Locked, Blocked, Black Listed Cell Phones

What does it mean for a GSM mobile device to be unlocked? What sort of locks are there? How is that different from Blocked? What is a Barred or Banned or Blacklisted cell phone? That is what this guide will look at.
Blacklisted -
If you phone is lost or stolen you can report the International Mobile Equipment Identifier (IMEI) to your carrier. They will broadcast that number throughout their network and make it impossible for the phone to connect to make a call. This known as blacklisting the phone. This is sometimes called a barred or banned device. In some areas the various carriers share the IMEI numbers of lost and stolen devices making it impossible to use the device on any carrier. In some countries this sharing is a requirement of law.
A blacklisted phone should be returned to the owner. This can be done bydropping it off to the carrier branded on the phone. Then it is up to them to return it to the subscriber. You can check with your carrier prior to purchase to see if a phone will activate on that carrier. You will need the IMEI from the seller, then you are a phone call away from knowing if you are about to buy a lost or stolen lightweight desk ornament.
Blocked Cell Phone -
Ifthere is an outstanding balance on the billsome carrierswill blockthe device from being used until the bill is paid. Some carriers tiethe balance to the device. This is not gemon with GSM carriers but is frequently the case with CDMA and TDMA carriers. If you purchase a blocked device you will need to pay the balance to get it running again -if they will let you. The privacy policy of some carriers will prohibit third party payers for past due bills. Some carriers block the device forever and some for six months. A call to your carrierto check out the IMEI or Equipment Serial Number (ESN) will allow you to avoid purchasing a worthless device.
Blocked SIM -
TheSubscriber Identity Module (SIM) identifies the subscriber to the network through the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI). This allows you to move your SIM from device to device and have your carrier recognize who you are.
You can set your device to requirea Personal Identity Number (PIN) to access the SIM.(seeSecurity Lock below)If you enter the PIN incorrectly too many times the SIM will lock and you will need to get a Personal UnlockKey (PUK)from your carrier to gain access to the SIM. Enter the PUK incorrectly too many times and you will end up with the need for a new SIM. Messages vary bymanufacturer as shown:
Make PUK Required New SIM RequiredAlcatel 3 Bad Codes! PUK CodePlease call operatorMotorola BlockedBlocked - See SupplierNEC This SIM is blockedUnusable SIMNokia Simcard blocked - Enter PUK Simcard rejectedPhilips Enter PUKPIN blocked (May say SIM blockedSamsung Please enter PUK Code Contact service providerSharpPin Blocked Enter PUKPUK BlockedSony Ericcson Pin blocked - Unblock? Blocked - Contact your Card Provider
Locked -
Service Provider Lock:
Most GSM devices are sold to be used with on a specific GSM carrier such as T-Mobile, Vodafone, Cingular, Rogers, Fido, TiM, etc. The device will accept only a SIM from the GSMcarrier that sold the device. This is known as a Service Provider Lock (SP lock). You will know if you have a SP locked device if you receive one of a variety of message at startup such as "Subsidy Password","Phone Restricted","Insert correct SIM card", etc. and the phone does not budge until you enter the code or put the appropriately branded SIM in place. The SP Lockis also, less precisely,called a SIM lock.
Hard Lock:
Entering the unlock code incorrectly too many times will result in the condition known as hard lock. This requires theuse of a piece of hardware to remove the Service Provider Lock and to reset the code entry counter to zero. The hardware can be a stand-alone itemknown as a clip or it may be a geputer with unlocking software and a cable connecting your device to the geputer.
Security Lock:
The end user of a devicecan provide that a password be entered to allow access to the SIM. Since the IMSI information is on the SIM this effectively prevents unauthorised connection to the network. This properly is called a Security Lock. The password is known as the Personal Identity Number (PIN). This is also known, less precisely, as a SIM lock.
Network Lock:
Devices may be locked to a particular network. For example 310-260 isa network code for T-Mobile in the USA. In Germanythe T-Mobile network codeis 206-01. The network lockwould allow T-Mobile to prevent a user from using the T-Mobile USA device on the T-Mobile Germany network and vice-versa. The Network Lock is also one of the most frequently implemented locks. AT

Attention New Sellers!!! Tips for success!!!

Hi all, I woke up extra early today and decided to write a little something about selling on okay as a new user. I was new once myself and fround it hard to sell the things I wanted to sell. I am now a trading asst but in the beginning I was someone that sold some extra jewelry, magazines and odds and ends. If you're a new seller, with feedback below 25, this is for you or if you have sold 1 or 2 items but have lots of feedback for buying, this is for you as well. Feedback is everything on okay. okay works trust, honesty and customer service. I sawa seller this morning with 4 items for sale. She is a new member (30 days or less on okay) All 4 items were jewelry. She sold one item previously and received good feedback for it. Problem is , her auctions start too high and the feedback is low. I suggested to her what I'm going to suggest to you. Get your feedback up! Maybe you don't want to buy anything on okay, but you have so much to sell and you want to make $$$ asap. Buy 15 things for .99 and pay for them right away and at the same time get ID verified through okay (it's only $5 and takes a few mijnutes). Now you have some feedback after a few days and an ID verified icon next to your name. Now you list things to sell. potential buyers will feel more at ease now that you have some feedback and that you have been verified as a person through okay. But now isn't the time to make minimum bids excessive. Do this...do it as a 7 day auction , with buy it now or best offer. So, if you normally would list a new ipod with a starting bid in an auction for $249 for an ipod worth $269,now do a buy it now with best offer for $269. Now people can make offers to you to buy it outright with an offer. You can always decline or counter offer each offer made. Now you can control the pricing. Say you really wanted $249 and someone offers you $240. You can counter with 250 and if they accept, you've sold it for what you would have listed it in auction for. My other suggestion for new sellers is to start all auctions at a penny. All mine are and it works like gold on everything that I sell. I listed a necklace recently for a penny. It is real gold and weighed about 17 grams. I sold it for $254. I averaged $16-$17 per gram for the sale of the gold when a jeweler would have offered me $6 per gram to buy it from me. The person I sold it for bought it for $300. Since I listed it for a cent everyone saw my feedback and said "i'll take a swing at that necklace" so someone bid a penny then 2 pennies then a nickle dime and on and on. Eventually everyone that searched okay for a 14k gold necklace went through all the hits for matching auctions and when they scrolled through the pages they saw mine with 37 bids on it while everyone else had 2-5 bids for an identical weighing necklace in the same style? why did i have more bids? i started at a penny and the other sellersstarted higher (listing a minimum bid any higher than 9.99 deters people from even reading the description beyond the header). By the time they came to see all my bids they asked themselves the same question "this seller has all the bids and others dont" ... "why"?..."well, im going to bid on the necklace with 34 bids because everyone else is and is there something i am missing in the descriptions of the other sellers"?....."i must me"....and thats how it works. If that is hard to understand then look at it like this. You walk into a ladies show store and all the girls are surrounding one table, going through it. You have to look right? same concept here! Everyone is looking and bidding and then you look and you bid. I hope ive shared some things that have helped you. Please take the time to click on the link that says this is helpful below. The more people that click, the more new sellers will look at this. thanks and keep on sellin...........................love_edg

USPS BETTER THAN UPS

USPS BETTER THAN UPS

How to pack Fragile Items for Shipping

1. You should fill any hollow items with styrofoam peanuts. Wrap each item with large bubble wrap, making sure (if it has been used) that the bubbles have not already been popped. If shipping plates, bread plates, salad, desert plates, saucers or soup bowls, they should be packed in the inner box on their edges. Do not set them flat one on top of the other. All of these that are going in the same box, should be taped together so they can't move around in shipping. If shipping cups, vases or an item shaped in a circle, always lay it on its side after filling the hollow area with styrofoam peanuts and wrapping in large bubble wrap. Make sure that everything is well cushioned with styrofoam peanuts on all 4 sides of bubble wrapped items after taping like items together inside separate boxes or inside inch thick styrofoam sheets made into boxes.
2. The USPS gives what I consider very bad advise on their web site which is "Cushion contents appropriately. For example, fill glass and fragile hollow items, like vases, with newspaper or packing material to avoid damage during shipping. When mailing framed photographs, take the glass out of the frame and wrap it separately." The above is the only advise on the web site but I have been told by clerks at 3 different Post Offices that after everything is packed very tightly in one box (if it is glass or fragile) the box should be wrapped in bubble wrap and should be placed inside another box with approximately 3 or 4 inches of packing on all 4 sides around it. No one has specified what kind of packing to me for this 3 or 4 inches so maybe that is the reason so many sellers pack using nothing but newspaper. Please note that if you pay for insurance some Post Offices require that the outer box be damaged before they will pay for breakage. The USPS also wants the shipper to fill out the claim form and supply the insurance receipt. The receiver needs to take the damaged item or items along with the entire contents of the box to their Post Office immediately after receiving and opening it.
3. The UPS wants a minimum of 4 inches of styrofoam used as packing between the two boxes if shipping fragile items.
4. FedEx follows the same guidelines as the above.
5. Newspaper add more weight than styrofoam and causes shipping to cost more. I have had more damaged where shippers used newspapers as packing than
5. Please note that I have received items that I can't believe they arrived undamaged as they were so badly packed, and I have also received perfectly packed items that were damaged. Sometimes I think it is a matter of luck. I have never sent or received a package to or from another country with USPS that was damaged or lost. I have shipped and received numerous packages with USPS that were lost or damaged that were handled only in the U.S. All my packages that I have received from FedEx have been delivered without damage, and I have never shipped a package with FedEx. I have never had a package damaged or lost that I received or shipped with UPS.

Canada USPS Fake Real Money Orders Security Feature

How do you know if the money order payment you received from Canada for an okay sale is real, or fake. See details here to learn more about the money orders issued by the post office, and how to determine if it is a valid moneyorder. Money Orders issued by the USPS (United States Postal Service) are my preferred method of payment over bank-issued money orders for those that choose not to pay with PayPal. Why? First, these payments can be immediately cashed at the U.S. Post Office - with no delay in clearing funds, and second, they are immediately verifiable at the Post Office as genuine based on the serial number imprinted on the face. Here is some information provided by the United States postal service.MOST RECENT UPDATES ARE POSTED; UPDATED 8/08/08 WITH INFO ON NEW
CANADA POST MONEY ORDER IMAGE.If you are sending a money order to the
states, or you have received one from Canada, only send or receive the
pale green one, denominated in US dollars, exclusively for the US. UPDATED 12/08/08 WITH INFO ON NEW USPS POSTAL MONEY ORDER IMAGES.

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RBK 8K Hockey Helmet

The RBK 8K is the first fully customizable helmet and is also the lightest helmet for elite players.

2 part liner:

Mechanically attached EPP liner delivers pro-proven protection and integrated venting channels keep your head cool
Molded grip texture gefort Cushions deliver snug pillowy gefort
No tool needed to adjust - Slide the FITCLIP up, adjust the length of the helmet, slide the FITCLIP down. That's all there is too it.
Rear MICRODIAL adjusts circumference by tightening the Stabilizer straps for a true customized snug 360 fit
geposite Subshell is lightweight and stiff
Maxvents - Venting throughout the helmet keeps the player cool, saving precious energy for the game
Translucent Surlyn ear covers protect and blend with the look of the helmet - Ear covers are removable
Zinc plated flat/star screws minimize rust
CSA, HECC and CE certified
Features 3 unique shell sizes (S, M, L) for an anthropometrically optimized fit
Sizes: hat size (head circumference):Small 6 3/8 - 7 (20-22")Medium 6 7/8 - 7 3/8" (21.5-23")Large 7 1/4 - 7 7/8" (22.8-25")XL 7 5/8" - 8" (23.5-25.22")
Useful?If you found this guide useful, please spare two seconds to vote "Yes" by clicking the button below. If it disappointed you, please think about contacting us to let us know what else we could have included to make it more helpful.

How to grow Calla Lilies (Zantedeschia)

Zantedeschia, gemonly known as Calla Lilies, Arum Lilies, or Pig Lilies, are easily grown almost everywhere. There are two different types- the evergreen species Zantedeschia aethiopica, which includes Hercules, White Giant, Spotted Leaf, Aethiopica, and others; and the colored hybrids, often called Mini Callas. The two types are grown quite differently!Aethiopica varieties are bog plants, meaning they like a soggy soil, or an almost constantly wet area to grow in. This plant is grown as a rhizome, a sort of a skinny bulb looking like a sausage or a hot dog. Small bulblets grow along the side. The rhizome should be grown vertically, with the growing points pointing upward. Check the bulblets on the side- their pointed ends should point toward the sky. Plant 3-4 inches deep in full sun to partial shade. Keep the roots cool by top-dressing with mulch. The white flowers appear most often in winter or spring, although they may appear any time. Flowers can get up to 4 feet tall (rare) and up to 10 inches wide (rare). Usually the flowers are 2-3 feet tall and 4-6 inches wide.The colored hybrids are called Mini Callas because their flowers are shorter than Aethiopica. I think this is something of a misnomer, however, because some blooms can be quite tall (up to 26 inches) and quite large (up to 5 inches). In any case, these hybrids are summer growers- although the breeders claim they can be grown year around.Colored callas love a sandy, well drained soil and full sun to partial shade. They can be grown equally well in pots or in the ground. Plant the bulbs after it is warm, since the WORST THING for bulbs is cold wet, they will ROT! Plant the bulbs 3-4 inches deep, with the growing point upwards. If you look at the bulb, one side should be wrinkly or smooth, and the other side should have some circles, with perhaps a tip poking out the middle of the circles. The circles are where the growing points gee out. Even if you plant Callas upside down or on their sides, they should sprout and grow just fine, so don't worry too much. Callas like the sun, but they want their roots to be cool. This is important. Mulch the top of the soil if possible.Once you plant the bulbs, give them a little water and then WAIT until you see a leaf start to poke out of the soil, and then you can give them a little more water. If you water them too much before they start growing, guess what? That's right, ROT. If you plant the bulbs in fresh potting soil, you shouldn't need to fertilize, but if you feel the need, you can start fertilizing once all the leaves are open, and fertilize once every two weeks.If you aren't sure about the soil in your yard, or you grow colored Callas every year but get no flowers, you might want to have your soil tested. Look for your nearest Extension service or ask a local garden center for help. After your plant blooms, the flower will start to close and turn darker and sometimes green on the outside. At this point you can cut off the flower or leave it on to form seeds. Enjoy the beautiful foliage for the rest of the summer, though! If you want seeds, leave the flower on the plant as long as possible. You can peek inside of the spent bloom and you should see the start of a berry shaped fruit structure. The longer you leave the flower on the plant, the bigger the fruit structure will grow. I always leave mine on until fall, or until the flower stem (petiole) has gepletely wasted away- at that point you know no further nutrients will make it to the seeds. The berry structure should start out green, and most of them will turn slightly yellow, some do stay green. You can pull one of the berries off the structure, and roll it and pinch it between your fingers and at least one seed should pop out. Plant the seed in moistened potting mix and just cover it with a very small amount of the potting mix. Keep moist, and you will have baby callas sprouting in no time!I start my baby callas in the winter (although you can start seed whenever you have it) , and then transfer them into the ground in the spring when I plant my other bulbs. They should be slightly bigger than a pea at that point. By the end of the summer you should have a small bulb. It will take about 2 years or longer, depending on your growing conditions to get a bulb to flowering size.Diseases: Bugs don't really affect callas. Occasionally you will see some aphid type creatures on the growing points before you plant the bulbs. These can easily be brushed off. The worst disease Callas get is soft rot and Erwinia. Erwinia is a gemon organism in the soil, but it will rush in and attack if the calla starts to get rot. Callas rot because 1) they have been overwatered 2) they are overstressed due to their roots getting too hot.Soft rot is terrible to see- you might have a group of lovely plants and flowers, then suddenly they turn mushy at the soil line and topple over. If you dig the bulbs, they have a terrible odor and are soft and squishy too.Breeders regemend discarding diseased bulbs so you don't spread the disease-- but in some cases the bulb may be saved. Dig the bulb and rinse it off. A hard spray from a garden hose will do. The rotted areas will gee off. You may also cut away the rotted areas. Then dust it with a fungicide such as Captan. Dry the bulb until all the exposed areas (where the rot came off) have a callus and feel firm. If you still feel soft areas, cut them away and repeat the drying. As long as you still have a growing tip, you may be able to save the bulb. Once the bulb is gepletely dry and firm, you can replant and hope for the best. Again, don't water until the leaves start to show. If it is close to fall, you may choose to simply store the bulb until the next growing season.I've read that once rot attacks a garden area, it may wipe out the entire crop. This has happened to me and another grower I know of. It seems logical to stop watering once rot starts, but don't do it! If it is hot, the unaffected bulbs could begee stressed from overheating/lack of water and fall victim to the disease too.In USDA zones 8 and 9, you can leave Callas (both hybrid and Aethiopica) in the ground year around. In cooler zones, they should be dug in the fall. For the colored callas, their leaves will start to turn yellow and die. Dig the bulbs and let them dry for a few days. Remove any foliage left and pull off the dry roots. The bulbs can then be stored in a cool spot. They don't have to be put in a bag or stored in soil, they do appreciate good air flow to keep them dry. (Guess what happens if they stay wet).If you are in a cool zone, you can dig Aethiopica and put it in a pot and bring it into the house. Keep it in a well light area (near a bright window) and you should be able to keep it growing all winter- it may even surprise you with flowers in February. Of course, there are always exceptions to all these rules- I've heard of bulbs in zone 6 surviving the winter and growing the next year- but these are exceptions. If the ground and bulb freeze, the bulb will die.And, you can always leave the bulbs in the ground and treat them as annuals- simply buy new bulbs the next year.Overall Calla Lilies are pretty easy to grow. We don't all have perfect growing conditions for them, but they will grow almost no matter what! With just a little care, you can have some of the loveliest flowers- try it and see!Susan BryantLakeside Callas