Hi all, This is a mail that I have been meaning to send ever since I moved back to the NoVA area, but have only gotten around to now... Many years ago I used to provide emergency, smart hands type assistance to those in need, but had to give this up when I moved out of the area. Anyway, I'm back and am willing to start doing this again.... This is primarily for those cases where you would normally have to fly someone out to have them replace a line-card or two, hook up a few cables, maybe swap a disk in an array, etc. This is not for those cases where you simple need someone to push the reset button, nor for rebuilding your entire cage from scratch... Anyway, if you have gear here and think that you might need to take me up on this, drop me a mail and I'll give you my direct contact info... If you like this idea, and are willing to also provide this sort of thing to the community (either in this, or in another area), please let me know -- I'll look into setting up a website / mailing list / something... Important disclaimers and limitations: 1: I do not want (nor may I accept) any compensation for this, other than good-will and a hope that you might help out someone else in need (AKA, I miss the days when this industry was more co-operative). 2: $day_job comes first. 3: If you are a competitor of $day_job you are probably out of luck. 4: If you wants me to plug in a new device, its your responsibility to make sure that you have sufficient power. 5: If you are a shady spammer, don't bother... FAQ: Q: What! Are you crazy? I'd never let a stranger into my cage! A: Huh, neither would I, but some people are less paranoid than us and / or know and trust me. Q: Why are you doing this again? What's in it for you? A: Back in the day, this industry used to be much more friendly and people would often go out of their way to help others. I fully understand why this has changed over time, but, well, it sucks.. I'd like to try and bring back some of the community feeling. Q: How did you end up so handsome!? A: First off, thank you. It was mainly luck.... Q: I am a small company looking to build a network for my 200 sales people (or something similar). Can I hire you as a consultant? A: Sorry, no. I have a day job that keeps me busy and entertained. I am not a consultant, nor do I have any wish to be one (and can think of few things worse). Oh, and I'm assuming that you meant that you own and / or work at a small company and not that you *are* a small company, because that would be weird. W -- Never criticize a man till you've walked a mile in his shoes. Then if he didn't like what you've said, he's a mile away and barefoot.