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Socrates
01-03-2004, 15:31
Well, better start a thread in which I can tell what's going on in my little Paris's suburbs.

First, this month of March is gonna be filled with exams all along, so I won't for sure start any game before at least one month. My 2 current games can still go on, it will depend if I'm in a rush this or that day.

Now to the fucking part. I got a virus last week-end !!! [cry] I feel sorry for Skyfish, who got injured (but not too much, I hope ?) through me. What pieces of advice can you guys give me ? So far I haven't installed any anti-virus programs or anti-spam programs, thinking my Web surfing would be "clean". [blush2] Now that I understand it's not guaranteed, I need to install stuff. I think we have McAfee at home, and AdAware is free : will those two be OK ? How can I get rid of my current virus ? It's called "I-Worm.Moodown.b", if it's the only source of problems so far !! Damn, I'm fucking angry now ! :(

ERIKK
01-03-2004, 16:19
A nice firewall and antivirus program would be nice!

How did Sky got affected? You emailed him a deadly attachment??? ;)

anarres
01-03-2004, 17:00
krys, here are the manual removal instructions for your virus. Note that McAfee and Adaware a more than enough to stop 95% of virus'/spyware/adware, etc, but you have to keep them UPDATED, and you have to RUN THEM. McAfee should stay running, always. Adaware should be run at least once a week. BOTH products must be updated once a week (at least) to keep them protected.

quote:
Terminating the Malware Program

This procedure terminates the running malware process from memory. You will need the name(s) of the file(s) detected earlier.

1: Open Windows Task Manager.
On Windows 95/98/ME systems, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE
On Windows NT/2000/XP systems, press CTRL+SHIFT+ESC, then click the Processes tab.
2: In the list of running programs*, locate the malware file or files detected earlier.
3: Select one of the detected files, then press either the End Task or the End Process button, depending on the version of Windows on your system.
4: Do the same for all detected malware files in the list of running processes.
5: To check if the malware process has been terminated, close Task Manager, and then open it again.
6: Close Task Manager.

Removing Autostart Entries from the Registry

Removing autostart entries from the registry prevents the malware from executing during startup.

1: Open Registry Editor. To do this, click Start>Run, type Regedit, then press Enter.
2: In the left panel, double-click the following:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE>Software>Microsoft>Windows>Curr entVersion>Run
3: In the right panel, locate and delete the entry:
service = %Windows%\services.exe -serv
4: In the left panel, double-click the following:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT>CLSID>{E6FB5E20-DE35-11CF-9C87-00AA005127ED}
5: Right-click the following key and add a new subkey named:
InProcServer32
6: In the right panel, double-click the (Default) entry and change its value to:
%System%\WEBCHECK.DLL
7: Close Registry Editor.

Socrates
01-03-2004, 18:19
I think you got it right, anarres. Your quote tells me about that "services.exe", and that what was running each time I started my PC (I'm now sure of it) ; it auto-terminates each time after like 5 minutes (you know, the Windows crash, and BTW, I saw it taking some good parts of the RAM in the Windows Task Manager). The little fuck installed a lot of things inside Windows folder and sub-folders (easily seen with a search in the Windows folder for changed files during last week).

Now I did what you told me, in the Registry (what a mess, this stuff !). I hope it stops running, now, on PC starts. But I need to clean the PC with McAfee. If there seems to be stuff after that (or more complaints from contacts I have), then I'll just delete my whole HD once again... losing so much time transfering vital files to another PC before formatting... [aargh]

I have found quite a lot of fake files : should I remove them myself ?

Here a little sample of some stuff : I can't believe hackers are so desperate in life to lose their time creating this.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200431173328_fake.JPG
18.66KB

Other stuffs are here and there too.

Skyfish
01-03-2004, 20:55
[eek] Horrible!
Get rid of all of it !


PS : I can see our dearest of hackers, Matrix, managed to infect you as well, it's a small world after all [lol]

Socrates
02-03-2004, 02:17
I think I got rid of that motherfucker now. [goodjob] I basically deleted everything by hand !! First deleted this 2nd services.exe in the WINDOWS folder. Then deleted the zips (I think : 24) in the same folder. Then deleted the dozens of 24-file bunches (image above is part of that) that were copied in every folder containing "share" in its name and each of their subfolders ! All of this after doing what anarres told me, and doing what was mentioned about this virus on the McAfee site.

Now if anyone encounters something wrong that could come from me (or one of my possible contacts...), please e-mail me as soon as possible. It should be OK, but you're never sure.

One important thing : to avoid possible confusion (I opened up the fake exe from an e-mail coming from a "sure" address at 1am, so I wasn't in special beware mode :D ), please sign all your e-mails !!! Write at least 1 word or 2 (I usually write "turn xxx"), and sign it, with your real name, nick or "nick's nick" (mine is "krys" :D ) to ensure this is an e-mail you actually wrote and sent. Any weird e-mail will be deleted immediately. I encourage you to the same.

anarres
02-03-2004, 11:26
krys, the way to not get a virus in the future is not to open a .exe that is obviously a virus. ;)

Socrates
02-03-2004, 15:56
Yes, but... yes, but... Can anyone estwing him on the head ? :D [estwing]

Seriously, I received that from a sure address, and that had more value than the weird and short body text and the damn attachment. Won't make it twice. All my friends are potential enemies, must be suspicious... [evil]

anarres
02-03-2004, 17:49
Umm, nearly ALL virus' spread by sending email from your friends infected computers! [:o]

Lt. Killer M
02-03-2004, 18:06
I actually got an email form an INEXISTENT email (a typo of my email on our homepage) TO the very same INEXISTENT email arriving at a different email....

the virus collects addresses on the web and uses them as camouflage. So the purpoted source sasy NOTHING!

Socrates
19-03-2004, 22:33
Just a little note to say I won't be here (and won't visit CDZ) from Tuesday to Sunday next week. I'm going to an observatory in the Provence hills (they say mountains, but I'd rather say hills :D ). This is for my studies (I'm in Astronomy and Astrophysics). We will go to bed at 5am every night !!! [eek]

So no turns will be played, for either Skyfish and Killer during that time.

Socrates
06-04-2004, 15:02
Here is a 1st bunch of pics that I took with my numerical camera, when I was in the observatory in Provence (south of France). All pics from space in this post were taken with the camera behind one of the optical ouput of a 80-cm telescope.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200446134135_Moon.JPG
24.98KB

In case you didn't recognize, this is the Moon during the 1st crescent.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200446134438_Jupiter - flash.JPG
10.37KB

Shooting Jupiter with flash (why not ?) ; you can see some of its strips on the surface.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200446134545_Jupiter.JPG
15.23KB

Still Jupiter, but with no flash. The powerful God is so bright !! And you can see what seems to be three of its Galilean satellites.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200446134629_Saturn - flash.JPG
10.38KB

Saturn with flash. Too bad that the conversion to a JPG took some light away ; the initial shot was better.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200446134740_Saturn.JPG
11.86KB

Saturn with no flash. You can still see its rings, in the middle of this very bright form. Maybe its biggest satellite, Titan, is on the left.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200446135024_120cm Telescope - upper.JPG
62.74KB

The night after that, in the 120-cm telescope. The upper part of the telescope.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200446135115_120cm Telescope - middle.JPG
79.96KB

Still the 120-cm one. You can see some of its mechanical parts.

Next post will be for pics taken with the 120-cm telescope, but through a CCD.

Skyfish
06-04-2004, 20:49
very nice !

Beam
06-04-2004, 23:32
Cool pics krys, specially the ones with Titan and 3 of the 4 Galilean satelites in the Jupiter pic. Did you do measeruments as well in order to identify the satelites?

Socrates
24-04-2004, 15:49
@ Beam : No we didn't do measurements there, because it was done with the 80cm telescope, which was only for lurking purpose. It would require to know the satellites' positions on their orbits, or to observe them several nights, because you clearly miss one dimension on the picture.

Time for some 3-colour pics from the CCD installed on the 120cm telescope ! As I sometimes can't recall what pics I took personnally (me and another guy, because there were a few groups which rotate on several nights), I suppose these were "my" pics !

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200442414738_Lyra Nebula.JPG
15.42KB

The planetary nebula in Lyra (M57).

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004424142252_Leo Galaxy.JPG
45.11KB

One of the galaxies in the Leo constellation (M66). The 3 layers don't fit nicely, due to atmospheric perturbations.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004424143159_Dumbbell Nebula.JPG
41.58KB

The Dumbbell Nebula (NGC 6853). I think it's this one, comparing to other pics from the Internet !! It doesn't look like a 3-colour pic, all the more as it was taken on a different night.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004424143441_Globular Cluster.JPG
56.72KB

A globular cluster (of stars). It could be any one of them, I can't recall which one it was. I should have kept a better paper of what we shot ! (and maybe it wasn't one of "my" pics too...)

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004424143822_Spiral Galaxy.JPG
34.14KB

A spiral galaxy seen from above (or below). It could be any one of such galaxies, since it's not one of my pics.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/200442414408_Galaxy absorption.JPG
26.3KB

A galaxy seen from the side (not one of my pics). You can see the absorption of light due to interstellar clouds (dark parts). Such clouds "eat" the visible light and reject some infrared light (thus invisible), due to their low temperature.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004424144341_Sombero Galaxy.JPG
12.9KB

The Sombrero Galaxy (not one of my pics). I know it's this one, since it heavily looks like those from the Internet. Beautiful shot.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004424144622_Saturn - ultraviolet.JPG
7.97KB

Saturn in ultraviolet. Not nice to see because it was printed and then re-scanned ! We tried to shoot it in visible light, but the damn CCD couldn't take very quick shots (less than 3 seconds) : the planet was really too brilliant in such wavelenghts, so we just did it in UV.

Well, I didn't post all pics, since other ones weren't as interesting and nice, and we screwed some more (3-layer thingie). It was a nice week.

Socrates
26-06-2004, 20:07
Some of you may have seen a strange MSN pseudo these days, and it has to do with my new summer job. I'm working in welcome stuff in some of Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport's terminals. I basically walk all the time in one section of the terminal, searching for people who might need some information/advice/help. I will work in terminals 1 and 3 during July and maybe August. The job sometimes starts at 7am and sometimes ends at 11pm !! [eek] Not on the same day of course... And fortunately there are many days off. I wear a yellow shirt and black trousers, so if you happen to travel to Paris this summer, via Roissy, then you may see me there !

Tell me if this is the case for someone. :D

Socrates
25-10-2004, 01:42
This thread needs an update ! First of all, I [b]needed to tell that working in an airport this summer was a little hard (but nice) from one point of view. I saw so many nice girls during those months that I sometimes was a little [crazyeye] for a while. The good part is I (and my colleagues) could see and talk to so many pretty ones. The bad part is that it could only last a few minutes at max. :( Mmmh, should I pick one up, I'd say that (I suppose) late-20s girl (with boyfriend) which was so beautiful and nice to talk to. She was leaving to Egypt, possibly Luxor ; had she told me to come with her straight away (and leave the boyfriend !! ;) ), I would have done it. Dear airport... :D


OK, why another post ? Last Friday I visited a museum, and that was my 1st personal initiative ever. [blush2] You guessed it, I went to the Musée du Louvre in Paris, it's now free from 6pm to 10pm for 26- people on Fridays. [tongue] So I went there and took some crappy pics. Here are 3 of them. Aggie, you can laugh big time...

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004102503129_Momie de goudron CDZ.JPG
66.87*KB

A mummy that was put into black tar and other stuff, dating from Greek or Roman Egypt ; it was a guy who died at the age of 21. Quite impressive to see it in real.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004102503556_Zeus CDZ.JPG
48.23*KB

The God of the Gods, Zeus himself, with thunder in his hand. I tried to shot him from below because it is Zeus after all. [tongue] You can see how good I am to make blurry pics. [mischief]

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2004102503931_Vénus de Milo CDZ.JPG
75.47*KB

A classic from the Louvre : "Vénus de Milo". Can't remember if that is the statue that an old Greek guy found around his house and kept touching at night on hiw own. [lol] Erk. Nice tits BTW.

That's all folks. Next time I'll learn how to take photos.

Socrates
10-12-2004, 10:09
I went a second time to the Louvre, one week afterwards, but this time I hadn't any camera. :( A pity, since I saw some cool Persian mosaics, a reconstitution of an Assyrian royal room (with the winged tauruses), and... a black stone with Hammurabi's code of laws in its entirety. [cool] What a blast to see it there, and laugh at some of the laws ! [lol]

Anyway, it's roughly 10am this morning, quite an unusual time for me to be awake. That's because it's the 3rd time in 2 weeks that I haven't slept a wink at night, and decided to get up to stop trying to sleep. This is with quite certainty related to my recent sickness, which I'm gonna explain a bit here. I had been under antidepressant for 4 months, not a strong treatment but still. This basically was to help me doing things in my life. I had a look at the notice, and I found out I was in its "social phobies" category. [crazyeye] They put the "" too. Maybe some of you will find it odd, well I don't know if I appeared so in Breda. [hmm] I think it's more the way I fear the business world et al... But back on topic : the doctor told me to stop it for a while because I had the feeling it didn't do me anything (at least now). So... I suddenly stopped taking it, and 3 days later I was sick. :( It lasted a week, where I just couldn't help staying in bed. It wasn't a headache, but a general [crazyeye] (smiley says it better than me) that made me wanted to sleep all day. Couldn't even stay a while in front of my PC, it was too hard for the head. Sorry for the delays in my games (Swimming Pool and Diplo). I now think I won't touch any of those medicines, they're too dangerous, and I'd better solve my problems on my own.

Oh while I'm at it. I never wanted to retake it during the sickness, so as to quit with it on an easier pace ; now that I had stopped it, all I wanted is to let it go, fucking medicine ! :D Once, as I was feeling very bad, I was about to call for God or something (maybe it is due to the language, strongly related to God-ish quotes) ; I immediately decided it was nonsense, and didn't start praying any God at all, and told to myself "fuck, I'll just let time pass and that's it !" Inch Allah !! [lol] Losers.

akots
10-12-2004, 10:13
Yep, stop poisoning yourself with these chemicals. I know first-hand they are not good.

ERIKK
10-12-2004, 10:57
Havent noticed anything in Breda Krys. I agree it's wise to stop taking these things but if it
prevents you from getting sick I realy don't know what is wise and what not.

Hope you get better (and some sleep ;)) soon! :)

Socrates
05-01-2005, 22:23
Time for an update (don't wanna make a blog, but I find it nice to tell my friends what I do).

I didn't resume taking medicines. [thumbsup] I don't think I'll come back to it soon (if not ever). ERIKK, you didn't notice anything, but that's normal : this stuff was quite "silent", and I wouldn't have come to Breda to stay on my own. [crazyeye] I felt quite at home there, a weird feeling, and so I want to re-thank Beam for the welcome.

I went skiing to my usual ski village (Alps), with no family but with friends. [goodjob] At last I could do that, and I was proud to invite some friends who had never skied or seen snow in mountains. Maybe I'm smart enough to organize another kind of reunion someday... [mischief]

I started my 1st real job in my life last Monday !!! :) I'll work for 6 months in a company dealing with other companies that work on office installing (when a company decides to move to another building). My company does a thing called "space planning". I'll oversee an office installement near our own office (5 min), just ouside the city of Paris.

My brother came back from Reunion Island tonight. [cool] After 6 months spent over there, and about a year after coming back from Australia (6 months too). Great to have the bastard here again ! :)

Pastorius
06-01-2005, 01:01
quote:Great to have the bastard here again !

So, your mother WAS a hamster, and your father smelled of elderberries then



:D

Socrates
29-01-2005, 01:28
Message for Paali : dude, move your ass and get the latest version of SNes9x (v1.43) !! It's got a video feature, and now you can shoot your games, lol. I started to do it for F-Zero, and that's so cool. The videos are stored in a special format, only readable by the emulator, and they are very light. Only when you convert them to avi's are they damn heavy. I think I'll shoot much stuff soon, why not Zelda 3, mmmmh maybe boring, or my tales in Street Fighter 2... Oh the joy. [cool]

I wonder if I'll often play Civ3 now.... Mmmh lately I've always been waiting for my saves, so no problemo. [mischief]

Pastorius
31-01-2005, 00:01
Tres cool. Have they fixed multiplayer yet?

A friend of mine almost beats street figther on lvl 6 [eek]

I suck on level 2-3 [:o]

Socrates
31-01-2005, 00:28
Très cool indeed. :D If you want, we can exchange vids via MSN or mail, they're so light. You only need the 1.43 version and the ROM. I made a vid of F-Zero where I almost lost, but... no. :)

Fucker, you told me you beat Street Fighter 2 on level 8 with Dhalsim !!! [eek] I'm gonna beat you for sure now, cause once I stopped at M. Bison on level 8 with Ryu, that was with Super Street Fighter 2.

They disabled the netplay feature because they somehow found out that it wasn't working... at all ? [crazyeye]

Pastorius
31-01-2005, 00:49
Yes - when I played SF2 on amiga, I kicked derniere (spelling?) @ level 8. on the emulator, I suck. Damn controls....

Aw darn. Netplay would have been awesome.

But I found SSF2 for PC (I think). Will try and see if the controls are better. Isnt too large. If I can remember the url as well, lemme c...

found url

http://www.abandondata.nl/info.php?type=pcgame&i=ssfighter2


dutchies running the site.

Socrates
14-03-2005, 03:12
Bad news : I got a serious problem on my PC, and I don't know what it is about. Basically I can't access the HD partition I made for my data, but still can do what I want in the partition with the system things. The PC doesn't start properly, I need to press a key to resume. It says "HD status BAD" or something similar. It wants to check the HD every time I start the PC, and finds hundreds of unreadable parts. It is very slow in using otherwise. FYI I have no anti-virus program installed, but went nowhere unknown tonight.

Please if someone can help me tomorrow... :( I'm clueless.

Until this is fixed (I hope it will be), all my PBEMs are on hold.

Pastorius
14-03-2005, 10:02
http://www.grisoft.com - get AVG 7 free version - free virus scanning suite

or if that is problematic:

http://housecall.trendmicro.com/ (needs activeX to be enabled to run)
Housecall is an online AV scanner

Rik Meleet
14-03-2005, 12:44
Here is a diagnostic disk which can test HDD (disque dur) and Memory.

Might be useful for you.

http://support.packardbell.com/nl/mypc/?PibItemNr=6917050600&PibItemParent=platform_veloce_ixtreme#show

anarres
14-03-2005, 13:10
No need to diagnose anything: Your hard drive is dying!!!

You must BACK IT UP NOW.

If you can't back it up turn off your PC NOW!!!!

Essentially every time you turn it on there is a chance it will die forever. The next time it is used MUST be to remove the data you need (if it's not too late already)...

To back it up you will need a second hard drive. If you have one turn off your pc, put it in, reboot, then transfer all your data to it. If you don't have one you need to buy one because your current drive will die any moment.

If you're really really scared of what's inside you will need a friend who isn't or you will need to take your pc to a shop and get them to do it.

Pastorius
14-03-2005, 13:29
As an extra precaution, I am rechecking all saves I have received from you Krys.

And I agree with anarres on the harddrive backup. I ve learnt that the hard way [cry]

Socrates
14-03-2005, 15:41
Additional info :

- I'm posting from work during daytime. ;)

- It all started when I tried to save the latest save Paali sent me. I was browsing my hard drive to pick up the correct folder, and it wouldn't allow me to enter the "krys v Paali" save folder, but all others were OK !! [eek] And everytime I tried to enter it, I got a message asking if I wanted to format my HD, an offer I declined of course.

- Then after a while, the PC started to mess up the windows... And that's how it came to the status I described above.

- It is obvious that I should back up all I want somewhere else, but how can I do it if I can't enter this part of my HD ? BTW, the "system" partition is fine, as far as I can see : I can still surf on the Internet, etc... When I want to enter the ill part, it says "error of pagination" or something like that.


Now, I can't see how a physical body can be destroyed by some 1's and 0's, but if you say so. :( I have no close friend really "in it", so should I quickly go to a shop ? Any idea of what could have caused this ? An internal error, or a virus coming from the Net ?

Pastorius
14-03-2005, 16:10
Krys, I am clean. No viruses, no spyware, trojans or malware.
And I showered this morning, so I am pretty clean in the grand total of things [:p]

This sounds a bit like something a former colleague of mine got. She had to reformat and reinstall everything. If you can - backup as much as possible, and do that. Saves you frustration of trying to clean the disk yourself.


Oh, and for the future, anyone without a virus scanner and firewall are begging for either a regular virus or worm, or a goddamn network virus or worm.

anarres
14-03-2005, 16:37
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov

- It is obvious that I should back up all I want somewhere else, but how can I do it if I can't enter this part of my HD ? BTW, the "system" partition is fine, as far as I can see : I can still surf on the Internet, etc... When I want to enter the ill part, it says "error of pagination" or something like that.This is a very clear indication that your drive is dying. In fact it looks like one of your partitions is already "dead", and non-recoverable...

However, the single line that gives us almost unrefutable proof that this is the problem is this:
quote:The PC doesn't start properly, I need to press a key to resume. It says "HD status BAD" or something similar. It wants to check the HD every time I start the PC, and finds hundreds of unreadable parts....


quote:Now, I can't see how a physical body can be destroyed by some 1's and 0's, but if you say so. :( I have no close friend really "in it", so should I quickly go to a shop ? Any idea of what could have caused this ? An internal error, or a virus coming from the Net ?*If* I am correct then your hard drive is simply on it's last few moments of life. This is not a problem of 0's and 1's but of the drive heads literally crashing in to the drive platters. A literal "crash"...

*If* this is the case you have a very limited amount of "on" time before it dies. For example, lets say it has 3 minutes of activity before it dies completely (this is an arbitary guess btw).

In this example, when you go home and turn on your PC you have just reduced it's life by 30 seconds. You try and do some stuff like load civ, etc. Now you have it's lifespan down by another 60 seconds. Next you go on the internet and do some stuff, then you go on msm, etc. After a while you power down, but you have now managed to take the hard drive lifespan down to just a few seconds. The next time you boot up it dies before even reaching windows...

A harsh example, but DO NOT GO HOME AND TURN ON YOUR PC UNLESS YOU ARE READY TO BACKUP THE DATA OR LOSE IT.

Also....

Believe me when I tell you that this is the problem - it is almost certainly the hard drive dying and nothing else.

Lt. Killer M
14-03-2005, 17:06
krys,

my HDD on my laptop gave up WITHOUT ANY NOTICE - it was fine one evening, the next morning on booting it just didn't do anything.

When I opened the laptop and took out the HDD it made a rattling sound.

THAT's how sudden it can be - and as anarrres said: BACK UP YOUR STUFF b[]ASAP[/b]!!!!!!!

Socrates
14-03-2005, 18:00
Thanks Killer, all is not lost. ;)

About my PC. I'm surprised, as I bought it 2.5 years ago only. I did use it quite much, but not like a bastard (read : properly). The fact that they can die without notice is really frightening, I'm even pissed. Do they need to create molecular PCs to run things properly ?

anarres, I have one question : what physically is a partition on a HD ? I only have one HD, and seperate it to have systems and programs on one part, and data on the other one. The system one is running really fine so far, whereas the data one isn't answering. If it is a physical crash (a mechanical fatigue), then why would it affect only one artificial part ? So I still doubt your explanation. And BTW, when it asks me if I want to check the volume before opening Windows (blue screen), with a 10-second notice, it displays the right name of the ill partition (whereas this name is gone in Windows proper).

And all in all, I'm still clueless to what to do, apart from going to the doctor : I can't access the ill partition, period. Without access I can't back up anything. Shit, because I had lots of downloaded concert records and other personal stuff... And to think that I was about to back up some parts yesterday. :(

anarres
14-03-2005, 18:33
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_disk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_crash

Now to explain what a partition actually is I have to simplify a little...

Imagine a hard disk is just 1 physical disk (platter). Note that they can have many now, but if I explain for 1 just imagine 8 identical disks all with 1/8 the data each. This disk is seperated in to many thousands of seperate concentric rings, each ring can store a lot of data (0's and 1's). For this example imagine there are 300 rings - also imagine for the sake of simplicity that all these rings hold the same amount of data (not true at all, but it doesn't matter).

If you seperate this disk in to 3 identically sized partitions you will have the 100 "center" rings as partition 1, the 100 "middle" rings are partition 2, the "outer" rings are partition 3.

Now just remember that the rings are many more than that, there are several platters working in parallel, and the rings all hold different amounts of data. And there you go, a "crash" course in hard drives. :)


Now back to the problem:

The "bad" sectors on your hard drive (as identifed each time you boot - note that the ones noted each time are just the NEW bad sectors!! The others from each boot are marked as "bad" and never seen again - the data from them is lost (literally).

This means that depending on which parts are "bad" some or all of your drive will stop working. After a "crash" the platters are scratched but the drive (sometimes) can still work for the non-scratched parts (note that it's the condition of the head that determines if it is working - the platters are just inaccessable if they are scratched but the head can move past them to read good bits).

Some parts of each partition store the file structure itself. If this part of the partition is damaged the whole partition can be inaccessable.

It is perfectly possible for one partition to get trashed and the rest to be ok - although ANY crash imples the disk is fucked and you better get your data off quick.

Socrates
14-03-2005, 19:49
Posting from my father's PC... ;)

Well, if this is what hapenned, this is really unfortunate, and I doubt I can do anything at all but throw the HD into the bin with all its data. There has been no way to access the damaged partition so far, and it's unlikely I'll find one on my own, all the more as you keep telling me not to use my PC. I'll see if I can bring it to a HD-repairer (lol), to at least save the data, but apart from that I think I can forget all the data.

Thanks for your help.

anarres
14-03-2005, 21:35
krys - there are *some* things that can be done as you can access the raw data on the partition itself - but they are best tried after everything else as it's fairly unlikely it will work, and even if it does it is quite complex (or at least it was several years ago when I last tried it).

First thing to do is to get data of your C@ (system) drive. Although you may think you've got it all there may be some data there:

1) default location for your documents is: "C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents" (this is for Win 2000 - similar for other flavours of windows)
Check here for stuff from "my documents"

2) Outlook by default store your email in: "C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Outlook.pst" (this is for Win 2000 - similar for other flavours of windows)
Check for this file if you use outlook - other email programs may also store on C:

3) Civ games ;)

4) Any other PC save games (not all, but many force you to store in program files)

5) Any other application data


Once you are *sure* you don't want anything else of the C: drive ask again about getting the data from the D: drive - I need to look it up again, but once you have a new drive and windows installed we can put your old one back in and try to read the data directly from it. As I said before this isn't guarenteed because it has to work out from the 0's and 1's what it all means.

Socrates
14-03-2005, 23:35
1) If this is where MSN put the files you get from friends, it is empty.

2) Noted for Outlook, though I don't have much to save from my emails, really...

3) Civ games were all stored on the D part, like the game files.

4) I haven't played any game apart from Civ3 for years... Oh shit, I'll miss some vids from Snes F-Zero. [lol]

5) I kept a folder of all the applications I downloaded, so this will be easy, though not that vital.

It seems I'll have to pay for another drive, something I don't want to do. So I must force myself. Damned consumer society. ;) And all of this is Bill Gates's fault, fucker. :(

Pastorius
15-03-2005, 08:53
1 is also for documents written with apps such as Word and the likes.

Socrates
15-03-2005, 16:10
Won't a "chkdsk" be the thing to do ? Or put my drive in slave from another PC ? anar, any idea before I declare my data as lost ? [cry] Also, any idea for a solid HD to buy ?

anarres
15-03-2005, 18:55
"chkdsk" stands for check disk and will only check for bad sectors and mark them as bad. When "marked" as bad it's as though they don't exist anymore - data on them is lost (so files/filesystems may be corrupted) and the disk skips over them. The issue here is that damage is very very very very likely to still be happening every time the disk spins up. Essentially it won't fix the problem, and may actually make it worse as it forces a full disk scan (for instance the heads may get "stuck" on one of the problem areas and kill your drive)...

The way we will try to get data back is by putting your hard disk in to a working machine as a second drive as you suggest - but you can do this in your own machine once you have a new drive with windows installed on it.

I almost forgot - do you have a copy of windows you can put on the new disk?

anarres
15-03-2005, 18:56
With regards as to which drive to buy, my only advice is to get a recognised name and to avoid seagate like the plague. Maybe others can comment on performance, but IMO seagate are the only ones to stand out as terrible of the branded ones...

grahamiam
15-03-2005, 19:28
quote:Originally posted by anarres

With regards as to which drive to buy, my only advice is to get a recognised name and to avoid seagate like the plague. Maybe others can comment on performance, but IMO seagate are the only ones to stand out as terrible of the branded ones...

I had a Western Digital ATA drive fail in a similar manner last May (I had OS and data partitions too). Replaced it with a 60GB Hitachi SATA and a 10GB Maxtor ATA. I use the 10GB drive for the OS only (WinXP) and the 60GB drive is partitioned for data, games, etc.

The idea came from a co-worker (software engineer) who had problems with his drives failing in OS partitions. He thought it was due to the fact that the computer constantly needs to access/read the OS portion of the drive. Seems to work very well for me and I probably won't be too put out if one dies due to the price of HD's these days.

akots
15-03-2005, 19:34
Yes, take the disk out without starting the PC, connect and install new drive, shake the old one a little bit and put it back as a slave. Backup whatever you can and throw it away. I've heard a few stories that actually hitting the drive with hammer or throwing down from the table might help. If it stops to spin which also often happens, it can be placed in a tightly wrapped bag in a freezer overnight then thawed and dried before mounting back. Sometimes it helps but not in case of bad sectors. Data can be recovered but it is really expensive since requires de-assembly of plates and mounting them back on a new headset in a controlled dust-free environment. Price is about $20/Gb recovered at least in Compaq factory here in Houston.

Pastorius
15-03-2005, 21:08
Ack! I have a seagate hdd :(

Got to ask some generous benefactor (ie my father) for some assistance.

Hm, perhaps I could raid his "old" computer [smirk]

Socrates
20-03-2005, 14:19
I've just put my drive as a slave on another PC. It doesn't help at all, ie. it won't allow me to access the data, chkdsk does nothing. Should I shake it like hell, so that it works ? Any idea on what I should do with it as a slave, or anything else ?

Melifluous
20-03-2005, 14:31
Now thus may seem stupid but...

1) Have you checked that the jumpers (little marker things) are set correctly on both drives?
2) Are you using the same IDE cable to connect both hard drives to?
3) Have you checked the BIOS to see if the motherboard recognises the fact you have connected 2 hard drives?

Personally I'd probably just take all the plugs from the CD/DVD drive and attach the slave drive to those.

Dont shake your PC/Hard drive ever! This may work with 1980's stereos but Comps are a little more delicate. This isn't a loose connection issue here.

We need more info though as well. Can you see the drive at all? Or just this partition missing?

Melifluous

Socrates
20-03-2005, 19:12
1) I checked the jumper on my drive : I changed it to "slave" position. I didn't check it on the other drive, though I know it is on "master".

2) Yeah, the same grey, flat IDE cable connects both drives to the motherboard.

3) When I start my dad's PC, it recognizes every drive, and immediately tells me about the FAILURE about the primary slave drive (mine), and that it needs to be replaced after saving the data.

In fact, my dad's PC has 2 hard drives, one on master, one on slave, as well as 2 drives for CDs and DVDs. I just took the plugs off of the slave hard drive, and put them on mine.

I shook it a little bit, nothing more than with a Kinder chocolate.

In "Poste de travail" (where you can see the drives), I can see my damaged partition, though it is called "Disque local" (standard, unpersonalized name). Clicking on it says "Drive isn't accessible... Error with a pagination operation" (translation by me). Right-clicking on it sometimes shows that the partition has 0 byte on 0 available, and that it is in RAW. The other partition shows up well, even on my dad's PC.

I'm close to forgetting about the data, and buying a new drive, and start from scratch. I checked and I didn't back up anything on CDs. :(

Melifluous
20-03-2005, 19:29
I think it's fair to say that it's dead dude.

But you did try everything and that's the main thing.

It often takes catastrophic hard disk failure to really get the backup your shit message accross :(

I feel for your loss...

Melifluous

akots
20-03-2005, 20:40
Hit it hard on all sides, may be even with a hammer, you've got nothing to lose. May be the heads will align then. ;)

But looks firm dead.

Beam
21-03-2005, 01:53
Sounds like a dead parrot.

Socrates
21-03-2005, 20:41
Hopefully back with this : http://www.rue-montgallet.com/prix/75012/fiche-technique/4550/ :) It cost me 72 €, in the "Paris Chinese micro street", I hope I made a good deal, it has 3 years of site guarantee. I wonder if it's the same with my old one, though I had bought it with a full PC, 2.5 years ago. [hmm]

Expect some Civ action pretty soon now.

Darkness
21-03-2005, 20:54
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov

Hopefully back with this : http://www.rue-montgallet.com/prix/75012/fiche-technique/4550/ :) It cost me 72 €, in the "Paris Chinese micro street", I hope I made a good deal, it has 3 years of site guarantee. I wonder if it's the same with my old one, though I had bought it with a full PC, 2.5 years ago. [hmm]

Expect some Civ action pretty soon now.


Good news! :)

So, did you get the save I sent you or do I need to resend?

Socrates
22-03-2005, 08:38
Dunno yet.

Bad news : I've been "stolen" some CDs, nothing important : Windows, installation CDs... which prevents me from running my PC again. I may not fix this before next weekend. All PBEMs on hold until that, I'm sorry. :(

Socrates
25-03-2005, 12:07
A good news (the CFC invasion) never comes alone. Thanks to grs (really cool of you, mate !), I was able to install the missing drivers after finding a WinXP CD and a key on the Net (thanks grs again). Tonight I'll complete the reinstallation of various programs and games, and so I'll be able to resume Civ during this weekend. :) I'll ask you all to resend a turn if I miss some (no need until then).

digger760
25-03-2005, 12:32
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov
I've been "stolen" some CDs


[???] you mean youe CD's were stolen/robbed?

Socrates
25-03-2005, 14:16
quote:Originally posted by digger760

quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov
I've been "stolen" some CDs


[???] you mean youe CD's were stolen/robbed?

Well, it was pretty clear, no ? [hmm] What I know is that I can't find CDs that should be in some place, because there is simply no reason for me to give them away. WinXP and OfficeXP on burned CDs were mine (everyone can make a copy), and the installation CD doesn't interest anyone, so... I'm left in doubt. Maybe the house cleaner ?? :( I also miss some blank CDs...

digger760
25-03-2005, 14:22
quote:Well, it was pretty clear, no ?

No, it was not clear...your use of English was dreadful...i am just helping you on your use of English, given that it not your native language[king].

You could have just said "I am missing some CD's" and it would have been crystal clear:)

EDIT: I had a Friends "Operation Flash Point" CD go missing..About 2 years later it turned up in my Music CD collection, after i had looked everywhere else in the house, including under the kitchen sunk and in all the boxes in the attic...It just goes to shows how often i listen to music CD's these days[blush]

Socrates
25-03-2005, 14:30
Mmmmh yes but I thought that "I've been stolen something" meant "Someone stole something to me". At least that's what I learnt at school, and I was told the passive form is good to use in English. But you're welcome to correct me. :) Just give me the right clues.

Apart from that, I'm looking forward to this 3-day weekend. :) Still at work, grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr ! [cry]

grs
25-03-2005, 14:32
Hmm, no holiday in France this Friday?

digger760
25-03-2005, 14:37
"I've been stolen something" and "Someone stole something to me"

are both in correct use of grammar.

"I've been stolen something" - makes no sense at all
"Someone stole something to me" would make sense if you replace "to" with a "from"

but it is also better to assume innocent until proven guilty...which in this case would mean, it would be better to assume the CD is missing then falsely accuse somebody of stealing it..because if they did'nt then you have upset them and the are more motivated to actually steal from you in the future just to spite you;)

Socrates
21-04-2005, 02:16
Here are a few pics of last Monday night. I went with bro and a friend to La Défense, next to my suburbs house, to experiment my friend's camera at night.

Dunno why the 1st pic won't load here (even at 50% size), but I uploaded it on my webspace, so I give you the link. I look like a ghost... Question : how did we do it ? The pic wasn't edited at all.
http://kryszcztov.free.fr/krys_le_fantome.JPG

Here is the Eiffel Tower ! The blue light comes from the lighthouse at the top of it, that rotates as the camera records the photons (long exposition).

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/20054211336_Eiffel Tower.JPG
91.88KB

Here is the Arc de Triomphe ! The suburbs city inbetween it and us is called Neuilly-sur-Seine ; it is the richest city in France, I believe, and its mayor has been Mr Sarkozy since 1983 (current leader of the UMP party - the one ruling the country). In the middle of the pic, we can see the métro coming towards us (the pair of yellow lines). On the right, we can see that a car gently lighted on its lights for track change (or whatever you call them) : that's the dotted orange line along the red ones.

http://www.civ3duelzone.com/forum/uploaded/kryszcztov/2005421140_Arc de Triomphe.JPG
130.64KB

Hope you like the pics. :D

akots
21-04-2005, 04:24
Liked the fantom pic a lot. :)

grahamiam
21-04-2005, 04:41
beautiful pictures [goodjob] my wife and i were all set to go to Paris for our honeymoon in '99, but then we found out that she couldn't leave the country on the entry visa they gave her for our wedding :( one of these days, when we get the money, we're going :)

quote:On the right, we can see that a car gently lighted on its lights for track change (or whatever you call them) : that's the dotted orange line along the red ones.
we call them blinkers or flashers, for a lane change :) and that looks really cool [cool]

barbu1977
21-04-2005, 06:41
For the ghost, was it a film camera? I've seen this happen a few times with one. The camera fails to advance and a second picture is taken over the first one.

Nice effect.

Pastorius
21-04-2005, 09:51
très bien monsieur :D

Tell us about the ghost pic man!

Socrates
21-04-2005, 21:51
Thanks guys, I'll tell my friend because he was the one who took the pics (I had the ideas though :D ). For the 'ghost' pic, as I said, it wasn't edited, so that is what we got in the camera. We didn't use a film option, I don't even know if there was one. What we did was simple : all these pics were taken with a long exposition (from 5 to 15 seconds, as can be seen in the pics' properties). In this one, I stayed in that position in front of the camera for about 2/3 of the time, and then quickly withdrew from the place for the rest of the time. So we end up with me AND the background together, making myself like a ghost. It was weird to stay still and suddenly rush away for so many pics. [crazyeye]

Rik Meleet
21-04-2005, 21:56
Tres Jolie !

barbu1977
21-04-2005, 22:15
When I say a film camera, I'm talking 35mm reflex camera, those we used before digital ones appeared.

Socrates
24-04-2005, 02:20
I'm back from my evening in Paris, and it was my best evening of the year, well, it can't be compared to anything at all...

Tonight I personally met Mr Billy Corgan, former frontman of the bands the Smashing Pumpkins and Zwan. [eek] [eek] [eek] He is one of my music heroes, and I still follow him closely. He was a few days in Paris, and said he wanted to meet friends there, just like that. I went to the Sacré-Cœur, at the top of the Montmartre hill, with some friends who share the same passion. And we met him, shook hands, asked questions... and he even played 3 songs on an acoustic guitar. This lasted over 1.5 hours, and then he left as the sun was down.

I feel freaky happy. :)

Pastorius
24-04-2005, 10:08
DUDE!!!

Only album missing from my collection is the Machina 2 album that was released on the internet.
I have the Zwan album as well (though not as happy with it...)

3 songs for 1.5 hours [crazyeye]

[jump]

Socrates
02-07-2005, 01:11
Blog shitty fucky fuck a duck i hate blogz stop the shit in summer never


I worked for 6 months, but I'm now unemployed, as they didn't want to keep me. [blush2] Still, my boss told me that, after an initial disappointment, he was OK with me. I learnt (or learned ? :D) stuff about the job I didn't know at all before, but more importantly I learnt about myself and how to deal with people at work. Basically it was about getting out of my everlasting bubble of intellectual daydream, so as to tell people "You have to do that, and that's how you will do it" instead of staying cryptic and metaphorical about it all. [crazyeye] Anyway it was good to work and earn a little money, but I'm now a free man (well, "free" is a word with no real sense...). Tonight I should have done some karting with them, but I didn't go because I spent the whole day here trying to get free of the alcohol stuck in my veins and belly, due to last night's party at a friend's... [blush2]

Billy Corgan's CD "TheFutureEmbrace" is out, and it is being aired on my stereo pretty frequentely. :) You can listen to it all on BC's MySpace page. ;)

Socrates
31-01-2006, 16:23
[bump]

Finally. I'm starting my new job next Thursday. :D My task is to stay in the street all day, trying to sign some people for giving money on a monthly basis (credit card and all) to a non-governmental association. It is a real job at full time (I'll do Tuesday to Saturday, from 11am to 7pm), and quite well-paid for what it is (not a skilled job). In fact this will be my salary record, but that ain't no extraordinary comment. It's just for one month, but this can be renewed for many months if I do well. This month I'll be working for "Médecins du Monde", an association dealing with healing and healing access in every part of the world, basically.

Oh, for those who think this is a rather odd job (getting paid for an association), there is a fact : it actually profits to the associations more than if we were volunteers not getting paid. In fact I'm paid by a little compagny which offers this service to many associations.

Now the future looks a bit brighter. :)

Darkness
31-01-2006, 16:40
Congrats Krys! :)

Socrates
06-03-2006, 22:07
Back to unemployment.

Darkness
07-03-2006, 10:07
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov

Back to unemployment.


Sorry to hear that... :(

Socrates
04-04-2006, 17:16
http://kryszcztov.free.fr/

This is my brand new website. :) Come and pay a visit if you have some time to waste, as it is mostly in French. ;) So far I uploaded one stuff, but all of it : poetry in French I've been writing for 3 years now.

akots
04-04-2006, 17:23
[goodjob]

barbu1977
04-04-2006, 17:33
Nice work. (althought poetry is not realy my cup of tea). I did not know you were a word artist like that. Nice to see that you respect a certain form and do not fall into vulgarities like many modern poets do.

Pastorius
04-04-2006, 18:20
Krys, one thing on the credits page - unless u want a nasty spider to collect your email, then change it...

Ok, one more: I dont understand half of it [:p]

Well, one last thing: nice work :D

Socrates
04-04-2006, 19:13
Hehe akots. ;)

barbu, sorry to hear that, you were the only one here to understand it all. [lol] I don't think I'm an artist, I'm just someone with too much free time on his hands (no job). Why are modern poets bound to write vulgarities ? Thanks. :)

Paali, done. Replaced it with an image, though I don't care much, as this is my 4th email address !! Thanks. :)

Socrates
18-07-2006, 03:13
Last week I learned something about the year to come (right after the summer) : the unthinkable happened, I'm back to school !! [eek] I'm still 1 year off the Master degree (the new European word for 5 years of university), and I know it's a pain in the ass on the job market. I was convinced to have a final chance to get it, and so I applied for a degree in "data processing" (word ? I never seem to know the English word for "informatique" [lol] ). This 1-year course is set up for scientific students like me, and I was allowed to take it, after some people decided on my case (like everyone applying).

Well, I'm very glad to do that, and really hope I won't fail this time, as I'll turn 27 next year... If I do well, I shouldn't have much difficulty to find a nice job afterwards, but I'll see that in time. Anyway, this means I'm soon back to "work", and I now know a bit of my future. And I have the feeling it will also soon get better overall for me, so we'll see that too. :)

On other news, I recently got me a decent camera (well... a photo machine), but I yet have to read the notice, because it seems rather complicated... :D Then I'll go photo-hunting.

akots
18-07-2006, 03:16
Good idea, man. Go get that degree.

barbu1977
18-07-2006, 04:19
Félicitations!

and good luck.

Darkness
18-07-2006, 10:23
Good luck! :)

digger760
18-07-2006, 10:54
Is "Information Technology" the word(s) you are looking for, generally it covers all things to do with working on computers...personally I see it as people who work with network support, servers and PC's, I prefer to refer to myself as a Software Engineer, which is in a class of its own [coool]

Socrates
18-07-2006, 12:19
Yeah, IT of course. Shame on me. [blush2] Proves I'm still not on track. [tongue]

Kingreno
18-07-2006, 12:39
Bon Chance!!!

Pastorius
19-07-2006, 11:41
quote:Originally posted by Kingreno

Bon Chance!!!


I'm with the King

Socrates
02-08-2006, 12:09
While waiting for my course to begin somewhere in September, I will work at the airport several days a week. Quite much the same job as 2 years ago, so I'll quickly be operational. ;) I'm starting this afternoon, I only learned that yesterday, I still haven't signed my contract, I don't have my "security zone" badge, etc... I'm used to be rushed like that. :D Bro is in the house for now and will do the same job too.

Darkness
02-08-2006, 12:33
Working at an airport? In the vacation period? Sounds stressful to me... ;) Good luck! :)

Pastorius
02-08-2006, 12:55
Don't you lose my luggage [hammer]

Socrates
15-09-2006, 15:00
Writing silly stuff from my new University near Paris... Yeah, school has started ! [eek] This weekend I'm finishing my summer job too.

Civ related : I was starting to get really bored earlier this week, so, while waiting for a good and easy RBCiv game to pop up, I started playing the Earth Map with 18 civs, as Alex da Great. Level is Prince, and though the AI isn't that tough, it's a challenge to keep up and build up a decent empire. :) Phalanx kick ass against horsies. [thumbsup]

Whomp
15-09-2006, 17:25
What are you studying this year Krys?

Socrates
15-09-2006, 20:25
quote:Originally posted by Whomp

What are you studying this year Krys?

It's written up there. Data processing, computers, etc... Then I'll have to find a real job with my Master degree (I hope).

But my Earth game is hard : only 3 cities in the Middle Ages (normal speed). [lol]

Socrates
16-02-2007, 18:16
OK guys, I'd need a bit of advice maybe.

I'm currently into my internship search. Uni is ending next week, and then I have a 4-to-6-month internship to do in order to complete the degree. I'm rather a newbie in programming and IT in general, I just know the basis (which includes "Hello World !" and a bit more ;) ). So I have to use the internship to improve myself and discover stuff, so as to be stronger in a few months when I start a job.

Today I got my first positive answer, it's an internship in... a video game development studio ! [groucho] While it's interesting, I wonder if it's a good idea. It's not well paid, and I think I'll program more than needed and maybe not see a full project, as requested by the Uni. At the end, I wonder if I'll be stronger enough in various sub-areas. I'm also searching in IT compagnies, mainly projects around Java, which will need less programming, but a lot more to discover (stuff I haven't learned, etc...). So it's about a (probably) more interesting subject versus a better investment for the future. I'm not that into video games, but I tried because I wanted to see if it would work.

Anybody has an opinion about it ? Someone into IT in general (I see digger is a software engineer) ?

Matrix
16-02-2007, 18:38
Well, to the video game development studio you should say that your university demands you to see a full project. If that is a hard demand by the uni and the company rejects it nevertheless, it's useless to go there...

Pastorius
16-02-2007, 18:55
I 100% agree with Monsieur Lensink


And, your first real employment will probably not be your last, so choosing the non-videogame option sounds like a good option to me.

More knowledge and experience ==> better employment oppurtunities, all other stuff held constant.


And us econ people like to hold stuff constant and let other things vary.

Socrates
02-03-2007, 17:22
:D Things have changed a lot since last update. I spent 2 weeks going at recruiting sessions in a few compagnies (black suit and all ;) ). I was eventually retained by 2 compagnies, and I have just made my choice. So I'm starting the 6-month internship in 10 days, at La Défense (the skycrappers just west of Paris), in a French IT compagny called Sopra Group, in their telecom division. This is an internship that can lead to a real job, so I have to work and learn hard now.

The other possibility (declined) was in the suburbs, in an IT compagny called Getronics, that some of you may know, as it is a Dutch-based compagny. ;) But it was less attractive (the intership at least).

In one word : this may be an important moment for me. The first step (getting a Master degree) is in good shape, and the second one (finding a job) not so far away. Not sure I'll make the third step now (renting an apartment), as I'm close to La Défense already. These are the 3 base things that I must do before thinking of anything else.

Pastorius
02-03-2007, 17:24
I ve been to La Defense [jump]

Socrates
02-03-2007, 17:34
quote:Originally posted by Paalikles

I ve been to La Defense [jump]

Not worth much more than a 1-hour visit or so, uh ? It's just the greatest business centre in Europe, but in terms of touristic attraction, it's quite mediocre. I don't like the place very much, it's not in a "city", it's... a weird place. That's also where I took the pics at night (earlier in this very thread).

romeothemonk
02-03-2007, 18:59
With the renting of an apartment, is it very hard to buy a house in Paris? In America, most of our personal wealth is tied up in our real estate, helping each individual keep equity. Is it that way in France, and Europe as a whole?
I see from postings that most of the CDZ Europe guys rent, even though they have similar qualifications as I do.
Just curoius.

Pastorius
02-03-2007, 22:38
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov

quote:Originally posted by Paalikles

I ve been to La Defense [jump]

Not worth much more than a 1-hour visit or so, uh ? It's just the greatest business centre in Europe, but in terms of touristic attraction, it's quite mediocre. I don't like the place very much, it's not in a "city", it's... a weird place. That's also where I took the pics at night (earlier in this very thread).


Yeah. We were there for about 40 minutes. Including a stop to a store that sold makeup. Anette wanted to browse.

We saw the Grand Arch, and the view of the Arche de Triomphe
then we took the metro somewhere else.

Socrates
03-03-2007, 00:24
quote:Originally posted by romeothemonk

With the renting of an apartment, is it very hard to buy a house in Paris? In America, most of our personal wealth is tied up in our real estate, helping each individual keep equity. Is it that way in France, and Europe as a whole?
I see from postings that most of the CDZ Europe guys rent, even though they have similar qualifications as I do.
Just curoius.

Not sure. I'm not as advanced as you are in life : you have a job, you have a wife, so it's more natural for you to own a house. But speaking of generalities, I think many people rent here, yes. I don't plan to buy me an apartment or a house anytime soon, and the primary reason is that... I don't know where I wanna live ! [crazyeye] The other reason is that I don't have a job (yet). Not everyone thinks as I do though.

Pastorius
03-03-2007, 01:24
quote:Originally posted by romeothemonk

With the renting of an apartment, is it very hard to buy a house in Paris? In America, most of our personal wealth is tied up in our real estate, helping each individual keep equity. Is it that way in France, and Europe as a whole?
I see from postings that most of the CDZ Europe guys rent, even though they have similar qualifications as I do.
Just curoius.


saving through investing in a place to live is quite a popular way to accumulate wealth in Norway.

buying stocks via funds is also quite common.

Diversity in saving depends on income level....


blabla.

I bet Whomp can come up with some interesting facts on this. Him being the "investment banker" and all.

Socrates
12-04-2007, 01:07
Internship has started, and all is well so far...

Now to the real thing. This morning I succeeded in buying some seats for a gig in Paris : the Smashing Pumpkins are back, and they've decided to start their reunion here in May !!! [cool] So I got the fucking tickets, despite their server going nuts in less than 1 minute... [crazyeye]

Oh, and their new album is due in July : "Zeitgest".


Rock on.

Whomp
12-04-2007, 03:15
Awesome Krys!! That will be such an awesome show.
I figured you'd like this video. Billy Corgan doing some AC/DC on the streets of Milan.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=QDnomq8Wf2Q

Socrates
12-04-2007, 23:57
Already watched it. :) Not sure if you read earlier posts in this very thread, but I happen to have been to such an informal meeting with Corgan in Paris. It was 2 years ago, and the first one of a few meetings of the like.

Socrates
13-07-2007, 23:46
My internship is getting close to its end. It was originally scheduled to end on August 31, but it's now over in July 31, one month earlier. And the reason behind this is... I have signed my first real contract in this compagny ! [cool] So I'm hired as an engineer beginner in IT, for an indefinite amount of time, and with a real salary of course. I have made quite some way since last year, and I'm glad it happened finally. The real satisfaction is that I was so lost one year ago, couldn't foresee such a development (and that easy BTW), so there's much to be relieved from now.

Next : find an appartment to rent, and produce my internship report. I'm taking no holiday (as planned) ; on August 1st I'm carrying on with the job (without any drastic change on a daily basis), until winter, I guess. That's where I'll probably enjoy my first days off.


As you noticed, I have slowly but surely cut my playing time and my forum activity, and this is partly due to this. The social calling is kicking very hard. ;) And I can tell you it hurts, too. Been used to staying a bit too much away from everything apart from my PC (hey I wasn't a nerd, but you know, CDZ and other forums can be addictive, and so is Civ...), and suddenly I feel like the man stepping out of his cavern, the sun beams hurting his eyes... Well, it has to be. Oh, I usually don't talk so much about my inner self, but I feel like doing it for once. After all, I know some of you in RL, and have known so many of you in VL for a long time. :)

So yes, I've stopped Hattrick. It was a fine game, I enjoyed playing it, and it wasn't too time consuming ; in fact the only thing is that it's getting a bit annoying to think of your matches EVERY freaking weekend. I stopped it because I was frustrated with the game engine, and I'm taking advantage of that to get away a bit more from my PC, hopefully to do other things...

I'm also playing no Civ at the moment. It seems like Beam has stopped playing our game for an unknown reason ; I will gladly finish this one if Beam wants, because I like to finish my stuff, and the map is good, but I won't lose sleep if we forget this game...

OK, it's already getting too long. I first started this post with "Quick update...", but obviously I wanted to post more than the main piece of information (and what a piece). This is NOT a goodbye post BTW, I feel well on this site. :D Just changing the angle...

Beam
14-07-2007, 00:03
One smiley: [goodjob]

Don't feel bad about our game and I take the blame. Reason why I guess is Pitboss, can't think of anything else.

You pretty much confused me when we got our first chat about Diplomacy couple years ago and from what you're telling us now you got yourself pretty well on track and I personally feel good about it! :)

About gaming. You are a gamer period. Just look for and find the balance between RL and gaming and the rest of the shit.

Socrates
14-07-2007, 00:26
For our game : as you want, I'm open to any possibility.

Waoh, I forgot I could have told so much on MSN back then. Would you remind me the shit in PM or on MSN precisely ? Just curious in a way...

About what I am : I still don't have a clue. I think I've now found out what I want to do as a job, and that's a big step forward. For the rest, I may be a bit late (heck, but that's the tendency these days), but I'll try to find out in time. Am I a gamer ?... I think I need to check a thing or two before considering the question. At the moment I'm in a low period for gaming.

mauer
14-07-2007, 00:29
Congratulations Krys! You seem pretty excited about this, so I'm excited for you. Now that you're gonna be making big money I'll have to call for a round on you :p

barbu1977
14-07-2007, 04:24
Bonne nouvelle!

Félicitations!

Shabbaman
14-07-2007, 10:49
Nice one krys, congratulations. Et bonne kwaaaatooorzzzje zzzwiiejeeeet!

Darkness
14-07-2007, 11:39
Good news Krys!
Congratulations! :)

Socrates
02-08-2007, 01:46
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov

My internship is [...] now over in July 31

[party]

quote:Next : [...] produce my internship report

[blush2]

BCLG100
02-08-2007, 01:49
congrats krys!

Pastorius
02-08-2007, 19:45
Graulerer Chris!

Rik Meleet
03-08-2007, 13:54
Well done Krys :)

Socrates
03-09-2007, 23:26
Internship report is done, and this morning I had my oral presentation about the internship at my Uni. I think it went well and all, and now I'm waiting for the final word coming this monh, hopefully with the fucking diploma attached. :D

I feel more relieved now.

Pastorius
04-09-2007, 20:17
cool. I also want a fucking diploma. My wife says I ve earned it

Shabbaman
29-10-2007, 12:32
quote:Originally posted by Paalikles

cool. I also want a fucking diploma. My wife says I ve earned it


Hm, somehow I thought you should've graduated ages ago. What happened? So Krys, can we congratulate you yet?

Pastorius
29-10-2007, 19:27
I graduated years ago. But they did not give me a fucking diploma.

Thankfully, I have studied hard, and practiced day and night. Sometimes several times a day. And night

Socrates
18-12-2007, 23:49
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov

I don't plan to buy me an apartment or a house anytime soon, and the primary reason is that... I don't know where I wanna live ! [crazyeye]

Hehe, how can we change in a spantime of a few months ! Last Sunday I signed a "sale promising contract" (word ?) for an appartment. I was convinced by some that buying immediately would be better than renting. I let the shit-thinking behind me (don't know where I wanna live, better wait for being a couple, etc...), and only concentrated on financial matters : it should be worth it. So somewhere in March I should be moving to my first, own home, in the City of Paris itself (after 27 years in the close, oh so boring suburbs). I'll probably enjoy the close metro, the Velib (new bicycles), the close, busy nights around, and feeling Parisian for real (I'm not alone for that).

On other news, I finally learned that I got my diploma ! :) About time. So all in all, I reached my 3 goals for 2007 : diploma, job, and house (this one not complete, but more ambitious than just renting).

I hope this year was good for all of you too !

akots
18-12-2007, 23:56
[goodjob]

barbu1977
19-12-2007, 00:21
Good Job!

What "arondissement" is the appartment located?

Socrates
19-12-2007, 00:40
quote:Originally posted by barbu1977

What "arondissement" is the appartment located?

It's in the middle of the 18ème arrondissement, one of the rare places where it is <s>still quite cheap</s> not so fucking expensive yet for a 2-room appartment. ;)

Whomp
19-12-2007, 05:50
Congrats Krys on all your achievements. Owning your first home is a very exciting experience and even moreso that it's in such a great city.

Pastorius
19-12-2007, 21:10
Congrats.

Next is wife and kid, like me [crazy]

Socrates
15-03-2008, 22:56
I signed the real deal for my new appartment yesterday, so now I own a (small) piece of Parisian estate. :) I plan to live there by Easter, ie. next weekend. Moving stuff has only begun, but I'm already very tired (this + jooooob).

BCLG100
15-03-2008, 23:04
cool nice one krys.

Just saying thanks for the help again with directions to our hotel, the day there we didnt understand them but by the time we were going back we were french public transport experts!

Rik Meleet
16-03-2008, 12:25
YEAH !! LAN in Paris !!! :)

Darkness
16-03-2008, 13:57
Sounds good Krys! :)

Matrix
16-03-2008, 14:07
Very nice, krys!

Welcome to the welfare ladder. ;)

Socrates
16-03-2008, 19:24
quote:Originally posted by Rik Meleet

YEAH !! LAN in Paris !!! :)

Hehe. Only 6 levels to climb without elevator, you'll love it. [:p]

quote:Originally posted by Matrix

Welcome to the welfare ladder. ;)

Yeah but one has to start at the beginning : my bank account is totally empty. [cry]

Socrates
20-03-2008, 01:05
LOL, I was starting to think that the latest additions to this very thread were all nice, and that this was rather new in my life.

Let's play a game. Something bad has just happened to me (for real). I hate to compare, but not as hard as what happened to Meli and Killer recently though (OK : not about relationship nor health). Still, rather bad. Can you guess it ? In order to guess it right, you have to be quite precise. Do not hesitate to describe it in detail. ;)

Mood : :(

digger760
20-03-2008, 13:45
you lost your job and defaulted on the mortgage for you apartment?

BCLG100
20-03-2008, 15:26
quote:Originally posted by digger760

you lost your job and defaulted on the mortgage for you apartment?


im going to go with that also.

barbu1977
20-03-2008, 16:35
Your new apartment burned to the ground!

Matrix
20-03-2008, 19:33
Your goldfish died!

Banzai
21-03-2008, 09:37
You are transfered to the office in Lyon and now you have to travel between Paris and Lyon every day.

Shabbaman
21-03-2008, 09:50
You slipped backwards in the bathroom and landed on the shampoo bottle.

Socrates
21-03-2008, 21:13
You guys are funny. :)

quote:Originally posted by barbu1977

Your new apartment burned to the ground!

This has to be the closest guess, although it's not as awful as that.

I've just learned that the basement of my new building has been shitty since some underground pipes flooded the place during a whole month in 1995. I've been hidden this during the whole sale (3 months), until the company managing the building revealed it to me. What's so shitty about it ? As a (new) owner in that building, I'm bound to financially take part in the reparation to come in 2 years. Even if I stop living (furniture, night, weekend, holidays...), I may not have the money for this in 2 years !

The latest owner (what I now should call a dirty, old bitch), whose main flat was NOT this one, probably wanted to get rid of this shit and make a nice profit out of the sale (price got multiplied by 3 in eight years [eek] ). The housing agency, which was the middle man, was aware of the shit and hid it to me ; to add injury, their saleswoman (a super-super bitch) lied to me multiple times when I asked to visit the cave attached to the piece of estate : she said they couldn't find the keys for the moment, while in fact there were many holes in the caves for architects to probe the ground (so as to have a good idea of the mess down there). Now the holes are gone, it seems, but of course this isn't a good incentive to buy a flat, eh ? I forgot to mention on paper that I actually didn't visit the cave back then. :(

My notary (?) was sent the paper mentioning the shit one day before I signed for real last week. I don't know if he read it entirely (despite the company managing the building specially added a first page to attract attention), ie. I don't know if he did it on purpose, but the result is that he didn't mention it during the sale. This is also a professional fault.

Today, I'm in the middle of my installation, with many, many fees paid and contracts signed. I have no money left and am stucked with a flat I don't really want anymore (this shit, I mean the actual problem in the building, will last for years...). Fortunately I have a sweet home and my parents to help me, so I'm not desperate. :) I decided not to move myself to my new flat for the moment, until I can see clearer. I'm on my way to a lawyer, something I'd never had imagined ! I'm determined to make them pay hard for this, I consider this as some kind of challenge too. In the meantime my dream is broken. :(

BCLG100
21-03-2008, 21:34
Im sorry to hear about that krys.

Lt. Killer M
21-03-2008, 22:12
krys, I have no idea how French law handles this, so I can only tell you how things would run in Germany: you'd be entitled to make the deal undone - that is return everything to the state before the purchase, at the expense of the seller. GET A LAWYER!!!!!

and good luck!

barbu1977
21-03-2008, 22:31
This indeed sucks. From what you said, there is no way they can get out of this.

But I know how it is with house buying, when you think it's over and you find out you feel you've been screwed is awfull. We had something a bit similar but way less expensive than what you had and a layer had to come in play (Fortunatly she was my cousin and didn't charge a dime). In our case it everything settle down on the first "mise en demeure".

With a good layer, you should realy see clearly and know where to go. If you are not sure about his advice I'd recommend you see another one. 100$ an hour migth seem expensive at first, but you are probably talking abour a few 1000$ in the deal so get a good one.

Shabbaman
21-03-2008, 22:38
I'm with Killer here, this is prohibited under dutch law. Still terrible though!

Socrates
21-03-2008, 23:11
Of course this is prohibited in France too. The thing now is to prove things, and so I have to check out what I have signed, etc...

I made a mistake in my previous post : in fact the reparation of the basement should be due this very year, and I don't have a spare penny for that. [lol] This is just ridiculous.

And my feeling is that, on top of that, I've been screwed by everyone in the affair : ex-owner, housing agency, technical company, notary, banker... All of them may have got more from what I should have paid, they're all dirty pigs that I have fed. Especially, the technical company (which charged me 125 € for a hypothetical checking of the flat, in order to deliver a paper for one of my loans (BTW the checking is full of errors)) is friends with the housing agency (one is recommended by the other) ; a lump of money I had refused to give until last week. The guy from the "syndic" (company managing the building) has more or less been asked for bribing by the guy from the housing agency. It has all ended up in the opposite party (ex-owner + her notary) being ready late for the signing day because of this, and then I had to pay an extra 20 € for my bank check to be delivered quickly to the notary... [lol]

I type as I think, so it's all messy in this post. To sum up : I've been fucked in the arse, but the petroleum jelly worked fine.

akots
21-03-2008, 23:30
Well, it might not necessarily be a bad things because if you can fix that basement, may be price will be increased even higher, so you would actually end up getting more of the apartment. The main problem is that you don't have the money for that from your own pocket. Well, it might be possible to come up with some sort of a deal with them instead of canceling the whole thing. Like may be split the expense or get loan without interest. But of course moral repercussions are horrible, after all this is the first yours and yours only piece of property.

Matrix
21-03-2008, 23:45
That's mighty annoying. Indeed, if the French law is somewhat similar to the Dutch one you should be able to reverse the purchase. Stay sharp though, cos you don't want to be stuck with this appartment. If all is well the worst end situation is just a shattered dream...until you've found a new residence. :)

Socrates
13-04-2008, 23:01
Some news...

The company that technically evaluated the appartment is run by the same guy who runs the housing agency. This is apparently prohibited and could be a case for a justice decision ! This was discovered by the (she)lawyer which is now managing the affair.

Every party is OK for a meeting, which is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon in her office. Fingers crossed. I'm gonna ask for the cancellation of the sale, with all the money (at least) returned. Not sure they'll agree though. If not, I might start a long process at the court...

Shabbaman
13-04-2008, 23:32
Sounds like dirty business krys. Good that you have some legal representation. Is she any good?

[morepics]

socralynnek
14-04-2008, 09:54
Oh yeah, I wanna see a video when the house finally crashes because of bad cave...

I hope, you'll find a good way out of this. Life is a dirty business when it comes to love or money, it seems...

I can't imagine all those people cheating you...some of these professional seem to be very bad...

Socrates
14-04-2008, 20:21
It lasted one hour only, without any pause. I kept my position : cancellation of sale please. Nobody caved in. Some vaguely talked about giving some money, hardly enough to cover the reparations to come this year. They thought money was above everything, so this was not an option for me at all. The guy from the housing agency was very off-hand and disgusting. The ex-owner played the ignorant.

So there was nothing to agree on. Time for a trial. This will last several months/years, and I may be a loser in the end, even if I win it. I'm keeping the appartment of course, and will probably end up there during all that time.

[thumbsup]

Matrix
14-04-2008, 20:29
I like that attitude! http://www.straland.com/images/smilies/Schwarzy.gif

Good luck with it all. Must be quite exciting!

Socrates
14-04-2008, 22:31
Last smiley was rather very ironic. ;) I'm not depressed, but my last child illusions on the world of adults are now gone. I'll make my best to have justice triumph, but deep inside I feel I'll get screwed in the very end, whatever the ending.

Matrix
15-04-2008, 00:07
In Europe more than 99% of the law suits end up the way they should; you should have faith. In the end the only thing you'll have lost are the costs for this case.

Mistfit
15-04-2008, 00:40
@matrix - I am glad you put the caveat in there about 99% of EUROPEAN lawsuits being right.. I am afraid that the US percentage would be closer to 40-60%

Socrates
15-05-2008, 23:41
The affair has not moved much recently. I started to see another lawyer, I'll see if she's better.

I went to London for 5 days last week with my sister, and it was very hot and sunny there. Walking, green parks, museums, Portobello and Camden... Got pics, but I'll post some another time.

ProPain
16-05-2008, 01:05
Sorry to read this Krys. I had some similar problems with my previous house but with far smaller financial repercussions for me Eventually I managed to get the guy who did a crap job on the technical check up to pay for parts of the damages and I ended up being screwed for something like 500 euro's only. Biggest problem in the whole things wasn't the law, which is quite clear on the fact that potential buyers shoudl be informed of all these kinda of issues, but was proving the previous owners actually knew something was wrong. Even though it was pretty obvious there was no way they wouldn't have known, proving that was quite another issue.

YOu live and learn, it just sucks big time when that comes at great (financial & emotional) expenses. Hang in there and come have a drink in Groningen this summer to forget you problems, cause that's the in vogue thing to do nowadays ;)

Melifluous
16-05-2008, 01:38
quote:Originally posted by kryszcztov

Last smiley was rather very ironic. ;) I'm not depressed, but my last child illusions on the world of adults are now gone. I'll make my best to have justice triumph, but deep inside I feel I'll get screwed in the very end, whatever the ending.


You ever get the feeling that these awesome words sound even better in french? Like they say in the Matrix, the French language is a great one to swear in...

All that aside, I'm positive things will come right for you Krys. Please don't lose the faith!

I'd like to think that your years in CDZ has taught you two things...

Never give up and always be an asshole if you have tank armies...

[meli]

Socrates
17-05-2008, 18:02
Yeah PP, maybe I should come this summer... Will see. About my problem, you're quite right on target : everyone knows what everyone knew ; the problem is proving stuff and also those little text annoyances you find in contracts. [blush2]

Meli, I'm making it a habit now not to give up, but it's hard. And I think I'll be an asshole anyway, despite only having spearmen on my side. :D

Socrates
12-07-2008, 15:16
Hey there. I finally managed to get me Internet in my new appartment. :) So I'll probably post more often from now on. Except that I'm still not playing Civ. Except that I'll go on holidays in a few weeks' time. :D

But yeah I'm connected again.

Shabbaman
13-07-2008, 11:43
Posting is good. How's the appartment?

Socrates
16-07-2008, 00:48
Appartment is getting slightly better. The affair is going very slow. Might give you an update next year probably. [lol]

Socrates
08-10-2008, 01:29
As a mod in your own forum, you can see the IP from which people post, and better, a hint at their Internet provider. :p

The old woman who sold me the appartment... died last July, she wasn't even aged 80 ! Better : 2 of her 3 children aren't responsible for their lives (seriously handicaped), which means this is getting really complicated. On top of that, the agency owner has written lies about me in a letter to the old woman's family and to my lawyer. [:(!] I've just received a draft from my lawyer for the "assignation en justice" (can't be arsed to look for the translation, basically the letter in which I officially expose my problem and cite the guys I attack). I'll only address the notary, the rest can fight without me. :)

Furiey
08-10-2008, 02:15
Her dieing must complicate things somewhat, would you now be claiming off her estate? The agency owner could end up helping your side if you have proof that what was written are lies. I doubt that the court would look kindly on that sort of thing. Best of luck, sounds like things are moving now though.

Socrates
04-11-2008, 09:59
Affair still going slow : lots of papers to gather, etc...

What's more annoying to me at the moment is that I twisted my ankle while practicing volleyball 2 weeks ago (not sure of the term, but basically my foot got hurt when I ended my jump). It appears the injury isn't that important, but I still got a 3-week notice. Can't walk properly (got walking sticks and stuff), and this sucks. Looking forward the end of that.

Shabbaman
04-11-2008, 10:24
What's a 3 week notice?

Socrates
05-11-2008, 00:34
What's a 3 week notice?

Probably a badly translated thought of mine. :D I meant I was told that I was off from usual activities for at least 3 weeks. No sport of course, but also carefully handling of the foot. I can walk, but I'd better not do it frankly if I want it to heal properly.

Shabbaman
05-11-2008, 10:04
Ah ok, that makes sense. I thought it'd be something like that, though it sounds awfully official. Real french bureaucracy. But I thought I'd better check, since a two weeks notice is usually a bad sign. A three weeks notice is just an excuse to be lazy, apparently ;)

Darkness
05-11-2008, 16:57
No fun... :(
I know what it's like to have an ankle problem like that, and it gets boring really fast.
I hope you get well soon...

Socrates
20-12-2008, 01:03
The other day at a party, I'm meeting two girls, one is Swedish, the other one is Dutch. I'm mainly speaking to the Ikea chick, but I'm burning to do the smartass, so I hail the cheesehead and go :
- Hey, is my pronounciation correct : "Ik houd van kaas !"
Of course, I'm speaking in French, except the Dutch part, which stands for "I love cheese", for some reason my favourite line in Dutch. :rolleyes: The girl gets interested in me and replies :
- That's fine, but it's : "Ik houd van jou."
I'm all :confused: because I was sure of my line, so I ask her to spell that, which she does, and she adds :
- It means "I love you."
I suddenly get it, so I roll on the floor on the couch laughing my smartass out, and with Mr. Big Grin on my side, I go on :
- No, no, I wanted to say "I love cheese !" :D

Too bad she wasn't cute, but that night the Dutch windmills spoke Chinese. :rolleyes:

Shabbaman
20-12-2008, 14:26
If you'd work on your pronounciation I'm sure you'd attract better looking dutch girls ;)

Socrates
03-01-2009, 17:00
A new year, a new username.

Thanks Shabba ! Me likes the forum's title you chose. :)

Socrates
08-02-2009, 21:22
I've started the process to move to GNU/Linux at last. I'm currently deleting many things from my HD, and saving other things to CDs and the USB key. Once this is done, bye bye M$ ! I'm taking advantage of this by getting rid of most if not all files with proprietary formats. BTW, I've been told by Windows that I last used Civ4 in July 2007, quite a long time ago already (got rid of it too). [:O]

I also closed many things online recently, and will end this soon by closing my MSN account. So don't be surprised if you see me go without notice.

And if you ask : yes I'm a geek. So what ? :)

In other news, I'm doing works in my appartment, that will also soon be finished. And I bought me a new folk guitar ! :D I can eventually annoy my neighbours.

Shabbaman
09-02-2009, 23:43
And I bought me a new folk guitar !

You're now officially uninvited to any future CDZ meeting ;)

Socrates
11-02-2009, 20:38
You're now officially uninvited to any future CDZ meeting ;)

Why so ? [:(!]

barbu1977
11-02-2009, 21:49
Who could resist singing "Hotel California" to a camp fire after having 12 beers?

Socrates
12-02-2009, 01:20
Who could resist singing "Hotel California" to a camp fire after having 12 beers?

Hum, I'm not into tasteless music. [:O] And who said you should only play camp fire songs with a folk guitar ? :D

Shabbaman
12-02-2009, 10:01
And who said you should only play camp fire songs with a folk guitar ? :D

Well, that's just an assumption...

barbu1977
12-02-2009, 15:53
the real plus of having a campfire when a dude plays guitar, is that you can burn the guitar if the player is not good. [evil]

socralynnek
12-02-2009, 17:06
Well how about French Chansons?

Aux Champs Elysses, dabadaba....or somethong like that...

barbu1977
12-02-2009, 17:22
I read somewhere that the guy "formely known as Krys" is not realy into Joe Dassin.

Maybe "Les Cow-Boys Fringuants" would be something he would enjoy.

Shabbaman
12-02-2009, 18:24
the real plus of having a campfire when a dude plays guitar, is that you can burn the guitar if the player is not good. [evil]

Well, then Krys is only invited to meetings where we have a campfire!

Socrates
12-02-2009, 21:10
Well, then Krys is only invited to meetings where we have a campfire!

Or if it's not in Quebec, apparently. :p

And seriously, I'm not into French music. Except some exceptions. Like eg. Mano Negra / Manu Chao.

Socrates
28-03-2009, 15:36
I finally got rid of Windows. :) So my old PC is now full on Linux, more specifically Ubuntu 8.04 LTS (aka Hardy Heron). I'm gonna get used to it, and then think of a more advanced/free system (Debian is on my check list). BTW I'm also done with MSN Messenger, but my last chat with a CDZer dates from the prehistoric times, so no biggie.

ProPain
30-03-2009, 12:39
BTW I'm also done with MSN Messenger, but my last chat with a CDZer dates from the prehistoric times, so no biggie.

Still a pity though!

Shabbaman
30-03-2009, 12:47
BTW I'm also done with MSN Messenger, but my last chat with a CDZer dates from the prehistoric times, so no biggie.

I only start MSN by mistake. There's always the wrong kind of people that start talking to me. Not CDZ members, mind you. I should either block or remove those other people, MSN is not without use. I'm still using ICQ, pretty quiet :D

We could start an IRC channel for chat. BTW, you can just use MSN with any other chat program. I use Miranda (also available for linux). All you need is the address and password, the MSN account doesn't need to be active at all.

Socrates
31-03-2009, 01:16
I closed both my email adress and my MSN account. :D I'm on the road to free as in speech, so no more proprietary protocol for me. Tis just a way of computing and networking. Anyway, given my CDZ activity these days, posting on the forum is sufficient for my needs, and there's always private messages for something... private. ;)

Shabbaman
31-03-2009, 13:39
We'll make a front page just for the "private" messages to you ;)

Socrates
08-05-2009, 16:13
I read somewhere that the guy "formely known as Krys" is not realy into Joe Dassin.

Maybe "Les Cow-Boys Fringuants" would be something he would enjoy.

Hey I was just reading the latest posts in this thread when I stumbled onto this. I heard about that band very recently. Not sure, but maybe it was this nice chick which came from Quebec City who told me about it. Gonna check them up before I see her again. :D

Socrates
22-01-2010, 19:50
It's been almost 2 years since I signed for (and then moved to) my appartment, with the great complications I had told you about.

Today I had a meeting with the other party, to find a shared solution and to avoid a trial. It lasted 2.5 hours...

AND IT'S OVER !!! I got some money back, and the affair will be closing within days. It's impossible to know whether this will be enough to cover up everything, but it's not just 3 pennies, and I'll now be able to move on.

I'm feeling great to have "defeated" a notary, his insurance company and lawyer with just a spear. [tvs]

Thanks for your support back then, it's also nice to see how justice can be achieved. I'm feeling right in rightness.

barbu1977
22-01-2010, 20:43
That is great news!

I hope still enjoy the place.

Shabbaman
22-01-2010, 22:01
Good news krys, congratulations!

Matrix
23-01-2010, 01:16
Splendid, nice to hear! Congratulations!

akots
23-01-2010, 05:33
[beer1]

Darkness
23-01-2010, 09:41
Excellent news Krys! :)

Socrates
19-09-2010, 22:28
No news for a while, all the more as I watch Civ5 from a distance...

[WARNING : GEEK POST]

After almost 8 years with the same computer (only replaced the hard drive), which saw me discovering fast Internet connections, forums, Civ3 and Civ4, GNU/Linux via Ubuntu and so many things, I moved to the next step. The computer got silent for some reason 3 months ago, and I had to get me a temporary laptop from a friend or two, or I was going to die from no Internet link.

This weekend I got new pieces for my new PC, which I set up on my own with my screwdriver. Installed Debian Testing on it, and there you go : a new toy in my hands, for less than 300 euros. :D

So far the CPU hasn't got mad after me, and the mother board is still fixed to the PC box, so I'm good.

Post written with Iceweasel, the replacement for Firefox in Debian. ;)

Shabbaman
19-09-2010, 23:05
Cool. I like new computers.

Furiey
19-09-2010, 23:13
Me too!
I'm still on Windows but having fun finding out how my new one with W7 goes. I was intending to build this one myself, but the old one was so old it needed everything replacing and in the end I found the local computer shop could put it together cheaper than I could buy the components. I have added RAM, replaced graphics cards, added interface cards and new/replacement hard drives before so was quite looking forward to building one complete, but the extra cost was too much.

Socrates
19-09-2010, 23:57
I'm still on Windows

Meaning you intend to take the (not so) giant leap to the free world someday ? ;)

I myself got a new box with the power supply already placed inside, a new motherboard, a new CPU + fan (Athlon II X2 245), new RAM sticks (2 GB, while I had 256 MB before) and a new DVD device (mainly because of switching from IDE to SATA).
I kept the mouse, the keyboard, the cubic screen and the hard drive.
Waiting for OLED screens for PC to arrive (not so soon) and SSDs' prices to drop further (a little sooner). Considered the Intel X25-V Value at 40 GB (for both the system and the data) but eventually postponed such an acquirement.

Furiey
20-09-2010, 00:51
So far I've been pretty pleased with Win 7 so probably not at the moment, although I had been considering having a play.
I too will probably add a SSD when the prices drop, but at the moment it was just too much.
I even had to replace the mouse and keyboard! I was going to get a larger widescreen monitor but so far the PC hasn't moved from the living room since it came through the front door and is plugged into the TV (HD) so it would have to be a pretty big monitor to compete with that.

ProPain
20-09-2010, 09:23
really thinking about buying a new desktop. Last one was a total disaster (thank you HP! Your service to your loyal customers sucks!), it never ran properly and totally collapsed 2 weeks after the garantee expired. A lot of reinstalling and phone calls later I gave up. Having a lot of trouble with my HP laptop as well, but as I have extended garantee, service is quite a bit better.

But I'm really noticing my laptop getting slower at start up after installing a few games on it. So I fear I need a new desktop for my gaming needs :) Still not sure what to buy though.

Furiey
20-09-2010, 13:26
From the tech support posts on the CFC Civ 4 forum, don't by an HP, Dell or other brand that insists you use their versions of drivers rather than those from eg: ATI or NVidia. They soon stop updating them and you are left with outdated drivers you can't upgrade that cause problems with new games. Plus the price premium you pay for a brand name.

Socrates
11-02-2011, 20:32
Currently engaged into a heavy process of job interviews. [ninja]

Furiey
11-02-2011, 22:06
Best of luck, I haven't got past the heavy process of job applications stage.

Shabbaman
12-02-2011, 11:48
Well, good luck with that!

ProPain
12-02-2011, 14:53
Good Luck Socra!

Socrates
19-08-2011, 21:36
Oops, time goes fast...

I started a new job in a new company back in mid-April, and am pretty happy with it overall. It is still one of those companies that hire IT engineers to sell them to clients during limited missions. My current mission is for a famous French bank in the Opéra district. :) Since I can go there by public bike within 15 minutes tops, it has changed my habits for good.

And in other news, I got me a gf very recently. :)

So all in all, a pretty decent year for me so far.

Shabbaman
20-08-2011, 12:42
Public bike?

ProPain
20-08-2011, 23:04
Shabba, your care for the environment is becoming obsessive. We get the happy news that he has a gf and you're like: public bike...???..?? :p

Good to hear you're doing well Socra. Beats fighting your landlord in court by a longshot I guess.

akots
21-08-2011, 19:29
A gf is a good thing.

Furiey
21-08-2011, 22:01
Good to hear things are looking up!

Shabbaman
22-08-2011, 10:54
We get the happy news that he has a gf

Before you know it this will turn into a "I popped the question" thread, and a "meet Socrates jr." thread after that. This won't get krys to play more civ ;)

Socrates
22-08-2011, 20:50
Public bike?

Called Velib in Paris. The rent-a-bike-in-the-street service, and for almost no money.

Before you know it this will turn into a "I popped the question" thread, and a "meet Socrates jr." thread after that. This won't get krys to play more civ ;)

I guess I'll name him... Plato ! :D But nah, it's a very long way to go anyway, but you're right : still no Civ. [:O]

Socrates
10-02-2012, 23:23
I had a difficult decision to make recently.
My gf flew off to Mumbai, India last night. She will not come back until next year, as she is going to work for a local NGO at a strategical position during that time. It has been 6 months since we got together ; she got the news that she won the position 4 months ago already.
Therefore the relationship was still quite fresh and fragile, and we spent many an hour to decide what to do. In the end, as it got more solid, we decided to bet on "We stay together and believe we'll make it through the year and meet again". Not the easiest card, but a great challenge of its kind !

I now have a webcam and a microphone to buy...

barbu1977
11-02-2012, 00:11
Hard time ahead.

Back in 1999 my gf went out for 8 months in Viet-Nam for a NGO. In our case it was easier to decide since we had already been together for four years. Back then Skype and webcam where not as present (and her internet was very slow). What was hard, is that she has many experience to tell you about and writes 2 pages mails daily and all your news take about 4 lines every 2 days.

If we could do it again, I would have had for sure taken 2 week off go see her at least once to see what she is living through. It would have made our re-acquittance easier. Easier said now, but at the time I was a student without much money...

akots
11-02-2012, 00:24
Mumbai is a nice city, she'll be OK there. And it is not too far away, so either of you can come and visit as long as you bother to get the visa and cheap tickets. IMO, Vietnam 13 years ago was less easy to reach.

Socrates
11-02-2012, 12:52
What was hard, is that she has many experience to tell you about and writes 2 pages mails daily and all your news take about 4 lines every 2 days.

I see what you mean. I can already feel that I am not "where it takes place", whereas she is. That is why I am determined to start/continue as many personal projects on my side during this year. Kind of an emulation.
Fortunately, she is just 4.5 hours ahead of me now, and only 3.5 hours ahead in summer time, which will make upcoming videochat possible at decent time during the day for both of us.

If we could do it again, I would have had for sure taken 2 week off go see her at least once to see what she is living through. It would have made our re-acquittance easier. Easier said now, but at the time I was a student without much money...

I am now thinking of going there once for 2 weeks, probably at the end of next summer, after the mansoon. We could take this opportunity to visit other states of India too.

Barbu, is she the girl who lives with you today ?

Mumbai is a nice city, she'll be OK there. And it is not too far away, so either of you can come and visit as long as you bother to get the visa and cheap tickets. IMO, Vietnam 13 years ago was less easy to reach.

She will not get back here during the year, as she has far less holidays than in France. Me going there is a much more probable move, so I am hoping things will go well until then. :)

barbu1977
11-02-2012, 14:24
Barbu, is she the girl who lives with you today ?


yep, 16 years and counting

BCLG100
11-02-2012, 20:05
Good luck krys/socrates, sounds like it'll be an experience whatever happens!

Socrates
21-06-2012, 00:52
Big news : I managed to sign a contract with a company to work for 6 months in Mumbai. This company is a local IT branch from my current client (famous French bank), and I will keep the same position as in Paris, within the same team. Kind of a telework. ;)
I should hopefully leave in early July, if I get the visa on time, and get back in late January. Planning 6 weeks of holidays throughout the country total.

Of course I am very excited to meet my gf soon again. The distance will end after 5 months only, which were rough for us (especially me). This will also be the first time we really get to live together. And live conditions are tough over there, as Mumbai is a difficult city to live in.

Further news soon ! :)

Shabbaman
21-06-2012, 10:32
Working in such a country sounds like a nice adventure. Usually you'd leave a loved one behind, but for you it's exactly the opposite. I can imagine this was an easy decision :D Congratulations!

BCLG100
21-06-2012, 13:17
Congratulations, will this increase activity here?

Beam
21-06-2012, 14:06
He congratulations man! Hope you will enjoy the experience. :)

barbu1977
21-06-2012, 15:38
Good news!

socralynnek
21-06-2012, 16:24
Sounds great!

Socrates
21-06-2012, 19:50
Working in such a country sounds like a nice adventure. Usually you'd leave a loved one behind, but for you it's exactly the opposite. I can imagine this was an easy decision :D Congratulations!

For her, it was exactly the opposite. ;)

Congratulations, will this increase activity here?

At CDZ ? How so ? I will have no time to play Civ in any case. :D

akots
21-06-2012, 21:43
Mumbai is not a bad place, just very crowded. At least this was my impression during one day I spent there. If you have AC at home and at work, you'd be OK. Short strolls from work to home and back are OK.

BCLG100
21-06-2012, 23:51
At CDZ ? How so ? I will have no time to play Civ in any case. :D

I'm not sure if any of us do, therefore you should come back more!

Shabbaman
22-06-2012, 10:28
For her, it was exactly the opposite. ;)

Yes, but she didn't post here ;)

Socrates
22-06-2012, 22:14
Yes, but she didn't post here ;)

That was implied in my post. ;)

BCLG100
23-06-2012, 02:12
That was implied in my post. ;)

You were implied by shabbas post.

Socrates
20-10-2012, 15:02
Congratulations, will this increase activity here?

Nope. :D
I have a little time this afternoon, thought I'd stop to say hello.

We have just had a 2-week holiday in North India, down River Ganga. Various landscapes, historical backgrounds, super food in restaurants, and so many miles run.
Now 2 more months in Mumbai, before I go back to Paris in mid-December. I should resume work in January, while my gf gets back in end January. I wanted to travel again at that time, but I got a 6-month visa instead of a 12-month visa* (as asked), which prevents me from staying in the country. Of course I paid for a 12-month visa. ;)

Anyway, living here is kind of a challenge, everything is more complicated, especially as we do not have expatriate standard level of living. Working remotely from here on my own is a bit strange, but I got used to it. On top of it, top management in the bank has decided to get rid of 3 contractors by June 2013 in Paris, while hiring 4 people in Mumbai for my project: it is cheaper overall. So I may start training them in December before I leave, if they have arrived at that time.

Will try to visit here more often from now on. Cheers. :)

* The first of hundreds of things that annoyed me in India.

Shabbaman
20-10-2012, 18:48
Could you post some pretty pictures?

Socrates
21-11-2012, 17:54
Passing by again...

Will post pics later when I am back in Paris and have more time. :)

Another 3.5 weeks to go before getting back to Paris. I have just learned that I will be back in my team there (still as a contractor), so everything is set job-wise in theory.
Now we need to find a new appartment in Paris for the tow of us, and this may not be easy...

Socrates
18-12-2012, 13:49
Back since yesterday!

We found a new appartment in central Paris (Bastille), that I will visit this week. We should move in in early January if all goes well. :)

I have recently learned that I will not resume work with my team in Paris in January. Some service in the bank declared that there is a criminal risk ("risque pénal") to hire me as contractor here while I was hired on Payroll by the local entity of the bank in India. So, in short, no job in January, as I secured a new contract with my IT company in February only. And I have to find a new assignment too...

Anyway, glad to be back, to celebrate Xmas with family and meet friends again, to take some vacation in the Alps, and eventually to start a new section of my life when we move in to our place with my gf (still in India for another 2 weeks btw).

I do not forget about the photos! I will get to that work somewhere in January. ;)

Shabbaman
18-12-2012, 14:20
Man, suddenly I feel envy because you get to live in the center of Paris.

Socrates
04-11-2013, 23:08
Man, suddenly I feel envy because you get to live in the center of Paris.

Back at my parents' house for a little while (September onwards), which is in the suburbs. Anyway, like the Terminator, I will be back (in DownTown Paris).
In short, the girl renting my appartment in Paris screwed me hard, and I was forced to let her stay one more year there.

Meanwhile, I quit my company in May, because they could not find me an assignment at one client. Which means I was idle from mid-December to mid-May. Now I am at another French bank, working on the upcoming SEPA format, which basically is to electronic cash transfer what the Euro has been to currency: one format for every European country.
Actual work is scarce, but I do not mind much, as it lets me more time and brain power to work on my personal project (more on that later).

Shabbaman
06-11-2013, 16:52
Back at my parents' house for a little while

Suddenly I'm no longer envious :D

ProPain
16-11-2013, 21:26
In short, the girl renting my appartment in Paris screwed me hard, and I was forced to let her stay one more year there.

.

I get a feeling French laws resemble Dutch laws concerning tenant rights.

Socrates
11-04-2014, 12:42
Appartment on sale! :D
The girl living there left last month, so I was able to get the keys back, clean some stuff. After thinking a little while, I took the decision to sell this appartment, so as to buy another one, bigger and closer to the center.
Another idea I had lately was to go work in Luxemburg. But I thought this would add complexity to the whole, so I abandonned the idea.
My assignment stopped 2 weeks ago, and now I'm idle again (still under contract). So that's plenty of free time to manage the appartement things. :)
Oh btw, forgot to say I'm single again. Well that's life...

Socrates
10-05-2019, 10:16
Woah, five years have passed. Fiiiiive years, as David B. would sing (RIP).

In a nutshell, I live in Seattle, WA right now. In a nutshell, but I don't live in a nutshell. :) And I don't play Civ or any game at all.

socralynnek
10-05-2019, 12:31
Well, with the problems you had with your appartment back then, it is nice to hear that you don't have to live in a nutshell ;-)

Shabbaman
12-05-2019, 22:40
Puzzled on why you wouldn't be gaming, but good that you show up here to spread the good news that you are alive and kicking. What are you doing in Seattle? Some big company?

Socrates
15-05-2019, 07:26
It's a mix of using Linux and not Windows, being lazy keeping up with new games, feeling there are other things I would do. I'm not entirely disconnected though, there's something I'd like to do if I get back to it. And I'm playing quite a lot of board games these days, Seattle is full of people into that.

I got very lucky getting a green card at the Diversity Visa Lottery. :D I moved here in October 2017 with just my luggages. Now working as a software developer in a small company. I switched to full-time coding (from almost none) three years ago back in Paris.

Shabbaman
15-05-2019, 12:02
That sounds like a fun adventure.