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Is the 3,000-Mile Oil Change a Scam?
Published on - June 10th, 2006 (by J.D. Roth)
Want to save some money on your vehicle? How often do you change the oil in your car? If you listen to advertising from Oil Can Henry and Jiffy Lube, you'd think a change every 3,000 miles was essential. You'd be wrong.
Last winter, an AskMetafilter user wondered:
Is the 3,000-mile oil change a scam? My wife, like a good American driver, goes for an oil change every 3,000 miles. My dad, like a good British driver, has never gone for an oil change in nearly 30 years on the road. There's no equivalent of the quick-lube shop in the UK; manufacturers 'recommend' yearly/twice-yearly changes (or 12-18,000-miles) but standard practice is just to top up the oil level sporadically. Is there something specific to US-model cars or American driving practices that makes frequent oil-changes necessary, or is it just a nice little earner sustained by popular wisdom?
The responses vary — and nobody who answers is really an expert — but the consensus seems to be that yes, it's a scam. (Or, more precisely, a marketing ploy.)
Change your oil every 5,000 miles or so, or as recommended in your owners manual. But don't let yourself be swayed by advertising from quick-lube places: they're just trying to increase their sales by 40%.
(To save even more money, learn to change the oil yourself.)
This article is about Cars
Actually, some of the local (non-national-chain) quick lube places here in So. Ill. have figured out that consumers have picked up on this. Last time I got my oil changed, the place wrote 5000 miles over the current mileage for the next recommended change.
Amazingly, my 2005 Mini Cooper doesn't have its first oil change until 10,000 miles and then again at 50,000 miles. I can't fathom that.
Interesting you mention this today. I purchased an '02 Toyota Prius in February, and have changed the oil once since then. I noticed I was over mileage again the other day and stopped in to schedule a change at the dealer for Tuesday morning.
The thing is, it is over 3,000 miles since the last change which is the recommended interval, but this hybrid doesn't run on the gas engine 100% of the time, so how come they recommend a change that often. The oil still looks fairly clean – at least nowhere near a change seems to be in order yet, but his is the newest car I have ever owned, and I do want to take the best care of it I can to make it last another 200,000 to 300,000 miles.
I went to school with the shop manager. I'll ask him for a more educated answer Tuesday.
I've been reading your blog for several weeks now, this is my first comment. You do a fine job writing. I admire your dedication.
I live in the South known for its famous 'good ole boy' network and as I increase in age I'm slowly let in on some secrets.
I have become friends with the man in charge at our local oil/tire/everything change place and he's told me that it's crazy to come in every 3,000 miles. I driver a newer Chevrolet Tahoe and he's told me I shouldn't even start thinking oil change until I hit 5,000 miles. Even then I should only bring in when I've got the time.
I notice a trend in the most recent comments: you all drive newer cars. Manufacturers in recent years have started requiring the use of synthetic oils, which have a much longer lifespan. Oilchanges of 5-7.5k miles are not out of the ordinary with synthetics. Since my vehicles are the two biggest investments I have next to my house, I prefer to err on the side of caution. I do, however, change my own oil. It takes about a half an hour every couple of months to change the oil in both cars at a cost of $12-15 each (for oil and filter). A very small price to pay for piece of mind. My current two vehicles have 150k miles each on them, and I've never had any major problems with either. Of course, I firmly believe that the '74 Olds Cutlass I delivered pizzas with in college lived to the ripe old age of 300k miles due to regular maintenance. Your milage will, of course, vary. Pun intended.
I have always changed the oil in my cars twice a year or about every 5000 miles. (We don't drive much). It might be more often than necessary, but it's really cheap insurance since any maintenance that's needed from pushing it to the limit will cost way more than you save.
If I switched to once a year, that would save me about $30/year. If I keep the car for 10 years that's $300. Anything that went wrong over those 10 years that was a result of not frequent enough oil changes would cost WAY more than $300 to fix, so pushing it too far seems like a really false savings.
It's $16 bucks at Walmart, it's usually fast, and they never try to sell you anything.
OTOH, you might blow more than that while you are waiting!
Older cars need the oil changes. Newer ones, different ballgame.
If you are taking your car to the dealer for simple repairs not under warranty, please send the money you are wasting directly to me please instead ^_^
5k or 6k is fine if you do mostly highway driving, don't tow anything, and drive your car fairly gently. If you do mostly around-town driving, you should change your oil more frequently, but 3k is a bit too often. 5k is probably safe.
The most important thing is to CHECK your oil regularly. If the oil is low, add a quart. Always keep a quart in your trunk just in case. If the oil is black on the dipstick, it is definitaly time for an oil change.
So, get your oil changed every 5k, under average driving conditions. More often if you drive your car hard, up many hills, around town, on dirt roads regularly, or tow a trailer. If, when you check your oil, it is black, you need to change your oil.
(All this is for dino oil. Synthetic oils have much longer lifespans, sometimes as much as 15,000 miles, but are a lot more expensive.)
I usually wait between 3K and 5K; but we have cars that are 1999 and 2001. I think going beyond 5K is just asking for it. Cars ain't cheap and the oil protects the more expensive to fix components.
If you want to make decisions on when to defer maintenance – check out http://www.noria.com. Heavy industry usually uses them to make deferrment decisions like this.
Just follow the manual, not the dealer service department. My Acura dealer wants to change it every 3,000 even when the severe service interval is 5,000. Since I don't qualify for the severe schedule, I do a change, as directed by the manual, every 10,000 miles.
Here's the breakdown. I used to be a mechanic, so this is at least somewhat accurate.
The oil itself will determine around how often you would need to change oil. If you use cheap oil, prepare to need to change it more often. The oil itself, even in cheap oil, will be ok long after 3000 or even 5000 miles is hit. What you need to change it for is the detergents that are in the oil that help to extend life of the engine and clean it as well as keep the oil from sludging (solidifying).
If your vehicle is older (pre-1990) and you use conventional oil, you might want to consider changing your oil more often than 5000 miles. The reason is, the engines don't burn quite as cleanly as newer vehicles so more crap enters the oil causing the detergents to break down.
As some have said, synthetics are offering much higher mileages than conventional oil. I've seen demonstrations that go up to 75000 to 100000 miles. Granted, those oils cost a lot more. There are even some that never require changing, only the filter.
In fact, changing your filter every 3000 miles and your oil every 6000 miles is enough for most cars under ten years old. Oil filters are damn easy to change. If you don't have an oil filter wrench, you can use a belt. Just use it out near the end where the filter is furled. Also, put a little oil on the rubber gasket that seats up to the block. Helps form and keep a seal.
I can't believe this. I know I'm going to get flamed here; but changing your oil depends almost entirely on you, your car, and your engine. I had a 1989 Mazda MX-6 that the engine would start to rattle and click at 3100 miles if it wasn't changed. This occured WITH OUT FAIL every time I was late on an oil change. The owner before me perscribed to this once ever 30,000 miles oil change non-sense and it is just that. Reasons to change oil very directly relate to the things that get IN to your oil, its a lubercant. The next time your thinking its a good idea to leave your oil in there for 50,000 miles or something stupid I want you to make a quick trip to the hardware store and pick up some sand paper and vaselene. You take a good long look down at yourself and see if you can convince yourself that the vaselene will make that sand paper all better for some alone time.
For what it's worth, don't go expecting a hybrid to last as long as a normal gas engine. The thing essentially uses a huge rechargeable battery that does what it has to and is recharged by the engine. It's only good for a finite amount of recharging. I forget the exact numbers but the longest warranty I can find is ten years. Significantly shorter lifespans are to be expected if you're a heavy driver (more discharging/recharging).
Yes, the battery can be replaced but I've seen prices over $5,000.
Considering the price premium you pay to drive a hybrid, skewed EPA mileage estimates (making you expect more than you really get), the fact that many hybrids' mileage will plummet in the wrong driving conditions, the price of replacing a battery, plus all the other maintenance you attend to on any car … Bah, I want to do the "socially responsible" thing but it's hard to find a real argument for it.
Back on topic though:
Yeah, 3,000 miles is more overkill. The problem is with people who simply have no idea how to judge. If you don't know anything about cars, have no idea how to change the oil, and are unaware of how oil works within an engine (to some degree) just go ahead with your regularly scheduled oil changes. They're not expensive and they'll at least prevent you from killing your car prematurely.
In the US Army, we use an oil sampling routine to decide when/if to change the oil. We also consider things such as water crossings or harsh environments (heat and/or fine grit) to accelerate or mandate oil changes. On another note, on most US automobiles it's very hard to change the filters without at least draining the oil. You could reuse it, but having to get it out and put it back in is most of the work, so change it.
Reading the comments I figured I throw in my $.02 as well. I have plenty of experience with changing my own oil, using dino and synthetic, and running lots of miles on vehicles. My last car was sold with 225,000 miles (still ran great) and I changed that every 7,500 with dino oil. My current vehicle is at 250,000 and is driven about 600-800 miles a week. I run synthetic and change the filter at 5,000 mi and the oil at 10,000 miles. I have gotten tons of life out of my cars with no mechanical problems as of yet with my intervals, as stated before your mileage may vary. Its mainly a matter of what you think is right, although I know of some folks who do religious 3,000 mi changes on synthetic, which I think is overkill but its their money I guess. So to answer the question, the 3,000 mi change may be a scam, depending on how anal you are about the maintainence of your vehicle. If it makes you feel better to change at that interval, then do it. Most people don't have the time, interest, or knowledge to change their own oil so let jiffy lube take care of it, but at least know not to take their add-ons, thats another rant in itself.
I drove my Toyota 2004 Tacoma for 13,000 miles last time without changing the oil or filter. I realize this was not a good idea, but my truck (and I) appear not to have suffered any consequences. I did just have it changed with a new filter last week when I got the brakes done. I don't know if they used synthetic or not…I assume they did!
I'm in the farming business in California and operate GMC and Ford trucks – 3/4 ton and 1 ton. If you have the Ford 4.6 or 5.4 engines you would be well advised to change the oil between 3-4,000 miles with full synthetic. Engine has lots of parts and will last longer. We are running our Fords and GMC's about 300,000 miles without engine failure before we trade them in. Also keep those air filters replaced.
I have recently moved to the US from the UK and suggest that you check out the manufacturers recommended service interval for your vehicle on the European websites. UK Toyota, for example (who have recently confirmed 5000 as the service period in the US) recommend 20,000 miles! or 2 years for all models which ever comes first with only a safety check at 12K!. The story is the similar for all the other makes, 12K probably the minimum you will find. If anything the typical jouneys are shorter in Europe with just as large seasonal temperature variations. I therefore struggle to find any other plausable explanation other than the "powers that be" in the US are intentionally brainwashing the American public into firmly believing that their engines will suffer serious damage if the oil is not changed every 5K or so ! When you try to put put a $value on this it is easy to see why ! Lets hope from an Ecological viewpoint honesty will prevail but I fear it will also take a brainchange for most American motorists after being led up the garden path for so long !
hmmmm, would that be 20,000 miles or kilometers?
I've heard enough stories from various people (interestingly mostly female) who experienced obvious engine trouble and/or damage due to not changing their oil in a timely manner.
I don't know how any engine would not suffer damage from going 20k miles without an oil change.
There is another value to geting regular oil changes other then Just simply changing the oil. If you have the old greace fitings it's a good idea to keep them greaced and looking over the undercarage it's a good way to keep an eye out for things that might become problems like torn CV boots and worn out suspention and brake parts.
If you change your oil every 3000 miles, you are abusing your engine !!
When an oil manufacture builds an motor oil product, that product is put through several industry tests.
One of the most significant is the ASTM Sequence IIIf test.
The API (American Petroleum Institute) requires this test to enable a manufacturer to include the API "donut" symbol and/or the "starburst" on the packaging.
In this test, the oil is run in a 6 cylinder motor for 80 hours. Among the many items measured at the end of the test is the viscosity. If the viscosity increases by more than 275 percent, it fails the test.
If the oil passes the test, then the manufacturer is permitted to display the API symbol on their bottle.
There's two major components to oil. The base stock and the additive package. The additive package protects the base stock and the base protects the engine and its components. The base stock makes up approx. 15 percent of the cost of producing a quart of oil and the additive package is approx. 85 percent.
Competition is so tough and if you buy a quart of oil, you expect to get a full quart, the only place they can reduce costs is in the additive package.
Now where do you think most oils on the market test at ?
How many oil manufacturers are so concerned about your vehicle that they greatly exceed the requirements of the API ?
That's right – NOT MANY !!!
Most people average 30 mph, which means it will take 100 hours of driving to reach 3000 miles (that does not include the time your engine is running while at a stop light or while warming up before you begin to drive). That is 20 hours after the oil has failed.
If you stretch your oil changes to 5000,7500,10000 miles, you are simply wearing away the inside of your engine.
The manufacturers would prefer that you buy the "lie" and let your cars parts wear out because they get to sell you more parts. They make greater profits from the parts than from the whole car.
With that said, there are two options you have.
1) Install an hour meter on your vehicle and change the oil every 50-60 hours.
2) add an oil supplement at every oil change to help make up the difference and change your oil every 3000 miles.
In Australia, 3000 miles is way too frequent.
Different manufacturers recommend different intervals down here. Toyotas go 10,000km between changes (over 6000 miles). Mitsubishis go 15,000km between changes (over 9000 miles). Many European cars here use synthetic oils and can go over 15,000 miles between changes.
The truth is in the older cars still on the road. How many do you see blowing smoke and what causes it?
3000 mile oil changes are a scam used by the oil manufacturers to boost their sales. I use and sell Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oils which are designed to go 25,000 miles or 12 months on one change. They are more expensive initially about $7.50 per quart but when you factor in the cost of 3000 mile drain intervals they are actually less expensive in the long run. Not only will Amsoil Synthetic Oils save you money in that way they also will provide superior lubrication and reduced wear extending the life of your vehicle. Amsoil also has oil and air filters that exceed any others in efficiency and longevity. Amsoil Ea Air Filters are designed to last 100,000 miles and only require a cleaning at 25,000 miles using a shop vacuum or a low air pressure cleaning using 10 PSI air. I am happy to discuss this with anyone who wants more info, drop me a line at firstname.lastname@example.com or visit my website http://www.synthetic-oil-tech/1124190 . The real key to extending oil life is using the best air and oil filters, proper filtration of the air and oil prevent contamination of the oil and reduce engine wear as well as improving the reliability of any engine.
The URL I provided in my previous post is incorrect it should be synthetic-oil-tech.com/1124190 Can you change it?
URL updated
The real key to extending oil life is using the best air and oil filters, proper filtration of the air and oil prevent contamination of the oil and reduce engine wear as well as improving the reliability of any engine. I am happy to discuss this with anyone who wants more info, drop me a line at firstname.lastname@example.com or visit my website http://www.synthetic-oil-tech.com/1124190 .
I lived in Germany for 8 yhears and I had an Audi A4 for about 3 of those years and it was due for a "service" (that's a real scam if you ask me – pay extra to get you car checked over) every 30.000 kilometers (20.000 miles) My Mazda needs an oil change every 15.000 k or 10.000 miles. As others pointed out, if the car is in America you change the oil ever 3,000 miles if it's in Europe its every 15,000 to 20,000 miles.
And yes they still use miles in the UK
Hi there!
I, too, am a longtime reader, and I believe this is my first comment.
More like a question, actually. My dealer (and Jiffy Lube) leads me to believe that I should change my oil every 3000 miles, or every 3 months, whichever comes first. Since I drive little, the 3 months always come first. WAY first. I probably come in under 2000 in three months…
What is your take on this? Should I at least wait 3-5000 miles? Or is there any reason to get an oil change every three months?
Once again the quick lubes are pulling a fast one. There is no good reason to change the oil at 3000 miles or 90 days except to make the quick lube dealer more money.
Switch to a quality extended drain synthetic oil such as Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oil and save money. The 90 day scam is based on the idea that an engine produces more contaminants in short trip operation than in long trips because it doesn't get warm enough to fully rid itself of the combustion byproducts such as the water which is introduced into the engine from the atmosphere as the engine takes in combustion air. In reality a quality oil is formulated to neutralize these acids and the oil filter is there to capture the water and also any wear metals that are present.
Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oils are formulated to protect any engine for 25,000 miles or one year. At a cost of approximately $7.50 per quart, and assuming that the vehicle needs 5 quarts of oil, that is $37.50 for oil and an additional $12.00 (this figure may vary depending on the actual vehicle) for an Amsoil EA Oil Filter that is $49.50 for annual oil service. Contrast that to the quick lube recommendation of changing your oil every 90 days at approximately $30.00 X 4 changes = $120.00 annual oil change cost.
As you can see the difference is substantial, over $70.00 annually. In addition the overall wear on the engine is decreased adding longevity and greater fuel economy as well as increased reliability due to better lubrication.
Switch to Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oils and save money as well as reducing the amount of waste oil that needs to be disposed of. Using the previous example once a year there would be only 5 quarts of waste oil and 1 oil filter annually to dispose of using Amsoil whereas the quick lube scenario adds up to 20 quarts of used oil and 4 oil filters to dispose of. In an age where each action we take has an environmental impact using an extended drain oil such as Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oil can reduce your personal contribution to the waste oil stream by at least 75% while at the same time saving you money in oil change costs, improving fuel economy, and freeing you from wasting your precious time sitting in the quick lube at least 3 times a year.
For more information on Amsoil Oil and Filtration products please visit my website http://www.synthetic-oil-tech.com/1124190 or drop me a line at firstname.lastname@example.com. I would be happy to assist you in reducing your annual vehicle maintenance costs while providing superior lubrication which will extend the life of your engine and reduce the chances of mechanical failure due to poor lubrication.
Nick Roberts is absolutely correct on all counts. I used Amsoil after doing much research and having 4 cars and 2 Harley Davidson's, it qot quite expensive taking my cars to Jiffy Lube so often. I was so impressed with my vehicle performance, I too became a dealer and haven't looked back. Check out syntheticsolution.com and educate yourselves. Synthetics are taking over from the inferior petroleum oils and the petroleum oils will soon go the way of the old 8-track players and bias ply tires, being replaced by better products like CD's, DVD's and Radial tires. With Synthetic oils you can go to extended oil drain schedules and you'll experience more miles to the gallon, easier cold weather starts and almost zero engine wear.
Bobby Unser has used Amsoil for years and Boyd Coddington of the hit TV show also endorses Amsoil now. It's sweeping the nation and it's no surprise. And, it's American Made! Having served 21 Years in the Air Force and 36 years total serving my government, I like using "American".
3,000 miles is just an old standby. Today, oil technology has gotten better to the point where oil changes should be done at about 7,000 miles; right before the manufacturer's recommendation of 7,500 miles (or right before whatever your car's manufacturer suggests in the manual). But that is just for standard oil. Normal synthetic blends and full synthetics aren't supposed to last longer than normal oil, they are just supposed to lubricate the engine better than normal non-synthetics are.
Manufacturers do make oil now that is advertised to last up to 15,000 miles (maybe more since last time I checked). But I drive a performance car and I love it and want it to last a long time, so I change oil around every 3,000 with standard 5w30 Valvoline (I started using Max life synthetic blend at around 70,000 miles). I don't mind spending a little extra for a little insurance. Valvoline tends to look cleaner than other brands when I check how it looks on the dipstick right before I change it.
It dosen't turn black as quickly as the others do.
Tony makes a few statements that need clarification.The statement that synthetic oils don't last longer that petroleum oils is incorrect. Synthetic oils are engineered to exacting specifications. Their molecules are all the same size which eliminates the shearing and attendent viscosity increase that petroleum and synthetic blend oils exhibit. Synthetic blends are a mixture of petroleum and synthetic base stock; sort of like watering down your drink to extend the taste of the alcohol. Petroleum based oils tend to increase in viscosity the longer they stay in service because of the shearing of larger molecules into smaller fractions that then are able to get past the piston rings and be volitized in the combustion chamber.
The second statement regarding extended drain intervals is also incorrect, the extension of drain intervals is the result of the more robust additive packages in synthetic oils that are designed for extended drain intervals. While he states that there are oils with suggested change intervals of 15,000 miles; there is only one motor oil with the proven ability to go 25,000 miles and that is Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oil.
Synthetic blends are a combination of petroleum and synthetic base stocks which means that they still contain waxes which adds to engine sludge. They are also subject to the same shearing as petroleum oils which results in increased viscosity, greater friction, higher engine wear and reduced engine protection.
His staement that the Valvoline looks cleaner after time in service is a tipoff that the oil is not robust enough to carry the contaminants produced by the engine and is not doing it's job of dispursing the combustion byproducts. Color in oil is not a good indicator of the oil's condition and actually may be giving Tony false confidence in his motor oil. The blackness he refers to is carbon and soot which should be carried by the detergents and dispursants that make up the oil's additive package allowing the filter to capture any large particles that contribute to engine wear.
Finally Tony says that he doesn't mind wasting his money changing his oil at 3000 mile intervals because he thinks it is helpful to his engine's performence. The reality is that by using a petroleum based or syhthetic blend oil he is not only wasting his money with the frquency of his change schedule he is also missing the benefits of reduced friction and extended engine life. Reducing friction means that the energy contained in the fuel is used to move the vehicle not to overcome the friction on the oil and the moving parts of the engine therefore increasing fuel economy. Not only will fuel economy increase with full synthetic Amsoil Motor Oil but engine wear and engine temperature will be reduced adding life to the vehicle and reducing the cost of operation not to mention increased mechanical reliability.
The facts are that by using Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oil one can reduce their annual oil change costs, increase their fuel economy, reduce wear in the engine and save time by not sitting in the oil change bay several times a year. On a site that talks about the value of money and tries to maximize the value of a dollar Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oils deliver unsurpassed value.
Questions or comments are welcomed email me at firstname.lastname@example.com or visit my website Synthetic-oil-tech.com/1124190.
I am fortunate to have experienced a fair amount of driving both in Europe and the US. My perception is that the pace and top speeds are much higher in Europe. Jams and hold-ups are of Calafornian proportions in most of our cities too.
Since the 90′s oil change intervals have been steadily extending. My last car was serviced in exact accordance with the makers instructions: 18K miles (no breaking-in change either).
It was mentioned that cars are expensive but I can assure you they are much more costly in Europe. Equally I can assure you that big ends, camshafts and piston rings are not being spat-out over the highway either. Cars are lasting longer than ever. You wouldn't question a motor under 100,000 miles these days.
My conclusion is that it is a scam. My lastest car, a Prius, was picked up yesterday brand new. First oil change: 10K or 1 year. If the US recommendations are any different question it. The motor is exactly the same.
Well, I have to revive this thread a little bit…with risk of being called all sorts of names, or whatever.
I work at a place that rhymes with "Foil Fan Fenry's", and I'm no teenager. I'm 39 and have lots of mechanical experience. I have to agree with "do it as needed" and that 3000 miles is excessive, to some extent. However, there are a lot of manufacturers that require the 3000 mile changes for warranty issues. So, with that said, it's become the general rule of thumb. Also, there are some who say that people shouldn't be driving unless they can change their own oil. What about the lady next door? Should she lose her license because she can't work a wrench? Personally, I run synthetic oil and go 5000-8000 miles on that depending on the driving conditions (or how rich I am at the moment).
Also, to take advantage of customers is silly in our company as there are cameras rolling all day long, (plus I'm an honest person), and if requested by the customer, we will even EMAIL you the video of us working on your car as proof of what we do, or have done. Also, the fees are a little higher because we actually check all fliuds and make honest recommendations according to EVERY vehicle manufacturer's specifications, which are also printed on every single Maintenance review we print up for every car we work on. Basically how we operate is to inform the customer. They make their own descisions based on that.
PS: It's not my company, but i trust the company I work for.
Well the problem with the lube shops is they use crap filters and average to poor oil.
With a lube shop filter I wouldnt go over 5000 miles.
Whereas with a quality filter and a good oil like a synthetic blend I would go 10,000 miles without a second thought.
So the British guy is correct, with OEM oil filter and OEM oil 12,000 miles is possible. Though at the far end of when you want to change your oil.
You're better off finding a mechanic who will change your oil/filter with what you provide him for a reasonable price. Or doing the job yourself.
I would never use lube shop filters they're junk.
Actually, it depends. Most older Diesel actually -require- frequent oil changes, as this affects MPG considerably.
Some Bottom Lines:
–The 3,000 mile oil change is not necessary and allows the quick lubes to make one additional oil change per car, per year. Big money.
–If you're going to spend the extra money on "synthetic blends" (which is watered down synthetic), spend the extra dollar on pure synthetic. Synthetics have no parafin or wax and have uniform size molecules. Blends are just that, blended with oil that comes out of the ground and causes sludge and varnish on your engine parts. Don't waste your money on "blends".
– Today's vehicles have tighter engine tolerances and less room under the hood to get cool air across the engine, plus improved aerodynamics look great but don't help cool the engine. So using a top quality synthetic that runs cooler, keeps your engine running cooler.
– Synthetics do last longer. They're designed that way in the lab. Since all the molecules are the same size and also are not affected as much by high heat, you don't have the oil "burn off" (volatization)where the smaller molecules burn off from high heat, taking with it the additives that protect your engine and leaving behind the large molecules which thickens your oil and leaves deposits on your metal surfaces. Synthetics are designed for extended drain intervals. Only one, Amsoil, since "day one" 35 years ago, guarantees 25,000 miles or one year between oil changes. It's designed that way, it works, its guaranteed in writing.
– Filters. You get what you pay for. Period.
Air filters are the vanguard of your entire system. Keep the dirt out of your engine and your oil filter won't have to work so hard. Oil filters, same thing, you get what you pay for. The inexpensive (cheap) filters off the shelf from the -Marts" are junk. There are quality oil filters out there and expect to pay a little more, it's worth it. Again, Amsoil makes the air filter good for 4 years or 100K miles, oil filter good for 1 year / 25K miles. the ONLY filters in the world with nanofiber technology, derived from the M1 Abrams Tank. No better filtration anywhere. Period. and guaranteed.
– the facts are out there and I'm pleased to see so many posts from so many people educating themselves on "lubrication", people are not dumb and a little common sense goes a long way, and I'm seeing that in these strings. Bravo to those of you who "care" about their vehicles.
Do the research. Synthetic is the only way to go. And if you use synthetic, use the best.
Feel free to visit my website, http://www.syntheticsolution.com and educate yourself. It will be an hour well spent.
3000 mile oil changes are a scam used by the oil manufacturers to boost their sales. I use and sell Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oils which are designed to go 25,000 miles or 12 months on one change. They are more expensive initially about $7.50 per quart but when you factor in the cost of 3000 mile drain intervals they are actually less expensive in the long run. Not only will Amsoil Synthetic Oils save you money in that way they also will provide superior lubrication and reduced wear extending the life of your vehicle. Amsoil also has oil and air filters that exceed any others in efficiency and longevity. Amsoil Ea Air Filters are designed to last 100,000 miles and only require a cleaning at 25,000 miles using a shop vacuum or a low air pressure cleaning using 10 PSI air. I am happy to discuss this with anyone who wants more info, drop me a line at firstname.lastname@example.com or visit my website http://www.synthetic-oil-tech.com/1124190 .
The real key to extending oil life is using the best air and oil filters, proper filtration of the air and oil prevent contamination of the oil and reduce engine wear as well as improving the reliability of any engine.Amsoil EaO Oil Filters and EaA Air Filters offer unsurpassed protection and by virtue of their design last significantly longer than cheap filters which will result in an overall savings when compared to the cheap ones.
I change my oil every 2,000 miles without question. After over 400,000 on my Honda Civic I think it's worth it! By the way, I buy the cheapest stuff possible and always on sale as long as it's API approved. About once a year Wal-Mart clears their shelves of whatever the "house brand" is at $.99/quart and I purchase enough to last me the entire year. My commute is about 150 miles/per day and mostly highway and a few surface streets. After every change, the oil is just starting to turn brown. Probably could leave it in longer, but as I said… I pay just $.99/quart and plan to keep my car another 400,000+ miles if it will go.
John, I like the way you take care of your Honda Civic. Firstly, it's a great car with a great drivetrain so that's a plus. Changing your oil every 2K miles will indeed keep your car running good almost indefinitely. Changing that frequently will minimize the sludge and varnish problem inherent in lower priced oils and you're changing it before it has a chance to deteriorate. There is absolutely nothing wrong with what you're doing, other than the inconvenience at the frequency of changes. Switching to Amsoil will afford you the same longevity, but changing your oil once a year or 25K miles is way more convenient. I wish more people took the care that you do for your vehicle. You might want to pay attention to your transmission too. Happy Motoring.
I agree with the above poster John in that it's better to change frequently with cheap oil, air filter and oil filters than stick to pricey stuff. I change all three on my Toyota every 3 months and it's at 210000miles.
However long oil is designed to last, it's only part of the story – how clean is the air, the fuel, the pistons, or the filter in your car? IMO it's better to change lower quality products more frequently than buy to last.
Sorry JonP but you are way off the mark here.
Low quality oil and low quality oil filters add up to excessive wear and reduce the life of an engine. The best results are seen by using top quality oils and filters such as Amsoil provides.
In the world of Get Rich Slowly you suggest it makes sense to waste money and resources by changing cheap oils and filters at 3000 mile intervals. In 25,000 miles following JonP's advice. the average car uses 40 quarts of cheap oil and 8 oil filters; even at $3.00 a quart for inferior oil, that's $120 annually plus another $40.00 for 8 filters adds up to a total of $160.00 annually to poorly protect the engine and it's reliability.
On the other hand 5 quarts of Amsoil Synthetic Motor OIl at $8.00 plus 1 oil filter at $15.00 for a total of $55.00 will provide less wear on the engine, better fuel economy and greater engine life as well as being designed to go 25,000 miles on the Amsoil Oil and Filter combination.
As an Automotive Quality Engineer I can say with certainty that what JonP offers is a recipe for wasting both oil, time and money while delivering poor engine protection.
Not exactly what Get Rich Slowly seems to be about which is getting the most for each dollar. Nick Roberts, Lubrication and Filtration Specialist, http://www.synthetic-oil-tech.com/1124190
JonP, I admire the fact that you take care of your vehicle, but Mr. Roberts is correct. While you change your oil frequently, and it's hard to argue with your impressive mileage, it does come out to be more expensive your way when Amsoil can actually protect your engine better and cheaper. If your engine fails at 300K miles, who's to say that is a bad thing, except for the fact, had you been using Amsoil Synthetic lubricants, you could then boast like so many other documented cases, of going a half million miles to over a million miles. Petroleum oil served its purpose in the 50′s and 60′s, but like the 8 track player and bias tires, it has been replaced by a superior product. Synthetic oil is superior and Amsoil has been proven to be the "best" synthetic on the market today, undisputed by any other oil company. I do admire your car care.
I'm a big believer in changing my oil regularly. In my youth I didn't maintain my cars regularly, then I burned up an engine… The expensive lessons are the ones that teach you best. I change every six months or 6,000 with synthetic oil. I always go to my local Firestone retailer for my service and have been doing so for the past ten years. Yeah, I could do it myself and save a few bucks, but they dispose of the used oil properly, check all my other fluids, rotate my tires for free and since I purchase a lifetime alignment (5 years ago) they align my front end, too.
[...] to Extend the Life of Your CarIs the 3,000-Mile Oil Change a Scam?Extreme Personal Finance: The Most Fuel-Efficient Driver in the WorldQuick and Easy Self-Watering [...]
Let's say it's a scam.
$15-20 every 3 months is a small price to pay for the alternative.
Americans probably spend $15-20 in 3 days on gasoline, so changing your oil, even if its useless, is not that harmful. But anybody who's seen your oil drain out sees how nasty it looks, to say the least.
I ran an experiment. My wife *always* goes to dealeship for service (read that as expensive) and *always* gets the oil changed at 3,000 miles. I thought it was a scam back then … now I *know* it's a sham.
When I bought my van (Plymouth Voyager), new, waaaayyyy back in 1996, the book said every 7,500 miles. I doubled that. Only replaced the oil (and filter) every 15,000 miles. Yes, that's right. Fifteen Thousand miles.
I sold (actually traded for some concrete work on the dam and spillway of our pond (barter, it's great!) — anyway, got rid of the van a few years back with 185,000 miles on it. No problems with the engine (tranny went out, but that's a different issue).
The guy I traded it to has driven it for another 3 years and it's currently at 220,000 (ish) miles and has never had a problem with the engine.
Fifteen thousand miles, folks.
3,000 is a sham and a waste of both your time and your money.
wow.. The comments section turned into an amsoil advert. Maybe they're trying to use GRS to Get Rich Fast…
Amsoil is not a get rich quick operation, merely making an avenue to the public for awareness, education, and saving money.
Do your own research, it's free and quite
exciting and liberating. People are doing
research and are finding out on their own that
the 3,000 mile drain is, in fact, a myth.
The American people are not stupid, just
uninformed in some areas, but in time, we
all learn and catch on and do the right thing.
I was uninformed. Not anymore. And am thankful
to the persons who "informed" me.
Interesting comments. I wish to add that I drive a company car,just now a Vauxhall(General Motors) Astra 1.7 diesel up here in Scotland. First service is at 20,000 miles and is a oil and filter change, next service is a full service at 40,000 miles and then interim srvice again at 60,000 miles (oil and filter)and so it continues. I drive approx. 40,000 miles/year and have not had any engine problems that would be associated with poor lubrication and this goes back over the last3-4 Vauxhalls.
My wife has a Ford Focus and its service intervals are approx. 13.000 miles or 1 year.Service intervals have increased over the years, especially for diesels, due to the use of semi and now fully synthetic oils.


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Signpost (Weber, Utah), 1988-03-301
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Wednesday, March 30, 1988 Weber State College Vol. 48 No. 47 V- Weber debaters lose in close call Reva Smith Managing Editor The Weber State team of Tony Justman and Jim Summers was narrowly defeated,3-2, by a Harvard University team during the octa-finals Monday at the National Debate Tournament. "They (Wcbcr) didn't do as well as we'd hoped, but I think they did pretty well," said Pierre Heidrich, head coach of the WSC debate team. Dartmouth College, who then went on to beat Harvard, won the tournament during the final round outscoring Baylor University, 5-2. The final day's topic for debate was an evaluation of U.S. commitment levels to its NATO allies. "Weber State supported the U.S. pullout of their military bases in Britain and the elimination of our dual-capable nuclear aircraft, which are committed to Europe," according to Heidrich. Harvard debated against any pullout. "I think Tony knew that topic better than anyone else in the country," said Heidrich. 1988 state Reva Smith Managing Editor A small allocation set aside for library books and barely enough money to cover basic mandated costs such as fuel and power, state insurance and maintenance are all Weber State College can look forward to beginning July 1, 1988, according to the 1988-89 state budget. "The legislative session was extremely difficult because of limited state revenues, but the Legislature treated us fairly," said William Rolfc Kerr, Utah HOW 1988-89 TUITION INCREASE DOLLARS WILL BE SPENT TOTAL: $5 million xMandatedCostsJl jr 34 lS392.800 M Research and DewelopmeniN. M 81 (Reimbursed Overhead ff I Mandated Costs Replacement) I M.WS.200 . t765,300 In addition, Lisa Johnson and Howard Allen were members of the WSC team. "I was also very pleased about how the second team (Johnson and Allen) did. They had a 3-5 record, but they accumulated 12 ballots over i i 3 -'Ufa Ti HffiT" I I - - - . STUDENTS FROM OTYOKWA, a Wcbcr State sorority enjoy themselves in their efforts to education HOW 1988-89 STATE APPROPRIATIONS INCREASE WILL BE SPENT Enrollment Growth $1,052,100 I " T7 TOTAL: $2.2 million 8 rounds. The top 25 teams only had 13 ballots," said Heidrich. "They just didn't have them (the ballots) at the right times and lost some of the debates they needed," said Heidrich. A ballot refers to a J r f . ! ; solicit members from the student body yesterday in the U.B. (Signpost photo: Matt Butler) budget crunched Commissioner of Higher Education. "We can't take many more of these lean budgets without seriously damaging the quality of education, but we will do our best to show our resilience again this year." By the Lime the Legislature finished its work in late February, higher education's state increase totaled $2.2 million, only a small portion of the $26.6 million requested by the State Board of Regents. Additionally, Utah colleges and universities will initiate a $5 million tuition increase for the coming year. This will be reflected in a 6 percent tuition hike at two-year colleges and an 8 percent tuition hike at four-year colleges and universities. The total expenditure increase will be slightly more than 2 percent or $7.3 million, bringing 1988-89 expenditures to $347,948,900, according to a publication of the Utah System of Higher Education. Effective fall quarter, 1988, Weber State's tuition will raise from $268 to $290 for 12 to 18 hours, the equivalent of a full-time student, according to Dee Vest, director of business affairs and budget In addition, Vest foresees about 150 new student enrollments. "Based on the fall head count, we had just a little over 12,000 students. We're projecting around 12,150 next year," he said. Wcbcr State and the University of Utah were the only two institutions able to cover all of their unavoidable costs and therefore were granted a small amount of money for library books. These funds will come from the tuition increase. No money was made available for across-the-board salary increases, although faculty promotions and degree completions will be eligible for salary increases under the new budget. judge's decision per debate. There were three judges in each debate, and with eight debates total there were 24 ballots available. Thirteen ballots qualified a team. Summers and Justman received 18 out of 24 ballots. Serious students get involved through ASWSC Dori Stauffer Contributing Writer Students concerned with the rising cost of tuition and student fees, the high price of textbooks, library limitations, and student fee allocation, are gearing up to gain your support for the coming year. Yes, it's ASWSC election time! The Associated Students of Weber State College (ASWSC) kicked off elections this week for ASWSC executive officers as well as 16 senate positions. Petitions and candidacy notices were due yesterday and candidates filed for all offices. Elections will conclude on April 15. The three executive offices to be contested arc: president, vice-president for academics, and vice-president for activities, services, and organizations. Senate positions correspond to the seven schools: social sciences, technology, business, natural sciences, arts & humanities, and nine special constituencies seats. They are traditional students, nontraditional students, hispanic students, native American students, black students, residence halls students, physically challenged students, (see ASWSC on page 5) Arts & Entertainment Classified News Opinion Sports "One could take specialization to such a high degree for purposes of providing experts, such as Nazi, Germany." See pg. 2 'People are are more See Candidates announced Here are the candidates who Cited before the deadline yesterday: Stephanie Jesscn - President Rich Mickelson - President Darren Berry - Academic VP Rich Hoggan - Academic VP Jim Puffer - Academic VP Jim Summers - Academic VP Malinda Briscoe - Exec. VP Shawn Maynard - Exec. VP Krislcn Olsen - Exec. VP Senators Tom Lakey - Business Brad Wilson - Business Scott Forsberg - Traditional Dan Alsup - Non-Traditional Marjoric Anderson - Non-TraditionalMclvin Feller - Phys. Challenged Leon Clark - General Studies Cliff Passey - General Studies Karen Nuttall - Education Mclanie West - Education Robert D. Stewart - Education Heather Forsgren - Arts and Hum. Don Hall - Allied Health Gary Pierce - Nat. Sciences Michael Houslcy - Nat. Sciences Muhammcd Mackie-International Trcg Julander - Soc. Sciences Guy Watkins - Technology Kathleen Matson - RHA page 8 page 11 page 2 page 4 page 9 seeing women competitive." pg. 9
Object Description
|Signpost (Weber, Utah), 1988-03-30, Vol. 48, No. 47
|Weber State College
|Associated Students of Weber College; A generous grant from the Utah State Library and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
|Weber's current student newspaper, the Signpost, first appeared on September 29, 1937. For two years prior to that time, campus news was disseminated via announcements posted on a bulletin board known as the "Signpost". As a result, the masthead of the first issue of the paper itself featured a rudimentary wooden sign with the title spelled out in rustic-looking letters. Over the years the paper has been published continuously, though the look, size and style has changed several times.
|Date Original
|College student newspapers and periodicals; Weber State College
|Digital Format
|Publisher Digital
|Stewart Library, Weber State University
|Date Digital
|University Archives LD5893.W55 S5, Stewart Library, Weber State University
|Digital Identifier
|Rights Management
|Public Domain. Courtesy of University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University.
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Duluth, MN (KDAL) - Last night there were two issues not on the agenda that were brought up for discussion. The first was a "Free S peach Zone" at the Bayfront Festival Park for the Bentleyville Tour of Lights. Two preachers are suing the city over being banned from testifying to the public inside the display. They have been banned to an area near the parking lot. Councilors complained that the change was a surprise to them. The two preachers lawsuit in Federal Court is a free speech issue and is going forward.
Councilor Sharla Gardner complained that the City's plans to auction off the Park Point Fire Hall next month was moving to rapidly. The building is historic she argued. Gardner represents Park Point. The building is up for grabs at auction on December 14th. The opening bid is $175,000.


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The State College Community
Like most Big Ten college towns, State College provides a wide variety of restaurants, cafes, movie theaters, and shopping establishments.
The University attracts a wide variety of high quality art and performance entertainment, and every July, State College hosts the nationally known Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts.
The University maintains high quality physical fitness facilities, including two indoor pools and one outdoor pool, three weight rooms, two indoor running tracks and two golf courses. These facilities are available to all students for modest fees.
A full listing of visitor resources including attractions, venues, and accommodations available on Penn State's website.
State College also has a network of bicycle and walking paths. The region is located at the edge of the Appalachian mountain range, and presents many memorable hiking and mountain biking opportunities.
The Centre Daily Times, the local newspaper, includes the Centre Region Guide with detailed information on topics ranging from recycling, taxes, voter registration, sports and outdoors, and entertainment.


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This is the micro-site of stunserver.org, an open and freely-available STUN server.
Anyone is welcome to use the STUN server that can be found at stunserver.org. We intend to leave this STUN server up permanently using this domain name. However, do not hardwire the name "stunserver.org" into any STUN client software delivered to users; instead, give it as as suggested name.
At this moment, we have a single STUN server running the open-source stund server software. The server resides at iol.unh.edu in Durham, NH, USA, and is not behind a NAT of any kind.
The stunserver.org STUN server is supported by the UNH InterOperability Laboratory.


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600-Strong Army Manning DIFF Operations
Thu Dec 15,2005
More than 350 volunteers and 250 staff are on hand every day of the seven-day Dubai Film Festival, handling everything from theatre operations to transportation arrangements and translations. The volunteers, who include a strong contingent from schools and universities around the UAE, provide all manner of support services from registration of Festival delegates and guests to box office handling at the various Festival venues around the city.
Last Chance to See More Than 50 International Films: The last two days of the Festival include more than 50 films from around the world, including critically acclaimed films from Africa, Europe, the Americas, the Far East and Asia. Tickets are still available for many of the films, including the closing night gala film Joyeux Noel.
The second Dubai International Film Festival ends Saturday, December 17, and features 198 films including features, retrospectives and short films. Tickets and an entire schedule of the Festival films are available on the Dubai Film Festival website www.dubaifilmfest.com, and at Festival box offices around the city.
The Festival is presented by Dubai Media City and its Founding Sponsors are Dubai Duty Free, Dubai Properties, Emirates, Etisalat and the Madinat Jumeirah – the Arabian Resort. The Festival's Gold Sponsors are Bin Hendi Enterprises, National Bank of Dubai, Showtime, The Kanoo Group and The Palm Jumeirah; the Silver Sponsors are Filmworks, Motivate Publishing and Sony.


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Only fellow geeks versed in QR codes will know what to do with your new shirt. Hidden message in the QR Code - Congratulations! You're a Geek!
Design ID: 13157528
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Lexmark: What's Next for Printers?
Matthew is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network -- entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.
Lexmark (NYSE: LXK) has been one of the premier manufacturers of laser and inkjet printers since 1997, when it introduced the first sub-$100 color inkjet printer. Since then, however, demand for printers has become an ongoing concern, and it has forced Lexmark and its competitors to rethink their business models. With the company set to report earnings next Tuesday, investors will be looking for concrete plans from the company on how it intends to adapt to the changing environment.
Lexmark used to be known as the most aggressively priced brand of printer, and its ability to undercut the competition was a big advantage. Now, its rivals, particularly Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) and Canon (NYSE: CAJ) are consistently cutting their prices and taking market share. Lexmark generates only 24% of its revenue from printer sales, with the majority (70%) coming from supplies and the other 6% coming from software. Revenues from printers fell 7% in 2011, and the company is projected to report a further 10% decline for 2012 during its earnings call. Industry analysts project a continued decline into 2013, so look for the company to address this issue during the call.
Of the two types of printers Lexmark produces, laser and inkjet, the majority of revenue declines have been seen in the inkjet market, where cheap products from competitors and generally weak demand have produced dismal sales results. Lexmark is the fourth largest inkjet maker in terms of market share, following Hewlett-Packard, Epson, and Canon, who combine for a dominating 85% of the market. The company is actually exiting the consumer inkjet business, so look for a status update regarding this.
As a result, Lexmark has decided to commit almost all of its resources to the laser printer market, which is a higher-growth area than inkjets. In order to compete with the larger companies, which for laser printers are HP, Ricoh, Xerox, and others, Lexmark needs to add new innovative products to its portfolio, especially in shared workgroup color printers, which provide more revenue per unit than other types of laser printers.
So, what needs to happen for Lexmark to return to its glory days? First, the shift toward higher-end hardware (like the color laser printers mentioned above) and managed printing services (MPS) need to show signs of success. Second, Lexmark's international business, particularly in Europe, needs to stabilize and subsequently grow. Given the economic climate in Europe, enterprises are reluctant to spend money on new equipment and contracts, so this needs to recover. Finally, the savings from the restructuring efforts need to be substantial. The company is shifting its operations to lower-cost countries and is closing at least one facility, eliminating 1,700 employees.
One bright spot: With uncertainty comes cheap valuation. Lexmark currently trades at just 7.5 times 2012's earnings, and when you factor out the $500 million in net cash Lexmark is sitting on, this P/E ratio drops to just 5.4 times earnings. However, the consensus calls for very little growth ahead; in fact earnings are expected to slowly decline over the next few years. Lexmark's historical average is right around 10 times earnings, so if you're willing to wait out the adaptation taking place, you could be handsomely rewarded in a few years.
In the meantime, investors are paid nicely to wait and see. Lexmark currently yields 4.29% and actually has a nice history of share repurchases, with the number of outstanding shares dropping from 89.2 million in 2008 to 64.6 million currently, a 27.5% decline in less than five years.
So, while things may turn out all right for Lexmark in the end, for now there are many challenges ahead. When the company reports, more important than the numbers themselves are the company's status updates on the restructuring and the outlook for the future. Any increase in corporate spending would be a huge positive catalyst, especially with the focus shifting to high-end laser printers. At any rate, although it is very cheap right now, Lexmark needs to show me that it will get through these tough times before I can be bullish on the stock.
KWMatt82 owns shares of Hewlett-Packard Company. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Is this post wrong? Click here. Think you can do better? Join us and write your own!


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NC Quilt Symposium
The Western North Carolina Quilters Guild in Hendersonville, NC, is dedicated to understanding and learning more about quilting and perpetuating this art form. We are a group of more than 200 men and women who are interested in quilting. Our skills range from beginner to professional, but we all enjoy a good time and we're good at sharing information and helping one another.
Whether you are a resident or a visitor to our area, we invite you to attend our meetings. We do not charge a guest fee because we want you to know that you are welcome. Please see our schedule.
Garden of Quilts Show, June 13-15, 2014
You will need the free Adobe Reader program to view Adobe Acrobat PDF files.
Photos by Anne S. Napier unless indicated otherwise.
Quilt block graphics adapted from www.dlstewart.com/clipart.htm
Updated July 5, 2014


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Hotel Paba
Via Cavour 266, Rome, Italy
Doubles from: $114 to $207
Check Rates for Hotel PabaChecking Rates for Hotel PabaNo availability
Reviewed by EuroCheapo.com Editors
The Hotel Paba's enviable location—almost within hurling distance of the Colosseum—is just one reason this two-star property remains popular with guests. Another (perhaps more important) reason is Alberta, who runs the place with care.
Pros: "When you're here, you're family" vibe. Fantastic location. Great value.
Cons: Some noise from the street and other guests.
Although it sits among many of Rome's most popular tourist sights, the Hotel Paba lends the feel that you're staying in your Italian grandmother's home. And the friendly Alberta plays the role well, offering friendly conversation, expert tips and that extra mile of service that leaves guests raving about their stays here.
Each of the seven rooms at the Hotel Paba is decorated in a different style and named accordingly. Enjoy the film posters in the "Lovers Nest" or stay in the "Imperial Suite" to nab the Hotel Paba's only balcony. The décor is a bit of a mishmash: Some rooms feature heavily patterned furniture and carpets, while others sport more modern laminate floors and white walls. And, as breakfast is brought to the rooms, each room has a bistro table and chairs.
All rooms benefit from air conditioning, a TV, phone, kettle, minibar and private bathroom with hair dryer.
The area around the Colosseum can be expensive for drinks and meals, so take heed of Alberta's personal recommendations. There is also a fridge in each room, so guests can stock up on snacks from the nearby supermarkets.
Note: The hotel is on the second floor of an apartment building. There is an elevator, but the Hotel Paba is not very accessible for guests with disabilities. Light sleepers should note that the street outside can be busy. Wi-Fi is free throughout, and breakfast is included in the room rate.
Reviewed by: Samantha Collins, EuroCheapo Staff Writer
Note: This hotel was visited by a EuroCheapo editor and is recommended based on cleanliness, location, price and overall quality. EuroCheapo did not charge this hotel to be listed.
- Breakfast Included
- Elevator
- Reception: 24-Hour
- Wi-Fi: Free
- Air conditioning
- Bathroom: Private
- Cable TV
- Minibar
- Safe
- Telephone
Via Cavour 266
Monti, Rome, Italy
Phone: +39 06 4782 4902
Fax: +3906 4788 1225
Website: http://www.hotelpaba.com/
Email: email@example.com
About the Hotel Paba neighborhood
The Monti neighborhood feature some of Rome's cutest winding, hilly streets. It's chockablock full of great little hidden-away bars and restaurants. The neighborhood boasts some of Rome's most famous landmarks, churches and ruins, including the Colosseum, Trajan's Market and parts of the Roman Forum.


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Publication: theday.com
New London — City police arrested a 19-year-old man they said robbed a teenage male at knifepoint Monday night in the vicinity of Colman Street and Garfield Avenue.
The victim suffered minor cuts on his neck but did not require medical attention, police said.
The alleged assailant, Malik Nunn, of 56 Coachman Pike, Mashantucket, was charged with first-degree robbery, second-degree strangulation, third-degree assault and sixth-degree larceny. He was held on a $75,000 bond until his arraignment in New London Superior Court.
According to police, the victim told them he was walking on Colman Street when Nunn pushed him against a wall, held a knife to his throat and stole cash and other items from him. The victim then managed to escape. Police were dispatched to the area at 9:07 p.m.
Police said they are looking for another person who may have been involved. Anyone with information should contact police at (860) 447-5269.
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Seeing as how you don't seem to aim when hitting a zombie with a bat, that you make no mention that the damage from walking over hills was fixed. And you make no mention that the developers sent an apology to everyone who signed up for this game. – not to mention all the other bug fixes and the fact that they are making unique weapons for EVERY PLAYER as a way of saying sorry –
And the fact that this was posted TODAY the 21st and not a month ago I don't see how you are any better than they are, You are trying to cash in on their past mistakes and make it seem like what you write is relevant.
I normally pass off these war z reviews because while I like the game 90% of what is said is true. But when someone can't even take the time to verify his information weeks after the fact, that is just asinine.
The War Z Review
Developer: Hammerpoint Interactive
Publisher: OP Productions LLC
Reviewed on: PC
Oh boy.
Some context: in 2012, a mod designed by Dean 'Rocket' Hall for the 2009 military sim Arma II was released. It was called DayZ and it turned Arma II into a multiplayer, zombie-survival game. Players started off unarmed (or barely armed) and had to scavenge for food, water and protection in a land overridden by both zombies and other humans, neither of whom tended to think twice about killing you.
It proved incredibly popular, giving Arma II the kind of late sales boost only mods can provide. Hall now works for developers Bohemia Interactive and is developing DayZ as a standalone release. It should be a considerable improvement over the somewhat clunky mod and is due sometime in 2013.
That stuff is important to know.
Other stuff that's important to know: DayZ is in no way connected to The War Z. The War Z is not the aforementioned standalone version of DayZ, nor does it share any of the developers, graphics engine or anything else aside from the zombie survival theme. Having spent the past few days confirming my worst fears about people confusing and conflating these two titles, I think that needs to be stated and re-stated.
So again, just to be sure. The War Z is not DayZ.
For anyone outside the videogames bubble, it's an easy mistake to make. Whoever named The War Z is an expert in diabolical marketing. Not only does it sound quite like DayZ, a successful mod in the same thematic genre, but it also sounds like World War Z, a successful zombie-themed novel (and soon to be film.)
But it is neither of those things.
More context: The War Z was spawned from War Inc, an unremarkable online shooter. When it was announced in July 2012, the game was clearly positioning itself to take advantage of the interest in DayZ. That action wasn't too egregious in itself. This is an industry which thrives on iteration, and if Hammerpoint had delivered an alternative zombie survival title of sufficient quality, all may have been well.
All was not well. Producer Sergey Titov's claim that "we began developing our game before DayZ" was shown to be, at best, a semantic contortion. More strangeness and half-truths were to follow.
When the IncGamers team played the beta in November last year, we assumed we were sampling a game that still had a great deal of development time ahead of it. Our reservations were tempered by the hope that the strands of gameplay that were obviously still missing would be implemented, that bugs would be dealt with and that the game could establish itself as a credible alternative to DayZ.
Instead, the game emerged from its 'beta' period with minimal (if any) changes and attempted to launch on Steam accompanied by a list of features that were not yet present in the game. A couple of days later the game was pulled from sale and Valve offered full refunds to all buyers. If you still need one, here's where you should go.
You can probably see where this review is heading.
The War Z is not just a bad game. Bad games happen all the time. This is something far more insidious; a shameless attempt to cash-in on a popular trend with the minimum possible effort. It's different from the regular band of clones, copies and derivations because most of those at least attempt to fashion a half-way decent game. This is a focused cash-grab, as plain as there ever has been.
Put simply, The War Z is the Ratatoing of videogames.
The expected components are all there (zombies, a big map to wander around on, items to find, other people,) but any sense of why that combination of things worked so well in DayZ has been trampled underfoot in a race to cream money off bamboozled players at every possible juncture.
In The War Z you will die, a lot. Sometimes fairly. Other times to animation glitches, bugs, unchecked hackers and spawn-point campers. If you've spent some real-life money in the game's marketplace, those purchased items will be lost in the blink of an eye. But don't worry, you can always buy more!
The survival genre relies on tension. If that constant sense of threat to your character from external sources is removed, games of this sort begin to fall apart. DayZ had the unwieldy but sim-based Arma II engine at its disposal, which resulted in a pretty immersive experience. The bleak landscape and Soviet-era buildings of Chernarus created enough of a suspension of disbelief for the mod to work. You felt alone, afraid and in peril.
In The War Z it's more likely that you'll be pulled out of the game's Colorado landscape by repetitive sound loops, dodgy texture work and atrocious animations. Whenever you attack a zombie with a melee weapon it looks like this.
Dramatic stuff.
Maybe after all that exertion you should cool off with a lovely swim?
There is a constant level of threat to the game, however. It's the worry that something will bug out while you're making your way slowly down a slope, costing you a sizeable chunk of health or possibly your life. It doesn't matter which of the cosmetic character classes you opt to go for, they all have ankles made of brittle china.
Of course there's also the ever-present danger of other human beings in general. The cheaters are inevitable and an annoyance, but genuine friendly encounters are rendered even more unlikely by the current restriction of communications to text. There's an option to alter "communication volume" in the game's menu, but voice chat appears to be yet another item on the To Do list.
Nobody, in a zombie survival game known for the ruthlessness of its players, is going to take their hands off their 'weapons' to input text and attempt close-range diplomacy. This leads to even more emphasis on a "shoot first" policy amongst players, and all-but rules out any entertaining negotiations.
Then there's the stuff that's just unfinished. Presumably you will be able to go in water at some point. Maybe the Missions screen will have purpose one day. Perhaps the experience points you gather from slaying zombies can, in some distant time, be applied to that greyed-out Skill Tree tab on the survivor screen. For now, of all the invented features advertised on the ill-fated Steam release back on 18 December, only two (100 player servers and a functioning perma-death mode) have been implemented. The rest are still missing in action. Lost in the development wilderness.
The developers can claim this title is a work in progress (or "foundation release") all they want, but the moment they launched it on Steam with the impression that it was feature-complete they lost any right to the benefit of the doubt. There's no indication on the War Z homepage that the game is in any way unfinished (save for a suggestion that more maps may be added in future,) but you're unlikely to miss the garish BUY NOW button. It comes right after a set of images depicting scenes that never happen, and never can happen, in the game.
The War Z's development has been characterised by duplicity, amateurish customer relations, shoddy craftsmanship and basic design flaws. It's an unfinished, bug-ridden shambles and the fact that substantial amounts of cash have already been funneled to the charlatans behind it is a crying shame.
Remember the names Sergey Titov, Arktos Entertainment and Hammerpoint Interactive. If you ever see them involved in future titles, consider it a warning from history.
… On the other hand, the game does have quite a neat looking skybox.
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Seeing as how you don't seem to aim when hitting a zombie with a bat, that you make no mention that the damage from walking over hills was fixed. And you make no mention that the developers sent an apology to everyone who signed up for this game. – not to mention all the other bug fixes and the fact that they are making unique weapons for EVERY PLAYER as a way of saying sorry –January 21, 2013 at 6:12 pm
oh dear god, where do I begin with you?
So they apologized. Big whoop. Anyone can make a huge list of mistakes and then say, "sorry guys, we'll try harder next time."
Damage from walking over hills was barely improved. It happened less, and on the less extreme slopes.
Unique weapons? You mean the katanas? The melee weapon that everyone recently? Funny, because in no way was it unique from the katanas everyone else got, and like every other weapon in the game, when you die with it, you've lost it. Forever.
Cash in?? How are they cashing in on this article? Did you pay to read this? You know what they get? Money from ads on the site.
Maybe the article was later than the other ones, but the information is still true. In other words, it's still a POS scam.January 21, 2013 at 7:06 pm
A. ) If you actually bothered to read what I said, I had said I agree that the game isn't that great. But that doesn't give people the right to bash it without bringing all the facts to the table.
B.) An apology does mean something if after that someone or something strives to better itself afterwards.
C.) The unique models have yet to be released and yes you can lose the weapon, it's kinda how the game works, if you are going to cry about it you shouldn't be playing in the first place.
And last of all, He is "Cashing in" by coming out with an article bashing a game others have bashed in order to create a better name for himself as a writer, It's not a hard thing to do and many people do it. But this post is sloppy and lazy and should have had more effort put in to it.
p.s I haven't had any issues with hills since the fix went into place, heck I scaled down a mountain and got nothing.January 21, 2013 at 7:36 pm
Not true, they've followed the War Z a lot on this site. Check your facts.January 21, 2013 at 9:13 pm
If they follow it why come out with another in a plethora of reviews bashing the game but make no mention of any recent events? You lot don't seem to understand what I am saying here. I agree with the god damn article I am not defending the game. I am criticizing the fact that this review is coming out months after the fact and that it is not giving people all the facts. Everyone wants to sit around and complain about how bad media is and how hard it is to trust any source. But you are so god damn complacent when you agree with what's being said that you over look the truth. Just because the game is bad does not entitle a reviewer to leave out information that might change someone's opinion or lessen the blow to the company just for the sake of a harsher and grittier review. You all make it so easy for people like this to thrive, and not just online. So stop being so thick headed and actually think.January 23, 2013 at 9:11 am
Aaah, an apology and a not-yet-unique-but-maybe-soon katana. Ive changed my mind! I do think the reviewer missed some things – he should have spent more time on the hacker situation. You say reviews about the game only are 90% true, it should mean that most reviews about it contain 10% falsehood. Even though you seem to think that 50% of this review is lies, isnt it rather that most of it (the important things) are true?January 23, 2013 at 6:35 pm
"Sigh" look when it was posted. It's posted OVER a month from the initial launch of this game and it addresses nothing but the issues that were present. Are you all just to thick to get what I am saying or what? A review coming out this late and acting as if its one of the first reviews out is bull. But whatever if you all want to read this crap and keep supporting these subpar reviews go ahead.January 23, 2013 at 8:05 pm
The reason this review was posted now was to give Hammerpoint time to sort this mess of a game out before any judgement was passed. Sadly Hammerpoint has failed to do that.
Having played the game myself recently and it he past, the review is spot-on. The game is a mess, and really, DON'T BUY IT. You have been warnedJanuary 23, 2013 at 10:00 pm
Are they paying you to defend a scam of a game? A apology is only meaningful when someone does something unintentionally. The War Z creators knew exactly what they where doing when they did it. So the apology is meaningless. Second, games are not rated based on future promises, and why would I believe those promises in the first place coming from these developers? Finally, here is something a little radical, how about the developers refund people their money, fix all the things wrong with the game, and then come back someday in the future to charge people 15+ dollars to play the game. That's worth a whole lot more then a worthless apology and a melee weapon.February 3, 2013 at 12:27 am
Yes because my clear statements in saying this is a terrible game and that I am talking about knowingly withholding information. God are you just so blind to anything you don't want to see that you skipped over me saying that this game sucks multiple times? This review is trash because the author doesn't address recent events that happened before this review is was posted. And also like I stayed but you chose to skip over. I do believe and apology means something if people change afterwards and try to be better. Also I suggest taking some reading comprehension classes because its clear you are in desperate need.February 3, 2013 at 1:17 am
You made a clear, competent, and well founded argument countering this review of "The War Z" that was only slightly incongruent with the majority of other comments… They must be attacking you because they think you are trying to break the internet with your reasonability.February 28, 2013 at 1:11 am
Viridius, no offense man, but you are kinda full of fanboism. Try to be a little bit more cynical when it comes to things like that.July 19, 2013 at 6:49 am
Right on for this article. But heres a question. What can we do? Class action? Unlikely. A consumer protection agency stepping in? Also unlikely. The sad truth is that after all is said and done, Sergey Titov and Arktos made a cool 4-5 million after costs and they will probably get away with it. It really is a crying shame.January 21, 2013 at 11:07 pm
So…why is no one taking legal action against this company? It is a clear case of fraud. All of the people who bought this game should start a class action lawsuit.January 23, 2013 at 6:05 pm
company is located in russia or ukraine I guess -> forget laws and legal action over there
It's a shame, the company would have been probably already sued if it would be located in US or a proper EU stateJanuary 23, 2013 at 8:43 pm
Because it is all done through a LLC company…….. try suing anyone through one of those…..January 24, 2013 at 12:06 am


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President of Northern Kentucky University, Dr. James Votruba shares stories about his life and career.
Capturing the Voices: An Oral Histories Projectis funded by a generous grant fromThe Robert & Adele Schiff Family Foundation;The Sutphin Family Foundation;The John Hauck Foundation;and, Fifth Third Bank.
Is there someone you think is interesting and would like us to feature for this project?Email Donald Hancock, producer for VOICES, at email@example.com


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Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Karl Popper's "Introduction to the Logic of Science": A Summary
After all, what makes science so great? Everyone seems to think it's induction, that induction is what makes science so great. They're all, "Look at all this data we have that proves that gravity is real! Where you at on the data for beauty and the soul, poets? Yeah, that's wht we thought. Fuckin' poets." Except fuck that, induction is broken. We've known since David Hume that induction is broken, and I'm here to tell you that there's no fixing it. You can't just drop shit a bunch of times and then be like, "Well, all these rocks keep falling at the same speed, and we've been dropping them for like three hours now so obviously that's how it is all the time everywhere in the universe." But for some reason people keep trying to figure out how many times we need to see rocks fall at the right speed before we can assume it's the same everywhere - "Uh, maybe if it happens the same way the first thousand times we try it, we can just go with it." Oh really? A thousand? How'd you get that number? Did we just test a thousand different things a thousand times and they've all worked so far, so we assume a thousand is the magic number? Bullshit, something could go terribly horribly wrong with the sunrise tomorrow and then your arbitrary "thousand" number is right the fuck out the window. You can't inductively justify induction, so you can't pretend like induction is all there is. Knock it off.
"But Karl, without induction, how will science tell us things? Why is is any different from metaphysical bullshittery?" Holy fuck, I'm getting there! Relax! But first, let's talk about how science even starts for a second. Probably because they've got their heads up their asses with induction, these same bros think that maybe we need to know how the scientist thinks, so we can get from one idea to the next and verify it, as if we need some logical breakdown of producing theories so that we can go about proving them in an orderly manner. But what the fuck would that even look like? Sure, maybe psychology can help us have better ideas or whatever, but how would understanding how we have ideas tell us anything about whether those ideas are good or not? Oh wait, right, it wouldn't. Whether a theory matches the world or not has nothing to do with how someone came up with it - we can draw theories out of a hat for all I fucking care.
So how does science proceed, if induction is fucked (which it is) and we can't logically determine how to have new ideas (which we can't)? Easy - just take a fucking guess. No, I don't mea- dammit, you asshole, I don't mean "guess how science works", I mean guessing just is how science works. Just start guessing shit and go from there. Of course you're going to make a couple stupid guesses at first. Seriously, some of the shit you're going to try is going to be genuinely fucked in the head. Remember when we thought heavier objects would fall faster? Boy was that wrong. But we took a guess, tried it out, and it didn't work. Instead of being whiny babies about it, scientists just took another guess and then tested that out, too. That's the process: guess, and then you test that guess. And if the test works, you're like "Huh! That was an even better guess than I thought." And the more tests it survives, the more people are like, "Great guess! I'll bet that's probably it." And then you get to a test that your guess doesn't pass, and you're like, "Welp, close but no cigar. Back to the drawing board."
We'll eliminate the fucking stupid guesses pretty quickly - it doesn't take long to show that we can't move things with our minds. Eventually, you start to build a pretty cool system of things so you can make better and better guesses. and you can totally use data to make good guesses; you don't always have to invent something completely new every time. I'm just saying that's all the data does, helps make good guesses. It doesn't prove shit.
And look! That method is deductive! What incredibly good news! You don't have to derive a universal statement from a bunch of single events, which is great because you can't; instead, you just guess a universal statement and then see if you can't find an event that breaks it. You can't get from "the sun keeps rising" to "the sun will always rise" but if one day the sun doesn't come up, you can be damn sure about "the sun does not always rise." All you need is one bad apple and you know for sure that not every apple is good, no induction needed. QED, motherfuckers.
And - AND - now we know what is and isn't science! Holy fuck I am on fire here. Not actually. Just- look, I'm solving lots of things, is my point. Scientific theories are falsifiable - they're incompatible with certain things we could observe. They predict shit, and then we see if that shit really happens. Back when we thought Newton's Laws were totally, completely true, Mercury had this weird fuck wobble in its orbit that said we should find another planet. Except we looked and no planet. And now we know for sure that Newton wasn't completely right. Einstein? He was a patent clerk for fuckssake, and he came up with a fucking incredible guess. And we just keep devising more and more complicated tests to check it out, and it keeps on passing. When it does finally fail, we'll fucking know. There won't be aaaaany confusion whatsoever. Souls? How the fuck would we go about testing for souls? "Well, we cut him open, and we didn't find a soul, so..." "Yeah, but you can't see souls! That's the whole point!" So you're saying we can't ever test for souls? That's fine, just, it means souls can't come to the science party. They're not falsifiable. You must be THIS FALSIFIABLE to ride the science ride, and souls just aren't.
I'm not saying crazy shit doesn't happen from time to time - sometimes someone's tools are broken, sometimes some clumsy fucking lab monkey burns everything down, sometimes your fiber optics report that neutrinos are fast as shit, too fast, really. So we can just lay down some rules for doing science, rules like "make tests that we can repeat to double-check" - don't be all, "Well, there was no fire last Tuesday, so, that's it for the theory!" We need to make sure that we justify our guesses with tests that in principle anyone can understand and perform. And we can totally come up with those rules later - I'm just saying we can't pretend like science is straight logic and everyone else is wrong. When that happens, bros start to get real uppity with people who disagree with their theories, like "don't you know how logic works, you simple simpleton?" But really, we should never act like we know exactly what the fuck is going on in science. All we've got are some super-good guesses, and as soon as we lose sight of that metaphysical bullshit starts creeping into our theories. BAD. BAD UPPITY SCIENTISTS. Yeah, I wish we could be more certain, too, but it's a damn sight better than that inductive bullshit you were using. Seriously, you guys, what the fuck was up with that?
"Introduction to the Logic of Science" is Part I of The Logic of Scientific Discovery, which you can get at Amazon. Part II is just a much longer and more careful laying out of his theory of falsifiability - he handles specific objections and technical questions.
7 comments:
- AnonymousJune 12, 2012 at 7:47 PM
Bayesianism: Kicking the shit out of induction, falsificationism, and everything since 1763.ReplyDelete
http://shawnslayton.com/open/Probability%2520book/book.pdf (Is that a free pdf of Jaynes' masterwork Probability Theory: The Logic of Science? Yes. Yes, it is.)
Brah, you're such a fucking boss, your work has never failed to blow my mind.ReplyDelete
(using induction:: you will always blow my mind. wait a sec)
This is great! I remember reading Popper as an undergrad. Now that I've left academia and don't get my 'philosophy' fix I really enjoy reading your posts!!ReplyDelete
Well done. Thanks again for helping people sift through the arrogant writing of most contemporary philosophers to deliver the message.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 12, 2012 at 9:57 PM
I read Popper as an undergrad too. I actually majored in Science, and at the time, it was all good and made helluva sense in a clean-cut, neat Science-y sorta way. So I appreciated this. Thanks, Bro.ReplyDelete
Also: my favourite line from this piece was "QED, motherfuckers". Haha.
Woah bro, I just learned more from this post than I did in an entire semester of Philosophy of Science. Thanks!ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 15, 2012 at 1:50 AM
"Look at all this data we have that proves that gravity is real! Where you at on the data for beauty and the soul, poets? Yeah, that's "wht" we thought. Fuckin' poets."ReplyDelete
Might wanna change wht to what.


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bigtornado-deactivated20130425 asked: I adore this blog. seriously. I come here everyday to see if there's new stuff.
well lucky fer yew i post almost every day because there are THAT many problems -____-
torioverrated asked: i sincerely enjoy the fact that you tell skinny bitches off! (: and your blog makes me feel better about being fat!
fuck yeah
Anonymous asked: this... isn't funny at all. I thought this would be something I could relate to, but it's just about eating a ton. I'm overweight because I have hypothyroidism and I can't relate to ANY of these (except the friends running & getting left behind one), even though I'm 50 pounds overweight. People like you make me self conscious to eat in public even if it's not excessive. This really just makes me sad.
normally i would give an extremely cheeky response to a message like this, but i will restrain myself. if you read this response, which i surely hope you do, take what i say into serious consideration:
i'm truly sorry you have a thyroid problem you have to deal with your whole life. i understand how incredibly sucky that can be. and i know it can be hard, but don't let anyone make you feel self conscious about eating in public.
i just responded to another message like this and emphasized that it is the people around you that make you feel a certain way, not this blog. get rid of the negative leeches in your life that make you feel so self conscious.
Anonymous asked: Hey :) im 15. and i do find your blog amussing; but it hurts sometimes to think of how much i can relate to these posts.
the only thing that should hurt after reading this blog is your stomach from LAUGHING HYSTERICALLLYYY.
but seriously.
don't let shit get you down. you are young grasshopper, but soon you will learn that the people who make you feel hurt for being a certain way are huge tool-faces because they just want to feel better about themselves. if people didn't make you feel bad about certain things, than you would be having a jolly old time reading my blog instead of reading it and feeling sad :(
sounds like you need to cleanse some negative folks out of your life, anon
waynefiorelli-deactivated201310 asked: I am a guy who follows. Because, even though I technically have a penis, I am seduced by food much in the way your posts would suggest. I appreciate the work you have done here. It is an honor to follow you.
Also --- I am eating cookies while tumbling while watching TV right now.
well i am honored to have one male follower!
and it sounds like i need to get on your level…i'm only tumbling…i should be tumbling AND have two ice cream cones in hand and be soaking my cankles in bath salts with forrest gump playing in the background.