I'm walking through a bustling underground train station. I push and shove my way through all the other commuters onto the platform. As I look around, there seems to be endless rows of platforms in both directions, stretching well into a dense fog. Further ahead, neat lines of railway tracks extend out from the fog and through the platforms. I instinctually look up at the info screen
Next train in ### minutes
I furrow my brow, squint to try and focus on the numbers but they're heavily pixelated and illegible. I look around at the other commuters, who stream onto the platform completely unaware of the anomaly. Most people are on their phone, or wearing headphones while some are talking to each other. No one seems to notice the malfunction with the screen.
That's when the absurdity of the situation clicks for me. Endless platforms, a wall of fog, unreadable numbers and people that don't care. It's all a dream. I bring my hand up to my face and pinch my nose, trying to breathe through it. An old reality check I remembered from back when I was trying to learn to lucid dream.
My heart rate jumped when I realised, that I couldn't breathe through my nose. Before I could even process this, another problem presented itself. I didn't know why I was here. I didn't know where I was going and I definitely did not know how I even got here. It seems as if reality ceased to exist right before I walked onto this platform. Just like it typically feels in a dream, you spawn in out of nowhere and don't really know what happened prior - except this wasn't a dream.
I knew I was sure of it because deep inside my bones I felt this anxious urgent message. I need to catch this train. It was a primal feeling.
At this point, my head is spinning and I need to sit down somewhere. I choose a silver bench with a middle aged woman sitting on it. She shuffles further to the left as I sit down next to her clutching my head and racking my brain to try and figure out what it is happening. This is what amnesia feels like, I thought to my self as I gnawed at scraps of messy muddled memories. Each image that came into my mind was just a fragment - A school, a library, sickeningly white walls. It hit me that I didn't even know my name. I was starting to hyperventilate but then my body kicked into autopilot. I started to take deep breaths, focusing on my diaphragm and calming myself down. It felt like I was trained to do this. I started to focus on the current situation.
Where was my ticket? Instinctually, I knew I had to have gotten one on my entry to the train station. I reached into my pockets and pulled out a scrap of paper. Scrawled in very familiar cursive:
*In case of memory loss, read the journal in your backpack*
Strange message but I didn't have any choice then to at least give the instructions a try. I removed my backpack and rummaged through it for the journal. I wouldn't really call it a backpack - more a tattered and frayed bundle of cloth that was reminiscent of a backpack. I finally found a series of small thick journals, bundled in cloth with their leather covers on the verge of disintegration. The pages still seemed in good condition though. Each cover was sequentially labelled which I'm guessing corresponded to the chronological order of the writings within.
The lady next to me was weirdly getting agitated. She kept stealing glances, her body shaking and eyes burning with a fierce rage. I slowly got up from the bench and began to step backwards. My backpack bumped into a pillar. The dull thud it made seemed to cause a drastic change to everyone around me though. They all snapped their heads, locking eyes on me and staring through my very soul. I felt exposed.
The rumble of an arriving train stole away their attention and within a split second everyone was ignoring me again, going back to their usual activities. It seriously felt like I had just imagined it and it was becoming more and more clear that I was having some sort of mental breakdown. Nevertheless, as the train slowed to a stop on the platform, I walked into it and found a seat. The train seemed to be old and new at the same time. Typical blue seats with abstract dirty patterns complete with a modern sleek interior of gentle curves clashing with a boxy dull metallic exterior and doors that looked like they belonged on a rusty submarine.
I opened the first of the journals and began to read. I soon realised that the handwriting was mine and within the next few moments I was attacked by a barrage of memories that had remained repressed and buried in the back of my mind.
*
My name is Jacob and I have been stuck here in this place called *The Limbo* for an eternity. When I say 'eternity', I don't mean it lightly. Back when I used to keep track I counted over 500 years through my wristwatch that never seemed to run out of battery. Now I know counting is meaningless. There have been periods like this where my mind falls into a deep trance and I lose my whole identity as I mindlessly wander in this place much like the entities that inhabit it. Occasional periods of lucidity breach this trance and then I find myself lost and confused. It's why I keep the journals with me. I think its some sort of psychological survival mechanism that human brains develop when faced with the infinite vastness of The Limbo.
Speaking of The Limbo, I've come to learn a few things about its nature through my stay here. Some of its been through people that I've come across (Yes others are also stuck here) and some has been through my own experiences. Perhaps the most important is the question of where I get my food and water. The answer is weird. I have never felt hungry or thirsty. The sensation of having cool water slide down my throat remains a memory so distant that it feels like the snippet of a childhood dream.
I guess the next natural topic about this place would be time. Through various experiences of mine (that you'll get to read about) and discussions with others, the leading theory of mine is that The Limbo exists outside of time itself. While I myself have fallen here sometime during 2001, I've met many others from various years like the 80s, 90s and even one recent fellow from 2043.
Most people in The Limbo eventually fall into a trance, withering away until they become one of the entities or become mere tools for them. It's probably naive but I keep going through this place with only two hopes. The first is to somehow get out of here at the right time point and see my son, who I never got to see. The second is to come out of this place and die so that I no longer have to live out the empty agony of eternity (I'll explain how you can't age or die in The Limbo later). Perhaps my hopes will dwindle as the centuries pile and I will become just like those who I look upon in pity now.
I am writing this consolidated diary of my experiences for several reasons. I'd like someone to know of my unending journey in this place. To be aware of the capacity of the human spirit to keep going in the worst of situations. I have never had a long term friend in The Limbo, but know that I consider you the reader a dear friend even if I never get to meet you because you will know my story. I'm also sharing this in hopes that there is more awareness of The Limbo. Perhaps the military and scientists can actually figure out what it is. Perhaps all of us can be brought home. Or maybe this can serve as a survival guide to those who may be unfortunate enough to fall through.
There are small holes in The Limbo. Most of them are barely large enough for a pinkie finger to fit in let alone a person, but sometimes I've come across one large enough for this journal to go through. I'm not sure what time or place these holes lead to, so the safe passage of this book into a person capable of reading it has about the same chances as me ever leaving this place.
The train I'm on supposedly leads to the edge of The Limbo, where the holes are large enough for humans to fit through. It's really more of a legend amongst the poor souls that are trapped here and I've followed trails and clues for a long time to even find this train.
There are only two ways this goes. Both outcomes would lead to you reading this book in your hands. I'll either find my way out of this hell or give up hope and slip this journal through a Hole. You will find my fate at the end.
I should stop rambling now though. It would be best to start at the very beginning.
*
I was rushing out of work in pure ecstasy. My wife had gone into labor while I was at work and been rushed to hospital. I needed to get there fast. People were glancing over at me over their cubicles in confusion as I packed up my work bag and rushed out to the elevators. I couldn't stop thinking about seeing my first son as the elevator made its way down. The elevator doors finally opened and I rushed out.
The ground entrance of the building I worked at, particularly near the lobby, is an intersection of various hallways. I was already walking to close to the wall when someone came rushing around the corner and bumped me right into the wall. I was only able to hear half their apology when I fell *through* the wall like it was just a holographic projection. In hindsight, I find it oddly funny how easy it is for a life to get ruined. Just when you think you've got it all, when everything is going smoothly, a small incident like that is enough to take it all away.
I found myself in a room that resembled a classroom. It looked as if someone who had never stepped inside a classroom was asked to imagine the space. Desks were arranged in messy uneven rows with the chairs facing various directions. The board at the front of the room was a seamless patchy mixture of both chalk and modern whiteboard and mounted way too low on the wall, nearly hugging the floor. A large teachers desk sat in the front of the room. The walls were filled with posters of absolute gibberish along with diagrams and pictures that seemed like they showed something tangible but no matter how close you looked you could never identify anything in the picture.
The initial confusion was replaced by an immense panic. My heart was drumming against my chest as I searched the room for a doorway to exit it. My mind was trying to rationalise the situation. I was trying to convince myself that this was just some old part of the building and I had fallen into a hallway instead of the wall.
I ran through the doorway at the far end of the room and found myself in a large hallway that seemed to extend forever in both directions. The walls were a muted grey and the floors were that typical dirty linoleum. Soon I would find out that the regularly spaced doorways on either side of the hall led to other nonsensical classrooms.
I ran down the hallway screaming for help in pure panic, which was a terrible mistake in hindsight. I stopped running down the hallway when I suddenly heard the distinct scratch of chalk against board. In this large empty space, the sound echoed and boomed. Since I was still refusing to buy in to the reality of the situation, my hopes were momentarily increased by the supposed presence of another person here.
I slowly walked over to the doorway that the sounds were coming from. My stomach filled with an uneasy dread. This deep primal instinct within me urged me to hold back. I peeked carefully in the classroom and saw a woman with their back turned to me drawing something on the chalkboard.
It took me a few moments to notice that it was a very realistic portrait of my face.
She was drawing lines across my throat, her long dark hair swaying as she drew in the details. The drawing was completed with a terrible slash across the throat, blood gurgling out. I was frozen in place, transfixed on the hauntingly beautiful realism of the picture.
She began to turn around slowly while humming a high pitched tune. To this day I can't describe the face I saw. It is still etched into my mind. A face full of so much hatred, so much anger that I don't think its possible for a human to make that face. It expressed an emotion beyond human understanding. No artist in the world could ever render the expression on the paper. No words could describe the pure fear that coursed through my veins as she stared at me and began to approach.
I turned around to run, only to realise that a bunch of school children had gathered around me. They were headless, the bleeding stumps dripping thick blood onto the floor in a rhythmic patter. Somehow they were laughing.
I shoved through the group and ran down the hallway. I wasn't sure where I was going. My whole world had shattered and now I was completely aimless in some nonsense dimension with horrors beyond imagination that wanted me dead.
*
The extract above is from this journal I found at the foot of a large tree on a hiking trail. It's a miracle that I spotted its faded leather cover given that it was almost buried under rotting leaves. I really don't know what to make of what I'm reading, so I'll be slowly transcribing bits of it in separate posts over the next few days.
I know this subreddit is good for this sort of stuff. I'd love if someone else could share anything they know about The Limbo. This whole journal feels like some sort of prank, but the words and memories within feel way too real.
I can't help but feel a connection to this story. My mum doesn't speak much of my Dad, who I know left before I was born. No one ever found out where he went.
I was born in 2001
X

people who score -0 on logic games consistently, how do you manage to do it?
do you go through every question slowly until time runs out and get every single one correct, or do you go through them and usually have time to double check your answers? the only time i’ve scored a -0 is when i double checked.
also, what is your games strategy? or you making game boards/worlds at the start or are you strategically answering questions based solely on the initial diagram/drawing a specific world for the question?
would greatly appreciate the input!

This is an argument I am messing with that does not include God, but I don't think the existence of God would affect the validity of this either. This is more of an argument towards moral relativism, but I'd be curious if theology disrupts this in any way, or why the thiest might disagree.
□R: It is necessarily true that in our world, difference and contrast are intrinsic and pervasive.
□ (S → R): It is necessarily true that goodness (S) requires the capacity for evaluative judgment, which in turn requires contrast and differentiation (R).
□ (U → (V ∧ W)): It is necessarily true that if actions are at least part of what society subjectively thinks are good (U), then these actions have objective differences (V) and these differences form an objective pattern (W).
□ (L → X): It is necessarily true that life aims to further itself (L), meaning life moves towards its continuation and proliferation, whether intentional or not (X).
□ (B → Y): It is necessarily true that systems aim to balance themselves (B), meaning systems move towards equilibrium and stability, whether intentional or not (Y).
□ ((X ∧ Y) → Z): It is necessarily true that if the furtherance of life (X) and the pursuit of balance (Y) are present, then these are coherent commonalities in predominant subjective conceptions of morality (Z).
□ (Z → S): It is necessarily true that if the furtherance of life and pursuit of balance are commonalities in subjective morality (Z), then morality aligns with the objective reality of these patterns (S).
□ ((S ≈ T) ∧ R): It is necessarily true that good, as we subjectively describe it, shares essential characteristics with the objective reality of contrast and differentiation in our world (S ≈ T), making it at least somewhat objectively true.
Full logic:
□ R
□ (S → R)
□ (U → (V ∧ W))
□ (L → X)
□ (B → Y)
□ ((X ∧ Y) → Z)
□ (Z → S)
□ ((R ∧ S) → (S ≈ T))
So the collective idea of the word "good" is going to vary and perhaps small pieces do not align with objective reality, however, we can refine our definition of the word good if we choose to, to even further approximate a good that actually is. Furthermore good is objectively real with or without God or people to judge it as such.
Edit: Summary section as recommended (full paper being worked on, just really appreciating feedback from you guys to refine it, disprove it, or make it more clear)
"Rocks are harder than wood”
This is a subjective statement and, what we can reasonably call, an objective statement.
The idea of a rock and actual rocks can never be exactly the same. One has an infinite amount of subjective descriptors, the other has an infinite amount of actual descriptors that once described, become intrinsically subjective again, yet never needed to be described to actually be. The difference between a rock and wood, would still be, even without our observations.
The purpose of this paper and argument is to show that moral goodness at least follows this form of objectivity that we call true, it will explore the ontological nature of contrast, and from that framework, propose an objective morality that fundamentally is.
Final edit:
Such good feedback and areas to improve. Thank you guys. The contrast part was a bit hard to explain, But you guys found unconnected logic, begged the question what is balance and which is more good that or the furtherance of life?
Like any round of feedback in a philosophical community, it's back to the drawing board in a lot of ways 🫡😁
You guys inspired me to make a diagram for the contrast point. This will be refined and put in the paper I think: https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1lt1UGl8tfcaMHSZEzD8gahSay6FdijLcNWlTgURr3RA/edit?usp=sharing

Hey people! For an art installation I would love to draw a huge diagram on a wall or the floor with UV ink that will become visible just with a UV torch. The idea is to draw some parts by hand with a marker and silkscreen others. Has anybody worked with UV inks before? any advice? I was wondering particularly about how visible will it be when it's not under a UV light and if you think the effect changes drastically if the space is darker. Also if you have any product recommendations that would be amazing!

Hey guys. I've created a list of the 100 best tools for spatial computing builders that I use. Each tool has been carefully curated, tested and validated.

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

Hey guys. I've created a list of the 100 best tools for spatial computing builders that I use. Each tool has been carefully curated, tested and validated.

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

🤵‍♂️ Best entrepreneurs spatial tools

Great White(board): Great White(board) is a simple, uncomplicated working tool. Take a note, sketch an idea, diagram a process, or think through the details of a complex idea.
Immersed: Immersed offers a virtual reality workspace where users can create multiple virtual monitors without additional hardware. This app excels in enabling focused solo work and efficient remote collaboration, allowing users to share screens and engage in virtual whiteboarding.
Fluid: Virtual workstation, wherever you are. Fluid turns your VR headset into a spatial computer that you can use for work, media streaming, gaming, and more.
Warp VR: Transform your training with immersive 360° scenarios, outperforming traditional e-learning and live actor simulations in engagement and retention.
Zoom for Vision Pro: Zoom’s Apple Vision Pro app banks on a future where virtual meetings will feel like real ones, already offering immersive meeting experiences from wherever you are.
PowerPoint for Vision Pro: You can use Microsoft PowerPoint on Vision Pro to create and update presentations. One unique feature is the “Immersive Environment” feature, which allows you to practice your presentation as if you were presenting it to an audience.
Arthur: Arthur enables your organization to meet, collaborate and manage work
Navi: Navi adds subtitles to your conversations! Perfect for business meetings abroad. Connect directly to other Navi-enabled devices around you, and what they say will be displayed directly on your Mac screen.
Lenslist: Amplify Your Marketing Using AR Filters.
SAP Analytics Cloud: SAP Analytics Cloud on Apple Vision Pro lets users arrange their most critical business workflows and apps in their physical space while using contextual 3D maps and graphics to gain new insights.
Mozilla Hubs: The go-to virtual platform for educators, teams, and organizations. Powered by Mozilla, we’ve designed our platform to make virtual collaboration and learning effortless.
Mindesk: Mindesk is a real-time CAD and VR software that allows designers to create and edit 3D models directly in virtual reality, providing a more intuitive and immersive design experience.

📟 Best spatial developers tools

Tilt Brush: Developed by Google, Tilt Brush is a VR painting application that allows artists and developers to create 3D artwork in virtual reality, making it a valuable tool for prototyping and visualization.
Gravity Sketch: Gravity Sketch is a 3D design tool that enables designers and developers to create immersive 3D models and environments in VR, facilitating collaboration and rapid prototyping.
Substance Painter: Substance Painter is a texturing tool that supports VR painting, allowing developers to create high-quality textures and materials directly in VR for use in their VR applications.
Unity: One of the most popular game engines, Unity offers robust support for VR development with its built-in VR support and extensive asset store.
Unreal Engine: Another powerful game engine, Unreal Engine provides advanced tools for creating high-quality VR experiences, including built-in VR support and Blueprint visual scripting.
Google VR SDK: Google VR SDK provides developers with the tools and APIs for building VR applications for Android devices, including Google Cardboard and Daydream.
VRTK: VRTK is a popular open-source toolkit for Unity that simplifies VR development by providing a collection of scripts and prefabs for common VR interactions and mechanics.
NVIDIA VRWorks: NVIDIA VRWorks provides developers with a suite of tools and APIs for optimizing VR performance on NVIDIA GPUs, including features like Multi-Res Shading and Lens Matched Shading.

🖼️ Best spatial designers tools

Spatial Icon: Download Free Spatial Icons for your Spatial Apps.
ShapesXR: ShapesXR helps you design spatial experience together.
JigSpace: JigSpace helps you create spatial presentations, combining 3D content, audio, video and text in an interactive, step-by-step experience that energizes the communication of complex ideas, products or processes.
SwiftXR: A powerful 3D and immersive design tool that is easy to use
SketchAR: SketchAR is an AR drawing app that enables designers to sketch and visualize their ideas in augmented reality, allowing for immersive and interactive design processes.
Adobe Aero: Adobe Aero is an AR authoring tool that allows designers to create interactive AR experiences using 2D and 3D assets from Adobe Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop and Illustrator.
Blender: Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling and animation software that supports AR and VR content creation, making it a valuable tool for designers to create 3D assets for their projects.
Reality Composer: Easily prototype and produce AR experiences directly in AR with no prior 3D experience.
Reality Composer: Reality Composer is an AR authoring tool developed by Apple for creating interactive AR experiences without writing any code, making it accessible to designers and artists.
Reality Converter beta: The Reality Converter app makes it easy to convert, view, and customize USDZ 3D objects on Mac. Simply drag-and-drop common 3D file formats, such as .obj, .gltf and .usd, to view the converted USDZ result, customize material properties with your own textures, and edit file metadata.
Adobe Lightroom: Lightroom for Vision Pro lets you edit photos on a truly big screen. It’s been redesigned for the VisionOS, so it’s easier to navigate with hand gestures than the desktop version, which has many more features.

👩‍🎤 Best content creators spatial tools

QuestCam: A system for third person recording that imposes minimal performance constraints and unlocks maximum creativity. QuestCam.
Liv: LIV is your complete toolset for VTubing, Mixed Reality Capture and VR native utilities like in-headset stream chat, alerts and notifications!
XCode + Reality Composer: Record 4K video in Apple Vision Pro using the Reality Composer kit on Xcode. Click here for the full tutorial.
The list is gradually being added to, and all 100 tools will be present by June 2024 (progressive updating).

In the context of applying to data engineer jobs:
I'm a DA who has drawn up some diagrams of our datasets before, and provided input on conversations with SWEs on what our data should look like. However this wasn't my core responsibility and we didn't do things very rigorously - when applying to DE jobs that want some experience in data modelling, what is the "true" modelling experience they are asking for? What does one actually do besides "this datetime should have 0.001s precision" or "the primary key will be ABC and XYZ will be a foreign key because we have those in another existing table" or drawing a line between CustomersTable and OrdersTable to show that customers can have zero or more orders?

Hi, I am studying maths and currently use LaTeX to take my notes in class in real time. This has been effective so far, however the main drawback appears to be when my lecturer draws diagrams to make examples clearer, I have no real way of doing this in LaTeX at the moment. For context, here is a snippet from my notes. I have a few potential methods:

• TikZ - I have all but discounted this as becoming fast enough at TikZ to use in real time seems nigh impossible / not something I'm interested in pursuing.
  
• Creating a more functional workflow using inkscape and VS Code, which I'm somewhat hesitant to do given the overall increased complexity of drawing vector graphics on a laptop.
  
• Switching to obsidian, and using my iPad to draw the diagrams and my laptop to write the notes. Any suggestions along these lines would be appreciated although this probably isn't the place!
  

Some ideas I have had yet not been able to find anything about online:

• Some way of annotating onto pdfs with apple pencil without the annotations being removed upon recompiling my LaTeX documents. This would be a somewhat messy but easy and effective solution if this is possible.
  
• Perhaps the ideal workflow would be some way of drawing / creating quick vector images on my iPad and then having them pop into my LaTeX documents quickly. I currently use OneDrive to store my LaTeX files which makes me think this is a potentially valid approach, however I would very much appreciate suggestions on how to achieve this.
  

If anyone has had any similar experience, please let me know.

Is there a generally agreed procedure – or at least a handful of useful techniques?
Background:
I'm learning about concavity in curves of functions, specifically identifying the turning points and inflections in such curves.
To do this I'm building sign diagrams of f(x), f'(x) (first derivative) and f''(x) (second derivative).
For example:

x	-1	0	1/2	1
y'	-	-	+	+

• By working out the signs of the 1st derivative, I can determine the turning points of the curve.
• By working out the signs of the 2nd derivative, I can determine the inflection points of the curve.

The functions tend to be polynomial, e.g.:

• f(x) = x^2 - x^4
  
  • so that f'(x) = 2x - 4x^3
  • and f''(x) = 2 - 12x^2
• f(x) = x^4 - 3x^2 + 6x
  
  • so that f'(x) = 4x^3 - 6x + 6
  • and f''(x) = 12x^2 - 6

So far my "technique" is pretty scrappy.
First I determine zero points (by inspection, completing the square or applying the quadratic formula).
Then I just punch tiny permutations into my calculator, e.g. `1.0001^2 - 1.0001^4`, etc, randomly to see whether they're negative or positive, and scrawl down the results. Then I try to throw together a sign diagram that seems right.
I would prefer to follow a consistent method that can generally get me accurate results.
So far I've got this short list:
A) Inspecting for obvious forcing of the whole result.
E.g. in an expression like: 2x^2 - x^2, the result can only be positive, because both sides square x and the left side only doubles that value, so will always be larger than the right.
B) Factoring/grouping.
Factor the polynomial into groups of multiplications if possible, then solve the sign of each group separately, then combined them in the end.
For example:

1. x^4 - x^3 - 5x => (x^2 - 3x)(x^2 + 2x)
2. Make two sign diagrams, one for (x^2 - 3x) and one for (x^2 + 2x)
3. Then combine the signs, i.e. - * - = +, - * + = +, + * + = +

C) Tabulating permutations.
Drawing up a table of values of x (columns) and groups of the polynomial (from the Factoring/grouping above).
For example:

x	-1	-1 + 0.001	0 - 0.001	0	0 + 0.001	1 - 0.001	1
(x^2 - 3x)	2 (+)	≈ 3.995 (+)	≈ 0.003 (+)	0	≈ -0.002 (-)	≈ -1.998 (-)	-2 (-)
(x^2 + 2x)	...	...	...	...	...	...	...

This can then easily be converted to a sign diagram.
D) Applying values of powers of fractions.
I noticed it's common that a fraction raised to a power will give a radically (no pun) different result to the whole polynomial.
For example:
6x^3 - 6x will be:

• Negative for fractions; e.g. (6 * (0.5^3)) - (6*0.5) = -2.25
• Positive for whole numbers; e.g. (6 * (2^3)) - (6*2) = +36

So it might be useful to quickly identify where powers are applied to fractions and solve for them early.
I'm thinking of memorising (or at least being able to quickly build from memory) a table like the following:

x	2	3	4	...
1/2	1/4	1/8	...	...
1/4	...	...	...	...
1/6	...	...	...	...
...	...	...	...	...

E) Inverting the polynomial (or grouped parts of it) to find zero points.
For example, given: 5x^2 - 1.
I can invert 5x^2 to get sqrt(x/5) so that sqrt(1/5) gives me a zero point of the expression.
Then I can add/subtract tiny amounts to build the sign diagram around it.
E.g.

x	sqrt(1/5)-0.001	sqrt(1/5)	sqrt(1/5)+0.001
	-	0	+

What do you think?
Am I generally right to try and find a systematic method or at least a collection of tools to solve this kind of problem?
If so, are there any good books out there that cover such methods, so I don't have to discover them on my own by trial-and-error?
Or if not, then maybe this would be a good topic for a math book or blog post that I should write on my own!

i honestly fucked up so intensely in the questions cause i got confused and lost, and i didn’t even write that penicillin was an antibiotic cause i thought it was a given and the question where you had to guess the nucleolus and then draw it i WAS THINKING about that but then i hurried it and decided it can’t tf be that and it gotta be the golgi bodies (which were already on the diagram tf i was thinking with i wonder), so i can’t even evaluate how bad or how good i did today cause it feels like every single question is wrong i’m sorry i just needed to let it all out and then go and prepare for chem tmrw or my inattentiveness fails it too

Hi everyone! I’m currently in the market for a used iPad and wanting to get the best value for lowest cost.
What I want/need it for:
A mobile computer replacement where I can work on my writing projects, draw art and lighting designs/diagrams, browse the internet, and use it to show people portfolio photos and video as a mobile screen device.
Ideally it’s fast, has good battery life, and a strong bright screen that is reasonably color accurate. I’m not looking to edit photos or video on it, so no need for that. But I am thinking of learning and implementing a cad design program like autodesk or solid works. Is it possible to use one of these programs on an iPad?
My budget is around 400/300$
I want something that will last a while without battery problems and can still be updated. Around another 2-3 more years of use.
Bonus points for advice on cases, keyboards, and stylus attachments.

If examiner gives you 2 solids and asks to separate they cannot be separated instantly, mostly one of them will be soluble for eg he gives you sand and NaCl and asks u to separate them, we know that sand is insoluble in water and NaCl is soluble so we will add water to both solids the NaCl will dissolve then we will take a filter funnel on a conical flask , place a filter paper on it and pour the solution, the insoluble sand will be collected on the filter paper as residue and the salt solution will flow through as filtrate. Now here he can ask two things 1. NaCl in crystal form 2.Nacl in powder form. 1) heat the NaCl solution to crystallization pint and allow the remaining liquid to slowly cool or evaporate, after some time crystals will be formed and we can just filter them and dry them by tapping with filter paper or in an oven. 2) Just heat the salt solution till constant mass nothing else.
now for the sand that we got although we have separated it, it may contain some soluble impurities of NaCl, which we do not want so we wash the sand with "DISTILLED" water and then dry it by using filter paper.
Also for the crystals that we got for the NaCl, please do not wash them with any water as NaCl is soluble in water so they will dissolve again. everything i wrote is for understanding the process in exam please summarize this.
Liquid+Solid If solid is insoluble just filter it and wash with distilled water to remove any soluble impurities and dry it
if solid is soluble we will do simple distillation. please do not sit there write the whole setup just draw the distillation diagram and label it (a picture speaks a thousand words) showing the heat source the round bottom flask the condenser with water in and water out and thermometer labelled, the solid will remain in the flask and the water or liquid will be evaporated and and then condenser and collect in the beaker at the other end.
PLEASE IF IT IS A ORGANIC LIQUID THAT WE ARE SEPARATING DO NOT USE A BUNSEN BURNER TO HEAT THE FLASK AS THEY ARE HIGHLY FLAMMABLE. use an electric heater or a thermostatically controlled water bath. also please make sure that whatever the liquid being separated, its boiling point should be below 100 degrees or we cannot use water to separate it as the water we are using in the condenser to condense the liquid will evaporate itself.
Liqud+Liquid if both are immiscible meaning they form layers and do not mix. use a separating funnel and pour one the more dense one off as it will settle at the bottom. if asked why are we able to separate them in this way, the answer to that is because both liquids have different density.
if both are miscible, then just write we will use fractionating column please do not sit there mentioning the details just draw a rough diagram including the round bottom flask, fractionating column, thermometer, Liebig condenser with water in and out marked, beads in the fractionating column to allow only particles with more energy to pass through and particles with less energy meaning lower temp to fall back in to the flask and a beaker in the end to collect the separated liquid.
if GAS + GAS then first step is to liquify them, which is done by lowering their temp, and then we will again be facing a liquid + liquid (miscible) so we will then do fractional distillation to separate them.
if both gases have different MOLECULAR MASS then we easy way to separate them is by diffusion. Gas with lower Mr will diffuse faster hence can be separated
hope everyone understands :)

Hi! I just ordered my Nomad last week, in Australia, and it's on its way to me. I have looked through some of the study/teaching posts and got some great ideas to start me off but I was wondering if there are any economists/people in commerce that have specific tools/templates they would recommend? In my studies I draw a lot of diagrams and models for markets.
I work in research so lots of project mgmt tools and drawing figures to describe database/server flows and security is another need of mine but I feel like I have a better idea of that compared to how to optimise my study notes.
Thanks in advance!

Just got done building in the Qube 500 Flatpack black edition, very pleasant experience.
Here is my review in bullet points. Then tips on building in the sucker as bullet points, and finally suggestions addressed to CoolerMaster (henceforth "CM") in, you guessed it, motherflippin' bulletpoints.

Review

1. Instructions: The written instructions were not great. Had that "draw the rest of the owl" energy to them. The order of the steps in the guide were all over the place for no reason. Please reassign the Extraterrestrial who writes your manuals to other projects. I feel this whole experience could be optimized and dialed in further. Maybe a number system or a colour code. Maybe CM can do a collab with Ikea and have their people help out. My body is ready for blue/yellow cases.
   
2. Flatpack concept: I really love the flatpack case concept; it's a few tweaks away from being great, and it has the potential to become the new standard for budget and mid-range cases. I really hope CM continues with this concept. Fundamentally, it's just 12 screws. 4 in the back, 4 in the front, 2 for the top and 2 for the bottom. All attached to the central Motherboard tray. Really hard to mess up.
   
3. Packaging: very high quality. The diagrams on the interior were not helpful. I think it was missing an overall diagram illustrating that this was packaged in layers, and you were expected to assemble layer by layer. I mean, I figured it out quickly, but a piece of paper at the top announcing what was going to be happening would have been great.
   
4. Case design elements: Lots of fluff text stamped everywhere on the case itself as well, text written about how each panel is steel, or that the glass is glass. We get it CM. The materials are made of materials
   
5. Cooling: It comes with 1 fan which, if that's all the cooling you use, is not going to be enough if its a gaming rig. I do wish an extra fan was included, I associate 1 case fans with budget cases, and this is definitely not budget feeling or priced. I added a few fans cannibalized from the old case, so no big deal.
   
6. Screws: I really appreciate that there was only one size of screws. That was a nice touch. Please only ever do this going forward for all the stuff you make. Give a raise to the person who came up with that idea. The inclusion of only silver coloured screws with the black case was dissapointing. What a weird corner to cut.
   
7. Extras: I really wish I could have bought extra accessories, attachments, panels or parts for the Qube when I ordered it. I understand from the promo materials that it's designed to play nice with 3D printing to some extent, but a modular design BEGS for a part catalogue for customization. The Macaron edition, with its extra cosmetic panels, is a good first step, but those should be available separately too. This case badly needed more options. This could be a flagship product for you guys, if the logistics can keep up with an initial marketing push.
   
8. Radiator Bracket: Without a mesh side panel for the left of the case I'm not sure I understand the point of the hinged radiator bracket. It's certainly not providing much in the way of sturctural integrity and without a flow through for air, why bother? Unless the case can be modded to switch the panels? I read nothing about that in the documentation provided and all the promo pics show it behind the glass panel. Weird. Thankfully it's removeable. If panels can be flipped and moved around, please indicate it more clearly. If they can't, well, why not?
   

Tips and tricks

My specific build was a "put lipstick on a pig" kind of project. Basically a case swap for an older system to make it re-sellable. The construction quality of this thing bumped a budget-looking system to premium-looking. Very happy with the result.

1. PSU positioning: My pig uses a non-modular ATX PSU. I was very apprehensive as the GPU option I wanted to put in, a 3070, was "too long" technically speaking and although I had a smaller PSU available, I did not want to swap it given the price point I'm going for with this build.
   Thankfully the GPU went in with room to spare. How? Turns out one of the pros of a fully non-modular PSU is all the cables come out in one area and so the spot where PSU connectors would normally interfere with a long GPU is totally clear and Cooler master had a channel just waiting there to route the PSU cables. See here.
   After testing, even if I would have placed the PSU in the lowest mounting bracket offered by the case (for water cooling), there would have been room for a longer GPU with this PSU configuration. Very cool!
   
2. Cable Management: Given that there is plenty of room behind the motherboard tray for cable management and plenty of tie-down points, the Qube turned out to be fantastic for cable management even with all the extra PSU cabling I had to deal with (my Pig also uss a 2.5 SSD drive too). Overall it looks much neater than I expected despite the unshrouded PSU situation. Honestly this might be the thing that surprised me the most about the case. It looks really clean. Granted I did a lot of the cable management as I went, BEFORE the step where CM suggests doing a bit of cable management (lol).
   I really disliked how unhelpful CM's instructions were in this regard. I did all of this out of experience, but I could see new builders getting frustrated. This case has plenty of room to cable manage when disassembled, and it in fact a pretty pleasant experience, but you really need to be diligent and ask yourself at every step what can you tidy up at that point.
   
3. Cooling: A Thermal Right Peerless Assassin 120 SE fits and has plenty of clearance even with the radiator bracket. Sucking in fresh air will be challenging however.
   I mounted fans to the panels as I installed them and spent a good amount of time routing motherboard cables prior to having the side panels locked in to help with airflow and clear obstructions. I used U cable adapters for the GPU's power connectors to keep them flat and out of the way and used black electrician tape to bundle and clean up hanging connectors here and there as much as possible.
   Ultimately, I placed the PSU in the highest bracket as I wanted space for a front fan and airflow. As a result of the PSU situation, I was able to fit a 140 mm fan in the front of the case with no obstruction, as well as another fan at the bottom close to the front's fan, creating a corner intake area. I added two top 140mm fans as well and kept the case's back 120 mm fan.
   
4. Future layout options: I could probably have 3 X 120 mm fans at the bottom of the case, although I'm leaning towards instead getting a PCIE riser cable to vertically mount the GPU. I think it will look nicer and give more room for the air to move diagonally. Based on my rough estimates it should not interfere with the bottom fan I already installed and CM includes an adapter to reorient the slots at the back. This layout possibility was unexpected (as I would have gotten a PCIE riser otherwise). This computer will look much nicer than I expected.
   
5. Power On: Don't forget to switch on the PSU before wrapping up. That said, two screws are between you and lifting the top panel if you did forget so don't worry too much about it.
   
6. Back Fan Cable: The included fan's connector cable position can interfere with the back panel's attachment (it gets squeezed in). I suggest fully routing the cable preemptively before screwing that in.
   
7. Hook up all the Mobo's connectors before screwing the panels together: I suggest routing and connecting anything and everything that latches on to the Motherboard as soon as you can. I'd route the PSU cables before actually attaching the PSU to the case as well, just in case you need to plug and unplug things for cable routing purposes. Once everything is in, especially with a chonky aircooler, it's incredibly difficult to access anything on the Motherboard. Very happy I'm selling this system rather than upgrading it, lol. Accessing the GPU release thingy is a nightmare on a cheaper motherboard. If you do need to do that, remove the bottom panel completely and slide a chopstick under there to press it.
   
8. Fan/RGB connectors: If you go with a Front-Bottom Pull to Top-Back Push airflow configuration, be mindful of the layout of the fan power connectors on your motherboard. You might need a fan controller. Same story with RGB connectors.
   

Suggestions for CM

1. Screw screws: Given the thickness of the panels, a snap system of some kind could have been used instead of screws altogether. A screwless flatpack case... maybe a collab with Lego instead? I'd love to connect the case panels lego style via overlapping panels touch points. If you added lego style texture to different parts of the case the amount of buzz you'd get on social media from people building little worlds in their case would absolutely be worth the hassle.
   
2. Side Panel Cowardice: Very disappointed that there is no left mesh side panel option and just glass. I feel the radiator bracket was included for that use case, but someone at CM chicken'ed out midway through production and here we are, with a useless bracket and a fragile glass panel.
   The glass panel stands out like a sore thumb considering the rest of the case is built like a Tank. Without that glass panel the amount of packaging and therefor the size of the flatpack itself could have been significantly shrunk down further which would have been fantastic. Really a missed opportunity here.
   
3. Give me diversity or documentation (ideally both): Although I appreciate all the different configurations you present outright (air, water, test bench), making side panels interchangeable (left/right) and allowing the front panel to be reversable (top/down) so that the IO is properly oriented for a side build (with feet that can be latched to the side panel), would have been better. Is it possible? I don't know! I did not see any mention of that in the confusing documentation you provided me. If these things ARE possible, then better documentation is necessary.
   
4. Simpler core design, more options: The interior motherboard tray is a bit overengineered. A simpler design could help lower the cost of the case and probably make it easier for you to make. CM could make fancy layouts still possible, by selling optional mobo trays, panels and parts that are compatible with a fundamentally simpler primary design. I think the "Qube 600 / Qube CM X Ikea / Qube CM X Lego / whatever the next iteration is going to be called" should have a much simpler design and instead feature a robust catalogue of optional panels and parts for customization.
   
5. Cable free cutouts: If you insist on overengineering your interior motherboard tray, then the Qube series would be a prime candidate for some of those new "cable-free motherboards" with the cables facing backward that require special cutouts.
   
6. Centre motherboard tray, flipped GPU, wait, did I just invent the Micro-Qube?: Alternatively, including a PCIE riser cable to allow the mounting of the GPU behind the motherboard tray would allow for a shorter tower and the now centred motherboard tray could provide more structural rigidity. "Bottom-Top" or "Side" airflow would be necessary but it would look killer. Maybe that could be the basis of a SFF "M-Qube" design?
   
7. Your hotdog moment: If you are going to include only 1 fan. Can it be nicer? This fan does not make me want to even bother looking at CM fans for the rest of the build. If you cut corners on your case with this fan, what corners are you cutting with your case fans? Think beyond the case for a moment. If you provide consumers with a super amazing fan or two in your cases, with a fairly unique design would that not lead to consumers buying more of the same fans to match? If it's only one fan, sure, swapping that out is doable, but if you include 2 or 3 of those with each case, then swapping all those out feels wasteful. Much easier to just add to them. Especially if they perform well.
   Consider this your Costco Hotdog. Include great fans. Hell, if you want to guarantee people pick your fans, use a bigger form factor (180 mm and 200 mm) If you design them unique enough, you are basically forcing people to buy into your fan ecosystem since there's almost no competition to begin with at those sizes.
   
8. Listen to the Bees: Why is the pattern of a case made by CM, a company with a hexagon as it's logo, circles rather than a grid of hexagons?
   Have you guys not received the memo? Hexagon is the bestagon.
   You need to leverage the competitive advantage you have in this area of geometry and leverage it hard. Across from me now sits the Lian Li 216. You know what I see at the back of it? Lots and lots of CM logos? Why? Because, they paid attention in geometry class and know it's the most efficient design to minimise waste in a pattern. Hexagons = better airflow. CM, wacha doin' baby. This should be YOUR thing.
   You could even integrate hexagons into your IO or better yet, integrate your IO into the hexagon design of your cases. Your case buttons are okay, but you need to do better. Go. Wild. With the motherboard cutouts of the motherboard tray, the screw heads, the included fan(s), if you can shape it like a hexagon, do it. OWN THAT SHAPE!
   I PROMISE you nobody will complain. This is a no-brainer. Come on guys...
   

Conclusion

Anyway, I'll be waiting for your request to sign off to you all the rights to all the good ideas I've provided you today, accompanied by a fat check or a custom made system of equal value featuring lots of hexagons. 🐝
You're welcome.
Now please go redesign the Hyper 212 Evo. ThermalRight has stolen your budget crown and you need to fire back with a dynamite value proposition...
Might I interest you in a hexagon-shaped radiator and fan setup? The CM Hexacooler? You know, to launch your new series of hexagon shaped fans. The world is ready CM, do it.
(T.L.;D.R.) Oh yeah, the case, ahem, 8/10. Better than expected, but still short from greatness.

Some questions I can't understand without drawing a diagram on the paper, especially questions without diagrams that just have an explanation so am I allowed to make a small drawing (with the given information) to better understand?

hi!! i’ve never posted anything here before and im not very well-versed in reddit so im sorry about any mistakes. i quite like understanding things through diagrams so i thought i would make on explaining how the mbti cognitive functions work(or at least how i understand them so far). i will attach a photo of my diagrams and explain what im trying to get across with each one. i apologise for the length!!!!
the drawings are in fact ridiculous looking but hopefully you can see my intention behind it. so! the basic idea of all of them: 1. the extroverted functions are enclosed in this eye-like shape. this is to emphasise the users of these functions looking outward, into the external world. 2. the introverted functions are enclosed in a brain-like shape. this is to emphasise the users looking inward, into the internal world. this is not to mean that introverted functions cannot see or experience the external world or the extroverted functions don’t have an internal world. it is simply where their attention lies. 3. outside of these shapes i have scribbled. this is to describe a blurred inner and outer world respectively. their attention does not lie outside of their shapes. 4. i repeat a couple shapes as they represent different concepts. the question marks mean like ideas, abstract concepts, theories. whereas the bin(trash can), dog and person represent physical objects, beings, tangible experiences etc.. the hearts, stars, clouds and other shapes are representations of impressions of harmony and discord felt by certain experiences and people. 5. lastly number 5, i forgot to dry draw the internal thinking part within the Fe block but just imagine its in that blurry part of it oops
okay so each type: Si- rely on inner experience and IMPRESSIONS informed by blurred external ideas and concepts
what did you see yesterday? Si forms a impression the dog, what in particular sticks out to Si about the dog and unclearly generates ideas of what the dog could look like or what the colour the dog may like to look at. what features Si sees COULD mean. (Si thinking of the answer) this is a TINY dog, this is a TIRED dog, this is a THIRSTY dog. it focuses on the impressions of it, and what Si WANTS to focus on. (Si answering) a little dog doing quite poorly
Se- rely on an UNCHANGED experience of reality and the tangible external world informed by blurred previous personal ideas and meanings
Se sees the entire dog objectively and unclearly fits any meanings it has to reality or things the dog could possibly do. it is an objective experience of the dog. so what did you see yesterday? (Se thinking of the answer) it is a tiny DOG, it is a tired DOG, it is thirsty DOG. the unclear ideas of what it could be(tiny, tired, thirsty) are picked up unknowingly and are only noticed when really focused on or compared with another object. it’s next to another dog that is clearly bigger so THEN is becomes the SMALL dog. but the important part is- (Se answer) a dog.
Ni- rely on inner, PERSONAL meaning and ideas informed by blurred scope of external world
Ni consciously connects meanings and possible implications off of a broad blurred scope. the inverse of Se. what did you see yesterday? (Ni thinking of the answer)it is thirsty, must’ve been hot that day, i smelled wet dog, there was a red sign with a monetary fine if you don’t do something. so it’s PROBABLY a dog? not too sure, but that makes the most sense with all that information. the important part was the ideas of what the thing might have been or done to become what is physically was. (Ni answering) ummm…. a dog….?
Ne- rely on POSSIBLE meanings and ideas informed by blurred impressions of reality
Ne intentionally generates many ideas off of previously lived but unclear reality. this dog gives me a lot of ideas because it’s different from dogs i’ve seen before… probably. so what did you see yesterday? (Ne thinking of the answer) a dog that was thirsty, or maybe it was trying to speak, or maybe it is a deaf dog and thought it was barking but really its mouth was just open, maybe it’s got locked jaw?? maybe i should tell the person asking me this all of the possibilities of what the dog was doing so maybe we could get to the bottom of this. (Ne answering) insert either long explanation or simply- a dog.(because they found something else that caught their eye in the middle of thinking and want to get this convo over fast enough to ponder the other thing)
i’m not very sure how to explain the thinking and feeling functions in these terms as they don’t really ‘perceive’ reality but just exist in it and inform the decisions you make in it. so i won’t as getting it wrong makes me want to throw up
Fi- rely on EXPERIENCED impressions informed by a blurred objective system Fe- rely on OTHERS’ impressions informed by a blurred experienced system Ti- rely on a decided UNDERSTOOD framework informed by an objective shared atmosphere Te- rely on adherence to a universal and FUNDAMENTAL working of reality informed by a personal impression of peace
if you find things i’ve missed or have just gotten completely wrong please let me know. i know this isn’t particularly useful to everyone but i thought maybe some people may understand things in the same way i do and maybe this will help them.

Hey all.
It's been quite a while since GvK came out. Three years, to be precise. Three years it's been since Adam Wingard swooped in to save cinemas with a bombastic love letter to monster movies. Three years it's been since Godzilla and Kong fought for the first time since 1962. Three years it's been since we were properly introduced to the Hollow Earth. It's 2024 now, and we still know next to nothing about it.
The anatomy of Earth in the MV is confusing, and it is probably going to stay that way. I've accepted that -- I think the community has, too. Sci-Fi doesn't make sense sometimes, and that's okay.
I still have questions, though. A lot of them. My biggest one has to do with the gravity inversion. Why? Why does gravity start pulling upwards?
Here's my theory:
Planet Earth is wholly hollow, like an egg. Not only is the shell 800 miles thick, it's extremely dense. Super extremely dense. As a result, spacetime is warped, creating a gravitational well.
According to the theory of relativity, gravity is the result of a massive warping of spacetime. If I understand correctly, mass affects gravity. For example, if Mars had more mass, its gravitational pull would be stronger. The reverse is also true: less mass = a weaker gravitational pull. Get it? Yeah? Great, let's continue. No? Don't worry -- try this.
Alright, back to my egg analogy.
Gravity works both ways in this scenario, pulling stuff towards the exterior surface and the interior surface. The 'drawing point' isn't located in the hollow center, but rather in the middle of the shell, 400 miles deep. A hollow planet wouldn't warp spacetime like a spherical planet would. Get it?
If you were to dig a giant hole and jump in, you'd fall. Then, after 400 miles, gravity inverts -- you'd start flying upwards, maintaining your previously achieved velocity. Gravity is now pulling you back down towards the point of inversion, gradually slowing you down until you start falling again. Gravity once again inverts, and you fly upwards until you start falling again. You wouldn't be able to escape the shell's gravitational well unless you somehow got out of that hole.
HEAVs are built to withstand this inversion, allowing them to pass through without problems.
You may recall that, in GvK, Hollow Earth harbors life on both the floor and the ceiling, with a void separating the two landscapes.
The planet's interior surface is one of these dual landscapes. Get it? Great. But wait, what about the other one? We'll get to that in due time, don't worry -- I need to explain just a few more things.
Let's get on with it.
A 'mini-planet' resides within Earth's hollow -- that's the Inner Earth (not to be confused with the interior surface of the shell!). It's a lot smaller than Outer Earth, and therefore has weaker gravity (explaining why Titans seem to move more fluently down there). The Inner Earth's surface is the second HE landscape.
One last thing: what's with the zero-G zone? Well, the zero-G zone seen in both GvK and GxK is where the gravities of Inner Earth and the interior surface of the shell meet, cancelling each other out and creating a void.
There's a neat diagram that shows it pretty well. Here. If you still don't get it, feel free to comment -- I'll try my best to answer.
I've got no idea how Axis Mundi works, but this is how I think HE works in the MV. What do you think?

"Wade! Good to see you back buddy!" Nathan said aloud as he and F approached Wade and Tina, the two breaking their embrace before looking to their friends.
Wade chuckled a bit as he responded to Nathan's greeting, Tina giving a pleasant smile as she stood behind him. "Same to you, man. How're things here?"
"Better than any words I could use for the situation!" Looking behind him, he gazed at a group of the worker drones that were rescued from the factory, having been brought aboard in order to transport them to a safer location. Their faces were of varied gratefulness and smiles as they made conversation with some of the troops onboard. "The rescue-ees are happy to be out of that place, far as I can tell!"
"They sure look like it." Wade said with a pleased smile, admiring the success of his and the Coalition's efforts as Nathan's friend Kurtis came over to the four.
Catching sight of Tina, the veteran drone gave a sly look as he correctly guessed the identity of Wade's accomplice. "Oh, and I see you found your girl you were telling me about."
The drone in question gave a blush of embarrassment as Wade held her hand, chuckling smugly as he introduced Tina. "Ah, yeah. Nathan, Kurtis, F, this is my girlfriend Tina. She's one of the best pilots I've met and known in my life, along with her sister Jasmine."
Tina's blush intensified heavily at Wade's words, a laugh breaching her mouth as she spoke to Wade's colleagues. "Well, I don't like to boast, but my sister and I DID fly for the military a while back."
Nathan and Kurtis gave impressed laughs as F chuckled at the amusing meeting, the former of the duo speaking as he shook Tina's hand. "Heh, well it's a proud pleasure to meet you, Miss Tina! You've got quite the partner with you, I'd say. He helped save F and Gerard from an accident during our time on Ceres."
Tina raised a hand to her mouth in shock as she looked to Wade, surprised by the news of his heroics at his new job before chuckling. "Well, it's not too surprising, I'd probably be dead if he didn't come in to help us." Remembering that F was involved in her rescue too, she glanced to the disassembly drone before quietly adding, "You too, darling."
F gave a thankful smile at the pilot drone as Wade spoke up on Tina's statement on her rescue. "Well, I'd also be done for if you didn't save me back there, with that disassembly drone squad." Tina nodded as Nathan looked to the drone couple in surprise at their stated feat.
"More of them? How many? Three? Fo-" The miner drone asked as Wade answered him mid-sentence.
"Three, and they put up a nasty fight. One almost got me before Tina shot at her with one of those guns these militia guys brought. A trooper must've dropped it during the fighting." Nathan gave an uncomfortable look of shock as Wade added, "One of them looked kinda like you too."
Tina pulled out her gun before holding it at attention, Nathan nodding in admiration of her efforts as she spoke up. "Think I could keep this one? We pilots usually carry sidearms like these, but I lost mine when they kidnapped me aboard the station in orbit."
Nathan and Kurtis looked to each other before nodding in agreement. "Sure, gonna need a holster though. Wouldn't want it to fall out that nice coat there, would we?" While Nathan gave his answer, Kurtis was already heading to the storage bays at the back of the ship, planning on grabbing the sizable holster wrap for Tina's weapon.
"Of course." Tina replied as Kurtis grabbed the desired gear, shutting the cargo door as he returned to the group. Taking the holster in her hand, she handed the pistol to Wade before speaking in between her efforts to attach the holster to her upper leg. "Thanks for the compliment, by the way."
"Don't mention it." Nathan replied back as F stepped up in between the group, wanting to add her own praise as the group looked to her.
"Glad to see so many together in arms here, especially when it's work colleagues like the boys here." Looking to Tina, she continued. "And Nathan's right, Miss Tina. Your partner is quite the guy, I'm a little surprised he didn't join the service. Him and his brother would've made great men if they fought in the ranks."
The positive air was quickly shattered upon the mention of Ron. Nathan, Wade, and the others all looked to F as her eyes became golden rings, the warrior drone realizing her mistake too late as she began to raise a hand to her face.
"...Yeah. Yes, we sure would have." Wade said solemnly, nodding lightly with a slight smile in his attempt to lighten the comment and, in turn, the mood. His smile faltered once again as he saw the others still frowning in sorrow, Wade joining them shortly after before remembering something. "Uh... Nathan? You did bring his body back here, right?"
Nathan nodded hesitantly as he glanced to the cargo bays at the back of the ship. "Yeah, I uh... We put him near the others we managed to recover before we left."
Tina listened with concerned eyes as she held tightly onto Wade's hand, the former worker drone tightening his own grip while speaking further to Nathan. "Good. Maybe, after this is all over, we can... Make preparations for a service. Ron deserves that at the least."
"So... h-he's in one of... those?" Tina asked dreadfully, observing the body bags lying next to each other in front of one of the cargo bay doors before looking back to Nathan, who looked down at the floor before replying.
"...Yep." Initially, Tina started to move, morbidly concerned over Ron's exact fate before stopping herself, still holding Wade's hand as she stood next to him again. Catching a glimpse of her attempt to see Ron, Nathan raised a digital eyebrow at her. "You, uh... want to see him?"
Wade looked down to Tina, who returned the gesture as they pondered over the uncomforting idea. She admittedly didn't want to see Ron, fearful of seeing what was left of him after that battle, but in a twisted way, knowing Wade wouldn't lie to her about a close relative like Ron being dead, she desperately felt the need for even the slightest sense of closure.
Looking to each other, Tina finally built her strength up, giving the faintest nod to Wade as her answer. Accepting her willingness, Wade slowly looked to Nathan, who needed no further gestures or words as he slowly walked over to the body bags, Wade, Tina, and their colleagues in tow. Upon reaching the bags, Nathan knelt down as his friends stopped behind him, Wade and Tina watching as he slowly unzipped the bag open. Despite her effort to be brave, Tina couldn't help but let out a horrified gasp upon seeing Ron's body, immediately noticing the large wound with dark, dried blood at his chest.
Nathan shook his head in dismay as he looked upon the sight of his fallen friend in the flayed bag. "It was when we made our second attempt in raiding the factory back there. We... We managed to pass through most of the halls without much trouble, but... we we're ambushed as we got close to the conversion room."
"G, the disassembly drone that helped the company abduct me, attacked us, along with several other troopers he brought with him." Wade added, him and Tina holding each other tightly as he continued. "We fought them off well enough, but G got an upper hand on me. He almost killed me, but.... Ron got in the way." Tina felt herself beginning to cry as she collapsed into Wade's chest, the former worker drone embracing her ever more tightly as she wept for their friend.
F shook her head in dismay, disappointed in herself as she spoke up. "I could've saved him, if I hadn't let myself get beat down like that. I-"
"F!" Wade said sternly, F ceasing her self-degrading as he tried to ease her guilt. "We did the best we could. If anything, it could've gone a lot worse."
Kurtis patted F on her back as he spoke up on his co-worker. "He was a good man, tried to bring out the best in people. Taught Wade that ideal well, too." He looked to Wade with a smile, the drone taking the compliment with the same gesture as he lightly patted Tina on her back too.
"*sniff* Y-Yes... He d-did try to make life brighter with his actions." Tina croaked as she slowly lifted her head up off of Wade, wiping the digital drops off her face as she added, "He... Him and Wade did well to so many with their farm they had back home, Jasmine and I helped transport their harvests all across the colonies."
The group gave looks and nods of admiration at the labor Tina described, Wade nodding in affirmation as he added, "Yeah, we held that place up for a long while. But if it weren't for the recent storms that ran through this place, we probably would still be farming." He began to chuckle slightly as he noted the events after the storm. "Heh, then again, we probably wouldn't have gone to Ceres if that was the case. So, I'm quite glad life changed our course on that endeavor."
Nathan was about to speak on the matter, but was stopped as Kelly walked out of the cockpit area, speaking to Wade specifically. "Mr. Wade? Our operative and her boss wants to see you and some of your team, says it's about the trouble you and the others went through."
Wade and Tina looked to each other with raised eyebrows before looking to their friends, F raising a hand as she spoke to the couple. "Well, you heard her. Let's get up there." Looking to Nathan, she motioned for him to follow her before glancing to Kurtis, who nodded to her before kneeling down to seal Ron's body bag.
Turning back to Wade and Tina, F smirked at them as they quickly made their way up to the small bridge of the ship, Tina speaking to Wade about the interior and where to go. "I do remember these ships a bit, now that I think about it. There should be a smaller room at the top above us. Come on."
Holding her hand, Wade and Tina made their way into the cockpit, F and Nathan close behind as the four walked up the small steps to the pilot seats. Right next to the ascending steps were another set of such steps, albeit going the other way into another room as Tina mentioned. The lover drones walked up the second set of steps as they entered the room, catching the sound of a conversation in their ears.
"Yeah Tess, they did a number on the security forces from what I've been told by Mr. Kurtis. He seems quite pro-" J stopped as she heard a startled gasp coming from the entrance near the cockpit, spotting her requested visitors as they took notice of her.
Wade, however, was immediately in shock, Tina also spooked by the familiar face as her love drew a sword before holding it out defensively. F and Nathan looked to the two in surprise as the former raised her arms slightly as to calm down Wade, knowing this J wasn't an enemy.
"Whoa there, easy now." The human hologram said with her hands raised as Wade and Tina gave a faint glare at J, who stared unamused with her hands to her hips.
Easy, Mr. Wade. I'm a friend." J stated as Wade kept his blade trained at her.
"Didn't we just kill you out there earlier?" Tina asked as she held onto Wade's arm, J smirking as she took in the amusing detail.
"Oh, yes. I believe you must've taken out one of my clones, not surprised. I killed a few myself back there." The corporate drone replied as Wade lowered his sword, surprised at J's words as she looked to him.
"Clones?" Tina said in bewilderment, confounded by the idea of multiples of the same drone running around.
"So, there's more of you?" Wade asked as he swapped his sword back for a hand.
"Indeed there are, Mr. Wade. Effective disassembly drones get cloned more often." J answered as she cringed slightly, remembering part of the reason she ended up here. "Though, admittedly I wasn't efficient enough recently. I'm a clone of one of the old units dispatched about two decades ago, before the Disassembly Division was officially instated."
Tina raised an eyebrow at J's explanation. "Recently? If you were away all that time, what could've possibly stopped you now?"
The murder drone groaned in slight annoyance as she reluctantly explained her answer. "Well, the colony we were supposedly sent to wipe out was quite persistent. During one of our raids, some brat with a ray gun blasted me in two." Regaining her composure, J flicked her hair with a smirk. "Then again, my clones should be better than they are, the Administrator seems to have a dislike towards me, as far as I can tell."
Wade and Tina glanced at each other as they took in the news, perplexed at the story they were hearing as the former spoke up. "Well, I sure hope so. Your clone didn't put up as much of a fight as I was expecting."
"Right..." J said with a look of disappointment before clearing her throat. "But besides that, we don't have time for THAT kind of backstory. We've got a lot of talk to do, Mr. Wade."
The holographic human raised a finger, drawing Wade and Tina's attention as she spoke. "Say, didn't J tell me about a human friend you had? A 'brother' guy?"
J nodded as she now also became curious over their missing acquaintant. "Ah yes, Ron, I believe. Do you know where he is, Wade?"
The two drones looked down in sorrow as Wade answered in dismay. "He uh... he didn't make it."
J allowed a concerned look to breach her shield of confident pride as her human friend spoke up, sounding sad at the news. "Oh, I uh, I'm sorry to hear that, Mr. W- er... Carter."
"It's alright," Wade replied as he held Tina's hand, looking up to J and the hologram before continuing. "at least he's not hurting anymore."
"My... condolences, Mr. Carter." J said, calling Wade by his last name now as she recovered from the tragic news. "But, it seems you've found someone else important. Who's your friend?"
Wade perked up a bit as he prepared to introduce Tina again. "Ah, yes. This is Tina Fowley, my girlfriend. She was among those captured by the company, I got her out before they could turn her, however."
"She's a pilot too." Nathan chirped from behind Wade, J and her boss stifling laughs as they took in the amusing description of Wade's partner.
"Well, she's quite the cutie, I'll say." The holo-human said in amusement, Tina blushing at the compliment as J spoke as well.
"Indeed she is, good find, Mr. Carter." Chuckling to herself, she remembered that she hadn't even formally met Wade earlier, prompting her to return the effort. "Well, now's as good a time as any to introduce ourselves." Looking to the hologram, J spoke. "Though you probably know who I am, name's J. And this is my boss, Tessa."
Looking to the human girl with a pleasant smile, he spoke to her. "Well, pleased to meet you, Mrs. Tessa."
"Good to meet ya too, Wade!" Tessa replied energetically before bringing herself back to a more serious stance, Wade and Tina feeling a bit surprised by the change of air as she spoke further. "And as much as I hate to cut the pleasantries so short, J and I have some important things to brief you on. So, take a seat and get comfy, everyone."
Noting the pair of chairs in front of the small table J and Tessa were standing on the other side of, the couple took them as Nathan and F stood behind them, simply listening in as J began to explain the matter at hand. "So, you both are probably wondering what this whole mess was all about, correct?"
The two drones nodded as Tina spoke up. "I heard it was having to do something with being recruited for the Disassembly Division, that group you spoke of a second ago. Why did they need to steal me away from my sister up there?"
"Well, the thing is, they didn't." Tessa answered, putting her hands to her hips as her companion explained further.
"Indeed, a simple memory transfer and body scan would've sufficed, but it seems the Administrator was in a bit of a rush." Crossing her arms, J continued in disgruntlement. "From what we gathered, this was done by her as per request by the company CEO, Mr. Jenson. He wanted the Administrator to recruit more drones under a new model of disassembly drone, with slight upgrades that would presumably remove most of the persistent issues each of us have." Shaking her head in disappointment, J finished with, "But, it's clear she cared little for how they were acquired, and way too far overboard with her efforts."
Wade held back his anger as he felt his certainty on the ones responsible grow with J's explanation. "So, it's true? Your people did all this? Got my brother and countless others killed for us?"
The corporate drone seemed to give a sluggish wave of her hand as she replied to Wade. "Well, you see, this whole ordeal is much more complex than it seems." Readying a holo-projector from her hand as it showed the image of a worker drone, dressed in a maid uniform. The hair was silver, two strips of it going down the sides of its head, as well as bearing a bow at the top of it all. Though the hologram made it hard to tell certain details, the drone's eyes appeared faintly as yellow through the blue hue from the hologram light.
Wade, Tina, and their companions eyed the seemingly innocent worker drone in puzzlement as J spoke again. "Now, you should count yourselves lucky, cause what I'm about to tell you is something corporate wouldn't let me spew out to anyone under certain statuses." Looking to Tessa, she continued with a sly smirk. "Then again, it'd probably be forced out of us anyway later on even if we didn't decide to tell you. So, now would be the best time to give you a run-down of the truth we have to share."
"Truth?" Wade asked with a raised hand, J nodding in affirmation before replying.
"Yes." Clearing her throat, J began. "You see, the Administrator was not a creation of JCJenson. At least, not in the way they intended. In fact, she was once a normal worker drone, just like you and I were." Wade raised an eyebrow as J's holo-projector shifted to show a building, a large, very old looking manor that went up a couple of stories high. As Wade and his cohorts observed the structure, J continued her story about her and this Administrator's origins.
"A long time ago, at this place we'll call Elliott Manor, my boss, who was still a child at the time, brought in a few worker drones left outside in a dump near the mansion, mostly composed of scrapped worker drone bodies. Upon bringing us in, Tess would fix us up so we could be her friends. I myself, along with three other drones, were her closest companions. Her family weren't so keen on having us around, but, to keep their daughter happy and to make us useful, Mr. and Mrs. Elliott put us to work keeping the place tidy." The disassembly drone's projector shifted again to show J and her three fellow workers, dressed in the same maid attire J was shown in earlier. Wade and Tina stared at two of them, as they resembled the disassembly drones they fought earlier, most notably N and V.
"Among the four of us here, THIS one would be the biggest problem." The hologram zoomed into the worker drone displayed earlier, postured in a strange, slouched over posture.
"Her name is Cyn, and, unlike J, V and N there, she was more broken than I had surmised back then. Spoke like some old artificial voice generator thing." Tessa stated, pointing at the highlighted drone before Tina decided to speak up on the backstory.
"How broken? Was there something wrong with her coding?" She said as she put a hand to her core.
J nodded lightly as she gave her answer. "Most likely. Do you remember the protocol tape for proper disposal of worker units? Seen it at all?"
Tina and Wade shivered a bit as they thought of the presumed tape J spoke of, dread creeping in from their memories of seeing it as the latter of the duo answered. "I think so, once during a little maintenance time I had years back. I think it was called... 'Zombie Drones'?"
"That's exactly the one." J said with a nod before continuing. "Well, if you saw it all the way through, the pie chart diagram points out the outcomes for OS complications should a worker core be improperly terminated. Out of those outcomes, the smallest, least likely one was 'potentially hazardous mutations'." Pointing to Cyn on the hologram, J continued further. "As for Cyn here, she befell said mutations, and they would come to not only affect her, but all of us at the manor too."
Tina's eyes went wide as she started to click the pieces together, recalling herself reading up on the incident J was hinting at years earlier during a class she took at the college she and Wade attended. "Wait... You, you don't mean SHE was the one who caused the Elliott Gala Massacre?"
J nodded in affirmation as Wade spoke up, confused at the revelation. "Wait, I remember looking into that too. Didn't the news say it was some mass murderer that did it?"
"That they did." Tessa replied as she added to the story. "However, that was a cover-up by the company to hide part of what really happened."
Pulling up what appeared to be a large room full of people inside, J explained the tragedy shown on the projector. "Tessa's parents didn't treat the drones under their service well, and Cyn seemed to despise them for it. On that day during a gala hosted by the Elliotts, Cyn, utilizing the mutations I mentioned, slaughtered the entire attending party there." Glancing to Tessa, J finished with, "Tess and I tried to stop her, but... it was too late."
Holding their hands to their mouths, Wade and Tina looked on in horror, Nathan and F sharing similar dismay as the four looked to Tessa. Knowing their desire to hear how she was spared, Tessa spoke to them. "Despite seeing her kill my parents and everyone in that room with my own eyes, Cyn spared me from the carnage. Took me away to some place so I could be kept quiet."
Raising a hand, F spoke up. "Well, wait a minute, how did Cyn join the company after all that?"
"Good question." J replied, pulling up an image of Cyn and a man, whom Wade recognized as Halloway before the corporate drone explained. "Upon the arrival of law enforcement and agents sent by the company, they found Cyn, who had already turned me and the other worker drones from the manor into the first disassembly drones. After some chatter between the two, Dr. Edgar Halloway, a simple materials recovery officer at the time, struck a deal with her. Talking with the authorities, they managed to convince them to keep the incident on the down low while they took Cyn and her drones in for study. Through said study, addition of protocols and official installation of Cyn into higher company positions, not to mention the creation of the Disassembly Drone Division, the rest is history."
The four drones looked on in stunned shock, taking in Tessa and J's story with unease as Wade spoke up. "So, this new body, the crazy shit that we just went through... it's all cause of this Cyn being? And those who are helping her?"
"That's right." J answered as Tina raised a finger, still concerned over the capabilities of the Administrator as she spoke.
"But, how did she convert you all into what you are now? What were these 'mutations' exactly?"
Tessa sighed a bit as she prepared to explain the origins of this horrible program. "Well, from what information I could gather before I got out of Cyn's clutches a while back, the researchers put to work studying Cyn and her abnormalities came to regard the latter as some kind of program, which grew stronger and more capable quite fast as it was kept under the company's leash. Eventually, they gave it a name: AbsoluteSolver." Pulling out what looked like a smartcomm, Tessa flicked her finger over it as she explained further. "Despite all logic, the AbsoluteSolver program, or, Solver, could generate various things out of thin air, as well as manipulate objects and living beings in many ways. To be blunt, it's like some kind of freaky magic powers for drones.
"Seeing that they could learn a lot from this program, as well as use Cyn's abilities to wring out all kinds of products and items for them to sell and use, the company instated the Solver Project, a research group dedicated to understanding the AS and its potential." Raising a finger, Tessa looked to Wade as she finished her explanation on the Solver. "Said program has been branched out to several other planets over the years, helping to spread this virus as far as possible for purposes we're certain aren't good, given that one of those planets got devastated by an experiment one of the teams did involving the virus."
The news that this infection brought harm to one of the colony worlds didn't sit well with the lover drones, both of them looking on in dismay as J gave more details. "And with that in mind, this recent effort has only cemented our belief that Cyn is up to something sinister. So once we reach the base here in Nevada, we have to make preparations for bringing this Solver Project to a halt... BEFORE it can harm any more people."
Smirking deviously, Tessa raised a finger as she glanced to Wade, who looked to her with concern as she spoke. "By the way Mr. Carter, that Halloway guy you ran into earlier? He leads one of the main teams working on the project."
Wade scoffed in annoyance he was reminded of that man. "Doesn't surprise me, seemed like he was really close to the Administrator from what I saw." Then, thinking on the reason for this briefing he was attending, Wade looked to J and Tessa curiously. "Why are you telling us this?"
J crossed her arms as she explained. "Because, Mr. Carter, YOU are the only disassembly drone we managed to recover from that place. And, given your exceptional performance there, your help would be much appreciated in our mission."
"Mission?" Tina said with a raised eyebrow. "So we're not done yet?"
"For us, not in the slightest. We've got some explaining to do with the government officials stationed at the base we're heading to. As for you all," J answered before looking to the four, all of them returning the glance as she continued. "...that depends on what you all have to say. Can you lend us a hand?"
Glancing to each other, Wade and Tina gazed into one another before nodding in agreement, turning back to J and Tessa before giving their decision. "Well, after what I just went through, and what happened to my brother... I'm sure as hell gonna bring those bastards to justice in one form or another."
"Yes, Wade and I have some talking to do with this 'Dr. Halloway' fellow before this is all over." Tina added, her and Wade holding each others hand as J gave a smirk at their vigorous determination.
"I'm glad to hear you two feel the same on the matter." J said as Tessa put her hands to her hips, slumped slightly as she spoke in a disappointed tone.
"Unfortunately, it may be a minute before we see some action. Once we reach the base, you all will find a place to rest for the time being. Since it's a military base, it should be safe from any major retribution attempts by those blokes at the company." Pulling out her smartcomm again, she continued once more. "As for us, we'll talk to the leaders there and see what their decision will be on the matter."
The quartet seemed to grow concerned over that last part, Nathan raising a hand before speaking his mind. "So, if they say no? Does that mean...?"
J and Tessa glanced to each other before the former answered the veteran drone. "Well, in that case, while it will be harder without official military support, the Coalition will take us wherever we need them to in order to put a stop to the Administrator. Shouldn't be much to worry about."
Taking this somewhat comforting news to heart, Tina and Wade nodded in understanding before the latter spoke to the operatives. "Well, that's good to hear. Whenever you do get an answer, give us a heads up."
"We will, Mr. Carter." J replied to Wade before shifting in her stance, Wade and his friends standing up together as their disassembly drone superior spoke once more. "With all that said, you're all dismissed. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask."
"Thanks for clearing this up, Mrs. J. You too, Tessa." Wade said gratefully before turning to the exit, Tina walking with him as F and Nathan walked over to the operatives.
"Wade? Do you mind coming down to the bay below? I... I have something to show you." Wade nodded to her before they made their way down, the four people behind them continuing the chatter as the couple went to have their long overdue privacy.
Stepping out of the cockpit behind them, Wade and Tina sighed in comfort as they saw the troops busy with their tasks, not giving a glance to the two as they walked close to the sealed door of the transport. Admiring the enormous view the large window in the door gave for a moment, the two drones looked to each other as Tina dug into her pocket. "I was hoping to do this when we got back home, but... I got this from Eridanus while I was visiting." Finding her token of love to Wade, she pulled out the small box she showed off on the call earlier, opening it to reveal her present.
Wade admired the blue gemstone with wide eyes as Tina pulled it out with great care. "Wow... It's beautiful."
Tina chuckled as she extended the gem's necklace band out. "I knew you would, I just happened to stumble upon it while exploring the forest during a tour." Putting the two necklace bands around Wade's neck, she clipped the present together before pulling her arms back, adoring Wade's new add-on as she finished her sentence. "I felt it would be something nice for you to remember me by, while we're away from each other."
Wade smiled at Tina as he expressed his appreciation for the gift. "It certainly will." Stiffling a chuckle, the former worker drone held Tina's hand holding the box as he spoke further. "But, no matter how far apart we are, nothing could fill the space you hold in my heart."
"Same in mine, dear." Tina replied as she gazed into Wade's eyes, noting the faint green in his yellowed visor as she looked on in hopeful amusement. "And yet, even after all they did, I can still see those eyes. Changed from the soft, cool grass to the warmth of a blazing sun." She said while putting the box away, then placing a hand onto Wade's face as he looked off with a blush.
"Tina, I..." Wade began, unsure of how to put his thoughts to words as he tried to find them. "I don't know what they did to me, but I won't let it ruin our relationship." Holding her shoulders, Wade spoke to Tina further. "You're the most beautiful being I've seen in the whole universe, your warmth, your flight prowess... I want to protect that. I want to protect you."
"Oh, Wade." Tina murmured as the two touched their heads to one another, holding each other close in their efforts to provide affection. Such affection intensified as the two joined their metal lips, sharing a long kiss as they enjoyed their moment of awkward romance together.
...
Location: New Nellis Staryards, Nevada
The Chameleon transports zoomed over the large military air base as they arrived at their destination, several A-20 planes flying about over the base as they either carried out flight sorties or, more likely, investigated the arriving craft coming towards the base. After about an hour of flying over the country, the Coalition-USN task force finally arrived at the designated area to begin unloading their rescued drones to an area they could be protected more efficiently.
As the transport began to descend, Wade, Tina, and their friends observed the sight outside the window, spotting several landed aircraft and even a few docked warships. They admired the many ships resting for repair and refurbishment while they prepared to land and disembark for the base outside.
In the small bridge of the dropship, one of the two pilots tapped a button on the control panel, putting a microphone to their mouth before speaking into it. "Base Control, this is Transport Chi-729-B, we've got assets from the recent op lead by Captain Preston aboard. Request permission to land."
"Permission granted, Chi-729. Welcome back." The officer on the other end replied as the transport descended further, two lightningrod jets breaking off as they permitted the craft to land on their grounds below them.