Q: You had information in a past column about a monitoring system for outside the home. At the time, I had no need. I have now moved to an area where there have been eight or nine break-ins in the past month.
— Ben Wright
A: I'm glad to have a chance to brag on what I think is a really great system for monitoring activity outside a home. It's sold by Radio Shack and is called the Reporter RWV-400R Wireless Alert System, catalog No. 55020851.
The price was $150 when I checked. It does a great job sensing motion outside the home — on a patio or a driveway for instance — and wirelessly sounding an alarm inside the house.
Q: I've seen a portable FM digital radio that interests me. Will I still have trouble getting a good FM radio signal from local, weak stations or does the digital tuner somehow have better reception?
— Terry Moy
A: In this case, "digital" means the tuner displays the frequency information using digits on a display panel, rather than moving a pointer along the dial. It does not pick up digital broadcasts. So it won't help weak signals. The solution is to use an antenna.
Q: What can you do to receive local channels with an antenna when there is no digital coverage in the area you live? My son lives in another state in an area too remote to receive over-the-air signals. Is there any solution?
— Sophie Kennedy
A: His options are to buy TV through satellite or cable — and the latter very likely isn't available in such a remote area.
Help from a reader
A recent column about dealing with customer service sparked some suggestions from Mark Higdon. Here's a summary:
Never ever use the second personal pronoun "you" when your complaint is with the company represented by the representative.
Aim your complaint at the company, not the person. Being patient and treating the person as an equal is not only the decent thing to do; it is also, by default, the smartest way toward getting accomplished what you want to accomplish with your call.
It's the old honey vs. vinegar principle.
HAVE A QUESTION?
Please send your questions to Bill Husted at tecbud(at)bellsouth.net. While he reads every e-mail, not all are answered. E-mails are selected for publication based on the likelihood that the answers will be of general interest.