I was just ditty bopping along earlier today and thinking about what a fargin great thing my Empeg is, and it made me wonder about other things that are as good. What other stuff would you folks consider to be as good as the Empeg? Stuff that radically increses the enjoyment factor of whatever it applies to in the way the Empeg does. Stuff that you have not always had - not like "TV" or "Automobiles", but rather like...

My computer - far and away the #1 item in this list. I can't even remember what life was like before it.

Directivo - takes something that most people do (watch tv) improves it so vastly that the concept of doing without it is akin to having your Empeg removed and having it replaced with an AM radio.

Anyone?

Paintstick.

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Paintstick

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Really? I had seen these before and wondered. The interior of my house is way past due...maybe I should try one?

Somehow I read this as PAIN-stick. I wondered for a moment what the hell was going on!

LOL so did I.

Had to wonder if Tony wasn't getting a little freaky for a second there.

Yes. That thing made repainting my entire house interior (including ceilings) a do-able job.

My only complaint is that cleanup is a b*tch, but it's worth it considering how neat and easy the rest of the job is.

Paintstick

Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80004005'

[Microsoft][ODBC Microsoft Access Driver] Not enough space on disk.

/tvkit/global.asa, line 111

Riding motorcycles.

Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80004005'

Well, shit, it didn't do that when I first linked it. That'll teach them for trying to run their site off of a Microsoft server product.

Well, this site isn't as good, but you can look here: http://wwda.com/paintstick/

Still doesn't do the thing justice. I know it's not high technology or anything, but it's one of those things that let me do something I wouldn't otherwise have been able to do. I painted pretty much the whole interior of my house with these things and it made the job fairly easy instead of completely unbearable.

The impressive thing is their one-way fill/release nozzle and gasket system. It's impossible to describe to someone who hasn't used it, but the whole thing is just terribly clever.

And by the way, these are available at just about any hardware store, you don't need to get them from the web. When you see them at the hardware store, they almost look like a gimmick, like "yeah, sure". But they really work.

Wireless networks. The idea of having my laptop tethered to an Ethernet cable is now unthinkable - it has completely changed the way I use my computer.

And broadband. Having to think 'I'm going to use the internet now' and waiting for a modem to connect just seems such a hassle now.

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Microsoft OLE DB Provider for ODBC Drivers error '80004005'

Well, [censored], it didn't do that when I first linked it. That'll teach them for trying to run their site off of a Microsoft server product.

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Maybe our ever growing userbase are starting to have a mini-Slashdot effect on some peoples websites?

Playing live before a packed crowed screaming their heads off. This adrenaline rush just about gets to where the empeg is for me..

Agreed on both. I went wireless on the laptop, and broadband both in 1998. It's an amazing change, and the internet any other way seems odd. Last week when my home network was effectively worthless with the server gone and no internet, it sucked. I kept opening iTunes wanting to tune to an internet radio station, and had to settle for the 4 CDs I had test ripped.

A new car is one of my big things. Before it, I had a cheepo car that my dad was going to maintain. When it decided not to start one night leaving me stranded, I abandoned it. This was after some transmission issues (having to go into park and back out at every stop) that I decided a new car was worth it. If I have a problem, I call in and drop it off for service. If I ever have a problem that strands me, a quick call to the number in my book resolves that.

Riding motorcycles

Agreed. I'm now officially shopping for mine, and will be trying to go dirt bike riding with a co-worker more often. That small taste again last week actually shifted my main thoughts quite a bit. Next weekend can't come soon enough.

I know what you mean. I'm getting mine as soon as I sell my car. Any ideas on how to install an empeg? Seriously though, I was thinking about building an i-pod into the helmet.

Hmm, that might be a perfect use of an iPod...

I was looking into a helmet with a hookup of some time available for a headset, in case I want to hook it into a two way radio. An iPod might work as well for this, and I do already have the G4 cube to hook it to...

An example of the speaker system is here: http://www.alfenterprises.com/rf_limited_ch550.htm

The audio jack on that one looks seperate from the microphone, so it should be easy enough.

For a couple of seconds I actually thought you were going to put a G4 cube onto your helmet

Seriously though, you have to be really careful if you've got ideas about attaching stuff to a helmet. You don't want to weaken it in any way at all. Glue also can be dangerous since it may attack the materials the helmet is made out of.

- Trevor

Nevermind the glue issue, how about putting hard objects inside your helmet? The whole point in a helmet is to absorb shock by allowing the foam to deform around your head in an accident. But maybe some would rather a set of speakers mashing their head instead.??

Several:
-email- I really can't imagine life without email, using handwritten letters for communication?
-cellphone- being able to get in touch with anyone at anytime (anywhere in the world). Although, now I don't memorize anyone's phone number anymore, so if I lose my cellphone, I am helpless.

Google.com- by far the most useful site on the internet,

The food at Greystone in St. Helena CA. I can't say enough good things about this place.

-Zeke

Damn, I was in St. Helena recently, and was looking for a good place to eat. What's the address there?

Look here. Copia in Napa is nice too, the company I work for has a wine cellar in there.

Good point. I'll probably just end up using headphones with an i-pod in my pocket.

But the good thing about riding a motorcycle is you don't have to listen to music to enjoy yourself, although it'd probably be nice..

Although, now I don't memorize anyone's phone number anymore, so if I lose my cellphone, I am helpless

In most stores that sell cell phones over here you can ask them to make a backup of your Sim Card. Still would be shitty if you lost your phone, but at least you would still have all your telephone numbers.

Ah, it was NORTH of St. Helena. I knew we should have driven farther north when we were looking!

Asuming you use a GSM phone with a SIM card to backup. Unfortunatly most of the US is blind to the wonderful world standard that includes the ability to never need to migrate numbers manually.

I'm glad AT&T is doing GSM now, time to get the other major companies off their oddball standards.

That place is worth the trip any day. I've been wowed both times I've been (I live in NH so the opportunity doesn't present itself too often). I highly recommend the 'chef's choice' appetizer (don't recall exactly what it's called). It's a little pricey for an app, but it's an assortment of small dishes at the chef's discretion, depending on what's in season. Even the inexpensive ($14 or so) chicken plate was delicious. I didn't know chicken could taste so good.

-Zeke

Unfortunatly most of the US is blind to the wonderful world standard...

Really? What do you guys use then?

I've never been without GSM in any US city I've visited.. perhaps "city" is the key word there.

Rob

I've never been without GSM in any US city I've visited.. perhaps "city" is the key word there.

Yeah, I was wondering where all those tri-band phones were good for then...

I've never been without GSM in any US city I've visited.. perhaps "city" is the key word there.

It was well flaky in New Orleans. I just about got signal on Canal St, right in the city centre, but even a dozen blocks away there was none whatsoever. It's not the phone, because that worked fine in Santa Clara and in, er, Atlanta, or wherever it was I had to change flights for NO.

Peter

Yeah, GSM works in most cities above 100,000 people. This is due to companies like Voicestream using GSM and expanding nation wide.

Other "standards" in use in the US are CDMA, PCS, and some old analog standard from the brick sized phone days. So basicially we have competiting cell technologies, instead of using one standard and having beter coverage overall.