The Advice Thread

[Motor City Sonics]

Looking for recommendations for those who does brakes and won't rip me off. 

Either in the Dearbor/Dearborn Heights/Allen Park area   or   Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area.       

 

An unsettling feeling based on the sound of my brakes.  

 

Thanks.  

[oblong]

I've heard great things about the Oil Exchange Place near us.  They own the garage next door. They were great before and they changed ownership and I've heard from a few that the new people are just as good.

 

[Motor City Sonics]

My mom lost access to her You Tube TV.....again.........can't get it restored because she just doesn't EVER keep track of passwords (and we go through this a few times a year). So when I was trying to help her get restored I hit the FORGOT PASSWORD button which then asked for a password. HELLO ! I FORGOT THE PASSWORD, HOW CAN I ENTER A PASSWORD I FORGOT? Has anyone ever had to deal with something like this before? How do we get out of this loop?  

 

 

I get furious with her over this password thing.   She just doesn't get it.  I don't know why she just refuses to manage them.   So, I am giving up on the streaming tv stuff and we're going to get cable for her again and she can pay way too much.     I don't understand how some people just refuse to deal with any technology changes.   My mom is 84 but she is not senile at all.   Very basic stuff here  but she just refuses to learn anything about it.    I tried to get her to do the streaming thing to save her money from her insane cable bills.  I got her a Netflix account and she never used it.  How do you do this? She asks.   You push the button that says Netflix and then use the directions to search for things and then push the center button.   Nope.  Can't do it.    She could navigate Real Estate laws and deal with all of those changes, but can't search Netflix.  So frustrating. 

 

  I work with a person who is actually afraid of tech.  I'm not a wiz at, but I know the basics of how to do the job and if those basics change (and they will) I will learn it as quickly as possible.   And it's not very likely that you'll be able to find a decent job that doesn't require some sort of tech use. 

Edited October 18, 2025 by Motor City Sonics

[Screwball]

I found this entertaining, and as a DIY'er, troubling. Only a minute and a half.

 

[gehringer_2]

44 minutes ago, Screwball said:

I found this entertaining, and as a DIY'er, troubling. Only a minute and a half.

 

What should be easier to QC than the actual length of measuring device?

Of course just because he hooked up the the ends uniformly doesn't mean he checked that the inside/outside slide at the end wasn't stuck or binding on some, I've seen that often enough on cheap tapes. That could be 3/32" One would assume he would check that, but it's the internet so who knows?  

[Screwball]

I would think he looked at that, and they don't look dirty. I've noticed this with my own. Over a long distance that can be big, especially if you buy something to size and is calibrated to the proper length - and your tape isn't - missed it by that much 20 some feet away. Even in this video and any tape, how accurate is the 8 foot?

What to trust anymore? Math - the 3,4,5 rule in construction is a good place to start.

[Screwball]

For those who use Firefox, is there a way to make the scroll bar on the right side wider? 

[gehringer_2]

30 minutes ago, Screwball said:

For those who use Firefox, is there a way to make the scroll bar on the right side wider? 

have you tried : 

about:config

search for 

layout.css.scrollbar-width-thin.disabled 

set it to false and see if that makes any difference?

(note: it doesn't seem to do anything here but I'm running Linux, so I can't say what it does in Windows or MacOS.)

Edited November 16, 2025 by gehringer_2

[Deleterious]

In your address bar type: about:config

there will be another empty address bar up top.  In it search for:

widget.non-native-theme.win.scrollbar.use-system-size

Make sure that value is set to false

Then again in the address bar search for:

widget.non-native-theme.scrollbar.size.override

there will be a number for the value.  Just enter whatever you want, higher being wider.

[Screwball]

On 11/15/2025 at 11:14 PM, gehringer_2 said:

have you tried : 

about:config

search for 

layout.css.scrollbar-width-thin.disabled 

set it to false and see if that makes any difference?

(note: it doesn't seem to do anything here but I'm running Linux, so I can't say what it does in Windows or MacOS.)

 

On 11/16/2025 at 2:46 AM, Deleterious said:

In your address bar type: about:config

there will be another empty address bar up top.  In it search for:

widget.non-native-theme.win.scrollbar.use-system-size

Make sure that value is set to false

Then again in the address bar search for:

widget.non-native-theme.scrollbar.size.override

there will be a number for the value.  Just enter whatever you want, higher being wider.

Thanks but this didn't work either. Not sure what is going on. Will mess with it more when I have time. It is there, just really skinny. Nothing makes it wider it seems. AI wants me to setup a css file. I messed with that a little and it doesn't do anything either.

[LaceyLou]

Any smoke detector experts here? I'm wondering if I can switch to a wired one with a 10 year backup battery. Are they really less likely to chirp every few months? 

In previous homes I only had to replace batteries once a year (and never had any chirping), but I've had two fail completely and the current one that chirps every couple of months. The other one I have is a CO/fire combo and I have no problems.

[Biff Mayhem]

16 hours ago, LaceyLou said:

Any smoke detector experts here? I'm wondering if I can switch to a wired one with a 10 year backup battery. Are they really less likely to chirp every few months? 

In previous homes I only had to replace batteries once a year (and never had any chirping), but I've had two fail completely and the current one that chirps every couple of months. The other one I have is a CO/fire combo and I have no problems.

Do you currently have 110v devices? That’s a good starting point. 
 

I have noticed that battery life tends to have decreased in smoke alarms even with the ten-year units. I don’t know if them being smarter draws more life out of the batteries but it is noticeable. 
 

Also, it is wise to purchase a can of smoke detector spray (available on Amazon) and test them at time changes. 

[LaceyLou]

3 hours ago, Biff Mayhem said:

Do you currently have 110v devices? That’s a good starting point. 
 

I have noticed that battery life tends to have decreased in smoke alarms even with the ten-year units. I don’t know if them being smarter draws more life out of the batteries but it is noticeable. 
 

Also, it is wise to purchase a can of smoke detector spray (available on Amazon) and test them at time changes. 

It's a wired one with AA battery backup (Kidde). I'm in a building where the wired ones are required in bedrooms. It seems odd that the battery still drains so quickly. Reviews seem mixed, and indicate that the 10 year ones don't last even close to 10 years. 

Oddly enough I haven't had any problems with the CO/smoke wired detector in the hallway. 

I'll look for the smoke detector spray-thanks for the tip! 

[chasfh]

I have had a wired Kidde with a backup battery for a few years now and I’m pretty happy, although it’s so coincidental this came up just now.

A couple weeks ago I’m in my office upstairs and the alarm downstairs just goes off. I am … well … alarmed. I have never had a fire before.

So I get downstairs and I see or smell nothing amiss. I go to the app and manage to turn it off. I also have an air quality monitor on all three of my alarms and they all say the AQ is good, even the alarm that’s going off. I chalk it up to a random blip.

Then, ten minutes later, it goes off again. I turn it off again. Then five minutes later, there it goes again. AQ is still good. So, finally, I disconnect it.

I call Kidde tech support. The lady on the phone is really good. She confirms that the unit is simply failing, annd she arranges for a replacement to be sent right away. Super responsive. I’m very happy.

I get the new alarm on Xmas Eve, and it looks very different from the alarm I have. I figure, it must be a new model. But then I connect it, pair it to the app, it’s working as intended—but there’s no air quality reading for it.

So, Kidde sent a downgraded product to replace the one that went bad under warranty. This can’t be right. I have reached out to them a couple times and not gotten a response. Maybe they are slower during the holidays.

But I definitely need a replacement with an air quality monitor because if it wasn’t for that—if I hadn’t seen the air quality was good was the other two working units—I wouldn’t have known right away there wasn’t a fire raging.

[gehringer_2]

20 minutes ago, chasfh said:

I have had a wired Kidde with a backup battery.....

 

we have 7 Kidde devices that do the wireless mesh thing - when one goes they all go. It's a 10yr sealed power system, when the battery dies they get tossed. But one thing I've noticed is that I switched from buying ionization detectors to optical detectors on the last round, and even on the ceiling, the optical detectors eventually pick up enough dust/whatever that they will start to give false alarms until you vacuum/blow the dust out of them.

[chasfh]

You might have heard about this kind of thing:

 

It's a ****ty thing when megacorporations can use the imbalance of marketplace information and technology power to maximize the separation of you from your money, but this article has some really good tips overall about how to minimize the probability of this, and they are relatively easy to implement if you just take a little care to do so:

• Delete cookies and cache regularly: This removes the tracking data companies use to determine pricing
• Use a virtual private network (VPN): VPNs mask your location data, which makes it difficult for retailers using dynamic pricing algorithms to raise prices
• Be wary of loyalty programs: These programs are ways retailers access your data to determine your shopping habits. The more data they have on you, the more likely they are to predict what you are going to buy, when and how much you're willing to spend.
• Shop with different devices: Before buying online, use your mobile phone and your computer, since prices can differ on each.
• Don't make repeated searches: If you're looking for a last-minute flight, chances are you're going to visit airline and travel deal websites to find the best deals. The only problem is that retailers can follow your searches, seeing your urgency and providing prices reflective of this. If you want to compare shops, use different browsers to do so.

I've never loved the first one, deleting cookies and cache, because cookies can be very handy and the whole process of doing so is ... well, a process. The VPN is always a great idea, though, and I shop with different devices and use private browsing and the DuckDuckGo browser a lot to avoid being marked to a personal price hike.

[Motor City Sonics]

20 hours ago, chasfh said:

You might have heard about this kind of thing:

 

It's a ****ty thing when megacorporations can use the imbalance of marketplace information and technology power to maximize the separation of you from your money, but this article has some really good tips overall about how to minimize the probability of this, and they are relatively easy to implement if you just take a little care to do so:

• Delete cookies and cache regularly: This removes the tracking data companies use to determine pricing
• Use a virtual private network (VPN): VPNs mask your location data, which makes it difficult for retailers using dynamic pricing algorithms to raise prices
• Be wary of loyalty programs: These programs are ways retailers access your data to determine your shopping habits. The more data they have on you, the more likely they are to predict what you are going to buy, when and how much you're willing to spend.
• Shop with different devices: Before buying online, use your mobile phone and your computer, since prices can differ on each.
• Don't make repeated searches: If you're looking for a last-minute flight, chances are you're going to visit airline and travel deal websites to find the best deals. The only problem is that retailers can follow your searches, seeing your urgency and providing prices reflective of this. If you want to compare shops, use different browsers to do so.

I've never loved the first one, deleting cookies and cache, because cookies can be very handy and the whole process of doing so is ... well, a process. The VPN is always a great idea, though, and I shop with different devices and use private browsing and the DuckDuckGo browser a lot to avoid being marked to a personal price hike.

Aren't prices posted on the items when you come in ?       Like, if I am looking at a box of Multigrain Cheerios, how are they going to charge me somehting different if the price is posted right in front of the item?     Is this for online shopping only?    Only time I have ever bought groceries and had them delivered is when I had Covid.   Whenever I go to the store I always buy some sort of produce and I have to pick that out myself,  plus I live in Dearborn and I probably have 15 grocery or produce stores within a 10 minute drive.   Maybe more, so a quick trip is all that's needed.     The new Harvest Market in Ann Arbor at Briarwood is very convenient because I work less then half a mile from there.   I thought they would be really overpriced, but they are not.  Lots of produce too.  I love it.  

Props to Maryland for protecting people.   Again, as I have posted in other threads, it just floors me - why can't we just live in a stand-up world?   If you just sold what you sold without this nonsense, you're still making plenty of money.   It's never enough, though, is it?  

Edited 3 hours ago by Motor City Sonics

[chasfh]

1 hour ago, Motor City Sonics said:

Aren't prices posted on the items when you come in ?       Like, if I am looking at a box of Multigrain Cheerios, how are they going to charge me somehting different if the price is posted right in front of the item?     Is this for online shopping only?    Only time I have ever bought groceries and had them delivered is when I had Covid.   Whenever I go to the store I always buy some sort of produce and I have to pick that out myself,  plus I live in Dearborn and I probably have 15 grocery or produce stores within a 10 minute drive.   Maybe more, so a quick trip is all that's needed.     The new Harvest Market in Ann Arbor at Briarwood is very convenient because I work less then half a mile from there.   I thought they would be really overpriced, but they are not.  Lots of produce too.  I love it.  

Props to Maryland for protecting people.   Again, as I have posted in other threads, it just floors me - why can't we just live in a stand-up world?   If you just sold what you sold without this nonsense, you're still making plenty of money.   It's never enough, though, is it?  

Many retail stores have LED digital shelf tags showing price posted in front of products, which presumably are Bluetooth-enabled and thus can be changed online. So the idea, I guess, would be to triangulate your position in the store via GPS with the products they know you buy frequently through your loyalty program via a persistent cookie on your phone, and then as you position yourself closer to the product, the price on the shelf labels increases. Either that, or, they have no shelf label posted showing price, then when you pick up the product and have it scanned at the register along with your loyalty ID, they apply a “special” price “just for you”. Now that I spool it out, the latter seems more likely as long as people get used to not seeing prices listed on shelves.

[Motor City Sonics]

1 hour ago, chasfh said:

Many retail stores have LED digital shelf tags showing price posted in front of products, which presumably are Bluetooth-enabled and thus can be changed online. So the idea, I guess, would be to triangulate your position in the store via GPS with the products they know you buy frequently through your loyalty program via a persistent cookie on your phone, and then as you position yourself closer to the product, the price on the shelf labels increases. Either that, or, they have no shelf label posted showing price, then when you pick up the product and have it scanned at the register along with your loyalty ID, they apply a “special” price “just for you”. Now that I spool it out, the latter seems more likely as long as people get used to not seeing prices listed on shelves.

It's funny, but I don't bring my phone into the store probably 80% of the time.   And the reason was I was once shopping for a streaming device in a target.  All I had was my phone on me.  I did not take my phone out check anything and the next thing you know, I started getting a bunch of ads for streaming device sales.    So, based on where I stood for a few minutes, I guess.  That **** is scary to me.   I no longer have Facebook on my phone because I found it to be a major distraction, but also, I don't want people to know where I am at all times and I think Facebook is a major contributor to that.   

I do use loyalty rewards at Kroger and Meijer, but they have physical price labels on their shelves.   If I see those disappear or see electronic ones, I will dump that rewards program.  

[gehringer_2]

3 minutes ago, Motor City Sonics said:

It's funny, but I don't bring my phone into the store probably 80% of the time.   And the reason was I was once shopping for a streaming device in a target.  All I had was my phone on me.  I did not take my phone out check anything and the next thing you know, I started getting a bunch of ads for streaming device sales.    So, based on where I stood for a few minutes, I guess.  That **** is scary to me.   I no longer have Facebook on my phone because I found it to be a major distraction, but also, I don't want people to know where I am at all times and I think Facebook is a major contributor to that.   

I do use loyalty rewards at Kroger and Meijer, but they have physical price labels on their shelves.   If I see those disappear or see electronic ones, I will dump that rewards program.  

the tattletales are Bluetooth and Location Services. Turning BT off when you don't need it and locking down location services so apps can only use it when they are in focus or not at all is about all you can do other than a hard shutdown of the phone. 

Edited 27 minutes ago by gehringer_2

[Motor City Sonics]

3 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

the tattletales are Bluetooth and Location Services. Turn 'em off when you don't need 'em.

Yeah, but it's so weird to be standing for maybe 3-5 minutes in one section of a store and they knew EXACTLY what I was looking for.   Just creepy.  

But I think I am a fairly young-thinking old guy at 61, but I don't need non-stop adulation on social media.    To me it's a form of mental illness and there's a lot of really sick people out there and they don't know it.   I've read about a growing trend of people unplugging from social media and finding themselves to be much, much happier.     It's crazy.  It's like the Black Mirror episode "Nosedive", which is the most realistic episode of the whole series.   Great episode and 100% happening in real life.   

[gehringer_2]

9 minutes ago, Motor City Sonics said:

Yeah, but it's so weird to be standing for maybe 3-5 minutes in one section of a store and they knew EXACTLY what I was looking for.   Just creepy.  

But I think I am a fairly young-thinking old guy at 61, but I don't need non-stop adulation on social media.    To me it's a form of mental illness and there's a lot of really sick people out there and they don't know it.   I've read about a growing trend of people unplugging from social media and finding themselves to be much, much happier.     It's crazy.  It's like the Black Mirror episode "Nosedive", which is the most realistic episode of the whole series.   Great episode and 100% happening in real life.   

it's part of the price we pay for the stuff we do like. For instance we were traveling last week and had put AirTags in our bags. They will ping of any phone they can find and then the apple network gives you your AirTag's location based on the system knowing where those phones are. So apple is hijacking someone's phone without them knowing to tell me where my tag is every time I check. If everybody opted out of the system all the time, that kind of stuff wouldn't work. Similar kind of concept behind traffic conditions on navigation apps.

Edited 14 minutes ago by gehringer_2

[oblong]

Maybe this is a repeat but if you are repairing a dryer yourself, just go ahead and get all the potential parts.  If you have a simply dryer they are easy to repair and the parts are not that expensive.  I had an issue a few years ago with heat.  Visited a friend's appliance parts business, got 3 parts for $30.  I tried the first one, that worked.  A few weeks ago same issue so I tried the two parts I already had. Didn't work.  Did some research and saw 3 other potential issues and since I'd have the patient open, so to speak, so I tried it.  The work wasn't hard but I wish I had just went ahead and bought all of them at once becuase it would have saved me from having to remove the drum twice.

I'm not handy and was able to do this for under $100 and I have about 5 new components on my dryer.  I also was able to get a good vaccuum in once I removed the drum.... and best of all.  I found $30 in change.  Somehow coins escape the drum and exist inside the shell of the dryer.