Maggie's Farm

Like a lot of these Tips, this might only interest a few — but it might interest them a lot.

This will show you how to manipulate online files via a Windows icon.

For a quick example, let's say you run a blog or forum.  You like the way the readers can post both pics and vids in the comments, but it worries you to allow it overnight.  Some sworn enemy or evil troll might upload a bucketload of child porno at 3 AM and call the FBI.  Sure, your good name will be cleared.  Eventually.

So you set up a DOS batch file to perform a little online file magiculation.  When you decide to call it quits for the day, you double-click on your 'Overnight' icon and it overwrites the config file for the comment editor with one that has the upload feature disabled.  In the morning, when you're back in the saddle, you run the 'Normal' batch file and it overwrites the config file with the standard one.

You can also use it to automagically change themes (which changes the entire look of the site), sidebar pics, ad banners and videos, and you can include a timer in the DOS file so it'll change an item every X number of minutes or hours.  You can then run that file when the computer starts up so you don't even have to think about it.  All in all, a very slick little trick.

This might be of interest if you're into uploading or downloading large files.  In my case, I don't have a TV so I download my few weekly shows from Usenet a few days afterward.  They're high-res and usually about a gig in size.  Likewise, when I upload a 1-hour documentary to one of my web sites, they're also often a gig in size.  Since I'm using a slow Verizon Wireless connection, this can take some serious time, like three or four hours.

And during that time, because I'm doing other things on the computer, I might suddenly need to reboot.  Hence the problem.

Below the fold I'll reveal what I know about continuing stopped uploads and downloads.  I recently made a fascinating discovery about Firefox that I wanted to pass along.  Unlike Internet Exploder, it can actually continue broken downloads, but, naturally, there's a trick to it.

I heard another nightmare story when it comes to domain names the other day.  This was emailed to me by an old buddy:

Hey, dude -

My girlfriend was going to start up a blog site a few days ago and found out her "name.com" was already taken.  It wasn't when she tested it out about a month ago.  Is there somebody out there keeping track of these things and selling them to those companies that collect domain names?

As an experienced professional in the field, my experienced, professional answer was that I didn't have a clue.

But, as I've preached here in the past, why take the chance?  These things are dirt cheap ($5/mo) and you don't actually have to do anything to the domain to preserve it (like build a web site), so I advocate getting it now before someone else does.  You'll only have yourself to kick later on if you don't.

For hosting companies, I highly recommend BlueHost.  It's owned by a good conservative family out in Provo, Utah.  The CEO's twice-yearly emails are a laff riot, and very critical of current governmental policy.  There's no sign-up fee and no early cancellation fee.  Also, the cost of the actual domain name is free, unlike some hosting companies which charge up to 35 bucks for it.

Even if you're not going to use it for twenty years until it's finally time to post pics of the grandkids, get it now.  There's only one 'yourname.com' out there, and once it's gone, it's gone forever.

Speaking of grandkids, below the fold I'll elaborate on the private 'family blog', and what a blast they are.  I have two great stories to tell.

This is, if you call my causing an 84-year-old man to openly weep, 'great'.

This will only be of interest to those of you using high-CPU programs.  I just made a very clever discovery that tied up the one loose end and figured it deserved a post.

This deals with taking a program that uses high CPU and lowering its 'priority' so it won't drag the system down, but will still hustle along as fast as it can otherwise.  I suppose this is mainly for the field of video, because traditionally video conversion programs are power-hungry and slow, but it would relate to any CPU-hungry situation.

We'll be dealing with batch files, DOS, strings and variables.

Only the strong will survive.

None of these are particularly worthy of their own post, but they add up to a fun little collection.  Well, except for that horribly sad thing that happened to Bird Dog.

Bring a tissue.

First, some really good news from the political front:

Washington Post Plans a Paywall

That should only eliminate about 90% of this liberal dishrag's readership.  Like the NYT, the news will still be open to the public, but to read the op-eds is going to cost a little something, and the only people who'll shell out the bucks are such ardent Lefties that we don't care about them, anyway.  But it's a very good thing to keep these creeps away from the average reader.

Next, kind of good news/bad news story.  First, the good news:

Johnstown, PA (GlossyNews) – Local and state police scoured the hills outside rural Johnstown, Pennsylvania, after reports of three animal rights activists going missing after attempting to protest the wearing of leather at a large motorcycle gang rally this weekend. Two others, previously reported missing, were discovered by fast food workers “duct taped inside fast food restaurant dumpsters,” according to police officials.

"Something just went wrong," said a still visibly shaken organizer of the protest. "Something just went horribly, horribly, wrong." The organizer said a group of concerned animal rights activists, "growing tired of throwing fake blood and shouting profanities at older women wearing leather or fur coats," decided to protest the annual motorcycle club event "in a hope to show them our outrage at their wanton use of leather in their clothing and motor bike seats."

“In fact," said the organizer, "motorcycle gangs are one of the biggest abusers of wearing leather, and we decided it was high time that we let them know that we disagree with them using it, ergo, they should stop."

According to witnesses, protesters arrived at the event in a vintage 1960?s era Volkswagen van and began to pelt the gang members with balloons filled with red colored water, simulating blood, and shouting "you’re murderers" to passersby. This, evidently, is when the brouhaha began.

"They peed on me!!!" charged one activist. "They grabbed me, said I looked like I was French, started calling me ‘La Trene’ and duct taped me to a tree so they could pee on me all day!"

Still others claimed they were forced to eat hamburgers and hot dogs under duress. Those who resisted were allegedly held down while several bikers "farted on their heads."

Forced to eat hamburgers and hot dogs?  The horror!

The bad news is that it's just another urban myth, as Snopes debunks here.  It's to note, though, as Snopes does, just how easy it was to believe.

Below the fold, two very similar topics.  First, one of the most disgusting, foul-mouthed rappers you've ever heard, then a note on Bird Dog's reputation.

Or what's left of it.

Do you know anyone who uses a computer?

My guess is that you know a very special someone who uses a computer.  Someone who's using it right now, in fact, and you'd like to give that special someone a really nice computer gift for Christmas.  And, honestly, who knows that special someone's needs and tastes better than you, right?  That's why you're the perfect person to make this decision.

Following are twelve gift ideas that I think would spruce up anyone's rig.

1. The Disc Carousel

Find the disc you want in the computer database program, click 'Eject', the carousel spins around and out it slides.  Holds 150 discs.  Price usually lists for $129, sometimes they go on sale.  Home site is here, much more info here.

"Hey, Doc, this 'shopping for someone special' stuff is great!  My own special someone is going to be so appreciative!"

That's what giving is all about.

The other day I'm re-reading an old article on my site and notice a link to the computer DVD player, PowerDVD.  I click on it just out of editorial habit and the site had changed something so the link is broken.

I go to the PowerDVD site, grab the address, update the post, and figured that'd be the last I'd hear of ol' PowerDVD for a while.

I cruise over to Hot Air and click on a link leading to the ABC News site.  I glance at the banner after the page loads.

I read the article and go back to Hot Air.  I scroll down the page and glance in the sidebar.

This is taking place literally minutes after my visiting the PowerDVD site, so, yeah, it's a bit unsettling.

And consider the irony of a site like Hot Air railing against governmental intrusion into our Internet lives, only to turn around and give everyone a marvelous example of real-time Web tracking.  I guess all that 'invasion of privacy' stuff is okay as long as it makes you money with effective sidebar ads.

This is all being done by means of 'cookies', which are small text files that web sites place on your computer which other web sites can then read.

The problem is that cookies can provide a very valuable service when it comes to remembering who you are on certain sites.  For example, if you check the 'Remember info' box when leaving a comment here, it places a cookie on your computer so you won't have to enter your personal info next time.

So if you delete them all as part of some regular maintenance regimen, much less outright turn them off, you have to do the name/password routine every single time you go to certain sites, a major pain.

A happy compromise is reached by using CCleaner.  It'll clean out your cookies but retain the valuable ones.  Details are below the fold.

With such an important event just a few months weeks days away, I figured I should reprise this important post.

We certainly won't be able to say we weren't warned.

But wait!  Before you fall into the black abyss of perpetual despair, let's look on the bright side!

Dealer Offers Free Cars if World Ends

The "End of the World Clearance Event" is detailed on MyNextGM.ca. The offers on hand aren't too different from those you'll find at other dealerships this December, but Humberview dealers offer one additional, easy-to-keep promise: "If the world ends, you don't pay!"

So we've got that going for us.

While I don't think you'll particularly learn anything new here, it's still interesting watching an official JPL guy cover the bases.

And if he's wrong?

Just do as we learned to do back in the 60's when Russia was about ready to launch 25,000 nukes at us.

Just crawl under your school desk.  You'll be fine.

I think you'll find this somewhat interesting.  Fellow bloggers, take note: the readership delivered a real message in a few of the responses.

Preview:

— There were 400 responses, our PollDaddy limit
— Bird Dog's guess on one issue totally nailed it
— Ditto my guess on another
— Two common MSM memes were totally dismantled
— And there are three surprises

The envelope, please!

Pic: Sad fate of a Mac user who tried going the Windows extra mile

Before I get to the gist of the article, I thought I'd list out a few Windows 7 annoyances that you might like to take care of.  All of these are on my Windows 7 setup page (most will also work for Vista):

— Getting rid of the "-Shortcut" tag on shortcut icons

— Changing the path to Internet Explorer's 'Favorites' so you won't lose them in case your system melts down

— Changing IE's tool bar icons back to 'Large'

— Activating 'Link to Email' in IE

— Disabling those incredibly annoying Task Bar pop-outs

— Cleaning up the 'New' menu

— Cleaning up the mouse's (right-button) Context menu

— Getting rid of icons on the Control Panel

Nothing earthshaking.  What we call 'housework' in the geek biz.

As for Windows Update, if you have Microsoft Office Suite on your system, you definitely want to do this for security purposes.  If not, do it anyway, just cuz.  You never can tell what it'll find.

Normally, Windows Update just scans for actual Windows files, not programs.  To do so requires a few clicks.  Details are below the fold.

Ever hear someone say something like, "Windows sure gets slow and bloated over time", or "My system sure has slowed down over this past year — damn Windows!"?

The truth is, it's not Windows' fault in the slightest.

It's yours.

That is, it's the fault of the programs you've installed since you bought it, and whoever initially set up the machine if it came ready-to-go.  About a third of the installs put in a 'pre-loader', which pre-loads a bunch of drivers and libraries and such into memory during boot-up so, when you actually run the program, it pops onto your screen approximately 0.87 seconds quicker.  And each of these pre-loaders gobbles up a bit more memory and is one more background 'task' for Windows to keep track of.

Now, if just one program did this, no biggie.  But multiply it by thirty programs and the rules change.  With tons of your memory being gobbled up, the first symptom you'd notice would be your computer... slowing down.

Want to see something sobering?  Open Control Panel, Administrative Tools, System Configuration.  Click on the 'Startup' tab.

This window is empty on a brand new Windows.

Everything you see was put here by you or whoever set up the computer initially.  And 90% of it can go.

But that's not what this post is about.  Using System Config to get rid of pre-loaders is beginner's stuff.

This post is on the background programs that it can't get rid of.  It's for you obsessive, pedantic bastards out there who demand a totally clean, pure system.

Not that I know anyone like that.

From last weekend's Jets-Patriots game.

Three touchdowns by the Pats in 52 seconds of game play:

It's here!  It's here!

Black Friday planner: Shoppers, get your game face on!

Best Buys on Black Friday and What to Skip

7 tips to make all your Black Friday dreams come true

Six Things Not To Buy On Black Friday

Why Black Friday shoppers endure the crush

The Best Black Friday Freebies 2012

It's the biggest shopping day of the year!

Or, is it?

Well, okay, I did read somewhere that increasing online sales have put a real dent in the overall take.

Or, have they?

But hey, we've all read the horror stories, and one thing Black Friday does is turn average Americans into sale-crazed lunatics.

Or, does it?

Well, one thing we know for certain is that it's always been on the day after Thanksgiving.

Or, has it?

And certainly the 'Black' refers to the businesses being put 'in the black' from the mountain of sales.

Or, does it?

Perhaps we should ask 5 Black Friday Myths The Media Wants You to Believe.

And so much for those notions.

But wait!

Myths or not, we seem to be overlooking that Black Friday signals one of the greatest events of the year, the official beginning of...

Another Successful Disappointing Holiday Season

This year, let's all do our part!

Arlo Guthrie, lefty hatemonger and anti-war activist extraordinaire, has become a (gasp!) Republican.

Doc's List of Great Lefty Hatemongers:

Weathermen — Advocated anarchy, mayhem and violence

SDS — Advocated anarchy, mayhem and violence

SLA — Advocated anarchy, mayhem and violence

Arlo Guthrie — Advocated walking into a military recruitment center, singin' a bar of "Alice's Restaurant", then walking back out

Great hatemongers, all.

But now that Arlo is officially one of the good guys, we'll allow him to preach his virulent, scathing, anti-war screed to the world.  God help the ears of any poor recruiting sergeant should someone actually walk in and pull off such a stunt.  It sounds a bit cruel to say, but most people don't sing very well.

For another Guthrie tune (and me seriously screwing with your head when it comes to his politics), please...

This is a repost from last year, with a small update.

I was just now reading An open letter to Sir Paul McCartney, from America on Thanksgiving Day, and came across this:

Thing is, domesticated turkeys — the farm-raised ones we eat — are plentiful. And fat. So fat they can’t really fly. (As God as his witness, Arthur Carlson from WKRP in Cincinnati believed otherwise.)

Some things truly are timeless.

Happy Thanksgiving, all.  Keep an eye out for any low-flying helicopters.

I am now using a radical, new cleaning solution for my LCD monitor:

Windex.

Yes, yes, I can hear your gasps of shock and bewilderment from here.  Windex contains ammonia, which will make your LCD screen dull and flat.  I and countless other computer gurus have been warning you about it for years.

Except there are three problems:

1.  My monitor screen is already dull and flat.  That is, it's not glossy at all.  Glossy screens are terrible indoors, showing off every reflection from every light in the room.

2.  What's not mentioned is how many applications it takes of ammonia to make your screen dull and flat.  By my estimation, roughly 10,000 times.

3.  LCD-friendly products don't work worth shit.

There's a reason Windex contains ammonia; it actually works when it comes to removing grime, filth, tobacco stains, and the spittle resulting from impulsively laughing out loud during one of Dr. Mercury's political posts.

The 'safe' alternatives, like Windex Wipes and using a half-and-half solution of vinegar and water just don't work very well.  I've used two types of 'wipes', two 'safe' liquid spray cleaners, plus gone the vinegar route, but none of them got the screen dazzlingly clean with just a few wipes.  There are always a handful of spots that have to be specifically 'scrubbed', and at that point I think it's possible you're actually doing more damage to that specific spot (with all the additional abrasion) than if you'd just given it a quick bath of ammonia and no scrub at all.

And that's just the first rule I'm breaking.

Another recommendation is to use a soft cloth, rather than a paper product.  I tried both a diaper and an old t-shirt and thought they were both terrible.  They smeared, as much as anything else, and since whatever you're wiping with has to be turned frequently, I ended up paying an overly amount of attention to making sure I had a clean spot for the next wipe.

Since I already have a roll of Charmin 'baby-soft' TP nearby for cleaning my glasses, I just use it for the monitor as well.  Unlike the non-disposable cloth, you don't pay any attention to getting a clean spot on the wad of TP you're holding; you just wipe a few times and toss it.  Like the ammonia, it's true that the slight additional abrasiveness from using a paper product might dull your screen over time — assuming you clean it 10,000 times.

And that's still not the end of my dastardly crimes.

Bird Dog posted a great quote the other day from the terrific (now deceased) author Robert B. Parker, he of the wonderful 'Spenser' novels:

Baseball is the most important unimportant thing in the world.

So true.

By any real-world measure, sports is a complete waste of time.  It has virtually nothing to do with the serious issues we face every day.  It's whimsical.  It's fanciful.  It's frivolous.

Then you head for the news sites and read how global warming or the latest pandemic is going to kill you in 20 minutes, then you read about 'Fast and Furious' and how nothing's been done, then about the Black Panthers invading a voting station and nothing's been done, then about the TSA mauling some 90-year-old woman and nothing's been done.  Then you drop by a left-wing blog site and read how the media is controlled by a vast right-wing conspiracy and that Romney is secretly a fascist dog-killing cancer-producing monster, then you drop by a right-wing site and read how those evil hippies are responsible for all your ills, how everyone in California is a drooling liberal, and how San Francisco is full of nothing but whacked-out sign-carrying moonbats.

Then you read how the Giants beat the Cardinals 5 to 3, and it feels like the only real thing you've read all day.

Below the fold I shall expound upon this most unique and wonderful of games, present five video clips, and document how something unbelievable happened in the seventh game of the National League playoff series that had never happened in baseball before.

Or, perhaps more specifically, had never been witnessed before.

As a small heads-up, I've just completed my first 'epic' post since the surgery.  (For the back story, Ed Driscoll of PJ Media once called my "Do these genes make me look fat?" post "epic", which was then picked up on by Instapundit and the word stuck.  More recent 'epic' posts have included Introducing Jackie Evancho and In The Spirit Of Equus.)  Tomorrow's post is 2,560 words, contains a bunch of videos and some wonderful insights.  If you don't know much about the subject beforehand, you certainly will afterward, and if you already know a lot about the subject, you're going to think it's the most enjoyable post you've read all month.

I have good news about the latest Internet Explorer update.

But, in typical Dr. Mercury fashion, I'll let you figure it out.

Hey, no sense in me doing all the work, right?

This is still in beta format, which is why it hasn't been made part of the regular Windows Updates yet.  The download site for the test version is here.  There are 32- and 64-bit versions available, so if you don't know which system you have, right-click on 'Computer', open its Properties, look for 'System type'.  It's for Windows 7 only.

The first dramatic thing that struck me was that it went right to Google the second I clicked on the link.  It also dashed right over to the IMDb, then Maggie's.  Each site responded perfectly with every word and picture intact.

Then I looked over all the menus and was again suitably impressed.  Rather then moving things all around like they usually do, each function was exactly where it should have been, which denotes the high quality you expect from a commercial product.  Unlike, say, some free piece of junk like Firefox.  (The fact that I'm using Firefox at this moment to write this piece is entirely coincidental.)

I should also report that pictures looked their absolute best, and each video I played seemed to contain every single pixel, although I didn't make an exact count.  The constant stream of ad banners and pop-ups seemed to glow with the exact intensity my monitor's 'Brightness' was set to, again showing off the height of browser precision.

Lastly, the new, improved IE fit my monitor screen perfectly right from the get-go.  With a cheap product like Firefox, which comes in a less-than-full-screen size by default, you have to manually press the 'maximize' box, thereby wasting precious energy and contributing to global warming.  Microsoft, caring about our planet's future, does it right.

Program Summation

All I can say is, when it comes to updates, this one breaks new ground.

A Google search for "flash problems" yields five hundred million hits.  By means of comparison, there are 350 million people in the U.S.

Having been somewhat distracted recently (recuperating, healing, staying alive — small things like that), I haven't been too active in the video scene.  When I did jump back in, I promptly ran into four problems.  Some sites that had a Flash video were locking up in Firefox, I was getting a "This video is currently unavailable" message on most YouTube vids in both browsers, DownloadHelper (a Firefox add-on that downloads vids) had stopped working on YouTube, and, on top of all that, when I reinstalled Flash, I started getting Windows melt-down messages every time I went to a Flash site.  Welcome back, Doc!

I reported on some of the problems a while back, but since I've now solved the last of them, I thought I'd compile the whole mess into one post.

That was a marvelous video Bird Dog posted yesterday.  Here's my contribution to the shadow art genre:

Damn, those first two hours sure were fun, weren't they?  Right up until around 9:30 Eastern when PA was called for Obama.  Pretty much all downhill from there.

Better luck next time.

The three scariest headlines I saw this morning were all on ABC News:

Obama Vows to Forge Change Where He Failed

President Obama Promises 'Best Is Yet to Come'

The Race for 2016 Starts Today

And there were a couple of ironic notes concerning the bloggers.  Allahpundit over at Hot Air led off his pre-election post with this:

Free advice, take it or leave it: Don’t start obsessing about Ohio until we have a better sense of what’s happening in Virginia.

As of 11:30 last night, Virginia was still undecided.

And in my own post, I noted that, while Ohio was getting all the press, Florida, with its mass of electoral votes, was the real swing state to watch.

As of this morning:

Yet again, Florida hangs in the balance. Only this time, it doesn't matter.

President Barack Obama held onto a slim lead in Florida early Wednesday, but he didn't need the largest swing state to win re-election.

At this precise moment, Florida is still undecided.  The only one so, no less.

Speaking of which, you know that stereotype you have about us South Floridians lazing around the beach all day long being served fancy drinks by scantily-clad wahines?  The reason it's a stereotype is because it's true.

But, like the victims of Hurricane Sandy struggling to get their votes cast, we South Floridians faced our own horrific weather-related challenge yesterday:

Miami-Area Voters Wait Long Hours in Tropical Heat to Cast Votes

Yep, it's tough living down here, but somebody's gotta do it.

Below the fold I'll offer up some notes on why this wasn't as bad as it seems for the Repubs, and why it's not as good as it seems for the Dems.  Fair is fair.

(Doc innocently drops by the news sites this morning)

Nor'easter: November 2012 storm 'great concern' for devastated Jersey shore

"Jeezo!"

Nor'easter may bring 50 mph winds, rain to Sandy-hit areas

"Yikes!"

Nor'easter Threatens Weather-Weary NJ, NY

"Let's face it, they're goners!"

Admittedly, the news sounds pretty grim.  The thought of people suffering from the bitter cold really tugs at my heartstrings.  I'm just filled with empathy for the innocent souls who-

Oh, hold on a sec.

Sorry about the interruption.  Had to turn the A/C on.  It was getting a little stuffy in here.  Damn Florida Keys weather.

Anyway, I thought this whole global warming thing was settled and we could expect to see this silly 'winter' business turned into a quaint anachronism by now, but apparently this isn't so.

With that in mind, I'm reposting my own contribution to the subject of staying warm, originally titled "How To Survive Living In A New England Igloo".

First, let us examine my credentials.  Do I have the right to opine on cold weather living, someone basking in the warm, balmy Florida Keys?

Well, I lived in that wimpy state of New England for three years and breezed through those delightful minus-10-degree days without a qualm.  But living in the quaint province of New England was nothing compared to living in what many consider to be the coldest hell on earth:

A Northern California coastal fog belt zone.

And surviving.

It all starts with the feet.  Keep the feet warm and the entire body follows.

Observation #1:

As expected, both sides are already drawing up battle plans in the event of a loss.  From what I've seen, most on the Republican side are being fairly pragmatic about it.  Basically, "Well, we just didn't get enough votes, dang it — better luck next time."  The Dems, however, are already testing out a panorama of excuses.  There's a good article on it here.

Observation #2:

The closer the race has gotten, the more we've heard the phrase "too close to call" come out of the media.

Observation #3:

In the 2000 election, Al Gore won the popular vote but George Bush won the electoral vote and the office.  Afterward, there was a plethora of articles arguing that the Electoral College should be scrapped.  There was also a bunch in 2004 and we saw a small flurry of them this time around.

The irony is that it's the close elections that argue against their case.  Only in an election controlled by electoral votes would we see such minor states (no offense) as Pennsylvania, Michigan and Minnesota making headlines:

Romney Forces See Pennsylvania, Michigan and Minnesota Ripe for Turning Red

Romney Campaign Has Eyes on Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania

Axelrod: I'll Shave If Obama Loses Pa., Mich. or Minn.

Which isn't to say there isn't some controversy brewing:

American Mustache Institute: Axelrod's Mustache Wager 'Incredibly Irresponsible'

With November just around the bend, senior adviser to the Obama campaign David Axelrod made a hairy wager on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" Wednesday: he will shave off his four-decade-old mustache on national television if Obama loses Minnesota, Michigan or Pennsylvania on Election Day.

Obama press secretary Jennifer Psaki doubled down on the wager later in the day, telling MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell: "I'll dye my hair black and wear a mustache" if Obama loses those states.

The American Mustache Institute isn't pleased with the wagers, especially the bet by Axe. "It's incredibly irresponsible for Axelrod to be playing games with such an exceptionally powerful mustache," institute chairman Dr. Aaron Perlut tells Whispers.

If the election was based on the popular vote, we'd be hearing nothing but who currently has the lead in California, Texas, Florida and New York.  If a member of the media was reminded that people in Michigan also vote, his initial response might be, Why would they bother?

Observation #4:

Despite our best efforts to prevent it, apparently my political posts here have achieved recognition on a national level.

The other day, I dared the Maggie's Valued Readers™ to put it all on the line and issue their election predictions.  I noted that I'd post them here, in broad daylight, so that their possible fall from grace would be as publicly humiliating as possible.  Even so, a hearty band of readers took up this mighty challenge and spat spake forth the following prognostications.

I also asked you to weigh in on local & state races, so a few of the predictions are only in regards to that.  Lengthier replies have been reduced to their summation.

And this is ongoing until Tuesday.  Slap your guess in the comments and I'll add it to the list so that you, too, can be publicly mocked, scorned and degraded for the rest of your life should Obama win in a landslide.  After the final election results are in, I'll do another post and announce the no-doubt embarrassed winner.  The prize will be they get to write an article on any subject they like, which I'll then post here for possibly even more mockification, scornalization and degradationalism.

To wit:

While I expect it to be decisively in Romney's favor, I think there will enough Democratic shenanigans going on to keep it from being a 'landslide'.  I'm thinking 50% Romney, 48% Obama, with the usual couple of percent devoted to write-ins.  Electoral votes-wise, I'm putting it in the 'barely squeaks by' column. — me

Romney 51% Obama 49% — Lady Tex

A Romney win that will probably be close — Garry

315/223 — Pajak

42% of the vote going to O, rest of the vote to R— BillH

I predict Colorado will go for Romney. — Colorado

I predict an old fashioned thumping, with Romney topping 400 Electoral Votes. — Tom Armstrong

My hunch is that Romney wins big time and captures a huge majority of both the popular vote and the Electoral College. — Tom Francis

Romney 53 - Obama 47, Pubbies get the Senate but only 51-49. Pubbies gain +2 in the House. Waxman gets axed in CA! — Bob in VA

Obama gets his ass kicked up around his collar bone. Romney wins Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Iowa, and my beloved New Hampshire. Oh yeah, Virginia and Florida too. Not quite 1984, but it is gonna be a rough one for the Dems. — Anthony L.

I predict Romney 53% - Obama 46% - 330 EC votes for Mitt. Senate 52 Republicans - 48 Democrats. +3 for the GOP in the House. — altered states

My prediction is that though Romney may have the majority of popular vote nationwide and enough support in the battleground States to win close fights and their electoral votes, I don't think he has enough of a margin to overcome the Democratic cheating and outright theft I've seen too many times to forget. — John

I think Romney will get it but will be a Pyrrhic victory. — chasmatic

Romney 52%, 0bama 47% — Vichris

Romney - 322, Obama - 216 — Chuckles

Romney landslide to a degree that surprises just about everybody. — ahem

I'll go with R 315, O 223 (a la Barone) -- but I say this more in hope than in confidence. — Texan99

...picked R 319 many months back. — Texan99's husband

Election is close…and it comes down to enthusiastic R voters vs D fraud.  I think the D fraud loses…this time. — Daedalus Mugged

270-268 Romney - NH, VA, NC, FL, & OH puts him over the top. — Dave

ROMNEY 52% - OBAMA 47%, ROMNEY 341 - OBAMA 214 — Gnome Number 5

Obama by miles. — thehawkreturns

It would be fun to join the Romneyfest here but I checked Intrade today to read the internet's tea leaves. It doesn't look like good news for Team Red, at least as far as the presidential election goes. Intrade doesn't always get it right, of course. But I believe it's right more often than not. — jhc

While that last one isn't an official 'prediction', we now have four presidential elections under our belt since the Internet Age began, so it's interesting to see who's starting to emerge as the predictive leader.

On the subject:

Did Cam Newton and the Panthers Predict a Romney Win?

Carolina Panthers fans are likely pretty pleased with their team's ability to win for the first time since Week 2, but one man is likely even happier.

History dictates that the Panthers 21-13 victory over the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field bodes well for Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. In the 18 presidential elections that have taken place since the Redskins moved to Washington in 1937, 17 have been predicted by the team's performance in its final home game prior to the election.

So we've got that going for us.