RaymondG

I am quite reasonably asking moderators to check this out, they are the ones arguing... No strikes for me.

Logically, it is a problem that besets fora using Invision software... How else do all others get through and not these? So what about doing something about it?

Well, we do see it every day... Particularly among those of Babylon the Great.

You still don't understand, do you? The anti-porn software is finding something in the IP software to lead it to blocking the fora. Now, instead of trying to prove I'm an idiot, why don't you do something about it?

Aww... shucks...

So, Pauline, how do you explain that I always knew 'nonsense' as a single word?

Bob, at no time did I agree with what you said... "within their software" was referring to the porn etc blocking software. Do you think you can understand what I am posting now?

My apologies, it was Bob...

Just to set your mind at rest, Shawn, this is the part of my post you musn't have read: So when you posted... ...you were only referring to something you imagined I had said, that this software is the problem. No, that's not what I was saying. It's something within the software used by 'IP' or 'Invision' which is detected by their anti-porn software and cuts this and other forums out. This, surely, is the message which has to be got to Wayport and whoever Hungry Jacks use. And Carlos, you may have more success with McDonalds if you don't spell it 'MacDonalds'. Clearly, as a multitude of other forums still work through their wi-fi, they don't intend preventing forum use in their stores. Judy... I believe I posted right at the beginning that this isn't a problem at McDonalds in Europe and the UK. It also doesn't affect all McDonalds in the US, or it didn't when I was there a few months ago, but it did affect a lot of them. I got to the point where I tried the wi-fi before I bought anything and if it didn't work I ate elsewhere. I didn't have the luxury of a lot of Gbs available when I was travelling, in fact I had none in Canada and the USA, so it was important to find wi-fi. And yes, sometimes you have to be a bit patient.

The Schlumpf Museum has an interesting history... The brothers Schlumpf had a textile factory and received government assistance to keep up the wages of the workers so they could remain competitive on world markets. This would have been through the fifties and sixties. They were cheating both, however. Syphoning off cash they amassed an incredible collection of cars. Old cars and rare cars, expensive cars and exclusive cars as well as ordinary cars. But workers got wind of the growing collection and worked out what was happening. They revolted and took over, but they failed to keep the place afloat financially and the government stepped in. It's said that at one time there was talk of selling off the collection, but as a significant number of cars (130 or more?) were Bugattis they were warned that a number like that going onto the market would depreciate their value overnight. So the Cité de l'Automobile, the National Automotive Museum was created and endures to this day. Road cars, prototype cars, racing cars of all types, sports cars, limousines and ordinary family cars dating from around 1890 to the seventies or eighties line up in row upon row of lavish and expensive display. Row upon row, like these: There are many from the 1890s... These 1893 models are from Peugeot and Menier, with Menier being just one of a great number of names no longer known. But they survive here, like the Sandford and Amilcar: The Sandford is also French, with a Ruby engine and sliding pillar front suspension. And look at that limo in the background, so much a contrast with these little machines. A bit more 'ordinary' are these pre-war Peugeots: In some markets the 202s headlights were not tucked in behind the grille, this model survived until the late forties while the Citroen just seen beside the 201 survived through to the fifties. And while French marques are very well-represented, the brothers apparently loved the odd Mercedes, this one being one of a number of cars displayed with an engine from that model alongside of it. Note the supercharger on the front of the engine: This spilled over into the competition cars, with these Grand Prix Mercedes from the late thirties... ...and this 300SLR from the factory's racing team of 1955: If I remember the story from years ago correctly, the brothers had a Grand Prix Mercedes of a type the factory didn't have an example left, the Daimler-Benz people were prepared to swap the 300SLR for the Grand Prix car. What struck me is that there is an 'F' for France on the back of it, presumably because the Schlumpfs went touring in it! Note also in the background of the above pic that there is a row of fifties Grand Prix cars. A fabulous collection by any standard, and the rarity of some cars is amazing. Here is the Bugatti Grand Prix car from 1954, it had this engine mounted transversely behind the driver, in front of it in the line-up is a Gordini: Another Bugatti, this one a plain old 4-door sedan of enormous size dating from the early fifties... ...while this Arzens is, rather suprisingly, from another French maker of the late thirties. I suspect the bubble car beside it is a bit later, however: Out of the same era is this Delahaye, also of 3.5-litres... ...and this Mercedes-Benz 770K Grosser. This model was built for high government officials and wealthy businessmen, so it's no surprise that the car seen here was owned by Dr Heinkel, the aircraft manufacturer: From Italy and Alfa Romeo in those pre-war years came this sports and the fabulous 2900 coupe, of the type which won a couple of Mille Miglias in those dark years. The length of the wheelbase surprised me... ...while the lack of British cars was noticeable too. Here's one now, a Lotus 7 in among some pretty classy Italian exotica: Apart from a few Grand Prix machines from the sixties and seventies, a Rolls Royce (or two?) were the only other representatives of the automotive industry of the British Isles. And to delight anyone with a mechanical bent, this WW2-built engine and gearbox from Bugatti is a real gem. Its four cylinders each have four valves, that looks like a little supercharger up front and it comes with a gearbox. Engine capacity? 369cc! There are pics of the Bugatti Royales dwelling in the Schlumpf museum in an earlier post, I spent about half a day there and was nicely absorbed by it all. Afterwards I drove to Strasbourg, crossed the border into Germany and headed for Stuttgart where the rather less-interesting Daimler-Benz museum was one of my 'bucket list' items. As was the Solitude Grand Prix circuit, another of the public road circuits which used to abound in Europe.

The USA is a great place to go for a drive! In my three trips I have revelled in the ease with which you can do it, the way the US presents visitors with economical travel, the plethora of things to see and do and the scenic beauty which is available both on and off the beaten track. Basically, you can't see anything while you're flying in commercial aircraft, save for an occasional tall mountain or similar. It's only at ground level where you can appreciate the majesty and beauty of creation and soak it up properly. One of the really good things driving the US offers is the ready availability of comfortable overnight accommodation, though it seems you didn't stop on your westbound trip. We always called in at the 'Welcome Centers' as we crossed into each state and got the 'hotel coupons' magazines so we were well-armed with knowledge about what there was ahead of us. Or me, in the case of my second trip. Need a laundry in the hotel tonight? Find one among the coupons with a laundry. Or a microwave. Each trip was an adventure. Our first saw us drive through 28 states and cover 9.600 miles in a pickup truck. I bought this not only for the trip, but to ship home full of car parts I could later sell: As we'd never been to America before it was all new to us, one of the real wonders being the abundance of autumn colours... ...especially in upstate New York. But in late October they were plentiful enough in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois and Indiana as well. Not forgetting Vermont and New Hampshire, where for the first time we saw a covered bridge: Simple stuff, but things unseen at home. Of course we hit the desert and canyon country... ...and zig-zagged all over the place. There was always something to see and as Janet wrote in her travel diary, at times "every turning brought a sight to take your breath away." By the way, that travel diary was a great thing to keep during the trip, the further we went the more detailed she became with it and it keeps the whole trip alive. Which, sadly, Janet couldn't do. My second trip I did alone - save for three days during which my stepson joined me - and in nine weeks I covered 14,400 miles in a conversion van I bought for the purpose. I drove it through 36 states, into eight provinces of Canada and then parked it back in Spokane WA ready for my next trip. From there I drove yet another pickup to LA for shipping and added three more states to my log for the journey and putting a further 1,200 miles of US driving experience behind me. While the highlights of the trip included the 2014 International Convention at Detroit, scenically I added Pikes Peak... ...(where you look down on the Rocky Mountains), a bunch of new country in the south and Yosemite... ...to my memory banks. Bumping into brothers and sisters was a big part of it too. Apart from at meetings, where wonderful times were had, spotting a couple of kids at McDonalds with their moms and wearing ties gave me a chance to tease them a little before we got down to discussing the convention and their territory. At one hall a sister said to me, after I told her I was going to Savannah, "Brother, if y'all are going to Savannah, you just have to visit mah sister!" Two days later I spent a couple of hours with Peggye, her husband and cousin and a 91-year old brother they'd invited to meet me. Emotions ran high, Peggye was so happy I'd called in and it didn't matter that the coffee went cold as we talked... At her insistence, that afternoon I went to look at the venue for the Jacksonville Regional Convention they were due to attend a week or so later. I had to go to Florida anyway, that was the deal with this trip. Janet and I had decided that if 28 states was good, seeing all the other contiguous states on our second trip would be a logical follow-up. But I didn't go into any state simply to be there. There had to be as reason. For example, as I drove through North Dakota people kept asking, "But why did you come to North Dakota? There's nothing to see here!" And the scenery backed up their statements... ...but there are still silver linings everywhere: My 'genuine excuse' for going there, however, was to see this: Oh yeah, that's my van. Don't worry, I fixed it, as soon as I got to the US I pulled out the automatic transmission and fitted a manual. Another place where I needed an excuse was Maine. I could think of no reason whatever to go to Maine, but I remembered hearing Anne Murray interviewed on the radio 27 years earlier. "Where do you live?" she was asked. "Nova Scotia." "I hear it's pretty there..." "Yes, we have 12 acres and it's beautiful!" I had to check out and see if she was being truthful, didn't I? It only took me a couple of hours to locate her home, all a part of the 'adventure'. As was seeing the Mississippi River in flood... ...at Burlington, Iowa, and I saw a whole range of these beauties: My third trip included six and a half weeks in Europe as well as six weeks in the USA and Canada, I drove 32,570km (20,242 miles) in all and I know I will never do a bigger trip than that. But there are more trips ahead of me, I will go back to the USA and Canada, I still have to discover New Zealand and there are more places in Australia to drive. .

Excellent, an answer!

So what is bloatware?

I will spell it out for you... In Australia, New Zealand and much of the UK, 'root' is sexual intercourse. 'Root', 'rooted' and 'rooting' are absolutely interchangeable with a four letter word beginning with 'f' and its derivatives. Any Australian reading this heading would have wondered what place it has on a JW website.