tjs282

In 2006, we bought a Fujitsu-Siemens laptop, Intel Celeron M processor, with Windows XP installed (now updated to Service Pack 3).

Up until around November last year, the drive read almost everything we put in it. In late December I noticed that it had started refusing to recognise many (but not all) CDs that it had previously played without problems. The drive whirrs and clicks, but won't read the disc (and when I go to the D-drive in 'My computer', it tells me there is no disc loaded). I have tried various game CD-ROMs, music CDs, and video CDs, all of which work fine on other machines (including Macs).

The drive will still happily read DVDs (thankfully!), and it will also write to CD-Rs (and read that information). The device drivers are correctly installed and updated, as far as I can tell. The Windows device driver troubleshooter was no help and Microsoft's DVD drive 'Fixit' download didn't fix the problem.

Not sure if this is relevant, but we have Kaspersky anti-virus, and renewed the licence in late November.

Don't mind buying a new DVD drive, but there's no point doing so if this is a software glitch.

We are shortly going to be installing solar heating for our water, the object being to insulate us from gas price rises in the future. For similar reasons, I would also like to reduce our electricity use, so delivering 'free' solar-heated water directly into the dishwasher and washing machine seems sensible.

The solar-panel guys have offered us a mixer unit for the washing machine (so we can do 30-40°C washes), but say another gubbins is needed for the dishwasher (not sure what, my wife spoke to them). Our dishwasher only has two programs, 50° or 60°C, so is there any good reason why we shouldn't simply switch the dishwasher supply from the cold pipe over to the hot one? Is this gubbins really necessary, or just an excuse to slap another 50 smackers on top of the 1000s we're already expecting to pay?

I have an old(!) Pentium 233 laptop with Windows 98, a 9-pin plug and one USB 1.0 port, which I got second-hand about 5 years back.

A little while later, I bought the Collector's Edition of X-Wing (including the B-wing add-on and TIE fighter), which I installed successfully, but was never able to play because (1) I didn't have a joystick, (2) or any idea what would work with what I have, and (3) I was living in a country where you couldn't trust the electricity supply, never mind the computer supply shops.

Now I'm back in civilisation (taking care of no. 3) and want to kick me some Sith butt, but all the joysticks on sale new seem to have about 50 buttons, and require a large chunk of processing memory to function.

Wireless is right out, and USB 2.0 won't work, so I probably need to buy something second-hand, but (2) still applies... Any ideas?

(Better still, if you have one to sell, stick it on Ebay, and we'll talk...!)

I'm driving a second-hand (not sure how old - pretty beat-up though!), 4-speed VW Golf, 1.4 l (I guess) engine, and commuting 25km each way to work every day, with the occasional longer journey (100 km or so).

I've been trying to use the highest gear possible that keeps the car moving without stalling (i.e. lowest possible r.p.m.), and am using about 8.4 l (unleaded) fuel per 100 km (about 33.6 m.p.g., if I've done the conversion right).

I would like to know if there is an optimal r.p.m. value where the fuel burns most efficiently (i.e. minimising unburnt fuel emissions) while still maximising fuel efficiency (minimum fuel used against maximum distance travelled)?

If so, is there an easy way to find it, or should I just carry on doing what I've been doing?