Like your avatar - at least you don't have to travel on clapped-out old Tube stock on the Island Line! PM me sometime about your programming - I use PowerBasic for my work.
@ thedrainman:
VB is very simliar, I tried RealBASIC and found it difficult to use (only because my mac is a white elephant amongst my other 4 PCs (2 laptops 2 desktop, one desktop is defunct.)). I have to say, I am getting more proficent in VisualBASIC, so I'd like to thank you for your offer and keep it in mind for a while.
The tube stock you use (yes, London Underground knackers) are about 70 years old now, they are termed 1938 Tube stock, to the Network Rail register or BR
TOPS, Class 483. They were all the last Northern Line dozen which lasted until 1988, sent to Eastleigh works for refurbishment and anti-corrision treatment (a layer of I think an oil that is designed to prevent corrsion, since they are all steel), then shipped bogieless to the island, while being reunined by their bogies. 10 got shipped over, 9 complete sets, 1 complete set as shell only. (All numbered 001 to 009, the shells were un-numbered).
001, 003 and 005 I think are scrapped, so thats 6 sets plus the shells (spares are now hard to find and corrosion is becomming an issue, although they are in better shape than their predecessors), there is talk about replacing them, but the trouble is, what with?
The tube stock of 1973 (Refurbished - Piccadilly Line), 1983 (most are now scrapped anyway - Jubliee Line), 1995 (Northern Line) and 1996 (Jubliee Line replacement of 9 - 16 year old stock of 1983! Plus expansion stock for the Jubliee Line Extension (JLE)) stock are all too long anyway.
The 1967 (Victoria Line automatic train operation) stock, 1972 MKI (most scrapped - Ex Northen Line, repalced by 1995 stock), 1972 MkII stock (Refurbished - Bakerloo Line) and 1992 (Central Line) are all short enough, but all won't be available for some time. The Victoria Line stock, is about 40 years old anyway, assuming they were built and introduced in 1967. (See the pattern?)
Theres also the Light Rail Transit scheme that was proposed, or it could be that the whole railway may revert to steam operation, there is only one minor problem with that, the tunnels at Ryde are of reduced height, because of flooding, hence why tube stock is used, the track bed was only raised by about 2ft as well!
You may wonder why LT were chucking out newer stock at the time, 1962 central line stock. Well, they suffered graffitti attacks frequently and the combanation of the unpainted alluminium and steel frames, meant they suffered eletroylsis through the use of harsh acids, removing the graffitti meant they were structurally unsafe. The Northen Line inherited the best cars for another 10 years, but even then, the 1959 stock, replaced by 2001, were again, well knackered and worn out, those trains also went from the Piccadilly Line, to the Bakerloo Line and then to the Northern Line, so the opportunity wasn't taken, I am not sure why the opportunity of 1972 stock replacement wasn't taken, although, I can guess this is because of the lack of funds/desire at the time.
I also have to use much newer (2001 to 2005 built) Electrostars to go to college and back, this is fine, until you find out how often they love to fail. This afternoon, I was on a set comming home and it was a 4 car star unit, with 2 of 6 motors "cut out" (isolated), which meant that performance was horrid and this isn't good for an intensive timetable, like the Southerns new West Coastway timetable.
@ SpoiledPrincess
College mainly, I guess she is attaining a Level 1 course (I'm on a much higher level, Level 3 currently) and the day after she saw me, the words, as I was comming into college was "allo darling", when we weren't even considered Boyfriend/Girlfriend at all at the time. Yes, she was with her friends, typically.
My tutor has mentioned that if she does continue to the point of bullying on the bus, they CAN sort it. I've had bullying before and it was sorted before the co-ordinator of special needs (I think she is) who I happened to know, needed to do anything, quite simply, because he was told to leave. The student in question was studying public services, constantly not doing the work required in the lessons I had to attend and the lessons that himself and the rest of his classmates (some I knew) attended) and basically, making an arse of himself. After November 06, peace at last.