neo-ninja

HI Guys, So thanks for all the advice so far I think its best if I lay out all the details. Just got the plans out the kitchen is 4m x 2.5m. He has given us a quote of £2500 for everything (flat agreed fee, it wont go up if the job takes longer) - that includes all extra bits and stuff he needs, to buy not included with the kitchen from B&Q. So new wiring, grout, floor adhesive, any piping etc...(we literally don't have to supply anything) He will take off £200 if we remove old tiling from walls (its horrible as anything) and remove all top row of cupboards (Which are along one wall) - im confident i can do all that. It sounds like people on here think that is a lot (i am actually completely clueless when it comes to stuff like this so any help or advice is fantastic!) His work would be: To remove existing base units and floor tiles, disconnect cooker and remove all appliances. Reroute lighting cable for led lighting to another wall near the entrance way. Move rad from wall chase pipes under floor and bring pipes up to new location ready for new rad, change centre ceiling light for a new one. Move all fused spur switches below work top. Install all new base units and wall units to kitchen, sink to be plumbed in to existing plumbing plus run pipe through wall for an outside tap, plumb in washing machine and dishwasher. Double cooker and hob to be wired into existing cooker cable, extractor fan with hood to be fitted Tile kitchen floor and hall way (hallway is around 4m2). All rubbish to be taken away from job.

Yes it is around 4.5m x 3meters the room is without cupbords i reckon. But that includes all prepwork so removing floor removing old units, and old tiling, re running wires for fuse switches etc.. then plastering etc..

thanks for the replies so far, he did our downstairs bathroom a while back and I think he did a pretty good job of that and did it really quickly. we would be paying him a set fee. If I was braver I would try to do myself but I botched up somehow filling a hole in a wall to make it look terrible with polly filler to I don't trust myself with a kitchen, and moving cables etc.. and if im honest I don't have the time as work is crazy at the moment.

Hi Guys, Quick question to you all, I am looking at redoing our kitchen at the moment it is pretty dated, the cupboards are pretty nasty, floor is dated, and worktops are horribly dated I have got a few quotes from the likes of B&Q, Tesco, Homebase, Ikea for thier fitting and they all seem to be coming out at around £4k which for a fairly small kitchen seems crazy (that's just fitting) I asked a local chap we have had before and he reckons to fit, lay new floor, move a few plug sockets to under counters, move rad and fit new one, fit LED lighting etc it will take him 10 days work and be around £2500 that includes all grout, cabling he needs etc.. Which I thought on one hand sounded fair in comparison to other quotes, but broken down on a per day rate seemed quite high to me. Any thoughts from anyone, as always any advice would be fantastic! Thanks in advance!

Hi All, Does anyone here have any dreambox experience? Where did you get yours, is it any good etc? I got speaking to a guy at a training day and it sounded pretty amazing. Mark

Never used it, but I do know that I once met a guy at a wedding who trained mechanics in the safety of using AC equipment and he was like never ever use them, as the gas in AC systems if it goes wrong will replace the gas in your lungs and your fecked if that happens...game over man game over.,... although that was a few years ago so its probably safe now.

HI All, Quick question for you all, my broadband and phone contract is up and BT the b*stards wont offer me the new deal on their site. 18 months, £50 sainers voucher, 6 months free £16 a month unlimited 16meg broadband and a new home hub 4. line rental £15.45 unlimited weekends. That apparently is for new customers only, the best deal they will offer me is the same package for 12 months but no voucher and no 6 months free. I cant get infinity in my area and was wondering if anybody could recommend anyone else or any other deals that can beat that, O2 also dont do good service to me house last time i checked.

Ahhh I see, so yummy then im guessing!

Ah that's great didn't realise it was that safe. Whats this fruit then, is it actually nice? I read that it smells like dead people.... When I said buying stuff I was thinking more like should I be buying gadgets to sell back here etc..

Thanks all, keep them coming, is anything worth buying and bringing back? No one has mentioned the night safari?

Hi All, IM going to Singapore for work and will have one afternoon / evening free while over there - any recommendations? Anything worth buying while over there? On the way back i am then flying to Canada again but this time Montreal again same deal i will have some free time, anything worth seeing or buying?

Ah thats interesting, but im right in thinking they are very intensive on hardware and power...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/mar/22/silk-road-online-drug-marketplace

My bit of research today makes me think this is the case especially as they are holding the amount of new coins issued each year. $100+ USD for a currency which doesn't have any real value. The US regulators are starting to get interested too. In effect if you're "mining" you will most likely be heavily regulated against similarly to a payments processor. So from my understanding, they have the hold the currency each year, to make sure it doesn't become devalued. What backs up the currency is partly this and partly the fact that in order to get it you are data mining and solving mathematical problems that use real energy to use and components, the problems now will easily kill a laptop (From what I have read). They are also now making physical currency which you can buy. That also sounds quite fascinating as its digital currency but in physical form. I know what you mean about Ponzi scheme it just seems too good to be true, but then again you read about the vast amount of wealth that is being stored and turned into these coins and it does make you feel like it can't all come crashing down, and the fact that the US has tried / is trying to get it shut down as its growing rapidly. Also several places now take bitcoin as payment methods. (including fairly nefarious people - which is one of the reasons the US dont like it as its almost impossible to track transactions, Which means no TAX no law etc..) I find it truly fascinating, but i haven't yet found someone (and im on quite a few forums with quite alot of tech minded people,) who has actually done it / is doing it and that makes me very suspicious. However there are said to be some people who were minding for coins in the old days (less then 2 years ago), got together several thousand of them and have recently cashed out making millions.

This isn't a bad introduction. There's loads of information out there if you search for bitcoin mining. http://www.weusecoin...en/mining-guide I read 2 lines of that and fell asleep, sorry! Watch the video

....the stuff you can buy with them on the TOR network I have heard is very shifty everything from professional hit men to dial a gram services. Did you actually give it a try?

The coins or the machines?

Thats exactly what I don't really understand actually. But your analogy is probably spot on.

From what i have read there is no need to be a genius unless you want to make chips, you simply invest in a rig get it going and hey presto. The clever part comes when learning / knowing when to cash in your coins. I know what you mean about the fictional currency side, but I get the impression it's here to stay at least for the short term, several big people have significant % of their wealth in bitcoins. Also there are several big companies who have produced huge orders of farming machines (were talking 100s of 1000s) . You can now buy rigs that are £100k+. I also read another article that estimated there is over £100m invested in bitcoins. What I'm struggling with a little bit is the whole "its too good to be true so probably is" factor. Some of the rigs you can buy are £600-1000 and using the online calculators can make you at current bitcoin market value a return of around £100-200 a month. Obviously you need to factor in electricity. I just don't know if those figures are unrealistic and if they are a bit like those ebay superchargers with batteries in them...

HI All, I was wondering does anyone have any experience with Bitcoin or bitcoin mining? I recently got my bonus and was looking at investing part of it in a bitcoin mining rig to see what it was all about and if I can get any sensible returns.

Maybe that answers my question then.

Yes, I have been approached for similar roles offering around 25% more. (I dont really want to leave as I like the company, and people. Traditionally the company does also not increase peoples pay because they are threatening to leave (or so i have been told from a friend who did leave))

Yeah its really tough, like I said I have never discussed pay or winged about it at work at all. Its made more tough by the fact that obviously you cant speak to colleagues to get their advice, so I'm really grateful for everyone's here.

Thats interesting maybe I am being spoilt, is your company itself doing well. I know i would 100% look at moving if i didnt have a pay rise based off my working career so far... I didnt know that actually interesting.

10% was the bonus. I would say on the whole the company is very good, it just feels as someone who is young (27) and very career minded that I would expect ever year to go up a step. And I really felt from all the talk the company gave at the end of the year we would be seeing at least a 5% increase possibly up to 10% + In a previous company in the same industry I was seeing that kind of increase yearly. I also 100% agree with everyone that I know people haven't had increases and lost jobs - but I always get the impression that is from companies that are either not doing well, or preparing not to. Or from public sector roles. Not companies posting massive profits. I would say the company pays poorly for the role, I am doing now (I was approached a month or so ago for a very similar role that is paying over 25% more) I'm young and appreciate I have a lot to learn I just feel really let down i guess, and i know money isn't everything, but I'm sat here with my spreadsheet out and at 3% every year I can't help but feel would i be a fool to not take up a role that is paying alot more for the same role, in equally as good a company.