# Factual Questions **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=582 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 583 --- ## [Is there a screen2text app for iPhone ?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-screen2text-app-for-iphone/814870)
**Author:** [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Replies:** 0\ **Last updated:** [May 26, 2018, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-screen2text-app-for-iphone/814870 "2018-05-26T22:04:19Z")
Often I am using an app : homedepot, Amazon, etc. and they make copying text on the screen difficult to impossible. Is there an app that can detect and dump all the text to a simple text file for copying ? Thanks --- ## [Why is CAGR the preferred rate of return?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-cagr-the-preferred-rate-of-return/814739)
**Author:** [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [May 26, 2018, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-cagr-the-preferred-rate-of-return/814739 "2018-05-26T21:29:42Z")
Return on Investment (RoI) is the profit divided by the amount of investment so if I invest $1000 and get $1080 back it is an RoI of 8%. But that does not account for the length of time it took to earn that 8% so a bett… --- ## [Weather striping question.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weather-striping-question/814817)
**Author:** [@dauerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 26, 2018, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weather-striping-question/814817 "2018-05-26T13:01:29Z")
All my exterior doors have weather stripping on the bottom which is wearing out. I believe this is kerf style weather stripping but do not see an easy way to remove and replace it as there are visible fasteners. I am a… --- ## [wesites that hide content if your window is too small any way to disable this feature](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wesites-that-hide-content-if-your-window-is-too-small-any-way-to-disable-this-feature/814813)
**Author:** [@Mr\_Shine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Shine)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [May 26, 2018, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wesites-that-hide-content-if-your-window-is-too-small-any-way-to-disable-this-feature/814813 "2018-05-26T07:53:27Z")
I only use 1 monitor and sometimes multitask so I often have 2 browsers each taking up half a screen. Often websites will completely hide content if the browser window is too small, (youtube comments is an example, but t… --- ## [Dog is "dry retching", what is wrong?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dog-is-dry-retching-what-is-wrong/516217)
**Author:** [@No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_Wikipedia_Cites)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [May 26, 2018, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dog-is-dry-retching-what-is-wrong/516217 "2018-05-26T01:58:33Z")
My 2 year old 20 pound hounddog in the middle of the night started to act like she was throwing up, but the sound is gutteral and rough, like a very loud snore. She kept doing it for about 3 minutes straight, and then st… --- ## [What is meant by "Do not push" on the back of dump trucks?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-meant-by-do-not-push-on-the-back-of-dump-trucks/814811)
**Author:** [@obbn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obbn)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-meant-by-do-not-push-on-the-back-of-dump-trucks/814811 "2018-05-25T23:09:58Z")
Hello Everyone, I was following a dump truck this morning and in big letters on the back it said DO NOT PUSH. Of course I’ve seen this all my life but have never quite understood what they mean. Do they mean don’t tai… --- ## [English-to-Spanish translation: edificio vs instalación?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-to-spanish-translation-edificio-vs-instalacion/814753)
**Author:** [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/english-to-spanish-translation-edificio-vs-instalacion/814753 "2018-05-25T21:53:26Z")
Working on a form to help collect information about damaged facilities. Many of these facilities will be single-building facilities, but some will have separate buildings assembled on a campus (e.g. schools). Sample ques… --- ## [Can You Be Disbarred For Being A Dick?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-be-disbarred-for-being-a-dick/814373)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-be-disbarred-for-being-a-dick/814373 "2018-05-25T20:21:33Z")
I’m not going to name names, mainly because I’m still not sure where I stand on the notion of publicly shaming someone on the internet. Nevertheless, there are stories going around of a guy at some New York store going b… --- ## [Help! Font size changed to unreadably small in the forums, but remains normal size everywhere else](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-font-size-changed-to-unreadably-small-in-the-forums-but-remains-normal-size-everywhere-else/814502)
**Author:** [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-font-size-changed-to-unreadably-small-in-the-forums-but-remains-normal-size-everywhere-else/814502 "2018-05-25T19:29:02Z")
yes, my cat jumped on the keyboard while I was reading this forum. She apparently landed only on the left side of the keyboard,presumably hitting the ctrl key, the alt key and some other keys at the same time. The res… --- ## [Occupational surnames: why is "Taylor" the only one that's spelled "wrong"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/occupational-surnames-why-is-taylor-the-only-one-thats-spelled-wrong/814399)
**Author:** [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Replies:** 80\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/occupational-surnames-why-is-taylor-the-only-one-thats-spelled-wrong/814399 "2018-05-25T16:17:55Z")
I know that the English language wasn’t standardized until relatively recently. But all the other “occupational” names are spelled with the current spelling. Smith, Baker, Carpenter, Barber, Weaver, and so on. But I’ve… --- ## [Discipline in the Royal Navy](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discipline-in-the-royal-navy/814652)
**Author:** [@Potestas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Potestas)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discipline-in-the-royal-navy/814652 "2018-05-25T15:47:18Z")
Is flogging/caning still on the books in the British Royal Navy (even though it might not be in practice?)? When was the last time it used? (If on the books is it prohibited by general orders or still available to comman… --- ## [Are holographic lenses practical?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-holographic-lenses-practical/814744)
**Author:** [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-holographic-lenses-practical/814744 "2018-05-25T15:33:34Z")
I went to get new glasses the other day. My eyes are rather out of balance: one eye needs about -8.5 (its uncorrected focal distance for a sharp image is around 6"), the other eye needs about -17 (is twice as bad). The o… --- ## [Confiscating assets of unconvicted](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confiscating-assets-of-unconvicted/814723)
**Author:** [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/confiscating-assets-of-unconvicted/814723 "2018-05-25T14:43:23Z")
When Jimmy Savile, the British celebrity accused post-death of a catalogue of iniquities, died he left several million to relatives. When all the stories emerged the money was seized and the beneficiaries of the will got… --- ## [tech advances behind "engine stops when car stops"](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-advances-behind-engine-stops-when-car-stops/814397)
**Author:** [@Jim\_Peebles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_Peebles)\ **Replies:** 76\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-advances-behind-engine-stops-when-car-stops/814397 "2018-05-25T10:47:04Z")
Another thread has been discussing cars where the engine stops whenever the car stops, and then the engine starts when you hit the gas. What are the technological advances that make this ok? Or has it always been ok? Did… --- ## [Do we say "check" rather than "bill" because "bill" has negative connotations?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-say-check-rather-than-bill-because-bill-has-negative-connotations/814643)
**Author:** [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Replies:** 50\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-we-say-check-rather-than-bill-because-bill-has-negative-connotations/814643 "2018-05-25T08:14:47Z")
I’m sitting here in a Greek restaurant, after dinner, waiting for my check. But it’s not a check, is it? It doesn’t have jack shit to do with a checkbook, a checking account, or any other commonly accepted use of that te… --- ## [Does booze " go bad " ?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-booze-go-bad/814553)
**Author:** [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Replies:** 35\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-booze-go-bad/814553 "2018-05-25T05:42:31Z")
I have quite a little collection of large size bottles of various alcohol. Booze left over from my wedding and that was 8 years ago. They’ve been sitting in the garage that gets hot in the summer and cold in the winter… --- ## [Who owns dental models?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-dental-models/814674)
**Author:** [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owns-dental-models/814674 "2018-05-25T02:30:27Z")
Someone I know needed a whole bunch of crowns and went to a prosthodontist for an initial consult. He charged him $90 for the consult and also made plaster models for which he charged another $70. Later, he came back wit… --- ## [What’s this scam?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-this-scam/814740)
**Author:** [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Replies:** 4\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-s-this-scam/814740 "2018-05-25T01:20:13Z")
My daughter got an e-mail from “xxx@vzwpix.com,”. Where “xxx” is my wife’s (I.e. her mother’s) phone number. The email contained a link to a file named “text\_0.txt.” Can anyone shed any light on how someone got my wife… --- ## [4-d spacetime](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/4-d-spacetime/814598)
**Author:** [@EastUmpqua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EastUmpqua)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [May 25, 2018, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/4-d-spacetime/814598 "2018-05-25T01:11:47Z")
I don’t understand how spacetime has 4 dimensions. Shouldn’t it have 3? A spatial dimension, a temporal dimension and a mass/energy dimension. --- ## [Largest Hard Drive Available vs. RAID](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-hard-drive-available-vs-raid/814711)
**Author:** [@molten](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/molten)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [May 24, 2018, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/largest-hard-drive-available-vs-raid/814711 "2018-05-24T22:09:18Z")
I have huge files ~4TB a piece for work that I need to handle. What is the largest commercially available hard drive I can get (I am thinking 16TB but the largest I found was 12TB) for under $1000 that will function as a… --- ## [Is there a standard for temperature similar to those for length, mass, etc.?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-standard-for-temperature-similar-to-those-for-length-mass-etc/814585)
**Author:** [@CC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CC)\ **Replies:** 72\ **Last updated:** [May 24, 2018, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-standard-for-temperature-similar-to-those-for-length-mass-etc/814585 "2018-05-24T18:24:18Z")
I believe that the Bureau of weights and measures has an iridium rod that is a standardized length. Maybe also a standardized mass. The Naval observatory has a time of day that everyone can calibrate to. There’s a for… --- ## [Question regarding the building of words in French](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-the-building-of-words-in-french/814677)
**Author:** [@davidmich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidmich)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [May 24, 2018, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-the-building-of-words-in-french/814677 "2018-05-24T17:42:50Z")
Hi I was trying to build the word toy monster or toy(anything). I assumed it was “le petit monstre” or “le jouet monstre” or 'le jouet monster??). I couldn’t find any of these combinations online. I hope someone can he… --- ## [Simple graphical yard management software.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-graphical-yard-management-software/814520)
**Author:** [@Kedikat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kedikat)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [May 24, 2018, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-graphical-yard-management-software/814520 "2018-05-24T14:59:33Z")
I need software that will allow me to input the shape of our industrial yard as a background. Create scaled icons of equipment, crates, etc… Then be able to drag and drop the icons on the yard background. There are giga… --- ## [Vick's No Longer a Nasal Decongestant?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vicks-no-longer-a-nasal-decongestant/814693)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [May 24, 2018, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vicks-no-longer-a-nasal-decongestant/814693 "2018-05-24T11:59:46Z")
I use Vick’s medicated rub for a variety of reasons. Trust me, you don’t even want to know some of them. Anyway, I have an old jar in my medicine cabinet, perhaps from a couple of years ago, and one I just bought. And t… --- ## [VLC Problem](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vlc-problem/814584)
**Author:** [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [May 24, 2018, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/vlc-problem/814584 "2018-05-24T04:52:57Z")
I’m running Firefox 6.0 on a Dell 780, 64 bit, 8Meg RAM. Discs sent by Netflix will play about one third to one half and then freeze up. I’ve tried using Chrome with the same results. I downloaded the 64 bit VLC with the… --- ## [Gruen Veri-Thin 'tank' watch](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gruen-veri-thin-tank-watch/814705)
**Author:** [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 24, 2018, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gruen-veri-thin-tank-watch/814705 "2018-05-24T00:06:34Z")
I have a Gruen Veri-Thin ‘tank’ watch similar (but not identical) to this one. The crystal has a pronounced angle horizontally across the middle, the second hand dial (?) is circular and without the box around it, and i… --- ## [Is Flying REALLY The Safest Way To Travel?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-flying-really-the-safest-way-to-travel/814172)
**Author:** [@golffan1963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/golffan1963)\ **Replies:** 128\ **Last updated:** [May 23, 2018, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-flying-really-the-safest-way-to-travel/814172 "2018-05-23T23:59:51Z")
I hear it all of the time…including reading it just now on another thread: “Statistically, flying is the safest way to travel”… But is it really? I know the stats, but it seems to me the question that is more appropriat… --- ## [The Episcopal Versus the Anglican Church.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-episcopal-versus-the-anglican-church/812179)
**Author:** [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Replies:** 55\ **Last updated:** [May 23, 2018, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-episcopal-versus-the-anglican-church/812179 "2018-05-23T23:32:16Z")
What exactly is the difference and ultimately the relationship between the United States Episcopal and the Anglican church? First a little background. The Anglican church recognizes the British monarch as its head. That… --- ## [How to market Website/Domain Names](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-market-website-domain-names/814683)
**Author:** [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [May 23, 2018, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-market-website-domain-names/814683 "2018-05-23T22:51:58Z")
A friend owns a couple of websites, planned to set up several more, & reserved domain names for them. She has decided to just stay with the two sites, and point the extra names to them, but she also has them available on… --- ## [Is wi-fi the same around the world?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-wi-fi-the-same-around-the-world/814627)
**Author:** [@Rocketeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rocketeer)\ **Replies:** 14\ **Last updated:** [May 23, 2018, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-wi-fi-the-same-around-the-world/814627 "2018-05-23T19:58:12Z")
Mrs R and I are planning a trip to Africa soon. She’s concerned about whether her Samsung phone will connect to wi-fi in the hotels we’ll be staying in. I know that international telephony is a twisted mess of incompat… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=581) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/factual-questions/9.md?page=583)