Life is sometimes sort of okay because...

Theblazeuk · 20 December, 2013, 10:55:12 PM

Good! Merry christmas one and all!

TordelBack · 20 December, 2013, 11:38:53 PM

Quote from: Dark Jimbo on 20 December, 2013, 08:57:04 PM...I've never had the depression descend upon me like some outside force and then refuse to release me from its clutches.

That's a description that's all too familiar. I'm long past giving advice about depression, since I seem completely unable to take my own, but at least be aware that many, many people feel this exact way from time to time, that it's totally irrational especially when it seems utterly rational, and while duration varies it can and does pass. Although a little help in speeding up the process never hurts.

GrinningChimera · 01 January, 2014, 04:13:17 PM

Just got an email of an order status. Turns out at some point last year a (probably) drunk me ordered the first collection of Transmetropolitan. And it will be here next week. And I just checked my credit card statement and I was charged for it last year. So It's almost like it's free!

On another note I thought that my Grand Theft Auto collection I got on steam contained V. Turned out it only goes as far as The Ballad Of Gay Tony. Which isn't too much of a bummer since I have it on Xbox. It just makes my purchase a little less of a bargain knowing that it's not really the whole collection.

TordelBack · 03 January, 2014, 09:51:51 AM

Embarked on a full dissection of my son's laptop yesterday, which has been out of commission since last spring. I originally built this late 2012 out of a lovely salvaged Sony Vaio body, various parts and a shiny 1TB HDD, and intended it as a Christmas present. Unfortunately getting it working properly gave me a lot of grief and took a lot of time, and while it positively sang as a dual-boot machine when actually finished, it also crashed and burned after only a few months, and weeks of frantic fiddling improved nothing. In the spirit of the new Year, and armed with a better multi-meter, a gallon of surgical spirit and a heat-gun, I took the whole thing back to its components and deep beneath one heatsink I found the likely culprit. Some intensive swabbing, a blob of thermal paste, and an anxious reassembly, and then in the middle of the lightning flashes of an actual no-kidding thunderstorm at 2am.... see, Igor, it lives again!

Trout · 03 January, 2014, 03:03:21 PM

Quote from: TordelBack on 03 January, 2014, 09:51:51 AM
Embarked on a full dissection of my son's laptop yesterday, which has been out of commission since last spring. I originally built this late 2012 out of a lovely salvaged Sony Vaio body, various parts and a shiny 1TB HDD, and intended it as a Christmas present. Unfortunately getting it working properly gave me a lot of grief and took a lot of time, and while it positively sang as a dual-boot machine when actually finished, it also crashed and burned after only a few months, and weeks of frantic fiddling improved nothing. In the spirit of the new Year, and armed with a better multi-meter, a gallon of surgical spirit and a heat-gun, I took the whole thing back to its components and deep beneath one heatsink I found the likely culprit. Some intensive swabbing, a blob of thermal paste, and an anxious reassembly, and then in the middle of the lightning flashes of an actual no-kidding thunderstorm at 2am.... see, Igor, it lives again!

I think I understood two words of that. How is it that someone with your skills isn't earning £100,000 a year as the world's cleverest man?

I'm seriously impressed.

Link Prime · 03 January, 2014, 03:11:19 PM

Quote from: Trout on 03 January, 2014, 03:03:21 PM
I'm seriously impressed.

Me too, and it's not the first time TB has displayed his electronic engineering skills.
Where did he previously work? Area 51?

Hawkmumbler · 03 January, 2014, 03:13:04 PM

Always my thoughts when Tordels posts anything anywhere. The world would be a poorer place without him and this forum would no doubt feel the brunt of it.

If your such a whizz Tordels maybe you could help me. My laptop crashed some months ago, it fails to boot up and displays a "physical memory dump" screen. I presume this is the hard drive that needs replacing or am J barking up the wrong technological tree? I kinda need to start using it again as I'm flogging my ancient PC and downsizing to individual items such as a BD player and laptop.

GrinningChimera · 03 January, 2014, 05:25:58 PM

Quote from: Hawkmonger on 03 January, 2014, 03:13:04 PM
Always my thoughts when Tordels posts anything anywhere. The world would be a poorer place without him and this forum would no doubt feel the brunt of it.

If your such a whizz Tordels maybe you could help me. My laptop crashed some months ago, it fails to boot up and displays a "physical memory dump" screen. I presume this is the hard drive that needs replacing or am J barking up the wrong technological tree? I kinda need to start using it again as I'm flogging my ancient PC and downsizing to individual items such as a BD player and laptop.

I think we need an ask TordelBack thread

TordelBack · 03 January, 2014, 05:26:34 PM

You're all very sweet, but I just took the thing completely apart, found a loose bit, cleaned it, and put it back together again. It's a Private Pile sort of thing. The actual tech people on here are laughing at me.

It was more the electric-storm context of the operation I was riffing on.

Hawkmonger: Windows 7 is above my pay-grade. It could just be a fecked-up registry (i.e. software) problem, or it could be overheating or something more hardware-serious. But I think it's less likely to be the HDD.

GrinningChimera · 04 January, 2014, 07:16:37 AM

Life is sort of ok because

-I got 4 new tattoos (yay)

-I have 4 areas of pain and no matter how I sit or lay, one of them hurts (boo)

-I had to get both legs shaved for 2 of them (bad because it looks a bit silly, good because my legs are smooth and feel nice)

Hawkmumbler · 04 January, 2014, 09:34:35 AM

I had my legs waxed for charity last year (in ever meaning of the word "aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggghhhhh"). My god did it feel nice after words though....

And thanks for the heads up Tordels. I'll check for over heating and take it apart until I find "a loose bit" and hopefully it'll be right as rain.

Spikes · 08 January, 2014, 08:27:48 PM

Turns out I've more holidays left than I thought. Not a great deal more (Just over a day), but ill happily take it.

TordelBack · 15 January, 2014, 11:16:35 AM

Discovered the start of the first proper contract of my new business delayed another fortnight, working for free on legacy archiving project 'til 4am last night, generally feeling tired, broke and disheartened, and then as if by magic I snagged a small sub-contract starting tomorrow 5 minutes from my house! As usual money is buttons, but on the other hand, money! Liking this whole 2014 thing again.

Link Prime · 15 January, 2014, 05:05:50 PM

Good stuff TB.

TordelBack · 16 January, 2014, 10:41:10 PM

And it was good stuff!

Today's unexpected sub-contract was my first proper legitimate paid day's work in more than two years, and one of very few in the last four years. Everything else I've done in this endless period has either been totally unpaid (legacy archiving and -ahem- childcare), or cost me as much to do it as I earned, or was completely ridiculous (e.g. go-between AV tech support by Skype between Bangalore (at night) and Saudi Arabia (during the day), in the end working out as about a euro an hour and three weeks without significant sleep), or was on a barter basis for friends or (-shudder-) family. My half of the mortgage alone is supposed to be over 10K, and I took in just over 2K in what was the complete non-event of 2013, from all sources, including eBay and Social Welfare.

So when I say I enjoyed what was a long, hard day today, I mean I really enjoyed it. Many more of those please. What's that you say, tomorrow?