TODAY'S TOURBUS TOPIC: RIDER'S REVENGE #28

Hi all... it's time for another Rider's Revenge issue, where I share sites that your fellow Tourbus riders think are useful, fun, cool or otherwise worthy of attention. If you have a favorite site that's of interest to an international audience, send it along for the next Rider's Revenge!

FULL OF GAS?

I get lots of spam hyping products that are supposed to boost your car's fuel efficiency, so I wrote to Russell Banush, a Senior Environmental Scientist at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, to see if these things really work. Here's what he said:

> We have evaluated 100 or so of these devices, and none has
> demonstrated statistically significant fuel economy benefits. We
> find that today's vehicles are very fuel efficient and that regular
> manufacturer recommended maintenance of one's vehicle and good
> driving habits will optimize fuel economy. Please visit the
> following address to check out the reports and other documents:

http://www.epa.gov/otaq/consumer.htm

In a nutshell, don't waste your money on these "gas saver" gizmos.

DON'T TAKE ANY WOODEN NICKELS

IRV STEIN from Rio Rancho, New Mexico wrote:

> Here is a useful, informative site that U might consider for Rider's
> Revenge. It happens to be my hobby site. Why not check it out B4 U
> just ignore it?

http://www.irvings-info-page.cityslide.com

Irv is a retired engineer from Jet Propulsion Laboratory who has been involved with the design and testing of spacecraft. He now offers advice about computers, life and removing static cling from pantyhose.

KICKING SOME BUTT

Bob Egan, from the deep dark depths of cyberspace opined thusly:

> Hey Guys, Love your newsletter!
> Saw in the Rider's Revenge #27 issue the sponsor ad for nicotine
> addiction relief. If any of your readers are trying to kick the
> habit, I have a Yahoo group that began as a quit-smoking-support
> group and has evolved into that plus a friendly group of buddies.
> We are a group of people who primarily enjoy each others' company
> and secondarily have an interest in fighting nicotine addiction and
> thirdarily offer each other support on most any issue... and a few
> laughs. It seems to work. 80%+ of the group has been off
> cigarettes for a year or more. We'd be glad to have any of your
> riders visit with us to see if we can help with kicking the habit.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/JABOF/

ROBUST... I LIKE THAT WORD

Larry Goldberg, Director of Media Access Group, WGBH Boston, wrote:

> Teachers' Domain is a multimedia digital library for K-12 teachers
> and students. You'll find a robust collection of classroom-ready
> digital resources, multimedia lesson plans and professional
> development resources. Each resource is tailored to specific grade
> levels and correlated to national and state standards. Teachers'
> Domain has been developed by WGBH, with major funding from the
> National Science Foundation. Keep up the great work!

http://www.TeachersDomain.org

THE GRIN REAPER

Mark Jeantheau in Germantown, Maryland wrote this with squeaky chalk:

> Hi Bob, I've been a TOURBUS rider since the mid-1990s (eek, am I
> that old now?). Thanks for the many years of great info you've sent
> my way. In return, I can offer you a few minutes of relaxation and
> laughs at a web site we've just developed --- Grinning Planet.
> There isn't another site quite like it on the web, and THAT'S hard
> to achieve these days. Keep on keepin' on, drivers!

http://www.grinningplanet.com

ASCII MOVIES

I can't remember who sent me this link, but it's worth a look. We've discussed ASCII Art (plain text computer graphics) in TOURBUS a few times, but Roman Messmer in Switzerland has taken it to a whole new level -- ASCII Movies. You'll enjoy watching scenes from The Matrix, Spiderman and others in stunning asciimation.

http://www.romanm.ch/ascii-movies.htm

See you next time! --Bob Rankin