Wag

There's an old saying that you cast over more fish than you cast to. I am always amazed that pole users insist on fishing at the maximum length of their pole, often while there are fish visibly feeding in the margins at their feet. My previous club rules stated that your swim was only to the centre line of the lake unless the peg opposite was empty. Unfortunately some anglers (and indeed people in general) have absolutely no regard for anyone else's rights or feelings. I often go fishing with a mate very appropriately nicknamed "Big" Dave - it's amazing how we never seem to encounter the same disputes when he's there.

As Elton says - IrfanView, or I like XNView as an alternative - if you can't see them with one of these it's something more fundamental that's wrong.

Just make sure it's not a railway bridge........

That must be one long hedge Cranfield

Mat, have a look at the Shimanos with the "fighting drag" feature. These are rear drag reels, but have an extra lever which allows the drag to be easily slackened or tightened during the fight, without changing the base drag setting. I use an early version for tench fishing in an estate lake that has some 15-20lb carp in it, and find the fighting drag really useful when one of the carp decides the juicy lobworm tench bait is just what they fancy. It gives a bit of extra insurance when the fish is under the rod top, and means you don't need to keep adjusting the main drag setting between fish.

Try Startup Inspector Its a free prog that lets you know what programs are running on your PC at startup, and allows you to remove and restore them in a controlled way.

Have a look here:- Free Image Software Lots of stuff - all free - some easier to use than others. The other thing to try would be ImageForge:- ImageForge

Have a look here:- CD Burner XP Pro I've been using this for a few weeks now and it works well. It's also FREE, which is nice

I use Ewido, which is free for 14 days in the full version, which includes real -time scanning, and still works as a manual scanner after the trial period ends. Make sure you download the latest definition files before you run a scan though.

Get yerselves a free copy of Ewido - it's the best crap remover I've found so far. Download, install and update, then run a full system scan - scary what it finds. I use it in conjunction with AVG and have found no conflicts so far.

Ray Walton I suspect.

Try changing the mail format to .html instead of .rtf There are known issues with attachments in .rtf emails. You'll need to check entries in your contacts as well - right click on the recipients email address and in properties you might find a tick box which says something like "Always send messages in rtf format", in which case untick the box. ......or have a look here:- XP SP2 and OE6 attachments disappearing Looks like the answer.

I tend to use barbed hooks for most fishing, unless they are banned on a particular water, especially in larger sizes. I quite like these Pinched hooks, best of both worlds maybe? They work well for worms, which often wriggle off barbless hooks. I can see both sides of the argument, and certainly barbless hooks are far easier to remove from a fish for a beginner (or a finger for a clumsy angler), but I still prefer micro barbs myself.

If you just want Post-it software go to the original makers:- 3M Post-it software The free version works fine.

I take it they're not supporting Cliff Richard on his next tour then?

Bigfishy you can get a Netgear 834G? wireless router/firewall for about £65 from Amazon.co.uk, and I think they still offer a free USB wireless access key. This would replace your current USB adsl modem, but you'll need a PCI ethernet card in your main computer (again Amazon sell a Netgear job for abot £7.00). Use the USB Wireless key in the kid's computer Set up is pretty straightforward as per the instructions on the boxes, you need to know your login and password for your ISP, but NTL should provide you with those anyway. The added firewall function will be a good security benefit as well. [ 28. September 2005, 09:28 AM: Message edited by: Wag ]

PlusNet@£21.99 a month Uncapped, 2Mbps, unlimited e-mail addresses, free connection/modem ( but some cancellation penalties, so read the small print). They do cheaper packages as well. I've been very happy with the service.

Before you order something online I would recommend you make a visit to your local tackle shop and explain to the nice shop manager what you want. They'll probably be able to sort you out with a basic set of tackle suited to where you want to fish, and given that if they can sort you out for a reasonable price they'll be likely to get much of your future bait and consumables trade, you might be able to negotiate a good discount. The invaluable advice on local waters/methods will probably be free. If you post on here the area where you live no doubt someone on AN will be able to recommend a good local shop (or warn you off the dodgy ones).

The only criticism I've seen of the Leeda is it gets heavy/unbalanced after a while when trotting at full length. It's a strong bit of kit though, and verasatile with the various lengths you can use it at. It'll handle big fish no problem. The Shimano looks a good deal at £53, I'm sure they were over £70 when first launched. It's light and stiff, so should control a float well and be easy to hold for log sessions.

I think the Shimano Hyperloop 14' rod is about £40, that would be good for silver fish and the odd chub. You might get a 15' Shakespeare Odessa power match rod for around £60 if you can find one discounted somewhere. Leeda do/did an Assassin rod at 15' which is a good rod, but I've heard it's a bit heavy to hold for long sessions. I think the longer, stronger rods start at around £100, so might be a bit on the expensive side. [ 09. September 2005, 10:46 AM: Message edited by: Wag ]

PrintScreen captures the whole visible desktop, Alt + PrintScreen just captures the active program window - handy if you don't need everything else.

'eelfisher'- I found these old reports while searching for something else - you might find them interesting - especially the weights mentioned, which give an idea of how the eel population has declined over the years. stealing eels [ 26. August 2005, 02:17 PM: Message edited by: Wag ]

Obviously great minds thinking alike Paul!!

Going to watch the British Superbikes at Cadwell Park on Sunday and Monday - hope the weather holds up. I wish I could squeeze in a days fishing on Saturday, but I've got too many jobs to do at home. Due to many and various family issues we've been busy every weekend since March, and I've yet to wet a line this season, but hopefully all the stress and upset is behind us now, and I'll be able to get on the bank come September, just as the rivers pick up

I used to have an old bakelite centrepin which had a broken ratchet, so I used a rubber band looped round the rod handle and hooked over a reel handle for setting up, rebaiting, roving etc. Thankfully I can afford decent gear now, and I have a selection of Leeds reels, and a Youngs BJ, all of which have some form of drag or ratchet.