sunrat Posted April 3, 2023 Share Posted April 3, 2023 22 hours ago, crp said: work grumpy from lack of sleep? these tips might help - https://www.sciencealert.com/a-bad-nights-sleep-can-ruin-your-work-day-heres-what-you-can-do-about-it Quote 4. Watch a funny video Sounds like a plan! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted April 6, 2023 Share Posted April 6, 2023 (edited) PLATO: How an educational computer system from the ’60s shaped the future Quote Forums, instant messaging, and multiplayer video games all started here. Quote Bright graphics, a touchscreen, a speech synthesizer, messaging apps, games, and educational software—no, it's not your kid's iPad. This is the mid-1970s, and you're using PLATO. Quote Quote The front end was a consumer TV set wired up with a self-maintaining storage tube display and a small keypad originally used for the Naval Tactical Defense System. On-screen slides appeared from a projector under ILLIAC's control and were manipulated by the control keys, and ILLIAC could overlay the slides with vector graphics and text at 45 characters per second via what Bitzer and Braunfeld called an “electronic blackboard.” The system offered interactive feedback at a time when most computer interaction was batched. The computer was christened PLATO in 1960 and was later backronymed as "Programmed Logic for Automatic Teaching Operations." Only one user could run lessons at a time, but the prototype worked. Quote There was no facility in those days that could handle simultaneous graphics terminals in significant numbers, so entirely custom system software was developed, along with a specialized authoring language called TUTOR. TUTOR was crafted in 1967 at the new Computer-based Education Research Laboratory (CERL) so that, in Bitzer's words, “teachers of lesson material [could] function as authors of the material without becoming computer experts.” Quote Teachers entered TUTOR programs on a PLATO terminal itself using an editor facility called "author mode." Author mode was protected by a single global password, so the manual took pains to remind instructors to “[n]ever let any student or other unauthorized individual see how you shift a terminal to AUTHOR MODE.” Quote Of course, education wasn't the only thing PLATO III was doing. Spacewar! had made a big splash on the PDP-1 in 1962, and Richard Blomme ported it to the network in 1969 using custom character graphics to draw spaceships instead of vectors. Players could duel each other and pick opponents off a “big board.” It was by no means the last game PLATO users would play. Quote Ostensibly, such features allowed administrators, teachers, and students to communicate productively, consistent with PLATO's educational aims. But PLATO's response time was so swift that messaging was practically instantaneous and became highly addictive, and system usage skyrocketed as a result; users hung out in channels waiting for people to drop by to talk to (or sometimes to flirt with). It was a level of interactivity few had ever experienced before, and it represented some of the first social interactions communicated entirely via computer. Quote Another lasting idea came from 16-year-old student employee David Woolley, who developed the 1973 PLATO Notes bulletin-board system. Originally a project Paul Tenczar assigned him for bug reporting, the system grew into a general message board and then into Kim Mast's private Personal Notes (“PNOTES”) by the end of 1974, or what we would now call an early form of email. The later Lotus Notes took its name and inspiration from it. Quote Games started appearing on the system as well. Early PLATO IV users flocked to “big board” listings from which players could choose opponents for chess, dogfighting, and card games, but subsequent diversions were more sophisticated. These included a 1974-5 TUTOR implementation of Dungeons & Dragons ('dnd') with the first known game boss and an early roguelike with the opaque name 'pedit5' (named after the program slot it was saved to), which author Rusty Rutherford constantly restored despite administrators' repeated attempts to delete it. There was also 1973's Empire I, probably the first networked multiplayer arena shooter, written by Iowa State student John Daleske in TUTOR with the assistance of Silas Warner at Indiana University over -pad-. (Silas Warner, inspired by other dungeon games on the platform, later became famous as the designer of Castle Wolfenstein for Muse Software.) Quote The first 3D flight simulator, Air Race, ran on PLATO IV in 1974; it was also the first multiplayer flight simulator and is believed to be a major influence on UIUC student Bruce Artwick's home computer Flight Simulator series (itself the ancestor of Microsoft Flight Simulator). Back in Urbana, local high school users started blocking senior users from signing on after hours so they could run large multiplayer games. The problem snowballed to such an extent that Urbana police subsequently asked Bitzer to institute a 9 pm curfew for users under the age of 16. A background program nicknamed “The Enforcer” sought out game sessions during high usage and tried to terminate or disable them with varying success as users started to obfuscate their activities. Quote But even if you weren't around for PLATO in its prime, that doesn't mean you'll never get to experience it. After VCampus went under, the business and assets reverted to its former CEO, who granted permission for a non-commercial release of CYBIS. One such instance is Cyber1, which maintains a public instance accessible over the Internet using the open source PTerm client, available for Windows, macOS (including Power Macs), and Linux. PTerm adds color support and can even execute Micro-TUTOR lessons from disk images. Much of the experience from PLATO's heyday, including its famous games, are available. More interested in the backend? Run your own installation on top of the dtCYBER package, which emulates a CDC 6600-compatible Cyber 175. The package includes a CYBIS disk image with CDC's NOS operating system, a boot tape image, and PTerm. Fascinating article. Edited April 6, 2023 by abarbarian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V.T. Eric Layton Posted April 6, 2023 Share Posted April 6, 2023 4 hours ago, abarbarian said: Forums, instant messaging, and multiplayer video games all started here. Hmm... now I know on whom to lay blame for all this $hit. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 9, 2023 Author Share Posted April 9, 2023 (edited) I thought the French were first . Edited April 9, 2023 by crp added minitel photo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 9, 2023 Author Share Posted April 9, 2023 https://blog.physics-astronomy.com/astronomy/astronomers-discover-the-largest-reservoir-of-water-in-space-equivalent-to-140-trillion-times-all-the-water-in-earths-oceans/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 16, 2023 Author Share Posted April 16, 2023 Not sure how to feel about this - https://blog.physics-astronomy.com/astronomy/new-research-claims-to-figure-out-where-are-all-the-aliens-why-we-havent-found-them-yet/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted April 16, 2023 Share Posted April 16, 2023 https://www.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES/fulldisk_band.php?sat=G18&band=GEOCOLOR&length=72&dim=1 Band=GeoColour Loop=72 Size=Large neat view https://rammb-slider.cira.colostate.edu/?sat=gk2a&sec=full_disk&x=11008&y=11008&z=0&angle=0&im=60&ts=2&st=0&et=0&speed=130&motion=rev&maps[borders]=white&mops[borders]=1&lat=0&p[0]=geocolor&opacity[0]=1&pause=0&slider=-1&hide_controls=0&mouse_draw=0&follow_feature=0&follow_hide=0&s=rammb-slider&draw_color=FFD700&draw_width=6 Live show Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 22, 2023 Author Share Posted April 22, 2023 no relation to S&G , https://www.lightandcomposition.com/reflections/language-of-silence/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted April 22, 2023 Share Posted April 22, 2023 The first round-the-world passenger cruise took place 100 years ago. Here’s what it was like on board Quote While the Laconia was built to accommodate some 2,200 passengers, American Express restricted passenger numbers on the 1922-23 world cruise to just 450. No traveler would be sleeping below deck in third class. There’d be no overcrowding. The aim was a luxurious experience, setting a new bar for travel for those with means. Quote At each port American Express offered the Laconia passengers guided excursions and tours, on site hotel stays and the chance to soak up local culture. Claudia writes of Darjeeling, India: “We climbed through forests after going through a village, getting gorgeous views of the valleys bathed in silver light and with veils of silver brushing against the mountains. We reached the top just as dawn was breaking, had coffee and climbed the round observation tower to see the sun rise.” Now if I had the loot and some company offered a cruise like that I would be tempted. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 23, 2023 Author Share Posted April 23, 2023 https://einsteinathome.org/content/results-deep-all-sky-search-ligo-o3-data 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 23, 2023 Author Share Posted April 23, 2023 yikes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunrat Posted April 24, 2023 Share Posted April 24, 2023 Aurora Australis seen from Victoria this morning. It's quite a rare occurrence as they usually are only seen further south. (For Americans - Victoria is the state in Australia where I live ). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 25, 2023 Author Share Posted April 25, 2023 https://nicenews.com/animals/fenders-blue-butterfly-not-endangered/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted April 25, 2023 Author Share Posted April 25, 2023 Hope Probe Snaps Surreal Image of Mars and Its Moon Together | PCMag Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted May 1, 2023 Share Posted May 1, 2023 On 4/24/2023 at 3:54 AM, sunrat said: Aurora Australis seen from Victoria this morning. It's quite a rare occurrence as they usually are only seen further south. (For Americans - Victoria is the state in Australia where I live ). Fantastic show. I want to see an aurora before the Valkyries come for me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted May 6, 2023 Author Share Posted May 6, 2023 too much information perhaps? https://www.popsci.com/science/roses-smell-chemistry-enzyme/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted May 6, 2023 Share Posted May 6, 2023 Race across the world - realy a race across Canada. Quote Five teams set off from Vancouver on a race across Canada. Without smartphones, internet access or credit cards, they will need plenty of ingenuity to make it to the finish line in Newfoundland. This is a fantastic series. I never knew Canada was so beautiful and the folks so friendly. Make me wish I had emigrated when I was younger. Even though I have a UK TV licence so am legally able to watch BBC programs through the BBC iPlayer I like to download and watch series in my own time. So I use, https://github.com/get-iplayer/get_iplayer An excellent open source program which is also useful for downloading radio plays etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted May 7, 2023 Author Share Posted May 7, 2023 well I saw this today https://www.physics-astronomy.com/astronomy/jupiter-the-only-planet-in-our-solar-system-that-doesnt-orbit-the-sun/ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V.T. Eric Layton Posted May 7, 2023 Share Posted May 7, 2023 I was aware of that, but it's still pretty amazing to try and fathom just how big Jupiter is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete! Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 I'm not wasting time ... It's medicinal. https://www.foxnews.com/health/internet-use-seniors-on-regular-basis-could-slash-their-dementia-risk-study-suggests 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zlim Posted May 10, 2023 Share Posted May 10, 2023 (edited) Hey Pete, we are not in that age range. Quote Among adults aged 50 to 64.9 I wonder about adults over 70 what our chances are? Or because we've been hanging when we were 50 to 64.9 are we now covered? Edited May 10, 2023 by zlim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted May 11, 2023 Share Posted May 11, 2023 22 hours ago, zlim said: I wonder about adults over 70 what our chances are? Quote "The principles make sense and underscore what we have always known: People need to remain engaged in life, whatever that looks like for them," Petersen said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V.T. Eric Layton Posted May 11, 2023 Share Posted May 11, 2023 1 hour ago, abarbarian said: People need to remain engaged in life, whatever that looks like for them.. I'm thoroughly engaged is being a poverty-stricken hermit... that's what it "looks like" to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete! Posted May 11, 2023 Share Posted May 11, 2023 On 5/10/2023 at 9:58 AM, zlim said: Hey Pete, we are not in that age range. I wonder about adults over 70 what our chances are? Or because we've been hanging when we were 50 to 64.9 are we now covered? Based on how long we've known each other without ever having met, I think we're "grandfathered". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted May 12, 2023 Share Posted May 12, 2023 She signed up to live on a cruise ship for three years. Here’s why Quote The cheapest rooms on the MV Gemini cost around $30,000 per year, including a discount for solo travelers. Lane calculated this cost was manageable, and decided to dive in. “By midnight that night, I had done enough research that I booked a room,” she says. Now, Lane is busy preparing for MV Gemini’s November disembarkation. She’s selling most of her possessions, giving up her rental lease and preparing for a long stint at sea. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V.T. Eric Layton Posted May 12, 2023 Share Posted May 12, 2023 2 hours ago, abarbarian said: giving up her rental lease and preparing for a long stint at sea. Yeah.,. NOPE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted May 12, 2023 Author Share Posted May 12, 2023 i dunno, i like microwave reheated coffee of standard quality - 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crp Posted May 25, 2023 Author Share Posted May 25, 2023 might be overpriced - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted May 25, 2023 Share Posted May 25, 2023 3 hours ago, crp said: might be overpriced - I'd buy one if I had the loot. Fab invention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abarbarian Posted May 27, 2023 Share Posted May 27, 2023 US to give away free lighthouses as GPS makes them unnecessary Quote Ten lighthouses that for generations have stood like sentinels along America’s shorelines protecting mariners from peril and guiding them to safety are being given away at no cost or sold at auction by the federal government. The aim of the program run by the General Services Administration is to preserve the properties, most of which are more than a century old. The development of modern technology, including GPS, means li Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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