The Stratosphere in Las Vegas is located at the north end of the strip. People tend to frequent the casinos located near the middle of the strip where the monorail is located. The casinos near the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue also draw more tourists due to their central location. Although a bit out of the way, the Stratosphere is worth the trip to the north end of the strip. I recently visited this casino and enjoyed my visit.

Pros of the Stratosphere Hotel and Casino

Being at the north end of the strip and away from the monorail, the Stratosphere is not as busy as some of the other casinos. Parking is also easier due to less traffic. For those not staying at the hotel, the Deuce, the Las Vegas mini bus transport, takes visitors directly in front of the casino,so it is easily accessible.

The Stratosphere has what is considered probably one of the best restaurants in the Vegas area. The Top of the World is located in the tower of the hotel and gives a 360 view of Las Vegas and the desert skyline. If you want a quicker meal the hotel hosts a buffet restaurant called The Buffet. Although the name is lacking in creativity, the food I ate their was awesome. The Buffet offers a full range of options from hot food to quick food such as pizzas and chicken nuggets. If you are in a hurry to get back to the tables and slots, The Pizzeria might be a great food option.

For those not interested in gambling, the hotel offers four thrill rides. The tower has four rides: The SkyJump, Insanity, X-Scream and the Big Shot. The Sky Jump is a tantamount to a sky dive, taking riders 855 feet below to the base of the tower. The Insanity spins riders in the air, free hanging at up to 3G speeds. If a teeter totter sounds fun, imagine the X-Scream ride at 866 feet above the ground. The Big Shot catapults the rider 165 feet in the air. Tickets can be purchased individually, for all four rides or as an unlimited all day package.

Cons of the Stratosphere

Because it is an older hotel and out of the way from the main tourist area, it seemed that the hotel was not well kept. Furniture and carpets were fine, but showed wear and tear. In some hallways, paint was peeling. The window had a bit of mold behind the window seal, but it may have been due to the fact that humidity is high in Vegas and mold is hard to control.

Some of the pay outs on tables appeared to be less than other casinos. It appeared that not many people were not cashing in on the slot machines,but machines were full and the tables were very active.

The positives outweighed the negatives. I would suggest that anyone who wants an all inclusive Las Vegas vacation at a budget rate, make a trek to the Stratosphere. Before visiting, call the casino or check online for discounts or specials. A trip to the Stratosphere may well be worth your time.

Hi,

I got this PC from my cousin, it’s supposed to go to my gran as she’s using an ancient one. This one’s not the newest either but would be a huge improvement.

It’s a Packard Bell IMEDIA 2669

It came faulty though. It had Windows MCE on it and the Keyboard and Mouse wouldn’t work. It would boot to my cousin’s login screen but K+M didn’t work regardless of being plugged in via ps/2 or USB (at the back).

I’ve now got them working via USB at the front. There’s only 2 USB’s at the front though. So I installed a PCI card. And now there’s 4 at the back. The 4 at the back (PCI card) work fine in windows but u can’t get in to the BIOS with it. The keyboard has to be in the front to enter the BIOS.

Anyway, the plan was to install Windows 7 on it as it should be capable. 2gb ram, Pentium D 3ghz. So Windows 7 home was purchased for it.

When trying to install windows 7 home, the K+M stop working quite early on, where you are asked to choose your language.

I’ve been googling this a lot and one suggestion was a faulty PSU and to check voltages, 5v,12v and 3.3v (something like that). They were all within 10% so that doesn’t seem to be the problem.

I should also let you know, one of the 4 original USB ports on the back (the motherboard ones) seems to have samage to it. Like part of it’s been pulled out. I haven’t tested the ethernet, spdif and another connector but both the PS/2 and USB on the back are faulty.

Ideally I’d want to get the ports at the back working, but I’d make do with just installing Windows 7. Just not sure how to go about it. I’ve heard about being able to install with USB but how do I do that with the disc?

Is there anything I should try? I’ve reset the BIOS, and I even tried taking the motherboard battery out for a minute.

Just to be clear, the 2 USB ports at the front work, the 4 I added at the back work. The 4 originals at the back dont and the ps/2 don’t. The 2 at the front are the only ones that can access the Bios. And none seem to work during the Windows 7 installation.

Cheers for reading and please respond with ideas/suggestions, even if it’s a long shot.

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Top U.S. officials reiterated the American position of refusing to negotiate with al Qaeda in hostage situations. White House spokesman Jay Carney said that authorities were still trying to coordinate Weinstein’s release, but provided no details as to what efforts were in place. The video, which shows Weinstein being held against a white backdrop, was directed at U.S. President Barack Obama and Weinstein recites what sound like prepared remarks asking for the president to step in and give his captors what they want in return for his freedom.

It is believed that the al Qaeda group holding Weinstein wants the release of specific prisoners in exchange for releasing Weinstein. Weinstein has been held by al Qaeda since August, when he was kidnapped from the Pakistani city of Lahore. He was living there as an advisor and consultant for J.E. Austin Associates, a U.S. firm that works with various Pakistani government agencies and private corporations.

Although the video showed Weinstein in what appeared to be reasonable health, it’s unclear exactly when the video was shot. He does note in the video that he has been given his required medication and that he has been cared for by his captors. The only realistic option on the table from the U.S. perspective is to try to establish back-channel communications with the al Qaeda cell holding Weinstein and to try to quietly negotiate his release via alternative means. A rescue attempt would seem unlikely, unless Weinstein’s location is determined to be outside of Pakistan.