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    2. dagga.

      ~creative Text 292 words
      last one for today, feel like i've been littering all over tildes and i dont want to be the only thing people see on the homepage. i normally only do these like once a week, but i kept finding...

      last one for today, feel like i've been littering all over tildes and i dont want to be the only thing people see on the homepage.

      i normally only do these like once a week, but i kept finding words that work today.

      sorry for the clutter,

      cheers.

      bliky at the forehead
      hit the floor dead.
      i give you advice
      so that i feel important
      tell me to stay im
      a little distorted
      cross-faded vision
      is going contorted

      take off my seatbelt
      and i start to floor it
      fuck all your comments
      i know its abhorrent
      i only go out in the
      night when it's dormant
      in hopes that I'll see
      a brick wall and ignore it

      gorgeous.

      tell me, do you cry or get lonely?
      Do you ever feel soulless?
      Do you ever stop and reminisce?
      Baby I want to feel free.
      Free.

      (beat.)

      dagga in die bak - smoke
      til the morning
      i just want you back
      still hear you moaning
      hard to look back,
      know that you happened
      hard to look back,
      see what we had then
      knife hits the floor, saying
      what the fuck man
      you're a grown man how
      do you function
      why do you do this
      you're above this
      Cus I don't know what's real
      Baby I want to feel free

      Free

      Free

      Free

      bliky at the forehead
      hit the floor dead.
      i give you advice
      so that i feel important
      tell me to stay im
      a little distorted
      cross-faded vision
      is going contorted

      take off my seatbelt
      and i start to floor it
      fuck all your comments
      i know its abhorrent
      i only go out in the
      night when it's dormant
      in hopes that I'll see
      a brick wall and ignore it
      it's gorgeous.

      6 votes

    3. Hooktube is dead

      ~tech Text 272 words
      Hooktube.com used to provide a private way to view youtube vids, blocking ads, bypassing region locks, and also pulling comments and search results via the api. All you had to do was replace the...

      Hooktube.com used to provide a private way to view youtube vids, blocking ads, bypassing region locks, and also pulling comments and search results via the api. All you had to do was replace the you in a youtube link with hook.

      No more. On July 11, this appeared on the changelog:

      HookTube no longer uses YouTube api for anything, and most features (channel page, search, related videos, etc) are gone. No choice.

      Which was extremely bad, but at least you could still watch videos privately right?

      July 16: YouTube api features are back but mp4 <video> is replaced with the standard YT video embed. HookTube is now effectively just a light-weight version of youtube and useless to the 90% of you primarily concerned with denying Google data and seeing videos blocked by your governments.

      rest in pieces
      It was a good run, 1.5 years. Started as a quickly made addition to the norbot project, and within long the server had to be upgraded several times. Of course YouTube Legal was an inevitability at that point.
      Special thanks to the many people who created plugins and extensions for hooktube, /g/, the five people who donated anonymously, and BitChute for working hard on a real YouTube alternative. HookTube will remain operational in the present state for those who only needed it for performance reasons. See you in the next project.

      :(

      Alternatives include: invidio.us, youtube-dl, the Freetube desktop app, Newpipe for Android, and you’re doomed if you use iOS. ETA: Actually, I just remembered, there’s Media Grabber for the Workflow app. And Invidio mostly works on mobile.

      15 votes

    6. The Lost of Oracle (DC comics)

      ~comics Text 358 words
      Batgirl background: A lot of Batman fans maybe be familiar with Barbara (Babs) Gordon's Batgirl. She was the first Batgirl (not to be confused with Betty Kane's Bat-girl), and is often the...

      Batgirl background:

      • A lot of Batman fans maybe be familiar with Barbara (Babs) Gordon's Batgirl. She was the first Batgirl (not to be confused with Betty Kane's Bat-girl), and is often the on-screen Batgirl of choice.
      • Barbara was paralyzed from the waist down in the infamous The Killing Joke. Her forced retirement from the Batgirl mantle has always triggered mixed feelings, and she's often the top three Women-in-Refrigerators.

      Oracle background:

      • Barbara returns to DC comics after the events of The Killing Joke as Oracle, where she continues to fight crime in a less overt manner. She often provides much needed expertise and assistance to other vigilantes, including Batman.
      • As Oracle, she is also one of the first major depictions of disability in DC comics.

      Barbara's return to Batgirl:

      • The New 52 Batgirl series is the first Batgirl title with Barbara as Batgirl. After a glossed over miracle cure, she can now walk and picks up her cowl again.

      The lost of Oracle:

      • Though it's great to finally see Barbara with her own Batgirl title comic, and her struggles to be Batgirl again. And it definitely doesn't hurt that she was written by Gail Simone. It seems the lost of Oracle was greater than the return of Batgirl.
      • The Batgirl mantle has been carried by a few people at this point, specifically Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown, both of which are in the New 52 and Rebirth continuity. To put it pointly, Batgirl is replaceable.
      • Oracle is not, and has not been replaced. In a world where information is the best tool and weapon in fighting crime, Oracle's role is more important than Batgirl's, which is basically one of might.
      • Oracle was a show of determination and will. Barbara may have been forced to retire as Batgirl, but she chose to continue fighting against crime. Loosing the use of her legs didn't affect the use of her mind.

      Any other fans of Batgirl/Oracle have thoughts on this? Is re-empowering Barbara as Batgirl, minimizing her contributions as Oracle? How do you feel about the representation of disabilities and/or women in comics in general?

      1 vote

    14. Daily Tildes discussion - thoughts about the site's activity level

      ~tildes.official Text 440 words
      The activity on Tildes has been (mostly) slowly dropping for a while. To be clear up front, it's definitely not doing badly at all and I'm not worried about it—it's still very good for how early...

      The activity on Tildes has been (mostly) slowly dropping for a while. To be clear up front, it's definitely not doing badly at all and I'm not worried about it—it's still very good for how early this is, the fact that the site is invite-only, and that we haven't had a real "burst" of people for almost a month now.

      Just as a point of comparison, saidit.net (a reddit clone that's been trying to get attention and doesn't have restricted registration) has had 9 comments and 3 submissions posted in the last 24 hours. Tildes is far, far better off than that and is already doing better than most community sites ever get to. Here's the last month of stats:

      DateCommentsTopics
      2018-06-13104067
      2018-06-1482769
      2018-06-1583243
      2018-06-1646730
      2018-06-1737731
      2018-06-1882885
      2018-06-1966264
      2018-06-2088382
      2018-06-2192675
      2018-06-2255342
      2018-06-2347937
      2018-06-2428032
      2018-06-2563462
      2018-06-2666648
      2018-06-2769137
      2018-06-2843345
      2018-06-2941558
      2018-06-3029929
      2018-07-0136941
      2018-07-0223936
      2018-07-0335345
      2018-07-0433839
      2018-07-0550131
      2018-07-0648539
      2018-07-0737836
      2018-07-0842228
      2018-07-0944534
      2018-07-1042443
      2018-07-1135237
      2018-07-1229831

      So the numbers are still quite good overall, but there's an obvious downward trend in there. I'd like to talk about what you think is behind this—is it just a bit of a feedback loop, where the activity isn't very high, so people get bored and the activity drops more? Or are there other causes? For those of you that feel like you're drifting away a bit, are there any particular reasons, or anything that would encourage you to participate here more?

      We probably also just need another influx of users before much longer—it's been nice for me to have it a little quieter so I can focus on coding things more than community-management lately, but we're obviously not at the point yet where the activity is self-sustaining. On that note, I haven't given out invite codes for a while, so I've given everyone 5 again. You can get them here (and always, if you need more for a particular reason, just send me a message and let me know): https://tildes.net/invite

      Let me know what you think. There are still quite a few high-priority things that I'm trying to get done in the near future, but if there are other changes we could make to try to help keep the site active, I think they're definitely worth considering.

      81 votes

    17. stoep.

      ~creative Text 253 words
      nevermind. my stoep is warm. my stoep is warm. can't keep my calm it should probably raise alarms if my stoep is warm my stoep is warm that there's a problem and I dont know how to stop it fucked...

      nevermind.

      my stoep is warm.
      my stoep is warm.
      can't keep my calm
      it should probably raise alarms if
      my stoep is warm
      my stoep is warm
      that there's a problem
      and I dont know how to stop it

      fucked up his arm
      with bleeding scars
      that kid's an addict he
      has no idea how to quit
      Insha'allah
      One day he'll stop
      If he ever dulls the edges of
      the shards of broken promises

      'llahu-allah
      'llahu-allah
      That a broken-legged lamb
      can still hobble into Providence
      i hear the caw
      i hear the caw
      woke up in a sweat and
      saw a raven at my doorstep

      (beat.)

      messed up inside
      messed up inside
      only when he's fucked up
      does he really feel alive
      the pain you feel
      the pain you feel
      is the happiness you had before
      So pay it up boy, that's the price.

      my stoep is warm.
      my stoep is warm.
      can't keep my calm
      it should probably raise alarms if
      my stoep is warm
      my stoep is warm
      that there's a problem
      and I dont know how to stop it

      fucked up his arm
      with bleeding scars
      that kid's an addict he
      has no idea how to quit
      Insha'allah
      One day he'll stop
      If he ever dulls the edges of
      the shards of broken promises

      the stoa's hot
      the stoa's hot
      how you gonna run from
      a problem that's inside your head

      it's going dark,
      it's going dark
      beautiful curse if you
      find that you woke up again

      5 votes

    21. DIY ROV

      ~creative Text 407 words
      Months ago I decided I was going to build my own underwater remotely-operated vehicle. I got sidetracked by a kitchen remodel, but since it is now complete I will have some free time to start...

      Months ago I decided I was going to build my own underwater remotely-operated vehicle. I got sidetracked by a kitchen remodel, but since it is now complete I will have some free time to start working on my vehicle. There are some decent videos out there where others have done the same thing, some are wildly complicated and others are basically built from items out of a scrap bin. I am hoping to land somewhere in the middle.

      During the bit of research I have performed, I discovered companies selling very high-end parts, the likes of which you would find on a highly funded/sponsored deep sea expedition or a government project. I didn't find a whole lot of middle ground really, either you DIY or you dump a ton of money into it.

      My plan is to use PVC for my hull. I had thought about constructing it similar to the Russian Typhoon-class submarine, with two pressure hulls within an outer hull. That would allow the electrics to reside in dry compartments while I use the void space for ballast. I even found RC submarine ballast systems on eBay which would allow me to take on water and dump it remotely so I could trim it out on the fly.

      The general opinion, I have discovered so far, is to make it neutrally buoyant. As much as I would like to add that ballast tank system I may need to just keep it simple for my first attempt. Tethers also seem to be an issue, adding too much weight when they get to a certain length and if you do not take steps to make them buoyant. I thought pool noodles, but learned from someone else that they become water logged and are a bad choice. Then there is power, the trend I noticed is keeping it onboard in the form of a battery pack, but I would like to keep it ashore and just add a wire to the tether so I can not have power to worry about.

      So far I have an Arduino board, some old laptops, and some rivers to explore. If we had a makerspace or hackerspace nearby I would be all set. I did search, and the closest is an hour away, which is disappointing since I know I am not the only person into ridiculous projects/hobbies around here! Anyone on here into things like this?

      8 votes

    27. Daily Tildes discussion - figuring out some early details of the group hierarchy

      ~tildes.official Text 347 words
      This week, I'm trying to focus on the last few pieces needed to finally get the site's code open-sourced (really, I am!). One of those pieces is that we'll need a group on Tildes for discussing...

      This week, I'm trying to focus on the last few pieces needed to finally get the site's code open-sourced (really, I am!). One of those pieces is that we'll need a group on Tildes for discussing development, answering related questions, and so on. The obvious location for this is something like ~tildes.dev, but adding it opens up a few questions related to the group hierarchy in general, so that's what I want to talk about today.

      Currently, we only have one subgroup on the site, this one (~tildes.official). The way it works right now, if you visit or subscribe to ~tildes, you will also see the content from ~tildes.official. You also have the option of going to ~tildes.official directly, so that you see only the content from that group without the posts from its parent group. However, there's no way to see only the content from ~tildes without ~tildes.official. This will become more significant when ~tildes.dev is added, because that group will probably only be interesting to a small group of the site's users—people that are involved in (or interested in) the actual code/development behind the site.

      So now we have a more interesting case, a subgroup that most people looking at the parent probably won't want to see. How should this work in practice? Some more specific questions that might help thinking through it:

      • When someone visits ~tildes, do they see ~tildes.dev posts in there?
      • When someone subscribes to ~tildes, are they automatically subscribed (implicitly or not) to both ~tildes.official and ~tildes.dev?
      • If someone only wants to see the content from ~tildes and ~tildes.official, what sort of process should they need to go through to make that happen?
      • How might these ideas work once the hierarchy gets much larger (for example, imagine a ~games with hundreds of subgroups inside many branches)?

      Any input about the topic is appreciated—try not to worry too much about whether a plan is "perfect", we can always adjust it as the hierarchy actually starts becoming more extensive.

      34 votes

    32. What, if anything, makes a morally good war?

      ~talk Ask
      I've been consuming the darkness that is wartime histories from the past three or four centuries and I feel like I've encountered a lot of people who had what they believed to be justifiable...

      I've been consuming the darkness that is wartime histories from the past three or four centuries and I feel like I've encountered a lot of people who had what they believed to be justifiable reasons to launch wars against other powers. There are people who thought they had divine right to a particular position of power and so would launch a war to assert that god-given right. There are people who believed in a citizen's right to have some (any) say in how their tax money gets used in government and so would fight wars over that. People would fight wars to, as John Cleese once said, "Keep China British." Many wars are started to save the honor of a country/nation. Some are started in what is claimed to be self-defense and later turns out to have been a political play instigated to end what has been a political thorn in their sides.

      In all this time, I've struggled to really justify many of these wars, but some of that comes with the knowledge of what other wars have cost in terms of human carnage and suffering. For some societies in some periods, the military is one of the few vehicles to social mobility (and I think tend to think social mobility is grease that keeps a society functioning). Often these conflicts come down to one man's penis and the inability to swallow their pride to find a workable solution unless at the end of a bayonet. These conflicts also come with the winning powers taking the opportunity to rid themselves of political threats and exacting new harms on the defeated powers (which comes back around again the next time people see each other in a conflict).

      So help keep me from embracing a totally pacifistic approach to war. When is a war justifiable? When it is not only morally acceptable but a moral imperative to go to war? Please point to examples throughout history where these situations have happened, if you can (though if you're prepared to admit that there has been no justifiable war that you're aware of, I suppose that's fine if bitter).

      20 votes

    38. What have you been listening to this week?

      ~music Ask (survey)
      What have you been listening to this week? You don't need to do a 6000 word review if you don't want to, but please write something! Feel free to give recs or dicuss anything about each others'...

      What have you been listening to this week? You don't need to do a 6000 word review if you don't want to, but please write something!

      Feel free to give recs or dicuss anything about each others' listening habits.

      You can make a chart if you use last.fm:

      http://www.tapmusic.net/lastfm/

      11 votes