I find blanket statements like don't shop there, only shop here very annoying. I prefer a centrist approach. Majority of my roses are in fact from nurseries like ARE/Chamblees/Vintage because I like to support them and fear that they may go under, and also because they sell own-root varieties I would never find elsewhere. But this whole dissing of HD/Lowes I simply do not get. They sell very nicely priced HTs and Austins that are great for me to try as experiments. I simply would never buy an HT from a pricey nursery in California because I don't know how high survival chances will be through a brutal Chicago winter. And yes, I've bought Mr Lincoln/Shreveport/Dbl Delight etc from Vintage in the past. Spindly own root bands that promptly croaked. Never again. I stick to OGR gallons with mail-order now. At HD, an HT is a $9 to $12 risk. If it makes it, good. If it dies, fine. Secondly, I am SICK and TIRED of 'reputable' rose nurseries sending me mislabeled roses which are often bands and I don't figure out it's the wrong variety until much later, often when rose shipping has ceased. At least with HD, if it's wrong (and I buy roses in BLOOM only from big box places) I can take it in and get my refund without jumping through hoops. Also, what's this about virused, dead plants from big box places? The nurseries I buy from in Chicago (HD/Gethsemane/Anton's) almost always sell Jackson and Perkins stock. Tons of people buy roses online from J&P. So that's ok and if someone buys it from a retailer here it's wrong? I got my start with rose growing because of HD. I bought a Charlotte and The Prince because they looked so delectable and didn't even know they were called Austins. They were healthy, gorgeous and sailed through the winter. I became confident and started buying more roses due to them. Today, I spend my money at rose nurseries but they are certainly not the ones who got me started with my hobby. Also, to the credit of big box stores, my local HD actually sells a few OGRs. I have seen Honorine de Brabant, Rose de Rescht and Mme Pierre Oger over there. Yes, a majority of their roses are the KnockOut varieties but they are trying to diversify a bit. And I certainly would not say that their employees are clueless. They may not know as much as hard-core rosarians do but they do know enough to do their job. Whatever. I'd rather be centrist and have a great garden than get all political and make sweeping statements. There are several advantages that those folks ignore.

Well, I am sorry to tell you that you have either totally missed or avoided my real point all along, greystroke. You give a lot of input here, but nothing hits the nail even remotely on the head. How can that be? It is NOT at all about determining any elemental content in components or solutions! I am calculating my formulas in a very conventional and reliable way. I am using my own nutrient calculator. I can also cross-check the results with other nutrient calculators in case (which I frequently did until it was completed). So there is no doubt about the data I use and apply. Anyway, with a nutrient calculator there is no need to have a PhD in theoretical physics or chemistry anymore, to get it right. There is no need to do any supplementary measurements or tests either. What I was talking about here ALL ALONG, was the difference between actual elemental content in a nutrient solution (which is the result of standard formulas and values in use) and the final EC-reading of the same solution. Because there apparently (well actually) is a significant difference (10-15%). Please let's focus to finally get to a point here (figure of speech): have you ever calculated, weighted components and used your own formulas to actually make COMPLETE nutrients? Have you used a nutrient calculator, or have you cross-checked your results with one? If yes, have you ever compared the total elemental ppm that your solution is supposed to have (mathematically and by commonly used values for components), - with the actual and final EC-reading of that same solution? If yes, have you noticed any differences? If yes, how do you explain it? PS: is there anyone else who has insight here and is able to give some input about this end of the equation? Sorry to insist - No offense here: I mean THIS very end of the equation - Thanks!

"First--do those prepaids need to be charged like a regular cell? DO NOT use a car charger, except in a true emergency. One of Dd's coworker's husband has a cell phone store, he warned us that using a car charger is a good way to burn up your battery (car chargers overcharge the phone, they don't have a 'shut off' when the battery is charged). So you will need to remember to take the phone inside to charge it with a wall charger. Prepaid cell phones are cell phones like any other. In fact many of them are older models that were used in contract phones and when the new models come out for contract phones, the leftover supply gets converted for prepaid use. There are a couple prepaid places where you can use another phone and set it up. As far as car chargers, let's clear this myth up. I've used car chargers since I got my first prepaid cell phone. I wasn't about to go out and have a dead battery at a time I might need it most. Either you misunderstood what he said, or he gave you very bad information. Perhaps he sells only junk chargers, but there's plenty of good chargers out there. I have bought car chargers for every type of phone I've had. I probably charge my phones on the vehicle more than at home. As I'm going between calls, I'll put a charge into it or top it off. And YES, it does shut off when it's fully charged! That feature actually is part of the phone usually but also there is a switch in decent chargers. All of mine have it. On my current LG phone has been in use for about 2-1/2 years. Many suggest that phone batteries are only good for a couple years. Mine is still going strong. But batteries vary. I can go about 5-6 days without having to charge it. My one Motorola had to be charged about every other day so the car charger was mandatory to have use of it. You can research it on the internet and check the chargers when you look at buying them. But if you're still overly concerned about this fallacy, there's another easy option. Get an inverter and and extra AC charger (but there too, beware of quality). Then you can use the AC charger through the lighter outlet. There are conveniences to having the cell phone. If you're out somewhere and want to see if a friend is home before driving over there a quick call can save some gas. If you're at a store and see something on sale and want to know if you should pick it up for someone, it could save an extra trip. There's a lot of legitimate uses for them other than chit-chat so although having one for emergencies is a good idea, and prepaid is the way to go in this circumstance, you'll build up time so you'll have that time to use for other things. I always caution people to check the coverage areas for phones you're considering and also, consider the areas you travel! Cell phones don't work everywhere. My first phone was Virgin Mobile and I liked it. They use the Sprint PCS system and it's very clear. However, you need to be in a major metro area or on a major freeway or highway to use it. If you get a mile or two off, you don't have a phone. So price shouldn't be your only concern. Also, for a while I carried two, and at one point, 3 different cell phones for expanded coverage. I got them so cheap that the cost wasn't a factor. Now I'm down to one, a CDMA TracFone and I'm very pleased with it. I get coverage where many others with $100+/mo contract phones don't get coverage. After I tested and experimented with cell phones to determine if I had a use for them I researched the coverage in the area and for me, around Minnesota, the Verison CDMA was the best. GSM wasn't bad and I used that for a while but I go out into the boondocks up norh and this is vastly superior. And with my age and health, I'm concerned about coverage. Don't be fooled. There's NO cell phone that gets reception everywhere. There's dead spots all over and the signal can be affected by a variety of things. I have been happy with TracFone, but I'm willing to look for the bonus codes, the special deals and the like to keep costs down. I bought a "double minutes for life" card for my phone, (some phones come with it, but no CDMA that I know of), and also have a deal where I get a bonus 30 minutes each time I add a card so adding smaller cards is better if I get deals on them. I also use the promo codes so for instance I just added a 120 minute card to my phone a month ago and got 190 bonus minutes for "free". Since I have about 700 minutes on the phone I needed to add time and you can purchase just time, which I did. For my use, I look more at monthly cost than the per-minute cost. I just added 310 minutes and 455 days for about $80 including the extra days purchased so the per-minute is tainted. So I have cell service for about $6/mo. Now, I don't give out my cell number to just anyone. I also have a Grand Central number that forwards to it that I give to people I don't totally trust with the number so I can shut it off if they abuse it. Enough rambling. I think everyone should have a cell available for emergencies and many will find them handy for other things and not have to spend $30-$300 per month for it! AND DON'T BELIEVE THE CAR CHARGER STORY!

My scanner is an HP Scanjet 5370Cse. I either bought the model with a top light, or purchased one as an accessory. The sensors are under the glass plate (on the moving head). Therefore, light must be passed from the top down through transparent photo media. The top light accessory provides this illumination and holds the negative masks. B/W negatives, color negatives, and color transparencies all use the top light. The bottom light is turned off when using the top light. (I had an all-in-one printer that had a top light built into the lid and that was much more convenient. Unfortunately, that printer began to fail last year and has been replaced.) The use of the top light is a bit awkward and not conducive to high production. It is best for a session of not more than 20, maybe 50, images per sitting. The negatives must be carefully positioned in the mask. Care must be exercised to keep finger prints off the image portion of the media. Slides and negatives should be handled by the edges only. Dirt and finger prints can be a problem. A spec of dirt on a 35 mm negative will make a magnified black dot on the copy. The most difficult negative to handle is a strip of 35 mm film that has been wrapped around a cardboard oblong and stored for several years. The film will have a permanent bends and is difficult to get it to lay flat. However, I did like the results and the degree of color balance adjustment control. The software was included with either the top light accessory or was on the printer driver disk. There is a learning curve until you understand how each feature works, and then after that, it is quite enjoyable. There is another option for 35 mm format: Use your digital camera. Nikon and possibly other makes offer a copy accessory with illumination. Getting even illumination across the entire film, and having a proper color content, is critical for copy work. Hobbyist do make their own fixtures, but this is ok for the experimenter. If you wish to get the job done in a reasonable amount of time, stick with the manufacturers fixture. An advantage of using your camera is that the image is already stored as a digital file. Also, the cost is very low. Blown shots cost nothing. Merely erase these, adjust, and shoot again. The camera's screen can be used to make a cursory check on the image quality captured. I have a relative who copied 3000 frames and photos using his digital camera as a copy machine. These were professional shots made in exoitic locations for magazines, ads, and catalogs.