• (cs) in reply to pints, pounds, gallons
    pints:
    In the UK their money is in points. Maybe that's how he got confused.

    I guess it costs one pound to buy a pint.

    I wish. It's usually around the three pound mark nowadays.

  • (cs) in reply to BentFranklin
    BentFranklin:
    North Shore Beach Bum:
    A pint of water weighs a pound (assuming US measurements). 8 pints to the gallon. Twenty-five gallons would weigh a whopping 400 pounds (181.8 kg), not the 200 mentioned in the article. IIRC, the UK gallon is larger, so 25 UK gallons would have weighed in at more than 400 pounds. Hm, maybe it was English and he meant 200 kg (440 pounds).

    I don't know much about metric multiplication, but here in the US, 8 x 25 = 200.

    And while I'm about it, a pint is 20 fluid ounces, which is one and a quarter pounds. Hang on, though ... (checks up on wikipedia), a US pint is smaller than a UK pint. It would be.

    Good grief. Not only are you ornery enough to insist on using Imperial measurements, you're even ornery enough to make the bloody things different from the rest of the world. Bah. May all your spaceships miss Mars.

  • (cs) in reply to n_slash_a
    n_slash_a:
    Luiz Borges:
    Five gallon gas can, hundred-quart cooler, two hundred pounds of water, fifty degrees Fahrenheit???

    Is it really that hard to follow, I don't know, the rest of the WHOLE world and use metric?

    While I initially agree with your statement, it sort of fails when the four units you mention are three different systems (volume, weight, and temperature). So, your question boils down to is it more or less confusing to use gallon and quart instead of liter and deciliter.

    I would argue that while the math is slightly more complex (x4 instead of x10), the units are clearer (wait, was that deciliter or decaliter?).

    Nobody bothers to use "decilitre" or "decalitre", you prick.

  • (cs) in reply to fritters
    fritters:
    snoofle:
    Just curious; where did they pump the hot exhaust from the air conditioners?

    This comment reminds me of a time I was a camp leader for a group of 12-year-old boys. It was a hot week, and the boys thought they were being very clever: they stole a window air-conditioner from one of the other buildings, dragged it into our cabin, plugged it in, and let 'er rip.

    It turns out the thing was either broken or very inefficient in its old age. Plus they had the whole unit inside the cabin. I walked into the cabin to find the group of sweaty boys, shirts off, congregated around the AC unit, congratulating each other when in fact the unit was actually HEATING UP the room!

    Can't really blame them. You obviously don't need me to tell you this but at that age, you are of course invincible and the smartest person in the world.

    So how long did you let them "win" before giving them a lesson on how a heat exchanger works?

  • Herby (unregistered) in reply to Reginald Watersby
    Reginald Watersby:
    Math is hard for us British. We can only count up to 21 on our fingers and toes and other extremities.

    FTFY!

  • Gunslinger (unregistered) in reply to Luiz Borges
    Luiz Borges:
    Five gallon gas can, hundred-quart cooler, two hundred pounds of water, fifty degrees Fahrenheit???

    Is it really that hard to follow, I don't know, the rest of the WHOLE world and use metric?

    Yes. When you pass us in technology, we'll consider it. Briefly.

  • PS (unregistered)
    Alex seriously doubted that it was a ventilation problem, but he’d since learned that the best course of action was to simply let the CTO learn this himself.

    For certain definitions of "best"...

  • sworgle (unregistered) in reply to Migala
    Migala:
    drobnox:
    Not the sharpest hammer in the drawer, our "Alex". Should have opened the box up the minute he noticed it was running hot. Shame shame.

    And fix the problem himself instead of watching the CTO try to fix it? Now where's the fun in that?

    ...because spending weeks carrying buckets of water around the office is such a good way to 'stick it to the man!'

  • sworgle (unregistered) in reply to Gunslinger
    Gunslinger:
    Luiz Borges:
    Five gallon gas can, hundred-quart cooler, two hundred pounds of water, fifty degrees Fahrenheit???

    Is it really that hard to follow, I don't know, the rest of the WHOLE world and use metric?

    Yes. When you pass us in technology, we'll consider it. Briefly.

    have you never been outside the US? the majority of the western world is miles ahead. Don't worry... keep writing your cheques, one day you'll figure out how the rest of us have been doing it for decades.

  • (cs) in reply to sworgle
    sworgle:
    Gunslinger:
    Luiz Borges:
    Five gallon gas can, hundred-quart cooler, two hundred pounds of water, fifty degrees Fahrenheit???

    Is it really that hard to follow, I don't know, the rest of the WHOLE world and use metric?

    Yes. When you pass us in technology, we'll consider it. Briefly.

    have you never been outside the US? the majority of the western world is miles ahead. Don't worry... keep writing your cheques, one day you'll figure out how the rest of us have been doing it for decades.

    Didn't you notice the moniker? He's talking military technology. I'll take our bombs over yours.

  • Anonymouse (unregistered)

    I'm surprised nobody has mentioned that it's a wonderful excuse for the CTO to get the receptionist to come in when nobody else is in the office - except him, to do some 'paperwork'. Depends on the receptionist, I suppose.

  • Bnon (unregistered) in reply to Herby
    Herby:
    Reginald Watersby:
    Math is hard for us British. We can only count up to 21 on our fingers and toes and other extremities.

    FTFY!

    That would be 2097152 if you do it right (you have to decide between Big- or Little-Endian first, of course).

    "refoveo" -- Yeah, make sure you see it.

  • Alex (unregistered) in reply to jonnyq

    Submitter here.

    Technology was really no part of my job. I was an account manager in a customer-service oriented industry.

    I wanted to open the box first thing, but was told that Corporate IT had diagnosed the problem, and the local CTO would never go against Corporate IT. Since my hardware experience was limited to "built a couple of computers" and the IT people had done a good job on software in the past, I figured they might know better. The CTO, on the other hand, had lost all respect on day one when the response to, "may I install Firefox?" was, "What's that?"

    I actually didn't ever get real permission to open the box. When they called me in on a weekend, I figured I'd take a look while nobody was around.

    Hardware maintenance was done from corporate HQ a few thousand miles away.

  • Alex (unregistered) in reply to C-Octothorpe

    I do regret that I do not have any pics of this glorious monstrosity.

  • Shinobu (unregistered)

    So as always, TRWTF® is Imperial measurements.

  • Alex (unregistered) in reply to Realist
    Realist:
    TRWTF is that he had a Fiancée...right?
    As I look at my beautiful, loving, geeky wife, I find that I can only smile in amusement at these kinds of comments.
  • PRMan (unregistered) in reply to PS
    PS:
    Alex seriously doubted that it was a ventilation problem, but he’d since learned that the best course of action was to simply let the CTO learn this himself.

    For certain definitions of "best"...

    Yeah, I mean, I couldn't imagine a better scenario than what happened here...

  • PRMan (unregistered) in reply to sworgle
    sworgle:
    Gunslinger:
    Luiz Borges:
    Five gallon gas can, hundred-quart cooler, two hundred pounds of water, fifty degrees Fahrenheit???

    Is it really that hard to follow, I don't know, the rest of the WHOLE world and use metric?

    Yes. When you pass us in technology, we'll consider it. Briefly.

    have you never been outside the US? the majority of the western world is miles ahead. Don't worry... keep writing your cheques, one day you'll figure out how the rest of us have been doing it for decades.

    Wouldn't they be kilometers ahead?

  • Alex (unregistered) in reply to snoofle
    snoofle:
    Just curious; where did they pump the hot exhaust from the air conditioners?
    That's what the ladder was for. They ran a tube to the ceiling and vented into the dropped ceiling. I'm sure it wasn't a fire hazard at all.
  • publiclurker (unregistered) in reply to Alex

    Isn't that area used as the air return on most new buildings? If so, then the hot air from this conditioner had to be cooled by the main building HVAC system

  • (cs) in reply to Bnon
    Bnon:
    Herby:
    Reginald Watersby:
    Math is hard for us British. We can only count up to 21 on our fingers and toes and other extremities.

    FTFY!

    That would be 2097152 if you do it right (you have to decide between Big- or Little-Endian first, of course).

    "refoveo" -- Yeah, make sure you see it.

    Is that what Dennis Miller means when he says "Let's touch Endians" ?

  • Alex (unregistered) in reply to publiclurker
    publiclurker:
    Isn't that area used as the air return on most new buildings? If so, then the hot air from this conditioner had to be cooled by the main building HVAC system
    That wasn't really the CTO's concern: he was just trying to keep the phone server cold enough to stay online.
  • (cs) in reply to old Fart
    old Fart:
    CAPTCHA: minim - is that the minimized version of "minimum"?
    No.
  • trtrwtf (unregistered)

    Amazing... this is one of the very few problems that cannot be solved with fire.

  • North Shore Beach Bum (unregistered) in reply to BentFranklin
    BentFranklin:
    North Shore Beach Bum:
    A pint of water weighs a pound (assuming US measurements). 8 pints to the gallon. Twenty-five gallons would weigh a whopping 400 pounds (181.8 kg), not the 200 mentioned in the article. IIRC, the UK gallon is larger, so 25 UK gallons would have weighed in at more than 400 pounds. Hm, maybe it was English and he meant 200 kg (440 pounds).

    I don't know much about metric multiplication, but here in the US, 8 x 25 = 200.

    Ah, my Hawaiian public education showing, I guess.

  • あ (unregistered) in reply to Luiz Borges
    Even thought decaliter and deciliter exists, they are almost never used.

    We (up here in northern Europe) actually use decilitres and centilitres and millilitres. But otherwise the deci- prefix is just something taught in schools. Same with hecto- (except air pressure and area) and deca- and centi- (except centimetres).

    Let's translate the article!

    And twenty five gallons of water is a good two hundred pounds or so of weight.

    This becomes:

    And 95 litres of water is a good 95 kg or so of weight.

    Damn, that doesn't flow too well...

  • The one-eyed man (unregistered) in reply to Alex
    Alex:
    Realist:
    TRWTF is that he had a Fiancée...right?
    As I look at my beautiful, loving, geeky wife, I find that I can only smile in amusement at these kinds of comments.

    Today's story is a Curious Perversion in Information Technology that might even get a laugh from my beautiful, loving, totally-non-geek wife.

  • UserK (unregistered) in reply to snoofle
    snoofle:
    To drain the water, they drilled a hole in the floor with the idea of putting a drain hose in the basement. Unfortunately, when they drilled down, they didn't first check to see what was under them. They had drilled right through the top of the big refridgerator that is used to chill all the beer,
    LOL, this is just poor dude! +1 for your comment.
  • Robbert (unregistered)

    What kind of water did come out of the AC? Where I live 1 liter of water weights 1KG, but 20 liters of their water weighs more than 90KG! How?!

    (also use the metric system for gods sake)

  • Robbert (unregistered) in reply to Robbert
    Robbert:
    What kind of water did come out of the AC? Where I live 1 liter of water weights 1KG, but 20 liters of their water weighs more than 90KG! How?!

    (also use the metric system for gods sake)

    Oh god I feel stupid right now. I didn't see the twenty in front of the 5.

  • tony (unregistered)

    well....that sure was an aoverheatign problem....from the inside...

  • itsmo (unregistered) in reply to pints, pounds, gallons
    pints:
    In the UK their money is in points. Maybe that's how he got confused.

    I guess it costs one pound to buy a pint.

    If only... more like 3 or 4

  • eVil (unregistered)

    But, surely if the thing is running hot, the first thing Aelx should have done is suggested opening it up and cleaning it?

  • Pedant (unregistered) in reply to あ
    あ:
    Even thought decaliter and deciliter exists, they are almost never used.

    We (up here in northern Europe) actually use decilitres and centilitres and millilitres. But otherwise the deci- prefix is just something taught in schools. Same with hecto- (except air pressure and area) and deca- and centi- (except centimetres).

    Let's translate the article!

    And twenty five gallons of water is a good two hundred pounds or so of weight.

    This becomes:

    And 95 litres of water is a good 95 kg or so of weight.

    Damn, that doesn't flow too well...

    I think you'll find that the kg is a unit of mass not weight.

  • The poop... of DOOM! (unregistered) in reply to Matt Westwood
    Matt Westwood:
    Luiz Borges:
    Five gallon gas can, hundred-quart cooler, two hundred pounds of water, fifty degrees Fahrenheit???

    Is it really that hard to follow, I don't know, the rest of the WHOLE world and use metric?

    Aha, yes, you got it, that's the real WTF, all the containers and measurement devices and thingies all use Imperial measure. Took me a while to spot it ...

    What's wrong with measuring things in hogheads, the weight of a stone, bunders of twigs or based on how big your feet are? Those're all perfectly valid, precise ways of measuring.

  • The poop... of DOOM! (unregistered) in reply to Alex
    Alex:
    Realist:
    TRWTF is that he had a Fiancée...right?
    As I look at my beautiful, loving, geeky wife, I find that I can only smile in amusement at these kinds of comments.
    You married one of those hugging pillows with an anime chick on it? Cause that's the only girl geeks can get :D
  • QJo (unregistered) in reply to Bnon
    Bnon:
    Herby:
    Reginald Watersby:
    Math is hard for us British. We can only count up to 21 on our fingers and toes and other extremities.

    FTFY!

    That would be 2097152 if you do it right (you have to decide between Big- or Little-Endian first, of course).

    "refoveo" -- Yeah, make sure you see it.

    If you're female, you ought to be able to make it up to 4194304.

    However, I'm a little concerned about how one would indicate the unconventional extremities as "on" or "off", without a lot of mucking about with ice cubes etc.

  • QJo (unregistered) in reply to PRMan
    PRMan:
    sworgle:
    Gunslinger:
    Luiz Borges:
    Five gallon gas can, hundred-quart cooler, two hundred pounds of water, fifty degrees Fahrenheit???

    Is it really that hard to follow, I don't know, the rest of the WHOLE world and use metric?

    Yes. When you pass us in technology, we'll consider it. Briefly.

    have you never been outside the US? the majority of the western world is miles ahead. Don't worry... keep writing your cheques, one day you'll figure out how the rest of us have been doing it for decades.

    Wouldn't they be kilometers ahead?

    Well yes, that goes without saying (although it would probably be "kilometres ahead", actually), but the important thing here is to use language that Americans can understand. Hence the use of "miles".

  • QJo (unregistered) in reply to The poop... of DOOM!
    The poop... of DOOM!:
    Alex:
    Realist:
    TRWTF is that he had a Fiancée...right?
    As I look at my beautiful, loving, geeky wife, I find that I can only smile in amusement at these kinds of comments.
    You married one of those hugging pillows with an anime chick on it? Cause that's the only girl geeks can get :D

    Yes, those are nice. I recommend them. Usually they don't argue back with non-sequiturs and unfair ad hominem arguments while at the same time threatening to get violent if you fight back with ad feminam ones.

  • Jan (unregistered)

    "And twenty five gallons of water is a good two hundred pounds or so of weight"

    When will you Yanks start using a sensible SYSTEM of measurements? The SI equivalent "100 liters of water weighs 100 kilograms" is so trivial that you wouldn't have to write it. And, incidentally, a lot more precise.

  • me (unregistered) in reply to pints, pounds, gallons
    pints:
    In the UK their money is in points.
    Only if you say "points" in a very broad Irish accent :P
  • Harrow (unregistered) in reply to Before we authorize this purchase of a solid gold parachute...
    Before we authorize this purchase of a solid gold parachute...:
    ...in or on the vitals out...
    This fragment is going into the geek writing hall of fame.

    -Harrow.

  • linepro (unregistered) in reply to Before we authorize this purchase of a solid gold parachute...
    Before we authorize this purchase of a solid gold parachute...:
    Did nobody think checking the Phone server to see if there was some buildup? I pull my desktop PC out from under the desk every 9 months or so with a little hand vaccum to pull any dust that may have accumulated in or on the vitals out. It's why I'm still running a computer that is about 2 "replacement" cycles behind most of the others in my department.

    laoreet: What Lao Che (from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) exclaimed when he saw the plane.

    Can I have your dust please? I need a new PC....

  • Joe (unregistered) in reply to Matt Westwood
    Matt Westwood:
    I wish. It's usually around the three pound mark nowadays.

    Please show some sensitivity. I had a son who was named Mark, and let me assure you: it is no laughing matter.

  • (cs) in reply to jonnyq
    jonnyq:
    drobnox:
    Not the sharpest hammer in the drawer, our "Alex". Should have opened the box up the minute he noticed it was running hot. Shame shame.
    He said he wasn't a server guy, so it sounds like it wasn't his job. But then, he's responsible for pushing the power button...

    So, TWTF is... who's frikkin job was it to maintain hardware?

    Well, eventually it's the CTO's responsibility, isn't it? Makes perfect sense.

  • (cs) in reply to Jan
    Jan:
    "And twenty five gallons of water is a good two hundred pounds or so of weight"

    When will you Yanks start using a sensible SYSTEM of measurements? The SI equivalent "100 liters of water weighs 100 kilograms" is so trivial that you wouldn't have to write it. And, incidentally, a lot more precise.

    Please, show some sensitivity. I have a son who had to use the metric system, and let me assure you: it's no laughing matter.

  • (cs) in reply to snoofle
    snoofle:
    Just curious; where did they pump the hot exhaust from the air conditioners?

    Similar incident: my brother and 5 friends just opened up a sports bar with lots (>50) tv's. There's a communications room with all the cable and satellite controllers which is used to direct what channel to which tv. Naturally, it gets very hot in there. Equally, there is no window, vent or drain in there. The general manager's solution? Put a portable a/c unit in there, and direct the heat through the wall into the next room. Ok, this works out as the kitchen is hot anyway. To drain the water, they drilled a hole in the floor with the idea of putting a drain hose in the basement. Unfortunately, when they drilled down, they didn't first check to see what was under them. They had drilled right through the top of the big refridgerator that is used to chill all the beer,

    WAIT! Was any beer hurt in this tragic incident?! I'm shaking just thinking about it...

  • (cs) in reply to Alex
    Alex:
    Realist:
    TRWTF is that he had a Fiancée...right?
    As I look at my beautiful, loving, geeky wife, I find that I can only smile in amusement at these kinds of comments.
    My wife is into shoes, handbags, jewellery, science fiction (you should see her Star Wars collection) and films with a high body count.

    Oh, and our son is named after Jean-Luc Picard (because I thought that Luke Tiberius was too geeky), and of our three cats, one is called Spot and another is called Ewok.

    Geeky? No. Unusual? Definitely. Good-looking? You bet.

  • C (unregistered) in reply to Matt Westwood
    Matt Westwood:
    And while I'm about it, a pint is 20 fluid ounces, which is one and a quarter pounds. Hang on, though ... (checks up on wikipedia), a US pint is smaller than a UK pint. It would be.

    Good grief. Not only are you ornery enough to insist on using Imperial measurements, you're even ornery enough to make the bloody things different from the rest of the world. Bah. May all your spaceships miss Mars.

    Not our fault that you guys couldn't keep a nice base 2 system and had to throw that base 10 division in there. We just fixed your mistakes.

    captcha ingenium - The elemental byproduct of over-engineered solutions

  • (cs)

    Converting units of measure is hard. How did any of you make it out of Physics class?

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