Truth in advertising; Fargo claims of being a true story

Question: Isn't it against the law to blatantly lie to the viewing public?  If the TV series Fargo is not true then why do they say it is?
Comment: Lying in general isn't against the law in most/all territories, and Fargo isn't an advertisement.  Your point is?
Comment: Is this question really a duplicate? The one that is linked is addressing whether or not the events really are true or not. This question asks how they are able to claim it is true when it is not.
Comment: Questions about the law are best answered by lawyers
Comment: @sanpaco totally agree. does not make sense, and this question deserves an answer!
Answer: No. It is not against the law. Otherwise the Coen brothers (and many others) would be in jail.
Also, to just name one other occurrence of the "true story" bit before a movie, eleven years earlier, 1985's Return of the Living Dead also claimed to be based on a true story. The trailer is here, and the movie (for however long it lasts), is here. EDIT : The YouTube version doesn't have the screenshot I was talking about, so I captured it from my DVD copy:

And that movie is about lucid, fast zombies.
Movies are not encyclopedias. They are not facts overseen by a committee to ensure accuracy. Even docudramas and biopics are not 100% accurate.
Sound advice:

If you're wondering how he eats and breathes
And other science facts,
Just repeat to yourself  "It's just a show,
I should really just relax
For Mystery Science Theater 3000."


Prove Cesàro mean using the weak law of large numbers

Question: Is it possible to prove that the Cesàro mean of a converging sequence is the limit of the sequence through probabilities using the weak law of large numbers ? Has it ever been done ?
Answer: The weak law of large numbers usually concerns the case where the initial sequence is divergent. So there is no chance to apply the LLN.
Comment: I don't really get it. What do you mean by saying it usually concerns that case ? In what way does it entail we can't apply it to this problem ?
Comment: @Minipipo1, because LLN usually speaks about a sequence of independent random variables. Such sequence can converge only to a deterministic limit. This virtually removes stochasticity from the LLN, almost transforming it to a deterministic result.


Multiple icons in dock?

Question: Is it possible to have multiple icons open for multiple instances of an application? For example, if I have two pdf's open, can I have two "preview" icons open in the doc bar?
Answer: You can open multiple instances of a mac application using open -n terminal command. Eg. open -n image2.pdf
More information.
Answer: Because I have to do that quite often : Yes, it is indeed possible and it makes use of the command provided in the answer by kekub.
Just create an application with Automator:
1) Open Automator
2) Choose "Application"
3) Search for the Shell-Script workflow element
4) Change the Input to "As Arguments"
5) Adjust the Shell script like this :

    for f in "$@"
    do
        open -a preview -n "$f"
    done

6) Save the Programm as Something like "Preview+"
7) Optional :  Change the default application for images to this created app
8) Optional : Move it to the dock and drop images on it.
Now for each Image there will be a new instance of Preview.
You can do that with every app you like.
Comment: Nice! I will try this out when I get home.

Multiple icons in dock?


How to get to level 40 and beyond in The Witcher 3

Question: Currently I'm level 39 and I have finished the main story, HoS expansion and all the witcher contracts. My question is where do I go to quest, kill monsters to get to lvl40 and beyond so I can use the Black unicorn sword.
Comment: Why don't you start a New Game+ ? This allows you to use your save with your level/items/stuff and do the plot one more time, this time with enemies scaling to your level, which means faster exp.
Comment: All to use that sword? But wouldn't you need a worthy enemy to fight?
Answer: You have three options

Grind and explore, very slow, even if you happen upon another new quest.
Start a newgame+, which scales everything up to your level, allows you to play everything again.
Wait for the Blood & Wine expansion (will be released in summer, current rumors say 7th of June), which will certainly provide additional content to get past lvl 40.

Personally, I went with option 3, my character is currently Level 39 as well.


Is there a low-e alternative to double-pane gas-filled window panes?

Question: I spoke with a local glass retailer and he said instead of using double-pane gas filled windows, I could instead use a 3-layer sandwich of, say, 1/8", 1/4", 1/8" panes to achieve the same efficiency. Did I hear that right? Is there any truth to this? If so, can someone point me to the details on this?
Answer: Sort-of.
Windows are a huge pile of tradeoffs and conflicting constraints.
More layers of glass trap more layers of air for more insulation - true. Is it the same, more, or less insulation than a particular gas-filled sealed double-pane unit? You have to compare the specific pair, because both vary.
More layers of glass also block more light (glass does not transmit 100% of light - if it transmits 90% (which is typical, but also can vary with specific cases), then two layers is 81% and three is 73% (and 4 would be 65%)
The gas fill in sealed gas filled windows offers an advantage on the insulation front without increasing light loss. It also is a thing that can leak out over time and as the seals fail, and the sealed unit nature becomes a problem when the seals fail and condensed water is trapped in the unit.
Coatings ("low-E") on the glass can affect both the light transmission and the heat loss. Specific coatings may be more effective at trapping interior heat or at preventing exterior solar heat gain, and which you want will vary with how much of your utility load is spent on heating or cooling, though which is easily/affordably available in your local market may not always reflect that as you would hope. i.e. I'm in a primary heating climate and was looking at triple the price to get windows not optimized for air conditioning. Coatings also affect the light transmission and color. Many coatings are only available on sealed units, where they are protected on the inside of the unit.
So, to compare windows, you really need to get specific - U or R value (U is 1/R, so a low U is a high R, and "high R" for a window is so low that most window makers prefer to confuse the average consumer by not providing the R value), light transmission percentage, and Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SGHC) are probably the major points to compare.
There is a considerable variation in individual examples of triple-glazed and gas-filled double-pane windows, such that you can't generalize to a meaningful extent. There are both good and terrible examples of both types. Likewise, there are gas-filled triple-glazed units and non-filled double-glazed units available.
Comment: MIght be worth mentioning the obvious, that triple-pane will weigh 50% more (roughly) than double-pane.
Comment: U value is confusing for consumers, but handy for engineers as it can only range from 0 (perfect) to 1 (no insulation), whereas R value ranges from 0 to infinity. Light transmission percentage is often presented as "visible transmissivity", a range from 0 (opaque) to 1 (clear).
Comment: Vacuum IGUs are also starting to become a thing (Pilkington Spacia seems to be the only product in that vein in current production, but there is quite a bit of R&D work going on in that space all the same)
Comment: +1 for you. TLTR, but generally you're right. It's complicated.
Answer: There are a couple of alternatives, but they aren't as readily available
The good news is that there are energy-efficient alternatives to pure "gas in glass" double/triple pane technology; however, they aren't quite as available on the North American residential market as conventional "gas in glass" IGUs are.
The more established alternative is suspended-film IGU technology, with either an air (LiteView) or gas (Alpen HPP) fill.  These IGUs consist of two outer glass panes, with one or more coated suspended films suspended between the two panes to break up the interior into multiple chambers.  As a high-performance alternative, they offer weight and profile advantages over multiple-pane units, and also have a long track record of success, with Alpen having used them for 40 years in commercial work, and making them available in a variety of fiberglass frames (either GFR-uPVC or standard GFR-polyester) for residential applications.  LiteView seems to be newer on the market, but offers an intriguing combination of air fill and fiberglass spacers that have the potential for an even longer lifespan yet.
The upstart choice is what is known as a vacuum IGU, or VIG, unit.  These have only been commercialized quite recently (as of the past decade to decade and a half), with Pilkington offering their Spacia product for architectural and retrofit applications, and VIG Technologies and LandGlass working with Vitro Glazing (aka PPG Glass) to bring the LandVac tempered VIG technology to the US market. The upshot of this is that you get a very thin unit (Spacia units are scarcely thicker than standard single pane glass) with double-pane performance.  However, availability is an issue, as I don't know of any residential window manufacturers in North America employing VIG technology.  If you're getting totally custom architectural windows made for you, you might be able to get your glazier to incorporate Spacia, but that's not going to be cheap!
Comment: It's just for one window right now, so we could pay a bit more. Ideally it would be in a thin steel frame for aesthetics.
Comment: @nielsbot the LiteView folks claim that their suspended-film IGUs are sturdy enough that they can be directly installed into a wall without the aid of a normal window frame.  Obviously, the resulting "window" is fixed, not operable, but given that metal frames need a good thermal break to get any sort of R-value out of the results, it might be worth looking into in your situation
Answer: Yes, triple pane windows have ratings given by the manufacturers.
These are U values or R values depending how you want to work.
We used them as part of our super insulated house - 30cm wall insulation etc
Comment: @JimStewart like any window they don't like bricks...
Comment: What are the failure modes of these triple pane windowsi? What is the service life?
Comment: Are there problems incorporating windows into brick veneer over stud walls or do you mean the incorporation into solid structural brick walls?
Comment: @JimStewart -- triple-pane "gas in glass" IGUs are no different failure-mode/service-life wise than their double-pane counterparts AFAICT
Comment: Getting bored, some (idiot) removed information about the construction of the house I gave... Won't bother anymore.


How to implement a company-internal icon gallery

Question: I love writing my own web-based applications, but don't want to succumb to the not invented here syndrome.  So before I go write this myself, I'm looking for solutions that either do this, or perhaps frameworks (like Django or Joomla, etc.) that give me a starting point fairly close to what I need.

My company produces software with a large variety of user interfaces.  We've decided to keep an icon database where one can search for icons by size, keyword, etc, track there they've been used so far, upload them, browse them, etc.

I've toyed with the idea of starting with an "image gallery" (Gallery, Coppermine, 4homepages, etc) but I was hoping for something that allows us to track versions of the icons, like we do for all our other source files, and I'm sure the attributes we track alongside each icon will expand over time, so it needs to be easily extensible.

So what do people suggest I use as a solution or starting point for a solution?
Answer: Sounds like you need a DAM system


In a futarchy, how do you measure the success of a specific proposal?

Question: Concrete example: in a futarchy system, we have 3 current indices, Ia, Ib, Ic, reflecting desired values, and 3 proposals P1, P2, P3 just passed. In 1 year, you measure the indices and confirm that they increased, which means the proposals succeeded. Problem is, how do you pick which proposals were responsible for the good effects? It could very well be the case that proposal P1 and P2 were outstanding, but P3 was awfully damaging. Since the overall indices increased, you can't detect that P3 was a bad choice, you can only assert the group of proposals did good.
Answer: As usually framed, futarchy doesn't involve waiting to see what has the best result when actually implemented. The idea is that you get people to bet in advance about what they think will have the best result, then you implement that.
Imagine GM want to increase their stock price, and they're wondering whether it would help if they fired their CEO. You give people the ability to bet on two different markets: The price in a world where GM did fire their CEO and the price where GM didn't fire their CEO. The simplest way to do this is just to void any bets on the market premised on an outcome that didn't happen. So you can bet on both markets, the one where the CEO was fired and the one where they won't, but your stake for the one that isn't implemented will simply be returned to you.
Set up this way there should be no particular limit to how many propositions you can test simultaneously. However, there may of course be situations where you want to test a bundle of propositions. "Sell the Toyota and buy a Mazda" and "Keep the Toyota and don't buy a Mazda" may be good ideas where "Sell the Toyota and don't buy a Mazda" and "Keep the Toyota and buy a Mazda" are both bad ideas.
In the context of a DAO you would typically have a token with its value taking the place of GM stock. One suggested approach is to enable buying and selling of the token with the proviso, "this sale only happens if proposition P1 is passed". This will set up a market in the token and produce a price, which can then be used to feed back into the decision whether the proposition passes or not. As with GM stock, you can run P2 and P3 in parallel.


How to establish your (yearly) savings rate in GnuCash?

Question: Title says it all... pretty much.
 Maybe this exercise is really simple and this question a bit silly: I'd guess it's simply the sum of all expenses (i.e. expense accounts) over the sum of all income, per time period, e.g. per year (1 Jan - 31 Dec). But happy to get some ideas / comments on how to think about it / what steps are involved in establishing it via GnuCash...

Related resources:

What is the Savings Rate?
The savings rate is a measurement of the amount of money, expressed as
a percentage or ratio, that a person deducts from their disposable
personal income to set aside as a nest egg or for retirement.
In economic terms, saving is a choice to forego some current
consumption in favor of increased future consumption, so the savings
rate reflects a person or group's rate of time preference. The savings
rate is also related to the marginal propensity to save.
(...)
The savings rate is the percentage of disposable personal income that
a person or group of people save rather than spend on consumption.

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/savings-rate.asp
How exactly do I determine my savings rate?
https://savology.com/savings-rate-what-is-it-and-why-is-it-important
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/saving-rate-is-is-gross-or-net/
https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-the-savings-rate-5198647
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/17/savings-rate-formula-will-show-you-how-close-you-are-to-retiring-early.html
https://www.gnucash.org/docs/v4/C/gnucash-guide.pdf
https://lists.gnucash.org/pipermail/gnucash-devel/2012-April/033843.html ("Savings Rate Report")
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12025912 ("your savings rate, as a percentage of your take-home pay")
https://networthify.com/calculator/earlyretirement
https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/01/13/the-shockingly-simple-math-behind-early-retirement/
https://github.com/BenBergman/gnucash-custom-reports/blob/master/savings-rate.scm
https://www.gnu.org/software/guile/manual/guile.html#Lambda
https://www.gnucash.org/docs/v4/de/gnucash-help/report-create.html
https://wiki.gnucash.org/wiki/Custom_Reports#Language_details
Answer: You can run the Income Statement report, under Reports > Income & Expense. Then click Options, go to the General tab and select the time period you are interested in.
That will give you a report of your total income and expenses over the period and make it simple to calculate savings rate as <code>(income - expenses) / income</code>.


$X$ be a metric space such that for any two disjoint closed subsets $A,B$ ; $d(A,B)>0$ , then $X$ is complete?

Question: Let $X$ be a metric space such that for any two disjoint closed subsets $A,B$ , $d(A,B)>0$ , then is it true that $X$ is complete ? I was trying to prove it and have figured that if we go by contradiction say $\{x_n\}$ is a non-convergent Cauchy sequence , then if we can find two disjoint subsequences of $\{x_n\}$ , we are done because then the distance of those two subsequences would be $0$  . But I cannot find two disjoint subsequences of a non-convergent Cauchy sequence . Please help . And is there any other approach ? thanks in advance
Answer: Let  X be a metric space such that if A and B are closed and disjoint subsets of X, d(A,B)>0. Suppose that X is not complete and consider a Cauchy sequence $(x_n)$ which does not converge. $(x_n)$ has an infinite number of different terms. We can extract from $(x_n)$ two sequence $(u_n)$ and $(v_n)$ such that $u_m\neq v_n, n,m>1$,  $u_n\neq u_m, n,m>0$  and  $v_n\neq v_m,m,n>0$. Let $U$ be the adherence of $(u_n)_{n\in N}$ (remark that this adherence is just the sequence $(u_n)$) and $V$ the adherence of $(v_n)$, $d(U,V)=0$ contradiction.


How to "replicate" this effect?

Question: I would like to replicate the effect in this image.

Which sort of brush can i use to draw simmetric lines in a layer mask , or an upper layer (to apply to layer below) ?
Thanks
Comment: I don't see any symmetrical lines, and the design is not symmetrical at all. Also it doesn't look like these were made with a brush. The lines look a bit like a bar chart which has been placed over a photo montage.
Answer: Watch it more careful. You should see that it's not mere masking with histogram like shape. The same shape is used also as image material in some slices. The woman is also sliced and used twice - I see a third eye.
Make the histogram style shape in Illustrator. Copy and paste it to Photoshop. You can use it to make selections with magic wand or paste it into layer mask as you planned.
Illustrator is not a must altough it's a little faster. As well you can make adjacent rectangular selections in Photoshop and fill them.
Answer: The image looks like it is a few brochures that are stacked on top of each other. The lines in the image seem to actually be going at a diagonal. Just wanted to clarify that since I didn't know if it was the entire photo you want to recreate or just the effect on one of the brochures. I will err on the side of the effect on one of the brochures.
To directly answer your question, there are many different ways to create these elements. Here is one way:
In photoshop, create the rectangular shapes over the image of the woman. This can be done with the pen tool or using the rectangle tool. Color the lines the color you want them and if this is the effect that's desired, then great.
The lines in the example, however, have a texture on them. In that case, import the texture you would like to use for the lines and place it over the woman. Select all of the lines (you can hold shift to select multiple shapes in photoshop), right click and create a smart object. Now hold command (ctrl on windows) and select the thumbnail of the layer of the new smart object. This will create "marching ants" over all of the lines (thus creating a selection based on the lines). Now select your background and click "add layer mask" at the bottom of the layers panel and your background will now be in the shape of the lines you created.
If I could provide some feedback on your question to help you not get downvotes in the future, please provide a little more detail about what "effect" exactly you are trying to achieve. The photo isn't actually an effect, but the black and white style, the multiple brochures in the image and the design on the brochure itself all could be, so we must guess as to what you're actually wanting.

How to "replicate" this effect?


Factorization of a polynomial in $\Bbb F_7$

Question: I need to reduce as much as possible the polynomial: $x^6+3x^5+2x^4+6x^3+4x^2+5x+2$ in the finite field $\Bbb F_7$.
It has no roots over the field, and I don't think that it is necessary to check factorization with all the irreducible polynomials with deg 2 or 3. It was asked after the very first introduction of  fields extensions. I tried (with no luck) to prove it's irreducible by extending the field where the polynomial has a root, tried by contradiction with dimensions, tried to mess with the roots and its squares multiplication groups that they generate and now I can't find how it helps me. I'll be glad for a little help. Thanks.
Answer: The polynomial can be factored over $\Bbb F_7$ as follows
$$
x^6+3x^5+2x^4+6x^3+4x^2+5x+2=(x^2 + x + 6)(x^2 + x + 4)(x^2 + x + 3).
$$
The shortest way probably is to find first the monic quadratic polynomials which are irreducible, and then use polynomial division.
Answer: Attempting to depress your polynomial $f$, it turns out that
$$f(x+3)=x^6+1,$$
which is easy to factor by hand.


Is it possible to code a "reply" to Facebook Messages in Notification Centre in Maverick OS X?

Question: Is it possible to edit some code in Notification Center to allow Facebook messenger notifications to have a "Reply" or "Close" similar to iMessage?
Answer: No. As of 10.9.1, Apple has not added the ability to do so, and unfortunately, you're going to need to wait on Apple to do this natively.
I can, however, suggest an app that you can try. It's called Chat Heads and it works really well. It's available in the Mac App Store for free.
Here's the link: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/chat-heads/id670724330?mt=12
Comment: This app is awesome.

Is it possible to code a “reply” to Facebook Messages in Notification Centre in Maverick OS X?


Are certain 4 part writing rules contradictory?

Question: I am told that I cannot double the 3rd when constructing a 4 part triad but at the same time I am told that the only note that can be omitted is the 5th. So in a triad, if I omit the 5th, then all I have left are the 3rd and tonic to double. Is this a bit confusing to anyone else but me?
Answer: I have a slightly different viewpoint as other answers: no, I don't think that part-writing rules are contradictory. But unfortunately, some teachers (and pedagogical approaches) are contradictory with the guidelines that they create.
I say this for one simple reason: there is nothing wrong with doubling the third of a major chord. Composers do it constantly on I and IV in major keys. The only time it's incorrect to double the chordal third is in the V chord. But this isn't an error with doubling the third of a major triad, it's an error of doubling the leading tone.
So let your doubled thirds of major chords fly; they're not errors, and if someone says they are, just point them to one of thousands of examples where composers had no problems doing so.
Lastly, there are guidelines of different weights, meaning that some of these possible part-writing transgressions are more serious than others. So when you're stuck in a situation where you have to decide which guideline to ignore, you'll of course want to go with the lesser problem. In a situation where you'll have either "hidden" octaves or parallel perfect fifths, go with the route that has "hidden" octaves; it's a far less serious transgression that parallel perfect fifths.
Comment: "Composers do it constantly on I and IV in major keys": in my experience it's quite rare unless there are six or more parts (usually more), and it does indeed make tuning more difficult, especially if the thirds are in different octaves.
Answer: In Walter Piston's Harmony he often says melodic considerations can override harmonic ones.
From that perspective you might have an occasion where doubling a third would be acceptable.
The point isn't to then try quantifying, or making a long list of exceptions for, acceptable doublings. You want to understand the reason for the norm in the first place, and then understand such "rules" aren't written in stone.
I think Piston's explanation about doublings is pretty easy to understand and not contradictory. You either double chord roots or you double the tonal scale degrees. The reasons are to keep the identities of chords and the tonality clear.
Also, I'd like to reiterate what @Richard said in his answer, it's common to double the third of a major chord. The cases I'm thinking of aren't necessarily four part harmony, but I don't think it matters. I'm thinking of classical, solo piano music. You often find a tonic major chord voiced as root and third in the accompaniment with the third doubled in the treble melody.
In terms of chord and tonal clarity this isn't a problem, because the surrounding harmony will usually be very much tonic/dominant and there will be no mistaking the tonal center. Melodically the treble plays the third in what you might call a "pastoral" style where the melody pivots around the third for a soft and gentle sound. You could say the accompaniment should just play the tonic alone to avoid a doubled third, but that might sound a bit thin. You could play root and fifth in the accompaniment and third in the treble for a balanced three part triad, but the root/fifth in the accompaniment sounds a bit like old Baroque voicing. Root/third accompaniment sounds rich and seems to have appealed to classical composers. So both parts separately do what they need to. The doubled third of the combined parts simply isn't deemed a problem.
I don't mean to belabor the point. I just wanted to give a real example of how parts are handled in a way that may seem contradictory to the fundamentals of four part harmony. It's probably best to consider those four part harmony rules as norms for vocal music (or strings only) and your exercises demonstrate you can control part writing to conform to the rules. Beyond that you will find varying norms depending on style and instrumental considerations.
Answer: Doubling the 3rd of a major triad is not advised.   The 5th may be omitted.  So, if you do so, I guess you have to TRIPLE the root. No contradiction, but perhaps an unexpected implication!
(It's not uncommon for all 4 voices to converge to the root in unison for a final note, thus quadrupling it!)
Comment: In the periods and styles that these rules are supposed to reflect, it's exceedingly uncommon for a piece to end in unison.
Answer: I don't know if the rules are contradictory but they are more rules in the sense of what sounds good, to the culture the music is created in. But everything involves compromise and it can be difficult coming to a solution. I read one author who said that four part harmony rules were created by 19th century theorists retrospectively.
When learning harmony or counterpoint it is better to follow the rules - as they are called - especially in a test or exam. This means it sometimes takes a lot of work to write something that is compliant with the stated rules.
Doubling the 3rd in a major chord should usually be avoided, in a minor chord you can sometimes get away with it. I personally do not like omitting the 5th so would probably work to avoid that. Although not usual, I once spent many, many hours over a couple of days writing eight bars of counterpoint. It doesn't usually take me that long but the important thing is to get it right.
The other thing is to consider the source of such information, they may be a professor of counterpoint, or they may be someone who knows less than you.
Comment: It is major chords, not keys. Two reasons. First, it's difficult to resolve major chords with doubled thirds (especially the dominant chord) because of the danger of parallel octaves. The second reason is that a major chord with a doubled third often sounds like a Neapolitan Sixth; sometimes it sounds like one has transposed keys.
Comment: Correct me if I am wrong, but I have understood that doubling the 3rd is usually forbidden in major "chords" not major "keys".  I am pretty sure you are allowed to double the 3rd in minor chords right?
Comment: I think "usually forbidden" and 'should usually be avoided" are saying more or less the same thing. As you have a teacher, I would ask her/him what is expected. Have you played through Bach's chorales, that is one of the best ways to develop an ear for harmony I believe?
Comment: When I was a student decades ago, I was told to get the collection by Albert Riemenschneider. There is this web site which I would guess is accurate but you will have to look at it yourself, or maybe check with your teacher: http://www.bach-chorales.com/
Comment: "It is major chords, not keys", sorry about that, major chords was what I meant - now corrected.


Capital gains tax from selling home at divorce

Question: My husband and I separated almost three years ago and are finally getting a divorce and selling the home we bought together in 2017.  He has lived there continuously while we were separated, but I have not.  I know there is a rule that you must live in your home as a primary residence for two of the last five years or you may have to pay capital gains - but is that a rule for the still married but separated couple or a rule that is imposed on each tax payer individually? Starting next month, I won't qualify for the 2 years in five rule. We bought the home for $800K in 2017 and it will likely fetch $1.1M now. Maybe to dodge the tax I need to stay married to him until after the divorce?  The house is empty now (as it is ready to be actively shown) - perhaps I need to "move in" (e.g. a sleeping bag and a pillow). Not sure it matters, but there has been $150,000 in improvements to the house.
Comment: United States of America
Answer: You bought the house for $800K, and added $150K in improvements, so your basis is $950K. You plan to sell for $1.1M, giving you approx. $150K gain. With selling expenses at about 10%, it's actually closer to $50K, giving each spouse $25K taxable gain at long term capital gain rates. Not sure if you want to spend legal fees on trying to mitigate that hit, but if you do here are some options:

Have your ex buy you out of the home and transfer you more cash or other after-tax value from your marital estate to be divided. Transfers between spouses are non-taxable and your ex can exclude all the gain from the sale of the house on their own, so it would be a wash.
Hold off the dissolution into the next tax year after the sale and report the sale on an MFJ tax return, that way you'll still get the tax break.

Your tax advisor and divorce attorney may come up with additional strategies that may not need cooperation from your ex like the above two. You're not the first to be in this situation.


My information was stolen... do I have to be worried?

Question: Yesterday someone got into my steam account and stole my full address, my full name and an old phone number that is out of service. I am 17 and living in Canada and I was wondering what can happen to me?? Should I be very worried? I also lost around 300$ of items but I'm not worried about that.   The scammer also has my postal address so does that affect anything?
Comment: If that is all there is nothing to be worried about.  It used to be that one's address was listed in a phone book.  There is not much someone can do with solely a address.
Comment: Even if he has my postal code? Cant he like put my adress on some website and then dont pay the bills so that they mail them to me even tho i never bought it?
Comment: Its a duplicate but it doesnt talk about the postal code also getting stolen or is that included in the adress informations?
Answer: The damage is probably not too severe (aside from the $300 lost to your Steam account.)
Signing up for credit cards (especially online) in Canada requires more information than just your address, your name and your phone number (especially an old one that's no longer in service.)  In particular, they would need at least your date of birth and your SIN, for example.  So, they can't just sign up for cards and not pay them with this info.
However, the fact that they broke into this account means they know the username and password you used here.  If you used the same password elsewhere, they may be able to break into those accounts as well, especially if the username is similar (ie: your email address.)
So, if you haven't already, you should change the password on your Steam account.  You should also go through other online accounts and change those passwords as well, particularly if they use the same password as Steam.  You may also want to consider two-factor authentication where available (ie: Steam has the Steam Guard app that can be hooked up to your account on your smartphone.)
Comment: I do have a mobile authenticator but he still got into my acc... i changed all my passwords tho and i also ran multiple scans on my pc. Thanks for all these infos tho


Limit of daisy-chaining of multiple ADCs

Question: I am designing a device consisting of 20 daisy-chained ADCs (https://www.analog.com/media/en/technical-documentation/data-sheets/ad7685.pdf) communicating via SPI with the STM32F303 microprocessor. I have a question regarding the sampling rate per channel. If the Nyquist frequency is 20kHz, is it possible to achieve an adequate (> 40kSPS) sampling rate for each channel having 20 chips? Is there some kind of equation that expresses the relationship between sampling rate and the number of devices in a daisy chain? And finally, should I consider some other limiters apart from the number of chips in the daisy chain, reading time for example?
Comment: Note that if you want 20 kHz analog bandwidth, sampling at 40 kSPS leaves very little room for anti-alias filtering.
Answer: This should be perfectly feasible.
The AD7685 is designed for this, and has an integrated sampling clock, meaning that the only limiting factor for you is the SPI clock rate. You need to allow for enough time to clock 20×16 bits out 40000 times per second, and allow for some minor extra processing time in between reads.
20×16×40000 = 12.8 MHz which requires an SPI clock period of 78 ns. This is well above the minimum listed in the datasheet:

SCK Period (Chain Mode)
Min
Unit

VIO Above 4.5V
17
ns

VIO Above 3 V
18
ns

VIO Above 2.7 V
19
ns

VIO Above 2.3 V
20
ns
Comment: And what about the clock speed of MCU? STM32F303's maximum SPI clock frequency is 24MHz (I am referring to https://www.st.com/resource/en/datasheet/stm32f303vc.pdf  page 97), which seems to agree with my conditions. So if I take a sampling rate of 75kSPS for less aliasing purposes, then it should be also fine. Am I right?
Comment: @Valeriya Sure, but make sure you can use DMA for this, so the time taken to shuffle the bits around doesn't completely swamp everything else you might want to do with the data.
Answer: That sounds extremely expensive; is there a reason to choose a single-channel ADC?  There seem to be many options with multiple inputs (muxed or simultaneous sampling), in the same price even.
As for the AD7685, max clock is over 50MHz (50Mbps data rate), so it would seem, assuming you can feed the SPI channel at that rate (STM32F3, that's going to have a DMA to handle it, right?), 40kSps * 16b/Sp = 320kbps/ch; 50Mbps / 0.32Mbps ~= 156 channels.
It's just ratios of data rates.
You'll run out of trace length long before then, I'm pretty sure.  Mind the clock skew, let alone signal quality and EMI, on such a lengthy bus.
With octal ADCs, you only need three of them, a trivial arrangement as far as the SPI bus is concerned.
Comment: You try and find a device comparable with the AD7685 that has two channels or more.
Comment: @Andyaka Could you be more specific? At a glance, I see a 250kSps, 16b true differential ADC. There are numerous results that match such a description.
Comment: INL, DNL, distortion, low offset and gain errors; when I used it (many used together in a proper design) it was the best ADC available for measurements. Of course, better ones may have surfaced since 2017 but they won't beat it by much. It's pseudo differential BTW from memory.


How to save layer as dbf using pyQGIS?

Question: Is it possible to save layer as dbf? Or even better convert .csv to .dbf?
I have some .csv files, no geometry just attributes and I need it as .dbf as I want to edit them (I found that Qgis doesn't support editing .csv files).
And I need to do it in pyQGis. I can do it in QGIS (simple Save layer as...)
Answer: So I solved it. It wasn't that hard. I open csv as "delimitedText" layer. Then I save this layer as "ESRI Shapefile". There is a trick. It fails to save, but it creates a .dbf file. Then I load it back as "ogr" file.
<code>pos_csv = QgsVectorLayer("file:///"+folder_name+'/pos_file.csv',"Layer Name","delimitedtext")
QgsVectorFileWriter.writeAsVectorFormat(pos_csv, folder_name+'/pos', "System", None,"ESRI Shapefile")
new_pos = QgsVectorLayer(folder_name+'/pos.dbf',"Layer Name","ogr")
QgsMapLayerRegistry.instance().addMapLayer(new_pos)
</code>
Answer: there are few (paid and free) third party programs you can use to convert csv to dbf (just google csv to dbf) and a few (free) online tools.
Online:
http://www.files-conversion.com/spreadsheet-converter.php
http://dbfconv.com/
programs:
http://www.dbf2002.com/csv-converter/convert-csv-to-dbf.html
http://dbfview.com/csv-dbf.html
last depending on your level of comfort with python there are a few resources
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/3897694/python-convert-csv-to-dbf
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/4440791/convert-csv-file-into-dbf-using-python
converting csv to dbf
good luck
Comment: Thanks, but not exactly what I was looking for. I need it in plugin, so any online tools aren't acceptable. I could use dbf modul, but it isn't standart python modul, so it would complicate things.
I thought that when QGIS can do it directly, why shouldn't I in pyQGis. There is option in Save layer as "dbf"...

How to save layer as dbf using pyQGIS?


What is the homotopy fiber of the map from a space to its James construction?

Question: Given a pointed space X, let $J(X)$ denote its James construction. There is a natural inclusion $X\rightarrow J(X)$ which can equivalently be described as the unit map $\eta_X:X\rightarrow \Omega \Sigma X$.
The homotopy fiber of the counit map $\epsilon_X:\Sigma \Omega X\rightarrow X$ is known to be $\Omega X * \Omega X$. Is there an analogous result for the homotopy fiber of $\eta_X$ in terms of $X$?
Comment: There is not even a known identification of the homotopy cofiber $C$
of $e_X$ in general. There are some partial results: its suspension $\Sigma C$ is weak equivalent to  $\Sigma (X\wedge \Omega \Sigma X)$.
In the metastable range (approximately 3 times the connectivity of $X$), the cofiber coincides with the "co-join," i.e., the holim of the diagram $\Sigma X \to \Sigma X \vee \Sigma X \leftarrow \Sigma$ given by the two inclusions.
Comment: I have the feeling that an analogous result would involve the homotopy cofiber of $\eta$, not the homotopy fiber. By the way, is $\ast$ the wedge product?
Comment: * is the join, ie the suspension of the smash product.
Comment: I believe for $X=S^{n}$ then one can get some answers p-locally by looping the EHP sequence. In general I am not sure what can be said.
Comment: Thanks for your comments. It seems there is not a known answer for this question, as John implicitly claimed above.
Answer: This might not be a satisfactory answer, but let me point out that S.-c. Wong constructed a "little cube" model for the homotopy fiber of $\Omega^{k-1}E^n : \Omega^{k-1}\Sigma^{k}X \to \Omega^{k-1+n}\Sigma^{k+n} X$ in this paper in 1994.
Note that May's little cube model for $\Omega\Sigma X$ is essentially the James construction.


Firing an event on a particular page in Google Tag Manager

Question: In Google Tag Manager I'd like to fire an event when a particular page is seen. This is for a completed signup page - a conversion.
In Google Tag Manager I have my base UA tag fire on all pages.
I then created a new UA tag "Subscriptions" to track events: track type events. I then filled in my category, action and label values for the event.
However, it's the rules that seem to be tricky.
When I went through the signup process in order to see the conversion page, here is all the info from Google Analytics debug in the JavaScript console:
Account ID               : UA-xxxxxx-2
Page Title               : Example Company | Your Account has been created | Premium
Host Name                : secure.example.com

Page                     : /secure/common/callback?`

https://secure.example.com/secure/common/callback?id=2c92a0fb41ee0b8c0142062c06fd6c89&tenantId=3415&timestamp=1390480077277&token=WByfk6aU4JX1EJSchx4XDMnp50XX8aL7&responseSignature=OTg2OWY4MTcwMDVmZmRiYzI3NWI2N2IxOWJmNTYxNGI=&success=true&refId=2c92a0fb43bdc33a0143bf122e6d3ebb&field_passthrough1=:email@example.com:email@example.com&field_passthrough2=P&field_passthrough5=%3Alnen%3ANmmeFirstNAme%20meLastName%3AA1123%20mainst%20Avenue%3AA2%3ACtPhiladelphia%3AStON%3APcM6G%202T8%3ACn&field_passthrough3=3a5e49b5-85ed-4c86-99af-761004f7db06&field_passthrough4=true&signature=OWM1NjY5MGZkMWVjNjI5NjJiYjk3MmVhOWU3ZjkzNjA=

I'd like to fire the "Subscriptions" event track tag. I tried the following rule but had no success:
{{url}} contains: /secure/common/callback?.
{{url path}} contains: /secure/common/callback?.
My questions therefore are:

How would I fire the submissions event when this page is visited?
Why is the event not firing now - isn't the logic sound? If the URL
contains /secure/common/callback? then it should fire, right?
Answer: I have not used Tag Manager but I suspect the issue is caused by the ? at the end of you URL. My suggested solution would be to escape this so your URL will look like this:
/secure/common/callback\?

You may also want to investigate if you can use regex with your rules to make the above more accurate.


Handle microphone inputs in c #

Question: I searched on Google, but I did not find much information about it. I was wondering if anyone had experience so that they knew a proper way to get data input from a microphone and also know how to play it. What I would like to do is a typical streaming app in C#, which takes audio from the microphone and sends it on the client application. I await advice, thank you.
Comment: If I understand do you need to Speech To Text functionality?
Comment: @OktamYaqubov actually I want to develop an application to talk on the net with connected people, a bit like Skype
Answer: There're many source codes available if you can use google and bing... If you want to build this application with C# programming language, then you need to know some basics of Network Programming in C#.

If you want build a program like voice chat. You will need grab the audio from the microphone using some technalogies like DirectSound, UDP packets and etc.
If you want build a video streaming application you can use several ways to get video streaming/conferencing with .net easily.
Use of plain Windows Media Encoder components, RTC Clients, voice/SIP, Sockets and etc.
So you have wide choice of managed technologies here. Another thing is Live Meeting at which you had no chance to take good look yet.
Answer: For those still interested I found the NAudio library really interesting: https://github.com/naudio/NAudio

Handle microphone inputs in c #


Where are the fan relays for the 2007 v8 Monte Carlo

Question: I'm looking for the fan relays for a 2007 Monte Carlo V8.  My fans are not turning on. So I need to check the relays to make sure that they are receiving power.
Comment: Hi, and welcome to mechanics.stackexchange.com!  I've edited your post to improve clarity.  Feel free to re-edit if my changes altered your intents.
Answer: This should help ... here's where it's located under the hood:

Here's what the fuse panel layout:

Please note there are three relays and two 30A fuses there.


Can scrum master allocate tasks?

Question: We are following scrum in our project. I see most of the times the scrum master allocates the tasks for us. However, I read from many scrum books that scrum works the other way around (the 'pull' approach) and team members pick up tasks or features. Is scrum master assigning tasks the correct approach or does it go against the agile ideology?
Comment: You are asking the question in a way the suggests you think there is a correct way to implement scrum. This is not how you should look at it. Scrum is a basic framework with some very generic guidelines. But every team and every project must adapt the guidelines to suit there current needs. Without a lot more details about your team it is impossible to give specific advice.
Comment: @Scout: A ScrumMaster acting as a command-and-control project manager is neither Scrum nor agile.
Comment: +1 Martin - Exactly. It's a framework. No need to be dogmatic or purist in your approach.
Comment: @MartinWickman - He hasn't mentioned that the team feels they are being "commmanded". Maybe they've abdicated this responsibility and choose to focus on writing code instead of picking things to work on. "If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice." Peart
Answer: According to the Wikipedia Article on Scrum, Sprint tasks are not assigned by the ScrumMaster:

Tasks on the sprint backlog are never assigned; rather, tasks are signed up for by the team members as needed, according to the set priority and the team member skills.  This promotes self-organization of the team, and developer buy-in.

Furthermore, the definition of a ScrumMaster is that he/she is the person responsible for making sure people follow the rules of the Scrum process.

ScrumMaster
  The person responsible for the Scrum process, making sure it is used correctly and maximizing its benefits.

The ScrumMaster does not assign tasks, plain and simple.  The team is self-organizing, and decisions of who works on what is decided by the team.
This is true Scrum.  Many organizations may of course use variations of this, however.
Comment: Yes. PO prioritizes. Team members estimate and select. Simple and powerful.
Answer: That's the way it's supposed to work, but as with all things that work great in theory...it doesn't always actually work.
There's dependencies, customer wants, and drivers from the outside.  Some things just have to get done before you can work on that fancy widget everyone wants to work on.
There's basic developer abilities driving from the inside.  Some things are just hard and some people are just better.  Sure, when working within an infinite timeline I can just let you figure it out; but when something's got to get done then assigning to the person best placed to get it done fastest and best is the one that's getting the job.
And then there's personality issues like over-controlling Scrum Master and/or developers who can't tie their own shoes without being told to.  My team, for example, has both.  Simply works better for everyone to ignore this little fact about Scrum in such cases.
In other words, don't just do it because the process says to.  Do what works.  Screw the rest.
Of course, then there's also the other basic fact of human existence....maybe you don't even know who the Scrum Master actually is.  Maybe it's not the person with that title.  Maybe you don't even have one.
Comment: "Some things just have to get done before you can work on that fancy widget everyone wants to work on." If this is an occasional thing, sure. If not, maybe you should be using shorter sprints - or maybe Scrum is not the right approach for your team.
Answer: Never.
Scrum is totally clear on this.  The Development Team, as a group, is responsible for completing the items in the Sprint backlog.  They are also completely in control of how they go about getting the development done and nobody is allowed to tell them how to do it.
As a coach, the Scrum Master does have a role in pointing it out when he sees the Team is in danger of missing Sprint objectives for whatever reason.  But then he needs to ask them to figure out how they are going to deal with it, and then get out of their way.
Another approach could be to let the Team complete the Sprint, hold them responsible for the lack of results and then let it get discussed in the Sprint Retrospective.
Answer: Like any ideology, there are times when the rule book needs to be thrown away, or carefully ignored.
Use some judgement as to what seems appropriate. Just be careful about somebody becoming a de-facto project manager - or worse, bullying people into doing certain things.
There's a big difference between task allocation by dictate (you SHALL do X) and allocation by discussion and agreement. Sometimes the agreement might be lukewarm.
Then again, maybe the team needs directing... its hard to know.
However, I'd be concerned about any process at all that insists you must follow the process to the letter with no room for wiggle or judgement. Such a process is a substitute for thinking.
Comment: I went through a case where no one on the team would pull a task.  Despite repeated attempts to encourage the initiative to just grab a card from the board, work would stop until I myself pulled the card and handed it over.  I think that stems from a transition mentality.  When the engineers are used to having assignments pushed on their plates, it can be hard to turn that around.
Comment: In scrum you delegate this responsibility to the team. You don't stop thinking. In fact you think collectively. So decisions are better.
Comment: Thinking is hard and I can only do so much per day.  May as well let something or someone else think about the little stuff.
Answer: In my opinion the scummaster shouldn't do that, team members should themselves pick up tasks. If the scrummaster is only doing the administration as is the case in our team is see no problem. Our scrum master makes sure the paper scrum board stays in sync with the excel file. The role of scrum master should be a facilitating one we're he/she makes sure you can do your work unhindered. This is the way we work. Do you know why your scrummaster does this? Is he a project manager afraid to become obsolete? Is he afraid the team will not pick up tasks themselves? It might be a good idea to discuss this during a retrospective.
Answer: I've been a scrum master in both types of environments (where I pushed tasks to individuals and where individuals pulls tasks).
O the Push team, the development resources were not interchangeable.  The Windows Client work had to go to the windows developer and the web work to the web developer.  So I was able to push tasks to resources during planning sessions.  I was also able to do individual capacity planning to know when to stop pushing.
The pull method worked well on a team where any task could be picked up by any resources.  But, I couldn't do individual capacity planning during the planning session, instead I had to depend on average velocity to know when enough was enough.  (It took ~3-4 sprints before we had a good idea on velocity).
I came across an interesting article outlining pros/cons of Push vs. Pull.

Can scrum master allocate tasks?


Techelet on Talit Gadol not Talit Katan

Question: I don't have the money right now to equip all of my talitot katan with techelet, but I'd like to put it on my Talit Gadol (Please, no discussion of Techelet itself - I've made up my mind on that one).  Is is permissible to "mix and match" as it were?
Comment: I think some people davka put it on there talis only
Comment: Marc, welcome to Mi Yodeya, and thanks very much for bringing your question here! I hope you'll look around and find other information here of interest as well, perhaps including our 18 other [tag:techeles] questions.
Comment: Isaac - Thanks.  I searched the techelet questions first.  Thanks.
Answer: I recommend that you discuss your own situation and best course of action with your rabbi.
I posed this question, regarding my own entry into the techeilet world, to Rabbi Jack Bieler in Silver Spring. If I recall correctly, he told me that if I only felt I could afford one set of strings, I should go ahead and put them on one garment, and that whether that would be the talit katan or talit gadol would be essentially my choice. His rationale was that fulfilling this mitzva with one garment is better than fulfilling it with none.
Comment: Thanks.  I just wanted a little more knowledge prior to asking.
Answer: The Ibn Ezra in Yesod HaMora explains that the point of tzitzit is that goes with you around when you go out of the synagogue and helps you to remember the mitzvot of Hashem in your business dealings etc. Furthermore, we know that the ikkar of the mitzva and remembering is through the ptil techelet (Rashi, Rambam, et al.), this remembering is what allows us not to stray after our eyes and heart.
Hence, my recommendation is that if you need to choose between wearing it on the tallit katan or the tallit gadol at any moment, you may choose the tallit katan as you will wear the techelet which is the ikkar during the whole day. This way you would also be wearing it during the morning prayers, so it is only a win win situation.

Techelet on Talit Gadol not Talit Katan


App Store email varies from Apple ID, where can this be set up on iPad Pro

Question: When setting up new iPad Pro-by default it only permits one email address to be used for Apple ID & App Store. On all my other devices, I have one email associated with my Apple ID & a different email address associated with my App Store. Because I haven't been able to locate where one can make this distinction, in Settings (or elsewhere), I can't access any of my previously purchased apps. Any one run into this or know how to resolve?
Answer: When setting up your iPad, there's a button on the Apple ID login page to log in with separate iCloud and iTunes Apple IDs.
If you didn't press this link, you can retroactively change your iTunes & App Stores Apple ID in Settings:

Go to Settings, tap your name at the top of the list, then choose iTunes & App Stores.
Choose the Apple ID displayed at the top, then Sign Out.
Sign in with the Apple ID you wish to use.


Request for startup package details at interview stage

Question: I have an upcoming interview/campus visit for an assistant professor TT position with a US R1 university in the sciences. They have asked that I bring a details about my desired startup package to the campus visit. I have never heard of anyone being asked for details about their startup package prior to an offer being made.
This seems to have two effects. First, to some extent my startup package depends on what is already available in the department and the interests of the department. Second, it seems it potentially changes the negotiations. With an offer in hand, you can ask for more in your startup package, since they may not give you what you want, but they won't take the offer away. If I ask for too much in my startup package before having an offer, they may not even make an offer.
I guess I have three questions. First, is it common for US universities to ask for details about the desired startup package prior to making an offer? Second, how does this change what I should include in my startup package request? Third, can I ignore this request and only give them a general outline of what I need to do my research?
Comment: FYI. I got the same request. To give a startup cost estimate before the formal offer is made. (US R1, science).
Answer: I've also never seen this at universities in the US (or elsewhere in the world) but I've seen it a lot in industry. I'm guessing someone came in to 'shake things up' or they hired a consultant and are trying things differently this time. Therefore, I will answer with respect to industry which I'm guessing will actually be applicable in the end.
It is a common negotiation technique to get 'the other guy' to make the first offer with the belief this puts him in a weaker position. This seems to be what they are doing and as you stated in your question, when they make the first offer you are indeed in a stronger position.
In your last question, could you ignore their request and simply not give them a number, tread lightly on this point. Some hiring people will become angry when you don't follow the rules and will count it as one reason not to make you an offer at all (or lower your offer because you are unable to follow simple instructions).
As far as how to actually handle the negotiations, like any negotiations, it is MUCH better if you are negotiating from a stance of understanding how you can work together to benefit each other. That is, don't get locked into a 'the more I get, the less you keep' train of thought. The goal is to be creative and find a way that you can actually ADD value to the equation and then divide that new value between the both of you...leading to the win-win settlement.
The problem is if you must make some kind of an offer blind and you have no personal rapport developed with your counterpart, it is very difficult to go down the win-win path. At that point, I would see if you can find a way to change the situation and start building some kind of relationship (even a telephone call can make a huge difference with regards to finding a genuine win-win solution).
If you are stuck and you cannot have any any meaningful conversation before you give a number, then the best I can say is to make a serious statement about what you would like but make it in terms of ranges (say between $100 and $120 [replace with reasonable numbers for you] per month depending on the rest of the details). By offering a range you have retained some flexibility but allowed them what they demanded: Something.
As you might guess, they may lock in on the lower number. However, you have not committed to that lower number firmly because of 'the rest of the details' you included.
Congratulations and good luck!
Answer: It's very unusual: I've never heard of this happening before. Since they're asking about the startup package (and not salary, which is less elastic at a university) that changes things slightly though.
You might be able to get away (at a first approximation) with a list of things you need (without specifying a price tag). Typical elements of a startup package include summer salary, support for students early on, space for offices/labs, and equipment. All of these can be specified without particular price tags: i.e you need support for X students for Y years, lab space to support this kind of machine, or these many students, and so on.
If you're pressed to put a price tag (which would be also unusual), then you'll have to have some number ready for things that you can price (equipment for example, for which you could add a generous inflation factor). For other things you can ask them ! (how much does a student cost, what is typical lab space, and so on). Again, the goal is to provide as little information as possible while satisfying the unusual requirement.
In addition, if you're asked to put a price, you should preface with "while it's a little unusual to ask this now, and while I can't be certain what things will cost once I'm in a position to purchase them", and ask first whether there's some flexibility in these numbers.
Comment: I just went through a faculty interview, and before I met the faculty dean (who controls the department's finances), the head of the search committee told me it would be good to at least tentatively negotiate the startup package with him. So while this may be unusual, the OP isn't the only one who's encountered it.
Answer: Something to keep in mind: The reason that startup packages are typically negotiated at a later stage is because they are not a major factor in determining whether to take someone for a tenure-track position. I think that in your case, even though you are asked for this during the first interview, it will still not be a major factor.
This means that unless your startup package requests are extremely unusual or the university is unusually poor, this will probably not affect the outcome. So I would not worry about this aspect too much.


SQL Server 2005 Management Studio is Slower than Molasses!

Question: SQL Server Management Studio 2005 is so slow that I often want to use something command-line just so I can move on with my life and quit waiting for the stupid GUI to load.  Have you ever run an update command and have the entire window lock up on you while the query is executing?  Those are scary moments right there.  How can I speed up the management studio?  Is there a "lightweight" alternative?
Comment: It's just not a lightweight application, I'm afraid. I've experienced some of the troubles you're talking about, and I just broke down and got a faster machine.
Comment: This might get more responses on serverfault.com or stackoverflow.com
Answer: You can install SQL Server Management Studio 2008 and still query SQL Server 2005 databases - might be worth a try? I've not had any of the problems you describe with either version though. Are you sure it's not an issue elsewhere?
You could also look at alternativeto.net (but it's currently down).
Comment: "Why should we expect anything different from a newer version?"  Because negative feedback like yours creates pressure to fix those problems, which means that your old version may have improvements in responsiveness that you're intentionally missing out on by not testing the newer version.
Comment: We are not going to upgrade.  Upgrading from 2000 to 2005 made everything significantly slower.  Why should we expect anything different from a newer version?
Comment: Using SQL Server Management Studio 2008 doesn't mean you have to upgrade the servers themselves. What did the 2000 to 2005 upgrade make slower?
Comment: Well, to be frank, there is no chance of convincing my boss.  I'm not even going to waste my time trying.
Comment: If you have an MSDN subscription you may already have SQL 2008 tools that you can use on your workstation to connect to your 2005 servers.
Answer: 3 Questions for you:

Is you machine a low end machine? If yes, upgrade. (May or may not be possible. But try to run Management Studio with minimum other apps running). (It works fine on my 2.45 GHz 845 Intel Chipset Motherboard with 1 GB RAM Machine)
Are you connecting to a remote SQL Server? If yes check the network. Make sure that it is not clogged & is fast enough.
Check if TCP/IP is enabled (From SQL Server Configuration Manager).
Named Pipes are slow for remote connections (Even for local connections).
Comment: My machine is over 2 years old, I probably need a new one.    Server is in the local network.  Our network is not exactly fast either.
Comment: This means hardware + network may be the culprit. Try running Management Studio with minimum other apps around. If your PC is anyway sluggish, Fasten it up (Defragment it, clean the Temp folder, Move the page file to non OS Drive, Use Windows Classic Looks etc). For the network issue, try running heavy queries on the SQL Server machine itself if possible. Also check if TCP-IP is enabled & is the first option for network connections(in SQL Server).
Answer: I had the same issue with SSMS2k5.
I've switched from 'Tabbed documents' to 'MDI environment' in Tools-->Options-->Environment, and it works again well.
Comment: +1 WORKED.  Thank you very much for the tip.  This sped up the application significantly.  It used to be sort of fast when I opened it, and it would slow down the more and more I used it.  I did keep 4-5 tabs open, but more out of laziness.  I like this option, and it's quite a bit faster.
Answer: You could try TOAD for SQL Server. However, I've only used TOAD for Oracle myself and the past few versions of that have been getting pretty bloated too!


Android: DownloadManager and COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED_UNTIL_USED

Question: I'm trying to work around disabled Download Manager correctly. Best info I could find is How to Enable Android Download Manager.
PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED and PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED_USER states are quite understandable for me.
But after hour of googling I'm still confused with PackageManager.COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE_DISABLED_UNTIL_USED.
Documentation reads:

Flag for setApplicationEnabledSetting(String, int, int) only: This application should be considered, until the point where the user actually wants to use it. This means that it will not normally show up to the user (such as in the launcher), but various parts of the user interface can use GET_DISABLED_UNTIL_USED_COMPONENTS to still see it and allow the user to select it (as for example an IME, device admin, etc). Such code, once the user has selected the app, should at that point also make it enabled. This option currently can not be used with setComponentEnabledSetting(ComponentName, int, int).

Does it mean that I should consider this state as enabled?
How can user select DownloadManager? How can it show up?
Answer: You can get the notify when ever DownloadManager is available setNotificationVisibility(DownloadManager.Request.VISIBILITY_VISIBLE_NOTIFY_COMPLETED)


My SharePoint Designer's Workflow's "Send Email" action is not sending email

Question: I ran a check for error in my SPD 2013 and it shows none. However, it does not send out the email. I read in here that someone switched to SPD 2010 workflow format and then it sent out the email. Is that the only solution?
Comment: Can you post a screenshot of your workflow.
Answer: It's kind of known issue in SPD 2013 workflow. Send mail action is not working in 2013 but it works perfect in 2010 version.
To fix this issue in SPD 2013, You can use 'Pause for Duration' action before 'Send email' action and set it for 1 min, after that it will works as per your expectation.
Comment: This issue has been fixed in SPD 2013 as of today. Seems like it was one of my action tasks that prevented the workflow from executing the emails.


How do I gradually go from one material to another?

Question: I am trying to put lips on my character, but as you can see, there is an abrupt line between the lip material and the skin material. It looks super fake. How do I smoothen out the transition between kips and skin? I'm using cycles.
Answer: I would normally handle something like by using one material across the entire face (or, if it's for a game, one material for the entire character) and paint into the texture the details like skin transitioning into lipstick, etc.
You can use Blender's Texture Paint mode to achieve this, but your object will need to first be UV unwrapped.


Algebra / unital associative algebra: better terminology?

Question: In Bourbaki an algebra over a commutative ring $k$ is defined to be a $k$-module $A$ together with a $k$-bilinear map $A \times A \rightarrow A$. We then have the obvious notion of morphisms of $k$-algebras. This terminology is nice, because e.g. Lie algebras are then a special kind of algebras and so on. But in 95% of my work I am using unital associative $k$-algebras with unital morphisms. Now, is there any better (in particular shorter) terminology available to distinguish these two cases? I don't want to add this "unital associative" and "unital morphisms" all the time. Is perhaps something like prealgebra for the first case or another short word used in the literature?
Comment: Very tiny comment: the spelling is unital, not unitial.  I wouldn't have dreamed of mentioning it except that the question is about how to use words.
Comment: Wow, that was a (repeated!) typo. Thanks.
Answer: If your work requires you to work mostly with unital assosiative $k$-algebras with unital morphisms, define somewhere prominent in your work 'algebra' and 'morphism of algebras' to mean precisely that, and say 'Lie algebras',  'not necessarily associative algebra', 'possibly non unital morphism of algebra', and so on in the meagre 5% of the remaining cases.
Comment: After thinking about this for a day, I'll do what you suggested :)
Answer: I will mention: most mathematicians of my acquaintance do not agree with Bourbaki's notation.  As far as I'm concerned, an algebra is unital associative.  In fact, I would discourage you from using the word "algebra" to mean a possibly non-associative algebra without pointing this out explicitly to your readers.
Comment: Agreed.  I have even seen the convention that "algebra" = "unital associative algebra" and "associative algebra" = "associative, not necessarily unital algebra".  This is an instance of the (Bourbakiste!) idea that the most used concept should have the simplest name.
Comment: Yes, I agree  .


How much time should I allow, as a US resident, to catch a domestic flight from JFK after arriving from Scotland

Question: How much time should I allow, as a US resident, to catch a domestic flight from JFK after arriving from Scotland. On a Tuesday afternoon in Oct.
Comment: Incidentally, being a US resident doesn't change the answer all that much.  For international travelers from countries that don't require visas, it's not a lot slower to go through the process.
Comment: Jim, in my experience the non-US lines can be significantly longer and slower that the US-citizen lines. One see the US-only lines clear and then they start pulling from the non-citizen lines. Things do vary a lot though. On some occasions we seem to zip through.
Comment: @djna it depends on the airport. I have GOES entry and have literally sat and waited behind Chinese students at the DFW airport. I had to complain to get someone to help and it was not faster at all.
Answer: Depends on the details.
If it's a single booking, your booking is automatically "legal" and you have a good chance of making it. It's not guaranteed (it never is), but if something goes wrong the airline will put you on the next available flight for free.
Things go a LOT faster if you have Global Entry and TSA pre-check. Highly recommended for a tight connection.
I'd say 2.5 hours gives a pretty good margin. With Global Entry, pre-check & no checked luggage 90 minutes should work as well.
If it's two separate bookings, I'd go with a minimum of 4 hours. 6 would be safer, since there is a lot of money at stake. If you miss you connection (delay, weather, lost bags, immigration issues) you are a "no show" and may have to buy a completely new ticket.


Should Brand accordion filter be alphabetized?

Question: The 1st accordion filter on the search results page is "Select Categories", which is sorted by relevance.
The 2nd accordion filter is "Filter Brands", which is also sorted by relevance.  Both display a top 20 with a "More" link if there are more categories or brands.  What is the best practice for this scenario?  Should the brands list be sorted alphabetically instead for easier usability?
Answer:
Assuming that your definition of relevance is the same as your users and
Assuming that relevance becomes less accurate as you display more and more results then

I would certainly give the user an option of displaying the options alphabetically. I would consider to have the link state what comes next  and let the users switch back to order by relevance.
Things to look at:

What percentage of searches involve categories not in the TOP 20?
Are you certain you can't display ALL your categories in div and allow your users to switch to alphabetical ordering if they so desire?
Answer: Yes.
The best approach I could think "out of the box" would be to:

Show the most popular brand/categories based on evidence in order to  increase the chance that users find what they want without further search.
Show them in alphabetical order for better scannability.
Add a "More..." link and redirect to a page to see them all including a filter (as you've mentioned)

I can think at least in one exception: if the content you are showing is not predictable to the user, so they'll just browse and not search.
If they already expect to find something, you should order "that something list" alphabetically to improve scannability and let them find it ASAP.
Answer: If most popular brands are not more than 5 or 6 items, then show the alphabetic order below but add a search bar to filter Brand names
Always label each section with good text so user knows what he is doing
Here are my visual solutions


Synchronising feature layer from QField to QGIS that was set to "copy"

Question: I want to load points collected in the field with QField into QGIS. For setup I used the QFieldSync Plugin. Unfortunatley, I set the layer action (under QField -> Cable Export) to "copy". When I synchronize now, my feature layers remain empty and I get an error saying:

QFieldSync: The project you imported does not seem to be an offline
project

On my smartphone I can see all the data collected in the field.
Is there a workaround to get the data synchronised to QGIS?
I'm using QGIS 2.22, QField 2.1.4, QField Sync 4.1.1
I have found an old post from someone on GitHub having exactly the same problem as I do (Link). Sadly, they didn't come to an conclusion.
Answer: I solved it and must admit, I was a little stupid. Since the last big QField update to 2.0 the actual project is saved on your smartphone under ...\Android\data\ch.opengis.qfield
As an alternative you can export your project directly from the app and won't encounter the issue either.


Could a substantial atmosphere protect a large moon from radiation belts like those seen in Jupiter's magnetosphere?

Question: I'm imagining a moon with a mass of 0.25M (so 10 times larger than Ganymede), in Ganymede's position orbiting a gas giant like Jupiter. Maybe the atmosphere is anywhere from 0.1 - 1 bar.  Would the surface of this alternate Ganymede be protected by it's atmosphere against the charged particles coming from the planet's radiation belts? Could the surface be hospitable to life, or would the radiation belt's particles still make it to the surface in large quantities and/or erode the moon's atmosphere? Do you think a moon could be habitable in this radiation environment?
Answer: Initially it would give protection, but because of the very protection it offered, it would end up being kicked away and leave the moon atmosphereless.
Charged particles can get accelerated by magnetic field, and when they hit another molecule they would transfer part of their momentum and kinetic energy to the other one. Statistically this will result in a fraction of the atmosphere reaching escape velocity and leaving the moon over geological times.
Considering that the moon would have a lower gravity, also lower would be its escape velocity, therefore the above process would happen even faster.


Heat-n-Glo fire place turns itself on

Question: My gas fireplace is a Heat-n-Glow & it turned itself on. The pilot lights fine & doesn't seem to be any other problem.
I normally turn it on with a remote - could bad batteries be causing it to light on its own?
Comment: Is there a thermostat that controls it?
Answer: Unbelievable. The instructions say "Caution: Disconnect remote controls if you are absent for extended time periods.  This will prevent accidental fireplace operation." Evidently, Heat-n-Glow is aware of this problem.
The remote obviously uses radio transmission. This creates the possibility that a foreign signal could be misunderstood as your signal. The possibility that your neighbors garage door opener could cause your fireplace to turn on is dependent upon the quality of design and build of the remote control system designed into your fireplace.
Evidently, Heat-n-Glow designed a fireplace which is susceptible to misreading general noise in the air which can cause the fireplace to turn on 'randomly'.
I would not like that at all. I am glad you asked about it. I will try to remember NOT to purchase a Heat-n-Glow fireplace because my garage door remote, or my blue tooth stereo, of my WiFi system or whatever it my be that is not my fireplace remote control causing my fireplace to turn on is what I call a 'serious problem'.
I am not certain that the disclaimer included in the manual would be enough to save Heat-n-Glow from a lawsuit in the event that the problem burned your house down. I would contact Heat-n-Glow and ask them just how it is that you are supposed to 'disconnect the remote controls' every time you leave the house as per the instructions.
Answer: I have the same issue.     Fireplace turns on at random times without anyone is this house using any type of transmitter.  To prevent this, I leave the glass panel off, and manually control the remote instrument in the exposed bottom.     When this remote instrument  is on OFF,  then the problem will not occur.   There should be an easy way to control the transmitter frequency.   You change the frequency to another settings until you have found one that is not influenced by outside transmitters.

Heat-n-Glo fire place turns itself on


best design pattern for data validation / multiple conditions

Question: Hi what would be the best design pattern to use for a data validation scenario where lots of values get passed to a function and all must be checked to be in the correct format and length etc.  At the moment im using multiple if statements but it seems very messy.
Answer: Have a look at the specification pattern.  It fits in with Domain Driven Design and has a fairly simple concept behind it.
I hope this helps.
Brendan
Answer: Well, it depends what the current state of your code is right now.
I'd try to follow that:
1) try to extract similar validating code and maybe package it as seperate functions/utility modules etc., just call the function to validate, don't put validating code in the validator
2) with that, you may be able to build a master validator as a composite of validators, package sub-steps of validation in action classes, and build a big validator that will launch all of these small steps, and fail if one of the sub-tasks fail (but assess first if that is not an overkill in your case, it might be faster just to end the refactoring here, if your validation is not that complex)
3) then with that pattern in place if your validation logic changes frequently, you could try to put the configuration of the composite outside of the code. IF you have access to inversion-of-control toolkit like Spring Framework, you can potentially construct your composite from the XML configuration, and not from the code. This has an advantage, as your validation requirement change, you don't have to rebuild your project to make ammendments, and it seperated business logic from the code.
Answer: You can try Strategy design pattern


What does bandwidth in kernel regression mean?

Question: here https://stat.ethz.ch/R-manual/R-devel/library/stats/html/ksmooth.html is bandwidth explained as "the bandwidth. The kernels are scaled so that their quartiles (viewed as probability densities) are at +/- 0.25*bandwidth.". I don't understand it properly. Could someone please explain me more undrestandable what does it mean?
Answer: The bandwidth is the "width" of the kernel function; larger bandwidths will give you a smoother estimate.
Often, if you're using a Gaussian kernel $K(x) = \exp\left( - \frac{x^2}{2 \sigma^2} \right)$, people refer to $\sigma$ (the "standard deviation") as the bandwidth.
In this case, they're using a slightly different definition in terms of the quartiles – the points at which the CDF of the distribution for which the kernel is the density are 0.25 or 0.75, i.e. the two values of $t$ where $\int_{-\infty}^{t} K(x) \,dx \in \{0.25, 0.75\}$. For a Gaussian distribution, the quartiles are at about $\frac{2}{3} \sigma$ away from the mean, so it seems this package is using "bandwidth" to mean four times that, $\frac{8}{3} \sigma \approx 2.67 \sigma$.
I don't know why they made that choice.


Corporal Punishment

Question: Any Rand believed that the US was the greatest country where individual rights were sacred. She denounced the initiation of physical force against the individual as immoral and illegal. In the US it is still legal and acceptable for a parent to use physical force to discipline their child. How is this not a moral and legal contradiction?
Comment: So is that any Rand, or just Ayn Rand?:) And aynway, it's only legal up to a point, although maybe there's too-wide a gray area about that. But, for one blatantly crossing-the-line example,  in a still-developing story, just two days ago these parents were arrested on **torture charges**, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/16/thirteen-siblings-found-chained-starving-california-home-say/  So it ain't all legal like you're suggesting.
Comment: @John Forkosh. 'And aynway' - great pun..Humour makes a change among the comments. Best - Geoff
Comment: Ayn Rand tended to be a bit cherry-picky about which rights for which individuals were sacred.
Comment: I'm a bit lost here. Ayn Rand said something; America has some sort of other policy. Ergo moral and legal contradiction?
Answer: Rand is making a comparative judgement. If corporal punishment is practised in the US, this by her own standards is a defect in the US recognition of individual rights as sacred since it involves physical force against the individual and she disapproves of that. But other countries may be more defective - violate more rights more drastically. The US could - just could - be the greatest country where human rights are sacred in the sense that it has the best record. That doesn't imply - and nor need she - that the US is perfect in its respect for individual rights. If corporal punishment is a blot on the US's rights-respecting record, the US's record may still be the best. So Rand is not necessarily caught in a contradiction, legal or moral.
This is not to defend her position. It is just to indicate how she could coherently make her claim - support her belief - about the rights-respecting pre-eminence of the US despite its ongoing use of corporal punishment.
Comment: Although Rand didn't write a lot about child-rearing, and I don't know if she ever expressed an opinion on corporal punishment, she did acknowledge that parents necessarily need to 'infringe' their children's rights in many ways, until they mature.  They aren't born with full autonomy.  Parents have control over their children's speech, who they associate with, etc., and that's not necessarily a flaw in the law.  It's by design.
Comment: @ kbelder 1. Thanks for this comment. I'm inclined to reply that the possession of rights does not depend on the status of full autonomy. Certain rights do hold only between fully autonomous agents, e.g. contractual rights. But I don't see how a child would lack the right to be protected from violence just because it was not a fully autonomous agent. The most that would follow from a child's lack of full autonomy would be a right by certain adults to constrain or control its behaviour. Not a right to inflict violence on it. That's my take. Is yours still different ?

Corporal Punishment


1998 Toyota Pre Runner Will not start?

Question: Turn the key on all you hear is the relay click, no starter noise.  New battery and new starter are on it.  What could it be?  Is there a neutral safety switch?
Comment: If an auto, there should be a neutral safety switch, but if you've recently put the starter on, I'd check your connections at the solenoid. Could be either the solenoid energizer wire or the main battery lead not being connected cleanly. Worth a double check.
Answer:
Make sure you are in Park and the car knows it. I've had this happen to one of my vehicles where the shifter would be in Park, but the car wouldn't see that it's in Park because the shifter was "wobbly" when in Park. The shifter was clicked into the Park position, but it could still move around a little bit and stay in Park. For my vehicle, I need to give the shifter a little tap forward to make sure the car sees that it's in Park.
Try Neutral. Move your shifter around, sometimes the car just can't see where the shifter is.
Check your battery voltage using a multimeter ($15 at WalMart), should be 11.8V at an absolute minimum, 12.4-12.6V is preferred.
Answer: The click must be a started solenoid, don't think you'd hear a relay solenoid. So it means it is in neutral, and a ECU knows it, and electricity goes to starter solenoid. Only doesn't get to a motor, unless motor end gear is stopping against a flywheel tooth.
 If your lights on the dash becomes dark or disappears at starting moment, it means you have not enough electricity to turn over the starter motor (battery issue). If it just clicks, and lights looks okay, it means solenoid doesn't move the core as far as it should (stops against the flywheel). In this case you can try to stick it in 4 - 5 gear and turn over the crank. Just a bit, 1 degree is enough :)
Comment: It is not the solenoid, I pulled the power relay and the clicking stopped.  Replaced it and the clicking came back, but no noise from the starter area.

1998 Toyota Pre Runner Will not start?


VMWare/Ubuntu development stack with symlink to Windows 7

Question: I would like to use a vm ubuntu installation as my testing environment, but to ease workflow, I have symlinked /var/www to a windows share. Everything looks good when browsing files and the owner and group both are showing up as www-data, but I can not seem to get apache to respond with anything other than permission denied. Obviously there are still some permission issues between Windows 7 and Ubuntu, but I don't know where to go
Comment: How exactly are you mounting the filesystem on the Ubuntu side?
Answer: It sounds like this is a problem with Apache permissions/settings, rather than Windows (filesystem) permissions.  Apache won't execute scripts, etc in the /var/www directory unless you've modified the conf file to tell it to do that.  Generally, you'd want to do that on a subdir-by-subdir basis anyway.
To test if this is the case, put a very simple test html file at the root of /var/www and see if you can access it from your apache server.
IIRC, you also need to make sure any kind of script has the execute permission flag set, i.e. r-xr-x--.
Comment: most permissions are 755. i have my vhosts set up just like i would on a regular apache installation. it points to the right place but then gives me a "You don't have permission to access / on this server."
Comment: Have you tried explicitly referencing a filename in the url?  Based on the response you quoted, I'm thinking you're doing a "GET /" request and it doesn't know what file to return and isn't allowing index display.  Can you post the `` portion of your conf file?


How can I display 'word count' in Calibre while browsing my Library?

Question: I use Calibre, to manage my library of eBooks.  It is easy to include the size of the book, but with images and such that can be misleading.   I notice on Smashwords they often include a word count in the books in the description.  Is the word count an attribute that Calibre can display?  If so how?
Comment: Can we make a feature request? I'd like to see word count too.
Answer: This is not straightforward but there is a Calibre extension that you can install : Count Pages (it counts pages but it also counts words). It works only for MOBI and EPUB files so it won't be able to show the word count of books you have only in Amazon Kindle format for instance.
First you need to install Count Pages :

In Calibre Preferences window, go to Extensions, then click on Get new extension modules
Look for Count Pages and install it

You also have to create a custom column :

In the Preferences window, click on Add a custom column and then on the + button
Name the column "Words" for instance (the first field is used for advanced search and does not allow capitals so you can enter "words")
Select Integer as the column type
Create the column and apply changes
Check that the column now shows up in your library (but it is empty and you need to populate it)

Finally, use Count Pages to populate your new column :

You should have a new Count pages button in the main menu : Select Customize the extension module in the drop-down list
In the Word count options select your custom column
You don't need to bother with the other options but you could create a "page" count column too if you'd like
Select all the books you need counted and click on the Count pages main menu button
You might get an error message saying that it could not process x books because it did not find them in a supported format
It takes a while because the plugin needs to open and process each file
Your column finally gets updated.

Each time you add a new book in the library you will need to use that Count Pages button to fill in the column for this book.
Calibre will need to be restarted several times in the process. My Calibre is in French so the words I used in my answer might not exactly be the ones used in the English interface, sorry.
Comment: Boy this could be simpler! Thanks for your help.
Comment: Your words are close enough that I could figure it out.  Thanks :)
Comment: Where's the main menu in calibre? I don't appear to have one.
Comment: I was talking about the big icon bar at the top of Calibre window.
Comment: Thank you! This was killing me.
Comment: I don't have the Count Pages button on the main menu! Help!
Comment: @Cathal did you install the extension? Maybe the menu bar is too wide for the screen and you need to click the double arrow at the right?


Does Salesforce CLI data:tree:import command support junction object records in one go?

Question: Suppose A and B are top level objects and C is a junction object having master-detail relationship with A and B. Can i export A, B and C in one go using sfdx:data:tree:export and import in another sandbox using sfdx:data:tree:import?
Comment: Have you tried this? What SOQL did you try? I suspect it is possible, but any attempts you've tried so far would be beneficial to the question at hand.
Comment: Hi @sfdcfox, I was trying to export all master data from UAT sandbox and wanted to import in DEV sandbox by using sfdx:data:tree:import in one go without using external Ids or vLookup to establish relationship between related objects.  I tried to  export junction object C with all its related objects (A & B) but with below export command i was able to get only 2 at a time. sfdx force:data:tree:export -q "Select id, (Select Id From C) From A'" -d ./dataexport -u usrname
Answer: We currently don't handle junction objects, or record types and maybe a few other things. Developer data import/export/synthesis is high on our road map over the next couple of releases.  Basing the export on a query is limiting in a lot of ways. Instead, we are exploring export for schema elements where we processing the relationships, including junctions, as simple queries and then create data plans that can be used on import to handle references.
The idea is that you could execute data:tree:export --schema Contact, Contact_Customobject, Account, CustomObject
And what you get back is separate json files with a data plan to instruct the import command on how to wire it up.
Synthesis would be similar except we would never hit the sandbox or production org to fetch the data.  Would love to hear your thoughts on the two approaches.
Comment: in the new approach you are describing, where would the WHERE clause go? For example, the user might not want all accounts, but just the ones having between 5 and 25 Contacts.
Answer: I've attempted to do so and haven't been able to find a working force:data:tree:export/force:data:tree:import pathway to import and export a junction object and two parent objects in a single operation.
The natural ways to approach this are either to do
$ sfdx force:data:tree:export -u scratch -p \
  -q 'SELECT Id, Name, Parent_Object_2__r.Name, \
   Parent_Object_1__r.Name FROM Junction_Object__c'

that is, approach via the junction object itself and reference both parent objects through that vehicle, or to do
$ sfdx force:data:tree:export -u scratch -p \
  -q 'SELECT Id, Name, (SELECT Id, Name, Parent_Object_2__r.Name, \
  FROM Junction_Objects__r) FROM Parent_Object_1__c'

that is, to approach via one parent object and obtain the other parent object data by reference through the junction object.
Unfortunately, while both approaches do yield exported data that seems more or less complete (this example is Approach 2)
    {
        "attributes": {
            "type": "Parent_Object_1__c",
            "referenceId": "Parent_Object_1__cRef1"
        },
        "Name": "P1-001",
        "Junction_Objects__r": {
            "records": [
                {
                    "attributes": {
                        "type": "Junction_Object__c",
                        "referenceId": "Junction_Object__cRef1"
                    },
                    "Name": "J-001",
                    "Parent_Object_2__r": {
                        "attributes": {
                            "type": "Parent_Object_2__c",
                            "url": "/services/data/v43.0/sobjects/Parent_Object_2__c/a015B0000078ymqQAA"
                        },
                        "Name": "P2-001"
                    }
                }
            ]
        }
    },

(Note that the second parent object is represented differently and doesn't get a referenceId), importing the same data back does not work. In both cases, running sfdx force:data:tree:import results in

INVALID_FIELD  Cannot reference a foreign key field Parent_Object_1__r.

and/or

INVALID_FIELD  Cannot reference a foreign key field Parent_Object_2__r.

This applies whether using a plan file or referencing the sObjects files directly.
Interestingly, running
$ sfdx force:data:tree:export -u scratch \
-q 'SELECT Id, Name, (SELECT Id, Name, Parent_Object_2__c \
FROM Junction_Objects__r) FROM Parent_Object_1__c'

doesn't even include the value of Parent_Object_2__c in the output:
    {
        "attributes": {
            "type": "Parent_Object_1__c",
            "referenceId": "Parent_Object_1__cRef1"
        },
        "Name": "P1-001",
        "Junction_Objects__r": {
            "records": [
                {
                    "attributes": {
                        "type": "Junction_Object__c",
                        "referenceId": "Junction_Object__cRef1"
                    },
                    "Name": "J-001"
                }
            ]
        }
    },

The tree commands are built on the sObject Composite REST resource. While I cannot find an explicit statement that one cannot do this, the clearest indicator I see is that the documentation for Create Nested Records states:

Use the SObject Tree resource to create nested records that share a root record type.

The sObject Tree data structure's documentation states

This record's child relationships, such as an account's child contacts. Child relationships are either master-detail or lookup relationships.

suggesting that one can descend a tree (parent to child), but cannot ascend it (child to parent) using the Tree API. The Composite API, by contrast, explicitly can achieve this, but it's not used by the SFDX force:data:tree commands.


Story content and audience

Question: I have an idea for a novel however I don't know if it is possible as the story line is very controversial and being young I write in a very immature style. This would make the novel very conflicting.
I want to know if people think I should try it anyway and edit it later or just make a note of key ideas and write it all at a later date.
Answer: Well if your style is immature, only two things will fix that, reading with attention, and writing. Do not neglect the reading with attention part. Francine Prose has a good book called Reading Like a Writer. It will help you learn to read with attention, to understand how the writers you read are actually achieving the effects that make a great story and a compelling read.
As for controversial, truly controversial books don't sell. Pseudo-controversial books sell very well. A pseudo-controversial book is one that picks a fight with group A for the purpose of delighting group B. It is pseudo-controversial because it deliberately pushes group A's buttons, but the real audience for the work is group B who already agrees with it. Because what you are actually doing is picking a fight, you have to present yourself as someone worth fighting with, which is difficult for someone very young. It is generally easier for your opponents to dismiss you are immature than to take the bait and give you the fight you are looking for.
You might be well advised to work on your style for a few years and make sure you really want the fight you propose to pick, and that you are really ready to fight it.
Answer: Write your book now, and don't worry about selling it until after it's finished.  By the time you finish it, you will be older anyway.  And even if you never publish it, it will still be good practice.  There's always a good reason not to write any given book at any given time, so sometimes you just have to jump in and write anyway.
If it still seems like a good book idea to you in a few years, you can always rewrite it then.  But even if you've moved on from the idea, you'll have learned some valuable things from the process of writing it.
Answer: There is no substitute for practice. Start working on something that inspires you. If you change your mind, you can always switch to something else, but you'll have the benefit of some experience.
Answer: Write it anyway. Most authors have to write a few books before they publish one. Don't think your idea is going to be your one and only idea ever. Some of my published work I have rewritten entire large set-piece scenes over THIRTY times before I liked them.
So you might as well get the first draft out of the way; or at least write your big scenes, if you can write out of order (I do, all the time).
Actually writing it out is a way to "debug" your story and see if you have problems to solve. I often think of this as writing something awful that needs to be fixed! Or I sit down at the keyboard and tell myself, "Okay, let's fail at writing this confrontation." Then afterwards, "Yep, that blows. What is the worst thing wrong with it?"
That may sound weird but it works for me; and it might work for you. Take the pressure off; you aren't writing a masterpiece, you just need something that gives you a direction for research and refinement.

Story content and audience