I got my current job through a LinkedIn contact, and LinkedIn is the first place recruiters go to look for people with a specific skillset. It's a necessary evil.
In 2018, at least for quick service (which is most of what's going cashless) you handle your own credit card. The chip reader is facing you, not the person taking your order.
The employees at my local grocery store are mostly incapable not damaging packaged goods, and do not appear to possess sufficient brainpower or attention to detail to not stick a gallon of milk on top of a bunch of bananas. The chance of them successfully operating a vertical farm is somewhere between epsilon and zero.
And for most people, it means either GMail or Exchange. They both have their trade-offs, but they both get the job done.
Open source e-mail software still has a place on the back-end, but it's incapable of providing the sort of collaboration platform people expect (for good reasons) in 2017.
"Three or more listings" means that it's almost certainly not their home.
This isn't targeting somebody renting out a spare bedroom, this is targeting people using AirBNB to run a business.
Switch to what?
Mac is a mess with non-expandable hardware and an OS that has gotten nothing but half-assed "borrowed from the iPad" updates over the last few years.
Linux does not usefully run productivity hardware such as high speed scanners (yes, I've tried it, and no, the inability to do things like automatic page sizing means it is not usable). It also doesn't play well with gaming (even light gaming) quality GPUs without an awful lot of hassle.
I've used damn near everything on the desktop (Windows, Mac, Solaris, Linux, FreeBSD, Irix, etc). Right now it pains me to say that Windows 10, especially with WSL, is the least awful option. At least you can get Thinkpad keyboards with it...
San Francisco does a pretty good job keeping us out. Lousy schools, enough crime to be a real problem (especially since Prop 47), major homeless issues, and a terrible commute to the cites with jobs (2 hours each way = never seeing your kids).
A TV is a monitor into which you plug your Chromecast / Roku / Apple TV / Media PC and stream stuff.
The whole "Cable company DVR" / "Smart TV" / etc is just a pile of legacy mess that will go the way of the dodo bird, Microsoft Bob, and (hopefully) vendor Android skins.
Google offers 2FA for free, labled as "2-step authentication". Setup takes about 3 minutes, hassle on known devices is roughly zero, and it makes these attacks irrelevent. Can do SMS, Authenticator app, etc.
It's like an iPod Touch; it's a pocket-sized Android tablet. They're handy for kid-entertainment (install a bunch of games), and worth little enough that eventual loss / destruction is no big deal. They don't have to be the latest and greatest; an old Droid 2 runs most games just fine. They also run Kindle really well, as a truly pocket-able e-reader (again, for kids, etc)
They're particularly handy when "quick entertainment" is desired, but an iPad is really too big to carry around.
And go Cheap. Buy the cheapest Kindle Amazon sells, skip the bulk of a heavy case. As long as it survives most of your trip, call it disposable.
If you can find one used, do that.
Sometimes rugged is not worth the hassle.
This is what tablets and smartphones are for. Bring your own tablet and/or smartphone, keep the personal surfing personal. Nobody will ask, nobody will care... your iPad is for watching movies on the plane, reading eBooks, random surfing, etc.
Also, having written a few AUPs myself... the exact restrictions tend to be pretty well documented, and driven by security and compliance requirements that your employer would be in trouble for violating. Read the AUP in full and make sure you understand it, ask questions if needed. Those of us who have to help maintain compliance / security would much rather get a few "silly questions" than have to clean up a mess. When in doubt, use a personal device. There's absolutely no excuse not to have one.
And to the employer... think about VDI+BYOD. Move the security back into the server room, let employees use "whatever". Keeping the personal surfing out is a losing battle, no matter what your compliance requirements are.
What you are asking for is not possible due to the way markets work.
If there is a skill that takes only a few months to learn, doesn't require formal background, and then you can do meaningful projects, that skill is not worth much because just about anybody can learn it.
Pick something that is more than a simple skill (i.e. artistic aptitude, something unique), find a niche, find something that's still widely used but "out of fashion", go local (works better in a relatively "low-tech" locale), find somebody who will take on an apprentice / mentee in some area deeper than a "2-3 month learning curve".
Also, if you're already writing, they way to get better at writing is to keep writing. Start a blog or two, volunteer to write documentation for a non-profit or open source project or similar, use that as a portfolio to find better paying writing work.
Speaking of non-profits - volunteering with one is a great way to network, find somebody who might pay you for the skills you're using as a volunteer, etc.
For the Huffington Post, this was no doubt a ridiculously good offer. $300m cash for a web site, which has fairly good traffic but a limited amount of really unique content; they'd be idiots not to sell. The owners / investors make out very well, and future value becomes AOL's problem. Even (liberal, conservative) bloggers can do math well enough to know when it's time to sell out!
On the other hand, I'm surprised that the activist investors of the world haven't been trying to force AOL to turn this cash into dividends instead of bad web investments. I guess that would involve said activist investors seeing enough cash flow potential to actually buy AOL stock first.
Instead of having to police sick days, a simpler solution would be to combine sick days and vacation days into "earned time off" or similar. Let the employee use the time as they see fit, no policing required, and you probably get better morale in the deal too.
They could use this wonderful network of tubes that we can shove bits through called the Internet.
There's plenty of bandwidth to stream high-def TV, weather images, etc; in fact, it's done every day. The satellite network no doubt serves as an important link, but you would think that fiber optics work in a pinch. (note that this is not a weather data gathering satellite, just a weather relay)
The fact is, despite the cheaper labor, there is a great deal of overhead in doing business in China and similar countries. This includes infrastructure issues (i.e. electricity and transportation), responsiveness to customer demand, bribes, and the fact that it really does take more people to get the same work done.
The US could be competitive, but it needs to unshackle itself from bad policy:
Pass a national right-to-work law
Reduce the power of unions, kill any threat to employers of card-check
Move healthcare to either a totally open market (individuals buy policies, regulated, priced fairly based on avoidable risk), get the companies out of that business
Cut corporate marginal tax rates, so companies are actually willing to make a profit in the US
Work to eliminate regime uncertainty; stop dangling "we're going to overhaul this later" over major and minor US industries
(regime uncertainty will hopefully get better after November)
Work hard to reduce employer/employment burdens and costs
If our government did not make it so expensive to hire people, companies would hire more people. (Obvious 101, but apparently not to the current leadership)
It's out of date, flaky, insecure, and barely compatible with modern apps and hardware. The security model is broken, the memory model is broken (64-bit anybody? It's 2010, not 2001), and the UI is a primitive disaster.
Just like Windows 98 during the 2002-2005 timeframe, lots of people are clinging to XP well past its sell-by date. It's time to move forward, deal with the issues, and get on with life. If you get that far behind the upgrade 8-ball, you will have a lot of pain; if you're still on XP, it's time to join the modern era.
(Linux is not realistic because of business app support. OSX is not realistic because of the upgrade treadmill that makes Microsoft look downright saintly.)
I'm looking at this from the point of view of a normal electrical (or other utility) end user looking to save energy (saving money will of course depend on your rates, alternatives, usage level, etc)
What this whole discussion is missing is a number of simple, common sense design issues (solutions to many of which are already here). The smart grid is excessively complex, inelegant, and subject to all sorts of failures (including security issues). It is also in danger of leaving you in a place where if you have to revert to 'dumb' grid, you don't have enough capacity for the electrical end-users.
For some more elegant solutions that solve many parts of the same problem:
For air conditioning (and heating), we have a newer system (SEER 15) with a two-speed compressor and a variable speed air handler. This means that during the really hot and cold days where demand is up, the system behaves more like baseload (on a larger percentage of the time, but a lower power level) than peakload. More systems of this design would substantially smooth out the peaks. While there are no mandates, this system did get us a $1500 tax credit. (from Bush era legislation, no less). Also, a programmable thermostat really helps, particularly if it's smart enough to gradually bring temperatures up or down to your target (again, not having to run the system at full blast).
For refrigeration, at least in parts of Europe, vacuum bottle insulation is becoming quite standard for refrigerators and freezers. This is the same incredibly exotic, unusual technology that makes a Thermos keep your coffee/tea/soup hot for many hours without heat input. This saves a huge amount of energy via very simple efficiency, without any kind of smart grids or smart controls needed. Even better, give the refrigerator and freezer each their own compressor and 'try' not to run both at once unless you have to.
For lighting, there are already excellent solutions - CFLs, LEDs on the way, and motion sensors can automatically turn lights on and off if you want to go that route (not a bad way to go for something like hallways, though we haven't bothered). You don't need a smart grid for this, you just need a smart switch - localized means easier to implement, easier to fix, and no central control needed.
For water heating, the easiest and cheapest answer is efficiency. Wash your clothes in cold or warm water (they still get clean!), get a lower flow showerhead (The Delta H2OKinetic 1.6gpm ones are surprisingly nice, and this is from somebody who would drill out or remove the restrictor plates in the early low-flow designs), use a dishwasher instead of hand-washing dishes (uses much less hot water), etc. Insulated hot water pipes don't hurt either. But if you use a lot less hot water, it barely matters how you heat it. (though if you use electricity, the GE Hybrid coming out 4Q09 is worth watching - a heat pump water heater, with a normal resistive backup. Should be particularly nice and efficient if your water heater is in a warm place.) Besides, it's hard to beat the ROI of $30 or $40 for a new showerhead.
Finally, leaky electronics (i.e. DVRs are TVs that use almost as much energy as 'on' most of the time) would be easy to solve if you just made manufacturers DISCLOSE all relevant information about energy usage. You don't have to mandate minimums, standards, etc; you can solve most of this problem by giving people the information and letting them make a smart choice. For once, the usual consumer advocate nincompoops (think Consumer Reports) might even nudge people into the right direction with this.
We really need to get out of the "brute force global solution" mindset and look for local, elegant, cost effective ones.
Slashdot Mirror
I got my current job through a LinkedIn contact, and LinkedIn is the first place recruiters go to look for people with a specific skillset. It's a necessary evil.
In 2018, at least for quick service (which is most of what's going cashless) you handle your own credit card. The chip reader is facing you, not the person taking your order.
The employees at my local grocery store are mostly incapable not damaging packaged goods, and do not appear to possess sufficient brainpower or attention to detail to not stick a gallon of milk on top of a bunch of bananas. The chance of them successfully operating a vertical farm is somewhere between epsilon and zero.
And for most people, it means either GMail or Exchange. They both have their trade-offs, but they both get the job done. Open source e-mail software still has a place on the back-end, but it's incapable of providing the sort of collaboration platform people expect (for good reasons) in 2017.
"Three or more listings" means that it's almost certainly not their home. This isn't targeting somebody renting out a spare bedroom, this is targeting people using AirBNB to run a business.
Switch to what?
Mac is a mess with non-expandable hardware and an OS that has gotten nothing but half-assed "borrowed from the iPad" updates over the last few years.
Linux does not usefully run productivity hardware such as high speed scanners (yes, I've tried it, and no, the inability to do things like automatic page sizing means it is not usable). It also doesn't play well with gaming (even light gaming) quality GPUs without an awful lot of hassle.
I've used damn near everything on the desktop (Windows, Mac, Solaris, Linux, FreeBSD, Irix, etc). Right now it pains me to say that Windows 10, especially with WSL, is the least awful option. At least you can get Thinkpad keyboards with it...
That data only goes through 2014
Prop 47 wasn't passed until the end of 2014
http://sfist.com/2016/04/25/sf...
San Francisco does a pretty good job keeping us out. Lousy schools, enough crime to be a real problem (especially since Prop 47), major homeless issues, and a terrible commute to the cites with jobs (2 hours each way = never seeing your kids).
Film at 11...
If you're in this industry and can't manage "work optional" by 45-50, you're doing it wrong. The answer is to GFTO before you get pushed out.
A TV is a monitor into which you plug your Chromecast / Roku / Apple TV / Media PC and stream stuff. The whole "Cable company DVR" / "Smart TV" / etc is just a pile of legacy mess that will go the way of the dodo bird, Microsoft Bob, and (hopefully) vendor Android skins.
Google offers 2FA for free, labled as "2-step authentication". Setup takes about 3 minutes, hassle on known devices is roughly zero, and it makes these attacks irrelevent. Can do SMS, Authenticator app, etc.
and you are going to have to support it, buy them either an iPad or a Chromebook.
An outbreak of brain parasites would explain just about everything that happens in Sacramento
It's like an iPod Touch; it's a pocket-sized Android tablet. They're handy for kid-entertainment (install a bunch of games), and worth little enough that eventual loss / destruction is no big deal. They don't have to be the latest and greatest; an old Droid 2 runs most games just fine. They also run Kindle really well, as a truly pocket-able e-reader (again, for kids, etc) They're particularly handy when "quick entertainment" is desired, but an iPad is really too big to carry around.
And go Cheap. Buy the cheapest Kindle Amazon sells, skip the bulk of a heavy case. As long as it survives most of your trip, call it disposable. If you can find one used, do that. Sometimes rugged is not worth the hassle.
This is what tablets and smartphones are for. Bring your own tablet and/or smartphone, keep the personal surfing personal. Nobody will ask, nobody will care... your iPad is for watching movies on the plane, reading eBooks, random surfing, etc.
Also, having written a few AUPs myself... the exact restrictions tend to be pretty well documented, and driven by security and compliance requirements that your employer would be in trouble for violating. Read the AUP in full and make sure you understand it, ask questions if needed. Those of us who have to help maintain compliance / security would much rather get a few "silly questions" than have to clean up a mess. When in doubt, use a personal device. There's absolutely no excuse not to have one.
And to the employer... think about VDI+BYOD. Move the security back into the server room, let employees use "whatever". Keeping the personal surfing out is a losing battle, no matter what your compliance requirements are.
@AniMoJo - that's exactly what I'm suggesting - find a niche. Don't go after a commodity market; commodity markets get commodity pricing.
What you are asking for is not possible due to the way markets work.
If there is a skill that takes only a few months to learn, doesn't require formal background, and then you can do meaningful projects, that skill is not worth much because just about anybody can learn it.
Pick something that is more than a simple skill (i.e. artistic aptitude, something unique), find a niche, find something that's still widely used but "out of fashion", go local (works better in a relatively "low-tech" locale), find somebody who will take on an apprentice / mentee in some area deeper than a "2-3 month learning curve".
Also, if you're already writing, they way to get better at writing is to keep writing. Start a blog or two, volunteer to write documentation for a non-profit or open source project or similar, use that as a portfolio to find better paying writing work.
Speaking of non-profits - volunteering with one is a great way to network, find somebody who might pay you for the skills you're using as a volunteer, etc.
For the Huffington Post, this was no doubt a ridiculously good offer. $300m cash for a web site, which has fairly good traffic but a limited amount of really unique content; they'd be idiots not to sell. The owners / investors make out very well, and future value becomes AOL's problem. Even (liberal, conservative) bloggers can do math well enough to know when it's time to sell out!
On the other hand, I'm surprised that the activist investors of the world haven't been trying to force AOL to turn this cash into dividends instead of bad web investments. I guess that would involve said activist investors seeing enough cash flow potential to actually buy AOL stock first.
Instead of having to police sick days, a simpler solution would be to combine sick days and vacation days into "earned time off" or similar. Let the employee use the time as they see fit, no policing required, and you probably get better morale in the deal too.
They could use this wonderful network of tubes that we can shove bits through called the Internet. There's plenty of bandwidth to stream high-def TV, weather images, etc; in fact, it's done every day. The satellite network no doubt serves as an important link, but you would think that fiber optics work in a pinch. (note that this is not a weather data gathering satellite, just a weather relay)
(regime uncertainty will hopefully get better after November)
If our government did not make it so expensive to hire people, companies would hire more people. (Obvious 101, but apparently not to the current leadership)
It's out of date, flaky, insecure, and barely compatible with modern apps and hardware. The security model is broken, the memory model is broken (64-bit anybody? It's 2010, not 2001), and the UI is a primitive disaster. Just like Windows 98 during the 2002-2005 timeframe, lots of people are clinging to XP well past its sell-by date. It's time to move forward, deal with the issues, and get on with life. If you get that far behind the upgrade 8-ball, you will have a lot of pain; if you're still on XP, it's time to join the modern era. (Linux is not realistic because of business app support. OSX is not realistic because of the upgrade treadmill that makes Microsoft look downright saintly.)
I'm looking at this from the point of view of a normal electrical (or other utility) end user looking to save energy (saving money will of course depend on your rates, alternatives, usage level, etc)
What this whole discussion is missing is a number of simple, common sense design issues (solutions to many of which are already here). The smart grid is excessively complex, inelegant, and subject to all sorts of failures (including security issues). It is also in danger of leaving you in a place where if you have to revert to 'dumb' grid, you don't have enough capacity for the electrical end-users.
For some more elegant solutions that solve many parts of the same problem:
For air conditioning (and heating), we have a newer system (SEER 15) with a two-speed compressor and a variable speed air handler. This means that during the really hot and cold days where demand is up, the system behaves more like baseload (on a larger percentage of the time, but a lower power level) than peakload. More systems of this design would substantially smooth out the peaks. While there are no mandates, this system did get us a $1500 tax credit. (from Bush era legislation, no less). Also, a programmable thermostat really helps, particularly if it's smart enough to gradually bring temperatures up or down to your target (again, not having to run the system at full blast).
For refrigeration, at least in parts of Europe, vacuum bottle insulation is becoming quite standard for refrigerators and freezers. This is the same incredibly exotic, unusual technology that makes a Thermos keep your coffee/tea/soup hot for many hours without heat input. This saves a huge amount of energy via very simple efficiency, without any kind of smart grids or smart controls needed. Even better, give the refrigerator and freezer each their own compressor and 'try' not to run both at once unless you have to.
For lighting, there are already excellent solutions - CFLs, LEDs on the way, and motion sensors can automatically turn lights on and off if you want to go that route (not a bad way to go for something like hallways, though we haven't bothered). You don't need a smart grid for this, you just need a smart switch - localized means easier to implement, easier to fix, and no central control needed.
For water heating, the easiest and cheapest answer is efficiency. Wash your clothes in cold or warm water (they still get clean!), get a lower flow showerhead (The Delta H2OKinetic 1.6gpm ones are surprisingly nice, and this is from somebody who would drill out or remove the restrictor plates in the early low-flow designs), use a dishwasher instead of hand-washing dishes (uses much less hot water), etc. Insulated hot water pipes don't hurt either. But if you use a lot less hot water, it barely matters how you heat it. (though if you use electricity, the GE Hybrid coming out 4Q09 is worth watching - a heat pump water heater, with a normal resistive backup. Should be particularly nice and efficient if your water heater is in a warm place.) Besides, it's hard to beat the ROI of $30 or $40 for a new showerhead.
Finally, leaky electronics (i.e. DVRs are TVs that use almost as much energy as 'on' most of the time) would be easy to solve if you just made manufacturers DISCLOSE all relevant information about energy usage. You don't have to mandate minimums, standards, etc; you can solve most of this problem by giving people the information and letting them make a smart choice. For once, the usual consumer advocate nincompoops (think Consumer Reports) might even nudge people into the right direction with this.
We really need to get out of the "brute force global solution" mindset and look for local, elegant, cost effective ones.