What is the difference between race/road and cx bikes?

Question: The only differences I know is that road bikes are often lighter and uses different set of brakes. But what else are the main differences?
Comment: See also: http://bicycles.stackexchange.com/questions/6497/can-i-use-a-cyclocross-bike-for-regular-road-biking-purposes
Answer: Cyclocross bikes will have a slightly different geometry. More like a relaxed road geometry with a higher bottom bracket than a road bike typically. You'll be stretched out a bit less and more upright. Cross frames also will have wider tire clearances for 32mm to 35mm tires, but it varies by model as some can fit 38mm to 45mm tires.
Traditionally, brakes tend to be wide profile cantilever brakes for good tire clearance and less chance of clogging with mud on cyclocross bikes.  However, disc brakes are now readily available on many cyclocross bikes.  Road / Racing bikes tend to use caliper brakes which have better modulation, but typically have small tire clearances, which may be too restrictive for cross tires, especially when they are covered in mud.
The new standard rear wheel size for disc cross bikes seems to be 135mm, so it's the same as mountain bike disc hubs. Non disc cyclocross bikes tend to have rear hubs which are spaced at 130mm, the current road standard hub spacing.
Tires on a cross bike are going to be different as well.  Road bikes will typically have skinny 23mm to 28mm slicks.  On a cyclocross bike, you will typically have knobbier tires which may not last as long and provide more rolling resistance when compared to road tires, which is a tradeoff for having better handling on dirt / grass / mud.  You can always swap out tires to match whatever style of riding you prefer. Depending on how serious you are about racing, you can find both cyclocross and road tires available as glue on tubular tires.  However, some people have been adapting mountain bike tubeless technology and mounting cross tires as tubeless to run lower pressures for better offroad handling. It is not common to use the mountain bike style tubeless setup on a road bike, and generally not desirable.
Road bikes and cyclocross bikes tend to use STI shifters and similar groupsets (chainrings / cassette / derailleur combinations), however sometimes people prefer to use bar-end shifters for cyclocross (or retroshift shifters which mount bar end shifters on brake levers).  Additionally, some cyclocross bikes have an extra guard on the outer chainring to prevent injury when mounting / dismounting frequently. These guards are typically not as heavy duty as mountain bike bash guards.
Cable routing tends to be different on cyclocross bikes due to the need to shoulder a  bike during the race, so under the top tube routing is typically avoided.  Sometimes 3 cables on top of the top tube or internal cable routing strategies are used.  Often times full housing will be used to help prevent cables from getting contaminated with mud as easily.
Comment: I think there is an important distinction between the racing cyclocross bikes and the commuter cyclocross bikes. Several brands have started making cyclocross bikes which are less racey and more like a fast touring bike, and which are meant for commuting and thus have a more relaxed geometry and fittings for fenders. One example is the Trek CrossRip.
Answer: Cyclocross bikes typically come with:

Wider/knobby tires.
Wider seat stays (for the wider tires) but this also makes it easier to fit fenders.
Compact Crankset such as 50/34
Flat underside of the top tube - for carrying your bike on your shoulder.
All cables to the rear along the top of top tube (or internal) - again for shouldering

As noted, the brakes on CX bikes are either Cantilever or Disc, mainly for the clearance of wider tires and mud.
I am seeing more road bikes with compact cranks.
Answer: Cyclocross bikes value a different set of priorities than road bikes. You want your cyclocross bike to have wide grippy tires so that you have good traction in all of that mud. You also want more clearance around your stays so that said mud doesn't build up too much there. You also want to have a wider wheel base and more clearance for easier maneuvering through the courses.
Road bikes aren't strictly lighter, a carbon fiber cx bike might easily be lighter than some aluminum road bikes. But yes, in general you want to lose as much weight as you can if you're going to be racing that road bike up all of those enormous hills.
With all of that maneuvering, another great feature on a lot of cross bikes are the cheater breaks
Answer: An important factor is geometry.
The difference is tire clearance and brake type, yes ...  but the difference between a road bike frame and a Cyclocross frame is measured in many more millimeters than the ones printed on the tire sidewall.
For instance, the 58cm Crux is somewhere generally between a 56cm Roubaix and a 58cm Tarmac, seat tube length withstanding.
The aerodynamic drag of CX bikes is more than that of road bikes, especially because disc brakes are not optimized for aerodynamic efficiency, as they are still largely just iterations of mountain bike systems.
As far as riding a CX bike in stock trim on the road, I think most riders would notice the 2cm average less drop on a CX's handlebars more than just about anything else (assuming the rider equipped the CX bike with 25-28mm tires).
Comment: @Michael Ian answered as his first post (that's what got it to the front page), and his post was served to me on the First Post review queue. I edited it (click on the edited link to see what I did). But you can also earn badges by editing old posts. See [Excavator](http://bicycles.stackexchange.com/help/badges/70/excavator) and [Archaeologist](http://bicycles.stackexchange.com/help/badges/69/archaeologist). I've been doing a little archaeology lately :-)
Comment: Why do you answer a 2 year old, solved Question, thus make it re-appear on the frontpage? I'm new, this seems to happen quite often and you are quite experienced, am I missing something?


Fetching field values from uncommitted features on Qgis

Question: I'm trying to fetch a feature's field value on Qgis, I use  QgsFeature.attributeMap().value(cont int & key).toDouble()
This works fine for committed features but it always returns " 0 " if the feature is not yet committed to the vector layer !!
Answer: QgsFeature is just temporary entity that is returned from the layer or the provider.  QgsFeature doesn't "know" where the data originated from.
I suppose you're fetching directly from the provider, but to get the uncommitted changes you must fetch the feature from the layer.
Answer: I'm iterating over the layer's features to get a specific feature with :

pQgsVlayer->select( attributeList, pQgsVlayer->extent() );
QgsFeature tFeature;
while ( pQgsVlayer->nextFeature(tFeature) ){
..
}

Here, attributes are fetched to the QgsFeature resulting from nextFeature(..) !
The problem was that I get the feature's Id from this iteration then I use it to get to the feature when needed with :

pQgsVlayer->featureAtId(id, Feature);

uncommitted attributes are, then, not fetched !
I solved this by using to iteration to get the feature itself not the id, so it will have all of its attributes when I use it !


String theory "computation" for math undergrad audience

Question: I am giving a talk on String theory to a math undergraduate audience. I am looking for a nice and suprising mathematical computation, maybe just a surprising series expansion, which is motivated by string theory and which can be motivated and explained relatively easily. Examples of what I have in mind are the results in Dijkgraaf's "Mirror symmetry and the elliptic curve", or the "genus expansion" of the MacMahon function (aka DT/GW for affine three-space), but I am not sure I can fit either into the time I have. Any thoughts?
Comment: What is the actual background of your audience? The word "undergrad" can have various meanings depending on where you are speaking. Also, if you're not sure yourself about an example that can be explained easily to your audience, is string theory really the right topic to be discussing?
Answer: Two counting problems -- from my own very biased and personal viewpoint -- that can perhaps be motivated:

Counting triangles on the torus = theta function relation for elliptic curve.  (I tried to squeeze this into a public lecture one time.)
Counting symmetric polynomials of degree k in 24 variables = partition function of chiral bosonic string => counting curves on K3 by heterotic duality:  24, 24 + 24*25/2 = 324, etc.

But these can't beat calculating an actual partition function (as in Richard Eager's answer), unless you're trying to emphasize mathiness.
Comment: It there any explanation for = ? I can count polynomials in dim 24, and understand the heuristics (a la Beauville) of counting curves on rational curves on K3, but what is the relation? (apart from the answer)
Comment: Do you have a link expanding on the triangle counting? It sounds interesting but I don't know it.
Answer: I've given a talk about the equivalence between 1+1 TQFTs and Frobeneus algebras to an undergraduate audience with great success. It has great pictures and a clear, beautiful idea. The "computation" can then be the beautiful formula for the number of degree $d$ covers of a genus $g$ Riemann surface as a sum over irreducible representations of the symmetric group $S_d$
$$Z(g)=\sum _{R} \left(\frac{d!}{\dim(R)}\right)^{2g-2}$$
That last computation requires that your audience knows some representation theory of finite groups, but that might be true for the Oxford undergrads.
Comment: A good reference where you can find the great pictures: http://mat.uab.cat/~kock/TQFT.html
Answer: Ginsparg's Applied Conformal Field Theory (hep-th/9108028 section 7.6) has a nice proof of the Jacobi Triple-Product formula and Euler's pentagonal number theorem.  The equalities can be interpreted as the equivalence between the partition function of a free chiral boson and the partition function of two chiral fermions on a torus.  This is an example of bosonization and plays an important role in string theory.
The proof can be explained without any reference to physics, but the crucial difference in statistics (Boson/Fermion) employed in the proof becomes obscured.
Comment: It's not really string theory until you sum over genera...or at least integrate over $\overline{M}_{0,n}.
Answer: I agree that computing partition functions has many pretty applications.
My favorite is the use of Jacobi's abstruse identity between theta functions,
$\theta_3^4-\theta_4^4=\theta_2^4$, to show the equality between the number of
bosons and fermions in open superstring theory as required by supersymmetry. This is explained in sec 4.3 of "Superstring Theory" by Green, Schwarz and Witten.
Another short calculation which quickly gets to the heart of the connection between string theory and gravity is the demonstration that bosonic string theory contains a massless spin two excitation. One way to do this requires regularizing a divergent
zero point energy via $\sum_{n=1}^\infty n \rightarrow \sum_{n=1}^\infty n^{-s}$
and then analytically continuing to $s=-1$ to obtain $\zeta(-1)=-1/12$. See sec 2.3
of GSW.
Answer: Maybe derive the Polyakov formula? Like KConrad says, whether it can be understood on an undergraduate level depends a lot on your presentation and the level of the undergraduates. But the basic idea behind the formula, if I remember correctly, can all be explained using a little bit of Riemannian geometry/representation theory plus a bit of complex analysis.
(I recently saw a talk where it was perfectly understandable and impressive for masters-level students.)
(You can also segue into explaining why the universe is 26 dimensional.)
Answer: Derive the Casimir Energy in Bosonic String Theory.
You start with the $\hat L_0$ operator and get rid  of the non-vacuum $\displaystyle\frac{\alpha_0^2}{2}+\sum_{n=1}^\infty\alpha_{-n}\cdot\alpha_n$, then you use a Ramanujam sum to do $\zeta$-function renormalisation,  from which you find out that the vacuum energy denoted by $\varepsilon_0$ is
$$\varepsilon_0=-\frac{d-2}{24}$$
However, the most interesting part comes when you go around deriving the critical dimension of Bosonic String Theory.
After which, the expression surprisingly simplifyies to a $-1$.
For a more detailed derivation of the above stuff, see these lecture notes/. (Section 4) (Equation 4.5-4.10)


Is it acceptable to reply to the comments/answers on your questions really late on the StackExchange sites?

Question: A lot of times it happens that I post a question there but I fail follow up on it because of my irritating internet connection and/or university commitments and then after a week or so I again remember that question and when I go there and see, some people have answered but it isn't perfectly accurate wrt my requirements or problem, and some other people have commented asking for clarifications. If I reply to all of them now, will I come off as a jerk who will only work according to his own convenience even when it's about other people selflessly volunteering to help him?
Comment: I think it'd be fine to reply late. It's loads better than the people with "urgent requirements"
Comment: I agree that it is completely fine to reply late, but I do get the feeling on SO that people are expecting an almost instant reply. I often feel bad replying to a comment/answering a question just before I leave work (I have a 1.5 hour drive home most days) because it's so common to arrive home and have numerous replies. Even so, I wouldn't explicitly discourage then practice.
Comment: I suggest that you do stick around for a bit immediately after posting the question though as quite frequently (at least in the tags I frequent) requests for clarification can occur within minutes of the question being posted.
Answer: I would not consider you a jerk. I regard Stack Overflow as a timeless Q&A site where both questions and answers can be improved at any time. I recently went back to some of my older answers to improve them even more, which may be helpful for future visitors.
I suspect most people ask their follow-up comments and then leave to do something better while waiting for your reply (and they will be notified about your reply in the notification area in the upper-left corner).
With that said, at least make sure to be around for a few minutes after posting your question to handle the most immediate comments. These are probably the most obvious shortcomings of your post and may be needed to know where to start an answer.
Answer: If you only happen to go back to a question after a while (for whatever reason), and find out that you need to add detail to it, do so.
It really doesn't matter why there is a lag (or how long it is).
Answer: I think that SO (and internet forums in general) are necessarily ... um, asynchronous.  It's normal to post something and then answer/reply/update much later; that's what the notifications are for.  It's not like your answerers are sitting there, twiddling their thumbs with increasing annoyance as they wait for you to respond.
Of course the following things are nice where possible:

Expressing a question with such lucid precision that further clarifications are not needed.
Being available to discuss follow-up questions immediately while the question is still fresh in everyone's mind, and the answerers are all there.

The first is an ideal that is not always easy or possible to accomplish; the second is nice but not required, or expected.
Answer: Personally I wouldn't find you a jerk but my primary goal is to better myself by answering questions, helping you is a secondary objective (sorry :s). Maybe that actually makes me the jerk.
New arrivals to a question like that (with answers already given but no response from the asker) might think you're a lost case though, which could hurt the number of prospective answers you get.
This is something where in my opinion accepted answers % score helps you. If you have a high percentage then people'd be less likely to see you as a 'lost cause'. If you have a low percentage then it could evoke a negative perception with new arrivals since they'll just assume that you found one of the answers acceptable and moved along.
So I'd say it's not a given that tardiness in response could hurt the number of answers you get, but it might where 'late answers' are considered. In my opinion people would be  less likely to answer a question that has been answered at least once days before but where no response from the OP was forthcoming. (provided the OP is in 'low standing' due to low acceptance %)


Best practices for Apache Server hardening?

Question: What are some best practices, recommendations, required reading for securing an Apache Server?
Comment: While this link may answer the question, it is better to include the essential parts of the answer here and provide the link for reference.  Link-only answers can become invalid if the linked page changes.
Comment: You might also wanna check the [Secure Configuration of the Apache Web Server, Apache Server Version 1.3.3 on Red Hat Linux 5.1](http://www.nsa.gov/ia/_files/webs/archived/apacheWS.pdf) . It's a guide from NSA
Comment: "Secure your apache so we can't steal stuff" article hey? ;P
Comment: Dead-link!...kinda....
Answer: Grab the Center for Internet Security (CIS) guide for securing Apache (it describes in detail how to enhance the security):
Edit:  Updated link
CIS Apache HTTP Server 2.2.x Benchmark
If you have a license to Nessus, then you can run an automated check by grabbing their audit template:
Comment: All CIS Benchmarks PDF files are available at https://github.com/cismirror/benchmarks
Answer:
Use SSH key based logins
Secure MySQL
Disable phpMyAdmin, webmin, etc
Close all ports/process's that are not needed
Use a file integrity checker
Use mod_security
Set the proper permissions/groups

This is a good guide:
https://serverfault.com/questions/212269/tips-for-securing-a-lamp-server
Basic guide for hardening:
http://www.wpsecure.net/server-guide/
If you're running php:
http://www.madirish.net/?article=229
Find 404's (or other status codes) in apache log
awk '$9 == 404 {print $7}' access_log | uniq -c | sort -rn | head
Comment: Key based logins are great except when you wonder where to keep the keys at.
Answer: The originally highly voted answer to this question that was accepted was deleted because it was a direct plagiarism of 20 ways to secure your Apache configuration. That page is a fantastic resource.
@RoryMcCune also posted this as a link on that answer: There's an OWASP project to develop a ModSecurity Core Rule Set here which could be of use.
Comment: Last comment on the [20 ways link](http://www.petefreitag.com/item/505.cfm) is from 2014 confirming it is good info, so I believe the info is still up to date and good practice? Just starting out with Apache here..
Answer: All the general security principles apply:  run only modules you need, turn off features that you don't need, tidy up your permissions/ownerships (most contents are read only, so why do the files need anything more than 400 perms?).
The stuff that's particular to Apache, like CGI jobs, or different vhosts serving out the same content twice with two different security mechanisms on them are much harder to spot; not exactly an automated check, you actually gotta know Apache, the underlying OS, and what the applications running in Apache are doing.
For completeness sake here's a Apache 2.2 Security Checklist from DISA.  UPDATE: Here's a link to their whole collection of webserver hardening documents.
Comment: That returns 404 not found now unfortunately.  Do you happen to have a copy of it (assuming it's public domain and you're allowed to share it)?
Comment: @sa289   good catch, updated links
Answer: There's lots of good advice here, so I won't repeat things already mentioned.  But what I will say is:
Don't forget to replace the default error pages with things that don't give away your Web Server release or kernel revision.  I tend to replace each default html with 1 liners that are something like "Error 400." It gives very little about the system away.  This principal applies to all web servers capable of displaying custom error pages, they all pretty much default to giving away far too much information than is necessary.  You would think that ServerSignature would hide this, but in many cases it does not.
Also, don't forget to delete all the default HTML content (language specific etc.) so fingerprinting is that much harder.
As far as good reads go there was a whitepaper from Apcon 2008 that's worth a read.
Mod_Security is mentioned a few times, this is more suited to web applications, so if you are serving static content only, it's not going to help you too much, though there are some attacks it helps defend against during request handling which could affect a static Web Server.
The other thing I'd mention is good log management, if you aren't farming your logs off and keeping a close eye on the system you run the risk of an attacker pounding away at it without having any awareness of it.
Answer: It might be worth giving Apache mod_security a look.
I have been giving it a go on some of my servers lately not only does it perform some configuration tweaks to Apache itself like changing version number etc but it also acts as a web application firewall helping to protect against a wide variety of attacks such as SQL injection etc.
Answer:
How Do I Secure Apache Web Server

What answer would you expect if you asked "How do I fly a jumb-jet" or "How do I do brain surgery" - the same applies to making a webserver secure - you need to do 1000's of hours of training, practice and research. But since everyone has to start somewhere...
There are lots of basic checklists on the internet for how to harden a server - but as per my comment elsewhere they vary greatly in quality.
I'd recommend the sans one as a good source.
Once you've followed the checklist you need to establish means by which you can

verify the integrity of your server (you definitely need a host based IDS such as tripwire along with a rootkit detector)
be aware of and apply patches
recover your system to a known good state

Don't plan for how you deal with a security incident if it happens. Plan for what to do when it happens.
After you've got your system setup and configured then swap out the hard disk and see how long it takes you to get the service up and running again without using the original disk.
Answer: this is not just apache-related (and also counts for nginx+php-fpm), but often forgotten: php-eastereggs, that might be switched of via php.ini
  expose_php = off

it is not as terrible as leaving a phpinfo.php behind, but usually is a hint to very lazy system-administration.
see easter-eggs
Answer: Use the latest version of apache, patch your OS and also of the third parties like openssl or any other.
Block unwanted ports.
This will protect you from some known vulnerabilities, but you will always be susceptible to a 0-day, of course.
Answer: Good thread turned. Many people say truth.
They forgot one, OpenBSD's way:

In OpenBSD, the Apache httpd(8) server has been chroot(2)ed by default

httpd (v.1 of Apache) included in OpenBSD by default, and chrooted by default.
You can repeat it easy with apache2 or nginx on any other Unix-like OS.
Answer: Here 6 key steps :

Secure your application code
disable all modules not used. Try to disable all, and then, one by one, add modules.
remove all scripts and backup files in the web folder.
disable directory listing
use modsecurity to protect your application from application-level attacks.
Use Fail2ban to trigger HTTP errors (403, 404).

Do not rely on your network firewall, it's useless when talking about web security.


How do I get started with dovetail joints?

Question: I've never made a dovetail joint before, and I'd like to do things right for my next project.  I have the router and table and all that - but I don't have a dovetail jig.  The prices vary from $40 to well over $400.  Do I need to buy a special jig, or is there a way I can just buy the router bit for $10 and make my own template somehow?
Comment: Why dovetails? With modern glues even a butt joint is really strong. For drawers I put a rabbit in the front back parts and then use a dado on the sides (and the bottom for the 1/4 inch plywood bottom). And sometimes I just use butt joints and Dominos for strength and ease of putting them together.
Answer: Here's a good tutorial on hand-cut dovetails.  There are two schools of thought - pins first and tails first.  It doesn't really matter, it's more about how you were taught.  This one is pins first.
How I Make Hand-Cut Dovetails
Answer: If you are using a router you will need some sort of edge/jig to guide the cut, otherwise you won't get a straight line. In the first instance I'd buy a cheap(ish) one and see how you get on. Then if you want to do more advanced pieces buy a more expensive jig.
BTW I learnt to do dovetail joints with a dovetail saw and mallet & chisel. You can use a mitre saw, but a dovetail saw is finer.
Comment: @Nathan - I'd have to do a Google search... Here's one - http://www.extremehowto.com/xh/article.asp?article_id=60151
Comment: @Nathan - here's a video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ8fSSKn0Ls
Comment: do you have a link that shows how to create a dovetail joint the old school way?
Comment: You'll also notice that the best/tightest dovetails are hand-cut.  This is because the pins can be made a hair smaller, and the tails a hair larger to get a really tight fit.  I love this video, it shows you that you don't really even need a marking gauge to cut a dovetail joint: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hlJWN4ERT8
Answer: Without significant care, a homemade jig won't allow the pieces to mesh properly when you're finished.  Commercial jigs are accurate down to hundredths or thousandths of an inch, and it's unlikely you'll get the same level of accuracy.  That said, as ChrisF mentioned, commercial jigs and routers are a fairly modern invention but dovetail joints are not.  So using your own jig you may need to do more manual work to get them to fit.
As my father (a professional carpenter for about 40 years) noted, "a 'master carpenter' is just a carpenter with enough experience to know how to hide his mistakes."
Answer: For a cheap and pretty good option, I would check out the jig Harbor Freight sells.  A lot of people say it's really good for the $25-$35 price point.
I personally cut them by hand (with a dovetail saw, $10 at Sears, and chisels) which is pretty quick for one-offs (no setup really required) and doesn't require any special jigs.  If you look up handcut dovetails on YouTube you can watch some people do it and decide how easy/hard it looks.


How to remove apps from android market website?

Question: There are a few apps that even though I uninstalled them (through android market mobile app) still remain present as 'installed' when I go to my website market account (they are not on my phone any more).. I tried installing and removing them again, but it didn't help.. Did anyone have the same problem? Is there a way to fix this so that they don't show up any more?
Answer: Well, Now you CAN remove the unwanted apps from your market website as well as from the market history. All you have to do is delete from your all apps list.
Goto your play store app and select My Apps Then swipe the screen to your left to see the ALL apps list.
Just click the crossed circle icon (pointed with the green arrow) to remove the desired app.

Make sure you have uninstalled the app before removing. You can uninstall the apps directly from the All apps list as well.
Note: It seems that this list only contains market installed apps. (i.e. apps other than user installed .apk apps)
Comment: @pootzko, you're welcome. :)
Answer: If you want them removed from the Market app list of previously installed applications, you will have to clear the data in Settings -> Applications -> Manage Applications -> Market.
To get them to not show as installed on the Market website, I would think that this will "clear" once your device does a sync and then the site processes that sync. You have no control over how the website shows applications that are installed. I'd say way a few days and if they are still showing as installed, you can try contacting google about the issue.
Answer:
edit: this answer is outdated, please see Sid's answer

I reported this to Android Team, and got this reply:

Hi,
Thanks for writing in. I understand
  that some apps are still showing on
  your account even after being
  uninstalled.
Keep in mind that all the apps you
  download will always show on the
  Android Market website for history
  purposes. Uninstalled apps will be
  removed from the Android Market app on
  your device after a few days.
Regards,
The Android Market Team

So, that means they will never go away from the Android Market website...
Comment: Please see the [new answer](http://android.stackexchange.com/a/36915/)


How do I troubleshoot a vehicle that won't start?

Question: My 2000 Chevy truck lights all come on like normal but won't start there is nothing . I hooked 2 wires to the starter and hit them together and it started. Any idea what the problem is
Comment: Did it turn over or did it start and stay running?
Answer: A car needs 3 things to start: Fuel, Air, & Spark. You can do try the following to either rule in or rule out the missing piece:
To make sure you're getting air and spark, try taking off the mass air flow cover from your manifold, and spray a little starter fluid directly into the intake, while attempting to start the car. If the car is getting a spark, the car should at least start because the air and fuel are coming in through the intake.
If the car doesn't start, you're likely not getting a spark.
If it starts and runs well, there may be a blockage in your air, which removing the air flow cover solved. You could visually check your air filter and air flow path.
If it starts, runs for a second or two, but stalls out - even after flooring the gas pedal after starting - It's possible there is no fuel getting to the cylinders.
This is just a very basic guide to point you in the right direction of the offending system that's keeping your car from starting.

In your specific case, your battery could be the culprit (may not be carrying enough current), or it could be the wires running from the battery to the starter. I would visually check the wires for damage.
Comment: Just to interject here - a number of immobilisers will stop electronic fuel injectors from working, so always keep that in mind.

However, it appears that OP cannot even get the vehicle to turn over, so I'm inclined to think the battery. If all the lights go off on the dash when turning over - I'd bet a whiskey it's the battery
Answer: Since shorting the starter worked it sounds like the issue is with your key/ignition.
Something isn't powering the starter when you turn the key?
Could also be bad power or ground wire to the starter.


Will the friends of friends that I put in the 'Restricted' list, see items in my profile that I set to be viewable by my 'Friends of Friends'?

Question: An attempt at illustrating this (where '->' means 'is/am friends with'):

I -> a friend in my 'Restricted' list (hereby known as 'R1') ->
  R1's friend (hereby known as 'R2')

Will R2 (assuming that R2 is not a Facebook friend of mine) be able to to view items in my profile that I set to be viewable by my 'Friends of Friends'? What I would like to know is if R2 will be restricted from viewing items in my profile due to his/her connection with R1 (who is in the 'Restricted' list), or will he/she be able to view items in my profile since he/she is a friend of my friend (R1), as per my profile's privacy settings.
Will the friends of friends that I put in the 'Restricted' list, see the items in my profile that I set to be viewable by my 'Friends of Friends'?
Answer: I just tested this, and the answer is yes. Despite account A putting all its mutual friends with account B on "restricted", account B (unfriended for the sake of the experiment) was able to see friends-of-friends content.


Replicating portfolio and risk-neutral pricing for interest rate options

Question: For equity options, the pricing of options depends on the existence of a replicating portfolio, so you can price the option as the constituents of that replicating portfolio. However, I am not seeing how the same analysis can be applied to value interest rate options. Does the concept of replication apply to interest rate derivatives? If so, what would a replicating portfolio look like?
Comment: It's made of interest rate instruments, of course, one per dimension of your SDE.  Money market accounts, swaps and zero coupon bonds are common choices.
Comment: Interest rate models often model a continuous curve based on a finite number of unobservable factors. So it is not that straightforward to go from the SDE to the maturity and notional of the swaps you should buy/sell.
Answer: As Brian B states above the short answer includes Money market accounts, swaps and zero coupon bonds among other instruments. Lets say we have an interest rate derivative that we need to value via replication. Now if we think of what we mean by a replicating portfolio its clear that the main ingredient needed is to match the pay structure\payout of the interest rate derivative with existing market instruments -- thus the instruments needed depend on the payout of the derivative.
For example, if we have an interest rate swap (IRS), we see that the cash flow (and hence payout) of the instrument is the same as if we had a chain (sequence) of forward rate agreements (FRA's). Similarly we can look at modeling the IRS with bonds of an appropriate tenor. There is no single definitive answer, because depending on the economics of the IRS, we may not have FRA's that match the payout, or we may not have bonds with correct maturities, we may have the bonds, but they may not be liquid enough to be valued etc. This notion is known as the completeness/incompleteness of the market.
Hence given a interest rate derivative, usually it would be the case that the existing market instruments are interest related products, but the actual components that make up the replicating portfolio depend on the pay out structure of the derivative, and the ability to be able to obtain market prices for the assets in the replicating portfolio. In fact, if these two conditions are met, then it does not matter which portfolio of underlying instruments you use.
However if these conditions are not met, then you usually have to make do with what is available or modify/proxy instruments to obtain a valuation -- in practice, this is most often the case.
Comment: @ezbentley oops sorry I answered your question for interest rate derivatives in general! I did not see that you wanted a discussion on options in particular -- the gist of the answer remains the same though.
Answer: Let $0 \leq T < U$. Consider a European call on a U-Bond (Zero-coupon bond maturing at time U) with time of maturity $T$.
What you do is that you hedge the call option with the aid of the U-Bond and the T-Bond. I could go in to more details on how to do this in particular models, but I would basically just write the same things as in this book:
Interest Rate Models - Theory and Practice: With Smile, Inflation and Credit
http://www.amazon.com/Interest-Rate-Models-Practice-Inflation/dp/3540221492
Answer: The concept of replication is indeed applied to IR products, after all they are also hedged in practice.
However, in the equity world we start with the replicating portfolio and then arrive to the pricing formula. In contrast, for IR products we employ a convenient numeraire which helps us to arrive at the pricing formula directly (in a non-constructive and arguably less intuitive way). Furthermore, in the IR world the market instruments themselves are many and interlinked (cash rates, FRAs, swaps, basis swaps, etc.); in equities you have a single well defined underlying.
To see the replicating portfolio one has to just look at the hedging ratios with respect to all relevant market observables. A swaption would be exposed to two points of the swap curve, and this exposure can be reconstructed by a collection of swaps and other instruments: i.e. the replicating portfolio.
Answer: For forward libor models, one can hedge interest rate options by using bonds. (Note that forward libor is a tradeable security under the forward measure).  See http://www.columbia.edu/~mh2078/market_models.pdf
For affine yield models (like Vasicek or CIR models) the inverse problem is the most useful.  Given an interest rate process, I can compute a theoretical bond price.  From observable market prices of bonds I can then compute the parameters of my interest rate model (by minimizing the L2 norm, for example).  Given these (risk neutral!) parameters I can then price any instrument that depends on that interest rate. But, I cannot necessarily hedge these instruments.


Co-transformation of plasmids from the same incompatibility group

Question: Can two plasmids with the same origin of replication (for example pBR322 ori) and thus from the same incompatibility group be successfully co-transformed in E. coli? What are the mechanisms that would prevent the two plasmids from co-existing together? Does it matter what is the dual resistance selection? How would the efficiency of co-transformation compare to the efficiency of a uni-transformation?
Answer: It turns out that there doesn't seem to be a specific mechanism to prevent multiple incompatible plasmids from coexisting.  Velappan et al put in more than one incompatible plasmid with different selection genes in them and put the bacteria on a single antibiotic and periodically checked for the second vector (by testing for  second antibiotic resistance).  It apparently took weeks for the second vector to disappear - many generations.
Higher copy number plasmids did better, with longer times to lose the second plasmid.  They seem to conclude that its just the natural rate of loss of plasmids that will cause the bacteria to lose the second plasmid without selection.  I imagine with two antibiotics in the culture it would take some months and you could potentially store the bacteria at -80C indefinitely.  Still in most experiments its going to be an additional headache where compatible origins of replication seem to have a more typical half life for retaining the plasmids.
They also state that the frequency of double transformations is more frequent than is usually appreciated, which seems to imply that you will get some colonies from a typical high efficiency transformation from plasmid preps.  However, they introduced the multiple plasmids by phagemid infection rather than transformation in this study.
Comment: Thanks for your answer. I actually co-transformed and I got twice as many colonies compared to a uni-transformation. I think there might me something wrong with the plates or the cells, but perhaps the co-transformation is more efficient. Which I still don't understand why would that be....
Comment: That is interesting.  I take it that both plasmids have different selection markers?


How to play DLC if game is finished?

Question: Can I play the DLC from the point where I completed the main game story-line, or do I have to back up to some save-game that I created before I entered the final battle?
Answer: You have to back up to a save prior to the end of the game. Unlike Broken Steel in Fallout 3, to play the DLC such as Honest Hearts and Dead Money, you have to do it during the game.
Answer: There is another solution, check out this mod. It worked when I tried it, it's worth a shot.
Simply download it, and place it in your Data folder where you installed Fallout NV, e.g C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\fallout new vegas\Data. Then start the game laucher, and tick of the mod in DATA FILES.
Comment: Great find, works as advertised!
Answer: I seem to recall reading somewhere recently that in a recent patch, a provision was made that creates a save right before the last battle that allows you to load and play the DLC before actually engaging in the battle.  I believe this patch was for all platforms.

How to play DLC if game is finished?


What should I practice to develop the skills needed to play rock solos?

Question: I know music theory, basic guitar chords and basic scales. What should I be focusing on practicing in order to compose or improvise rock guitar solos, and just play famous solos by ear? I am talking about solos like Hotel California, Stairway to Heaven, those from Slash, and those from the Rolling Stones. What scales should I be practicing, and how? And are there any composition techniques that are helpful? Are there any specific web resources that could help me?
Comment: This question is about individual practice, but I would add to the existing answers: Don't *just* practice on your own! "Real-world" experience in performance and with other band members is an important part of the learning. Private practice is an invaluable piece of the puzzle, but it won't get you all the way there.
Answer: You should focus on three related areas: scales, shapes and licks.
Scales
You've already said you know the theory, so that's great. Take the time to study the kind of solos you want to work on, and work out what scales those solos are using. Note where they switch from one scale to another.
It's definitely worth practising scales, so you have the positions in muscle memory.
After that, it's a matter of personal preference how you approach soloing. Some people like to take an analytical approach ("The song is in C, so I will use the G mixolydian scale"). Other people develop a more instinctive approach ("I know the note I want to hear next, and I know where it is on the fretboard").
Find your own preference.
Shapes
A shape is like a mini scale; a cluster of fret positions that produce notes that fit well together. A shape tends to be movable. You'll notice that a lot of the classic rock/blues guitarists have signature shapes that they come back to again and again. Copy them, and build your own collection of favourite shapes.
Licks
Build on top of scales and shapes, are licks -- stock musical phrases. Again, you'll notice that classic rock guitarists tend to have licks that they reuse again and again. You can learn licks that sound impressive, then just throw them into any solo when it feels right.
A lot of electric guitar licks are likely to involve techniques such as bends, slides, hammer-ons etc. which you wouldn't have used practising straight scales.
There are books full of licks, and seeing them tabbed is a good way to get started.
Answer: It all comes down to practice and listening. In order to be able to write your own solos I would suggest the following:

play along with solos by your favourite guitarists until you can play them note for note
do the same for solos by other artists, maybe not your favourite, but those acknowledged to have well structured solos or melodies
listen to genres outside your core - jazz is a useful one to help you understand alternate techniques, modes and note combinations (you might only like rock, but do this anyway - you will be a better soloist because of it!)

It takes time, but practice is what will do it!
Answer: This may seem too obvious, but I learned how to improvise solos mainly by reading transcriptions in magazines like Guitar For the Practicing Musician, Guitar World, and Guitar School. I preferred the GFTPM ones, because they would give more of the song (vocal melodies, bass transcriptions, and even drum transcriptions!).
So maybe get a transcribed book for a classic album by each master; and work them up!
[I know the question was geared towards "free" materials, but good transcriptions can save you lots of time (==money), not to mention frustration. In the magazines, they'll often give you a brief article about the techniques required (including exercises).]
Answer: The basics for any good rock guitar solos are scales. Practice scales, and you will have the best basic technique for playing (and composing/improvising) solos. There are some good answers that relates to this in this question:  Why learn scales? What are they for?
About what kind of scales, and how to practice, you can find some useful answers in this question: Logical way to learn movable scales on guitar?


Add post thumbnail from external image with plugin

Question: I'm currently writing a plugin modifying the post content with the wp_insert_post_data filter. While doing that I would also like to add a post thumbnail using an external image url. It doesn't really matter if the image is hotlinked or copied to my wordpress installation. Anyone knows how to go about that?
Answer: you should have a look to this blog post : http://www.maverick.it/tech/create-thumbnails-using-wordpress-built-in-functions
then, if you can't use a remote image, just download it as a temporary file on your server, process and delete it.
One your image created, you should then insert it as an attachment (http://codex.wordpress.org/Function_Reference/wp_insert_attachment) and set it as the post thumbnail (http://codex.wordpress.org/Function_Reference/set_post_thumbnail)
I hope it will help.
Cyril.
Answer: This may help?
http://epicplugins.com/external-url-link-to-featured-images/
It's a plugin that lets you set your featured image from an external image URL.
Answer: Hotlinkig is inherently evil.
Just host the images on your own server. Use WordPress built-in Media Management to attach the images to your posts, and to designate them as featured images (i.e. post thumbnails).


How can I encourage language development in my infant?

Question: My 4 month old is the most verbal baby I've ever seen. He has something to say in every situation. My husband and I tell him what things are, "That's a truck. It moves along the road.". My son clearly recognizes some words, like "hi", and I wonder if there is a way I could help him learn to understand and speak a little faster since he is so passionate about it?
Answer: Here are a few things that I've read in books and articles about encouraging your child to talk:
Show excitement when he tries to talk
Let him know that the noises he makes are important by paying attention and encouraging him when he coos.  As he gets a bit older and his noises become more developed ("bababa" or "mamama" instead of just "aaaaah!"), then specifically encourage the more advanced consonant sounds.
Encourage him to copy you
This can be anything from making faces to peek-a-boo to actual sounds.  If learns to enjoy imitating you, he will also begin imitating your speech.
Have "conversations" with him
When he's being vocal, coo at him and wait for him to respond, and then you coo back again.  This way he can learn the ebb and flow of how conversations work.
Answer: The use of "motherese" http://www.education.com/reference/article/motherese-support-children-language-learning/ encourages children to attend to speech and provides an exaggerated model of the intonation and inflection of speech which helps her understanding of "talking".
When he begins to vocalize, listen intently with direct eye contact and exaggerated facial expressions. When he stops "talking", then respond with "motherese" stopping when he begins again. These exchanges teaches the concept of turn-taking which is necessary for "conversations".
Playing peek-a-boo, tickling games and simple action games all provide opportunities for turn-taking.
Imitating a child's sounds exactly encourages repetition of the sounds and is the beginning of imitation skills. A child's first words will likely be reduplications of syllables such as: mama, dada, baba, bubu or single syllable words beginning with the earliest developing consonants such as m, b, t, or d. These sounds naturally occur from muscle development from sucking.
Continue talking to your baby simply, clearly and often. He may not understand what you are saying, but will enjoy and learn from your conversations. Look and point at the things you talk about.
Read picture books to your baby. Describe what you are looking at and make any accompanying sounds that matches the pictures. Reading to a child is highly correlated with school readiness/success.
Repetition of rhymes and simple songs is also idea interactions that support language in children.
Follow your child's lead. Continue this vocal exchange for as long as he shows interest. When he indicates displeasure, recognize that he is ready to move on to another activity.
From about seven months babies start to use and understand hand and body gestures and natural signs. Express in words what your baby shows in signs and facial expressions.
Answer: When you get to the point where you're asking questions try to ask questions that force an answer rather than just a yes or no response.  An example would be:-
"Would you like some milk, or some water?", rather than "do you want your milk?"
Answer: Speak. Speak to others when he's in the room. Speak to him when you're alone with him. monologue about what you're doing, how you make soup, which sock belongs to which family member. Talk in the car about which way you're going, where, and why. Every chance you get, read books to him. Talk about the pictures. Everything else is detail.
Leave the TV off. He'd rather watch and listen to you anyway.
Answer: Keep is simple. All I can say, is children "accidentally learn things" so make it fun. Make animal noises, say the simple sounds that are similar to aahhhh like Maaaaaa Daaaaa Baaaa or even ta for thank-you. Read him books, he will most likely cackle himself, but point out the words, if he loves talking, you never know he might love words, and books and reading. Just don't push it, and enjoy your child while they are still young.
Answer: Beyond the short term answers given as requested) above, it is worth noting that language development is a long term processes. As noted in Slate and NY Times, ongoing conversation with your child adds greatly to their intellect. The Thirty Million Words Project exists specifically to address the issue of children's language development by encouraging greater interaction, especially in the poorer communities where the word gap is greatest.


Why does the unity top panel not show the Chrome icon?

Question: It does on gnome shell and cinnamon (linux mint).
Why not in unity?
Answer: In Unity the "top panel" is a menu bar only, when an application is running in Unity you get an arrow on the left side of the icon (and an additional arrow on the right when the application is focused)
Answer: To add to Jorge's answer, multiple instances of a program show up as multiple white dots to the left of the Launcher icon (up to three I believe).  Single white triangles on the left indicate active processes.

Clicking on the button on the unity bar displays all the windows or fades the desktop and brings up small versions of the windows that you can click on to select the one you want.

In Oneiric, the left side indicators (dots or triangles) turn blue when the application wants attention.  (In Natty, a blue triangle appeared in the upper left on the Ubuntu button, but that button is now on the top of the Launcher in 11.10.)
Also, depending on your Backlight settings for Unity, the application that wants attention gets backlit with edge illumination. Below, you should see the Synergy and GEdit icons are not backlit, while the Synaptic and the Gimp icons are.  The GIMP icon also has the subtle edge illumination effect. (And The Gimp has a bug where it always requests attention when starting up.)

Use the Compiz Configuration Settings Manager to change the backlight mode.  Mine was defaulted to "Backlight Always On" - so all the icons were backlit (as in the earlier screenshots).  Changing it to "Backlight and Edge Illumination Toggles" now has the active windows backlit and the ones wanting attention edge-illuminated.

How can I configure Unity?

See also this question on how to bring the demanding application to focus.
and this one on auto-raising chat windows when demanding attention
The Launcher should provide as much functionality as seeing Chrome in the top panel.
You can also make extensive quicklists that show customizable menus when right-clicking on the Launcher icons.
See this excellent question: What custom launchers and quicklists are available, and in your case in particular: Chrome quicklist


What is the device that Bruce Wayne uses to heal/brace his knee in Dark Knight Rises?

Question: In the Dark Knight Rises movie, Bruce Wayne visits the doctor and is diagnosed with cartilage problems. That is, he has no cartilage. Is the knee bracing device that he uses meant to heal the cartilage or brace the knee or both? Is it a real medical device?
Comment: [Related](http://movies.stackexchange.com/questions/3367/what-happened-to-bruce-wayne-batmans-knee)
Comment: [Related](http://movies.stackexchange.com/a/3883/1405)
Answer: The knee brace was a nod to the comics where he had a cybernetic knee brace to help him walk. It is very much a piece of fictional batman technology and doesn't exist in real life.
Quote:

In a nod to the comic books, he develops a knee brace with servomotors
  that  alleviates his need for a cane, and he takes up the mantle once
  again,  taking on new foes in the process.

Comic example 1
Comic example 2
Answer: There are devices like this that do exist in real life, actually. I myself have a knee brace that, although not having servo-motors that assist in forward movement/strength, is fastened by hand with Velcro and has metal joints in it.
It wouldn't take too much engineering (and from what I read, it isn't, because it's being done) to make a knee brace with servo-motorized joints that open and close to the normal range of the leg (so as not to hyper-extend it).
Now, as for Batman's stiff-kick that knocks the bricks out of the archway in the cave...I'm not sure how a motorized knee brace would help that. Kicks are thrown with the full body-weight behind it, having very little to do with the actual leg (although front kicks utilize some leg-strength, even those are about thrusting your hips behind the kick). Obviously, you need the leg to be strong enough so as not to buckle...but a brace would have probably been more effective on the leg he posted on, since it would have knocked him off his feet. If you've never kicked something hard, like a door, you have to kick it hard enough that it knocks you back, similar to how Bane's kick on Batman in their first fight did.
My feeling is, the leg brace brought him back to his previous ability, to where he could have kicked those bricks out regardless (of logic). He then used the assisted stability to workout and rebuild strength in the leg, to the point that he wouldn't need the brace anymore. Makes sense with the prison plot and also makes sense with Wayne having been docile "peeing in mason jars" inside of his mansion for several years, not getting enough exercise to keep his previously damaged leg (that he still could run on, after killing Dent, when he was in peak condition) capable of function.


How should I go about finding a guild in WoW?

Question: What strategies do you use to find the right guild for you in World of Warcraft?
Forums? Trade chat?
Should I be willing to realm transfer?
Answer: You should be willing to transfer but I don't think it's good to blindly transfer.
There are many ways to look for a guild and your process has to change based on what you want out of a guild. Here are some methods from least involved to most involved.
1) trade chat: lots of guild advertise there. Pick one and try it.. if you don't like them try another.
2) PUG: Jump in random groups. If you like some one ask them about their guild. You can learn about tons of guilds that way.
3) apply: Lots of the top raiding guilds have an application process. These guilds are more serious about the content they play and PUG random people less so you might not meet them while trying to find random groups.
Important things to consider when looking for a guild are times of the day you are free and if that is when your new guild plans on runing guild events like raids and pvp. Some guilds focus more on results and less on the social side of the game. Knowing what you want out of a guild can go a long way to finding a good guild.
Comment: Mmo-champion is also a great source in the recruitment  http://www.mmo-champion.com/forums/244-Guild-Recruitment Has EU and US also has French, German and English also US Oceanic and lots of guilds advertise there including most top guilds
Answer: It depends on the guild you want to find. If you're looking for a serious raider guild, there's pugs, trade chat, recruitment ads on popular forums, etc.
However, if you value intelligent chat over we kild LK lol, look for people who write complete and grammatically correct sentences, wherever you may find them. Also, girls: a guild with lots of girls has a much better probability of sane chat and members, simply because they'd leave if they were harassed by their own guildies.
Answer: I think the best way is to join a lot of groups and find people that you like playing with, then ask them for an invite to their guild. If you enjoy playing with someone and they take you under their wing for a guild invite you'll already have a leg up by knowing someone.
Answer: There's a very good tool on WoW Progress:
Go to Recruitment tab and just fill everything to fit your needs. I found a suitable guild literally in an hour or something.
Only downside with this tool is that not every guild keep their info up to date all the time.
Answer: The easiest way to find a good guild is to get to know people in real life who play WoW and find out what guilds they are in. I found my favorite guild since release through people at work.
As far as server transfers, I would only do so if you knew people beforehand who can vouch for the quality of the guild. Preferably people outside the game. Transfers are just too expensive to waste on a guild that might be a poor fit.
Mainly however, you have to decide what you really want out of a guild. If you are just looking for people to chat with while leveling, then your best bet might just be to join random guilds until you find a good fit, or run dungeons with random people and find some that you enjoy playing with.
If you are finding yourself more concerned with things like raiding it gets a little trickier. You will want to find a fairly organized guild, which pretty much rules out just about every guild that doesn't have some form of application process. If they advertise in trade and accept you on the spot, don't expect to be running many successful 25-mans in the near future. One easy first place to check is the server forums for whichever server you are focusing on. Find posts from guilds looking for members that have a solid guild site for you to peruse. Check out the application process for any red flags such as incapable or unreasonable raiding schedules.
In the end, a lot of it is just choosing one and seeing how things go. My best piece of advice after joining a guild is keep an eye on the leadership. While the non-officers of the guild will have a big impact on your experience of the guild, the officers will signal the overall direction the guild is heading.
Comment: If someone runs up and shoves a guild invite in your face, it's probably not a guild you'll enjoy being in...
Answer: WoWProgress has always been my first stop for groups, guilds, etc. The recruitment tab is probably the best place to begin, but there are lots of places to poke around within WoWProgress. This article digs into some of the things you can do there: https://www.whatswithtech.com/wowprogress-best-wow-rankings-powerhouse/
Answer: Shameless plug, but I built a tool to help with this exact thing. You can search for WoW guilds and join them pretty easily. Browsing around will give you a good idea of who is recruiting and what the guild specializes in. Check it out here:
BattleStandards (http://battlestandards.com)
Other than that, I think the most important thing is playing with someone from the guild and determining if you get along well. If you do, just ask them about their guild. You usually get a pretty honest answer.


Unity3d select empty gameobjects in scene

Question: I have a pathing system that I am creating in Unity. When you add nodes to denote the path, I create a empty GameObject and render it in OnGUI as a square. The problem that I have is clicking on the object in the scene view. I am trying to figure out what would be the best way to click the Node, so that I can move and rotate the Node.
I had some ideas, like:

Creating a Cube or some other GameObject with a mesh, and change the layer to Node. Then make the camera cull out the Node layer.
Only in editor mode, create a temp asset and delete it before runtime.
Do a raycast and see what objects are near the click, then pick the closest one.

I have a feeling that I am putting to much thought into it, and suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!
Answer: It sounds like you want to extend the Unity editor. Looks like you can use the Handles class to create custom handles for your objects too.


Can an employer access Whatsapp messages if you are using their servers?

Question: Does anyone know if an employer can access whatsapp messages if you are using their servers? Whatsapp apparently say the messages are encrypted, but I'm not sure about this.
Comment: Secure against an employer - perhaps. Secure - certainly not. That'd need end-to-end encryption.
Answer: The following research paper describes four attacks on WhatsApp.  I don't know whether they have been fixed.

Guess Who's Texting You? Evaluating the Security of Smartphone Messaging Applications.
Sebastian Schrittwieser, Peter Fruhwirt, Peter Kieseberg, Manuel Leithner, Martin Mulazzani, Markus Huber, Edgar Weippl.  NDSS 2012.

Impersonation attack.
One attack allows an attacker to impersonate someone else.  In particular, if the attacker has a particular phone number in mind (the victim's phone number), the attacker can register himself for that phone number and receive all WhatsApp messages that might have been intended for that phone number.  See Section 5.2 of the paper.
This may be relevant to you.
SMS spam attack.
A second attack allows an attacker to send arbitrary text messages to anyone around the world, for free, from the WhatsApp servers.  See Section 5.4 of the paper.
Phone number enumeration attack.
A third attack allows an attacker to enumerate the phone numbers of other WhatsApp users and identify the operating system they are using.  See Section 5.5 of the paper.
Status message forgery attack.
A fourth attack allows an attacker to change any other WhatsApp user's status message to anything of the attacker's choice.  See Section 5.6 of the paper.
Implications.
None of these directly address the particular question you asked.
However, these vulnerabilities diminish my confidence in the security of WhatsApp.
The vulnerabilities described in the paper are extremely basic and elementary flaws.  We're talking facepalm territory. The flaws include, for instance, a complete lack of access control or authentication; as well as inappropriate trust in the client.  (Basically, OWASP A3, A8, and A9 violations.)
Of course, anyone can make mistakes, but these are such basic mistakes that they make me wonder what other mistakes the WhatsApp developers may have made, and what is wrong with WhatsApp's security review process that these slipped through into deployment.
So, based upon this analysis, I would be reluctant to rely too heavily upon the security of WhatsApp.
Answer: WhatsApp is a fairly popular messaging system according to the media:

WhatsApp handles ten billion messages per day as of August 2012
Financial Times: WhatsApp "has done to SMS on mobile
phones what Skype did to international calling on landlines.

It supports encryption and although having a number of security incidents, I would expect the security to be high and incidents similar to those above to be transient and managed by the company.
There is one special case when your messages might be at risk. That is if your phone or computer on which you are using WhatsApp is being administered by your employer. So if you have a smartphone provided by your employer, then your messages might be intercepted.
In conclusion, I think Whatsapp's message privacy is trustworthy. You should worry more about the security of your phone. Android smartphone are particularly not kept up-to-date with patches.
Comment: Thanks Christian does the encryption apply to photos too or just text?
Comment: The content of the message (text, photos, other media) is passed through an encrypted channel.
Answer: This article regards Whatsapp's encryption to be too weak and the company's handling of security issues to be lacking:
http://www.h-online.com/security/news/item/Account-theft-still-possible-with-latest-WhatsApp-1760639.html
This article says sender authentication is now more robust, but privacy concerns persist:
http://countermeasures.trendmicro.eu/whatsapp-in-violation-of-privacy-law/
Answer: Do the following test on your mobile device and at least you can be sure that your device can't be monitored like that.

go to https://www.google.com
Click on the https lock in the browser

If issued to is Google Internet Authority G2 then https is not penetrated or MITMA(Man In The Middle Attack) employed. If there is another name like your company name, then it's possible they can penetrate the https traffic.


Usage of "will" and "would"

Question: Which one is correct?

What would I do without you.
  What will I do without you.

You would always be my favorite travel buddy.
  You will always be my favorite travel buddy.
Comment: (Probably) related: [When should I use "Would", "Would have", "Will", and "Will have"?](http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/3657/when-should-i-use-would-would-have-will-and-will-have)
Answer: Would is conditional/hypothetical.  Will is a modal verb used to form the indicative future tense.
In both cases, a) and b) are both correct, and carry a different meaning.  When would is used, it expresses a hypothetical situation, so:

What would I do without you?

... asks a question about a hypothetical possibility - that I would be without you.  However:

What will I do without you?

... implies that I will in fact be without you at some time in the future, and asks a question about that factual (rather than imagined) eventuality.
Answer: In theses examples will is a more definite statement about the future while would is more hypothethical.
So in your first example, "What will I do without you?" means you are going and I am wondering what is going to happen next, while  "What would I do without you?" is more speculative.
In your second example "You will always be my favorite travel buddy" is an assertion or prediction.  "You would always be my favorite travel buddy" looks incomplete, and might be followed by something like "if you ever travelled with me".

Usage of "will" and "would"


How to keep track of objectives in X3: Reunion

Question: I recently picked up X3: Reunion and have been enjoying it. However with the lack of a proper tutorial most of my time has been spent figuring things out. I know the game is rather huge and allows you to go off on your own so one thing I'm afraid of is losing track of plot objectives. I know I usually get a message telling me where to go but it seems like I'm getting lots of messages in the beginning and I'm worried about losing it if I go off on my own or take a long break between gaming sessions. Is there a menu or something that keeps track of current mission objectives? I didn't see one during my beginning missions.
Answer: After a long time with no answers and being unable to find one myself (and mostly having not played the game a ton) I'd have to say there is no in game way of doing it. I have heard important plot npc characters will send you a message or something if you don't do anything with the plot in awhile but can't really confirm that.
Answer: Unfortunately, there isn't a dedicated mission log. As you mentioned, mission messages will be saved to your general message log. Not entirely ideal as it gets cluttered fast.
Another game-y method would be to hail somebody - either someone on a station, or a random passing ship. You will get an option : "How do I get to X?"
X will be where you'll need to head next in your mission.


Storing cut button mushrooms vs whole button mushrooms

Question: Do cut buttons mushrooms have a tendency to spoil more quickly than whole button mushrooms?
Also, what are signs that a button mushroom has gone bad ?
Just curious about this.
Answer: Anything will spoil more quickly if cut than if whole. It's all a matter of surface area.
The bacteria/fungi/mold/whatever can only attack the surface that is open to the air. When you cut the mushrooms, you open more surface up to attack, and hence they will be affected  more quickly. This is equally true for dehydration and loss of flavour (by evaporation), which are also linked to surface area.
With regards to spoiled mushrooms, a quick sinff will usually give away any dodgy mushrooms. They tend to stink like nobody's business when they've gone south. If they look right and smell right, they're most probably fine.
Answer: In my experience, yes, though you'll probably find dehydration to impact the mushroom quality of sliced mushrooms faster than decomposition sets in, especially if you store in paper packaging. Mushrooms seem to spoil more quickly in plastic (but they're less likely to dehydrate in plastic wrap).
Usually, a sort of fishy smell is a sign that mushrooms of any sort are past their prime.  Certainly visible mold can form as well. Mushrooms that merely dry out aren't actually spoiled, however, and they can be used if you add water and cook them.


plane crash sound effect, how to record a powerful crash?

Question: Hi All
I'm recording SFX for an independent film. One of those is a plane crashing into the ground. It has to be a powerful crash. I've used many props for this (the jet engines are a fan pitch-shifted down and time stretched a bit) but the impact sounds tend to loose all thir power after I pitch-shift down. I'll do some more recordings asap but to be honest I'm at a loss....what props can I use for something as massive as a plane crash? Or maybe there is a way to fix the loss of power problem I'm experiencing when pitch-shifting smaller crash and impact sounds?
Answer: Seconded on the details selling it. I had to design a bunch of train car impacts a while back and ran into similar problems with getting things to sound massive. Don't think that your pitch-shifted layers will make the entire sound - they can provide some low body, but all that high tinkly, full-res stuff is also really important.
My quick tips in addition to what's been said here:
1) Picture what's actually happening to the plane in slow motion and map it out if it will help you structure your crash. Like, maybe first there's the plane hitting water, so you need a large splash. Then there's the metal of the plane crumpling - deep metal stresses and groans, maybe some high creaks or write tensiony snaps. Glass breaks. A fuel tank explodes. Bubbles rush up as some stuff starts to sink down, etc.
2) Don't be afraid to use some distortion. Hearing a real impact like that close up would probably deafen you instantly, so go big.
3) Jump from as quiet as you possibly can to as loud as you possibly can as quickly as you possibly can. There's no better way to make something sound loud than using all the dynamic range you have and making it as transient as possible. Once that initial 'hit' is done, you can bring up a bunch of squashed/limited layers, but I wouldn't bother compressing the initial hit at all. Maybe have the first part of the impact be the bass so that people's ears get a chance to warm up a tiny bit before the real nasty hits come in though.
4) Kinda goes without saying, but try to hit the full frequency spectrum - sub basses, low groans, low mid explosions, mid creaks and tears, mid high creepy dry ice-y sort of metal sounds, high glass. That'll give you even more perceived loudness and make sure that no matter what else is going on in the mix (e.g. music), there are the necessary layers available to the mixer to make your hit sound as big as possible at that moment.
Impacts that long are kinda like doing a mini mix session - you will want to be constantly taking your audience's ears from one detail to another in very short amounts of time. So choose your details and make sure to give them space to speak, one by one.
Post up when you're done! Would love to hear it.
Answer: From my observations (since I've haven't had the opportunity to design a plane crash yet), a plane crash or other large scale impact is designed with a ton of carefully layered sounds/events. I've always liked this one. Which is less about the impact and more about the aftermath. Really nice use of metal, water in this sequence to elevate the danger.
Real world props.
I'd suggest finding a large metal dumpster or shipping container to start. They can sound huge if recorded in the right way.
It's not always necessary to pitch elements down to sound big if you record them with some proximity effect. Or the opposite, use acoustics to your advantage and record with some distance to capture some nice big reverb/slap. Contact mics are also your friend, especially with metal. And don't forget about the subwoofer, a key tool in designing these large scale events. A little 60kHz rumble can go a long way in selling size.
Have you looked at library recordings of trains (rumble, wheel screeches), or car crashes? Building demolition? Those could make for nice material as well.
Good luck.
Comment: Contact mics are an aweeeeeesome suggestion. You can get so much nice rich mid and low frequency content without any noise or reflections. And since you will be burying them under other layers..
Comment: man, watching that castaway crash just gave me the shivers.
Answer: Dont forget to add debris sounds. They'll help a lot with enphasizing the scale of the impact. Rock/mud/dirt/trees/bricks etc. Maybe some heavy creaking sounds of metal and wood. Perhaps some screechy dry ice type sounds at the point of impact might work?
Use plenty of layers :)
Answer: I got some explosion sounds while playing with bass and reverb the distortion makes it seem more powerful I think, you can download it if you like. I don't know how the scene plays out exactly but you could also try slowly pitching up the engine sounds as it descends to add more tension and and lower other sounds with it prior to the explosion to make it seem more powerful (like this LoTR example), Greg Russell also mentions a good point (skip to 16:35) when mixing to make an impact seem more powerful.
Comment: I agree that the dynamic range is very important, thank you for the link. It's not exectly an explosion I am looking for but thank you for the sound as well.
Comment: Debris, yeah. I'll add a lot of earth, metal and screech (I've got a train screech recording that sounds like metal being thorn-up). Thank you @Andy
Answer: Layer up the impact, distortion as Luca said would sound great as well as a sub bass going under it.
I thought the turbines on the plane would pitch up not down as they are working harder?
contact mics/close mic on big sheets of metal, get the creeks yourself, go to a junk yard, I'm sure they won't mind.
Comment: Yeah, the engines sound has been made of my little desk fan so I had to pitch shift down the whole sound. I layered the un-pitched with the pitched and added a pitched-up screetch to meke it sound like the engines are going faster and faster. But the engine sound was not a problem, the crash was a bigger challenge.
Answer: In crashes and such, the impact and explosions are not even close to as important as the immediate aftermath with debris and material stress! You can make the fattest, most bad-ass explosion in the world, and the audience still just think it's a pretty cool sound, but by adding collapsing metal, sprinkles of debris, bursting plastic, chattering glass and all kinds of really unhealthy sounds you sell the shit has really hit the fan in 1000Mph!
In explosions, dynamite is very often a best friend. TNT and such burns with an extremely high speed that tends to be very difficult to do something with (at least what I think right now), but dynamite has a nice and threatening release with nice low-end I've found very useful in many ways. Also, the low-end is vital for the scale, but actually not that threatening. Imho the best way to enhance the shitstorm-effect in an explosion, other than loads of debris, is to use the range around 2KHz, a very physical range for the human ear, and a very careful raise somewhere around the centered bass, with the sub-bass (not to be confused with LFE, though it will mostly come from there) as just an enhancer.
I'm not a big fan of hammock shaped EQ'ing, especially not in explosions and impacts...


Why does twisting quasi-Hopf algebras work (as in majid's article)

Question: I can't understand this sentence i the article of Majid "Tannaka-Krein theorem for quasi-Hopf algebras and other results" about the reconstruction of a quasi-algebra (in fact its dual) from a given braided category (C,c) with a forgetful functor F ; at the end it considers the action of Drinfeld-twisting upon quasi-algebra and says:
if A (quasi-algebra) corresponds to (C,F,c) then A_twisted corresponds to (C,F,c') for a new choice of braiding c'.
i am very disturbed: the associativity constraint is modified too obviously; sorry for my very naive question.
Comment: You're going to have to give more context if you want an answer. It's not fair to require us to locate this paper and read through it to find your question.  Is there a link to the paper online?  What page?  If not could you excerpt the relevant statement?
Comment: Why don't you email him?
Comment: The article, incidentally, is in the collection "Deformation Theory and Quantum Groups with Applications to Mathematical Physics", Contemp. Math. 134, 1991.  I'm not sure which particular sentence OP is confused by.
Answer: You might find these notes helpful as a second source to read fro:
http://www-math.mit.edu/~etingof/tenscat1.pdf
There is a careful elaboration of the various variants of Tannaka-Krein construction, and the case of quasi-bialgebras and quasi-Hopf algebras is discussed.  So far as I recall, Drinfeld twisting of a quasi bi-algebra just means acting on the original category by a tensor functor which is the identity on objects (and so is only interesting as a tensor functor).
As such, it does have a fairly straightforward effect on the associator $\phi$.  If you twist by an invertible element $F\in H\otimes H$, then the associator $\phi^F$ is something like $\phi^F:=B\phi B^{-1}$, where $B:=F(\Delta\otimes\operatorname{id})(F)$, or maybe $F(\operatorname{id}\otimes\Delta)(F)$, I can't remember.
It might help you to note that nothing in your question relies on the braiding; there is a reconstruction theorem for any (quasi)bi-algebra with a fiber functor, and since you're asking about the associator, it isn't too important that there's a braiding lying around.
What leads you to expect some more complicated effect on the associator?
Answer: You probably know all that I'm going to say, but I'll mention it anyway, for any other interlocutors:
I'm going to adopt Stasheff's recommendation ("Drinfel$'$d's quasi-Hopf algebras and beyond", same volume) that "Drinfel$'$d-twisting" be called "skrooching" (a transliteration and abbreviation of the Russian, which is roughly four syllables.).  Also, I'm going to talk about associative algebras and quasicoassociative coalgebras, not the other way around, even though the reconstruction theorem lands in "co" territory: if you really want to do Majid's theorem, you have to think about the convolution multiplication.
Anyway, then the basic Drinfel$'$d idea is that you start with something that I think should be called a "weak bialgebra": an associative unital algebra $A$ and an algebra homomorphism $\Delta : A \to A\otimes A$.  This gives a functor $\otimes: A\text{-rep} \times A\text{-rep} \to A\text{-rep}$, which forgets to the usual $\otimes$ on vector spaces.
A quasicoassociative bialgebra is a weak bialgebra along with a distinguished invertible element $\psi \in A^{\otimes 3}$ so that $(\text{id} \otimes \Delta)\circ \Delta = \text{Ad}_\psi \circ (\Delta \otimes \text{id})\circ \Delta$, where $\text{Ad}_\psi$ is the inner automorphism of $A^{\otimes 3}$ by conjugating by $\psi$ — then acting by $\psi$ gives a natural $A\text{-rep}$ isomorphism $(X\otimes Y)\otimes Z \to X \otimes (Y\otimes Z)$ — and there's a pentagon for $\psi$ that matches Mac Lane's pentagon.
Given any invertible element $\varphi \in A^{\otimes 2}$, you can skrooch the weak bialgebra $(A,\Delta)$ by $\varphi$ to get a new weak bialgebra $(A,\Delta^\varphi)$, which is the same algebra and $\Delta^{\varphi} = \text{Ad}_\varphi\circ \Delta$.  If $(A,\Delta,\psi)$ is quasicoassociative, then $(A,\Delta^\varphi,\psi^\varphi)$ is, with:
$$ \psi^\varphi = \text{Ad}_\phi \psi \quad \text{where} \quad \phi = (\varphi\otimes 1) \cdot (\Delta \otimes \text{id})(\varphi) \in A^{\otimes 3}$$
and $\cdot$ is the multiplication in $A^{\otimes 3}$.  You can translate this pretty straightforwardly into the representation theory.
The easier observation is quasitriangularity.  A weak bialgebra $(A,\Delta)$ is quasitriangular if it comes equipped with a skrooch $\rho \in A^{\otimes 2}$ such that $\Delta^\rho = \Delta^{\rm op}$.  A (quasi)coassociative bialgebra is quasitriangular if additionally $\rho$ satisfies two hexagons.  If you skrooch a quasitriangular bialgebra $(A,\Delta,\rho)$ by $\varphi$, then you get a new quasitriangular bialgebra $(A,\Delta^\varphi,\rho^\varphi)$, where $\rho^\varphi = \varphi^{\rm op}\rho\varphi^{-1}$ (multiplication in $A^{\otimes 2}$; $\varphi^{\rm op}$ is the obvious element with the two $A$s in $A^{\otimes 2}$ flipped).`


BIG O - Algorithm Case Analysis

Question: Why is big O most commonly associated with worst and average case complexties of a function
Comment: Because that's the definition of it?
Comment: @user23871: Did you mean as opposed to other notations? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_O_notation#Related_asymptotic_notations
Comment: As opposed to what?
Comment: O(1), O(N), O(N^2), O(N!), O(log N) ?
Comment: as opposed to best worst case analysis
Comment: Because that's what most people are interested in?
Comment: @Jonas: I wouldn't call O(N!) common--that usually means "Run away, screaming".
Comment: @Loren :) I have to citate a user on Stack i readed onced. "O(n!) means you fail at programming and should perhaps try your hand at a different career. – BlairHippo"
Answer: In mathematics, Big O is the notation for an asymptotic upper bound. The Big-O function (with the unspecified constants filled in with appropriate values) is always at least as large as the "real" function.
There are also notations for the asymptotic lower bound, and for a tight bound. In the tight bound case, with different selections of constants, the same asymptotic formula is both an upper bound and a lower bound of the "real" function. This is known as being "within a constant factor".
The complete set of asymptotic notations is listed here...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_O_notation#Family_of_Bachmann.E2.80.93Landau_notations
The upper bound of a function naturally matches the worst-case memory or time requirements, whereas the lower bound of the worst-case performance function tends to give lots of better-than-worst-case results (it's a kind of best-cases-of-the-worst-cases mismatch). Similarly, the lower bound naturally matches the best-case memory or time requirements, though for algorithms we're less often interested in that.
Some algorithms text books (notably Cormen et al.) use tight bounds a lot.
It turns out that the lower bound of the worst case can be useful, though. I asked this question recently...
Why would I care about the asymptotic growth of the lower bound of the worst case time/space?
Answer: Because that is exactly what it is designed to find out.
Answer:
In mathematics, computer science, and
  related fields, big-O notation
  describes the limiting behavior of a
  function when the argument tends
  towards a particular value or
  infinity, usually in terms of simpler
  functions.

That is the name they gave the process of finding that value. You can read more about it on the wiki
Answer: Mostly because worst case and average case are the ones most people care about -- what can I really expect, and what's the worst that could happen?
The best case does have some real uses though -- for example, I've seen people waste a lot of time trying to find significantly better algorithms in cases that if they'd spent 10 minutes thinking about the best case, they'd have realized that what they had was already (at least from an asymptotic complexity perspective) as good as they could hope for.
Answer: Because it is much much much more common to care about the worst case than the best case.
Generally, when you're thinking about the complexity of your algorithm, you're not in a situation where you can make too many assumptions about the input. Therefore, you will have to consider the average case (to estimate performance over large numbers of runs with arbitrary input) or the worst case (to estimate just how long it might take to process arbitrary input). Best case? It's rare to care that your program might run really quickly if you're lucky.
Of course, one can imagine different situations. For example, the best case for the infamous Bubblesort is O(N) if the list was already sorted. If you have a list which you know will be almost sorted (e.g., a previously sorted list that has had some small changes made to some elements), you can be confident that Bubblesorting it will be close to best case performance. But you would never use a Bubblesort for a general sort that was going to take an arbitrary number of arbitrarily shuffled elements.

BIG O - Algorithm Case Analysis


Best Resources on Getting Started?

Question: I have several food allergies and a big one is malt. Because I thirst for a good beer once in a while and the difficulty of finding beer I can drink, I am entertaining the idea of brewing my own beer. What are some of the best online resources and/or books on getting started?
Answer: This site, for one. As you learn more, you'll have more questions. Be sure to ask us.
The term you're going to want to search for is gluten free or sorghum. Those are the ingredients I'm guessing you're looking for.
HomebrewTalk.com is a great resource for all things brewing.
Brew Your Own magazine has some articles about gluten free brewing.
Bard's Tale Brewing makes gluten free beer. They can be a good resource as well.
And of course, your local homebrew shop, depending on where you are, should have some excellent resources both in paper and brain form.
I did a little research on this on my own, and it was hard to find very much out there. Please share what you find!
Answer: There are a vast array of gluten free beers you can make with alternative fermentable resources, like quinoa, buckwheat, sorghum, rice and maize.  This sounds like a really fun project.  I recommend looking into African opaque beers.  Nigeria had a restriction on the importation of barley in 1986 and many brewers were forced to utilise sorghum.  There might be some good recipe suggestions from that debacle, and I know opaque beer remains popular in South Africa.  If you are thirsty now or want something to sip on while making your homebrew I can recommend RedBridge.  It is a sorghum beer brewed by Anheuser-Busch.  Have fun and best of luck!

Best Resources on Getting Started?


What is a good open source issue tracking system for non-developers?

Question: I've used TRAC for tracking bugs/issues for software development but it seems a bit complex for a typical desktop user. Is there anything better (open source) that would be simpler to use (than TRAC), aimed more at end users(not developers), and perhaps walk them through common scenarios?
Comment: This one was first, but in case the other won 'wins' in terms of good asnwers, this is a duplicate of: http://serverfault.com/questions/947/whats-a-good-open-source-or-free-ticket-tracking-system
Answer: Wikipedia has a Comparison of issue tracking systems
Answer: At my current work we use Redmine. I don't know if that counts as "simpler", but it works well for us.
Answer: Non Software:
I At a previous place of work that we use to work at, we used OTRS (http://otrs.org/)  It is for a non-development environment (doesn't have fixed in build, found in build etc..).  We set it up to authenticate against our windows AD.
What I like about OTRS is that it can integrate into Email AND Web.  So users can email in a problem, it will open a ticket, and then you can log into a web interface and answer them back to their email.  If the user wants to use a web interface 1/2 way through, they can... and everything that they emailed back and forth is stored as notes.  Its all seamless to you and the user.
You can also have 'canned-responses' so you can email a user or put a note in a ticket without typing everything again.
OTRS also has a FAQ section, where you can put a 'how-to' section.  It also can reg-ex certain words and put them automatically into different queues.
Software:
for Software bug tracking, (the place that I am now) we use Mantis BT.  I would say its very easy to use and setup, we authenticate against an openldap server.
Answer: BugZilla seems to be a popular choice.
Answer: An alternative to Bugzilla/Redmine is Mantis Bug Tracker.
If yours developers are using Eclipse, you should take care of a good integration with Mylin, a wonderful eclipse plugin to access to yours bugs directly from Eclipse and also link source code to them.
I know that Bugzilla and Jira (very good but not open source) are currently supported.
Comment: I'm targeting end users, not developers. I've edited my question to clarify that, thanks.
Answer: Roundup is pretty good, and easily hackable with a bit of python knowledge.
Answer: check out JIRA, really good for help desk as well
Comment: I'd recommend this too. I believe they have free personal licenses as well for 5 users.
Comment: We use Jira and it is fantastic for development projects.However I belive systems like RT are better suited to sysadmins.Still , Jira can be used for longer projects
Answer: I'm currently using a product from a company that rhymes with "Bog Peak" at work for issue tracking. I like it. But not open source, so it doesn't answer your question.
I don't have anything to recommend from personal experience, but I can speak out against two earlier suggestions: Bugzilla is a nightmare for non-technical users, and Mantis is a steaming pile of usability fails. Not a fan of either at all.
I've heard good things about Trac and Lighthouse. (Although Lighthouse doesn't really qualify as open source, it does provide free options.)
Answer: If you haven't given up on the Trac approach, you might want to look at http://trac-hacks.org/wiki/SimpleTicketPlugin to hide some of the existing fields.  Note also that if you remove all options from many of those fields, they'll vanish from the UI.
Also, with Trac 0.11, we have configurable workflows.  While most often used to add more states to a ticket's path from "new" to "closed", you can reduce the workflow to the point that those are the only two states.
Answer: One of the issues with most trackers is that they drive clients away on first sight. I highly recommend Snowy Evening, because it's just as powerful as these others but is also extremely easy to use for my clients:
http://snowy-evening.com


How do you enable connect to outlook on external list?

Question: I am very new to sharepoint, its about day 3 of working with it, and I am having a problem getting Connect to outlook working on external lists. The menu item is greyed out.
In my external contact type for the list in question I have Offline sync enabled, and office item type set to Contact. The data source is a sql 2005 server, and i have mapped the various columns from the table to appropriate outlook types.
I have created a new contact list (non BCS), and this shows Connect to outlook in the List tools->list menu, and it works correctly.
Is there something im missing?
======================
Further info:
I used sharepoint designer to add an external content type, selected SQL, then clicked on the appropriate table, right clicked, did generate all operations.
Offline sync is left enabled, and i configure no filters on my content type.
All the columns in the table in question are string or int, and all but the index are mapped to appropriate values in the outlook contact.
When that was done, i used the shortcut icon in the external content type to generate a list. I also tried adding the list manually.
After doing this i went to the administration page, and added permissions to BCS for all users so that the page would load. I appear to have to do this every time, as sharepoint designer resets the values.
I have tried to add the list manually via the website, and by creating the external list by hand in sharepoint designer and both produce the same result.
The lists in all cases show the correct data, and editing/creating records is working correctly.
Answer: Have you enabled the site feature: Offline Synchronization for External Lists?
Comment: Yes you are correct.
Answer: You will need to set up the External Content Type to the correct Office Item Type, by default it is generic list but there are other options available.

Appointment
Contact
Task
Post

There is a good blog here: http://www.chakkaradeep.com/post/SharePoint-2010-Business-Connectivity-Services-Walkthrough.aspx
If you are using a third party tool to create your ECT in Visual Studio (such as BCS Meta Man, from the company I work for) there is guidance here too:
http://www.lightningtools.com/blog/archive/2010/06/17/mapping-the-office-item-type-for-external-content-types-in.aspx
Regards
Phil
Answer: The Outlook sync is supported in all versions of SharePoint 2010, ie also in SharePoint Foundation.
Can you elaborate on how you created and configured the External Content Type and External List ?
Comment: Hi, I am not at my dev pc at the moment, so i apologise if this lacks sufficient detail. I have updated the original message as im over my char count in here.


When Do You Stop Working Out?

Question: I've always stopped when my muscles are moderately sore, but I've seen some people on this site say that soreness is not an accurate gauge of how good of a work out you got. How do I tell when my body's had enough?
Answer: I think the standard approach to training is to have a set of goals (better health, better in a specific sport, recovery from some injury, etc.) that you've set and you gear a training program/schedule to accomplish that.  The schedule is developed to guide you to your goal in a given time without causing additional injuries. For some people the schedule/workout takes you beyond the point of soreness and for others it's prior to reaching that point. The schedule/plan could be time based (x minutes on a bike) or effort based (x sets/reps).
So, you should stop when your set plan dictates. In other words, don't go into an exercise program with an open ended 'work till I drop' type of plan because it will most likely result in injury and a very short term engagement.
If during a well planned schedule you feel ill, out of sorts, weak, etc. - much different from prior exercise sessions - you should also stop.
Answer: The problem with stopping when you're sore is you don't always know until it's too late. Many times I've engaged in full contact sparing sessions where one or both of us ends up with blood all over our uniform. Usually, we have to examine each other just to find out whose blood it is. Obviously, if we had felt anything we would have stopped earlier. I'm sure it's the same with many activities: lifting weights, riding a bike, swimming, ect. You're probably on a adrenaline high and have exercise induced endorphins clouding your senses.
The way you know when to stop exercising is simple: you've finished your planned work out for the day. If you weight lifting you should choose the exercises and choose the weights and rep you're going to do even before stepping foot in the gym. If you're running, biking, or swimming then you should choose a distance. If you're working with a coach he will know if you're going to hard or fast, trust his judgement. Stick to a plan, it'll keep you from working too hard and from injuring yourself by trying something foolish. If you end up getting sore then adjust your plan for the next exercise session.
The obvious exception to my statement above is if you feel pain during the exercise. In that case you should always stop immediately. Check your form, check your pace, and check your weight. Make sure everything is fine and the pain hast left before starting again.

When Do You Stop Working Out?