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2976

Developer's Corner / Re: Hi, first post in the developers section

« Last post by wraith808 on May 29, 2016, 02:15 PM »

We have code highlighting format that can make it even more useful.  There's a drop-down above the post area that has formatting for many different languages.  Visual basic is there.

2977

General Software Discussion / Re: VB.NET Log to file code

« Last post by wraith808 on May 29, 2016, 11:25 AM »

There's the area Developer's Corner on the forums.  I think it would be totally OK to post it there.

And welcome to the site!

2978

Living Room / Re: Zip Drives revisited

« Last post by wraith808 on May 28, 2016, 03:39 PM »

I remember them well.. That was a product that really filled a need and felt very solid.

-mouser (May 27, 2016, 05:06 PM)

I didn't get into Zip drives, but I used Jaz drives quite extensively.  The use of the SCSI interface with removable media really shook things up in the illustration and 3d modeling realm.

2979

Living Room / Re: Need a new Keyboard - advice?

« Last post by wraith808 on May 25, 2016, 02:22 PM »

Do you use the numeric keypad?  What about the function keys?  There are some affordable options on amazon that are mechanical, and would be useable.  I found that recently, evaluating my own typing.  I use the arrows and function keys and page up/page down and such pretty rarely.  so I picked up a keyboard that didn't have those- a Pok3er with cherry browns (and tried clears too).  It's a bit more expensive than what you're talking about, but the Qisan keyboards are pretty nice for the price.

http://www.amazon.co...cforce/dp/B01872MCIA

The browns are more for some reason... the blacks and blues are a lot less.  On this particular keyboard, you're giving up the function row (which can be accessed using the function key) and the numeric keypad.  It's a good tradeoff.

2980

Living Room / Re: Recommend some music videos to me!

« Last post by wraith808 on May 24, 2016, 08:54 PM »

Red Fang- Wires

Best music video ever!

Bonus points for appearance by Brian Posehn!

2981

Living Room / Re: Freelance Programming/Upwork discussion thread

« Last post by wraith808 on May 24, 2016, 06:58 PM »

He might even give you a tip...!

-wraith808 (May 19, 2016, 07:36 PM)

No, but he did leave this textless, 1-star review to which I replied:
[ Invalid Attachment ]

-Asudem (May 24, 2016, 06:48 PM)

Unfortunately, most people don't read the replies.  There's a reason that they have an aggregate review scale on most of these places. 

2982

Living Room / Re: Goodbye to my father

« Last post by wraith808 on May 24, 2016, 05:18 PM »

I lost my dad a few years back, I don't think it truly hit me until sometime later when I picked up a new Harley...and then realized that I couldn't stop by to show it to him.

-Stoic Joker (May 24, 2016, 11:32 AM)

It's bad when that happens- just hits you out of the blue.  My dad loved clothes, and introduced me to this one shop.  I don't like clothes and dressing up like he did, but it was a store that I felt comfortable in, which was the reason he introduced it to me- to show me that shopping didn't have to be a bad experience.

I was in there, and out of the blue I saw this man that looked exactly like my dad!  I walked up to him, and of course when he turned around it wasn't.  There was like a drop deep in my stomach, and the guy saw it.  He was really nice, and stood there and talked with me a while about my dad and what the store meant.  And though I took that original gut punch, the memories overwhelmed that feelings of bad- like he was there with me for that brief moment.

Renegade said it well.

I hope you and your family can find some comfort in fond memories and celebrate his life.

-Renegade (May 24, 2016, 08:01 AM)

Those memories don't fully fill that space where you held him at first.  But over time, they expand, and life becomes just a little bit brighter when those memories show you just how fortunate you were to have him.

2983

Living Room / Re: What books are you reading?

« Last post by wraith808 on May 24, 2016, 05:12 PM »

I didn't know this. I wont post here anymore ...

-panzer (May 01, 2016, 06:23 AM)

You can post here... that's not what Tom was saying.  Just post things that you're reading and you think worthy after reading to share.  We don't want just a list of books- what we'd like is a list of books that have been experienced and are being recommended based on that.

2984

Developer's Corner / Re: Designing Personal Sites - Programming POV

« Last post by wraith808 on May 24, 2016, 08:15 AM »

Yet the site itself resembles nothing like that anymore. I will have to consult archive.org for closer inspection.

-Asudem (May 24, 2016, 01:53 AM)

The new version uses WPPropeller - https://wppropeller.com/.  That's one of the benefits of using a platform- the ability to easily update your style.  You can stay in Divi- or move to something else- a lot easier than rolling your own from scratch.  And WPProppeller underneath uses Divi for its functionality.

There has to be a certain critical mass around programs IMO.  Just having programs with no descriptions on a site, and nothing around them won't lead to people using them from my experience.

-wraith808 (May 23, 2016, 01:31 PM)

Well, I mean I'd have some sort of text describing the program, but not some kind of instruction manual.

-Asudem (May 24, 2016, 01:53 AM)

You might be able to get away with that.  Some do.  But usually only with the audience created somewhere else.

Take a look at mousers pages for his software.  When you download them, you know exactly what the features are, and why you should try them.  Mere descriptions don't help with that.  And not having a help file or some sort is IMO a mistake.

2985

Living Room / Re: Goodbye to my father

« Last post by wraith808 on May 23, 2016, 11:17 PM »

Mine also.  My father has been on my mind a lot lately, and this really touched me.  My father never got into computers, but he is the reason that I'm so into them.  He brought me to work just so I could work on the computer there, and spent what seems today a godawful amount of money to get me my first.  I wish I had some nugget of wisdom or something to help, but all I have is my words.  I'm really sorry for your loss.

2986

Living Room / Re: Programming/Coder humor

« Last post by wraith808 on May 23, 2016, 03:30 PM »

^ Oh. My.

2987

Developer's Corner / Re: Designing Personal Sites - Programming POV

« Last post by wraith808 on May 23, 2016, 01:31 PM »

What's the difference from your perspective?

-wraith808 (May 22, 2016, 12:08 PM)

I feel a blog is a mindless template which creates little to no skill to create by it's user. It's not impressive nor has a "wow" factor but simply exists to be a voice on the internet. A blog is about it's content, not it's design.

-Asudem (May 23, 2016, 03:06 AM)

That's an incorrect view of wordpress.

A couple of links on just using wordpress to create static sites:

https://www.designwa...-with-optional-blog/

http://www.bloggingt...-for-non-blog-sites/

The theme that I use for my static sites is Divi.

It allows you to build your site using varied included components, custom code, and/or third party components.  I've found it very useful for such- I've not found a site I couldn't create.

Some examples can be found at http://www.elegantthemes.com/showcase/, though there are several examples if you just look for Divi example sites.

But I don't have content to write. I have code examples and programs for download, but who honestly goes through someone's portfolio to read the fine details and not just the bulletpoints? If I can't get their attention with a bullet and a screenshot, then I've already failed in my opinion.

-Asudem (May 23, 2016, 03:06 AM)

There has to be a certain critical mass around programs IMO.  Just having programs with no descriptions on a site, and nothing around them won't lead to people using them from my experience.

2988

Developer's Corner / Re: Designing Personal Sites - Programming POV

« Last post by wraith808 on May 22, 2016, 12:08 PM »

I feel like I want a site and not a blog.

-Asudem (May 22, 2016, 11:44 AM)

What's the difference from your perspective?  My resume site is a site- I don't post updates or anything, it's just for information.  But it's built on wordpress.  Wordpress has changed from being a blogging platform a long time ago.

2989

Developer's Corner / Re: Designing Personal Sites - Programming POV

« Last post by wraith808 on May 22, 2016, 09:23 AM »

What about static site generators? https://getnikola.com/ (python) or jekyll (ruby) - plenty more here https://www.staticgen.com/

-Lintalist (May 22, 2016, 08:22 AM)

I tried those for a while- jekyll and hugo (http://gohugo.io/).  My problems with those was the idiosyncrasies of where everything went.  A DC'er started a course on Hugo, and almost immediately I liked it better than jekyll.  But as time went on, and I wanted to do something that wasn't simple, it still became a nightmare to maintain and generate for changes- at least to me.

2990

Developer's Corner / Re: Designing Personal Sites - Programming POV

« Last post by wraith808 on May 22, 2016, 12:15 AM »

I'm actually not a fan of wordpress, which is the reason when I saw there was an opportunity for hosted Ghost, I took it.  But the reality is, Wordpress dominates the scene, is easily moddable, and has a thriving community.  I tried Joomla and it was just too much, and if I was going to go through that much trouble, I might as well just make my site.

2991

Developer's Corner / Re: Designing Personal Sites - Programming POV

« Last post by wraith808 on May 21, 2016, 02:49 PM »

I still can't find anything solid, and Joomla! is just going to become a moneypit with all it's extensions. Anyone got any more ideas? I don't care if I need to learn a new language, but I'd like something with a little flexibility and something I can build from.

-Asudem (May 21, 2016, 06:31 AM)

I've had this particular dilemma before, and have finally found that there is a reason that wordpress is so popular.  It just works, can be altered pretty easily to be what you want with themes and plugins, and you can get help easily.  I've recently changed to paying for ghost hosting, because wordpress is such a target, and that's the bit you exchange the commonality of it for.

But that would be my suggestion.  Go with something that is easily hackable and widespread.  Especially if it's just for personal use.

2992

Living Room / Re: Surface Pro 4 (etc); observations from long term use?

« Last post by wraith808 on May 20, 2016, 12:07 PM »

I tried to order a Surface from Microsoft Store - Build Your Bundle, but I was not allowed to order one without Office 365. There was no option for Office 2016 or no Office.

-Curt (May 20, 2016, 09:16 AM)

It's a bundle.  You have to buy O365 in order to qualify for the bundle.  You can buy Surface without the O365 outside of the bundle.

2993

Living Room / Re: Surface Pro 4 (etc); observations from long term use?

« Last post by wraith808 on May 20, 2016, 06:58 AM »

I think I have decided, more or less, to buy the Book version. Sounds as if it is the best laptop replacement. No one saying I would be mad, despite the price, and even a mild positivity. But I'll hope to wait for the next generation to be out. It might be better, and, if it isn't, the current generation will probably be reduced in price. And I'm unlikely to need to buy earlier.

-Dormouse (May 13, 2016, 03:10 PM)

Same here.

Does any of you guys use a Surface as your only computer, or is it "always" the transportable I'm-off-for-a-meeting one? I guess my question is, if I need two computers, or if a strong Surface will do?
 

-Curt (May 20, 2016, 02:23 AM)

I can't speak from experience, but all of the research (including asking those that have used one) seems to point in that direction for certain everyday uses.  I haven't seen anyone say that they do primary video/photo editing, or other CPU intensive things on it.  So it would depend on your intended usage of your computer.

2994

DC Website Help and Extras / Re: Can't post a post with just a video

« Last post by wraith808 on May 20, 2016, 06:56 AM »

Not necessarily.  The youtube linking code is an add on to SMF, while the image code is inbuilt.  Therefore, there could have been allowances made for images that would not have taken into account the youtube markup.
____________________________

-wraith808 (May 19, 2016, 09:30 PM)

Ah, I see. So, if that is possible, then who would be in a position to determine whether there were "allowances made for images that would not have taken into account the youtube markup."?
@mouser seems to think is is a "bug" of some sort. Presumably he would know?

-IainB (May 20, 2016, 12:30 AM)

A bug is a defect or imperfection, as in a mechanical device, computer program, or plan; glitch.  However, that does not cover all of what a bug or defect is.  A bug is any an unexpected defect, fault, flaw, or imperfection found in a program.  Just because it can be capitalized on, doesn't make it not a "bug".  That's what mouser meant.  He wouldn't even necessarily know, as it seems that he didn't before I brought it up.  But I think this conversation is descending into the highest form of pedantry.

It is an unexpected flaw that mouser sees as a feature, and will not correct, as the general consensus is that it is useful to explain any video post (more than an image) as they, not being hosted on the server, can disappear, leaving a gap in the flow of the thread.  In addition, text can be indexed for later retrieval by a simple text search- videos can't.

That seems to be enough to answer the question brought up in this thread, so I will leave it with that.

2995

DC Website Help and Extras / Re: Can't post a post with just a video

« Last post by wraith808 on May 19, 2016, 09:30 PM »

However, where you say that "...this is a bug in the forum software...", you presumably say so on the basis that the/any rule here would be (or is) assumed to be consistent, or something - that is, that it should be equally applicable to videos and images - yes?

-IainB (May 19, 2016, 08:34 PM)

Not necessarily.  The youtube linking code is an add on to SMF, while the image code is inbuilt.  Therefore, there could have been allowances made for images that would not have taken into account the youtube markup.

2996

Living Room / Re: Freelance Programming/Upwork discussion thread

« Last post by wraith808 on May 19, 2016, 07:36 PM »

so, the fix is to get rid of his wife (and collect $20...)

-Target (May 19, 2016, 04:19 PM)

-Asudem (May 19, 2016, 04:48 PM)

He might even give you a tip...!

2997

DC Website Help and Extras / Re: Can't post a post with just a video

« Last post by wraith808 on May 19, 2016, 02:15 PM »

I don't know if this is intentional, but you have to post spurious text when posting just a youtube video, but you don't have to do the same when posting an image.
___________________________

-wraith808 (May 18, 2016, 06:08 PM)

I are confuzzled by this.
The category for this thread is DC Website Help and Extras - yes?
What is intended to be the subject of the statement "I don't know if this is intentional..."?
Is there a DC Forum rule that one must post spurious text when posting just a youtube video, but one does not have to post any spurious text when posting an image?
I'm not trying to be pedantic, but, if there is such a rule, then would it not likely have been "intentional" to have that rule in the first place, and if it was not intentional, then why was the rule established and allowed to remain?
If "spurious text" was also intended, then why on earth was that so?
"Spurious" means:

• not genuine, sincere, or authentic
• based on false ideas or bad reasoning

Why would that be required?
Surely a video or an image could be potentially more informative if accompanied by relevant/contextual text and references, rather than by spurious text or no text at all - no?

My view is that posting just static images on their own, or just YouTube links/videos on their own, without any explanatory text would probably be more appropriate for (say) the DCF silly humour section(s), or Pinterest, for example, rather than a pukka discussion forum like DCF.

-IainB (May 19, 2016, 09:25 AM)

It is there in one of the locations where you post things without necessarily adding context, i.e. interesting things.  I think this is the reason that Arizona Hot in many cases posts videos with a repetition of the title.  And I mean spurious as a synonym for specious, i.e. apparently good or right though lacking real merit; superficially pleasing or plausible, to join you in pedantry.  I do apologize if you weren't familiar with that particular use.  I've heard it used quite often that way, and dictionary.com and thesaurus.com seem to support that connection.  And as mouser points out, this is the section to get help and clarifications, which is what I was asking for.

Thanks Deo/Tom- I didn't get the indexing part; that does, indeed make sense.

2998

DC Website Help and Extras / Re: Can't post a post with just a video

« Last post by wraith808 on May 19, 2016, 07:19 AM »

For what it's worth, I do think it's a good idea to describe videos when you post them. That way in a couple of years when someone is trying to remember what they were, a search for related terms will bring something up.

-Deozaan (May 19, 2016, 02:58 AM)

Many videos, because they have the text in the title of them, and even in the first frame, don't require that.  For example, the ocelot one.  Are you saying that I should just repeat the title? It felt spurious having to put text.

2999

Screenshot Captor / Re: Feature request: Hold Spacebar to pan image

« Last post by wraith808 on May 18, 2016, 06:09 PM »

It must be a failure on my part that so many users don't know about that critical feature..

-mouser (May 18, 2016, 05:45 PM)

Or we just don't pay attention 

3000

DC Website Help and Extras / Can't post a post with just a video

« Last post by wraith808 on May 18, 2016, 06:08 PM »

I don't know if this is intentional, but you have to post spurious text when posting just a youtube video, but you don't have to do the same when posting an image.