# Discussion thread for the "Polls only" thread (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 28, 2022, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380 "2022-09-28T11:33:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 427
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8524 "2023-12-07T18:46:52Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > Lastly, Theoden is most interesting for his flaws. A great ruler of men, brought down by conspiracy, poor advice, and hubris. But one who does not abandon his responsibilities despite legitimate issues, even if he does put his own people first. And of course, the Jackson portrayal does an incredible job with this character as well. In Jackson’s Two Towers film, there’s the scene where members of the Fellowship publicly point out how long the odds are at Helm’s Deep after Theoden was acting Large and In Charge in front of his subjects, and Theoden takes Aragorn privately aside and says ‘_what would you have me do_?’ The scene of course never happened in the books but stayed true to the characters and summed up the prevailing mood at the time. Now if only someone could have convinced Jackson the surfboarding elf with a killer bow wasn’t such a great idea… ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8525 "2023-12-07T18:53:45Z")
> [@Cardigan](#): > > Now if only someone could have convinced Jackson the surfboarding elf with a killer bow wasn’t such a great idea… Jackson, a great man brought down by conspiracy (of not providing good advice), poor advice, and hubris. 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8526 "2023-12-07T19:19:05Z")
About the simulation poll… Does GTA 5 count? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8527 "2023-12-07T19:20:00Z")
I’m not sure I’ve ever played a computer game that narrowly simulated anything. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8528 "2023-12-07T19:21:12Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Does GTA 5 count? Are you a car thief? ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8529 "2023-12-07T20:03:02Z")
I’m a fan of sim games. I have _PC Building Simulator_. I have _Power Wash Simulator_. I have _Cooking Simulator_. I have _Brewmaster: Beer Brewing Simulator_. I’ve done all of those things in real life. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8530 "2023-12-07T20:13:17Z")
Although work seemed like Pong some days, this was more of a metaphor than a representation. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8531 "2023-12-07T20:16:44Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > By the LoTR poll, I am shocked so many have not read the books are watched the films. > [@Cardigan](#): > > Now if only someone could have convinced Jackson the surfboarding elf with a killer bow wasn’t such a great idea… That scene was no big deal. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8532 "2023-12-07T21:19:38Z")
I’ve watched the films but I couldn’t tell you the names of so many characters. Sam is good. Was that his name? Frodo’s companion? I liked him. And the lady warrior who announced, “I am no man!” before she killed that one guy. It’s been a while. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8533 "2023-12-07T21:32:06Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > > [@ParallelLines](#): > > > > By the LoTR poll, > > I am shocked so many have not read the books are watched the films. The books are kind of long and somewhat decently written (certainly better than Rowling): if the subject matter fails to hold the reader, there is not much inclination to slog on. The movies are the same thing – if one is not inclined, they are not worth the effort. > [@](#): > > > [@Cardigan](#): > > > > Now if only someone could have convinced Jackson the surfboarding elf with a killer bow wasn’t such a great idea… > > That scene was no big deal. I do not remember that scene, but I do well remember the battle for Minas Tirith, which was heavily larded with camera-active CG. It was all so exciting that I started yawning and went to fetch a snack, hoping something interesting would happen soon.        I mean, maybe I am somehow defective, but action sequences get tedious for me very quickly, especially if the camera is a kinetic participant. I really liked a lot of _Cloud Atlas_, but the longer action scenes mostly had me gone to doing something else. ---
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8534 "2023-12-07T21:45:40Z")
> [@eschereal](#): > > I do not remember that scene Here’s the scene: [Shieldboarding - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TusQGmO-5Do) ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8535 "2023-12-07T22:56:54Z")
When I was a kid I used to play Lemonade, a text-only simulation of a children’s lemonade stand over the course of a summer. It was published in 1982 or 1983 by Commodore Educational Software, and seems to have been inspired by (but with different gameplay than) the famous 1973 mainframe game [Lemonade Stand](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemonade_Stand). In the Commodore version, every day of gameplay you need to buy lemons and sugar, whose price varies over the summer, and set your asking price on the basis of a weather forecast that includes the temperature and humidity. Set the price too high, and you’ll end up with excess ingredients. Buy too little ingredients, or set the price too low, and you’ll sell out with customers still clamouring for more. You’ll get more customers, and they’ll be willing to pay a higher price, on hotter days. The trick is to find the optimal amount of lemonade ingredients, and the optimal price, that lets you turn the highest profit. After years of playing the game I developed an excellent strategy. I’m also quite sure that I also set up a lemonade stand in my grandmother’s front yard, probably because I had played that game so much and wanted to try it out in real life. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2023, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8536 "2023-12-07T23:06:03Z")
> [@psychonaut](#): > > In the Commodore version, every day of gameplay you need to buy lemons and sugar, whose price varies over the summer, and set your asking price on the basis of a weather forecast that includes the temperature and humidity. Set the price too high, and you’ll end up with excess ingredients. Buy too little ingredients, or set the price too low, and you’ll sell out with customers still clamouring for more. You’ll get more customers, and they’ll be willing to pay a higher price, on hotter days. The trick is to find the optimal amount of lemonade ingredients, and the optimal price, that lets you turn the highest profit. What they’re leaving out is repeat customers, who are likely to be indignant at finding that they’re expected to pay 1.50 on Thursday for lemonade that cost 1.00 on Tuesday. Being told that the reason is because Tuesday was cool and cloudy while Thursday is scorching hot sun will probably only make their reaction worse. I think airlines get away with that kind of pricing. I doubt a lemonade stand can. (But if you did set one up, maybe you can tell me different --) ---
**Author:** ![RollOutTheBarrel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rolloutthebarrel/32/1649_2.png) [@RollOutTheBarrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RollOutTheBarrel)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2023, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8537 "2023-12-08T00:59:43Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > About the simulation poll… > > Does GTA 5 count? Now I wish I had included an “I plead the fifth” option. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2023, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8538 "2023-12-08T03:11:50Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > I’ve watched the films but I couldn’t tell you the names of so many characters. Sam is good. Was that his name? Frodo’s companion? I liked him. Yes, it was Sam. His full name was Samwise Gamgee. > [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > And the lady warrior who announced, “I am no man!” before she killed that one guy. Eowyn ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2023, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8539 "2023-12-08T03:15:09Z")
I once played a computer game that simulated managing a maximum security prison while I was supposed to actually be managing a maximum security prison. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2023, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8540 "2023-12-08T03:16:23Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > I first thought of _A Bug’s Life_, although I guess circus performers aren’t really actors. My first thought as well. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2023, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8541 "2023-12-08T03:39:27Z")
I haven’t smoked in over twenty years, so no light, sorry. When I did smoke, I was pretty free with light ups and bumming out cigarettes. I was in it for the Ciggy Karma. Semi-related anecdote: I was an extra on Patch Adams. (I’m the guy hanging out by the tree when he walks by.) Phillip Seymour Hopkins realized I would give you a smoke if you asked. I don’t think that man bought a single pack of cigarettes the entire time they were on location. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2023, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8542 "2023-12-08T04:15:51Z")
I’ve got plenty of matches. (Wood stove is a sizeable chunk of my winter heat.) But given the ‘what for’ option – if it’s not obvious to me why the person’s asking, I might well want to know that first. ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2023, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380/8543 "2023-12-08T04:34:10Z")
When I read the “actors as heroes” question, I totally forgot about Galaxy Quest, and thought “that would make a fun movie” Yes, yes it did [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380.md?page=426) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-1/972380.md?page=428)