As they say... "Radio Shack: You have questions; we have batteries." Regarding "technical store built with the mall mentality," I always thought it would be interesting to rent one of those little carts in a mall which are generally used to sell junk jewlery or cookies. I'd stock it up with motherboards, RAM, cables, software on CD, etc. High value stuff that doesn't take much room. Could it work in the typical mall? Further Radio Shack story... Years ago I was working in a radio station and got a Radio Shack catalog. The catalog had what appeared to be a transistor radio battery and the text said it had "higher lumen output." They had a CB radio with "range boost" with no explanation as to what it was. They had a TV antenna whose major attribute was that it looked good on top of any set. I wrote them a letter questioning these items and finished off with something like "I'm currently the chief engineer of a radio station, but would consider a job writing catalog copy." They wrote back thanking me for reading their catalog so carefully. The admitted the "higher lumen output" did not make sense on a transistor radio battery and would fix that. I don't remember what they said about "Range Boost." They did say the TV antenna copy got a little hokey at times. They didn't have any openings at the time (early 1970's). Harold Harold Hallikainen harold@hallikainen.com Hallikainen & Friends, Inc. See the FCC Rules at http://hallikainen.com/FccRules and comments filed in LPFM proceeding at http://hallikainen.com/lpfm On Fri, 2 Jul 1999 11:13:41 -0400 Wagner Lipnharski writes: >I needed to post this... an experience I had today. > >Went to local Radio ShOck looking for a coiled wire, enough to feed >800mA (6Vdc) to a moving head, first thought was a handset telephone >coiled wire, all 4 wires soldered in parallel should do... the return >current goes through ground. That kind of wire size is AWG 28 or >around, >stands aprox 760mA per wire, so 4 wires should do it. > >First went to the regular wires section, browsing around, some >attendant >start a conversation: > >he: "Can I help you?", >I: "Yes, thank you, I am looking for a coiled wire" >he: "What kind of wire?" >I: "Coiled, isolated, to supply 6V, 800mA to a moving head, it can be >a >coiled telephone headset wire. Cell phone lighter car recharger coiled >wire can not do, it is short" >he: "NO! you can't use telephone wire to feed 800mA" >I: "Why not?" >he: "Because it is too much current, telephone wire stands few >milliamps" >I: "How many milliamps?, what is the top current for telephone wires? >what is the AWG size?" >he: "I don't know!, but it should be far less than half amp" >I: "You don't know the size of a telephone wire, not even the >current, >how can you be so sure about what you are saying? that it can not feed >800mA?" >he: "Telephone wires were done to stand low current, can not conduct >800mA" >I: "How can you be so sure about it? if you don't know the specs of >the wire?" >he: "They are so small, look..." > At this point I was holding a big laugh, he was showing a flat >beige 4 wires telephone wire. >I: "I am talking about coiled wire, not this one" >he: "It is the same thing" >I: "No, it is not, the other is coiled" > >Sure he got trapped by my questions... he could not justify his >guessing >about the current. >I just looked around a bit more and exit the store. >He never pointed me the shelve where lots of coiled telephone wires >were >just sit. > >Ok, now, do you want to buy a nice computer? a handheld two way >communication radio? perhaps a nice security system? and are not so >sure >about it, looking for help? go there and ask this same guy... > >Morale: When asking for technical help, first ask the guy if he >really >knows about it, had experience about it... or if he will just guess >about it... remember that you also can guess (that he's an idiot)... > >His approaching question should be: "Can I help you guessing >something?" > >Wagner. ___________________________________________________________________ Get the Internet just the way you want it. Free software, free e-mail, and free Internet access for a month! Try Juno Web: http://dl.www.juno.com/dynoget/tagj.