Curious_Canid

@Curious_Canid@piefed.ca

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨I don't actually read the news. I surmise the news based on memes that begin popping up for which I have no context.⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  That approach makes up a large part of the world in which we now live. It is also one reason why things are as messed up as they are. On the other hand, whether or not to read the news has become a major mental health issue, so I’m not going to blame anyone who avoids it.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨I went back to Linux and it was a mistake⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  Whether or not this particular person should know better, migrating to Linux is unlikely to be a seamless transition for most people in the real world. I think the article emphasized the problem and understated the benefits. Let’s just not pretend there aren’t compromises to be made, even if they are reasonable ones.

  I have to use a Windows machine for work. I use both Windows and Linux for personal use. And I still miss OS/2. :-)

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK About Resilience Targeting⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  I’m seeing a lot of articles about how to defend yourself against being overwhelmed by the awful things going on. This is one of the most useful. It is short, informative, and has good suggestions.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨‘In the end, you feel blank’: India’s female workers watching hours of abusive content to train AI⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  I don’t think that is a characteristic of our species. It is not universally true across other cultures.
  And studies strongly suggest that the characteristic that was most important to the early survival of humans was altruism. There are always a lot more people who are basically good than basically bad. Only around 4% of the population are sociopathic.

  Unfortunately, promoting sociopaths is a built-in characteristic of capitalism. Without controls, it rewards managers who are willing to sacrifice other people for profit (or power). The people who do that the best are those without empathy. So we end up with the worst of us making the decisions about how the world should work.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Why I Don’t Believe in a Lost Advanced Civilization...Yet⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  I’m not sure why either. He didn’t even say those things can’t exist. He just said there is no clear evidence for them yet, which is true enough.

  I find Hancock entertaining, and he may even be right, but don’t find any of his evidence sufficient to support the claims he is making. That could always change, in either direction. It is fun watching new evidence emerge.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨if ai had a face, it would be punchable⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Sam Altman is the face of AI, and it is certainly punchable.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK the four rules of firearm safety⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  We were fortunate to have a producer/director who felt strongly about safety and was willing to spend the extra time necessary. A lot of the time, especially for productions that are running on a shoestring, everyone is pushed very hard to reduce the time and cost to an absolute minimum. The low pay selects for inexperienced armorers and the time constraints means that the armorer is constantly being pressured not to “waste” any time. An armorer who is believed to have “slowed down” a production may be fired and will have trouble finding more work. That is what happens everywhere when money is more important than people.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Nova Launcher gets a new owner and... ads⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  You’re right, but a lot of apps work the same way, and only serve ads to unpaid users. I’m hoping for the best.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨YSK the four rules of firearm safety⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Some years ago I acted as crew on an ultra-low budget film. We didn’t have the budget for simulated firearms so we had to use real ones. Everyone involved in the project agreed that extreme care was warranted. We made certain that there was no live ammunition anywhere near the set. Firearms were locked up unless they were being held by a trained crew member or an actor. The actors were all taught the basics of how their firearms operated and how to check the chambers. The prop handlers and actors checked every firearm every time it changed hands, even when they had just watched the person who handed it to them check the chamber.

  With all of that in place, we still insisted on following the other rules as well. Trigger discipline was maintained at all times, including while filming scenes. Camera angles were adjusted so that firearms never had to pointed at anyone or anything that we were not willing to damage. Actors were careful to keep their firearms pointed in the safe directions that had been arranged, even when simulating their use.

  It was a fair amount of trouble and it added time to a very tight operation, but there were absolutely no incidents, or near incidents, or concerns that there might be an incident. That is how everyone who handles firearms should treat them in real life. It takes a little time and attention, but it isn’t difficult. And following even one of the safety rules makes it impossible for anyone to be hurt accidentally.

  Learning and following the safety rules is a cheap investment for the benefit of not accidentally killing someone.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Nova Launcher gets a new owner and... ads⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  If they stick with ads only for unpaid use, I’m okay with that. Software authors need to make a living.

  Overall, I’m happy to see Nova Launcher getting support again. I’ve tried a half-dozen other launchers without finding one that really does everything I want.