My brother-in-law who is a guitarist and guitar collector wants to paint a pre-CBS Fender Stratocaster in the original 'Sonic Blue' colour that the company sold in the early 1960s (used by John Lennon amongst others). The trouble is that if you google this you end up with several different versions of the colour that vary in terms of their blue/green balance, saturation etc. So the question is, without getting into the philosophy of colour perception, is there an easy way to obtain the right colour of paint?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by jamespake at 4:28 PM on August 6, 2015 (9 comments)

A domain that I once owned expired, years ago. When it did, I deleted the folder, and all the files within it, on my hosting plan that said domain pointed to. Someone else has bought the site, and instead of a new site, my old site is on it!
posted to Ask MetaFilter by millipede at 6:41 AM on August 5, 2015 (11 comments)

Come with us on the MeFiMusic train, for a journey from city to city, with your fellow mefites as your musical guides...
posted to MetaTalk by greenish at 6:04 AM on August 3, 2015 (4 comments)

For most of us, the internet is functionally a necessity, with much of our lives lived on or enabled by the Web. But for the disabled, the internet is too often an unfriendly, inaccessible place, with many sites and services not being designed to support accessibility. But Web accessibility needs to be for everyone, in our ever more connected world, not only from the standpoint of letting the disabled into an increasingly important public accommodation, but because accessibility is just good design. (SLSlate)
posted to MetaFilter by NoxAeternum at 8:02 AM on July 23, 2015 (32 comments)

Cat-Scan.com is one of the strangest sites I've seen in some time. I have no idea how these people got their cats wedged into their scanners, or why.
posted to MetaFilter by yhbc at 5:35 AM on July 14, 2015 (154 comments)

Lost Friends: Advertisements from the Southwestern Christian Advocate:

Two dollars in 1880 bought a yearlong subscription to the Southwestern Christian Advocate, a newspaper published in New Orleans by the Methodist Book Concern and distributed to nearly five hundred preachers, eight hundred post offices, and more than four thousand subscribers in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Arkansas. The "Lost Friends" column, which ran from the paper's 1877 inception well into the first decade of the twentieth century, featured messages from individuals searching for loved ones lost in slavery.

posted to MetaFilter by metaquarry at 11:40 AM on July 13, 2015 (15 comments)

Does anyone have good matches for the Fuscia/Magenta-ish colors used by DEC for their (very) old PDP series of computers? I'm trying to use the colors and am looking for near matches. Optimally, I'd love to find what DEC themselves would have used for promotional materials, as well as paint mixture codes if I wanted to paint stripes of matching colors on my walls. ;)
posted to Ask MetaFilter by BleuLlama at 6:24 PM on July 12, 2015 (11 comments)

I am looking for the name of an old cookbook, perhaps British, that has no text but just illustrations, like the ones from Popular Mechanics that showed you how to make thing with illustrations, or the wordless illustrations that tell you how to evacuate an airplane. Note: This is an older book, so it's not Picture Cook or the IKEA cookbook.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by maxsparber at 1:13 PM on July 1, 2015 (2 comments)

In the mid-1800s, a snail spent years glued to a specimen card in the British Museum before scientists realized it was still alive. What became of this snail? Help me solve a scientific History Mystery, AskMe!
posted to Ask MetaFilter by nicebookrack at 10:04 AM on July 1, 2015 (17 comments)

Yesterday, "Surf and Turf" Joey DaSilva slid, slipped, and skipped to the end of a 45-foot-long telephone pole suspended over the water and covered with grease and slop. By grabbing the flag at the end, he became the 2015 Saturday champion of the annual Greasy Pole contest, making him one of the elite crew eligible to compete again on Fiesta Sunday for the rest of his life. It's one of the highlights of the unique St. Peter's Fiesta, an annual festival sponsored by the Italian-American fishing community of Gloucester, MA. The festival is a five-day celebration including a procession of St. Peter's effigy accompanied by bands and Sicilian chants, a Sunday mass on a large outdoor altar, seine boat races, a carnival, food, and drinking - lots of drinking. The annual festival is a defining force in Gloucester's tight-knit community, even as the fishing industry that generated it continues a long decline.
posted to MetaFilter by Miko at 8:24 AM on June 28, 2015 (6 comments)

Have you had to prep for the arrival of a major VIP (eg a Queen? a Head of State? the head of the United Nations) to your office or factory? What did you have to do?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by almostwitty at 8:45 PM on June 22, 2015 (14 comments)

Back in February, I asked the hive mind for their ideas for 40 things to do before you're 40 for a friend of mine. I wanted to say thanks...
posted to MetaTalk by girlgenius at 9:01 PM on June 19, 2015 (17 comments)

What is a nerd hobby that will enable me to (a) travel anywhere to enjoy (b) interact with people and build relationships, (c) not super expensive, (d) somewhat DIY, and (e) doesn't require an entire workshop, garage, or wardrobe?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by rebent at 10:46 AM on June 19, 2015 (34 comments)

Trying to get an idea of the cost in both money and time to set up an 8 modem BBS in 1987. Anecdotal evidence would be useful. Thank you!
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Alex Goldman at 6:47 AM on June 19, 2015 (13 comments)

It takes 10 kilocalories of fossil-fuel to make 1kcal of food. You use 80kcal to walk a mile. There are 31520kcal per gallon of gasoline. 80kcal * 10 = 800kcal of fossil-fuel per walking-miles. 31520kcal/800kcal=39.4 walking-miles/gallon of gas? What am I missing? Can I trust the 10:1 fossil:food ratio?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by gregr at 8:39 AM on June 12, 2015 (14 comments)

I didn't do my thesis on anything mefi-related, but I just handed in my master's thesis and I thank you all for giving me a great place to procrastinateread about spiffy things.
posted to MetaTalk by curuinor at 7:39 PM on June 10, 2015 (16 comments)

I've been reading articles about backlash towards high-speed rail in American cities, and it confounds me because I enjoy rail systems in Europe and Asia. Some people have said it logistically doesn't make sense in America, and I want to why that is.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by xtine at 9:33 PM on June 10, 2015 (39 comments)

End of life planning is hard. There are checklists, like this set from Get Your Shit Together. There are practical tips for making things easier for whoever's dealing with your estate after you're gone, like the tech tips in this previously from MeFi's own Jessamyn. But in the murky middle between living completely independently and being incapable of managing everyday tasks lies a subtler and more difficult question: how to organize and manage your money when financial competence is one of the first areas to decline on the slide from mild cognitive impairment to dementia. SeekingAlpha contributor PsychoAnalyst has a surprisingly nuanced analysis of the steps self-directed investors can take to protect their finances from the underestimated risk of their own declining ability to make good financial decisions, and raises some points worth thinking about for folks beyond the site's investor wonk audience.
posted to MetaFilter by deludingmyself at 10:03 AM on June 6, 2015 (26 comments)

Going to Australia for its animals. Seeking advice re making conversation:
posted to Ask MetaFilter by BadgerDoctor at 9:11 PM on June 1, 2015 (50 comments)

As I sat outside enjoying the evening, I watched a small bird (a sparrow, I think?) looking for worms or seeds in the veggie patch. For some reason (maybe the wine, I dunno) the question crossed my mind: why do some birds hop (like the sparrow) and some walk/waddle (a duck, for example).
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Klaxon Aoooogah at 10:24 PM on May 28, 2015 (10 comments)

What’s the one thing I should be doing to stay healthy as I age, keep up my energy, stay healthy and be in good health for the neither or four decades?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by mulcahy at 8:16 AM on May 24, 2015 (30 comments)

Reporting, Reviewing, and Responding to Harassment on Twitter [via mefi projects] For three weeks last November, Women, Action, and the Media (WAM!) accepted harassment reports that they escalated to Twitter, collecting data on the experience of harassment and the process of reporting it. A team of academics published a comprehensive report on what they found, with a focus on the people reporting and receiving harassment, the kinds of harassment that were reported, Twitter's response to harassment reports, the process of reviewing harassment reports, and challenges for reporting processes.
posted to MetaFilter by Little Dawn at 9:21 PM on May 15, 2015 (11 comments)

What would a culture that doesn't hate women look like? I'm looking for books, movies, works of fiction and non-fiction in various formats/media, and your own musings and imaginings.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by gakiko at 11:39 PM on May 14, 2015 (19 comments)

"I created a series of pop culture-inspired portraits of my friend Beth, playfully celebrating her fantastic weight loss of 150 pounds. I shot her "Before" and "After" selves two years apart, and the digitally integrated them to interact with each other within each scene. To properly communicate and celebrate Beth's accomplishment, her body shape has not been digitally altered."

Photographer Blake Morrow on The Beth Project
posted to MetaFilter by Room 641-A at 4:12 PM on May 9, 2015 (51 comments)

I am building several dozen tank cars in HO scale for a friend, who has given me license to come up with clever (fictional) railroad/car company names to put on the cars. Some considerations:
posted to Ask MetaFilter by pjern at 1:08 PM on May 10, 2015 (31 comments)

When calling landline to landline, I have no trouble hearing every word that's said. Meanwhile, my friend just called someone to give an ETA and ended up shouting NATO phonetic alphabet into a smart phone that can stream 1080p video. After he hung up, he admitted that he hated talking on telephones because one party or the other always needed something repeated. Why is mobile call quality so terrible? Why do people not demand this (in the economic sense)?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by d. z. wang at 10:00 AM on May 3, 2015 (18 comments)

A few years ago, I saw someone walking around in a shirt with the Harvard seal on it, except that the "VE RI TAS" part had been replaced with "BUR RI TOS." I would very much like to purchase this shirt or one like it, but can't find it online. Any leads?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by delight at 4:42 PM on April 30, 2015 (3 comments)

My friend has a problem that might be impeding his social life. I'd like to know how to speak to him about it.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by milque at 7:00 AM on April 29, 2015 (25 comments)

The Real Purpose of Libraries , by Ferguson Library Director Scott Bonner (SLReading Rainbow)
posted to MetaFilter by box at 7:30 AM on April 17, 2015 (6 comments)

Even though Lorenz, who, like Downey, is blind, can't see the space before her, she knows exactly what to expect. On her desk at the ILRC's current office on Mission Street, she keeps a tactile floor plan that Downey printed for her. The plan's fine web of raised lines looks like an elaborate decorative pattern, suggesting a leaf of handmade stationery or a large sheet from which doilies are about to be cut. Though Downey has consulted on other architects' projects since going blind six years ago, this one marks a turning point for him. The community center is the first space he's designed since losing his sight. The center recently opened its doors to the public with a celebration to inaugurate the new space, located on Howard Street in the city's Yerba Buena district, just down the block from the Moscone convention center. But on this May afternoon, the walls are just beginning to go up.
posted to MetaFilter by ellieBOA at 3:57 AM on April 21, 2015 (4 comments)

I'm looking for YT videos along the lines of "CheckItOut - Taylor Swift Parody Video for National Library Week" and "Librarians Remake Beastie Boys' 'Sabotage' Video, Win Internet." More like these, please?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by MonkeyToes at 9:13 AM on April 19, 2015 (7 comments)

Does the Coast Guard get respect from Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines? Or do Navy guys say it's for people too chicken to join the Navy? I don't know what the Marines or Air Force might say. Something equally contemptuous. Can a Coast Guard veteran call himself or herself a 'veteran' in the way that we think of Veteran's Day and sacrifice and national pride.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by BadgerDoctor at 8:22 PM on April 13, 2015 (27 comments)

I can't afford to go to a spa but I've always been enticed by the idea of a mud bath, getting a massage, etc etc. Sometimes I take some time to do a clay face mask and polish my nails which make me feel pretty good about myself not to mention relaxed. I'd like to create some sort of budget-spa/pampering experience in my own home.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by atinna at 5:02 PM on April 12, 2015 (26 comments)

What would a Social Justice Warrior put on her shield? (Also, the rest of her?)
posted to Ask MetaFilter by NoraReed at 1:00 AM on April 13, 2015 (21 comments)

In 1981. Sears released its first (and last) laserdisc based catalog. It's a time capsule of fashions in both clothing and video production, and one more example of how Sears was constantly searching for the future of retail, but never quite found it.
posted to MetaFilter by Horace Rumpole at 4:33 PM on April 7, 2015 (41 comments)

Lately I've been running across a lot of highly theoretical science and technology information that I don't understand. I would like to be able to recognize quackery and fringe science, as well as when technologists (especially programmers) are reinventing the wheel and claiming to revolutionize things, so I don't get steered in the wrong direction. I'm looking for heuristics.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Beethoven's Sith at 5:08 PM on April 7, 2015 (16 comments)

I'm ashamed to be using a question on this, but what 70s (?) song features a chorus that is the band singing the name "CJ?" It's about a girl named CJ, I think, and all I can remember about it is that the refrain goes "CEEEEeeeee JAAAaaay." (I presumed it was called "CJ" or something similar but Google and Rdio fail me.)
posted to Ask MetaFilter by AgentRocket at 4:58 PM on April 7, 2015 (5 comments)

Are there any wifi consultants in Austin, TX that could help diagnose why a high speed connection drops throughout a house? Alternatively, are there any good guides to do a self-diagnosis?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Pants! at 10:02 AM on April 3, 2015 (9 comments)

If Cats Were on OKCupid
[ via | via | for dogs ]
posted to MetaFilter by not_on_display at 10:14 PM on March 26, 2015 (18 comments)

Kernelmag's Jeff Keacher documents connecting his old Macintosh Plus to the World Wibe Web, courtesy of a Raspberry Pi and a bunch of software to remove all those pesky <div>s and such.
posted to MetaFilter by thegears at 4:21 AM on March 23, 2015 (23 comments)

Richard III of England was interred today at Leicester Cathedral (official site for the burial). A New York woman was responsible for creating the traditional altar linens used in today's service. Richard III previously.
posted to MetaFilter by immlass at 12:59 PM on March 22, 2015 (40 comments)

I live in Fishtown in Philadelphia, and it is very common in the neighborhood to incorporate a fish into the outside of your house. Are there other places that do this kind of thing?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by sepviva at 4:08 PM on March 22, 2015 (19 comments)

Just say you're down at the shops buying milk and bread and you do something to get arrested, or you get arrested for something you did years ago... either way, you're arrested. What happens if you need to deal with something important but you can't because you're gonna be locked up for the next little while?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by UltraFleece at 12:02 PM on March 19, 2015 (30 comments)

I'm done with charitable organizations. I'm looking to help real people in real situations. I need help figuring out how to find these people and help them out in the least dramatic way possible.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Anonymous at 10:19 AM on March 19, 2015 (38 comments)

I need a small freezer much more ASAP than is comfortable. Where can I obtain such a thing, in Seattle, today?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Because at 1:47 PM on March 13, 2015 (21 comments)

The Department of Justice has postponed its NPRM on the accessibility requirements of websites for places of public accommodations under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, from March 2015 to June 2015. The NPRM for accessibility requirements of government websites was due in December 2014.
posted to MetaFilter by johnofjack at 3:15 PM on March 9, 2015 (10 comments)

So, mathowie, you are still with us for one last night, as a so-called moderator. Interesting. Beguiling, even. Show us then: what are the uncouthnesses, insubordinations and downright fripperies up with which you will not put, while you are still in power?
posted to MetaTalk by MiguelCardoso at 1:57 PM on March 6, 2015 (617 comments)

Recently poutine came up in a convo I had with a foreigner. After they told me they visited Canada and while here made sure to try poutine, I explained to them that I was familiar with poutine before most Canadians knew what the hell it was and that in the not-too-distant past poutine wasn't well-known outside of Quebec. I estimated that it only started becoming popular outside of Quebec in maybe the late 90s. Am I off in this estimate, MeFi?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by GlassHeart at 10:28 PM on March 5, 2015 (33 comments)

Why is the world about to fall in love all over again? Why will we be marching hand in hand? Why are the ocean levels still rising up? It's a brand new record for 2015: MetaFilter's cover of They Might Be Giants' classic album, Flood!
posted to MeFi Music by not_on_display at 10:47 PM on January 11, 2015 (16 comments)

Why did I just spend 20 minutes looking at photographs of human gore? More specifically, I just looked at dozens of online images of the MH17 crash and the mangled bodies laying in the fields.(These images are not hard to find online.) I cried and felt like I was going to vomit while looking at pics of victims who fell from the sky when a missile hit their airplane, yet I kept looking for over 20 minutes. My question: What compelled me to look at these images? Is there a psychological explanation beyond the euphemism "morbid curiosity"? What part of my psyche does this activity satisfy even if no pleasure was derived from it?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Jason and Laszlo at 2:29 PM on December 30, 2014 (11 comments)