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MEATBAG! DO YOU NOT RECOGNIZE THE BETADYNIUM RESISTANCE-MODULATED FORCEPTUAL GRIP APENDECES IN THE GRASP OF DR. INSANO?

Aka some kind of clamps, I believe. I've seen similar for electrical work, albeit with neon orange instead.

If I did, i wouldn't have asked what they were

Plastic can conduct electricty?

I would never make this mistake, as my speakers are constantly beaming bright blue cherenkov radiation at me.

Seriously, what is up with computer peripherals having these actinic blue lights the past few years?

They look like metal spring clamps to me...

Usually they are used for clamping things.

But they can't be for electric use because the ends are plastic - or maybe rubber.
Not sure if they're woodwork ones either - I think those usually use a screw to close them.
My dad has a small construction company - so I've seen the kind of tools they use

When I still worked for Apple, one of the things I discovered was that you could pull the mouse cord just enough out of the keyboard that it would stop working, but still look like it was plugged in correctly.

I had a *lot* of fun at my coworkers expense due to that fact.

No, they aren't meant to conduct electricity...they are meant to hold things in place. They're general purpose, so you could use them in electrical applications...but typically they hold things like tarps.

I've also seen spotlights with these clamps on the end so you can attach them somewhere temporarily.

I've only ever seen temp lamps with screws to hold them, not clips - although I'm sure they exist

What I hate is... The support person asks me my problem, and I run down a list:

* it's plugged in and turned on
* I tried unplugging and replugging cables
* I tried resetting the modem

etc...the basic stuff they always ask. And when I finish describing the problem and describing what I've already tried before finally calling, they ask...

"So is it plugged in and turned on?"

Yes they exist.

So how deep is that spot now? Has it moved from dent to hole yet?

That's just gross.
I think they're probably building clamps of some sort - maybe for holding glued pieces of wood together?
Or metal, if the guy's a mad scientist - doomsday devices aren't usually made of wood

Strange - I've never seen one - although it's not resally something I look for

Today must be my lucky day, because I keep finding these comments that just give me a big smile on the inside

Originally Posted by Arcanaville Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Big wide grin.

I recall one day my Crockpot wasn't heating up. I told my better, and smarter, half that I was going to have to buy another because it was not working.

"Is it plugged in?" he asked.

"Yes, of course" said I

He came over, eyeballed the situation, and burst out laughing.

It seemed that I had plugged in the toaster and not the crockpot.....So, yes...... "is it plugged in" is indeed a valid question.

Lisa-Still blushing

I am just glad in my job now I do not have to ask those questions to people, who could not tell the difference between Word and IE.

Why are you under the impression that all tools related to electrical work must conduct electricity? Specifically, why must tools designed to be held in your hand conduct electricity? Wouldn't it be smarter for them to NOT conduct so you wouldn't shock yourself on high voltage?

I specifically bought myself a pair of rubber-handle pliers for this reason alone, because I often have to stick them into the light sockets of a particular lamp that likes to unglue the glass of a bulb from its metal base, which you then can't unscrew normally without glass in it.

As far as postits over your mouse's projector, wouldn't the red light be the first thing you look at when your mouse isn't moving to ensure it's actually working at all?

Originally Posted by Arcanaville Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

I have no idea, and would like to know the answer too. Is it fashionable or something?

For me, and most of my friends, yes.

Weirdly, though, I've noticed people who check either the surface the mouse is moving on (in the case of this prank, the prankee would probably see the post-it note anyway), or just keep moving the mouse anyway. When I asked, apparently they're "used to the old mouse roller balls" or some such.

Yes, I know the ball-mouse has not been used for a long time now. I see it as kind of how I can't seem to move past HTML 4.01 into something more recent.

Hmm... I actually may be biassed in this. I've had a few PCs that tended to inexplicably just cut out power to the mouse (with that distinctive "ta-dum" noise of plug-n-play devices), so every time my mouse stopped moving, I'd flip it around to see if the light was on. Or, you know, just lift it off the pad. The red shine of the LED is clearly visible on most surfaces. If it's off, it's a technical glitch. If it's on, then it's something else. I mean, that's the most direct functionality check you can do, so it makes sense to do it before trying anything else.

As far as roller ball mice go, I've had a lot of bad experiences with these, but whenever one wouldn't roll, my instinct was to unscrew the bottom cap, take out the ball and look for grime on the rollers. Scraping that off with my fingernail tended to fix most problems related to that.

Originally Posted by Arcanaville Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

And if it doesn't, 90% of the time it's because the spring has worn out. I never figured out if that was just bad design or planned obsolescence.

LEGION OF VALOR - Be a part of the Legend!

But the clamps in the picture are the wrong way around - the end bits are rubber, and the handle parts are metal - I know the guy's a mad scientist, but that doesn't mean he's that dumb that he'd hold eletrical things by the metal parts

How about people who think they know everything about whatever it is they're calling about, so they start lecturing you incorrectly as to how it's supposed to work and why your tech support is wrong?

My monitor's the worst. The light is actually brighter than the monitor, and only about an inch below the screen. This was a huge distraction until I covered it up.

That was about 10 seconds after I turned it on.

If only I had known that me posting a picture of Dr. Insano would lead to this discussion...

That's not a slap in the face.

This is:

But, yes, it IS annoying and disconcerting.

Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.

I loved those people. And by loved, I mean "wanted to beat their brains out with a lemon wedge wrapped around a very large brick".