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5:13 PM
0
Q: what has been the recent changes to ak74u?

yandosLooking at the last patch for BLOPs (http://www.callofduty.com/board/viewtopic.php?f=73&t=313362) there seems to be a a reference to adjustments made to the ak74u - can anyone shed some light on what this is?

 
Hey folks, what's the "best" way to host images that are part of questions? imgur is really flaky.
 
what's going wrong? it usually works pretty well
 
Usually is the problem.
If imgur is the best solution, that's fine, but it's annoying to have to refresh a page about five times to see the images.
 
there aren't really any better free ones, photobucket/tinypic/etc are definitely worse
it's good to be able to host things yourself, but that's not really a simple option for a lot of people
 
9
Q: Is it ok to save and re-upload images in questions?

KevSome of the questions and answers I've been tidying up have sample screenshots where the images are hosted by third party sites such as ImageShack. To guard against potential image rot in the future I've been downloading these then re-uploading them into the official Stack Overflow image store. ...

@ChadBirch Dropbox has a 'Public' folder. You put things in it and they're published on the internet. :)
 
5:21 PM
Aha, so there is an official Stack Overflow image store?
 
hi again, just checking is the election supposed to never go below 0 votes?
 
the official one is imgur :b
 
cause I should be on -14 :'(
 
SO is using the imgur api to let you upload directly while posting
 
Browser Game Pick: LightSpeeder (Ramon Zarate Saiz) http://bit.ly/hhUefj
 
5:22 PM
Ah, I see.
 
@badp yeah, I've seen some people use that. I don't really like it myself, I don't know why, it just "feels" wrong
especially since dropbox doesn't give any guidance on transfer limits from your public folder or anything
 
I guess I'll just deal with imgur's nonsense then.
 
@ChadBirch I think it's great, given what it replaced for me (Google Pages)
I had to log on the service, upload the files one by one, no hierarchy, limit of 100 MB total
@ChadBirch Transfer limits usually are "high enough"
I've seen some links get broken by those, but not many
they have to really get viral.
 
yeah, for use on gaming SE or something I don't think it would ever be an issue
 
> Links that use up more than 10GB/day for Basic (free) accounts and 250GB/day for Pro (paid) accounts are automatically suspended.
(For reference, I have a basic account.)
 
5:27 PM
oh ok, I'm pretty sure that it didn't have specific numbers there the last time I looked
that's surprisingly high, actually
 
so even for huge ass images like Beautiful game-rec assassination, poster sized.png I'd need ~12k downloads/day
 
yeah, that definitely seems like a good option for self-hosting then, I can't see Dropbox disappearing suddenly either (or at least I hope not, it's a really nice service)
 
The one big problem I can foresee
is link rot
Google Pages let me forward links to another place if I set it up
 
yeah, that's one of the benefits of putting it on somewhere public like imgur. If the whole service is going to go down or change their URL format or something, it's something you can deal with in bulk
but with individual accounts somewhere that lapse, there's not any easy way to notice, compensate, or recover when stuff disappears
 
@ChadBirch dunno, because you lose ownership of images
If I have the images, I decide what to do of them
I don't think imgur does accounts
 
5:34 PM
well, somewhat
once anyone else has downloaded your image it's out of your hands
 
@ChadBirch My problem isn't that, my problem is keeping links alive
When pages was shut down I kept links alive by forwarding them to Dropbox
When Dropbox goes down, will I be able to do so?
Maybe.
When Imgur goes down, will I be able to do so?
I don't think so.
 
well, my point was not that the sites themselves would have a method of doing it
but that when imgur puts up their "we're going down next week" announcement, you can do some bulk processing and move everything
when Random User X deletes his dropbox account, there's no way to fix that
 
@ChadBirch That's why it's kind of hard to hardlink to images by default.
the UI goes through imgur even if you specify a URL.
 
0
Q: Votes for moderator doesn't drop below 0

Ronan FormanI'm not sure if it's supposed to be like that be the number of votes the nominees have doesn't go below 0. Doing the maths the normal view should display -14 but instead it displays 0 Is this done on purpose or a bug?

 
@RonanForman I hope you aren't taking the results too hardly
 
5:43 PM
@badp naw I expected it really, I entered partly over morbid curiosity anyway!
 
:(
 
@Mana → 1 message moved to Sandbox
 
Aaaaaaaanyways, off to class. Peace gamebros.
 
@RonanForman if I may make a humble suggestion, improve your writing skills.
 
@CRoss what have I done wrong now?
 
5:52 PM
0
Q: Beating the snake boss in Magicka.

RedRecently started playing Magicka and I've just started fighting "the snake boss"(2nd boss). Hes giving me a real tough time to be honest. Is there something specifically that needs to be done? I've been treating it as a standard boss battle and searching for a decent opening to hit him. However...

 
you haven't done anything wrong, just a suggestion
 
6:03 PM
hmm, is FallenAngelEyes around?
(is there any way to PM someone on here, or just start a new room with them?)
 
@ChadBirch Yes, click on his avatar and choose "start a room with this user"
You definitely have enough network rep to do that
 
6:31 PM
0
Q: Killing the toughest dragon on the Darkside of Xeen

Peter TurnerI figured I'd go to my grave without knowing the answer to this, but is there any way to kill the dragon in the clouds on the Dark Side of Xeen in the top left corner of the map? It's been a long time since I've played the game and I'm sure that's the only thing I've never done. I've been sans...

 
KITTEH.
 
@Brant No, Kitteh, that's my pot pie!
 
@Brant Man, I was watching that video while my kitten sat on my lap urging me to fed her. So meta.
 
@badp you have a cat?
 
@CRoss Yup. She totally looks like Jeff's.
 
6:38 PM
@CRoss no I think he stole it...
 
6:55 PM
0
Q: StarCraft2: MegaRax vs quick mech in TvT - is it viable?

BuddaPlaying Terran in my previous league I've beat a lot of other Terrans with Mega Rax strategy. In my implementation it looks like this: 10 Supply 11 Barrack 12 Refinery 14(or15) Barrack 2 in mean time (as resources allows) tech-lab for 1st barrack, reactors to other tech labs, research stim-pack...

0
Q: Jormungandr's so big, it fits all around the world, and in two separate questions

Grace NoteOne of our earliest questions for the game Magicka was: How do I hit the worm's weak point for massive damage at the end of Chapter 2? Today, we received a similar one: Beating the snake boss in Magicka. Pardoning the whole part where they decided to pick completely different animals to describ...

0
Q: Valentine's Day version of Angry Birds: Seasons- Information/Secrets/Strategies?

ZootCould someone tell me more about the Valentine's Day version of Angry Birds: Seasons? I've only recently heard that it exists. What differentiates it from the other versions that are available?

 
btw, if someone could explain to me why Angry Birds is so popular, I'd love to hear it.
 
@Powerlord I have no idea either, I played it once, it was boring.
 
Its not every day when the clone becomes many times more popular than the games that spawned it.
 
@Powerlord I guess one thing it does do right is hand input. Your finger/hand never ever has to cover the screen
A problem that the cancelled iPhone game @GnomeSlice was talking about yesterday instead had
 
@badp Which happens to be one of the reasons that I said a few days ago that I don't like Zelda: Phantom Hourglass or Zelda: Spirit Tracks as well as the GBA/GBC Zelda games.
 
7:08 PM
@Powerlord um, the GBA had touch input?
 
@badp No, the two I listed are DS games... I don't like them as well as the GBA/GBC ones.
 
I'm playing through the GBA version of Zelda: Link to the Past and I'm not hating it -- then again I've never played anything else Zelda.
 
The DS Zelda games suffer from "can't see the screen because my hand is in the way"itis
 
@Powerlord most DS games have that as well
 
@badp You might want to try Minish Cap too... it's pretty good, although not as good as Link to the Past.
Then again, there is no such thing as a Zelda game that's better than Link to the Past.
 
7:11 PM
@Powerlord best handheld zelda game! (that I've played)
 
@Powerlord oddly enough, I've never played it
 
@RonanForman Best console zelda game, too! (It came out on SNES first. ;P)
 
@Powerlord really?
 
depends if you two are talking about LTTP or Minish Cap
 
@ChadBirch I'm not sure...
 
7:12 PM
Oh right, I just assumed he meant LttP
 
@Powerlord I meant minish
 
@RonanForman TRAITOR! Minish Cap is nothing compared to LttP!
 
@Powerlord i said the best I'd played
 
@RonanForman Oh, right. You should play LttP some time. :)
 
Link's Awakening was my favorite handheld one
though I haven't played most of the new ones
 
7:14 PM
LttP is on SNES, GBA, and Wii's Virtual Console.
 
@Powerlord it's on my list!
 
I thought for sure that someone would step in and say Ocarina of Time is better.
 
@Powerlord we're talking about handheld games
 
@RonanForman eyes the 3DS version of Ocarina of Time
 
I hope that doesn't happen!
 
7:15 PM
Yeah, the 3DS isn't out yet... but it will be next month.
@RonanForman You're too late for that, it's been officially announced.
I'm not sure that it's a launch title, though.
 
dammit
 
Nope, it's not going to be a launch title. The system won't have a Mario launch title either.
Whoops, my bad... it won't have a STANDARD PLATFORMER mario launch title.
It will have a Paper Mario game as a launch title.
 
@Powerlord there is a professor layton/phoenix wright one
 
Um, I don't really know how a platformer would benefit from "3D"
 
@badp it's just a gimmick, live with it!
 
7:19 PM
the 3D may not always be used, like the touch controls on DS
@RonanForman Last I saw, the Layton/Wright game wasn't even planned to be translated to English, so I don't know if we'll ever see that one
 
awww....
 
@badp From what I've heard, it'll make the foreground elements stand out from the background elements.
 
@Powerlord :|
 
@Powerlord yeah, just a gimmick
 
When I actually get a 3DS (whatever they name the second generation one), I'll likely set the 3D slider to off.
Which, from what I heard, won't help the battery life one whit. >:/
 
7:22 PM
heh, that's interesting, you have to somehow take advantage of 3D while users can turn it off any time
and you may not even know what level it's set at, if it's purely analogic
 
@badp The problem is that something like 1 in every 10 people can't see the 3D effect at all.
Which likely includes me anyway...
I want a 3DS for the Layton games, including the Phoenix Wright crossover, as well as the Paper Mario game.
An HD version of Ocarina of Time doesn't interest me in the least, particularly not if it's going to cost $40+
As it is, I already have serious misgivings about the next Wii Zelda game, Skyward Sword.
I've played both versions of Twilight Princess. The GameCube version plays so much better it's not funny.
 
@Powerlord So you want the 3DS, the whole point of which is the 3D, because games that do not really use 3D are exclusive to the 3DS, and you aren't even interested in the 3D bit.
 
@Powerlord Any particular reasons?
 
@RonanForman That's purely because of the play controls, seeing as how it's missing widescreen support.
 
on an a vaguely related note. I've noticed several sites running gameboy emulators in browser. What's the legality on that?
 
7:26 PM
@CRoss not good...
 
I wouldn't say the whole point of the 3DS is the 3D, it's just the next generation of Nintendo handheld
 
@CRoss What's the problem? The emulator is likely okay. The problem is, what were they running?
 
@CRoss Unless they have some convoluted reasoning, or licensing from the makers of said games, it's likely illegal.
 
Emulating hardware is fine, copying someone else's game isn't. (Not that it's stopped me)
 
@ChadBirch as long as its not just a 3d ds
 
7:27 PM
the sites I saw had dozens of name brand games, Pokemon jumped out at me
 
One thing the 3DS is going to have is the GBC/GBA virtual console store.
or virtual handheld if they rename it. :P
I still don't know why the DSi didn't have that...
 
Bye guys!
 
I should get an SD card for my DSi at some point.
I've been goofing off in this chat instead of rewriting some atrociously bad jQuery event handlers I inherited.
 
@CRoss They're soundless, so entertainment-wise they're worthless :(
 
I wonder if the 3DS virtual store will have Zelda: Four Swords in it... not necessarily for Four Swords, but the GBA version of Link to the Past is on the same cart. :D
 
7:32 PM
they need to make a new four swords game...
 
@RonanForman I agree, but this time it can be wireless.
That was a problem, particularly with the GC version, since the GC version required 4 GBA-GC connector cables.
 
@Powerlord they were expensive!
 
The GBA version wasn't so bad, as you just needed 4 GBA-GBA cables... I forget if the system came with one or not, but I was thinking it did. Of course, you also needed the 4-player hub thingy.
 
also the story was bad
 
Well, yeah, but multiplayer games don't exactly have the best story.
To date, there are 3 Zelda games I haven't finished. Four Swords, Four Swords Adventures, and Majora's Mask.
 
7:45 PM
@Powerlord why shouldn't they? you can't use multi-player as an excuse!
 
@RonanForman Because it takes time to tell a story, and most of the time, people in multi-player games aren't looking for that.
It's even more prevalent in non-coop games.
 
story can be told though lots of things: setting, character design etc. watch extracredits some time
 
So, am I supposed to stop while playing Team Fortress 2 and admire the 1960s evil genius type hidden base design... or just kill the enemy team?
 
@Powerlord what is the story behind TF2?
 
@RonanForman It's a story of two holding companies who secretly control all the governments of the world, who are fighting each other for control through the actions of mercenaries... buy both companies are actually run by the same woman.
 
7:49 PM
@Powerlord how do you know that?
 
Oh right, none of this is gathered from the game, but rather through comics and stuff they've released over time.
The only exception is that the same woman runs both corporations, as she's the in-game announcer.
teamfortress.com/war/administrator <-- For example, this comic confirms that she runs both corporations.
 
@Powerlord you could still get the: era, mercenaries, announcer, companies and the reason of conflict from in-game alone
 
@RonanForman Except there is no real reason for the conflict. Most of the time, you're fighting over control points that have no real explanation. :D
 
fine that's the only thing
 
Or you're stealing enemy intelligence briefcases... three times per round unless the server has adjusted the settings.
Or you're pushing a giant bomb past checkpoints (also control points) to blow up some enemy base... for no apparent reason.
 
7:53 PM
I GET THE POINT!
 
Or both teams are trying to push a giant bomb to blow something up before the other team does... right, you get the point.
The last one makes the least sense, since the two corps control the entire world in the TF2 universe. :D
 
@Powerlord that's the announcer!
 
@badp The Administrator is the announcer, yes.
Originally based on this image, Valve hired the guy who made it.
As I recall, he still works for Valve and most recently did the Left 4 Dead 1/2: The Sacrifice comic.
 
@Powerlord there was no text, cutscenes or voice lines that told you most of that story
 
@RonanForman Nope, not really. Not in game. Most of TF2's story is told outside the game.
 
8:01 PM
watch this and tell me story story can't be told in-game escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/extra-credits/…
 
@RonanForman it's not that it can't be
it just doesn't always need to be
I have gotten great enjoyment from TF2 without being aware of the story
I just thought it was a hat simulator, and I was losing
 
I think I mentioned this before, but when people go to play multi-player games, they don't necessarily want to see story.
@CRoss America's #1 War-themed Hat Simulator! teamfortress.com/macupdate
2
 
we were talking about multiplayer story and not having time to tell story without getting rid of collective interest
 
At least I think that's what they refer to it as in the Mac Update. ;D
 
I'm playing a hat simulator without any hats
 
8:04 PM
woah, so am i!
 
@CRoss That's just sad. :(
 
I don't know how often hats drop any more.
 
0
Q: Combination attacks in phantasy star 4

user6947Are there 14 or 15 combination attacks in phantasy star 4? What is the most powerful combination attack in phantasy star 4?

 
From personal experience, hat drop rates are affected if you craft or unbox hats.
Which REALLY sucks.
Well, maybe not if you craft one, but if you unbox one it is.
 
8:06 PM
do you buy keys?
 
@CRoss ...maaaaaybe
 
@Powerlord sellout
did you actually watch that video?
 
But anyway, I can't imagine how else I had an 8-month dry spell in hat drops when I play nearly every day.
@RonanForman Can't, I'm at work and gaming sites are blocked here.
As it is, the TF2 links I pulled out were from google.
 
awww.. it's interesting anyway
 
@Powerlord You want my boxes? I'll trade them to you for ... something
 
8:10 PM
Speaking of ridiculous, after sorting out stuff yesterday, I found that I had no less than 6 Candy Canes in my inventory.
 
hmmm, what items am i missing that I actually want ...
I crafted my medieval medic ...
 
I wish the RIFT TF2 item thingy wasn't so long, so I know which items I need to hold to craft them.
 
@Powerlord this I have not heard of
 
@CRoss Yeah, the Volcano Shard and Sun on a Stick will be craftable in March.
...and Valve introduced a new item rarity for people who actually do preorder RIFT and got them that way.
"Genuine"
Which is literally the same thing as Vintage, but we can't reuse that name since these items are newer than the Mann Co. update!
 
I was about to ask that
 
8:16 PM
It has a different name color, though... dark green.
I had someone ask me why I used a Vita-Saw on the rare occasion that I play Medic... I told them "I suck at Medic!" and then pointed out at my first death after they asked that I died at 97% charge...
(Which was my first death as a Medic)
Since Vita-Saw lets you carry over 20% charge to your next life...
 
...you could've died at 21% for as much profit
unless you mean "20% of your charge", not just "the first 20%"
 
@Powerlord I'd rather have the regen, and the group heal
 
@badp Yes, at anything more than 20%, you keep 20% to your next life. However, if I had died once before that, I'd have had a full charge.
and in fact, I got to 100% twice during my next life. :D
(it reset back to 0% after the first charge)
 
I find my success as a medic depends as much on the quality of the soldier/heavy/whatever as my play
 
My major problem in TF2 is that my best classes are all support classes.
I've been trying to play Pyro more (particularly since by this point, I know the majority of Spy tricks and hiding spots) because I suck at Heavy and Soldier.
Demoman... eh, depends on the loadout.
I have found out that people don't expect Charging demos with the new sword, with the longer charge range. :D
 
8:27 PM
With Pyro I find I can almost always kill one person, die, and run back...
@Powerlord and snipers don't expect return fire from medics
 
As Pyro, I like the Degreaser plus Axtinguisher.
 
quite a popular combo
 
Even though it doesn't work that great on certain classes, like Heavy,.
 
but it'll put a demo or a medic down in no time flat
 
Well... depends on the Heavy, but it requires two Axtinguish hits on a Heavy, whereas most other classes is just one.
 
8:29 PM
0
Q: Suikoden I - stars of destiny

user6947What is the minimum number of stars you have to recruit to complete the game?

 
Oh yeah, Degreaser plus Axtinguisher is definitely handy, since you can hit them with melee almost immediately. Doesn't work well on Scouts at all, though, since they can outrun you.
Not unless you can airblast them into a corner.
I don't know why, but today is going by insanely slow for me. :/
 
anyone else keep checking the /election page?
 
@CRoss Nope.
It would help if your election results showed on the tracker, though.
(Also, /election is blocked here. :P)
 
@Powerlord I noticed that. Ivo's is missing as well
 
1
Q: Elections nominations posts not showing up in API

Yi JiangI know that it's probably unintended that the Primary voting scores were leaked by the API, but I think if you're going to remove it, then at least make it official, so I won't have to wonder if it's just a transient bug. Anyway, some background: It's possible to collect the score and up/downvo...

Was linked to us earlier.
 
8:36 PM
grumble grumble
 
Also, this made me lol
22
Q: SkeetStalker - Get to unanswered questions before Jon Skeet!

CatchwaWell, seeing that I don't currently have: A desk A chair other than my dining room chairs, or A monitor larger than 19" I thought I'd submit an application to StackApps to see if I could win something. (Worth a shot, right?) Screenshot Main Page Supports all StackExchange sites via Stack...

@CRoss: btw, the Saharan Spy set is so overpowered on cp_degrootkeep...
The silent decloak and silent backstab effects make you especially good on RED, both backstabbing enemy Snipers and defending the point.
I personally prefer it with the Dead Ringer, but...
 
yeah, degroot keep is not balanced class wise
 
@Powerlord Useful to keep track of questions I might answer unless I get there first.
 
@CRoss Well, there are certain items that do help balance it.
 
8:43 PM
@Powerlord if you have them. You can't play sniper without huntsman, or medic without medieval medic
 
Yeah... that's not my thing.
 
For example, the Pyro's set melee weapon (or better yet, the entire set)...
The Soldier is pretty useless on degroot, though.
 
what do you think of the heavy's new gun?
 
@CRoss Useful in certain situations, but most of the time skip it.
 
I feel like TF2 left me behind
I didn't play for all of a month
 
8:45 PM
It says I'm going to answer this Secret of Mana question.
 
and now there's like hundreds of new items
 
It's absolutely right.
 
and apparently I can build things now
I just want to point and shoot. :P
 
... you missed more than a month :-)
 
@SpencerRuport Only a month? I don't recall any new items in the past month...
 
8:46 PM
@Powerlord it hurts like a ^&*(#
 
Well I mean, that was a while ago
 
Crafting's been in the game for over a year already!
 
oh, a month a year ago
 
@Mana Who would know more about Mana's secrets than @Mana?
 
8:46 PM
I haven't played much since.
 
@CRoss Right, but it makes the Heavy extremely vulnerable to Snipers, and to a lesser extent Spies.
 
I motion that in chat, we all call it "Secret of @Mana"
 
What's the new Heavy weapon?
 
It is the game I took my username from so I feel like that's appropriate @Arda
 
8:48 PM
Mana is rapidly disappearing?!
 
Interesting.
 
Speaking of which, I don't think we've ever had any Second Life questions, is that still doing anything?
 
@SpencerRuport Actually, every class but Engineer has an item set now, with some sort of set bonus.
Some bonuses are more overpowered than others (read: Spy)
 
I read an article about SL a while back. They split the world into clean and adults only. Apparently the adults only is more popular
 
@CRoss I know. I've been there.
 
8:49 PM
@Arda gasps
 
It's split between teens-only and adults-only.
 
Oh, right, I should also mention that Valve finished the class updates. All 9 have taken place, with the Engineers being last... which is likely why he doesn't have an item set yet.
 
It's where "Arda Xi" comes from.
 
@ArdaXi any redeeming value?
 
I don't get it.
 
8:50 PM
@CRoss If you like furries, maybe. It used to be really nice. Easy way to make real-life money with mediocre scripting knowledge.
 
Makes sense that they'd save the engineer for last
 
@Powerlord they still haven't done the Pyro video though?
 
And yes, I joined the adult version. You need a credit-card for the teen one, and it's easier to pretend to be an adult in a game than to a credit card company.
 
@CRoss Nope, nor the Medic video.
@SpencerRuport The Engineer items they added are interesting. One lets you take control of the sentry gun and where it fires... plus causes it to take 66% less damage (I think it's 66%...). One lets you build miniature sentries that build much faster and cost less metal, but can't be upgraded.
The last one is a new shotgun with only 3 bullets before reload, but when your sentry is destroyed, you get 2 critical shots for each kill it got and 1 for each assist, maxing out at 30.
Oh right, it doesn't normally crit, though.
Oh... and Engineers can pick up and move their own buildings now.
 
oh that's helpful
 
8:54 PM
yeah, big improvement
 
And as of... yesterday was it?... repairing an ally's sentry nets you assist kills for it.
 
that's been that way for a while
since the engie update at least
 
hm, guess I'll have to fire it up again sometime soon and check this out.
I finally saw some of the portal 2 videos
 
@CRoss Then why was it in the release notes for the most recent patch?
 
Can't wait for April 21st
 
8:56 PM
Which, of course, I can't find the release notes for through Google, despite the fact that it indexes steampowered.com...
 
@Powerlord dunno. I know I had it happen a while back
and a medic healing an engie working on his gun has given assists for a LONG time
 
@CRoss Yes, this new one is specifically Engineers repairing other Engineers' guns... should be near the top of store.steampowered.com/news
 

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