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Here you go...$14.99 from Radio Shack.

Well whether or not you think those features are necessary, I'm just trying to answer your question as to why the phone is $400. This is another option.

I see that the Dell one weighs 3.4 lbs, which is about as much as my laptop, and gets "up to 3 hours" run time. I guess that's not too shabby, considering I get about 2 hours now. Combined with the built-in battery, that could make it usable for a cross-country flight, say, where I didn't have a power source.

For a more DIY solution, they also list Li-ion 3.6v cells putting out as much as 2400 mAh. But I have a much older laptop I'd experiment with first. I have lots of things around the house that seem to run off of AA cells, so I might experiment with a bunch of NiMH cells clipped together with things like these first since I've already got quite a few of those cells and chargers lying around.

Can you wait 15 minutes? Try Radio Shack for Rayovac's 15-minute IC3 technology. AA and AAA batteries that recharge in 15 minutes, no joke. I find it handy for my digital camera.

Obviously you've never seen an optical S/PDIF (TOSLink) connector...

You don't need a $40 kit. Radio shack (and others) sell an optical cable that has both the 3.5mm jack and the standard TOSLink connector. Here http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog_name =CTLG&product_id=15-1597 for example.

I'm a three-Leatherman person myself - I've got the Radio Shack version of the Micra (instead of a scissor, it has a plier/wire stripper) on my keychain, a Wave (my personal favorite) that I keep at my office and take along in my kit when I head to a client and expect a tool to be needed, and I have an old PST 2 that was a groomsmen's gift at a friend's wedding many years ago. That one stays in my car at all times.

One thing about all the Leatherman tools is that they seem to hold a blade really well. I've chopped through some nasty stuff in particular with my Wave, and it's held up great over the years I've had it so far.

And I've also got an old Topeak MacGuyver tool that I keep on my bike. Comes in handy at times - it's difficult to use but it's got darn near everything on it and it's lightweight.

I swear reading most of these ask slashdot's are slowly killing me from the inside out.

If you're pissed that a block takes up like 3 ports on a surge protector, get a short extension cord like this: http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog_name =CTLG&category_name=CTLG_009_001_003_000&product_i d=61-2755 , but if you want ONE DC converter with various voltages, you're just asking for trouble. An eyesore they may be, but they're quite safe for the most part and do their job properly.

The Squirt EL [RadioShack -- $40] is very nice and pocket sized, the difference between it and the normal Squirt is that it has plyer/wire-strippers/cutters in the normal plyer -OR- cutter spot.

could anyone explain what exactly is wrong with headphone output?

Maybe you've been extremely lucky but that normally leads to a 60HZ hum from a ground loop. It is very annoying and very noticable. You can buy a small inline transformer from Radio Shack to elimiate the ground loop but you then limit your high and low frequencies as the transformer is not that efficient.

I have a "media" pc attached to my stereo and I've found the coaxial digital output from the plain old SB live plugged into the coaxial digital input to my receiver works great. No hum, and very little noise. The speaker out jack or headphone jack on the same system sounds like complete crap and borderline worthless. The better your stereo is, the more you will notice the downfalls of that headphone jack.

I purchased an IOgear Smartlink cable. I had to use USB 1.1 due to OS and hardware inadequacies, but there may be a USB 2.0 option (though I don't see it on the IOgear site). The connection software is pretty crummy-looking, but it works, and their site claims that it supports Macs as well Windows (although I have not used it on a Mac). Since it's USB 1.1, it is as slow as molassass for entire-drive transfers, and you may prefer a different method.

Another option I looked into was an ethernet crossover cable, which, I believe swaps two of the wires over the course of the cable run. This was available at RadioShack (and I am sure other places). I decided not to go down this route, and it sounds like a no go for you as well, but I'm including it for the sake of completeness.

The third thing that might work is an external harddrive. I didn't use one because of the expense, but it may be worth it if you don't want to wait while your files transfer via USB. If you're doing smallish (less than 1GB) transfers, a thumb-drive may be the easiest way to do this.

It is VERY important that you do not try a straight USB to USB connection without the bridge cable. I understand that it can fry the USB ports on the machines. If you look at the image of the Smartlink cable on the page linked above, you'll see a bulge in the middle of the cable. That's the USB 'slave' that allows both computers to act as masters when doing the file transfer. FireWire may be a different story though, as you may just be able to plug it right in (no guarantees, though).

Universal Antenna.

those screwy star-shaped ones that nobody has

What a torx? They aren't that hard to find. You can get a set for $5 at any hardware store.

http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog_name =CTLG&product_id=42-2559

Volume control cable for your iPod. Merry Christmas.

my only tidbit- are you prepared to give the kid their own computer- or to give yours up? the tivo in my home hangs over my computer, and for some reason, my son loves watching barney standing between me and my keyboard. sometimes he will allow me to sit him on my shoulders and type

there are a lot of 'keyboard banger' games out there, try baby keys from here in full screen

The thing is the solution to the stress fatigue issue is well know. Do you remember 'corded' phones? they had a destinct 'spiraling coil' shape. Well, by spirialing metal in a coil you exponentially reduce the amount of stress caused by repeated flexing, as the metal itself is not forced to bend more than a fraction of a degree at a time. Instead of the metal 'bending' the coils of metal move closer or farther apart from each other.
BTW you can get all the parts you need from say a radio shack to 'Build your own' pro grade headphone cord using a simple coiled telephone cord*, a broken pair of headphones, and a
1/8 jack

Remember, headphones are made throw away cheap so you'll buy more headphones... If they actually made them to last 25-30 years why would you ever buy a new pair of headphones?

*= these are specifically meant for corded telephones and I can't remember if they have 2, 3, or 4 leads... if they have 2 leads, then you'd need to either look for a non-standard 3 or 4 lead cable elsewhere, or use a two 2-lead cables.

The thing is the solution to the stress fatigue issue is well know. Do you remember 'corded' phones? they had a destinct 'spiraling coil' shape. Well, by spirialing metal in a coil you exponentially reduce the amount of stress caused by repeated flexing, as the metal itself is not forced to bend more than a fraction of a degree at a time. Instead of the metal 'bending' the coils of metal move closer or farther apart from each other.
BTW you can get all the parts you need from say a radio shack to 'Build your own' pro grade headphone cord using a simple coiled telephone cord*, a broken pair of headphones, and a
1/8 jack

Remember, headphones are made throw away cheap so you'll buy more headphones... If they actually made them to last 25-30 years why would you ever buy a new pair of headphones?

*= these are specifically meant for corded telephones and I can't remember if they have 2, 3, or 4 leads... if they have 2 leads, then you'd need to either look for a non-standard 3 or 4 lead cable elsewhere, or use a two 2-lead cables.

Radioshack makes a DRM hack! It's crazy, i can't believe they're getting away with it! http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog%5Fna me=CTLG&product%5Fid=42-2387 OUT->IN

FYI... Here's a clampable ferrite bead. This one is small but you could try just clamping it over the lamp cord. It would likely have a noticeable effect.

-The Ruggy

Each XM unit comes with a serial number incorporated into the hardware (firmware?). You don't have to subscribe to purchase the unit, but a subscription is necessary to activate it. Until then all you can get is the preview station on Channel 1.

Once you call in (or log in at the XM website) to subscribe, you give your unit's number, and the authorization comes over the satellite signal once payment is confirmed.

I got my unit using the Opie & Anthony promotion (listeners already on their FoundryMusic mailing list prior to their satellite debut were given the oppurtunity to sign up and get the basic hardware for $50), and it supposedly came pre-activated, but I needed to resubmit the radio's code a couple of times on the XM website before the unit picked up the signal and started loading the stations into memory. After that smooth sailing.

Rather than get the boombox unit (I have the home kit), I used a workaround consisting of the automotive adapter/FM transmitter in conjunction with an AC-DC power supply with 12V automotive power output . This way I can use the transmitter in the house (it also functions as the reciever's power supply), listening with an FM-equipped MP3 player as I move about the house, as well as recording if I desire, since I have a Yepp player with FM recording, as well as an Archos Jukebox recorder that can grab the last 30 seconds of audio preceding a recording session, just in case you decide to record after the song's started.

I'd certainly get more use out of the MiFi, but I'd wait for a bit of a price drop before investing in one (you can add additional recievers to your account for an extra fee). As it is, I've used the home kit in the car using the car adapter/transmitter, and the stock indoor antenna works fine sitting on the dashboard. You only need a secure spot to sit the reciever, as it's a bit nose-heavy in the home docking station.

---PCJ

do you think it's intentional that it looks like a Radio Shack Zip-Zap?
http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog_name =CTLG&category_name=CTLG_006_005_002_004&product_i d=60-7017/

A co-worker bought one of these awhile back, and I was impressed with it. Not a bad choice for a bright 12-year-old.

The TV has greater sensitivity to an incoming signal. I've ran an identical signal, and the TV picked up more stations than the TV Tuner.

w00t

Apparently, there aren't too many old school programmers here who believe in KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid). All sound goes to my stereo by way of this very expensive, complicated device.

Games & movies go in the PS2. Done.

It might not be pretty or the best, but I use this one from Radio Shack. It works and it's cheap.

LK

Then could I offer you a great deal on a cell phone?

Here's the blurb from the site:
Quit lugging around more than one camera on vacation! This tiny camera performs three functions and is incredibly affordable! It's a digital video recorder, 3.2-megapixel digital camera and a PC camera, too.

PRODUCT FEATURES:
• Digital video recorder records digital-quality video in MPEG4 with voice-adding component
• 3.2-megapixel digital camera for beautiful still photos
• PC camera can be used to send live images over the Internet or into storage
• 1.8" TFT LCD screen to preview images as you take them and instantly show again after they're taken
• 4x digital zoom to bring you closer to the action
• 16MB internal memory
• SD® card slot for additional memory
• CD-ROM editing software including ArcSoft Video, photo editing and storage software
• Dimensions: 4.7x2.8x1.8" (11.9x7.1x4.6cm) (WLH)
&#149; Weight: <4.4 oz. without batteries (0.12g)

SPECIFICATIONS:
&#149; Sensor: 1/2.7" CCD 3.2 megapixels
&#149; Lens: F/2.8, auto focus lens
&#149; Sensor sensitivity: ISO 100, 200, 400, Auto
&#149; Focus range: 10cm to infinity
&#149; View finder: 256 Matrix/Center/Spot/AF Area
&#149; Movie file format: MPEG4
&#149; Movie resolution: QVGA (320x240), VGA (640x480)
&#149; Frame rate: (320x240) 30 fps, (640x480) 15 fps
&#149; Image file format: JPEG
&#149; Image resolutions: 640x480, 1600x1200, 2048x1536
&#149; Image quality: Fine; Normal; Basic
&#149; Strobe: Auto/Off/Slow Sync/Forced+Red-Eye Reduction/Auto+Red-Eye Reduction
&#149; Strobe range: 1.2m-2.0m
&#149; White balance: Auto/Sunny/Tungsten/Fluorescent/Cloudy/Speed
&#14 9; EV compensation: &#150;2.0EV-+2.0EV (9-steps)
&#149; Self-timer: 10 seconds
&#149; PC interface: USB 1.1
&#149; TV out: NTSC/PAL
&#149; Power source: 4 &#147;AA&#148; alkaline batteries or AC adapter
&#149; Auto off: 3, 5, 15 minutes (ser selectable)
&#149; Included in the box: camera; USB cable; TV-out cable; hand strap; pouch; alkaline batteries; user's manual; software CD-ROM with driver, Arcsoft Software, VideoImpression, PhotoImpression, Funhouse, PhotoBase

PC SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:

&#149; Operating system: Windows XP/2000/98SE/ME
&#149; CPU: Pentium or higher
&#149; RAM: at least 32MB
&#149; Interface: USB port
&#149; Disk driver: CD-ROM

Well, you can go from your $10 boombox to your PC using the Plusdeck.

or for $135 less ($10 boombox, $5 cable), just get a Cable

Speaking of hobbies, I want to lean more about electronics and circuit theory. Does anyone recommend specific learning kits? I've seen some at Radio Shack and other places. I don't have any place to solder and I don't want to electrocute myself, so I'd like to start out with some kind of kit.

PRODUCT FEATURES:
Meets USB 1.1 requirements
No batteries required
Compatible with Direct-X
Windows XP/2000/ME/98SE/98 compatible

Uh-oh! These guys better run!

Go to your local Radio Shack or other electronics parts store and purchase a ground loop isolator. Fixed my awful interference problems. It was about $15 at my local Radio Shack.

Sorry, $15.99.

All of them try and upsell you on worthless warranties. I know personally that Radio Shack gives much higher commissions on the extended warranties, which is precisely why the salesmen are so damned pushy with it.

I also find it moderately funny that this topic shows up just 1 week after I walked out of Leon's after refusing the "extended fabric care package" on a couch I purchased. The exchange between myself and the salesman:

Me: "I'll take this couch."
Salesman: (blurb about how great the protection package is.) "So do you want it?"
Me: "No thank you, I'm not interested."
Salesman: "You realise you're buying a hamburger without the bun, eh?"
Me: "That's OK, I'm not interested, thank you."
Salesman: "What're you going to do when you stain it?"
Me: "I won't stain it, and besides, I have family that does professional fabric cleaning."
Salesman: "Well are they going to replace it when you stain it and it can't be removed?"
Me: "I'm leaving. I'll shop elsewhere."

I wrote an angry letter to head office, they called and asked about the situation. I explained it to them. Their response: "We actually train our salespeople to be like that."

I've spent $5k at Leon's in the 3 years I've been living on my own, and will never spend another dime there again.

It's a sad day when the consumer can't go somewhere, buy something they like, and leave without being bothered.

&#149; Sends high-quality live video wirelessly to a Web browser anywhere in the world
&#149; Broadcasts over Wireless-B (802.11b) network or over 10/100Base-T Ethernet cable
&#149; Built-in stand-alone Web server for remote video viewing from anywhere
&#149; In security mode, it automatically e-mails an alert with images to your designated addresses
&#149; Supports up to four users simultaneously
&#149; Access the camera anywhere in the world via the Internet
&#149; Dimensions: 3.35x6.1x3.15" (8.5x15.5x8cm) (WHD)
&#149; Weight: 0.53 lbs. (0.24 kg)
&#149; Warranty: 1-year
Specifications:
&#149; Ports: one 10/100 RJ-45 port, one power port
&#149; Control: one reset button
&#149; LEDs: ready, act/link, LAN, wireless
&#149; Security: user authentication & WEP encryption
Minimum Requirements:
&#149; PC with 550MHz or faster processor
&#149; 64MB RAM memory
&#149; Microsoft Windows&#174; Internet Explorer&#174; 5.5 or higher for Web viewing and Web-based configuration
&#149; Cable/DSL connection for Internet viewing
&#149; CD-ROM drive
&#149; Windows&#174; Media Player 7 or higher
&#149; Wired or wireless network adapter with TCP/IP protocol installed
&#149; Windows 98 SE, Me, 2000, XP
What's in the Box:
&#149; Wireless-B Internet video camera
&#149; Setup CD-ROM with User Guide
&#149; Quick installation guide
&#149; Power adapter
&#149; Ethernet network cable
&#149; Camera desktop stand
&#149; Registration cards

I think ideally you should use something like this if you're going from a headphone jack to line in. You used to be able to get a speaker wire-to-line level convertor for use in connecting old car audo decks to line-level-input amps.

The whole setup works pretty smooth, and with some custom apple-scripts, it does everything I want.

I'm very surprised about the consistently positive things people have to say about Vonage, but I also noticed that the "reviews" are very glib, and don't go into any detail about service issues (good or bad).

I'll try to break it down for readability:

1. Call quality - Varies. With some calls, I hear an echo of myself on the line, while other calls are fine. This seems only to be a problem on my end of the line.

Of course, call quality will suffer if you infringe on the amount of bandwidth the VoIP service needs. Basically, if you're using up most of your downstream bandwidth, you'll hear a stutter on the other end of the call; if you're using up most of your upstream, the other party will hear a stutter.

2. Hardware - Up until a few months ago, Vonage sold its customers the Cisco ATA 186 VoIP appliances. These were good units, but expensive. Now Vonage has replaced them with the cheaper, flimsier Motorola VT1005 MTA. My main problem with the VT1005 is that such common phenomena as port scans are enough to bring it down. To make matters worse, Vonage encourages users to keep their routers downstream of the Voice Terminal appliance, which means that a simple port scan is enough to take your entire network offline.

I circumvented this problem by putting the voice terminal downstream of the router. However, even thought the device supports static IP addressing, I can't connect to its web interface using its assigned IP address. If I want to reconfigure it, I have to hard-reset it to reenable DHCP support, and then access it on a DHCP-enabled LAN. Imagine a lay person trying to cope with these issues.

3. Customer Service - This is arguably the worst thing about Vonage. The sporadic service problems and billing issues would be much easier to cope with if customer servic gave two shits. Vonage has some of the worst customer service I've ever dealt with. The support people are ineffective and, in my experience, the calls go nowhere. Don't expect promised callbacks to happen.

4. Loss of service - A notorious problem for Vonage users is you attempt to make a call, and you're greeted with nothing but a fast busy signal. I was once unable to place or receive calls for three days.

5. Spam - Not only does Vonage spam its own customers regularly, they actually started calling customers at home with prerecorded messages encouraging people to refer others to Vonage.

6. Service package - The service package is robust. You can even check (and toggle) your voicemail from a website with a decent interface. The website logs all call activity with timestamps. Very nice. The web site control panel gives you a lot of options. This is definitely a strong point of the service. Unfortunately, the voicemail system has some bugs, but once it's setup its fine.

7. Fax - Vonage charges $10 for a fax line. I don't need a separate fax line, but I use my fax modem occasionally. Oops, Vonage don't play dat. I tried for an hour to send a fax through Vonage without success. If you want to send or receive faxes with Vonage at all, you need to pay them an additional $10/month, regardless of whether you want a separate line to do it.

8. Setup and billing - If you already have a landline and you want to keep your old phone number, switching to Vonage is not fun. Expect to pay concurrently for both your POTS and Vonage service until Vonage and your old telco get around to transferring your phone number. This takes weeks if you're lucky, and months if Vonage screws it up, as in my case. Vonage starts billing you from day one, even if you don't actually have service yet (which you won't).

While Vonage tripped over its own feet, I paid SBC and Vonage for three months of service... except I only hav

Fer chrissakes, link it

See, it's not that hard

Stupid space in link...

Click Here

Maybe something like this?

Coincidently, an anti-static wrist strap will help with electronic grounding!

The sound quality isn't perfect, but it works great for when I'm moving throughout the house. It also doubles as a transmitter from my CD walkman to my (cheap) car stereo.

I know that the Squeezebox has added features, such as a display and a remote, but I can go wireless from PC to stereo for only $30.

If you think this sucks, then you fund their development and distribution costs. As long as Microsoft has the bucks, Microsoft calls the shots. This is no different than any other platform -- look at all the titles that are exclusive to PS2, with no PC version in sight. Oh, but you own a PS2, so that's OK by you, right? So buy an Xbox then and shut up already. Most gamers I know own several consoles for just this reason. Why else do you think they make these?

Can't "own" the songs? Not like we own them now..

Besides, it's nothing one of these babies couldn't fix.

S

I hate the fact that you have to look at this remote to use it.

It could be that the side-by-side battery configuration of your flashlight resembles that of the standard RadioShack battery holder-kit-thing: here
Maybe they think it controls the detonator for a bomb?

-Mr Lizard

Easy solution:

[radioshack.com]

Um, my lowly RedHat 2.1 Linux box was doing all this (except video) back in the early 90's.

Web, File & Print? Trivial.
Lights / HVAC? X10
MP3 music: SliMP3
(and no, you don't need to buy to use their software -- I just happen to own a couple of them :)

Answering machine I hacked up waaay back when myself (still use it via ISDN inbound :). Today MP4's are flying across the network to a Powerbook for watching movies on any TV wirelessly.

For $15K I'd spend it on a Dual G5 with Dual monitors (why not? :) and every toy out there. Probably have a few $K left over... And no, I did not read the article.

Now -- I did look around the (html version) of the site. Nice little product, though IMHO over priced. I hacked it all up for under $3K (including X10 re-wired outlets as needed). A couple of [radio] all-in-one remotes from The Shack and I can control the lights, TV, and stereo as needed throughout the house. I have a remote for each floor actually, though Radio Shack has since discontinued the model I like -- the new one doesn't work with X10 unit codes 11+ anymore for some reason.

Radio Shack has the RadioShack 6-in-1 Kameleon? Touch-Screen Remote. It looks very nice. It's flat but the buttons do have a tactile response. There is a good review on it here

Try the Radioshack 8-in-1 15-2116 for $29.99. Programmable and learning. Best cheap universal remote ever! See Here.