Category: post

Dropbox Lied to Users About Data Security, Complaint to FTC Alleges | Threat Level | Wired.com

Yes, it seems the whole Internet is talking about this story. That said, here is the general rule of thumb we all should be aware of as a blanket statement of security about everything:

If you want your data to be 100% secure, here’s the solution:

Don’t have data.

Anything on or attached to the Internet could be accessed no matter what. This is especially true of anything you willingly give to someone else, no matter what they promise. The only way to be safe is to locally encrypt all of your data and never, ever, attach it to the Internet. Though, that is only as safe as someone taking your machine and breaking the encryption which, well, the government could surely do if they wanted to.

The bottom line is that the moment you even have data it is at some level of risk. So the real question is how much risk are you comfortable with?

For instance, I’m reasonably sure my hosting provider could read my IMAP based email anytime they want to. I’m also reasonably sure that, someone with the right skills could hack into my local machine from afar and read whatever they wanted. Therefore, I’m not at all surprised that a company that syncs data to the cloud that I allow it to and then to other machines has the ability to read that data and hand it over to authorities if pressed to do so under threat or law.

By connecting with the Internet in the first place I’m assuming some level of risk. Having my email hosted by a 3rd party I’m assuming another. Put any of my data in the hands of anyone else (Dropbox in this instance), well, that is yet another. 

Osama Bin Laden spent years not connected to the internet and encrypting his data. This still has not stopped our government from taking his machine and finding his porn stash.

I’m trading security for personal convenience in all of these cases and it’s a risk I have, thus far, been comfortable with in the instances I have done so. A big part of that comfort comes from knowing that most of our ideas about security are stories we like to tell ourselves and each other to help us sleep comfortably at night. The Internet knows much more about us then most of our friends do from the moment the cable guy flips the switch.

So, yes, back to the Dropbox thing…

Just be reasonably careful so you can be reasonably comfortable and know that there is no such thing as secure data.

Have a nice day!

In a child’s mind, everything happens right now. Have you ever suggested something to a child, especially a two or three year old, with the intention of it happening at a later date. For instance, suggesting having ice cream after dinner or going to a movie later in the day? My results are always that they start heading straight for the freezer with bowl in hand or to the door ready to take in a show. It takes effort and explanation to sway them from the idea that there even is something called “later” let alone that these things are happening there.
I believe there is a reason for this. It is because later does not exist. The future is great in concept and theory but, until the future becomes now, it is as real as a fairy tale or an imaginary friend. Everything that exists in the world around us exists only in the now. Our natural state is now.
Therefore, imagine how strange and complex a subject the idea of later must be to the mind of a child. Especially one who is only just beginning to grasp the concept of time.
Perhaps we should all try to approach life and our time in it in the same way. Let the past be prologue. Let the future be fantasy. Let your thoughts and actions exist in the now.

Societal pressure to ‘keep house’

Personally, unless a home is filthy or is a danger to the person who lives there or a burden to others, I don’t care about the clutter. I just hope the person is happy and the clutter doesn’t interfere with her ability to pursue the life she desires or anyone else’s. Not only do I think gender is irrelevant to this topic, I believe we need to stop cluttering up our thoughts and time by concerning ourselves with how other people have chosen to live. If someone chooses to be an unclutterer, I think that is an amazing decision. However, I don’t think everyone should or needs to be an unclutterer to pursue a remarkable life.

What we believe in.

Just like Erin, if anyone were to see my home at any given time, they would likely think that the person who curates this site was a complete charlatan. I live in an old house. There are constant remodeling projects in ious stages of completion. I have a three year old daughter who messes it up as quickly as I can pick it up (so why even bother most days). My office area is in such a state of disarray that I can barely stand working in it. Plus, I married someone who, by their own admission, is the opposite of a minimalist. A big part of my desire to have a more minimal existence with my technology and other personal items is driven by the fact that it is the one thing I can control. It is the one area I can reduce some clutter and friction without forcing others around me to conform. 

Therefore, I’m always surprised when people think I judge them and how they choose to live and work. That I care about how much they have on their desktop or think poorly of them for having a messy desk. Quite the opposite actually. I want people to live and work in whatever way is best for them. All I try to promote here is the idea that we should not just let these things “happen” to us. We should all ask questions, in this increasingly crazy world, about what we can do to make our own lives a little bit more sane.

The other day I was having lunch with a friend. My friend has a business. He is a realtor. This business, like most, would benefit greatly from the use of a blog and social tools to both communicate to current clients and capture new ones. The problem: He thinks he doesn’t have anything to write about. He says he gets there, logs in, but does not know what to say. He sweats over the details. The words. The subject. Everything. He tells me this, seeking my help. So, here is what I told him and the secret I’m going to give you: Every conversation you have contains something to write about. If it’s interesting enough to have a conversation about, it’s interesting enough to write about and, if it’s not, you should not waste your time talking or writing. I’m not talking about idle chit-chat here (though that could be great too). I’m talking about conversations where real value and information is exchanged. Casual or not. The post is right there, waiting for you to capture it, share it. For instance, here are the things I learned in the five minute conversation we had when I asked him, “How’s business going?”:

1. In this market, you can get a 2,500-3,000 square foot house with three bedrooms and two baths for under $200,000. Compared to even a couple of years ago, it’s a bargain.
2. There are plenty of great house deals like this and plenty of people to buy. The problem is the bank’s willingness to loan. The problem in getting a loan is easily solved with the right Mortgage Broker. He has a guy that has relationships with 30+ banks and can get a loan for just about anyone.
3. Part of his job is, up front, assessing if he and the client are the right fit. He wants to be your guy. Therefore, he asks a few up front questions of perspective clients. Like, what’s their name. Many people don’t even want to give that. They are afraid that will somehow make a commitment. That he will be looking them up and cold calling them every five minutes. In fact, that is the last thing he will do. Why would any reputable business person want to start a relationship with someone who does not want to. How can he even know if he can get you the right house if you won’t even give him your name?

Guess what I told him? In five minutes he came up with his first three blog posts. Information that would be valuable to any current or perspective client. Ideas that can then be promoted with a single tweet or status update. Also, if we could come up with that in five minutes just think of what we could come up in an hour long lunch. A meeting. A phone call. Especially with a colleague or client. Do you also see something else? It’s hiding right in front of your eyes… This post. This post is from that same conversation. I start with “nothing to write about” and in five minutes of casual conversation I have something to share. It’s like magic. But it’s not. It’s called writing.

I’ve been meaning to speak about this for a while. Namely, this: If you have music you don’t enjoy in your iTunes library, why?

Is it that you bought it before you realized it was not your thing and now feel like deleting it would be throwing money away?

Is it because it was a gift and you feel like deleting it would somehow dishonor the thought?

Do you have your music on a shared system with your spouse/significant other/family/roommate and you have different or only slightly overlapping musical tastes?

I don’t claim to have the answers to any of these. In fact, I’m likely just a guilty as anyone else. Especially if you have a large music library, it can take a while to go through it all and decide what to keep and what to delete.

That said, this is even more of a reason to turn on shuffle from time to time and let the random happen. And, while the random is happening, take the time to rate each song as you hear it. It only takes a few seconds and can prove invaluable for separating the wheat from the chaff. That way, even if you don’t or can’t delete the music you don’t like, you can at least focus in on the stuff you do. How? Well, with Smart Playlists of course. Here are a few that I use:

Here is the stuff that has never been played in your library. Start here. I limit mine to a manageable and not overwhelming amount. I play these and rate them as I go along.

Here is new stuff I have added and not yet played. Once again, I take pains to rate this stuff as I listen to it so that I can do the work up front.

Once again, a manageable chunk. No need to give yourself more pressure. Rate a few and a few more will be there when you are ready to get back to it. Do it enough and you will know where everything in your library stands.

Because then… Then… You can do stuff like this:

Boom! 

You now have the greatest playlist in the world filled with stuff you at least like more than average. Every single song will be great.

You can also do this:

These are the things you should ask questions about. 

Sometimes, you don’t even know you are writing a book until you have done so. A writer who writes primarily for online publishing, who is used to publishing in essay form, does not always see the individual items emerging into a meaningful whole. Then, one day, you look up and realize that you have something. That this thing belongs with another thing. That, perhaps, all of these things want to be together and live on as a collected body of work. This is a core of a book.
It is with great pride (and a certain sense of relief) that I release my very first book. It’s titled Keeping It Straight – You, Me, & Everything Else. It’s available today in both paperback and eBook form. I would be humbled and honored if you would consider buying a copy.
Keeping It Straight is a collection of short essays that explore topics such as mindfulness, compassion, truth, and living a purposeful and productive life. There’s plenty of practical advice to take away as well. For instance, how to deal with email overload and sensible task management.
Here is what some others have already had to say about it:
“Patrick’s writing is like warm butter on dry toast. Each page is full of musings and personal discoveries from Patrick’s life that will make you think about how you’re spending your time and energy, and, more importantly, it will make you think about what priorities are most important in your own life.” – Shawn Blanc
“Fans of David Allen’s ‘Getting Things Done’ will instantly embrace Patrick Rhone’s work. Patrick offers the “Why” to GTD’s “How.” – Randy Murray
“Patrick is a wonderful writer and many of the thoughts he conveys in this book compel you to put the book down right where you are in order to make some real changes in your life.” – Ben Brooks
Keeping It Straight is a delightful mixture of advice, reflection and exploration that reads like a poem. Patrick’s honest, genuine approach to a iety of topics from happiness to efficiency make this book a joy to read. Highly recommended. – Brett Kelly
Most of this book has been written over the past few years, originally published online in ious forms, for ious projects and in many locations. While most of these ideas are out there, somewhere amongst my uncollected works on the internet, and available for free, everything in this book is different from the original. These are now collected, professionally edited, and presented in the way these ideas seem destined to live on – together. Also, I believe you will find that many take on a new life in this form.
Finally, I’d like to thank all who have helped make this possible especially Randy (and Penny) at First Today Press, Aaron at Wet Frog Studios, and Pat Dryburgh for designing the book website.
Buy it today:

• Paperback

• ePub

• PDF

When Less is More is More Than Less : fiftyfootshadows.net

This is all well and good and I enjoy reading through different ideas and opinions but at what point is enough enough. When does minimalism start to become cluttered and excessive in itself.

You are simply not allowed to read any of the rest of this site until you read the link above. Go. Now. See you back here in a few minutes…

Are you back now? Good. Now, stop dinking around on the Internet! Go get something done. Make something. Anything. 

I could show you a pizza and beer joint with better tips, tricks, and lifehacks than anything you can read online, carved into the 150 year old wooden booths, written long before the Internet was a thing. Do you know how they got that way? Well, every day it fills up with people. Some of these people have something to say, especially after a pint or two. Then, they use whatever sharp object at their disposal to say it as quickly and clearly as possible on any available semi-soft surface.

So, why am I here doing this? 

Hmmm… Fair question…

This is my booth at the pizza joint. I come here all the time with something to say. My Mac is nothing more than a overpriced pocket knife for me to scrawl stuff into it. And if I did not have that I would find a way. Because I have something to say. It’s what I do.

Find that thing that you do and do it. If it is, in fact, what you do, no tool will make you and no tool will stop you.

The solution to conquering fear is increasing trust. There is a structural tension between the two.
Outfitted with the same equipment and halfway up a high cliff, the experienced rock climber is in as much danger of falling as one with a fear of heights. Theoretically, they should be equally afraid of falling. When we look down we all see from the same perspective. Yet the climber simply looks ahead for the next step higher while the acrophobe can’t shake the possibility of dying. The difference is their level of trust in the rope, the harness, the belay, and, most importantly, themselves.
I watch my daughter balance on the two inch wide arm of a chair. I watch her traverse a three inch wide retaining wall. All without assistance and perfect balance. Put her on a five inch wide balance beam at circus class and she hesitates and reaches out to the teacher for assistance. I ask her why this is and she says, “The other kids make it wobbly”. She trusts the equipment. She trusts the teachers. She trusts herself. She does not trust the other kids.
We all have obstacles we would like to overcome. To do so we must increase our trust. Focus not on fear but on faith.

Most people just don’t get it. What is the appeal of a nice pen? Why a fountain pen? I mean, let’s be straight here, there are a lot of reasons a cheap stick pen, mistakenly pocketed from from your local bank branch, would be considered superior over just about any fountain pen. You don’t have to fill them (which often gets ink on the hands thus staining them for a day or three). They write, reliably and with no bleed through, on just about any type of paper. You don’t have to worry about losing it or loaning it to one in need. If it runs out of ink or breaks, it is practically free to replace.
Yes, all of this is true. But, will that cheap pen ever become imbibed with your character? Will you form a bond with it that is unique to you? Will you know it’s quirks as well as it knows yours? Will it, because of these things, remain with you for a length of time and to the extent that if ever parted from your grasp it will feel as if losing a limb? Will the nib shape to your style? Will your grasp shape to the barrel? Will such a pen ever become a part of you?
These are the things that drive my passion for beautiful pens. Most specifically, fountain pens. The relationship between a writer, the tool, the ink, the page, and the words, demand intimacy. Connection. Extension. I need to know the nib, the ink, the paper and, perhaps more importantly, it needs to know me. It needs to know my hand such that it slowly becomes it. It needs to know my preferences such that it expects them. It needs to know my quirks such that it accommodates them. In my experience, The more care and quality that goes into the production of such an instrument, the more the pen will give to these things.
The Perdice Bradford is such a pen. It is a hand crafted limited edition and stems from a collaboration between the heads of the Pear Tree Pen Company and the Edison Pen Company.

The barrel is made from an extraordinarily scarce acrylic seen before only in the Sheaffer Balance II. The model provided to me for review is an intense and rich tortoise shell bursting with hints of sunlight gold. The nib, made of 18K Gold, is nothing short of a work of artistry. It is one of the smoothest I have ever experienced fresh out of the box. It can be ordered in a choice of fine, medium or broad-tip (I tried the fine, which was perfect lovely). In addition, custom ground extra fine or italic nibs can be special ordered for slightly more.
For my testing purposes, I used Pelikan 4001 black ink. Not the most interesting choice but one that I knew would provide me a consistent flow for ease of comparison to other pens I’ve tried or own. The pen certainly took well to it and laid down a consistent line that, due to a very slight flex in the nib, was not devoid of personality. Exactly what one would want from a pen of such quality and something that would grow with the writer over time.
Every single detail of this pen reveals the caliber of the craft, both that of the maker and that of the writer. The price, starting at $325.00, is reasonable considering this fact. This is a pen that, with the proper care, will outlast you and give your descendants, should they chose to use it, as many hours of writing pleasure as it provided you.
The only drawback in the experience is that I must send this one back. It is number seven out of a total of ten that will be made. My only hope is that it will be appreciated as much by the buyer as it has been by me during my time with it. Perhaps, that buyer will read this review one day and drop me a card written with this fine pen. Thus, binding us in greeting and familiarity as only a good pen can.

So, I was sitting around my local co-working space today, when someone asked me what I thought about offsite backup services and what I would recommend. Without missing a beat, I said, “The one I offer.” I then proceeded to give the elevator pitch and explained the benefits.

“Great!”, the other person exclaimed. Then, a few minutes later he stated his desire to sign up and asked when we could set up a time.

“You have your laptop sitting there so how about right now?”, I asked.

To his amazement, and appreciation, I took my wallet out of my pocket, removed the tiny USB 8GB drive I keep within. I plugged it in, launched the installer for the backup client software, entered the settings, and began the backup.

“So, how will I pay you? Do you need me to send you a check? PayPal?”, he asked.

“I can take a credit card right now, on the spot, if you prefer.”, which he agreed to.

I took out my Square reader, plugged it into my iPhone, swiped the card, charged it, and sent him the receipt via email. The entire process from decision to completion took about 5 minutes.

The future is now.