2013 Ford Fusion: Radio & Heater/Defroster turn on and off by themselves

Question: While I'm driving my radio and heater/defroster shuts off and then will turn on by itself.  It also feels like the steering is also affected when the radio and heater turns off and then seems normal when they come back on.  This just started.
Answer: The common thread here is that all of these items are electric – so it sounds like you are intermittently loosing electrical power. I'd suggest starting off by getting codes read, it's possible that a controller will be logging power loss events and that there may be some clues in that.
Since the power goes off and then comes back on there are three explanations that seem obvious:

A load reduction relay dropping out or a self-resetting circuit breaker is tripping and then after a bit resetting.
A connection is loose and is opening up in response to vibration (or something).
A large intermittent load (or short) is pulling down the electrical bus (making it seem like power is being lost).

The items that you're seeing don't have much in common. I can almost guarantee you that they are not on the same circuit, so you'll want to look for common points upstream of the fuse panel. That makes the load reduction relay seem like a possible candidate. Another clue that the load reduction relay might be worth investigating is that you don't notice the instrument panel going dead when this happens. The instrument panel is probably not fed through the load reduction relay. The connections at the main fuses (usually near the battery) might be another possibility.


Mixed flight / bus search engine?

Question: Some months ago I came across a good website that offers to search and plan your travel with mixes way of transportation... Like for example you have to plan a mixed way, like flight and bus, similar to www.fromatob.com?
Answer: rome2rio is a  multimodal transport search engine that mixed flight, bus and ship.
Compared to fromatob it search much faster and cover bigger area. It also show the route of each option in the map.
(the upper one is exeter, uk-Hong kong searched by fromatob and the lower is same route searched by rome2rio)
Comment: Rome2Rio lets any place be an endpoint.  fromatob just told me I have to "select one of the suggested locations" (when there are no suggestions).  On the other hand, Rome2Rio has an irritating habit of assuming I didn't mean what I typed and changing it to someplace else in another country.
Answer: If you want to travel within one country in Europe you can often use the train planner to get a combination of train and bus, like the Bahn site for Germany and Belgianrail for Belgium.
In the UK you can use traveline for train, coach and buses, I am not sure about flights but it might work.
Non of those keeps being that helpful when crossing national borders.
Comment: thanks! do you have some suggestions about portugal and spain?

Mixed flight / bus search engine?


Schengen travel insurance for 3 entries

Question: I have obtained Schengen tourist visa last year and I got single entry visa for 30 days stay. This year I plan to visit Schengen as well as Greenland and Faroe Island and my plan is - Schengen (5 days) - Faroe Island (7 days) - Schengen (5 days) - Greenland (7 days) - Schengen (6 days). Now do I need to book three separate Schengen travel insurances or 30 days single use Schengen travel insurance is enough ?
Answer: This would seem to depend on your insurer. Some travel insurances are "per trip", defined as the time spent out of your country of residence and expire when your return there. Others have a specific length of time and cover several trips during that period. Both variants would seem to cover your trip but there might be others I don't know about.
As far as Schengen regulations are concerned, you need to prove you are covered each time you apply for a visa. If you apply for a multiple-entry visa, it's enough to show that you are covered for the first trip you plan and to get insurance for subsequent trips later on.
Here are the relevant bits from article 15 of the Schengen Visa Code:

Applicants for a uniform visa for one or two entries shall prove that they are in possession of adequate and valid travel medical insurance to cover any expenses which might arise in connection with repatriation for medical reasons, urgent medical attention and/or emergency hospital treatment or death, during their stay(s) on the territory of the Member States.
Applicants for a uniform visa for more than two entries (multiple entries) shall prove that they are in possession of adequate and valid travel medical insurance covering the period of their first intended visit.
In addition, such applicants shall sign the statement, set out in the application form, declaring that they are aware of the need to be in possession of travel medical insurance for subsequent stays.

Schengen travel insurance for 3 entries


Comp Sci PhD Admissions: How often are Skype interviews requested?

Question: I am applying to several computer science PhD programs, and several professors who I mentioned in my statement of purpose have reached out requesting Skype interviews. My question is: how often are these requests made? Should I be very encouraged or is this standard procedure for almost all qualified applicants?
Comment: "Should I be very encouraged ..." -- why not? You are at the time in your life when optimism is appropriate. I would be encouraged even if it were standard procedure (which it isn't).
Comment: Are you asking about whether you should expect an interview request at all, or whether you should be discouraged because they want to do it via Skype rather than in person?
Answer: Time is one of the most valuable resources for professors – I know no one who just offers interviews for fun.
Answer:
Should I be very encouraged or is this standard procedure for almost all qualified applicants?

Be very encouraged. I can guarantee you that they don't do it for all "qualified" applicants, because nobody has the time to do that. In my institution in Sweden, for any given call, we may get somewhere between 25 and 150 applications. Even of only a third of those are qualified, it is easy to see that the hiring faculty member can't interview everybody who is qualified even for a call that received comparably little attention. I typically interview about 3 to 5 people per call, and I would presume that this is fairly normal.
That said, take the call very seriously. In the past I have been highly disappointed with how badly prepared many applicants were in these Skype calls (e.g., I usually ask beforehand that candidates do a short 10-min presentation of their master's thesis and some candidates have no presentation prepared, or candidates who have obviously not even looked at my website and clearly have no idea what kind of research I actually do). I never hire applicants that seem ill-prepared for the interview.
Comment: Just a note, it's a little confusing to refer to both the Skype call and the call for applicants as just "a call."
Answer:
Should I be very encouraged or is this standard procedure for almost all qualified applicants?

It's to be expected that lead researchers would want and need to have a proper conversation with a PhD applicant. It's almost like a job interview.
But beyond just pointing this out, I believe you should see your surprise as  indication that you may have gone about your application process in not quite the right way.
In my opinion, when looking for a place to do Ph.D. research, you need to take the time to get in touch with the relevant research groups and their primary researchers, to understand what their interest and foci are, to introduce yourself, to figure out potential directions you would pursue if you joined them - all things which would have gotten you in touch with those "professors who I mentioned in my statement of purpose" (and as is understood, have not contacted before).
Had you done so, you would likely have thought of such Skype conversations as something you want to do anyway, regardless of the admission process, and that could be beneficial for you in itself. Assuming these are academic worth their salt, face-time with them is something you should be able to benefit from.


Are annuities the best way of generating monthly income?

Question: What is the most effective, least costly, way of generating monthly income from an investment of $500,000 or more? Are annuities too costly?
Comment: You need to define your idea of _cost_, particularly as it relates to risk.
Comment: Are you talking about an annuity that will start paying you money now, or are you talking about an annuity that will start paying money decades from now?
Comment: It would be helpful to know what country you are in.  Also, can you live with 6% a year?  (That'd be $30,000/year)?
Comment: I would say REITS together with Some Index Funds is the way to go. Diversifying across that area is a secure way (even in this time) to generate a steady income with dividends going up to as high as 25% a share. If you have a sum of money that large it would be a good way to sit easy.

There are plenty of Horizontal Markets out there as well that you can buy (especially in the ETF space) and have a steady income as well.
Comment: Investment grade preferred stocks might be an alternative to an annuity because they avoid the high annuity commissions.  They currently pay 5+ pct.  With some occasional swapping, the yield could be bumped up, sometimes to more than double that.  The drawback is that they are tied to longer term interest rates and since most are callable in 5 years, there's no guarantee that you'll get the same yield after call.
Answer: It is definitely not the least costly if you are looking at it in terms of generating $X in income per month per $Y invested. The benefit of Annuities is that they are one of the least RISKY investments. Unless the company you bought them with defaults you get a guaranteed income stream even if we experience an extended bear market.
For that safety you likely give up some return compared to just investing in cash-flowing investments. What you are buying is that risk reduction.
In a nutshell you are buying insurance to protect your income stream.
Answer: If you need the income to last for life (of an individual or couple) but no longer, then an annuity is likely the best option. This is because an insurance company can diversify your longevity risk with that of other customers. Investments you make on your own would not be able to hedge your longevity (you're facing a sample of 1); you couldn't spend as if you'll die at 80, because you might live to 105.
Comment: This should be the best answer.  The risk is transferred to the party most able to bear the risk.  The risk for the individual is that they will live longer than forecast or that they will live shorter than forecast and have been spending less than they could have.  The insurance company can average over many people and offer an annuity at a level that takes that into consideration.  Unfortunately, in the US, the fees on these are quite high and the offerings are not so simple-there is a part that depends on the insurance company investment returns.  Read the fine print carefully, but +1.
Comment: @RossMillikan Immediate fixed annuities are the simplest product and help avoid the fees and uncertainties you mention.
Comment: When I did some looking I didn't find those offered retail.  I was surprised because I thought there would be a good market for them and insurance firms should be eager to satisfy that market.  If they are out there, you are right.
Comment: @RossMillikan I'd guess that the situation in the question i.e. "Have lump sum, want monthly income now" is too rare. Much more common is some delayed version like "Can save smaller sum each month, want monthly income starting at retirement age", which puts you into the realm of private retirement schemes, for which there is indeed a big market and a lot of offers (at least in Europe).
Answer: Another consideration when looking at the cost of annuities is how regular your income needs are.
In the UK, annuities are taxed as income.  If your income needs tend to fluctuate over a year, you may find that you are getting an annuity income every month that you may not need in its entirety, but you will still get taxed on that income.
If you are just pulling income out of investments or an drawdown scheme, then they may still be taxable, but at least you only pay tax on income that is actually necessary.
A reasonable approach may be to blend your income approach - purchase an annuity to cover that income that is essential to you (getting the benefit of the guarantee for life) and then draw income from other sources as and when you needed to cover life's little luxuries.
N.B. A lot of this depends on how much income you are looking for and how much tax you might wind up paying - everyone's circumstances are different.
Comment: For annuities purchased from a DC pension pot, it's true about the income tax.  However for annuities purchased with other assets, there are some monstrously complicated rules about "exempt sum"/"exempt proportion": some of the annuity payments is simply treated as return of the purchaser's capital (and not subject to tax).  It's a curious situation as the level of tax paid will depend on their life expectancy according to actuarial tables!
Comment: If your needs fluctuate over the course of a year but are consistent year-to-year then as tax is charged annually, month-to-month variations shouldn't be a problem.
Answer: In addition to the considerations others have mentioned, you also have to take inflation into account. Some annuities are fixed, some may be indexed to the CPI, but even those aren't necessarily indexed to medical inflation or housing inflation or some other expenses that may rise dramatically over your lifetime.
For an example, assume you are a man age 65 today, and your annuity starts paying $30,000 immediately. You have a remaining life expectancy of approximately 18 years (in the US), or until 2038.
Now let's look at inflation over the past 18 years (remember, past performance is no indication of future results, but absent a crystal ball, it's the best data we have available). One dollar in 2002 bought as much as $1.43 today. Or said differently, your standard of living will decrease substantially. By the time you pass on, your standard of living will be whatever you can afford with approximately $21,000.
Comment: Are any securities indexed to medical inflation or housing inflation or just a given that they may rise dramatically over your lifetime? Your inflation concerns are valid. One must include them in income projections. I think that a variable annuity with a 6% defeered side growth (GMIB, GRIP, GRUB, etc.) would be a better choice than an immediate.  Guaranteed 6% income base, more if the market performance exceeds 6%. Begin withdrawals at 59-1/2 and be in their pocket by age 75 (after that, it's their money supporting you).
Comment: I'm not enough of an annuities expert to know what products insurance companies come up with, but I doubt that any exist pegged to medical or housing inflation, in part because those rates aren't even tracked as formally as the CPI. Even if there was such a product, it would likely be extraordinarily expensive. Another issue to consider is that we don't know future politics or economics. Maybe medical cost will be brought under control, or your annuity provider goes out of business (think AIG).


GTA 5 Snapmatic Problem

Question: In Grand Theft Auto Five (GTA V/5), whenever I use the Snapmatic app on my phone while in Story or Online, I get this message when choosing the option "Upload To Gallery": Error: Snapmatic features disabled on this account due to eligibility restrictions. Other people say they have this problem as well. How is it fixed?
Answer: Make sure you are connected to the Internet had the same problem I don't know why it does it even though you are not uploading it to Facebook  or whatever press option button on ps4 pad then r1 till the gallery and they should be there

GTA 5 Snapmatic Problem


How big is a LEGO torso in Microsoft Paint

Question: I am trying to print decals, but I don't know how the size of the torso or any other parts are supposed to scale in my Microsoft Paint.
Comment: Assuming you have Microsoft Paint, you can use Microsoft word to size your creation to match the torso size. Make sure your original decal is cropped to remove all whitespace first, then resize and print it in Word.
Answer: The size won't matter in Paint, what will matter is the resolution of your printer.
For example, if you want to print 1 inch by 1 inch, and your printer is 800 DPI, then you need an 800x800 image.
Answer: This link for decal specs.
But honestly, the issue is mostly about your program of choice. You can't resize in anything but pixels, and as the other responder said, your dpi really means the entire problem, because each dot is a pixel, and it can print waaay off. There is a free, proven-safe program (I have it on all my school computers too,) called Paint.net, which allows you to choose your size in centimeters/inches for your graphic. Now all you have to do is measure your torso, and put the art at normal size onto your paper.
In Microsoft Paint? Sorry, man. It just won't cut it. To use a measure, you need to have a program that understands a measurement.


Why don't anti-viruses detect encrypted viruses in decryption?

Question: Some viruses are encrypted so that the anti-virus can't identify them, but what I don't understand is: why wouldn't the anti-virus detect them, considering they have to decrypt themselves before running? Wouldn't the anti-virus understand the malicious code in that decryption step, before the virus could run?
Answer: There are a few ways malware could encrypt itself to thwart antivirus detection:

Derive a key from target specific information like hashes of known files, user names, and network shares. Check out Ars Technica's description of Gauss.
Encrypt itself with a random, but relatively short key. When the malware runs, it will have to brute force the key. Many AV sandboxes have a timeout on the amount of time a particular sample can run, if the brute force process takes longer than this timeout, the malicious payload won't be decrypted.
Retrieve the key from the internet. The attacker may host a web server with the key on it. They then could use timing, IP information, or client based parameters to determine if they key should be sent.

Of course, in order to run the encrypted payload, the malware must be decrypted. If it is decrypted, antivirus may detect it, but the malware may detect the AV first.
Finally, the mechanism of having an encrypted payload using host based, random, or network based keys may itself be used as a signature for malware. The AV may not know what the sample would have done, but it could prevent it from running in the first place.
Comment: Another technique is to encrypt strings and even entire functions and only decrypt and use them when needed. This greatly reduces the exposure of the plaintext.


what permissions I need to grant for user to use "Manage Content and Structure"

Question: I granted Contribute permission to users. I modified the contribute permission and checked override checkout and approve items. even after this modification users aren't able to copy or move documents from one library to target library. "Inadequate permissions to "target library" to  complete this operation. Please suggest. Per Microsoft Contribute permissions is sufficient for this action. https://support.office.com/en-za/article/Work-with-site-content-and-structure-30fcaad9-02b1-4347-8b03-e1ccc5a4c19f
Comment: Added Approver and Hierarchy to the contribute permissions and now it's working. I really don't want user to modify the list settings (adding or removing columns, etc.)
Answer: While the Contribute permission level is sufficient to access the "Manage Content and Structure" page, the specific permissions required for copying or moving documents between libraries are Manage Permissions, Manage Web Site, and Add and Customize Pages.


What are some of the best ranking algorithms with inputs as up and down votes?

Question: What are some of the best ranking algorithms with inputs as up and down votes?
Comment: I am a bit unclear as to what exactly you are asking and how data analysis enters the picture? Please elaborate.
Comment: This isn't just a data analysis question, because many users become aware of the voting system and vote strategically. In other words, the kind of measurement is changing the behavior. Economics (political economy and game theory in particular) has a lot of interesting things to say about choosing ranking algorithms.
Comment: How is ranking not related to data analysis?  You're trying to combine user data (up/down votes) to generate a rank statistic that conveys information.  Admittedly, more work on this has been done in machine learning than statistics, but that's on topic, right?
Comment: @ars It *seems* on topic but the question was/is a bit unclear to me. An algorithm can mean many different things depending on context.
Comment: @Srikant: there was a comment earlier about *closing* the question which I was responding to.
Answer: David MacIver had a nice post on the algorithm he used for ranking programming languages based on relative rankings from different users for various factors:

Rank Aggregation in The Right Tool

It's based the Rank Aggregation Methods for the Web paper by Dwork et al.
If you want something similar to this site, then Reddit's code is open source.  There was some discussion of their ranking algorithm on Hacker News a while back:

Reddit's Ranking Algorithm

For a quick and simple take on "hotness", consider Evan Miller's algorithm with time decay:

Rank Hotness With Newton's Law of Cooling
Answer: I have listed a number of schemes for solving this problem at Sorting answers, given overvotes and undervotes.  I won't duplicate them here; just take a look over there.  The most promising ones look like either Bayesian rating or Laplace smoothing.


Dried tomatoes vs. dried tomatoes in oil

Question: I have a soup recipe that calls for 24 oz. dried tomatoes in oil, drained and patted dry. I would like to use dried tomatoes (not in oil), but don't have a clue how much to use.
Is there a conversion by weight? Should I substitute by volume?
Answer: I would probably substitute roughly by volume. 24 ounces in oil looks to be 2-3 cups, based on my memory of jars I've bought and a quick Google image search to confirm.
But I wouldn't do that with them fully dried - I'd rehydrate them in water or stock (the ones in oil tend to be less thoroughly dried out), and then cram them into your measuring cup (because they're certainly crammed into the jars with oil) and aim for 2-3 cups.
I might also add a tablespoon or two of olive oil to the soup to compensate for what's inevitably in the tomatoes even if patted dry.

I tried to find a good conversion by weight based on nutrition facts (usually works!) but unfortunately sun-dried tomatoes in oil are sold by weight including the oil, but the USDA nutrition facts are for drained tomatoes. For what it's worth, based on a label from a specific brand (found a photo here), the ones in oil are 6/19 carbohydrates by weight (and does seem to be including the oil - it says they're also 5/19 fat), while the USDA says dried without oil are 55.76/100. The carbohydrates are all from the tomatoes, not the oil or any additional water, so that should indicate how much tomato there is.
So: 24 ounces * (6/19) / (55.76/100) = 13.6 ounces. But I'm not terribly confident about that estimate, because it's based on so little evidence, and there's a lot of room for variation here. It's at least in the right ballpark, though - I have about 6 oz of dried tomatoes that look to be about 1.5 cups, depending on how packed they are.
Answer: One solution is to rehydrate your dried tomatoes with water and add them by volume. If it would be me I'd rather just measure by volume from the beginning, since they have almost the same size in oil or not.
Answer: Since your recipe calls for 24 ounces, I would expect that to be by weight, not volume.  You could therefore simply use 24 ounces of the plain dried tomatoes.
The one caveat to that is if the recipe meant "24 ounces of tomatoes and the oil they were stored in, without the oil" instead of "24 ounces of tomatoes that have been removed from the oil in which they were stored."  If the recipe intends the latter, then you can simply do the above no problem.
If however it meant the former, then you have a couple of options.  You can either estimate the amount of oil that would be in the jar (for a 24 ounce jar I would estimate ~4-8 ounces, depending on how tightly packed the tomatoes were) and subtract that from the amount of tomatoes you use, or simply use the full amount and have slightly more tomatoes than called for.
If it were me I would just use the full 24 ounces-- soups are very forgiving.
Comment: My 3 ounce bags of dried tomatoes have a volume of about 1 cup. It would take 8 bags/cups to equal 24 ounces, that would be way too much. I'm trying to figure the amount of tomatoes in a 24 ounce jar of dried tomatoes in oil.
Answer: Try to rehydrate before cooking and then use the same amount as in the recipe.
You can adjust the other ingredients afterwards.
(I do assume you will unlikely rehydrate 10 x the amount required).
This is because oil and water densities are not too dissimilar. Moreover the tomatoes called for by the recipe could have been rehydrated, which is a possibility when preparing tomatoes in oil vase.


Goal of liberation in yoga/meditation - Isn't it Boring?

Question: I see that the goal of yoga/meditation is liberation from the karma and from the birth/death cycle. People say that it is the ultimate happiness forever. But wouldn't that be boring and monotonous if there is happiness forever?
Comment: You're assuming 'forever' is a long time. For a truly happy person it is just the 'Perennial Now' or 'Divine Instant'. Also, imagine losing all your fear of death and dissolution - wouldn't this make you more happy than bored?   .
Answer: In Buddhism, Nibbana refers to liberation from suffering (dukkha). It is also referred to as the highest bliss (nibbanam paramam sukham) in Dhp 204. The word sukha is translated in this context as bliss, but in other contexts, also as happiness.
Boredom is a type of suffering. An enlightened person is free from this type of suffering too.
We have 3 types of feelings - pleasant feelings (usually associated with sensual enjoyment), painful feelings (usually associated with aversion) and neither-pleasant-nor-painful feelings (usually associated with boredom and confusion). Feelings here include forms with eyes, sound with ears, odor with nose, taste with tongue, touch with body and ideas with mind.
When an unenlightened person experiences neither-pleasant-nor-painful (or neutral) feelings, he may experience boredom. But when an enlightened person experiences neutral feelings, he experiences bliss.
So, is unending happiness or bliss a source of boredom? Not for the enlightened one.
What causes boredom?
The neither-pleasant-nor-painful feelings also known as neutral feelings, normally make us bored or dissatisfied. Cravings (tanha) would lead one to seek pleasures (kama tanha) or to become something or achieve something (bhava tanha) rather than sit around all day experiencing neutral feelings that don't bring satisfaction. No feelings at all, would also be a cause for boredom and dissatisfaction.
The first noble truth states that there is suffering.
The second noble truth states that the cause of suffering is craving. This includes the suffering of boredom too.
The third noble truth states that with the cessation of craving, comes the cessation of suffering. This includes the cessation of boredom too.
The fourth noble truth shows the path to end suffering, which is the noble eightfold path.
This answer may also be helpful.
Answer: Householder sundar, interested,
this question is a very advanced one and the seek after lastig satisfying happiness, if not informed, binds so hard to suffering, but if seen the escape and the posibility trough human effort, turns one to refined, longer lasting and release, where such as boredom can not reach.
The carpenter Pañcakanga once asked the Buddha about the kinds of feelings who left him open a choice of the many kinds.

Ananda, that some wanderers of other persuasions might say, 'Gotama the contemplative speaks of the cessation of perception & feeling and yet describes it as pleasure. What is this? How can this be?' When they say that, they are to be told, 'It's not the case, friends, that the Blessed One describes only pleasant feeling as included under pleasure. Wherever pleasure is found, in whatever terms, the Blessed One describes it as pleasure.'"

It is right if one says, that happiness gained by Yoga (meaning "taking on the whole yoke", work) meditation alone could not be lasting satisfying, is no refuge, never under ones controll, nor really real, since it is always conditioned and conditioned phenomenas are actually not lasting. What ever happiness to gain requires work, sacrifices, pain, even when attained, to maintain it further. Yet ordinary pleasure, based on the five senses requires a lot of pain for very short pleasure, needed even as livelihood, thought on raw food, to be able to walk on and do not break apart. This raw food of sensuality does not only require on sacrifices but harm other and is mostly not voluntary given and so leads to more conflicts.
Contentment with low kind of happiness is much more subject to boredom in shorter and more harmful ways for oneself and others, so seek after refined is needed, and contentment here it enemy to find better or even release, lasting satisfation.
If one is in a palace, enjoys what ever senspleasure is avaliable, proper similies are needed so that one could find needed faith:

"...Even so but to a still greater degree, Aggivessana, is Prince Jayasena hemmed in, blocked, obstructed, enveloped by this mass of ignorance. Indeed, that Prince Jayasena, living as he does in the midst of sense-pleasures, enjoying sense-pleasures, being consumed by thoughts of sense-pleasures, eager in the search for sense-pleasures, should know or see or attain or realize that which can be known… seen… attained… realized by renunciation — such a situation does not exist. Had these two similes occurred to you, Aggivessana, for Prince Jayasena, Prince Jayasena naturally would have acted in the manner of one having trust in you." The Discourse on the 'Tamed Stage'

If one maintains ones needed joy by meditation, it would not harm anybody, neither oneself (think on all the side-effects of sensepleasures on health and freedom lose by addictions), nor others (think that all sensepleasure harms endless beings and lives till foods for senses can be consumed). Jet of cource, since thist and greed after pleasure is not stilled, even if no more after raw sense pleasures, even when thinking on highest sensual pleasures, one gets bored with it, has no controll of it and the maintaining becomes burdensome and doubt, whether there is a better arises again: this very craving. Gaining every day ones beloved food, one gets sick of it, since the mind, not knowing release, searches always for more and anew. The refined food gained by the work in yoga-meditation, how ever, not only that it is always different and much more refined, has a lot of levels of fineness, satisfies more lasting, not only because it does not harm others and would thereby fast taken away and fought by others again.
Yet nevertheless this satifaction would break apart, so those work, yoga, has to be understood in two ways, one as a good livelihood, to gain a pleasent dwelling, one to investigate all kinds of pleasures and the need for gain, that all those states are not lasting, subject of aging, sickness and death.
Once somebody sees and understands that what ever state and retined happiness, existing, would nevertheless of no lastig satisfacion, seeing the disadvantages even in heavenly states of high conncentration, this is the point where the Buddha and Arahats would teach the Sublime Dhamma of the Noble Ones, the Four Noble Truth. to those tending to renouncing the meaningless seek after real happiness in the worlds.

"Bhikkhus, it is through not realizing, through not penetrating the Four Noble Truths that this long course of birth and death has been passed through and undergone by me as well as by you. What are these four? They are the noble truth of dukkha; the noble truth of the origin of dukkha; the noble truth of the cessation of dukkha; and the noble truth of the way to the cessation of dukkha. But now, bhikkhus, that these have been realized and penetrated, cut off is the craving for existence, destroyed is that which leads to renewed becoming, and there is no fresh becoming."

Having listened with proper attention, attantion of what gives birth within, once this is penetrated, the cause clear seen, and by the right approach it's cause, not understanding, by seeing by one self, uprooted, one breaks into the deathless sphere, the unconditioned, having done the work, and at this point, no more work is needed, all done and lasting satisfaction attained. No more birth, aging, sickness and death, noting further for this world and by breaking up of the body, with death, finaly Nibbana has been gained.
Till then, after attaining the deathless, here and now, while still alive, one would spend much time in this Jhanas, states of concentration, as pleasant livelihood, next to live from alms to maintain body and give others a possibility for great merits.
That is why the follower of the Buddha chant daily: "N'atthi santi param sukham" 'No peace is higher as the heal of Beyond/Nibbana'
The Yoke of the Eightfold paths mastering is not taken on for further wandering on, but by seeing that what ever conditioned states can not be lasting satisfied, are pointless.
Yoga Sutta: Yokes
Joined with the yoke of sensuality
    & the yoke of becoming,
joined with the yoke of views,
    surrounded by ignorance,
beings go to the wandering-on,
    heading to birth
        & death.
But those who comprehend sensuality
    & the yoke of becoming — entirely —
who have thrown off the yoke of views
    and are dispassionate
    toward ignorance,
disjoined from all yokes:
they — their yokes overcome —
        are sages
        indeed.
Right labor makes free!
Possible good to remark, that the path is not gained by concentration, but 'simply' by hearing the good Dhamma and proper attention, as for right concentration, fruit and release, the aim, once right view is gained, virtue purified, there is no more need of will required, and will be effected by the previous given causes:

"For a person endowed with virtue, consummate in virtue, there is no need for an act of will, 'May freedom from remorse arise in me.' It is in the nature of things that freedom from remorse arises in a person endowed with virtue, consummate in virtue.
"For a person free from remorse, there is no need for an act of will, 'May joy arise in me.' It is in the nature of things that joy arises in a person free from remorse... ...rapturous... ...serene in body... ...experiencing pleasure... ...whose mind is concentrated... ...who knows & sees things as they actually are... ...who feels disenchantment... ...
..."For a dispassionate person, there is no need for an act of will, 'May I realize the knowledge & vision of release.' It is in the nature of things that a dispassionate person realizes the knowledge & vision of release.
"In this way, dispassion has knowledge & vision of release as its purpose, knowledge & vision of release as its reward.... ...Skillful virtues have freedom from remorse as their purpose, freedom from remorse as their reward.
"In this way, mental qualities lead on to mental qualities, mental qualities bring mental qualities to their consummation, for the sake of going from the near to the Further Shore."

Mudita & Anumodana
Possible extended answer and given space for discussion or what ever inspired, can be found here: [Q&A] Goal of liberation in yoga/meditation - Isn't it Boring?
(Note: this is not given for exchange, stacks, trade or entertainment but as a means for liberation from this wheel.)
Answer: Dependent in the experience of boredom are feelings of disinterest and distance.  We are not part of our experience because our feelings of bored dissatisfaction keep us at one remove.  The enlightened mind is, by definition, always engaged.  Mindfulness, energy, joy, concentration, and the other seven factors of enlightenment are all present and expressed.  Each one of these factors is compelling, captivating, and fully intimate with the world.  How could a mind so engaged possibly have room for boredom?
Answer: I will give you a metaphor, for some wise people here can grasp the meaning conveyed by means of a metaphor.
A couple of days ago during my morning commute I saw a guy... Judging by the fat joint sticking out his lips, he was smoking marijuana... as he jumped off the back of the slowing down truck to grab the next portion of trash cans and empty them in, then jump back on the truck as it was already starting to move. From his all-teeth smile it looked like his morning was going well: he was high on weed, enjoying the movement and the rhythm, loud R&B music playing in his over-the-ear headphones.
In contrast to the trash guy's, my morning was rather "boring" and "monotonous": I had my usual milk-over-oatmeal breakfast out on my lake-facing deck and was driving my old Toyota Camry to a parking garage next to the company's office. My car's stereo played quiet piano of Ludovico Einaudi's "Seven Days Walking" series. For a moment I felt like I almost envied what seemed to be his youth and his "freedom". Two seconds later the illusion has passed.
It was clear that the guy's subjective world was a kind of good-morning-in-hell, with loud noises and stinking smells covered up by the marijuana-induced excitement of jumping up and down the garbage truck in rhythm with the music. My quiet morning was less exciting, true - but I knew I did not want to trade places with the garbage guy.
The mind of Samsara is like the experience of that garbage truck guy. Even though it has a lot of excitement, there's no way the mind of Enlightenment would want to trade places with it.
Comment: ohh... I understand, Andrei thinks Camry driver, going to work, listening to that music... is metaphor for the yogi on the way to Liberation...
Comment: "The mind of Samsara is like the experience of that garbage truck guy." - but the Camry-driver is not a valid metaphor for Nibbana... As a good monk I will not troll in the comments but will edit my answer to explain why ;)


Can I keep apple music when switching apple IDs

Question: My son currently uses my apple ID on his phone with my credit card, and we have an apple music memebership, if he starts his own apple ID, can he still keep all the apple music and just use it under my account on his phone, i.e when he opens apple music he needs to type in the password for my account?
Comment: Possible duplicate of [Transfer content from one Apple ID to another?](http://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/118706/transfer-content-from-one-apple-id-to-another)
Answer: You should check out Family Sharing, which is designed to share "family's" purchases and credit card. This way, you don't need to transfer content, instead you share the content.
Some restrictions as fine print from aforementioned site:

Family Sharing requires a personal Apple ID signed in to iCloud and
  iTunes. Music, movies, TV shows, and books can be downloaded on up to
  10 devices per account, five of which can be computers. iOS 8 or later
  and OS X Yosemite or later are required to set up or join a Family
  Sharing group and are recommended for full functionality. Not all
  content is eligible for Family Sharing. Content can be hidden by
  family members; hidden content is not available for download. Content
  downloaded from family members or acquired via redemption codes is not
  subject to Ask to Buy.


2003 Nissan Frontier pick up 4 cylinder

Question: When I turn AC on engine surges up and down.  Why and what is wrong.
Have changed all belts, and replaced tensioner for AC.
Comment: does the engine shut down?
Answer: First thing to look for is remove the intake boot at the throttle body, and look at the throttle plate area. If there is black carbon around the throttle plate where it seats, clean it with carburetor cleaner.  Put it back together and start the engine. It will be flooded so hold the throttle open until it starts and clears. The idle should start out being high so let it run at idle for a minute to let it stabilize.  Turn on the AC and see what it does. If that takes care of it, you're done.
If not, there is a base idle adjustment that may have crud in it as well. The simple thing is to turn the screw out a quarter turn and see if that fixes it. The screw is near the throttle body in a round hole (sometimes it has a rubber cap on it). The screw is about 3/8 of an inch thick and is silver.

2003 Nissan Frontier pick up 4 cylinder


What is the meaning of RashmimAlA Mantras

Question: What are RashmimAlA Mantras? What's the importance of these mantras and
Only Goddesses have these mantras ?
Comment: Btw note Rashmimala and RashimAlA refers to the same thing, the later is somewhat more perfect with regards to pronunciation with A standing for the long "a"  .. But for this particular answer I hv not used that scheme ...
Comment: Also I hv a hard copy of Nityotsava so i can quote from it .. the link that is given the answer is an overview of the text and not the full text..
Answer: Rashmi Mala (Rashmi=Ray; Mala=Garland) Mantras are part of Sri Vidya worship. The Mantras are mentioned in the Parashurama Kalpa Sutra.
Details are also mentioned in the expository text Nityotsava's 3rd chapter, a text which is based (chapter by chapter) on Kalpa Sutra itself.
After a disciple is initiated into Sri Vidya, he/she must perform daily some rituals without fail, and the reciting these Rashmimala is part of that daily ritual (Nitya Karma).
It is done immediately after waking up from sleep. That is, one is allowed to do the chanting on one's bed itself.
The daily ritual for Sri Vidya disciple has the following steps (as per Nityotsava):

Ahnika Prakarana - Guru Dhyana (meditating on the Guru), Pranasamjamanam (details omitted), Chid
  Vimarsha (details omitted), Hrida Mulavritti (reciting the Mula mantra in heart), Rashmimala Smaranam (reciting or remembering the Rashmimala mantras), Ajapa
  Gayatri Bhavanam (details omitted), Bhuprarthana to Mukha Prakshalanam (from praying to Earth to rinsing the mouth),
  Snanavidhi (rules of bathing), Sandhya Vidhi (rules for Sandhya) ... etc ..

So, Rashmi Mala recitation is a prerequisite (and a limb of the whole Sadhana) to be completed before the disciple embarks upon the main ritual, which is to worship Goddess Sri Lalita Mahatripura Sundari in the Sri Chakra.
Nityotsava's 3rd chapter, which is titled Sri Krama, states:

Vakshyamanam rashmi mala mantramshcha ekavaram avartayeth |
  Rashmisra gavartanam tu trai varnika vishayam ||
The given Rasmi Mala mantras should now be chanted once. Reciting
  these mantras are only prescribed for the Brahmins, Kshatriyas and
  Vaishyas.

Then it gives the list of around 30 or so Mantras along with mentioning the limbs of the Mantras. Dhyana Slokas, which are to be recited before chanting the Mantras, are also given.
And, no, the Mantras are not only for the Goddesses, several Mantras are there which are for the Gods.
The list (of deity/mantra) is as follows:

1 Abhayankara Mantra (Abhayankaramantrasya Gritasmada rishih, Trishtup
  chandah, Abhayankaro devata, tatprityarthe jape viniyogah) 2 Saura
  mantra 3 Pranava (om) 4 Turiya Gayatri 5 Chakshus Mati
  mantra 6 Viswa Vasu mantra 7 Pathividrudra 8 Tara mantra (
  Tara mantrasya Matsya rishi, virat chandah, taramba devata, tat
  prityarthe jape viniyogah ) 9 Namatraya mantra (for Vishnu) 9
  Mahaganapati 10 Shiva Shakti Atmaka mantra 11 Amrita Mrityunjaya
  mantra (for Amritamrityunjaya Sadashiva) 12 Sruta Daharini Mantra
  (for Brahma) 13 Matrika (for Saraswati) 14 Sri Hadi
  Lopamudra 15 Bala Shadangam 16 Sampat Kari 17 Chanda
  Yogeswari 18 Parashambhu Natha 19 Para Mantra 20 Bala
  Tripura Sundari  21 Annapurneswari 22 Aswarudha 23 Sri
  Vidya Guru Paduka 24 Laghu Shyama 25 Vagiswari 26 Nakuli
  Vagiswari 27 Shyama Guru Paduka 28 Laghu Varahi 29 Swapna
  Varahi 30 Tiraskarini 31 Varahi Guru Paduka 32 Sri Purti
  Vidya 33 Mahapaduka Mantra.

So, these above 33 Mantras are known as the Rashmi Mala Mantras.
Comment: its awesome explanation!! Dhanyosmi  _/\_  _/\_
Comment: No problem mate .. btw whn u posted tht comment the match was on ..:D @SaMolPP


How can I get more citizens to educate themselves?

Question: I noticed that I have too many uneducated citizens. While a small minority of them go to high school and college to get educated on their own, is there a way to attract more students? I pay a fortune to get foreign educated workers, while my island's population is too lazy to study!
Comment: Do you have open student slots in your schools? Have you enacted social security?
Comment: Yes both active :(
Answer: According to my personal experience and this thread, Tropicans with high Intelligence are more likely to go to High School or College. (It's factored into the "do I educate myself?" equation.)
So, if you have empty education-required jobs, and those jobs pay well enough to tempt a normal Tropican, and nobody's volunteering for education, then give up on the current generation and educate the next one: set your Grade Schools to Spelling Bee Contests to get the largest possible boost in Intelligence for your young graduates.
One of the other ideas in that thread I linked is to start a eugenics program: simply ensure that only highly-intelligent people are living on Tropico. (Children have the same qualities as their parents, so intelligent parents make for intelligent children.) Your military and secret police probably have some good ideas on how to arrange that. While you're at it, you can select for low courage, to keep rebellions down.
Answer: Increase the number of jobs that require high school or college education, and make sure they pay more than the uneducated jobs. Beyond that, it takes time.
Comment: Well, I usually open a "Rum Distillery" and I have too many empty slots, that's why I asked. Is there any edict that will allow me to have more educated workers?
Comment: I don't believe so. When I need more educated workers, generally I turn to immigration. The immigration office has a mode that attracts more educated immigrants. Additionally, having more people than jobs will lead to more people seeking education, as well.
Comment: I believe Literacy Program makes Tropicans more likely to go to school. If not, it definitely increases the rate they increase in skills so they'll graduate sooner.
Comment: It increases the rate all tropicans increase in all skills. It does not affect the rate at which they go to school.
Answer: Tropicans are more likely to attend High School/College if there are actually jobs for them requiring that level of education and those jobs are better than the uneducated ones. If you're constantly importing workers, there will never be any educated jobs available. Stop importing workers, leave some well paying high school jobs open and you'll soon have students.


Would an aquatic civilisation be able to exist under Europa's ice sheet?

Question: If yes, what are some possible ways they could break through the ice and explore the surface?
Comment: Never underestimate the power of water, when Europa comes closer to Jupiter the liquid ocean push up the ice sheet and sometimes erupt to the surface hence the wounds visible all over the planet, there might be many ravines littered around I think.
Answer: Yes
I'm not entirely sure how life would initially evolve; there are a host of questions related to that. Your best bet would be around hydrothermal vents, with extra heat coming from the tidal forces exerted by Jupiter's gravity on Europa. But I would think it would definitely be possible for a civilization of advanced life to develop. It will, most likely, take a lot longer, and go in very different directions. And your civilization will have to reach much higher technology levels to reach the surface. There would also be other challenges with your aliens, like not having eyes due to the underwater lack of light, and possible lack of heat to develop larger life forms.
See a few questions for details such as those listed below. There are also a lot more questions.
What would life around a hydrothermal vent on Europa be like?
Medicine under water
What would make good clothing for an underwater species?
To reach the surface, you need a craft, and most likely a robot or super strength space suit. Assuming that the life forms evolved at the bottom of a very deep ocean, the pressures there would be immense and would require them to carry these conditions with them. Getting up to the surface would be the equivalent of humans digging a hole miles deep and maybe an acre in size. Although probably just a few yards. And then doing some ridiculously difficult space task. The point is, it will be difficult and dangerous. To make things easier, the might run into these guys
On further inspection on that last question, there will be an icy explosion when the surface is breached. Beware, and make sure you can get back in.
Answer: In short: No.
There are two major issues with this premise. The first is that the ice on Europa is thick. Very thick, upwards of 20km with some estimates of over 100km of total ice and water. We don't have any technology that can drill through 20km of ice, from the top, let alone from the bottom. What technology we have relies on the second issue with this premise. No technologically advanced civilisation is possible without resources to build tools. The first proto-humans were prolific tool users and this allowed them better access to food (hunting with spears, etc) and better defense against predators, as well as the ability to complete work such as turning animal skins into coverings and shelter. Europa probably contains a solid iron core, but the science is definitely not in on that. It definitely has a very thick layer of water under the ice. This would prevent anything that evolved there from using tools, as there are no resources to create them from. The massive depth of the ocean would prevent any life that evolved under the ice from accessing any portion of the crust, mantle or core, assuming they exist in the way in which we currently envision them.
Comment: i think that the question is asking us to suspend our disbelief about that part and focus on whether both civilization and surface exploration are possible. you do make an important point: even if primitive tools are possible, the civilization would have to develop some kind of metalworking or a suitable alternative that works in freezing temperatures and under immense pressures. this almost guarantees that any form of technology the race eventually creates is going to be pretty alien, for lack of a better word.
Comment: @Duncan, the evolution of life is absolutely the biggest problem with this; energy for the life might come from heat caused by tidal forces from Jupiter, but would be restricted to the deepest parts of the ocean, around any hydrothermal vents as exist in this scenario. It's certainly not coming from the sun through 20+km of ice!
Comment: @BenMS Speaking of differences in pressure, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4RLOo6bchU
Comment: Well, they could be extremely pressure resistant, and live near geothermal vents for heat. That would allow gem materials, heat, and possibly other life to cultivate, domesticate, or deal with. Although getting to the surface would be similar to a lunar misision, space suits would be needed, and it would be incredibly difficult, if not impossible for them to get there.
Comment: there probably wouldnt be a problem with getting raw material for tools if we are willing to accept the evolution of life in the first place. after all, most primitive tools are made out of repurposed body parts (eg bone, skin), and after that you can convert other parts of your environment to tools.
Comment: @XanderTheZenon Not just space suits, but they would need to carry the pressure with them from those extreme depths. When you pull a deep sea fish up from the depths, the lack of pressure ruptures their swim bladder, guaranteeing death even if you throw them back. We are able to protect against the lack of pressure in space because the difference is between one atmosphere and zero atmospheres. They would need to compensate for the difference in pressure between the bottom of a very deep ocean (100 atmospheres per km) and space.
Comment: @Bob I expected the video of the crab being sucked into the low-pressure pipeline from an oil rig maintenance video, +1 for the surprise.
Answer: Practically Impossible
1- The civilization we are considering is, near Jupiter. And then again, under a thick sheet of ice. That means very very less available light. Which means no eyes. No eyes means that although life is possible, intelligent life (as we know it) is impossible to evolve.
2- Next issue is a sustainable underwater food chain. Maybe there are bacteria and other microscopic organisms which survive by eating minerals and then oxidizing them, but that's all there is to it. And no, this is not a sustainable food chain. Once these mineral resources are depleted (slightly faster than you would expect), there would be nothing for the other, evolved organisms to ... well ... eat.
3- No eyes (see point 1) also means that technological advancement would be plain impossible. We are talking about small, blind organisms building submarines and pressure suits. No, they don't do that type of stuff! Considering that our earthly oceans are FAR more supportive for complex life and still no smart whale or dolphin has come up with a design of an internal combustion engine, on Europa ...
4- Yet another hurdle to complex life would be the absence of oxygen. On Earth all complex life is has oxygen based respiration systems and anaerobic respiration system is limited to seriously primitive life forms (things which secrete botulinum and stuff). Considering that the ice sheet on Europa is seriously thick, even IF (of which there are no signs) oxygen was presented on the surface, it would be impossible for it to mix in with the underwater ocean water and aid in the evolution of aerobic life forms.
5- And if you are a believer of panspermia, then ... well ... how does life even BEGIN in the silent, sullen underground oceans of Europa in the first place? An asteroid or comet hitting Europa, containing DNA sequences or bases would simply be lost on the surface ice and those precious chemical codes be lost forever ...
6- Even if (and trust me, it is a big if) magically and mysteriously, some smart folks with eyes happen to be present in the underground oceans and they have derived all those smart formulas and processes for creating submarines and things, how on Europa are they ever going to construct any of those? You don't get to easily mine and purify iron while living in an underground ocean. How do you build those furnaces and navigation software and ... well ... the fuel to power them all? Forget it.
All in all, just forget that notion completely. The idea is very cool for a video game or a fantasy novel, but in reality it is simply impossible according to the laws of evolution and tech development we have known on Earth.


Rule-based styling road crossing in QGIS

Question: Styling/symbolizing (rule-based option) a roads vector layer with intersections of streets with different styles I have incorrect (and annoying) overlaps of the different symbolization styles. is it possible fix the problem?

I also add the symbolization level window
Answer: You need to set the symbol level of the feature you want on top to a value higher than the other ones. This is true both vertically (road type) and horizontally (component of the road style for a given road type).
In your example, if you want the blue line on top, set the last line, layer1, to a value of 3.
It may also be necessary to hit apply on the main styling window to see the changes.
As an example, the following symbol levels will draw the green area (0), then the  blue area (1) and at last, on top of everything, the center line from the low line (3)
Comment: Thanks a lot, it works well :). If I understood correctly, then should I hierarchically organize road types and assign the same hierarchy to the color symbol levels?
Comment: @Andrew-63 yes. And you can be fancy too, like putting "lower class" center-line above "higher class" buffer
Comment: "And you can be fancy too, like putting "lower class" center-line above "higher class" buffer", sorry, I do not know if I understand, could You show me an example about, please?


Can GFI breakers or GFI outlets allow grounded outlets to be used?

Question: I have a 1963 house in Texas with Square D breakers and mostly duplex plugs.  All metal outlet boxes. However, there are 8 romex style cables (12-2 with ground) tied to the breakers in the service panel. The ground wires have green insulation and I think there are 8 plugs that have the ground attached to the metal outlet box. Many more outlet plugs are duplex and no grounding (even tested it). I see no conduit or metal cable sheathing anywhere. Is it true I can either 1. replace all breakers with GFI's and then change all plugs to grounded outlets? or 2. Replace just the first outlet coming from the service panel for each circuit with a GFI outlet and then change the rest of the plugs to grounded outlets?  Not much chance to run just a ground wire to each receptacle.
Really want to modernize and end up with legal protected outlets for 110 circuits.
Comment: I always vote for the gfi in the breaker, the inside of a square d breaker is far above the inside gfi outlet. GFIs also like to  be left alone in the dark, they work and play well with others in the load center. Should you ever trip a gfi - they are all right in 1 panel, not scattered about.
Comment: I would caution against replacing every breaker with a GFI. If you put a GFI breaker on the circuit with your refrigerator, for example, your food will probably all be spoiled before you realize there's a problem. See http://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/9341/which-kitchen-outlets-do-not-need-gfci for more details.
Answer: Yes, you can protect those outlets with a single GFCI per circuit and put three-prong outlets in the boxes. There will still be no ground wire and no actual grounding in those outlets.
You cannot connect the ground terminal to the neutral; this is a code violation, and dangerous since it puts current on the ground wire, specifically causing the ground wire to act as a live conductor if there's a fault in the neutral, and will energize the screws on your face plates, energize the housings of grounded power tools and grounded appliances like toasters, etc.
Technically, all un-grounded outlets that are protected with GFCI are supposed to be labeled "GFCI Protected/No Equipment Ground" (GFCI outlets will usually come with a little sheet of adhesive labels in the box for this purpose).
I agree generally with the comment about using GFCI breakers, although you certainly can replace the first outlet on a circuit with GFCI and protect everything "downstream" by connecting the downstream part of the circuit to the LOAD terminals on the GFCI.
Square D 20A GFCI breakers cost about $35 each. GFCI receptacles probably cost half that.
GFCI and grounding are two different concepts. GFCI's will protect people against electrocution, but they do not provide grounding, so they don't provide any protection to equipment that really requires grounding.
For some appliances this probably isn't an issue as the GFCI will provide protection against electrocution and there aren't other noticeable effects that matter to you.
For more sensitive electronics, like computers, TV's, radio and sound systems, running without a grounding conductor can subject your equipment to irritating effects like ground loop interference (which might sound like a background hum through speakers, for instance) and may or may not cause problems or damage to the equipment itself or even danger to your structure. If you have satellite equipment, there are explicit code requirements for grounding. Also, connecting surge protectors to a circuit without a ground probably won't allow the surge protector to be fully effective.
Inside the GFCI there are identical little inductive coils around the hot and the neutral conductors, and the GFCI circuitry trips if it detects any imbalance in the current between the hot and neutral. The neutral carries the same amount of current as the "hot" in a circuit with a load on it. If the neutral is not carrying the same amount of current, that means current is leaking to ground (a ground fault) through some other path, which might be a person. But the GFCI doesn't have anything to do with grounding the circuit.
Comment: Thanks for the info.  I mis-spoke about using the word grounded.  I realize no ground wire at the plug means it's not grounded and won't ever be.  Meant to say "protected" and I just don't want an inspector down the road to balk.  So I'm buying all new GFCI breakers for the 110v circuits.


Pair two drivers with one remote control IKEA TRÅDFRI

Question: I am going to buy two TRÅDFRI Drivers, one 10w and a another 30w. Is it possible to pair the drivers and use one remote control to dim them at the same without the gateway? Or does it work to pair the remote control with both drivers? It's impossible to wire them together because the distance between them is too far.
Comment: Welcome to the site!  I've edited to improve the grammatical clarity, but please feel free to [edit] or roll-back if you feel that I have obfuscated your intent.
Answer: By drivers I assume you mean these.
Yes, you should be able to pair 2 of those to a single remote/switch without the need for a hub/gateway.


Antonym of "dispenser"

Question: I've been searching a lot of dictionary websites for the antonym of dispenser.  I was wondering if anybody could think of one.
Answer: Collector works in many situations; one person dispenses information, another collects it.
Answer: Receiver or taker, I would say. Maybe even recipient or acceptor.
Answer: Perhaps also withholder or inhibitor in the sense that a dispenser allocates/distributes/gives and a withholder or inhibitor would hold back or keep.

Antonym of "dispenser"


Are the fundamental laws of logic always true in every field known to man?

Question: the three fundamental laws of logic: (1) the law of contradiction, (2) the law of excluded middle (or third), and (3) the principle of identity. These are the three fundamental laws of logic and while they seem to be true all the time, I am wondering if there are certain fields where one of the three laws doesn't quite apply, especially in physics and mathematics. Is this the case?
Comment: Keep in mind that these laws apply to our use of language, not to nature. They are "true all the time" because we choose to use sentences (for the most part) in a way that complies with them. So it is more accurate to say not that they are "true" but that they are pragmatically useful to adopt. There are alternative ways to use language, as Eliran mentioned, that are better for certain purposes: constructive mathematics (no excluded middle), non-ideal reasoning (no non-contradiction), quantum events (no identity), etc.
Comment: There are some logics that deny non-contradiction or excluded middle. See https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/dialetheism/ and https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/logic-intuitionistic/.
Comment: Maybe (see Kant) the laws of logic are the way our brain is "programmed" to understand the world; if so, necessarily they applies to every field of human knowledge.
Comment: see also **quantum logic**, whose rules of inference consider the principles of quantum mechanics for their justifications.
Answer: You will find that there is no "law" of logic that is held universally. And to speak "of logic" confuses the issue because there isn't a single logic but rather numerous logics.

Technically all you need to have a logic is a language (syntax or rules for what counts as a well formed formula), definitions of interpretation (or semantics), operators and their interpretations, and rules of inference.

There is incredible flexibility here and you can be arbitrary although the systems are typically judged by their usefulness in solving problems.  This is much like mathematics, which has systems where parallel lines intersect, or where division by zero is allowed.

Graham Priest did a great interview with 3am magazine a few years back on non-traditional logics, but 3am does not seem to keep an archive of their publications. Fortunately a copy can be found at a site maintained by Richard Marshall the journalist who did the interview. The interview is an accessible overview of what paraconsistent logics and dialetheism are and why people care about them.
Francesco Berto wrote a journal article "Meaning, Metaphysics and Contradiction" in American Philosophical Quarterly, Vol 43, no. 4 (October 2006) looking at paraconsistent logics and dialetheism which have both challenged the law of non-contradiction Article available on Jstor.
Quantum physics inspired the need for logics that handle more than binary values or a scale from 0 to 1 (such as various fuzzy logics). This lead to eight valued logics.  Here is a journal article on work done on 8-value logics The focus in this article is from a computer science perspective.
Studia Logica: An International Journal for Symbolic Logic
Vol. 92, No. 2, Jul., 2009 was an entire volume you may find of use on truth, semantics, and some work on non-traditional logic. Here is a link to that volume/issue
And finally Hegel used the dialectic to challenge Aristotalean assumptions on logic. Here is an article on Hegel's logic
Jumping into professional-level logic is not easy. What I found is only an example of scholarship published in journals on these topics, and it may serve as an entry for you. Good luck!
Comment: _Quantum physics inspired the need for logics that handle more than binary values or a scale from 0 to 1 (such as various fuzzy logics). This lead to eight valued logics._ Multi-valued logics (3, 4, .. whatever, nothing special with 8) have naught to do with QM. They were initially studied by Lukasiewicz from a purely mathematical perspective. Indeed, von Neumann tried to define a QM logic but this didn't go anywhere fast; nowadays it seems that Girard's Linear Logic, invented in the 70s, would be a good fit to describe QM processes but I know nothing precise on that.
Comment: As for Computer Science, well, fuzzy logic is used for expressing fuzzy set membership and (with some epistemological handwaving) "approximate values" and lives in control systems mainly. Some instances of [Paraconsistent Logic](https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/logic-paraconsistent/), i.e. logic able to handle contradictions, uses Truth Value Lattices. Very cool.
Answer: I am just going to add this : these laws might best be considered axioms, an axiom is not true in the acceptance you're using, rather, it's self-refering; you can say it's truth is out of question, hence you cannot speak of its truth (since truth is, most usally, considered a compliance-relation between a "refering object" and a "refered object" (this is a very weak analogy, it's just to convey the point).
In many ways, your are free to drop an axiom, but in doing so : you'll have then construct "logical coherence" without it, something that has been done is mathematics and other fields.
Good day
Comment: All three of your mentioned concepts share one thing, they are all artificial constructs which attempt to pre-determine what is acceptable discourse and search for truth value. They should, all three, be ignored and discarded. CMS
Comment: @CharlesMSaunders: I think Berson's take on these matters (although maybe not explicit in form) is very relevant and joins your suggestion : a construct is a dissociation from the "élan vital ", one that is however usefull. I'd also agree that they are usefull however restrictive they might be. Overcoming them will come at a price of forging inhanced constructions. However, something bothers me in equiting axioms with mere constructions. I'd not say they are constructed, I'd say they are stated, much like a picture is stated mentally.
Comment: @CharlesMSaunders: from a linguistic point of view, axioms operate as a pivot of the grammar. There is not point defying grammar IMO, you can however suggest another.


What does "change" "repair" or "remove" mean in the blender installer?

Question: When I try to install blender, it says change, repair, or remove. I tried clicking change and repair, and install after that but it does nothing. When I delete it and try again the same thing happens.
Answer: Sounds like you are using a Windows installer. If that is so, Change, Repair, Remove are the options the installer is giving you. Remove would be un-installation, Repair would be like a re-installation. It should be noted that there is no reason to install Blender on your system, and in fact it is desirable not to. Instead download the compressed archive of Blender for your OS and you can drop the program into your root project directory. This way you can keep whatever version of Blender you are using for each project along with addons/settings on a per project basis and it will be fully portable to other computers. Helps ensure you maintain project compatibility and prevents you from ending up with a dozen Blender installs on your system as each version comes out. Especially true if you ever use developer builds or branches.
Answer: That dialogue is standard in most windows installers.
Having those options (instead of just install) means you already have a version of blender installed on your system.
Being thus you have the options to:

"change" that installation (used in some programs to install optional components). For example if you did not install the blender player, you could "change" your installation and add it.
"repair" the installer will attempt to overwrite any damaged files.
"remove" simply remove, or uninstall the program.

At this point you should have a working blender installed on your system. If not, then I would recommend you uninstall blender (the "remove" option), either try installing it again, or better yet use the zip archive.


PCI Compliance and fines

Question: Our organisation has validated compliance with PCI DSS.
What are the consequences to us if we had been breached by a security incident related to credit card information, considering we have validated PCI DSS compliance?
Would any fine apply to us?
Comment: No breached organization is PCI compliant, ever. No matter what you were 5 minutes before the breach. There is no immunity based on your prior status.
Answer: Card companies have contracts in place with processors to force them to both be PCI compliant and to force them to make their merchants compliant. I guarantee you any bank or processor you contract with as a merchant will stipulate PCI compliance. To the degree of verification is on there part.
If a breach occurs, the card companies can go after the banks, and intern the banks could go after you if they feel you've broken your agreement. Card companies also have the right to sue you for lack of security or improper management, or some other legal speak.
This as also mentioned this doesn't cover the cost of investigations, etc.
I believe the last average was $225/ record. The Verizon Data Breach Investigation Report usually has some good figures.
Answer: Other answerers have made lots of good points about the consequences of a data breach. Let me just make a couple about why it's modestly better to be in PCI compliance and have a breach than being out of compliance and having one.

If you're out of compliance and you're sued, you'll be a bad position. If you're out of compliance and the way you were out of compliance can be tied as a cause to the breach, you are in bad, bad, bad trouble. Either way, you have fallen short of what the merchant community has deemed the customary minimum standard of protection for card data. On the other hand, if you do have a PCI audit that says you were compatible before the breach and that audit appears to have been conducted independently and thoroughly conducted ... well, you're still in a vulnerable place, litigation-wise, but at least you can argue that you did what you reasonably could.
I guarantee you that the payment brands will go easier on you in terms of letting take credit and debit cards again if you can show you did a legitimately through compliance audit. (After you can show you've secured your network/s after the breach discovery, of course.) On the other hand, if you were clearly not in compliance before the breach you will face an unpleasant range of possible consequences, going from withdrawl of your ability to take credit & debit cards if you're a small business to more financial consequences and future security compliance scrutiny from the majors (Visa & MasterCard)than you would get if you had been compliant pre-breach if you are a large retailer. (Is it fair that a small business could very well have it's ability to take payments revoked but big boys like Target, Kmart, Home Depot, etc. who were all horribly negligent about security and exposed almost 100 million card numbers between them never faced that possibility? Maybe not, but that's how it is.)
Answer: Regarding the lost of customers issue, despite  the the previous answers and what it make sense to think i have a different stand on this one.
Unless a consumer suffers identity theft or a loss of money, a breach does not create an incentive for customers to leave a retailer permanently.
I back it with with a survey conducted at January 26, 2016
read further at the folowing link https://macmember.org/library/public/Consumer%20Attitudes%20Toward%20Breaches_FINAL.pdf
Comment: Could you please summarize the results of the survey in your post? Stack Exchange strives to eschew dependence on external resources which may vanish into thin air at any time.
Comment: as i wrote in my answer : "Unless a consumer suffers identity theft or a loss of money, a breach does not create an incentive for customers to leave a retailer permanently."
Answer: There are no real consequences from the PCI DSS side itself, except possibly losing certification. But you should prepare for:

lawsuits
cancelled accounts and lost customers
insurance claims (not related strictly to PCI DSS, but for real compensation paid to victims of leak)
payment card issuer fines
government fines, possibly including also losing license required to work in some country
Comment: would it be worse if we weren't certified? Talking about fines specifically.
Comment: No, because if you weren't certified, you wouldn't also be permitted access to data, which is subject to leak.
Answer: Everything Tomasz listed, plus a few more:

Significant costs to your organization (other than fines) such as the costs of audits or forensic investigations, costs associated with notifying affected clients/customers of the breach, etc.
Any or all of the payment card brands could bar your organization from accepting their cards.
Long lasting damage to your organization's reputation.

All of these outcomes could happen whether or not an organization has validated compliance in the past. As gowenfawr alluded to, the position of the PCI Council is that you cannot have been in compliance if you were breached.
That said, I'm sure the situation would be even worse for an organization that has never validated compliance.

PCI Compliance and fines


4 months into position found out my salary is below the minimum for position, how should I handle this?

Question: I've been with with a large bank for 4 years, same line of work 3 years, my new position 4 months and I saw a posting for my same position showing the minimum salary about $2000 higher than mine. My past years evaluations have been above average and I am doing well in my new department. I want to discuss this with my manager, but don't want to sound greedy. Any tips or advice on how I should handle this?
Comment: "don't want to sound greedy" - well obviously your pay has been adequate for your living circumstances. So if you don't want to sound greedy don't ask for a pay rise. However, your employers haven't been as worried about being greedy over the past 4 years...
Answer: As Bruce Hornsby said, that's just the way it is.
You've moved into the new role internally, hr have possibly moved you to the top end of salary for your grade, or maybe moved you up a grade (I'm assuming the new role paid some more).
What that has to do with what they would need to pay someone on the open market to come in, frankly nothing.  They will offer what they need to compete with other companies vying for candidates.
What can you do, you can ask, but unless you have a unique selling point, it is unlikely to do much.
I've had my people in my teams hit this before, different rules apply I'm afraid.
Answer: It probably means that the salary was lower when you started, and the market rate has increased faster than your wages. Basically, they don't feel they would be able to hire someone for your salary.
The best you can do is approach it with your manager.
Answer: The best approach is usually to ask your manager what you'd need to do in order to get a raise to that level. It's sometimes already in progress, or you may just need to given him/her  a bit more ammunition to take forward when the year-end evaluations are done.
If you aren't given some productive route to achieve that, you have only two choices. One is to decide that it isn't worth worrying about (you're being paid "enough" or you wouldn't have taken the job). Or you can decide that it's something you're willing to quit over... because trying to insist on a raise that they aren't ready to give you is likely to result in your being offered that alternative .., and start a job hunt to find out whether you really can get the additional money.
I much prefer to try to work with my employer rather than playing power games against them, not least because they have most of the power. But others feel otherwise. Your mileage will vary.


Difference between pervasive navigation and primary navigation

Question: Quick question from reading Steve Krug's Don't make me think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability
What's the difference between pervasive navigation and primary navigation? Could someone give me an example each?
Answer: In short, primary navigation is the main hierarchical navigation, while pervasive navigation is always on the page.
For obvious reason there is a lot of overlap but it's not absolute. Let's say 99% of primary navigation is pervasive, and 50% of pervasive is primary. Analogy; 99% of cars are vehicles (some are scrap, or art or marketing) and 50% of vehicles are cars (many are bikes, trains etc.)
Primary navigation:
This is the one users are most interested in and are most likely/often going to use. Hierarchically, they are links to the top categories of the site. For example on Amazon.com, the primary categories are the departments:

Although it often IS placed at the top, it's a misconception that primary is the navigation at the top. Like you saw, Amazon uses a button in the top bar, but the menu actually expands more along the lefthand side of the screen than along the top. And Gmail and Hotmail for example use a more obvious side-by-side pane layout, where the primary hierarchical navigation is along the left side.

This is both due to the layout of the content (email tends to be narrow, tall) and the fact that both these companies treat their mail ass an app in a suite.
Although one could argue that the top bars (with links to other apps and your profile/settings) are primary, I'd disagree. You're here for mail, not other apps, so navigating your mail is the primary objective.
Pervasive navigation
This is simply navigation that exists on every page. Among this are the primary navigation, but also links to user settings (not actual content), the search box (which is non-hierarchical) and links to stuff like copyright notices and EULAs (not really content either).
Looking at Amazon.com again, they have a substantial footer on every page:

Which links to a lot of external pages, different languages, job openings, and all other sorts of things that aren't categories of products they sell.
Hotmail/Gmail also have a footer (though much smaller) with links to the terms of service. And as mentioned before, there are links to user settings and other apps always in the top bar. There are also semi-pervasive (on every page, but only if you have email(s) selected) buttons which aren't links but actions... so ignore that I even mentioned them?
Anyway; a lot of links that exist on every page, but aren't related to navigating the main content hierarchy.
Answer: Primary navigation are usually the main categories of a sitemap. Pervasive navigation are links that you want user to access easily and they persist across most (if not all) pages such as search, home. I suppose primary navigation could be pervasive as well such as links on the header.
Answer: Pervasive navigation. Pervasive navigation refers to nav links that are on almost all pages. They might be two-level tabs like in Amazon, or Windows-like dropdown/flyout menus.
You can refer this for more research and navigation understanding.
http://www.webstyleguide.com/wsg3/6-page-structure/3-site-design.html


1 stepper motor driver using two motors

Question: If I have a bipolar stepper motor driver (currently based on a L293, but I may be switching to a A4983) and I would like to control two 4 wire bipolar steppers from it (but not at the same time and the speed of the switching is irrelevant), can I just use a DPDT switch or relay to switch 1 wire of each pair between two motors on the output of the driver ?  Apart from just using another driver per motor, are there better options here?
Answer: Having just addressed this myself I'd have to say separate drivers for each motor is the most sensible approach.
If you remove the power from one motor, is has no holding torque and will 'flop' under any force.
You may also have issues with the state of the outputs not being correct for the current rotor position, which will make the motor jump a bit when you switch it.
And as Dave mentioned, if you have power on a coil when you switch it, it will arc inside the switch which will eventually destroy it.
It's also way more impressive to have both axes moving simultaneously if you can :)
Your application may be able to cope with some of these issues, but if you need reliable accuracy then I'd recommend separate drivers.  The A4988 (update of the A4983) is only $3-4 from Digikey if you're building your own board.
Comment: You make excellent points, especially the twitch from the outputs not being correct for the motor - that would cause me greater grief than the lack of holding torque (which I'd already considered).  My biggest concern with the doing the A498X on my own board is that I've not done surface mount soldering before.  Pololu makes a board for the A4983, but its uneconomical to purchase one for every motor I need.  Maybe its just time to bite the bullet on SMD...
Comment: @rfusca - while SMD isn't always difficult to do, leadless packages like QFN may prove frustrating as a first experience. When the occasion arises you could start with something like SOIC.
Comment: @rfusca sounds like the perfect opportunity to learn SMD soldering!  Watch this helpful video to get a head start: http://store.curiousinventor.com/guides/Surface_Mount_Soldering/101/
Comment: @Dave - Thanks, I've watched that and about a million other tutorials on it lol.   I've decided to do it, I've got some SMD parts on the way and so then I'll etch some simpler circuits to practice on.
Answer: I don't see why not, as long as the switch you're using is rated for the amount of current that your motor is going to draw.  I also wouldn't switch over unless the driven motor is first stopped, so that you don't have any arcing in the switch.

1 stepper motor driver using two motors


Is it possible to insert data in different languages in table columns in Codeigniter?

Question: I am working in a Codeigniter application with language class.
So far, I have the application running perfect and translating all languages using language files.
But I need to add a new functionality related to translation.
How this would work:
When a user posts some data, it would be inserted on different columns being translated to different languages each column. That means database content (Data inserted using forms like description of post) being translated to various languages.
Because I can not create a language file for that so I need to do it this way for data being inserted.
I am looking for some suggestions. I can't figure out a way to do this.
Thanks in advance.
Answer: I'm not sure of the specifics of what you're trying to accomplish, but have you considered creating the language file programmatically? Rather than handwriting it, you could create it on the fly or after updating the database.
Comment: Thanks for reply.. I need database content (Data inserted using forms like description of post) being translated to various languages.


What is the chemical redox equation between hydrogen peroxide and melanin?

Question: I am investigating hair bleach, and want to figure out the redox reaction between $\ce{H2O2}$ (hydrogen peroxide) and $\ce{C18H10N2O4}$ (melanin). $\ce{H2O2}$ is a strong oxidizing agent in this redox equation, but I don't know how to write that out. Someone please help?
Answer: Your formula for melanin is incorrect. Melanin does not have a clear and concise chemical formula; it is a class of natural polymers that differ in their exact composition. The only thing they have in common is that they derive from the amino acid tyrosine and that they at one point polymerised.
Therefore, unfortunately there cannot be an exact description of what happened between melanin and hydrogen peroxide. You can draw a half-equation for the hydrogen peroxide part which would be:
$$\ce{H2O2 + 2 e- + 2 H+ -> 2 H2O}$$
But what exactly happens in melanin and which groups are oxidised is hard to say. What probably happens is a series of radical reactions that in some way oxidises away the aromatic system and thereby moves the absorpion wavelength out of the visible spectrum. But that's probably about as much as you can say.


Will someone fail the Test DAF exam because of having a swiss accent?

Question: I started to learn Dutch and Schweizerdeutsch (swiss german) simultaneously and I found that the way I speak german in general has changed in terms of pronounciation and in next november I will have my test DAF exam, I'm afraid that I will fail the exam because of my accent, because my speech will be recorded and listened to later which in my opinion will make the matter worse, so how would I get rid of this accent while speaking standard german and use it again when speaking Schweizerdeutsch, because it is hard for me to say for example "ich" and "ich" as a swiss might say it without mixing both. I also read that having such an accent in the exam will not make any difference, is that true? And how would that sound to a native german from Germany or Austria?
Comment: A Swiss accent on standard German is quite different from *Schweizerdeutsch*, the latter one not being understandable for native Germans if spoken at full speed - can you clarify the question? See [this question](https://german.stackexchange.com/q/18851/1696).
Comment: Regarding the exam will I fail it because of such accent?
Answer: Swiss accent is no reason to fail an exam: Swiss-German is as valid an accent as any one.
They can't make you fail because you speak like millions of German native speakers. However, it will not be beneficial, if your examiners have a hard time to understand you (and maybe fail to identify the kind of accent!).
Beware: If you speak dialectal Swiss-German and not "Schweizer Hochdeutsch", you may rightfully fail.
I suggest that you try to inform your listeners that your accent is Swiss. If you still have the choice, I would also recommend that you pass the exam at a test center in Switzerland or at least Southern Germany - and not in Berlin or Hamburg.
(Personally, I acquired my DELE diploma from a test center in Germany instead of Spain to reduce the risk of failing the oral part.)
An anecdote
I remember an interview with a renowned Swiss-German author. He had been teaching German to a Japanese student. The student, who needed the exam to enter diplomatic service, failed the exam: Admittedly his German was excellent - but all his relative clauses were introduced with "dass" instead of "daß" (as required by old orthography in Germany and Austria - but not in Switzerland). The author said that he had contacted the test center and/or the Japanese Foreign Ministry to take the responsibility for the failure on himself, tell them that the student had written correct Swiss-German and make them reconsider. (Outcome not mentioned or forgotten.)
Comment: Another anecdote: A German native speaker friend of mine didn't score the highest score in a German evaluation test at an Austrian university, because she spoke with a high-german accent.
Comment: @infinitezero: Yet another anecdote. As Erasmus students in France many of us needed a few more ECTS points. A student from the UK picked an English(!) course as she hadn't found anything interesting or useful for her career. Funny enough. Everybody wondered, whether she would achieve the normally illusory 20/20 points. Ultimately, her grade was closer to 10/20 - passing grade. She told us that her teacher had not been content with her level of participation. I don't know, if she was angry or simply amused.
Answer: Assuming you're referring to the TestDaF Institute, on their web site they say (emphasis mine):

Ihre kommunikative Kompetenz ist also wichtiger als die Wiedergabe z. B. grammatischer Regeln und Strukturen. Wichtig ist, dass Sie sich mit dem Format des TestDaF vertraut machen.

Translation (by deepl.com):

Your communicative competence is therefore more important than the reproduction of grammatical rules and structures, for example. It is important that you familiarise yourself with the format of the TestDaF.

Thus I doubt you'll fail the test because of having an accent.


Adding materials to more than one object

Question: Is it possible to add a texture or material to more than one object at a time?
Comment: Add a material to one object. Then select all of the object (making sure the one with the material is the "active" object), hit CTRL-L and select "link materials"
Comment: Like all objects have the same material? The materials must be apply one time for each mesh. You cannot select multiple objects and apply one material to all of them like expected in other graphic software.
Comment: @ajwood this could be an answer :-)
Comment: [similar question](http://blender.stackexchange.com/q/28883/2217)
Comment: Could you provide some more info about your current setup? E.g. What render engine you are using?
Answer: It's possible link the materials on a selection of objects to a single "active" object.

Add an material to an object:

Select all of the objects you want the material on, then select the object from step 1 (it's important that you select that object last; it needs to be the active object). Hit CTRL+L and select Materials
Answer: This is an easy way to copy a material to many objects.
First the object with the material should be the active object while all the other objects you want to copy the material to are selected. Then press the "Copy Material to Others" button in the material tab of the property window.
Answer: For 2.8+ you can go to the 3D View header menu Object > Make Links > Materials

You can also access it from the material slots dropdown Copy to Selected option

Materials are always copied from the active object to the others selected. Shift clicking on an already selected object makes it the active one.
Answer: Also you can select all those objects you want to assign material to and execute the code:
#assuming there's image loaded in Blender and called 'sky_1'. It's the one you'd like to assign
img = bpy.data.images['sky_1.jpg']
imageTexture = bpy.data.textures.new('Image_Texture', type = 'IMAGE')
imageTexture.image = img

#check presence of material with the same name
if bpy.data.materials.get("textureMaterial") is not None:
    materialToApply = bpy.data.materials["textureMaterial"]
else:
  # create material
  materialToApply = bpy.data.materials.new('textureMaterial')
  materialTexture = materialToApply.texture_slots.add()
  materialTexture.texture = imageTexture
  materialTexture.texture_coords = 'UV'
  materialTexture.mapping = 'FLAT'

#loop through selected objects and assign the material
for x in bpy.context.selected_objects:
  me = x.data
  me.materials.append(materialToApply)

The small advantage of this (at least for me, I always check twice which one is active if transfering materials) is that it doesn't really matter the objects' selection order in this case.


Backing up Windows Server for Active Directory?

Question: I'm new to working with Active Directory and after watching a training video it mentioned that the default Windows system backup was not an ideal choice as it takes over a drive. I'm going to be evaluating several third-party backup solutions. While I'm doing this, what features should I look for?
Comment: Product recommendation questions are off-topic. As such, I've edited your question to make it more about valuable features of backup systems.
Answer: The built in Window Server Backup in Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2 will dedicate the backup target drive to the backup and won't make the backup drive available for any other purpose, but I don't see that as a bad thing. Additionally, if I needed to restore AD, I'd much rather have a full backup of the server rather than bits and pieces.
My recommendation would be to purchase 1 or 2 drives that are large enough for a Full server backup and use those alternatley for backups of the entire server.
Answer: If you are prepared to restore with a new install and then restore the core data you can use a "System State Backup".
From an elevated command prompt:
<code>wbadmin start systemstatebackup -backuptarget:f:
</code>
will backup the key data to F:, but not dedicate that drive to backups. See Technet for all the wbadmin operations.