try this next time you make coffee.

- make sure the equipment is clean; Just rinsing it out isn't enough, everything needs to be washed.
- grind the beans yourself, or buy fresh grounds. Coffee grounds go stale in just a few days.
- use lots of coffee. 2 tablespoons per cup.
- use good tasting water. If you don't like the taste of the water before it becomes coffee, you probably won't like it post brewing.

I cannot agree more.

A lone IT guy does not need software to keep himself on task. A Moleskin, lab notebook, or even a stack of notecards will do the job nicely and won't require training, spin up time, network connectivity, or electricity.

Isn't it more like....

Bob: "Hi, I'm Bob! I work for the Owner. I'd like to hire you to take care of the Owner's house. Here are the keys. These keys are VERY important. Besides the owner, you are the only one allowed to have the keys. This is Helen. She works for you, but isn't allowed to have the keys"

Housesitter: "Cool! sounds like a great job!"

Years later...

Helen: "Give me the keys"

Housesitter: "Do you even work here any more? You haven't shown up for work in months. And why are you going through all the Owners closets?"

Helen: "Help! Police!"

Housesitter: "WTF?"

Police: "You're under arrest! Give Helen the keys."

Housesitter: "I can't. Bob told me that I can only give the keys to the Owner"

Bob: "Give the keys to Helen"

Housesitter: "I can't. You told me that I can only give the keys to the Owner."

The Owner: "Give me the keys"

Housesitter: "Ok, here you go! Can I leave now?"

Police: "Back to jail, Criminal!"

In order for information to be considered exempt from release under the FOIA it must fit into one of the following categories AND there must be a legitimate Government purpose served by withholding it:

1. Information which is currently and properly classified.
2. Information that pertains solely to the internal rules and practices of the agency. (This exemption has two profiles, "high" and "low." The "high" profile permits withholding of a document that, if released, would allow circumvention of an agency rule, policy, or statute, thereby impeding the agency in the conduct of its mission. The "low" profile permits withholding if there is no public interest in the document, and it would be an administrative burden to process the request.)
3. Information specifically exempted by a statute establishing particular criteria for withholding. The language of the statute must clearly state that the information will not be disclosed.
4. Information such as trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a company on a privileged or confidential basis that, if released, would result in competitive harm to the company, impair the government's ability to obtain like information in the future, or protect the government's interest in compliance with program effectiveness.
5. Inter-agency memoranda that are deliberative in nature; this exemption is appropriate for internal documents that are part of the decision making process and contain subjective evaluations, opinions and recommendations.
6. Information the release of which could reasonably be expected to constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of the personal privacy of individuals.
7. Records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes that (a) could reasonably be expected to interfere with law enforcement proceedings; (b) would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or impartial adjudication; (c) could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of the personal privacy of others, (d) disclose the identity of a confidential source, (e) disclose investigative techniques and procedures, or (f) could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of any individual.
8. Certain records of agencies responsible for supervision of financial institutions.
9. Geological and geophysical information concerning wells.

(Excerpted from: http://www.fas.org/irp/doddir/dod/5200-1r/appendix_c.htm)

more like a Commodore 64

I agree with you in principle, but you could have chosen better examples to make your point.

Scrubs and Earl had gone seriously downhill. The first few seasons of each were hilariously funny, but they were in trouble at the end.

Frasier ran for nine years.

Actually, a free market offers no protection in this case. Right now, manufacturers use the DMCA to protect their diagnostic gear, but without its protections they could use any scheme they wanted.

Imagine instead each diagnostic code encrypted via a one time pad that is unique to each car that rolls off the line. Only members of the companies authorized repair network would be able to access it.

If you have 100 users and are using anything more complicated that a telephone and a stack of notecards you are a moron.

If you absolutely MUST have something digital try this: a shared drive and a text editor.

Did you take a shower today? The water probably came from the government, through government pipes.

Did you drive to work? You probably drove on a government road.

Was your country occupied by a foreign army? That's probably because of your government funded Army.

Do you have electricity? It probably came to your house through a wire that was installed on a government mandated easement.

I could give you more examples... a lot more examples, but I think I'd be wasting my time.