Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2009 April 10

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April 10

What's the background music in this video (and where can I get it?) ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYSXY3hWHJk --Wikinv (talk) 06:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

banking and finance.

wealth maximization a function of share price maximization.... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 41.219.251.117 (talk) 09:26, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

So?86.197.21.17 (talk) 09:58, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

What exactly is your question? SteveBaker (talk) 11:41, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I'm going to take the Q to be "Is wealth maximization simply a function of share price maximization in all of your stocks ?". In that case, the answer is no. Dividends matter, as do tax implications. So, a stock which pays high dividends and is tax-free may very well be better for wealth maximization than one with a higher growth rate in the share price. StuRat (talk) 14:57, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Benylin in France

Shall be grateful if anybody can say if Benylin cough mixtures are available in France? Perhaps under a different trade name?86.197.21.17 (talk) 10:00, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

They have a French site (http://www.benylin.ca/fre/index.asp) and a contact number listed - may be worth giving them a call if nobody else responds with a more definitive/useful answer. ny156uk (talk) 12:47, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

French language, but a Canadian site. I can't find a French site.

I assume you are in France. If you have an empty box or bottle, take it into the chemist with you, they should be able to find a similar product. If you have no box or bottle, why not print out the relevant page - it lists the active ingredients.

Please note that none of the above is medical advice. Consult a doctor if your symptoms persist etc etc. pablo_hablo. 13:53, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

From the packaging I see the maker is now McNeil, but their site does not mention the product at all! TQ for the advice re the pharmacist - tried that, with no joy. Wonder if it might be Tylonol (?) under a different brand ?86.197.21.17 (talk) 14:01, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

Tylenol contains paracetamol (acetaminophen) which is one of the active ingredients of Benylin. You should be able to get hold of any generic paracetamol if all you want is pain relief and ant-fever properties. :The other active ingredients are the decongestant (pseudoephedrine), expectorant (guaifenesin) (and anti-cough (dextromethorphan), depending on which product you have) stuff. See a doctor! pablo_hablo. 14:15, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The thing is that the same drug may require a prescription in one country and not in another. I have never had occasion to buy cough medicine in France, so I have no idea whether all those ingredients are non-prescription there. --Anonymous, 03:33 UTC, April 11, 2009.

Indeed. So to repeat, discuss with a pharmacist or, preferably, a doctor - I know they have those in France! pablo_hablo. 23:50, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

IIRC, there is quite a large range of common cough-mixture medicines that are not availible in France. I'll try to find out more. Astronaut (talk) 01:36, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

My mistake - I was thinking of a different country. Astronaut (talk) 02:28, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Yes - of course they have those in France. But they tend to be French. Therefore literal. If it is on the list, fine. If not, too bad. Buy one that is on the list. They are lovely people but, to paraphrase a quote from an animals' rights person they have the imagination of a brussels sprout at times. Many thanks for all the help. Good to know the info is not easily available. I'll try the steam telephone next week. a bientôt86.197.169.220 (talk) 14:32, 11 April 2009 (UTC)DT

CSAT

how do we drive a customer service process(bpo) to attain maximum markings in a customer satisfaction survey as i am in a dilemma as the business existance in the company is dependent on it.Anyone please. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 61.95.140.188 (talk) 10:18, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Can you put this question into context? Don't see how a business existance (sic) can be dependent upon a process. Are you wanting to use a survey to measure satisfaction? Or what?86.197.21.17 (talk) 14:04, 10 April 2009 (UTC)DT

I expect that their company will lose it's contract and go under if it doesn't get their customer survey results higher. StuRat (talk) 14:46, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

One approach is to look closely at the survey and aim for improvement on each of the points listed. For example, if there's a question on if your services are timely, then work on that (perhaps by having more people working during peak hours). If there's no such question, put your efforts elsewhere. Also concentrate on those areas where the most improvement is needed and where improvements can be made the quickest and at the least expense (the "low-hanging fruit"). It would help us to give better recommendations to know what type of business you have and which marks are currently the lowest. StuRat (talk) 14:46, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

CSAT is a general term for "customer satsifaction". You didn't mention what industry you're asking about, which company does the survey, what the survey questions are, what problem areas have been identified, etc. It is almost impossible to give specific answers that are likely to be helpful for your particular situation. You can get an incredible number of ideas on general ways to increase customer satisfaction by Googling increase customer satisfaction. 152.16.16.75 (talk) 01:37, 12 April 2009 (UTC)

Pay scale for government employees

How/where can I find an online public record of the salaries of United States government jobs? I need to search by job title. Am I mistaken in thinking that this would be available online? Thanks, 168.9.120.8 (talk) 16:43, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Is the data you're looking for here? Tempshill (talk) 17:13, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Ah, I can't seem to find what I need there. If the clarification helps, I'm looking for a locally-hired educational position whose salary is apparently funded by the federal government... that might change the landscape a bit. 168.9.120.8 (talk) 17:22, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The salary tiers are presumably a matter of public record — check the school district's website perhaps, or call them on the phone? If it's funded by the federal government then you could find the specific funding authorization in the Department of Education labyrinth and perhaps it specifies how the salary is supplemented or funded. Tempshill (talk) 19:48, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

How to Print a few More Pages from Ink Cartridges (Q moved from RD talk page)

My ink cartridges are almost dry and all the stores are closed. I've heard somewhere that there is something a person can do to get a few more print pages from an old ink cartridge. Heat? Rinse in water? Shake? Does anybody know? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.2.40.36 (talk) 17:17, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Shaking it gently from side to side might help. Try it, it can't do any harm. --Richardrj ^{talk email} 17:22, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Actually as mentioned below printing on empty can clog (which may require servicing or a lot of wasted ink to clean) or even damage the printhead beyond repair (although that's probably rare) Nil Einne (talk) 15:06, 12 April 2009 (UTC)

If only one color is out on a multi-color cartridge, you could try changing the colors of each item you want to print to match those colors you still have. StuRat (talk) 18:14, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

I was trying to print a photo but the people came out with bright green faces. I printed a test page and it said that I was all out of red so I asked you. Thank you very much Richard!! I took the color cartridge out and shook it plenty, then I ran another test page and it showed that the red was now fine so I printed the photo again, but I had forgotten to take out the 8 1/2 X 11 paper and put back in the 4 X 6 photo paper. So I changed the paper and printed it again, This time I walked away and when I came back to it I found that the new paper hadn't fed through and all the little bit of ink I had left went onto the roller. So I printed it again and this time made sure the paper feeded through and I got a lovely picture, suitable for framing!! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.212.182.145 (talk) 19:54, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

It's worth pointing out that, while gentle shaking won't do any harm, the process of removing and reinserting the cartridge might "reset" the control electronics such that they will *allow* you to print magenta again. Sometimes the "empty" warning is posted by guessing the amount of ink remaining—a guess which may vary widely from reality depending on how you use your printer. (Note, however, that printing on an empty cartridge may damage your printhead; if it's part of the cartridge then that's no big deal, but if it's separate you may need to replace it as well.) – 74  21:07, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Boys and Girls Club Logo

Can you tell me how the Boys and Girls Clubs of America came up with the clasping hands logo? What is the history? I am under the impression the Boys and Girls Club held a contest in the late 1960's or the early 1970's and asked grade school children to come up with ideas for a logo to adopt and decided on one of the children's ideas but after looking at all resources I can think of, I am not able to come up with anything. If you are not able to find the history on this question, can you please at least put me on the correct path by coming up with a date or an approximate date and or point me in the correct direction in which I can begin researching this? The reason why this is so important to me is because I believe I know the person who came up with this logo all those years ago and I would like to have something to confirm (on paper or by some tangible means) to prove the origin of the Boys and Girls Club logo. Thank you for your time regarding this matter. Sincerely, Wendy> a —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wkbowgo (talk • contribs) 19:03, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

The marketing website may possibly have some information about this - if you click "Logo Downloads", then "National Logo", then "Logo History" then there are several logos used throughout the years. The current logo is dated 1980, but it's not definitively stating that they only started using that logo in 1980. There's a "Contact Us" link if you want to ask them. Tempshill (talk) 19:55, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Wendy, It was 1978-1979 I was working at The Boy's and Girl's Club of Westminster as a athletic assistant. I was 16 years old. Your right it was a national contest. The Staff sat around a table and discussed the contest and I came up with the hands together Logo. It's been so long ago I don't remember the names of the Staff but I can tell you the director asked me how I would draw that? I said easy like this. He submitted it and our Club won the contest. It's something I've been very proud of all my life. I hope this has been helpful. B.W. of California

Santa Monica Freeway widening project

Is this possible that Caltrans will eventually widen the Santa Monica Freeway between Route 1 and East LA (5/60/10) Interchange? Since Santa Monica Freeway is one of the most congestion routes in probably in the USA, and only have 2 or 3 lanes in basic. If they plan to widen the Santa Monica Freeway when will this happen? Many freeways in Orange County also needs repairments.--69.229.241.215 (talk) 21:07, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

 Wikipedia is not a crystal ball. The Reference desk is for questions which can be answered with reliable references, not for discussions or speculation. --ColinFine (talk) 11:28, 14 April 2009 (UTC)

Car noise

My girlfriend's 2003 Vauxhall Corsa has started making a metal-like scraping noise when braking at speeds < 10mph. I'm pretty sure it only happens when braking – is the likely cause of this brake pads? It's not a really loud noise, but it can be 'felt' through the brake pedal. We'll be having it looked at properly after the Easter weekend, but I thought a heads-up first may stop us worrying. Cheers. Cycle~ (talk) 22:05, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Have you checked/topped off all the fluids? 76.97.245.5 (talk) 22:55, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

That is almost certainly worn brake pads. Most cars have little metal whiskers embedded inside the brake pad material so that when the pad has worn down to the level of the whisker, it rubs against the brake disk (or drum) and makes that horrible noise which in theory provokes you into taking the car to a garage to get the noise sorted out and they can say "Aha! You need brake pads."...and it evidently works! These gizmos start making their noise well before the pads are worn dangerously thin - so you should be OK to drive it for a week or two after the noise starts. But don't forget about it...brakes are rather important! SteveBaker (talk) 23:21, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Note that the noise is still there at higher speeds but you just can't hear it over the engine and road noise.

The trouble is, those "metal whiskers" are really big metal studs. Leave it too long and they will dig deep grooves into the brake disks. You will get slightly better braking for a couple of months (metal against metal being better than brake pad stuff against metal disk), followed by sudden catastrophic brake failure. Really, don't leave it too long.

In my experience, as well as new brake pads, the garage may try to sell you new disks for ££££, especially if you make a big deal about metal scraping sounds when braking. It might be better to say something like "I think my brake pads might be wearing down. Can you take a look at give me an estimate for new pads". If the disks really are deeply gouged, they will let you know soon enough. Astronaut (talk) 01:19, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Cheers guys, I'll get it booked in in the coming week. Thanks. Cycle~ (talk) 10:33, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

Global Power Consumption:

Dear friend(s), in a "Green Team" forum recently, a person suggested I quit reading books, and read ebooks instead, which I thought ludicrous. Therefore, I would like to ascertain the total global power consumption of the internet, including computers, peripherals, (power and cost of production), etc., compared to the cost of global book production. I am going to keep searching for data, but as I am disabled by severe anxiety, it gets rather nerve racking at times. Thank you for any help, MJ MichaelJ47 (talk) 22:51, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

That would hardly be a fair comparison. The internet is used for a lot more things than ebooks - and in fact, many ebooks (the Kindle, for example) don't use the Internet at all. (The Kindle uses the cellphone network). To do this comparison fairly involves a heck of a lot of assumptions. Aside from the cost of publishing your book - you have to consider the space it requires to store it - the number of people who might read it - whether you could get it in a library or not, etc. The paper book (if you dispose of it by recycling the paper - or burying it in a landfill) may lock up carbon and actually help the environment. If you burn it - then not. Similarly with your ebook - the cost for delivery of the ebook to your reader is certainly a lot less than the cost of the paper book - but if you are the only person who reads your copy - then that may not be such a good idea as a book that's loaned out. At any rate - your question contains an entirely false premise - so I'm not going to spend the effort to look up the numbers. SteveBaker (talk) 23:15, 10 April 2009 (UTC)

Case in point: how would you suggest these folks replace the Internet with books, for their purposes, practically? 94.168.184.16 (talk) 00:43, 11 April 2009 (UTC)

The answers you seek are contained herein. Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air 96.50.4.248 (talk) 02:28, 11 April 2009 (UTC)