It is a serious problem and a crime, but I can’t help ROTFL. Sorry.

Scammers claim to offer a technical support service to their victims. Instead, they use social engineering and confidence tricks to persuade their victim about fictitious problems on their computer. It can be pretty much anything, ranging from malware infections to claims that the user is using illegal or unlicensed software, or even a very “meta” revelation that some hacker is using their computer.

Initial contact with the victims may be started with a phone call they initiate, or they may be passively waiting to answer one made by the victims. To get the victim to call them, they use common tricks like fake pop-ups resembling error messages or fake helplines advertised on websites owned by the scammers.

Payments to the scammers are usually through ways that are hard to trace. For example, they get the victim to buy gift cards or even send them money in cash thru the mail (usually to “mules” they hire to collect it locally; asking victims to send money to India would look rather suspicious).

Technical support scams are not new; they have occurred as early as 2008, and the vast majority of the scammers can be traced back to locations in India. Millennials and Generation Z have the highest exposure, but senior citizens are more likely to give money away to scammers.

Responses to technical support scams include lawsuits against companies responsible for running fraudulent call centers (mostly in India) and… scambaiting.

Scambaiting

Scambaiting is a form of internet vigilantism. Technically prepared users pose as victims to waste time and resources of scammers, gather valuable information for authorities, and publicly expose scammers.

They document scammers’ methods and sometimes go all the way and hack their systems. Scambaiters’ motivations range from a sense of civic duty to personal amusement. Fantastic Youtube channels can educate you and keep you entertained for hours. Two of my personal favorites:

• https://www.youtube.com/c/JimBrowning
• https://www.youtube.com/c/ScammerPayback

Scambaiting is an Internet Sport; it is not a new thing. It has been used against advance-fee fraud for many years. See https://www.419eater.com/ for a lot of fun with (mostly) Nigerian scammers.

Popular methods of entertaining scammers go from asking them to fill out lengthy questionnaires, convincing them into taking long trips, even getting them to send their “fake” victim money. In addition, baiters publicly humiliate scammers by filming their interactions or persuading them to produce humiliating images that will later be used as trophies.

This may all look like a lot of fun. Seriously, it is. However, I need to remind you that these people are real criminals. Do not engage with them. Chances are you may be ill-prepared to do it and place yourselves in real danger. Just don’t do it. Stay safe.

Just an average Joe, thinking aloud; it can be a train wreck. But, he does not pretend otherwise.

Joe Rogan is a podcaster. A very successful one. He signed a deal with Spotify, worth around $100 million, making him exclusive on the platform and a massive reference in the podcast business.

“The Joe Rogan Experience” started in 2010; The podcast has guests who discuss every conceivable topic, from martial arts to politics. Joe Rogan is a curious, easy-going host; he does not pretend to be an expert on anything outside martial arts and comedy and is not afraid to dwindle into whatever his guests have to offer. This includes science, conspiracy theories, politics, and morals.

Joe Rogan’s opinions are heartfelt and honest. While he may stray into the crazy territory and have misguided views on many subjects, you see the genuine individual struggling to figure things out. So, many times that struggle to find facts by simply googling or looking at a random video on youtube and forming opinions in real-time is a big part of the show’s success.

It is not a science convention. It was never presented as such to the listeners. Instead, it’s your “average Joe” talking to guests about random subjects. Sometimes the guests are fantastic and help the host reach illumination; other times, they are not quite that awesome and drag Joe into cuckoo’s land. That matches what it says in the tin: it’s “Joe Rogan” personal experience exploring many subjects.

Unfortunately, as the show is tremendously popular, sometimes there are harmful consequences to Joe’s beliefs. Stepping on science and public health matters may lead listeners to make poor choices and eventually die. However, I honestly don’t feel it is fair to blame Joe Rogan. He is just being himself; he never pretends to be a perfect human being or educated; he is just sharing his own experience. These are not TED talks. He is not a medical doctor; he is not an educator. Instead, he shares his own options concerning his health and why he believes they are the right ones for him. He is not offering advice. That is not what his show is about.

People that mimic Joe Rogan options and beliefs may end up regretting it? Sure. In the same way, on many other issues, they may actually improve their lives. There are a lot of topics where the show is educational because Joe’s own journey of discovery ends in a good place. The better the guest, the higher the chance it will happen, and he has had some amazing guests over the years.

I am sad and troubled over Joe’s views on Covid vaccines. It is deplorable that his journey led him there. However, I don’t make up my mind based on his experience; neither should you or anyone else. You should listen to Medical Doctors on medical matters, not radio or podcast show hosts, no matter how smart or convincing they and their guest sound.

Computers are game-changers for talented creative individuals.

Recognizing talent, nurturing it, and seeing it grow, is a big part of my job as IT director in a big Portuguese retail company. Very few activities are more gratifying than changing people’s lives for the better, helping them reach their full potential, being a better version of what they would otherwise be. So I decided a long time ago I would use the same skill set to help others, outside working hours, people I meet in my personal life.

My father showed me a Sinclair ZX-81 computer early in my teens. He explained the Basic computer language, described how the machine worked and offered me quality time by his side. He blew my teenager mind. It was a life-changing experience. Soon enough, I was learning English, writing my first computer game (“tic-tac-toe”), and thrilled with the whole experience.

Fast forward a few decades, I find myself offering (the right kids and, on rare occasions, older “kids at heart”) Raspberry Pi’s and old hardware someone is throwing away. I find the best books and magazines to best fit the particular individual I have in mind. For some is a guide to building a games console or arcade machine; for others, a python or C language book on making games. The hardware is just one piece of the puzzle: directions to the Pandora’s knowledge box is the other.

Finding individuals with the eagerness to learn and explore is critical. However, the whole process takes time. I recall spending entire summer vacations showing arcade games to my nephews (and friends) and explaining the basic concepts behind making a computer game. I talked about the game authors, their stories, the difficulties they faced. Then, suddenly, they were more into the story behind the game rather than the game itself.

Some started to get curious about the technical stuff among the crowd. “how do you tell the machine to do what you want?”, “do you speak English to the computer?” and “what do you mean with machines being dumb?”.

I make a deal with them:

• I own the next five weekend mornings; in exchange, they will make their own computer game in a month.
• After a good night’s sleep, we start early, so that means no partying on those Friday and Saturday nights. Coffee is not a replacement for a night of healthy sleep at night.
• The learning will be challenging, and they are not dumb!

Depending on the age group, I choose different languages and tools. For example, I have used Blitmax (a basic like dialect), and C language (my favorite teaching language), which requires students to be like Spider-man; great power comes with great responsibility.

As far as manuals and books, I usually pick a well-written, simple book or article that will backbone our workshops. Then, they can refer to the text they are familiar with when they need to recall doing something. Some of my favorites resources are from https://store.rpipress.cc/

In particular the “Learn to code with C” — https://magpi.raspberrypi.com/articles/learn-code-c — that has just the right mix of simplicity and depth.

Although I took groups of students on rare occasions, I prefer to do it one on one. I also like to bring parents and their sons as students in a closed group. Unfortunately, this means I can only do it for a very small number of individuals. So I made some videos you can follow with kids and accomplish the same quality time with them.

Some examples (source code and complete games) created in these summer workshops can be found in here: https://plaureano.itch.io/ (they are all FREE to download and can be used as inspiration for your own adventures teaching or learning).

Who knows; you may be that teacher they will never forget and change their lives… or a true inspiration, like my father was to me, changing my life forever.

We may look like a planet filled with delicious lobsters to them…

Michio Kaku is a professor of theoretical physics at the City College of New York, a proponent of string theory, and a well-known science popularizer with several television appearances and successful books. Soon we will have the James Webb telescope in its orbit, fully deployed, and we will, for the first time, be able to observe thousands of planets. Hence, professor Michio Kaku thinks the chances that we will be able to make contact with alien civilizations are very high.

We all heard all kinds of theories about aliens — all kinds of possibilities, from them being very good to very bad, from friendly first contact to the destruction of the human race.

Science fiction often depicts humans successfully fending off alien invasions. Still, scientists are more convinced that an alien civilization with enough power to reach Earth could destroy human civilization with minimal effort. When it comes to having the technology to play any role in space, we are a very primitive race; we can barely get out of our backyard.

Douglas Vakoch, METI’s most prominent proponent, believes that if we don’t tell anyone we’re here, we risk missing out on new technologies that could help humanity or protect us from other, less friendly aliens. On the other hand, Stephen Hawking thought contact with an alien civilization might be a risky proposition.

I am siding with the pessimistic view. The whole concept of primitive civilization meeting a more advanced one never ended working well for the one with less technology and power.

I know there is a possibility aliens may be friendly vegans eager to give us technology and the secrets to happiness. But, somehow, I am more inclined to imagine them as predators eating us for breakfast or interested in earth resources and seeing us a pesky plague.

Either way, I would be delighted if we found them first. Study them. We correctly evaluate risks and then say, “hello, we come in peace” or not interfere in any way, shape, or form with them. However, I find it more likely that humans will exploit them (or the resources of their world) and act like obnoxious space conquerors. Like the “we are decent, respectful and caring” as resulted that well on Earth as far as our relationship with other species…

But aren’t UFOs real? Are they already among us? Of course, UFOs are real. We see flying objects, fail to identify them, and call them unidentified. Does that mean they have come from outer space? I HOPE NOT since I am not a proponent of the “good aliens” theory.

Even contact with alien viruses and bacteria is potentially disastrous to humans. So are you insane suggesting it’s a good idea to meet advanced alien civilizations? I think humans are cute, so are a lot of animals, and that did not prevent us from killing them as a recreational sport. Or for food. Or because they are in our way to getting something we want. We may not exactly look like a cute bipedal life-form that inspires a lot of sympathy. We probably look a lot like fire-ants or a gourmet exotic delicacy to alien eyes.

Get a grip on reality; start planning your life and be extra-careful now!

Most experts believe SARS-CoV-2 will become endemic. As the disease moves from Pandemic to endemic, the health impacts will be less severe, and we as a society will be better able to manage the risks associated with COVID-19. However, this switch does not mean we will eliminate COVID-19 (the disease) but learn to live with it (the virus SARS-CoV-2 and its various mutations), reduce transmission, and reduce severe consequences for infected people.

History of pandemics (spoiler) review of our current situation

If the history of pandemics serves us right, eventually, epidemiologists will agree that we have reached the endemic stage. But exactly what this phase looks like, how many deaths it causes, and the risk of infection from it depends mainly on how serious the virus variants, including Omicron, turn out to be and how effective the measures we take against the disease are. It has happened before, and it will happen again.

There is no doubt that the coronavirus will eventually get to us when almost everyone is vaccinated or infected, or both. However, right now, we are still going through a messy and potentially unstable transition. Nevertheless, judging by the sudden drop in new infections in South Africa and the United Kingdom, right after the raging spread of Omicron, I would say there is a pretty good chance we are reaching the final leg of the Pandemic.

Our post-pandemic future will largely depend on how the virus evolves over the next few years. As our ability to avoid the worst-case scenarios for COVID-19 improves, the virus will never truly disappear. While this virus and our immunity determine the likely future of endemic COVID, the ultimate burden of the cases and deaths we endure lies with us.

A clear picture instead of recycled technical jargon?

We heard about the possibility of “herd immunity”. But, unfortunately, it was presented more like an oasis in the desert and a goal than a hypothesis. Like herd immunity, endemicity is technical jargon that refers to the threshold where science supposedly says we can stop worrying about COVID-19.

COVID-19 is not yet endemic because many people are still not immune from vaccination or infection worldwide. The likelihood that every single person will at some point get the virus is more than apparent. Unless you live in a bubble, in isolation from other human beings, you will get it. Hence, the non-vaccinated will get natural immunity by contracting the disease, at a much higher risk of dying in the process. The problem will nevertheless solve itself.

Regardless of your vaccine position, this is an excellent time to get your shots if you have not taken them already. Do you want to be that family member that dies from COVID-19 in the last moment days of a pandemic? Please grow up. The vast majority of the population has already “tested” the vaccine, so you can put your doubts to rest. Don’t die of stubbornness; with the help of the virus, humanity is finally defeating.

This last mile in the race to survive is the hardest.

Countries will not enter the endemic phase simultaneously. Several factors, including vaccination levels and how spread-out communities are. Although Omicron looks like it’s establishing itself as the dominant variant everywhere, this is happening at different rates that greatly vary from country to country.

Hospitalizations everywhere have their limits. The transition to the endemic state of the epidemic is not something we want to rush, even if it means life will get back to normal. Some of us will need help and medical care; it is up to us to ensure we don’t take that precious scarce ventilator, hospital bed, or treatment if we can wait our turn to take more significant risks.

Patterns are likely to be significantly different in some countries. Countries that opted, or were faced with the fact, that Omicron will go thru their population unchecked by restrictions are betting that disease levels will be compatible with their healthcare capacity. They better get it right. It’s a significant bet.

Some countries opting for a zero-virus spread policy will sooner or later change their policies either voluntarily or under changing circumstances outside their control — the option to either attempt to manage the spread of the disease or not manage it at all. Regardless, it will happen.

The decline in infection numbers is slower on the right side of graphic curves than the rise in cases on the left. It takes a couple of weeks for the rampant number of infections to fall.

Will COVID-19 still kill us when it becomes endemic?

No doubt the virus will still pose a potentially serious threat to the elderly and medically vulnerable, but the degree of suffering could be much less, closer to what we experienced in the worst pre-COVID flu seasons. So, yes, it will kill some of us, just like the flu and other endemic diseases.

Medical care availability and better treatments should contribute to a much better prognosis in the future. However, like flu season, people are likely to take extra precautions whenever COVID-19 cases increase. The most significant difference is that the governments will no longer actively control the spread of the virus and instead focus on treating higher-risk patients.

Over time, we may see the virus become less pathogenic, like the four coronaviruses that cause the common cold, which is nothing more than a seasonal nuisance. It may also disappear, like smallpox and polio. We do not know which.

According to many, Portugal takes the cake in 2022; That is where I live.

Portugal has (mostly) free health care, low cost of living, excellent weather, low crime rates, excellent infrastructures (from roads/highways to Airports and Internet access). In addition, you will never be more than two hours away from a beautiful beach, and there are many English-speaking people among the Portuguese. The food is unbelievable. It’s a fantastic place to live!

Foreign citizens, who can support themselves, can live and work in Portugal. Moreover, it is a SCHENGEN member country, meaning you can travel freely around Europe.

There are Visa requirements for some countries worldwide; please conduct due diligence before even thinking about coming in. However, it is not that hard to enter Portugal legally. Visas are valid for two years and are renewable. In addition, depending on your particular situation, you may be eligible for tax-free status under the non-habitual resident (NHR) scheme.

Some additional notes:

• The primary Visa applicant should show a minimum of €1,000 monthly income. For a relaxed, care-free living in Portugal, double that amount per person. Anything in the middle will mean you will have to make some compromises.
• The visa suits employees, freelancers, crypto traders, retired, etc. If you have an income source, chances are you will be accepted; however, a fixed income stream significantly improves your chances.
• Over 90% of the population is vaccinated. You need to be vaccinated to enter the country; otherwise, you will have a considerable fine waiting for you in the airport and a guaranteed flight back to wherever you came from.

Is it for you? Only you can get to the answer. When it comes to a world ravaged by a Pandemic, there aren’t many countries with these vaccination rates and (mostly) free healthcare. Sure is the place for me, but we may have different needs, priorities, and tastes.

The contract is set in stone by nature. So work at the small clauses!

Before you die; take a moment to think about your sacrifice.

“Despite popular rhetoric, democracy is not synonymous with freedom. Taking something without permission is theft, but not when the majority goes along with it and calls it taxation. Matters that should be of no interest to any other person (e.g., what a person chooses to do with his or her body) become matters of public policy when the majority says so.”- Brian Drake(?)

I do not know who Brian Drake is. Please let me know if you have a link that correlates with this quote. Nevertheless, the confusion between freedom and democracy is prevalent in society, so I started here.

“Democracy is two wolves and a sheep voting on whats for dinner. Liberty is a well armed sheep protesting the vote.” — James Bovard

I know you will hate me if I am the first one to plant the thought in your mind. Please redirect all the frustration and anger toward the original author. There is a link to biographies in the name after each quote.

The concept of democracy, when applied to a small group, sounds egregious. But, I am not even going to plant in your head the seeds of unbearable pain and doubt when you consider tribal societies where gang rapes and female genital mutilation are practiced. Some of those are, in fact, democracies that elect their leaders by simple majority rules.

“Democracy (n.): Government of the sheep, by the shepherds, for the wolves.”–”Lucifer’s Lexicon: The Portable L.A. Rollins”by L. A. Rollins, Chip Smith, et al.

Correctly identifying the sheep, shepherds and wolves, is the challenge, dear reader. Citizens are the sheep, politicians are the shepherds, and donors are the big dire wolves. But, judging from the pathetic IQ level of most politicians, always-on display of stupidity, we better start reading into the excellent manipulation job done by their puppet-masters.

This is the same on both sides of the political spectrum. While we have our personal biases to deal with, once you realize you are being manipulated just as much as everyone else, you will be at least a bit less gullible.

Not that it is your power actually to do something about it. Just vote. It is pretty much all you can do. Choose the more innocuous of the candidates. Get yourself rid of the illusion of power and play along. If you don’t vote at all, there is an excellent probability the worse candidates win. You are going to take the pill, either the blue or the red one, at least participate in choosing the color. Good boy!

“Democracy is no solution — it’s just 51% bossing the other 49% around. For God’s sake, Hitler was democratically elected! Democracy is just mob rule dressed up in a coat and tie.” - Doug Casey

“No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.” — Winston Churchill

Talking about pills, placing the wrong people in government will kill you. But, regardless of how disillusioned you may be, it can get worse. A lot worse. So take the exercise seriously.

“The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter” — Unknown.

Wrongfully attributed to Winston Churchill (Attribution debunked in Langworth’s Churchill by Himself.[28] First known appearance is in a 1992 usenet post).

I found this is to be funny as hell. What can I say? I have a twisted sense of humor. I find the concept that a majority of individuals is blessed with wisdom amusing.

“Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance. Democracy is also a form of worship. It is the worship of Jackals by Jackasses. Democracy is only a dream: it should be put in the same category as Arcadia, Santa Claus, and Heaven. Democracy is the art and science of running the circus from the monkey cage. Democracy is the theory that the common people know what they want, and deserve to get it good and hard. Every decent man is ashamed of the government he lives under. Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.

Democracy is the art of running the circus from the monkey cage.” – H.L Mencken

Sometimes our puppet-masters momentarily lose control over the monkeys. In those moments, it does look like the animals are running the circus.

“We talk about democracy as if it’s a safeguard for individual rights… Instead, it’s become our way of intruding on rights, allegedly in the name of that most collectivist of concepts: The Common Good.”–Jonathan David Morris

This one hits me right where it hurts the most. It is a check-mate on individual freedom — the root of everything I despise as a libertarian.

Come cry in the corner; I have cookies.

Establishing a new normal. The old one is not coming back anytime soon.

Shoutout to Umair haque! He wrote an excellent article on Medium that you can read here: https://eand.co/good-luck-learning-to-live-with-the-pandemic-youre-going-to-need-it-c733b56f1393 

While I appreciate his article on the current state of affairs in the pandemic-ravaged world, obviously, I very much disliked the message; it’s hard to “like” our current predicament.

We have to find our “new normal”. It may be very different from life before the pandemic; nevertheless, we must reach the proper risk management and actions that meet our needs to live with the problem.

Does that mean vaccines every six months? Are masks not getting out of fashion any time soon? Is social distancing unavoidable? Something even more life-altering must be part of our daily life is on the cards?

Regardless of the details, we must find our new normality in a way that meets our needs as social beings. Having a pandemic of depression and suicide is certainly not a solution to dying from a coronavirus. Instead, we have to find a new alternative economy that sustains people. If we do not, people will end up dying from a myriad of problems in our attempt to deal with one cause of death.

While I wholeheartedly agree with most of the message, there is a time limit for our resistance to abnormal behavior. Extraordinary measures can only last so long before they become ordinary. So yes, we have to live with the virus, which will probably mean we have to accept dying from it. I am not saying people should be reckless. I am saying we have some tough tradeoffs to make.

I live in a country (Portugal) with over 90% of the population vaccinated. In addition, people wear masks in indoor spaces. So while we are less worried about the omicron, we keep our eyes open to the possibility of other variants being a bigger problem. In the meantime, we are enjoying seeing each other. We value those moments while we can. We do not know when they will become impossible again.

I am 52 years old. My parents are in their 70s — some of my uncles are in their 80s. They want and need to be with their loved ones. They are willing to risk their lives to do so. I have to manage and balance the risk. We all do.

A nation on the brink of fascism embracing a cult of personality.

When I first heard George W. Bush saying “evolution and creationism” were just two theories a few years back, I should have guessed by then things would not go well if a country placed science and religious fantasies on the table as equally valid propositions.

I thought it was some American eccentricity, with a president with the IQ and culture level of a bad twelve-year-old student, not wanting to listen to adults in the room. Although the president of the United States must have advisors, they failed to coach him on that occasion; it sounded funny.

Fast forward a few years, Americans decided to elect an orange ape-like creature, and populism went into overdrive. Soon enough, there were “good people on both sides” when comparing right-wing extremists to people opposing those views. Are you kidding me? This is not distinguishing right from wrong, moral from immoral behavior. Even the twelve-year-old must have a grasp on what is the difference between right and wrong.

The Covid Pandemic hit while the country looked like it was going into cuckoo’s land, unable even to have a conversation on any given subject. People could not agree on what reality and facts were anymore.

We got a parade of clowns preaching snake-oil treatments, the denial of the obvious consequences that followed some stupid actions (like people self-medicating and dying in the process). If it were not a real tragedy, it would likely be funny.

A poorly planned attempted cue is being discussed for a year now. I fear the second try maybe a charm. A third of the country seems to not even care about democracy, precisely the same part of the country that touts the defense of democratic values as the reason for promoting the whole mess.

Fascism thrives under these conditions. I live in a country ruled by a fascist dictator for 40 years until 1974 (Portugal). It all starts with people accepting a cult of personality, dividing themselves into two groups, and not listening to each other. You are creating a perfect storm — the land of the free, the last remaining super-power, maybe on the verge of destroying itself.

I hope you get your act together as a nation and wish you all the best. But, unfortunately, it does not look good, seen from an ocean away.

We have a serious problem. If you think Covid is bad… buckle up!

The empirical application of moldy bread on wounds started long before the concept of bacterial infection was even understood. There are many historical references to ancient civilizations’ healers using antibiotics.

It is not even a debate. Not having them will destroy your soul.

I have seen it happen time and time again. Companies going back in time decades, some closing shop, I.T. departments F.U.B.A.R. and peoples lives destroyed. The non-corporate world equivalent is people losing their digital archives of irreplaceable digital memories forever; photographs, videos, etc. Gone. Forever.

On good days your focus could not be further away from thinking about losing data. Things are happening. The world is evolving, your systems are working, and the world is your oyster.

On bad days disks fail, data becomes corrupted, you are under attack by some evil hacker organization. Having a well-thought-out backup plan makes your bad days a nuisance, one undesirable change of plan. But, bad as it is, it will not be a catastrophic failure with dire consequences.

The RAID and other data replication schemes misconception.

Having a system that replicates data against hardware damage of some of the drives is excellent. You can switch to alternative media in failure scenarios and keep your system operational while replacing faulty hardware. It deals with the integrity and failures of your physical layer (hardware).

While under attack or dealing with nasty a bug that slowly (but surely) corrupts your data, it is useless. Automation will ensure that the original and the replicated data are corrupted equally. So you will end up with two perfect clones of the problem and no way to get back to a previous version.

Replication systems are NOT a backup solution. Instead, they address and deal with a specific use case; hardware failure. You need one immutable, point-in-time backup of critical data that you can revert to.

Snapshots and incremental backups

Cloud platforms and Virtual Machines have point-in-time backups called Snapshots. They store the differences between data in two points in time, and you can easily navigate to a previous version of your system.

You can usually automate snapshot creation in ways that fit the ever-changing needs of any particular system. Usually, scheduling is tightly related to the speed at which data changes by design, sometimes tied to logical business cycles. Opening and closing the daily activity in a store, catalog updates, price changes, etc.

The need for offline remote location copies and immutable data

There is no safety whatsoever in having incremental backups if they can be destroyed along with the system they are designed to restore. I have seen ransomware attacks that ended up with backup files held hostage along with everything else. An entire building was destroyed by a fire. These things do happen.

You must keep replicas of the incremental backups, updated regularly on a remote location, preferably offline. This way, you know for sure that it is untouched and ready to be used if the need arises.

Backup restoration is not optional.

I cannot recount how many times I have witnessed puzzled looks on people’s faces when they find out their backups are useless. They simply cannot restore them. When they find out about their predicament, people’s expressions soon turn pale and give way to shock and horror.

You must test the restore procedures (regularly) to ensure they are (and remain) viable and know how long it will take to recover from disaster. That’s where your confidence should come from. Knowing the outcome. Not from the illusion of supposedly having done everything right, only to find out that, in fact, you didn’t.

Do the work. You will get the benefits someday, at the same juncture where most people are hit by drama.

Having backup plan

Effective backup plans vary drastically depending on the systems and data they protect. There is no silver bullet solution to fit all systems and problems.

They must answer the following questions:

• What data needs to be backed up. Some systems have primarily data in transit that can be rebuilt in run-time from the source. There is no point in backing it up. You should have data backed up at its inception already, and the system will populate it on the first run after restoration.
• What system or technology will perform the backup operation?
• Where will backup data be stored?
• What is the procedure to have an offline copy?
• How will it be transported to a secure remote location?
• Are there risks related to data in transit?
• Will backups need to be encrypted?
• How much will backups cost over time?

Timelines:

• How often will backup operations be performed?
• How often are backups validated and restore-tested?
• How long will backups be retained?

People:

• Who has access to backup data?
• Who will have access to the encryption keys that protect backups if encrypted?
• Who is responsible for testing backup restore procedures?
• Who executes backup restoration in real-world scenarios?
• Who is in charge of documenting the processes?

Use and protection:

• What are the emergency procedures?
• What are the specific events the backup strategy is designed for?

Conclusions

Over the years, I have seen too much pain and sorrow over essentially poorly designed or nonexistent backup plans. Don’t be that person that fails. Be better than that.

How the Portuguese overcame a lousy start fighting the Pandemic

In the early day of the Pandemic, the Portuguese authorities made a conscious choice of lying to people. PPE (Personal Protection Equipment) was scarce, namely N95 masks. The need to ensure that medical staff got whatever was available led them through the slippery slope of making up a story that would convince people not to adequately protect themselves.

Government officials started building an outlandish narrative that masks were dangerous. People would not know how to properly place them over their mouth and nose, and we all would be better off not using them.

Soon, it became apparent to everyone (and their pets) this was an idiotic approach. The narrative then switched to something along the lines of “please leave the available stock of N95 and the blue cotton surgical masks to medical professionals”. Instead, use homemade masks; you can make one at home using whatever materials you got on hand.

Finally, when stocks of propper masks got replenished, a few months into the Pandemic, we got our first glimpse of helpful information from authorities. People were at this point required to cover their mouths (and noses) with whatever they managed to buy. For the first time, communication was made cristal clear; homemade masks were close to useless but better than nothing. Cotton blue surgical masks were much better; N95 covers were the best.

This ever-evolving message, from its outlandish beginnings to the factually correct statements, in the end, is a tragedy. Having government officials lying and sugarcoating facts has become the norm, sadly. Having health authorities acting along these lines is lethal. There is no possible excuse for these people’s actions. Regardless of their intention, they are literally killing their citizens.

There are consequences to getting the wrong information.

To this day, I see people wearing generic homemade masks and generic cloth ones. I wonder how many of these missed the memo that they are close to useless. That is the problem with health authorities not communicating with clear messages based on science and making up stories to serve their circumstances. People actually missed health authorities’ last version of advice on masks.

No one likes wearing masks. People wear them out of a need for protection or regulations imposed on them. Since they are wearing them, it makes no sense to use the worst possible option available to them. Surgical masks are cheaper than most cloth-based ones. I truly believe this group does not have precious information on protection levels provided by different covers against an airborne virus.

People wearing a mask without covering their noses are beyond pathetic. They convince me that some of us are not that far away from some extinct branch of apes lacking basic survival instincts. It has been one year and a half: You could potty train the stupidest of dogs faster than this.

We did a terrific job vaccinating people.

The Portuguese government gave control over the vaccination efforts to a career military. Vice-Almirante Gouveia e Melo — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henrique_Gouveia_e_Melo — without hiccups and idiotic misinformation messages, made vaccines available to every Portuguese citizen.

He was verbally attacked by anti-vax movements. So, yes, we also have a small and very loud percentage of idiots. But folklore aside, he got over 90% of the country vaccinated. A truly heroic effort and a terrific job that could not be more different from what we got from health authorities.

All in all; We were lucky.

Thankfully we did not have political parties casting doubt over vaccines and false treatments; Just Facebook profiting from spreading incorrect information and dividing people, like the rest of the world. It’s their business model, what they do. It’s pure evil. Whatever gets people engaged with the platform is fine for Facebook…

Although delivering the initial official misinformation from authorities, the broadcast media at least did not add any political twist to the nonsense. So we had, in that regard, better luck than our American and Brazilian counterparts.

How multiplayer (e-)sports reveal natural leadership skills and team players.

Introspectiveness, listening, and ensuring the best ideas win!

The sarcastic view of America felt too close to reality.

Ten years ago, if the movie existed, I would tell you I disliked American society’s dystopian view. It would feel unrealistic, an exaggeration that went way too far, and it could never get this crazy. My issue with the movie is that it’s pretty realistic, punctual exaggeration notwithstanding, which bothers me; a lot.

I understand why so many top-tier actors accepted to participate in this one. But, unfortunately, I can instantly hear in my mind the voices from the right-wing arguing that it is left-wing propaganda. It is meant to pass a political message and be entertaining while at it, but I think it fails on both fronts.

I honestly believe the craziness would vanish instantly if American society faced a common enemy of such biblical proportions. History shows us that. Even with some of the most idiotic politicians ever, and fractured society, they will rise to meet the challenge when the need arises. This movie casts some doubt in my idealistic views; that is why it bothers me so much.

Since I am talking so much about a movie, let me “review” the film itself: high production values, great acting, average screenplay, dark humor I find disturbing and not funny.

I am a European. I do not live in America. So I can only hope the divisiveness is inaccurate or not so prevalent. But, from an ocean away, it does not look good. At all.

We are social beings; we need to touch each other and socialize.

I am a huge fan of Jessica Wildfire writings. She lives in a southern state in the US and frequently writes (a lot) about her views on the Pandemic. While realistic and a pleasure to read, I find her circumstances disturbing.

I am Portuguese, and I live in Portugal. We have a full vaccination rate of over 90% of the population. https://timetoherd.com/

There is no lack of testing facilities or self-tests. The government provides up to six free tests to everyone monthly. In addition, personal protection equipment, like masks, is readily available everywhere.

While we are looking at record numbers infection rates, the highest since the pandemic started, the vast majority of the population does not need hospital treatment to get through it. So we are monitoring the problem, focusing on the number of people in Hospitals and ICU beds, not so much on the infection rates. Most infected people are either asymptomatic or have very mild diseases.

We are facing a high probability of Covid turning into an endemic problem. As a result, we will have to learn to live with it, probably for the rest of our lives. In all likelihood, like with the common flu, we will all be infected by the virus at some point.

I am starting to get my everyday pre-pandemic social life back on track. However, I am not exactly a party animal, being 52 years old, married with no kids. I like to have family or a couple of friends at the house weekly and on special occasions.

I am planning the new year party and had three small(er than usual) Christmas meals with family.

Finally, and getting to the point, we are social beings. We need other people. We need to feel them, touch each other, read facial expressions, hear voices coming out of their mouths and not computer (or cellphone) speakers. If our bodies are as equipped to deal with the virus as possible, if everyone is fully vaccinated and tested before each gathering, I believe we should do it.

Do not counterargue. Express concern, plant a seed, and be on your way.

“There is no point in arguing and showing facts, and nothing will convince them at this point.” — I am not saying you are wrong. It’s your opinion, and you are entitled to have one. But, while I have a different perspective, I hope you are right. For your sake, since you are the one that will have to live with the consequences or, worst, die from them.

See what happened there? It’s all about them — their perspective. You just casually stated you have your own perspective on the subject, did not in any way imply it was the correct one, or even state what it was.

If someone is not interested in your views, keep them to yourself. No matter how right you think you are, or how good you feel about spreading your formula for a better outcome. How do I say this politely and gently? Shut up! Be quiet. You have done all you can at this point.

Sometimes. Mainly depending on how empathic you were, people will take the bait and show some curiosity on that different perspective of yours. While that sounds like a good thing if you are eager to share your views, educate others, and put them in line. In reality, most people obnoxiously fail miserably as they step in round two in the conversation. And lose every single point they had previously scored in the first round.

If you clearly state your views on the subject, you will see them back away further and further into their shells. So, I say that I had my doubts, just like them, indeed, and ended up following the opposite track. I am sure they can figure it out; I don’t want to preach. I genuinely hope they change their views because (I believe) they are hazardous to them, but I don’t want to push them in any direction. I wish them all the best and will be on my way.

No one likes losing an argument — no one likes being wrong. So why do you believe placing anyone in such a position is the best way to change their mind? Plant the right seeds and let them take them home. Be kind and loving. Learn to live with the fact that there is no way back from crazy land for some people.

You did your best… there is no point in harming the Lemmings’ feelings, and you can’t save them all.

It is not embracing reckless risk-taking; you can do it safely. And you need to.

Risk assessment and management are crucial to having something that remotely looks like our previous social life. Before the dark days, before the pandemic engulfed us.

I had three Christmas parties this year. My parents divorced in my early teens, and I married 20 (something) years ago. I hope my wife skips this one, or I may be in trouble (albeit I will probably get out of it unscathed; risk assessment and management already). So Christmas eve lunch is with my mother, dinner with the wife side of the family, and on Christmas day, it’s the father side for lunch.

In each get-together, everyone was fully vaccinated/boosted and tested. The arrangement was that if anyone, including kids, had any symptoms of Covid, or a cold, we would cancel the event.

On Christmas day lunch, I felt the risk was higher, there were a couple of really young nephews present, so my wife and I wore a mask the whole time. Not pleasant, but none of us is interested in lowering our guard.

I am throwing a karaoke party for New Year's Eve, inviting three other couples, and planning to have a ton of fun. Safely. Using infrared heaters (those heat people, not the air around them) on an outdoor space (an open garage) is a good option.

You can read about the Karaoke setup (using Ultrastar Deluxe with all my favorite music) here.

The whole point is that we are social beings. We need to socialize. We have to deal with the pandemic and learn how to have our psychological needs met safely.

If you are fully vaccinated, it is not so much a matter of life and death at this point. It is more a matter of managing the risk of either being sick from Covid or clinical depression. I have not gotten Covid yet. I want to avoid having it as much as possible. However, I believe it will become endemic, and the likelihood of avoiding it will be similar to preventing the common flu.

I am not a doctor; my evaluation of our circumstances may be tragically wrong, so please talk to your MD about the subject.

The US has (by far) more people incarcerated than any other nation. 639 out of every 100.000 individuals.

It is not remotely close to other developed nations.

To understand how unbelievably shockingly high this number is, you must compare it to other developed countries.

Eastern European countries have close to 200 (for 100.000 inhabitants). Most Western European countries are below the 100 mark. For example, Norway has 49 people incarcerated by 100.000 inhabitants.

Even outside Europe, most 1st world countries have shockingly low numbers compared to America. As an example, Japan has 35 people by 100.000.

The rate of incarceration is a lot closer to the third world countries.

The top 25 countries ordered by incarceration rates by 100.000 inhabitants:

The US leads in both wealth and education! Not in crime rates!

How can the country with the best education system globally and the wealthiest of all nations (GDP) fail so badly?

GDP rank: https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/countries-by-gdp

Education rank: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/education-rankings-by-country

The US is nowhere near having a top crime rate (56th highest) when compared to other nations: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/crime-rate-by-country

I cannot feather how this is justifiable; it looks insane to my European eyes. Are you putting individuals in jail for what should be minor fines or community service? You do know that is a sure way to turn them into real criminals, right?

You are doing it wrong, and you know it! Get your act together.

Feeding on peoples dreams while realizing your own

The “how to get rich” on some “platform” (Youtube, podcast, Medium) articles sure seem pretty lucrative.

Looking at the sheer number of people pumping out the content on the subject, we can safely assume that apparently, people that “made it” are incredibly generous about spreading the success formula.

Not one of these content creators seems remotely worried about increasing the competition. Something that would indeed happen if everyone made it to the top. They want to help you, dear stranger, take a piece of the pie they are eating.

It looks like a gold rush where every miner is willing to show where to dig to everyone else. Does something sound weird about the concept?

Take a step back, just for a few seconds. Then, think about what happens to these individual content creators’ income if everyone repeats their exact success formula.

I sincerely believe that some people are genuinely altruistic. The sheer amount of helpful advice they give away is spectacular. But, unfortunately, it is a bit harder for me to distinguish the ones that are being confessional about their journeys from others that are simply suffering from a lack of new ideas.

This is not an accusation. On the contrary, I am very thankful to see people willing to help me and others as we start our journeys. But I must admit I find it odd and tiresome to see the same content in a thousand articles about the medium algorithms. Should we, the platform users, repeat ourselves this often?

Wouldn’t it be more productive to create a single non-monetized article in everyone’s profile to the best reference (and original) articles on a particular nuance on how to make it big?

Something like, here is the best article on “how regularly should you publish” by “this person”. Then, we would be rewarding the best among us, not incentivizing plagiarism, not polluting our feeds with the same article rewritten ad nauseam stating the same thing with a slightly different combination of words.

When one of us, Medium users, comes out with an excellent piece on a subject, we should give him credit. Likewise, we should aspire to be credited to our original work one day. The best way to help our readers achieve the success they crave is by setting and showing a good example. Certainly not by plagiarizing our heroes by creating infinite echoes of their original message.

It’s Christmas. Merry Christmas. Let’s share the love, not others content and ideas as our own.

Better sound and video means people’s attention lasts longer!

I am on video calls over 90% of my working days. While I spend most of the time listening to other people, occasionally, I have to speak. Because I need to have the participant’s full attention, I want to tire them as little as possible.

Sound

Sound quality is crucial. If you ever tried listening to a podcast or YouTube video with lousy sound, you know how hard it is to focus on the message the speaker is trying to deliver. Unsurprisingly the same happens at business meetings.

Since most people use their laptop’s built-in microphone, it is not hard to improve the sound. Unless you live in a recording studio with good sound isolation, I recommend using a dynamic microphone. They capture less ambient noise than their condenser capsule counterparts.

I use high-end Rode XLR microphones (broadcaster), a high-quality boom arm, and a Rodecaster Pro. I also do voice-overs on videos and have a podcast, so I invested a lot more than most people need to.

A good cheap dynamic USB microphone will do the trick just fine. The Audio Technica ATR 2100x ($80) is an excellent choice. You need to find a way to get the microphone as close to your mouth as possible. It is essential to extract the best quality out of your dynamic microphone. A microphone stand is the best solution, and you can find one for cheap (around $20).

Video

While being less critical than audio for meetings, I like to give the people I work with the best possible visual experience. Unfortunately, most laptops come with potato cameras. While they are mostly terrible, they can do the trick.

Light is essential no matter what camera you have. So take care of that, and you are halfway there. A ring light ($25) is an excellent choice. Avoid at all costs having light sources on the background unless you are planning to look like a criminal giving an anonymous interview.

If you want to take your video to the next level, take a look at the “Logitech brio” line of cameras (~$150) and the “El Gato Facecam” (~$200). They are both surprisingly good.

Working from home has some great perks. My days gained two additional hours for myself and my family in my particular case. However, I feel the need not to lose efficacy when communicating with my colleagues. That is why a decent setup is not an option. It is a requirement.

The less you know about a subject, the more likely you will poorly judge how ignorant you indeed are. Projecting confidence seems like a good strategy in life, which is a dangerous combination.

Knowing very little about psychology, and therefore in an attempt to avoid falling into the Dunning-Kruger Effect all over this article, I recommend you read about from the authors directly:

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Unskilled-and-unaware-of-it%3A-how-difficulties-in-to-Kruger-Dunning/f2c80eef3585e0569e93ace0b9770cf76c8ebabc?p2df

…now that you are back, after reading the paper and much wiser than you were before you read it, let’s proceed.

I am a big fan of humble people with a grip on reality.

I like the majority of ordinary people. Realizing they do not know enough about medicine, and therefore should “probably” follow doctors’ orders. However, I see a few very vocal and loud individuals stating that they are not “convinced” a vaccine is a good idea on the other side of the spectrum.

Getting a grip on what science knows about the human immune system takes years of study; these individuals are not equipped at all with the toolkit of knowledge and the skillset required to understand the problem; how can they be “convinced” of the merits of the potential solutions?

You are gullible when you are this ignorant on medicine. But, unfortunately, there is no quick fix for that, and conspiracy theorists are not the solution either. I understand the nature of your discomfort, but you have to get over it.

Please don’t give me the “our freedom, our body” speech… Sure, you have the option to do the wrong thing. Good for you. You know, what really messes with your freedom? Being in the hospital, unable to breathe, and needing a ventilator.

Just remember the Dunning-Kruger effect next time some wacko speaks.