OVER 2 YOU 229 (03/05/05)

GOING LOCO

I am researching British Railways diesel and electric locomotives, particularly named locomotives. I wonder if anyone knows of a website listing the original numbers, with their "TOPS" (Total Operations Processing System) equivalent and, of course the names?

Andrew J. Southwell, Towngate, Ossett

The Preserved UK Railways Locomotives Database at: http://ukhrail.uel.ac.uk/rlylocos.html, would be a good place to start, simply enter as much information as you have and it will return all known data on locomotives that are still existence.

Hugh Gifford, via email

Have a look a the Great Western Archive, this is a fantastic resource for those interested in the history of GWR, from stations, signal boxes and rolling stock to classic locos. You will find it at: www.greatwestern.org.uk/

Ian Fellowes, via email

A website listing the original numbers of British Railways diesel and electric

Locomotives is: www.lexcie.zetnet.co.uk/topsguide.htm.

D. W. Roberts, via email

I suggest that Andrew Southwell opens Google and types in any locomotive number, class or name.  He will find dozens of web sites, which will lead him to undreamt of quantities of information about every locomotive ever built, and many which weren’t.

John Brandon, Tonbridge, Kent.

CHART COLOURS

I have been trying to make graphs of certain variables using the Excel Chart wizard. I want to use a specific colour code for many small graphs of different quantities of the same variables. However, I have only been able to change the colour for each individual graph and wondered if there was a way I could use the same coloured legend on many charts.

Deborah Pocock, via email

Deborah should first define her chart with colours as required. Then she should right click it and go into Chart Types, select the tab Custom Types and click the radio button User Defined. This makes and Add button available and she can add her chart with a custom name. Next time she wants to use it for a new chart, she should just go into the Custom Types.

John Beardsworth, via email

Deborah Peacock wants to repeat her graph format for different sets of data. One way is to put the graph on its own sheet, then copy it onto a new sheet.  By right clicking on the new graph, then clicking Source Data, you can change the data to the new values.

John Duffield, Loughton. Essex

You can customise the Excel colour palette in Tools/Options using the Color Tab. The Chart Wizard will assign the "Chart Fills" colours to the first data sets followed by the "Chart Lines" colours then from the "Standard Colours" if you exceed 16 data sets. Each colour can be individually set using the "Modify" button. These modified colour settings can then be used for graphs and cell/text colours. The settings are stored and applied throughout the current workbook with new workbooks reverting to the default colour schemes.

Neil Watson, via email

SILVER TONGS

I am a keen collector of silver sugar tongs (‘nips’ or ‘bows’ as they are sometimes called). Ninety percent of my 120 strong collection are English Hallmarked, and normally identifiable. However, I have some from European countries plus the USA, Russia and Argentina etc., and I am looking for a source of information to identify and explain foreign markings. I have not been able to find any books on foreign silver, although UK marks are well documented. Can anyone suggest a web site?

David Bennett, Allestree

I suggest your correspondent tries: http://home.wxs.nl/~luijt005/hallm.htm

R.E. Macpherson, Santiago, Chile

NUMBERED TICKETS

I produce tickets using Microsoft Publisher 2002 for events and outings organised by my local Women’s Institute.  I create them in File > Page Setup > Custom and print 6 or 8 to the page. However, it is often necessary for the tickets to be numbered.  Is it possible to number tickets in Publisher, or can anyone suggest a better method?

Chris Moore, Colchester

There is a manual solution to the problem which Chris Moore of Colchester has printing sequential serial numbers on tickets. I had the same problem when producing raffle tickets, except that there were two repetitions of the same number, one on the stub and one on the ticket. I use PagePlus, not Microsoft Publisher. Rexel sell a number stamp, which can produce 1, 2, 3 or up to 7 prints of the same number and then it indexes on by one number to the next number. It’s a little fiddly to set up but very easy to use. I put a small location mark on the printed stub and ticket where I wanted the number to print and found it quite easy to line up the stamp so as to place the number in the correct spot. Some might consider it a little costly but as far as I am concerned it has repaid its cost many times over in saved time.

Tim Crawley, via email

CAN YOU HELP?

I am a teaching assistant working one-to one with a special needs child in a

Primary school. I have been looking everywhere for a font (preferably Comic

Sans) that writes the letters in dots that can be joined by the child to help with their writing/pencil control. So far without success. Can anyone help? I am sure this would be of use to other teachers and their assistants.

L. Sims, via email

My wife and I, fairy competent silver-surfers, are contemplating moving to rural Spain before the arthritis gets us! The location has no mains power or reliable terrestrial telephone services and we really would like a high-speed broadband service. Solar panels and a back up generator are no problem but does anyone know of a fairly priced satellite service or some other system available on the Mediterranean coast north-west of Almeria?

Ray Martin, via email