The Vent and Rant Thread - Page 1816

CWatkinsNash · 02-21-2016, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hitch

+1. I love Limas. A little cooking, a wee bit of butter...awesome.

Confession: I bought a lovely round bread, Sunflower Seed/Honey, and THEN bought a pound of Kerry (imported Irish Grass-fed) butter to slather on it. I restrained myself from gorging, but I could hear my arteries screaming for mercy. {sigh}. Ah, for the good old days, when I could eat things in blissful ignorance.

Hitch

Kerry's is the only butter we use in my house. Now I'm hungry for buttered Lima beans...

Hitch · 02-21-2016, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CWatkinsNash

Kerry's is the only butter we use in my house. Now I'm hungry for buttered Lima beans...

I like Kerry's. And I shan't pretend that this is a butter-free zone; it's not. But I try to replace it when possible. We have a heart-attack and a heart-attack-coming (on clogged arteries) house, so...

Hitch

issybird · 02-21-2016, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Damn they tasty!

Oh, Tom, Tom! Swype got you again.

Damn they tasty nasty.

WT Sharpe · 02-21-2016, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

Oh, Tom, Tom! Swype got you again.

Damn they tasty nasty.

Oh, Issy, Issy...

Katsunami · 02-21-2016, 07:12 PM

This is ridiculous.

There are two shared universes I read in; one is Forgotten Realms, and the other is Pathfinder. I mainly started reading the latter because I recognized some names from the Forgotten Realms: Elaine Cunningham, Dave Gross, Ed Greenwood (although he gets bad reviews there too, so he apparently still can't write), Richard Lee Byers... and I just love to read some light (sometimes even tripe

) fantasy in between the 'real' stuff. I don't read the rulebooks or web fiction or short stories; just the novels, just as I do with the Forgotten Realms.

Well, the first 25 books were published by Paizo themselves. (Paizo is a company comparable to TSR/Wizards of the Coast). They had quite original stuff, and their books were not too expensive; $7 at the US Kobo store. I could often combine a purchase with at least a 50% off coupon, so I could get many of the books for $3.50 or less.

I'm now checking my library to see if anything was published in series I'm reading. I added two Forgotten Realms novels published in 2015, to keep these series complete (as far as ebooks go: I have to get some as paperback as well someday, because they don't come as an ebook). Then I went to check out Pathfinder. I noticed I was now 6 books behind, and went to bookmark them and go hunting for some coupons.

Or, maybe not.

They are now published by TOR.com/MacMillan.

Now the books don't cost $7, they cost $15.38 to $17.95, depending on the store, and they don't seem to be eligible for a discount anywhere. How's that? A 100%+ price increase.

==========

Second rant, about the same book series, actually...

Paizo, Pathfinder's creator, published Dungeons and Dragons material in the past, but Wizards of the Coast decided not to renew the license in 2007. In response, Paizo created Pathfinder. It actually is a d20-system roleplaying game, based on the OGL (open game license), using a modified version of the Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 edition rule set.

Therefore it is no surprise that it feels like, and looks like Dungeons and Dragons, especially because some writers who write for Wizards of the Coast now also (or still) write for Paizo.

However, their website now has terms like these:

Seldarine ('normal' elves)
Drow (dark elves)
Duergar (dark dwarves)

And they live in the Darklands, of which the description is surprisingly familiar... it sounds a lot like... uh... the Underdark (but with sections below one another instead of side by side), with a cities looking and functioning more than a bit like Menzoberranzan. It just misses a hero called Dryzzit Dro-Arden who journeys to the surface and meets a dwarf called Brawenar Battleaxe to (almost) complete the copy...

I *liked* the fact that Pathfinder was Forgotten Realms-like without actually *being* the Forgotten Realms, but if species of that setting are creeping in, anything could happen.

As Pathfinder has even replaced Dungeons and Dragons as the top-selling RPG in the US, I wouldn't even be surprised if Hasbro/Wizards of the Coast just outright purchases Paizo, and make Pathfinder another campaign setting in the D&D Universe. It would fit right in, but I think it would lose most of its fans.

I wonder if anyone is actually playing anything besides Forgotten Realms; are people still playing Greyhawk, Dragonlance, Ravenloft, Planescape, Eberron, and Dark Sun? Most campain settings seem to be basically dead (apart from maybe Dragonlance), apart from being converted to a new ruleset every number of years.

Maybe I should just stop after book 25 and get the Ravenloft books. They are not many, and it looks like an interesting setting.

John K · 02-21-2016, 08:46 PM

Sprouts

orlok · 02-22-2016, 06:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

Oh, Tom, Tom! Swype got you again.

Damn they tasty nasty.

I with you there. After being force-fed the damn things (we call them butter beans over here) at boarding school, I have had a life-long aversion.

Cinisajoy · 02-22-2016, 12:18 PM

I hate phone sellers or should I say scammers.
First off, it was obvious you used a computer dialer since it took you 5 seconds to pick up your receiver. Second there is no Windows Service Center.
Third, when I say I don't own a computer. Hang up. Do not repeat yourself.

Rant over.

wodin · 02-22-2016, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by orlok

I with you there. After being force-fed the damn things (we call them butter beans over here) at boarding school, I have had a life-long aversion.

I'm reminded of a big ugly yellow dog named Rex I once had. Rex would eat nearly anything. He once ate my garden, the whole thing except the tomatoes which he wouldn't touch. We soon learned that if we planted tomatoes around the periphery of the garden the rest of it would be safe.

Anyway we would feed Rex table scraps, and soon learned to cook extra so Rex would have enough to eat. Once we had roast beef, mashed potatoes, gravy, some kind of desert and Brussels sprouts. We loaded up his plate with a big heaping pile of everything with the one remaining sprout in the middle. When he was done he left a pristinely clean plate with one pristinely clean Brussels sprout sitting in the middle.

badgoodDeb · 02-22-2016, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Jesus... my typing is atrocious. I have missed and unintended letters everywhere in my posts since I have this laptop. Maybe they should start to make 3 inch thick laptops with a mechanical keyboard again, like in the 80's.

Uh... on second thoughts... better they don't. That thing is huge.

How about the earliest portable (err, luggable) computers. Here's the Kaypro. No wait, it says it's the Kaypro II, so the earlier one must have been even nastier. I remember these beasts!

Katsunami · 02-22-2016, 02:36 PM

Aah... those were the days, when a computer was a highly tecnical device used to get actual shit done. I think it ended somewhere in 2001. At that point, computing for the masses *really* took off. At least, in the Netherlands, that was the point in time where people who didn't really need a computer still went out to get one.

(That, by the way, is the mother of all pictures. If I print this, I can use it as wallpaper

)

badgoodDeb · 02-22-2016, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Aah... those were the days, when a computer was a highly tecnical device used to get actual shit done. I think it ended somewhere in 2001. At that point, computing for the masses *really* took off. At least, in the Netherlands, that was the point in time where people who didn't really need a computer still went out to get one.

(That, by the way, is the mother of all pictures. If I print this, I can use it as wallpaper

)

(Sorry -- I just grabbed a link off the web!) There were several brands like this, at the time. They were Hot Stuff when new. I forget, but I think they were before the 1984 first macintosh, which was also luggable. One could buy a case for it, even.

badgoodDeb · 02-22-2016, 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

(Sorry -- I just grabbed a link off the web!) There were several brands like this, at the time. They were Hot Stuff when new. I forget, but I think they were before the 1984 first macintosh, which was also luggable. One could buy a case for it, even.

A friend remembered the name of the even earlier brand, with a smaller TV screen. The Osbourne. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne_1 . Note that these were CP/M computers.

Photo won't show (too big?) but it's at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborn...rne_1_open.jpg

badgoodDeb · 02-22-2016, 03:26 PM

Ah yes. This one wasn't a portable, but it was my first computer. I wasn't sure if that Apple ][ thing was going to stick around, so I hedged my bets and got a clone that also did CP/M. (Never mind that I never learned how to run CP/M) The "Basis 108". http://www.a2clones.com/apple_clones_1/basis_108/ Has anybody else even HEARD of the "Basis 108"? I soon got rid of it, in favor of an Apple //e that I knew how to run.

HomeInMyShoes · 02-22-2016, 03:59 PM

^Nope got me stumped. My first home machine was a Commodore Vic-20. Then I moved to the mighty 128. Then I went into the evil PC clone path.

02-21-2016, 07:12 PM	#27230
Katsunami Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,111 Karma: 34000001 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: KPW1, KA1	This is ridiculous. There are two shared universes I read in; one is Forgotten Realms, and the other is Pathfinder. I mainly started reading the latter because I recognized some names from the Forgotten Realms: Elaine Cunningham, Dave Gross, Ed Greenwood (although he gets bad reviews there too, so he apparently still can't write), Richard Lee Byers... and I just love to read some light (sometimes even tripe ) fantasy in between the 'real' stuff. I don't read the rulebooks or web fiction or short stories; just the novels, just as I do with the Forgotten Realms. Well, the first 25 books were published by Paizo themselves. (Paizo is a company comparable to TSR/Wizards of the Coast). They had quite original stuff, and their books were not too expensive; $7 at the US Kobo store. I could often combine a purchase with at least a 50% off coupon, so I could get many of the books for $3.50 or less. I'm now checking my library to see if anything was published in series I'm reading. I added two Forgotten Realms novels published in 2015, to keep these series complete (as far as ebooks go: I have to get some as paperback as well someday, because they don't come as an ebook). Then I went to check out Pathfinder. I noticed I was now 6 books behind, and went to bookmark them and go hunting for some coupons. Or, maybe not. They are now published by TOR.com/MacMillan. Now the books don't cost $7, they cost $15.38 to $17.95, depending on the store, and they don't seem to be eligible for a discount anywhere. How's that? A 100%+ price increase. ========== Second rant, about the same book series, actually... Paizo, Pathfinder's creator, published Dungeons and Dragons material in the past, but Wizards of the Coast decided not to renew the license in 2007. In response, Paizo created Pathfinder. It actually is a d20-system roleplaying game, based on the OGL (open game license), using a modified version of the Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 edition rule set. Therefore it is no surprise that it feels like, and looks like Dungeons and Dragons, especially because some writers who write for Wizards of the Coast now also (or still) write for Paizo. However, their website now has terms like these: Seldarine ('normal' elves) Drow (dark elves) Duergar (dark dwarves) And they live in the Darklands, of which the description is surprisingly familiar... it sounds a lot like... uh... the Underdark (but with sections below one another instead of side by side), with a cities looking and functioning more than a bit like Menzoberranzan. It just misses a hero called Dryzzit Dro-Arden who journeys to the surface and meets a dwarf called Brawenar Battleaxe to (almost) complete the copy... I liked the fact that Pathfinder was Forgotten Realms-like without actually being the Forgotten Realms, but if species of that setting are creeping in, anything could happen. As Pathfinder has even replaced Dungeons and Dragons as the top-selling RPG in the US, I wouldn't even be surprised if Hasbro/Wizards of the Coast just outright purchases Paizo, and make Pathfinder another campaign setting in the D&D Universe. It would fit right in, but I think it would lose most of its fans. I wonder if anyone is actually playing anything besides Forgotten Realms; are people still playing Greyhawk, Dragonlance, Ravenloft, Planescape, Eberron, and Dark Sun? Most campain settings seem to be basically dead (apart from maybe Dragonlance), apart from being converted to a new ruleset every number of years. Maybe I should just stop after book 25 and get the Ravenloft books. They are not many, and it looks like an interesting setting. Last edited by Katsunami; 02-21-2016 at 07:23 PM.

02-21-2016, 08:46 PM	#27231
John K Reader Posts: 266 Karma: 13465550 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: USA Device: Kindle DXG, Kobo Forma	Sprouts Attached Thumbnails

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02-22-2016, 12:18 PM	#27233
Cinisajoy Just a Yellow Smiley. Posts: 19,161 Karma: 83862859 Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: Texas Device: K4, K5, fire, kobo, galaxy	I hate phone sellers or should I say scammers. First off, it was obvious you used a computer dialer since it took you 5 seconds to pick up your receiver. Second there is no Windows Service Center. Third, when I say I don't own a computer. Hang up. Do not repeat yourself. Rant over.

02-22-2016, 02:36 PM	#27236
Katsunami Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,111 Karma: 34000001 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: KPW1, KA1	Aah... those were the days, when a computer was a highly tecnical device used to get actual shit done. I think it ended somewhere in 2001. At that point, computing for the masses really took off. At least, in the Netherlands, that was the point in time where people who didn't really need a computer still went out to get one. (That, by the way, is the mother of all pictures. If I print this, I can use it as wallpaper )

02-22-2016, 03:26 PM	#27239
badgoodDeb Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,555 Karma: 64462893 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Harrisburg outskirts Device: Palms, K1-4s, iPads, iPhones, KV, KO1	Ah yes. This one wasn't a portable, but it was my first computer. I wasn't sure if that Apple ][ thing was going to stick around, so I hedged my bets and got a clone that also did CP/M. (Never mind that I never learned how to run CP/M) The "Basis 108". http://www.a2clones.com/apple_clones_1/basis_108/ Has anybody else even HEARD of the "Basis 108"? I soon got rid of it, in favor of an Apple //e that I knew how to run.

02-22-2016, 03:59 PM	#27240
HomeInMyShoes Grand Sorcerer Posts: 19,226 Karma: 67780237 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: none	^Nope got me stumped. My first home machine was a Commodore Vic-20. Then I moved to the mighty 128. Then I went into the evil PC clone path.