June 16, 2015
Himawari gets an Upgrade
World of Tanks and other things have been taxing Himawari's poor GTX 650 video card. It doesn't take TOO much to max out the GPU and the fan whirrs like mad without much provocation. So, I went for the top of the line, but missed a little again. I set out for a GTX 980 Ti, but what I found was the non-Ti model for about $120 less (Still a $500+ card), but it was the best thing on the shelves at Fry's and still 5 times more powerful than the old card. One nifty thing about the Corsair modular power supply is that in the bag of power cables, there was one specifically for supplying juice to Extra Power-hungry PCIE cards. No need to tap into the hard drive lines.
I also found a liquid cooling unit for the CPU. Fortunately I didn't let the Salesgal talk me into the bigger unit, as the one I got barely fit in my full size case. Installing it was scary, mostly because I couldn't get the damned OEM heat sink off. I did think it odd that instead of the typical thermal grease, the original heat sink came with a patch of gray something pre-masked on it. I thought it was nice and would keep things neat. I didn't realize the putty would stick like glue. By the time I prized free the heatsink, the processor was yanked out of the ZIF socket along with it! I even bent a couple of pins slightly. Fortunately they were not bent so far that they could not be bent back without breaking. But getting the processor free of the heat sink required the services of a kitchen knife, and even then it was iffy that I could get it off, and getting cut was a possibility, given how unwieldy the heat sink was. When the CPU suddenly popped off, it was surprising.
The cooling unit came with all kinds of hardware for attaching the cooling plate instead of the using the original heat-sink mounting hardware. Virtually none of it fit (the ZIF socket must be higher profile than they planned for), so I figured out how to use the original screws to hold it in place. The radiator/fan/pump unit replaced the rear fan in the case, and took up a lot of room, almost 3". It also came with a second fan, in case I needed even MORE cooling.
Once I managed to get it all together, it was amazing. The new graphics card has three fans, but because of that, they all run much slower, and so the noise level has gone down considerably during games, and the water cooling has totally stabilized the CPU temperature, and again, killed almost all the noise. The only downside is the noise it does produce is a steady, low sine-wave note, which even though it's quiet, still penetrates from all directions.
Interestingly, my UPS also reports a slightly lower power consumption.
My frame rates didn't quite get the boost I thought they would, but the graphics modes are higher, so that evens out. My network is more of a limiting factor now. The reduction of noise (except for that note) is really, really significant, and I wonder if I added that second fan would it drop even more.
I'm even tempted to push the Overclocking button on my motherboard. The Graphics card has some overclocking options as well, but I'm not sure how to use them properly.
One sad thing is that my case, which is lined with foam to help deaden sound, is opaque. And the liquid cooling unit has an RGB LED set in it that will actually indicate temperature. The video card also has some gaudy LED bits on it, but none of that can be seen when the case is buttoned up.
I also found a liquid cooling unit for the CPU. Fortunately I didn't let the Salesgal talk me into the bigger unit, as the one I got barely fit in my full size case. Installing it was scary, mostly because I couldn't get the damned OEM heat sink off. I did think it odd that instead of the typical thermal grease, the original heat sink came with a patch of gray something pre-masked on it. I thought it was nice and would keep things neat. I didn't realize the putty would stick like glue. By the time I prized free the heatsink, the processor was yanked out of the ZIF socket along with it! I even bent a couple of pins slightly. Fortunately they were not bent so far that they could not be bent back without breaking. But getting the processor free of the heat sink required the services of a kitchen knife, and even then it was iffy that I could get it off, and getting cut was a possibility, given how unwieldy the heat sink was. When the CPU suddenly popped off, it was surprising.
The cooling unit came with all kinds of hardware for attaching the cooling plate instead of the using the original heat-sink mounting hardware. Virtually none of it fit (the ZIF socket must be higher profile than they planned for), so I figured out how to use the original screws to hold it in place. The radiator/fan/pump unit replaced the rear fan in the case, and took up a lot of room, almost 3". It also came with a second fan, in case I needed even MORE cooling.
Once I managed to get it all together, it was amazing. The new graphics card has three fans, but because of that, they all run much slower, and so the noise level has gone down considerably during games, and the water cooling has totally stabilized the CPU temperature, and again, killed almost all the noise. The only downside is the noise it does produce is a steady, low sine-wave note, which even though it's quiet, still penetrates from all directions.
Interestingly, my UPS also reports a slightly lower power consumption.
My frame rates didn't quite get the boost I thought they would, but the graphics modes are higher, so that evens out. My network is more of a limiting factor now. The reduction of noise (except for that note) is really, really significant, and I wonder if I added that second fan would it drop even more.
I'm even tempted to push the Overclocking button on my motherboard. The Graphics card has some overclocking options as well, but I'm not sure how to use them properly.
One sad thing is that my case, which is lined with foam to help deaden sound, is opaque. And the liquid cooling unit has an RGB LED set in it that will actually indicate temperature. The video card also has some gaudy LED bits on it, but none of that can be seen when the case is buttoned up.
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June 07, 2015
Knights of Sidonia - Suits
A space suit with a skirt and super high heels?
Why not? If you've got the technology, flaunt it.
They also have... other... technology. It's good to see the tradition has survived a thousand years after the distruction of Earth. Below the fold...
more...
They also have... other... technology. It's good to see the tradition has survived a thousand years after the distruction of Earth. Below the fold...
more...
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May 29, 2015
Sheesh
Gave up eztv for being taken over by a scumbag, and now BTChat goes down.
And this is your internet on Throttling.
At 5 AM, do they REALLY need to suddenly cut my bandwidth from 4 megabits to 50Kbytes. on one cell tower, and ONLY for BitTorrent? Isn't that against the new Net Neutrality law? So what difference does it make, a file transfer that was going to be done in 30 minutes will now run at a constant low level for several hours. What does that save?
Please Clearwire, lie to me and tell me it's Peak Hours.
And this is your internet on Throttling.
At 5 AM, do they REALLY need to suddenly cut my bandwidth from 4 megabits to 50Kbytes. on one cell tower, and ONLY for BitTorrent? Isn't that against the new Net Neutrality law? So what difference does it make, a file transfer that was going to be done in 30 minutes will now run at a constant low level for several hours. What does that save?
Please Clearwire, lie to me and tell me it's Peak Hours.
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May 26, 2015
Absolute Duo
Absolutely Awful.
I only finished it off this weekend because I wanted something short and I only had three episodes left to watch. I hate leaving stuff unfinished, and it was at the top of the list alphabetically.
There was one part though that had me yelling at the screen.
I'm going to assume you've at least heard of it, as if it's not enough of a standard story. If not, I think I started reviewing it below, so you can check that out.
So, there's one girl whose weapon manifests as a spear-like thing that almost resembles a folded umbrella, but it's so damned big, she can't normally lift it. There are also bad guys who wear techno armor, and they start attacking in earnest in the second half of the series. So Umbrella-girl gets captured during a raid, and they convince her to come to their side by promising to make her stronger so our Hero will like her, after he rejected her. This is by means of an exo-suit that resembles nothing so much as a unitard, but shows off her overdeveloped figure quite a bit And the dose of mind-control that comes with it is an added bonus.
So when she shows up for the final battle, of course the heroes are conflicted. "We can't kill our friend, who's trying to kill us". There must be a TVTrope for that. Mostly she's focused on Our Hero, to whom she vows to show she she's strong enough for by trying to kill him, out of love, or something. And that's what had me yelling at them. Think! Turn this to your advantage! You've already figured out that she's brainwashed, but devoted to you. Promise her anything, just to get her to smash the hell out of the enemy forces.
Duh!
Japanese writers just don't think like us though. And there are story patterns to fill, and they followed them to a T.
I only finished it off this weekend because I wanted something short and I only had three episodes left to watch. I hate leaving stuff unfinished, and it was at the top of the list alphabetically.
There was one part though that had me yelling at the screen.
I'm going to assume you've at least heard of it, as if it's not enough of a standard story. If not, I think I started reviewing it below, so you can check that out.
So, there's one girl whose weapon manifests as a spear-like thing that almost resembles a folded umbrella, but it's so damned big, she can't normally lift it. There are also bad guys who wear techno armor, and they start attacking in earnest in the second half of the series. So Umbrella-girl gets captured during a raid, and they convince her to come to their side by promising to make her stronger so our Hero will like her, after he rejected her. This is by means of an exo-suit that resembles nothing so much as a unitard, but shows off her overdeveloped figure quite a bit And the dose of mind-control that comes with it is an added bonus.
So when she shows up for the final battle, of course the heroes are conflicted. "We can't kill our friend, who's trying to kill us". There must be a TVTrope for that. Mostly she's focused on Our Hero, to whom she vows to show she she's strong enough for by trying to kill him, out of love, or something. And that's what had me yelling at them. Think! Turn this to your advantage! You've already figured out that she's brainwashed, but devoted to you. Promise her anything, just to get her to smash the hell out of the enemy forces.
Duh!
Japanese writers just don't think like us though. And there are story patterns to fill, and they followed them to a T.
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May 11, 2015
Junk Files
IMPORTANT UPDATE: Yeah, so I'm the last to know.... The reason EZTV has sucked so much lately, and is carrying all these bottom-dwelling, hijacked and repackaged torrents is because it lost in a hostile takeover by scammers. Do not use it any more.
One thing that really bugs me in some areas of the Torrenting world is this overwhelming urge some folks have to toot their own horn for things they really don't have anything to do with. You start with the group who digitizes a TV show, and they put their name on the file. Now, fansubbing is a different story, since they put some work into the job.
But what really gets me is the repackaging. Let's say I'm trying to watch The Flash. EZTV has been a little wonky since the move, and all the sources they have are repackagers. What I mean is, if I download the latest episode of The Flash and get the torrent from say, BTChat, I JUST get the show. But go to EZTV, and you get a directory, and there are worthless files like .nfo (which windows doesn't like) but even more worthless text files that say "Torrent Downloaded from Demonoid.com" which it wasn't, and then, some repackager takes that and throws in their OWN text file that says something similar. Some even chew up a few megs with a "preview" file. All of which is worthless. And it cuts down on which trackers you can add in (that may be why).
But even more irritating is, since each episode is now in its own directory, you can't just click the next file button in MediaPlayerClassic to get the next one.
I've tried looking for ways to relocate an individual file within uTorrent, but it won't do that. The best I can do is tell it to skip files, but the tiny text files are usually included in one block anyway. The thing is, I also use uTorrent as a sort of video manager, so I can tag things I've watched by changing the label to (drum roll) "Watched". It's a first world problem, to be sure, but the motivation is so 80's Apple ][ game cracker, where they'd find a way to wedge their names into the opening screen. (Even back then, there were script kiddies running game cracking tools).
One thing that really bugs me in some areas of the Torrenting world is this overwhelming urge some folks have to toot their own horn for things they really don't have anything to do with. You start with the group who digitizes a TV show, and they put their name on the file. Now, fansubbing is a different story, since they put some work into the job.
But what really gets me is the repackaging. Let's say I'm trying to watch The Flash. EZTV has been a little wonky since the move, and all the sources they have are repackagers. What I mean is, if I download the latest episode of The Flash and get the torrent from say, BTChat, I JUST get the show. But go to EZTV, and you get a directory, and there are worthless files like .nfo (which windows doesn't like) but even more worthless text files that say "Torrent Downloaded from Demonoid.com" which it wasn't, and then, some repackager takes that and throws in their OWN text file that says something similar. Some even chew up a few megs with a "preview" file. All of which is worthless. And it cuts down on which trackers you can add in (that may be why).
But even more irritating is, since each episode is now in its own directory, you can't just click the next file button in MediaPlayerClassic to get the next one.
I've tried looking for ways to relocate an individual file within uTorrent, but it won't do that. The best I can do is tell it to skip files, but the tiny text files are usually included in one block anyway. The thing is, I also use uTorrent as a sort of video manager, so I can tag things I've watched by changing the label to (drum roll) "Watched". It's a first world problem, to be sure, but the motivation is so 80's Apple ][ game cracker, where they'd find a way to wedge their names into the opening screen. (Even back then, there were script kiddies running game cracking tools).
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April 29, 2015
Knights of Sidonia
Since I never finished watching the first series, and the second was coming out, I powered through it this weekend. It was actually pretty good for a Mecha show, with some interesting side stories that come from the setting (A colony seed ship passing through territory infested with the same monsters that destroyed the Earth, and no compunctions by the leadership against a little genetic engineering on the population.) There are of course, those moments where you facepalm over physics (They have artificial gravity, but maneuvering with the main thrusters is not compensated for). But the MC, while a bit confused at first because he was virtually a bubble boy - raised in the catacombs beneath the city with no companionship but the flight simulator and his grandfather, the best fighter in history and the man he was cloned from - is not some ball of angst like most leads in a mecha show. He gets past his cluelessness, except about girls, and the not-quite-a-girl who really likes him (genetic engineering, again).
But the interesting thing I just ran across is this. Here's an image generated with the character models on Deviant Art. Apparently the producers of the show have released some of the character models, with armatures, compatible with Blender, at sidonia-3dmodel.com. I haven't tried to navigate the site yet, but I will. Because Thigh Boots.
But the interesting thing I just ran across is this. Here's an image generated with the character models on Deviant Art. Apparently the producers of the show have released some of the character models, with armatures, compatible with Blender, at sidonia-3dmodel.com. I haven't tried to navigate the site yet, but I will. Because Thigh Boots.
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April 26, 2015
Trailer
Just saw a trailer for a Live Action Attack on Titan. Annoyingly,
Facebook doesn't show YouTube links, so I couldn't find it off the cuff
like this comment, but if this sounds like your thing, it's out there.
ETA: Found it:
Gotta say, I'm getting really annoyed with the "fade and hold on black" editing technique. And this doesn't show the cable systems in use (I never watched the series, so I don't know how commonly that was used).
ETA: Found it:
Gotta say, I'm getting really annoyed with the "fade and hold on black" editing technique. And this doesn't show the cable systems in use (I never watched the series, so I don't know how commonly that was used).
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April 16, 2015
So you want to Fix the Hugos
Over on my writing blog, I've written a post about the Hugo voting system and a possible improvement. One that isn't quite as politically targeted and mathematically incomprehensible as what they're discussing over at Making Light.
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April 04, 2015
Traveling in the wrong circles
One of the most irritating things about trying to follow anime (Aside from not having enough time to watch it (Damned mandatory overtime and higher priority household chores)) is that since it's an unpaid fan activity, well, it's not always reliable.
And man, when it comes to unreliable fansub groups, can I pick 'em or what?
I'm especially good at picking groups that start off strong, get the A+ rating, and then fall apart three episodes before the end, when you're entirely invested in their version of things. Given my download speeds, invested is a carefully chosen word. (I have found some tricks, like changing my port to 80, since my ISP would DIE if they blocked web traffic, but since UDP port 80 is reserved for their network management, it kills a lot of trackers, unless I start on a random port then switch over after I've got enough peers. I have graphs that are appalling proof of their practice, just waiting for the FCC.).
It's probably more prevalent on shows that HorribleSubs is also running. My latest ire is directed at DameDameDesuYo, for their slow releases of Junketsu no Maria. Episode 10 just came out. everyone else is up to 12. But everyone else is HorribleSubs, and all the groups that re-encode HorribleSubs. (I really don't get the point of that).
The shows that I've been downloading, but not watching as loyally, they're finishing up on time.
Before, it's been Commie that drives me up the wall. But whatever it is, I just have this uncanny ability to hitch my wagon to the slowest mule.
Updated to add: DDY came though, and I just got the last couple of episodes. Maria had a happy ending. In fact, everyone had a happy ending, it was almost too pat, how it all got wrapped up. But actually, I was satisfied with it. Definitely not a typical story. I'm not entirely sure how to approach the write-up.
And man, when it comes to unreliable fansub groups, can I pick 'em or what?
I'm especially good at picking groups that start off strong, get the A+ rating, and then fall apart three episodes before the end, when you're entirely invested in their version of things. Given my download speeds, invested is a carefully chosen word. (I have found some tricks, like changing my port to 80, since my ISP would DIE if they blocked web traffic, but since UDP port 80 is reserved for their network management, it kills a lot of trackers, unless I start on a random port then switch over after I've got enough peers. I have graphs that are appalling proof of their practice, just waiting for the FCC.).
It's probably more prevalent on shows that HorribleSubs is also running. My latest ire is directed at DameDameDesuYo, for their slow releases of Junketsu no Maria. Episode 10 just came out. everyone else is up to 12. But everyone else is HorribleSubs, and all the groups that re-encode HorribleSubs. (I really don't get the point of that).
The shows that I've been downloading, but not watching as loyally, they're finishing up on time.
Before, it's been Commie that drives me up the wall. But whatever it is, I just have this uncanny ability to hitch my wagon to the slowest mule.
Updated to add: DDY came though, and I just got the last couple of episodes. Maria had a happy ending. In fact, everyone had a happy ending, it was almost too pat, how it all got wrapped up. But actually, I was satisfied with it. Definitely not a typical story. I'm not entirely sure how to approach the write-up.
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March 24, 2015
Junketsu no Maria Ep. 9
Still saving things for a full write-up. Although one comment I wanted to throw out there is that while Maria is against the war and killing and death and such, this show is not some anti-war polemic. Save that for 15-year-old Gundam pilots who whine, "War is so horrible! Why do I have to be so good at it?" I saw another review that didn't quite get that, and thought that as an anti-war polemic, it didn't quite make good sense.
Mostly all of the characters have contradictory beliefs to struggle with. Maria is in love with a young man, but thanks to a bit of a curse the Archangel Michael laid on her, if she has sex, she loses her magic. (Said young man is torn between his love for Maria and his duty to his Lord.)
Unfortunately, word of this curse reaches the high priest, and the local lord, and they send a mercenary who has no love for her interference in his battles to, ahem, relieve her of her magic. By a strange turn of fate, he is interrupted before he can complete the deed, but Maria still seems to have lost her magic, and that is when the church and their forces seize her.
Which goes to show, you can keep your virginity and still be totally fucked.
I expected this mostly to be a sex comedy, especially since all the witches send their familiars to go off and molest the generals to influence the tides of battle, and make a bit of money (Although one English witch conducts some of her affairs in person). But Maria's conflict and her willfulness, and principles, all conspire to put her in exactly the wrong place. In the scene above, she is brought before the village she protected and who loved her in order to be rejected and humiliated. (And then in an even WORSE fate, she ends up in a cell with the head priest who has a philosophical revelation, all of which goes over her head as he quotes more and more philosophers.)
Mostly all of the characters have contradictory beliefs to struggle with. Maria is in love with a young man, but thanks to a bit of a curse the Archangel Michael laid on her, if she has sex, she loses her magic. (Said young man is torn between his love for Maria and his duty to his Lord.)
Unfortunately, word of this curse reaches the high priest, and the local lord, and they send a mercenary who has no love for her interference in his battles to, ahem, relieve her of her magic. By a strange turn of fate, he is interrupted before he can complete the deed, but Maria still seems to have lost her magic, and that is when the church and their forces seize her.
Which goes to show, you can keep your virginity and still be totally fucked.
I expected this mostly to be a sex comedy, especially since all the witches send their familiars to go off and molest the generals to influence the tides of battle, and make a bit of money (Although one English witch conducts some of her affairs in person). But Maria's conflict and her willfulness, and principles, all conspire to put her in exactly the wrong place. In the scene above, she is brought before the village she protected and who loved her in order to be rejected and humiliated. (And then in an even WORSE fate, she ends up in a cell with the head priest who has a philosophical revelation, all of which goes over her head as he quotes more and more philosophers.)
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