Backblaze, my preferred cloud backup service for a few years now, is today making it a bit easier and cheaper to restore all of your data if your computer should ever crash or get lost / stolen. The company has always let subscribers ($5 per month) pay $189 to receive an external hard drive with a full copy of their backup. But maybe you don"t need yet another external drive that"ll just end up sitting around collecting dust. So now Backblaze is giving customers another option: send it back within 30 days for a full refund.
You"ve got to cover shipping costs for the drive"s return trip, unfortunately, but this still makes for a pretty convenient way of getting your stuff back in a jam. Of course, this being a cloud service, Backblaze always gives you the ability to download your files directly from the company"s website at no charge, but that can be a bit slow and frustrating depending on your broadband connection. Having a drive shipped to your door avoids Comcast yelling at you for downloading gigabytes upon gigabytes of data. And if you actually want to keep the drive to use for a local backup, perhaps (which you should always have) you can just eat the $189 charge and hang onto it.
Backblaze claims this service is unique among its competition, with Crashplan recently having phased out the option for "Home" subscribers to restore via mailed hard drive. Backblaze has backed up over 200 petabytes of customer data through its unique storage pod system, and says it"s made over 10 billion data restorations. Having used it for some time now, I can vouch that it"s pretty great. Once the initial backup is finished, you"ll barely ever notice that it"s open, quietly keeping your files safe in the background.
Lost Media Chronicles Episode 8 - Christine Chubbuck Suicide (1974) [NOT ACTUAL VIDEO]
On July 15, 1974, 29-year-old Sarasota TV reporter Christine Chubbuck spoke to the camera: In keeping with Channel 40s policy of bringing you the latest in blood and guts and in living color, youre going to see another firstattempted suicide. Chubbuck put a pistol to her head and pulled the trigger.
Chubbucks hair-raising on-air suicide has inspired not one but two newfilms, both being shown later this month at the Sundance Film Festival. One,Christine, is a dramaticrecreation of Chubbucks final days, with Rebecca Hall (who starred inThe Town andIron Man 3) portraying Chubbuck and directorAntonio Campos behind the camera.The second film, Robert Greene"sKate Plays Christine, is a documentary, but far removed from your typical talking-head piece. The movie follows the actress Kate Lyn Sheil (best known for a role onHouse of Cards) as she prepares to play the role of Chubbuck, visiting Sarasota and attempting to understand her suicide. Greene knows Sarasota well; he participated in the 2014 Sarasota Film Festival, where he showed the similarly styled documentary Actress.
Neither of the two new movies is the first to grapple with Chubbucks grisly act; her death loosely inspired the 1976 filmNetwork. But both Sundance films are set in Sarasota, showcasing a b****y and disturbing chapter in the citys history. We"ll be watching.
Vince Young = BROKE 1/25/2016 7:35 AM PST BY TMZ STAFF
Breaking News
Ex-NFL starVince Young was arrested for DUI in Texas early Monday morning ... and is still behind bars.
TMZ Sportsconfirmed Young was pulled over in a white Chevy Silverado by Austin cops around midnight. He was booked for DUI at the Travis County jail. Police told KXAN that officers saw Young drifting across lanes while doing 40 to 60 mph.
Police also described Young as being uncooperative once officers pulled him over. He refused to take a breathalyzer. His bail was set at $2,000.
Officers say Young showed several signs of intoxication during the stop -- including, "thick tongued" speech, swaying and mumbling.
Cops also say Young started the "Walk and turn" test -- but refused to continue after losing his balance.
Young returned to his alma mater, University of Texas, in 2014 to work on recruiting.
Erica Kinsman Facebook Jameis Winston Accuser Party Girl The Hunting Ground Ignored
Photo: KEVIN MAZUR/MTV1415/WIREIMAGE.
Major News: The pair behind those Planned Parenthood "sting" videos has been indicted.
On Monday, a grand jury in Texas indicted two anti-abortion activists behind falsified "sting" videos that sparked a probe into Planned Parenthood"s practices, reports The Houston Chronicle. The grand jury cleared Planned Parenthood of wrongdoing, and instead indicted secret videographers David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt on charges of tampering with a government record. (Read More)
Here At Home: Florida State University reached a $950,000 settlement in a civil lawsuit over the way it handled a sexual assault investigation.
Florida State University reached a $950,000 settlement with Erica Kinsman, who filed a Title IX lawsuit against the school last year over the way it handled her sexual assault investigation. In her lawsuit, Kinsman claimed Florida State wanted "to protect the football program," resulting in a lack of charges. The New York Times uncovered a long list of errors and procedural missteps in the school"s investigation. (Read More)
Feminism FTW: The Oxford Dictionary is reviewing its use of the phrase "rabid feminist" after being called out on Twitter.
The negative connotation behind the word "rabid" didn"t stop the Oxford Dictionary from using the term "rabid feminists" in an example sentence on the word"s entry. On January 20, Michael Oman-Reagan, whose Twitter bio says he is a PhD student at Memorial University, suggested that "feminist" might not be the best word to pair with "rabid" in the dictionary"s examples. (Read More)
Pro-Tip: There may be a health benefit to deep-frying your veggies in extra-virgin olive oil.
According to a recent study, there may be at least one health benefit to deep-frying your veggies as long as you use extra-virgin olive oil, reports Popular Science. Researchers found that the veggies" fat content increased when they had been deep-fried and sauted, but that they also had higher levels of antioxidant phenols. (Read More)
Weird, But True: People are turning colors after using Lush beauty products.
It looks like a love for Lush is turning some customers red in the face quite literally. The frenzy started last Sunday, when U.K. customer Abi Shenton tweeted a selfie in which she resembles a stick of bubblegum come to life. As it turns out, Shenton simply didn"t use the product correctly and mistook the Razzle Dazzle Bath Oil she had purchased for a soap. But Shenton"s color-changing isn"t an isolated incident. (Read More)
Must See: A cop in Ecuador rescued an adorable, lost sloth.
Photos of a lost sloth in Ecuador are going viral, and it"s not hard to see why. The sloth"s picture-perfect smile has warmed the hearts of thousands of Facebook users. Ecuador"s transit commission shared the images of the remarkably cute sloth over the weekend. The commission"s photos have gained thousands of likes and shares across the globe. (Read More)
ICYMI: Kim Kardashian and Chrissy Teigen got into a discussion over Twitter about some not-so-great aspects of #momlife.
Kim Kardashian has never been shy about her own pregnancy struggles or about life as a new mom to her little girl North and her new baby boy, Saint West. So it"s no surprise that she decided to share some of her newfound wisdom with good friend and mom-to-be Chrissy Teigen. The two got into a discussion over Twitter about some not-so-great aspects of #momlife after Kardashian tweeted, This 4 am feeding really kills me. Im like delirious.(Read More)
Icebreaker: Bernie Sanders now has his own ice cream flavor.
Bernie Sanders is getting an ice cream from an icon in the field. Ben Cohen, one half of Ben & Jerrys, masterminded Bernies Yearning, a pint of mint ice cream covered with a thick disc of solid chocolate. Ben & Jerrys, the company, is not in any way affiliated with the ice cream. Cohen donated 25 pints to Bernies campaign and is raffling off 15 more. (Read More)
Stephen Curry"s Jaw-Dropping Shots | Spurs vs Warriors | January 25, 2016 | NBA 2015-16 Season
Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Here"s why we"ve never seen an NBA regular-season game quite like Monday"s Spurs-Warriors tilt.
Finally, the game has arrived. The 38-6 Spurs travel to the Bay Area to take on the 40-4 Warriors on Monday (10:30 p.m. ET, NBA TV). Half the season has elapsed, and yet this is the first time the league"s two best teams will match up.
The Spurs and Warriors have dominated the rest of the NBA in historic fashion this season. San Antonio is outscoring opponents by 15.3 points per 100 possessions and has the NBA"s best defensive rating in over a decade. Golden State is outscoring opponents by 13.7 points per 100 possession, powered by an unstoppable offense and crunch-time lineup that runs circles around the league.
These two superpowers have not played each other in nearly 10 months. They missed each other in last year"s playoffs when the Spurs lost in the first round to the Clippers, which was no doubt a relief to Golden State. Two of the Warriors" 15 regular season losses last season came to the Spurs. Golden State looks even more formidable this year, but then again, so does San Antonio.
This makes Monday night"s matchup the best regular season game in NBA history. Here"s why.
There are never two teams playing this well at the same time
The Warriors enter Monday night"s tilt with a 90.9 winning percentage this season. The Spurs have merely won 86.4 percent of their games. We"ve never seen two teams this dominant in a regular-season game.
In fact, the Warriors and Spurs have two of the six best records in league history through 44 games.
The only regular-season game between two teams this good was between the 39-3Lakers and 35-8Bucks in 1972. On that night, Milwaukee, behind 39 points from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and 17 from Oscar Robertson, ended the Lakers" record 33-game winning streak.
Aaron Barzilai, a statistician that has worked for several NBA teams, compiled a list of regular-season matchups that might compare to Spurs-Warriors. Monday"s game is still far ahead of the pack.
Steph vs. Kawhi
Kawhi Leonard vs.Stephen Curry is the matchup we all want to see. There"s no point in devoting any more words to Curry"s offensive brilliance. He"s the game"s best shooter, scorer and ball handler, and seems like an MVP shoo-in.
But if Curry is the likely MVP, Leonardis the clear No. 2 in the race. He"s the NBA"s best defender, but is also second in the league in three-point shooting and hasmorphed into one of the game"s top offensive players. Leonard might be the only person in the world with the size, athleticism, skill set, limbs and smarts to actually bother Curry in a one-on-one matchup.
It"s unlikely Gregg Popovich,who views the regular season as one giant warmup for the playoffs, slots Leonard onto Curry for extended periods of time, especially becausethe absence of Tim Duncan due to a knee injury also takes away the Spurs" top interior defender. That said, any glimpse of Leonard on Curry will be basketball p**n, and seeing Leonard attack the Warriors" array of top defensive wings on the other end should be interesting, too.
Curry has played at this level for a couple years, but this is the first time Leonard is joining the MVP conversation. These two stars will be spending the next half decade battling for supremacy out West. Last time they met,Leonard and the Spurs routed the Warriors. Chances are Monday night"s game will be much closer.
The Spurs trying to stop the Warriors" Lineup of Death
Chris Paul"s magic in the first round of last year"s playoffs prevented us from seeing if San Antonio could put together an answer for Golden State"scheat code small lineup of Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Harrison Barnes and Draymond Green. Hopefully that doesn"t happen again this year. While Popovich won"t give away any major secrets on Monday, this game could still provide a glimpse of how he plans on dealing with that Warriors death lineup,which is outscoring opponents by 56.6 points per 100 possessions this season, perNBA.com.
Nobody has been able to stop that unit, but nobody else has the brilliant mind of Popovich on the sidelines or a player like Leonard on the court. Leonard in particular could end up being the Spurs" answer to Green, whohas become the Warriors" co-MVP because of his ability to mesh big man and guard skills. Green can space the floor and create on offense while guarding every position on defense, which empowers the Warriors" small unit.
Leonard, however, could be the answer to slowing him down. He hasn"t played a lot of power forward during his Spurs career, but that doesn"t mean he can"t. He could lock up Green on the outside and guard him down low, and he can put pressure on him on the other end of the floor. Boris Diaw, assuming he puts downthe espressos for a minute, is another mobile big man that could have a bigger role against the Warriors. The Spurs will also need LaMarcus Aldridge"s versatility, particularly if he"s the center alongside Leonard up front.
... And many more reasons
It"s possible -- again, POSSIBLE -- there are seven Hall of Famers on the floor for this game:Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Leonard, Aldridge, Curry, Green and Thompson. (If Duncan were playing, he"d make it eight).
It will feature one of the best offenses of this generation (the Warriors) against one of the best defenses of this generation (the Spurs). Contrasting styles make for good fights.
The game might set a record for passes thrown. The Spurs rank No. 3 in the league in passes made per game, while the Warriors are No. 5, perNBA.com. All that ball movement should make the game a visual delight.
How to Watch
When: 10:30 p.m., ET
Where: Oracle Arena
TV: NBA TV
* * *
SB Nation presents: East Coasters" solution to watching late Warriors games
The Internal Revenue Service appears to have violated a court order once again requiring the preservation of evidence needed by investigators looking into questionable practices at the agency. In a case sure to stir up memories of the Lois Lerner investigation, which saw IRS Commissioner John Koskinen dragged before Congress for multiple hearings, the agency destroyed a computer hard drive belonging to an IRS official connected to the subject of a Congressional query.
Earlier this year, the IRS was ordered by a federal judge to preserve documents including electronic documents that were possibly related to an ongoing dispute between the agency and Microsoft.
Related: New Lerner Emails Mean IRS Targeting Scandal Creeps Closer to DC
The disagreement between the IRS and the software giant centered on compliance with the federal tax code, specifically, the agency was looking into the companys transfer pricing practices. A major concern in establishing the tax liability of multinational corporations, transfer pricing refers to the sale of goods and services between entities that are part of the same corporate structure.
Some companies have been known to illegally reduce their tax liabilities by mispricing the goods and services exchanged between their subsidiaries.
The computer hard drive the IRS destroyed belonged to Samuel Maruca, who oversaw the transfer pricing section at the agencys Large Business and International division.
In the Microsoft case, the software giants attorneys became curious when they were directed to meet with, and in some cases have their clients give depositions before non-IRS attorneys as part of the case.
Related: 32,774 Found IRS Emails Prompt Criminal Probe
The company filed a Freedom of Information Act request, and discovered that the IRS had spent more than $2.5 million on outside legal assistance, often to trial lawyers charging the government $1,000 per hour or more.
The revelation led Microsoft to protest that senior executives from the company ought not to be forced to comply with demands to testify, on the grounds that the private attorneys do not have the legal standing to conduct interviews related to an IRS audit.
A federal judge disagreed, and though he said that the involvement of the outside attorneys was troubling, told the company to comply.
However, while the courts might have sided with the IRS, the Senate Finance Committee and the House Oversight and Investigations Committee were not pleased to learn that the agency, which employs thousands of tax attorneys, spent millions of dollars on outside legal help.
Related: Treasury IG Finds IRS Destroyed More Lerner Emails
Sen. Orrin Hatch, the Utah Republican who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, wrote to Koskinen in May, noting, The IRS has over 40,000 employees dedicated to enforcement efforts, including more than 36,000 tasked specifically with exams and collections. If none of these employees, nor IRS Office of Chief Counsel or Department of Justice tax attorneys, have sufficient expertise to undertake the examination at hand, we should have a broader conversation about your agencys hiring practices and recruitment needs.
Hatch also challenged the idea that it was acceptable to allow non-government attorneys to participate in the audit of a private firm.
Unlike private contractors, Treasury Department officials are required to swear an oath to the Constitution and are subject to rules of conduct and federal law regulating their interactions with taxpayers. Turning over inherently government functions such as the conduct of an examination to private contractors not only jeopardizes the rights of taxpayers, but also confuses the examination process and changes the well-regulated relationship between revenue examiners and private taxpayers.
The revelation that the agency had destroyed a hard drive that Congressional investigators viewed as central to an ongoing inquiry infuriated House Oversight and Investigations Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah).
Related: IRS Stirs Up New Crisis With Non-Profits Over Social Security Numbers
In a letter to Koskinen last week, co-signed by Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, he wrote, It is stunning to see that the IRS still does not take reasonable care to preserve documents that it is legally required to protect, and demanded information related to the agencys document retention policies.
In a line that seems to presage further uncomfortable Congressional hearings for Koskinen, they also wrote, The destruction of evidence subject to preservation orders and subpoenas has been an ongoing problem under your leadership at the IRS.
who invented the mechanical television? (John Logie Baird)
This was despite him losing his hearing in his 30s. By the end of his life aged 56 in 1827, Beethoven was totally deaf.
"It happens that our story isnt much of a stretch in the broader context of Ludwig van Beethovens life, which saw more than its share of rotten luck," said Google"s artists.
"He lost two siblings prematurely, had to assume full responsibility for his family as a teenager, fell madly for unrequiting lovers twice, and, most famously, began losing his hearing at the peak of his career. Despite all of this, Beethovens music prevailed."
December 17 is not actually Beethoven"s birthday, which is unknown, but marks the anniversary of his baptism in 1770.
Most scholars accept December 16 as his date of birth, which is actually a notoriously bad birthday to have. According to research from Interflora, the cold weather and interference from Christmas reduces the likelihood of gifts, or of people turning up to your birthday party.
One in six people born in December (16 per cent) said they were "unhappy" with their birth date followed by January (15 per cent) and November (11 per cent).
Today"s Doodle is one of Google"s more innovative ones, and follows a long line of interactive art that replaces the traditional Google logo. Since then more than 2,000 have been created.
Some of the more memorable examples include Robert Moog"s 78th birthday and an interactive penalty shoot-out to mark the 2012 Olympics.
