Recent posts

#1

Southeast / Re: Florida

Last post by roadman65 - Today at 03:17:16 AM

https://www.google.com/maps/place/St+Pete+Beach,+FL/@27.8734914,-82.6838827,15z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x88c3029f9de5dea9:0x98aafcc9726f8c6a!8m2!3d27.7428134!4d-82.7504542!16zL20vMHJyNXg?entry=ttu

Googlemaps still hasn't updated to add TOLL FL 690 yet.

#2

Northeast / Re: Pennsylvania

Last post by storm2k - Today at 02:32:52 AM

Penn State happens to publish old campus maps that I personally find interesting. I've yet to find a town map of State College in PSU libraries or published by the state, so for now this page has to suffice. Walking around campus, there's some geography notes I've found interesting:

• 1992 map: what on earth are those phone numbers? I've seen 7 digit phone numbers (area code is implied), but never 5 digit ones.

This is a product of the phone system the college uses.  Using a phone within the college's system, they only need to dial the 5 numbers shown.  The 1st number is the last number of the local extension (ie: 623-3064.  If you needed to call from outside the school's system, just dial the 7 digit number, which is now probably area code plus 7 digit number).  Each professor's office, classroom, administration and other offices all probably had 5 digit numbers as well. 

State offices in Trenton, NJ have the same (or at least similar) system, although some Divisions and Departments have changed to a newer system that involves dialing all 10 digits. 

This is a very common thing, actually. Rutgers University still has 5 digit dialing across campuses as long as your university phone number is one of their standard exchanges (848-932 or 848-445, or 848-267). Fewer people know about it these days because landlines are not as much of a thing, but they still work for VOIP phones used in most campus office buildings.

#3

Traffic Control / Re: Unique, Odd, or Interestin...

Last post by roadman65 - Today at 02:11:32 AM

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/53686333708_e5e7fc0d53_k.jpg
The abbreviation for Clearwater ( on the airport that is) is got a lot to be desired.

#4

Weather / Re: What's your weather curren...

Last post by CtrlAltDel - Today at 01:45:47 AM

Rain, rain, and more rain. It's been storming all day. I kind of like it.

#5

Weather / Re: What's your weather curren...

Last post by jakeroot - Today at 01:29:48 AM

Warm/hot and humid with no relief in sight. Low 80s for highs, lows in the mid-70s. Humidity around 60 to 80 percent. Thunderstorms almost everyday.

#6

Great Lakes and Ohio Valley / Re: I-70/71 Columbus Crossroad...

Last post by TempoNick - Today at 12:49:18 AM

I was driving through there today and I'm still shaking my head at everything that's being built over there. Don't get me wrong, the work is impressive, but I'm wondering if a better and less complicated solution wouldn't have been to:

1. Leave everything as is along the split, with minor improvements.

2. Divert traffic from I-70 westbound at James Road to Ohio 104 as was suggested once as sort of an express lane for I-70 thru traffic. It would also eliminate having to drive all the curves along existing I-70.

3. Existing I-70 West of James to get another number. (I know ODOT talked about downgrading it to a boulevard, but that sounded stupid to me.)

4. I-71 routed along I-670 and 315 without multiplexing with I-70.

It seems like this would have solved multiple problems without all the complexity of this project. I know other problems would be created, but there are some spots along I-670 that were never right, particularly the ramps around Neil and Goodale.

#7

Northeast / Re: Massachusetts

Last post by roadman65 - Today at 12:33:17 AM

https://maps.app.goo.gl/nXUufMWidfnysogFA
I take that "The Islands" refers to Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard on this guide on SB MA28.

#8

General Highway Talk / Re: Road-Geeky Things Of The P...

Last post by Scott5114 - Today at 12:23:59 AM

As much as a LOVE panning around on Google Earth and the like and enjoy it when there is new imagery to browse, I have a pang of nostalgia for the days before the ubiquity of such online resources and my efforts to keep our copy of the Delorme atlas for Wisconsin updated amid a flurry of rural expressway/freeway construction in the state.

I tend to be more averse to GSV spoilers of upcoming road trips than I am spoilers of TV shows and such. (Mostly because I kind of like knowing the plot of a show going into it because it helps you spot foreshadowing and such, but there's no real benefit to knowing what a scenic view looks like ahead of time.)

#9

Off-Topic / Re: Minor things that bother y...

Last post by jeffandnicole - Today at 12:23:21 AM

If I had my druthers, merchants would not be allowed to sell anything with a deferred-redemption component unless the full value of said component were kept available to the customer without expiration.  This would mean:

*  Store gift cards and gift certificates would never expire.

Some states do prohibit this.

If this forced supermarket chains to phase out loyalty programs, I would not shed a tear.

Businesses encourage people to shop there.  An extension of this would be hotel, airline & casino loyalty programs.  All encourage customers to maintain a relationship with that company. Customers save money and get benefits; Businesses earn money.  It's a win for both.  The only people that think it's a loss are those that think it would stop junk mail or tracking of their purchases.  And since no one is required to have a card at most stores (other than specific instances such as Costco, Sam's Club, etc), you don't need it, so it's no harm to you if others maintain accounts with loyalty cards.

But it is not required that returned merchandise be returned for cash. (It's almost always in-store credit - which is basically a gift card.) So I have no idea why gift cards should be. I mean these are gifts.

That has not been my experience.  On the few occasions I have returned things for a refund, I have typically received a chargeback on the card I used to pay.  I can't remember the last time I was asked to settle for in-store credit or a voucher that I could spend only at the business concerned.

You received a credit because the business was able to identify the method of payment thru your credit card.

BTW - you do realize that when you used the credit card, the business tracked your purchasing anyway, right?  The only difference was they didn't have all the info to send you tailored advertising or discounts.  So, they got all your money and you received no benefit.

Okay, but what does "never expire" really mean?  Businesses don't stay around forever.  They don't have any way of knowing how to get ahold of people who have gift cards they issued, and I wouldn't want to be on their mailing list if they did.

"Never expires" means that the value of the card (or other deferred-redemption instrument) would remain a liability against the business indefinitely.  Realistically, I think it would have to be dischargeable in bankruptcy, even if this meant that customers would have to settle for pennies on the dollar.

Legally, it already is.  But personal debts are way down the list of how companies are required to settle debts when they go bankrupt. If a bankrupt company was able to settle all other corporate debts first at 100%, then consumers would be in line to obtain money for their debts, including gift cards. 

Being a company is going bankrupt due to being short of cash, that is extremely unlikely to ever happen.

#10

Mid-Atlantic / Re: Francis Scott Key Bridge (...

Last post by Big John - April 28, 2024, 11:49:43 PM

The Edgar Allen Poe Bridge.

Murder out the trusses.

Trusses cause an unkindness.

(Ravens are not crows)