Fun With Windows 11

[yogi]

Browser tabs at one time could not be run under separate processes. The same code running the browser ran whatever was going on in all the tabs. This had the effect of all tabs being open and running continuously. Then Mozilla came up with a way to assign a different process to each tab. That would be like adding cores to a single CPU. Like the multi-core CPU, the tabs running multiple processes used a lot of resources. This made instant tab response possible. Now it is possible to set up a browser so that those multi-process tabs go to sleep when they are not in focus for a period of time. Browser resources are not used as heavily in that case but I suppose it's possible to see some lag when waking a sleeping tab. In some ways each tab can be seen as a virtual machine in that it is a separate container within the browser. Each one can be run on it's own or share the host resources.

I seldom run more than one VM and I configure each one with 2GB of RAM. I suppose that would limit me to 8 machines if RAM was exclusively dedicated to virtualization. To be honest I don't know if that is dedicated RAM or if it is shared. All the setup wants is a number for memory space and it doesn't say what it will do with it. Given that each box is an entity onto itself, I seriously doubt there is any sharing going on as you could see with browser tabs.

I'm not all that well informed about cloud computing, but I think it has come a long way down the road from dumb terminals. Ideally executable code should run on the client side, but a cloud computer is in effect a virtual machine. That virtual session is probably on your desktop, but there is a controller up in the clouds that manages it all. The whole idea of cloud computing is to reduce the need for spending a lot on computer hardware. I have this vision that anything saying it's virtual is really a stored file on a host server. It may or may not be downloaded to your desktop.

[Kellemora]

When we had Flash Player, I could open 50 tabs all of very large farms in FarmTown, I would only start about 8 tabs running at a time though, they would start when I actually opened the tab, but would continue to run after I moved on to the next tab, they didn't shut down because they were no longer in focus. Naturally I would close those that finished the job and open another to replace it.

Since WebGL, you can open only between 4 to 8 at a time, depending on your installed memory, and if you try to open 9 tabs, WebGL crashes on ALL tabs.
Doing other things where you are not using extra tabs, only working from one tab, WebGL crashes around 8 to 10 times per hour of trying to get things done. In some cases when performing certain operations, you know exactly when it will crash, and it has nothing to do with what you were doing before or after. Some peoples farms just crash WebGL 100% of the time.

If you only assign 2GB of RAM to a VM, how do you run a program that requires a minimum of 4GB to run, which program suggests you have 8GB or more for optimum performance.

The couple of cloud services I do use that have on-line programs I use. I log-in, upload my multi-page document to it, and it does all the work on their servers. Then I can view where changes need to be made, and when I'm done, download the edited copy.
Also, when I do my taxes, I'm filling out an on-line form, and when done, I can download a copy for myself. I don't think they download anything onto my computer in either case to do the job.

[yogi]

One reason Mozilla gives the option to use separate processes for each open tab is the crash problem. It used to be that if one tab crashed, it took them all down. Apparently that is what WebGL is doing. Now and days with each tab running on it's own a crash will only affect the misbehaved tab and not the others. While that's great for keeping the browser sessions going, as I noted above it uses a lot of browser resources to accomplish that independence. The sleeping tab function is an attempt to cut down on resources. Since I am unfamiliar with WebGL I can't comment on it's operation. Apparently it's a global thing that overrides the separate process scheme. WebGL is a third party extension as was Flash Player, and like Flash WebGL functions from a single console somewhere in the sky.

The 2GB RAM space I allocate to virtual machines is just that, RAM usage. The machine itself, the virtual hard disk, is no less than 10GB. In some cases the operating system creates it's own swap file in the root directory, and it is that swap file that augments the 2GB dedicated to RAM. I run minimal systems in the VM environment because Ubuntu, and many of it's siblings, require 20 GB or more for a full install to be functional. It will all fit in less than 8 GB but response time suffers greatly if there isn't enough disk space beyond that. The bare minimum Ubuntu runs perfect with good response time when I install the lite version. Since I don't use much of the total system anyway, the lite version is just fine for me.

I never did like what Turbo Tax was doing, i.e., keeping a copy of my tax records on their servers. I stopped using them long before they experienced a major breach, but for all I know they are keeping my records on file forever. Their web service was convenient, but it cost just as much to buy a copy at WalMart as it did to subscribe online. Some states forced Intuit to offer free tax programs. I used to do my MIL's taxes and she lived in Iowa. Both the federal and the state Turbo Tax service there were free. The identical program in Illinois was high priced.

[Kellemora]

I can have WebGL crash on only 1 tab, or on several tabs at once.
One type of crash you can recover from just by reloading the tab that crashed.
But the most common WebGL crash requires closing the browser and reopening it again.
Royal pain in the arse, it don't hold a candle to Flash Player in any way shape or fashion.
The same holds true for HTML5 Canvas, which is also a royal pain in the arse, which is why companies are using WebGL to overcome the billions of deficiencies in HTML5.

I guess it don't matter about VM's because I doubt I would ever start using them again at this late stage of the game for me.

I've always done my own taxes, except for two of my first years in the real estate business when I hired both a real estate tax attorney and use the tax man he worked with. It was a good deal for me as far as learning the ropes.
I only used Turbo Tax for a couple of years, until they came out with their spyware issue, then I switched to H&R Blocks Tax Cut for like 5 years. After I moved south and no longer had to do a state income tax report, except for my business, I started using Free Tax U.S.A. and have been using it every year since. Never had a problem with it, and I can file electronically for free too!

My mom didn't use anything to figure out her taxes, she had like 4 or 5 things she could put into an envelope showing her income and small investment. And they would do her tax for her. She like that because she always got more back than she thought she should, often more than she paid in, hi hi.

[yogi]

I claim not to be a gamer, but I do have some opinions about them. Web based games are intrinsically flawed in that their main purpose is to generate revenue. Those so called free games cannot exist unless they are getting something profitable from each of their users. There are a lot of game servers floating around the internet, but they all have their own engines and do not depend on web page rendering restrictions. Thus the problems with HTML, Flash, and WebGL are avoided. That's not to say they are charitable institutions, but they are not blatant money grabs like those web page based games. Then there are the game boxes and PC versions of games. Those are of the highest quality and complexity. I've not ventured in that direction much, but what I have done generally was a pleasant experience.

I did my own taxes until I moved down here to Missouri. The first year I justified hiring a tax service on the basis that my finances were very complicated that year with income from two states and real estate capital gains involved. That's when I discovered the Missouri state tax forms were very complicated. I suppose I could figure them out if I had to, but I can afford not to learn it's intricacies and am willing to pay somebody else to do it all for me.

I've heard a few stories about older people getting away with not filing federal income tax forms. By law anybody with income must file regardless of whether they must pay taxes or not. I don't recall clearly but I'm pretty sure the IRS will or did offer to file tax forms for you under certain circumstances. I guess your mom fell under that ruling, but it's hard to believe she got a refund greater than what she contributed. LOL

[Kellemora]

Farm Town is an interesting game, it is FREE to play, but they do sell some tools and other things.
They are the only game I know that gives what they call Farm Cash, to buy the items that cost real money.
You can earn 2 to 4 Farm Cash per week, my Farm Cash is built up to over 350, because I have all the tools I want now.
I can use that money to buy some of the facilities that do cost real money, and every once in awhile I do.
But as you said, almost all the other on-line games will end up costing you to play.

It is wise to use a CPA or Tax Man when you move to a new state, especially MO with its convoluted taxes.
I used one my first year down here, but only to check my work to make sure I did it right.
Like you, I had both MO and TN forms to fill out, after selling all of my assets before moving south.
At first he thought I was crazy for selling all of my houses so that the bottom line came out to zero, which I could have made some money from them, but then he realized the taxes on them if I did would have wiped out most of it anyhow.
But after that first year, I've done all of mine, and for a few family members with simple returns also.

I've had a couple of years when I got back more than I paid in. Not much, under a hundred bucks each time.
I had tax credits I never used because I never had enough tax owed to use them. Didn't know I could still use them to offset the tax I did owe in smaller incremental units. My retirement income is $52.1 per month, but I have them hold out 10 bucks for taxes. So I get that back at the end of the year, normally. I use it like a cushion so I don't end up owing at the end of the year.

[yogi]

Illinois state taxes were very straight forward and simply to file. I always admired whoever it was that made their IL-IRS website because they did an exceptionally good job. The form for nearly all the years I paid taxes up there was only two pages long and a lot of what they wanted was a direct copy from the federal form. For all its ease and efficiency, I can't recall a year I got a refund from the state. This was a planned strategy based on the idea that I did not want to give them any more money than they deserved because I was not getting paid interest on the excess. Thus I did not mind sending them a check every year. I used the same approach to the federal taxes, but that system is a little more difficult to anticipate the end results. A few years I did get refunds, but most of the time I owed. The problem there was I could not owe them too much or they would penalize me for exceeding their limit. Now that I'm retired and my income is much more stable, it's easier to hit the desired window.

And, for what it's worth, I read that us folks on Social Security benefits were granted a 6.3% cost of living raise. That's is nearly the highest increase in a few decades. Unfortunately the SSA only changes it's payout rates once a year, in January. Thus we will not see any increases in the checks until next year.

I don't know exactly how free Farm Town actually is. It is costing them money to allow you to play their game and I doubt that the in-game purchases are nearly enough to pay the rent. Games like Farm Town generally are big on being spyware, and they sell what they know about you to their partners. Those lists are where they make most of their profit.

[ocelotl]

Down here, the classification of Income type is easy.

Fixed income (Sueldos y Salarios). If you earn under around 450,000 pesos a year, all your taxes are deducted and paid by your employer undere the payroll retentions figure and you don't have to worry about that, in the salary receipt the employer has to especify the deduction amount, in case of an auditory. Even, if there is not a work contract, but you receive payroll receipts, you can use those to prove you are a worker for the company that pays your salary.
For people earning more that 450,000 pesos, you have to fill monthly and yearly forms, stating your earnings and deductions.

Professional Activities. This is when you are a freelancer or work for a company billing proffesional fees. You have to do fill monthly and yearly forms, with the applications provided by the Tributary Administration System, our version of the IRS. Listing earnings, Aggregated value sum (billed when extending invoices, deducted by the employer when paying said invoices, and paid for products you use in your work. The application calculates your tax, you generate a payment line and go pay at a bank.

Real Estate rents. For landlords. Add to the Profesional Activities the maintenance costs for the property rented. The declared income is that of the rent, of which you must extend invoices.

Enterpeneurship Activities. Related to companies.

Fiscal Incorporation. Most people without university degree with a shop falls under this regime. Formerly it was called "repecos" for "Régimen de pequeños contribuyentes" (Small contributors regime)

Problem is that many people are not registered and works without paying taxes. There's a problem that is not easy to solve since most if the informal economy is formed by street vendors that don't give receipts of register any income. That part of the economy is not illegal per se, nor does it require much paperwork, but is informally regulated and sometimes is used by some politicians to support their agendas.

There's another group that do not pay taxes, and they shouldn't. Pensioner of any of the Federal Social Assitance Institutions that are federally funded. IMSS (Social Security, for private initiative employees), ISSSTE (Government Workers) or either of the big companies, be them federal or privatized, such as CFE, PEMEX or Telmex. As I say to dad, Those pensions are the result of all the years worked, they've already earned it so it would be double taxing if the government takes taxes from those pensions. At least that's the way those systems are legislated.

[yogi]

The tax structure of Mexico does not sound complicated in the way you describe it. Over here anybody with an income must report it to the IRS. That's the fundamental rule. The methods used to determine the amount of taxes paid by income earners is the most complicated mess human beings are capable of inventing. Each taxpayer generally does the same thing to earn income for each year of their working life: thus they learn only the rules that apply to them. In that sense they system is simple. But the number of exemptions and deductions and credits can be overwhelming for the most honest of wage earners. When it comes to business taxes it's a nightmare that only professionals should attempt to tackle. LOL

Pensions are an interesting thing here because there are so many different types. Some are fully paid for by the employer and some share the funding with the employee. In general any monies put into a retirement fund by the employee is not taxable at the time of the contribution. However, when that money is paid back, the amount the employee contributed, and its earnings, is taxable. In my opinion where the company is the only contributor to the pension fund, that should be considered a fringe benefit of working for that company and it should be subject to taxation. A pension is no different than earning a salary other than the fact it is paid out after you stop working. In practice some states do not tax pension income but I believe the federal IRS does.

I've always thought everybody should pay the same rate of tax on their income. Nobody should escape paying taxes. There are pros and cons to that idea but the current convoluted system isn't very equal and fair either. The easiest taxation method would be for no individual income taxes whatsoever. Businesses could be made to pay all the taxes. Of course they would be required to pass that added burden to the cost of doing business, but then consumers would in general have a lot more disposable income if they did not have to pay income tax. Plus, the paperwork for dealing with individual taxes would be eliminated.