The tenants of Solipsism postulate that MY experiences are the ONLY provable experiences.  When you speak about pain, such as, you cannot really speak accurately about someone else’s pain but only your own.  It also implies that you cannot really ever describe your pain to another person since it is uniquely yours and anyone trying to interpret your description can only do so using analogs in their own mind from their own experiences.  Deep shit right?

Well, I had a situation that was uniquely painful that I want to share with you.  I have a nice laptop from a major computer maker that I am sure you are all familiar with.  lets just say they had a catchy ad campaign a while back where a jerky teen went around pointing out that folks were “gettin’ a (insert manufacturer here)”.  This laptop is small and portable like most laptops are and had been a fun, useful machine for me for a long while now.  Suddenly the last few weeks it gradually has been harder and harder to power on.  Some thorough testing and research revealed to me that the coin cell, sometimes called the button cell battery that powers the BIOS was failing and needed to be replaced.  Much to my dismay, more research on the process of replacing the battery yielded a sobering answer.  I will have to tear t his damned machine UTTERLY apart to do the job.  I don’t just mean removing some parts and pieces I mean, the process involves taking the machine apart to the BARE METAL!

Not only is the battery positioned under 5 layers of other components but it is upside down on the bottom of the motherboard which must be removed to get to it.  I sat shocked and quietly crying for an hour while I mulled around in my mind what options I have.  The battery itself is a standard button type 2032 used in everything from hearing aids to remote controls.  That’s easy to get.  The process seemed very daunting.  I even went as far as asking my buddy Jim, who is a much more detail oriented guy than I am how much he would charge me to do the job.  He refused to quote me stating that’s what friends are for.  What a guy my buddy Jim is.

I bought the battery but just could not bring myself to take the machine over to Jim’s shop.  I felt half guilty at sticking him with such an inane job and one half stupefied at my reluctance to do it myself.  A week went by and I cam home early today for the long weekend and decided I would not let this job scare me.  So I started about 3:00 PM.  It was not as hard as i thought it would be, just tedious.  I had a collection of small quarter sized, plastic ice cream container lids to put all the sundry screws in.  Thanks to my honey who saved them just for situations such as this.  I grabbed some small post it notes and a set of jewelers screwdrivers and set to work.

About 4:45 the job was done.  It was time to test the machine.  Would it boot?  I can happily say that this post was done entirely on that little laptop as a burn in test.  HOWEVER…

I would not wish that experience on anyone. Sophists say, you can’t really understand unless you have done it anyway.

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    Hard drives by nature are NOT portable.  Yes manufacturers can put them in fancy shock proof containers and call them “portable” but the device is should still not be moved about to any great degree during use or even when powered down.  Long ago I worked for del.l During their orientation they described how a hard drive operates  in real word equivalents.  The example was that of a Boeing 747 jet flying about 25 feet of the ground at full speed.  The read/write head assembly across the spinning disks travels at a very high-speed and even if the actuator of the drive has shock resistance any movement of the drive can bang the head against the disk causing scuffs, scratches and the like.  The bane of a hard drive’s existence is fine particles of dust or any other detrius such as chips of disk platen that could potentially bounce around ruining whole sections of the disk while it is spinning.  Now hopefully you see what I mean.

  Equipped with your newfound knowledge you can clearly see that old style hard disks are not a great long-term backup solution.  Solid State Drives have few or no moving parts.  These are the best choice if you need to move the backup medium around from place to place .  Such drives do not suffer the ill effects since there are no heads to damage and no platens  to damage.

    This is still only part of the solution since no matter what medium you choose for your backups, having all your proverbial “eggs” in one “basket” is a bad idea.  Double or even triple backup redundancy is a must if you value your data at all.  That is where writable Dual Layer DVDs come in.  I often use these as a secondary backup method.

    So there you have it.  In a perfect world you use a SSD for your daily backups.  You can even carry that around with you wherever you go without worrying too much about your data.  Backup every month or so to a stationary hard drive, portable or otherwise.  Lastly, I would also suggest every 6 months or so a backup to hard media is the amount of data and cost is within reason.

    Remember kids backup, backup, backup.

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#15 Rob Reiner

• This is Spinal Tap
• When Harry met Sally
• The Princess Bride
• A Few Good Men
• Stand by Me
• Throw Momma from the Train
• Misery

      When I was researching this list I almost fell out of my chair because I, to my surprise, did not realize how many fo Rob’s movies have affected me.  Just out of high school I can vividly remember watching this This is Spinal Tap. I quote The Princess Bride almost daily.  I have a strange unnerving fear of cast iron frying pans thanks to Throw Momma from the Train.  I wont even get into how bad my ankles hurt any time I see Kathy Bates now.  This guy definitely influenced my life.

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#14 Peter Jackson

• Dead Alive
• Bad Taste
• The Frighteners
• Lord of the Rings Trilogy
• King Kong

    How does a guy get from making strange, amazing, horror comedies to making the Lord of the Rings.  I remember watching  Bad Taste and Dead Alive.They freaked me out as a teenager. The grand, epic scope of the Lord of the Rings films makes Jackson a director I can relate to. I must be one of the few people on the planet that loved his King Kong remake.

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#13 Alfred Hitchcock

• Rear Window
• The Birds
• Vertigo
• Psycho

    I can thank Mr. Hitchcock for introducing me to one of my favorite film genres, Horror.  Psycho will for me, like many, always make taking a shower interesting.  The Birds and The Rear Window are also favs of mine.  You have to watch those crazy taxidermists right?

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#12 David Cronenberg

• Videodrome
• The Incredible Melting man
• Scanners
• Naked Lunch
• M. Butterfly
• The Fly
• Eastern Promises

    This guy taught me to have a strong stomach.  he also showed me the joys of seeing things that you just can’t believe.  The master of “Body Horror” I cant go more than a week without sitting transfixed watching one of Cronenberg’s movies.

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#11 David Lynch

• Eraserhead
• Blue Velvet
• The Elephant Man
• Dune

    This guy made the list for two reasons.  I watched the Elephant man when I was a young adult after I read some things about the person the movie was based on.  I was mesmerized by the direction and, of course the acting.  This movie made me understand that I had and continue to have a LOT to be thankful for.  Dune on the other hand was a wildly fantastical Sci-Fi Epic that it took me 4 viewings to fully understand, but once I did the richness of the movie and the direction sticks with me even now.

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# 10 Clint Eastwood

• High Plains Drifter
• Sudden Impact
• Pale Rider
• Heartbreak Ridge
• Unforgiven
• Million Dollar Baby
• Letters from Iwo Jima
• Gan Torino

    I am pretty jazzed that in my lifetime I have been able to enjoy Clint as both an amazing actor and more recently a timely director.  His movies about the west were my introduction to the western and his direction of Pale Rider and Unforgiven made me realize he was a master of both crafts.

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#9 Martin Scorsese

• Taxi Driver
• Raging Bull
• Goodfellas
• Cape Fear
• Gangs of New York
• Aviator
• The Departed

    Scorsese films showed me the seedy and often mentally off sides of life.  I can still relate to these touched individuals thanks to the brilliant direction given.  I remember his films teaching me that odd is OK and for a geek that means a lot.

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#8 Ridley Scott

• The Duelists
• Alien
• Blade Runner
• Legend
• Gladiator
• Kingdom of Heaven
• Robin Hood

    What can I say about this man?  His films are both prolific and relevant.  Ridley showed me both as a youth and as an adult that storytelling is without a doubt NOT a lost art form.  I can VIVIDLY remember how scared I was while I watched Alien, how transfixed I was watching Blade Runner, and how amazed at the imagery that existed in Legend.  I STILL to this day watch all these movies over and over and find new things every time.

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#7 Terry Gilliam

• Monty Python and the Holy Grail
• Time Bandits
• Brazil
• The Adventures of Baron Munchausen
• The Fisher King
• 12 Monkeys

    I am a huge Monty Python fan.  Lets face it British humor is something you either get or you don’t, but Terry’s films take that quirky oddness to a whole different level.  His movies brought fascination and silliness into my life at a time when I needed it.  I will forever think of how many times I watched Time Bandits to try to understand it.  Now that I get it I LOVE IT.  That’s really the way it is with all these films.

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#6 Tim Burton

• Beetlejuice
• Edward Scissor Hands
• The Nightmare Before Christmas
• Batman
• Batman Returns

    Burton ranks pretty high on this list because of my connection to him as an artist.  Being an illustrator first and a computer jockey second I can totally relate to hos he fell into film making.  I have grown up watching Tim’s progress from obscure artistic interpretations, to comedies and then darker fare.  I will always see him when i discuss dark thought-provoking films.

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# 5 John Carpenter

• Assault on Precinct 13
• Halloween Series
• The Thing
• The Fog
• Escape from New York
• Star Man
• Big Trouble in Little China
• Prince of Darkness
• They Live
• Vampires
• Villiage of the Damned

    Carpenter is one of my all time favorite directors.  The list of his movies that I would happily re watch any time is filled with his films.  It does not just stop at his directorial works but his soundtrack talents as well.  I attribute my love of synth music to him.

#4 Mel Brooks

• Blazing Saddles
• Young Frankenstein
• History of the World Part 1
• Spaceballs
• Life Stinks
• Robin Hood Men in Tights

    Mel Brooks is a master of the spoof comedy.  When I feel the worst in my life I can ALWAYS flip on one of his films and laugh my blues away.  The dialog of his films while humorous is also clever and smart.  His films make me feel good and I love to share my love of his movies with others.  Sharing them with my kids for the first time I think is one of the greatest moments I ever had as a father.

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#3 Stanley Kubrik

• Spartacus
• Dr. Strangelove
• 2001 A Space Odyssey
• A Clockwork Orange
• The Shining
• Full Metal Jacket
• Eyes Wide Shut

    Kubrik’s amazing attention to detail in his films and his tremendous eye for camera work is what I attribute as one of the driving factors in my overall love of film.  Spartacus is an amazing film even after all these years. A clockwork Orange not only made me think about the future but feel it.  2001 is a movie that is as brilliant in execution as it is to look at.  Kubrik is definitely one of the greatest of  filmmakers of all time and one of my favorites too.

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#2 George Lucas

• THX 1138
• American Graffiti
• Star Wars series

    Now I know what you’re saying, this guy is not a really great director.  Well, that may be true, but I cannot deny that the films Lucas has directed have influenced my life’s fiber in almost every way.  I grew up living and breathing Star Wars.  I had toys.  I ate branded Happy Meals.  I drank out of emblazoned glasses.  I wore clothes with images from the films.  There is not one aspect of my childhood and now my adult life that I can not reference some Star Wars films in.  Nuff Said.

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#1 Steven Spielberg 

• Jaws
• Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind
• 1941
• Raiders of the Lost Ark Series
• E.T.
• Twilight Zone
• The Color Purple
• Empire of the Sun
• A.I.
• Hook
• Jurassic Park
• Saving Private Ryan
• Minority Report
• AND ON AND ON

    What Can I say?  Spielberg is number one on my list for the most part due to his huge confluence of films and the sheer number of them.  I have enjoyed is films over the course of my entire life.  I can almost note a film of his that I love for every year or so since I started watching movies.  I can quote lines from almost all his films.  I know trivia and details about his films that would blow your mind.  The fact that his movies stand the test of time coupled with the fact that he is STILL making movies blows my mind.  Of all the directors I know of he fits MY definition of what a director is better than any other.  I want to know all the movies he has ever made. 

…so that’s  my list.  If you read through all that then I applaud you.  I almost did not think I would finish this as it turned out to be a MUCH larger task than I anticipated.  Cheers.

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   I often work on peoples computers. I do it for fun. I do it to make connections with people.  I do it because there is a need.  I lost count long ago of how many friends I have made with this philosophy.  Most of the time I get paid in the end by having improved my friendships or making connections that lead to other paying jobs.  I don’t look at it as work. I look at it as a way to share with folks and get to know people.

    Well, tonight I had the distinct pleasure of getting to know one of my coworkers and her family better while taking care of a little computer issue they had.  Not sure I helped much, just checked the main components, vid card, memory, power supply, you know.  Luckily it wasn’t anything major.  Few component reseats and a bios reset and viola, a booting PC.

    What made the night super special was that payment I mentioned.  I had AMAZING Thai food cooked in a real, as they put it, “working kitchen” by my friend’s husband.  I have had Thai before but after this meal I would like to say I have NEVER had Thai until tonight.  Thai beer, Green Curry with Beef, Lemon grass Shrimp soup with Thai chilies, read that as super HOT, and fresh fried rice with chicken.  I loved every bite.  I loved the company and conversation.  I don’t write about every meal but I felt like this one was worth noting. 

    So here’s to Lisa and Rick who treated me like family just for helping them with a computer problem. Thanks guys!

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The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Who could ever get that crazy theremin soundtrack out of their head.  I LOVE this movie. Even today if I am channel surfing and land on this flick I stop and HAVE to watch.  An interesting tidbit about this film is that the book it was based on has a COMPLETELY different ending.  In the original short story that Klatu the human was actually just a speaker and the robot was the MASTER.

The War of the Worlds (1953)

H.G. Wells was a genius, lets face it.  When I first saw this film as a kid I loved the colors, the scenery and the special effects.  The movie lead me to read the actual novel which is quite different than the movie.  Walter Lantz the creator of Woody woodpecker and George Pal the director were good friends and  if you look close you can actually see Woody make an appearance in a treetop as the first Martian meteor crashes to the ground.

Them! (1954)

A movie about giant, atomic, mutant ants is a movie you just HAVE to see.  As a child I remember my dad playing this movie for me at his job in a pizza parlor on an old film projector.  Although the beginning titles are in color the film itself is black and white.  It was originally supposed to be in 3-D but the 3-D camera malfunctioned when they began to shoot the film.

Forbidden Planet (1956)

Leslie Neilson, Flying Saucers, and Robbie the Robot.  Nuff’ said!

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

Sitting in a dark room with al the lights off watching this movie will give you chills. I promise.  I saw this movie as a teen after watching a pretty dull remake in 1978.  It captures a sense of tension and isolation and fear that is very palpable. When the film was released nationally in early 1956, many theatres displayed several of the pods (made of paper) at theatre lobbies and entrances

The Fly (1958)

One of THE quintessential monster movies of all time.  Vincent price, technicolor, wild electrical and scientific equipment.  Experimenting with living creatures What could possibly go wrong?

The Time Machine (1960)

Considered the companion piece to the earlier War of the Worlds movie.  Once again George Pal directed and produced this H.G. Wells masterpiece.  The movie studio art director actually built the machine installing a plate stating that the machine was manufactured by  H. George Wells as a tribute.

The Day of the Triffids (1962)

Man eating, MOBILE plants that are the result of a meteor shower. Not the most inventive of films, but it holds a real lock on my heart because the idea really caught my imagination.  You can actually see a “Triffid” plant on board the space craft in the movie E.T.

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

What can one say about this, the ultimate Sci-fi film.  Not only is it often referred to as one of the greatest films of all time but it contains the pantheon of Sci-fi devices.  Time shifting, aliens, space craft, robots, computers, space walks, space suits, the list goes on and on.  The soundtrack is superb.  The acting is good.  The camera work and pacing are like nothing else.  THIS WAS MADE IN 68′? It’s just amazing.  Kubric pioneered the use of use front projectionwith retroreflective matting to produce the backdrops for the African scenes showing ape-men against vast natural-terrain backgrounds, as traditional techniques such as painted backdrops or rear-projection did not produce the realistic look Kubrick demanded.

Planet of the Apes (1968)

Charlton Heston is undoubtedly one of my favorite actors.  He brings a great depth and humanity fo a film that tries its damnedest to be inhuman.  Hallmarks of Sci-fi abound here.  You have time travel, space travel, and a real Robinson Caruso feel.  Jerry Goldsmith’s soundtrack is eerie and bleak and compliments the film perfectly.  Best of all you have hundreds of folks running around in rubber ape masks!

    I  would say that’s a pretty sound list of older Sci-fi.  I love all these movies and more.  Do yourselves a favor and check out ALL of these.  Don’t let the fact that some are old or only black and white discourage you.  These are ALL worthy additions to any movie buffs viewed list.  Ciao!

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    I was looking into the  origins of the word “nerd”.  It seems that in 1950 the term “nerd” was first used by Dr. Seuss in the book “If I ran the Zoo”.  It was a description of a little creature and had little to do with the common term we all know today.

    Just thought you all might enjoy that bit of info.  It made me laugh.

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