When Windows losts DNS records (no IP records, cannot ping) and needs a refresh

CMD as administrator.
Computer was unable to connect to printer server.
Command prompt --> ipconfig /flushdns
ipconfig /registerdns

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When normal way of turning on the domain network discovery file sharing doesn't work

Domain network discovery has been turned off.
Solution: export mine that is on...
- run cmd as administrator, type netsh, then type advfirewall
- type export c:\firewall.wfw

copy the firewall.wfw file to client's computer.
import it:
netsh, advfirewall, import c:\firewall.wfw

Source: https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/af01c0c7-27aa-4540-a474-cd25d99256bc/remotely-enabling-network-discovery-in-a-domain-environment?forum=itprovistanetworking

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Vocab: Errant

Kathy’s Word of the Week (8/20/2018)

Weekly Brain Food brought to you by our VP of HR

errant

Pronunciation:
er-rant

Definition:
deviating from regular or proper course

As used in a sentence:
an errant breeze

Posted in Vocabularies | Leave a comment

Rockaway Fishing: Striper caught

Website said it's a good day to fish. Though there were a few rains earlier.

Sunset time is at 7:59pm. I noticed my baits' tails kept being bitten off by something.

Wave was rather low this time. lowest tide was 2:10PM. It got a bit higher later around 8pm.

I used net fool around. I actually caught small fishes (twice) in it. Rather easy catch. Could have caught more if I had more time. Big sand fleas were also caught in the net as well.

Baby Striper caught with the small fish I netted. Took some video/photo, pretended that I caught it barehanded, let go.

Wave fishing is fun...But not sure how I'd deal with fun wave like this:

tallwave

Posted in Biology, Travel | Leave a comment

Vocab: Intersectionality

The Left/Democrat's form of racism.

It's ok to be racist when it comes to the unique identity of one's own race (gender, etc.)

Posted in Biology, Vocabularies | Leave a comment

2018-08-04: I pay my TOEFL Proctor, Fishing at Rockaway Beach

What a day today.

Today is the first day I hired my own proctor out of my own pocket after raising my rate. Since Vivian had left, I paid her brother $73 in cash today. If it's not the siblings: Alfred & Jessica, I would have to find some high school / college students from churches or local schools for a lower rate to begin with.

Then, Nadia and I were able to visit Rockaway Beach together for the first time. This is the one in Fort Tilden. I swam still, despite the shocking appearance of a small 4-foot shark last time, only not too far this time. I think that shark was probably caught by some angler who threw it back to sea half conscious. It seemed rather weak.

Anyway, after being brushed by something on my foot near the shore, I immediately realized that I should start setting my fishing rod, which I brought, just in case. The last catch was at Breezy Point and it was just a Sea Robin - useless keeper but plentiful. So, I had almost given up, even with the thought that what brushed my foot was soft but strong enough to be some sort of fish.

Now I've watched John Skinner's shore fishing flukes at Long Island Sound and was intrigued:

So, I tried his method of baiting for Summer Flounders at the shore. I was giving up after a while but then I saw that my fake marinated worm bait's tail has bite marks. So I tried again. There was a stronger pull, but it was let go. I am now convinced that this is a fluke's work. They are good at swimming with the bait when being caught, thereby I would not realize that I've caught anything. This also allows them to free themselves easily.

So, the second time I felt a slight pull, I quickly reeled in and pulled the rod back. However, my line suddenly got caught under the spool. I knew I couldn't wait to fix my line, so I just grab my line and ran back against the sea, not giving the possible fish any chance of escape. Wow...there it was, a not so big flounder. I was excited. It certainly made my day.

But I already knew, from afar, that this is not a keeper. It's against NYC recreational rule to keep a Summer Flounder less than 19 inches long. But I had to show Nadia (And yes, I have the kind of ego that's hoping other strangers, including the angler who's 50 feet away from me to see it too, because he apparently had a bigger fishing rod than me and I don't think he caught anything yet).

I had easily caught some large sand fleas and shown Nadia. Any fisherman knows that the prized fish are either Flounder or Striped Bass. Nevertheless, I had to let it go. I held it in my hand as long as I could, hoping that I could still flash my ego around for others to sea, I really can't tell if anyone else saw it, there might be one or two, but I was wearing goggle, my vision wasn't clear despite the fact that it's a special prescription goggle, due to water marks.

As for why I was wearing goggle. I was trying what I called: Swim Fishing 🙂 It should be self-explanatory. While others were doing conventional fishing - standing on the dry land and casting their long and mighty and probably much much expensive fishing rod, I was jumping in the waters like a sea monkey. From within the shallow end of the water, casting forward, backward, side ways, any way I could. I had planned only to swim in the beginning, remember?

Before the swim, we set up a semi-tent for the first time that Nadia spotted on sales in Costo a few years back:

This is also the second time I noticed someone (a young lady) thought this is a nude beach. Just at 3'clock from our tent in the video. This is the third time I'm at this beach. I also saw a mother took off her cloth playing with her baby boy by the beach the first time I was here. Unlike Brighton Beach which was packed with latinos and blacks, this beach is much less crowded and a haven for what looked like Russians. And the Russians certainly treat their beaches as nude beaches, for toddlers to old old folks.

Anyhow, I'm not here for the nude beach, I was here to swim and catch some fish and maybe fly the drone, which didn't happen today. I wished I could fly the drone above the sea in search of large sea monsters. But time did not allow it.

After coming home, I learned remove the spool by turning the drag. As the cover goes, I could see so many loops of line inside the spool. I had to cut all the tangled line anyway because I don't have time to untangle them. I also checked Fishing4Tides.com, and learned that I was actually fishing at the best moment: 7:30-8:00PM EST as the tides dropped to lowest at 9:16PM. Sun was setting at around 8:07PM. The waves weren't too strong, which was not the case the other times I was here. It was probably 1-3 foot high. Fishing4Tides showed 8-9PM was the time with most fish, it gave 6+ fish icons, that's more than the usual 4 fish icons for most lowest tides.

This has certainly built my confidence in fishing. Were it not for the tangled lines, I might have actually caught a keeper. But then, it could be 9PM by then and I had to face a grumpy wife driving home.

Posted in Biology, Faults, General, Reflection | Leave a comment

Command Line for Time Change/Update

For some computers that does not sync their clocks with internet time (NTP server), which means it's depending on the local CMOS clock (command: w32tm /query /status), which becomes inaccurate after a period of time (3-4 min offset in a few months),

but can change time from elevated level. A solution is to add a task scheduler to run a routine batch script (administrator level):

net time /set \\SPGNYAD01 /yes

This would sync the local clock to the server such as SPGNYAD01 that it has access to.

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Electricity Leak / Stolen

The power meter reading showed that we've used 55 kWh in 2 days (7/31 - 8/2). On average we paid $60/mo. Then it went to $70 which was still ok. But last month's bill was $148. And our average power usage was 200 kWh, became 510 kWh last month.

A quick online search shown that this could be due to the landlord not doing their due diligence when they purchased the apartment. That they needed to hire electricians to make sure that the electricity wiring is properly separated between the two families, and not just take it for granted from the previous owner.

However, there is also a chance that the leak does not come from downstairs. Even though I couldn't get the landlord to test every appliances they have, particularly their second A.C. if there's one (we saw an empty box for a new 24,000BTU A.C.), which I thought so. But she tested one A.C. in the back and it worked even though I've pulled the breakers on the second floor. What's strange is that with the power cut off from the breaker box on the 2nd floor, our bedroom outlet was still providing power to the fan and Echo-Dot.

24k BTU = 7kWh. That would raise one's bill significantly. That's about $1.40-$1.80 an hour.

So, some forums had suggested that there could be power theft from neighbors. Which was not uncommon, apparently.

Con-Ed had asked my wife to find a private electrician to check the circuits before they investigate further. But after multiple calls, she was able to get Con-Ed to send someone over on Thursday 8/9. which I've asked a day off on. If it had been a private electrician, they would charge from $150/30mins to $350/job. Lucy claimed that it was Con-Ed who installed all these. I have no idea what to think except to wait for the technician to come on Thursday.

50 kWh in two days is equivalent to 2 full 24/7 day of an average air conditioner power consumption. And we barely touched our AC this whole summer, and definitely not in the last two days.

Until then. This is going to be interesting. I was being reminded of trust in God, no matter what happens. Recently, a few American preachers have been preaching on how anxiety is a sin, but I'll leave this for another topic.

Posted in Projects, Technical | Leave a comment

Bak Zhang Lady in Chinatown

Bak Chang Bak Zhang! BaZhang! (肉粽/粽子)

There's this old lady that's always selling Bak Zhang in Chinatown NYC (NW corner of Grand st. & Chrystie st)

BakZhangLadyinNYCChinatown

My first impression was dirty, probably not healthy. Someone selling food in a basket in the corner of the street, where the homeless sometimes linger.

Then, it turned to compassion.

Then I bought 2. Turns out she had more than 5 varieties (Taiwanese, Shanghai, 加料, etc.)

My wife loved it. Bak Zhang is her favorite. It has sentimental value for her because her both her mother and grandmother made it, from scratch.

Then I bought 3. And then 4. And will buy many more in days to come. They cost only $1.50 each. The Taiwanese type does not have salted egg yolk. And Nadia abhors (any? food from) Shanghainese.

I thought the old lady's very very old, that she's gonna be gone soon, until I took the photos with her:

20180801_183107

20180801_183115

Posted in Culinary, General | Leave a comment

The Comparison of Pastors

I shall do a full analysis and comparison of pastors I've met. Pros and Cons. Predictions of where they're heading. Their attitudes. They value in caring. That sort of things.

Posted in Projects, Theologization | Leave a comment