An .EXE file is not an invoice

Posted on June 9, 2015 by The Old Wolf

Today’s scam email:

From: “Agnessa Arina” <agnessaarina@yahoo.es>

To: redacted

Subject: FW::deposit invoice copy

Hi,

we are updating our company email address so i’m sending you the outstanding balance and new lodging.

Confirm receipt.

Amy chan

Tridium, Inc.
3951 Westerre Parkway, Suite 350
Richmond, VA 23233
USA.

View Download

That “Download” is a file called “deposit copy.exe” – something you NEVER want to click on. EXE files are PROGRAMS, and they are BAD NEWS. From code that will log your keystrokes, steal your information, turn your machine into a zombie spamming device, to encrypting all your files for ransom, these malware programs will make your life a living hell. Just don’t do it.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

The Greatest Summer Homework List Ever

Posted on June 9, 2015 by The Old Wolf

The dreaded summer reading list. For most kids, summer is a time when they can forget about school, but many teachers want to keep their thumbs in that glorious time of blissful forgetfulness. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing – an increasing number of voices in the education community are calling for modifications.

But Cesare Cata, who teaches at a secondary school in the central Le Marche region in Italy, wants his students to use their time off for less academic pursuits. I bless his name, and wish I had had a teacher like this.

Here the original Italian:

1. Al mattino, qualche volta, andate a camminare sulla riva del mare in totale solitudine: guardate come vi si riflette il sole e, pensando alle cose che più amate nella vita, sentitevi felici.
2, Cercate di usare tutti i nuovi termini imparati insieme quest’anno: più cose potete dire, più cose potete pensare; e più cose potete pensare, più siete liberi
3. Leggete, quanto più potete. Ma non perché dovete. Leggete perché l’estate vi ispira avventure e sogni, e leggendo vi sentite simili a rondini in volo. Leggete perché è la migliore forma di rivolta che avete (per consigli di lettura, chiedere a me).
4. Evitate tutte le cose, le situazioni e le persone che vi rendono negativi o vuoti: cercate situazioni stimolanti e la compagnia di amici che vi arricchiscono, vi comprendono e vi apprezzano per quello che siete.
5. Se vi sentite tristi o spaventati, non vi preoccupate: l’estate, come tutte le cose meravigliose, mette in subbuglio l’anima. Provate a scrivere un diario per raccontare il vostro stato (a settembre, se vi va, ne leggeremo insieme)
6. Ballate. Senza vergogna. In pista sotto cassa, o in camera vostra. L’estate è una danza, ed è sciocco non farne parte.
7. Almeno una volta, andate a vedere l’alba. Restate in silenzio e respirate. Chiudete gli occhi, grati.
8. Fate molto sport.
9. Se trovate una persona che vi incanta, diteglielo con tutte la sincerità e la grazia di cui siete capaci. Non importa se lui/lei capirà o meno. Se non lo farà, lui/lei non era il vostro destino; altrimenti, l’estate 2015 sarà la volta dorata sotto cui camminare insieme (se questa va male, tornate al punto 8).
10. Riguardate gli appunti delle nostre lezioni: per ogni autore e ogni concetto fatevi domande e rapportatele a quello che vi succede.
11. Siate allegri come il sole, indomabili come il mare.
12. Non dite parolacce, e siate sempre educatissimi e gentili.
13. Guardate film dai dialoghi struggenti (possibilmente in lingua inglese) per migliorare la vostra competenza linguistica e la vostra capacità di sognare. Non lasciate che il film finisca con i titoli di coda. Rivivetelo mentre vivete la vostra estate.
14.Nella luce sfavillante o nelle notti calde, sognate come dovrà e potrà essere la vostra vita: nell’estate cercate la forza per non arrendervi mai, e fate di tutto per perseguire quel sogno.
15. Fate i bravi.

And here the English translation:

In the morning, sometime, go walk by the sea in total solitude: look at how the sun is reflected and, thinking about the things you love most in life, feel happy.
Try to use all the new word you learned together this year: the more things you can say, the more things you can think of; and the more things you can think of, the more free you become.
Read as much as you can. But not because you have to. Read because the summer inspires dreams and adventures, and because while you are reading you feel like swallows in flight. Read because it is the best form of revolt there is. (For suggested reading, ask me).
Avoid all things, situations and people that make you negative or empty: Look for challenging situations and the company of friends that will enrich you, understand you, and appreciate you for who you are.
If you feel sad or scared, do not worry: the summer, as all wonderful things do, can trouble the soul. Try to write a diary to record your feelings; (in September, if you like, we will read these together).
Dance. Shamelessly. In line at the bank, or in your room. Summer is a dance, and it is foolish not to take part.
At least once, go see the sunrise. Remain silent and breathe. Close your eyes, grateful.
Play sports. A lot.
If you find a person who enchants you, tell them with all the sincerity and grace of which you are capable. It doesn’t matter if (s)he understands or not. If (s)he does not, (s)he was not your destiny; otherwise, the summer 2015 will be the great gilded vault under which you walk together (if this goes wrong, go back to step 8).
Review the notes of our classes: for each author and each concept, ask yourself questions and liken them to what happens to you.
Be as cheerful as the sun, as untamable as the sea.
Do not use bad language, and always be most wise and kind.
Watch films with poignant dialog (preferably in English) to improve your language skills and your ability to dream. Do not let the films end with the credits. Re-live them while you live your summer.
In sparkling light or on warm nights, dream about what your like can and must be; in the summer serch for the strength never to give up, and do everything to pursue that dream.
Be good.

The Old Wolf has nothing more to add.

Unfortunate Advertising Coincidences

Posted on June 7, 2015 by The Old Wolf

I don’t have AdBlocker on my mobile device, so I see all sorts of garbage. On occasion, however, what I see is amusing enough that I’m not even mad. Below a capture from an article where Bernie Sanders proposes spending $5 Billion to provide jobs for youth instead of even more on law enforcement and incarceration:

The juxtaposition of the McDonald’s propaganda and the snippet from Sanders’ comments was enough to make me smile. But when I clicked on the ad, just to see what kind of disinformation MickeyD’s was disseminating, I had to capture the unfortunate choice of redirect URLs:

The full URL actually was longer than the full name of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch – I’ve never understood the mechanics behind these dynamically-generated addresses:

One thing is certain, though – neither the advertising concern nor McDonald’s could possibly be too happy about being labeled

BS Serving System

regardless of how true it may be.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

1935: Outside Water Supply in DC

Posted on June 3, 2015 by The Old Wolf

July 1935. “Outside water supply, Washington, D.C. Only source of water supply winter and summer for many houses in slum areas. In some places drainage is so poor that surplus water backs up in huge puddles.” These municipal water taps (or pumps — they have crank handles) appear in several photos from this series. I wonder if any survive. 35mm negative by Carl Mydans

Found at Shorpy

Movie Review: Tomorrowland. The best film I’ve seen so far in 2015.

Posted on June 1, 2015 by The Old Wolf

Caution: Mild spoilers ahead. I’ll try not to give too much away.

Here’s a review of “Tomorrowland” by some pretentious soul who holds himself or herself out as a film critic:

“An aggressively optimistic script admonishes the lazy and irresolute and urges humanity to end war and save the environment; the proselytizing burdens an already onerous plot.”

This is exactly the type of person that the film’s conceit addresses: nothing is wrong, all is well in Zion, and those who dare to dream are optimistic fools.

The plot of the movie revolves around a young girl who was taught by her father to feed the wolf inside her that stands for light and goodness, not darkness and evil. She is shown a vision of a future that could be, and encounters people who are dead set against allowing that future to happen. And she has to make some difficult choices along the way.

George Clooney stars, but the characters that swirl around him, notably Britt Robertson, Raffey Cassidy, Thomas Robinson, and the ever-curmudgeonly Hugh Laurie, turn in performances that carry the film along in a convincing and delightful manner.

The effects are stellar and imaginative. Not much more can be said.

And the message of the film is one that is desperately needed in the world today. We need more dreamers, people who are willing to step up to the plate and do something about the pressing issues that face our world. We need more Elon Musks, more inventive kids like the ones out there who are figuring out better ways to provide clean water and cheap power to impoverished areas, provide better lighting, clean up the plastic in the oceans, diagnosing diseases quickly and cheaply, and countless other wonderful things.

Instead, our own country is arming police departments like they were SWAT teams, killing people with abandon, taxing the poor in favor of the ultra-wealthy, allowing robber barons to get off scot-free, cutting science, arts and literacy programs in favor of standardized testing and cookie-cutter education, and generally doing everything it can to cut creativity off at the ankles.

The last movies that made me feel this good were The Peaceful Warrior and The Ultimate Gift. We need more messages like this in the world, despite what the self-appointed naysayers preach.

I recommend this movie wholeheartedly. Not a perfect show by any means, but I left the theatre with my heart singing.

Overall rating: Eight out of ten stars.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

New York, 1905

Posted on June 1, 2015 by The Old Wolf

WordPress is strange; I realized I had gotten the date wrong on this photo in my previous effort; I could update the post, but the URL stayed the same and included the wrong date, so I had to trash the original post and start again.

This photo was colorized by redditor /u/kibblenbits, one of the best colorizers out there. I love historical photos of New York – this one would have been taken 4 years before my father was born.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Keeping Welsh (and Bees) Alive.

Posted on May 31, 2015 by The Old Wolf

Note: This article was originally published at FT.com (Financial Times). It is copyright. They have indicated that these articles can be shared with their “sharing tools,” and added, “Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web.”

That would be fine, if they didn’t use that accursed “complete a survey to read this full article” ploy. Or make you register (i.e. give them your information) to read “3 free articles per month.” Both of these are scummy tactics which serve no purpose other than to drive people away from a website; to Pluto with that. So, FT, get rid of the surveys and the paywall and I’ll be happy to link people directly to your site. Until then, hard lines.

Wil Griffiths set up an organisation that aims to save the bees and his native tongue

©Gareth Phillips

Wil Griffith: ‘When we started, other beekeepers thought we were racist’

Welsh has always lent itself to prose and poetry, to music and singing. But it has never been associated with scientific matters, and beekeeping is a science. If the language is to survive, it needs to expand into all aspects of everyday life.

I run the only Welsh-language beekeeping association in Wales. I set up Cymdeithas Gwenynwyr Cymraeg Ceredigion (the Ceredigion Welsh Beekeeping Association) at the end of the 1960s with two aims: survival of the bee and survival of the language.

Our Welsh beekeeping terms are not a pure translation of English terms because word-for-word translation is meaningless. For example, in a beehive, honey is stored in the very top of the hive, in the top box. The term in English is “super” — as in “superintendent”. It means “above”. But “above” would not be used that way in Welsh. The more usual Welsh word is “lloft” — meaning “upstairs”. So, in determining new terminology, we use everyday words that make sense to a Welsh ear. I wrote a book, Dyn Y Mel (The Honeyman) in which our Welsh terms are listed. In English, the term is “beekeeper” but, again, in Welsh, “dyn y mel” is more common.

I’m well over 80 now but I started beekeeping 60 years ago. At about that time modern hives were introduced. Before then, beekeepers had used closed straw skeps — but suddenly, for the first time, they were able to see what was taking place within the hive.

Modern terms were coined to reflect these changes, which flustered the older beekeepers. Very experienced beekeepers, who were first-language Welsh, were at a loss. The terminology involved was beyond them, particularly if it was in English.

Today our association has about 30 members and we even put on an annual show in a pub for our honey and mead. Finding enough bilingual judges is always a problem. As they are tasting, the judges must comment out loud in Welsh.

Beekeeping can be hazardous. A friend went to shift a hive late one evening and didn’t bother with protective clothing; a bee crawled into his ear. We tried to get it out but couldn’t. The only way was to drown it, and the only liquid we had to hand was a bottle of brown ale. So that was poured in and the bee floated out. But there’s no special term — in Welsh or English — for these beekeeping mishaps.

Our members do not have to speak Welsh — but we are true to our founding principles. At meetings, English speakers sit next to someone bilingual — most of us are — who will quietly translate for them. After a season or so, they have a good smattering of the language.

When we started other beekeepers thought we were racist. But what is wrong with studying in our native tongue? People would not be surprised if beekeeping associations in France or Germany discussed beekeeping in French or German. Why be surprised about Welsh?

The best way to keep a language alive is to place it at the centre of everyday life. In my county, Ceredigion, Welsh is a minority language. There has been a big fall in the number of native speakers in the past 30 years, and people are realising that we are in danger of losing one of the oldest languages in Europe.

Don’t Click That Ad

Posted on May 30, 2015 by The Old Wolf

As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, clickbait ads are everywhere. They are the spam of the World Wide Web, unwanted intrusions into your browsing experience, and like spam, the vast majority of these ads are deceptive and lead to spurious or borderline criminal offers.

What’s that “New Rule?”

If you click that ad, you are taken to http://www.easy-autoquotes.com/, which looks like a respectable financial advice website:

And what’s that “one rule?”

“Don’t even think about getting insurance without first comparing discounted quotes from an unbiased source.”

The “unbiased source” they want you to visit is the Easy Auto Quotes™ official site, which deceptively redirects you to

"http://provide-savings.com,"

which turns out to be a scummy outfit which, like LowerMyBills will gather your information including sensitive personal data and sell it to anyone who waves money in their faces. You won’t get a quote from them, but you will be inundated by calls and emails not only from competing auto insurance agencies, and countless other disreputable marketers hawking everything under the sun. The only way you’ll be able to stem the tide is move, cancel your credit cards, change your email address, get a new phone number, and walk widdershins around a rotting stump at midnight while looking at the new moon over your left shoulder.

Have a look at the disclaimer at the very bottom of their page, which most people will never see, and which is hard to read even if you get there:

Here it is in plain text:

Disclaimer and Consumer Information.

THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT AND NOT AN ACTUAL NEWS ARTICLE, BLOG, OR CONSUMER PROTECTION UPDATE
THIS SITE GETS PAID FOR CLICKS OR SALES PRODUCED FROM CONTENT FOUND ON THIS SITE
*We are dedicated to bringing readers valuable information which can help them accomplish their financial and lifestyle goals. Our disclaimer is that this site does receive compensation for product reviews and referrals or purchases made through our links. This page is an advertisement/advertorial. The story depicted here is for demonstration purposes only and everyone’s results may vary. We hope you find our online resource informative and helpful.

This site is in no way affiliated with any news source.

Important information regarding the truthfulness of this article (For our site visitors and the FTC): There have been issues in the online marketing industry with fake advertorials to pitch certain products within the affiliate marketing industry. This site and the owners of this site have never participated in these false advertising practices. Here are a few clarifications points regarding this article: First, as stated at the top of this site, [NOTE: No, it only says “Advertisement’] this is an Advertisment/Advertorial. This site receives compensation for purchases made through our links.

*Clarification of the advertising headline “New Policy in your State”: Some of our website visitors may have visited our site after seeing an ad regarding “New Policy in your State.” This ad then clarifies that certain individuals may receive discounts of up to 50% off car insurance. The newest United States information and insurance tips for lowering your car insurance cost can be found at usa.gov (recently updated October of 2011). The United States federal governments and state governments are constantly looking out for consumers and have published new information on helping consumers lower their car insurance bills. Here’s a specific link regarding the newest usa.gov advice, tips in order to receive lower car insurance rates: http://www.usa.gov/topics/travel/cars/insurance.shtml. In addition to this information, each state and their respective state insurance commissions may have additional recent policy changes which may affect the insurance rates in your area. The specific new discount car insurance policies in your state which are currently helping individuals save up to 50% on car insurance is information that can be found through the insurance comparison site Provide InsuranceTM mentioned in this article. Upon visiting this site you will see the claim that individuals can save up to 50% in their respective states. This is information that we have found to be true. From the article mentioned from usa.gov, we see that the federal government has also given the advice and made the claims that “To get the best coverage at the best price, get several quotes from insurance companies. It may save you hundreds of dollars a year… You may be eligible for a discount based on the number of miles you drive; your age (turning 25 or 50); your good grades if you are a student, your driving record (no moving vehicle violations or accidents in three years); or if you’ve taken a safe-driving course. You might also be able to get discounts if you insure more than one vehicle, insure your vehicle and your home with the same company, have anti-theft devices or have safety features such as air bags or anti-lock brake system.”

*Clarification of the advertising headline “New Rule in (Your State)”. – Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines the word “rule” as “a piece of advice about the best way to do something” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rule). This article aims to advise the public that comparing rates is one of the best ways that you can save money on car insurance. No matter what city, state or zip code you live in you can compare rates and get free quotes. If you truly want to find the best rate and save on car insurance then follow our advice or “rule” to compare rates. Here are links to two surveys which demonstrate the importance of comparing rates and how applying this “rule” in any state, city or zip code may help drivers save 32%. A new survey found that the #1 reason people switch is because they found a cheaper rate. Click Here for Survey. A second survey which analyzed car insurance quotes for 1,000 zip codes across the U.S. found that within a given zip code, rates vary by 154% on average, allowing drivers to find an average of 32% in savings. Click Here For Survey.

This site is committed to protecting the privacy of our online visitors. If you join our mailing list, your information will not be shared with others. Anyone who wishes can choose to be removed from our mailing list at any time.

This site is in no way affiliated with any news source. As mentioned at the top of this web page, it is an advertisement.

This site contains affiliate and partner links, and as mentioned previously, this site is only an advertisement. The owners of this site receive compensation when sales are made.

This website and the company that owns it is not responsible for any typographical or photographic errors. If you do not agree to our terms and warnings, then leave this site immediately.

Product is not affiliated in any way with ABC, MSNBC, CNN, Fox News, Consumer Reports, CBS, Wink News or USA Today. All trademarks, logos, and service marks (collectively the “Trademarks”) displayed are registered and/or unregistered Trademarks of their respective owners. Contents of this website are copyrighted property of the reviewer and/or this website.

Note that this disclaimer consists largely of weasel words which attempt to justify the deceptive nature of the advertisement; the worst example of this kind of humbuggery I have already shared over at the “Hall of Shame.”

It gets worse. When you visit Provide-Savings, they begin a process which will gather all sorts of PII (Personally-identifying information) which they claim they need to provide you with your requested quote. Take a gander at a selected portion of their “privacy policy.”

In order to provide you with insurance quotes, we collect your personal contact information including name, telephone number, mailing address, email address, gender, birthday and marital status. For home insurance quotes, we also collect details about your home and personal property. For auto insurance quotes, we collect information about your vehicles and drivers and may also collect information about your credit and your existing insurance coverage.

By submitting your e-mail address and/or phone number (as the case may be) via this Site, you authorize us to use that e-mail address and phone number to contact you periodically, via e-mail and manually-dialed and/or auto-dialed telephone calls, concerning (i) your quote requests, (ii) any administrative issue regarding the Site or our services and/or (iii) information or offers that we feel may be of interest to you. We may also send e-mails to you periodically regarding updated quotes. You may opt out of receiving e-mails from us at any time by unsubscribing as set forth in the applicable e-mail.

Additionally, by filling out information on this Site as part of your request for information about insurance policies and quotations, you authorize us to provide that information to various insurance companies, insurance agents and other related third parties that participate in our insurance quote network (collectively “Insurance Providers”). The Insurance Providers may provide your personal information to their insurance carriers, suppliers and other related vendors in order to generate price quotations and information relevant to insurance policies that you have requested

We may share your information with third parties with whom we have promotional or advertising relationships (provided that we are not otherwise restricted from this sharing of information). If you do not want us to share your personal information with these companies, contact us at compliance@adharmonics.com.
We may provide your PII to, or permit access to it by, our subsidiaries, affiliated companies, vendors and/or service providers, such as our ISP or infrastructure hosting companies, for the purpose of processing such information and/or contacting you on our behalf, or where such access is incidental to their providing assistance to us. In such cases, we expect these parties to process such information based on our instructions and in compliance with this privacy policy.

At some point, we may establish subsidiaries or other related companies, or merge with or be acquired by another company. Should that happen, then we may disclose your information to them, in which case we will request that they abide by this Policy. We may also disclose some information to a potential acquirer, although such disclosure would be subject to normal and customary requirements.
We reserve the right to disclose your PII as required by law or when we believe that disclosure is necessary to protect our rights and/or comply with a court order, legal process or judicial proceeding served on us.
We may work with third party data providers to obtain additional information about you, other drivers on your policy or in your household, and information about your car. By using these data providers, we are able to prefill your questionnaire and save you time. You will still be able to review and edit this information before you submit it.

The TL;DR¹ here is that they have essentially reserved the right to sell your personal information with anyone under the sun.

Ultimately, to be perfectly honest , the advert on the original referring page should look like this:

It goes without saying that you should not even be seeing ads like this. The easiest way to cut down on such things is to install a simple extension, Ad-Block Plus, which quietly and unobtrusively blocks ads like this from ever appearing on your page. It works with Chrome, Mozilla, IE, Opera, and many other browsers.

Be careful out there, and don’t give your information to scumbags.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

¹ Too long; didn’t read

Acc

1898: A Free Pound of Coffee with Every Pair of Shoes

Posted on May 29, 2015 by The Old Wolf

This interesting receipt showed up in some Georgia probate files. Prices back then were insane, compared to today’s – but one must also factor in wages and overall cost of living.

According to various inflation calculators, a dollar in 1898 was worth $27.08 in 2013, making a pair of shoes for ten bits the equivalent of $33.85. And that pound of coffee? 18¢, or about $4.87 in 2013 dollars.

Not a bad Dreingabe¹; today’s coffee runs about $12 to $15 per pound, unless you want kopi luwak, which you can score for $350.00 online if you happen to like coffee beans that have been shat out by a civet.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

¹ German: bonus or give-away