the 2008 l.o.u.n.g.e.
I. New l.o.u.n.g.e. setup

    As the 2007-2008 school year came to a close, it was decided that the l.o.u.n.g.e. should move to apartment-style housing, since the price of housing (which had restricted the l.o.u.n.g.e. to a two-room suite in the past) was no longer a problem for the residents. This decision was also precipitated by the fact that the then-current location of the l.o.u.n.g.e. [1] would be closed over the summer.

    Instead of doing something that might be considered normal, the residents of the l.o.u.n.g.e. decided to again push the bounds of interior design towards the insane. Each of the four individual bedrooms were scrapped; instead only one room was used as a bedroom (with the now-traditional quadruple-bunked bed), leaving three other rooms (plus a lounge) open to other purposes. One room was selected to be a dedicated study lounge; another was selected to be a server/storage room; and the last a computer workstation room. The main lounge, of course, would contain the highest level of groovitude, incorporating the previously established elements of the l.o.u.n.g.e. from years before [1,2].

    A diagram of the proposed setup can be seen in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Abandonment of sanity.

II. Move from the old l.o.u.n.g.e.

    Several new possible locations for the l.o.u.n.g.e. were originally discussed. However, the residents of the l.o.u.n.g.e. apparently did not have the requisite coolness to be placed in the most optimal of rooms by Georgia Tech Housing. The chosen new location was approximately 1000 feet down a treacherous hill which actually did not have a pit of crocodiles as Figure 2 indicates.

Figure 2. Slight dramatization of move route.

    Because Georgia Tech forced the move of the l.o.u.n.g.e. two days after finals ended, packing of the lounge could not begin until late on the day beforehand, because some residents were busy standing around receiving a piece of paper. Large amounts of sleep were lost in the hurry to pack the numerous goods and electronics into temporary boxes late in the night.

Figure 3. Correct disposal of large letters.	Figure 4. Harsh punishment was in store for those who did not work hard enough.
Figure 5. The clear organization of this endeavor is evident.	Figure 6. Proper cleanup of aluminum cans.

Figure 7. Getting close to the pit of crocodiles.

    Much later, all of the countless electronic devices and useless things were moved outside the new l.o.u.n.g.e. location. This did wonders for transportation through the hallway outside the l.o.u.n.g.e., and needless to say, everyone who passed by the area was more than pleased with the situation.

Figure 8. Don't call the Fire Marshal.

    Quickly all of the electronic devices were set up in the new room to allow for maximum groovitude to take place as soon as possible. It was indeed not long before movie-watching could occur. The bed construction was difficult, however; each piece of the frame was from a different bed set, meaning no two frames had drilled holes in the same places. It is indeed questionable how well these beds would have held up before the l.o.u.n.g.e. bunked them. With the help of a magical high-speed spinning and cutting device these problems were quickly solved.

Figure 9. These bolts aren't even the same size!



Figure 10. It is clear no Housing policies are being violated here.

III. Main Improvements

    The larger layout of the new l.o.u.n.g.e. allowed for many new possibilities. With five possible rooms to use instead of two, the old computer room of the l.o.u.n.g.e. was broken up into three separate rooms: a computer terminal room, a server / storage room, and a movie-watching / music-listening lounge. The fourth room was used as a bedroom, and the fifth as a dedicated study lounge. However, the large movie-watching lounge did not possess the fluorescent fixtures, so fixtures needed to be purchased and assembled; these cost approximately $35 each and can be seen in Figure 11.

Figure 11. The dark side is evident here.

    Another new device was a new record player [2], which was bought with the intended purpose of transcoding records to a digital format. However, the turntable's performance was slightly hindered when the improperly mounted projector screen traveled downwards from the ceiling using the force of gravity to attack the turntable. The turntable was repaired with the magic of solder and screwdrivers.

Figure 12. One might think we're (crazy / foolish / delirious).

    Figures 13 through 17 show a picture of each of the five rooms in the l.o.u.n.g.e., from the perspective of a person entering the room. This is the perspective more commonly seen, as an average person will enter the l.o.u.n.g.e. more times in a day than they will leave it.

Figure 13. Better not put on too much weight, there's only 20 inches per bunk. Figure 14. Electric guitars increase studying productivity. Figure 15. The aluminum foil keeps the government out of residents' brains. Figure 16. Central heating system. Figure 17. Classes don't actually leave enough time for the proper enjoyment of this room.

    Another very important improvement (though not done by the denizens of the l.o.u.n.g.e.) was the availability of a l.o.u.n.g.e.-controlled thermostat. In the older building, the air conditioning would turn to heat in the winter (even though the l.o.u.n.g.e. most certainly did not need heat). This useful addition helped prevent server room fires.

IV. Drawbacks and Problems

    While the l.o.u.n.g.e. is indeed the coolest place to ever exist in the history of the universe, it has slight drawbacks. First of all, the rooms themselves are not very large and can lead to flow problems when the number of people in the l.o.u.n.g.e. increases.

    Additionally, an unforeseen problem was wall thickness. In the old buildings (2006 and 2007), the walls were concrete, and the l.o.u.n.g.e. was on a peninsula, so no noise was ever heard from other rooms. However, the new building had much thinner walls, meaning that noise insulation was nowhere near as good. On top of this, the l.o.u.n.g.e. was now next to other rooms that other people lived in. The computer room, where music was usually playing, had a neighbor who apparently wanted to listen to the music late at night, but could not comprehend that it was a wall separating the l.o.u.n.g.e. and their room. Presumably thinking it was a door, they would bang on it, as if to ask to be let in. However, even when directed to use the front door, they did not attempt to do so. In an attempt to resolve this problem, the computer room was switched with the server/storage room in December 2008. Since this point the misguided neighbor has not asked to be let in.

V. Photo Gallery



Figure 18. The Samsung SyncMaster 204Bs have proven to be very unreliable.



Figure 19. Keyboard stand made of musical instruments.



Figure 20. The exact reason the guitar controller cords are tangled with the rest is unknown.



Figure 21. The extremely uncomfortable couch was shoved into storage.



Figure 22. The original N64 has given birth to many other gaming systems, which are rarely used.



Figure 23. "Silent" fanless G4 Cube powers music status display.



Figure 24. The robot still has the best seat.



Figure 25. The hazards of duct tape have still not been learned.



Figure 26. Movie-watching mode.



Figure 27. The informational whiteboard teaches this viewer complex mathematics.



Figure 28. Strategic whiteboard near the sink helps manage dietary needs.



Figure 29. The bookshelf next to the study table.



Figure 30. Walter, the resident tree, is still recovering from a malicious attack by several freshmen in 2007.



Figure 31. Only science is allowed on the study room whiteboard.

VI. Bibliography

[1]. 2007 l.o.u.n.g.e. - http://www.ratml.org/lounge/lounge_2007.html
[2]. 2006 l.o.u.n.g.e. - http://www.ratml.org/lounge/lounge_2006.html
[3]. Stanton T.50 Turntable - http://www.stantondj.com/v2/prod_t50.asp