Things you recently bought or got

Discussion in 'The Lounge' started by mashers, Sep 6, 2018.

  1. Moon

    Moon Contributor Contributor

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    Coffee and this bagel twist... thing. Yum.
     
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  2. Night Herald

    Night Herald The Fool Contributor

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    There's swimming, yeah, but I don't think you can go under. You will flounder and drown if you try to swim out of bounds, maybe that's what you saw?
     
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  3. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Mmm, odd. It was early footage (maybe a day or so after release) but this was at the water's edge. He just walked into a river and as soon as he got out of his depth he started thrashing about like he'd never learnt to swim.
     
  4. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Oh, I also picked up 28 Days Later. I love the grittiness of this one. S'like Ken Loach doing a post-apocalyptic zombie film.
     
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  5. Moon

    Moon Contributor Contributor

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  6. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Ha, don't remember. I'm a GTA V man myself. That game is worth loading up just to go swimming amongst the corals. Especially in first-person mode with all the HUD disabled. Utterly immersive.
     
  7. Moon

    Moon Contributor Contributor

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    Why in the world is my post stuck in the quote? Weird. Couldn't even fix it. o_O
     
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  8. Cave Troll

    Cave Troll It's Coffee O'clock everywhere. Contributor

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    A microphone that should be better than my
    stupid happy little 8-ball that I gave a shot. o_O
    Also a requested book to review, and I think
    it might give me mind cancer. Just glad that
    I could get it on the kindle, cause it is not worth
    $12 for the paper back, so $3 is still to much, but
    I think the first line from the synopsis makes it
    worth at least that much. :p

    ( IT'S INTERESTING THAT OUT OF THE FIRST 37, ..YES 37 !!!.., ONE-STAR REVIEWERS, ONLY 6 ACTUALLY READ THE BOOK AS INDICATED BY AMAZON'S ' Verified Purchase' FLAG. WHY ARE THEY HERE? READ ON. ).....
     
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  9. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Because you've italicised and bolded the opening square bracket of the closing quote tag.
     
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  10. Martin Beerbom

    Martin Beerbom Senior Member

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    I also bought some mechanical pencils. I got two Uni KuruTogas 0.5 (the ones with a rotating lead mechanism. We'll see how those will work out.)

    I must say, it's kinda perverse that I (in Germany) can buy <$10 pencils from Japanese stores via Amazon with no additional shipment charge, shipped from Japan via airmail. There goes my carbon footprint... (There are full-metal mechanical pencils from Staedtler(!) that no one in Germany stocks or ships, which I ordered the same way. No one knows why. It's a German company, and there are German customers who want them, but you only get them from Japan...)

    Be that as it may: The cheaper of the two (the "Advance", with faster rotation) is terribly squeaky, depending on the paper. The other one (the "normal" rotating mechanism; the pencil is called "Gun Barrel" style) seems nicer (with the same 2B Staedtler lead.) Could either be the different rotating mechanism, or the less mechanically stable mount of the lead (the "Advance" has a retractable sleeve tube, the other's is fixed.)
     
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  11. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Wow, mechanical pencils. They were all the rage when I was a kid but you don't see them now. Interestingly (or maybe not) they were known as clutch pencils over here.
     
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  12. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

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    Do you want me to ask?
     
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  13. Seven Crowns

    Seven Crowns Moderator Staff Supporter Contributor Contest Winner 2022

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    Got a first edition of "Rabbit, Run" by John Updike. Only 10,000 exist. I'm looking at copies on Abebooks that are priced upwards of $1000, and the signed editions go well past $2000. And the thing is, its condition is just superb. It's not mint . . . there's very faint wear on one edge of the spine, but other than that and the faintest quarter-inch scratch on one edge of the cover, the dust jacket is perfect. There's nothing on Abebooks even approaching its condition. Not even the $4500 copy compares. It's the best used book find I've ever seen.

    It was a birthday present. Apparently it cost $15. I'm still stunned by that. I think the dealer was selling too much James Patterson and didn't know what he had.

    If anyone ever finds a first edition of "A Confederacy of Dunces," please send it my way.
     
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  14. EFMingo

    EFMingo A Modern Dinosaur Supporter Contributor

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    This is why I go to estate sales. The sellers usually don't have a clue what they have. Takes me hours to sift through even small libraries, but I've collected a bit of rare first editions that way. Never found a mint, but I have a number of fair condition ones. Even dating back to the mid 1800's. Kind of a hobby of mine when I get spare time.
     
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  15. minstrel

    minstrel Leader of the Insquirrelgency Supporter Contributor

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    Alas, no. The examples I've seen on Ebay in really good condition are a little out of my price range these days. They're fascinating little machines, though.
     
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  16. The Dapper Hooligan

    The Dapper Hooligan (V) ( ;,,;) (v) Contributor

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    If you've got the patience and the resources, you can build a version for yourself out of 3d printed parts from readily available plans online. Not as cool as the original, I'll admit, but kind of cool in it's own way.
     
  17. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    No, but thank you for offering.

    I've now played for a solid three hours or so (a good sign certainly) and reached Chapter II. Unfortunately there's a number of interactive button prompts that it seems can't be disabled. It's very annoying as I prefer to learn what buttons do what. I really really don't need a prompt telling me that triangle loots a body, every time I walk up to one. Thankfully I still have a memory.

    A few other niggles; horse movement feels rather clunky and the inventory wheel is as confusing as hell. But man this game looks gorgeous. I only have a 1st gen PS4 and it even looks gorgeous on that!
     
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  18. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

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    Aaargh. You've brought back a frustrating memory. Back when I was a child we used to have a number of what I now realise were very valuable editions of books, including at least two I remember well that were the original editions illustrated by NC Wyeth. And my mother, in her dotage, kinda lost the plot and started scribbling all over them in INK, making comments on what she thought of the story, the pictures, etc. She even drew ON the pictures. Totally ruined the books. (Scream.)
     
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  19. EFMingo

    EFMingo A Modern Dinosaur Supporter Contributor

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    I'm sorry, that's terrible. What I had happen was I was in high school when my great grandmother died she left behind a small library of all first edition classic american literature. Would be worth tens of thousands of dollars. My grandmother didn't understand this and sold the whole lot for a paltry 500 before I even got there to ask about it. I've been so pissed off about it for so long that I think I build my current collection in memory of her. She was the first person to get me into literature, so likely I was the only one who had any idea what she had. If I ever own a library, I'll name it after her.
     
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  20. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

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    Yeah, sometimes that's the only way to deal with that kind of a loss. Just grit the teeth and start rebuilding. I know my mother had a huge collection of glass Christmas tree ornaments, including one from HER grandmother (that I've seen in an antique book for several hundred dollars) and several from her childhood, and my dad's childhood as well. And after she died, and my sister was clearing the house, the ornaments were stolen. My poor sister was devastated, and so was I. After banging my head on the wall for about a year, I started collecting my own. And I now have a tree I'm really proud of. And my sister started collecting HER kind of ornaments (which are different from mine) so we now have two trees we love. So hey. Somebody else got the benefit of the older collections (yours and mine) but here's hoping that somewhere they are being appreciated.
     
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  21. Martin Beerbom

    Martin Beerbom Senior Member

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    Clutch pencils are mostly very different from these mechanicals. Clutch pencils are called "Fallminenstifte" in German (Falling Lead Pens), because, when you release the clutch tip down, the lead falls out :). I love to use them, though. Basically like wooden pencils without wood and replaceable lead, if you don't mind some hands-on fiddling.

    There are pencils that work like the fine-leaded pencils (holding them in, and advancing them with pressing a button or some such) with the thick leads of clutch pencils, but I don't have one yet.
     
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  22. OurJud

    OurJud Contributor Contributor

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    Oh, I see. So how do mech pencils work?
     
  23. Martin Beerbom

    Martin Beerbom Senior Member

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    Here's a review for the Uni Kuru Toga Gunmetal I described, with pictures: http://comfortableshoesstudio.com/2014/12/review-uni-kuru-toga-roulette-gunmetal-mechanical-pencil/

    They use finer leads (common 0.3, 0.5, 0.7 mm diameter) and no sharpening. Clutch pencils use much thicker 2 or 3.15 mm (and still need sharpening. Knife will do in a pinch :)). There are some more exotic different diameters.

    The lead sticks out a bit. If it's out too much, it breaks. There's a mechanism that pushes the lead out a bit more (maybe 1 or 2 mm at a time). Mostly a button at the end (often holds an eraser as well). Some new mechanisms use the sleeve around the lead (when the lead is worn down, and the sleeve is pushed in a bit, the lead advances, so you do not have the thumb from the writing position to push the button). There's also pencils that use shaking.

    There's often a small tube protecting the lead. It's mostly intended for drawing, to keep the bulk of the pen away to see the tip. Pencils for writing often don't have them. Some pencils allow this tube to be retracted (for transport), some don't (the latter holds the lead better, but is more prone to breaking (or poking holes in clothing and bags...).

    There are also the old screw mechanism pencils with the fine leads: You turn a knob at the end, and the lead comes out. If the lead gets too short, you replace it, and turn the knob back to pull the new lead in. Very simple, very stable, and nowadays mostly found on high priced luxury pencils.

    A lot of people complain about them because they either break the leads too often (there are pencils that cushion the lead with springs to prevent this, and then there are pencils that can turn off that cushioning to have the lead firmly fixed in place for precision drawing... That said, a lot of people extend the lead too much, use too hard a lead, or don't even know that they can get softer leads. Also, holding the pencil more upright than I usually do for writing helps, too, which I just learned recently in my old age. I wished my teachers had told me in school*), or claim the advance mechanics breaks (can happen, but often is caused by stuffing too many leads in the back that jams the leads.)

    *There are many things about using pencils for writing and drawing that are often not explicitly taught, despite the fact that most schools start teaching writing with pencils. I picked up most of it on my own, but a lot of my fellow students never did. Which is a shame, because pencils are way more efficient and sustainable than pretty much all other low-tech writing implements. Then again, who still writes with pen(cil) and paper when you have smart phones, Siri and Alexa as memory extenders...
     
    Last edited: Nov 17, 2019
  24. The Dapper Hooligan

    The Dapper Hooligan (V) ( ;,,;) (v) Contributor

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    I use them a lot. Technology can get unreliable in the fringes, so you don't really get super defendant on it. Awesome thing about pencils, too, is that they can get submerged in water for a prolonged period of time and still work. Pens only might, and phones almost never do.
     
  25. Cave Troll

    Cave Troll It's Coffee O'clock everywhere. Contributor

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    I use mech-pencils for drawing. I make lots of mistakes so it helps too. :)
     

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