The Mandelbear's Musings

Signal Boost: The World as It Ought To Be

2025-10-11T12:38:54Z

If you've been following this blog for the last year you will have run across references to our little publishing business, HyperSpace Express (often abbreviated HSX). And you may have noticed that my housemate N has been writing a book. IT'S FINISHED!

Go take a look at The World as It Ought to Be -- Stories from a protopian future, by Naomi Rivkis.

It's protopian rather than utopian -- sixteen linked short stories about ordinary people building a world that doesn't suck.

Protopia (n.) A world that is not perfect, but is getting better; one that is on the long arc toward justice, carried by human hands.

( Come visit for a while in The World As It Ought to Be: )

Buy it now from Smashwords (which has a free sample you can read online). It's also available at Kobo, Apple, and Barnes&Noble. Kindle and dead tree editions are coming in a few weeks.

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Public Service Announcement: Back up your e-books!

2025-02-19T15:09:21Z

TL;DR: After February 26th, you will no longer be able to download books to your computer from that bookseller named after a river in Brazil. That means that you will not be able to back up your library to, say, a hard drive, or convert your books to a format you can read somewhere else.

Either of those would be a non-problem for people -- like me, until yesterday -- who only read books on their kindle, or the kindle app on their phone, and are comfortable with trusting $A to keep their books safely stored in the cloud. BUT, as pointed out in this article on Good E-Reader, they can no longer be trusted. They have been known to remove books from their store, and from the libraries of everyone who "bought" them, without notice, recourse, or recompense. They have also silently replaced books with modified (censored) versions.

You have until Tuesday the 25th to download your books.

After that you'll be able to sideload them onto a Kindle via USB, or use Calibre to remove the DRM and convert them to more portable ebook formats.

You can download books up to 25 at a time by putting them in collections. Not fun, if you have lots of books. Colleen and I had over 1000 between us. There is a bulk downloader: bellisk/BulkKindleUSBDownloader: Quick script to download all your Kindle ebooks. It's in Python and should be portable; the requirements can be installed with pip. It also needs Chromium. (Or Chrome, but you really don't want that.)

Good luck and happy hacking.

ETA: Claim Your Free COVID-19 Tests Now in Case the USPS Program Gets Shut Down - CNET

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Public Service Announcement: Stop Using polyfill dot io

2024-06-26T20:03:19Z

If you happen to be developing websites using the polyfill.io javascript library, drop everything and DELETE IT NOW! The domain was purchased by what's said to be a Chinese malware organization, which is using the library to redirect users to sport betting websites. More at

@ solarbird | if you use polyfill dot io, stop RIGHT NOW and read this @ Renaud Chaput: "polyfill.io malware injection" - Oisaur @ Remove Polyfill.io code from your website immediately • The Register @Polyfill.io JavaScript supply chain attack impacts over 100K sites

... and a tip of the hat to solarbird, who put me on to this.

If you develop websites using a framework or javascript library but you're not sure what a polyfill is, search your codebase for the string "polyfill.io". Then look it up and either eliminate it as a dependency, or find a different place to fetch it from.

This, BTW, is one more reason to like Chris Ferdinandi's's Daily Developer Tips | Go Make Things.

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Public Service Announcement: Update Windows RIGHT NOW!

2024-06-15T15:58:34Z

A tip of the hat to solarbird's post titled: "uh if you have windows and wifi this is VERY IMPORTANT" -- and it is. If you haven't updated Windows this week, DO IT NOW. This affects all currently-supported versions of Windows.

Let me present CVE-2024-30078 - Microsoft - Windows Wi-Fi Driver Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. The money quote is:

According to the CVSS metric, the attack vector is adjacent (AV:A). What does that mean for this vulnerability?
Exploiting this vulnerability requires an attacker to be within proximity of the target system to send and receive radio transmissions.
How could an attacker exploit the vulnerability?
An unauthenticated attacker could send a malicious networking packet to an adjacent system that is employing a Wi-Fi networking adapter, which could enable remote code execution.

It does not say whether the target machine (you) needs to be connected to the WiFi network -- because this is happening at the driver level, probably not. It affects Windows 11, Windows 10, and all versions of Windows Server back to 2008.

It also doesn't say whether earlier, unsupported versions of Windows are affected, but it's safe to assume that they probably are as well. So if you're running, say, Windows 7, there's never been a better time to upgrade to Linux.

Let's kick off our summer with a pwn-me-by-Wi-Fi bug in Microsoft Windows | MSN
Considering it hits every supported version of Windows, it will likely draw a lot of attention from attackers and red teams alike." Patch as soon as you can.
New Wi-Fi Takeover Attack—All Windows Users Warned To Update Now | Forbes
"The vulnerability, assigned as CVE-2024-30078, does not require an attacker to have physical access to the targeted computer, although physical proximity is needed. Exploiting this vulnerability can allow an unauthenticated attacker to gain remote code execution on the impacted device. What’s perhaps most concerning, though, is that this Wi-Fi driver security flaw affects all supported versions of the Windows operating system."
Windows security hole allows attackers to install malware via Wi-Fi — new patch plugs gaping vulnerability | Tom's Hardware
"The Wi-Fi attack bypasses all authentication protocols, does not require prior access rights, and requires no user interaction at all."

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Done Since 2024-06-02

2024-06-09T18:59:50Z

Not a bad week. Got a few things done. Not enough, though. It's never enough, and I seem to have an aversion to finishing things. WTF, brain? Health-wise I've sometimes been feeling vaguely "off", especially in the evening; don't know what's up with that.

I'm back to a qualified "okay" for mood, because of persistant worries. But I had a good hour or so with both cats in bed this morning, and a lot of good cat cuddle other times this week, and I'm not complaining. And I went for a walk five days this week. (Not nearly so good about my normal morning exercises. Bronx has a little to do with that — I always used to do the standing exercises in the bathroom, but Bronx + bathroom = havoc.)

I had a good talk with Jonathan, my oncology social worker, on Wednesday, mostly about music and emotions. Apparently even though I'm not very good at verbalizing my emotions when asked (cf. alexithymia), they sometimes come out in songs. Maybe that's because in songs I don't have to actually name them. Also maybe because I don't write songs very often. The songs in question deserve a full-on post — I'd planned on posting an s4s but got sidetracked. Maybe next week, although as I have often mentioned, I have the memory of a mayfly on crack. So maybe not.

According to LJ I've been writing this blog for 22 years as of Saturday. Of course all the posts, and the posting, have moved over here to DW, and LJ broke cross-posting. That's their problem.

And, Public Service Announcement: don’t install any version of Windows 11 that can run copilot/recall (via @solarbird; more links under Tuesday). Don't believe Microsoft when they say they've fixed it, or that it won't run on your down-rev PC. There's never been a better excuse to switch to Linux.

( Notes & links, as usual )

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Signal Boost: US South: Extreme Heat Warning

2023-06-30T23:53:02Z

Boosting the signal for siderea | US SOUTH: ALERT: Extreme Wet-Bulb Temps Fri 6/30 [meteo, US]. Also NOAA's "severe weather warning"

Severe thunderstorms that may produce tornadoes, along with scattered severe gusts and large/damaging hail, and heavy rains will impact portions of the Great Lakes region southward into the Lower Mississippi River Valley. An oppressive and persistent heat dome will continue producing dangerous heat and humidity in Texas and spread into the lower Mississippi River Valley.

I think "dangerous heat and humidity" may be an understatement -- they're talking about wet-bulb globe temperatures in the 90's. This is not quite extreme as equal wet-bulb temperatures, which are measured in the shade, but it's still well into the potentially deadly range.

Be safe out there.

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Signal Boost: Time to Leave

2023-03-29T20:05:19Z

Signal boost for siderea | Move [US, pols, Patreon]. (Also noted by @catsittingstill.)

I don't know who in the US needs to hear this: it's time.
If you have a uterus, or love someone who does. If you're trans, or love someone who is – especially if they're a child. If you were married to someone of the same sex. If you are otherwise LGBQ, or your child is. If you are someone who provides medical care that is or is about to become criminalized.
Definitely, if you live in Florida. Probably, if you live in Texas. There's a whole bunch of other states that aren't looking too good either.
If you're one of those people living in one of those places in the US...
It's time to think about moving.

There's more -- go read the whole post. I'll wait.

My extended family includes people in all of the categories at risk. I have already advised my kids, including my trans son, to get their damned passports renewed. Washington (state) is still safe for the moment; all bets are off after 2024, and the US Supreme (kangaroo) Court is already makings things difficult. That will only get worse.

In addition to Florida and Texas, dangerous states include Idaho, Indiana, Arkansas, and Tennessee (all mentioned in comments on Siderea's post); there are others.

Note that the Nazis went after queers first. They didn't stop there. Good luck.

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Public Service Announcement: Anonymous comments turned off for a while

2023-03-10T02:24:21Z

I have been getting a lot of comment spam on my last post. Like over 100, all in Chinese with random bits of latin text. Screening doesn't appear to have stopped them, so I'm turning off anonymous comments for a while. Meanwhile you can still comment using a registered account or OpenID.

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Weather: Be careful out there

2022-12-21T00:01:04Z

If you're anywhere east of Seattle in the US it looks as though there's some bad weather headed your way: This is the first time I've encountered the term "bomb cyclone". According to the Washington Post, "The Weather Service office serving Buffalo is calling it a “once in a generation” storm system." (Which probably means that we'll see one every couple of years, given climate change.)

Here's WaPo's advice about how to get ready: How to prepare yourself, your home and your vehicle for extreme cold; 20 smartphone tips for weathering natural disasters. To which I will add: if you want to use an electric vehicle as a temporary power source, I found out that -- at least in the Chevy Bolt -- auxiliary power isn't coming from the main battery. There's an ordinary lead-acid battery that powers the car's electronics, and when it's totally discharged, nothing will work regardless of what's in the main battery. So if you're planning on spending an hour or two working on your laptop and charging your phones, hit the "start" button.

And if you don't have any plastic "space blankets" in your house and in your car, get some.

Be careful out there.

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Signal Boost: James Webb Space Telescope first images

2022-07-12T21:28:12Z

I don't think I've ever used "awestruck" in my Mood field before. But the James Webb Space Telescope's first images are worth it.

Here's the (recorded) livestream where they released the first images and spectra.

Additional links: Webb Telescope: First Science Images Packet | Science Mission Directorate and Webb's First Images & Data | Flickr

Finally, a personal note: this was an unexpectedly intense emotional experience for me. My father was one of the pioneers of infra-red spectroscopy, and Mom worked on the Hubble (they both worked at Perkin-Elmer, where the Hubble's mirror was made). The software that finds the spectral lines is (most likely) based on the Savitzky–Golay filter. When they put up the spectrum of WASP-96B I was close to tears.

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GoingSideways.blog: Frankly, It's a Sick Truck

2022-06-15T02:36:25Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Frankly, It’s a Sick Truck.

Frank the Truck [which ... um... who?? you might remember from last week] is unwell.
The conclusions from the inspection were mixed, but worrisome. On the one hand, his body is in good shape, without any of the rust that ruled out one truck for us, and most of his systems seem to be fine as well. On the other hand, he’s getting engine issue codes that could mean anything from a cam shaft or timing chain problem to the need for an entire new engine. And right now, we don’t know which we’re dealing with, since the mechanic who did the inspection can’t diagnose him with more specificity than that. We need to take him to a Ford dealer, they told us.

This threatens to put a definite kink in everybody's plans for the next month or so. Look for an update next week.

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GoingSideways.blog: Frankly, It's a Truck

2022-06-07T18:45:37Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Frankly, It’s a Truck, wherein C finds, buys, and names a pickup truck.

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Signal Boost: Two health-related articles

2022-06-02T19:13:29Z

I was pointed at a couple of fascinating health-related articles (which I should have posted about Tuesday, but procrastinated):

First, Drinking Coffee Daily May Stave Off Early Death, Study Suggests. Which I was already assuming from prior reading, but this is good confirmation. What was new to me was that a teaspoon of sugar actually enhances the effect -- I don't use it, but generally eat something fruit-like with it, which presumably counts. Good to know, given my liter/day habit.

(Supported by this research article: Association of Sugar-Sweetened, Artificially Sweetened, and Unsweetened Coffee Consumption With All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality: A Large Prospective Cohort Study: Annals of Internal Medicine.)

Second, On Your Back? Side? Face-Down? Mice Show How We Sleep May Trigger Or Protect Our Brain From Diseases Like ALS | IFLScience tl;dr: side. Lately I've found that I can't get to sleep lying on my back (I used to; darned if I know what changed), so it's good to know that side-sleeping is healthier as well.

(Supported by The Effect of Body Posture on Brain Glymphatic Transport - PubMed The Glymphatic System – A Beginner's Guide - PMC.) The glymphatic system was apparently discovered in 2013; this set of articles was the first I'd heard of it.

Sleeping on one's left side, in particular, is better for other reasons, including reducing heartburn. (See "Side Sleeping: Benefits and Which Side to Sleep On | Sleep Foundation" and "6 Hidden Health Benefits of Sleeping On Your Left Side That You've NEVER Heard About" -- although I'd already heard about several of those.) The benefits for sleep apnea and back pain appear to be less side-dependent, and there seem to be arguments in favor of both directions, e.g. Right vs. Left Side Sleeping: What's the Best for Your Health? - Sleep Junkie.

Edited to correct paste error in the coffee study link text.

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GoingSideways.blog: Racking Up the Miles

2022-05-18T18:36:35Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Racking Up the Miles -- the next installment in the continuing saga of C's search for a truck.

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Signal Boost: Putting It Together

2022-05-10T16:00:11Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Putting It Together -- planning continues for both the Italy trip and the Colorado trip.

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Signal Boost: Things [Naomi] Learned in Africa

2022-05-03T15:59:15Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Things I Learned in Africa.

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Signal Boost:

2022-04-13T17:45:59Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Lime Soda.

Am I frustrated at all of the obstacles? Yes and no. This kind of adjustment and adaptation is really the essence of my Going Sideways method of travel.
[...]
Travel plans are like battle plans: they never survive contact with reality. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

What does that have to do with lime soda? You'll just have to read it to find out.

[...]

Meanwhile, here's a bonus signal boost: Fiction: Mushroom Chat by dialecticdreamer, written in response to my prompt on her latest Magpie Monday.

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Signal Boost:

2022-04-05T16:03:55Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is It’s for You! -- Naomi and I go to the Woodland Park Zoo to try out her new camera (with a phone wrapped around it, but that's kind of secondary).

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Signal Boost: Catching Up to Now

2022-04-01T16:12:47Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Catching Up to Now - getting caught up with the recent past, and plans for the near future.

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Signal Boost: Homecoming

2022-03-29T21:51:21Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Homecoming, wherein Naomi writes about returning home, and plans for future trips.

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Signal Boost: Shipping Out

2022-03-25T17:45:15Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Shipping Out -- Naomi's visit to the National Maritime Museum in Amsterdam.

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Signal Boost: The Dutch in the Ancient World

2022-03-22T19:56:03Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is The Dutch in the Ancient World -- follow Naomi to the Museum of Antiquities in Leiden.

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Signal Boost: The latest posts on GoingSideways

2022-03-15T21:34:00Z

I don't seem to have signal-boosted the last few posts in GoingSideways.blog -- time to fix that.

Impenetrable is probably the best post so far:

It sounds so much like a fairy tale, doesn’t it? First there’s a long climb, high into the steep and scary mountains. Then you hack your way with swords into a place called the Impenetrable Forest. And it’s all in order to meet a kind of gentle giants who live nowhere else in the world… giants who are almost, but not quite, human.

Cut and Run, wherein the consequences of Breaking the First Rule finally catch up with her.

At that point, the determination which had kept me going through six hard days of illness gave out. Screw it, I thought — why am I still pushing myself? I’ve done all the things that were most important to me here. I’ve visited rhinos and I’ve boated on the Nile. I’ve seen chimpanzees up close, and gorillas have walked up and touched me. I’ve gutted my way through three different camps despite severe illness just because there were a few things I didn’t want to miss, and I haven’t missed a single one of them. Now I am DONE.

And today's post, On the Water, wherein Naomi starts the last leg of her trip, visiting her oldest friend in Amsterdam.

Right now, as I write, I am touring Amsterdam on a boat. I am also living, for the week, on a boat. Different boat. Amsterdam is very big on boats. This happens when your entire city is below sea level and therefore most of it’s built on piles just to keep it out of the water.

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Signal Boost: Trip Diary: For a Woman

2022-03-04T18:18:51Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog isTrip Diary: For a Woman.

I had a date this afternoon with a very special organization, one I had particularly requested to see and I wasn’t going to allow sleepiness to get in the way. It’s an extraordinary community women’s group serving the villages surrounding Bwindi, and it’s called Ride 4 A Woman.
Ride 4 A Woman was founded in 2009, though the seeds were sown many years earlier when a remarkable woman named Evelyn Habasa was growing up, the youngest child of an equally remarkable single mother.

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Signal Boost: Breaking the First Rule

2022-03-01T20:02:58Z

The latest post in GoingSideways.blog is Trip Diary: Breaking the First Rule.

What first rule, you wonder? Well, they do depend on who you ask. My mother’s first rule was always, “Never hit anything that’s harder than you are,” and a good and sensible rule it is. Thankfully, I didn’t break that one; thataway lie broken bones and concussions. But I did do something maybe even stupider. I broke the first rule of international travel, the one every tourist hears the moment they announce their first expedition beyond the boundaries of their own country (at least if they live in the west)...

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