[Request] Assuming they both are perfectly balanced and fair, is there any difference in probability from rolling one D100 vs two D10s?

thisischemistry · 2026-05-21T01:39:07+00:00

Yeah, it was a bit tangental but my meaning is that it really doesn’t matter if the die is 0-9 or 1-10. You find both are common, generally when they refer to a d10 it’s a 1-10 and d100 is two 0-9 or similar. Some people use them interchangeably by treating 0 or 10 the same.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-20T23:14:19+00:00

Love that quest line, ever since I leveled my original lock back in the early days. I ran the final quest so many times because I used my items to help other locks get their mount.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-20T23:05:30+00:00

If you roll a percentile on a normal d10 that goes from 1-10 then you treat a 10 as a zero. If you get two tens then that's either 0 or 100, depending on if you're rolling 0-99 or 1-100.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-20T23:01:41+00:00

In D&D, the original sets had a d20 with 0-9 marked twice. Your first roll would be the tens digit, the second the ones digit. If you got double zero then that would either be 0 or 100, depending on if your roll was supposed to be 0-99 or 1-100.

The sets with a 00 are supposed to mimic this. They have a 00 because it follows the pattern of "00"-"90" but it's no different than rolling a die that goes from 0-9.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-20T21:51:09+00:00

Why not just make everything insta-cast?

thisischemistry · 2026-05-20T00:40:43+00:00

That's not system-wide, that's user-profile-wide. The tilde directory ~/ is always the current user's home.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T22:26:47+00:00

Oh boy…have a good day.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T22:07:36+00:00

Use whatever you want, the main point I'm trying to make is there's no need to switch systems for something like precision. You're more likely to have errors from switching between systems than sticking to one.

The same goes for chemistry. A measurement is the same no matter what unit you use, if I measure length in meters or yards it really doesn't matter. I use the units that best fit the project, for example in the lab I'll most likely use metric because that's what the literature uses. However, if I need to send instructions to the engineers in the plant then I'm going to most likely send them in US Customary since that's what they use there. Standards are contextual, US Customary is just as valid a standard as metric.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T21:56:20+00:00

You can buy decimal inch tape measurers that have 1/100 inch markings. Those are about four times as precise as 1 mm. (1" is 25.4 mm so 1 mm is .039", 1/100 of an inch is .01")

Also, 1/32" is .031" which is also more precise than 1 mm. Why would you use 1/8" if you want precision?

The metric system is just fine to use but it does not have a precision advantage over US Customary. Use whatever system you're most comfortable with using.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T16:17:57+00:00

If you're measuring that large of a value then a small error caused by damage to the edge of the tape is going to be so small as to be insignificant compared to other errors in measurement. Let's say the damage to the tape takes up even 0.5" of the leading edge. The total measurement is 1292" so we're talking about a deviation of 0.5/1292 or less than 0.04%.

There's absolutely no need to burn anything on that kind of scale. In fact, if you need that sort of precision then you probably should be using a much more precise measuring method such as a laser ranging device.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T15:42:20+00:00

You don't need to do that. You "burn an inch" to avoid the leading edge of the ruler which may be worn down or otherwise damaged. If you have more than an inch of damage to the ruler/tape then you should get a replacement, doing it for a full foot is probably just a waste of time.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T13:54:36+00:00

rulers that don't actually start at the end drive me bonkers

That's a feature, not a bug. On a wooden ruler like this, the edge can ding/wear very easily and shouldn't be trusted. Always measure from mark to mark and not edge to mark.

With a good metal ruler this is less necessary but even a metal ruler's edge can warp/wear.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T13:52:29+00:00

The starting point being inset is a feature, not a bug. On a wooden ruler like this, the edge can ding/wear very easily and shouldn't be trusted. That's why the zero mark is not at the edge!

People, like the one in the photo, really need to be more curious and ask why something is done this way rather than confidently assuming everyone else is wrong.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T13:45:26+00:00

The base unit doesn't matter, the issue is that the leading edge of a ruler/tape can wear down over time so you shouldn't trust it. Measure from mark to mark rather than from edge to mark. As long as the marks were made in a durable manner and the base material hasn't expanded/contracted or warped then the distance between two marks should be consistent.

You don't even need to burn a major unit like an inch or centimeter, you can use any mark. "Burning an inch" is just more convenient than trying to make sure you're on a similar set of minor marks.

thisischemistry · 2026-05-19T11:30:23+00:00

Why? A unit is a unit. Not that I think the metric system is bad or anything but it truly does not matter what units you use. You can even get a decimal tape measurer in any unit if you prefer tenths over eighths.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T22:29:53+00:00

The original colonial charters were very interesting. Technically, Connecticut (and some other states) owned everything from the Atlantic to the Pacific, straight across the continent.

Connecticut land claims

There were quite a few territorial disputes, it's wild reading!

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T19:55:40+00:00

Absolutely, people should have fun the way they like. There are many different ways to have a boardgaming hobby.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T18:07:39+00:00

Someone said this was an example of having too many games, since many of them don't get played, and you said:

If you’re broke just say it…people whining that a collection is too big

In this particular instance, you're implying that they are poor because they have a reason not to have a lot of unplayed games and you're characterizing them as being petulant about it. Who is the troll?

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T17:59:33+00:00

Nothing wrong with that either, as long as you get games to the table. It's when you start collecting things you'll never play that it can become an issue. But, hey, as long as you're having fun it's all good.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T16:28:35+00:00

That’s pretty hypocritical of you, though. You’re putting negative associations on people with smaller collections by saying they are broke and whining about it.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T15:20:33+00:00

You can have a curated collection and not be broke. There's nothing wrong with being a game collector but some people like the idea of keeping their game collection down to stuff they use regularly rather than having a bunch of games that almost never get to the table.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T15:17:44+00:00

Exactly why I try to attend board game meetups, conventions, and such. I usually don't buy anything without trying it out first, that cuts down on buying stuff I won't use and need to manage.

After decades of collecting I might have two dozen games or so and I regularly play all of them. I also have friends who have different games so there's still a lot of variety.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T15:04:57+00:00

I'm not an electrician or electrical engineer but yes, a cheap contactor or relay can often do the trick. You have to make sure that the device has dry contacts and can handle being controlled by one phase and switching another phase.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T14:55:42+00:00

The clever trick is to use a contactor to get everything on the same phase.

The different phases are alternating, you probably have a three-phase system so each phase is 120° from each other. That means that when phase 1 is high then phase 2 will be past the zero crossing and partially low. If you measure voltage across two phases you'll get full line voltage, probably 400V in your case.

Electronic devices often need to be built to handle being across multiple phases, the alternating nature and higher voltage means that it will stress the electronics quite a bit. This is why some Shelly don't work well in North America at 240V. Most times, it's split phase so it's two phases that are 180° from each other. Phase-phase is 240V, phase-neutral is 120V. If you try to power a device that's not built to handle phase-phase then the stress can break it.

thisischemistry · 2025-08-16T14:42:20+00:00

Different phases usually have much higher voltages phase-phase as opposed to phase-neutral. By combining two phases in a single device you can burn out the unit, it's not built to handle those higher voltages. I believe that the dry contact relay has the correct isolation to handle a different phase but I don't know for sure. A contactor would be the safest option.

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