Peter’s Soapbox

Linux Saves its Neighboring Windows - Twice This Week

Several times this season, we have had record-breaking blizzards. And, nearly every time, my efforts to deal with them have been thwarted due to failures of the brand new snow-throwing equipment I’ve purchased. Fortunately, my neighbor has come to our aid several times and, thanks to his tractor, our driveway remains clear and we can get to and from our house. Continue reading Linux Saves its Neighboring Windows - Twice This Week…

Man Page Minute - mv

MV(1) User Commands MV(1)

NAME
mv - move (rename) files Continue reading Man Page Minute - mv…

Man Page Minute - cp

CP(1) User Commands CP(1)

NAME
cp - copy files and directories Continue reading Man Page Minute - cp…

Jim Cramer’s “Stay Mad for Life” - Part Two

Continuing where I left off reviewing this book, chapter 3 covers planning for retirement, and the five biggest mistakes people make with their 401(k) plans. Since I own a small company, we currently have no 401(k), but we do offer a SIMPLE IRA for our officers, and most of these points hold true for me as well. They are:

1. Buying the employer’s stock
2. Investing in stable-value funds
3. Accepting the default offerings in their company’s 401(k)
4. Cashing out their 401(k)s when switching employers
5. Not paying attention to where the money is going (which seems to me to be the same as point #3)

He then covers a few practical tips to make the most out of your 401(k), such as automatically contributing to it each month, instead of waiting ’til year end. I’m guilty of not doing this, but luckily cash flow isn’t an issue right now, so I can still contribute. Cramer also advises that you contribute the maximum amount to your 401(k) that your employer will match. After that, you want a separate, self-managed IRA, which gives you more flexibility than your employer’s plan.

So far, I’m liking the advice I’m getting from the book. Check back in thirty years to see how it worked out.

Symantec Endpoint Protection: Right Up There With Norton Internet Security

Two of my staff and I spent the entire day at a client’s, in an attempt to upgrade the system (of approximately 150 PCs) from an ancient Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition 7.6 to Symantec Endpoint Protection 11. Why? Because sometime in the last few weeks, it stopped getting anti-virus definition updates. Continue reading Symantec Endpoint Protection: Right Up There With Norton Internet Security…