Re: The 2025 Burning Man Bar is open

[FIGJAM]

For some reason I can't "Add Files" anymore.

[ygmir]

For some reason I can't "Add Files" anymore.

Hi FJ!
yeah, me too. This happened the other day and got resolved, maybe by Trilo? I know he was going to ask tech to look at it.
youtube links are working it seems, though

[Elorrum]

I don’t remember what it stands for. Campfire..?

Add files I can’t figure either… I try to get it smaller and smalller in size, and a larger one goes through and a smaller one not. Eh.

[FIGJAM]

When I "add file", it goes in the proper line, but the only option it gives is "delete".

[lucky420]

For some reason I can't "Add Files" anymore.

Hi FJ!
yeah, me too. This happened the other day and got resolved, maybe by Trilo? I know he was going to ask tech to look at it.
youtube links are working it seems, though

Thanks for the sweet tunes

*dances backwards out the door

[trilobyte]

Attachments are at capacity. The add files crowd used up all the available space. Since some number of the files that make up the total attachments are things that were sent as private messages, when sent messages get deleted it can effectively give back some capacity, but I'm not sure how often that happens.
If and when we're ever given a larger disk space allotment it will be increased, but until then use the img tag and paste the URL of the image address to display pictures.

[trilobyte]

Whew, long day of running around. Puttered around with some little projects like getting labels on the circuit breakers and putting auto-close hinges on a couple doors while waiting for a service tech to come sort out something that was misbehaving on the pool, then made my first run to the local dump with some stuff I'd been meaning to take over a while ago. From there it was over to the garden center to figure out the parts and pieces I'll need for a project I want to get cracking on over the next week.

[ygmir]

For some reason I can't "Add Files" anymore.

Hi FJ!
yeah, me too. This happened the other day and got resolved, maybe by Trilo? I know he was going to ask tech to look at it.
youtube links are working it seems, though

Thanks for the sweet tunes

*dances backwards out the door

I"m having a vision....

wow Trilo! ambitious and busy you!
thanks for the explanation.
too bad there's not a way to delete very old photos? Other than scrolling back through all my posts. hahaaa.
I'm probably responsible for several.

[Elorrum]

Good morning bar. Seems a feature we like is gone, and it’s our fault for using it up? Is eplaya on the way out?

[trilobyte]

It's a catch-22. Even if people could edit old posts with no time limit, asking people who took the easy route (attaching file vs. linking the URL of where a thing is hosted/posted) to put in a lot of effort to remove the attachments is probably not going to get much traction. And trying to scrub attachments in bulk effectively breaks the old content.

The last few years have been a bit of turmoil from a tech team perspective, but once I'm able to get connected to the right folks I should be able to not only get a whole bunch of our long-overdue upgrades scheduled, but get a sense of if/when I can get our attachments capacity increased.

This morning's batch of nogoodnicks seemed small, so be on the lookout of another wave of jerkos hitting the board this morning. I've got a handful of errands and things going on, not sure when I'll be able to pop my head back in. Have a great Friday.

[Elorrum]

“The easy route?” Posting pictures we can see as we scroll is lazy and shouldn’t be supported? Sadness. I really don’t like clicking on links that I have no idea where they’ll take me. Trilo, Do you have a hosting service free, to suggest?
Thank you for your efforts, I understand times have changed things.

[FlyingMonkey]

It's a catch-22. Even if people could edit old posts with no time limit, asking people who took the easy route (attaching file vs. linking the URL of where a thing is hosted/posted) to put in a lot of effort to remove the attachments is probably not going to get much traction. And trying to scrub attachments in bulk effectively breaks the old content.

The last few years have been a bit of turmoil from a tech team perspective, but once I'm able to get connected to the right folks I should be able to not only get a whole bunch of our long-overdue upgrades scheduled, but get a sense of if/when I can get our attachments capacity increased.

This morning's batch of nogoodnicks seemed small, so be on the lookout of another wave of jerkos hitting the board this morning. I've got a handful of errands and things going on, not sure when I'll be able to pop my head back in. Have a great Friday.

Can we at least get a barf emoji? There is space for 1 more over there on the right.

Where can a guy get a drink around here. I thought this was a bar and not a nanny service.

[ygmir]

*wanders in, starts ECM*
Hi gang.
I'm hoping to be up to riding my War Rabbitt soon, till then I have to just shuffle through the swinging doors.
I, too, very rarely click on links. Not only suspicious, but some of the most link posting posters bore me and seem so very myopic and self righteous. Though some posts are droll, to me, I mostly avoid the links, especially when it's just a link on the post.
But, it's Saturday!
*clicks tv remote*

[Elorrum]

Hey cartoons! That makes it officially Saturday. I used photobucket for years to upload the photoshop amusements I had fun with here. @6$ a month, I said no thank you. Just opened an Imgur account this morning to see if it would work here.

[ygmir]

SCC link test.
I guess I didn't realize links would play live without clicking?

[Elorrum]

I guess I didn't realize links would play live without clicking?

That’s neat! I like a free fireplace channel, various kinds of fires indoors outdoors, with sounds or music, half hour programs, a nice ambient flicker telling my caveman brain that warmth and safety are near.

[burner von braun]

Yep, I used photobucket for several years here too. It was great... until it wasn't. Switched to imgur, but in my experience, it feels much more clunky, and I've had mixed results. There have been times when it simply seemed to refuse to cooperate. Other times, it framed my artwork/image with its own logo when I tried to post it, and I couldn't find a way to clear it off or upload it cleanly. Nope, sorry, not interested in that. And then, on occasion, it has worked fine.

Thing is, if I'm interpreting how this all works correctly, if you use the 'Add Image' technique, then a person has to have an eplaya account and be logged in to see other people's artwork. If you use the image link method, everyone can see it at any time. For me, I like that technique; the more the merrier. And now, come to find out, apparently 'Add file' has a maximum file space that it can accommodate. That was news to me when Trilo mentioned it.

On a slightly different note, I'm thinking that perhaps the reason that yg's fire image here plays automatically is because it's a .gif file, rather than a video file such as an mp4? I get out of my depth pretty quickly though on this sort of stuff.

Anyhow... are there any image hosting sites out there that work smoothly and easily, that would be a 'best practice' for those of us wishing to post things to eplaya without clogging up the works?

[trilobyte]

Invariably, providing a free thing on the internet only really happens because somebody is picking up the tab. ePlaya, for example, happens because the open source software is free and the hosting involved is largely done on the cheap.

Commercial companies operating a service need to find ways to turn the "free" service into a way for them to generate revenue. Sometimes they launch super free and then start offering subs or searching out ways to monetize once they have some momentum (figuring that users rely on the service so much that they'll turn a blind eye to whatever they're doing. That's Google and Facebook and the like in a nutshell... in both their cases, it's free because you are the product.

Image hosting has been a bit more complicated, because a lot of the way hosted images are used (embedding) makes it tough to monetize (that's the main reason ppl can't just easily embed pics they give to FB). Photobucket, smugmug and others were awesome in their loss leader years, they were so caught up in the hype of building a userbase at all costs that they weren't worried about the costs. Eventually, though, they need to start being accountable, and they sometimes either limit the ability to embed or they start requiring paid subscriptions. I've used tumblr a lot in the past, it's a few extra clicks to create an image post on a tumblr blog, but they seem to embed well. I've also made use of wordpress, since I already have a couple sites built on wordpress that include an amount of image/file hosting, I can just upload something there and copy the URL if I need to.

It's a bit of a lazy Sunday lounge-about for us, we don't do traditional holidays so it's just a nice relaxing Sunday. Geeking around with a couple projects and talking about the stuff we want to get done in the next few months, and enjoying a pint or three of Guinness.... *pours a round for the bar* Cheers!

[ygmir]

*notes War Rabbitt riding in on Da Mule, or Da Mules cousin (twins named Patty and Duke) *


this seems to work fine, thanks Trilo!

I hope everyone has a nice day, however or if, you believe.
We seem to have lost the will, often, to wish "the best" for people we disagree with. That's sad.
You may well perceive God, a hairy thunderer, or Cosmic Muffin 100 internet points for reference, but I still hope you have fun with it!
*starts ECM, heads for ROS*

[Elorrum]

*Sets out Cheese doodles for da mule*
I support most things that people use to endure and thrive. “Not my cup of tea” can go a long way. I take solace and strength from a power outside of myself. I appreciate any well wishing. A little more kindness never hurts.

Cheap ham and chocolate tomorrow!

Cheers, Bar!

[burner von braun]

Thanks for the reply Trilo, I appreciate the info and feedback.

...and good to see War Rabbit and daMule's cousin out stretching their legs this afternoon! Lol!

[trilobyte]

Love the war rabbit!

In project news, I got approval from the boss to start work on building the shop table. Woohoo! I've been planning this piece since we got the place. And 8' ish x 4' ish workshop table, to be used indoors and outdoors as various projects need it. Pressure treated lumber and commercial grade plywood, on heavy duty casters and designed to withstand all kinds of abuse. After getting that built and getting some much-needed electrical work done we'll finally be in a place where we can think about doing burner community workshop nights, something I've wanted to be able to do for years and years...

[ygmir]

*strolls in, starts ECM*
HI gang!
Sounds like a nice table, Trilo! I'd be curious for the reasoning behind pressure treated lumber? Typically, you can get a better grade and grain structure in standard Douglas fir, and depending on your source, you can pick through and find some #1 or select structural quality. How thick for the plywood and at what span?
Sorry for all the detailed questions...I've made quite a few work tables, and I abuse them with my granite work and such, so have other ideas if you'd like. I can share them here, or PM if you are at all interested.
Also, I have a couple of 1/2" plate steel top and steel leg tables, and one made from 2x1/4 bar on edge every 1/2".
Not sure how much "pounding" you'd be doing on them, but removable casters is a thought if you are indeed going to bang with big hammers.
Stacked joints with gussets are more able to take impact than depending on shear from screws or bolts.
Sorry for all the babbling, just some random thoughts...let me know if I can help.

*strokes Juke, heads for ROS*

[trilobyte]

I went with pressure treated for the framework since it's going to be used both indoors and outdoors. We've got plenty of garage space, plus room in the driveways and a big paved section on a side yard, this will be something we can use on whatever we want to do in either of those spaces. I'll top it with a fairly rugged commercial grade pine plywood that they showed me at the lumberyard when I was in a little while ago on another project. The casters I've got are pretty heavy duty but will also be removable, though I don't think I'll be doing that much heavy pounding on them. I imagine it'll be used mostly for woodworking and some metalworking, but if I'm starting up something that might be a heavier duty project I will be able to take the casters off. I'll take and post pics of the progress in a work in progress thread as I get into it.

Last night's burner Mondays meetup was fun. Somebody celebrating a birthday, a bit of burlesque fun, and lots of people getting excited about their camps.

[trilobyte]

Wow, just saw some news about a nor'easter pummeling parts of the northeast! A foot of snow, couple hundred thousand without power, and it's the 19th of April! Gotta build up that fire, or maybe get an electric version of the never-ending blanket!

[ygmir]

*strolls in , starts ECM*
HI Trilo!
your table sounds great. Can't wait to see photos. My point about the pressure treated, is, unless you have direct ground contact, and or long long periods of sitting in water/constant rain, the P.T. is not necessary. Slivers from it are a bummer and tend to infect easier, and are more painful due to the toxicity of the copper compounds. Also, you can select a nicer grade of plain douglas fir, since you can see the grain structure much better, and it will be stronger wood. I'm guessing your P.T. lumber is Hem fir, which is good, but it's not Doug fir...
Of course, I'm not telling you what to do, nor judging your fine plan. Just offering some thoughts from experience.
Maybe resurrect the "what are you making" or whatever that thread name was? That was a fun thread anyway.
*builds fire in S.C.C.*
for our friends getting more winter:


and to be fair, the NEB works best with friends for cuddling for warmth. When our cold friends come in, we can just dog pile them and pull the NEB over us all!

*heads for ROS*

[trilobyte]

Thanks, but I'm pretty comfortable with my lumber choices for the project. I just need to get the time to start getting it done

Aside from that shop table project, I have a bunch of yard junk to do. We recently got a tiller (cool tool for breaking up ground, used for gardening), which I'm looking forward to getting familiar with. The ground in Las Vegas is this crazy stuff called caliche that makes hard pack playa seem like warm butter. It's often described as a natural concrete. Trying to dig a hole or even turn a little dirt with a shovel is just about useless, it's either back-breaking work with a pickaxe or using power tools.

Since the house we got had been owned by a couple half-ass real estate flippers and had an owner who hadn't done much outside, the ground is super hardened. We've got some stuff growing in pots, but if we want to do any gardening in the ground it'll take some work. That plus trying to loosen up some ground to put in a trench for drip irrigation to take better care of the trees. Before I can play with the fancy tiller, though, I've got to spend the day shoveling the gravel stones out of the way (in this town, everything that isn't paved is covered in gravel).

Last night we got to have some good (and cheap) fun... one of the resorts near here does a big floral art installation in springtime in a bunch of their public spaces. They had hot air balloons and airships and giant hummingbirds and peacocks and things, all made of different kinds of flowers. It opened several weeks ago and runs through the middle of next month, and it's free. We've been talking about wanting to check it out for a while, and yesterday finally got around to it. As an added bonus, we got a chance to stroll over and take a look at Bliss Dance in her forever home...



It felt a little perfect, the winds picked up quite a bit as we were walking over, and while she was posing for the picture they had to be over 40mph. Reminded us of seeing her on the bay (it used to be installed at Treasure Island) or like a less dusty version of the playa.

[FIGJAM]

I deal with that "hard ground" all the time.

A 35 pound electric demo hammer is ideal for digging holes. (I think your tiller will just bounce on that ground.)

The hammers can be rented for about $35 a day. But knowing how much you like to play in the yard, you may want to invest in buying one.

Mine cost about $750 and is pro grade, but you won't be using it daily, so something like this should do everything you want.


VEVOR Demolition Jack Hammer, 2200W Electric Demolition Jack Hammer w/ 4 Bits clay spade chisel & scraping chisel & flat chisel & pointed chisel, 1400 RPM Concrete Breaker, 360° ROTARY Electric Hammer for $150.

[trilobyte]

Here's a pic of a few of the smaller pieces...



In a sense, it's like nature's kidney stones. I think what happens is that the local groundwater and rain water is super hard and filled with all kinds of sediment and whatnot. As it soaks down into the clay, the sediments and stuff congeal or calcify or whatever fancy term there is for it. It's not like a shell that covers the entire ground (though one of the contractors I was talking to said his place on the far west of town it is a thick shell), it's reminds me more of potatoes or yams. As I was working on my soaker tube trench I noticed that the stuff seems to form underneath all the really big roots of our tree. I was able to get the roots free with a small one-handed pick tool, hopefully that makes Mr. Mulberry Tree a bit happier.

The tiller gets right through the caliche for me (and it's not even a super powerful model). I mean, ideally over time I'd like to have all the fun power tools, but we're expanding our arsenal slowly. I feel confident that we'll get quite a bit of use out of this thing for the yard.

And... dammit, I had the wrong size pressure reducer for the job. For a soaker line (think a big spongy tube that the water oozes out of), I need to reduce the hose pressure down to 10psi, and what I had was 30psi - the kind of pressure that you'd want for a drip line with little bubblers for plants. I'll use the parts I have on another part of the yard so hooray for no waste, but blargh, it'll be a day or two to get the parts I need.

Hot and messy days like today make me happy we've got a pool to cool off in.

[FIGJAM]

Caliche is clay and the contractor is right about it usually runs in shell like slabs.

It's the same as any clay, but here (and there) wet and baked every year till it turns into something like a badly baked ceramic.

Too hard for most tools, but too soft to break out in chunks.

Layers are anywhere from1" to 4' thick.

I've dug holes and filled them with water to soak only to come back the next day to find them still full of water like a ceramic bowl.

I'm glad you don't have that issue. :)