pinball_wizard
@pinball_wizard@lemmy.zip
- Comment on Microsoft update breaks localhost in Windows 11 2 weeks ago:
Ouch. I’m in this picture, and I don’t like it. Haha.
- Comment on Microsoft update breaks localhost in Windows 11 2 weeks ago:
It felt risky upgrading my work PC to Linux, but I’m so thankful not to be dealing with this bullshit.
We did everything inside of WSL already, anyway.
- Comment on DirecTV screensavers will show AI-generated ads with your face in 2026 2 weeks ago:
Penis-face sure looks like he’s having a great time in that cold medicine ad!
- Comment on The Full Story of BOOX: How a Chinese Startup Revolutionized the Global E-Reader Market 2 weeks ago:
Yes. Boox is nice, if you want it for adding Android apps.
I side load on mine a great deal.
Fast things like games and movies don’t play nice with the slow eInk screen.
But board games, puzzle games, digital comics, and simple websites all work great.
I was surprised that background processes do fine, with some patience. I have something running to back up my notes to my NAS.
- Comment on The Full Story of BOOX: How a Chinese Startup Revolutionized the Global E-Reader Market 2 weeks ago:
Boox are great!
I don’t trust the services they default to, but they’re full unlocked Android, so they talk to my NAS and other services I choose.
If you don’t care for the battery life or screen refresh rate, be aware that there’s now a setting so you can pick your preference (faster refresh means shorter battery life).
- Comment on I've recently turned into a blocker. 2 weeks ago:
Just be aware of any filter bubble you might create.
That’s a great point. I block pretty easily, but for rudeness, not for disagreement.
I’ve blocked some assholes that I wholeheartedly agree with, but I just don’t want to read them abrasively support things I believe in.
- Comment on I've recently turned into a blocker. 2 weeks ago:
Yes. I block at the drop of a hat, but I’m still really not blocking all that many total users. Most folks here are very considerate.
It is funny though, I’ll often see half a conversation with an asshole - and I won’t know if it’s because the community is well moderated or because I just previously blocked the asshole.
More rarely, I’ll see half of an interesting good faoth conversation, and I’ll revisit and unblock someone.
- Comment on A tangled web of deals stokes AI bubble fears in Silicon Valley 2 weeks ago:
One outcome will be a sea-level-rise in superfluous text that’s all coming from the same point-of-view and is pretty bland.
Searching the Internet for a banana bread recipe allows us to experience this full distopia, today.
The web used to be full of recipes. Now most of the web is copies of the same mediocre recipe wrapped in meaningless filler text and ads.
It feels like the village at the end of “A wrinkle in time”.
- Comment on Everyday AI looks more like the '08 housing bubble 2 weeks ago:
They do look like bubbles.
- Comment on People regret buying Amazon smart displays after being bombarded with ads 2 weeks ago:
they’ll lobby these techs as unsafe and dangerous and potentially ban their use outright, or require special licenses and degrees.
They have a strong foundation in the DRM built into HDMI. I suspect this is exactly the real reason it is there.
- Comment on Millions in England face higher water bills after regulator backs more price rises 2 weeks ago:
What if we raise prices for as many people as possible so a few very rich people can have more money?
- Comment on Does anyone have tried minecraft java edition on mobile? 3 weeks ago:
It’s worth noting that the full version of Luanti runs natively on Android, is fully free, and plays fully cross platform will all Luanti servers and other copies of Luanti.
One Android phone copy of Luanti can even serve the game to a few other players playing on PC or Android.
- Comment on Senate report says AI will take 97M US jobs in the next 10 years, but those numbers come from ChatGPT 3 weeks ago:
You can tell how competent someone is at something by how good they think AI is at that thing.
This is so true.
I recently had a colleague - ignorant of this perspective - give a training presentation on using AI to update a kind of bullshit job useless document.
Dozens of peers attended their presentation. They went on demonstrating relatively mindless prompt inputting for 40 minutes.
I keep remembering just how many people they shared their AI enthusiasm with.
I think they may honestly believe that AI has democratized the workplace, and that they will vibe code their way to successful startup CEO-ship in a year.
- Comment on Google Confirms Non-ADB APK Installs Will Require Developer Registration 3 weeks ago:
The phone space is ruled by apps. The phone makers and the companies developing apps prefer it this way.
That’s true, but for everything non-free, they always end up having a perfectly working web app that will accept my money.
- Comment on Harsh 3 weeks ago:
And the next night, try doing it again with Sony Walkmen.
- Comment on Microsoft triples down and blocks even more Microsoft Account bypasses on Windows 11 — an online account is non-negotiable 3 weeks ago:
I am also not negotiating on having a Windows account.
- Comment on More Halo: Combat Evolved Remake Details Emerge, Including Who Is Making It 3 weeks ago:
My prediction: Minecraft crossover DLC within a year of release.
Advertised with a chicken jockey riding on a covenant walker.
- Comment on More Halo: Combat Evolved Remake Details Emerge, Including Who Is Making It 3 weeks ago:
This feels sad for everyone involved.
There’s so many okay games that could be remastered into excellent ones.
If I didn’t have the Master Chief Collection, I would obtain my copy before Microsoft makes it have an “accident”.
- Comment on More Halo: Combat Evolved Remake Details Emerge, Including Who Is Making It 3 weeks ago:
Yes. Halo CE plus changes on a new engine sounds strictly worse.
- Comment on How do I make pictures less blinding if I prefer dark apps? 3 weeks ago:
On Lemmy, I just block users who post images with white backgrounds. They’re delightful users, but there aren’t that many of them, and it is worth it to keep my feed dark room friendly.
┐( ∵ )┌
- Comment on Head of the Signal app threatens to withdraw from Europe 3 weeks ago:
politicians are very stupid when it comes to tech it seems.
They are so so so stupid, about this.
There will be so much blackmail and ruined political careers if these backdoors get installed.
A backdoor is never solely used by the folks one might hope would use it.
- Comment on I balance my checkbook every day. I manage my bank acount . Why does the goverment have so much problems with this? I get large payouts and such but it always seem they are in the neg?? 3 weeks ago:
I’ve noticed that a number of politicians show signs of sociopathy.
I think that’s a key difference.
- Comment on Are Street Racers "bad people"? 3 weeks ago:
Uh…
You and I have visited very different speedways.
Where I come from, if the engine turns over, it is race eligible.
And if the engine doesn’t turn over, there’s a cool giant fire breathing robot we can still feed the car to.
- Comment on Are Street Racers "bad people"? 4 weeks ago:
but you guys are we really so sure that subjecting others to the coercion of a prison-industrial complex is justified when all they’re doing is following their instincts?
Assume we’re not talking desert highway street racing - or places that no one cares:
Their instincts could kill my kid. The prison industrial complex is the nicer response.
People who routinely behave in ways that endanger children are unaware of how many of the rest of us own a good shovel and know a spot to get rid of their body.
How do we know that we’re not the ones who are actually bad people?
Oh. The ethical implications are truly complex, but they don’t matter because we won’t agree to live with them. Child endangerment doesn’t routinely lead to deep ethical introspection. People tend to just go with the instincts that allowed children to survive over so many generations.
And yes, this is also why so many bad laws get passed “for the children”.
My advice for street racers: do it out of sight of any parents, and we’ll away from anywhere that children play.
- Comment on Is anyone NOT steaming their Music? 4 weeks ago:
My Compact Discs (CDs) and my compact disc players both still work fine.
Occasional visits to thrift shops have expanded my collection at very affordable prices.
The variety of music I enjoy is unimpressive but steady.
But the load times are very nice, and the network resilience is unmatched.
- Comment on Cracker Barrel Outrage Was Almost Certainly Driven by Bots, Researchers Say 4 weeks ago:
Yes. It’s incredibly stupid. But I don’t see why anyone cares.
That said, I could absolutely believe that the rebranding was to deliberately destroy the brand, as part of some rich people destroy Toys R Us / Gamestop type of crap.
- Comment on Which career to pursue? 4 weeks ago:
A friend and I graduated the same year, and both had potential as a coder or graphic designer.
I chose to focus on coding, he chose to focus on graphic design.
I have had higher income and stronger job stability across my career, so far.
AI has affected both professions, but AI is still shit at doing either job correctly. It seems immediately obvious when companies shovel out AI slop images. It is less obvious when back end web server code is a vulnerable pile of shit. There’s a lot of “fuck around and find out” happening in AI over-adoption, right now.
The market for programming is at an all time low, with like 93% employment, last time I checked. - Which is still pretty nice.
The US gov predicts further recision of programming jobs next year. Recruiters reaching out make it seem - to me - like the demand is heating back up, again. But I’m some random person, and they’re scientists. ¯_(ツ)_/¯ If I were you I would trust them more than me.
References:
- Comment on How long can someone physically walk for? 4 weeks ago:
“Paweł undertook this challenge to raise money for the Diamond Soul Foundation, a charity he co-founded which supports people in their recovery from addiction. They also organize free one-week camps in Sicily for underprivileged children.”
Very cool.
- Comment on Dedicated mobile apps for vibe coding have so far failed to gain traction | TechCrunch 4 weeks ago:
Yes. The Cybersecurity implications are… unfortunate.
For anyone who has put off locking their credit reports down…Well, I certainly would get that done.
- Comment on Amazon is making it impossible to remove the DRM from Kindle Books 5 weeks ago:
Agreed, the battery life is way worse. I find tht features of full unlocked Android to be a worthwhile trade.
But my point is that the prices of various eInk Android tablets aren’t unreasonable anymore.