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00:18
One of my friends has been hired as an extra in Hawaii Five-O.
user61230
00:52
They're making new episodes of Hawaii Five-O?
01:03
Hawaii Five-0 is an American police procedural drama television series and a remake of the original 1968–80 television series. The series is produced by K/O Paper Products and 101st Street Television in association with CBS Productions, originally an in-name-only unit of but folded into CBS Television Studios, which has produced the series since the beginning of season three. The title of the new show uses a zero instead of the letter "O" in the original title. Hawaii Five-0 debuted on CBS, the same network that aired the original version. Like the original version, it follows an elite state police...
My mother's been watching it and enjoying the parallels and subversions from the original show.
user61230
Wow, who knew.
user61230
...evidently a lot of people.
VTC unclear until system/edition info, at least.
(It's probably D&D 4e, because that's the system in the other question he's asked, but...)
 
1 hour later…
02:16
02:50
@BESW Today? Congrats on your millennial!
@SevenSidedDie Thanks!
03:18
Thousandinneal
@Sandwich Yes. : ) "mille" from the Latin for thousand.
Nice icon edit there SSD
@BESW My condolences.
@Sandwich The white background is supposed to be transparent, but there seems to be a bug somewhere between my image program and SE's avatar uploader. I decided that wasn't going to slow me down. :)
03:34
It is transparent though
I dont see any white there at all
@Sandwich I see white in that link? My normal icon shows the tan through, instead of having a white square background.
If you send me the file I can fix it
This is what it should look like, and does even after uploading, but not after clicking "save...":
(That one shows up with a black background after saving the upload. It looks fine in the upload view before saving.)
03:50
@SevenSidedDie Did you make this image, and if so, how did you make it?
Like, what was your process in getting it to be transparent?
@Pixie Yeah, I put it together in the Gimp. I laid my normal avatar set to "multiply" over a pride flag to get the general look, tweaked the saturation on the flag, and duplicated the blue outlines to get the colour back. Looked great until I uploaded it and the transparency was all wacky. :)
What type of file is it Seven
PNG? JPG?
@Sandwich It's a PNG.
@SevenSidedDie I think there are some problems that can come up with Gimp specifically, and pngs in general depending on how the program does them. Looking for more information.
@Pixie HMM. I have an old copy too.
Got to go for a bit, but I'll be around later I think.
03:56
i.imgur.com/kzSrhw4.png There you go dude
04:07
@SevenSidedDie A potential solution may be changing the image to RGB mode before exporting. May also be something to do with the alpha layer.
05:01
Nice icon :D
@Sandwich Same problem: somehow it converts to a black background. I suspect there's a regression bug in SE. Probably has something to do with the changes they've been making for the new profile code.
It looks like a bug in SE's image resizing code. This has the error, but get rid of the size parametre in the URL and the transparency comes back.
Back to the hardcoded white background for now...
@Sandwich I appreciate the effort though. :)
@doppelgreener :D
@Pixie No luck. It appears to be a bug on SE's side that is still outstanding or has recently regressed. Doesn't affect gravatar-derived images, because that doesn't go through SE's code, but since it's a temporary change I figured I'd use their uploader...
05:25
@SevenSidedDie You may wish to open a new Meta.SE report suggesting the bug's come back.
@doppelgreener I left a comment on the dev's answer there, so hopefully it will get noticed. A duplicate would probably just get closed to it.
I changed my gravatar instead (I forgot you can have multiple saved, so temporary changes are easy), but now it's waiting on SE's gravatar cache to update!
@SevenSidedDie I've left bug reports in the past (this one) that say "this is happening, sounds like it might be this old bug" that didn't get closed. I don't think it's common practice to close an unfixed bug (regression or not) as a dupe of a fixed one.
Ahhh, there we go. ...now just to wait for chat's cache to update.
//yawn//
The Three
4d6
05:31
A nasty dive of a tavern; A rope or noose; A traitor or defector; Treacherous, dangerous and ambitious.
you using the Oracle while i have the fudge dice script enabled here is confusing. [disables]
There is a rumour you once heard, of a secret scrawled on the inside of the crematorium pits of the Drakenhall. And not just any crematorium, but the one reserved for the worst traitors (however the Three define that). You make a plan. You'll have to betray the Three, which means you'll have to earn their trust. You'll have to be hanged. You'll have to withstand the pyre. It all starts in a tavern...
0
Q: Uploaded profile pictures converts transparency to black

SevenSidedDieThe transparency-related profile-picture bug appears to have regressed. Transparency shows as black with the size parametre in URL: https://i.sstatic.net/6mUws.png?s=128&g=1 Transparency works fine when size parametre is removed: https://i.sstatic.net/6mUws.png (Pleas...

@doppelgreener Thanks for the advice. Done!
@SevenSidedDie I have just learned that 'parametre' genuinely exists as a variant of 'parameter'
05:39
@doppelgreener My English spelling may be slightly pretentious.
And not just the word for a sky-diving unit of measure? Cool!
@doppelgreener And here I thought it was going to be the most awesome-sounding unit of measurement.
@BESW Dammit, beaten to the punch.
@SevenSidedDie i'm gonna go with spelling hipster instead
@doppelgreener YES
@doppelgreener Huh, a sharp rise, relatively-speaking, in "parametre" in the 40s, a peak in the 70s, and then a sharp drop-off as the Internet is born. A tiny bump back in the 1860s is the only "historical" precedent too. So it's both retro and faux-retro.
05:45
@SevenSidedDie Ahh, I see! Unfortunate, but at least the mystery is solved.
@BESW Yeah, interesting. So "parametre" is an example of hypercorrection. Neat.
And now, please enjoy this graph of the word perimetre.
The 1870s were a hopping time for perimetre.
People who liked that graph may also like this one.
@BESW I don't even what's going on there. I wonder why the two near-symmetrical bumps for different capitalisations?
05:49
@SevenSidedDie Google's ngrams get weird when their sample sizes are tiny.
The smoothing algorithms get bored, I think.
@BESW I am reminded of the neural-network hallucinations article you linked recently.
Hmmm
If thats the case why is my sandwich transparent Seven
@Sandwich It isn't.
Oh it isnt
What
@SevenSidedDie Ngrams are fascinating.
05:54
@Sandwich The bug does say "black", but I did get one upload that was white and then couldn't reproduce it. So, probably that. Gravatars not affected, if you want to switch to those.
@BESW Yes!
I'm not sure why Varney the Vampire gets only one result.
No way man
ILL NEVER DROP MY SANDWICH RAAAGH
@BESW One is plenty of Varney.
But if you just go for Varney, the ngram gets a curious little treble-spike right around that story's publishing.
@BESW Varney the Vampire is not a name I can take seriously in this day and age.
06:01
@doppelgreener Varney is not a vampire to be taken seriously in any age.
Nor probably to read at all, unless you are very dedicated.
You could just spell something backwards to make a vampire name
Y'enolab the vampire
That reminds me, I wish I could watch Penny Dreadful. I'm hoping it makes its way onto Netflix, Hulu, or free Prime eventually.
Nocab the Vampire
H'ciwdnas Krop the Vampire
06:14
@BESW Heh. Once they get this year in, I'm sure it'll go up sharply.
Also can't wait for Crimson Peak. I've always been fond of gothic literature as well as del Toro's work.
Del Toro's definitely got style.
@BESW -- can you not see that one of your comments has been flagged, or what kind of flag it has on it? I was kind of expecting me flagging your last comment on my latest question as obsolete as being a cue to flag my last two comments on that question as obsolete too :)
Only elected moderators see comment flags, and unless you use a custom flag they're not likely to go vetting comments that haven't specifically been flagged.
....also you can delete your own comments, so there's no reason to bug a mod about them.
oh :)
I keep forgetting that. :P
@BESW The trailer for this one looks like a perfect distillation of a gothic romance, too. I almost wish it played coyer with the supernatural elements, but that's what's going to sell it, so I cannot blame it either. xD
06:23
@Shalvenay the only flags you'll ever see, unless you're a mod, are those in your own flag summary
right
Ben
Ben
Evenin all
GOOD EVENING!
@Pixie Just watched the trailer, and some of the setpieces gave me distinct Event Horizon vibes.
Ben
Ben
@doppelgreener Energetic
06:28
@BESW Ah, interesting. I haven't seen that one.
@Pixie Sadly it gets a bit fuzzy on the edges in the third act, but the setup is superb.
I think Ebert got it right: "The script creates a sense of foreboding and afterboding, but no actual boding."
Heh.
Even I, who find it really hard to locate horror films that I can actually sit through, found its denouement kinda lackluster and jump-scare-y.
I hate jump scares
@trogdor BOO
06:34
they are the cheapest ****
I tolerate horror much better than I used to. It's slowly become a strong interest.
But the setup, oh man. Some people consider Event Horizon a precursor to Doom.
yeah sorry, but they don't work in text form,.. in point of fact I have trouble finding anything written that actually scares me
I've probably sat through worse for smaller virtues. Scratch that, I know I have. :P
@Pixie I'm intellectually fascinated by the genre, but I hate the actual scaring bits.
06:35
not to say I don't like horror, I loved movies like Alien, and shows like X Files
@trogdor Written horror rarely ever scared me, even as a child, which is probably why I love horror fiction as much as I do. :P Movies, on the other hand...
There's a very delicate balance of dread/horror that I really like. Body horror and gore, though, I run from.
jump scares are just dumb is all
Unfortunately Event Horizon does a LOT of body horror toward the end, but does it poorly.
they mean you couldn't manage to scare someone with other tactics, especially when they are used anything other than extremely sparingly.
06:36
So I'm discomfited for no particular worthwhile result.
I really have few issues with body horror and can tolerate surprising amounts of gore, but I'm not fond of them, either.
body horror isn't entirely my thing either
body horror?
as in "wait, where'd that dead body come from?"
But when I was younger, I could not watch horror movies. I couldn't do it. I'd spend all night with my anxiety levels through the roof if I caught even the slightest glimpse of the wrong scene. I never thought I'd be able to handle them.
06:38
as in, horrific, torturous, and or really gross things happening to your body
aaaah
@Shalvenay Mutilation, disfigurement, parasitism--anything where the scare comes from something unpleasant being done to a body without the focus being on an immediate act of violence.
@Pixie Ditto.
yeah...I tend to bypass a lot of that from the written-word side -- comes with engaging with a world through its details
I'm much more comfortable with certain types of body horror than I am others, though. Bizarre body changes (like Uzumaki) don't bother me. Mutilation on screen is highly unpleasant. I think I'm actually more squeamish about gory bits and prolonged torment than I used to be.
Body Horror, in fact would be harder to at least some small degree to pull off if the body was literally just a body
06:42
massive gore isn't really my thing though
I don't think bizarre body changes would bother me too much though
probably not at all really
But when I was around... 13, I think? My friend was watching a Friday the 13th sequel while I was staying over, and I decided for her sake I'd give it a shot, especially since I had someone else with me. Being alone at night always multiplied the fear considerably. To my surprise, I tolerated it pretty well. From that point on, I could be more adventurous.
There are movies that I will never actually be able to watch, though, because of childhood exposure. The Halloween franchise is the main one.
I think that the biggest thing that'd bother me with most horror is panicked, illogical protagonists
That is distracting at times.
I do hate that when it is overblown
I would love to see Jason Voorhees run into a swordmaiden :P
06:49
to a certain degree it can make sense, you don't think entirely straight when you are scared half to death
but sometimes a protagonist just does the dumbest thing possible and it makes no sense
@doppelgreener LOL
@trogdor -- a lot of it is the "leaving no outs" part
and it goes beyond the explanation of genere blindness
genre blindness bugs me tremendously too
06:51
@Shalvenay how do you mean?
@trogdor -- characters who let themselves get cornered with no options
@trogdor Yeah. There are certainly ways to pull it off, and it's entirely reasonable and logical that normal people who are terrified of something are not going to react optimally or make the best decisions.
like they do something they really can't take back? like hiding somewhere where there is only one entrance/exit?
@trogdor -- exactly
Still, movies are crafted scenarios, and fiction's job is rarely to portray life exactly as it is.
06:52
@Shalvenay ok, that was what I thought
at that point, as an antagonist, out come the flasks of flammable fuel and the fire-starting materials
one exit? enjoy sharing that one exit with a fire, fool.
because if there's anything that gets me, it's fire.
(when it comes to scaring the living daylights out of me)
Well, most people aren't prepared to be attacked by murderers or animals or supernatural forces at all times. Additionally, often the setup is either the character missing or overlooking important details because (from the perspective of life-as-usual) they're not important or especially suspicious, or they're easily rationalized. People rationalize things all the time. Then, when things become immediately, obviously wrong, the characters aren't equipped to deal with them or are in too deep.
that is the reason a lot of people rag on the particular scene in Prometheus, (as well as other parts) where one of the characters decides to run forward when stepping to the side would easily be a better choice
in fact, 2 characters do it, but at least one realizes it was a dumb idea before death happens and grows a brain
just trying to say it in a non spoiler-y way in case someone somehow wants to see that movie and hasn't yet
With fiction, although it would be reasonable and understandable for people to behave that way, we can't help but judge it from our position as all-seeing eye. It can be frustrating to see things happen purely because the character made an illogical decision when the logical one is so obvious to the viewer.
I think part of it is that not enough effort, or possibly skill in some cases, is put into showing why people make these decisions sometimes
not that it is entirely possible every time, but sometimes it seems the character in question in any particular instance could have made any other choice, or that maybe some small explanation is in order for some choices
07:09
Yeah. That's why I talk about the setup. If that setup is organic, if it feels like the culmination of interlocking factors rather than hapless chance, then it's easier to swallow.
and in that scene I mentioned, there were 2 people making the same mistake and one realized it, but the other didn't even after an example was made as to the obviously better idea
that is part of the reason I personally hate that scene
the rest of the movie before it didn't do any favors to my state of mind either
I'd have to actually see it in order to judge.
it is rife with examples of people doing the dumbest thing possible
if you want to, just be warned that I am definitely not the only person by far who thought it was a stupid movie
and you might not want to see it before you see Alien movie, and maybe the ones after it
@trogdor that and playing games first-hand vs spectating makes it really clear there is a big difference between decisions you can make from the sidelines and decisions you can make while you're right there
but the third and fourth ones are not exactly entirely liked either
07:15
e.g. just watching someone play a horror game
The other thing is that, again, because a film is a crafted scenario, sometimes decisions are made purely because it's the path of least resistance to a desired outcome, whether or not it's actually been set up. It didn't happen because it made sense that it might or because it needed to. It happened because the thing after needed to happen. When that makes itself obvious and pushes beyond a viewer's suspension of disbelief, it tends to be more frustrating.
@doppelgreener this is all true, but for example, the few Horror games I have played and the relatively many I have watched other people play,.... no one does something as dumb as running forward more than they have to when they are running something that is so obviously going to kill them unless they take some turn somewhere
and they definitely don't do it when someone else, either another player or an NPC, shows them the example of what they should be doing
Well, sometimes when you're terrified, you don't register that kind of thing.
I have the example of when I played F.E.A.R, I think it was the first one but it could have been 2
One time I got stung by a wasp on the porch. I was right next to the door. Instead of going inside, I ran all the way down the porch stairs, into the garage, and up the inside stairs.
07:19
I did do something stupid in that, when I was randomly transported to some really bloody/gross/scary room
possibly it was just a halucination of the character or whatever
but I kept shooting things.. and it obviously wasn't helping
but there literally was nowhere to run or anything
so I do know that you can do some unreasonable things if you at least can't think of other options
I can't remember if that was the first or second time I got stung, but it's few and far between that it happens (actually, I've only been stung twice in my life), and I wasn't expecting it either time. I was suddenly in intense pain, and there was a thing I needed to get away from! Now!
and I am a bit of a pansy when it comes to video game horror
makes sense
@trogdor Well, like @doppelgreener said, there's a big difference between the detached viewership of a movie and engaging with something directly.
abject terror kinda uh
screws with clear thinking
in a way
a whole lot
yeah, it's just, I was not constantly making those kinds of mistakes in horror, it does happen, but my god
I just can't see how some things seem like a good idea JUST because of the fact that you are scared
in many cases, what I get upset over is the fact that said character had a little too much time to think of something else to do, or had a little too much space between them and some bad thing and decided to get CLOSER to it when they know it is there
07:26
Sometimes it overrides your ability to think at all, and by the time you can, you've made mistakes that you have to struggle to correct while your fight or flight instinct (whichever is relevant) and anxiety levels are still raging and the danger is still present. Add something like the character already being in pain, not being familiar with the environment, or conditions being inhospitable (wet and slick, dark, etc.), you have a recipe for terrible decisions.
@trogdor Heh, yeah.
I was watching a really bad found footage thing about the Bell Witch recently and there was a lot of pretty shaky behavior, on the part of almost everyone involved. Also bad acting.
I can understand running when you should be fighting. for example, but if you got away briefly and have SOME kind of improvised weapon nearby you can pick up, especially if you made the more or less understandable mistake of getting into a corner, you would pick that up out of desperation
it is called fight or flight for a reason
it might not save you, but it is something you would at least likely try after other options are visibly exhausted enough
But sometimes despair has a chance to take over, in that case, or you're simply too rattled to think that far. I'm not saying it's a good narrative choice, necessarily, but potentially justifiable.
my main complaint is that people doing something dumb is not in itself bad, but a little too much of it can happen
especially if it is the same character constantly choosing to do the wrong things with some decent time to think of other things
Yeah. Again, fiction's job is rarely to precisely mirror life, and just because something can happen doesn't mean that, in your constructed narrative, it should.
and I do admit, part of my dislike of it might very easily come from the fact that I am more detached than the person making the mistake, but I think that at least in some cases, the actions a character takes are just a little more irrational than they should be
and I also think it might be a slightly over used trope
sometimes the horror could come from a character doing the right thing, but that thing ending up not mattering anyway, for example
and that is done, but I just don't think I see alternative options like that being used enough
it IS, after all, a story
07:43
That "path of least resistance" to desired outcomes comes into play often, and I think there's a natural tendency for viewers to desire active characters as well, even if they're not competent. If you get emotionally invested in a character, you'd like them to survive (hence to fight and do the best they can in their circumstances). If they repeatedly refuse, you might not be emotionally invested in them anymore.
making a character competent without their competency mattering enough, (because horror story) is a route that could be used more often
@Pixie yeah, I think this is pretty accurate
if you are putting a character in a lot of danger, or even killing them off, you don't have to always do it in a way that makes them look real dumb
And in the case of an incompetent character, if we can at least see and understand the factors that are making them less competent, the efforts they do make may be more appreciable.
yeah
Heh. I've been listening to a song about glasses a lot lately because I'm happy I got new glasses, but over on the side, Youtube is suggesting "Sticker shock: why are glasses so expensive?" Now I remember how much the darn things cost.
XD
they can be pretty expensive
07:48
I should have just gotten one pair, but they had so many good ones this time, so I got two. >_> Usually I have to go to three stores to find even one pair. xD
two is a good number though
I've never actually had two pairs at once, and I'm struggling to figure out whether they got the prescription wrong on one or whether it's just going back and forth between shapes that's throwing me off. I'll need to get them checked, I think.
If I was not in the habit of having a spare, I would have had some issues a few times
that does sound like a difference in prescription
I still remember the first time I changed prescription being the weirdest thing I have ever experienced
Oh, I just had my eyes checked. My prescription (hopefully) isn't in question. I'm just not sure they got both lenses right. They've messed them up before.
There's always a period where new glasses make everything look weird, though, so I'm trying to get through that before heading back to the store. xD
to be fair, my life might just not be weird enough, but that was quite an experience to say the least
@Pixie my point is that if one is wrong, the wrongness wouldn't be the only factor
07:53
Yeah. Things never look right at first.
just the fact that you are trying to get used to two different prescriptions off of one you already are used to could factor in
True.
of course, that isn't to discount the problem of a wrong prescription by itself, I just mean that it could be further evidence that one of them is wrong
getting it checked seems like a good idea
Oh, heck. I've been wearing the pair that seemed more right at first for a few days, and now I've put the other pair on to look again. There's no way this pair is right. xD
yeah, it should be pretty easy to tell under those conditions
07:58
One pair magnifies things more at a distance. Its effect on my depth perception is more extreme.
 
1 hour later…
09:16
Hey @Trogdor
hello
I'm DMing 4e and one of the players came up with a charger thief, whose attack bonus is (almost conssistently) +21 at level 8. I'm not really sure that thing about tax feats is right, since monster AC at that level is around 22.
tax feats? like as in needing to pay too many feats to get a payoff or something?
As in "everyone must take this feat in order to be effective", with the usual feat being a weapon expertise
anyway, building a charge character, especially like a rogue pixie, is a pretty good way of getting really good attack bonuses, so I am not especially surprised
09:19
While I feel like some characters have to take it, some others... I mean, when your class gives you a +1 bonus to weapons with +3 proficiency...
but I am not sure if I knew it was possible to get a +21 to hit at lvl 8
part of it is that really light weapons do already have a really good bonus to hit
is this PC a pixie? cause that is one of the pretty exceptionally powerful ways to build a charge rogue or something similar
Human. +6 ability +4 half level +3 proficiency +1 class feature +1 charge +1 charge feat +2 combat advantage (which he gets on isolated enemies) +1 expertise feat +2 weapon
And like 3 extra d8 on every sneak attack charge, and a wizard moving enemies away.
rogues (and thieves and such) are pretty good at that kind of thing
massive to hit and pretty good single target damage, with the right feats and such
was there a question, or did you just want to mention it?
BESW was my DM for my 4E time, and he did find he had to tweak encounters because of the optimization's many of the players had
Sort of a question. Maybe I'll stat it for the main site later.
especially at later levels, but probably a little bit at lower levels too
09:28
Unfortunately there's this "if you want to work with the pre-statted monsters, no tactics will be enough on your part" attitude
see you later
they did put what is most likely a little too much power in the hands of the PC's in 4E, I think
BESW, if I recall, found some site or other that had better monster health to hit and defences per level
but I don't remember what that was
of course, there were also a couple of pre made encounters that were ridiculous for their level, especially lower level ones, but that is a lesser issue.
 
2 hours later…
11:21
stargate SG-1
woman gets up right after childbirth, walks around with her child
samantha: shouldn't you be resting? daniel, shouldn't she be resting?
woman: i'm fine!
(i sure hope this might be a plot point or that all of my worldly knowledge has misled me as to why she WOULDN'T just be up and walking)
11:38
what episode are you on?
just curious
@trogdor Brief Candle
ah, that one
without spoiling it, I will say that you will have that explained to you
i think i have
mk
it is a strange episode, not one of my personal favorites, but I didn't hate it as much as some
 
10 hours later…
22:12
You will never have enough coffee, but you must never stop trying your best.
 
1 hour later…
23:34
Pool noodle tentacles. Might be useful for LARPers?
4

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