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Bike Week

August 10, 2015, 4:07 pm
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A convention of motorcycle owners who like to cosplay as a motorcycle gang.

Yet somehow feel they can actually look down on gamers, geeks and bronies.

Didn't cost me thousands of dollars for my fashion accessory that I have to leave parked outside the convention center where nobody who can see my costume can see it.
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It Is Not 1985

August 10, 2015, 9:12 pm
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But you'd never be able to tell from so many gun parts sellers.

My quest to obtain a replacement firing pin for my Star B is reaching epic frustration levels with the seller.

His archaic web page, which is just an image of his paper inventory sheet, lets me fill out an order form that would be at home in the center of a circa 1985 Numrich catalog.

No shopping cart, enter the name of the part in its box, the part's number in its box, how many you want, the price, do the quantity times price math...  Subtotal... add tax if your in his state (I'm not) then shipping...

All manually like you were filling out the form on paper before there was teh intertubes.

You hit send and then you hope and "allow two weeks for delivery" because LITERALLY his wife makes the trip to the post office once a week with the orders.

Hope wasn't enough.  His order form failed and two weeks passed without parts.

He's very responsive to email, I am happy to report, and neither of us is yelling at each other.

I spent more time than it should have taken to get my bank to confirm that my card had not been charged.  The seller made sure I checked so that I wouldn't get gigged twice for the parts.  I appreciate that!

He's put it on his wife to give me a call and we'll complete the order over the phone like it's 1960 or something.
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The Type A Front Door

August 11, 2015, 5:00 am
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Copyright 1998 Steve Jackson Games.

This is the main airlock and entryway on Deck 2 of a Beowulf class Type-A Free Trader, up is forward.

It's served by iris valves on both ends and has iris valves in both the overhead and deck near the inboard end.  Ladder up leads to Deck 1 and the passenger common area and staterooms.  Ladder down leads to Deck 3 and the lower-forward cargo area and purser's "office".  The inboard hatch (iris valve) leads to the crew common area and staterooms.

For more convenience during passenger boarding, a folding set of steep stairs is used instead of the ladder rungs set into the wall.  These stairs also have the advantage of blocking the valves to the crew area and cargo deck.  The 1.2m diameter iris valve and steep stairs serve as a reminder to passengers that Flying Free Trader is not luxury service as can be found on a Subsidized Liner like a Stellar Class.

Aft of the airlock is the bay containing the low berths.  Notice that it's not sealed against vacuum in the airlock!  Luckily, the berths themselves are.

One hex is one yard across flats.

This deckplan is not entirely accurate about the outer door.  The iris valve is actually set back from the hull about 1.5m and is parallel with the inner door.  The angled portion where the valve is shown is just a fairing that opens up like a door and is hinged at the top.  The creates a bit of a porch outside the iris valve.

A set of collapsible stairs extends out from under the porch to allow access to the airlock from the ground.

Similar to this:


The stairs on a Beowulf are a little longer because the hatch is about 4.5m off the ground instead of the 2.74m shown here.

The outer iris valve is equipped with a standard Imperial 1.2m docking ring.
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This Is Why I Wrench

August 11, 2015, 7:18 am
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Completely replacing both front calipers and pads is under $100 on The Biscayne.

Just takes a few hours to do, and most of that is running to the parts store and bleeding the brakes.

I can't even work up too much upset about the right front caliper getting stuck on me.  That caliper has almost 300,000 miles on it and was first mounted on the car in March of 1990 in the Willow Run Assembly plant.

I think the last time I did the pads was before I got The Precious too.
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Mandela Effect Explained

August 11, 2015, 8:14 am
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Here, read this.

There is no such thing as The Mandela Effect.

What's happening is far more people have Temporal Inertia than we thought.

Temporal Inertia (Mental, Supernatural) [15 points]  
You are strongly rooted in probability. If history changes, you can remember both versions. If you are involved in a genuine time paradox, you are not erased, even if the rest of your world is! You have a place in the new timeline, whatever it is, and remember all your experiences – even the ones that never happened. (In an extreme case, you have two complete sets of memories, and must make an
IQ roll any time you have to distinguish between them under stress . . . you might need Acting skill to stay out of the lunatic asylum.)
There is a drawback: there is a “you” in any parallel or split timeline you encounter, and he is as similar to you as the timeline allows.
This trait is only worthwhile in a campaign in which paradoxes or changes in history – erasing past events or whole timelines – are possible. See Unique (p. 160) for the opposite of this advantage.
GURPS Basic Set: Characters p. 93.  © 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2004, 2008 by Steve Jackson Games Inc.

There is no longer anything to see here, move along.
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Apocalypse Speculation

August 11, 2015, 1:05 pm
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Iran is almost definitely getting nukes.

I will be shocked if they don't get some sort of agreement with The Soviet Union Russia that considers an attack on Iran the same thing as an attack The USSR Russia.

We had such agreements with several nations of Europe during the Cold War (and they're likely still in force as part of NATO).

Knowing that the mullahs be wantin' the poxyclips to summon the 13th Imam...

Would you put it past them to pop off their nukes at home to make it look enough like a US or Israeli first strike and hope, in the confusion, The USSR Russia launches a retaliatory strike at the US and NATO?
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Confirmed

August 11, 2015, 1:40 pm
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I once speculated that DRM was doomed not from base profit motives of thieves but by the shiny-red candy-like nature of cracking the problem to a certain mind.

I think I found another piece of evidence that supports my supposition.

Look up how The Odyssey Notes were solved.

If you put a mystery out there and tell people it's unbeatable, there's going to be people who find that irresistible and if it can be beaten, they'll be the ones doing it.

Because they can.

It's especially obvious with DRM because they start with the knowledge that it can be beaten because a defeat needs to be built into it so the rightful purchaser can play the media.
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Social Status

August 11, 2015, 3:42 pm
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For [5] per level you can change your Status from the default of 0 and become a noble.

Huzzah!

There's a down side in that you've got to spend more to live appropriately or lose the status.

But say you wanted to make a character who's a baron.

Seems simple enough, shell out the 20 points for being a lesser noble and you're in!

But is that all of it?

Barons held land, so some wealth should be associated with it.

Barons could mete out justice, so legal enforcement powers should be purchased.

Barons, being nobility, weren't subject to the same laws as commoners.  Some legal immunity might be appropriate (depending on how the immunity is exercised; for some crimes the sentence is the same for commoner and noble, it's just the method of execution that varies).

The higher up the social ladder you are in the peerage, the more wealth and power you wield.

Nobles have a duty to their liege.  That liege may also be a patron.

Nobles also have a duty to their fief.

There are historical societies where one can be a noble, but penniless and powerless; and common, but rich and powerful.

For a fantasy game there may even me restrictions on nobility and being a wizard or cleric.

In many cases the focus of being a noble is managing the fief and being an officer and soldier come time of war, bringing your fief's levy of troops with you when called.

As time passes, historically, the powers fade even if the wealth doesn't.

Should buying the title be enough to get everything else, or should it be a la carte?
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Indicators

August 11, 2015, 8:13 pm
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I enjoy Deadliest Catch.

It's interesting to see National Geographic say that the arctic ice is all but gone while these crab fisherman are ALL saying that the ice is farther south sooner than it was even a couple years ago and how several places their parents fished are just no longer accessible because of where the ice is nowadays.

I tend to believe the fishermen because their interest is entirely in filling their holds and don't have anything vested in making things seem different than they are.  Even if they were, there's constant footage of their map displays and you can see the damn ice out the windows.  The ice is where they say it is.
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Unsympathetic

August 12, 2015, 11:21 pm
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Jimmah has cancer?

Has it really bad?

GOOD!

Hope he suffers to his last breath.
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It Came From Facebook

August 13, 2015, 10:15 am
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A picture showing the Starsky and Hutch Torino, Dukes of Hazzard Charger and Smokey and The Bandit Trans Am; asking which we'd prefer.

In stock form, the Charger is the best muscle car.  But I'd never own another genuine MOPAR again if my choices were General Lee or Smart 4 Two.  Great engine, horrid electrical systems.  MOPAR gave Lucas a run for their money on failures.

Painless Wiring didn't get started making EFI swap harnesses, just sayin...

I'd own a modern Dodge with a Hemi™ in it.  I'd own a classic MOPAR with a complete to AC-Delco wiring conversion (Painless' bread and butter for a long time).

That leaves me with the smog motors from Ford and Pontiac...

Well, the Pontiac is easiest to fix.  So readily fixed that the producers of Smokey and the Bandit fixed even the hero car.  It took me years of watching the movie before I recognized what I was looking at and why it's impressive.

Right after Bandit picks up Carrie and she intones the verbal incantation, "Does this thing move?" the Trans Am takes off and chirps the tires in the 1-2.  That chirp left 20' marks!  If you keep watching, he chirps 2-3 as well.

The Trans is my choice of the three, but like the MOPAR, I would have to have it fixed.  Of the three it's the easiest to get handling well.  This is, of course, until the memories of the Silver Camaro start to override the nostalgia and remind me how much owning a 2nd Gen F-Body is Love-Hate.

The Torino is the car I want to like (because I liked the show).  But I just can't.  There's nothing wrong with the looks to me, or inherently with Ford.  It just doesn't trip the lever.

Fords, like GM's, are easy to work on and have lots of parts available to make things better.  GM beat Ford to the punch on the simple means of meeting smog rules, so there's a lot more plumbing in there, but nearly all of it is discarded when you're fixing the problem and unless you live outside the US where they still check for that crap, there's no reason to keep it.

As an aside on smog shit, Hot Rod or Car Craft once did an article about getting better mileage from your hot rod.  They took it down to a CARB testing station to see what the emissions were before and after.  The only thing left of the emissions system was the catalytic convertors and it was cleaner at the tailpipe after the mods.  It almost failed in stock form and passed with flying colors with a new engine tuned up well.  The inspector, however, said the car would still fail because it didn't pass the visual inspection that looked for the outdated vacuum controlled emission equipment, intake and carb.

h/t Tam's Facebook
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XKCD Was Right

August 13, 2015, 7:25 pm
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But if I had a shot of scotch for every time I see American history revised around the Native American and his innocent noble nature; I'd open a distillery and rebottle that shit because I couldn't drink it fast enough to dent the supply.

There's enough atrocity to go around on both sides.

What makes people all weepy over the noble savage is they were massively overmatched and the people weeping are descendants of the victors in this war.

War?  Singular?  Try wars, plural.

Again, there's enough blame to go around on both sides.

If the American Indian was wholly innocent and never went back on their word, never murdered anyone, never massacred settlers and never committed a single atrocity...  Maybe...

But that's not true.

The conflict in the US West was mutual and it was a fight to the death.  Both sides wanted the fight, and got it good and hard.
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Envy

August 14, 2015, 9:20 am
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If the reason I own a gun is penis envy, explain the girls.

I know several gun owning women who can easily get all the penis they want who own guns.  At least one doesn't want any penis at all.
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Woo Hoo

August 14, 2015, 10:47 am
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Reverting to 1970 technology worked for the seller of the firing pins!

I didn't tell him I answered his call on my smart phone out of fear it would send him running and screaming to the hills.

I should have my Star B back up and running pretty soon!
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Ethicity

August 14, 2015, 12:59 pm
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If Italians were as touchy as some identity groups, if you said, "as the day goes by," they'd start screaming, "I ain't no bisexual!"
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Visiting The 2,000 Worlds

August 14, 2015, 1:40 pm
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I am attempting to grok the K'Kree.

I think the Hiver are easier because they're so totally alien physiologically you can't start from anywhere but zero.

I think they're going to be easier than Vargr because they're alien enough to avoid some preconceptions whereas the Vargr are remarkably similar to Humaniti in enough ways that the differences end up being subtle.


And I am ever so amused that Traveller has militant xenophobic obligate herbivores and the race called Vegan isn't it.
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Lower Prices

August 15, 2015, 10:37 am
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There's much ado about Verizon Wireless dropping the contracts and phone subsidies.

It will take my bill from $260 a month for four phones and a tablet with 5gb to $140 a month for four phones and 6gb.

On average a smart phone lasts us three years.  We've been taking advantage of the subsidy and renewing the contract when we do.

I did the math...  It's simple math.

$120 per month saved, x24 months for the contract is... $2,880.  Even if the unsubsidized phones are $600 a pop we can replace all four every year, essentially for what we're paying at present.

Remember how I said three years?  That comes to $5,040 saved, minus (4*$600) or $2,640 saved over three years.

And it actually saves more!  Because the subsidy isn't for the full price of the phone.  The Motox is $375 as I've configured it, and I paid VzW $200, so they only subsidized me for $175.

So a $600 phone is really $400 out of my pocket more than when they subsidize...  That's still better than what I am paying.

Putting the money aside is in that "adult responsibility" column that's been so very hard to learn.

It's also unlikely that our phone choices will be $600 phones.  That's an iPhone.

As I said, my Motox is $375 bought straight from Motorola with customization.  With half the memory it's a $450 phone from VzW.  $480 for the next phone we have... then $350 for Harvey and $210 for her mom's non-smart phone.  Worst casing... $450 + $480 + $350 + $210 = $1,670 to replace them all.  Even at two years we've saved more than enough with the new plan and have more than $1,200 still in our set-aside.

And this assumes that prices will stay the same or go up.  Electronics don't trend that way.

I think that Verizon Wireless' plan is going to work for them if enough people can handle buying that first off-contract replacement phone outright.
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Higher Prices

August 15, 2015, 11:00 am
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Something I do expect from Verizon Wireless is to further lock out phones that don't come from them.  Ask Anglave how much they liked his Nexus 5...

A foot note in every article about this new deal is that they're going to continue to have a payment plan for your new phone!

Let's pick on Marv...

Marv's share of the plan is $60 now and his $480 phone was $250 out of pocket.  So Verizon has $230 worth of subsidy here.

Under the new plan his share drops to $20.  That means it takes a mere six months to pay off the subsidy at the old $60 a month, but the contract is 24 months...

Assuming that the plan really cost $20 all along and $40 was there to help subsidize phones, of course.  But it's representational.

The devil will be in the details.
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Wanna Make College Affordable

August 15, 2015, 4:45 pm
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Take away all the money.

It's counter intuitive.

All giving people money to pay for college has done is raised tuition.

Look it up.

When that fountain of funding dries up the colleges and universities are going to have to lower tuition, justify the costs to the students or die off.

In a generation we went from being able pay tuition at a state college with what's a minimum wage job today to an associates degree at a community college costing more than Harvard did in the 1950's.

The actual material being taught did not actually become more valuable.

The best they can do to sell the education is that you're likely to make more over your lifetime than someone without a degree, but they forget to subtract paying off your tuition and student loans.

Never mind that where you went to school still matters a great deal more than what you learned when it comes time to get a job.  I've watched The Lovely Harvey talk rings around a Yale grad at an office party.

She's got her MBA from the same rinky-dink defunct Corinthian College school I went to.  She definitely knows more than that Yale MBA does about the subject matter, and he admitted it.

Guess who's making more money and has the higher position?

They're friends, so she could conceivably network out of it, and that underscores that it's not what, but whom you know.
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If Convicted

August 15, 2015, 5:16 pm
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While I have no confidence that even busted red handed Hillary will be convicted, let alone sentenced to anything more than a hand slap...

It'd be nice if she was and the judge added the same modifier to her sentencing that Barry Seal got.

I'd love to see the minds explode while their patron saint has to go without Secret Service protection because "You will not own guns, you will not be around people with guns, you will not hire people with guns."
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