The Race to Insanity and Beyond!

[NullAshton]

Oh, they have some QUALITY posts over there.

[El_Phil]

Yes.

And No.

[Kamog]

It depends on how we define "quality". It's kind of subjective and relies on people's opinion about what sorts of characteristics about a post make it a quality one.

...Anyway, in my opinion, all our posts here in this thread are very high quality posts, indeed. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[El_Phil]

'Quantity has a Quality all of it's own' - Lots of people I suspect.

And in that case the quality that quantity has is known as 'Rubbish' http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Jack Simth]

So... how many people do you think will fall for it?

[Kamog]

Well, a lot of people will probably fall for it. Quality is important!

[NullAshton]

Hmmm?

[El_Phil]

Hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Bee based singing. It will never catch on.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Ohmmm.....

Buddhist chanting doesn't appear to be taking the musical world by storm either. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[NullAshton]

Hehe.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

http://artistic-insanity.net/song/daleksong.html

Definitly a must-see. Fyron said so...

...Well, actually, what he said was more like 'That's worse than that badger song!', but close enough for me. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

*collapses on the floor in a twitching, laughing heap*

[Kamog]

Haven't seen the new Doctor Who yet, is that raspy voice what the new Daleks sound like? They didn't used to sound like that! Where is Davros? Is he actually dead or are they going to bring him back again, he's survived all sorts of dangers in the past like being shot, being in a ship that blows up, etc.

[El_Phil]

Davros is probably back sobbing at home at being left out of the new series.

Don't worry Davros, just pour yourself another Ouzo.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I dunno, I've only read a few of the books.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Oh come on people, we need some more insanity!

And why is my message subject "Re: Organic and Standard race diplomacy"? When was organic and standard race diplomacy ever discussed here?

[El_Phil]

I think the title bar is linked to a random generator. That or it just replies to the last post anywhere on the forum. Or it's broken of course.

I think we're hitting 'The wall' in this race, the point where you have to dig deep to keep on being insane or risk dropping out. Tough times gentlemen, tough times.

[Jack Simth]

Nononono - no random generator. Random generators don't quite come up with some of the stuff we've seen.

[NullAshton]

THIS THREAD IS FALLING APART!

[El_Phil]

Purple alert. This is not a daffodil. Abandon shop!

[Kamog]

Learning to play the piano is so hard!

[NullAshton]

Uh, yeah. I like playing the keyboard, I get visual effects to go with the music of weapons fire.

[Kamog]

I started taking lessons for piano about two months ago and each week it's getting harder even though it's still beginner stuff. I have to practise a lot at home because I just don't have the manual dexterity and coordination yet to do those tricky finger movements. When I look at the notes on the music book, I need 100% mental concentration and still I have to pause and think every so often to figure out what it says and what corresponding hand movement goes with it. The teacher makes it look so easy!

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

/me nukes the piano from orbit.

YAY! Finally some insanity! My title reads "Re: ZOT!", and if that isn't something insane, I don't know what is! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[El_Phil]

I want to learn to play the comedy piano, one where all the keys are replaced by ultrasonic emitters.

You can only play a tune by either: Making dogs howl in tune OR The synchronised falling of bats out of flight.

A tough instrument to be sure, but rewarding.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

And don't forget that you can also play a tune by synchronizing your hand movements so the ultrasonic emittions cause an earthquake on the other side of the planet, to the tune of "Frère Jacques", but beware; this is extremely difficult. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[El_Phil]

Theres also the problem that you can't practice to many times before running out of areas to cause earthquakes in.

Also people take a dim view of this, but true artists are regularly unappreciated in their own lifetimes.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Egg-zactly. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

...What does that say about today's singers?...

[NullAshton]

That they rock your world?

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Methinks Ashton has missed the point. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[El_Phil]

That's a good thing. It's really pointy and could take someones eye out, which would probably hurt. Unless it was a wooden eye.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Or a steel eye. That would work too.

But if Ashton has missed it, who will catch it? Or will it land on the ground, causing he who threw it to score a homerun?

Or was it never thrown at all, but was it merely an illusion which missed Ashton? What kind of point are we talking about here? A wooden stake, a splinter of wood, a Xi'Chung's ermmmm..... youdontwannaknow?

[NullAshton]

I think I turned the point right around into Narfs eye.

[El_Phil]

Thus proving that Narf will never be a javelin thrower at a professional level. Although I doubt there are many professioal spear chuckers left in the world.

Where did it all go wrong?

[NullAshton]

I think it's where he opened himself up for a pun counterattack.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

/me lobs a hairpun at Ashton

[NullAshton]

NullAshton counteracts with a bad pin.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Oh, you're playing badpinton?

[NullAshton]

No, Strategia is drinking a bud light. SHAME ON YOU!

[narf poit chez BOOM]

...And that's a pun because?...

[NullAshton]

I dunno. It's one of those bad puns, ones that don't really make sense, that made sense at the time.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Ah.

On top of spagetti,
All covered in cheese,
I lost my poor meatball,
When somebody sneezed.

It rolled onto the table,
And onto the floor,
And then my poor meatball,
Rolled out of the door.

It rolled into the garden,
And under a bush,
And then my poor meatball,
Was nothing but mush.

So when you're eating spagetti,
With meatballs and cheese,
Hold onto your meatballs,
And don't ever sneeze!

I learnt stuff like that from a really weird friend of my sister. There's also some alternate endings, but I don't remember them.

Anyone know any?

[Jack Simth]

One bright day
In the middle of the night,
Two dead boys
Got up to fight.

Back to back
They faced each other,
Drew their swords
And shot each other.

A deaf policeman
Heard the noise,
Came and killed
The two dead boys.

If you don't believe
This tall tale,
Ask the Blind man,
He saw it all.

[NullAshton]

Sorry I don't have anything to sing with, can't sing O.o

[Jack Simth]

That's okay. At least you didn't have to listen to my horrid off-tune singing voice.

[NullAshton]

Yay.

[Kamog]

Horrid off-tune singing is perfect for karaoke.

[El_Phil]

Unless you have a clever Japanese karaoke machine that trys it's damnest to give you a half decent voice. If you sound awful on one of those you should never attempt singing ever again. Ever.

[Jack Simth]

Hey now! You don't sound awful at karaoke if the audience has enough alcohol! Why do you think they put them in bars?

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

So that people can pick up said iron bar and smash said karaoke machine to pieces with said iron bar if said karaoke machine mangles voice of said wannabe singer?

[NullAshton]

Nah, I think it's so that we can hit you with it. FORE!

NullAshton smacks STrategia into tomorrow.

[El_Phil]

We don't want him here. He might break it.

Phil whacks Strategia back into yesterday

[Kamog]

Steel Bar
Ceram Bar
Laser Bar

[NullAshton]

Superman's most feared joke http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Kamog]

Yay Kryptonite
http://www.shrapnelcommunity.com/threads/uploads/377644-kryptonite.JPG

Mars Bar! Monkey Bar! Chocolate Bar! Sandbar! Crowbar! Tintinabar! Minbar!

[NullAshton]

NullAshton tosses red kryptonite to everyone.

[El_Phil]

Ahhh I'm becoming unpredictable and temporary!! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/eek.gif

Oh wait. I'm not a Krypronian. Lucky escape there. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

/me points a finger at Ashton and shouts "You KRYPTONIAN!!!". Ashton is promptly jumped by green and gold Kryptonite chunks and starts to melt.

[Jack Simth]

Kit Kat Bar! Mr. Goodbar!

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Give me a break! Give me a break! Break me of a piece of that Kit Kat Bar!

[Jack Simth]

*snap*

Here you go.

Fortunately, it's a cartoon kit-kat bar, and will keep regenerating any bits broken off.

Unfortunately, it's a cartoon kit-kat bar, and tastes like ink.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Fortunatly, Narf is a cartoon character and likes the taste of ink.

In fact, to him it's filling and nutritious!

* Narf eats the Kit Kat Bar.

[Kamog]

A regenerating Kit Kat bar? That would cause Hershey's (or is it Nestle?) to go out of business. You just get one of those and it's good for the rest of your life. You can just sit there all day breaking off pieces until you have a giant mountain of Kit Kat pieces. You can just live on Kit Kat and water and not eat any other food. You'll save a lot of money on food. Hey, that would be perfect for long space flights. It's like having a quantum reactor that produces unlimited food.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

The downside, of course, is the fact that you'll die of morbid obesity after a year or two. By that time you'd be approximately 600 kilograms in weight, and capable of swallowing cars whole and breathing in bricks through your nose.

[NullAshton]

There's a living person who weighs half a ton. 1,000 pounds of fatty goodnes.

[El_Phil]

http://www.dimensionsmagazine.com/dimtext/kjn/people/heaviest.htm

Apparently most of the weight of such people is fluids not actual fat. Even so the question does have to be: How the hell do you let yourself get that bad?

I mean when you realise you can no longer see your legs surely you'd stop and do something, not just carry on eating whole cakes as snacks?

[Kamog]

Well, they probably let things get that bad because the weight gain happened gradually over many years, so day-to-day they don't notice any difference. Over the long period of time, the increase in weight is tremendous but they live with it because it occurred gradually, and if they were OK with being a little bit overweight, it's easy to live with a little bit more weight, and a bit more, and so on until it added up.

[El_Phil]

Still when you realise you can't stand up without crushing your own knees you'd stop eating surely?

Or not I suppose, it would be so depressing the people need to cheer themselves up by eating an entire moose or something.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

/me thwacks Phil and Kamog about the head(s) with a frying pan for talking in a SANE manner here!!!

[Wolfman77]

This is the worst case I've heard of.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2004371699,00.html

I saw some pictures of it when I first heard of it, but I can't find any now.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I lost 8 pounds since the last time I weighed myself.

[Wolfman77]

What's left when a mouse looses 8 pounds?

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

a negative mass of 7.5 pounds.

Narf is now officially the first living creature with negative mass. Enjoy, Narf. You'll need antigravity generators, though; otherwise, you'd fall up all the time. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif

[El_Phil]

You always did have a shaky grasp of physics didn't you Strat?

A mouse that's lost 8 pounds? It's a mice that's £8 poorer.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

About 252, actually.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Now you're talking business..... err..... insanity! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[El_Phil]

Ahhh so you count in base F!Tang then narf. Well that explains it. I gained several stone last time I was weighed. They were all in my pocket after a trip to the beach!

[NullAshton]

We should always change the topic every time you post.

[El_Phil]

Who's you?

No wait that could be too philosophical.... http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/eek.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Someone set us up the bomb!

[douglas]

narf poit chez BOOM said:
Someone set us up the bomb!


Correction: Somebody set up us the bomb!

[Kamog]

There was no alien, and the flash of light you saw in the sky wasn't a UFO. Swamp gas from a weather balloon was trapped in a thermal pocket and refracted the light from Venus.

[El_Phil]

douglas said:

narf poit chez BOOM said:
Someone set us up the bomb!


Correction: Somebody set up us the bomb!



So bodies bomed the set up us?

Is that right http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/confused.gif

[NullAshton]

This is fun.

[El_Phil]

Phil considers making a comment about there being better things to do than post on a forum at 3am. Suddenly he looks down to see a very, very thin layer of ice beneath him. Then he is distracted by a large device for boiling water and an elaborate lidded frying pan calling him very very dark grey.

[Kamog]

What you say !!

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

You have no chance to survive make your time!

[NullAshton]

He could just use a penguin.

[Jack Simth]

AntiPenguin! Much more volitile.

Not nearly so dangerous as a high-output Hawking Generator, however.

[El_Phil]

Or the unltimate weapon a penguin-antipenguin missile. On impact the two forms of penguin are forced together and annihilate each other in a bright orange light, leaving behind only a wrapper and fait chocolate mark.

[NullAshton]

Linux shall take over the world one day.

[Jack Simth]

Yes... but when a Hawking Generator goes sour, there's nothing left, save for a small black hole, that usually evaporates. Doesn't matter whether it goes sour on a ship, a planet, or in the center of a star, save for the size and longevity of the black hole that remains.

[Kamog]

Hawking is a very smart guy! I saw a wax figure of him at Madame Tussaud's when I visited London a couple months ago.

[Jack Simth]

What type of wax?

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Ear wax!

[El_Phil]

Kamog said:
Hawking is a very smart guy! I saw a wax figure of him at Madame Tussaud's when I visited London a couple months ago.



More smart than you would think. Despite his condition he managed to elope with his nurse, amazing achievement really. It must have taken some very eloquent typing to pull that off.

[Kamog]

Wow, didn't know that. Brilliant guy. His tremendous brain power more than makes up for his physical disadvantages.

[NullAshton]

He's still wasting away, so eventually he'll be a quivering mass of flesh incapable of moving. So his days are numbered.

[Kamog]

It's been smokey on and off these last few days and there's a burning smell outside. Sometimes it's really bad, sometimes it's hardly noticeable, depending on the wind direction. There's a big fire pretty close by in a place called Burns Bog and there's having difficulty putting it out. The fire has been spreading these last couple days.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Yeah, I go outside and I can see and smell the smoke - Ground level, and I'm 50~ miles from there.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

NO!!!!! NO SANE TALK!!!!! INSANITY!!!!! YOU'RE DRIVING ME SANE!!!!!

[NullAshton]

NullAsthon sets off a penguin bomb in the Race to Insanity, unleashing a bunch of penguins to slow you down while I continue!

[El_Phil]

Phil paints a huge black circle on a mountain and puts up a 'Shortcut' sign next to it.

"That'll fix 'em"

[NullAshton]

NullAshton wonders what the shortcut will do... The penguins just wander around randomly, paying no heed to the shortcut sign.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

/me runs right into the hole, and comes out another hole on the other side of a mountain.

* Cartoon characters can do that.

[NullAshton]

Hmmmm. Wonder if my talking wolf on D&D would count as a cartoon character.

[El_Phil]

Only if they're the right cartoon character, then the villian has to run in after them and smack into solid rock.

It's practicaly the law you know. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I'm a mouse...He's a wolf...

...Wolf pancake. It's the law.

[NullAshton]

Eh, I don't eat mice. Not enough meat.
Now, why would I be a pancake? Maybe Jason has a meld into stone or something...

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Cartoon physics. The wolf always looses.

[NullAshton]

But I'm cuddly and soft! If people hug you, they crush you...

[narf poit chez BOOM]

...

[El_Phil]

Hmmmm.

Remember people, you have the god given gifts of repression and denial. Use the wisely.

[NullAshton]

O.o Doesn't that just lead to pain in the end?

[El_Phil]

Depends how well you repress really. If you keep it hidden well enough you'll die before the memories re-surface.

[NullAshton]

Meh, they're still there, just not screaming 'hello!' at you.

[El_Phil]

Yep and that's the point. Maybe it's just me, but I'm a strong 'Live for today, for tommorow you may die.' person.

Not to silly extents, but so far life has made it clear to me that thats a philosophy to live by.

[NullAshton]

Repressing stuff only leads to it building up, it doesn't simply evaporate over time. It needs time to let itself out, evaporate like emotions.

[El_Phil]

Indeed and it can do that evaporation whilst being repressed. Maybe repression is the wrong word, bit too strong perhaps. Certainly ignore and not think about often, if at all.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

If I need to let something out, I type it all out in the reply box, then delete it and write something nice.

So now you all know my secret. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Kamog]

If my repressed emotions surface, I go and hit something!

[Jack Simth]

Firewood is really good for that ... especially when it needs splitting anyway ... and you have a splitting maul... quite satisfying, really.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Yup. Unfortunately, sometimes you don't have firewood at hand. At times like that, pedestrians' skulls will also do nicely.

[NullAshton]

Yeah, but then the cops come to crack YOUR skull. And that's painful.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Until you tell them you have a fleet of orbital starships ready to fire CSMs at them..... then they won't crack your skull, they'll just lock you up in a psychiatric institution http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[NullAshton]

And you're crack your own skull. Same thing happens, either way.

[Kamog]

Conclusion: releasing one's repressed emotions leads to a cracked skull. Better keep those emotions deeply buried!

[El_Phil]

Let me get this straight: If you take crack into your skull you end up releasing repressed emotions and burying yourself alive?

Well I'll just add that to the list of reasons not to take crack then.

[Kamog]

That's right! And if you bury yourself alive, you won't be able to play SEV when it comes out.

[NullAshton]

And that's all that matters.

[El_Phil]

And if you've got a SE addiction already you'd be foolish to have two addictions to feed.

[NullAshton]

Don't you mean three? There is, after all, Space Empires V that's coming out soon...

[El_Phil]

Well do you still play SEIII that much?

[Kamog]

No. After I got SEIV, I spent maybe a total of 2 hours playing SEIII. It's just not the same anymore and I can't get into it.

[NullAshton]

They still need to place a warning label on SE5. Just as a marketing gimmick.

[NullAshton]

To revive this thread again... Look at my spiffy new avatar!!!

[Jack Simth]

Is that an asteroid? Meteor? Meteorite?

[NullAshton]

My ne new black hole. See, it's with all the radiation, and stellar matter falling in. Ooo.

[Jack Simth]

Ah, an all consuming space void. Well, lets hope you can continue to find enough matter to keep from evaporating anytime soon.

[El_Phil]

Hmmm so NAs an all consuming void. Well I'd heard the rumours....

[NullAshton]

Well, there's the null in my name. Funny story about how I got it in there...

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Tell us.

TELL US!

[NullAshton]

I used to be called SkyAshton. Then there was a conversation about stuff with the word null in it's name, starting with nullspace cannons. Then came along... NullAshton! And a new name was born.

You have to admit, my new avatar loks a lot better than that fake-looking blackhole I rendered. Looks like someone just exploded a start, and it's collapsing into a black hole, or something.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Yup, it really looks like an exploding start. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/tongue.gif

[NullAshton]

Meh, supposed to be star. Hey, maybe it's an exploding black hole! Or maybe a wormhole, spewing out matter.

[Jack Simth]

Oohh - it's a pretty swirl ... spinning ... dizzy....

[Kamog]

Does a black hole really look like a spiral vortex?

[NullAshton]

A black hole is black. All the swirly stellar matter swirling in...

[Jack Simth]

Well... that's not entirely true... black holes are thought to spit matter back out, one twisted, torn, and rent particle at a time....

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Black holes are recycling depot's!

[El_Phil]

The problem is just dumping what you wanted to and not the whole ship with it.

[Jack Simth]

There can be 16 and 2/3rd's "meh"'s. Hah.

The real trick is to lock one up and feed it very carefully - feed it basically any matter, and capture the radiation as energy - total conversion of matter to energy at E=mc^2 (and then you have a Hawking Generator). There are some downsides, though - your generator can go critical in one of two basic ways: underfeeding (energy output is proportional to an inverse of the black hole's mass, and it loses mass as it outputs energy - if you don't feed it enough, it explodes in a very big burst of some very hard radiation) but that's not so bad as the second, which is loss of containment (it gets loose, and starts feeding ... on anything and everything available - the atmosphere of your ship, your ship, the atmosphere of the planet your ship was parked over, the planet your ship was parked over, the star that planet used to orbit.... and everything on any of them, of course (though why you would have anything important on a star, I have no idea) - all that's left is a little black hole ... which eventually evaporates).

Overfeeding will tone it down (more mass -> lower energy output) but you can't rev it up again in a hurry if you need to, and raises the risk of a loss of containment.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

...

[Jack Simth]

narf poit chez BOOM said:
...


?

[Kamog]

!

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

/\

[El_Phil]

%

[NullAshton]

What if you grab an artificial black hole that dissapates if you don't continue to generate it.

[douglas]

All that's needed to maintain a black hole is to keep shoving mass into it.

[El_Phil]

Or just turn the lights off in a white hole.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

... = Speechless.

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif = laughing his butt off.

[Emperor's Child]

Wha?

[kerensky]

I was going to post some sort of snide off the wall remark, but my mind just wandered off again and I need to go retrieve it.................

[El_Phil]

Off the wall, thats wallpaper isn't it?

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Only if it's peeling.

[Jack Simth]

That's usually on the wall, unless you've been boiling too much water or something.

[Kamog]

I wonder what wallpaper tastes like!

[Jack Simth]

I don't know. I've never tried it. You could probably find out....

[Suicide Junkie]

Jack Simth said:
There are some downsides, though - your generator can go critical in one of two basic ways: underfeeding (energy output is proportional to an inverse of the black hole's mass, and it loses mass as it outputs energy - if you don't feed it enough, it explodes in a very big burst of some very hard radiation)
...

Not just proportional to 1/ mass, but to 1/mass^4 IIRC.

Dropping the mass by 10% increases power by about 52%
Half the mass -> 16 times the output.

So, yeah, quite unstable a reactor.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Wall and paper?

[Jack Simth]

Suicide Junkie said:
Not just proportional to 1/ mass, but to 1/mass^4 IIRC.

Dropping the mass by 10% increases power by about 52%
Half the mass -> 16 times the output.

So, yeah, quite unstable a reactor.

Hence, "an inverse" rather than "the inverse" in the earlier post - couldn't quite remember the power, but knew it was > 1.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

mass^4? Wouldn't that possibly imply that gravity is four-dimensional?

[El_Phil]

Much as like the idea of black hole reactor, we are getting somewhat sidetracked from the usual insanity round here.

This is a good thing, keep it up.

[NullAshton]

Science is weirder than fiction. Remember that.

[El_Phil]

Well I asked the purple fruitbat in my closet about that, he replied that the influence of cats on the development of external combustion was much under-rated.

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Hah! They stole that idea! And guess who they stole it from?!

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Yusuf Islam?

[Emperor's Child]

NullAshton said:
Science is weirder than fiction. Remember that.



Recall that in the days when start trek was first shot, computers were as large as a house and only performed calculations roughly equivalent to our calculators of today.

[Wolfman77]

Heres a neat pic. Shows how bad we can predict the future.

[NullAshton]

Personally, computers now are ever so much better than computers in TOS.

[NullAshton]

That picture is a hoax, you know.

[Wolfman77]

Still funny.

[kerensky]

It has lots of fiber in it and the glue makes it very chewy...

[Kamog]

The history of computers is fascinating. When I visited the Science Museum in London a couple of weeks ago, they had some of Charles Babbage's mechanical computers on display, along with Babbage's brain. /threads/images/Graemlins/icon07.gif

[Jack Simth]

Kinda a pitty the last in that list doesn't appear to function anymore....

[El_Phil]

That's what mad science is for. Or possibly Voodoo in this case.

[NullAshton]

Voodoo cards were actually superior to other cards at the time. It failed because of lack of advertising, I believe.

[kerensky]

Voodoo cards were really nice. I remember a friend of mine had one....

Ih and by the way, did anyone notice that we are coming up on two thousand posts?

[Jack Simth]

I haven't been watching the post count, no - just having fun with Roman Numerals for a while.

[kerensky]

yeah roman numeral are fun...

Especially when you can't remember much about them.

[Jack Simth]

Roman numerals are an odd system:
Base symbols with their numeric meanings, encountered individually:
I = 1
V = 5
X = 10
L = 50
C = 100
D = 500
M = 1000

Now, if a smaller value is on the right of a larger value, they add; so
VI = 6
XI = 11
LI = 51
CI = 101
DI = 501
MI = 1001

If an I, X, or C value is to the left of a larger value (which also must not pass the next X, C, or M value up), the smaller value is subtracted from the larger value; thus:
IV = 4
IX = 9
XL = 40
XC = 90
CD = 400
CM = 900

If there are two or threee the same symbol (selected from I, X, C, M only) in a row, they add:

II = 2
XX = 20
CC = 200
MM = 2000
III = 3
XXX = 30
CCC = 300
MMM = 3000

These are cumulative; 1999 would be written as MCMXCIX: 1000 + (1000 - 100) + (100 - 10) + (10 - 1) while 2005 would be written as MMV: 1000 + 1000 + 5

For numbers over 4000, there's a an extra notation - a bar over the top multiplies whatever is underneath it by 1000.

One page on the subject - there's more, if you search (http://www.novaroma.org/via_romana/numbers.html)

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I can do one to thirteen real good. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif

[Jack Simth]

1 to 50, and I can translate (eventually) just about any integer > 0 I choose.
I
II
III
IV
V
VI
VII
VIII
IX
X
XI
XII
XIII
XIV
XV
XVI
XVII
XVIII
XIX
XX
XXI
XXII
XXIII
XXIV
XXV
XXVI
XXVII
XXVIII
XXIX
XXX
XXXI
XXXII
XXXIII
XXXIV
XXXV
XXXVI
XXXVII
XXXVIII
XXXIX
XL
XLI
XLII
XLIII
XLIV
XLV
XLVI
XLVII
XLVIII
XLIX
L

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I used to know the one for 100 - I think it's 'C'.

[NullAshton]

Didn't he just say that?

[Jack Simth]

Seems a rather nonsensical order.

Which is fine, for this thread.

?sdrawkcab s'ti spahreP

[Kamog]

For some reason, on some clocks 4 is IIII and not IV.

Why is 1999 MCMXCIX and not something simpler like MIM?

[Jack Simth]

.nwod edispu saw ta gnikool erew yeht rebmun eht fi llet dluoc enoemos os ylbissoP

.tfel eht ot rewol edutingam eno naht erom eulav a tup t'nac uoY .emag eht fo seluR

[Kamog]

...oga emit gnol a ,erofeb ecno siht did ew rebmemer ot mees I ?sdrawkcab gnipyt ew era yhW !sknaht ,ees I ,hO

[Jack Simth]

...rrG ?niaga c deecxe I did ....tiaW ?sdrawkcaB

[douglas]

.srettel ton ,sdrawkcab og emit sekam thgil naht retsaf gniog ,on on oN

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

:dias gomaK.VI ton dna IIII si 4 skcolc emos no ,nosaer emos roF



.gnihtemos ro gnilaeppa yllacitehtsea erom s'tI .IIX ot XI dna ,IIIV ot V ,IIII ot I ;snoitces dezis-yllauqe eerht otni kcolc eht sedivid sihT

[NullAshton]

Hey look, I'm talking backwards!

[El_Phil]

Arse Fez! I can't be bothered with this backwards milarky any more, it's far too much effort. Forwards is indeed the way forwards.

[NullAshton]

Since everyone else is talking backwards, we're talking in the relative backwards.

[Jack Simth]

,sdrawroF Backwards,

Quell est la difference?

[kerensky]

YOu know, it's all fun and games until your head explodes from over-processing...

[Jack Simth]

s'ohW crazy hguone to ssecorp what swohs up ni this daerht?

[kerensky]

No one but my head still hurts, and super glue doesn't quite do the trick of holding all the pieces together.

[El_Phil]

Nail guns can be effective in such situations.

[kerensky]

Hmmm maybe they would...

Would I get one of those cards that let you pass through metal detectors if I used one? IT would be easier to smuggle those alien technologies into the country then....

[Jack Simth]

Hah! You just need to be smuggling Organic technology - metal detectors don't work so well on them!

[kerensky]

That would make more sense, but amorphs typically don't like to be stuffed in a bag, especially if they are armed.

[Jack Simth]

That can be a rather explosive situation, yes.

Well, Crystal tech sometimes has similar stealth.

[kerensky]

....

[El_Phil]

Stealth schlock? Arrrrrgh just think of the casualties!

[Jack Simth]

Schlock shock?

[narf poit chez BOOM]

Jack Simth said:
s'ohW crazy hguone to ssecorp what swohs up ni this daerht?


http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/stupid.gif http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif

[NullAshton]

I actually understood that. I have no life. Either that, or my life is on my harddrive somewhere.

[Jack Simth]

....it etorw that eno the m'I efil? no evah You

[kerensky]

?doow chuck dlouc woodchuck a fi chuck ,kcuhc wood a dlouc wood hcum woH

[narf poit chez BOOM]

I've got a scientific webpage for that somewhere.

[El_Phil]

And once again my thoughts turn to the amazing cleansing power of napalm.

[Wolfman77]

Several Sites actually, depending on method.

The simple answer:
http://128.252.223.112/posts/archives/may2000/958482443.Zo.r.html

The humoruous:
http://www.people.virginia.edu/~jbk9y/wdcksoc.html

using all of a woodchucks energy:
http://www.maths.tcd.ie/~icecube/woodchuck.html

[Jack Simth]

Somewhere (http://www.giantitp.com/cgi-bin/GiantITP/ootscript?SK=226)

[kerensky]

ROFLMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thats great!!

[narf poit chez BOOM]

So...Who's on third base??

[Jack Simth]

I Don't Know. (http://www.baseball-almanac.com/humor4.shtml)

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Then who's on first?

[Strategia_In_Ultima]

Nodachi said:

Alneyan said:

Nodachi said:

Atrocities said:

Nodachi said:

Alneyan said:

Nodachi said:

Atrocities said:

Alneyan said:

Alneyan said:

Atrocities said:

douglas said:

douglas said:

Jack Simth said:

narf point chez BOOM said:

Jack Simth said:

Atrocities said:

Jack Simth said:

Will said:

narf poit chez BOOM said:

RudyHuxtable said:

kerensky said:

douglas said:

narf said:

He said:
Hey, does anyone around here like turn based space strategy games? http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/wink.gif


Hate them!


So why are you posting on a forum dedicated to one?



I was just wondering the same thing. Space Empires IS a turn based space strategy game for all of you who have never made the conection.



Hey Kerensky. Space Empires is most certainly NOT a turn based space strategy game. Get a clue, man. It's turn based space strategy game. Sheesh. The nerve of some people.


Hey, my head feels pretty spaced right now. Like it's spinning. Weee, lack of slepp is funn!


Now THAT is what I call a lot of quotes.


How is that a lot of quotes?


IMPRESSIVE.


How so? It isn't even giving me side-scroll bars.


How so? Most people use a needle and thread.


Funny, most people who I know sew use a sewing machine.


Hmm, how narrow can the inner quote box get?


Looks like excessively nested quotes can mess up formatting just like large pictures. The minimum width of a quote box appears to be dictated by the longest word in it, "Nodachi" in this case.



Guys, what is the longest word in the english language? PNEUMONO­ULTRA­MICRO­SCOPIC­SILICO­VOLCANO­CO - I think it is a lung desease or something. Not really



Floccinaucinihilipilification! That's all I have to say on this matter. That word is one of the longest words not related to science, though it doesn't have much of a meaning (it basically repeats the same thing a couple of times).



And there is always antidisestablishmentarianism, which can actually mean something (besides making the forum suffer).



Right. However, if we were to track back into time to the beginings of the English language, the universally spoken english language as we all know, then I think we would find that our barbaric forefathers first spoken word must have been "NO." I mean it was the first word I learned.



It is extremely disconcerting to see my name getting contorted like that! So of course I'll add to it! http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/laugh.gif



I believe one of the Old English words for no was "Na" (as far as I know, the vowel was not really the same as our current "a", but I am no Old English scholar), though this word did not quite have the same meaning as our no.

That was just a pretence to add to the thread though, and see what happens if we shorten Nodachi to "he"... Will the middle box be much shorter? Will it break the forum at last? Will John fall in love with Mary?



Now "turn-based" is the limiting factor. And yes, John will fall in love with Mary but won't stop seeing Sue.


Pain is tempory, posts are forever.



Someone please tell me, why are we trying to break the forum?



Because we have a mile-wide mean streak? And the forum is doing just fine, though 1600X1200 is no longer enough to avoid the side-scroll bars. Anyone has a higher resolution to check it out? (Now trying with turn based instead of turn-based)



Ah, we're stress testing the forum!



R u glad I brought this back from teh dead? No? Guessed so. http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/smilies/happy.gif

[NullAshton]

I'm considering ignoring you now. Hmmm.

[NullAshton]

And to help accelerate it off the thread, two-post minimum!

[kerensky]

OMG i thought I'd never see that again...

[kerensky]

Obliged secondary post.

[NullAshton]

Yup.

[NullAshton]

Byebye, quote thingie. Wasn't nice seeing you.

[kerensky]

Everyone run in fear of the evil quote monster!!!!!!!!!!!!

[NullAshton]

Just spam...

[NullAshton]

Till it goes away.

[El_Phil]

You know that solution was kind of like curing cancer by killing the patient. Yes it works, but.

[Ragnarok]

El_Phil said:
You know that solution was kind of like curing cancer by killing the patient. Yes it works, but.



Agreed. It gets old seeing spam messages all over the place.

[NullAshton]

Bah.

[NullAshton]

We need to get that off the front page. It ruins our reputation.

[Fyron]

The deluge of spam posts doesn't?

[NullAshton]

Thank you, Fyron! WE ARE SAVED!

[Jack Simth]

Strategia_In_Ultima said:
Then who's on first?

Right.

[Jack Simth]

NullAshton said:
Thank you, Fyron! WE ARE SAVED!

That depends on what your settings are for the number of posts per page....

[kerensky]

I think that the whole view of being saved is relevant to your current position and how many times a penquin sneezes.