Akir's recent activity
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Comment on I deliberately bet like a problem gambler. DraftKings made me a VIP. in ~tech
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Comment on All eighty books banned in Minnesota last year came from one school in ~books
Akir Link ParentI meant to use "queer" as an inclusive term, but perhaps it should have been specified.I meant to use "queer" as an inclusive term, but perhaps it should have been specified.
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Comment on All eighty books banned in Minnesota last year came from one school in ~books
Akir Link ParentI couldn't find what grade levels they taught, but typically US schools are split into elementary, middle / jr. high, and high schools.I couldn't find what grade levels they taught, but typically US schools are split into elementary, middle / jr. high, and high schools.
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Comment on Epic Games reportedly pivoting to “AI first” game development model in ~tech
Akir LinkWhat a shame. I remember being so impressed way back when I first saw... what, UT2003? Using zbrush to create ultra high resolution models to make normal maps and have super realistic looking...What a shame. I remember being so impressed way back when I first saw... what, UT2003? Using zbrush to create ultra high resolution models to make normal maps and have super realistic looking models that would work on commodity hardware of the time.
But honestly? Since then, all the games they've developed in-house kind of look like lumpy messes anyway. I know they have artistic talent, but the producers have always pushed them to keep generating the same aesthetic over and over again. There was the Gears of War age, and now we're in the Fortnite age. Who knows, maybe the AI age will make things look like a slightly different kind of lumpy play-doh shape.
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Comment on Epic Games reportedly pivoting to “AI first” game development model in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI've found LLM roleplay to be rather dull, personally, but then again it hasn't been exactly what you're talking about.I've found LLM roleplay to be rather dull, personally, but then again it hasn't been exactly what you're talking about.
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Comment on All eighty books banned in Minnesota last year came from one school in ~books
Akir Link ParentKrebsbach didn't even order them. He just recommended them. This article is kind of just brushing over the fact that the school district and parents turned Krebsbach into a scapegoat when clearly...Krebsbach didn't even order them. He just recommended them. This article is kind of just brushing over the fact that the school district and parents turned Krebsbach into a scapegoat when clearly he wasn't the only one involved in the decision to buy the books. He wasn't even a librarian; he was an assistant librarian.
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Comment on All eighty books banned in Minnesota last year came from one school in ~books
Akir Link ParentWell given how much damage they've done with their anti-repair stance on their tractors, clearly, John Deere is evil. I'm not sure if this comment is sarcastic or not but I'm leaving off the...Well given how much damage they've done with their anti-repair stance on their tractors, clearly, John Deere is evil.
I'm not sure if this comment is sarcastic or not but I'm leaving off the sarcasm tag nonetheless.
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Comment on All eighty books banned in Minnesota last year came from one school in ~books
Akir Link ParentI'm afraid that it seems disingenuous because the people who challenge these books are actually disingenuous. They are bad people who hate queer people and think that exposure to them will turn...I'm afraid that it seems disingenuous because the people who challenge these books are actually disingenuous. They are bad people who hate queer people and think that exposure to them will turn their kids queer. I don't have a way to prove it, but this story has happened so frequently here in the US that I can practically guarantee that the books that they have mentioned are likely the most "graphic" titles because at least one of them - Gender Queer - is on ALA's list of most challenged books. The Bluest Eye and The Kite Runner are also very frequently challenged.
If parents wanted to discuss the ability of their children to access certain books, there were certainly better ways to do it than to remove them from shelves and to fire the queer librarian.
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Comment on Denmark tests humanoid robots in supermarkets to help to ease staff workload at night in ~tech
Akir Link ParentSo are they also shipping them with big blocks of ice so that they can last out in the sun for when people aren't there to pick them up immediately? Perishable foods is the big problem with...So are they also shipping them with big blocks of ice so that they can last out in the sun for when people aren't there to pick them up immediately? Perishable foods is the big problem with grocery delivery. Given that those trucks aren't cooled, that's going to be a considerable amount of weight.
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Comment on Denmark tests humanoid robots in supermarkets to help to ease staff workload at night in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI'm not sure I buy that environment claim. I doubt how much carbon savings there are for grocery delivery. For old-school delivery - where you set up a delivery date and a big truck comes up on a...I'm not sure I buy that environment claim. I doubt how much carbon savings there are for grocery delivery. For old-school delivery - where you set up a delivery date and a big truck comes up on a long route with 50 other homes - absolutely! But it seems like most grocery delivery services are focused on short delivery windows, so drivers are being dispatched to the stores/warehouses and then to your house. From an environmental standpoint, there's little difference to just driving to the store yourself, especially with platforms like Instacart which are literally just shopping at your local market.
Then again there are many different delivery services and I'm sure they are all operating differently, so YMMV. Especially talking about non-US markets, where cars aren't always involved in the equation.
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Comment on Hi, how are you? Mental health support and discussion thread (October 2026) in ~health.mental
Akir LinkI had a follow up with a doctor today. In my previous appointment I broke down crying. I had told him that I had already given up on a therapy because it kept me up at night, but he encouraged me...I had a follow up with a doctor today.
In my previous appointment I broke down crying. I had told him that I had already given up on a therapy because it kept me up at night, but he encouraged me to keep going because it was the only way to see how to get through with it. I had already seen two specialists about the issue. I've been dealing with this issue for years with no solutions. The thing about it is that if I'm not trying to deal with the problem, it doesn't actually bother me.
This follow up was two months later and he had congratulated me for keeping up with it in spite of the difficulties.
He offered no solutions for the difficulties I was going through. He said maybe I should ask my regular doctor, and offered another follow-up later. I politely declined, and after leaving promptly had another breakdown. Thankfully it was a video appointment so I could scream in my own home.
I've been in a depressed state for the rest of the day.
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Comment on Popcorn! What's the best way to make it? in ~food
Akir Link ParentFrom my extra crunchy granola contacts I've actually had them recommend using aquafaba as the popcorn moistening agent, but I didn't want to try putting that in a spraybottle and it had weird...From my extra crunchy granola contacts I've actually had them recommend using aquafaba as the popcorn moistening agent, but I didn't want to try putting that in a spraybottle and it had weird effects when sprinkling it on popcorn because it kind of just gums it up. The spraybottle just kinda works and you can use saltwater as well (though I personally wouldn't because I just have an all-purpose water sprayer).
To their credit, though, bean juice and popcorn did actually taste pretty good once you get over the soggy popcorn texture, especially when you added lots of nooch.
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Comment on Software developers are not okay in ~tech
Akir Link ParentIsn't that also a bad way of thinking? If you want to be involved in the way things are managed, why would you only want to be part of a temporary job? Pay is only part of the experience, after...Isn't that also a bad way of thinking? If you want to be involved in the way things are managed, why would you only want to be part of a temporary job? Pay is only part of the experience, after all. But everyone has different motivations.
I didn't put it in my earlier comment but I was starting to wonder if I should include Google and Meta in that shortlist of legacy tech companies. Yeah, they're not that old relatively, but we're all getting older and they're well established at this point.
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Comment on Software developers are not okay in ~tech
Akir Link ParentPersonally speaking I’ve been viewing this topic as a sister to the vibe-coded adobe suite one, and under that light your response is almost funny. The so much of the world’s capital is dominated...Personally speaking I’ve been viewing this topic as a sister to the vibe-coded adobe suite one, and under that light your response is almost funny. The so much of the world’s capital is dominated by large monolithic legacy tech companies: Adobe, Oracle, Microsoft, Apple, etc.
Moreover, large companies tend to buy out smaller companies in the same industry all the time to increase their market share, so for the people in that company any “freedom” they get from that company’s practices could very easily be temporary. But it likely won’t matter anyways because they won’t unionize in this small company so they won’t have any control over their futures. This is assuming they stay in the same company to begin with instead of simply jumping ship and moving to greener pastures.
It’s not that new tech companies can’t happen obviously, it’s just that the deck is stacked against them and without unionization most of the people are going to be at the whims of a select few.
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Comment on Popcorn! What's the best way to make it? in ~food
Akir LinkI prefer air popped as well simply because I don’t like it greasy, and every stove method tends to need at least a little bit of oil to aid with heat transfer. Air popping also helps because it...I prefer air popped as well simply because I don’t like it greasy, and every stove method tends to need at least a little bit of oil to aid with heat transfer. Air popping also helps because it dries out the popped corn which makes it even more crispy. The secret is to pop it directly into a paper bag so you can shake out the unpopped kernels, because - spoilers - every air popper sucks! I kind of want to experiment with making my own shroud to try to improve upon the design.
The irony of this super dry popcorn is that seasonings don’t stick well to it so you’ll actually have to moisten it if you want it strongly seasoned, and for that it’s best to lay it out on a baking sheet and do a quick spray with a spray bottle. Don’t do too much though; it shouldn’t look or feel wet in the least.
The best seasonings are peppers of different kinds. Black peppercorn is great, but also try good old fashioned red chili flakes, paprika, etc. Curry and other spice blends are also good to experiment with.
If you do want fat on your popcorn I really don’t blame you, just avoid butter. It blunts the flavors you want. Use a neutral vegetable oil. If you want that butter flavor, you would be better off purchasing flavacol or some other brand of butter flavored salt.
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Comment on Introducing all-new Amazon Alexa Tablets—powerful tablets with Alexa+ built in in ~tech
Akir Link ParentFrankly I've heard that about literally every internal division of Amazon. The amount of nothingburgers that have come out of their game studios alone must have cost them some untold billions of...Frankly I've heard that about literally every internal division of Amazon. The amount of nothingburgers that have come out of their game studios alone must have cost them some untold billions of dollars. I guess it's a good thing that rent-seeking is so profitable!
Though if I am being fair, Project Hail Mary was a pretty good movie, and that was made in-house, so maybe some things can still get done in the house that Bezos built. And obviously everyday work still gets done even if things are chaotic.
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Comment on Denmark government hack leaked 8.7 million citizen's ID's: the password was "123456" in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI know, I had the exact same urge to say that I have the same combination on my luggage.I know, I had the exact same urge to say that I have the same combination on my luggage.
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Comment on The return of phones with physical keyboards? in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI rarely need to type in Japanese but for the few occasions I do I'm really bothered by how I can never remember how to type this.(Also the romaji keyboard is funny. づ, pronounced "zu", is typed "du". There are reasons for this, but nevertheless this is amusing to me.)
I rarely need to type in Japanese but for the few occasions I do I'm really bothered by how I can never remember how to type this.
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Comment on Amazon uses its tracking data to guess whether shoppers have a flat butt and no friends in ~tech
Akir Link ParentYeah, but here's the thing: I'm an outlier. It's weird that I'm not buying things on Amazon. It's weird that I don't have a Meta account for instagram or whatsapp. But people who are invested in...Yeah, but here's the thing: I'm an outlier. It's weird that I'm not buying things on Amazon. It's weird that I don't have a Meta account for instagram or whatsapp.
But people who are invested in Amazon are probably not only buying things on amazon.com, they probably have Amazon Prime and are buying compulsively. They are probably buying groceries at Whole Foods Market. They're probably watching shows on Prime Video. They might be reading books on their Kindle or listening to their audiobooks on Audible.
There are many places they can bring datapoints in so I think that a lot of people are going to get weirdly specific predictions.
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Comment on Was watching a history YouTube video when I realized they are all AI in ~tech
Akir Link ParentTo be fair, I have been getting a lot of really shit recommendations from Youtube which has been leading to really low quality video essays in which the person reading the script clearly didn't do...To be fair, I have been getting a lot of really shit recommendations from Youtube which has been leading to really low quality video essays in which the person reading the script clearly didn't do much research and is giving some wildly untrue claims. But I'd still rather see human slop than machine slop, because at least there's a baseline of effort being made.
Frankly I don’t understand how we as a society suddenly decided that gambling was something we decided was just going to be OK everywhere instead of a thing that the mafia handled.