Greased Lightning - My First Ever TV Shopping Channel Purchase

Normally when I'm watching a shopping channel on TV (I think a lot of them are absolutely hilarious), I normally just see a load of old Tat that the presenters are making out is an absolute bargain!

I happened to be channel hopping the other day through the FreeView channels that I get and I stopped on the IdealWorld shopping channel and started to listen to what they were saying about a quick and easy way to wash you car without taking it to a carwash and without getting a hosepipe and buckets of water involved.

After 30+ minutes of listening to what they were saying and watching the demonstrations, I went straight on to google.co.uk to see if there were any complaints about this product.  I couldn't find a single complaint from anyone who had actually used the product (lots of sceptical people saying it couldn't possibly wash a car without scratching it - how could they know this without trying it?) - surely  if IdealWorld sold a product that ruined the paintwork on peoples cars then they would have been sued by now?

Anyway, here is a link to the product that I brought (the 'free' gift I went with was the tyre blackener thingy).

IdealWorld - Greased Lightning

Is it any good?  Will it scratch my car?  Is it a complete and utter waste of money?

Only time will tell, as soon as my delivery arrives I will try it out and post the results on here.

If People Brought Cars Like Computers...

Call No. 1

HELPLINE: "General Motors Helpline, how can I help you?"

CUSTOMER: "I got in my car and closed the door, and nothing happened!"

HELPLINE: "Did you put the key in the ignition slot and turn it?"

CUSTOMER: "What's an ignition?"

HELPLINE: "It's a starter motor that draws current from your battery and turns over the engine."

CUSTOMER: "Ignition? Motor? Battery? Engine? How come I have to know all of these technical terms just to use my car?"

Call No. 2

HELPLINE: "General Motors Helpline, how can I help you?"

CUSTOMER: "My car ran fine for a week, and now it won't go anywhere!"

HELPLINE: "Is the gas tank empty?"

CUSTOMER: "Huh? How do I know?"

HELPLINE: "There's a little guage on the front panel, with a needle, and markings from 'E' to 'F.' Where is the needle pointing?"

CUSTOMER: "It's pointing to 'E.' What does that mean?"

HELPLINE: "It means that you have to visit a gasoline vendor, and purchase some more gasoline. You can install it yourself, or pay the vendor to install it for you."

CUSTOMER: "What!? I paid $$12,000 for this car! Now you tell me that I have to keep buying more components? I want a car that comes with everything built in!"

Call No. 3

HELPLINE: "General Motors Helpline, how can I help you?"

CUSTOMER: "Your car sucks!"

HELPLINE: "What's wrong?"

CUSTOMER: "It crashed, that's what went wrong!"

HELPLINE: "What were you doing?"

CUSTOMER: "I wanted to run faster, so I pushed the accelerator pedal all the way to the floor. It worked for a while, and then it crashed -- and now it won't start!"

HELPLINE: "It's your responsibility if you misuse the product. What do you expect us to do about it?"

CUSTOMER: "I want you to send me one of the latest versions that doesn't crash anymore!"

Call No. 4

HELPLINE: "General Motors Helpline, how can I help you?"

CUSTOMER: "Hi! I just bought my first car, and I chose your car because it has automatic transmission, cruise control, power steering, power brakes, and power door locks."

HELPLINE: "Thanks for buying our car. How can I help you?"

CUSTOMER: "How do I work it?"

HELPLINE: "Do you know how to drive?"

CUSTOMER: "Do I know how to what?"

HELPLINE: "Do you know how to drive?"

CUSTOMER: "I'm not a technical person! I just want to go places in my car!"

Ask any support tech: they'll tell you these are not exaggerations!

Apple USB Keyboard With Numeric Pad

The standard keyboard you get with a Mac is OK, but if you want extra functionality then the Apple USB Keyboard With Numeric Pad is well worth buying.

Not only do you get the handy numeric keypad, but several additional keys such as DELETE, PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN.

If like me you have a MacBook then having an external keyboard to the built in one means you can position your MacBook in a more comfortable viewing position and if you have an external monitor that is larger than the screen on your MacBook then it also makes sense to have this item.