Bay 12 Games Forum

O... kay.

I actually gave blood for the first time a couple of weeks ago.  Really easy.  There's a form to fill out to ensure you're not a particular health risk.  They process that ask about the details, and once they're happy with your answers they prick your fingertip- almost painless- so they can test a drop of your blood (it goes in a test tube full of copper sulphate to make sure your haemoglobin levels are fine- a precaution to make sure you'll be okay).  If that's successful, you lay down, a nurse will constrict your arm a bit to make your vein stand out, and get started.  They offer local anasethetic if asked, but it's not standard.  I suggest relaxing and not looking at the needle until it's in- it looks bigger than it feels.  I experienced surprisingly little pain; once it's in, all you have to is bleed for ten minutes or so and then take a few more minutes to recover.  The most unnerving part of the whole procedure was sitting up and having two nurses look at me like I might collapse any second.  Then you get a drink and something to eat.  Extremely easy- I'm definitely doing that again.
Plus I now know I'm O+.

Of course, everyone is different, and the procedures are on the NHS so your mileage may vary.  But for me it definitely beat an uninterrupted afternoon at work.

I'm not sure whether to think it's so bad it's good, so bad it's awful, or just sitting on its own new plane transcending such petty concerns, but I have one that has to be seen to be believed...  Ahnuld Schwarzenegger's film debut, entitled Hercules In New York.  Yes, that Hercules.

Quote from: jaybud4 on July 21, 2008, 12:07:16 am

Quote from: Jude on July 20, 2008, 11:59:59 pm

And really, the notion that people without the patience to laboriously teach themself the skill set necessary to play a game are not worthy of DF, is ridiculous.

Wait, so the notion of people without the patience to learn DF being not worthy of playing DF is ridiculous? Did I miss something?

If all that's putting them off is the interface, then yes. That's a pretty elitist notion.

The game itself is complex enough to learn but the fact that actually doing basic things is completely impossible without extensive help, can easily put off anybody.

Yes, the notion of personal worth being somehow tied up in this is pretty stupid.  DF is not for everyone, and more people will find that out the hard way once the presentation arc is presented, but we'll just have to deal with it.  That's life.

Here we go again.

Adding graphics will not change the fact that you have to (heaven forbid!) learn new things to play this game, but it will inevitably lead to people entering this community who are disgruntled to find otherwise, and likely leaving in a huff when they are told not to adjust their set.  The worst are generally those who refuse to accept help and instead sit around waiting with bad grace for someone to activate the magic make-it-easy switch.  The sort of person who sits around on MU*s asking how you get into the game and where the graphics are.  It's not worth arresting the development of the game over, but it will change the community.

This is a tense subject for many, presumably because changing its appearance changes its whole tone, and there will always be some people who panic at change on such a fundamental level.  Some people *cough cough* do genuinely feel that it looks fine right now.  Speaking for myself, I'd rather see tiles than 3d jiggery-pokery: I don't think there's any way that could possibly improve FPS, quite the opposite, and whatever happens, an option to default back to the 'classic' appearance would be nice.  (Cue a new generation of No-Items-Fox-Only-Final-Destination 'hardcore' players who insist on old-style DF... oh well.)

I have heard it said that the best thing to do if you spill a drink on your key board is to run it under the tap, before whatever was in your drink messes up the connections.

Ahh, the scrolls of Icarian Flight. Great fun, if you remember to pack a potion or charm of slow falling.  If only there were more than three in the game (or the mods I had installed...)