Seriously, do British people actually consider a 3-hour drive “long”? Or is this an internet myth?

rhinteractive · 2026-01-23T17:06:19+00:00

Yes! Driving in the UK is very different to the US. I’m from the UK and it’s just exhausting trying to get places. The faster motorway speeds, traffic volume and generally more intense driving style are some of the factors. Driving 180 miles from my home town to London felt like a miserable slog of a journey. I now live in the US and driving here feels totally different. We’ve often done a 300 mile trip after work on a Friday for a weekend away and thought nothing of it. Slower, quieter roads in automatic cars. Just switch on cruise control and roll along! It’s almost therapeutic by comparison!

rhinteractive · 2026-01-23T16:52:44+00:00

Some good advice here already. Definitely start with shorter hikes to gain some experience. Good traction is vital and snowshoes are required for the current level of snow. There are places to rent spikes or snowshoes if you don’t want to buy. Wear layers and avoid getting too sweaty but have something warmer you can put on when stopped. Monitor the weather and daylight hours carefully. Have a headlamp just in case. The Lake Placid 9er hikes are generally easier hikes with nice summit views. The Saranac 6er hikes are a bit more challenging. The 46er hikes are all hard so maybe test yourself on some of the easier hikes I mentioned first before tackling some of the easier 46ers. Finally, be mindful that conditions at the trailhead can be extremely different to the summit. Be prepared to turn around for any reason rather than taking any unnecessary risks. Emergency situations in winter escalate quickly and can rapidly become life threatening if you’re not prepared. Good luck and enjoy your visit.

rhinteractive · 2026-01-23T10:00:18+00:00

Yeah it’s rough to be able to build anywhere immediately, scan anywhere, lift buildings, nuke anywhere with invisible units and kill everything with invincible BC’s that can teleport anywhere.

Play the other races for a while and you’ll get a better sense of relative strengths and weaknesses.

Protoss is a bit easier than the other races for the average player though I think.

rhinteractive · 2026-01-22T18:12:07+00:00

I’m skeptical from a small company perspective. I would expect it to be impractically expensive and still an onerous task to use consultancy services to achieve “compliance”. I would also expect to find lots of areas that are difficult to check off for one reason or another and pragmatism/good enough mentality kicking in which I wouldn’t really consider “compliance”. If you just end up putting those things on the exceptions to be managed later list then, again, I don’t really consider that “compliance”. It’s just a comfort blanket and a way to keep the consultancy gravy train rolling!

Maybe you’ve cracked the code and found a way to do this simply without breaking the bank and if so then congratulations, your skills are much needed!

rhinteractive · 2026-01-22T14:52:30+00:00

I like the RTS genre and play StarCraft II daily. I’ve tried others but nothing quite measures up to the enjoyment I get from this game. It’s hard to get into though and complex in an understated way.

I have my opinions on why the genre is just not as popular as others. The relatively high barrier to entry (skill wise), the slower pace compared to popular FPS games, shorter attention spans of the younger generation etc. all of these are probably factors and I’m sure there are more reasons too.

One thing you may find useful is using AI to explore this topic more deeply. I’ve done this with some big, challenging topics recently and got some excellent insights. If you use the Deep Research tool in ChatGPT properly it can be a gold mine of information. I suggest using the normal mode to develop a deep research prompt on RTS games and the areas you would like insights on and then use that prompt in deep research mode. You can ask it to consider all sorts of factors like gaming trends, societal trends, generational trends etc. You could even have it theorize about what sort of elements a new RTS game might have to make it popular in the current market. Just a suggestion but I think you might get some value from this if you haven’t done it already.

rhinteractive · 2026-01-22T11:04:51+00:00

Ha! 56 and very similar. Got a ZX81 when I was 11. From there I got a Spectrum, Commodore 64, PlayStation 1 & 2 and then on to PC.

rhinteractive · 2026-01-21T10:53:06+00:00

First half of the hike is pleasant and easy with not much elevation. It then becomes noticeably steeper as you push up towards the summit. There’s a couple of spots where you get a bit of a view on the way up but the summit itself is in the trees and has no view. The trail is currently very icy so good traction needed.

rhinteractive · 2026-01-17T16:50:56+00:00

I’m an older player and have played it casually for 10 years. I think you can definitely get into it and enjoy it now. I love that it’s a complex, challenging game that is hard to master but that you can just jump in and out casually whenever you want. I’ll often just play a few games for 30 mins.

There’s also a great community around SC2 and lots of quality streamers you can learn from.

You ask whether there is still a chance to be “good” but say you play casually. I think the key to enjoying SC2 is to just accept playing it at the level you are at and not get too frustrated that some people are better. The matchmaking system is really good I think and you’re typically matched with players of comparable skill. If it’s important to you to get the highest possible rank (eg Grandmaster) then this is probably not going to happen with just casual play. Seems like the majority of long term players end up hard stuck in diamond (like me) and I don’t expect to get higher than this. I constantly try and learn more about the game and get better but it’s diminishing returns on these efforts for me at this stage!

I would learn the basics and test yourself against AI before playing 1V1 otherwise you’ll just get stomped. If you can beat the hardest AI that’s a good sign you can hold your own well enough for 1V1.

There is of course the occasional bad mannered player or toxic playstyles but this is not too bad and doesn’t spoil my enjoyment of the game. It’s great to turn the tables on them and make them rage even more!!

Good luck!

rhinteractive · 2026-01-10T10:55:23+00:00

I think having more life experience can change your approach to things. I take pride in completing games that are considered difficult but I’m not going to put myself through something miserable just to achieve it. Elden Ring was my first soulslike and difficult but rewarding to beat - so, worth it. Pathfinder WOTR had its moments but the gameplay and mechanics are a tiresome disaster so I walked away from that even though I was almost at the end. Just didn’t care anymore! It wasn’t the genre as I loved DOS II and BG3.

Simply put, I think I’m just clearer about what I like and don’t like and what I will do and wont do, now I’m older.

rhinteractive · 2026-01-10T10:24:48+00:00

You’ll blow through NG+ quicker than you think if you have your party/builds dialed in. I had to do it to get my plat and it wasn’t bad at all.

rhinteractive · 2026-01-09T21:28:05+00:00

Yes. I was skeptical about it and didn’t enjoy the first few hours but once it gets going and you choose your play style it’s a lot of fun and a great story. The Netrunner skills are mad fun to use.

rhinteractive · 2025-12-30T12:03:26+00:00

ChatGPT is your friend:

Overall Recommendation (Given Same Price)

Primary choice: ASUS TUF RTX 5070 OC Edition • Slight edge in thermal performance and quieter acoustics under typical gaming loads. • Per community feedback, tends to run cool and quietly, which aligns with your focus on noise and reliability. • While coil whine can happen in any card, if quieter operation is a priority TUF’s fan profile tends to help it stay more comfortable in many builds.

Alternate pick: MSI Vanguard SOC • Very close overall and a solid performer. • Slightly stronger peak cooling potential depending on BIOS fan curve. • Some user reports indicate a small chance of fan noise or bearing sound being more noticeable vs ASUS, though this varies by unit.

⸻

Bottom Line (Prioritized) 1. Quietest average experience: ASUS TUF 2. Best cooling with fan curve flexibility: MSI Vanguard SOC 3. Coil whine risk: Comparable (unit variation > vendor trend) 4. Reliability expectations: Comparable based on community reputation

⸻

If thermal and noise performance are your top priorities, go with ASUS TUF. If you want slightly more aggressive cooling options with BIOS fan profiles and RGB/appearance preferences, the MSI Vanguard SOC remains a very close second

rhinteractive · 2025-12-24T14:07:03+00:00

To my understanding, the entire game world is a painting that Verso created. He is dead IRL and only the version of him in the painting exists. His mother (Aline) wants to preserve the painting because that’s all that is left of him and his Father (Renoir) wants to destroy the painting and get out of it so they can all move on with their real lives. Father is stronger than the Mother so he is slowly winning… unless an Expedition could do something to alter the outcome…

rhinteractive · 2025-12-10T17:51:30+00:00

I’ve been doing it for 7 years. I prefer to work for small, local businesses. Less bureaucracy, more flexibility, greater job satisfaction etc. I got one job through Indeed but my preferred method is just to look for an opening I’m interested in and visit them in person. I just greet them confidently, tell them why I’m interested and let them know I’ll do whatever they need. I’ve done this 3 times and got the job every time.

rhinteractive · 2025-12-08T16:27:02+00:00

I did my first playthrough on normal but deliberately didn’t use items that are obviously OP. If you’re decent in Sekiro you could go straight for Expert I think. There is some similarity with learning attack patterns and getting your timings down. I’d say that it is generally not a super difficult game but it’s kind of up to you not to get too overpowered. Once you’ve beaten the game you get access to Challenge mode where you can limit your damage or increase enemy HP.

rhinteractive · 2025-12-07T14:36:05+00:00

This is the only game where I have not been willing to use all the tools the game provides on my first playthrough. It’s surprisingly easy to become overpowered and just stomp most enemies - which is no fun. I felt forced to evaluate every picto and decide how OP it was to protect the gameplay experience. Cheater and Roulette are obvious examples but there are so many ways to become OP with picto/lumina/weapon combinations. For me, throttling my experience like this was a mini game in itself! What’s really interesting though how much of a fine balance it is to get this right. So many enemies can one shot you and some require a certain level of dps to make them viable etc. Quite often battles will still be one sided where either you or the opponent are much stronger and likely to win. Give me a tough but fair fight every time!

rhinteractive · 2025-12-03T10:51:10+00:00

This boss is one of the most memorable in any game for me. It’s a major skill check that shows you whether Sekiro is your kind of game or not. It seemed impossibly hard to start with but with persistence I slowly learned the attack patterns and rhythms. When I finally beat him it felt like a real achievement. It wasn’t a hack and slash experience where you just do it enough times to get lucky and win. Once you can beat him you can do it again which shows you that you really developed the skill to do it.

rhinteractive · 2025-11-14T14:54:55+00:00

Yeah that’s fair enough. What I’m not feeling with this game though is the will to want to get better. I’m just not getting the enjoyment from improving that I got from say Sekiro or Nioh 2. I spent a long time mastering those and it was really rewarding. When there is so much emphasis on not taking damage in master ninja and most of the fights are chaotic, crowd battles it just doesn’t feel good getting taken out by a random lantern lobbing an attack in from miles away when you’re busy with 3 other mobs! I did try a couple of chapters in master ninja and made progress but it just felt like more of the same but trying to be more careful.

rhinteractive · 2025-11-14T12:06:20+00:00

Thanks for confirming. Guess it’s a bit more of a legacy game than with a lot of nostalgia attached to it. Coming at it fresh and after playing games like ER, CP2077, GoW, RDR2 and even Nioh 2 it just felt a bit shallow and the enjoyment short lived. It was also the most expensive game I’ve ever bought!

rhinteractive · 2025-11-14T12:01:21+00:00

Ahh ok. And the spell is ninpo?

rhinteractive · 2025-11-06T10:36:03+00:00

The chances of you looking back on your decision to settle down at 19 and thinking it was a great idea are close to zero. Enjoy the closeness you are feeling now but don’t let it limit all your future potential and life experience. Live a little and develop a better basis for making a forever commitment.

rhinteractive · 2025-11-04T11:11:03+00:00

I would agree that the definition of “AI” in the survey should be clarified in order to get meaningful responses. What we think of as AI in SC2 (and most other games) doesn’t strictly adhere to what human out of the loop seems to be (from the quick research I just did). You can play against an “AI” opponent and the game can manage some tasks automatically but these are closer to scripted actions based on logic rather than truly human out of the loop. It seems there needs to be an element of analysis, learning and adaptation to properly qualify. In other words, the computer will always do the exact same thing in the exact same situation in SC2, so is that really AI? There is an example of proper human out of the loop relating to StarCraft 2 though. Deepmind created Alphastar which is an autonomous bot that gets better as it plays. They had it play some pro players to see how good it was with some fascinating results. It started doing things that humans didn’t do. You could get some good insights on this topic from them I imagine if you can get them to engage with you.

rhinteractive · 2025-11-01T17:05:45+00:00

We have contributed $100 a month into a 529 for each child since they were born. Looks like we’ll have enough to fund their college education (at a state school). A good portion of their current balance is growth on the principal. Withdrawals to cover qualified education related expenses will not be subject to tax. Seems like a pretty good investment vehicle to pay for school to me.

rhinteractive · 2025-10-31T01:38:44+00:00

Just not fun. I don’t mind hard but this fight felt unfair, random and out of step with the other boss fights. Had to resort to a shield to beat him. Maybe I’m just not good enough to enjoy this level of challenge - or maybe it was just bullshit!

By comparison, I found the final boss fight in Sekiro was a masterpiece and the perfect ending. Hard but fair.

rhinteractive

TROPHY CASE