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With an auto hammer of course.

Thank you for teaching us that those exist!

With an auto hammer of course.

• get a good, solid standup desk, one you could lean on. There's a lot of cheap crap out there. Mine is a 4'x3' wood top, lots of space. Something like this but not this
• get one that's adjustable. There are all kinds of weird things out there (motorized for example), but mine has a simple crank to set the height. It isn't clear for awhile what the height should be and you should be able to adjust it.
• get a standing mat. I just picked one up a Sears like this but you can get one anywhere. This made standing a lot easier. In the beginning, my feet hurt much more than anything else

By the way, I'm 57 and have had operations on both knees. Not a problem.

I have an Craftsman Multimeter #282408 that looks very close to a Fluke. Strange but when you look at Craftsman's line now and the last few years, the yellow is gone. I have two Flukes too.

http://www.sears.com/search=cr...

Most of the time when I run the washing machine, I want the clothes clean today, I don't care particularly when.

I'm pretty sure that's not true for nearly anybody else.

No idea when it's going to start washing means you have no idea when to go in and move them to the dryer. And since you have no idea when the dryer will start, you have no idea when you'll need to come and take them out. 9pm? 2am?

These delays will also be multiplied by how many loads of laundry you're trying to get done that day, making it a completely unworkable scheme for most households.

you can either advance or delay the chilling by quite a bit without affecting the temperature. You can also run the compressor and chill the coolant a bit in advance of needing it,

No. Unless you think 10 minutes is quite a bit of time. Fluctuations in ambient temperatures (day versus night), frequency of access, and items being added/removed will substantially change the interior temperatures in very short order. If the compressor doesn't come on RIGHT AWAY, you're going to very quickly have frozen items melting, and refrigerated items going above the proper temperatures, and spoiling more quickly.

And predicting the future is a similarly bad idea. The thermostat can detect a temperature rise, then a few minutes later, the temperature could drop below the target, as cold items are removed and re-added, or the thermostat is subject to stray warm air pockets. So when you turn on the compressor in advance, you either risk over-chilling the contents, or you store that cold somewhere, and don't utilize it before it warms again.

you'd likely recoup that in a year if electricity prices fluctuated by 10% during the day.

I can't imagine how you calculated that... Looking-up a basic $500 refrigerator, I see an EnergyGuide rating of $41/yr. A 10% savings would be $4.10. You can't add practically ANYTHING to the design of that refrigerator for $4, never mind extra computer controls that are going to plot and predict future power demands, and the data connection to interface with this smart grid to tell it when electricity is cheaper...

Without a good GPU this Green Lantern costume looks like an Ace Frehley costume!

Not quite reasonable here, but I see the point. I've had windsheild mount before, it doesn't work out in Texas on every model of vehicle due to the sheer amount of solar energy that comes through the windsheild. I've had phones shut off from heat before while driving towards the sun or having it overhead, eight months out of the year. When the sunds behind me it's fine.

It's why I switched to a CD Slot mount holder, it works great and I don't have to trust a suction cuff, which tends to have issues when you have the kinds of temperature ranges we do.

Sears still sells some higher quality stuff, you have to pay for it which a lot of people don't so Sears offers choices.

I went through one of these in about 2 months
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-evolv-gel-handle-hand-trowel/p-07164912000P?prdNo=1

before buying one of these that has lasted YEARS..
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-ergonomic-hand-gardening-trowel/p-07164921000P?prdNo=21

Same with the garden hoses and just about every other thing in the lawn and garden section. Sears also has a huge line of industrial and professional hand tools (wrenches, sockets etc) but they are about 2x of the regualr Craftsman line. Most small stores do not carry them but they are readily available online and in the tool catalogs.

Sears still sells some higher quality stuff, you have to pay for it which a lot of people don't so Sears offers choices.

I went through one of these in about 2 months
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-evolv-gel-handle-hand-trowel/p-07164912000P?prdNo=1

before buying one of these that has lasted YEARS..
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-ergonomic-hand-gardening-trowel/p-07164921000P?prdNo=21

Same with the garden hoses and just about every other thing in the lawn and garden section. Sears also has a huge line of industrial and professional hand tools (wrenches, sockets etc) but they are about 2x of the regualr Craftsman line. Most small stores do not carry them but they are readily available online and in the tool catalogs.

I take something like this on this bus: http://www.walmart.com/ip/2-Wheel-Folding-Shopping-Cart-w-Folding-Shelf-Silver/10929354

Or a trailer like this for my bike: http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&client=ubuntu&hs=4y7&channel=fs&q=bike+trailer&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&biw=1280&bih=787&noj=1&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=2622355757712821004&sa=X&ei=hxs9UIO2NKfs0gHesoD4Ag&ved=0CKgBEPMCMAg

Or walk with a wagon like this: http://www.sears.com/tricam-industries-steel-garden-cart/p-07164406000P

it's attractive that they are offering an android tablet comparable to the Kindle Fire, for $50 less.

I don't know that it's comparable to the Kindle Fire given the resistive screen among other specs. Heck this one is $99, has pretty much the same specs as the offering by Family Christian except the Sears model is capacitive.

"If the Apple Retina display is already beyond the point a human eye can resolve - what's more resolution going to get you?"
You just need these 2.5x near-focus binocular spectacles. Stylish, too.

Or why a thermostat would be Internet accessible.

Want to know why a thermostat would be Internet accessible? see here

Want to know why a garage door opener would be Internet accessible? see here

More and more things are becoming that way. like it or not.

Yes, burning up fossil fuels just to keep warm water when no one needs it is of course more intelligent, sensible and rational. Or simply typical american over-the-top mind-set of exaggerated wasting of resources.

We have inline water heaters here (in the USA) too; they just aren't very popular yet, and are fairly new, but they're becoming more and more popular. I haven't tried one, but from what I read, they can heat water just as well as a tank-type heater, and don't run out of hot water the way tanks do. The problem is they require a big 220V cable, as they obviously use a lot of power. Maybe the ones in Europe aren't as powerful?

For instance, here's one that needs 8kW of power; that means you need a 40A 240V circuit, which is a lot bigger than your standard European 240V outlet (I think most of those are only 10A).

The big problem with tanks is that, depending on how far your tap or shower is from the tank, it can take forever to get any hot water; you end up turning it on and letting it run for a minute or two before using it.

Ah, yes. That's why more people die in car accidents in the USA than in Europe.

Not sure, but this might be because of higher speeds. Energy goes up with the 4th power of velocity IIRC, so the faster you go, the worse it's going to be in a crash. So if your speed is limited by tiny streets, your fatality rate will be lower, even though your accident rate may be higher. I've heard from Indians that they have tons of crashes over there due to the totally chaotic roads, but people rarely die because no one ever drives over 35mph and they're usually stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Of course, our complete lack of real driver training and allowing every moron and his brother to drive don't help. What I hear about German driver training makes me jealous.

You can already buy hats with LEDs in the brim from places like Sears: http://www.sears.com/craftsman-4-led-hat/p-03493353000P
So a few bucks to change out the LEDs to IR LEDs and you are good to go.

.... then we're in trouble

I ran into their awful code back in August, when I was trying to sign in for a Sears email special (hey, I need some cheap tools ...)

the page is still there:
http://www.sears.com/shc/s/dap_10153_12605_DAP_Get%20Connected?adCell=WF

It wouldn't validate my password (say ... for example, "ab1cd2ef"), even though it met all the requirements:

"Password must be at least 8 characters, contain at least one number and one character, not start with a number and not contain any
special characters."

so I dug in a little, and found quite a gem of Javascript !
if (/^[a-zA-Z]+[0-9]+[a-zA-Z]*$/.test(oPass.value) == false) {
                alert(invalidMsg);
                oPass.focus();
                return false;
        }

it won't handle the two numbers ...

try it ... go to the sears link up there, and try registering with a password like ("ab1cd2de") ... don't worry, it won't work, so your (hopefully fake) email will be safe ...

if you want to see what's happening, have a look at the script.js file, and searh for the function verifyPass() ...
you can even see some commented out code of their previous attempts at implementing this basic functionality ...

I emailed Sears back in August, telling them where the error was, and a simple way to fix the regex used ... but all I got was an "out of office reply"

ah we.. I still managed to register after all, and have bought a few tools on sale ...

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/search_10153_12605?keyword=tablet

Also amusing - remember how everyone was saying how stupid the "iPad" name was when it first came out, with tons of jokes having to do with periods? That page lists the ePad, the APad, and the ThinkPad.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/search_10153_12605?keyword=tablet

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_66610683000P

If you're looking for cheap... try this:

http://www.usbfever.com/index_eproduct_view.php?products_id=867

Even something as obscure as the Breast Drill - http://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2010/12/hand-powered-drilling-tools-and-machines.html#more

Apparently can still be purchased at Sears. http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00934093000P

According to Kevin Kelley, Technology never dies. -- http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2010/11/kelly_on_techno.html
About midway through this hour-long podcast, Kelly describes an experiment where they took a 100 year old Montgomery Ward Catalog, and managed to find everything in it still being manufactured somewhere.

I myself still manufacture ancient Catapults and Trebuchets, -- http://www.rlt.com/ -- both small model and full-sized machines. (Fortunately, I was NOT the maker of the drug launching catapult found at the Mexican border that was in the news recently.)

Here's the answer to your needs. Most assembled products these days use thermal pads since they are much easier to automate and can come in higher transfer values than pastes.

If you have to get one now, the Viewsonic G-Tablet for $400 is as generic an Android tablet as I've seen; Tegra 2 processor, 10.1" 1024 X 600 screen, 512MB RAM, 16GB flash, mini SD card slot, mini and full-size USB ports, B/G/N WiFi, Bluetooth, an honest 8-10 hours of battery life, etc., etc.

If you read the reviews, there seem to be two categories. People who are disappointed with the out-of-the-box Tap-n-Tap interface and return it, and those who spend an hour or two updating the software and are happy with it.

Viewsonic does seem committed to improving the G-Tablet and is reportedly pushing out frequent software updates.

And it's available from Amazon and Sears.

Thanks. I just found 2GB netbooks
do exist. What you own is as good as experimental until it is easier to find on shelves; reminds me of the topic of the Google Nexus. It was just as hard to locate out in the wild in users' hands.

Meanwhile, here is the projected price of your device in 2009 ($350) and here is how pricewise ($728) it is just it is piled together with the laptop category.

The Viewsonic G Tablet is out and available now at, for example, Sears for $400.

Decent specs; 10" screen, 1GHz Tegra 2 processor, 512MB RAM, 16GB flash, Android 2.2.

My impression from reading the reviews is that the hardware is decent but the software needs a little work, probably because it's just been released. If you can put some effort into tweaking it you can end up with a decent tablet, or you can wait 6 months and hopefully let Viewsonic iron out the wrinkles.

I am surprised anybody buys it. You can buy an iPad for about the same price, and the iPad does far more.

Arguably the kindle is better for just reading - still.

Sears has the "Aluratek LIBRE eBook Reader PRO" for $99, and buy.com has the "Ectaco jetBOOK LITE e-Book Reader" also for $99.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00309013000P?vName=Computers%20&%20Electronics&cName=PortableElectronics&sName=MP3%20Players&psid=FROOGLE01&sid=IDx20070921x00003a

http://www.buy.com/prod/ectaco-jetbook-lite-e-book-reader/q/listingid/84607877/loc/111/213401968.html

The reason that the kindle / sony reader / nook are better than these $99 readers is because they use e-ink. Which really is a different feel for reading and viewing. If you haven't seen it then you don't realize how much of a difference it brings over the other display types. It is also why they are better at just plain reading then the iPad ever can be just because of eye strain levels.

I am surprised anybody buys it. You can buy an iPad for about the same price, and the iPad does far more.

Arguably the kindle is better for just reading - still.

Sears has the "Aluratek LIBRE eBook Reader PRO" for $99, and buy.com has the "Ectaco jetBOOK LITE e-Book Reader" also for $99.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00309013000P?vName=Computers%20&%20Electronics&cName=PortableElectronics&sName=MP3%20Players&psid=FROOGLE01&sid=IDx20070921x00003a

http://www.buy.com/prod/ectaco-jetbook-lite-e-book-reader/q/listingid/84607877/loc/111/213401968.html

Maybe a uniform design like a red jacket with a shining insignia on the left chest and a black top that covers the shoulders and a little down. + black pants. Naturally all made in spandex.

No spandex! Who do you think we're dealing with here, Heather Locklear? More like this.

Here's a cheap DVR: $300 or ~$250 on ebay - It lets you record two different programs at the same time, while watching a third program off the hard drive: http://www.sears.com/shc/s/ProductDisplay?partNumber=05757709000P&storeId=10153&catalogId=12605

Or just get one of these and use your old DVR or VCR - http://www.dishnetwork.com/dtvpal/plus.shtml

Sony PS3, SLIM PRESELL 1

> Gas powered dryers? Really? They exist?

Ask and ye shall receive:

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/s_10153_12605_Appliances_Washers+%26+Dryers_Dryers?sbf=Brand&sbv=Kenmore#viewItems=40&pageNum=1&sortOption=ORIGINAL_SORT_ORDER&&filter=Power+Source|Gas&lastFilter=Power+Source

Couple one of these with a front-loading washer to save money on your utility bills.

TFA is even worse than "Sears Horsepower". Take this link for example:

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00970394000P?vName=Tools&keyword=compressor

By some miracle, Sears can pull "1.5 Hp" using "only 8 amps at 115 volts". Truly a miracle of perpetual motion.

So, I figure, using "sears horsepower" they could calculate 200000 / ( ( 8*115) / 1.5 ) = some 326 Sears Horsepower for their little car.

Sears horsepower used to be the absolute peak of scummy non-scientific marketing, second only to "music power" of audiophile amplifiers, but these car guys might set a new low.

Allow me to be blatantly honest. I think kids should have the right to explore their sexuality in a safe manner online. I know I did.

Times haven't changed so much

"While it wouldn't maybe help the INDIVIDUAL very much, the ENTIRE COUNTRY would benefit a decent amount."

Great, so the country will benefit from [mainly] inflating their tires.

I sure hope those tire gauges from China are accurate, cause the last 2 I bought here and here are different by 9psi.

Looks like the country benefiting from this isn't ours at 14.99 a pop.

Let's face it, neither plan from either candidate satisfies the public--it's because BOTH are relying on industry and corporations (for alternative energy and efficiency) to solve it. Conservation is a start, but a long road--and we're looking at 20-30yrs.

I doubt either candidate will supply the answer we need, but sure would like to give us the answer we want. Hey, it's an election year!

I don't know any country that would make a profit off the .001% of the dumba__ that would pay $14.99 for a tire gauge that the rest of the WORLD can buy at their local gas station for LESS than $1.

Where in the hell are you buying Tire Gauges?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B000NPPBB0/sr=8-15/qid=1219119626/ref=olp_tab_new?ie=UTF8&coliid=&me=&qid=1219119626&sr=8-15&seller=&colid=&condition=new

And that's from Amazon.

"While it wouldn't maybe help the INDIVIDUAL very much, the ENTIRE COUNTRY would benefit a decent amount."

Great, so the country will benefit from [mainly] inflating their tires.

I sure hope those tire gauges from China are accurate, cause the last 2 I bought here and here are different by 9psi.

Looks like the country benefiting from this isn't ours at 14.99 a pop.

Let's face it, neither plan from either candidate satisfies the public--it's because BOTH are relying on industry and corporations (for alternative energy and efficiency) to solve it. Conservation is a start, but a long road--and we're looking at 20-30yrs.

I doubt either candidate will supply the answer we need, but sure would like to give us the answer we want. Hey, it's an election year!

I don't know any country that would make a profit off the .001% of the dumba__ that would pay $14.99 for a tire gauge that the rest of the WORLD can buy at their local gas station for LESS than $1.

Where in the hell are you buying Tire Gauges?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B000NPPBB0/sr=8-15/qid=1219119626/ref=olp_tab_new?ie=UTF8&coliid=&me=&qid=1219119626&sr=8-15&seller=&colid=&condition=new

And that's from Amazon.

"While it wouldn't maybe help the INDIVIDUAL very much, the ENTIRE COUNTRY would benefit a decent amount."

Great, so the country will benefit from [mainly] inflating their tires.

I sure hope those tire gauges from China are accurate, cause the last 2 I bought here and here are different by 9psi.

Looks like the country benefiting from this isn't ours at 14.99 a pop.

Let's face it, neither plan from either candidate satisfies the public--it's because BOTH are relying on industry and corporations (for alternative energy and efficiency) to solve it. Conservation is a start, but a long road--and we're looking at 20-30yrs.

I doubt either candidate will supply the answer we need, but sure would like to give us the answer we want. Hey, it's an election year!

"While it wouldn't maybe help the INDIVIDUAL very much, the ENTIRE COUNTRY would benefit a decent amount."

Great, so the country will benefit from [mainly] inflating their tires.

I sure hope those tire gauges from China are accurate, cause the last 2 I bought here and here are different by 9psi.

Looks like the country benefiting from this isn't ours at 14.99 a pop.

Let's face it, neither plan from either candidate satisfies the public--it's because BOTH are relying on industry and corporations (for alternative energy and efficiency) to solve it. Conservation is a start, but a long road--and we're looking at 20-30yrs.

I doubt either candidate will supply the answer we need, but sure would like to give us the answer we want. Hey, it's an election year!

First, let me say that this isn't one of those "I've heard that this works..." things. I've actually used this method. I still do. It works. It's sounds crazy... but it works. It works with big, honkin', mondo scratches. It requires you buying a sander from Sears, but it's handy for other stuff, too... so, in the end, you've got yourself a nifty sander as well.

Next, you probably already know this, but the data is on the top of the disc. If you scratch the top, the data is gone and isn't coming back. So, check carefully to make sure that it's really a scratch on the underside.

First, go to Sears and get one of their "3D" sanders. It's a strange-looking 3-pad sander which is basically the sanding equivalent of a Norelco razor. They sell a variety of hook-n-loop sanding pads to go with it. Get the one with the buffing/polishing pads (get enough so that you have at least 6 of the felt-looking polishing pads) and also get the extra-fine sanding disc set (which has discs from grit 280 through 1000). Also, pick up a can of rubbing compound and a can of polishing compound.

[] Bring it all home and put one of your CD's face-down on some folder paper-towels.
[] Use a Sharpie or dark, permanent marker to mark the scratches so that you'll know when you've sanded them out.
[] Put the 400 or 600 grit discs on the sander and start sanding. Don't bother trying to get just that one spot where the scratch is... we're going to re-do the whole damn surface. So, hold the sander flat, and just move it around to get a good, even reduction of the surface. If you want, you can add some water to wet-sand it. Don't go too fast... no need to fling the water all over the place. Also, you don't want to overheat the sander OR the disc material. At this point, the disc will look like it's ruined forever. It's not. In fact, show it to some friends and see if they'll bet that it'll never play again.
[] If you're still not getting the scratch out, then you can go to a coarser grit.
[] Once it looks like you've sanded the scratch out, start moving through the finer and finer grits. It can be difficult to tell when you've gotten rid of the previous grit's scratches, so I usually draw big squiggles on the disc with a sharpie and then sand until they're gone... and then I do it again, and then I'll switch grits.
[] Once you've gone through the finest grit, get out the first set of polishing pads (the ones that look like yellowish felt) and put some rubbing compound on the disc and start polishing at a low speed. This can generate some heat and will dry up the compound pretty soon, so spritz some water on the disc to keep the compound working. Do this for a couple of minutes.
[] Now, clean all of the rubbing compound off of the disc, put the other 3 polishing discs on and do the same with the polishing compound.
[] Now, clean the disk off and put on the buffing pads (the ones that look like super-bushy white loop-velcro). You're going to do this one DRY and without any compounds or anything... just the pads. Go ahead and crank the sander up to higher speeds for this one... like 7 or 8 or so. You're going to generate a bit of static electricity and you'll be zapping yourself the whole time... just so you know.
[] After a few minutes of this, you should have a disc that is kinda hazy... but without any large scratches. Give it a play in your player. If it doesn't play right, then give it more time with the buffer. Or, if you still see some scratches, then back up to the sanding and get those scratches out.
[] Good luck.

Desktop linux machines have already hit the $200 mark.

Mirus ($189.99 after rebate)
Everex ($199.99)
KPC ($229)
Limbo ($249)

Yeah, it's a bit off. For some reason I pulled 28 amps@240 volts out of my head rather than going with the simple 'It's got a 5500W element in it'.

So that's 5.5 kw, not 6.7. But you're off as well, as in the USA a 30A, 240V installation is what could be considered normal for an electric water heater.

Here in the US, the water heater would definitly be considered power-consuming, but we manage with single phase 240V, normally a 50amp breaker for a combined stove/oven, 30A for the water heater, 30-50 amp for electric heat or AC.

Water heaters, in the USA, are standardly hard wired, not plugged into the wall. Just replaced mine last week, as a matter of fact. Installed it myself. A couple large wire nuts and a ground screw, 10 gauge wire is a pain compared to 12 or 14 gauge. Still easier than adjusting the plumbing(my new unit is quite a bit taller and wider due to increased insulation levels as I bought a higher end unit).

BTW 'Wall Wart' traditionally refers to a AC-DC converter at the end of a plug, generally large enough to block the other outlet(an annoyance if you want the other slot).

Thought I responded to this earlier, but the response never showed up...

And while today he may be loosing $400 per year, energy prices are only going up.

Then you invest in the system when energy prices are high enough to justify it - Electricity is more stable than oil, excepting California. The price of solar systems are dropping. So it makes more sense to invest in the solar system in the future.

For example, he takes the $15k, invests it into stocks and such. He'll make, on average, $1.5k a year, which can be used to pay for his electricity and then some. In a decade, when the cost of electricity has climbed to the point that it isn't true, and the cost for a solar system has dropped to $10k, then invest in it.

My real problem is with the fact that in order to make it economical for an individual, the government had to subsidize 70% of the costs, then keep paying him!

Now, I can understand schemes that do things like 'energy saving features(including solar energy panels) don't get added to the 'worth' of a house for the purposes of taxes'. But we're not talking paying for 70% of the system!

Yea, the lack of details here makes it hard to make a decision on whether it's good or not. For instance a Sun Frost refrigerator will beat many other refrigerators that are Energy Star rated in energy efficiency.

The only problem I have with them is that they're too expensive. I can get an 18.4CF refrigerator from sears for $388(or $499, if you don't buy it 'on sale'). Energy Star says it'll use 479kWh a year. More expensive conventional refrigerators offer more features like water dispensing, not normally better efficiency. The RF19, the largest unit Sun Frost makes, uses only 281 kWh a year, but also only has 16.14 cubic feet of internal space, and costs $3K.

It'll save 198 kWh/year, but capital cost wise is down ~$200. It's better quality, but doesn't have quite as much storage space... This is marking up the cheap unit up to $1k, IE you're replacing/repairing it more frequently.
At 10 cents/ kWh, that's only saving you $19.80 a year in electricity. If you're paying a dollar a kWh, then it starts making sense.

Besides all this, if he bought a sun frost, was the price difference included in the $50k? That's hiding expenses and overstating the energy savings right there.

A Nuclear Loan Provision which would guaranty loans was slipped into a farm bill, what does nuclear power have to do with farming? I'm all for ending subsidies for solar but I want all subsidies eliminated, including those for big businesses.

Sure, let's stop all of them. I just want to point out that a loan guarantee isn't anywhere as expensive as what the solar/wind industries are getting. As for the farm bill thing, all I can do is shrug, because I hate it as well, but it happens all the time.

Admittedly I live alone, but even living with others my electric bill wouldn't be much higher than it is now, and it's below $30.

I'm alone as well, but while I don't have AC, I do run one computer all the time, but the big killers would be that all my appliances except central heat are electric. All my water is electrically heated(and I like HOT showers). My stove is electric, etc...

I've looked at getting a new propane water heater, but I'd need to modify the gas lines in my house, and I'm somewhat scared about that. Need to contact my propane company sometime to see if they can help.

Edit to previous post - Wii's available at Sears.com now!

Didn't RTFA?
They have a Craftsman 1 inch X 2 Light Year measuring tape!

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?cat=Hand +Tools%2C+General+Purpose&pid=00937393000&vertical =TOOL&subcat=Measuring+Tools&BV_UseBVCookie=Yes/

I met this artist in 93 or 94, he had built the world's first 3D printer. It used glue and sand, and printed out all sorts of shapes. I don't remember his name, but it was a really interesting presentation. He also had a chair that could shake at different frequencies (he was searching for the Brown Note).

Also, Sears has a 3d woodworking "CompuCarve" that takes 14x5xinfinite pieces. It's sold out because BoingBoing linked to it.

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_Sessi onID=@@@@0018833813.1168235300@@@@&BV_EngineID=cdc caddjkllkmklcefecemldffidfki.0&adCell=P3&pid=00921 754000&vertical=TOOL&ihtoken=1

Josh

A Cadex C7000 battery analyzer
An SB-5 Carbon Pile load tester
An infrared thermometer
A spot welder
UV and infrared lighting equipment, maybe a couple of booths and a couple of handhelds

There is no such thing as an "iPod killer".

Oh, yeah?

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?pid=0093 8358000&vertical=Sears&BV_UseBVCookie=Yes

That really isn't much of an overpriced 'Digital' stereo cable. I've seen less quality for more at Walmart

You should have furnished this link for HDMI cables

Well sure sounds like that'll BLOW AWAY 35mm film and definitely be about comprable to 4x5 film.

I was actually looking for a funny link, but this guy makes a great point -- a good scanner and a roll of that 4x5 film -- yes, four inches by five inches, absolutely huge compared to a 35mm roll -- will get you 100 megapixels of resolution for a couple thousand bucks.

It reminds me of a story I saw (on PBS or Discovery Channel) about modern medicine in developing countries. People will pay extra for a "digital X-Ray", even though the cheap equipment produces a digital image that has far less resolution than a plain old film X-Ray. But it's "digital", so it must be better.

And don't even get me started about overpriced digital stereo cable!

The point is that you can pay a nationally recognized company to build you a computer and install Windows XP on it. It's much harder to find a national OEM vendor that sells machines that have been preloaded with Ubuntu.

Only if their time is worth nothing. If the time to learn how to get Linux working is worth more than the price of a copy of Windows XP and its successor, then the masses will choose Windows XP and its successor.

let the "market" determine what they should stock.

The problem is that "the market" is being ravaged by "the mass market". It's near impossible to get furniture I would consider to be quality (will my grandchildren be arguing over who gets to keep it when my children die?) in large part thanks to people I've spoken to who can say with a straight face that they believe Ikea sells "quality" furniture. Money can no longer buy quality because the market for quality has been consumed by the market for "cheap". And by cheap, I mean cheap... I'm in possession of my grandfathers' dining room furniture which has yet to break, and my father told me that his father had bought all the furniture at a discount store. Meanwhile, I've been through three build-it-myself computer desks: the cheap veneer peels off and the fiberboard beneath swells up and basically dissolves. But where do I get a computer desk that would last? I've thought of building one myself, but a trip to the lumberstores discouraged me. Sure, I could buy some mahogany at $20 a piece, as long as I tolerate a few loose knots and the "slight" warp. Maybe if I went around to 20 stores, I'd be able to put together a desk my great grandkids could play on 60 years from now, using the one piece of usable wood buried in the pile of crap at each store.

To stay on topic, look at the difference between the Kitchenaid mixers WalMart sells vs. the ones stocked at Sears or anywhere else. Sure, you pay less at WalMart, but for what looks like the same model, you get less: Compare 4.5 qt 10 speed mixer here and here: in saving $30 by buying at WalMart, you end up with a weaker motor.

FOUND: THE iPod Killer(s)