u/DustyShinigami

Hi, first post here. A little bit of background first. My brother has been in talks with me to pay a visit to York in the UK, in the next few months or so, which is actually one of my favourite cities, and I'm not one for cities usually. York also has a reputation for being one of the most haunted cities in the UK. One of the times I went, it must have been sometime around 2006-2010 or after, I remember doing one of those ghost walks. I also noticed a certain pub as part of a tour bus guide, I think. That pub is none other than The Golden Fleece, which is supposed to be one of the most haunted pubs in the UK. This got my fascination rekindled for the paranormal and hauntings. So I was looking up stories, experiences, and videos of people who have reported the various weirdness that's happened there.

This then led me to discover The Ancient Ram inn in Gloucestershire, which is considered one of, if not THE, most haunted buildings in the UK. And as you can probably imagine, I've been looking up countless stuff to do with it and learn it's fascinating and disturbing dark history. I'm now actually interested in paying it a visit on one of their tours. Ideally in the Autumn when it might be quieter. In a lot of videos, I've seen people use various gadgets when they've stayed in these places, and was just curious about some of them and how reliable they are.

I'm not sure if I'll ever become a fully fledged ghost hunter like many out there, but it's certainly something I find interesting, and I'd like to be somewhat prepared for when I visit the Ram. I'm considering taking one of those EVP voice recorders at the very least as they don't appear to cost much on Amazon. But are there any specs I need to look out for? Are there specific models that have advantages over others?

Thanks

Hi, first post here

I stumbled on this channel by chance last night and immediately joined. I couldn't help but notice the number of threads concerning the same issues and feelings as me. I should take solace in the fact I'm not alone in this regard, but it's still incredibly difficult.

Lately, I've been feeling that old familiar burning sensation that I'm so utterly alone. Even around others, such as family and work colleagues. It's been an issue the majority of my life. And after my ex broke up with me for someone else, and a 'friend' ghosted me, I've reached that point where I've had enough of chasing after people. And realised, as far back as school, that people have done nothing but hurt, lie, let me down, and abandoned me. I'm never anyone's first choice.

My siblings and myself haven't achieved 'success' as others would consider it. IE: none of us are married, we haven't all moved out, nor have we given my parents grandkids, and none of us are in well paid secure jobs etc. Though as for the grandkids, I don't think they're bothered about that. My mum certainly doesn't care. My sister has moved out, but is in a toxic relationship she can't/won't get out of and is unemployed. My sister is 30, my brother is over 40, and I'm pushing 40.

I'm working towards a better career doing something I want to do, but that's essentially all I have going for me. Everything else in my life is crap. I have no friends really - they've all moved on now and gotten married, have families, work full-time etc. - and I find it incredibly hard to fit in and make new friends. It doesn't help that all three of us - my brother, sister, and me - have autism. I was diagnosed in 2017.

The part-time jobs I tend to get, including the one I have, have never been right for me; I don't fit in. And was made to feel like an alien even when I started due to the lack of patience and tolerance from staff, and the fact so many things were never explained, so I had to bungle my way through everything. Things have improved, but it's still not ideal. And one colleague puts me on edge due to how they overreact if I make a mistake. So I often feel like I'm walking on egg shells. My (social) anxiety is always sky-high anyway, so if someone has a go at me and I become depressed, I then become withdrawn and it can often lead to meltdowns. I have two shifts this weekend to look forward to with them.

My town is dire. It's never had anything on offer for me, so I have no where to go and no one to go with. I've tried looking online for various groups, but there's nothing. My interests are much too niche, so outdoor activities etc. are a no-go. I do plan on going to some gigs, which I haven't done since 2019, and possibly some ghost hunt, but the timing has to be right and I need to save the funds. Plus, for things like gigs, they're not exactly ideal for meeting people due to the loud music.

I've spoken to people on forums involving specific topics, but that isn't the same. It doesn't fill that void within yourself. I don't make any close connections with people and what with everyone being in different parts of the world, it makes meeting up unlikely. I used to be an avid Twitter user until that went completely downhill. In the beginning, I seemingly made loads of new friends and then it all changed and stopped. Now I can no longer be bothered to use social media.

The one thing my ex completely took away from me and destroyed wasn't the relationship and the break-up itself, but the companionship. She completely severed ties with me in less than a week of breaking up. I went from feeling like I wasn't alone anymore to having no one all over again. I had that one person to confide in on a daily basis and then suddenly - nothing. And I hate her for that.

If the career plan works out, that would certainly cheer me up a LOT, but it will never fix the issues and struggles I have. I can still see myself living on my own and having no one. I would very much like to move away from this town and start fresh, but I imagine I'll still have the same problems wherever I go. Any new friends I make at work, who will ideally be the right kind of people I share interests with, will inevitably move on eventually. Either change companies, get laid off, or we'll speak less and less. No one ever stays for the long haul.

Dating apps are a no-go as well, as I'm sure they're no use for most on here for the same reasons. No likes, no replies, only acknowledgements from bots, one-sided conversations, members of the opposite sex (depending on the app *cough*Tinder*cough*) are usually not my type, and everything is locked behind a pay-wall.

So I'm forever shut up in my room working towards that career change goal. And working at the weekend. I've tried going for walks lately, but I've never felt any better. Ever. No amount of sun, fresh air, or exercise fixes my crippling loneliness and isolation. It may address the symptoms of depression to an extent, but it doesn't fix the cause. I often just feel despondent and that I get no pleasure out of anything. And yes, I'm on medication. Have been since I was 16. I occasionally write a journal, but that only helps so much. And days like today, I have no motivation anyway. I certainly can't see myself going for longer walks as I just have no drive or incentive. If I had a dog, definitely. But my parents are adamant that we're having no more pets, so I can't even have that. Not until I'm able to move.

So yeah, that's my story/situation as of right now. I just feel utterly trapped with seemingly no way out.

Hi. First post here. Not sure if anyone will be able to help with this, but I've recently installed the original Thief games on my retro PC with Windows 98. So completely vanilla. However, they're not without their problems. I just wanted to get some insight into a few things, to find out if or what patches/mods might be required.

I did install their latest updates, so 1.33 and 1.18 respectively. Initially, the games acted weird by saying I needed to insert the CDs. I'm using CD images created from my original discs mounted with a virtual drive, and all the correct drive letters and directory paths are in check. The second game definitely complains about the CD until I install the patch. Though I have to install the patch for the Premiere edition of Thief 2 for it to work properly.

There are two things I've noticed though, which don't seem to be a problem with the first game. Firstly, the audio is ridiculously quiet! Is this a common problem with the original Thief 2? All the volume sliders are at full and it's the same problem whether I use my Yamaha OPL3 ISA sound card or my PCI Sound Blaster Live Value. Audio sounds fine in Windows. I've yet to test it without the patch, so I will be doing that, providing I can get around the 'insert CD' problem.

The other issue is that performance is much worse. At least, in the very first mission. I'm using a Geforce 4 Ti 4200 AGP. I've not tested much of the original yet, but performance is fairly solid from what I have sampled. Which leads me to the question - do any mods out there address performance and audio issues, such as NewDark? And if so, are any compatible with Windows 98?

I'm currently going through the original Resident Evil games and I know mods for that are only designed for modern systems, which is understandable, but was just curious how backwards compatible the mods are for the Thief games.

Thanks

Does anyone know, or remember, if the second Tex Murphy game - Martian Memorandum - ever got a release outside the US? Specifically in the UK?

Wikipedia and Mobygames don't have anything for it outside of NA. And yet, apparently, the first game - Mean Streets - was published by US Gold for UK markets, as they did back then.

Thanks