Bet
it happened to at least some of us who, in all good faith, tendered a
valid credit card to the shopkeeper, who slipped it through the card
reader, but it failed to scan the magnetic band. He did it again, and
again, and ... nothing. The queue started to form behind you and you
began to feel embarrassed as thought it's your fault. The cashier
reached down and from below the counter, he pulled out a black plastic
bag, wrapped the failing card, and passed it through the reader again.
Worked. Shopping concluded.
Verifone, the company that fabricate the reader of credit card machines, refused to confirm or deny this black plastic bag trick. That's just one of the many little low tech tricks even some high tech engineers occasionally resort to, through desperation I guess, and found some of the unlikely emergency measures surprisingly work.
Mobile Phone with low battery: If you find that your mobile battery goes down too rapidly after being in your pocket for too long, part of the reason might be the temperature of your pocket is too warm. It should be kept in cooler places, advised Isidor Buchanan, Director of the web page Battery University. The human body warmth transmitted through the cloth of your pocket is enough to accelerate the chemical process in the interior of the battery and this shortens the life of the battery. It lasts longer if carried in a handbag or clipped to the waist belt, or an outside pocket instead of one closest to the body.
At
night, when the phone is turned off, put it in the fridge also
lengthens the life of a battery. I would be the one who would always
forget to take it out the next day!
When ink cartridges in the printer get too dry:
just when you are printing an important document, take out the ink
cartridge and use a hair-dryer to blow on it for 2-3 minutes. Re-insert
it in the printer while it's still warm. It usually solves the immediate
problem, giving you enough time to get new ink.
The Remote for the car: Suppose you are on the other side of the garage and your remote can't reach the car. Press the metal part of the key against your chin then press the button to open. This trick apparently converts your head into an antenna, explained Tim Pozar, a radio engineer of Silicon Valley. This serves to join the command of your head, with all the fluid there is in the head, this action ends up being a good conductor. It's not excellent, but it works. (Got to confess this particular explanation leaves me completely in the dark still.)
Dropped your mobile phone down the toilet? By accident usually I should think. Fish it out and take out the battery immediately, to avoid the electric short circuits carbonise the fragile internal components of the phone. Dry the phone thoroughly with a soft towel, and put it in a jar full of raw rice. The rice contains an elevated, chemical affinity for water; it thus attracts like magnet the molecules of water, which is absorbed by the rice instead of dripping inside the phone.
Dirty disks: If you need to clean a DVD or CD that skips and you are a bachelor that has no cleaning material in the house, you can moisten a cloth with Vodka (that you must have) or some mouthwash, to gently wide over the surface. Alcohol is a very powerful dissolvent, perfectly capable of dissolving prints of dirty fingers, dust and dirt. A €4 bottle of mouthwash is equally effective as a €60 bottle of cleaning liquid for DVD. Using Vodka is definitely more macho than using a cleaning kit too!
Try them. Don't thank me and don't blame me whatever the result!
Current Mood: 
Accomplished
Accomplished
No comments:
Post a Comment