Joe D

I've relied on Big Ben most of the season, but his ankle injury and the late Monday decision make me uneasy. I did pickup backup Charlie Batch, but obviously I have to decide today to commit. Meager waiver wire choices are Orton, Hasselbeck, Senaca Wallace, Orlovsky, and Skelton.

Thanks!

Joe

My primary QB is on bye this week, which is good, since his thumb is in a splint. I have Colt McCoy as my backup (vs Jaguars), but he's not even making the experts' pick list. The projections have him with 12 FP this week, but I assume the expert picks are more reliable.

Tyler Palko (vs NE), Rex Grossman (vs Dallas), and John Skelton (vs SF) are available on the waiver wire. The projections have Palko with 13 FP, but the experts are collectively ranking Skelton the highest of the three. Skelton is playing for the injured Kevin Kolb, but many believe he's playing well enough to stay as primary.

What do you think? Gamble with McCoy, replace with Skelton, or one of the other two? It's only for week 11, unless Big Ben delays his return after bye.

My father is in a nursing home. I've acquire a cellphone for him (Firefly) which I will activate soon. However, I am concerned that it will go missing or walk away. (We've had to replace his DirecTV remote a few times.)

Is there a lightweight security cable solution for this scenario? The phone has a narrow pass-through clasp for a lanyard, but not the security lock hole like you see on a laptop. I imagine I would have to secure it to his electric wheelchair, which stays next to his bed. My assumption is that one end would have to be a loop while the other end would be some type of small but effective adhesive plate. I've tried searching eBay and a couple of other places, but may not be using optimal search terms. Any ideas?

Having a little trouble picking a quarterback this week. Advice appreciated:

1) Hasselbeck (Seattle) vs Rams. This would seem like the best QB match-up, particular on the passing defense and consider how the earlier match-up went. However, Hasselbeck has been a bit inconsistent, even against some weaker opponents.

2) Palmer (Cincinnati) vs Browns. Another weak opponent. Palmer seems a bit more consistent, but this may not be as much a lock as the Rams.

Thanks!

Typically, I don't have a problem settling on a quarterback. However, this week bring a bit of uncertainty and I actually have 3 mediocre ones to choose from, but with potential high score.

1) Hasselbeck (Seattle, vs Detroit) - has recent ribs injury, but seems to be recovering. He's had off and on games. More importantly, he's playing the Lions this week, which may give him huge opportunities for passes to Burleson and Houshmandazeh. I'm leaning toward this one.

2) Carson Palmer (Cincinnati, vs Baltimore) seems to be improving his play with Ochocinco and did beat the Ravens earlier this season.

3) Alex Smith (SF, vs Tennessee) New on the QB scene, so hard to predict his performance, though he may have a breakout week against Titan defense. Some are expecting good passing to Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree this week.

Thanks!

I have an opportunity to go back to school for a few months to beef up my certifications and decided to go for MSCE/security. (I already have A+, N+, and MCDST.) Been looking at two local schools in the Dallas area and trying to decide this week:

New Horizons - Offering a specific path of classes for this purpose, but will also throw in some later for CCNA, Security+ since I can bypass some of the basic stuff. All classwork on site through video instructor and labs, though exam preps can be used at home. The facilities appear to have a professional appearance.

TechSkills - Offering an unlimited assortment of courses for a two year plan, which means I can work on other certs in my spare time later. All coursework and preps can be done at home or on site. Facilities aren't quite as appealing and I have seen a few online complaints about the provider. They will pay for exam retake if you fail, providing you completed the necessary coursework.

I would really appreciate some input on these choices. Thanks!

Ok, finally decided to make the jump to blu-ray and purchased a Samsung BD-P1600 player for my Sceptre 32BV-FullHD LCD HDTV. I have bought three different blu-ray movies so far and am curious why two of them (Stargate, 2010) show the black bars on top and bottom, while the third (Bullitt) does expand to the full screen. All three movies indicate they are 1080p high def, 16x9, and 2.4:1. Both the player and TV are 1080p and I am using a high quality HDMI cable. I leave the TV on "wide" aspect on all three, as opposed to "normal" or "zoom." It doesn't bother me a lot, but I am just curious why they would be different in this regard. Thanks!

Sceptre 32BV-FullHD HDTV LCD:

32" Widescreen 16:9 HDTV LCD

High Resolution 1920 x 1080

1080P Full HDTV

1080P thru HDMI & Component

Samsung BD-P1600 blu-ray player:

high definition 1080p resolution

HDMI 1.3

Our non-profit has $10K which we are saving for a long-term project, so won't touch it for at least a year. We've traditionally been going with CDs for this purpose, but the rates are 2% or less currently as opposed to the 5% we got last year. Should we go with something like a money market instead or buy a shorter term CD and hope the rates climb back up? Thanks,

While I am off work, I am considering a project to replace my living area carpet with laminate flooring and painting the walls there. My living room furniture is light colored. Should I go with light or dark on the flooring, paint, and rug(s)? I'm not really that imaginative on such things and would like to get it right the first time. :)

The neighboring bedrooms will keep the plain beige carpet and white walls for now. The adjoining kitchen has light ceramic tile.

Our town has grown from about 6K to 24K in recent years and we have outgrown our current library facilities. We have a bond coming up which has to cover only a portion of the town's wish list. While the town council seems inclined to put building a new library near the top of the list, a bond committee left the library off their final recommendation. What are some good points to make in favor of the library facilities at the final town council bond review public meeting? I have a number I made at an earlier review, but would love some fresh ideas. Thanks!

I'm already playing Westbrook as RB. For slot 2, need to decide between Matt Forte (vs Green Bay) or Ronnie Brown (vs Oakland). Yahoo Projections favor Brown 18 FP to Forte's 14 FP. However, all the experts favors Forte over Brown. Go with Forte? (I also have Slaton and Jamal Lewis to choose from.) Thanks!

I actuallly find myself with a choice of four good RB this week, with Westbrook back in action, but need only two:

Westbrook

Slaton

Forte

Grant

Thanks!

I upgraded my desktop PC from 2 GB to 4 GB RAM (PC3200). However, Windows XP is reporting 3.6 GB RAM total. Is that unusual? Is there a way to see how much RAM each bank really has? (All of the sticks are labeled PC3200 1GB.) Thanks!

I've got a 1997 Dodge Intrepid I haven't driven extensively over the past year. Recently, everything was dead when I got into it and tried to start it up. When I took the battery in to charge it up, the parts store says it would not hold a charge, so I had to purchase another one. I hooked it up and all the accessory lights were on and bright once again. However, when I turned the key, everything went dead. I have to disconnect the battery and reconnect it for all the lights to come back on. Would this be a starter problem? I assume it would not be alternator. Thanks!

My neighbor has cut down this plant/shrub/sapling a few times over the years and was wondering what type it is. Depending on what it is, he might leave it or dig it up. Any ideas? Thanks!

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh176/bayoubear...

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh176/bayoubear...

I have two good quarterbacks, Derek Anderson (Cleveland) and Kurt Warner (Arizona). I usually go with Anderson, but snow and wind are going to be a significant factor in Cleveland on the passing game. Think I should play it safe and switch to Warner? Thanks!

I've been having pretty good success with New England defense most of the week. However, all the fantasy football sites I've seen have been rating Pittsburgh defense #1 against the winless Miami Dolphins this week. I picked up the Steelers defense as a backup today, but am debating whether to stick them in the lineup. Miami has been improving a bit and Pittsburgh lost to the Jets. What do you guys think? (I do pick a best answer, by the way.) Thanks!

I'm looking for a web domain host for two non-profit organizations. Are there any quality hosting companies which provide reasonable cost service to non-profits? Thanks!

I moved to the suburbs about five years to get away from the noise and light pollution of the city. For the first three years, it was really nice. Unfortunately, the local school district saw fit to build a huge multi-million dollar sports stadium right in the middle of the adjacent residential section last year. It baffles me how any taxpayer-funded agency can do that to its citizen. I can hear almost everything going on and it lights up my house like a Broadway stage, sometimes until 11:30pm. The town has a dark skies ordinance and noise restrictions, but apparently they don't apply to an entity like a school district. The district claims the lights are shielded and pointed down correctly, plus cannot be dimmed. What are my legal options here? Not only does it disturb my quality of living, I'm sure it reduces the value of my five year old house. It's like living in an industrial section of town. Advice appreciated and best answer will be chosen. Thanks!