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Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

polygon.com

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Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#121

Post by wodenokoto »

chrisshroba wrote: post #116
tialaramex wrote: post #53

Yes. In the EU product "denatured alcohol" for most purposes is likewise treated with the same agent. This replaces the widespread use of methanol and similar products which are poisonous (yes even if you call the product "meths" it probably isn't methanol in the EU today). The rationale is that poisoning people is not an appropriate reaction to attempted tax avoidance. Alcohol is only "denatured" because booze is ta…

I'm sorry for my ignorance, but could someone give more context on this? I don't understand what "denatured alcohol" is, how it relates to tax avoidance, or what illegal use people are finding for it?

You tax alcohol for consumption but not for cleaning products, like rubbing alcohol.

Now you need to figure out a way to stop people from consuming cleaning products.

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#123

Post by jonny_eh »

chrisshroba wrote: post #116
tialaramex wrote: post #53

Yes. In the EU product "denatured alcohol" for most purposes is likewise treated with the same agent. This replaces the widespread use of methanol and similar products which are poisonous (yes even if you call the product "meths" it probably isn't methanol in the EU today). The rationale is that poisoning people is not an appropriate reaction to attempted tax avoidance. Alcohol is only "denatured" because booze is ta…

I'm sorry for my ignorance, but could someone give more context on this? I don't understand what "denatured alcohol" is, how it relates to tax avoidance, or what illegal use people are finding for it?

Governments started adding poison to alcohol products that are not meant for human consumption. They did this because people would buy products like rubbing alcohol to produce alcoholic drinks at home, since they were cheaper (e.g. avoiding sales taxes).

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#124

Post by jonny_eh »

flatiron wrote: post #57
badlucklottery wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Did Sony do this with the Vita cartridges? Well, wonder no longer. I just licked a PS Vita copy of World of Final Fantasy and it only tastes faintly of plastic.

My SD2Vita also doesn’t taste too bad ;)

What about the microSD?

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#125

Post by greiskul »

chrisshroba wrote: post #116
tialaramex wrote: post #53

Yes. In the EU product "denatured alcohol" for most purposes is likewise treated with the same agent. This replaces the widespread use of methanol and similar products which are poisonous (yes even if you call the product "meths" it probably isn't methanol in the EU today). The rationale is that poisoning people is not an appropriate reaction to attempted tax avoidance. Alcohol is only "denatured" because booze is ta…

I'm sorry for my ignorance, but could someone give more context on this? I don't understand what "denatured alcohol" is, how it relates to tax avoidance, or what illegal use people are finding for it?

There are many uses for Ethanol like starting fires, some stoves, not to mention industrial uses. Alcoholic beverages are normally taxed with a 'sin tax' to discourage consumption. Goverments realized that people could just drink Ethanol that was sold for other uses, maybe mixed with stuff to make cocktails, but that circumvents the 'sin tax' i.e. tax avoidance.

So some countries sell https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denatured_alcohol, which is alcohol with additives to discourage consumption. Some countries limit themselves to just adding a foul taste and smell, while some add poisonous substances to it to make it toxic.

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#126

Post by matheusmoreira »

chrisshroba wrote: post #116
tialaramex wrote: post #53

Yes. In the EU product "denatured alcohol" for most purposes is likewise treated with the same agent. This replaces the widespread use of methanol and similar products which are poisonous (yes even if you call the product "meths" it probably isn't methanol in the EU today). The rationale is that poisoning people is not an appropriate reaction to attempted tax avoidance. Alcohol is only "denatured" because booze is ta…

I'm sorry for my ignorance, but could someone give more context on this? I don't understand what "denatured alcohol" is, how it relates to tax avoidance, or what illegal use people are finding for it?

Alcohol is extremely useful for many things but some people will drink it if they find it. So they add denatonium to it to discourage that. Alcohols that are meant for people to drink are taxed more heavily, so adding denatonium puts it into a completely different category of product thereby avoiding all those taxes. Just like the way Sony avoided taxes by adding Linux support to the PS2 and PS3 which caused it to be classified as a different type of computer.

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#127

Post by kunai »

lstodd wrote: post #120
kunai wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you're using alcohol for cleaning 70% concentrations are better as they actually kill and lyse pathogens at that concentration, while 99% will just desiccate them, allowing for reactivation when in a moist environment.

My hands, from working with NF/USP Isopropyl alcohol tend to disagree. It desiccates, defats, and generally kills everything in sight.

Of course alcohol is a powerful solvent at any concentration, but there are definitely studies[1] that demonstrate 70% being a bit more effective at disinfecting.

[1]: https://www.webmd.com/first-aid/ss/rubbing-alcohol-uses

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#128

Post by pvaldes »

mikestew wrote: post #6
llbeansandrice wrote: post #5

I was unfortunately reminded this when swapping out game cartridges on a flight once. I stuck one in my mouth a bit to hold it while I messed with the carrying case and other cartridge and had the awful bitter taste for the rest of the flight.

...and had the awful bitter taste for the rest of the flight. Thanks for saving my lunch by letting me know that it is not just a momentary bit of unpleasantness, because I was about to go grab one from the Switch case here at 11:46 in the morning just to see how bad it is. EDIT: curiosity got the best of me. If I can eat a green persimmon, I can handle a Nintendo cartridge. A little lick of the sticker tells me not…

Trivia. I ate green persimmons, but there is a trick. It --must-- be a persimmon from the correct cultivar (or a treated one). It doesn't worth it, but is perfectly doable. Somebody trying the same in a common persimmon will suffer the persimmoncalypse.

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#129

Post by jonny_eh »

tribby wrote: post #49

another example of this kind of intentionality from nintendo is the curve on top of SNES, which is there to discourage setting drinks on top of it, unlike the NES before it

The SNES is also top loaded (like the Famicom), so wouldn't normally be a good drink surface.

Re: Nintendo Switch game cartridges taste offensively bad (2017)

#130

Post by matheusmoreira »

323 wrote: post #104
tialaramex wrote: post #53

Yes. In the EU product "denatured alcohol" for most purposes is likewise treated with the same agent. This replaces the widespread use of methanol and similar products which are poisonous (yes even if you call the product "meths" it probably isn't methanol in the EU today). The rationale is that poisoning people is not an appropriate reaction to attempted tax avoidance. Alcohol is only "denatured" because booze is ta…

Drinking this medical disinfectant denaturated alcohol has become a meme in Romania, where very poor people drink it because it's so cheap - $1.5 for 1L of 70% ABV (almost twice Vodka strength which is about 40% ABV). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdZuHPjJtgs&t=1825s

I've seen alcoholic patients try to drink alcohol 70% antiseptic solutions in the emergency room.
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