HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: mellon@ncd.com (Ted Lemon)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.misc,comp.sys.mac.comm,comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: PRODIGY New and improved STILL SUCKS, HORRIBLE as before
Date: 18 Dec 92 19:19:41 GMT
	<1992Dec16.205326.29305@gateway.ssf-sys.DHL.COM>
	<zkessin.724555976@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu>
Followup-To: misc.consumers
Organization: Network Computing Devices, Inc.
In-reply-to: zkessin@chaos.cs.brandeis.edu's message of 17 Dec 92 01:32:56 GMT
Followups-To: /dev/null


>I just read on alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk something about Prodigy
>uploading stuff from peoples HD's. I think the EFF has more info.

This is incorrect.   Prodigy's software appeared to be snooping on
your disk because they were creating large files without zeroing out
all of the contents, so that data from deleted files that lived on
your disk might wind up in the unused portion of your Prodigy data
file.   This is a bug in MS-DOS, not in Prodigy's user agent.

I'm not saying this because I'm fond of Prodigy, of course.  Prodigy
is really big on censorship, which I find extremely offensive, so I
too recommend that you give them a wide berth.  However, there's no
point in spreading misinformation about them when the truth about them
is bad enough.

			       _MelloN_
--
mellon@ncd.com						uunet!lupine!mellon
Member of the League for Programming Freedom.   To find out how software
patents may cost you your right to program, contact lpf@uunet.uu.net
Xref: sparky misc.consumers:20630 rec.travel:16636 misc.jobs.misc:8246
From: grund@calypso.som.cwru.edu (Victor Grund)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,rec.travel,misc.jobs.misc
Subject: Boston Area Cost of Living
Keywords: boston cost of living col
Date: 14 Dec 92 22:38:56 GMT
Followup-To: poster
Distribution: usa
Organization: International Business Machines, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
NNTP-Posting-Host: calypso.som.cwru.edu
X-Post-Machine: calypso.som.cwru.edu


I'm trying to get an idea of the cost of living in the Boston area
(specifically Cambridge, MA) to help set a salary requirement.  Could
some people help me out with this?  For comparison, I'm familiar with
the following areas: Chicago Metro, DC Area, SF Bay Area, South
Florida, and the Cleveland Area.  

Please email responses.  I'll summarize on the net if there is
interest.

Thanks!

--
Victor D. Grund        | grund@pyrite.som.cwru.edu | Awaiting call sign...
IBM Cleveland          | grund@vnet.ibm.com        | 
RISC System/6000 & AIX | DETVMIC1(VGRUND)          | 
(216) 664-7381         | FAX: (216) 664-7348       | 
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.misc,comp.sys.mac.comm,comp.sys.mac,comp.sys.ibm.pc
From: rboudrie@chpc.org (Rob Boudrie)
Subject: Re: PRODIGY New and improved STILL SUCKS, HORRIBLE as before
Organization: Center For High Perf. Computing of WPI; Marlboro Ma
Date: Sat, 19 Dec 1992 16:00:20 GMT

>>
>>Prodigy has:
>>---stronger and more utilized bulletin boards
>>--More services offered for a flat fee
>>--A $2 a MONTH surcharge for 9600 baud, which would get you about 10 minutes
>>of use on Compu$erve at the same speed.
>>--Plans to open an internet connection within 3 months.
>>--A computer bulletin board INCLUDED in flat rate service (HA!)
>>--More national members than Compu$erve.
>>--a more diverse user base (that's my subjective opinion, however)
>

It also has "moderators", and automated software, to assure that :

  (a)  "Distasteful" topics and words are not used in bulletin board
       postings.
  (b)  Postings not in the best interest of Prodigy are removed
       (if anyone on Prodigy is able to start a bulletin board discussion
       about Prodigy's email surcharge, or limited length of an email
       message compared to other services, without it being censored
       please let me know...I'm refering to bulleitin board postings,
       not email).

                                        rob b.
Xref: sparky misc.consumers:20530 misc.consumers.house:15711
From: lin@cdin-1.compu.com (Lin Chen)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.consumers.house
Subject: Help !! == cable TV on second floor ==
Date: 11 Dec 92 18:39:59 GMT
Organization: CompuData


   We have cable TV cable run to the family room on the first floor and like 
to be able to have cable TV also in the second floor bedroom. I believe I have 
two options :

	1) run a cable to the second floor, 
	2) get one of those broadcastors so I can receive cable TV signals any 
	   where in the house. 

Solution 1) seems difficult to do as it has to be done between walls, but it 
should provide better signal quality. Is this a possable DIY ? Do I need
some kind of signal enhancer for the cable to travel about 30 ft to the
second floor ? Does this have any thing to do with the cable company ? 2) is 
easier but I have no idea how good the picture quality will be, would it be 
degraded to be that of the broadcasting TV ? I would also like to be able to 
copy video tapes between the two VCR's, one on first and the other on the 
second floor, would this make things any more complicated ?

   Any experiences ? Suggestions ???  Thanks.
-- 
Lin Chen	      * Work : lin@COMPU.COM	     	     * (215)824-3000
CompuData Inc.        *        {dsinc,uunet}!cdin-1!lin	     *      x209
10501 Drummond Road   * Home : lin@icdi60.COMPU.COM	     * 
Philadelphia  PA19154 *        {dsinc,uunet}!cdin-1!icdi60!lin *
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: strnlght@netcom.com (David Sternlight)
Subject: Re: Financial software
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services (408 241-9760 guest)
Date: Sun, 13 Dec 1992 06:43:41 GMT


Mitch Lustig recommends Quicken in response to a request.
Unfortunately the request specifically mentions managing "stock
portfolios, social security, taxes"

Those are areas where Quicken's capabilities are weak or nonexistent,
and MYM shines.

Xref: sparky misc.consumers:20563 rec.food.cooking:22970
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,rec.food.cooking
Subject: Re: Visions (or other) cookwares?
From: richardp@owlsnest.uucp (Richard E. Polivka)
Date: Sun, 13 Dec 1992 21:29:18 GMT
Organization: Owl Designs

>>>>>> On 6 Dec 92 21:01:41 GMT, thogek@cco.caltech.edu (Thomas G. Kiefer) said:

>> I have a general question.  We've been thinking of getting some new pots
>> 'n' pans (since some of our old ones are starting to look diseased).
>> From ads and some friends, we've heard wonderful things about Visions
>> Cookware sets, and were thinking of getting that, but just recently we
>> heard from someone else that Visions are supposedly notorious for
>> burning things and causing other problems.  So, of course, now we're
>> confused (not too uncommon for us).

>>>>>> On 8 Dec 92 16:34:36 GMT, bruce@uxb.liv.ac.uk (Bruce Stephens) said:

> I've got a few Vision saucepans (I assume we're talking about heavy
> glass ones?).  The reason they will appear to burn things is that they
> hold heat very well; so they do really burn things, but it's your
> faultyou need to change your cooking style slightly.

> I find them very effective, but if you're used to metal pans then you
> may prefer to stick to the rather more responsive feel to them.  I
> tend to cook stews and things rather than delicate sauces, so it
> doesn't worry me much, and I value being able to see what's going on!

I have used Visions cookware ever since it was introduced by Corning. 
I have had some problems with it but the problems can be attributed to the
user of the product (me) and his rushing the creative process rather than the 
product itself. The cookware's high heat retention can cause a problem if one
is not careful with it. I try to use a bit less heat on my gas stove than what I
think is necessary, unless I want to burn water for pasta and for other times
when I need HOT water. 

The problem that I had with pasta sticking to the cookware was solved by
adding a little olive oil to the water before it starts to boil. I let the
water get rolling good and then in goes the pasta. I babysit it until the 
water is rolling again with a good boil and then it needs very little tending
to. 

Personally, I do not like nonstick surfaces. I do not relish what injested
flourocarbon chemicals that have been overheated can do to me. I do not want
to find out.


 
Dreams are Make Believe,            | Richard E. Polivka, N6NKO
Until they all come true...         | Amateur Packet: n6nko@wb6ymh2
            Bruce Healy             | +1 310 925 7506
**** AND THEY DO ! ****             | Internet: elroy!swc!owlsnest!richardp
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,alt.privacy
From: pbwhite@rodan.acs.syr.edu (White)
Subject: Re: Junk mailers dirty tricks
Organization: Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY
Distribution: na
Date: Tue, 15 Dec 92 15:00:31 EST

>But seriously, I tried the same experiment, with similar (disappointing)
>results.  The other weird thing is that my son (who hasn't lived at home for
>4 years now) is still getting college-type mail (study help, loan offers,
>etc.), and I've moved about four times since he lived with me.
>
>I think that's the "address correction requested" thing that does that
>for the pests.
>
Don't know if everybody read this, but yesterday's paper said that this is
true.  The postoffice takes your change of address cards and corrects listings
for various magazines or circulars or other types of trash mail.  I don't
recall if it is a local or widespread process.
Brian
From: lstowell@pyrnova.mis.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Tell me about electric blankets
Date: 18 Dec 92 22:20:53 GMT
Reply-To: lstowell@pyrnova.pyramid.com (Lon Stowell)
Distribution: na
Organization: Pyramid Technology Corp., Mountain View, CA

In article <44017@zygot.ati.com> john@zygot.ati.com (John Higdon) writes:
>In article <1992Dec14.091907.20005@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com> billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson) writes:
>
>>So, what advantage would there be in a DC EM field over an AC EM field?
>
>When I heard the author of _Currents of Death_ speak once, he spent the
>good part of an hour relating this elaborate theory about "resonances"
>and "vibrations" of cells supposedly caused by 60 Hz electromagnetic
>sources. His entire premise hinged on the concept of 60 Hz current.
>
   Wonder what in heck 60 has to do with it.  Now if you had a
   strong field at about 7 Hz, you might actually get a few serious
   scientists to worry.

>It was highly amusing, therefore, to hear a caller ask about living
>near BART (a SF Bay Area transit train system) tracks, which have a
>third-rail. After all of this psuedo-scientific babble about the
>destructive nature of 60 Hz fields, the author cautioned that caller
>that indeed, there would be much concern about living in the vicinity
>of a BART third-rail.
>
>BART runs on direct current, as do virtually all electric train
>systems. So much for science.

    Hey, if you get canned from the National Enquirer due to 
    "credibility problems", you gotta do SOMETHING for a living.
From: burgoyne@access.digex.com (J. Robert Burgoyne)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: TV Infomercials
Date: 15 Dec 1992 14:45:10 GMT
Organization: Express Access Online Communications, Greenbelt, MD USA
NNTP-Posting-Host: access.digex.com
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL3

pwageman@visual.spk.wa.us (Peggy Wageman) writes:
: There are numerous infomercials on TV now and most have various celebrities
: that are either selling the products or endorsing them.  Does anybody know
: whether they are paid for selling the products or are they just doing it 
: for the publicity and exposure?  Thanks,  Peggy Wageman

I'd say it depends what they are receiving for their appearance. It's never
going to be free unless it's for a friend.

Usually, the minimum fee is $10K, and many of these folks will also want a
share of the proceeds.

Robert Burgoyne
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: vetter@mtu.edu (STEVEN J. VETTER)
Subject: Re: OK..why shouldnt I get an extended car warranty?
Organization: Michigan Technological University
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 16:38:16 GMT

staggers@cup.hp.com (Ken Staggers) writes:
>I just bought my new car, a Mercury Tracer LTS.  Today's session with
>the sales people was to talk financing and "other options".  They made
>the extended car warranty sound OH SO GOOD.  After listening to him,
>I couldnt remember anything the net has said about these warranties.
>I need to be reminded...why are they such a bad deal?  On principle, it
>sounds great.  For $660 I can get an extra 2 years of coverage.  And the
>brochure they give indicates a lot of things that are covered.  I have
>a lot of power options like door locks and windows.  Couldnt they fail
>during years 4 and 5?  What didnt the sales guy tell me?  What was he
>leaving out?
>
>Yeah, I turned it down.  But they will be "giving me another chance" to
>take it when I pick up the car.  I wonder how many other chances will I
>get afterwards?
>
>--Ken
>  staggers@cup.hp.com


  I don`t know all the taboo's against any extended warranty, however, I do
  know that you can usually get a better one from your insurance company.  
  I have heard of severall insurance companies that offer extended warranties
  that usually cost in the neighborhood of 1.5 to 2 times the dealer warranties, 
  however they often have NO deductible, and cover a lot more.  Ex: I know of 
  one person who paid $900 for an extended warranty for his Geo Metro through
  his insurance co.  No deductible, I think it covered something like 10 years or
  90K, and when his computer went, they replaced it (I think this job was on the
  order of $1000).  Sounded like a good deal to me. I`d love to see more on this 
  subject.

 
>
-- 
Steve Vetter     DISCLAIMER-  The opinions expressed here are not those of
vetter@mtu.edu                my employer,  because I don`t have one yet.  If  
                              you wish for these opinions to be your company's,
Damn it's Cold!!!             or not, send e-mail to :  vetter@mtu.edu
From: ken@wybbs.mi.org (Ken Jongsma)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Financial software
Date: 15 Dec 92 16:16:07 GMT
Reply-To: jongsma@benzie.si.com
Organization: Smiths Industries

mlustig@stein.u.washington.edu (Mitch Lustig) writes:

>jimh@pacdata.com (Jim Harkins) writes:

>>I'm thinking of getting my dad a financial package for christmas.  Do any
>>of you have any opinions on whats out there?  I seem to think Andrew Tobias
>>is good, while I understand lots of people like Quicken.  My parents are
>>both retired, solidly middle class, have no plans to start a business.  All
>>they need is something to manage stock portfolios, social security, taxes,
>>and all that other baffling BS.  Oops, I should mention he's got a PC
>--------------------------

>Quicken, Quicken, Quicken.

>It was designed for computer idiots, like me.  Cant go wrong.  Besides, its
>much cheaper than MYM.

Not much cheaper anymore. The list price of MYM was drastically cut recently.
You should be able to buy it for well under $50 now. It does so much more than
Quicken for the few additional dollars...

-- 
Ken Jongsma                                     jongsma@benzie.si.com
Smiths Industries                                    ken@wybbs.mi.org 
Grand Rapids, Michigan                      73115.1041@compuserve.com 
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,soc.culture.usa
From: foo@netcom.com (Mark Hall)
Subject: Re: Santa Dollars.......
Keywords: church, state, religion
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
Distribution: usa
Date: Fri, 11 Dec 1992 22:41:09 GMT

In article <1992Dec11.210223.21105@leland.Stanford.EDU> rsingh@goliath.Stanford.EDU (   raj) writes:
)As it is, a LOT of people have trouble with "In God We Trust" being on
)US notes, so isn't putting Santa's picture on the note not only
)endorsing religion, but also Christianity.  Comments? Flames?

   Last time I talked to Santa, he claimed to be Buddhist.


Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: dheisler@CERIS.Purdue.EDU (Dave Heisler)
Subject: RJR tobacco visa cards
Organization: Center for Environmental and Regulatory Information Systems, Purdue University
Distribution: usa
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 20:14:29 GMT

After contemplating how the decrease in smokers is affecting
domestic consumption of cigarrettes, i came up with an idea.

RJR could put out a tobacco visa card, maybe give discounts
for charged tobacco products, and if you keel over with a
balance, they would write it off.

gives shop 'til you drop a whole new meaning.

they couldn't call it visa gold though,
maybe "visa dingy brown".

why haven't they done this yet? seems like a good idea to me.

dave
From: cd529@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (M. Scot Parchman)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Earn Money In Your Spare Time
Date: 14 Dec 1992 03:16:44 GMT
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (USA)
NNTP-Posting-Host: hela.ins.cwru.edu


Earn extra money by working at home. It doesn't matter if you are
in a house, apartment, trailer, or dorm. You can make money in your 
spare time. This is a proven program. No selling. Little investment.
For complete details send $1.00 cash or money order to :
     MSLP Opportunities
     P.O. Box 2283
     Russellville, AR  72801

Also include a note saying "Please send me information on how to          
make money from my home.

The $1.00 covers printing, mailing and other cost incurred.
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: downs@helios.nevada.edu (Lamont Downs)
Subject: Re: PRODIGY New and improved STILL SUCKS, HORRIBLE as before
Organization: UNLV
Date: Fri, 18 Dec 1992 02:01:19 GMT

>
>If you don't mind my asking, what in the world do you find to like about it?
>
>The commercials? The lack of file download capability? The interface (gag)?
>The lack of connectivity with the internet? The way it takes over your Mac?
>
>There must be something wonderful that I am missing. Sorry to sound sarcastic,
>but please do elaborate!
>
And how about the censorship? I guess some people just have to be sure 
anything they stumble across is 'squeaky clean'...
Lamont Downs
downs@helios.nevada.edu
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: hbb@cbnewsf.cb.att.com (harlan.b.braude)
Subject: Auto Windshield Replacement; Orig. Equip. vs Brand X
Organization: AT&T
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 17:44:48 GMT

The windshield in my Honda developed a crack and has to be replaced.
I contacted my Honda dealer and received a price quote for parts,
labor and tax.

I then contacted my insurance company to see if they'd help pay for
it and they referred me to their preferred auto-glass franchise.

The latter's price is about $150 less (and they'll do it in the
parking lot while I'm at work!) The Honda fella explained that
his shop uses Honda parts and other places use non-Honda replacement
parts. I figured it was also principally because a car dealer charges
more for everything.

I've decided to go with cheap and convenient (big surprise, eh?,) but
I'm paranoid enough to wonder whether there is any real difference in
specs between windshield glass that Honda sells and brand-X windshield
glass.

I mean, will the first gnat/snow-flake to hit the shiny new non-Honda
windshield cause the glass to shatter into a bizillion pieces?

Opinions anyone?
-- 
Harlan B. Braude
hbb@karin.att.com
Newsgroups: misc.consumers,misc.misc,comp.sys.mac.comm,comp.sys.mac,comp.sys.ibm.pc
From: sts@mfltd.co.uk (Steve Sherwood)
Subject: Re: PRODIGY New and improved STILL SUCKS, HORRIBLE as before
Reply-To: sts@mfltd.co.uk
Organization: Micro Focus Ltd, Newbury, England
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 1992 10:56:07 GMT

 
|> The perception, in part, was caused by dos-idiots noticing "pieces of their
                                          ^^^^^^^^^^
                               I take it that this is not an opinion
                               of all dos users ?... Especially not in a 
                               PC newsgroup

Steve



-- 
+-----------------------------------+------------------------+ Micro Focus
| Just like Pariah, I have no name, |    rm -rf *            | 26 West Street
| Living in a blaze of obscurity,   |      "rum ruff splat"  | Newbury
| Need courage to survive the day.  |                        | Berkshire
+-----------------------------------+------------------------+ England
      Extn 5543, sts@mfltd.co.uk, !uunet!mfocus!sts
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
From: billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson)
Subject: Re: CHP can't use radar?(Was: What radar d
Organization: Hewlett-Packard Company, Corvallis, Oregon USA
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1992 07:47:26 GMT

egreen@east.sun.com (Ed Green - Pixel Cruncher) writes:
: In article 1flb20INNreq@tamsun.tamu.edu, henrik@stat.tamu.edu (Henrik Schmiediche) writes:
: >
: >On a side note - how to police use aircraft to monitor car speeds? 
: 
: They claim to match speed with the auto, and read the speed.  They
: radio the info and a decription to an officer on the ground who writes
: the ticket.

I don't think so. All the police air patrols, that I know of, use time
and distance computers. You may have noticed the stripes by the side of
the road. Those are the distance markers.

: Any aviator can tell you of the difference in airspeed, which is what
: is indicated in the cockpit, and ground speed, which is what they claim
: to be reading.  Basically, the two are the same, plus or minus the
: windspeed, which changes with altitude, so even if there is no wind on
: the ground, there could be at the plane's altitude.

It is irrelevant. They can determine your speed, even if they are
flying at right angles to your path. A judge would throw out airspeed
determinations - to inaccurate.

Groundspeed is not plus/minus windspeed - it depends on your angle to
the wind.

: There is also the question of how they know they are matching the car's
: speed.  Unless they fly such that the plane's shadow is adjacent to the
: car, it is very difficult to judge small differences in speed from a
: distance of several hundred feet.

See above - they don't try.

: Finally, there is some question as to who the ticketing officer is, and
: who would show up in court to prosecute the case.  I would guess both
: the pilot and the ground cop would need to be there to present a case
: and allow examiation by the driver.  I would guess that the
: "continually postpone the court date in the hopes that you land a date
: the officer can't be there so the case gets dismissed" strategy would
: be particularly effective in this situation.

Nope, only the cop in the plane. He/she is the one who determined your
speed. The cop on the ground only wrote the ticket.

: There has been extensive discussion of this in the regional group
: ca.driving, possibly cross posted to rec.autos.  It's not really a
: "consumer" topic.

I hope it was a little more accurate than your posting.

Bill
From: jarnold@tixel.mv.com (Jon Arnold)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers
Subject: Mail Orders Contacts
Distribution: world
Date: Fri, 18 Dec 92 01:07:25 GMT
Organization: 
Reply-To: jarnold@tixel.mv.com

The company I use (and am happy with, so far) is 1-800-666-LENS, or call
305-968-4555.  I seem to recall they're out of Florida somewhere (Miami?).
Quoted from the back side of my "membership card":

"Lens Express makes it easy and convenient for you to order your contact
lenses and care products DIRECT from anywhere in the world.  Most orders
shipped within 24 hours.

Here's how it works:

1. TO ORDER, call the Lens Express toll-free hotline:
    1-800-666-LENS or 1-305-968-4555
2. Give your Customer Number to the salesperson so your personal records
   can be located in our computer file.
3. You will save up to 50% on your contact lenses and care product purchases.
4. No additional premiums or dispensing fees apply.

PRODUCTS 100% GUARANTEED"

(end of quote)

Initially when you call, you give them your prescription (ie, "-3.0") and
the type of lens (ie, J&J Accuvue) that you've been using, and that's what
they'll ship you.  You need to know your prescription when you call.

Jon Arnold                        Phone: W: 603-883-1233
Nashua, New Hampshire             Fax:   W: 603-883-7350
                                         H: 603-883-6371

      "If you ain't the lead dog, the view never changes."

Newsgroups: misc.consumers