talesofweirdfl's recent activity

  1. Comment on What creative projects have you been working on? in ~creative

    talesofweirdfl
    Link
    So, some of you know I write novels. Well, the novel-writing world isn't super awesome right now (sad trombone music) and I've been trying to figure out what makes sense going forward. Well, as...

    So, some of you know I write novels. Well, the novel-writing world isn't super awesome right now (sad trombone music) and I've been trying to figure out what makes sense going forward. Well, as luck would have it, a friend of mine asked me to write a couple of OSR adjacent adventures for his TTRPGs.

    It was a blast.

    And even better, he loved them!

    So, I'm working on amassing some of the rule books for the more popular games and putting some energy into adding adventure writing to my corpus in 2026.

    It's all we can do. Keep trying. Keep swinging at things, even if the world is on fire :)

    3 votes

  2. Comment on Suggestions for uses of old computer hardware? in ~comp

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    I second this suggestion. Learning Linux is a fun way to increase your overall understanding of computing. You'll be surprised the sort of neat things you can discover outside the Microsoft ecosystem.

    I second this suggestion. Learning Linux is a fun way to increase your overall understanding of computing. You'll be surprised the sort of neat things you can discover outside the Microsoft ecosystem.

    7 votes

  3. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

    talesofweirdfl
    Link
    Last week I talked about writing the code for a text game which I submitted to an itch.io jam. That was such a great experience I've been working on making a much larger game, but to do that I had...

    Last week I talked about writing the code for a text game which I submitted to an itch.io jam. That was such a great experience I've been working on making a much larger game, but to do that I had to get to work on some visual studio code extensions to make the process easier.

    So, this week I'm back to say that I've been able to make a syntax highlighting extension and am looking into what it would take to port the "build" engine to visual studio.

    Sadly, the build tools are going to be more difficult. It feels like writing a vs code extension is both well-documented and surprisingly difficult to follow if you aren't a web person.

    Still, I soldier on. If that fails I might just write some shell scripts to do it. Not sure.

    1 vote

  4. Comment on What creative projects have you been working on? in ~creative

  5. Comment on What creative projects have you been working on? in ~creative

    talesofweirdfl
    Link
    I'll bite. For years I've been wanting to write a parser text game. For those who aren't familiar, parser text games are the sort of games where you type in commands and the game tells you what...

    I'll bite. For years I've been wanting to write a parser text game. For those who aren't familiar, parser text games are the sort of games where you type in commands and the game tells you what happens. They were a big part of my childhood (Zork, Wishbringer, Enchanter) and I have always secretly wanted to try my hand at making one.

    Well, I decided this year was the year and I set out to write a parser game. In truth, this proved to be a lot more difficult than I expected. What was worse, a lot of the friends I hoped would play it couldn't really be bothered to try and understand the mechanics of how to play a text game. I don't fault them. I'm about ten years older than most of them and if you don't have the nostalgia for stuff like this it's hard to want to dig into it now.

    Then I discovered a very cool coding engine that allowed me to make a parser-like game but have it be completely mouse driven. This makes it so much easier for my friends to play. The engine/library is called Gruescript and I absolutely loved working with it. So, I knuckled down, sent the pdf manual to a printer to get a wire-bound copy of it, and got to work making a silly game based on one of my novels.

    I'm super happy to report that I finally finished it and put it in a text game competition!

    It's my first game, so I realize it's not going to win any awards, but I'm just proud of myself or not giving up and for doing something I always wanted to do. I think my younger self would be amazed to know he'd end up making a game himself one day.

    10 votes

  6. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

    talesofweirdfl
    Link
    I did it! I finally made and posted my first text game to an interactive fiction competition on itch. In the process of making it I ended up making all kinds of scripts and tools (including a...

    I did it! I finally made and posted my first text game to an interactive fiction competition on itch. In the process of making it I ended up making all kinds of scripts and tools (including a visual studio code extension) to make the development process easier. All in all, it was a blast and I'm kinda excited to make another one.

    5 votes

  7. Comment on Safe spaces for him: Why men need support groups run by other males for their well-being in ~life.men

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    This is very interesting to me. Could you perhaps share the name? I'd like to learn more. If you don't feel comfortable posting it here, please feel free to message me directly.

    This is very interesting to me. Could you perhaps share the name? I'd like to learn more. If you don't feel comfortable posting it here, please feel free to message me directly.

    2 votes

  8. Embarking on this new hobby and a little overwhelmed

    ~games Ask
    I'm embarking on a new phase in my life and am frankly pretty darned excited about it. My only child is off in college now and I find myself with extra time I didn't used to have. As such, some...

    I'm embarking on a new phase in my life and am frankly pretty darned excited about it. My only child is off in college now and I find myself with extra time I didn't used to have. As such, some younger friends of mine have been reaching out and asking me to join them for "shenanigans" in the form of online video games. Mind you, I haven't played games since the mid 90s, so while this sounds exciting, it also is quite intimidating.

    So far I have gotten my hands on a ROG Ally X. It's a nifty looking handheld that I have been assured would allow me to play a lot of the games my buddies play, but my eyes aren't what they used to be and the screen, however nice, isn't quite big enough for my needs.

    Time to get a dock!

    I was able to find a one for this thing, which is very cool, but now I'm thinking I'm going to drive my wife crazy shouting at the device to talk to my buddies. I assume I need a decent headset, but which one? These things seem to run the range in prices. Do I need it to be wireless?

    Also, I'm guessing it would be good to have some sort of controller so I'm not on top of the screen, again, what fits the middle of the road? Cordless? Do I want a trackpad? Is that even a thing?

    I am overloaded with options.

    Basically, I'm a dad who has discovered he has a lot more time on his hands than he expected and good (and patient) friends who want to spend time with him, but I'm way out of my depth trying to plot a modest path forward (without spending silly money).

    Anyway, thanks for making an old guy coming to the hobby feel welcome!

    24 votes

  9. Comment on ACCESS.bus: The forgotten USB competitor in ~comp

  10. Comment on ACCESS.bus: The forgotten USB competitor in ~comp

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    Hell yeah. I have a feeling we would have been buddies back in the old times. Now if you tell me you played DnD, skateboarded, and loved you some 'tendo. I'd have to start to question whether or...

    Hell yeah. I have a feeling we would have been buddies back in the old times. Now if you tell me you played DnD, skateboarded, and loved you some 'tendo. I'd have to start to question whether or not I have a clone...

    1 vote

  11. Comment on ACCESS.bus: The forgotten USB competitor in ~comp

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    But we were wizards back then. I remember vividly getting free candy from a friend because I could rewrite his config.sys and autoexec.bat to squeeze out just enough conventional memory to run...

    But we were wizards back then. I remember vividly getting free candy from a friend because I could rewrite his config.sys and autoexec.bat to squeeze out just enough conventional memory to run Wing Commander and his Sound Blaster card.

    JFC, listen to me... I think I just aged 5 years in one post.

    6 votes

  12. Comment on ACCESS.bus: The forgotten USB competitor in ~comp

  13. Comment on ACCESS.bus: The forgotten USB competitor in ~comp

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    Holy shit, you weren't kidding. That video had like everything I remember from my senior year of high school. It's hard to believe that we used to do everything with serial and parallel cables. I...

    Holy shit, you weren't kidding. That video had like everything I remember from my senior year of high school. It's hard to believe that we used to do everything with serial and parallel cables. I remember parallel "dongles" for certain insanely expensive software products too.

    3 votes

  14. Comment on What low-stakes drama is going on in your circles right now? in ~talk

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    This is really good advice. Thank you! I will consider checking that PD again. Fist bump Astigmatism friends!

    This is really good advice. Thank you! I will consider checking that PD again. Fist bump Astigmatism friends!

    2 votes

  15. Comment on What low-stakes drama is going on in your circles right now? in ~talk

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    Ugh. I'm pretty sure you are right. I think I'll give this a try next year. Just too much going on in my life to go funhouse mirror mode right now. Thanks for the encouragement though!

    Ugh. I'm pretty sure you are right. I think I'll give this a try next year. Just too much going on in my life to go funhouse mirror mode right now. Thanks for the encouragement though!

    1 vote

  16. Comment on What low-stakes drama is going on in your circles right now? in ~talk

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    I am both amazed and horrified. Off to google I go! Thank you.

    I am both amazed and horrified. Off to google I go! Thank you.

    10 votes

  17. Comment on What low-stakes drama is going on in your circles right now? in ~talk

    talesofweirdfl
    Link
    I have the olds. My single vision glasses are no longer working for me when it comes to phone and e-reader viewing (damn you, iPhone). So now I have progressives. For those who don't know, these...

    I have the olds. My single vision glasses are no longer working for me when it comes to phone and e-reader viewing (damn you, iPhone). So now I have progressives. For those who don't know, these are like slapping funhouse mirrors on your eyeballs. I have felt like I wanted to vomit twice so far. Listen, I get it, it's hell getting older and it does beat the alternative, but... is this really the best we can do? We put people on the moon, created vaccines, split the atom, etc. We can't fix my crappy eyes with magic lenses? Sigh.

    14 votes

  18. Comment on What did you do this week (and weekend)? in ~talk

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    I just snorted tea all over my desk. Thank you for providing material for a future book.

    I just snorted tea all over my desk. Thank you for providing material for a future book.

    3 votes

  19. Comment on What did you do this week (and weekend)? in ~talk

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    Well if that just isn't capital news I don't know what is. Way to go, papa! Mine just hit 18. I get called, but just for money.

    Well if that just isn't capital news I don't know what is. Way to go, papa! Mine just hit 18. I get called, but just for money.

    9 votes

  20. Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books

    talesofweirdfl
    Link Parent
    The man has a few hot button items. His favorite evil incarnations are paintings, dead bodies/things, puppets, art, wall stains, empty houses, and paintings. Did I mention paintings? :) All...

    The man has a few hot button items. His favorite evil incarnations are paintings, dead bodies/things, puppets, art, wall stains, empty houses, and paintings.

    Did I mention paintings? :)

    All kidding aside. I teased him that I wanted to know who left him in an art gallery as a small child...

    Most of his books have that same slow burn feel. The only one that has deviated is All the Fiends of Hell. That one reads more like a thriller than a horror story, but with his highly poetic prose it doesn't rip quite as fast as it could.

    If you want more slow burn Nevill with a weird ending, I'd recommend "No One Gets Out Alive." Look for the connections to Last Days if you do. They're in there. It's subtle, but if you look closely you'll see them. The Nevill verse is highly connected. Enjoy!

    1 vote