"...I don't know where this thing about battery life comes from, probably a few people who've not turned the camera off, put it in the bag with the shutter cocked. Then in closing the bag put pressure on the shutter release which constantly drained the battery."
Ted, It's no urban myth, and I for one am not that stupid...!
I had one of the first M7 .85s in the UK. It chewed through three sets of batteries in a week. It went back to Leica who confirmed a battery drain problem, and replaced it. After the second drain, I put in new batteries, turned the camera off and left it on a shelf for a day. Result - one dead camera. I have had no problems with #2, however.
Regards,
Bill}