Info and forum posts by 'Opposable_Thumb_Envy'

RE: Heath Ledger found dead

Quote:
Jack Nicholson has hinted he warned tragic Heath Ledger against taking on the role of The Joker in the new Batman film.

Nicholson, who famously portrayed the menacing Joker in Tim Burton`s 1989 movie Batman, implied to the waiting crowd outside plush London restaurant The Wolesley on Tuesday night he spoke to Ledger about his role in The Dark Knight - and warned him about the pitfalls of taking on such a demanding challenge.

When asked by the London crowds for his reaction to Ledger`s untimely demise, a defeated Nicholson simply replied, "I told him so."

The ever reliable IMDB - yesterday Radio 5 had Jack Nicholson commenting that that he`d also had a negative experience with that particular brand of sleeping pill but he did not know Heath Ledger...

This item was edited on Thursday, 24th January 2008, 17:24

RE: Looks good for a £300 laptop

Gets an ok review here:

www.vnunet.com/personal-computer-world/hardware/2195320/review-fujitsu-siemens-amilo

though this is sounds like a bit of a drawback:

"The video failings extend to playing DVDs and videos as well - the sample videos included with Windows Media Center were pretty much unwatchable in full-screen, although this was alleviated somewhat when viewed in a smaller window."

But for £300, less any codes and quidco etc you might find it seems pretty good value.

This item was edited on Saturday, 15th December 2007, 21:09

RE: Should Atheists stop celebrating Christmas?

Quote:
Still a belief then! You have no facts on which to base it and therefore the fact you don`t believe in a god means you must believe something else

I think this issue, the notion of an absence of belief, is one that people with religious convictions find it difficult to appreciate.

I heard a radio caller this morning saying that as a christian he only needed one belief to explain his own existence whereas atheists needed 150 beliefs to explain the reason why they exist. The notion that there does not have to be a reason at all, that it is not necessary to form any belief system about existence, that there need not be a defining purpose to life, had not occurred to him

Personally I`m all for people believing in the all powerful magic man if it gives them some comfort; the things I do at this time of year, enjoying a festival period at the end of December during which time gifts are exchanged, pre-date christianity and I`m sure I`d be doing pretty much the same thing if christianity had never developed beyond being an obscure sect of judaism.

For many, the religious basis of this period is of little or no importance in comparison with the simple pleasures of being able to spend a little more time than usual with friends and family. If you gain some spiritual fulfilment on top of that, good for you.

My only real gripe at this time of year is the demise of the native `Father Christmas` in favour of the Coca-Cola snorting Santa Claus in all his corporate-whoredom.

This item was edited on Saturday, 15th December 2007, 14:32

RE: Free RyanAir Flights

Sorry to here about that Mike though the cheap ones were there - got a newcastle -dublin return ticket for 2p plus the £1.40 card charge - really must get an electron card.

RE: Selling one`s gaff online...

I`ve no personal experience of this but the people on the MSE forums tend to have a poitive opinion of http://www.housenetwork.co.uk/ on the basis that it`s a cheap way of getting your house on the rightmove site

RE: Thieves at the tax office owe me money. Whats the best form to use?

I guess the situation is that you were on some kind of emergency tax code [edit, oh right BR code - didn`t read your post thoroughly - thought your were empoyed by BR!] until the tax office got your p45 and put you on a cumulative tax code? Or maybe you never got a cumulative code for last year but you got one from the start of this tax year?

Basically to issue a refund they need to know how much you earned and how much tax you`ve paid for the tax year in question - quite often they don`t have this information. Give them a call and they`ll look to see if they`ve got any employment gaps for the given year in which case they`ll want your copy of your P60/P45`s.

If they`ve got all the information then you don`t need a form - they`ll just request a refund.

If you can try and do things by phone as most HMRC regions have a backlog of mail of about 4 weeks.

This item was edited on Thursday, 19th April 2007, 17:39

RE: Linguaphone

I`ve tried various courses over the years - the best for actually getting you speaking the language are the Michel Thomas disks - there`s no book to read so you miss out on the written side but they are incredibly effective otherwise. You can download the first hour of the French, German, Italian and Spanish courses for free here:

http://www.bookshoppartnership.net/download.html

(use the links at the bottom of the page)

Have a go and if you think it`s right for you the full courses can be had fairly cheaply on ebay or you can just get them out of the library...

RE: How much do you get per week on the dole ?

Dole varies depending on age but if you`re 25 or over it will be £60 a week from April. even if you`ve got savings you hould be entitled to contribution based JSA for 6 months before it becomes income based JSA. You won`t have to pay council tax if your savings are within a certain limit and if you`re unlucky enough to remain unemployed for more than nine months you can receive income support payments to cover the interest on your mortgage - if you don`t ask about this they won`t tell you..

RE: Printing yer own passport photos...

Hi Alfie - any modern inkjet is going to be capable of a quality sufficient for a passport photo so as long as you have a high-res jpeg that meets their requirements in terms of size, background etc you should be ok.

If you get a passport application pack there should be an illustrated guide to the do`s and don`t`s for photos - I found the biggest problem was getting the photo accepted by the post office - they put it into a grid and if your head is in any way outside the guidelines they reject it.

When I did this last year I just pasted the image into a word file and used the on-screen ruler marks to resize it to somewher near the correct size then did a test print and made adjustments.

Got my new passport about 10 days after posting the application.

RE: Tesco - Very cheap DVD-R s

I wouldn`t use these for anything important but when I wanted some DVD+RWs, to go with the cheapo Liteon recorder I bought from Tesco, I got a pack of 25 Tesco brand disks; I tried them with some trepidation but to my surprise they`ve all worked perfectly and continue to do so.

RE: Some bast&%d got hold of my Visa card detail

Bad luck Jean - I had a card stolen in Barcelona - it was cancelled straight away and a new card issued but two months later transactions started appearing on my account from spain and france - it turned out that toll machines on motorways were the culprit - the thieves were using the old card in machines that did not check the validity of the card. Got the money back from Barclaycard in the end though so hopefully you`ll be OK.

This item was edited on Saturday, 24th February 2007, 13:10

RE: Do the banks offer protection......

If you do a bank transfer to someone and the payment doesn`t reach them, say because an account number is a digit out or something like that, then you can contact the bank and they`ll hunt around for the payment and get it back to you eventually.

If you are paying someone for goods/services by banking transfer and there is something wrong with what you have bought you don`t have any rights to contact the bank - as has been said this is great for the seller but not good for the buyer.

RE: Digital camera advice - SD cards

Hi bowfer - kingston are one of the better cards - maybe not up there with sandisk or lexar but a decent branded card. Cards have differing read/write speeds, so for example Kingston sell a basic card range, and elite pro x50 range and an Ultimate x133 but as long as your camera has a decent memory buffer you shouldn`t notice any lag in taking photos - the casio`s are noted for their speed and decent battery life I believe. You can pay a premium for the very fast cards so unless you are taking bursts of multiple shots per second (which is more digital SLR territory) they are not really necessary.

This item was edited on Tuesday, 20th February 2007, 21:25

RE: And the `complete universe` won`t be so complete...

It`s now £70.97 - I wonder if you can get a further refund?

Incidentally I`ve been watching the Crusade episodes and there seems to be a continuity mistake in the JMS approved episode order. in `Ruling from the Tomb` (ep.10) Gideon and Lochley have never met yet they did in `Every night I dream of home` (ep.7) so if you are keeping to the JMS order, as described by papanz, you might want to slip `Ruling...` in earlier on, maybe after `Racing the Night`.

This item was edited on Sunday, 21st January 2007, 22:10

RE: People parking on my drive. Help.

I fitted one of the fold down ebay types for my brother - no need to pay someone to do it, you just need to borrow an SDS drill for the four bolt holes and a long enough extension cable.

This won`t stop them parking in front of your space though but if that area is classed as public road you may be able to get it towed by the police...

RE: And the `complete universe` won`t be so complete...

Never tried it myself but there is a thread on hotukd... about this from which this is a cut and paste:

Not many people know this, but Amazon has a price drop policy. If they lower the price on something that youve purchased within the past 30 days, theyll issue a credit (although you have to ask for it).

If you want to check if any of your purchases are eligible for a refund, just follow these simple steps:

1. Visit Your Account and look at all invoices from the past thirty days.

2. Click on the item names to pull up the current item description/price and compare to the price that you paid.

3. If you paid more than the current price, copy down the order number and go to the Return and Refunds Contact Form page.

4. Select Refund Inquiry as your subject, and check off the order(s) of interest. If you dont see the order in question listed, enter the order number in the Other field.

5. State in the comments that the price dropped, and that you want to be credited for the difference. It might help to mention the item name as well as old and new price, but Im not sure that this is necessary.

This item was edited on Sunday, 7th January 2007, 22:45

RE: Now 119.99 pounds...

I guess you could watch `The Gathering` first as it was the original pilot; that said it`s very much a work-in-progress and some of the script gets re-used in a season 1 episode so you could just watch seasons 1-5 and then start on the films. If you did that the order would be -

B5 Seasons 1-5
The Gathering
In The Beginning
Thirdspace
The River of Souls
A Call to Arms
Crusade season 1
The Legend of the Rangers (To Live and Die in Starlight)

[edit] Just had a look at Rassilons viewing order and the only one I`d query is In The Beginning - certainly watch it first if you want to know what is happening from the start; personally I think the charm of B5 is that it is one evolving story so that something that happens in season 1 may only make sense of have significance in season 3, so maybe watching In The Beginning first would spoil some of the suspense.

This item was edited on Sunday, 31st December 2006, 13:09

RE: Babylon 5: TheComplete Universe £80.97

Just watched the final episode of series 5 last night - it`s been compelling viewing over the last two months and this is a great price.

Can`t wait for the release of `The Lost Tales` later this year.

RE: Freeview Box £19.98 @ Asda

Thanks carolyn - got this working last night; was looking at the aldi scart sized one but this is half the price and the remote doesn`t need a line of sight - don`t know how that works but it`s now hiding behind the tv and is happily feeding a signal into the Liteon dvd recorder I got from Tescos.

RE: Digital Camera - Good place to purchase one online (and last chance for an opinion!)

Cheapest I could find is £229.11 at savastore.com aka watford electronics - I`d order from them without concern:

http://www.savastore.com/productinfo/product.aspx?catalog_name=Savastore&product_id=10288710&pid=44&rstrat=0

Looks like you`ll have a two weeks wait on delivery if you order now.

RE: Lite-on dvd recorder @ TESCO`S

I`d just like to say thanks to TheOgster for spotting this one - I was looking for a replacement for an aging bedroom VCR and this is perfect; with DVD+RW there is no need to finalise if I want to play them downstairs - they play just fine on my Toshiba 330. Much appreciated.

RE: What an ass!

I suspect his parents have always been related - why is it when someone is in the news from Sunderland it`s clear they`ve been swimming in the shallow end of the gene pool?

(written by an embarrassed Mackem)

RE: No education grant for me. The reason?

Hi Washu - as someone who saw the last days of the grant system, when paying fees was a foreign concept, I find it hard to believe how much we`ve adopted the american model for higher education, and I sympathise with your predicament.

I suspect there are very practical reasons why, despite the distance learning aspect of your course, they would require you to be based in the UK - apart from any minimal contact time that may still be needed there would be numerous placements in UK schools that the university would need to arrange.

I think to move forward with your aspiration to teach perhaps you should be thinking about returning to the UK and doing a full time language degree; this would give you access to the loans system and would enable you to fund your studies; you could use this time to gain some mentoring experience through the uni`s community outreach programmes. After three years you could then do a PGCE for which you would be entitled to a maintenance grant that would cover most of the fees, plus a training bursary, which I believe is 9k for modern languages. On top of that there would be a `golden hello` of 2.5k after your first successful year of teaching.

All of the above is contingent on you having a base in the UK however - somewhere you can plausibly say you`ve been residing in order to acquire home student status. Good luck.

This item was edited on Thursday, 9th November 2006, 15:28

RE: No education grant for me. The reason?

Hi Washu - if you were banking on this money I can appreciate that this news must be very disheartening. That said it does seem that you have only a partial understanding of the Secondary Subject Shortage Scheme. The most important point is that it simply is not a grant - it's a means tested hardship scheme; in exceptional circumstances this fund can pay up to 6k however there is absolutely no entitlement to that sum. If the university guidance notes do not make this clear, or indeed any wider eligibility criteria, it would be legitimate to raise this with the university. The general case is that access to funds and lower 'home' fees are dependent on nationality and upon three years residence in the EU.

You mention that your course is part-time for up to five years which suggests that it is an undergraduate course. If that is the case you now find yourself in a similar position to many others trying to self-finance their part-time degrees. I agree that combining work and study is far from ideal, however, would an internet-based course not offer greater flexibility to do enough work to pay the bills? Of course you may have been planning on working anyway to pay the higher oversees fees. I hope you can find a way get on a teacher training course at some point, even if it involves coming back to GB for some less virtual training.

RE: Digital Camera surprise. Comparison between SLR & normal digital camera.

Quote:
The reason I want the 350 or 400 is they are a little smaller & I`m thinking of space when I fly

Size is a definate consideration - unfortunately I have `Shrek` hands which mean even the Nikon D50/D80 feel small and the canon 350D a bit toy-like.

If you plan on having a couple of lenses then if you can stretch to it I`d go for the 400D as it has features to remove dust from the sensor - have a look here:

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/Canon400D/page3d.shtml

RE: Digital Camera surprise. Comparison between SLR & normal digital camera.

Hi Paull - on the point about camera shake, if the nikon lens had its VR (vibration reduction, the canon version is IS for Image Stabilization) feature turned on that shouldn`t be an issue.

I suspect the issue here is one of aperture / depth of field ie the nikon was focused on something in front of the building and with a wide open aperture the bricks would be out of focus.

The benefits of such a camera are that there are numerous options and controls for the various camera features which allow you to get exactly the look you`re after - the downside is that you need to learn how to use them to get the most out of the camera.

This guide (for your mates camera, and mine actually) gives an indication of things you need to consider:

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d200/users-guide/index.htm

I`m no knowledge of Canon but I expect the 400D will be an excellent camera. Equally the Lumix cameras are clearly very good at what they do - it`s just SLR`s allow you to be more creative.

The things I suspect you would notice straight away if you got digital SLR would be better battery life, an end to shutter/write lag and better quality shots at high ISO (I believe canon are noted for their low noise in poor light situations).

That said, even if you buy an slr I suspect you`ll continue to use the Lumix simply because it`s such a convenient size to carry around.

RE: site sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo slooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Slow here with Firefox, opera and IE

It seems to be something to do with a tracking cookie trying to contact `servedby.advertising.com` - bumped security on Internet Explorer up to `High` and that solved the problem in the short term.

RE: Advice On Sofa Beds Please

Hi Superted - I`m currently in the same position as yourself housewise and I use an `intex` branded blow up bed I got from ebay; it has a built in pump that inflates/deflates in a couple of minutes and is surprisingly confortable. Have a look here:

http://home-garden.listings.ebay.co.uk/Inflatable-Mattresses-Airbeds_Queen-size-46-411-W_W0QQfclZ3QQfromZR11QQsacatZ131600QQsocmdZListingItemList

This item was edited on Monday, 4th September 2006, 16:32

RE: Cyclist condemns red light fine

As a fellow cyclist the politest thing I can say about this guy is that he`s a f*cktarded arsewit.

It really p*sses me off when people decide certain road laws don`t apply to them and sadly the most dangerous examples of this behaviour are often exhibited by cyclists putting their own lives at risk.

Recently in my other roadly capacity as white van man I came close to running into a cyclist riding straight towards me, the wrong way up the road, without lights, at dusk - I got the impression he expected me to get out of his way - madness.

The worlds gone to pot ... societies gone to the dogs ... in my day ...mumble mumble... I`m 39 you know!

This item was edited on Saturday, 15th July 2006, 01:02

RE: Budweiser & Budvar - whats the difference?

The name Budweiser actually predates both of them but essentially they are two distinct companies founded at the end of the 19th century, on czech, one american; to try and resolve the obvious trademark disputes that arose as they both expanded they carved up the world into mutually exclusive markets - the UK is one of the few places they both actively market there products. But the main difference is that Budvar is better!