Info and forum posts by 'cirdan'

RE: need a new monitor

thanks for that. we had a look round yesterday. we saw an Lg 22inch and a 23inch Acer within our price range. they both looked good, but i don`t now about connections etc. we had a chat and i think the main use will still be for the computer, but having the flexibility to use a TV card like you said could be an advantage.

cheers

need a new monitor

hope this is in the right place, its hardware but also PC.

we are sorting out internet/land line and mobile at the moment. part of this is to move the computer downstairs, we bought and assembled the desk today, which was fun. i was hoping i could use the computer as a media base i guess. not just for computing but also as a second TV if someone wants to watch something else. i have an older CRT style monitor, probably around 10 years old, and to be honest is and has been fine.

i don`t really now what i am looking for. i now you can use things like iplayer and bbciplayer which i use a lot, but i would like it to be used as a second TV maybe. would a monitor be ok, can i get freeview through the computer? or would an LCD work ok? we don`t want to spend too much, maybe around £140. i need a little help please.

cheers.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

i am on pay as you go, but thats all i need it for, and i still get the broad band cheaper so thats ok. cheers.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

thanks for the reply.

i have an 02 mobile so thats fine. i have only just started buying online, what is quidco? i have seen it mentioned here, and other sites, i just assumed it was something to do with a credit card or something. cheers

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

thanks for that. i will go back and do the registration.

cheers.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

cheers for that. if i don`t need the Mac code should i cancel the virgin media now or wait till the bill is payed? as i said i haven`t had to cancel a phone/internet contract before. i just don`t want to be without the internet for too long. it said on the box i got that i need to register it i think it said, i checked out the webpage and it said after completing it they would send an email or text in about a week with an activation number. can i do this part of it now or do i have to wait till i have left virgin media to do it? i should have asked that at the shop but didn`t think of it till last night when i was on the website. thanks.

RE: possible fault on lcd

bit of an update. not long after i posted above i got an email saying he had spoken to the branch manager where i was going to, and made them aware of our dealings, and to take it in. although i don`t live that far i needed to sort a lift out.i gave them a call first to avoid a wasted trip. good job i did as the manager of the branch was off and the guy i spoke to didn`t now anything about it, and said it would cost £100 to get it looked at, like the first email i received had said.

i called back days later to find he was off again. i have just been back in touch with them this afternoon and spoke to the manager, but despite him saying he regularly speaks to the guy who emailed me, didn`t seem aware of the screen/problem. and he again said they could look at it but would cost as it was 18months or so old, as i didn`t have any cover from them.

i didn`t say anything else because i wasn`t sure if he genuinely didn`t now or if they were trying to pass the buck a bit. i may have got the wrong end of the stick early on with this, but if i was prepared to pay to get it fixed i wouldn`t have emailed in the first place i would have taken it to the branch. i made that clear in the first emails that i didn`t want to pay to get it looked at. and the next replies didn`t mention money just them saying they would get it looked at. surely he new what i was wanting.

not sure what to do now, do i email the guy back at RS to clarify things or should i get in touch with Sharp? this has dragged on for a few weeks now, and no one has looked at it yet.sorry for going on a little. cheers.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

i picked up the 02 box the other day. i just wanted a bit of info as what i need to do first. i have read about how to get going with 02, but when do i get in touch with virgin media? the next bill from them is due around 16th, i think 02 asked for a mac code i think it is. i haven`t had to cancel one before, i have only had the one internet account, blueyonder/virgin. do i just ring them? cheers.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

thanks for the replies.

after talking with my parents it looks like we are staying with BT for the phone but changing the calling plan and altering a few things, to get the bill down, and as long as it is as straight forward as it seems, going with 02 for broadband. so we should be looking at getting them both for under £25 a month. i guess there maybe better deals but this way means less disruption as we don`t have to change the phone which is what my parents wanted. but we will save money. thanks again.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

just after some more advice. we have not decided on anything, as i expected, too easy not to change. we are going to stay with bt for the phone though. but i was looking at 02 for broadband. i have done a little reading about it but as with anything there are good and bad points. we already have 02 mobiles and the price for their broadband is pretty good. combined with bt we would get the phone and internet for about what we wanted to pay.

i use the internet a lot but i dont need anything like the 10mb i am on now, especially if if i am paying more for it. i just want a reliable connection as i use Skype and things like iplayer. but if there are any main issues with it i want to now before doing anything. cheers.

RE: possible fault on lcd

i sent a reply, basically saying ok but that i don`t want this to drag on and asking what would be done. i have had a reply. someone from the technical help side has replied saying that any repair would be done by RS and not Sharp. and then asking which store i can get it to etc.

this is what i was hoping they would say when i sent the original email, and reading this it seems they will try and sort it out. i just wonder what they will do as the last time, Sharp serv actually replaced the main components, main boards i think, twice and the problem wasn`t fixed. i will drop them a reply with some details and see what they say. thanks again.

RE: possible fault on lcd

just an update, i emailed richer sounds a few days ago and just got a reply. the guy said as the item is some way out of warranty, they can have a look, although it will be a chargeable repair. there is an initial fee of £100 to book it in.

now i wasn`t expecting them to say bring it in for an exchange, to be honest i don`t want that as i like the screen i have, except for the banding. but i paid around £500 for it, which today is a lot but when i got it there wasn`t that much choice, and i only had a few places i could buy from etc.

when i got in touch with them i just mentioned where i got it, what the problem was and how long i have had it. what would you suggest my next move should be? i don`t want this to drag on, i now from experience that it can. the sharp i had a few years ago needed fixing with the same problem, that went on for a few months, they even replaced the same parts twice (sharp serv).

cheers.

RE: ordering senseo pods

just a quick update. i went back to Argos the other day, and they gave me a new Senseo. i checked the production date on the bottom and it starts with 09, the affected ones on the Philips site start with 06 going up to 08 i think it was.

cheers.

RE: buying rail tickets online

cheers for that

i will take a look later on today. they got their senior citizens rail cards the other day. thanks again.

buying rail tickets online

i have bought tickets online before, a few months ago. but that was just for me, i now need to buy three, for myself and my parents. when i booked the ticket last time i remember reading, that if you had a printout for your ticket the details had to match those on the credit card, i had the normal tickets as i chose to have them delivered before travelling, and on the train they were just stamped. does that only apply if your ticket is a printout?

i wanted to now if i can buy more than one ticket in one go, or would i have to create separate accounts online for them? i could go to the train station to get them, but i found this way pretty good. cheers.

RE: getting rid of old computer.

thanks for the replies.

i will pass on the info, and mention the charity idea. not sure exactly how old it is, but it could be an idea if it is still working alright. i suppose it depends on why they are changing it.

now to email them a picture of what a hard drive looks like :)

thanks again.

getting rid of old computer.

a friend is changing computers so needs to get rid of the old one. what steps do they need to take before doing this. i have done a little reading and most seem to suggest keeping hold of the hard drive, but are there any other parts they need to check out. it is quite old, i don`t think any parts would be of use so i think its going to the tip. they wanted to make sure they got rid of all data, having read some stories about data being retrieved from discarded computers.

cheers.

RE: ordering senseo pods

i have been meaning to go back to the Philips site and go ahead with the repair but have just got round to it now. when i entered the numbers it said click here for additional information on the next step of the repair. when i clicked it opened a page that said, due to the low numbers of new cases registered in the UK, Philips has stopped the central registration and exchange co-ordination as of September 1st 2009, the recall and exchange process will continue for your eligible Senseo. and to return your machine to the retailer from whom you purchased.

do i just go back, in my case to argos, with the Senseo in its box with receipt, will they send it back for repair or replace it? has anyone done this as i dont want to just turn up at argos and they no nothing about it. i guess as the date suggests this has just happened the other day, i might give my local argos a call first. cheers.

RE: possible fault on lcd

thanks for the reply, much appreciated.

i will give richer sounds a call over the weekend. its an annoying problem to be honest. most of the time you don`t even see/notice it, but when you see the lines you keep looking at/for them. when i had the same problem about four years ago they couldn`t fix the screen, despite many attempts, that was sharp serv. i thought i would give sharp screens another go, and apart from this, as with that screen, its pretty good but those lines are stopping me from watching as much as i would like. i think i only had the screen on a couple of times last week.

i will post back when i have given them a call.

thanks again.

possible fault on lcd

just after some advice. i have had my sharp lcd for around 18months. i got it from richer sounds, i didn`t get any cover plans with it, so its outside of any guarantee from them, but i was wandering if i have any options.

i think the problem is banding. i am getting vertical faint lines on the screen. they appear whenever there is movement on screen, the lines are quite noticeable. and when playing xbox they are also quite obvious. they weren`t there originally otherwise i would have done something about it, i have had some experience with this problem a few years ago with a previous screen. i have tried to ignore them and to be honest a lot of the time i don`t notice them, but once i do its hard to ignore.

with it being 18months i am outside the year that you get from RS, i think thats right? but do i have any other options?

cheers.

RE: backing up from freeview recorder

thanks for the replies, much appreciated.

i thought the connection might be for something like that, but i wasn`t sure. a relative has the Sony hard drive/recorder, has had for a while, and if we were going to get a new one it would be one like that. from what i have seen its very good.

but to be honest we are happy for the time being with our recorder, for what it cost it`s been pretty good, a few problems aside. i can get hold of a dvd recorder so i think i will give that a go as we would only need it occasionally.

thanks again.

This item was edited on Sunday, 23rd August 2009, 00:46

backing up from freeview recorder

we have an 80gb digihome freeview recorder. most of the time we just delete after watching, but we have a few things that we would like to keep. i was going to see about getting a cheap dvd recorder, but when i looked in the guide it had a connection at the back called rs 232. i dont now anything about this except when i googled, and saw what the cable looked like.

is there anything i can use to transfer from the freeview box? a laptop/external HD or am i best looking at a dvd recorder? cheers.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

thanks for the replies

it would be easier to stick with virgin media or even bt, as we have one service with each of them so i guess there wouldn`t be much to sort out. what is bt like for the internet side of things?

would sky be the only option for S4C? i now we get it, analogue, very well at the moment with an indoor aerial, but will it be available when we switchover? i think we are on winter hill. i will get in touch with virgin media to see what they say.

cheers.

RE: need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

thanks for the reply. we were looking at sky as well, as the package would have been roughly what i am paying just for broadband which is mad. the problem is though we don`t use the phone that much and to be honest we are happy with the free view recorder, so these two services would feel like getting them because they are part of the bundle. but it would be cheaper than what we pay at the moment. we would be happy just getting the phone/internet together and using the free view recorder if S4C was on free view but it doesn`t look like it will be here.
apart from the dish, what actually happens when you go with say sky? cheers.

need help choosing internet/tv/phone package please.

we should have done this months ago, but it has been too easy to stay as we are, but we are paying too much for these services as they are. i am on virgin media for broadband, 10mb £25 a month. and BT for the landline phone. we dont make a lot of calls during the quarter, and to be honest i dont really need 10mb now even though i am online most days. we have a freeview recorder for our tv.
one thing though is we need to get S4C. my dad watches hours of it every week. i now you get it on sky and virgin media i think but not on freeview, unless in Wales. we get it here on analogue which is good. i havent been able to find out if it will be available on freeview in the near future. if it was that would make the decision easier. i dont have any problem staying with virgin media or going to sky, we just cannot decide, there doesnt seem to be a clear winner, which has made it easier to just stay as we are. we just want the least disruption. i was going to suggest my dad watch S4C online then we would just need to get an internet/phone bundle but he isn`t a computer user. we need to make a decision soon, any help would be appreciated. cheers.

does anyone have, still crazy like a fox?

my brother just asked me if i could find this for him. he said its been on the telly a few times but he always seems to miss it. i have just looked online, in the usual places, and cannot find it. to be honest i wasn`t expecting to, i thought i might find a vhs copy somewhere. its about twenty years old and seems to be a tv movie. i used to watch the series. the film was made over here i think, i haven`t seen it myself.

i now its a long shot but i thought it would be worth a try. cheers

RE: ordering senseo pods

had a look earlier, my one is listed too. i thought it would be. i am not sure what to do either. i have only had mine for around eight months but i don`t want to have any problems with it in the coming months, but then again nothing might happen. i don`t mind sending it away, i can do without it for a few weeks, and they send the box to send it back, i guess you just have to take it to where they say, maybe post office, i don`t now. and it has a new guarantee when you get it back. it says some areas have a high level of calcium, is there any way of knowing where those areas are?

the recall started in May i think it said so hopefully it would only be the twelve days they said. cheers

RE: ordering senseo pods

thanks for that, just checked the link. not sure which model number mine is, i got it at the start of the year. i will check and see if its one that is mentioned as being recalled.

cheers

RE: ordering senseo pods

thanks for that. i might give the Lidl ones a go next time i am passing.

cheers.

ordering senseo pods

i have had one since the start of the year, when the prices came right down. i have only used the normal pods though, which have been great and i really like the coffee, but after doing a search online i found that we don`t get as many varieties as they do in Europe. i would like to try a few of them, namely the chocolate one, well my parents would. a few websites have them listed, and not too expensive. has anyone had any experience of doing this, what do they taste like, what are the best sites to order from? etc.

cheers.