Welcome to my world.  :-{)

I disabled write cache in xp to try and prevent recurring disk issues (which worked), but it killed game performance. So I re-enabled it, and will have to remember to boot into repair console & run chkdsk every few days.  :-(

I'm hankering over a subcutaneous neodymium magnet ATM, but I'm not aware of any UK bod-modders who offer it as service.

I have about 4 spare AGP graphics cards. Just in case, but of what I don't know.

what brand/models are they?

DIY?

Mainly Radeons I believe. Acquired from old PCs at work that were due to be skipped.

They do actually have a purpose to some degree, my wife has an older Windows XP machine at work for use with a piece of specialised research kit that doesn't work under newer Windows. The PC that drives it had AGP graphics, so I collected a few spare cards. Four is admittedly excessive...

I like the practical uses that could lead to. My favourite is a magnet placed either side of the bridge of the nose for attaching a set of specs.

Something like these (though a few seem to be piercings and look less elegant than that which a magnet might achieve).

https://www.google.co.uk/search?tbm=isch&q=magnetic+nose+implant+for+glasses&spell=1&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi0h7T2qKLXAhVJ6xoKHeQ2B18QBQg7KAA&biw=946&bih=667&dpr=1

If they are strong enough, you could put several around your head for scissors, stapler and can opener, things I'm sick and tired of losing.

A walking stationary box.

I can see chefs using head magnets for small pans and keeping knives close to hand (so to speak) and surgeons for having lancets, scalpels and speculums ready to go whenever they are. :|

Don't think I have the cajones for that.

You just need the right anesthetic

It occurred to me that since Aramco is essentially a portion of the SA govt, then when you purchase a share of stock in Aramco:
- You are essentially purchasing a share of stock in Saudi Arabia
- The country is in heavy negative cash flow for a while - and apparently for some time to come
- Not sure if it is a good thing or not, but their solution to a cash flow problem appears to have been to round up anyone with significant money and influence and "jail them" and their families in a hotel.
- SA is also in the middle of several wars and appears to be itching to get into another one.

Not sure that this is really a great investment.  Certainly outside of my risk / reward level.

Saudi Arabia is fucked in all kinds of ways. OTOH, Brent crude just went to $64.

Doesn't buying shares in Aramco mean you're paying the UK+US arms industry for ISIS's weapons and helping out the criminally abusive SA government.

Why the fuck would anyone want to do that?

Many major governments are operating a budget deficit.

They've been running a very large surplus for many years which I believe now means cash in the bank. Obviously it relies heavily on the price of oil being above the breakeven point. Which seems to be around $74 for them.

Not just SA in the middle of many wars, but it does seem very involved in a lot of conflict at the moment.

Depends on what you mean by "break even", their production costs are ~$10 a barrel presumably the rest is to underwrite the princely lifestyle

http://money.cnn.com/2015/11/24/news/oil-prices-production-costs/index.html

Looks like the characters "short-term illusion of" have done a Tory from your image.