# Latest **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=451&state=tracking [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 452 --- ## [Glad to have my PC back](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glad-to-have-my-pc-back/1009127)
**Author:** [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [October 24, 2024, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/glad-to-have-my-pc-back/1009127 "2024-10-24T03:42:32Z")
My desktop was in the shop yesterday, which reminded me of how clumsy and inconvenient viewing the SDMB is on my Android. Increasingly slow and erratic behavior on the computer’s part was getting to be unendurable. I fin… --- ## [Steam sale not working?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steam-sale-not-working/1009126)
**Author:** [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Replies:** 3\ **Last updated:** [October 24, 2024, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/steam-sale-not-working/1009126 "2024-10-24T02:39:31Z")
A few days ago, on recommendation from a friend, I put Valheim on my Steam wish-list. Hm, 20 bucks, not bad, but I’ll wait to see if it goes on sale. Lo and behold, yesterday, I got an email “A game on your wish list i… --- ## [The Poetry of Donald J. Trump -- Special September Campaign Edition](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-poetry-of-donald-j-trump-special-september-campaign-edition/1006857)
**Author:** [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [October 24, 2024, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-poetry-of-donald-j-trump-special-september-campaign-edition/1006857 "2024-10-24T00:49:03Z")
From Trump’s speech at the Economic Club of New York, September 5 2024 Donald Trump was asked about child care. See if you can understand his response. Well, I would do that And we’re sitting down, You know, I was, … --- ## [Kindle Cloud Reader help: enlarge page for book](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kindle-cloud-reader-help-enlarge-page-for-book/1009097)
**Author:** [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kindle-cloud-reader-help-enlarge-page-for-book/1009097 "2024-10-23T22:42:10Z")
I’m reading a book on Kindle (read.amazon.com/\[book path\]) but the pages are displayed full length on my screen (Chromebook laptop/Chrome browser; using Firefox didn’t help), which makes the font hard to read. I’m lookin… --- ## ["Gypsy" style in classical music](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gypsy-style-in-classical-music/1009112)
**Author:** [@Quondam\_Mechanic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quondam_Mechanic)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gypsy-style-in-classical-music/1009112 "2024-10-23T21:40:09Z")
There’s a recognizable style in classical compositions where the title of the piece suggests that it’s supposed to be “Gypsy” style. Is it just a case of composers imitating other composers’ versions in the same style, … --- ## [The 6 greatest British bands of all time](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-6-greatest-british-bands-of-all-time/1007019)
**Author:** [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Replies:** 173\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-6-greatest-british-bands-of-all-time/1007019 "2024-10-23T21:07:10Z")
According to YOU. Genre is open. You can judge by music sales, influence on later music or just the awesomeness of their talent. Whatever you feel qualifies them to be deemed the greatest. But only 6 band and a few word… --- ## [How do you effectively eliminate taxing tips?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-effectively-eliminate-taxing-tips/1005585)
**Author:** [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Replies:** 103\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-effectively-eliminate-taxing-tips/1005585 "2024-10-23T21:01:14Z")
Not sure if this belongs here or in P&E. Both Trump and Harris have proposed eliminating taxes on income from tips. I generally favor increasing minimum wage, and just about anything that will enhance the standard of l… --- ## [Turks and Caicos Islands, luggage and bullets](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turks-and-caicos-islands-luggage-and-bullets/1005246)
**Author:** [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Replies:** 95\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turks-and-caicos-islands-luggage-and-bullets/1005246 "2024-10-23T20:07:19Z")
What is up with this? Why are people flying around with stray ammo in their luggage? How stupid do you have to be? The first person? yeah ok…mistake. It was well reported. Check your suitcase out folks. Is T & C on… --- ## [RIP Fernando Valenzuela](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-fernando-valenzuela/1009082)
**Author:** [@Disinfectus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disinfectus)\ **Replies:** 9\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-fernando-valenzuela/1009082 "2024-10-23T19:32:37Z")
Just announced by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Fernandomania was such a fun and exciting time to be a Los Angeles Dodgers fans, and he helped to grow the fan base exponentially. And in his prime, he was a damn good pitcher,… --- ## [How do people in the public eye deal with the DMV (or your state's equivalent)?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-people-in-the-public-eye-deal-with-the-dmv-or-your-states-equivalent/1009024)
**Author:** [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-people-in-the-public-eye-deal-with-the-dmv-or-your-states-equivalent/1009024 "2024-10-23T19:08:28Z")
Partly inspired by this thread. How would someone who is likely to be instantly recognized and/or swarmed with fans (or haters) deal with having to go to the DMV to renew their driver’s license (assume it absolutely posi… --- ## [Looking for Christmas song title and artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-christmas-song-title-and-artist/521874)
**Author:** [@arjee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/arjee)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-christmas-song-title-and-artist/521874 "2024-10-23T19:01:21Z")
Hello! My kids’ school has been singing Christmas carols every morning in their gymnasium, and they sang one the other day that I loved but had never heard before. Here’s a snippet of the lyrics from the schools’ song … --- ## [Trump, PACs, and legal fees](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-pacs-and-legal-fees/987843)
**Author:** [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Replies:** 49\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-pacs-and-legal-fees/987843 "2024-10-23T18:51:06Z")
New York Times has an article about Trump and his legal fees. Apparently one of his PACs has asked for a refund of $60 million that it paid to one of his other PACs, because Trump is having trouble defending himself fro… --- ## [Travel to Mexico City question](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/travel-to-mexico-city-question/1009070)
**Author:** [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Replies:** 15\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/travel-to-mexico-city-question/1009070 "2024-10-23T18:37:54Z")
I will be going with a friend for a week to Mexico City next week and staying in Condesa over Halloween and Dia de los Muertos. I am not a newbie to international travel having been to multiple places in Europe and Sout… --- ## [Military equipment in parks](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-equipment-in-parks/1008299)
**Author:** [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Replies:** 83\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/military-equipment-in-parks/1008299 "2024-10-23T17:08:16Z")
It’s a relatively common sight (at least here in America). You drive by a public park or memorial and they have a tank or a plane or an artillery piece on display. I’m assuming that all of this military equipment has be… --- ## [Test drive etiquette when selling a used car?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/test-drive-etiquette-when-selling-a-used-car/1008780)
**Author:** [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Replies:** 23\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/test-drive-etiquette-when-selling-a-used-car/1008780 "2024-10-23T15:36:46Z")
It’s been a long time since I sold a used car to a stranger. I tend to keep vehicles for a long time, and my last two used vehicles I sold to a nephew and a friend, respectively. My wife asked me “do we let people take a… --- ## [What will it take to allow Cuba to prosper?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-it-take-to-allow-cuba-to-prosper/980491)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 37\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-will-it-take-to-allow-cuba-to-prosper/980491 "2024-10-23T13:55:32Z")
Is the Castro family lock a given? Who is in the wings that could lead the country out of communism? --- ## [Caffeine in Zero-Sugar Sunkist Orange Soda](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-in-zero-sugar-sunkist-orange-soda/1009069)
**Author:** [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Replies:** 16\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/caffeine-in-zero-sugar-sunkist-orange-soda/1009069 "2024-10-23T13:41:19Z")
How can I find out the caffeine content of Sunkist Zero Sugar Orange soda. The 12 oz can I’m drinking from says it has 19 mg. The box the cans came in says there is none. Online sources report both and also report 57 mg… --- ## [Bad parenting moments](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-parenting-moments/1009005)
**Author:** [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Replies:** 30\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bad-parenting-moments/1009005 "2024-10-23T12:41:16Z")
Back in the day when drive-ins were still a thing, our local was offering a double feature with Milo and Otis being the first movie off the rank. Bundled the four little kids into the station wagon with blankets, pillow… --- ## [What % of extra money would it cost to make all new construction 99% hurricane-proof?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-of-extra-money-would-it-cost-to-make-all-new-construction-99-hurricane-proof/1009065)
**Author:** [@Gozu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gozu)\ **Replies:** 6\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-of-extra-money-would-it-cost-to-make-all-new-construction-99-hurricane-proof/1009065 "2024-10-23T07:53:25Z")
I read this article the other day that inspired this post: How to Build a Hurricane-Proof House | WIRED Humanity was unwilling or unable to do what was needed 30+ years ago to keep the planet cold-ish, and the warmer pl… --- ## [How do I recover files from a damaged portable hard drive?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-recover-files-from-a-damaged-portable-hard-drive/1009047)
**Author:** [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Replies:** 11\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-recover-files-from-a-damaged-portable-hard-drive/1009047 "2024-10-23T06:15:06Z")
I have a portable hard drive I’ve been using for backing up files. It appears to have become damaged. I bought a new portable hard drive and I’ve attempted to transfer the files from the old portable to the new one. Tha… --- ## [Attention Kmart shoppers: The last full-size Kmart in the mainland United States is closing](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-kmart-shoppers-the-last-full-size-kmart-in-the-mainland-united-states-is-closing/1007644)
**Author:** [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Replies:** 94\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-kmart-shoppers-the-last-full-size-kmart-in-the-mainland-united-states-is-closing/1007644 "2024-10-23T03:20:38Z")
i know a certain departed doper is somewhere rejoicing over this but I find this a bit sad …although I remember the last few years of our poor kmart … --- ## [Antenna length for remote control lighting](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/antenna-length-for-remote-control-lighting/1009079)
**Author:** [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/antenna-length-for-remote-control-lighting/1009079 "2024-10-23T02:26:51Z")
My front porch light switch is operated by a Heath Zenith system that has a battery operated motion sensor/transmitter. You can place the sensor anywhere within range and it turns the porch lights on with motion after da… --- ## [Does anyone remember elementary school movie projects with built-in screens?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-remember-elementary-school-movie-projects-with-built-in-screens/1009003)
**Author:** [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Replies:** 10\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-remember-elementary-school-movie-projects-with-built-in-screens/1009003 "2024-10-23T01:49:19Z")
Today I was thinking of 1970s AV equipment. We certainly had free-standing film projectors that projected to screens in front of the room (to screens that pulled down, or mobile screens), but I’m recalling something a b… --- ## [Are AI-generated submissions slowing down the publication process?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-ai-generated-submissions-slowing-down-the-publication-process/1009035)
**Author:** [@themapleleaf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/themapleleaf)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-ai-generated-submissions-slowing-down-the-publication-process/1009035 "2024-10-23T00:50:53Z")
As some of you may recall, last year I completed work on the manuscript of a novel. Since that time, I have submitted it to four publishers in Canada, all of which publish fiction, the first one around early August of la… --- ## [You're Aileen Cannon. What are the downsides of a directed verdict?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-aileen-cannon-what-are-the-downsides-of-a-directed-verdict/985483)
**Author:** [@slicedalone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slicedalone)\ **Replies:** 53\ **Last updated:** [October 23, 2024, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-aileen-cannon-what-are-the-downsides-of-a-directed-verdict/985483 "2024-10-23T00:17:35Z")
I think we’ve lost the thread here on what’s going on in Aileen Cannon’s mind. As I understand it, the judge in this case has the ability to issue a directed verdict of “Not Guilty”, notwithstanding the jury’s decision o… --- ## [The Poetry of Donald J. Trump - Special Summer Edition](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-poetry-of-donald-j-trump-special-summer-edition/1003319)
**Author:** [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Replies:** 28\ **Last updated:** [October 22, 2024, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-poetry-of-donald-j-trump-special-summer-edition/1003319 "2024-10-22T23:39:18Z")
Our nation’s poet has offered us another glimpse of his special genius. This time he has chosen a nature theme. Where there’s so much water, you don’t know what to do with it. You know, it’s called rain. It rains a l… --- ## [Does The Department Of Motor Vehicles Deserve Its Terrible Reputation?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-department-of-motor-vehicles-deserve-its-terrible-reputation/1008977)
**Author:** [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Replies:** 68\ **Last updated:** [October 22, 2024, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-the-department-of-motor-vehicles-deserve-its-terrible-reputation/1008977 "2024-10-22T20:38:38Z")
Disclaimer- I have never had a driver’s license. My only dealings with the DMV involve obtaining, renewing, and changing the address on a state issued non-driver ID. The state was supposed to send me a voter registratio… --- ## [I am scared for Pennsylvania (presidential election)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-scared-for-pennsylvania-presidential-election/1008972)
**Author:** [@Happytree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happytree)\ **Replies:** 29\ **Last updated:** [October 22, 2024, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-scared-for-pennsylvania-presidential-election/1008972 "2024-10-22T19:55:59Z")
I am starting this thread in the pit because it is just me shouting at a wall maybe: I am scared as a pennsylvania voter. Scared of what i see outside my own door everyday. My caddy corner neighbor has a freshly painted… --- ## [Is Venus's surface heated more from above or below?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-venuss-surface-heated-more-from-above-or-below/1009031)
**Author:** [@EdwardFound](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EdwardFound)\ **Replies:** 8\ **Last updated:** [October 22, 2024, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-venuss-surface-heated-more-from-above-or-below/1009031 "2024-10-22T19:38:08Z")
When googling the cause for Venus’s high surface temperature I find only one explanation: solar energy trapped by the greenhouse effect from Venus’s thick, CO2 atmosphere. But the surface of Venus also receives heat fro… --- ## [Why were the Chernobyl control rods tipped with graphite?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-the-chernobyl-control-rods-tipped-with-graphite/1008953)
**Author:** [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [October 22, 2024, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-were-the-chernobyl-control-rods-tipped-with-graphite/1008953 "2024-10-22T17:43:54Z")
A question I have after finishing my annual rewatch of Chernobyl. The simplified reason given for the reactor exploding is that when they SCRAMed the reactor, reactivity went up instead of down because the control rods w… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=450&state=tracking) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md?page=452&state=tracking)