Having the digital camera is so useful while gardening! Not just so you can share pictures with friends on GW but also for taking shots of the garden during different growing seasons, to record where plantings are like spring bulbs, to look back on for ideas of what worked and didn't work... so many things to list! I too liked having my old 35 mm that I could adjust the settings and get the photo just right but after making the switch to a digital camera I don't think I could go back! I started by first putting the camera in automatic mode all the time. The first thing I learned was how to turn the 'auto flash' off. I find that you get a much better photo without the flash. It was only after I used the camera for a while did I learn more of its features such as putting it into Macro mode so you can take closeups. Really if you just do these 5 things you can do a lot with your camera: 1) Putting the camera in automatic mode. 2) Learn how to shut off the auto flash. 3) Turning on the macro mode for closeups. 4) Getting the pictures off your camera to share. 5) Getting two sets of rechargeable batteries and a charger. For #4 a really simple option is to buy a USB device that you can connect to your computer all the time and then put the 'memory cards' from the camera into this device. The memory card reader device acts like another disk drive. This saves you from having to hook your camera up to your computer to get the photos off it. These memory card readers are priced from around $12 to $25 and highly worth it!

I have AT&T/SBC and my fax machine does not function with their phone/TV/DSL package. Not sure why, but it's a known issue. I had to turn off the voicemail feature in order to be able to auto send and receive faxes. Otherwise I'd have to stand there and go through several steps to manually receive a fax, including knowing when it was coming in and being at the machine waiting for it. I have just a small home office, for a larger busier office that would really interfere with their day to day activities. So maybe they were experiencing similar issues. Also, there are cables coming into our house. They hook up to a main gateway for the internet and primary PC is hooked up to that. Any secondary PCs or laptops are on a wireless network. A complex would probably have to have wiring/cables coming in at some location, then perhaps each unit could be part of a wireless network (much like hotels or hospitals now offer). So I don't see how you'd be able to just luck out and get SBC service without those cables coming into the building somewhere. I had to consult our atty once about a satellite dish issue. Installed on a rental house roof without asking, it was a poor install job & created issues with the roof. Our atty said under FCC regulations as a LL I cannot prohibit the use of a satellite dish (because it would be illegal for me to prohibit others from access to various forms of that type communication, such as TV, radio, internet, etc.) However I can stipulate that it's not to be installed on any of our buildings. So in that situation installation on a pole or fence post is acceptable, but not on any roof or building in order to prevent structural damage from poor installation. My point is even tho I was advised LLs can't block communication services like TV, Internet or radio, LL's can put restrictions on installation if it compromises structural integrity. So in your scenario it might well be they can't block internet altogether (and they aren't), but they can prevent use of a provider that impedes the daily & necessary functions of their office. It would take an attorney to elaborate more on that.

Have you tried opening a second Internet Explorer (or whatever browser you are using) window by going to 'file' and 'new' and using one window to go the gardenweb forum and the other window to go to flickr? maybe you won't lose the copied info if you are working with different windows instead of using the back button?

I'd take the deal (considering the price is right for you). The same thing happened to me several years ago. We purchased an historic home in-town and the inside was simply beautiful with wonderful wood work, floors etc. plus the previous owners had remodeled the kitchen and bathrooms to current standards. It was a great mix of old charm and modern necessities. The outside of the home needed some work. We had the exterior of the home painted in historic colors with 5 color trim, etc. I relandscaped the yard and added a few touches. We lived in the home only 3 years. One evening I discovered a letter in our mailbox indicating this couple loved our home and wanted to buy it if/when we wanted to sell. The letter indicated their friends lived down the street and heard we may be thinking of moving. While we weren't serious considering or looking at other properties, we were thinking of starting a family and my wife wanted a home in a suburban development surrounded by other young families. I called the lady (she was an attorney) and told her our pie-in-the-sky price. She said she would discuss it with her husband and let me know. The next morning they called and bought the house at our asking price. They had only two conditions, they wanted the side porch swing and a water fountain in the rear yard. Done Deal! We closed in 45 days, no realtor fees, no showings to nosey neighbors and lookie-loo's.