Loan & Moan

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So I wrote to customer services, but they didn’t really get it, and told me to talk to the store, and I talked to the store and they don’t really get it. None of them understand that the card they’re advertising never had 256mb of memory, it’s not that we got a card different to the one they’re advertising, it’s that the one they’re advertising doesn’t have what they think it does.

The GeForce 6200 TurboCache PCI-Express cards do not have the memory on-board used in the card ‘name’. They just don’t. So I ordered two replacement cards while I try and educate the retailer. Of course, since it’s such a small market, I ordered GeForce cards even though I think this whole problem is GeForce’s at the root.

But on better news.

Only THREE more loan payments before it’s gone.

That’s going to have been 84 loan payments in total, and it’s nearly over. Finally. It’ll be roughly equivalent to getting a 8-10% pay increase after tax.

I’m pleased we managed to avoid adding the loan onto the mortgage when they offered us the option, I’m glad we’ve managed to hold on and not extend the loan any more, and that we’ve finally gotten to a stage where we can clear that debt.

Credit card balance is the next target … and once that’s gone, the overdraught. Getting there slowly.

love is …

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… never having to give out real memory figures.

So the two new PC’s, they were a good deal, we love them, EQ is much quicker, we’re happy.

But I’m not happy about the advertising “256MB GeForce Graphics card” it said. When it really meant “GeForce 6200SE TurboCache 256MB” which translates to “GeForce 6200SE TurbCache with 64MB onboard and using another 192MB of your precious system memory over the PCIExpress slot”.

I might talk to the vendor tomorrow about their advertising, I know that they get theirs from the manufacturer, but it was their advertising which sold me the machine, and it didn’t list the TurboCache feature or explain it anywhere, just said 1GB of main memory and a 256MB Graphics Card.

Bonus!

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So it’s bonus time at work, computer prices (without monitors) are mad and low – which means we’re sporting a couple of new ones. Been about 2 1/2 years since we had new machines and the speed of the old ones was starting to show. New P4 3GHz machines with 1GB memory and decent graphics. Not state of the art, not super quick, and not more than £430 each.

off-call!

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another week of being on-call over with, it always amazes me how much relief i feel even if i never felt like i was under much additional stress/pressure at the start.

roll on the weekend!

Blogging deluge

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No posts for like ever and then 3 in the space of 40 minutes. What can I say.

Just wanted to post a few links to stuff I’ve been reading lately and found funny, interesting or worth passing on!

Scott Adams’ blog -> sometimes funny 🙂 But always updated more often than mine.
Best of Craiglist -> what started as a small personal’s website, has grown into a huge windy crazy thing, and the Best of … section is often very humorous. Please note : not suitable for anyone under 18, anyone with no sense of humour, or anyone easily shocked. If you’re an easily shocked under 18 year old with no sense of humour, please retire to bed immediately.

A friend sent this link to me http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200303/rauch – and it struck a chord 🙂 I’m not saying it’s the truth or deadly serious, but it certainly rang true and describes how I feel at times.

Awesome USB gadget

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USB is an excellent technology and there’s loads of gizmo’s that you can use these days, but we particularly liked this one at work. It looks well put together rather then just hacked together in a shed, and actually might prove useable. It’s a USB Fragrance Oil Burner.

Time Marches ever onward

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It’s March, I know, I find it hard to believe as well but there you go. Time it seems, refuses to stand still for even one moment. I survived the festive period, I’m sure you’re all glad to hear. I have to go and have another set of blood tests and checkups for the diabetes soon (this week or next) but fitting it in between bouts of apathy is proving difficult. We’ll see if I can break a hole for it in my busy apathy schedule next week.

Work is a bit more optimistic than it’s been for some time, they’ve ‘reorganised’ again back into the structure they had 3-4 years ago when I started which always felt like a better layout than the 2 they reorganised into during that period. I’m hoping it finally makes an impact, it’s moved me into a team which will have work to do even when my present work is offshored which can only be A Good Thing[tm].

I’m actually feeling quite chirpy. I know, I’m confused as well.

I signed up to Google’s AdSense thingy and popped some adverts onto the Gemmell Mania site, it’s eating up more and more bandwidth these days, so I reckon earning $1 dollar a year should help recover some of those costs. I feel a bit of a hypocrit since I refuse to click on web advertising, but it’s unobtrusive and not everyone feels like I do, so we’ll see how that goes. If any of the regulars complain I’ll probably take it off again. You can add AdSense to your blogger site with only about 3 clicks, but really, even I don’t read this site so I can’t imagine it generating any revenue. One blog article every 2 months isn’t really electrifying.

We’ve become addicted to CSI (Vegas, Miami and probably New York if we ever saw any), excellent TV shows, the only thing I try and actually watch each week, and Grete’s just starting getting the DVD box sets which is cool.

Some of the feelings of being happier and more communicative are probably due to the fact that spring is nearly upon us, always a time to feel like doing new things and emerging from a wintery ball of unsociable defense. We’ll see if it lasts.

TNF Progresses

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These posts are archives of forum / blog entries I made on my EverQuest guild website. The website won’t be around forever, and I wanted the posts all in one place so I didn’t lose them, this blog seemed like as good a place as any.

It’s nearly a month since Agnarr fell, and the TNF Raid Force hasn’t slowed it’s assault on the Planes of Power.

We took a break the weekend after Agnarr due to server outages and downtime.

The weekend of the 28th January saw TNF take on the Mithaniel Marr line again. A very long but successful raid meant AD, HoH trials 1-3, and Lord Mithaniel Marr fell. We rounded off with Velitorkin (he was lonely).

For the first weekend in February, we focussed our attention on Bertoxxulous and his High Priest. A quick run through the Carprin event, and another successful spanking of Bertox ensued. We also completed the 2 Sol Ro mini’s that TNF hadn’t attempted previously.

And the weekend just gone meant another Tactics run, from a complete and very smooth MB, through our second ever Rallos Zek kill, and then a trouncing of his brothers as well.

All-in-all, an excellent few weeks for TNF, confirming that our first-time-kills of Bertox, Rallos Zek and Lord Marr are repeatable, and getting ever-more people flagged for the Chamber of Solusek Ro. We’ll be revisiting Agnarr, Saryrn and probably Terris over the next few weeks, as well as beating the mini’s in Sol Ro one more time each.

See you all there 🙂

Agnarr the Stormlord – Down

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These posts are archives of forum / blog entries I made on my EverQuest guild website. The website won’t be around forever, and I wanted the posts all in one place so I didn’t lose them, this blog seemed like as good a place as any.

Agnarr is a wuss! The kite team did a superb job keeping everything amused while we tidied up, keeping Agnarr busy while we chatted casually about how to kill him and rescue Karana.

Outstanding work from everyone in the TNF Raid Force, and then a quick(ish) clear or three mini’s finished off the flags for that evening.

Congratulations to those in the raid force who are now earth / water / air flagged.

Agnarr

Oops, Agnarr fell over.

Festive Period

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It’s our own fault, we live in the middle of the country and our folks live in the north-east (mine) and on the south-coast (hers). So Christmas is often a time spent in the car – staring at other cars full of people staring at other cars. I can’t drive which means poor Grete gets it in the neck and has to do all that herself (donations of driving lessons welcome). Car survived, which is always a full-on bonus. Drive up north was clear, leaving was difficult with about 90 minutes of driving snow and some serious freezing fog. South wasn’t bad, although was very cold in the morning and lots of fog, and then coming back from there it was wet and windy. We got the whole gamut of British Winter Weather (you know, hailing one moment and then clear skies and bright sunshine the next). It was nice to see the family, we haven’t seen most of them for a couple of years through a combination of health, cost and time.

Generally it’s been a good Christmas, certainly more relaxing than previous years and we didn’t get sick just before cooking Christmas dinner and throwing it all away this time, which always helps. We did cook too much food and throw most of it away anyway but that’s not the point.

Hmm, I started this an hour ago, got sidetracked and now I can’t remember what I was going to write, and it’s 3am. So, I’ll go to bed, glad you enjoyed your visit 🙂