My router has dynamic DNS support through three services:

• DynDNS - Now owned by Oracle and a paid service.
• No-IP - It has a free tier with 1 hostname but sends you a confirmation email every month to make sure you're still using the address (which they can tell anyways if record is accessed and by pinging the IP so it's more like they want send you a monthly marketing reminder).
• TP-Link - This is the router company's one. You need a TP-Link ID which you have if you want to remote control your router.

I used TP-Link provider:

1. Login toTP-Link account then add a domain (enter anything, though it rejected my first couple of suggestions with invalid term and maybe it doesn't like www2 in www2-tgd-inc): dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com.
2. Delete the current A record for www2.tgd-inc.com.
3. Add a CNAME record for www2 that points to dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com.

Now if you do a DNS lookup:

% nslookup -debug www2.tgd-inc.com         
Server:		192.168.0.1
Address:	192.168.0.1#53

------------
    QUESTIONS:
	www2.tgd-inc.com, type = A, class = IN
    ANSWERS:
    ->  www2.tgd-inc.com
	canonical name = dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com.
	ttl = 7200
    ->  dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com
	internet address = 192.184.151.221
	ttl = 900
    AUTHORITY RECORDS:
    ADDITIONAL RECORDS:
------------
Non-authoritative answer:
www2.tgd-inc.com	canonical name = dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com.
Name:	dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com
Address: 192.184.151.221

In your web browser if you go to https://www2.tgd-inc.com:

1. Your computer does a DNS lookup for www2.tgd-inc.com
2. That response says lookup at dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com
3. Your computer does a DNS lookup for dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com
4. That response gives an IP address
5. Your browser goes that IP address and in URL bar it still says https://www2.tgd-inc.com so SSL certificate still works.

I rebooted the router, which picks up a new IP address. It took an hour or so for dyn-tgd-inc.tplinkdns.com to reflect the new IP address — you'd think the router knows the IP address changed so it should update immediately but still fast enough for home use.

Sat Jan 04 2025

Sleep 0500 to 1330 (8-1/2 hours)

• Was doing a big network sync and from my MBP M4 to the AX55 to Airport to Mac mini throughput was about 10 MB/s which is much slower than before. Plugged in Mac mini directly to AX55 and throughput went to 30-40 MB/s and that’s good. Also I mistakenly used the Hue hub Ethernet cable (which is short and convenient) and throughput went back down to 10 MB/s so that’s not a high speed cable. Think I should buy a couple of 10gb Ethernet cables just to make sure both Macs connected to the AX55 have the highest bandwidth.
• We received our EV incentives rebate from Peninsula Clean Energy. For me it was $3841 for installation and the charger (about $650) plus $411 for the legal stuff (we modified property rights to account for charger) which HOA paid for and get reimbursement from the PCE fund. Rebate is $2470 so my out of pocket turned out to be $3841 - $2470 = $1371. BTW there is also a WiFi network we installed but that’s all covered by HOA since it also helped with our AT&T VoIP lines and maybe we can use the network for security cameras or something.

Sun Jan 05 2025

Sleep 0530 to 1200 (6-1/2 hours)

• macOS started verifying my video files when I opened them. This took a few minutes and macOS would say it couldn’t verify so it wouldn’t open the file. Go to Security settings and click Open Anyway and it’ll go through verification again and this time when it fails the dialog allows you to open anyways. Obviously this is very unworkable. Searching the web I found this article “Fix: macOS Verifying every video file” which basically tells you to turn off LSQuarantine which is GateKeeper. I think that turns off application checking too. Not sure this is the best solution but for now I’ll keep it.
• At the same time the default app for opening video files became TV.app. I could set the app to VLC on an individual basis but when I tried to set it or all documents it would revert to Books in the UI though in reality it was TV. I ran Disk First Aid which didn’t find anything. Eventually I moved VLC into the regular Applications folder and now I can set it as default app.
• Perhaps both of the above are from installing and uninstalling Samsun Magician software since that tried to make system changes. Don’t recall doing anything else unusual.

Mon Jan 06 2025

Sleep 0415 to 1315 (9 hours)

• One thing about my TP-Link router is that on reboot it picks up a new DHCP IP address. My Airport would reuse the same address if available so rebooting was no problem and I’d see a changed IP address if there was a general power outage. Since I have a DNS record, www2.tgd-inc.com, that points to the router I have to update it when TP-Link reboots. TP-Link does support Dynamic DNS with three different providers and that’s good for most home users. I suppose there may be a way to point www2.tgd-inc.com to an external DNS record. I’ll have to research.
• I bought Return to the Keep on the Borderlands. I noticed that the outdoor map now shows that the Cave of the Unknown is Quasqueton, though no details in this module. I also made it Quasqueton — the fortress of module B1 — in my D&D campaign.
• Doing my rounds and found someone who is getting ready to sleep in the recreation room. Apparently he is from unit #111 and was had a fight with his wife and he has a suitcase so I guess it was serious. I let him sleep there tonight.

Tue Jan 07 2025

Sleep 0415 to 1215 (8 hours)

• Got a text message about the guy in the rec room. Went out about 2 PM and talked to him and we agreed he could leave after dinner. Later that night when I went to lock up the rec room he was gone. Hopefully his home situation improves but it did look like he’s not working which may be a contributor to their domestic issue. Checked later that night and he’s gone.
• Went to Trader Joe’s for some groceries. Again remembered that I need to sticker my license plate so during my rounds tonight I took my license plate back to my apartment.

Wed Jan 08 2025

Sleep 0530 to 1330 (8 hours)

• Dinner at C3’s. Simple spaghetti with green or red sauces.
• Evening walk with CSr. Somehow brought up if I’m going to start looking for a job and now I’m a bit depressed.
• CJr has not been doing his chores so Netflix subscription will probably lapse.

Thu Jan 09 2025

Sleep 0430 to 1030, 2 hour nap (8 hours)

• Mobile notary came by and Steph, David (for the HOA board), and I signed the EVCS agreement. It’s neat she had an app to record our signature and a little fingerprint scanner to record that too. Friendly gal. Claudia Paez, Notary Public.
• Which reminds me that I’m probably not ever using A+ Mailboxes & More again since their notary was unhelpful when there was a problem with his stamp. Our lawyers wanted him to fill out a certain Illegibility form and he refused hence why we needed to re-sign today.
• TT called me about how things are with Stifel. She wants to call them tomorrow to talk to them. I told her sure but let me in on the call. Which reminds me I haven’t advanced it any further so I shot Nathan an email to warn him about the possibility (so that he has information ready) and to ask if any of the other two board members have signing authorization. Mostly I’d rather not have their names on checks since it’s TT and I that approve invoices so it’s like them signing for checks without even knowing what they’re for.

Fri Jan 10 2025

Sleep 0445 to 1315 (8-1/2 hours)

• Went to Safeway for fried chicken. They didn’t have any fresh so I bought one of the ones earlier in the day that it’s the heated foods section. Wow that’s so bad even microwaves a bit to make it hot. Just very dry after it’s been under a heat lamp for several hours. Also they mislabeled it as dark meat when it’s the mixed white/dark meat.
• Trying out macOS Dock on the left. Bottom is nice but I hate it when I go too far down on the second monitor and the Dock moves there which also makes the windows resize (and DuckDuckGo browser resizes to whole field). At least on the left it doesn’t move around though it’ll take getting some used to.
• Tiny Tina’s. After a couple of hours I started to get nauseous so wasn’t into it for the last half hour. Was nauseous for a couple of hours afterwards.

With the playoffs starting this weekend it's time for predictions.

First is personal picks. For champions the #1 is omitted because that's too easy.

AFC Champion: Buffalo Bills.
NFC Champion: Philadelphia Eagles.

Picking the #2 seeds is still predictable. For Buffalo I don't see any other teams other than Kansas City that can beat them. In the NFC Minnesota I'm still not that confident in them and they'll have to go through Detroit.

For upstart picks these have to be a wildcard team that will upset a team or two.

AFC Upstart: Pittsburgh.
NFC Upstart: Green Bay.

No particular reason other than I like those two teams.

Now we go for Super Bowl preferences which follow the usual formula: teams that won recent Super Bowls rank last and teams that haven't won a Super Bowl rank first.

1. Detroit Lions (0 SB appearances, founded 1928)
2. Houston Texans (0 SB appearances, founded 1999)
3. Los Angeles Chargers (played in 1 SB)
4. Minnesota Vikings (played in 4 SBs, not as recent as Buffalo)
5. Buffalo Bills (played in 4 SBs)
6. Baltimore Ravens (won 2 SBs)
7. Washington Commanders (won 3 SBs)
8. Green Bay Packers (won 4 SBs)
9. Pittsburgh Steelers (won 6 SBs)
10. Denver Broncos (won SB 50)
11. Philadelphia Eagles (won SB 52)
12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (won SB 55)
13. Los Angeles Rams (won SB 56)
14. Kansas City Chiefs (won SB 58)

It's interesting that the top pick is also probably one of the favorites to win it anyway.

The 2024 NFL regular season just ended. San Francisco 49ers had a really bad year ending 6-11, often being ahead in games but then losing the game in the second half.

AFC

1. Kansas City Chiefs (15-2) - They looked great all year and I saw way too many last possession they drive down the field and get the winning Field Goal or Touchdown.
2. Buffalo Bills (13-4) - Josh Allen is a great Quarterback and the Bills can challenge the Chiefs in the AFC title game.
3. Baltimore Ravens (12-5) - RB Derrick Henry is a great free-agent signing though at times the Ravens did not play as well offensively as I thought they could.
4. Houston Texans (10-7) - 2nd year coach DeMeco Ryans and 2nd year QB CJ Stroud get a second playoff appearance. Texans started hot (6-2) then cooled the rest of the season so unlikely to get far.
5. Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) - Jim Harbaugh returns to NFL coaching after getting Michigan a title and NCAA sanctions. I'm not really enamored with this team though.
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7) - QB Russell Wilson is not great anymore and was injured some but backup QB Justin Fields showing he's capable. They also started ok and faded.
7. Denver Broncos (10-7) - Rookie QB Bo Nix is entertaining and has played better than expected.

NFC

1. Detroit Lions (15-2) - I totally doubted them through most of the season and they winning and winning. An impressive home win against the Vikings to secure the #1 seed and this is the team to beat.
2. Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) - Started out slowly and ended strong. Once again looking like a team worthy of going to the Super Bowl.
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7) - QB Baker Mayfield doing well in his second year with the Bucs.
4. Los Angeles Rams (10-7) - NFC West was so bad this year but it came down to the Rams or Seahawks and the Rams won 5 games late to win the division. Backup QB Jimmy Garoppolo got the week 18 start in a meaningless game in which he showed his usual can-play-well-and-lose-the-game-in-the-4th-quarter style.
5. Minnesota Vikings (14-3) - The rpg.net NFL thread for this year started out subtitled the Sam Darnold revenge tour and it was. Certainly a candidate to upset the Lions or Eagles.
6. Washington Commanders (12-5) - A surprisingly good start (7-1) then three loses then five wins to go into the playoffs like a team that can go into Tampa Bay and beat the Bucs.
7. Green Bay Packers (11-6) - Like QB Jordan Love so I like this team but they dominate so don't see them upsetting any other team.

I was rooting for Cincinnati Bengals to get in because I like QB Joe Burrow and they had a bad 4-8 start and won their last 5 games to almost make it.

Fri Dec 27 2024

Sleep 0330 to 1045, 1 hr nap (8-1/4 hours)

• We played some Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands. Wish I could set up a VPN so we can do LAN play without me booting into Windows but Open VPN free account only supports two external connections (I could have the server connection be on my local network so I wouldn’t need VPN myself).

Sat Dec 28 2024

Sleep 0530 to 1230 (7 hours)

• We played some DDO.

Sun Dec 29 2024

Sleep 0530 to 1130 (6 hours)

• Bought Humble Comics Bundle: Hellboy Universe Megabundle ($18).

Mon Dec 30 2024

Sleep 0245 to 1045 (8 hours)

• Hit this issue with Epic Games Store where it says your account is not allowed to get a copy of a free game. Apparently free games are per IP address so if you’re using a VPN (e.g. iCloud Private Relay) then you might hit this.
• Just saw that New Amsterdam is leaving Netflix Jan 15. I have season 4 and 5 to watch but should be doable at two episodes per day.

Tue Dec 31 2024

Sleep 0700 to 1300 (6 hours)

• Darn. Castle no longer on Disney+. If I had known I’d have watched more.
• Finally setup my new router, TP-Link Archer AX55. Took a couple of hours. I used WPS to setup the printer connection and that was easy especially compared to using the 5-button 1-line LED UI on the printer (theoretically you can also connect a Windows computer via USB).
• MBP M4 connected with 802.11ax upload/download speeds are about the same so I guess I was already maxing out the Internet bandwidth with 802.11n. We’ll see if at least computer to computer transfers are fast.
• I slightly regret not getting the Ethernet version of my printer since the WiFi it supports (802.11b with WPA2 encryption) is a bit old and less secure.
• Downloading some stuff at 0200 and I did see it go to 60 MB/s which is maybe twice as fast as before, though I guess in the day you’re not going to see much of a difference.

Wed Jan 01 2025

Sleep 0530 to 1230 (7 hours)

• Turned on Open VPN server on my TP-Link router. Pretty easy: tell it if you want clients to access internal network or internal network + Internet, generate certificate (it uses external facing IP address, I assume I can’t change it to a domain name like www2.tgd-inc.com, export config file which you can then import to an Open VPN client. No passwords or login though so it’s a home network solution not an enterprise solution. The router also supports PPTP, L2TP/IPSec, and WireGuard servers all of which you can add clients with passwords.

Thu Jan 02 2025

Sleep 0130 to 0830 (7 hours)

• Went to Trader Joe’s about 3 PM. Quite full of people with all registers fairly busy. Besides the usual they had 1 lb. bags of shelled sunflower seeds for $3 which seems quite cheap.

Fri Jan 03 2025

Sleep 0300 to 1130 (8-1/2 hours)

• TT objected to providing so much info to our Reserve Fund bank just so she can have signing authority. I will probably need to have RB be co-signer on checks which is not ideal since TT is co-approver in our AP app. Feel a bit uncomfortable having a co-signer who is not approving the same expenses.
• I didn’t realize you can change your computer/device name in Settings > About > Name. Only became a problem when my new MBP’s default name of Kevin’s MacBook Pro kept confusing me since I have two MBPs. Also don’t like Kevin’s xyz I’d rather it be Kevin xyz without the ’s.
• Oh, I did get charged $99 for the iPhone “screen replacement” which is fine since I got an (I assume) refurbished iPhone SE out of it. Only I’m worried about is if the battery is old but still normal or if it’s a newer with less wear and tear.

The Complete Night's Black Agents & Dracula Dossier Bundle from Humble Bundle is $18 for

Already Own

PELG-N01 Night's Black Agents (2012)

PELG-N05 The Dracula Dossier: Director's Handbook (2015)
PELG-N06 Dracula Unredacted (2015) - Bram Stroker's Dracula novel with a lot of "redacted and unpublished" additions.
PELG-N07 The Dracula Dossier Deck (2016) - card deck with NPCs, Nodes, Locations, Objects, and Opponents
PELG-N08 EDOM Field Manual (2016)
PELG-N09 The EDOM Files (2016) - compendium of eight adventures
PELG-N10 The Hawkins Papers (2015) - handouts
PELG-N11 The Thrill of Dracula (2016) - review & analysis of Dracula tales and stories + adventure seeds

Don't Own

PELG-N02 The Zalozhniy Quartet (2012) - 4-mission campaign
PELG-N03 Double Tap: The Night's Black Agents Companion (2013)
PELG-N04 Dust and Mirrors - Music for Night's Black Agents (2013) - MP3 album

PELG-N12 The Dubai Reckoning (2016) - 25-page adventure
PELG-N13 Looking Glass: Hong Kong (2017) - generic supplement usable with various Pelgrane RPGs
PELG-N14 The Persephone Extraction (2018) - 5-adventure campaign
PELG-N15 Night's Black Agents Director's Screen & Resource Guide (2019)
PELG-N16 The Dracula Vector (2020) - 29 page 2-session adventure
PELG-N17 Find Forever - one-shot adventure

GUMSHOE Zoom: Mind Control (2014) - 12-page article from Ken Writes About Stuff monthly series
Lilith (2014) - 9-page article from Ken Writes About Stuff monthly series

Free Stuff

The Dracula Dossier: Cuttings and New Additions - 65 pages of extras
The Dracula Dossier: Orchestral Theme Music - bonus from KS
Perveniet Calix (2015) - 7-page bonus item from Dracula Dossier KS

These can be downloaded from the Pelgrane's Dracula Dossier Resources.

I bought the Dracula Dossier Bundle which is all of the Already Own items. The rest is still a good buy for $18.

DriveThruROG has a sale going on. Without adventures a new RPG has little appeal, except for maybe an OSR fantasy RPG since you can generally use those with D&D modules. Going through the first 25 pages I found these items that I'll probably buy, all for AD&D 1E or 2E.

T1-4 Temple of Elemental Evil (1e) - $6, 40% off.

L1 The Secret of Bone Hill (1e) - $3, 40% off. I have this back when WotC was providing some old adventures for free. It's like an RTF file doe the main text and folders with GIFs for each art piece, map, and cover. Sure the content is there but not a nice format so I'd still buy the PDF version.

L2 The Assassin's Knot (1e) - $3, 40% off.

L3 Deep Dwarven Delve (1e) - $3, 40% off. L1 to L3 comprise a connected series of adventures.

Return to the Keep on the Borderlands (2e) - $4.20, 40% off. This is more of a redo of B2 for new beginning PCs rather than a sequel where old and now veteran PCs come back and to find new and tougher monsters. Because I thought this was a sequel I never thought about using it. Now that I know it's a redo I regret, a little, not using this for the change of pace compared to stock B2.

N5 Under Illefarn (1e) - $3, 40% off. N1 to N4 are available as a bundle.

Sat Dec 21 2024
Sleep 0330 to 0900, 1 hr nap (6-1/2 hours)

• DDO with the guys. We did Sealed in Amber on R5 (wiped) then on R3.

Sun Dec 22 2024

0630 to 1230 (6 hours

• Made the mistake of signing up to Alignable. A whole lot of emails as they try to connect you with everyone and everything.

Mon Dec 23 2024

Sleep 0215 to 1245 (10-1/2 hours)

• In a recent update the DC Heroes KS will now include PDFs for any products you buy, though won’t be available separately. It still makes the $630 all in no new stuff (+ shipping) option out of my price range. But I suppose I’d only want the 2nd edition rules in PDF which means the $60 core box. Then again I’d rather run a campaign with Blood of Heroes RPG which is like a 4th rules.

Tue Dec 24 2024

Sleep 0115 to 0800 (6-3/4 hours)

• Drove to mom and dad’s early.
• MBP M4 Pro 24 GB Memory/ 512 GB SSD $1700 which is $50 less than I bought it. I’m fine having bought mine last month and I'm quite happy with it.

Wed Dec 25 2024

Sleep 0100 to 0500, 30m nap, 1h nap (5-1/2 hours)

• Chill Christmas at mom and dad’s house with C3 and Steph, no extra guests.

Thu Dec 26 2024

Sleep 0245 to 1045 (8 hours)

• Drove home from mom and dad’s. Was raining a fair amount though not stormy.

Bundle of Holding's The One Ring 2E Bundle is for Free League Publishing's RPG based on Tolkien but not specifically Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit. $19 gets you:

The One Ring 2E Core Rules (244 pages)

Character Lifepaths (10 pages)
Peoples of Wilderland (10 pages)

Loremaster's Screen and Rivendell Compendium (12 pages)
Strider Mode (28 pages) - solitaire play

Ruins of the Lost Realm (120 pages) - "This expansion for The One Ring™ RPG is a guide to the peoples inhabiting the Lone-lands of Southern Eriador, the places they dwell in, and the hopes they hold for their future in the twilight of the Third Age."

Tales from the Lone-lands (114 pages) - "…contains six adventures for The One Ring… All are set in the lone-lands of north-western Middle-earth around the year 1965 of the Third Age."

It's not a large product line yet this bundle doesn't include the last two books, published this year, Realms of the Three Rings (2024) and Moria: Through the Doors of Durin (2024).

Price is good though so very tempting.

Humble Bundle's Hellboy Universe Megabundle continues from the previous two Hellboy bundles and includes them at discounted prices. $18 for the new items (+$20 if you add the two previous bundles).

Hellboy and the BPRD: 1952
Hellboy and the BPRD: 1953
Hellboy and the BPRD: 1954
Hellboy and the BPRD: 1955
Hellboy and the BPRD: 1956
Hellboy and the BPRD: 1957

Hellboy and the BPRD: The Beast of Vargu (own Beast of Vargu OS)
Hellboy and the BPRD: The Return of Effie Kolb (own 3 of 4 OSs)
Hellboy and the BPRD: The Secret of Chesbro House

Hellboy: The Bones of Giants (novel)
Hellboy: Odder Jobs (anthology) (own)
Hellboy: The Fire Wolves (novel)
Hellboy: The Ice Wolves (novel)
Hellboy: The Lost Army (novel)

Abe Sapien v1: The Drowning (own)
Abe Sapien v2: The Devil Does Not Jest
Abe Sapien v3: Dark and Terrible and the New Race of Man
Abe Sapien v4: The Shape of Things to Come
Abe Sapien v5: Sacred Places
Abe Sapien v6: A Darkness So Great
Abe Sapien v7: The Secret Fire
Abe Sapien v8: The Desolate Shore
Abe Sapien v9: Lost Lives

Lobster Johnson v1: The Iron Prometheus
Lobster Johnson v2: The Burning Hand
Lobster Johnson v3: Satan Smells a Rat
Lobster Johnson v4: Get the Lobster!
Lobster Johnson v5: The Pirate's Ghost and Metal Monsters of Midtown
Lobster Johnson v6: A Chain Forged in Life

Lobster Johnson: The Satan Factory (novel)

Crimson Lotus

It's a bundle I mostly don't have so worth buying.