How do I configure the launcher to "dodge windows"?

Question: I don't like the auto hide launcher for it is too annoying for me. The launcher stays hidden and to reveal it, the mouse pointer has to be moved to the default hot spot. I'd instead like to have the hide to dodge windows previously available in Ubuntu 11.10. How do I change back to this behaviour?
Answer: 12.04
I'm afraid the dodge window capability was deliberately removed from 12.04
According to Mark Shuttleworth

"dodge-windows approach tested very poorly. We thought it would work
well, tried it, tested it, and have had to evolve from there based on
evidence....
If users encounter the dodge by moving windows against
the launcher, then it is fine. They see that the dodge happens when
they push the launcher away, they discover they can move the window
back and the launcher will reappear. So far so good.
Here's the problem. Most users don't discover the dodging by moving a window till
it touches the launcher. They first encounter it when they maximise a
window. So, they login to the desktop. Good. They start an app. Good.
Then they maximise a window, and the launcher "disappears". To these
users, the behaviour is deeply uncomfortable, random. And these are in
fact the majority of users. It also turns out that users who can work
with dodging launchers can also work perfectly well with launchers
which always hide when not used."

By default the launcher is always visible.
More information about how to configure the launcher can be found in the Q&A
How can I configure Unity's launcher auto-hide behavior?

Dodge Windows is a topic covered by WebUpd8
An enterprising developer has written some scripts that mimic the dodge window behaviour when a window is moved into the launcher area - i.e. it hides and unhides as appropriate.
A similar script is available to autohide the launcher when a window is maximised.
Note - these are in binary deb format.  Obviously - installing random binaries is not recommended practise from a security point.  Read the article if you wish to pursue this.
Comment: there is a bug report with some very forthright views as to retaining the option for the dodge behaviour:  https://bugs.launchpad.net/unity/+bug/930148
Answer: How to restore Dodge behavior in 12.04
This Ubuntu Geek post and this newer WepUpd8 post report how to restore the Dodge Windows and Dodge Active Windows for Unity in 12.04. These can then be set in the Unity plugin in CompizConfig Settings Manager.
Update: For 12.10 / 13.04, please refer also to this WepUpd8 post.
It is required to add a ppa:
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:ikarosdev/unity-revamped

and run a distribution upgrade:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get dist-upgrade

Then open CCSM and set it to your favorite behavior!

(The terminal is only to document Ubuntu version.)
You might have to log out and in again for it to take effect.
This patch also restores the old Click-To-Minimize behavior. See this Webupd8 post for details.
All changes can be reverted by the following commands:
sudo apt-get install ppa-purge
sudo ppa-purge ppa:ikarosdev/unity-revamped

Alternatively, a hack to restore the older Dodge behavior is reported on here.
I tried out the "real dodge" version, and it works so-so in my opinion. Most notably, the launcher does not "go above" active windows, but pushes them to the side, where it sometimes gets stuck (so the launcher doesn't go away again). In general, when the launcher shifts position, so does many other things on screen (e.g., icons on the desktop).
An alternative is to (almost) permanently hide the launcher (see here) and use a dock with the wished for behavior (for example cairo-dock).
Comment: Your repo makes my 12.04 broken again ( ie: flashy windows when changing desktop :-( ) -- any way you can add the fix?  If not thats cool - thanks ..
Comment: It's not my repo, so I'm not the right guy to ask... Sorry. I hope it'll be fixed, though.
Comment: Oh haha - dont know why i thought that.  Thanks for sharing it :-)
Answer: 12.04
Here is the solution:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Unity-ReplaceDodgeWindowsBehavior
have fun!
Comment: This will revert unity back to the 4 options for hiding, see no issues here after doing so. There will likely be packages available in the future for those that don't wish to build unity themselves. While Tips & Tutorials still allows support it can be gotten here, http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1967822
Answer: 12.04
this feature called dodge. was dropped from unity.
there are unofficial solutions to get it back.
There are two window dodge behaviours available: one that works mostly as it used to be in Ubuntu 11.10 and the other one only works for maximized windows:
 real window dodge behaviour for the Unity Launcher and you can download it here:

http://webupd8.googlecode.com/files/unity-dodge-windows_1.5_all.deb
 window dodge behaviour for maximized windows and you can download it here:

http://webupd8.googlecode.com/files/unity-dodge-maximized-windows_1.5_all.deb
for further info please see the related section on this post.
Comment: Thanks for your answer. It would have been really nice if the application worked. Unfortunately, it spams awk errors and sets the launcher to never-hide. I think I'm giving up on unity for now, less than 24h after I started using it. :)
Answer: 12.04
Unity 2D is the only way to have dodge in Precise out of the box. After logging in, open dconf-editor and navigate to /com/canonical/unity-2d/launcher/hide-mode and set its value to 2 (the default is 0).
Answer: 13.10
This is possible 13.10, at least it tested well in my VM.
The older scripts do not work as you(Seth) have discovered.  However the newer scripts that worked for 12.10 and 13.04 work for 13.10.
The site webupd8.org has the instructions. As is stated, the instructions are for 12.10 and 13.04 but I tested the one in Virtualbox and it worked flawlessly(well as well as they did in 12.04 up, there are a few limitations as noted in the article but all in all they work well)
Unfortunately, the ppa for Saucy has not bee updated to include these scripts (at least not as far as I was able to determine) so the only solution is to download them directly.
There are 2 different scripts and they cannot be installed together.
The one script only dodges maximized windows.  It's biggest limitation is that it will allow the launcher to overlap any windows that were opened while it was hidden.
The other script brings back the old style of dodging windows(almost) in that it will hide the launcher when any window is in it's(the launchers) space.  The biggest limitation that I noticed is that if any window is open that is in the launcher's space, the launcher will stay hidden even if that window is minimized.
Here is the link to download the Dodge maximized windows script
Here is the link to download the "original" dodge windows script
The download links that I included above come directly from the article on webupd8.org.
I would suggest that you read the article on webupd8.org that I linked to at it gives a good rundown of the scripts, (I don't want to get into plagiarism territory by including too much of the article.

In the interest of full disclosure, I did not play too long with the 13.10 VM but in the time I used it I didn't notice any unexpected issues with the dodge windows scripts.  I also did not play long at all(maybe an hour) with the "original" dodge windows script as the hidden launcher limitation I mentioned above was not to my liking.  The dodge maximized windows script has seen maybe 10+ hours of use with success.

As an editorial note(read my opinion, which in worth exactly what you paid for it);  These "dodge windows" question and workarounds are all over AU and the internet, I don't understand why Canonical is so married to the idea that it was a bad feature.  Yes I have seen the articles about why they removed it and it seems like "thin soup" to me, obviously many user want it, and the scripts work well enough.
To give credit where it is due(I think*), I believe that @JorgeCastro wrote the first work-around script back in 12.04(the dodge maximized windows one). Thanks a bunch Jorge, this missing feature was a deal breaker for me and I was considering switching away from Unity(was considering Cinnamon but it was buggy, so you really saved me at least.)
I have taken a bit of a liberty in including this editorial, and my intention was not to start a discussion on the subject, just to state what seems to be a common opinion in the Ubuntu community.  Please do not respond to this as a discussion, or I, or the mods will be forced to edit or delete this answer.
Comment: Do you use 13.10 with dodge windows on a regular basis? (btw, I don't know where the downvote came from..)
Comment: idk where or why the down vote, it was made very quickly after I answered...And no I don't use it regularly, I have it in a VM and have maybe 12-13 hours on it, but I noticed no difference between that and 12.04(which I do use, I kept putting of the upgrade as I did not want to try to reinstall all my programs, now I might as well just wait till 14.04...) the script may be a bit quicker to work in 13.10, but that may be just because Unity is quicker, but it still is not quite as quick as the original behavior was back in 11.04& 11.10, there is still a *slight* delay before the launcher returns
Answer: 12.04
In Ubuntu 12.04 the Dodge Windows feature was removed. To get it back you will have to install basically a patched version of Unity.
The easiest way is probably to read the following posts carefully and follow the instructions. There are two different kind of fixes and you'll have to settle for one.
Get Dodge Windows Unity Autohide Behaviour For Maximized Windows In Ubuntu 12.04 Precise Pangolin and Real Window Dodge Unity Launcher Bahaviour For Ubuntu 12.04, I presume you'd prefer the latter. I, however, understand that this is a custom build of Unity and cannot give any information about future updates (should unity receive updates), bug fixes etc.
You might also want to check out the original ubuntuforums thread that dealt with these issues: HOW-TO: Unity with 'Dodge Windows' and minimize/unminimize behavior
Answer: 13.10
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:nilarimogard/webupd8
sudo gedit '/etc/apt/sources.list.d/nilarimogard-webupd8-saucy.list'

make sure it looks like this
deb http://ppa.launchpad.net/nilarimogard/webupd8/ubuntu raring main
deb-src http://ppa.launchpad.net/nilarimogard/webupd8/ubuntu raring main

This changes 'saucy' to 'raring'.
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install unity-dodge-maximized-windows

Atlast reboot your pc to make changes(unity-dodge-maximized-windows) work.
Comment: Could you add some more details? How well does this work? Have you tested it?
Comment: I'm using it right now. Unity dodge maximized windows hides on all maximized windows just fine. I tried using unity dodge windows and it did not work properly. I prefer maximized windows anyway. It required a reboot.
Comment: Also, I added a script to /etc/init.d that I downloaded here [link](http://webupd8.googlecode.com/files/unity-dodge-windows) I'm not sure if it makes a difference.
Answer: 14.04
The PPA that was available in 12.10 and 13.04 has still not been updated for 13.10 or 14.04 as of this writing.
In my testing I have found that the "Dodge Windows" script (that would nearly restore the old behavior of the dodge windows) no longer works....when it is installed, the launcher hides constantly and changing the behavior in the System Settings does not work until the script is removed.
The "Dodge Maximized Windows" does still work with the same limitations that I mentioned in my answer for 13.10 with two others....

on some webpages the window will resize so that the launcher is visible, this seem to be related to specific webpages (ighome.com is the only one I've found so far) switching to any other open tabs will restore the window and hide the launcher again....(I use Firefox so this may be different for Chrome or other browsers)
When you minimize a maximized window, the launcher will remain hidden a long as the window is open - this was not the case before, (the launcher would return if the window was minimized to the launcher)

I will edit this answer at some later point if a better solution comes about or the current scripts are edited to work better.
As I said in my other answer, the download link comes right from the lauchpad PPA that was for 13.10.....her is the link:
Dodge maximized windows
The blog post about the PPA and the scripts that was written for 12.10 and 13.04 is
How To Get Unity Launcher Window Dodge In Ubuntu 12.10 Or 13.04
Answer: new answer for 16.04 and 18.04:
The old script will not run because of some errors. I modified the original script and now it works. Here it is:
#!/bin/bash
#ps -ef | grep "$0" | grep -v "grep\|$$\|/bin/sh" | awk '!/awk/ {print $2}' | xargs -r kill

# gconftool-2 --type int --set "/apps/compiz-1/plugins/unityshell/screen0/options/launcher_hide_mode" 0
#
# Okay we have to use dconf now instead of gconftool-2 so do the following instead:
#
dconf write "/org/compiz/profiles/unity/plugins/unityshell/launcher-hide-mode" 0
# if [ "$DESKTOP_SESSION" != "ubuntu" ]; then exit 0; fi

RACE=$(wmctrl -l | grep -c "DNDCollectionWindow\|launcher\|panel")
MAX_W=$(wmctrl -lG | awk '{if ($5 > max) { max = $5;}} END {print max}')
MAX_H=$(wmctrl -lG | awk '{if ($6 > max) { max = $6;}} END {print max}')
LAUNCHER=$(wmctrl -lG | grep launcher | awk '{print $5}')
PANEL=$(wmctrl -lG | grep panel | awk '{print $6}')
WIDTH=$(expr $MAX_W - $LAUNCHER)
HEIGHT=$(expr $MAX_H - $PANEL)

while true; do sleep 1

CURRENT=$(dconf read "/org/compiz/profiles/unity/plugins/unityshell/launcher-hide-mode")
MAXIMIZED=$(wmctrl -lG | awk -v LAUNCHER=$LAUNCHER -v PANEL=$PANEL '$3==LAUNCHER && $4==PANEL' | grep -c "$WIDTH $HEIGHT")
MAXIMIZED2=$(wmctrl -lG | grep -v "N/A" | awk -v PANEL=$PANEL '$3==0 && $4==PANEL' | grep -c "$MAX_W $HEIGHT")

if [ "$MAXIMIZED" -eq "0" -a "$MAXIMIZED2" -eq "0" ]; then
        if [ "$CURRENT" -ne "0" ]; then
dconf write "/org/compiz/profiles/unity/plugins/unityshell/launcher-hide-mode" 0;fi
else
        if [ "$CURRENT" -ne "1" ]; then
dconf write "/org/compiz/profiles/unity/plugins/unityshell/launcher-hide-mode" 1;fi
fi
done

Run the following commands to install the dependencies:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install dconf-cli wmctrl coreutils gawk

notes:
I had to disable the ps command check so you have to manually disable autohide.
Before you run the script, you must disable the "Auto-hide the Launcher" setting in:
system settings > Appearance > Behavior > Auto-hide the Launcher
Also, if you kill the script you will probably have to go into your settings to disable "Auto-hide the Launcher" before you start it back up.
Additionally, I find the best way to run the script is with an ampersand after the script so you don't have to keep a terminal open like in the following example:
./unity-dodge-maximized-windows &

Finally, if you run into unexpected behavior you can always issue a kill to stop the script:
sudo killall unity-dodge-maximized-windows


Downgrading an iPhone 4 from iOS 6 to iOS 5.1.1 using iTunes with a restore.ipsw file

Question: Can I downgrade an iPhone 4 from iOS 6 to iOS 5.1.1 using iTunes if I have a 5.1.1 restore.ipsw file? I have watched this video on YouTube and was wondering if that works for downgrade. I dont need to sync the phone with any of my files afterwards. I just need to have it as new with 5.1.1 software.
Answer: In short: not if you didn't bother about jailbreaking or never heard of TinyUmbrella.
Apple is very strict on installing iOS firmware. Everytime you do a restore, iTunes is verifying the firmware for the connected device with their own server by checking SHSH blobs at Apple's servers. An app like TinyUmbrella allows you backup your SHSH blobs (they are unique for every iOS device) locally or to saurik's server. This however only works the latest iOS version that is available for your iOS device.
read this: http://www.redmondpie.com/reminder-save-your-ios-5.1.1-shsh-blobs-now-before-its-too-late/ or this: http://www.saurik.com/id/12
Answer: Not without jailbreaking (and even then it might not work). Apple generally doesn't go backwards so iTunes needs to be cajoled, tricked or bludgeoned into ignoring the current OS and using an ipsw that it doesn't download and verify with Apple's servers.
Have a look at the site and do some research - you can always ask a narrower question if you decide to try a jailbreak and run into a problem on a certain step.


Do "analog FPGAs" exist?

Question: I am thinking on analog circuits, whose circuit design could be read (or, at least, significantly altered) from software. Do they already exist?
Comment: You might look into the PSOC family of microcontrollers. They have a programmable hardware layer that can be "routed" however you desire and contains a few analog blocks, on top of a common microcontroller core. Not really a FPGA, but an alternative that may be preferable in case of simpler applications.
Comment: @SF. I think it is not really a problem, from the view of the functionality it does what I am looking for. Although a such construction contains probably much fewer circuits as an FPGA, it depends on the circumstances if it is a problem or not. Thank you!
Answer: Yes, it's called Field-programmable Analog Array (FPAA):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field-programmable_analog_array
They are exactly the analog version of the FPGAs. There are many different subtypes (current or voltage driven, discrete or continous time). They are built up from CABs (configurable analogous blocks), and from interconnects between them.
Comment: Thank you! I extended your answer with the essence of the link target, I hope there will be somebody fixing that. :-)
Answer: There are many chips that can be configured by choices made in software, which then have a perfectly analogue behaviour that gets altered.
Blocks that work like that go from Analogue Switch arrays and/or Multiplexers all the way past Programmable-Gain amplifiers through to complete integrated chips that have a combination of blocks, such as programmable gain, a whole bunch of analogue switches, analogue mixers and multiplexers and all such. Analog Devices are kings of doing things like that.
As an example a programmable gain amplifier may have only a discrete number of gains, 4, 16 or 32, or even 256 for a very high-end, luxury one, but it will gain any voltage on the input by that number, any real voltage that can be made by something, so they are truly analogue.
I believe there are even some actual FPGA-type devices, much like DSPICs, that include some of those kinds of blocks into the programmable gate array along with DACs (Digi->Analogue) and ADCs (Analogue->Digi), but no types spring to mind, so I could just be misremembering.
For sure many DSP System on Chip (SoC) devices made for old-school analogue video and/or multi-track audio manipulation and conversion would be a mix of such analogue trickery before the signal would be turned digital and processed further as a digital signal. Which then in some cases would be turned back to analogue and possibly again multiplexed or modulated into some kind of antenna signal.
No modern-to-future-day applications for such a complex SoC other than very specific Audio tools or metrology spring to mind right now, but it's not unlikely they still exist, since no one person will have heard of everything.
So, in more ways than one, the answer seems to be yes, they exist. Though of course not exactly like an FPGA, because a digital beast can never be fully compared to an analogue one.

Do "analog FPGAs" exist?


One time pad key exchange

Question: If two parties want to communicate with securely using OTP , how is the key ( that is lengthy as plain text) shared with other party for decryption ?
Answer: That's a well-known disadvantage of using OTP. Like in the ancient times, you could e.g. employ a trusted courier for that transfer.
Comment: Or both parties are physically present to create or exchange the keys.
Answer: One way to share a OTP key is to separately send several different independently-generated OTP keys, each one in its own tamper-evident package (often more than one layer).
When Bob receives the package, if the seal shows the package hasn't been opened in transit, then therefore no one has opened the package and copied or modified or entirely replaced the OTP key inside,
and therefore that key is safe to use between Bob and whoever sent the package.
When Bob receives the package, if the seal shows the package has been opened (or if shippers have banged it up so much it's hard to tell), then he simply discards it.
That makes the key inside that package useless to whoever might have copied or replaced it.
The various quantum key distribution systems can each be seen as a high-tech way of sending one bit at a time, and discarding bits that might have been tampered with.
The tamper-detection system isn't perfect on its own.
How can Bob be sure the package came from Alice and not Mallory?
If Mallory has intercepted one of the OTP key packages from Alice, how can Alice discriminate between "good" over-the-air ciphertext messages from Bob vs "bad" over-the-air ciphertext messages that claim to be from Bob, but they're actually from Mallory?
How do we prevent a denial-of-service attack?
There exist work-arounds to these problems by combining tamper-detection with trusted couriers, or armed couriers, or some sort of back-and-forth key-agreement protocol, or some combination.
Answer: Given that the key does not need to be constructed in any particular way any secret sharing method such as the Diffie-Hellman exchange be repeated to build up to the required key length. And simply concatenating the acquired secrets (after potentially passing them through a cryptographically secure PRNG to remove any exchange artifacts). However this method is susceptible to the same attacks as the chosen secret sharing method.
Comment: plus at this point attacking the key exchange is a weakness and the remaining scheme is no longer informationally secure
Answer: One way of sharing a OTP is to draw a random sequence (a huge list of randomly chosen characters or btis) in advance and to disclose it beforehand to the other party (physical meeting). The obvious disadvantage is the need to keep secret a big amount of information.
Another way is to share a short secret (key) in advance (e.g. during a physical meeting). This is much more practical in the sense that the information to be kept secret is much shorter. In order to share a random sequence as long a the plaintext to be transmitted, a cryptographic primitive is then used such as a stream cipher (or, e.g. a block cipher or hash function running in counter mode). An IV (a public short string) is used to derive a random sequence anew for each plaintext. The drawback compared to sharing a long random sequence before hand is that the random sequences thus genereated are "only" pseudo-random (i.e. in the best case scenario, they appear random to a computationally bounded adversary provided some hard computational assumption holds, such as the hardness of computing quadratic residues for instance; sometimes, the security is even more ad-hoc, like when using hash functions in counter mode).
Finally, an additional way is provided by quantum key distribution (Bennett and Brassard, 1984). The key is distributed through a quantum channel and it is assumed that tampering will be detected due to the physical properties of the channel. The advantage is that the whole system can be made to rely on inconditionally secure primitives only. The disadvantage is that the rate of random sequence generation is pretty low nowadays and do not compete at all with the previous solution. Also, it is highly susceptible to denial of service attacks.
Comment: A stream cipher working from a short key is *not* a one time pad. It doesn't have the same perfect security properties an one time pad has, so please don't call it that.
Comment: Well, I construe one time pad as a pad that you use one time. Please also note that the distinction you're trying to make is already part of the answer: *sequences thus genereated are "only" pseudo-random*. Also, you'll have a hard time defining what a perfectly random string is in practice: anything that you'll use to generate it has some bias...
Comment: A stream cipher is not a one time pad. You might as well list RSA in your answer as well.

One time pad key exchange


what is the reason for adding tomato paste when making a brown stock?

Question: I'm studying for an apprenticeship test and I know one of the questions is about why you add tomato paste to brown stock.  I have been taught that it's for depth of flavour and colour.  However, the choices on the test are separated into a) flavour, b) colour, C) acidity d) to speed up cooking process (?!)  I'm curious if anyone knows the actual ONE reason we add tomato paste to the bones?
Comment: Is there an underlying question of "what happens when it is omitted and why?" and/or "how to choose a satisfying substitute?" ?
Answer: It's odd that they force you to choose one, as many things in cooking have multiple reasons, e.g. browning meat adds flavour and colour to a stew. Are you sure the question isn't one of those 'tick all that apply' ones?
In this case, the tomato paste adds flavour, colour, and the acid helps break down the connective tissue in the bones, which helps the stock to jellify.
Comment: Definitely all of those things apply.  If I had to choose one, I'd probably say flavour, because brown stock already has colour and the pH change is pretty negligible for the typical 1 T of tomato paste.
Answer: As another poster said, several of these apply. However, the most noticeable difference will most assuredly be the flavor. Tomato paste is absolutely packed with glutamates, and the umami from even one tablespoon will enhance the flavor of the whole stock.
Comment: I think the question is odd and we may therefore be delving into the semantics of the question rather than real substance, but I would say that perhaps "acidity" is the best answer - wouldn't this help accelerate flavor extraction from the bones by drawing out the calcium?
Answer: The reason is for color, as it helps make a brown stock browner.


high power congruences finding $x$

Question: trying to solve:
$$x^{13} \equiv 11 \pmod{135}$$
I came to the fact that $x = 11^{59}$ but its in mod $72$ and needs to be converted to mod $135$
any suggestions? I'm not sure how to change it to mod $135$ with such a large number
Answer: $135 = 3^3 \cdot 5$, so $\varphi(135) = 72$. Using Euclid, you find that
$$
1 = 13 \cdot (-11) + 72 \cdot 2 = 13 \cdot 61 + 72 \cdot (-11),
$$
so
$$
x \equiv (x^{13})^{61} \equiv 11^{61} \pmod{135}.
$$
PS Once again, apologies for the initial mistake in this late-night post (never again!), and thanks to Gerry Myerson and user62340 for calling my attention to it.
To finish the calculation by hand, it is probably safer to compute first
$$
11^{11} = 11 \cdot 11^2 \cdot 11^{8} \equiv 41 \pmod{135},
$$
and then the inverse $56$ of $41$ modulo $135$, which is the required solution.
Comment: $\phi(135)=72$.
Comment: @GerryMyerson, thank you so much, I shouldn't post this late in the evening, I'll fix it.
Comment: I thought ϕ(135) = 72  not 24... How did you get it Andreas? ϕ(135) is 2*3*3*4 ?
Comment: @user62340, it's late in the evening, I cannot count anymore. I have fixed it, thanks to you and Gerry Myerson for notifying me.
Answer: If $\rm\: x^{13}\equiv 11\,\ (mod\ 5\cdot27)\:$ then the same congruence holds mod $5$ and $27$, and we can use CRT (Chinese Remainder Theorem) to recombine the two solutions. It turns out to be very simple:
$\rm\quad\ mod\,\ 5\!:\ x^4\equiv 1,\:$ so $\rm\,x \equiv x (x^4)^3 \equiv x^{13}\equiv 11\equiv \color{#C00}1.\ \ $ Next $\ \phi(27) = 18,\:$ hence
$\rm\quad\ mod\ 27\!:\ 1 \equiv x^{18}\equiv x^{13} x^5 \equiv 11 x^5\:$ so $\rm\,x^5 \equiv \dfrac{1}{11}\equiv \dfrac{55}{11}\equiv 5\equiv 2^5\Rightarrow\:x\equiv \color{#0A0}2\  $ (unique, see Note)
$\rm\Rightarrow mod\ 5\cdot 27\!:\,\  x \equiv \color{#0A0}2 + 27\,\left[\dfrac{\color{#C00}1\!-\!\color{#0A0}2}{27}\ mod\ 5\right]\! \equiv 56,\ $ by  $\rm\ mod\ 5\!:\, \dfrac{-1}{27}\equiv \dfrac{4}2 \equiv 2,\ $ using Easy CRT.
Note $\,\ 5$'th roots are unique $\rm\,mod\ 27\:$ since $\rm\, (5,\phi(27)) = (5,18) = 1,\:$ so $\rm\:n\equiv 1/5\ mod\ 18\:$ exists, hence  $\rm\,x^5 = y^5\:\Rightarrow x\equiv x^{5n}\equiv y^{5n}\equiv y\,$ since $\rm\,5n\equiv 1\,\ (mod\ 18).$
Answer: $x^{13}\equiv11\pmod{135}\implies x^{13}\equiv11\pmod5$ and $x^{13}\equiv11\pmod{27}$
Using Euler's Totient Theorem,  $$a^{\phi(m)}\equiv1\pmod m \text{ where }(a,m)=1$$
So, if $\phi(m)\mid(r-s),a^r\equiv a^s\pmod m$
$\implies x^{13}\equiv x\pmod5$ as $\phi(5)=5-1=4\implies x^{13}\equiv11\pmod5\iff x\equiv1\pmod5--->(1)$
Using this, if $a$ is primitive roots of prime $p$ and $p^2,a$ will be primitive roots of $p^n$ for $n\ge1$
$2^1\equiv-1\pmod3,2^2\equiv1\implies2$ is a primitive root of $3$
Now, $2^1\equiv2\pmod9,2^2\equiv4,2^3\equiv-1\implies ord_92=6=\phi(9)\implies2$ is a primitive root of $9$
So, $2$ is a primitive root of $3^n$  for $n\ge1$
Applying Discrete Logarithm with respect to base $2$ on   $x^{13}\equiv11\pmod{27},$
$13\cdot ind_2x\equiv ind_211\pmod{18}$ as $\phi(27)=3^2(3-1)=18$
Now, $2^3\equiv8\pmod{27},2^4\equiv16\equiv-11\pmod{27}$
Again as  $2$ is a primitive root of $27,2^{\frac{\phi(27)}2}\equiv-1\pmod{27}$ i.e., $2^9\equiv-1$
So, $11\equiv2^4\cdot2^9\equiv2^{13}\implies ind_211=13$
So, $13\cdot ind_2x\equiv 13\pmod{18}\implies ind_2x\equiv1\pmod{18}$ as $(13,18)=1$
So, $x\equiv2^1\pmod{27}\equiv2--->(2)$
Applying well known CRT on $(1),(2)$ we get $x\equiv2b_1\frac{27\cdot5}{27}+1\cdot b_2\frac{27\cdot5}5\pmod{27\cdot5}\equiv 10b_1+27b_2\pmod{135}$
where  $b_1\frac{27\cdot5}{27}\equiv1\pmod {27}\iff 5b_1\equiv1$
and  $b_2\frac{27\cdot5}5\equiv1\pmod{27}\iff 27b_2\equiv1$
Expressing $\frac{27}5$ as continued fraction,
$\frac{27}5=5+\frac25=5+\frac1{\frac52}=5+\frac1{2+\frac12}$
So, the last convergent of $\frac{27}5$ is $5+\frac12=\frac{11}2$
Using convergent property of continued fraction, $27\cdot2-5\cdot11=-1$
$\implies 5\cdot11\equiv1\pmod{27}\implies 5^{-1}\equiv11\implies b_1\equiv11 $
and $27\cdot2\equiv-1\pmod5\implies (27)^{-1}\equiv-2\equiv3\implies b_2\equiv3$
So, $x\equiv27\cdot3+10\cdot11\pmod{135}\equiv191\equiv56$

high power congruences finding $x$


Can I dry my own yeast to make it relatively shelf stable? How?

Question: Obviously, it can be done, as dry yeast works for fermenting beer.  I go sometimes a month or two between batches, and carrying over one yeast culture across beers seems a bit of a pain.  How is dried yeast made/ packaged?  Is it something a homebrewer can reasonably do?
Answer: I don't think the process of commercially drying yeast is straightforward - it involves a partial vacuum or a stream of filtered air to make the liquid suspending the yeast evaporate faster - and it's probably difficult to reach the levels of hygiene required in a homebrew setting.
If you want to preserve yeast for a long period, 1 year or more, you can store the yeast with glycerine and keep it in the freezer.  There's a good writeup on HBT with the process and equipment needed. It's fairly simple and achieves good results. I've successfully brewed with yeast that I froze 3 years ago.
Even if you don't freeze the yeast, but keep the yeast in the fridge, the yeast remain in better condition in glycerine than when kept in wort.
If you are already making a starter then freezing is a simple process that allows you to keep a variety of strains in your yeast bank over a long period.
Answer: Simply put it is not practical for the homebrewer as you need to perform the drying under sterile conditions.
Comment: What sources is this answer based on? Why do you need to be more sterile than during brewing? Is the process of drying more dangerous for the yeast than the process of brewing beer? I understand this is widely shared opinion, but not necesarily true, as there are people successfully drying their yeast.
Comment: This seems to be the ultimate answer for my question.  The other answers were good too.
Comment: You're likely to get away with it once or twice, but a contaminant will likely catch up with you.  It is not as sanitary a practice as brewing.  You're exposing the culture to air for much longer than you're wort/beer is during brewing.  I understand why people want to try it.  Its just not a sustainable technique long term.  My source my personal expertise as a biologist that has cultured a great many microbes over my career.
Answer: How did Monks and farmers do it? Farmers in Norway apparently do it with even less fanfare.   http://www.garshol.priv.no/blog/342.html

Terje took some wort in a plastic bucket. Then he brought out a plastic box of pale gray flakes. This was the kveik, which Terje got from a friend in Hornindal twenty years ago, and has been using since. Terje collects the yeast after fermentation each time, and hands it to his father-in-law, who then cleans and dries it, before storing it in the freezer.

Taken from the comments on the article:

As far as I know, nobody's ever written down or in any way documented the cleaning process. From what I gathered, the cleaning is the usual process of putting the yeast in water, then draining off the non-yeast part. This is repeated a few times. The yeast is then smeared on baking paper in a room in the cellar. Once it's dried into a thin (3-4mm) crust you can just crush it by folding the paper and drop it into a small plastic box and stuff it in the freezer.
Comment: These yeasts have been selected for their ease of drying though, unlike, say, US-05.
Answer: This all looks a bit like gobbledygook if you ask me.
The intention is not to dry yeast commercially, simply for the home brewer.
Norweigien Kveik has been dried at home for centuries, how do you think they dealt with it in the past before UV lights stainless steel chambers, pressurised canisters etc.
I would suggest you look at David Heath's Youtube channel for details on how to dry your own yeast.
Comment: Ooh..... as luck would have it, I just stumbled upon this link!  I swear, I wasn't even looking for this.  Thread just initiated 1 day ago.  https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/drying-kveik-fast-and-easy-method.669196/
Comment: Your comments are valid.  However, keep in mind, this is a very old thread, and at the time the other responses were written, kveik yeasts were unknown outside of Norway.  Still it's an interesting suggestion to learn how kveik yeasts have been preserved over the centuries so thanks for that.  Can you provide links?  Cheers.
Comment: @dmtaylor that is an interesting post!  You could post the details as a new answer if you like.
Comment: Keep in mind the strains of Kviek we are able to purchase have are purified isolates.  The true Norway Kviek 'strains' have multiple microbes in them. Which is totally in line with what I said in my original post in 2012. Selective pressure likely led to the rapid fermentation character of the cultures so that the contaminating microbes don't take hold and ruin the batch.  Try doing it with WLP001 and you won't have that rapid fermenation character after a few generations of harvest and drying.  I stand by my original post on the topic.
Answer: I know you can make a dry sourdough starter by just spreading it thinly on a sheet pan and leaving it in the sun to dry.  That doesn't seem nearly sterile enough for our beery exploits, however.
You may want to look into yeast slanting and yeast washing.  I also have an article on how I wash yeast on my website.
There was also an interesting thread recently on HBT about farming and freezing yeast using glycerine to protect the cell walls from rupturing.
Comment: "nearly sterile enough" is an interesting understatement.
Answer: Although I do not know the exact process, if sterility is the aim, it seems that all that is required is to create a positive air pressure sterile box(PAPSB). This can be done with lexan, a strong fan, and a few high grade HEPA filters. You can create a near sterile environment in this manner with the aid of a strong sanitizer and UV lights. Using this PAPSB you should be able to perform all of the necessary procedures outlined. Of course the box will need to be outfitted with gloves to allow manipulation of objects in the box. The system I am suggesting is similar to those used by CDC members when handling various bacteria and virii. A guide to creating such a box is here.
Answer: You can make stocks of your yeast in glycerol and put them in the freezer for relatively long term storage  and work with Petri dishes in the fridge for shorter storage time. You can make a glovebox for your self using house hold items. But if your sterile technique  is not good, you will encounter contaminations.
The glovebox is basically a sealed plastic box that you spray with bleach or ethanol and access through gloves. If you are careful enough this should suffice.
Answer: I found excellent guidance provided at the following link on how to dry yeast in your oven.  Basically, since your oven is one of the most sterile locations in your house (and even if it is not, it can easily be sterilized), just spread some yeast out on a sheet of wax paper in the oven, not with the oven turned on, but only the oven light on (assuming an incandescent lamp bulb), leave for a few days until dry, then package.  I have not tried this technique yet, but I do intend to try it very soon... and not only for kveik yeasts but why not also try it for other yeasts.  Hopefully it works well.  See for yourself:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/drying-kveik-fast-and-easy-method.669196/
Answer: Just saw this on HBT:  https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/guide-to-making-a-frozen-yeast-bank.35891/
It's not drying yeasts but I think it accomplishes the same thing.
Answer: Actually the oven drying method looks quite accurate.  If done correctly with wax paper, parchment paper, or foil.   You can pre-heat the sheets to 212-270F in the oven.  Let oven with baking sheet material cool to 100F and smear on the yeast for drying in the oven.  Surely, this is what our ancestors did before high tech.
See this link for how dry yeast is made (high level overview).
https://www.bobsredmill.com/blog/healthy-living/how-is-dry-yeast-made/
Answer: This question is pretty old now, but I just found this thread, while searching for the same answer. In my opinion some of the answers given are a bit ambiguous, and are lacking references.
I think that some home experimentation would be well worth it, and with a little forethought and hygienic practice, should be well within the grasp of a homebrewer to run some experiments.
It would be very easy to produce a good healthy strain of yeast in a reasonably controlled environment in a gallon jug producing a large amount of yeast available for harvest.  Even a wild yeast. I primarily only ferment Cider now. I have Harvested and propagated Wild Apple Yeast to produce a working Gallon Jug that will washed out to provide me with enough tubes of yeast to make a years worth of starters.  I consistently get good results and flavor from this method.
It would not be a huge effort to wash out several batches to be dried.  I would experiment by making some foil pouches, placing them onto a foil covered cookie sheet and heating them an oven to 300F. Shut down the oven and monitor for the temp to drop to 100F. At 100F remove a tube of Yeast Culture from the refrigerator, open the oven door, and pour the tube into a pouch, maintain 100F until it dries to a cake. Close the pouches (before removal from the oven) and store.  Once every few months pull a pouch, use it as if it were a package of dry, and add it to a cup of warm water with a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and maybe a pinch of Nutrient and see if it blooms.  Not scientifically sterile, but as good as any home practice is.  Even if you pitch only a prepackaged yeast after heating your ingredients, you invite some level of unknown contamination while pitching.
I'll let you know in a year how I make out...    :-)
Comment: No offense intended, but do some research on how dry yeast is actually made.  I think you'll find you're pretty far off base.


Sound not working after installing PCI video card and then removing it

Question: I am running 11.10 on a HP/Compaq Presario sr1010z, and the video/audio was working fine with whatever was in the machine already.  Then I installed a new video card (PCI/nVidia), which disabled the audio/video on the old one automatically.  But that card didn't work out too well so I removed it.
Now the video is back to normal, but the audio is gone.
I have tried the following:

In BIOS, set audio to on/enable rather than Auto
Looked for hardware in System Settings > Sound, but nothing shows up there
But when I run the sysinfo utility, I get the description of the audio controller

When I do a sudo aplay -l, I get:
aplay: device_list:240: no soundcards found...

And then when I do a lspci -v | grep -A7 -i "audio", I get the following:
00:02.7 Multimedia audio controller: Silicon Integrated Systems [SiS] SiS7012 AC'97 Sound Controller (rev a0)
    Subsystem: Hewlett-Packard Company Device 2a05
    Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 32, IRQ 5
    I/O ports at a000 [size=256]
    I/O ports at a400 [size=128]
    Capabilities: <access denied>

00:03.0 USB Controller: Silicon Integrated Systems [SiS] USB 1.1 Controller (rev 0f) (prog-if 10 [OHCI])

Any ideas on how to fix this?
Thanks
Answer: I ran the Ubuntu CD to repair installation and that fixed the issue.


Could a rocky rogue planet get trapped in the orbit between Earth and Mars?

Question: I know it's extremely unlikely a rogue planet passing by there, and I know the size of rocky planets can vary a lot (IIRC there is a rocky planet 5 times the size of Earth) but in any hypothetical case, could a rogue planet be trapped in any part of the orbit between Earth and Mars? If so, which are the possible effects it could have over Earth and Mars? In which cases would they be expelled from the solar system?
Answer: It is exceptionally unlikely.
Imagine that there was a planet already there. What could cause it to suddenly escape from the solar system?  It would have to be a massive event, such as a second passing rogue planet catapulting it out of orbit.
Running time backwards, for a rogue planet to be captured and neatly end up orbiting between Mars and Earth would require an unbelievably unlikely sequence of events, such as

two rogue planets happen to pass between Earth and Mars at the same time and the interaction between the two results in a transfer of energy and momentum, which (by lucky chance) leaves one of the planets in a nearly circular orbit, (while the other escapes)".

Given how big space is, and in consequence, how rarely a rogue planet enters the inner solar system, this would make the above sequence of events practically impossible.
In this unbelievable scenario, the effects on Earth and Mars would depend on how closely the new planet passes. If we are close enough for significant effects on the planet, we are in a great deal of danger.
Comment: A slightly less unlikely scenario is that the rogue is captured initially by Jupiter, ending up in an elliptical orbit with aphelion near Jupiters orbit and perihelion between  Earth and Mars. After that, a close encounter with Earth (or the Moon if it was small) could bring the aphelion inside the orbit of Mars.


MS Word meta data update

Question: I have a template that uses a number of Document Meta data in it's header/footer, like for example the Title, the Subject, Author of the document etc. Is it possible to instruct MS Word to ask user about those fields when they are empt
Answer: You can achieve this by using an IF field and a content control linked to the document property of your choosing. This is what the field code should look like, the content in the square brackets is a Title content control which was inserted using Quick Parts -> Document Property -> Title.
<code>{ IF { DOCPROPERTY Title } = "" "Please enter a document title: [Title] " "" }
</code>
Note there must be a space between the content control and the closing speech-mark.
I have uploaded an example document which demonstrate this. The only downside is that after the user enters in a value for the title and clicks away the prompt doesn't disappear, this must be done by pressing F9 to update fields or if you put the whole field in the header footer, by going into print preview.

MS Word meta data update


Free plugins for making drones and textures?

Question: I want to be able to process audio files or synths to create new drones and textures in Logic Express 9. Anyone has any suggestions of which free plugins are worth a try?
Answer: Paulstretch is great for creating long, evolving textures and drones out of anything. Guitar riffs work incredibly well if you want a place to start.
Logic also has a convolution plugin called Space Designer, great for convolving two sounds together.
An interesting combination you can try out is having the sound of fire crackling be your source audio and a synth pad as the AUX sound. Process with some delays and reverbs for added warmth.
Answer: Michael Norris' Soundmagic plugin suite has an FFT dronemaker included.  I've gotten some pretty good stuff out of it.


Should I write a small test for every ticket / defect?

Question: We have unit and integrations tests in our project and want to work test driven. One questions that raise up is this: When a ticket is created because somebody found a bug, should we create a small test case just for that bug, or should we include this case in the general tests?
Answer: Welcome to SQA, Tim.
I do not create a new test case for every bug.  I believe testing is about managing risk.  If I believe the risk of a a bug reappearing is low, I will test the bug when the developer says it is fixed, but I will not re-test it for every subsequent release.  Judging risk is subjective, and sometimes my judgement is wrong, but I think this way of testing is a better use of resources than testing for every bug that has ever appeared.
Other organizations may manage risk differently because of the nature of their business, their regulatory environment, or the culture of the company.
Comment: Isn't the fact, that this bug existed in the first place, a good indicator for a fragile feature in most cases?
Comment: If by fragile you mean likely to have more bugs, I do not think so.  But I think that is a different issue than whether a fixed bug is likely to break again some time in the future.
Answer: Creating a test based on a bug is a good way to drive the development and provide an acceptable pass condition for the fix.
While i agree that smaller bugs that are hard to re-create probably aren't worth building a test around, there may be some merit in seeing how often it does actually pop up and the test does fail.
Answer: I believe the answer is "it depends". If you're talking about a unit test, why not? These should be the bulk of your tests anyway, and usually run very fast. But it may not be worth the time or money.
If you're talking about functional tests, probably not. But again, it depends. Was the bug a cross-browser or OS issue? Was it a logical bug or typo? Will the test give you a satisfactory level of confidence that it wouldn't happen again? What is the business impact if the bug happens again? How much does it cost the company to have you write a test for a particular bug? Is there sufficient ROI or risk mitigation to make it worthwhile?
These are the types of questions that you need to prioritize before you can really determine if a particular bug should have a corresponding test, and the business needs usually take precedence over all else.
Comment: Exactly.  If you always re-test every bug that has ever been fixed, do you necessarily get better quality?  It may be better to spend that time testing in other ways.  Or to spend less time testing.
Answer: Just like with everything else in IT - it depends. Depends on whether the bug can be easily reproduced, it depends on how severe this bug is, depends on the chance of the bug reappearing again somewhere in the future. Someone said before me that it's all about managing software testing risk and I agree with it. While it may seem to be tempting to cover EVERYTHING with tests, it is a waste of time and resources, in the long run, it would be writing tests for the sake of writing tests.
Answer: I'm not sure what the difference is between a "small test" and "general tests".
Anyway, we add tests based on bugs to our main test suite, with some exceptions.
One of the exceptions is the test not being a "small test", some bugs are difficult and time consuming to replicate or verify.
Another exception is "not our bug", meaning a bug in an adjusting module that we are not responsible for (unless it's really trivial to be tested).


Increment a pointer with a fixed value

Question: The code below is an example and the addresses are meant to point to a flash memory of an microcontroller so it wont point to any garbage data.
What I am trying to do is to point the pointer "end_adress" to the end of the memory block. In this case the start of the block is 0x00001000 and end of the block is 0x00002000. I want to set the "end_adress" variable by using the knowledge of the starting address and the size of the memory block.
Is this a good way of solving the problem?
Good is in terms of readable code, any other suggestions are mostly welcomed!
static const uint32_t memory_size = 0x00001000;
static volatile const uint32_t* start_address = (volatile const uint32_t*)0x00001000;
static volatile uint32_t* end_address;

int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
    end_address = start_address + (memory_size/sizeof(end_address));
    printf("End adress: %x \n", end_address);

    return 0;
}

Answer: To solve your problem, replace this
end_address = start_address + (memory_size/sizeof(end_address));

with:
end_address = start_address + (memory_size/sizeof(*end_address));

Reason: end_address itself is a pointer while *end_address is actually the data type that the pointer points to. It would lead to a problem when sizeof(uint32_t) != sizeof(char*) e.g. on 64-bit or 16-bit systems.
However as you're operating with memory addresses, I would suggest you to use pointers with type char* so you could do direct arithmetic with it:
char *memory_size = 0x00001000;
uint32_t memory_size = 0x1000;
char *end_address = memory_size + memory_size;
/* then it's assured that end_address == 0x00002000 */

Comment: Use `char*` instead of `void*`. Arithmetic won't work on `void*` (unless the compiler allows it as a language extension).
Answer: Your way is almost ok (except the *end_address) as mentioned in another answer. However, there is still one problem.
Your memory_size is in bytes, while sizeof gives a multiple of chars. sizeof(char) is always one, but a char may not necessarily be one byte (one example is a TI chip for which I'm coding these days where a char has two bytes).
Let's see what happens in that case:
/* char is two bytes */
/* sizeof(char) == 1 */
/* sizeof(uint32_t) == 2 */
end_address = start_address + (memory_size/sizeof *end_address);

which translates to:
end_address = (uint32_t *)0x1000 + (0x1000 / 2);

which translates to:
end_address = (uint32_t *)0x1000 + 0x800;

which means 0x800 * 4 bytes after 0x1000, which is 0x3000 (not 0x2000).
What you should do to be sure is use CHAR_BIT (from limits.h) that tells how many bytes makes one character. Then do:
end_address = start_address + memory_size / sizeof *end_address / (CHAR_BIT / 8);

assuming CHAR_BIT is a multiple of 8. If it's not, you would have to know what is the number of bits in a byte and divide by that!
Note that I do / (CHAR_BIT / 8) (instead of * 8 / CHAR_BIT) to prevent any possible overflow.

Alternatively, you can write:
end_address = (void *)((char *)start_address + memory_size / (CHAR_BIT / 8));

which may look clearer or more cluttered depending on what you're used to, but is otherwise the same.

Increment a pointer with a fixed value


Canning chow chow

Question: I canned 5 jars of chow chow about 1 1/2 weeks ago and just realized I forget to put them in
a water bath after the canning process. Should I through them out? They did seal.
Comment: Welcome to Seasoned Advice! There are many different ways of canning, and some may be safe if a step is ommitted, others not. We cannot help you without more information. Please post a description of the canning process you were following, including any instructions for holding times and temperatures at each step, so we can see if it is processed enough. You may still save those jars :)
Comment: I boiled the jars and lids @ 180 degrees for 10 minutes. Cooked chow chow for 30 minutes, filled jars, removed air bubbles, wiped top of jar, put on lids and bands.
Answer: Chow chow has enough acid and salt in it that you wouldn't need to pressure can it, however in order for it to be safe long-term you would need to process the jars in boiling water. If you haven't done this then your only option after a week and a half would be to throw them out.

Canning chow chow


How can I optimize my inventory for weight vs. value in Skyrim?

Question: I am really missing the ability to sort my inventory by weight and value when deciding what to drop when I am overly encumbered and unable to run.  I read a rule of thumb that said to drop anything where value is less than 10x weight.  Are there any better methods or guidelines for maximizing the value of the loot I carry back to a merchant?
Comment: Doubt it, I go by the 10x rule myself (I just figured it'd be best), but sometimes everything I have is over 10x, so I just drop the one with the lowest ratio, or the heaviest if there's a tie.
Comment: Modding the inventory menus to not suck is going to be popular when the Creation Kit comes out…
Comment: I always divide the weight by the cost to get the cost-per-unit ratio.  Ditch the items with a low ratio in favor of those with a higher ratio.  This is really only helpful in the beginning of the game, though, because once you learn the banish enchantment, your money problems are over for the rest of the game.
Comment: Strongly related: http://gaming.stackexchange.com/a/294609/108003
Answer: It pains me to leave something behind in a cave or dungeon after hours of battle and scavanging for treasure, rare ingredients, weapons etc... but, where there's a will, you will find a way! Here are some handy tips for the hoarding junkies like me:
PS... none of these tips are spoilers, they will simply make your Skyrim experience that much more enjoyable or less frustrating (depending on whether you're a glass half-full or half-empty type :-) )

Most importantly, Get yourself a follower. I've used Faendel and Lydia and they're rather useful mules who can carry as much as you, but DON'T let them die! To prevent them from dying, equip them with the best weapons, armour, enchanted items and give them some restoration and fortification potions, which they will use in one of those long, tough battles where enemies are relentless. Make sure you use your 'courage' spell to help them recover if they're knocked down. Always save your game before getting into a chaotic battle... too many times I've stumbled over the body of my faithful follower after a serious confrontation... but at least I could start again! F5 (quicksave) and F9 (quickload) are a Skyrimmer's best friends!
Get your Follower to pick items up... If you want your follower to be able to carry AN ENDLESS amount of items, without worrying about weight and without using a cheat (I don't use cheats as it defeats the object of the game), simply drop whatever item you want them to carry and instruct them to pick it up using the 'talk' menu and selecting 'There's something I want you to do for me'... If your follower isn't over encumbered, just use the 'I want to trade something with you' selection to move items from your inventory into theirs.
Potion of Strength - Find or create a few bottles of this potion which will fortify your strength (load carrying capacity) usually for about 300 seconds. In a dungeon or cave, drop all your heavy items somewhere that has been cleared of creatures. Keep growing the pile through the quest. When completed, go and pick up all the items you dropped and knock back a Potion of Strength... This will give you plenty of time to hightail it out of the cave back to Skyrim... but if you're on foot, this won't be enough to get you back to a village to sell your items. If on foot, and your potion is still effective, you can fast travel back to your house or a village to sell your wares. But there's a better, more reliable solution, particularly if you don't want to leave the area just yet..
Buy a horse... this is a MUST for any Skyrim Hoarder. Even when you're over encumbered, you can travel at normal speeds and even fast travel when on horseback!... Good ol' "Trigger"! My horse is my fortune so I keep it alive at any cost... you should too because it will make you richer, faster!
Buy a house... As mentioned in previous posts, you need a house to safely store the many goodies you will collect on your journey's through Skyrim... because you never know when you might need them (typical hoarder comment :-))! I've done all the upgrades on my home in Whiterun, which gives me plenty of cupboards, side cupboards, chests, sacs, satchels etc to store my goodies in.
Enchanted items... Find or create items enchanted with strength magic. This is the fasted way to increase your stamina points so that you can carry more than your skill level allows. My Elven Boots of Strength give me an extra 35 points of carrying capacity. I even have an amulet, helmet and ring with strength enchantments, allowing me to carry more items earlier in the game. The more you collect, the more you can sell and the sooner you can buy a house, horse and dog (PS... buy a dog from Markuth)
Lightweight armour & weapons... Elven armour and weapons ROCK! Most items weight between 1 and 4 points while providing you with ample damage and block capability. Put an enchantment on them and you're unstoppable! I acquired most of these items on side missions long before levelling up to 20.
Plan what you need to carry... before taking on a quest or side mission, think about what kind of equipment, weapons, apparel, ingredients etc you will need. If you need magic, then you don't need to carry all your ingredients with you, so put them into a chest in your house until you want to do something that relates to Alchemy. Do the same with other items like ore and ingots, dragon bones & scales, chitin etc, which you will only need when Smithing (they weight A LOT)... and don't carry EVERY potion you've created. Only carry the potions you use. I never use potions that fortify or restore stamina, so I either store them or more often, I just sell them for some extra 'coin'!

I'm sure there are many other things you can do as such is the wonderful, exciting adventure of Skyrim.
I hope you find some of these tips useful. Happy hunting!
Comment: Nice first answer!
Comment: Tx Victoria... even I was impressed because when it comes to Skyrim, I have faaar more questions than answers, which is what makes this game so epic.
Answer: Well, lacking a precise formula (even though there certainly is one, the problem can be nailed down mathematically since the only variables are the weight of items, the value of items, and the total amount that you can carry), all I can do is give you some tips:

If you don't want to invest perk points in armor trees, get light armor. In the end game, light armor will give you the same protection as heavy armor does, but it is... well.. lighter. Source: http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Skyrim:_Armor
Get rid of dragon bones! Although selling them might be a bad idea, since you can craft dragon bone armor if you get deep into the smithing skill tree.
Stay away from 2H weapons. They are among the most heavy objects in the game, while usually not having a very high value.
Store your books somewhere! At least I picked up every book that I could find, promising myself to read them one day. But carrying around 50 or so books (there are a lot in Skyrim!) takes up at least a good fifth or your carrying capacity - for little to no value. Get a house and put them in a box!
Search for gems and soulstones! They weigh almost nothing and are usually decently valuable.
The same goes for enchanted necklaces, rings, and robes. All of them are ridiculously light compared to their value.

These are the ones that come to mind right now.
Comment: This problem is actually the well-known knapsack problem: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knapsack_problem.
However, I don't think Skyrim comes with a built-in knapsack problem solver. ;)
Comment: True, light armor is lighter, but both light and heavy armor have perks that negate the weight of armor worn - Unhindered and Conditioning, respectively.
Comment: Investing in a home as early as possible is vital for being able to leave your heavy collections (dragon bones/scales, books, etc.) somewhere safe.
Comment: Until an algorithm fetishist mods one in...
Comment: @heishe There is a online compilation of all the skyrim books.
Try googling it, i have it on my Kindle, and i read it daily, but all the books,as they are ingame, are just a short chapter or so of an entire book.
Comment: Oh yes, I forgot about that. I expanded that section a bit :P
Answer: For the PC gamer who doesn't mind installing mods, the SkyUI mod brings to Skyrim the ability to sort by Weight and/or Value.
From the mod's page:

• Sortable columns to order items by a specific stat. Multi-state columns to sort by value/weight ratio, and to quickly quickly single out equipped, stolen, enchanted or poisoned items.
Answer: Although it's more 'expanding' rather than 'optimizing', the one biggest thing you can do to maximize the loot you can carry, is to get a follower.
You can access their inventory through a dialogue option, effectively doubling your carrying capacity.
Also:

Increasing your stamina at level up also increases carrying capacity by 5.
With alchemy you can create Potions of Strength to temporarily increase capacity if you're in a bind.
Arrows do not weigh anything. Although the basic ones (I think with damage 8 or below) sell for 0, anything above that is free gold for zero weight.
Comment: Additionally, you can expand your carrying capacity by 100 with the [Extra Pockets perk](http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Skyrim:Pickpocket#Skill_Perks) (requires Pickpocket 50 and the Light Fingers perk).
Answer: Well, I sneak around a lot in Boethiah's Ebony Mail, and I also have the Lightfoot perk (I power-levelled Sneak by sneak-attacking my own zombies to death... and yes, I shouted, "Get up so I can kill you again," at them in real life).  My followers only ever get me spotted or trigger traps that I try to steer them around (watch "Lydia vs. Gate" on YouTube if you haven't seen it yet - there needs to be an "avoid that" command).  I also don't fast travel because the game is so beautiful and I love to take in the views as I pick my way over mountains, and I usually try to do like four missions at once after letting them pile up for a bit while I wander around looking for work.  So that's how I enjoy playing, and this is the looting system I've developed for it:
1.  First thing I did after becoming Thane of Whiterun was to take a carriage to Solitude (I played the first 13 levels twice at two different friends' places when I didn't have the game yet, so I didn't count this against my "don't fast travel" rule) and nab the Steed Stone.  Weightless armor and 100 extra carry weight is win.  The Thieves' Guild gives you armor with an additional 20 carry weight, too, if you're into light armor.
2.  Keep all your crafting stuff at home.  If you don't have a home, buy materials and then craft on the spot and sell your stuff right away.  The first thing you should notice when you do this is that those iron daggers are worth less than the materials used to make them - which leads us to our next point...
3.  Once you're past level 10, shift to a 25:1 loot threshold.  Honestly, you're not going to miss those banded iron greaves.  You're a busy Dovahkiin, you have places to do and things to shout at, and there will be plenty of magical items on the way.  The vendors have limited gold, so it's not like you can sell them the whole dungeon anyway.  When you're 20, shift to 50:1.  At 30, 100:1.  You eventually come back to town with pockets full of enchanted staves, expensive jewelry, and precious gems.  I bankrupt every town I visit and store the excess at home for enchanting practice, then visit the magic vendors and bankrupt them.  And in order to do this intelligently...
4.  Have a sales route.  I stop by the alchemist first, because s/he only buys potions.  If s/he has money leftover, I sell my dragon parts (if I have any).  Then I visit the magic vendor and sell my staves and enchanted weapons.  Then I go to the smith and sell the rest of my enchanted weapons.  Then I go to the general store and sell everything else.  Sell your mundane weapons last, if you plan on practicing enchanting (iron daggers of zombie-scaring are the best markup I've found).  Stash the rest at home.  And speaking of which...
5.  Organize your house!  Have a chest for each type of crafting, as well as the trophies you don't have room to display and the loot you haven't been able to sell yet.  This makes it so much easier to get your "chores" done when it's time to work.  Also, it helps you RP when you remember what came from where, and here's a little story to prove it (no spoilers, promise).  I married the person who turned me into a werewolf, and I proposed with a pair of gold rings made from a gold ingot I lifted during our first hunt together.  It had been months, but I knew it was the gold ingot because I am freaking organized and I kept track of where I put it.  Better RP through personal organization!
6.  Finally, what brings it all together:  don't loot for looting's sake, quest for money's sake!  I have more money than I know what to do with, enough to buy and fully decorate at least three more houses, and I've been gunning for these places ever since I finished my initial power-levelling push (grinding smithing, taking weapon perks, then doing whatever the Hell I like).  I can't sell my loot fast enough, and I can't spend my money hard enough, because I can make stuff better than I can buy and nobody can buy everything I have to sell.  So I guess that's the optimum looting strategy, if you ask me:  do your quests out in the world, and only pause when you're so full of high-efficiency loot that you can't carry any more.  You'll be rolling in riches in no time.
Answer: Additionally, and this could be considered a exploit so puritans aren't going to want to use it, you can dump all of your items either on the ground or in a chest, then tell your follower to pick them up or empty the chest. In this way your follower can carry literally anything, I've taken as much as 2000 pounds off mine, once I've reached my home. Your follower can't become encumbered, so you and she will be just as fast as if she were carrying nothing.
Be warned, if you do this, everything your follower has picked up will be marked as stolen! Even if you tell her to empty out a chest of things that you just crafted, in your own house, that no one else has ever touched. So you won't be able to sell them to non-fences, and they'll all be taken if you let yourself get arrested.
Another somewhat inventory related phenomenon I found is that if you give your follower a soul trap weapon and 100 soul gems, killing one petty soul will fill all the gems in her inventory. Definitely a bug, but an interesting one. Corollarily, if you give her grand soul gems but let her kill a petty soul will a soul trap weapon, they'll all be filled with petty souls, so watch out.
Answer: Also, for anyone travelling short distances while overencumbered,e.g. to a house or a chest, you move faster with your bow drawn. This can be further increased with the archery perk that increases your speed with an arrow drawn.
Answer: When I'm almost through a dungeon, but still have a few more rooms to scavenge and I'm maxed out on carry weight, there's a few things I do because I get desperate and I love hoarding.

I apply poisons to the weapons that I use to remove them from my potions menu clearing up some weight.
I recharge any magic weapons I have to clear some weight from gem stones.
I eat/drink any food that I can find later, ( I love saving food items for my kitchen, but I always find myself sacrifing food to clear weight. )
If there's an arcane enchanter nearby, I go to OT and destroy any enchanted items that I haven't learned the enchantments to, and that I don't care to keep as trophy's, ( eg. Mage robes )
If i have food items that weigh a lot and salt piles, I cook up some stews that weight less, half a pound usually, producing a better food item for later use and trimming down some weight.
Same as the last point, if I have heavier alchemical ingredients, I mix potions with these to create lighter potions, ( usually half pound or less. )
I check my books menu for any spell tomes that I haven't learned and use them to learn a new spell and clear up some weight.
Same as the point where I eat up food, I also eat up less important ingredients that are easier to replace and I start chugging the cheaper potions like basic stamina and magicka potions.
If there's a smelter nearby or blacksmiths work station, I make ingots that require 2 ores to cut weight in half.

Yes I know these are all desperate measures, but I take them when I've run out of options.
Answer: Well you actually don't want to sort by weight. The important thing is the weight to value ratio.
As you noted, a good rule of thumb is that anything less than 1:10 isn't worth it.
So you only take loot that has gold value of 10 per every weight.  For example, if something weighs 37 it should be valued at at least 370.
This generally fills your capacity by end of the dungeon. If there is more, then you can raise your threshold over 10. Then, you can start dropping things that are only 1:10, or not much over. Twenty is an easy next step.
All you need to do is basic arithmetic. Just load up on stuff that's 1:10, and start dropping things based on new, higher ratios as you fill up.
As an example, a silver sword that weighs 7 and costs 100 is more valuable (100 / 7 = 14.3) than gauntlets that weigh 2 and cost 25 (25 / 2 = 12.5).
If you're having trouble doing the division in your head, you can use a calculator. Over time, you'll learn which things to pick up and which to ignore, so that you can know which things to pick up without having to do the calculations over and over.
This allows you to instantly know when looking through a corpse which items are worth taking without even looking at values, solely from memory.  For example, when looting Stormcloaks: take the shield, arrows, hide armor and hide gauntlets, and scaled helmet. Done in 3 seconds.  These all have value of 1:10 or greater.  Eventually, against say silver hands, you pretty much only take the silver swords at 7:100. So on and so forth.
I almost always just barely max out my carry weight by the end of the dungeon with this simple method, essentially guaranteeing I always get the most possible profit every time.
Comment: Your answer would be improved by editing out all of the condescending language:  "you actually don't want to" "nothing can help you" "you are hopeless" "I don't understand what could possibly be at all challenging".
Comment: +1 because this is all correct, and contains most of the information I would include if I were to write an answer, but it could certainly use a rewrite to be more polite. I can completely understand people not upvoting this.
Comment: Actually, this user hasn't been on since 2011. I'll just rewrite this for them.
Answer: Bring up your enchanting skill to 100 to dual enchant. Use the highest enchanting potion to get the most value at the enchanter.  Rings, necklaces and gauntlets (elven) can be dual enchanted with a carry weight and a skill enhancement.  So I have over 50 carry weight each on at least three items at all times. Also use boots with 40-45 carry weight and low object weight. There is a mask with another 20% extra carry weight or the St. Jiub necklace. Use elven armor and use the Blacksmith potion to get the armor to epic or better. My elven armor is at 68 with a weight of 4 lbs. The armor is stronger than ebony or daedric with less weight.  If you use the heavy or light armor skill tree the armor can weigh nothing.  Go to the Steed Stone to add carry weight and there is another bonus on the pickpocket? tree. Blackguard armor will add another 50 that you will get for the Mallory quest in Solstein.
Comment: This doesn't really say how to maximize the value of loot, just how to carry more.  If the OP had 100 carry weight then 100 x 1 Septim value items is worth less than 2 x 1000 Septim value items, but both take the same weight.


How to avoid mentioning the name of a character?

Question: I am writing a short story which features a character known only as Old Man, but there is a part of the story where someone calls the Old Man by his name. Only once, and I was wondering if there was a way to have it so that the name is said but not mentioned in the story. My story is written from the third person.
Comment: Is it a mystery that he is Old Man?  If not, you should introduce him in a third person narration as John "Old Man" Smith and then refer to hims as Old Man until the dialog calls for "John or Mr. Smith"  Another way is to have a character who is close to Old Man call him by "John" as sign that they only use their name when it's serious.
Comment: Write in the first person.  See   du Maurier's "Rebecca" for the classic example.
Comment: Peter shout on (called) the Old Man, by his name. And so on ..
Answer: Sure, take the example of the Library story arc in Doctor Who, we see River Song tell the Doctor his name by way of convincing him she's trustworthy but we don't hear it. The audience only know what she told him because she says she's going to tell him and only know it's the right name because of the Doctor's reaction to it. The same is possible in written fiction as well:

X leaned over and whispered into the Old Man's ear. The colour drained from his weatherbeaten features, then he found his voice. "But how do you know that name?" he sputtered.

Or something similar, the key is to show the information being used without actually saying what that information is.
Answer: Have the narrator tell the action in that place, not show it.  Then show Old Man's reaction.
Example:
"Nothing gives you the right to do this."
Old Man sat back down in his chair, hoping Taylor would take the hint and go.  Instead, he bent over so close Old Man smelled beer and onions on his breath.  Then Taylor whispered something Old Man had last heard from his wife's dying lips.  Too many years to count.
"How?..." Old Man asked him.
Taylor stood. "I know more than you think.  More than just your name, Old Man."
And so on...
Comment: +1 got goosebumps when reading "I know more than you think. More than just your name, Old Man."
Comment: Damn, now I want to know more about the Old Man and his late wife, and what is this Taylor guy up to.
Answer: I think a good way to do this is to simply said "(person) called his name." or something like that.
Comment: @LightnessRacesinOrbit: I wouldn't consider that a problem unless the name is significant to the plot.  If the name is going to be a plot point later, then this is a Bad Idea.  If the name is being omitted because it's *not* supposed to matter, then eliding it in this fashion is perfectly unobjectionable (just like eliding any other irrelevant detail).
Comment: @LightnessRacesinOrbit: Well, you're welcome to your opinion, but without any story-mechanical reasoning for why this is actually a problem, I think we have to agree to disagree.  I would not be uncomfortable with reading this storytelling technique.
Comment: I agree with you, @LightnessRacesinOrbit. It feels a little jarring to have the mention of the name be so on the nose. Do you think a grammatical trick to de-emphasize the use of the name in the sentence structure would make it more palatable?
Comment: The problem with this is that your characters can hear something that your readers can't, which creates a disconnect between your readers and the story. I really would try to avoid the name being audible in-universe; you can have _some_ characters hear it (e.g. as a targeted whisper, or as an anecdote of something that happened elsewhere), but from the perspective of the narrator or whoever's telling the story, it should be inaudible so as to maintain disbelief.
Comment: @Kevin: IMO it would be like introducing a character without describing them, stating their appearance, what they say, it's just not a good way to tell a story! And I feel the reader will notice that and be uncomfortable. I would at least.
Comment: Maybe it's just me then! But I would expect to at least have a lantern hung on it.
Comment: @Don01001100 Yes I think so though off-hand I can't think of an example
Comment: @LightnessRacesinOrbit, I gave that a try in a comment to a different answer below. I'm sure one could further diminish the prominence than I did there, but it's something.
Comment: @Don01001100 That works really well
Answer: You can say e.g. "upon hearing his name, he turned..."
Comment: @Don01001100 p.s. If I were writing this I'd probably dance around the not using of the name by talking about the name at length, how they react upon hearing it, what the name means to the person, when they last heard it, why they're surprised to hear it, what it might mean that somebody uttered it etc
Comment: What would go just before this? Something like "Balt called out to the Old Man, and upon hearing his name, he turned...," perhaps? I'm not sure why burying the mention of the name in a preposition phrase makes it feel less jarring to me than Kale Slade's suggestion.
Comment: @Don01001100 you could precede it with mention of calling out but you needn't. I like economy of word so I probably wouldn't. E.g. you could begin "he walked directly towards X, his gaze fixed, but upon hearing his name called from a grey figure huddled on the sand, he turned..."
Answer: Note: This answers a slightly looser requirement that "the real name is not mentioned in the story". This isn't precisely what the OP asked, and may not work for them, but may suit others in a broadly similar situation.
You could perhaps adopt/adapt the technique used in the spy novel The Ipcress File by Len Deighton. Although the film of the book gave the main character a name (Harry Palmer), Deighton did not. At one point in the book he has another character refer to the protagonist by name (while in an airport bookshop):

I was killing a minute with the paperbacks when I heard a soft voice say, 'Hello, Harry.'
Now my name isn't Harry, but in this business it's hard to remember whether it ever had been.

and "Harry" shrugs it off as a previously-used false name. That works well for a cloak-and-dagger spy story, but there are variants you could use in a more run-of-the-mill setting, for instance:

Old Man didn't know why [she | certain people] had decided his name was "John": it wasn't, but he couldn't be bothered correcting them.

Note: The technique Deighton uses keeps it clear to the reader that they don't know the name of the main character: he has not been named up to this point in the book, and as soon as a name is mentioned, it is immediately made clear that it is not the character's real name.
This is in contrast to, say, The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth. Here (spoiler-block for anyone who has not read the book):

 The main character is identified early on – both to characters within the story and to the reader – as Charles Calthrop. While we [the reader] see him assume many false identities throughout the book to evade the authorities, we "know" he is Charles Calthrop. It is only in the epilogue that this certainty is disabused and we learn that neither we, nor the authorities, know his real name.
Comment: As a side note, this has been used (albeit in a direct homage to the Deighton style of spy novel) by Charles Stross in his Laundry series. Essentially, the name given to us for the character is Bob Howard (Bob Oliver Francis Howard in full, which is a rather subtle geek I M A Pseudonym) and several times in the books, he alludes to the fact that this isn't his real name, but since you are reading his secret service memoirs/case reports the names have been changed for security reasons.
Comment: This seems to be answering a question different from what the OP asked.
Comment: @Acccumulation Not precisely the same, but related: I'm answering more how to satisfy "but _the real name is_ not mentioned in the story". There are good answers for how not to mention the name _at all_; I think this is a useful variant. It might not work for the OP's situation, but might for others in a similar position. I'll update the answer to acknowledge this explicitly.
Answer: I'd imagine, the Old Man is one of the central characters of your story. Why not name the story after him and use his name there?
Doing so would accentuate his stature while creating an air of mystery. Allowing one person to called the Old Man by his name also conveys depth and sensitivity.
I'm not sure if you've got a short story title in mind but I would simply call it "John" and leave it at that.


(Exchange 2003) Outlook Web Access and firefox

Question: We are evaluating to switch our mailenable mail server to an exchange 2003 one.
The web interface of mailenable is great, and works fine with firefox.
I am wondering if outlook web access (exchange 2003) can be configured to work with firefox in premium mode (as everyone in the company is urged to use firefox)
Answer: Not with Exchange 2003.  The Premium client will be accessible via Firefox in the Exchange 14 release.  More details:
http://msexchangeteam.com/archive/2009/02/12/450639.aspx
Answer: I realize this is anecdotal but I'm using firefox on Fedora to access OWA (2k3 Exchange server) and it works flawlessly.  On my XP virtual machine it works fine in firefox as well.  On the other hand, getting a linux mail client to talk to exchange is a nightmare.
Answer: We have Exchange 2003 server and run webmail, routing through an ISA proxy server for external access.  I would not do the ISA proxy again, it has been troublesome.  I would likely do an Exchange gateway instead.
I disagree with kentchen about OWA in Firefox; it is a good solution.  It isn't as pretty as OWA in IE, and there isn't drag and drop to folders, but it is really fast.  Unless they are using Outlook now, you won't hear complaints. The IETab add-on is a reasonable option, as long as the users are discouraged from using it for other sites.
Answer: No, but you can have them use IE8 instead, you should also consider going to exchange 2007 for a better OWA experience
Answer: It would be better using IE TAb add-on in Firefox (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1419). It basically uses IE engine inside the Firefox. I have been using it for years and found it very useful. It has become one of the must-have add-ins in my Firefox.
Don't have the experience for Exchange 2007, but until 2003, OWA is best used in IE, not other browsers.


What caused my wort to be this cloudy, and how can I get it to clear?

Question: I recently did two experimental all-grain gluten-free batches, and got some strange results; so much sediment that it looks like milk! Initially, looked about the same, and I thought about running through a filter, but decided to see if it would settle at all. After 5 days, this was the result. These do not have yeast in them, as I decided that I might filter and re-boil.
To the left is Batch 2, the shorter mash with the longer cereal cooking step which looks like rice-milk with only an inch or so clear at the top, to the right is Batch 1, which was the over-night mash. It looks almost normal now, but the trub layer is thicker than what I am used to seeing come straight out of a kettle... (Albeit this is only my third all-grain brew...)

My questing is what could have caused these (especially batch 2) to be so ridiculously cloudy?
I am guessing this might simply be small flour particles, but then why would batch 1 be clear of them?
Is it possible the higher temp of cooking in Batch 2 extracted more protien?
Is that related to the high gravity reading?
Perhaps my temperature control temperature on batch 2 was lacking, or the enzymes are not as potent as stated and failed to achieve complete conversion of starch? Could this result in cloudy wort? Why would the gravity reading be the same then?
A second question would be how on earth can I filter this? A coffee filter would surely just clog right up, and this stuff is so small it can go right through a fine mesh bag like it's nothing. Is there any practical way to filter these?
Is it possible that after fermenting, the whole thing would settle out somehow? Maybe it just needs more time? Like months?
-Details-
For any possible relevant details I can think of... Here's the whole process. (These are 1 gallon batches.)
10 oz white rice
13 oz millet
Grains were not malted.
Ground in a bur grinder set to it's most course setting, which resulting in a mix of particle sizes from what looks about corn-meal size down to very fine flour.
2L of 'strike' water was used. (About 1.5 qt / lbs)
In both cases, the mash became thick and hard to stir before enzyme was added, and thinned very quickly afterward.
The enzymes are SEBAMYL BAL and SEBAMYL L. According to the seller, they are best used together in a "Reverse Step Mash", adding BAL first at 165, then adding L later at 145.
The mash is where the two experiments diverge.
Batch 1: Kettle on stove, keeping burner on very low to maintain temp.
Raise temp to 185 F, stir and cook for 20 minutes.
Wait for temp to lower temp to 165F, then add first enzyme.
After 60 minutes, lower temp to 145 F and add second enzyme.
I started doing did iodine tests after an hour, and after 2 hours still had indications of starch.
I decided to let it go overnight, using an oven to hold it near 145.
Iodine test still turned purple. Wort looked thin and tasted sweet though, so I decided to continue anyway.
Batch 2 was done in an InstantPot pressure cooker, generally leaving heat off and relying on it's insulation to keep temp.
Same grain & water etc.
Cook at 212 for 30 minutes, stirring constantly.
Cool to 155, then slowly raise to 165. (To help ensure temp reading is correct.)
Added first enzyme and leave for an hour.
Cool to 145, add second enzyme, and hold for 2 hours.
This also failed the iodine test, turning dark purple immediately.
I figured the iodine test might be picking up flour particles, so I decided to ignore it and call the mash done.
The 'sparge' step was the same for each. It was just me pouring a measured amount of warm water over the grains as they sat in a nylon mesh bag over a pot. This was done to help recover some of the sugars that would otherwise be lost between the grains.
After this, I took gravity readings of each using a hydrometer. Samples were taken from each kettle and cooled to 68F (the hydro's calibrated temp.)
Both read 1.045, which is really weird to me, because I was expecting 23 oz of grain to yeild at most 1.025, of sugars...
Added hops (pellet, but kept in muslin cloth bag), boiled both for 60 minutes, added about 1/4 tablet of whirlfloc in the last 10 minutes, chilled with immersion chiller, then racked. I did not add yeast, because I immediately noticed that they were both way too cloudy.
Answer: Yeah that's starch alright.  Add more enzymes, either at room temp or below 155 F.  I would expect enzymes to denature fast at 165 F.  Might need to leave the enzymes in overnight or even for several days?  I'm not sure how long as I've never done this.  Only boil after the iodine test comes out negative.
No use in filtering with that much starch in there.  Gelatin might remove some minor haze, but probably not THAT much.
I wish you the best, hope this works out for you.


TLS 1.3 Security against PKCS#1v1.5

Question: This paper explains an attack on TLS 1.3. This was published way back in 2015 when TLS RFC was in draft stage.
My question is now TLS 1.3 RFC is finalized, is this attack got addressed?
Comment: related [Why Static RSA and Diffie-Hellman cipher suites have been removed in TLS 1.3?](https://crypto.stackexchange.com/q/67604/18298)
Answer: There is an encryption scheme called RSAES-PKCS1-v1_5, or PKCS#1v1.5 for short. There is a signature scheme called RSASSA-PKCS1-v1_5, or PKCS#1v1.5 for short. These two schemes have different security postures.
The signature scheme has no particular weakness as long as the implementation is functionally correct and the use of the private key has no exploitable side channel leak. There is a class of attacks against PKCS#1v1.5 due to Bleichenbacher, but it's due to implementations of signature verification that don't verify everything they should. Vulnerable implementations still existed in 2019, but major implementations of PKCS#1v1.5 have been safe for ages.
The encryption scheme is extremely difficult to implement correctly because decryption is vulnerable to padding oracle attacks. Some ciphertexts are invalid, and merely revealing whether a ciphertexts is valid or not, even through a very small timing difference, is enough to allow attackers to decrypt arbitrary ciphertexts. To make matters worse, revealing partial information about a plaintext after a successful decryption can also allow the attack. This class of attacks is also due to Bleichenbacher (there's also a similar class of attacks known as Manger's attack). There was a big wave of disclosures in late 2018 nicknamed "the 9 lives of Bleichenbacher's CAT", and it's probably not the last one. PKCS#1v1.5 encryption is extremely hard to implement and use correctly and many voices are calling to stop using it altogether.
TLS up to 1.2 has cipher suites that use RSA encryption: the client encrypts a master secret, the server decrypts it, this master secret becomes a shared key for the subsequent communication, and the client knows that it's talking to the correct server because only the correct server can decrypt the master secret. TLS also has cipher suites that use RSA signatures: the two parties perform an unauthenticated key agreement to establish a master secret, the server signs the handshake data, and the client verifies the signature to ensure that it's talking to the correct server.
If a server is willing to use a cipher suite that uses RSA decryption, and there is a vulnerability that allows attackers to use the server as a decryption oracle, this vulnerability may also allow attackers to use the server as a signature oracle. If this is the case, then attackers can impersonate the server even against clients who refuse to use RSA decryption. The attack goes like this:

The client starts a handshake. The attacker is a man-in-the-middle and intercepts the handshake packets. The client and the attacker agrees to use a TLS cipher suite based on RSA signature.
The attacker needs to sign the handshake data. It contacts the server, which is willing to perform RSA decryption. The attacker uses the server as an oracle to construct a signature of the handshake.
The attacker sends the valid signature to the client, so the client believes that it is talking to the correct server.

This attack is possible even if the client uses TLS 1.3, which only has cipher suites based on RSA signature (as well as cipher suites using other signature schemes), not RSA encryption. The root of the problem is that the server is willing to do RSA decryption and RSA signature with the same key.
This is an illustration of the fact that it's bad practice to use the same key for two different purposes. A protocol definition cannot protect against this (other than to say "don't do it", but it's not something that the other side can detect).
Comment: Also, The ROBOT team executed an attack that they signed with facebook private key.
Answer: The attack portrayed is that you use Bleichenbacher's Oracle on some system which does PKCS#1v1.5 (thus can't be TLS 1.3) and then you use the Oracle results to impersonate that same system on TLS 1.3.
There isn't any way to address this in TLS 1.3 since it isn't a fault in TLS 1.3. If you have one or more RSA keys for which a valid certificate exists associating them to some name, and one or more of those RSA keys is used on a service vulnerable to a Bleichenbacher Oracle, then the attacker can use this to answer CertificateVerify for that valid certificate and impersonate the target in TLS 1.3.
Any TLS 1.3 client that doesn't accept RSA keys is immune. Any system in which servers don't use RSA keys for TLS 1.2 and earlier (or doesn't support old versions at all) is immune. A system which is somehow truly immune to the Bleichenbacher Oracle for RSA in PKCS#1v1.5 is immune.
Note that the attack is also probably not very practical in the real world because of timing, as the authors explain.
Comment: In TLS 1.3 the cipher suite doesn't care about public key cryptography used for authentication, it's just about the symmetric cipher used to secure the connection. But yes, if you use ECDSA for authentication then you're immune since that's not RSA.
Comment: Also, if you use different RSA certificates (more accurately, RSA private keys) for TLS 1.2 and TLS 1.3, you are immune...
Comment: Agreed , so ECDHE_ECDSA types of cipher suites are immune right ?
Comment: Oh yes , I meant signature algorithm
Comment: The problem with having two keys is why should your TLS 1.3 client not accept the apparently perfectly good RSA authentication bad guys perform with the "wrong" key? The Web PKI doesn't have an EKU which says "Only for TLS 1.2 and earlier" so the certificate looks fine. The KeyUsage field could in theory hint that a key used for encryption mustn't be used for authentication but in practice too many clients don't care.

TLS 1.3 Security against PKCS#1v1.5


How can I outline this image with a thick black border

Question: I would like to turn this image into just a simple black outline.
Like this simple hand drawn example below, but more precise.
Answer:
Choose magic wand tool set options to:

1, levels Tolerance
Anti-alias on

Click on background white
Holding shift down click inside handle, to add to the existing selection.
Invert selection  shift+ctrl+I
Make a new adjustment layer

Solid color, white

Apply a layer style of stroke

Done. Your values may be different as scale might change things.

Image 1: Results of steps.
PS: you can also turn the selection into paths. That may be marginally better for low res images as it smooths edges.

Image 2: Instead of fill, the selection was turned to path with 1,5 px fidelity and then stroked with a brush.
Answer: Grab the Pen Tool and manually draw two paths - one around the bulk of the pitcher, ignoring the handle, then one around the handle.
Then combine the vector/shape layers for the shapes into one layer.
Add a stroke if a vector layer, or add a stroke via Layer Styles.
Answer: I see you've already accepted joojaa's answer but...
In order to get a little smoother result beginning with joojaa's method set Tolerance to around 10 before making your selection...
Then after inverting your selection as joojaa has advised choose 'Select and Mask' (or 'Refine Selection' in older versions of PS), and change the view to Black and White:

Now press the B key to activate the Brush Tool (use the square bracket keys [ and ] to size the brush up and down, and press and hold the Alt key to switch from white to black), and we can manually improve the selection a bit (doesn't have to be perfect):

Then click 'OK'. Using my method, from here we just want a black & white image so press the D key to make sure you have the default colors active:

With your selection still active press:

Ctrl+Backspace to fill the center with white
Ctrl+Shift+I to invert the selection
Alt+Backspace to fill the background with black

The boundaries of the water pitcher are a little too close to the edge of the canvas for this effect, so go to Image > Canvas Size, check 'Relative' and add 40px to the width and height values.
Go to Image > Mode and choose 'Grayscale'. Now we have something like this:

Go to Filter > Filter Gallery and under 'Sketch' choose 'Stamp' and crank up the 'Smoothness' slider until the edge is looking – well, smoother... then add another filter (by clicking the 'New Effect Layer' button at bottom-right of the Filter Gallery dialog) and choose 'Photocopy'.
Mess around with the Detail and Darkness sliders until you get the effect you're after... (You can also add another instance of the Stamp filter to smooth things out even further if needed/desired):

And here, the final result:
Answer: These are all great answers, and I know i'm posting really late, but you don't have to do this, it's much too complicated. I do this:
First, I apply a stroke effect to the layer via Blending Options.

From there, all I have to do is drag the fill bar at the bottom right to 0%.

It may not be as pretty or accurate as the other answers, but it is definitely the fastest and easiest way.