That's rather a bargain (considering the house price) compared with Long Island, New York. I have a modest 3-BR ranch (1,000 sq ft) witn attached garage on 1/6 acre (70 x 100 ft). I'm just under an hour by express train from Penn Station in Manhattan. On this house, the taxes are $6,543.90 next year. As they say on a local radio commercial "taxes to choke a rhino!" We also pay a state income tax, as well as state and local sales taxes.
I too thought of Der Ring when I spotted this post. However, Wagner's music alone for his Ring epic covers nearly 16 hours. Der Ring is usually presented in a series of 4 operas over as many evenings, each one having intermissions (excepting Das Rheingold which is one act and sometimes performed without intermission).
Peter Jackson's films (even if we go with the "extended" versions) would cover some 10 hours, but I suspect you'd need a really dedicated audience to make a go of a 3-evening musical.
I bought a "white box" computer upgrade last December when my old drive crashed with a corrupted FAT. The previous machine had a SCSI card for my scanner and internal JAZ drive as well as an internal ZIP. I still had backup material on those mediums, so for about $700 the local shop upgraded the innards keeping only the case, power supply, ethernet card, ZIP and JAZ drives. I didn't need a new monitor, printer, speakers, keyboard, mouse and all the other "stuff" you get with a new system, and saved myself the bother disposing of all that. Plus I was able to restore my bookmarks, address book, correspondence, etc. Try buying a machine from one of the big makers with those "obsolete" drives and you'll be treated like someone with three heads.
Anyhow, that's why I went with the local shop: they provided me with exactly what I needed, without a lot of stuff I had no use for.
All of the HDTV transmitters and antennae in the New York City area were destroyed on 9/11. No decision has yet been made on an "equivalent" replacement. The Empire State building is not equipped to handle all of the hardware necessary to resume local over-the-air broadcasts (before the WTC was built, most broadcasts came from the Empire State).
As a Long Island resident who has always used an antenna (why should I pay monthly for something that's "free"? OK, the Sci-Fi channel is good!), I won't be getting HDTV any time soon. But as others have pointed out, I wonder how many sales people in the local electronic stores would even mention this obstacle?
I've used the Cambridge SoundWorks "PCWorks" amplified system on my computer for a few years. I've also given them to friends and relatives (who thought they needed a new sound card, but were pleasantly surprised with the new speakers) as gifts. They are a definite step up from the usual "give away" speakers that come with a computer system, and they're not expensive. I've even seen the system for $40 - 50 (US) in stores like Staples, MicroCenter, and others. You can also get them from www.hifi.com (1-800-for-hifi). Cambridge SoundWorks makes several 3- (and even) 5-piece systems for computers, so there's a good selection depending on your needs and budget.
I don't work for any of those outfits, but thanks to a Scottish heritage, I do enjoy a good buy.
Good luck on your shopping and let us know what you finally get.
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That's rather a bargain (considering the house price) compared with Long Island, New York. I have a modest 3-BR ranch (1,000 sq ft) witn attached garage on 1/6 acre (70 x 100 ft). I'm just under an hour by express train from Penn Station in Manhattan. On this house, the taxes are $6,543.90 next year. As they say on a local radio commercial "taxes to choke a rhino!" We also pay a state income tax, as well as state and local sales taxes.
I too thought of Der Ring when I spotted this post. However, Wagner's music alone for his Ring epic covers nearly 16 hours. Der Ring is usually presented in a series of 4 operas over as many evenings, each one having intermissions (excepting Das Rheingold which is one act and sometimes performed without intermission).
Peter Jackson's films (even if we go with the "extended" versions) would cover some 10 hours, but I suspect you'd need a really dedicated audience to make a go of a 3-evening musical.
I bought a "white box" computer upgrade last December when my old drive crashed with a corrupted FAT. The previous machine had a SCSI card for my scanner and internal JAZ drive as well as an internal ZIP. I still had backup material on those mediums, so for about $700 the local shop upgraded the innards keeping only the case, power supply, ethernet card, ZIP and JAZ drives. I didn't need a new monitor, printer, speakers, keyboard, mouse and all the other "stuff" you get with a new system, and saved myself the bother disposing of all that. Plus I was able to restore my bookmarks, address book, correspondence, etc. Try buying a machine from one of the big makers with those "obsolete" drives and you'll be treated like someone with three heads.
Anyhow, that's why I went with the local shop: they provided me with exactly what I needed, without a lot of stuff I had no use for.
As a Long Island resident who has always used an antenna (why should I pay monthly for something that's "free"? OK, the Sci-Fi channel is good!), I won't be getting HDTV any time soon. But as others have pointed out, I wonder how many sales people in the local electronic stores would even mention this obstacle?
I don't work for any of those outfits, but thanks to a Scottish heritage, I do enjoy a good buy.
Good luck on your shopping and let us know what you finally get.