What the Heck Happened to the Archive?

 For more than two decades, I've been an ardent fan of the Internet Archive, aka archive.org. It's been an amazing repository for recordings of live music, public domain literature, vintage video, and other such ephemera. I've always said you have to be careful going in, because you might not find your way back out for quite a long while. I've even used a few selections from the Archive as materials for the classes I teach, but a couple of weeks ago, I got an email from my department chair at work, asking if I could fix a broken link from an item on the Archive. When I went to the site, I found the whole thing was down with no real explanation on the error page, beyond an assurance the condition was temporary. 

 My first thought was that the copyright police had finally caught up with them, since in recent years, an increasing amount of copyrighted material has found its way onto the site, but that was not the case.

On further investigation, it turns out the site had fallen victim to a cyber attack. Things are gradually coming back up now, but as they say, it isn't what it used to be, at least not yet. Administrators say the content is all safe and they're working to strengthen the interface to resist future attacks. I was able to find the missing video my department chair inquired about, but I couldn't get to it from the proverbial front door of the site's homepage. I had to enter the title into a search engine to access it directly. 

Today, 26 October 2024, I was listening to a Phil Lesh and Friends concert on SiriusXM, in observance of the former Grateful Dead bassist's passing yesterday at age 84, and decided to see if it was available on Archive. I was able to go in from the home page and find multiple copies from different tapers, but I couldn't download any of them directly from the Archive site, as has been my habit. Fortunately, I was able to select a torrent for the one I wanted and downloaded it that way.

So, if you're wondering as I was, what the heck happened to the Archive? That's the information I have been able to gather thus far. It looks like we'll just have to be patient for a little while longer as administrators continue working to recover the site and make it more secure, but where there's a will, there's a way to get to what you need.

UPDATE--As of today, 10 November, one can now stream audio and video from the Archive, but direct downloads are still unavailable. Many text resources are still completely unavailable via Archive, but may be accessed through other Web sites such as Project Gutenberg. The only option to download audio and video files is via a torrent, but this hit-and-miss at best. It only works if another user is actively seeding an item. As an experiment, I downloaded torrents for a couple of old radio shows yesterday, but have yet to capture a single byte of data. They just don't get the traffic of, say, a Grateful Dead concert recording. Recovering the entire Archive will doubtless be a lengthy and arduous task. One can hope it will be completed soon, but patience is necessarily the watchword. 

UPDATE--2 January 2025: Earlier today, I downloaded a 1975 Little Feat show from Archive without resorting to using a torrent. While I can't say categorically that the site is now fully operational again, this is a major step forward and a good reason to be optimistic. Happy New Year indeed.

A Better Way to K

 Like a lot of people, I succumbed to the convenience of Keurig coffeemakers about six or seven years ago, but I have always felt a bit guilty about the plastic waste from those little single-use K-cups. That and their expense were enough to keep me from initially jumping on the Keurig bandwagon for several years after they first came out.

I have several of the reusable K-cups that can be filled with regular ground coffee, but they've always been less than satisfactory. The coffee has always come out tasting fairly weak. My solution to date has been to add a small amount--less than a quarter teaspoon--of instant coffee to the grounds to boost the flavor without giving it that bitter instant coffee edge. Fortunately, I've now found a better way. 

For quite some time, I have suspected the coffee grounds were too coarse, so I finally decided to test my theory by getting an electric coffee grinder to grind my coffee a little finer. The grinder arrived late yesterday, so I decided to test my theory and re-grind some coarse-ground coffee to a finer state, then loading up a reusable K-cup for my morning coffee. All I can say is this is what the coffee should have tasted like all along. And with the lower cost per cup for ground coffee versus K-cups, my $10 coffee grinder should pay for itself in no time.

I'm glad to have solved this conundrum and I can now have the convenience of my Keurig with less of an environmental impact. Still, there's one other problem. I only have one single-serve reusable K-cup that works with my Keurig 2.0 brewer. The problem is the Keurig 2.0 models use a digital rights management technology to lock out unlicensed K-cups. Thankfully, the DRM scheme garnered enough consumer backlash that Keurig phased it out with the Keurig 2.0 models on which it had been introduced. There are YouTube videos out there describing which wires to cut to disable the system, but that's a little more "Mission: Impossible" than I really want to get into with my coffeemaker.

Unfortunately, that DRM system locks out most reusable K-cups as well, unless they have a lavender stripe around the lid, which only one of mine does. The others are solid black and the system doesn't recognize them. Those will soon be retired, now that I have just ordered a six-pack of Keurig 2.0 compatible reusable K-cups so that I can use loose coffee grounds instead of single-use K-cups on a more regular basis. 

From a practicality standpoint, I'll still be using single-use K-cups at work, because I don't have the time or facilities to be grinding (or in this case, re-grinding) coffee there. It may take a little while to fully transition to the reusables at home, but I will will be manageable and in time, and soon I will be going loose, instead of single-use.

Linux Mint, A Year later

 It's been almost exactly a year since I bought a second hand Dell Latitude 7490 laptop computer, loaded with Linux Mint as its operating system. I had experimented with several flavors of Linux in the past, including Mint, but none of them had actually stuck, until this one. A year later, this one is still my daily driver. 

I bought this laptop on impulse out of three-way frustration. I was using an aging Apple MacBook Pro as my daily driver, but it had aged out of receiving any updates, so the writing was on the wall for that one. I also had a slightly newer HP notebook computer that was reaching the end of its line as well, since it lacked the system resources to upgrade to Windows 11. Finally, I had an HP Chromebook that was simply too limited for my needs. I tried to expand its functionality by installing and running Linux applications under the Linux Developer Environment (aka Crostini) in Chrome OS, but I never could make it do what I needed it to do. 

When the Dell arrived, I was immediately impressed with its performance and user friendliness. The computer practically configured itself, automatically adding both of my printers, and finding my wireless network so that I only had to type in my WEP password to get online. I was literally ready to roll in minutes. Most of the applications I needed were present, although I chose to replace the outdated version of LibreOffice with the latest one, downloaded from the LibreOffice Website, and installed manually, using one terminal command I had learned from the Crostini experiment. I had everything configured to my liking within an hour, and quickly realized this computer was exactly what I was trying to turn my Chromebook into, but which it was simply not capable of being, and thus the Chromebook was almost instantly retired.

The novelty of having a new (to me) computer was enough that I set my old MacBook Pro aside to take some time to acclimate myself to the Dell, but the funny thing was I never really picked it back up again, except to retrieve needed files and transfer them to the Dell via a Web-based tool called Snapdrop. After a couple of months, I realized that it, like the Chromebook, had effectively entered retirement.

The eBay seller from whom I had purchased the Dell had thoughtfully included a bootable flash drive with a copy of Linux Mint to be used to restore the system, if necessary. But after being greatly satisfied with the Linux Mint experience on the Dell, I decided to use it to load the operating system onto my HP Windows 10 laptop, creating a dual-boot system. I did this so that I would still be able to access both the files I had on the HP and the applications with which I had created them. Linux Mint ran marginally better on that computer than had Windows 10, but in the end, it was just too slow, especially compared to the lightning fast performance of the Dell. Such are the joys of running a system with modest system requirements on a machine with resources far greater than that system needs.

About a month after I had acquired the Dell, I spotted an eBay listing for another Dell 7490 laptop at less than half the price I had paid for mine, albeit with a quarter of the onboard storage capacity. Its internal solid state drive held 256GB, versus my Dell's 1TB. Still, for such a modest price, I decided it would make a good replacement for the HP, so I took the plunge. The computer was advertised as not having an operating system, but in fact had an unregistered copy of Windows 10, loaded down with enough adware to make it next to useless. Within an hour of being delivered, the second Dell was booting into Linux Mint, courtesy of the same flash drive, never to see Windows again.

Over the past year, a couple of things about Linux have been reinforced for me. One is that desktop Linux need not be difficult to use, and the other is it isn't just for programmers. It is true that there are dozens of Linux distributions out there, and some have steeper learning curves than others, but if you stick with the more mainstream distributions, such as Mint or Ubuntu, you will find they are mature, user friendly, well supported, and well suited for most users. Some people think the only legitimate way to run Linux is from the Terminal screen, and that's their prerogative, but I am no programmer, beyond knowing the rudiments of HTML, and I almost never type commands into the Terminal. When I do, I most often just copy them from a Web site, and if it doesn't work, it's because I mistyped something. Day in and day out, it's just point-and-click, no different and no more complicated than Windows or Mac OS. The ironic thing is many people don't realize they're using Linux already, as both ChromeOS and Android are based on Linux.

So, for the past year, I have been using Linux Mint on both of my daily driver computers, and for the first time in more than 30 years, I do not have a Mac OS machine in daily use. This was never a scenario I would have imagined a year ago, but I feel just fine about it; in fact, it is rare that I even think about what operating system I'm using, or that I have become a full-fledged full time Linux user. I'm just using my computers to do what I need to do, and they're far more than adequate for my needs. I won't say 'never' again, but I have no desire to ever own a Windows computer again. I use them at work, because that is what my employer supplies, and they drink deeply of the Microsoft Kool Aid. Another, Mac at home? Maybe someday, but for now, count me firmly on Team Penguin!*

 

*For those who are not aware, Tux the penguin, as pictured at the top of this article, is the official Mascot of Linux.

Batman--Back to Basics!

 Ever since I was a small child, I've been a fan of the Caped Crusader, from the Adam West series of the 1960s to Tim Burton's cinematic adaptations from 1989 and 1992, to Bruce Timm's Batman: The Animated Series (1992-1996), and animated successors, even Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, and the prequel series Gotham.

Given that history, I was very excited to hear that a new animated series, Batman: Caped Crusader, was on the way. The series dropped a few days ago on Amazon's Prime Video service, and having watched all ten episodes of the first season, I was not at all disappointed.

At first glance, this series appears as if it is a thematic continuation of the brilliant Batman: The Animated Series, but it is more of a reboot, sharing little in the way of direct continuity with the 1990s series, but nonetheless thematically closer than some others. Set sometime in the 1940s, most likely in the postwar period, Caped Crusader pays homage not only to BTAS, but also to the to movie serials, released in 1943 and 1949 with opening titles in black and white. The series uses a more muted color palette, and artwork that appears heavily inspired by the Fleischer Studios Superman cartoons from 1940-43. If you've ever wondered what a Fleischer Batman cartoon might have looked like, Caped Crusader could hold your answers.

In addition to being visually darker than its predecessor, Caped Crusader also takes a decidedly darker tone with coarser language, more adult themes, and characters actually getting killed, earning it a TV-14 rating, compared to its predecessors' TV-7 . But despite its nostalgic milieu, the show also caters to contemporary sensibilities with ethnically diverse characters, and in one episode, the beginnings of a queer romance. And speaking of gender, one of the core bat villains has undergone an extreme makeover in Batman: Caped Crusader; The Penguin is now a woman, renamed Oswalda Cobblepot. Voiced by Minnie Driver, the character works well and is perhaps even more menacing than her male predecessors. Also re-imagined is Harley Quinn, who originated in Batman: The Animated Series as a sidekick to the Joker. To provide further details would create spoilers for those who haven't watched season one yet, so I shall refrain, except to say she isn't Joker's sidekick, girlfriend, or anything else. It's not that they had a falling out, it's just that Joker doesn't figure into season one at all, except for a teaser scene, embedded in the closing moments of the season finale. Also missing from the Gotham rogues' gallery in season one were the Riddler and Mister Freeze. While Barbara Gordon figures prominently as a public defender, she does not defend the public in the guise of Batgirl, nor does Robin, the Boy Wonder make an appearance at all.

I have to say that I went into this new animated iteration of Batman with a little trepidation, knowing that the late Kevin Conroy would not be voicing the Caped Crusader or his counterpart, millionaire Bruce Wayne. Fortunately, Hamish Linklater ably fills the cape and cowl, doing honor to his predecessor without imitating him.

My only real complaint about season one of Batman: Caped Crusader is there were only ten episodes, which was hardly enough for an immersive experience. It is more akin to an appetizer plate, enough to whet one's appetite but not quite sufficient to fully satisfy on its own. Fortunately, a second season is already in the works, and one can only hope that it will be even bigger and better than the first one.

Keurig Adventures

 I've been using Keurig coffee brewers for almost a decade, but I was initially put off by their steep price. I finally became a convert after picking one up on the cheap second-hand at a thrift shop. I've now gotten several for between $9 and $20. Some have needed a little cleaning before use, and I routinely run a white vinegar solution through them to disinfect them before use, but they have all served me well. Below is a rundown of the models I've owned and my impressions of them.

B40--This was the first Keurig I owned. It's the most basic version of the classic Keurig. There is no temperature adjustment, and only two serving size choices, four and ten ounces. The water tank holds 48 ounces, which had me refilling it every other day when it was in daily use. The coffee was a little watery, but still palatable. This is the only Keurig I've had that has stopped working. All the others are still fully functional. This one was $20, back when Keurigs were still a rare sight at thrift shops. Today, they are a common fixture.

K45--A slightly updated version of the B40 with three size choices: four, six, and ten ounces. All other features and specifications are the same as above. Mine is the red variant, and everyone who sees it wants it. It was $9 well spent.

B60--An upgraded version of the B40, it has all of the features of the machines above; in fact, the water tanks and drip trays are interchangeable. Its claim to fame is an LCD display and a metal cover for the drip tray. I got this one to replace the B40 after it died. This one was a spendy $20 at the time.

B71--This was Keurig's top-of-the-line single-serve brewer when it came out, featuring a 70-ounce water tank, five serving size settings, ranging from four to twelve ounces in two-ounce increments, temperature adjustment, and an LCD display with a clock and auto-on option. This model also has a couple of annoying features. It is almost impossible to install the water tank when full without splashing water out of it; also, the power switch is inconveniently located on the right hand back side, instead of on the top. It now lives in my main office. Despite its flaws, it was an excellent $12 investment and has served me well.

K-475 (Keurig 2.0)--Keurig's attempt at a more high-tech approach, it gets a lot of stuff right, but misses the mark on some other things. Its most striking feature is a color LCD touch screen display. It also comes with an optional carafe that will keep coffee warm for a few hours. It requires super expensive, and hard to find, large K-cups. I opt instead for the reusable coffee ground holder, but that makes very weak tasting coffee. To compensate, I add a quarter teaspoon of instant. It's just enough to boost the flavor without giving it the bitter instant coffee edge. The Keurig 2.0 series incorporates the an ill-conceived, and ultimately unpopular, DRM (digital rights management) scheme to detect "genuine" K-cups and reject those it does not recognize. The only issue I've had with this is it rejects all but one of my single serving reusable K-cups. Thankfully, this feature/annoyance died when the Keurig 2.0 series was retired. Nonetheless, this is the Keurig I use daily in my kitchen. It will continue to have a place there, thanks to the carafe, because I do occasionally like to brew a pot of coffee, instead of just a cup. The Keurig 2.0 series also introduced the 'strong' setting, which slows down the brewing process a bit to create a more robust brew. For better or worse, this feature is only available when using single serving K-cups. I picked this one up for $10 and found the carafe on different shelf, priced at $4. 

UPDATE--Since writing this, I have found a better way to get good flavor with loose coffee grounds. I acquired an electric coffee grinder, which I use to more finely grind the coffee, allowing for a richer brew. I also had to get some new single serve reusable pods that have a purple stripe on the top in order to be recognized by the notorious Keurig 2.0 DRM system.

K-1500--Part of Keurig's commercial lineup, this brewer is built for durability, offering a somewhat spartan feature set, reminiscent of the Classic series. All the essential basic features are there, but no extras. It sports a 96-ounce water tank, four serving size settings from six to twelve ounces, and a 'strong' button. Although it is not included, the filter assembly for a Keurig 2.0 brewer will fit it. I have this one in my satellite office, a location where refilling the tank is sufficiently inconvenient that having the extra large water capacity is a definite plus. This one was $15.

K-Elite--Although designed for household use, this brewer seems to share a considerable amount of DNA with the K-1500 above. I haven't been able to try it, but I would not be surprised if the 75-ounce water tank is are interchangeable with that of the K-1500. In addition, it has dedicated buttons for five cup sizes, ranging from four to twelve ounces, a 'strong' button, high altitude setting, adjustable brewing temperature, and LED clock display. One design feature is a bit of a throwback to the classic line, in that there is no dedicated "brew" button. Instead, selecting the serving size initiates brewing. Like the K-1500, it does not include a filter kit but will accept the Keurig 2.0 style. One minor design flaw is the water level in the tank is not visible from the front of the brewer, only from the side. This is a recent $11 impulse purchase. I am very pleased with it and it has now found a home in my main office, replacing the B71.

Shopping for Keurigs at thrift stores can be an adventure, as prices are random at best, and are seldom based on anything resembling logic, with base models sometimes commanding higher prices than more deluxe ones. When I bought my K-475 for $10, there was another one next to it for $12 that was in visibly worse condition. When I bought my K-Elite, it was the newest and cheapest of three Keurigs on the shelf. The middle machine, in terms of both age and price, was a K-475 for $12, and the oldest one, a B40, was priced at $15. Prices sometimes soar into the stratosphere, as high as $40 or $50, regardless of model. Needless to say, those sit on the store shelf for a long time. They seem to sell most readily in the $10-$25 range. The most annoying thing about thrift store Keurigs is when parts like tank lids and drip trays get scattered across the shelves, and eventually end up in the trash unless someone reunites them. Some thrift shops have begun to wise up to this phenomenon and now tape these loose parts into place.

Bobbing for an Apple Watch

Ever since the Apple Watch was first introduced in 2015, I’ve always thought it was an interesting accessory, but I never seriously considered one because of what I saw as an exorbitant price tag, and very limited battery life, compared with a conventional watch. At the time, I was also using an Android smart phone, so I wasn’t fully in that ecosystem. Still, the idea never really left me.

Around 2020, I did buy a generic smart watch, and while I liked it well enough for what it was, it kept lousy time and there was no good way to manually reset it, so I put it aside after a month or so of active use and went back to my conventional analog watches.

The one thing I’d always said would make me buy an Apple Watch is if they were to make one that could monitor my blood glucose levels. While that technology has not come to pass, I recently started using Dexcom G7 continuous glucose monitoring sensors, which will communicate with an Apple Watch. That was enough to rekindle my interest, but I still wasn’t prepared to pay the full freight for a brand new one, so I turned to eBay for an affordable second-hand model, an Apple Watch 5 series 44mm in space gray aluminum, with two plastic straps in chocolate brown and off white.

Plastic watch straps have never been my thing, so I ordered a black stainless steel deployment style bracelet that’s more to my liking. It came with a link removal tool, which made adjusting the bracelet's size to fit my wrist very easy. I had to remove a total of three links, two from one side of the buckle and one from the other. The whole process took about ten minutes to give the watch a much different--and more sophisticated--look.

Still, now that I have the watch, I might have held off on the band. It is several years old, too old to receive further WatchOS updates, and even though it is in good cosmetic condition, the battery barely lasts a day. On my second day with this watch, I put it on around 9:00 a.m., and the battery was down to 36 percent by supper time, and went to low power mode by bedtime.

After wearing it a couple of days, I have changed a couple of settings to noticeably improve battery life. According to everything I've read online, the always-on display isn't supposed to affect battery life much, but turning that feature off does indeed buy a few extra hours of life between charges. It seems like a minor thing, but it definitely helps me warm up to the watch a little more.

I also discovered that the watch is one generation too old to fully integrate with the Dexcom sensors, so all I can receive on it is high and low glucose alerts. That’s better than nothing, but I was looking forward to being able to read my glucose levels on demand. Oh well, that one’s on me for not checking more carefully. Live and learn, I suppose. 

The jury is still out on whether my Apple Watch experience will end up somewhat like my generic smart watch experience. I’m going to give it a week or so, and see how I feel about it. Will I wear it frequently, or leave it on the charger for increasingly extended periods until one of the cats eventually knocks it off, and I find I’m too lazy to pick it up and put it back on? Time will tell.

I've already determined this is not my ultimate smart watch. What my ultimate smart watch would need are a battery that lasts at least three or four days between charges, a week would be better, direct blood glucose monitoring, and an affordable price. Yeah, none of that exists right now, and we are talking Apple products here, so if and when it ever arrives, it definitely won't be affordable, at least not my idea of affordable.

UPDATE: I've now had the Apple Watch for about a month and a half, and things have gone pretty much as I had predicted. My feelings toward the watch are lukewarm at best, I wear it maybe once, maybe twice a week, and by the time I put it back on the charger that night, I'm happy to choose one of my more conventional watches for the next day, and then wear it for several days, maybe week or longer. And on the days I do wear the Apple Watch, I actually find it to be mildly annoying, vibrating and displaying every email, text message, and phone call that comes in. And when I want to see what time it is, it may or may not display the watch face. Quite frankly, I'm failing to appreciate the value proposition of the Apple Watch. Maybe that's me, maybe it's the watch, or maybe it's a combination of the two. Honestly, I'm just not feeling it the way I'd hoped I would.

My Two-Headed Monster

In the almost 40 years I've been using computers, and well over 30 years of computer ownership, I've only ever had a single monitor, and that has always seemed to be enough; in fact, I've frequently wondered over the years exactly what I'd do with a multi-monitor setup.

The 14-inch screen on my laptop is usually enough for my needs, but I do occasionally find myself thinking a little extra screen real estate would be nice.  I recently found a simple and cost effective solution in a KYY model K3-2 portable 15.6-inch USB-C monitor. This device adds a second screen, slightly larger than that of my laptop, with plug-and-play simplicity to create, along with a wireless USB keyboard and mouse, a double-headed desktop configuration that can easily be set up and taken down as needed.

Setup, right out of the box took just a couple of minutes to position the monitor on its included stand, which flattens out to double as a protective slipcase, and connect it to the laptop using the supplied USB-C cable. My Dell laptop, which runs Linux Mint, immediately recognized the monitor and activated it as a second screen, onto which I could drag windows over for simultaneous viewing. The screen image of the external monitor is slightly softer than that of the laptop, but it is by no means unpleasant to use. I have not yet tried it with the HDMI cable to see if that makes any difference.

In addition to the aforementioned slipcase/stand, the package includes a USB-C to USB-C cable, suitable for connecting to most current laptops without an additional power cable, an HDMI to mini HDMI cable for video connection only, and a USB-C to USB-A cable for power from a wall outlet, via its included plug-in power adapter when needed. With these three cables, one can connect the monitor to a variety of laptop computers, smart phones and tablets, portable gaming devices, etc.; however, some devices, such as older Apple products, that lack a USB-C port, may require an additional proprietary adapter to connect.

The monitor is very thin and lightweight, making it easy to carry along in the bag with the laptop, making the multi-monitor experience feasible on the go. A certain degree of care should be exercised in transporting the monitor. Putting it inside the slipcase/stand is a must, and the manufacturer discourages carrying it in a backpack where it could sustain damage from other hard objects. The monitor also comes in a sturdy, well-designed box with compartments for the included accessories, suitable to store the monitor when not in use. Users would be wise to keep the box as an integral component for long term protection.

It should be noted that KYY offers several different variations of this monitor, but only the K3-2 offers the slipcover stand. Other variants come with a magnetic stand that acts as a protective cover over the screen, not a storage pouch. This model supposedly has the ability to operate in portrait mode, simply by turning the monitor up on end, but I have not been able to make that happen while it’s connected to my laptop. Perhaps it needs to be connected to a device like a smart phone that has a portrait orientation by default.

One small design compromise this feature necessitates is that all ports and controls are located on the right side of the monitor when in landscape mode, so that they are accessible on top when the monitor is rotated 90 degrees for portrait mode. By comparison, the other variants have a USB-C port on each side. Fortunately, the supplied USB-C to USB-C cable is long enough to run from the left side of my laptop to the right side of the KYY monitor. This is important for ergonomic reasons because the computer assumes the external monitor is to its right, so that dragging from the laptop to the second monitor is from left to right. To me, this is a non-issue.

The only very minor disappointment worth mentioning is that the monitor’s USB-C ports apparently do not support a data pass-through connection to the laptop, only video and power, as documented in its instruction booklet. When I attempted to plug a USB-C camera card reader into the monitor’s second USB-C port, the KYY monitor simply blanked out and the SD card never mounted. In the absence of a USB-A card reader, I had to temporarily unplug the monitor from my laptop’s single USB-C port to copy the needed images, then reconnect the monitor. Although it is by no means a deal killer, a fully functional USB-C port would have been appreciated in that instance.

Since I have only just received this monitor today, I am still exploring its capabilities and use cases, but for the price I paid, I am generally pleased with the purchase. 

UPDATE--In using this monitor for a couple of days, I have come to the realization that the combination slipcase/stand, while arguably a genius design for use on the go, is only satisfactory for short periods. The issue is the magnets that hold it in the stand configuration. While they hold the two ends of the cover together, they can still slip laterally over time, making it less satisfactory to use for more than a few hours at a time. There really should be a physical tab to stop it from sliding forward. If the monitor needs to remain set up for several days, a sturdier stand is preferable. 

My solution is a Lisen adjustable tablet stand. It is well designed and sturdy enough to support a monitor this size. With two-point articulation and a telescoping arm, one can adjust both height and viewing angle to improve ergonomics. The three pieces are held together with bolts that can be tightened with the included hex key that stores neatly underneath the base. For barely the price of a fast food value meal, it is a worthwhile purchase to greatly improves the experience.

One month later...--The extra screen with the Lisen stand has been so satisfactory that I haven't yet found a good reason to take it down. On the contrary, I find myself increasingly gravitating toward this laptop/desktop hybrid setup, even when I could get away with just the laptop's screen. It's an accessory I didn't know I needed.