WarKitty's Feline Frenzy Random Banter #216

[DataNinja]

Not to be overly pedantic but memory (RAM) and harddrive space are ever so slightly different, likely you have about 4GB of total RAM in your piddly little notebook. Ever thought about having a usb stick or flash card for additional storage as they would both have more space then your notebook's internal HDD taking up all but no physical space at all and at a very reasonable price.

Yeah. I really should, especially given that I've probably got one or two lying about. It certainly wasn't something I was expecting to need, though, given that 99% of the time the university has what I need for the more memory/processor intensive programs. This is the first time ever that the lab hasn't had what I needed. Which is doubly annoying because my prof said it was there. But, c'est la vie, I guess. No plan survives yadda yadda.

Have to say, I'm a bit gobsmacked about a *library* being 7Gb. What on earth is in it? The coded instructions for creating a new universe?

I'm probably calling it the wrong thing (again... that's rather a problem of mine, I call something one thing in my head, and then have troubles getting it out, especially as it gets later and later in the night), but it was a "everything you need to make your T_EX program translate to the PDF part of the program".

[LaZodiac]

Blargh. Today was not good. My rant got a bit long, so I spoilered it for those who don't want this Shadow darkening their day of chocolates and flowers.

Spoiler: Rant

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It's reading break, and I had homework, which needed a specific program, so I headed down to the university to do it. My prof had said, and stated on the course site, that the program was available on all University computers. It was not. Not a one. I searched for over an hour, and not a single computer had the promised program on it.

Okay... that's a setback, but... no biggie, I guess. Onto Plan B. Follow the instructions on the assignment description to download the program for myself. Onto my piddly little notebook. 28 gigs of memory total, just over 4 GB free. Pretty weaksauce, but, it's been sufficient for school so far. No problem, I thought, I'd downloaded stuff temporarily before, and they were usually in the rounds of 2-3 GB. Downloaded the program, it turned out to only be a few hundred megabytes. Pleasant surprise. Got to starting my work, tried to compile. It didn't work.

Turns out, it needed a library downloaded, too. Which it didn't say on the sheet. So, followed the link, and downloaded it. Now, it didn't say how big the library program was. Nor how long it would take - at least not until 2/3rds of the way through.

The download turned out to take, oh, the short span of... four hours. But that's not the best part, oh, no. It also turned out to be... just under 7GB big. Those of you paying attention will see the problem with that.

It also did not inform me about the fact that it was not going to stop anytime soon until... well, not officially until well into the second hour, but I figured that out as it reached two hours. So, I was watching my free memory tick down, and it was still coming. Quite rapidly. So, in order to not waste coming-on three hours, I would have to start deleting things. I ended up having to purge literally everything on my notebook that was not completely irreplaceable, in a race against the rapidly depleting memory. And even then, I was down to single-digit Megabytes by the time it finished.

So, yeah, long story short, I had to purge 3 GB worth of stuff, including a lot of misc. pictures for the games I'm running, because of this. So... I'm rather annoyed right now. And am in the process of re-acquiring everything before I forget what it is.

Well, anyways, yeah, just needed to rant a bit. That was cathartic. Doesn't make things better, but it helps, slightly.

Edit: I just realized. This continues my longstanding tradition of having fairly miserable Valentines days. Yay. What god/dess of love did I annoy?

Jeez, that sounds awful. What a bad day to have such consistent bad luck. Hope things go smoother tomorrow.

[DataNinja]

Jeez, that sounds awful. What a bad day to have such consistent bad luck. Hope things go smoother tomorrow.

To be fair, it's not like Valentines means a lot to me, given my... lack of significant other. So, for me, it was Tuesday.

(It's just a semi-amusing thing that something goes awry every February 14th. Well, amusing after the fact. )

[Thufir]

Well I spent Valentine's Day, among other things, saying cringily romantic things to another man's wife.
(I was onstage, dress rehearsal. The other man in question is playing my father, just for added weirdness)

[Aegis J Hyena]

How do you run a border control if you don't understand the concept of kicking people you don't like out of your country?

They don't have such a thing. They just kill everyone they don't like. Although, I am entertaining the thought. "Run like prey so we can learn about your ships and then chase you down!"

[Teddy]

I'm probably calling it the wrong thing (again... that's rather a problem of mine, I call something one thing in my head, and then have troubles getting it out, especially as it gets later and later in the night), but it was a "everything you need to make your T_EX program translate to the PDF part of the program".

Ah, that makes perfect sence, since that thing contains pretty much every LaTeX package in existence, which pretty much straight up is the coded instructions for making a new Universe (using TeX code).

If your assignment is to make a document of some sort using LaTeX, may I suggest using an online tool such as Overleaf or ShareLaTeX? They're really handy, I've been using Overleaf (previously WriteLaTeX) through all my university years, and some of my course mates used ShareLaTeX with equal satisfaction.

They don't have such a thing. They just kill everyone they don't like. Although, I am entertaining the thought. "Run like prey so we can learn about your ships and then chase you down!"

Ooo, that sounds pretty fun!

[DataNinja]

Ah, that makes perfect sence, since that thing contains pretty much every LaTeX package in existence, which pretty much straight up is the coded instructions for making a new Universe (using TeX code).

Figures. My computer is certainly not Universe-maker level.

If your assignment is to make a document of some sort using LaTeX, may I suggest using an online tool such as Overleaf or ShareLaTeX? They're really handy, I've been using Overleaf (previously WriteLaTeX) through all my university years, and some of my course mates used ShareLaTeX with equal satisfaction.

Ah, thanks. Those'll be really helpful, should it come up again. Which is probably in a year. Because that was the one LaTeX assignment this semester.

[Durkoala]

So. I've had an accident with a bottle of milk and it's gone all over the kitchen. I've cleaned up as best I can, but there's been quite a few crevices I can't get to.

Does anybody know how to get rid of milk smell or, failing that, how long it'll take for the smell to go away?

It went up the walls...

[Gnomvid]

So. I've had an accident with a bottle of milk and it's gone all over the kitchen. I've cleaned up as best I can, but there's been quite a few crevices I can't get to.

Does anybody know how to get rid of milk smell or, failing that, how long it'll take for the smell to go away?

It went up the walls...

Depends on the humidity levels, if it's pretty dry it will quickly dry up and stop smelling if it's pretty moist it will stop smelling like milk after a while and start smelling like rotten milk and... well you see where it's going.

[FinnLassie]

Welp... I've not been too active here, so I'll make a quick recap of the beginning of the year:

• start of the year was hectic as hell, I got a bad flu and uni started like a bang
• again, busy times at uni
• BACHELOR'S THESIS PROCESS STARTS I'M IN PANIC
• AAAAAAAAAAAAA
• need to find a place for my internship
• stress about internship, no one's answering my emails
• phone microphone stops working, can't call anyone
• get a super good idea for the thesis but need an approval from the organisation I want to do it for
• NO ANSWER FROM THERE EITHER JUST GREAT
• thesis crap is pushing me down like hell
• too many group projects at the same time, hackathon is coming too soon for us
• I don't think my mental health has fluctuated this much in a while, but I believe I'm stable
• my money situation is really, really bad

And... today... FINALLY! My phone's mic started working after 1,5 months of quirky business, it had taken too long of a time for the ppl to contact me about my internship and thesis so I decided to just call the guy after my classes. He answered and I just got an overwhelmingly positive response to my research plan and aaaaaa.

So, what's my thesis going to be about? I'll answer you: a nationwide research on how much bullying is there within the Finnish Scouts and Guides between the ages of 15 and 22. I will also be doing my internship hopefully with the Finnish Scouts and Guides, it's 80-90% certain.

I'm just... so happy. SO HAPPY.

[LaZodiac]

So, what's my thesis going to be about? I'll answer you: a nationwide research on how much bullying is there within the Finnish Scouts and Guides between the ages of 15 and 22. I will also be doing my internship hopefully with the Finnish Scouts and Guides, it's 80-90% certain.

I'm just... so happy. SO HAPPY.

That sounds awesome! Congrats on the thesis approval!

My friends are so cool.

[Aegis J Hyena]

So I ran my game on saturday, making it seem like the anthros were going to kill the PCs completely. Instead, their orders are only to kill the humans.

It went... sort of ok. There were a lot of traps and such that the players could use to bait the opposing party (double the PCs level but I wasn't going to TPK them, only rough them up); after about six rounds one of the Apex Predators (heroes) of the anthros shows up and stops the fight. One PC didn't get involved at all (he's an anthro and wasn't going to "betray his species", very well IC for him), another PC anthro got involved and got sneak attacked to death (there would have been far more deaths if he hadn't, though...) and the party's sorcerer got killed by an angry anthro monk's flurry of blows.

So to mitigate the deaths without making it seem contrived (because death sucks), I had the "satan" of the anthros pull in the party's bard (who'd gotten shot in the head by a hawk while hanging off her ankles in midair) and offer a classic devil's deal. He took it and the PCs are back up, though in 3.5 being raised from the dead costs a level. I hate bookkeeping so I just reduce the EXP but not remove skills or spells, making it just take longer to reach the next level (but bonuses are added per session until he's caught up). With the Devil's Deal, if the bard dies, those returned from death die. If those returned from death die, the bard dies.

The problem here is that said sorcerer was left behind by the rest of the party -- the player was at work (he is routinely late to the game) and I was playing the opposing team smartly. They're not going to let an enemy sorcerer just stand there alone and get off spells. So when everyone on the planet went to assault the enemy warrior and throw him in a lava pit (a very wise move), they left the sorcerer wide open and the opposing monk walked up and Flurry'd repeatedly. The player is pissed that his character died when he had no control over it, and doesn't like losing the EXP ("being punished for something I had no control over"). I think either I'm going to lose him as a player or he's going to off himself to spite the bard (the latter would be IC for him, though, and Devil's Deals are... well, Devil's Deals...) He wants to reroll a clone of his PC, and I told him no, I don't do "clones".

So I've sort of written myself into a corner. I can't retcon the deaths -- that takes the edge off dying and the PCs will expect me to pull their asses out of the fire any time they spectacularly foul up like they did by killing the important chieftain in the first place. Now they've been ordered to GTFO and take their "human city" nearby with them. , and will be watched now that they were "put in their place." The humans of the party are lucky to be alive; normally the anthros of this particular area try to sacrifice on sight and really only didn't because some party members are anthro and were vouching for them (and stood passively by while the fight raged on).

On the other hand, one of the opposing forces killed a PC anthro in cold blood (the NPC is a bounty huntress and just doesn't care, so it was IC for her to ignore orders and shoot the unconscious rogue...) so the party is going to get her "services"... whether she likes it or not...

[Prince Zahn]

*snip*

Spoiler: Introducing myself briefly

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Hi all! nice to meet everyone! first time coming here but I'd like to make a bit of an effort to take a part of the discussions going on. If all goes well, we will get to know each other a lot better. I look forward to that :)

That's quite a pickle you're in, my friend. though I'm a bit confused, was the player playing the sorcerer even present during this battle he died in? If he wasn't, then given the information you presented I think I'm inclined to agree with your sorcerer friend, because if he wasn't there he should not be punished for having justified priorities (i.e. not leaving work early just to play in the session)

If he was there, that changes some factors, but not the decision at hand: You could let the players who died leave your game, with all the consequences that might result (i.e. holding a grudge, being traumatized in future games, or worst case scenario losing a friend, note that this is conjecture, you know your players better than anyone, so you can probably better predict the magnitude of this decision based on how well you know the people involved) - or you could relent and really make a do-over of some sort(maybe a one-time thing, if it helps you), which isn't an ideal solution, because, like you said, it takes the edge off of the death element of the game.

If your other players are also pissed at you over other character deaths, that's another matter entirely, and you should note for future games that character death might not be something those players are equipped to handle.

You'll need to choose to take the side of either your inner DM or your friends/players in this scenario, or seek middle ground (I.E gather everyone, explain your perspective to them and discuss a solution that satisfies everyone, yourself included, before going forward.)

Best of luck with your issue, either way! I'm sorry if it's not the answer you were hoping for, but I hope it helps!

[TheWombatOfDoom]

Hey everyone! Anyone live near Vienna, Austria?! Because I'm going there for a few days at the beginning of next month! I'm excited! Or even, been there? I'm looking for suggestions for things to do there and in Rome!

[Aegis J Hyena]

He wasn't present for his PC's death, no. In his words, "It was a one-player game of chess you ran."

I ended up giving him half EXP for the session since he was alive for about half of it, and not removing a level. I'm hoping he says "alright, we cool" when I talk to him next. I've already talked to some of the others; they're cool with any outcome I decide on since "the DM's word is law" but you're right in that saying I have to side with the inner DM or with the players but not both. Having somewhat of a bleeding heart was the reason my old sunday game steamrolled everything and I was trying to stop doing that with this one.

[LaZodiac]

He wasn't present for his PC's death, no.

I was trying to stay out of this but.

No.

You don't ****ing do this. I understand not wanting to your players to steam roll, I understanding wanting to be a good DM that has the things that happen be dynamic and cool.

Never kill a player when he's NOT THERE. That's wrong.

[Prince Zahn]

I was trying to stay out of this but.

No.

You don't ****ing do this. I understand not wanting to your players to steam roll, I understanding wanting to be a good DM that has the things that happen be dynamic and cool.

Never kill a player when he's NOT THERE. That's wrong.

+1, as blunt as it is put, it is a truism. When one of us is absent, our consensus with the DM is that the character is considered not there (or if it is the healer, there but only healing out of combat and not interacted with, much less targeted by enemies) and not involved in the session but retcon'd in next session. if more than a third of our players can't make it, we reschedule our session night. it's crude to the narrative, yes, but it's the fairest course of action. I suggest that in the future you attempt this too, or a similar practice, because your Sorcerer right now must feel like you acted behind his back by killing him off when he wasn't even there.

[FinnLassie]

Oh man, almost didn't recognise you there Prince Zahn! So used to your former avatar. Welcome to random banter! How are you doing?

ION: Trip to Madrid is in just a few days. One of the fun parts is that we'll be going to an Escape Room with Spanish_Paladin and a couple of his friends!

[DataNinja]

ION: Trip to Madrid is in just a few days. One of the fun parts is that we'll be going to an Escape Room with Spanish_Paladin and a couple of his friends!

Just make sure of the Escape part.

"What... you think we'd just let you leave, after coming out all this way? Nope, you're staying here."

[Prince Zahn]

Oh man, almost didn't recognise you there Prince Zahn! So used to your former avatar. Welcome to random banter! How are you doing?

ION: Trip to Madrid is in just a few days. One of the fun parts is that we'll be going to an Escape Room with Spanish_Paladin and a couple of his friends!

Hey Finn! and thanks! do you like?
funny thing, I kept the former avatar for so long because I wasn't over what my old DM did to that character years ago. I've seen him in action since, he's taking strides to learn from his mistakes, and I think it's time to move on too. so now Vamber rests in peace and Cynthia takes the lead, I hope you'll like her, too

back to the question. I'm swamped between school and work, And I'll be frank some subjects are simply overwhelming sometimes. I have a massive math test on Sunday, and the midterm on Wednesday. I REALLY should not have spent the entire day in the playground

anyway, have lots of fun in Madrid! tell us all about it by the time you get back!

[DataNinja]

I'm swamped between school and work, And I'll be frank some subjects are simply overwhelming sometimes. I have a massive math test on Sunday, and the midterm on Wednesday. I REALLY should not have spent the entire day in the playground

Preaching to the choir. Especially the last part.

Best of luck with the math. Hopefully it's math-you-can-at-least-pretend-to-enjoy. And not math-that-sucks-the-soul-out-of-you.

[Prince Zahn]

Preaching to the choir. Especially the last part.

Best of luck with the math. Hopefully it's math-you-can-at-least-pretend-to-enjoy. And not math-that-sucks-the-soul-out-of-you.

The lecturer is a manipulative sadist, but aren't they all?
Once I'm engaged in math it's not too bad, but when I get stuck (which happens often) I panic.

He's also our statistics and probability lecturer, but probability is also frustrating.

The biggest sucker punch was when he told us that everyone who's studying for Behavioral Science (like I will once I complete these courses and enroll in this college) won't even need the math portion for their B. A. so it is just a really difficult boulder in the road that stands in my way of success.

[Spanish_Paladin]

Oh man, almost didn't recognise you there Prince Zahn! So used to your former avatar. Welcome to random banter! How are you doing?

ION: Trip to Madrid is in just a few days. One of the fun parts is that we'll be going to an Escape Room with Spanish_Paladin and a couple of his friends!

Yay!!!

[Aegis J Hyena]

Yeah. I bungled bad, but finally decided on half EXP for the session since he was alive at the start, plus he gets raised so no harm done. I'm adding in a sidequest to break the "curse" of being fatebound --- because the "satan" in particular isn't allowed to come forth with pacts (despite him going "I'm chaotic evil, I can cheat."; people have to come to him first), there will be a loophole (and potentially an easy one depending on where they end up). I've already apologized but have been getting the silent treatment so far. Still a few days to the next game though, so we'll see if he comes back.

[Prince Zahn]

Yeah. I bungled bad, but finally decided on half EXP for the session since he was alive at the start, plus he gets raised so no harm done. I'm adding in a sidequest to break the "curse" of being fatebound --- because the "satan" in particular isn't allowed to come forth with pacts (despite him going "I'm chaotic evil, I can cheat."; people have to come to him first), there will be a loophole (and potentially an easy one depending on where they end up). I've already apologized but have been getting the silent treatment so far. Still a few days to the next game though, so we'll see if he comes back.

I reckon that at this point you've done what you could, assuming your friend is still hurt, you might have to give him some time to himself. Of course, even if he misses the next session, leave your offer open. Last time my dungeon master crossed me, it took me a long time before i felt that I could trust him again, because I had little hope he would stop making the same mistakes time and time again. I've only forgiven him after hearing from friends and then seeing first hand that he is not the same DM who screwed me over long ago.

What I'm trying to say is give him time, give him space, and keep trying to improve yourself so you don't make this sort of mistake again. Whatever happens, this was a necessary learning experience.

I hope it works out for you.

[Aegis J Hyena]

Looks like he's coming back. This next session is going to be a rough one (rougher still if he decides to off the bard by offing himself since they're still fatebound; the other character in the binding doesn't care either way).

[Cuthalion]

Hey everyone! Anyone live near Vienna, Austria?! Because I'm going there for a few days at the beginning of next month! I'm excited! Or even, been there? I'm looking for suggestions for things to do there and in Rome!

What budget are you on, how long do you plan to be there? I'm acquainted with the city; have a number of relatives in the area. It's an awesome place, and has excellent public transportation. What would you like to see? How do you feel about giant museums?

[TheWombatOfDoom]

What budget are you on, how long do you plan to be there? I'm acquainted with the city; have a number of relatives in the area. It's an awesome place, and has excellent public transportation. What would you like to see? How do you feel about giant museums?

I don't have a huge budget, and am only there for a few days. I like museums, but also like to avoid larger tourist traps when possible. Finding places that I can later paint would be nice, but ultimately I'll take any recommendations.

[Cuthalion]

I don't have a huge budget, and am only there for a few days. I like museums, but also like to avoid larger tourist traps when possible. Finding places that I can later paint would be nice, but ultimately I'll take any recommendations.

If you want to go to see beautiful places without spending money, there are tons of parks. I'd recommend Schönbrunn, if you don't mind a few people. It's the old imperial summer residence, and while a lot of people are in the museumpalace itself, there are huge gardens that are very well maintained, and you can go up on a hill for a top-quality view. Tourists go there, but they usually don't swarm in very deep and not as many this time of year, I'd guess.

Spoiler: Picture, there are many smaller paths going through the woods

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Again, it won't be empty, but once you get out of the main areas it's very peaceful and most of the people you'll see will be locals out for a stroll or run.

I personally love just going to downtown Vienna itself and walking around. Take a map if you're not confident in your sense of direction, but it's always fun to duck down the quiet alleys, maybe stop by a bakery or two, smell the smell and see the smells. The old downtown Vienna, which the walls used to surround, has many tall, old, grand buildings and cobblestone streets. Again, there'll be a bunch of traffic in the main areas, but again the side ways are interesting and pleasant. You can crane your neck and look up at all the architectural details, stumble across small secluded squares with one or two statues in them. The Danube is on the east side of the city itself, and one side of the downtown, or the Ring, is on a canal. It's quiet and a nice place to walk of itself, lots of interesting graffiti, again largely locals out for exercise or so forth. If you like rivers, take the U-Bahn a bit farther east and you can go to an island in the middle of the Danube itself. Not much per se is interesting there, but there are ponds and lawns and it's quite relaxing. Can see traffic on the water and look at the buildings from a different perspective.

You'll probably want to get a 72-hour pass (€16.50) or such for public transportation if you plan to be out much, especially if you're staying where lodging is cheaper in the suburbs. It's a big city, especially with the suburbs, but the public transportation is excellent. Passes are good for unlimited subway and bus rides.

If you feel you need ice cream at this time of year, I've been told that Eis am Schwedenplatz has the best ice cream in the city, but I don't know how expensive it is. Might be more pleasant to stop by, like I said, a bakery or coffeehouse in the suburbs and get something warm to drink.

You'll want to go in Stephansdom, but that should be obvious. It's the giant cathedral in the middle of everything. Lots of people, but worth it if you want to feel very small and impressed by architecture. If you want a small, secluded, picturesque location I'd advise swinging by St. Rupert's Church. You can't go in, but it's traditionally (if debatedly) the oldest surviving church in Vienna, and is a really pretty little stone building with ivy and trees surrounding it at the top of a hill in a quiet residential area in the Ring. As far as parks go within downtown Vienna, again, there's the Volksgarten, which would be worth visiting, a public park with lots of very well maintained plants and benches and such, a nice place to relax, Karlsplatz, a large, fairly traffic heavy park with a very interesting old church with some Byzantine-ish pillar things, and the Stadtpark, which often has people that work in the area, but lots of grass, a canal going through the middle, and is quite pleasant. Oh, and there's also the Beldevere gardens, attached to an old palace now museum, that are free of charge. I never went there but I heard they're excellent. There are a bunch of museums clustered over by the Volksgarten; the Natural History and Art History ones. They're huge and impressive, but probably not as unusual or interesting for you.

Again, probably my biggest suggestion is just to wander around the entirety of the Ring. Everywhere you go there are fascinating old buildings and little parks and alcoves and charming nooks and crannies.

Look at where everything is on the map compared to you and play it by ear. I think you'll definitely enjoy the city, and I'd be curious to see pictures if you take any and want to share, as I've spent all my time there in late spring.

If you have any other questions fire away as well. Sorry about the run-on sentences and such, but I was typing this up in a bit of a hurry.

[Teddy]

*waves hi to Prince Zahn*

(And, psst, you have a broken italics tag in your sig.)

[...]
If you feel you need ice cream at this time of year, I've been told that Eis am Schwedenplatz has the best ice cream in the city, but I don't know how expensive it is. Might be more pleasant to stop by, like I said, a bakery or coffeehouse in the suburbs and get something warm to drink.
[...]

And now I wonder why Vienna has a "Sweden Square"...[/too late for Wikipedia]

ION:
Just came back from a two days mini vacation skiing down a "mountain" with my family. I'm typing that in quotation marks, because it's hardly a mountain even by our fairly modest Swedish standards, seeing how it didn't even break the treeline, but it still offered plenty of opportunity for hurtling down at breakneck speed on twin steel ribbons strapped tightly to your legs, swerving in and out between all the pesky casuals (i.e. anyone going slower than us (i.e. everyone)) clogging up the pistes. So, in other words, good times, albeit short.