The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
Ha the calm before the inebvitable tornado.
What's made you smile today?
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What's made you smile today?
No kidding. Twisters all around us last night. I even had to figure out how to get my crippled ass down to the basement as the warning sirens were going off. We'll probably take a drive later today to see what got whacked.
Weird February weather. Almost 80F yesterday. It won't get above freezing today. It's supposed to back up into the sixties and seventies for the weekend.
The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
Much the same weird weather here but less extreme. Quite scary altogether wondering what the planet will chuck at us next.
I had to replace the charging port on Mrs.Cheest's laptop today.
It went without a hitch and is charging again, so I no longer have to listen to that particular whine.
What really made me happy was a wonderful three hour nap in my new EZ chair after I finished with the laptop. And I did it without any chemical assistance.
It went without a hitch and is charging again, so I no longer have to listen to that particular whine.
What really made me happy was a wonderful three hour nap in my new EZ chair after I finished with the laptop. And I did it without any chemical assistance.
I like the fancy soldering stationI had to replace the charging port on Mrs.Cheest's laptop today.
It went without a hitch and is charging again, so I no longer have to listen to that particular whine.
What really made me happy was a wonderful three hour nap in my new EZ chair after I finished with the laptop. And I did it without any chemical assistance.
.I spent the day helping my friend get another Cyclemaster going, it's in a Raleigh Gentleman's bike frame, it has the later BEC carb instead of the more basic Amal and the 32cc engine, so it goes better however brakes are even worse on this one, so I ended up a little off road down a bank unintentionally as couldn't get to the hand throttle in time.
He has just bought another bike with a Solex engine friction driving the rear wheel.
A project for another day is a 1938 James 98cc with pedals, but in a sad state at present and the Villiers engine feels rough when turning the Mag/flywheel.
Had a long running battle with a supplier, generally the problem stems from they over promise and under deliver.
Effectively we've spent 2 years building around the fact that many things they said their system could do were either none functioning or not as advertised.
Anywho few months ago they rolled out a new thing which was meant to fix a lot of our complaints...in that it brought a lot of the stuff we'd ended up building custom outside of their software into it.
However first day I went in to recreate some of my custom work and no didn't work at a very basic level. Pretty much you point it at a number you know is 3 and it'll bring back 1.5 to 2 some days and 3 others. So no good for numbers you can't easily sense check.
I reported this to them as fault..
They procrastinated for 4 months...finally arranged a meeting, didn't turn up to it, re-arranged a meeting.
Their crack American guys default position was to tell me that I should be paying them for training in how to use it properly, to which they may have got a version of "I'm not going to waste my time on something that at a very basic level is broken". Now he may have taken offence at this as he questioned my qualifications as to make this judgement and made out like we were always a bother...to which I played dumb and said "ok this could be a me thing, get your guy to build a version of this that works and tell me how you did it".
Week later he comes back with his version..(I should point out he took a week to do what I know to be 30 seconds of work).
I go back to exactly the same data point I demonstrated to them in the meeting it doesn't work in exactly the same way.
They are now flapping....as there is a reasonable chance their much trumpeted system is generating incorrect data for all clients but us being "difficult" are the only ones who checked their work.
Seems I'm qualified to call their bullshit..
Effectively we've spent 2 years building around the fact that many things they said their system could do were either none functioning or not as advertised.
Anywho few months ago they rolled out a new thing which was meant to fix a lot of our complaints...in that it brought a lot of the stuff we'd ended up building custom outside of their software into it.
However first day I went in to recreate some of my custom work and no didn't work at a very basic level. Pretty much you point it at a number you know is 3 and it'll bring back 1.5 to 2 some days and 3 others. So no good for numbers you can't easily sense check.
I reported this to them as fault..
They procrastinated for 4 months...finally arranged a meeting, didn't turn up to it, re-arranged a meeting.
Their crack American guys default position was to tell me that I should be paying them for training in how to use it properly, to which they may have got a version of "I'm not going to waste my time on something that at a very basic level is broken". Now he may have taken offence at this as he questioned my qualifications as to make this judgement and made out like we were always a bother...to which I played dumb and said "ok this could be a me thing, get your guy to build a version of this that works and tell me how you did it".
Week later he comes back with his version..(I should point out he took a week to do what I know to be 30 seconds of work).
I go back to exactly the same data point I demonstrated to them in the meeting it doesn't work in exactly the same way.
They are now flapping....as there is a reasonable chance their much trumpeted system is generating incorrect data for all clients but us being "difficult" are the only ones who checked their work.
Seems I'm qualified to call their bullshit..
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Many times I have experienced the "no-one else has complained, therefore it must be you" excuse. Just because others do not understand that something is wrong, does not mean it is right. Also, we are a nation of 'accept and get on with it', rather than complain, type of people.
With software, it has been tested with known quantities, by the people who built it, and want it to work. My answer, is grab the janitor (or your gran, or anyone not computer literate), get them to use it. If they struggle, fix the software.
Is this the same software the Post Office used? A computer starts out as a posh calculator, so failing basic sums is a bit of a failure.
I've dealt with quite a few American companies. They all shout about customer service, but my experience is that they rarely deliver. It is all BS. And I worked for a company whose main ouotput was BS.
Not just america, most are the same around the world.
To be fair I am actually qualified to make the call it's broken...
But I was happy to give them the rope to hang themselves.
Also now having fun with them trying to make out like it's a small issue and me helpfully providing evidence it's not to assist their enquiries you understand.
Engaging in the IT equivalent of lobbing a grenade into a room then closing the door.. fun times.
But I was happy to give them the rope to hang themselves.
Also now having fun with them trying to make out like it's a small issue and me helpfully providing evidence it's not to assist their enquiries you understand.
Engaging in the IT equivalent of lobbing a grenade into a room then closing the door.. fun times.
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Sounds like an outfit my 70's to 90's employer used that caused us to corkscrew into the ground.
Yesterday, but I expect more of the same today.
Beautiful day, so I insisted that Mrs.Cheest let me out of the house. I managed a few trips up and down the street on the knee scooter, remembering to 'Flintstone' it with my good foot down the inclines while still using the brakes. I got to chat with the guy across from us for a bit. His wife is a physical therapist and, if insurance allows, I may be able to hobble across the street to use her services instead of having to drive 25 miles.
The pickup has sat for three weeks. I was able to haul myself up into it and fire it up just to make sure it did. I figure I can drive it without too much trouble but getting out of it is interesting. I didn't bother with the Jeep. I can't push the clutch in to start it anyway. And it's such a basic vehicle, it doesn't care.
I spent a couple hours in the garage yesterday, too. I managed to get the lathe bolted down to the bench. With two good legs, it should not have taken me more than 30 minutes. With one leg and a knee scooter, it took over an hour. Now I can start going through the lathe today.
Having sat on my backside for the past three weeks was telling, though. I was wiped out by 3pm. It's supposed to be another nice one today, so more time outside.
Beautiful day, so I insisted that Mrs.Cheest let me out of the house. I managed a few trips up and down the street on the knee scooter, remembering to 'Flintstone' it with my good foot down the inclines while still using the brakes. I got to chat with the guy across from us for a bit. His wife is a physical therapist and, if insurance allows, I may be able to hobble across the street to use her services instead of having to drive 25 miles.
The pickup has sat for three weeks. I was able to haul myself up into it and fire it up just to make sure it did. I figure I can drive it without too much trouble but getting out of it is interesting. I didn't bother with the Jeep. I can't push the clutch in to start it anyway. And it's such a basic vehicle, it doesn't care.
I spent a couple hours in the garage yesterday, too. I managed to get the lathe bolted down to the bench. With two good legs, it should not have taken me more than 30 minutes. With one leg and a knee scooter, it took over an hour. Now I can start going through the lathe today.
Having sat on my backside for the past three weeks was telling, though. I was wiped out by 3pm. It's supposed to be another nice one today, so more time outside.
This is on the verge of making me grumpy today..
Phoned me last night at 9pm to tell me all the cars he wasn't buying I send him some options that cover off what he's asked for.
Get an email with a prince engined 208 on it (what do you think of this?) it's lovely looking car but that BMW plastic infused timing chain is a no from me...after he's suggested a Corsa 1.4 while on the phone. At this point invest in autotrader and a dart board.
I gave up looking out for cars for others after being told their max. spend and diligently finding something good in that price range, only to find they had already bought a piece of rubbish for twice that price limit!
Oh this has been going on since the 19 year old Focus was about 3...
The main annoyance for me is the budget requirement is arbitrary.
I get why he doesn't want to buy a new car, depreciation is the main cost and he does about 2-3k a year so a new car is going to cost 100s of pounds a month in depreciation sitting there.
But at the same time...he wants a warranty and for it to be new car reliable which means you're looking at newer cars....which are still depreciating.
He could just wander into a dealer and buy a pre-registered car from stock and be done with it but that's not his style.
The main annoyance for me is the budget requirement is arbitrary.
I get why he doesn't want to buy a new car, depreciation is the main cost and he does about 2-3k a year so a new car is going to cost 100s of pounds a month in depreciation sitting there.
But at the same time...he wants a warranty and for it to be new car reliable which means you're looking at newer cars....which are still depreciating.
He could just wander into a dealer and buy a pre-registered car from stock and be done with it but that's not his style.
Sounds like you could be "flogging a dead horse"
Without a doubt however I'm not taxiing him about when the Focus MOT runs out next month....
So I'm motivated to say the least...at this point got a slightly dog eared but mechanically sweet and still PSA warrantied C3 he can have for budget and I'll get myself something a bit bigger for family work
I'm sure the C3 will appreciate the break from me and my wife driving it..
So I'm motivated to say the least...at this point got a slightly dog eared but mechanically sweet and still PSA warrantied C3 he can have for budget and I'll get myself something a bit bigger for family work
I'm sure the C3 will appreciate the break from me and my wife driving it..
My 2012 C3 Picasso with 224k miles is still just about staggering on, but considering the purchase price 4 years ago of £300. it is probably value for money as I also do not do many miles and have other vehicles to fall back on if required.Without a doubt however I'm not taxiing him about when the Focus MOT runs out next month....
So I'm motivated to say the least...at this point got a slightly dog eared but mechanically sweet and still PSA warrantied C3 he can have for budget and I'll get myself something a bit bigger for family work
I'm sure the C3 will appreciate the break from me and my wife driving it..
Well ours is one careful lady owner full history and low miles....
It has also absolutely never been airborne..
It has also absolutely never been airborne..
I quite often get asked opinions on what car people should buy or to endorse their choice when they are doubtful. From time to time someone will ask me to come with them when they go to view the vehicle. Now a days I tend to make up some sort of excuse as to why I can't do that or utter some pretty noncommittal comments when asked for an opinion. Why? Well, over the many years people have asked me to do this I find that it's an absolute minefield for personal relationships. Often I find that, having gone to some trouble to find out about a vehicle I'm not familiar with, they go off and buy something completely different because they "liked the look of it" or the infotainment system does this or that. Worse still is if they take your advice and do buy a particular model which then subsequently gives trouble, you end up being the "baddie" for having recommended it. This situation gets even worse if you have actually accompanied them to view the vehicle as you then get blamed for every single little thing that goes wrong or that they subsequently don't like after becoming familiar with the car. Of course I make exceptions for family members and really close friends but a conversation is always had before I will commit.I gave up looking out for cars for others after being told their max. spend and diligently finding something good in that price range, only to find they had already bought a piece of rubbish for twice that price limit!
Likewise, I do the same. Other than immediate family (excluding children as that's just different), I usually say I cant decide what car I'd have next, so cant comment on others.
