Subj : Re: Do Not Call To : Barry Martin From : Nancy Backus Date : Thu Nov 07 2019 18:55:06 -=> Quoting Barry Martin to Nancy Backus on 31-Oct-2019 12:39 <=- NB>> A little downtime the night we arrived was a good thing... BM> Yes, that 'nothing to do time' can be nice. The camp _is_ a place for BM> relaxation and enjoyment, after all! As for hauling along a laptop to BM> fill a short time, I can relate. Used to do that when accompanying BM> someone on a doctor's visit, etc., to fill the time. Make sure it's BM> charged, download whatever mail I need to do. Get there and BM> unpack/setup -- check an outlet is conveiently nearby. (I also have BM> an extension cord in my laptop's case.) So far have not needed to BM> recharge in a waiting room. Now just bring the cell phone along and BM> watch interesting videos. Never did get into hauling a computer with me when waiting in a doctor's office waiting room... did sometimes bring along some easily packed project or other, though.... Now I tend to not bring anything, unless I anticipate a long wait... BM>> ...And sort of speaking of Mother Nature, bright enough outside can BM>> see the colours out there: the leaves have definitely turned orange BM>> since yesterday, though still patches of green. Looked the other day BM>> and what may or may not be the Burning Bush did have some 'Burning Bush BM>> red' leaves, so there's hope! NB>> Sounds promising... :) BM> LIS in an earlier message it snowed overnight; haven't checked to see BM> if that triggered the change. Still flurrying, almost lunch now. BM> Gained a whopping two degrees since my earlier report several hours BM> ago: now 29ø! We've got that weather today.... so far no accumulation to speak of... and the temps are still in the 30s, but there is definitely snow in the air.... ah, well... it is November, after all.... BM> ...Checked the area Trick-or-Treat times; about half on the Illinois BM> side have been postponed while none on the Iowa side have been altered. You have posted times for when kids can trick or treat...? Or are those at businesses....? BM>> It's those silly little details! There have been times over the BM>> decades I've dialed in and not connected -- most of the time the BM>> problem was on the host system's end but there were still those times BM>> the problem was on mine. Have noted also with 'regular' websites: get BM>> that pecky little 'spinning' or some other 'waiting' icon. And we BM>> wait, and we wait. And we get annoyed and either hit the reload button BM>> or sometimes open a new session -- connect instantly! NB>> Similar to waiting on hold on the phone... sometimes what works is NB>> hanging up and trying again.... unless in the meantime, they've closed NB>> the phones for the day.... ;) BM> Yes - earlier this summer I needed to dial into the hospital's phone BM> system: "please continue to hold - you're call is BM> number one in line". That went on for BM> close to ten minutes. Thought to myself this doesn't seem right, even BM> if a big emergency going on and several 'yakkers' have called in ahead BM> of me. Hung up, redialed, got one iteration of the phone queue and then BM> answered. Did inquire (nicely) about being busy -- they were having BM> issues with the telephones. That makes sense... issues with the phones certainly is a good explanation... ;) BM>> Sounds just as valid. I think the tone generated by the 'Tele-Zapper' BM>> might be the SIT - forgot what it stands for but is the "doo-Doo-DOOO" BM>> tone one sometimes hears followed by "the number you have dialed is BM>> out of order or no longer in service". Supposedly tells the other BM>> computer to mark that number as having a problem or is no longer valid. NB>> No, actually it's just a single beep... and it is generated when any NB>> one of the handsets in the circuit is picked up... but is supposed to NB>> tell the other computer that it isn't a valid number, at least in NB>> theory... BM> Hmm: hadn't heard of the single tone one. It's been around for quite a long time.... We must have gotten that phone a couple of decades ago, and it was old technology then, just not been incorporated into consumer phones before NB>> And that three tone tone is also followed sometimes with the message NB>> that your line is out of service, and there may be a phone off the NB>> hook... so an indication that the other party really did hang up, NB>> even though your line wasn't released.... BM> Right. All sorts of reasons. To me helps to know which tone I'm BM> getting so I know what to do (or not do). Slow busy: phone BM> (individual line) is in use or otherwise off-hook. Fast busy means the BM> trunk line is busy, so can't get to the individual line. Yup... BM> My Mother recognizes the "American ring" from the various "European BM> rings" when she dials Switzerland and Austria. Oddly (to me) she BM> doesn't pay attention to the slow busy vs. the fast busy signals. Maybe in her case, the bottom line is just that she can't get through right now, and will have to try again.... the distinction is more in how long one might probably have to wait to get connected... and even that might not be all that different... BM> Trees here have turned white - oh, that's snow! Also was paying a BM> little more attention: there has been snow on Halloween but only trace BM> amounts. Today's 3" locally and more north and east blew those out! BM> Also the record low high temperature was 34ø; they're predicting a BM> high of only 33ø for today so may break that record also. ...Beginning BM> of October was in the upper 80's (he gave the exact temp; I wasn't BM> paying attention). It's been a record breaking year, on all sorts of fronts... and wide swings in temps... ;) BM>> ...Upcoming project -- the computer/data-based weather as the ones BM>> using the wireless sensor don't work up here. NB>> So you are giving up on those sensors.... BM> Yup. They do work in other parts of the house, but that doesn't do me BM> any good up here. Right now just a general concept; probably separate BM> monitor -- half-thinking combine with the outdoor cameras. Maybe run BM> the software off a Raspberry Pi. We'll see. You'll figure out something... :) ttyl neb .... Into every life some rain must fall. Usually when car windows are down --- EzyBlueWave V3.00 01FB001F * Origin: Tiny's BBS - http://www.tinysbbs.com (454:1/452) .