Feeling a little over-sensitive today or what? How do you get that I was
ragging on you? I just said I didn't get it, I didn't say you were a moral
defective for doing it. As long as the screams don't bother me while I'm
camping I don't give a damn if you put an S&M dungeon in your Westy.
I suppose I should follow your lead and feel ragged-on for expressing
puzzlement about something...
Sheesh.

Robert

----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael Elliott" <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Saturday, March 03, 2007 3:01 PM
Subject: Re: 12-volt LCD monitors for DVD?

> I'm a big-time reader. I started and finished "Passage to Peshawar,"
> while in Joshua Tree, and started Rushdie's excellent "Shalimar the
> Clown." While there I rode my bike on a sweet 14-mile round trip from my
> site to Jumbo Rock and back. I spent a lot of time taking pictures,
> daydreaming and generally puttering around camp. Installed new visor
> clips in Mellow Yellow, managed to get the drinking water pump working
> again and wrote Mrs Squirrel a letter. You're ragging on me because I
> watched "The Syrian Bride" one night, and "World's Fastest Indian" the
> second? I don't measure up to your purist standards?
>
> PS - I never said anything about TV. Not one word. Wouldn't watch it
> even if there was reception.
>
> --
> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
> 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
> 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
> 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
> KG6RCR
>
>
>
> Robert Fisher typed:
>> I guess I don't understand why you would drive hours from home and go
>> through all the other efforts involved with 'camping' to sit out in the
>> nowhere and watch TV and movies.
>> Hell even if it was raining I'd rather go for a walk in it, or sit under
>> the
>> tent or awning and watch/listen to it; otherwise I'm out doing
>> something, or
>> sittin' on a log not doing anything, which is part of why I go.
>> After the first day's withdrawal the kids act like they've been freed
>> from
>> chains, with 'nothing to do' but run and play and explore- and bug the
>> neighbors, if there are any.
>> At night we watch the fire and actually ... talk to each other. We wait
>> for
>> the kids to fall asleep so we can, um (ahem) ... fresh air will do that
>> to
>> you. : )
>>
>> I don't get it.
>>
>> Cya,
>> Robert
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Michael Elliott" <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM>
>> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
>> Sent: Saturday, March 03, 2007 11:26 AM
>> Subject: Re: 12-volt LCD monitors for DVD?
>>
>>
>>> Hi Dennis, that's right. For this exercise I was looking at monitor
>>> power consumption only.  I know that our Philips DVD player likes about
>>> 2.5A when running, so I'm figuring another 5Ah for the player itself for
>>> a 2-hour movie.
>>>
>>> Mark's 17'' 12V monitor makes my 17'' 120V monitor look like a total
>>> power hog. Mine is rated at 1.2A @ 120V which is 144W, while his is
>>> rated at 4.2A @ 12V which is closer to 50W. For a 2-hour movie, his
>>> monitor would only need a relatively miserly 8.4Ah
>>>
>>> Player + monitor would be about 14Ah for a 2 hour flick. With our Group
>>> 27 battery topped off, that's not out of the question as long as we are
>>> sure we'll have charging power (either engine or sun) the following day.
>>>
>>> Where do you folks camp where you receive TV signals? I can't think of
>>> any nice camping area in SoCal where one would expect to be within range
>>> of a TV transmission tower.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
>>> 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
>>> 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
>>> 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
>>> KG6RCR
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> dhaynes@optonline.net typed:
>>>> Don't forget, you will still need to power up the DVD player to watch
>>>> the DVD on the monitor.
>>>>
>>>> So an Optima will have trouble playing one movie.
>>>>
>>>> Dennis
>>>>
>>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>>> From: Michael Elliott
>>>> Date: Saturday, March 3, 2007 11:45 am
>>>> Subject: Re: 12-volt LCD monitors for DVD?
>>>> To: dhaynes@optonline.net
>>>> Cc: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>>>>
>>>>  > Thanks, Dennis. I use my laptop for photography and treat it
>>>>  > gingerly
>>>>  > after having had it break twice while in the field. It stays
>>>>  > stowed
>>>>  > unless I need it. Our Philips standalone portable DVD player is
>>>>  > less
>>>>  > dear, so if it breaks it won't break my heart at the same time.
>>>>  > Plus,
>>>>  > we're looking for a standalone monitor we can place above the
>>>>  > poptop
>>>>  > latch when the top is up.
>>>>  >
>>>>  > I also noticed that my laptop draws about 50% more current from
>>>>  > the
>>>>  > battery than the DVD player. I have no idea what 12-v LCDs
>>>>  > wants,
>>>>  > powerwise . . . hmm, let's look at the sticker on my home
>>>>  > ViewSonic
>>>>  > VP720b monitor: 1.2A @ 120VAC. That's 1.2 X 120V = 144 watts.
>>>>  >
>>>>  > Using the handy-dandy online Battery Demand Calculator at
>>>>  > http://www.altavistaaudio.com/Westy/Vanagon/battcalc.html we
>>>>  > find that
>>>>  > with an 80% efficient inverter, a 2-hour movie will require 32
>>>>  > Ampere-hours from a battery. If inverter inefficiency is removed
>>>>  > from
>>>>  > the setup by finding a 12V monitor with similar power
>>>>  > requirements, the
>>>>  > 24Ah would be needed for the same film.
>>>>  >
>>>>  > I reckon we'd pull out the big monitor only if we could be
>>>>  > assured of
>>>>  > adequate charging the next day.
>>>>  >
>>>>  > --
>>>>  > Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
>>>>  > 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
>>>>  > 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
>>>>  > 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
>>>>  > KG6RCR
>>>>  >
>>>>  >
>>>>  >
>>>>  > dhaynes@optonline.net typed:
>>>>  > > I find the best option to be a large screen laptop. Does a
>>>>  > whole bunch
>>>>  > > of stuff in one package including the the DVD player. Robust
>>>>  > and
>>>>  > > compact. Sitting on the top of the stove cabinet makes great
>>>>  > viewing
>>>>  > > from the rear seat or chairs outside the sliding door. If
>>>>  > getting a new
>>>>  > > one, look for one with the tuner card built in. Works better
>>>>  > than the
>>>>  > > USB add ons. Some of the new laptops are very efficient. My
>>>>  > son's HP
>>>>  > > Laptop will go 6 hours on its own battery. My older Toshiba
>>>>  > doesn't go 2.
>>>>  > >
>>>>  > > Dennis
>>>>  > >
>>>>  > > ----- Original Message -----
>>>>  > > From: Michael Elliott
>>>>  > > Date: Saturday, March 3, 2007 10:59 am
>>>>  > > Subject: 12-volt LCD monitors for DVD?
>>>>  > > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
>>>>  > >
>>>>  > > > Mrs Squirrel and I often enjoy the watching of a film while
>>>>  > > > camping. Her
>>>>  > > > tastes are in the rom-com vein, while I can be tempted by an
>>>>  > > > indy film.
>>>>  > > > Somehow we manage to find something to rent that we both
>>>>  > like. Our
>>>>  > > > little portable DVD player has a similarly little screen
>>>>  > and we were
>>>>  > > > wondering if there are standalone 12-volt LCD monitors -- not
>>>>  > > > televisions -- in 16:9 17'' or so size.
>>>>  > > >
>>>>  > > >
>>>>  > > > --
>>>>  > > > Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott
>>>>  > > > 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus
>>>>  > > > 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana")
>>>>  > > > 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano
>>>>  > > > KG6RCR
>>>>  > > >
>>>>  >
>>