Patti O'Shea's Blog, page 131
August 5, 2014
Fighting to Stop the Outbreak
Back in the 1990s, I read a book called The Hot Zone by Richard Preston about Ebola. In case you haven't heard of it before, Ebola is a hemorrhagic virus that is between 50% and 90% fatal depending on the strain involved, and everything I've read about it suggests it's a horrible way to die.
Right now there's an Ebola outbreak going on in West Africa, the worst outbreak of Ebola since it was named in the 1970s. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of 04Aug14 there have been 1603 cases of Ebola leading to 887 deaths. That's a 55% mortality rate and it could be worse. Much worse. If you check out the Ebola link in the above paragraph, you'll see the death tolls from other, smaller outbreaks.
Despite all this, there are people--nurses and doctors and others--selflessly treating the sick. Many health care workers on the ground in Africa have sickened and died from the disease, including some high profile physicians in the countries dealing with the illness.
When I imagine doctors and nurses, I like to believe these are people who are called to help the sick, not for monetary gain, but for a higher good. Too often, I'm disappointed, but there are people who have been working in Africa to treat those infected with the illness.
I don't want to slight the health care professionals who live in African countries who've been helping and healing since the beginning. They deserve all the accolades they can get, especially since the American media didn't seem to give the plight much coverage until two Americans working there were infected.
But I did want to give a shout out to the doctors and nurses from around the world who have traveled to West Africa or who will be on their way shortly to help cure the ill.
Doctors Without Borders, the WHO, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and many, many other groups are ratcheting up the response, preparing to send more doctors and nurses to the front line in the war against Ebola. It's not an easy job. There's distrust of Western doctors, some of the countries involved have been through terrible wars in the recent past, and customs that have family members washing the dead all the contribute to a level of difficulty not faced in other places. Medical personnel have been attacked, family members are hiding the ill, and even one ill person can start the outbreak all over again.
I've seen estimates online that says a best-case scenario (I read that as highly unlikely) puts the time frame at 6 months to end the outbreak. Best case scenario.
These medical workers on the ground in Africa now--both local and from other parts of the world--and those about to head into the outbreak deserve to be lauded as heroes. This is what we hope our doctors and nurses will be--selfless, caring individuals who do want to help. Who do want to make a difference. Who stand and fight illness regardless of ability to pay.
And I'll close with this. Doctors in Africa are working (many times) in poor conditions without the basics we take for granted in the US and other Western nations. These physicians and nurses have been on the front lines of this Ebola outbreak since March 2014 when the first cases were identified in Guinea. It takes courage to stand and treat patients in these circumstances, especially when health care workers are very much at risk for contracting Ebola themselves.
Maybe there's something we can do to help them and the people who are ill. The Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders take donations. There are other worthy organizations working in Africa as well who could also use some help. Please consider making a donation to help these groups continue their good work.
***Opinions expressed are my own and I received no compensation from anyone, anywhere at any time for anything I wrote.***
Right now there's an Ebola outbreak going on in West Africa, the worst outbreak of Ebola since it was named in the 1970s. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), as of 04Aug14 there have been 1603 cases of Ebola leading to 887 deaths. That's a 55% mortality rate and it could be worse. Much worse. If you check out the Ebola link in the above paragraph, you'll see the death tolls from other, smaller outbreaks.
Despite all this, there are people--nurses and doctors and others--selflessly treating the sick. Many health care workers on the ground in Africa have sickened and died from the disease, including some high profile physicians in the countries dealing with the illness.
When I imagine doctors and nurses, I like to believe these are people who are called to help the sick, not for monetary gain, but for a higher good. Too often, I'm disappointed, but there are people who have been working in Africa to treat those infected with the illness.
I don't want to slight the health care professionals who live in African countries who've been helping and healing since the beginning. They deserve all the accolades they can get, especially since the American media didn't seem to give the plight much coverage until two Americans working there were infected.
But I did want to give a shout out to the doctors and nurses from around the world who have traveled to West Africa or who will be on their way shortly to help cure the ill.
Doctors Without Borders, the WHO, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and many, many other groups are ratcheting up the response, preparing to send more doctors and nurses to the front line in the war against Ebola. It's not an easy job. There's distrust of Western doctors, some of the countries involved have been through terrible wars in the recent past, and customs that have family members washing the dead all the contribute to a level of difficulty not faced in other places. Medical personnel have been attacked, family members are hiding the ill, and even one ill person can start the outbreak all over again.
I've seen estimates online that says a best-case scenario (I read that as highly unlikely) puts the time frame at 6 months to end the outbreak. Best case scenario.
These medical workers on the ground in Africa now--both local and from other parts of the world--and those about to head into the outbreak deserve to be lauded as heroes. This is what we hope our doctors and nurses will be--selfless, caring individuals who do want to help. Who do want to make a difference. Who stand and fight illness regardless of ability to pay.
And I'll close with this. Doctors in Africa are working (many times) in poor conditions without the basics we take for granted in the US and other Western nations. These physicians and nurses have been on the front lines of this Ebola outbreak since March 2014 when the first cases were identified in Guinea. It takes courage to stand and treat patients in these circumstances, especially when health care workers are very much at risk for contracting Ebola themselves.
Maybe there's something we can do to help them and the people who are ill. The Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders take donations. There are other worthy organizations working in Africa as well who could also use some help. Please consider making a donation to help these groups continue their good work.
***Opinions expressed are my own and I received no compensation from anyone, anywhere at any time for anything I wrote.***
August 3, 2014
Mathematically Correct Breakfast
For all the bagel lovers out there. Even after watching this video twice, I don't think I could replicate this cut.
July 31, 2014
One Year
It's been just over a year since I officially moved from Minnesota into my new home in Georgia. Last July, I was stressed to the max as I closed on one house (my beautiful MN home), and then seven days later, closed on a second (my new GA home). I thought I'd share a few thoughts.
My new house is on top of a very steep hill. I like this when it rains because I don't have to worry about flooding. Everything is going away from my home. I do not like it, though, when I have to roll the garbage can out for pick up. I keep it in a death grip, worried that if I lose my hold on it, it's going to roll wildly down my driveway and into the pond across the street.
The new kitchen has a lot of counter space and cabinet space, which I really like, but because I no longer have a basement, I've had to store my good dishes in the island. This means I actually have less space.
I also miss having pullouts in the lower cabinets (I loved those!) and I miss my two bread boards that were built in to the cabinets. I did install some after market pullouts in one cabinet. There's some wasted space since they're not custom, but I'm going to put them in two more cabinets because I practically have to crawl in to reach the things in back.
Still in the kitchen, I'm not wildly in love with the granite used on my counters. I can't see crumbs really well because of the color. I've also been unable to find the tan twisty wire things that come on bread because of how close the color is. The dark inclusions also look too much like bugs. That said, because of the huge amount of counter space I have, replacing them with something I like better is too expensive.
The pantry is also a little small, although it is much bigger than the one I had in Minnesota. So it's a gain, but I wish it was a walk in with really nice shelving.
Also strongly in the do not like category is the scorpions. I've found seven in my house since I moved in. There are no words for how much I loathe any bug, but those are extra prehistorically creepy.
I have a formal living room that I have no use for. I'm sorry, but if I'm inviting someone to my house, they're going to have to hang out in the family room. Because I needed the space, I have boxes of my books up there plus my scrapbooking supplies. The ultimate goal is to get some screens up to block it off because the dining room is right there as is the front door.
This house is on a smaller lot than I had in Minnesota--much smaller--but it has as much (if not more) privacy. I credit my hill with that. When the house was built, they basically cut into the top of the hill. I still have a rise in land on three sides of my house, and with the trees fully leafed, I don't even know I have neighbors. The house is also blissfully quiet. I don't usually hear my neighbors either. Total win.
I also credit my hill with the lack of casual doorbell ringers. :-) You have to really want to see me to make the climb.
Great outdoor space! I have fabulous outdoor space in my new home. A nice, large covered back patio that I plan to have screened in and a good sized front porch. I had a large front porch in MN, too, but that one was square, making it difficult to consider a true outdoor space. I have a rectangle here and could actually fit chairs and a table out there if I wanted. But I've had some wasps out there, so, yeah, no.
I still hate the commute down here. I'm like twice as far away from my job as I was in Minneapolis and I hate that. I get two hours later than I used to--partly because I start an hour later, but the commute is the reason for the other hour. At least I have my van pool which saves me money, wear and tear on my car, and makes the trip faster with people to talk to.
Sticker shock. The general belief up in Minnesota is that it's cheaper to live in the South. The other truism is that Minnesota has high state income tax. Neither is true. It's much more expensive for me to live in Georgia.
*Sales tax is just about the same
*State income tax is just about the same. ($5.00 higher in MN)
*Property tax is higher and there's no property tax refund down here
*Electric is much more expensive
*Gas is at least double what I paid in MN
*Water, OMG, the cost of water down here is unbelievable. 3 times higher. What I pay for one month in GA, is what I paid in three months for MN.
*Housing is not cheaper either because I couldn't afford a house with a basement down here.
*Don't ask me about the ridiculous amount I had to pay to get license plates for my car down here. It was criminal!
So, bottom line, just like living anywhere, there are pluses and minuses. Some things are better, some worse, so I guess it all comes out about even.
My new house is on top of a very steep hill. I like this when it rains because I don't have to worry about flooding. Everything is going away from my home. I do not like it, though, when I have to roll the garbage can out for pick up. I keep it in a death grip, worried that if I lose my hold on it, it's going to roll wildly down my driveway and into the pond across the street.
The new kitchen has a lot of counter space and cabinet space, which I really like, but because I no longer have a basement, I've had to store my good dishes in the island. This means I actually have less space.
I also miss having pullouts in the lower cabinets (I loved those!) and I miss my two bread boards that were built in to the cabinets. I did install some after market pullouts in one cabinet. There's some wasted space since they're not custom, but I'm going to put them in two more cabinets because I practically have to crawl in to reach the things in back.
Still in the kitchen, I'm not wildly in love with the granite used on my counters. I can't see crumbs really well because of the color. I've also been unable to find the tan twisty wire things that come on bread because of how close the color is. The dark inclusions also look too much like bugs. That said, because of the huge amount of counter space I have, replacing them with something I like better is too expensive.
The pantry is also a little small, although it is much bigger than the one I had in Minnesota. So it's a gain, but I wish it was a walk in with really nice shelving.
Also strongly in the do not like category is the scorpions. I've found seven in my house since I moved in. There are no words for how much I loathe any bug, but those are extra prehistorically creepy.
I have a formal living room that I have no use for. I'm sorry, but if I'm inviting someone to my house, they're going to have to hang out in the family room. Because I needed the space, I have boxes of my books up there plus my scrapbooking supplies. The ultimate goal is to get some screens up to block it off because the dining room is right there as is the front door.
This house is on a smaller lot than I had in Minnesota--much smaller--but it has as much (if not more) privacy. I credit my hill with that. When the house was built, they basically cut into the top of the hill. I still have a rise in land on three sides of my house, and with the trees fully leafed, I don't even know I have neighbors. The house is also blissfully quiet. I don't usually hear my neighbors either. Total win.
I also credit my hill with the lack of casual doorbell ringers. :-) You have to really want to see me to make the climb.
Great outdoor space! I have fabulous outdoor space in my new home. A nice, large covered back patio that I plan to have screened in and a good sized front porch. I had a large front porch in MN, too, but that one was square, making it difficult to consider a true outdoor space. I have a rectangle here and could actually fit chairs and a table out there if I wanted. But I've had some wasps out there, so, yeah, no.
I still hate the commute down here. I'm like twice as far away from my job as I was in Minneapolis and I hate that. I get two hours later than I used to--partly because I start an hour later, but the commute is the reason for the other hour. At least I have my van pool which saves me money, wear and tear on my car, and makes the trip faster with people to talk to.
Sticker shock. The general belief up in Minnesota is that it's cheaper to live in the South. The other truism is that Minnesota has high state income tax. Neither is true. It's much more expensive for me to live in Georgia.
*Sales tax is just about the same
*State income tax is just about the same. ($5.00 higher in MN)
*Property tax is higher and there's no property tax refund down here
*Electric is much more expensive
*Gas is at least double what I paid in MN
*Water, OMG, the cost of water down here is unbelievable. 3 times higher. What I pay for one month in GA, is what I paid in three months for MN.
*Housing is not cheaper either because I couldn't afford a house with a basement down here.
*Don't ask me about the ridiculous amount I had to pay to get license plates for my car down here. It was criminal!
So, bottom line, just like living anywhere, there are pluses and minuses. Some things are better, some worse, so I guess it all comes out about even.
July 29, 2014
Spam Attack
Is it just me or has anyone else noticed a huge increase in spam the past few weeks? Even accounts that I never had spam on before are suddenly getting two or three or four spam emails a day. My writing account? Forget about it. Spam is almost out of control.
It made me curious enough to do an internet search and after some browsing, I found an article with graphs showing that spam is at the highest level it's been at since October 2010. This article is from May 2014, so I guess I'm lucky that it took until July for the spam increase to catch up to me. Even so...sigh.
I've also gotten a good look at what kind of attacks have been directed at my website.
Those of you who've been reading my blog for a while might have noticed that I switched back to Blogger. I used to have a WordPress blog attached right to my website, but after it was hacked four or five times, I decided that was enough. I'm very computer savvy, but nothing I tried protected my blog.
I also switched to a new web host around the same time. Not because of the hacking, but because my old host had raised their prices dramatically. My new web host has different programs to look at stats and I was suddenly able to see what kind of assault my site took every month. And by far the vast majority of the attacks were aimed at finding WordPress or one of it's vulnerable plug-ins.
Yikes!
It really makes me glad I ditched WordPress even though I loved the flexibility and features it offered. I'm just sorry that some people out there have to ruin the web experience with spam and hacking attacks.
It made me curious enough to do an internet search and after some browsing, I found an article with graphs showing that spam is at the highest level it's been at since October 2010. This article is from May 2014, so I guess I'm lucky that it took until July for the spam increase to catch up to me. Even so...sigh.
I've also gotten a good look at what kind of attacks have been directed at my website.
Those of you who've been reading my blog for a while might have noticed that I switched back to Blogger. I used to have a WordPress blog attached right to my website, but after it was hacked four or five times, I decided that was enough. I'm very computer savvy, but nothing I tried protected my blog.
I also switched to a new web host around the same time. Not because of the hacking, but because my old host had raised their prices dramatically. My new web host has different programs to look at stats and I was suddenly able to see what kind of assault my site took every month. And by far the vast majority of the attacks were aimed at finding WordPress or one of it's vulnerable plug-ins.
Yikes!
It really makes me glad I ditched WordPress even though I loved the flexibility and features it offered. I'm just sorry that some people out there have to ruin the web experience with spam and hacking attacks.
July 27, 2014
July 24, 2014
Adventures With Jewelry
I have this sterling silver pendant that I wear almost every day, but the sterling rope chain has had tarnish issues. No matter how often I clean it, it just doesn't last. I finally decided to buy a stainless steel chain, even if I had to get one of those medical alert chains. As it turned out, stainless steel jewelry has come a long way since I last shopped. They had a very nice 30 inch box chain that I bought.
The only problem I discovered was that the clasp was rather large for the width of the chain and it wouldn't fit through the jump ring on the pendant. I tried squeezing the clasp, I tried squeezing the ring to make it more oval. The clasp still wouldn't go through and now I had a gap where the ring joined.
I didn't want to risk using a real pair of pliers so I bought jewelry pliers. With an incredible lack of skill, I opened the jump ring farther. Okay, I thought, so instead of trying to thread the clasp through the ring, I'll just open it far enough for the chain to slide through and then seal it up again. This should be easy. Or so I thought.
Forcing the ring open with the pliers was hard, but I did manage that. The problem came when I tried to close the ring again. It had become an oval and I couldn't get the two edges of the ring to match up. I know have a sharp edged piece of metal holding my pendant to my chain.
After messing around with the pliers and my pendant for way longer than was reasonable, I decided to search online for instructions. I found a video and guess what? The instructions said not to use pliers to pull the ring apart. Using two pairs of pliers, I was supposed to twist it open and then twist it closed again because if you pull, you can never get the circle back. Um, yeah. Great.
Clearly, the answer was to find another jump ring since I'm risking scratching my skin or tearing clothes with the jagged edge. They sell them online in packs of 100. Gah! I don't make jewelry, but the price was cheap--less than $4--so I bought them.
And I bought another pair of jewelry pliers because the instructions said two pliers and the rings are only 6 mm so I can't use a regular pair of pliers from the garage. Now I'm thinking, wow, since I have all this equipment, maybe I should try making some jewelry. It might be fun! I'm not kidding. Creative outlets that are not writing usually help the writing flow better and why not jewelry making?
All because I wanted a chain that wouldn't tarnish.
You know, I could see the snowball start to roll downhill, but I couldn't manage to stop it. :-/
The only problem I discovered was that the clasp was rather large for the width of the chain and it wouldn't fit through the jump ring on the pendant. I tried squeezing the clasp, I tried squeezing the ring to make it more oval. The clasp still wouldn't go through and now I had a gap where the ring joined.
I didn't want to risk using a real pair of pliers so I bought jewelry pliers. With an incredible lack of skill, I opened the jump ring farther. Okay, I thought, so instead of trying to thread the clasp through the ring, I'll just open it far enough for the chain to slide through and then seal it up again. This should be easy. Or so I thought.
Forcing the ring open with the pliers was hard, but I did manage that. The problem came when I tried to close the ring again. It had become an oval and I couldn't get the two edges of the ring to match up. I know have a sharp edged piece of metal holding my pendant to my chain.
After messing around with the pliers and my pendant for way longer than was reasonable, I decided to search online for instructions. I found a video and guess what? The instructions said not to use pliers to pull the ring apart. Using two pairs of pliers, I was supposed to twist it open and then twist it closed again because if you pull, you can never get the circle back. Um, yeah. Great.
Clearly, the answer was to find another jump ring since I'm risking scratching my skin or tearing clothes with the jagged edge. They sell them online in packs of 100. Gah! I don't make jewelry, but the price was cheap--less than $4--so I bought them.
And I bought another pair of jewelry pliers because the instructions said two pliers and the rings are only 6 mm so I can't use a regular pair of pliers from the garage. Now I'm thinking, wow, since I have all this equipment, maybe I should try making some jewelry. It might be fun! I'm not kidding. Creative outlets that are not writing usually help the writing flow better and why not jewelry making?
All because I wanted a chain that wouldn't tarnish.
You know, I could see the snowball start to roll downhill, but I couldn't manage to stop it. :-/
July 22, 2014
Massive Fail
Yesterday I saw a quiz on my Facebook timeline. Can We Guess Who You Are In Only 20 Questions? It sounded intriguing, so I did the quiz. According to this, I am a 30-year-old male who's recently become a father.
Massive fail.
As I discussed this on Twitter, a couple of us found the quiz questions problematic. The ones that I found particularly bothersome was how long do you spend getting ready? And how many times do you cook per week?
I retook it and changed my answers to the three questions I found most sexist. I figured if I switched my choices and this time it guessed I was female, I'd have my smoking gun so to speak.
This didn't happen. In the quiz's favor, this go-round made me a teenage male. Still a massive fail, but at least these three questions alone weren't the determining factors.
The quiz invited people to post how accurate it was in the comments. I wanted to check them out so I could talk about it here, but I can't find any comments. It might be my computer. I have it personalized far past what most people do to their systems and I might have a setting that blocks me from seeing comments.
I also saw on Facebook from a different friend that it was a massive fail for her as well. So far I know one person who found it accurate and three of us going, huh?
Massive fail.
As I discussed this on Twitter, a couple of us found the quiz questions problematic. The ones that I found particularly bothersome was how long do you spend getting ready? And how many times do you cook per week?
I retook it and changed my answers to the three questions I found most sexist. I figured if I switched my choices and this time it guessed I was female, I'd have my smoking gun so to speak.
This didn't happen. In the quiz's favor, this go-round made me a teenage male. Still a massive fail, but at least these three questions alone weren't the determining factors.
The quiz invited people to post how accurate it was in the comments. I wanted to check them out so I could talk about it here, but I can't find any comments. It might be my computer. I have it personalized far past what most people do to their systems and I might have a setting that blocks me from seeing comments.
I also saw on Facebook from a different friend that it was a massive fail for her as well. So far I know one person who found it accurate and three of us going, huh?
July 20, 2014
July 17, 2014
Facebook Annoyances
There are so many things about Facebook that drive me nuts. It's especially annoying because they don't allow any easy way to fix them.***
For an example, someone I'm not friends with invited me to three events! Three! Someone I am NOT friends with. Why does FB allow this? Who knows? Can I put this woman under block from sending invites? Hell, no, I can't because I'm not friend with there. WTF?
I don't know if complete strangers can send event invites because this woman is an author and--of course--we have many mutual friends. Maybe this my friends friends thing applies here. It doesn't matter. I hate it.
Why can't Facebook let me turn off ALL event invitations? Authors continually use the event function to spam their friends.
I'm also tired of FB dictating what I see in my news feed. A post from two days ago that I read and have no interest in was at the top of my feed again today because others commented on it. I don't care. Seriously. I'd rather see what my friends are posting today. I'd also don't think Facebook knows what I want to see or from whom.
And don't get me started about those stupid games. Those I have blocked, but Facebook throws a bazillion ads for them in one of my feeds. Every other post has another ad stuffed after it. Facebook, I'm not going to play any games. Stop bugging me with those ads.
I'm also tired of seeing every single person my friends have friended or page they've liked. I'm friends with a lot of authors who friend a lot of people. Many, many authors are also notoriously bad with computers and they don't turn off this notification being sent out far and wide--probably because they have no clue that you can, of if they do, how to do it.
I know why Facebook likes this feature--it might help people find mutual friends--but damn is it annoying. BTW, I do have this turned off so none of my friends see when I friend someone else. If only all authors would do this.
And while I'm complaining, Facebook, why the lag time when I'm scrolling down the news feeds? It's not a brief hesitation, it's many seconds before it finally goes. The farther down the feed I want to go, the slower the script is to let me scroll. So annoying.
There are many, many other things about Facebook that annoy the hell out of me, but I'll stop here.
***Edited to add: Facebook is now letting me block invites from people right when I delete their invitation! This is how it used to be and I'm glad to see it back. This will make it so much easier, even if I still have to block one by one.
For an example, someone I'm not friends with invited me to three events! Three! Someone I am NOT friends with. Why does FB allow this? Who knows? Can I put this woman under block from sending invites? Hell, no, I can't because I'm not friend with there. WTF?
I don't know if complete strangers can send event invites because this woman is an author and--of course--we have many mutual friends. Maybe this my friends friends thing applies here. It doesn't matter. I hate it.
Why can't Facebook let me turn off ALL event invitations? Authors continually use the event function to spam their friends.
I'm also tired of FB dictating what I see in my news feed. A post from two days ago that I read and have no interest in was at the top of my feed again today because others commented on it. I don't care. Seriously. I'd rather see what my friends are posting today. I'd also don't think Facebook knows what I want to see or from whom.
And don't get me started about those stupid games. Those I have blocked, but Facebook throws a bazillion ads for them in one of my feeds. Every other post has another ad stuffed after it. Facebook, I'm not going to play any games. Stop bugging me with those ads.
I'm also tired of seeing every single person my friends have friended or page they've liked. I'm friends with a lot of authors who friend a lot of people. Many, many authors are also notoriously bad with computers and they don't turn off this notification being sent out far and wide--probably because they have no clue that you can, of if they do, how to do it.
I know why Facebook likes this feature--it might help people find mutual friends--but damn is it annoying. BTW, I do have this turned off so none of my friends see when I friend someone else. If only all authors would do this.
And while I'm complaining, Facebook, why the lag time when I'm scrolling down the news feeds? It's not a brief hesitation, it's many seconds before it finally goes. The farther down the feed I want to go, the slower the script is to let me scroll. So annoying.
There are many, many other things about Facebook that annoy the hell out of me, but I'll stop here.
***Edited to add: Facebook is now letting me block invites from people right when I delete their invitation! This is how it used to be and I'm glad to see it back. This will make it so much easier, even if I still have to block one by one.
July 15, 2014
Bait and Switch
I've been using Office 2010 at home for years now, but I never felt the need to customize the ribbon. Then we got 2010 at work and I continually hit the wrong icon in Word. The answer seemed easy--take the icon I didn't want and wouldn't use off the ribbon.
Confident--I knew exactly where to go to fix my ribbon--I soon found out that my brilliant plan wouldn't work. Why? Because Microsoft does not truly allow you to customize their ribbon.
I could create a brand new ribbon, but I was not allowed to remove anything, not a single, solitary thing from the ribbons they created for Word 2010. Really, Microsoft? Really? That's your idea of customizable? Because it doesn't fit my definition at all.
All I wanted to do was remove the Increase/Decrease Font Size icons. I didn't want to cause anarchy.
Microsoft, though, doesn't seem to really want to let its users do much customizing. For example, there is no way at all to turn off the your-email-has-no-subject pop-up. I tried. I even did an online search because I couldn't figure out how to do it. Only to learn that you're not allow to turn that off. Gee, thanks, Microsoft.
Confident--I knew exactly where to go to fix my ribbon--I soon found out that my brilliant plan wouldn't work. Why? Because Microsoft does not truly allow you to customize their ribbon.
I could create a brand new ribbon, but I was not allowed to remove anything, not a single, solitary thing from the ribbons they created for Word 2010. Really, Microsoft? Really? That's your idea of customizable? Because it doesn't fit my definition at all.
All I wanted to do was remove the Increase/Decrease Font Size icons. I didn't want to cause anarchy.
Microsoft, though, doesn't seem to really want to let its users do much customizing. For example, there is no way at all to turn off the your-email-has-no-subject pop-up. I tried. I even did an online search because I couldn't figure out how to do it. Only to learn that you're not allow to turn that off. Gee, thanks, Microsoft.
