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I could see a central vacuum system being pretty handy if it was considerably stronger than a normal vacuum cleaner. Is there enough suction to handle beer cans, cum rags, and food scraps being fed directly into the wall socket?
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Mar 4, 2015 03:39
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A FUCKIN CANARY!! posted:I could see a central vacuum system being pretty handy if it was considerably stronger than a normal vacuum cleaner. Is there enough suction to handle beer cans, cum rags, and food scraps being fed directly into the wall socket? Yes*, yes, and yes. Just make sure they can't be caught on the inside of the tube, so crumple up your cumrags (or stuff them in before drying) and make sure to flatten your beer cans. I've lived in a house with a modern central vacuum. Ridiculously powerful and convenient.
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Mar 4, 2015 03:45
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SquadronROE posted:I almost bought a house with a central vacuum cleaner. There was an outlet in each room you would plug the tube into, which also made a circuit connection that turned on the vacuum. Pretty cool tech for a house, but you're right. A blockage would take forever to clear. My parents had a house built about 10 years ago and specifically told the architect they wanted a centralized vac system. My parents absolutely love it and haven't had any issues so far. My dad also had a dust collection system built in to his workshop during the design as well (which is really the same thing, but for sawdust).
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Mar 4, 2015 03:46
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flosofl posted:My parents had a house built about 10 years ago and specifically told the architect they wanted a centralized vac system. My parents absolutely love it and haven't had any issues so far. My dad also had a dust collection system built in to his workshop during the design as well (which is really the same thing, but for sawdust). Oh yeah those are awesome. Not that I have a workshop 
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Mar 4, 2015 04:00
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Magnus Praeda posted:Good news! Thank you.
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Mar 4, 2015 05:03
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Humphreys posted:About $1500 total. I was in one of my 'I ain't stopping til I get things exactly how I like it' moods for a week after purchasing. I now have a few auto electricians that hire me on the side to do the same job. And I sell a few bits and bobs required for hilarious markups! This story is cool and I want to know more. It has hardware, reverse engineering and modern tech in it. How do you dump the roms for car chips? How do you read them?
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Mar 4, 2015 05:41
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KoRMaK posted:This story is cool and I want to know more. It has hardware, reverse engineering and modern tech in it. How do you dump the roms for car chips? How do you read them? PM me if you want to know more after this - I'm sure I'll get into poo poo for stupid long posts: 1. Strip down the various component cases after figuring out the convoluted way modern dashes are designed (partly to prevent quick and easy stereo removal but went from there to be 'stylish'). 2. Find the possible EEPROMs that hold data you want to fiddle with. Or just just take a scorched earth approach and try every chip one at a time. 3. Two methods of dumping the chips, using a 3M clip to attach to the chip while it is still in circuit (doesn't work for all and can be a bitch for the clip to stay on and get contact with all pins, plus some components may draw power away from the chip thus loving up attempts to read), or as I do with most, is heat gun, stready hand a lift the chip - put them into a ZIF socket (I have a bunch of SMT sockets for various types), then plug that into the programmer. 4. Dump the EEPROM 5. Figure poo poo out. One little thing that became a BIG DEAL with this car was a thing called 'VIM' or video in motion which would prevent the stereo from showing video files while driving (also negating ability to hook a apple tv or similar into the stereo as a replacement source). figuring out VIM consisted of soldering to all EEPROM pads on the target firmware EEPROM and feeding wires out to programmer, then taking live dumps while fiddling with the gears (Reverse, Neutral, Drive, or Reverse, neutral, 1st) and changing various addresses and seeing if the video feed cuts out after hitting 5km/h or above. ^ Gone are the days of just earthing the video sense to chassis instead of the handbrake sense wires. Some random photos:      Content on weird words. The Pidgin english word for helicopter: magimiks bilong Yesus (Magimix belong to Jesus) - where magimix is a type of electric food mixer. The ducted vacuum system we had when I was a kid was always clogged with my Gi Joes and marbles.
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Mar 4, 2015 07:13
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Holy poo poo that's impressive. 
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Mar 4, 2015 09:27
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Go post some of that stuff in AI, Humphreys. Please?
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Mar 4, 2015 10:20
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Nidhg00670000 posted:Go post some of that stuff in AI, Humphreys. Please? Done. I think ages back in the thread there was a guy who collected old cinema projection equipment. Anyone heard of Cinerama? Think of precursor to imax. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinerama quote:The original system involved shooting with three synchronized cameras sharing a single shutter. This process was later abandoned in favor of a system using a single camera and 70mm prints. The latter system lost the 146° field of view of the original three-strip system and the resolution was markedly lower. Three-strip Cinerama did not use anamorphic lenses, although two of the systems used to produce the 70mm prints (Ultra Panavision 70 and Super Technirama 70) did employ anamorphics. Later, 35mm anamorphic reduction prints were produced for exhibition in theatres with anamorphic CinemaScope-compatible projection lenses. 
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Mar 4, 2015 10:51
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Cinerama was really interesting in regards to stuff like framing the shot as it's just so vast - 2.89:1. Blocking had to take into account the massive curvature of the screen so actors were sort of cheated into position and parts filmed separately to blend better. Any reformatted versions that were flat had actors appear to be staring away from each other. Another effect of this was that it effectively forced you to only go as close as a medium shot for close ups else you'd have a massive head looming at the audience. A simple medium shot was made trickier as you had to cover the vistas on the sides of the actor or dress far more of the set than before. One massive issue the version had was that it was impossible to keep perfect image consistency across all three projectors. Back then studios tended to operate off the roadshow distribution method where the top cinemas would get the best version and the reel filtered down to smaller venues. As a result the reels would get damaged from wear and projectionists would often clip out scratched frames or in cases censor bits. Now apply that to a Cinerama setup where you have to clip out each frame equally across all three reels. Plus as time and grime went on, all three would start looking different. I recall the DVD release of How the West was Won had two options for viewing, a cropped version more in line with regular aspects and an attempt to replicate Cinerama. It also had the advantage of digitally blurring each reel's crop together to make it seamless.
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Mar 4, 2015 12:50
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You can actually still see cinerama's precursor - polyvision - in action from time to time, in special screenings of Abel Gance's Napoleon. Basically, the last part of the film was filmed simultanously on three 35mm cameras, and is screened with three projectors to create stunning 3x1:34 aspect ratio vistas. At the very end the reels are tinted to form the french flag. It is indeed quite spectacular.
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Mar 4, 2015 13:04
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You guys and your computers   I had this thing instead of amigas and commodores and whatnot:  Talking Whiz Kid! Back in, uh... 1990? I think? Came with 50 barcoded cards:  ...which were unreliable as gently caress, and I had nightmares due to the thing going PLEASE INSERT CARD for ages Still, even with a language barrier and almost indecipherable speech, I wasted so much time with this thing. Even  It was pretty mobile though, so I snuck it around the house. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIK7OSWyuNY Here's a video review. Hearing all the sounds was a huge bout of nostalgia. It got obsolete real quick, though... because dad bought a computer (386, if I recall correctly) in 1992. Used that thing till 1999 where I finally bought my own.
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Mar 4, 2015 14:28
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Humphreys posted:Done. Yeah that was me. Cinerama was one of a few novelties to pop up in the wake of the rising popularity of television. As WebDog states, it was a massive pain in the rear end and CinemaScope was the final nail in the coffin. To this day films are released mostly in 1:85:1 "flat" or 2:35:1 "scope" ratio. A few of the Cinerama films have been released on DVD with "Smilebox" aspect which is bowed in the middle to give the effect of sitting in front of the massive curved screen. It's actually very effective. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lII5rXbxcCs
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Mar 4, 2015 15:07
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Humphreys posted:Done. Not only have I heard of it, I've seen it. There was an old cinema in Pocklington in Yorkshire that had been converted into a museum for Victorian penny slots, Mutascopes and automata. The guy who ran it had managed to retain the Cinerama rig along with a short reel, which was part of the tour. Sadly the museum closed when the owner died suddenly, but the collection was bought by the International Arcade Museum and has toured around the world.
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Mar 4, 2015 15:34
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Awesome, awesome awesome awesome.Humphreys posted:PM me if you want to know more after this - I'm sure I'll get into poo poo for stupid long posts: Can you link to where you posted in AI? I looked but didn't see a new thread by you. I find the reading of EEPROMs really interesting. If I wanted a baby's first EEPROM would ardiuno be close enough?
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Mar 4, 2015 15:50
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Humphreys posted:PM me if you want to know more after this - I'm sure I'll get into poo poo for stupid long posts: I'm honestly surprised this is as simple* as identifying + modifying data stored in EEPROM--were there at least any neat data protection or obfuscation schemes to figure out? I'm looking at a device right now that guarantees EEPROM integrity through power loss by storing two copies of each data structure, with separate CRCs and some flags used to indicate which one was updated last/if one might be invalid/something (never bothered to fully figure that part out). I would have thought that you would need to get into reflashing custom code onto the micros, or maybe inserting inline devices on the bus to intercept and modify certain packets. Out of curiosity, was there just a value on the eeprom at some fixed location with the speed threshold for disabling VIM? Or was there some more complicated going on? *"simple" in relative terms for embedded systems hacks, but admittedly complicated + difficult in the real world
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Mar 4, 2015 21:19
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Ron Burgundy posted:Yeah that was me. This is drat cool. Personally I don't think I would like the idea of having to move my head all over the place to see all the action. I still hate Twister after beign forced to sit in the front row by my father. Made me feel a bit sick haha. KoRMaK posted:Awesome, awesome awesome awesome. I'm a dumb and didn't actually submit it: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3704457 EDIT for content: Yesterday I noticed that the department store I shop at still does film processing, then saw disposable cameras. I couldn't believe it. Even my grandmother takes her SD card all the way to the printer on the other side of the room and presses print. Humphreys has a new favorite as of 08:47 on Mar 5, 2015 |
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Mar 5, 2015 08:28
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Looks like it'd be an excellent candidate to be converted to a VR headset like the Rift or something.
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Mar 5, 2015 16:28
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The ULTIMATE TIME COMPUTER of the future, today. In 1972. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5szJYA_z44
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Mar 7, 2015 01:39
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So here's a neat article that tells the impossibly frustrating story of the little video game console that couldn't, the TurboGrafx-16.quote:The TurboGrafx-16 went on sale in the U.S. in August of 1989. By the middle of 1994, it had been discontinued. I've spent weeks interviewing people who were there at the time, major players and minor, each of whom had a connection to the system. 
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Mar 7, 2015 05:40
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Doctor Bishop posted:So here's a neat article that tells the impossibly frustrating story of the little video game console that couldn't, the TurboGrafx-16.  Don't even need to click; that thing was the ultimate "hosed over by brainless assholes in the American branch" poster child. Sham bam bamina! has a new favorite as of 05:49 on Mar 7, 2015 |
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Mar 7, 2015 05:47
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Would it have mattered anyway? Sony come along and the rest is history. Old time companies like sega and atari couldn't even fight the console wars and make money. NEC with a one hit wonder probably couldn't either. In fact they wouldn't have as they withdrew from TV and VCR and other home electronics eventually to concentrate on commercial products mainly (I used to have a NEC CRT, VCR and phone at one point). I read that link and they say they needed translators since most at NEC spoke Japanese only. I always find that strange, doing international business and being at that disadvantage. Hitachi is the same, top guys often only speak Japanese and have no idea of the western market or culture. But anyway, that's why they could get screwed around by the American branch as you said. Fo3 has a new favorite as of 09:19 on Mar 7, 2015 |
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Mar 7, 2015 09:07
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Fo3 posted:Would it have mattered anyway? Sony come along and the rest is history. Old time companies like sega and atari couldn't even fight the console wars and make money. PlayStation came out afterwards (late 1995 in the US/Europe), it was all about the SNES/Genesis in those times. Considering how Sega was actual competition to Nintendo then, the TG16 could have been a decent contender. Then again for all we know it might have taken sales FROM Sega, which could have led to the Dreamcast not existing for example.
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Mar 7, 2015 12:14
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Doctor Bishop posted:So here's a neat article that tells the impossibly frustrating story of the little video game console that couldn't, the TurboGrafx-16. So this is the same thing as the "PC Engine" ? I'd love one of those. A schoolfriend of mine lent me his PC Engine in the mid 90s, I spent the summer playing Wonderboy In Monsterworld  *must-resist-ebay-urges*
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Mar 7, 2015 12:49
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Serperoth posted:which could have led to the Dreamcast not existing for example. Somewhat ironic, given the Dreamcast would then go on to suffer a very similar fate.
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Mar 7, 2015 12:57
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Fair Hallion posted:So this is the same thing as the "PC Engine" ? I'd love one of those. Yes although there was a white different looking pc engine too. I remember these being the poo poo but it was never sold in the UK that I remember and people I knew imported games from Japan. Was there a handheld one? I remember something that looked like a black gameboy.
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Mar 7, 2015 13:10
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Sort of retro and it might interest people: Back In Time is an annual event where the 80s computer musicians get together to perform their music live on real instruments. This year's gig is on Kickstarter with about 30 hours to go and is just £2k short of goal. I strongly doubt anyone here would be attending as it's in Brighton, UK, but there's a £10 tier that awards a bootleg video of the event plus a free album download from C64audio.com. You can also pledge £20 for the bootleg, the album plus a BIT T-shirt. Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with this project as anything other than a backer (and at the £20 level at that, I can't attend myself).
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Mar 7, 2015 13:29
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Fair Hallion posted:So this is the same thing as the "PC Engine" ? I'd love one of those. Dysgenesis posted:Yes although there was a white different looking pc engine too. I remember these being the poo poo but it was never sold in the UK that I remember and people I knew imported games from Japan. This way, folks: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3515794
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Mar 7, 2015 16:08
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Mister Kingdom posted:The ULTIMATE TIME COMPUTER of the future, today. That almost seems like a parody, and then BAM Johnny Carson out of nowhere!
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Mar 7, 2015 19:23
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I'm not much of a recording engineer these days but I kinda miss aligning a tape machine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW5kifLh598 And I miss the MRL voice over. Which, I can't seem to find. At least Shellac got the guy who did the original narration to intro their CD. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0jw5qBgUuo
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Mar 8, 2015 03:28
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flosofl posted:My parents had a house built about 10 years ago and specifically told the architect they wanted a centralized vac system. My parents absolutely love it and haven't had any issues so far. My dad also had a dust collection system built in to his workshop during the design as well (which is really the same thing, but for sawdust). The house I grew up in, which my parents bought from my great grandparents, has a centralised vacuum. The house was built in 1963, my parents have had it since 1991 and there hasn't been a blockage yet. They use a normal vacuum now, but I can't think why they do because the central vacuum was so convenient. Also, as a kid I couldn't understand why all of my friends' parents had clumsy vacuum machines and not just a hose. Now I have my own place and my own clumsy vacuum machine.
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Mar 13, 2015 17:05
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I've never seen a central vacuum with brushes, which is a weakness compared to modern vacuums.
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Mar 13, 2015 18:44
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eddiewalker posted:I've never seen a central vacuum with brushes, which is a weakness compared to modern vacuums. Like for the carpet? They exist, my parent's central vac has one. Though its powered by the suction of the vacuum rather than having an electric motor, so it's probably weaker than most.
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Mar 13, 2015 18:47
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The one I had as a kid had an integrated plug as part of the wall hole you stuck the hose into so you could have a powered brush.
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Mar 13, 2015 19:31
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With the centralized vacuums, is there a risk of kids opening and putting valuable stuff into the hose outlets or are they pretty child-proof? I suppose there being a centralized containment means whatever went in there could be retrieved if needed, but not something you'd want to have to do everytime Junior decides daddy's watch should go in the bye-bye wall.
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Mar 13, 2015 19:31
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Just tell the kids that the vacuum monster will suck their arms straight off.
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Mar 13, 2015 19:37
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sweeperbravo posted:With the centralized vacuums, is there a risk of kids opening and putting valuable stuff into the hose outlets or are they pretty child-proof? I suppose there being a centralized containment means whatever went in there could be retrieved if needed, but not something you'd want to have to do everytime Junior decides daddy's watch should go in the bye-bye wall. I think they have a trigger in the outlet so it only powers up the vacuum when you plug a proper hose in - but depending on how the tubing is angled in the wall I guess that might not make a big difference. e: On googling this, I found a thing I didn't know I wanted - a VacPan. Basically a small square vacuum cleaner outlet in the baseboard that you flip open/on with your foot and sweep stuff into. Computer viking has a new favorite as of 19:45 on Mar 13, 2015 |
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Mar 13, 2015 19:38
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sweeperbravo posted:With the centralized vacuums, is there a risk of kids opening and putting valuable stuff into the hose outlets or are they pretty child-proof? I suppose there being a centralized containment means whatever went in there could be retrieved if needed, but not something you'd want to have to do everytime Junior decides daddy's watch should go in the bye-bye wall. With ours you had to have the integrated plug plugged into the socket in order for the motor to run, so if you just opened it there wouldn't be any suction at all.
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Mar 13, 2015 19:38
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Oh, neat! That makes a lot of sense. I don't know why I didn't put that together myself. Chalk up another thing to add to my Imaginary Someday As If Dream House.
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Mar 13, 2015 19:52
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