http://www.viewpoints.com/aboutme/hermanj Fri, 30 Nov 2007 17:12:16 GMT Reviews by hermanj http://www.viewpoints.com/Honda-LX-2003-review-3d5a0 We bought this little two door coupe in a hurry.  We didn't have any fears buying a Honda; we'd owned several before.  She wanted a two door.  It has decent power with the A/C off and one or two occupants.  Nobody should doubt Honda's quality of design and assembly; I think they are tops in those categories. —  But it has had problems.  The right front shock unit (inside the strut tower) broke in half.  Yes, in half.  We started hearing this loud rattling sound and when we took it in for service, they remove both halves of the shock and showed us.  Maybe it was just a fluke but when it happens to you, it's a complete and total failure. — It seats four average adults but you have to change your driving habits if you carry more than two.  The weight of four passengers seems to really hit the engine power and how you have to engage the clutch.  Needing air conditioning while carrying four approaches the absurd in terms of... Fri, 30 Nov 2007 17:12:16 GMT http://www.viewpoints.com/Honda-LX-2003-review-3d5a0 hermanj 4 http://www.viewpoints.com/Goodlife-cat-food-review-691c1 I get this coupon for a free bag of Goodlife cat food so, being as thrifty as everyone says I am, I pick up a bag on my next trip to the Wallmart.  Buddy, our cat, finally finishes his last bag of whatever and we open the new bag of Goodlife.  Whew!  What died in there?  We both had the same reaction.  This stuff really stinks!  But then again it is for cats, not humans, so we give him a bowl full and he does eat it.  I mean he doesn't wolf it down, but he eats it.  And it hasn't killed him, yet.  But I can't wait for the end of this bag because, on smell alone, I'm not bringing any more of this stuff into my house.  Good luck and enjoy. —... Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:51:12 GMT http://www.viewpoints.com/Goodlife-cat-food-review-691c1 hermanj 2 http://www.viewpoints.com/Gateway-MT6840-Core-Duo-Notebook-review-77a8 After five and a half years, my old HP laptop finally just quit working.  I should have seen it coming and set aside some money for a replacement but I didn't.  So when I went shopping for a new computer, cheap was most of what I was looking for.  I found a good deal on this Gateway at Office Depot.  It had dual core CPUs, 2 gigs of RAM, Windows Vista Home Premium, and a price of $699 after rebate.  I had previously had only one Gateway computer, a desktop, many years ago, at work.  It was OK in quality so I thought I take the chance on this laptop.  Well I can honestly say that this little, lightweight laptop is a real screamer.  It runs fast, run lots of useful programs, and has plenty of leftover capacity to add more.  I purchased Office Student Edition and loaded that; more features than I could ever need.  I run a Delorme mapping and GPS navigation package; that is awesome if you've never tried it.  My wife is in school and... Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:44:46 GMT http://www.viewpoints.com/Gateway-MT6840-Core-Duo-Notebook-review-77a8 hermanj 4 http://www.viewpoints.com/Chevy-Silverado-2002-review-b9a12 I've pulled a 16,000 pound fifth wheel RV now for 5 years with this truck.  The Duramax diesel/Allison transmission combination is absolutely bullet-proof.  Unbelievable pulling power on the mountain climbs taking the interstate through West Virginia.  I get on an up slope and press the pedal a little further down and it actually picks up speed; 60, 65, 70 miles per hour without any noticeable sign of effort.  Yes, it makes some noise, but it's not screaming like my old gasser.  This thing is infused with pulling power! —  And fuel mileage is apparently thrown in to boot.  I get 18 mpg highway without the trailer, about 15 around town and a solid 11 when hauling my beast of a trailer.  It just goes to show why essentially all over-the-road trucking companies choose diesel drivetrains. — And then there's comfort.  We have the LT package; heated, power, leather seats with two-position memory on the driver's seat.  Extended... Thu, 15 Nov 2007 17:07:52 GMT http://www.viewpoints.com/Chevy-Silverado-2002-review-b9a12 hermanj 5 http://www.viewpoints.com/Kingston-Flash-Card-review-0f6a0 This Kingston flash memory stick is absolutely the easiest thing that I've ever come across for doing backups on my personal computer.  I've written simple Windows batch files to backup my budget, tax and investment spreadsheets from my laptop to the memory stick.  I just plug in the memory stick, run the batch file and then unplug the memory stick.  No floppy disk to load and store; no cds to burn; just plain simple. — If there is any one thing that I would change it would be the memory capacity.  I have only half a gig and that will run out someday.  My wife needed one to backup her work for her masters program.  I bought her a 2 gig.  She'll be using that one for a very, very long time! — Thanks, Kingston, for producing such a simple, high quality and useful device.  I tell everyone how happy I am with your product. —... Tue, 13 Nov 2007 15:08:17 GMT http://www.viewpoints.com/Kingston-Flash-Card-review-0f6a0 hermanj 5