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Pvt.Scott posted:Doesn't NASA still use some pretty old and bulky computers on spacecraft for critical systems because they're easier to fix and more reliable/durable, or am I just misremembering something? this doesn't really answer your question, but the ISEE-3 reboot kickstarter illustrates the value of old tech. Longish story short: ISEE-3 (International Sun-Earth Explorer) was a satellite launced in 1978, escaped earth orbit and took measurements of the earth's magnetosphere and solar winds. Its mission complete, it was ordered to change orbit to get several orbit assists by the moon, so that its course would pass through the tail of a comet. After that mission was complete, it was ordered to shut down in 1997. Years later they discovered that it had not, in fact, shut down. Moreover, all but 1 of its instruments are still operational. The crowdfunding is to get money to do a software-rebuild of the technology used to communicate with the satellite, rent the hardware required to send a signal, and order the satellite to do a specific burn which will again use the Moon's gravity to kick it in another intercept orbit through a comet tail and transmit the data back to us. The data would be made publically available upon success. Point is: nasa scrapped the hardware because it was no longer used and it turns out that we can still recycle a scrapped satellite. So now we need to recreate the systems. Oh, and just for drama: the satellite needs to receive the signal soon, because the maneuver must be completed by mid-june. double nine fucked around with this message at 00:21 on May 23, 2014 |
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May 23, 2014 00:18
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Pvt.Scott posted:Doesn't NASA still use some pretty old and bulky computers on spacecraft for critical systems because they're easier to fix and more reliable/durable, or am I just misremembering something? "It works" is part of the answer as for militaries and space agencies use a lot of old stuff, another part being that they are certified for flight or outer space use and developing new hardware and certifying it is more expensive than to keep the old stuff running. Even the space shuttle's computers had double backups despite all the certification.
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May 23, 2014 00:19
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Pvt.Scott posted:Doesn't NASA still use some pretty old and bulky computers on spacecraft for critical systems because they're easier to fix and more reliable/durable, or am I just misremembering something? From what I understand it's most specifically because the old bulky computer chips are more resistant to cosmic radiation. The smaller designs are all well and good, but cosmic rays can sometimes hit transistors and cause the switches to flip or even burn out, possibly causing a random crash. This can happen to any computer on Earth, but up in space they don't even have the atmosphere to protect the electronics. There's a certain amount of shielding you can put in place, but the bulky old transistors are tougher to adjust through random radiation. They are working on new, more resistant materials, however.
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May 23, 2014 00:41
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I thought they were still running 286s in the space shuttles because they were welded in.
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May 23, 2014 01:01
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No, they used five of the F-15's flight computers. Magnetic core memory, 480 000 instructions per second, so all five of them were less powerful than the 286 which isn't so surprising since there's over a decade separating the two.
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May 23, 2014 01:18
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Bluhman posted:In the process, I also discovered the insufferable argument that (cultivated) bananas disprove atheism. Cultivated bananas are an example of how distance from the machinations of real progress can be conflated easily with magic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfucpGCm5hY Which is why there's so much modern scifi where all the techie stuff gets muddled with shamanism, especially in post-apocalyptic scenarios.
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May 23, 2014 03:19
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Bobbin Threadbare posted:From what I understand it's most specifically because the old bulky computer chips are more resistant to cosmic radiation. The smaller designs are all well and good, but cosmic rays can sometimes hit transistors and cause the switches to flip or even burn out, possibly causing a random crash. This can happen to any computer on Earth, but up in space they don't even have the atmosphere to protect the electronics. There's a certain amount of shielding you can put in place, but the bulky old transistors are tougher to adjust through random radiation. Yep. Keep in mind that the 286 processor had 134,000 transistors, with a gate size of over a micron. Today's chips pack hundreds of times that in the same (or smaller) space with a gate length of a few hundredths of a micron. One of the reasons they've focused more on parallel computing (multiple die CPUs) over just "more and faster and smaller" is that we've started to run into the physical limits of the material: electron creep and thermal issues can wreak havoc. Toss in high energy random radiation and you've got a system that maybe you don't want running your life support systems or calculating your autopilot.
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May 23, 2014 03:39
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srb posted:Magnetic core memory... This is the important component when people are talking about radiation resistance. A magnetic core memory consists of a grid of ferrite rings that are magnetized in different directions, depending on the value of that bit. This is on scale of around 1mm or so, and it should be fairly obvious that it's almost impossible for a stray cosmic ray to flip the bit of something so large. Modern electronics are sometimes made radiation hardened for use in space (or anywhere else that might need it), and I believe that rad-hard computers were used by astronauts on the Space Shuttle when they were doing other work. There just wasn't much need to make changes to the flight computers; even if they were old technology, they worked just as well as when the design was new.
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May 23, 2014 03:43
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No, they actually did change out to semiconductor memory, but only in the 1990's when the stuff had been on the market for 20 years.
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May 23, 2014 04:43
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Major_JF posted:I thought they were still running 286s in the space shuttles because they were welded in. Not so much this but NASA works with old computers because those are the computers that they're working with when they start designing/testing the project. Projects can take 15-20 years to go from original design to launch, but because they design all the software around the computer tech they have available when they start the project, that's what winds up getting shot into space.
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May 23, 2014 16:18
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When he did his report on the Challenger disaster, the safety of the computers was pretty much the only thing Richard Feynman had a good word for. It's hopelessly primitive by today's standards, but was tested to all hell and worked.
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May 23, 2014 23:28
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I felt sorry for that boat person after you took his tiny little stash. What'll that even buy, another round of drinks at the Lucky Money?
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May 25, 2014 04:41
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Glazius posted:I felt sorry for that boat person after you took his tiny little stash. What'll that even buy, another round of drinks at the Lucky Money? Eh, dude's a drug dealer/smuggler. I'm sure he'll make it.
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May 25, 2014 07:46
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Plus, what's a poor protagonist to do? The credit chit was just lying there, taunting him. He wasn't gonna just leave it there.
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May 25, 2014 07:53
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Police baffled by master thief who can seemingly open any door. His only calling card a hastily discarded knife.
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May 25, 2014 15:38
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Mr Phillby posted:Police baffled by master thief who can seemingly open any door. His only calling card a I like this theory better, even if it hasn't directly happened yet.
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May 25, 2014 17:12
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The Youtube still image for every video since I reached Hong Kong has been JC talking to someone who doesn't particularly like him. I feel like this says something about this leg of the journey.    Handouts: Ms. Chow's Benevolence Police Report: Maggie Chow Police Report: Officer Tam The True Way Tai-Fun Insurgent Password Change Interrogation Transcript Maggie Email: Triad Control Maggie Email: Alert Maggie Email: Report Jock Email: Fallback Jock Email: Surveillance Jock Email: Paul Needs You Known misses: No known unknowns.
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May 26, 2014 17:00
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Chow's building always manages to confuse the hell out of me. There are so many ways to get in, with the back entrance that leads into the elevator shaft, the 2nd and 3rd floor areas, I can't get a mental image of the architecture. edit: and either I never noticed or I forgot that Maggie's voice actor is the same one as Anna's voice actor. edit2: wasn't there also a credit chit somewhere in the fridge? double nine fucked around with this message at 17:42 on May 26, 2014 |
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May 26, 2014 17:11
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So the MJ12 people don't like people snooping around their floor but they don't mind a homeless drug addict around there? Also, I seem to remember Maggie Chow saying that Paul was her husband if Paul dies in New York, but maybe it's just my imagination.
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May 26, 2014 19:46
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I find it hilarious that my first run of Deus Ex, I stealthed Maggie Chow's place totally by accident because I was looking around and thought "What the hell, an examinable paper lantern?" They do a bunch of cool things to facilitate variety in gameplay, whether on purpose or by accident. Edit: Also I should mention that while I don't discuss much in the thread since I know literally nothing about the topics, I really appreciate the LP. I first played this game like 2 years ago and even then I got the feeling I didn't get the full picture in any regard. Seeing someone show off the game in its entirety is fun to watch, and all the supplementary discussion afterwards is fun for expanding my general knowledge of nonsensical stuff. Keep up the good work, because its drat good work. Highwang fucked around with this message at 20:52 on May 26, 2014 |
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May 26, 2014 20:19
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I remember as a child, I wanted to meet Shigeru Miyamoto, but the realization that he didn't speak any of my languages made that a bit dismaying. I do still have some personal heroes I'd like to meet, but uh... In this day and age it is so easily possible to meet them, it is kinda weird for me. Even famous actors post on places like reddit, twitter and the like so the whole "mystery of the unmeetable figure" is kinda gone and I think I can go the rest of my life never meeting anyone in particular that don't interest me on a more personal level. I thought maybe that was just growing up, but maybe it's a bit because of technology killing the illusion. An illusion that has driven fans to border of insanity, so maybe for the best.
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May 26, 2014 20:46
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I remember as a teenager the only person I thought I'd really like to meet - even though, to be honest I would have probably despised him becasue 1) He was a raging misogynist and 2) He was a raging theocrat - was Malcolm X/El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz. I just remember he expressed anger eloquently, fervently and plainly in a way I couldn't have thought possible; and I found that impressive.
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May 26, 2014 21:15
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double nine posted:edit2: wasn't there also a credit chit somewhere in the fridge? If you mean Jock's fridge, I think you must have seen a candy bar, because I only found food items in there. Marker17501 posted:Also, I seem to remember Maggie Chow saying that Paul was her husband if Paul dies in New York, but maybe it's just my imagination. Maggie Chow being Paul's wife seems to be an idea exclusive to that earlier build of Deus Ex. I just killed Paul off and made it to Hong Kong, and while she takes the news of Paul's death hard (or at least appears to--she is an actor), she never gets more explicit about their relationship than to say she knew him "intimately," which she also says in the video. In related news, she makes a much more convincing case that she's telling the truth if you go straight to her penthouse without exploring. She even claims to know where Tracer Tong is hiding.
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May 26, 2014 21:20
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loving yes the Dragon's Tooth Sword  it's just so goddamn beautiful, this is undoubtedly my favourite weapon in all of videogamedom, next to the Air Taser from Syphon Filter.Holy gently caress it's deadly, that base damage is insane. Also wow I never thought of escaping the window like that to get to the other apartment, I always just sneaked around in the dark foolishly on the bad lighting spots and giant billboards. Pretty sure that nest was Golgo 13's though, I bet he could have made the shot  As for celebrity, I will admit I was one of those fiercely huge Michael Jackson fans who refused to believe to the very end about the rumours and court cases, trying to dig up all the stuff I could about possible fabrications, allegations and whatnot. At least in terms of celebrity idolisation. Mordaedil posted:I remember as a child, I wanted to meet Shigeru Miyamoto, but the realization that he didn't speak any of my languages made that a bit dismaying. It's kind of...bizarre.
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May 26, 2014 22:23
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Wow, I didn't remember that Maggie Chow was that bad with the R-L thing. I only remembered non-named characters and Tong doing that once, but I must be misremembering.
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May 26, 2014 22:51
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Bobbin, have you read the IT-HE documentation? (for the uninitiated, it is "how do I break this game" on steroids) The entry for Hong Kong is great. They go through the entire game like this. quote:[on wallclimbing/grenade climbing]Take care when you approach the top of the skyscraper. Some of them are very narrow, and it is quite possible to trip over the skyscraper and fall back down the other side. Go read the whole thing, especially the Sunglasses at Night subsection. The Fourth Coming subsection toys with Ms Chow by launching a rocket the second JC entered the map, lining her flat with explosives that the maid will trigger when leading JC to her boss, and placing LAMs next to Chow's chair/sofa which she will trigger when sitting down. edit: gently caress it, have an unrelated screenshot of the shenanigans they get up to:  (USER WAS PUT ON PROBATION FOR THIS POST)
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May 26, 2014 23:37
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It always bugged me how the blade of the Dragon's Tooth springs out from the hilt when you turn it on, and yet it takes up so much inventory space.
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May 27, 2014 00:23
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Yeah me too, I chalk it up as a balancing decision.
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May 27, 2014 00:27
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It's... in case it accidentally turns on in your coat? Wouldn't want to impale your shotgun from being jostled in the street.
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May 27, 2014 00:37
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When you mentioned how much you liked Tonnochi Road because of all the neon it reminded me of one wall that was nothing but a solid, repeating texture of a billboard at the end of the street (that for some reason faced another wall 3 feet away...). It seems to have been edited out in the HD pack you are using but I remember finding it for the first time and being really weirded out by it for some reason. One thing I think would have fit in well in the Conspiracy Corner is the advice "Never meet your hero." when explaining how people will replace bits and pieces of facts that they don't like about a person they look up to. In the end your hero is a person, and people are not perfect. And some people can't cope with that fact and do crazy things. Dragonwagon posted:It always bugged me how the blade of the Dragon's Tooth springs out from the hilt when you turn it on, and yet it takes up so much inventory space.
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May 27, 2014 00:39
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It is possible to get into the MJ12 compound from inside Maggie Cow's apartment without the maid calling for the guards and the alarm not being triggered. The "prized Buddha" that sinks into the floor can also be destroyed, but instead of going that way, turn immediately right after exiting the elevator, go through the piano room and look up at the ceiling. Activate the green and orange paper lantern. You still have to somehow get through the laser grids, of course.
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May 27, 2014 06:47
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Ok, one of the things about this game I've noticed is how well it does mirror reflections. Previously I just thought that the game has extra space behind the mirror that has a dummy 'denton' figure behind it (i.e. it's an actual other room, but just separated by a near-invisible wall. At least this is how I've seen it done in every other game), but the small table mirror in Jock's apartment, not to mention the whole one-way mirror in the club, quickly disproves that method. Anyone actually know how it was handled?
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May 27, 2014 06:50
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Idolization of public figures is just one of the many forms of escapism that come natural to human beings when they are not investing that time on themselves. There are many reasons that they might turn away from their own lives in favor of an escape, be it that their lives are too difficult to face or that the escapism is just that enticing. It's equivalent to rooting for a sports team, being invested in a fictional setting (as you mentioned in a video), or in my case never not posting on Something Awful. There are, of course, more literal forms of escapism, like the usage of chemicals: alcohol and drugs--- literally escaping your life and altering your perceptions to ones more pleasurable than reality.
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May 27, 2014 06:53
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J.theYellow posted:It is possible to get into the MJ12 compound from inside Maggie Cow's apartment without the maid calling for the guards and the alarm not being triggered. The "prized Buddha" that sinks into the floor can also be destroyed, but instead of going that way, turn immediately right after exiting the elevator, go through the piano room and look up at the ceiling. Activate the green and orange paper lantern. You still have to somehow get through the laser grids, of course. So did you miss the part where I did a walkthrough of Maggie's apartment explaining exactly how to get the sword with zero skill or augmentation uses and only a riot prod to keep the maid from interfering? If you can figure out Maggie's password you don't have to deal with a single laser grid or use a single multitool. JT Jag posted:Idolization of public figures is just one of the many forms of escapism that come natural to human beings when they are not investing that time on themselves. There are many reasons that they might turn away from their own lives in favor of an escape, be it that their lives are too difficult to face or that the escapism is just that enticing. It's equivalent to rooting for a sports team, being invested in a fictional setting (as you mentioned in a video), or in my case never not posting on Something Awful. There are, of course, more literal forms of escapism, like the usage of chemicals: alcohol and drugs--- literally escaping your life and altering your perceptions to ones more pleasurable than reality. Let's not forget the eternal problem of boredom. The human brain is like a microwave oven that's turned on for 16 hours a day, and if there's nothing to absorb the mind waves, they'll bounce around the interior and damage the machinery. Real life doesn't provide enough stimulation to keep a brain occupied constantly (and if it does, then either something is going terribly wrong or you're worrying too much), and so we come up with and consume stories and songs, take drugs, play games, and do whatever else it takes to keep our minds occupied even as we work on something more mundane. Escapism can mean that your life is so lovely that you need to get away from it, but it more often means that your life isn't lovely enough and so you need something else to keep yourself entertained. It's perfectly healthy to spend time on a hobby, whether you focus on learning a skill, collecting memorabilia, using recreational drugs, or arguing about fictional settings. Some of them may turn into a profession or an investment over time, but that's rarely the point. Even if your hobby is a giant money sink, so long as you're having fun, it's money well spent, and you certainly don't have to ruin your life in order to go to a convention dressed as a klingon. It's only if a hobby begins to eat into time better spent on important things or inspires you to harm others that you really run into trouble.
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May 27, 2014 07:39
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Bobbin Threadbare posted:but it more often means that your life isn't lovely enough and so you need something else to keep yourself entertained. Pretty sure this is exactly the reason why such genres as horror are entertaining.
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May 27, 2014 07:41
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Bobbin Threadbare posted:Maggie Chow being Paul's wife seems to be an idea exclusive to that earlier build of Deus Ex. I just killed Paul off and made it to Hong Kong, and while she takes the news of Paul's death hard (or at least appears to--she is an actor), she never gets more explicit about their relationship than to say she knew him "intimately," which she also says in the video. Yeah, I think what I had in mind was this unused conversation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwHATlzUJ0A
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May 27, 2014 09:15
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Bluhman posted:Ok, one of the things about this game I've noticed is how well it does mirror reflections. Previously I just thought that the game has extra space behind the mirror that has a dummy 'denton' figure behind it (i.e. it's an actual other room, but just separated by a near-invisible wall. At least this is how I've seen it done in every other game), but the small table mirror in Jock's apartment, not to mention the whole one-way mirror in the club, quickly disproves that method. Anyone actually know how it was handled? They likely do it just in the way your thinking but that Dummy room is only visible when your on the correct side of the mirror, And when the mirror glass is destroyed so too is the fake room. New games can create more "Real" mirror effects but I'm not sure if they actually do anything different either. If you have played portal you may be aware that they copy paste the map into each portal and draw the whole thing behind it, Well what you can see anyway, And they can layer that up too 9 times, but those reflections are only visible through the portal. Computer games work with impossible space alot to make mirrors and portals.
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May 27, 2014 13:01
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Speedball posted:Pretty sure this is exactly the reason why such genres as horror are entertaining. Well, I'm sure it factors in why people seek it out, but another reason for this is that biologically there is no distinction between our various arousal states. The only difference is our mental assessment of why we feel an arousal. So horror movies, on top of providing stimulation, also provide physiological arousal feelings that at least some of us have adapted to seek out.
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May 27, 2014 13:52
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On the mirrors and other reflective surfaces in Deus Ex: It's been a very long time since I've looked at Unreal/Deus Ex era UnrealEd, but I remember that when you see the sky in those games, you're actually looking at basically flat planes on the inside of (usually) a box containing the level. A small room (the 'skybox') outside the playable area of the level contains a diorama of the 'sky' - clouds, horizon, etc - along with a point entity to define the position of the level in relation to this sky. The skybox stuff is then rendered onto the flat surfaces inside that aforementioned box (because those faces have been flagged to do so). So this just is a wild guess since I don't remember doing anything with reflective surfaces, but they might work in a similar way. The surface is flagged as reflective and renders what's in front of it, sort of like with the skybox. Anything more technical than that is too technical for me.
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May 27, 2014 14:25
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Thanks for showing the "proper" sequence dealing with Maggie. I was always baffled why she wanted me to see the data the police had on her. Every playthrough of mine I've visited the police first and discovered the secret rooms in her apartment on my first visit. I never knew she was just using it to get me out of the way so she can get out of Dodge. Now it makes sense!
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May 27, 2014 15:02
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