Dumbass

[Sic Pup]

..... questions from a noob who possesses a natural state leaning more towards perpetual confusion than common sense. If nothing else maybe they'll be some entertainment value in my cluelessness for the vets.


Let me preface this by saying I've spent the last week reading the Survival Guide, the Noob FAQ and quite a few of the eplaya threads as well as many of the external links contained within and haven't seen these addressed (which doesn't necessarily mean that they weren't just beyond the range of my densness):

1) A fire extinquisher is listed as being mandatory in the SG, at this stage I don't plan on cooking, is there really a possibility access would be denied if I showed up sans fire extinquisher? I'll be lugging 20 gals of water, does that count for anything?

2) Lock and chain is advised for bikes, I'm hard pressed to imagine what the bike might be chained to when one is not in their own camp. Someone else's camp? Immobile burners? Random bypassers? Or is it just used to disable the wheels/chain and make a thief carry it away if they want it that badly?

3) I'm traveling from the East Coast on a three week jaunt and will be exploring some of the west afterwards since I'll be in the "neighborhood". As Such I would like to take my laptop for non playa use. My car is black. From what I've read about dust one probably wouldn't want to crack thier windows to vent some of the heat. I'm an orphan and at this stage my setup will be a studio so to speak. Will the heat in the car/tent be enough to do damage? Would you feel comfortable leaving it concealed but unlocked in an unoccupied tent? Or should I leave the thing home and risk, in a moment of weakness, having to pay for porn?

4) I get that there are reserved and restricted areas. I'm toying with the notion of, conditions permitting, setting up a Pétanque court. It doesn't need to be regulation size but I also don't want to come off as a space hog or, worse yet, risk being chased around the playa by irrate burners menancingly brandishing steel balls (at least not until later in the week, anyway). Are there any written in stone mandates, general guidelines, unwritten practices in terms of space limitation in setting up one's camp?

TIA

[Token]

1. No you will not be denied entry if you lack a fire extinguisher.

2. Yes, immobilize the bike if there isn't a bikerack to secure to.

3. The laptop will be fine. The battery may lose it's mojo. Take out the battery and put it in the tent. Btw, tent won't be much cooler.

4. The closer you are to the Esplanade the more packed it gets. There are no rules but common sense and courtesy go a long way.

[Eric]

Token covered it. I'll add-

2) Lock your tires to the frame. The idea is to keep someone from just grabbing it ("by accident") and using it to get back to their camp. If it's not east to take it probably won't be taken. Keep it locked up in your camp when you're there as well.

4)Set up your court on the backstreets. Lots of space out there. If neighbors want to expand into that space, talk to them. Go from there.

[geekster]

4. The closer you are to the Esplanade the more packed it gets. There are no rules but common sense and courtesy go a long way.

I would also add, don't let the Monday through Wednesday culture lull you into thinking things won't be so bad. The population doubles from Thursday to Saturday as the "weekenders" show up. You will go from almost no line for ice to a line half way down the block in a space of 24 hours.

[AntiM]

Insulated lunchbag or collapsible cooler (dry) will help keep a laptop/battery cool.

[C.f.M.]

I had my laptop in my tent, no problems. I was also back on 9, though, nowhere near the front.

[gyre]

Hoop lock is adequate.
Chain is good, esp security chain, abus, etc.
Proof lifting chain is good, but not even on the same planet.

Only the most exotic cables can't be easily cut.

Locks vary a lot.

If you're traveling, good security may be worth the money to you anyway.

[MisaBlue]

Hi Sic Pup!

The Wise already answered and as a newbie I cannot say more than good luck!

But I am really interested in your no. 4 - Petanque court, that is so cool, I love to play that game and playa actually seems to me as the biggest playground one could ever get
So, if you keep this plan, please post here, where you will (probably) be camping. I would love to stop by, say hi and have a game

[gyre]

Personally, I would leave the laptop in the car, at the bottom of the trunk or floor.
Cover to hide and insulate.

[C.f.M.]

I usually take bocce to burns. It's incredibly fun. We play "traveling bocce," where we just throw the pallino, play a round, then walk up to wherever the pallino was, pick up all the balls, throw it again, and keep moving. People jump in and out of the game as we travel all over the entire burn area.

[theCryptofishist]

I want steel balls.
(NTS--Find the balls for your game...)

[phil]

> There are no rules but common sense and courtesy go a long way.

There is no common sense.

[theCryptofishist]

> There are no rules but common sense and courtesy go a long way.

There is no common sense.

Indeed. What is called "common sense" is just cultural biases instilled so early that we have no idea that they are there.

Unless you're talking about real-life physics sense, if something's heavy or light for its size, for instance.

[Dr. Pyro]

What good would common sense be in a thread titled Dumbass?

[Token]

I stand corrected!

Stake out you full game court, swat everyone with a broom and tell them to fuck off cuz you were there first and unless they are willing to blow you on the spot, fuckall to hell.

[Savannah]

2) Lock your tires to the frame. The idea is to keep someone from just grabbing it ("by accident") and using it to get back to their camp. If it's not east to take it probably won't be taken. Keep it locked up in your camp when you're there as well.

This is what I do--lock the bike to itself when I hop off, somewhere away from camp. There are lots of unlocked bikes that are easier to steal than one that is at least temporarily immobilized. I also tend to light my bike distinctively so that if it's twilight or later & it starts moving away from me as it shouldn't, I notice.

Back at camp, I lock it to something more substantial & don't leave it right out by the edge of the street.

I have never actually had a fire extinguisher because I don't have any open flames at camp, but I think this year I'm going to bring one. I might not use flame, but other people do--art cars, fire-breathing, cooking, fire pits--and people do camp close together. I think I'm going to stop pressing my luck & have one just in case.

[mudpuppy000]

4) I get that there are reserved and restricted areas. I'm toying with the notion of, conditions permitting, setting up a Pétanque court. It doesn't need to be regulation size but I also don't want to come off as a space hog or, worse yet, risk being chased around the playa by irrate burners menancingly brandishing steel balls (at least not until later in the week, anyway). Are there any written in stone mandates, general guidelines, unwritten practices in terms of space limitation in setting up one's camp?

TIA

There's miles and miles of open playa just outside the camping area. That'd be a great place. I like the traveling version that C.F.M. mentioned too, that sounds like fun.

[portaplaya]

You are bringing too much water for standard use by one person, by almost double.

With frequent showers, you might use 2 gal per day. Normal use is 1.5 gal per day, including brushing teeth, doing dishes, staying hydrated.

Since a gallon of water weights exactly 8 pounds you are definitely going to want to avoid bringing more than you will use. One person, eight days, 12 gallons. Best to bring three five gallon empty containers and pay $7.50 in Gerlach to get them filled there, so your weight stays low until the last moment.


Also, a black car won't get any hotter at BM that it does left in a parking lot anywhere else on a hot summer day. You can test your car at home today and decide if the trunk heat is running too high for your laptop.

[Sic Pup]

I want steel balls.

So did I, then I found these



Now I have LED-backlit colored balls that BLINK.

Thanks for the advice all, particularly the water thing and holding the space hostage for sexual favors.
I think I might get comfortable on the playa.

[C187]

2) Do as Eric says..

3) Last year I brought my laptop with me for the drive. While waiting in line I bagged (like ziplock) it after it was cool and waited till I got to camp to store it in the cargo area of the crv. The cargo area of that crv has a removable table with a space under it big enough for a large laptop. So I just chucked it under that. When I got it out it was cool to the touch and the bag kept the dust out. If you don't have a space like that in your vehicle.. I'd suggest you remove the battery, place the bagged laptop under a blanket on one side, and do the same for the battery on the other side. Because while unlikely, batteries going boom are not fun, and at least you'll still have your data. If your ultra parodied, pick up a anti-static bag.

4) Be on the look out for camps with things posted in front. Could be anything from a no smoking sign, to a no public sign. If you walk slightly (like two feet from the road) into a camp and people get mean, or someone grabs you. Tell them to fuck off only how a east coaster can. Otherwise be on the look out for camps that have areas open to the public one day or during the day, but close it off to the general public the next day or at night. (Suspended Animation does this, but they clearly post info out front like a responsible camp.)

[Bluemandrew]

3) I'm traveling from the East Coast on a three week jaunt and will be exploring some of the west afterwards since I'll be in the "neighborhood". As Such I would like to take my laptop for non playa use. My car is black. From what I've read about dust one probably wouldn't want to crack thier windows to vent some of the heat. I'm an orphan and at this stage my setup will be a studio so to speak. Will the heat in the car/tent be enough to do damage? Would you feel comfortable leaving it concealed but unlocked in an unoccupied tent? Or should I leave the thing home and risk, in a moment of weakness, having to pay for porn?

So last year I had this project that I needed to view video output on occasionally. I only had a laptop with an X11 spy cam adapter to do this with, so naturally I took my work laptop (because it was my only Windows machine...)

I remember more than once sitting on the ground, with my mask and goggles on and a dust storm blowing right through camp, with my laptop on my lap. I also left it on the floor of my (very) dusty tent in sleep mode the entire time. I had no real problems back in defaultia with the machine, using it daily. We even fired up my girlfriend's machine to DL someone's pictures off of their camera (our camera broke so we just stole everyone else's pictures, oddly enough you get a lot more candid pictures of yourself on vacation if you do this with a friend.)

I am an IT guy though, so my laptops get treated like tools. Hand tools. Like hammers. I also didn't give a shit if it fried, cause I would just fix it.

This is just a story though, not a recommendation. The work laptop was an HP and Mindy's is a Dell. Haven't had any issues with them at all.

Edit: Also I didn't clean them once I got home. Just through it back into its bag and went to work.

[velocirafter]

3) I'm traveling from the East Coast on a three week jaunt and will be exploring some of the west afterwards since I'll be in the "neighborhood". As Such I would like to take my laptop for non playa use. My car is black. From what I've read about dust one probably wouldn't want to crack thier windows to vent some of the heat. I'm an orphan and at this stage my setup will be a studio so to speak. Will the heat in the car/tent be enough to do damage? Would you feel comfortable leaving it concealed but unlocked in an unoccupied tent? Or should I leave the thing home and risk, in a moment of weakness, having to pay for porn?

So last year I had this project that I needed to view video output on occasionally. I only had a laptop with an X11 spy cam adapter to do this with, so naturally I took my work laptop (because it was my only Windows machine...)

I remember more than once sitting on the ground, with my mask and goggles on and a dust storm blowing right through camp, with my laptop on my lap. I also left it on the floor of my (very) dusty tent in sleep mode the entire time. I had no real problems back in defaultia with the machine, using it daily. We even fired up my girlfriend's machine to DL someone's pictures off of their camera (our camera broke so we just stole everyone else's pictures, oddly enough you get a lot more candid pictures of yourself on vacation if you do this with a friend.)

I am an IT guy though, so my laptops get treated like tools. Hand tools. Like hammers. I also didn't give a shit if it fried, cause I would just fix it.

This is just a story though, not a recommendation. The work laptop was an HP and Mindy's is a Dell. Haven't had any issues with them at all.

Edit: Also I didn't clean them once I got home. Just through it back into its bag and went to work.

I'd love to see the inside of that laptop, it must look like a beach

[Bluemandrew]

I'd love to see the inside of that laptop, it must look like a beach

Yeah I should probably mention I never cleaned it because I don't really want to know what the inside of it looks like.

It shed dust out of the edge of the screen for quite a while.

My boss awesomely enough found all of this out when a co-worker threw me under the bus about it in the middle of a meeting.

[swampdog]

yeah, 22 posts in this thread and I still want to put in my .02

re: fire extinguisher - I think you may be reading something from the pyro requirements. If you plan to have fire effects you need an extinguisher, etc. Otherwise, no.

re: securing your bike - it's not like there are bands of roving bicycle thieves roaming the playa. Most bike theft seems to be when someone takes someone else's bike because they're too lazy/stoned/stupid to find their own, or they find themselves farther away than they meant to be and are too lazy/stoned/stupid to walk back or some such scenario. You only need to secure it enough that the lazy/stoned/stupid will skip yours. After all, the running assumption is they're lazy/stoned/stupid, they're not going to bring great resources to defeating your lock.

[gyre]

There are professional thieves out there.
But the most common threat is casual theft.

How much would you miss your bike if you don't have it?
Even if it's a cheap bike, how will you do without it?
Act accordingly.

[journey]

In past years I would just velcro the tire to the frame--the assumption being that stoned/lazy/stupid would move on to an easier to take bike. Perhaps risky, but I have not had any problems with this. Then again, I have already had two theft scenarios happen this year, maybe I don't want to risk a third...

[Magpie]

2) Do as Eric says..

3) Last year I brought my laptop with me for the drive. While waiting in line I bagged (like ziplock) it after it was cool and waited till I got to camp to store it in the cargo area of the crv. The cargo area of that crv has a removable table with a space under it big enough for a large laptop. So I just chucked it under that. When I got it out it was cool to the touch and the bag kept the dust out. If you don't have a space like that in your vehicle.. I'd suggest you remove the battery, place the bagged laptop under a blanket on one side, and do the same for the battery on the other side.

Beware placing your laptop under a blanket! I did that once and discovered, to my chagrin, that my warranty does not cover ass damage!

[ygmir]

Magpie:
are we related?
Mom?

[RichieRiot]

Just a note on fire extinguishers:

You can pick up a small one from a hardware store like Home Depot or Harbor Freight Tools and just keep it in your trunk all year round for about $20. I keep one in my van near my spare tire, with my other roadside repair items, like jumper cables.

It may seem a bit much to keep one in the car all the time... but while driving about ten years ago I came across a car on the side of the road who had a small fire start in the engine. I was able to help put it out before the fire department was able to get there due to heavy traffic.

You may not have open fire in your camp, but your neighbor may. Since they are so cheap, it's just worth having one in general.

[gyre]

Be sure to get the correct type for a vehicle, typically more expensive.