OVER 2 YOU, 114 (21/01/03)

DEAD DOG DILEMMA

I was recently given a Sony Aibo ERS-111 robotic dog. Unfortunately ‘Softy’ seems to be very sick. Sony tells me it has to be sent to France and wanted over £100 just to look at it, plus scary sums to replace limbs or the head. Are there any robotic vets in the UK who can see to my poorly plastic pooch?

Emily Trainer, via email

I sympathise, I too had an ailing Aibo called Henry and ran up against the same high cost of repairs but there doesn’t seem to be any alternative. Aibos suffer from a number of genetic disorders, other than simple wear, tear and old age. The most distressing complaint is known as Droopy Head Syndrome or ‘DHS’ and causes the dog’s head to sag all of the time. I understand that it is caused by a faulty clutch mechanism, a part that probably costs just a few pence but the only solution offered by Sony is a complete head replacement, costing several hundred pounds. Whilst it appears that Sony Europe won’t sell spare parts they can be obtained from the US division but they’re not cheap, once you’ve factored in the shipping charges and import duties. For more information go to: http://www.us.aibo.com/update/ contact3.php?mode=parts

Gillian Hodgson, Purley, Surrey

It would be very difficult indeed for anyone in the UK to set up an Aibo repair service since Sony’s European robotic division keep such a tight reign on spare parts. My own Aibo has been repaired twice, once for a damaged leg, the other time for a new head and on both occasions Sony refused to return the old components to me. I have since heard that Sony sell ‘reconditioned’ Aibos on its web site, I wonder where it gets all the bits from?

J.H.S, via email

MISSING FAX

I was amazed to find that my new pre-loaded Windows ME system does not have a fax function and Microsoft offer neither an apology for this or any solution. Can anyone recommend an easy to install fax program, which will allow me to send faxes in the way they were handled in Window 95?
Hal Thomas, via email

I have a US Robotics 56K Message Modem on my computer which lets me receive faxes even when my computer is off.

Hugh Landher

I have been very satisfied with Delrina's WinFaxPro for several years now. It is now marketed by Symantec and more details can be found at www.symantec.com. Otherwise upgrade to Windows XP, which has the facility requested.

Lord Bramhall

Have a look at BVRP Phone Tools on the web at www.bvrp.com, which I still have from the days when I was running Windows 98 SE.

Denise Neve

I use a really neat little stand-alone program called 'Just the fax', available from http://www.rkssoftware.com.

Malcolm Beet

The best software that performs the essential functions of a fax program superbly is Mighty Fax. It installs a printer driver so that you can fax directly from Microsoft Word and your scanner. It can be downloaded from www.rkssoftware.com for 30 days free trial and then £13 when you buy it, which you will. Alternatively, go to www.freewarehome.com >Fax utilities >CallCenter for a no-cost program, it’s generally reliable, slightly quirky but well worth a shot.

Keith Lycett

Like Hal Thomas, I was annoyed at the lack of fax facilities in Windows ME. However, I have found that WinFax Pro from Symantec is comprehensive, reliable and easy to use, with a useful "drag and drop" feature for document collation. I found it in PC World but it should be available online from.

Tony Rig, Bucks  

I have found Fax Machine from Nico Cuppen to be excellent. http://www.nicocuppen.com/ It allows you to scan directly to fax.

Mike O'Sullivan

I can highly recommend SnappyFax by SnappySoftware available for download from: www.snappyfax.com

Meirion L Parry

CYCLE DESIGN

I am entering a competition for a motorcycle design. I have plenty of ideas, but no means of expressing them in a technical format. My entry needs to be submitted by e-mail, can anyone suggest software for technical drawings?

Paul Reynolds.

Your correspondent might find the free drawing program at www.ptc.com useful. It is extremely sophisticated and has a very comprehensive tutorial.

John Rippengal

There are many graphics software packages that may assist, amongst them, CorelDraw. However, from my own experience, I would say too that they are very, very difficult to master - I am still trying! At the risk of sounding mercenary, I would suggest Mr. Reynolds contact an acquaintance of mine who has spent many years working as a draughtsman in the Aircraft Industry. Beginning with the now archaic pen and pencil skills, John Pinnington subsequently mastered software packages for technical drawing. Having retired from that profession now, for his amusement he runs a one-man graphics company and can be contacted at: johnpin.benson@virgin.net.

Bob Abbots

We have a range of software suitable for Paul's design and documentation requirements - both for three-dimensional design and 2D detailing. We'll be happy to provide a full-function version with a 30-day trial license. 

Francis Traylor, CADKEY UK, fnt@cadkey.co.uk , Tel +44 (0)2476 236323Fax +44 (0)2476 236503

EXCEL SCRIPTS

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

Further to the previous suggestions I have what I consider to be a very simple solution. In an Excel spreadsheet if columns A to C are formatted in hours, minutes and seconds, let column A be for Time 1 and column B for Time 2. Column C can be formulated with  (Time 2 - Time 1) as follows

:
             =if((Bx-Ax)>0,(Bx-Ax),(Ax-Bx))
             where x represents the appropriate row number.
Further identification of a negative time difference can be given by using
Conditional Formatting of Column D as follows:
             =if((Ax-Bx)>0,"Neg","")
                   and using a coloured text.
This system highlights the negative time section. No doubt someone can find a way to combine the Conditional Formatting change of colour into the time difference column, and do away with column D altogether.
Alex B. Dobie

HEARING DIFFICULTIES

I wear two behind the ear Widex analogue hearing aids.  I have been denied the use of a mobile phone because every one I try to use results in a high pitched noise rendering reception to be totally inaudible.  Has anyone else
experienced this problem and how have they solved it?
Geoff Jackson, via email

Those in the hard of hearing world have known of this problem for some time and Hearing Concern (a charity run for hard of hearing people) has been raising awareness of the issue.

The problem is that parts of the hearing aid act as an aerial and pick up the digital signal emitted by the mobile phone. Geoff Jackson will probably find that the interference is even worse with a digital cordless phone. Both mobile phone and hearing aid manufacturers are aware of the problem and many modern hearing aids are more resistant to interference.

To get over the problem until hearing aids are fully resistant, Geoff Jackson could purchase a hands-free device so that the phone is remote from the hearing aid (the interference is reduced dramatically with distance) and the aid can be switched to T (inductive coupling). Some available adaptive devices have been reviewed in the Hearing Concern magazine of Spring 2002. The website for Hearing Concern is www.hearingconcern.com and Geoff Jackson may be able to get a back copy of the magazine. Personally, I use a T-Link sold by Connevans (www.connevans.com) and this works well for me.

Jack Sandover, Loughborough

CAN YOU HELP?

I am using Windows 98 SE, MS. Word and MS. Outlook Express 6. I need to send a short questionnaire via e-mail to various people. I have composed a template in Word, which I send by mail and ask the recipients to complete and return via the reply button. It serves the purpose but is a bit temperamental, depending on how much the recipient types in. There must be a better way? Does anyone know of a better system or program that will do the job?

Ted Wooller, via email

Does anybody have any good ideas or software suggestions for cataloguing stamps on a PC?
Tom Livingston, via email

Sometimes I need to protect an individual cell, a number of cells or columns within a spreadsheet rather than an entire sheet or workbook. Is there anyway of forcing Excel 2000 to do this?
I.C. Blaik, via email