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The Minor Irritant Thread (Page 20)
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Thorzdad
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Jun 3, 2022, 05:08 AM
 
I saw that. It’s interesting, though it would appear my iPad is too old for even that. Anyway, the idea of having to fiddle with linux doesn’t make me sit-up and clap my hands.

Personally, making every browser basically be a skin over WebKit is probably my biggest issue with iOS. I’d love to have an actual, for real version of Firefox on iOS.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 5, 2022, 02:29 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Put a 4th 2018 Mac Mini into my render farm. They’re all identical hardware-wise except for the size of the SSD.

The new one is consistently 5-10% slower than the others. All I can think of as the cause is it’s running different software revisions.
New computer appears to have reached parity with the others. All I can think of now was it needed to work on my current project for long enough to build up a cache.
     
ghporter
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Jun 5, 2022, 03:02 PM
 
It’s the on-boarding process…. The new guy takes a while to figure out the flow of the group, along with where the restroom is and how picky management is about lunch breaks.

Which is to say I completely agree with your assessment. Any multi-computer system has to have all of the units at close to the same “pre-load” of both code and data. And a big part of that would be the cluster/array/blob/whatever-you-call-it OS to fully integrate all of the nodes. Exactly like the “new guy” getting used to the new office…

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 5, 2022, 03:05 PM
 
That all makes perfect sense. What made me initially discount it was I figured this specific problem would have gimped the new computer more than 10%.
     
reader50
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Jun 5, 2022, 03:55 PM
 
Hmm ... perhaps Spotlight was indexing everything the first time. Low-priority, in the background.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 5, 2022, 04:04 PM
 
Not counting the After Effects cache, there’s only 63GB on the machine. The cache is a TB tho.
     
reader50
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Jun 6, 2022, 01:25 PM
 
YouTube ads. They're now up to 3 ads at a time.

With short videos, it had already reached the point where the ads were sometimes longer than the video. That was with 2 ads per interlude.
     
andi*pandi
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Jun 7, 2022, 10:32 AM
 
it's almost enough to make you go back to live tv...
     
reader50
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Jun 7, 2022, 02:18 PM
 
I've also been getting a lot of really-long ads recently on YT. Anyone else getting 9-90 minute ads every other commercial break?
     
Laminar
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Jun 8, 2022, 08:33 AM
 
They also bumped up the first ad to appear sooner in the video. It used to be several minutes in, now it feels like it's right after the intro of most vids.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 11, 2022, 05:05 PM
 
That I didn’t realize until right now Slenderman, Five Nights at Freddy’s, the Weeping Angels, and Peanut from SCP…

     
Thorzdad
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Jun 12, 2022, 09:25 AM
 
Was heading over to our daughter’s yesterday for her birthday. Was stopped at a light behind this shiny new, big, black, hulking SUV. On its rear window was an equally-shiny-new ginormous 3-Percenter symbol. I had totally forgotten those fucks even existed, and now I see they’re in the neighborhood. Kind of put a damper on things.
     
Thorzdad
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Jun 14, 2022, 04:07 PM
 
My daughter was in a fender-bender last week. Some woman just pulled out at a stop sign and broadsided her. She’s okay, but the car isn’t entirely drivable. So, she’s been dealing with the other insurance company, which is never fun.

She inquired about getting her a rental while the car was in the shop. “Yes, absolutely.” The insurance rep said, “However...”

So, it turns out, that the insurance company will pay for a rental while the car is in the shop for repair, like you would expect. BUT, if there is a delay in the work while the car is there, like the shop being understaffed or a backlog on parts, etc., then the insurance company will not continue to pay for the rental during the delay. WTF???

Their suggestion, if this scenario happens, is to get the repair shop to pay for a rental during the delay period.
     
reader50
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Jun 14, 2022, 06:04 PM
 
Originally Posted by Thorzdad View Post
Their suggestion, if this scenario happens, is to get the repair shop to pay for a rental during the delay period.
Good luck with that - that's not a repair shop's job.

My suggestion, if this scenario happens, is to talk to an attorney specializing in insurance claims.
     
andi*pandi
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Jun 14, 2022, 08:00 PM
 
that is BS.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 16, 2022, 05:55 PM
 
Sudden memory of a minor irritant from a couple decades ago.

Went to a Taco Bell drive-thru near closing. Ordered. Go to the pickup window. Waited 5 minutes. Guy came to the window and said they were closed.

With hand gestures… seemed to divine opening his window to tell us verbally would end poorly.
     
Thorzdad
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Jun 16, 2022, 06:59 PM
 
Originally Posted by andi*pandi View Post
that is BS.
It gets better.

The insurance company apparently handles claims one of two ways, and you get to choose which one.

No.1) Take the car to any shops on their list of “approved” shops, and the insurance company works directly with the shop to cover the costs.

No.2) You are free to take your car anywhere you wish to get it repaired. But, if you don’t use an “approved” shop, you will have to cover the expenses yourself and the insurance company will reimburse you when repairs are completed.

Your choice! And, isn’t that what America’s all about? Choice?

The insurance company’s name rhymes with “ballstaint”.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 16, 2022, 09:14 PM
 
So… ballstaint in good hands?
     
Thorzdad
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Jun 16, 2022, 09:37 PM
 
yep
     
reader50
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Jun 17, 2022, 01:13 AM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Sudden memory of a minor irritant from a couple decades ago.

Went to a Taco Bell drive-thru near closing. Ordered. Go to the pickup window. Waited 5 minutes. Guy came to the window and said they were closed.

With hand gestures… seemed to divine opening his window to tell us verbally would end poorly.
I assume you gave him hand gestures in return?

If this was in 2010 or later, he may have been concerned about a repeat of the McNuggets Rage incident in Toledo.

     
subego  (op)
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Jun 17, 2022, 01:47 AM
 
It was about 2K1 if I remember.

Our response was more along these lines.

     
Thorzdad
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Jun 19, 2022, 01:53 PM
 
The grocery store is completely out of peanut butter of any type or brand. Empty shelves.
     
Face Ache
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Jun 19, 2022, 10:57 PM
 
Pasta makers: We need cooking times in BIG DIGITS on the front of the package, not on the back, 3/4 of the way into a long screed about your love for making pasta, printed in a tiny hard-to-read font.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 20, 2022, 01:50 AM
 
I’ve got you covered.



Cook until done
     
Waragainstsleep
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Jun 20, 2022, 03:31 AM
 
Do pasta cooking times even vary that much?
I have plenty of more important things to do, if only I could bring myself to do them....
     
OreoCookie
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Jun 20, 2022, 04:54 AM
 
Originally Posted by Waragainstsleep View Post
Do pasta cooking times even vary that much?
Yes.
Spaghetti are “the worst”. You can get some that need 12 minutes, 9 minutes and 6-7 minutes, and they look nigh identical. And when you overcook pasta by 30 % or so, they do get very mushy.

There are thin spaghettis with even shorter cooking times (the shortest I have seen is 3 minutes), but you can tell them apart from regular ones quite easily.
Originally Posted by subego View Post
I’ve got you covered.



Cook until done
Nooooooo!


My Italian friends would make sausage out of you. You don't cook pasta until it is done, you have to take it out a bit before it is done and then add a knob of butter, let it emulsify and then finish it in the sauce. As a rule of thumb, I subtract 2 minutes from the specified cooking time for that.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 20, 2022, 10:21 AM
 
Fair enough.

This is still best determined by mouth, not by clock.
     
andi*pandi
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Jun 20, 2022, 02:04 PM
 
the only way to prove spaghetti is done is to throw it at the wall. If it sticks, it's done.

     
ghporter
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Jun 20, 2022, 04:59 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Fair enough.

This is still best determined by mouth, not by clock.
I fully agree, but I’d like to add that not everyone has had the chance to learn to cook before they decide “I’m makin’ that Ragu sphagetti stuff.” Hilarious fails ensue in this sort of situation. A little guidance would be good…

Cook until done or nearly done - pasta should be firm but not too chewy. Expect about “x minutes” per serving, depending on your stove.
This would allow purists to completely ignore the instructions (as most of us should at times), but give the first-time cook enough to not cause their pot to catch fire when it boils dry.

My background in electronics has thoroughly conditioned me to look for and follow instructions, and to not do stuff from memory. I’ve managed to shake much of that conditioning for things like cooking, but it’s still a challenge sometimes.

As to peanut butter; it’s my understanding that there were very few lots of one or two specific brands that had problems. So why did stores pull ALL lots of those brands? And why hasn’t there been more peanut butter on the shelves since then? My crunchy peanut butter jones is acting up, and there’s no fix in sight.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 20, 2022, 05:19 PM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter View Post
My background in electronics has thoroughly conditioned me to look for and follow instructions
A minor irritant for me is people who can’t follow a recipe.

Like, how is that even possible?
     
andi*pandi
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Jun 20, 2022, 06:47 PM
 
You have x ingredient. You look for recipes that use up x ingredient.

You find one that looks good but you don't have a, b, or c ingredient. Nor can you find them at your regular grocer. So you substitute onion for shallot, and cayenne powder for exotic fancy dried ghost peppers, and just leave out that other thing.

We're having beef stroganoff on wednesday. I eyeballed about 3 different recipes, noted which ingredients were common in each, and am kind of winging it elsewise. Like, I'm not buying expensive cognac. I'm using cooking sherry. c'est la vie.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 20, 2022, 07:48 PM
 
I cook rarely enough it’s always prefaced by shopping, so I only get hit with that if the store fails me.

Never occurred to be it’s a bigger problem with more regular cooking, but of course it is.
     
OreoCookie
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Jun 20, 2022, 08:29 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
Fair enough.

This is still best determined by mouth, not by clock.
Yes, but the time(s) on the package are still important enough for me to look for them and then set a timer of [printed time] - 2 minutes. When the timer goes off, I'll start hovering near the pot and get all the other ingredients ready.

Boiled eggs and pasta are one of the few foods I cook aided by a timer. Everything else is mostly by feel. (Although you will still need to have a sense how long certain foods take to cook.)

I still think your overall point is spot-on: you should try pasta and not blindly cook it a certain time. Plus, I have learnt is that even within Italy there is a gradient on what is considered al dente: the further you go towards the south, the harder the pasta tend to get I was told. A close friend of mine (from the south) told me jokingly that in Sicily the pasta is raw.
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
Face Ache
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Jun 20, 2022, 08:41 PM
 
Originally Posted by andi*pandi View Post
You have x ingredient. You look for recipes that use up x ingredient.

You find one that looks good but you don't have a, b, or c ingredient. Nor can you find them at your regular grocer. So you substitute onion for shallot, and cayenne powder for exotic fancy dried ghost peppers, and just leave out that other thing.
I do all the cooking in this house and my wife has dietary requirements that involve modifying the recipe of almost everything I make. I have maybe eight pasta recipes, requiring maybe eight different pasta types ( ) so I can never remember which pasta cooks for how long, and the cooking time is almost always semi-hidden on the packet somewhere. I can also never remember where it is hidden on the packet.

Pasta should, of course, be al dente. The time on the packet is a guideline and should never be trusted - it's usually a minute less for al dente.

I shared an apartment with a chef for years. He liked to throw pasta at the fridge. Never wiped the goddamn fridge afterwards though.
     
Face Ache
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Jun 20, 2022, 09:25 PM
 
In other news, and a minor irritant, someone is sending me an Italian girl. She arrives on Thursday. She'll be here for a month. I found this out last Friday.

A few months ago one of my wife's relatives in Milan decided her 17y/o daughter should learn English from Australians (?), so she ran it past my wife, who (on my advice) told her to ***DEFINITELY NOT*** send her daughter in winter, as Perth is very much a sleepy summer seaside town, but in winter it is DEAD. So if you're 17 and the beach isn't an option then there is sod all else to do. The beach is at the end of our street, but unless you like wind and seaweed you should really come in summer. My wife was emphatic. (Well she sounded emphatic - it was in Italian. )

Actually... scratch that; Italians always sound emphatic.

Anyway, the relative seemed to get the message, and we didn't hear any more of it.

So imagine our surprise when wifey's relative rang last Friday to say her daughter arrives here in Perth this Thursday. Tickets bought, English lessons somewhere locally (?) booked.

So this poor girl, who I've never met, leaves summer in Milan for the dead of winter in Perth and arrives in two days. Of course my wife hasn't organised any annual leave so, as I'm usually home, I guess I'm getting an Italian girl.

A bizarre situation that we are apparently powerless to stop. (ya gotta laugh)
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 20, 2022, 11:17 PM
 
What’s the usual hi-low for winter in Perth?
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 20, 2022, 11:22 PM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
lwhat is considered al dente
That’s the other thing which makes the clock difficult, that varies by person and dish.

This may not count, but it like my macaroni (in say a mac and cheese) very mushy, not so much with capellini.

Plus, I try to track down fresh pasta for something like capellini, which cooks so quickly I just keep sampling almost from the moment I drop it in.
     
Face Ache
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Jun 20, 2022, 11:34 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
What’s the usual hi-low for winter in Perth?
Oh it's not terrible. Californian weather. But winter isn't optimal for an Aussie holiday. Wind and big surf trashed the beach last week, so it's currently seaweed city. And the afternoon sea breeze is... bracing.

https://www.timeanddate.com/weather/.../perth/climate
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 21, 2022, 12:16 PM
 
Gotcha! I can see how trading typical Mediterranean summer weather for that would be a bit of a letdown.
     
reader50
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Jun 21, 2022, 01:36 PM
 
One would assume working on English skills was a secondary reason, and it was urgent to get her out of the house pronto. Enough to justify the airfare. The primary reason could be interesting.
     
Laminar
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Jun 21, 2022, 02:09 PM
 
I went offroad motorcycling in Perth one September, weather was awesome. Took the wife to the east coast in June of 2016, we road tripped from Sydney to Brisbane. Perfect weather for hiking and being outdoors, riding 4x4s. Well, except for the East Coast Low we got caught in.
     
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Jun 21, 2022, 03:14 PM
 
Originally Posted by subego View Post
A minor irritant for me is people who can’t follow a recipe.

Like, how is that even possible?
And yet there are thousands of people who do the following:
> Drive around alone with a procedure mask on. They can’t all have horrid smelling cars…
> Drive around with their “handicapped” hang tag hanging on the mirror, all the dang time. There are literally instructions on the tag that say “don’t drive with this on your mirror,” and the DMV person (here in Bexar County, Texas anyway) spends five minutes telling people how to and not to use the tag, including to take it down when you leave the parking space.

Both of these are “minor irritants” to me, but the latter also makes me wonder how they got their hang tag in the first place…because they’re not authorized for mental handicaps.

Don’t judge; I’m not being ableist, I’m seeing how many people with these tags can’t park - not just “not worth a darn,” but pretty much at all. And their “driving” seems to be consistently horrific. I’m talking about those who leave the tag in place here…so maybe it’s an indication of how poorly they observe any sort of rules?

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
reader50
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Jun 21, 2022, 04:07 PM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter View Post
> Drive around alone with a procedure mask on. They can’t all have horrid smelling cars…
Red light cameras. Those municipal cash registers take pics of the driver running yellows. The yellows the city decreased from the standard 5-seconds to as little as 3, so revenue will go up.

Wearing masks is common today, and if the driver picture isn't useful to ID someone, then the ticket cannot be issued. At least in CA. Not sure if the "identifiable pic of driver" is needed in TX.

I don't know if this is the reason. But I got robbed once by a nearby city. And I could see someone doing this to protect themselves where cash registers cameras are deployed. Masks do indeed protect you, and not always the way you'd expect.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 21, 2022, 05:39 PM
 
Here they just sock it to the plate owner.
     
reader50
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Jun 21, 2022, 05:47 PM
 
subego, if someone stole your van and there was a police chase, you'll get an amazing number of tickets. With dashcam proof from the cop cars, showing everything the car does. Yes, it did indeed punch 37 red lights, etc.

Tickets are a form of criminal punishment, and crimes are performed by people. Such as drivers. How can they fine the car owner for things other people did or may have done?
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 21, 2022, 07:35 PM
 
My guess is they qualify the camera ticket as some form of civil offense. They still get the money but can’t put any points on a DL.

I also imagine there’s some way to challenge them, but it’s generally a lost cause outside of extreme examples.
     
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Jun 21, 2022, 08:38 PM
 
Originally Posted by reader50 View Post
One would assume working on English skills was a secondary reason, and it was urgent to get her out of the house pronto. Enough to justify the airfare. The primary reason could be interesting.
This has occurred to me.
     
Laminar
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Jun 22, 2022, 08:10 AM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter View Post
And yet there are thousands of people who do the following:
> Drive around alone with a procedure mask on. They can’t all have horrid smelling cars…
When I was masking full time, I'd put it on to do daycare drop off and just not bother taking it off on the drive to work. Or going from store to store or wherever else. The masks didn't bother me so I was never in a hurry to get it off my face, so it wasn't unusual to be wearing it in the car.

Plus during the cold winters here it was actually kind of cozy.
     
subego  (op)
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Jun 22, 2022, 12:07 PM
 
My dad was in the hospital (he’s home and all good now), so I had a full week of both forgetting to put a mask on and forgetting to take it off.

I’m also getting phantom mask nose pinches.
     
reader50
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Jun 22, 2022, 02:09 PM
 
Originally Posted by reader50 View Post
One would assume working on English skills was a secondary reason, and it was urgent to get her out of the house pronto. Enough to justify the airfare. The primary reason could be interesting.
Originally Posted by Face Ache View Post
This has occurred to me.
It could be innocent. The mom is working on a new boyfriend. And doesn't need the editorial comments coming from the teen bedroom. Or amateur sound effects. Perhaps someone anonymously called in a parking violation, and had the boyfriend's car towed.
     
 
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