Didactic Mind

Monday morning devilish dentistry

Didact — Mon, 10 Aug 2026 22:08:08 +0000

As usual, the weekend zipped by way too fast, and once again, we are faced with the shoulder-sagging prospect of another week spent in soulless offices slaving away over PowerPointless presentations. I swear, if the world ever comes to its senses and makes me Supreme Dicktater, one of my very first acts will be to […]

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Cheap and reliable beats expensive and elaborate every time

Didact — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 13:17:52 +0000

Back in 1951, that deceased old monster and pederast, Arthur C. Clarke, published a short story in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction called “Superiority”. You can read it for free using that link I provided. And it is well worth the time and effort, given the subject matter – though I must say, […]

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Friday T&A: Death Becomes It Edition

Didact — Sat, 08 Aug 2026 21:12:32 +0000

I am in an especially antisocial mood this weekend, having spent quite a bit of it on the road, and the rest of it bored out of my gourd at an, admittedly very pretty and scenic, office deep in the countryside. This has been one of those weeks where you kind of have to show […]

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The toughest gig in drumming

Didact — Sat, 08 Aug 2026 20:24:53 +0000

When the surviving members of RUSH announced late last year that they were thinking about touring again, and had hired a new drummer to fill the shoes of the late, LEGENDARY, dearly missed Neil Peart, most of us fans – “Rushians”, as Peart himself once affectionately called us in one of his books – would […]

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Monday morning diabolical dialects

Didact — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 22:59:23 +0000

That weekend zipped by FAR too quickly, and as a result, we are now faced with the shoulder-sagging prospect of another week at work. I spent a not insignificant chunk of Saturday playing through the epic disappointment that is HALO: Campaign Devolved, as I wrote at length yesterday. So we are all going to need […]

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HALO: Campaign DEvolved

Didact — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 13:56:33 +0000

So I sat down yesterday and started playing HALO: Campaign Evolved, and, having played through “The Pillar of Autumn” and about a third of the way into “HALO”, plus the first bonus mission, I have to say… what a bloody disappointment. (Yes, MrUNIVAC, I did buy the thing as a digital download – but no, […]

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White elephant vs carrier crusher

Didact — Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:48:16 +0000

The following is adapted from a poast on my Telegram channel, in which I analysed a recent article looking at the particular choices facing the Russian Navy. The article made the argument for mothballing Russia’s sole remaining Kirov-class nuclear-powered cruiser, and investing the funds in modernising its sole aircraft carrier. There was recently a rather […]

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Friday T&A: Very Strongly Edition

Didact — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 23:13:36 +0000

We somehow made it through another week without Ornj Boi doing something REALLY stupid and then calling it the greatest thing ever, with very strong results that no one else has ever achieved. So that is something to celebrate, I suppose. The problem is, of course, that Drumpf – or whoever it is that is […]

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Monday morning autobahning

Didact — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 22:51:31 +0000

Well, that weekend certainly disappeared awfully quickly. And now, we are faced with the absolute misery of Monday. Fortunately, we have a fully packed and ready Great Mondaydact Browser Hamperer to sustain us through the day. And, seeing as I just spent a significant part of the day driving, I think an automotive theme is […]

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Dispatches from Mordor: A game of drones

Didact — Sun, 26 Jul 2026 12:04:26 +0000

The picture that you see up top, is one that I took myself, while walking along the beachfront area of Sochi, not far away from the city centre and the marina building. You are looking at a radar station mounted above the heads of the beachgoers, on the hillside overlooking the beach itself. This is […]

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