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Submission + - Slashdot Alum Samzenpus's Fractured Veil Hits Kickstarter

CmdrTaco writes: Long time Slashdot readers remember Samzenpus,who posted over 17,000 stories here, sadly crushing my record in the process! What you might NOT know is that he was frequently the Dungeon Master for D&D campaigns played by the original Slashdot crew, and for the last few years he has been applying these skills with fellow Slashdot editorial alum Chris DiBona to a Survival game called Fractured Veil. It's set in a post apocalyptic Hawaii with a huge world based on real map data to explore, as well as careful balance between PVP & PVE. I figured a lot of our old friends would love to help them meet their kickstarter goal and then help us build bases and murder monsters! The game is turning into something pretty great and I'm excited to see it in the wild!

Comment Idiotic 1-star review (Score 1) 176

I saw a bad 1-star review recently for a fine-toothed wooden comb. The buyer put it in his back pocket, sat on it, and was angry when it broke in half.

The seller was very apologetic. Frankly, I don't think the seller should have apologized, at all. The buyer should have been ridiculed for his stupidity.

Comment Laptop 18650 (Score 1) 95

You can usually see which laptops use 18650s, by the shape of the case. Pick a laptop, and search Amazon for replacement batteries.

I strip the 18650s out of laptops for other uses. It's just cheaper that way. It usually works out to about $1 for each 18650, including the occasional bad battery.

Thin squares, like the MacBook Pro have, are different. It's pretty obvious that an 18650 wouldn't fit in it.

Built in batteries are more likely to be flat square or rectangle types. You're SOL for replacing those with a pack of 18650s.

I only strip them down for their cells. I suppose if you're *real* careful, you could cut the case open, and be able to reseal it. There are temperature sensors inline, that you'll want to keep. and you'll need to solder the new ones together. They're typically spot welded. And, obviously, you'll need to keep the original control board. ... or just buy a replacement pack on Amazon or eBay. When the batteries die in the laptops I use, I don't try to remanufacture them. While I could do the parts cheap, the labor would exceed the cost of the replacement pack.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

Comment I think it would be difficult (Score 1) 120

Naively, I don't think this approach would work well. Why? Storage devices work with fixed-length blocks of data at given locations. The problem with compression is that the compressed size is variable: A text file compresses well, but media, like video and audio files, are usually already compressed.

I could see an operating system working with hardware-assisted compression, but honestly, given the tradeoffs, I suspect that a bigger drive is probably cheaper and faster in the long run.

Comment Re:this has to be a prank, right? (Score 1) 187

It reminds me of when I used to go around the Valley telling people I was running a business selling vibrating toilet seats. I used to claim that "they vibrated at the brown note" and that I "crowd-sourced funding from little old ladies who didn't like eating prunes."

You'd be shocked at how many people believed me.

Comment I gave up on noise canceling headphones years ago (Score 2) 436

I gave up on noise canceling headphones years ago. Recently, I bought some good ear muffs for hearing protection while I mow the lawn. They just happened to include a bluetooth headset, which happened to have excellent quality.

They're so good, I use them when I fly, and even when I'm in an office situation. A lot of people will start talking to me, and I can't hear them at all if the music is at a normal volume. It's surprising that a $50 ear protection can outperform a high-priced set of bluetooth noise canceling headphones, but sometimes simpler is better.

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