Sadly the average American VCR clock
Posted on 10/07/2006 5:52:10 PM PDT by Dallas59
There's no doubt about it: foreign technology can whet your appetite. Super-lightweight laptops from Japan, feature-packed smartphones from Europe, and shiny, gotta-get-it devices designed in India, South Korea, and Taiwan are but a few of the items that currently reside on tech's cutting edge. But chances are you will never see those gadgets on store shelves here in the U.S.
A trip to the typical U.S. electronics store suggests many Americans would gladly shell out some extra cash for high-end lightweight products. Smaller, lighter, and more-expensive laptops are occupying an ever-increasing amount of shelf space. Even if a larger percentage of Japanese and European consumers reach for higher-end products than their U.S. counterparts, a small percentage of Americans could still spell big sales.
Why, then, do some innovative products never make it to our shores?
I believe that part of the reason is that we don't have an Akihabara, a single massive district that allows not only companies to get anything they need rapidly and effortlessly, but also allows a mass consumer market direct access and fast feedback.
Too much regumalation, too much gummint, too much monopoly, duopoly, quadropoly. Free market? Not in the good ole USA!
Anyone still think that outsourcing isn't going to hurt us?
Sadly the average American VCR clock
Heck, just covert them to the format you want... Lots of coverters out there free...
Heck... here is a link for one that converts about anything for free..
http://www.erightsoft.com/SUPER.html
I like ImToo software, since the cracks are so easy to find.
Super... look like a nice program.. just doesn't support converting the FLV to other formats that I can see. Also not totally free... SUPER has lots of conversion features, but is a bulky program (slow loading) and can mess with other programs.
I just basically use Super to convert the FLV video I nab off video sites to a format to view more easily.
But as typical for Honda, they figured out how to meet even the tough CARB 2009 diesel emission regulations by developing a special reactive catalytic converter that changes NOx into simple NO2, which is easily removed by standard catalytic converters. It doesn't need urea gas injection like the complicated BlueTec system developed by DaimlerChrysler.
Honda said this new emission control system will be part of the 2.2-liter I-4 and 3.0-liter V-6 turbodiesels that will likely arrive in the US market by 2008. These new turbodiesel engines will also use 2000 bar common-rail pressurized direct fuel injection, which means the engine will have the same horsepower output as its gasoline equivalent but with a way high torque peak at around 1950 rpm, which makes the diesel-powered car faster than its gasoline equivalent up to 65 mph.
Thanks to the manufacturer's neglect to include a simple battery backup to preserve the time over power outages. I get tired of having to reset the clock every few months because of momentary or extended power fails (wind, lightning, auto accidents). Don't need the VCR to know the time, so I usually just ignore the 12:00 indicator.
"Making a phone call was an adventure for people with a lot of patience."
That hasn't been my experience each time I fly to the good Old Continent. And I travel there often - 3-4 times a year at least.
Also freeware has NO help sources if you have problems. So your on your own with tech questions that often arrise with complicated programs.
But foreign cellphone customers do pay a fortune in per-minute charges to use their cellphones, especially using some of those 3G features like streaming video and audio. You should see how much T-Mobile charges for their GSM cellphone service in Europe.... 
By the way, I've checked up on the type of HDTV service starting up in Japan and Europe and most of them are using the same resolution standard used in US HDTV, namely 1080-line interlaced scan and 720-line progressive scan.
locked cell phones in the USA while ON THE REST OF THE PLANET GSM phones can be changed with event needs with the swap of a chip. (one phone for work, the basic and small phone for small profile dress up)
I could not stand the clunk ware of sprint/nextel.
OF course companies like sony have no long term support for their products. (ie clie)
I bought a 30" CRT HDTV a year a half ago for $540. It could pick up digital broadcasts from five stations.
Despite the talk, the U.S. is far ahead of the rest of the world in HDTV set sales, HDTV broadcast stations, HDTV content, and HDTV satellite and cable. In the Atlanta market, 39 distinct HD channels are available via over the air broadcast, cable, and satellite.
fair enough - let's see what new regs CARB comes up with to knock this down now.
how long does the reactive agent inside that cat last?
Engineering calculators? How backwards! We all use sophisticated programs running on our servers and laptops now - pros and students alike.
It's only very recently that Europe and Japan finally got their act together to broadcast 1080i/720p HDTV. The US ATSC system is excellent because unlike the NTSC analog system, color quality is always the same from channel to channel (no more "Never Twice Same Color" jokes). By 2008, DirecTV and Dish Network customers will enjoy potentially hundreds of channels of HDTV broadcasts.
Since the system is based on electrically charging the exhaust to break down the NOx into NO2, that converter will probably last the life of the car.
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