HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: wmartin@STL-06SIMA.ARMY.MIL (Will Martin)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Junk mailers dirty tricks
Date: 24 Dec 1992 10:23:47 -0600
Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway
NNTP-Posting-Host: cs.utexas.edu

>From: sean@cobra.dra.com
>True, however they are generally allowed to charge for "reproduction costs."
>This means it is free to sit in the license collector's office and write
>down all the names by hand.  But if you want reproductions (either on a Xerox
>machine, or maganetic media, etc) they will charge you for that service.
>Also you are generally not allowed to remove anything from the premises,
>so you are stuck using their equipement.  The "reproduction costs" rarely
>resemble "fair market value."

This seems to me to be a prime market for those hand-held copy machines
which seemed to be widely available only a few years ago, but then 
completely disappeared and are no longer advertised anywhere! What
happened to them? People like these credit-reporting-company data-
gatherers and anyone else who is scanning manual, paper records for data
should be finding these hand-held copiers a godsend! Why did such a
useful (even though specialized) product disappear after such widespread
advertising and availability?

For example, my wife does a lot of genealogical research. One of these
things would be a nice surprise present for her, and the per-page costs of
library copying machines avoided because she had this thing would
eventually repay its price and the cost of the consumeables it uses. So
why can't I just go buy one any more? Even DAK peddled them... 

Will
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: erc@netcom.com (Eric Smith)
Subject: Re: Getting rich -- this is no joke!
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest)
Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1993 06:14:35 GMT

In article <1993Jan3.001640.16834@cbnewsl.cb.att.com> stank@cbnewsl.cb.att.com (Stan Krieger) writes:
>U.S. social security is not a pyramid scheme; it's a Ponzi scheme
>(i.e., pay off the early investors with money received from later
>investors).


Social security is not quite the same thing as a Ponzi scheme.  When
people discover the truth about a Ponzi scheme, they stop investing,
and it comes to a sudden end.  People have already discovered the truth
about social security, but it shows no signs of ending.
Xref: sparky misc.consumers:21405 misc.legal:21960 soc.misc:1098 alt.conspiracy:13633
From: thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu (Ted Frank)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.legal,soc.misc,alt.conspiracy
Subject: Re: How does a PI locate somebody?
Date: 2 Jan 93 19:32:58 GMT
Reply-To: thf2@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago

In article <2JAN199307371121@amarna.gsfc.nasa.gov> packer@amarna.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>A friend tells me that she used the services of a private
>investigator to locate a boyfriend from high school days (25
>years ago), mainly out of curiosity as to what had become of
>him. She paid the PI something around $150-$200 for this, as I
>recall, contingent on success in the search. 
>
>The PI was able to find the former flame within a day using his
>databases, the nature of which he wouldn't disclose to her. He
>did say that he had worked for the Federal government in the
>past. 
>
>How did he do it? 

He used the "finger" command.
-- 
ted frank                     | thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu 
standard disclaimers          | void where prohibited
the university of chicago law school, chicago, illinois 60637
From: sritacco@wet.UUCP (Steve Ritacco)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: New Ikea Stores ????
Date: 27 Dec 92 22:58:27 GMT
Organization: Wetware Diversions, San Francisco

Hi,

Can anyone tell me if there will be an Ikea store in the San Francisco area
anytime soon.

Thanks

Steve
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: hubcap@hubcap.clemson.edu (System Janitor)
Subject: Re: Legal Tender?? A different Twist
Organization: Clemson University
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 19:24:06 GMT

 * stank@cbnewsl.cb.att.com (Stan Krieger) writes:
 * 
 * It's 2/5 and 3/5 of a bill.  Over 3/5 of a bill is good for full value;
 * between 2/5 and 3/5 is good for half value.

 * and Steven H. Schwartz sez:
 * From memory (it's been years):
 * 
 * 60 - 100% of the bill   = 100% value
 * 40 - 60%                = 50% value
 * < 40%                   = 0

RIP RIP RIP.

The sound of me increasing my wealth by 50% by ripping all (both :-)
of my bills into 60/40 chunks. This *can't* be true.

-Mike
From: lim@addvax.llnl.gov (Doug Lim)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Low Fee Credit cards with Freq Flier Mileage
Date: 30 Dec 92 18:29:00 GMT
Reply-To: DougLim@llnl.gov
Organization: LLNL
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41

In article <3268.502.uupcb@pcb.batpad.lgb.ca.us>, john.ewin@pcb.batpad.lgb.ca.us (John Ewin) writes...
>There is another form of card CitiBank offers...
> 
>In conjunction with "Air Miles", the card is basically the same as their
>Classic cards, is only $5 more ($25/year), and offers mileage credits
>for several airlines.
> 
>I seem to have misplaced their phone #, but try calling 800 dir. asst.
>(1-800-555-1212) and ask for "Air Miles".
> 
>I just found out about it the other day, and I got my new card (I was
>already a CitiBank Classic MC holder new logo, same acct. #, etc) within
>2 or 3 days!

I believe I got the same offer. Be careful, if I remember right they don't
give a mile per dollar like the other "airline mileage cards" do. They are
a different kind of mile (ie. miles of free travel rather than accumulated
miles towards a mileage level), but with some analysis it appeared to be
not as good as "regular airline mileage cards" still. In fact some more
analysis showed that you would be better using a "cash back" credit card
and buying your own ticket over the "Air Miles" card.

I believe I am remembering the name right...Isn't that the program which also
includes mileage for purchasing products from specific companies as well?
If this is not the same program and doesn't have the drawbacks I mentioned
I would be interested in hearing some more details of the program as my Mom
is desparately trying to finish off enough Northwest Airline miles to get
a trip to Hawaii (yea! :-)).
| | | |     +----------------------------------------+
| | | |     |      Doug Lim - DougLim@llnl.gov       |
| | | |__   | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory |
| | |___/   |        Computer Scientist - ASD        |
\ \____/    |    (510) 423-6019 FAX: (510)423-2419   |
 \____/     +----------------------------------------+
From: wb8foz@skybridge.SCL.CWRU.Edu (David Lesher)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Dedicated ATM card?
Date: 30 Dec 1992 23:59:37 GMT
Organization: NRK Clinic for habitual NetNews abusers - Beltway Annex
Reply-To: wb8foz@skybridge.scl.cwru.edu (David Lesher)
NNTP-Posting-Host: skybridge.scl.cwru.edu

Others said:
# However, at least in Utah, the latest trend seems to be *against*
# free interchangeability.  Last June, a Utah bank with a lot of ATMs started
# charging $1 to use the ATM if the user does not have an account with that bank.......

Service charges are another one of those scams that brings to
mind the old question:
	If banks are those nice friendly folks you should trust
	with your money; why do they chain the pens down?

They spent years bombarding us with propaganda to convince us to use
them instead of human tellers. Now that we are hooked, they jack up the
fees. (Does this remind you of the tobacco companies?)

Of course, their explanation is that the ATM network charges them fees.
I always ask them who, other than the banks, owns & controls these
networks. I've yet to get a valid reply.... ;-{

The Washington Post printed a list of local S&L's and banks with low/no
fee ATM cards. I keep a small cash account at the one at the top of the
list.

--
A host is a host from coast to coast..wb8foz@skybridge.scl.cwru.edu
& no one will talk to a host that's close..........................
Unless the host (that isn't close).........................pob 1433
is busy, hung or dead....................................20915-1433
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: nelson@that_machine.Kodak.COM (Bruce D. Nelson)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Calling consumer 800 numbers and general complaining
Date: 22 Dec 92 16:45:57 GMT
Reply-To: nelson@kodak.com
Distribution: usa
Organization: Eastman Kodak Co,

In article <Bzn95o.Ezu@acsu.buffalo.edu>, v120q4jf@ubvmsd.cc.buffalo.edu (Vax Crazie (ROB B.)) writes:
|> In article <Dec.18.14.56.44.1992.12616@net.bio.net>, charleen@net.bio.net (Charleen Bunjiovianna) writes...
|> I called  the burger king 800 # and left my name and address and it was
|> useless.

I called, and they sent me $5.00 in Burger King bucks.
-- 
Bruce Nelson                            | Phone: (716) 726-7890
Rochester Distributed Computer Services | Internet: nelson@kodak.com
Eastman Kodak Company                   |
Rochester, NY 14653-5221                |
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: henry@ADS.COM (Henry Mensch)
Subject: Re: Can one be denied insurance based on citizenship?
Organization: Advanced Decision Systems; a div of Booz, Allen & Hamilton
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 16:52:52 GMT

dhe@ncratl.AtlantaGA.NCR.COM (Duanfeng He) wrote: 
->I vaguely remember recently there was a case the US Suprime Court 
->refused to hear.  In it some people sued the insurance companies
->for dropping their insurance and refuses to pay after they are 
->found to have serious illness.
->
->In essence, the Suprime Court seems to be saying that although
->you bought $x million health insurance, at the moment you found 
->you need that much, or any other sizeable chunk, the insurance 
->company can drop you.

bzzt.  it's important to get the details right.  what happened: an
employer changed the terms of employer-sponsored health benefit after
an employee got sick with AIDS ... the supreme court ruled 

the ruling does not apparently affect those who purchase their health
insurance directly from the insurer; it only affects those who get
their insurance via their employer.

be very afraid.

--
# henry mensch / booz, allen & hamilton, inc.  / <henry@ads.com>
# "fight the real enemy."  -- sinead o'connor, and many others.
#     for information on the league for programming freedom, 
#                     write to lpf@uunet.uu.net
From: sritacco@wet.UUCP (Steve Ritacco)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: New Ikea Locations ???
Date: 23 Dec 92 06:58:54 GMT
Organization: Wetware Diversions, San Francisco

Sorry if this is frequently asked.

Does anyone know if there is going to be a San Francisco area Ikea store
anytime soon?

Thanks,

Steve

Xref: sparky misc.consumers:21142 sci.electronics:21495 soc.culture.japan:12802 misc.education:5531 misc.entrepreneurs:3734
From: blamb@hri.com (Bill Lambert)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,sci.electronics,soc.culture.japan,misc.education,misc.entrepreneurs
Subject: Re: America doesn't have a clue: (was DOES AMERICA SAY YES TO JAPAN? - Off track!!)
Date: 23 Dec 92 22:54:12 GMT
Followup-To: misc.consumers
Organization: Horizon Research, Inc.

In article <1992Dec23.212516.11185@netcom.com>, strnlght@netcom.com 
(David Sternlight) writes:

=> With reference to Mike Fester's message--I no longer respond to inflammatory
=> content in public. 

If you insist on constructing inflamatory content in public,
then perhaps you should consider responding to the flames
you have lit... also in public. It's easy enough to cite
the sources of your brainwashing and then try to weasle
out of any responsibility for it, but I think many of us
might enjoy seeing you try and support your pathetic and
paranoid positions in a mano-a-mano (excuse me, ladies)
set-to with Mr. Fester... and good luck!

I hope that's not too inflammatory for you.

Bill
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,soc.culture.japan
From: hiraga@Csli.Stanford.EDU (Yuzuru Hiraga)
Subject: Re: America doesn't have a clue: (was DOES AMERICA SAY YES TO JAPAN? - Off track!!)
Organization: Stanford University CSLI
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1992 06:35:53 GMT

In article <1992Dec30.011051.23413@Csli.Stanford.EDU> I wrote:
>>His legacy still lived on in a) the mess of the current LDP b) the failure to
>>this day to open the second runway in Narita c) the ever increasing role of 
>>money in Japanese politics d) his hand-picking of the next few Prime Minister's
>
>I'm not sure of his affluence in b) -- agreed with the others.
                     ^^^^^^^^^
Of course I meant "influence".  Sorry.
# though affluence may induce influence...

-YH
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,soc.men,misc.misc
From: henry@ADS.COM (Henry Mensch)
Subject: Re: Levi Strauss DEFUNDS Boy Scouts
Followup-To: net.dork
Organization: Advanced Decision Systems; a div of Booz, Allen & Hamilton
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1992 23:55:12 GMT

Michael.Bohl@launchpad.unc.edu (Michael Bohl) wrote: 
->I just spoke with a customer service representative from Levi Strauss and
->Co. concerning their defunding of the Boy Scouts of America.  I was not
->certain I knew the reason so I asked their representative for an
->explanation.  She said it was because,
->
->	"The Boy Scouts discriminate against atheists and homosexuals."

have you been under a rock for the past year?  this ain't news at all
... 

--
# henry mensch / booz, allen & hamilton, inc.  / <henry@ads.com>
# "fight the real enemy."  -- sinead o'connor, and many others.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,soc.culture.japan
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Subject: Re: Tell me about electric blankets
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA
Distribution: na
Date: Sat, 26 Dec 1992 09:27:31 GMT

cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best) writes:
: > : Your DC blanket will, of course, generate a magnetic field -- just not an
: > : electric one.  Whether or not this is better or worse from the health
: > : standpoint is, as you point out, a good question.
: > 
: > Bullshit. It will produce a DC electromagnet field. That field will build
: > and collapse as the blanket thermostat cycles.
: 
: Maybe a few hundred times a night, but not 1.7 million, which was the original
: point.  Is there ANYthing on your body that resonates at the thermostat's
: cycle rate?  Not likely.

Ah, but it would - unless the person built a power supply with built in
capacitors and a voltage regulator. I suspect that such a contrivance
would be rather hazardous.

If the person simply rectified the current then - with a half-wave rectifier,
the current would pulse at 60 hz (1/2 that of a 60 hz AC voltage, which 
pulses at 120 hz)  or - with a full-wave rectifier, the current would pulse
at 120 hz.

It is questionable that anything in the human body resonates at either 60 Hz
or 120 Hz either.

Bill
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: stank@cbnewsl.cb.att.com (Stan Krieger)
Subject: Re: Legal Tender?? A different Twist
Organization: Summit NJ
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 18:31:11 GMT

>
>>How much of a dollar bill ($20 bill to be exact) do you have to have
>>before it's spendable?  My husband found 3/4 of a $20 bill and
>>figured that it's probably unspendable but I thought I'd pose the
>>question anyway.  Replies to rrg@fibercom.com
>
>What I have heard is that anything over 1/2 can be turned in (at a bank,
>I presume) for a new bill.
>
>This leads to thoughts of scams by exactly tearing bills in half (on a 
>diagonal to make it harder to figure out if it is 1/2 or not) and then
>turning each half in for a new bill (at different places of course).

It's 2/5 and 3/5 of a bill.  Over 3/5 of a bill is good for full value;
between 2/5 and 3/5 is good for half value.
-- 
Stan Krieger                 All opinions, advice, or suggestions, even
UNIX System Laboratories     if related to my employment, are my own.
Summit, NJ
smk@usl.com
From: michaelq@tlaloc.sw.stratus.com (Michael Quicquaro)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Jiffy Lube - Vacuum out oil
Date: 30 Dec 1992 23:41:01 GMT
Organization: Stratus Computer, Software Engineering
NNTP-Posting-Host: tlaloc.sw.stratus.com

I have heard that the technique that Jiffy Lube uses to extract
the oil out of your engine (with a vacuum at the drain plug) is
bad for your engine and can ruin it.  Can anyone give any more
information about this?
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.kids
From: roger@wrq.com (Roger Fulton)
Subject: TYCO Super Duper Double Looper
Organization: Walker Richer & Quinn, Inc., Seattle, WA
Distribution: na
Date: Fri, 25 Dec 1992 21:54:31 GMT

Anyone else out there give/get a TYCO Super Duper Double Looper
slot car set for Christmas?  I got one about a month ago for my 4
yr old son for this Christmas, and I've been impatiently waiting
since then for Christmas to roll around (my wife claims that this
gift is at least as much for me as my son; she may be right!).

Last night (Christmas eve) I set it up so that my son could wake
up to it this morning.  Everything on the set works great EXCEPT
the Upside Down Jump (UDJ) part.  I was up until 3 a.m. this
morning trying to get the technique of jumping the UDJ.  I
re-checked the assembly to make sure that the exit/entrance ramps
were positioned correctly (they were).  I tried slow, medium, and
fast approaches to the UDJ.  I tried to follow the instructions
exactly regarding the negotiation of the UDJ.  After playing
around with this for about 4 hrs, I made the jump only *3* times!
I'm not THAT uncoordinated!  Also, my wife made many attempts
over the UDJ, and was no more successful than I.  So, my son has
yet to see this set, because I want it working well before I give
it to him (it's not much fun to have to replace the car on the
track each lap after it crashes on the UDJ).

So, my questions are:
(1) If you have this set, are you able to consistently jump the
    UDJ?  If so, how?
(2) If you have this set and have not been able to consistently
    jump the UDJ, what have you done about it?
(3) Can the track be reconfigured to a simpler layout, like a
    figure-8?  I have some concern about this, because I suspect
    that the entire track must be used to provide a proper load
    to the power supply.
(4) Could the UDJ be replaced with a piece of flat track?  Such a
    piece of track would have to have a bit of a jog in it to
    mate with the rest of the layout.
(5) I bought this set at Target.  Does anyone know what their
    return policy is regarding items that cannot be completely
    disassembled to pre-purchase state (for example, I can't
    remove the orange labels, and their are pieces of the set
    that are not made to be disassembled.)  My hope is that
    Target has an unconditional "Satisfaction guaranteed or your
    money back" policy.  I'll be calling them myself tomorrow to
    see what they say, but I'd like to know what others'
    experiences with them are.

Thanks in advance.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.invest.real-estate
From: kenny@osf.org (Kenneth Crudup)
Subject: Re: Sony Equipment (was Re: CD walkmans)
Organization: Open Software Foundation
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 22:31:56 GMT

In article <1huc97INNnv1@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu>,
lcc@po.CWRU.Edu (Lih C. Chen) wrote:

[ ... mention of long-playing CD player that needs to be run at a very cold
      ambient temperature deleted .... ]

> Following this train of thought, I have a question for you technical
> folx out there:  Is it implied, then, that playing 2-3 hours of music,
> even when you have to go through 2 or 4 CDs to do that, at regular
> room temperature is bad for your current CD player?

In article <chiu-311292102704@222.8.248.8>
chiu@gpb-mac.sps.mot.com (Norman Chiu) writes:

>...so the player was playing the same CD overnight for 12 hours straight!
>Next morning he found that the player was still playing the same CD without
>any problems.  But when he removed the CD, it was REALLY warm.

Well, the reason the first CD player (the prototypical one that can run
a 3-hour disc) needed to be so cold is because the wavelength of the laser
able to do that needs to be very short, and the only laser diode they've
got that can do that needs to be run at nearly superconducting temperatures.
It has nothing to do with running the player cool.

Although it's not good in general to let things get *too* warm, you're
probably going to get more problems with wear on the electromechanical stuff
(motors) and the laser (reduced emissions over time) than you will with
heat. Once a device gets to a certain temperature, if it's working OK, it's
gonna stay there. His CD just finally got to the temperature of its 
surroundings.

	-Kenny

-- 
Kenny Crudup, Contractor, OSF DCE QA
OSF, 11 Cambridge Center, Cambridge, MA 02142	+1 617 621 7306
kenny@osf.osf.org			OSF has nothing to do with this post.
	  Religion: The longest-running gag ever played on Mankind.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,soc.culture.japan,sci.electronics,alt.sex,soc.culture.african.american,misc.education,misc.entrepreneurs
From: fester@island.COM (Mike Fester)
Subject: Re: DOES AMERICA SAY YES TO JAPAN? - Off track!!
Organization: /usr/local/rn/organization
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 21:54:02 GMT

In article <1992Dec31.215130.4280@island.COM> fester@island.COM (Mike Fester) writes:

>The Nikkei average has lost fully 56% off its peak of about 2 years ago. This 
>has resulted in a net loss of capitalization to Japanese corporations of more
>than 3 TRILLION dollars in the last 2 years. 
      ^

OOPS! Make that *2* trillion $$. 

Mike
-- 
Disclaimer - These opinions are not so much opinions, as pearls of wisdom. Any-
one disagreeing is obviously either a) a snivelling, whining, mentally-
deficient, weak-willed, inconsequential, namby-pamby tool of some vague but
conveniently defined conspiracy, or b) my wife.
Xref: sparky misc.consumers:21246 misc.kids:31164
From: glen@slate.cs.wisc.edu (Glen Ecklund)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.kids
Subject: Re: TYCO Super Duper Double Looper
Date: 28 Dec 92 17:27:07 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: U of Wisconsin Madison - Computer Sciences

roger@wrq.com (Roger Fulton) writes:

>(5) I bought this set at Target.  Does anyone know what their
>    return policy is regarding items that cannot be completely
>    disassembled to pre-purchase state (for example, I can't
>    remove the orange labels, and their are pieces of the set
>    that are not made to be disassembled.)  My hope is that
>    Target has an unconditional "Satisfaction guaranteed or your
>    money back" policy.  I'll be calling them myself tomorrow to
>    see what they say, but I'd like to know what others'
>    experiences with them are.

Stand up for yourself, and return it if you want to.  They sold you a
defective piece of merchandise.  I think they will be good about it, but if
they aren't, you can probably get your money back through your charge card,
if you used one  (a good reason to use a bank card).
It wasn't your fault, and they probably shouldn't be putting
it back on the shelf, anyway.  They should return it to the manufacturer, so
that they will know to fix the problem.
-- 
Every child shall be treated with complete respect.

Glen Ecklund     glen@cs.wisc.edu   (608) 262-1318 Office, 262-1204 Dept. Sec'y
Department of Computer Sciences        1210 W. Dayton St., Room 3355
University of Wisconsin, Madison       Madison, Wis. 53706  U.S.A.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,soc.culture.japan,sci.electronics,alt.sex,soc.culture.african.american,misc.education,misc.entrepreneurs