<![CDATA[The Lurker Lounge Forums - All Forums]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/ Sun, 19 May 2013 00:01:50 +0000 MyBB <![CDATA[LED lighting, and a small ranty rant,]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15323.html Fri, 17 May 2013 04:18:26 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15323.html
I'm using them for bias lighting behind my computer monitor.

Now I am a LED lighting enthusiast, way back when. Ever since I first saw my friend using one of the first generation, 5mm white LED flashlight on a camping trip, years and years ago.

It was bluish white, only as bright as a moon beam on a cloudy night, and ran on coin cell batteries. It wasn't that great, but it's big advantage was the battery life, ruggedness, and relatively cleaner beam. But I knew it had big potential the minute I saw that thing.

I want to be clear here, I am not an early adopter. But when I see a good\promising technology reach the 'good enough' critical stage, I jump in.

I hate the mostly crappy LED I see being offered at Sprawl-Mart, because IMO it gives a bad name to a very good emerging technology. I'm an enthusiast geek, so I can spend hours reading up info on what to look for.

But when we're talking about the retail consumer space, where other people may not have the time or interest level, they just need something of quality that works. First impression matters a whole lot more. And if John and Jane Q public first experience is buying an expensive, and crappy LED light, they are just as likely to write off -every- LED as overhyped, overprice, and underperforming.

But getting slightly back on track, at 16 bucks a pop, and will be decreasing in the future I'm betting. LED light bulbs has reached an important price milestone IMO. That was the price when CFL really started to move off the shelf.

Speaking of CFL. Here is how I'm impressed with how far LED has come.
I am no longer buying CFL bulbs. The ones I do have, I will be using until they're dead. But I will be replacing them with LED. The few incandescents I have are already in places that very rarely sees continual\long usage (back porch that sees maybe 5 minutes in one year), so it's not worth replacing them for a long time.

One important exception, two 100w incandescent are in locations that needs that amount of light for someone in my family, and when that light goes out I may replace them with halogen (similar to incan), but I'd really want an A19 socket, 100w equivalent LED instead. This is where the savings really start for me, because I hate going up a chair to replace that damn bulb everytime it goes out. Big Grin

The basic tech is there, it's just a matter of adapting and adopting. I already saw some high powered LED, portable work lamps. It's still pricy compared to older halogens, but it's already elbowing out CFL work lamps.

Then again I always saw CFL as a temporary technology, it's the John the Baptist to solid state lighting Jesus. Tongue

Now here is my slightly ranty rant.

I remember when this little stupidity came out.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on...le6748435/

I say it's stupid because I think the government should look at an 'X-Prize' model \ carrot instead of knee jerk ban move. Banning lead paint, that's good. Banning incandescent bulb, giving fuel to the usual suspects of Conservatards 'they're banning mah freedumb!!11', backing\urging CFL which I seriously think is just a stop gap tech at this point, not so good.

The reason I threw that 'Conservatard' label? What else comes to mind when I remember something like this. (I remember seeing it on CNN for Fox sake.)

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=...ZWVDsqTkaM

I want to be clear here. I'm not pissed about Bush Jr. Or the bafflegabber Fleischer. It's not even about 'Murrca'. It's the bigger underlying message it says about the 'First' World.

Quote:"That's a big 'no,'" Fleischer said. "The president believes that it's an American way of life, that it should be the goal of policy-makers to protect the American way of life. The American way of life is a blessed one."


If anything, I should thank Mr. Fleischer for saying it. From what I've seen so far, the current ruling party of my country, The Conservative Party of Canukistania, Ruled by his Worship King Harper, wouldn't dream of saying anything like the above. They just do it.*

*(And no, I'm no liberal\progressive\komienist\Al Gore. In fact I even voted for King Harper the first round. Well it was mostly to vote the Liberals out, Canadians seems to be more fond of voting parties out than voting parties in, but that's a whole other kettle of fish.)

But getting back to that quote. It stunned me when I first saw that. For a so called conservative, with the word 'conserve' in it, that's just mind boggling. And what the hell happened to the proud Ameri-can-do, pioneering spirit the Yanks had? Hosers and Lumberjacks have the expression 'give 'er', which is the kindred spirit of 'git 'er done'.

'The American way of life is a blessed one?' Now I get what he's trying to paint here. It's the Norman Rockwell painting of Thanksgiving. I get that. It's also IMO, quite disingenuous.

The 'America' I remembered also had a pioneering, roll up your sleeve, work hard and play hard ethos. You know, the kind they make television truck commercials out of. Big Grin

It is a WTF moment for me when I saw that on TV. Was this really the same nation that once said, 'Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men.'?

Again, I want to be clear here. This is not an Anti America Rant. I don't agree with many of the US policies. It's people however, I have a genuine love and affection for. I have families that live in the USA, and are citizens. I have friends in the USA. Small business wise, on a personal scale, I genuinely enjoy working with the Yanks.

There is something that is genuinely disturbing going on however, and IMO it is more complex than Left vs Right, Commietard vs Conservetard.

I mentioned before my ranty part. How I am a LED lighting enthusiast. And I saw the same pattern from some admittedly few, but loud and insistent people emerging, when that technology began to gain strength.

First, dismissal. "It's nice but niche, not bright enough'. True, but give it time.

Then it became brighter. 'Yeah it's getting brighter...but it's still too expensive'. True, but give it time.

It then became brighter, and cheaper. 'Yeah well, it doesn't have a warm colour.' True, but give it time.

It then became brighter, cheaper, and now have better uniformity, and a choice of warm and cool colour spectrum. 'Yeah well...uh...I still can't buy it at Home Des-pot for a reasonable price like under 20 bucks' True, but yadda yadda.

I can now buy a 60 watt equivalent, warm or cool spectrum, LED bulb in a common socket configuration, for 16 bucks, at a big box store. 'Yeah well..uh...moving goal post some more... Progressives are ruining the country!!11 I'm going to buy all the incan bulbs before the commie-fascist ban, and then sell them for freedom!111' Uh....right.Dodgy

Again, before someone(s) gets all butthurtz on how I'm saying mean things about Merca and how I hate freedoms. Let's make this clear. This is something far bigger and deeper (derper? Derp!). My own current ruling government is IMO, doing something worse than just talking crazy anti-science, anti-knowledge talk. They do what people with a serious intent do. They don't talk about it. They just do it.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/poli...le8878547/

I don't want to end on just a ranty, overly pessimistic note however.
Canadian Astronaut Chris Hadfield did a great cover of David Bowie's Space Oddity. Usually I don't like covers that takes a more literal tone that the original version (let's face it, it's not a big secret that Space Oddity can be heard as a metaphor for drug abuse.). But in rare cases, it can becomes something else altogether, in a good way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo

Nothing like a shot of the ole blue marble from space, to give perspective on just how petty and small we as a species can be. But hey, if it can produce a singing astronaut, we might have some potential. Maybe.

TL, DR; It is now affordable to buy a household LED light bulb, but it's still more fun for some folks to curse the darkness. I'd rather curse in a better lit room however. Big Grin]]>
I'm using them for bias lighting behind my computer monitor.

Now I am a LED lighting enthusiast, way back when. Ever since I first saw my friend using one of the first generation, 5mm white LED flashlight on a camping trip, years and years ago.

It was bluish white, only as bright as a moon beam on a cloudy night, and ran on coin cell batteries. It wasn't that great, but it's big advantage was the battery life, ruggedness, and relatively cleaner beam. But I knew it had big potential the minute I saw that thing.

I want to be clear here, I am not an early adopter. But when I see a good\promising technology reach the 'good enough' critical stage, I jump in.

I hate the mostly crappy LED I see being offered at Sprawl-Mart, because IMO it gives a bad name to a very good emerging technology. I'm an enthusiast geek, so I can spend hours reading up info on what to look for.

But when we're talking about the retail consumer space, where other people may not have the time or interest level, they just need something of quality that works. First impression matters a whole lot more. And if John and Jane Q public first experience is buying an expensive, and crappy LED light, they are just as likely to write off -every- LED as overhyped, overprice, and underperforming.

But getting slightly back on track, at 16 bucks a pop, and will be decreasing in the future I'm betting. LED light bulbs has reached an important price milestone IMO. That was the price when CFL really started to move off the shelf.

Speaking of CFL. Here is how I'm impressed with how far LED has come.
I am no longer buying CFL bulbs. The ones I do have, I will be using until they're dead. But I will be replacing them with LED. The few incandescents I have are already in places that very rarely sees continual\long usage (back porch that sees maybe 5 minutes in one year), so it's not worth replacing them for a long time.

One important exception, two 100w incandescent are in locations that needs that amount of light for someone in my family, and when that light goes out I may replace them with halogen (similar to incan), but I'd really want an A19 socket, 100w equivalent LED instead. This is where the savings really start for me, because I hate going up a chair to replace that damn bulb everytime it goes out. Big Grin

The basic tech is there, it's just a matter of adapting and adopting. I already saw some high powered LED, portable work lamps. It's still pricy compared to older halogens, but it's already elbowing out CFL work lamps.

Then again I always saw CFL as a temporary technology, it's the John the Baptist to solid state lighting Jesus. Tongue

Now here is my slightly ranty rant.

I remember when this little stupidity came out.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on...le6748435/

I say it's stupid because I think the government should look at an 'X-Prize' model \ carrot instead of knee jerk ban move. Banning lead paint, that's good. Banning incandescent bulb, giving fuel to the usual suspects of Conservatards 'they're banning mah freedumb!!11', backing\urging CFL which I seriously think is just a stop gap tech at this point, not so good.

The reason I threw that 'Conservatard' label? What else comes to mind when I remember something like this. (I remember seeing it on CNN for Fox sake.)

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/story?id=...ZWVDsqTkaM

I want to be clear here. I'm not pissed about Bush Jr. Or the bafflegabber Fleischer. It's not even about 'Murrca'. It's the bigger underlying message it says about the 'First' World.

Quote:"That's a big 'no,'" Fleischer said. "The president believes that it's an American way of life, that it should be the goal of policy-makers to protect the American way of life. The American way of life is a blessed one."


If anything, I should thank Mr. Fleischer for saying it. From what I've seen so far, the current ruling party of my country, The Conservative Party of Canukistania, Ruled by his Worship King Harper, wouldn't dream of saying anything like the above. They just do it.*

*(And no, I'm no liberal\progressive\komienist\Al Gore. In fact I even voted for King Harper the first round. Well it was mostly to vote the Liberals out, Canadians seems to be more fond of voting parties out than voting parties in, but that's a whole other kettle of fish.)

But getting back to that quote. It stunned me when I first saw that. For a so called conservative, with the word 'conserve' in it, that's just mind boggling. And what the hell happened to the proud Ameri-can-do, pioneering spirit the Yanks had? Hosers and Lumberjacks have the expression 'give 'er', which is the kindred spirit of 'git 'er done'.

'The American way of life is a blessed one?' Now I get what he's trying to paint here. It's the Norman Rockwell painting of Thanksgiving. I get that. It's also IMO, quite disingenuous.

The 'America' I remembered also had a pioneering, roll up your sleeve, work hard and play hard ethos. You know, the kind they make television truck commercials out of. Big Grin

It is a WTF moment for me when I saw that on TV. Was this really the same nation that once said, 'Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men.'?

Again, I want to be clear here. This is not an Anti America Rant. I don't agree with many of the US policies. It's people however, I have a genuine love and affection for. I have families that live in the USA, and are citizens. I have friends in the USA. Small business wise, on a personal scale, I genuinely enjoy working with the Yanks.

There is something that is genuinely disturbing going on however, and IMO it is more complex than Left vs Right, Commietard vs Conservetard.

I mentioned before my ranty part. How I am a LED lighting enthusiast. And I saw the same pattern from some admittedly few, but loud and insistent people emerging, when that technology began to gain strength.

First, dismissal. "It's nice but niche, not bright enough'. True, but give it time.

Then it became brighter. 'Yeah it's getting brighter...but it's still too expensive'. True, but give it time.

It then became brighter, and cheaper. 'Yeah well, it doesn't have a warm colour.' True, but give it time.

It then became brighter, cheaper, and now have better uniformity, and a choice of warm and cool colour spectrum. 'Yeah well...uh...I still can't buy it at Home Des-pot for a reasonable price like under 20 bucks' True, but yadda yadda.

I can now buy a 60 watt equivalent, warm or cool spectrum, LED bulb in a common socket configuration, for 16 bucks, at a big box store. 'Yeah well..uh...moving goal post some more... Progressives are ruining the country!!11 I'm going to buy all the incan bulbs before the commie-fascist ban, and then sell them for freedom!111' Uh....right.Dodgy

Again, before someone(s) gets all butthurtz on how I'm saying mean things about Merca and how I hate freedoms. Let's make this clear. This is something far bigger and deeper (derper? Derp!). My own current ruling government is IMO, doing something worse than just talking crazy anti-science, anti-knowledge talk. They do what people with a serious intent do. They don't talk about it. They just do it.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/poli...le8878547/

I don't want to end on just a ranty, overly pessimistic note however.
Canadian Astronaut Chris Hadfield did a great cover of David Bowie's Space Oddity. Usually I don't like covers that takes a more literal tone that the original version (let's face it, it's not a big secret that Space Oddity can be heard as a metaphor for drug abuse.). But in rare cases, it can becomes something else altogether, in a good way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo

Nothing like a shot of the ole blue marble from space, to give perspective on just how petty and small we as a species can be. But hey, if it can produce a singing astronaut, we might have some potential. Maybe.

TL, DR; It is now affordable to buy a household LED light bulb, but it's still more fun for some folks to curse the darkness. I'd rather curse in a better lit room however. Big Grin]]> <![CDATA[Grim Dawn - Alpha released today]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15247.html Wed, 15 May 2013 21:12:27 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15247.html
http://www.grimdawn.com/contribute_buynow01.php

I've got mine, and I am just about to start playing.]]>
http://www.grimdawn.com/contribute_buynow01.php

I've got mine, and I am just about to start playing.]]> <![CDATA[How can I install Hellfire on Windows 7?]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15239.html Tue, 14 May 2013 23:42:08 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15239.html
Edit: Sorry. I forgot to mention I tried different compatibilities to no avail. Ran as admin. Is it even possible with a 64 bit OS?]]>
Edit: Sorry. I forgot to mention I tried different compatibilities to no avail. Ran as admin. Is it even possible with a 64 bit OS?]]> <![CDATA[Taming your inner demon]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15238.html Tue, 14 May 2013 20:03:09 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15238.html

(Yes, that's me... no, not the green guy Wink !)


I wanted to share with everyone an experience that has come as a great surprise to me, one I discovered here on the Lounge as a matter of fact. What I'm sharing is the road to a better self that I discovered, one I feel may benefit others.

I scored a 15 on this test.

So I realized I have an anger problem (so what? lot's of people do), but I discovered it in the most peculiar of ways with the most interesting of characters (FireIceTalon) and while trying to think up a rebuttal to an argument, I realized with great shock and deep contemplation, that I was being controlled by my anger, and that it (my anger) was merely a wall that prevented me from getting hurt, one I had set up since I was a child. To make the issue more convoluted (or pathetic) is that I never knew I had this problem because it was so ingrained in my every thought. This all came to me in an epiphany I would liken to discovering God for the first time; it was that strong. I was literally floored when I discovered this about myself because, in retrospect, it was so obvious...

Part of the problem with anger (in general) is when your experiencing it, you get that adrenaline rush followed up by dopamine being released and everything you're doing feels like it's the "right" choice so it's easy to fall into the trap of thinking everyone else is wrong except you. I suppose to the extreme, some people could get addicted to that feeling; I wasn't that type of angry person, but I was explosive when I felt thing's weren't going as I expected them too.

To spin this tale out correctly, I need you (the reader) to be able to identify where I'm coming from, so in this regard, let's bring it back to where it all began: it all started when I was in grade-school. My earliest memories of my parents are of them constantly bickering and fighting when they were at home. They both worked two jobs so I hardly spent any time with them, and when they were home together they only fought, and when home separate, were too busy paying bills or working on their own projects to spend time with me. I never had any brothers or sisters and I honestly didn't know any better because I had nothing to compare my life too, but I always felt hallow inside, lonely. I wasn't enrolled in any sports or extra curricular activities and my parent's didn't take me out. I spent a lot of time at my grandmothers, but I always felt low on self-esteem because I guess part of me felt responsible for their bickering, which is untrue but you know how kids think. So when at school, I had a really tough time making friends and because I always had my head down, I got picked on a lot. You can't imagine how lonely it is as an only child without friends and with parents who don't pay any attention to you because they are constantly arguing around you.

When I was eight years old (yes, you are reading this right), I was so sad inside and didn't have anybody I could call a friend, I saw no point in living so I tried to kill myself by dropping onto the floor from my kitchen counter onto a kitchen knife aimed at my heart (or where I thought it was anyways). I failed the first two attempts as the knife bounced off my ribs, but by the third, I had realized my error and attempted it again, but this time, I found my hand had moved, or better said, I had unconsciously moved the knife so it wouldn't kill me. At the time, I was so furious with myself, but then it was THAT moment that I decided, death couldn't be any worse than living, so what the fuck am I afraid of? And from that point on, I lived my life without fear, without consequence, because I was truly unafraid of death (I welcomed it). What did I have to loose? So I stood my ground when bullies approached and got knocked down, but earned a bit of street cred. I started getting friends because they were attracted to the intensity and insanity that was me at the time and when bullies attacked, I tried to enlist them (my friends), but they were to afraid, and my parents continued to ignore me at home, so I was still all alone with my problems and the yard duties don't really care what the problem is or if that bully plans on beating you up after school so long as you don't fight in front of her at that moment. But I was not afraid, so how would I deal with this menace (bullies). My next attempt at self defense was to, when confronted, strike back, which ultimately led to another kid getting the yard duty and me getting in trouble (despite this new found lack of fear and inward rage, I was still quiet as could be and shy because at the time I never learned how to communicate with people in a genuine manner - people "expect" you to act a certain way, not only with "yes sir's" and "no ma'am's", but the way you look in their eyes, shake their hands, posture... etc, and at this point in my life, I was behind everyone else on the social scale and hand't learned to anticipate what they expected of me so I came across very ani-social because I was practically raising myself here...); striking-back was a double-edged sword which always resulted in me getting in trouble AND the bully getting his friends and pummeling me after school. Live and learn, live and learn.... So I found what worked best for me was to stand my ground to the bully, and when he went to assault me, to attack him before his attacked landed and surprise him (the three bullies I encountered throughout my time at grade school were always bigger than I, so I had to strike fast and furious to catch them off guard), and hold him in a way he could not attack me back (by gripping his vital organs) until he gave up or passed out, and even THEN bullies would rise up, get their friends, and assault me again so the ONLY OPTION I HAD was to put the fear of god into these kids, make them think I was insane, and that if they assaulted me, there was no telling how far I'd be willing to go, and to deliver that message I had to continue attacking them once they hit the ground until they realized it was simply not worth picking on me any longer.

In a world where you are fighting just for survival, this aggressive act (the one directly descried above) is in fact self-defensive and preventive when nobody else is doing anything to help or protect you from bulling, however based on most of the replies I received from members on this forum, I've realized most of you have not gone through the type of life I have, and most likely it's difficult to place yourself in my shoes and share my experience because it's so different than yours and the more logical option you'd take would be just to get the yard duty or tell your bigger brother or mom and dad. I didn't have those options so I had to learn how to survive on my own and without guidance, that was the best I could come up with. It (that train of thought) invaded every aspect of my personality, controlled everything I did and thought, my reactions with others, everything! And I think it was actually a fear, not of my attackers, but a fear that if I backed down and let go, that I was no better off than that pathetic little boy who tried to commit suicide at eight years old who gave up. So I swore to never give up and that's how I've lived my life for the past 35 years (and I'm not talking about the rhetoric of saying "I'll never give up," but I mean literally willing to fight through impossible odds up to the point of death - whatever your goal is, no mater how trivial).

So to bring this back to the current times, I realized I had an anger problem when FIT called me out on some choice words I was using when I was taking something personal that I really shouldn't have, and I pondered why I said the things I said and realized it all stemmed from that past I just mentioned above, and that it CONTROLLED ME (my past; my anger)! I was not in control, my anger was! Wow, this was a life-changing moment for me! Why? Because I was no longer that poor little kid, I have friends now, I have a wife, I have kids who have taught me so much about love, compassion, morality... I've learned how to communicate with others and I thrive doing it and I love it! I have changed who I am inside completely, but this was one aspect of myself I hadn't realized still controlled me, and it affected others because when I got mad, I made others suffer, and I never knew that. This logic, this realization has brought new meaning to my life in ways I'd never have thought because I realized, I don't have to keep those walls up anymore, I don't have to prove anything to myself anymore, I don't have to be afraid!

"Yeah yeah, touching story and all that, but what have you got to show for it? I thought you said this was a road to discovery, not a telltale?" Well, of the more interesting thing's that has changed for me is my handwriting. I'm in no way making a joke of this. Before, my handwriting used to look sloppy, rushed, jagged, aggressive. No matter how many ways I tried to alter my handwriting, it always looked like that, even when I wrote slowly and methodical. Since I realized my problem two weeks ago, my hand writing is how as I always imagined it, beautiful to look at, rounded, elegant. Someone told me, "you have really nice writing," and I realized, "oh my god, what in the world happened?" So I compared and did a few more tests and my handwriting has in fact really changed. My mother-in-law has a degree is handwriting analysis and has assisted detective with cases in the past and she has always told me that one's handwriting is a window into the soul; she also told me to change your personality, change your handwriting. I always thought she was full of it before, but now, I must concede there is definitively something to this myth.

[Image: 20130514112607.jpg]
Pic on the left is before, pic on the right is after, although the red penmanship is a bit harried because I'm in the middle of writing this topic up which is bringing up old emotions, but nonetheless it's still a good example of how my writing has changed.

The next thing I noticed was that I'm starting to understand that I no longer have to always be right. We (my family) was playing Risk last Friday and the Friday before that when my wife made a move I felt threw the game... and I could not let it go. I kept telling her she made a terrible move and, I don't remember the exact chain of events, but this forum came up along with my epiphany and... well, I realized when thing's didn't go the way I expect, I get angry, and realizing this has helped me let things go. Let me explain this better; when something happens now opposite from what I expected, (the new me) is able to let it go. I feel calm about it and just watch others do what they do and don't feel like I have to insert my opinion. And I don't feel like I lost part of myself in this process; quite the opposite actually. I feel empowered, in control, like it's my choice and that I'm letting other's have theirs. I feels really good and I'm sad it took this long to realize this, but happy I finally did and it's changing my life.

Finally, I realized I don't feel threatened anymore when visualizing being assaulted by someone, at least, what I mean by this is that I feel like it's okay to walk-away, to run even. I don't have to confront every conflict head-on anymore. I don't always have to be in control, or rather, I can remain in control an not loose any respect for myself without having to engage a threat. I'm going to tell a little story here to emphasize this point: as a teenager, I'd always attack my attacker first and two times that I can remember, I had police officers draw their hand-guns on me as they told me to lay down and instead I turned and face them down in a stand-off. I am no longer this person anymore and I don't have to be. Wow, it's so empowering.

So, at it's worst, this is just a story I'm sharing with you all. At it's best, it's a story that can help others who currently have my (old) disposition, and can hopefully be motivational for them as they struggle letting go of their own self. And I'm still learning; as I shed a bit more of my wall, I seem to learn something new about myself everyday. It's really a beautiful process.]]>

(Yes, that's me... no, not the green guy Wink !)


I wanted to share with everyone an experience that has come as a great surprise to me, one I discovered here on the Lounge as a matter of fact. What I'm sharing is the road to a better self that I discovered, one I feel may benefit others.

I scored a 15 on this test.

So I realized I have an anger problem (so what? lot's of people do), but I discovered it in the most peculiar of ways with the most interesting of characters (FireIceTalon) and while trying to think up a rebuttal to an argument, I realized with great shock and deep contemplation, that I was being controlled by my anger, and that it (my anger) was merely a wall that prevented me from getting hurt, one I had set up since I was a child. To make the issue more convoluted (or pathetic) is that I never knew I had this problem because it was so ingrained in my every thought. This all came to me in an epiphany I would liken to discovering God for the first time; it was that strong. I was literally floored when I discovered this about myself because, in retrospect, it was so obvious...

Part of the problem with anger (in general) is when your experiencing it, you get that adrenaline rush followed up by dopamine being released and everything you're doing feels like it's the "right" choice so it's easy to fall into the trap of thinking everyone else is wrong except you. I suppose to the extreme, some people could get addicted to that feeling; I wasn't that type of angry person, but I was explosive when I felt thing's weren't going as I expected them too.

To spin this tale out correctly, I need you (the reader) to be able to identify where I'm coming from, so in this regard, let's bring it back to where it all began: it all started when I was in grade-school. My earliest memories of my parents are of them constantly bickering and fighting when they were at home. They both worked two jobs so I hardly spent any time with them, and when they were home together they only fought, and when home separate, were too busy paying bills or working on their own projects to spend time with me. I never had any brothers or sisters and I honestly didn't know any better because I had nothing to compare my life too, but I always felt hallow inside, lonely. I wasn't enrolled in any sports or extra curricular activities and my parent's didn't take me out. I spent a lot of time at my grandmothers, but I always felt low on self-esteem because I guess part of me felt responsible for their bickering, which is untrue but you know how kids think. So when at school, I had a really tough time making friends and because I always had my head down, I got picked on a lot. You can't imagine how lonely it is as an only child without friends and with parents who don't pay any attention to you because they are constantly arguing around you.

When I was eight years old (yes, you are reading this right), I was so sad inside and didn't have anybody I could call a friend, I saw no point in living so I tried to kill myself by dropping onto the floor from my kitchen counter onto a kitchen knife aimed at my heart (or where I thought it was anyways). I failed the first two attempts as the knife bounced off my ribs, but by the third, I had realized my error and attempted it again, but this time, I found my hand had moved, or better said, I had unconsciously moved the knife so it wouldn't kill me. At the time, I was so furious with myself, but then it was THAT moment that I decided, death couldn't be any worse than living, so what the fuck am I afraid of? And from that point on, I lived my life without fear, without consequence, because I was truly unafraid of death (I welcomed it). What did I have to loose? So I stood my ground when bullies approached and got knocked down, but earned a bit of street cred. I started getting friends because they were attracted to the intensity and insanity that was me at the time and when bullies attacked, I tried to enlist them (my friends), but they were to afraid, and my parents continued to ignore me at home, so I was still all alone with my problems and the yard duties don't really care what the problem is or if that bully plans on beating you up after school so long as you don't fight in front of her at that moment. But I was not afraid, so how would I deal with this menace (bullies). My next attempt at self defense was to, when confronted, strike back, which ultimately led to another kid getting the yard duty and me getting in trouble (despite this new found lack of fear and inward rage, I was still quiet as could be and shy because at the time I never learned how to communicate with people in a genuine manner - people "expect" you to act a certain way, not only with "yes sir's" and "no ma'am's", but the way you look in their eyes, shake their hands, posture... etc, and at this point in my life, I was behind everyone else on the social scale and hand't learned to anticipate what they expected of me so I came across very ani-social because I was practically raising myself here...); striking-back was a double-edged sword which always resulted in me getting in trouble AND the bully getting his friends and pummeling me after school. Live and learn, live and learn.... So I found what worked best for me was to stand my ground to the bully, and when he went to assault me, to attack him before his attacked landed and surprise him (the three bullies I encountered throughout my time at grade school were always bigger than I, so I had to strike fast and furious to catch them off guard), and hold him in a way he could not attack me back (by gripping his vital organs) until he gave up or passed out, and even THEN bullies would rise up, get their friends, and assault me again so the ONLY OPTION I HAD was to put the fear of god into these kids, make them think I was insane, and that if they assaulted me, there was no telling how far I'd be willing to go, and to deliver that message I had to continue attacking them once they hit the ground until they realized it was simply not worth picking on me any longer.

In a world where you are fighting just for survival, this aggressive act (the one directly descried above) is in fact self-defensive and preventive when nobody else is doing anything to help or protect you from bulling, however based on most of the replies I received from members on this forum, I've realized most of you have not gone through the type of life I have, and most likely it's difficult to place yourself in my shoes and share my experience because it's so different than yours and the more logical option you'd take would be just to get the yard duty or tell your bigger brother or mom and dad. I didn't have those options so I had to learn how to survive on my own and without guidance, that was the best I could come up with. It (that train of thought) invaded every aspect of my personality, controlled everything I did and thought, my reactions with others, everything! And I think it was actually a fear, not of my attackers, but a fear that if I backed down and let go, that I was no better off than that pathetic little boy who tried to commit suicide at eight years old who gave up. So I swore to never give up and that's how I've lived my life for the past 35 years (and I'm not talking about the rhetoric of saying "I'll never give up," but I mean literally willing to fight through impossible odds up to the point of death - whatever your goal is, no mater how trivial).

So to bring this back to the current times, I realized I had an anger problem when FIT called me out on some choice words I was using when I was taking something personal that I really shouldn't have, and I pondered why I said the things I said and realized it all stemmed from that past I just mentioned above, and that it CONTROLLED ME (my past; my anger)! I was not in control, my anger was! Wow, this was a life-changing moment for me! Why? Because I was no longer that poor little kid, I have friends now, I have a wife, I have kids who have taught me so much about love, compassion, morality... I've learned how to communicate with others and I thrive doing it and I love it! I have changed who I am inside completely, but this was one aspect of myself I hadn't realized still controlled me, and it affected others because when I got mad, I made others suffer, and I never knew that. This logic, this realization has brought new meaning to my life in ways I'd never have thought because I realized, I don't have to keep those walls up anymore, I don't have to prove anything to myself anymore, I don't have to be afraid!

"Yeah yeah, touching story and all that, but what have you got to show for it? I thought you said this was a road to discovery, not a telltale?" Well, of the more interesting thing's that has changed for me is my handwriting. I'm in no way making a joke of this. Before, my handwriting used to look sloppy, rushed, jagged, aggressive. No matter how many ways I tried to alter my handwriting, it always looked like that, even when I wrote slowly and methodical. Since I realized my problem two weeks ago, my hand writing is how as I always imagined it, beautiful to look at, rounded, elegant. Someone told me, "you have really nice writing," and I realized, "oh my god, what in the world happened?" So I compared and did a few more tests and my handwriting has in fact really changed. My mother-in-law has a degree is handwriting analysis and has assisted detective with cases in the past and she has always told me that one's handwriting is a window into the soul; she also told me to change your personality, change your handwriting. I always thought she was full of it before, but now, I must concede there is definitively something to this myth.

[Image: 20130514112607.jpg]
Pic on the left is before, pic on the right is after, although the red penmanship is a bit harried because I'm in the middle of writing this topic up which is bringing up old emotions, but nonetheless it's still a good example of how my writing has changed.

The next thing I noticed was that I'm starting to understand that I no longer have to always be right. We (my family) was playing Risk last Friday and the Friday before that when my wife made a move I felt threw the game... and I could not let it go. I kept telling her she made a terrible move and, I don't remember the exact chain of events, but this forum came up along with my epiphany and... well, I realized when thing's didn't go the way I expect, I get angry, and realizing this has helped me let things go. Let me explain this better; when something happens now opposite from what I expected, (the new me) is able to let it go. I feel calm about it and just watch others do what they do and don't feel like I have to insert my opinion. And I don't feel like I lost part of myself in this process; quite the opposite actually. I feel empowered, in control, like it's my choice and that I'm letting other's have theirs. I feels really good and I'm sad it took this long to realize this, but happy I finally did and it's changing my life.

Finally, I realized I don't feel threatened anymore when visualizing being assaulted by someone, at least, what I mean by this is that I feel like it's okay to walk-away, to run even. I don't have to confront every conflict head-on anymore. I don't always have to be in control, or rather, I can remain in control an not loose any respect for myself without having to engage a threat. I'm going to tell a little story here to emphasize this point: as a teenager, I'd always attack my attacker first and two times that I can remember, I had police officers draw their hand-guns on me as they told me to lay down and instead I turned and face them down in a stand-off. I am no longer this person anymore and I don't have to be. Wow, it's so empowering.

So, at it's worst, this is just a story I'm sharing with you all. At it's best, it's a story that can help others who currently have my (old) disposition, and can hopefully be motivational for them as they struggle letting go of their own self. And I'm still learning; as I shed a bit more of my wall, I seem to learn something new about myself everyday. It's really a beautiful process.]]> <![CDATA[Maryland abolishes death penalty.]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15231.html Mon, 13 May 2013 21:32:19 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15231.html http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2...80295.html

I'm not one to give any respect to bourgeois politics or the actions of its oppressive state apparatus, but props to the citizens of Maryland for doing this. Now, if only they could get rid of LIP w/o possibility of parole.]]> http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2...80295.html

I'm not one to give any respect to bourgeois politics or the actions of its oppressive state apparatus, but props to the citizens of Maryland for doing this. Now, if only they could get rid of LIP w/o possibility of parole.]]> <![CDATA[The Gaming Font Quiz]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15230.html Mon, 13 May 2013 20:58:54 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15230.html
Hint: if you can't identify #29, what are you doing on this website? Answers are below the image (no spoiler tags in this forum software, sorry).

[Image: 6F0AKFx.png]





Answers
01. Minecraft
02. God of War
03. Gran Turismo
04. Viva Pinata
05. Rage
06. Warioware
07. Castlevania
08. Starfox
09. Unreal
10. Mario
11. Final Fantasy
12. LA Noire
13. Earthworm Jim
14. Guitar Hero
15. Yoshi's Island
16. Tetris
17. Street Fighter
18. Far Cry
19. Doom
20. Half Life
21. Fallout
22. Mass Effect
23. Ghost Trick
24. Rock Band
25. Sonic the Hedgehog
26. Left 4 Dead
27. Pikmin
28. Grand Theft Auto
29. Diablo
30. Angry Birds
31. Little Big Planet
32. Crysis
33. Pokemon
34. Portal
35. Rayman
36. Mortal Kombat
37. Pac Man
38. Halo
39. Lemmings
40. The Legend of Zelda
41. Metal Gear Solid
42. Outrun
43. Gears of War
44. Mega Man
45. Contra
46. Monkey Island
47. Fable
48. Donkey Kong
49. Prince of Persia
50. Smash Bros.
51. Uncharted
52. Space Invaders
53. Plants vs. Zombies
54. Quake
55. Kirby
56. Starcraft
57. Resident Evil
58. Professor Layton
59. The Sims
60. Deus Ex: Human Revolution]]>
Hint: if you can't identify #29, what are you doing on this website? Answers are below the image (no spoiler tags in this forum software, sorry).

[Image: 6F0AKFx.png]





Answers
01. Minecraft
02. God of War
03. Gran Turismo
04. Viva Pinata
05. Rage
06. Warioware
07. Castlevania
08. Starfox
09. Unreal
10. Mario
11. Final Fantasy
12. LA Noire
13. Earthworm Jim
14. Guitar Hero
15. Yoshi's Island
16. Tetris
17. Street Fighter
18. Far Cry
19. Doom
20. Half Life
21. Fallout
22. Mass Effect
23. Ghost Trick
24. Rock Band
25. Sonic the Hedgehog
26. Left 4 Dead
27. Pikmin
28. Grand Theft Auto
29. Diablo
30. Angry Birds
31. Little Big Planet
32. Crysis
33. Pokemon
34. Portal
35. Rayman
36. Mortal Kombat
37. Pac Man
38. Halo
39. Lemmings
40. The Legend of Zelda
41. Metal Gear Solid
42. Outrun
43. Gears of War
44. Mega Man
45. Contra
46. Monkey Island
47. Fable
48. Donkey Kong
49. Prince of Persia
50. Smash Bros.
51. Uncharted
52. Space Invaders
53. Plants vs. Zombies
54. Quake
55. Kirby
56. Starcraft
57. Resident Evil
58. Professor Layton
59. The Sims
60. Deus Ex: Human Revolution]]> <![CDATA[D& Neverwinter open beta]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15215.html Thu, 09 May 2013 14:52:07 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15215.html
Since the briefly diverting but ultimately disappointing (for me) releases of DIII and TLII, I basically have been playing nothing for months.

I did, however, just kick the tires on the free-to-play Dungeons & Dragons Neverwinter MMORPG open beta.

Most interesting bits:
  • No locked targeting or tab targeting -- you target basically by pointing yourself at something
  • User created quests and content (approved, so no juvenile moronic stuff gets through)

Being F2P you would spend money to buy chests of items or faster mounts, etc. I find the melee combat to be much more satisfying than WoW. I can't say much about balance or long term play, but has all the appearances of a solid entry.

Might be worth a look for some of you.]]>
Since the briefly diverting but ultimately disappointing (for me) releases of DIII and TLII, I basically have been playing nothing for months.

I did, however, just kick the tires on the free-to-play Dungeons & Dragons Neverwinter MMORPG open beta.

Most interesting bits:
  • No locked targeting or tab targeting -- you target basically by pointing yourself at something
  • User created quests and content (approved, so no juvenile moronic stuff gets through)

Being F2P you would spend money to buy chests of items or faster mounts, etc. I find the melee combat to be much more satisfying than WoW. I can't say much about balance or long term play, but has all the appearances of a solid entry.

Might be worth a look for some of you.]]> <![CDATA[Our newest member! The lounge itself!]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15212.html Tue, 07 May 2013 15:42:22 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15212.html
http://www.lurkerlounge.com/]]>
http://www.lurkerlounge.com/]]> <![CDATA[Battle.net Support in Hellfire]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15206.html Sun, 05 May 2013 22:46:07 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15206.html
I´ve been wondering if it would be too hard to add the Battle.net Menu under Multiplayer on Hellfire.

I downloaded the Unnoficial Hellfire 1.02 made by Marsch on this forums and noticed he added a new option there, LAN UDP.

My intention is not to player on blizzard´s servers, but actually to use the gateway feature to play on PvPGN servers.

On my reasearch i discovered that a multiplayer game on either Diablo 1, Starcraft or Warcraft 2 all simply connect users with each other, and few things are handled by the server, like the game name, player in it, and other small stuff.
So this means it doens´t require any adjustment on the server side, i can simply make PvPGN accept modified clients connections and i could connect with the Hellfire client.

Would this client modification require just patient HEX editing does it require something else?
If so, is there like a particular program that makes the modding easier?

I was thinking about getting the already great hellfire.exe from Marsch´s 1.02 patch and start from there.
Was also thinking about hex translating the exe into my native language (pt-br)

Sorry if this is much of a noobish question. I love this game but don´t have much knowledge about how to mod it to my liking, figured here would be a good place ask about it.

Thanks in advance for any replies.]]>
I´ve been wondering if it would be too hard to add the Battle.net Menu under Multiplayer on Hellfire.

I downloaded the Unnoficial Hellfire 1.02 made by Marsch on this forums and noticed he added a new option there, LAN UDP.

My intention is not to player on blizzard´s servers, but actually to use the gateway feature to play on PvPGN servers.

On my reasearch i discovered that a multiplayer game on either Diablo 1, Starcraft or Warcraft 2 all simply connect users with each other, and few things are handled by the server, like the game name, player in it, and other small stuff.
So this means it doens´t require any adjustment on the server side, i can simply make PvPGN accept modified clients connections and i could connect with the Hellfire client.

Would this client modification require just patient HEX editing does it require something else?
If so, is there like a particular program that makes the modding easier?

I was thinking about getting the already great hellfire.exe from Marsch´s 1.02 patch and start from there.
Was also thinking about hex translating the exe into my native language (pt-br)

Sorry if this is much of a noobish question. I love this game but don´t have much knowledge about how to mod it to my liking, figured here would be a good place ask about it.

Thanks in advance for any replies.]]> <![CDATA[Questions about multiplayer save file for Hellfire]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15204.html Fri, 03 May 2013 13:49:13 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15204.html ), and after a long time researching about Diablo 1, it seems that this forums are one of the most active that still talks about this classic.

I also noticed several community releases, so i wanted to join and ask a few questions, if i may.

After trying to convert my diablo 1 mp save to hellfire mp save, i managed to do it with Diablo Saver 1.09.

But only to find out that Hellfire is based off Diablo 1.04, and has a retarded multiplayer saving system that places hidden system-like .drv extensioned files on a system protected folder on WinNT based systems, AND (worst of all), make that save usable only on that machine, making the backup of save files a real pain in the ass.

That all seemed resolved when i found in this forum the "My Unnoficial Hellfire 1.02 Patch" o this link: http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-13318.html

When i read that one of the changed was that now multiplayer save files are all usable independant of the machine it is in, i got excited.
I managed to find the link for the mod, downloaded and installed it.
The game opens fine, but now Diablo Saver won´t work because its a different client version.

Is there a workaround for this?

The situation is: i either use the 1.01 version and use the save file only on this machine, forever (diablobackup can´t seem to restore it), or i use the 1.02 mod fixes and loose all of my existing diablo characters, that i worked so hard do level up.


Sorry for the long post, and thanks in advance for any replies.]]> ), and after a long time researching about Diablo 1, it seems that this forums are one of the most active that still talks about this classic.

I also noticed several community releases, so i wanted to join and ask a few questions, if i may.

After trying to convert my diablo 1 mp save to hellfire mp save, i managed to do it with Diablo Saver 1.09.

But only to find out that Hellfire is based off Diablo 1.04, and has a retarded multiplayer saving system that places hidden system-like .drv extensioned files on a system protected folder on WinNT based systems, AND (worst of all), make that save usable only on that machine, making the backup of save files a real pain in the ass.

That all seemed resolved when i found in this forum the "My Unnoficial Hellfire 1.02 Patch" o this link: http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-13318.html

When i read that one of the changed was that now multiplayer save files are all usable independant of the machine it is in, i got excited.
I managed to find the link for the mod, downloaded and installed it.
The game opens fine, but now Diablo Saver won´t work because its a different client version.

Is there a workaround for this?

The situation is: i either use the 1.01 version and use the save file only on this machine, forever (diablobackup can´t seem to restore it), or i use the 1.02 mod fixes and loose all of my existing diablo characters, that i worked so hard do level up.


Sorry for the long post, and thanks in advance for any replies.]]> <![CDATA[Star Wars VII]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15202.html Thu, 02 May 2013 18:48:11 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15202.html
What's up with bringing back all the old relics of the past:

http://www.movieweb.com/news/carrie-fish...pisode-vii

They are bringing back both Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford, and I heard Mark Hammel too. I'd call this a travesty of our day and age if JJ Abrams wasn't the director. I have faith he'll make this a kick ass movie, but I'm just surprised he brought back everyone. Obviously, he does not plan on following the books with Luke's wife, Mara Jade, and their kids, or in Heir to the Throne, the clone of the emperor (who didn't see that coming?). There is so much story in between Return of the Jedi and how old the actors are now in the books, that I really don't see how they'll pull it off in a good story unless they (the old actors) are merely making cameos, but then why go to the trouble to get personal trainers for all of them?

Thoughts?]]>
What's up with bringing back all the old relics of the past:

http://www.movieweb.com/news/carrie-fish...pisode-vii

They are bringing back both Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford, and I heard Mark Hammel too. I'd call this a travesty of our day and age if JJ Abrams wasn't the director. I have faith he'll make this a kick ass movie, but I'm just surprised he brought back everyone. Obviously, he does not plan on following the books with Luke's wife, Mara Jade, and their kids, or in Heir to the Throne, the clone of the emperor (who didn't see that coming?). There is so much story in between Return of the Jedi and how old the actors are now in the books, that I really don't see how they'll pull it off in a good story unless they (the old actors) are merely making cameos, but then why go to the trouble to get personal trainers for all of them?

Thoughts?]]> <![CDATA[When is a red line more of a grey area?]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15201.html Wed, 01 May 2013 16:43:56 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15201.html
“We cannot have a situation where chemical or biological weapons are falling into the hands of the wrong people,” Obama said at an Aug. 20 news conference. He added: “A red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized. That would change my calculus.”

Last week we've heard from or President, that indeed chemical weapons were used, but we don't know enough to determine what was used, who used them, when, how much, etc.

Is it just me, or does this seem like the US is making the same type of idle threats made by some of the worlds worst dictators? I think it makes us look like either we drew a red line without understanding, or we are unwilling to follow through. Either way, it makes us appear weak. I'm not an interventionist, so I was mostly against the "red line" talk in August. We already blew it with how we handled Libya, and then the Benghazi incident... Which was all about not so secret arms deals. In the wake of it, we've seen Libyan weapons proliferate all over the region, in Gaza, in Niger, in Somalia, and in Syria. For all the war merchants who sold arms to all the shady characters, the proverbial chickens are coming home to roost. The same weapons sold to them (by US and Europeans) in the name of peace will be re purposed into instruments of terror.

My prediction is that Bashar Al Asad will eventually be extracted by Russia, and there will be a power vacuum. Russia is pressured to move away from Asad diplomatically, while Hezbollah is pledging support, and then there is Iran.

In that scenario, then Syria would probably become another Libya, and Egypt with a defacto Hezbollah run pseudo military theocracy. And, these are more havens for radical islam to spawn anti-western terrorism in Europe and the US.]]>
“We cannot have a situation where chemical or biological weapons are falling into the hands of the wrong people,” Obama said at an Aug. 20 news conference. He added: “A red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized. That would change my calculus.”

Last week we've heard from or President, that indeed chemical weapons were used, but we don't know enough to determine what was used, who used them, when, how much, etc.

Is it just me, or does this seem like the US is making the same type of idle threats made by some of the worlds worst dictators? I think it makes us look like either we drew a red line without understanding, or we are unwilling to follow through. Either way, it makes us appear weak. I'm not an interventionist, so I was mostly against the "red line" talk in August. We already blew it with how we handled Libya, and then the Benghazi incident... Which was all about not so secret arms deals. In the wake of it, we've seen Libyan weapons proliferate all over the region, in Gaza, in Niger, in Somalia, and in Syria. For all the war merchants who sold arms to all the shady characters, the proverbial chickens are coming home to roost. The same weapons sold to them (by US and Europeans) in the name of peace will be re purposed into instruments of terror.

My prediction is that Bashar Al Asad will eventually be extracted by Russia, and there will be a power vacuum. Russia is pressured to move away from Asad diplomatically, while Hezbollah is pledging support, and then there is Iran.

In that scenario, then Syria would probably become another Libya, and Egypt with a defacto Hezbollah run pseudo military theocracy. And, these are more havens for radical islam to spawn anti-western terrorism in Europe and the US.]]> <![CDATA[Replacing the Rig - Advice Needed]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15197.html Sat, 27 Apr 2013 16:39:20 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15197.html
Still got the wireless network card and keyboard/mouse from that.

Anyway, last time I built a PC I followed PC Gamer's (UK) suggested rig from about... I dunno, 2009, 2010? Maybe earlier. I'm actually pleased to say that their advice was pretty good back then, since the only time I've ever had to crack the case open to replace anything was to switch out a broken PSU that was responsible for a pretty bad burning smell throughout the house. The suggested PSU was a 700W one, I switched it for a 750W which was a little louder to the point where the name "Whisper" became decidedly ironic. Otherwise, what I bought then has held together pretty well with only really modern games (Tomb Raider, Bioshock Infinite) actually running sluggishly. But she is showing her age, I'd like to run Dark Souls at 60FPS (or thereabouts) while recording, and just maybe get the games I do play nowadays a lot prettier.

So back to the PC Gamer rig. The current suggested machine is here, but I'm making a few changes to it because, frankly, there are either parts I don't need or the fact that the PSU suggested is atrocious.

In that case, I'm going with this PSU instead; it's actually the same one I've got installed on my current machine, and it seems like you're paying stupid prices for 850W up. A 650W is inadequate; the 450W they suggest in the magazine is pathetic. I'm also not going with the keyboard, mouse, soundcard, and headset since I've got my own superior models (Logitech G510, Razer Naga, and Logitech G35 rendering soundcards obsolete). I may get a nice, shiny new monitor if what I order comes to significantly less than £1,000. I'm also going for a different DVD-RW; a LG one that's less than the Samsung.

Otherwise, I can't see any glaring issues with the build, which is probably where you come in.

One big issue I'm seeking advice for is the hard drive situation. Back when I was building my potato, SSDs were new and expensive and tiny. Now they're old and inexpensive and still tiny; what the website doesn't state is that in the magazine list they're running a 128GB SSD backed up with a 1TB HDD.

Except... While I might go for a SSD as a main OS install, I'm a bit leery about a 1TB HDD. I remember that it used to be commonly thought that 1TB drives have a high and inevitable failure rate, but I'm not sure if this is still the case now. When it comes to retiring this PC, I'll probably remove the largest of the SATA HDD (512GB) and install that as extra space while keeping the 128GB one in to at least render the box usable.

But I'd still like to slot in a nice shiny new drive. I've got a 2TB external drive that holds my Steam install (1.14TB and growing!) plus a few other things. This is part of the reason why I take such a performance hit whenever I'm recording, since the videos are dumped onto this drive.

Assuming sensible cost, what would be a decent hard drive arrangement: Windows and essential programs on a 128GB SSD, everything else on a 512GB HDD and a 1TB HDD as additional space, or shouldn't I gamble on a TB drive and maybe just buy a few more 512GB drives? For what it's worth, I do tend to partition up large drives to maintain a little sanity.

Also, I'm sticking with Windows 7 for now. I may be waiting for Windows 9, I'm unlikely to be going with a Linux install for my main machine since I have had absolutely nothing but problems with hardware incompatibility to the point where installing Ubuntu on this machine has rendered my headset unusable in Windows until I remove the Linux install.

And, as always, is there anything I'm being thick about? If so, let me know before I drop some serious cash on a new machine.]]>
Still got the wireless network card and keyboard/mouse from that.

Anyway, last time I built a PC I followed PC Gamer's (UK) suggested rig from about... I dunno, 2009, 2010? Maybe earlier. I'm actually pleased to say that their advice was pretty good back then, since the only time I've ever had to crack the case open to replace anything was to switch out a broken PSU that was responsible for a pretty bad burning smell throughout the house. The suggested PSU was a 700W one, I switched it for a 750W which was a little louder to the point where the name "Whisper" became decidedly ironic. Otherwise, what I bought then has held together pretty well with only really modern games (Tomb Raider, Bioshock Infinite) actually running sluggishly. But she is showing her age, I'd like to run Dark Souls at 60FPS (or thereabouts) while recording, and just maybe get the games I do play nowadays a lot prettier.

So back to the PC Gamer rig. The current suggested machine is here, but I'm making a few changes to it because, frankly, there are either parts I don't need or the fact that the PSU suggested is atrocious.

In that case, I'm going with this PSU instead; it's actually the same one I've got installed on my current machine, and it seems like you're paying stupid prices for 850W up. A 650W is inadequate; the 450W they suggest in the magazine is pathetic. I'm also not going with the keyboard, mouse, soundcard, and headset since I've got my own superior models (Logitech G510, Razer Naga, and Logitech G35 rendering soundcards obsolete). I may get a nice, shiny new monitor if what I order comes to significantly less than £1,000. I'm also going for a different DVD-RW; a LG one that's less than the Samsung.

Otherwise, I can't see any glaring issues with the build, which is probably where you come in.

One big issue I'm seeking advice for is the hard drive situation. Back when I was building my potato, SSDs were new and expensive and tiny. Now they're old and inexpensive and still tiny; what the website doesn't state is that in the magazine list they're running a 128GB SSD backed up with a 1TB HDD.

Except... While I might go for a SSD as a main OS install, I'm a bit leery about a 1TB HDD. I remember that it used to be commonly thought that 1TB drives have a high and inevitable failure rate, but I'm not sure if this is still the case now. When it comes to retiring this PC, I'll probably remove the largest of the SATA HDD (512GB) and install that as extra space while keeping the 128GB one in to at least render the box usable.

But I'd still like to slot in a nice shiny new drive. I've got a 2TB external drive that holds my Steam install (1.14TB and growing!) plus a few other things. This is part of the reason why I take such a performance hit whenever I'm recording, since the videos are dumped onto this drive.

Assuming sensible cost, what would be a decent hard drive arrangement: Windows and essential programs on a 128GB SSD, everything else on a 512GB HDD and a 1TB HDD as additional space, or shouldn't I gamble on a TB drive and maybe just buy a few more 512GB drives? For what it's worth, I do tend to partition up large drives to maintain a little sanity.

Also, I'm sticking with Windows 7 for now. I may be waiting for Windows 9, I'm unlikely to be going with a Linux install for my main machine since I have had absolutely nothing but problems with hardware incompatibility to the point where installing Ubuntu on this machine has rendered my headset unusable in Windows until I remove the Linux install.

And, as always, is there anything I'm being thick about? If so, let me know before I drop some serious cash on a new machine.]]> <![CDATA[Diablo 2 Private Server [MyBattle]]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15194.html Thu, 25 Apr 2013 19:48:46 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15194.html [redacted]


Our Server is running on version 1.13c but you can also play with 1.13d.

Maphack is allowed to use here. - Download 1.13c Maphack

No Botting allowed, if you still do, you will be banned permanently.

All Game Changes: Game Changes

The Experience (1-90 very fast) & Droprate has been increased!

Inventory, Cube and Stash size has been increased.

Mercs can use all equipment - like characters.

Countess can drop all Runes ingame.

We got many Custom Uniques and Custom Runewords.

For a list click here: List of all Custom Items

Townportal + Identification books can now take up to 100 Scrolls each.

You can now buy Full Rejuvenation Potions at every NPC.






We got some custom Cube Recipes:


1 Rune + Perfect Sapphire = Downgrade the Rune
2 Runes + Perfect Ruby = Upgrade the Rune




Custom crafting of Charms:


Put all this in the cube,


--> a Grand Charm + a Standart of Heroes + a Jewel +
Cham (Barbarian)
Jah (Sorceress)
Ber (Paladin)
Sur (Necromancer)
Lo (Druid)
Ohm (Assassin)
Vex (Amazon)

[Image: 2zgg1li.png]





Our Mercs got new Auras!


Combat - Fanaticism
Defensive - Meditation
Offensive - Conviction


The Mercs that got this Aura are Hell only.




Some items can be socketed now!


Javelins can be socketed - Normal 1 Socket, Exceptional 2, Elite 3


Belts,Boots and Gloves can now drop with 1-2 Sockets!]]> [redacted]


Our Server is running on version 1.13c but you can also play with 1.13d.

Maphack is allowed to use here. - Download 1.13c Maphack

No Botting allowed, if you still do, you will be banned permanently.

All Game Changes: Game Changes

The Experience (1-90 very fast) & Droprate has been increased!

Inventory, Cube and Stash size has been increased.

Mercs can use all equipment - like characters.

Countess can drop all Runes ingame.

We got many Custom Uniques and Custom Runewords.

For a list click here: List of all Custom Items

Townportal + Identification books can now take up to 100 Scrolls each.

You can now buy Full Rejuvenation Potions at every NPC.






We got some custom Cube Recipes:


1 Rune + Perfect Sapphire = Downgrade the Rune
2 Runes + Perfect Ruby = Upgrade the Rune




Custom crafting of Charms:


Put all this in the cube,


--> a Grand Charm + a Standart of Heroes + a Jewel +
Cham (Barbarian)
Jah (Sorceress)
Ber (Paladin)
Sur (Necromancer)
Lo (Druid)
Ohm (Assassin)
Vex (Amazon)

[Image: 2zgg1li.png]





Our Mercs got new Auras!


Combat - Fanaticism
Defensive - Meditation
Offensive - Conviction


The Mercs that got this Aura are Hell only.




Some items can be socketed now!


Javelins can be socketed - Normal 1 Socket, Exceptional 2, Elite 3


Belts,Boots and Gloves can now drop with 1-2 Sockets!]]> <![CDATA[Proxy help]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15192.html Wed, 24 Apr 2013 00:54:58 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15192.html <![CDATA[costs too much?!]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15183.html Mon, 22 Apr 2013 01:51:27 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15183.html
But then I stopped to see what the smith had for sale. Big hunk of armor, over 1600 defense, cool, I think I might have a Barb around who would enjoy that. Cost was somewhat over 4.1 Million. Wait a minute, that's not fair! No character can actually hold that much gold in inventory! In the past I remember running across things I could not afford (due to sheer poverty), but never anything that was impossible to buy. Seems a little harsh.

Ah well, back to the woodworking shop tomorrow, the shellac will be dry by then.

Krishta, the impoverished amazon.]]>
But then I stopped to see what the smith had for sale. Big hunk of armor, over 1600 defense, cool, I think I might have a Barb around who would enjoy that. Cost was somewhat over 4.1 Million. Wait a minute, that's not fair! No character can actually hold that much gold in inventory! In the past I remember running across things I could not afford (due to sheer poverty), but never anything that was impossible to buy. Seems a little harsh.

Ah well, back to the woodworking shop tomorrow, the shellac will be dry by then.

Krishta, the impoverished amazon.]]> <![CDATA[Looking for Lurkers who could help.]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15182.html Sun, 21 Apr 2013 16:35:51 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15182.html
1.) Not local. To simulate people purchasing the product, and not having the designers at their beck and call.

2.) People I can trust. I need people that I can feel readily confident that they aren't going to break the NDA, and leak it.

3.) people that have a group of friends that would be willing to play test a card game. Not a card game like Magic, or L5R, or something like that. A card game like Poo, Nuts, Infernal Contraption, Lunch Money.

4.) You need to be open to the idea of a comical take on animal violence. PG-13 humor abounds, as well as the comedic violence with animals. So, if you think that PETA is a good thing, this is probably not the game for you.

If this sounds like something you would like to do, please let me know. I can't guarantee that everyone who says "yes" will be included, but I will try and get as many people involved as we as a group can agree is needed to make this a viable playtest.

And then, hopefully this summer, you will be able to find it on Kickstarter. We are hoping to get this game out this year, and have another game ready by the end of the year, and then another game ready in the first quarter of 2014. This should gives us a slate of products to take to what should be our first Origins booth in June of 2014.]]>
1.) Not local. To simulate people purchasing the product, and not having the designers at their beck and call.

2.) People I can trust. I need people that I can feel readily confident that they aren't going to break the NDA, and leak it.

3.) people that have a group of friends that would be willing to play test a card game. Not a card game like Magic, or L5R, or something like that. A card game like Poo, Nuts, Infernal Contraption, Lunch Money.

4.) You need to be open to the idea of a comical take on animal violence. PG-13 humor abounds, as well as the comedic violence with animals. So, if you think that PETA is a good thing, this is probably not the game for you.

If this sounds like something you would like to do, please let me know. I can't guarantee that everyone who says "yes" will be included, but I will try and get as many people involved as we as a group can agree is needed to make this a viable playtest.

And then, hopefully this summer, you will be able to find it on Kickstarter. We are hoping to get this game out this year, and have another game ready by the end of the year, and then another game ready in the first quarter of 2014. This should gives us a slate of products to take to what should be our first Origins booth in June of 2014.]]> <![CDATA[static.wowhead.com/]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15181.html Sat, 20 Apr 2013 22:37:49 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15181.html <![CDATA[boston bombing]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15179.html Fri, 19 Apr 2013 12:57:14 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15179.html
The latest I read i a dutch online newspaper is that the two guys (one of whom is dead now) ar brothers from probably Chechnya who had military experience. And who were legally in the US since a year or so.

So there is a tremendous continuously ongoing intelligence effort in the west (especially in the US) and big security measure in place everywhere.

We all know what we have to go through when boarding a plane, especially when travelling to the US. But this is only a small part.
Before boarding we now have to fill in a long questionaire which has to be send to the US amabassy at least so many weeks before flying etc. (and this is only security when flying)

So how is it that two guys from the Kaukasus (a place known for it being full of terrorists and sympathisers) with millitary experience, apparantly can get a residence permit to come and live in the US, legally?

If I want for example to take a 10 month holiday for traveling through the US, I can't. They wont give me a permit.....there is a tourist visum but that is for 6 months.


And yes I have been always incredibly critical of GW Bush here on the lounge.....but this is Obama time now.......and it seems he didn't learn to much]]>
The latest I read i a dutch online newspaper is that the two guys (one of whom is dead now) ar brothers from probably Chechnya who had military experience. And who were legally in the US since a year or so.

So there is a tremendous continuously ongoing intelligence effort in the west (especially in the US) and big security measure in place everywhere.

We all know what we have to go through when boarding a plane, especially when travelling to the US. But this is only a small part.
Before boarding we now have to fill in a long questionaire which has to be send to the US amabassy at least so many weeks before flying etc. (and this is only security when flying)

So how is it that two guys from the Kaukasus (a place known for it being full of terrorists and sympathisers) with millitary experience, apparantly can get a residence permit to come and live in the US, legally?

If I want for example to take a 10 month holiday for traveling through the US, I can't. They wont give me a permit.....there is a tourist visum but that is for 6 months.


And yes I have been always incredibly critical of GW Bush here on the lounge.....but this is Obama time now.......and it seems he didn't learn to much]]> <![CDATA[Kaboom - Fertilizer Plant Explosion]]> http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15178.html Thu, 18 Apr 2013 13:03:43 +0000 http://www.lurkerlounge.com/forums/thread-15178.html Source article

As the sun rose Thursday over West, Texas, the scope of the small town's devastation came into fuller view: a gruesome, bloody scene, homes flattened to rubble, and scores of firefighters battling a raging blaze.

The massive, deadly blast at a fertilizer plant Wednesday night forced the evacuation of about half the town of about 2,800 people and left officials asking key questions: Was it a crime or an accident? How could it have happened?

"Nothing at this point indicates we have had criminal activity, but we are not ruling that out," said Sgt. William Patrick Swanton of the nearby Waco Police Department.

A more immediate question is how high the death toll will rise.

It could be between five and 15, Swanton said. Dr. George Smith, the city's emergency management system director, said it could spike to 60 or 70.

"We have two EMS personnel that are dead for sure, and there may be three firefighters that are dead," Smith said.

"There are a lot of people that will not be here tomorrow," Mayor Tommy Muska warned late Wednesday.

------------------------------





[Image: BIGUbldCUAA5UjF.jpg]

There's a reason why the FBI investigate anyone attempting to purchase large amounts of fertilizer ever since 9/11. This is it. I have a close family member who oversees day-to-day operations at an oil distributor, and a few years back they were involved with the FBI when they were contacted by what seemed to be shady individuals who wanted to buy a large quantity of chemicals. Never found out what happened with that, sort of how like when you report someone to Blizzard for cheating and they say "we'll take of it."]]> Source article

As the sun rose Thursday over West, Texas, the scope of the small town's devastation came into fuller view: a gruesome, bloody scene, homes flattened to rubble, and scores of firefighters battling a raging blaze.

The massive, deadly blast at a fertilizer plant Wednesday night forced the evacuation of about half the town of about 2,800 people and left officials asking key questions: Was it a crime or an accident? How could it have happened?

"Nothing at this point indicates we have had criminal activity, but we are not ruling that out," said Sgt. William Patrick Swanton of the nearby Waco Police Department.

A more immediate question is how high the death toll will rise.

It could be between five and 15, Swanton said. Dr. George Smith, the city's emergency management system director, said it could spike to 60 or 70.

"We have two EMS personnel that are dead for sure, and there may be three firefighters that are dead," Smith said.

"There are a lot of people that will not be here tomorrow," Mayor Tommy Muska warned late Wednesday.

------------------------------





[Image: BIGUbldCUAA5UjF.jpg]

There's a reason why the FBI investigate anyone attempting to purchase large amounts of fertilizer ever since 9/11. This is it. I have a close family member who oversees day-to-day operations at an oil distributor, and a few years back they were involved with the FBI when they were contacted by what seemed to be shady individuals who wanted to buy a large quantity of chemicals. Never found out what happened with that, sort of how like when you report someone to Blizzard for cheating and they say "we'll take of it."]]>