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The Lighter Side of Steampunk
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#1
Off Topic / Re: YET *EVEN* MORE things tha...
Last post by Sorontar - Today at 10:13:59 AMJust discovered that the tree in the far corner of our land is bearing 3 (very sick) fruit for the first time since we moved here, revealing that it is a nectarine tree! Now we just have to help it get better.
#2
Tactile / Re: That 'big project' I've be...
Last post by James Harrison - Yesterday at 07:35:26 PMI've done myself a mischief here. Ideally I want matching taps.
I can get chrome taps. I can get (for a bit more money) gold-plated taps. But can I get copper taps? More to the point, can I get Vicwardian copper taps? That I can actually, you know, afford without beggaring myself?
....
I'll get back to you on that. Just going to see someone about selling a kidney.
I can get chrome taps. I can get (for a bit more money) gold-plated taps. But can I get copper taps? More to the point, can I get Vicwardian copper taps? That I can actually, you know, afford without beggaring myself?
....
I'll get back to you on that. Just going to see someone about selling a kidney.
#3
Tactile / Re: That 'big project' I've be...
Last post by von Corax - Yesterday at 07:12:23 PMOoh, shiny!
#4
Tactile / Re: That 'big project' I've be...
Last post by James Harrison - Yesterday at 06:10:37 PMFirst component of the new bathroom has arrived...
#5
Off Topic / Re: Departed Cultural Icons 20...
Last post by RJBowman - Yesterday at 03:33:35 PMTelevision producer and writer Norman Leer has died at 101. I don't know if he is known outside the United States, but his impact on popular culture here is massive.
https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/norman-lear-dead-dies-tv-legend-all-in-the-family-1235823995/
https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/norman-lear-dead-dies-tv-legend-all-in-the-family-1235823995/
#6
Tactile / Re: Great Central Railway No.5...
Last post by James Harrison - December 04, 2023, 06:00:30 PMI can talk about it now (I think).
The locomotive drag box has been constructed - it was on display at the AGM however at that time the sponsor hadn't seen it.
The locomotive drag box has been constructed - it was on display at the AGM however at that time the sponsor hadn't seen it.
#7
Meta-Clubs / Re: Dicey wildcards. tabletop ...
Last post by rovingjack - December 04, 2023, 09:53:15 AMdon't know how I missed it, but in planning out more game creation challenges I was thinking of creating a game world a month in 2024 but I couldn't think of a catchy name. (also felt like a setting a month was lowballing for an easy victory).
It dawned on me about an hour ago as I told myself I should be going to bed. If you make 2 worlds a month for a year you would get 24 worlds in 2024. And can call it 24 worlds.
It dawned on me about an hour ago as I told myself I should be going to bed. If you make 2 worlds a month for a year you would get 24 worlds in 2024. And can call it 24 worlds.
#8
Tactile / Re: Victorian Boombox Mark IV
Last post by J. Wilhelm - December 04, 2023, 07:41:04 AMProgress is remarkably slow at the moment, because I'm trying to get a roof over my head. The realization set in that I may not even be able to continue working on this project, depending on where I end up. Technically I have until the end of February to leave this house, but realistically it's impossible to wait, primarily because of the weather. I have this recurring nightmare that I die in extreme cold or heat, and it terrifies me to think I wouldn't have a place by February. Needless to say, I'm extremely stressed right now. So don't expect great progress. On the other hand, I do want to finish this box before I leave the house. It's a "catch 22" situation for me, especially when I know all my savings will be depleted after I move, which means no money to build anything new, hence, no way to start a business
EDIT *Censored paragraph detailing my violent thoughts*
But anyhow, this is what the Mk IV looks like right now. I need to find three identical short micro USB to USB cables, which will connect the screen to the electronics compartment. I need to fit the shortwave radio, and if possible the ATSC 1.0 HDTV tuner board and buy a second transformer to feed the radio and HDTV, probably another DeWalt 12v-USB adapter. The idea is that I can use a single switch (dual pole double throw) to choose between the radio/TV and the computer/sound card and a rotary switch to direct the sound to the amplifier.
Honestly, it's starting to sound better to try to continue using the computer to tune TV and radio, but it's not possible, due to the large amount of power all devices would consume simultaneously. As a baseline I can calculate the consumption for the radio and TV as stand alone devices; I'm already looking at an average current draw of 7.5 amperes for amplifier and computer plus peripherals, but with the Sihuadon radio and the GTX TV tuner needing about 3 amperes, I could potentially push consumption beyond a theoretical maximum of 10 A for the two power modules. Unfortunately, it's not much better if I use the computer as a TV/radio tuner, because the work is actually done not by the Intel CPU, but by the chips inside the USB radio TV dongles that are tiny computers all by themselves, so there's no assurance I'd be saving any current that way. In fact, it could be more current.
EDIT *Censored paragraph detailing my violent thoughts*
But anyhow, this is what the Mk IV looks like right now. I need to find three identical short micro USB to USB cables, which will connect the screen to the electronics compartment. I need to fit the shortwave radio, and if possible the ATSC 1.0 HDTV tuner board and buy a second transformer to feed the radio and HDTV, probably another DeWalt 12v-USB adapter. The idea is that I can use a single switch (dual pole double throw) to choose between the radio/TV and the computer/sound card and a rotary switch to direct the sound to the amplifier.
Honestly, it's starting to sound better to try to continue using the computer to tune TV and radio, but it's not possible, due to the large amount of power all devices would consume simultaneously. As a baseline I can calculate the consumption for the radio and TV as stand alone devices; I'm already looking at an average current draw of 7.5 amperes for amplifier and computer plus peripherals, but with the Sihuadon radio and the GTX TV tuner needing about 3 amperes, I could potentially push consumption beyond a theoretical maximum of 10 A for the two power modules. Unfortunately, it's not much better if I use the computer as a TV/radio tuner, because the work is actually done not by the Intel CPU, but by the chips inside the USB radio TV dongles that are tiny computers all by themselves, so there's no assurance I'd be saving any current that way. In fact, it could be more current.
#9
Off Topic / Get your 1844, 1872, 1912, 194...
Last post by rovingjack - December 03, 2023, 09:21:31 PMYour 1844, 1872, 1912, 1940, 1968, and 1996 calendars are about to become useful again. I kind of want to do a calendar for the year with steampunk art of some kind, and maybe a podcast with news of 'this week in 1844, 1872, and 1912'. for helping out those time travelers out there. lol.
#10
Tactile / Re: That 'big project' I've be...
Last post by James Harrison - December 03, 2023, 03:29:34 PMAnd onto the 2024 programme.
The thing in the back of my mind now is that in early 2025 my fixed rate mortgage switches over to a tracker type. Which means that it's going to become more expensive and - crucially - I don't know how much more a month I'm going to have to pay. This means that if I want to do expensive things, they're going to have to be done next year or else put off to a later date.
The first thing on the list is to finish off the window renewal programme. There are two windows still to be replaced - in the back bedroom, and the bathroom.
Ah, yes, the bathroom. I really, really don't like the existing bathroom suite, or bathroom layout. It's perfectly serviceable, but it's really not compatible with the rest of the house. The problem is that bathroom suites weren't really a thing in the Edwardian era. And the Victorian/ Edwardian 'style' ones available just strike me as variously still too modern, too twee, or just plain unconvincing.
This obviously is a part of the project that is not DIY-friendly. I don't have a timeframe for when this bit will get underway.
I'm also going to have to have part of the sitting room replastered. The radiator has started to pull away from the wall, and whilst I've shored it up with some pieces of wood, clearly that's not a long term solution. No, what is needed is for the radiator to be taken down and the crushed and crumbling plaster behind to be replaced. Perhaps that's a Summer job.
Then I want the flashing around the chimneys to be renewed, and I also want flashing to be installed around the bay window roof.
Now you might be looking at this list and thinking 'well James, what are you personally planning to be doing this year to get this done?' I should have thought the answer is obvious. I'm the one going out to work to pay for it all...
The thing in the back of my mind now is that in early 2025 my fixed rate mortgage switches over to a tracker type. Which means that it's going to become more expensive and - crucially - I don't know how much more a month I'm going to have to pay. This means that if I want to do expensive things, they're going to have to be done next year or else put off to a later date.
The first thing on the list is to finish off the window renewal programme. There are two windows still to be replaced - in the back bedroom, and the bathroom.
Ah, yes, the bathroom. I really, really don't like the existing bathroom suite, or bathroom layout. It's perfectly serviceable, but it's really not compatible with the rest of the house. The problem is that bathroom suites weren't really a thing in the Edwardian era. And the Victorian/ Edwardian 'style' ones available just strike me as variously still too modern, too twee, or just plain unconvincing.
This obviously is a part of the project that is not DIY-friendly. I don't have a timeframe for when this bit will get underway.
I'm also going to have to have part of the sitting room replastered. The radiator has started to pull away from the wall, and whilst I've shored it up with some pieces of wood, clearly that's not a long term solution. No, what is needed is for the radiator to be taken down and the crushed and crumbling plaster behind to be replaced. Perhaps that's a Summer job.
Then I want the flashing around the chimneys to be renewed, and I also want flashing to be installed around the bay window roof.
Now you might be looking at this list and thinking 'well James, what are you personally planning to be doing this year to get this done?' I should have thought the answer is obvious. I'm the one going out to work to pay for it all...