Also it was recommended to me by both the TiVo Support and the cable people support that I have a a cable tech call to install the card, since a fair number of them seem to be lemons, so he could try more than one if that was a problem.

Me too.

So far the new-to-me Tivo seems to be working fine, and Cablevision was able to bind the old cablecard to the new Tivo without any problems over the phone. Now I'm just crossing my fingers that I still have ABC by Sunday night...

The only thing that makes me hesitate to get a TiVo is that I have Comcast, and I fear the difficulties that could ensue in trying to get a cablecard. I can just imagine buying the TiVo, and then having no one at Comcast know what a "cablecard" is.

Tivo will actually conference-call with you and Comcast (they say "your cable company," but the rep I was on the phone with called out Comcast by name) if getting cablecards is a problem. They have a script for getting them to cooperate.

It took two visits to get mine installed. Apparently not installing them right will blow out the card, and that's what happened. Incredibly frustrating, and who's making the technology that delicate.

Time Warner, here.

On the Tivo HD in our bedroom the tech went through 7 Cablecards before he landed on one that actually worked.

Apple has announced the official release date for the iPad. My birthday.

The only thing that makes me hesitate to get a TiVo is that I have Comcast, and I fear the difficulties that could ensue in trying to get a cablecard. I can just imagine buying the TiVo, and then having no one at Comcast know what a "cablecard" is.

I didn't have any trouble with it. Talk to to Tivo first, before you call the cable company because one kind of card is better than the other, as I recall. I seem to remember that you do a two card system or one card (even though you have two slots). You want the one card because it's better. Also, if they are charging you for the card, it's cheaper to pay for one.

I've seen "mouse" orbital sanders fairly cheap and are good for flat surfaces with extra details.

I have a Black & Decker mouse and am pretty happy with it; it's easy to control with my small hands, for one. A big job will wear through the sandpaper attachments (precut to the shape of the mouse) pretty quickly, but it does the job.

My previous experience in sanding is all manual - sandpaper on a grip, basically - and the Mouse is easier on the hands than that, definitely. If you are used to fancier sanding equipment, I don't know how it would compare,

Would anyone be able to recommend a power sander for refinishing furniture?

I use a palm sander a lot for furniture. With fine sandpaper, you can just take down the grain between coats of finish. The advantage of a palm sander is that it's very gradual and doesn't go round and round, so the potential for damage is much less. I've had ones from Sears and Black & Decker and haven't seen much difference, except that they use different tricky ways to hold on the sandpaper. Getting one with a dust bag is totally worth it.

I have a Black & Decker mouse too, and it's a good tool, but I mainly use it to get into small spaces.

You want the one card because it's better

How?