We have DirecTV and have had no major

issues.  I have internet through the cable company and have had lots of problems.  If cable is through Time Warner they have the worst customer service.  In my area the programming is about the same between cable and satellite, except DirecTV has just added satellite radio.  I don't know if cable charges per each box, but DirecTV does charge $5.00/mo per box after the first one.  The only complaint I have about DirecTV is that we had a big storm and after that we could not get every channel on every box (we have 3).  We're not sure where the problem is, but for them to come out is an automatic $70.00 and then depending on what the issue is there could be more charges.   When my internet goes out there are no service fees, although it is a pain in the rear getting anyone out to fix the problem. 

With satellite you may have to put the dish in your yard on on your house where it might be an eye sore, but if the dish is on the house they only have the run the wiring down the house and not in the yard.  If you have cable they have to run it from the pole to your house and they barely bury it, so that you have to have it located every time you need to do any planting/digging.

With satellite when it rains real hard we lose signal, though it doesn't usually last long.  When we used to have cable we might not lose signal entirely, but it would be very fuzy.  Cable really utilizes satellite.  Our local cable company has huge dishes setup and the cable feeds from those.

• Anyone using DirectTV- what are the pros and cons in comparison to cableTV? nm - MT
  • I absolutely LOVE Directv!!! - Lingle
  • great when it works - me
  • We have direct TV and directway internet for high speed and luv it!!!! nm - livin in the sticks
  • I love Directv. The picture is soooo much clearer than cable. sm - T
  • We're in the process of switching my FIL to cable from Direct TV. - Nyer
    • The guide is one of the things I would miss. - mtathome
  • We have DirecTV and have had no major - me
  • DirectTV - KyMT
  • I use Directv - mtathome

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Okay first of all I updated to XP from ME, lost my Microsoft Office so had to reinstall it. I use Express Scribe to play dss files.  Before my update I updated ES to version 4.16.  Found out that does not play dss files so uninstalled that and reinstalled v. 4.15 and it worked.  After the upgrade, I reinstalled version 4.15 and it does the same think at 4.16 did.  WIll not load dss files.  They appear in the file list but with a duration of 0 seconds.  I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling, restarting and everything I can think of.  Even with the extra dss .exe that the website said I needed.  Is there a possibility that XP doesn't not run with ES or dss files or do I need to install another component to make my files play on XP? 

Please help, I am getting backlogged and starting to freakout. 

long distance phone charges for the C-line.  Check into Magic Jack.  Some people have been very happy with it and have used it for long distance while using a C-phone.  It makes no difference what kind of computer you're using when you use a C-phone. 

Link to Magic Jack info is below.

A rant letter to a couple of doctors:

What has happened to the medical profession in this country?  Why is it that doctors forget their Hippocratic Oath?  Why is it they forget the purpose of their career choice?  I've transcribed this week on numerous elderly patients who have been with their doctors for five, ten or even fifteen years, but they have to seek care elsewhere because so many doctors are refusing to accept Medicare.  How would you feel were if it were your own mother or father being refused care with their established physician just because they became classified as "elderly" and qualified for Medicare?  If it weren't for your "connections," your parents would face the same dilemma that other elderly people face.

Why is it that when a patient comes into your office complaining of feeling fatigued and achy that you automatically assume they're depressed and pop out a prescription for them to pop a pill?  Why not LISTEN to what the patient is saying and realize that while some MAY be depressed, others have a legitimate medical problem going on?  Why not do some labs on them to check for anemia, hypothyroidism, etc.?  Oh, I get it -- let them wait two hours to see you after their appointment time and then spend two minutes with them... after all, time is money.  By the way, I guess that kid who came several times a couple of weeks ago complaining of abdominal pain wasn't just trying to get out of school since I saw his obituary in the paper this week.  Even when his mom and dad brought him in a second and third time, you brushed them off.  I hope seeing his obituary hurts your heart at least half as much as it hurt mine.  I can't imagine the pain those parents are enduring right now, but I doubt you've stopped earning money long enough to let it bother you.  And, no, I won't cover your butt if I get a subpoena when his parents sue you for medical negligence.

Why is it that you cringe when I tell you I need to raise my rates when I've not had a rate increase in three years or longer when in the mean time you've raised your rates at least three times a year every year?  Oh - ok - your expenses have gone up?  Do you think they've discounted my electric bill, gasoline, supplies and everything else?

Remember that last check before Christmas that I asked about when you were late paying me?  You know, the one where you said you didn't have the money to pay me until after the 1st of January - although my contract with you explicitly explains payment arrangements?  That was hard to swallow when your wife was standing there while I was waiting to talk to you and making out a check for $8200 to have your home decorated for Christmas?  Yes, it ticked me off that you had the money for that in your budget but not the money to pay me my measly little $702.  It also ticked me off when you took your three-week vacation to France and left me waiting for payment.

I do understand - its all about the money.  Of course, that is why I work.  But, if I ever get to the point that I'm so cold-hearted or money-oriented that I cannot try and give the best of my abilities in my transcription for every patient I type on, I have common sense enough to know its time to get out of my profession.  Yes, to you I'm just a "typist", but how many times have you picked up the phone and called me asking, "Do you remember the names of the tests that I need to order for Lyme disease?" Or, what about when you can't dictate a proper letter and you say, "This is what I want to say - can you fix it for me?"  What about those times when I've flagged a lab result and said, "This patient would be dead with a potassium of 988."  Regardless, I remain just a "typist" in your mind.

In spite of all your faults, I do my best for you.  I give you accurate work every day of every week because I know one typo (on the transcription work you don't review) with a drug dosage could mean the difference between life and death of your patients.  But in the end, does it really matter to you? 

Publix says tipping is not allowed.  I do not agree with that.  They are loading TONS of stuff into cars, why shouldn't they get a tip?  I tip, their bosses are not outside watching anyway and I don't know that anyone ever lost a job with Publix (one of the largest employers in the SE) due to this

to each his/her own I suppose    

Since I've been working for the last 1-1/2 years with a company and more recently with my own accounts, I daresay that I am doing just fine with or without the RMT.  I wanted to take the RMT for my own fun.  I am sure there are others that either want to take the test or that are waiting to hear their results after waiting several months.

This is my 2nd Saitek...the first one had silver keys and oh ya, I got the paint on them babies worn off within 6 months.  I'm totally bummed to hear this one will do the same thing, because I really looked at it hard before buying and saw the letters were "etched" in and not painted on.  It's no biggie for me, being a touch typist, but when family or friends want to plink around, they got totally lost...plus it looked fargin' ugly too. 

I use the angry red lights when typing that ESL crap (red alert!), and the happy purple the rest of the time.  The old one was just blue, so I'm kinda sick of that for right now, but it is so much fun to mess with the mood lighting.  Simple pleasures for simple minds      

Dh and I were looking for a house about 3 months ago because the one we are in is too small.  We put that on halt.  For one, I am worried about my job.  I work for a hospital.  OM announced we are going to upgrade to a new system.  One of our MTs got to see this new system (I don’t know how) and she said it was great.  She told about those 3 doctors that say when doing one of their DS to cut and paste from their HP and then they begin with the hospital course.  We get paid for all those lines.  Well, now the HP is just going to feed into the DS so we won’t have to cut and paste.  Plus some, not all of the docs are going to be able to do VR.  They will still need us for editing they said.  They already took the headers and footer pay away from us because it automatically wraps into the report. 

imaging by Congress - called the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.  Signed by Bush in December.  Over five years will amount to 20 Billion dollars cut from outpatient imaging payments for Medicare and medicaid patients.  This will have a ripple effect.  Private insurers soon will follow suit.  Posted the DRA but it was removed by Administrator.... This will have a detrimental effect on us all, as cuts will begin occurring in every aspect of radiology. 

Here is a comprehensive article.  Please do not remove this post for one day, Administrator.  This will impact MTs in radiology significantly.

imagingBiz.com - The Information Service of the Imaging Center Institute

Was at a major company that I liked for a year, then they made some changes and it was a nightmare for the second year.  I went to a smaller company for awhile, they were great but I found it harder and harder to sit down and pull reports.  I got to the point I was only doing about 300 lines a day.  I made a change to a small company as IC, and chose one where so many minutes were dumped on me for the day.  I knew I had to finish those minutes, and before I knew it I was back to about 800 lines a day, six days a week.  That is all I can do without developing CT myself; I have learned this over the years.  Now I'm starting some editing part time, so I can earn more without losing the use of my hands.

If you already have CT, you might have to get into something different, like editing.  It doesn't seem realistic to keep working, knowing you're doing more damage and will shortly be unable to work anyway.  I'd be looking for a change.

Whatever you do, try to find the motivation that works.  I didn't find thinking about unpaid bills or setting a financial goal each month helped, it just made me depressed when I couldn't reach it.  I focused on the positive, like being able to do 50 lines more daily this week than last, adding minutes each week until I reached my goal.  I also make sure to take two weeks off at different times each year and go some place at least once, something I neglected for years.  I come back refreshed.

Best of luck to you; it's a difficult situation.

I guess I am out of it.  How big of a holiday is this?  All the kids home from school today?  Post offices and banks closed?  Seems rather quiet work-wise.  Wondering if I should start cleaning the house or keep staring at the no jobs to do in my queue.

Thanks!