Miscellaneous links.

• Are you plagued by User Access Control prompts every time you run Notepad++ on Vista? See Notepad++ and the GUP for a fix.

• According to The Onion, Bill Clinton is running again.

  We saw him speak at a fundraiser for Jim McDermott a couple of years ago. It was impressive to see him stand up for an hour and riff on all manner of topics without notes. The current incumbent is truly a mental midget.

  Not that I especially enjoyed the Clinton years. I often felt left down.

• Larry Lessig is unhappy with the sleaze emanating from Hillary Clinton.

• Joel Spolsky's article on the Five Whys showcases a useful technique to find the root cause of problems by iteratively asking why. He also links to a great New Yorker piece on the efficacy of medical checklists.

• It looks like Harry Reid is trying to give immunity to the telecoms for illegally wiretapping US citizens. Senators Dodd and Feingold are planning a filibuster. Glenn Greenwald has more.

  I contacted Obama and Clinton, telling them:

  Senator ___, you are still a sitting senator.

  I have been underwhelmed so far by your actions on TELECOMS IMMUNITY. I expect you to go back to Washington DC and filibuster any attempt to grant immunity to the telecoms for wiretapping American citizens.

  Thank you.

  (Yes, I've gotten tired of asking nicely.)

  I also contacted Reid, Murray, and Cantwell.

  Some days I feel like a complete crank for caring about this stuff :(