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    1. Seeking good programs for digitizing all our addresses

      What's your preferred program for typing up lots and lots of addresses? My mum's got multiple address books and they'll have to be typed up eventually, a block at a time. I don't really want to go...

      What's your preferred program for typing up lots and lots of addresses? My mum's got multiple address books and they'll have to be typed up eventually, a block at a time. I don't really want to go with the contacts function of Outlook/Hotmail/Live, because it requires signing in and the password could be misplaced. I also would like to use something that could ideally export the addresses to another Outlook/Hotmail/Live or Gmail account.

      7 votes
    2. What did you do this weekend?

      As part of a weekly series, these topics are a place for users to casually discuss the things they did — or didn't do — during their weekend. Did you make any plans? Take a trip? Do nothing at...

      As part of a weekly series, these topics are a place for users to casually discuss the things they did — or didn't do — during their weekend. Did you make any plans? Take a trip? Do nothing at all? Tell us about it!

      8 votes
    3. What projects/orgs are you donating to?

      Every year, I donate a modest sum to combat climate change. Since my employer matches my donations up to a certain amount, I try to maximize their contribution. This year, most of my donations...

      Every year, I donate a modest sum to combat climate change. Since my employer matches my donations up to a certain amount, I try to maximize their contribution.

      This year, most of my donations have gone to the following two orgs:

      • Information Technology and Innovation Foundation - a highly regarded US think tank focusing on clean energy research and advising policymakers
      • Eden Reforestation Projects - apparently $7 donated here offsets a year worth of personal carbon emissions

      Are there any projects/causes/orgs you are very keen on donating to? Are there any that we should look out for?

      Edit: Please feel free to list technical projects, Kickstarters, Patreons, etc.

      23 votes
    4. What are your favorite mods?

      Note that this question is touched upon here, but only for very large, expansive mods. Also, I don't play a lot of games and have never installed a mod (and most mobile games don't allow it anyway...

      Note that this question is touched upon here, but only for very large, expansive mods.

      Also, I don't play a lot of games and have never installed a mod (and most mobile games don't allow it anyway and none on console) so this is mostly based on how much I like the concept of the mod and the footage I've seen of it, which is obviously to be taken with a grain of salt and is gonna be a lot different from a list from someone who actually plays the game with the mod. This list will also be biased towards well known mods and won't be expansive for the same reason.


      KSP

      Principia

      Kerbal space program simplifies gravity by only doing calculations for one body generating gravity, meaning Lagrange points don't exist and orbits are generally simplified. This mod changes that, and not just for your ship, it does for the planets too.

      RSS (Real Solar System) mod

      Title. Basically it recreates the real solar system in Kerbal space program since KSP has it's own system with it's own planets. Usually followed by Realism Overhaul (a mod with includes real rockets because the KSP system is 10 times smaller for playability) and Realistic progression (a mod that makes all those rockets disponible in the game's tech tree and would probably be high on this list.)

      Outer planets mod

      Basically a mod that adds Saturn, Uranus and Neptune analogues to the game, and some of their associated satellites, while still being relatively original. (note that they do add a pluto analogue but the stock game already has a pluto analogue. It's turned into an Enceladus analogue around the Saturn analogue.)

      Honorable mentions:

      10x Kerbol system, because it scales up all the celestial bodies in the game to a realistic size without needing to change the rest of the game.

      Tilt' em!, for adding axial tilt into the game, something that is moderately important to orbital mechanics (if your planet is inclined relative to the rest of the solar system, your orbit might need to align with the solar system instead of the planet to reduce inclination in interplanetary space.

      16 votes
    5. A discussion of Glenn Greenwald's departure from The Intercept

      Glenn Greenwald resigned from from The Intercept_ an online publication he helped start after the Edward Snowden Leaks. In that letter Glenn Greenwald goes into detail for the reason for his...

      Glenn Greenwald resigned from from The Intercept_ an online publication he helped start after the Edward Snowden Leaks. In that letter Glenn Greenwald goes into detail for the reason for his resignation.

      The final, precipitating cause is that The Intercept’s editors, in violation of my contractual right of editorial freedom, censored an article I wrote this week, refusing to publish it unless I remove all sections critical of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, the candidate vehemently supported by all New-York-based Intercept editors involved in this effort at suppression.

      Editor-in-Chief of The Intercept's response with a heavy critique of Glenn Greenwald work as a Journalist.

      it is important to make clear that our goal in editing his work was to ensure that it would be accurate and fair. While he accuses us of political bias, it was he who was attempting to recycle the dubious claims of a political campaign — the Trump campaign — and launder them as journalism.

      Glenn Greenwald post the unedited article w/ typos and and all that The Intercept refused to publish.

      Glenn has also posted the email exchange between himself and other editors at The Intercept.

      26 votes
    6. What tips or tricks do you use when researching a topic to find actually useful information?

      Stop me if you've heard this one before: You get an idea for something you'd like to learn more about. (Maybe you have a question, maybe you want to explore a new hobby, or maybe you want to make...

      Stop me if you've heard this one before:

      • You get an idea for something you'd like to learn more about. (Maybe you have a question, maybe you want to explore a new hobby, or maybe you want to make a more informed decision.)
      • You type something into a search engine.
      • You click a result, only to realize that what you're reading is poorly written. It seems rushed, surface-level, and ill-informed. "This doesn't answer my question at all!" you think to yourself.
      • You go back, and try another one, and another one, only to give up and put the idea back in your head.

      I don't think these webpages are written to be useful in the first place. They seem to be written to attract attention to the website for other reasons (ad revenue, affiliate links, to draw attention to a product or service). Regardless of why it's happening, though, I want to find a better way to search.

      The sort of content I'm looking for is written by someone who really cares about the topic. I want to learn from dorks and nerds and passionate people. Once I stumbled across this blog about extra virgin olive oil. The website isn't pretty, and it goes way more in depth than I'll ever need, but I trust the author, and there are some really interesting nuggets of insight on these pages. (e.g. "Another myth debunked: Heating EVOO makes it ‘toxic’")

      Do you have any tips or tricks to more reliably find these sorts of sources (whether online or in-person)?

      15 votes
    7. Apple Arcade recommendations?

      I upgraded to Apple One because it was only $3 more a month for TV and Arcade split between my family plan members. So why not? Looking for recommendations of what's fun to play in the Arcade....

      I upgraded to Apple One because it was only $3 more a month for TV and Arcade split between my family plan members. So why not?

      Looking for recommendations of what's fun to play in the Arcade. I'll take anything, but if you're looking for what I like the last games I really enjoyed playing were: Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Disco Elysium, Persona 5 Royal and Animal Crossing: New Horizons. As you can tell, I really don't play mobile games much.

      Thank in advance.

      9 votes
    8. Announcing Tildes' Make Something Month (Timasomo) for 2020!

      Timasomo 2020 has concluded. Please visit the Showcase Thread to see and comment on participants' work! What is Timasomo? Timasomo is "Tildes' Make Something Month": a creative community challenge...

      Timasomo 2020 has concluded. Please visit the Showcase Thread to see and comment on participants' work!


      What is Timasomo?

      Timasomo is "Tildes' Make Something Month": a creative community challenge that takes place in the month of November. It was inspired by NaNoWriMo, the National Novel Writing Month. The first ever Timasomo took place last year. You can see the threads for the previous Timasomo using the timasomo tag, and you can see the final showcase thread of creations here.

      What are the rules?

      Timasomo is self-driven and its goals are self-selected. On November 1st, participants will commit to a creative project (or projects) that they plan to complete within the month of November. There is no restriction on the methods/products of creativity: writing, painting, code, food, photos, crafts, songs -- if it's creative expression for you, it works for Timasomo!

      Though most will be participating individually, collaborations are welcome too!

      What is the schedule?

      Timasomo begins November 1st and ends November 30th. All creative output towards your goal(s) should be confined to this time. This week prior to the start of November is for planning, and there will be a few days at the beginning of December given to "finishing touches" before we have our final thread, which will be a showcase of all the completed works. Below are the dates that I will be posting weekly threads:

      Sunday, October 18, 2020: Announcement Thread
      Sunday, October 25, 2020: Planning Thread
      Sunday, November 1, 2020: Roll Call Thread
      Sunday, November 8, 2020: Update Thread #1
      Sunday, November 15, 2020: Update Thread #2
      Sunday, November 22, 2020: Update Thread #3
      Sunday, November 29, 2020: Final Update Thread
      Sunday, December 6, 2020: Timasomo Showcase Thread

      This announcement will be posted in ~tildes. All Timasomo process threads will be hosted in ~creative. The final Timasomo Showcase thread will be posted in ~talk.

      Can I participate?

      Yes! Timasomo is open to anyone on Tildes! The greater Tildes community is also encouraged to participate in discussion threads even if you are not actively working towards a creative goal. This is meant to be an inclusive community event -- all are welcome! If you are interested in participating but do not have a Tildes login, please e-mail the invite request address here for an invite to the community.

      Participants will formally announce their plans to enter into Timasomo on Sunday, November 1st, in the Roll Call thread. If you are planning to participate or just want to follow the event, please make sure you are subscribed to ~creative where all of the update threads will be posted.

      What if I have ideas for how to run the event?

      Please share them here! I am facilitating the event, but I am completely open to feedback and suggestions to make this the best event possible. I want this to be Tildes' event, not kfwyre's!

      51 votes
    9. Today I bough some duct tape

      What a magnificent purchase. I fixed the saddle on my bike and now it’s less saddle than duct tape. I was so mesmerized I took it cycling with me, and stopped near the road to put some tape on the...

      What a magnificent purchase.

      I fixed the saddle on my bike and now it’s less saddle than duct tape.

      I was so mesmerized I took it cycling with me, and stopped near the road to put some tape on the handlebar.

      It looked neat, sharp, complete.

      When I got home I told my husband about my duct tape, and all the little things I could use it for.

      He was not very enthusiastic, so I shut his mouth. With duct tape.

      I then shut his nostrils and made his head into a cute little football.

      It looked neat, sharp, complete.

      He wiggled back and forth. It was adorable for a while. And then he stopped.

      I need to buy some duct tape.

      21 votes
    10. Developer Resume Review

      I am currently a junior in college and in search of summer internship for next year. I am not seeing much response and starting to wonder if it is an issue with my resume. Is there any chance one...

      I am currently a junior in college and in search of summer internship for next year. I am not seeing much response and starting to wonder if it is an issue with my resume. Is there any chance one of you would be willing to take a look at it? Open to any and all feedback.

      Thank you for your time.

      Resume

      12 votes