Stupid Linux Tips - Disable Touchscreen Temporally

I have a touchscreen that needs a good wipe down. Touch screens are annoying when dirty and you only have three options:

1) Wipe it down and hope you don't click something stupid.
2) Turn off the computer.
3) Disable the touchscreen.

I want item three, but there seems to be no Unity control panel for the touchscreen. I couldn't find one so I opened the Swiss army terminal and typed xinput.

Reading down the list is simple enough, id=13 is my touchscreen.

The command is xinput disable 13 or whatever number you need. Turning it back on is just as simple with xinput enable 13.

Obviously, I am not the best Linux user, but I like to share tidbits that make things easier.

Now clean that monitor.

Oh... Miniatures for Sale

Over on Classical Hack, I noticed my dad is unloading some of his massive armies.

Some of my favorites are the Macedonians. Check them out.

Taking Stock

Back in January of 2011, I started my first website at PretenderToThePower.com. It was a flat looking html page with the banner above. Nothing to write home about. Later, I moved on to Wordpress and then finally Blogger.com.

Over the years, I added more sites to cover all of my interests. I currently run four websites which I have combined into this site.

99% of my traffic is from G+. It is sad to see it go. I have tried other sites in the past, but many of them shifted focus as they evolved and I did not. Ello is a key example. While billed as a social media website for creators, it does not seem to fit with my model. It is beautiful to look at but doesn't match with my style. I like it, but it isn't home.

Over the past month, I have lost most of my followers on G+ as they depart to more lively parts of the web. At this point, I think I have found a new home at both MeWe.com and Pluspora.com. As of this moment, I have 153 followers on G+, if I can just get the same number on Pluspora and MeWe, I believe I will feel at home.

November is never a good time for me. I have midterms rocking and rolling on me, I have a book to write, work and a family to take care of. I hate this feeling that I am living out of a cardboard box on social media. The box has got to go, so it is my first priority.

Do me a favor: Share my sites, profiles or even the book I wrote.

I will be eternally grateful.

Phil

The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon.

A couple of months ago, I signed up for Audible. My first order was Gibbon's The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. It's 126 hours long. I'd be lying if I said I finished it.

The audio is high quality and Charlton Griffin's narration is excellent. It's hard to believe this book is 200 years old. If you merely want to read this book, it is also available on Gutenberg. This version is also excellent.

One thing that you miss from the Audible version is the maps. Gibbon meanders through history and of course he assumed you'd be holding the book with the maps as you read. I am surprised that Audible provided a PDF for the record, but didn't include the non-copyrighted maps. It is an odd omission. I have pulled the maps from the Gutenberg copy and loaded them here. Perhaps some day I will make a PDF of just the maps for easy printing.

West	East
North West of Western Empire	North West of Eastern Empire
North East of Western Empire	North East of Eastern Empire
South West of Western Empire	South West of Eastern Empire
South East of Western Empire	South East of Eastern Empire

The list price attached to the ad is for an purchase outside of your Audible account credit. An Audible account is $14.95 a month, which entitles you to one credit or book per month. Well worth the cost.