Quatermass's recent activity

  1. Comment on What is your favorite internet radio station? in ~music

    Quatermass
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    My knowledge of classical is very basic too but I have a sort of elementary grounding of it. A lot of that I attribute to discovering KUSC as a radio station through the app (was it even an app...

    My knowledge of classical is very basic too but I have a sort of elementary grounding of it. A lot of that I attribute to discovering KUSC as a radio station through the app (was it even an app back then??) on my N95 years ago.

    As classical stations go it's really pretty good - they play whole pieces, or at least whole movements, the commentary is kept succinct, and because it's public radio you don't get drowned with news and opinions and adverts.

    And unlike a lot of stations that have a really limited range that boils down to pretty much "The 10 pieces you've previously heard in films", KUSC does everything from big orchestral movie scores to famous composers to (for popular culture) quite obscure composed so it exposes you to a whole range.

    I mean, I'll also defer to someone with better knowledge than me, but I can hear a piece these days and go "Huh, I think that's Telemann" with at least a bit of accuracy, and that's because I've spent a decade or so periodically sticking on KUSC in the background.

    Definitely my favourite station.

    1 vote

  2. Comment on What is "that part" for you in any game? in ~games

    Quatermass
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    For me it's the inevitable "Oh no, your character lost all his gear, now you'd better escape from here while on drugs and moving slowly!!" sequence that seems obligatory in narrative-focused FPS...

    For me it's the inevitable "Oh no, your character lost all his gear, now you'd better escape from here while on drugs and moving slowly!!" sequence that seems obligatory in narrative-focused FPS games. I'm sure it's meant to feel badass but it just seems like a completely cheap way to add artificial challenge by taking away everything I've been patiently working for.

    The FarCry games are particularly bad for pulling stunts like that.

    (I'll give Deus Ex a slightly reluctant pass, though, because it's actually done for the crucial plot point, and at least you keep all the skills you've built up so you still seem to have some agency)

    1 vote

  3. Comment on What is "that part" for you in any game? in ~games

    Quatermass
    Link Parent
    The chicks didn't bother me, but oh man there was one level where I could not find a space to hang a certificate, and that was somehow some of the best storytelling I've ever seen...

    The chicks didn't bother me, but oh man there was one level where I could not find a space to hang a certificate, and that was somehow some of the best storytelling I've ever seen...

    2 votes

  4. Comment on Inside a secret lesbian sex toy smuggling ring in ~lgbt

    Quatermass
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    Fascinating and slightly scary to be reminded of how backward society was in the 80s - this article is great and quite funny (I adore the notion of shipping porn around in tapes marked up to look...

    Fascinating and slightly scary to be reminded of how backward society was in the 80s - this article is great and quite funny (I adore the notion of shipping porn around in tapes marked up to look like they're worthy dross from the BFI!)... but at the same time it must have been completely miserable to live in a society so fundamentally opposed to people getting their rocks off in the privacy of their own homes...

    7 votes

  5. Comment on Where ya from? in ~talk

    Quatermass
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    Having moved my Reddit is Fun shortcut from my phone home screen I actually replaced it with an app called Pressreader - my local library is giving me free access to stuff like The Economist and...

    Having moved my Reddit is Fun shortcut from my phone home screen I actually replaced it with an app called Pressreader - my local library is giving me free access to stuff like The Economist and The Week which I'd never normally buy and it's pretty awesome.

    Less dumb memes but I feel like it's not better use of my time when I'm stood around idly and instinctively tap the icon in that spot - after 13 years the muscle memory is really strong!

    2 votes