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The Euro becomes legal tender from midnight tonight. Is anyone here in a Eurozone country and what's the mood like? I'm in the UK, so not joining (yet?), but it's still very interesting.

we're not getting the euro, luckily.

The mood..? Well, it's on the radio all day here. Sounds like a lot of propaganda to me. And tonight there's a couple of hours of television on the launch of the Euro.

Me personnally? I hate it. They're stealing our national currency which has lasted almost 700 years!!! And for what? Just to enrich banks and big corporations. It doesn't benefit us at all.

How was is decided that Holland would enter the Euro?

Was it a government decision or was their a national poll?

yeah! How dare they! We make our currency for more then 170 years

And I don't know about Holland, but here it was just decided by the governement

So overthrow the government....

ha! In Belgium, when you walk on the street and you scream:
"viva la republique!" (long life the republic) you get arrested and you can stay a month in jail...
Overthrow the governement? Wow, that would mean the Death Sentence then...

ouch.......one day there will prob be a world currency....scary thought. What would all the money changers do for a living????

change the currency?

There are still a lot of currencies used today........some day it will porb all be moved to one....like Europe has moved to the Euro...

that will never happen!

In another 50 years there wont be paper currency, we'll have chips implanted into our heads or hands and any financial transactions will be automaticaly deducted without ever touching money, checks or credit cards. I hope my chip doesn't clash with my hair

I'm with queeq, I hate it!! They are taking a vital part of a civilization and trying to form one large country, I won't let it happen. It's really ridiculous.

In 1978 people were positive we'd be living on Alpha Centauri by 1999. Where are we now? Same durn country. We're to the point that it's no longer invention but simply improving that needs to be done.

Yeah, but what are you going to do about it when you are along?

I don't understand...what do you mean "when I am along"

that is Yerssot for you UBH our Belgian friend often talk in "riddles" he get around to explain his thing just be patient with him

Along a strange one in to be yesterday?

Ya'll lost me at Alpha Centauri...

Well that was lucky.

But inorder to improve, we must invent.

i agree we should be cautious about predicting the death of hard cash any time soon. I mean in 2001 we were supposed to be using flying cars. And who remembers the "paperless office" affordable computers were supposed to make? lol

also, Happy New Year everyone.

Invention comes through originality. To invent an improvement is simply improvisation at work, it IS original, but lacks the roots of originality. What I meant by invention is that, the evolution process would be so widened due to the lack of current information, for example of Zero-G concepts, that I don't see us just falling on the concept even within our lifetime, we'll have to allow the technological process to gradually induce more info, which for example, mathematics has taught us, over hundreds of years.

Abacus to Thermodynamics

Considered simple to us now, but how long did it take us to simply grasp these ideas?

Flying cars are atleast 1000 years away, end of paper currency, much closer then you think. We are heading closer towards a 'paperless office' everyday. No need for paper when you can send and read everything electronically. Cheaper and more efficient that way. Paper is like soooo 1954!!!!

*This is not a gunshot at ethnicity*

Do you realize America is so far ahead of other countries technologically that you guys try to see things as if it's up to you guys? Everything there is electronic, but not here. Sure we have computers, big businesses, etc., but we most certainly aren't a country ran by microchips. I can speak for almost all the other Euro countries as well.

If America is making the footsteps away from paper currency, then let them, but the rest of the world WON'T be able to follow, so it will be an isolation I hope you guys can live with for the next 500 years until the other countries to catch up.

it wont take 500 years, but yes, America is much farter then us

Japan is far more advanced then the US. We depend on them for mostly everything. I dont know anyone who pays with cash anymore, everything is on credit cards or automatically deducted from their bank accounts each month (telephone, car insurance, etc). Almost everyone has Palm Pilots, (no paper notebooks needed). Now within the next 5 years they are planning to implement electronic books in classrooms and I can easily see how paper in general will become extinct as a median of communication. Paper money included.

Japan is master in replicating stuff but they have trouble inventing things

Oh Hahaha...*grumbles*

What? You mean you never got used to my dry English humour???

yerss:
that's completely wrong.
japan is the #1 producer of electronics, and they are the ones who come up with new stuff all the time.

UBH:
I can't follow your analysis of the use of electronic devices in USA vs. Europe. I think many europeans use as much/many electronics in their lifes. and, when it comes to cell phones europe and japan is ahead. I agree with tex in that paper-money use will decrease strongly in the years ahead.

indeed they produce a lot of electronics, but it's always the same, only smaller, etc.

nonono, they're the ones who invent everything new in the world of electronics too.

well, they made one robot and they are constantly improoving it

you have to understand; japan is the country who invents the most of new electronics, that be robot-dogs, household-equipment, TVs, etc. etc. period.

Mah is right, they come up with all the good stuff, keep it to themselves for a year and then export it to the rest of the world.

I didn't know cell phones were a substitute for all that stood for technology...

Also, Europe, Japan, Australia and America are the only places that use credit cards or even checks for that matter. I visit Eastern Europe (more specifically Romania, Russia, and Bulgaria) and almost no one there uses anything BUT cash.

Sure, the 4 places I listed above are the vast importance to our economic market, but they aren't the only ones.

Just because we may follow what Japan and America do (credit cards, cheques, etc.) doesn't mean we're all on the same line of progression.

by UBH

ehh we are kind of at that state now in Norway, most people use Visa cards when shopping. I seldom carry any money on me, just my Visa. And while at it, when I last were in the States they had a little problems with my Visa. The credit card equipment they used in stores were ,at least for us in Norway, OLD GADGETS.
I havent been shopping in other European countries for a while, but I was surprised at the ancient equipment used in the States.
And they had never seen the kind of visa card I used, It is an ID on the flip side of it and that was totally new to them. Those card have excisted for over 10 years here.

have I EVER said that?

Same here. Most months we hardly make any cash withdrawals from the bank, just pay the Visa bill instead at the end of the month.

Unfortunately we haven't got to the cashless stage completely yet, but I look forward to the day we do

an example mah: the tv was invented by some American... right?
(well, not one from Japan)
and now those guys are reproducing it and getting it smaller and better, they didn't invent the tv, nor the phone, NOR the robots (blast those American scientists!)

no, if you go that far back in time you might be right. but when some new electronic devices is invented nowadays, it's almost everytime from the japaneses.

They really should get out more...

I know the Dutch company Philips invent a lot of stuff, very innovative stuff. But since they suck big time at marketing, the Japanese usually take the market.

Philips are Dutch? Now I never knew that. Their used to be a big Philips factory near where I live but it closed down.

Yep, it's Dutch. VERY Dutch. I always think it's quite strange that no one abroad knows that. But then, communication is not their strongest point. It took them ten years to start telling the world they were the ones that invented CD. Go figure.

Philips is more than 100 years old, it was founded in the city of Eindhoven. They moved the international head office two years ago from Eindhoven to Amsterdam.

I knew that! That crap can only come from Holland

well, they aren't that bad, actually...

I think they are. They only good thing they make is light bulbs and tv's, which boils down to the same thing really.
Almost everything I ever bought of Philips breaks down right after the warranty has expired. That's why I RARELY buy something of Philips and when I do after several years thinking that they may have changed, it happens again....

But they do have good inventors. Weird people though, they were brown pants, sandals, white shirts with pocket protectors, they have long beards and they wear glasses. I once worked on a miniaturisation exposition in one of the buildings in Eindhoven, and as I walked down those halls where all these inventors worked, they looked up from their open computers as I passed. They looked at me as if I was some sort of alien: what's that? It looks human, a creature from the outside!!!!

I dunno, I have a pretty good wet and dry shaver made by Philips.

That's what you get when you visit Arkansas

I bought a Philips TV last week, I like it, you have automatic picture and sound settings that change automatically to match programs you are watching, Sports/Movies/Music and personal. The sound also changes to Theater/Music/Voice and personal. It also has component video outputs, so I ge the best picture possible with the DVD. If It breaks, I'll just curse the Dutch

Philips used to be the same as quality, but with Phillips like other electronic produsers, they are now manufactured in former east block countries. If you want quality you have to pay a bit more. Dont fall for the cheap eastern europe manufactured crap. Get the real stuff.

My DVD manual says that component is the least good alternative, s-video the next best, and scart the best. also a DVD magazine I read writes that you should avoid component. but maybe I'm wrong!

you are always wrong mah

How many Euro is a DVD-player?

I'm always right!......well except that time last year, and yeah that time, oh that time last week too, and yesterday and....

you forget a lot I'm sure

No, you probably have component confused with composite.
Composite video is the regular Audio/Video jacks
then came S-video which was a vast improvemnet over composite video
Now they have component video, which is the best you can get. It's only available on new DVD's and TV"s that are digital ready.

Red, blue, and green are my favorite colors!!!!!


WHEEEE!!!

<gargle>

Yup, those are the ones, then you just plug in the Red & White audio cables, leave the yellow one out, and your ready to go. If your really special, you can hook up your sound via the optical audio output! But I'm not that special

ok, I just remembered wrong.

We forgive you.

hmmm speak for yourself!

Oh, yeah, you still mod this place too.

Excuse me while I choke.......*cough*,*cough*. No Yerssot, the T.V was invented by a Scot called John Logie Baird in 1922.

We also invented-
the TELEPHONE
the STEAM ENGINE
the TELEGRAPH
the POSTAGE STAMP
the PNEUMATIC TYRE
the DECIMAL POINT
the FAX MACHINE
the IRON BRIDGE
the MICROWAVE OVEN
TARMAC ROADS
PARAFFIN
the RADAR DEFENCE SYSTEM
the FRIDGE
the VACUUM CLEANER
COLOUR PHOTOGRAPHY
ANTISEPTICS
the STEAM BOAT
the BICYCLE,
WATER PROOF COATS
the FOUNTAIN PEN
Continious Electric Light (LIGHTBULB)
the TELESCOPE



Were also responsible for inventing, creating or discovering PENICILLN,
the U.S NAVY,
the BANK OF ENGLAND,
ANAESTHETICS,
CARBON DIOXIDE,
a CURE for SCURVY,
COLLOID CHEMISTRY,
the first CLONED MAMMAL,
GEOSCIENCES,
HALLOWEEN,
the HISTORICAL NOVEL,
HYPODERMIC SYRINGES,
the KELVIN scale of Tempreture,
the PLANET NEPTUNE,
SOCIOLOGY,
ECONOMICS,
the STEREOTYPE,
the VACCINE against SMALLPOX,
and a lot more that I don't have time to write.

Not bad for a country of only 5 million people.

Yip, he;s roight. Annoyed I didn;t spot yerss saying that.

Though technically you invented RDF rather than Radar, which was an American term.

Back to the Euro - I was dead against this until Sept 11th. Now the idea of being a bigger part of Europe doesn't seem that bad to me.

*Fails to see the connection.*

I'm sorry KJ
you see, this board is very educatif!

what are you talking about KJ?

I accidently said that America was responsible for inventing the tv, but in fact it were the SCOTS who did that!
Once again, KJ, sorry

Funny how they become Scottish when they do something good and British when the screw up...

and we invented the....eh....words troll, fjord and slalom. yipeee!

And all pledge alliance to the Union Jack right?

The Germans can put in an earlier claim than that, Finti.

The fact is, Baird's is by far the strongest.

well he has the patent for it though

maybe but John Logie baerd still invented th box that is the actual television!

And the Dutch invented...... invented...... invented....... errmm...... ah, yes, the Goalkeeper.....


..... which doesn't always work.

and cloggs and Madurodam

It doesn't matter who was working on it, the fact is Baird is credited with inventing it.

There is evidence that a team of Scots and a seperate team of English inventors both flew planes before the Wright Brothers but that doesn't count because the Wright brothers got the patent.

The worlds first powered flight took place in Sommerset, England, 55 years before the Wright brothers but it doesn't count.


That's funny because that's what we say about you.

John Logie Baird invented the T.V.

So you say but he dont have the patent for it

I don't know about that.

let's just all agree on the fact that the TV was invented by some european

Well if he was from Scotland we must say he was British.

No we don't. It's a seperate country.

But you can say that if you want.

oh really, you dont have full soveriegnity though and you are considered a part of Britain so British

Finti don't wind me up, I'm not in the mood.

Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland are all seperate countries. But we've shared a Government, Parliment and Monarchy successfully for years.

How many other countries could do that and acheive what Britain has?

You won't be laughing when you guys join the Euro and the rest of Europe.

we won't, the norwegians have shown in polls that they are not interested in joning euro or EU.

I know. I'm just trying to scare Finti.

mah, you are lucky!!!

Don't forget Big Brother....

and we are ow so thankfull for that

But the problem with Big Brother is that it DID work.

who watched that if I may ask?

(and how many euros can you win with it? to stay on topic ofcourse)

Well, year one was a huge success (ratings wise) and then it went downhill.

my day gets better and better
I know that the first one was a succes here and I heared a lot less about the second one

Same pattern. When you've seen one...

yep:
throw people in a house, aim cameras at them, broadcast 24/7 and hype it up,

Like Tarkin would say:
Stupid to the last

Actually, they rarely show all 24 hours. They edit it in such a way that the one they want, wins.

Canal+ did that this year

Over 100. "Wake up, time to die."

Closing.