A couple random questions

Slainbylich

A few things have been knawing at the back of my brain recently and I'm just looking for some answers.

1) Sleeping pills

Due to my work schedule on the weekends(third shift) my sleep cycle is essentially unworkable during the week. College is starting up soon, and I do have morning classes, so I was wondering if I could use sleeping pills to sort of kick my sleep cycle back into line? I regularly go to bed at 10pm, but don't get to sleep until 3-4am.

Question: I would only be taking pills on sunday night to get myself back into a workable rhythm. What is the chance of these things becoming habit forming? Also, would this do me any good for what I want them to do?

Question: I do occasionally like a little drink. How dangerous would combining normal sleeping pill dosage and small amounts of alchohol be?

2) Some computer game from the 90's

I remember it came on a demo disc for a computer games magazine. My friend and I played the hell out of the demo because it was so much fun. The concept was that you were a wizard and had to defeat other wizards on the map. It was a real time strategy where the only way you could get more mana would be to park your summoned monsters on 'mana locations', this would feed you a steady stream of mana to use. You could also pick up items that would allow you to summon monsters, like a statue of a goat man with an axe.

I would really like to check this game out again. Any help would be appreciated.

3) More of a curiosity question; life insurance.

Question: Does life insurance pay off on a suicide? I'm sure they have clauses against it, but I was just wondering.

4) Small-ish mp3 player

I own an old ipod video(30gig) and it has served me very well in the past. I tend to use it during workouts, but am fearful of breaking it which causes me to hold back.

Question: I am in need of a good, durable, yet cheap mp3 player. Something that can plug into a usb port without an additional cord would be nice. Any recomendations?

5) College and the EEEpc

Question: To those that have one, how usefull is the EEEpc when taking notes in class? I'm tempted to get one just for the novelty of owning a 'cyber deck' so to speak. But I would barely use it for anything else.

6) Graduation

All things going the way they are now, I'll more than likely graduate in a year.

Question: I'll be graduating with a fancy placemat(bachleors) in history. There are some obvious things that can be done with that, which depress me. My friends say that as a liberal arts degree it has many other uses. My google fu hasn't turned much up; what can I use this thing for after I graduate?

7) Cartoons and the 80's

It was an anime(I think) from the 80's that aired in germany. The premise(what i can remember) is a squad of heroes going around in specialized vehicles(air,ground, etc) and dealing with, criminals I think. They had a giant robot space ship that could transform and fire some giga cannon out of its fingers. The enemies/criminals had these wicked fighter craft that could transform into combat armor around them. There was a big moment in the series where the power core of the giant robot thing was destroyed to secure a peace treaty with the enemies, which didn't last.

Not sure what it was. Any help?

8) Giant robots and today.

Super robot wars has caught my attention recently. I know of two games in the USA; SRW:OG and OG2. Are there any other games of that series released in the usa?

9) More giant robots

I'm looking to start a giant robot table top game. What readily available systems are out there that can replicate most of the facets of giant robot warfare?


Thanks for the help guys.

reminderGTO

That's a lot of questions.

I'll try the 1st one though. Look up melatonin. It's a natural hormone in your body that regulates your internal clock and this; alone with waking up to sunlight or equivalent might help. Sleeping pills are habit forming most of the time and with alcohol is a no-no.

Djeet

3) Of course not. Well, unless you successfully made it look like something other than suicide. Which would be hard ... and fraud.

6) Almost any entry-level office environment position. Though ITT the utility of a general Lib Arts degree is greatly overstated, given that with a modern education (where you use computer and the Internet in the course of your study) someone with an engineering or natural sciences degree would be just as qualified for an entry-level office environment position.

Slainbylich

Djeet wrote: »

3) Of course not. Well, unless you successfully made it look like something other than suicide. Which would be hard ... and fraud.

6) Almost any entry-level office environment position. Though ITT the utility of a general Lib Arts degree is greatly overstated, given that with a modern education (where you use computer and the Internet in the course of your study) someone with an engineering or natural sciences degree would be just as qualified for an entry-level office environment position.

That's what I thought. Oh well.

Sevorak

Djeet wrote: »

3) Of course not. Well, unless you successfully made it look like something other than suicide. Which would be hard ... and fraud.

Not true. According to wiki life insurance policies generally pay out on suicide unless it occurred within two years of getting the policy or there is a specific clause in the contract stating otherwise.

EggyToast

3) no.

4) iPod Nano. Refurbs are a smidge over $100 and you won't have to learn/tolerate a crappy interface.

5) sure, it'll work for notes and basic stuff.

6) generally, having a bachelors degree qualifies you for many basic jobs because it shows that you can stick with hard work for 4+ years. Sell it as work experience instead of education in history, and you'll probably go further in applying for jobs.

witch_ie

9) BESM (Big Eyes Small Mouth)

Mike Danger

2) Sounds like Summoner.

MuddBudd

2 sounds like Sacrifice.

And you may want to direct your peepers HERE if that was it.

Proto

2. the game was Master of Magic or I'll eat my hat. Fantastic game.

Mike Danger

MuddBudd wrote: »

2 sounds like Sacrifice.

And you may want to direct your peepers HERE if that was it.

This is what I meant to say. :S

Limp moose

i have a liberal arts degree in history. I became a pilot.

ceres

4) You want a small mp3 player that's ridiculously cheap and has enough room to hold a workout's work of music?

I have one of these.

It holds about a gig, has a bright screen, is really durable, requires no special software, and has a built-in AM/FM radio and recorder. You can actually use it to record songs off the radio.

The real bonus is that the price is right, so if you do manage to lose it or smash it or drop it in the toilet (don't ask) you can pick up a new one without cringing too much.

Dehumanized

ceres wrote: »

4) You want a small mp3 player that's ridiculously cheap and has enough room to hold a workout's work of music?

I have one of these.

It holds about a gig, has a bright screen, is really durable, requires no special software, and has a built-in AM/FM radio and recorder. You can actually use it to record songs off the radio.

The real bonus is that the price is right, so if you do manage to lose it or smash it or drop it in the toilet (don't ask) you can pick up a new one without cringing too much.

Those sort of things pop up on Woot all the time for cheap-as-hell prices, too. You could probably buy 2-3 of them and not even care if one of them breaks.

the cheat

i recommend trazodones or rozarem for sleeping pills. they do the trick for me and are not addictive.

big l

#1 - melatonin might work, might not. There's like zero side effects and no chance of addiction, so go for it, but I know that it does nothing for me. It works great for some people I know, so I think it just depends.

#9 BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH BATTLETECH

Just google it or something. It's way too badass for me to try to describe in a single post. There might be a thread in the tabletop gaming board on here. Seriously, though - giant mechs fighting is like the Battletech specialty. Ever play the Mechwarrior games? Like that, but better and tabletop.

Slainbylich

In regards to #2, it was none of those. I do remember that the graphics were sprite based and everything took place on an isometric 3d-ish angle. Sort of like a less pretty diablo 2.

I'll be sure to check out the options regarding the sleeping pills/other options.

I'll check out battletech, and besm again I guess.

Erandus

You sure it wasn't Master of Magic?

Combat:

City Management:

World Map:

You summoned magic spirits that you then sent off to nodes which you had defeated the guardian monsters of. Your summoned creatre melded with the node, increasing your mana per turn.

Even if you're thinking of some other game, you should totally play MoM anyway. :P

El Mucho

2) It took me all morning to try and think of the game but I believe it may have been Magic and Mayhem.

Link to screenies

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/magicmayhem/images.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gsimage&tag=images;img;1

EDIT: Awesome game by the way but unstable as fuck. I could never get it to run without crashes and in the end I gave up.

Slainbylich

El Mucho wrote: »

2) It took me all morning to try and think of the game but I believe it may have been Magic and Mayhem.

Link to screenies

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/magicmayhem/images.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gsimage&tag=images;img;1

EDIT: Awesome game by the way but unstable as fuck. I could never get it to run without crashes and in the end I gave up.

That would be it, thank you!

Man, that game is so much uglier than I remember.

wunderbar

4) get a sandisk sansa. Not the greatest mp3 players in the world, but are drag + drop, cheap, and durable. Perfect for the gym, unless you like watching video.