fcc

VuPoint Solutions Digital Film and Slide Converter (FC-C520-VP-BX2)
$99.99
With hundreds of slides reaching the age that the images were showing deterioration, I needed to scan them or let them fade away. I have tried a few other slide scanners and the process was so slow that I never managed to get more than 100 done. The VuPoint Solutions Digital Film and Slide Converter (FC-C520-VP-BX2) is fast enough and requires little enough attention to easily do 100 in an hour while watching TV.

This scanner is easy to use. Put in SC card, plug in power, open it up, put some slides in the slide holder, push it in the slot and press the button. You load 3 slides at a time in the holder. The first time only you need to set the resolution (why would the default not be the higher one?) and the film type (BW/color/negative) - the settings persist. The image processing time is pretty quick; 3 seconds to adjust the light levels and you are ready to press the button. Scanning the image takes another 3 seconds. You get a 1 second display of the scanned image and saving to the SD card takes 5 seconds.

One of the best things is it does not need to be connected to a computer - just insert an SD card and scan JPEGs to it. With other scanners I've used they had to be connected to your computer and you had to make adjustments for each image with some buggy application. This one is easy to setup and operate in front of the TV.

The scanning is very automatic. I get good scans (the source is fading anyway so perfect is not a requirement) with no adjustments ... just load and press.

One bug I have seen is some images show a blue-ish strip near the bottom of the image. Rescanning does not help. It can probably be corrected digitally.

The slide tray is also a weakness. It has a tiny latch that requires a fingernail. Once you get the technique it works OK.

Tests - Answers for FCC General Radiotelephone Operator License Updated Multiple-Choice Tests from the actual FCC exam Plus Radar Endorsements Tests
$24.95
This one-stop guide is your first step to obtaining your FCC Commercial Radio License. It contains everyting you need to know to get a Marine Radio Operator Permit (MROP) or General Radiotelelphone Operator License (GROL), plus the Radar Endorsement. Learn wireless communications and move to the front of the employment line in Radio-TV Broadcasting, Satellites, Microwave, Aviionics, Radar and Maritime. A US Government FCC License is important. Federal regulations require all transmissions and tests performed during installations, servicing or maintenance of a Marine or Avionics station to be made by or under the immediate supervision and responsibility of a person holding an FCC General Radiotelephone Operator License. Even when this license is not legally required for employment, it serves as a government document certifying and acknowledging proficiency in the Communications industry. To obtain an FCC license, applicants must get a passing score on a 100 question multiple-choice exam. The only other requirements for getting an FCC License: Applicants must be a legal United States resident and have an ability to communicate in English. This newly revised 19th edition contains everything an applicant needs to know to pass the exam, including the answers to all questions on the government examination.

TDK 16X DVD+R 100PK Spindle
$0.00
Although the box says TDK, as someody else mentioned, the manufacturer is Ritek. First 2 discs in the Pioneer drive from my laptop produced coasters. The maximum write speed accepted was 2.4x, although the drive itself is much faster and works very well with other brands. The resulting discs would not play in any DVD drive I tried.
I then tried to write a third disc on an external Toshiba drive, which routinely writes other discs at 8x, and I got a whopping 4x write speed with the "TDK". At least the Toshiba produced a disc that was readable in other drives.
If you are lucky and your drive is compatible with these discs, fine, if not, you get coasters.

Freespace / Silent Threat Bundle (Jewel Case)
$0.00
Silent Threat is overall satisfying expansion pack. It does feel a little cut, though.
The missions themselves are an interesting variety of the normal Freespace missions, and you get to do "silence all rebels" sort of missions. They still tie them into the overall plot of Freespace quite well though, so they aren't lacking.

On mission design, DESPITE what others have said, the last mission is possible. Hard, yes, but any self-respecting Freespace player can do it. I'm not ashamed to say that for my first try, I lowered the difficulty; though once you get then hang of it you can do harder difficulties. (Hint: try loading yourself with harbingers, and half the other pilot's fighters. If you have them engage the enemy fighters and cover you, you're fine)

The team at volition also added a couple of new weapons and ships, and they're well balanced. The Zeus bomber in particular is nice.

So, why do I say it could've been better? The campaign needed a bit more length. The ending didn't seem concrete, and it felt as if I should be going on to my next mission. Even just 2-3 more missions would've given it an OK ending.

Still, this is still a great expansion pack to an even greater game... 4.5 out of 5, 5 out of 5 if they had more missions...