GMRS License Fee Increase

From $65 to $70...

FCC to increase GMRS license application fee https://t.co/cAEkT5GDp9 #hiking #camping #PrepperTalk @brickolore #twowayradios #walkietalkies

— BuyTwoWayRadios.com (@2wayradios) July 9, 2016

More Cord Cutting

First, people were dropping cable TV. Now, they are dropping home internet service. I stand by my crazy suggestions to keep customers.

Cheaper Tech Except...

The trend is for tech to get cheaper over time... with the exception of your cable bill.

I've been thinking about cutting the cable cord and going a la carte - $40 gets me lots of channels including ESPN(s), SEC Network, and HBO.  I should probably pick up an ARRIS SURFboard SB6183 DOCSIS 3.0 Cable Modem and quit renting, too.

FCC Fee Changes

FCC Eliminates Amateur Radio Vanity Call Sign Regulatory Fee

“The Commission often receives multiple applications for the same vanity call sign, but only one applicant can be issued that call sign,” the FCC explained. “In such cases, the Commission issues refunds for all the remaining applicants. In addition to staff and computer time to process payments and issue refunds, there is an additional expense to issue checks for the applicants who cannot be refunded electronically.”

FCC Eliminates GMRS Regulatory Fee:

"The fee, which was previously assessed at $5 per year, added $25 to the total cost of a GMRS license, which has a term of five years. While it does not eliminate the cost of a license altogether, the complete elimination of the regulatory fee brings the total cost of a General Mobile Radio Service license from $90 down to $65."

New Macbook

Via Mike in the comments about the USB Type C Port... An Apple engineerTalks About The New 2015 Macbook:

Ink

Because the promise of a paperless society* has not materialized... we need to change our default fonts to save millions. I already use 6 pt fonts to save disk space.

* And where are my jet packs and flying cars?!?!

Cost of an iPhone

In the US, $707. In Brazil, about $1,200.

My company looked at doing business in Brazil. I learned about several complexities on the accounting side. I suspect these "complexities" explain the extra $500.

Life Expectancy and Healthcare Spending

jeffweiner Problem with U.S. health care costs summarized in one chart via @conradhackett lnkd.in/bE-nXKc
Sat, Mar 01 20:41:53 from LinkedIn
retweeted by msuster

Very interesting... I'm not quite sure what to make of it, but the US does not appear to be making a reasonable return on its investment in healthcare.

Google's Next Acquisition

Google's Next Acquisition: Skydrop - the Nest of irrigation systems. Time for someone to create an open-source controller!

Via Uncrate

Monoprice and Amazon Basics

I've bought my share of inexpensive electronics. If I need some cables, adapters, or other miscellaneous small electronics and I am wanting to save money, but avoid some risk, I usually check two places.

Monoprice (Coupon "xmasinjuly" good for 5% off today and tomorrow.) - I've bought a ton of network patch cables from them along with other cables.

- or -

Amazon Basics - These are Amazon store brand electronics. I've had bad luck with iPhone chargers and the like from overseas. Amazon's stuff is higher quality without paying a premium.

Ammo Availability

Speaking of buying ammo, a reader sent me this link to a simple app that checks the availability and pricing of ammo - http://www.gunbot.net/. You can search by caliber and it has a nice feature that gives you a pricing benchmark:

"Current climate "good deal" threshold (red text) = 60 cents per round"

Current climate being key there.

Cost Savings

While the price of rifles and ammo goes up, Magpul is trying to make their training programs more affordable:

News from Magpul Dynamics 

With the state of the industry right now, the Dynamics crew is making some accommodations....

Magpul Dynamics Pricing and Ammunition Requirement Update

In an effort to make training more accessible in these times of increased prices and reduced availability, Magpul Dynamics has updated their pricing structure, round counts, and acceptable calibers for the 2013 training year.

Effective immediately, all three-day classes are reduced to $600 per student, and two-day classes are reduced to $450 per student. In addition, the curriculum has been revised for all pistol/carbine courses based on the changes occurring over the past year to allow for maximum training value at a slightly reduced round count. Also, we are temporarily allowing the use of pistol-caliber carbines and 22LR AR-15 pattern training rifles in the carbine classes. Please understand that there are many drawbacks to training with 22LR as opposed to normal rifle platforms, but significant training value will still exist. We expect a full return to allowing rifle-caliber rounds only in the future as the ammunition supply catches up with current demand and ammunition prices return to a reasonable level. However, we understand the financial burden placed on students with the current state of the economy and the rapid rise in retail pricing in the ammunition industry. We firmly believe in the value of quality firearms training and are committed to providing quality products and services at a fair price.

Duane, Steve, Jon, and Caylen

It is nice to see that people get it - and I bet it helps their business. They (deservedly) look good and probably get a few customers they wouldn't have before the changes.

I believe in letting the markets work, so the prices are what the prices are for rifles, pistols, and ammunition. If you don't like the price, let it go. If others do the same, the prices will come back down. Heck, if the Constitution isn't totally torn up, there might even be some deals to be had when things normalize.

CDs

I'm a month and a half late on this, but it is still hard to believe that you can get a DVD player for $50 bucks compared to where we were.

marksenk It was 30 years ago today the CD began to play - $1,000 player went on sale in JapanMon, Oct 01 12:14:52 from The Visitor Widget

Crossover 27Q

The Chinese continue to crank out the inexpensive electronics. In this case, it is not a radio, but a monitor - the Crossover 27Q. It is said to use the same LCD panel as the Apple Thunderbolt Display. Yet another opportunity to save a lot of money if you are willing to take a risk.

Take 15, Graduate in 4

Take 15, Graduate in 4:

"When I went to college, you were expected to graduate in four years.

For today’s college students, this expectation has somehow gotten off-track.

We have embarked on an all-out effort to make on-time graduation the new norm for our students. Starting in the fall of 2013, our full-time undergraduates will be charged for 15 credit hours per semester—the number they must take to graduate in four years. They now pay for only 12 credit hours, regardless of how many they take. "

"This new plan will be a money-saver for students and their families. Adding just one year of college costs an extra $24,000."

Look how much we are saving you! Ignore that tuition is going up! Sounds like spin to me. And I took 21 hours a semester on occasion, so it is safe to say that I'm okay with people taking more than 12 hours.

Quote of the Day

Tam in the comments on Les's post about giving up cable and almost giving up internet access, too:

"Okay, yeah, see, that's just crazy talk right there. :p

Keep your priorities straight, man: I can order bottled water from the internet, but I can't get books out of my faucet."

Social Security Statements On-line

Last year I posted about the end of paper Social Security statements and lamented that there was no on-line replacement. That's changed. You can check your Social Security history here.

Via Bargaineering (now and for the original post)

Baofeng: Value

From a post by Soxy on the Transmission1 forum:

"if any rep from baofeng monitors this site is'nt it about time you got these radio's right.after the uv-3r mk-1 then the mk-2 and the mk-3 and now the uv-5r there are still major issues.come on get it right and stop ripping your customers off and coming out with useless excuses."

I'm not sure why this bothers me so much. The outrage? The grammar? The lack of specifics (relating to the "useless excuses"? The incorrect model names? The sense of entitlement? The sense of powerlessness?

No one is making this person buy these radios. Most reasonable people understand that, in the real world, there are trade-offs. Pay less, get less. He can't be bothered to use capitalization or do any proof-reading for a few sentences, but someone else better darn well make a perfect product and make it super cheap.

I did not reply on the board as I generally prefer to avoid feeding the trolls. Since logic does not appear to be his strong suit, trying to persuade him with more logic is likely to fail.

Utilities Bills vs. Technology Bills

I'm a geek, but maybe I am a frugal geek, because my utilities are much more expensive than my monthly technology cost unlike the findings in this article. If you don't like words, there is a good infograph there, too.

It helps that my company provides my smartphone service, but we have the basic internet service with Knology and no home phone. We don't spend a lot on apps or other services - including an on-line backup service. (I've been tempted, but I use a combination of Dropbox, Windows Live Mesh, and USB hard drives to do the heavy lifting there.) It also helps that my daughter is only three - she probably won't need her own smart phone for another 6 months. ;)

Another factor is that my house is one big energy sink when it comes to heating and cooling. My base usage is a small number compared to the heating and cooling costs. I need a smaller house.

Paying for Apps

This article/cartoon pokes fun at our reluctance to pay a dollar for an app when we routinely buy $5 coffees, $200 phones, etc. It struck a cord with me as I buy very few apps - most apps that we have bought have been for our three year old. I think the reason I avoid buying apps is that I don't think I will use them over the long haul. Of course, I drink my Starbucks all in one sitting, too.

Via Slashdot.org