Asus Q200

I bought an ASUS Q200 in July and it served me well until yesterday. S.M.A.R.T. errors warned me the drive was about to die and sure enough it died yesterday afternoon.

After I pulled the back case off, I noticed that a screw was missing. I hadn't touched the insides until yesterday. It was the store display model and seemed fine when I checked it out in the store. "Best Buy" wouldn't let it leave without removing their A.R.C.H.I.E. software or whatever they use these days.

Either ASUS didn't assemble it with all the screws or BB didn't put it back together correctly after pulling the drive to wipe it.  I wonder if they put the same drive back in and didn't grab a malfunctioning drive.

It wouldn't have been a big deal if it hadn't been a thin hard-drive, I have a few 2.5" drives but they don't fit because of the thickness. BB stopped carrying the smaller drives locally because of shoplifters. They wouldn't let me trade it in for a working machine and I haven't had good experiences with sending devices off. So it is out of order until I can get a replacement drive. SSD would be nice, but to get a decent size is a bit too much.

Ham Block

As my last post indicated I passed my test. My radio arrived this week and I was checking daily for my license and guess what? The government shutdown. Doesn't look like I'll be transmitting for a while.

Ham Radio

After studying I finally got ready to take my test. I went to the Cabot Chapter of S.T.A.R.S. (Small Town Amateur Radio Service) meeting and afterwards I took my test for Technician. I look forward to making my first communication. Before the "interwebs" were popular I used to connect to the local BBSes and after a bit of searching online I found that people run BBSes over the radio.  I think I'm going to see if there is one in my area and if not I might start one.

Ham Radio

Made contact with the Faulkner County Amateur Radio Club at Ecofest. I spoke with one of their members who pointed out several websites to get started. I order a small portable and while I am waiting for it to be shipped I've been studying for the exam. Hopefully before it arrives I will have my technician license. I've thought a lot about getting into Amateur radio, and finally decided to take the plunge. I'm really excited. I've been boring my wife with bands, frequencies, and technical schematics while I am trying to get ready for the test.

Topper's

After spending 24 hours waiting to be one of the 50 first customers at Topper's Pizza in Conway, AR the count down clock finished. We all lined up and placed our orders. One of the "rules of the contest" was the first customers had to make at least a $10 purchase. I went with the half pound of BBQ boneless wings. The free food came in a simple nondescript white box. 52 business card sized date stamped coupons for free food. Roughly half of them were for their free cheesesticks. Their version of a personal pizza and specialty cheesesticks made up the remaining coupons. Since I was first in line beating my friend by a few minutes I had the "honor" of becoming the "king of the line". The Log Cabin Democrat wrote an article about the  store grand opening and featured my kingly attire.

So what did I do for twenty four hours in line?  The best way to pass time is with your friends. I had two  of my friends close in line and that made the time fly. Waiting with others you begin to make new connections you normally wouldn't. I met a few of the CompSci grad students at UCA. I even ran into a few people CosPlaying. Power Ranger, The Crow, and others provided amusement. A few games passed the time as we waited. A Pictionary-esque  game allowed me to team up with the "White Ranger" and we  began to guess. We didn't win, but a  good time was had. Coca-cola sunglasses were the consolation prize. Music for the event was provided by a local DJ firm. They were great, playing requests from the crowd. Eventually we played a song guessing game and I won another drink tumbler.

In the slow periods I kept alert by reading. I stopped off at the Faulkner County Library before I went and picked up two books. One was a large tome from the author of "Snow Crash" and the other was a small paperback copy of one of John Steinbeck's lesser read stories. The larger of the two books was unwieldy and did not fit in my backpack. I also brought a deck of playing cards and we played a few games. Several of the people in line brought games as well. A Bat Cave Card and Comics regular brought a stack of games including one of my favorites "RoboRally" . Others played Lord of the Rings Risk, and others played non traditional "camp style" games. One of these games the player would name a movie title and the next player had to name another movie that started with the last letter of the previously named movie. After thirty seconds you were out.

Regular line checks kept people from sleeping for too long. Wristbands with the line position kept order. As we waited the line grew and shrank with some people leaving after mere hours. The marketing team from Toppers were great keeping the crowd alert and in high spirits. A group of the crowd played Frisbee, Hacky sack and simple catch. Others merely danced with the music. One of the crowd had a bicycle and road up and down the line. A few brought skateboards. One of the crowd nearby performed card tricks.

It was a blast!

Waiting in line at Toppers Pizza

One of my good friends from college and I are waiting in line at Topper's Pizza. The first 50 customers get "free food" for one year. They actually were already open but are trying to create a buzz. The pizza was decent we split a Tuscan Chicken pizza. It was quite tasty. Only down side I found,  no fountain drink dispensers it was bottled drinks only. Probably going to post more later.

Topper's Pizza

First in line prize!