userexec's recent activity
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Comment on Is Nebula worth it? in ~tech
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Comment on Zilog discontinues production of original Z80 processor after 48 years in ~tech
userexec LinkWhat an unbelievable run it's had! The first time I learned what a Z80 was, it was in a Texas Instruments TI-83+ graphing calculator. I adored that thing and spent who knows how many hours in my...What an unbelievable run it's had! The first time I learned what a Z80 was, it was in a Texas Instruments TI-83+ graphing calculator. I adored that thing and spent who knows how many hours in my teenage years writing programs in TI-BASIC to make games, cheat on assignments, and what have you. It was the first device that really made it click in my head that technology could do just about whatever you instructed it to, and I was hooked. It got me looking into what other devices had Z80s, and what a fascinating world that is. Maybe I'll pull it back out today and play around in assembly a bit.
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Comment on The internet used to be ✨fun✨ in ~tech
userexec LinkI always tell my interns that if they really want to get hired somewhere, start a blog. Write about your personal projects. It may seem like ancient internet, but it works in a way new internet...I always tell my interns that if they really want to get hired somewhere, start a blog. Write about your personal projects. It may seem like ancient internet, but it works in a way new internet doesn't.
Having a social media presence is fine, and having a github is even good if you're wanting to get into a field that uses that, but as someone who hires nothing is a surer way to the top of a stack of similar applications than a blog. It shows your work and personality in a way that no other format (save for maybe a long-format YouTube channel) does.
What sorts of things interest this person? How do they approach problems? How do they communicate? What's their personality like? If there's a link to a blog on the resume, I have pretty good answers to all of these questions before even starting the interview.
The trouble with the resume is they're practically meaningless: You can get someone who can barely create anything listing 100 different skills that they saw in a book one time and have used for all of 30 seconds, and they're up against others who list only a tiny handful of skills that they're insanely competent in, and whose pride won't allow them to list things they see as merely intermediate skills. The education and experience sections can somewhat legitimize those, but I've seen plenty of people with long lists of impressive-sounding titles who can't actually do what their title says.
A blog skips right past all of that and proves it, and does so with an air of legitimacy and depth that social media is just lacking in most cases.
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Comment on You're wrong about Aptera's car. It's ridiculously efficient (and solar powered). in ~transport
userexec Link ParentReminds me of the whole Elio thing. I would have loved to have one of those, and they did make some serious moves toward production, but it kept being a thing long, long after anyone could see it...Reminds me of the whole Elio thing. I would have loved to have one of those, and they did make some serious moves toward production, but it kept being a thing long, long after anyone could see it wasn't going to happen. Hopefully this doesn't follow the same trajectory.
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Comment on AI IT project management in ~tech
userexec Link ParentI find that Copilot in coding sometimes helps and sometimes it's just a distraction showing me tab completions I don't want. At work I'd say it's a wash--I save about as much time not typing a...I find that Copilot in coding sometimes helps and sometimes it's just a distraction showing me tab completions I don't want. At work I'd say it's a wash--I save about as much time not typing a line I didn't need to as I spend hitting tab on something that's almost correct, but then backing through it and editing while realizing it would have been quicker to just type it myself.
On some personal projects it's an enormous time-saver, though. One thing I'm working on requires making a large number of quite predictable derivations of a base sentence in a foreign language with some metadata interpolated at predictable points. Doing it by hand would be theoretically simple but incredibly painful and boring. Copilot is great at picking up the pattern such that I need only write the first one and then usually tab-complete all the derivations without editing.
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Comment on What makes you chew fire? in ~talk
userexec Link ParentI remember seeing the challenge and response, but never saw the actual fight. Guess I didn't miss anything. The camera work is so bad I can barely watch even bits and pieces of it, and the parts I...I remember seeing the challenge and response, but never saw the actual fight. Guess I didn't miss anything. The camera work is so bad I can barely watch even bits and pieces of it, and the parts I did see before closing the video so I wouldn't get seasick were so staged-feeling it's almost insulting.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tech
userexec LinkWell that was fun, I built a quick one for my cat to test it out. It works great and has an extremely simple interface! I could easily see recommending this as a first hosting solution for people...Well that was fun, I built a quick one for my cat to test it out. It works great and has an extremely simple interface! I could easily see recommending this as a first hosting solution for people getting started in learning HTML and CSS.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tech
userexec Link ParentIt doesn't look like there's anything preventing it at least, and it will hopefully encourage people to learn enough CSS to do so.It doesn't look like there's anything preventing it at least, and it will hopefully encourage people to learn enough CSS to do so.
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Comment on American teachers are missing more school, and there are too few substitutes in ~life
userexec Link ParentThis was one of many reasons I quit teaching, but was certainly one of the more frustrating ones. There were no consequences. At all. I had a student whose only goal in life seemed to be to...and disruptive students actually face consequences
This was one of many reasons I quit teaching, but was certainly one of the more frustrating ones.
There were no consequences. At all. I had a student whose only goal in life seemed to be to disrupt lessons. A few days of detention would at least allow the other students to focus for a bit, but he'd come right back. Alternative school? He'd be back in a week. Removed from class by the police? That happened twice in my classroom, though luckily only as a result of things that had happened beforehand. He wasn't gone long though.
I don't think I ever graded a single thing from him. He refused to participate in the class at all, so I never saw any work or had anything to put on record. His average was a zero.
But don't worry, he passed and came to my class the next grade level up, too.
I'm sure many out there would go watch some feel-good teaching movie and enthusiastically blame me for not turning his life around, but I had 149 other students so you can do the math on how much individual attention I could really devote to the issue.
Either way, certainly one of the most frustrating things. Though the fact I worked basically nonstop from wake to sleep and took stacks of essays home to grade every weekend for about the same money I made flipping burgers as a teenager weren't exactly highlights either.
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Comment on If happy people do nothing? in ~talk
userexec Link ParentGood point. Also, I feel like there's doing things just based on genuine interest. Sometimes I tinker with electronics, even when I'm not bored, and not out of any sense of dissatisfaction or...Good point. Also, I feel like there's doing things just based on genuine interest. Sometimes I tinker with electronics, even when I'm not bored, and not out of any sense of dissatisfaction or avoidance of something--It's just interesting to me. And certainly sometimes I tinker because I'm just bored, or because something broke and I'm trying to avoid paying for repairs, but just doing it for the hell of it because it's enjoyable is totally valid too.
I suppose that could be framed as doing something in order to avoid boredom, but the two feel distinct in my experience.
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Comment on He spent his life building a $1 million stereo. The real cost was unfathomable. in ~music
userexec Link ParentThis is probably my equivalent to the weirdness quotient. The wilder the font treatment, the wilder the conspiracy theories. Where there isn't rich text editing it's always unnecessary...conspiracy theories written in huge bold colorful fonts
This is probably my equivalent to the weirdness quotient. The wilder the font treatment, the wilder the conspiracy theories. Where there isn't rich text editing it's always unnecessary capitalization. Whenever someone capitalizes random words it always throws up huge red flags for me. In my experience consistent unnecessary capitalization almost always indicates the conversation's about to turn to lizard people.
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Comment on How bad are search results? Let's compare Google, Bing, Marginalia, Kagi, Mwmbl, and ChatGPT. in ~tech
userexec Link ParentAgreed. This comparison just feels off to me. Marginalia ranking high made me curious to go try it, and after a few queries I don't even find it functional compared to Kagi. For example, searching...Agreed. This comparison just feels off to me. Marginalia ranking high made me curious to go try it, and after a few queries I don't even find it functional compared to Kagi.
For example, searching "open source wideband o2 sensor" without quotes on Kagi returns highly relevant blog posts, board designs, products for sale, and github repositories of exactly what I'm looking for. On Marginalia it returns nothing. Even paring the query down to the much more general "wideband o2 sensor" only returns 5 results on Marginalia, none of which are relevant. The first two results are at least vaguely automotive, but results 3-5 are iPhone and Apple Watch reviews.
I understand Marginalia isn't operating at the same scale as Kagi, and that one search query isn't illustrative of overall performance, but I also feel like that's a pretty mainstream, softball query for me. After reading the article I wasn't expecting it to be a total blowout like that.
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Comment on REVR plans to turn your ICE car into a plug-in hybrid for US$3,200 in ~transport
userexec Link ParentI think I'm just drawn to this design of using the existing hubs and knuckles because it simplifies the fabrication versus the other hub motors I've seen. It's a nice thought to get hub motors...I think I'm just drawn to this design of using the existing hubs and knuckles because it simplifies the fabrication versus the other hub motors I've seen. It's a nice thought to get hub motors without having to redesign parts of the car that seriously affect its safety at speed. Whether it will actually work well or not, we'll see.
If I were going to do it now I'd probably go with something like Swindon's HPD E series where you're really just worrying about mounting and half shafts, but ya... expensive. Very very expensive. By the time everything was set up the conversion would cost 10x what I paid to buy the car and getting it running nicely in the first place.
A used Nissan Leaf is absolutely the right way to go at the moment for a reasonably-priced electric car.
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Comment on REVR plans to turn your ICE car into a plug-in hybrid for US$3,200 in ~transport
userexec LinkI would be very interested in something like this, and would be fine with removing the engine entirely. On my old car the only thing that would still need to be turned would be the AC compressor....I would be very interested in something like this, and would be fine with removing the engine entirely. On my old car the only thing that would still need to be turned would be the AC compressor. The heater and vacuum pump for the brake booster could likely just be handled electrically, so it would leave a ton of room for battery. Adding in the tire well mounted battery could make for some excellent weight distribution. I doubt they'd target my specific model of Civic anywhere near the beginning, but ten years from now I'd be very open to the idea of converting it to electric.
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Comment on Gut check on contractor quote in ~life.home_improvement
userexec Link ParentMy thoughts exactly on the fireplace insert. If there's already existing electric or gas, adding an appropriate insert is a downright simple job. My parents needed a new gas unit over Thanksgiving...My thoughts exactly on the fireplace insert. If there's already existing electric or gas, adding an appropriate insert is a downright simple job. My parents needed a new gas unit over Thanksgiving and it was maybe an hour to swap them with a couple basic hand tools.
If it's just a bare fireplace, though, then that gets into a whole mess of complexity depending on the home's layout. My house is flat-roofed and doesn't have a crawlspace, and the electrical panel is nowhere near the fireplace. Switching from a gas to an electric fireplace insert and getting a circuit run to it here would be a major operation.
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Comment on What did you do this week (and weekend)? in ~talk
userexec LinkI bought a 1987 Honda Civic wagon last week off some guy for $1000 and have had it up on stands in the garage fixing its many issues. It seemed like junk to him because it made horrible sounds...I bought a 1987 Honda Civic wagon last week off some guy for $1000 and have had it up on stands in the garage fixing its many issues. It seemed like junk to him because it made horrible sounds while driving and practically nothing worked right on it, but actually it's practically rust-free and the engine has good compression.
It has 157k miles on the odometer, but also a dinghy tow kit and damage on its bumper that looks like it got melted from exhaust, so I'm betting a lot of those miles are just from being pulled around on four wheels by an RV. The exterior has a few dings but is overall pretty good, and the interior looks like it's hardly been sat in. Apart from one gouge on the dash it's practically brand new in there.
The big issue is it had watery gas in the gas tank and got very rotten in there. It couldn't run for long because it would choke on rust in the tank. I've sent the tank off for cleaning and re-lining. Next, it was dumping a ton of fuel into its engine oil, which is likely just the mechanical fuel pump up on the distributor shaft having a leaky diaphragm. I've swapped that out and changed all the lines and filters. Then it had a really loud CV joint and the brakes had a terrible grinding sound, but still worked well. Waiting for new half shafts, pads, and rotors now. I've been going around cleaning electrical connections since many of those are corroded from many years of sitting, but everything's come right back to life once the connections are cleaned.
I expect it will be a very nice little car with tons of life left in it once its issues are addressed. It's very tiny compared to most things on the road today and only weighs a hair over 2000lbs, but should get upper 30s in gas mileage. I've always wanted a kei car but one wouldn't be all that useful where I live since there are stretches of road at 70mph to get to the places I need to go. This thing isn't much bigger than a kei car and has all that same charm, but should happily do 70. Plus the insurance is a joke at $6/month.
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Comment on People who manage small websites, how much does it cost you in time (and finances)? in ~comp
userexec Link ParentDitto on hosting my blog on DigitalOcean. The $5/month tier was enough for me since that's all it's doing, so $60/year in hosting plus $15/year in domain registration.Ditto on hosting my blog on DigitalOcean. The $5/month tier was enough for me since that's all it's doing, so $60/year in hosting plus $15/year in domain registration.
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Comment on What's the big deal about running a half marathon? in ~life
userexec Link ParentI'd just like to add to this that the level of a partner's needs in this area does vary from person to person. It sounds like OP and their partner have different needs regarding the level of...I'd just like to add to this that the level of a partner's needs in this area does vary from person to person. It sounds like OP and their partner have different needs regarding the level of involvement and enthusiasm from their partner around their personal efforts. While OP may see their own personal efforts as exclusively personal and not requiring the involvement/approval/participation of their partner, it sounds like this view may not be shared. Really I get the impression that there are two extremes on this spectrum going on here.
My partner and I certainly respect each other's personal goals and the efforts we put into our non-shared hobbies, but I wouldn't say either of us requires or even desires involvement or enthusiasm from each other about those. We give each other the space to pursue things and respect the efforts, and we've always been perfectly happy with that arrangement.
To give an example, I've spent years studying Japanese and spend every night before bed in the recliner translating. She has no interest in Japanese, nor would I expect her to. We have shared hobbies, but this isn't one of them. I don't need a cookie from her every time I finish an article, and I don't expect her to enthusiastically tell her friends about my latest progress. She's not into it and that's okay--I don't need someone to validate my intrinsic motivations before I can pursue them; I only require a partner who at least respects the act of pursuit generally. I may tell her about a funny word or something, but I would never badger her to learn with me or seek praise about it, nor would she get gloomy because I'm pouring effort into something that doesn't interest her.
Different people are different, though. I wouldn't say our way of looking at it is the right way--only that it's the right way for us because it's a match. Since it may not be a match in this post's case, though, I agree with you that there's some introspection to be done here.
I'd stop short of saying OP is the odd one out here, though: I think their view on this is, if anything, the more common one (and not even as extreme as it usually presents) and people just refuse to see it in themselves. I've been in several relationships where my partner's views on my personal hobbies and efforts were downright discouraging because it wasn't an interest they shared so they didn't "get it" and had no respect for it, but I was expected to be enthusiastic about and supportive of everything they did. Needless to say, that imbalance didn't work out.
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Comment on Via: Solving the 100 GB problem in ~games
userexec LinkVery cool! My only concern here is actually illustrated perfectly by his choice of game in the video. Halo Infinite already has a long section of match loading where you wait forever on an "other...Very cool! My only concern here is actually illustrated perfectly by his choice of game in the video. Halo Infinite already has a long section of match loading where you wait forever on an "other players loading" bar. What happens when half the players are using this and you constantly get stuck in a queue with some rando still running a 28k modem and loading this map for the first time? It seems like it would degrade the multiplayer experience by forcing everyone who already has the game downloaded to wait for anyone who didn't. In most games this wouldn't be a problem I suppose, and it solves itself on an individual level over time at least, but I imagine online matchmaking would run into a whole lot more timeouts and need to refill queues a lot more often.
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Comment on How native English speakers can stop confusing everyone else in ~humanities.languages
userexec Link ParentI can confirm that while my electronic dictionary has the English meaning in question, it has no suggestions or example sentences for how that would be translated in Japanese. I’d be stuck either...I can confirm that while my electronic dictionary has the English meaning in question, it has no suggestions or example sentences for how that would be translated in Japanese. I’d be stuck either using miitoboru or getting descriptive about the specific type of meatball, both of which would lose meaning. It does suggest ひえー驚いた for “bugger me,” though, and that’s kind of amusing that there’s an entry for that.
Edit: Now I’m just laughing that Google Translate comes back with 私をブッガー!
I have it, but admittedly I haven't gotten much use out of it. I mostly keep it around because I like the idea of it and want to help give it a little longer to grow into something.
I'd say my main complaint is a counter-intuitive one: The content leans very high quality video essay from professional creators, to the point where I'm not sure at a glance if it's cool for random people to upload useful mundane stuff. I'd say half my use of YouTube is "how do I" kind of things where someone shows how to use a program or change a bearing or grout tile or something, and Nebula doesn't seem like a place where that content fits in right now. It's possible my watching habits just aren't a good fit for it.