Vent [A Bug's Life]

When I take over the phone account tomorrow, and the number changes, BT will run a PSTN cease on the line and my Internet connection will stop. The phone and Internet have stayed in Tenant H's name for the last couple of weeks since I moved in (thanks!). I can place a new order with Eclipse (our current provider) but this will take 5-10 working days to come into effect. This is not ideal. Ach.

Anyone have any brilliant reasons why I shouldn't stay with Eclipse? Otherwise I'll call them at 5pm to place the order.

Anyone have Internet I could come round and borrow on occasion over the next week or two, to check e-mail and do job applications from? I could go and camp out at the Arts Picturehouse or CB2 but that's not an ideal environment.

And while I'm here and asking for technical support: I would like to use two monitors, as I often do document comparison and would benefit from two screens. I have two flatscreen monitors. I've had a look at the back of my graphics card, and it only has one monitor socket. Do I need a different graphics card, with two sockets, to use two screens? Or is there some software/adaptor fix I could use? I don't want this enough to get a new graphics card, so if that is the only solution I'll be asking if anyone wants a spare 15" monitor :-) In two weeks, when I have Internet again. Grrrr.

My priorities for this evening have suddenly changed. Do excuse me while I hastily go and write down everything I'll need from the Internet.

EDIT: I still have my cix account, which will do when I've remembered how to connect using dialup :-)

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Better than AOL who stated "up to 20 working days" to move us. In fact it's supposed to be coming live on Thursday, which is in fact only 6 working days after we move, so could be worse. I don't get how we managed our tantalising glimpse of the internet *last* Thursday though.

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You don't say what OS you run. However, in the general case, multiple monitors are a solved problem and Just Work, provided you have the right hardware. You need either: (a) a graphics card with two monitor sockets; (b) a motherboard with a monitor socket on-board as well as the graphics card you have; (c) a second graphics card, which requires looking at your motherboard to determine what slots are available and matching that against available graphics cards.

Does your graphics card have any other output sockets? (I'm thinking of an SVHS or Composite video out.) These might be persuadable to use as a second output, but you'd need a monitor or TV capable of accepting the different signal, and you're unlikely to be able to drive it at high resolution.

It's a bit blurry, but people who know what they might expect to see on a graphics card might recognise said bits:

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That round black one is probably SVHS but I'd need to see the arrangement of the pins to be sure. However, more hopefully, that beige one is a DVI monitor connection! (Dual link DVI-I, according to the pin layouts on Wikipedia, which means it does both digital and analogue.) Many flat panel monitors can accept DVI and have a similar connector - check yours. (You'll also need a cable, of course, which will normally have come with the monitor if it's supported.) If one of your monitors can accept the DVI, then you're probably sorted - possibly via a little tweaking in the control panel, I'd expect you can go multi-monitor straight away.

Thanks - I don't recall the monitors coming with that sort of cable, but now I know what it's called I can do some more digging :-)

Also there are adapters for DVI to VGA (I know, I bought one!) so you can use older monitors with graphics cards that have DVI ... need to know what the graphics card is (right click on desktop, properties, settings and see what the graphics card is ... or go through "My Computer".

I'm sure I have one, not least because one came with that graphics card before I lent it to Bug. However it might be in any of eighteen boxes of computer Crapp and I suggest you see if anyone else has one more readily locateable.

I'm WinXP. I have a second graphics card, the original one that came with my machine, but when I plug the second monitor in there's no signal.

You may have to switch it on by right-clicking on the desktop, picking properties, settings and see if there's an option saying something like "extend my desktop onto this monitor" (at least that's what you have to do on my laptop!)

What he said.

(And I probably have a spare converter too)

On my first attempt, I have extended my desktop onto the same monitor twice :-) Must try harder.

The company down on Hills Road I've been working for over the last few months have an Eclipse ADSL line (business grade), and a *Be(there.co.uk) line, and the eclipse one is resoundingly crap. *be on the other hand, are susprisingly good for such a cheap service (this is the £22/month service however)..

I've used Eclipse for three years and found them fine, but BeThere look much better! Especially this part:
"If your order is accepted, your BT phone line will physically be connecting to our network in your local exchange (this usually takes about 1 - 3 weeks). In the meantime you will have access to an 0845 number for dial-up internet access"

'Course, I can't sign up till my BT line becomes active...

There are lots of 0845 numbers you can use for cheap dial up access in any case. FWIW I use Plusnet and they've been consistently great for me despite the huge amount of bad press they seem to get.

Ooh, PAYG. Heck, though, I realise I still have my cix account and I can use that if I can remember how and if I still have dialup technology in this machine :-)

We use plusnet and are Happy.

To be honest these days I think I'd find dial-up unbearably slow, and I'd rather just wait. Especially since I'd have to go out and buy a modem!

There must be an old modem here somewhere.

I don't want to go without Internet for that long while I'm job-hunting; so much is done on-line now.

I recommend Be and have used them for about six months.

I have spare internet but I'm not very local to you. You're welcome to use it if you want to but I suspect you'll not want to involve yourself in the traveling it would involve.

Aw, but thanks :-)

I'm sure we could let you borrow some of our bandwidth at some point (as long as I can remember the password). I doubt the signal will reach to your house but it might reach to the little shortcut that goes round the back of our house past the scout hut.

At any rate, I could maybe come round for a cup of tea some time?

Get a couple of Pringles cans and make a wireless bridge?

Simon, now, what have we said about making unhelpful suggestions?

Oh, wait, no, that was "of" me, not "from" me :-)

Go round to your nextdoor neighbours and ask if you could leech off their wireless until your internet gets sorted.

I find that having one enormous monitor works better for me than two monitors.

Though I'd prefer one enormous monitor *and* another one ... I tend to put the document/app that's most important full screen on the big monitor, and use the small one for google, checking if there's new email, picking MP3s etc.

I prefer two enormous monitors. Though I do focus on one and use the other for tv programs :-)

I own two 15" monitors, and I'd like to use them. I would *prefer* two enormous monitors, but... ;-)

I have two of these 20 inch behemoths....

http://h18000.www1.hp.com/products/quickspecs/10587_div/10587_div.HTML

I usually have problems getting Linux to have two monitors, but it has gotten much easier in recent years. Windows however should do it easily.

The Monkey House has internet. It also tends to have me, generally attached to the keyboard and blocking your view of the monitor, but I'm sure we could manage to work something by distracting me with tea - or possibly Pringles...

Thanks - I might take you up on that once or twice - or maybe just come for a cup of tea?

Absolutely!
There is, in fact, a spare laptop here - probably easier than trying to hack another one into our wireless broadband (though we could try that too if you came round when musicmonkey, who sometimes knows the password, is in). So, if you don't mind roughing it with the spare laptop and spare desk, you can camp out here quite a lot. And tea breaks with company = always good.

Ooh, I could bring my Eee and a LAN cable if that would help :-)

It might! Cable connection is good because our security seems to be tight enough to exclude anyone simply trying to gain access by legitimate means.

The monkey sys admin is now home. He says you'll need to geek with him to get you set up on our internet. He's available Wed and Friday evenings this week or by appointment at the weekend, if you're interested. Once that's done, the two of us and a cup of tea should suffice to keep you connected.

I telecommute, so apart from being out M/Tu/W every other week (including this one) I'm home most days. On the other hand I'm on the other side of town and have no wireless (but I do have a cable that reaches the whole flat).

Do some production orders before you lose spod, assuming I haven't drowned you in explanations. :-)

I've added Twiglet Imperium to my list of things to do tonight; I need to get the printer working first so I can provide evidence of my jobhunt to the Job Centre tomorrow. Luckily I now have some interview invitations to show them :-)

Spare machine on broadband or wireless for access via you own kit on offer. If you want peace and quiet I'm out between 2.30 and 4.30 each day and con provide you with key (and felines). Otherwise I'm around and generally quetly busy the rest of the time.

I have wireless internet and a sofa which you can borrow, if you're ever on my side of town in the evenings.

I should come round some time anyway, as I have books for you and

jamesb.

I've got a 3G modem (on Pay as you Go, it's got a couple of gig left on it) you can borrow, if you get 3 reception where you are? It's kind of patchy around Cambridge.

That's probably a very kind offer, but I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't understand it. Does it go in a desktop PC? If it's a phone thing, my phone doesn't render or navigate web sites in any useful way that I've found, other than the few sites O2 put on it at the factory.

I have a Wifi thingie in my PC, and another metal card thing with a small hole (1cm wide, four metal teeth) marked with a picture of a telephone and another identical hole marked with this shape
00100
01110
11111
11111

I'm currently feeding my broadband into another identical hole marked with three linked computers.

Beat your brow and run away now, I would :-)

It's a USB thing: http://www.three.co.uk/personal/mobiles_/discover.omp?CID=1193835363623 - you plug it into a USB port, install the software, and it acts more or less the same as a phone modem only much, *much* faster.

Let me know if you fancy giving it a go.

That looks like a wonderfully neat thing! I'd love to borrow it, when would be a good time? I'll be in town on Tuesday in the daytime, or could come round to your neck of the ~~woods~~ fens on Wednesday evening.

My email's packed up (the server it lives on on has gone down, dunno what the problem is...) - if you need to get in touch with me, acronym@gmail.com or my mobile are probably the best bets.

I'll try to remember and bring it into town tomorrow - I'll be in the Chemistry dept at work. Send me a text when you're in the vicinity!