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    1. Hypothetical time - let’s say Lewis Hamilton announces tomorrow he’s retiring after this year. Who gets that Mercedes seat?

      This is something I’ve thought about and I don’t think has gotten as much discussion as I figured it would. Who’s in line to take that second Mercedes seat if Lewis does decide to walk away? I...

      This is something I’ve thought about and I don’t think has gotten as much discussion as I figured it would. Who’s in line to take that second Mercedes seat if Lewis does decide to walk away?

      I don’t think anyone in the junior program will go straight to Merc. Additionally, Red Bull are no gos in my opinion.

      I think both Ferrari guys will do what they can to get out at this point. Slight lean to Leclerc because he does have his brilliant moments. I would have put money on Lando before Silverstone, but maybe he’s been convinced. I don’t think they’d take Alonso, Stroll isn’t going anywhere. I know Ocon used to be managed by Toto but I think he’s committed to Alpine. Gasly and Bottas haven’t been impressive enough since the start of 2022 to be in consideration, in my opinion. Ricciardo will need a hell of a rest of 2023 to be a contender. I highly doubt they’d go to Mick, could they potentially poach Albon from Williams and put Mick in his place? The story is Hulk was going to be their other driver way back when, has he done enough to be in the conversation?

      My personal top three most likely is Leclerc, Albon, Norris. What do you think?

      17 votes
    2. What films did you love in your late teens to mid twenties? What makes a good young adult film?

      Is it simply as simple as having young protagonists? I don't think so. On the one hand, I love Remains of the Day but I wouldn't suggest it to younger family members. On the other hand,...

      Is it simply as simple as having young protagonists? I don't think so. On the one hand, I love Remains of the Day but I wouldn't suggest it to younger family members. On the other hand, Schindler's List released when I was in college and I loved/suffered through that film.

      17 votes
    3. Share your favorite pie recipes

      I'm going to a supper club this Saturday and the theme is pie. Now, I love making me some pie (and subsequently eating it), but I'd like to do something a little different from my normal pie. What...

      I'm going to a supper club this Saturday and the theme is pie. Now, I love making me some pie (and subsequently eating it), but I'd like to do something a little different from my normal pie.

      What is your favorite (ideally esoteric) pie recipe? I'm making one sweet, one savory. Gimme your best shot!

      18 votes
    4. Are there any plans to publish an official API?

      I understand there are no plans to develop an official app, which is understandable to me as that would require a lot of time and resources for a project like this. But it's clear that there are...

      I understand there are no plans to develop an official app, which is understandable to me as that would require a lot of time and resources for a project like this.

      But it's clear that there are lots of devs eager to chime in and create an app by themselves, just like they did for Reddit. There's even one iOS app already in progress, although it relies on HTML parsing to retrieve the data obviously.

      So is there any official stance on this? Why not publish the API and let the community do its magic? Any thoughts?

      56 votes
    5. Anyone with DIY motorized bike experience? Considering building one!

      Hi Tildes! I'm a college student considering adding a gas motor onto my existing bike. I'm in a pretty hilly city, so biking around for groceries is kinda annoying... plus I wanna just zoom around...

      Hi Tildes!
      I'm a college student considering adding a gas motor onto my existing bike. I'm in a pretty hilly city, so biking around for groceries is kinda annoying... plus I wanna just zoom around some trails in my free time.
      Currently, I'm looking at one of the 49cc 4 stroke engine kits all over Amazon/Ebay, since I heard that 4 stroke motors are supposedly quieter and more reliable than 2 strokes. I don't care about speed... in fact, I don't want to be going over 30mph on a bike. 49cc also makes this thing street legal in my state.
      I did consider doing an e-bike conversion as well, but those are much more expensive... a 4 stroke kit is ~$160, while any reputable e-bike battery alone is more than that. These things don't burn much gasoline either, getting 100-150 mpg! I'd have to ride thousands of miles before the fuel cost exceeds an e-bike battery.
      So, any advice would be appreciated! Also, I'd be willing to spend ~300 on this if there is a compelling reason to get a better motor than the generic Ebay one. If you have motor suggestions, please link them!
      Thanks,
      purpuraRana

      13 votes
    6. What is your favorite TV show that you rewatch often?

      Almost everyone has one, a TV show that they love so much that they rewatch it every once in a while. For me, it has to be Band of Brothers. In my humble opinion this is the very best miniseries...

      Almost everyone has one, a TV show that they love so much that they rewatch it every once in a while. For me, it has to be Band of Brothers. In my humble opinion this is the very best miniseries mankind has ever produced. I love every scene of every episode and by now I know the entire show by memory. I still rewatch it once a year. People call me insane and don't understand why and to be honest neither do I. Whenever I come across a post about this show or hear a piece of the music I just have to watch it again.

      I was 13 when the show first aired on TV and I watched it every week with my father. We're both WW2 buffs and consume every piece of media that has anything to do with it. Band of Brothers was right up our alley. Not only have I watched the show more times than I can keep track of, I also read all the books written by the men of Easy Company just to learn more and find out about what the show got wrong. The show has some errors but I still love it.

      Enough about me, what is your favorite show to rewatch? How often do you rewatch it? What triggers your need to rewatch it? :)

      Edit: thanks for all the cool replies guys. It's my first day on Tildes and I'm really liking it here so far. I just want to reply to everyone but the site is telling me to slow down!

      94 votes
    7. Permanent archival formats. Do they exist?

      Recently, I've been thinking pretty hard about how to archive data. Optical media is out, due to my (possibly irrational?) fear of disc rot. HDDs just break with extended use, SSDs have been known...

      Recently, I've been thinking pretty hard about how to archive data. Optical media is out, due to my (possibly irrational?) fear of disc rot. HDDs just break with extended use, SSDs have been known to die with either overuse or just existing for an extended period of time. What's left?

      I have heard of tape (of some kind) being used for backup in some bigger operations, but with my experieces with VHS, and to a lesser extent, cassettes, they seem to be very susceptible to mould.

      Any suggestions?

      30 votes
    8. How to read House of Leaves

      I'm wondering how to read this book. I'm about 2 chapters in, and I've read all of these footnotes/references to other material at the bottom of the page. So far, they basically mean nothing to...

      I'm wondering how to read this book. I'm about 2 chapters in, and I've read all of these footnotes/references to other material at the bottom of the page. So far, they basically mean nothing to me, and I think it was implied during the introduction that some of the footnotes are real and some of them are fake? Do they reference other parts of the book? Am I supposed to be flipping somewhere else in the book every time a footnote refences something? Or should I be going outside of the book to hunt down the references to read those? Is it worth it to try that if some are fake and some are real? Is there a wrong way to read this book? Can those footnotes/references be ignored sometimes or most of the time? Am I overthinking this and I should just keep reading normally without thinking about the footnotes?

      30 votes
    9. How do you manage your time? What tools do you use and what philosophies do you follow?

      Apologies for the vague title, but the topic itself is really open, and I was having trouble cutting down on its scope. Here’s some background: Recently, I’ve been going through several...

      Apologies for the vague title, but the topic itself is really open, and I was having trouble cutting down on its scope.

      Here’s some background: Recently, I’ve been going through several transitions in life: moving and switching jobs somehow were not the most stressful among them. During this period I’ve been trying to keep all of the various tasks, events, reminders, alarms, etc. organized for myself. This process of organizing my time has been extremely overwhelming for me. I’ve been trying to take it one step at a time, only adding tasks as they come up. This still has lead to my problem of figuring out whether or not an event should be added to my calendar, or a task added to my todo list, or even an alarm added to my phone. If I add everything, then it becomes tough to see what is important, and if I don’t then I risk not remembering one of them.

      My question is kind of two fold: what tools do you use to keep track of your day/tasks/events, and what philosophy do you have regarding adding or omitting items?

      For me right now, I am using google calendar to keep track of major events and birthdays, and for everything else I use a physical notepad. In my calendar, I have birthdays and any event that has a time set in stone. This lets me see whether or not I am actually free when I’m invited to things or asked if I can help someone out.

      For everything else, I use my notepad and attempt to keep track of anything that could be considered a task. At the end of each day I try to organize my list of tasks based on how immediately they need to be completed or how important they are to complete.

      My system has two pitfalls: occasionally I over extend myself, because an event (stored on my calendar) will coincide with a day where many of my tasks (stored in my notepad) are due. For example, I had a day where I worked in the office (9 hours plus commute), had another event (4 hours plus commute), 1 task that took me two hours, 3 different tasks (each one ending up taking over an hour), and several other tasks that I didn’t even get to before falling asleep.

      What tools/systems/philosophies do you use? And semi-related, how does one keep from falling into the trap of spending more time planning than actually living?

      25 votes
    10. Horse riding: Any equine fans?

      I've recently (around a year ago) taken up horse riding as a hobby. Although, at this point it's crossing the boundary into sport, I still think there's plenty of hobby to discuss. Have you ridden...

      I've recently (around a year ago) taken up horse riding as a hobby.
      Although, at this point it's crossing the boundary into sport, I still think there's plenty of hobby to discuss.

      Have you ridden before? If so how long? If not what's stopping you?
      Do you have horses or ponies? Please share!

      11 votes
    11. How do you parent boys?

      I would be interested in tips, thoughts, and experiences folks have had with raising sons. I work in healthcare (in finance) and am acutely aware that most of my colleagues are women, as were most...

      I would be interested in tips, thoughts, and experiences folks have had with raising sons. I work in healthcare (in finance) and am acutely aware that most of my colleagues are women, as were most of my teachers, and class mates in college. With this in mind, it seems that the feminine side of raising sons is well represented. I've been reading and soul searching about good practices for the father of a son but would welcome all perspectives. Another interesting aspect is that I've found many parenting books to be focused on mothers rather than fathers. The few I've found that are focused tend to be religious/ Christian. Nothing wrong with that but would like to hear the collected wisdom here. To be clear I am hoping to get specific thoughts and actions rather than a broad topic with concepts and ideals.

      58 votes
    12. What variant rules/house rules do you use in your Warhammer fantasy roleplay 4e game?

      I'm currently reading over and learning Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4e I'm moving more and more away from D&D and Pathfinder games towards others due to different mechanics, fantastic design, etc....

      I'm currently reading over and learning Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4e I'm moving more and more away from D&D and Pathfinder games towards others due to different mechanics, fantastic design, etc.

      I've seen much conversation about WFRP 4e online and how it's not as good as 2e, or too complex, or other arguments. I'm not looking to start edition warring, but how many of these arguments still hold true in 2023 with the newer rules from Up in Arms and Winds of Magic?

      If there are complexities/gaps in 4e, what variant rules, house rules, or homebrew are you using to fix those things or fill them out?

      9 votes
    13. Graphics glitch on new install of Ubuntu

      So I have an old MacBook Pro (mid-2014) Core i5 which I've just installed Ubuntu 22.04.2 on. Most things are working fine but the screen randomly flickers and then goes black and then after...

      So I have an old MacBook Pro (mid-2014) Core i5 which I've just installed Ubuntu 22.04.2 on. Most things are working fine but the screen randomly flickers and then goes black and then after varying lengths of time will pop back on again. I've been googling around and found lots of instances of similar graphics glitches but can't quite find a solution.

      Any suggestions?

      7 votes
    14. What pedals are y'all rockin?

      Alright, first post. Let's do it. I have seen this post from 3 years ago asking about guitar pedals and the like. But that's old, and I wanna start a new discussion post. With that out of the...

      Alright, first post. Let's do it.

      I have seen this post from 3 years ago asking about guitar pedals and the like. But that's old, and I wanna start a new discussion post. With that out of the way...

      What are the pedals y'all rockin? What's your setup? Do you have any pedals currently in your possession or those you are gunning for? Also, if you have any stories about pedals, which ones are your favourites or smth else, I would love to hear! I figure we've already had the discussion about buying your dream guitar so anything about dream pedals are cool too!


      You can find my answer here.

      17 votes
    15. Overuse of commas

      First I thought to myself, "I seem to use too many commas." Now I'm no writer, but I've noticed that professional writers (and editors) clearly use less commas than I do. For example, here's a...

      First I thought to myself, "I seem to use too many commas." Now I'm no writer, but I've noticed that professional writers (and editors) clearly use less commas than I do.

      For example, here's a sentence in a book that I'm reading: “As the victim was usually unconscious it was obvious they were totally reliant upon third parties and whatever action they took would determine their fate.”

      I thought it was interesting, because I would've put a comma after "unconscious" and a comma before "and."

      So, I found this helpful resource on grammar rules: https://www.grammarbook.com/punctuation/commas.asp. 4a and 5b in particular were situations where I learned I could get rid of commas.

      Still however, in the example sentence above, you'd think to put a comma before the "and" to separate the two clauses. I haven't found an explanation for omitting it, other than some writers are grammatically correct in a stricter sense, and others use commas more stylistically.

      Is the use of commas more of an art, if you will, than I thought? How do you use commas personally?

      Interested to read others' opinions!

      74 votes
    16. Howdy, motorsport fans! What series are we all watching at the moment? What’s your favorite?

      Surprised there wasn’t a topic already posted! What kind of motorsports do you all watch? What is your favorite? Personally, I dabble in nearly everything four wheeled (two is not for me)....

      Surprised there wasn’t a topic already posted! What kind of motorsports do you all watch? What is your favorite?

      Personally, I dabble in nearly everything four wheeled (two is not for me). However, my mains are F1, Indycar, IMSA, and WEC.

      I got into F1 in 2018 and been a religious follower ever since. I became a Max fan as he was able to fight the Mercedes, kind of funny that now he’s in the annoyingly winning spot. I also pull for McLaren and the wife Williams, so we have a nice time watching the midfield with some banter every week.

      I was very much casual Indycar, but making an effort this year. Palou seems to be just running off in the sunset Max style but I’m really hoping Grosjean can pull a win out. It looked so promising to start the year.

      The endurance series are fun to watch too. I started to watch last year and it seems like I picked a perfect time with the Hypercar class coming into its own. Very excited to see who all comes into the class as time goes on!

      26 votes
    17. Anyone here a fan of Kdramas?

      A few years ago, I came across a light, romantic Korean show called Oh, My Ghost. It had good writing, acting and plot, and even a slightly darker undertone. I was hooked and I've been watching...

      A few years ago, I came across a light, romantic Korean show called Oh, My Ghost. It had good writing, acting and plot, and even a slightly darker undertone. I was hooked and I've been watching Kdramas ever since.

      My favorites are those that don't involve the powerful, rich elites in Korea. Stories like Weight Lifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo, and Just Between Lovers are more to my taste. Other, truly fine shows include Goblin, Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Hotel Del Luna and It's OK to not be OK. Those last three have strong female characters, which I find a little surprising for Korean shows.

      There are a lot of Korean shows available these days on Netflix. Squid Games and The Glory made an impact worldwide. Squid Games pushed me to the limit, but I managed to make it through that series. Season 2 is coming, so that will be interesting too.

      This year hasn't been a great one for my tastes in Kdramas, so I'm still looking for an outstanding series to watch. The Glory lost me at some point. Revenge isn't a compelling plot line for me. Right now, I'm watching Delightfully Deceitful, and it's different enough to keep me watching. I'm on episode 4, so there's a long way to go yet.

      Any favorites I've missed?

      Edit: Oops, did I get one of those titles wrong! I've corrected it to Weight Lifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo.

      30 votes
    18. Book writing self-hosted solutions?

      I'm big into self-hosting and recently getting back into writing as an additional hobby, cuz one can never have too many, right? Anyway, I am looking for a writing organization tool like...

      I'm big into self-hosting and recently getting back into writing as an additional hobby, cuz one can never have too many, right? Anyway, I am looking for a writing organization tool like Manuskript, Dabble, or Scrivener that is both open source and self-hosted.

      Essentially, I would just like something that I can organize my thoughts and occasionally write in, but be able to access it from all my devices - desktops, laptops, phones, tablets, etc. It seems like most of the solutions I've looked at are limited to a single device or cloud functionality is locked behind a paywall. Of course, I could just use a self-hosted wiki site for cloud editing/organization, but I'd like something more oriented toward writing if anybody has any ideas. Thanks!

      26 votes
    19. What are some modern first person shooters with a classic, old-school feel?

      I'm looking for more recent games that are reminiscent of the original Doom, Quake, and shooters of that era. Preferably on PC, but also on the Xbox. I am, of course, aware of the most recent Doom...

      I'm looking for more recent games that are reminiscent of the original Doom, Quake, and shooters of that era. Preferably on PC, but also on the Xbox.

      I am, of course, aware of the most recent Doom games, but I gotta be honest, I'm not a big fan. They don't feel old-school to me.

      1990s shooters have a simplicity that I crave.

      I have no intention to play online, so a good campaign is a requirement.

      Thanks!

      23 votes
    20. Do you use props in your role playing games?

      I'm not especially creative, but I love having props at the table for games. Some games seem like a better fit for props than others - for example, Call of Cthulhu's focus on investigation makes...

      I'm not especially creative, but I love having props at the table for games. Some games seem like a better fit for props than others - for example, Call of Cthulhu's focus on investigation makes having prop newspaper clippings, diaries and journals, maps and other ephemera feel natural and rewarding. It's made that much easier when the publisher provides them with a scenario, which is what Chaosium does for Cthulhu - the starter set handouts are freely available at their site.

      Recently, I've added a mix of etsy and more premium products to various games:

      • a fun set of inn menus, maps and store price list handouts for Lost Mine of Phandelver (link)
      • I'm waiting for the Silver edition of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist to release from Beadle and Grimm (link)
      • For the introductory Cthulhu adventure 'The Haunting', I found some really nice non-combat maps on DTRPG (link) and added the handouts from the HPLHS Classic Game Prop Set (link)

      I'm curious to know how other people use props at the table, if you make your own, or have found something on etsy or elsewhere that you'd recommend.

      14 votes
    21. Women's soccer players, do you remember how you fell in love with the game?

      I'm a soon-to-be new dad of a baby girl. I have loved and played soccer since 6 years old, and would love nothing more than to see my daughter take to the game. However, I would never force...

      I'm a soon-to-be new dad of a baby girl. I have loved and played soccer since 6 years old, and would love nothing more than to see my daughter take to the game. However, I would never force anything on her just because I happen to like it - if she ends up having no interest in soccer, so be it.

      So my question to those of you who play/played, do you remember what got you hooked? I'll obviously be kicking the ball around with her at the park, and my city is fortunate enough to have a pro women's team, so I'll be taking her to games. Is there anything else I can do to put together my best "pitch deck" together for the sport?

      Thanks in advance, and go KC Current! :)

      13 votes
    22. What is your most important game?

      I was talking with a friend not too long ago about this, and I'm curious what others have to say. For me there were a few, specific games that ended up playing a big role in my personal history,...

      I was talking with a friend not too long ago about this, and I'm curious what others have to say. For me there were a few, specific games that ended up playing a big role in my personal history, but one in particular that I can say had an immense impact on who I am today.

      The game was STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl. In 2007, I graduated high school and got a new laptop. Prior to that, I had a WinXP desktop from...at least 5 years ago, which was never really built for playing games. I really didn't know anything about computers in general, besides some basic maintenance - I genuinely just didn't comprehend "hardware requirements". With the new laptop, I guessed (somewhat correctly) that I could play new things, so I went out and bought a bunch of games I'd always intended to play. Among those, was STALKER.

      I didn't know about that game at all, at the time. I saw it in a Walmart, looked at the back of the box, and it was so neat and strange that I figured I had to try it, not knowing at all whether my computer could even do it. Turns out, it couldn't, or rather, it could, but performance was really poor. ~10-15fps when trying to play in any of the dx9 rendering options. The game worked great in an unlit, dx8 mode, but it looked terrible, so I was determined to see that game the way it was intended.

      Thing was, I had no background knowledge. What do I do? I trial-and-error'd my way through some of the graphics options, but couldn't really connect the dots on which settings did what/how to go about targeting better performance. I started exploring the computer itself, learning the basics of how games work on a PC (the real basics, I mean - as in, what does a gpu do, why does RAM matter, etc). Through that I landed on a first step.

      That was to do a RAM upgrade. I had never done that before, but looked up what all I'd need/how to do it, and from there started really getting in deep to figure out what I could do to get the game to work. I trawled forums and asked folks - what does [this setting] do? Can I change it in the game's files? Which setting has the biggest effect? What effects could I live without?

      That experience, over the course of that last grade-school summer, set up knowledge and skills I would use pretty much all throughout my life from then on. I learned so much, about what different rendering options did, the effects of different things on system performance, how to optimize windows itself a bit for playing games - I explored every avenue. I don't remember the hardware exactly, but the machine I had was not a gaming machine - a Dell Inspiron, it had a 40gb hdd (2007, mind you, low end even for then), and some sort of AMD integrated chip.

      After much time, much trial and error, and even some game modding, I finally got STALKER to run at what I then could consider a playable framerate - a solid 24 lol. At the time, learning about framerate, I came to learn that's what movies run at, so I figured if I could hit that mark it would be good enough. I had saves set up to place me in the most intense areas I could find, and worked to try to get it to 24 in those areas. The end result was something akin to a portable version - lower resolution, some effects disabled, but generally the same look, same game. And in learning how to mod it a bit, I also got to tweak the game a bit to suit my preferences.

      From there I started tinkering with every game I could, and with that computer. Even got to the point of making modified drivers for the integrated GPU - how exactly I couldn't tell you today, but I did squeeze out another 1 or 2 fps doing that (who knows what I must have borked deep down lol). The skills I picked up trying to get this game to run on my computer, opened up the whole world of computers to me, and so this game has a very special place in my memory.

      Do you have a game like this, for you? One which ended up playing a big role for you? Or on a different track, is there a game which to your mind could serve this sort of purpose for a lot of people? I'm curious what you've seen and what you think.

      57 votes
    23. Do you always finish games you started? I am overwhelmed with the amount of available games.

      I have a huge problem with playing games until I finish them and I don't know how to change that. It's a rare ocurrence for me to finish the game because I usually get distracted with other games,...

      I have a huge problem with playing games until I finish them and I don't know how to change that. It's a rare ocurrence for me to finish the game because I usually get distracted with other games, so I make break and after the break I don't remember plot or how to play properly which discourages me to pick it up back again especially if I was already like 20 hours in the game. I want to enjoy games like I did 20 years ago where getting a new game was special but now the amount of cool games and their availability makes me feel that I am missing out therefore I usually switch from game to game just to try it.

      Sorry if all of the above looks like a some kind of babble but I am not a native speaker :D

      50 votes
    24. How easy is it to change out parts on a watch?

      I see some nice watches that I like, but 80-90% of them are the silver/stainless steel color. I'm not sure why that color is so prevalent (probably the same reason 40% of new cars are white),...

      I see some nice watches that I like, but 80-90% of them are the silver/stainless steel color. I'm not sure why that color is so prevalent (probably the same reason 40% of new cars are white), maybe a lot of people love it but its not for me.

      Let's say I found a watch I really liked, but wanted the case/bezel/lugs (and of course the strap) to be black stainless steel. Is this something a jeweler or watch repair shop would be able to do?

      12 votes
    25. I am an extremely light sleeper, and need advice

      I just changed rooms, and my new neighbor makes noise. It's not much of a problem for other people, but I wake up at the slightest sound or the slightest change in lighting. Because of this, I am...

      I just changed rooms, and my new neighbor makes noise. It's not much of a problem for other people, but I wake up at the slightest sound or the slightest change in lighting. Because of this, I am not able to sleep properly. I have tried earbuds and earplugs, but they hurt my ears. Can you suggest how I can become a heavy sleeper? Or how to sleep in this environment?

      35 votes
    26. Would love to get recommendations for songs/musicians for my get-up-and-get-ready and workout playlists - like Doja Cat, Dua Lipa, Rina Sawayama, and/or Y2K pop like Britney Spears, LFO

      Hi everyone! I have a Y2K playlist for this (Britney Spears, LFO, Destiny's Child, etc.) and another playlist with more recent music (Doja Cat, Dua Lipa, Rina Sawayama, Ariana Grande, etc.)....

      Hi everyone!

      I have a Y2K playlist for this (Britney Spears, LFO, Destiny's Child, etc.) and another playlist with more recent music (Doja Cat, Dua Lipa, Rina Sawayama, Ariana Grande, etc.).

      Sample songs from these playlists:
      Rina Sawayama - XS
      Doja Cat - Like That
      Dua Lipa - Levitating
      Britney Spears - Gimme More
      LFO - Summer Girls
      Destiny's Child - Independent Women

      Hoping to get recommendations for songs/musicians with similar vibes. Or perhaps links to existing Tildes threads for this; I've already tried searching 90s pop / Y2K pop / Doja Cat.

      I use these playlists to help me get into a more energetic mood, usually for getting ready or for working out. I listen to almost all kinds of music so I'm also open to recommendations from other genres; the above's just been my mood lately.

      Thank you!

      16 votes
    27. How do I migrate almost twenty years of email off of Gmail?

      I have followed numerous discussions on here lately regarding extracting oneself from being Google-reliant, and they've all deeply resonated with me. For years now I've been slowly migrating...

      I have followed numerous discussions on here lately regarding extracting oneself from being Google-reliant, and they've all deeply resonated with me. For years now I've been slowly migrating numerous Google-bound things over to my own self-hosted alternatives. I've moved my storage, contacts, documents, and some (but sadly not all) of my calendars to home solutions, fairly easily too.

      But the biggest hurdle I've been facing this whole time, the one I've been putting off the longest, is the act of figuring out how to get almost twenty years of mail archive and history on my primary account away from Google and into a space where I can access it separately. I have been steadily changing the main email on my more active external accounts to a self-hosted one, and now only seeing a shrinking handful of lesser-used services still attached to the old gmail. But that history is too precious to me, and I still find multiple occasions where I need/want to reference some communications from long ago.

      I've tried searching the web for options, but so far all combinations of my queries are either really elementary "here's how to set up a new email" crap, or else aimed at moving from one Gmail account to another Gmail account. I've been thinking that the simplest approach might be just to set it up as a POP3 account in my mail client (eM Client, for the record), download it all, and then when I finally pull the plug just drag it into the local client archive, and then remove the account from the app. But I figure there have to be others who have done this, right?

      74 votes
    28. Any BBS sysops here from back in the day?

      As a not quite "old man" I was wondering how many former BBS sysops are here? In the early-mid 90s, I used to run a single line PCBoard powered hobby BBS and dabble in making PPEs (PCBoards...

      As a not quite "old man" I was wondering how many former BBS sysops are here?

      In the early-mid 90s, I used to run a single line PCBoard powered hobby BBS and dabble in making PPEs (PCBoards programming language for plug ins/mods). I also help friends set up SpitFire, Searchlight, Synchronet, WWIV and Aftershock (total PITAs from what I remember)--basically anything free, crackable or unlimited trial.

      Since I was the only sysop that ran PCBoard I was invited to become an officer in our local User Group to run their whopping 3 line BBS and give classes (that was quite the technological achievement back then). That is something I truly do miss. I was, by far, the youngest member of the User Group (your average member probably had grandkids my age) but it was a meritocracy.

      People seemed eager to learn and share information as they found it. Before computers, 3d cards and the internet was ubiquitous, you were automatically accepted into a knowing crowd if you put in the effort/time to join a BBS, forum or (early) MMO. Exclusion brought inclusion, if that makes sense. If you torched your reputation by acting like a jackass it was difficult to move on like a locust to another area.

      So many stories. So many high jinks that would be deemed illegal today, lol.

      Everything that is old, is new again.

      I'm getting a lot of BBS vibes in the aftermath of Rexxit. The slower pace of Tildes reminds me so much of the BBS forums (while I know Tildes isn't new, it is growing in popularity in the aftermath.) Even the Fediverse harkens back to the days of early BBS synch nets.

      Now if only I could find a modern remake of Tradwars 2002.

      51 votes
    29. What are your favourite genre-bending bands/artists?

      I really enjoy music that blurs traditional genre lines and draws on multiple different influences to make something unique and distinctive. I'm sure I'm not alone in that, so I'd love to hear of...

      I really enjoy music that blurs traditional genre lines and draws on multiple different influences to make something unique and distinctive. I'm sure I'm not alone in that, so I'd love to hear of any groups that have caught your attention for the same reason!

      I'll start out with one of my own recs, as an example - I absolutely love the band Hollenthon. They're probably most closely described as black/death metal, except that they include full orchestras + choirs as part of their instrumentation, and draw on a bunch of diverse inspiration across classical music, modern movie music, and even traditional ethnic/folk melodies. The result is an incredibly interesting and distinctive sound that I haven't heard paralleled in any other band I know of. Example song - Y Draig Goch

      37 votes
    30. What are industries and specialties where you see demand for employees?

      For example, this article shows demand for aviation mechanics. What are your observations and experiences re demand in hiring?...

      For example, this article shows demand for aviation mechanics. What are your observations and experiences re demand in hiring?

      https://apnews.com/article/jobs-workers-shortages-hiring-manufacturing-airplane-mechanics-84176a760eaacd1b629e9cef2f6ee42c

      47 votes
    31. How do I figure out what it is I want to do with my career?

      This week marks my 8th year of working in IT, and I have been feeling more and more that I am ready to move onto something different. Both my undergraduate and masters degrees were in the arts...

      This week marks my 8th year of working in IT, and I have been feeling more and more that I am ready to move onto something different. Both my undergraduate and masters degrees were in the arts (Japanese, and Linguistics respectively), and I just sort of fell into IT as a job because I was always good with computers and it seemed like it had a pretty great pay-to-effort ratio. Now that I am approaching the decade mark, I feel like it's not what I want to do any more. Even my current job (which I once described as my dream role) has lost its sheen, and the prospect of spending the rest of my working life having to study and learn new technologies, and keep up with the latest developments just fills me with dread. I don't want to be in my fifties and reading endless documentation to try and understand why MacJibbleGPT is now the preferred way to skilter a virtualised quallock. In short, I would like to relegate my computing to the level of "hobby."


      The problem is, I really don't know what I would like to do instead. The last time I had an idea of a career that I wanted to follow was as a teenager when I wanted to be a doctor, but I didn't get the grades. Since then I've just sort of fallen from thing to thing, and been a bit directionless, just assuming that IT would be enough to carry me through my working life, and focus on my hobbies for fulfilment. Well my hobbies are now very fulfilling, but they just make the slog of the work day even harder.

      So how do I go about figuring out what it is that I want to do? I have done a few quizzes online (via reputable organisations), I've contemplated the jobs of my friends and family, and I still just feel like nothing is inspiring me. There are a few problems that I need to try and work around with finding something new as well:

      • At least for the next 6 years or so, I am geographically fairly restricted to being within a reasonable driving distance to my daughter's home
      • Shit is expensive, so I need to minimise the hit to my salary
      • I do not have the money to get a degree or similar vocational qualification
      • I would like stable hours, and not to work weekends or evenings (this is more job-specific than it is career-specific)
      • Hybrid working is preferable to full-time in the office or full-time WFH (ditto)

      So I ask my fellow Tilderen, have you ever pivoted into a completely different career after several years of investing your time into another? How did it go? How did you go about figuring out what you wanted to do instead? What advice would you have for me, a nearly-31-year-old who still has most of her working life ahead of her?

      30 votes
    32. Any Bevy (the rust game engine) users here?

      Bevy just released their version 0.11, so I figured it would be a nice opportunity to ask the Tildes gamedevs if they were using it :) Bevy is a rust game engine - more like a set of libraries...

      Bevy just released their version 0.11, so I figured it would be a nice opportunity to ask the Tildes gamedevs if they were using it :)

      Bevy is a rust game engine - more like a set of libraries actually - that's been gaining popularity the last few years. It has become the de facto toolset if you want to make a game in rust. It is very opinionated towards Entity-Component-System (ECS), and uses the pattern to facilitate parallelism and multi-threading.

      Personally, I'm using the bevy-ecs lib (not the whole engine) to write a roguelike and hone my skills in rust. I enjoy it but it's not really beginner-friendly. The official docs are lacking, and you'll have to dig in the auto-generated api docs to make the most out of it. However, I appreciate that each release not only brings new features, but also refines existing ones. The engine is getting better - not only bigger - release after release.

      16 votes
    33. Modern men: A summary of Tildes community discussion

      The other day I created a post here to evoke discussion around what kind of topics, and community norms we might consider. I offered up initial thoughts to spark conversation and there were a lot...

      The other day I created a post here to evoke discussion around what kind of topics, and community norms we might consider. I offered up initial thoughts to spark conversation and there were a lot of people offerings deep insights. I spent the past few days learning from everyone and reading through comments. I tried to capture the high level take aways in a summary and added it as an edit to my original post. Here is a link to the full thread.

      It was suggested I post that summary as a new topic for better visibility and so that's the intention of this new post. This is only the foundation of what we could consider as we evolve the discussions, and it helps surface the initial thoughts and perspectives we have collectively shared.


      It's encouraging to see such in-depth and thoughtful conversations on ~life.men. I wanted to take a moment to recap the significant themes I read up to this point. This is high level, so please correct me if I got it wrong, and I may have missed something valuable that needs called out.

      Our discussions around Stoicism have been quite enlightening, and we've recognized its potential to encourage self-control and inner resilience. Nevertheless, we've also acknowledged its potential misuse, which might inadvertently promote unhealthy aspects of masculinity. This is a subject that requires more nuanced exploration.

      We've unanimously expressed the need for a supportive environment for men of all identities. This includes cis, gay, trans, and men of all other identifications. Despite potential challenges such as toxicity and inactivity, many believe this forum can serve as a respectful and positive space to engage in discussions about contemporary masculinity.

      Conversations have emphasized challenging traditional gender norms and fostering inclusivity. There's been a strong consensus against defining masculinity by outdated stereotypes. We've expressed a shared commitment to creating an environment welcoming everyone, regardless of gender identity. We also acknowledge the role of diverse geographical and cultural backgrounds in shaping our understanding of gender, which we deeply value.

      The topic of men's role in promoting gender equality has been prominent. We agree on the importance of men as allies in this movement. Tackling the rigid roles defined by patriarchal norms is crucial, as is having open and transparent conversations on these issues. Progress in gender equality benefits everyone - it's not a zero-sum game.

      We've also delved into gender norms, roles, and the usage of gendered language. It's been helpful to see such scrutiny of societal expectations and a strong emphasis on promoting universally beneficial values and inclusivity. There's a shared understanding of the complexity of gendered language and how it can both define personal identity and represent broader affiliations.

      We've explored varied experiences in male-specific spaces. From the importance of representing all demographics to discussing the challenges of modern fatherhood, we've covered extensive territory. There's a shared commitment to guard against potential toxicity and ensure balance in all our discussions.

      We have expressed the importance of focused discussions on men's experiences. Challenging assumptions about masculinity and addressing men's issues from multiple perspectives can impact our society.

      I'm new to Tildes and not sure where to go from here. Given all the valuable insights and themes we've gathered, how can we adopt draft guidelines for our community? I suspect we can see how this develops organically, but I appreciate approaching things intentionally. Thanks for all the comments and discussions. It has me thinking much more broadly and about things I hadn't considered.

      EDIT
      I received early feedback that "guidelines" may be the wrong ask here. The thought was to be intentional and surface a "purpose" for having a men group. Being new to Tildes, I'll defer to community as to what's the right way to move forward. Regardless, I appreciate the conversations and discourse that Tildes brings.

      26 votes
    34. How do I filter out topics from subgroup?

      Unless I'm missing something, it seems if I subscribe to parent group but not its subgroups, the topics from subgroups still show anyway. Back when they were just tags at least I can use filter...

      Unless I'm missing something, it seems if I subscribe to parent group but not its subgroups, the topics from subgroups still show anyway. Back when they were just tags at least I can use filter but that doesn't work anymore. Is it just me or isn't that the opposite effect we'd expect from subgroups?

      Edit: Everyone explained that it's a bug. I'll just need to be patient then.

      17 votes
    35. Strategies to manage ADHD

      I figured I would help kick off this new subgroup by starting a discussion on how people with ADHD try to manage it. I had a late diagnosis a couple years ago as an adult, and I have been working...

      I figured I would help kick off this new subgroup by starting a discussion on how people with ADHD try to manage it.

      I had a late diagnosis a couple years ago as an adult, and I have been working with a counselor to develop some behavioral techniques (in addition to medication). Not all of them stick, which in my experiences is the primary challenge of this disorder, but I've had good results when I do use them.

      Primarily, I have a calendar where I put reminders and plan things out. If I have parts of a project I need to get done, I lay those out and assign them to certain days of the week. Working in academia, I live my life a semester at a time and this helps me reevaluate certain goals and it feels reasonable to me to plan out a few months at a time.

      One thing I struggle with when it comes to planning is coming up with accurate estimates of how much time it might take to spend something. This was always a big obstacle in my way when it came to planning things out before - I wanted to know the exact time on how long it took to do something so that my schedule would be perfect. My counselor suggested that I come up with an initial estimate of how long something should take based off my intuition, and then double it (e.g. if I think a task should take 30 minutes, plot it out for 60 minutes of my day). This has been great for me because usually it's a win-win. Often, my initial assessment is underestimating how long something takes, so by accounting for slippage in time I can better chunk out my day. On the other hand, if I do get it done sooner I can pat myself on the back and I now have extra time in the day to get other things done.

      I wanna find better ways of trying to stay on track with habits. I've tried some different apps and none are working too well. Recently I picked up Sunsama which has helped in terms of reviewing the day and looking at subtasks, but as I've gotten busy with experiments I've kind of lost track of that. What are some things that you do to accommodate the way your brains works?

      61 votes
    36. What is a subject you could talk for 2+ hours about with a great degree of accuracy and no preparation whatsoever?

      I'll start: as a film major, I could talk in length about several aspects of filmmaking, especially writing and directing. EDIT: I'm overwhelmed with such a high number of interesting responses....

      I'll start: as a film major, I could talk in length about several aspects of filmmaking, especially writing and directing.

      EDIT: I'm overwhelmed with such a high number of interesting responses. You guys and girls know a lot of interesting stuff that goes way beyond my intellectual abilities. This is not an attempt to be modest or to draw empty compliments, it's quite simply the truth. That is the reason I did not answer to any comment yet. I wanted to make a proportional effort (I also got a new dog and he's awesome, but that's unrelated hahaha). I will try to do so tonight, and probably create a related thread to you guys can speak a little more about your awesome obsessions. Cheers!

      39 votes
    37. Cosmetic bug: a.link-group:visited in groups list has same colour whether subscribed or unsubscribed

      See this image. Which groups are unsubscribed? All of the ~sports.X groups are unsubscribed, but american_football, basketball, football, and motorsports have been visited. The link-visited colour...

      See this image.

      Which groups are unsubscribed? All of the ~sports.X groups are unsubscribed, but american_football, basketball, football, and motorsports have been visited.

      The link-visited colour set by a.link-group:visited is taking precedence over the default colour otherwise set by .group-list-item-not-subscribed a.link-group, hiding the colour change associated with -not-subscribed. This is particularly troublesome when unsubscribing from a group, since one must go to the group's page – visiting the link – in order to unsubscribe.

      6 votes
    38. Dumb internet ideas

      Hello people, This is my first post, so if you have any tips, please tell them For a number of years I've thought about the idea that the experiment of the "free" internet has failed. Around...

      Hello people,
      This is my first post, so if you have any tips, please tell them

      For a number of years I've thought about the idea that the experiment of the "free" internet has failed.
      Around fifteen years ago the only goal of social media was to grow and how to make money was an afterthought. Now that investment money is drying up and websites like Reddit and Twitter are trying their best to find a way to become profitable, I'm thinking again of the idea that the "free" internet doesn't exist.
      Small niche websites are able to exist on donations, but they aren't reliable and people aren't willing to pay a random single access fee or subscription for a website they don't know. Streaming has found an audience, but that has become close to the tv model.

      So I thought:
      What if your ISP has to pay a website a fee everytime a user accesses the website?
      Of course you have to think about how that payment works and how this system can be abused.
      I expect the system to work like music streaming, where an artist gets a certain amount of money per stream.
      I am curious how the internet developes with this system. If smaller websites can exist without having to rely on adverstisements or if it might even get profitable. How these websites get paid and how IPS's will handle this (I expect monthly fees to become 10 euros/dollars etc. more expensive).

      What do you think of this idea or do you have your own (dumb) idea?

      13 votes
    39. Question about this plate I found at a yard sale

      I recently got this plate at a yard sale and was curious if anyone has any info on it I did some reverse google image search and couldn’t find much on it. I’m not sure if this is number 28 made...

      I recently got this plate at a yard sale and was curious if anyone has any info on it
      I did some reverse google image search and couldn’t find much on it.
      I’m not sure if this is number 28 made out of so many or number 28 in a set.
      If this is a set I’d like to track down the rest and collect them because look how cool it is!!
      I also apologize if this isn’t the right place to post as I’m fairly new to tildes.

      https://imgur.com/a/6eUt9We

      7 votes
    40. I love space horror and sci-fi with horror elements. Any recommendations around?

      New to Tildes, so I wanted to kick things off by asking—do you have any sci-fi horror recs you reckon I might be interested in? Here's some of what I've read: Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer Solid...

      New to Tildes, so I wanted to kick things off by asking—do you have any sci-fi horror recs you reckon I might be interested in? Here's some of what I've read:

       

      Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

      • Solid read, but definitely more about the weird vibes than anything else. Sequels didn't hook me as much.

       

      Blindsight by Peter Watts

      • I generally try not to DNF my reads. But this was one of them. I'm sorry, I just can't buy vampires in a sci-fi world that's trying to take itself seriously, without proper grounding. It's also incredibly dry.

       

      Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes

      • A pretty solid read, I like how the narrative is told via flashbacks and then suddenly terminates in a way that makes you want to know more, in the most tantalizing of ways. Unfortunately I thought the reveal of the lurking horror was incredibly meh, and it went mostly downhill from there.

       

      Diamond Dogs by Alistair Reynolds

      • Fantastic novella with a mysterious locale functioning as the backdrop of the setting, and the horror elements being both external (as in the setting) and internal (how far our characters are willing to go to crack the mystery).

       

      Paradise-1 by David Wellington

      • A really solid space horror novel, with a pretty interesting protagonist trio (including a self-aware robot with plastic bodies) and it has some genuinely uncomfortable moments of horror that I can absolutely get behind. My main issue though, is that it ends in a cliffhanger and I'm still mad about it.

       

      Salvaged by Madeleine Roux

      • Decent read, but the horror reveal came super early and in reality, it's less space horror than it is human drama involving horror elements which is basically the Protomolecule from the Expanse. Fun read though, if you're okay with that.

       

      Salvation Day by Kali Wallace

      • I thought this was somewhat bland, the concept and initial plot were interesting, but it trails off and overall, overstays its welcome with some scenes that pacing-wise, feel like they belong in the middle part of the book. Some solid moments of horror though.

       

      Ship of Fools by Richard Paul Russo

      • Probably the quintessential space horror book for me. A fantastic setting, an intriguing protagonist narrative interspersed with religious themes and a genuinely solid pacing, horror-wise.

       

      Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty

      • This would have been an interesting murder mystery in space... if it actually had good and compelling characters. It does not. Everyone feels like a cardboard cutout with One Defining Trait and that's it.

       

      The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling

      • This was... a disappointment. I still rank it amongst the worst books I've read, simply because the protagonist is unbelievable. I can buy a protagonist doing things under duress or from being manipulated, but I cannot buy a protagonist who constantly flip flops 5 minutes after making a decision and then
        hooks up with the person who was manipulating her, because yay fucked up sexytimes! Look, I want queer representation in my books too, but this came off too much as just doing it for the vibes. Queer rep deserves better than stupid protagonists.

       

      Walking to Aldebaraan by Adrian Tchaikovsky

      • A great novella; it's a retelling of a really well-known story but reframed in sci-fi terms, and I love that approach.

       

      We Have Always Been Here by Lena Nguyen

      • A really haphazard book I think; I like some things about it, but others just don't make sense, or contradict it. E.g. the protagonist is a psychologist, but is absolutely horrible at reading human emotion and speech, and a loner who prefers robots. Throw in some Michio Kaku-esque pseudoscience and while it's not a horrible read, it feels like a book that could have been better with a rewrite. The setting and suspense are pretty neat though.

       

      So, as you can see, I have met the good, the bad and the ugly of sci-fi horror. I'd love to find more! For non-book horror or horror adjacent works I've enjoyed, those include Alien, The Thing, Event Horizon, Sunshine, Underwater and Dead Space. Please don't recommend tie-in novels though; I can find those myself and generally I've found that they're not really up to par.

      27 votes
    41. Share your favourite short animated films with me!

      What short animated films do you really love and why? Here's two of mine: Anna & Bella - says so much without saying much of anything! I love the lack of dialogue and the expressiveness. Makes me...

      What short animated films do you really love and why? Here's two of mine:

      Anna & Bella - says so much without saying much of anything! I love the lack of dialogue and the expressiveness. Makes me feel warm and fuzzy thinking about my relationship with my brother.

      Affairs of the Art - NSFW, love the animation style and character designs, and the overall message on obsessions, passion and art being for everyone!

      14 votes