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Questions that you always wanted to ask but were afraid to ask (Page 4)
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Cap'n Tightpants
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Jun 18, 2016, 02:57 AM
 
It's Leo as a chick, in his youth he was the Renaissance trans dream. What's not to like about that?
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mindwaves  (op)
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Jun 18, 2016, 05:43 AM
 
Originally Posted by el chupacabra View Post
Whats so special about the Mona Lisa painting, it's kind of plain isn't it?
On a similar note why is most Renaissance art focused on religion, isn't there anything else to paint other than bible characters?
Mona Lisa, along with many other related things, is super overrated. Just a few people making a big deal about nothing which causes the entire world to wonder and contemplate about nothing. It is just a painting!!
     
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Jun 18, 2016, 08:35 AM
 
Originally Posted by el chupacabra View Post
On a similar note why is most Renaissance art focused on religion, isn't there anything else to paint other than bible characters?
A combination of many things. The Renaissance involved the reformation, and perhaps more relevant the counter-reformation. That involved monks walking around destroying or straight up defacing works of art they didn't like. In some cases, they didn't stop at destroying the art. Painting a biblical motive was a good way to guard against that.

Also note that everything was works for hire - whoever paid decided the motive. Painting a biblical motive may have been a way for whoever ordered to demonstrate their allegiance; much art was also paid for by the church or donated to it.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
mindwaves  (op)
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Jun 19, 2016, 06:32 PM
 
Does anyone like this modern plating style?

I'm talking about Restaurant Impossible restaurant remakes and other more modern restaurants which basically does one to two things to the plating of the food:

1) Put some grain on the bottom of the plate (usually mashed potatoes or rice) and top that with a huge piece of meat and top of 1-2 small pieces of veggies and sauce. Basically looks like a tower.
2) Put some sauce on the plate and smear it across with a spoon.

Issue with #1: I don't want my food to be touching, especially mixing my steak/chicken/fish with my potatoes. I want to eat one at a time and not have mixed flavors. Looks pretty but fails. I don't want a tower on my plate. If I want to cut my steak/chicken/fish, I have to push it off to the side and then cut it.

Issue with #2: Smearing anything is disgusting, but somehow is perfectly acceptable in fancier restaurants. Double standards.
     
Waragainstsleep
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Jun 19, 2016, 07:45 PM
 
Why is smearing disgusting?
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
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Jun 19, 2016, 08:03 PM
 
Painters are going to be in trouble once they find out.
     
ajprice
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Jun 20, 2016, 05:53 AM
 
Originally Posted by mindwaves View Post
Does anyone like this modern plating style?

I'm talking about Restaurant Impossible restaurant remakes and other more modern restaurants which basically does one to two things to the plating of the food:

1) Put some grain on the bottom of the plate (usually mashed potatoes or rice) and top that with a huge piece of meat and top of 1-2 small pieces of veggies and sauce. Basically looks like a tower.
2) Put some sauce on the plate and smear it across with a spoon.

Issue with #1: I don't want my food to be touching, especially mixing my steak/chicken/fish with my potatoes. I want to eat one at a time and not have mixed flavors. Looks pretty but fails. I don't want a tower on my plate. If I want to cut my steak/chicken/fish, I have to push it off to the side and then cut it.

Issue with #2: Smearing anything is disgusting, but somehow is perfectly acceptable in fancier restaurants. Double standards.
We Want Plates

It'll be much easier if you just comply.
     
mattyb
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Jun 20, 2016, 11:09 AM
 
Originally Posted by el chupacabra View Post
Whats so special about the Mona Lisa painting, it's kind of plain isn't it?
On a similar note why is most Renaissance art focused on religion, isn't there anything else to paint other than bible characters?
It is plain, and small. When you see it physically its such a let down.

Renaissance art is also lots of nudity for some reason. I never understood how they could get away with nudity at that period. Everyone was such a prude, except for the Borgias of course. They shagged anything that moved.
     
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Jun 20, 2016, 11:41 AM
 
I suspect that quite a lot of them shagged anything that moved, it is just that the Borgias' dirty laundry was aired in public by their main enemy (and successor Pope) - who also had at least one illegitimate child. One can trace the spread of STDs across Europe in this era by the major Church conclaves, so the Borgias were hardly alone.
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Jun 20, 2016, 05:35 PM
 
Here's one: why are most school buses built on truck chassis? That makes them heavy, slow, inefficient, and prone to rolling. City buses seem to be just fine with low ground clearance and low centers of gravity, so why not school buses?

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Jun 20, 2016, 06:40 PM
 
I hesitate to respond here, because this is just something I heard rather than know. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong:

The story I've heard is that nobody wants to produce and certify a new model school bus because the legal liability from any safety defect would be huge while school districts are poor and unable to spend much, so they keep running models first designed decades ago. Buses used to be designed more like trucks, so that's what school buses are. Slightly less cynically, it could be a repeat of the Ford Crown Victoria taxi situation - loads of spare parts and mechanics who only know one model creating a barrier to entry.

I do know that nobody makes money off of city buses today. All big manufacturers make them as part of another business (usually trucks) which is what pays the bills, and the city buses barely break even. The reason is the broken bidding process, where every city specifies the bus they want slightly differently, forcing manufacturers to make short special build series instead of having a few standard models with options, the way cars and trucks work.
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mindwaves  (op)
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Jul 13, 2016, 05:20 AM
 
How to people get on TV/front page of a major news website?

I see news broadcasting about a cat up a tree to a lady taking pictures of herself on a honeymoon without her husband every day. How do the news sites pick these things up and why does it deserve placing on the main page?
     
mindwaves  (op)
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Jul 13, 2016, 05:24 AM
 
Originally Posted by Waragainstsleep View Post
Why is smearing disgusting?
Smeared paint


Smeared underwear


Would ordinarily be considered a mistake, but in a fancy restaurant, it is art!
     
subego
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Jul 13, 2016, 10:57 AM
 
Originally Posted by mindwaves View Post
How to people get on TV/front page of a major news website?

I see news broadcasting about a cat up a tree to a lady taking pictures of herself on a honeymoon without her husband every day. How do the news sites pick these things up and why does it deserve placing on the main page?
In TV this is called a "kicker", and is usually what they sign off with.

I always assumed the idea is the news is so utterly depressing, they want to leave you on a lighter/happier note.

One of the Onion's better gags is taking some horrible story – the one I recall was about a bear raping a zookeeper to death – and writing it like it's a kicker.
( Last edited by subego; Jul 13, 2016 at 12:39 PM. )
     
subego
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Jul 13, 2016, 11:01 AM
 
Originally Posted by mindwaves View Post
Smeared paint


Smeared underwear


Would ordinarily be considered a mistake, but in a fancy restaurant, it is art!
Since it's usually done purely for presentation purposes, a decent chef will take pains to make it not look like a skid mark. That said, there are better presentation tricks to be had.
     
osiris
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Jul 15, 2016, 08:43 AM
 
I wonder if Geico is aware that the music in their motorcycle insurance ads are about going to a whore house.
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Cap'n Tightpants
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Jul 15, 2016, 10:29 AM
 
I thought it was a strip club?
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subego
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Jul 15, 2016, 11:14 AM
 
Cord cutter...

What song?
     
osiris
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:18 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Cord cutter...

What song?
La Grange

Rumour spreadin' a-'round in that Texas town
'bout that shack outside La Grange
and you know what I'm talkin' about.
Just let me know if you wanna go
to that home out on the range.
They gotta lotta nice girls.

Have mercy.
A haw, haw, haw, haw, a haw.
A haw, haw, haw.

Well, I hear it's fine if you got the time
and the ten to get yourself in.
A hmm, hmm.
And I hear it's tight most ev'ry night,
but now I might be mistaken.
hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm.

Have mercy.
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osiris
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:20 PM
 
Originally Posted by Cap'n Tightpants View Post
I thought it was a strip club?
perhaps, but I always read it the other way. The song refers to it as a shack and a home, so that to me means whore house. We need to bring an expert in on this.

wikiwhatever had this:

"The song refers to a brothel on the outskirts of La Grange, Texas (later called the "Chicken Ranch"). The brothel is also the subject of the Broadway play and film The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, the latter starring Dolly Parton and Burt Reynolds."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Grange_(song)
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subego
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:24 PM
 
So, the connection is "insure your cycle with Geico like you insure your dick with an industrial-grade tarp".
     
osiris
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:27 PM
 
what a wonderful world we live in.
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subego
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:33 PM
 
What is this thing on the pet carrier for?

     
osiris
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:39 PM
 
That's so you can clip it onto your shirt pocket.

I have no idea.
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subego
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:44 PM
 
I even asked at the vet once, and they had no idea either.

The best I've been able to improvise is shoving the discharge papers under it.
     
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:47 PM
 
air? for when crates go on airplanes and the holes on the sides might be blocked by luggage?

All I know is, for my cats it would be a sniper vent for claw slashing vengeance to the poor sucker holding the handle.
     
subego
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Jul 15, 2016, 12:58 PM
 
This is their pattern for letting in air, which makes me think it's also supposed to do something else.

     
Cap'n Tightpants
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Jul 15, 2016, 02:11 PM
 
It's to secure the carrier with a car seatbelt.
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subego
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Jul 15, 2016, 02:20 PM
 
Originally Posted by Cap'n Tightpants View Post
It's to secure the carrier with a car seatbelt.
****ing brilliant. Thank you!
     
osiris
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Jul 15, 2016, 02:38 PM
 
That's why he gets the big bucks.
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Jul 15, 2016, 03:54 PM
 
Originally Posted by osiris View Post
La Grange

Rumour spreadin' a-'round in that Texas town
'bout that shack outside La Grange
and you know what I'm talkin' about.
Just let me know if you wanna go
to that home out on the range.
They gotta lotta nice girls.

Have mercy.
A haw, haw, haw, haw, a haw.
A haw, haw, haw.

Well, I hear it's fine if you got the time
and the ten to get yourself in.
A hmm, hmm.
And I hear it's tight most ev'ry night,
but now I might be mistaken.
hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm.

Have mercy.
Not just any whore house. The "Chicken Ranch." Apparently it was a pretty popular place "back in the day."

La Grange, Texas is a very sleepy little town. It was just a wide spot on the road when I was doing radio repair work out of Austin in the early 1980s, but this was after ZZ Top's song from 1973, and of course after Marvin Zindler. (Look him up, he was something of a Houston celebrity.)

Whatever the song is "about," it's a kick@ss riding song.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
osiris
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Jul 15, 2016, 04:15 PM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter View Post
Whatever the song is "about," it's a kick@ss riding song.
and it must be played loud!

edit: had no idea it was the Chicken Ranch... that's some bit of Texas history right there.
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Jul 23, 2016, 09:36 AM
 
Why do I feel like I have an asthma attack after I take a giant number two?
     
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Jul 25, 2016, 01:09 PM
 
Originally Posted by And.reg View Post
Why do I feel like I have an asthma attack after I take a giant number two?
It's called Dump shock*







*not a proper medical term
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osiris
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Jul 27, 2016, 11:47 AM
 
I believe a vacuum forms inside you, hence the asthma attack.
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Jul 27, 2016, 05:06 PM
 
Separate question:

Knowing that fairly-decent modern PC laptops cost $500 for people who, for the most part, just need to get things done for home and work... in comparison, what is the sense in having Apple's laptops span a $2000 price range for the same purposes?
     
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Jul 28, 2016, 04:06 PM
 
That people buy them at those prices?
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
Waragainstsleep
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Jul 29, 2016, 04:59 AM
 
They last a lot longer as a rule.
Part of it is the same reason you spend $50k on a BMW when you could get a Ford for $30k. (I don't know the prices of Fords or BMWs but you get the idea).
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
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Jul 29, 2016, 06:28 AM
 
That's why people pay the prices, yes, but basically, Apple charges what it can get away with.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
subego
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Jul 29, 2016, 09:56 AM
 
I had a friend who bought an MBA. She got the smaller one, used it for a week, and then decided she wanted the bigger one.

Nervous, she called the store asking what she should do.

Their response was "walk in with that computer, then walk out with a new computer and a smile".
     
andi*pandi
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Jul 29, 2016, 09:57 AM
 
The perception of quality, the perception of longevity (a mac will run for years and years) and ease of use.
     
Doc HM
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Jul 29, 2016, 10:36 AM
 
Originally Posted by andi*pandi View Post
The perception of quality, the perception of longevity (a mac will run for years and years) and ease of use.
Actual not perceptual longevity. I have dozens of clients happily rolling along with 2008 iMacs, MacBook Pro's, etc. All running the latest OS. Yes they may miss out on hand off, Airplay etc but these are not power users. They are people who paid £1000 8 years or so ago and are still getting good use from their investment.
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Jul 29, 2016, 10:39 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
I had a friend who bought an MBA. She got the smaller one, used it for a week, and then decided she wanted the bigger one.

Nervous, she called the store asking what she should do.

Their response was "walk in with that computer, then walk out with a new computer and a smile".
This.

Again, loads of clients with 2011 (so a five year old machine) 15in MacBook Pro's where the graphics cards let go and Apple will fix it for free under their extension programme. That's five years!! Most can't believe it. A five year old PC laptop. They get binned even if they are still working!
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Jul 29, 2016, 11:25 AM
 
But how do the numbers actually compare? It's easy to say that tons of Macs are out there, but without knowing exactly how many competitor's products are lasting that long, you can't really make any definitive statements.
     
subego
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Jul 29, 2016, 12:43 PM
 
This is true, but a couple of what I think are safe observations.

1) At $500, it doesn't need to last as long
2) At $500, the manufacturers would probably prefer it didn't last as long.
     
Laminar
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Jul 29, 2016, 02:06 PM
 
I actually went and looked at Apple's current offerings. Ouch, that's rough. I'll stick with my 2010 iMac and 2013 MBA.
     
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Jul 29, 2016, 04:13 PM
 
Originally Posted by Laminar View Post
I actually went and looked at Apple's current offerings. Ouch, that's rough. I'll stick with my 2010 iMac and 2013 MBA.
Indeed. It's been many a year since most of Apples updates have been compelling

iMac 2012
15in MacBook Pro 2012
13in MacBook Pro 2013
Air 2013

Good job they last.
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subego
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Jul 29, 2016, 04:26 PM
 
Get a load of how long that Mac Pro lasts.
     
andi*pandi
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Jul 29, 2016, 09:45 PM
 
Posting from a 2008 mac pro right now. It's had a new hard drive, and I suspect needs another one at some point.. but I also have a 2012 mac pro sitting here waiting for me to swap all my files on it...
     
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Jul 30, 2016, 07:52 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Get a load of how long that Mac Pro lasts.
Got a client with a 2013 waastebin MacPro. They've just dropped big $ on a 4TB (yup) flash drive for it.

Not. Cheap.
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