Or when are you gonna make my laptop's WiFi card work?
As soon as two things happen... 1. the vendor releases enough information on the card to make it possible to write a driver for it... AND 2. Somebody who knows how, writes the driver and submits it so we can incorporate it.
This analysis demonstrates that while a flow-battery system is appropriate for battery chemistries with a low energy density (those that can only store a limited amount of energy for a given weight), for high-energy-density devices such as lithium-ion batteries, the extra complexity and components of a flow system would add unnecessary extra cost.
The way I read this, it tells me that they will not be able to get high energy densities (small size/weight) without adding a LOT to the cost if you use "flow batteries". How they then claim that this will be helpful to automobile applications is somewhat of a mystery to me. For autos, space and energy density are very important, as is weight. Where there are apparently benefits to flow batteries, it doesn't seem to me that these benefits really work in a electric vehicle application if the delta in cost is as high as it seems.
I don't know though, because elsewhere they start making grand claims that seem to contradict the above statement. So I'm wondering if we have a case of an article written by someone with a really bad understanding of the technology, who just strung together some pull quotes from their notebook and didn't realize that the context of the interview they are pulling from really means something totally different. My guess is that the reporter just asked some questions about EV applications because that's all they knew about, but the answers from the researcher, while positive, had provisos that the reporter didn't under stand or choose to ignore to make the story interesting.
Well... What can I say... Buy a smaller house and bunk beds for the kids then.... Oh, and stop having kids (or put a TV in the master bedroom).
Seriously, my point here is that we to often think that we cannot have what we want because it's too expensive or we don't make enough, but the truth usually is that we could afford that big thing if we'd stop wasting our income on unnecessary and unimportant things on a daily basis.
Actually, what's the harm in living in a trailer? It's possible to at least own a dwelling...
Nothing, except for two things... 1. They are likely not allowed by local ordinance anywhere in Colorado near where you want to work so the commute is going to be long. 2. Most people will find them uncomfortable in the winter due to how dang cold it gets around Denver, Longmont etc...
But if your goal is to live cheaply and own something, then that's a good reason. I'm just guessing though that by the time you found land with water and got a trailer on it to live in, you are going to be coughing up some serious cash anyplace between Pueblo and Longmont. It's truly expensive to live there.
And if "another place to live" isn't within practical commuting distance of your job or of any employer hiring in the field for which you have trained, too bad.
Sucks, but you made a bad career choice if you didn't consider this. I'm not insensitive to your plight, but in reality it was YOUR choice of careers which puts you in the spot you are in. It might be time to take responsibility for your part in this and start making choices to deal with it.
In reality, most people in your position just don't realize that it's not the location or their career choice that is the problem, if you like what you do and where you can do it, that's great! What the problem REALLY is in the majority of these cases is that you wish to live beyond your means. I've seen it time and again (and did it for awhile myself) where people choose to have that flashy new car, that wiz bang shiny new tech toy, the latest smart phone, a plush apartment in a desirable location etc. Then they complain (like I did) that I can never have "nice things" like a home because I cannot afford them.
The truth is, that you likely CAN afford "nice things" like a home if you really want it, but such choices are made though a thousand tiny choices you make each day. Do you *need* that $5 Starbucks over what your home coffee maker puts out for $1? Is it that important to dump $8 for lunch every day when you can bring your lunch from home for much less? How about that $1 bottle of water from the vending machine over the drinking fountain and a cup from home? Don't get me started on that car payment and cell phone bill. You see, the problem is you cannot afford them ALL, but in reality practically nobody else can either.
I discovered that the way to get MORE nice stuff, is to BUY LESS JUNK. Don't live on credit where you pay interest on credit cards but pay off your balance monthly. Watch for ways you can save even a dollar or two a day, bring your lunch, make your own coffee, make do with fewer clothes or that fancy sporting equipment upgrade. Shop around for everything, clip coupons, eat at home. Be self disciplined have a budget and stick to your goals. If you want that house, save for it...
Well.... Could I strongly suggest layer 2 security on your network?
Look, your story, which I believe fully, just tells me that your company has some serious issues with physical security AND network security. You got darn lucky if you ask me. That you found anything is a wonder, but your perp was pretty stupid in how they went about this and left tracks. A more thoughtful offender wouldn't leave any traces, given your security. A couple of things you should seriously consider doing:
1. NEVER leave equipment which is unused laying about. Lock that stuff up so it doesn't walk away.
2. NEVER leave unused network ports wired to anything. Go into the wiring closet and disconnect any/all unused ports physically, or failing that put them onto a VLAN that goes nowhere. You simply cannot allow unauthorized and uncontrolled physical access to your network. (Your wiring closet does LOCK right?)
3. ALWAYS put Layer 2 ingress security in place. If the device isn't a known MAC on the expected port, don't pass traffic from it. (see #2) There may be exceptions to this rule in conference rooms and such, but MONITOR these if you leave them open.
4. Have policies in place to forbid employees from bringing stuff in from home. No personal hardware touches company computers, no personal software get's installed without approval etc. I know it doesn't prevent anything, but it gives the company justification for dealing swiftly and harshly with this kind of thing. Enforce the policy!
5. MONITOR YOUR NETWORK - Somehow, monitor your network. Look for new and unexplained MAC's, run a local DNS cache and monitor what's being hit, monitor firewall logs etc, I know monitoring systems are expensive, but do what you can with what you have.
So, where the MAC didn't get you much in your investigation, it was KEY in tracing down how the traffic entered your network. It might not have helped you that much, but that's more about your company's security posture than MAC addresses. Shame on you if you let a rouge MAC address onto your network through some wired port on a cheap hub and have issues tracing it down....
$6K can do a lot of repairs, and add to that the security deposit.... Keep significant security deposits and a wary eye on who you choose to rent the place to. I know there are legal limits, but you can pull credit histories, verify salary and get references before you accept a new tenant. Inspect the property often as well. You may not be able to enter without the tenants present depending on local law, but that doesn't mean you cannot knock on the door on the weekend and ask if there are any maintenance issues. Also, you start the eviction process with zero delay at the first justification.
Ways to attract bad tenants is being in the wrong location, having the rent too low for the area and not asking for security deposits which are big enough. Weed out the field by keeping rent in line with the market and having larger deposits. Avoid the wrong areas, stay middle class, unless you are willing to go with risk. Then verify income to cover the rent. People who are responsible will have money for the deposits and will know they can afford the rent. If they don't have a deposit, and/or the rent is more than half their income don't deal with them.
In my experience, finding tenants is a bit risky, but most people out there are responsible. If you are located in a middle class area, the chances of having issues with a tenant is there, but not that likely. But if that risk is too much for you, then I suggest you might be wrongly invested.
I think you need to re-read what I posted. I'm just opposed to government owning and operating infrastructure. It bloats the size of government unnecessarily and opens up avenues for graft and corruption. I am in favor of rules that forbid the owners of the "last mile" infrastructure which government has allowed (like the cable franchise in your local town) from not allowing competitive use. Perhaps going so far as to forbid them from dealing directly with retail customers. So competition yes, government owing and operating infrastructure, no.
A wise man says... "Bulls make money, bears make money, but hogs get slaughtered." To that I add, Brokers make a killing but own nothing. Which when you apply this to the current situation means you should be a realtor, or better yet a broker....
Just do it on your own.... Rent a place that is below what you can comfortably pay, get a roommate etc. Bank the excess. It's call saving for a down payment. Problem is that most 20 somethings are not disciplined enough to keep from spending their nest egg on useless junk, cell phones, flashy cars and the like. Well that and huge unnecessary student loans...
Don't worry, the government can just print more to pay for (enter pet project name for the day here), unless you are Greece, then something bigger keeps you from doing that.
Inflation hasn't yet hit for the money they've been printing of late, but there will be heck to pay when the economy actually takes off. We are in the Carter malaise for many of the same reasons....
The interesting question is how long can this last before we reach a level that is not affordable to the majority of the demographic that is being serviced.
Care to guess what happens at that point? New construction doesn't sell, developers go bankrupt, new construction is sold at auction for lower prices. Then the new units available at lower prices push down prices of other housing, which makes purchase more affordable, which results in renters buying, which curbs rent prices.
No matter what part of the cycle you're in, no matter what part of the country, one thing can be counted to be constant: idiots proclaiming that the current trend is the new reality and will last forever!
EXACTLY... This is what got us into that mess in 2008... Real Estate will NEVER go down in price, so who cares if the borrower cannot make the payments, the asset will be worth more by the time they default and we will still show a profit. Plus we get to take their down payment NOW..
Where I agree, having good tenants that don't tear up the place is great, I got to point out that it might not be worth it in the long run to be that far under market.
$500/month is $6K per year, and in 15 years that's $90K which could pay for 4 years of college at a LOT of pretty good schools at today's prices, and you don't have to sell the condo to do that. I'm no investment adviser, but I don't think leaving 1/4th of your possible profit on the table is a good idea.
If I was you, I'd seriously think about edging up that rent over the next few years until you are within a few hundred of the competition. Go half way each year, so next lease jump it to $1,650. Start banking the difference between rent and expenses and DON'T TOUCH it except for tuition or property repairs. If the tenants walk, don't mess around, jump to the market rate and hold large security deposits so you can weather any eviction storm. If that's too risky for you, sell the thing and find something with risk you can accept, there are things out there, but something tells me your tenants won't walk on you as long as you stay just under market and they can make the rent payments. It's great to be nice, just don't sell you and your family short in the process.
As you readily admit, "We have the technology to do this" now, which is true, so as I said, it's not an emergency, not something WE must do now or else. We don't even need to develop the technology, because as you say, it exists now.
This is a self fixing problem, one that will solve itself when the time comes, economic forces will make it happen. You are trying to artificially force the solution too soon. Relax, enjoy the ride and let the grand kids take care of it.
Look, the only way this really changes world wide is when economic pressure forces it. Fossil fuels will keep getting more and more expensive and eventually it will make sense to start doing something else. Until then, all you can accomplish is unilateral suicide and surrender to other people who don't care one bit about you living or dying (except that they wish you dead.)
Don't be emotional and do stupid things... Just relax and let it happen on it's own.
My problem with the heat was keeping the flexible tubes in the engine compartment in place, and the fact that the door seals and fresh air box where pretty much missing. Defrost/defog was a rag in the passenger seat too...
But I totally agree, fun and easy to drive, extremely reliable if you took reasonable care of them. Mine where hot when it was hot and cold when it wasn't, but that's the nature of driving around with 65 horses and no AC and the fact that I was to cheap to eliminate all the drafts mine had. They are easy to fix on your own if you can find the parts, which is pretty much mail order these days.
Ah what I'd give for 26+ mpg again.... Apparently it's not AC, given I live in Texas now..;)
So.... Invest in research and development for tomorrow's technology, just stop with this "we got to stop using fossil fuels now!" hype and I'm not going to object..
It's not an emergency.... Won't be one for my lifetime or my grand kids lifetimes for that matter... Prepare for the future? Sure. However, it's not time to panic about the issue and run out and do something stupid and rash.
Everything you say is true with the following provisos....
I'm into cheap transportation, which was why I drove a Bug. Where I did do the electronic ignition thing to avoid the timing drifting as the points wear and faster starts, for the rest I went with cheap, which was stock parts. So where all the things you suggest exist, I was too cheap. Not to mention that at the time, the costs of the upgrades would have exceeded the value of the car by a number of times. On to my provisos.
First, you really want to be changing the oil often in a bug. Of course the maintenance schedule was for non-detergent, non-synthetic oils so having a synthetic blend does allow some extension of the 3,000 mile interval, but there are few things to consider. 1. Oil is used to cool this thing. 2. There is very little oil to start with (3.5 quarts), 3. there is no filter (unless you figure on the Oil Cooler doing that). If you keep this all stock, I'd suggest you never go over 4,500 miles between changes, even with the best oil you can find. Waiting too long puts junk in the oil cooler, and a plugged cooler is a one way ticket to major engine damage. Change the oil, it's cheap enough still.
Second, you never set the timing of a VW Bug using the timing light, but unless you've done it before I wouldn't expect you to know. These beasties need to be set using a static timing method to TDC where the notch on the crank pulley lines up with the split in the case. You can time them using a timing light, but with the vacuum and centrifugal advance it's really hard to know where to set it at idle, and I can assure you it's not 0 degrees from TDC but somewhat advanced if memory serves. With a standard ignition on a quiet morning I could set the timing with just a crescent wrench (by listening to the arc when the points opened) but once I put the electronic ignition it took just a light bulb across the coil to ground.
But that's just me, Mr cheap-o transportation who had less than $1,000 total invested in his car... I make more money now so I can afford something with AC and reliable heat....
Slashdot Mirror
Or when are you gonna make my laptop's WiFi card work?
As soon as two things happen... 1. the vendor releases enough information on the card to make it possible to write a driver for it... AND 2. Somebody who knows how, writes the driver and submits it so we can incorporate it.
So you going to wire them in parallel eh?
Read the article closer...
This analysis demonstrates that while a flow-battery system is appropriate for battery chemistries with a low energy density (those that can only store a limited amount of energy for a given weight), for high-energy-density devices such as lithium-ion batteries, the extra complexity and components of a flow system would add unnecessary extra cost.
The way I read this, it tells me that they will not be able to get high energy densities (small size/weight) without adding a LOT to the cost if you use "flow batteries". How they then claim that this will be helpful to automobile applications is somewhat of a mystery to me. For autos, space and energy density are very important, as is weight. Where there are apparently benefits to flow batteries, it doesn't seem to me that these benefits really work in a electric vehicle application if the delta in cost is as high as it seems.
I don't know though, because elsewhere they start making grand claims that seem to contradict the above statement. So I'm wondering if we have a case of an article written by someone with a really bad understanding of the technology, who just strung together some pull quotes from their notebook and didn't realize that the context of the interview they are pulling from really means something totally different. My guess is that the reporter just asked some questions about EV applications because that's all they knew about, but the answers from the researcher, while positive, had provisos that the reporter didn't under stand or choose to ignore to make the story interesting.
What? And give Uber their cut? NO! we protest!
Napoleon.... A little problem solver that guy was.
I thought riots where a big problem...
Arrest who? The Uber drivers breaking the law or the protestors who are not generally breaking the law?
There IS money in doing exactly the opposite of what everybody else is doing... Congratulations on the accomplishment. Hope you can do it again..
Well... What can I say... Buy a smaller house and bunk beds for the kids then.... Oh, and stop having kids (or put a TV in the master bedroom).
Seriously, my point here is that we to often think that we cannot have what we want because it's too expensive or we don't make enough, but the truth usually is that we could afford that big thing if we'd stop wasting our income on unnecessary and unimportant things on a daily basis.
Actually, what's the harm in living in a trailer? It's possible to at least own a dwelling ...
Nothing, except for two things... 1. They are likely not allowed by local ordinance anywhere in Colorado near where you want to work so the commute is going to be long. 2. Most people will find them uncomfortable in the winter due to how dang cold it gets around Denver, Longmont etc...
But if your goal is to live cheaply and own something, then that's a good reason. I'm just guessing though that by the time you found land with water and got a trailer on it to live in, you are going to be coughing up some serious cash anyplace between Pueblo and Longmont. It's truly expensive to live there.
And if "another place to live" isn't within practical commuting distance of your job or of any employer hiring in the field for which you have trained, too bad.
Sucks, but you made a bad career choice if you didn't consider this. I'm not insensitive to your plight, but in reality it was YOUR choice of careers which puts you in the spot you are in. It might be time to take responsibility for your part in this and start making choices to deal with it.
In reality, most people in your position just don't realize that it's not the location or their career choice that is the problem, if you like what you do and where you can do it, that's great! What the problem REALLY is in the majority of these cases is that you wish to live beyond your means. I've seen it time and again (and did it for awhile myself) where people choose to have that flashy new car, that wiz bang shiny new tech toy, the latest smart phone, a plush apartment in a desirable location etc. Then they complain (like I did) that I can never have "nice things" like a home because I cannot afford them.
The truth is, that you likely CAN afford "nice things" like a home if you really want it, but such choices are made though a thousand tiny choices you make each day. Do you *need* that $5 Starbucks over what your home coffee maker puts out for $1? Is it that important to dump $8 for lunch every day when you can bring your lunch from home for much less? How about that $1 bottle of water from the vending machine over the drinking fountain and a cup from home? Don't get me started on that car payment and cell phone bill. You see, the problem is you cannot afford them ALL, but in reality practically nobody else can either.
I discovered that the way to get MORE nice stuff, is to BUY LESS JUNK. Don't live on credit where you pay interest on credit cards but pay off your balance monthly. Watch for ways you can save even a dollar or two a day, bring your lunch, make your own coffee, make do with fewer clothes or that fancy sporting equipment upgrade. Shop around for everything, clip coupons, eat at home. Be self disciplined have a budget and stick to your goals. If you want that house, save for it...
Well.... Could I strongly suggest layer 2 security on your network?
Look, your story, which I believe fully, just tells me that your company has some serious issues with physical security AND network security. You got darn lucky if you ask me. That you found anything is a wonder, but your perp was pretty stupid in how they went about this and left tracks. A more thoughtful offender wouldn't leave any traces, given your security. A couple of things you should seriously consider doing:
1. NEVER leave equipment which is unused laying about. Lock that stuff up so it doesn't walk away.
2. NEVER leave unused network ports wired to anything. Go into the wiring closet and disconnect any/all unused ports physically, or failing that put them onto a VLAN that goes nowhere. You simply cannot allow unauthorized and uncontrolled physical access to your network. (Your wiring closet does LOCK right?)
3. ALWAYS put Layer 2 ingress security in place. If the device isn't a known MAC on the expected port, don't pass traffic from it. (see #2) There may be exceptions to this rule in conference rooms and such, but MONITOR these if you leave them open.
4. Have policies in place to forbid employees from bringing stuff in from home. No personal hardware touches company computers, no personal software get's installed without approval etc. I know it doesn't prevent anything, but it gives the company justification for dealing swiftly and harshly with this kind of thing. Enforce the policy!
5. MONITOR YOUR NETWORK - Somehow, monitor your network. Look for new and unexplained MAC's, run a local DNS cache and monitor what's being hit, monitor firewall logs etc, I know monitoring systems are expensive, but do what you can with what you have.
So, where the MAC didn't get you much in your investigation, it was KEY in tracing down how the traffic entered your network. It might not have helped you that much, but that's more about your company's security posture than MAC addresses. Shame on you if you let a rouge MAC address onto your network through some wired port on a cheap hub and have issues tracing it down....
$6K can do a lot of repairs, and add to that the security deposit.... Keep significant security deposits and a wary eye on who you choose to rent the place to. I know there are legal limits, but you can pull credit histories, verify salary and get references before you accept a new tenant. Inspect the property often as well. You may not be able to enter without the tenants present depending on local law, but that doesn't mean you cannot knock on the door on the weekend and ask if there are any maintenance issues. Also, you start the eviction process with zero delay at the first justification.
Ways to attract bad tenants is being in the wrong location, having the rent too low for the area and not asking for security deposits which are big enough. Weed out the field by keeping rent in line with the market and having larger deposits. Avoid the wrong areas, stay middle class, unless you are willing to go with risk. Then verify income to cover the rent. People who are responsible will have money for the deposits and will know they can afford the rent. If they don't have a deposit, and/or the rent is more than half their income don't deal with them.
In my experience, finding tenants is a bit risky, but most people out there are responsible. If you are located in a middle class area, the chances of having issues with a tenant is there, but not that likely. But if that risk is too much for you, then I suggest you might be wrongly invested.
I think you need to re-read what I posted. I'm just opposed to government owning and operating infrastructure. It bloats the size of government unnecessarily and opens up avenues for graft and corruption. I am in favor of rules that forbid the owners of the "last mile" infrastructure which government has allowed (like the cable franchise in your local town) from not allowing competitive use. Perhaps going so far as to forbid them from dealing directly with retail customers. So competition yes, government owing and operating infrastructure, no.
A wise man says... "Bulls make money, bears make money, but hogs get slaughtered." To that I add, Brokers make a killing but own nothing. Which when you apply this to the current situation means you should be a realtor, or better yet a broker....
Just do it on your own.... Rent a place that is below what you can comfortably pay, get a roommate etc. Bank the excess. It's call saving for a down payment. Problem is that most 20 somethings are not disciplined enough to keep from spending their nest egg on useless junk, cell phones, flashy cars and the like. Well that and huge unnecessary student loans...
Oh darn, there goes the investments....
Actually, that's when you allow immigration in large numbers....
Don't worry, the government can just print more to pay for (enter pet project name for the day here), unless you are Greece, then something bigger keeps you from doing that.
Inflation hasn't yet hit for the money they've been printing of late, but there will be heck to pay when the economy actually takes off. We are in the Carter malaise for many of the same reasons....
The interesting question is how long can this last before we reach a level that is not affordable to the majority of the demographic that is being serviced.
Care to guess what happens at that point? New construction doesn't sell, developers go bankrupt, new construction is sold at auction for lower prices. Then the new units available at lower prices push down prices of other housing, which makes purchase more affordable, which results in renters buying, which curbs rent prices.
No matter what part of the cycle you're in, no matter what part of the country, one thing can be counted to be constant: idiots proclaiming that the current trend is the new reality and will last forever!
EXACTLY... This is what got us into that mess in 2008... Real Estate will NEVER go down in price, so who cares if the borrower cannot make the payments, the asset will be worth more by the time they default and we will still show a profit. Plus we get to take their down payment NOW..
Oh boy the bloom is off that rose.
Where I agree, having good tenants that don't tear up the place is great, I got to point out that it might not be worth it in the long run to be that far under market.
$500/month is $6K per year, and in 15 years that's $90K which could pay for 4 years of college at a LOT of pretty good schools at today's prices, and you don't have to sell the condo to do that. I'm no investment adviser, but I don't think leaving 1/4th of your possible profit on the table is a good idea.
If I was you, I'd seriously think about edging up that rent over the next few years until you are within a few hundred of the competition. Go half way each year, so next lease jump it to $1,650. Start banking the difference between rent and expenses and DON'T TOUCH it except for tuition or property repairs. If the tenants walk, don't mess around, jump to the market rate and hold large security deposits so you can weather any eviction storm. If that's too risky for you, sell the thing and find something with risk you can accept, there are things out there, but something tells me your tenants won't walk on you as long as you stay just under market and they can make the rent payments. It's great to be nice, just don't sell you and your family short in the process.
Might be time to select another place to live, some place with more affordable housing perhaps?
A trailer in Colorado? Woooo Hooo... Yea, that's going to work.
As you readily admit, "We have the technology to do this" now, which is true, so as I said, it's not an emergency, not something WE must do now or else. We don't even need to develop the technology, because as you say, it exists now.
This is a self fixing problem, one that will solve itself when the time comes, economic forces will make it happen. You are trying to artificially force the solution too soon. Relax, enjoy the ride and let the grand kids take care of it.
Look, the only way this really changes world wide is when economic pressure forces it. Fossil fuels will keep getting more and more expensive and eventually it will make sense to start doing something else. Until then, all you can accomplish is unilateral suicide and surrender to other people who don't care one bit about you living or dying (except that they wish you dead.)
Don't be emotional and do stupid things... Just relax and let it happen on it's own.
My problem with the heat was keeping the flexible tubes in the engine compartment in place, and the fact that the door seals and fresh air box where pretty much missing. Defrost/defog was a rag in the passenger seat too...
But I totally agree, fun and easy to drive, extremely reliable if you took reasonable care of them. Mine where hot when it was hot and cold when it wasn't, but that's the nature of driving around with 65 horses and no AC and the fact that I was to cheap to eliminate all the drafts mine had. They are easy to fix on your own if you can find the parts, which is pretty much mail order these days.
Ah what I'd give for 26+ mpg again.... Apparently it's not AC, given I live in Texas now.. ;)
So.... Invest in research and development for tomorrow's technology, just stop with this "we got to stop using fossil fuels now!" hype and I'm not going to object..
It's not an emergency.... Won't be one for my lifetime or my grand kids lifetimes for that matter... Prepare for the future? Sure. However, it's not time to panic about the issue and run out and do something stupid and rash.
Everything you say is true with the following provisos....
I'm into cheap transportation, which was why I drove a Bug. Where I did do the electronic ignition thing to avoid the timing drifting as the points wear and faster starts, for the rest I went with cheap, which was stock parts. So where all the things you suggest exist, I was too cheap. Not to mention that at the time, the costs of the upgrades would have exceeded the value of the car by a number of times. On to my provisos.
First, you really want to be changing the oil often in a bug. Of course the maintenance schedule was for non-detergent, non-synthetic oils so having a synthetic blend does allow some extension of the 3,000 mile interval, but there are few things to consider. 1. Oil is used to cool this thing. 2. There is very little oil to start with (3.5 quarts), 3. there is no filter (unless you figure on the Oil Cooler doing that). If you keep this all stock, I'd suggest you never go over 4,500 miles between changes, even with the best oil you can find. Waiting too long puts junk in the oil cooler, and a plugged cooler is a one way ticket to major engine damage. Change the oil, it's cheap enough still.
Second, you never set the timing of a VW Bug using the timing light, but unless you've done it before I wouldn't expect you to know. These beasties need to be set using a static timing method to TDC where the notch on the crank pulley lines up with the split in the case. You can time them using a timing light, but with the vacuum and centrifugal advance it's really hard to know where to set it at idle, and I can assure you it's not 0 degrees from TDC but somewhat advanced if memory serves. With a standard ignition on a quiet morning I could set the timing with just a crescent wrench (by listening to the arc when the points opened) but once I put the electronic ignition it took just a light bulb across the coil to ground.
But that's just me, Mr cheap-o transportation who had less than $1,000 total invested in his car... I make more money now so I can afford something with AC and reliable heat....