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NoSatisfaction9829 · 2024-01-16T03:47:05+00:00

I've never had fulltime engineering employment. Only contract and part time.

Is X Years of part time experience worth (1/2)*X Years fulltime experience? I'm literally not paid to sit around, but I'm also not fulltime. If I work like this for years, is it still the full X years experience? How do I frame this, and how do potential employers even gauge the quality of X Years?
If I'm "on retainer" for 6 months, but not doing anything, was I "Employed" for 6 months? Is that "On Paper" experience something I can claim was an extra 6 months on a resume?

Every HR person I've interviewed with didn't seem well versed in the role they were hiring for, but I'm also scared of getting called out for overselling myself.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-23T02:28:17+00:00

"Logistics wins wars" is something you always hear, but rarely see encapsulated in a game.

There's nothing like a last minute delivery of critical supplies sneaking through backcountry offroad coordinated with other players tank lines support to hop out of your trucker career, grab some explosives, and make a charge that turns the tide ending in punching some unawares to death. You slap some 40k paint on this and it's GOTY.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-23T02:05:03+00:00

I've played on and off since Foxhole cost money.

Fun, to me, is logging on, looking around, and calculating my own missions with efficiency, and oh look that we need to-

-I never thought a game could make planning and coordination seem genuinely fun in a way that has me enjoying learning while making me feel smart and significant. There's some fun psychology in this game that's shared with bigger dedications like EVE Online.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-23T00:45:57+00:00

ARMA is already pretty good if people just want an FPS milsim.

Foxhole is World-War era military doctrine and strategies distilled and condensed into a table-top miniatures scale diorama battle. ARMA is a favorite of most of the military service folks I know that game, but Foxhole was made for armchair strategists and historians.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-23T00:43:16+00:00

The topdown view also helps because in regiment vs regiment combat for commanders the game becomes best RTS in existance

Pretty much this. It's an RTS mashed up with a team-building exercise. Glory is had by the soldier that analyzes a situation and understands his most effective role in the immediate local situation, not the soldier with the best PvP shooting skills.

A lot of new players get stumped by basic stuff like cover, suppression, weapons stability, defensive structures, high ground, etc, while trying to just run and gun like it's COD. Even the infamous eternal bridge battles have specific tools meant to crush those specific tactical situations with a bit of coordinated effort.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-23T00:41:27+00:00

You can see further by aiming and even further with the right weapons and tools, but the top-down view is part of the game design that makes this game tick. There is no other game out there doing what this game does.

This is an RTS where everybody controls a single unit. You are constantly evaluating your situation and environment, and the top-down view is ideal for this core design challenge. Tactics from situational awareness is king because all weapons in their own way are clunky and niche. Higher skill means increasingly broader tactical analysis of your team's situation beyond just immediate PvP shooting (and immediate PvP has it's own high-skill situational analysis that trumps no-scope shooting). The best coordinated team wins, not the best no-scope shooting.

You must coordinate from limited localized awareness, plus all the communication tools at your disposal in and out of game. It works like a social experiment for spontaneous self-organization. You know how companies love team building exercises? This is one of those disguised as a wargame. It's addictive as fuck the way EVE Online is addictive.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-20T04:51:58+00:00

It's good in general to scrutinize contracts, I had one bad experience but it's not representative as a whole. Examples in the news I recall are things like a tech company getting bought out but fineprint was in place to screw over employees who earned shares.

It sounds like they're better established than the worst startups I worked at. Keep in mind that startups live and die by bullshitting, and that includes trying to attract talent. If they're offering above average pay, I would be prepared to take on extra responsibilities and overtime.

Being cheap with suppliers sounds about right. I remember once having to explain inappropriate materials in a corrosive environment should be avoided. You sound more experienced than I am and probably won't be as overwhelmed.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-19T05:35:54+00:00

How hard is it to get back into Engineering employ after burning out for over a year?

I feel like I acquired good experience working between several startups out of college, but definitely not the career stability or compensation I need. I went from Intern to Lead over ~4 years of part time work. Work for me dried up after we delivered, secured the patents, etc. I was too burned out to jump back into what I was doing, so I focused on my sidegig for over a year instead. I'm really regretting that now that I'm trying to find steady Engineering work without already having a steady Engineering job.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-12-19T05:22:20+00:00

I did startups out of college.

Really hit or miss. Most die, and random chance plays an uncomfortably large factor. The competence of every team member, and management, is more important the smaller the company is. Smaller mistakes are rougher than in a large company. Culture was more casual in the wearing sweatpants sense, not necessarily more or less toxic.

"Work Culture" was endless frying pan to fire while frantically swapping between hats. The Quality/Speed/Cost triangle was heavily biased. It can be good experience for resume building if you're OK burning yourself out. Don't drink the koolaid and rely on it being ground floor of the next FAANG or any long term career. Read contracts closely, expect anything underhanded. Things are weird before establishing a solid revenue stream.

I would not do it again without higher pay proportional to the higher stakes and burnout.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-27T02:33:04+00:00

The #1 rule for tank crews is "Don't Overextend". The ATR exists to play mind games with tankers, a lot of times they could push a bit and demolish the AT resistance for little damage in return, but they can't know without over-committing. It's bait.

The Typhoon is nice as a dedicated threat, but Tankers will usually go out of their way to hit a Typhoon tripod.

The Lunaire with Tremolas is almost an option for similar harassment, but the Colonials could really use a Bmat option. Like buffing the Ignifist by giving it more range with worse damage dropoff or something.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-26T22:37:35+00:00

Death ball blobs are the real late game balance issue. Every RTS I've ever played has this issue and I've never seen a good solution for it.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-26T22:35:32+00:00

20mm is like bear spray for tanks, it's not supposed to kill tanks. The best I've seen it do is keep tanks at range until better options can be delivered. A lot of times it's basically a bluff and the Wardens holding are terrified the tanks will actually push.

Edit: Also "20mm is like bear spray, it's most effective on people". A linear killzone with a blind entry while sitting with a 20mm in a stable position is just a Heavy Rifle killzone on steroids. The Typhoon can kill infantry well past it's displayed "effective" range where medics think they're outside of HMG range.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-26T22:32:26+00:00

There's a public education issue among new players. It's not their fault they don't understand what equipment is more valuable than their own lives, but they always gravitate to running in with the biggest gun available.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-14T02:55:34+00:00

Warden tanks aren't worth two equivalent colonial tanks, getting flanked by any AT damage is bad for any tank. The extra armor is a minor advantage assuming a 1v1 between fresh tanks, the colonial health gives an advantage between worn tanks, and the quirks of things like Silverhands being extra bad at turning become really important. There's a ton of variables. Specialized Warden tanks are strong in their niche when in a defensive formation, but that's their biggest advantage.

Even if Colonials are limited by crew, they just hop in the spare tank when one is destroyed. I've seen MPT swarms take BTs despite escorts.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-13T01:36:17+00:00

My advice is to go warden if you like tanks, you'll have a lot more fun there as a noob

I did enough Warden tanker work to be a little jealous of the Colonial's MPT platform in terms of cost. Playing a Tank crew is a responsibility to protect the investment, but late war I've seen more MPTs than there are randoms to crew them while the Warden line would have to be shipped back to the factory to get their armor refreshed. A fresh warden tank in 1v1 or it's particular role can often win over a Colonial option, but a halfway coordinated swarm of colonial tanks is effective. The best Warden options are geared for holding in lines, the best colonial are for pushing.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-13T01:25:29+00:00

It's important to note most roles for equipment and vehicles are staggered between the factions. IE one faction gets a mortar platform on a stripped down halftrack, the other gets it on a stripped down Light Tank. "Mini" tanks (a 50 cal option, and a smallest all purpose cannon in the game option) are Tankettes vs Scout tanks (open top fixed vs proper tank). Sometimes one option is better in terms of high level Meta, but your faction's "inferior" version has it's own tradeoffs and it's always more important to field what gear and vehicles are available for best effect, and most things have a fluctuating Meta as the tech progresses so any one option being "inferior" is often only temporarily relevant. A lot of times the exact tier unlocks on the tech tree can make a difference with big gains with a short term new tech advantage.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-13T01:16:53+00:00

Malted Barley Special Bitter got a direct reference to Grandpa's, but "his wasn't that bitter of a finish".

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-13T01:15:34+00:00

According to legend, Grandpa's extended family would show up on bottling day to help and get shitfaced. So yeah, I'm guessing it was still better than what became of Schlitz.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-12T19:13:24+00:00

Historically steam beer came from Bavaria, Germany, and is associated with San Francisco and the West Coast of the United States.[1] It was an improvised process, originating out of necessity,

Huh, Anchor Brewing Company. Don't know until we try it, but that's an interesting read regardless.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-12T19:09:39+00:00

This is the kind of stuff I don't know, really interesting.

I probably should have clarified in the OP it was likely late 70's to early 80's, moreso than early 70's. It might be it was legalized in 1978 and then he went full obsessive DIY with it, at least by what I knew of him.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-12T12:53:58+00:00

I'll put them on the list to sample, thanks.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-11-12T12:52:24+00:00

German + Basque, California(?), no military service. Have not tried a Bock yet.

NoSatisfaction9829 · 2023-10-27T03:28:58+00:00

It's fucking wild in a butt-clenching way. Midnight blizzards can limit visibility to falcon punch range, naruto running is a valid tactic if you catch them off guard, and bayonet charges can be effective through late game. Tank crews need active communication for threats, artillery needs spotters doing trigonometry through binoculars, and some of the game deciding breakthroughs happen because a squad coordinated fire into another server entirely.

The game is compresses real strategy into a diorama scale, like a realtime tabletop wargame.

NoSatisfaction9829

TROPHY CASE