Dual nationality, not sure how to switch passports!

Question: I am a US and EU citizen residing in the US. I am going backpacking throughout Africa and want to travel on my EU passport. My flight is US–Paris–Tunis–Cairo. When do I use each passport? Do I book my flight on the US passport or the EU passport? Can I leave the US on my US passport and then switch mid-flight and enter Paris with my EU passport?
Answer: The only significant restriction I know of is that you must enter the US with your US passport (there may be a restriction by the country of issue of your EU passport, but probably not). Therefore you need to carry both passports.
It doesn't matter which passport you book your outbound flight with, but it's probably a good idea to book your flight back to the US on your US passport, which if it's a return flight implies booking both on that. If you are only transiting in Paris you shouldn't need to pass border control, so it shouldn't matter which passport you use there.
You will need visas for many African countries, so present the passport that you used to get the visa when you enter that country. Present the passport that you used to book a flight when you get on that plane. Present the passport that you used to enter a country when you exit it. Should be a simple enough as long as you don't confuse airline checkin with outgoing border control.
Comment: One doesn't necessarily book flights with any passport.  Airlines collect passport data for check-in; lately they give you the opportunity to provide the information at booking, but it is not necessary.  I always check in for flights to Europe with my EU passport, and for flights to US with my US passport; these are almost always return tickets, and it has never caused the slightest problem, nor has anyone even seemed to notice.
Answer: Since you are a US citizen, you don't need to worry about the US using passenger records to implement the electronic I-94 system, and the possible confusion that using multiple passports may cause there.
You will obviously require your US passport upon returning to the US. You can book all your flights using your EU passport, and keep your US passport somewhere safe for the duration of your travels.
On your final flight back to the US, you may be asked about the lack of an ESTA on your EU passport to enter the US (which normally an EU passport holder would require). However, showing your US passport to the airline agent at that time should clear up any question about whether you will be allowed to enter the US.
Comment: You can avoid being asked about the lack of an ESTA on your final flight back to the US by checking in with your US passport.
Answer: You generally must always enter and exit a country on the same passport.
The passport you exit a country with does not have to be the same one as the one you enter the next country with.
Answer: I have two passports, I generally book my flight using whichever one works better at the destination. I leave my country of residence using my passport-with-visa. There appears to be no connection between immigration control and the airlines - the airlines want to know that you are able to enter the destination country (or they get a nice big penalty) and my country of residence simply wants to know that I didn't overstay my visa.
On more than one occasion I have used the "wrong" passport to book the flight and simply handed the other one to the destination's immigration. They don't even blink.
Comment: Indeed.  The airline is mostly concerned with your identity.  The only point at which they care about your nationality is right before you get on the plane, when they want to be as sure as they can that the destination country will let you in.  I always show my Dutch passport when I'm flying to the EU and my US one when flying to the US.  No blinking for me, either.


Can you route a URL using a restricted port to a local URL with a safe port?

Question: I work in an environment which heavily utilises non-standard restricted ports in URL's for development environments for instance ports 81-104 & 444-456. As a front end developer this causes many problems with our testing e.g. most browsers won't load webpages using these ports at all or they require startup flags or heavy configuration. This is something the server admins aren't willing to change at the moment so I"m looking for a way to be able to hit a local URL that routes to these URL's using non standard ports. Would I be able to do this in my /etc/hosts file? Are there other options or tools I should consider?
Answer: If you're looking to view a page in your browser over the standard HTTP port (80) that's generated by a server listening on a non-standard port (e.g., 81), you'd need to set up either a remote proxy on a server or a local proxy on your workstation to handle redirection.
For remote proxies, you can utilize nginx, squid, or varnish.
For local proxies, you can try Fiddler (http://www.fiddler2.com/fiddler2/) or Charles Proxy (http://www.charlesproxy.com/).
Answer: I would imagine that you should be able to use squid for this. AFAIK it can do URL redirections and port translations (in both directions).
Answer: You could do this through IPTables but that would have to be configured on the servers, alternatively you could set up some sort of proxy (NGINX, HAProxy etc.) to take connections on ports like 8000-9000 and forward them to the real ports but again this would need to be set up on the server.


Term for law workarounds

Question: Let's imagine there is some law (for example, gambling prohibition law) and malefactors try to find some workarounds to continue their business (for example, pretend like this is not gambling but lottery). What are these law workarounds called in general?
Comment: how about `evasion`?
Answer: They're called loopholes or legal loopholes, if you want to make it clear that you're referring to a loophole in a law.
As a side note, corresponding verbal phrases include exploiting the loophole or circumventing the law.
Comment: But a loophole is renaming your gamble a lottery, not 'pretending this is not gambling'.
Answer: You might say they found a loophole.
Answer: Loophole is the general term, but there's a special case:

Tax avoidance is the legal utilization of the tax regime to one's own advantage, to reduce the amount of tax that is payable by means that are within the law. By contrast, tax evasion is the general term for efforts not to pay taxes by illegal means.
Answer: A loophole is a term of derision for an exception in a law (or other legal regime).
You appear to be asking for a term to describe the practice of pretending that what one is doing is legal. There's no general term for that; the closest is "sham" which means an arrangement which purports to be one thing, but is actually something else.

Term for law workarounds


Where should I leave a bike in Amsterdam when going vacation for a few weeks?

Question: I live in central Amsterdam, and will soon be leaving the country for several weeks for Christmas. Given that I typically store my bike in one of the public racks (and don't really want to drag it up 3 flights of Dutch stairs to my apartment), what are my options for storing it during that period to avoid theft/impoundment by the authorities?
Comment: Do you have friends? :)
Comment: I leave it at work, where we have a proper bike shed. But I guess that you would have thought of that if that was an option for you. There really aren't any obvious solution beyond private storage for periods longer than two weeks.
Comment: Note that the delay for bikes parked on the street (*not* at the station) is 6 weeks. After that, an abandoned bike is kept for 6 weeks in the *fietsdepot*, and you can get it back by paying about €20 (or €35 if you want it delivered at your address).
Answer: You are gone for weeks, why not carry it up and down once? That is by far the easiest solution.
Ask a Dutch friend from Amsterdam, they know how to navigate those stairs.
Comment: This is probably what I'm going to do anyways, but I figured it'd make a useful question for others.
Answer: Carry it up to your apartment - that would be simplest and safest.

I ... don't really want to drag it up 3 flights of Dutch stairs to my apartment

Hauling a bike upstairs is indeed a harrowing experience, and I wouldn't recommend it for a few days away, but given that you're leaving for several weeks - it's worth it.
Like @EugenMartynov suggests - try to find a friend, or just a neighbor, to help you carry it up. Anything else would be more time, more effort, more money or more risk - and probably most of them at one. In my opinion.

What are my options for storing it during that period to avoid theft/impoundment by the authorities?

Some other options which I don't recommend:

Lend your bike to someone.
Put in in a bike shed at work, or somewhere else the general public can't access.
Risk it and just leave it locked on some bike rack - but make it someplace where there are always other bikes, so that it never stands out.
Ask the person on the bottom floor of your building to agree to put it somewhere (maybe in his back yard) - possibly for pay.


Is it possible to share merit to all beings like Angels, hungry ghosts, animals etc

Question: I read stories in Petavatthu which describe how people offer donations to the sangha and transfer the merit to their deceased relatives who are born as hungry ghosts, so that they can get alleviate the suffering experienced by the hungry ghosts. In the same way, is it possible to share merit to other beings like Angels, animals, etc, because I haven't come across this in the texts.
Comment: i answered this question here https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/a/22375/8157
Comment: @Dhammadhatu, thank you for taking time to respond. Has the Buddha himself ever mentioned that other beings, like Angels, animals, humans etc don't receive the merits one transfers. Sorry, I am not doubting you, I am just trying to understand.
Answer: Not sure Dhammadhatu's answer is direct answer for this question.
So sharing merit (telling your good merit) to animals doesn't work because they (almost every of animals) do not have any mind to understand good merit and eventually not able to be happy/together with you about your merit. So they will not share the effect of being happy/together of good merit.
Angles (frequently gods in Buddhist literature) may have little chance to know/care about your good merit since their lives are more about consuming the effects of good karma instead of cultivating good karma and sharing merit of others. There might possibility that some lower angels (gods) wandering on earth or living like human among us who can be shared our good merit but it is not so strong effects like on hungry ghosts because it is greatly differ in terms of necessity.
Comment: It is highly appreciated spreading Metta (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maitrī) before taking meal or when visiting monastery what you always do. For reference texts I will try to update my findings. Due to bad time and degraded foods around us, my memory will never be as good as people from previous century.
Comment: Thanks for taking time to respond. I have asked this question on chat groups and talks but I get mixed answers. I do, before taking a meal or when visiting a monastery, mentally wish for transfer of my good merits to all beings. But just want to know if there a mention of it in the texts, as to whether do all beings really receive my good merit.
Answer: Traditionally, the amount of merit you could send to an "angel" (I'm assuming this is a translation of "deva?" Caroline Rhys Davids used to translate "deva" as "angel.") is incredibly meagre compared to the amount they already have. This is not your or "our" fault. We are humans who live here because of certain past deeds. A human birth is precious, but a divine birth is more pleasurable and is the fruit of greater merit.
We send merit to the ghosts, animals, demons, because they are destitute in spiritual poverty. They "need" it, so to speak. There is nothing at all stopping you from transferring merit to the gods, but they don't "need" it in a way those suffering in the lower destinies do.

If you want to help the ghosts, get wholesome food and drink in seven clean vessels each, an excessive amount is not necessary. Seven vessels of pure water and seven vessels of vegetables would do nicely. Meat is not "wholesome food" for this exercise. As much as you would eat. You won't be eating the food if you do this, so keep that in mind.
Place the food and drink on your altar. Perform loving-kindness meditation to sentient beings in all directions. Then, recollect the sufferings of the hungry ghosts and send maitrī to those of the unfortunate destinies. Assume the dhyānamudrā. Recite in a strong clear moderately-loud voice (your pronunciation doesn't matter too much for this kind of lay ceremony):
唵啞葛嚕穆看薩哩斡塔哩麻南啞牒耶奴忒班荅奴忒
on akaro mokan sariwa tо̄rimanan achōyadoto hantōdoto
唵啞吽癹吒莎訶
on a un ho sоwaka
This dhāraṇī requires no empowerment or ordination. This is a section of the "Releasing of the Flaming Mouths," a food offering with a mantra. A more "souped-up" version of this is performed by the saṁgha for funerals. The food will be able to satiate the hungry ghosts. It is said that upon eating the food, the ghosts will become freed of ghosthood and be reborn as animals or humans according to their karma. Afterward, leave the food in the woods or burn it. Do not eat it. The vessels can be washed and re-used for anything. It is recommended to very thoroughly wash them.
Comment: Thanks for taking time to respond to my question. So you are saying that merit can indeed be transferred to Angels, but I haven't come across that in the texts. Could you please let me know in where you read it or come across it. Just curious.
Comment: I've never heard about it. There is no reason why you couldn't offer your merit to devas, but it is not traditionally done. It doesn't seem like it would be useful to you or them.


A type of compartment that rises out of a desk

Question: I'm building a computer desk and I had the idea to hide some speakers in a compartment towards the back. I'd like the speakers to pop up out of the desk on some kind of mechanism that rises up, kind of like an old top loading VCR, maybe something hinged at the back. I'm fairly mechanically minded, but I'm struggling to imagine a way to make something like this that doesn't need visible handles and I'd love it if I could open the compartments by pressing on the top and having it open at least a small amount.
I know this is a long shot, but are there any products out there that could help me achieve this?
I genuinely have no idea what search terms to use.
Comment: Just find a couple of old top-load VCRs and scavenge the lift mechanisms out of them. Can't beat the retro-futuristic look of that!
Comment: Just a thought -- do you really need to lift the speakers?  If they're mounted so they're pointing up, and the doors open to 45 degrees, it should reflect the sound out 90 degrees.  That should simplify the design significantly, as you just need to move a flat panel, no electronics.
Comment: If you don't want to use linear actuators, you will probably have to get creative with some springs and magnetic latches.
Comment: There are some cars that have this - i wonder if you could find these mechanisms (possibly including the speakers) at a junkyard or on ebay?
Comment: This general mechanism uses what is called a four-bar linkage - googling that should help you if you decide to build your own.
Comment: It sounds fancy, but consider that within a couple months you'll end up just leaving the speakers up.   Have you considered putting the sub under the desk, and only mounting the smaller tweeters/mid permanently above the desk ?   You could look at in-wall speakers too, for maximal hiding.
Comment: @PhilippNagel that would be really cool! Do know what they are called?
Comment: @FreeMan I think that would have been a much easier task 10 years ago... I don't think I've seen them anywhere in at least that long!
Comment: @Phill : try thrift stores.  I know I saw one last year at one near me.
Comment: @Joe That is a really good out-of-the-box (or should I say, inside the box :D ) idea! I'll have to have a play around see how the sounds comes out, but yeah, that would considerably simplify everything!
Comment: You might want to check out Sugatsune - they are a manufacturer of a huge variety of hinges and hardware for many applications.
Answer: Search for "Lift up" hinges. These will let you lift up a section of desk to reveal something underneath, but won't let you click in the desk to lift it up. For that, you'll want push latches.
I'm not quite sure how well those will work in combination. As a fallback, consider some kind of recessed handle. (There's a bunch of options out there.)
Comment: I think lift up hinges and push latches are exactly what I was trying to imagine, but didn't have the words for
Answer: To hold it up there are cupboard door stays used in motorhomes/caravans (RVs etc.). Here (eBay) are some I've used.  They're just a spring in a tube,  and aren't all that strong, but should do this job.  They're often used together with push latches.
If it's very heavy, look for small gas struts (a smaller version of those used in car boots/trunks).  You'll want a good idea of the weight and geometry when you select them - so perhaps get the cheap spring ones first even if they up up being a prototype.
Another effective latch can use magnets, specifically rare earth magnets, and it's easiest to use the sort with a countersunk hole.  You'd need an arrangement such that the magnet pair (or magnet plus steel bracket) come into contact when fully open.  Note though that it may be prone to slamming shut once the magnet force is overcome.
These both assume a hinged arrangement, rather than a vertical lift.  For the latter I'd look to a scissors mechanism but getting the parts could be hard (Meccano?).  Latching down would be easy - gravity, but up would require something customised. If I went that far I'd motorise the scissor lift on a leadscrew made from M6 studding, under computer control of course - but I do a lot of hardware interfacing for home and work.
A further variation, inspired by some pop-up headlights on old sports cars, is for the section of desktop to hinge at the back (or lift vertically, but I think that lack of a flat top is a good thing because I'd put stuff on it) and for the speaker to hinge at the front, set slightly lower.  A leadscrew or servo would tilt the speaker up, and that would push the lid up.
Comment: OK, you get a +10 from me (if I could) for "Meccano" and a computer-controlled lead screw mechanism!
Comment: @FreeMan I want this myself TBH, but my desk is never tidy enough (home and work desks both covered with electronics projects, meters, scopes, sketches, calipers...) so I settled on a simple shelf
Comment: For up, I kind of want to say use some kind of counterweight arrangement with a latch at the top to make it stable at the top. Low tech, easy to understand, easy to maintain/adjust.
Comment: @user3067860 I've done that before - a rise/fall monitor stand counterweighted to within about 100g using plastic pipe filled with sand via a pulley.  The latch was a magnet.  But this can be bulky.  If the OP has dead space behind drawers there's room.  The counterweight could be chosen to be a little  more than enough, then you could use a push latch at the bottom.  However you latched it you'd need decent runners, or the friction would be too much.  Did you have something in mind? Decent quality drawer runners mounted vertically might work, such as the all-metal Ikea ones with bearings.
Comment: @ChrisH They have specific "push to open" drawer slides that should (probably) work OK with a counterweight. I was thinking you would want a hard latch at the top to keep it from wobbling/sinking back down in case you accidentally set a cup on top of your speaker or something. I would want something more than a magnet there--but you could use a normal (visible) latch there and still have the cool perfectly-smooth look when down.
Comment: Lego Technic would be good for mocking up some of these.  It would actually be strong enough to use for real, if that was the aesthetic you were aiming for
Answer: There are purpose-built products out there that are designed to do this.
Hard to show an example without it coming across as a recommendation, but you may want to explore something like this:

Table Top Fitting, Swing Up, Tavoflex
To stress, this is merely an example and not a product recommendation.
For my money, I think I'd save myself the frustration of trying to get something acceptable from a combination of push latches and lift-up hinges. Something purpose built is much more likely to "just work".
Answer: Nice idea. How about making a tilt-top cubby at the back of the desk?

Cut the top across the width of the speakers (perhaps two compartments., for stereo, leaving the center as flat space even when open).
Hinge the back of the top to the back edge of the desk.
Mount speakers under that flap (or flaps).
Use either a drop-down support rod or springs to hold it open.
Comment: That sounds like a good approach! I like the idea of using springs to hold it open, but I can't quite visualise how it would work. Are there specialised brackets/hinges with springs that are available? I don't know what to search for
Answer: Threaded rods turned by a toothed belt pushing up two speakers - the speakers are prevented from rotating and the rods act on bearings.
Comment: This has the advantage over most of the other suggestions that it can lift speakers (etc.) up as high as required, and while needing motors would appear to be a disadvantage the speakers won't be much use during a powercut. However I think using rod (including threaded, and those irrespective of thread form) will be too flimsy to prevent the whole thing being wrecked by a hard shove from the side: far better to use slides as found in filing or server cabinets.
Comment: For an opposing view point, I'd think that a round rod would be significantly more resistant to bending from an accidental push in the wrong direction than the flat metal of a drawer slide that's _normally_ held flat against the drawer case and drawer body, and not exposed to any real lateral movements.
Answer: There are ready made desk items search Google for "pop up desk cable hidden". You could either modify one or may be able to buy an empty one.
Images from Amazon:
Comment: Please include the source for your images.
Comment: These look like they'd do exactly what I want, but I think they're a bit too small for my application... unless there are larger versions of the same thing out there
Answer: Look for "push latches" - often used for loft/attic-hatches, or for kitchen cabinets.
The latter is relatively common - cupboard doors with no handles.


Does a career change mean I would have to take a pay cut?

Question: I am currently a mobile developer and have been that for about 7 years now and I have been in IT for about 10. So I'm an experienced IT professional. I'm considering changing careers to either cyber security or computer forensics. But I would have to take an entry level position for cyber security or computer forensics. If I am at 95,000 a year as a developer would I be able to ask for the same or would I have to accept whatever the entry level pay is for one of those 2 careers?
Answer: You will probably take a pay cut.
You can't ask for the same amount of pay as someone with 10 years experience in your new field.  If you're applying for an entry level position you will get entry level pay.
If some of your current skills are transferable and you bring value to the business that another person normally would be unable to, then after some time you could ask for more pay.  But for your entry level job you will need to be competitive.  Expect a pay cut as part of that.
Comment: My $.02 is this -- make sure you have a good career growth plan in your new position. Although you are taking a cut, you want to 'catch up' quickly. As someone interviewing you, I would love to hear this question asked.
Answer: I needed to answer this because no one else said the magic words: Transferable Skills.

If I am at 95,000 a year as a developer would I be able to ask for the same or would I have to accept whatever the entry level pay is for one of those 2 careers?

Yes, however there's a lot of value in transferable skills and I would argue software development has a truckload of transferable skills. Research, communication and management are all just baseline skills.
Will you make what you make now? No. Will you make the same salary as an absolute newbie? I doubt it. There's a lot of value in the sorts of skills developers acquire in their careers.
Comment: That's what my answer was implying, the transferable skills, but good to use the term :)
Comment: I said "If some of your current skills are transferable" - same diff innit?
Comment: As you write your resume and prepare for interviews, think through some things you've done/learned, and how they apply to infosec.  "I chose Java for the authorization parts of my app because C is too prone to overflow attacks."  "I kept track of patch notices and scheduled applying the patches to my company's servers."  There's LOTS of infosec related work in software development. Tell your story well, get paid better.
Answer: You should expect your pay to be based on how well your skills and experiences fit the requirements for the new position.
Specifically, you asked,

If I am at 95,000 a year as a developer would I be able to ask for the same or would I have to accept whatever the entry level pay is for one of those 2 careers?

What you made as a developer is essentially irrelevant. The thing that matters is, what is a typical salary for an employee in the position you're seeking? If your skills in security match what an "entry level" person typically needs, and an entry level security tech makes 50k (or 100k, or whatever the number is), then that's what you should expect to make.
As with any career path change, be sure to prepare for inevitable questions in interviews - why are you making the change? What research have you done about the new role? What have you done to prepare yourself? How will your old skills help you in the new role?
In addition to proving that you're a good fit for the new role, you should also be ready to show that this is a carefully considered and prepared-for change, and not something you're doing on a whim. Employers are leery of career-path-switchers who act like they may be a risk for continual change - you don't want to come across as someone who's going to try out the new role and then jump back to your old stuff after 6 months, or leave for something else totally new.
Answer: PenTester with training/experience in forensics here.
The skillsets required for these two (but especially forensics) are very different to standard development work. As such, you will probably take a pay cut.
HOWEVER:
As with all things IT, the ability to automate things is very valuable. Most forensic toolkits use Regular Expressions (a complex form of search query that usually looks like garbage to most people) and some scripting language (usually a form of Python) and depending on what area of forensics you're going into (PCI testing is a great example), these are VERY useful.
With penetration testing, scripting and automation will be limited to little time savers. However, dev skills will be a MASSIVE bonus if you want to go further (think Red Team engagements), as you will end up trying to create your own payloads (publicly available payloads are also publicly available to antivirus companies too).
My point is, you can easily carve yourself a niche and USP with your dev skills. Once you have a bit of training in your chosen field, you can start commanding your old pay rate or even more.
 You can easily carve yourself out a niche within any forensic or penetration testing team
Answer: In "normal" career development, taking pay cuts is not usually a good choice.
However, there are situations when a pay cut is unavoidable. E.g., when changing your work from something you know to something in which you have no experience.
Extreme example: I am a programmer and I decide to start working in the shoe-making business. Of course, I will be a complete beginner, and salaries of shoe-makers are smaller than the salaries of the programmers, so a pay cut is unavoidable.
Now, the extent of the pay cut in your case, is another discussion. It depends on a lot of factors, and is a matter of negotiation between you and the employer.
Answer: There is no right answer to this question I'm afraid.
To give you an example, I moved from Application Support into Project Management and received a substantial pay increase instead.
If the company you apply for to work in cyber security is mainly a mobile development company, they may pay you more since you not only know how to secure their product but understand how it was built, which helps you know better how to break some of the features, so you have an advantage over other people.
If instead you apply for a company with no mobile presence in a completely different market you have worked in, then the only benefit to the company is your cyber security knowledge, which as you have pointed out, might be lower than other candidates that have been working in the field for a while.
Be prepared to negotiate, but most importantly, if it is what  you REALLY want to do, job satisfaction is more important than your salary (if you can afford the cut)
Answer: We can't possibly know the answer to this without knowing what any one specific company is looking for in terms of experience and what they're willing to pay for that level of experience, but I'd wager that you probably would take a pay cut. Yes, you're still working in the IT field but you're working in a new discipline that requires a new body of knowledge (or mostly new), and requires a new skill set. Some of your knowledge and skills will carry over, but not likely enough to get you the same pay, unless your level of knowledge and experience in this new discipline happens to match your current salary, which is doubtful.


Are there winglet modification regulations?

Question: If an already existing fleet (737-800 and 900 without winglets) is thinking of a winglet modification, is that possible without regulations? Or what are the regulations?
Comment: Aircraft modifications in general are subject to airworthiness update. [CAA (UK)](https://www.caa.co.uk/default.aspx?catid=1458) // [FAA (US)](https://www.faa.gov/aircraft/air_cert/continued_operation/ad/mcai/).
Comment: Are you referring to the regulatory approval process that declares the plane (type) is airworthy with the addition of the winglet, or the physical installation on an existing plane of a previously approved winglet?
Answer: In the U.S., changing anything on the wing is considered to be a "Major Repair/Alteration" according to the FAA (FAR Part 43 - Appendix A)
To make those changes, this form - http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Form/Form_337.pdf needs to be completed.
As you can see, it requires a certified mechanic to handle the work after which a person with Inspection Authorization would approve the aircraft for return to service.
A little extra reading - Who can perform different maintenance checks?.
Comment: It's more than checking the change has been done properly. You need to renew the type certificate if a winglet is added, which includes structural tests and flight testing before a mechanic can attach the winglet to the next plane of the same type. Legally, that is.


Can conquerors Haki give someone brain damage?

Question: I always wondered does conquerors Haki have any long term effects like brain damage?
Answer: If you are knocked out by the Conqueror Haki you are no longer susceptible to other non-physical influences from a biological point of view. You can only be receptive once you are conscious.
Unfortunately, the anime / manga does not support my thesis, as in both the Conqueror Haki was not used several times in a row.
It can not be said at this point that Luffy's battles in which he competes against strong opponents and the impact of the release of the Conqueror Haki made a similar comparison with the deliberate use and switch off by the Conqueror Haki are comparable.
Conclusion: I do not think that this could cause damage.
Anyway, in the anime sometimes you see people slowly getting up but moving very slowly from the effect of the Conqueror Haki. I would say that if the character is strong enough you could at least speak of a "long-term effect" if the disabled people take a long time to get fit again. Maybe it would be possible to deprive people of their full physical abilities for days.


How to change the Bus / Dev in order to allow xsane to work

Question: I am rather new to fixing problems;  no one seems to be able to give me any guidance so I am turning to you.
I have just installed the scanner drivers for my mfc5460cn.  Everything is okay except for the connection.
lsusb shows my machine at
Bus 002 Device 005: ID 04f9:01b7 Brother Industries, Ltd MFC-5460CN Remote Setup
However, xsane is searching for it at Bus 1 Dev 1.
How do I reconcile this?  How can I change Bus / Dev?
Comment: The problem was solved.  lsusb to verify where the usb is located Then, sudo chmod a+w /dev/bus/usb/$Bus/$Dev
Answer: As you stated in your comment:
The problem was solved. lsusb to verify where the usb is located.
Then, sudo chmod a+w /dev/bus/usb/$Bus/$Dev


Appropriate functionals for prediction of NMR spectra of transition metal compounds

Question: In line with this question, I'm looking for suitable functionals for transition metal compounds with organic ligands to predict NMR spectra. Also, I'd like some guidelines about how to choose functionals for this type of calculations.
Answer: I haven't had much experience with calculating chemical shifts, but I do have experience calculating J-coupling between P atoms on metal complexes.
From this, I know that for chemical shifts and J-coupling calcs may require the use of specialized basis sets since most energy optimized basis sets (i.e. pople, dunning, karlsruhe) do not have an appropriate description of the core electrons for accuracy in nuclear calculations. I don't have experience with basis sets that are developed for chemical shifts, but this paper may be of use (although it only looks at 31P shifts): https://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.organomet.0c00127
I know that for 13C and 1H chemical shifts, the hybrid GGA functionals WPO4 and WCO4 were developed by Cramer for small organic compounds (ref to the original paper: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/ct6001016 ) and are available by default on many quantum chemical computing programs - the paper cited also discusses the performance and shortcomings of other functionals, so that may help guide you if WPO4/WCO4 are not appropriate for your system.
Also the GGA functionals KT1, KT2, and KT3 were developed for the nuclear shielding constants of non-H atoms and could be useful to you too (ref to the original KT paper: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1590634)
Comment: Great answer @para_aramid! If you're familiar with DFT, can you add an answer here about the different types of DFT (meta-GGA, LDA, maybe KS-DFT, H-K Theorems, TDDFT, etc.)? You don't have to list every single functional like B3LYP, but the broad categories would be nice.
Comment: sorry, I forgot to send the link: https://materials.stackexchange.com/a/194/5. More acronyms that I see from Meilani Wibowo's answer are CDFT, BDFT, and I just remembered DFTB.
Answer: I do not have much experience with DFT, but have been digging into DFT in strong fields the last couple of months. The investigation of magnetic properties such as NMR shielding constant and the magnetisability in the context of DFT rely on an explicit dependence on the magnetic field. Magnetic-field DFT, known as BDFT (J. Chem. Theory Comput. 2017, 13, 9, 4089-4100) and current DFT (CDFT, J. Chem. Theory Comput. 2015, 11, 4169−4181) are alternatives to the the standard DFT, where it was shown that cTPSS functional gives modest improvements over GGA level functionals such as PBE.
Hence, you might try to use cTPSS functional and its hybrid forms, i.e. Hybrid-cTPSS (10% HF exchange is added) and Range-separated cTPSS.


Defining a ring homomorphism from $R$ to $End(R)$

Question: What is a natural ring homomorphism from a ring $R$ to the ring of endomorphisms of $R$, i.e., of group homomorphisms under addition and composition. The map that I've seen defined was send $r$ to $ f_r $ where $f_r$ is defined by $f_r (a) = r+a$, but I don't understand how $f_r$ is even a group homomorphism of $R$.
Comment: It might be better to define $f_r$ by $f_r(a) = ra$.
Answer: This sounds like you're learning the first bit about module theory. In particular, $R$ is itself an $R$-module, and the ring homomorphism $R \to End(R)$ provides the multiplication.
Perhaps that's off the mark. That's okay. Suppose $r_1, r_2$ are in $R$. Then $f_{r_1} f_{r_2} (a) = f_{r_1} ( a + r_1) = (a + r_1) + r_2 = a + (r_1 + r_2) = f_{r_1 + r_2}$. That's interesting. $f_{r_1 r_2}(a) = a + r_1 r_2 \not = $ anything useful, really, unless your multiplication is my addition.
But if instead, $f_r (a) = ra$, then $f_{r_1} f_{r_2} (a) = f_{r_1}(r_2 a) = r_1 r_2 a = f_{r_1 r_2} (a)$ and $f_{r_1 + r_2} = f_{r_1} + f_{r_2}$ by distributivity and the same direct work. This is a ring homomorphism, and in fact it's in line with the standard idea of $R$ being an $R$-module - it acts on itself by left multiplication.
Answer: Do you know what it means for the map $f_r$ to be a group homomorphism? You have to check that addition in $R$ turns into composition in $\mathrm{End}(R)$ under $f$, i.e. check that $f_{r+s}=f_r\circ f_s$.
As Dylan points out, the multiplication map $m_r(a):=ra$ satisfies ring homomorphism properties; check that the following hold for all $r,s,a\in R$ (it comes down to parroting ring axioms on $R$):
$$(m_r+m_s)(a)=m_{r+s}(a) $$
$$(m_r\circ m_s)(a)=m_{r\cdot s}(a) $$
This means that $+$ and $\circ$ in $\mathrm{End}(R)$ on the LHS is turned into $+$ and $\cdot$ on the RHS.


How much should I consider lens mount when buying all-manual lenses?

Question: I'm mostly shooting micro four thirds, and am looking at buying a set of primes. It occurs to me, that if I buy an MFT lens set, then those lenses can only by used with MFT cameras and those with shorter flange distances (like Sony's E-mount). But lens adapters are cheap, and if I can buy a set of Nikon F-mount primes, then I can adapt that to Canon, MFT, Sony, any number of mounts. So if I'm shooting manual everything, is there any reason not to just buy a set with the longest flange distance and rely on adapters?
Comment: Are you asking about using adapters *at all* or about consolidating all adapted lenses around a single mount (like Nikon F) based on FFD?
Comment: I restored the original header because it gives a different shade of meaning to the question. The OP seems to be trying to choose between native mount MFT lenses or the *possibility* of using adapters, not between which non-native lens mount with which to definitely use adapters. The OP doesn't really say much of anything at all about being interested only in older, defunct, lens mounts in order to find cheap lens options, either.
Answer:
... is there any reason not to ... rely on adapters?

Usually, you'll have the best experience with a camera system by sticking with native-mount lenses. However, since you specifically want to use "all-manual lenses" (which excludes electronically controlled lenses), many arguments against using adapters, such as loss of automatic control, don't apply.

There are exceptions, such as manually-focused EF-compatible lenses with electronic apertures. If you are interested in such lenses, adapters may not be the most appropriate way to use them.

... is there any reason not to just buy a set with the longest flange distance... ?

Of the commonly used DSLR mounts, Nikon F has the longest flange focal distance.  It would make sense to get lenses with the Nikon F mount if you have a Nikon DSLR or plan to adapt the lenses to other DSLR mounts, such as Canon EF.  However, mirrorless cameras all have very short flange focal distances, so the particular mount doesn't matter that much.  Almost any old lens can be used.

A few mounts, such as CS, D, and DL, have FFDs that are too short to be used normally with most mirrorless cameras. Unless you intend to use them for macro/close-up work, adapters would not be the most appropriate way to use such lenses.
Some mounts are not popular enough for anyone to bother mass producing adapters. Unless you intend to make your own, adapters may not be the most appropriate way to use such lenses.

Reasons to consider multiple mounts include quality, selection, and price.  There are a lot of good, inexpensive lenses not available in Nikon F mount.  Reasonably good lens adapters for many mounts aren't very expensive.

There are some mounts for which adapters are relatively expensive compared with those for other mounts. They are likely more complicated adapters with moving parts for lesser known mounts.
New manual lenses are produced for some modern mounts. Possibly because of low production volume, they tend to be priced fairly high.  For the same price or less, you can find older lenses with excellent performance. Here are a few, there are many more:

Canon new-FD (bayonet mount)
Minolta Rokkor
Pentax SMC
Tamron BBAR MC (Broad-Band Anti-Reflective Multi-Coated)
M42 lenses, often for "character".

It might even make sense to use adapters for the mount with the shortest FFD to which adapters from other mounts are made (EF).  This would give the greatest flexibility in lens selection and use.  For instance, focal reducer, smart adapter, dumb adapter, and macro helicoid adapters could be shared across multiple mounts, rather than require multiple adapters of each type for each mount.
Reasons to not use (only) Nikon F mount:

They tend to cost more because the mount is still being used in new DSLRs.
The longer FFD requires slightly larger adapters.
A more expensive adapter is needed for Nikon lenses without aperture control.
Special adapters, such as focal reducers, cannot be adapted to other mounts.

Reasons to not use (only) OEM lenses:

Limited lens selection.
Prices often higher.
Lenses may lack desired "character".
No option to use special adapters, like focal reducers or (real) anamorphic lenses.
Miss out on joy (frustration) of using adapted lenses.

Regarding adapter selection:

Avoid cheap, no-name adapters from China. They often have poor alignment and fit. They are often made of soft aluminum, which isn't durable. Anodized, steel, and brass adapters are available reasonably priced. Often if any specific name is associated with an adapter, it'll be fine (Pixco, Fotasy, among others).
Avoid adapters made of hard, brushed metal (Kipon). They can grind away material from the lens.
Comment: That list should, ironically, maybe even include Leitz R - *some* of the R lenses, when the particular model currently isn't hyped, offer quite some value for their secondhand price ...
Comment: @rackandboneman – You just added it  The list is potentially never ending. For instance, there are some really sharp lenses for QBM (quick bayonet mount), so-called because no one bothered to give it a proper name.
Answer:
So if I'm shooting manual everything, is there any reason not to just buy a set with the longest flange distance and rely on adapters?

As long as the set with the longest flange distance allows you to manually control the lens' function to your satisfaction there really isn't. But there are many cases where you probably won't be able to control aperture, much less anything else, to your satisfaction.
Here's the rub: most short registration cameras (i.e. newer mirrorless cameras) use electronic controls to communicate with their lenses. Micro Four-Thirds cameras have electronic only interfaces with lenses. There are no mechanical connectors for an MFT camera to control a lens that requires mechanical movements to stop down. If there is room, an adapter can include a logic circuit that can "translate" the electronic command from the camera and either a) send an electronic command to the electronic lens in the "language" the lens understands or b) use a servo to mechanically move a mechanical connection to the lens. Most of the "translation" is figured out using reverse engineering by third party adapter makers, and may or may not work as well as one would hope. Those kinds of adapters aren't the cheap ones to which you refer in the question, either.
Many other cameras with longer registration distances also use all electronic communication with lenses. Sony E-mount. Canon EOS. The lenses for those systems, and even many of the lenses made for other systems - such as Nikon's F-mount that can still use a mechanical connection between the camera and lens to control the lens' aperture do not have manual aperture control capability using the lens. Nikon "G" lenses do not have any kind of aperture control ring on the lens. The camera tells the lens what aperture to use electronically, and then the mechanical stopdown lever in the camera provides the movement to, depending on the lens, push the aperture lever to the correct position or push the aperture lever until it hits the "stop" in the lens set to the desired aperture.
So all of those lenses are potentially out, since a cheap adapter will not give you the capability to set the aperture on the lens. Depending on the mounts involved, there may not be any way to "translate" an electronic command from the camera to a mechanical movement on the other end of the adapter, regardless of the cost of the adapter. You'll be stuck using such lenses either wide open or stopped all of the way down.
Without aperture control from the body, exposure metering won't be reliable if it is even possible at all. All of those whiz-bang exposure peaking and zebras that your MFT camera can display will be totally useless.
There are also a lot of lenses for newer mounts that require communication with the camera for even manual focus adjustments. So called "focus-by-wire" lenses do not have a mechanical link between the focus ring and the lens' focusing elements. Instead the focus ring has a position sensor that tells the camera to tell the focus motor in the lens to move. All of Canon's STM lenses are focus-by-wire. There are many others in the various other mounts, and they are becoming more popular all the time. MFT lenses are almost exclusively focus-by-wire.
Comment: Question is about "all-manual lenses". Vast majority of this answer simply does not apply to such lenses.
Comment: "All-manual lenses" is in the title you reverted to.  It asks about cons of using adapters in the context of Nikon F mount (longest FFD) and "manual everything" lenses.  The intro about MFT lenses and not being able to use them with other mounts is the motivation for considering adapted lenses.
Comment: Any Nikon lens on a foreign body, if not used with a smart adapter, becomes an all manual lens for what it's worth....
Comment: @rackandboneman Yes, but if it has no aperture ring, it becomes problematic to control the aperture, even manually.


Does brown rice or white rice expand more when cooked?

Question: Which expands more when cooked: brown rice or white rice?
Comment: Why do you want to know? Context might help you get better answers. And do you mean by volume, or by weight, i.e. how much water they take on?
Comment: @Jefromi Expand would be a volume thing by most people's use of the word.
Comment: Okay, sure, weight is unlikely, but with no context it's hard to be totally sure. I should've asked whether it's about aggregate volume or individual grains, though. The latter will probably be more correlated with weight increase.
Answer: I'd say the answer will depend a lot on the exact type of rice, as well as cooking method, and how much you might "fluff" it afterward.  I've seen internet sources that claim brown rice expands more, and other internet sources that say white rice expands more.
For a more precise measurement, I went to the USDA food composition database.  There you can find measurements of nutrients by volume for cooked and raw rice.  Although volume measurements are difficult for things like cooked rice, I figure if there's any resource that attempted consistency in measurement, it's probably something like this.
Anyhow, what I did was compare the calories listed for 1 cup raw vs. 1 cup cooked rice in various instances from the USDA nutrient list.  I assume there aren't a lot of calories randomly lost during cooking (or at least any minimal loss is at similar rates).  Note that the standard USDA preparation seems to be to cook until all water is absorbed (for example, in data sheet here), rather than methods like boiling in excess water and draining, which could result in more nutrient loss.
So, by comparing the calories per cup in raw vs. cooked, we can get a sense of the relative expansion of each variety of rice.  Here's the data for calories per 1 cup portions, along with my calculated expansion ratio.
Brown rice

Long-grain: raw 679, cooked 248 = ratio 2.74
Medium-grain: raw 688, cooked 218 = ratio 3.16

White rice

Long-grain: raw 675, cooked 205 = ratio 3.29
Medium-grain: raw 702, cooked 242 = ratio 2.90
Short-grain: raw 716, cooked 266 = ratio 2.69
Glutinous: raw 684, cooked 169 = ratio 4.05

Bottom line is that the shape and type of rice grain seems to matter just as much as whether it's brown vs. white.  Again, there are bound to be inaccuracies here, so I'd only take these figures as estimates.  But there doesn't seem to be a significant trend that brown rice always expands more or less than white.
Answer: My instinctive answer is that brown rice expands more than white.  Because my family made rice a lot while I was growing up, and I'm really sure I remember that brown rice is made with a lot more water per cup than white (half to a full cup more water per cup of rice), and the grains after cooking are plumper and fluffier - that is, there's more volume in cooked brown rice, and the grains look more similar before cooking than after so it isn't just a question of different starting points.
So I would guess there's extra water being absorbed by each grain, even if some extra is also being lost to evaporation, and more water being absorbed by the rice means more volume where the extra water is, in brown rice rather than white.


Can a DM tell a player if/when they act or roleplay in a manner that isn't their alignment?

Question: I'm a very new DM, and I've played three games in total with a new group each spanning about thirty minutes (Role playing games aren't appreciated where I live) .  One of my characters is a Chaotic neutral but he plays as a Lawful Good character. Is it okay for me to tell him how to roleplay or should I let him find his character on his own?
Comment: Is this a brand new player that has little to no understanding of what alignments mean?
Comment: He has never played a roleplaying game before, so he isn't familiar with the concept of being someone who isn't himself.
Answer: Don't tell him how to roleplay
Doing so would be a vast overstep in a social circle, as it would be telling someone how to play the game (taking control over the one thing they should have total control over).
As a GM, you can tell him his character's alignment is changing
While there is a lot of discussion and disagreement about alignment, almost everyone agrees on one thing: alignment doesn't determine actions, alignment emerges from actions. Alignment shift is a real thing - due to misunderstanding the alignment system (and accidentally roleplaying a different alignment), due to not knowing how you want to roleplay the character when picking those two letters, due to motivations shifting, due to traumas or interactions, etc.
I discourage just telling him "hey, you've been playing as LG, so you're LG now." More finesse and warning is needed - communicate. Talk with the guy, say "hey, I've noticed [character name] has been pretty altruistic and orderly. Do you think Chaotic Neutral is the right alignment? He's been a lot closer to Lawful Good recently, he might start shifting towards that if he keeps acting like it." Note that many mechanics don't care what alignment you are, so a large shift usually doesn't really impact the core "stuff" of the character (only a few effects, and which deities you can call on).
TL;DR: Don't tell your player how to roleplay their character, discuss whether their actions are in line with their alignment (and talk about adjusting alignment to fit the actions - actions lead to alignment).
Comment: Just to point out how little it matters mechanically.....literally the only thing in all of the 5E core books that cares about your Alignment is a handful of Magic Items (In the DMG...only 5 of them, and all but one only cares about good/evil). There's not even a rule that Clerics and Paladins have to be the same alignment as the deity they worship.
Comment: @guildsbounty Rakshasa's and the spell Spirit Guardians also care, but yes very few things do.
Comment: Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation about what actions indicate what alignments has been [moved to chat](http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/63522/discussion-on-answer-by-delioth-can-a-dm-tell-a-player-if-when-they-act-or-rolep).
Comment: @guildsbounty Sprites are able to sense alignment; MM p. 283 Heart Sight feature.
Comment: Also if roleplaying is the main thing of your sessions, you could "punish" the resulting alignment change by NPC's the character knows from his earlyer days, and let them itneract differently. So the actions he does in the long run alter his alignment, what by RAW isn't changing much, but this could directly affect the behavior of NPC's to him. Whats then somewhat a biger thing, in my opinion at least.
Answer: Descriptive vs Prescriptive
Seeing alignment as descriptive means the alignment describes how a character in general reacts. Some characters tend to exploit or protect weak characters or uphold the law even though it is really inconvenient for them or break it just to screw with authority. Alignment is a general crude reading of a character's personality which is actually much more complex than 9 categories. Characters are free to act however they want, the alignment is decided based on past actions.
Seeing alignment as prescriptive means the character is preprogrammed to act a certain way in certain situation. It is just in their nature and they cannot help it.
Varying Opinions
Not everyone sees alignment the same. Trying to figure out which alignment various real or fictional characters have will tend to create debates that don't end up in everyone agreeing. If you can't even agree on which alignment Spiderman, Conan the Barbarian and Gandalf have there is little chance you can agree on the PC's alignment.
Same Page
There is no right and wrong how to handle this. Your group just needs to set up ground rules (ideally in a session zero) about how alignment works in this world and what to do when players break their character's alignment.
You can force them to play differently, you can change their alignment or you can ignore alignment for most of the game, don't let them find the Sword of Goodness that only Lawful Good characters can attune to and make a ruling when it does come up.
It is, however, important that you make clear how alignment works in your game or to have the group discuss how it should work so everyone agrees.
Comment: +1 for not springing a potentially punishing situation on a player w/o warning
Answer: I am reminded of a story told by my first DM:

I had a game where a thief (we'll call him Perfidy Quisling) was a
great team player. He befriended other characters in-game,
voluntarily pushed into the front lines, and risked himself to save
the weak. He donated to beggars, made offerings to churches, and
was a great all-round guy. I repeatedly took him aside and told him,
"Hey, man, you are a great player but you aren't respecting your
alignment [neutral evil]. If you keep playing like this, let's change
you to lawful neutral or lawful good."
The player always told me,
"Please don't change my character. I just play a little differently."
After more than three months of campaigning together like this several
times per week, after the party had amassed considerable wealth, he wrote a short note to the DM while his character
was on watch: "I quietly slit the throats of my party members, load
the wagon with their valuables, and ride to the nearest town with the
terrible news of our party's demise."

And so ended the game for his party.
As DM, you can tell players whatever you like, but do so privately, and make a judgment call based on the player's experience and history.
Comment: That's a heck of a long con!
Comment: @KyleStrand That's a part of it, but I'd say that MGS is really when RPing what your character would do is overall detrimental to the overall game. IMO, someone ruining the game for the whole table because it is 'something their character would do' is MGS, even if the player doing it enjoys it. If the table didn't mind this behaviour, then no problem. If the player finds a way to screw everyone regardless of their character, it is a problem but not MGS. Maybe we need a new Q for this? ;)
Comment: @Shane Fair enough. Seems like a somewhat distinct phenomenon, but I suppose "my guy" can apply to both.
Comment: @Shane My understanding is that in classic 'my guy' syndrome, the player him/herself feels "trapped" by their character, but in this case the player clearly *wanted* this to happen.
Answer: You ask about dnd-5e so why not look at what the rules actually say?
PHB p.122

Alignment
A typical creature in the worlds of Dungeons & Dragons has an alignment, which broadly describes its moral and personal attitudes. Alignment is a combination of two factors: one identifies morality (good, evil, or neutral), and the other describes attitudes toward society and order (lawful, chaotic, or neutral).
... Individuals might vary significantly from that typical behavior, and few people are perfectly and consistently faithful to the precepts of their alignment.
Alignment in the Multiverse
For many thinking creatures, alignment is a moral choice. Humans, dwarves, elves, and other humanoid races can choose whether to follow the paths of good or evil, law or chaos.
Alignment is an essential part of the nature of celestials and fiends. A devil does not choose to be lawful evil, and it doesn't tend toward lawful evil, but rather it is lawful evil in its essence. If it somehow ceased to be lawful evil, it would cease to be a devil.

The overarching concept is one of choice (unless you are a devil etc.); to my mind, the alignment written on a character sheet is aspirational - this is the type of person the character wants to be; not who they are.
As to specifics:

Lawful good (LG) creatures can be counted on to do the right thing as expected by society.
Chaotic neutral (CN) creatures follow their whims, holding their personal freedom above all else.

It occurs to me that the current "whim" of the character may be "to do the right thing as expected by society." From the outside, the Lawful Good and Chaotic Neutral individual are indistinguishable. From the inside the Lawful Good individual is acting in accordance with their moral compass and will consistently act that way, the Chaotic Neutral individual is just going with the flow: perhaps its easier to just move along when the guard asks rather than picking a fight. Of course, maybe the Chaotic Neutral will feel differently about it tomorrow but the Lawful Good won't.
And then, of course there is the rule (PHB p.6):

How to Play

The DM describes the environment

2. The players describe what they want to do
3. The DM narrates the results of the adventurers' actions

The DM narrates results - what effect the character's actions have in the world: the DM controls the world - including what the world thinks the character's morality is. The player describe what they want to do: the player controls the character - including what the character thinks their morality is. These do not have to match!
Comment: @Alexander Kosubek Dale is saying it's the DM's job to have NPCs react to the players. The NPCs judge the players by their words and deeds--both observed and reputed--not by what's written on their character sheet. 5th edition doesn't have a "know alignment" spell, so "what the character's morality actually is" isn't terrible meaningful. There's also some philosophical baggage that comes with ideas like "what the character's morality actually is" but that's beyond the scope of a comment chain. :V
Comment: Best take on alignment I've seen in a while. +1
Comment: @DaleM Implication is what I meant; they know the characters true alignment, and behave differently based on it.  This answer doesn't cover that issue; if the player picks the alignment of the PC, and the DM only picks how other creatures consider the character, what about magic items?  Are they based on what the PC picks, or what the DM view's the PC's alignment as?
Comment: Isn't there an inherent problem: IMO the DM should describe not "what the world _thinks_ the character's morality is", but "what the character's morality _actually **is**_! - But to know this, the DM would have to know the motivation of the character.  A CE character _acting_ like a LG character might still actually _be_ CE, but the DM can only know that he _acts_ LG.
Comment: There are magic items in 5e that actually do divine a character's alignment.
Comment: @Yakk would you name some? There are some that reveal alignment through implication (since they only work/do harm for certain alignments) but I know of none in 5e that reveal a creature's alignment directly.
Comment: @DaleM The Sprite in the MM can tell what a creature's alignment is. But that's the only one I can think of.  ***Heart Sight**. The sprite touches a creature and magically knows the creature's current emotional state. If the target fails a DC 10 Charisma saving throw, the sprite also knows the creature's alignment. Celestials, fiends, and undead automatically fail the saving throw*.
Answer: Sure
You'd really need to set up a lot of things beforehand, though, so you probably can't do this in your ongoing game.
Now, you don't have to do this: there are a lot of ways to play where this is a bad idea.  But you can play in a manner where telling your players that they are breaking alignment is fine, even to the point of prohibiting some actions on the basis of their violating alignment.  Here's how to do that:

Define alignments rigorously. Don't feel constrained by the general hand-wavey examples in the books-- pick ethical stuff sufficient to set up two axes with two opposing ends and then stick with it.  For example, I sometimes run a Pathfinder game where Deontology ≡ Good and Utilitarianism ≡ Evil, while philosophical parsimony ≡ Law whereas a lack of parsimony/'existentialism' ≡ Chaos.  This works pretty well and results in a world that fits intuitions pretty well, but I could just as easily have defined each of those things to be their opposite (and sometimes do for a one-off campaign) or use risk-taking preference as an axis (e.g. Law ≡ choose the certain option in a situation with identical average outcomes, Chaos≡ choose the highest potential output option in a situation with identical average outcomes) or any number of other things.
The key is to pick something that can be easily used as a spectrum
with two discrete ends, and whose ends are both sufficiently
rational near the meridian that actors acting in accordance with
them don't automatically seem insane (so the principle of
Benevolence is a bad map for Good, for example, because it makes
Evil and even Neutral people largely incomprehensible/insane).  It's
also good to pick systems you have a decent command of, and feel
comfortable passing judgment on test cases for.   You can use
Trolley problems(an example is linked) to help prep for such judgement passing.

Consider how Archons/Angels, Demons, Devils, and Eladrin work, what Celestia, the Abyss, Hell, and Arborea are like and why, and how various outsiders would explain why their system is the best system.  For example, in the primary system outlined above, Asmodeus is a Utility Monster, so the only reasonable course of action is, of course, to give him all of the things.  And indeed, he enjoys your suffering far more than you are upset about it, as do his many legions of devils.  Greatest happiness for the greatest number of people and all that. (related comic)

Decide how you are going to handle alignment breaches and changes.  What happens when an NPC changes alignment?  What happens when a player changes alignment?  How do players change alignment?  What do you do when a player tries to do something counter to their alignment?  etc.  For example, you might give characters advantage on rolls for actions that exemplify acting according to their principles in defiance of external disagreement, and disadvantage on rolls for actions that are against the character's conscience. Alternatively, you might just require a saving throw when a player attempts to have their character break alignment, or any number of other things.

Explain to your players how each alignment is going to work, and how alignment in your game is going to work overall.  Get player buy-in before character creation, and talk about how you are going to be adjudicating alignment, and what happens when players have their characters break alignment, and what you'll do when people are breaking alignment accidentally.  Stick to these agreements while playing the game, as potentially modified by further discussion.

This system works fairly well, though you'll need to experiment to find the right sorts of things to use as axes for your group's enjoyment, and you'll probably pick some bad answers to 'what happens when a PC/NPC breaks alignment' til you get more experience.  I strongly recommend erring on the side of leniency here-- the advantage/disadvantage thing works okay and you can just require players to fictionally justify alignment changes rather than punishing/rewarding them for them.  But, in any case, prohibiting player action on the basis of alignment can work, as long as a solid alignment framework has been built first.
Answer: As the GM, you are in charge of the game and largely in charge of the players' enjoyment of it. You can and ought to open discussion on any matters of player characters' personality that you perceive might harm the enjoyment of the player or the group as a whole, and serve as the ultimate arbitrator on what steps to take when there is a social problem. Outright telling another player how (not) to play their character is a harsh, extreme measure, and I wouldn't do it without a strong consensus among the rest of the players - a milder solution to the problem you see here would be asking the player to mark their alignment as Lawful Good if they keep playing their character as such.
However, personally I would just let the player play their character as Lawful Good as they like without raising an issue about it. Unlike earlier editions of DnD, alignment in DnD 5e does practically nothing. For most intents you can simply pretend the alignment value doesn't exist, and rule based on the player's behavior if you encounter one of the very few situations where it really does matter. While you may be puzzled about the reasoning behind the player's conflicting choice of alignment and behavior, it will not cause any actual problem for your game in itself and thus you don't have a reason to interfere.
Answer: Short Answer:
Yes.
But that doesn't come close to scratching the surface of the iceberg this topic is, as evidenced by the plethora of passionate answers.
Alignment is Controversial
Anyone who discusses D&D with frequency knows that not everyone agrees on where the lines are drawn.  How people of any given alignment act is exceedingly unclear, to the point of being almost meaningless, IF you try to go by what others tell you online.
To this end, you should talk to your players about what alignment means in your setting, and how various alignments impact characters and the party.
Players don't always pick their character's real alignment.
I've had players describe a concept to me, then upon greater discussion, it turned out that they really wanted to play a different alignment, but didn't want to write that other alignment on their sheet.
Sometimes this is down as a sort of "poser" bad-guy-cred, ala Green Ranger, where the PC will never actually be evil/chaotic in the actual game, but the player wanted to the feel of street-cred.  While I can appreciate the goal, this is the wrong tool for that job.
Sometimes this is because players just really don't understand alignment.  This is tough to identify, but hopefully, self-adjusts over time.

My suggestions:
Don't use alignments
Honestly, this is the simplest approach.  Odds are, alignment will spend more time getting in your way than helping you, so toss it.
Use goals and compatibility
Require your PCs to justify their cooperation, in a way that not only makes sense but is more permanent than your campaign.  Have them be related(compatibility), wanting to stay part of the same guild(goals), or all loyal to the same Emperor(compatibility).  As long as characters have predictable willness to be in the party, players are VERY unlikely to cause fights over alignment-esque my-guy issues.
Refuse character archetypes that don't fit your story/group.
Not only are you within your rights to cull incompatible players, it is in your best interests.  If you're running a group of brazen pirates, wanting to sail the Grand Line in search of One Piece, tell your players:  No allegiance-minded Paladin-types.  If you're running siege-defense story where humanity is struggle to survive within the great walls of a massive city assaulted from without by giants, obviously, no low-commitment self-interested wanderers.
Answer: I love using mechanics to inform the players. You can set up scenarios that are only completed by the given alignment, knowing (and preparing for) their failure given the person will act differently.
"You can only pick up this hammer if you're pure of heart. Wait, you can't pick it up, apparently the hammer thinks you're an *******."
Even going so far as to have a spirit come and admonish the hero, pointing out how their actions and words have belied their actual nature.
This can spin off a whole new quest of discovery for the player and help them grasp who their character is and how they function. Even if the character is someone like the player, it can be interesting to explore our faults from a more-or-less third-party perspective. It also allows for adventure, as those trials to get back on the good side of the magical hammer can be harrowing (to say the least).
Other players can also benefit, as having to help the tormented player can help them explore how they feel about others and how they interact as a group when with the player or each other in some odd situations. I used a redemption story to drive a whole campaign, and was able to spin that off into an adventure for each player's character, making a fine campaign of it where everyone could hold the "center spotlight" for a few sessions and fully explore motivations. Even after that, the characters gained, well, character and future sessions with them were like visiting old friends. (Even when they all retired and ran weapon shops ^_^)
Answer: This is one of the things that Inspiration is for
Not all DMs award Inspiration, but your question describes one of the situations in which it might prove useful. You could chose to "use the carrot, not the stick," by awarding other players Inspiration for doing things that represent their alignments particularly well.
This fits well with how Inspiration is explained in the source books. Consider that in the PHB (p. 124), on "Gaining Inspiration", we read (emphasis mine):

Typically, DMs award it when you play on your personality traits... and otherwise portray your character in a compelling way.

Although that doesn't mention alignment explicitly, it does say "personality traits", and on p. 122 of the PHB, under "Alignment", we read (emphasis mine):

A typical creature in the worlds of Dungeons & Dragons has an alignment, which broadly describes its moral and personal attitudes.

So, Alignment is part of one's personal attitudes, and when a player especially exudes their personality traits (such as personal attitudes), then that is one of the cases where a DM would "typically" award Inspiration.
When doing so, you can say what it is for. "Hey, that was so iconic of your Lawful Evil alignment, I am awarding you Inspiration!"  And that can get the attention of all the players, including those not playing to their alignments.
"Use the carrot, not the stick"


How do I add a user to multiple groups in Ubuntu?

Question: What's the command line utility and the arguments it requires?
Answer: The utility is usermod and is used like:
usermod -a -G group1,group2 username

Where username is the user you want to modify and group1 and group2 are the new groups you want that user to join. Running the command without the -a argument will remove that user from all groups except group1 and group2.
To check a users group memberships use the groups command:
groups username

Answer: usermod -a -G group1,group2,group3 username

Answer: Assuming the user already exists, the easiest way is to just open the file /etc/group and add the username to the relevant groups that you want them to be a member of. The usernames are comma separated from the other usernames in the group.
You can check by doing a id -G username to verify if they are members of the groups you intended.
Answer: On Debian, and I assume on Ubuntu as well, the canonical way of adding users and adding users to groups is through the adduser script, not useradd. To add a user to a group, just use:
adduser user group

Though using useradd or usermod works as well of course and is probably more cross platform (but the adduser script reads settings from /etc/adduser.conf and is hence usually preferable).
Comment: "How do I add a user to **multiple** groups in Ubuntu?"
Comment: Obviously you can run a command to add a user to a single group twice, but given the way the question is phrased I would expect any answer to explain how to add a user to two groups using a single command once.
Comment: @Gauthier run the above twice, once for each group. I figured that was obvious.
Answer: usermod -a -G groupname username

Answer: Use usermod with the -a and -G options.
Answer: Adding Groups
groupadd group1
groupadd group2

Adding user to the group
useradd -G group1,group2 -d /home/user1 -s /usr/bin/bash user1

id user1

will show the details of user user1
Answer: Another way of doing this is by copying the group membership of one user to another user like this:
for i in `grep -E "(:|,)<username>(:,|$)" /etc/group|cut -f1 -d:` ; do
  addgroup <newuser> $i
done

Source: Stev.Org | Linux - List / Copy group membership for users
Answer: First, as an infosec professional I completely agree with the additional security benefits and best practices SUDO provides.

However, the self-proclaimed experts who repeatedly belch forth the tired "I-know-how-but-I'm-not-going-to-tell-you-so-go-learn-SUDO-&-sudoers" mantra are the same individuals who post explicit command-line configurations for complex OS & service installations or modifications INCLUDING THE SUDO command, without considering that newbies are simply copying & pasting these commands into their installations without understanding ANY of the risks or the increased attack surface the changes may be creating.  Such behavior creates MORE security issues than sharing the information to allow a user to create alternate root accounts.

**Before using the following commands, it is your responsibility to understand the ramifications of creating and using a root-level account.  Use may result in a security compromised system or you may render your system COMPLETELY UNUSABLE.
** You agree by using the information contained herein that any negative impact or results to any system, data or network are entirely your responsibility.
Create additional root-level accounts by running these commands from a terminal session:
sudo su

useradd -G root <newusername>

passwd <newusername>

id <newusername>

You should see something similar to: uid=1001(newusername) gid=1001(newusername groups=0(root).
usermod -o -u 0 -g 0 <username>

(in the usermod command string, the first switch is the letter "O".  The characters following the -u and -g switches are each "zero")
id <username>

You should now see something similar to: uid=0(root) gid=0(root) groups=0(root).
I suggest bouncing your system prior to logging on with the newly created root-level user account.
shutdown -r now

These commands work well in most main stream *nix and BSD distributions.  Use them wisely.
Comment: This is completely unrelated to the question asked.


Is page age a ranking factor?

Question: My website is quite new, only about an year old. I publish one post per day. I am seeing a pattern where pages start getting SEO traffic 15 to 30 days after posting. Is this normal for new sites? If so, is page age a ranking factor?
Comment: Page age is not a ranking factor. Otherwise, any old page should perform better than most. This would not make sense. It takes a while to gather metrics for any new page especially including links to the page, citations, etc. So yes. New pages do take time before performing well. However, with competition being a huge hill to climb, it really is the content that makes the difference.
Comment: @closetnoc Google does not use only backlinks, content etc, there are so many things which can make search algorithm very strong, for example if the page contain any information and it is stay for a long time, then its really benefit to user. Hence page age is good fit for ranking factor IMO.
Comment: @Goyllo I know very well what goes into search. But page age is not one of them. Think of it this way... suppose you suck as a content creator and you created a site full of lousy content. Should the age of the site or any page increase the "rank" of your lousy content? That's what the question is about, rank. The answer is No. Are there factors where time is a benefit for good content? Then possibly yes. Just trying to be clear on what I am saying. Cheers mate!!
Comment: Looking at this in isolation makes no sense. Sometimes it makes sense to show new content, sometimes it makes sense to show established content (which might not be the oldest).
Answer: When you are seeing that it takes Google 15 to 30 days to start sending traffic to a page, that is most likely because it is taking that long for Google to find and index content on your domain.   As your domain gains trust, Google will find and index pages you post much more quickly.   Google comes and re-crawls your site based on how many inbound links it has.   As you gain links, Googlebot will fetch content from your site much more often.  Many trustworthy sites, including this one, get their new content indexed within hours.
Google certainly uses page age as a ranking factor, but it isn't quite as straightforward as you might think.
For news queries a newer page is a bonus.  Google has a concept they call "query deserves freshness" or QDF.   News searches need freshly updated pages to please users and Google prefers those fresh pages for those queries.
For other queries Google usually prefers established pages that have a history of pleasing users.  We call that content "evergreen content."
Google constantly collects additional data about your pages.   It views how users react to them.   It sees if users use the back button to come back to Google after viewing your content.   It sees if the page attracts external links.  Older pages have much more history.   The ones with positive history will rank well.
As your page ages, Google is able to collect more and more data about your page.   When your page is high quality, Google will eventually notice that and start trusting it.   If it is mediocre quality or there is higher quality competition your page may never rank well.
When you first post evergreen content, it may enjoy a honeymoon period where Google "tastes" the page.   Google may try it out on the first page of the results to see how users react to it.   It usually doesn't stay there unless it gets a very positive click through rate.   After the test, it may fall in rankings substantially, often back several pages.   It may take it years to get back to the first page of search results.
Comment: That's true Page age is ranking factor but it's not add much weight. Page age(n Gram) vs Page link(n Kilogram). But I think honeymoon period work only at site level(newly domain) not to page level.
Comment: Page age is not a huge factor, no.   I've seen the honeymoon effect at the page level many times.
Answer: Okay take a deep breath. I am going to contradict the popular answer here.
Let's make one thing clear. Conceptually I will replace page age with content age. While it seems synonymous, one is more technically correct.
Is page age a ranking factor?
No. Not at all.
Are there factors that allow an older page to perform? Quite possibly,  depending upon many other important factors. Older content relies upon many factors to perform and not age. Age does not enter the equation. However newer content can short circuit this fact.
Google has two rules. One of which is, What does a metric say about content quality, popularity, etc? A pages age says nothing about content. I used in my comments an example of really lousy content. Should it "rank" better because the lousy content is old? Of course not.
So where do people get confused?
The term rank is often confused. Rank is a resulting metric or sets of metrics based upon more than one factor or metric. Page age is a metric that can be collected, and it certainly is by way of the inception date, however, one metric in of itself is not rank nor can it be. It is a metric. This metric can be used as a factor to be considered where it makes sense to. So is it?
Search queries go through several steps. The first is very basic where all content that appears to match the search query is returned. There are actually several queries to the database that are returned into a blended result set. I have mentioned the headline read order before, this is where it lives. A relatively basic algorithm is applied in returning the result set. More detailed applications of the overall algorithm are applied after the result set is returned using filters.
Those who are familiar with SQL will understand "order by". When you do a query to a database, the query matches the intent of the query then optionally can be ordered by metrics or data within the query. The same is done in search queries. For example, the query against a search engine database must match the search query to the content first then followed by "order by" PageRank. While this a simple example, it does illustrate how search matches content first then basic ranking factors second. Keep this in mind.
There are no factors and metrics that get in the way of the search query matching relevant content even when rank is poor. The mechanism is that the content is returned in a result set that is ordered by all the ranking factors that govern content and sites the primary of which is PageRank. It can also include the sites Trust score, the sites authority on the topic, etc. Once the result set is returned, it is passed through filters that narrow down the result set that either removes content or orders the content differently. The exception here is that "limit" is used within the initial query. Since the web is so vast, it makes sense to limit the size of the result set from the search query. The good news is, this is a reasonably large number that allows for a result set that is sure to capture enough results so that once all of the filters are applied, the SERPs are still quite vast.
Older is not considered as much as new.
Logically speaking, "new" is considered over "old". What do I mean by that? We know that the first result set is returned with all content that seems to match the query. It passes through a series of filters that modify the result set to further match the search intent. What can we determine about the search intent? For example, is there anything in the search query that indicates we want older content? No. While it is possible to signal that you want historical information, search queries can not indicate that you want older content. For example, War of 1812 is a historical topic, however, the search query itself does not indicate a desire for older content. Can you think of a search query that says, I want older content? No. But can you think of a search query that says, I want newer content? Yes. I will get to that. I promise.
Search intent could be for trend content such as news, time relevant content such as product specifications, historical content, research content, etc. The search query will be analyzed for each of these intent. Each of the categories will either benefit from newer content or any content. But no consideration is for older content except for what would be normal ranking factors.
I will use Trend searches as my examples.
For example, you are curious about the recent earthquake in Oaxaca, Mexico. This is a news item that happened yesterday. While there have been other earthquakes in Oaxaca, Mexico, the assumption is that you are interested in the most recent earthquake when the search query does not specify specific a clear intent. I used the search earthquake Oaxaca, Mexico which does not indicate a time period whereas past earthquakes Oaxaca, Mexico does. The first query returns primarily news related results whereas the second only returns a few news related results along with historical content. Remember my promise to address a query for newer content? A search for earthquake yesterday indicates a clear intent for recent content.
What is happening here? Trend searches are not always clear. The new hip hop artists first release hits the charts and skyrockets to the top. Just a search of the name is enough to indicate a trend search you would think. Here, because the artist has only been out for a few months, any content regarding the artist will be relatively new. But what if his name was Byron Benson King? He goes by B.B. Then what? Getting my drift? Search trend data, trusted news sources, SERP performance data, secondary searches, etc. all contribute to skewing trend searches and not factors of the page itself other than the content and general ranking factors that may be lacking for newer content. All of this data together will distinguish the trend for the new artist versus the older King of blues. None of this is a product of any factor of the page other than the content itself, but factors related to search trends.
Now suppose there is no new hip hop artist. A search for B.B. King will return any page written regardless of content age on the subject assuming that rank, authority, expertise, semantics, etc. indicate that the page is worthwhile. Here, the factors are not filtered by trend data but factors some of which can grow over time. This would include links, SERP performance, etc. where indicators could weigh an older page over a newer page. But not always. Consider older content that sucks and simply does not perform well. Should it "rank" higher simply because it is older? No. In fact, there is no consideration for age at all in this case. Only metrics that come with age. Now consider there is a new book on B.B. King that is getting a lot of attention. The author has a web site with fantastic content that has many social media indicators that has brought attention to the new page. Add to this the articles and reviews of the book that are written. Here again, trends skew the results from all to new.
What am I saying?
Content age is not a factor except where a search query potentially indicates a desire for newer content. Not older content. Factors will allow a newer page to perform better than an older page in trend searches. Short of trend searches, news falls into this category, the search results depend upon factors of which content age is not one of them. Have I been clear on this?
Comment: You are correct that other ranking factors correlate with age and confound things.  However, I often see Google trying out a new page high in the search results for a while while they collect data on it.   Even for queries that don't need fresh content, I see Google treating new pages differently.
Comment: @StephenOstermiller You are right. Google "tastes" new pages in the SERPs intentionally. The primary reason for this is that new pages can never really have SERP performance metrics that allow it to compete against older pages without testing it. Otherwise, it would take forever for any new page to gain important metrics. This allows for a fresher SERP.
Comment: I like how you say "tastes."   That is a better way of saying it than what I had said in my answer.   I rewrote some of my answer to incorporate that.
Comment: Cheers!! That was a word I adopted from domain tasting. It makes perfect sense and seems to be as clear a description of what is going as I can think of. Hey! I coined my own SEO term. Does that mean I am a thought leader? Or really good at slinging barn yard finds?
Comment: Turnabout is fair play!
Comment: I thought you were a leader.   Does that make me a thought leader too?
Comment: @StephenOstermiller I thought you and I were loading the spreader. It is about that time of the year.
Answer: Domain age is a ranking factor according to SEO experts. But I have never seen page age being listed as a ranking factor.
If anything, Google often tries to show fresh and new content to its users. It will often rank articles that were written in the past week over articles that were written 4 years ago. This is because Google understands that older articles are often outdated and are no longer as relevant.
Fresh content is more likely to rank over older content.

It may take some time for Google to crawl your page, which could be a reason as to why it ranks better a few weeks after it has been posted. There are a few ways to increase the likelihood for Google to crawl your page.
Ways to help Google crawl your page:

1: Utilize sitemap.xml to tell Google about pages on your website.
2: Increase the number of internal links to the article that you want Google to crawl. If the article is linked from your home page it is more likely that Google will find this article than if the article is linked from far deep within your site
3: Submit the page to Google for indexing. You can do this from the webmaster console. https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/submit-url

After Google has crawled your page, it still may take some time for Google to index it in its search results. A lot of its indexing delay can be due to how much trust Google has in your site and your content. Newer and less trustworthy sites will take longer for Google to index its pages than trusted, established sites such as NYTimes which will often be indexed immediately.
You may also be experiencing a traffic boost two to four weeks into posting the article due to Google determining its ranking value based on the signals it has received. If your page has initially received a low amount of traffic, there aren't many signals for Google to determine how beneficial this page will be to its users. Once you have started to receive some traffic then Google can analyze metrics of the article such as "time on page", "bounce rate", "pages per session", etc, as well as its success on social network sharing. If your article performs well in its metrics analysis, then Google will begin sending you more traffic.
Answer: It is ranking factor, and I have read that in some approve patent of Google, whenever I will find link, I will try to share it here.
Actually it is ranking factor because the information on that page is stay for a long time. Whenever google request that page it is always display that information, hence it is ranking factor. And it's beneficial for user.
There are so many sites who just crawl someone else page and index it on Google, and later they delete it, hence Google generally give some low score initially, and increase that score with time if the page is still return 200 status with actual information.
So the older page means better ranking, but there is more benefits, if you update it with fresh information. Google generally calculate score for same document page with different algorithm and then combine the sum, like how much older the page is, how much fresh information it has. Here fresh information does not mean only latest post, if you update your old page with fresh information then it will perform better compare to newly created page.

Is page age a ranking factor?


Reasons to Backup (or not backup) QA and Dev Databases

Question: Pretty simple question: is it standard/best practice to backup dev and QA instances of the database?
Assume that the schema information is kept in some form of source control.
Answer: QA and dev databases (I will refer to these as non-prod[uction] to encompass all life cycles) are still databases.  So the business (in this case, might be the app dev team) needs to determine what type of disaster recovery they require.
In my opinion, SLAs don't just apply to production databases.  They apply to any data store that requires a certain RPO/RTO.  In the case of development databases, DML might not be a huge concern, but the loss of DDL could be application-breaking.
The point I'm trying to get at, is we here can't answers whether or not you'll want to back up your non-prod databases.  You will need to find out what type of disaster recovery is required of these databases.  There's a chance that database creation scripts generated weekly is enough.  But there's also a possibility they may require native database backups.
Personally, I always resort to some form of backups.  Even if it's simple recovery and just daily full backups.  These non-prod databases are typically not gigantic (although there are definitely exceptions to that rule), and end-user impact isn't usually a big concern in lower lifecycle environments (again, there are exceptions here as well).  I typically err on the side of more DR than less DR.  But I'd still recommend talking to the business group to get clearly defined and documented guidance for disaster recovery.  You don't want to be the reason that a week of development was just lost because you haven't been taking backups.
Comment: The easy answer here is this: A development server is a production server to a developer.
Answer: Say that you have 8 developers working daily with a dev database.
They work for 8 hours/day.
Each hour costs say 100$ per developer.
That is 6400$ for one day of work on a DEV database.
In this situation, if it was up to you, would you do transaction log backups at least every hour just in case?
Or would you go with simple mode?
One of my customer faced that situation and chose simple recovery model before I explained it in the language they understand $$.
Do not take the simple recovery model decision by yourself if you are not owner of the system, leave that to the one that gets paid to make decisions. But help him by explaining the situation in $ language.
Answer: Dev instance is the production database for developers. Having said that, many development groups decide to use source code control like version manager or vss to backup and version development products, thereby getting rid of the database backup works on dev servers.