len_mullen

My wife asked me if I would go out and get one of these for her. I will venture out so no one has an excuse to borrow my t100 -- which also has no optical disk ;-)

Well this was fun. It's sad that we could only post five items. So far, my lucky kid has a cool race track, an awesome electric car, an official Red Rider carbine action two hundred shot range model air rifle, and a crazy car. For the grand finale... BURGUNDY RED COMET PEDAL CAR http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/ODE0WDEwNjI=/z/JPcAAOSwEppUNeFp/$_57.JPG My father got one of these which looked a little like his car and repainted it so it looked a LOT like his car -- right down to the license plate. Like all cars built in the 60s, it succumbed to body rot (the plastic electric car is in my attic). Any kid would love a car like this. I did. In fact, I loved every single posted toy. My mother did most of the Christmas work -- decorating, meal, stocking stuffing, and all the little gifts under the tree -- but my father always got the 'big gifts'. They were very memorable. Thanks dad!

Maybe, but I was buying laptops before desktops had optical drives. The venerable IBM 600 series laptop had a removable bay which could hold an optical drive, a floppy drive, a magnetic drive, or an extra battery. While the definition of a laptop may not be precise, wrapping definitions in historical perspective might help. Initially, there were computers which came as components or all-in-one configurations. Then we got portables and 'luggables' which were designed to stand up to the rigors of transportation. The Gavilan SC was the first computer actually marketed as a laptop. Launched in 1984, it ran on batteries and had the familiar clam shell style case and a 400×64 LCD display, but no optical drive. A year later, the first 'IBM compatible' laptop arrived. The Kaypro 2000 had no optical drive. Optical disks did not become important or common until Windows 95. Windows 95 could be installed from optical disk or floppy -- the upgrade version came on 25 floppies. Office Pro came on 30! I believe the first consumer laptops that came with an optical disk were Gateways. Notebook is a nebulous term created by marketing types. Generally, it was supposed to conjure images of increased portability at the expense of power. The Grid Compass (1979) was called a notebook and the Gateway Solo 9100 -- which had a bay for an optical drive -- was called a notebook. Apple produced a 17" notebook! In 1992, Gateway introduced a 'Handbook' which was half the size of a subnotebook. I believe the Asus eee pc was the first netbook (2007). Its key characteristics were size and cost. It did not run on intel iron and ran linux not Windows and had a solid state drive. That was followed by atom based devices which did run some flavor of windows. The tablet has been around since the fifties and Microsoft and Apple both had tablets on the market in the nineties. Generally, any computer which abandons mouse and keyboard in favor of touch and pen is considered a tablet. Of course, now we have computers which use both and tablets have keyboard and mouse accessories. The bottom line is that it doesn't really matter what you call this or any portable computer. You really need to consider and specify the various components. This is definitely not a tablet simply because the keyboard is attached, but I think it's OK to refer to it as a laptop or notebook -- even though its specs more closely track to what you would expect in a tablet.

Could be a special order. Regardless, good hunting and it's probably pretty close even if it isn't THE laptop.

I see nothing to corroborate bribri25's speculation, but, if true, this is a really good deal. I have had a T100 since August and it is a very capable laptop. There's no optical drive, but that is not unusual these days. Performance is very snappy. For $100, I think an 8 hour touchscreen laptop would be welcome under a lot of trees. Looking forward to the ad scans.

Amloid Krazy Kar Ride http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MzQ1WDUwMA==/z/Lv0AAOxy3yNThFVk/$_12.JPG More exercise than Call of Duty. Another great toy from my childhood. I think my great nephew would love this.

Daisy Red Ryder BB Gun http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NTUwWDU1MA==/z/~VcAAOSwmUdUU~e7/$_12.JPG What kid would not want a BB gun for Christmas? My father noticed one more thing behind the curtains by the tree many years before Ralphie got his... http://www.wolfgnards.com/media/blogs/photos/art/ralphie-christmas-story.jpg

ANTIQUE MARX 1950'S? 1960'S BATTERY OP 42" STUTZ BEARCAT PEDAL CAR The seller doesn't know what he has. This electric car ran on dry cells that could not be recharged. My father spent an arm and a leg on batteries. I still have the car and here is a picture of my oldest riding mine nearly 20 years ago... Other than new (rechargeable) batteries and the bulb horn, this car is original bumper to bumper. An electric car is a great car for any small child.

Johnny Lightning Topper 1971 Indy 500 Race Set In Box With Orig Cars This is a variation of a toy I had in 1969... http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/736x/45/58/af/4558af0076247c825749af2713cbd8b3.jpg http://hooniverse.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/johnny-lightning-1970-JCPenneys.jpg http://www.vintagetoysillustrated.com/vintagetoy/forsale/september/2009/TOPPER_TOYS_JOHNNY_LIGHTNING_ROCKET_500_INDY_TRACK_SET_BOX_LID.JPG https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QO5QPeSrKsY This race track had a hill (right side of picture) with slide controls. When your car reached the bottom of the hill, you slid the slide control from left to right. A hook would grab the bottom of the car and pull it up the hill. If you moved the slide too fast, the car would lose control and fly off the track. If you moved it too slow, the car would not finish the next lap. This track was a lot more fun that watching hot wheels or squeezing the controller of a slot car set. In the early 70s, Topper went under due to fraud. About the same time, my younger sister toddled through mine breaking a few of the tracks which could not be replaced. In 1994, Playing Mantis bought the rights to some topper toys including Johnny Lightning and a new racing set was introduced. I bought two -- one to play with and one for spare parts. They are still a lot of fun to play with (I still haven't invited my sister to play). My kids and our cats really enjoyed this track. If you know someone who once owned one or would like to make some kid's Christmas very exciting, get one of these tracks. The cars are really unusual and fun to collect. I have a few (a lot really) we play with and even more still in original packaging. When the Johnny Lightning brand was discontinued in 2013, the tracks and cars got a lot more expensive (my tracks were $10 new) and more difficult to find. http://www.entertainmentearth.com/images/AUTOIMAGES/RA50152ABlg.jpg

At any given price point for a given screen size, a plasma will look much better than an LED. Both can have dead pixels or cells. The night before the last superbowl, I paid less than $600 for a 60" 1080p plasma that looks great.

You have to wear pants in most stores.

Walmart I'll probably go out after breakfast on Friday. Walmart announced 20000 rollbacks effective yesterday, so I guess their sale has begun. Last year they opened their doors at 6:00 pm Thursday. That is probably a good guess. Their doors will be open at midnight, so, technically, their Friday sale will begin at 12:00am.

You don't. You could negotiate holidays off as a condition of employment. You could also seek employment in a field that does not require holiday work. If you choose to take a position that requires holiday work, then you ought to do it cheerfully. That's what they pay you for.

Police, firemen, hospital employees, security guards, military personnel, and many, many others work on holidays.

A couple years ago, K-mart announced they would be open Thanksgiving. Since our travel plans would put us near the store at opening time, I decided to stop in. The place looked like a bomb hit it. Turns out Massachusetts would not let its stores open on Thursday, so K-mart kicked off Wednesday night instead. Salem New Hampshire decided to do the same. People who waited in line on T-Day found all the door all the doorbusters gone and no rainchecks. I have not shopped at K-mart since. A sign on the door would have been considerate.

As long as people are willing to work and shop. I wish them all well. I don't think it is my place to prohibit people from doing either. Let the free market prevail!

OP, I also recommend a Kindle Fire. I think you will find the device itself less expensive than most handhelds and the games that are not free (at least once in a while) are very inexpensive. Besides playing games, the Fire can be used to surf the internet, check mail, read books, and do some educational things.

For me, this forum is almost purely social. I enjoy sharing the anticipation of BF with other members and helping people with product selection.

Make a list of everything you want to buy. For each item on your list, compile a list of all available products. Research the individual products removing any that do not meet your quality requirements. Look up the products on the deal sites and note the best recent price. Watch the deal sites and flyers for prices at or near the best recent price. Once you get within 30 days of BF, buy your goods when their price falls below the highest price you will pay. Return/rebuy or price adjust right to the holidays. This will help you avoid impulse purchases and buyer's remorse, ensure you get all the gifts you want, and net you the lowest possible price. Happy shopping!

There are three phases to the shopping season... - must have items - my shopping list - opportunities If one of the people on my list wants something special, I buy it at the first reasonable opportunity. You can always price adjust or return/rebuy. I start working my shopping list 30 days before the BF ads come out -- again for return/rebuy opportunities. As the holidays approach, I buy good deals even if I do not have a present to buy. My oldest son has a February birthday. A lot of times, his birthday presents are purchases of opportunity during the Christmas season.

No. There are a lot of benefits to using a credit card -- cash back, extended warranties, etc. The real problem is you are undisciplined. Fix that. I like lists. Make a list in the calm of your home, take it with you, and don't buy anything on the list. If you succumb to impulse, return the items once you calm down.

I shop alone, yeah With nobody else I shop alone, yeah With nobody else You know when I bust down doors I prefer to be by myself One year I shopped with my sister. We started at Kohls. Standing at the front of the store, with all my loot bagged up, I saw her pushing a cart past. It was still empty. She waved that 'one minute' finger at me as she headed to the back of the store. We still shop at the same time...in different cars.

Not unless you are printing your own cash. Bad guys have used rogue ATM machines to collect account and PIN data. Crooks use cameras to capture the information on the screen and follow your keystrokes. Muggers wait for people to leave the ATM. Just hang on to your receipts and make sure all the charges on your accounts are for purchases you made. Your CC company will not hold you responsible for any loss due to a breach.

Used to load up on computer stuff at Staples. They really don't do the whole free thing as much these days. I got a generator one BF. I would argue that was for my wife, though, because I can go a week without a shower and warm beer is OK by me.