Hi all,

A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
I missed getting the main item I went there for.
I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
that any of you folks have shown up at this store
or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
people you saw there.

Thanks.

"Flarky" <qwerty@1234567890abcdef.org> wrote in message 
news:S9SdnbAlL9j6kRvenZ2dnUVZ_v-dnZ2d@comcast.com...
> Hi all,
>
> A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
> were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
> I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
> I missed getting the main item I went there for.
> I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
> that any of you folks have shown up at this store
> or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
> people you saw there.
>
> Thanks.
>

It depends how much your time is worth to you vs.
the likelihood of getting whatever you're after at
a below-normal price.

One time I was going by anyway and arrived at Best Buy
5 minutes before 10AM. They opened at 10 so I drove on.

Don 

Don K wrote:
> 
> It depends how much your time is worth to you vs.
> the likelihood of getting whatever you're after at
> a below-normal price.
> 
> One time I was going by anyway and arrived at Best Buy
> 5 minutes before 10AM. They opened at 10 so I drove on.
> 
> Don

Your answer has nothing to do with Black Friday. I think the
vast majority of people would be thrilled if they only had to
wait 5 minutes to get into BB when they open on BF. I have heard
that people show up 2+ hours ahead of time for the really hot
deals. Not me. And BB opens at 5am on BF, not 10am.

Bill

Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:

>I think the
>vast majority of people would be thrilled if they only had to
>wait 5 minutes to get into BB when they open on BF. I have heard
>that people show up 2+ hours ahead of time for the really hot
>deals. Not me. And BB opens at 5am on BF, not 10am.


Yep. Decided not to play the game this year after doing CompUSA's
pre-Thanksgiving sale at 6PM yesterday. Showed up an hour early, was the second
person waiting and figured since it wasn't advertised heavily, that the crowd
would be thin. 

Well, it was slightly thinner than a BF morning, but there were enough there.
They all decided to swarm around the door instead of lining up, and rushed the
door as it opened.

I managed to get two different items I was interested in, but saw people at the
register with armfuls of the non-rebate sale things. As much as I dislike
rebates, they do help control that kind of bingeing.

Tonight there was a SATA hard drive I was mildly interested in, but I decided my
time wasn't worth the 3 (three!!!) rebates it would take, as well as the crowds.

"Clark W. Griswold, Jr." wrote:
> 
> Tonight there was a SATA hard drive I was mildly interested in, but I decided my
> time wasn't worth the 3 (three!!!) rebates it would take, as well as the crowds.

Those triple rebate deals are evil. They should be illegal. You
KNOW the only reason they do it is to split the amount so at
least one of them (maybe more) is small enough so people don't
bother sending them in, or gives the company an extra chance to
reject one of them. I can live with two rebates on an item, you
can make the case that one is being paid by the manufacturer and
one by the retailer. But when the manufacturer has two rebates
on a single item, and the rebate program ids are consecutive,
you KNOW it was planned that way. The thing I find even more
amazing about them is that CompUSA started doing them shortly
after they had their wrists slapped by the FTC regarding
rebates. You would think they would want to do things that would
make life EASIER for customers, not HARDER.

I am generally very forgiving about rebates, but these triples
rebates (and yes, I have been stupid enough to do some, but I
will not anymore) just get me angry.

Oh, and he's a good one -- in today's CompUSA ad, they are
selling a CompUSA brand router. And there are STILL 3 rebates,
two manufacturer, one CompUSA. And I think one may only be for
$2. They've gotta KNOW that most people are not going to deal
with that. And who is the manufacturer if not CompUSA???

It's like the Dilbert cartoon where they are for some large
amount of information to be written in a tiny spot. It's
designed to cause the customer not to get their money.

Bill

Clark W. Griswold, Jr. wrote:
> Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:
> 
>> I think the
>> vast majority of people would be thrilled if they only had to
>> wait 5 minutes to get into BB when they open on BF. I have heard
>> that people show up 2+ hours ahead of time for the really hot
>> deals. Not me. And BB opens at 5am on BF, not 10am.
> 
> 
> Yep. Decided not to play the game this year after doing CompUSA's
> pre-Thanksgiving sale at 6PM yesterday. Showed up an hour early, was the second
> person waiting and figured since it wasn't advertised heavily, that the crowd
> would be thin. 

   My first full time job was in a large department store. At that time 
most stores opened at the regular Friday hours, in our case it was 10 
a.m. Employees arriving before opening generally just walked in the 
employee entrance. For that day we were told to have our ID in hand. 
Seemed shopper would wait for 4 or 5 employees to enter and try to blend 
in with them. Once inside they would walk around until the opening. In a 
7 story store it was not that hard to blend in once you had access. 
Other people assumed you worked there and sipping coffee in the employee 
cafeteria made it easy to hide.
> 
> Well, it was slightly thinner than a BF morning, but there were enough there.
> They all decided to swarm around the door instead of lining up, and rushed the
> door as it opened.
> 
> I managed to get two different items I was interested in, but saw people at the
> register with armfuls of the non-rebate sale things. As much as I dislike
> rebates, they do help control that kind of bingeing.
> 
> Tonight there was a SATA hard drive I was mildly interested in, but I decided my
> time wasn't worth the 3 (three!!!) rebates it would take, as well as the crowds.


-- 
   To reply via e-mail please delete 1 c from paccbell

Flarky wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
> were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
> I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
> I missed getting the main item I went there for.
> I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
> that any of you folks have shown up at this store
> or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
> people you saw there.
>

What does it matter what others did at their store. Won't help you one
bit.
Tip: If there were  200 in line at opening time last year, I'd suggest
you get there mucher earlier this year.

Flarky wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
> were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
> I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
> I missed getting the main item I went there for.
> I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
> that any of you folks have shown up at this store
> or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
> people you saw there.

Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd save
standing in line for hours?

Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:

>
>
>Don K wrote:
>> 
>> It depends how much your time is worth to you vs.
>> the likelihood of getting whatever you're after at
>> a below-normal price.
>> 
>> One time I was going by anyway and arrived at Best Buy
>> 5 minutes before 10AM. They opened at 10 so I drove on.
>> 
>> Don
>
>Your answer has nothing to do with Black Friday. I think the
>vast majority of people would be thrilled if they only had to
>wait 5 minutes to get into BB when they open on BF. I have heard
>that people show up 2+ hours ahead of time for the really hot
>deals. Not me. And BB opens at 5am on BF, not 10am.

I was at CompUSA this morning at 8:30 am. Of course, all the great
deals were long gone (I coveted a hard drive at $30), but I did still
get a PC game for a great price. Anyway, I talked to a guy there who
was looking at hard drives as well; he said he showed up at this store
at MIDNIGHT and there were already over 200 people in line!!! He
turned around and left. 

Now, temperatures here in the DC area were about 20 F overnight. How
desperate do you have to be to freeze your ass off for 6-7 hours ( I
would assume that people near the door showed up at 10-11pm) to save a
couple hundred dollars???

Andrew White <nospamers@allowed.at.all.net> writes:

>I was at CompUSA this morning at 8:30 am. Of course, all the great
>deals were long gone (I coveted a hard drive at $30), but I did still
>get a PC game for a great price. Anyway, I talked to a guy there who
>was looking at hard drives as well; he said he showed up at this store
>at MIDNIGHT and there were already over 200 people in line!!! He
>turned around and left. 

Since CompUSA opened at midnight, at least around here, of course the 
line would be long by midnight.  You would have had to show up probably by 
9 or 10 pm to get a good spot in line.

If CompUSA had a cheap notebook like Walmart and Best Buy, I would have 
been there by 9 or 10 pm.

Brian Elfert

"Bill" <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote in message 
news:4386A550.C7C6F901@prodigy.net...
>
>
> "Clark W. Griswold, Jr." wrote:
>>
>> Tonight there was a SATA hard drive I was mildly interested in, but I 
>> decided my
>> time wasn't worth the 3 (three!!!) rebates it would take, as well as the 
>> crowds.
>
> Those triple rebate deals are evil. They should be illegal. You
> KNOW the only reason they do it is to split the amount so at
> least one of them (maybe more) is small enough so people don't
> bother sending them in

I don't see how it's the retailer's fault the customer is lazy. 

> I was at CompUSA this morning at 8:30 am. Of course, all the great
> deals were long gone (I coveted a hard drive at $30), but I did still
> get a PC game for a great price. Anyway, I talked to a guy there who
> was looking at hard drives as well; he said he showed up at this store
> at MIDNIGHT and there were already over 200 people in line!!! He
> turned around and left.

Same thing here in Cincinnati ,Ohio early this morning. I showed up at 
Midnight and people were parking in the grass and in the isles blocking 
other cars. They only had 5 registers open and the lines where wrapped 
through out the building. It was chaotic. 

Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:

>You
>KNOW the only reason they do it is to split the amount so at
>least one of them (maybe more) is small enough so people don't
>bother sending them in, or gives the company an extra chance to
>reject one of them. I can live with two rebates on an item, you
>can make the case that one is being paid by the manufacturer and
>one by the retailer. But when the manufacturer has two rebates
>on a single item, and the rebate program ids are consecutive,
>you KNOW it was planned that way. The thing I find even more
>amazing about them is that CompUSA started doing them shortly
>after they had their wrists slapped by the FTC regarding
>rebates. You would think they would want to do things that would
>make life EASIER for customers, not HARDER.


The even stranger thing is that CompUSA announced a few months ago that they
would be phasing rebates out within a year as they were a large source of
customer dissatisfaction.

"thunder" <thunder@cinci.rr.com> writes:

>Same thing here in Cincinnati ,Ohio early this morning. I showed up at 
>Midnight and people were parking in the grass and in the isles blocking 
>other cars. They only had 5 registers open and the lines where wrapped 
>through out the building. It was chaotic. 

Your CompUSA has more than 5 registers?  I'm pretty sure the local one 
doesn't have more than five.

Brian Elfert

>Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than >you'd save standing in line for hours?

Why don't you lighten up, jagoff....

Most people I know get the entire Thanksgiving weekend off.

Maybe they are working.... some of the deals they waited in line for,
they can sell it on ebay for a heck of a lot more than what they
would've made working a full day. For example: people who waited over
10 hours for an Xbox 360 are reselling them for $1000, at $700 profit.
Not even you make that much in a day.

Brian Elfert <belfert@visi.com> wrote:

>Andrew White <nospamers@allowed.at.all.net> writes:
>
>>I was at CompUSA this morning at 8:30 am. Of course, all the great
>>deals were long gone (I coveted a hard drive at $30), but I did still
>>get a PC game for a great price. Anyway, I talked to a guy there who
>>was looking at hard drives as well; he said he showed up at this store
>>at MIDNIGHT and there were already over 200 people in line!!! He
>>turned around and left. 
>
>Since CompUSA opened at midnight, at least around here, of course the 
>line would be long by midnight.  You would have had to show up probably by 
>9 or 10 pm to get a good spot in line.

Now it makes some sense! I was under the impression that the store
opened at 5 am.

Larry Bud wrote:
> Flarky wrote:
> > Hi all,
> >
> > A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
> > were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
> > I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
> > I missed getting the main item I went there for.
> > I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
> > that any of you folks have shown up at this store
> > or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
> > people you saw there.
>
> Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd save
> standing in line for hours?

Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, not
rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waiting
for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale.
Too cold last nite, didn't go.

On Fri, 25 Nov 2005 16:02:17 GMT, "Bill 2" <asdf@asdf.asdf> wrote:

>>> Tonight there was a SATA hard drive I was mildly interested in, but I 
>>> decided my
>>> time wasn't worth the 3 (three!!!) rebates it would take, as well as the 
>>> crowds.
>>
>> Those triple rebate deals are evil. They should be illegal. You
>> KNOW the only reason they do it is to split the amount so at
>> least one of them (maybe more) is small enough so people don't
>> bother sending them in
>
>I don't see how it's the retailer's fault the customer is lazy. 

It's not the retailers' fault; they are, however, counting on that
laziness.

Why "Black Friday"?  Why not "Green" instead?  This is when they rake
in the cabbage.  


W : )

In article <1132948468.303934.79190@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
Wordsmith <wordsmith@rocketmail.com> wrote:
>Why "Black Friday"?  Why not "Green" instead?  This is when they rake
>in the cabbage.  

"Black" because the sales starting on black friday will (hopefully) put
the business in the black for the year.

-- 
Rich Greenberg Marietta, GA, USA richgr atsign panix.com    + 1 770 321 6507
Eastern time.  N6LRT  I speak for myself & my dogs only.   VM'er since CP-67
Canines:Val, Red & Shasta (RIP),Red, husky                   Owner:Chinook-L
Atlanta Siberian Husky Rescue. www.panix.com/~richgr/  Asst Owner:Sibernet-L

"Clark W. Griswold, Jr." wrote:
> 
> The even stranger thing is that CompUSA announced a few months ago that they
> would be phasing rebates out within a year as they were a large source of
> customer dissatisfaction.

I thought that was Best Buy who announced that??

Bill

Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:

>I thought that was Best Buy who announced that??

My mistake. Came across this article though. Very good:

<http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/nov2005/nf20051123_4158_db016.htm>

The Great Rebate Runaround
Consumers hate the hassles and hoops. Companies love them unredeemed. Now
regulators are wading in


Ah, the holiday shopping season: Santa Claus, reindeer -- and rebate hell. Those
annoying mail-in offers are everywhere these days. Shoppers hate collecting all
the paperwork, filling out the forms, and mailing it all in to claim their $10
or $100. But no matter how annoying rebates are for consumers, the country's
retailers and manufacturers love them.


From PC powerhouse Dell (DELL ) to national chains Circuit City (CC ) and
OfficeMax (OMX ) to the Listerine mouthwash sold at Rite Aid (RAD) drugstores,
rebates are proliferating. Nearly one-third of all computer gear is now sold
with some form of rebate, along with more than 20% of digital cameras,
camcorders, and LCD TVs, says market researcher NPD Group.

Hal Stinchfield, a 30-year veteran of the rebate business, calculates that some
400 million rebates are offered each year. Their total face value: $6 billion,
he estimates. Office-products retailer Staples (SPLS ) says it and its vendors
alone pay $3.5 million in rebates each week.

TAX ON THE DISORGANIZED.  Why the rage for rebates? The industry's open secret
is that fully 40% of all rebates never get redeemed because consumers fail to
apply for them or their applications are rejected, estimates Peter S. Kastner, a
director of consulting firm Vericours. That translates into more than $2 billion
of extra revenue for retailers and their suppliers each year. What rebates do is
get consumers to focus on the discounted price of a product, then buy it at full
price. 

<more>

"Scott en Aztl�n" wrote:
> 
> On Fri, 25 Nov 2005 16:02:17 GMT, "Bill 2" <asdf@asdf.asdf> wrote:
> 
> >>> Tonight there was a SATA hard drive I was mildly interested in, but I
> >>> decided my
> >>> time wasn't worth the 3 (three!!!) rebates it would take, as well as the
> >>> crowds.
> >>
> >> Those triple rebate deals are evil. They should be illegal. You
> >> KNOW the only reason they do it is to split the amount so at
> >> least one of them (maybe more) is small enough so people don't
> >> bother sending them in
> >
> >I don't see how it's the retailer's fault the customer is lazy.
> 
> It's not the retailers' fault; they are, however, counting on that
> laziness.

I think that having 3 rebates on a single item, where two of the
rebates are being paid by the manufacturer and the rebate
program numbers are sequential, is a blatant attempt to cause
the customer to fail to get their rebate. You certainly know
that I am a big fan of rebates -- I will have over $1000 rebates
to submit from my purchases this weekend alone. But when you see
three rebates on a single item, two of which have sequential
offer numbers being paid by the manufacturer, you KNOW that the
reason is to make each individual rebate smaller to increase the
odds that the customer will not bother doing one of them (or
maybe both), or to help them to reject one. And when there is
only one retailer who seems to be doing this, you have to figure
that they are directly responsible for doing it. 

If you say that rebates are a gamble (which I generally do not
agree with), then this is like stacking the deck. It's not about
lazy. There is no real justification for that third rebate. And
it's just so OBVIOUS why they are doing it.

Bill

Andrew White wrote:
> Brian Elfert <belfert@visi.com> wrote:
> 
> 
>>Andrew White <nospamers@allowed.at.all.net> writes:
>>
>>
>>>I was at CompUSA this morning at 8:30 am. Of course, all the great
>>>deals were long gone (I coveted a hard drive at $30), but I did still
>>>get a PC game for a great price. Anyway, I talked to a guy there who
>>>was looking at hard drives as well; he said he showed up at this store
>>>at MIDNIGHT and there were already over 200 people in line!!! He
>>>turned around and left. 
>>
>>Since CompUSA opened at midnight, at least around here, of course the 
>>line would be long by midnight.  You would have had to show up probably by 
>>9 or 10 pm to get a good spot in line.
> 
> 
> Now it makes some sense! I was under the impression that the store
> opened at 5 am.

I thought it was kind of a clever move on CompUSA's part, since techies 
tend to be night rather than morning people.  (At least that's the 
stereotype, and I think there's something to it).  But I didn't want 
anything enough to go this year.

Last year was the only year I've participated in "black friday" and it 
seems like it was about springtime before I was done getting rebates. 
It was kind of a jovial atmosphere in line and I met a couple nice 
people, but the dash and grab at opening time was distasteful.

Bill wrote:
> "Scott en Aztl�n" wrote:
> 
>>On Fri, 25 Nov 2005 16:02:17 GMT, "Bill 2" <asdf@asdf.asdf> wrote:
>>
>>
>>>>>Tonight there was a SATA hard drive I was mildly interested in, but I
>>>>>decided my
>>>>>time wasn't worth the 3 (three!!!) rebates it would take, as well as the
>>>>>crowds.
>>>>
>>>>Those triple rebate deals are evil. They should be illegal. You
>>>>KNOW the only reason they do it is to split the amount so at
>>>>least one of them (maybe more) is small enough so people don't
>>>>bother sending them in
>>>
>>>I don't see how it's the retailer's fault the customer is lazy.
>>
>>It's not the retailers' fault; they are, however, counting on that
>>laziness.
> 
> 
> I think that having 3 rebates on a single item, where two of the
> rebates are being paid by the manufacturer and the rebate
> program numbers are sequential, is a blatant attempt to cause
> the customer to fail to get their rebate. 

What annoys me is when the rebates are incompatible, e.g. both rebates 
for the same item demand the original UPC.  You show a clerk and they 
say, "just send them in, I'll bet they'll still do it" and you think, 
"yeah, right.  What if they don't?"

Another thing I don't like is "1 rebate per customer" when you can't 
tell what they mean... is it one rebate per item, or for everything on 
this table, or on this page of the flyer, or the whole store or what?

Sometimes the terminology on the reabates is inconsistent.  They request 
a "packing list" but the package only contained a "shipping receipt" or 
somesuch.  Or the packaging has 5 different bar codes scattered on it 
and you don't know which to cut out.   Vonage asked for my "account 
number," so I gave my vonage phone number, well it was denied because 
they wanted some other oddball number I'd never heard about.  They could 
have just looked it up from my phone number but hey, why bother I guess.

Then there was the time my envelope got shredded by the postal service 
and lost the original UPC need to claim the rebate.  It was a big 
rebate, a hard drive I think.

I would LOVE to see the fulfillment rates on rebates.

timeOday wrote:

> What annoys me is when the rebates are incompatible, e.g. both rebates 
> for the same item demand the original UPC.  You show a clerk and they 
> say, "just send them in, I'll bet they'll still do it" and you think, 
> "yeah, right.  What if they don't?"

In general, I find that in cases like that, I have misread the
rebate form and one of them either takes a copy of the UPC, or
uses something else. As an example, Symantec rebates will take
either the UPC or the proof of purchase tab on the box. The
upgrade rebates usually ask for the POP but most novices will
misread that as the UPC and claim that the rebate is not valid.
The general rule of thumb is that the store rebate gets the UPC
copy.

> Another thing I don't like is "1 rebate per customer" when you can't
> tell what they mean... is it one rebate per item, or for everything on
> this table, or on this page of the flyer, or the whole store or what?

It's almost always one per item. Circuit City does some nasty
stuff in that area -- they will advertise multiple items (router
and network cards, for example) and their rebate will limit you
to a single item, even though the manufacturer's rebate allows
multiples of each item!

> Sometimes the terminology on the reabates is inconsistent.  They request 
> a "packing list" but the package only contained a "shipping receipt" or 
> somesuch.  Or the packaging has 5 different bar codes scattered on it 
> and you don't know which to cut out.   Vonage asked for my "account 
> number," so I gave my vonage phone number, well it was denied because 
> they wanted some other oddball number I'd never heard about.  They could 
> have just looked it up from my phone number but hey, why bother I guess.

When in doubt, call the number on the rebate form before sending
it in. I find for online orders, printing the online receipt is
the best bet.

And I hope to called and got Vonage to honor that rebate.

Bill

In article <1132946338.344522.226590@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
 "Jon von Leipzig@myway.com" <JonLeipzig@myway.com> wrote:

> Larry Bud wrote:
> > Flarky wrote:
> > > Hi all,
> > >
> > > A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
> > > were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
> > > I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
> > > I missed getting the main item I went there for.
> > > I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
> > > that any of you folks have shown up at this store
> > > or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
> > > people you saw there.
> >
> > Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd save
> > standing in line for hours?
> 
> Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, not
> rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waiting
> for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale.
> Too cold last nite, didn't go.

Feh! I would be surprised if I couldn't find the same laptop for sale 
online for a lower price. Some friends and I went out shopping at around 
5:00am on Black Friday. We went to a Best Buy somewhere in Montogery 
County, PA. The lines were absolutely insane. The line snaked around the 
entire store all the way along the rare wall.

I saw some good deals, but nothing that would have motivated me to wait 
in line that long. The prices on flat screen TVs were impressive, but I 
am sure I can find equally good values by shopping online.

After we roamed around Best Buy for about half an hour, we went to a 
nearby Toys R Us. The crowd in that store was also very heavy, but for 
some reason, the line at the registered looked like it was moving fast. 
I ended up spending around $40 there on some cool toys to give to the 
kids in my family. I only waited in line about ten minutes. A friend who 
wanted to buy a Gameboy for one of his kids had to wait longer in the 
electronics section. While I was waiting, I had a great time trying out 
the new Xbox360. After that, the four of us ended up at a nearby 
restaurant to eat breakfast.

It turned out to be a good day, but very tiring. I would not do that 
again though. Anyone who wants to get good bargains is crazy for waiting 
hours in those long lines when its easy to find so much stuff at lower 
prices online.

Shawn Hirn <srhi@comcast.net> wrote:

>In article <1132946338.344522.226590@g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
> "Jon von Leipzig@myway.com" <JonLeipzig@myway.com> wrote:
>
>> Larry Bud wrote:
>> > Flarky wrote:
>> > > Hi all,
>> > >
>> > > A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
>> > > were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
>> > > I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
>> > > I missed getting the main item I went there for.
>> > > I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
>> > > that any of you folks have shown up at this store
>> > > or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
>> > > people you saw there.
>> >
>> > Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd save
>> > standing in line for hours?
>> 
>> Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, not
>> rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waiting
>> for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale.
>> Too cold last nite, didn't go.
>
>Feh! I would be surprised if I couldn't find the same laptop for sale 
>online for a lower price.

Then prepare to be surprised a lot! Go ahead and find any Toshiba
laptop anywhere online for that price. Or a 200 Gb hard drive for $29.
Or a dual-layer DVD burner for $19. Or a 1Gb Secure Digital card for
$29. That's just a small sample of deep loss leaders that stores like
Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, Staples an a handful or others had on
this Black Friday. 

You CANNOT find deals like that elswhere; not even close. That's why
people stand in line for hours to get them. The stores loose a bunch
of money on these items, but more than make it up on others,
especially given the fact that the supplies for such items is always
extremelly limited.

Andrew White wrote:

> Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:
> 
>>
>>
>>Don K wrote:
>>> 
>>> It depends how much your time is worth to you vs.
>>> the likelihood of getting whatever you're after at
>>> a below-normal price.
>>> 
>>> One time I was going by anyway and arrived at Best Buy
>>> 5 minutes before 10AM. They opened at 10 so I drove on.
>>> 
>>> Don
>>
>>Your answer has nothing to do with Black Friday. I think the
>>vast majority of people would be thrilled if they only had to
>>wait 5 minutes to get into BB when they open on BF. I have heard
>>that people show up 2+ hours ahead of time for the really hot
>>deals. Not me. And BB opens at 5am on BF, not 10am.
> 
> I was at CompUSA this morning at 8:30 am. Of course, all the great
> deals were long gone (I coveted a hard drive at $30), but I did still
> get a PC game for a great price. Anyway, I talked to a guy there who
> was looking at hard drives as well; he said he showed up at this store
> at MIDNIGHT and there were already over 200 people in line!!! He
> turned around and left. 

Our CompUSA opened at midnight this time, which might explain the apparent 
insanity.  I lined up early at CompUSA last year (5:00 am, maybe), bringing a 
thermos of cocoa and a book.  At some point a couple of employees walked down 
the line asking who wanted the 50G drive for $50, etc. and handing out slips 
of paper.  Excellent idea.  There must have been bloody battles the year before.

> Now, temperatures here in the DC area were about 20 F overnight. How
> desperate do you have to be to freeze your ass off for 6-7 hours ( I
> would assume that people near the door showed up at 10-11pm) to save a
> couple hundred dollars???

Just depends on how much you want the stuff.  They might not have had to wait 
as long as you thought.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
______________________________________________________
"Parasites plus suckers do not add up to a community."
                                     -- Thomas Sowell

Rich Greenberg wrote:

> In article <1132948468.303934.79190@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
> Wordsmith <wordsmith@rocketmail.com> wrote:
>>Why "Black Friday"?  Why not "Green" instead?  This is when they rake
>>in the cabbage.  
> 
> "Black" because the sales starting on black friday will (hopefully) put
> the business in the black for the year.

Can we assume that the tremendous bargains are loss leaders designed to lure 
customers into the store to buy profitable items?  How many people actually do 
that?  On BF we get in, get the good stuff, get out, go on to the next place. 
  Who actually shops for regular-price stuff in the middle of all those long 
lines of bargain-crazed loons?

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
______________________________________________________
"Parasites plus suckers do not add up to a community."
                                     -- Thomas Sowell

Bill wrote:

> If you say that rebates are a gamble (which I generally do not
> agree with), then this is like stacking the deck. It's not about
> lazy. There is no real justification for that third rebate. And
> it's just so OBVIOUS why they are doing it.

I bought some stuff a month ago that, along with a different rebate form, 
required you to fill in your name and address twice on the same piece of paper.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
______________________________________________________
"Parasites plus suckers do not add up to a community."
                                     -- Thomas Sowell

Tush Smells Bush Kills!!!!!!!!!!! wrote:
> >Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than >you'd save standing in line for hours?
>
> Why don't you lighten up, jagoff....

LOL!  Take your own advice!

> Most people I know get the entire Thanksgiving weekend off.
>
> Maybe they are working.... some of the deals they waited in line for,
> they can sell it on ebay for a heck of a lot more than what they
> would've made working a full day. For example: people who waited over
> 10 hours for an Xbox 360 are reselling them for $1000, at $700 profit.

With, of course, no guarantee they're going to get one.

> Not even you make that much in a day.

Maybe, maybe not.  I guess my time is more valuable to me than the
lemmings standing in line for 10 hours.   Those same people will come
back and complain how they don't have time to do anything and that they
are over worked!

The Real Bev wrote:
> Rich Greenberg wrote:
>
> > In article <1132948468.303934.79190@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>,
> > Wordsmith <wordsmith@rocketmail.com> wrote:
> >>Why "Black Friday"?  Why not "Green" instead?  This is when they rake
> >>in the cabbage.
> >
> > "Black" because the sales starting on black friday will (hopefully) put
> > the business in the black for the year.
>
> Can we assume that the tremendous bargains are loss leaders designed to lure
> customers into the store to buy profitable items?  How many people actually do
> that?  On BF we get in, get the good stuff, get out, go on to the next place.
>   Who actually shops for regular-price stuff in the middle of all those long
> lines of bargain-crazed loons?

I'm sure there are a bunch of people who buy the $20 DVD player, and
$100 on regularly priced movies.

Shawn Hirn wrote:
>  "Jon von Leipzig@myway.com"
>
> > Larry Bud wrote:
> > > Flarky wrote:

> > > Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd save
> > > standing in line for hours?
> >
> > Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, not
> > rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waiting
> > for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale.
> > Too cold last nite, didn't go.
>
> Feh! I would be surprised if I couldn't find the same laptop for sale
> online for a lower price. Some friends and I went out shopping at around
> 5:00am on Black Friday. We went to a Best Buy somewhere in Montogery
> County, PA. The lines were absolutely insane. The line snaked around the
> entire store all the way along the rare wall.

Camelfeathers!!   I guarantee you'll not find a brand new Toshiba at
anywhere near that
discounted BB price.

I looked for PC parts/periphs online last Xmas.  Couldn't find prices
lower than in-store (after rebate)

Tomorrow's your big day. It's been dubbed "Cyber Monday" the biggest
day for online buying.  Please let us know if you find any  (new) $400
laptops, anywhere.

Shawn Hirn wrote
> "Jon von Leipzig@myway.com
>
> Larry Bud wrote
> Flarky wrote
>
> Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'
sav
> standing in line for hours
>
> Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, no
> rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waitin
> for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale
> Too cold last nite, didn't go
>
> Feh! I would be surprised if I couldn't find the same laptop fo
sal
> online for a lower price. Some friends and I went out shopping a
aroun
> 5:00am on Black Friday. We went to a Best Buy somewhere in Montoger
> County, PA. The lines were absolutely insane. The line snaked aroun
th
> entire store all the way along the rare wall
>
Camelfeathers!!   I guarantee you'll not find a brand new Toshiba a
anywhere near tha
discounted BB price

I looked for PC parts/periphs online last Xmas.  Couldn't find price
lower than in-store (after rebate

Tomorrow's your big day. It's been dubbed "Cyber Monday" the bigges
day for online buying.  Please let us know if you find any  (new) $40
laptops, anywhere

The Real Bev wrote:
> 
> Can we assume that the tremendous bargains are loss leaders designed to lure
> customers into the store to buy profitable items?  How many people actually do
> that?  On BF we get in, get the good stuff, get out, go on to the next place.
>   Who actually shops for regular-price stuff in the middle of all those long
> lines of bargain-crazed loons?

While that may be true of many of us HERE, I can assure you that
many of the people who rush into Walmart on BF walk out with a
cart full of stuff, not all of which is a loss-leader. And at
Circuit City the other day, I was in back of a woman who spent
over $500 (in cash!) and absolutely no rebates printed out,
which led me to believe she did not buy any of the really great
deals.

Bill

There's a Dell laptop available online right now for $399.00 after rebate.
Has been for a couple of days.

What you probably won't find is an $800.00 laptop selling for $199.00, like
the ones that were fought over at Wal-Mart's across the land on Friday.

You will find those laptops on ebay right now...

John E.

"Jon von Leipzig@myway.com" <JonLeipzig@myway.com> wrote in message
news:1133099343.201812.151690@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com...
>
> Shawn Hirn wrote:
> >  "Jon von Leipzig@myway.com"
> >
> > > Larry Bud wrote:
> > > > Flarky wrote:
>
> > > > Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd
save
> > > > standing in line for hours?
> > >
> > > Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, not
> > > rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waiting
> > > for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale.
> > > Too cold last nite, didn't go.
> >
> > Feh! I would be surprised if I couldn't find the same laptop for sale
> > online for a lower price. Some friends and I went out shopping at around
> > 5:00am on Black Friday. We went to a Best Buy somewhere in Montogery
> > County, PA. The lines were absolutely insane. The line snaked around the
> > entire store all the way along the rare wall.
>
> Camelfeathers!!   I guarantee you'll not find a brand new Toshiba at
> anywhere near that
> discounted BB price.
>
> I looked for PC parts/periphs online last Xmas.  Couldn't find prices
> lower than in-store (after rebate)
>
> Tomorrow's your big day. It's been dubbed "Cyber Monday" the biggest
> day for online buying.  Please let us know if you find any  (new) $400
> laptops, anywhere.
>

Bill wrote:

> The Real Bev wrote:
>> 
>> Can we assume that the tremendous bargains are loss leaders designed to lure
>> customers into the store to buy profitable items?  How many people actually do
>> that?  On BF we get in, get the good stuff, get out, go on to the next place.
>> Who actually shops for regular-price stuff in the middle of all those long
>> lines of bargain-crazed loons?
> 
> While that may be true of many of us HERE, I can assure you that
> many of the people who rush into Walmart on BF walk out with a
> cart full of stuff, not all of which is a loss-leader. And at
> Circuit City the other day, I was in back of a woman who spent
> over $500 (in cash!) and absolutely no rebates printed out,
> which led me to believe she did not buy any of the really great
> deals.

FSM bless these people, for their sacrifices make the bargains possible for 
the rest of us.  They are kin to those public-spirited citizens who sacrifice 
themselves by attracting the attention of ticket-writing law enforcement while 
the rest of us continue on at our customary speeds.

-- 
Cheers, Bev
==================================================================
"Don't sweat it -- it's not real life. It's only ones and zeroes."
                                                   -- spaf (1988?)

John Emmons wrote:

> There's a Dell laptop available online right now for $399.00 after rebate.
> Has been for a couple of days.
> 
> What you probably won't find is an $800.00 laptop selling for $199.00, like
> the ones that were fought over at Wal-Mart's across the land on Friday.

A friend managed to snag one of the $100 Linspire machines at Fry's -- the 
ones that are normally about double that price.  He's happily customizing them 
with Slackware for his children, hoping to lure them to the One True Path.

-- 
Cheers, Bev
==================================================================
"Don't sweat it -- it's not real life. It's only ones and zeroes."
                                                   -- spaf (1988?)

Andrew White wrote:
> Then prepare to be surprised a lot! Go ahead and find any Toshiba
> laptop anywhere online for that price. Or a 200 Gb hard drive for $29.
> Or a dual-layer DVD burner for $19. Or a 1Gb Secure Digital card for
> $29. That's just a small sample of deep loss leaders that stores like
> Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, Staples an a handful or others had on
> this Black Friday. 
> 
> You CANNOT find deals like that elswhere; not even close. That's why
> people stand in line for hours to get them. The stores loose a bunch
> of money on these items, but more than make it up on others,
> especially given the fact that the supplies for such items is always
> extremelly limited.

so unless youre among the first 20 or so, youre basically wasting your time.

SoCalMike wrote:

> Andrew White wrote:
>> Then prepare to be surprised a lot! Go ahead and find any Toshiba
>> laptop anywhere online for that price. Or a 200 Gb hard drive for $29.
>> Or a dual-layer DVD burner for $19. Or a 1Gb Secure Digital card for
>> $29. That's just a small sample of deep loss leaders that stores like
>> Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, Staples an a handful or others had on
>> this Black Friday. 
>> 
>> You CANNOT find deals like that elswhere; not even close. That's why
>> people stand in line for hours to get them. The stores loose a bunch
>> of money on these items, but more than make it up on others,
>> especially given the fact that the supplies for such items is always
>> extremelly limited.
> 
> so unless youre among the first 20 or so, youre basically wasting your time.

Not necessarily.  Sometimes the ad says how many each store will have, 
sometimes not.  Then you have to decide how many of your fellow geeks will 
want the item that you want.  Factor in what the other stores have and how 
many will want that stuff too.  Then flip a coin, fill your thermos, pull up 
your socks and get on with it.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Sign on restroom hand-dryer:
	"Push button for a message from your congressman."

In article <6u-dnU2FAari5xfenZ2dnUVZ_tKdnZ2d@comcast.com>, 
Mikein562athotmail@hotmail.com says...
> Andrew White wrote:
> > Then prepare to be surprised a lot! Go ahead and find any Toshiba
> > laptop anywhere online for that price. Or a 200 Gb hard drive for $29.
> > Or a dual-layer DVD burner for $19. Or a 1Gb Secure Digital card for
> > $29. That's just a small sample of deep loss leaders that stores like
> > Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, Staples an a handful or others had on
> > this Black Friday. 
> > 
> > You CANNOT find deals like that elswhere; not even close. That's why
> > people stand in line for hours to get them. The stores loose a bunch
> > of money on these items, but more than make it up on others,
> > especially given the fact that the supplies for such items is always
> > extremelly limited.
> 
> so unless youre among the first 20 or so, youre basically wasting your time.
> 
I showed up at the local Staples at 8:30 or so.  They still had 
piles of the $29 disk drives, $19 DVD burners, and $3/50 DVD+R 
blanks (snagged one of each).  I missed the USB sticks. :-(

-- 
  Keith

Keith Williams <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:

>In article <6u-dnU2FAari5xfenZ2dnUVZ_tKdnZ2d@comcast.com>, 
>Mikein562athotmail@hotmail.com says...
>> Andrew White wrote:
>> > Then prepare to be surprised a lot! Go ahead and find any Toshiba
>> > laptop anywhere online for that price. Or a 200 Gb hard drive for $29.
>> > Or a dual-layer DVD burner for $19. Or a 1Gb Secure Digital card for
>> > $29. That's just a small sample of deep loss leaders that stores like
>> > Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, Staples an a handful or others had on
>> > this Black Friday. 
>> > 
>> > You CANNOT find deals like that elswhere; not even close. That's why
>> > people stand in line for hours to get them. The stores loose a bunch
>> > of money on these items, but more than make it up on others,
>> > especially given the fact that the supplies for such items is always
>> > extremelly limited.
>> 
>> so unless youre among the first 20 or so, youre basically wasting your time.
>> 
>I showed up at the local Staples at 8:30 or so.  They still had 
>piles of the $29 disk drives, $19 DVD burners, and $3/50 DVD+R 
>blanks (snagged one of each).  I missed the USB sticks. :-(

Damn! I was at the local one at 8 am and there were none! It sucks to
live in one of the most geek-heavy areas in the US - Northern
Virginia. 

On Thu, 24 Nov 2005 13:54:42 -0500, Flarky
<qwerty@1234567890abcdef.org> wrote:

>Hi all,
>
>A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
>were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
>I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
>I missed getting the main item I went there for.
>I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
>that any of you folks have shown up at this store
>or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
>people you saw there.
>
>Thanks.

The best time to show up is 10 minutes after they close.  That way
they wont steal your money.
Best Buy is one of the crookedest companies around. Boycott them

*Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *

slivver@fartolean.com wrote:

>On Thu, 24 Nov 2005 13:54:42 -0500, Flarky
><qwerty@1234567890abcdef.org> wrote:
>
>>Hi all,
>>
>>A year ago I showed up at 5am at Best Buy and there
>>were already over 200 people in the line. Nevertheless
>>I got a great deal on an item I was seeking. However
>>I missed getting the main item I went there for.
>>I'm curious to know what's the earliest time
>>that any of you folks have shown up at this store
>>or any other on Black Friday morning and how many
>>people you saw there.
>>
>>Thanks.
>
>The best time to show up is 10 minutes after they close.  That way
>they wont steal your money.
>Best Buy is one of the crookedest companies around. Boycott them
>
>*Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *

I'm curious: do you really believe that statements like these can
persuade or even just nudge someone towards boycotting Best Buy?

"Jon von Leipzig@myway.com" <JonLeipzig@myway.com> writes:


>Tomorrow's your big day. It's been dubbed "Cyber Monday" the biggest
>day for online buying.  Please let us know if you find any  (new) $400
>laptops, anywhere.

Microcenter has a Winbook laptop/notebook PC for $459.99 after two $100 
rebates.  You can buy online at www.microcenter.com.

If you are lucky enough to live near a Microcenter, you can get another 
$100 off by applying for the Microcenter Visa and using it for your 
purchase.

Brian Elfert

The Real Bev <bashley@myrealbox.com> writes:

>Not necessarily.  Sometimes the ad says how many each store will have, 
>sometimes not.  Then you have to decide how many of your fellow geeks will 
>want the item that you want.  Factor in what the other stores have and how 
>many will want that stuff too.  Then flip a coin, fill your thermos, pull up 
>your socks and get on with it.

Walmart didn't list a minimum quantity for their notebook.  I have heard 
reports of Walmart stores having anywhere from 15 to 70 notebooks 
depending on the store.

I don't know if Walmart parceled them out based on store sales or what.

Brian Elfert

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 06:08:55 GMT, Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:

>There is no real justification for that third rebate. And
>it's just so OBVIOUS why they are doing it.

And yet you continue to play right along with the game, like a good
little sheep.

On 27 Nov 2005 05:49:03 -0800, "Jon von Leipzig@myway.com"
<JonLeipzig@myway.com> wrote:

>> > > Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd save
>> > > standing in line for hours?
>> >
>> > Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, not
>> > rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waiting
>> > for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale.
>> > Too cold last nite, didn't go.
>>
>> Feh! I would be surprised if I couldn't find the same laptop for sale
>> online for a lower price. Some friends and I went out shopping at around
>> 5:00am on Black Friday. We went to a Best Buy somewhere in Montogery
>> County, PA. The lines were absolutely insane. The line snaked around the
>> entire store all the way along the rare wall.
>
>Camelfeathers!!   I guarantee you'll not find a brand new Toshiba at
>anywhere near that discounted BB price.

And yet Best Buy openly DESPISES the people who buy their loss
leaders, and is actively trying to discourage them from shopping at
their stores.

On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 07:26:57 -0800, Scott en Aztl�n
<scottenaztlan@yahooNOSPAM.com> wrote:

>On 27 Nov 2005 05:49:03 -0800, "Jon von Leipzig@myway.com"
><JonLeipzig@myway.com> wrote:
>
>>> > > Why don't you go to work instead, and earn more money than you'd save
>>> > > standing in line for hours?
>>> >
>>> > Not necessarily.  BB here had a Toshiba laptop on sale (instant, not
>>> > rebates) for $370 less than original price. Wudda been worth waiting
>>> > for, if one thot that $700+ was a fair price b4 the sale.
>>> > Too cold last nite, didn't go.
>>>
>>> Feh! I would be surprised if I couldn't find the same laptop for sale
>>> online for a lower price. Some friends and I went out shopping at around
>>> 5:00am on Black Friday. We went to a Best Buy somewhere in Montogery
>>> County, PA. The lines were absolutely insane. The line snaked around the
>>> entire store all the way along the rare wall.
>>
>>Camelfeathers!!   I guarantee you'll not find a brand new Toshiba at
>>anywhere near that discounted BB price.
>
>And yet Best Buy openly DESPISES the people who buy their loss
>leaders, and is actively trying to discourage them from shopping at
>their stores.


Nope - it's just you.

slivver@fartolean.com wrote:

> The best time to show up is 10 minutes after they close.  That way
> they wont steal your money.
> Best Buy is one of the crookedest companies around. Boycott them
> 
> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *

OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after I mailed 
the forms.

-- 
Cheers, Bev
=================================================================
"A stupid person is a person who causes losses to another person
  or to a group of persons while himself deriving no gain and even
  possibly incurring losses."                       -- C.M.Cipolla

"Scott en Aztl�n" wrote:
> 
> On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 06:08:55 GMT, Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:
> 
> >There is no real justification for that third rebate. And
> >it's just so OBVIOUS why they are doing it.
> 
> And yet you continue to play right along with the game, like a good
> little sheep.

Actually, I now refuse to buy anything with 3 rebates.

Bill

On Wed, 30 Nov 2005 01:58:03 GMT, Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:

>> >There is no real justification for that third rebate. And
>> >it's just so OBVIOUS why they are doing it.
>> 
>> And yet you continue to play right along with the game, like a good
>> little sheep.
>
>Actually, I now refuse to buy anything with 3 rebates.

That's certainly a positive step.

On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 12:05:30 -0800, The Real Bev
<bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>slivver@fartolean.com wrote:
>
>> The best time to show up is 10 minutes after they close.  That way
>> they wont steal your money.
>> Best Buy is one of the crookedest companies around. Boycott them
>> 
>> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *
>
>OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after I mailed 
>the forms.

Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.

Scott en Aztl�n wrote:

> On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 12:05:30 -0800, The Real Bev
> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
>>slivver@fartolean.com wrote:
>>
>>> The best time to show up is 10 minutes after they close.  That way
>>> they wont steal your money.
>>> Best Buy is one of the crookedest companies around. Boycott them
>>> 
>>> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *
>>
>>OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after I mailed 
>>the forms.
> 
> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.

You're way too cynical.  Yeah, I hate filling in the forms and doing the 
xeroxing and sorting and crap, but nobody else is going to pay me a couple 
$hundred an hour for my time.

Repeat, for the benefit of the newbies among us:  The only rebate I've ever 
gotten screwed out of was for a $4 power strip, and I just let it slip.  If 
I'd called before the company went belly up they probably would have sent me a 
check just because I'm such a nice person.

-- 
Cheers, Bev
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"I'm sorry I ever invented the Electoral College."
                                 Al Gore 11/08/00

The Real Bev <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>Scott en Aztl�n wrote:
>
>> On Tue, 29 Nov 2005 12:05:30 -0800, The Real Bev
>> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
>> 
>>>slivver@fartolean.com wrote:
>>>
>>>> The best time to show up is 10 minutes after they close.  That way
>>>> they wont steal your money.
>>>> Best Buy is one of the crookedest companies around. Boycott them
>>>> 
>>>> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *
>>>
>>>OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after I mailed 
>>>the forms.
>> 
>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
>
>You're way too cynical.

No, he's just an idiot, and you keep on feeding this dumb troll.
Follow my suit and put him in your kill file. Life will be so much
better!

On Fri, 02 Dec 2005 20:00:35 -0800, The Real Bev
<bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>>>> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *
>>>
>>>OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after I mailed 
>>>the forms.
>> 
>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
>
>You're way too cynical.  Yeah, I hate filling in the forms and doing the 
>xeroxing and sorting and crap, but nobody else is going to pay me a couple 
>$hundred an hour for my time.

C'mon, Bev - you're smarter than that.

NOBODY is paying you $hundreds/hour for your time. All they are doing
is jacking up the sales price by $X, then making you jump through
hoops to get your $X back. 

Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour for
filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
refund).

Andrew White wrote:

> The Real Bev <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
>>Scott en Aztl�n wrote:
>>
>>> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
>>> 
>>>>slivver@fartolean.com wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> The best time to show up is 10 minutes after they close.  That way
>>>>> they wont steal your money.
>>>>> Best Buy is one of the crookedest companies around. Boycott them
>>>>> 
>>>>> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *
>>>>
>>>>OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after I mailed 
>>>>the forms.
>>> 
>>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
>>
>>You're way too cynical.
> 
> No, he's just an idiot, and you keep on feeding this dumb troll.
> Follow my suit and put him in your kill file. Life will be so much
> better!

Who, Scott?  He's not an idiot, just has strong opinions about rebates.  I 
hate them too, but it pays me more than anybody else will!  I like Best Buy 
and he doesn't. Big deal.

And he drives a 'Vette!

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
=================================================================
"There's an apocryphal (I hope not !) story about a Bristol bike
thief found cold, wet and bedraggled one morning, D locked by the
neck to a local bridge."                                  -- Anon

Scott en Aztl�n wrote:

> On Fri, 02 Dec 2005 20:00:35 -0800, The Real Bev
> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
>>>>> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *
>>>>
>>>>OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after I mailed 
>>>>the forms.
>>> 
>>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
>>
>>You're way too cynical.  Yeah, I hate filling in the forms and doing the 
>>xeroxing and sorting and crap, but nobody else is going to pay me a couple 
>>$hundred an hour for my time.
> 
> C'mon, Bev - you're smarter than that.
> 
> NOBODY is paying you $hundreds/hour for your time. All they are doing
> is jacking up the sales price by $X, then making you jump through
> hoops to get your $X back. 
> 
> Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
> just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour for
> filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
> refund).

Error!

Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.  Same with other 
stuff.  If I could get it for the same price without a rebate I would.  I may 
not always get stuff at the lowest price available, but I'd bet I do it 80% of 
the time.

The tax thing is completely different.  Most of what I get with my tax money 
is of questionable value to me, and the only reason they get anything at all 
is that they have bigger guns than I do.  Even Gates can't force me to buy his 
software at gunpoint.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
=================================================================
"There's an apocryphal (I hope not !) story about a Bristol bike
thief found cold, wet and bedraggled one morning, D locked by the
neck to a local bridge."                                  -- Anon

On Sat, 03 Dec 2005 22:07:03 -0800, The Real Bev
<bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>>>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
>>>
>>>You're way too cynical.  Yeah, I hate filling in the forms and doing the 
>>>xeroxing and sorting and crap, but nobody else is going to pay me a couple 
>>>$hundred an hour for my time.
>> 
>> C'mon, Bev - you're smarter than that.
>> 
>> NOBODY is paying you $hundreds/hour for your time. All they are doing
>> is jacking up the sales price by $X, then making you jump through
>> hoops to get your $X back. 
>> 
>> Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
>> just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour for
>> filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
>> refund).
>
>Error!
>
>Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER. 

They would if people refused to play the rebate game. Loss leaders are
SOP in the big box retail industry; they would continue to use them as
a lure to sucker you into the store even if rebates did not exist.

But that's an extreme example. 99.9% of rebates are for small amounts
that are more than covered by jacking up the selling price. Kinda like
"club cards" at grocery stores: on Monday, the bottle of Perrier sells
for $1.59 (regular price); on Tuesday, they jack the "regular" price
up to $1.79 and offer a "club card" price of $1.59. And, if you don't
have a club card (don't claim the rebate), the store just made an
extra $0.20 profit.

Scott en Aztl�n <scottenaztlan@yahooNOSPAM.com> wrote:
> On Sat, 03 Dec 2005 22:07:03 -0800, The Real Bev
> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
>
>>>>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
>>>>
>>>> You're way too cynical.  Yeah, I hate filling in the forms and
>>>> doing the xeroxing and sorting and crap, but nobody else is going
>>>> to pay me a couple $hundred an hour for my time.
>>>
>>> C'mon, Bev - you're smarter than that.
>>>
>>> NOBODY is paying you $hundreds/hour for your time. All they are
>>> doing is jacking up the sales price by $X, then making you jump
>>> through hoops to get your $X back.
>>>
>>> Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
>>> just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour
>>> for filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
>>> refund).
>>
>> Error!
>>
>> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.

> They would if people refused to play the rebate game.

Nope, essentially because the price with rebates works on the basis
that a substantial proportion of the sales wont see the rebate paid.

> Loss leaders are SOP in the big box retail industry; they would continue to
> use them as a lure to sucker you into the store even if rebates did not exist.

But not at the same price when every sale would be at the advertised price.

> But that's an extreme example. 99.9% of rebates are for small amounts
> that are more than covered by jacking up the selling price. Kinda like
> "club cards" at grocery stores: on Monday, the bottle of Perrier sells
> for $1.59 (regular price); on Tuesday, they jack the "regular" price
> up to $1.79 and offer a "club card" price of $1.59. And, if you don't
> have a club card (don't claim the rebate), the store just made an
> extra $0.20 profit.

Different process entirely. 

"Scott en Aztl�n" wrote:

> But that's an extreme example. 99.9% of rebates are for small amounts
> that are more than covered by jacking up the selling price. Kinda like
> "club cards" at grocery stores: on Monday, the bottle of Perrier sells
> for $1.59 (regular price); on Tuesday, they jack the "regular" price
> up to $1.79 and offer a "club card" price of $1.59. And, if you don't
> have a club card (don't claim the rebate), the store just made an
> extra $0.20 profit.

I see you are just as clueless about supermarkets as you are
about rebates. Presumably you are claiming that this is the case
with all supermarket sales just as you claim that no one gets
their rebates.

Bill

On Mon, 05 Dec 2005 00:41:54 GMT, Bill <billrubin@prodigy.net> wrote:

>I see you are just as clueless about supermarkets as you are
>about rebates.

Whatever.

Scott en Aztl�n wrote:

> On Sat, 03 Dec 2005 22:07:03 -0800, The Real Bev
> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
>>>>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
>>>>
>>>>You're way too cynical.  Yeah, I hate filling in the forms and doing the 
>>>>xeroxing and sorting and crap, but nobody else is going to pay me a couple 
>>>>$hundred an hour for my time.
>>> 
>>> C'mon, Bev - you're smarter than that.
>>> 
>>> NOBODY is paying you $hundreds/hour for your time. All they are doing
>>> is jacking up the sales price by $X, then making you jump through
>>> hoops to get your $X back. 
>>> 
>>> Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
>>> just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour for
>>> filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
>>> refund).
>>
>>Error!
>>
>>Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER. 
> 
> They would if people refused to play the rebate game. Loss leaders are
> SOP in the big box retail industry; they would continue to use them as
> a lure to sucker you into the store even if rebates did not exist.

I don't think so for the simple reason that the mugs buy because of the 
after-rebate price and then don't do the rebate.  Pure profit.  And I have no 
problem at all deriving benefit because others don't.

> But that's an extreme example. 99.9% of rebates are for small amounts
> that are more than covered by jacking up the selling price. 

Back in olden times when postage was much cheaper people would send away for 
rebate coupons for 50 cents.  Mind boggling, huh?

> Kinda like
> "club cards" at grocery stores: on Monday, the bottle of Perrier sells
> for $1.59 (regular price); on Tuesday, they jack the "regular" price
> up to $1.79 and offer a "club card" price of $1.59. And, if you don't
> have a club card (don't claim the rebate), the store just made an
> extra $0.20 profit.

You speak of Perrier in a frugalism newsgroup?  Fie!

What's more likely is having bread on sale for a very good price for a week or 
two and then raising the "regular" price.  That's probably more common. 
Nearly everybody has a card.  I can't remember if the homeless guy buying junk 
food and cigarettes had one or not...

And who included comp.os.linux.hardware in this thread?  Not that it's 
inappropriate or anything...

-- 
Cheers, Bev
=================================================================
"In all recorded history there has not been one economist who has
  had to worry about where the next meal would come from."
                      -- Peter S. Drucker, who invented management

On Sun, 04 Dec 2005 22:32:32 -0800, The Real Bev
<bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>>>Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER. 
>> 
>> They would if people refused to play the rebate game. Loss leaders are
>> SOP in the big box retail industry; they would continue to use them as
>> a lure to sucker you into the store even if rebates did not exist.
>
>I don't think so for the simple reason that the mugs buy because of the 
>after-rebate price and then don't do the rebate.  Pure profit. 

Not every loss leader involves a rebate. Even if you take the rebates
away, they'll still do the loss leaders to build traffic to the
stores.

>And I have no 
>problem at all deriving benefit because others don't.

;)

>> But that's an extreme example. 99.9% of rebates are for small amounts
>> that are more than covered by jacking up the selling price. 
>
>Back in olden times when postage was much cheaper people would send away for 
>rebate coupons for 50 cents.  Mind boggling, huh?

Yeah, and car fare on the PE used to cost a nickle. ;)

>You speak of Perrier in a frugalism newsgroup?  Fie!

OK, feel free to substitute the Arrowhead equivalent. ;)

>And who included comp.os.linux.hardware in this thread?  Not that it's 
>inappropriate or anything...

It was already there when I joined - I guess because we were talking
about hard drives. ;)

In article <9Ivkf.16145$0u6.5968@fe06.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com=20
says...
> Scott en Aztl=E1n wrote:
>=20
> > On Fri, 02 Dec 2005 20:00:35 -0800, The Real Bev
> > <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> >=20
> >>>>> *Friends dont let friends shop at Best Buy *
> >>>>
> >>>>OTOH, they just sent me a $30 rebate check less than five weeks after=
 I mailed=20
> >>>>the forms.
> >>>=20
> >>> Yeah - and people DO cash in on their lottery tickets, as well.
> >>
> >>You're way too cynical.  Yeah, I hate filling in the forms and doing th=
e=20
> >>xeroxing and sorting and crap, but nobody else is going to pay me a cou=
ple=20
> >>$hundred an hour for my time.
> >=20
> > C'mon, Bev - you're smarter than that.
> >=20
> > NOBODY is paying you $hundreds/hour for your time. All they are doing
> > is jacking up the sales price by $X, then making you jump through
> > hoops to get your $X back.=20
> >=20
> > Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
> > just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour for
> > filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
> > refund).
>=20
> Error!
>=20
> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.

Correction: 200GB  ;-)

>  Same with other=20
> stuff.  If I could get it for the same price without a rebate I would.  I=
 may=20
> not always get stuff at the lowest price available, but I'd bet I do it 8=
0% of=20
> the time.

I hate rebates and normally just pass.  I did grab the 200GB drive=20
and a dual-layer DVD writer for $19.

> The tax thing is completely different.  Most of what I get with my tax mo=
ney=20
> is of questionable value to me, and the only reason they get anything at =
all=20
> is that they have bigger guns than I do.  Even Gates can't force me to bu=
y his=20
> software at gunpoint.

Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)

--=20
  Keith

The Real Bev wrote:

> Even Gates can't force me to buy his software at gunpoint.
> 

You can bet he's working on that.

Marsha/Ohio

Marsha <mas@ves.org> wrote
> The Real Bev wrote

>> Even Gates can't force me to buy his software at gunpoint.

> You can bet he's working on that.

Mindless stuff. 

Keith Williams wrote:

> bashley@myrealbox.com says...
>> Scott en Aztl�n wrote:
>> > Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
>> > just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour for
>> > filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
>> > refund).
>> 
>> Error!
>> 
>> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.
> 
> Correction: 200GB  ;-)

160G SATA.  We gotta stop buying hard drives faster than we can use them!

>>  Same with other 
>> stuff.  If I could get it for the same price without a rebate I would.  I may 
>> not always get stuff at the lowest price available, but I'd bet I do it 80% of 
>> the time.
> 
> I hate rebates and normally just pass.  I did grab the 200GB drive 
> and a dual-layer DVD writer for $19.

Those will be nice when the price of the media comes down.
> 
>> The tax thing is completely different.  Most of what I get with my tax money 
>> is of questionable value to me, and the only reason they get anything at all 
>> is that they have bigger guns than I do.  Even Gates can't force me to buy his 
>> software at gunpoint.
> 
> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)

Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  AHA! 
  Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
to Big Bear.

-- 
Cheers, Bev
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
"I love to go down to the schoolyard  and watch all the
little children jump up and down and run around yelling and
screaming...They don't know I'm only using blanks."   --Emo

On Mon, 05 Dec 2005 20:05:21 -0800, The Real Bev
<bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>
>Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  AHA! 
>  Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
>to Big Bear.

OTOH, it was just last winter when the Grapevine was closed due to
snow...

In article <068lf.22597$0u6.3914@fe06.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com=20
says...
> Keith Williams wrote:
>=20
> > bashley@myrealbox.com says...
> >> Scott en Aztl=E1n wrote:
> >> > Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
> >> > just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour fo=
r
> >> > filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
> >> > refund).
> >>=20
> >> Error!
> >>=20
> >> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.
> >=20
> > Correction: 200GB  ;-)
>=20
> 160G SATA.  We gotta stop buying hard drives faster than we can use them!

Well, you aren't alone. ;-)   One of the reasons I bought the 200GB=20
pATA as my SATA doesn't work (Sil3114 Linux driver problem) and the=20
160GB pATA I bought last summer seems to be flakey.  I now have=20
520GB on the system and likely less than 30 of that used.  I'd put=20
them on my other system but it's too old and won't take these large=20
drives.

> >>  Same with other=20
> >> stuff.  If I could get it for the same price without a rebate I would.=
  I may=20
> >> not always get stuff at the lowest price available, but I'd bet I do i=
t 80% of=20
> >> the time.
> >=20
> > I hate rebates and normally just pass.  I did grab the 200GB drive=20
> > and a dual-layer DVD writer for $19.
>=20
> Those will be nice when the price of the media comes down.

My plan.  Meanwhile I upgraded the second system with a DVD writer=20
(yet to see if it works).

> >> The tax thing is completely different.  Most of what I get with my tax=
 money=20
> >> is of questionable value to me, and the only reason they get anything =
at all=20
> >> is that they have bigger guns than I do.  Even Gates can't force me to=
 buy his=20
> >> software at gunpoint.
> >=20
> > Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>=20
> Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows. =
=20

That's fair. You don't pay for our plows either.=20

> AHA!    Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow=
 the roads=20
> to Big Bear.

It's only been 30 hours since my street was plowed (and the snow=20
has all melted).=20

--=20
  Keith

On Tue, 06 Dec 2005 07:17:24 -0800, in misc.consumers.frugal-living Scott en
Aztl�n <scottenaztlan@yahooNOSPAM.com> wrote:

>On Mon, 05 Dec 2005 20:05:21 -0800, The Real Bev
><bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
>
>>> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>>
>>Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  AHA! 
>>  Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
>>to Big Bear.
>
>OTOH, it was just last winter when the Grapevine was closed due to
>snow...


I've seen it closed to snow when there was no snow at all.  So-cal.. go figure.

Keith Williams <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:
> In article <068lf.22597$0u6.3914@fe06.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com
> says...
>> Keith Williams wrote:
>>
>>> bashley@myrealbox.com says...
>>>> Scott en Aztl�n wrote:
>>>>> Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time
>>>>> is just like saying that the government is paying you
>>>>> $hundreds/hour for filling out your tax return (in those years
>>>>> when you get a tax refund).
>>>>
>>>> Error!
>>>>
>>>> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.
>>>
>>> Correction: 200GB  ;-)
>>
>> 160G SATA.  We gotta stop buying hard drives faster than we can use
>> them!
>
> Well, you aren't alone. ;-)   One of the reasons I bought the 200GB
> pATA as my SATA doesn't work (Sil3114 Linux driver problem) and the
> 160GB pATA I bought last summer seems to be flakey.  I now have
> 520GB on the system and likely less than 30 of that used.  I'd put
> them on my other system but it's too old and won't take these large
> drives.

It will, actually, at most you just need a card for them.

>>>>  Same with other
>>>> stuff.  If I could get it for the same price without a rebate I
>>>> would.  I may not always get stuff at the lowest price available,
>>>> but I'd bet I do it 80% of the time.
>>>
>>> I hate rebates and normally just pass.  I did grab the 200GB drive
>>> and a dual-layer DVD writer for $19.
>>
>> Those will be nice when the price of the media comes down.
>
> My plan.  Meanwhile I upgraded the second system with a DVD writer
> (yet to see if it works).
>
>>>> The tax thing is completely different.  Most of what I get with my
>>>> tax money is of questionable value to me, and the only reason they
>>>> get anything at all is that they have bigger guns than I do.  Even
>>>> Gates can't force me to buy his software at gunpoint.
>>>
>>> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>>
>> Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your
>> snowplows.
>
> That's fair. You don't pay for our plows either.
>
>> AHA!    Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to
>> plow the roads to Big Bear.
>
> It's only been 30 hours since my street was plowed (and the snow
> has all melted). 

In article <3vlv56F16e0ngU1@individual.net>, rod_speed@yahoo.com=20
says...
> Keith Williams <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:
> > In article <068lf.22597$0u6.3914@fe06.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com
> > says...
> >> Keith Williams wrote:
> >>
> >>> bashley@myrealbox.com says...
> >>>> Scott en Aztl=E1n wrote:
> >>>>> Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time
> >>>>> is just like saying that the government is paying you
> >>>>> $hundreds/hour for filling out your tax return (in those years
> >>>>> when you get a tax refund).
> >>>>
> >>>> Error!
> >>>>
> >>>> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.
> >>>
> >>> Correction: 200GB  ;-)
> >>
> >> 160G SATA.  We gotta stop buying hard drives faster than we can use
> >> them!
> >
> > Well, you aren't alone. ;-)   One of the reasons I bought the 200GB
> > pATA as my SATA doesn't work (Sil3114 Linux driver problem) and the
> > 160GB pATA I bought last summer seems to be flakey.  I now have
> > 520GB on the system and likely less than 30 of that used.  I'd put
> > them on my other system but it's too old and won't take these large
> > drives.
>=20
> It will, actually, at most you just need a card for them.

Of course, dipstick.  Why would I spend $30 on an add-in card for a=20
system that's six years old?

--=20
  Keith

Keith Williams <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:
> In article <3vlv56F16e0ngU1@individual.net>, rod_speed@yahoo.com
> says...
>> Keith Williams <krw@att.bizzzz> wrote:
>>> In article <068lf.22597$0u6.3914@fe06.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com
>>> says...
>>>> Keith Williams wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> bashley@myrealbox.com says...
>>>>>> Scott en Aztl�n wrote:
>>>>>>> Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your
>>>>>>> time is just like saying that the government is paying you
>>>>>>> $hundreds/hour for filling out your tax return (in those years
>>>>>>> when you get a tax refund).
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Error!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.
>>>>>
>>>>> Correction: 200GB  ;-)
>>>>
>>>> 160G SATA.  We gotta stop buying hard drives faster than we can use
>>>> them!
>>>
>>> Well, you aren't alone. ;-)   One of the reasons I bought the 200GB
>>> pATA as my SATA doesn't work (Sil3114 Linux driver problem) and the
>>> 160GB pATA I bought last summer seems to be flakey.  I now have
>>> 520GB on the system and likely less than 30 of that used.  I'd put
>>> them on my other system but it's too old and won't take these large
>>> drives.

>> It will, actually, at most you just need a card for them.

> Of course, dipstick.  Why would I spend $30 on an add-in card

Dont need to spend anything like that, fuckwit.

> for a system that's six years old? 

Scott en Aztl�n wrote:

> On Mon, 05 Dec 2005 20:05:21 -0800, The Real Bev
> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
>>> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>>
>>Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  AHA! 
>>  Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
>>to Big Bear.
> 
> OTOH, it was just last winter when the Grapevine was closed due to
> snow...

Yeah, but only x-country skiers go that way to ski!

Actually, that's not fair.  I used to go up to BB on days that required 
chains, but not any more;  now I just wait until the road is clear.  They 
probably DO plow the roads, I just don't see it.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_
When you stop bitching, you start dying.

Keith Williams wrote:

> In article <068lf.22597$0u6.3914@fe06.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com 
> says...
>> Keith Williams wrote:
>> 
>> > bashley@myrealbox.com says...
>> >> Scott en Aztl�n wrote:
>> >> > Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time is
>> >> > just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour for
>> >> > filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
>> >> > refund).
>> >> 
>> >> Error!
>> >> 
>> >> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.
>> > 
>> > Correction: 200GB  ;-)
>> 
>> 160G SATA.  We gotta stop buying hard drives faster than we can use them!

Hitachi, BTW.

> Well, you aren't alone. ;-)   One of the reasons I bought the 200GB 
> pATA as my SATA doesn't work (Sil3114 Linux driver problem) 

Ug.  I guess we have to check that.  No newer/better/working downloadable driver?

> and the 
> 160GB pATA I bought last summer seems to be flakey.  I now have 
> 520GB on the system and likely less than 30 of that used.  I'd put 
> them on my other system but it's too old and won't take these large 
> drives.

Probably ought to re-run the 'oldest computer' ("Mine was coal-fired.") thread 
here...

>> >>  Same with other 
>> >> stuff.  If I could get it for the same price without a rebate I would.  I may 
>> >> not always get stuff at the lowest price available, but I'd bet I do it 80% of 
>> >> the time.
>> > 
>> > I hate rebates and normally just pass.  I did grab the 200GB drive 
>> > and a dual-layer DVD writer for $19.
>> 
>> Those will be nice when the price of the media comes down.
> 
> My plan.  Meanwhile I upgraded the second system with a DVD writer 
> (yet to see if it works).
>
>> >> The tax thing is completely different.  Most of what I get with my tax money 
>> >> is of questionable value to me, and the only reason they get anything at all 
>> >> is that they have bigger guns than I do.  Even Gates can't force me to buy his 
>> >> software at gunpoint.
>> > 
>> > Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>> 
>> Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  
> 
> That's fair. You don't pay for our plows either. 
> 
>> AHA!    Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
>> to Big Bear.
> 
> It's only been 30 hours since my street was plowed (and the snow 
> has all melted). 

Well, we got some impressive hail here a few months back.  Friend canceled the 
comprehensive insurance on her race-ready Miata the week before and it now 
sports lots of dimples on all horizontal surfaces.  We actually did get some 
snow here around 1990 or thereabouts.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_
When you stop bitching, you start dying.

amde@aol.com wrote:

> <scottenaztlan@yahooNOSPAM.com> wrote:
> 
>><bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
>>
>>>> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>>>
>>>Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  AHA! 
>>>Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
>>>to Big Bear.
>>
>>OTOH, it was just last winter when the Grapevine was closed due to
>>snow...
> 
> I've seen it closed to snow when there was no snow at all.  So-cal.. go figure.

You listen to the traffic reports on the radio, right?  They're wrong more 
often than they are right, especially when reporting traffic backed up for 
miles due to an accident at the exact spot in the mountains that I'm passing 
at 40 mph and can see no evidence whatsoever that there was ever an accident 
there.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_|-_
When you stop bitching, you start dying.

In article <dynlf.3$ES.2@fe05.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com says...
> Keith Williams wrote:
>=20
> > In article <068lf.22597$0u6.3914@fe06.lga>, bashley@myrealbox.com=20
> > says...
> >> Keith Williams wrote:
> >>=20
> >> > bashley@myrealbox.com says...
> >> >> Scott en Aztl=E1n wrote:
> >> >> > Claiming that rebates are paying you $hundreds/hour for your time=
 is
> >> >> > just like saying that the government is paying you $hundreds/hour=
 for
> >> >> > filling out your tax return (in those years when you get a tax
> >> >> > refund).
> >> >>=20
> >> >> Error!
> >> >>=20
> >> >> Nobody sells 160G hard drives for $29 without a rebate EVER.
> >> >=20
> >> > Correction: 200GB  ;-)
> >>=20
> >> 160G SATA.  We gotta stop buying hard drives faster than we can use th=
em!
>=20
> Hitachi, BTW.

My SATA is a Seagate Barracuda.  I've had it spinning (without=20
bits) for about 18 months.

> > Well, you aren't alone. ;-)   One of the reasons I bought the 200GB=20
> > pATA as my SATA doesn't work (Sil3114 Linux driver problem)=20
>=20
> Ug.  I guess we have to check that.  No newer/better/working downloadable=
 driver?

Not that I've found.  It's really worse than not working.  It works=20
for a while, then hangs.  Very frustrating.

> > and the=20
> > 160GB pATA I bought last summer seems to be flakey.  I now have=20
> > 520GB on the system and likely less than 30 of that used.  I'd put=20
> > them on my other system but it's too old and won't take these large=20
> > drives.
>=20
> Probably ought to re-run the 'oldest computer' ("Mine was coal-fired.") t=
hread=20
> here...

;-)  It's not *that* old (K6-III/400).  My "first day purchase IBM=20
PC is in the basement collecting spiders.

<snip>

> > It's only been 30 hours since my street was plowed (and the snow=20
> > has all melted).=20
>=20
> Well, we got some impressive hail here a few months back.  Friend cancele=
d the=20
> comprehensive insurance on her race-ready Miata the week before and it no=
w=20
> sports lots of dimples on all horizontal surfaces.  We actually did get s=
ome=20
> snow here around 1990 or thereabouts.
>=20
We got a lot of snow in 1990, or thereabouts too. ;-)  ...and=20
likely every other day for about the next four months, except when=20
it's -20F.  Then it's every third day. ;-)=20

--=20
  Keith

On Mon, 05 Dec 2005 20:05:21 -0800, The Real Bev
<bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>
>Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  AHA! 
>  Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
>to Big Bear.

However, the local roads within and surrounding Big Bear are a
different story.  After all, they certainly get enough powder at Snow
Summit to make a buck or two...

On Tue, 06 Dec 2005 13:39:31 -0800, The Real Bev
<bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:

>
>Well, we got some impressive hail here a few months back.  Friend canceled the 
>comprehensive insurance on her race-ready Miata the week before and it now 
>sports lots of dimples on all horizontal surfaces.  We actually did get some 
>snow here around 1990 or thereabouts.

Maybe it will go further and faster now... works for golfballs...

Bob Ward wrote:

> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
>>> Roads are nice, as are the snow plows. ;-)
>>
>>Yeahyeahyeah, but I don't get an awful lot of use out of your snowplows.  AHA! 
>>Proof of global warming -- it's been years since they had to plow the roads 
>>to Big Bear.
> 
> However, the local roads within and surrounding Big Bear are a
> different story.  After all, they certainly get enough powder at Snow
> Summit to make a buck or two...

Powder?  At Snow Summit?  In California?  There's fresh wet snow that hasn't 
been groomed yet, but powder?  I've never seen powder.

No snow yet, but they've got one run open with a foot of man-made snow.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
================================================================
"Everything sucks;  reverse the wires and everything will blow."
                                                   -- Desert Ed

Bob Ward wrote:

> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
>>Well, we got some impressive hail here a few months back.  Friend canceled the 
>>comprehensive insurance on her race-ready Miata the week before and it now 
>>sports lots of dimples on all horizontal surfaces.  We actually did get some 
>>snow here around 1990 or thereabouts.
> 
> Maybe it will go further and faster now... works for golfballs...

I'll tell her that, but I don't think she'll be amused.

-- 
Cheers,
Bev
================================================================
"Everything sucks;  reverse the wires and everything will blow."
                                                   -- Desert Ed

In article <or8cp19re9unkksnq2ivqo51nglbs96rrt@4ax.com>, 
bobward@email.com says...
> On Tue, 06 Dec 2005 13:39:31 -0800, The Real Bev
> <bashley@myrealbox.com> wrote:
> 
> >
> >Well, we got some impressive hail here a few months back.  Friend canceled the 
> >comprehensive insurance on her race-ready Miata the week before and it now 
> >sports lots of dimples on all horizontal surfaces.  We actually did get some 
> >snow here around 1990 or thereabouts.
> 
> Maybe it will go further and faster now... works for golfballs...

"Red Green" had similar segment some time back.  He used a ballpein 
hammer on his van.  Apparently, the right number of dimples (336) 
is important.  'Twas funny as hell.

-- 
  Keith