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So, uh... did one of you mail me a Zen Micro?

Jul 3, 2015#1

GasBandit

Somebody (whose name rings a bell but I can't quite place) sent me a package that contained only a 6 gig Zen Micro and no explanations. I even checked the thing for audio files, it's wiped clean.

So.. if it was one of you, thanks? And sorry if I've forgotten why you would send me this?

Jul 3, 2015#2

Chad Sexington

I'll take the credit if no one else will.

Unless it's booby trapped, in which case it definitely wasn't me.

Jul 3, 2015#3

Thread Necromancer

I really hope I didn't mix up the one with the furry porn for the one I sold on ebay.....

Jul 3, 2015#4

Bubble181

Was it delivered by owl, Harry Potter style? If not, it probably wasn't me.

Jul 3, 2015#5

ThatNickGuy

IT'S ME, GAS BANDIT! IT'S ME, GAS BANDIT! IT WAS ME ALL ALONG, GAS BANDIT!

(Note: It wasn't me.)

Jul 3, 2015#6

GasBandit

Aw son of a bitch!

Also the first name of the person who sent it to me is Clint.

Jul 3, 2015#7

Simfers

Jul 4, 2015#8

Dave

GasBandit said:
Also the first name of the person who sent it to me is Clint.

That's a typo.

Jul 4, 2015#9

figmentPez

How I picture this delivery happened:

Jul 4, 2015#10

checkeredhat

Dave said:
That's a typo.

Jul 4, 2015#11

PatrThom

Maybe someone just wanted to try and get you to compromise your system?

--Patrick

Jul 4, 2015#12

GasBandit

PatrThom said:
Maybe someone just wanted to try and get you to compromise your system?

--Patrick

Seems an odd thing to put your full name and return residential address on.[DOUBLEPOST=1436033261,1436033202][/DOUBLEPOST]Also I looked him up on LinkedIn and Facebook... doesn't ring a bell but eminently traceable.

Jul 6, 2015#13

drawn_inward

Another JCM alt.

Jul 6, 2015#14

PatrThom

It could have come from any of a hundred IP addresses.

--Patrick

Jul 6, 2015#15

Null

Next thing you know you'll be part of the Citizen 11 conspiracy or some cyberpunk bullshit like that.

Jul 7, 2015#16

Tinwhistler

If you found the guy on Facebook, just message him and ask him why he sent it.

Jul 7, 2015#17

GasBandit

Tinwhistler said:
If you found the guy on Facebook, just message him and ask him why he sent it.

I don't actually have a facebook account. I might try it via linkedin though.

Jul 7, 2015#18

PatrThom

GasBandit said:
I don't actually have a facebook account. I might try it via linkedin though.

Oh hey new avatar.

--Patrick

Jul 7, 2015#19

GasBandit

PatrThom said:
Oh hey new avatar.

--Patrick

It was time for a change.

Jul 7, 2015#20

drawn_inward

GasBandit said:
It was time for a change.

Very Eye-of-Sauron-esque.

Jul 7, 2015#21

AshburnerX

Well... after nothing but cans of beans for so long, I'd expect blood too.

Jul 7, 2015#22

Null

GasBandit said:
It was time for a change.

Now I'm seeing the post apocalyptic settlement of Gas-Town, with fierce ewoks manning the walls and a giant can of beans in the center of town, like a silo.

Jul 7, 2015#23

GasBandit

Null said:
Now I'm seeing the post apocalyptic settlement of Gas-Town, with fierce ewoks manning the walls and a giant can of beans in the center of town, like a silo.

Yub nub, mother fucker.

Jul 7, 2015#24

Null

GasBandit said:
Yub nub, mother fucker.

Jul 7, 2015#25

DarkAudit

GasBandit said:
Yub nub, mother fucker.

Jul 7, 2015#26

PatrThom

drawn_inward said:
Very Eye-of-Sauron-esque.

Mine or his?
(I always thought mine was more illuminati- or looking-down-through-the-microscope-esque)

--Patrick

Jul 7, 2015#27

drawn_inward

Combine them and the circle will be complete!

/crossed the streams

Jul 7, 2015#28

PatrThom

"By our powers combined, we are ... @JCM!"

--Patrick

Jul 7, 2015#29

Emrys

Null said:
Now I'm seeing the post apocalyptic settlement of Gas-Town, with fierce ewoks manning the walls and a giant can of beans in the center of town, like a silo.

Now I'm picturing the Church of the Bomb.

Jul 7, 2015#30

Null

Emrys said:
Now I'm picturing the Church of the Bomb.

Jul 7, 2015#31

GasBandit

Null said:

He does have some compelling things to say about government...

Jul 7, 2015#32

evilmike

Emrys said:
Now I'm picturing the Church of the Bomb.

Jul 7, 2015#33

sixpackshaker

Jul 7, 2015#34

CrimsonSoul

I.. I dunno if I like the new avatar.

Jul 7, 2015#35

GasBandit

The Rock says....

Ha ha ha, just kidding. I know it'll take some getting used to. Change can be scary and uncomfortable.

Jul 7, 2015#36

Celt Z

They miss staring at your can, Gas.

:unibrow:

Jul 7, 2015#37

Gruebeard

@PatrThom, have you been ordained as a priest of the temple of Syrinx?

Jul 7, 2015#38

ThatNickGuy

GasBandit said:
The Rock says....

Ha ha ha, just kidding. I know it'll take some getting used to. Change can be scary and uncomfortable.

[DOUBLEPOST=1436310803,1436310758][/DOUBLEPOST]

Celt Z said:
They miss staring at your can, Gas.

Does that mean Gas no longer has a can-do attitude?

Jul 7, 2015#39

Emrys

The can has been canned.

Jul 7, 2015#40

PatrThom

Gruebeard said:
@PatrThom, have you been ordained as a priest of the temple of Syrinx?

No, but I have had people tell me I look a lot like Geddy Lee. Does that count?

(Note that I have my hair pulled back in my pic, unlike Lee, but I promise mine is just as glorious)

--Patrick

Jul 7, 2015#41

Gruebeard

. . . I don't know. I'm not counting anything. Your eye avatar just reminds me of the watching eye video they play during that song in concert.

But let's count some of these associations. Are you anybody's Big Brother?

Jul 7, 2015#42

PatrThom

Gruebeard said:
. . . I don't know. I'm not counting anything. Your eye avatar just reminds me of the watching eye video they play during that song in concert.

But let's count some of these associations. Are you anybody's Big Brother?

No, though I was someone's Little Brother back in the early 80's.

--Patrick

Jul 7, 2015#43

Gruebeard

PatrThom said:
No, though I was someone's Little Brother back in the early 80's.

--Patrick

That doesn't count then. Unless . . . was his name Tom Sawyer?

Also. What kind of car do you drive? Is it red?

Jul 7, 2015#44

PatrThom

Gruebeard said:
That doesn't count then. Unless . . . was his name Tom Sawyer?

Bill.

Gruebeard said:
Also. What kind of car do you drive? Is it red?

PatrThom in the rant thread said:
I'm currently driving a [silver] 2008 Milan Premier.

https://www.halforums.com/xenforo/threads/rant-viii-the-reckoning.27941/page-119#post-1209642

--Patrick

Jul 7, 2015#45

Terrik

PatrThom said:
No, but I have had people tell me I look a lot like Geddy Lee. Does that count?
View attachment 18685 View attachment 18687
(Note that I have my hair pulled back in my pic, unlike Lee, but I promise mine is just as glorious)

--Patrick

Have you ever posted your picture before? I don't remember "seeing" you 0_o

Jul 7, 2015#46

Chad Sexington

Terrik said:
Have you ever posted your picture before? I don't remember "seeing" you 0_o

Seriously. @PatrThom you have broken an illusion.

Jul 7, 2015#47

PatrThom

Terrik said:
Have you ever posted your picture before? I don't remember "seeing" you 0_o

Chad Sexington said:
Seriously. @PatrThom you have broken an illusion.

@stienman posted my pic back in the meetup thread. Also I stamped my mug over @ThatNickGuy's for his er, contest.
I posted my "Jesus" pic a long time ago but can't seem to find it. That's the one that made a woman actually back away when I showed it to her due to the resemblance.

--Patrick

Jul 8, 2015#48

Officer_Charon

GasBandit said:
Change can be scary and uncomfortable.

Much like prison sex...

Jul 8, 2015#49

PatrThom

Chad Sexington said:
Seriously. @PatrThom you have broken an illusion.

...says the guy who doesn't actually have a sweet set of muttonchops.
(Alternately: "Put...put the mask back on.")

--Patrick

Jul 8, 2015#50

fade

PatrThom said:
...says the guy who doesn't actually have a sweet set of muttonchops.
(Alternately: "Put...put the mask back on.")

--Patrick

Seriously. Words cannot describe the disappointment I felt the day I realized that was just a shadow on @Chad Sexington 's face.

Jul 8, 2015#51

drawn_inward

fade said:
Seriously. Words cannot describe the disappointment I felt the day I realized that was just a shadow on @Chad Sexington 's face.

Oh snap. TIL.

Jul 8, 2015#52

Chad Sexington

Current level of beard. Not going to leave mutton chops when I shave.

Jul 10, 2015#53

PatrThom

PatrThom said:
I posted my "Jesus" pic a long time ago but can't seem to find it.

Hah! Found it.

...told you my hair was glorious.

--Patrick

Jul 10, 2015#54

drawn_inward

I had a jesus time too. I need to find a pic. My hair wasn't that long though. Glorious mane bro.

Jul 10, 2015#55

Dave

So, did you ever find out from whence it came? The Zen Micro, that is.

Jul 10, 2015#56

Ravenpoe

PatrThom said:
Hah! Found it.
View attachment 18711
...told you my hair was glorious.

--Patrick

I once had a glorious mane, until genetics decided that my hair was going to be like France and surrender.

Jul 10, 2015#57

GasBandit

Dave said:
So, did you ever find out from whence it came? The Zen Micro, that is.

No, I've kind of been distracted by other things, and haven't followed up the social media leads.

May 15, 2017#58

GasBandit

I never figured out who sent it, or why.

But I started using it, just to see if it was any good.

Long story short - Meh. Not so great.

It needs a Mini (not micro) USB cable, which I haven't needed in, like, 10 or 15 years. It's slow and cumbersome to transfer music to it, and getting it to play music without using its proprietary software (which I refuse to load) was non-intuitive. The touchbuttons are fine, it's just the UI is reticent and alien. I actually had to go into the device's settings 3 menus deep to enable a "play all random" selection to appear, which should have been standard. I still can't figure out how to tune its FM receiver other than by attempting to let it autoscan-fill its presets and then jumping between them, which just gets me a bunch of presets full of garble and static.

And on top of all that, the sound is drastically inferior. Comparing it to my phone using the same aux jack and cable in my car, the same music coming from the Zen Micro is much flatter and seems to have much less dynamic range. The bass is weak, and while the sound isn't as "tinny" as some old MP3 players used to be, it is noticeably worse than a current gen smartphone. Even attempting to compensate using the Zen Micro's built in EQ helps so little it's almost indistinguishable.

Even the power button is inconvenient. It's a slide/switch that you have to slide and hold sideways for 5 seconds to get the thing to softswitch on or off. And the slide is RIGHT NEXT to the headphone jack, in probably the least convenient place. And to top it all off, the thing locked up on me today. Couldn't even power it off, had to pull the battery.

Soooo... I guess it's just good for a backup device for 6 gigs of music.

May 15, 2017#59

PatrThom

Tangentially related...

MP3 encoding to no longer require purchase of license
Basically this means that the tools to make MP3s will no longer require royalties be paid to Fraunhofer as part of their cost.

--Patrick

May 15, 2017#60