vacuumflower
@vacuumflower@lemmy.sdf.org
- Comment on Germany’s CDU Pushes Real-Name Social Media Mandate and ID Checks 12 hours ago:
Because the system for going full Nazi has been built. For actual Nazis it was radio. Today it’s the Internet.
To be used for control it has to be regulated. It can be regulated so it will be.
Architecture defines outcome.
- Comment on OpenAI retired its most seductive chatbot – leaving users angry and grieving: ‘I can’t live like this’ 1 day ago:
Well, that chord looks wrong, but I meant finally having a class of programs that works similarly to objects we encounter IRL and entities that human cultures are used to internalizing. And human cultures responding with acceptance.
- Comment on OpenAI retired its most seductive chatbot – leaving users angry and grieving: ‘I can’t live like this’ 1 day ago:
Pygmalion is “Her (2013)” apparently.
Other than this I’m reminiscing on one of Lucian’s dialogues about a certain Aphrodite statue with extremely nice butt and one smitten visitor who was sneaking into the temple at night to pollinate that, resulting in precisely located mold spot.
Computers have finally caught up with humanity. This is good. I thought it’ll never happen that they are finally a part of human magical thinking. This is as terrifying as it’s inspiring.
- Comment on Homeland Security has reportedly sent out hundreds of subpoenas to identify ICE critics online 2 days ago:
So, from Russia - let’s see how people in your country of “dignity and culture to resist oppression and deep institutions” will pass through that future. From someone “not protesting enough” and “feeding the regime with my taxes” and “feeling fine when Ukrainians suffer” (technically true, except might not be the only thing true).
- Comment on In a blind test, audiophiles couldn't tell the difference between audio signals sent through copper wire, a banana, or wet mud 2 days ago:
Yes, so my well-trained ears prefer noisy sound, something like 48kb mp3s I downloaded from the web in my childhood (born 1996). Because that’s less likely to cause migraine through them than a good record with some annoying sounds in it, preserved by a more precise lossy encoding. And things you want to hear are kept well enough even by 48kbit mp3s.
And this surprisingly keeps with analog things, like headphones and speakers. I prefer something cheap and noisy that makes sounds softer to something quality and with crisp sound, but somehow too crisp.
And I do have good ears, I can hear a lot of things, a cat on a neighboring plot in countryside during wind, things like that. Hence the migraines.
- Comment on What dating apps are really optimizing. Hint: it isn’t love 2 days ago:
That’s because a social app that quickly solves the need of making a connection and then perpetually the need of maintaining it was called ICQ. Or AIM. Or other such. They were focused on the part after that hope.
The reason that’s no longer the normal model is simple - weak people are easier to exploit. The “after hope” model doesn’t keep people weak.
Even with XMPP - the classic instant messenger model of adding someone to friends, remember it? You send one invite message, and after it the other side won’t see anything you want to send until it accepts you into contacts. It might never do that. Or it might add you, see you’re sending unsolicited dick pics, remove you.
With dating apps all you need is a search by tags and tags corresponding with truth, and of course ability to choose who can contact you. The former is not hard. The latter is hard when people are interested in putting false tags, but not when the tag social metric, so to say, is commutative. The model where conversations are started by mutual “like” is good, I think. And the anonymized way (like with Pure, have tried using it when decided to become more social, got some insights but no dates, or more specifically one failed date) is good, when those who liked you are shown as anonymous invitations to accept or deny, but also when mutual “like” means accepting that invitation. I think one’s visibility and one’s point of view are something that should both be customizable with logical conditions. One should be able to set they want to only be seen by people without “no less than 20 inches” wish to not be frustrated when those people ghost them, or that they don’t want to see people without photos on their page, or that they only want to see people and be seen by people who like hiking or who like animals, but not both at the same time, or any other set of logical rules, everyone is different. Perhaps a limit on searches is good, though.
And then there is crime. Or mental illnesses. Or bad hygiene. Or conflict. That is, there are situations where outside observers should be able to evaluate who of the two sides is telling the truth about the other side being an abuser or whatever. I suppose some kind of escrow for contacts can be devised. This should be a social thing, a moderator can’t be trusted with correspondence and also with judgement. So - escrow by people trusted by both sides, something like that. To have a rating, it should be possible to tell who’s really spilling tea and who’s doing libel.
And if you were reading attentively, you might have noticed this doesn’t just apply to dating, this applies to everything about establishing contact over social media. Because that’s absolutely correct, dating doesn’t differ in anything from any other social connectivity. In other social events you too want to quickly find and communicate for long with someone. Romance being involved doesn’t change much or anything.
The reason these two purposes have been separated by businesses is pretty transparent - trying to apply general social media to dating shows that they don’t work, and trying to apply dating social media to normal long-term communication shows that they too don’t work. The issue is that what’s invisible still exists. That separation is just hiding what doesn’t work, but it still doesn’t work. A functional social media would function for both dating and daily buddy talk. Like ICQ did.
- Comment on [deleted] 5 days ago:
I’m talking about this not being great depression levels.
- Comment on Russia Launches First Brain-Chipped Bird Drones for Surveillance Over Cities 5 days ago:
It’s as if you weren’t reading what I’m saying.
That aside, roasted sunflower seeds are nice, it’s the stereotype of young pigs littering their shells in, eh, every public place where they are consumed, that’s a negative one.
Also roasted sunflower seeds are a product of Ukraine and south of Russia mostly, so the stereotype is as suited for Ukrainians as for Russians, perhaps more.
- Comment on [deleted] 6 days ago:
A minimum wage job, 1 minimum wage job, paid for a family in 1950. Bought a house, a cheap car, doctors, dentists, optometrists, other professional services people can’t do themselves, even able to go out to eat for a burger.
Yes, in 1950, damn right. Now do 1930.
by the 1980’s it was undeniably true that wages no longer paid for what they did
Still better than 1930.
but there is no future going further up, come straight back and join us in the sunshine brother!
I dunno, there might not be any sunshine stored for me, but it’s still not 1930.
- Comment on [deleted] 6 days ago:
There are some very old contracts still not terminated around. From Netherlands before William of Orange, or from England before Cromwell. Those of nation-states (WWII lend-lease of the famous ones).
working people don’t have the money to live a dignified life for the first time since the great depression in the US,
The US is not even close to that. Your comment be proof of that, you don’t even understand how life was there and then, despite that being history of your country portrayed well enough in many movies and books.
That said, there are, of course, complications to be expected.
- Comment on [deleted] 6 days ago:
It’s better to use what you can use.
- Comment on Lawyers set to argue that Instagram and YouTube intentionally addicted and harmed teen in landmark social media trial 6 days ago:
We’re constantly psychologically manipulated.
Yes, so about that - these things are actual power applied holding us on the necessary (for their owners) trajectory. There are already plenty of actual broken people. Nobody will stop them without a power solution. That is, a cure. A counter-manipulation technology, that manages to stay under the radar for its carriers to become strong enough before actually engaging in countering this.
I don’t see that future counterweight, perhaps that’s before, as said previously, it stays under the radar.
- Comment on ‘Manfluencers’ are filming themselves trying to pick up women using smart glasses 6 days ago:
I’m not a Muslim.
- Comment on ‘Manfluencers’ are filming themselves trying to pick up women using smart glasses 6 days ago:
It’s a reference to how in Judaism it’s considered impolite to write “God” on disposable sheets and such. Nothing to do with cowardice.
- Comment on Russia Launches First Brain-Chipped Bird Drones for Surveillance Over Cities 1 week ago:
the fact that russia can’t design and build a tank that doesn’t play turret toss when it gets hit with a shell or break down in the middle of a parade DOES have a lot in common with this - it’s called brain drain.
Older Soviet tanks play turret toss, you know why? Their automatic loading system is optimized for fire rates, but not safety. You know why that and what that achieves? That achieves a whole lot of tanks built during Soviet times for mass ground warfare in the WWIII as it was imagined then. When it’s one safer NATO tank against 5 worse but comparable (and fast-firing) Soviet tanks for the same expense, the choice (with Soviet doctrine) is obvious.
There was no brain drain then, these were all conscious design decisions making a difference of the scale of hundreds of tanks built.
Literally all of the smartest young people left Russia because the pay was bad and the prospects for living were better I’m the west.
Unfortunately no.
You say thag everyone of consequence involved in designing military equipment in russia has better knowledge than Germany? Due to what experience, getting their World War 2 era tanks pulled out of the mud by Ukrainian tractors?
You are a few years late even in talking about tanks.
That’s also something most Russians have passively understood by now about modern warfare, it’s all about information, planning, coordination done by many small drones, with humans reduced to techs and operators and, of course, small assault groups. Tanks have no place in that.
You’re wanting to claim a country that experienced that amount of brain drain is can do cutting edge brain surgery??
Brain drain is something that was happening when plenty of Soviet-educated engineers and scientists simply had no place in ex-Soviet countries, or by any measure the offers they could get were far better in the West. Right now there’s no coordinated incentive for said brain drain from the western governments. Which was a thing then.
Right now - yes, I think oil money that buys western components for weapons can buy expertise in areas of interest.
- Comment on ‘Manfluencers’ are filming themselves trying to pick up women using smart glasses 1 week ago:
Cowardice in general has become way too socially acceptable. Actually the norm. If you G-d forbid act so that you can be unambiguously determined as not a coward, then G-d help you.
And cowards understand each other very well. You can even expose them all as cowards, they’ll accept the shame and admit you’re right and all such, and then they’ll still feel victorious, because in a society of cowards cowardice always wins in all ways but one.
Living like “Hagakure” for real is perhaps the only way to preserve your humanity in some life situations, but that won’t lead to happiness. And the author of “Hagakure” refused to commit seppuku when his suzerain died, because “times have changed”.
And meeting people who live by those principles, you damn hard wish they hid or cowered or stepped back that one time that led them to pain for their remaining lives from those not worth their breath.
I’m thinking of a woman, by the way. Men of that quality are far more rare.
- Comment on ‘Manfluencers’ are filming themselves trying to pick up women using smart glasses 1 week ago:
This is honestly better than what I’ve encountered. At least they are trying to attract a woman.
There are types who can both hate a woman’s personality and envy those she likes and hate her for not liking them, all at the same time.
But yes, being male, I’ve been recently inspired by reading about medical advancements in procreation without boys. This will be necessary to counter the population growth on the side of various shmucks and their abused wives.
(I’ve recently learned I have no right to call myself a shmuck since 13 years ago.)
- Comment on 1 week ago:
Yes. They should perhaps dispose of that server when returned, or thoroughly examine all the firmware and such for changes. A hostile party has touched it.
- Comment on The Department of Homeland Security Is Demanding That Google Turn Over Information About Random Critics 1 week ago:
Not cower in fear, but throwing a brittle hard item (that is, made of glass) at them may be legally stretched far enough. Perhaps if you are fine with dealing damage, do a proper Molotov cocktail.
- Comment on British soldiers to get new AI radios, headsets and tablets 1 week ago:
Militaries have always known how to work with and around bad equipment.
Yes, and in that light one can think that defense corruption traditions have an evolutionary reason - they maintain this ability. It doesn’t really matter if something stupid is mandated for purely honest, just misguided, reason, or for a corrupt one, but corruption requires the ability to avoid the outcomes.
- Comment on The new Microsoft copilot key is impossible to properly remap. 1 week ago:
Honestly X11 keystroke and modifier management is not that good. Because were it better, you could map any sequence to a different kind of action, possibly intercepting them. Instead you have keystrokes with modifiers, sometimes the keystroke is the modifier key alone. One can work around some things of this with, say, WM menus in FVWM called by one keystroke with modifier and then keybindings for menu items to have something like Emacs UX.
- Comment on 1 week ago:
Oh no, without a warrant. How could they. How impolite. No, our security is only intended for jurisdictions with law-abiding police.
- Comment on British soldiers to get new AI radios, headsets and tablets 1 week ago:
Object recognition and classification is more narrowly AI, and from the description this thing might have it.
I’m not sure it’d be a good thing, of course - it’s very unlikely it can reliably classify everything , which will create a contrast between what the combatant uses their senses for and what they are hinted on screen. That’s a very ergonomically debilitating effect. Like night lighting makes you blind for everything outside the illuminated area. Or try playing an airplane simulator game with realistic interactive cockpit and an arcade HUD with less information above it, it’s guaranteed you’ll mostly ignore the former and the information it gives you.
- Comment on The Department of Homeland Security Is Demanding That Google Turn Over Information About Random Critics 1 week ago:
- It might, 2) they might think they are being attacked seriously and use live rounds, 3) they might identify you later and put you into jail.
- Comment on The Department of Homeland Security Is Demanding That Google Turn Over Information About Random Critics 1 week ago:
Be careful with glass ones, though.
- Comment on Russia Launches First Brain-Chipped Bird Drones for Surveillance Over Cities 1 week ago:
I’ve heard of the particular people behind that particular company achieving similar things 12 years ago with, eh, humans. That’s of the “bloody regime horror stories” genre. There will be no proof.
Also honestly
would put the company decades beyond any tech I have seen
why not? They have plenty of money and expertise. Something you don’t want to believe? Too bad, neither do I.
- Comment on Russia Launches First Brain-Chipped Bird Drones for Surveillance Over Cities 1 week ago:
You do, of course, understand that this has nothing in common with building a tank?
You do also understand that (just guessing) if you’re from a German instance, then probably everyone of consequence involved in designing military hardware in Russia has better knowledge of their domain area than people analogous to them from German MIC and military? Simply due to experience gained. That does apply to tanks.
Anyway. I don’t know if it’s real, but you just go and read whose company it is. It might be.
- Comment on Ubisoft Fires Team Lead For Criticising Stupid Return-To-Office Mandate 1 week ago:
I’m fine with the idea of a coop for a business. There are people whom I’d want to associate with. There’s a little catch - we all do different things in different areas. And those who do the same things in the same areas as me whom I know - those I wouldn’t want a coop with. I mean, OK, possibly I would.
- Comment on I used an original iPod Nano in 2026, and it worked surprisingly well 1 week ago:
or leave it with zero charge for too long
That.
- Comment on I used an original iPod Nano in 2026, and it worked surprisingly well 1 week ago:
Well, my PSP had its battery inflate. I had replaced that battery a few years ago, used it a bit, then forgot about it. Recently found that the new battery is in oopsie state too.
It’s not just degradation.
And PSP is still a fine device. Actually amazingly useful, it’s the missing branch of evolution that should have been chosen instead of smartphones. No touchscreen, but convenient controls. If it only had a SIM port. There even was a Skype client.
A general purpose device and not a gaming one, like PSP, would be very good. Instead of that proprietary optical drive - additional ports and memory card slots, perhaps even a section with an interface for some extension chips. A similar set of buttons - except perhaps a retractable (or attachable via some interface) QWERTY keyboard would be useful.
The UI and UX of the OS were very cool. OK, I was using it for listening to music and reading books.