Author: Ron Walker

Dear WordPress. JUST STOP IT!!

~ Ron Walker ~ 21 Comments

We already know you don’t listen to input. The business model and money drive what was once an enjoyable hobby. The incessant badgering about the new block editor (which isn’t new anymore) is reminiscent of the crazy world of Windows 10 when it was forced on the world. We get it, just throw the damn switch already! I’ve been using it for months now, Why do I have to cancel a “Welcome to the new editor” popup this morning? I am fortunate that I use my desktop mostly, as from what I have gathered, the mobile versions of the new block editor, or should we call it what it is, Web page creator, just stink. Mostly unusable from what I gather on some devices.

Try doing it quietly

And while I’m in this ill mood because many great bloggers I know are talking of walking away to other platforms, let me clue you in on another stupid idea. WordPress security. You mean well, but for the love of all that is holy, stop putting out the alerts expounding on how you found twenty zillion vulnerabilities in this or that plugin, that is used by hundreds of thousands of WP sites. Makes one think perhaps they shouldn’t log into their WP site, let along use or purchase an add-on in your massive plugin/theme store. Try doing it quietly in the background, unless you actually have an ego the size of Jupiter that needs this attention. If half as much effort had been put into the launching of the new editor, as the scary security alarms the Guttenbust editor would have been a wonder to behold.

Here’s a novel thought. Maybe have those teams of highly paid security units, vet the plugins BEFORE they are released, and not scare the bejesus out of the rest of us. It’s getting depressing reading all the security holes in WP add-ons. Actually, you’re starting to convince me, that perhaps I should look elsewhere for a blogging platform.

Okay, thanks for patching them. However, why even mention it.

Moments ago, the Wordfence Threat Intelligence team published details about two vulnerabilities that were discovered and patched in Facebook for WordPress, a plugin installed on over 500,000 sites.

email this morning.

Okay, thanks for patching them. However, why even mention it. It doesn’t instill a lot of confidence knowing they were there in the first place.

Please, stop fidgeting with my defaults. Every time you update something, I have to go on a safari to find simple things that used to just “be there” because I used them before. Like this morning. I wanted a simple “Quote” block. Clicking for a new block gave me..

First. WTH is a Eventbrite Checkout or a cute and cuddly sounding Calendy. I simply wanted to use a quote block that I had used before, and should have been there at my fingertips for convenience. No, I have to wade through business site related options that I will never use. Maybe a rebranding from WordPress to SitePress would be more appropriate at this point.

Please. Just stop trying to help me.

Comments from actual bloggers welcome. Don’t worry, if the way we comment has been changed I’ll wait.

We’re a nation of unreal reality.

~ Ron Walker ~ 22 Comments

Why do people gravitate towards shows, that are designed to dumb them down? When I was a kid, perhaps I was easily duped into believing that wrestling was real. I cheered for my favorite wrestlers. We were too young to accept the fact that it was all a staged affair. That was 57 years ago. I look around and see adults almost my age, racing to the TV on certain nights to watch the various wrestling associations put on their scripted matches. The outcome is predetermined, yet thousands glue themselves to the screen, cheering and screaming for their favorite wrestler.

“Tiger King” / Joe Exotic fiasco

It’s been a long and insidious program, to dumb down the masses through media entertainment. Get them to watch, either through the radical antics or wardrobe, and you seem to have them hooked into watching. Before you know it, they are actually starting to believe in the show. I know many of us don’t watch the unreal reality shows. Which is a good thing, and a credit to our upbringing and education. However, thousands tune (or did) into the “Tiger King” / Joe Exotic fiasco. Sure, he was convicted of trying to hire an FBI agent into killing his rival for $3,000. But what type of network should even glorify an idiot like that. I refer you back to the current state of adults in our nation. He dressed like he was ready to attend some parade in New Orleans and talked funny. Maybe that was the draw to the more simple-minded.

Ahoy there!

Someone correct me if I’m wrong. But years ago I was channel surfing and came across the show about saving the Whales. I watched a small skiff, raft or otherwise small vessel attack and throw Molotov Cocktails onto a ship in an effort to drive them from the fishing waters. Now, am I wrong? Or is that not piracy to attack another vessel with dangerous instruments. I never watched it again.

How about being overly excited about people stranded on an island with no support, yet we forget that they have a camera crew with them. Not to mention medical support and other infrastructure to avoid liability lawsuits from the “actors”. I made fun of it one night and got voted out of the living room, by my mother-in-law. She was so excited to watch Street Outlaws. A show about “illegal” street racing. Now, I could be wrong, but if you’re a producer and provide support of monies to further illegal activities, that might run afoul of FCC or other broadcasting or even the local/county/ or state laws. Assisting in a crime is generally punishable?

Naked and afraid. I sat there one night (I think maybe some of my brains must have been getting mushy) out of morbid curiosity, to see just what it was about. The girl who I think was a homemaker, ultimately had to take care of the big burly guy, who had sat on the beach until he was totally cooked on the head and body with sunburn. She fashioned hats out of leaves and moved him into a makeshift shelter while tending to his burns. The only problem with this script (at least for people with half a brain) was the guy, was introduced as an ex-marine recon soldier. I don’t think he would have sat out in the sun until baked, and rely on a housewife to have survival skills to save him.

Until about six years ago, I didn’t really know what a “Kardashian” was. Apparently having been too busy living under my rock. Yet many of the world follow them like royalty. What do they wear, who are they cheating on. Somewhere along the line, Jerry Springer convinced the simple masses, that his show was real.

Idiocracy

There just doesn’t seem to be any real, quality entertainment now. I challenge those of you who have never seen the movie “Idiocracy” to give it a try. Made in 2006. It took two tries a few years ago to watch it, but I made it through it, and was horrified by how accurate it seems compared to today. It had its funny moments as well. Do give it a good try. Watch how a man tries to rescue the world from 500 years of reality TV.

Private Joe Bauers, the definition of “average American”, is selected by the Pentagon to be the guinea pig for a top-secret hibernation program. Forgotten, he awakes five centuries in the future. He discovers a society so incredibly dumbed down that he’s easily the most intelligent person alive.

IMDB

I hope I haven’t offended anyone, but reality shows are the downfall, at least in my opinion, of the masses.
Comments always welcome.

Kick the Habit. You’re stronger.

~ Ron Walker ~ 18 Comments

Are you addicted to a device?
One sure sign is if you take it to the bathroom with you. If you can’t take a moment for bodily functions without your phone/device, then you’re a rabid stockbroker or addicted to your device.

Taking Control:
The first step to fighting social media addiction is to decide “you’re in control”. Your time is important, time can never be redeemed. Once a moment is spent, it’s gone forever. It can be remembered fondly, but it can never be repeated or changed.

Explain to family and friends, that you don’t always respond right away. You may be busy, or just don’t feel like texting or posting to social media at times. If they don’t want to understand that, it is on them. The excuse of, “How will you know it’s not an emergency” is not a valid excuse. A phone call is placed faster, if not as fast as a text, or social posting. Teach others, that the phone portion still works on the devices, and sometimes that is your preferred way of communicating.

Help Yourself break the habit:
I decided, that I would not be a slave to a device. “I” control my time. I started by leaving my phone in the other room for short periods. When I returned to the room after whatever I’d been doing, I would check it for a missed call or other communication. Many understood, some stopped texting me as much. Maybe their ego was Injured by the removal of instant gratification. Or maybe they simply understood. You’ll be amazed at how long you can go after a while, without checking for texts and social media updates. It’s like breaking any other habit. Baby Steps.

Turn off Auto notifications:
This gives you control. No more interruptions during dinner, theater, or conversations with others. Decide you are going to live without listening for a notification from social media and check it when “you” want. This is you controlling your time and life. At night, my phone is set to only allow notifications or phone calls from family. All of them know by now that it is set that way, and I don’t do midnight texting or calls unless it’s an emergency.

Stop watching me:
If you don’t know it yet. Social media is the biggest privacy leech invented. It knows what you discuss, read, search for, and produces ads based on these things. It also partners with other ad producers and social platforms to do the same. I have deleted my Twitter account. I mean, what does it actually do for me. Other than make me feel important once in a while when something gets retweeted.

I wish you luck, if breaking the habit is something you want, or need to do. It will give you less stress, more time, and improve your personal interaction with others. So, forget that phone for a moment, then make it two moments, then three. Suddenly, you’ll be looking for where you left it the last time, or you’ll place it on a table for easy access, just like our old landlines that didn’t rule our lives.

Do you have any ideas to help? Think you can do it, or do you want or need to do it. Maybe it’s too important to some. That is a decision we all have to make as individuals. Me? I feel in control, liberated.

Comments always welcome.

Mobile Devices. Losing ourselves, one moment at a time.

~ Ron Walker ~ 21 Comments

Definition of addiction

: a compulsive, chronic, physiological or psychological need for a habit-forming substance, behavior, or activity having harmful physical, psychological, or social effects and typically causing well-defined symptoms (such as anxiety, irritability, tremors, or nausea) upon withdrawal or abstinence: the state of being addicted

-Míriam Webster

It started as a novelty. Something we had all wanted, and a way to save time and supposedly bring people closer. Devices, those things with which to save time and communicate have taken over our very lives. Social media was to bring us together and share information. Instead, it has come to consume nearly every waking moment of many. It has also served to isolate us from one another. There is no real substitute for personal contact. Without it, we become sick. Mentally, and physically.

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Courtesy and respect have taken a backseat, to contact and instant gratification. Families sit at dinner tables and stare at illuminated screens as if some unseen force compels them to remain motionless, and voiceless. Staring intently at an inanimate object craving for the need to feel accepted by others. Immersed in another reality, oblivious to those around them until some urgent outside stimulus pulls them away, like an addict in a drug room who just had the hose unplugged from their Hookah.

Young and old frantically searching for a way to recharge a device, so they don’t miss the next casual call or text. Some people actually become agitated when deprived of instant access. Mental Addiction?

We all know how it affects us, but we are still drawn into the darkness for that egotistical fix of feeling worthwhile, and important. All the time ignoring those closest to us, that are truly personal contacts. Show a person the Meme below, and they will chuckle. Knowing all too well it is a harsh truth, but it is easier to make light of it than to fix it.

Next time you’re out, look around and notice how many aren’t paying attention to what’s around them. Buried in a device of some sort.

Only we can make the decision not to be enslaved to devices, it doesn’t happen overnight. Like a smoker trying to quit, you have to be strong and resist it in increments. Take back your life, let those closest to you know you care. Don’t be afraid, take that first step. You’ll be glad you did.

Comments, welcome.