|
| ||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ||
|
|
|
|
If you find this information useful and want to thank me, why not buy one of my low-cost "eBooks" that you can download direct to your computer? My books can be read on-screen or printed out on paper. They are full of colour photos and illustrations. http://www.The-Cool-Book-Shop.co.uk
Retune today in the UK Today is the day you must re-tune your Freeview and BT Vision receivers. (Satellite TV is not affected.) Plummeting Pound The value of the pound has fallen again. This doesn't help expats who have seen their pensions effectively fall by a third in the last year. Is anyone betting on Labour getting back in? Blooming email! I know I keep going on about it but it's very difficult to run an Internet business without it. Recently, however, Nicola has been on holiday, leaving Sophie to handle all the administration. The result has been chaotic. I've been receiving half a dozen complaints a day like "why don't you reply to my emails?" I don't know whose fault it was but I had to do something about it, quickly. So, despite the other problems I have to sort out here in Greece, like Residency permits, furniture and fittings and various utility bills, I've spent some time installing a new "Support Ticket" system (for Sales only - you can still email me). About my "attitude". "Sally's Cafe" in Sandbach was run by an old fellow named Alan. Actually, he wasn't much older than I. Each customer who walked through the doorway would be greeted with a snide remark or abuse. With me it would often be "Bugger off! If you can't be bothered to eat here every day, I don't want you at all! I suppose you want that horrible decaffeinated coffee? Well it's dried up in the jar because you're the only person that drinks the stuff. It tastes like shite. Where have you been, anyway?" This would usually trigger laughter and the start of a lengthy conversation in which I would explain how busy I'd been and he would hurl more abuse. Since he retired and a new owner took over, it has been very quiet in there. The atmosphere isn't the same. It's almost uncomfortable and everyone seems afraid to speak. Today (Sept 3rd), however, the new owner greeted me with a grin and "what the heck are you doing here? I thought you'd emigrated!" The silence was broken and everyone began to talk. I think it will be a success. Anyway, several people seem to like (or at least tolerate) my similar "attitude". In fact the readership has increased to over 13,000 subscribers! That's not bad for a "niche" hobby. I must be doing something right. However, I'm not proud that I'm sometimes blunt and apparently rude. But I'm sort of resigned to the fact that, at age 58, I'm probably not going to change. I call a spade a spade. That's how I am. If you don't like it, go back to "Facebook" or "Myspace" (or Twitter). I'm typing this from my "office" overlooking a turquoise sea Yes, we've arrived and my broadband is working! Maybe I'll start to "chill out" in the sun? (That's not really my shirt, by the way. It came with the house, together with the previous owner's underwear and books. No, the underwear doesn't fit.) Accessibility I had to contact my Insurance company about my emigrating. Their web site email form produced an error message in both Safari and Firefox. I have tried Setting Safari's "Develop" menu to emulate Exploder v6 (recommended on the site) but still can't get their email form to display correctly or to work at all. I wrote a snail mail letter to point this out and here's their response: "Thank you for your letter dated 29 August 2009. I am sorry you have experienced problems with accessing our on-line Mail system. When we set up our Mail system, Internet Explorer was the predominant browser and we have no plans at present to change this browser. Unfortunately this means that you may not be able to use our Mail system with other browsers. It may be possible to download an attachment for Internet Explorer through Firefox using the foilowing site https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1419 We have not tested this and have no responsibility for it. If you choose to take this action you will do so entirely at your own risk. Unfortunately it is not feasible for us to send correspondence to you by email. We will maintain the above postal address on our records for correspondence. blah blah blah..." I have many web sites and I've checked the statistics for each of them. It seems that, on average, less than 50% of visitors are using Internet Exploder and, of those, probably only 20% are still using Exploder v6. Everybody knows about the security risks that I.E. poses so I thought that only "newbies" were still using it. But here is a large insurance company which is demanding that its customers use an outdated browser. Not only that but the web site is deliberately designed to be non-compliant with the W3C standard! Our Policy http://www.pru.co.uk/accessibility/ "Prudential is committed to providing a website that is accessible for all our customers. We are currently working hard to make our site more accessible to all user groups and have invested in consultancy with a specialist company to understand how best to do this." Yeah, right! Above is how it looks in my browser! Try it yourself: http://tinyurl.com/lnc3hr This is clearly not the web site of a professional company. A web site OUGHT to be W3C compliant so that it works with every compliant browser on every major platform. Some people may not be able to afford an Apple Mac but you can hardly say that MacOSX is not a major platform - any more than you can say that Mercedes is not an important car manufacturer. In view of our move to a (secret) location on a Greek island, I thought it best to appoint my son as signatory for business cheques. He has an account with Barclays, as do I, so I foresaw no problems. Hah! In the old days it would have been a case of "sign here, sonny. Right, you can sign cheques now!" But technology has intervened, together with anti-money-laundering regulations, child molesting and all the other crap which made me want to move in the first place. So they have to order a "mandate pack", which takes a week to arrive. It comprises SEVEN sheets of A4 for me to complete. I did so and posted it. TEN days later it arrived back with a letter (unsigned), apparently typed by a ten year old, in which even my own surname had been misspelt TWICE! (Doesn't inspire confidence, does it?) It asked: Please would my son and I write our signatures properly because they didn't match what they had on record? (Let's ignore the fact that they've been happily cashing our cheques for years with these same signatures.) I won't bore you with the details but they are STILL refusing to accept my son's signature. Somebody isn't going to get paid. It's never-ending. I informed this company that my phone line would be disconnected on August 30th, giving them two weeks' notice before we were due to leave. They sent me an acknowledgement by email but failed to take the final payment before I stopped the Direct debit. Now they want me to pay a penalty! Yet another company that I won't be recommending! I just wanted to say I enjoy reading your monthly news - and especially your whinges :-) I can only imagine the sort of questions you get asked. I work in IT and I can tell you that the stories you may read about crazy IT supports requests are true (at work we really do have customers that bad). I certainly don't see your replies as "blunt to the point of being rude", in fact I find it quite refreshing to meet (well sort of) people who speak their mind - I might not agree with them but at least I know where I stand. Not a customer, yet. I will be when I get some other jobs out of the way. PS - hope your travels go well. PPS - And I really do agree with you on the ability, or not, of people to write in English and use words as they are found in a dictionary. Am I the only one who cringes at the misuse of their/there/they're ? Simon. Answers on a postcard to: Marrrtin Peekerigg Oh, by the way, a subscriber wrote to complain about the "boring readers' questions" - as if it were my fault! So, c'mon, people. Send in some interesting questions, please, otherwise we're gonna lose a subscriber! Nowt. A good Yorkshire word but disappointing to have to say it. (Round here they say "teepotta" instead.) So 13,000 + of you haven't done anything interesting with satellite or terrestrial TV this year? You boring sods! If you have anything of interest to contribute, please contact me with details. What have you installed? What problems have you had? Have you been ripped off? Tell us all about it. (Make it interesting.) I promise not to make fun of your spelling or grammar. (I'll correct it.) Teepotta. Been too busy emigrating. I wish I could bottle sunshine and sell it! Anybody like olive oil? I'm being forced to eat it with everything. So much so that I'm pooing black slugs! (Too much information?) I can't make my mind up about XL trading. See what you think! Could it be legitimate? They seem to think so and I'm no legal expert. - a selection from this month's emails (If you are a new subscriber I'm afraid that you might find some of my replies a little blunt to the point of being rude. That's just the way I am after answering customers' questions for the last fourteen years. Please don't take offence. Sometimes I'm a little tired, ratty or impatient and it shows! Generally, if you ask for a free reply, you'll get what you pay for. Things may improve now that I'm living on a warm Greek island!) David J. Hi, David. An aerial invariably measures short-circuit to DC but it should be approximately 75 Ohms impedance at UHF frequencies. It sounds as if your receiver is expecting to feed power to a masthead amplifier but is "seeing" a short-circuit instead! Check your settings and make sure that any voltage feed is set to "OFF". Alternatively, you could connect the aerial to a decoupled wall plate or else make a decoupled "fly-lead". See http://www.satcure.co.uk/tech/decoupled_cable.htm http://www.satcure.co.uk/tech/tvplugs.htm (No need to solder plugs to a decoupled cable.) Equipment made by: Pace Sky Model number on label or rear panel: none Just wasted £400+ trying to get freeview working was 95% even before new aerial & full CT100 re-wire, but think must have been perfect weather as not any more, checked everything 20 times. 37 miles crystal palace, I know poor signal. So sensitive to spending much more if can't get results I want. Anyway ordered yesterday from you an OCTI LNB for my Sky+HD (Already use 4) main question is I want to pipe Sky+ RF out/playback etc. to prob. just 2 other TV's via ONE cable. i.e combine each New LNB with the RF Out into one cable & then split at each TV, 1 in SetTopBox & other in RF IN. Is it best to try 2 separate combiners or the whole Loft Box. Sorry, I'm finding your shorthand difficult to follow. A question mark would help distinguish a question from a comment. I don't understand this implied question. You would need to define what you mean by "best" and upload your proposed wiring diagram for comment. http://www.satcure.co.uk/tech/lofthelp.htm Current setup : No unnecessary connections, F type where I can, fully screened cables apart from some to the TV's at moment. All fly leads screened. Aerial In (via mast amp), straight to Sky+ IN > RF OUT > up to loft > Into 8 way distribution. PS. Since new re-alightment with crystal palace (ex. Reigate) to get DVB-T. Sky RF out fuzzy, Don't think interference or ghosting just very grainy, tried every channel, avoided channels from CP, Guildford & Reigate. If remove any RF input, picture is perfect so would thing interference but can't see how, very rural, 100m to nearest house or road. Might this be a hidden question? Grainy Sky pictures can have two causes: 1. You've set the Digibox RF output channel on top of a Freeview multiplex frequency. 2. The aerial signal is much stronger than the Sky RF output signal and needs to be attenuated. See http://www.satcure.co.uk/digifaq2.htm#grainy Also do you sell something that would isolate other channels, Guildford is almost direct line in between my house & CP (although Vertical aerial) A diplexer? http://www.satcure.co.uk/accs/page11c.htm#diplex The only thing I haven't changed is the power supply to the mast amp, I assumed if working at all should be OK. Sorry long question but could result in quite a large order. Greg R. Don't rush this. Spend a few weeks reading all the available information, making sketches and understanding how everything works. Plan ahead. We really don't want your order if it means that you buy something unnecessary or something that won't work for you. Your writing suggests that you are a highly intelligent, fast thinker. That's nice but you need to slow down and get everything on paper so you can think clearly and express your questions succinctly. Model number on label or rear panel: 80gb I have a Sky+ box in the lounge attached to the TV in that room with a scart cable & it operates well with good picture quality. I have a second TV in a bedroom room. The connection is from the co-ax out socket on the Sky+ box into a wall 'socket' and in the bedroom from the wall socket to the TV. The picture in the bedroom is clear apart from two areas where there are two transparent lines constantly. If I run a standard TV lead as bought from a DIY store, the picture quality is unaffected/excellent. I have checked both wall sockets to ensure that none of the shielding is touching the central wire. 1. Is it likely to be a co-axial problem? I hope not because & can't see that pulling a new cable is practical!! 2. If I install a powered signal amplifier will that resolve the problem? If so, anything specific I ought to look for when buying one? Bill S. Hi, Bill. There are rare occasions where amplifying a signal before it goes into a poorly-screened cable system, and attenuating it when it comes out, can reduce the effects of interference. However, it's better to eliminate the interference at source (where possible) and to replace the unscreened cable and sockets with fully-screened types, keeping the cable as far from the sources of interference as is practical. See http://www.satcure.co.uk/tech/tvplugs.htm I enjoy the Satellite Review Hello, I am a long-term English expat and I subscribed to your newsletter a long time ago. I have found much useful information and enjoyed reading it. I am now in Vienna, where useful reception of UK satellite channels is almost impossible and I have cable. But I am still reading your newsletter although I am not directly interested. I found myself wondering why. I think I just like your style, your impatience with people who ask dumb questions in bad english and I think you remind me of the England where I was brought up. Keep up the good work. All the best Jonathan That's it for another month, folks! Latest SatCure eBook updates None this month. I'm just lazy I guess. Meet other Satellite TV enthusiasts and put your questions or points of view here Need to buy wholesale stock to sell on eBay or on your web site? Thinking of starting your own business? Click on banner above. All kinds of video tapes transferred to DVD, UK's lowest prices and top quality. Experienced engineer and a personal service. Most tapes just £10 for 2:30 hours or less in quantity. I can't recommend this forum for Expats too highly. It's run and moderated by Kay who puts in a lot of hours to make sure everything runs smoothly. If you are outside the UK or thinking of emigrating then you need to look in here! Looking for a TV or VCR remote control? Look no further. only £18.80 inclusive from SatCure! Your advert could be here! Contact us for details. Electronic kits and gadgets. Start a new hobby! Ideal Presents. News - EXPATS SPECIAL
I'm quite pleased with it and the girls really like it. Customers seem to like it, too, so we're all winners. 
Monthly Whinge
Barclays Blank
First Telecom
A small Greek Island
The Mediterranean
Greece
Readers' Contributions
New Products
Beware the Scam!
Questions
Received your antenna yesterday type AERKIT2WH-V10-040 Brown cable. I have assembled the unit as per instructions and it is working well. However, a message on the screen states "The antenna cable is short-circuited. I have checked both ends of the cable via the conectors with my meter and it is clear, ie no short circuit. But on re-fitting the p/c into the antenna the message on the TV re-appears. I hope you can help. Kind regards,
My location is: GU10
Equipment made by: Thomson
Happy Customers
I'm still an impatient old sod. Do I remind anyone of Greece, now?
A bit short but I've been busy. I'm also compiling a private on-line diary of our "adventures on a small Greek island" and that's taking up a lot of time.
is an audio enthusiasts' website, run purely for the fun of it. No money involved at all! Take a look. 
The SatCure Satellite Review is written for the customers and subscribers of the following websites:
http://www.satcure.com
http://www.satcure.co.uk
http://www.satcure.net
http://www.your-book.co.uk
http://www.The-Cool-Book-Shop.co.ukcopyright © 2007 SatCure