# Discussion thread for the "Polls only" thread (Part 2) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 16, 2024, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636 "2024-02-16T02:56:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 384
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7662 "2025-07-20T02:45:03Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I thought about getting a new wireless doorbell, but the battery life concerns me somewhat FWIW, I bought a wireless doorbell about 7 years ago and have not yet had to replace the battery. There are also wireless doorbells that don’t have replaceable batteries at all; they recharge themselves using the mechanical power of the button being pressed. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7663 "2025-07-20T04:10:36Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > > > 1953 ain’t that old, says my 1894 house. > > 1894 ain’t _that_ old, says my 1880 house. > > > [@Maserschmidt](#): > > > > 1894 ain’t that old, says my 1760 house. > > > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > > > I figured somebody was going to top that. I almost added to the post that it would probably be somebody from Europe; although there are some 1760 houses in the USA. > > In the 1970s I lived in a house in Boston that was built in 1650, the James Blake House. Does that count? We were the resident caretakers while in graduate school. Friends, also in architectural history graduate school, lived in Paul Revere house in the North End of Boston. You should see the houses in [Yorkshire](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue7wM0QC5LE) Half the alien shows I’ve never even heard of & half of those that I do know I don’t remember enough about them to comment. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7664 "2025-07-20T11:47:59Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > 3rd Rock for the alien TV show poll; for .6 of a second I considered Alf, but in retrospect knowing how much every performer hated working on the set of that show made me not choose it. The poll question asked what was the best show, not which show had the happiest cast. I have fond memories of Alf and went with that. I’ve seen some episodes of 3rd Rock, and it was pretty good. I have some nostalgia for My Favorite Martian, but I wouldn’t consider it the best. Regarding Mork and Mindy, I love Mindy, but a (very) little bit of Mork (and Robin Williams, for that matter) goes a long way for me. I have never heard of any of the remaining shows. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7665 "2025-07-20T12:26:37Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > It was an incredible experience for an Iowa girl. I could lie in bed at night and look at the fireplace and the huge timbers still artful and mighty after centuries and feel kinship with all the others that had lived and loved and birthed and died and made love in that room. It was like the house was a person itself. It certainly witnessed a lot of history. That’s lovely. With a house so old there’s definitely a sense of history lived - for us, old timbers (some of the joists in the cellar are trees split in half with bark still on them), a beehive oven, a decidedly weird layout, and the original builder and their descendants down the street in a tiny graveyard. It makes the almost 30 years we’ve lived here feel transitory. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7666 "2025-07-20T15:05:36Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > The poll question asked what was the best show, not which show had the happiest cast. I have fond memories of Alf and went with that. But I am allowed to take that into account, even if strictly speaking it was a meta concern. It means that rewatching it I now will notice how the cast carried themselves-note they had to navigate a bunch of trenches in the floor of the studio where the puppet’s operators worked. I noticed years ago how on edge so many of them seemed, and now I know why. [literally] ---
**Author:** ![Bayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bayaker/32/3454_2.png) [@Bayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7667 "2025-07-20T15:24:03Z")
I went with _3rd Rock from the Sun_ for the aliens poll because it was a really great show, but I almost voted for _My Favorite Martian_ out of nostalgia. When I was eight years old or so I even had a set of ‘Uncle Martin’ antennae to strap over my head. _Mork and Mindy_ was enjoyable, but I was too busy with work and school to see much of it. _Alf_ didn’t impress me at all, and i only saw one or two episodes. I never even heard of the rest of them until today. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7668 "2025-07-20T17:42:19Z")
Yeah, same for me. I voted for _3rd Rock_, but my favorite show was not on the list – _Resident Alien._ ---
**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:** [July 20, 2025, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7669 "2025-07-20T18:15:14Z")
> [@carrps](#): > > Resident Alien I’d never heard of it before making the poll. From skimming its Wikipedia article, it seemed not to be a sitcom, and so I didn’t include it among the options. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7670 "2025-07-20T20:26:17Z")
> [@psychonaut](#): > > I’d never heard of it before making the poll. From skimming its Wikipedia article, it seemed not to be a sitcom, and so I didn’t include it among the options. Wow, we even have a whole thread on it in Cafe Society. I would call it a “dramedy”. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7671 "2025-07-20T20:54:02Z")
Well, I know it makes me laugh like a banshee. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2025, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7672 "2025-07-20T21:53:12Z")
Easy choice. 3rd Rock is the only good show on the list. I was 11 when _Mork & Mindy_ came out. I thought it was great. For anyone over 11 it really sucks. It’s the definition of not aging well. I’m sorry about all the horrible TV I put my parents through. ---
**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:** [July 21, 2025, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7673 "2025-07-21T03:20:28Z")
For Alien Sitcom I didn’t vote, because in general, I don’t like the sitcom formula. I don’t watch them, other than an episode here or there because someone else was watching it and I wasn’t going to tell them to watch something else! If it was shows _with_ aliens set on Earth though (as opposed to various flavors of interplanetary/interstellar societies) I’d have wanted to vote for [Alien Nation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alien_Nation_(TV_series)) (TV series derived from the movie of the same name). It wasn’t perfect, but the mix of police series, drama, and comedy (cultural assumptions/misunderstandings) was a huge favorite of mine when it was on the air, and seemed infinitely more grounded (bigotry-wise among many other things) than any other scifi show I saw during that era. It was also part of a trend of Fox cancelling good stuff far too soon based on semi-arbitrary penny wise, pound foolish decisions that plagued (and may still for all I know) the network during the 90s. [specifically a similarly “realistic” and dark view on human failings in another beloved show of mine, [Space Above and Beyond](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space:_Above_and_Beyond) roughly 5 years later, or the wonderful Dark Fantasy Detective series [Brimstone](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brimstone_(TV_series)) ] ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2025, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7674 "2025-07-21T03:47:15Z")
Season six of the Flintstones was missing from the aliens in a sitcom poll. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2025, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7675 "2025-07-21T12:34:02Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > t was also part of a trend of Fox cancelling good stuff far too soon based on semi-arbitrary penny wise, pound foolish decisions Firefly 😟 ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2025, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7676 "2025-07-21T12:39:18Z")
An expensive sci-fi/western show, aired by a company that didn’t understand the genre, at the exact time that cheaply-produced reality shows were becoming popular. Never had a chance. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2025, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7677 "2025-07-21T15:54:16Z")
Jumping back 3500 posts or so, I received a Nielsen ratings mailer today. $2 free and clear, woo hoo! I’ll go ahead and fill out the survey. ETA also a $5 gift card for giving some demographics. Woot! ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2025, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7678 "2025-07-21T17:36:51Z")
When I was working for ReplayTV, the company that produced the world’s first DVR (I stand by that; Tivo was almost simultaneous but definitely not earlier), I got a Nielsen mailer. I don’t remember if the ReplayTV product was released yet or if it was still only being used by employees, but if it was released it was very new on the market. The questionnaire didn’t seem to have any way to account for timeshifting, so I called Nielsen to ask how I should handle that. I explained to the agent what kind of device I was using, and he had no idea what I was talking about. I tried to explain that it was kind of like recording a show on a VCR and watching it later, but he seemed very confused. He finally gave me some vague advice that didn’t seem right to me, but I just did my best with the questionnaire. ---
**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:** [July 21, 2025, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7679 "2025-07-21T18:59:24Z")
> [@Frodo](#): > > Firefly 😟 I had not forgotten Firefly, but was keeping my examples from the 90s, where they were consistently bad about it. Though I will grant, at the time Fox was at least _more_ adventurous that the Big 3 networks about at least trying more speculative shows - but if it wasn’t instantly X-Files popular, they just dropped the shows like a hot potato. And yes, Fox rarely understands what makes a show popular, or interesting, or even cares if it’s winning awards. Going back to my mention of Alien Nation TV series, they eventually went back and did five (!) made for TV movies (not fully equal in quality) which shows that there was plenty of interest and material that they just tossed because someone didn’t get it / tossed it for a short-term funding snafu. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2025, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7680 "2025-07-22T09:26:19Z")
The easiest resolution for me to achieve would be giving up addictive substances because I don’t smoke at all, don’t use drugs, and am a light drinker. Unless you include “caffeine” in the list of addictive substances, in which case I’m screwed. ---
**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:** [July 22, 2025, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636/7681 "2025-07-22T11:18:28Z")
I quit caffeine every year, for Yom Kippur. And a couple times i stayed off it for months after that. I decided i enjoy my morning hot beverage ritual, and that the health profile of that amount of caffeine is fine, so I’m back on caffeine. But i guess i could do that one. I think I’d be miserable trying to lose weight. I did it once as a teen, under pressure from my parents, and i hated constantly having to think about for and constantly denying myself. That’s why, when i gained a lot of weight with each pregnancy, i decided to buy new clothes, rather than try to lose the weight. I’ve never had enough debt to be able to judge. I mean, i had a mortgage, and once had a car loan, and paid off my husband’s college debt. But none of those were challenging. So it’s just hard to judge. I didn’t vote in that one. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636.md?page=383) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/discussion-thread-for-the-polls-only-thread-part-2/997636.md?page=385)