At the risk of getting all technical, if you're using a Radeon x300 you should be okay, though you REALLY need to upgrade to the x1xxx series. The xXxx series are rubbish. Are you using a laptop? Is it possible you're not using dedicated RAM for the vid card and you're experiencing slow downs that way? I can also see IE7 having caused the problem. You can roll back to 6 in XP rather easily.

Realistically it's an improvement if only because it SEEMS to be a bit less of a resource hog than multiple IE windows, and tabbed browsing is always nice. Still, it has a direct line to the kernel and therefore will always be inherently insecure. Use Opera, Firefox, or, if you're old and crotchety, Lynx, and you'll be better off.

All I know is I'm flying over to attend 3 games at Christmas, and I can get legal international broadcasts of Rovers games. Heck, even if I can't make it, I'll buy tickets and kit to support the team.

If that really is a semi-England patch, it's not a reverse pic - the shirt description is wrong. It says it's worn into the 50s, but it must be a pre-38 shirt. Weird. Why did we switch sides in 38?

Okay, does anyone else think the colors are reversed on this shirt?

I don't know that you really WANT to go with the Transmeta chipset, but Sharp makes an Ultraportable that should run XP and do what you need it to do for a month.

Nope. Specs: Processor: AMD Athlon 64 FX60 Toledo 1GHz FSB Socket 939 Dual Core Processor Motherboard: ASUS A8N32-SLI Deluxe Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce SPP 100 ATX AMD Motherboard RAM: Patriot 4GB (4 x 1GB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200) Unbuffered System Memory Cooling System: Custom Built Zalman Water Cooling System Case: CODEGEN S-201-CA Black Steel Server Case Power Supplies: TWO PC Power & Cooling Turbo-Cool 1KW EPS12V 1000W Power Supplies Video Cards: TWO ASUS EN7800GT DUAL/2DHTV/512M Dual Geforce 7800GT 512MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 Video Card Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Elite 7.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Card System HDs: FOUR Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drives System RAID Controller: Onboard nForce RAID on Motherboard Data HDs: NINE Seagate Barracuda 7200.9 ST3500641AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drives Data RAID Controller: Areca ARC-1230 PCI Express SATA II Controller Card Data HD coolers: NINE VANTEC VTX-C01-BK VORTEX Hard Disk Drive Coolers with crossflow blowers Optical Drives: TWO PLEXTOR Black IDE DVD Burner Model PX-716A/SW Monitor: ViewSonic VX922 Black/Silver 19" 2ms LCD Monitor Mouse: Logitech G5 Laser 931376-0403 2-Tone 6 Buttons 1x Wheel USB Laser Mouse Keyboard: Logitech Ultra X 967353-0403 2-Tone PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard Headphones: SENNHEISER PC160 Binaural Headset Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Professional X64 Edition Among other things that includes a doublewide server case to handle the onboard 3.5TB RAID 6 array (each drive in its own cooler), dual DUAL 7800GT graphics cards, 4 gigs RAM, and 4 150gig Raptors in a Raid 10 for the system drive. Yes you can build something very good for 5-8k. This was the most over the top (yet still not the most expensive) system we could spec and build. That cost might go up because, from our research, we may have to up the watercooling system to handle the GPUs as well, and that'll cost a bit more. All these parts are available on Newegg, by the way, if you want to see the costs/what they look like.

It's a little high. I built a system with the same proc (and probably the same motherboard) with 2 200gig 7200 RPM SATA drives, an x1600, 2 gigs of RAM, a full tower, a better cooling solution, for about 1200 USD. Part it out yourself and you should save some money. Plus, I never trust small computer manufacturers. If you want a warranty or someone you can go after, buy a Dell. If you want to save cash, build it yourself. By the by, I can build you the ULTIMATE GAMING COMPY O' DOOM for about 12600 USD. It's an impressive system, to be sure, and that's only 10% over cost.

Nono... don't get me wrong. I own club shirts, and continue to buy new ones. I just don't like the way they've looked since Kappa and would rather express my support in a different manner.

Yeah, well, I'm from Texas. We use napalm to kill off ground cover. Sarin and Ricin - now THERE are smells to wake you up in the morn.

Forgive my ignorance, but... First off, do Rovers own Ewood or is it owned by Blackburn and leased? Second, the team budget is roughly 15 million pounds in salary this year? How much are the training grounds worth? I'd presume the team is probably in the realm of 50-70m pounds if I had to guess. That's based on some rough estimates based on US sports franchise costs. Hell, the lottery was at 256 million USD last week here. If I win, I'LL buy the Rovers. =P

That's about right, though the literal translation is "We will be seen for that which we do." Doesn't QUITE have the ring that dying for the Red Rose of Lancaster does, alas. Still, Arte et Labore has its own charm, and screwing with the motto seems a worse idea the more I think on it. Well, I've ordered the bits for the camo jacket, now to see how it comes out.

Thanks for the heads up! And yes, it is indeed as hot here as you've been led to believe. It hit 30.5 C here today. In summer the papers keep running totals for how many days it hits over 100 F. I think last year we hit something like 23 days in a row for it. It's brutal in the heat.

For the record, I am not a fan of Rovers because of Friedel. I'm not entirely sure why Rovers captured my fancy when I started following soccer in 1999, but they did, and I've stayed a fan ever since. Hell, even from Texas I'm trying to get to Ewood to help out with the attendance numbers. I'm terribly sorry that my Lancastrian geography and history are somewhat suspect, but I imagine the same is true of your knowledge of the rich history of the great state of Texas. Similarly, my technical grasp of soccer terminology is lacking. I try, though, at least. Trust me - 'twere I, like most of my countrymen, a fair weather fan, I'd be wearing a Chelski or Man Ure jersey right now. Maybe if I were "hip" I'd support the Arse. But I'm going on my 7th year of Rovers support, so cut me some slack, eh?

My current goal is to make the first game of next season, or, if God smiles on us, the first home game of the Champions play. Is Manchester the best airport to fly into, or is the general consensus to fly into London and take the train? I've gone ahead and ordered the bits, and will be sewing it together once it arrives. I'll post pics for public ridicule then.

I dare say I'd love to see Vince Young try to play soccer. Do "football" skills apply to football? Still, a 6'6" 270 pound guy who can run the 40 yard dash in 4.4 seconds would be a scary sight indeed charging down the pitch.

So here in the states there's a sad dearth of Rovers merch. The club store is perenially out of shirts online, and, to be frank, I haven't really liked the shirt designs since we used Kappa. So I thought about creating my own piece of Rovers kit for personal use. I guess my questions are: 1) Does anyone think this even sounds good looking? 2) Is the thought of doing this horribly horribly disrespectful to the Club? What I guess I'm envisioning, being a yank of dubious taste and morals, is a modification of the basic club patch to remove "Arte et Labore", move the Blackburn Rovers FC to the space previously occupied by said motto, and replacing the Rovers club name round the patch with "They Win Or Die Who Wear The Red Rose Of Lancaster" (the motto of the 55th [West Lancashire] Division from WWI). Then putting that bodge job on a BDU jacket in what is affectionately known as the "electric blue" pattern. Does this sound intriguing to anyone at all? I'm not looking to sell them, or even make more than one, but I figured I would temper my natural Texan enthusiasm for the bizarre with good British sense before investing the money and (potentially) looking like a moron.

1999. As sad as it is to admit this, I had a buddy from Wales at the University of Manchester who was a Man Ure fan. Just to spite him, I picked the Rovers out of the Premiership standings (last at the time) and decided to become a fan. I fell in love with the team, and have been a true supporter ever since. Though, I must admit, having been relegated for the first full season I was a fan almost broke my heart...

Well 0-0 and a bit of a disappointment considering some awfully good scoring chances, but still a point, and we definitely looked better than Man City. Can we officially kill the "are we safe" thread now?

Yep, I am indeed. Good to know there's another HornRover out there. Hook Em Rovers... hmmm... that's got a nice ring to it...

wow.... ANOTHER texan welcome. that makes what? 5 texans? Good to know there are other Texan Rover fans around. I'm actually originally from Dallas. Alas, the only decent player my HS ever produced had to go and sign with Man Ure. *sigh* All I know is I've got my venue, my cable, and a good stock of Shiner Bock for tomorrow's game. Go Rovers!

Woo hoo! My jersey arrived! Now I can actually sport the colors during the FA semis! (*mumbles*.. I kinda hate being a newbie fan...)

Well, I don't know if ya'll will be able to hear me in Cardiff, but I can guarantee half of Austin will. Anyone willing to help me on bail with the inevitable noise complaint?

We thank you for your support. I 'twould be there, save the 5000 mile trip, and I'm dirt poor. I'm a poor student and I can't afford Fox Soccer Net, so I'm having to get a friend to record it to VHS... Here's hoping my shirt arrives in time for the game...