Cantousent

Every person in authority must pick his battles. Now, assuming it's causing a real issue, then that's the battle to pick, but the solution is likely going to be worse than the problem. With all that aside, it's assinine to scream so loudly it causes the whole ceremony to stop. So, I think the people screaming for extended periods of time, and I've attended such ceremonies, is stupid, but I don't think it will do any good to withold the diploma. If that's the extent of their leverage, then they really don't have any.

I'd get a motorcycle just for the gas savings alone. It would be faster, but I think it would be harder on the body too. You know, I left the house at 7am this morning and I got home... well... now. haha Seriously, the days are long, but I actually enjoy the experience quite a bit. What I enjoy most is feeling that, even as a new QA guy, I can have a positive impact on the game. I enjoy seeing these people work because you really come to understand that it's a job. These are skilled folks working on product. From QA on up to the owners, these folks produce something in our society. ...And it's something worthwhile. It's something I would buy. I'm going to stave off waxing poetic for the time being. I can do that later. BTW: Motorcycles can use the carpool lane and move inbetween cars in congested traffic here in Sunny Southern California. The idea behind carpool lanes is that they relieve congestion by encouraging multiple folks to use one vehicle. In addition, carpooling is supposed to be good for the environment. Motorcycles ostensibly serve both purposes. The reason motorcylces move between traffic lanes is because some of them are air cooled. They need to move while running.

I always love simple solutions on the internet. Ugh. Okay, that wasn't a slam, Hurl, but it just requires more explanation. As to brown bagging it, that's something I really need to start doing. It's not only less expensive, but it's considerably healthier. Can't be anything I need to keep refrigerated, though. I'm in my car too long in the mornings and I don't feel like keeping it cold in the car for two hours just so my lunch stays at a good temperature. As to the motorcycle, though, that's just not going to happen. I've brought up the motorcycle idea many, many times over the years. My wife is convinced I'll die in a hideous crash. She literally goes off the deep end if I push the subject. Finally, the real problem isn't the expense anyhow. Her point, in full, is that I could take a job closer, making less money, have pretty much the same net income, and have time to spend with her during the week. I know you're married, so think of it as different paths by which she is attacking the current arrangement. The bottom line is time. If I could be home at or around when she gets home at night, then none of the rest would be an issue in the first place. You know how it is when your spouse takes a dislike to something. As time progresses, she'll find more and more things that draw her ire. So, unless you have a realistic idea for shaving a couple hours off my drive, I can't see what I can do at this point. ...And, to be clear, it's not like I enjoy having a 3 hour daily drive either.

Yeah, it's a young man's game, but I don't think any of the testers live with their parents around here. With a room-mate, you could probably get by. I don't really know how the rents are this part of Orange County, but it's not a cheap area. I also can't speak for how QA works for other companies. Don't worry, slug, I'm going to let you know the title, but after the project ends. I don't imagine I'll seek to remain for any other projects.... at least if my wife continues to express her current level of hostility to the project. Hell, she complains that, between two meals out a day and 2 1/2 tanks of gas a week, I could make less closer to home and net more money. haha

I haven

Wait. Wait! I honestly thought it was my mistake. I wasn't being snarky at all. I mean, I'd read about glare, but sometimes these terms get mixed up. I figured it had to be reflected light. I'm serious, I wasn't being snarky. ...Unless you meant Lady. In that case, all I forgive her. Really, I'm just confused now. If someone could explain what they mean by glare, I'd appreciate it. What I thought it meant was reflected light. I intentionally have my monitor set up so it doesn't have a significant light source directly behind it. When I post pics later, you'll see what I mean. The room is well lit, but the biggest light sources are to the sides rather than behind.

Oh, I'm sorry Lady. I was just showing my ignorance. I thought glare was reflected light on the screen. I take from your comments it must be the amount of glare that the screen outputs.

Yeah, but what about the graphics, mr. smartenheimer?

OH. GREAT. Way to harsh my buzz, jerk. :Cant's wolfish grin icon:

The reason I went with the CRT is that I don't really have a problem with glare at this point. I haven't had a problem with glare since I've lived here. Frankly, I would probably have dropped more cash for a larger CRT, but I wasn't willing to spend over a thousand dollars for this: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16824002139 but it's inferior to the monitor I actually purchased in every way that matters to me except for screen size. Even then, having all that surface and being confined to 1600 x 1200 would be a waste.

Aaaaaeeeeeeeeiiiiii! It burned it's own image out of your post! EDIT: DAMN! It burned back in. Aaaaeeeeeiiiiii!

Okay, I would LIKE to be a really badassed mage. I think I'd be a specialist mage who has mad skill ranks in Lore, Spellcraft, Concentration, and Diplomacy (cross-classed). I'd go for the Mind Over Body 1st level feat and then take metamagic and spellcasting feats the whole way, especially penetration feats at mid to higher levels. What I'd probably REALLY end up being is a level 0 humanoid living in the Forgotten Realms somewhere and hating the fact that I was the only person in town not a level 50 Red Wizard of Thay or some such.

Well, I will say a prayer for little Sophia, may she have both wisdom and beauty. If you prefer, you may think of it as a well wishing instead. :Cant's friendly smile icon:

Today, I spent most of my time doing laundry, shopping for groceries, and cleaning the house, all of which I can't do during the week nowadays. I was thinking, the next time I'm up north, that I'd try to see Calax and Childe.

I will send before and after picture so you can get an idea of how much more space it takes than my current 19" monitor. I definitely look forward to it. I'm usually gone from home between 12-16 hours daily, but my wife can probably muscle it inside the house.

I think the music for one of the areas I've been testing is really awesome. Otherwise, it all sounds like the usual RPG fare. I'm not usually excited about this sort of stuff. Hell, I remember buying the CE of Diablo 2, putting in the soundtrack, and thinking, "Good Lord, chains rattling and moaning? This sounds like dinner at my in-laws." Now, there was an area of Might and Magic 6 that remains my favorite music for any area in a video game. I can't remember the name of the town there. Freehaven? I think? PS:T had some great music in terms of setting the atmosphere. The bar was great. The clips that played whenever the PC interacted with Deionarra.

I decided against the TV for now. Here's why. I don't watch tv. I watch dvds every now and again, but even then I tend to play video games at the same time. The only show I actually watch are old tv shows transfered to dvd format. Those really don't need hdtv. When I was set to get an xbox 360, it was an option. Now, however, I've decided to wait to see who wins the HDDVD/blue ray wars. If the xbox 360 comes out with an HDDVD option in the actual case, I'll buy one and then it will be time to get a better tv. As it stands now, I just don't see it. Instead, I opted for a monitor, which was about $500-700 less than the TVs I was thinking of buying.

Okay, I've finally taken the plunge and bought my monitor. It's this one here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16824116121 It has mad resolution, great pitch size, and weighs less than 60 pounds. I'm happy. I guess I'm a luddite, but I just prefer my CRTs. Maybe, in the next generation of LCDs, I'll be willing to go to the newer technology.

Now now, Lady. We all know you're far too young to think of Doom as something "marvelous and fresh" in comparison to anything. :D

I love PS:T. Favorite all time game out of many, many games. On one hand, I disagree with you because there was a lot of ugly in PST's graphics. On the other, I completely agree because the atmosphere was great.

Nice commentary. I completely agree as regards Farenheit. I don't know if I'd call the graphics stellar, but it did have a real coolness factor.

You ranted for nothing. haha Anyhow, I'm sorry that you're losing your players to South Korea, Spider. Great folks, the South Koreans, so maybe your friends will be able to get a group going. :Cant's ****-eating grin icon:

Huzzah!

See, that's my problem, Vol. I don't play anything. I used to run a campaign between Las Vegas and Loma Linda. I'm just plain not willing to invest the time to travel to play. It would be fun if we were all within 15-20 miles of one another. As far as my favorite system, I'd have to say the only reason we play DnD is because it's familiar and we've all been playing it for years. Something close to three decades for me. As far as the most intriguing system and one I would love to play more often (at all really, at this point) is Call of Cthulu. Tons of fun, but it requires real PnP gamers. The reason I cited Paranoia is that it's a great beer and pretzels game that even a novice can enjoy. The game isn't meant to be hardcore. It's meant to be goofy and funny. If you're experienced, you can make the game fun for just about anybody.

I've thought about trying LotRO. Since I started my dreadful commute, I just don't get a chance to play very much. I wish more folks played TOMBS. I can catch a few minutes of that without breaking my workflow.