Author Topic: Small Animal News  (Read 187628 times)

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Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #105 on: August 13, 2011, 02:03:48 am »
From Mikey's Blog.  The unnamed 'X' gave the following report, after completing his successful (though obviously temporary) infiltration of the gang.

"During the so-called off-season, the gang is desperate for whatever help they can get.  They needed a 'runner', a cat who could be trusted to move items and messages from one place to another.  I saw the opportunity and volunteered, knowing that I might eventually be trusted with secret and important communications, too sensitive to send over the electronic network.  For collecting intelligence, the position was about as good as it could get."

"The effect of hierarchy within the gang could be well felt.  In the beginning, a lot of the cats were quite physical and some, like P's de-facto right-hand-cat, T, would aggressively bump into me and try to knock me into walls or other cats.  Others, like J, seemed very blaze until I once was purring with F and then suddenly he charged at me from a distance, hissing and shrieking at me to 'keep my paws off her'.  It seems that all this was quite normal, any new cat in the gang would be tested to see where they would fall in the hierarchy and if they could be bossed or bullied around.  But the cats in gang that acted this way, I found them to be all hiss and no bite, I quickly found that they were weak fighters who simply could not back up their threats."

"As a runner, I was often employed by P, who was leery of R, at the time the manager of the technical electronic communication department.  R himself was a controversial cat, and when I started there was a lot of of back-and-forth between P and Z (a snake) about their plans to sack him.  Their messages were essentially scribbles, which I took the time to read even if I assured P I did not (and could not) read.  From the time I started, R's days were already numbered, the plotting between the two had R's pay pulled while at the same time, an ally of Z set up a new main server and physically detached the server that R had maintained from the gang network, and backed everything up just to be certain.  Once R realized that he was no longer receiving any income from the gang, he tried to hack into the gang's network through his server but failed since it was no longer connected.  When R realized his attempts had already been pre-empted, he threatened to lead a revolt against P, but it was hopeless as his support of the prior leader L had hurt his reputation among gang members so much that no cat would even consider taking his side against P."

"Shortly thereafter, P decided to do a purge.  All the cats were 'herded' into a room under the promise that gourmet cat food would be available in large quantities.  But instead, once all the cats gathered and were purring and licking their noses in anticipation, all the exits to the room were locked and P turned to his right-hand-cat, T, to lead something of a 'pep rally' praising himself.  T raised his right paw and mewled as loud as he could, expecting the other cats to follow what he said in perfect sync."

"The spectacle lasted no more than a few minutes, with chants akin to 'all hail El Presidente' and the like.  I played along and did my best to look enthusiastic like a lot of the other cats; about halfway through the rally I spotted a number of cameras that were trained on everyone.  No doubt they were watching us to ensure that we showed appropriate enthusiasm in praising the leadership of the gang."

"Afterwards, T produced a single can of gourmet cat food, citing budgetary cuts.  Some of the cats were naturally upset, and mass chaos ensued as they tried to fight each other, snatch, and grab the can in order to escape with it.  I don't know who ended up getting the can, but I did see P and T take advantage of the chaos to make a timely escape."

"The next day, several cats had disappeared and anyone who asked as simply told they were no longer part of the gang.  I believe the highest ranking member who got purged was the manager of the department of operational notice development.  Apparently most of the other cats thought little of it, the had become used to frequent purges under the former leadership of L and considered the purges under the newer leadership tame by comparison to the more frequent 'loyalty tests' and 'security checks' that had to be endured under him."

"After the purge, P must have felt more secure because he announced he no longer needed runners.  Instead I was moved to the collections department.  Our job was to go from door to door in our territory and extort the populace, primarily a variety of small animals and others who were unlucky enough to live in areas where the gang still had a grip."

"In practice, this job had become quite difficult.  Other cats in the department would often speak of the 'good ol days' where small animals knew if they did not pay up, they risked being eaten on the spot, or worse."

"Our misadventures were fraught with danger, and all the cats were on the edge.  The mere sound of a barking dog could send the cats running every which way and abort all collection activities for that day.  We kept hearing how our 'fat cats[1]' had big things in the works but most of us doubted they'd ever see it through the night[2]."

[1] similar to personal usage, somewhat derogatory term for lead cats

[2] another saying among cats, implies that it will be forgotten by the next day
« Last Edit: August 22, 2011, 08:11:44 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #106 on: August 30, 2011, 02:03:23 am »
Continued from the last post:

"E, who ran the department, was under a lot of pressure from P to bring in some income.  In response to his begging for help, P sent down three snakes, two small rattlers and a young boa.  But the move was largely symbolic, as the snakes were total loners and refused to work with the cats as part of the collection team.  They insisted on working alone and while they did manage to dispose of a few animals who were not paying up, they were still not able to collect anything at all.  Regarding these snakes, after one simply disappeared while out on a job, the other two were frightened by a rumor that the small animals had employed a mercenary king snake that was responsible for his disappearance.  They refused to go out and hence became quite useless to the department."

"It wasn't too long before E's disappearance was planned.  T, P's previously mentioned 'right paw', had doubts of E's loyalty and suspected that E was pocketing the income that the department was bringing in rather than sending it to P.  So I was to lead E into a trap where he would be assaulted by T and several other cats, who would dispose of him.  In exchange, I would be promoted to the new leader for the department."

"Recognizing this was a spoiled deal, instead I crossed T and explained the situation to E.  We schemed up the plan of leading T and his followers into our own trap, involving some of the dogs that C's small animals were employing.  I met with my patron and told him of the planned scheme, he called C on his radio and after a discussion, C agreed to send two dogs and a 'fighting bunny' squad to assist.  The plan was to wait for the two of us to go to the ambush point (as T had instructed) and then wait for T's forces to surround it and move in.  Shortly after, C's fighting bunnies would charge in to assist us, as well as the Pomeranian, while the Dachshund would stand by to chase down any of T's cats who tried to escape." 

"The plan worked quite well, leading to an almost comical scene where the fighting bunnies had formed a circle trapping T and his followers in the middle.  Meanwhile the Pomeranian and the two of us squared off against T and his several followers, once the Pomeranian identified T by his scent, he charged and tried to bite T, the rest of us kept the other cats from interfering and when some of them tried to split, they received powerful kicks from the bunnies, knocking them square off their paws and back into the center of the circle.  The fight went on for a short while, the Pomeranian grazing T with a few bites, enough to grab some fur but nothing else; despite being outnumbered by T's followers, we were able to at least hold our own and keep them from from defending T.  One of the cats that had tried to run and took a kick from the bunny was lying paws up on the ground, T grabbed his submitting comrade and swung him around, knocking the Pomeranian off balance and proceeded to throw his comrade at a bunny.  The bunny was knocked back by the impact, and he ran through the hole full speed before the bunny could recover.  As formerly planned, the Dachshund took after him, but would return empty handed.  Several seconds later, the rest of T's followers were either unable to fight or showing submission, they were taken away by the bunnies and once we learned P had escaped, we figured reinforcements would not be far behind so I bade E farewell and told him to take care of himself."

---

It is still a work in progress.  I will put up a new video when it is ready.  This is 6-7 times the power of the one in the video.  There is nothing wrong, it is just the usual development process delays.  The system itself works great, but it was a bit overpowered for the front-end supply.  The supply worked fine up to about 80W, but died when I tried to push it over that.  So now everything is powered direct, which meant redesigning the power source, mostly done.  Temperatures are okay, at full operation, the limiter core temperature is est. 105-110C of 125C rated maximum, surface temperature of that part 85C and the cooling is now powered separately rather than trying to get it from the direct source.  Everything else is well below its limits so it should work this time without any big problems. 

Update:  Probably next week, or whenever I have time.  Limiter core is down to about 85C at room temperature, surface around 65C.  Emitter surface is nominal, even at full power, 40C or less.

---

I am still getting questions about Cat Y, I know he had a lot of fans but this is starting to get kinda ridiculous.  I know like one person who is semi-close to Cat Y's owner and that's it, and people can talk to this guy on their own.  It's not like I care too much about Cat Y irl, he's not much of anything to me.  I saw him once in person, once, and I didn't think much of him.  Really, what's the big deal?

« Last Edit: September 06, 2011, 08:18:03 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #107 on: September 07, 2011, 01:18:02 am »
Yes.  It lasts through December if they are lucky, but will more likely run out in November.  Once it runs out, then all the vehicles they rely on for transport will come to a halt, the only way they can transport animals and/or goods is by walking and/or carrying.  Cat P has tried to implement several alternatives to replace the vehicles, but nothing has been well-received.

From Mikey, "At the current exchange rate, the cost to keep the vehicles running is coming in at roughly 400,000 baby carrots a day.  The funds just aren't there.  Defectors report that Cat P has constructed several alternative means of transport, such as a giant trebuchet known as 'the hurler', as it designed to hurl cats and cargo to their destination in a timely fashion.  'Victims' are issued parachutes, in the hope that they can avoid injury, but among the volunteers that Cat P used to test the device, approx. 57% received injuries, and of those, 29% received 'serious' injuries.  No right-minded cat will even go near the device, and Cat P has run out of volunteers and has problems finding more, especially during the [off-season]."

From an unnamed informant, "The chutes, which are provided by a sponsor of [the gang], are made of stamped paper in order to cut costs.  They have a prominent sponsored logo on the top and bottom.  The primary problem in their implementation is that the chute must be deployed near the apogee of the flight in order to be effective.  If the chute is deployed too early, tearing and breakage is common due to the high speed of travel, and the animal may be off target significantly without any means of correcting.  If the chute is deployed too late, a similar, more deadly mishap can take place.  Volunteers found that the best chances of survival was to ditch the chute in either of these circumstances, instead relying on their own innate abilities to land on their feet, hopefully unharmed."

Cat P claims the program as a success, claiming that it can reduce transportation costs to near-zero levels and reduce transit times significantly.  Some of other cats apparently overheard Cat Y asking 'why doesn't he use it himself, then'. 

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #108 on: September 10, 2011, 01:17:10 am »
It doesn't work.  The more you use it, the more likely you are to induce a failure, and not necessarily right then.  It could cause a failure in the future.

The most common cause of failure is environmental.  High temperature, ESD, liquids or other chemicals, etc.  Excessive use can also cause failures, reading can cause proximity failures while writing causes write failures. 

---

It's honestly taken a back seat to a lot of other things.  While it's interesting, it's simply not high on the list of priorities right now.  They have problems, the usual money problems, internal dominance struggles, and so on.  There's always a chance that they will pull through, just hang on really.  We know they are dying for 'something big' but he already sold his soul, he doesn't have anything else to tempt the devil into making another deal.  Public disclosure will come soon, and I can only guess what the response will be once that gets out in the open.  On both sides. 

---

Yes it is true, but it is minor.  The boss cat (P) was injured while trying to demonstrate his newly finished "Super Lift System".  Jokingly referred to by most other cats as "Pop and Drop".  The system involves strapping on four 'kitty boots', each with a prominent sponsor's logo and a disposable solid rocket engine.  And then standing in place on a mobile launcher, while an assistant (in this case, Cat T) activates the launcher and sends the user up into the air.  While he is rocketing into the sky, the user moves his paws to actively control the rocket thrust and get over his intended location.  When the rockets run out, a parachute is deployed and he falls back down to earth.  Sadly for the cat, who took a lot of pride in the system he had designed had a vital flaw, individual rocket engines could fizzle or fail to ignite, resulting in an inability to control the upward movement.

After his last misadventures with 'the hurler', no one even considered volunteering for the cat's latest scheme.  So sure of himself, he insisted that the system was perfectly safe and that he would be the first to demonstrate its use.  Secretly hoping that it would be his demise, many cats gathered as he strapped on the boots and his trusted henchman, T, readied the launcher.  When T pressed the ignition switch, only the front two engines ignited.  P is more than a bit overweight and this actually helped him in this case.  Instead of lifting him up, the front engines simply made a lot of smoke and pushed him backwards along the ground.  As the rear kitty boots were dragged off, he put out his claws to try to stop the reverse movement, but to no avail.  Behind-first, he barreled through a few bystanders who could not get out of the way quickly enough and kept going.  After several more seconds of rapid movement along the ground, he was thrust behind first into a containment wall which also stopped his movement.  About ten seconds later, the rocket engines went out.

In this debacle the boss cat suffered numerous bruises and abrasions but miraculously no broken bones or other injuries that required long-term treatments.  However, the damage to his ego is much greater, and there are whispers that his 'trusted' henchman, T, actually sabotaged the launch and set him up to fail. 
« Last Edit: September 16, 2011, 01:01:54 am by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #109 on: September 21, 2011, 02:02:55 am »
I've gotten numerous requests, here is the link.
http://www.cherryblossomfestivalsocal.org/media/dog_contest/dogphotopage.html
"Tofu
12 years old, Japanese Chin
Tofu went through a lot, but he is still one happy dog."

You can meet him and the others on the Blossom Stage 3:15pm this Sunday 9/25/2011

---

From Mikey's blog:

"It is propaganda.  If nothing else, he has a handle on propaganda.  At times, he even seems masterful of it.  But don't be mistaken.   He just has a lot of shills.  And he still has enough resources to keep his shills loyal to him (his soul hasn't run out just yet).  His tactics are rather straightforward, pedestrian.  Transparent.  He isn't really at the expert level."

"His right paw is actually more skilled than he is.  Sometimes.  But, his right paw is a pariah to everyone else.  He can't exist anywhere else except under the cat.  If the cat were to go away, he'd be done."

"(The Snake)'s statement is vague and prone to mis-interpretation.  It could mean just about anything.  If he was a master, this would just be a tactic of 'stomping the grass to scare the snake'.  The who, what, and why of his statement is unclear.  The pretext is unclear.  All throughout, they continue to try to make small animals look like the aggressors.  How ludicrous!  Small animals as the aggressors?  When I hear of the reports from the cat, it's like something out of Monty Python[1]."

"As always, we just don't know where the snake stands.  We don't.  Be wary of the snake.  Be especially wary of those who hang out with the snake.  Of course (it goes without saying) small animals should always be wary around snakes.  But be extra wary around this one.  Something just smells real funny here."

"It's a low-priority matter.  Ultimately, we'll know more in a few months.  But we'll keep you appraised if anything else develops."

[1] Mikey is alluding to the Vorpal Bunny from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

---

You can get translation (in english) of the text in the app.  Touch the screen once and outlines will appear around all the text that can be translated.  Touch the inside of an outline and the english translation appears below it.  Touch outside an outline to make all the outlines disappear (or re-appear).

"Going on an Errand"
"Hoo boy..."
"Darn it, I forgot to buy daikons."
"Mom."
"I'll go  buy some diakons for you, mom!"
"Well, is it all right to ask you?"
"Just leave it to me!"
"I'm the strongest, after all."
"That's my biggest worry."
etc.
« Last Edit: September 23, 2011, 10:21:52 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #110 on: September 28, 2011, 02:10:23 am »
We are aware, but honestly, everyone else knows just as much as we do on this topic.  Look around.

Publicly, the snake was known for his history of domestic violence and had fathered several illegitimate children.  He was well known to the local community of small animals as a danger to everyone.  He was believed to be 'into' sadism and domination. 

Mind you all these behaviors are considered 'the norm' for snakes.  If a small animal protection group was active in his area, and he was spotted, he would be quickly engaged.

Remember that if you must deal with snakes, please be aware and ask around at the local small animal hangouts like parks, bars, cafes, etc.  Listening to what others say is the best indication.  Just stay out of the coffee shops... definitely avoid the coffee shops, and libraries also.

---

It's a wordplay on Tsundere.  Tsun = nasty, arrogant, or mean; Dere = loving, soft-hearted, or kind.  So calling someone "All tsun, no dere" or "Tsun without the dere" obviously means that it's just a nasty or mean person without any redeeming qualities.  Though in some circles that may not be an insult.

---

I don't know if he (Tofu) won or not.  I was not there.  I don't expect he would have won, honestly a lot of the others were much cuter.  We were there for maybe 20 minutes tops on the other day.  It was such a yawner that no one wanted to go back.

---

There is no contradiction.  I know what it says but the reason it says that is because she changed.  She was Luka that July and Len that August.  Both the Rin and Len have Wings.  The Luka wears a black and gold dress and golden boots.
« Last Edit: October 04, 2011, 11:13:18 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #111 on: October 14, 2011, 02:24:06 am »
I don't think so, but we'll see if it (really) matters in due time.  Success, false success is the greatest threat to those who live under illusions.

And personally, I just don't care.  There's honestly no reason for me to care.

With things apparently cooling down, the Lepus alliance has recalled their skeleton crew back to the north to begin operations against the gang in their home area.  They say that there haven't been any cats spotted in their safe zone and that it appears the gang is 'clamping down', scaling down their activities to conserve what little fuel is left in their stores.

According to Mikey, the inside word is that Cat W is very close to being ousted as part of P's inner circle.  "W's support by the 'rank and file' of the gang has been teetering, and P doesn't think much of him either.  W can barely get the other cats to listen to him, much less consider what he says.  I don't expect he'll survive through the end of this year."  K, the japanese bobtail, is well respected and a threat to P.  P isn't terribly fond of him, but having already sold out, he can't get rid of him. 

---

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w337ij3wtXA
"Cirno's voice has been fixed.  All the voices are done by an actual girl"

Note:  16:19 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_ching#Trigrams

---

For snakes, this type of 'everyone is out to get me' paranoia is quite common.  In reality, snakes are territorial and solitary creatures that make a habit of avoiding other snakes.  And it's not uncommon for this general fear of others to extend to any type of animal, to the point that most snakes are simply not capable of any kind of cooperation with other animals. 

"It's just not in them.  A snake has no understanding of when to back off, when to slither forward, and so on.  If two snakes are forced into close proximity with each other, it will almost always end with a fight in which one snake eats the other."
« Last Edit: October 17, 2011, 11:48:02 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #112 on: October 29, 2011, 01:54:17 am »
Yes, and I can verify it.  According to Ollie there was no resistance at all, though I wouldn't conclude much else because it's just one guy honestly.  It's heavily hierarchical, we already know that.

"With the drop in security issues, the [skeleton crew] was pulled, re-equipped, and reformed as the forward interdiction team.  It was sent north, for operations against the gang."

"The maps were made in March, and hence outdated.  But knowing that the southeast segment of their territory fell under W's responsibility, all twenty bunnies formed up in a tight formation and advanced.  We were not met with any resistance as we could see W's owner's house.  But we found the house to be abandoned, with evidence of what looked like a bank foreclosure."

"It didn't take the bunnies long to find a way in, by gnawing through a hastily boarded up window and the house was found to be completely abandoned save for a few rats.  Following this, a garrison was set and the house secured as a forward base."

[Honestly it doesn't say much, it doesn't necessarily mean that W is done or anything like that.  Just that he no longer lives in that house.]

---

(Continuation)

"It didn't take long to find out from the local rats that the house had been abandoned for more than a month.  A mercenary from the 'black bunny squad' was quick to show up and offer his services to our force when enticed with a small stash of carrots.  He was tasked with scouting out the gang's main base (to the northwest) and reporting back the number of cats and any other forces.  Before night our intelligence officer met with him and went over photos of some of the prominent (or once-prominent) cats in the gang like Cat Y or others who may be willing to flip with the right enticement."

"At night our first supply team arrived with a bunch of carrots, rope, and fresh water.  The mercenary set off and promised us that the would be back by sunrise."

"Mr. Hops, the primary lookout, reported seeing some apparent cat eyes in the dark distance at several points throughout the night.  But we couldn't figure out if it was a cat with the gang, an ordinary stray, or someone else."

...

---

She will be there, but she has an extreme case of total sociophobia, meaning that despite being (apparently) rather gregarious and active online, she does not interact with or even acknowledge people irl.  According to her sister, "this is perfectly normal behavior (for her)." 

"The girl sat in the corner, facing the window.  She had no will to interact with the group at all.  Her only interaction with the world was to occasionally sip her milk tea that her sister had given her earlier in the night.  Otherwise she was completely engrossed with her laptop screen and completely ignored the world around her.  When it was time to go, her sister tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention, and then she silently closed the laptop and followed her sister out the door."

---

I don't believe so.  I probed and found nothing solid.  Whatever went on was just your usual back-and-forth (normal discourse).  It wasn't the type of thing you could pin down.  So honestly, I wouldn't worrey about it too much at this time.
« Last Edit: November 07, 2011, 11:24:18 pm by Sindobook »

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #113 on: November 08, 2011, 12:01:01 am »
Yes, snake E, who works for some local firm (unknown) as a manager.  Middle-aged, approx. 40-45 years old (snake years).  Was known to be friends with the late snake S, as well as the snake J, but openly states his dislike of nearly all other snakes.  Even the generally-outwardly-friendly snake Z.  He's never been known to threaten small animals, and most think of him in a similar way to snake Z, ie. "Mostly Harmless".

---
Friday:
Nonaka and Imegawa 5pm LP1
Asian Food Challenge 7pm Marina

Saturday:
Moon Prism Poptarts 11am LP1
Cosplay Contest 3:30pm Main Event
Vocalekt Visions 7pm LP2

Sunday:
Ladies of Tenchi Muyo 12pm LP2
Christina Vee 1pm LP2
Tsuyoshi Nonaka 2pm LP2

---

That is correct, by all outside appearances, he has been 'erased' from the gang.  Checking their photos from a year ago (and more), they have been edited / photoshopped, often poorly.  In most, his image was simply erased, in one case leaving a cat who had been on his back simply floating in midair, or leaving prominent empty spaces in group shots.  In a few cases, his image has been covered with a photo of Cat F.  Oddly enough, he still appears in plenty of video releases from the gang, presumably 'erasing' him from video is either beyond their capabilities, or this effort is a work in progress.

This is an unusual measure, in most other cases, those who have been forced out (ie. Cat R, Cat L) typically remain in past photos and literature.
« Last Edit: November 14, 2011, 09:44:40 pm by Sindobook »

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #114 on: November 14, 2011, 11:06:50 pm »
Yes, he really is.  He mentioned the conversation went something like this:

"Oh, by the way, I'm sorrey but your blacklisted from [deleted]."

I don't think he was faking it.  And the funny thing is, no one quite knows why.  It's totally nonsensical.
He wasn't banned for a reason or because he actually did anything.  And he stands out too much to be any kind of sabotage risk, unless
he tries to ninja his way in.

I wouldn't put it past him to still show up.  It honestly can't be too hard to slither around whatever incognito safeguards they've tried
to set up.  Of course he disavowed all knowledge of that, but we'll see.

Nobody knows what's really going on inside C's head.  But if he banned the snake without a reason, he's going to lose a lot more,
because that snake for instance has a pretty good relationship with two of his bunnies, among others.  I saw it, they were right in
front of me.  Not to mention, a decent sized following among others.

---

Yes, and times two.
I'd check, but I just don't care.

---

It was pretty bad.  The lighting consisted of a mix of incandescent, 2500K, 2800K, and 3200K.  The two setups I used were:
C1 AV f/2.8 ISO3200 EV -2/3 AB 2/3 FC-DNF DR-C C2 M f/2.8 1/100 ISO800 FEC -1/3 C3 AV f/2.8 ISO2500 FEC -1
C1 AV f/2.8 ISO1600 FEC -2/3 C2 M f/2.8 1/100 ISO800 FEC -1/3 C3 AV f/2.8 ISO2500 FEC -1
flash set to 3200K.

---

It got a CID match, so I deleted it.
I'll upload it to an alternate account soon.  I know CID can be defeated, but it's easier to just upload it to an alt.
The sad thing is, it's a guy standing right there playing a melody from a song on a keyboard.  Recorded through a video camera.  Just the base melody, no lyrics or anything.  And somehow it gets a CID match.  Something's screwed up with that, but go figure. 

---

Yes, shortly after I posted it, I got a pm from one of the small animals saying that one of the Akiba didn't want his face shown in the video and asking me to obscure it.  So I made it private, I'll see if I can do that on youtube and if not, I'll do it over the weekend.  I don't have the video editing software to do that, but I know a few people who probably do.

---

Quite simple really, that dog, like a lot of English Springer Spaniels, is over prone to 'rage syndrome'.  If baited, even slightly, he will 'blow up' and begin behaving aggressively toward people.  These fits include loud barking, growling, and lurching/charging at animals and even people who happen to be close by.  It's become so well-known that many have made it a sport to bait him to see what he will do next, since the episodes tend to be rather humorous and draw a lot of attention. 

From Mikey:  "If he takes over, you can be pretty sure he'll kill it.  I'm not sure why anyone would want that dog in charge."
« Last Edit: November 18, 2011, 08:03:03 pm by Sindobook »

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #115 on: November 23, 2011, 11:13:25 pm »
"Final" simply means it will be the last time the current setup and technology is used.  In my conversations with the snake, he said they are waiting for the next iteration of the technology and redesign of the setup to get it 'right'.  Because their current iteration is just not there.

According to Mikey, "As a singular setup, it can work, pretty well in fact.  But it's not a crowd-pleaser, not much at least."

Honestly the current setup leaves much to be desired.  It was dated from the beginning and we all knew it.  It was just a very modern implementation of an old idea, the system itself -- already an incognito group of pigs and bunnies are able to get close to mimicking it all with little more than 20,000 carrots in funds. 

So in all honestly, we'll see where things go from here. 

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #116 on: December 02, 2011, 01:44:37 am »
I was told to "just keep trying".  People say that it works on some days and doesn't work on other days.  If a few days go by and you still can't get it to work, try calling them.

---

Right now I will say that sentiment is between 'mixed' and 'negative'.  It's certainly not positive. 

According to Mikey, "It's not just one reason.  It's a collection of reasons, and something is going on.  Someone is goofy here, it's hard to say who, or what.  But if those are the decisions they are making, internally, I don't expect it can last.  It's going to cause a revolt among his own, or it's going to sputter out."

---

So far, only Vocaloid (2pm) and Touhou (4pm).  Please don't ask me to do the MLP one, I still have nightmares about that from when I was young.  I've already had to tell a few people no.  If there is a PS&G I'll do that one, maybe some of the others but definately no MLP.

---

13/109 is my best count, not bad.
16/114 now. 
18/116, it's significantly over 10%.

----

So Far:
Friday
* 2 pm - Vocaloid - Pool Deck
3 pm - Pokemon - Pool Deck
4 pm - Adventure Time - Pool Deck - maybe, ONLY if one of my friends is in it
4:30pm - All video games
5 pm - Capcom vs SNK - place TBD
Saturday
12 pm - Valve - Patio
* 2 pm - Vocaloid - Pool Deck
* 3 pm - Vocaloid Dance Competition(?) - Pool Deck
3 pm - Final Fantasy - Pool Deck
* 4 pm - Touhou Project - Pool Deck

---

It's fine.  I'm not a big fan of it indoors.  But outdoors, no complaints really. 

---

This is starting to get ridiculous, that's the second time this has happened.  I searched and a lot of users are having this exact same kind of problem.  They claim it is 'extremely rare', but it doesn't seem so.  I can keep bypassing it to the alt, but it's really getting rather annoying. 

Note:  I'm still trying to figure out exactly what caused it.  I pieced it out and I haven't got anything back for the individual pieces yet.  I'm starting to think it may be just a wierd glitch, one that only happens when everything is put together.  But in the past, it's taken 48 hours for that to come back, so the only thing to do is just wait.

Okay, I think I figured it out.  The new system can trigger based on the length of the complete video.  So if a compilation video gets rejected, try keeping it short or splitting it up into smaller videos that are under 15 minutes long or even under 5 minutes long. 

It may not be a perfect, but the site isn't perfect either.  It's just what we have and have to live with right now.

---

That's not a myth, it was very much true at the time.  His doctor told him that he was developing carpal tunnel in his wrists and hands and that there was no treatment other than to stop playing the computer game for a while.  So he had to stop for several months, and while he was not playing his friends joked that he had been placed on 'injured reserve'[1]. 
« Last Edit: December 16, 2011, 09:35:37 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #117 on: December 12, 2011, 08:08:30 pm »
1) Generally, the end difference is background exposure, which is why it's good to do both.  If you lock them on the custom dial (ie. C1 and C2) then you can switch between them real quickly.  And choose which one looks better in post.

If properly set, bounce flash will not illuminate the background.  Since it's coming down on the subject from the ceiling.  For AV mode, the camera will expose to the frame and then add a limited amount of 'fill' flash, as to not blow out the subject.  To some extent, you can tweak the balance between exposure and flash using the EV adjust.  And you can tweak the absolute flash intensity with FEC.  For M mode, the camera is going to expose as it is set up, adding flash to bring the exposure up to standard brightness.  But, since only the subject is being illuminated, it will likely overexpose the subject if left alone.  If the flash metering is set to center weighted average, you will probably need to use FEC -1 or -2 EV in order to keep the subject normal brightness.  You can try spot metering or center-only modes for flash metering, if available, these shouldn't need any adjustment.

When absolutely necessary, direct flash can be fine.  Just adjust it way down with FEC. 

2) It doesn't have to be that bad, you can make a 'speedlight-on-a-stick' using light monopod, a heavy ball head, and some velcro and zipties to secure it.  Secure the flash to the bottom end of the monopod, the heavy ball head serves as a counterweight, allowing you to hold it close to that end.  This contraption will be balanced enough to hold in one hand, or even anchored underarm (and above the opposing elbow) or such. 

You can get 30 degrees offset this way easily, tangent of 30 is around 0.6, so if you are 8 to 9 feet away from the subject, 30 degrees is around 5 feet out.  That way, even if you keep the background in focus, which is generally preferable in this case, and faces and other features won't appear flat. 

---

I really doubt that's true.  It's just laughable that they would even try that.  But if it is, you know who to talk to.  I'm not the one to fix it; I can't fix it.

---

I'm still trying.  The software I had access to couldn't do it.  And there's already other sources out there, so it's not a big time rush.  Honestly if it never happens, it's no big loss, there was another person there with a full team so I really just took a step back and tried to stay out of their way.  What's important is that the Akiba's identity stay a secret, we don't want to 'blow his cover' so to speak.  I don't know the details, but honestly, it's not something I need to or care to know.  We were joking about it the other day, [insert random explanation here], like that he's a fugitive dog on the run from the animal control, or he has a salaried position at some major firm working as a public face, or he's enough of a celebrity or recognizable figure who doesn't want to be 'outed', or it's secretly [deleted] himself, and he doesn't want his face or identity known too well, or for people to know it's him, or so on.  That's why, most people like me insist:  Don't say anything more, I don't need to, or even want to, know. 
« Last Edit: December 16, 2011, 10:14:28 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #118 on: January 09, 2012, 10:51:40 pm »
From Mikey:
"He was most certainly there.  Friday, in the far hall, I walked right by him.  Or more, he waddled past me, flanked by a few of his best buds.  You can't really miss that fat cat, though I just continued along nonchalantly, not wanting to make a scene."

"The next day, the snake made reference to having to find 'el presidente' due to some logistical problem that had come up.  So he must have been there during then also."

"It's kinda strange they let him there to begin with.  Oh and this was before 'that incident'[1]."

[1] Cat P's and T's close call with his new publicity-gathering idea

One of the booths / merchants (kappa berra or something like that) was handing out free helium balloons, the cat wanted to use the balloons to leap off the balcony and slowly float down to the plaza below.  Of course, being so overweight, it was not possible to gather enough balloons to support himself, instead he volunteered his loyal servant 'T' for the task.  A bunch of balloons were tied to T with some ribbons by his assistants, but his assistants were holding onto him in the process and weighing him down, throwing off the measurements and they ended up tying too many balloons to him so that when they let go, he started to float off and up into the sky.  This normally wouldn't be a huge problem, as they could just wait a few hours for him to come back down; but they were near an airport and if he floated too high he might end up sucked into an airplane's engine or something like that.  So security was summoned, and they had to 'rescue' him.

---

It is not part of the bunny brigade; it is actually three members of the black bunny squad that were captured during the action and are being held captive.  The black bunny squad is a well-known mercenary group of 'expendables' that is sometimes hired out to do tasks that the brigade deems too dangerous for its own members.

---

Because it was an actual contest.  There were no second-rate or second-tier attempts.  Everything was very well done.  I don't know who won, but the judges captured video to aid in the judging.

---

You do not have to do anything to get one of the life-size Tuan Tuan Posters.  You just have to show up.
Supplies may be limited, and one poster per person only.

---

She moved, in relation to the neighborhood cat gang's territory, she is 'one to two hours to the east'.
At least, it's a much better spot for her than where she used to live.

In relation to Mikey's area, she is "pretty far away... north till you hit the big mountain range, then east about an hour or so."
« Last Edit: January 19, 2012, 08:03:42 pm by Sindobook »

Offline Sindobook

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Re: Small Animal News
« Reply #119 on: January 24, 2012, 08:42:23 pm »
It's larger than that.  They've already got a team to the far north, and they're in the process of assembling a team to the (nearer) north.  I think that's the real key; you can only go so far with technology alone.  Having a full team of people there that support it will go much farther than that.

But I don't expect they'll go after the neighborhood cat gang, not yet at least.  We'll see in march, perhaps that will be their first real appearance?  It's local, at least.

---

Just the preview, wait till you see the full video...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJezQlYvO9c

And the scary part is:
This video is most popular with:
#1: Male    35-44
#2: Male    45-54
#3: Female 13-17

Remember target audience of Creamy Mami is girl from 6 to 12 years old.  And yet that's doesn't even make the chart.
The world is a scary place, watch out for staklerz.  And it's very big in the PRC too, more than twice as popular in the PRC than any other country like the USA.  Must be all those Pandas.

---

Due to the current logistical and supply shortages, they are limited to only 50 Tuan Tuan Posters.  If you want a poster, the representative will begin handing them out at roughly 9am.  So if you want one, you better show up early.

---

From Mikey:
"The reports are true.  I recently spoke to an infiltrator who described how for the past couple of weeks, their main office had been overrun by rats.  You'd think the cats wouldn't have much problem setting up rat patrols, but the higher-up in charge of this, Cat W, has been slacking as of late since it's obvious he's on the way out and isn't likely to secure enough votes to keep his position in the Vanguard at the next Kitty Caucus.  At one point the rat problem became so bad that the cats had to call in an exterminator, that led to a short-term decrease, but a few days later, the rats came back with a vengeance and Cat P had to cancel one of his mandatory morale-boosting 'pep rallies'.  He reports it's a big problem, and growing day by day."

---

Rumor has it that Cat P is 'done', and will be removed from his current position in "A couple of months, or maybe sooner."  Cats W, T, and others who have supported him are unlikely to survive the aftermath.  His likely replacement is the cat who he sold his soul to, aka. Cat K, or one of his many henchmen. 

The rather prominent snake and enough of the other cats who are likely participants in the Kitty Caucus are behind this move.  According to Mikey, "There's always been a sentiment among the gang's lower levels -- thugs, assorted low-lives, and other general bad and/or misbehaving kitties that P was an ineffective and incompetent leader with no idea how to run the gang.  This is normal, but in the past few months, this sentiment has moved up the ranks, now you have many of the top cats in their respective areas seriously doubting his ability and wanting him out.  It's past the point of no return, he's been a zombie[1] from the beginning and only he and his inner circle haven't realised it."

[1] Not the horror-movie zombie, Mikey is using it in the economic sense (ie. Zombie bank, Zombie company, etc.) of something that is already dead, or perpetually failing, but kept alive through outside intervention.
« Last Edit: January 30, 2012, 08:01:17 pm by Sindobook »