g8vkv

Much of our income (OAP etc) is transferred directly into our French account. So I use that effective rate €total/£total (rounded down) as the rate for everything else. I "declare" this in a covering letter and also on the tax form and take photographs of those. Paranoid or what?

Here's the situation in Centre Var. We have a "carelessly aligned" 90cm dish and Humax FoxSat HDR. When the 11023H tp started, I received it with SQ 75/60 on the Humax. This signal would always collapse, anywhere between 13:00 and 17:00 and reappear next morning. Since the other tps have migrated, they can be received with SQ 80/70 consistently for 24 hours. The 11023H signal has also strengthened slightly and doesn't collapse. The weather conditions have been good during this time (Provencal wall-to-wall blue), so that could be a factor.

http://tinyurl.com/c824qgp

As someone who can distinguish between north and south Liverpool accents and the posh stuff on the Wirral, I can assure you that it's 90% Scouse, with a dash of Foreign.

Jako - It's all quite interesting. I was up at 03:00 this morning (I have "man-flu" and needed a cup of tea) and noticed that the (presumably) 1N signals were all (unusually) very strong - lighting up the SQ bars on my Hummy. This is still the case, 8 hours later, all still showing 100/100. The 11023H signal has also improved in strength, but not quality (100/60) I just wish they'd get on with it!

Danny .. You're very likely correct - maybe I got over excited for a while. However, I've never noticed 1N signals this strong before and the 11023H signal is now sitting at an SQ of 100/60 (previously a stubborn 75/60 until it disappeared) A bit interesting.

Anyone know what's going on? All signals much stronger since about 03:00 - typically SQ 100/100 or 100/90. It's almost as if both 1N and 2F are running together - but I didn't think you could do that because of phasing, clock synchronisation and all that? Very odd and I'm sure it won't last.

I've been in touch with a chap about 60km east of us who says his 11023H holds up all day with a 1m dish, so that gives me hope that things aren't necessarily terminal. It's true that our dish setup is less than perfect. It wasn't especially aligned for maximum signal (just until it was "OK") and also the LNB is held in place with sticky tape (the clip is broken) So it looks like getting the ladders out again.

11023H signal disappeared at 13:30 yesterday. Reappeared this morning at 08:00 - just as the sun was pushing clear of the horizon, roughly "inline" with the sats. So - evidence suggested that the beam is being distorted (favourably for anyone in the SE) by the solar wind and this effect goes away later in the day? All other tps still seem to be on 1N as far as I can tell.

Jako ... Looks like you could be right. Signal now oscillating between SQ 75/50 and 0/0 Time 13:30, weather good.

It just occurred to me that maybe they've moved 11023H back onto 1N. They wouldn't do that, would they?

I can report that things are much improved this morning (weather much better). The 11023H transponder is showing 80% strength and 60% quality and both 8601 and 8611 feeds are looking good. Maybe it was the weather yesterday? Maybe they were running low power? Until things finally stabilise, I guess reception will be "variable"

I may be being dim - but isn't the only transponder functioning at the moment on 2F the one at 11023H? All the rest are still on 1N?

I should add that it's overcast here, with a heavy cloud layer.

Location 60km north of St Tropez. Equipment : Humax Foxsat HD + 90cm (oval) dish Transponder at 11024H showing no discernible signal strength. It will find a channel on scanning, but picture very broken up.

I emailed them and they replied saying I should send it back to them for a replacement. A bit of a faff -  next time it fails, I guess I'll change the contract to Escota.

Actually, I think it's my bad. I think "détérioration" refers to a damaged unit. I then found this .... "Par ailleurs, la Société émettrice procédera au remplacement du badge gratuitement par simple échange, pour prévenir tout incident lié à son usure normale et à sa consommation d’énergie" ... which I guess covers a dead battery.

I've had one of these for about 12 months and to be honest, it hasn't been particularly reliable. Recently, instead of beeping as we passed through the peage, it started emitting a kind of startled screech and a couple of weeks ago, it gave up the ghost completely. I assume the battery is duff and so I'm thinking of returning the unit to them for a replacement (by post as we don't live anywhere near to the A28). Looking through the small print, I see they will charge 35€ for a unit replaced because of  "détérioration" (I assume they'll class a spent battery as détérioration) Has anyone had one of these replaced because of a dead battery? G8VKV

Maybe it's started

[quote user="sweet 17"] Thank you.  I didn't quite get the name as I switched on about midway through.  Mentally deranged?  Certainly.  But I think they would be dangerous, given half a chance! As for the islamist thing, they are both deranged and dangerous.  I mean, Weymouth?  Such an innocuous, pleasant seaside town and there are these people raised in its midst! For me, they are the scarier of the two, if only because I know next to nothing about the US but quite a lot about the UK. [/quote] You could be right. It's a bit worrying that a significant percentage of the US population believes in "The Rapture", i.e. judgment followed by the end of the world  (the former now about to happen at the end of May 2011, with the end of the world in October). If Ms. Palin ever gets her finger on the button, we could all get pretty worried. Don't get me started on Islamist crackpots. Some therapy for all this lunacy here

[quote user="sweet 17"] Last week, I saw a programme with Louis Theroux in the the US where he spent time with a Christian fundamentalist group who frightened the hell out of me.  For a start, they believe that Obama is the Anti-Christ and anyone within the family disagreeing with them should be well and truly ostracized. [/quote] That would be the Westboro Baptist Church, led by the notorious Fred Phelps and his daughter Shirley. Their speciality is to picket the funerals of US soldiers, waving placards saying things like "Pray for more dead soldiers" and "God killed your son" and similar delightful sentiments. Their aim appears to be to provoke attacks and then sue, claiming the First Amendment. They have had some success in this money-making scheme. They have a number of websites (godhatestheworld.com, godhatesfags.com, etc.), which have recently been shut down by attacks (allegedly)  from anonymous.org  (motto : We are Anonymous. We are Legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. Expect us). TBH, I think they are more mentally deranged than actually dangerous.

We had an Xmas card from one of our not-very-awake rellies addressed ... John and Mary Quartier Code Postale, Ville France ... and it "got through"

When I had a similar problem (machine locked when starting XP) I loaded a "live CD" version of Ubuntu Linux. I was then able to see the files on the hard drive and save those I needed. I then re-formatted the disk and re-installed XP. You need to know a bit about Linux though.

" .... the Pope was concerned that her presence would spark a rash of nude and scantily-clad photos from her modelling career being published in Italian newspapers". I wonder why a "Head of State" would be interested in what went on in the gutter press of its neighbour??

I complained and got this (email) response ... We are constantly striving to find the best possible ways to deliver real value to our members.  Commission free card use abroad has been a long standing benefit of Nationwide's FlexAccount but, even though it has been available for more than ten years, only around a third of our current account holders have used it each year.  Over time we have found it has provided a huge benefit to a tiny minority of our current account members, such as regular business travellers.  At the same time it has benefitted others by only a modest amount and it has not benefitted the majority of our current account members at all.  It is simply not an equitable way to share member value.  We have a responsibility to manage the business in the most prudent and sustainable way for our membership as a whole and a key part of our corporate strategy is to encourage more members to use their FlexAccount as their main current account.  The future introduction of 2% commission for debit card use abroad and the £1 cash withdrawal fee also have to be seen in the context of the charges made by our competitors. Nationwide's planned charges are still lower than those made by the majority of our high street competitors.  Very importantly, the changes only apply to FlexAccount customers and not Nationwide's credit card customers.  Nationwide credit card customers will continue to be charged a 1% fee outside Europe and no foreign usage charges within Europe. I do understand your concerns and I acknowledge that you are not alone in really appreciating the existing arrangements.  I have tried to give you the fullest possible explanation of the rationale behind the changes.  We did not take this step lightly, but we have to put in place benefits that are more equitable, prudent and sustainable.