Thumbs up!

Here’s a recipe I’ve used to make ravioli, including the filling, from scratch. [1] I found the recipe several years ago on the web, but unfortunately don’t remember where. In any case, here’s the recipe. It makes a LOT of pasta - enough for at least 6 people. The ravioli filling is my own creation - and its damn tasty.

There are essentially four steps:

1. Make the dough
2. Make the filling
3. Make the ravioli
4. Cook

Step 1: Make the Dough

Ravioli Pasta Dough Recipe[2]

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 large egg
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup water

Place about 3/4 of the flour into a large bowl. Separately mix the egg, oil, salt and water. Add the wet ingredients to the flour. Mix everything thoroughly.

Kneed in the remaining flour. This takes a long time.

Wrap in plastic wrap and let sit for 30 minutes in the fridge. In the meantime, let’s move on to…

Step 2: Make the filling

Garlic Spinach Ricotta Ravioli Filling

• 1/2 cup frozen spinach
• 1 tablespoon of garlic minced
• 3 tablespoons finely grated parmigiano reggiano cheese
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 teaspoon salt

Defrost spinach in bowl and drain. Mix in everything else. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate when not in use.

Step 3: Make the ravioli

• When ready to make the ravioli, only remove a very small amount from the plastic to work with at a time.[3] I only worked with pieces of dough about the size of a standard 6-sided-die.
• Squish the piece of dough into a disc about the size of a silver dollar.
• Place the dough on a plastic cutting board. I prefer the kind with the non-skid rubberized ends.
• Roll the dough as thinly as possible. You’re going for almost translucent in the center. A heavy rolling pin helps.
• Add about 1/2 tablespoon of the filling to the center.
• Fold the dough in half and pinch the edges.
• Set each piece aside on wax paper on a large plate. The wax paper is to prevent the ravioli from sticking to the plate. Don’t let the ravioli touch each other since they will stick together.
• Cover the ravioli on the plate with plastic wrap while you work.

Step 4: Cook

• When ready to cook, add the pasta to boiling water in a large pot and then lower to medium heat after a minute.
• Cook for 5-7 minutes.[4]
• The ravioli will tend to stick to the bottom of the pot, so stir once or twice.

Enjoy!

1. Photo courtesy of Dev Null
2. As I mentioned above, this recipe makes a lot of dough. If trying it out for the first time, consider making a 1/3 batch.
3. If you’re using a pasta press, you already know what you’re doing so you don’t need to read this.
4. 5 minutes if you have very thin ravioli, 7 minutes if your pasta was thicker

The Grinch

After a short break from blogging, I off two tidbits: one full of holiday cheer… and the other about an incorrigible Grinch.[1]

Holiday Cheer

A few days before Christmas I received an extremely nice e-mail from David DePaolo, of WorkCompCentral fame.  He had read my blog post about my local food bank and made his own donation to his local food bank.  Thank you David!

Incorrigible Grinch

I have a loud neighbor.  They talk on the phone loud, watch TV loud, play music loud, etc.  Loud enough so that I can hear whatever it is they’re doing over my own TV with the doors and windows closed.  The night before Christmas Eve at around 8 O’clock PM they were playing something that sounded like a marching band - complete with tubas.  I couldn’t tell if it was a radio or TV or what - but it was extremely loud.  Being a good neighbor and filled with the aforementioned holiday cheer, I went out onto my patio and hollered, “Hey!  Turn it down already!”  In a few minutes their marching band music died down to a low rumble.

A few minutes later I find out that I had just yelled at a group of teenagers with instruments walking down our street… carrolling.  That’s right, I yelled at carolers - I’m the Grinch.

Ho ho ho!

1. Photo courtesy of slworking2

No Frames, Please

A little while ago I posted about How NOT to Build a Successful Website using Adobe Flash.  Long story short, Adobe Flash websites are extremely unfriendly to both website visitors and businesses who own the websites. [1]

The second worst way to create a website is to build it totally out of frames.  There are several workers’ compensation defense firms who have websites built out of frames - and they’re terrible.

In the early days of the internet frames were an easy way to enable navigation throughout a website.  Since then easy-to-use intelligent server-side languages[2] and client-side languages[3] have made building website navigation tools a breeze.  More importantly, these other technologies and techniques do everything frames do - only better.

Here are some of the problems with websites created using frames:

• Un-bookmark-able. Just as with Adobe Flash, users can’t bookmark specific pages within a website built using frames.  This means your website visitors can’t come back to visit that specific page and, more importantly, can’t send a meaningful link to their friends.
• Un-navigable.  Depending on how someone links to your frame based website, its very possible that they will link directly to an internal frame.  This means a website visitor getting to your website from a search engine might never see your website’s name or logo!
• Printing. Frame based websites don’t always interact properly with web browsers.  When you go to print, you might end up printing the wrong frame.  Make it easy for your clients to make a hard copy of the information they see on your website and don’t use frames.
• Search Engine Optimization.  Search engines are designed to be smart.  Even so, search engines still have trouble untangling a website made out of frames.  If people cannot reach your website by searching for exactly what you’re about, your website is a failure.

I know why there some web developers sell frame-based websites.  From a development standpoint, they’re very very easy to write.  Frames are little more than HTML, so they’re if you can create a Word document, you can create an frames-based website.  I suppose it would be relatively easy to also recyle parts of that website in a new website.  These websites are also deceptively good-looking.  When the web developer is showing you a frame based website, you’re going to see exactly what you expect.  The “danger” of a frame-based website, as indicated above, is that its so easy for it to be shown to your potential clients in the wrong way or out of context.

I think I also know why businesses invest in frame-based websites.   They require so little skill to create that a business can just have one of their file clerks or some high school kid build the website cheaply.  The website would be, for all intents and purposes, free.

A website is essentially the 21st century equivalent of a resume.  You’re using it to tell your clients about you before you ever get a chance to meet them.  These days everyone considers Google to be a verb.  If your potential clients are already looking for you through the internet, shouldn’t you try to put your best foot forward?  A cheap temporary website is fine … as long as its temporary.  As soon as you can afford to do so hire someone to put togther something better.

Website Development Tips:

• Never build a site out of frames.
• Other web technologies and techniques do everything frames do, only better.
• Think of your website as your business’s resume, since that’s what potential clients may see first.
• Think of your website like a business suit.  If it doesn’t look good on a first impression, a potential client may never even speak to you.

1. Original photo courtesy of eriwst
2. Such as PHP and MySQL.
3. Such as Javascript.

Broken Laptop

Before I start talking computer repair, I offer three caveats.  First, I have no formal training in diagnosing, repairing, or even using computers.  Second, I have no experience with repairing an Apple or Mac computer.  Third, all of the below only applies to laptop repair.  Its incredibly easy to swap out components on a desktop.[1]

So, you’ve done the math and decided that it is more cost-effective to repair your non-functional and out-of-warranty laptop.  You know that having the manufacturer or a big box store like Best Buy, Circuit City[2] and Fry’s is a very bad idea.[3]  About the best you can hope for is that it will only cost you much more money than your computer is actually worth.  The worst you can expect is to pay for your computer to be returned to you in worse condition.[4]

Option 3: Dedicated Repair Facility

Since I use my laptop constantly, it was extremely important to me that I took it someone who I could trust to do a good job.  Unfortunately, this is the kind of decision I agonize over.  Weighing the various pro’s and con’s, relative merits, creating formulas or spreadsheets to help me synthesize and digest the data.

I over-analyze, in part, because I want to make sure I spend my money well.  However, its far more important to me that I make sure that whatever item I am researching is the most perfect fit for me.  I spent my free time for the better part of the week Googling for local laptop repair places.  Once I had a list of places, I started to par it down.

My criteria included: location, accreditation, apparent familiarity with my problem, initial diagnosis based upon my description over the phone, whether they performed a free diagnosis, whether I could locate any review or complaints, and price.  You know, that’s all.

I first created a list of every laptop repair facility in my area and then tossed out the ones with bad reviews.

Question 1: Can you repair laptops?

This is a really good question even if you’re looking to have your desktop computer repaired.  Repairing a desktop is dead simple.  If a part stops working, you open it up, pull it out, slap in a new one and “rock on completely, with some brand new components“. [5] Repairing a laptop is far more involved.

If they couldn’t repair a laptop, I would not have any confidence they’d be able to repair a desktop and would move on.

Question 2: Can you repair components?

There are a lot of “computer repair” places, but most of them either only deal with software problems or only replace large whole computer parts.  Their solution to a laptop problem is to replace the motherboard or tell you to buy a new computer.  That’s like a mechanic telling you that you need to either replace the entire engine or buy a new car because spark plugs are just not their thing.

The good thing about a repair facility that does “component level repair” is that they will actually look for what caused the problem.  Then they will need to try and replace just that little part.  Depending upon your computer’s symptoms, you might need a new power jack, new chip on the motherboard, or even have the solder on the board around a chip melted and re-applied to the motherboard[6] .

If the repair facility couldn’t repair a component level problem, I moved on.

Question 3: Can you diagnose the problem over the phone?

When calling a repair facility, ask for a technician and describe the problem for them.  Obviously, you can’t expect them to actually know what’s wrong, so don’t hold them to it.  On the other hand, they should be have some inkling as to the cause.

A small aside about workers’ compensation defense, and then back to laptop repair:

Sometimes during a doctor’s deposition I need to ask a question that deals with legal issues.  Invariably, the other attorney present has a different take on the applicable medicine or, more likely, the law.  In these situations, I state my position about the medical-legal issue in terms of, “Doctor, its my understanding that…”  Then, I say, “Doctor, for the purposes of this question, assume that my understanding about the applicable law is correct.  Now… [insert insightful question here]?”

This keeps objections and interruptions to a minimum and allows the doctor to focus on my question.  If the other attorney is correct in their legal position, my question and the corresponding answer are irrelevant.  Posing the question in this fashion completely removes any basis for objection since the doctor’s response becomes entirely dependent upon whether or not a given legal position is correct.

When describing my computer problems over the phone and getting a snap diagnosis from the technician, I ask them the following, “Assuming the problem is [the problem you've just diagnosed], are you capable of making this repair and how long would it take?”

If the repair facility technician had no idea what the problem was or would refuse to venture a guess based on what I was saying, I moved on.

Question 4: Who will be doing the diagnosis and repair?

I located a surprising number of local people who represented via their website or a posting on CraigsList.org that they were able to repair a variety of laptop problems.  Some of these were just people who did the work out of their home.  They may very well do a good job and certainly charged less - but they weren’t for me.  I had a little more confidence[7] in a repair facility employing a repair technician than I did in a some guy who put up an ad or website.

Occasionally, a local repair facility will actually out-source the diagnosis and repair.  This, of course, begs the question - why do I need you?

As I mentioned above, I wanted to talk to a technician - preferably the one who would be performing the job themselves.

Question 5: How did you treat me on the phone?

Some technicians can’t help feeling superior to the their clients. [8]  If the technician was the least bit rude or condescending, I hung up and moved on.  Repair facilities are in the customer service industry as much as they’re in the computer repair industry.  All it takes is one unfriendly or  unknowledgeable person answering the phones for you to lose a potential client.

If you follow the above criteria to create a list of local computer repair facilities and ask the above questions, you’re going to stand a decent chance of finding the best place to get your laptop repaired.  Good luck!

1. Photo courtesy of Just Us 3.
2. They’re bankrupt, so don’t bother
3. For those of you who just can’t wait to find out: I think a dedicated computer facility is best.
4. Or, in my case, have Dell ship your laptop to a construction site in Oakland.  Yay.
5. Thank you Cake!
6. This is called a “re-flow,” since the original solder is melted and made to flow back around the chip or connections.  If your computer gets heated and cooled a lot, this might be your problem.
7. And, perhaps wrongly so.  This is just a gut feeling.
8. Unfortunately, this is also true of some attorneys.

He's really excited about so many users!

Just this last Saturday we reached 300 registered users - and King Leonidas couldn’t be happier.[1]

On August 20, 2008 the 100th person registered for this site since its re-launch on July 6, 2008.  On October 20, 2008 the 200th person registered.  In the time since this website’s relaunch, I’ve:

• Posted 113 times, not counting today.
• Through at least the end of this year, I’m donating everything I’m make through this website to my local food bank.
• Created a lot of “Road Warrior” checklists[2]
  • Road Warrior Checklist - Appearances
  • Road Warrior Checklist - Car
  • Road Warrior Checklist - Techie
  • Road Warrior Checklist - The Backpack
• Posted about how to go about getting your laptop repaired[3]
  • How to decide whether to repair or replace a laptop
    • Hint: Scroll all the way down to the end of that post for a formula to help you decide whether you should repair or replace.
  • Repairing with the manufacturer
  • Repairing at a “big box” store
• A few posts about starting and running businesses:
  • How to Bootstrap a Business
  • Going Viral
  • How to Start a Business: Plan B
  • Things I learned from watching “Kitchen Nightmares”

1. You know, King Leonidas from the movie 300.  The really happy looking guy to the right.
2. I’ve got at least two or three more checklists planned.
3. More laptop advice on the way.

Wordpress Upgrade

I upgraded the website to WordPress 2.7 RC 1 over the weekend.

I generally do not bother installing the updates between the major upgrades.  My major concern in upgrading is eliminating possible security issues and obtaining additional program features.  I maintain a totally separate website from PDRater.com, also running on WordPress, where I install the very latest versions of WordPress and try out new variations on the look-and-feel of this website, new calculators, and new ideas about how best to present the current calculators.

Very late Wednesday night I upgraded this website to WordPress v2.7.  I’m not sure I fully appreciate how much better it might be than the various release candidates.

Thursday morning I discovered an unintended effect of upgrading is that it “broke” one of my plugins.   (Reza: Thanks for pointing it out!)  I had modified an existing plugin, EasyPayPal, to allow this website to accept credit card payments.  WordPress v2.7 changed the user profiles area of the website - and made it so that instead of seeing an option to become a paid subscriber, you just saw a cryptic PHP error.  This is nothing that would have compromised a credit card number or anything - it just would have prevented anyone from giving me money.

A little bit of bug testing, one new line of code and its back up and running.  :)

No Flash, please

There are many different ways to put together a website.  Flat HTML which does not interact with the users at all.  Javascript enabled pages which allow the user to interact with the webpage a little.  AJAX enabled pages which allow the user to interact with the web server and even other users.

The worst way imaginable for a website to be built is one entirely powered by Adobe Flash animation.  I know of at least one workers’ compensation defense firm that has an all Flash website - and I feel sorry for them.  Their clients probably never use their website.  They’re squandering one of their best marketing tools.

Here are just a few of the problems with Flash websites:

• Bandwidth. A picture of the word “website” is much much larger than the text “website.”  In a similar way, a Flash website is going to be much much larger than the same information presented in pure HTML.  The bigger your website, the longer it will take for it to load.
• Maintenance. The smallest change to the website needs to be handled by the original web developer.  If you “invest” in an all-Flash website, you’re basically hiring that web developer for life.  With traditional websites, you can hire any code monkey to adjust your website.
• Unnavigable. Flash websites do not work with the browser’s “Back” button.  If your users can’t navigate your website in a normal fashion, they will leave and never come back.
• Search Engine Optimization. Or, SEO, as it is known in the business.  If your website is basically a bunch of moving pictures, it can’t be indexed by a search engine, so it doesn’t know what your website is about, so it doesn’t know when to show it to people who are searching for exactly the kinds of things you are trying to sell.
• Repeat Business. If your website is meant to be something people look at once and never return to, I suppose its fine. The problem with a Flash website is that it will not allow users to bookmark or link to particular pages.  This means if your clients really love a particular page on your site they can’t e-mail the link to their co-workers!

I know why web developers sell Flash websites.  These websites show off how great you are at creating swooshing logos and nifty pages transitions.  And, if your client ever needs a little change, they have to come back to you or pay someone else to build them a website from scratch.[1]

I also know why businesses invest in Flash websites.  They want something stylish and unique.  In reality all truly successful website forgo snazzy animations for functional user friendly pages.  If Amazon, eBay, and Google don’t build their websites out of Flash, why should you?

This isn’t to say that Flash animation doesn’t have its place.  It think its great for product demos, presentations, and banner ads.  Its an excellent way to present information in a graphical format.  That said, you should never ever purchase a Flash website.

Website Development Tips:

• Never build a site out of Flash.
• Never use Flash to show words.
• If its good enough for Google, its good enough for you.
• Focus on what your customers want to see, not what you want to show them.
• Make it easy for your customers to tell people about you.

1. Heaven forbid you have a new hire or, you know, the law changes.

Leverage

I’ve been looking forward to watching the premier of a new TV show called, “Leverage” on TNT.  I first saw a teaser preview during the summer.

I happen to like Timothy Hutton.  I was a big fan of the Nero Wolfe mystery series on A&E a few years back.[1]

If you like caper movies/shows, chances are you’re going to enjoy Leverage.  Its in the same vein as Ocean’s Eleven and Hustle.  If you haven’t seen Hustle, its a BBC import shown on AMC about a group of con artists.

For those keeping score at home, I’d liken Leverage to:

• Ocean’s Eleven
• Hustle
• Burn Notice
• Sneakers
• A-Team[2]
• Mission Impossible
• The Sting

Leverage even has its own Alternate Reality Game.  Its good for a few minutes diversion.

The premier of Leverage was on last night on TNT.  I expect they’ll show an “encore” sometime in the near future.  In any case, its going to be on Tuesday night at 10:00 PM.

1. Unfortunately, A&E in their infinite wisdom decided to cancel this show.  I believe they began airing reruns of “CSI: Who Gives A Damn” instead.
2. Come on, you know you liked it.

Bootstrapping 101

Everyone has heard the phrase, “pull oneself up by the bootstraps.”[1] It basically refers to using your current resources to reach the next step.

In a prior post I talked about “How to Start a Business: Plan B,” which was mainly about fund raising.  Fund raising is the exact opposite of bootstrapping.  If you can’t raise funding for your business and you’re really committed to it, you’ve got to find another way.  That would be “Plan B.”

In hindsight I would have entitled that post, “B is for Bootstrapping” or “Starting A Business On A Budget.”

For a very nuts-and-bolts look at starting a business, look to Guy Kawasaki’s “The Art of Bootstrapping.”  This is an excerpt from his new book, “Reality Check.”  My understanding is that this book is a distillation of his prior books and blog posts.  Its on my Christmas wish list, so I’ll look forward to reading it in about a month.

I used many of these bootstrapping techniques while building this website.  Using the bullet points from Guy’s post, here’s some of the things I used to start this business:

• “Ship then test.”  To be more exact, I tested the calculators rigorously but didn’t spend nearly as much time testing how the earliest versions of this website looked in different web browsers.  Once I got it to work in Internet Explorer, I started marketing it.
• “Start a service business.”  In the first few months of building this website I worked as a technology consultant and part-time programmer.  In addition to being a nice change from my day job as an attorney and earning a little extra, it also gave me the chance to learn some new programming languages and techniques.
• “Go direct.”  I schlepped my laptop to every appearance and showed off the website to every single attorney that was foolish enough to sit still and listen to me.  Besides not having the resources to hire people to sell for me, it also allowed me to learn more about what my customers wanted.  Keeping in touch with my clients/customers has lead to a LOT of new developments on this site.

As to “how” I started this business, here was my process:

1. I wanted to build my own online rating calculators.[2]
2. I bought a book about starting a business.  “The Art of the Start” by Guy Kawasaki.  $17.00 or so.
3. I bought some books about web based programming languages.  $55.00 or so for two books.
   • “SAM’s Teach Yourself PHP, MySQL, and Apache” is probably written for the beginning programmer who’s already familiar with other programming language structures, but not with PHP, MySQL or Apache.  I found this book the more helpful of the two.
   • “PHP & MySQL Everyday Apps for Dummies” assumed I knew the basics about PHP / MySQL and would be able to edit the functions and code presented.
4. I bought a few website domain names.  $10.00 each.
5. I wrote a “prototype” of the 1997 and 2005 permanent disability rating calculators.  It wasn’t pretty, but it worked.
6. Once I had a working prototype, I bought some web space.  $180.00 for two years.
7. Market the website.
8. Make a sale.
9. Develop more features and/or improve the site.
10. Lather, rinse, repeat steps 6 - 8.

1. Photo courtesy of Jarl van Hoother
2. The exact reasons why are the topic of an entirely different blog post altogether.

Broken Laptop

Before I start talking computer repair, I offer three caveats.  First, I have no formal training in diagnosing, repairing, or even using computers.  Second, I have no experience with repairing an Apple or Mac computer.  Third, all of the below only applies to laptop repair.  Its incredibly easy to swap out components on a desktop.

You’ve done the math and decided that it is a better use of your resources to repair your non-functional and out-of-warranty laptop.[1] You know that sending an out of warranty laptop to the manufacturer is a bad idea.  But, what about a big box store like Best Buy, Circuit City[2] , and Fry’s?[3]

Option 2:  Big Box Stores

When I’m not buying computer or electronics components online, I like Best Buy for products and Fry’s for components.  However, I would never have a computer diagnosed or repaired by either place.

First, let’s recognize that a big box store has certain priorities.  As such, their staff are trained to sell, not to diagnose or repair.  I imagine their priorities are, in order: (1) Sell you things, (2) sell you warranties for things, (3) sell you new things, and (4) sell you warranties for those new things, (5) LLR. [4] From a capitalistic perspective, its hard to argue with a business plan like this.

A little burned out component on the motherboard takes very special equipment and skill to replace.  When faced with such a problem you can replace the entire computer, the motherboard[5] , or just that one component.

From calling numerous computer repair facilities, I know very few of them have the special equipment and skill required to replace a single tiny component on a motherboard.  If dedicated repair facilities do not typically have this equipment, I doubt big box stores would be up to the task.

I think everyone’s heard the horror stories or seen the TV investigations of big box computer store repair services scamming unwary or uninformed consumers.  I have friends who hired Best Buy’s “Geek Squad” and still didn’t have their problems fixed.

If I were a very cynical person[6] I’d suggest that big box stores hire untrained staff who have a vested interest in charging a diagnostic fee to tell you that your computer and all your data is beyond recovery.

Luckily, I believe the third option, finding a reliable dedicated computer repair shop, is your best bet.

1. Photo courtesy of Just Us 3.
2. They’re bankrupt, so don’t bother
3. For those of you who just can’t wait to find out: I think a dedicated computer facility is best.
4. LLR - Lather, rinse, repeat.
5. Which, by the time you need it, costs as much as your computer is worth.
6. And, I am.

Block Letters

According to a recent DIR news bulletin on November 17, 2008 the new WCAB Rules of Practice and Procedure were approved by the Office of Administrative Law and filed with the Secretary of the State and (apparently) made effective that same day.  If you haven’t already reviewed the new regulations, now’s a good time.  You can check them using the above links or download it here:

New WCAB Rules of Practice and Procedure (Effective 11-17-2008)

Since the new WCAB rules became effective, the new EAMS forms are now mandatory.  The exceptions named in the above bulletin are:

• There will be a four-week “transition period” in effect through December 12, 2008 during which the “legacy”[1] forms will still be accepted.
• Forms requiring multiple signatures will be accepted in “legacy” form as long as the filer establishes that circulation began prior to November 17, 2008. [2]
• Unrepresented injured workers will be allowed until February 17, 2009 to use “legacy” forms.
• Unrepresented injured workers who do not have access to a computer or typewriter will be allowed to fill in the new OCR forms by printing using block letters.[3][4]

Did you know there’s a handbook for the new Optical Character Recognition EAMS forms?  You can check it out here or download it here:

EAMS OCR Handbook (Rev. 11-24-2008)

1. Read: non-EAMS
2. I suppose the easiest way to demonstrate this is to point out that at least one of the signatures was dated prior to 11/17/2008.
3. Though, I suppose printing clearly in all-capital letters migh work better…
4. Photo courtesy of Thomas Hawk.

Broken Laptop

Before I start talking computer repair, I offer three caveats.  First, I have no formal training in diagnosing, repairing, or even using computers.  Second, I have no experience with repairing an Apple or Mac computer.  Third, all of the below only applies to laptop repair.  Its incredibly easy to swap out components on a desktop.

So, your laptop has stopped working and you’ve decided it makes sense to repair it.[1] The big question is: How do you repair it?[2]

When my laptop died back I Googled and called around trying to find and decide upon someone to repair my laptop.  There are several possible options when it comes to choosing a laptop repairer.  When your laptop is still under warranty, its a no-brainer to send it back to the manufacturer. [3] But, what about a computer that’s either no longer in warranty or with no warranty?

Option 1:  Manufacturer

I’ve owned three laptops - a Compaq, a Dell, and then another Dell.  On the one hand, I never had to call Compaq for technical support.  On the other hand, by the time the laptop was three years old it was in pretty bad shape.

I called Dell first.  Sure, I’d had truly terrible experiences with Dell tech support in the past.[4] I figured it couldn’t possibly have gotten worse, right?[5]

Dell offered a three stop process to fix the problem:

1. Phone diagnostic.  $50.00.
2. Selling me new parts[6] and walking me through the repair over the phone.  $200.00 - $300.00.
3. Sending in the laptop to Dell for repair.  $300.00 - $500.00.

There are several problems with Dell’s repair process.  First, its tremendously time consuming.  Second, most of Dell’s processes are developed with the idea that the user is the most common problem.  Third, if you have an actual problem you are all but guarrantted to spend more money than the computer is worth.  Fourth, Dell tech support is just about the worst ever.

Time Consuming

Dell tech support is nothing if not standardized.  Their tech support staff all have binders[7] which list tons of symptoms, diagnostic tests, and possible fixes.  But, before you even start such a scenario you will be asked to check all cables, that everything is plugged in, and restart your computer several times.  Even if you eliminate all time you spend on hold, that’s half an hour right there.

By the time you’ve run through a few diagnostic programs, you’ve easily spent two hours on the phone.

Computer Users Are The Problem

As best as I can tell, Dell’s tech support binder has them verify that the problem is not the user, then not software, then not user-replaceable hardware, then not Dell-replaceable hardware.  Obviously, their goal is to minimize tech support time by ruling out simple issues, and thereby minimizing costs.

I’m not saying this is a bad system.  But, if the problem is obviously a hardware problem, restarting the computer or dimming the monitor isn’t going to help.  I have sent in two Dell laptops becuase the left mouse click button stopped springing back up.  After fully describing the problem several times, they still asked me to fiddle with the battery, check that the laptop was plugged in, etc.

The problem is that by requiring you go through the Dell checklist of basic problems with their tech support staff, they are guarranting that every single call, no matter how trivial, will require a minimum of 30-45 minutes.

My former “left mouse button won’t pop back up” problem is really a 5 minute phone call that should go something like this:

• Jay calls Dell.
• “Hi, my name is Roger, please state the nature of your technical emergency.”[8]
• Jay: “Hi Roger, I have a Dell XPS 1210 and the left mouse button won’t pop back up.”
• Roger:  “Hmm.  Well, try tapping the button.  Does that work?”
• Jay:  “No, that doesn’t seem to work.”
• Roger:  “Hmm.  Can you see anything jammed in there?”
• Jay:  “Nope.”
• Roger:  “Yeah, that was a longshot.  Okay, well, I’ll send you a box and a shipping label.”
• Jay gives Roger his information and is happy with Dell service.

Ideally, Dell would have a way to jump past certain steps.  Perhaps by answering a computer trivia question or by hitting “3″ for “I have performed all basic rudimentary tests and diagnostics and know what I’m doing.”

Or, more likely: “I have checked all cables, restarted the computer, removed the battery, reinserted the battery, restarted again, booted into Safe Mode, restarted, booted into the command prompt, booted back in Safe Mode, restarted, booted from a recovery disk, restarted, restarted, booted from a Linux CD, restarted, wished on a falling star, and my brand new laptop still arrived with a giant gaping hole in the middle of the screen.”[9]

Dell’s Guaranteed Expensive Fix

If your computer has an actual hardware problem, and you’re trying to get Dell to fix it, you’re all but guaranteed to spend more money than the computer is worth.  If your laptop is out of warranty, then its probably more than a year old.  If you go through Dell’s repair process above (phone diagnostic, user-repair, Dell repair), you’re going to spend a minimum of $550.00.  This is a losing proposition.  Unless you have a high end gaming rig, it probably cost between $750.00 to $1,500.00.

If you’re spending more than one-third to one-half the cost of the original laptop after one year, that money would be better spent towards a new laptop.  That’s just a rule-of-thumb; you should really try my[10] scientific formula for deciding whether you should invest in a repair or buy a new computer.

Dell’s Tech Support Is Bad

Dell’s tech support is the opposite of helpful.  Their tech support personnel are trained to read from their scripts, repeat what you say as if they understood the problem, and then simply do the next thing on the script.  Any request for deviation from the script results in a denial or, best case scenario, holding for ten minutes while they find out from their supervisor the reason for denying your request.

You can eventually get what you want from Dell’s technical support, but you better be prepared to fight like hell for it.  You will need to argue and haggle with two layers of technical support grunts and as many supervisors as it takes to reach a technical support person located in the United States.

Even if Dell agrees to repair your laptop in an acceptable fashion, you’ve probably 10 hours in the process.  Add this to the actual cost of the repair and its a losing proposition.

Look, I’m Indian and I hate Dell’s Indian tech support.

1. Photo courtesy of Just Us 3.
2. Since I can tell the suspense is killing you, I think a dedicated computer facility is best.
3. Tech support in this circumstance isn’t so much free as it is pre-paid.
4. A long story for another day.
5. I was sooo naive.
6. At cost, supposedly.
7. Or the digital equivalent of binders.  Decision tree programs, if you will.
8. Thank you Robert Picardo!
9. I had a scarily similar experience to the one I just described with a friend’s Dell laptop that arrived with a non-functional CD-burner.
10. Mostly

Tuesday night I made a decision to help my local food bank.

• I have donated all of the income from this website, retroactive to November 1, 2008 to my local food bank.  I will be sending out an e-mail to all current paid subscribers thanking them for their support of this website and, by extension, our food banks.

I also decided to make a further commitment.

• I will continue to work on this site to bring you the absolute best workers’ compensation calculators for free.  And, I will continue to donate every single cent from this website to this food bank through the end of this year.
• If you buy a monthly subscription, I will donate your subscription to this food bank through the end of the year.  If you buy a yearly subscription between now and the end of the year, I’ll donate the whole thing to them.  I do not believe this would be tax deductible for you, so I’ve thought of another option.
• If you make a donate of any amount to your local food bank, just send me a copy of the receipt and I will give you an equivalent amount of subscription access to this website. [2]

If you use this website chances are you’re a professional who can spare enough to make a donation.  I’m no good at impassioned pleas or eloquent words.  Please make a donation and help out some hungry folks.  If you want to sign up for access for this website, please e-mail me or try to make an online payment through your profile on this website.

Thank you.

1. I’m an NPR junkie, remember?
2. E-mail, fax, mail - whatever works for you.

Going Viral

“Going viral” is the latest marketing buzzword to make it into the public consciousness.  This phrase refers to a process where something is promoted mainly by word of mouth.  The “viral” part of the phrase means to imply that popularity will spread exponentially, like a virus.[1]

The most memorable examples of “viral marketing” in recent years is probably the “Blair Witch Project.”  This super-low budget movie was popularized largely through word of mouth, making the highest profit-to-cost ratio movies of all time.[2]

What does this have to do with you or PDRater.com?

Scott Adams, the creator and author of the wildly popular Dilbert comic, recently published a blog post about what he referred to as, “digital tipping.”  He puts up a blog post every day[3] but makes little to no money off of it.  Recently he partnered with a company which provides a free service[4] in the hopes, or so I believe, that people will use the free service and upgrade to the pay service providing him, in turn, with a financial reward.

Scott Adams made an interesting point about how his blogging has affected his core business - publishing comic strips.[5] He discovered that his sometimes controversial blog posts sometimes turned people off from his comic strip - thereby losing a portion of his fan base forever.  On the flip side, although his blog is fairly popular his blog rarely improves his comic strip fan base.

A simple cost benefit analysis would suggest that the observed risk is not worth the potential incremental benefit - especially in light of the ongoing time commitment required to publish blog posts.  I suspect that my own blog posts have a similar risk-reward scenario.

Assuming that I’m acting rationally in blogging, why do I continue to do so in light of an unfavorable bost benefit analysis?  Firstly, I rather enjoy writing.  Secondly, its my understanding that search engines rank frequently updated websites slightly higher.  Thirdly, it is my hope that popularity, knowledge, and use of this website will “go viral.”

Much like Scott Adam’s concept of “digital tipping,” will help me at no cost to themselves by telling their friends about this website, how useful it is for them, and how this website saves them time.  So, if you enjoy or appreciate this website, why not tell a friend?

1. Photo courtesy of AJC1
2. Incidentally, unseating Mad Max which held the title for twenty years.
3. Its not easy!  I missed two days last week!
4. Which can be upgraded to a pay service.
5. I wish I could find that link!

Calculators

Last week a website user notified me of a problem he was experiencing with this website’s rating calculators.  He’s been a regular user for nearly a year now.  When he tried to perform a calculation the calculators would just show waiting indicators without showing the answer.  If he closed the browser window and reopened it, it would sometimes fix the problem.  To complicate matters, his coworker was having a similar problem.

Worst of all, this problem had been plaguing them for two weeks.  If you have a problem with this website, let me know as soon as possible so that I can track down the last change to the site to see if its causing a problem.

My troubleshooting went like this:

1. Get a detailed description of the symptoms.
2. Try to replicate the problem.
3. Reiterate the problem to make sure I’ve got it right.
4. While working to diagnose and fix the problem, offer a temporary fix (putting up a temporary site for their use).
5. Look into recent changes in the website (going back two weeks).
6. Since I couldn’t replicate the problem, ask additional questions.
   • Does the problem occur at a particular time of the day?[1]
   • What web browser and version do they use?[2]
   • What operating system?  When was the last update?[3]
     • Explain how to figure out their version of Windows and how to install update.
   • Do they have any third-party “toolbars” installed?  Yahoo, Google, MSN, etc toolbars.[4]
     • Ask them to temporarily disable or uninstall the toolbar.  Give them links to where they can re-download the toolbar software.
   • Do they single-click or double-click on buttons?[5]
   • Are other co-workers having the same problem?[6]
   • Do they have this same problem on different computers?[7]
   • Is the browser showing javascript errors?[8]
   • Ask them to try out a new browser. I recommended the PortableApps.com version of FireFox.
     • If the problem disappears, its obviously in their computer or network.  If the problem persists, it could still possibly be their network or the website.
7. Above all else: KEEP THE CLIENT INFORMED.[9]

As of right now, one of this client’s co-workers has contacted me to say that he’s no longer having trouble with the website.

So, problem solved?  If not, let me know, alrighty?

1. This would indicate a data bottleneck at the server.  Time to upgrade!
2. And, tell them how to find this information.
3. Have I mentioned how much I loathe Microsoft Vista?  Seriously, I think people should delete Microsoft Vista because its crap.
4. These browser helper objects are notorious for interfering with normal browser operations.  Worse, you can’t rule them out based upon when they were installed because they’re constantly downloading and installing updates to themselves.
5. Double clicks send two requests to the server - and might be confusing the browser.
6. Two computers on a single network could be a coincidence, a sign of a problem with the website, or a sign of a problem with the client’s network.
7. If not, its a problem with that computer.  If so, could still be a problem with either the website or their computers/network.
8. Tell them how to tell if there’s an error and how to give you the error code information.
9. They may not care for the constant updates, but they will know you’re on the case.

Temporary Fix: Even though the Body Part code search function does not work for some users, the rating functions still appears to work just fine.  If you know the Body Part code, you should be able to enter it manually in the box provided.  If you are performing a 2005 schedule rating, please use the full 8 digit body part code.

Permanent Solution: I am working on a fix for this problem and will update this website as soon as I am able.  I cannot be sure, but I suspect that the problem is being caused, in part, by the recent increase in the popularity of this website.[1]

To all paid-subscription users:

I value your business and appreciate your patience.  If this problem persists, I will create a second website exclusively for your use.

In the meantime, if you’re having problems with the calculators, however small, please e-mail through the Contact Us link at the top.  The more information I have about the problem, the better able I will be to diagnose and fix it.

Thank you again for your patience.

Sincerely,

Jay Shergill

1. Yay, popularity!  Boo, problems!

Imaginary Security

What’s worse:

Having no security or having the illusion of security?[1][2] Before you answer, you might want to read this article about how TSA security at airports is just plain ridiculous.

Keep in mind that by definition, the only difference between no security and illusory security is your ignorance - not someone else’s.

That said, having the illusion of security is worse.

No Security

If you have no security, you could at least take steps to improve security.  Let’s restate the question to highlight the distinction:

Would you rather have no burglar alarm or have a burglar alarm that never works and tells you it does?

Although not having a burglar alarm won’t prevent you from making foolish decisions[3], at least you’ll have the opportunity to know you’re making a foolish decision.  Without a burglar alarm your decisions might be wise or foolish - but only accidentally so.

Illusory Security

Some would argue that the illusion of security provides a deterrence effect.  The only people who believe in the illusion of security is better are those who have something to gain by selling illusory security.[4]

• First, deterrence is not a benefit of actual security.  Actual security depends upon the ability to actually stop something from occurring.  Deterrence is, at best, only a side-effect of actual security.  To the extent that actual security relies upon deterrence, its really just illusory security.  When good security is employed deterrence is either irrelevant or unnecessary.  Case in point:  If I have a good guard dog outside my house, I could care less what he looks like.
• Second, as the above article suggests only stupid or careless criminals are deterred by illusory security.  Even the stupidest criminal knows that some people have actual security and other have only the illusion of security.  Don’t forget, if a criminal doesn’t care about whether you have actual or illusory security, then there is no deterrent effect.  If that same criminal cares whether you have illusory or actual security, then they’ll do the minimum to determine whether you have security.  If this hypothetical criminal instead who doesn’t know or care about illusory or actual security is stupid and will try out security measures.
• Third, deterrent effects do not require illusory security.  Case in point:  If you know you don’t have a burglar alarm, there’s nothing preventing you from buying signs that say you do.  If deterrence is truly a worthy goal, then why not just opt for no security and specificallly develop the illusion of security.

Stupid Security

Why am I blathering on about security today?  I had an appearance at the Oakland WCAB on Monday afternoon.  As per the instructions of the security guard, I removed all metal from my person and placed it all in the plastic bin provided.  As I was about to walk through the metal detector, she pointed to my shirt pocket and asked what was in it.

Jay:  “Paper - see?”  I showed the parking lot ticket and a receipt from lunch.

Security Guard:  “Put that in too.”

Jay (giving a puzzled look):  “Why?  There’s nothing metal in it.  Its just paper.”

Security Guard:  “Just in case.”

I swear her response was, “Just in case.”  At this point I gave up.  There is little point in arguing with truly profound ignorance.

Just in case of what, exactly?

Just in case paper turns into metal?  Just in case I was hiding something in the paper I just showed her?  Isn’t that what metal detectors are supposed to find anyhow?

1. Original photo courtesy of Daquella manera
2. ”i” stands for an imaginary number.  :)
3. Such as going on vacation with the front curtains wide open showing off your 60″ plasma screen.
4. Call this a reductionist statement and ad hominem attack all you want.  But, you better back that up with an actual reason why illusory security is better than no security.  If you’ve got one, I’d like to see it.

Data is important...

Quick recap:

• I bought a laptop from Dell[1]
• After a year, I sent my laptop in for a minor repaird
• Dell last my laptop, and after much agony, replaced it with another model
• After a year and a half, laptop monitor stopped working
• I took my laptop to Paramount Technologies
• 3 hours later, my laptop was fixed
• After about 45 days later the LCD monitor stopped working again
• I took the laptop back to Paramount Technologies for the repairs last Monday
• Friday evening the laptop was fixed under the repair warranty, no charge

...so keep a backup

Here’s what I’ve learned:

1. Backup your data before something goes wrong[2][3]
2. A flash drive is your friend
3. Decide whether it makes sense to repair or replace your laptop
4. Make sure you find a good reliable laptop repair shop
   • Get a referral, if possible.  Otherwise, do your homework.
   • Researching a repair shop is time consuming, but you’ll be glad you did.
5. Make sure your repair shop stands behind their work.  Paramount Technologies’ repair warranty is 90 days.  I think that’s pretty reasonable.
6. Ask them what went wrong and how to prevent it

Ideas for new posts:

• What to do when your laptop or computer dies?
• How do you choose a laptop repair facility?

1. Dell’s are great - if you know what you’re doing OR if you spring for the all-you-can eat repair buffet AND like talking to tech support.
2. Like discovering you have an evil android twin who’s exactly like you - except that he has emotions.
3. Thanks to wikipedia for the photos.

This baby monkey has nothing to do with workers compensation at all

This website was recently re-launched on July 6, 2008 in a “blog” style format using Wordpress to power everything except the calculators.[1]

On July 23, 2008 this website was all of one year old.  That day I made a goal of posting something[2] every single weekday.[3]  Today is the 100th post on this site and I can’t help feeling somewhat accomplished.[4]

As any website regular can tell, I’m constantly tinkering with this site.  I fully understand constant change might be somewhat disorienting.  On the other hand, I’m making these changes in an effort to improve the appearance and usability of the website.

Most recently, I moved the Medical Provider Network and Links sub-pages to be their own[5] menu options.  These pages seem to be things people use a lot and really deserve their own spot at the top.  Then again, I don’t want the top menu to be too cluttered.  There’s really no one great solution to this dilemma.

Other changes I’m considering:

1. Moving the EAMS and WCAB search functions to their own page.  Some users[6] use these functions exclusively and probably don’t appreciate the dozen or so other calculators.
2. Combining the Blog and Articles pages.  I haven’t done this so far because I doubt people want to sift through my technobabble to learn something about workers’ compensation.

While I have you here:

• What do you think of the new look?
• What do you think about the MPN’s and Workers’ Compensation Links getting their own menu items?
• Would you like to see the EAMS and WCAB search functions get their own menu items?

Drop me a line and let me know.

1. Photo courtesy of nycgeo.
2. Admittedly, sometimes nonsense.
3. Even on holiday-weekdays.
4. I’m not exactly ready for NaNoWriMo, but you need to walk before you can run.
5. Top level
6. I suspect mostly non-attorneys.

Once I tried OpenOffice, I never looked back.  Its my preferred word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, office suite program.  Not only is it better than MicroSoft office in just about every way, but its also completely free.  You might be interested in trying it out because I believe it will help you tremendously with EAMS.

OpenOffice.org

OpenOffice.org released version 3.0 of their program on October 13, 2008.  It was so wildly popular that their website was crushed under the overwhelming demand.  The three most important things to know about OpenOffice are:

1. Its open source, so its completely free.  So, there’s no reason not to give it a shot.
2. It can open, edit, and save to any MS Office 2000, 2003, 2007, and WordPerfect formats.
3. It can print or export any file to a PDF.

If you’re a Workers’ Compensation professional in California, you’re probably dealing with EAMS.  Since filing things with EAMS means working with a lot of PDF’s.  In order to keep from reinventing the wheel, it makes sense to save those PDF’s of the document cover sheets.  But what if you need to make a small change later on?  Well, OpenOffice v3.0 can help with that too.

Using an extension ((basically a small program)) OpenOffice can open and edit and re-save a PDF file. Not even Adobe, the company that promotes the PDF format[1] , does a good job of opening and editing PDF’s.

This is a really big deal to me because editing saved PDF’s is going to save me a lot of time editing settlement documents and various pleadings.

Update

I wrote the above about a month ago while I gave OpenOffice 3.0 a shot.  It won’t install on my Vista laptop but works great on my XP desktop.  I’ve reverted to OpenOffice 2.4 on the laptop while I wait for a fix.  OpenOffice 2.4 is still free, but it won’t open MS Office 2007 formats (which not everyone is using anyhow) and cannot edit PDFs.

1. I know that’s redundant.

How can you make their job easier?  Well, the good news is you don’t have to, I’ve given you all the tools to make your office run faster and more efficiently, saving you time and money.

1. 

   Top 5

   MPN’s.  Medical Provider Network lists, complete with logins and passwords.  Whether you’re on the applicant or defense side, your staff is going to need access to these lists.  You can find a doctor for your client or so you can give a list of doctors to opposing counsel.

2. EAMS DWC to ADJ Number Search Engine. Chances are you’ve got cases with more than one “legacy” Board file number.  With this search engine, you can search for the corresponding EAMS ADJ numbers.  And, you can search for as many Board (or ADJ) numbers as you want at the same time, just by separating them with commas.
3. EAMS Office Search Engine. When your staff is filling out documents for you, they’re going to need to know the correct name and address for all the parties.  When they need to call opposing counsel, they can also look up the phone number with this search engine.
4. EAMS Document Type and Document Title Search Engine. Your staff needs a quick way to find the exact EAMS document type and EAMS document title for every document cover sheet getting filed with the Board.  Sure, they could comb through four or five pages of 3 point font on the Board’s form.  Or, better yet, they could search and find exactly the document type and title they need.
5. EAMS Body Part Codes. There are 62 different body part codes in the EAMS system.  There’s no need to keep the EAMS chart on hand, just tell your staff what body part you want on the form and have them look it up on this website.
6. DWC / WCAB  / EAMS Forms. There are now more than 130 different forms, new and “legacy”, available on the DIR website.  There’s no reason your staff should have to scroll up or down looking for the right form.  Type in a few characters and get a direct link right to the exact form you need.
7. Date Calculator. Sure, everyone in your office could have their own date wheel.  In my experience, date wheels and money charts are two of the most commonly swiped office aides right after the good stapler and scotch tape.  With a date calculator built into the website, all of your staff can quickly and easily calculate the number of days between two dates or what day it will be in a certain number of days.

So, there you have the top 5, er 7, PDRater.com website search engine and workers’ compensation calculators your staff is going to benefit from using.  Registration for this site is quick, easy, and free.  Save your staff some time and frustration by having them register for this website and try out the calculators, search engines, and links.

Wordpress

I’ve been upgrading to the latest releases of Wordpress as soon as each one comes out.  And, its a good thing too. 

Over the last week or two a website named “Wordpresz.org“ ((I’ve edited the link so that it goes to Wordpress.org instead.  I don’t want contribute to these hackers fooling anyone else.)) was discovered.  The people who created this website were using a vulenerability in Wordpress version 2.6.2 to redirect users to their website.  Their website purported to release Wordpress version 2.6.4[1].  The problem was that they had hacked one file in the installation package to create a bigger security vulerability.

This just goes to show that:

1. Monitor for Updates.  Many programs these days automatically check to see if new versions are available.  If the program does not have this feature[2] , its a good idea to check about once a month or so.
2. Update Frequently.  Not all software updates are equal.  If the program is being updated to fix security vulnerabilities or improve the program’s stability, you definitely want to install the update.  This website’s installation of Wordpress was already “inocculated” against this kind of attack because I had alled version 2.6.3 almost as soon as it came out.
3. Use Official Sources.  Wordpress is open source software built using PHP and MySQL.  Since the program is open source, its easier to modify the code. ((As Uncle Ben said, “With great power comes great responsibility.”))  The themes and plugins available through Wordpress.org are reviewed by other users for malicious code and for possible improvements.  If you’re not certain how to examine source code for malicious code, its best to only use official sources.

1. The latest version is 2.6.3 which is just version 2.6.2 with a small but important security fix.
2. Or if you turn it off, as I sometimes do.

Technical Difficulties

A little over a month ago my laptop died.  I took it to a shop in Contra Costa County named, “Paramount Technologies” who were able to fix up my laptop in record time. [1]  Apparently, the problem was the video chip which had loosened from the motherboard over time (probably through overuse).

Friday evening my laptop died all over again.  At least it was peaceful.  I put my laptop to sleep and it didn’t wake up again.

Its still under a repair warranty from Paramount Technologies, so I’ll take it back to them.  It has the same symptoms, so I hope its the same problem.  Even if it weren’t under warranty, my formula for determining whether I should invest in repairing or buying a new computer still dictates that I should probably repair.

No matter.  Be of good cheer: these troubles will have absolutely no effect on this website.  :)

1. Estimate: 3 days.  Repair time: 3 hours.  Now, that’s what I call service.

Wake up!

Perhaps its the political climate, or the recent daylight savings time change, or that I’m an argumentative guy.  Today’s post is my argument against daylight savings time.[1][2]

If Wikipedia is to be believed, Daylight Savings Time was not invented by Benjamin Franklin.[3][4][5] [6] If Wikipedia is to be further believed, some guy named “William Willett” was the one who thought of it.

Its a mixed blessing for Mr. Willett that no one knows his name.  Ben Franklin gets the credit for daylight savings sandwiched between kudos for electric kites and bifocals.  Then again, Franklin also has to put up with abuse from people who hate daylight savings.  Such as myself.

The Benefits

Set aside for the moment the historical benefits to daylight savings time - the farmers getting out of bed and whatnot.  I’ll stipulate that it may have served some terrific purpose yeas ago.  The real issue is whether daylight savings time has any ongoing net benefits for our society.

Let’s assume arguendo there are practical benefits to getting everyone in your state to wake up, get home from work, and go to bed an hour earlier or later.  They have more “time” to do whatever is they want to do. [7]  Let’s even suppose that having an “extra hour” improves the mood of people with seasonal affect disorder. [8]

The Problems

Infrastructure. You have to admit that a truly Herculean effort is required to support the infrastructure necessary for daylight savings time.  People engineer wall clocks that manipulate the time twice a year.  Cell phones, computers, and TiVo’s all have to be pre-programmed to change the time twice a year.  Its exactly this kind of ridiculous time-accounting nightmare that lead to the Y2K bug in the first place.

Manual Upkeep. All of non-computerized devices such as coffee pots, car stereos, wristwatches, ovens, microwaves, climate control devices, and sprinkler systems need to be manually reset.  In this way, daylight savings time is almost like having a guaranteed power outage twice a year.

Productivity. The missed appointments, reschedulings, and groggy commuters and workers.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Starbucks was behind the cont