On Tue, 22 Jan 2008 13:07:54 -0500, Ian Burgmyer <spe### [at] gmailcom> wrote:

>> I forgot the smiley
>
>Here, have mine: :)

Thankye


>There are some cases where I do prefer to go alone.  I ended up buying a 
>camera the other day (Nikon D40, so I can finally stop using my crappy 
>cell phone camera) and I doubt I would have sprinted in and out as 
>quickly as I did if I'd had someone there.  Odds are I would have wound 
>up spending more money. :S  External influence can be a bad thing in 
>some cases.

Well I'm lucky, I just tell my wife what sort of thing I'd like and she will
find out the model and best price then send me out to buy it. She's not a techie
but developed the skills shopping for HiFi. Again she'd send me out to buy it
because she got comments like "The blue interconnects, is that to match your
curtains?"
"No to match the colour of your face as I strangle you with them!" 
It was safer if I went alone and quicker too. :) Yip a touch of red headedness,
I fear.


>> Don't sleep, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_congestion_charge
>> I heard that New York was thinking of trying it.
>> BTW I approve of it, travelling in London has improved since it was introduced
>> IMHO
>
>I dunno...seems a little steep to me.

The idea is to cut down the number of cars. Drivers need more that just a polite
asking.

>I'm really not sure if that would work in the States.  I'm just thinking 
>of all the people who have hour-plus commutes and the relatively poor 
>public transit systems in a lot of areas.  I'm fairly ignorant about 
>daily life in Europe (for obvious reasons :P), so I don't know about the 
>situation in various parts overseas.
>

It might in NY, maybe Jim C will have an idea. You have to remember most of
London was designed for the horse and cart. The traffic is horrendous, a journey
of about six miles could take between twenty minutes and two hours (not rush
hour). Oxford street, a bus and taxi only street takes about fifteen minutes to
travel a mile. Almost as quick to walk. The transport system has been improved
but our tube maintenance company just went bust. 
Bicycles, motor bikes, invalid's cars and green cars are free (I think). 

>> That is for on street parking
>
>Ouch. O.O

Have you heard about "wheel clamping" where your car is immobilised if you don't
park in a recognised parking bay? You get the car back after paying a large fine
and then have to wait until someone unlocks your car.

The signs of things to come, Whooooo! :)
 

Regards
	Stephen

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Stephen wrote:
> Well I'm lucky, I just tell my wife what sort of thing I'd like and she will
> find out the model and best price then send me out to buy it.

Always nice to have a dedicated researcher. :)

Unfortunately for me, that's what I tend to be in my circle of friends 
and family.  Ah well.

> She's not a techie
> but developed the skills shopping for HiFi. Again she'd send me out to buy it
> because she got comments like "The blue interconnects, is that to match your
> curtains?"
> "No to match the colour of your face as I strangle you with them!" 

That...is amazing. :D

>> I'm really not sure if that would work in the States.  I'm just thinking 
>> of all the people who have hour-plus commutes and the relatively poor 
>> public transit systems in a lot of areas.  I'm fairly ignorant about 
>> daily life in Europe (for obvious reasons :P), so I don't know about the 
>> situation in various parts overseas.
> 
> It might in NY, maybe Jim C will have an idea.

Yeah, I don't know about New York.  I've only driven through Cleveland 
and Pittsburgh and both of those cities seem pretty well-managed during 
rush hour to me.

In all honesty, I'd rather drive through Cleveland during rush hour than 
through Boardman, OH, any time before midnight.  Boardman's traffic is 
so horrid that it can take fifteen minutes to travel five miles 
(partially due to driver stupidity and mostly due to OH-224 needing 
another land in that city).

> You have to remember most of
> London was designed for the horse and cart. The traffic is horrendous, a journey
> of about six miles could take between twenty minutes and two hours (not rush
> hour). Oxford street, a bus and taxi only street takes about fifteen minutes to
> travel a mile. Almost as quick to walk. The transport system has been improved
> but our tube maintenance company just went bust.

Have you ever watched the movie Office Space?  What you just described 
reminds me of the beginning of it. :P

> Have you heard about "wheel clamping" where your car is immobilised if you don't
> park in a recognised parking bay? You get the car back after paying a large fine
> and then have to wait until someone unlocks your car.

Oh yes.

I've never witnessed anyone getting clamped, but I've seen pictures. 
Not pretty (I imagine it would be rather effective, though).

-- 
-Ian

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On Wed, 23 Jan 2008 03:12:07 -0500, Ian Burgmyer <spe### [at] gmailcom> wrote:

>Stephen wrote:
>> Well I'm lucky, I just tell my wife what sort of thing I'd like and she will
>> find out the model and best price then send me out to buy it.
>
>Always nice to have a dedicated researcher. :)
>
>Unfortunately for me, that's what I tend to be in my circle of friends 
>and family.  Ah well.

In that case I was thinking of replacing my laptop and here are my requirements

:)

>> She's not a techie
>> but developed the skills shopping for HiFi. Again she'd send me out to buy it
>> because she got comments like "The blue interconnects, is that to match your
>> curtains?"
>> "No to match the colour of your face as I strangle you with them!" 
>
>That...is amazing. :D
>

What is amazing, the sales assistant or my wife's reply? 

Just ask any woman who buys anything technical if they've ever been patronised.




>(partially due to driver stupidity and mostly due to OH-224 needing 
>another land in that city).

Sorry I don't get the reference.

>> You have to remember most of
>> London was designed for the horse and cart. The traffic is horrendous, a journey
>> of about six miles could take between twenty minutes and two hours (not rush
>> hour). Oxford street, a bus and taxi only street takes about fifteen minutes to
>> travel a mile. Almost as quick to walk. The transport system has been improved
>> but our tube maintenance company just went bust.
>
>Have you ever watched the movie Office Space?  What you just described 
>reminds me of the beginning of it. :P
>

No, I'm not a movie buff, or sports come to that.

>> Have you heard about "wheel clamping" where your car is immobilised if you don't
>> park in a recognised parking bay? You get the car back after paying a large fine
>> and then have to wait until someone unlocks your car.
>
>Oh yes.
>
>I've never witnessed anyone getting clamped, but I've seen pictures. 
>Not pretty (I imagine it would be rather effective, though).

You don't do it twice :)

Regards
	Stephen

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Stephen wrote:
>> Always nice to have a dedicated researcher. :)
>>
>> Unfortunately for me, that's what I tend to be in my circle of friends 
>> and family.  Ah well.
> 
> In that case I was thinking of replacing my laptop and here are my requirements

> :)

Alright, let's do this. 8)

You obviously need a top of the line Alienware laptop.  Nothing less 
will do.

>>> She's not a techie
>>> but developed the skills shopping for HiFi. Again she'd send me out to buy it
>>> because she got comments like "The blue interconnects, is that to match your
>>> curtains?"
>>> "No to match the colour of your face as I strangle you with them!" 
>> That...is amazing. :D
> 
> What is amazing, the sales assistant or my wife's reply? 

The entire exchange.

> Just ask any woman who buys anything technical if they've ever been patronised.

I dunno, I think it's more just a sales thing.  There are very few 
instances that I'm dealing with sales people that I don't get 
patronized.  Maybe I'm just in touch with my feminine side. :)

Buying my camera was actually a pretty pleasant experience because the 
person who sold it to me was a bit of a DSLR buff.  He didn't try to 
push me into a higher priced model, he didn't go "oh, why would you want 
*THAT* one."  Best customer service I've gotten at a retailer in a while.

>> (partially due to driver stupidity and mostly due to OH-224 needing 
>> another land in that city).
> 
> Sorry I don't get the reference.

I typoed. :(  I meant to say "needing another lane."  The traffic gets 
so backed up with nowhere to go; they really need another lane on that road.

>> Have you ever watched the movie Office Space?  What you just described 
>> reminds me of the beginning of it. :P
> 
> No, I'm not a movie buff, or sports come to that.

Alright, I shall describe. :)

The main characters are driving to work and traffic is completely 
stopped.  The main main main main character, Peter, looks over and sees 
an elderly man with a walker, slowly making his way down the sidewalk. 
When he notices a lane next to him moving, he switches to it and ends up 
having to stop immediately.  When this happens, the lane he was just in 
starts moving.  He switches, it stops.

Long story short, the guy with the walker was the clear winner.

-- 
-Ian

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On Wed, 23 Jan 2008 15:32:05 -0500, Ian Burgmyer <spe### [at] gmailcom> wrote:


>Alright, let's do this. 8)
>
>You obviously need a top of the line Alienware laptop.  Nothing less 
>will do.

You have hit the nail on the head :) That is exactly what I want but I don't
want to pay the price. My current laptop is a DTR with a full size k/board and a
lot of cpu ticks. But it is old and noisy and very heavy. Have you heard the
term "lugable"? :)
So I want to go for something lighter. Most of the laptops on the market seem to
be dual processors with a lower clock speed. As I use Ver 3.6 and don't want to
use the beta because my modeller is a beta too. 
What to do? I don't know what I want.
So fix that, please :)


>>>> She's not a techie
>>>> but developed the skills shopping for HiFi. Again she'd send me out to buy it
>>>> because she got comments like "The blue interconnects, is that to match your
>>>> curtains?"
>>>> "No to match the colour of your face as I strangle you with them!" 
>>> That...is amazing. :D
>> 
>> What is amazing, the sales assistant or my wife's reply? 
>
>The entire exchange.

You're young, yet :)

>> Just ask any woman who buys anything technical if they've ever been patronised.
>
>I dunno, I think it's more just a sales thing.  There are very few 
>instances that I'm dealing with sales people that I don't get 
>patronized.  Maybe I'm just in touch with my feminine side. :)

Yes it is a sales thing and a waiter thing (in the UK). I find that in most
shops that sell consumer electronics the staff know more about the extendable
warranty that the product. I've lost my interest in mega pixels I just want to
see the quality. I don't want to hear about the number of bits in a DAC etc.

And to be fare to my wife, she didn't actually say that to the salesman. It is
just what she wanted to say. 

>Buying my camera was actually a pretty pleasant experience because the 
>person who sold it to me was a bit of a DSLR buff.  He didn't try to 
>push me into a higher priced model, he didn't go "oh, why would you want 
>*THAT* one."  Best customer service I've gotten at a retailer in a while.

Remember that store.


>Alright, I shall describe. :)
>
>The main characters are driving to work and traffic is completely 
>stopped.  The main main main main character, Peter, looks over and sees 
>an elderly man with a walker, slowly making his way down the sidewalk. 
>When he notices a lane next to him moving, he switches to it and ends up 
>having to stop immediately.  When this happens, the lane he was just in 
>starts moving.  He switches, it stops.
>
>Long story short, the guy with the walker was the clear winner.

From RL :)

Regards
	Stephen

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> *Speaking of that, what on earth lead to p.o-t.h-v-c.f.f.f and 
> p.o-t.f.h.b.b.b?! XD

WTF! I didn't notice :|

Post a reply to this message

Ian Burgmyer <spe### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> *Speaking of that, what on earth lead to p.o-t.h-v-c.f.f.f and 
> p.o-t.f.h.b.b.b?! XD

  Andrew and me.

-- 
                                                          - Warp

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Nicolas Alvarez wrote:

>> *Speaking of that, what on earth lead to p.o-t.h-v-c.f.f.f and
>> p.o-t.f.h.b.b.b?! XD
> 
> WTF! I didn't notice :|

So haven't I. I can't even find anything like those from the server...

-- 
Eero "Aero" Ahonen
   http://www.zbxt.net
      aer### [at] removethiszbxtnetinvalid

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Stephen wrote:
>> You obviously need a top of the line Alienware laptop.  Nothing less 
>> will do.
> 
> You have hit the nail on the head :) That is exactly what I want but I don't
> want to pay the price.

Heh, I probably wouldn't use an Alienware laptop if one were given to me 
(well, I might use it, but I probably wouldn't enjoy it).  Last 
Alienware laptop I used got so hot it hurt my legs and its battery life 
was so horrid that they should have just left the battery out of the design.

> My current laptop is a DTR with a full size k/board and a
> lot of cpu ticks. But it is old and noisy and very heavy. Have you heard the
> term "lugable"? :)

Oh yes.

My laptop is rather large (hurray, 17" screen!), but it doesn't have a 
full-sized keyboard and all.  That would just be excessive. :P

Also, pics please.  I'd like to see your little goliath.

> So I want to go for something lighter. Most of the laptops on the market seem to
> be dual processors with a lower clock speed.  As I use Ver 3.6 and don't want to
> use the beta because my modeller is a beta too. 
> What to do? I don't know what I want.
> So fix that, please :)

I CAN'T! :(

hrm...

As far as the clock speed issue is concerned, it all depends on what 
you're comparing it to.  Since the Pentium M, Intel's completely 
rethought their strategy, focusing on efficiency rather than pumping the 
clock speed as high as they possibly can.  I did some informal tests on 
my systems and my laptop's Pentium M (Dothan core) 1.73GHz CPU is faster 
than my desktop's Pentium 4 (Prescott core) 2.80GHz CPU (FSB on both 
systems is 533MHz).  If you're thinking in terms of a Pentium 4 or 
Pentium D, a 2.4GHz Core 2 is going to mercilessly kill just about any 
of them (with fire).  To make the situation even better, they don't get 
as hot.  My laptop's processor runs cooler under load (with the fan in 
my laptop set to "low") than my Preshott does idle (whose case has a 
bazillion fans in it).

So really, even if you're only using a single core on a modern laptop, 
odds are you're going to wind up with a system that performs exceedingly 
well.

>>>>> She's not a techie
>>>>> but developed the skills shopping for HiFi. Again she'd send me out to buy it
>>>>> because she got comments like "The blue interconnects, is that to match your
>>>>> curtains?"
>>>>> "No to match the colour of your face as I strangle you with them!" 
>>>> That...is amazing. :D
>>> What is amazing, the sales assistant or my wife's reply? 
>> The entire exchange.
> 
> You're young, yet :)

I'm easily amused. :)

> Yes it is a sales thing and a waiter thing (in the UK). I find that in most
> shops that sell consumer electronics the staff know more about the extendable
> warranty that the product. I've lost my interest in mega pixels I just want to
> see the quality. I don't want to hear about the number of bits in a DAC etc.

Exactly.

As far as the whole megapixels thing goes, it seems as though everyone 
gets into that.  In my class, a bunch of people got on my case for 
paying $550 for a camera that "only" takes 6.1 megapixel shots.

When you do the math, there really isn't much of a difference between 6 
megapixels and 8 megapixels.  To double the resolution of a 6 megapixel 
camera, you'd have to use a 24 megapixel camera.

I'd rather pay more for a camera that takes *damn good* 6 megapixel 
shots than a camera that's $50 less that takes crappy 10 megapixel shots 
that need to be scaled down to eliminate all of the artifacts in the 
picture.  If I wanted to have to scale down photos to make them look 
less crappy I'd use my cell phone camera.

> And to be fare to my wife, she didn't actually say that to the salesman. It is
> just what she wanted to say. 

Sure, sure... ;)

>> Buying my camera was actually a pretty pleasant experience because the 
>> person who sold it to me was a bit of a DSLR buff.  He didn't try to 
>> push me into a higher priced model, he didn't go "oh, why would you want 
>> *THAT* one."  Best customer service I've gotten at a retailer in a while.
> 
> Remember that store.

*sigh* If only it weren't a thousand miles from home. :(

Ah well, I'm still going to be in Tampa for about a month and a week, so 
it's all good.

-- 
-Ian

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On Fri, 25 Jan 2008 14:39:03 -0500, Ian Burgmyer <spe### [at] gmailcom> wrote:


>Heh, I probably wouldn't use an Alienware laptop if one were given to me 
>(well, I might use it, but I probably wouldn't enjoy it).  Last 
>Alienware laptop I used got so hot it hurt my legs and its battery life 
>was so horrid that they should have just left the battery out of the design.

We must read different books but I do remember that laptop :)


>
>My laptop is rather large (hurray, 17" screen!), but it doesn't have a 
>full-sized keyboard and all.  That would just be excessive. :P
>

I don't know about that. It makes a big difference to me.

>Also, pics please.  I'd like to see your little goliath.

Sorry, no can do. It is a K8T800 motherboard if that helps?

>> So I want to go for something lighter. Most of the laptops on the market seem to
>> be dual processors with a lower clock speed.  As I use Ver 3.6 and don't want to
>> use the beta because my modeller is a beta too. 
>> What to do? I don't know what I want.
>> So fix that, please :)
>
>I CAN'T! :(
>
>hrm...
>
>As far as the clock speed issue is concerned, it all depends on what 
>you're comparing it to.  Since the Pentium M, Intel's completely 
>rethought their strategy, focusing on efficiency rather than pumping the 
>clock speed as high as they possibly can.  I did some informal tests on 
>my systems and my laptop's Pentium M (Dothan core) 1.73GHz CPU is faster 
>than my desktop's Pentium 4 (Prescott core) 2.80GHz CPU (FSB on both 
>systems is 533MHz).  If you're thinking in terms of a Pentium 4 or 
>Pentium D, a 2.4GHz Core 2 is going to mercilessly kill just about any 
>of them (with fire).  To make the situation even better, they don't get 
>as hot.  My laptop's processor runs cooler under load (with the fan in 
>my laptop set to "low") than my Preshott does idle (whose case has a 
>bazillion fans in it).
>
>So really, even if you're only using a single core on a modern laptop, 
>odds are you're going to wind up with a system that performs exceedingly 
>well.
>

Thanks for that. I think I lost track when they went to 16 bit :)



>As far as the whole megapixels thing goes, it seems as though everyone 
>gets into that.  In my class, a bunch of people got on my case for 
>paying $550 for a camera that "only" takes 6.1 megapixel shots.
>
>When you do the math, there really isn't much of a difference between 6 
>megapixels and 8 megapixels.  To double the resolution of a 6 megapixel 
>camera, you'd have to use a 24 megapixel camera.
>
>I'd rather pay more for a camera that takes *damn good* 6 megapixel 
>shots than a camera that's $50 less that takes crappy 10 megapixel shots 
>that need to be scaled down to eliminate all of the artifacts in the 
>picture.  If I wanted to have to scale down photos to make them look 
>less crappy I'd use my cell phone camera.
>

And the lens don't forget the lens.

>> And to be fare to my wife, she didn't actually say that to the salesman. It is
>> just what she wanted to say. 
>
>Sure, sure... ;)
>

Ok it's what I wanted her to say :)


>Ah well, I'm still going to be in Tampa for about a month and a week, so 
>it's all good.

It sounds so exotic :)
That is a long course it must cover a lot? Is it a campus and do you get out at
night? :)

Regards
	Stephen

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