Lots of ethnic restaurants that the back of the house is staffed by illegal immigrant Hispanics. It seems they can pretty much out cook everyone.

Making bacon.

And I’m older than you and in the US-- I agree with you that Seinfeld was a waste of scotch tape also. There was nothing about it that ever resonated with me. And for the life of me, I can’t see how anyone else could be so fascinated by the premise of that TV show.

It’s not even worth the effort to be “offended” by it.

No, .step file is an exchange format, (think .pdf files), that can be used across different CAD programs to import geometry so you can work on them.

Unlike the common .stl format, a .step file contains a majority of the internal information that was created by original CAD model. While an .stl file is just meshes and nothing else.

PrusaSlicer can use .step files directly to slice. But I’m not sure that other forks/slicers can. I like models in .step file because it’s far easier to open them in whatever 3D CAD software I’m using to make changes to a model to suit my needs. I can do .st’ files, but it’s a pain to work with them.

People who do first layer tests across an entire build plate are being anal retentive. Or they are looking for some kind of bragging rights.

Thanks to the various auto bed leveling systems out there on every printer these days, it means very little to do such extreme tests. And as long as your heat bed is flat enough to be in compensation tolerance for the auto leveling system you are using, you will never notice much.

This is not to say that it can’t be a diagnostic tool if you ever need to check for a warped heat bed. But that’s pretty rare these days to find a heat bed that’s that bad. And if you are running Octoprint, there is a plugin to map the flatness of your build plate that you can see.

*** A word of caution: One needs to understand that the “flatness” of your build plate can and will change at various temps. Just because it might appear flat at one temperature, does not mean it will hold that flatness at a different temperature.

There are a fair number of methods to join pieces into larger assemblies.

Some people have used a 3D pen to “weld” an assembly. But from my observation, it’s not particularly strong. Super glues are popular for PLA. It bonds and holds well to PLA. PETG is better glued with epoxies vs super glues. But super glue will work in a pinch. Sometimes printing threaded parts is acceptable. But issues with fitment and strength of threads can be a problem. Simple machine screws and nuts are good for somethings. Even self-tapping screws are popular. Heat set brass threaded inserts are cheaply and widely available. And can be set with a cheap soldering iron. Various “snap together couplers” can be designed and 3D printed.

These are just a few ways to make assemblies with 3D printed parts. The trick is to learn how to choose what is the best for any particular model and that’s on you.

Making a model hold water can be as simple as “the thicker is better” approach by adding more perimeters and top and bottom layers. Or it can involve applying various suitable paints and sealers. Again like fasteners, your use will most likely dictate the methods that you choose.

Edit to add: From what I can see, PrusaSlicer currently offers the best tools to create cuts and locators right in the slicer. With perhaps Cura a close second, (but I haven’t use Cura in couple of years now).

One thing that people neglect to mention when they debate “Bambu vs Prusa” is the level of support. And support costs money. Prusa’s level of support is why I chose their brand over other far more expensive printers I was looking at the time. That support level matters to a business. And they are willing to pay for it. So Prusa is well situated to enter the commercial market as a known name.

Violence is always a valid answer. It’s just not always the best answer. The problem with violence is it’s been proven time and time again to be impossible to control and hold to a limited use since there are no cool heads at that point. Nor do specific targets exist-- just collateral damage.

And no successful revolutionary has ever had a sound plan for after the victory beyond “I want the power now.” And they can either hold the power or not. But the idea of “for the good of the people” gets put to the side pretty quickly.

Yeah, There are some maintenance things with CoreXY I’m not overly impressed with. The belts being one of them. Still, I think they are the future for consumer printers now. It’s going to be interesting to see how the CORE does in the market.

I did consider an up grade to my Mk3s to Mk4 abilities. But in the end I didn’t figure it was worth the money and effort for my needs. In the end, it might be considered slow now but it’s a tank of a printer. I am considering upgrading the control system by adding Klipper to my Raspberry Pi and flashing new firmware for the old 8bit Rambo board. It sounds like it would get me a Mk3.5 level of control and speed.

For many people the size will be fine. Most people can get along with 180 cubed for probably 80% of their printing needs. Not a lot of people need the really large print volumes.

I would assume that a CORE kit would come with Prusa’s excellent assembly instructions. Which should make it quite easy to put together.

I’m starting to think that Prusa is switching their focus from consumer grade printers to entry level pro machines and better. Prusa can’t really afford to be in that market as the race to the bottom accelerates. But there is a niche for small business use and full blown commercial use. Qidi seems to be the only player in that market right now. And the CORE seems to offer all the goodies that Qidi has with a much better reputation for reliability and support that would appeal to a small business.

I’m not so sure Prusa will go out of business. But I can see them switching focus from consumer machines to “pro-consumer” machines due to the race to the bottom with consumer machines. It’s impossible for Prusa to compete with Chinese manufacturers on price. The XL and the HT90 already appear to be moves towards that focus.

While I have recently added a Bambu A1 mini to sit along side my trusty old Mk3s+, that Prusa ain’t going nowhere. You will get my Mk3s when you can pry it from my cold dead hands…

My money is on fusion before proper socialism.

There is always someone willing to twist the rules and game the system to get more money and power than everyone else. The 1% have always existed and so have the worker class. It will always shake out to that.

At the start of the Russian Revolution, the Soviets tried that. Even they quickly discovered that pure democracy didn’t work well when choosing “the boss.” They even went so far as to remove ranks from the military. Which failed even faster.

Turns out, “the boss” often can’t afford to be popular or buddies with everyone when making decisions.

I wash my hands for nearly a minute. But most of that time is spent trying to get those stupid no touch faucets to work.

They often are partially recycled material. But recycled paper isn’t like recycling aluminum or steel. There are limits to how often and how much of the cycled material you can add back to make useful paper products.

But paper towels can and does make great compost as most gardeners know. And a properly run landfill is a compost pile. But you need to keep the nasty garbage out.

Yes you can assume all people don’t wash their hands correctly.

Sounds like it’s fine for decorative pieces but less so for items that require strength if you need to place severe limits on top and bottom and perimeters plus infill.

Violence from the masses requires the masses to feel like they are starving, sick, and dying with no way out except death. We have been slowly accelerating towards that violence for a while now.

Watch for an increase for those CEO’s, (at least insurance and pharmaceutical CEOs), to have much increased budget for private security measures. Both in surveillance and personnel. I think we will start to see more ‘black limo caravans’ like the the POTUS moves around in. And being surrounded by people in black suits with guns openly visible. They will do whatever it takes to stay alive and be evil.

The next question is: how long before politicians start becoming targets?

10 cent Near beer, (NA beer today), available for us kids to buy on street vending machines.

Some of my best memories was being able to get into town in the evenings after all the chores were done and playing baseball with my friends on a hot summer evening. And when we were done, we would walk uptown to the one pop machine that had Hamms near beer in it. At 10 cents for a 12 oz bottle it was amazing. So cold and so refreshing.

People today would absolutely lose their minds over 9 or 10 kids standing around on a sidewalk drinking NA beer today.

That’s a small amount of old airplanes. It’s not like there are 250 million 1947 Piper Cubs flying a 100,000+ Km a year.