Slow Computer? Try Cleaning off the Desktop

Is the hard drive of your computer grinding constantly, essentially bringing your computing operations to a halt?   Cleaning up the computer's desktop may help.  This is especially true if your computer is more than five years old.

All of those little icons on your desktop are using system memory, taking up space that otherwise could be used by the web browsers, word processor and email client you're trying to use.  Too many things on the desktop, as in the photo above, may contribute to a memory shortage, causing your system to struggle with allocating memory space for the programs you want to run.  That's when the hard disk starts grinding away.

Files on the desktop can be moved into the My Documents folder.  Unused icons can be deleted.  Or, if your computer is running Windows XP, you can try using the Desktop Cleanup Wizard.

Links:
Some additional system maintenance tips
More system maintenence tips from Microsoft

Free Food February

Nothing stimulates a marketing blitz like a highlight on the calendar, such as Groundhog Day, President's Day, or this week's Leap Day.  Here in Hampton Roads, Leap Day means free food.

Today, February 28th, has been deemed National Pancake Day.  Through 10pm, IHOP restaurants are giving customers free short stacks of pancakes.  They are also collecting donations to the Children's Miracle Network.  Details about the pancake giveaway can be found at www.IHOPPancakeDay.com

Leap Day, Feburary 29th, is Free Premium Roast Coffee Day at McDonald's locations in Hampton Roads and NE North Carolina.  From their media release:  "Participating McDonald’s restaurants across Southeastern Virginia and Northeast North Carolina will be serving free Premium Roast coffee of any size (no purchase necessary) all day."

Cox/WAVY Dispute Going Down the Wire

Another standoff is brewing between a local television station and a cable service provider.  Cox Communications' agreement to rebroadcast the signal of WAVY-TV 10 and WVBT Fox 43 expires at midnight, February 29th.  The disagreement is similar to a 2011 standoff between WAVY's parent company and  Dish Network.  That issue wasn't resolved until after Dish Network blacked out WAVY's programming for several days.

As I reported last October, such disputes stem from the 1994 Cable Television and Protection Act, which gave local TV stations the right to negotiate with the cable companies to re-transmit their signals.  In this instance, WAVY's owners are demanding an increase in the fees Cox pays to carry WAVY's signal.  Cox officials describe the increase as "huge."

Such impasses often  lead to a TV channel blackout, but not always.  In 2011, WVEC's parent company settled with DIRECTV just before their agreement expired.

Statement from Cox Communications

Another Busy Tornado Season

Forecasters at the National Weather Service are predicting that 2012 could be every bit as busy for tornadoes as the 2011 season, which was one of the busiest on record.  A meteorologist in Oklahoma said this week that weather patterns were becoming slightly more active.  The advisory affects the Southeast and the Midwest.


Virginia is coming off a year in which 51 twisters hit the state, the second most ever recorded.  Virginia reported ten tornado-related fatalities last year. 

The Virginia Department of Emergency Management has scheduled the state's annual tornado drill for Tuesday, March 20th.  State officials are asking public schools, businesses and civic groups to register to participate.  For information about the upcoming Statewide Tornado Drill, visit the Virginia Department of Emergency Management's website.

The storm season is already off to an active start; there were 95 confirmed tornadoes in the U.S.  The spring months of March and April are usually the most active for twister activity.

Fin Whale...not a Sei Whale

Updating Tuesday's post about the sei whale that was found dead on the beach in Norfolk over the weekend...marine scientists have now correctly identified the animal as a young fin whale. 

Both are classified as roquals, a family distinctive for their grooved throat pouches that expand when feeding. Their main difference is in size.  While adult sei whales can top out at 45-55 feet, the fin whale can grow to over 80 feet, making it the second longest animal on earth, trailing only its cousin, the blue whale.  They're also fast, capable of 23mph in short bursts.  Fin whales, like sei whales and humpbacks, are usually seen off the Virginia coast in the winter months.

Scientists did a necropsy on the whale Tuesday.  Norfolk city officials say they will bury the carcass in the beach where it was found.

On the web:
http://acsonline.org/fact-sheets/fin-whale/

Learning About the Sei Whale

I've been watching the reports about the dead sei whale that washed onto the beach in Norfolk's Ocean View neighborhood last weekend with great interest.  As much as I know about local wildlife, there is a lot I don't know about this particular species of whale.

First, I wasn't even sure I was pronouncing the name correctly.  I had to look it up on Dictionary.com before going on the air with the story.  It rhymes with "day."  According to the American Cetacean Society, the name is derived from the Norwegian word for pollock, a fish that appears off the coast of Norway at the same time of year as the sei whale.  Incidentally, I would have been completely wrong in pronouncing the name of the sei's cousin, the Bryde's whale.  It's pronounced "broodus."

Secondly, I wasn't aware that the sei whale was even seen off the Virginia coast that often.  Humpback whales are regular visitors here during the winter; this year has been one of the best for whale watching, officials at the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center say.  Sei whales are apparently not as showy as the playful humpbacks, but they do frequent our coast, I've learned.  A sei washed up on the beach at Sandbridge just last year, the Virginian-Pilot reported.

In both dead whale cases, the animal was likely killed by a collision with a ship.  The 42-foot long beached whale in Norfolk has an obvious head wound.  Marine scientists are conducting a necropsy to determine the cause of death.  Norfolk will bury the carcass.

It's too bad that a whale had to die in order for me and others to become educated about them.  Still, the whale carcass was quite a tourist attraction Sunday and Monday, with hundreds heading to the beach to photograph it.  Perhaps some science teachers changed their lesson plans this week, to include a few facts about the sei whale.

Chocolate Shortage?

This small item in today's Daily Press caught my eye: "...scientists are saying that thanks to climate change and plant diseases, a cocoa shortage for future holidays is a very real possibility."  That's about the last thing I want to read, especially in proximity to Valentine's Day.

According to Scientific American magazine, a number of factors could negatively affect the world's supply of chocolate in the future.  Primarily, the magazine reports, an expanding population living in a growing number of developing nations will increase worldwide demand for chocolate.  Meanwhile, the cacao plant, which produces the seeds that are ground into cocoa powder, is under threat from new diseases, pests, and yes, climate change.  The current yield of 3.7 million metric tons of the crop is not expected to meet demand for chocolate by 2020, the magazine reports.

Chocolate is often seen as a holiday gift (we Americans spend an estimated $700 million on chocolate on Valentine's Day alone), but it has other uses.  In my household, dark chocolate is an effective remedy for a scratchy throat.  *cough* I think I feel the need for some chocolate therapy right now...;)

Links:
Summary of the Scientific American report
News report from the Chicago Tribune