Delphi For Fun Newsletter #87

January 8, 2018

Happy New Year to all!

The 4th quarter of 2017 was one  of mixed blessings:  My business partner from our Saudi Arabia days passed away; another friend from those days had triple bypass surgery after a heart attack;  the wife of  my long-term buddy from Rocketdyne wrote that Dave's memory is failing and she must now go with him on outings to make sure he doesn't get lost; and a retired summer-time neighbor from Vermont is battling an aggressive form of prostate cancer.    It really is true that "Growing old is not for sissies!"  

Oh, and I suffered a "Retinal Vein Occlusion" in late November which leaves me with one good eye for now.  "Occlusion"  is med-speak for "blockage" and only time will tell whether the eye is smart enough to grow replacement veins.  Until then, blood in the eye obscures most vision and monthly injections (at $2000 per!) should keep veins from growing behind the retina which would be really bad.

On the plus side, I got the lumber sawn and poles set for a mill shed before the December deep freeze hit.  Even better, we are now new great- grandparents with the arrival of Isabel just before Christmas.   We're planning a trip up north when the weather breaks to see if she is really as beautiful as the pictures they have been sending J.
 

There are a low number of programming projects this quarter, partly due to the above and partly due to Dish Olympics Channel, Christmas gift books to read and other "stuff".  Here are the ones which did get posted:  

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October 31, 2017:  A grandson's wedding, a run-in with an uninsured deer, replacing a garbage disposal when it its retaining clamp rusted through, breaking-in the new sawmill, and a hard-to-crack puzzle have made this a busy month without much to show for it.    The puzzle of the month Cast A Word,  is an interesting one that that's going to require more time to program.   In desperation, I did solve it with pen and paper today, so might get a solver programmed before Thanksgiving J .  

November 29, 2017:   Log Sawing Version 4 was posted today.  This program suggests effective ways to saw logs into lumber with a horizontal bandsaw.  It is a major rewrite from the original, hopefully for the better.   The original program was written in 2010 when owning a sawmill was only a "big boy's" dream.  Now that the dream has come true, it's time to make the program more than a math & programming exercise.  The biggest change from version 1  is the more realistic reporting of cutting positions as inches above the bed since the saw head moves down rather the the log moving up as boards are cut..   Click the link above to see more change details and to download the program.    

December 13, 2017: 

My nemesis "Cast A Word" puzzle has been solved!  Just not by me.  Recall that we are given 16 four letter words which can be formed by throwing four dice with letters on their faces and reading the tops.  The problem is to assign  letters to the dice in such a way that this can be done.  Cast  A Word. Version 2 written by Sergio, a smart, older, Italian, "just for fun" programmer bailed me out.  Click the link to find out more and download the program.
     

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Quotes from past Newsletters (continued):

DFF News #26,  April 29, 2002:  "The question in life is not whether you get knocked down. You will. The question is, are you ready to get back up and fight for what you believe in?" -- Dan Quayle

DFF News #27,  June 19, 2002: The truth of the matter is that you always know the right thing to do. The hard part is doing it." -- General H. Norman Schwarzkopf

DFF News #28,  August 16, 2002 : Even the turtle never got anywhere without sticking his neck out" -- Unknown

DFF News #29,  October 4, 2002 : "I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination.  Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world." -- Albert Einstein
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