Quoting Ed Vance to Barry Martin on 01-Jun-2019 14:00 <=-

I haven't been lurking here for awhile.

That's the way to get behind... ;)

As i read Your message to Nancy I decided to add my thoughts to the conversation going on between You, Her and Daryl (and maybe Others). -snip-

I seem to remember reading was a method to gain knowledge before
television and YouTube videos!

Maybe You are not as old as I am but I remember sitting on the floor listening to the Radio.

As do I... also sitting on the floor (or on a piece of furniture)
reading a book..... :)

And considering that I'm not looking to tv or YouTube for
information.... ;)

Radio???

Generally... :) I do get most of my news from the 3 minute or so "top
of the hour" news headlines that the classical station gets from NPR...
other information is still generally from books... or what I learn from
reading messages in the echoes... ;)

I have thought of buying a Tablet and putting a Spreadsheet on it to compare the prices that different stores have on the same product.
Many Years ago My Wife kept a spiral notebook in Her purse for Me.
I wrote down the prices for things we buy often and had pages for
three or four Grocery Stores and Sam's (back then anyone who worked
could buy from Sam's by paying an added 5% of the purchase price).

I mostly keep prices in my head... works short-term pretty well... and I generally can keep track of what my usual store charges for things...

I used that book and a circular sliderule.
The sliderule helped Me compare the price per weight of different size packages of the same (or similar) product(s).
It being round was easier to use than a old slip stick sliderule.
I never had to readjust the slider, I just rotated it a bit to compare
a price to see which one cost less Cents than the others.
I didn't have to move the center slider part, just held My thumb on it when I wanted to know which one to buy.

Most grocery stores have shelf tags which show the unit price per lb/oz/100ct/whatever to make it easier to compare without resorting to a calculator or sly drool... ;) I used a slip stick in college... :)

Were there anyone doing that at Your Store, or am I unique?

Your method might be somewhat unique, but lots of people do try to
compare prices.... I've encouraged that sort of behaviour in some people
I know that don't seem to pay that much attention to the real cost of
things, too... :)

Better too many calls than nobody... ;)

I thought too many informants was a lot better than not being told.
If the power goes out the reporting is relying on people being home.
(Well, used to rely on; have read of smart distribution systems which
self-report.)

The Electric Company updated the electric meter on our house to one
that the Meter Reader didn't have to come to our back yard to read.
I believe, in each neighborhood they have a Wireless Hub that gathers readings from all of the meters in its area and sends reports to the Electric Co.

The electric meter on our camp in the Adirondacks has been changed to
one that the meter reader can read from the comfort of his/her vehicle
with a remote device... Our meters here at home still need to be read
directly up close, whether we do it or the meter reader does... and they
are down in our basement... ;)

I still use a Land Line Telephone, and I have entered the Emergency
Number for the Electric Company on a button to use when the lights go
out.
I know unless the Telephone Poles have been blown down by a Storm I
can still report a loss of power just by pressing one button on my
phone set.
People in my area who have Telephone Service through a Cable Company
can't do that.
When the A.C. Power fails, nothing works for them unless they have a
UPS (Uninterruptable Power Supply) between their Cable Box and the Wall Outlet.
I can because I know the Phone Co. has large Batteries in their
building that supply power to their Land Line Phone Customers.

We still have a landline also... the phone is likely to still work, even
if the power is down in the area.... We don't have cable TV, either, but
even if we did, we'd still want our phone service to NOT be via cable...

Probably still is better when people also call it in...
reassurance that the smart system is working properly.... ;)

Right. Always the possibility of a phone call not being logged
properly. A single phone call could create a very low priority outage;
fifty phone calls from the same area should elevate the emergency-ness.

Some time the Electric Company's Computer says I was the first caller
to report a problem to them.

An observant good citizen...

OH!, My wrist, elbow and shoulder hurts when I pat Myself on My Back.

You need to work on getting them more flexible, I guess... :)

ttyl neb

... Hey! Where did this tagline come from?

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