The Spam Thread!

[cpd2009]

Well, fate is an ironic prankster.

So I upgraded my aunt's PC to Ubuntu 12.10 and to my horror SiS video cards are now glitchy as hell on it. I swapped her Maxwell's board, CPU and RAM since S3 video chipsets are usually better supported in Ubuntu.

I gave her that 500w PSU as well, reasoning that it's better for her to have it since I'd want a new PSU to go with Clementine's rebuild anyway.

Well, I got a new PSU today because I was feeling like giving her existing board another chance. For equal measure, I also got her a new CMOS battery because, as I said before, NVidia's chipsets have a nasty habit of outright refusing to boot (i.e. playing dead) instead of booting and warning that the CMOS battery is low.

I changed the battery, installed the new PSU, and for good measure, erased the CMOS using the jumper.

She now boots fine.

Two replies in a row..... wow.

Anyway, I figured that Clementines board was salvageable. At least you got it working again.

Does this "playing dead" issue only affect motherboards with a NVIDIA chipset? Greta has an NVIDIA GeForce 610m, but since she is a dual GPU system (NVIDIA Optimus), the main chipset is Intel based I believe. Being a laptop, the CMOS battery can only be replaced by a technician, or if I am willing to risk the life of Greta by disassembling her myself.

As for your aunts PC, what OS did it run before it got Ubuntu? Or did it always run Linux?

Random question:
If you play arcade First Person Shooting games, would you prefer a type where you must hide to dodge enemy attacks (e.g. Time Crisis series), or the type where enemy attacks cannot be avoided so you have to attack quickly and kill or stun the attacking enemy before the attack hits you (e.g. Virtua Cop series, House of The Dead series)?

I personally prefer the second type because I'm often paranoid while hiding, afraid that I would stand up at a wrong time and eat a bullet to my face right away (Which has happened quite often), and that hurts the enjoyment.

Arcade FPS?

Those games I would actually play. Last one I remember playing was my copy of the Midway FPS "Revolution X, Featuring Aerosmith". I played this in the arcade about seven years ago, and the SNES version is not that great of a port, but it's a good time waster. Revolution X is the kind of Arcade FPS where you can't avoid the enemy attacks and you have to kill off missiles or enemies as fast as you can or take damage. I need to work on my reflexes as I tend to waste a LOT of credits because of how many enemies you have to clear.

I also go for third person arcade shooters too. Space Harrier is one of my favorites. With Space Harrier, you have to shoot at and avoid enemy projectiles at the same time.

I normally avert modern FPS games (like CoD or Gears of War) because to me, most of them look the same. There are exceptions like Halo and Team Fortress 2, but to get the most enjoyment out of those games, you have to play online, and outside of Animal Crossing or Mario Kart Wii, I don't play live multiplayer games that much.

[RAMChYLD]

Does this "playing dead" issue only affect motherboards with a NVIDIA chipset? Greta has an NVIDIA GeForce 610m, but since she is a dual GPU system (NVIDIA Optimus), the main chipset is Intel based I believe. Being a laptop, the CMOS battery can only be replaced by a technician, or if I am willing to risk the life of Greta by disassembling her myself.

As I understand it, yes, it does. Since only Greta's GPU is from Nvidia, it's safe to assume she won't be affected.

As for your aunts PC, what OS did it run before it got Ubuntu? Or did it always run Linux?

Well, I got her on Ubuntu 12.04 before this, and the board worked fine. Only during my upgrade did Ubuntu spew some warning about the chipset not being supported anymore in 12.10. I made a big mistake by ignoring it >.<

Then again, 12.10 has been full of holes. SLI doesn't work correctly out of the box, unsupported chipsets... it's as if the darn thing is rushed >.<

Random question:
If you play arcade First Person Shooting games, would you prefer a type where you must hide to dodge enemy attacks (e.g. Time Crisis series), or the type where enemy attacks cannot be avoided so you have to attack quickly and kill or stun the attacking enemy before the attack hits you (e.g. Virtua Cop series, House of The Dead series)?

I personally prefer the second type because I'm often paranoid while hiding, afraid that I would stand up at a wrong time and eat a bullet to my face right away (Which has happened quite often), and that hurts the enjoyment.

Well, personally, I enjoy both types.

Anyways, reading about the shooting now... I'm scared. Apparently the killer has a similar issue with me - with depression fits like that. However, I was pretty much able to trace my depression to it's roots (and yes, it's bullying. My complete history of bullying, coupled with perceived bullying by the government and some nasty party on the internet who I think you know), but I can't find a way to solve it.

I'm scared.

And I still refuse to seek help, at least not in Malaysia. If I am to seek help, it has to be Australia or Singapore. Problem is, they won't let me move over there, not without large amounts of money.

[cpd2009]

Anyways, reading about the shooting now... I'm scared. Apparently the killer has a similar issue with me - with depression fits like that. However, I was pretty much able to trace my depression to it's roots (and yes, it's bullying. My complete history of bullying, coupled with perceived bullying by the government and some nasty party on the internet who I think you know), but I can't find a way to solve it.

I'm scared.

And I still refuse to seek help, at least not in Malaysia. If I am to seek help, it has to be Australia or Singapore. Problem is, they won't let me move over there, not without large amounts of money.

Well, there has to be some sort of available counseling in Malaysia that has no connections to the government or religious groups whatsoever...

Unless if government-sponsored counseling services are the only type that exist there.

You should find a way to deal with your depression, and find a way to get to Singapore to get that counseling. How much does it cost to just get across the border with Singapore just for a day long visit, or even a week long visit without permanently moving there?

[cpd2009]

Pardon my language, but I am royally pissed off right now. Why?

People on Facebook are sharing the image with the following quote:

DEAR GOD,
Why do you allow so much violence in our schools?
Signed, a concerned student

DEAR CONCERNED STUDENT,
I'm not allowed in schools.
God

Read that message twice, and try to figure out why I am so mad about it. If not, just keep reading.

This message is just hateful. It may not seem that way on first reading, but to go out and say that God allows horrific school shootings to occur because the schools no longer teach anything about God or Christianity, or removing the word 'God' from the Pledge of Allegiance....

Those are not kind words to express right now. Everyone has a right to say stuff like that, but I am also allowed to criticize it. It's basically saying that God no longer cares about children who are raised and educated in the public school system.

Utterly disgusting. :evil:

I am not a truly religious person, but isn't God better than that? Even if he couldn't save all 20 kids on Friday, would he have said better words to the grieving families? Would he?

AFA Radio, a right-wing radio nuthouse that needs to be shut down, also made a similar statement on Friday, hours after the shooting.


I fear for our country. Not because of the shooting, but for the fear of it being overrun by right-wing religious zealots like the ones who made that shirt.

The USA could become a Christian Malaysia, so to speak.

[Blackberry Bun]

I'm coming home ...

My real home, not my hometown. I'm missed. We're wanted back in time for Christmas.

Enjoy your Christmas, and have a safe trip.

[RAMChYLD]

The USA could become a Christian Malaysia, so to speak.

Well, I believe Obama is a good president and won't let that idea come to pass.

What they really need is to have an entrance guard at schools with X-Ray machines to pick out guns. Sure, it won't stop the 1% of nutters with Nerf guns modified to fire real bullets, but well, it's a compromise. There will be nutters complaining an invasion of privacy, but seriously, things like this happen, and they say it's because of God?!? That's ridiculous. Why not just say that God orchestrated the whole freaking event to purge the school off bullies, and those 20 kids are guilty of bullying?!?

Malaysia's a worse off country. Gun ownership is very strictly controlled- if you want to own a gun, you must first join a shooting club, then get a gun license, and even then you're not allowed to carry a gun in public. Heck, even having a meat cleaver in the car will leave you with a lot to answer for if you're pulled aside for a routine check and the police finds it!

PS: Have they looked into the kid's history to see why he did this? It occurred to me a while ago that the kid's behavior - suicide threats, yelling and cussing, is indicative of bullying pressure (hell, reflecting back, that behavior is something I go through myself during my fits, and I'm far too familiar with them). It appears that something could've instigated him into this. Being this connected could mean that he has made some enemies online, and could've been pushed past the limit through cyberbullying. If he was indeed an aspie, he probably wouldn't take cyberbullying very well. He himself may have been a victim, a victim to those who pushed him past his boiling point.

You should find a way to deal with your depression, and find a way to get to Singapore to get that counseling. How much does it cost to just get across the border with Singapore just for a day long visit, or even a week long visit without permanently moving there?

Well, it costs two hundred Malaysian Ringgits to drive down to Singapore and back >.< The tolls are already exorbitant, the cost of gas is insane (and getting worse, the government has already announced plans to raise gas prices over the next five years- their reason is that it will force employers to raise the wage of workers. Uh huh, what's to say that this won't cause circular reactions and result in a nasty inflation?). And oh, due to the government's narrowmindedness, the speed limit here is rather low (110km/h, or 68mph, max). It takes four hours to get to Singapore, and four to come back. Day trips are just not feasible >.<

And that doesn't even take into account the psychiatry bills!

[Stella Grapes]

Wade, Sandy, thank you.

I'm traveling home on "Doomsday" :roll: and the day after.

[cpd2009]

Wade, Sandy, thank you.

I'm traveling home on "Doomsday" :roll: and the day after.

You're welcome.

And sincere apologies for me and Sandy's messages to you getting buried in our other discussions. That seems to happen a lot here.

[RAMChYLD]

See? The Philippines are indeed better! They not only have Aduilt Swim and Comedy Central, they also have no Television and Internet censorship, and they actually banned Justin Beiber!

I'd rather have that Justin Beaver banned than Erykah Badu!

[Blackberry Bun]

What's the recommended antivirus nowadays? My laptop now has AVG after reformat. Should I replace it with Avast or something else? What's your opinion?