Orchid XP v8 wrote:
> ...with the disadvantage of having a maximum string size,

Every machine has a maximum string size. What you really mean is "a maximum 
string size small enough I've bumped into it often enough to be annoying."

I knew a professor who taught "There's two kinds of programming languages. 
Those that support bounds-checks on their fundamental data types, and those 
that don't know they need to support bounds-checks on their fundamental data 
types."  (Or something to that effect.)

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   I ordered stamps from Zazzle that read "Place Stamp Here".

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On 3 Sep 2009 12:17:42 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:

>and software like Harvard Graphics 

A rave from the grave :)

-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:14:25 +0200, andrel <a_l### [at] hotmailcom> wrote:

>> Look at the insulators, they are a strange shape. That shape ensures that they
>> are not covered with a continuous layer of water. Magic, isn't it :)
>
>For some reason I saw nobody referring to these as 'magic mushrooms', I 
>wonder why.

'Caus you'd be spaced out :)
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On 3 Sep 2009 11:54:01 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:

>On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 09:14:41 +0100, Invisible wrote:
>
>> Rain water isn't chemically pure. (Depending on pollution levels.) Once
>> the pylon gets wet, it's entire surface is covered in a continuous sheet
>> of water, which also covers all of the cables. So why don't they short
>> out?
>
>Because the bare wire isn't exposed, it's insulated.  

Not on this side of the pond, Jim.

>And in order to 
>short out, you have to have a path for electrons to flow.  Arguably it 
>would take a pretty strong rainstorm to give the current someplace to go 
>to.
>

I think he means jump or track to.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On 3 Sep 2009 11:58:49 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:

>On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 10:06:55 +0100, Stephen wrote:
>
>> So it is much simplier
>> and cheaper for overhead cables to be left bare and make sure that there
>> is a lot of space between them.
>
>Weird, over here, the power lines are insulated....
>

Yes but you Yanks have money to burn :P
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:59:21 +0200, "Fredrik Eriksson"
<fe79}--at--{yahoo}--dot--{com> wrote:

>On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:37:20 +0200, Stephen <mcavoysAT@aoldotcom> wrote:
>> Actually it is quite hard to ignite petrol from a petrol pump with a  
>> naked flame.
>
>That depends on the flame.
>

Yip! A thermite lance or a nova will do it ;)

>
>> Besides having a LEL (Lower Explosive Limit) petrol has an Upper  
>> Explosive Limit (UEL) where above that level the gas/air mixture is
>> too rich to burn. In the open air the gas/air mixture goes from too
>> rich to too leen very quickly. I once saw a petrol pump attendant put
>> a lit cigarette into the mouth of a full petrol tank.
>
>http://www.intuitor.com/moviephysics/mpmain.html#cigarettes

That agrees with what I said, I think.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:36:00 +0200, Stephen <mcavoysAT@aoldotcom> wrote:
> On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:59:21 +0200, "Fredrik Eriksson"
> <fe79}--at--{yahoo}--dot--{com> wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:37:20 +0200, Stephen <mcavoysAT@aoldotcom> wrote:
>>> Actually it is quite hard to ignite petrol from a petrol pump with a
>>> naked flame.
>>
>> That depends on the flame.
>>
>
> Yip! A thermite lance or a nova will do it ;)

A match will do just as well.


>>> Besides having a LEL (Lower Explosive Limit) petrol has an Upper
>>> Explosive Limit (UEL) where above that level the gas/air mixture is
>>> too rich to burn. In the open air the gas/air mixture goes from too
>>> rich to too leen very quickly. I once saw a petrol pump attendant put
>>> a lit cigarette into the mouth of a full petrol tank.
>>
>> http://www.intuitor.com/moviephysics/mpmain.html#cigarettes
>
> That agrees with what I said, I think.

Regarding cigarettes, yes.



-- 
FE

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On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:21:14 +0100, Stephen wrote:

> On 3 Sep 2009 12:17:42 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
> 
>>and software like Harvard Graphics
> 
> A rave from the grave :)

Indeed - I remember the classes on that (not that I took them, but I 
worked in the computer lab so helped students who were having problems), 
it was really interesting.

One of the things that made it interesting was that each table had two 
printers on it that shared a print queue.  The way HG would print, you 
could end up with half the graphic on one printer, and half on the 
other. :-)

Jim

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On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:25:51 +0100, Stephen wrote:

> On 3 Sep 2009 11:54:01 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
> 
>>On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 09:14:41 +0100, Invisible wrote:
>>
>>> Rain water isn't chemically pure. (Depending on pollution levels.)
>>> Once the pylon gets wet, it's entire surface is covered in a
>>> continuous sheet of water, which also covers all of the cables. So why
>>> don't they short out?
>>
>>Because the bare wire isn't exposed, it's insulated.
> 
> Not on this side of the pond, Jim.

Interesting, I hadn't noticed that - but I hadn't really thought to 
look. :-)

>>And in order to
>>short out, you have to have a path for electrons to flow.  Arguably it
>>would take a pretty strong rainstorm to give the current someplace to go
>>to.
>>
>>
> I think he means jump or track to.

Yeah, but it still would want to go to ground, and the water doesn't 
provide a grounding influence that's stronger than staying with the wire.

Jim

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On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:27:54 +0100, Stephen wrote:

> On 3 Sep 2009 11:58:49 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
> 
>>On Thu, 03 Sep 2009 10:06:55 +0100, Stephen wrote:
>>
>>> So it is much simplier
>>> and cheaper for overhead cables to be left bare and make sure that
>>> there is a lot of space between them.
>>
>>Weird, over here, the power lines are insulated....
>>
>>
> Yes but you Yanks have money to burn :P

Not any more we don't.  We're burning China's money. :P

Jim

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