On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 16:12:11 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) co
[dot] za> wrote:

>Signal's a bit low in the bedroon (thick, very solid walls) 

Not a bad thing in itself ;)


A strong firedoor is recomended too.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

> Heh. *My* laptop came from PC World, so it had a 6 month warranty instead 
> of the usual 12 months.

Regardless of the warranty advertised, if a battery fails within an 
"unreasonably" short time, you can request a refund or replacement free of 
charge.  If it failed within 8 months, I think most people (including a 
judge) would think that unreasonable.

> Also, if you want support, you *must* get it through PC World. (If it had 
> been bought anywhere else, we would have got it direct from the 
> manufacturers.)

It's the place you bought it from that is legally responsible to 
fix/replace/refund anything broken, not the manufacturer.

> Also, it apparently took my mum many, many months to find a replacement 
> battery. Apparently she had to buy an exorbitant sum to have one shipped 
> over from Korea specially. (Or at least, this is what she told me...)

Oh, our IT guy just phoned up Dell and they were here the next day, I think 
they were something like 50 pounds each.

> All different versions of Acer TravelMate. None of them are young any 
> more. (Maybe 2, 3 years old?) A few of them will run on battery power for, 
> like, 20 minutes. But none are very reliable. Apparently they were when 
> new.

I would say that after 3 years hard use, 20 minutes battery life is not that 
surprising.  Batteries don't last forever, which is why replacements are 
readily available from the usual manufacturers.

> My dad bought a Belkin WiFi router which comes with a free Belkin WiFi 
> adaptor for your PC. In other words, the entire rig is same-brand - and a 
> pricey brand at that! But no, he had endless problems with it.

Belkin, pricey? :-O

> But even so, if you move too far away from the router... no signal.

Oh yeh you wally, you should have told him to get the router with infinite 
output power :-D

> BTW, is WiFi faster or slower than Bluetooth? Every time I have to use 
> that thing, I'm struck by how utterly low it is. (10 minutes to transfer a 
> few KB??)

Bluetooth is way slower, I don't think it's meant for data-heavy 
applications, but 10 minutes for a few KB is too slow for BT.  I can usually 
send an MP3 (about 3MB) to my phone in 10 seconds or so.

Post a reply to this message

"Stephen" <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote in message 
news:5niaj4p1phtgnacpkb7honq0832ldbhbiq@4ax.com...
> On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 16:12:11 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) 
> co
> [dot] za> wrote:
>
>>Signal's a bit low in the bedroon (thick, very solid walls)
>
> Not a bad thing in itself ;)

The entire building has very thick, very solid walls. It's a 30 year old 
block of flats, from when buildings were built properly.

Post a reply to this message

> You might be able to put some new life into your old laptop batteries by
> discharging them completely then charging then again a couple of times but 
> if
> your laptop shuts off immediately on switching the power off then I fear 
> that
> they are goosed.

Don't you need to maintain a minimum level of battery power in a Li-Ion in 
order to stop it completely killing itself?  I believe if you drain one 
completely then you might as well just chuck it in the bin.  Maybe this 
happened somehow due to a bad battery control circuit in the laptop?

Post a reply to this message

"Invisible" <voi### [at] devnull> wrote in message 
news:493544bf@news.povray.org...
>
> Actually, he bought a cheap "there isn't even a brand on the box" WiFi 
> adaptor from Maplin, and it worked much better than the supplied Belkin 
> one. But even so, if you move too far away from the router... no signal. 
> (Or rather, intermittent signal. Some days it's fine. Some days it won't 
> work for toffee.)
>

I'd replace the router, quite honestly.
See if you can buy/borrow a wi-fi detector and see how well the thing's 
transmitting.

Post a reply to this message

>> Not a bad thing in itself ;)
> 
> The entire building has very thick, very solid walls. It's a 30 year old 
> block of flats, from when buildings were built properly.

Not like the building I'm sitting in right now, where the walls are 
cardboard and every now and then a door handle falls off... :-P

Post a reply to this message

Stephen wrote:
> On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:22:56 +0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> 
>> All different versions of Acer TravelMate. None of them are young any 
>> more. (Maybe 2, 3 years old?) A few of them will run on battery power 
>> for, like, 20 minutes. But none are very reliable. Apparently they were 
>> when new.
> 
> Rechargeable batteries are funny things before Li-ion batteries, the best thing
> you could do for them was is to "work" them. That is charge and completely
> discharge them regularly. With Li-ion batteries that does not work and in fact
> it is counter productive. Li-ion batteries can be kept on charge all the time, I
> believe.
> You might be able to put some new life into your old laptop batteries by
> discharging them completely then charging then again a couple of times but if
> your laptop shuts off immediately on switching the power off then I fear that
> they are goosed.


IIRC, Li-ion batteries do have a problem with building up a *resistance* 
barrier inside.  While researching batteries several years ago I ran 
across some information, but I don't remember too much now.

If you follow a particular discharge pattern they will build up an 
actual 'film' internally on an electrode.  This would increase the 
internal resistance of the battery.  A lot of electronics detect this as 
a dead battery and shut off accordingly.  The problem is that the 
battery still does have a good charge, just a higher internal 
resistance.  If you hook it up so that a current continues to be drawn 
then the 'film' is burned off and the internal resistance decreases to 
normal.

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 17:13:11 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) co
[dot] za> wrote:

>
>"Stephen" <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote in message 
>news:5niaj4p1phtgnacpkb7honq0832ldbhbiq@4ax.com...
>> On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 16:12:11 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) 
>> co
>> [dot] za> wrote:
>>
>>>Signal's a bit low in the bedroon (thick, very solid walls)
>>
>> Not a bad thing in itself ;)
>
>The entire building has very thick, very solid walls. It's a 30 year old 
>block of flats, from when buildings were built properly.
>

Jammy! (That means lucky BTW :)
In the UK you have to go back to the 1930's to get solid buildings. After the
war, {which one? I hear people say. (WWII)}, most of our buildings were put up
quickly and cheaply. I'm sure that, if I had a mind to, I could punch through
our internal walls. 
I guess that your place is cool in the summer.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 16:05:37 +0100, "scott" <sco### [at] scottcom> wrote:

>> You might be able to put some new life into your old laptop batteries by
>> discharging them completely then charging then again a couple of times but 
>> if
>> your laptop shuts off immediately on switching the power off then I fear 
>> that
>> they are goosed.
>
>Don't you need to maintain a minimum level of battery power in a Li-Ion in 
>order to stop it completely killing itself?  I believe if you drain one 
>completely then you might as well just chuck it in the bin.  Maybe this 
>happened somehow due to a bad battery control circuit in the laptop?
> 

I really don't know. It has been a very long time since I worked in the real
world. Most of my experience has been with lead acid and Ni-cads. I have ruined
a few older laptop batteries by leaving them on charge but you can overcome that
a bit by flattening them a couple of times.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 16:05:37 +0100, "scott" <sco### [at] scottcom> wrote:

> I believe if you drain one 
>completely then you might as well just chuck it in the bin.  Maybe this 
>happened somehow due to a bad battery control circuit in the laptop?
> 

Reading Tom's post reminded me that with Li ion's there is circuitry in the
devices to stop you discharging the battery completely. And Li ion's do not have
a problem with the memory effect.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 10:24:18 -0500, Tom Austin <taustin> wrote:

>
>IIRC, Li-ion batteries do have a problem with building up a *resistance* 
>barrier inside.  While researching batteries several years ago I ran 
>across some information, but I don't remember too much now.
>

From what I can remember, the internal resistance builds up due to age. Whether
the battery is used or not. 

>If you follow a particular discharge pattern they will build up an 
>actual 'film' internally on an electrode.  This would increase the 
>internal resistance of the battery.  A lot of electronics detect this as 
>a dead battery and shut off accordingly.  The problem is that the 
>battery still does have a good charge, just a higher internal 
>resistance.  If you hook it up so that a current continues to be drawn 
>then the 'film' is burned off and the internal resistance decreases to 
>normal.

You live and learn :)
Again I did not know that.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

scott wrote:
> "actually we think people like the old shiny reflective screens better, 
> can't you make them like that". :-)  Shiny things sell!

Or, as Dilbert said,
   "I notice passenger-side air bag wasn't in your list."
   "We find it's not cost effective to cater to those
     not making the purchasing decision."

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   The NFL should go international. I'd pay to
   see the Detroit Lions vs the Roman Catholics.

Post a reply to this message

Invisible wrote:
> The problem is, after 4 months the battery in a laptop stops working,

I suspect they've fixed this. It used to be somewhat the problem.

> impossible to use a computer without a mouse, so you must have a mouse 
> connected too. 

Most laptops have such built in these days.

> (plural)... I don't need those connected *all* the time, but it's a faf 
> to plug stuff in each time I need it...

So go to the desktop machine when you need them. Share the printer and use 
it remotely when you need it. :-)

I have a friend whose house is networked to the nines, and he still 
complains about his flakey KVM.  What??

> In short, a laptop makes no sense for me at all. And yet, I keep wanting 
> to buy one.

They are indeed like that, I will say.

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   The NFL should go international. I'd pay to
   see the Detroit Lions vs the Roman Catholics.

Post a reply to this message

>> In short, a laptop makes no sense for me at all. And yet, I keep 
>> wanting to buy one.
> 
> They are indeed like that, I will say.

Heh. Well they are *designed* to be like that, eh? ;-)

There are people who have a similar problem with eating things. At least 
I haven't actually *bought* a laptop! :-D

Post a reply to this message

Stephen wrote:
> Li-ion batteries can be kept on charge all the time, I believe.

More precisely, due to the complexities of charging Li-ion batteries without 
making them explode, the charger has to have enough smarts to know when to 
stop charging the battery even if it's plugged in. So you can leave them on 
the charger indefinitely, and the charger will stop charging them as 
appropriate.

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   The NFL should go international. I'd pay to
   see the Detroit Lions vs the Roman Catholics.

Post a reply to this message

"Stephen" <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote in message 
news:j2maj41q9grjmd39acovbqjgoq1sfi7i64@4ax.com...
>
> I guess that your place is cool in the summer.
>

Unfortunatly not. I have floor-ceiling windows on the side that faces ENE, 
so I get full sun from sunrise to just before midday. Then there are smaller 
windows on the other side (WSW) which catch the sun from about 4pm til 6.

On the second floor, so above most of the shading trees.

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 19:17:05 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) co
[dot] za> wrote:

>
>"Stephen" <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote in message 
>news:j2maj41q9grjmd39acovbqjgoq1sfi7i64@4ax.com...
>>
>> I guess that your place is cool in the summer.
>>
>
>Unfortunatly not. I have floor-ceiling windows on the side that faces ENE, 
>so I get full sun from sunrise to just before midday. Then there are smaller 
>windows on the other side (WSW) which catch the sun from about 4pm til 6.
>

Where do those architects park their brains?

I have something similar in my flat. The living room has floor to ceiling
windows South and West. Hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Tut! Tut!

>On the second floor, so above most of the shading trees. 

Do you live in the bush? :) Small trees, I'm on the forth floor and the trees
outside are about 10 feet higher than my window.
Come to think of it I did not see many tall trees in Nigeria except in the Delta
but then I was above them in a helicopter so it was hard to gauge the height.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 08:33:31 -0800, Darren New <dne### [at] sanrrcom> wrote:

>Stephen wrote:
>> Li-ion batteries can be kept on charge all the time, I believe.
>
>More precisely, due to the complexities of charging Li-ion batteries without 
>making them explode, the charger has to have enough smarts to know when to 
>stop charging the battery even if it's plugged in. So you can leave them on 
>the charger indefinitely, and the charger will stop charging them as 
>appropriate.

I'm glad to hear that I'm doing the right thing.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

Stephen wrote:
> On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 10:24:18 -0500, Tom Austin <taustin> wrote:
> 
>> IIRC, Li-ion batteries do have a problem with building up a *resistance* 
>> barrier inside.  While researching batteries several years ago I ran 
>> across some information, but I don't remember too much now.
>>
> 
> From what I can remember, the internal resistance builds up due to age. Whether
> the battery is used or not. 
> 

A internal resistance may build due to age, but I think that is 
different that what I am referring to.



>> If you follow a particular discharge pattern they will build up an 
>> actual 'film' internally on an electrode.  This would increase the 
>> internal resistance of the battery.  A lot of electronics detect this as 
>> a dead battery and shut off accordingly.  The problem is that the 
>> battery still does have a good charge, just a higher internal 
>> resistance.  If you hook it up so that a current continues to be drawn 
>> then the 'film' is burned off and the internal resistance decreases to 
>> normal.
> 
> You live and learn :)
> Again I did not know that.



It has been many years since I researched this information - I don't 
know how accurate I am.

So don't take what I say as fact - only as something to chew on and do 
further research on.

Post a reply to this message

"Stephen" <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote in message 
news:jkraj41muuer1ohs99d9v68d4jtc96k1uo@4ax.com...
>
> Where do those architects park their brains?

Wish I knew.

> I have something similar in my flat. The living room has floor to ceiling
> windows South and West. Hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Tut! 
> Tut!

Yup. That sounds familiar

>>On the second floor, so above most of the shading trees.
>
> Do you live in the bush? :)

No. I live in a city.

> Small trees, I'm on the forth floor and the trees
> outside are about 10 feet higher than my window.
> Come to think of it I did not see many tall trees in Nigeria except in the 
> Delta
> but then I was above them in a helicopter so it was hard to gauge the 
> height.

The tallest trees around here come to about the top of my window. Pity 
they're too far away to give effective shade.

The building is pretty high. The ground floor (which is a parking area) is 
about 4 m high (a guess, I haven't measured). The floors aren't as high, but 
my ceiling is 2.75 m above the floor (which really made curtains expensive, 
and doesn't help with the temp in winter)

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:58:51 -0500, Tom Austin <taustin> wrote:

>
>A internal resistance may build due to age, but I think that is 
>different that what I am referring to.

Yes, I agree it is different. I'd not heard of a film on the electrode before.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 20:20:51 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) co
[dot] za> wrote:

>
>No. I live in a city.

Sorry Gail, I'm not a very literal person. I surmised that you lived in the city
from what you've said before. That was my idea of a joke, sorry.

>
>The tallest trees around here come to about the top of my window. Pity 
>they're too far away to give effective shade.
>

Shame! They are so far away but then the upside is that they don't block your
view and you have something to look at.

>The building is pretty high. The ground floor (which is a parking area) is 
>about 4 m high (a guess, I haven't measured). The floors aren't as high, but 
>my ceiling is 2.75 m above the floor (which really made curtains expensive, 
>and doesn't help with the temp in winter) 

Ouch! But at least your room must be airy.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

Stephen wrote:
> On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:58:51 -0500, Tom Austin <taustin> wrote:
> 
>> A internal resistance may build due to age, but I think that is 
>> different that what I am referring to.
> 
> Yes, I agree it is different. I'd not heard of a film on the electrode before.

I was using the term 'film' because I lacked a better term at the 
moment.  It's a buildup of 'something'

I got curious and looked up a few sources
I'm not crazy - I actually found something.


apparently it is called a 'passivation layer'

http://www.spectrumbatteries.com/id6.html
http://www.electrochemsolutions.com/pdf/Passivation.pdf
http://www.bealecorner.com/trv900/battery/lithium.html

I believe it has to do with low current draw.
Low current does not burn off the passivation layer that forms, yet you 
do not see much affect because the current draw is low and the internal 
resistance drops little voltage.
But as soon as you need a higher current from a battery with a big 
passivation layer, the voltage drops due to the internal resistance.
Most electronics sense the low voltage and indicate low battery and shut 
off.
If they would stay on for a couple of minutes the passivation layer 
would be burned off and the voltage would return to normal.


I don't know what 'chemistries' of Li-ion batteries have this problem - 
apparently someone thought the SONY Infolithium batters did.




Tom

Post a reply to this message

Darren New wrote:
> Orchid XP v8 wrote:
>> Recipe...book...?
> 
> Yeah. I think they had some ROM left over or something.  Who would put a 
> 50" TV in the kitchen, tho?

I just found a TV that also contains 6 famous paintings which you can 
watch instead of watching TV... WTF?

-- 
http://blog.orphi.me.uk/
http://www.zazzle.com/MathematicalOrchid*

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:05:16 -0500, Tom Austin <taustin> wrote:

>
>http://www.spectrumbatteries.com/id6.html
>http://www.electrochemsolutions.com/pdf/Passivation.pdf
>http://www.bealecorner.com/trv900/battery/lithium.html
>

That was very interesting now I'm worried about the heat transfer from my CPU
core to the battery. :)
When PovRay is running the core temperature can reach about 95 °C. 


>If they would stay on for a couple of minutes the passivation layer 
>would be burned off and the voltage would return to normal.

But then if the battery is flat…

No big deal I suppose if you include a start up timer 
 
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

Orchid XP v8 wrote:
> I just found a TV that also contains 6 famous paintings which you can 
> watch instead of watching TV... WTF?

Now *that* is a good idea. You hang up a huge TV on a flat wall, and when 
you're not watching TV, it looks like a painting instead of a big flat chunk 
of pointless glass.

Slow glass would be even better, but they haven't invented that yet.

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   The NFL should go international. I'd pay to
   see the Detroit Lions vs the Roman Catholics.

Post a reply to this message

"Stephen" <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote in message 
news:gb1bj4992supdiml4f75dj02tqkkedfm7v@4ax.com...
> On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 20:20:51 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) 
> co
> [dot] za> wrote:
>
>>
>>No. I live in a city.
>
> Sorry Gail, I'm not a very literal person. I surmised that you lived in 
> the city
> from what you've said before. That was my idea of a joke, sorry.

And that was a very tongue-in-cheek reply...


Need more smilies.

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 12:19:02 -0800, Darren New <dne### [at] sanrrcom> wrote:

>
>Slow glass would be even better, but they haven't invented that yet.

You do know your 1960's SF :)
Have a brownie point.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 22:49:50 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) co
[dot] za> wrote:

>
>"Stephen" <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote in message 
>news:gb1bj4992supdiml4f75dj02tqkkedfm7v@4ax.com...
>> On Tue, 2 Dec 2008 20:20:51 +0200, "Gail" <gail (at) sql in the wild (dot) 
>> co
>> [dot] za> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>No. I live in a city.
>>
>> Sorry Gail, I'm not a very literal person. I surmised that you lived in 
>> the city
>> from what you've said before. That was my idea of a joke, sorry.
>
>And that was a very tongue-in-cheek reply...
>
Phew! Thank goodness, here's me thinking that you thought that I thought you
were a dryad.  

>Need more smilies. 

Now I thik that you're Warp :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) :-)
:-) 
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

On Tue, 02 Dec 2008 22:07:14 +0000, Stephen <mcavoysAT@aolDOTcom> wrote:

>Now I thik

Now I'm thick (think).
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

Post a reply to this message

"Darren New" <dne### [at] sanrrcom> wrote in message 
news:49359836$1@news.povray.org...
>
> Slow glass would be even better, but they haven't invented that yet.
>

That rings a bell. I'm sure I know the reference, but....

Post a reply to this message

Stephen wrote:

> Have a brownie point.

Question: How many brownie points do you need to earn before you can 
redeem them for an actual brownie?

Post a reply to this message

Phil Cook wrote:

> Sony tend to have the quality, Panasonic the black levels, LG more 
> extras, and Philips all three ;-)

...so I bought Samsung. o_O

Hmm. There's something wrong with me...

Oh well, it *seemed* to work OK in the shop. I was going to buy the 
Phillips one, but it was *very* sparse on connections, and they were all 
really awkward to get at. The Samsung was about £30 cheaper, and had 
lots more connections.

Oh well, I just hope my mum likes it! Now to decide what the hell I'm 
going to get everybody *else* for Christmas... x_x

Post a reply to this message

And lo On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:29:22 -0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> did  
spake thusly:

> Phil Cook wrote:
>
>> Sony tend to have the quality, Panasonic the black levels, LG more  
>> extras, and Philips all three ;-)
>
> ...so I bought Samsung. o_O
>
> Hmm. There's something wrong with me...
>
> Oh well, it *seemed* to work OK in the shop. I was going to buy the  
> Phillips one, but it was *very* sparse on connections, and they were all  
> really awkward to get at. The Samsung was about £30 cheaper, and had  
> lots more connections.
>
> Oh well, I just hope my mum likes it! Now to decide what the hell I'm  
> going to get everybody *else* for Christmas... x_x

Which model OOC?

-- 
Phil Cook

--
I once tried to be apathetic, but I just couldn't be bothered
http://flipc.blogspot.com

Post a reply to this message

Phil Cook v2 wrote:
> And lo On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:29:22 -0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> did 
> spake thusly:
> 
>> ...so I bought Samsung. o_O
>>
>> Hmm. There's something wrong with me...
> 
> Which model OOC?

I had it gift-wrapped in the shop. (John Lewis FTW!) Thus, I cannot be 
*completely* sure. However, if their shop stock matches their online 
store, there's only one 26" LCD TV in their range, and it's the Samsung 
LE26A457. (And indeed, the specs seem to match the device I purchased.)

Post a reply to this message

And lo On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:44:09 -0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> did  
spake thusly:

> Phil Cook v2 wrote:
>> And lo On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:29:22 -0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull>  
>> did spake thusly:
>>
>>> ...so I bought Samsung. o_O
>>>
>>> Hmm. There's something wrong with me...
>>  Which model OOC?
>
> I had it gift-wrapped in the shop. (John Lewis FTW!) Thus, I cannot be  
> *completely* sure. However, if their shop stock matches their online  
> store, there's only one 26" LCD TV in their range, and it's the Samsung  
> LE26A457. (And indeed, the specs seem to match the device I purchased.)

For that price with a five-year guarantee, not bad. I thought you wanted 3  
SCART connections though ;-)

-- 
Phil Cook

--
I once tried to be apathetic, but I just couldn't be bothered
http://flipc.blogspot.com

Post a reply to this message

>> I had it gift-wrapped in the shop. (John Lewis FTW!) Thus, I cannot be 
>> *completely* sure. However, if their shop stock matches their online 
>> store, there's only one 26" LCD TV in their range, and it's the 
>> Samsung LE26A457. (And indeed, the specs seem to match the device I 
>> purchased.)
> 
> For that price with a five-year guarantee, not bad. I thought you wanted 
> 3 SCART connections though ;-)

I did, but I couldn't find a TV anywhere on the face of the Earth that 
has that.

You'll notice I purchased it from John Lewis. In other words, if there 
*is* a problem, I'll actually _get_ some ****ing _SERVICE_. ;-)

In fact, I purchased the TV about 10 minutes before the store closed, 
and yet the salesman still *ran* (I watched him) to the collection point 
personally so that he could wheel the TV up to the gift wrap station on 
the top floor so I could have it gift wrapped before closing time. And 
it only cost, like, £2 for the gift wrap. (YOU try wrapping something 
this big! It's not easy... They did a far better job than I ever could. 
Even if the wrapping paper *was* lame.)

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And lo On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 10:04:49 -0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> did  
spake thusly:

>>> I had it gift-wrapped in the shop. (John Lewis FTW!) Thus, I cannot be  
>>> *completely* sure. However, if their shop stock matches their online  
>>> store, there's only one 26" LCD TV in their range, and it's the  
>>> Samsung LE26A457. (And indeed, the specs seem to match the device I  
>>> purchased.)
>>  For that price with a five-year guarantee, not bad. I thought you  
>> wanted 3 SCART connections though ;-)
>
> I did, but I couldn't find a TV anywhere on the face of the Earth that  
> has that.

Heh well I did say as much.

> You'll notice I purchased it from John Lewis. In other words, if there  
> *is* a problem, I'll actually _get_ some ****ing _SERVICE_. ;-)

Indeed certain stores of a certain group don't have the best in after-care  
service. It may cost a little more now, but it can often make the  
difference.

> In fact, I purchased the TV about 10 minutes before the store closed,  
> and yet the salesman still *ran* (I watched him) to the collection point  
> personally so that he could wheel the TV up to the gift wrap station on  
> the top floor so I could have it gift wrapped before closing time.

Obviously on commission :-P

> And it only cost, like, £2 for the gift wrap. (YOU try wrapping  
> something this big! It's not easy... They did a far better job than I  
> ever could. Even if the wrapping paper *was* lame.)

Actually I'm not bad at wrapping various shapes up having had large  
amounts of practice when young, sometimes it can be fun as in when I  
wrapped up a round tin in two sheets of paper (simple silver foil and a  
translucent gold) to make it look like a giant toffee.

-- 
Phil Cook

--
I once tried to be apathetic, but I just couldn't be bothered
http://flipc.blogspot.com

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>>>  For that price with a five-year guarantee, not bad. I thought you 
>>> wanted 3 SCART connections though ;-)
>>
>> I did, but I couldn't find a TV anywhere on the face of the Earth that 
>> has that.
> 
> Heh well I did say as much.

I know. ;-)

>> You'll notice I purchased it from John Lewis. In other words, if there 
>> *is* a problem, I'll actually _get_ some ****ing _SERVICE_. ;-)
> 
> Indeed certain stores of a certain group don't have the best in 
> after-care service. It may cost a little more now, but it can often make 
> the difference.

Indeed. I bought a large LCD computer monitor from John Lewis. After 
about 8 months, the backlight quit working. IIRC, it took something like 
a week for them to deliver a brand new replacement monitor and take the 
old one away. Which isn't bad really, eh?

Also nice is the fact that their staff generally *have* a clue... 
although there's not what I'd call "experts", they at least have some 
idea what they're talking about.

The only problem is that they don't sell a huge range of stuff. (Or at 
least, stuff I'd want to buy.) Having just said that, last week they 
sold me a Tilby and some rather fetching gloves...

> Obviously on commission :-P

Clearly. ;-)

On the other hand... don't you just hate it when you go somewhere and 
you're all like "yes, I'd like to buy this £2,000 item here please" and 
they're all like "meh, I can't be bothered, go away". (!!)

>> And it only cost, like, £2 for the gift wrap. (YOU try wrapping 
>> something this big! It's not easy... They did a far better job than I 
>> ever could. Even if the wrapping paper *was* lame.)
> 
> Actually I'm not bad at wrapping various shapes up having had large 
> amounts of practice when young, sometimes it can be fun as in when I 
> wrapped up a round tin in two sheets of paper (simple silver foil and a 
> translucent gold) to make it look like a giant toffee.

See, now I *suck* at wrapping things. I seem to have scisors that are 
too blunt to cut the paper, and a reel of tape that's wider in the 
center than at the edges, so the tape always curls when you pull it off. 
Plus the scisors won't get the tape either.

One thing I *have* discovered though... paper weights aren't just pretty 
to look at. Those buggers are USEFUL too!! ;-)

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"Invisible" <voi### [at] devnull> wrote in message 
news:49365171$1@news.povray.org...
> Phil Cook wrote:
>
>> Sony tend to have the quality, Panasonic the black levels, LG more 
>> extras, and Philips all three ;-)
>
> ...so I bought Samsung. o_O
>

Samsung's good. Same brand as I bought.

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Gail wrote:

> Samsung's good. Same brand as I bought.

Actually, IIRC the large LCD monitor at home is Samsung too, and it's 
worked very well all these years.

(The backlight failed at one point, but the shop quickly replaced the 
monitor. It's been flawless since then. And a very crisp picture too...)

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On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 10:34:04 +0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:

>See, now I *suck* at wrapping things. I seem to have scisors that are 
>too blunt to cut the paper,

Ha! You need a Swiss Army Knife for Christmas ;)
 
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:19:38 +0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:

>Stephen wrote:
>
>> Have a brownie point.
>
>Question: How many brownie points do you need to earn before you can 
>redeem them for an actual brownie?

Perve! :)
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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>> See, now I *suck* at wrapping things. I seem to have scisors that are 
>> too blunt to cut the paper,
> 
> Ha! You need a Swiss Army Knife for Christmas ;)

You can't cut paper with a knife, man!!

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>>> Have a brownie point.

>> Question: How many brownie points do you need to earn before you can 
>> redeem them for an actual brownie?

> Perve! :)

Heh. I did think about commenting on the double-meaning, but I figured 
somebody might think... oh well, never mind! :-P

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On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:21:20 +0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:

>>> See, now I *suck* at wrapping things. I seem to have scisors that are 
>>> too blunt to cut the paper,
>> 
>> Ha! You need a Swiss Army Knife for Christmas ;)
>
>You can't cut paper with a knife, man!!

Three things.
1.	If you can't cut paper with a knife, then your knife is not sharp
enough. I test my knife by shaving the edge off a cigarette paper.
2.	Swiss army knifes generally have a pair of scissors. 
3.	The best way to cut paper with scissors is not to use a cutting motion
but to start the cut then glide the scissors through the paper.

Like Phil I'm good at wrapping things. :)
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:22:07 +0000, Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:

>>>> Have a brownie point.
>
>>> Question: How many brownie points do you need to earn before you can 
>>> redeem them for an actual brownie?
>
>> Perve! :)
>
>Heh. I did think about commenting on the double-meaning, but I figured 
>somebody might think... oh well, never mind! :-P

No one here would do such a thing :)

http://www.girlguiding.org.uk/brownies/
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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Stephen wrote:

> http://www.girlguiding.org.uk/brownies/

"This area is for cool, highly intelligent and fantastically fantastic 
brownies!"



How intelligent do you need to be to use a phrase like "fantastically 
fantastic"? :-P

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>> You can't cut paper with a knife, man!!
> 
> Three things.
> 1.	If you can't cut paper with a knife, then your knife is not sharp
> enough. I test my knife by shaving the edge off a cigarette paper.

Right. And after you've used the knife trice, it'll be blunt. :-P

> 2.	Swiss army knifes generally have a pair of scissors. 

Now that's more like it...

> 3.	The best way to cut paper with scissors is not to use a cutting motion
> but to start the cut then glide the scissors through the paper.

Yes - but only if they're sharp.

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Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> The problem is, after 4 months the battery in a laptop stops working, so
> it must be permanently connected to the mains anyway.

I know others have commented, but let's add to the statistics. My Macbook is
nearly 3 years old and still runs for 2-3 hours on a full battery. To be fair,
it's more like 1-2 hours if I'm using the wireless and/or intermittently
rendering, which is most of the time :). If I'm rendering continuously it won't
last more than an hour, but that's not so different from when it was new.

I tend to plug it in when it gets nearly empty, then use it connected until I'm
done for the evening then put it to sleep. I also hardly ever turn it off, not
sure if that makes any difference.

Bill

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