The Family

Being brief here – Ramona and I had a quick talk about keeping files on a laptop secure even if you lost the laptop.  One good solution that I know of is a software package called True Crypt.

True Crypt allows you to create an encrypted file on the computer that TrueCrypt will mount as a regular drive.  You store your important files inside the True Crypt drive and they are encrypted/decrypted on the fly.

Using this solution will keep your files secure so long as you log off of your account when you put the laptop away.  And that’s what you should be doing when you travel anyway.

So, if someone did snatch the computer and try to pull files off the hard drive…  well, the chances of them being able to break TrueCrypt depend on how good of a password you used.

Anyway, I use TrueCrypt to store some important work files that get backed up to a third party (Mozy).  Not that I don’t have some trust in Mozy, I just want to be very sure about the security of the files when they get transferred somewhere else.

Well, I guess it’s time to go ahead and bring this up.

Kevin is still unemployed. And I figure we all have financial pressures, and besides that, we’re all grown up and don’t need anything. Well, nothing small, anyway.

So – what would the group like to do?

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OK. I am ready…… No, I’m not. I am in the process of deciding that yet another idea is not any good after I decided that it was what I was going to go with. My sympathies to all those, past and future, who have to name the Christmas Eve theme. (Except to those who think of something, name it, and go on with their lives without wasting time second guessing themselves.) Sigh………

Before i completely talk myself out if this…

The gift shall be an unusual Christmas ornament. It can be pretty, silly, or whatever, but it must be unusual (or seem unusual to you) and it must be an ornament which adorns the tree. It would be nice if it was also unique, but that is not a requirement.

I did the random gift exchange selector, but it has a problem. Do you, Chris and Christina, want to include Aleah and/or Donavan? It is up to you. Either way, you need to change it. Right now it includes Donavan and not Aleah.

I am not sure, but did we have a rule that spouse does not give to spouse? If so, when Aleah and Donavan join the game we should change that, making the rule only that we cannot give to ourselves.

I am trying to remember….how do we do this? Do I generate and post here or do I tell each individual who he or she has so it is as much of a secret as possible? I don’t remember. Seems like I post.