rich-c: confirm rich-c: refresh rich-c: refresh
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changed username to Dr.D. rich-c: hi Rich Dr.D.: Just woke up and remembered about the chat. rich-c: for shame -bet you got to bed by 4 a.m. too ;-) Dr.D.: No, I was in bed by 11:00 PM. Dr.D.: The problem was having to get up to take Joan to work this morning at 6:45 AM. rich-c: oh - then teh nap was your body in shock over such strange hours? rich-c: OK -right - though doesn't Joan drive? or is it a street safety issue? Dr.D.: Yes, never really got a good sleep. Dr.D.: Driving issue is that one of the cars is in the shop. Dr.D.: And I had to do lots of shuttle duty for kids to activities this morning. rich-c: that is an issue with which I'm somewhat familiar, so to speak Dr.D.: So it's been run-run-run. rich-c: yes - four jids can do that to you - I recall having troubles enough with one Dr.D.: It was the can't-do-it-with-one-trip problem this morning. rich-c: btw, noticed Ron wasnt on W3ed. then his emails were from his old dialup address rich-c: wonder if he is having problems with his cable supplier? Dr.D.: Drive Joan to work at 6:45. Get back home around 7:20--but Diana had to get up at 8. No sleep there. rich-c: and of course each kid goes off in a different compass direction Dr.D.: Take her at 8:45...but then Elanor had to go somewhere by 10:00. Dr.D.: And had to get them both at noon, from places 20 minutes apart. Dr.D.: Bleh. rich-c: or perhaps, yeecchh Dr.D.: As for Ron, yeah, dunno what's up with his E-mail; I had to use my moderator powers to allow his posts to the list. Dr.D.: Since they were from a non-subscribed E-mail address. rich-c: right - Mailwasher had them listed as spam Dr.D.: But that's why I asked Dale to be an adminstrator for it, 'cause I knew he wouldn't get around to fixing it :-) rich-c: I do monitor mailwasher for things like that so caught the error and corrected it rich-c: regrettable, but you are right rich-c: mailwasher is helpful but it uses Spamcop as one database and that program (it's commercial) is a fraud Dr.D.: I guess I can send him mail and see what's up. rich-c: or maybe he will choose to turn up here at some point - not everyone is prompt Dr.D.: But hopefully he'll pop in to one of the chats and we can find out directly. rich-c: yes, he is busy but usually he does turn up Dr.D.: I am not so prompt. rich-c: the early birds besides me tend to be Daniel, james and Scott rich-c: Ron is on Wet Coast time so it's a strain for him to come on even an hour after we start Dr.D.: Scott, I haven't seen him on Wednesday for a while. Dr.D.: Believe me, I know about time differences. rich-c: no, he tends to be highly erratic, some of which is his school schedule Dr.D.: It has been a pain scheduling around my friend J-P's 7-hour difference from Helsinki. rich-c: yes - I'll get a taste of it tomorrow morning rich-c: the Italians will be unhappy to have the Monza race start at 2 p.m. so I can see it at 8 a.m. rich-c: but the California Autoweek chat board posters will be complaining about getting their fix of Formula One at 5 a.m. Dr.D.: I can remember watching the 1972 Winter Olympics in the middle of the night, live via satellite for the first time, in glorious black and white. Dr.D.: My mom and I were the only ones who could stay up that late. rich-c: meanwhile, there's a football game tonight in B.C. that doesn't start till 10.30 my time Dr.D.: But at least the game is in natural daylight, right? rich-c: I will tape teh second half of teh football game and also teh race in case I don't wake up in time rich-c: don't think so; we're nearing the equinox and it will be 7.30 p.m. starting there Dr.D.: I can't remember the last time I bothered to tape anything to watch it later. Dr.D.: Heck, I don't even know what's on TV anymore. rich-c: well, I watch my real football and selected motor racing and that's it Dr.D.: I didn't find out about Gene Kranz's "Failure is Not an Option" show until after it had finished about 5 days of reruns. rich-c: sort of gave up watching the news or feture stuff though Dr.D.: GK being a famous NASA mission control guy. rich-c: ah, the space program. which network was that on? Dr.D.: IIRC it was cable, The History Channel, though maybe for you folks it will percolate over to regular broadcast TV. Dr.D.: I had read his book several years ago, but I wanted to see the interviews.
moved to room Meeting Place Dr.D.: PBS had a show about Apollo 13 way back when Ron Howard's movie came out, and I saw some interviews of him then.
changed username to Ron rich-c: we don't subscribe to teh history channel, just mandatory basic plus sports Dr.D.: It is Ron. Ron: From the west -- greetings rich-c: well Ron, we were wondering what was with you Ron: large as life....twice as ugly Dr.D.: We noticed that you were using ronaldm@mars.ark.com again. Ron: yeah.... switch from cable to ADSL rich-c: yeah, has Shaw got your dander up? Dr.D.: I had to use my coladam admin powers to approve your recent posts to the lists. Ron: no..... our local ISP has a deal on ADSL.... and it's now available in our area Ron: save me $10 to $15 a month rich-c: and my Mailwasher nearly rejected you as spam till I caught it Ron: didn't know me eh? rich-c: really? what's teh going price on the Island then? Ron: $24.95 mo Ron: A friend donated a ADSL modem he was no longer using Dr.D.: Total, or on top of your existing access? Ron: total rich-c: neat - those modems cost about $200 new, don't htey? Dr.D.: Very good, as my ADSL is $52/month, US even. Ron: depends on who you talk to. rich-c: how long is that price guaranteed for, Ron? Ron: I've heard anywhere between $60 and $200 Dr.D.: But I got an ADSL router, not a modem. Ron: 1 year rich.... there's the catch Ron: it will go to 32.95 in 12 months.... but even then that's 10 bux a month less than cable rich-c: sort of like Ma Bell - $24.95 first 3 months then 34.95 plus $10 extra if you dont buy their overpriced long distance Ron: yeah... ya gotta read the fine print Ron: however....there is one other compelling reason Ron: the company I now deal with also provides freebie web hosting for our Mac club, Ron: so it felt like the right thing to do Dr.D.: I just left long-distance on Bell System/AT&T and left it alone. Ron: and they have a local office where I can go and scream and shout and jump up and down Dr.D.: I just left local service on Ohio Bell/Ameritech/SBC and left it alone. rich-c: yes, if you are getting web hosting for free, that's value added Dr.D.: I never bothered with the jump-around-for-savings stuff. Ron: When I first took up with Shaw Cable, ADSL was not available in my area rich-c: we are still taking our basic phone service from Ma Bell Dr.D.: And no cell phone, no fancy extra services, so they have no bait I want to bite on. Dr.D.: I am an antediluvian customer. rich-c: but we are using a 10-10 dial-around for long distance at 5 cents a minute Ron: right Ron: that's pretty good Rich rich-c: yes, among other things you don't have that phony monthly "connection charge" even if you don't use long distance Ron: indeed rich-c: that's what blew Frances' fuses and persuaded her to change Dr.D.: If it weren't for having the teenagers in the house, we would still be on the measured service for local calls: 30 local calls/month, 25 cents each call thereafter. Ron: would be enough to boil the accountant's blood all right rich-c: I have a flyer here from 3WebXS offering ADSL at $24.95 if you take their long distance service Dr.D.: We did that until about 1995. rich-c: the gimmick is their long distance service is 4.5 cents a minute 24/7 in North America Dr.D.: By then Christina was doing too many things in school and church that we needed to make more than the 30 calls. Ron: Those who endeavour to sell long distance service on the telephone should be shot Ron: For them, the word "no" doesn't exits rich-c: we still have Bell basic home service - even pulse not tone dial Ron: I too have a telephone with a Strowger switch Ron: most reliable phone in the house rich-c: my cellphone is a basic connection charge monthly, but it's pennies - every calling minute is charged but so what? rich-c: and of course my internet is independent dial-up rich-c: but then I throw quarters around like they wre manhole covers ;-) Ron: we on the island have only just graduated from the tin can and string era rich-c: well Bell desperately wants to get rid of pulse dialling but the CRTC won't let them Ron: damn rights Ron: and so they shouldn't rich-c: the gimmick is that tone dialling is still an added service and not subject to price regulation rich-c: so as soon as they get you on tone dial, they can really stick it to you all they want Ron: most people probably wouldn't know that rich-c: the CRTC really boobed when they did let Bell make all new installations mandatory tone dial Dr.D.: Sorry, I was called away for a while. rich-c: so if we ever move, we're toast Ron: yep..... grandfathered have you been Ron: so don't move, don't die Dr.D.: It won't even understand pulse? rich-c: well, if we're going to have regulation, there should not be that loophole for Bell Dr.D.: Well, Richard can move where he likes, but of course, don't die!!! Ron: but if he moves, he loses his pulse Ron: that didn't sound right rich-c: oh, I've got to dial pulse when on the Bell system but as soon as the connection answers I can just hit star and it switched to tone for voice mail Ron: aha Ron: not a true purist then rich-c: well, every once in a while I do get bloody-minded with some outfit and just block their line till they answer, then explain I have a rotary phone Ron: following which there's dead silence at the other end Ron: a what? Dr.D.: I got a beautiful red rotary phone from a flea market at the Greek festival last year. rich-c: yes, despite the fact that there are apparently a couple hundred thousand of us old mossbacks out there Dr.D.: Original red connect cord ending in a beige plastic 4-prong connector. Ron: One of my Mac buddies collects 'em..... his apartment is crawling with dead telephones Ron: 'course.... I can't talk about that sort of thing Dr.D.: Build by Western Electric in 1974. Pristine condition. Dr.D.: I donated it to Theta Chi Fraternity at CWRU (my fraternity), whose colors are Military Red and White. Ron: they'll be worth money some day Dr. D,,,, if they aren't already rich-c: we have a Nortel phone we bought at the Bell shop some years ago Dr.D.: They put it in their study lounge, nicknamed the War Room. rich-c: interesting that they sold a pulse phone with the convert to tone switch Ron: ha ha ha..... cool! Dr.D.: It has a great ring. Dr.D.: The only thing it doesn't do is flash the case like Commissioner Gordon's Bat Phone. rich-c: we got a big button phone for Frances' mother and may now use that Dr.D.: It really looks like a hotline to the Kremlin. Ron: :) Dr.D.: And the white dial label is also pristine, nobody ever wrote anything on it. Ron: now that's unusual Dr.D.: I have an equally pristine Bell DataPhone with 300 bps Bell 103A modem in it. rich-c: yes, that really is quite rare rich-c: maybe it came from the local bordello where anonymity was desired? Dr.D.: It's rotary, of course...but there are illuminated push buttons to select for voice or data. Ron: about the only thing I've got left around here is a 300 baud acoustic coupler Ron: phones don't even fit it any more Dr.D.: Haha, if it were a cathouse phone, it would've been all beat up, methinks. Ron: yup rich-c: yes, I guess if it were styled for use in a public area, it would be rather useed Dr.D.: I think someone bought it and never installed it. Ron: sounds like that was the case Dr.D.: Or rather it was installed and then never reclaimed by Ohio Bell. rich-c: that is, surprisingly, not an unusual event Dr.D.: The phone is stamped on the receiver "Property of Ohio Bell", molded in the plastic. Ron: Back in those days telco owned the equipment right down to the telephone, right? rich-c: no doubt some guy brought it home and his wife wouldn't have it - made the place look like a cathouse ;-) Dr.D.: Yep, it was illegal to install any non-Bell equipment. Ron: yes rich-c: yes, on my chronology the change to allow us to own our own phones is relatively recent Dr.D.: We had one such "illegal" phone in our house when I was a boy, a big black desktop from about 1960 that my mom spray-painted Harvest Gold to match the decor in the basement, where it was bestowed. Dr.D.: Our "legit" phone was a wall-mount rotary. rich-c: coloured, no doubt, avacado green? Ron: The original here is newer than that, but still has the rotary dial Dr.D.: I have an ITT beige desktop and white Genuine Bell wall-mount, both rotary. Ron: It's the only one in the house that will work in a power failure Dr.D.: Haha, that was a bug that bit many people during the blackout here, all they had was a cordless phone. Ron: exactly rich-c: reeally? your phone service goes out in tone mode when you have a power outage? rich-c: Ithough cordless phones just worked on rechargable batteries Ron: Could be we have older switching equipment still (the island, you know) rich-c: or is it a matter that the base needs power on to function? Dr.D.: The base station broadcaster is powered. Ron: the latter Rich Dr.D.: Only batteries are in the receiver. Ron: base station needs juice rich-c: I guess my Luddite attitudes have their redeeming features after all Ron: Don't knock it Rich....... we may all one day have to return to older methods. rich-c: I have never had the urge to invest in a cordless phone Dr.D.: Christina harped endlessly for one so she could hide in her room and talk. rich-c: though you should see our cable reel - we can get teh wire clear to the back doort Ron: yeah, for the young ones, it must have been tough Dr.D.: It has been useful for me once or twice when calling Joan to reboot some computer or tell me exactly what was wrong with some washing machine part while I was at work. Ron: a little mobility Dr.D.: But I don't mind talking from the kitchen. Dr.D.: Phone ringing...I bet it's Joan ready to be picked up from work. Dr.D.: Yep. rich-c: house small as ours, a long cord is pretty well adequate Ron: cordless phones for some reason, do not like the snake pit herre Ron: to much EMI Ron: nor does am radio Dr.D.: Okay, I'm off to get Joan. rich-c: you get places like that Dr.D.: Nice to chat with you both, see you Wednesday. Ron: Ok Dr. D... say hello for u Ron: i mean say hello for us rich-c: my van radio doesnt like stereo FM when parked in fromnt of my garage Dr.D.: Will do. Dr.D.: <poof> Ron: I must away too... think mother wants to go downtown
Dr.D. left chat session rich-c: see you Rich rich-c: OK Ron, catch you then on Wednesday Ron: so we'll see ya Wed Rich Ron: yup rich-c: take care Ron: bye rich-c: bye
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