Believe what you will, I would prefer anything i bought not to fail because the shipper wasn't ESD aware or concerned.

Very funny I've mined 11 BTC so far, I only have 5 to show for it. I spent the rest on hardware. I'm trying to accumulate some BTCs So i prefer to spend Fiat now. and the supply is getting low.

I don't know about everyone else, but i'm running out of money. heh,

Actually, I smoked my V1 MB, the V2 is a replacement, so my original image is V1.

I immediately ran into problems on the linux machine. the card didn't seem to show up, but i expected as much since in have so many hubs and USB miners attached to that machine. So i'm back to winXP on my netbook, mainly because it has a card reader built in to it. I'm going to try the imager Morblias recommended

Really, that link referenced earlier said specificly there wasn't. *kicks the internet for lieing to me*

Well, i'm going to do it on the linux machine anyway since it is a faster down load.

Does the V2 img contain the correct chainminer? or does that need to be downloaded too?

Ok!!! My new MB has arrived! It is a ver 2 board, so i guess this means i have to update my flash drive to the v2 image. looking at the reference to an FAQ in this thread i gather that I have to do this on a Linux machine? It can't be done on winXP netbook?  

Ok, the most convient Linux machine that i have at the moment is crunching away with 51 USB Erupters. Will trying to use this to write a Pi memory at the same time cause any problems? I assume that i can use one of those cheap memory card to USB adapters that i use for transfering pictures from my camera to interface the card. Is this true?

I'm always nervous doing things the first time.

This is a matter of opinion. Belief bordering on religion. My personal opinion is that if they were shipped in the beginning of Aug. they still wouldn't make their money back because the difficulty, and the hashrate driving it, would have risen enough to compensate for it due to an increased amount of hardware becoming available.

All the profitability predicters do not take into account that if the hardware were priced cheaper to allow break even, the amount of hardware purchased would increase to nulify the lower price. There are a lot of reasons to mine Bitcoin, but increasing your wealth is rarely one of them.

ESD, ElectroStatic Discharge is a very real concern when shipping circuit boards. There are two levels of ESD packaging and both must be used and taken into account. The first is what is known as "Pink Poly". you will find pink plastic bags, bubble wrap, even foam peanuts are available in Pink Poly. Pink Poly is a plastic that does not build a Static charge. It does NOT protect the contents from ESD damage, it just does not contribute to the problem and should be used. The other is the metallic like, shiney ESD bags. These conduct Electricity and provide a uniform ground for the contents. These are a must.

When handling circuit cards you should make sure you are grounded, or at the very least touch the metal case of your computer to bleed off any static charge you may have on you. Try to only handle the cards by the edges.

The damage from ESD is usually invisible. You can't see it, but those chips on you circuit card could be damaged to the point where the don't function correctly, or at all. Personally, I have seen microscopic pictures of ESD damaged Integrated Circuits(what we all call chips). It is not a pretty sight.

For as long as I've been buying ASICminer Block Erupters, I've wondered why they come packaged in those acetate plastic bags which are a great source of Static Electricity. I put those in the garbage immediately, I don't want them anywhere near my unboxed Erupters.

The thing with ESD damage is that it isn't always immediately apparent. it just may degrade the usuable life of your product, or may cause random problems over time depending on what is damaged.

Seriously Shippers, please package your products properly!

Taxes have nothing to do with control. In the US, your stance could get you arrested for tax evasion.

Block inclusion is rarely under human control. I doubt Pool operaters can accomodate individual block inclusion requests. You are just going to have to wait.

It varies by state, but there is usually some one time extra fee.

my MB shipped!

Try cgminer or bfgminer, I'm not sure gui miner supports USBs

Dave has it covered, I'm just afraid he's forgotten, since i'm sure he is quite busy.

Dave! don't forget that i need a new Motherboard!!!

I believe that the motherboard powers the Pi.

Is ok, i should have one in my mailbox by today or tomorrow that i paid way too much for on eBay.

grrrrr...

Mine serve me well, they bring me breakfast in bed every morning.  

What happens to your coin if your trezor device gets broken?