Things to Listen to While Grinding

[Razaele]

So, I've picked up Ragnarok again (at the request of my friend), and I'm having an alright time. The problem is, like my previous experience with Ragnarok and any other MMORPG's out there, is that grinding is a chore. It gets really boring and monotonous, but I don't really wanna quit because the PVP itself is fun. So, I've devised a way to keep myself from falling asleep while grinding. I plan to listen to audio books, stand up comedy routines, etc., to keep me entertained while I do my thing. Does anybody have any suggestions? :smallbiggrin: Also, no music related suggestions please, because I've pretty much had my fill with most genres out there. Thanks in advance! :smallwink:

[kamikasei]

The Mark Steel Lectures (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mark_Steel_Lectures). Entertaining and informative biographies of famous historical figures. They don't add up to that long a play time, unfortunately - the friend who introduced me to them listened to the entire run in one night of WoW grinding (mind, I do mean one full night, dusk to dawn).

For comedy, there is of course Bill Hicks. Also Mitch Hedburg. I've recently discovered Tim Minchin but only through YouTube, don't know how available his material is otherwise.

[Corlindale]

Plenty of free audiobooks to be found here (http://librivox.org/). Note however that it only contains books in the public domain, so mostly older classics. It is also read by volunteers so quality may vary - but most of the stuff I've heard have been decent.

You could also find some audio language-learning course - that would be a quite constructive way to spend your grind-time:smallsmile:. I've usually found that it's easily possible to focus on the lessons while playing no-brainer parts of stuff like WoW or D2.

[Hunter Noventa]

I was going to suggest putting Trombe! on infinite loop since it makes anything feel awesome, but another thing you might want to look for are Radio Dramas. I have a few on CD, namely the original Star Wars Trilogy, and they're pretty cool to listen to once in a while.

Sadly, i don't know where you could find such things online save for potentially less-than-legal methods.

[bosssmiley]

The Mark Steel Lectures (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mark_Steel_Lectures). Entertaining and informative biographies of famous historical figures.

One of the few good things the BBC has done recently. The Mary Shelley one was particularly hilarious (Mary as the Ur-sulky Goth chick IIRC). :smallamused:

If not lectures then ambient electronica (Moby, Chicane, etc.) or classical (all geeks love Bach) help to pass the time nicely.

*looks about surreptitiously*

Or there's prog rock (Hawkwind, Yes, etc.)

[Hannes]

The sweet whizz from the machine before it hits the metal? (http://www.betterphoto.com/uploads/processed/0019/0412010829571grinding-11.jpg)

[Egiam]

When I saw this topic, I thought you were reffering to dance music.

I would suggest buying a Dragonforce album. The one with "through the fire and the flames" (forgot the name) and/or Valley of the Dammed.

All of their music is the same. It is long and constantly changing, but still sounds like every other song.

It's the kind of music were you just let it play by itself and don't bother skipping tracks.

[Decoy Lockbox]

When I saw this topic, I thought you were reffering to dance music.

I would suggest buying a Dragonforce album. The one with "through the fire and the flames" (forgot the name) and/or Valley of the Dammed.

All of their music is the same. It is long and constantly changing, but still sounds like every other song.

It's the kind of music were you just let it play by itself and don't bother skipping tracks.

I dunno, I thought he was trying to relieve monotony, not create more of it :smallbiggrin:

He also said he wasn't interested in music. but if he was interested in music, I would reccomend he listen to some really freaky stuff like Dog Fashion Disco or Sigh or Boredoms.

For comedy, I suggest Bill Hicks, Patton Oswalt, George Carlin, Daniel Tosh, Jim Gaffigan, Dave Chapelle, David Cross, Dov Davidov....the list goes on. Comics who specialized in telling long stories (like Chapelle) should keep you occupied for a while.

[Fifty-Eyed Fred]

Why has Karl Pilkington not been mentioned?!?

You can get the audiobooks off iTunes (unless they've been taken down by now, since they're going to make it into an animated series), but if you want stuff for free you'll get not only much more content (how does 99 hour-long shows sound to you?) but the free Xfm shows are better than what you'd be paying for. Just go to http://www.pilkipedia.co.uk and head over to the downloads section. You will not be disappointed. I recommend starting with late series 1 or series 2.

[Sholos]

I came in expecting something completely different. Think dancing, not playing an MMORPG. Anyways, for stuff to keep you awake, I've always found music to be better than anything else. Besides, other stuff just distracts you, doesn't it?

[Moff Chumley]

Get Music for 18 Musicians by Steve Reich. Its a fifty minute piece in which each instrument's part slowly morphs over the course of the song. When combined with other monotonous activities (work, grinding, et cetera) it creates this really weird trance-like state... time passes very quickly, and it's not boring. Shockingly.

[Dragonus45]

Im listening to the harry potter books on tape while i play maple story. I wouldnt recomend them on repeat like i do for days on end. But once through makes for a good deal. Just try to get the Stephen fry version. He makes them come alive.

[Moff Chumley]

And then there's Futurama reruns.

I vote for those.

[WhiteHarness]

The word "grinding" seems to mean something very different to you all than it means to me...

[Lord Seth]

EDIT: Whoops, missed the part where you said not to give music suggestions. Never mind!

[Icewalker]

And then there's Futurama reruns.

I vote for those.

I spent at least a year playing WoW regularly with Futurama always playing in the background. It was actually ridiculous, as I reached a point where I could almost go through a few episodes verbatim. It was way too much. :smallsigh:

Anyway, in terms of music I'd suggest Flogging Molly, makes good grinding music I found. In terms of spoken stuff, George Carlin. Great stuff. I've got a full book of his as an audiobook, as read by him, and it's quite wonderful.

[Razaele]

Awesome! I'm gonna try most of the suggestions out. Thanks guys! Also, sorry for the confusion with the thread title, it didn't occur to me that people would get mixed up by the word "grinding". :smalltongue: