Ratzend

Brilliant, thank you. I will give them a bit longer in case there is a problem at the office and try that number if not. I am assuming it must be a problem, I can't see they would normally make people wait for activation!

Do you happen to have any contact numbers for them? Other than the one that comes with the CD and is on the web site? I just keep getting the answerphone and haven't had any response to email. It looked a good program when I watched it being demonstrated. I would certainly be happy to update and supply POIs but would just like to start using the program first! I also want to use it on a laptop and a netbook, it appears the activation codes are specific to the computer so presumably you need 2 codes? Thanks.

The E-Canal app looked quite interesting in use, I just wanted to start with a complete map for planning marathon round trip to boat yards etc, not particularly cheap at £130 and not a lot of use if you can't get an activation code I also thought it was quite a clever name EureauWeb

Thanks, wasn't watching what I was doing Think it is ok now.

I wondered if anyone has any experience of the Water-ways program? Waterways I saw it the Crick Boat show and intended to buy a copy when I went back on the Monday, unfortunately I couldn't get back so I bought it online. It arrived this morning but I don't seem to be able to get a response from the office at Braunston, you have to call them to get an authorisation code. I just wondered if there was normally a delay or maybe closed on Tuesdays. I have also emailed them but assume they must be busy! I'm hoping it will be useful for planning and familiarisation on the computer. Thanks,

Sounds like a good decision. I have also been planning this for a while and my conclusions were: Thought about having a boat built, but it would REALLY pushed me financially, I don't have the experience to plan it properly so would be depending on the builder for advice and designs. I would probably start re-arranging the brand new boat as soon as I took delivery and probably be constantly realising how things might be better. Thought about a sailaway but found it very difficult to assess what the costs would be to fit it out as I went along. Also realised that I would be living in a workshop for possibly a very long time!!! Spend the rest of my life looking for the perfect boat, not very realistic !!! Decided that I have pretty good skills with woodwork, plumbing, heating, electrics, maintenance, was trained as a mechanic and have good IT skills. But accepted that I do not have any real skills with heavy metal working, welding etc. So it seemed to make sense to try and find a boat with a good hull, which I would rely on a surveyor to confirm, but was 'tired' and in need of TLC ! I suspect there are quite a few about, it's just finding them !!! My initial 'boat requirement' list went in the bin a long time ago, mainly when I realised the boat would be in the hundreds of tons and longer and wider than an Olympic swimming pool So now the requirement list is quite short. An 'interesting' hull, an 'interesting' engine, not bothered about the toilet system as I believe I will be able to learn to live with, or change it if necessary and I will be able to play with someone else's innards that have hopefully been designed with more experience than I have ! It seems to be harder on the feet, but easier on the brain Good luck with your search

Likewise, I have used them several times for both cars and a van, they dropped the vehicle off and collected it at the end for no extra charge.

My vote would go to TomTom, I now use a TT Via Live 120 with Euromaps. Seemed easy to set up and use out of the box. I have some limited experience with Garmin but didn't find it as intuitive. The size of the screen is important and makes a big difference, but you must remember to remove it from sight when you leave the car. The 'live' service which I think is included for the first year is very helpful with advance traffic warnings. I also have an older version, the TomTom 910 which you could hack and add music and silly voices to from your computer but the novelty wore off very quickly. Try Ossie Osborne's uncensored version when you have your 98 year old aunt in the car with you

Hi Martin, It was on Sky News all day which you should get on Freeview if you have it. Apologies if you already knew that

It was the first time for me and I was very impressed with the show. I liked the straw logs and nearly bought some, then remembered I need to buy a boat first !!!

Thanks, that is pretty much what I was hoping, I can't see that changing the angle is going to effect the heating of the boat? Just that it will be nicer when sitting in the saloon? Being mounted square on to the side just looks odd, it sort of points at the end of the galley and you can't see the front and the flames when sitting down.

I realise it may not be possible for anyone to answer this definitevely as I can't give exact dimension. Two of the boats I am seriously considering have Morse multi fuel stoves in a mid position, which is what I wanted, but they are at the end of the galley and the start of the saloon, facing square on to the boat. Partly for aesthetic reasons I would like to have turned them 45 degrees to face toward the saloon, is this a major consideration? I have a feeling it is not as simple as it sounds and obviously realise there are minimum distances etc to be taken in to account, even if it means adding more fire proof cladding etc. I just wondered if anyone had done this? It is not a huge deal if they have to stay where they are, just feels they would nicer at an angle. Thanks.

It is quite a well known affliction !!! There is a proper name for it which I can't remember at the moment, John Cleese suffers from it and did a program a few years ago part of which centred around it. I have had it for most of my life, I usually explain it to new friends and try and persuade them that if I meet them in the street and appear to ignore them then it is not intentional!!! It can be quite handy sometimes It has led to a few embarrassing situations but nothing that couldn't be resolved. I find that I can usually remember a photograph of someone's face but not just from meeting them face to face. Caricatures are easier to remember, and people pulling faces, comedians and people acting out of their normal behavior seems to work too. I don't think it is really anything to do with special needs, and I have run a number of very successful business without alienating too many people The best way really seems to be to just accept it, adapt and live with it, if it bothers anyone too much then I am afraid that is their loss as there isn't much I can do about it !!!

I have 2 sets of remote control plugs which did the same thing. They usually come with dip switches so that you can change channels in case of interference?

I have found the same, no fear at all when I was younger. I read or heard recently, it may even have been on here, that the male brain in general has little or no fear up to a certain age, at which point for various reasons the 'fear' starts to increase, which is one of the reasons there is an age point where insurance companies will switch to lower premiums. I don't know if it is the same for women but that is apparently the case for men Edit to add that I have just remembered that it was on a speed awareness course I was required to attend a few weeks ago !!!