Apple iTunes Radio Not Ready for Primetime

My first 24 hours with iTunes Radio are not encouraging.  With regard to desktop functionality on my Mac, there is no way to like or dislike a song. This is the key reason I use Pandora, and if they don’t add this lickity split there will be a problem.

 

On my iPhone, some of my stations allow me to select “play more like this” or “never play this song,” but others do not; the option appears, but nothing happens when you attempt to select it.  The big problem, however, is that songs play repetitively….I mean back to back.  I just heard Round Here by the Counting Crows three times in a row.  Other songs are replayed after just a couple of songs.

Converting a TIF to text

Let's say you scan a document and don't have the ability to save it as a pdf.  You have a TIF file.  Save it to your desktop.  Open Microsoft OneNote.  On the ribbon, choose insert, then picture, find the file, and select it.  Once it's in OneNote, all you do is right click over the photo, and then select "copy text from picture."  Then paste it into Word.  Note that you have to do this for each page of the document in OneNote.

What Kind of Bat Does Hunter Pence Use?

I'm a pretty big collector of signed baseball memorabilia, but I only collect things that I get signed personally.  I just don't trust it's authentic unless I see them sign it.  When it comes to bats, I like to try and have the player sign the type of bat he uses.  I was on a tour of AT&T Park last weekend and snapped these photos of the bat Hunter Pence used in the playoffs against the Cardinals.  It's the bat that he used to hit the ball three times despite the fact it cracked.  He uses the Louisville Slugger M9 D200.

Here's a photo of my kid getting Hunter's signature...unfortunately, it wasn't the right bat:

Review of Griffin 20 aka Griffin Twenty

I had an old pair of good Yamaha outdoor speakers, as well as a an AirPort Express base station, Model No. A1084.  So when I heard about the Griffin 20, it sounded like the perfect solution for hooking up my old speakers.  I installed my speakers on a gazebo, ran the speaker wire, plugged in the Griffin 20, attached the AirPort Express, and then ran inside for what I thought was a few minutes to configure the AirPort Express.  It turned into a complicated mess.  The Airport Utility in Mountain Lion does not recognize the AirPort Express, so there is absolutely no way to configure it.  I tried resetting the Airport Express, and Googled various "fixes," none of which work.  I finally found a post that said that you need to download an old version of the Airport Utility that will work with the AirPort Express.  I downloaded it, but then I received a notification saying that the Airport Utility cannot be installed on Mountain Lion.  After 20 minutes of Googling, I found a post saying that you can install Airport Utility using a third party shareware application called Pacifist.  I ran it, installed the Airport Utility, and it recognized the Airport Express Base Station.  None of this is mentioned ANYWHERE on the Griffin website, and the customer support person said he had never heard this.

So how's it work?  It streams music perfectly from my iMac.  While my wife's iMac recognizes the Airport Express, no sound comes out of the speakers when I try to play music.  As for playing music from my iPhone, it does play, but there is constant drop off.  The call to Griffin was worthless, so I'm still working on this and will update this post.  It will either work, and play music from my iPad/iPhone flawlessly, or it's going back.  We'll see.

Update:  Any type of connection difficulties are attributable to the Airport Express and your wi-fi connection.  The Griffin 20 has nothing to do with it; it's an amplifier; that's all.  And at $100 for 20 watts, it's overpriced.  The thing that sets it apart is that it looks like an Apple product, and it's designed so that the older generation Airport Express units work with it.  That being said, you can really hook up any receiver/amplifier to an Airport Express and it will play music through your old speakers.  I'm now debating whether to buy a much more powerful amplifier on Amazon, for around $60, and returning this thing, but I'm leaning toward keeping it.  If you get one, just be aware that Griffin's support is absolutely worthless.  The guy I spoke with said he had no knowledge that the old version of the Airport Utility needed to be installed to work the old Airport Express models, or that Mountain Lion won't let you install the old version without a work around.  For a company that is currently selling a device that is made for the older version Airport Express units, this is unacceptable.

3/26/2014 Update:  Okay, so I've had the thing a year.  I installed outside in a waterproof box I bought at Home Depot (I drilled holes so it doesn't get too hot inside).  My iPhone's wi-fi reception is not great in the back yard, and it seems like that's the reason it keeps dropping the connection.  Running my iPad inside works great.  I've had the thing continuously on for a year without problems, including in 110 degree heat (not advised).  I have to give it a thumbs up.

Best Christmas Tree Farm in Sacramento Area

By far the best deal in Christmas trees is at Twin Pines tree farm in Georgetown.  5150 Twin Pines Loop, Georgetown, CA 95634.  $32 any size, and they have a ton of different tree types to choose from.  Free cocoa and cider, free tree trimmings and free mistle toe.  The husband and wife owners are totally cool.

iPhone 4s Activation Fail

So I spend 5 hours ordering my iPhone 4s last friday just so that I could receive it today.  It arrived at 9:15 a.m. this morning, but I've been unable to activate it for the last three hours.  I keep getting the following message:

Which one is it?  Will I receive notification, or should I try again later?  Why is the top sentence in a larger, bold font? 
When I try the process again, I have to start from the beginning, re-entering the same information.  Apparently only AT&T customers are experiencing this issue.  Perhaps AT&T should compensate new iPhone 4s users for loss of use. 
From the 4+ hours trying to order the phone from Apple's website, the Apple Store iPhone app, the Apple 800 number, the AT&T website, and AT&T customers service, to incorrect order confirmation, this whole process has been mind numbing.  I actually received confirmation for an order that I didn't place, and I had all of the other person's contact information, including partial credit card info.  I easily could have changed the delivery address to my house, but instead I notified Apple.  Still, this experience is far better than any experience I ever had trying to contact Microsoft, so I'll let Apple slide.

What Kind of Shoe Does Steve Jobs Wear?

The New Balance M991

Steve Jobs' Favorite Restaurant in Palo Alto

Just read an article that in his final days Steve Jobs went to his favorite restaurant, Jin Sho in Palo Alto.  No particular reason for posting this; I'm just burying this factoid on my blog (hence it's backdated to 2010) so that I'll be able to find the name next time in Palo Alto.  I like sushi and something tells me this place is good.
http://www.jinshorestaurant.com/menu/dinner.html

Scanning Old Photographs

I inherited my grandfather's photo albums dating from 1916-1932, which I've begun scanning into my computer. They begin with his first year at the US Naval Academy, and show his progression through the Navy. He was an early Naval aviator, beginning at Pensacola in 1924. He eventually was an Admiral during WW II. A lot of the photos have descriptions on the back, but this one is a complete mystery. What the heck is going on here?

Low Country Lemonade Recipe

While on a recent trip to Washington D.C., I had dinner at Eric Ripert's West End Bistro.  While at the bar, I had one of the best cocktails that I can remember tasting.  It's called Low Country Lemonade (aka a John Daly).  It was so good I had the bartender write down the recipe, as follows:

1 1/2 ounces Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka
2 ounces lemon juice
1 ounce simple syrup

Mix them together in a glass of ice and enjoy.  You can make simple syrup yourself, but I bought a bottle at Safeway for $5.  It's just sugar water.  In California, you can find Firefly vodka at Safeway or Beverages 'n More.

Jennifer Aniston's Cobb Salad Recipe

The LA Times had an interview with Courteney Cox in which she mentioned that Jennifer Aniston ate a Cobb Salad on the set of Friends every day. Here’s an excerpt of the article:

"Jennifer and Lisa [Kudrow] and I ate lunch together every single day for 10 years. And we always had the same thing -- a Cobb salad. But it wasn't really a Cobb salad. It was a Cobb salad that Jennifer doctored up with turkey bacon and garbanzo beans and I don't know what. She just has a way with food, which really helps. Because if you're going to eat the same salad every day for 10 years, it'd better be a good salad, right?"

 

So I did a little digging to see if I could find anything else on how she doctored it up.  A traditional Cobb Salad (first introduced at the Brown Derby in LA) has the following:

Lettuce (head lettuce, watercress, chicory, and romaine)

Tomatoes

Crisp bacon

Chicken breast

Hard-cooked eggs

Avocado

Roquefort cheese

Chives

Special Cobb salad vinaigrette

 

Although there are many variations on the dressing used for a Cobb salad, this one is purported to be the one originally used at the Brown Derby:

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 teaspoons salt

3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon dry English mustard

1 small clove garlic, finely minced

1/4 cup full-flavored olive oil

3/4 cup salad oil

 

Obviously, if she ate a traditional Cobb Salad every day, she’d look like Fat Monica.  I found these two references to her salad:

“Jennifer Aniston, who acted in the popular TV sitcom Friends as the character "Rachel" from 1994 to 2004, said in an interview with Oprah Winfrey that she ate a Cobb salad for lunch every day for the whole duration of the show, "mixing it up a little" by adding onions on Thursdays and Fridays.”

 

“She particularly favors a healthier version of a Cobb salad - switching out red meat and eggs in favor of beans, grilled chicken or turkey and just a touch of Swiss cheese.”

 

So I’m guessing that her salad has:

Tomatoes

Red Onion

Turkey Bacon

Grilled Chicken

Swiss Cheese

Avocado

Cottage Cheese

Chives

Taking a look at the dressing, she definitely wasn’t using the one with ¼ cup of olive oil and ¾ cup of salad oil. I’d have to say she switched this out with a low fat bottled version.

Dead DotComs

Here’s a list I compiled of software companies that either went belly-up or were acquired in the last few years (post-dotcom meltdown). It's a work in progress. Email me if there are any mistakes, or if you have additional suggestions.

6th Sense Analytics: Acquired by Rally Software
Above All Software
Acopia Networks: Acquired by F5
AdmitOne Security/Biopassword: as of 3/2/2012, the last press release on the site was from 2009.
Aduvo (Acquired by Sun)
Agami Systems: Dead
AimNet Solutions: Acquired by Cognizant.
Airflow Networks (Website replaced by clickfraud website)
Alerilabs: Replaced with strange free nailpolish website
Alignent: Acquired by Sopheon
Altor Networks: Acquired by Juniper Networks
Amarium (Formerly Cirond): Website replaced by placeholder site.
Ambeo: Acquired by Embarcadero Technologies
Anakam: Acquired by Equifax
Andiamo Systems: Acquired by Cisco
Antartica Systems: Appears dead. Last Press release was 2005.
Anthology Solutions
Anthology Solutions: Website is dead.
Apani Networks: Website is dead.
Apere: Website redirects to Citrix.
Appgate: Acquired by Cryptzone
Applabs: Acquired by CSC
Applix (Acquired by Cognos)
Approva: Acquired by Infor
AptSoft (Acquired by IBM)
Aradyme (Website replaced by fake site)
Arcadian Networks: Out of Business
Archer Technologies: Acquired by EMC
Arcot: Acquired by CA in 2010
Ardence (Acquired by IntervalZero)
Arsenal Digital Solutions: Acquired by IBM
Attune Systems: Website is dead.
Availigent (Website dead)
BEA: Acquired by Oracle.
BitLeap: Acquired by Barracuda Networks
Black Spider: Acquired by Websense
Bluefire Security: Dead
BlueLane Technologies: Acquired by VMWare
BlueNote Networks (Acquired by Aspect)
BlueSocket: Acquired by AdTran
BlueSoft: Gone
BlueStar Solutions: Gone
BNX Systems: Gone
Borderware: Acquired by Watchguard
BowStreet: Acquired by IBM
Brabeion Software: Acquired by Archer
Breach Security: Acquired by Trustwave
BridgeStream: Acquired by Oracle
Bridgewerx: Gone
Cantata: Acquired by Dialogic
Celequest: Acquired by Cognos
Centeris: Acquired by Likewise
Certicom: Acquired by RIM
Cittio: Winding down
Clear Technologies: Acquired by Versata
Clearapp: Acquired by Oracle
ClearPoint Networks: Acquired by nCircle
Cloakware: Now Irdeto
Codespear: Acquired by Federal Signal
Colubris Networks: Acquired by HP
ConfigureSoft: Acquired by EMC
Converged Access: Dead.
Converged Access: placeholder website
Control Break - Safeboot: Acquired by McAfee
Corestreet: Acquired by ActiveIdentity
Cornice: Website is fake website.
Cotelligent
Covelight Systems: Acquired by Radware
Covi Technologies: Assets Acquired by GE Security.
Crosswalk: Fake web portal
Cryptometrics: Gone.
Dasient: Acquired by Twitter in early 2012
Data Domain: Acquired by EMC
DataMirror: Acquired by IBM
Datastrip: Acquired by Smart Media Innovations
db4Objects (aka Servo Software): Acquired by Versant
Decru: Acquired by NetApp
DeepNines: Acquired by NetSweeper
Digital Harbor: Acquired by Norkom
Dyad Security: Acquired by Outpost24
e-DMZ: Acquired by Quest Software
Emotion: Acquired by Corbis, which was acquired by Artesia
Encryptx: Acquired by Imation
Envox: Acquired by Syntellect
Equant
Eurekify: Acquired by CA
eVault: Acquired by Seagate
Exabyte
Exaprotect: Website is dead.
Filesx: Acquired by IBM
Flashline
FrontGate Systems: website gone.
Guardium: Acquired by IBM
GuardianEdge: Acquired by Symantec
Gold Wire: Acquired by Intelliden
Golden Gate: Acquired by Oracle
Goldwire Technologies: Fake web portal
GreenPlum: Acquired by EMC
GridApp: Purchased by BMC
Gupta: Acquired by Unify
Hummingbird: Acquired by Open Text
Hyperion: Acquired by Oracle
iBRIX: Acquired by HP
iConclude: Website is now a click fraud farm.
Idiom Technologies: Acquired by SDL Enterprise Technology
iManage: Acquired by Interwoven
Imperative Networks: Gone.
Impress Software: Assets acquired by Trinovis
InfoWave: Website is dead.
Infravio: Acquired by Webmethods
Infraworks: Bankrupt
Insightix: Acquired by McAfee
Intellipath Solutions: Website is dead.
Intellitactics: Acquired by Trustwave
Interlace Systems: Acquired by Oracle
Inxight: Acquired by Business Objects
ION Networks: Assets acquired by Cryptek.
IPLocks: Assets acquired by Fortinet
Ironport: Acquired by Cisco
iSpheres
Jaluna: Gone.
Jasomi Networks: Now DiTech Networks
Jounree: Now Initiate
Karta: Gone.
Kenamea: Now Scivantage
Kidaro: Acquired by Microsoft
Kinitos: Now NeoEdge Networks
Kinzan: Gone
Kiyon: Gone, replaced by fake web portal
Klir Technologies: Website is still there, but no management names or recent press releases
Knowmadic: Gone.
KnowNow: Gone.
Kubi Software: Replaced with fake website.
LeCayla Technologies: Acquired by Opsource
Left Hand Networks: Acquired by HP
Linux Networx: Acquired by SGI
Liquid Machines: Acquired by Checkpoint
Lockdown Networks: Out of business
LogicalApps: Acquired by Oracle
Lumigent: Assets acquired by Beyond Trust
Lurhq: Merged with Secureworks, which was then acquired by Dell
LVL7 Systems: Acquired by Broadcom in 2007
MaXware: Acquired by SAP
Meetinghouse: Acquired by Cisco
Meiosys: Acquired by IBM
MessageOne: Acquired by Dell
MetaInfo: Acquired by NeuStar
Metamatrix: Acquired by Redhat
Mirage Networks: Acquired by Trustwave
Mirapoint: Acquired by Critical Path
Mobile Armor: Acquired by Trend Micro
MX Logic: Acquired by McAfee
MXI Security: Acquired by Imation in 2011
Mykonos Software: Acquired by Juniper in 2012
Napera Networks: Acquired by OpSwat
NEI: Acquired by Unicom
NeoAccel: Acquired by VMware
NetContinuum: Acquired by Barracuda Networks
NetDevices: Acquired by Alcatel Lucent
Netegrity: Acquired by CA
NetForensics: Relaunched as Blackstratus
NetManage: Acquired by MicroFocus
Netezza: Acquired by IBM
NetWitness: Acquired by RSA in April 2011
Network Associates: Acquired by McAfee
NetZentry: Out of Business
NextHop: Acquired by U4EA
Nextpoint: Acquired by GenBand
NFR: Acquired by CheckPoint
NuBridges: Acquired by Liaison Technologies
Number Six Software: Acquired by ATS
Onaro: Acquired by NetApp
OpsWare: Acquired by HP
Orative: Acquired by Cisco
Ounce Labs: Acquired by IBM
PacketHop: Acquired by SRI International
PacketMotion: Acquired by VMware
PanGo: Acquired by Innerwireless
Parlano: Acquired by Microsoft
PassGO: Acquired by Quest
PassLogix: Acquired by Oracle
Peak Stream Systems: Website gone, replaced by fake website.
Peakstone: Website is dead.
Peakstream: Acquired by Google.
Performaworks: Acquired by Workscape
PGP: Acquired by Symantec
Pilot Software: Acquired by SAP
Pinion Software (aka Infraworks): Assets acquired by GigaTrust
PlateSpin: Acquired by Novell
Plumtree: Acquired by BEA
PointSec: Acquired by Check Point
Polivec: Website is gone
Popkin, acquired by telelogic, acquired by IBM
Portal Software: Acquired by Oracle
Postini: Acquired by Google.
Prisa Networks: Gone
Proactivenet: Acquired by BMC
Progeny: Gone.
Protego Networks: Acquired by Cisco
QLusters: Gone
Qovia: Danger! Do NOT go the website; it attempts to download trojans.
Quarry Technologies: Gone
Questerra: Gone.
Qumranet: Acauired by Red Hat
Reactivity: Acquired by Cisco.
RealOps: Acquired by BMC
Reconnex: Acquired by McAfee
RedCannon: No management names listed on website; last press release is from 2007.
Remedy: Acquired by BMC
Revivio: Acquired by Symantec
RippleTech: Acquired by Nitro Security
Robobak: Acquired by KineticD
Robot Genius: Website is Gone
Rohati: Acquired by Cisco
Sanera: Acquired by McData
Sapias: Acquired by Wireless Matrix
ScanAlert: Acquired by McAfee
Scentric: Out of Business.
Seague: Acquired by Borland.
Seaway Networks: Assets acquired by Freescale Semiconductor.
Secure Computing: Acquired by McAfee
Securent: Acquired by Cisco
Secuware: No management names listed on site, and last press release is from October 2007.
Senforce: Acquired by Novell.
Sentryware: Dead site.
Service Integrity: Website replaced by fake web portal
Sierra Logic: Acquired by Emulex.
Signacert: Acquired by Harris
Simulalabs.com: Dead site.
sOFTEK: Acquired by IBM.
Solidcore: Acquired by McAfee
SolSoft: Acquired by Exaprotect
Solstice: Acquired by Greenhat
SpectraLink: Acquired by PolyCom.
SPI Dynamics: Acquired by HP.
SPSS: Acquired by IBM
SSA Global: Acquired by Infor
Storability: Acquired by Storagetek, which was acquired by Sun
SurfControl: Acquired by Websense
Tangosol: Acquired by Oracle.
Tasman Networks: Acquired by Nortel.
Telelogic: Acquired by IBM.
TeleSym: Out of business
Terrascale: Acquired by Rackable
Thinstall: Acquired by VMware
Third Brigade: Acquired by Trend Micro
Tidal Software: Acquired by Cisco
TopSpin: Acquired by Cisco
Transitive: Acquired by IBM.
Transparency Software: Website is dead.
Vaau: Acquired by Sun
Vernier Networks aka Autonomic Networks: Shut Down.
Vidoop: Acquired by Confident Technologies
Vigilar: Assets foreclosed and sold in 2010
Viion Systems: Gone.
VirtualFabrix: Acquired by Vizioncore (Quest Software)
Virtugo: Out of business.
Warp Solutions: Website appears abandoned.
Watchfire: Acquired by IBM
Webify: Acquired by IBM
Xen Source: Acquired by Citrix
XO Soft: Acquired by CA
Yoggie Security: Sold off assets
Xramp: Acquired by Trustwave
Zantaz: Acquired by Autonomy
Zimbra: Acquired by Yahoo!

Apple's Website Through the Years

Through the magic of the Internet Archive WayBack Machine, here are some screen shots of apple's website over the years. You can see all of the pages here: http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://apple.com

1997...

2000....

2001...

2004...

Current version...

Madden NFL 09 for Wii: User's Guide

We lost the directions on how to play Madden NFL ’09 for the Wii.  It was a complete nightmare trying to get a replacement user’s guide, but I finally got a pdf version from EA sports.  So I’m providing a link should anyone else need one.

LINK TO MADDEN NFL 09

Adding Missing Album Artwork in iTunes

So you’ve got a large iTunes library. You go to Advanced, and select “Get Album Artwork.” But once you click on it, you’re notified that iTunes “Could not get artwork for some albums.” You can click on the “total notifications” to see what albums are missing.

Don’t get frustrated. There’s an easy way to add the artwork.

First, go to http://www.allcdcovers.com/. I did not have to register. I simply entered the name of one of the albums that was missing artwork in the “search,” “all covers” box in the upper right. I then found the album, clicked on it, and then selected the front photo. After clicking on it, a new page opens and you have the opportunity to download it. Once you click on it, a new page opens with a large photo of the cover. Right click it, and then save to a folder on your desktop that you create call “Album Artwork.” Be sure to change the title of the file to something that identified it. Once you’ve save it, go to your music library in iTunes and find the album. Select the top song, hit shift, and then tab all the way down to the last song until all the songs in the album are highlighted. Right click, and click “Get Info.”

You’ll get a popup that says “Are you sure you want to edit information for multiple items?” Click yes. Now you’ll see a new window with four tabs. The first tab is “Info,” and it’s open. You’ll notice in the bottom right that there is a selection for Artwork. Double click inside the large Artwork box, and then navigate to your folder where you saved the artwork, and select it and click open. Voila. You’ll now see the artwork.

Update: if allcdcovers.com doesn't have the album artwork, just do a search in Google, but click on "images." You'll find what you're looking for. Save it to the same folder, and then do the above import. Be sure to pick the largest image available (ie, 500 x 500 is better than 250 x 250).

Update Two: In going through the coverflow art, I noticed numerous incorrect album covers that iTunes automatically added, apparently through gracenotes. Some were from completely different artists.

Linksys WRT160N: A Wireless Router to Avoid

In the 9 years since I last purchased a Linksys wireless router, I assumed that they would have worked out the issues with enabling security. I was wrong. Linksys has made the process of configuring the router even more confusing. After spending an hour trying to get my iMac, 2 iphones and an XP netbook to access the network, I broke down and called Linksys. After TWO HOURS on the phone and trying dozens of work arounds, my devices were finally able to access the secured network. However, today is a new day and I’m again faced with the same exact issue.

So I’m returning the thing, and I will never buy another Linksys item. I should have bought an Airport Extreme in the first place, but I was lazy and didn’t want to drive to a Bestbuy or Apple Store, which actually would have been faster than the nightmare I went through with Linksys support.

Update 7/29/2009: I purchased the Apple Airport Extreme at the Apple Store. After plugging it in, the green light would not go on. I call Comcast (I have a cable modem) and they reset the modem. The green light then went on. I then installed the Airport Extreme software on the Mac, and configured the security. It took five minutes, and everyone in the house now has wi-fi access. We even have access for our guests, with a different password.

My only complaint is that the USB printer functionality simply does not work. I have a Dell laser printer and when it's plugged into the USB port of the Airport Extreme, I cannot print from my Vista machine that is attached to the Airport via ethernet cable. In addition, the computers cannot access each other's iTunes libraries. But other than these two issues, the wi-fi network works and works well.

Top Google Flops

Google Radio Ads

Google Print Ads (It spent $102 million to acquire dMarc)

Dodgeball (SMS-social networking service that Google bought back in May 2005)

Google Page Creator (Allowed you to create websites that looked like they were designed by a 3^rd grader)

Google Video
Google Catalog Search

Google Notebook

Google Accelerator

Jaiku

Lively (Virtual online community/Second Life Wannabe)

Google Answers

Google Coupons

Orkut

 

If you can think of any others, post a comment and I’ll update it.

How to Increase Gas Mileage for Your Hummer H2

I saw this on I-5 on the way to LA this past weekend. The only way this guy could get worse gas mileage is to have packed his luggage department with bricks.

Random Facts About Steve Jobs

I finally got around to reading the March 17, 2008 issue of Fortune, which had two articles on Steve Jobs.  Here are some highlights:

 

·         Steve Jobs is a Buddhist and a vegetarian.  When he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2003 he tried nine months of “alternative methods” prior to undergoing successful surgery in 2004.

·         As of March 2008, Steve owned $682 million in Apple stock and a 7.3% stake in Disney, worth $4.6 billion.

·         Steve parks his Mercedes in handicapped spaces and refuses to put a license plate on the car, which he says is “a little game I play.”

·         He dated Joan Baez and Diane Keaton.

·         He was adopted by Clara and Paul Jobs, a working-class California couple.  His biological father is Syrian born Abdulfattah “John” Jandali who impregnated Joanne Simpson, his biological mother, while the two were University of Wisconsin graduate students in 1955.  Unwed at the time, they gave Steve up for adoption, only to later marry.  They had another child, Mona Simpson, who grew up to become a critically acclaimed novelist and who did not know Steve was her brother until she was an adult.  Jandali abandoned the family when Mona was 4, jumping from job to job as a political science professor, before leaving academe.  Now 76, he is the food and beverage director at the Boomtown Hotel and Casino near Reno.  Mona wrote a book, The Lost Father, about her quest to find him.

·         Steve had a baby, Lisa, with Chrisann Brennan.  For two years he denied paternity while Lisa’s mother went on welfare.  Steve swore in a court document that he could not be Lisa’s dad because he was “sterile and infertile.”  He later acknowledged paternity.  Lisa Brennan-Jobs graduated from Harvard and is a writer.  Steve married Laurene Powell, a Stanford MBA and miraculously fathered three more children despite being infertile.

Best & Most Authentic Sangria Recipe

With the weather getting warmer and Daylight Savings Time upon us, it's time to start thinking about drinking alcohol. We have a "secret" family recipe for the absolute best sangria you've ever had. I'm sharing it with you, my readers.

1920 Madrid Sangria (The original variation was picked up by my grandfather, a Naval officer, while he was in Spain):
2 bottles of dry red wine (Don't be cheap - spend $10 a bottle, minimum)
1 cup of sugar
1 jigger of Brandy
1 jigger of Orange Liquer
1 orange sliced thinly
1 lemon sliced thinly
Diced apple
Dash of cinnamon

Chill several hours

At last minute add a bottle of chilled Champagne and Ice (Again, don't be a cheap bastard. At a minimum, use WhiteStar).
Anyone who drinks a sip of this nectar will ask for more, and demand the recipe. Don't forget to give me credit.