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THE RVERSCORNER Newsletter
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July, 2001

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Hi folks,

There are going to be a few changes to The RVers Corner Newsletter!

This newsletter has been hosted by ListBot for the last several years.
(ListBot was a free service for small website owners like me!) The deal was
... ListBot hosted our newsletters for free and, in exchange, we allowed their
advertisements to appear within our newsletters. A win/win arrangement, yes?

About a year ago, ListBot was bought by Microsoft!

About a month ago, all 90,000+ ListBot newsletter users (like me) got an e-mail message that
stated that ListBot would now cost $149 per year, and if we didn't like it, we could
move our e-mail lists elsewhere. Period.

Well, these high handed tactics for a cash grab by Microsoft will not be supported by this webmaster!

They said, "Buy my service, or get out of Dodge". I chose to "Get out of Dodge!"

This move is not an easy task! I have spent many, many hours, looking for an alternative solution.

I am sure that many other small newsletter publishers have gone through the same agonizing decisions
that I have gone through. If you are a webmaster and are looking for an alternative solution,
I would be happy to share my experiences and results. E-Mail me at: webmasterl (at) rverscorner.com

The RVers Corner will now host this newsletter! This transition may cause a few problems,
but hopefully will be as painless as possible.

This issue is the last to be sent using ListBot.

Our subscriber list is well over 2200 members, and growing daily! Welcome new Subscribers!

Inside this issue:

- From the RVer's Open Forum:
- From the RVer's Corner Inbox:
- Give your RV a classy facelift By Peggi McDonald (part one of two)
- Big Time Wasters By Dr. Donald E. Wetmore
- Backup Mysteries Revealed, Part 2 The NewbieClub


Joke of the Day:
Classified Ad Section:
About the RVer's Corner Newsletter:
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From the RVers Open Forum:

Question:

I notice that mostly I can leave the thermostat set on "2" for adequate cooling;
however in the heat of the day, I need to increase it, usually up to "4". As night
comes, I have to remember to turn it back to "2" otherwise the contents will freeze.
Is it normal behavior for a refrigerator to need to the thermostat adjusted according
to the time of day? Or is there something wrong with this one?


Answer:

These refrigerators act a little differently from the normal household appliance and
they need a little more time to catch up to a thermostat setting. Their reaction time
is slower and they are more prone to "cold" loss when opening the door many times and
for long periods. Ideally, the door should be open only as long as absolutely necessary
- think about what you need to get before you open the door, get it, and close the door.
On hot days, this becomes more important. If you are opening the door frequently for cold
beverages or similar items, maybe a small ice filled cooler would be a solution.

This said, setting the thermostat to a higher setting does not help it cool faster - it
only allows the burner/heating element to run longer. That is why you have to set it back
down at night. Less "cold" loss because the door is not being opened - the burner/element
is running longer and dropping the temperature too low.

This does sound like a thermostat problem and it is not a normal requirement to reset the
thermo as you are describing.

The thermostat should regulate the temperature to it's setting regardless of external
factors (within reason).


Happy trails,

Les Doll
http://www.rverscorner.com

This is what our forum is all about ... rv'ers helping other rv'ers!


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From the RVer's Corner Inbox:

Question:

I have been looking at some solar panels for trickle charging our batteries
when we are dry camping.

I don't need anything large and have been told to buy a 5 Watt solar panel
made by ICP Global Technologies - a "BatterySaver Pro5W".

All I want is to run some power into the batteries during the day and restore
as much power as is reasonable without putting out a lot of money.

As usual, I have got 2 separate pieces of advice....one guy says anything
above a 5W requires a separate power regulator ($ + installation). This 5W
has it's own regulator + alligator clips to go to the battery terminals.

Someone else said that wasn't true and don't worry about it unless you're
up to 50W or so.

Any comments as to this idea and if that 5W item is useful or a waste of money
because of the low power output?


Answer:

The 5 watt panels are only for trickle charging a starting battery over a long
period of time. Five watts is a very low charge rate (about .4 amps) so over an
eight hour sun period, would provide about 3.2 amp hours of charge per day.

This would resupply the use of two of your single lights for one hour or ...
the use of your water pump for about 20 minutes. Less the inefficiencies involved,
the available charge from these is negligible for what you want to do.

A 75 watt panel (about 4.5 amps) over an eight hour sun period = about 36 amp/hours
of charge which replaces some or all of the power used in a day. (Depending on your
power requirements)

The 75 watt panel uses a regulator and the total system is about $1,000 Canadian.

I have some links to RV solar sites on my links page http://www.rverscorner.com/links.html
that will give you a better idea - check them out.

Hope this answers your question!

Happy trails,
Les Doll
http://www.rverscorner.com


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Give your RV a classy facelift...by Peggi McDonald (Part one)

It happens to all of us eventually, everything in our RV's becomes dull
and drab from extended usage plus dust and dirt. It's not that we as
RVers lack good housekeeping skills, these units simply need a new
facelift now and then. This becomes even more evident after a visit
to an RV show or dealer Open House. It is so easy to fall in love
with a pristine dream machine simply because it glistens. However
your older reliable home away from home can look equally as impressive
with a few simple upgrades.

Don't fret; even if creativity is not your strong point, it is not
difficult to add a fresh face to your present home on wheels. A little
imagination along with some inexpensive pretty fabric and basic sewing
skills can easily transform a tired RV into a show place. A sewing
machine may also help some but in many cases it is not necessary.
Depending on the degree of upgrade, cost can be under a few hundred
dollars.

When I decide to modify I begin with a visit to fabric stores to peruse
up-to-date curtain ideas in search for suggestions, many styles are
available ready made. Lets begin with the bedroom by adding a fresh
covering to the valences. Frequently this may be as little as covering
existing frames with new fabric---pleating or simply fastening the
fabric with hidden straight pins works well--on the underside of course.
With the addition of new blinds or lacy cafe style curtains the room
takes on a cozy bright spot. Coordinated sheets and quilted throw
completes the transformation. Thanks to the little girl in me I usually
add a stuffed animal or two or three as a final touch. Color matched
pillows can also highlight our new look.

If I can't find quality inexpensive fabric on sale I sometimes use king
or queen size sheets. This way I have 'mucho' fabric to work with, plus
it's easier to balance colors. Our present coach decor has an olive
green/gold hue and since the valences are in good shape so I simply
mounted vibrant silk ivy/floral arrangements to each living room valence
for a dramatic transition. By the way the 's' style curtain hooks with
one sharp end work wonders to hang items on all cloth or padded areas.

The bathroom too can undergo a simple uplift by adding 'lampshade aprons'
(these too can be pinned in place) and making a washable toilet seat cover
from the same fabric-finished size approximately 15" high x 14"wide.
Another option is to sew each side of a folded hand towel, angle the top
corners of the lid for fitted effect. Simply slip the cover over the lid;
add a coordinated rug from the dollar store. Fresh silk floral arrangement
completes the transformation. Voila, your bathroom now has a classy touch.
Above the toilet we mounted a plexi-glass shelf with a heat-curled edge on
brass wall brackets. With the addition of a few fancy things on small pieces
of non-slip plastic mesh along with a plant and your bathroom too sports an
elaborate image.

In the kitchen John and I wall papered directly over the plastic covered
wallboard. To accomplish this in an RV, wallpaper as normal but add an extra
covering of vinyl-to-vinyl glue designed to attach borders before attaching
the wallpaper. NOTE: It is much more time-consuming to cut around corners
when wallpapering the small areas in an RV. Recently we found a neat brass
wall hanger with two small nails at the back. These hangers only make small
holes in the wall, yet they are very strong. They also look so good it is
easier to leave them in place when you sell your unit than it is to plug
holes where hangers once were.

Use the same techniques to modify valences in the bedroom, kitchen and
living areas. Instead of removing what is in place try dressing it up
with a new covering or by adding floral displays. The addition of preformed
lace café style curtains complete with rod holes on the hanging edge helps
to add a homey touch to the living room decor. We attached our café curtain
rod brackets to the screws on our window frames-no extra bracket holes were
necessary. In our kitchen, we hang sleeves to hold garbage bags (14"x18"-with
elastic casing top and bottom) on each side of the window; a valence in the
same fabric frames the window with interesting dressing.

Front drapes too can receive a colorful upgrade by adding an overlay instead
of doing the curtains from scratch. However this may be a bit advanced for the
basic seamstress. Since we have two dachshunds, furniture cover-ups are really
a necessity, but keeping them in place was always a challenge. In the past I
designed special slipcovers that I could easily remove for washing, yet with
the help of elastic straps they always stayed put. Two years ago I discovered
a dark-colored chenille throw from Wal*Mart is perfect as a couch cover.
Simply because it clings to fabric, it stays put for days on end.

Part two in the next issue!

Hope this column provides a few ideas. Whether your makeover is a touch-up or an
extensive facelift, spending the time to give your trusty home on wheels an update
is always worthwhile. Driving a 'like-new' unit adds zest to your travels. Have fun.


Peggi and John are RV Lifestyle Consultants who understand the idiosyncrasies
of the Canadian RVer. Peggi's book Spirit of the Open Road
(See http://www.rverscorner.com/sipirit.html for details.)
is one of the most comprehensive how-to publications on the market. Don't forget to
check her web page and download her two FREE comprehensive e-books RV Living: Facts,
Tips, Hints and More---Vol One and Vol Two on http://www.rvliving.net



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Big Time Wasters
By Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

You may be well intended about getting things done during your day at work
or during your personal time, but there are big time wasters that will conspire
against you to take your productive time away. It has been said that the road
to Hell is paved with good intentions. In conducting my Time Management Seminars
over the last 20 years, I have identified five Big Time Wasters that you can attack.



Poor planning. "People don't plan to fail but a lot of people fail to plan."
Without a plan of action for your day you tend to direct your attention to the
most urgent thing that may not necessarily be the best use of your time. Often,
the day will be filled with wheel spinning and "busy-ness", rather than business.
When I was in the military, we referred to the "Six P's": "Poor planning produces
pretty poor performance". (I recall that some used a different word for "pretty",
but I'm sure you get the point.)

Procrastination. Taking the time for planning is great but what if you don't
execute on your plan? You tend to put off doing what you know you ought to be
doing when there is little or no pain for not doing it and little or no pleasure
to do it. Procrastinating the unimportant things has a positive value in your day.
The problem for many is that they are procrastinating the important items.

Interruptions. You can do a great job of planning and not be much of a procrastinator,
but interruptions will come your way and rob you of productivity. An interruption is
an unanticipated event. That's what makes it an interruption. They come to you from
two sources, in-person and electronic (telephone, email, beeper, pager, etc.)
Interruptions are both good and bad. There are A (crucial) and B (important)
interruptions that you receive without reservation. By definition, they have value
to you and are welcomed. But then there are the C (little value) and D (no value)
interruptions that only take you away from being as productive as you might otherwise
desire.

Failure to delegate. "If you want a job done well, you have to do it yourself". Have
you ever said that to yourself? The problem is you only have 24 hours in your day, 7
days a week for a total of 168 hours. Subtract from that the time you sleep (perhaps
8 hours per night, 7 nights per week, or 56 hours in total) and you are now down to only
112 hours each week to do everything you need and want to do. Delegation is plugging into
someone else's time stream when you don't have the time or the expertise to accomplish a
particular task. Delegation is how you can leverage your time through other people. A
lot of time is being wasted by doing what ought to be delegated to others.

Attending meetings. In a typical day in the United States, there are 17 million meetings.
A meeting is when two or more people get together to exchange common information. What
could be simpler? Yet it surely is a major time waster for many. They are particularly
wasteful and unproductive when there is no agenda or time frame and the meeting then
drifts out on one tangent and then another without concrete results.
Want five easy tips to help you to stop wasting a lot of your time? Get your free copy
now of "Stop Wasting Time". Email your request for "stop" to: mailto:ctsem@msn.com

Receive your free Timely Time Management Tips on a regular basis to increase your personal
productivity and get more out of every day? Sign up now for your free "TIMELY TIME MANAGEMENT
TIPS". Just go to: Oops, no longer available - and select "subscribe".

Dr. Donald E. Wetmore

Professional Speaker
Productivity Institute

Time Management Seminars
60 Huntington St., P.O. Box 2126
Shelton, CT 06484

(800) 969-3773
(203) 929-9902
fax: (203) 929-8151
email: ctsem@msn.com
Visit Our Time Management Supersite: http://www.balancetime.com
Professional Member-National Speakers Association
Copyright 2001 You may re-print the above information in its entirety in your
publication, newsletter, or on your webpage. For permission, please email your
request for "reprint" to: mailto:ctsem@msn.com

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Backup Mysteries Revealed, Part 2
By Tom Glander

In our first installment, we discovered how to create a
backup on a diskette. You backed up a file you created,
and today we'll restore that file. I hope you printed
Part 1, and that you'll print this installment as well.

OK, let's start. Make sure the diskette you used to create
your backup file is inserted in the disk drive.

Open Microsoft Backup (Start, Programs, Accessories, System
Tools, Backup.)

Dismiss the Wizard (the first screen that appears) so that
you're left with the main backup program. Just click the
Wizard's Close button.

Now, select the "Restore" tab. This is where we'll be working.
You may be asked if you want to "Refresh the view." Click
"Yes." In fact, answering affirmatively to any of the
questions you encounter at this point is fine. You will be
asked to select a backup set. You will want to select the
set (highlight it if it's not already) you created during
your backup process. Once this is done, you're ready to
begin.

1. In the "Restore from" field, "File" should already be
selected. Next to that, you should see "A:\Test Backup.qic."
This is the name of the file on the diskette. So we're
restoring the backup set named "Test Backup" and we're
going to restore it to its original location.

2. You'll see the "Where to restore" selector is already
filled in, and shows "Original Location." This is what you
want. If you want to restore to a different location, that's
another process altogether. We'll not be discussing that one
at this time.

3. In the "How to restore" area, you will see "Do not replace."
This is fine. It applies to files that already exist. So if
Backup compares what's in its own database of files with
the files it finds on your computer, it won't replace any
that already exist. You can click the "Options" button and
change this if you want to.

4. In the "What to restore" window pane click the plus sign
next to drive C:, then click the plus sign next to the Windows
folder, then click ON the Desktop folder. You'll see the file
named "My test backup file.txt" appear in the right window
pane. Click a checkmark in its selection box.

5. Now, DELETE the file you named "My Test Backup File.txt"
from your desktop. When it's gone, you're ready to restore
it using Backup.

6. Click the "Start" button. A new window appears that says
"The following Media are required to complete this operation.
If the required media are not available, cancel this operation
and check the available media." You should see a file listed
with the '.qic' file extension. Select this file by clicking
it once, then click "OK."

7. The "Restore Progress" indicator appears, and when the
progress indicator finishes, your restoration is complete.
Click the "Report" button to see exactly what was done, or
click OK. You should see the file appear on your desktop,
restored to its original format.

As you can tell, backing up data is easy using Microsoft
Backup. It resides on your computer, doesn't require any
additional expense, will use diskettes, another hard drive,
Zip disks, tape drives, whatever you want as media.

In my final presentation on this topic, I'll explain the
options for backing up, and will give you some strategies
that work in the real world.

We appreciate your telling others about what you've found
at The Newbie Club. Everything we sell is created specifically
with the new computer user in mind, and carries a 12 month no
questions asked money back guarantee. More details about our
flagship product are located at...
- Oops, no longer available!

Stop by and discover how to make friends with your PC.

I look forward to sending you the final installment in...
"Backup Mysteries Revealed."

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Copyright © 2000, 2001 Roglan International All Rights Reserved.
This tutorial may be distributed as long as it remains intact
and includes the entire body of text as is.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

This is an exerpt from the three part series "Backup Mysteries Revealed"
To get this free tutorial delivered to your mailbox click here:
mailto:backup_help_me_now@fastresponder.com

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Joke of the Day:

One of Microsoft's finest techs was drafted and sent to boot camp. At the
rifle range, he was given some instruction, a rifle and bullets. He fired
several shots at the target. The report came from the target area that all
attempts had completely missed the target.
The tech looked at his rifle, and then at the target. He looked at the rifle
again, and then at the target again. He put his finger over the end of the
rifle barrel and squeezed the trigger with his other hand.
The end of his finger was blown off, whereupon he yelled toward the target
area, "It's leaving here just fine, the trouble must be at your end!"

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CLASSIFIED ADS

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The Dummy's Guide to Buying a Pre-Loved RV - by Les Doll
In the market for a pre-owned recreational vehicle?
Not sure what to inspect or how to inspect it?
The Dummy's Guide is written for you, by an RV Tech
and RV damage estimator. Free Download!

http://www.rverscorner.com/dummyltr.html

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SPIRIT OF THE OPEN ROAD by Peggi McDonald is a 'must have'
for all RVers, both novice and experienced travelers.
Although written from a Canadian point of view it is 95%
generic and a valuable guide to RVers from all countries.
For complete details -
http://www.rverscorner.com/spirit.html

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!!! HAPPY CAMPIN' !!!

Les Doll - RV Technician
My advice is free and worth only what you gain from it!