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So it would appear that the meddling fools in Washington have got it into their heads that we could save energy by extending Daylight Savings Time.  I’m not going to get into the issue of whether DST even makes sense anymore (with the mind-and-body-jarring loss of sleep associated with “spring forward”). 

The last time some political pointy-head monkeyed with DST was in 1974, during the Arab oil embargo.  The current boundaries of DST were set by Congress in 1986, which was a time when most computer systems were still adjusted manually for DST by operators. 

Since then, some systems (such as Unix) accounted for DST automatically by using rules based on the legal definitions of DST in the system’s (or user’s) locale.  For example, the POSIX standard defines a TZ variable format that allows for the specification of the starting and ending dates and times of DST in a particular timezone (as well as the offset). This can be a bit complicated, as we can see by looking at the example of the full definition for the Pacific timezone in the United States, which is “PST8PDT,M4.1.0/2,M10.5.0/2”.  That translates to a timezone known as PST that has an offset of 8 hours from UTC and is known as “PDT” during DST.  The “M” string means that DST starts on the 0th day (Sunday) of the first week (1) of April (4th month) at 2:00am (/2) and ends on the 0th day of the 5th week of the 10th month at 2:00am.  These POSIX strings are pretty messy, but they do allow for full flexibility in determining the current time in the given timezone. 

However, over the years these things have changed in certain areas, so if one is calculating the time in the past it isn’t sufficient to know the current politically-defined time.  Later versions of Unix (and variants like Linux) allow for location timezone settings using strings such as “America/Denver” or “:US/Pacific.”  This references a database that includes historical information in addition to the current political definition of the timezone.

So, given the above, one could conclude that it’s simply a matter of configuration to fix this sort of thing: simply download the new location database or fix the environment variables to include the new start/end dates.  However, things aren’t always this simple.  Consider that on some older systems this could affect time-of-day calculations when working with dates in the past, so you can’t just willy-nilly change these to the current values (Why would you worry about time-of-day in the past?  I could imagine that astronomy applications might have a need for accurate time when calculating things in the past…).

Windows would have a similar problem, in that it automatically adjusts for DST based on the timezone that is chosen at installation.  All Windows systems would require a code update to accomodate the changes to DST start and end.

While Unix and Windows at least have configuration settings, I wouldn’t doubt that there are many systems out there that don’t have any type of configuration.  These systems would either have to be patched or replaced.  Even on the systems where it’s just a configuration setting the issue of the volume of systems is daunting, in that there are millions of them.  If we wanted to ensure an absolutely smooth transition, it would require an effort in the IT industry similar to what we saw for Y2K.  The Y2K effort was estimated at costing $100-billion.

Perhaps this effort would be smaller, but it remains non-trivial.  Many programs would have to be examined to look for timezone-dependent code and to inspect that code to make sure it didn’t have any hard-coded behaviors.  At a minimum, every system would need to be tested, which costs time and money and could tie up the developers and the test environments for those systems, impacting other more productive work.

Update:  More thoughts here.

An article in this morning’s Star-Telegram about excuses people give to get out of work caught my attention.  It seems that people give some pretty weird and off-the-wall excuses to get out of work.

• “I was sprayed by a skunk.”
• “I tripped over my dog and was knocked unconscious.”
• “My bus broke down and was held up by robbers.”
• “I was arrested as a result of mistaken identity.”
• “I couldn’t find my shoes.”
• “I totaled my wife’s Jeep in a collision with a cow.”
• “My cat unplugged my alarm clock.”
• “I had to be there for my husband’s grand jury trial.”
• “I had to ship my grandmother’s bones to India.” (Note: She had passed away 20 years earlier.)

I would think that if someone wanted a day off they could just claim to be sick with something that would keep them incapicitated for a day but that wouldn’t likely require a doctor’s visit.  At least that kind of thing is vaguely plausible. 

But this got me to thinking about something that I’ve noticed about some employer policies.  I notice that they treat sick time kind of like vacation in that it accrues over time.  It seems odd to me to do this, since it would also encourage the use of sick time as a form of vacation.  Further, it could end up putting people into a nasty position if something major happened that required more sick time than was accrued.

In my case I don’t get a set amount of sick time.  If something major were to happen, I wouldn’t have to worry about running out.  But I also have plenty of options about when I work.  I have some flexibility so if I need to run an errand or take off on an afternoon for an appointment, then I can just make up the time elsewhere.  All that really matters is that I meet my commitments to the job.  I can see how people would be tempted to take sick time if they didn’t have these options.

There was a sad note to last week’s vacation, though.  My mother’s dog, an 11-year-old black lab named Chula died suddenly at the end of the week. 

From the time I realized that something was wrong with her to the time she was dead was about 10 minutes.  Her symptoms indicated to me that she had gotten into something poisonous.  Whether this was due to a snake-bite, something she accidentally ingested, or something she was given is impossible to say.  But in my more suspicious moments I can’t help but wonder if the people who recently moved in across the road didn’t have something to do with it.  Chula had a habit of running out to the road and chasing anyone who rode a bicycle in front of the house.  She didn’t mean any harm by it and if you understood dog body language you would know she wasn’t a threat.  But I could see how a young child (such as the boy who lives across the road) would be intimidated by her.

I just hope that my suspicion was misplaced.  Unfortunately, we’ll never know for certain what happened to her, and I suspect that it will always bother me.

We buried her near her favorite tree, where she used to spend hours watching and waiting for squirrels.

I spent last week in East Texas visiting with my mother and my nieces (who had been sent to stay with her for the week).  It was nice to get away to the country and do next to nothing.  I rarely checked my own email and never even bothered to fire up my company-issued laptop for work emails. 

I have to admit that it’s kind of hard to get back into the swing of things after that, especially with the heat.  I find it interesting that I only felt like getting back into posting today.  Today is the first reprieve we’ve had from the heat for a while.

I’m not sure why, but I had the impression that Sports Authority had more class than to engage in pre-recorded telephone spam, but the same day I got the phone spam from Dish Network I got one for Sports Authority.  Perhaps that’s what’s bugging me so much.  It’s like someone flipped a switch and my business line is now attracting telemarketers, despite being on both the national and state do-not-call lists.  It’s doubly annoying since I have to answer this damn phone.  It’s there for my work.

I intentionally got this phone without Caller ID because the feature is useless with my company’s telephone forwarding system and the number is unlisted.  I hoped that between being unlisted (and I never give it to anyone) and being on the do-not-call lists that I wouldn’t be bothered.  I guess now I’ll have to see if I can get Caller ID without having to purchase a bundle of crap I don’t need so I can at least tell when it’s a legitimate call for work or if it’s some damn asshole trying to sell me something in a telephonic pre-recorded drive-by.

Just when I thought it was safe to answer the phone, Dish Network assaulted my business line with a pre-recorded autodialer.  Worse, one with a VRU!

This time I attempted to root out the culprit by pressing “1” to speak to an agent.  Someone named “Erin” took the call and tried to sell me a subscription to Dish Network.  Up to this point, I hadn’t been completely sure that it was Dish, but I had strongly suspected it to be the case.  Unfortunately, it was impossible to get her to own up to the name of the company she worked for.  She would only say they were “affiliated” with Dish Network.  At that point I thought I would take a shot at getting removed from their calling list, but she hung up on me. 

So, I got a bit ticked off and filed a complaint with the Texas PUC against Dish Network.  I don’t give a rat’s ass whether Dish was the company that called me or not.  It was done in their name and they have a responsibility to make their affiliates follow the law.

Anyhow, let’s examine the case against this Dish Network affiliate.  While the complaint I filed was for violating the Texas Do Not Call list, I could also (and am considering it) file a complaint at the federal level for violating a number of rules. 

Calls using artificial or prerecorded voice messages – including those that do not use autodialers – may not be made to residential telephone numbers except in the following cases:

• emergency calls needed to ensure the consumer’s health and safety;
  I’m pretty sure selling satellite service doesn’t ensure my health or safety; in fact, the annoyance raises my blood pressure…
• calls for which you have given prior consent;
  I certainly didn’t consent.  In fact, putting my number on the national and state do-not-call lists is a good sign that consent is not expressed or implied…
• non-commercial calls;
  Selling satellite service certainly seems like a commercial enterprise.
• calls which don’t include or introduce any unsolicited advertisements or constitute telephone solicitations;
  It was an unsolicited advertisement to solicit me to sign up for Dish Network service.
• calls by, or on behalf of, tax-exempt non-profit organizations;
  I’m pretty sure Dish Network intends to make a profit off of me.
• or, calls from entities with which you have an established business relationship.
  I most assuredly do not have a prior business relationship with Dish Network, as I loathe them and their sales tactics.

In addition, the FCC’s rules prohibit the use of autodialers in a way that ties up two or more lines of a multi-line business at the same time.  (I only have one line so I guess they get a pass on this one.)

All artificial or prerecorded telephone messages, must state, at the beginning, the identity of the business, individual, or other entity that is responsible for initiating the call. Fail!  If a business is responsible for initiating the call, the name under which the entity is registered to conduct business with the State Corp. Commission (or comparable regulatory authority) must be stated.  Wouldn’t even tell me who they were when questioned after the recording! During or after the message, the caller must give the telephone number (other than that of the autodialer or prerecorded message player that placed the call) of the business, other entity, or individual that made the call.  Ha!  Their whole M.O. is to avoid giving out their contact information.  It may not be a 900 number or any other number for which charges exceed local or long distance transmission charges.  Heck, I’d even take that if I could find some way to contact these bastards.

Autodialers that deliver a recorded message must release the called party’s telephone line within 5 seconds of the time that the calling system receives notification that the called party’s line has hung up.  Fail!  I’ve had problems with this consistently with them.  Their system will not release my line, even after 10 seconds or longer.

In certain areas there might be a delay before you can get a dial tone again. Your local telephone company can tell you if there is a delay in your area.  I’d accept the delay if they’d just get the hell off the line when I hang up.  Instead, they’ll still be yakking away when I pick it up again.

Seems like this Dish Network “affiliate” has designed their message to break just about every rule concerning recording messages.  It’s almost as if they planned it this way… 

I wrote about this problem nearly two years ago, and in finding that link I see that once again Target moves me to say pretty much the same thing.

I was in the local Target over the weekend and I happened across an XM Roady on clearance for $45.  While it wasn’t optimal for home installation, it was tempting because it had all the components needed (unlike the other units which require expensive kits for home or auto).  Since I’ve already got XM in the truck, I could add this unit on my existing account pretty easily.

However, my musings on connecting and using the unit were interrupted by a young lady with a clipboard who was wandering the isles attempting to sign people up for a Target Visa card.  This is the one thing that really annoys the daylights out of me about them.  They push and push and push this card to the point I’m really considering staying out of the store.  Heck, I even had one experience where the clerk tried to get me to sign up for the card when I purchased a case of bottled water (like I’m stupid enough to sign up for a 20%-interest credit card to save 45-cents on a purchase).  While Target has a much nicer shopping environment than Wal-Mart, at least Wal-Mart isn’t pushing their damn credit card on you at every opportunity and interrupting your shopping.

Target will never get me to sign up for their Visa card, and they lost a sale (albeit a cheap clearance sale, but a sale nonetheless) over it, because I was so annoyed that I decided to myself to just get the hell out of the store with the couple of items I’d come for. 

Much like The Fat Guy and his dancing pig, the heat had sapped my life force and I was sorely tempted to post my own version of the “Adios, mofos” farewell.

However, I find myself in a state of general annoyance with the world at the moment, so watch this space for some annoyance-driven drivel.  More to come…

It seems that the old water-cooler is now virtual, since companies now have geographically dispersed teams and many work-at-home employees.  I’m sure the company’s purpose in creating an IM system was to improve productivity, and they probably never expected some of the uses it gets put to today.  A prime example of which is the following conversation that I just yanked out of one of my IM windows (and sanitized to remove any identifying information)…

Coworker – what is considered to be impolite to leave stuck in your rice in Japan except at funerals?
Me – Your chopsticks?
Coworker – yep
Me – I had never known that, but the context of the question suggested the answer.
Coworker – the question was on a chocolate wrapper
Coworker – an authoritative source
Me – What kind of chocolate?
Coworker – Reeses
Me – I guess in previous experiences with Reeses that I must have missed these pearls of wisdom on the wrapper in my haste to partake of rich chocolaty-peanutty goodness…
Coworker – well, I am getting around to eating bell shaped Christmas ones <OtherCoworker> gave me
Coworker – sort of cleaning out my office
Me – Uh….
Coworker – they’re still good
Me – You better make sure your insurance is paid up…
Coworker – oh, come on
Me – I guess they could be, based on shelf-life… but still… something about 7-month old chocolate seems… well… offputting to say the least.
Coworker – ha, that’s fresh for me
Me – 
Coworker – I prefer the Nestle’s Treasures
Coworker – but no thought provoking questions on the wrapper
Me – Unfortunate.

Surely, with vital communications such as this coursing through it, our IM system is enhancing productivity and creating synergies throughout the company… 

It appears that there’s a member of the Texas Rangers who doesn’t much like news cameras. 

Pitcher Kenny Rogers might be facing legal action and a suspension from baseball after an altercation with two television cameramen in front of the Rangers’ dugout before Wednesday’s game with the Los Angeles Angels.

KDFW/Channel 4 cameraman Larry Rodriguez left Ameriquest Field in Arlington on a stretcher afterward and was taken to Medical Center of Arlington complaining of neck, back and leg pain.

Rangers owner Tom Hicks said Rogers is dealing with “anger-management issues” and apologized to KDFW.

Anger-management issues?  What ever gave you that idea? 

Anyhow, I don’t have much sympathy for a professional ballplayer, since it’s very obvious by now that the job comes with a certain amount of celebrity and the cameras come with that.  He should have known the job was dangerous when he took it. 

But it did get me to thinking about the news media in general and their tendency to shove a microphone and a camera into people’s faces when they’re grieving or otherwise at a low moment in their lives.  If someone is not otherwise already a celebrity, then that person gets a free pass when it comes to slugging any reporter that shoves a microphone in their face after a stressful event (like having a family member murdered).  Frankly, we don’t really need to hear the answer to “How do you feel?”  I think we can all figure it out.  It’s not newsworthy.  We can all afford to give people a bit of space until they’ve dealt with the initial shock.