sid

Hi Punch Thanks for the link, I'll save it for future reference. I've already placed an order with Axminster and the total cost including postage is £10.15 for a numeric set. Regards Sid

Les My caravan is 15 years old but in excellent condition; we feel it's worth a try to get it registered. The advice I've been given by another caravan owner who has registered a similar van in our departement is that a chassis plate is not acceptable (it already has one of those) but the chassis number must be engarved or punched into the 'A' frame on the righthand side (nearside for France). There are no letters in the chassis or serial number. These were the instructions from the chap at DRIRE Niort. I know differnet departments interpret the regulations in different ways but this is local information. There are all sorts of tales about the impossibility of registering UK 'vans, for example the door is on the wrong side... every French car has at least 1 door on the wrong side!! Anyway, back to the die stamps. I've placed an order with Axminster but not yet received an indication of the postage. Val2... I tried Outiror, they have a website, but I can't find 'poincons'. Maybe another company has them but I'm running short of time. Regards Sid

Hey, thanks guys, I can see that you've been searching while I've been away! "Poincon" (with the cedilla under the 'c') seems to be correct, "die stamp" was what I was looking for in English. Sometimes I feel caught in a time warp, can't find the French word and can't remember the English word either!!! [8-)] Thanks for the UK links, it looks as if I'll have to order from there because I can't find anything by mail order over here... the Franch don't seem to be into internet trading properly yet. On checking my chassis number I'll get away with just a numeric set, so the postage shouldn't be too bad. Thanks again guys Sid

I would like to buy a set of 'punch' tools to mark our caravan chassis with its serial number prior to attempting registration. I've no idea what the tools are called in English, never mind French!! [:$] They're like a small centrepunch with an embossed letter/number and you get a set A-Z, 0-9. Anybody know what they're called , and more importantly where to get them? Niort or Angouleme would be good. Sid

The OP was asking about what they run on. We should point out that the fillers on the chainsaw are usually for 2-stroke fuel, premixed; that is, the oil and the petrol are mixed before filling up. The other filler is for oil, but this is thick, sticky lubricating oil for the cutting chain itself, not the engine. Generally the lubricating oil will need to be topped up every time the fuel is topped up. I've seen many recommendations for Stihl chainsaws and the users seems think they are the best. Like Volvo drivers perhaps? From my experience, I found a cheaper 'own brand' type from Castorama, costing about one third of the price, to be perfectly adequate for home and garden needs so long as the chain is maintained in sharp condition. The warning about protective clothing 'stihl' applies though. [:)] With a cheaper saw you can afford decent protection!  

During the drought last year water restrictions were applied here in Poitou-Charente, and in fact here Deux-Sevres they were not lifted until March this year. As I understand it you are not allowed to take water from a well during the periods of water restriction because it in effect lowers the water table. I would hve thought that the amount wouldn't make much difference, especially when compared to the huge amounts used for water maize and so on, but I don't think that argument would hold any water (ouch!). We were allowed to water vegetables during the hours 8pm to 8am, but the severity of the restrictions varies with the water shortage and the ultimate sanction is to ban watering altogether. The notices are published outside the mairie. Many people have electric pumps fitted to their wells and I don't see how the authorities could keep track of them all. You could get 'grassed up' (pun intended) though by a neighbour. One of the tales doing the rounds is that there are microlights buzzing about taking photos of offenders or properties with particularly green lawns and gardens. Sid

"Knowledge is great, sharing it is even be ...... tter" Hi Ufly, many of us have gone through this process for BBC1 etc, but probably not for the Swedish stuff... sounds interesting though!! I used this website http://www.satcure.co.uk/ there's loads of information, much of it free, and you can download 'e-books' for a small charge which cover the more complex issues. The topic has been covered many times on this forum, so try a search for 'satellite' (use the correct spelling though) or 'SKY TV' etc. Sid

I too have watched Premiership football via the internet. As the previous poster said, you can find Asian websites which have 'streaming video'. You need an broadband service. The picture quality is poor but watchable, the commentaries usually in Chinese and very irritating. The links have a habit of breaking or freezing too. It really is only for the dedicated addict who misses his home team and needs his weekly fix... oh yes, that's me. Sid   

Surely you have some form of Registration document? The normal advice is never to buy a vehicle without proof of ownership; a reg. document at least shows who the last owner is/was. This is the first document you're going to need for 'immatriculation'. The fact that it has French plates means, I think (!), that it won't have an English document. My first step would be to contact the vendor. Perhaps the vehicle has been written off? Sounds like a load of hassle to me; why make work and difficulties for yourself. I'd advise buying a fully documented car over here, or bringing a similarly fully-documented UK car and re-registering it. You can't do any of this process by internet. Sid

We have a Britline account. They have always been very helpful and I would have no hesitation in recommending them. Our original plan was to have this account while we bought our house here and moved across permanently then switching to a local branch or bank. In the event we have not seen any need to do this. Sid

Sorry for the late reply. When I registered my '99 Honda VFR it didn't have a CoC and I was unable to get one in the UK. The procedure here is to write to the manufacturer, in my case Honda in Paris, and tell them that you want to make the 'immatriculation'. They send a questionnaire back to you on which you have to complete the details of the major components covered by the EU conformity regulations. ie the lights, mirrors, tyres, etc (even the spark plugs !) and you have to note the 'E' numbers of these components. Having done this you return the form with a cheque, for Honda it was 100€, and then sit and wait and wait... and wait. Eventually (in my case after about 8 weeks) you get back either a full CoC which you can take to the prefecture, or a partial CoC which requires you to take the bike to DRIRE for a test similar to an MoT and only after that will you be able to go to the prefecture. Obviously it's better if you get the full CoC !! Headlight units may need to be changed, particularly if they dip to the left, and the speedometer may need to be changed... I'm a little hazy on this last point now as I changed mine to a kph one anyway (I found the small numbers on the UK one too small to read easily, and anyway, why do I need mph now?). You will aslo need a certificate 'fiscale' from the local tax office which shows that you have paid the VAT on the bike. For this you need to take a receipt into the office. You may not have to original from 6 years ago, but I'm sure you can be fairly creative with some computer software! Say no more! At the prefecture I can't remember how much the charge was but you should come away with your carte grise and then you just need to get the new number plate made. Any motorcycle dealer will be able to do this for about 15€. Don't forget to notify your insrance agent of the change. If you need any more info 'pm' me. Sid  

You'll probably get umpteen different recommendations, we all like to think we've made the best choice, but it's down to personal preference in the end. So here's another... I've plumped for Sony DSC-R1, it has all the features of an SLR but is purely digital (no mirror). It has a superb lens. Some critics don't like the viewfinder. It has a 10 mega-pixel capability. I particularly didn't want a camera with interchangeable lenses; dust can be a big problem if it gets on the CCD. Get a memory card of at least 1gb, I got a high speed compact flash card on Ebay from a seller in Hong Kong. The price of the camera here in France beats anything I could get in UK and I got mine from Alifax in Paris by mail order, great service and delivery within days. I'm very pleased with it. http://www.alifax.fr/SONY/DSC-R1_1235_4006.htm Good luck Sid

I stand corrected, Brian, thanks.

For SKY+ you need the subscription so that you can receive the electronic programme details, the programme schedules, I believe. Why this is any different from the normal listings you see on a free SKY box beats me. Sid

Sorry for the late reply and I'm surprised nobody has responded before now. Can't you just bring your NHS hearing aid with you to France and buy batteries for it here?  

Baz Success!! The forced download appears to have fixed the problem and the subtitles are restored! Thank you very much. Sid

Sue Apologies for not replying to your query for the Norton tools, I've been away for a few days. I see that Anne has provided the link for you, and I've also learnt some useful tips for shortening links in the process! Regards Sid

Hi Baz Thanks. AFAIK the software is up to date (operating system version 1.2S4FE, EPG Software version 3.4.4b) but I'll certainly give the forced download a try. I'll let you know what happens. Regards Sid

We have a Grundig Skybox and because my wife is deaf we use the subtitles facility. Sometime within the last week (I'm not sure exactly when because we've been away) the subtitles have stopped working properly. Subtitles are selected via System setup, but currently this shows that they are selected ON, however they're not appearing. I need to reboot the box by disconnecting it from the mains and then reconnecting, whereupon the subtitles reappear. I assume this has something to do with the recent software upgrades on SKY? I can't go through a reboot every time I switch the TV on... does anyone have another solution?  

I agree with Alfa, AVG is much better from a performance point of view. I've dumped Norton. You can download tools from Symantec which supposedly remove their software completely, including the Registry. Seemed to work for me. My only quibble is that many of the links for AVG don't work for me, for example www.grisoft.com comes up not found! I downloaded the free version from www.avguk.com I've opted for AVG plus Firewall and I'm currently 20 days into a 30-day free trial; it'll be £31 to buy (2-year licence). Sid  

My advice would be to NEVER reply to anything you're not sure about. Spammers rely on recipients replying, supposedly to 'unsubscribe', they then know that the address was real and from then on you just get loads more of similar rubbish. Sid

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We've just a new fosse and filter bed. It took just two days including connection and inspection. The garden looks like the Somme but we've been assured that it will recover. We add Eparcyl every week, but it wasn't made clear whether we should have given it an intial starter dose. No ominous smells so far (2 months). We have a contract with our local council whereby we pay around 32€ a year for inspections and 4-yearly emptying. (That's once evey 4 years, not 4 times a year! [:)] ). 

I think a screeded layer is to allow you to lay tiles which is the norm as far as we have found out via this forum. It will only be a couple of centimetres thick. If you want a timber floor on joists you'll need more depth and it's probably too late now. Have a look at the positions of the door sills and also the headroom in the rooms.  

I did the simplest thing and typed "cnxmon.exe" into Google. A surprising number of hits! It seems that it's a process belonging to your Wanadoo set up. You do have Wanadoo? http://www.liutilities.com/products/wintaskspro/processlibrary/CnxMon/ http://www.tasklist.org/task_CnxMon_exe_7011.html It appears than it's not essential and you can remove it with a Regisrty edit, although you shouldn't try this unless you're confidant. Always backup the Registry first. Hope this helps Sid