audiomick

That's the time. The "Volvo incident" would have been around '86 or '87.

I'd have the SAAB. Back in the day, the Volvo bricks had a reputation in Melbourne. It lasted, more or less, until the 850 came out. Up until then, the Volvo marketing emphasised how safe the cars were. Justifiably, if I remember correctly. That led to them being bought by people who relied on the car to keep them safe instead of learning how to drive safely. The motorcycling community was of the firm opinion that if you see a Volvo, you should give it a lot of space. Relevant to the following anecdote, drivers wearing hats were also considerd dangerous. In the late '80s, a man in a car with a hat on was likely to be getting on in years. I was riding through the suburb of Ivanhoe in Melbourne and came up behind a Volvo brick. I think it was a 244 Station Wagon. Squeaky clean, driver wearing a hat, custom number plates that read "Grandad". Maybe I misjudged the man, but I pulled over and waited for him to disappear.

I'm heading way off topic hear, but would like to make a point: Stuff sold as "speaker wire" is one of the ways the hi-fi branch makes a heap of profit. Yes, those speaker wires will pass a lot of current, but that has mostly to do with them being 6 gauge wire, i.e. really, really fat. The more copper in the wire, the more current it can pass without getting hot.

In the video, he said something about "the bike talks to me". I know what he means. I've had that with motorcycles, and also with musical instruments, even instruments that I can't play. I pick them up, and they want to be played. Same with bikes, you see them, touch them, and they say "when can we go for a ride?". I don't know if that is really "soul", or my subjective impression, but some things, when they are really good, do seem to live. PS: @activpop I have no doubt at all that the Kawasaki is a very fine motorcycle. I would be very tempted by it, but I have decided to stick to bikes with shaft drive.

Aprilia owned Guzzi from 2000 on, and was bought by Piaggio in 2004. The V11 started about 1998, didn't it? So that could be right.

Because it works. All the character of the predecessors, but with the benefits of progress. Later models might be technically better, but the V11 is a successful package. If I were to hear criticism of the V11 models, I would be prone to ask the critic if he or she has ever actually ridden one. Hearing one start is already very convincing. Actually riding one should convince any fair dinkum motorcyclist of what it is all about.

Another candidate for one of those spots is, of course, the V7 Sport with the first Tonti frame. The original "Greenie", if you like. Very pretty, and a milestone in the evolution of the Guzzi concept. The 1000S was very pretty, too. But I haven't ridden either of them either, so it is all based on looks.

Yeah, I know what you mean. That, and the Daytona. I didn't mention them because I haven't even been close enough to stroke either of them, let alone ride one. But they are definitely amongst the, if not the, prettiest Guzzis ever built.

Top 5? V35 Imola, because it is so very pretty, and the riding position is close to perfect for me. And it's fun to ride. And I still love it after about 14 years. EDIT: I just had a look at the documents. I bought it in 2013, tried and failed to get it registered in 2014, and finally succeeded with the registration in 2015. So about 10 years. Doesn't matter, every time I ride it, I come home with a smile on my face. Mk III Le Mans. The first Guzzi I rode. It belonged to a bloke I shared a house with in Melbourne. Also very pretty, and a riding position that I liked. V11 Le Mans. Similar character to the Mk III Le Mans, but with most of the niggles sorted out. If mine didn't have so many problems as a result of poor maintenance by previous owners, I would love it. Or maybe I do anyway, in spite of that. Not sure about the other two spots. Maybe a Norge, but I haven't ridden one. Maybe a Griso or a Sport 1200, but I haven't ridden either of those either, and I'm not rapt about the styling of either of them. There is also the Breva 750 i.e. . Probably not accurate to put it in a top 5 list, because it is, after all, actually just a mid-sized commuter bike. I wouldn't say I love it, but I'm getting used to how it looks, and enjoying riding it more and more.

Very clean. I'm impressed.

I wouldn't say "inherited" in the genetic sense, but one does have to grow up with it to learn it properly.

I think because the correct sound for the Italian "u" doesn't really exist in English. Like learning to correctly pronounce "ch" in German. Like in "ich", which means "I" (in the sense of "me") or in "nicht", which means "not". The correct sound is a kind of hissing sound. If I really concentrate, I can get close. Mostly it comes out like "ick" or "nickt". Wrong, but my English trained tongue finds it hard to get itself around the sound. And then there is the rolled "r". Can't even get close to that...

That is the gist of it, I reckon. AI doesn't make decisions. At the best, it draws conclusions from data and comparisons that it has been programmed to collect and make. As far as I know, it is not (yet) capable of, for instance, checking for plausibility. If enough "hits" say that 2+2=5, it will go with that. It is not ready to be replacing rather than just assisting specialists. I have no idea how long it will be before it is ready, but it isn't yet. As far as music goes, in my time at the uni in the '80s it was a topic of discussion: how much of the compositon process can one relegate to a computer? At the time, the series "Miami Vice" was popular. There was a computer program that "automatically" generated music. One fed it with parameters, and it "composed" music. Rumour had it that most, or all, of the background music for the series came from that program. The crucial point is, does someone look at the output of the program and select the useful bits to use, or does the output get used without anyone checking to see if it is bullshit or not? EDIT: for example, look at what the forum software does with d ick. @#$$#! That this is a common nickname for people whose name is Richard doesn't come into it. It "knows" that is a "bad word" and censors it. Admittedly a very primitive form of AI, but still, it demonstrates what I mean.

Seems so. From the "Nutcracker Suite".

Yes, but AI is much more modern. Computer generated has been around for years...

I wouldn't say "gullible". The technology is still fairly new, and it is not common knowledge that it is so good. So one doesn't immediately question it. That is the big problem with the whole thing: AI is becoming very powerful, and is not being questioned enough. It is a useful technology, but needs to be regulated at least a little bit.

The music, it is this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dance_of_the_Hours but my earliest memory of the melody is this or maybe this Walt Disney, Fantasia. @LowRyter right on the money.

As far as that goes, I don't have the means to enlarge the diagrams, but have found it very helpful to "extract" the various parts of the wiring loom from the wiring diagram. The pdf on the computer, which I can zoom in on, on the one hand, and a standard A4 print and coloured pens on the other hand to document the individual circuits. Once I've followed an individual circuit, it is pretty easy to understand. For those who think elecrickery is some kind of magic, it's not. I'm neither an electrician nor an electronics engineer. I studied music theory, but I ended up being a sound engineer. Doing that for a living does makes one very good at understanding what is connected to where, but it is not hard. Just remeber that "more Volts" will always try to find the path to "less Volts". That is all there is to it, really.

If you really do that, I'd be happy to help by adding German to the comparison. It wouldn't be the first time that I have confirmed something by comparing the translations.

Commenting on the costumes could easily be percieved as being a bit tacky, couldn't it? So I wont...

Yes. The correct "name" for that letter is zed.

I thought so. I'm one of the Admins on a German forum, and we can't see personal messages there either. I doubt that one could see them in the database either, actually.

Not on the wiring diagram I'm looking at. Neutral light gets fed from pin #3 on the ignition switch.

For the sake of completeness: A further inspection of the wiring diagram has revealed that, parallel to the fuel level sensor, there are also connections to The oil pressure warning light, and through that to the oil pressure switch The generator warning light, and through that to the regulator. The tachometer. Not the backlight, a + input that must have something to do with the internal works. I don't expect that the oil pressure warning light was a "leak". The oil pressure switch is, as far as I know, exactly that: a switch that is on or off. I don't however know what goes on in the regulator or the tachometer, so maybe there is a path to earth in one or both of them that is not a fault as such. Whatever, the point is there are enough explanations for how the 12 V on the wrongly connected green wire were finding a path to earth sufficient to activate the relay for the lights without having to worry that there might be an actual fault in the wiring somewhere.

After a night's sleep and a look at the wiring diagramm, that actually makes sense. With the high / low beam switch on low, the coil in the high beam relay was getting 12 V through the incorrectly connected green wire, and finding it's earth through the high beam indicator lamp, thereby closing the relay and allowing high beam to light up. Pressing the "flash to pass" closed the connection to put 12V on the other end of the coil in the relay. 12 V at both ends = no potential difference across the coil, so the relay opened, extinguishing the light.