- Joined
- Oct 24, 2006
- Messages
- 2,032
- Points
- 38
Credit cards, bah! Good old fashion money order - there's no info to steal, its basically sending cash in the mail (which ain't legal, so its the legal way to do it).
Otherwise, you can try your hand at DIY by buying a DVD burner at a local store and taking the diode out of it (an expensive way, but pretty much your only option). You'll have to keep in mind though that if your ultimate goal is to end up with a good working laser - the only real option is to buy one. Making one yourself is a great learning experience, very rewarding when you succeed, and it can turn out cheaper than buying one but its all a gamble. You never really know how well you'll do till you do it, so I advise that much more as a learning experience than as a way to try to get a laser.
3rd option ends up costing you a few dollars, but you can buy a visa, mastercard, etc. gift card from... nearly anywhere it seems (it seems like a majority of grocery stores are even selling them now). There's no information tied to it, its just a number to a card that only has what you paid for it. Its still technically possible the info could get stolen, but at least then you can only lose, at the very max, all that's on the card.
I get the impression there's more to it than your parents just worried about using a credit card though. You sure they would be okay with you owning... whatever it is you're vying for?
Otherwise, you can try your hand at DIY by buying a DVD burner at a local store and taking the diode out of it (an expensive way, but pretty much your only option). You'll have to keep in mind though that if your ultimate goal is to end up with a good working laser - the only real option is to buy one. Making one yourself is a great learning experience, very rewarding when you succeed, and it can turn out cheaper than buying one but its all a gamble. You never really know how well you'll do till you do it, so I advise that much more as a learning experience than as a way to try to get a laser.
3rd option ends up costing you a few dollars, but you can buy a visa, mastercard, etc. gift card from... nearly anywhere it seems (it seems like a majority of grocery stores are even selling them now). There's no information tied to it, its just a number to a card that only has what you paid for it. Its still technically possible the info could get stolen, but at least then you can only lose, at the very max, all that's on the card.
I get the impression there's more to it than your parents just worried about using a credit card though. You sure they would be okay with you owning... whatever it is you're vying for?
