Cleaning House with DaisyDisk

Since I'm taking the week between Christmas and New Year's off and I have nothing on my schedule, I thought I would take some time to do a little digital housekeeping. My projects include: Cleaning up the hard drive on my macbook, updating the photo section on Pfeiffersite, tweaking the firewall settings on my home router and possibly getting my old PC "file server" back up and running, or replacing it altogether.

Today I decided to tackle cleaning up the hard drive on my macbook. With a modest 160 GB hard drive, I was starting to worry about storage capacity when I cracked 140 GB of utilization last week. My typical experience with the computers I have owned in the past is that about the time I start bumping up against the hard drive capacity, the thing is ready to be scrapped anyway. But my macbook is only about two years old and is still performing exceptionally well. So I decided that before I went out and randomly started junking unneeded files, I would give DaisyDisk a shot. I picked up DaisyDisk from MacHeist earlier this year and at the time, I thought it was a neat looking utility with little practical value. I was WRONG.

DaisyDisk renders a graphic representation of your hard disk (pictured) to demonstrate your overall utilization and where the disk hogs are hiding. Offering seamless drill-down capability and the ability to target chunky folders and files in a Finder window, DaisyDisk is the perfect tool for hard drive reclamation projects. Thanks in large part to dumping a ton of old TV episodes in iTunes, a bunch of ripped DVD's, several disk-intensive games and compressing my virtual windows install, I was able to reclaim nearly 65 GB. Further cherry picking old application data, documents and unused applications netted an additional 15 GB.

If you're a mac user with some storage issues, give DaisyDisk a try. If nothing else, seeing the graphic representation of all your local data is pretty cool.

The Realtor World

Next week will mark 3 months since Emily and I closed on our first home. It's been almost nine months since the house hunt began in earnest and in that time, I've learned a lot about the home buying process. In no particular order, here are my top 10 lessons learned:

#1 - Get pre-qualified early. The first call I made when we decided to buy a home was to a mortgage broker who checked my credit, got some basic information about my finances and issued a letter of pre-qualification. In a depressed housing market (like the one we were shopping in), being pre-qualified isn't always crucial during the house hunt. But in a competitive housing market, sometimes pre-qualification is required just to get your foot in the door with a seller. Pre-qualification should be one of the first steps in your home buying process, as desirable homes often sell very quickly (sometimes less than 72 hours). You want to walk into prospective homes prepared to make an offer. Once it comes time to write paper, pre-qualification is a must if you want your offer taken seriously.

#2 - Budget Conservatively. When Emily and I first started talking about purchasing a home, we looked at the inventory in Rochester based on our combined income. But since we knew Emily would have to find a new job in Rochester, we made the decision to get pre-qualified and purchase a home based solely on my income. In retrospect, this was a great move. We ended up getting a lot of house for our money and now that Emily has a job, we'll be in a solid financial position that will allow us to cover our housing costs and still bank some savings.

#3 - Don't Ignore Fees and Taxes. When perusing the MLS listings, the property tax amount is hidden down at the bottom and is often the best-guess of the seller and their agent. This is unfortunate, because in Monroe county, taxes can often double the amount of your monthly mortgage payment. Never consider a property until you've evaluated how the taxes will affect your monthly payment. In anticipation of rising assessments or screw-ups on the part of the listing agent, round the property tax amount up to the next thousand dollar mark when budgeting. In addition, don't forget to factor in attorney fees, mortgage application fees, the cost of an inspection and other miscellaneous closing costs in your budget.

#4 - Shop Realtors. This was my biggest rookie mistake. I got a recommendation from my mortgage broker and stuck with the guy WAY after I knew he wasn't the right realtor for me. If I had to do it all over again, I would screen multiple agents. The most important question I would ask is "What do you bring to the table that makes you more valuable to me than one of your competitors?" All agents have certain obligations to their clients. Don't settle for a realtor who doesn't go above and beyond those obligations.
#5 - Use the Internet. My biggest beef with realtors is that with the proliferation of online real estate tools, there's not much extra a realtor can offer in the way of finding a home. Using online MLS directories (homesteadnet.com in the Rochester area), a buyer can get a feel for the specifics of property and often see photos. Google Maps is useful in helping to locate prospective properties and the Street View feature is great for getting a curbside look at a property and the surrounding neighborhood. Zillow.com has aerial photos and also shows property lines and assessed values. There are many helpful sites out there to help you with your house hunt. Use several of them to get as complete a picture as possible about a property before setting up a showing.
#6 - Narrow Your Focus. Some buyers begin a house hunt knowing exactly what they want and how much they can pay. Emily and I began knowing what we wanted to spend, but we had only a vague idea of what we wanted. After LOTS of looking, we developed a better feel for what we needed in a home. If you're not entirely sure what you're looking for, keep searching until you can confidently describe the must-haves and the desirables for your home. Once you've reached that point, screening out non-contenders becomes much easier.
#7 - Consider Resale. When you're looking for a home that you plan to occupy for years to come, it's tough to think about the day when you'll be selling it to someone else. But that should definitely play a part in your decision. Is the home in an appealing neighborhood? Will it's character and personal touches appeal to other buyers? Are you overlooking a feature that's going to be a major turnoff when you have to sell? All good questions before deciding on the right house.
#8 - Read Everything. OR have it explained by a trusted individual. The old adage about not signing anything until you've read it is excellent advice. However, real estate can be complicated, and reading a document and not understanding is about as helpful as not reading it. So if you don't understand something, ask your realtor or attorney. There are no stupid questions when so much money is on the line. I would also highly recommend that once you decide on a realtor, have them walk through their standard offer paperwork. When a buyer finally finds the right house, it's tough to focus on the details. But there are numerous terms and conditions in the offer that require some serious thought. Knowing what those terms are before it's time to write paper can make the whole process less stressful.
#9 - Be Present for the Home Inspection. Once you've had an offer accepted, a home inspection by a qualified inspector is a necessity. And being there when the inspection is done is important. You'll receive a report from the inspector, but being there to ask questions is a valuable opportunity to learn about your home and any problems it may have.
#10 - Don't be Afraid to Walk Away. Don't be afraid to fire a bad realtor. Don't be afraid to bow out of a bidding war. Don't be a afraid to walk away from a home that's falling apart on inspection. It is difficult to separate emotion from the business of purchasing a house. But the effort and potential pain of staying detached is definitely worth avoiding the financial consequences that result from emotionally charged decisions.

Rotten Apple

I took a trip to the Apple store at Eastview today to drop off my MacBook to have a couple of parts changed out. Imagine my dismay when I arrived at the mall to find security guards (and man, do I use that term loosely) blocking the door to the store and a line of about 50 people in the middle of the mall corridor. Turns out today was the release of the iPhone 3GS. I explained to the "guards" that I just wanted to drop off my MacBook for service and I was denied entry. After demanding the attention of one of the orange-shirted Apple enforcers, I had to wait for a service tech to come out to me. Apparently, I presented a serious threat to the orderly roll-out of a cell phone. Because of the iPhone launch, the 45 minute job I was promised turned into a half day odyssey and I had to come back after work to pick up my machine. Getting access to the store to sign for my computer was similar to the security process at a major metropolitan airport (though I was permitted to leave my shoes on).

The whole incident has me pretty irate because I have had it with Apple acting as though iPhone users are the only customers that matter to them anymore. And its not just today's product launch. Let's turn back the clock to the World Wide Developers Conference held June 8th. Typically the keynote address at the WWDC serves as a "state of the union" for Apple's product development efforts. It began at 10AM PST. The first 47 minutes were dedicated to mac products and the new Snow Leopard version of OS X. The next 1 hour and 21 minutes were ALL iPHONE. Attendees at this year's conference reported overwhelming emphasis on iPhone app development. I'm shocked...

I know that the iPhone has kept Apple's revenue flowing as the iPod cash cow began to dry up, but last time I checked, they're still actively selling computers. So it's time to stop treating those of us who dropped a considerable chunk of change on their computing hardware like second class citizens.

Don't get me wrong, I think the iPhone is great product. And at some point in the future, I might even buy one. But it's still just a phone. And if I'm standing at a genius bar with a $1400 MacBook that needs a new battery next to some iPhone junkie who can't set up the exchange email on his new 3GS, you better believe I expect to be served first.

So here are a couple constructive suggestions for Apple to turn the tide and start treating mac customers like they matter:

• Let AT&T handle the iPhone. Get it out of the Apple stores. This is a no-brainer. No other retail store I can think of is forced to close it's doors to all other customers on the day it rolls out a new product. AT&T has a national chain of retail locations and a fully-featured shopping website. They're providing the service, let them sell the phone.
• Quit it with the "There's an app for that" commercials. Yes, there is an app for that. And there's been an app for that for Windows Mobile users for years. And we didn't have to pay a dime for it. The bottom line here is that Apple needs to resume it's focus on encouraging independent OS X developers. Every geek with a copy of X Tools installed thinks they're going to strike it rich designing iPhone apps. These people don't need any more encouragement.

I love Apple products, but it's time for Steve-o to retake the reigns and get his company actin' right.

Pfeiffersite Annual Update

Every year at about the same time (late spring/early summer) I get the itch to update my website.  Each year typically brings increased content and a new look, and I catch up on the photos I haven't posted in a long time.  This update is no exception.  I've applied a new theme (which I may or may not keep) and I've added photo albums for recent trips to Great Falls National Park and Billing World in Las Vegas.  But I've also made two other major changes to the site this time around.  Both are intended to improve the content of the page, as well as the chances of me updating that content on a regular basis:  1) I am no longer hosting the photos in my albums.  Those who maintain web sites know how burdensome this can become with many albums.  So I have created photo albums using Picasa and my photo page now links to those albums.  Please let me know if there are any problems accessing the Picasa albums.  2) Verbal Currency, which was previously a blog hosted on Pfeiffersite, is now Pfeiffersite.  Anyone with interest in this site will probably appreciate the prominent placement of my blog, instead of a home page with infrequently updated album links.  

I've removed my bio for the moment, but I'll be updating it in the near future.  In addition, I'm revisiting the content of my "interests" page.  So additional changes to the format of the site will be forthcoming.  But in the meantime, I'm going to try and stay on the blog content.  

Television Favorites: To Bail or Not to Bail?

In the past month, I've grown tired of many of the shows that I've started watching regularly over the past couple of years.  I hate using the term "jumped the shark," because many of these shows are relatively new.  Can a show be any good and still "jump the shark" in the span of just one or two seasons?  I think so.  But it could be that the novelty of a new premise masked weak writing and acting.  For example:

-"Eleventh Hour" started quietly as a darker, more serious alternative to "Fringe."  Rufus Sewell is an odd, but appealing choice for the role of Dr. Jacob Hood in this CBS rehash of the British original.  And Marley Shelton (aka Wendy Peffercorn in "The Sandlot), is multiple levels of hotness above Anna Norv on "Fringe."  But the serious tone of the show is killing it now that the writers have had to stretch the boundaries of plausible science to come up with new dilemmas for Hood and Rachel.  Sewell's patronizing scientific explanations and Shelton's delivery of obvious questions to set up those explanations are repetitive and painful.  The addition of Omar Benson Lee as Felix was a welcome change, but it came too late.  I removed "Eleventh Hour" from my DVR recording list this week.  

So far, Eleventh Hour is only the first victim of permanent banishment from the DVR.  But there are a number of other shows that are on the chopping block.  In no particular order, they are:

-"Chuck."  Here's a show going nowhere fast.  I was turned on to "Chuck" by a co-worker after the first season.  I caught up on iTunes and was really looking forward to season 2.  But so far, season 2 has been all about preserving the status quo.  Will Chuck and Sarah hook up?  Will Chuck man up and find a real job/apartment/grown-up friend?  Is Chuck doomed to be the Intersect forever?  The Fulcrum plot seems unimportant compared to the character development the audience really wants.  I'm giving "Chuck" a few more episodes to get the story moving, or else.

-"Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles."  Only weeks away from being forever jettisoned from the DVR, T:TSCC scored HUGE points Friday night when Jesse did fans a favor and blew away Riley after a wicked catfight.  And fanboys everywhere said "thank you."  How long was the audience really supposed to believe that the future leader of mankind would settle for someone so aesthetically challenged when the family's pet cyborg is closer to a 10?  

The show also seems to have moved on from the "check out how crazy Sarah is" plot line, which is a big plus.  My only concern is that the Weaver/Ellison/John Henry (formerly Cromartie) story will take over future episodes.  T:TSCC is at its best when it focuses on John's evolution and his relationships with Sarah and Cameron.  The producers need to tone down the happenings at ZeiraCorp to keep viewers interested.

-"Lie to Me."  The premise was interesting.  Tim Roth on TV was cool.  The first episode was a lot of fun.  Man did that get old fast.  The focus on the practice of lie detection that made the first episode fun to watch has been eschewed in favor of a standard police procedural.  Next.

-"Heroes."  Many fans have already fled, but I'm hanging in there.  For now.  Sylar's daddy issues and the prospect of learning more about the real HRG have kept me coming back in recent weeks.  But the show needs to shake things up and I humbly submit the two following suggestions: 1.)Whack Nathan Petrelli.  The Senator has flip-flopped and double-crossed SO many times that his character has become devoid of any real meaning.  This guy needs his wings clipped.  2.) Give Hiro his damn powers back.  Hiro is obnoxious enough when he can teleport and freeze time.  Take away the powers and he's even worse.  Remember badass Hiro on the subway in season 1?  I know a lot of folks have said that the timeline has altered and that cool, future Hiro is gone.  But can't we move in that direction anyway?   

-"The Office."  I know, sacrilege.  But it's gotten to the point that I tend to fast forward through any extended scene involving Michael.  It's not funny any more.  It's painful.  The goings-on at Dunder Mifflin have become increasingly implausible and one of the show's biggest strengths is that it allows cubicle drones across the country to relate.  Time to get back to reality and refocus.

A-Roid Speaks

And I really wish he wouldn't.  Following allegations that Alex Rodriguez had tested positive for steroids during his 2003 MVP season, A-Rod "came clean" in an interview with Peter Gammons.  I have long been a proponent of harsh punishment for those individuals in any sport who engage in the use of banned performance enhancing drugs.  I am so disgusted with athletes getting busted for 'roid use and then apologizing profusely on prime time.  Where was the regret when A-Rod was picking up his MVP trophy in 2003?  Let's be clear, for most of these athletes, their use of  banned substances translated into millions of dollars in performance bonuses and free agency leverage.  I guarantee that juiced players aren't sorry about that.  In A-Rod's case, he's not even sorry he got caught.  Because the agency doing the testing was the user-friendly MLB Player's Association.  None of these athletes are feeling any remorse until proof of their doping goes public.  And are they sorry they've lost the respect of their fans?  Nope.  They're sorry they've lost the $$ from their sponsors.  

It's ridiculous that someone out there has the names of another 103 players, each earning a ridiculous salary, who cheated.  Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Andy Pettitte, Alex Rodriguez and every other one of the as-yet-unnamed 103 dopers should be permanently barred from the hall of fame and have their records deleted.  There is simply no room in professional athletics for admitted cheaters, who only come clean when their misdeeds have finally landed them before the court of public opinion.

The belated apologies and lame excuses only serve to make the admissions even more infuriating.  When I was coaching novice rowers at RIT, I told them that they would all screw up at some point in the season.  They would oversleep, miss a workout, forget to pick up a teammate before practice, etc.  I didn't care why they screwed up and neither would their boat mates.  What was important was that they decided to man up, admit their mistake, accept the punishment, and avoid repeating the same screw-up in the future.  I didn't accept excuses.  All I wanted to hear was, "Coach, I f**ked up."  I would like to recommend a similar policy for professional athletes.  At this point, no one cares why you cheated.  We know it was the money.  The only shot at redemption is coming clean before SI or ESPN forces the issue.

100-0 Blame Game

On January 13th, the girls varsity basketball team at the Covenant School of Dallas put a 100-0 beat down on the ladies of the Dallas Academy.  The story has received national attention since then, and things got heated again over the weekend when Covenant fired coach Micah Grimes.  Sports personalities across the country have taken the path of least resistance and blasted Grimes for the spectacle (check out the Mike & Mike video accompanying the ESPN story for some truly self-righteous indignation), but several other parties have apparently been given a pass:

• The Covenant players.  I just checked the roster on the Covenant School website and it includes 1 senior and 3 juniors out of eight players.  I'm guessing at least one of those four girls has been playing ball long enough to know what good sportsmanship means.  I'm guessing any one of those four girls could have stopped this at any time by running out the shot clock, not going for an easy steal, and not attempting to drain 3's for the entire game.  I'm guessing that one of those four girls wishes she had the chance to be the voice of reason given the chance again.  Some of the most stunning displays of sportsmanship in athletics come from leaders on the field.  Often without the prompting - or even in defiance - of a coach.  The Covenant players can let the coach take the fall, but mercy is all the more meaningful when it is granted by a peer.
• The Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS).  Check out the quote from Edd Burleson, director of TAPPS in the ESPN article.  Is anyone surprised Edd is advocating the golden rule, given that his organization didn't have the foresight to enact any other rule that could have prevented this?  The Dallas Academy team has been winless their past four seasons.  As an athletic governing body, how did Edd and company not see this coming?  I hate the idea of excluding anyone from high school athletics.  So barring the Dallas Academy from TAPPS play on the basis of their enrollment or roster size is unacceptable.  But somebody had to imagine team with a creep of a coach and some callous players making this possible.  Where was the mercy rule?

Don't get me wrong.  I agree that coach Grimes was largely responsible for committing an egregious violation of the concept of fair play.  But it bothers me that personalities like Mike & Mike let the buck stop there.  Clearly there are other parties who could have prevented or put a stop to this shameful display.  If this really is a "teachable moment," then let's make sure the right people are learning.