All the web stuff at polarweasel.org should be encrypted-only now. In other words, when you visit a page on the blog, or on the main site, you should see the little lock-icon thingy — or whatever your browser uses — in the address bar.

For my own future reference, and maybe yours too, here’s what I did.

These sites are hosted on Dreamhost, which makes it really easy (two clicks) to get a Let’s Encrypt certificate. So I did that for the various sites.

So, I read Let’s Play a Minimalism Game Together by The Minimalists, and sent it to my friend Anne this week.

No time like the present. November’s the month.

This ought to be interesting. My daily tally will be below the fold on this post.

The BioLite CampStove is a brilliant idea. Burning some little sticks will cook your food and charge your phone (or other USB device) all in one shot. Nice.

I’d love to own one, but most of the time, I wouldn’t be able to use it here in Colorado (or New Mexico, or Utah, or all our other desert-type neighbors). Fire bans, and all. If we were move someplace wetter, though, I’d be all over this.

UPDATE A subsequent update fixed the problem. Or at least didn’t re-create the problem.

HP software update 2.10 came out recently for Lion and Mountain Lion, and causes apps to crash when you try to print. If this is happening to you, here’s what to do about it.

Delete this:

/Library/Printers/hp/PDEs/hpPostScriptPDE.plugin

(You’ll need to provide authorization, either with sudo or by giving an administrator password to Finder.)

There is no step 2.

Programmable Web just posted a really nice list of 10 reasons why your API sucks. Or doesn’t, depending on how good your documentation and developer experience (DX? Do we really need another bullshit acronym, people?) are. The post also links to their own list of 5 attributes of a great API. Definitely check out the presentation slides in that post.

Note that a number of the bad things (unexpected and undocumented releases, poor developer experience, inadequate support, and poor documentation) and good things (provide great developer support) are documentation-related. How surprising. Yet another bunch of reasons you should add a good writer to your development team.

I’ve had a few discussions recently about the value a technical writer can bring to an organization. Unsurprisingly, given what I do for a living, the discussions have centered around the value a very technical writer brings to the table.

Clearly, it’s time to write some of this down.

So the Apple TV is now officially a high-definition device, capable of 1080p output. Still officially a hobby for Apple, but the strategy behind it is becoming increasingly clear: year after year, chip away at the dwindling reasons to subscribe to cable or satellite.

Netflix and iTunes have pretty much eliminated (non-reality) TV series now, for a large segment of the population. Movies are coming along nicely, with Netflix streaming and iTunes movie rentals, along with sharing from computers and devices on your home network.

I can hardly wait for our upcoming daughter to be old enough to appreciate Mark Twain’s Advice to Youth. It’s some of the best advice I’ve read in ages. (I really do want her to read it, along with everything Oscar Wilde ever wrote, for starters…)

Be respectful to your superiors, if you have any, also to strangers, and sometimes to others. If a person offend you, and you are in doubt as to whether it was intentional or not, do not resort to extreme measures; simply watch your chance and hit him with a brick. That will be sufficient.

When Bigger Isn’t Better: Samsung Galaxy S II Preview | Apartment Therapy Unplggd

First, WTF is up with that name, Samsung?

I find it interesting that Apple’s devices appear to be considered untouchable by so many reviewers. This review might as well read, “Well, it’s ugly, not as good as its 18-month old competitor, and clearly designed and built by chimpanzees, but it’s pretty much better than the rest of the also-rans.”

In an earlier post, I mentioned Rhode Island Wiring Service, purveyors of reproduction wire, including what looks to be every wire style used in Land Cruisers (40s and 60s, anyway).

Other good sources of auto/boat electrical parts I always forget about:

Genuinedealz does free shipping, and their prices are great. They will make custom cables, too, for a $1-per-connector labor charge. I remembered about them tonight, right after I spent more than I should have for some Blue Sea stuff on eBay.