Posts by Sigma

Quote from Radu

53 minutes ago, Radu said: Probably two or three guys talking it over some twinkies at the snack bar.

That or its gearing up the hype for the next installment finally being opened up to public consumption (by permitting these leaks) - or they're cleaning the slate to begin work on the next installment completely fresh. Who knows. . . not getting my hopes up anyway. Too many other games to play, and story wise Half-Life is competing against some great new IP's that have come down in the interim.

Spoiler [Blocked Image: http://ww2.hdnux.com/photos/64/04/20/13648905/3/1024x1024.jpg]

Sucks that you had to go through that Stefan, but in the end it worked out alright. I completely support your removing work distractions from your home life as it is highly disruptive and stress inducing to be at home and still have your mind on work. I too learned this lesson (not quite as harsh as your version). It really does wonders to make the distinctions necessary for us to decompress.

As for what to do with your new found free time, I suggest taking up something that is relaxing to you. As an example, I cook to relax. It takes my mind completely off of the day's to-do lists and I focus solely on what's in front of me (delicious food). Not to mention it makes the wife very happy too (women love men who can cook). Stay away from anything that is actually related (in subject) to your work though. It would only help drive your mind back towards your work and potentially re-trigger your stress.

Beware the spoilers:

Spoiler Why yes Daenerys, you do act like a child. But not so much as professional whiner Cersei. Although Jon is probably the greatest whiner of them all. Also, Sam is the biggest badass in GoT. I mean... dude cured a man of an incurable disease. Although let's be honest, as clearly mentioned in the line from the Arch-Meister they know it is a sub-epidermis infection (and not simply topical) that causes stone skin. Why the hell do they not have some anti-biotics? They have poisons, antidotes, but not fucking ingestable medicine's for a clearly HIGHLY FREAKING CONTAGIOUS disease?! Also, you telling me you wear clearly freaking protective cloth but you don't bother to protect your hands and face? Also, with all the mulled wine, beer, mead, etc . . . that is present in every episode, nobody has figured out penicillin?! But hey, it's basically the dark ages for them. It was nice to see Tyrion and Jon's relationship develop a little bit further. Very interesting that Tyrion straight up asked how to help Jon. . . what does he know? Anyway - watched the episode while playing GoT Risk with some friends. Was fun.

I knew I had seen it but couldn't place it. Had to look it up. Good find @Tisky.

Classic @blackdog!

Quote from grapen

1 minute ago, grapen said: I'm sure everyone gets stuck sometimes, even the old (traditional) masters did. Surely there's more stuff to work on for your portfolio while you marinate the problematic model?

I'm certain they did. I just feel like I have been in a rut for a couple of years now as far as 3D goes. I think you're right that I need to work on other projects to marinate this one. Thanks!

Sorry Jack. I don't know enough about the behind-the-scenes guts of the Unreal Tournament Editor to help on this one. I suggest you try the unreal forums or the discord channel. There are several people who actively work on the engine (Tournament side) present pretty much 24/7. It sounds to me though like you're trying to force save over a pre-existing uasset. You might consider creating a copy of the problem material (CeilingMetal01) and using that instead on all aspects of the level. Then do a fresh save in a new directory if possible. Like I say, that is a shot in the dark and I don't know for certain, but it's a thought.

@Castle may have something to add as he knows the engine better than many.

Been booking like a mad person all the activities for my New Zealand trip. Got the Hobbiton Tour booked, some cave diving, glow worm caves, rafting, and zip lining stuff booked as well. I'm feeling awesome about that.

Feeling down though about the 3D side of things for me. Just can't seem to make some sense of a model and it's demotivating me on other 3D fronts. I'm tempted to abandon it but don't want to at the same time. Damn sci-fi weapon that is nonsensical!

So... all-in-all, just the usual get pumped for the next great adventure while berating myself for not doing enough work at home. I guess I can't complain too much though. I have a home, a lovely wife, food, water, and a decent job. Just gotta figure out that grind like @grapen has.

Spoiler Awesome opening to the episode. It was well paced throughout and I enjoyed it keeping up with every major character. I continue to be impressed with the character development of Jaime Lannister, Tryion Lannister, and even Cersei had an interesting continuation/development this episode. David Bradley did an awesome job for this episode as Frey, with nuanced acting that portrayed he was not quite Walder. Overal rating of episode 9/10 (1 point lost for the humorous, albeit long, onslaught of bedpans that Sam dealt with combined with the infamous Ed Sheeran cameo that had no point other than to give Arya a better means to reach King's Landing (honestly, he sang and that was it - barely talked afterwards).

Quote from Sprony

On 7/15/2017 at 0:28 AM, Sprony said: I agree about the resurgence but I don't believe the world wants to be bashing on America. Most of us rely on your country for either aide, economic stability or military support. It's just that Trump is jeopardizing all of that and we have a hard time understanding that's what's happening in America right now, is actually possible. If our Prime Minister only did a fraction of what Trump pulled so far, he would be in jail. That's another thing. All this craziness has exposed America in way that we outsiders have never seen before. Not on this scale anyway. We're are seeing the deep-seated rot of how your wealthy fuck over the poor, how your systems like healthcare are deliberately inadequate and how the voices of the people can be suppressed as in a dictatorship. But most of all, it has shown us that you have a lot of scary people living in your country. As an American, I would be more worried about these brainwashed right wing religious zealots than terrorists.

This is a little out of order as a response, could be worded more clearly and better, etc etc. . . so please bare with me. I havn't had enough coffee yet.

I understand that it's scary to look at from the outside-in, particularly when many nations are highly dependent on the influence/exports of the USA (ranging from medical/food aide, to economic aid, to military support, to research). While Trump is still in position, I would argue that he is not in power. Power implies the ability to execute the threatened action (I use this phrase because Trump is more combative than compromising). Trump does not have the power to execute many actions he has threatened. In order to execute any reduction of funds, manpower, aid, or alter the law Trump must go through the US Congress. As we have seen, while right-wing politicians may control Congress, they are severely fractured. Any action Congress takes is subject to the review of SCOTUS (Supreme Court). Thus SCOTUS is the last remaining true vestige of American governance at the highest executive levels (ignoring the Joint Chiefs of Staff, state governments, local governments, and media). Furthermore, this is not the first time a demagogue has been POTUS. Throughout my nation's history, we have had many Presidents that acted more like petulant children than "Presidential." In fact, I would argue that part of the reason Trump is so disconcerting to many people is that he comes immediately after the exception to this rule (Pres. Obama), rather than the standard. It is simply more easy to highlight these attitudes in modern times due to the expansion of media access and internet access throughout the world than before.

It is important to point out that the United States does not solely operate on a Federal (national) government level. The vast majority of government and economic actions are taken at the state and local levels due to the structure of government in the US. Case in point, I am sitting in my office working on local government matters at this moment that impact more than 23,000 people on a daily basis (on break so no jokes).

Are you correct in identifying religious zealots as the primary threat (physically) to the United States as a whole? To an extent, yes. Do I think religious zealots have the capacity to execute mass murder in the name of God, yes. However, it is insufficient to refer to these person as simply "religious zealots". They are terrorists. Terrorism is defined as the use of violence or the threat of violence to achieve a political goal. These persons clearly fit this role. What is more scary, is that for the last 40 years there has been a generation of religious zealots raised by parents who told them their goals were to gain entry into the local and state levels of government (the largest sectors). Because of this, currently, the right-wing zealots have access to a larger share of the American political machine than at any other time in history. However, and this is crucial, MANY of the people at these levels of government are smart enough to know how to control these citizens reasonably while moving forwards with governing in a responsible fashion. Thus, I am less concerned about these persons influence, as throughout our nation's history, we have always had factions rise and fall due to the rise and fall of counter-factions. Furthermore, the USA is still very much dealing with ramifications and attitude changes that other countries are only beginning to deal with (Muslim immigration to non-Muslim countries that are predominantly racially Caucasian, some form of Christianity as the major religion, and has a national language as the official language). Similarly, the USA is only beginning to put to bed many issues that other countries have taken care of a long time ago (national health care systems, racial tensions are still being felt with the magnitude of the 1960's Civil Rights era; case in point there are public schools that did not desegregate until the late 1980's, and economic stresses).

Second to last point, another important one, is that there has been (and remains) a very concerted effort by federal law enforcement agencies to remain completely politically neutral. The appointment of Special Counsel Robert Muller comes with it the inherent task of searching out criminal activity. The title of Special Counsel legally assumes that there has been criminal conduct. That is huge! However, in order to conduct an appropriate investigation that is verifiable and does not suffer from evidentiary insufficiency or mistakes will take TIME.

The last thing I would point out, is that despite all of the issues the USA has (there are many), and while it may look insane to non-Americans, by the very geography (seriously, we are huge - there is a reason train travel, access to internet, access to water, and public transportation are insufficient in this country) we have huge swaths of population requiring extraneous efforts to meet their needs. No other country has ever, or will ever (short of ancient Rome at its height - which is still not an appropriate comparison but its the closest there is; unless there is a sudden geopolitical landscape shift) take-on and accomplish the same relative levels of pure activity in the areas of infrastructure, healthcare, food generation and distribution, or education than the US.

TLDR: In short, its the local people are the key to the USA - not its national politics. Local people will always talk with other locals, thereby ensuring the "thought bubbles" are broken. Just takes time, so please bare with us as we sort this situation out. It will get better.

I know right now in the world it's the "bash America show"... but do keep in mind that the USA is the premier world superpower (regardless of our feckless president). The economy is still moving, Americans are still consuming, the population is adopting renewables at increasing rates (regardless of politics). If there is one thing I have figure out over this past year, its that Americans "care" about politics, but at the end of the day don't give 2 s***s and will carry on with their lives. This is basically the 1980's all over again (war on drugs, welfare queens, illegal immigration, voter fraud, oil/gas glut (post crises)). So long as the world treats the USA like North Korea (oh look, its crazy uncle Kim/Trump), then in 3.5 years (or less depending on congressional midterms - although I have little hope for the Democratic party as an organization) you should see a resurgence of American leadership in the world again. In fact, this is what the world leaders appear to be banking on anyway (with exception to Russia and China of course). Also, the rule of the internet is that the internet trolls.

I believe what is being seen is a reaction to a demagogue, not to a country itself. Then again... I am biased.

Played this last night:

[Blocked Image: https://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic3238287_md.jpg][Blocked Image: https://cf.geekdo-images.com/images/pic3519694_md.jpg]

Was fun and had some strategy to it. I can see it being a tough game to play as you start paying attention to what your opponents' resources are and their strategy. Not the most difficult game, but definitely a nice and easy one to pick-up.

Quote from JackW

23 hours ago, JackW said: I guess the next step from here is working with an artist to dress up this giant sci-fi palace and then do some final lighting tweaks and spawn point/ pickup adjustments.

Looking good. Any particular art style you are after? I would be willing to team up if you like...

- Start exercising

- Take Honeymoon (Planned and almost fully booked)

- Finish current consulting job and turn into full-time job (failed to materialize into fulltime job)

- Finish boat asset for portfolio (WIP)

- Do 3 major portfolio scenes (No major scenes currently planned; working other assets/projects)

- Finish UT4 map (failed/abandoned; not likely to pickup again)

Fail fast, fail often, failure is your teacher and the path to success.

Happy 'Merica day everyone! Amexit 1776. ? I still have all my fingers and toes. ?

Quote from text_fish

8 hours ago, text_fish said: I get together with friends or family from time to time to play board/card games. Haven't dared touch anything as involved as Warhammer yet. About the most involved we got was playing Risk Legacy which was fantastic, though now that it's over I doubt we'll be organised enough to go through it again from start to finish. More recently I've been enjoying Ticket to Ride and Exploding Kittens. I bought Five Tribes the other day but I've yet to organize a night to play it. It looks exciting though!

Exploding kittens is definitely fun! Havn't seen Five Tribes yet though so I will need to look at it.

Quote from AlexM

On 6/27/2017 at 10:16 AM, AlexM said: Yeah I play magic (people at my work got me back into it). It's a pretty huge money sink but I managed to actually make a profit because it turns out all the cards I have from 1993 are worth hundreds of dollars.

So you'll sell me that Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale and Timewalk for a nickel on the dollar, right (the Mapcore discount; still profit)?

Have not done warhammer or any small figurines games (money and time seems extroadinary); but I do have a buddy who loves board games and we go over about once a month to play. Been playing Codenames (personal favorite) and Mystic Vale lately. Although he has a new game every time we go over. Consequently, the wife and I have started our own (very) small collection as well for when company is over. Otherwise, it's just Magic: The Gathering.

Is it me, or was there either a glitch and/or error in animation on the Springfield 1911 pistol reload animation (magazine was too long...)?

Not to get off-topic, but wouldn't these departures be indicative of the company's shift towards being the premier publisher/marketplace in the PC sector more than anything? Valve does not exactly make their own games at this point. . .