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Proper power supply or rip-off

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Dragos

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Apr 25, 2008, 8:47:14 PM4/25/08
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OK. I bought a "custom power supply" from a fellow Commodore user
whose claim is they build power supplies for a living.

After about 3 total hours of use (yes i had it for a year, but I
rarely turn on a breadbox) it died. knowing from past experiences, I
didn't bother to tell the person, as it would become an argument and I
don't feel like having yet another one with this individual.

Upon further though, I decided to open it to see if it was perhaps a
fuse or other servicable part.

Here is what I found:

http://c64.digitalscream.com/power-supply.JPG

Please look at that and tell me if you think that constitutes a custom
built power supply, or a cheap hack designed to get rid of old parts
and an extension cord...

Golan Klinger

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Apr 25, 2008, 8:57:57 PM4/25/08
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Is there a deluxe model that uses a grounded extension cord? :)

--
Golan Klinger
Dark is the suede that mows like a harvest.

Dopple

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Apr 25, 2008, 9:01:12 PM4/25/08
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you need to slap some carbon fiber-look stickers on that, put some cool logos on
it, and then it'll be compleat.

The shiznit 10 gazillion percent.

christianlott1

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Apr 25, 2008, 9:11:08 PM4/25/08
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hell ya!

Joe Forster/STA

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Apr 25, 2008, 9:31:08 PM4/25/08
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> http://c64.digitalscream.com/power-supply.JPG

Isn't this just two common power supplies (apparently, one 5V and the
other 9V) plugged together?!

Golan Klinger

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Apr 25, 2008, 9:32:26 PM4/25/08
to
Serves him right for not springing for the flames stickers. Those make
things go quicker. Of course, that thing looks like it might burst into
actual flames...

Andrew Wiskow

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Apr 25, 2008, 10:15:54 PM4/25/08
to
Wow... That looks like something I might have put together when I was
12... :/

I think it would benefit the Commodore community to know who is making
these shoddy "custom power supplies" so that others can avoid them.

-Andrew

BruceMcF

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Apr 25, 2008, 11:40:06 PM4/25/08
to

Now I have to try to explain to the people in the next room why I am
laughing so loud when someone is trying to sleep.

I don't think I can explain it, but "I build power supplies for a
living" translated into a claim that "I plug power supplies into multi-
plugs for a living" just cracked me up.

Klompmeester

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Apr 25, 2008, 11:59:16 PM4/25/08
to

"Andrew Wiskow" <wis...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:c3450b80-1b5e-4a0c...@l17g2000pri.googlegroups.com...

Here is a clue...

http://tinyurl.com/4t2em9


Andrew Wiskow

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Apr 26, 2008, 12:29:01 AM4/26/08
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On Apr 25, 8:59 pm, "Klompmeester" <whowh...@andwhy.com> wrote:
>
> Here is a clue...
>
> http://tinyurl.com/4t2em9


Say it ain't so... :(

Dragos

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Apr 26, 2008, 12:50:10 AM4/26/08
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It is indeed from Francois 'eslapion' Levielle.

christianlott1

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Apr 26, 2008, 2:02:56 AM4/26/08
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eh? maybe you got a bad one

Brian Ketterling

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Apr 26, 2008, 4:16:10 AM4/26/08
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In news:05b50d97-3d4e-43b1...@k37g2000hsf.googlegroups.com,
Dragos <mgla...@gmail.com> wrote:

> OK. I bought a "custom power supply"...

I'm sorry for your turdy experience, but thanks for the laugh!

Brian
--


Brian Ketterling

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Apr 26, 2008, 4:17:25 AM4/26/08
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In news:7e15c979-7215-4067...@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com,
christianlott1 <christi...@yahoo.com> wrote:

> eh? maybe you got a bad one

:D I'll say!

Brian
--


Pheuque

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Apr 26, 2008, 1:23:19 PM4/26/08
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You do realize that you've voided your warranty by opening the case.
LMAO!

That's just PATHETIC! I would go break one of this guys legs.

Jim Brain

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Apr 26, 2008, 1:49:12 PM4/26/08
to
While I could see some value...

No, forget it, there are so many things wrong with the PSU, I can't
defend it at all.

o Wall Wart PSUs typically don't provide enough juice for the 5V leg of
a 64 with any amount of peripherals. I've seen 1.5A ones, but never larger.
o Extension cords were never meant or designed for that use. In a
pinch, sure, but not enclosed like that.
o Grounded plug, where are ye?

You know, I've got a HD original 64 PSU around here I'll ship you for
the cost of shipping, just to save you some pain. But, only if you
promise to make a web site and put this on it. I don't even think it
needs any significant description. This is classic, and it's not even
CBM specific.

Jim

Dombo

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Apr 26, 2008, 2:55:19 PM4/26/08
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Jim Brain schreef:

> Dragos wrote:
>> OK. I bought a "custom power supply" from a fellow Commodore user
>> whose claim is they build power supplies for a living.
>>
>> After about 3 total hours of use (yes i had it for a year, but I
>> rarely turn on a breadbox) it died. knowing from past experiences, I
>> didn't bother to tell the person, as it would become an argument and I
>> don't feel like having yet another one with this individual.
>>
>> Upon further though, I decided to open it to see if it was perhaps a
>> fuse or other servicable part.
>>
>> Here is what I found:
>>
>> http://c64.digitalscream.com/power-supply.JPG
>>
>> Please look at that and tell me if you think that constitutes a custom
>> built power supply, or a cheap hack designed to get rid of old parts
>> and an extension cord...
> While I could see some value...
>
> No, forget it, there are so many things wrong with the PSU, I can't
> defend it at all.
>
> o Wall Wart PSUs typically don't provide enough juice for the 5V leg of
> a 64 with any amount of peripherals. I've seen 1.5A ones, but never
> larger.

Many wall wart PSU's are not (properly) stabilized as well. Some output
a considerably higher voltage when they are only lightly loaded. In
other words: you do risk your vintage hardware when hooking it up to
these kind of PSU's.

Wildstar

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Apr 27, 2008, 10:35:24 AM4/27/08
to
At least it is an easy fix. Hey, Dragos, even *you can build-* 'em yourself
with a cool paint job and ticker and sell them. Just make sure you find a
better priced vendor. You could even get thos Radio-Shack project boxes.
:-)

Or maybe not. This isn't a custom power supply. This is just a box and two
ordinary AD/DC adaptors connected to an extention cable. This is *CRAP* so
we shall never buy from this (deleted the rest for cleaning up the
language - :-) ).


"Brian Ketterling" <twee...@no-potted-meat-products-peoplepc.com> wrote in
message news:fuuofm$ra6$1...@aioe.org...

Dragos

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Apr 29, 2008, 10:04:33 AM4/29/08
to
For some "interesting" defensive comments, please visit the thread on
Lemon64:

http://www.lemon64.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26803&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0


Joe Forster/STA

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Apr 29, 2008, 1:14:44 PM4/29/08
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I don't know...

I'm not a hardware expert at all but if the seller picked high-quality
power supplies, which do the job, then why is it a problem that it's
not a product manually built from scratch? I understand that the
auction or whatever might have given the illusion that it's something
innovative and not this. Still, is the price right? (No idea, I don't
buy such stuff anymore.)

It's another story that this particular power supply did _not_ do the
job but, still, the seller may be right saying that this particular
product was faulty. (I'm not sure what he would've done if it had
burnt out your Commodore setup, however cheap or expensive it is. I'm
not sure what _I_ would've done if products I sold had killed a
customer's hardware. It shows Mr.Axel's skills, though, that we had no
such case... :-) )

Yeah, the seller gave quite a show on that forum but it might have
been the result of _his_ frustration about a customer who, as he sees
it, blew up a problem before contacting him. Assuming that he's
"innocent" and these products are meant to be worth their price...
Perhaps, someone else also bought such a product from the same seller;
any opinion about it?

Dragos

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Apr 29, 2008, 2:09:46 PM4/29/08
to
The issue is, I was deceived. There are many more people who were
deceived on other products. I did not contact him, because I am never
dealing with him again on any matter. This was the straw, so to
speak. I left opinions up to the reader, if you think its a fine
design, then by all means, feel free to make one for yourself :)

Joe Forster/STA

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Apr 29, 2008, 2:42:40 PM4/29/08
to
> if you think its a fine design

I don't. Actually, it's not a design at all. :-)

Dombo

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Apr 29, 2008, 3:01:26 PM4/29/08
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Dragos schreef:

> For some "interesting" defensive comments, please visit the thread on
> Lemon64:
>
> http://www.lemon64.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26803&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

Though this person doesn't appear to be most polite person on the planet
his defense about meeting safety standards and certification is valid.
This contraption is much more likely to be electrically safe (for
humans) and much less likely to catch fire and disrupt other equipment
than a homebrew PSU build from the ground up designed by someone with
only elementary knowledge about electrical engineering.

Joel Koltner

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Apr 29, 2008, 4:45:58 PM4/29/08
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"Joe Forster/STA" <s...@c64.org> wrote in message
news:5620bb5d-2abc-41d6...@x41g2000hsb.googlegroups.com...

> I don't. Actually, it's not a design at all. :-)

Yeah, it's not, although for $35 I can't imagine anyone would expect a
custom-designed power supply given the very low quantities they'd be able to
sell on the remaining Commodore market anymore.

eslapion over there would have been much better off if he had disclosed the
internals before making the sale, however.

Reminds me a bit of the Individual Computers Ethernet cards for Amigas that
were actually the cheapest NE2000 ISA (PC) Ethernet cards available with a bit
of glue logic to interface them to the Amiga's bus... although in that case
there was some actual new hardware design involved. :-)


Wildstar

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Apr 30, 2008, 12:49:38 AM4/30/08
to
If I were to make the same kind of product... in the same fashion - sort of.

Instead of the extension cord, I'd use a good surge suppressor, some heavy
duty (meeting the voltage and amperage specs) adpators for the 5v and 9v
lines. Typically 5v 4A and 9v 4A adapters all wired properly to wired onto a
perf board and a pins. You name it.

In the path, the voltage lines would have a regulating diode or something of
the sort "in-line". Just the normal stuff. Then put it in a nice Project
Box.

The Power Suppressor would provide surge suppression protection. Something
not normally found in a C= PSU. In that case, Dragos would be happy with.

$15-18 for the surge protector then whatever it is for good heavy duty
adapters. Then a pcb and components for maybe $10-20. At some point, I might
just use an ATX PSU modded with suprge suppressor. So what does this mean?
Why dick around. I understand where Dragos is on this matter.

"Dombo" <do...@disposable.invalid> wrote in message
news:48177087$0$24406$5fc...@news.tiscali.nl...

MagerValp

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Apr 30, 2008, 3:50:55 AM4/30/08
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>>>>> "JF" == Joe Forster/STA <s...@c64.org> writes:

JF> I'm not a hardware expert at all but if the seller picked
JF> high-quality power supplies, which do the job, then why is it a
JF> problem that it's not a product manually built from scratch?

Well, Francois 'eslapion' Leveille considers himself an engineer, and
loudly proclaims so in various forum threads. When it turns out that
he's just an engineering student, and that his $50 custom built power
supply is just two wall warts in a ghetto case, I think people's
entitled to poking fun at him. If he didn't flame everyone left and
right people wouldn't make a such big deal out of it.

As for his "design", I might actually build something like that
myself to reduce cable clutter, as I'm *not* an engineer :)

--
___ . . . . . + . . o
_|___|_ + . + . + . Per Olofsson, arkadspelare
o-o . . . o + Mage...@cling.gu.se
- + + . http://www.cling.gu.se/~cl3polof/

Dragos

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Apr 30, 2008, 8:59:50 AM4/30/08
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He loudly has proclaimed he had no intent to deceive, please tell me
what you make of this:

http://c64.digitalscream.com/Slappy/Fraud.txt


MagerValp

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Apr 30, 2008, 9:09:29 AM4/30/08
to
>>>>> "D" == Dragos <mgla...@gmail.com> writes:

D> He loudly has proclaimed he had no intent to deceive, please tell
D> me what you make of this:

D> http://c64.digitalscream.com/Slappy/Fraud.txt

Now that is... interesting.

It's also edited, care to share the whole thing?

Dragos

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Apr 30, 2008, 10:54:05 AM4/30/08
to
ok, here it is will all the babbling.....


http://c64.digitalscream.com/Slappy/fraud-full.txt

Dragos

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Apr 30, 2008, 10:57:35 AM4/30/08
to
oh, and after checking my records, it was $45 for the power supply
plus shipping...

Groepaz

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Apr 30, 2008, 1:54:06 PM4/30/08
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Dragos wrote:

> http://c64.digitalscream.com/Slappy/fraud-full.txt

what an ass

--

http://www.hitmen-console.org
http://www.pokefinder.org
http://ftp.pokefinder.org

A 'hacker' is any person who derives joy from discovering ways to circumvent
limitations.
<Robert Bickford>


Golan Klinger

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Apr 30, 2008, 5:33:56 PM4/30/08
to
"Extension cord leads to house fire"

http://www.thesnaponline.com/homepage/local_story_112084921.html

It's a good thing nobody is building and selling 64 power supplies that
use wall warts plugged into an extension cord in a plastic box. It could
lead to a fire...

--
Golan Klinger
Dark is the suede that mows like a harvest.

Kyle J Cardoza

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Apr 30, 2008, 5:39:47 PM4/30/08
to
On Wed, 30 Apr 2008 21:33:56 +0000, Golan Klinger wrote:

> "Extension cord leads to house fire"
>
> http://www.thesnaponline.com/homepage/local_story_112084921.html
>
> It's a good thing nobody is building and selling 64 power supplies that
> use wall warts plugged into an extension cord in a plastic box. It could
> lead to a fire...

Without passing judgement either way on the PSU in question[1], it should
be noted that it's highly likely that *any* power cord could cause a fire
if it were shorted by a recliner, extension cord or not. That would
include the cord on an original C64 PSU, for example.

[1] I take no side on that matter; as far as I'm concerned, it's between
the buyer and seller.

Joel Koltner

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Apr 30, 2008, 5:41:38 PM4/30/08
to
"Golan Klinger" <n...@sp.am> wrote in message
news:slrng1hp...@trout.local...

If you put any power supply under a recliner you're just asking for trouble...


Klompmeester

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Apr 30, 2008, 7:24:45 PM4/30/08
to

"Dragos" <mgla...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:8a332315-d825-4398...@56g2000hsm.googlegroups.com...

> He loudly has proclaimed he had no intent to deceive, please tell me
> what you make of this:
>
> http://c64.digitalscream.com/Slappy/Fraud.txt
>
>

I call that BUSTED!


MagerValp

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May 1, 2008, 6:39:58 AM5/1/08
to
>>>>> "D" == Dragos <mgla...@gmail.com> writes:

D> ok, here it is will all the babbling.....

D> http://c64.digitalscream.com/Slappy/fraud-full.txt

Amazing.

redrumloa

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May 1, 2008, 8:26:24 AM5/1/08
to
Slappy is not very bright, he just earned himself a ban from
amiga.org. Not very intelligent to repeatedly curse at and insult a
moderator in private messages :roll eyes:

Dragos

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May 1, 2008, 8:38:50 AM5/1/08
to
Yes, not surprising. He is also saying that the problem is I am
stupid. Pot calling the kettle black, perhaps?

Peter Schepers

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May 1, 2008, 9:21:41 AM5/1/08
to
In article <f3fa37e8-44c1-4cb6...@e39g2000hsf.googlegroups.com>,

Dragos <mgla...@gmail.com> wrote:
>Yes, not surprising. He is also saying that the problem is I am
>stupid. Pot calling the kettle black, perhaps?

Initially I thought his C64 supply approach was very unique, something
which I might have done for myself if I needed to. However, I would
_never_ sell something like this to someone else due to the liability
issues.

His basic fault is the assumption that since everything inside is CSA/UL,
then the final combined product must be as well. As Jim Brain pointed out,
restrictions on extension cord usage prohibit their use this permanent
fashion. Such a product cannot be used on the power grid without a valid
CSA/UL zticker on the _outside_ of the enclosure.

If he simply sold both wall warts with the cable combined to a single C64
power plug then I doubt anybody would have much of an issue, but that's
not what happened.

PS.

Dragos

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May 1, 2008, 1:22:08 PM5/1/08
to
ok, he has resorted to PMs for name calling now, so here we go
again....

I am sure the people supporting him have no idea of his intent and
ACTUAL DECEPTION in selling his cloned JiffyDOS as old stock. He
actually sold it on ebay as real, and defended it after I told him I
still had the logs that are posted now.

and for the record, it is not a claim, but a verifiable fact that I
was previously and EE student. I do not, however, go around spout
bullshit and lies regarding my products (note, I personally have no
products)

The whole point is STILL being missed by slappy. Had it been
disclosed to me what was to be in the box, we would not have the
situation we have now. I could have made on myself and went on my
merry way. But I was assured by someone who claims to design power
supplys for a living that he would build one (please note, that build
to me does not cover hiding two wall-warts in a project box) that
would outlast any of the current designs on the market.

anyway, here is his recent tirade of name-calling and falsely garnered
support....

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

From: eslapion
To: dragos
Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 11:59 am
Subject: PSU Quote message
Quote:
Of course there will always be people who insist he does no wrong.
Thats fine, people in some african tribes believe sex with a virgin
cures aids.


Ignorant whiner!

The thread was locked before we got Paul Quirk's reply from the CSA...
I wonder why?

How you can possibly claim to have taken courses in electrical
engineering and act like that is beyond belief.

Anyways, everywhere you managed to spread your nice stack of lies,
there was at least a few people who saw through you and tried to
restore the truth.

Here is another e-mail I got... from an engineer I had never chatted
with before.
Quote:
I usually don’t get involved in flame wars but it seemed rather one
sided. The participants that were “against” you seemed to be so
focused on the fact that it was a simple, crude solution that they
couldn’t accept the fact that there wasn’t anything technically wrong
with it. After reading through the thread and all the information
presented there (that’s the only info I had to go on), it seemed to me
that there was no ill intent, that there was nothing technically wrong
with the solution and that the buyer was pissed off because he had it
in his head that this power supply should be some sort of commercial
grade solution. From what I saw, he paid $35 for a knowingly home made
solution. What does one expect for $35!?!? ROFL. I thought it was a
great deal! It would cost me at least $20 for the two plugs, another
couple of bucks for the extension cord and the plug to fit the C64…
then my time to put it together… $35 sounds sweet! Haha! Besides what
other option is there when the C64 power demands require two
completely different power supplies?

Anyways… I’m rambling! Very Happy I read the thread and thought I’d
just try to shine a light of reason onto the topic. I did find the
whole thing very entertaining and like I said, I can’t believe how
worked up people got about that! You would think that you had stuck a
bomb in that thing and sent it off to him! LOL I would love to see how
some of these people would react to something really important,
something worth getting all worked up about! Half of them would
probably drop of a heart attack induced by stress! Hahaha!


The people at ETS reacted in pretty much the same way AND they offered
full support should there be ligitation.

Dragos

unread,
May 1, 2008, 1:40:24 PM5/1/08
to
Ok, now more bullshit. Now I am being accused of "asking poeple to
close threads after I get the last word"

What typical slappy behavior, here is his latest pm:


Then stop asking your friends to close the threads when you placed
your last word.

You know all too well if you took this issue to court, you would LOSE.
You use the public as a jury on this to defamate on me, claiming 99%
of them agree with you, knowing all too well 99% of the general
population have no clue whatsoever how to make good and safe power
supplies. (...how to make power supplies AT ALL)

...puh! Sex with Virgin to cure aids... You know, all you post
publicly can also be used against you.

Make this PM public, I strongly encourage you to do so.

Dombo

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May 1, 2008, 1:43:19 PM5/1/08
to
Dragos schreef:

> ok, he has resorted to PMs for name calling now, so here we go
> again....

<snip>

IMHO the attitude of this guy is a much bigger concern than the products
he is selling. Not only for the community but eventually also for
himself. Let's hope he will grow up real quick.

redrumloa

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May 1, 2008, 4:56:39 PM5/1/08
to
Slappy is now threatening to sue Amiga.org, any interest in me making
the email public?

Dragos

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May 1, 2008, 5:15:34 PM5/1/08
to
Well, I believe you know my stance (don't send it over the internet if
you don't ant the world to read it)


Klompmeester

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May 1, 2008, 6:47:21 PM5/1/08
to

"redrumloa" <amig...@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:e2c8fa9c-bc50-4b2d...@m3g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...

> Slappy is now threatening to sue Amiga.org, any interest in me making
> the email public?

Sure, why not. Eslapion has a big enough mouth, let it be heard ;-)


Klompmeester

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May 1, 2008, 7:12:05 PM5/1/08
to

"Peter Schepers" <sche...@ist.uwaterloo.ca> wrote in message
news:fvcg55$q5c$1...@rumours.uwaterloo.ca...

That's the way I see it too.

Richard James

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May 1, 2008, 10:25:55 PM5/1/08
to
On Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:47:14 -0700, Dragos wrote:

> OK. I bought a "custom power supply" from a fellow Commodore user whose
> claim is they build power supplies for a living.

Talking of Fraud why don't you explain to the wider Commodore community
your real reason for posting this?

Here let me help inform everyone else of the small but very significant
fact that you neglect to mention.

In a thread on the Denial forums about C= Wine you come in and start
abusing everybody. Eslapion joins in this fight. You claim to be able to
expose eslapion as a liar. The thread was locked by a moderator.

Later the same day (in my timezone) this apparently unrelated post
appears on this newsgroup. You don't mention your previous fight, you
don't even name eslapion as the creator of the PSU.

So did the power supply actually die or where you just using this to get
back at eslapion by another method?

Richard James
--
sig fail on line -1

Dragos

unread,
May 1, 2008, 10:39:39 PM5/1/08
to
Welcome to the fray....

yes it died, yes he lied. yes he does it alot. yes I left his name off
initially so as not to bias the question.

unlike him, I don't pm insults and name-calling to several other
members, or make up facts to support my undefendable position. He
managed to get himself banned from at least one forum by threatening
and harassing a moderator.

If you actually looked at the facts and disregard any other source of
information, there is only one logical conclusion concerning his true
intent.

I don't sell things that are, in ebay terms, "significantly not as
described"

A lot of the things he is saying I posted, are fabrications, or others
words. anyone is welcome to read the posts on denial, there is little
there that has not been said in one form or another in various other
places.

I am sure he is enjoying your blind support, and I thank you for
providing another opportunity for me to correct you.


Groepaz

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May 2, 2008, 1:42:06 AM5/2/08
to
redrumloa wrote:

> Slappy is now threatening to sue Amiga.org, any interest in me making
> the email public?

he wants to sue a website for getting banned? LOL

keep it coming i say =)

--

Mit dem Aberglauben ist es so eine Sache. Ich habe noch keinen Menschen
getroffen, der sein dreizehntes Monatsgehalt zurückgegeben hätte.
<Fritz Muliar>


MagerValp

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May 2, 2008, 5:55:32 AM5/2/08
to
E> Here is another e-mail I got... from an engineer I had never chatted
E> with before.
E> Quote:
E> I usually don’t get involved in flame wars but it seemed rather one
E> sided. The participants that were “against” you seemed to be so
E> focused on the fact that it was a simple, crude solution that they
E> couldn’t accept the fact that there wasn’t anything technically wrong
E> with it. After reading through the thread and all the information
E> presented there (that’s the only info I had to go on), it seemed to me
E> that there was no ill intent, that there was nothing technically wrong
E> with the solution and that the buyer was pissed off because he had it
E> in his head that this power supply should be some sort of commercial
E> grade solution. From what I saw, he paid $35 for a knowingly home made
E> solution. What does one expect for $35!?!? ROFL. I thought it was a
E> great deal! It would cost me at least $20 for the two plugs, another
E> couple of bucks for the extension cord and the plug to fit the C64…
E> then my time to put it together… $35 sounds sweet! Haha! Besides what
E> other option is there when the C64 power demands require two
E> completely different power supplies?

E> Anyways… I’m rambling! Very Happy I read the thread and thought I’d
E> just try to shine a light of reason onto the topic. I did find the
E> whole thing very entertaining and like I said, I can’t believe how
E> worked up people got about that! You would think that you had stuck a
E> bomb in that thing and sent it off to him! LOL I would love to see how
E> some of these people would react to something really important,
E> something worth getting all worked up about! Half of them would
E> probably drop of a heart attack induced by stress! Hahaha!

Is it just me, or is this "other" engineer's writing style
disturbingly similar to Eslapion's?

BruceMcF

unread,
May 2, 2008, 8:58:42 AM5/2/08
to
On May 2, 5:55 am, MagerValp <MagerV...@cling.gu.se> wrote:
> E> Here is another e-mail I got... from an engineer I had never chatted
> E> with before.
> E> Quote:
> E> I usually don’t get involved in flame wars but it seemed rather one
> E> sided. The participants that were “against” you seemed to be so
> E> focused on the fact that it was a simple, crude solution that they
> E> couldn’t accept the fact that there wasn’t anything technically wrong
> E> with it. ...

> Is it just me, or is this "other" engineer's writing style
> disturbingly similar to Eslapion's?

Don't know, never read what Eslapion writes ... since there is plenty
that is technically wrong with the "solution". Indeed, if the
solution
*worked*, the case would have stayed close, and nobody would have been
the wiser. So the actual fact of the matter is that the "solution"
failed and so "nothing technically wrong" is pure, unadulterated,
bullshittery.

Its certainly *compatible* with sock puppetry, but it may also be
that
Eslapion takes advice from people who overstate their own credentials
in an effort to avoid getting called in complete and utter
bullshittery.
Someone's doing a con job, the only point that is arguable is whether
Eslapion was conned and then passed it on, or Eslapion is the author
of the con job.

And indeed, the key point in the defense is:

E> ... From what I saw, he paid $35 for a knowingly home made


E> solution. What does one expect for $35!?!?

IOW, if someone makes a claim they can do something for a price, and
they cannot in fact do it because it cannot be done for that price,
there is no fault for the person who made the false claim and all
fault lies with whomever was silly enough to believe them.

How convenient for people who make claims that they can do things
that they cannot do.

BruceMcF

unread,
May 2, 2008, 9:02:25 AM5/2/08
to
Oh, BTW, if you want, I can email the above, and so you can quote it
saying, "I got an email from a ...". After all, I figure one
meaningless, irrelevant reference to an irrelevant credential is as
good as any other. And, certainly, if someone is credentialed as an
engineer and do not see "fail to work" as a technical problem, their
credential is basically meaningless and irrelevant.

Golan Klinger

unread,
May 2, 2008, 12:32:04 PM5/2/08
to
MagerValp wrote:

> Is it just me, or is this "other" engineer's writing style disturbingly
> similar to Eslapion's?

He attempts to strengthen his position in debates by mentioning the large
number of supportive emails and/or PMs he receives and he'll even go so far
as to send copies of the aforementioned to those with whom he is debating.
He has used the technique on me a few times and I've read PMs that he sent
to others and, as you observed, the writing sytle is often similar to his.
They also contain the same grammar and spelling errors thet he makes in his
public postings. It's all very curious.

Unfortunately he never shares the names of the people that send him these
supportive messages and the headers have always been removed. What's really
strange is that these mystery people never voice their support publically.

digita...@gmail.com

unread,
May 2, 2008, 4:56:48 PM5/2/08
to
Greetings. This is my first post in this newsgroup, though I've been
active in the Commodore community for a while, and got my first
computer (a Vic 20) back in the early 80's.

First, a disclaimer. I've delt with Francois (the guy who built this
power supply) in the past, bought some things from him, and he's been
a good guy to deal with. I have nothing good to say about Dragos, so
I won't say anything at all about him, and we'll leave it at that.

My reason for making this post is because, quite frankly, I have a
real healthy fear of electricity. Being a homeowner, I'd be horrified
if something I bought turned out to have its certifications voided and
caused a house fire. Insurance wouldn't cover me, and I would probably
never be able to sue the guy who made it for what my house is worth!

My initial reaction to this post was that it was some kind of a joke.
I later discovered that it was no joke; its creator genuinely thought
it was safe, and claimed that he chose this method in order for the
products involved to retain their UL certifications. Having replaced
60 amp fuse boxes with 200 amp breaker panels in some of the houses
I've flipped, I'm familiar with electrical codes, inspections and
certifications; I've always had my work inspected and certified before
reconnecting the juice. To do otherwise would be a very foolish
gamble, even if I did everything right. This is why I doubted that
the components in this power supply retained their UL certification.
I decided to defer to the experts, and asked a representative at
Underwriter's Labs myself. I included the picture, and sent this to
c...@us.ul.com:
---
This picture depicts three products that are certified by you. These
include an extension cord, and two power supplies. One power supply
has a rated output of 5VDC, the other at 12VDC. As you can see, the
original wires have been cut from the power supplies. In their place,
these two power supplies are soldered to a cable designed to power an
8 bit desktop computer. These are enclosed in this case with a bunch
of holes drilled in it to provide ventilation. All soldered
connections have been sealed with shrink wrap, and the electrical
connections have been tested to ensure the proper pins on the cable
deliver the proper amount of power.

Would the UL certification still be valid for the extension cord and
power supplies, if used in this manner?
---
Almost immediately, I got a response from Ms. Denise L. Dougherty:
---
From: Denise.L.Dougherty.a.t.us.ul.com
[mailto:Denise.L.Dougherty.a.t.us.ul.com] On Behalf Of
CustomerService_Industrial_UL.a.t.us.ul.com
Sent: May 1, 2008 12:01 PM
To: Paul Quirk
Subject: Re: Certification; is it still valid or void?


Dear Paul,
Thank you for the technical question regarding the ext cord design.
Any changes made to a UL Listed Product will null and void the UL
Listing.

Have a good day!

Sincerely yours,
Ms. Denise L. Dougherty
Senior Customer Service Engineer, Industrial
---
To make sure, I asked her to clarify:
---
"Paul Quirk" <digitalquirk.a.t.gmail.com>
05/02/2008 04:30 AM
To <CustomerService_Industrial_UL.a.t.us.ul.com>
cc
Subject RE: Certification; is it still valid or void?

Just for clarification, when you say “Any changes,” does that include
changes made to the wire that runs from the PSU’s, as depicted in the
picture I included? I need this clarification, because there are some
that believe that, because the housing of the PSU’s wasn’t
compromised, they still retain their UL certifications.
---
She responded:
---
From: Denise.L.Dougherty.a.t.us.ul.com on behalf of
CustomerService_Industrial_UL.a.t.us.ul.com
Sent: May 2, 2008 9:58 AM
To: Paul Quirk
Subject: RE: Certification; is it still valid or void?

Hi Paul,
Any change including removal of labels, cords, changes to the label,
defacing. Anything! Cutting the cord of the Class 2 transformer is
considered a change. When a product is changed we have no control how
it may used other than the way it was intended according to the UL
Listing/Recognition or Classification.

I hope this helps!


Sincerely yours,
Ms. Denise L. Dougherty
Senior Customer Service Engineer, Industrial
---
So, I do believe that ought to settle this issue once and for all.
The UL certification on both of those transformers is now null and
void according to Underwriter's Labs.

Dragos

unread,
May 2, 2008, 6:28:16 PM5/2/08
to
That is some very clever detective work. I think it proves a very
important point. It doesn't address My problem with it, but it sure
does give a lot of weight to some of the other points raised. Nicely
done.

lord...@vcsweb.com

unread,
May 2, 2008, 11:59:51 PM5/2/08
to
Hoi Dragos:

Caught this in an email sent to me. Saw it on the IRC. Man you need a
PS. I have some bricks I'll send you for shipping. Smeg it man I did
better than that in college back in the 70s drunk off my rear and
bread baording the lot.

BCNU
Lord Ronin from Q-Link

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