Ah yes, of course. That's long been the way of it. Thank you for your response.
Look, before I slip quietly away let me explain why, just as a courtesy. After all, I've enjoyed my interaction here. It's been a good journey 'till now.
Honestly, I've no problem with reasonable ads. As you say, bills must be paid. But when the ads use large file sizes with moving, dancing, graphics it becomes burdensome for my aged iPad. Time is wasted. I've learned to be wary of loading needless applications just to suit the demands of advertising programmers.
And I've too much respect for photomedia imagery to bother using my smartphone to access photmedia forums.
However, if the majority of members acquiesces to the new format, I'll just quietly cease dipping into the site. Time is too precious, life is too short, and there are plenty of altenative sites and forums.
Cheers...
.

Not only has the format been radically changed, but why is it now triggering unwanted spam ads...? This time with high file content unwelcome Toyta spam..?
Clumsy, time wasting adolescent new software. It's deabatable whether we'll now remain members.

My immediate sympathy went out to that unfortunate litle Brit motorcar.
Three "normal" size Americans on board and a gradient would have been
a challenge. Why didn't two of you simply get out and walk the short distance
uphill instead of sitting there and laughing...? You'd have saved burning the
clutch plate.

Cars there are generally low powered rather than "under powered" because
economics dictate petrol use, not fossil fuel waste. European cars and engine
designers therefore constantly seek sleeker body dynamics and greater
drive chain efficiency.

Still, you're right about the green lanes. They're charming but narrow and
best tackled with moderate speed. And often not in the rain, unless you're
driving a Land Rover or something Swedish. Altgough the Solihull Land Rover
is another vehicle you'd probably find "under powered" compared with a Hum
Vee. But it has definitively the best low range gearing of any 4WD. And they
seem to last forever.

You're also correct in summarising the nightmare of driving in London and
Oxford. But why would you want to..? Taking a Mini or a rag top sports car
through the beautiful Cotswolds, Devon, Cornwall, Wales, Scotland and
Ireland can be a delightful pleasure.

But hey, I'm not even a Brit. Just been there several times, backpacking,
cycling, riding a motorcycle, driving a car and stopping in at the splendid
counry pubs.

I come from a country where rural roads can be like driving on Mars.
So what would I know about Brit-US motoring compaisons...!

.

Aye up... Ta Lateron, a'hm chuffed..  Right champion a thee , spadge. A thissen too.  See they later.
'T O'B

{[quote=denoferth]}


Agreed... And yet there's a developing surreality in this thread that echoes the most biting of John Cleese/Basil Fawlty satire.

As Manuel might have said:
"Ohhhhh... ¿qué? ... ¡No! ... ¡No!... ¡Pero mi Mi cebola Española es grande¡ "

Husband and wife comedy writers and perormers John Cleese and Connie Booth displayed near anthropological genius in their brillant 'Fawlty Towers' series. Andrew Sachs was the superbly played Manuel, a Spanish innocent abroad whose misadventures were amplified by the self-conscious faux racism of the pretentiously bumbling Basil Fawlty.

And we loved them all.

As we embrace rational Spaniards who don't cling to the viciously arrogant colonial facsim of Cortes and Franco.

The Spanish region is richly rewarding. And not all 'Spanish onions' are
difficult to swallow.

BTW Cleese, Booth and Sachs are keen photographers. As were the
late Spike Milligan and his muralist brother Pat.

I'd somehow like to think that the Milligans and the Cleeses would be
delighted with this thread and its implosively unconcious comedy.

And does it really matter if JC was the original author, or not..?

Surely pedantry and xenophobia have no place in intelligent satire.

____

___


...

Ah, the joys of being Spanish.
_________

Manuel (Andrew Sachs): Que...? Pero... No sé nada..!"

Basil Fawlty (John Cleese): "He's from Barcelona, you know..!"

- 'FAWLTY TOWERS' , Brit TV sitcom

.

{}


"Brit teeth are superior to Merkin teeth..!" -- Stephen Fry, 'QI'

.

()

Mmm... Well, there's your electoral system and Donald Duck Trump for starters...!

And hey, you didn't mention the "M#%{*!" word...!

Um... Is this really important..?

Crikey...! And what's the PC threat level among the scant and churlish few members who are demanding we obey DER RULE UF ORDER...?
Of course, they're the chaps in leather trousers, holding Leicas at the ready and wearing spikes on their helmets...!
..

No worries, Roger. Thanks mate. We'll keep a snag on the barbie
for you when we have to come and lend a hand again.
See ya,
- Theo. an Ausie ocker with a Fuji X100S in hand, and presently roaming the top end of Sumatra where the Security Level has been raised from 1944 to 1946

Ah yes, the old no-prophylaxis policy. I'm not as brave as you. I prefer
protection. Even while swimming in the mud of Wikipedia.

However, I'm confdently virus free so far after some 30 years
of negotiating the Interweb minefield.

Problem here is that even at university - or maybe because - a virus
can sneak in behind an innocent message, graph, assignment extension, or research paper.

I accept that graphic images are always a potenial hazard, but the
real world hard copy fine typography publishers have been meeting
the challenge for decades.

With appropriate anti viral prophylaxis.

Sure, we know well the pitfalls of juvenile gamesmanship, and the ubiquitous
lacklustre erotic sites viral diseases. Whomsoever dips deliberately into that adolescent mire is either exceptionally gutsy or a kangaroo short in the top padock.

Or lucky.

_____

I was just mischievously curious to know whether perhaps you had a
"see round corners" sidewinder radar program there that could scout
ahead for all potential threats no matter how well they might be camouflaged.

It might then be fitting fun to devise a retaliatory program to nuke the
perpetrator's PC. ;-)

- Th.

Thank you StraightShooter. Good to know.

Rpavich - cute answer, but surely the only way to
guard against the malevolent sites that seem to
occupy most of the Interweb is to have a prescient
anti-virus safeguard..? A crminally inclined psychotic
web code writer is hardly likely to warn you he's a thief...?

- Th.
.

Wonderful pictoral layout, Stash. Splendid
photography. Thank you kindy for sharing
these fine images.
- Theo.