OVER 2 YOU, 109 (03/12/02)

ON LINE STATIONARY

I have recently started my own business and presumed I could now design and order my new stationery online. However, various search engines have supplied me with only very slow and unreliable sites (which I'd better not name!). Can anyone recommend a fast, easy-to-use online print design system -- preferably not too expensive -- or am I still best off using high street print shops?

Stuart McGregor, via email

I would suggest trying the www.printing.com website or calling at one of their stores or franchisees.  I have found it a fast efficient service at a very competitive price.

Brian Coleman-Smith

Having offered this facility we have found that people's requirements are so diverse that letterheads, business cards and brochures are by their nature bespoke to the individual. One person's idea of a 'cool' typeface is not another's and likewise it is impossible to select paperweight and colour in the virtual world.  It is simply not feasible to post on a website the variations possible and we find that in the majority of cases it is not until a printed proof is seen by a customer that they get a feel for the image they wish to portray.
Angela Metcalfe, Metloc Printers Ltd

Try either www.iprint.com or www.previewprint.com.  We ordered some stationery from Previewprint and the result was better than some high street print shops, and much cheaper.

Tony Maywood

I recommend a print processing application called Reform. The software works with all types of applications. It can be downloaded for testing from http://www.intrinsic-solutions.co.uk it is fully functional and only requires licensing when you are happy with it.

John Raybould

PHONE FAN

I found the recent discussion on valve amplifiers and old mechanical televisions absolutely fascinating, now I wonder if I can throw in my two ‘pennoth? My hobby, which I have taken up since retiring, is collecting old telephones (pre 1960 and preferably GPO issued) and now I’m the proud but naive owner of an Internet PC, I wonder if any readers can help me track down any informative web sites or direct me to ways of contacting fellow enthusiasts?

Geoffrey Burns, via email  

I suggest ebay, as a good source for old telecomms equipment, there is a section specifically for telephones. I have sold a few that I have collected from the 1960s for between £5 and £15, depending on model.
Stuart Hales

Geoffrey Burns will find all the info he requires on the website of the Telephone Heritage group at www.thg.org.uk. I hope he will consider joining; it is well worth it.

Michael Beckley

SINCLAIR SEARCH

I recently bought an old (circa 1975) Sinclair pocket TV from someone on the Internet. It came unboxed and without instructions and as expected turned out to be faulty. Does anyone know of a source of service manuals for old or obsolete TV and video equipment?

James Connell, via email

I don't know any source of service manuals, but the TV may be OK. I bought one on Wimbourne market a few years back but subsequently broke the screen.  However, my experience may be of help. The sets were designed to run from a flat pack battery used by Polaroid cameras.  This has a non standard voltage.  I found by trial and error that my TV, which appeared to be non-functional, was very sensitive to the supply voltage and would only work over a range of plus or minus half a volt. The set gets its HT supply from a scanning oscillator, which at too low or too high a voltage does not work. I used a variable output power supply and gradually raised the voltage. At the correct voltage it burst into life.  Above, it died again.

I must say it was hardly worth the effort. A postage stamp size screen,tinny sound, and although supposed to work on any system it has a simple rod aerial which only works in a powerful signal area.  OK for a novelty museum I suppose!
Gordon Nunn

A firm called Mauritron specialise in service manuals for old TVs and Radios. They go back to pre-war and can be found on www.mauritron.co.uk or e-mail cdinfo@mauritron.co.uk. It also issues catalogues on CD ROM. This has a whole page of Sinclair products, which you can obtain by downloading or have sent by post, cost varies depending on the size of the manual, so you need to know the model number for the TV.

John Holmes

Have a look in "Wireless World" There is generally a number of ads at the back of this magazine offering the publications he is looking for.
I.M.Tasker

OUT OF TOUCH WITH HIS MOUSE
My 85 year-old neighbour has lost the sense of touch in his fingertips and finds it impossible to use a mouse.  He also has difficulties when using the keyboard. He has heard of a 'glove mouse', which sounds useful, but there does not seem to be in production any more. He is now confined to a wheelchair and would find the use of his computer now more valuable than ever. Has anyone any suggestions or experience of using a PC with this kind of disability?

Dougie Morrison, via email

I suggest Dougie Morrison's neighbour try taking daily 60-120mg of Ginkgo Biloba tablets. These help with circulation of blood to extremities- feet, hands and brain. I have diabetes type 2 and they have helped to improve
circulation in my feet.
Raymond Reid

FOOTBAL FIXTURES

Does anybody know of a way I can download football league and premiership fixtures into an Excel spreadsheet for betting analysis each week? It would also be useful if I could automatically download each team's points total. Currently I just key the data in manually each week.

Roger Thornhill, via email

You can get an email of fixtures & results & betting analysis from: http://www.mabels-tables.com/email/

Phil Strain

SHEET MUSIC

Apart from ebay does anybody know a source of old (probably out of publication) song sheet music?        

David Minor, via email

I came across the Lester Levy Collection of Sheet Music held by the Johns Hopkins University  (http://levysheetmusic.mse.jhu.edu), which is a great mine of songs and other music spanning the years 1780 to 1960.  All are fully indexed and most items pre-1923 are downloadable. Although the quality of reproduction not completely ideal, all are easily decipherable and the whole site is a mine of gems!

Ian Stuart

 I run a free loan service of sheet music, which is out of copyright, via my website (www.atemssheetmusiclibrary.co.uk). The site also has links to sources of vintage music available for sale.

Alan T.
 

SHARE PRICES

I would like to be able to download price histories of shares, indices etc for use in a Technical Analysis program, for as far back as possible, and to update these histories as required. Does anyone know of any suitable sites, either free or subscription based?
Peter Shelton, by e-mail

A software package called Investorease has a vast amount of comment, data, historic and current prices.  It operates on both intra-day and a full evening price updates, the prices can be down loaded to several different packages including Excel or 123. It is available on a monthly subscription of about £11. It can be found on the web under www.investorease.com.

G.Johnson

CAN YOU HELP

I live abroad and regularly listen to the Archers on the Radio 4 web site. However this requires the use of RealPlayer software, which I find intrusive and unreliable. Does anyone know of an alternative that will allow me to get my daily fix of the goings on in Ambridge, without messing around with my PC and accessing my internet connection without permission?

Trevor Lacey, via email

Does anybody know how to get Excel to show a negative minutes and seconds value? My work involves timing TV scripts - having done an initial estimate of a scene length, I enter it formatted as minutes and seconds. In the next column when the scene is recorded, I enter the actual time the scene lasted. In the third column is a formula to show the difference between the two, which when it’s a negative figure appears unhelpfully as ‘#####’. Is there any way round this?

Helen Stephens, via email

Our local Arts Centre shows films using a video projector. Most of the films are in 16:9 widescreen ratio. Before the film there is a Powerpoint 'slide show' made up of  announcements of forthcoming events, exhibitions, scanned leaflets, etc., and these are obviously in the standard 4:3 Powerpoint ratio. It is therefore necessary to access the projector menu and alter the ratio settings before showing the film, which detracts from the general video presentation. Can anyone think of a way to modify the Powerpoint input to give a 16:9 ratio widescreen view?

Brian Hemingway, via email