Tim D

I know you can't use the DVR on a Tivo without a subscription. But will it at least allow you to tune over-the-air HD stations, without recording? Or do you need a subscription for that, as well? How about the Netflix feature...will that only work if you are paying the Tivo subscription (and of course the Netflix subscription, too)?

I have an older HDTV without a built-in tuner. I want to receive over-the-air antenna broadcasts in HDTV, but all the digital converter boxes I've found are standard definition only. Where can I find this type of a converter box/tuner, with 1080i output?

When are all of the arguments expected to wrap up, and when could we expect to get the decision from the Supreme Court?

Trying to find lactase pills cheaply. Where have you found the most pills with higher FCC units, for the lowest cost?

I'm trying to find a good list of substitutions for dairy products. Many of our recipes have milk/butter/sour cream. Can someone point me to a good list on the internet? I searched on Google and didn't find anything helpful. I'm not looking for specific brands to sub...I just want general ideas for cooking/baking with non-dairy products. A 1 or 2 page list format would be perfect.

I've recently started to suspect I am lactose intolerant. I cut out all dairy from my diet for 10 days, and felt really good. A couple days ago, I had a couple of chocolate cupcakes, but I took two Lactaid pills. Nevertheless, I felt awful today. Should the Lactaid have prevented the symptoms, or do some people just have such a bad intolerance, that the Lactaid won't do any good?

I've heard you can use food-safe mineral oil to coat the grates on the cooking surface of a gas grill, and that will protect it from corrosion. The same kind of mineral oil they use to protect butcher blocks. Is that safe on a grill, too? I'm just worried that when you heat up the grill, it might change the composition of the mineral oil into something unsafe. I've also heard vegetable oil is not good, because it can allow bacteria to grow on the grill.

My gas grill's cooking surface is rusting a little bit, and the replacement grates are nearly $100. Is there a way to remove the rust and make the grates safe for cooking again? I scrape with a wire brush and it doesn't help much...but they are pretty heavy grates, so there is not much metal lost yet.

I had a job interview 15 days ago for a Senior IT staff position, and I still haven't heard anything back from them. So at least they haven't formally rejected me yet, but no job offer, either. When is it appropriate to call the HR person and ask for an update? They didn't give me a decision timeline when I interviewed.

I am searching for a new job, and I don't want my current employer or co-workers to know about it. A couple of people have left the company recently, so I'm worried someone will ask me if I am thinking about leaving, or if I am looking for a new job. What is a creative response I can give them, without telling an outright lie? I don't want to say, "none of your business", and I don't want to admit what is going on, either.

We moved into a house with a few cat pee stains in the basement. We are already taking care of cleaning the stains in the carpet, so please do NOT tell me how to treat those. I just want to know if there are any good air fresheners that are especially effective at hiding cat pee smells? It is just a faint odor...some people can't even smell it.

Moved into a different home, and our cat won't stop pooping outside the litterbox. He pees in the box, so he knows where it is. And he usually poops in the box, too, but a couple times a week he poops outside the box. He only poops on the concrete in the room where we keep the litter box. He hasn't pooped on the carpet anywhere yet. We've been keeping the litter box clean for the most part. What do you think might be going on? How can we make him stop?

We have NetNanny as an internet filter, but I'm not sure that it does much for email protection. Is there anything like that for email? My son is ready to have his own email account. I can monitor it, but I'm wondering if there is any software or mail-hosting websites that are good for this purpose?

I bought a used office chair from an Asian home, and it smells of curry. The chair is leather or faux leather. Is there anything I can do to eliminate the odor, other than waiting for it to air out? I put it outside on my deck, hoping that will dissipate the odor more quickly.

We just moved to a new city, and we haven't found a church to join yet. We would like to tithe somewhere, though. Do you think it is still considered "tithing" if we give the money to some individuals in need, or perhaps a charitable organization? Or is it only true tithing if you give it to a church?

I am getting much lower speed on my internet connection via wireless than with a LAN cable. 38 Mbps with LAN versus 16 Mbps on wireless. The router is a Linksys Wireless-G WRT54GL. It is supposedly capable of 54 Mbps. Obviously the problem isn't my cable modem. So how do I determine if the router or my laptop is the bottleneck? I don't want to buy a new router and discover it isn't any faster.

FYI...I understand theoretical speed may be less than half of the 54 Mbps, but even at half-throughput, I should be getting in the high 20's, rather than high teens.

I am getting much lower speed on my internet connection via wireless than with a LAN cable. 38 MBps with LAN versus 16 MBps on wireless. The router is a Linksys Wireless-G WRT54GL. It is supposedly capable of 54 MBps. Obviously the problem isn't my cable modem. So how do I determine if the router or my laptop is the bottleneck? I don't want to buy a new router and discover it isn't any faster.

I don't think my chassis is grounded very well. When I do a resistance check from my negative battery terminal to several exposed screws on the frame (near the battery), I have continuity, but the resistance is pretty high. Where do I look to find where the negative terminal is connected to the body/chassis? I want to see if it is a good connection.

I am moving to a large city in a different state, where we don't know very many people (Omaha, NE). We need to identify a couple of specialty doctors (one for allergies, another for asthma). I don't know where to begin. I don't like the idea of picking one randomly from the phone book. Are there any good websites or other resources available to make an educated choice on a good doctor?

Four times in the last few weeks, my van wouldn't start. It just made clicking noises. Each time, it started with a jump start. I had the battery tested, and it is good. I also don't think it is the alternator, because otherwise the battery would be completely dead by now, right? What else can I check?