My version of MS Office 2016 doesn't give any alert when I open a sample copy of a .odt file, other than the standard yellow bar at the top stating it was downloaded from the web and is opening in read-only mode until I select to switch to editing mode. I can also save any file in .odt using Office 2016.

I can't verify what happens with the newer O365 versions because I refuse to "rent" my software from MS.

ODT is an open standard. If you open the file in a text editor you will see the first two letters are PK (RIP Phil Katz) Microsoft's .docx also starts with PK. Both are compressed zip files that contain the actual document, images, markup, etc. in specified folders, according to the open standards. Try opening either a .odt or .docx using 7zip to see the internal format.

Wow! You know you wouldn't have to ASSUME anything if you would just RTFA!

The actual problem is we, the people, have not yet decided if mass recording and storage of identifiable images should be illegal. The people must decide if they wish to enact laws that prohibit this activity and create laws to prevent it. This means we need to let our local representatives know we want to restrict this mass surveillance and storage of our whereabouts. They write the bills and if enough people support it, it passes and becomes law.

Without a law to prevent it, these companies will attempt to generate income from anything not yet illegal. If we feel strongly enough, we need to create these laws to stop it. Many cities and states are writing laws that prevent capturing information, limit how long the data is saved, or who can query the data. The laws in Boston, Boise, and Barstow will very different depending on the amount of public pushback each location generates.

I remember when you were finally allowed to connect your own phone handsets to your phone line, but you had to contact the phone company and give them the Ringer Equivalence Number (REN) printed on the bottom of the phone. Because the power to ring the bell in the phone came from the phone line, the phone company needed to know if your total REN was above 5 so they could supply more power on your line.

As more phones started using electronic ring sounds instead of mechanical bells, the whole REN reporting disappeared. As homes transitioned to multi-handset cordless phones, the whole line-powered phone was forgotten.

While I would love to grouse about how this is the result of corruption or incompetence, I don't see this problem as surprising. It's like the army fielding a new close combat battle rifle and then complaining about all the ammunition the army is firing.

The modern battlefield is changing. We saw a similar shift in the 1980s when electronics went from tubes to discrete components to integrated circuits and then microprocessors. The war in Ukraine has shown how drones have become integral to the battlefield. Using AI for planning, image analysis, pattern analysis, and tactical analysis is something the military is just getting a handle on. Getting the ground troops familiar with how AI can enhance or reduce their workload is something that is going to take familiarization and experimentation to find what helps, what is noise, and what is hallucinations. It's hard to categorize something as normal or abnormal if you've only used a tool twice.

The thing I find interesting is they still show how to secure and release a seatbelt. When the safety briefings began in 1952, it was not all that common for cars to have seatbelts, so explaining back then how they work made sense. Seatbelts were not federally required equipment in cars until 1968 and more years away from common usage. I didn't start consistently wearing seatbelts until they started checking for them at entry checkpoints in the 1980s.

I can understand the logic in pointing out where the nearest exit is, explaining that floor lights will pulse to show you the route to the nearest exit, how to start oxygen flowing if the masks drop from the overhead panels, but explaining how to secure and release a seatbelt seems like something that is now common knowledge.

There are two quick ways to turn manage Device Installation Settings on Home editions:

Almost all Group Policy settings can be configured by manually changing or adding registry values.

A user that logs into Windows with an organizational account does not have a Microsoft user account. The backup data itself is stored in the enterprise's domain, and the feature does not support cross-tenant migration. Cloud PCs are also not yet supported.

All this "backup" tool does is enumerate the installed programs that came from the Microsoft store so provisioning a new computer or creating a new profile on an existing computer offers the user the option of installing the previous set of listed programs from the Microsoft store. It does not backup program settings or program data. The same process could be accomplished in AD group settings, but not admins configure individual or group provisioning settings.

I see this as a tool for busy AD admins that haven't spent the time to pre-configure deployment settings. It also has absolutely no impact on home users.

Good point. I had seen some interest rates on private loans that were above 15% but I see now that is not common.

I've seen both opinions championed. Jump into a four-year degree using student loans and plan on getting a job capable of paying the debt in a reasonable time frame, or working and stretching a degree to six years with no debt. Both have advantages and the choice heavily depends on the demand for the job your degree supports.

Bullshit. Just because you utter it, doesn't make it true. FUD

The degree is barely worth the paper it is printed on these days.

That depends on what value you place on the degree. Nowadays, a degree is nothing more than an invitation to an interview. It suggests that you have been exposed to the bare minimum information that will be helpful for a particular job. No company views a degree as proof that a candidate can step into a job and be proficient on day one. Every company has particular procedures, policies, and protocols that every new hire will need time to assimilate. A degree suggests you are willing to learn.

As far as student loans, I view them as the newest version of crushing payday loans. Only the most desperate reach for them and get roped into a crushing interest rate trap. There are too many ways to finish a degree without accumulating soul-crushing debt.

Student loans are like buying a house on a credit card. The interest so overwhelms the small amount that is applied to the principle that the payment schedule is designed to take 30 years to pay off. Taking six years with no student debt to complete a four-year degree is so much better financially that I would NEVER recommend anyone take a student loan. There are many options that still result in a degree without accumulating soul-crushing debt.

"unstated ability to get access to systems"

Difficult to guess what he was referring to from the lens of 27 years in the future. Access to data? Access to high performance computers? Access to technical expertise when the Playstation 1 and Gameboy Color were a incomprehensible marvels?

For context, in 1999 most computer users were running Win95/98 and AOL was still sending out free intro CDs. Windows 95 had just included the late-to-market "Internet Explorer 1.0" in the Plus! for Windows 95 pack and wouldn't be included in the main Windows until Win98. Dial-up modems had just standardized on the new 56K .90 protocol and US Robotics still dominated the market. Cell phones were a luxury for affluent professionals with many people still using pagers.

In this context it is hard to guess what "unstated ability to get access to systems" meant to Rep. Curt Weldon. It certainly didn't mean what "access" implies today.

You could use Mark Rober's "Sat Gus" as an example. He built and launched a satellite that takes photos from space with kids selfie images which he emails back for free. He details the design and build in one video, then the launch in a second. While not a military grade communication satellite, he did get everything to space for $5 Million.

I Tried Building My Own Space Satellite
I Spent $5 M So You Can Go To Space For FREE
https://www.spaceselfie.com/

That reminds me of the process at UC Berkeley, using lasers to read and preserve wax-cylinder phonograph recordings. Modern analysis tools can scan, image, and decode earlier technologies.

Project Irene

The FAA is also removing accident investigation reports that show spectrogram images of the Cockpit Voice Recordings. Someone has analyzed the images and recreated the voice recordings, accurately enough that survivor's families could recognize the voices. Newer technologies and computational resources will recover information we didn't know was available.

https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/22...

Let's see. Pick an average city in the middle of the country. Let's say Omaha, NE. The median income there is $70k, which about 55% of Americans all over the US earn or higher.

That means that a $20k vehicle takes about 3.5 months of income to purchase, for a vehicle that can be expected to last 10 or more years.

A $20k electric vehicle would be a great addition for many workers. I hear the Slate truck/SUV has a baseline of $25k. We'll see how popular they become.