User talk:Π/Archive2

This is an archive page, last updated 4 November 2008. Please do not make edits to this page.

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Ads

Don't broadcast the opt out - it's clicking on ads that (partly) pays for the wiki.   ^Contribs_Talk 00:32, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

Advertising is evil, except the advertising I do that is good. $\approx$$\pi$ 00:33, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

Generally speaking, I agree, but it funds all those things you get for free on the web (like Google)   ^Contribs_Talk 00:37, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

I pi pledge, so I don't feel bad for turning the ads off. $\approx$$\pi$ 00:38, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

The reason it is there is to allow people to opt out. tmtoulouse ^heckle 00:41, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

But what's the chances of a random BON pi pledging? Zero to none, I'd imagine. (Besides some of the creationist sites adding on us are really Lulzy)   ^Contribs_Talk 00:43, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

Trent are the ads placed there by the common skin? $\approx$$\pi$ 00:45, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

Don't understand the question. tmtoulouse ^heckle 00:47, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

I was wondering how they can just appear and disappear. I know there is a common skin on wiki's that everyone can see and you can edit you own, so it has minor differences. $\approx$$\pi$ 00:49, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

The html for the ads are added to the MonoBook skin, and the original MonoBook skin was moved to the ad free version. tmtoulouse ^heckle 00:51, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

Okay thanks. $\approx$$\pi$ 00:53, 1 September 2008 (EDT)

pi r be in your squared

Ack,i like pi as much as the next guy, so long as it has fun:chocolate in it. but are you SURE that is being chilverous? :P --Waiting for Godot 22:20, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

I don't know. I just read an essay once that we need more female bureaucrats, so you have been demoted. $\approx$$\pi$ 22:23, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

grumble, mumble, frumble, stumble. Time for wine. --Waiting for Godot 22:28, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

Ez edit section

I think it will be a Sisyphean struggle. tmtoulouse ^heckle 23:18, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

Trent, do you know about parser function that give the date for other calendars? $\approx$$\pi$ 23:22, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

Explain, Je ne comprende pas. tmtoulouse ^heckle

If you type {{#time:n}} it gives you the month in the Gregorian calendar. If you type {{#time:xjn}} it should give you the number of the month in the Jewish calendar. A lot of moving events are fixed in other calendars. It is an extended function I think. $\approx$$\pi$ 23:26, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

I can add it to my list. Would be quicker if you found it and linked it to me. tmtoulouse ^heckle 23:28, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

It describes it a bit below here. $\approx$$\pi$ 23:33, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

This seems the closest thing I can find to what you may want (I have no idea so I am randomly guessing). $\approx$$\pi$ 23:38, 2 September 2008 (EDT)

Super mowse

Wow, you can has a blinking mowsie. Youz can has a cools. --En attendant Godot_{"«I think like a genius, I write like a distinguished author, and I speak like a child. --V.Nabokov»} 11:36, 16 September 2008 (EDT)

What you be thinking of?

Your WIGO archiving was way too "server". I would never archive a topic that had been added to in the last 24-48 hours. Don't forget we cover many different timezones so some of the stuff you archived I had not even seen and that was only after 8 hours away from my screen. Also 155K is a bit large, I would suggest archiving about 100K at a time once the page gets over 160K. Leaving so little takes away the vitality of the page. Генгис^{Our ignorance is God; what we know is science.} 04:17, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

According to Wikipedia, low power servers like BlackBerries (and SusanG's gameboy or whatever it is she uses) can only handle around 32k, so they recommend that as a page limit unless absolutely necessary. But yes, give us 24 hours so the brits, kiwis and merkin clone eels can read things before they vanish please. Totnesmartin 04:48, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

TM, do you have a ref for that? Although the MediaWiki software tells you that some systems have problems with page sizes > 32K I always thought that was an editing problem, rather than a viewing problem. That's why wiki pages have manageable sections for editing. After all, pages can be pretty large if images are included and using transclusion they can be humungous for the viewer but each part relatively modest for an editor. Генгис^{Our ignorance is God; what we know is science.} 06:41, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

The ref is here 18:31, 18 September 2008 (EDT) Totnesmartin

Reading through that confirms my assumptions. The problem is mainly one of editing and we have to get nearer 400K for browser problems, also the editing problems have largely been overcome now. The other thing is WP guidance about article length in terms of readability, this is probably not applicable to talk pages where comments are generally quite short compared to the large blocks of text found in major articles. Генгис^{Our ignorance is God; what we know is science.} 19:03, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

As a kiwi I take this very seriously. Ace McWicked^{55.3 million page views!} 04:53, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

As a NZer I suggest you watch this. then you'll understand my funny accent. Ace McWicked^{55.3 million page views!} 05:10, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

That's great bru! Totnesmartin 05:23, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

Funny heaps as. Ace McWicked^{55.3 million page views!} 05:29, 18 September 2008 (EDT) P.S I dont sound like that. Only low brow NZers sound like that and my accent has been tempered by years in the UK and South Africa. Nonetheless.......Ace McWicked^{55.3 million page views!} 05:31, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

A combined US/NZ/SA accent? Oh my gawd... have you tried moving to Newcastle? Totnesmartin 06:07, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

Well I do sound kinda funny but lucky for me my dad was a real "Speak properly" stickler when I was a child. So after many years of traveling in adulthood I have a kinda a-sexual accent. Adaptable really. Still, my kiwi accent is dominant. Ace McWicked^{55.3 million page views!} 06:23, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

To answer Genghis' question I was thinking; it has been 3 hours since anyone else last edited and all we have had all day were two boring obviously fake trolls all day who don't deserve oxygen never alone food. I probably deleted too much and apologies for any inconvenience. $\approx$$\pi$ _Mowse 07:43, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

Too frickin' keen by half! I would also have left that other stuff you took out and waited until we had got back up to 150K again. Not everyone can get online every day, so there is no point in rkiven until it is really necessary. I appreciate your help but you're as bad as my wife for tidying things away before I've finished with them. ;) Генгис^{Our ignorance is God; what we know is science.} 11:37, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

Okay Genghis I now anoint you archiver of TWIGO. $\approx$$\pi$ _Mowse 18:24, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

We're all janitors round here! No offence intended Pi-man, you do a good job. Генгис^{Our ignorance is God; what we know is science.} 19:03, 18 September 2008 (EDT)

thing

I'd wait a bit - having problems :-)   ^Contribs_Talk 08:03, 25 September 2008 (EDT)

Okay. $\approx$$\pi$ _Mowse 08:04, 25 September 2008 (EDT)

sysopship

I can't believe you waited to make me a sysop until after I posted an evil laugh on a talk page.

I mean, if that was the main qualification, I could have done that months ago. Wazza (Not Wazzock, Wazza)^{Approach the Presence} 06:15, 28 September 2008 (EDT)

That is in fact the only qualification. Now see if you can find a non-sysop to abuse. $\approx$$\pi$ _Mowse 06:18, 28 September 2008 (EDT)

Sorry!

Opps, sorry I wasn't paying much attention to the situation and didn't realize I demoted a bot for our 100th after you made a recommendation for a real user. I get easily distracted by projects. tmtoulouse 19:21, 28 September 2008 (EDT)

We have 100 sysops for just over 2,000 users, what other wikiproject can boast a ratio like that. $\approx$$\pi$ _Mowse 19:24, 28 September 2008 (EDT)

Especially considering that several hundred of the remaining 1900 users are sockpuppets of existing sysops! ħuman 18:54, 5 October 2008 (EDT)

Thanks!

Thanks for the welcome! I hope to become a useful, amusing editor! I am working on block #3 at Confarceapedia... although per the *ahem* "Sysop", he says that my next block is for life, so I don't think I'll make your 20 block standard! You may find the following passage amusing...

...a transcript from my intelligent meeting with MENSA nominees Jpatt and Bugler...

RE: block

Don't you think it was a bit much to block without warning? A quick search of my edit history shows that I am (was) obviously not a troll and make (made) constructive edits. I was obviously unaware that people are supposed to give the articles an obvious conservative slant and troll on their own articles. I was of the opinion that this was supposed to be a balanced wiki (i.e., not leaning to either direction). But, I am partly to blame; I should have done a little more research (because the whole "allegedly" thing was started by the Grand Poobah, Aschafly, himself), which is quite unfortunate because this site (had) a lot of potential but will never be taken seriously now because of the ridiculous, fascist principles that guide the "sysops" (and I use that term very loosely). The main reason is because as liberally biased as wikipedia is, Conservapedia is orders of magnitude (i.e., factors of ten) more biased in the opposite direction. Have fun being a big wheel semi-sysop on this no name wiki. You're like a Tackleberry security guard that could never make it in a real police force. If you want to prove me wrong, try existing in Wikipedia. In good faith, I will help you learn how to actually edit and maintain a serious wiki. If you need help contact me here. But I don't think you will because you all live in this fantasy land. Well, I suppose I'm blocked/banned now or whatever and hopefully my userpage won't get vandalized (which would just prove my point even more). Have fun "policing" all twelve people that edit on this farce. I hope you prove me wrong. So, I am banned now I assume. Regards. --SlapHappy 15:27, 5 October 2008 (EDT)

Just dumb and moronic comments. Again, another user was removing "allegedly" from BO's page. I would reinsert only to find the same person delete once again. A reasonable block of 1 day followed. Then smart guy SlapHappy decides to remove allegedly just minutes later after all that just took place. He earned a reasonable block of three days. Now he complains that CP can't be taken seriously and that blocking rights by CP are fascist. Personally, I will never edit Wikipedia for it is a fraudulent website. A place SlapHappy should make home. I feel that this person should be banned for life. I am reasonable and gave the problem child another 3 days. Feel free to extend the block if you agree with me.--Jpatt 15:40, 5 October 2008 (EDT)

Jpatt, you have been more than fair to SlapHappy. I will extend this to one week as he also used a profane abbreviation in a recent post which perhaps you didn't notice - though I am sure that an 'infinite' would be more appropriate and will be coming shortly. However, wheels within wheels and all that - he may not deserve, but will get, a second chance. More strength to your elbow! Bugler 16:20, 5 October 2008 (EDT

Blocky blocky

Does the "kind of" mean that I've only blocked you here? JazzMan 00:29, 10 October 2008 (EDT)

Yeah. I am trying to collect the whole set. - User $\approx$$\pi$_{For best results use daily} 00:30, 10 October 2008 (EDT)

I was just curious if I blocked one of your socks or something. JazzMan 00:36, 10 October 2008 (EDT)

Posting maps to people's houses...

Not cool. stalkerish. Creepy. I don't care if people can easily find it on other websites. Let them find it there, not here. This is a person with a family and children, and showing every crazy in cyberspace how to find them is wrong. Please don't do it. PFoster 23:51, 11 October 2008 (EDT)

Okay, I won't do that again. - User $\approx$$\pi$_{For best results use daily} 23:53, 11 October 2008 (EDT)

Since I don't have a fambly or chilluns, it's ok to stalk me ;) ħuman 00:25, 12 October 2008 (EDT)

I already do. Did you get those flowers I sent? - User $\approx$$\pi$_{For best results use daily} 00:31, 12 October 2008 (EDT)

Yeth, zhey were teh loverly, zhank you. Nektht time, zhough, perhaps, you could get zhem to include dirt and roots, so I can enjoy zhem every year? Thzhank you :) ħuman 01:15, 12 October 2008 (EDT)

Actually, no. Although my neighbor had a wonderful bouquet on their porch for a few days last week... ħuman 01:25, 12 October 2008 (EDT)

Sig

Cool sig! You may want to try replacing \frac{a}{b} with a/b for inline text. That way it will be typeset with a smaller Sigma, and with offset limits. For instance \sum_{n\geq 0}(-1)^n4/(2n+1) imparts the same mathy goodness without taking up as much space. -- Antifly ^{Now with 50% less retirement!} 08:53, 21 October 2008 (EDT)

Montecarlo method

I thought about some very ineffective but somehow interesting methods of obtaining an approximate value for pi. The first was used to teach us the essence of the Montecarlo method. Take a circle of radius 1 and centered on the origin of a cartesian coordinate system. Let the circle be inscribed in a square of side length 2. That is: (-1,1) and (1,1) are the locations of two opposing corners of the square. Now, if you take one point at random in that square, what is the probability of that point belonging to the circle? Easy, it is the circle area (pi) divided by the square area (4). This suggests a method to calculate pi:

1. Take two random numbers x and y, both belonging to (-1,1). Is x squared + y squared <= 1 ? In that case the result is "yes".
2. Repeat one million times. How many "yes" results? Divide that count by one million. The result is an approximate value of pi/4.

The second method I found is even more ineffective! It is just the reversion of Stirling's approximation for the value of the factorial of a number n (n!). But I am too lazy to type its reverse (that is, pi = ... instead of n! = ... ) with the math template. The approximate values of pi for n = 1,2,3 are respectively (1/2) e^2, (1/16) e^4, (2/243) e^6. The "nice" thing about this method is that you have to either cheat or stop soon, as for growing values of n the approximate value of pi becomes a ratio of two very high values. Editor at CP^{Oh, Finland! Why?} 07:39, 23 October 2008 (EDT)

That puts me in mind of a statistics experiment we did with some engineers a few years ago where we had ruled line on a piece of paper the width of a match stick apart and we dropped a match stick on them. After some calculations it turns out that the probability of the match stick landing so that it crossed one of the lines was 2/pi.

By the way Karajou blocked that proxy in Finland. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 07:51, 23 October 2008 (EDT)

That dropped matchstick one, I recall it from years ago & could never understand it. If my two lines were in New York & I dropped the match in Chicago, where does pi come in? Silly,I know, but where do you drop the match from? (The way I recall it, it was a unit radius circle & unit sticks dropped, counting those that were entirely inside the circle v all others. Or something) You can also estimate an area (of say the map of a country) by something similoar, but it all grew too much for me. Sorry, rather incoherent. Cayce_Pattern 08:02, 23 October 2008 (EDT)

Preliminary results for the circle method: 10,000 simulations, 3.1196; 100,000 simulations, 3.1408; 1,000,000 simulations, 3.1448. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 08:05, 23 October 2008 (EDT)

10,000,000 simulations, 3.1419.

Buffon's needle was very popular, once ... --LArron 08:43, 23 October 2008 (EDT)

Cayce - the spec calls for an infinite plane covered with equally spaced parallel lines. You can find this in the same cupboard as the weightless unstretchable chord and the smooth plane along with all sorts of useful mathematical tools. Silver Sloth 08:58, 23 October 2008 (EDT)

All these things are nice but I get along with just an infinitly long unmarked rule and compass with arms that collapse as soon as you lift it, and of cause my one dimensional lead pencil. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 06:21, 25 October 2008 (EDT)

Not liking this 10,000,000 simulations still gives 3.14169864. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 07:59, 25 October 2008 (EDT)

I think that I just received a message

from you informing me (you Informer !!) that I'd been elevated to a sysop here? I can only assume that this is due to some gigantic bureaucratic FUCKUP. I have pretty much rejected Rationalism as being just another religion, I have been identified, outed, if you will, as being a cult member, I was homeschooled for a significant period in my life. I have encountered a UFO, have talked to the dead, a dance naked at various significent times of the year ([1]). And it only gets worse after that. Do this deed and you (opinion) seriously put your standing (or seating, as the case be) around here in serious jeopardy. Einar aka Carptrash 22:08, 25 October 2008 (EDT)

I don't care if you believe in Scientology, if you don't block people or delete pages you can be a sysop here. If you don't want to be a sysop their is a form you can fill in, in triplicate and submit it our office, only on a Thursday morning. You must bring you 48 digit customer reference number with you as well as any other relevant documentation. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 22:35, 25 October 2008 (EDT)

...

Keep wishing. I hope it's for something good. Corry^{It's an illusion, Michael!} 01:18, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

? - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 01:23, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

Uh, ok. To explain. I said "shit in one hand, wish in the other..." The rest of the sentence would be "see which fills up first." When you put an ellipses and started subtracting periods, well, to hell with it. I've had beers, and nevermind. Corry^{It's an illusion, Michael!} 01:44, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

holydaze

is your thing ready for prime time? and does it allow for non-date-specific holydaze? ħuman 01:47, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

PS, does it work for CP boycotts? ħuman 01:49, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

It doesn't work for non Gregorian date holidays. The boycott could be set off with a logical switch. I will go work on that. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 01:54, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

Um, Pi guy, with all due respect, you just really broke "watchlist". Can you play in teh sandbox until it's readly for prime time, pleez? ħuman 02:12, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

Sorry that was getting the boycott to work that did that. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 02:16, 26 October 2008 (EDT)

Anything else?

I'd like to keep helping, but I don't know what to do. Is there anything specific that needs to be done? Radioactive afikomen ^{Please ignore all my awful pre-2014 comments.} 01:46, 28 October 2008 (EDT)

Other than tracking down all the side-by-sides we look like we are done. Thanks for all your help the category is much more manageable now. - User $\scriptstyle -i\ln(-1)$ 01:48, 28 October 2008 (EDT)

You're welcome. Radioactive afikomen ^{Please ignore all my awful pre-2014 comments.} 01:50, 28 October 2008 (EDT)

Thanks!

Thanks for the demotion to sysop! I wish I could launch some of my sysop ICBM's over to confarcapedia! Is there like a test area where I can practice all the pretty new buttons?--Der Meister des Marionettes^talk! 19:18, 28 October 2008 (EDT)

You can start by learning how to unblock yourself. Have fun with that. PFoster 19:35, 28 October 2008 (EDT)

Hello! I'm not really sure what cascading is or why it was checked. I'm still getting used to the new features so that's why I'm still sticking to basic page creations, edits, and welcomes until I know what I'm doing (or rather what's expected of me). Sorry if I screwed something up. :-) Cheers!--MAstEr oF pUPetS^talk! 00:49, 30 October 2008 (EDT)

Cascading means that all the pages linked from your page were also protected (I think) Terra 00:55, 30 October 2008 (EDT)