If you happen to have Splinter Cell: Conviction flicker issues, where various in-game objects flash on and off and there's bands of strange flicker ... try turning off Crossfire / SLI.  Fixed it for me, though good luck finding specific mention of this anywhere.

I was about due for a blog entry anyway!

Sorry guys --

When I moved to Lighttpd, the way the rewrite rules work is a little funny.  In short, I recently realized that a bunch of people have been trying to download my JSON RPC example zip file and have been getting 404 errors.  Sorry -- I have corrected this problem!

This is a strange article to have up, I know.  But it might be useful to someone so I'll throw it up here.

Self propelled lawnmowers rock.  If you don't have the storage space, money, or your yard is just plain too hilly for a riding mower, they're the best.  For around $50.00 to $100.00 more than an average pusher mower, you can get one that can help push itself.

And it makes a big difference.  Lawn mowing used to be such an epic chore -- I have a .8 acre lot, which is a lot of land.  But it's hilly and oddly shaped so a riding mower is impractical (not to mention my garage is full and I have no idea where to put it -- and even the cheapest rider is in the $500 - $600 range).  I used to use a push mower.  It would take me two days to mow the lawn; I would mow until I ran out of gas, then stumble inside and collapse.  Then I'd finish the next day.

It was exhausting, it was painful, and it's dreadful in the North Carolina heat and humidity.  However, the pusher makes it okay; I finish the lawn in a reasonable amount of time, without having to refuel.  I can't quite call the job "pleasant" but I can call it "tollerable".  There are actually moments where I can understand why some people enjoy this work.

So which one to get?  I got a Lawnboy; unfortunately I don't know the model number, but it's the cheapest of it's self propelled line.  20 inch deck and "ready start" technology (not the key -- I'll get into why the key sucks in a minute!).  Lawn mowers are something I want to buy in person; so I went to Lowes and Home Depot.  The local Lowes had a wider selection but the cost to entry was higher; so I bought mine at Home Depot.  I also looked at Sears online, but that only helped convince me that I wanted to buy it in person (Sears was also more expensive for what I was looking for).

There is probably a wider selection online, and maybe there's other stores too, but I just didnt' care that much about getting the bottom dollar -- the one I got was actually on the low end of what I budgeted for the project so I was happy.  It has been several weeks now and I don't have the receipt, but I think I paid around $250 for it.

Here's some thoughts I'd like to put out there:

Front wheel drive is good.  I have a rear-wheel drive one.  If you can get a front wheel drive in your price range, then do it!  The reason you want front wheel drive is the same reason you want it on your car; makes turning a lot better.

You will find self propelled mowers are somewhat difficult to push when not being self propelled (i.e. when the throttle, or even the mower itself, is off).  This is to be expected because you're dealing with a very basic drive section.  My mower "clicks" when you push it like when you peddle a bicycle backwards; I think a similar thing is in play here so you're fighting a resistance as you push.

Anyway -- that means turning sucks because you can't control the front end when the back end is pushing.  Front wheel drive should mean you can steer and self-propell; rear-wheel drive means you have to fight it to turn, or do a careful wheely (which the manual doesn't want you to do) to ease the turn.  I admit I do the wheelie; I sort of lift the front end an inch up and lean it on one of the wheels slightly to execute a turn.  This is a Bad Idea, but I do it anyway because otherwise it sucks.

DO NOT GET THE KEY START!  I can't stress it enough.  The key starter is the stupidest thing ever.  For one thing, on my mower line, it's a $50.00 difference.  The difference between my mower and the next "step up" is $50.00 and the key starter.  That's it.

Why no key start?  Because that requires a BATTERY ... and mowing is a hassle enough without the obligation to plug it into the wall when you're done.  The "ready start" thing means I only have to pull the thing once, maybe twice, to get it started and I never have to prime.  So ... why get the key start?  To pay $50.00 and be obligated to plug in the mower?  To have the battery eventually no longer take a charge?  To risk having the mower not ready when I'm ready to go?  No thanks.  Stupidest idea ever.

Also... don't get a self propelled mower if your yard has a lot of 'detail' work.  Mine has a lot of long stretches of back and forth and a lot of up and down hill -- which is perfect.  If you have a lot of planters to spin around or trees or shrubs... don't do it.  The self propelleds don't take turns well, especially the rear wheel drive ones (as stated above, I believe the front wheel drive ones are far superior).  Better off with a pusher I would think, unless you have a lot of detail and a lot of straightaways as well ...

Anyway, just my random thought of the day!

I've added a guide on how to root a samsung moment.  See the 'Projects' list to the left.  This guide is purely for entertainment reasons and is a fictional account.  Tanabicom, LLC is not responsible for any destroyed phones.  Tanabicom, LLC does not advocate the practice of rooting phones or otherwise do naughty things.  Tanabicom, LLC does, however, advocate freedom and the right to choose what software you want to run on your personal devices.

... A random question of, "I wonder if NitroFill has ever killed anyone?" leads to a math problem determining that it probably can't.

Nitro-fill is where they fill your tires with Nitrogen.  This led me to wonder if anyone had ever deflated their tires and changed the nitrogen content of the room they're in to suffocate.  Or alternatively, considering one usually squats close to the tire as one is deflating the tire, could one inhale enough nitrogen to kill one's self?

The answer turns out to be no.  There's not enough volumn in the tire to significantly impact the surrounding air.  For a 10x10x10 air-tight cube, it only impacts the nitrogen content of the surrounding air (which is already mostly nitrogen) by around a percent at worst.

And, were you to directly inhale straight from the tire ... you'd black out, but chances are you'd just fall over and start breathing the normal air after a few moments.

This has been a random nerd moment, brought to you by Tanabicom.