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    1. Recommend me books with a twist (with a twist)

      I'm interested in reading some books with good plot twists and would love some recommendations. BUT WAIT THERE'S A TWIST Knowing that a twist is coming can inhibit its effectiveness, so I also...

      I'm interested in reading some books with good plot twists and would love some recommendations.

      BUT WAIT THERE'S A TWIST

      Knowing that a twist is coming can inhibit its effectiveness, so I also want some recommendations in this thread that do not have twists. This means that I or anyone else consulting this thread for recommendations won't necessarily know if the given book we've chosen has a twist or not, which helps keep us on our toes.

      21 votes
    2. Recommend me a version control system for design assets (primarily Photoshop & Illustrator)

      I'm a software developer working with a small team, and our Google Drive folder tree of UI assets/illustrations/app icons/etc. is becoming increasingly difficult to deal with. Aside from proper...

      I'm a software developer working with a small team, and our Google Drive folder tree of UI assets/illustrations/app icons/etc. is becoming increasingly difficult to deal with. Aside from proper versioning, symlinks would be a major plus. Both are kinda-sorta possible with GDrive, but not in a reliable way.

      I'm happy to take on a reasonable amount of management myself, although the easier it is for the designers themselves to work with the software, the better. Paid solutions are fine, although open source would be preferable (even as a hosted service) to avoid vendor lock-in down the line.

      My instinct is to go with git/GitHub on the basis that we're already deeply familiar with it from the dev side, the GitHub desktop app isn't too onerous for non-techies, and we're already paying for it. That said, I'd be very interested in anyone's real-world experience of git for multiple gigs of 10-200MB binary files. I've heard that it's not especially well suited, although that might be out of date knowledge?

      Beyond that, I'm open to almost anything. I'm kind of surprised that I haven't been able to find a single "gold standard" piece of software here, in the way that git is for developers, but maybe I haven't been searching well enough? Any pointers in the right direction or stories of what has/hasn't worked for your teams would be a huge help!

      17 votes
    3. What to do with NFC tags

      I picked up 20 NFC tags (link) and they seem to be alright with iOS after I (re?)format them to NDEF. Anyway, I have a few things setup: tap to play music in the dining room over a Google Home...

      I picked up 20 NFC tags (link) and they seem to be alright with iOS after I (re?)format them to NDEF.

      Anyway, I have a few things setup:

      • tap to play music in the dining room over a Google Home speaker
      • tap to turn off some lights and prep for bed etc
      • tap to change some Hue scenes

      ... and that's about it. I don't have trouble waking up to an alarm, so I don't need to go down that route. Anyone have any fun things you're doing with tags?

      9 votes
    4. Open source alternatives to Slack, Google Drive and Google Docs

      So I recently started working at a company that uses Slack (free tier), Google Drive and Google Docs. Being a privacy conscious person I decided to do some research to see if we could transition...

      So I recently started working at a company that uses Slack (free tier), Google Drive and Google Docs. Being a privacy conscious person I decided to do some research to see if we could transition out of at least 1 of these tools.

      For Slack I thought about Element. However I have a question: is it possible to create a closed channel (meaning no unauthorized person has access to or can discover the company chat) on Element with only the free tier (it's easier to convince my boss to transition if it doesn't add to the cost structure)?

      For Google Drive I don't think there are other free options that offer the 15GB of storage we have. 10GB would probably be enough. But I am also open to paid solutions.
      I found out about CryptPad. They offer cloud storage but one has to pay to be at the same level of Google (which is totally understandable). They also have productivity tools integrated with the storage solution which is great.
      Maybe there is some cloud storage solution that doesn't have integrated productivity tools and offers more storage. I would like to know.

      I'm open to suggestions and thoughts. My functions at the company have little to do with all this, I am just interested in open source and privacy. EDIT: I am not interested in self-hosting.

      26 votes
    5. Duck eggs

      I bought a dozen duck eggs from the farmers market this week, hoping to add some pizazz to any dishes with egg this week. Was wondering if anyone had recommendations for dishes where duck eggs...

      I bought a dozen duck eggs from the farmers market this week, hoping to add some pizazz to any dishes with egg this week. Was wondering if anyone had recommendations for dishes where duck eggs really shine or take it up a notch? Scrambled eggs will be on the menu this weekend. I have heard baking with these eggs is recommended as they have more yolk and are richer.

      12 votes
    6. What would you do with 30+ kg of fresh tomatoes, and counting?

      So the garden plot has succeeded beyond my wildest expectations, and I can't give away enough tomatoes, tomatillos, and hot peppers. I'm averse to the risks and expense of home canning, but...

      So the garden plot has succeeded beyond my wildest expectations, and I can't give away enough tomatoes, tomatillos, and hot peppers.

      I'm averse to the risks and expense of home canning, but otherwise open to suggestions. There's a wide variety of heirloom cherry (if you can get seeds for "Brad's Atomic Grape", they taste amazing), Roma, and beefsteak types.

      Tomatillos are getting roasted and made into salsa verde for freezing.

      I'm going to make freezer salsa rojo, but any other suggestions or favorite recipes are welcome. [I do have a dehydrator, but that seems like cheating.]

      15 votes
    7. Advice on colorful programmable LED lights

      Any recommendations for those? I'd like to replace all my house lights with colour-programmable GU-10s. I've had poor experience with Philips Hue... They do the job but I'm not a big fan of them,...

      Any recommendations for those? I'd like to replace all my house lights with colour-programmable GU-10s. I've had poor experience with Philips Hue... They do the job but I'm not a big fan of them, the app sucks etc.

      I'm sure someone here has smart home / iot as a hobby :) thoughts?

      10 votes
    8. What's a good book to (re)learn chess fundamentals?

      Most people online seem to favor a practical approach to learning chess, but I tend to prefer something more structured, with a bit of theory, concepts, and explanations. I'd also rather use my...

      Most people online seem to favor a practical approach to learning chess, but I tend to prefer something more structured, with a bit of theory, concepts, and explanations. I'd also rather use my physical board instead of an app. I already know how to play chess, but I'd like to give it another good and see if I can achieve a higher level than before, starting from the beginning. Any suggestions?

      12 votes
    9. Recommend me a small SBC!

      So I'm looking to do an improved version of this project from a couple of years ago that rebuilt the dreamcast VMU into an emulator system that could even interface with a modified dreamcast...

      So I'm looking to do an improved version of this project from a couple of years ago that rebuilt the dreamcast VMU into an emulator system that could even interface with a modified dreamcast controller using the original connector. That project was really neat, but it used a raspberry pi zero, which is frankly anemic for running any emulators past the SNES, and I'd like to find one that's powerful enough to emulate the dreamcast itself, but small enough to fit inside a VMU. To that end, my requirements are:

      • Must be of a similar size to the pi zero. Smaller would be better, but it absolutely cannot be more than 40x65mm.

      • Must have a processor at least as powerful as a cortex A53, preferably something more powerful like the A72.

      • Must have a release of armbian (or similar) with drivers for full video acceleration.

      • Must be able to drive a display over SPI.

      • Must be available. The NanoPi NEO Core 2 is pretty close to what I need, if maybe a bit underpowered, but it seems to be discontinued and I can't find it anywhere but aliexpress at double the list price.

      • Composite video out would be nice.

      • Analog audio out would be nice.

      • Availability without soldered headers and large ports would be nice, like the pi zero or nanopi neo.

      9 votes
    10. Food in New Orleans?

      Hey All - Spending the month of July in New Orleans and it just occurred to me I could get some great rec's here. Anyone have any suggestions for places to eat/drink that aren't the usually...

      Hey All - Spending the month of July in New Orleans and it just occurred to me I could get some great rec's here. Anyone have any suggestions for places to eat/drink that aren't the usually touristy spots? We aren't afraid of spice, and love baked treats as well. Would welcome any recommendations. Thanks!

      10 votes
    11. Please recommend analytical, industry-specific blogs and newsletters

      Hey all, I'm looking to expand my stable of long-form, "crunchy" reading material. I'll recommend three. ( I think I found all these through tildes.) Casey Handmer's Blog A blog about the new...

      Hey all, I'm looking to expand my stable of long-form, "crunchy" reading material. I'll recommend three. ( I think I found all these through tildes.)

      Casey Handmer's Blog
      A blog about the new space industry with a specific focus on SpaceX and the industrialization of Mars.

      Construction Physics
      A newsletter that analyses trends and data in the construction industry with a focus on modular construction.

      ACOUP
      Essays about medieval and ancient history as well as their interaction with popular culture, with a focus on methods of production and common people in history.

      Another type of content I've really enjoyed is detailed breakdowns of zero-day vulnerabilities and large software catastrophies.

      14 votes
    12. Do you know any books, articles, videos, etc. about how relationships (friendships, dating, etc) worked in the past? If so, then why do they rarely appear when people talk about them?

      Occasionally people here get into discussions about social relationships, namely dating, and what quickly comes up is how both of those seem to be less common and harder to 'get'. This more...

      Occasionally people here get into discussions about social relationships, namely dating, and what quickly comes up is how both of those seem to be less common and harder to 'get'. This more frequently happens in overtly dating and relationship subreddits and similar dedicated spaces, albeit, of course, this also pops up in more general communities, alongside any community where social relationships are an important topic, like communities about social ideologies like feminism or the manosphere or about genders because heterosexuality.

      One thing I often find is missing is some historical context. A lot of talk about loneliness and lack of platonic or romantic relationships is basically limited to the recent past, if it even talks about the past at all. It seems like it would be helpful to look at what relationships and dating were like 10, 20, 30 years ago when it comes to talking about the problems or just general state of both today. So do you know of good sources of information concerning relationships in the past? If so, then why do you think they don't pop up in discussions about dating?

      14 votes
    13. Looking for more home and building related content!

      I'm really not sure if I posted this in the right place, but I have been watching the Youtube channel "The B1M" and the guy's other channel "Tomorrow's Build" and I really like his type of...

      I'm really not sure if I posted this in the right place, but I have been watching the Youtube channel "The B1M" and the guy's other channel "Tomorrow's Build" and I really like his type of content. I've also been watching tv shows about homes and the types of people who live in what homes in which parts of the country (Denmark). I also watched a couple of episodes of "The World's Most Extraordinary Homes" on Netflix...

      So yeah, I obviously really have an itching for more content along the lines of buildings and especially homes. So, does anyone have suggestion on what to watch next?

      6 votes
    14. Suggestions for things to do with a NAS?

      Hey all, recently bought a Synology NAS and looking for suggestions for things to do with it. I'm not exactly tech saavy when it comes to something like this, so guides accompanying suggestions...

      Hey all, recently bought a Synology NAS and looking for suggestions for things to do with it.

      I'm not exactly tech saavy when it comes to something like this, so guides accompanying suggestions would be super helpful.

      8 votes
    15. What are some high protein vegan foods that don't try to emulate meat?

      Since I was a kid my main reason for avoiding meat has been the spongy, chewy texture that makes me nauseous in just a couple of bites. I've been trying to find good substitutes, but despite vegan...

      Since I was a kid my main reason for avoiding meat has been the spongy, chewy texture that makes me nauseous in just a couple of bites. I've been trying to find good substitutes, but despite vegan stuff becoming more popular, food companies are all trying to make the taste and mouthfeel imitate meat. Nice for a meat lover turning vegan, not so much for someone who never liked meat to begin with.

      I've tried tofu and soya chunks, but they both had the aforementioned problem. Coarse soybean meal is the only very high protein (>50%) thing I can handle, as when cooked it closely resembles one of the few meat products I used to eat without a problem: ground beef/meat.

      Are there any foods that are of softer consistency? Something similar to beans, cheese, or fish, perhaps.

      I should mention that I live in Europe, so any US specific brands/chains may or may not be available here.

      14 votes
    16. What are some great LGBT speculative fiction?

      Speculative fiction contains elements that don't exist in reality. It includes genres such as science fiction, fantasy, and supernatural horror. A producer friend is looking for stories with a...

      Speculative fiction contains elements that don't exist in reality. It includes genres such as science fiction, fantasy, and supernatural horror.

      A producer friend is looking for stories with a focus on LGBT issues. As someone with a predilection for speculative fiction, it would be great to read/watch some speculative stories that deal with issues in that area. I am aware of some stories with LGBT characters, but gender and LGBT issues are generally not the main themes. I'd love to get suggestions for movies, TV shows, and books (especially short stories) that deal with those issues in a proper and inventive way.

      As usual, Wikipedia has an extensive list on the subject, but I was hoping to get some more personal suggestions from the Tildes crowd.

      Thanks!

      7 votes
    17. Looking for a new high chair. What would you recommend?

      The last time I posted on tildes, I got some really helpful suggestions on a mop for my floors. Now I'm looking for a new high chair for my daughter. She's nearly 6 months old, so we're about to...

      The last time I posted on tildes, I got some really helpful suggestions on a mop for my floors. Now I'm looking for a new high chair for my daughter. She's nearly 6 months old, so we're about to start her on solid foods but gave away our older son's high chair a while back when he started sitting in a regular chair (and because it was terrible).

      The main requirement is that it's easy to clean, but it also has to support a younger baby sitting in one for the first time. Our last high chair (Graco brand) almost seemed like it was designed to have as many difficult-to-reach crevices as possible where crumbs could get pulverized into.

      What do you think?

      6 votes
    18. Recommend me a podcast app for android

      I'm rather bored of the constant pop up ads on my current one that I paid for ads to be removed for years ago before more recently they changed to a subscription requirement for advert removal....

      I'm rather bored of the constant pop up ads on my current one that I paid for ads to be removed for years ago before more recently they changed to a subscription requirement for advert removal.

      I'm looking for something easy to use that has no ads by default or has a one time payment to remove them. Extra features such as tags/folders would be great but not 100% required. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

      12 votes
    19. Science fiction that presents immortality in a good light?

      It seems incredibly common in works of science fiction that touch upon technological immortality to focus on every possible way that such a technology could go wrong, create problems, or worsen...

      It seems incredibly common in works of science fiction that touch upon technological immortality to focus on every possible way that such a technology could go wrong, create problems, or worsen social dynamics.

      Among the negative outcomes that have attained trope levels of frequency, off the top of my head, I can name the following:

      1. Immortality becomes available only to the ultra-wealthy, allowing them even more power to abuse everyone else, leading immortal people to be antagonists in a pretty generic dystopian plot.

      2. Immortality subtly twists the morality of its beneficiaries, causing them to lose sight of "the real meaning of life" according to the author's worldview, and the protagonist usually fights for society to recognize how important death and endings are

      3. Immortality causes people to go insane, become monsters, or otherwise utterly lose their humanity (this is more of an extreme version of case #2, but I feel it's distinct in the way a story plays out)

      4. Immortality ultimately leads to the extinction of the human species due either to biological effects of the immortality technology in question, or due to cultural/societal shifts that lead people to stop reproducing

      I'm sure there are many others that I'd recall if prompted, but my point is that I don't think I can name any science fiction that involves immortality technology that doesn't also decry it as ultimately a harmful development.

      Are there any works of science fiction that any of you can think of that do more to celebrate the idea or look forward to it with some optimism?

      16 votes
    20. Tab viewer/organizer?

      Weird question, but does anyone know of a simple tab viewer or organizer for Firefox (bonus points if it works on iOS)? I have... way too many tabs open, and I want to see what I can bookmark...

      Weird question, but does anyone know of a simple tab viewer or organizer for Firefox (bonus points if it works on iOS)? I have... way too many tabs open, and I want to see what I can bookmark before closing rather than having to either close everything or manually check each tab.

      11 votes
    21. Looking for literature on depression

      I've suffered from depression and anxiety disorders for a while now. I take medication daily and I am seeing a therapist. However, I feel that I should know more about the disease. I think it...

      I've suffered from depression and anxiety disorders for a while now. I take medication daily and I am seeing a therapist. However, I feel that I should know more about the disease. I think it would be useful for when I'm talking to my therapist and psychiatrist for example.

      Recently I had a healthy debate with my therapist because she believes I am too young to be dependent on meds and that I should aim to get out of them long-term. I explained her that before I started taking drug mix that (kinda) works for me, I was falling into an abyss. I couldn't function, I couldn't be independent. And, with my current knowledge and experience, I think I will be a chronic user of medication.

      So I got the impression (I might be wrong on this and we will discuss it more in the future) that my therapist believes in some kind of separation of the brain from the biological world. For example, if someone is diagnosed with a heart disease and starts taking meds, no one bats an eye. When it comes to psychiatric drugs people get concerned. I am skeptical of this double standard.

      I also believe that the current umbrella of depression will be revised in the future. I think for some people it is caused by a life event but for others, the brain just isn't working well and we can't (yet) identify a source for the depression. My therapist doesn't like this theory. She thinks that it all comes down to your emotional and behavioral landscape, both in the present and in the past. Now, I know that the brain is a "special" organ because, unlike the heart, we use it to think and feel. So there is definitely SOME relationship between depression and what you feel and act, but I think that is a simplistic way of seeing things. I have done brain exams before and nothing was found. But did someone test my brain chemistry for example? No. So There is probably much more to learn with regards to the disease.

      So I guess this was a long way of reaching my request: I am looking for up to date and thorough literature on depression, mostly on it's causes, treatments and current undergoing research. I want to be more informed so that I can better communicate with my caregivers. I want to know what the hell is wrong (at least, most likely) with me. I want to know that there is hope in current research.
      This literature can be books, papers or another medium.

      I would like to finish by saying that I like my therapist a lot and the objective of this post is not to bash her. It's about explaining the context for my request.

      Thanks.

      13 votes
    22. Listen to old podcasts on a modern release schedule

      I once heard about a website that does this, but I cannot find it. You would give the website an RSS feed, and it would give you a new feed to subscribe to. It would then release “new” episodes on...

      I once heard about a website that does this, but I cannot find it. You would give the website an RSS feed, and it would give you a new feed to subscribe to. It would then release “new” episodes on a set schedule. This way you could listen to, for example, a weekly podcast starting at the very beginning, released on a weekly schedule as if you were listening to it when it first released.

      I hope one of you awesome tilderinos know a website that does this. Thanks in advance!

      16 votes
    23. Best way to consume YouTube without the algorithmic results?

      I'd love to get a passable alternative interface to YouTube that just shows me what I'm subscribed to, a search bar, and nothing else. Does this exist as a userscript or alternate site? Edit: My...

      I'd love to get a passable alternative interface to YouTube that just shows me what I'm subscribed to, a search bar, and nothing else. Does this exist as a userscript or alternate site?

      Edit:

      My current solution is to have my YouTube bookmark go directly to my subscriptions listing. I also have my ad blocker cut out the recommendations feed on the side. It works okay but maybe there's a better solution out there.

      This is the ad block rule:

      www.youtube.com##.ytd-watch-next-secondary-results-renderer
      www.youtube.com##.ytd-guide-entry-renderer[title=Explore]
      www.youtube.com##.ytd-guide-entry-renderer[title=Home]
      
      18 votes
    24. Can anyone recommend a printer? (...ahem...) a Linux printer?

      Last time I owned an inkjet was well over a decade ago. I had a nice HP color laserjet that Just Worked™for almost a decade (and PS, I bought it used), and then I just lived w/o a printer for the...

      Last time I owned an inkjet was well over a decade ago. I had a nice HP color laserjet that Just Worked™for almost a decade (and PS, I bought it used), and then I just lived w/o a printer for the past 3-4 years. Now, I'm window-shopping for inkjets, it sounds like the whole "use-our-ink-or-die" business model has only gotten worse.

      Are there any good inkjet printers where I can just use it like a normal printer, just buy ink (cheaper than the printer was) when I need it, yada? Or should I just write off the entire industry (again), and go straight to the laser printers?

      And does anyone actually have a decent (color, all-in-one) printer that works reasonably well with their (YourDistroHere) Linux machine?

      Danke


      ETA: Thanks for all the feedback. I'm now prioritizing a Brother laser (maybe just mono), or possibly an Epson Ecotank.

      Side-note ... how cool is it that we have so many Linux-folk in our midst!?

      Thanks again.

      13 votes
    25. What unified login to use?

      I'm setting up a server with nextcloud, plex, matrix and some other things I don't yet know, for some friends and family, (about 20 people if I get lucky) and now I heard of a thing called single...

      I'm setting up a server with nextcloud, plex, matrix and some other things I don't yet know, for some friends and family, (about 20 people if I get lucky)
      and now I heard of a thing called single sign on/unified login. (Login to different services with the same user/pw and/or login once, access to all services)

      so far I found out about Keycloak https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keycloak

      is this what I'm looking for? does anybody have experience in this? Are there other/better/simpler solutions for this?

      12 votes
    26. Can anyone recommend a good collection of Greek mythology for children?

      When I was a kid I loved the stories of ancient Greek mythology and I think my daughter would enjoy them too. What are some good collections for a 7-year-old? Her name is Ariadne, so I’d be...

      When I was a kid I loved the stories of ancient Greek mythology and I think my daughter would enjoy them too. What are some good collections for a 7-year-old? Her name is Ariadne, so I’d be especially interested in ones that feature that character as more than a footnote (though preferably the less traumatizing versions of those particular stories).

      14 votes
    27. What are your favorite short stories?

      What are some of the best, most influential, memorable, or otherwise impactful short stories that you've read throughout your life? If possible, please link to a PDF or other text so that we can...

      What are some of the best, most influential, memorable, or otherwise impactful short stories that you've read throughout your life? If possible, please link to a PDF or other text so that we can enjoy it too.

      21 votes
    28. Canadian charity recommendations

      Hi Everyone! I'm looking to donate some money to a charity that is focused on helping children learn how to code. I've always heard that lots of charities are scams, and I was hoping to get the...

      Hi Everyone!

      I'm looking to donate some money to a charity that is focused on helping children learn how to code.
      I've always heard that lots of charities are scams, and I was hoping to get the opinions of you fine folks about a good charity to donate to!

      7 votes
    29. Any self-help/motivational books that don't focus on an individualistic perspective?

      Just wanted to preface this by saying that I don't know much about self-help lit and do not mean to offend anyone who enjoys it as a genre. I've been talking to a friend of mine who primarily...

      Just wanted to preface this by saying that I don't know much about self-help lit and do not mean to offend anyone who enjoys it as a genre.

      I've been talking to a friend of mine who primarily reads self-help literature (a genre I've never really delved into), and what struck me was the highly materialistic/individualistic focus that a number of these books seem to have (most being focused on becoming an entrepreneur who drives a Lamborghini and retires by 40 living off of their crypto/stocks/real estate investments). The failure of the individual to achieve these goals can apparently be overcome through positive thinking, changing one's mindset, etc, and the focus seems to be largely on material goods and the general definition of "American-style" success. My general feeling is that a large part of self-help as a genre is focused on the failings of the individual rather than societal ills (or, the Jordan Peterson style of motivational thinking), and that got me wondering if anybody had some books that differ from the mold somewhat, possibly talking about improving yourself not only as an individual but also as part of the community, perhaps offering some sort of a leftist perspective that touches upon commodity fetishism, etc.

      If anyone had any suggestions, I'd love to take a look at them.

      15 votes
    30. Looking for suggestions of investigation-based games

      Hi all, can anybody recommend any games that are mostly investigation-based with little to no combat? A few that I've really enjoyed were Outer Wilds, Return of the Obra Dinn, and The Sexy...

      Hi all, can anybody recommend any games that are mostly investigation-based with little to no combat? A few that I've really enjoyed were Outer Wilds, Return of the Obra Dinn, and The Sexy Brutale. (Two of these have time loop mechanics, and even Obra Dinn has something very similar, but I guess that's not strictly a requirement.) Each one is very story-driven, with complex worlds and events meticulously crafted, and it's your job to figure out exactly how each one works.

      19 votes
    31. Recommended training courses for graphic arts?

      My fiance is an artist who was laid off because he worked for a major employer in the entertainment industry that required him to be in contact with people. So he's been unemployed for a long time...

      My fiance is an artist who was laid off because he worked for a major employer in the entertainment industry that required him to be in contact with people.

      So he's been unemployed for a long time now, but he has been trying to find work, but there isn't really anything available that uses his particular skills. So we invested in a digital art workstation (basically just bought a monitor with a digitizer built in to use a pen with) so that he could work on becoming an independant artist. But he's so bad at marketing and he spends so much time worrying about fine details that it takes him over a week to finish a single piece, so he hasn't had any success.

      So if you combine this with a broken tooth that he hasn't been able to get taken care of because of a lapse in his dental insurance, he's not been in a good place.

      I just bought a Mac and was looking for mac-native graphics programs (I sometimes work on marketing, so I need to do photo editing from time to time. Also I used to do photography as a hobby and want to get back into it), when I came across Serif's Affinity Designer Workbook. And I thought to myself that getting my fiance a training course in graphic design would allow him to shift gears into a segment where there is more work. It'll also give him a bit of a kick in the pants to get him moving and feeling better about himself.

      I'm sure everyone knows there are millions of online training courses available right now, so I'm hoping someone might have any recommendations. I have some money saved up, so I don't mind paying a little bit extra if it'll result in better results. I'd prefer if it were a class that didn't rely on Adobe Illustrator if possible, but I know that it's the 'standard' and he'll probably have better luck if he has experience in it.

      9 votes
    32. Suggestions for meta animes?

      I really really enjoyed 'Danshi Koukousei no nichijou'. In particular anything-goes hijinx parts, and nice lore. I also enjoyed metahumor from Saekano and Monogatari, but they lean in their...

      I really really enjoyed 'Danshi Koukousei no nichijou'. In particular anything-goes hijinx parts, and nice lore.

      I also enjoyed metahumor from Saekano and Monogatari, but they lean in their respective category more than comedy part.

      Monogatari is a bit heavy and needs attention, so I'm looking for something light and humorous. I don't much enjoy fan service/lewdness unless it serves the purpose of the story or as comic relief.

      Any suggestions welcome!

      6 votes
    33. What are some great documentaries about Asian culture that are easily available?

      I'm on a binge of watching YouTube videos about Asian culture and wanna take it to the next level. Anything about the cultures of countries like Japan, both Koreas, China, etc. As long as it's...

      I'm on a binge of watching YouTube videos about Asian culture and wanna take it to the next level. Anything about the cultures of countries like Japan, both Koreas, China, etc. As long as it's high quality and available on the major streaming websites. Thanks!

      9 votes
    34. Recommend some upbeat / high-energy music that, if I listen to it in my car, will make me want to roll the windows down and drive at unsafe speeds

      Spring is here (at least in the northern hemisphere, sorry Aussies and Kiwis) and it's now warm enough where I live to roll the windows down while driving. I'm looking to expand my playlist of,...

      Spring is here (at least in the northern hemisphere, sorry Aussies and Kiwis) and it's now warm enough where I live to roll the windows down while driving.

      I'm looking to expand my playlist of, like I said in the title, music that will make me want to roll my windows down, turn the volume up, and exceed the speed limit.

      For an idea of what I'm looking for, here's some tracks on my current playlist. This skews towards metal because of my own personal tastes, but I'd welcome recommendations from any genre:

      17 votes
    35. Children books and short stories about death

      I need to read some fiction children books about death (for research) -- any age group preferably for young children. Stories both realistic and fantasy/fantastical that doesn't gloss over the...

      I need to read some fiction children books about death (for research) -- any age group preferably for young children.

      Stories both realistic and fantasy/fantastical that doesn't gloss over the suffering and pain children can experience, possibly with dark overtones.

      Stories featuring Death as a character would be great too.

      Thanks!

      6 votes
    36. Looking for recommendations for a high-end / "prosumer" network router (that is not Ubiquiti)

      I recently moved apartments. I have a Ubiquiti Edgerouter POE that's served me well over the past few years. I unplugged the router at my old place, drove over to my new place, plugged it in,...

      I recently moved apartments. I have a Ubiquiti Edgerouter POE that's served me well over the past few years.

      I unplugged the router at my old place, drove over to my new place, plugged it in, and...it failed to boot. I can log in to the web UI, but I immediately get an error that I can't get past. SSH, which normally works, comes back "connection refused" indicating the SSH daemon isn't even running.

      There are forum posts about this problem from five fucking years ago. The only solution offered is to do a factory reset. I could do this, and I have a config backup somewhere, but I'm not going to put up with a device so unreliable that a power cycle bricks it.

      I was a big fan of Ubiquiti up to now. I have two of their routers, one at my home and one at a vacation home my family owns that I'm the IT guy for, as well as several of their access points. After this, as well as the recent data breach (which didn't affect me personally but gives me a bad taste nonetheless) I think I'm done with them.

      So, Tilderinos, any recommendations?

      Some specifics:

      • I have gigabit internet so I definitely want something that can handle those speeds and not be a bottleneck

      • I'm knowledgeable about networking and have no problem with "user-unfriendly" setup & configuration.

      • I have a site-to-site-to-site Wireguard VPN between my home, my family's cabin, and a server I run in the cloud. I'd strongly prefer to keep using Wireguard, which effectively limits me to Linux-based options, because FreeBSD support for Wireguard is still WIP. If it weren't for this requirement, something BSD-based like pfSense / OPNsense would be at the top of my list.

      • I'd prefer to keep the router and access point separate rather than go with a typical "all in one" type device. The wifi spectrum at my new place is much less congested than my old apartment building, but I'd still like to keep the option of having multiple APs. I got spoiled by my old apartment being wired for Ethernet so running multiple APs was easy. That's not an option at my new place so I may look into either powerline internet (yes I know it sucks) or mesh wireless.

      15 votes
    37. What are some casual, kid-friendly games that can be played remotely, over a videoconference such as Zoom?

      I have a friend who's in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. They're currently all meeting remotely, for Obvious Covid Reasons. The kid they were paired with asked if they could play a game like...

      I have a friend who's in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program. They're currently all meeting remotely, for Obvious Covid Reasons.

      The kid they were paired with asked if they could play a game like Monopoly or Wheel of Fortune.

      I'm sure there are some amazing games out there that are a) well-suited to be played over Zoom or a similar videoconferencing link and b) enjoyable for an adult and a kid to play together (most likely 1-on-1, but if there's games that could be played with N adults and N kids, those could also work)

      11 votes
    38. Good electronics repair shop?

      I recently went into my attic and pulled out my old 1990s 4-track Fostex X-26 tape recorder. I was hoping to transfer some of my old band tapes to the computer. Alas, it is dead. While it turns...

      I recently went into my attic and pulled out my old 1990s 4-track Fostex X-26 tape recorder. I was hoping to transfer some of my old band tapes to the computer. Alas, it is dead. While it turns on, the motor appears frozen, and the device hums. (I don't mean there's line noise when you plug a speaker into it, I mean the device itself audibly hums, even when not using the tape controls.)

      I have seen online that some people repair theirs. It's probably beyond my skill level to do so, though. (And I don't really want to do it myself.) I have contacted a few shops near me (Los Angeles), but have gotten no replies, unfortunately. I was wondering if anyone here knows of a good shop that would repair an older device like this.

      I have also contacted some places that claim to do cassette to digital transfers, but none have replied to my questions about whether they can deal with a 4-track recording. Also, just looking at their prices, it seems like it would cost significantly more to have them convert my tapes than to get the recorder repaired. (And I'm not sure what's on all of the tapes, so I don't really want to hand over some embarrassing practice tape or tape containing some out-of-context banter between takes on it.)

      I've looked online for a used one, but all the listings I've found have been "for parts only", which is what mine would be if I were to sell it. And knowing how these things go, they probably all have the same broken part. So any recommendations are appreciated!

      10 votes
    39. Where do you go for humor?

      What sites do you frequent for humorous writing? I guess that might be an online magazine, a blog, Youtube channel, comic, or a podcast—but foremost, I'm looking to read well-written, funny prose.

      15 votes
    40. Recommend a piece of fiction that gives a specific feeling, regardless of genre or medium

      I've been looking lately for something new to read/watch/listen to/play and I've been chasing a particular feeling that some of my favorite works have given me in the past. It's something that's...

      I've been looking lately for something new to read/watch/listen to/play and I've been chasing a particular feeling that some of my favorite works have given me in the past.

      It's something that's hard to describe succinctly, so it's not exactly easy to just google search for something, and usually just telling people I like x thing gets me y recommendation which is maybe a similar style or genre but doesn't really elicit the particular feeling that I'm after.

      I figure other folks might have a similar problem, so I thought it might be fun to have a thread for requests for works that make you feel a certain way, regardless of genre or medium.

      I'll start mine in the comments and other folks feel free to ask for requests as top-level comments as well!

      22 votes
    41. Good basic electronics toys for twelve year olds?

      Back when I was a kid, I had a radioshack 200-in-1 science fair electronics kit this one I loved that thing, and it sparked an interest in tech that ultimately led me to a CS degree. Id like to...

      Back when I was a kid, I had a radioshack 200-in-1 science fair electronics kit this one

      I loved that thing, and it sparked an interest in tech that ultimately led me to a CS degree.

      Id like to buy something similar for my much younger sister, but nowdays everything I can find is arduino or raspi based. Id love to get something like that eventually, but I think it might be better to get a kit that more focuses on individual components first... Does anyone know of one sold these days?

      Alternatively, if anyone has one of these and would be willing to scan the book, Id love to build one of these as a breadboard-based system.

      13 votes
    42. Song suggestions about: Cars, driving, trucking, racing, police chases, etc

      Might be a weird one, but I like the uh..... aesthetic? I guess? Some examples would be: Artist Album Song Megadeth So Far, So Good...So What! 502 The Presidents of the United States of America...

      Might be a weird one, but I like the uh..... aesthetic? I guess?

      Some examples would be:

      Artist Album Song
      Megadeth So Far, So Good...So What! 502
      The Presidents of the United States of America Love Everybody Highway Forever
      Deep Purple Machine Head Space Truckin'
      16 votes
    43. Current affairs TV shows worth watching?

      Is there a show focused on current affairs that you would feel like recommending? I'm looking for reportages, in-depth interviews, and high-quality commentary, maybe not overly US-focused, the...

      Is there a show focused on current affairs that you would feel like recommending? I'm looking for reportages, in-depth interviews, and high-quality commentary, maybe not overly US-focused, the more international the better. The only one I know is VICE News, which leaves a bit to be desired sometimes. Grateful for any recommendation!

      8 votes
    44. What charities/orgs are measurably effective in bringing people out of poverty and violence in US?

      The recent rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans has been an emotional topic for me. The thing that makes me sad is, it seems the most I can do to de-escalate a violent situation I see on...

      The recent rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans has been an emotional topic for me. The thing that makes me sad is, it seems the most I can do to de-escalate a violent situation I see on the news without putting myself in clear danger is to basically distract the aggressor from afar and comfort the victim afterwards.

      What makes the matter more complicated is, if you look at the demographics of those who tend to commit these violent crimes against Asian people, they're often other minorities. It's so easy to fall into a trap of undermining the progress we've made in racial/social equality the moment we acknowledge that Asians are being targeted. For similar reasons, I view that our political system is entirely ill-equipped to handle this matter in a sustainable matter.

      But I'd still like to turn this into something positive. Because I live comfortably as an engineer in the Bay Area, I was thinking I can donate to charities and organizations that are effective at bringing an end to this violence every time I see news about an Asian American getting targeted on social media. I plan on doing my own research as well, but I hope you can also give some suggestions.

      19 votes
    45. I want to watch anime more regularly but I'm not sure where to go to do so. Do you have any recommendations?

      My 2 main dealbreakers are significant amounts of paid content or the service itself being paid (because I'm not of working age) and that it doesn't work in mobile. So any reccomendations or...

      My 2 main dealbreakers are significant amounts of paid content or the service itself being paid (because I'm not of working age) and that it doesn't work in mobile. So any reccomendations or anything more you might want to say?

      9 votes
    46. What two songs don't feel like they should be from the same artist?

      Maybe that atmospheric death metal band you like recorded an acoustic folk cover of a Rihanna song. Maybe that bubblegum pop artist you follow made an experimental post-rock album. The goal is to...

      Maybe that atmospheric death metal band you like recorded an acoustic folk cover of a Rihanna song. Maybe that bubblegum pop artist you follow made an experimental post-rock album.

      The goal is to highlight range: try to find two songs that are as "far away" from one another as possible while still being from the same artist.

      Link the songs here, and identify what makes them so different.

      13 votes