RAF_Louvert

. Well folks, it's been over a year since I became a member of the OFF forums and commenced to inflict my odd sense of humor on you all, post my inane questions and comments, prattle on about things of interest only to myself, and generally contribute little of any consequence whatsoever to the community. It is time I said "Adieu", and I thank you for your tolerance in enduring yours truly. Fair winds, clear skies, and bright horizions everyone. Cheers! Lou .

. appraiserfl wrote: appraiserfl, I am going to attempt to address your point before I go Sir. First of all, I am never bored. I don't know if it's a glitch in my brain but I honestly find things to hold my interest in everything I do. I can sit in the backyard listening to the wind in the pines and get caught up in nature and the universe, and before I know it several hours have gone by. Likewise, I can come on to this forum intending to only check in for 10 or 15 minutes, and two hours later I am still finding things to read and respond to. And this is my dilemma. Becuase I have so many things that not only require my attention but that I also want to do, and because there is nowhere near enough hours in a day to do them all, I have been forced to prioritize. Family, friends, church, and job must be the first items on my list, and not always in that order. Next it's daily chores around the homefront, and after that the numerous projects I have in the works at any given time. And then comes reading and study. And after all these I like to fill in with my WWI flying and all such things related to that, of which the OFF forums are a part. Unfortunately, this last passion is the one I must cut back on. Folks, I am touched by the many PM's and responses posted as concerns my leaving. I had no idea you all felt so strongly, and because of this I thought it proper to reevaluate my course of action. I have decided that, instead of leaving permanently, I will take rather a six month sabbatical from the OFF fora, (to quote the Latin plural of fourm as Dej so correctly used in his post), after which time I will come back to confer, converse, and otherwise hob-nob with my brother OFF'ers. And furthermore, until what time I return, Widowmaker, by virtue of his highly superior brains, shall rule in my stead... assisted by Olham, by virtue of his magnificent heart...and Von Paulus, by virtue of his courage...and uncleal, by virtue of his fringe lunacy...and rabu, by virtue of his fine skinning abilities...and Ras and Rickitycrate, by virtue of their Minnesotaness...and...and...ah Hell, you're all in charge. My friends, I take my leave, but I shall return, Good Lord willing and the creek don't rise. Cheers! Lou .

. Folks, I'm not going anywhere else, and I've never been able to be active in more than a single forum at any given time. There simply aren't enough hours in a day or days in a lifetime to do all that I want to get done. I will still fly OFF in my spare moments as it's the only sim that has my interest, but those moments are becoming few and far between. Ras, I've had the same online name since 2004 and I would never change it Sir. As to poor old Chappy, I'm afraid he ended up spending the duration in a German POW camp east of Berlin. uncleal, I did the Benedictine monk thing before, but the robes made me look chunky. catch, not burned out Sir. I just have nothing of worth to contribute here and many other things that need tending to. To those who note they will miss me it's nice of you to say, but in very little time I will be nothing more than an ever-so-minor blip on the outer edge of your TAC screens, and shortly after that will slip off the edge for good. Life's funny that way. Flyby PC, I'm not leaving in a huff. I tried that once but it didn't handle well and had poor acceleration. Left in a snit once too, but they're not much better. Olham, a big hug right back at you Sir. And I'm not moving to Tibet, (don't like earthquakes and the high altitude gives me nose bleeds). And, if I stop by sometime again in the future you'll be the first to know my friend. "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while you could miss it." Lou .

. I imagine some of you oldtime OFF'ers have already discovered this geograghical oddity, but I flew over the Lormaison aerodrome early this morning and was surprised to see the only mesa in all of France. The entire aerodrome sits about 200' higher thant the surrounding flatlands. Strange tectonic forces at work midway between Paris and Amiens. .

. Actually it was 24 hours and 30 minutes, but who's counting? Thanks Pol and Winder, just wanted the glitch to been noted in case it hadn't been already. .

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. Yes. .

. I'm sticking with the French gunman next to the wooden fence on the grassy knoll. .

. We are by nature a violent species, and we began illustrating that in our technology from the beginning. Oral history passes down tales of great battles in native cultures, as do ancient pictograms and hierogryphlics. When we began writing and printing books, some of the favorite topics were war, and death, and killing. Same subject matter served as a mainstay when we developed the ability to make movies. Radio brought such stories into the average home in the first part of the last century, and television introduced yet another aspect of depicting violence into those same homes. Now it's video and computer games, and the argument against them is the same argument that was made against other past depictions of violence in our technology. It would be nice if we as a species could separate ourselves from our violent nature, but I don't imagine that will ever happen as long as the human race exists. All we can do is what we have been trying to do for centuries, suppress our violent side when living in a civilized setting. Conversely, we have also set that violent side free when we feel we have to fight for survival of our way of life, and then we find ways to justify the violence. We are a complicated lot. .

. Flyby PC wrote: I've read about the Death Star theory before, and it does seem to explain some odd orbital behaviors in our galactic neighborhood. But I'm betting the Yellowstone Caldera will blow it's top long before the Nemesis scenario plays out, and that earthly event will be a planet killer spewing out enough nasty dust to rival Newcastle's trophy case cleaning. .

. 46 views an nary a comment. Has no one else run across this anomaly? Devs? Anyone...class...anyone? Beuler...Beuler...Beuler? .

. hee, hee...22 years to a wonderful woman who loves me, tolerates me, and reminds me of my place on a daily basis. .

. Volcanic eruptions in Iceland; meteors falling on the central United States; earthquakes in the Tibetan Plateau. It's the end of the world as we know it and I feel fine, (to quote R.E.M.) .

. gaw, Win 7 64 must be different from XP Pro 64. My priority settings stay right where I put them. And you're welcome, even though you didn't thank me for my elaboration on HW's comment. It's OK though, I've grown accustomed to being summarily dismissed and/or ignored around here. .

. SWEET! .

. catch, I've been looking for that one to add to my library as well, without having to spend in excess of $100 US dollars. Missed a chance a couple years ago on a nice 1st of it for $45.00. Just a bit too slow that day. BTW, our OFF devs are great, aren't they, (rhetorical question). .

. WOW! Can't wait to give these a try in a mission. Very cool. Thanks Winston. .

. Carrick, that is an excellent old bit of film that I also ran across before, and saved to my computer, (before the HD crashed). And for those who may not know, you can save just about any YouTube video to your own computer by using the free "KeepVid" application found here: KeepVid Cheers! Lou .

. Pips, I am really looking forward to this read myself. .

. Hasse Wind wrote: That is quite correct HW, use the task manager to set both TrackIR and OFF to high priority and there will be a noticeable increase in the performance of each, (but as you cautioned, do not set them to "real time"). Cheers! Lou .

. A most hearty congrats to you and the Missus, CJ! My wife and I have been grandparents for the last five years and it is just the best. Even better than being parents. Cheers! Lou .

. Holy Shnikee NS13Jarhead, you have been around, and have the chestful of bling to prove it. Well done Sir. Also major kudos to sandbagger, Stingray72, and JimAttrill on all of your long years of active service, gentlemen. usafmtl, many thanks Sir for initiating this recogintion program, and for your years of service too. I salute all veterans past and present, who have done their duty and served their countries with pride. Four years active USAF myself, and two years reserves. Was a Morse Intercept Operator back in the mid-to-late 1970's, (a "ditty-bopper" to those in the know). Served in the now long gone Security Service and answered directly to the NSA and CIA, among other infamous acronyms. Was stationed in Europe in both ground-based and airborne operations, and it was honestly one of the best times of my life, (and I've had a lot of really great times in my life to this point, I might add). Here is a blast from the past; yours truly in the summer of '75. FREEDOM THROUGH VIGILANCE! .

. Here's my latest screensaver: A shot of Sgt. Albert Larsson's N16 taken during one of his recent flights whilest flying with his wingman over the mud of Verdun. .

. Olham Sir, for someone who's native tongue is not English, you honestly have a better command of the language than many who learned it as their first. I agree, "know" is a far better choice in this instance. .

. SWEET! I can't wait to give that big bastige a go. Beautiful work and a great addition to the sim. .