Way back when Plymouth Valiant was still relatively new to the market, I had to replace the battery in that car. We lived close to a shopping mall with a J C Penny auto center that sold car batteries. I don't recall the price, but it was reasonable. I bought the battery because it came with a 5 year warranty. I told the guy I never had a batter last more than 3-4 years, but he gave me a piece of paper saying they will replace it free if it fails before it is 60 month old. I was thinking like you in the sense I figured I'd get another "5-year" battery free in about 40 months. As it happened, the battery made the 60 months it was guaranteed to do. It died at the end of the 61st month. I don't know how they did that, but the timing was exquisite. I went back to the auto center and whined a lot, but they refused to replace the battery free. I never bought anything from J C Penny since that time. LOL
Halo AC/DC BOLT is an amazing device. I like it. The price for it on Google ranges anywhere from $89 (out of stock, of course) to $159. I looked at a couple dozen places and the average price is about $109; I have not been able to find one anywhere near the $50 mark you suggest. There also seems to be a few different versions of the gizmo. Given my needs, or lack thereof, even a $50 gadget would seem like a lot. The thing I do like about it is that it will charge a phone via USB. LOL That might come in handy on the road. I'll look around again later on a different VM with a different browser. Maybe I can fool the gods of the Internet.
Avatar Issues
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Of course the prices all changed since I looked yesterday too, hi hi.
Walmart had the 55000 for 39.95 or something like that, and the 58800 for 49.95.
But I think Debi got the first one on-line and the second one at Sams Club.
Walmart had the 55000 for 39.95 or something like that, and the 58800 for 49.95.
But I think Debi got the first one on-line and the second one at Sams Club.
Re: Avatar Issues
$39.95 it is at Wally World for the 55500 mWh one. I'm not sure an extra 3 amps is worth $10, but the price is right. The WalMart version doesn't look too different than the ones going for twice the price, but they obviously are not the same design. That's typical of Walmart to sell a special made for them model.
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Here is one of the 58830 for $69.95 with free shipping.
If you scroll down to the bottom picture in the left column, you'll see it comes with everything.
https://www.wincaser.com/bolt-58830-mwh ... C4QAvD_BwE
The place where Debi got mine for $49.95 is currently at $89.95
As an aside: Amazon showed me a price of 109 yesterday and 118 today, hi hi.
If you scroll down to the bottom picture in the left column, you'll see it comes with everything.
https://www.wincaser.com/bolt-58830-mwh ... C4QAvD_BwE
The place where Debi got mine for $49.95 is currently at $89.95
As an aside: Amazon showed me a price of 109 yesterday and 118 today, hi hi.
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That''s probably the best deal I've seen so far. I'm not surprised by the price changing but I didn't get Wincaser in any of my searches. I wonder what the dynamics behind that is.
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I often use best price websites to find the lowest price on something.
The hard part is making sure you are getting the exact same product you are looking for and not some knock-off or a repaired return sold as renovated or restored, etc. And with the warranty too!
Some of these places are really sneaky about some things.
Saw a website selling Roomba's for about 70 bucks less than anyone else.
Read the fine print and it does NOT come with the Battery.
So you don't catch that, they don't sell the batteries on that website either.
They do say brand new, from the factory, NOT RECONDITIONED or Returned Units.
In some cases, they don't say does not come with battery, they are slicker than that and say something like uses battery number xxxxx, or requires battery number xxxxxx.
One website I hit for something else, didn't say a word about the battery until you got the shipping form, where it may have said something unit is not shipped with installed batteries. I'm seeing this more and more with some of the more hazardous batteries used in some items. If it comes with batteries you cannot select anything but ground shipping, because the batteries cannot be sent by air.
The hard part is making sure you are getting the exact same product you are looking for and not some knock-off or a repaired return sold as renovated or restored, etc. And with the warranty too!
Some of these places are really sneaky about some things.
Saw a website selling Roomba's for about 70 bucks less than anyone else.
Read the fine print and it does NOT come with the Battery.
So you don't catch that, they don't sell the batteries on that website either.
They do say brand new, from the factory, NOT RECONDITIONED or Returned Units.
In some cases, they don't say does not come with battery, they are slicker than that and say something like uses battery number xxxxx, or requires battery number xxxxxx.
One website I hit for something else, didn't say a word about the battery until you got the shipping form, where it may have said something unit is not shipped with installed batteries. I'm seeing this more and more with some of the more hazardous batteries used in some items. If it comes with batteries you cannot select anything but ground shipping, because the batteries cannot be sent by air.
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In my experience shopping on line hasn't been any trickier than shopping in the brick and mortar stores. The best strategy is to go to the physical store and pick out what you want. Make certain you have the UPC and model on hand when you leave. Then look up those numbers on the web to be sure you have an exact match. About as often as not when armed with specific details to search for, the search engine results will give you something close but not exact. It may look the same but it's rev 1.1 instead of the rev 2.0 you saw in the store. That battery scam is old hat and easy to miss. When prices vary by a drastic amount, you know there must be a reason for that.
Not too long ago our coffee pot died. Went to Target and got the exact same one for a replacement. Sure enough it was identical to the original in all but one respect. The line cord was all of 8" long as opposed to the old one being 24" long. Of course this won't reach any of the wall outlets and they knew it because they said we need to use an extension cord of the proper quality. I assumed that they were saving tons of money by not giving you the proper length cord, but my wife found some comments in a review saying there was some kind of law suit involving people tripping over the long cord. I suppose that would be possible if you made your coffee on the floor instead of the normal place on the counter.
Not too long ago our coffee pot died. Went to Target and got the exact same one for a replacement. Sure enough it was identical to the original in all but one respect. The line cord was all of 8" long as opposed to the old one being 24" long. Of course this won't reach any of the wall outlets and they knew it because they said we need to use an extension cord of the proper quality. I assumed that they were saving tons of money by not giving you the proper length cord, but my wife found some comments in a review saying there was some kind of law suit involving people tripping over the long cord. I suppose that would be possible if you made your coffee on the floor instead of the normal place on the counter.
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About the same with power tools. Instead of a long 8 to 10 foot cord, they all started coming with a little 6 inch cord, which was a royal pain. Then they came with no cord at all, but a place to plug the cord onto with a clip to hold it in place.
Even when I used tools every day, I never like the heavy battery powered tools.
I can't believe how hard it is to find a good power tool these days that have a cord.
For home handymen who only use a tool rarely, it makes no sense to buy a battery powered tool, because it will be dead just when you need to use it.
I did something sorta unusual back when I was working on projects nearly daily. I found these 12 volt small drills that were balanced without the battery connected. I never did buy the batteries that went with them. Instead I bought some deep cycle marine batteries about the size of a motorcycle battery. Added two holders to my tool belt one on each side but closer to my back side so my arm wouldn't hit them. I ran the power cord up under my shirt and down my shirt sleeve. So when I needed to grab a tool, all I had to do was pull the cord out from my shirt sleeve a few inches and plug it in. I had two drills, a mini-saw, and a sander that were all 12 volt small and lightweight, but had plenty of power. Also had a 12 volt staple gun, actually a brad gun, but it jammed every time I used it so I ended up tossing it or giving it away, don't remember which now. I kept this set of tools when I moved down here, but sold it to the guy who bought the first house I was renovating, along with a bunch of other stuff he didn't have and needed.
My uncle gave me a 90 volt wet cell battery, huge, said it came out of a diesel train.
All the terminals on this battery were exposed, so you could locate the straps to get the voltage you needed.
Don't know if it came that way or if my uncle modified it. He had the straps set up in such a way that he got a tad over 12 volts out of it, but enough amps to fry anything, hi hi.
He had used it for a couple of years in the trunk of one of his race cars that had no alternator or battery under the hood.
Then used it in his boat to run a trolling motor. But the thing was so heavy it took two people to even move it, hi hi.
He was moving and knew I liked stuff to tinker with, or I could use it as a back-up power for my ham radios. And as usual I never say no to anything someone wants to give me, hi hi.
I left it at the big Des Peres house when I moved further north to Creve Coeur. Hadn't used it for anything for a couple of years, and besides, as I said, it was heavy, hi hi.
Even when I used tools every day, I never like the heavy battery powered tools.
I can't believe how hard it is to find a good power tool these days that have a cord.
For home handymen who only use a tool rarely, it makes no sense to buy a battery powered tool, because it will be dead just when you need to use it.
I did something sorta unusual back when I was working on projects nearly daily. I found these 12 volt small drills that were balanced without the battery connected. I never did buy the batteries that went with them. Instead I bought some deep cycle marine batteries about the size of a motorcycle battery. Added two holders to my tool belt one on each side but closer to my back side so my arm wouldn't hit them. I ran the power cord up under my shirt and down my shirt sleeve. So when I needed to grab a tool, all I had to do was pull the cord out from my shirt sleeve a few inches and plug it in. I had two drills, a mini-saw, and a sander that were all 12 volt small and lightweight, but had plenty of power. Also had a 12 volt staple gun, actually a brad gun, but it jammed every time I used it so I ended up tossing it or giving it away, don't remember which now. I kept this set of tools when I moved down here, but sold it to the guy who bought the first house I was renovating, along with a bunch of other stuff he didn't have and needed.
My uncle gave me a 90 volt wet cell battery, huge, said it came out of a diesel train.
All the terminals on this battery were exposed, so you could locate the straps to get the voltage you needed.
Don't know if it came that way or if my uncle modified it. He had the straps set up in such a way that he got a tad over 12 volts out of it, but enough amps to fry anything, hi hi.
He had used it for a couple of years in the trunk of one of his race cars that had no alternator or battery under the hood.
Then used it in his boat to run a trolling motor. But the thing was so heavy it took two people to even move it, hi hi.
He was moving and knew I liked stuff to tinker with, or I could use it as a back-up power for my ham radios. And as usual I never say no to anything someone wants to give me, hi hi.
I left it at the big Des Peres house when I moved further north to Creve Coeur. Hadn't used it for anything for a couple of years, and besides, as I said, it was heavy, hi hi.
Re: Avatar Issues
Like you, I don't particularly care for battery operated power tools. I have the same idea about the batteries failing when I need the tool most. However, many holidays ago my daughter got me a battery operated Dremel Tool to replace the a/c powered one that died after thirty years of service. Of course I was very grateful for her thinking of me, but I didn't have much hope that the tool would be any good. One of the things I used it for was to sharpen my chain saw and grass cutter blades. Both of those tend to be of seasonal usage. The new Dremel worked very well. It seemed to have a bigger and more powerful motor than the old one, plus the speed was variable. After sharpening a few tools I put the thing in it's box and didn't resurrect it for nearly two years. I could not believe that it started right up again without a charge. Seemed to have full power too.
That train battery must be an amazing thing. It sounds like it could run your house for a few hours if you had a converter hooked up to it.
At one time I had thought about using a battery backup for this computer, but I never got around to installing it. There isn't much to lose on it, but not being interrupted by a power outage might save a few fragile components from destruction. The battery in the laptop is almost useless. I can't recall ever using it without the line cord. Only once in all my years did I actually need a battery operated laptop. That was when we bought this house and signed some papers electronically. The rep met us in the hotel lobby where we did all that. The battery in that old computer lasted about an hour which was just long enough. The only useful battery operated device I own is the clever phone.
That train battery must be an amazing thing. It sounds like it could run your house for a few hours if you had a converter hooked up to it.
At one time I had thought about using a battery backup for this computer, but I never got around to installing it. There isn't much to lose on it, but not being interrupted by a power outage might save a few fragile components from destruction. The battery in the laptop is almost useless. I can't recall ever using it without the line cord. Only once in all my years did I actually need a battery operated laptop. That was when we bought this house and signed some papers electronically. The rep met us in the hotel lobby where we did all that. The battery in that old computer lasted about an hour which was just long enough. The only useful battery operated device I own is the clever phone.Re: Avatar Issues
Before Debi decided to switch companies and get a Schmartz-Fone, my little Flip-Fone's charge would last a whole month.
I got in the habit of plugging it up at bedtime on the last day of every month.
Then, after she got her first Schmartz-Fone, she got me another new flip-fone from that company. It would die after about 15 days, so using a twice a month charge schedule wasn't working. So I got into the habit of charging it every other Monday night. Then when she switched to a fancier Schmartz-fone and got me yet another new flip-fone, this darn thing goes dead after about 9 or 10 days. So now I charge it every Tuesday night. I dread getting another new one, I may have to charge it every single day like Debi has to with her Schmartz-Fone. She even carries a remote charger around with her in her purse because if she has to do much on her fone, it don't even last a whole day.
The little netbook I bought for going to writers meetings, if fully charged, I can use it for about 3 hours. So that much about it I was pleased with. I just don't like using them for much of anything.
My neighbor who comes over here quite often to visit with Debi, uses her netbook like a picture telephone. Which is really about all she seems to use it for. She comes over and invariably while they are talking it will beep about an incoming call or a post to a social media website. Heck, I guess it could be a humongously big screened cell phone, but it looks to me like my netbook. I guess I should get it out of the closet and charge it up to see if it still works, hi hi. Been probably six months since I've used it for anything.
I got in the habit of plugging it up at bedtime on the last day of every month.
Then, after she got her first Schmartz-Fone, she got me another new flip-fone from that company. It would die after about 15 days, so using a twice a month charge schedule wasn't working. So I got into the habit of charging it every other Monday night. Then when she switched to a fancier Schmartz-fone and got me yet another new flip-fone, this darn thing goes dead after about 9 or 10 days. So now I charge it every Tuesday night. I dread getting another new one, I may have to charge it every single day like Debi has to with her Schmartz-Fone. She even carries a remote charger around with her in her purse because if she has to do much on her fone, it don't even last a whole day.
The little netbook I bought for going to writers meetings, if fully charged, I can use it for about 3 hours. So that much about it I was pleased with. I just don't like using them for much of anything.
My neighbor who comes over here quite often to visit with Debi, uses her netbook like a picture telephone. Which is really about all she seems to use it for. She comes over and invariably while they are talking it will beep about an incoming call or a post to a social media website. Heck, I guess it could be a humongously big screened cell phone, but it looks to me like my netbook. I guess I should get it out of the closet and charge it up to see if it still works, hi hi. Been probably six months since I've used it for anything.
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Phones, tablets, and even this desktop browsers all have the ability to push notifications. From what I can tell very few people decline the offer when it is presented. Each app or web site needs your approval and permission in order to send those obnoxious notifications. All you need to do is turn them off if you don't want to be bothered. Then, too, there are people who actually respond to those push notifications. Why would I care if you liked somebody's picture of their cat on Facebook? Some people do care and spend half their life responding to things that make no nevermind. My clever phone is pretty quiet compared to my wife's. I allow about three notifications and that's it.
The battery on my Pixel phone is phenomenal. I can go three days without a charge if I don't fire up the telephone and keep the screen off most of the time. Even on days when I use the telephone function it only drains about 45%. It's not the thinnest phone in the world, but there is one hell of a battery in there. My flip phone, which was retired after I got the clever phone, will stay charged about three weeks. It continually pings the network but all I ever use it for now is a portable clock for when I go to bed. So that means with next to no usage the battery is good for 21 days. I'm guessing the clever phone might go four days unused.
i can't see myself ever acquiring a netbook. I'd get a table before I consider something so useless. Apparently Google's Chromebook is popular and I don't understand why. You got to love Google in order to do without the things it can't do.
I have a couple Pompas Grass plants in my yard that need to be cut to the ground every year. Didn't know that last year and they seemed to do pretty well. I will likely get a small chain saw to do the cutting and in that case would not mind a battery operated one. I'm only going to use it once a year on two plants. The trees I have are not yet mature enough to be trimming. By the time that happens I'll be in a nursing home.
The battery on my Pixel phone is phenomenal. I can go three days without a charge if I don't fire up the telephone and keep the screen off most of the time. Even on days when I use the telephone function it only drains about 45%. It's not the thinnest phone in the world, but there is one hell of a battery in there. My flip phone, which was retired after I got the clever phone, will stay charged about three weeks. It continually pings the network but all I ever use it for now is a portable clock for when I go to bed. So that means with next to no usage the battery is good for 21 days. I'm guessing the clever phone might go four days unused.
i can't see myself ever acquiring a netbook. I'd get a table before I consider something so useless. Apparently Google's Chromebook is popular and I don't understand why. You got to love Google in order to do without the things it can't do.
I have a couple Pompas Grass plants in my yard that need to be cut to the ground every year. Didn't know that last year and they seemed to do pretty well. I will likely get a small chain saw to do the cutting and in that case would not mind a battery operated one. I'm only going to use it once a year on two plants. The trees I have are not yet mature enough to be trimming. By the time that happens I'll be in a nursing home.
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Oh heck Yogi, just get out your garden hose, and burn those Pampas Grass bushes down in the spring.
They come back plenty fast. I have several in my yard. Use the garden hose to keep the thatch in your lawn from turning into a forest fire. Be careful though, once you get them lit, they go up like a can of gasoline, FAST!
I have Debian installed on my Netbook, it does everything my computer does, only a lot slower, hi hi.
There are some things I wouldn't want to do on it. But heck, before the frau bought her Roku, I was setting it by the TV and watching movies I streamed from on-line.
There is an hour long show Debi don't get on her satellite or on Roku, so a friend of hers send her a copy via e-mail every week. She used to sit there and watch it on her computer monitor. She has a TV in that room, so I used the HDMI port on her computer to hook it up to the TV, she likes that!
I've tried to figure out how to send it via WiFi to the Roku or the Satellite WiFi box, but never figured it out.
She's happy enough getting to see it on the TV in her office instead of on the monitor.
Although, if I split the screen for her, with the movie going to the TV and her trying to play Farm Town on the monitor, it causes the streaming movie to get pixels or freeze every now and then.
Plus I have to set it up for her and turn it off each time. For some reason she can't keep her mouse on her own screen and it ends up on the TV screen instead, and she can't find it then, hi hi.
They come back plenty fast. I have several in my yard. Use the garden hose to keep the thatch in your lawn from turning into a forest fire. Be careful though, once you get them lit, they go up like a can of gasoline, FAST!
I have Debian installed on my Netbook, it does everything my computer does, only a lot slower, hi hi.
There are some things I wouldn't want to do on it. But heck, before the frau bought her Roku, I was setting it by the TV and watching movies I streamed from on-line.
There is an hour long show Debi don't get on her satellite or on Roku, so a friend of hers send her a copy via e-mail every week. She used to sit there and watch it on her computer monitor. She has a TV in that room, so I used the HDMI port on her computer to hook it up to the TV, she likes that!
I've tried to figure out how to send it via WiFi to the Roku or the Satellite WiFi box, but never figured it out.
She's happy enough getting to see it on the TV in her office instead of on the monitor.
Although, if I split the screen for her, with the movie going to the TV and her trying to play Farm Town on the monitor, it causes the streaming movie to get pixels or freeze every now and then.
Plus I have to set it up for her and turn it off each time. For some reason she can't keep her mouse on her own screen and it ends up on the TV screen instead, and she can't find it then, hi hi.
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I love the idea of a 40 foot high flame coming off the Pompas grass. LOL However, even if I am very careful about setting the other grass on fire, I have a bunch of paranoid neighbors. If I stretch my arms out too far, I'd be touching the siding of their house. The back of my property is lined with what I'd call row houses. Should one catch fire, I'm certain we'd lose about twenty of them. Yeah, I know they have fire walls, but still. I don't think it would be in my best interest to deliberately set a bush fire, particularly not since a HOA board member lives across the street and some kind of uniformed police officer lives directly in back of me.
I think you need a smart TV to be able to talk directly to your LAN router. Some of them are capable, I'm sure, but then you'd want a network separate form your data LAN for all your streaming. I know of people who are heavily into cinema and streaming and they have a server just for that purpose. It distributes things throughout the house.
I think you need a smart TV to be able to talk directly to your LAN router. Some of them are capable, I'm sure, but then you'd want a network separate form your data LAN for all your streaming. I know of people who are heavily into cinema and streaming and they have a server just for that purpose. It distributes things throughout the house.
Re: Avatar Issues
Hmm, most places I've lived, you cannot plant certain types of highly flammable plants within 15 to 20 feet of a structure.
One of our neighbors a couple houses east of us had planted them like a hedge along the side of his yard. And although it is like 30 feet away from his house, when the entire hedge burned, it melted the siding on his house that far away. Not so bad when they were a small foot wide row, but they have grown and spread like ours to a 3 foot width on his hedge.
We have one in the front yard that grew to around 4 feet in diameter, so we dug out several clumps to get it back down to only 2 feet, but it is already back up to around 3 feet again, and about 5 feet tall. Lots of heat when I burn that one down each spring.
Before my son moved, he had like a movie theater in his basement. A projection machine that filled the entire basement wall he covered with a silver and glass bead screen. He had several machines such as VHS, DVD, BluRay, and a small computer system for streaming movies. He left the entire system intact and functional when he sold his house as it was part of the deal he made.
What he has now is no where near as elaborate. He learned like I did, too big of a screen is tiring to try and watch.
The last time we visited him back home, he was fiddling with these goggles you wear. Although it makes you feel like your in a movie theater, sorta, I got the worst headache from watching only a 1 hour show with him.
Although the goggles were right on your face, close to your eyes, the image looked like it was 20 feet away, but as big as a movie theater. Interesting concept, but really hard on the eyes. Sorta strange when you turn your head and nothing you see changes, hi hi. He let me try his newest pair of goggles which were open on the bottom. This was better because you could look down, see, and pick up your drink from the coffee table. But then the ambient light coming in from the bottom was annoying also.
One of our neighbors a couple houses east of us had planted them like a hedge along the side of his yard. And although it is like 30 feet away from his house, when the entire hedge burned, it melted the siding on his house that far away. Not so bad when they were a small foot wide row, but they have grown and spread like ours to a 3 foot width on his hedge.
We have one in the front yard that grew to around 4 feet in diameter, so we dug out several clumps to get it back down to only 2 feet, but it is already back up to around 3 feet again, and about 5 feet tall. Lots of heat when I burn that one down each spring.
Before my son moved, he had like a movie theater in his basement. A projection machine that filled the entire basement wall he covered with a silver and glass bead screen. He had several machines such as VHS, DVD, BluRay, and a small computer system for streaming movies. He left the entire system intact and functional when he sold his house as it was part of the deal he made.
What he has now is no where near as elaborate. He learned like I did, too big of a screen is tiring to try and watch.
The last time we visited him back home, he was fiddling with these goggles you wear. Although it makes you feel like your in a movie theater, sorta, I got the worst headache from watching only a 1 hour show with him.
Although the goggles were right on your face, close to your eyes, the image looked like it was 20 feet away, but as big as a movie theater. Interesting concept, but really hard on the eyes. Sorta strange when you turn your head and nothing you see changes, hi hi. He let me try his newest pair of goggles which were open on the bottom. This was better because you could look down, see, and pick up your drink from the coffee table. But then the ambient light coming in from the bottom was annoying also.
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I have two Pampas Grass plants in the back yard. Half the yard slopes down to the neighbor's property at about a 45 degree angle. One of the plants is on that slope. That one is about 8 feet tall when it matures and about half the diameter of the other Pampas which is on flat ground before the slope. That plant is only a few feet away from the storm sewer on my neighbor's property and it gets plenty of water; sometimes standing water. Since these plants love water upper plant is at least 15 feet tall and approaching 3 feet in diameter. Setting it on fire could risk melting the siding on my house, but certainly would melt down my neighbor's white plastic fence that is only a couple feet distance from the plant. Apparently both plants are healthy albeit different sizes. The one on the slope gets plenty of water, but it drains off rapidly. The one by the storm sewer thinks it's in Pampas heaven.
I'm not much of a movie fan nor a big time gamer, in spite of my gaming quality computers. That lack of interest in anything cinema is why I never got into the augmented and virtual reality scene. I don't think I would want a full wall display, but I do anticipate getting a cinema style monitor at some point in the future. It will not be used for it's intended purpose but instead will provide me with extra space to monitor my network and computer performance. With a display that wide I may also run Linux in a VM simultaneously with Windows. The VM would be a sandbox for anything I do needing security. I do that to some extent even today but it's a slight hassle setting up the Linux environment. If I could have a constantly running machine that would save me some grief.
I'm not much of a movie fan nor a big time gamer, in spite of my gaming quality computers. That lack of interest in anything cinema is why I never got into the augmented and virtual reality scene. I don't think I would want a full wall display, but I do anticipate getting a cinema style monitor at some point in the future. It will not be used for it's intended purpose but instead will provide me with extra space to monitor my network and computer performance. With a display that wide I may also run Linux in a VM simultaneously with Windows. The VM would be a sandbox for anything I do needing security. I do that to some extent even today but it's a slight hassle setting up the Linux environment. If I could have a constantly running machine that would save me some grief.
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One of our computer stores here had a big sale on narrow frame monitors last year. Turns out they were hard to sell because they did not have a stand, and made to all connect together on a grid, of which he also had 4, 6, 9, & 12 monitor mounts you could buy, which cost more than a monitor by the way.
He bought a bunch figuring they would sell like hot cakes, and it turned out, sales were next to nothing.
They were fairly thick too, front to back, because everything had to be behind not below the monitor as in desktop monitors.
With nearly everything now running on the Internet, one EMT strike will wipe out everything, hi hi.
He bought a bunch figuring they would sell like hot cakes, and it turned out, sales were next to nothing.
They were fairly thick too, front to back, because everything had to be behind not below the monitor as in desktop monitors.
With nearly everything now running on the Internet, one EMT strike will wipe out everything, hi hi.
Re: Avatar Issues
I've seen some gamers' rigs that are wrap around. Some are only three monitors across, but I've seen others that are 3x3. One layout had a chair that could tip back to a reclining position. I can't imagine what kind of game you would be playing on your back, but it looked totally awesome. Apparently high end games have a much broader field of view than what you can see on a normal monitor. I recall Microsoft's Flight Simulator being like that, but in that case there were several cameras instead of one panoramic view.
You are right about being dependent upon the Internet for half our life functions. I don't know how else content can be delivered except over a network, and networks are pretty vulnerable. I'd have to say the same thing about the electric grid, although that seems to work more reliably than the cable internet I have. I think it's at least partly due to the smart electric meters. In the case of the internet all the smarts is at the ISP's end, if at all. Even more devastating is the thought of some communication satellite(s) going out, or being destroyed by a passing meteor. I guess solar storms play havoc with them, but those outages are temporary.
You are right about being dependent upon the Internet for half our life functions. I don't know how else content can be delivered except over a network, and networks are pretty vulnerable. I'd have to say the same thing about the electric grid, although that seems to work more reliably than the cable internet I have. I think it's at least partly due to the smart electric meters. In the case of the internet all the smarts is at the ISP's end, if at all. Even more devastating is the thought of some communication satellite(s) going out, or being destroyed by a passing meteor. I guess solar storms play havoc with them, but those outages are temporary.
Re: Avatar Issues
Since I don't know how the Internet is actually laid out.
Let me approach this from an Electricians point of view instead.
You hear all kinds of talk about the Electrical Grid and it's vulnerability.
However, that is not actually the case.
And many local electrical distribution systems are not on a grid at all, even if they claim to be.
Despite the claims made by the TVA about their massive Grid, technically, they have no grid at all.
Here in east TN, there is no evidence that we are part of any grid, internal or external.
And none of the local wiring is on a grid at all.
At least back in St. Louis County, we were on a dual-feed system, and sometimes on a three or four feed system which can be called a local grid.
When a single utility pole, 2 or 3 miles from your house, being knocked down by a car, takes out most of a 100 sq. mile area, you are definitely NOT on a grid of any type, not even on a dual-feed system.
No matter how many things you have plugged into your extension cord, if you unplug it from the outlet, everything goes out. This is a single feed system, and is what is used in most cities and almost all rural areas around the country.
In Missouri for example: Crawford County has ties with Phelps County electrical distribution systems. So if the Crawford County power chain goes out, Phelps County can handle the load and keep Crawford County up and running. Provided the six to eight linking lines between the two stations remain intact. Even so, this is not a Grid. Crawford county has no grid system at all, but a lot of Phelps County industrial and commercial areas are on a three to four point interconnecting grid. Meaning at least three or four of the main distribution stations are all working to supply the sub-stations in the same coverage area.
From what little I understand about the Internet, it is a system far superior to our electrical system.
If any path is disabled or slow, your signal will follow another path to reach its destination.
In order to do this, it needs to be a near perfect grid system.
But in the case of the Internet, taking out a Hub or Node may affect a single area, it won't affect the overall Internet distribution system. And even then other Hubs or Nodes may also supply that same area, so you would never know if a Hub or Node was down or not.
The breakdown would be through your local distribution system, which works more or less like the point to point electrical system. If Comcasts cable gets cut, you won't have Internet until they fix it, or find a way to route around it, and with Comcast, that is highly unlikely.
Let me approach this from an Electricians point of view instead.
You hear all kinds of talk about the Electrical Grid and it's vulnerability.
However, that is not actually the case.
And many local electrical distribution systems are not on a grid at all, even if they claim to be.
Despite the claims made by the TVA about their massive Grid, technically, they have no grid at all.
Here in east TN, there is no evidence that we are part of any grid, internal or external.
And none of the local wiring is on a grid at all.
At least back in St. Louis County, we were on a dual-feed system, and sometimes on a three or four feed system which can be called a local grid.
When a single utility pole, 2 or 3 miles from your house, being knocked down by a car, takes out most of a 100 sq. mile area, you are definitely NOT on a grid of any type, not even on a dual-feed system.
No matter how many things you have plugged into your extension cord, if you unplug it from the outlet, everything goes out. This is a single feed system, and is what is used in most cities and almost all rural areas around the country.
In Missouri for example: Crawford County has ties with Phelps County electrical distribution systems. So if the Crawford County power chain goes out, Phelps County can handle the load and keep Crawford County up and running. Provided the six to eight linking lines between the two stations remain intact. Even so, this is not a Grid. Crawford county has no grid system at all, but a lot of Phelps County industrial and commercial areas are on a three to four point interconnecting grid. Meaning at least three or four of the main distribution stations are all working to supply the sub-stations in the same coverage area.
From what little I understand about the Internet, it is a system far superior to our electrical system.
If any path is disabled or slow, your signal will follow another path to reach its destination.
In order to do this, it needs to be a near perfect grid system.
But in the case of the Internet, taking out a Hub or Node may affect a single area, it won't affect the overall Internet distribution system. And even then other Hubs or Nodes may also supply that same area, so you would never know if a Hub or Node was down or not.
The breakdown would be through your local distribution system, which works more or less like the point to point electrical system. If Comcasts cable gets cut, you won't have Internet until they fix it, or find a way to route around it, and with Comcast, that is highly unlikely.
Re: Avatar Issues
There have been several incidents in the last ten years when large sections of the United States lost electrical power. One that I recall involved the entire New England area as well as part of Canada. At first nobody knew why it happened, but then the evidence became clear that some state actor was behind the outage. I don't know if New England and Canada fit into your idea of an electrical grid, but I do know the power was out for reasons never explained to the public.
The Internet is wired up like a spider's web so that any junction failure will not affect a large area. There are major junctions, Internet Switch Points, which distribute a lot of traffic compared to those smaller web junctions. When one of the big switches go out, the Internet may not go silent, but the speed of those packets will be throttled as they are rerouted. Knock out a satellite and the Internet may survive, but you might not be able to get a message from Washington to London directly. Likewise when one of those Atlantic cables are disrupted.
My point is that there is no fool proof way to prevent disruptions from attack vectors which want to put our lights out, literally. Large segments of both the power "grid" and Internet "web" already have been shut down for unexplained reasons. Calling the electric supply system a grid may be a misnomer, but that's the term most people understand. When it's down, it's down.
The Internet is wired up like a spider's web so that any junction failure will not affect a large area. There are major junctions, Internet Switch Points, which distribute a lot of traffic compared to those smaller web junctions. When one of the big switches go out, the Internet may not go silent, but the speed of those packets will be throttled as they are rerouted. Knock out a satellite and the Internet may survive, but you might not be able to get a message from Washington to London directly. Likewise when one of those Atlantic cables are disrupted.
My point is that there is no fool proof way to prevent disruptions from attack vectors which want to put our lights out, literally. Large segments of both the power "grid" and Internet "web" already have been shut down for unexplained reasons. Calling the electric supply system a grid may be a misnomer, but that's the term most people understand. When it's down, it's down.
Re: Avatar Issues
Yes their are major cross country electrical grids. They are being fed from many sources, and those sources are not capable of carrying the entire grid if more than two sources go off line in succession, then the whole grid comes down.
But it doesn't have to be that way! You can still have the grid, but have preventative measures that prevent an overload on the rest of the sources causing them all to go down.
Using a grid helps keep the cost of electric down for everyone. Because all sources of power can be added to the grid. The major power sources try to anticipate loads and power up or power down what they are capable of producing.
But it takes time to power up, or power down for that matter. And a sudden drop in demand can not only cause a major financial loss due to power being created and not used, as well as cause the dynamo to fail in many ways.
After a power outage, the amount of electric used when the power comes back on is phenomenal. So they have to power up to near full capacity before they flip that switch, then begin to power back down again as fast as they can before they burn out their equipment.
Just think of all the things with motors or heating elements in your house that will kick on after a power outage.
Your AC or Furnace blower, the hot water heater, all those little wall warts you have plugged in, and of course the lights that were left on when the power went out.
Powering back up after an outage is a major problem for electric companies. And those who are connected to a grid have to all work together to power up all at the same time to prevent burning out all the sources on that grid.
This is why I say the grid should have failsafes built in so it can cease to be a grid until everyone is powered back up, and then they can reconnect to the grid after their area is up and running and the power surge back down to normal.
Looking at smaller local distribution systems that work on a 2 point to 4 point local grid is an interesting study!
But it doesn't have to be that way! You can still have the grid, but have preventative measures that prevent an overload on the rest of the sources causing them all to go down.
Using a grid helps keep the cost of electric down for everyone. Because all sources of power can be added to the grid. The major power sources try to anticipate loads and power up or power down what they are capable of producing.
But it takes time to power up, or power down for that matter. And a sudden drop in demand can not only cause a major financial loss due to power being created and not used, as well as cause the dynamo to fail in many ways.
After a power outage, the amount of electric used when the power comes back on is phenomenal. So they have to power up to near full capacity before they flip that switch, then begin to power back down again as fast as they can before they burn out their equipment.
Just think of all the things with motors or heating elements in your house that will kick on after a power outage.
Your AC or Furnace blower, the hot water heater, all those little wall warts you have plugged in, and of course the lights that were left on when the power went out.
Powering back up after an outage is a major problem for electric companies. And those who are connected to a grid have to all work together to power up all at the same time to prevent burning out all the sources on that grid.
This is why I say the grid should have failsafes built in so it can cease to be a grid until everyone is powered back up, and then they can reconnect to the grid after their area is up and running and the power surge back down to normal.
Looking at smaller local distribution systems that work on a 2 point to 4 point local grid is an interesting study!