FranLab is getting evicted

[Ed.Kloonk]

Whatever her problem is, Python can solve it. 

AI can solve it!

Windows 11. 

[EEVblog]

Lessons learnt:
1.  A plan B is not good enough, and neither is a plan Z, it can all turn to shit.
2.  Buy only what you need when you need it, don't buy stuff on a whim.
3.  Get deposits from customers, particularly where there are large outlays.
4.  Friends and family are worth far more than your most valued customer.
5. Keep well, eat well and live well. All the bad stuff you do will come
back to bite you on the arse when you least expect it.

Good list 

[Muttley Snickers]

< snip list ....>

Good list 

I could waffle on for days about lessons learnt but won't, a very important lesson I should have included in that list was this: 
6.  Don't take on too much, focus and finish one task at a time or risk becoming overwhelmed and incapable of doing or completing anything.

This is in fact where I failed miserably, I took on too much and suffered as a result, it started with the heart then everything else fell apart.   

[Nominal Animal]

I have the same affliction as Dave: I keep looking for solutions and alternatives, when someone is in a bind (but is not necessarily asking for any). 

What I can offer, is this: Life is change.

Even when "I just want things to stay as they are", it is important to have options, because change always happens, sooner or later.  Nothing alive stays unchanged for long; that's what being alive is.

It is even more important to consider options rationally, because what might feel awful and horrible and impossible now, might be the best thing ever the day after tomorrow.

Just because I believe this is the best place for me to be now and in the future, it may not be true at all.  Opinions are opinions, and beliefs are beliefs, nothing more.  They need to be carefully, critically, rationally examined, to find out the truth in them.  I have definitely been mislead by my own opinions and beliefs before, and have suffered a lot because of not being prepared to change things.  I'd hate to see others repeat my mistakes.

Seeing someone reject all alternatives because "I just want to things to stay as they are right now" reminds me of how I dug a hole for myself doing exactly that, and makes me thoroughly sad.  I know, from experience, that that road only leads to unnecessary suffering.  Better change things before the change is forced on you by reality, I say, while you have options and alternatives to choose from.

[austfox]

I know of plenty of people who have resisted a move for as long as possible, but once they have done so have never looked back. Quite often they say they wish they had moved sooner. I guess most of us don't like change, but sometimes change is a part of life that helps us evolve and grow.

[EEVblog]

I have the same affliction as Dave: I keep looking for solutions and alternatives, when someone is in a bind (but is not necessarily asking for any). 

What I can offer, is this: Life is change.

Even when "I just want things to stay as they are", it is important to have options, because change always happens, sooner or later.  Nothing alive stays unchanged for long; that's what being alive is.

It is even more important to consider options rationally, because what might feel awful and horrible and impossible now, might be the best thing ever the day after tomorrow.

Just because I believe this is the best place for me to be now and in the future, it may not be true at all.  Opinions are opinions, and beliefs are beliefs, nothing more.  They need to be carefully, critically, rationally examined, to find out the truth in them.  I have definitely been mislead by my own opinions and beliefs before, and have suffered a lot because of not being prepared to change things.  I'd hate to see others repeat my mistakes.

Seeing someone reject all alternatives because "I just want to things to stay as they are right now" reminds me of how I dug a hole for myself doing exactly that, and makes me thoroughly sad.  I know, from experience, that that road only leads to unnecessary suffering.  Better change things before the change is forced on you by reality, I say, while you have options and alternatives to choose from.

Fran and I are good friends and we have dicussed this a lot over the last few years. And in the last few days since this video she has sent me even more extensive reasoning behind all this which gives me a greater insight into why she is doing what she is doing.
I won't disclose details, but suffice it to say that I don't agree with her reasoning. Indeed I thin kthat some of those reasons are glaring red lights that she should makes changes.

*snip* I removed some stuff, I can't help but talk too much about this. And it also kinda annoys me that I should stop for various reasons.

I have decided that whilst I will of course still be there to discuss it and help as a close friend if she asks, I won't make suggestions any more on the issue. She needs to make her own life choices. I wish her the best of luck, and she seems very happy again that the Patrons have come through again for her.

Sadly I suspect we'll be back here in 6-12 months, you can't continue to walk the tightrope forever.

[EEVblog]

FYI, the video has been delisted as she was getting a lot of abuse in the comments.

As an aside, re the comments on the video about ebaying various parts and making some bank from that, I agree with Fran that it doesn't work like that. Some people don't realise how much work is involved in listing stuff like this on ebay.
I put off listing my hoard on ebay because of the work involved for ultimately not much financial return. And I've sold many hundreds of items on ebay over the years.

[Nominal Animal]

I can't help but talk too much about this.

Hopefully she realizes that it is only because you're a friend, and care.

I have decided that whilst I will of course still be there to discuss it and help as a close friend if she asks, I won't make suggestions any more on the issue. She needs to make her own life choices. I wish her the best of luck, and she seems very happy again that the Patrons have come through again for her.

It's not easy to stop making suggestions to try and solve the problem, because that's the way many of us naturally show compassion and consideration.

But for sure, everyone must make their own life choices.  It's just .. painful to see someone walk a road you know isn't safe, thinking this is the safest road for them.

FYI, the video has been delisted as she was getting a lot of abuse in the comments.

Opening up like that on a media like Youtube is surefire way to attract the attention of trolls and haters (people externalizing their own unhappiness in themselves by attacking others).  Add to that asking for financial support, well, that's a red flag to many others, especially to those who don't have her resources or options to begin with, even if otherwise very supportive of Fran.

(I do not like to talk enjoy talking about my own history and issues, but do so because advice or opinion without context is not really useful: I use myself as a datum, necessary for my advice to have any relevance or context.  I know how it changes some peoples' perspective of me, for the worse, when I do.)

[EEVblog]

I can't help but talk too much about this.

Hopefully she realizes that it is only because you're a friend, and care.

She does.

[PlainName]

I put off listing my hoard on ebay because of the work involved for ultimately not much financial return.

Similar reasoning here for a mini-hoard, but I reckon it's worth doing for the space regained. Making a bit of dosh would be icing.

[RAPo]

I was a follower of Fran on youtube, not Patreon.

The old film content was interesting to me, but the 'rants' on other things were not.

The rants including the troubles regarding the lab do repeat without any sight of improvement (whatever reason may be behind it).
Therefore I decided to unfollow Fran on youtube.

[nctnico]

I put off listing my hoard on ebay because of the work involved for ultimately not much financial return.

Similar reasoning here for a mini-hoard, but I reckon it's worth doing for the space regained. Making a bit of dosh would be icing.

I unhoard regularly by putting everything in boxes and listing the whole lot on a local 2nd hand website. I do want 5 euro though because listing stuff for free attracts the wrong crowd.

[EEVblog]

I unhoard regularly by putting everything in boxes and listing the whole lot on a local 2nd hand website. I do want 5 euro though because listing stuff for free attracts the wrong crowd.

I've listed stuff for free on Gumtree (local ebay owned site that's for face-face used stuff) and my phone has messages so quickly I couldn't get into the app to close the listing.
Recently got rid of that huge ultrasound machine carcass from my bunker, I thought surely no one would want it, but someone picked it up for free with a giant trailer.

[EEVblog]

I put off listing my hoard on ebay because of the work involved for ultimately not much financial return.

Similar reasoning here for a mini-hoard, but I reckon it's worth doing for the space regained. Making a bit of dosh would be icing.

Yep, my bunker is currently filled with boxes of stuff from the old bigger lab and storage tubs with all sorts of crap. I moved out in a hurry and dumped it all there. I need to spend a few days sorting, tossing, and giving away stuff. Hard to find the time to justify it though when it doesn't really cost me anything to keep it there.

[armandine2]

The de-cluttering journey is its own growth process - in my experience longer than you imagined it would be but the keep/dispose choices are clearer and intuitive.

[Alex Eisenhut]

You mean it's not normal to have boxes of 30 year old linear wall warts with voltages nothing uses anymore?

[IanJ]

Other towns and cities CAN become home very quickly. It's so sad that Fran is just so hard headed about this......not to mention, the more I think about it, the money she has received in these past few years from folks must amount to quite a big sum.......and that could have been put to much, MUCH better use.

Dave has always been completely public about EEVblog circumstances and when you follow it through across all his years I'd say not many people could have done any better........

Will Fran come out of this in the months/years to come?.......I highly, highly doubt it. I fear for her future.

Ian.

[james_s]

I unhoard regularly by putting everything in boxes and listing the whole lot on a local 2nd hand website. I do want 5 euro though because listing stuff for free attracts the wrong crowd.

I do that too. Sometimes when the person gets here to collect it if they seem friendly I'll just say forget about the money and take it, but it's useful to filter out the bottom feeders and flippers.

[james_s]

I've listed stuff for free on Gumtree (local ebay owned site that's for face-face used stuff) and my phone has messages so quickly I couldn't get into the app to close the listing.
Recently got rid of that huge ultrasound machine carcass from my bunker, I thought surely no one would want it, but someone picked it up for free with a giant trailer.

Probably a scrapper, they'll show up for anything containing metal.

Surely you have some friends that share your interest in various technical junk? I've helped several of my friends clean out storage units, they let me pick through it and take anything I'm interested in that they don't want and I help haul the rest to disposal.

[james_s]

You mean it's not normal to have boxes of 30 year old linear wall warts with voltages nothing uses anymore?

I always grab linear ones when I find them, yeah they're less efficient but they're so much more reliable in always-on applications. The voltage is not much of an issue now since so many things have their own onboard regulators, broadband routers for example, they most often accept 12V but they will actually work fine on anything from about 5V to 20V or more. I was replacing the switching PSUs once every 2-3 years but a linear one will last decades.

[Stray Electron]

I've listed stuff for free on Gumtree (local ebay owned site that's for face-face used stuff) and my phone has messages so quickly I couldn't get into the app to close the listing.
Recently got rid of that huge ultrasound machine carcass from my bunker, I thought surely no one would want it, but someone picked it up for free with a giant trailer.

Probably a scrapper, they'll show up for anything containing metal.

Surely you have some friends that share your interest in various technical junk? I've helped several of my friends clean out storage units, they let me pick through it and take anything I'm interested in that they don't want and I help haul the rest to disposal.

  Same here but sadly I've outlived almost all of my buddies that know anything about electronics or that are interested in electronics. My kids have zero interest and I think that once I'm gone that they're going to call in a dumpster and cleaning crew and just pitch everything.

[james_s]

  Same here but sadly I've outlived almost all of my buddies that know anything about electronics or that are interested in electronics. My kids have zero interest and I think that once I'm gone that they're going to call in a dumpster and cleaning crew and just pitch everything.

That's a shame. Hopefully you can sort out the most valuable stuff and put it in a separate place. Certainly stuff like test gear is easy to unload, I've been consistently shocked at how high prices have been on that stuff since Covid came along. I haven't found any bargains on ebay since then.

[Stray Electron]

  Asking prices have just gotten plain STUPID on Ebay!  I keep looking but I haven't bought any TE there for several years now.

   But I've ran out of patience dealing with excessive charges from E-bay, PayPal and the various shipping companies and with the Ebay fraudsters. IMO, it's not worth the head aches to try to sell anything there any more. I'm just going to hang onto my TE until I kick the bucket, and then it's going to be someone else's problem!

   I've taken some good TE to the local hamfests but no one seems to know what most of it is any more. The only thing that most buyers are interested in is very late model radios or TE that they can buy for 20% of it's value and then flip on E-Greed.  I'm convinced that most "buyers" there have no knowledge or interest in electronics and are just E-flippers.

[Alex Eisenhut]

  Asking prices have just gotten plain STUPID on Ebay!  I keep looking but I haven't bought any TE there for several years now.

The heyday of bargain shopping on eBay is about five years in the past, now it's more about serendipity. Either for TE or 8 bit computer junk.

You have to search for typos or general descriptions and you can get lucky.

[james_s]

Well there are plenty of people on here looking to buy test equipment, although generally they're looking for bargain prices. Local outlets like craigslist and facebook marketplace might be worth trying too, there isn't much on there and what does turn up is usually inflated prices so if you set fair prices you might unload it pretty quick.