Something Random

[jtr1962]

NJ roads were so asinine I got lost several times, during the day, despite having Yahoo/MS Maps directions.

Yep, that about sums them up. They also have a penchant for using ridiculously small street signs and having exit signs on expressways 50 feet from the exit (with no previous signs warning of the upcoming exit). And let's not forget the entrance ramps before the exit ramps which NJ is famous for. Cars entering the highway cross the paths of cars wanting to get off. No wonder insurance is so high.

Can't believe you've never flown before. I logged 56k miles in 2005. I don't care for it; just something I have to put up with.

Merc's not the only one. First and only time I was on a plane was in August 1990 when I was 28 years old. I was sent to Virginia to train some people to do my job since the NYC branch of the company was closing. I actually would have preferred Amtrak but the boss had already gotten an airline ticket before I had any input. I don't care for flying. The airport and airplane both smelled of fumes, and I didn't really feel safe until I was back on the ground again. After 9/11 I decided to boycott the airlines permanently, not that I had planned any trips anyhow. Honestly, since airports are located on the outskirts of cities they're not terribly useful to a person who doesn't drive anyway. I had to be picked up at the airport by one of the company's employees. I wouldn't have that luxury with pleasure travel.

Given the long layovers, I wonder if flying actually saved Merc any time over Amtrak or driving.

 

[Will Rickards]

Living a bit outside of Philly, Drexel Hill, and having to drive in NJ to visit relatives and friends, I can attest that the entrance ramps before the exit ramps is crazy. However, they actually raised their highway speeds to 65mph were most in PA are only 55mph. People drive at least 70pmh anyway.
I can also confirm everything else jtr says about NJ driving.

So how'd the interview go Merc?
Will you be moving to my part of the world?

 

[CougTek]

...I can attest that the entrance ramps before the exit ramps is crazy. However, they actually raised their highway speeds to 65mph were most in PA are only 55mph. People drive at least 70pmh anyway.

JTR isn't supposed to know a damn thing about highways. If he does, what the Hell was he doing on a 65mph highway with his bike?

You're crazy man. If you hate life that much, at least don't end it on someone else's windshield. I hope you were wearing a helmet.

 

[mubs]

Aah, that feels good! I've been driving for 30 years, and felt like an utter idiot in NJ. At least I'm not the only one who thinks they're screwed up over there.

Fushigi, I've been in IL just once, overnight, and a cabbie did all the driving, so I can't really compare IL to CA. If you have a map (AAA maps are the best) and you take a gander at it, you'll do fine in SF. More important, if you screw up, say missed your exit, it's no big deal. Most everywhere is a grid, so if you have a sense of direction you can get where you're going. It's even easy to get back to the exit you missed. Get off at the next exit, turn left, take the ramp to the freeway going the other way, go past a couple of exits, then repeat. Voila! you're back near the exit you missed.

I couldn't do any of this in NJ. :evil:

 

[Tannin]

As a kid, I probably had more flights in aeroplanes than I had ice creams. My family comes from Tasmania and nearly every set of school holidays it was off to Tas to stay with grandparents or various other rellies. Plus Sydney a few times, Queensland lots of times, the Reef of course, the red centre and Darwin, all over. It was routine. I always liked it, but it was just a part of life. For us, travel was ridiculously cheap. There was a massive staff discount in those days - 95% off the regular price - so we travelled a lot, and just about always by air.

They were real aeroplanes back then: DC-3s and DC-4s and a huge old DC-6B that TAA were forced to lease from Ansett in return for Ansett getting their hands on a couple of TAA's superb new tubine Viscounts; a Dove, lots of Friendships, Viscounts of course, 727s, DC-9s, a couple of 707s and a 747 ..... I never did get to fly in an Electra, which I should have liked to have done, nor the A300s.

Since then it's been boredom all the way: interchangable plastic aeroplanes that all look and smell and sound the same. The McDonaldsosation of air transport: lots of 767s, an A320, and that most boring of all possible boring aeroplanes, the ubiquitous 737. I'd rather eat dry white bread without butter than fly in a 737. Once, not so long ago, I flew to Brisbane with the now-defunct Ansett, and to most passenger's dismay and my complete delight, got one of the last two surving 727s in the fleet. They should have been retired long before on economic and fleet management grounds, but Ansett were to effective management as Stalin was to free speech, and I got one last trip in a real aeroplane to remember them by.

These days, I drive. In the first place, I need the facilities that my car has and a rental doesn't (road manners but excellent off-road capability, dozens of necessary small items secreted in nooks and crannies here and there, ranging from maps to battery chargers to water bottles to a winch, and above all the ability to deliver AC power from the second battery). In the second place, the equipment I need for a week or a month on the road doesn't even come close to what you can take by air. In the third place, I'm damned if I'm going to have anything to do with the spastic air "security" idiocy we have had inflicted on us since the end of 2001. And finally, in a car you can get out and walk around any time you see something interesting. Oh, and to travel by air, you have to start by going towards the very sort of place you are trying to avoid, i.e., a big city. Puts a bad taste in your mouth right from the beginning.

Back to aeroplanes. Which were my favourites? Only a handful of the modern craft are memorable, al lof them small ones. The Shorts 360 (AKA "the shed" for reasons which will become obvious if you have ever seen one). Different, but sooooo sloooow. I could walk faster. (Almost.) Beech 1900D. Hmmm .... it's an aeroplane. Next question. Dash 7 and Dash 8: nice aircraft, almost modern versions of the Friendship. Let's go back a few years to the real McCoy.

The DC-6 had its own unique style, of course. Unforgettable. Friendships were small and friendly and made a wonderful sound, plus you could sit under the wing and see all sorts of interesting things happening through those huge oval windows. I really liked 707s too, much nicer than uber-boring 747s and 767s. And 727s were cool. So were the DC-9s, I liked them. If I could only fly in one .... Viscount? DC-9? Nope, I'll go with the Friendship. Wonderful aeroplane.

 

[mubs]

Gee, Tannin, you really stir old memories. I've flown a couple of times in Fokker Friendships, but I was so little then I remember nothing. Did you ever fly in an Avro? Propeller-driven. You always held your breath during take-offs; always felt like the bugger wouldn't make it into the sky. They served milkshakes made fresh (loaded up with milk before take-off).

And which one was it that had a tendency to blow up (cabins coming apart in flight) - the Viscounts or the Caravelles? My memory fails me.

I recently flew on ATRs a couple of times. Propeller-driven (turbo-prop, I think). Short haul flights - ~ 250 miles each way. Quite comfy.

 

[Tannin]

Which Avro? Hmmm .... I guess you mean the 748 (later renamed to the HS 748 when the Hawker-Siddely combine replaced Avro and a grab-bag of other traditional Brittish aircraft manufacturers). I can't imagine that you are going back to the Tudor or the Lancastrian or the York, none of which I have seen, let alone flown in, as they were all immediate post-war types coddled together in a hurry from often unsuitable military types. (Well, the Tudor was a proper civil aircraft, and modestly successful, but sold less thgan it might have done with all those war-surplus Douglas machines about. In any case, this was a period when the American manufacturers were at their peak - Douglas, Lockheed, and Convair at this time, Boeing came along with the 707 revolution quite a bit later - and it was almost impossible for a non-American aircraft to break into the sales race.

There were three reasons for this. First, at the time, the US companies were often just a little bit better, particularly at the finer points of practical everyday civil aircraft - boring stuff like baggage facilities was often a weak point for the English and the Europeans. (There were several; outstanding exceptions, of course, but in the main the American civil types were a little better.) Second, the American makers benefited from truly massive US government subsidies, which were disguised in the form of defence contracts. For example, it cost Boeing nothing to develop the 707. Yup: not one red cent: Uncle Sam paid for the whole damn thing via KC-135 contracts. Competing aircraft from Europe, on hte other hand, had to be privately funded. And finally, racisim. American airlines utterly refused to buy anything not made in the USA. Airlines in the rest of the world, of course, bought whatever type they liked best. (Barring the USSR, which was in its peculiar way as xenophobic and racist as the US.)

So you can count the successful non-American airliners of the 2nd half of the 20th Century on one hand. The Friendship was the true star amongst them. For a long time, no-one else had anything in the same ballpark and it sold like crazy. In fact, the only real competitor it had of note was your Avro 748, which came along a couple of years later and sold around 380 where the Friendshp went well into four figures. The Japanese YAMC, a very similar looking thing to the HS 748, was prety much domestic market only.

Err .... what was the question?

 

[Mercutio]

So how'd the interview go Merc?
Will you be moving to my part of the world?

The interview itself was fine. I was there for four hours, which is probably a good sign. I'll know if I got the job in a month or two (they're hiring based on anticipated need and, I'm told, hiring processes at multinational companies can sometimes be glacial).

I think they want me to live someplace between Baltimore and South Philly.

And the sixty-five degree weather while I was there was pretty nice.

Unfortunately, the rest of the trip wasn't much fun.

Lesson 1: The smaller the airplane, the cuter the flight attendant. The little commuter jets that fly to South Bend had stewardesses that could've been models. The bigger planes I was on were crewed by clones of Nurse Ratched.

Lesson 2: Aisle seats only.

Lesson 3: Pennsylvania doesn't believe in street lights, period. Or street signs. And every fucking thing in the entire state closes at 10PM. Even the gas stations. The laws of physics are different in Pennsylvania, too. I couldn't find an 802.11 signal anywhere. There must be a giant 2.4GHz-signal-sucking black hole in the greater Philadelphia area.

Lesson 4: When some dickwad says "I'll give you directions to where you want to go." that specifically include not going through the ticket gate lane on 276, because "That's only for people going the other direction", don't listen. If anyone is wondering, full fare on the Pennsylvania Turnpike is $18.

Lesson 5: People who bring colicky infants on small airplanes should be strangled with their child's intestines.

Lesson 6: Air travel stands as proof of man's hatred of his fellow man. In considering punishment for harded criminals, I believe the scale should go: Minimum Security, Maximum Security, International Airport. I'll bet the guys in regular prison at least get clean toilets and food capable of supporting human life.

Lesson 6a: If I ever have to go to Europe, Asia, Austalia or Africa, I'm driving.

Over the course of the trip, I spent 20 hours in airports and maybe three hours in the air. I was a standby passenger for three different flights from Philly to Detroit and couldn't board any of those planes. My luggage - including my Thinkpad and my winter coat and everything I brought to read, however, did make the first trip, as I was allowed to board one plane and told that my stuff would have to be checked, since the overheads were all full, then kicked off again when the guy whose seat I was taking showed up at the last minute... Anyway, my stuff wasn't waiting for me when I finally got to my destination. They don't know where it is. Supposedly, if they find my luggage they'll ship it to me, or something.

I had to drive home in a combination of blinding snow and freezing rain. Took 3 hours to drive 45 miles. Gee, wish I had my winter coat. And my laptop.

Can someone please tell me why anyone would want to fly anywhere?

 

[CougTek]

I'll bet the guys in regular prison at least get clean toilets and food capable of supporting human life.

Well, you're a lot of life to support.

Anyway, my stuff wasn't waiting for me when I finally got to my destination. They don't know where it is. Supposedly, if they find my luggage they'll ship it to me, or something.

Bunch of jerks! I bet no one felt guilty about it either. They must have told you that just like someone tells you that you didn't win the lottery. Will they pay you something if they don't find it or if anything is damaged? I bet no. Damn ass grabbers!

 

[Bozo]

If your laptop 'looks' like a laptop to the bagage gorillas, you may never see it again. Hopefully it was in your suitcase or camo'd to not look like a laptop.

Once you get west of Philly (about 80 miles) there is real civilization. Even grass and trees. Delaware is a great state. Wilmington is about half way between Philly and Baltimore. And I95 goes right through it.

Bozo :mrgrn:

 

[ddrueding]

Wow, I've never heard of them making you check a laptop before. That really blows. I've also never been booted from a plane after getting on with standby. I've done more than 50 flights in the last 2 years, and I still haven't seen it all. Sweet! :roll:

 

[jtr1962]

Can someone please tell me why anyone would want to fly anywhere?

I'm with you on that, Merc. If I ever travel far, I'll just take the time to take Amtrak, or go by boat if overseas (you can get no-frills berths on those cargo freighters fairly cheaply). I don't think if I had to invent a way to torture people I could come up with anything better than air travel. Besides the indignities suffered at airports these days in the name of security, traveling by air has to be about the worst way to get around. Sure, it's fast. If you don't count security delays, flight delays, travel to/from airports, etc. In any case, speed is about the only thing going in its favor.

Flying is at best uncomfortable and anxiety producing. Any means of travel that purports to be civilized shouldn't produce such anxiety that something like one out of six people are afraid to use it, and more than half of the remainder dread using it. I heard of days gone by when people actually considered getting there half the fun. Of course, that was when train and ship travel were much more common. Little about either mode, except maybe derailing on a bridge or hitting an iceberg, which would provoke anxiety. Certainly normal operations didn't produce the kind of fight-and-flight responses that flying produces. First, there's the dreaded takeoff where you get pushed back your seat and slingshot into the air. To make it all the worse, the time you spend taxiing out to the runway gives you more time to think about what's to come. And then you have the flight. Just knowing you're in a paper thin pressurized aluminum can some tens of thousands of feet up depending upon a fragile wing for support is enough to make a sane person sick. And then when you hit turbulence, forget about it. Not unlike bad track on the subway, except that on the subway you have no chance of falling straight down a few miles. And speaking of those fragile wings, they are filled with explosive fuel. Not a comforting thought. As you come in for landing you can't help but think this is when most accidents happen. The plane has to aim for a runway which looks like a black smear from altitude, hit it just right, and then slam on the brakes so as not to run off the end.

As if all the above weren't enough, in the back of your mind you think some of your fellow passengers might be Middle Eastern loonies hell bent on using your plane for an urban renewal project, or perhaps cutting your throat to make some political point.

No thanks. I'll take the time to travel by ground or sea. The only time I'll fly is when it's absolutely, physically necessarily to get where I'm going. The only time that will happen is when we start having commercial tours into orbit or the moon or Mars. Yes, I would go on those in a heartbeat, but at least I'll be flying because there will really be no other way to get there.

Bring on those high-speed maglevs in evacuated tubes for terrestrial transport. Besides offering comfort, they'll be fast enough to make the Concorde look like it's standing still.

 

[Will Rickards]

Lesson 3: Pennsylvania doesn't believe in street lights, period. Or street signs. And every fucking thing in the entire state closes at 10PM. Even the gas stations. The laws of physics are different in Pennsylvania, too. I couldn't find an 802.11 signal anywhere. There must be a giant 2.4GHz-signal-sucking black hole in the greater Philadelphia area.

Yes street signs are sometimes missing or the old style that is small and hard to see. Though this is getting better, many green signs with white writing have appeared in the last 5 years. And many back roads have no street lights. And the 10PM thing is annoying. There are 24 hour gas stations just not all of them. Wireless hotspots we have not many, though they are trying to make philly a whole wireless hotspot.

If anyone is wondering, full fare on the Pennsylvania Turnpike is $18.

I don't have to wonder, I've had to pay it myself when my ticket fell on the ground when I got on. I figured I'll just tell them I lost my ticket. BIG MISTAKE. I feel your pain.

 

[mubs]

Merc: I'm sorry your first trip turned out to be such a bummer. There's no excuse for an airline to provide horrible service.

JTR: It ain't as bad as you make it out to be (I didn't read through your post, though).

97% of my air travel has been overseas, with the shortest segment being 6500 miles (about 14 hours), and the additional segments being 2000 miles and 1800 miles. I'm talking one-way here. I sure ain't going to take a boat for that! If it's a once-in-a-lifetime journey, maybe, but not if I do this once every couple of years and sometimes twice in a year.

Much of my travel has been on Singapore Airlines, the remainder on Malaysian Air. Singapore is it in terms of service, quality of care etc; consistent from booking to ground staff to cabin crew. Malaysian cabin crew is very good, the rest of the staff are trash. Singapore dumps it's aircraft when they're 5 years old. They are truly the crème de la crème of the airline industry. Siblings that recently travelled on British Air and Lufthansa swore never to fly those carriers again - two airlines that used to have sterling reputations.

Domestic airlines, in their perennial cost-reduction efforts have trashed the industry. Last summer I flew American to the East coast, and was stunned by how worn the interiors of the aircraft were, and how dour the cabin crew was. The plane was clearly quite old, and seating was cramped. About 10-15 years ago, American was considered to be at the apex of the airline industry in the USA. How the mighty have fallen.

The point I'm trying to make is this: the domestic industry is utterly horrible. Many of the international airlines are horrible. There are some, though, that are very, very good. Don't let the bad apples sour you on the whole concept.

 

[Tannin]

Singapore Airlines is generally regarded within the industry as one of the six or eight true industry leaders. Many seem to rate SIA as the industry leader. This is a position Pan Am held during the 1950s and 1960s in their glory days. One obvious sign of this is being first in line for the best new aircraft types: Pan Am was the launch customer for both the 707 and the DC-8.

The first four A380 customers were Singapore Airlines, Emirates, Qantas, and IFLC. Sign of the times.

 

[time]

The bit about the luggage shows the US has learnt nothing about security. In Australia, a plane is not permitted to take off with unaccompanied baggage. If for any reason a passenger isn't on the plane, then no matter how long it takes, the baggage hold is unpacked and their luggage removed.

In any case, a golden rule of air travel is to never, ever check a laptop (or anything irreplaceable). It was highly unprofessional of the staff to suggest it. The claim about the overheads being full is dubious (what, they inspected them all?) and in any case, you could stow it on the floor near your feet.

If something sounds wrong to you, query it politely but firmly (never be abusive onboard an aircraft - these days you'll probably be arrested).

I realize this is gratuitous advice since it's already happened.

 

[Mercutio]

Wow, I've never heard of them making you check a laptop before.

Naw, I had a largish saddlebag with my laptop, coat, and the clothes I had worn the day before. It was a little too big to fit under a seat and should've gone in the overhead bins, but LOTS of people, even in Coach seats, were taking three carryon bags besides their briefcase or whatever (like the bag of crap they bought in the airport). Every flight I got on, the bins filled up well before the plane did, so much supposedly carryon stuff got checked.

I'll probably feel better about the experience if my cell phone and laptop reappear. It really sucks that I can't even call anyone for updates.

 

[Handruin]

Sorry to hear your first trip on a plane was crappy. I've always had that fear where the overhead compartments would fill up before I get my seat and I'd have to check valuables. I haven't flown much, but my most recent trip I've seen some of the most ridiculous bags being put in the overhead compartments. I honestly can't believe they let this one woman bring her suitcase. This bag was gigantic…she could barely lift it to get it in there, and was slamming the door to get it to latch because the bag didn’t exactly fit. She was latterly taking up 2/3rd’s of the space for those 3 seats…

I'm going to be traveling in the spring, and if there isn't a place for my camera bag in the overhead compartment above me, I will simply pull out the bag that's taking my space and place it in the isle for its owner to fetch. I'll probably get in trouble, but I think it's a load of bullshit.

 

[ddrueding]

The advantage of gaming with other people is that at some point, someone says "wow, it's 4AM on a Tuesday, we should call it a night".

Just got "Need for Speed: Most Wanted, Black Edition" from a friend who works for EA this afternoon. It's now 4:48AM and I'm ~18% of the way through the game. My girlfriend and the dogs are long asleep, and I'll have another rough day tomorrow.

Really fun, really addictive game. I think I'll need to kill my friend if he pulls this shit again. EA shouldn't be writing good software.

 

[Buck]

Traveling in first class to Hawaii this last September was pretty decent (although not as nice as business class on an international carrier like Lufthansa).

 

[CougTek]

What do you do for a living? Pro golfer or what? First class to Hawaiï, pssf.

 

[Buck]

What do you do for a living? Pro golfer or what? First class to Hawaiï, pssf.

I accumulate miles and then upgrade my coach ticket to first class.

 

[Mercutio]

Well, I got my bag back today. I'm told that it spent a couple days in San Antonio, then Detroit again. My cell phone and laptop are fine - the plastic on my cell phone's display is cracked (oh well), but the bag itself is pretty much a write-off (they offered to pay for it if I can find a receipt)... someone from the airline actually brought it to my door. That was kind of nice. Apparently they had been trying to call me for a couple days (which obviously wasn't very helpful, seeing as how my phone was in the bag.

On the other hand, I stopped by the Starbucks down the street from my house this morning, and the coed who waited on me talked to me for a bit and then gave me her Email address (and a bunch of IM addresses), which I think is the 20something version of getting a girl's phone number.

Today Ms. Coed wrote something on my cup:
"That love is all there is is all we know of love."

Which is half of an Emily Dickenson poem that continues:
"It is enough, the freight should be Proportioned to the groove."

And all I can think now is... She's fucking with me, right? I mean, I have no idea who this person is.

 

[Tannin]

Apparently they had been trying to call me for a couple days (which obviously wasn't very helpful, seeing as how my phone was in the bag.

Gahhhh ..... Bloody morons. Still, at least the y brought it to you, which soe might not have bothered doing.

 

[Will Rickards]

And all I can think now is... She's fucking with me, right? I mean, I have no idea who this person is.

Who cares, maybe she's just a nimpho, go for it man!

 

[ddrueding]

And all I can think now is... She's fucking with me, right? I mean, I have no idea who this person is.

Wierder things have happened. If she knows poetry, she can't be all that bad. Obviously she can't ask you out, as that is against company policy (don't ask how I know) and you can't ask her (because, well, you can't). So this is where flirting is fun until someone cracks.

Best of luck.

 

[ddrueding]

I forgot how much my back hurts while I'm building a system. I just finished New systems for my GF and myself in matching P180 chassis. These things are sweet, and can run very quiet and cool, but take much linger to build properly.

 

[CougTek]

It isn't normal to have back pains when you're just in your early thirties. This probably indicates that your abs are too weak, so your back is overcompensating and the pain comes from the wear of your back muscles.

Start to do sit-ups. Buy a big balloon and do your series on it, it will support your back better than if you do sit-ups on a flat surface. Don't do full sit-ups, half sit-ups are enough. Don't do too many at once. A few series of 10 repetitions each will be ok. Do it every two days. Doing it every day in the beginnning will hurt you more than anything.

And your girlfriend will appreciate the results as well as your back.

 

[ddrueding]

I currently do about 30 sit-ups, 30 squats, and 30 push-ups a day, in addition to basic yoga positions. I'm in pretty good shape, really, just bending over a workbench for 3-5 hours makes by back hurt.

 

[Mercutio]

Puny ddrueding (who, I think is actually in his mid20s and therefore extra-puny)! I can sit at a workbench for days without soreness.

It's cause I'm such a stud under the extra 80lbs or so I'm carrying around.

Just, you know, don't ask me to do a pull-up.

 

[Mercutio]

Link to a mininova torrent for a premade Ghost Image of a 260MB WindowsPE image, suitable for running on a thumb drive.

Note to any moderators who might be paying attention: This post violates moderation guidelines and should be, you know, moderated.

Bad Merc!

 

[ddrueding]

Puny ddrueding (who, I think is actually in his mid20s and therefore extra-puny)! I can sit at a workbench for days without soreness.

It's cause I'm such a stud under the extra 80lbs or so I'm carrying around.

Just, you know, don't ask me to do a pull-up.

I think with the extra 80 pounds you're carrying around is a workout in and of itself. I should start strapping weights to myself and just go about my day that way...

 

[ddrueding]

Thanks for the link, and now that I already have the file...


...bad Merc! Moderators! :mrgrn:

 

[CougTek]

Thanks Merc. I'm glad that our mods are lazy these days :mrgrn:

Now all I need is a USB drive.

 

[CougTek]

Hmmm. I can't connect to the torrent, seems to be down for me. Too bad.

 

[Mercutio]

PM Me, Coug.

 

[Fushigi]

I guess it's time to cave in and d/l a BT client. What's the preferred client nowadays?

 

[ddrueding]

Azureus

 

[Mercutio]

I use two different clients:
On Windows computers that I control and don't shut off for long periods of time, I use BitTornado. It's fast, fast, fast. It's a modest bandwidth hog though, and it doesn't have a download manager so...

On Linux, on computers I shut down (laptops) or computers where I might actually be polite about bandwidth, I use Azureus, which has a download manager and its own private tracker, but isn't even in the same ballpark as 'tornado for speed. It also has a very obnoxious user interface (particularly for picking and choosing files out of large downloads) and it eats insane amounts of RAM.

 

[timwhit]

I hate Azureus. Didn't we have a long discussion about this in another thread?

BitTornado is my preferred client, and I download torrents just about constantly and have tried just about all the major clients.