Car Talk 4/7/2008 Episode now out!

[Shane R. Monroe]

http://cartalk.monroeworld.com/episodes/cartalk-2008-04-07.mp3

Dreams, growing up ...

[GrilledMonkeyFat]

Just listened to the latest. If you ever have some "Total Recall" type dreams, do share. :D

[alexjlopez]

Just finished the latest show. You know, I can actually relate to your ongoing nightmares about finding yourself back in the military. I got out in 94 myself, so it looks like we were in about the same time (I was in the Army).

My recurring dream is always under the same circumstances but on different occasions (if that makes any sense). It's always the same thing: I receive the news that I'm being "deployed" (which was always the threat of impending doom back then), and that I have until the morning to get packed and ready to go. So the dream is generally a stress-filled combination of me bitching and scrambling to pack my things quickly.

I've had this dream on and off at least 2 or 3 times a year every year since I got out, and as my life has changed, the dream evolves enough to trick me into thinking it's really happening. When I was single, it was an old Army buddy that came to break the news to me that I needed to get packed. After I got married, it was my wife who would tell me. And as I moved from my old apartment to my house in Miami to my latest house here in Houston, the environment always changes just enough to make me sweat a little until I wake up hehe.

Not sure it will ever go away, I had the dream most recently over the holidays this past year. I think it's human nature to dread being in a situation where you have very little control over your own fate, which is one of the dominant feelings when you're serving in the armed forces.

[Shane R. Monroe]

A pseudo website is in place .. no time to finish it - but all the episodes are listed and the list self-generates, so just bookmark the Commutes page, and you should be good to go.

http://cartalk.monroeworld.com

[Chris]

My father dreamed about both the Challenger and Columbia space shuttle disasters before they happened. In the case of the Challenger, he even told my mother about the dreams before the disaster happened. True story. There's more detail to it, but that's the bottom line.

[GrilledMonkeyFat]

No show today, huh?

Found your recorder on Ebay, Shane. About $8, so I bid on it. I'll bet anything within the next 5 days, the price will go beyond $60.

[Chris]

This is mine, I love it, got it brand new in box for $90 shipped.

http://www.camera-shop.co.uk/acatalog/DS-30.jpg

[GrilledMonkeyFat]

And there's no limit to recording? Is it like they give you 1 Hour and 15 minutes worth of recording time on one setting, and 30 minutes on a higher quality setting? Like with VCR's and DVD recorders with SP, LP, and SLP (2 hours, 4 hours and 6 hours, respectively)

I know I should look this up, but I wouldn't know where to go.

[Chris]

And there's no limit to recording? Is it like they give you 1 Hour and 15 minutes worth of recording time on one setting, and 30 minutes on a higher quality setting? Like with VCR's and DVD recorders with SP, LP, and SLP (2 hours, 4 hours and 6 hours, respectively)

I know I should look this up, but I wouldn't know where to go.

Well there's a limit, but it far exceeds my use for it. On the absolute highest quality mode, I can do 4hr 10 min. In "high quality mode" I can do 17 hours. In SP its 33 hrs and in LP its 66 hours.

The "maximum recording time per file" is 26 hours for the highest (odd), 53 hours for SP, and 148 hours for LP mode.

[GrilledMonkeyFat]

WOW!! I hope to God I win this!!

Can't see the other side of the pic of the recorder. Is there a headphone or mic jack on the other side, by chance?

I should be thrilled, first off, that the recording time is SO great, maybe I'm being greedy.

[Chris]

WOW!! I hope to God I win this!!

Can't see the other side of the pic of the recorder. Is there a headphone or mic jack on the other side, by chance?

I should be thrilled, first off, that the recording time is SO great, maybe I'm being greedy.

Oh so you're bidding on the DS-30?

The mic you see on top is a stereo mic and it is removeable, you can actually add another external mic for recording.

As you see it in the picture, the left side of it actually holds a jack for headphones as well as the usb.

The recording time is excellent and its only a 256mb device. I've always been such a big fan of recording things, I have tapes of myself doing "shows" and documenting other adventures going back to the mid 80's. So this is a great recorder, beats the old tape deck I used to lug around.

[GrilledMonkeyFat]

I've got to have this, and....dammit, I've been outbid. Lousy Ebay ****ers!

[Chris]

I've got to have this, and....dammit, I've been outbid. Lousy Ebay ****ers!

Mine was a Buy it Now and 90$ shipped is pretty good for that model based on the searches I was doing all around. My limit was $100.

I couldn't be happier with mine, and above all the best thing about it is there was no bs around transferring files to the computer. I hooked it up via USB, it was discovered easily, and I could instantly access the drive. Just dragged and dropped my files onto my hard drive and that was that! This may seem like nothing to most people, but I'm coming from the minidisc format where the options to transfer your files to the computer were either nonexistent or a big gigantic bitch to pull off thanks to Sony's ways.

[GrilledMonkeyFat]

If I had the money, I'd spend just under $100, but I got like $60 or so left, so gotta take it easy until I get paid Friday.

[Chris]

If I had the money, I'd spend just under $100, but I got like $60 or so left, so gotta take it easy until I get paid Friday.

Ah, well that's fine, they'll still be there.

[Flare]

Shane, in a recent Car Talk you mentioned you are addicted to Diet Coke... is that addiction to the actual Aspartame taste or would it be the same with regular Coke if calories where no object?

Would you get fixed on Splenda Diet Coke too?

[Shane R. Monroe]

I like Diet Coke's flavor over regular coke. I don't like the sheen of crap that 'non-diet' soda leaves on my teeth.

I can do Coke Zero ok and Splenda Coke.

[Shane R. Monroe]

You know what to do ... sit down in our thinking chair and think ....