Hobbes

Eurobricks Fellows
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About Hobbes

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  1. Hobbes

    [MOC] Calvin and Hobbes

    Nice try...
  2. Hobbes

    Switch modification

    I have some switches with his mods he made for me back in the day, but they where geometry changes and removal of the position lock of the throw. So I can't tell you about this particular mod. But here's his brickshelf folder, maybe you can find some hints there...
  3. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    Please elaborate...
  4. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    Because that's what EB was known for? In the beginning it was news of new sets and leaks. And fun banter around that. Where do you get that from? I'm not saying the MOCs weren't/arent't high quality, but who says that's what EB was/is known for? Maybe that was just your impression? It wasn't/isn't mine... Hell, no! I do! Actually, that's what I still come here for... WTF?! You know what the "F" and "L" in "AFOL" stand for, right? EB wasn't/isn't an AFOL community per se, it's a LEGO community (at least it used to be), that includes talk about the company and the toy, too...
  5. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    No, no, no, and no! That's not what forums are all about. This was/is a place to talk about LEGO - you know, the bricks? In general and "in special". MOCs are part of it, sure, but they're not all. When the forum was smaller a lot of the regulars knew each other in person (or at least very well through the forum). The common ground was LEGO. There was a place for general discussion, there were places for special topics/themes, and there was a place for chit-chat. Sometimes we just wanted to talk about... anything, really. But we wanted to be able to do it with our "LEGO friends" (see, we actually laid the groundwork for the theme) - here, and not someplace else. Again, I don't mind MOCs and people commenting, and I understand wanting recognition. But I don't want to "be guilted" into doing it. I don't feel guilty not doing it. So stop it. Thank you.
  6. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    I honestly have a problem with everybody being so hung up on MOC presenting and commenting. As @fred67 said, you're not building it for me. I feel no obligation to comment, even if I like it. You decided to present it here, then you have to accept that very few people actually say something. In my case it's simple: I don't/can't build anything without instructions that's beyond the building skills of a 7 yo (that's probably why my kids are into playmobil - their dad can't build anything cool). Because of that I don't recognize building techniques or special parts or anything. I see the entire MOC and I like it or not. I mentioned before, I am interested in "dioramas/layouts", not single builds (buildings or the like). I have all the modulars and I really like them but modulars MOCs aren't really interesting to me since I'll never be able to design/build one from scratch. Technic is way beyond what I understand LEGO to be. The MOCs, especially to scale, people build are astonishing. But it's not LEGO anymore to me and I turn away. I was an avid Technic fan in the 80s, but not anymore. Basically, I don't feel obligated to comment on anything and it really annoys me that people expect it just because I'm a user here. That's not how this works. If you decide to post your work here you have to live with not being recognized the way you want. In my opinion the little interaction MOCs get show how little really skilled MOCers are here or even out there. Honestly, how many people can build like that? And have the money to get all the needed bricks? And don't get me started on digital "MOCs"...
  7. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    Pfff, the best one was in 2007: That caused a frenzy - good fun, especially since only 2 people were in on it...
  8. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    I don't know you, @fred67, but can I be your friend? I actually didn't want to post anymore but you made me. I loath the board software, too, but they don't have much choice. You're a software developer, you said, so you know they have to update it now and then. Problem is, Invision doesn't really offer "security updates only". They pack new features into it and the whole thing looks completely different after an update. But if the board isn't updated it's prone to attacks. I really liked the second version, I think it was. Way more "compact" and totally easy and comfortable to navigate. Then in 2007 or 8, I think, the base for the current iteration came out. And I hated it from the get go. But what can you do... Back to the activity: as always in this kind of threads there is the MOC appreciation subject. I'm not a MOCer myself, I merely MOD stuff. And even that I do with ideas/techniques from existing models because I'm creatively incapacitated. I do check out MOCs, and sometimes they're awesome (like Modulars or Technic) but so vastly out of my league that I'm not interested any further than that quick glance. What I look for are pictures of layouts or dioramas or simply collections. I have accumulated a bit of LEGO sets over the years myself and just love to see how others do. Pictures don't have to be professional, I just want to be able to recognize what it is. Don't care if there's a sofa in the picture or a TV or a cat or an ugly carpet. Just bring 'em...
  9. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    Of course, that's all we old people have You trying to make me look old?! Changing EB to a more visual "pinterest"-like platform is a nice idea, but near impossible to do. EB doesn't have a corporation or paid staff behind it. It uses a relatively "cheap" (i.e. payable with the current "income") forum software that more or less dictates the format of the content. The layout is somewhat customizable, but that's about it. You can turn off/on certain features but not more. It's a web forum, it is what it is. Changing that would most likely require a new software. Invision (the forum software people) does have Gallery and Blog modules, but those don'really represent the current "community life-style" as we have asserted (despite looking "modern"). Maybe it's possible to combine these three, I can't say how well they interact (i.e. "user experience"). To really get what was suggested you'd need some sort of very freely customizable content management system, like... I dare say, Typo3. Those things cost more than a forum. And you need even more staff to tweak it and run it. And the biggest question is: can the current content be preserved? Right now there's not many "techies" behind EB (from what I gather). And running a "visual platform" that is not a standard would require a lot more techies who spend as much time at the platform as they spend during their day job - for the love of doing it, at that. I mean, I did pay for the software once from my pocket. That was shortly before I retired, and back then it was dirt cheap and I did want to upgrade "at all costs" just to see the new version. That's how I invested in EB I was. The first server farm it ran on was cheap, too. That has changed. And a more visual platform would require even more resources. A few Google Ads (that are being blocked by Adblockers) won't pay for that. And from an attractive platform the users expect more. If that can't be met, they won't be that invested and it's "Just another platform". Same situation as now, just more money wasted. Being old and all, I think it's a nice idea. And I could probably even "understand" and be intelligent enough to use it. But it's not feasible the way EB (the "organization") is set up... </rant>
  10. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    Not really, I meant everything from back then...
  11. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    You should read 2005-7. Fun times... New members should be required to take a history test. Read all threads from the start of the forum to the end of 2009 (a week's time should suffice) and then take a test about it (5 days/a workweek, 4-5 hours per day). You can register with 85 % correct answers. Non-passers must go to imug... imru... imgr... instagraph...
  12. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    Jee-suss! That's a fukking lot of members!
  13. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    Like what?
  14. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    One of the biggest problems with the product... As I said, clueless people. Now that's just wrong marketing. Fabuland caters to the 40-plusses, everybody knows that. But that's off-topic. I agree with the sentiments that forums are not a "modern" place for discourse. Unfortunately. My "demographic" finds it uninteresting because of all the youngins who still have to learn a lot and grow up in a world of yet another declining LEGO product. Due to the lack of knowing a good product they think it is good. Poor souls. So we old people leave the forums because we tell ourselves that we don't really need that exchange (family, work and so on). But secretly we miss it. Classic midlife crisis. The only solution is to ban everybody under the age of 35 and bring the old people back. The others can use myspace or tweet on flickr or whatever they do nowadays...
  15. Hobbes

    Making Eurobricks More Active

    If those are new tags and not from the glory days... I remember you... I'm complaining. Also, it's hard to read so much centered text :-P