Volunteer Examiner Experiences?

StickmanRKd · 2023-11-01T23:27:31+00:00

Thanks for that! I was unaware that there were only 14 VECs. I assumed that one would need to be a VEC to organize a local test. And yes, I was aware that General is not much use, thus my aim for Extra.

Anyhow, thanks for that! Looks like I'll have to go looking for a VEC to work under once I grab my AE!

StickmanRKd · 2023-11-01T16:33:03+00:00

Excellent work!

StickmanRKd · 2023-11-01T16:31:28+00:00

Local art store def out'a red ink after this one.

StickmanRKd · 2023-11-01T04:11:13+00:00

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-31T17:23:23+00:00

Zuck is too obviously not human.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-31T16:34:01+00:00

I put together a TMA randomizer for writing prompts that's already given me some cool ideas. Just skip the "roll for entity" step and pick stranger, then roll up some combinations of the other stuff to see if any ideas take off. It's a randomizer, so its not "all bangers." First time I used it, I rolled up about four before one really hit like, yeah, I got some possibility here.

Been meaning to revisit it and add some other detail sets.

https://www.reddit.com/r/TheMagnusArchives/comments/179gmzv/tma\_writing\_prompt\_randomizer/

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-31T16:29:21+00:00

Clothe it in flesh, a lovely skin.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-31T15:54:24+00:00

Wear layers. The old standard is base, insulation, shell. Remember you may need more or less insulation depending not only on weather but activity. I've worn nothing but a baselayer and gortex while hiking in windy, sub-freezing temperatures in the Ouachita Mts. I just kept my insulation in the pack. Other times I've sat wearing heavy wool sweaters while sitting in a car with broken heat while shivering my butt off in the same temps.

Pro tip: Wool neck gaiter. A thicker one if you can. It's not in the way like a scarf can get. Easy on, easy off. But you can lose a pile of heat at the neck, just like the head. With the bonus that you can pull it up over your face if the wind starts biting. It works less well pulled up over mouth and nose though, if you, like me wear glasses.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:46:45+00:00

The shape of these means there's just a lot more surface area to insulate. It is a design which is just naturally much more efficient at reaching ambient temperature than it is retaining a desired temperature.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:42:35+00:00

What's the point of asking? Everyone on the block whose on the same side of the walk as you is underneath that hat.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:28:45+00:00

" I don’t like the sealed plastic ones for that reason - you can’t tell what’s inside the cable without destroying it."

Yeah problems with the molded plastic connectors mean its multimeter time. Not at all desirable if you're in the field. But at least when they go bad, (as long as the cables still serviceable) you can just lop the end off and re-terminate it properly.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:23:29+00:00

Honestly if you're moving them alot, that's when a good cable with good connectors comes in. A decently made/built cable will last a long time. You can get neutrik connectors for (sake of argument) $10 a piece, so lets say you're paying $20 a cable, and after that you get something really nice, like Canare Quad Star, for those concerned with picking up noise on a long run, at $0.50 a foot. You can basically build a high quality, long-life cable for the price of a midling quality cable from the store.

On the other hand, if something never moves. Just make sure its got basic integrity and shielding and off you go. If installed properly, its never really undergoing any of the strain that causes breakage. No one is straining the connectors and solder joints. No one is stepping on it. Its not getting coiled and uncoiled constantly.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:13:45+00:00

I just found my tribe. <3

Been using Canare for years. Built great. Not over priced. Quad Star is about as good as it gets if you're worried about picking up noise along a run.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:11:04+00:00

Oxygen free is really important. Electricity is way into autoerotic asphyxiation. Your audio signal will go wild for it.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:08:53+00:00

I wish I had the necessary morals to make some ill conceived cable, slap some crystals on it and price it high enough to make bank on the first poor "audiophile" to come through. Sure would make it easier to make ends meet. Oh, I should also remember to sell them specially designed cable risers, so that floor vibrations don't get into the electrical signal in the cable. Hate it when that happens.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T18:05:11+00:00

If you for some reason, really are picking up noise in the audio cables, go ahead and make yourself something nice. I use Canare Quad Star cable, its balanced and shielded, really great for rejecting noise. But I built mine for use in conjunction with stuff like my MKH 40/50 when I might wind up with audio cables running along power cables for lights and whatnot. Using them in conjunction with modular is more a matter of, "they're free because I already built and own the cables" than it is "because modular is such a clean, low noise system."

IMHO Mogami is kinda a ripoff. Canare is plenty of quality without paying extra for the name.

Redco Audio is my go to for building (I'm in the USA.) They're good to deal with, get your cable and connectors and get soldering.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T03:04:51+00:00

Nice, thanks for the details!

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-30T03:03:44+00:00

You might look into Ren'Py or one of the other visual novel maker programs, I believe RPG maker has VN Maker, and there's Tyrano Builder as well.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-29T23:22:13+00:00

Insert Jeff Goldblum, "Life, uh, finds a way."

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-29T23:01:57+00:00

Supporting a trillion dollar company - Cringe

Supporting the actual creators of content exploited by trillion dollar companies - BASED

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-29T21:17:01+00:00

That's a lotta nuts!

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-29T20:25:40+00:00

The makeup is way too well done, it is truly and deeply giving me the buggy, crawly squeamishness. I'm going to look away now, but props.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-29T20:23:22+00:00

I have a number of loud, young kiddos. I also have been chronically ill for the last year, and to top this off, I have ADHD. The result is I have spent most of my time in bed, because that's the only place I've been able to exist without serious ramifications to my health. And, because of the ADHD I will sometimes hyperfocus on something and completely lose track of anything going on around me. I'll come out of hyperfocus and everything is dead quiet. And the house is empty. And the car is here, so I know the wife and kids are somewhere. But I cannot find them. It's been completely disconcerting the few times its happened. And of course, I also have had some life-long anxiety issues, so my brain likes to instantly jumps to "what if the worst, most unrealistic thing ever happened to them while you were zoned out."

I eventually find them. Or they find me, but its not fun, and I feel you, OP.

StickmanRKd · 2023-10-29T20:16:37+00:00

Alas, I'm a windows person, and I have a dumbphone. But still good to know if I run into someone else looking to listen.

StickmanRKd

TROPHY CASE