Update: What I really want for Christmas

First off, I do not want anyone thinking that this is a some sort of a whiny post. It’s not; it is just me, window shopping and sharing it here on the blog.

For Christmas this year, I have, so far gotten a pair of gloves and a band to go around my noggin. This will come in handy, when I’m out there running snow blower. I will most likely get a few dollars in my checking account too, via my parents.

But what I really want for Christmas; is this stuff here. Stuff I could really use. But, truthfully I cannot afford. So, I write this posting, with subtle hints, hoping that some “well to do” Conservative will see it and maybe, possibly, hopefully, take the hint! 😉

First of all, What I want more than anything, is to be able to get back to my hobby of Amateur Radio. Yes folks, I am a licensed Amateur Radio Operator. I hold a General Class License.

I have had my eye on this little beautiful thing  here for a long time:

The Icom IC-7800 HF Transciever

This is the top of the line, High Frequency Transceiver for Amateur Radio. It is a DX’ers dream.

So, how much will one of these contraptions set you back? Oh, about $10,300.00! (Shipping Included…)

Of course, if I had a station like this, I would have to get a nice Amplifier to go with it. I have one that I would really love to own.

This one:

The Ameritron AL-1200 Amateur Radio Amplifier and innards

It’s made in America, very high quality. An excellent machine. How much will it set you back?  $3200.00!

Plus another $100 or so to get the 220 ran into the ham shack. Plus another $100 for your friend, for being brave enough to stick his hands in the circuit breaker box and hook it up for you!

I already have a good antenna and a decent antenna tuner. In fact my buddy Matt put up the antenna; and then it tuns out my rig had some major issues. He tried to fix it, but it needs some serious TLC by someone who’s got some really good equipment. This is a job that would be over my head. I can do basic stuff, but major stuff is out for me.

Another thing I could use, is this:

Window 7 Home Premium

My Laptop runs Windows Vista Basic. I need Windows 7. This is the only version of that this laptop will run.

How much? $120.00 from Dell and I have to buy it through them, or I void the warranty. (Sucks, but, thems the breaks!)

Update: I picked up Windows 7 myself. I got just enough from the folks to be able to pick up Windows 7. I, for one, am looking forward to this upgrade! 😀 So, I removed the link to paypal on this one. As I already have it now. The rest? Feel Free!

Anyhow, feeling generous? Want to get me off of this blog? then, you know…. 😉 😀 😛

Merry Christmas to all! 😀 😛 😆

6 Replies to “Update: What I really want for Christmas”

  1. Have you considered using Linux as an alternative to Windows? It is free to download (need broadband though) or for about $15 you can go to a bookstore and get a magazine with a Linux CD or DVD.

    Unless you have Windows-specific software you are using then Linux could be a viable alternative. Here is a short
    list of common computing software Linux uses and its Microsoft equivalents:

    Microsoft Linux
    MS Word OpenOffice, Lyx, Scribus
    Notepad gEdit
    Wordpad Abiword
    Photoshop gimp
    MS I.Explorer Firefox, Ice Weasel
    A.I.M. pidgin
    MS FrontPage Bluefish, Seamonkey, Amaya

    Seeing as how you have mentioned your negative employment outlook and financial position, I find it amazing you would pay $120 when there are free alternatives out there.

    If you are interested in Linux distributions, the Distrowatch website (google it) has a list you can look at. Ubuntu, OpenSuse, Mandriva, Mint, and Fedora all qualify as beginner-friendly distros. If you are a heavy multimedia type, Sabayon would be a good choice too.

    1. Buford,

      I have looked at Linux and quite frankly, I did not like it at all. In fact, I have it here on a CD… which like one that I downloaded. I installed it, and it even booted from CD… and it didn’t like my laptop at all. half of the drivers did not even work.

      Thanks for the suggestion.

      -Pat

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