05/06/2011 [DMFA #1216] - Still less so than Korhal IV

[joshofspam]

Butterfly in the sky~ I can go twice as high! Take a look, it's in a Book, a Reading Rainbow!

Good one and the song fits so well.

I'm also partial to school house rock.

[lilpuppy23]

Rainbows!

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

*greedy expression*  I must know how Cyra did it!  

Very well, I think.

[Kirishala]

I dunno. Two things leap into mind. One, a foot thick of glass is going to be tricky to break (your average brick wall is about this thick; think about bulletproof glass, for example), and two, glass is, at least theoretically, liquid. Over the course of a hundred years, it flows downwards slightly. Over the course of 7000 years? I can see a case for arguing that the higher buildings, well, aren't so high anymore. And eventually, you have a very big, very flat mirror.

Admittedly that will take a very, very long time, but... Cyra isn't going anywhere.

Glass flowing is a common misconception, glass is an amorphous solid not a supercooled liquid and as such does not flow any more than any other solid.  The source of the idea that glass flows is believed to be the fact that old windows tend to be thicker at the bottom than the top which is actually due to the manufacturing process in use back them producing panes that were thicker at one end than the other and it generally making sense to put the thick end at the bottom (which doesn't mean that ones with the thick part at the side or top are particularly rare though).

OTOH glass is a metastable solid that over long periods (thousands of years) changes from an amorphous solid into a crystalline one losing its transparency and becoming much more vulnerable to weathering.  So Hishaan shouldn't still be a blinding risk as the outer layers of the glass should have changed long ago leaving it looking like a city of frost rather than glass making its nickname even more appropriate, and IMO making it even more creepy as the features of the statues would have mostly weathered off by now as well.  As this does not seem to have happened it seems that there is some sort of linger magical effect preventing it, and possibly making it hard (or even impossible) to damage the glass in other ways.

[ishidan]

Well, putting it in terms of easily-understandable standard fantasy-world magicks, this sounds like a particularly artistic version of a Petrify spell.  A Petrify spell would transmute the target organic matter into some kind of rock--granite, basalt, quartz, whatever gets the job done.   This one is the same concept, but with a particular end point in mind-glass.

[Amber Williams]

I originally did want to have Abel add a casual mention that the place did have magical reinforcement so as not to just turn into a shattery shardland.  But I ran out of decent space for it.

[Turnsky]

y'know, just a random thought here but while 'glass' is made from silica and so forth, i'd imagine carbon and other more sturdier materials would form the relative basis for this.

http://dornob.com/transparent-aluminum-glass-like-see-through-metal/ transparent aluminum exists, it's theoretically possible that other processes and materials were involved to make glass like substances.


at least that's putting a scientific spin on it. otherwise it's maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiic.

[Amber Williams]

Well when you have creatures with wings on their butts and half the size of buildings, trying to get overly scientific or serious just seems silly.

[Maark30]

Well if your gonna be that way about it... 

[Azelrus]

So Cyra is essentially, SPOILERS FROM THE ENDING OF FFXIII(Final fantasy 13)[spoiler]Lightning because at the end of the game she freezes cooccon[/spoiler]

in other news, could it be possible to skate on that city?

[Sienna Maiu - M T]

Is the ascension for Cubi more of a bitter sweet thing when you obtain that status?

Ignoring those simply power-mad;
Tri-wing status, although makes one lose the ability to have children, might allow for certain "assurances", a stronger clan, perhaps a longer life span for everyone in the clan... Essentially, perhaps the drawbacks are worth it, to be able to protect one's family better.

in other news, could it be possible to skate on that city?

perhaps in bare shoes... If the glass is indestructable, metal skates would simply not work the same way.
Roller blades though... >.>

[Anker Steadfast]

Damn you Turnsky for linking to that site ... I am now lost !!
It's almost as bad as TV Tropes and Wikipedias.

I am now caught between  tales of abandoned cities and penthouse slums.

[Talis Mahn]

y'know, just a random thought here but while 'glass' is made from silica and so forth, i'd imagine carbon and other more sturdier materials would form the relative basis for this.

http://dornob.com/transparent-aluminum-glass-like-see-through-metal/ transparent aluminum exists, it's theoretically possible that other processes and materials were involved to make glass like substances.


at least that's putting a scientific spin on it. otherwise it's maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiic.

Also know as Optical Sapphire!!!  Mjolnir Armor faceplate anyone?

[Tapewolf]

I am now caught between  tales of abandoned cities .

Your abandoned cities link attempted to attack my computer.  A second attempt at viewing it didn't repeat the trick so it was most likely a compromised banner ad rather than a hack or maliciousness on the part of the site itself.

Even so, I would not recommend viewing that site under Windows.

EDIT: For those curious about the attack, it was peddling fake antivirus software.  Tried to download and presumably run some malware in a ZIP file, and displayed a fake AV scan instead of the actual page.

[Maark30]

OOOH I love that malware.  I just want to know if we can find the company that uses it and set up a class action lawsuit for malicious advertisement and maybe fraud.

[Mao]

Well when you have creatures with wings on their butts and half the size of buildings, trying to get overly scientific or serious just seems silly.

I've been saying that for a while.  No one ever listens.

I am now caught between  tales of abandoned cities .

Your abandoned cities link attempted to attack my computer.  A second attempt at viewing it didn't repeat the trick so it was most likely a compromised banner ad rather than a hack or maliciousness on the part of the site itself.

Even so, I would not recommend viewing that site under Windows.

EDIT: For those curious about the attack, it was peddling fake antivirus software.  Tried to download and presumably run some malware in a ZIP file, and displayed a fake AV scan instead of the actual page.

Thanks for the warning, but you certainly can view it under Windows.  Provided you're actually doing what is commonly accepted as standard practice and running AV, Anti-spyware and Firewall apps, most attacks will fail.  Beyond that, don't click things you're not sure of.  They'll try and prey on your fear and ignorance and trick you into putting their stuff on your system.  If you're really not sure, read up on the name first and see for yourself about any popup you get.  Google is your friend.

For added caution, use Firefox with NoScript / AdBlockPlus.

[VAE]

Well when you have creatures with wings on their butts and half the size of buildings, trying to get overly scientific or serious just seems silly.

I've been saying that for a while.  No one ever listens.

Well, science works even in Furrae, though it has a bunch of physical laws different from ours.
That is, if the Fae or Lord Ikarion Daryil don't get too involved in it.

[Tapewolf]

Thanks for the warning, but you certainly can view it under Windows.  Provided you're actually doing what is commonly accepted as standard practice and running AV, Anti-spyware and Firewall apps, most attacks will fail.

Maybe I'm unlucky, but the last few times this happened it went through the AV suite like it wasn't there.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

I've been saying that for a while.  No one ever listens.

I listen.

I might not actually do anything about it, but I do listen...

[Amber Williams]

I know Spice has similar unluck. She's got a set of anti-virus things but give her five minutes and deviantart and she'll come out just loaded with internet chiggers.

[Anker Steadfast]

Ugh .. yeah, seems you had a bad run of banner ads with malware in them.
The worst kinds are the rogue antispyware applications ... those can make me real annoyed, since they claim to be your actual antispyware.

Most non-nerd people will not be able to spot the difference, and fall for their trickery and end up twice as infected.
This page has a lot of information on those kinds of malware and the removal of such.
One of the very first links on that page deals with removal of such malware.
As you can see from the list on that page, there are quite a few of them around.

Interestingly, I don't think I have ever had malware from DMFA website .. ever.

[joshofspam]

Eh, I have my problems to when it comes to sites with random adds too.

Though the strangest one I'm having now might not even be so much as a problem as it might be more of an over protective anti malware program.

Webroot for me is simply convinced that certain threads on this forum are either risks or actually infected by something. Don't have any other problems mostly with other sites, but I'm now of the mind that some fibber reported to webroot of this sight being a high risk site.

[Kirishala]

Eh, I have my problems to when it comes to sites with random adds too.

Though the strangest one I'm having now might not even be so much as a problem as it might be more of an over protective anti malware program.

Webroot for me is simply convinced that certain threads on this forum are either risks or actually infected by something. Don't have any other problems mostly with other sites, but I'm now of the mind that some fibber reported to webroot of this sight being a high risk site.

As its only some threads it is likely that its due to the site where someone's (or several people's) avatar or signature image is hosted has been reported as such and Webroot is picking up that your browser is trying to access it.

[ishidan]

Thanks for the warning, but you certainly can view it under Windows.  Provided you're actually doing what is commonly accepted as standard practice and running AV, Anti-spyware and Firewall apps, most attacks will fail.

Maybe I'm unlucky, but the last few times this happened it went through the AV suite like it wasn't there.

Was it xwf.exe?  That one got me just last month, went right through my AV suite, all the same symptoms--probable source a compromised ad, fake AV popup, browser hijacking... the little bastard disabled System Restore and hijacked Windows Security too.

[Maark30]

With that one you have to halt it as the item is pretending to run the suite.  If you close out your internet browser before it finishes its run then it most likely will not leave a trace,  But I would avoid it all the same.

[Maark30]

As far as the City is concerned I think that if Wildy ever found it she would take it over as a retreat for all ferret kind and make a fortune in the process.  She could call it the "The Great Land of the Shineys".

[Turnsky]

I know Spice has similar unluck. She's got a set of anti-virus things but give her five minutes and deviantart and she'll come out just loaded with internet chiggers.

given it's deviantart i'm not surprised. 

[Arcblade]

Popping by to say I absolutely love the last panel.  Funny demonstration, with so much shiny.  So pretty.  And deadly.  And one-upping a meme.  Many layers of awesome.  Very well done.   

[RobbieThe1st]

I just have to say three things about the whole drive-by-malware scene:
1. NoScript. It works. Let it auto-block everything, unlock only things from the parent site and you'll generally be OK. And it speeds up your browsing about 10X on slow connections, due to not loading horribly-written JS ad code(which takes several DNS lookups and redirects before it loads the single JS file. Seriously.)

2. Never use IE. Even on Windows, without NoScript enabled, I never had trouble with driveby malware and Firefox. I just never got anything worse than an annoying browser popup or two.

3. Common Sense, people! If it says "Click here", don't click. Seriously. For almost any reason. If you get an ad for something cheap or free, /never/ click on it. In fact, never click on advertisements at all: If you like the product, google it and click on what you find /there/.

4. Ubuntu is great for someone who just wants to browse the 'net. Just stick the LiveCD in your drive, boot it, and it /works/. No configuring stuff unless you want to.

That's just all I have to say... Except that Tapewolf's /going/ to reply to this. I just /know/ it.

[Talis Mahn]

I just have to say three things about the whole drive-by-malware scene:
1. NoScript. It works. Let it auto-block everything, unlock only things from the parent site and you'll generally be OK. And it speeds up your browsing about 10X on slow connections, due to not loading horribly-written JS ad code(which takes several DNS lookups and redirects before it loads the single JS file. Seriously.)

2. Never use IE. Even on Windows, without NoScript enabled, I never had trouble with driveby malware and Firefox. I just never got anything worse than an annoying browser popup or two.

3. Common Sense, people! If it says "Click here", don't click. Seriously. For almost any reason. If you get an ad for something cheap or free, /never/ click on it. In fact, never click on advertisements at all: If you like the product, google it and click on what you find /there/.

4. Ubuntu is great for someone who just wants to browse the 'net. Just stick the LiveCD in your drive, boot it, and it /works/. No configuring stuff unless you want to.

That's just all I have to say... Except that Tapewolf's /going/ to reply to this. I just /know/ it.

Heh, all good points, except for point 3.  Many web comics rely on those clicks to help defray their hosting costs.  Usually you can just avoid the 'free' offers tho.  But I mostly agree with your points.  And I run Ubuntu on my gaming system. Which is the same system I use to read DMFA!