908musdf's recent activity
-
Comment on You're going to use Gemini on Android whether you like it or not in ~tech
-
Comment on Rockhounding in ~hobbies
908musdf LinkYes, me, and I usually say "rockhound", because that gives the best idea to the widest audience. Although lately I have focused more on slimming down the collection over dragging home additions,...Yes, me, and I usually say "rockhound", because that gives the best idea to the widest audience. Although lately I have focused more on slimming down the collection over dragging home additions, having slowly accumulated a fair bit of material.
I collect based on minerals and locality/provenance, so not as many large, showy crystals. The most famous place I have been is probably Mt. Antero, and the best find was supposedly some chalcedony after aragonite. The latter is based on the local museum wanting to keep it for their collection, though, because I disagreed with their assessment. My favorite collecting is at weird pegmatites with unusual minerals, and my own favorites tend to be that sort of thing.
I have been into some old mine adits, and a great many pits, mostly smaller. I also currently hold one lode mining claim myself. It is a section of silicified fault line in some rhyolitic tuff, so there is significant outcrop, and all collection has been choice agate-like pieces from surface breakdown without any tools. The survey for staking and filing was done with Google Maps, GPS, and running the haversine calculations in Python. I know it is not perfect, but it is close, and I did not have any real survey equipment—or training!
Just as you say, I have never really used a pickaxe. Largely, I get by between a standard rock hammer, large chisel, and little crack hammer. I also have a large sledge hammer and digging bar that have come out on occasion. Other tools I use include a textile gun (great for removing stuff like those tenacious rock lichens) and a scintillation counter. The next thing needed to work the claim material is a large slab saw, which has proven cost prohibitive, and is on hold. Some folks go out hunting with black lights, such as for the yooperlite mentioned by patience_limited.
For upcoming searches, hmm... I have a lead on an andesitic unit that is supposed to have red zeolite crystals in vesicles I want to verify. It is not all that distant from the claim, but have not had the time for going that much more out of the way yet. I have also been thinking about going on a longer trip to recover some aventurine examples I left before. At the time, I devoted all my pack space to piemontite and schorl specimens instead, ha ha!
-
Comment on What is the "bible" of your hobby or activity? in ~hobbies
908musdf LinkAn index on your area for rockhounding and mineralogy. It will list, by species, exhaustive references to technical literature where it was noted and discussed. For example, Minerals of Colorado...An index on your area for rockhounding and mineralogy. It will list, by species, exhaustive references to technical literature where it was noted and discussed. For example, Minerals of Colorado by Edwin B. Eckel et al.
One can do similar lookups on mindat.org, but I still prefer having the book.
-
Comment on Best open source EPUB reader app? in ~books
908musdf LinkI use Librera Reader for everything on phone and tablet. It is flexible and handles books and comics on both well. Nowadays I get it from F-Droid on LineageOS.I use Librera Reader for everything on phone and tablet. It is flexible and handles books and comics on both well. Nowadays I get it from F-Droid on LineageOS.
-
Comment on What are your top three video game soundtracks? in ~games
908musdf LinkStar Ocean: The Second Story Motoi Sakuraba was an excellent fit for the classic tri-Ace games. This might be the best. Agree with the SO and Valkyrie Profile mentions above. Soul Blazer Also...- Star Ocean: The Second Story
Motoi Sakuraba was an excellent fit for the classic tri-Ace games. This might be the best. Agree with the SO and Valkyrie Profile mentions above.
- Soul Blazer
Also mentioned above. All the SNES Quintet titles have great soundtracks to match their gameplay.
- Lords of Thunder
Not yet mentioned! Thundering heavy metal making great use of the Duo's red book capabilities. The previous title Gate of Thunder is good too.
-
Comment on Ebook reader for comics in ~comics
908musdf Link ParentThis is what I did, except with a Galaxy Tab A 8.0. It gets you 2019 hardware, current LineageOS, and an SD card slot. The install of LineageOS was more challenging than other devices I have put...This is what I did, except with a Galaxy Tab A 8.0. It gets you 2019 hardware, current LineageOS, and an SD card slot. The install of LineageOS was more challenging than other devices I have put it on, but past that it has worked well. I use Librera Reader (from F-Droid).
-
Comment on What are your favorite webcomics? in ~comics
908musdf Link ParentDinosaur Comics is still great! It hit 20 years in February as well. Ryan North is also writing the ongoing Fantastic Four series.Dinosaur Comics is still great! It hit 20 years in February as well. Ryan North is also writing the ongoing Fantastic Four series.
I have used CalyxOS and F-Droid on a Fairphone 4 as a daily driver since soon after Murena started selling them in the US. It is the best Android phone I have used since the Nexus 4 (rip smaller devices). This setup allows me to scoff at, e.g., the forcing of Gemini from op, but I admit to placing Software Freedom higher in priority than many, and would rather forgo something like a banking app requiring attestation that give up the former. The AOSP ecosystem is much better these days than it used to be, but still will probably not fully work for everyone.
It is exciting that we will have the 6 available after they skipped over the 5, although the rumors about Google killing AOSP are concerning. More exciting is the slow but steady progress on a Linux stack from projects like PostmarketOS. There is still nothing that is fully "there" as a daily driver, but various projects continue to get closer. And I say this as someone holding onto hope since Openmoko flopped!