Open for Business
banner
ofb.biz
Open for Business
@ofb.biz
Open for Business (ISSN 2153-5469) is the magazine of ideas, culture, technology and politics. Est. October 5, 2001. Twitter: @ofbmag

Tags for Fediverse […]

[bridged from https://mastodon.faithtree.social/@ofb on the fediverse by https://fed.brid.gy/ ]
"Simba-sama made it to 2026, but just barely. It matters. His real name was just Simba, but he was wise, so it made sense to add 'sama,' an honorific signifying high rank and wisdom, to that name." https://ofb.biz/sa1384

#catsofmastodon #cats #death #newyear2026
The Soul of a Cat
Simba-sama made it to 2026, but just barely. It matters. His real name was just Simba, but he was wise, so it made sense to add “sama,” an honorific signifying high rank and wisdom, to that name. “Sensei” would have worked, too, because he taught the several other cats in Risa’s house how to be cats.
ofb.biz
January 8, 2026 at 5:27 AM
"Hook, the absolutely star-studded film directed by Stephen Spielberg, has received mixed reviews from critics since its release in 1991. I still can’t figure out why." https://ofb.biz/sa1383

#movies #moviereview #peterpan #disney
On The Contrary: “Hook” Is A Great Film
Hook, the absolutely star-studded film directed by Stephen Spielberg, has received mixed reviews from critics since its release in 1991. I still can’t figure out why. One could have given the Academy Award for Best Actor to Dustin Hoffman, and Best Supporting Actor to Robin Williams.
ofb.biz
January 8, 2026 at 5:09 AM
Dennis E. Powell writes, “Just over a year ago I got my #unicomp #modelm Mini, a newly manufactured version of what is in my estimation the best computer keyboard ever, the #ibm Model M #ssk. …] I wrote a bit about it at the time. It is the only keyboard I have used since then. It has been a […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
January 1, 2026 at 4:59 AM
“Ahead of Christmas, I heard a lot of ads for a company that digitizes old photos and videos to keep them secure],” <a href="https://ofb.biz/sa1381" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky">@trbutler writes. But security is an elusive thing with data and with life. <a href="https://mastodon.faithtree.social/tags/TwelveDaysOfChristmas" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky">https://ofb.biz/sa1381 <a href="https://mastodon.faithtree.social/tags/NewYear2026" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky">#TwelveDaysOfChristmas <a href="https://mastodon.faithtree.social/tags/Christianity" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky">#NewYear2026 <a href="https://mastodon.faithtree.social/tags/Jesus" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky">#Christianity [#Jesus
Timothy R. Butler
Pastor, @littlehillschurch and @faithtreecf (outreach ministry). Editor, @ofb. Shakespeare lover, Apple/*nix geek in #StLouis #Missouri. #Christian #ChurchHistory #Reformed #Theology #Aquinas #Shakespeare #Photography #Technology #Apple #Linux #Perl Tags for Fediverse tools: #Searchable #fedi22
mastodon.faithtree.social
January 1, 2026 at 4:58 AM
Dennis E. Powell writes, “Has there ever been a less Christmas-y Advent? I sure can't remember one. Even during times of great sadness and crisis, we've always allowed -- I daresay welcomed -- the season to comfort and encourage us.” https://ofb.biz/sa1380

#christmas #advent #news #2025 […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
December 27, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Dennis E. Powell reflects re: #POTUS, etc.: “The last week has been like one of those bizarre times in which you notice that nothing makes any sense, so you must be having a dream. With that realization, you awaken. Except that for the last week, it has been no dream.” https://ofb.biz/sa1378 […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
December 18, 2025 at 10:31 PM
“One of my all time favorite brands is Metadot’s #daskeyboard. They typically don’t include all the bells and whistles, but they are built _so well_. But what if a Das Keyboard had all the current extras?” #mechanicalkeyboard #qmk #via https://reviews.ofb.biz/sa1377
DeltaForce 65: Das Wilde Keyboard
One of my all time favorite brands is Metadot’s Das Keyboard. They typically don’t include all the bells and whistles, but they are built so well. But what if a Das Keyboard had all the current extras?
reviews.ofb.biz
December 18, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Dennis E. Powell reflects that 35 years ago, RIME and BBSes felt like modern marvels. Today, technology delivers news of a Japanese "mega quake" threat at the speed of light. That can be both helpful and cause for more worrying. https://ofb.biz/sa1376
Nature's Sword Damocles
Time passes quickly in a busy life, so it oughtn’t surprise me that 1989 is as long ago as it was. But surprise me it does.
ofb.biz
December 11, 2025 at 2:09 AM
The latest #testytim review: “#Satechi is a long-running name in stylish computer accessories, but one that comes to mind for, say, a Thunderbolt hub, not a #MechanicalKeyboard. The SM3 is a strong argument the time has come for them to be a part of the keyboard discussion.” […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
December 11, 2025 at 1:22 AM
“It began the way colds always do: a kind of dry, scratchy feeling in the nose, arriving over a couple of hours.” Dennis E. Powell compares it to Kübler-Ross's 5 stages of grief. “In both, the first stage is denial.” https://ofb.biz/sa1373

#cold #flu #virus #health
Healthy Holidays
I suppose there is a psychological essay to be written about it, on the order of Elizabeth Kübler-Ross’s five stages of grief. In both, the first stage is denial. “No, I’m not really getting a cold…”
ofb.biz
December 4, 2025 at 7:58 PM
“I became the lab rat. Three weeks ago, I put away my trusty #macbook to discover if the technically powerful 11” #m4 #ipad Pro could handle everything this solo pastor’s jack-of-all-trades work demands -- writing, video editing, programming, system administration, the whole enchilada. A year […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
December 4, 2025 at 7:33 PM
. @kettingerjason turns to Biblical musings on this Thanksgiving week. “In Matthew 16:13-18, we have Jesus reminding us that the time is urgent. In this way, St. Matthew and St. Luke are capturing the urgency of Christ as prophet. Sometimes, the challenge of Jesus is not in what he says, but in […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
November 28, 2025 at 12:38 AM
Dennis E. Powell writes, “George Washington, we are told by #kenburns's latest documentary series, was a (mostly) great man and a terrible general. He was inspiring, yes, but an awful tactician. Oh, and *unforgivably* he was a slaveholder.” https://ofb.biz/sa1370

#americanrevolution #history #pbs
Did the Good Guys Win The American Revolution?
George Washington, we are told by Ken Burns’s latest documentary series, was a (mostly) great man and a terrible general. He was inspiring, yes, but an awful tactician. Oh, and unforgivably he was a slaveholder.
ofb.biz
November 20, 2025 at 5:16 AM
#blackfriday no longer happens on a Friday or even in the week of the namesake Friday. It’s in full effect now and some of our perennial favorite fruity themed deals are back and worth grabbing before the deals sell out.
https://reviews.ofb.biz/sa1369

#apple #mac #airpods #deals
Amazing Apple “Black Friday” Deals
Black Friday no longer happens on a Friday or even in the week of the namesake Friday. It’s in full effect now and some of our perennial favorite fruity themed deals are back and worth grabbing before the deals sell out.
reviews.ofb.biz
November 20, 2025 at 4:37 AM
“We had other rabbits, too, little gray cottontails that gamboled in the fields. We did not look after those, nor for the most part did we eat them. They had to come up with their own food, they had to work out their own romantic arrangements, and they were not protected from predators by a […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
November 12, 2025 at 8:26 PM
.@kettingerjason muses on Star Trek: TNG. "The episode that concluded its 3rd season, and its heart, the capture of Picard by the Borg, is resolved in Season 4's opening. But the next episode deserves to be remembered as the third part of the story." https://ofb.biz/sa1367

#startrek #tv #drama […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
November 12, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Dennis E. Powell contemplates grocery stores annoying reorganizations. "It was the day that I stopped forever my weekly visit to Kroger. The COVID-19 epidemic was underway, and we were advised to stay away from each other. It was cold, and the forecast was that an ice storm would hit about […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
November 5, 2025 at 11:27 PM
Dennis E. Powell takes us through three "balls of confusion" in a story about wasps, baseball... and Google. https://ofb.biz/sa1364

#baseball #worldsereis #wasps #insects #cybersecurity #google #encryption
Wasps, Baseball, and Google
The Temptations had a hit song 55 years ago, “Ball of Confusion (That’s What the World Is Today).” It feels as if it were a prediction of the last week around here.
ofb.biz
October 29, 2025 at 7:18 PM
"We all love to hate #wikipedia: it is imperfect, but unavoidably useful; biased, but somewhat correctable. Could #grokipedia take what is good about it and round off the rough edges? _Maybe._" https://ofb.biz/sa1363

#grok #ai #opensource #creativecommons #elonmusk
Can Grokipedia Tesla-fy Wikipedia?
We all love to hate Wikipedia: it is imperfect, but unavoidably useful; biased, but somewhat correctable. Could Grokipedia take what is good about it and round off the rough edges? _Maybe._
ofb.biz
October 29, 2025 at 5:32 PM
. @kettingerjason writes, "And what’s really galling about this casual misandry is that it’s highly selective. Not too many people are embracing celibacy and sexual abstinence on account of men. This 'reproductive right' is apparently only the right to kill the products of their conception." […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
October 29, 2025 at 5:29 PM
"Murray's editor last week posted something about Murray's latest book. 'Taking Religion Seriously by #charlesmurray may be the most important book I’ve ever edited.' ... I immediately ordered it. To be entirely accurate, I immediately ordered it again..." https://ofb.biz/sa1362

#christianity […]
Original post on mastodon.faithtree.social
mastodon.faithtree.social
October 23, 2025 at 5:39 AM
"Cold water, applied suddenly, can be inspirational," writes Dennis E. Powell. For him, the inspiration leads to a journey about more efficient roofing... https://ofb.biz/sa1360

#energyefficiency #greenenergy #roofing #hotwater
Energy From the Roof
Cold water, applied suddenly, can be inspirational. I was reminded of this Friday morning when, mid-shower and all lathered and shampooed, the gas ran out. It wasn’t a matter of jumping out of the shower, either. I had to rinse it all off first. So I wasn’t just surprised by the icy blast. I had then to deliberately submit to it.
ofb.biz
October 16, 2025 at 6:56 PM