Even with all the hype about Twitter and Facebook, it seems that a forum is the place on the web where I find the best answers to my questions. Here is the latest example..... the fan in the heater/air conditioning unit of my car has been acting strange over the past few months. It was going on and off at random times when it should have been on. Finally it stopped working completely. Since this is a car that I don't want to put any more money into, I kept putting off taking it to a shop. I guessed it was something around a $500 problem. Before taking it in, I figured I would see what the internet had to say about the issue. A quick search led me to a BMW forum that with a thread that matched my problem. The thread described the part to replace and exactly how to replace it. (To give the forum a plug, here is a link: DIY - Replacing the final stage unit/blower motor resistor - bimmerfest - BMW Forums ) I ordered the part, had no trouble replacing it, and now my climate control unit works perfectly. It cost $85 instead of the several hundred a shop would have charged. :highclap:
Absolutely! About two years ago my recently out of warranty Sammy DLP TV had developed a shadow alongside the edge of the screen. Google + forums provided sufficient information to call Samsung with enough ammo that it didn't take long to convince them to pay for repairs. Cost me nothing (instead of $250-$1000 to pay for it myself) and if I hadn't learned about it beforehand I wouldn't have known the magic words to say to them
I had a similar experience with the outboard engine on our boat malfunctioning last week. Took 15 mins to repair and the parts cost $49.95, it would have easily run into $100s if taken to a boat repair shop. . I wasn't even aware there was such a wealth of knowledge & a forum just for our boat engine. Palm850/v0100 Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows CE; IEMobile 7.11)
Joe i had the same exact problem with my BMW e39, i agree with you, i've found so much useful tips on how to work on my car through forums, and Bimmerfest is one of them, i'm also a member there, and at bimmerforums . bimmerfest - BMW Forums - View Profile: Tony E! Many years ago when i was rookie and didn't know much about cellphones, i searched through the net and led me to this great forum.
I love how there are still forums. This forum actually helped me with all the cellular knowledge I needed and couldnt find anywhere else on the Internet. Thank you Wireless Advisor!!!!!!!!!!
Yep... without forums, I wouldn't have figured out how to tweak my Moto phones and J/B and unlock my iPhone....
Without the forums, I wouldn't have learned how to save my phone after having a drink spill on it. Which I also learned after that, "not to leave my phone on the table near drinks either", ha.
From cell towers here on WA, to how to install a AUX input in my mitsubishi outlander, to OTA HD reception issues on AVS forums; forums always have what I need.
What I love about forums, is that it provides a good sounding block for your views and opinions. If you say to your buddy "CDMA sucks!" he'll just agree with you, you'll be happy with his confirmation, and that's the end of it, CDMA officially sucks. ...but if you stand in front of a room full of people (or come on an internet forum) and say the same thing, you're going to get a wide range of different viewpoints, opinions, etc, and you're going to have to think about what you just said, and be prepared to come up with some facts and evidence to support it. Or, maybe ... just maybe ... in light of some new facts, evidence, opinion, etc that other people have brought to the table ... you might just see things from a different angle, and may even change your opinion ... I think of forums as mental bubble-gum; it gives me something to chew on
...except next gen stuff like LTE or WiMAX The CDMA days are soon done and I'm glad for it. It's overly complex and softhandovers (in CDMA based networks) are really overkill and unnecessary. So actually, I guess what I'm saying is "CDMA sucks"
I hear what you are saying, although code division multiplexing always has a soft corner in my heart. It is so elegant compared to time division multiplexing conceptually... kinda like learning about Amplitude modulation in my first communications class, and then learning about FM and going whoa... that is cool and so much more elegant than AM...
...and a soft-handover in your phone I agree, it's brilliant mathematically. Impressive stuff. But in the "real-world", if you want to say "4" just say "2+2=4" (GSM, LTE) rather than "4²+78+x*(0.24)/88-y" (CDMA/WCDMA). You can stand in awe of the mind-boggling CDMA equations, or bask in the simplicity of GSM and LTE. And as someone who works with this stuff daily, I like to bask in simplicity
Like a said in my PM "Spoken like a true brilliant & impractical scientist". Of course RR put it much more eloquently & in your language. Palm850/v0100 Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows CE; IEMobile 7.11)
Agreed. I like FB, don't really see the need for Twitter, but forums of all types will be around for some time IMO.
Facebook = internet crack... I have recently installed the Windows Mobile Facebook application, and now feel compelled to update my status constantly.
Meh...I'm not on facebook as much as I used to be. The only time I'm really on is if I'm bored and killing time, or if someone posts a message to me. I still don't mind having it though.
Forums have saved me many times. I work in the IT industry and forums are a vital part of research as users post issues that you may experience too. As others have said I would not have known much about cell phones if it weren't for this forum. Thanks JFB for this free forum to express our views, opinions and experiences!
I never really understood the point of twitter. But I guess because all the stars use it, it's become a huge craze. You still won't catch me using it though.
