10 October 2008 - The price of crude oil is approximately US$85. How now, taxi diesel surcharge?

The largest taxi operator in Singapore, ComfortDelGro announced that it would raise taxi fares on 17 December 2007 due to higher operating costs. Slightly over half a year later, they announced that they will impose a taxi diesel surcharge of $0.30 for each taxi ride to offset the higher cost of fuel to an uproar from many Singaporeans including me.

Before the taxi diesel surcharge was imposed, Mr Yang Ban Seng, CEO of ComfortDelGro’s Taxi Business explained, “For the last six months, we have been absorbing a large part of the increase in diesel costs so that our drivers can enjoy a low rate of just $1.19 per litre of diesel, compared to $1.83 per litre if they had pumped outside. But even at this subsidised rate, our drivers are still paying about 40% more than what they were paying six months ago before the fare revision and the indications are that oil prices will continue to remain high,” he said.

ComfortDelGro commented that the surcharge, which will go entirely to the driver, is a temporary measure to offset the spiralling increases in diesel costs and will be removed when diesel prices fall back to $1.19 per litre which was the market price on 17 December 2007.

Why the taxi diesel surcharge should be removed now

1. At the time when the surcharge was imposed, diesel cost approximately $2.03 per litre at the 4 local petrol stations. As of today, diesel cost approximately $1.70 per litre, which is a difference of approximately $0.30 per litre. Without taking other factors into consideration, this is a good reason why the taxi diesel surcharge should be removed now.
2. Mr Yang predicted that oil prices will continue to remain high. Let's assume this comment was made when the price of crude oil is approximately US$125 per barrel. Oil prices have not continued to remain high, falling from a peak of US$147 per barrel to hover between US$80 to $90 per barrel since end September. This brings us to point no.3.
3. ComfortDelGro commented that the taxi diesel surcharge will be removed when diesel prices fall back to $1.19 per litre which was the market price on 17 December 2007. Let's assume that the market price they mentioned is the price of crude oil. The price of crude oil in December 2007 was approximately US$90. It is also around this price at the current moment. In fact, the price has been consistent between US$85 to US$90 for about 2 to 3 weeks.

Based on the points that I have raised above, the taxi diesel surcharge of $0.30 should be removed with immediate effect. Let's hope that ComfortDelGro would not have conveniently forgotten their assurance to Singaporeans because of Mr Yang's somewhat overconfidence that oil prices will never go below US$100 during his tenure as CEO and readdress this issue.

I have lots of lawyer girlfriends.  Because I am a lawyer, of course I have lots of lawyer friends.  It goes with the territory, you know?  What I find amusing is how often my lawyer girlfriends have to pull out the lawyer card as part of their ass-kicking when some stupid company fucks them over.  My lawyer boyfriends do not seem to have this problem, and I mean friends who are boys, not actual boyfriends.  I only have one boyfriend and he is not a lawyer, thank GOD...anyway, I digress.  I think sometimes us girls get hassled by companies who would not hassle boys just because they think us girls are pushovers.  Small problem.  We are not all pushovers, especially lawyer girls.  Lawyer girls in my experience have a little extra something that likes to kick asses, if you know what I mean.  Something of that ass-kicking mentality pushes us to do things like go to law school and become lawyers.  I am sure there are other professions like this as well, but as a group, my lawyer girlfriends are ass kickers.

ANYWAY.  So my friend Kathleen has had many instances where she has had to kick company ass.  It's fun to listen to her because you can tell by her story that she is always right and the company is always wrong and I am not being facetious here, she really is.  Like the time the bank told her she could have her deposit in 7 business days so she deposited a rather large sum based on that assertion, then the receipt the bank gave her after the deposit said she could not have that money for like two or three weeks or something.  Um.  NO.   Bank wrong.  Kathleen kick ass.  Or another time, I don't remember the details, but she was bidding at a furniture auction and bid on a piece of furniture and the auction people gave the furniture to someone else who bid earlier.  Kathleen kick ass again.  I think she lost on that one but the company was sorry they had crossed her and her husband looked sheepish.  The company was wrong, no doubt in my mind. Fuckers.  I would have kicked ass too.  Kind of like when the bank in Hawaii thought I was a terrorist and would not give me an account even with a very large sum of money, a valid driver's license, a social security card, and a passport.  Very large ass kicking there. I ended up at another bank.  Upset Lara.  Oh, and then there was the time the air filter company tried to mess with my lawyer friend Sara.  Their ad said Free In Home Estimates.  So they came and did their estimate and it was too high so of course Sara used another company.  Then they tried to charge Sara.  Um.  No.  Sara pointed out the various laws their attempts to collect violated.  Needless to say, they didn't get the money they did not deserve.  Jerks.

ANYWAY.  So the point of this rambling diatribe is that I gave this med spa fifty bucks to hold my appointment back in July.  They said We need a fifty dollar deposit to hold your appointment.  If you don't show or cancel within 24 hours of the appointment, we keep the fifty bucks. Okay.  I can deal with that.  Well, I called to cancel the same day I made the appointment.

Oh, we don't do refunds.  This isn't a refund.  I didn't get anything.  It is outside the 24 hour period, I want my money.  Well we won't give it to you.  Okay then.  Have you heard of the Oregon Health Spa Act, ORS 646A.030?  It allows the right of rescission of any spa service within 72 hours of requesting or paying for service.  Um, let me get my manager. Yeah, you do that.  So the next several conversations were not pleasant.  I described all the things I would do to them, including writing about their spa on my blog (doing that now), calling the Oregon Attorney General's office, and telling Clackamas Town Center, the mall where they are located.  During all this, I also promptly sent off the written notice requesting the rescission, as required by statute.  Finally the manager spoke to someone who would allow a refund.  She told me the money would be in my account by the end of the day.  Nope, not there.  I called again.  Within three days.  Nope, not there.  It is now three and a half months later and still, no refund.

So I'm going postal on their asses.  I filed my complaint with the Oregon AG.  I am going to call the mall where they are located.  And I'm writing about them here.  I did some research and discovered MANY forums lamenting the many problems with Pure Med Spa.  They are a terrible company.  They have huge problems giving refunds or returning deposits.  They also use technicians who are not properly licensed and forget to follow health regulations when performing spa services (this information comes from the forums, not my personal experience).  Too bad I did not know this when I walked by them in the mall.  They are counting on people not knowing this when they walk by in the mall.  This is part of why I'm going to tell the mall.  I don't know if the mall will care, but there should be some public service message to let patrons know the company they might deal with is a giant crook who will steal their money and could possibly perform some atrocious health violation on them or something.

The problem with stupid companies assuming customers are stupid is that their assumptions are often WRONG.  Guess what? I know where to look for the statutes about stupid asses like you.  I am happy to let others know there are statutes out there to protect consumers from shitty companies.  Oregon and many other states have rights of rescission statutes in many areas (though not in car sales, as is often believed).  Anyway, in Oregon anyway, there are statutes to allow you to change your mind about gym contracts, time share contracts, things sold door to door, certain home sale contracts, and other consumer contracts.  Usually you just have to send them a letter.  It's not difficult, people just don't know this is their right.  It would be better if the statutes required these jackasses to post something prominently stating as much, but for now, at least the laws are there so if some crappy company like Pure Med Spa tries to rip you off, you can fight them if necessary.  Fees to sue them and damages for causing you the trouble are often included in the remedies, so all you are out is your time.  The next time a company gives you trouble, go look through your state's consumer statutes, you might find you have certain rights.  It is so empowering when some ginormous company who couldn't give a shit about you tries to steal from you and you kick them in the ass.

It's a real challenge doing a job like this at a time like this, when there is only one real story on the news. Of course, we'll often try to make the link with that story, or focus on issues that are relevant. But there will always be interesting things that go unnoticed that at another time might have got more coverage. An example today was the announcment on strengthening consumer rights. The proposals cover a whole range of issues of concern to consumers such as clear information on price, additional charges and fees before they sign a contract. They will also strengthen consumer protection against late delivery and non-delivery, and set out EU-wide consumer rights on issues such as cooling off periods, returns, refunds, repairs and guarantees and unfair contract terms. This isn't just a consumer story though - it's a business story too, because with a clearer system in place across Europe, there will be greater opportunities for selling Europe-wide, especially online.

Went to the National Theatre last night, to see The Year of Magical Thinking. A tour de force performance from Vanessa Redgrave, but I thought the play was a little too long for the format (a woman in a chair talking) and there were some directorial decisions that I would question (if an amateur like me is allowed to question David Hare!) I went with Irina, one of my fellow Eisenhower Fellows, and it was lovely to see her again. While there I bought tickets for Every Food Boy Deserves Favour, a new play by Tom Stoppard and Andre Previn, which has a full orchestra! Sounds mad. I'll have to wait till January to find out what it's all about though - tickets are for then.

We're making progress on the Double Club's trip to Brussels, which I hope will be a lot of fun for those involved. They're going to visit a school, take part in lessons, play football with them, go to an Anderlecht game and then do lots of sighseeing. we need now to work on the Monday, which is the Commission/Parliament end of things.

The new stagiaire (intern) started today, and it'll be great to have someone around to give a hand with some of the research that we find difficult to get done. Sometimes the difficult bit is remembering that you have someone there to ask to do things when you're used to doing them yourself - always the first challenge when you get staff.

With the theme "on the healthy and safe side of living," the exhibitors are categorized into the "healthy" and "safe" products and services.

Activities for the next three days at the Atrium of the Mall include the annual poster-making contest, lectures on consumer rights and responsibilities and organic farming, cooking demos, seminars on utilization of kitchen waste, and healthy exercises.

The activities are spearheaded by the DTI and the Consumer Net, composed of government and non-government consumer groups.

At the ribbon-cutting yesterday, I got the commitment from fellow city councilor Pilar Braga to help fund this annual consumer fair after my term ends in 2010. I have been assisting the DTI mount this activity with P100,000 contribution from my Annual Development Fund.

Councilor Braga, who once served as executive director of Konsumo Dabaw, promised to continue the funding assistance starting 2011.

5:48 a.m.

I can’t wait for this one. Hold on shh it’s about to start…

<House Lights Dim>

ANNOUNCER: Llllllllets Get Ready to RUM-BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL!

In this corner with the Blue tie and smile we have a political heavyweight. He’s chaired the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee and currently serves as a ranking member. He’s the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, He’s the chairman of the Crime & Drugs Sub-committee, he’s strong on Consumer Rights, Human Rights, Immigration, Border Security, Technology Terrorism, Homeland Security all which he has served as a ranking member on these sub-committees. Not to belabor the obvious, but he’s authored the Violent Crime Control & Law Enforcement Act and the Violence Against Women Act to name two. He hails for the great state of Delaware by the way of Scranton, PA the six term senator and 2008 Democratic Vice-Presidential nominee “Smokin’ Joe Biden”.

* I proved links so Sarah Palin could read up on some of these things.

And in this corner with the square rimmed glasses and smirk we have a political new comer. She’s the one-term city council member of a town called Wasilla, then elected mayor of Wasilla, Alaska for one-term. She’s chaired the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission from 2003 – 2004 before she was elected Governor of the great state of Alaska in 2006. She was a star point guard and the head of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at Wasilla High School.

She was enrolled at Hawaii Pacific University but left after her first semester. From there she transferred to North Idaho College, where she spent two semesters as a general studies major. From there, she then transferred to the University of Idaho for two semesters. During this time Palin won the Miss Wasilla Pageant beauty contest, then finished third (second runner-up) in the Miss Alaska pageant, at which she won a college scholarship and the "Miss Congeniality" award. She then left the University of Idaho and attended Matanuska-Susitna College in Alaska for one term. The next year she returned to the University of Idaho where she spent three semesters completing her Bachelor of Science degree in communications-journalism, graduating in 1987. She’s the envy of Conservative Women from all over. Less I forget, she’s a mother of five children, one honorably serves in our armed forces, another is pregnant, but she’s keeping the baby and finishing high school, the other are lovely as well. The 2008 Republican Vice-Presidential Nominee Sarah “Barracuda” Palin.

COMMENTATOR: Now I want you both to answer the questions asked and refrain from sarcastic punch-lines. We do not have Teleprompters so it’s all on you. Let’s have a good debate.

]]> http://nicegreekboy.wordpress.com/?p=173 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:27:46 +0000 nicegreekboy http://nicegreekboy.pt-br.wordpress.com/2008/09/29/wal-mart-shutting-down-drm-servers-back-up-your-tunes/  

And in keeping with today's Wal-Mart theme, the latest example of Digital Rights Madness has arrived courtesy of the world's largest retailer. Wal-Mart has announced, in an e-mail to customers, that they will be shutting down their DRM servers in the coming week. Any music purchased before February 2008 will have to be backed up to an audio CD in order to be played on anything other than the original PC it was downloaded on. Why February 2008? Because that was when Wal-Mart started selling DRM-free music. Oops.

It's a shame, because the only person who loses in this scenario is the consumer. Wal-Mart and the record companies, after all, already have their money. But now the consumer needs to take special precautions to ensure something that they actually paid money for can still be used. It's only Wal-Mart now, but imagine if Apple pulled this with iTunes? DRM is increasingly becoming more unpopular in the digital music business, with services like Amazon offering DRM-free music and Apple experimenting. It's only a matter of time before Apple sends out a notice just like this. It makes sense - consumers  hate being told what they can do with their purchases.

But the unfortunate side effect is that when these servers get shut down, people who legitimately bought entire music libraries are the ones who get screwed. How many people do you think will actually pay attention to a notice like that and take the necessary precautions to ensure that their files will still work once the servers are shut down? You have to imagine that many people won't pay attention and then be up shit creek once the servers shut off and they can't listen to Lil' Wayne anymore.

And, as ars technica points out, one of the hilarious unintended side effects of sending out this notice is that it tells people how to bypass DRM (in music, anyway) on their own.

Of course, this whole fiasco could have been afforded if these companies had just allowed people to have DRM-free music to begin with. Instead, there's going to be an awkward, frustrating transition to something that should've been in place to begin with. And the net result is going to be a bunch of seriously pissed-off consumers.

And in the end, piracy looks more and more inviting to the average person every day.

Wal-Mart latest store to shut DRM key servers [ars technica]

Johnny was a rebel. A real maverick of a man. Show him a system, and he’d find a way round it. All the little get-outs, he got out through. He opted out of all opt-in mailings, he had his number put on the list to avoid junk calls, he made sure as hell he wasn’t on that electoral roll that’s for sale. His email address was a miracle of concealment to fool the bots, and you’d be bloody lucky to get it. And almost nobody got anywhere near his ‘real’ online identity.

If he was a bit naughty in his car, he’d make a real song and dance about ’fessing up to who was actually driving. There had to be pictures. Of his face. If not, he’d write long letters inevitably quoting the Human Rights Act. Stopped by the coppers in Waterloo? Same thing, knowing all the right responses to give to stay just the right side of the law, and exactly what would press the frustration button of the guy in the yellow jacket.

Junk calls? He loved those – playing right into the hands of his call centre victim – baiting them further and further into revealing who they worked for, and where, while tapping away merrily on his 192.com account and his Google Maps (and other, darker sources). Until he could surprise them by telling them the name of their wife. And if really pissed off, that he was watching their house from across-Church-Street-right-at-this-fucking-minute-pal.

Always pushing things to the very edge to protect his data, and his rights. Because information was Johnny’s lifeblood. His belonged securely locked away. But others’? Especially ‘public’ information? Ah, that was a bit different. Everything had to be open. Without compromise. If the government had it (or he thought they had it) he wanted at it. If there was something out there about a corporation, he wanted it mashed-up, unpacked, aggregated, chopped every which way.

Consumer rights were a passion. He joined every pressure group he could. It was his duty to share with others, not about himself of course, but about his purchases, how he claimed his benefits, what he did to swing the right school place for his kids, and so on…

He delighted in sharing the things The Man didn’t really want you to find out. The uglier stories of corporate hell. The product reviews that told tales from inside the factory. The quicker routes to claiming from the state. Where the councillor lived, and what they got up to on the internet that they thought nobody could find out about…

He bloody loved saynoto0870.com.

He whiled away boring afternoons phoning companies to pester them into giving up geographical alternatives to those noxious money-making numbers. They hated it, he really knew they did, but he knew how to beat the scripts – where to find the weak spots. And when he struck gold, up on the site it went.

Johnny was liberating the system for the downtrodden: the people who actually lived in the same town as their bank and shouldn’t be paying national rate numbers. The bundled-mobile-minutes crowd, who were buggered if they were going to pay twice for the same call.

And so it went. Until the day the crushing pain gripped his chest. Late nights, junk food, way too much coffee – his heart was giving out. He reached for the phone. The local health practice’s 0870 number… nah, he had the ‘real’ one. – Sure, get here asap, they said. The ambulance came. On the trolley now, doctors coming and going. A bit blurry. Fading, fading. A machine – wires… something, something wrong. Shaking heads. Dark, dark, dark.

The back-up defibrillator had failed. Wouldn’t normally have been used, but the real one had gone away for repair. In the old days, when the budget allowed, they’d have got the engineer on site. But things were pared to the bone now, and there was a 24-hour turnaround contract.

Of course, the budget shortfall hadn’t been helped by the drop in all the little sources of income for the health centre. Those guys who’d found an inconsistency in the boundary records for the car park, and had clawed back all those parking charges. Oh, and the strange drop in the margin on the 08— numbers. Some clever arses had found out the local numbers and put them on the internet.

At the edge of every system, it’s the tiniest differences that swing things. Johnny had just slipped, irretrievably, over the edge.

It was an anxiety filled day!  Its hard to stand up for yourself, especially if you are a woman!  You think everyone is calling you a bitch, you feel like they think you dont know what you are talking about.  And it is scary taking on a fight with a man! I know that sounds stupid but I always have difficulty fighting or disputing a man. And I have to get over it, I have as much right as anyone else to have my opinion and stand up for what I beleive in and get a good job done for a fair and reasonable price.  

I CALMED DOWN AND SENT THE GUY A TEXT TELLING HIM I HAD EVERY INTENTION OF PAYING HIM WHAT I FELT WAS A FAIR AND REASONABLE PRICE FOR THE WORK HE DID.  THEN I CAME HOME AND ITEMIZED THE MATERIALS AND CHARGES I FELT I NEEDED TO DISPUTE AND RECOUP IN A LETTER.  I WILL MAIL IT WITH A CHECK FOR THE AMOUNT I FEEL IS REASONABLE TO HIM. 

I am not trying to rip him off, I am just trying to be an active consumer and pay for the quality of work I recieved. I have that right,  I work for my money too and I deserve to be treated with respect.  I trusted him and he misused the trust.

It wore me out though and I have been trying to tile all day but have not accomplished much.  I am filthy dirty, may have tax class tomorrow, I have no shower to clean up in... but atleast I took a stand and decided to fight the fight.  I have a few new friends that have backed me up and I feel stronger . It is good to have friends again too. 

Well, got to go lay a few more tiles and call it a night.  Tomorrow is another day in the ring for a little fighter girl!

Português: Falei que achava que vocês não precisavam se preocupar com a questão do superaquecimento do W7S. Bem, preciso dizer que eu estava errado. Desculpem-me os que acreditaram, mas até algumas descobertas minhas dessa semana, não havia mesmo nada a temer.  (Continuação da versão em português no final do texto)

Something about 6 months ago, I've returnerd my W7S to store with some kind of crazy bug that put 6 copyes of my desktop on the screen. I tought it was just "bad luck". The store replaced the mother board, but now, 6 months later, I'm returning the W7S for the second mother board replacement in one year, now with lockdowns and pink lines on screen.

Doing some research, I've found this and other related forum threads and blog articles. Looks like the GPU in W7S, nVidia GeForce 8400m, has a serious bug related with overheating and/or heat cycles. Looks like nVidia also is not talking much about it for now. From my searches, it does not appear in all GPUs, but on notebooks like W7S, that naturally are hot, this is a big issue. I can't say for sure if this is the problem, but all indicates it cannot be anything else.

While the store works on replacing the motherboard again, I'm contacting Asus for a long term sollution for this problem. I've choosen this model also because of the GPU, and it is unacceptable that I need to stop using the GPU resources to extend the notebook lifetime. Look's like some vendors are releasing a BIOS update that keeps the fan running all the time, but that is also unacceptable, since it only will delay the problem from happening and will ruin the battery life. I'll keep updates of the status of this conversation with Asus on this post. I am confident Asus will give a good sollution, even if it is not really their fault, but I'm also researching about my consumer rights in the law for a "B plan", if needed.

For you all that may have found this page looking for info on the notebook, my advice is: I think Asus is a good choice. Except for this nvidia bug, I was very happy with the notebook while it was working. But I recomend caution on buying notebooks with the nVidia 8xxx GPUs, if you want to do it, make sure it has a good temperature reduction system that may prevent this bug from causing you problems.

For those that have a W7S or other 8400m powered notebook, I recommend caution. Maybe stop gamming for some time (specially if your warranty has expired). And keep updated on this post changes, I'll keep this updated with my findings and communications. If you already experienced any problems, please comment this article so we can share experiences, and maybe cry together (lol).

What I'm doing about it...

• [26/09/2008 8:56 AM BRT] - First contact with Asus Technical Support, explaining the problem, and asking for their position and a long term sollution
• [29/09/2008 10:30 AM BRT] - Got an Answer from Asus. Looks like an auto-response for brazilians, since it only told me how to send my notebook to Asus services on Brazil. Since my notebook is already being fixed, and my question was about the nVidia bug, I've rated the response unsactisfatory and replayed it with more especific questions.
• [02/10/2008] - Didn't received a response, so I decided to check the Asus page. My message is not marked as "pending" anymore, is set as "replyed at 2008-09-30 21:06:25". But in the content of the response is... nothing! Just my message quoted as "Original Message", and above it, where should be a response, is just nothing. I'll open a new ticket today.
• [04/10/2008] - Same thing happened. Ticket was "replyed" at 2008-10-03 20:35:05, but the reply is empty on Asus "VIP" services page. I'll not gve up that easy, I'll open a new one, very simple this time, just asking their position on "nvidia GeForce 8400m heat cycle bug" and a link to this homepahge, saying I've experienced it twice on my notebook. Maybe a shorter email they will reply.
  

More Info...

• [PC ADVISOR] Nvidia 'misled' public over graphics chip defects
• [PC ADVISOR] Nvidia to reveal scale of laptop chip woes
• [THE INQUIRER] All Nvidia G84 and G86s are bad
• [ASUS FORUM] Topic : [Problem]All Nvidia G84 and G86s are bad
• [TOM'S HARDWARE] Report: All Nvidia G84/G86 Chips Defective
• [NVIDIA] NVIDIA Provides Second Quarter Fiscal 2009 Business Update
• [DIRECT2DELL] NVIDIA GPU Update for Dell Laptop Owners
• [CNET] Summarizing the Nvidia problems with laptop chips overheating
• [CNET] Lawsuit alleges Nvidia hid chip defects
• [SLASHGEAR] NVIDIA GPU over-heat problem affecting all chips, notebook & desktop
• [NOTEBOOKREVIEW FORUM] Topic: NVIDIA Faulty Graphic Cards & Heat Problem
• [O GLOBO] Apple alerta para problemas em placas de vídeo Nvidia em alguns de seus MacBook Pro

Portuguese Version (Versão em Português):

A uns 6 meses atrás, retornei meu W7S para a loja com um problema estranho que colocava 6 cópias da minha área de trabalho na tela. Achei que foi "falta de sorte". A assistência substituiu a placa mãe, mas agora, 6 meses depois, estou retornando o W7S novamente para uma segunda substituição de placa mãe, dessa vez por travamentos e linhas rosa na tela.

Através de um pouco de pesquisa, achei diversos artigos e discussões em fóruns. Parece que a placa de vídeo presente no W7S, a nVidia GeForce 8400m, tem um grave bug relacionado com superaquecimento e/ou ciclos de aquecimento. Parece também que a nVidia não está falando muito do assunto por enquanto. Pelas minhas pesquisas, não é algo que aparece em toda placa de vídeo, mas em notebooks como o W7S, que já são mais quentes, é um problema grave. Não posso te afirmar com certeza que este é o problema, mas tudo indica que não pode ser outra coisa.

Enquanto a loja trabalha para a substituição da minha placa mãe mais uma vez, estou entrando em contato com a Asus para uma solução de longo prazo para o problema. Escolhi este modelo, entre outras coisas, por causa da placa de vídeo, e não é aceitável que eu precise parar de usar seus recursos para aumentar a vida útil do notebook. Parece que algumas empresas estão liberando updates da BIOS que mantém o cooler rodando o tempo todo para resfriar a placa, mas isso também é inaceitável, pois apenas atrasa a ocorrência do problema e acaba com a vida útil da bateria. Manterei este post atualizado com o que estou encontrando e com o status das minhas conversas com a Asus. Estou confiante que a Asus me dará uma boa solução, mesmo que não seja culpa deles, mas estou também estudando meus direitos de consumidor para um "Plano B" por meios legais, se necessário.

Para vocês que encontraram esta página em busca de informações sobre este notebook, meu conselho é: Aacho a  Asus uma boa marca. Se não fosse por este bug da nVidia... eu estava muito contente com o notebook enquanto ele estava funcionando. Mas eu recomento cautela ao comprar um notebook com essas placas de vídeo da série 8xxx. Se você realmente quer fazê-lo, tenha certeza que o notebook tem um bom sistema de ventilação e redução de temperatura que possa impedir este bug de te causar problemas.

Para quem já tem um W7S ou outro notebook com uma nVidia GeForce 8400m, eu recomenco cuidado. Talvez pare de jogar jogos por algum tempo (especialmente se sua garantia já acabou). E fique de olho neste post, manterei ele atualizado com minhas descobertas e contatos. Se você já está passando por problemas, deixe um comentário para que possasmo trocar experiências, e talvez chorar juntos ;D.

O que estou fazendo a respeito...

• [26/09/2008 8:56 AM BRT] - Primeiro contato com o suporte técnico da Asus, explicando o problema, e solicitando a posição deles e uma solução de longo prazo.
• [29/09/2008 10:30 AM BRT] - Chegou a resposta da Asus. Parece ser uma resposta padrão para brasileiros, pois apenas me explicou como submeter o notebook à assistência no Brasil. Como meu notebook já está na assistência, e minha questão era especifica sobre o bug da nVidia, dei nota insatisfatória à resposta e respondi com perguntas mais especificas.
• [02/10/2008] - Não recebi qualquer resposta, então decidi verificar na página da Asus. Minha mensagem não está mais marcada como "pendente", mas sim como "respondida em 2008-09-30 21:06:25". Mas no conteúdo da resposta, não há nada! Apenas minha mensagem citada como "Mensagem original", e, acima dela, onde deveria estar a resposta, simplesmente não há nada. Vou abrir uma nova chamada hoje.
• [04/10/2008] - De novo. O ticket foi respondido em 2008-10-03 20:35:05, mas a resposta está vazia na página de serviços "VIP" da Asus. Mas não vou desistir tão fácil. Vou abrir um novo ticket, desta vez bem simples, apenas perguntando a posição deles quanto ao "problema de ciclos de aquecimento da placa nVidia GeForce 8400m", e um link para este texto dizendo que já passei pelo problema duas vezes. Talvez um email mais curto eles respondam.
  

Mais informações (maior parte dos links em inglês)...

• [PC ADVISOR] Nvidia 'misled' public over graphics chip defects
• [PC ADVISOR] Nvidia to reveal scale of laptop chip woes
• [THE INQUIRER] All Nvidia G84 and G86s are bad
• [ASUS FORUM] Topic : [Problem]All Nvidia G84 and G86s are bad
• [TOM'S HARDWARE] Report: All Nvidia G84/G86 Chips Defective
• [NVIDIA] NVIDIA Provides Second Quarter Fiscal 2009 Business Update
• [DIRECT2DELL] NVIDIA GPU Update for Dell Laptop Owners
• [CNET] Summarizing the Nvidia problems with laptop chips overheating
• [CNET] Lawsuit alleges Nvidia hid chip defects
• [SLASHGEAR] NVIDIA GPU over-heat problem affecting all chips, notebook & desktop
• [NOTEBOOKREVIEW FORUM] Topic: NVIDIA Faulty Graphic Cards & Heat Problem
• [O GLOBO] Apple alerta para problemas em placas de vídeo Nvidia em alguns de seus MacBook Pro

Since the last time I mentioned Spore and the DRM woes that Electronic Arts has saddled it with, things have gotten a whole lot uglier. After a week in which EA vowed to "tweak" SecuROM (Five installs! Tight!) and was slapped with a class-action lawsuit, it seems that the gaming overlords have finally decided that they've had enough of the peanut gallery hurling angry barbs their way.

Since the controversy first erupted, many users have taken to the official Spore forums to voice their displeasure with SecuROM. As you can imagine, EA wasn't terribly happy about that. So unhappy, in fact, that they appear to have gone with the scorched earth approach to customer service.

"SecuROM has been discussed and discussed so much and it causes arguments in threads," barked a moderator. "If you want to talk about DRM SecuROM then please use another fan site forum.

"Please do not continue to post these threads or you account may be at risk of banning, which in some cases would mean you would need to buy a new copy to play Spore."

Whoa! Now we're talking! Nothing like a little autocracy to rile up the peons, eh? And riled up they got. Another moderator tried to calm them down by assuring them that their accounts would only be banned if they "broke the rules" and they'd be okay if they kept conversations civil.

Unfortunately, as mad as this might make you as a consumer, this is how DRM works. As I mentioned previously, when you buy a product with DRM encoded, you don't really own that product; your use of it is often completely up to the whims of the maker. And sometimes, those whims may include banning you and forcing you to buy another copy of the game for speaking your mind. Oops.

Then again, the joke is still on them, seeing as how Spore has been illegally downloaded over 500,000 times and will soon be the most pirated game in history.

You have to wonder how many of those people who get "banned" are going to go "buy" another copy.

EA threatens to cancel Spore accounts [eurogamer]

RTI given go-ahead
Shamim Ashraf

The council of advisers yesterday gave final approval to the much-awaited Right to Information (RTI) Ordinance 2008 aimed at ensuring people's right to information.

New posts will be created in most of the government offices and non-government organisations (NGOs). Officials holding those posts will provide people with the information they seek within 20 days of receipt of applications from them, says the ordinance.

But in cases of issues concerning a person's life and death, arrest and release from jail, the officials will have to provide primary information within 24 hours, it says.

The widely-debated law ensures people's right to information from organisations run with public money, and the NGOs using foreign funds, Information Secretary Jamil Osman, who placed the proposal before the council of advisers, told The Daily Star last night.

The law covers government offices down to upazila level.

“The rest of the local government bodies, like union parishads, will be covered by the laws on different local bodies which have provisions for ensuring people's access to information,” the information secretary said.

The RTI ordinance with 36 sections and a schedule of six security and intelligence agencies, which cannot be asked for information, has a list of about 20 instances of exemption from disclosure of information, an official said seeking anonymity.

The government said the new law will increase transparency and accountability, reduce corruption and establish good governance in government offices and NGOs.

Different rights and journalists forums have welcomed the government move terming final approval of the ordinance a 'historic step'.

The advisory council gave final nod to the RTI Ordinance 2008, 94 days after it approved the ordinance in principle, at a meeting chaired by Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed.

Details of the ordinance were not available immediately. It will come into effect after the president signs it.

Under the new law, people will have to pay fees for filing application seeking information. But people living below poverty line will be able to apply in white sheets of paper without paying any fees.

A three-member Information Commission headed by a chief information commissioner will be formed to properly enforce the law and deal with complaints from the information seekers.

“One of the two commissioners will be a woman,” Syed Fahim Munaim, press secretary to the chief adviser, told reporters after the council meeting.

The Information Commission, apart from financial liberty, has been entrusted with the authority to punish or fine officials who will fail to provide primary information on life and death, arrest and release of a person from prison within 24 hours, he said.

The president will appoint the chief information commissioner and information commissioners on the basis of suggestions from a five-member selection committee.

The chief justice will nominate a judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court to head the selection committee. The Speaker will nominate two parliament members -- one each from the treasury and opposition benches-- while the government will nominate one from among eminent citizens.

The cabinet secretary will be the other member of the selection committee.

If any assigned official does not provide information to an information-seeker as per the law, he will have to pay Tk 50 for a day's delay and a total fine not exceeding Tk 5,000, according to a provision of the ordinance.

The ordinance will not cover National Security Intelligence, Directorate General of Forces Intelligence, Military Intelligence Directorate, Special Security Force, Criminal Investigation Department of Police and Central Intelligence Cell of the National Board of Revenue.

This provision will not apply if the information concerns corruption and human rights violation.

Welcoming the government move, Shaheen Anam, executive director of Manusher Jonno Foundation, which has been working for several years for enactment of the law, said, “It is historic. If there is anything that needs to be changed, it can be done later.”

Congratulating the government on its approval of the ordinance, Shawkat Mahmud, president of the Jatiya Press Club, also termed it a historic move.

The information secretary said 99 percent of the NGOs will be covered by the law. “We've tried to ensure maximum disclosure of information. If there is any lapse in the ordinance, there is always a scope to address that,” he said.

Describing implementation of the law as a crucial job, he said the main tasks include forming the information commission, creating information bank and information dissemination system at offices and training up the staff.

Against the backdrop of a longstanding demand, the caretaker government took the initiative to formulate an RTI law as part of its institutional reforms. After an eight-member government-formed body prepared a primary draft in February, opinions from different stakeholders were sought before the information ministry submitted it to the cabinet on June 18.

Tegnapelőtt vettem két üveg Traubisodát. Megláttam a boltban és nagyon megörültem neki, mert már régen ittam. Amikor azonban itthon belekóstoltam kellemetlen meglepetésben volt részem. Az íze nyomaiban sem hasonlított a régi, hagyományos Traubiéra. Leginkább valamiféle illatosított ásványvízre emlékeztetett, borzalmas mű íze volt, bennem kifejezetten undort keltett. Azt, hogy milyen gyümölcsből készült nem tudnám megmondani, de nem szőlőre emlékeztetett. Szerintem leginkább sosem látott gyümölcsöt.

Manapság sokat mondják, hogy legyünk tudatos fogyasztók, hát én az voltam. Rákerestem a Traubi honlapjára, hátha valahol lehet kritikát írni a termékről. Rá is bukkantam a http://www.traubi.hu/ -ra. Kritikát persze nem lehetett írni, de érdekes dolgot találtam:

„A balatonvilágosi igazi Traubi tulajdonságai

1971 óta badacsonyi saszlaszõlõbõl készül, melyet a balatonvilágosi üzemben préselnek és dolgoznak fel, az eredeti receptúra szerint. A saszlaszõlõ aromája a magnéziumban gazdag vízzel keveredve alkotja meg az emlékezetes Traubi ízt, a természet ajándékát.

Az igazi Traubisoda ismertetõjelei

Szükséges felhívnunk a figyelmet az igazi Traubisoda ismertetõjeleire.

A.) minden termék kupakján és címkéin megtalálható a szõlõszemes embléma.

[caption id="attachment_55" align="aligncenter" width="200" caption="1. számú jel"][/caption]

B.) az üveg hagyományosan 0.25 literes ûrmértékû, és NEM 0.20 literes.

[caption id="attachment_56" align="aligncenter" width="124" caption="2. számú jel"][/caption]

C.) kóser minõsítést igazoló, héber nyelvû pecsét.

[caption id="attachment_57" align="aligncenter" width="124" caption="3. számú jel"][/caption]

Mások is állítanak elõ Traubensaft, Traubensoda, Traubisoda, stb. elnevezésekkel üdítõitalt, amely azonban tartalmában nem felel meg az 1971 óta megszokott és közkedvelt Traubi íznek és tulajdonságoknak, esetleg más gyümölcssûrítményt tartalmaznak szõlõ helyett. Kérjük, amennyiben ilyen vagy hasonló termékkel találkozik, értesítse a Traubi Hungária Rt.-t!“

Jobban megvizsgáltam hát az üvegemet és ez tényleg nem a balatonvilágosi fajta volt, a fenti ismertetőjelek közül semmi sem volt rajra. Az általam vásárolt termék gyártója a debreceni Ráthonyi Kft. volt.

Na, gondoltam akkor kiderült a turpisság, és írtam is egy e-mailt erről a Traubi Hungária Zrt-nek, hogy figyeljenek oda erre a Ráthonyi Kft-re, mert rongálja a termékük hírnevét.

Csakhogy ekkor még nem tudtam erről:

http://www.vg.hu/index.php?apps=cikk&cikk=240533

Szóval úgy néz ki, hogy ez a két cég most vitatkozik, hogy ki használhatja jogszerűen a Traubisoda márkanevet. A Ráthonyi Kft. szerint a Traubi Hungária Zrt. jogtalanul bitorolja azt. Megmondom őszintén a két cég huzavonája nem igazán érdekel, de az igen, hogy egy régi, jól bevált márkanévhez, pláne ha “Hungarikumról” van szó a régi, jól bevált minőség társuljon! Márpedig úgy tűnik a Ráthonyi Kft. meg ezt az elvet tiporja lábbal a termékével! Szomorú ha ezt úgy teszi, hogy tényleg ő a márkanév jogos tulajdonosa. Mert akkor vigyázhatna rá! Szerintem botrányosan rossz, amit gyártanak Traubisoda név alatt!

Csak remélni tudom, hogy végül a fogyasztó nyer és így vagy úgy visszakapjuk a régi Traubi ízt! Hajrá Traubi!

The process of subscription is also simple, just send "START DND" to 1909, whoever your service provided is going to be. 

Govt mulls ethical society to curb graft
Formulating National Integrity Strategy; PM to lead ADB-financed good governance project
Julfikar Ali Manik

The government is considering introducing a 'national integrity strategy' (NIS) in a bid to create an ethical society to back up its drives against rampant corruption.

The government aims at achieving the goal through 'rebuilding integrity' in every segment of the society including public, private and political sectors.

Though the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is responsible to prosecute the corrupt, policymakers of the present government believe it's impossible to fight graft only by ACC through prosecution, say sources involved in formulation of NIS.

"So the government has taken initiatives to formulate NIS to combat corruption through moral-based approach to complement the ACC's functions," says a source.

Explaining the perspective of coming up with a new idea, another source argues: "Ineffective formal control and lack of social and citizen-oriented anti-corruption accountability mechanisms have added to what could be termed a crisis of integrity."

"This calls for a longer-term change process with a strong reform regime that would sit at the core of the good governance agenda of the government," the source adds.

"Given the holistic nature of a national integrity strategy, its full implementation would be long-term -- more like a decade than months," observes Barrister Manzoor Hasan, director of Institute of Governance Studies (IGS), Brac University, who is involved in formulation of NIS draft through consultation with cross-sections of people in the country.

The sources say the government is formulating NIS as part of the four-year project styled "Supporting the Good Governance Program" financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The ADB is providing the government with a loan of $150 million (Tk 1,050 crore) for this project, which is likely to be increased up to $170 million, sources say. They add the donor agency also suggests that the government formulate NIS.

A draft of NIS is expected to be prepared by mid-September, said Matiar Rahman, joint secretary (committee and development) of the Cabinet Division, who is working as the co-coordinator of the Good Governance Programme.

Rahman said the ultimate goal of NIS is to strengthen integrity at the individual, institution and national levels "because the values, ethics and morals have already been distorted which we need to rebuild in every level."

"The NIS is mainly to prevent corruption in government institutions. Our ultimate vision is to free the country from corruption. Through implementation of the strategy, we want to prevent corruption in public sectors and ensure proper service to people through public institutions."

"We have plans to work on integrity issue from family to national level. As a result of NIS, we want to get a country free from corruption and people will get proper services from public offices," added Rahman.

In Asia, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines have such integrity strategies in different names. The Malaysian's strategy is called 'National Integrity Plan', he said.

Different sources say India and Pakistan are also working to formulate such integrity strategies.

"We have examples that some countries have gained many achievements through implementation of such integrity policies," said Barrister Manzoor Hasan.

"As integrity will increase in our society, the ordinary citizens have a greater sense of ownership. They will be able to express their views without fear. The quality of basic services -- health and education -- will improve," he added.

The government has designated IGS to prepare the draft of the strategy and IGS submitted a National Framework on it to the Cabinet Division in June. The IGS on August 27 submitted another detailed document to the Cabinet Division as a process of finalising the draft.

Sources say initially it was proposed by IGS to set up a 'national integrity institute' by this month, which will be run under policy guidance of a high-powered National Integrity Advisory Committee (NIAC) headed by the prime minister or the chief adviser.

It was also proposed that the government would form a 'national integrity council' (NIC) to lead the implementation of the strategy and the government's plan is to make NIC functional before the national elections proposed to be held in the third week of December.

But the government is not willing to set up a separate institute to implement NIS, the sources say. According to the policy guidance of NIAC, an NIS cell in the Cabinet Division headed by an additional or joint secretary will now facilitate implementation of the strategy through ministries, constitutional bodies and other institutions.

The NIS cell will facilitate formation of Ethics Committee and appointment of Ethics Focal Person in each ministry and other government institutes (those will be considered as participating agencies of NIS) headed by the secretaries of the ministries and head of the institutes.

The ethics committees will work to ensure integrity within the ministry and in other organisations or offices under the ministries in line with the national documents of NIS, which will set a minimum standard of integrity to be maintained.

Besides, these committees will make an action plan in line with NIS to implement the strategy in their offices, while Ethics Focal person will maintain liaison with NIS Cell in view of the progress of implementation.

"We cannot force people in private sectors to form such an ethics committee in their own arena, but we can request them to do so in the name of anything," a source observes.

The sources say they are considering formation of NIAC drawing members from each participating agencies of the state institutions and non-state institutions.

The state institutions are parliament, the executive (cabinet ministers), judiciary, civil service, local government, public prosecution, Public Service Commission, ACC, the Election Commission, Ombudsmen and Comptroller and Auditor General.

Non-state institutions are family, civil society, NGOs, private sector, media and political parties.

"The state and non-state institutions are in the National Integrity System. We will decide representatives from different institutions later through discussions," says a source.

The sources add there will be a provision that the head of the participating agencies of NIS will be members of NIAC.

"It will be an opportunity to bring all the heads of the important bodies to the same forum. Now they don't have any scope to sit to decide anything together," a source adds.

If this plan is implemented, NIAC led by the prime minister or the chief adviser will be formed comprising the Speaker, cabinet ministers, an elected representative from local government, attorney general, ACC and PSC chairmen, chief election commissioner, Ombudsman, Comptroller and Auditor General, and representatives from NGO, business sector, media, civil society and political parties and families.

No selection process has been chalked out yet to select a representative from family for NIAC, says a source.

A draft national framework of NIS suggests that the government consider the life-span of NIS, which could be four to 10 years, or can be extended by laws.

The sources go on to say the government already has mechanisms in the ministries and their field offices to handle grievances.

The mechanisms have been set up as part of the Good Governance Programme, which will be strengthened further when NIS comes into effect, the sources say, adding promulgation of the Right to Information Ordinance is also a part of the project which will be a key issue for implementing NIS.

Two years on, I've opened a new bank account and tried and tried to close my old one. But every time I sign the closure form, the bank spend oodles of time getting round to closing it, by which time I've been charged again. Hey presto, another debit transaction and the bank keep the account open.

Last week I got a letter demanding x amount or the bank were taking me to court. I marched over, letter in hand, and said I was very, very cross. Cue letter from head office saying if I pay one AOL debit of £18, they will drop all the other charges and close the account.

Get it up you, big businesses! I still rule!

Do you find this headline familiar? No, it isn't from an old report. In fact, it is from The Straits Times today . It was not long ago that Starhub increased the subscription charges for Sports Group, which includes ESPN, Star Sports, SuperSports and now Football Channel and now it is estimated that the subscription charges could go up by another 60 - 80% by 2010, which is about 1/1/2 years away!!!

Personally, I cannot live without football on the television and as long as they do not increase it by an astronomical amount, they are guaranteed a loyal customer in me. However, I cannot live with the fact that firstly, Starhub increased the subscription charges and then took away the BPL broadcast from ESPN and Star Sports, moving it to their reinstated Football Channel. If you don't have the expertise to broadcast live matches, then give it up to others who know how to! (click here for 64 reasons why Football Channel sucks)

Secondly, after increasing the subscription charges, Starhub gave up the rights to broadcast UEFA Champions League matches to Singtel from season 2009/10 without even a whimper. That means we are now paying more and watching less! So what if you are having exclusive broadcast rights to the Asia World Cup qualifying rounds and the UEFA Cup?! Who on earth watches those?!

Should Singtel manage to secure the broadcast rights to the BPL, I am definitely kissing goodbye to Starhub. I have enough of their nonsense since they started broadcasting the BPL on Football Channel and if there are no BPL and UEFA Champions League on Starhub, there is nothing worth subscribing to.

Madness of the market

ONCE again, capitalism has shown its cuddly, people-friendly face with the collapse of holiday giant XL Leisure Group.

Around 85,000 people stranded abroad, several hundred thousand advance bookings dishonoured, staff finding out that they didn't have a job in mid-flight, over 1,700 jobs potentially vanishing and the Unite union not even being informed by the company that it was in trouble with its refinancing arrangements after a major bank pulled out on August 14.

And yet, in the full knowledge that it was, indeed, in trouble and desperately trying to arrange a bail-out, the companies in the group continued to take people's cash and make bookings that there was precious little chance that they could honour.

Not that this implies any dishonesty or deliberately dodgy dealing by the companies. Far from it - at least in the terms of the market economy.

The logic of capitalism meant that they had to continue trying to trade their way out of trouble and that same market-oriented logic said that they could not allow any hint of trouble to become public knowledge because people would obviously then cease to book with the companies, thereby sealing their fate.

Indeed, as late as August 31, a company spokesman was saying that "the XL Leisure Group is experiencing strong trading, with bookings for 2009 already outperforming last year."

But, as for the long-suffering passengers, they inevitably get the sticky end of the deal and, the less well off that they are, the stickier it becomes.

Granted, customers well off enough to book full package deals through travel agencies are covered by the CAA air travel organisers' licensing scheme and will be offered repatriation flights or their money back if they have an advance booking.

And, if they booked by credit card, their card insurance should cover them.

But people not having credit cards to book with, or booking a flight only, because they could not afford the full package, will face an extra fee to get home.

And it's not only the passengers. The staff have an even worse situation to deal with.

No jobs and an industry that is contracting by the day, with airlines such as Alitalia and Zoom either collapsing or in terminal decline and a resulting glut of unemployed staff on the jobs market.

So, who is to blame for this situation?

In 2004, the Times reported that a major British bank "is poised to become the largest oil trader in the City of London as banks rush to profit from the soaring oil price and booming oil speculation market."

In 2008, that same bank pulled the rug out from under XL because of financing associated with fuel. In other words, a major oil speculator shuts XL because the company can't pay the price for fuel that the speculators have driven up.

And the bank's partner in financing XL - a major Icelandic bank - acquired the still-profitable French and German XL subsidiaries on Friday morning after the rug-pulling exercise, in what can only be described as a perfect example of asset-stripping, although it would probably claim that it was saving what could be rescued from the stricken company.

But the fact remains that, if the company was stricken, it was the banks that did the striking.

Talk about having your cake and eating it.

It is difficult to imagine a better example of the amoral chaos of market capitalism or, for that matter, a better reason for social ownership of banks and big businesses generally.

Today you can bet that any hurricane, even if downgraded to a category one, will be a perfect fit to hike up prices at the pump.  Mother Nature has become yet another convenient excuse to suck it to the consumer.  Meanwhile, what is the government doing about it?...Absolutely nothing!  Why? Because we’re living in a Bush age, where Oil is King and people are the minions of corporate abuse.

Still, the slap on the face does not end in oil.  We, the taxpayers that is, are now rescuing the housing market.  Bailouts are not constitutional folks!  What we are witnessing is immoral and at the heart of what is wrong with America today.  Unfortunate events happen because people choose to abuse of other people and the welfare system that is in place to allegedly assist the people that are in dire need.  It all plays upon a cynical stage when private interests are the movers and shakers.  Meanwhile, the media—another monopolized network—provides all the choreography for the trailers of doom, and we buy into it.

Let’s take back the American Dream and say, “NO!”

On Microsoft's site they have a place to compare the different versions of Vista, because they have four different editions. There they have a chart like most comparison, with the editions running across the top, and the features running down from there will places for check marks to go for the feature that is available.

The first in the comparison is Vista Home Basic ( not to be confused with Vista Home Premium, the next choice for an additional $60) , for $199 you get three out of the 16 check marks. The descriptions (on all the check marks) are as vague as can possible be. The three that come with home are "Most secure Windows ever...", "Quickly find what you need...", and "Easier network connectivity...". The "..." at the end of each of these indicates that if you mouse over it, there will be a better description. The verbose description for these three is "...with Windows Defender and Windows Firewall", "...Instant Search and Windows Internet Explorer 7", "...with the Network and Sharing Center". Lets dissect these a bit more, the first includes Windows Defender, a very poor quality and free Malware scanner, and Windows Firewall already comes in Windows XP. The second, Instant search, another free utility that while makes searching for files on your computer faster, constantly indexes your system, putting tax on your hard drive and using up system resources slowing down your computer. Internet Explorer 7, also free to download, adds a few features that are standard in every other browser around including tabbed browsing and more security. Finally the third in the set, Network and Sharing Center, is just a rename of the Windows XP networking features.

So if you buy Home Basic Edition of Vista, you can get a handful of programs that are already included in Windows XP. The only difference here is that you lose the other other 13 features that Vista has to offer in its premium editions that are all also already included in Windows XP but not in Home Basic (aside from the Aero Vista theme, we will get to that momentarily).

The system recommended requirements for the Vista class are pretty steep compared to that of XP or any of the other operating systems out there, yes there are alternatives to Windows.

Windows XP recommended requirements are as follows, and the recommended means that these are more than what is necessary to run the system.

300 MHz CPU
128 MB of RAM
1.5 GB of available hard disk space
Super VGA (800 x 600) or higher-resolution video adapter with at least 8 MB of video RAM and monitor
CD-ROM or DVD drive

Vista Home Basic recommends this:

1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
512 MB of system memory (1GB for anything over Home Basic)
20 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space (40GB for anything over Home Basic)
Support for DirectX 9 graphics and 32 MB of graphics memory (for anything over Home Basic: 128 MB of graphics memory)
DVD-ROM drive
Internet access (fees may apply)

Note this last one, Internet Access is required. That is because Vista connects back into Microsoft on a set schedule to make sure that you are still running a legal copy. If you are not, it will lock the system and you wont be able to log in at all.

Also note the 128mb graphics card requirements. This is required to run the Aero theme. 128mb is enough power to play high graphic video games from last year or so and now it is required just to run a theme that shows you the window contents as you Alt+Tab.

And last of all, check out the storage space requirements. The requirements are 10x what they were for XP. 15GB of space for an operating system? That is ridicules, many people only have 20gb hard drive space total, and why would you want to have to delete all your movies and music to use the space for *.cab files and Vista lib files?

Back to our check marks, the other vague descriptions that they offer include ambiguities such as "Use a secondary screen on your mobile PC..." and "Protect against hardware failures...". So if I don't buy Vista, I cant connect an external monitor to my laptop? If I buy Vista, thunderstorms have less of a chance to short out my equipment?

This is the most appalling and misleading way to advertise that I have ever seen. If the operating system does not add any features, the company should not advertise all these great additions. Most of them are already included with other operating systems, and those that are not are free to download from Microsoft directly.

This product is an insult to the consumer and a plague to the IT field that has to support it. It is the digital equivalent to a big company dumping toxic waste into our nations water supply and telling us that it will make us feel better and live longer.

As Jackie Chiles said," This is a clear violation of your rights as a consumer. It's an infringement on your constitutional rights. It's outrageous, egregious, preposterous."

And I say, It's definitely preposterous.

How do you avoid losing your money like this? Make a deposit or withdrawal on each and every bank account at least once per year (either online or at the physical branch). Interest going into a bank account is not considered activity. Deposit and/or cash your payroll and gift checks quickly before you have a chance to lose or forget about them. Use traveler's checks as soon as possible. If you have a deposit box, visit it at least once a year.

Keep your contact information up to date. Make sure that you update your address on each and every bank account, so the bank can send you important notices and you have a reminder that your accounts exist.

Do you want to see if you have any unclaimed money? Go to www.unclaimed.org and look under all the states that you have lived in. You may find that it is worth the trip.

Yesterday I was very thirsty and it had been long time since I drank "Mirinda" a soda based soft drink product by PepsiCo India Ltd. So I thought of buying a half liter bottle.

I have to go to 3 different shops to buy a single half liter bottle.

While I was checking the expiry date for the bottle at the first shop, the shopkeeper gave me a weird look. To my surprise the bottle was well over its expiry date.

I told him so, he took out another bottle and it was also over the expiry date, I checked all the Soft drink bottles he was having were well over their expiry date.

I refused to take any. I told him send the bottles back to the company do not sell them, or throw them away. I was sure he was going to do nothing.

He told me to get on my job, and he will take care of his job. He said no one bothers to check expiry date on soft drink bottles and anyways they are kept in the refrigerator. I was sad, but what else would I have done other than telling him.

Sadly I went to the second shop, there I had another problem on hand, the guy asked me 22 Rs/- for a half liter bottle, MRP of which is 20 Rs/- . I argued with him, and he said, if you want to buy, buy else leave the shop. Again, what else could I do?

I got the bottle well within the expiry date and that too at 20 RS/- .I quenched my thirst, but what about quenching the thirst of answers for questions at came along with the experience with the previous 2 shop owners?

How many people seriously check expiry date for each item they buy?

How many shop keepers feel responsible enough not to keep products over the expiry date?

And if they are found selling such products, what kind of action is taken against them?

Is it easy to go and file a case in a consumer court against such shopkeepers? Or is it the whole responsibility of the consumer to check the expiry?

Please make it a habit to check for expiry date of any item you purchase, or at the least for food items.

The above mentioned pic is from http://www.expirydate.co.uk/ .