YGM reference Lightning Process.

I remember buying my ex a stereo at an AV store about 5 years ago – the cashier was rude and "ungrateful." So I immediately walked round the store, found the manager and summarised her attitude – to which the manager said something along the lines of "I'm sorry sir … we know what she can be like … her attitude has been worse lately … and she was very late in today … I feel it's time I must do something about it."

Fair enough, he may have done **** all – on the other hand, he might have "cautioned" her. Hence, as a customer, I feel we have a right to complain about a store-person's attitude.

Don't even get me started on the kn0bhead 20 yr olds that supposedly work at Vodafone stores. Haven't got a **** clue.

+1 Resident Evil 4 – brilliantly atmospheric, especially with a good sound system, and hugely playable in a real hands-on way.

Okami – not nearly as well known as the likes of Zelda, etc, but more funky fast-paced IMO. It's like a journey through some kind of psychodelic watercolour.

Dominoes and PH on a good day can taste just about passable, but you get that "Urrgh, that really wasn't good for me" feeling soon after. On a bad day they taste sh1te.

I don't even rate Pizza Express these days.

Best ones are homemade or from a good Italian eaterie (or one of the local gastro pubs).

Went to Sardinia a few years back and the pizzas were awesome. Had something like 5 in 7 days. Couldn't help myself.

Hi Karinofnine.

I might well be doing the ND on Sunday. Typical loops tend to include the usual XC aspects of Leith, Holmbury, Pitch and sometimes Ranmore, etc. Definitely no 'shore. Let me know … cheers

I bought a Petzl 4-5 years ago for running at night. Reviews and specs said it was excellent, however, in reality I could barely even get away with walking at pace. Absolute rubbish for £40. Would only use it camping, etc. Far too dangerous for running.

I remember entertaining a young lady a few years ago and offered to cook her anything she wanted – she chose beans on toast. Hmm, a bit odd, I thought, as did my two laughing housemates. Still, I had the last laugh that night, I can tell you:)

We recently rented a cottage near Crediton – just north of Dartmoor. Ideal if you want to be kind of central and explore differnt parts of Devon as well as head into Cornwall. Most journeys were 1-2hrs each way, but we did the north coast, south coast and west coast. Plenty of biking to be done around Dartmoor too. And if you're on the southern Cornish coast you've got to check out Sams Diner at Fowey or Par.

What tyre for a newbie with a 29er/26" situation?

Binners, as per my other thread, can you PM me because your email isn't in your profile (unless I just can't see it for some reason).

Cheers

KRAP is all I say.

Hmm, I can't see it. Can you PM me instead? Cheers

Binners, can't find your emamil addy in profile …

Excellent! Might have to fight you for the food though cos I tend to put a fair amount of it away myself!

I'll PM you with the general theme, but to give you a rough idea it's a combination of medical/clinical/HR/people oriented. Probably a case of creating a few illustrations/flowcharts/maps from scratch – possibly animated. Flash is fine because we can slot that in.

Like I say, I'll PM you a summary.

Cheers
SM

Alexonabike, regarding your depression – you might want to check out the Lightning Process.

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I know three people who have done this (1yr ago, 2yrs ago, and 3yrs ago) – and they're all living very very normal and productives lives having previously suffered with all kinds of stuff including ME, FM, depression, etc.

Must at least be worth a phone call to your nearest practitioner.

If you have 'strong morals', then you either don't want to be in sales, or want to get rid of your morals. Surely sales people don't have morals?

Joe

That's bullsh1t.

A lot of people associate a very negative stigma will anyone involved in sales. IMO that's just being plain ignorant – rather like saying "All 4×4 owners are tw4ts who can't drive and don't give a sh1t about others."

"Proper" selling is about helping people make the correct buying decision – sometimes that means not buying anything at all.

I'm not going to comment on what I feel the OP should do, other than say one thing:

Any form of immoral selling f*&king stinks IMO.

If you want to learn about the brighter side of selling then read anything by Keith Eades or Sharon Drew Morgen.

They both know their stuff when it comes to helping people and businesses make the correct buying decisions, as opposed to helping one's employer fill their coffers at everyone else's expense.

OP, I don't know what your background is, but would you be happy to stay in your role in you could apply a more moral sales strategy? If so, then you might want to start right now.

Depends what kind of site you want to build. If you want to focus on content management, blogs, forums, etc, then look at Joomla and WordPress plus various widgets/plugins.

A basic install of WP is pretty limiting, but if you get your own domain and then buy a professional template then you can do all kinds of funky stuff.

Can't comment on many other editors cos I don't really use them these days.

+1 for GIMP
+1 for Inkscape (for vector graphics, etc)

One of my ex colleagues had Sky BB and he said it was pants in terms of stability and customer service.

I'm with Zen who have been brilliant. Can't you upgrade your limit?

Cheers all.

I've got my eye on a few now and have a better idea what to look for.

SM

Hmm, interesting.

or the famously unreliable original intel ones (they had a tendency to overheat and destroy the main board).

I guess you're referring to the 2006-07 models? They also seem to have other faults (allegedly) inc random shutdowns, etc.

Having had a look at the OS side of things, I think I'll make do with Tiger unless it has something else installed.

Atlaz – I'll PM you – cheers.

SM

Also try Imeem. Now part of MySpace IIR, but I guess that shouldn't make any difference.

Thanks all.

Now I can't find the kneading blade. Probably £stupid for a replacement. Ar5e.

I should add that we have an SD255 breadmaker …

Does the Panasonic one leave a hole in the bread where the dough hook's been?

Yes. But sometimes the blade ends up in a convenient position where you can extract it without leaving a hole.

+1 for the Panasonic SD255

Had our's a couple of years but don't use it as regularly as we'd like. Good results most of the time (so long as you use the proper blade and not the rye one or whatever it is).

Haven't experimented much but can certainly vouch for it being one of the best in its class.

Most of us are used to sitting through dull as **** Powerpoint presentations – poorly designed and poorly delivered. The reality is that Powerpoint is actually an excellent tool – you just need to learn how to use it properly.

Check out books and blogs by Garr Reynolds, Clive Atkinson and Nancy Duarte (and a Japanese guy whom I've forgetten the name of) for starters.

I've learned a helluva lot by "studying" their materials, etc.

SM

Cracking game. Well done lads.

Zen Internet

Whatever you do, remember that quality and choice is subjective.

One person might say "Get a cheap model and save the cash because you don't need anything fancy," and another will say (like me) "Spend a bit more and get something better quality, perhaps more future-proofed, and with a proper warranty."

Looking back, there's no way I would have settled for any of the £280-£350 models that I was previously considering. The LG is far better all round.

Naturally it depends on your budget, but it is at least worth walking into a showroom and having a look while asking questions yourself.

Depends on the quality of picture, sound and connectivity you want, etc.

I looked around for a 32" just before Xmas and went with an LG LH4010 from Richer Sounds @ £430 inc 5yr onsite warranty. Very impressed – more than I expected.

Superb picture with full 1080HD and progressive scan.
Audio decent enough for everyday use but we plug it into the downstairs amp for proper sound.
Loads of connectivity otions; 3 HDMI, PC/VGA, USB (MP3s, photos, etc), component, 2 SCART, headphones.
Freeview.
5 min setup.
Loads of customisation options.

If you're looking to spend upwards of £350/£400 then I would seriously take a look at the LH4010 because you get a lot of kit for your money – and the respected RS warranty.

I think re-stocking fees can actually be challenged due to some law that proves them inelligible (unless there's small print somewhere).

Have work for a Dell VAR, I can safely say their general attitude sucks. Sure, they have their favoured partners and customers, etc. But generally they're a bunch of w&*"£rs.

I ordered a DVD from Amazon on 14th Dec – it shipped on 16th but never arrived. Emailed them on 3rd Jan and they replied within the hour saying it must have got lost en route – re-shipped on the 4th and now just waiting for it to arrive.

It's that time of year so do bear with them, but do chase them too.

HTC Hero. If you wait around a few weeks then you'll start hearing about more (better?) phones on the horizon … then you'll wait another few weeks and hear about more (better?) phones on the horizon … ad infinitum. That's why, IMO, I'd say take the plunge.

It's a very good piece of kit. If you find it has the strange UK battery problem (possibly due to your providers tinkering) then HTC will flash it and get it running properly.

Lower tyre pressure and use as many blanket-type materials to aid traction.

I've had four Specialized bikes over the ears. Excellent pieces of kit backed up by a proper warranty and customer service.

IMO worth checking out various towns around M25 J8-10. Can easily be 30mins from Gatwick, Heathrow and London, plus a handful of minutes from the North Downs trails.

If you're going to be on the road then bear in mind that heading anti-clock from M25 j6-15 is an absolutely sh1tbag in the mornings, and then heading back in the evenings – whereas j10-6 clockwise is pretty sound in the mornings and evenings.

SM

Some TV is shit, some is great, and some is inbetween.

It's your choice whether you watch it or not. Nobody forces you to sit down and watch (IMO) all the BS soaps, reality shows and celebrity b0ll0cks, etc.

There's also a load sh1t on the radio, on the internet, in the book world, and in the music world … and there's also a load of great stuff. Find it and enjoy …

If it goes back to BMW/Mini then they're likely to strip the panel back and paint from scratch – hence the cost of £600 sounds perfectly reasonable (albeit expensive when seen from your friend's perspective).

I'm sure he can ask for three quotes, but the owner has the right to choose.