AndyMan

I got 12/12 on french, but there were a few that I guessed at. I wish they would've explained some of the answers. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I understand that's generally true, and I remember that discussion - it was mostly theoretical. I know that gross negligence is a very dificult case to make. I don't know of any cases in skydiving. I am not a lawyer. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Some people here have had very good experiences with the in-store waranty's from Ritz Camera and Circuit City. The Ritz waranty actually replaced a camera that had been burned to a crisp, then run over by a car... If I remember correctly. The cost of the waranty's there seem to be about the same, but those stores do charge a bit more for the cameras. If a waranty is important to you, then maybe that's a good option. Me? I never buy extended waranties, but take my chances. With Sony - there's a flat "fix it all" charge (no matter what's broken) for $250ish. I'm in the middle of testing that right now, but others have had reported mixed experiences. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I had a terrible experience with the MACK waranty. I do not recomend it. It took them 6 weeks to fix what would have taken Sony 2. I would have gladly paid the standard Sony fee to get it back 4 weeks quicker. I found MACK extremely dificult to communicate with. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

A Stiletto is a hell of a lot of fun to fly, in the right hands.... but - it's not a great swooping canopy. It recovers from a dive very quickly, which means you need to initiate your turns much lower for a good swoop. It also builds riser pressure quickly, which means it's hard to keep in a dive. I would keep with the Saber2, and maybe go down one size if you're ready. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Again, I find myself stating something that should be obvious. You have absolutely no business flying that canopy. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I've had good experiences with the Windows Media Encoder, which you can download here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/9series/encoder/default.aspx. In my experience, it's generated the smallest files at the highest quality. The downside is that people on Mac's or Linux boxen can't see it. It's still my favorite, though. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I agree, although we will get to a point where this changes. All of the major card manufacturers are releasing CF and SD cards that are literally 32X faster than they were just a year or two ago. As card speed and capacity increases, we'll quickly get to the point where they can handle high quality video. Such a camera *could* come out any days now, I suspect. That said, I doubt we'll see a usable camera like this for a year at least, certainly not one thats durable and has a LANC port. To the original poster, JVC cameras are not durable, and generally do not last long in Skydiving. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Interesting. Thanks, _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Remember that just because some people are not paying members right now, does not mean that they weren't paying members when they made the majority of their posts. Nor does it mean they didn't contribute in other ways, like the donation box. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Hmm. I seem to have just gotten two days worth of notifications... _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I've heard this before, I just don't get it. Here's why. Start with the proposition that a vent at the apex doesn't reduce drag. Then take out your scissors and make the vent bigger. Then make it bigger again. If you keep making the vent bigger, eventually you'll end up with a parachute that has a strong resemblance to a tube. Surely a tube has less drag than a parachute! So, cue the obvious questions: Why does a big hole reduce drag but a small one doesn't? How big does a hole have to be before it starts reducing drag? To me, the answers to these questions just do not make sense given the original proposition. The original proposition must be wrong. The obvious answer to me, is that a small vent reduces drag by a small amount. A big vent reduces drag by a big amount. Either way, it's still reducing drag. _A, __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

This is one example where Google fails. More uptodate stats can be found at www.skydivingfatalities.info _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

If I were to try competing, it will not be for the prize money. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

It seems to me that venting trades pull-force for stability. A vented parachute is more stable, but provides less drag. Opening a parachute is such a quick action that stability of the pilot chute isn't the important bit - but a good strong initial pull force is. Maybe? Hopefully the guy that designed it will chime in... _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Incorrect. It's impossible to not be aware of this camera. Samsung is buying full page ads in both Parachutist and Skydiving magazine. The exposure is huge. The very fact that a student like yourself is aware of it points out how pervasive it is. The problem is actually flipside. Samsung has done such a great job of telling people how great this camera is, that nobody understands the risks. You'll notice that of the people who do thousands of camera jumps every year - the people who do everything in their power to keep themselves alive, and reduce every risk? They don't jump remote lenses. That should tell you something. Remote lenses do not make things safer. It's also not all that different then countless cameras that have come before it. It's single biggest selling feature - the remote lens, is not new. People have been making and testing remote lenses for years. The problems they've always had still exist. No video camera is meant to be focused, zoomed, started or stopped in flight. No video camera has mouth controls. This camera isn't very different. The only big difference with this camera is that Samsung is buying ads and putting those in places where everybody sees them. Awareness of this camera is bigger than any other camera used in skydiving before. That's bad, and I hope it ends before too many people get hurt. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Get used to it. There are certain aspects of skydiving that are only suitable for jumpers who've got a lot more experience than you. Jumping camera is clearly one of those. So is swooping. It seems obvious to a lot of people, but I'm amazed at those who don't see it. There are countless examples of people who get ahead of themselves and do things they're not ready for. Often times these adventures end in disaster, with helicopter trips to the trauma ward, or worse. It's predictable. Skydiving is not a sport where you can get away with blindly jumping into a new direction. People who do this get hurt, badly. The next time you think you want to try something new in skydiving, your first step should not be to run out, buy that new toy, duct tape it on, and jump from an airplane. If you do, expect to be given a hard time. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I'm having the same thing. Some show up, some don't. Both followup and PM notifications. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I have absolutely no idea, but I do know that Samsung has released a clone of the *ist DS2, called the GX-1S. If you're looking at the Pentax, make sure to consider the Samsung. Read more about the Samsung here: http://www.dpreview.com/news/0601/06011602samsunggx1s.aspp DPReview also has a good review of the entire Pentax lineup here: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/specs/Pentax/ _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

In downtown Chicago, a two bedroom condo goes for $325,000 - $400,000. Outside of downtown gets cheaper or bigger. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Strangely, some of the wealthies Americans are quite liberal. Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are both clearly on the left, in the current political climate. Also, Martha's Vineyard voted overwealmingly for Kerry. Democrats did better in afluent Aspen than they did in working class Denver. Odd. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Actually, the bigger problem is that too many new jumpers perceive skydiving to be far less dangerous than it really is. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

Actually, two of my friends died in colisions. Only in one case was it aparently his fault. My third friend died when he stalled his canopy, causing line twists and a spinning malfunction at an altitude he thought was too low to cutaway. That's just in the last 2 years. None of them were impacts from a deliberate low turn. Skydiving is not safe. Don't kid yourself. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

If your profile is even remotely up to date, you have absolutely no business jumping a camera. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

I don't know anything about how you ride your bike, but if you think that riding your bike to the DZ is more dangerous than skydiving, either: 1) You're an incredibly dangerous bike rider, or 2) You seem to think skydiving is a lot safer than it really is. My point here is simple. If I've read your posts correctly, you seem to think that skydiving is relatively safe. It isn't. If you believe that, you're mistaken, and setting yourself up. Skydiving has killed 3 of my friends in the last two years. I can not say the same for any other sport, including motorcycles. _Am __ You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.