Staying sane with Adobe Reader on your Mac

For the longest time I avoided installing Adobe Reader on my various Macs. The stock Preview.app on the Mac is both very fast and can read 99.9% of PDF files that I throw at it. Very rarely would I encounter a PDF file it couldn't read, but I never felt compelled to install Adobe Reader just for those handful of files.

I recently had to fill out a Very Important Government Document that Preview.app declared it couldn't handle. Moreover, since it was a long and tedious form that was easy to make mistakes on, filling it out using Adobe Reader's form filling functionality actually made sense. So I installed Adobe Reader.

Adobe Reader is slooooow. It actually has a plug-ins of it's own, although I've no idea what functionality they provide that I might care about, nor where I'd get new ones if I wanted to. It has more options than the rest of my Mac applications combined. This is the Preferences Pane for Adobe Reader:

Adobe Reader Preferences Pane (not a joke)

I will remind you that Adobe Reader is a PDF reader and not an authoring tool, First Person Shooter or Geographical Information System.

It's also installs itself as a web browser plug-in for reading PDF files. This means that when I open a PDF file on the internets, Safari now freezes for about 15 seconds while Adobe Reader contacts its mothership in the next galaxy.

You can save yourself a lot of grief by just disabling the Adobe Reader plug-in. Here's how you do this:

• Quit Safari.
• Open your Macintosh HD.
• Find the Library folder and enter it.
• Find the Internet Plug-Ins folder and enter it.
• Look for a file called AdobePDFViewer.plugin and move it into the Disabled Plug-Ins folder.

Disabling the Adobe Reader Plug-In (click to expand)

• Restart Safari and test with a PDF file. You should now be back to simple, clean and fast PDF viewing.

Google accounts vomit

Does anyone actually understand how Google accounts work? I'm including anyone at Google in that question.

I have Google Apps For Your Domain (henceforth GAFYD) set up for durables.org and I've been using my email address from that account to log into various non-GAFYD services that Google provides (Blogger, Reader, etc.) Now apparently Google wants to transition all those non-GAFYD services into GAFYD. This is going to happen - whether I like it or not - in January. Apparently I have to rename all the non-GAFYD accounts I've logged into using my GAFYD email address to something non-GAFYD based (e.g. a Yahoo email address, a gmail.com address, etc.) I expect my users will have to do this, too, but I've no idea what to tell them to do because I'm completely confused about this myself.

I looked at my account settings page - it's a unhelpful mess. Apparently I have another non-GAFYD account name associated with my account. I've no idea how that got there and no idea what use it is. Can I use that with my account, too? If I go to gmail.com, it tells me I'm logged in using my GAFYD account and that I can add Gmail to it by completing a form. I should point out that I already have email via my GAFYD account that I've been using forever. Would this new gmail.com address complement that, be an alias or a replacement?

WTF? Help?

Waddell, 1860

PBS and BBC America are replete with British detective series. They're all so similar in every respect (the characters encountered, the deaths, the motives, the acting style, the writing) that it wouldn't surprise me to learn that the screenplays are all written by one guy sitting in a small office in Guildford. My take-away from all these is that if you live in England you're likely to be murdered in a most disturbing manner. Don't worry, however, as they'll catch your killer before the end of the episode. Everyone - even the detectives - will be very glum the whole time. This will be explained by revelations of a personal nature right about the 75 minute mark.

I was wondering what an Irish detective series would look like. By strange coincidence, I've just started reading Melancholy Madness: A Coroner's Casebook. I'm still not done, so I'll hold any review to a later date. However, it occurs to me that this book would make an ideal detective series. The casebook of the title belonged to William Charles Waddell, coroner of County Monaghan, and the book was the second of three volumes that he wrote officially documenting his cases. It spans the period from 1856 to 1876 and the cases cover everything from household accidents to murder. Even with the passage of so much time, the sense of tragedy is palpable. This isn't just because of the individual circumstances surrounding each case, but because of the despair and societal norms of the time that led to so many of these deaths. Chapter 2 (cases involving infants and children) was particularly difficult to read. I think it'd translate to TV quite well, and with 900 cases documented, there won't be a shortage of material, either.

Comcast fail

I'm pretty sure Comcast is censoring certain web sites. If I try to connect to http://www.cutmybills.org/ using my laptop at home, Safari tells me it can't find the server. Running 'host www.cutmybills.org' on the command line fails, too. I can access the same web site from the same laptop using my work internet connection, or over 3G on my iPhone.

In case you're wondering, this web site explains how to cut various utility bills you may be paying, including how to cut your cable entirely. It's actually a pretty messy site that mostly seems to be advertising for cheap alternatives to each service.

Anyway, I was curious why this was, so I used the email technical support form on the Comcast support page and sent this:

I can't access http://www.cutmybills.org/ via my Comcast internet service. I can access it just fine from my cellphone's 3G connection and from my work internet connection. The error I see in my web browser is that the server can't be found. The problem appears to be related to DNS lookups.

Can you please explain why this is?

They sent this reply:

Dear Robert,

Thank you for contacting Comcast High Speed Internet. My name is Carlo and I appreciate that you brought up this accessing http://www.cutmybills.org concern to our attention.

I understand you want to access http://www.cutmybills.org. I know how important it is for you to access http://www.cutmybills.org so you can check and view your bill online. I will be more than happy to provide
you needed information on how you can access http://www.cutmybills.org on this email. Rest assured that your accessing http://www.cutmybills.org concern will be taken care of.

Robert, with regard to your accessing http://www.cutmybills.org concern, I understand that you are able to access normal websites, but are unable to access any secure sites. There could be several issues that could cause you to have difficulties accessing secure sites. I have included steps below for a few different fixes. I suggest you start with the first one, and after each step, close Internet Explorer, launch it again, and try accessing the secure site. Chances are you will not need to complete all of these steps; however, I included them to help you avoid multiple contacts with us.

Verify that Internet Explorer is using 128-Bit Encryption. To do so:

 1.  Open Internet Explorer,
 2.  Click Help,
 3.  Select About Internet Explorer,
 4.  Verify that 128-bit appears next to Cipher Strength. If not, upgrade to that level either by clicking the word update next to the current cipher strength or by downloading the Internet Explorer High Encryption Pack to your computer's hard disk, and then installing it.

Clear the cache. It is possible that some of the files in your cache (Temporary Internet Files) are corrupted.

To clear the cache:

 1.  Open Internet Explorer,
 2.  Click Tools,
 3.  Select Internet Options at the bottom of the drop-down menu,
 4.  Click the General tab (IE7 - on the General tab, click the Delete button under the Browsing history heading),
 5.  In the Temporary Internet Files section, click Delete Files;
 6.  Place a check in the box labeled Include All Offline Content (IE7 - click Yes in the confirmation box),
 7.  Click OK (IE7 - click Close, then click OK).

Incorrect date, time, and time zone settings on your computer can prevent you from accessing secure sites because SSL certificates have an expiration date.

To verify that your computer is configured with the correct date, time, and time zone settings:

 1.  Click Start,
 2.  Choose Control Panel,
 3.  Select the Date/Time, Language, and Regional options;
 4.  Make sure the Date, Time, Time Zone, and Daylight Savings settings are correct for your area in each option;
 5.  Click OK in each option if any changes are made.

Verify that Internet Explorer is configured to use SSL 2.0 and SSL 3.0:

 1.  Open Internet Explorer,
 2.  Click Tools,
 3.  Choose Internet Options,
 4.  Select the Advanced tab,
 5.  In the Settings box, under the Security header, verify that the boxes next to Use SSL 2.0 and Use SSL 3.0 are checked. If not, check them;
 6.  If changes were made, click Apply;
 7.  Click OK.

Configure Security settings for the Trusted Sites zone in Internet Explorer:

 1.  Open Internet Explorer,
 2.  Click Tools,
 3.  Choose Internet Options,
 4.  Select the Security tab,
 5.  Click on Trusted sites and then on Default Level;
 6.  Add the secure Web site you are trying to access to the Trusted Sites zone by clicking on Sites and then typing the address (URL) of the site in the Add this Web site to the zone box,
 7.  Click Add,
 8.  Click OK (IE7 - click Close),
 9.  Click Apply,
 10. Click OK again.

If you are using Windows XP you will want to clear the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) state and AutoComplete history:

 1.  Open Internet Explorer,
 2.  Click Tools,
 3.  Choose Internet Options,
 4.  Select the Content tab,
 5.  Under Certificates, click Clear SSL State. Click OK when you receive the message that the SSL cache was successfully cleared;
 6.  Click AutoComplete (IE7 - click the Delete button on the General tab, under the Browsing history header);
 7.  Under Clear AutoComplete history, click Clear Forms (IE7 - click the Delete forms button in the Form data section);
 8.  Click OK when you are prompted for confirmation of this action (IE7 - click Yes in the confirmation box, then click Close, Apply and OK to exit Internet Options).

If you would like more information about this program, or if you would like to have a live interaction, please contact us using our secure chat. You can chat with one of our Online Customer Support Specialists 24 hour a day, 7 days a week at

http://www.comcastsupport.com/chat

Please be sure to have any of the following for verification purposes:

1. Comcast Account Number,
2. Last four digits of the Social Security Number associated with the Account,
3. Service address, Account name and Phone number;
4. Date and amount of last payment made,
5. A list of Comcast service/s that is/are installed in your home.

I appreciate you providing us with the opportunity to assist you, Robert. I hope you will find this information helpful.

For future reference, please take note of this case number: 1592126. Please refer to this number should you contact us regarding the same issue.

We thank you for this opportunity to assist you. Thank you for choosing Comcast. Robert, feel free to contact us anytime we can be of assistance. We value your business. Have a great day!

Sincerely,

Carlo Felipe Generoso
Comcast Customer Care Specialist
**************************************************
The response contained in this message is intended for the addressee
only and may vary from other responses depending on geography,
promotional campaigns or other factors. If you are not the intended
recipient of this response, please delete this message. Any unauthorized
use or dissemination of the information contained in this message is
prohibited.
**************************************************



Original Message Follows:
------------------------
The following information was submitted from the Comcast Web site:
Re: Web Form Submission: Connection/Browser

Name: Robert Walsh
Address: XXXX
City: Sunnyvale
State: CA
Zip: 94087

Home Phone: XXX XXX XXXX
Email: xxxx@durables.org

-
Problem: Connection/Browser

Comments:
I can''t access http://www.cutmybills.org/ via my Comcast internet
service. I can access it just fine from my cellphone''s 3G connection
and from my work internet connection. The error I see in my web browser
is that the server can''t be found. The problem appears to be related
to DNS lookups.

Can you please explain why this is?

-
Browser: Default
OS: Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; Intel Mac OS X 10_6_4; en-us)
AppleWebKit/533.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Safari/533.18.5
IPAddress:69.241.45.59

Less than useful. I made two attempts at contacting their live support web site. This starts some Java chat applet that connects you to a tech support person. The first support person told me that Comcast was probably blocking the web site (an admission!), asked me for some account details and then the Java applet appeared to terminate (i.e. the Java canvas went blank.) The second support person got straight down to asking me for my account details and then went silent. The window was still up and functioning but they didn't answer my questions after that. I pinged them a few times, but terminated the conversation after about 15 minutes.

The odd thing is, I've looked at other web sites that have a more explicit goal of getting you to cut cable and their not censored at all. I wonder what's up here?

Anyway, my solution is to junk their DNS server and switch over to Google Public DNS. Let's see how that works out.

Update: Google Public DNS is working out just fine.

Logitech Harmony remote follow-up

Now that I've been using my Logitech Harmony 900 remote for a while, I want to add an addendum to my review: I have to admire their reliability department a lot.  The remote has so far withstood several tosses from the couch by a curious toddler, plus several even higher drops by yours truly. Something's loose in there, but the thing is operating like a trooper.

Their Mac-side software still sucks donkey balls.  Thankfully I haven't had to use it since I initially set it up.

Barefoot Coffee Roasters fail

I like the coffee at Barefoot Coffee Roasters a lot.  I used to enjoy going there, too.  However, after their recent remodel, I have to say they've really messed up.

For a start, there are now two lines: one for hand-poured coffee and one for espresso drinks.  One line leads to the rear end of an espresso machine, with the barista's heads poking over the top.  The other leads to what looks like a mad scientist's lab, complete with beakers and filters.  The cash register isn't really obvious and there's no signage to indicate what's what, so every time I've been there since the remodel (and I literally mean every time I've been there) I've stood in line behind confused customers wondering how exactly they should order.  Every time I've heard the employee at the chemistry set repeat the same set of instructions to the customers: if you want espresso, order over there, otherwise order here.  Meanwhile, it's hard to get to the espresso line because there's a bunch of chairs in the way.  This means that in order to get into the other line, you have to squeeze past the confused customers, making it look like your jumping the line.

Also, they've removed the regular coffee option from the menu.  This means that the simplest coffee you can get there now is a hand-poured coffee.  It tastes great, but it takes a few minutes to brew and it costs a lot more than a regular pre-brewed drip coffee.  Today's options were $2.75, $3.00 and $7.00.  That's right: seven dollars.  I like snobby expensive coffee as much as the next guy, but I'm not going to spend $2.75 on a coffee every day, let alone $7.00.

Cyber-attack!!1!

Every so often, I see headlines like this:

S. Korea on Alert for Possible Internet Attacks by North Korea

Now I know these can be potentially disruptive, but every time I see a headline like this, I always think:

North Korea promises to tickle South Korea until it gets sick