Buy local? Thanks to all of you who call and visit the shop and express your desire to deal locally with your hometown businesses before running down the hill to Sacto. Thank you! We regret being a service-only shop, would be nice to have the resources and assets to provide a retail outlet to our clients, but alas..... it's just not an option here. The up-side is our ability keep service rates and repairs reasonable by obtaining materials as needed and passing 'em along at cost. Thank you for your understanding and continued support. Outstanding local assets Our short list of assorted individuals, companies and resources here in Nevada County that we recommend without reservation. Battery Warehouse - Cell Phone batteries galore BK Powder Coating - Nice folks, great work Brock's Custom Cycle - 11860 Atwood, Auburn - 885-4044 Downs Art - Local artist extraordinaire Fastenal - Fasteners, paint, equipment and supplies Harris Insurance Services - 426 Sutton Way, GV - 477-1563 KNCO - Local AM talk radio, news, and Swap Shop KVMR - Local FM radio, eclectic music and NPR news The National Hotel - Broad Street, Nevada City Nevada County Food and Toy Run - Christmas in Nevada County! Northstar Designs - Creative welding and fabrication Renegade - Motorcycle gear, 744 Maltman Dr. GV - 273-4644 Sign Works - Sign design - 1240 E. Main, GV - 273-9205 Tourist Info - Nevada County's official online guide Two Gunners Custom Iron - Harley Davidson service The Union Newspaper - Covering Grass Valley since the Civil War

Humpty Dumpty goes up in flames on Saturday night, Jan. 7, 2012 25 firefighters from five departments took two hours to contain the blaze. There were no injuries.   Sunday morning found owner Randy Hodges surveying his gutted restaurant in a daze. We're all hoping for a quick recovery, Randy. Godspeed. (Also see the Sac Bee for stories about the Humpty Dumpty Kitchen.) More news: < TheUnion.com > < CBS 13 news >

THE Nevada County Food and Toy Run (12/10/11) First organized in 1991, Thom Staser and company created an annual event that is always a great time and the very essence of Christmas. At precisely 12 noon on the appointed December day, a procession of up to 2000 motorcycles begins their journey thru Nevada City and Grass Valley on a mission to deliver toys and food for needy families here in Nevada County. This annual Christmas tradition is supported and assisted by local law enforcement, fire personnel and countless volunteers. Streets are lined with cheering crowds, and the result is a one-of-a-kind event that should not be missed. <http://www.toyrun.org/>

Nevada City's 1st Annual Soapbox Derby (06/18/11) Watch death defying speed demons, fire-breathing chariots, pirate ships and misguided missiles compete for speed and style in this exclusive nCity video short.   The day started with a rollover crash (top-right corner in video), but driver walked away. Gladiator entry won in style category, BTW. Our short covered the first heat only; NCTV should have extensive coverage of entire race here: <www.nevadacountytv.org>

A list of speed test sites appear below; each link opens in a new window. Run three or more tests from different sites. Record your download speeds. Be sure to note test results in Kilobits (Kbps) or Megabits (Mbps), as provided by test. Record date and time of each test. Find the average of test results: Add all speeds, then divide by number of tests. More tests = better accuracy. Note that test results may vary depending on load; tests during peak hours (evening) will probably be slower than, say, 4-5 am. Results will also vary somewhat by day-of-week. Call your service provider and share your test results with them. They should be happy to hear from you. Or not. Test results can vary considerably depending on a number of factors.  Factors include server traffic, distance (closer = better), date and time of test, computer specs, browser and operating system, routers, switches, condition of cable/wiring, and more. For best results, reset modem/router, clear browser cache and history, and disable/quit any unnecessary software before running tests. Please make sure your machine and network are in order and up-to-date before blaming your broadband provider for poor results.   Additional test resources: If you have an iPod Touch, iPad or iPhone, search the App Store for "speed test" and you'll find a variety of bandwidth test apps from Cisco, Xtreme Labs and others. These may be the quickest, easiest and most accurate way to test any broadband connection. The sites listed here are designed to work from your computer, sorted (roughly, given the constant flux) by accuracy and ease of use. Most accurate test sites: Windows User Group (WUGNET) 2Wire CNET Networks Bandwidth Meter Bandwidth Place Speed Test Bandwidth.com ToastNet Entertaining test sites: PC Pitstop Speakeasy Speedtest.net IP-Address.com TestMySpeed.com ATT Yahoo Some ISPs have an initial speed "boost" that may skew results, as can certain browser/OS combinations. Sometimes nothing beats reading the fine print in a download window: The legal definition of broadband is [anything over] "200Kbps in one direction," which means this Comcast connection (above) cannot legally be called broadband. In any case, download window shows a dismal, real-time "speed" of 173Kbps per second. No speed boost here..... 56,000 bits per second. Actual data rate will be substantially less; 56K is the theoretical maximum for analog data transmission over landline. Planning to use dialup? (Really?!) You'll need a V.92/56K modem. All Macs have wireless and ethernet built-in, but internal modems are a thing of the past; Apple no longer offers any dialup modems. Third-party external USB modems may be found at Staples or Best Buy (or online) for under $50. 1,500,000 bits per second = 1.5 Megabit/second (1.5Mbps). 1.5 Mbps should be where broadband starts (instead of the FCC's measly 200K). It would certainly go a long ways toward keeping service providers honest. Sadly, 1.5 Mbps is a good speed here in Nevada County, and it's often the highest data rate available in this area. 3,000,000 bits per second = 3 Megabit/second (3Mbps). 3 Mbps is close to top speed on DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) over telephone equipment around here. ATT offers tiered rates according to services available at your location. (Maximum speed here at the MacShack is about 2.5 Mbps over DSL. Comcast was delivering 1-1.5 and charging for 12Mbps.) 6,000,000 bits per second (6Mbps). 6 Mbps? Not likely around here. Phone and cable providers happily advertise speeds they cannot deliver, well beyond 6Mbps (Comcast advertises 12-15), and they collect premium rates based on advertised speed, not the actual service they provide. Satellite broadband has additional factors impacting data transmission (latency and dish), but at least they're honest about it.   Broadband Service Providers in Nevada County: Spiral DSL is a local, full service ISP, and a better choice than dealing with ATT directly. (Why? see their web site.) Full Spectrum DSL Full service ISP, web hosting, domain registration, ISDN and T-1 lines. Also better than going to ATT directly. ATT Digital Subscriber Line (DSL). Best to do an end-run, as above. They are now charging for going over 150GB/mo. _and_ will be charging for having over 3 devices online (identified by device IP addresses). Comcast cable Overpriced, undernourished broadband access and cable television, dismal customer service, will be charging for the same data and device caps as ATT. Odd coincidence, huh. Actual data rates are no where near what Comcast advertises and charges for - not here. Hughes net satellite broadband services WildBlue satellite broadband services Smarter Broadband line-of-sight repeaters to "fixed wireless" access points. Good (possibly only) choice if cable/DSL and satellite options are unavailable to you. Suddenlink Colfax, Auburn, south county services. Also uses repeaters for those who cannot access other options.