The Thinking Blog ~ Knowledge Grows When Shared

M is for the moan and the miserable groan
From the pain that she felt when I was bo'n!

O is for the oven with its burnin' heat,
Where she stood makin' sure I had somethin' to eat!

T is for the time that she stayed up nights,
And took my temperature when I wasn't feeling right!

H is for the hard-earned money she spent,
To keep clothes on my back and tried to pay da rent!

E is every wrinkle I put on her face,
And every worry that I caused when I stayed out late!

The last letter, R, is that she taught me respect,
And for the room up in heaven that I know she'll get!

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"Drempels makes colorful, swirling, hallucinogenic patterns that resemble a hurricane or tornado. It normally runs in your Windows background or 'desktop', replacing your old still-image wallpaper with gently-animating visuals... and meanwhile, you can use your computer just like you normally would. It uses very little CPU overhead - so little that it even runs smoothly on a 233 MHz system!"

1. Watch your opponent play others. Often, they will lean towards one of the choices (for example, rock). If you have a chance to watch them play before they play you, look for an overall pattern.

2. Know rookie tendencies. The World RPS Society claims rookie men tend to lead with rock. If you're playing a spontaneous game against a male rookie, there's an increased chance that his opening throw will be rock, so you'll want to go with paper. Why do men start with rock? Perhaps the clenched fist evokes power and makes guys feel tough. If you're playing a female rookie, however, keep in mind that competitive player Jason Simmons claims that women tend to start with scissors, so go with rock.

3. "Train" the rookie. If an inexperienced player asks you to repeat the rules, you can subconsciously influence them to pick a certain gesture by dropping subtle hints. Physically demonstrate the gesture you want them to play more than any other gesture, and make sure it's the last gesture they see as you explain how the game works.

4. Play paper against an experienced player. A non-rookie may know that throwing an initial rock is too predictable, because of the tendency for male rookies to do this. They'll probably use scissors or paper. Therefore, you should start off with scissors, as it'll beat their paper or at least tie with their scissors. If your opponent is an experienced woman, she may be familiar with the "scissors" stereotype and will likely throw either rock or paper - thus, your best bet is paper.

5. Look for a double run. If someone makes the same throw twice, they will not want to make that same throw the third time, because they don't want to seem predictable. You can use this information to your advantage. For instance, if someone throws paper twice, they'll probably throw either rock or scissors on their third gesture; use rock so that you can either win or draw.

6. Beat your last move. This only works if you have just won; inexperienced or frustrated players tend to subconsciously throw the move that just beat them, so you should throw a gesture that will beat your own last move. For example, if you just won with rock against their scissors, they might throw rock next, so you should be prepared with paper.

7. Use probability to your advantage. In competition play, it's been statistically observed that scissors is the least common gesture. If you're at a loss for what to throw, using paper will give you a slight advantage, as it's slightly less probable that your opponent will use scissors.

8. Watch and react. Keep your eyes on your opponent's hand just as the gesture is being thrown. Watch what shape they are forming their hand into. If you see them extending into the paper gesture, for instance, you may have a split second within the count to react accordingly with scissors. But, be careful when trying to see what your opponent is doing because it could lead to slow throwing, which is illegal in competitive play.

9. There is no substitute for practice. Roshambo "RPS" can be played online in either a tournament or heads-up match setting at various websites. Although you won't be able to study the physical gestures of your opponent, you will be able to observe game play patterns and habits faster online. You can even earn money while playing RPS online with Moola.

10. Beware of non-rookies. An experienced pro may use all of these strategies against you. They might fake you out by, say, using scissors predominantly as their first gesture and then all of a sudden using paper when you least expect it.

1. The Turbocharger: This guy had an old turbocharger lying around and decided to put it to good use, pumping air into his flaming hot case faster than any 90mm fan out there.
   
   


2. Liquid Nitrogen Cooled: The Reigning Champion, used again and again with every new chip released. The only way to go for a new 3DMark record. This was used to cool a P4 over clocked to 5.25Ghz!
   
   


3. The Oversize Fan: Built on Plastic Tubing, with a rediculously large fan. Completely custom case with probably the best ventilation possible.
   
   


4. Pool Cooled PC: Cooler Computer, Warmer Pool. This guy integrated the water cooling system for a few computers with his pool's piping to get a cheap and efficient water cooling system.
   
   


5. The Case Fan Case: This case consists of 70 Case Fans total, all blowing air into or out of the case. The fans aren't screwed onto the case, they are the case.
   
   


6. The Cookie Jar Trick: A fan mount, air duct, and hard drive silencing enclosure -- all in one! This practical mod is for anyone running a high speed HDD but looking for some silence at night.
   
   


7. Refrigerant Cooled PC: Think of it as Liquid Nitrogen Lite. This mod uses the same technology as a refrigerator, and is fairly cheap if you have the supplies.
   
   
   


8. The Water Cooled PC: From 1885? This beautiful rig combines style and substance. Truly a work of art.
   
   


9. The Cooking Oil PC: $1000 worth of hardware submerged in oil. The vegetable oil acts as a good coolant but doesn't conduct electricity. Just don't play Crysis for ten hours straight or you'll end up with some deep fried chips.
   
   
   


10. Air Ducts: Foam Boards Direct Air Inside Case. This is another cheap and practical mod anyone can do. A few peaces of cardboard and a couple fans to efficiently direct air in any case.