Clifford Brown, sleep apnea specialist, and Michelle Sands, Sleep Director, who can provide diagnoses of sleep disorders and offer solutions to help you achieve a better, healthier night’s sleep.The main appeal of the myNoise app is its slew of customization options. If you are struggling with sleep issues, contact Silent Night Therapy today at 63 to learn more about our sleep-related services. It is important to weigh the pros and cons before investing in a white noise machine to determine if it is the right choice for you. However, they may not be the best choice for everyone. White noise machines can be an effective tool for promoting relaxation, blocking out external noise, and improving the quality of your sleep. Contact Silent Night Therapy for Your Sleep Issues It is important to address these issues with a healthcare professional to ensure proper treatment. While white noise machines can help with sleep and relaxation, they do not address underlying issues that may be causing sleep problems, such as sleep apnea or anxiety. It is important to use the machine responsibly and to make sure that important sounds are still audible. In some cases, the sound produced by a white noise machine may mask important sounds, such as a smoke alarm or someone knocking at the door. This can be particularly problematic in shared living spaces, such as dorm rooms or apartments, where the sound may be heard by others. While white noise machines can be helpful for the person using them, they can be disruptive to others sharing the same space. Additionally, the cost of replacing the machine or its components can add up over time. High-quality white noise machines can be expensive, and the cost may be prohibitive for some individuals. It is important to use the machine at a low volume and for short periods of time to avoid damaging your hearing. Playing white noise at high volumes can lead to hearing damage over time. Some people find that the sound produced by the machine is too distracting or does not effectively mask external noise. While white noise machines can be effective for many individuals, they may not work for everyone. This can make it difficult to sleep without the machine, especially when traveling or staying in a different environment. Some individuals who use white noise machines report becoming dependent on the sound produced by the machine to fall asleep. Cons of Using White Noise Machines Can Be Addictive For individuals with tinnitus, the sound produced by a white noise machine can help to mask the ringing or buzzing, making it easier to fall asleep. Tinnitus is a condition characterized by a persistent ringing or buzzing in the ears. Studies have shown that individuals who use white noise machines experience a deeper, more restful sleep, which can lead to improved overall health and well-being. Improves Sleep Qualityīy creating a peaceful and relaxing environment, white noise machines can improve the quality of your sleep. The sound produced by the machine can effectively block out external noise, making it easier to fall and stay asleep. If you live in a noisy environment, such as a busy street or near an airport, a white noise machine can be a lifesaver. Additionally, the sound can help to mask other sounds that might be stressful, such as the sound of traffic outside. The consistent sound produced by these machines helps to create a peaceful environment that is conducive to sleep. White noise machines have been shown to promote relaxation and reduce stress levels. Pros of Using White Noise Machines Promotes Relaxation and Reduces Stress The noise is created by mixing together different sound frequencies, which results in a uniform sound that can be played at a low volume throughout the night. The sound produced by these machines is similar to the sound of static on a television or radio. White noise machines are devices that produce a consistent, soothing sound that helps to mask or block out background noise. But what exactly are white noise machines, and are they worth investing in? In this article, we will explore the pros and cons of using white noise machines to help you make an informed decision. White noise machines have been gaining popularity in recent years, especially among individuals who struggle to fall or stay asleep due to environmental noise.
0 Comments
I try to boil my pasta at the same time I am cooking up my sauce to save some time. I start by setting my ingredients out so that they are ready to go. I’m pretty sure that we stuck to the blue and yellow box variety!) Preparation Tips It will remind you of the classic baked macaroni and cheese dish that mom used to make. I was most excited to try the recipe for this classic comfort dish: Mom’s Baked Mac Uncheese, found on page 37 of the book. The first 30 pages are dedicated to educating the reader about the various types of vegan cheese sauce, special ingredients, pasta varieties, and various cooking methods. When you first open the book, you are going to notice that the recipes don’t even start until page 31. What I really appreciate about this cookbook is that it isn’t just about the recipes. And if you want to veg-up your mac and cheese, there is an entire chapter devoted to Mac and Veggies, with 15 veggie-loaded recipes such as Roasted Butternut Mac Uncheese, Asparagus Mac and Hollandaise, and Brussels and Bacon Cheesy Mac. Yes, it has those as well, but you’ll also find recipes for Greek Spinach Orzo Bake, Buffalo Cauliflower Mac, Crabby Mac Uncheese, and more. This cookbook doesn’t just stop at the basic Mac & Cheese variety. If you’re new to a plant-based diet, you might be wondering if you can still enjoy this comforting meal. The book Vegan Mac & Cheese by Robin Robertson does not disappoint! There are more than 50 (that’s right!) awesome plant-based recipes devoted to Mac & Cheese! Like most people, chances are you’ve eaten a lot of macaroni and cheese in your life. I was given a copy of Vegan Mac & Cheese to try out and share my honest review. Well, times have not really changed! Even though I can certainly come up with most recipes on my own, I’m still a sucker for a good cookbook. When I was a little girl, I used to pour over cookbooks with little scraps of paper, inserting them in all the pages of the mouth-watering recipes that I wanted to try. From the new cookbook, Vegan Mac & Cheese by Robin Robertson (affiliate link), Mom’s Baked Mac Uncheese is creamy, cheesy, and delicious with a baked buttery crumb topping. All the comforts of Mac and Cheese the way you remember it. The JPG converter is always available online and is completely free. Powerpoint to JPG - Convert your PPTX to JPG for Free Online Converters Document PPTX Convert PPTX to JPG Language English PPTX to JPG Convert PPTX to JPG online and free Choose Files Drag & drop files Max. You can convert your JPG documents from anywhere, from any machine or even from a mobile device. Online Document Converter makes it possible for anyone to instantly convert many of the file formats (doc, docx, xls, ppt.) that are used daily to PDF. All documents are removed from the cloud after 24 hours. Expand the ConvertOptions and fill the fields for watermarking.Ĭonverted PPT files are stored in the cloud. Or you can add a watermark to the converted PPT file. Just expand LoadOptions and enter the password of your file. For example you can convert password protected documents. POWERPOINT to JPG converter Convert your file from Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation File to Joint Photographic Experts Group JFIF format with this POWERPOINT to JPG converter. Specify the folder where you want PowerPoint to save the JPG files. Save PowerPoint as JPG Type in your preferred name for the file. Select JPEG File Interchangeable Format (.jpg) as your preferred format (for Save as type). You even can perform more advanced conversions. Windows: F12 or Ctrl + Shift + S Windows. Once conversion completed you can download your PPT file. Select your Powerpoint file (PPTX) from your computer and import it. Just drag and drop your JPG file on upload form, choose the desired output format and click convert button. How to Edit PowerPoints Online in 5 Steps Log into your Visme dashboard to get started. You can convert your JPG documents from any platform (Windows, Linux, macOS). Use the following pip command to install the library from PyPI. Using the library, you can create, modify and convert the presentations seamlessly. It is a powerful library to implement presentation manipulation features in Python. These are the alternative ways to save PowerPoint as JPEG on different devices or operating systems! Make sure to choose the right image format when users are saving or converting the ppt files in both Microsoft PowerPoint or PDF Converter.Convert your JPG files online. To convert PowerPoint PPT to JPG images, we will utilize Aspose.Slides for Python. Step 5: Finally, tap Convert and click Open File to preview the new jpg document! Get It On Now! Step 4: Add the new PDF file and choose the Output Image Format as jpg. Click the Share button and select Download from the drop-down menu. Step 3: Choose PDF to Image tool from the Convert from PDF menu in the PDF Converter. How to Convert Canva Slides to PowerPoint (With Animations) If you don’t want to lose all the cool animation you’ve added to your Canva presentation, you’ll have to export them as a GIF. Step 2: Upload the PowerPoint file and click Convert to convert the PPT to PDF. The program can convert with high output quality and very fast speed. you can batch convert ppt to jpeg with ease. Step 1: Launch Bitwar PDF Converter and go to Office Files to PDF tool from the Convert to PDF menu. Own the most powerful conversion function. Aspose.Slides enables applications to read, write, protect, modify and convert presentations in. Net is a Presentation Processing API for PowerPoint and OpenOffice formats. In case users don’t have the Microsoft PowerPoint on the device, then users will need to use the PDF Converter to convert the PPT to PDF first, then convert PDF to JPG easily in the software. To convert a PowerPoint file (PPTX or PPT) to Jpeg, you need Aspose.Slides for. Step 3: Click Save as Type as JPEG and click Save.Ĭonvert PPT to JPG without Microsoft PowerPoint Step 2: Click File again continue with Save As and select the File destination. Step 2 Select «to ppt» Choose ppt or any of the other 200+ supported formats youd like to convert to. Select the presentation file in the PPT format to convert to the JPG format, you can select a file from your computer or your Google Drive or Dropbox. Then, go to File and click Open to open the ppt file. Step 1 Upload jpg-file You can select jpg file you want to convert from your computer, Google Drive, Dropbox or simply drag and drop it onto the page. Use any available tools if you want to edit and manipulate your PPT file. When the PowerPoint finishes, users can save as the file format like JPG, PNG or other image formats instead of ppt format. Select File PPT Converter PPT PPT is a presentation file format associated with Microsoft Power Point. To change PPT format to JPG, upload your PPT file to proceed to the preview page. Convert PPT to JPG without Microsoft PowerPoint. The band reformed in 1987 with Ronnie's younger brother Johnny and a rotating cast of new blood.Īllen Collins died in 1990 of pneumonia resulting from a serious car accident four years earlier due to his drug abuse. Rossington, Collins, Wilkeson, and Powell formed the Rossington-Collins Band, but Collins was prone to alcoholism and drugs. The band disbanded after the tragedy, with the group reuniting at Charlie Daniels's Volunteer Jam V to perform an instrumental version of "Free Bird" accompanied by Daniels and some of his band members (bassist Charlie Hayward and keyboardist Joel "Taz" DiGregorio). Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, his sister Cassie (one of the band's backup singers, known as The Honkettes), and Dean Kilpatrick, a member of the band's production staff, were killed. Tragedy struck on October 20, 1977, three days after the band recorded their Street Survivors album when their chartered plane crashed in Mississippi. (The next time you hear someone shout "Play 'Free Bird'!" at a concert, you now know who to blame). The group was eventually discovered by producer Al Kooper and recorded its first album, (pronounced 'lĕh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd), in 1973 - in the process, the album forever cemented the song "Free Bird" as a permanent part of the rock'n'roll lexicon. Meanwhile, roadie Billy Powell joined the group as the keyboardist. In 1972, Walker and Medlocke left the group to perform with the band Blackfoot and Leon Wilkeson took Walker's place as the bassist. Walker replaced him, while Rickey Medlocke joined the band as a second drummer and mandolinist. During their early years, Junstrom left the group and Greg T. They later renamed themselves "My Backyard" in 1965, "Leonard Skinner" (a rather authoritarian teacher at their former high school who disapproved of male students with long hair) in 1970, and " Lynyrd Skynyrd" in 1972. Jacksonville friends Ronnie Van Zant, Allen Collins, Larry Junstrom, Gary Rossington, and Bob Burns formed the band in 1964 under the name "The Noble Five". Please keep in mind that product colors might not exactly match the colors displayed on the renders.If you live in the American South, you damn well better know Lynyrd Skynyrd. By purchasing this, you agree that you will be charged right away and there are no cancellations, no exceptions. Please note that this is a GB/Pre-order, there may be delays and the timeline is just an estimate. Join our Discord for the quickest updates & upcoming keyboard projects! Join the waitlist to get 2 days early access as well as priority in shipping! Want an extra TKL carrying case? Right Here!įor The Full TKL Keyboard Kit, Click Here!įor additional silicone dampeners, click HereĬan fit the H88 Solder PCB (Compatible with FBTKL Case & Supports ISO) Want a Numpad to go along with your Freebird60 click here Want a Numpad to go along with the TKL, click here E-Coated CNC Machined Aluminum Case ( Black, Navy, Olive, & White).FBTKL Hot-Swap PCB (QMK & VIA Ready): ANSI.Switch Plate (Aluminum, POM, FR4, & PC).E-Coated CNC Machined Aluminum Case ( Black and White).Mounting Style: Top Mount or Gummy O-ringĭimensions: 362mm by 133mm FBTKL Full Kit (WK/WKL) Includes ($249): Also, offering WKL! Yes, we heard you WKL lovers!!!Īs being the world's first keyboard company to include Durock v2 screw-in stabilizers in Freebird60, we wanted to continue the tradition by including them in FreebirdTKL Full Kit! Just like FB60, FB TKL will be an aluminum board, and it will be offered in 4 E-Coated colors. We have noticed that there are not that many affordable and quality TKL keyboards in the market, so we have decided to work on FB TKL as our next project, with Dingus and Taylor. Our first keyboard project, the FreeBird60, surprisingly, had much interest, so we decided to make "FreeBird" a series of good quality & affordable keyboards! Pre-Orders will be delivered in July 2023. In my experience, the G2 has a peak around at 130hz after which it rolls off sharply. The amount of bass boost here is based on the limiter barely not kicking in at my personal listening volume, but if you listen at louder volume than me you may notice the sound "dying" at loud bassy parts, then you might need to reduce the bass boost, (deepest frequencies are less audible but consume the most power so cut them first), and if you listen at lower volume, you might get away with more boost. For this reason, you can't add too much bass or the power limiter will kick in, and I can't tune the bass as well as my hifi headphones. The bass curve is more finicky, especially since after rev 14 (March manual firmware update that I don't recommend installing either if you don't have problems), the headset will cut down speaker power if too much power is drawn, acting kind of like a compressor effect. If you need more volume, you can increase it, though I don't think the speakers' power management even allows that much, at least on the volumes it produces on my PC. The curve also comes with a -12 dB preamp to contain the bass boost, to ensure no digital clipping regardless of software volume. peace profile into "C:\Program Files\EqualizerAPO\config" and it will be selectable in the Peace app. To use this, you need Equalizer APO (system wide equalizer) and Peace GUI for user interface. Here's an Equalizer APO EQ curve that I've used daily with my G2: I have the rev 14 firmware, which already nerfed the bass compared to stock (if you updated to rev 15, you can downgrade here, open all the arrows to find rev 14) If an HP employee contacts you on here, they will only ever ask for this information to be sent to an hp.com email address and never in private messages. They are not and never will be needed on Reddit. This includes the serial numbers of your units.Do not post personal or identifying information.The moderation team cannot police these activities and they present a big target for scammers.No buying, selling, begging, giveaways or crowd-funding.If you wish to promote your own content, you should be an active member of this community and your promotional posts should constitute a minority of what you post here. Memes, gifs, unrelated images and similar posts will be removed.Several HP employees are kind enough to post here and help people out, please do not direct your ire at the product or company at them as they are not personally responsible for every decision.If you are not completely sure that you can express your opinion without it sounding like an attack, you’re best off not doing it at all. If you can’t express your opinion of someone else’s actions without being mean, childish, insulting or spiteful, keep it to yourself.Be kind to others, even if you disagree with them.This subreddit is not affiliated with HP Inc. Whether you want to discuss the hardware, experiences or games, all posts are welcome here. Regardless of your numbers, an epoxy solution is never as good on many levels Some food for thought though: if you designed and specified some U-bars extending from your column into your slab to develop moment, then the contractor should provide it I imagine you can't actually rely on this but at least there's some discussion in here that may help inform you Our seismic assessment guidelines could help provide some guidance as to realistic ideas of laps RE: Why is a decrease in tension lap splice length not allowed for excess reinforcement? bugbus (Structural) 11 Sep 22 22:55 But in my situation, if I calculate a one foot embedment satisfies the remainder of code provisions and presumably provides a reliability index of at least 3 or 4 (failure probability of one in several thousand), why do we need to punish the iron workers with having to drill several feet into column tops? Shouldn't the committees be striving to achieve uniform reliability across design? Let me know if I'm missing something here. I understand the committees want to incentivize me to detail my splices to be staggered in new construction. A class B lap on a typical column vertical requires a drill and epoxy solution with a drill bit several feet long, and it appears ACI ties my hands by forcing me to develop the full yield strength of the bar: "Reduction of development length in accordance with 25.4.10.1 is not permitted in calculating lap splice lengths." (ACI318-14 25.5.1.4)ĪCI408R-03 says "The extra length required for Class B splices is not based on strength criteria but rather is used as an incentive for designers to stagger splice locations."ĭarwin, Lutz, and Zuo say "Although tests demonstrate that splice strength where (As required) / (As provided) < 1 is conservatively represented by the modification factor in 2.5, this factor is not used to increase the level of reliability of lap splices." My intent is to transfer some moment between slab and column, and I frequently find my column tensile steel is like 5 or 10 times what's needed. A situation that arises on many projects: contractor forgot U bars at column tops or installed them at the wrong elevation, poured columns, and then asks me for a correction. The Verdict: The price point is going to be prohibitive for some, we'll admit. It really is setting a new standard for wireless headsets this generation. That's a difficult balance to strike, but the result had us picking up on even the smallest of audio cues all while enjoying a rich tapestry of well-rounded sound. We were impressed with the power of the lower ranges here, but not only was the bass beefier than we've experienced with previous releases - the overall sound definition remained crystal clear in the higher ranges as well. SteelSeries has upped the ante for its Nova line, and the Pro Wireless sings because of it. While the HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless can pack a serious battery punch all by itself, this solution offers far greater peace of mind.Īudio: We'll admit it, we find ourselves naturally favoring the clarity and definition of SteelSeries' soundscapes - even if we've found previous models like the Arctis 7P lacked a little in the bass ranges. This was such a simple solution to a problem plaguing many a headset, it's difficult to understand why it hasn't been implemented in more high-end solutions. Simply throw in the additional battery charging in the base station and you'll never find yourself without charge. The right earcup opens up to reveal a swappable battery pack that can be lifted right out of the set itself. However, the true triumph here lies in the charging capabilities. We have a lot of gaming headsets to run through in testing, and none have been so easily slotted into everyday life as the Nova Pro. Not only do you have easy access to a whole host of EQ settings via this small box, but you'll also be able to connect both a PC and PlayStation to easily switch your audio between them. The base station is much more than a DAC, it's a charging, EQ fiddling, multi-platform connecting beast. Everything feels solid and secure with an excellent level of adjustability on each side, and controls are within easy reach as well.įeatures: Straight out the box we were greeted with a whole host of additional kit to truly help the Nova Pro shine. We found the whole aesthetic to be more inline with an everyday set of headphones than a gaming headset. That means you're getting a ski-goggle style headband and those chunky, slightly elongated cups on each side. Anyone looking for an easy plug and play device might want to consider something more streamlined.ĭesign: Sitting at the top of the Nova line, the Pro Wireless carries the same design language as cheaper options through its build. ❌ You don't want to tinker with EQ settings: There is a little work going into getting the best audio possible out of the Nova Pro Wireless. We'd recommend checking out some of the more platform-specific options on this list if you fly solo. ❌ You don't play across multiple platforms: If you're not splitting your setup, the amount you're paying for those dual-connectivity and easy switching features doesn't make sense. You can find out more about how we test gaming headsets further down the page, or head straight to our top picks for a range of use-cases just below. These are devices that have continued to impress throughout our initial and further testing, rising above the competition in audio quality, value for money, features, or durability. That's why we're rounding up the best gaming headsets we've come across yet. We've tested hundreds of headsets over the years, living with a massive range of releases from Razer, Corsair, SteelSeries, Logitech and more. That's why we've put our noggins in as many headsets as we can get our hands on, covering all the latest releases and some older options that still hold their value today. Right now, the best gaming headset is the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless, but with a hefty price tag it's not going to be for everyone. That means picking out the right model from the right brand can be tricky. Whether you're after immersive top-tier gaming audio and clear chat or a do-it-all set of cups that won't break the bank, there are plenty of gaming headsets vying for your attention right now. Something else ate all of the onions under the ground. It got to the point where the squirrels took a bite out of every zucchini and pumpkin I grew. But, apparently word got out in the animal and bug world that yummy things were in there, so it turned into be a private restaurant for the squirrels and the slugs. For the first few years, I concentrated on it and veggies grew really well. We put in a picket fence gate with an arbor over it. It is in a separate section of our garden and is surrounded by a chicken wire fence that I train vines on. dAhub helped me plan it years and years ago. And the fig tree is covered with baby figs–maybe we will be able to get some before the squirrels help themselves.īut, I used to keep a vegetable garden each year. It was quite traumatic for me and for the bird. I am reluctant to do this because the one year I did covered them, a baby bird got stuck in the netting and it took forever to get him out. I need to covered them with netting or something. My blueberry bushes produced quite well but, as usual, the wild birds got all of the berries. And the golden and red raspberries are going crazy–they are just about the easiest plants to grow here. And my pear tree, which has four different types of pears finally produced a pear. They are only about 3 feet tall (they are truly dwarf trees), but they are so covered with apples that they are bent over to the ground. In fact, our dwarf apple trees are covered with apples. This has been mostly OK for the several fruit trees and berry bushes that do their thing without much input from me. The past few years I have been busy with book stuff and I kind of ignored the garden. I made a promise to myself this summer that I would spend at least a little time each day out in our garden. Girlfriend and I sit out on the porch in the later afternoons and evenings and read, and we can’t get enough of the scent. And I put the pot on our front porch so we can smell them as we enter the house. Anyway, I bought the plant–it has been blooming like crazy all summer. Our wedding theme was “English Country Garden” mixed with Alice in Wonderland, so the idea worked really well. The florist said she got such a kick out of designing each corsage/boutonniere from of all of the different flowers. It was so fun to see everyone wearing their their favorites. And when dAhub and I got married, we ordered a corsage or boutonniere of their favorite flower for each of our family members. Of course, when I went to my high school prom, my corsage was a gardenia, much to my mom’s delight. I love gardenias and they hold a special place in my heart because they were my mom’s favorite flower. One of the best things about tracing your ancestors is that this is a quest which you can enjoy for years to come. Now that you’ve mastered the basics, plan a trip to your local history or library, where you can consult original documents, browse maps and plans, or perhaps attend a help session or workshop. Online forums can be a great source of help and encouragement, or consider leaving the query and moving to another branch of your tree, coming back to look at the problem with a fresh eye further down the line. If you reach what seems like a dead end with our family tree, don’t despair! Even the most experienced family historians face research challenges. Not only will you benefit from a regular journal, talks and events, you’ll also be able to socialise and share tips with other enthusiasts, both in person and online. Join a family history societyĬonsider joining a family history society, either in your local area, or the society that covers the area where your ancestors lived. If your findings are mainly recorded electronically, use a memory stick as a safeguard should you lose access to your data. Start a research log as soon as you can and use this to record which ancestors you’ve searched for and where you looked saving yourself from repeating the same search further down the line. Keep track of your researchĪs you discover new ancestors, it’s all too easy to lose track of your paperwork or online research. Cyndi’s List is another great starting point for exploring family history online. The National Archives catalogue allows you to search 32 million records to find out where in the UK and online more than 2,500 different archives are located. Explore the internetįamily history doesn’t have to be an expensive hobby, there are lots of free of charge websites to get you started. You can search for certificates for each of these events using the free General Register Office indexes at websites such as Free BMD.Ī birth certificate will give you the names and occupation of the parents (your next generation of ancestors) marriage certificates provide age and occupations, plus details of the father of the bride and groom (another generation) whilst death certificates give age and cause of death. With your fledgeling tree drawn up, it’s now time to start exploring birth, marriage and death records to discover more ancestors. If you discover information about one of your ancestors on an internet forum or online tree, always double check the facts before adding the data to your own tree. However tempting it might be to try to prove a link to someone far in the past, always work backwards from yourself when creating your family tree, finding your parents, then their parents, and so on. Next, create vertical lines to connect each sibling to the two parents (with the father shown to the left of the mother) and write the parents’ crucial dates as in generation one, creating a new horizontal line of ancestors for each generation. Plot the youngest generation of the family at the bottom of the page, allocating a box to each person, with the oldest child on the left and subsequent siblings listed to the right of the previous name. Now that you’ve collected some information, it’s time to draw up a basic family tree. These will form the basis of your research and will give you clues to start you on your journey of discovering the next generation of your ancestors. Search your attic and ask other family members for family history treasures such as photos, birth, certificates, apprenticeship records, etc. “We all know the real world of motorsport costs a hell of a lot of money to do,” he says. “But it kind of gives you an idea of what time went into it.”ĭraycott has a theory as to why sim racing is so popular. “That probably says a lot more about my ability than it does about what’s actually needed,” he says. racetrack Snetterton, Alexander put in six weeks’ worth of training, doing more than a thousand laps of the circuit, to know its every twist and turn. Ahead of his first race of the season at the virtual depiction of U.K. Some of the most popular YouTubers have tens or even hundreds of thousands of followers.Īlexander races every week in the league against his competitors. That’s vital, as at the highest echelons of competition, racers compete for real prize money. They also post tips, tricks, and ideal rig setups meant to help eke out split-second advantages. Sim racers broadcast their races live on YouTube. The league, he says, is a “really nice, happy environment.” He joined the Nevo Sim Racing League, where he currently stands 21st out of 32 competitors in the British F4 Series (confusingly, eight nationalities are represented in the league, including Americans and Canadians, though most of the competitors are in the U.K. “It’s a hobby I’m starting to take more seriously,” he says. It’s not just money that Alexander has invested in his hobby - it’s time, too. Top-end simulators include hand-stitched seats 200-degree wraparound screens feedback on wheels, seatbelts, and pedals and mechanics that move the driver around within the rig. The sim racing equivalent Pimp My Ride exists on YouTube, where high-end racing rigs are presented in awe-inspiring videos. “You could go up to £50,000 or £100,000 if you wanted to be serious about it,” Alexander says. Alexander even wears a VR headset to more deeply immerse himself in the races. It includes haptic feedback that helps him feel his way around the track, and more accurately mimics the machinery involved in a real car steering wheel. “It kind of escalated from there, and my rig’s now sophisticated,” he says. There was just one problem: Alexander’s racing wheel wasn’t going to cut it. Unlike basic racing video games popular on home consoles, which allow users or computer-controlled players to catch up to each other if one player tears away too fast, iRacing is designed to mimic as accurately as possible the realities of racing on an actual track. He bought a subscription to iRacing, which was exactly what Alexander was looking for: It gave him the ability to test his racing prowess against others online in a realistic environment. Alexander began by playing popular racing games, but soon graduated to a more advanced level of computer-based racing called sim racing. He bought a steering wheel gaming peripheral from a local computer store for £180 ($210) and put it on his desk. Matt Alexander in his sim racing rig Matt Alexander |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |