I lost my TV remote, so I can’t watch anything. Not TV, not streaming, not DVDs. Smart TVs are really very stupid. I do have another, smaller TV, but I would have to move it out of the bedroom and hook it up to something. It’s older, so it’s not as smart, but it might work. I can also stream on my laptop, but the screen isn’t very large.
Many smart TVs have a mobile app that acts as a remote.
I can empathize with sleeping problems. Insomnia hits out of the blue without rhyme or reason.
I have also had to resort to just staying in bed being still or perhaps reading. I really should get myself connected to audiobooks. Just haven’t had the energy to configure things.
I haven’t had much energy at all this week. Exhausted and full of anhedonia.
This is a pet peeve of mine–the fact that some modern TVs lack any buttons on them and rely completely on the remote.
Gmail’s obsession with security pisses me off. I guess it must have been a while since I logged in to my primary Gmail account, probably causing cookies to expire, because when I tried to log in on my everyday computer on which I log in all the time, it went into super protective mode, as if I’d tried to attack it in a dark alley. It acted like it had never seen me before, and both of my mobile devices – my phone and my tablet – started beeping with Red Alerts, insisting that I verify that “it’s really me”. Actually it may just have been my phone, my tablet may have started howling with a Red Alert when I tried logging in to a different Gmail account. Then more beeping and howling as I started getting “new login” notification emails on my designated backup email account.
WTF, Google? This is a humble personal email account, it’s not the CIA, and it contains no national security secrets. Google already fucked with me once before when Gmail stopped accepting passwords as a login method, because by golly, it’s not secure enough! You must either login via the Oauth 2 third-party authorization method, or else set up a device-specific “app password”.
And I suspect they may eventually discontinue the app password, too, “for my convenience”. Again, WTF, Google? They also seem to be deprecating POP3 in favour of IMAP. I’d like to round up Larry Page and Sergei Brin and inscribe on their foreheads, with indelible magic marker, the time-old adage “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. They won’t be able to see their own foreheads but presumably will be able to see each other and thus be reminded of an important guiding principle of technology that kids these days have either forgotten or never learned.
We still haven’t found our cable box remote thingy, but the Google TV app on our phone does successfully control it. It’s a bit clunky to use, but better than nothing and we’re too lazy to order a replacement, though we probably eventually will.
At least I can catch some hockey games now!
When the patio door was open, Buddy insisted on being lap velcro. Once I closed it (and DH went to take a nap), he started getting very vocal about wanting OUT.
I have had similar experiences and it has become surreal at times. I enjoyed your description comparing it to a dark alley attack lol. That’s exactly what it feels like.
At work I now have to set up some kind of new 2 factor ID just to get on my work station. I’ve been dragging my feet on that one but will probably have to do it this week.
My cell phone has become more and more bizarre in addition to all the security malarkey.
I recently flew to Europe from the east coast and got an announcement welcoming me to Canada and that I could use my Verizon phone to make calls and use data.
LOL - no I can’t. I am likely somewhere above 35,000 feet in the air and not purchasing Delta wifi.
That never happened to me before. It was just odd.
I was pleasantly surprised at how easy this was to do at my grandchildren’s’ house, where, as you all can no doubt imagine, remotes often go walkabout for days at a time. I downloaded (for free) remote control apps for both of the tvs and now I can turn tvs off and make program selections whether the 7 and 3 year olds want me to or not and whether or not they have absconded with the real remotes. Yes, it is a little slower, pokier, clunkier, but works just fine on both the Vizio and Samsung devices. One app for each brand of device.
I looked for an app, but I couldn’t find one for my TV. There are universal remote apps, but none that you can even try out for free. I have a universal remote that I can’t get to work with my TV, so I don’t even know if any universal remote will work with it. This is what I get for buying a cheap TV. 
It’s not a good thing. I knew this was going to happen some day.
What make & model is your TV ?
I don’t want to listen to other people’s music when I’m in public.
I REALLY don’t want to listen to other people’s music when I’m at home, inside, with doors and windows closed.
I’d also like to be in my yard without smelling cigarettes or marijuana.
I am happy that other people can enjoy the sounds and recreational substances they like, but why can’t they do it without forcing them on me?
I heartily endorse this minirant. If you can’t have the peaceful enjoyment of your own living room, that really sucks.
Our former apartment manager had a rule: “If your neighbors can hear your music or TV in their apartment, it’s too loud”. The second part of the policy was to bring all complaints to her and she would remind the person of the rule. Worked great, no inter-tenant conflict.
The new manager’s policy is tenants have to deal with noise issues on their own first. She’ll only get involved if the problem escalates. It goes without saying I much prefer the old policy.
Late last night I happened to notice that one of my digital subscriptions was soon going to run out, so I logged in to renew it. I mean, what could possibly go wrong?
Man, what a nightmare, and the fault was either my cell phone provider, which I normally have no problem with whatsoever, or the goddam bank that issued the credit card, which I have problems with all the time. When I entered the credit card number for the renewal, I got a message saying that I had to enter a security code that was just sent to my mobile phone. I sat there looking at the phone, and … nothing.
I tried it again, and still nothing.
I called the CC support line, and they tried sending an SMS message to my phone. Nothing. They tried multiple times. Nothing.
Then all of a sudden a torrent of messages arrives on my phone. All the backlogged stuff, now mostly useless. In the mess of all those messages, I read them back the wrong security codes, resulting in my card now becoming “restricted”. Apparently it can still make purchases, but in order to access customer support again, I have to go to a bank branch and present “two pieces of ID” in order to prove that I’ve rehabilitated myself.
Man, I hate “security”. The world would be such a happier place if everyone was honest instead of being infested with thieving assholes.
And if they don’t, there are numerous third party remotes available.
To which end I’ll pit Logitech for discontinuing their very functional, moderately-priced remotes. We have two, one of which is held together by tape because it’s seen such heavy use, and I want to get a spare, but…
And my own new rant: the upcoming movie Here. Hanks / Wright, apparently designed to be a very very very very sweet life story focused around a house. And apparently the only thing worth advertising on streaming TV. I feel my A1C going up a point with every commercial break.
The human brain can be utterly stoopid at times.
Me, I’m fighting a cold right now, after norovirus early in the week. My body ha decided I can sleep every other night (and not well). I feel your pain.
Spoke too soon: I heard my son hurling yesterday morning (it was a no-sleep night for me). He is feeling back to normal today. My husband has NOT yet developed it, which is quite a surprise given that we share a bathroom. He’s caught my cold though.
I have a sinus infection. I couldn’t sleep Thursday night because of throbbing pain in my teeth. I went to the minor med on Friday and got some antibiotics and a steroid shot. Yesterday I had just a little pain but today it has kicked into high gear. My teeth hurt so bad. Tylenol dulls it for about an hour after I take it and then it starts back up. I’ve tried a heat compress on my face but that didn’t help at all. I can’t take any more Tylenol for 5 more hours. I just want it to stop.
I’m sorry, sinus pain is so miserable.
Yeah, fuck Logitech. They bought the Slim devices in 2006, acquiring the Squeezebox music streaming devices. They then went on to produce some fantastic hardware, but then suddenly pulled the plug on the product in 2012. To their credit, they did maintain the servers to support the devices until 2024. In my opinion the Squeezebox was better than Sonos, and they missed the boat by not competing in that market.
I know they discontinued the remotes, but are they still supporting the products?
I can’t speak for @Mama_Zappa, but I have a Harmony remote and Logitech says it will continue support until no one uses the product anymore. Unfortunately, the Sony TV we have doesn’t work well with the Harmony. I can still use it for the DVR, but I can’t get it to turn on the TV or work with streaming services even though Sony claims it will. And for reasons I can’t fathom, it no longer works with our sound bar, either, though it did perfectly well with our previous TV. So it may be lack of support from other manufacturers that do it in.