Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum
Main => Main Forum => Topic started by: Darq on February 04, 2008, 04:43:05 pm
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Just saw this on digg. dont know if its been posted yet.
http://gizmodo.com/352147/retro-arcade-gaming-fan-heaven-is-worth-infinite-quarters/ (http://gizmodo.com/352147/retro-arcade-gaming-fan-heaven-is-worth-infinite-quarters/)
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Nice.
How long before local zoning commission comes in and decide to be ---Deutsche Frankfurters--- about this...
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Stunning. Simply stunning. I am in awe.
Now, if he also had some retro consoles hooked up to some big TVs, then we're REALLY talking. ;D
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Nice.
How long before local zoning commission comes in and decide to be ---Deutsche Frankfurters--- about this...
Can they do anything if he let's people play for free?
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Nice.
How long before local zoning commission comes in and decide to be ---Deutsche Frankfurters--- about this...
Can they do anything if he let's people play for free?
Well, maybe power use or lights/sounds or the amount of people or something...
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His Luna City Arcade has 57 fully-restored arcade classics
Not for long.
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His Luna City Arcade has 57 fully-restored arcade classics
Not for long.
Exactly. Free admission, while being great in theory, tends to bring a lot of undesireables with it. You have to charge something, even if it's simply a token entry fee, to keep out the loiterers and riff-raff.
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to keep out the loiterers and riff-raff.
HEY! Did it occur to you that I MAY want to go there?!
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to keep out the loiterers and riff-raff.
It doesn't make any difference if you do charge.... you still get loiterers and riffraff not to mention drunks, drug addicts, and other nefarious and often violent scum.
This is especially true here in the UK..... I'm not sure if that's so much the case in the USA.
Best Regards,
Julian (Fozzy The Bear)
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not to mention drunks, drug addicts, and other nefarious and often violent scum.
HEY! Did it occur to you that I MAY want to go there!
:laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:
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There's a very simple solution for that. Make it a members only club. That way you can control who may enter and still make it free. Better yet, start your own religion and get tax exemption! ;D
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start your own religion and get tax exemption!
Do that, just make sure to call it "Xenu's thetan club" ;D
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not to mention drunks, drug addicts, and other nefarious and often violent scum.
HEY! Did it occur to you that I MAY want to go there!
:laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:
Hey! did it occur to you that I work in a place like that!!! :-\
:laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:
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to keep out the loiterers and riff-raff.
It doesn't make any difference if you do charge.... you still get loiterers and riffraff not to mention drunks, drug addicts, and other nefarious and often violent scum.
This is especially true here in the UK..... I'm not sure if that's so much the case in the USA.
Best Regards,
Julian (Fozzy The Bear)
Fair enough. I suppose to be more accurate I should have said "cut down on" the loiterers and riff-raff.
As an example, there's an arcade locally that's part of a larger amusement center. To get into the arcade you have to purchase a certain amount of credits (I can't remember how much). The other day, my son and I went to the arcade only to find an all day concert event taking place in the parking lot (dang kids and their rock 'n' roll music!). I figured our day was doomed. However, after entering the arcade we found it virtually deserted and it stayed that way for the few hours we were there. I credit their entry fee policy.
Hmmm... It seems that maybe this thread could use an entry fee as the riff-raff has already begun to loiter. :angry: ;D
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It seems that maybe this thread could use an entry fee as the riff-raff has already begun to loiter.
HEY! Did it occur to you... Oh, drat... Forgot what I was going to say...
Good thing you had free run of the Arcade tho! (Lucky B + asteroid!)
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Exactly. Free admission, while being great in theory, tends to bring a lot of undesireables with it. You have to charge something, even if it's simply a token entry fee, to keep out the loiterers and riff-raff.
Certainly he's not opening his doors to whoever happens to want to stop by. I mean, his change machines dispense free money! My guess is that this is an invite-only situation, otherwise people would show up and just walk away with hundreds of dollars in quarters.
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Exactly. Free admission, while being great in theory, tends to bring a lot of undesireables with it. You have to charge something, even if it's simply a token entry fee, to keep out the loiterers and riff-raff.
Certainly he's not opening his doors to whoever happens to want to stop by. I mean, his change machines dispense free money! My guess is that this is an invite-only situation, otherwise people would show up and just walk away with hundreds of dollars in quarters.
This makes sense but I'm just going by what's in the article. It says "...open to the public...". I even double-checke to make sure it didn't say "open to the pubic". I don't know what that would mean but I might stop by just to find out. ;)
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i dont think he'll have problems with 'undesirables'. hasnt he built this on his own land or something? in which case, you are going out of your way to drop by...
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I wonder if the pay phone is free to use...
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This makes sense but I'm just going by what's in the article. It says "...open to the public...". I even double-checke to make sure it didn't say "open to the pubic". I don't know what that would mean but I might stop by just to find out. ;)
Article has since been corrected -- it is invite-only.
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Even if all his patrons are from the local Ladies Auxiliary Hall, he's still going to be subjecting his "fully-restored arcade classics" to lots of normal wear and tear (meaning they will no longer be in "fully-restored" condition soon enough), with no return to show for it. Even if people aren't playing them constantly, just having them on, ready to play, is going to cause a lot of screen burn as well as wear and tear on the other electronics, not to mention the amount of electricty he will be using.
It would kind of be like having a restored classic car collection and then allowing free rentals, and paying for their gas to boot.
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just having them on, ready to play, is going to cause a lot of screen burn as well as wear and tear on the other electronics, not to mention the amount of electricty he will be using.
From the looks of one of the pictures, he has a full set of circuit breaker boxes, and therefor prolly cuts the power to everything when the place isnt hosting a gaming day (or when he himself isnt playing them).
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if i recall correctly from his blog...he has three main switches to turn everything on...
'hmm...i feel like playing tron...time to turn on sixty-six machines to make it happen...!'
it's pretty lame...i asked him why he didn't install solar panels during the construction of the building back in the summer...he said that he looked into it but decided it was too expensive at the moment...whatever peter...there was talk of having to upgrade the transformer supplying his house with power...it's ridiculous...
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it's pretty lame...i asked him why he didn't install solar panels during the construction of the building back in the summer...he said that he looked into it but decided it was too expensive at the moment...whatever peter...there was talk of having to upgrade the transformer supplying his house with power...it's ridiculous...
Sounds to me like you are just jealous! Wouldnt you like to have the kinds of resources and time to do that? I know I would, plus it seems he restored them because he loves to play arcade games, and let others play them. These cabs are in a way works of art, but only if they are enjoyed the way they were intended. It would be sad if you just collected them and they sat there with noone playing them :(
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i understand the trouble that the world is facing due to an increasing overpopulation & limited resources...jealousy has nothing to do with it...
i will commend him on allowing people to come and play them...that does indeed spread the wealth a bit...i just think that there were way better alternatives to using energy than the one he opted for...
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.i just think that there were way better alternatives to using energy than the one he opted for...
True, solar panels, battery banks, and maybe have a few stand in place bicycle generators as the cost of admission (ones that plunked out a quarter for every 30 seconds you pedaled! :D) would have been better, but meh. Cant really fault him to much myself, I live in a 2 story cabin (uninsulated) that is electric heat...(In Maine no less)
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His Luna City Arcade has 57 fully-restored arcade classics
Not for long.
Exactly. Free admission, while being great in theory, tends to bring a lot of undesireables with it. You have to charge something, even if it's simply a token entry fee, to keep out the loiterers and riff-raff.
I believe it's by invitation only. So not just anyone can go in.
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.i just think that there were way better alternatives to using energy than the one he opted for...
True, solar panels, battery banks, and maybe have a few stand in place bicycle generators as the cost of admission (ones that plunked out a quarter for every 30 seconds you pedaled! :D) would have been better, but meh. Cant really fault him to much myself, I live in a 2 story cabin (uninsulated) that is electric heat...(In Maine no less)
If you're looking to conserve energy, bicycle generators don't help. That just transfers the cost from your electric bill to your food bill.
And why on earth is your cabin not insulated? I've never heard of anyone living in an uninsulated structure in Maine.
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His electric bill for a two story uninsulated cabin in Maine would be well over $1000/month. Maybe $2000 from Dec-Feb.
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If you're looking to conserve energy, bicycle generators don't help. That just transfers the cost from your electric bill to your food bill.
in a country with an ever-growing obesity rate...i think bicycle generators would help amazingly well... :applaud:
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in a country with an ever-growing obesity rate...i think bicycle generators would help amazingly well... :applaud:
That's a myth. In the late 90's they changed the official definition of the words "obese" and "overweight" and voilą, instant "obesity epidemic".
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::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::) ::)
(edit)
what is a myth...?
what i actually said or some phantom point that you are implying that i'm trying to make...?
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If you read his site...and the hell he went through getting permits, etc...you will know the city is fully aware of what he has behind his house.
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That's a myth. In the late 90's they changed the official definition of the words "obese" and "overweight" and voilą, instant "obesity epidemic".
That's actually true to a certain extent. People are getting heavier, that's certain, but the sudden "epidemic" was because of the changed sliding scale combined with actual comparison charts from the 1950s.
Look at it this way - when I had a 34 inch waist and 13% bodyfat I fell into the obese category. There was no room in the chart for someone with a larger than average frame or higher than average muscle mass and I had both. The BMI charts said I should be 180lb - I was a 210lb and in excellent condition.
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which by the way...his blog is here...
http://peterhirschberg.blogspot.com/
since i don't think anyone has posted it...
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If I were him, I'd be very "choosy" when filling out invitations, then subject party goers to random jumping jack tests before leaving to verify they aren't stealing quarters. Yep, just to verify quarters...thats all. ;D
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Heh. I'm sure arcades, even brand new showpiece arcades, attract the fun to watch jumping jack sort. :laugh2:
After dropping that much money I seriously doubt he'd even notice if people were stealing quarters unless he was watching the inventory.
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Heh. I'm sure arcades, even brand new showpiece arcades, attract the fun to watch jumping jack sort. :laugh2:
After dropping that much money I seriously doubt he'd even notice if people were stealing quarters unless he was watching the inventory.
I think the dude is crazy for leaving fully stocked change machines on free dispense. Of course, it is obvious that he has more expendable yearly income than most of us make in a year.
Shoot, I was considering handing out tokens for my daughters B-day party this Saturday, but I know most of them will not end up in the coin bucket. ;D
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That's a myth. In the late 90's they changed the official definition of the words "obese" and "overweight" and voilą, instant "obesity epidemic".
That's actually true to a certain extent. People are getting heavier, that's certain, but the sudden "epidemic" was because of the changed sliding scale combined with actual comparison charts from the 1950s.
Look at it this way - when I had a 34 inch waist and 13% bodyfat I fell into the obese category. There was no room in the chart for someone with a larger than average frame or higher than average muscle mass and I had both. The BMI charts said I should be 180lb - I was a 210lb and in excellent condition.
Exactly. Using the current BMI standards, muscular people like athletes, manual laborers, naturally rugged folks, etc., and larged framed people are considered "overweight" and "obese" right alongside people with a high body fat percentage.
As an example, Michael Jordan in his prime at 6'6" and 216 lbs. (BMI = 25) would now be considered "overweight" by the U.S. government, and would contribute to the overweight percentage statistics.
So if you excercise and gain muscle mass, you actually make the statistics "worse".
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What is this topic about again?
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i understand the trouble that the world is facing due to an increasing overpopulation & limited resources...jealousy has nothing to do with it...
i will commend him on allowing people to come and play them...that does indeed spread the wealth a bit...i just think that there were way better alternatives to using energy than the one he opted for...
We could always do what France does and that's use Nuclear Power. Sadly, so many blatantly wrong myths about nuclear power have been hammered into the public's mind that nobody wants one within a thousand miles of them even though they provide a great deal of energy and have an unlimited fuel supply. (Breeder reactors can generate more atomic fuel than they consume. A country run off of breeder reactors can theoretically never run out of nuclear fuel. The downside is that nuclear fuel is also capable of being used in weapons and that requires high levels of security).
Still, if you get rid of the ridiculous fears regarding nuclear power, you can see that it is a much better alternative than oil/coal/gas.
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[Still, if you get rid of the ridiculous fears regarding nuclear power, you can see that it is a much better alternative than oil/coal/gas.
Three names for you......
Chernobyl
Winscale
Three Mile Island
Not ridiculous fears....
Not to mention the even worse ecological disaster when these plants come to the end of a working life and you have to dispose of them.... Which then makes the supposedly cheap electricity they made a total nonsense, because the cost of cleaning up the mess then makes it a little bit less than cheap. As well as polluting the dump site for several hundred thousand years.
Best Regards,
Julian (Fozzy The Bear)
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from the faq of peter hirschberg's arcade website...
"What's your electricity bill like?
Not much different than it would be without the games. I only have the games turned on every few weeks or so, so it doesn't really amount to that much. People seem to have the impression that the games are on all the time."
only turned on every few weeks or so...what...?
:dizzy: :dunno :dizzy:
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I wanna live there................................................... :o
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[Still, if you get rid of the ridiculous fears regarding nuclear power, you can see that it is a much better alternative than oil/coal/gas.
Three names for you......
Chernobyl
Winscale
Three Mile Island
Not ridiculous fears....
Not to mention the even worse ecological disaster when these plants come to the end of a working life and you have to dispose of them.... Which then makes the supposedly cheap electricity they made a total nonsense, because the cost of cleaning up the mess then makes it a little bit less than cheap. As well as polluting the dump site for several hundred thousand years.
Best Regards,
Julian (Fozzy The Bear)
Chernobyl: Built in the USSR where low cost was more important than safety or reliability. The accident occurred when the people running the plant decided to turn off ALL safety backups and see how long they could go without them. The design of the plant would NEVER have been acceptable here in the US, or in most other parts of the world and the entire reason the plant became a disaster is because of INCREDIBLE human stupidity and breaking every safety regulation on the face of the earth.
Winscale: Hmmmm. Once again, cost appeared to be more important than safety. Nearly every country in the world has such a strong fear of nuclear power that the budgets given to ANYTHING involving radiation is drastically cut forcing these technologies to be built using lower cost, and hence lower safety, materials. France is perhaps the only country in the world where the general populace has accepted nuclear power and as a result they have a HUGE portion of their power generated from nuclear power plants. France hasn't had any accidents.
Three Mile Island: A U.S. incident where a broken guage caused operators to misread the level of coolant in the reactor core, thus causing the fuel rods to begin melting. ALL back up safety mechanisms worked and the "incident" was contained within the reactor core. There has yet to be any valid evidence of effect on the public and it is now stated with full certainty that the public was never at risk. The USA has ALWAYS been VERY "picky" with their nuclear power plants, and TMI proved that if the plant is built properly and the proper safety mechanisms are put into place, a Chernobyl like accident could never occur.
Nuclear power, like any technology, does come with a risk. The thing is, the risks associated with nuclear power can be completely controlled if proper mechanisms are put in place and proper personnel are trained. The environmental impact can also be controlled if the proper funding is put in place so that the plant isn't forced to cut corners. The amount of nuclear waste generated by a plant can be drastically minimized, and the amount of fossil fuel required for the operation of a nuclear power plant is DRASTICALLY less than a coal or oil plant.
Granted, the BEST form of mass energy production is hydroelectric, followed by solar. The problem with hydroelectric is that you must be near a source of fast moving water, and for solar you have to rely on a constant source of sunlight. During the night, solar energy will drop.
In poorer countries or countries where cost is more important than safety, nuclear power is not a viable option. In the USA, however, nuclear power could be a great relief from our dependence on fossil fuels with regards to energy production. The really sad thing is that there are so many "activist" groups who only know 5% of the total knowledge about radioactivity and suddenly think they are experts. These people are the ones who put out the huge myths about nuclear power being so horrifically bad and damaging. They also believe that a Chernobyl style accident can happen at any time in the US. (This is 100% not possible because as I've said before, the design of the Chernobyl plant has NEVER been a design that was allowed by the United States NRC).
Finally, if you take a look at the total overall cost of running a nuclear power plant from start to finish and compare it with a coal or oil based plant, the nuclear power plant will be cheaper. (Because that nuclear 'waste' people refer to can actually be processed into a financially recoverable material that is used in research and various other professions. You know the smoke detectors you have in your house? Nuclear "waste" goes into those detectors to allow them to work. ;D )
I still state that if you get rid of the "ridiculous" fears involving nuclear power, it is a very viable source of energy that is sadly overlooked. I still stand by my claim that Chernobyl, TMI, and Winscale are indeed ridiculous fears because TMI didn't cause any damage at all to the populace and this has now been confirmed. In fact, the other cores at the plant are still operational! Chernobyl happened because of ridiculous plant design and absolutely horrid actions taken by the "people in charge". Winscale occurred from poor design and people trying to cut costs.
Again I say look at France and their generation of nuclear power. They haven't had accidents or widespread damages and a LARGE portion of their energy is derived from nuclear sources. I would MUCH rather hear about a nuclear power plant being put in down the road from me than a coal plant or an oil plant. The toxins released by coal and oil burning plants are far more likely to give you cancer and health problems than living near a nuclear power plant would. ;D
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What is this topic about again?
Based on the contributor list... a cross between knitting and PMS.
I think Peter's arcade is teh awesome, and I'm glad that at least one of us has the cash to own it. :cheers:
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only turned on every few weeks or so...what...?
When he has a group of people over, I'm sure. I'm betting these actually doesn't get that much play, because he has a life outside of them.
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The really sad thing is that there are so many "activist" groups who only know 5% of the total knowledge about radioactivity and suddenly think they are experts.
The "activist" groups dont just stop at nuclear: In Maine, When Bangor Hydro Electric had to shut its Hydro dam down (due to old age), certain "enviromentalist" groups blocked them for setting up a new dam. They claimed it would destroy hundreds of acres of woodland (Apparently, not realising that it would create hundreds of acres of wetland, which is disapearing much faster than woodland). So now, due to the valiant effort of these groups that wanted to save the environment, we have to rely on coal based power, and if memory serves my correct, most of the coil in the US is gotten via surface mining which is MUCH worse to the environment than building a dam would have been, not to mention that coal pollutes much for than running water does... *sighs*
:banghead: :banghead:
:dunno
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can you guys take the hippy, tree hugging, save the whales, go green crap to pnr so we can have a worthwhile discussion on someone's cool arcade on these arcade forums....
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can you guys take the hippy, tree hugging, save the whales, go green crap to pnr so we can have a worthwhile discussion on someone's cool arcade on these arcade forums....
Oh.. Right, right. I thought this thread had a different point... ;)
And yes, I am envious of this guys awesome arcade... Wish I had the dosh for that...
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http://www.1984arcade.com If you want to go along to something similar that is open to the public. $5 Door charge is nothing... Peter's arcade is totally awsome and it's safe to say most of us here would have the same in an instant if we could. Otherwise why would we be members of an arcade forum?
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If I were ever in the position to have an arcade that size, I definitely would have one that big... That is everything an arcade should be and more.