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From: yeager@sc2a.unige.ch
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware
Subject: Re: Macs in Switzerland?
Message-ID: <1991Jan2.151927.347@sc2a.unige.ch>
Date: 2 Jan 91 13:19:27 GMT
References: <1035@gistdev.gist.com>
Organization: University of Geneva, Switzerland
Lines: 49


In article <1035@gistdev.gist.com>, andy@gistdev.gist.com (Andy Warinner)
writes:

> I am moving to Switzerland and I am taking my Mac (an SE/30) with me.
> I understand that the Mac has a variable power supply that can adapt
> itself to European current.  My question is:  where can I get a power
> cable for Swiss power outlets?

No problem, just buy from a local mac dealer, or do-it-yerself on the US
cable with tools and a plug from the hardware store. DIY supplies may be
the ONLY reasonably priced stuff that you can find in Switzerland. Hope
they give you a raise...

> Also, I am considering taking my Mac on the plane with me.  Is it wiser to 
> ship it in its original box?

Definitely NOT in the original carton. I had a friend who checked his
computer all the way thru to England. Somewhere along the way it was 
heisted. What he learned was this: original cartons for electronics are
easy targets for the dishonest employee. When one of these people sees
luggage getting checked through to its destination, he knows that there is
no way for the victim to prove WHERE along the way the crime occurred, if
the victim has multiple connections. The solution is to claim the computer
baggage after you complete each leg of the journey and re-check in.

I use a special locked case to carry my SE/30. It looks like an upended
steamer trunk, very rugged. You can buy or order one at any good mac
supplier. And I don't put any FRAGILE signs on the box, which can only
serve to tempt the delinquent baggage handler into stealing or deliberate
damage. I have schlepped that machine trans-Atlantic many times, never a
problem.

Be prepared to open your case for inspection and to power up the machine to
prove it's a computer and not an explosive device. And no matter WHAT they
tell you about the safety of their X-rays, do not put your hard disk or
floppies through the scanner. I read recently where someone passed boxes of
ten written floppies through a scanner 1 to 4 times. After one pass, a few
of the floppies were unreadable, and after 4 passes ALL where unreadable.
You can insist on hand inspection.

My US bought modem and Imagewriter II work fine here with a 150 watt 220V
-> 110V transformer. Some claim that the power supply of the printer MIGHT
frizz out on the 50 Hz, but I've been using my printer for over a year now
with absolutely no problems.

--
Mark Yeager  ->  yeager@cgeuge52.bitnet     yeager@sc2a.unige.ch
 University of Geneva, Dept. of Biochemistry, CH-1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland