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    1. Need a simple way to password protect a webpage

      Hey Tildes! I've got a static, basic website, HTML and CSS. It's one page only. But I'd like to create a second page with some more private content that is password protected. I know that I can...

      Hey Tildes!

      I've got a static, basic website, HTML and CSS. It's one page only. But I'd like to create a second page with some more private content that is password protected.

      I know that I can accomplish this via .htaccess but what I don't like about this method is that when the user navigates to the page, they get a pop up asking for a username and password. What I would like is having the user navigate to the page, and then they are met with a simple form asking for just a password (no username). After they enter the password, the "veil" lifts or the page forwards and they get the private content.

      Here's the thing... the content really only needs to seem private. It's not super secret, personal information. I don't want it indexed by search engines (nofollow), and I want it basically hidden, but the password is only there to make the user feel exclusive. If some tech-minded person encountered this page and jumped through a bunch of hoops to get in without the password, it's not a big deal to me. In reality, 99.9% of people accessing this page will not be able to bypass the password.

      I'm guessing this can be accomplished easily in Javascript, but I don't really know much Javascript apart from finding code snippets and plunking them in. I also want to be able to fully design the password entry page so that it looks branded, so a code snippet plunked down into my HTML doc would be great for this.

      If there is an easy way to actually protect the content behind the password, that would be excellent. In this case, I imagine it would be much like a news site with an ad-blocker-blocker. Just some kind of pop-up that blocks all the content. Enter the password, and you're in.

      Anyhow, I hope I've described what I'm looking for accurately enough. Anybody have any easy and quick ways to accomplish this?

      14 votes
    2. Are the notes played here essentially random?

      I was watching this video and at the linked time I was wondering if there was any technique being used because it looks almost random but sounds quite good. The only thing I could see is he was...

      I was watching this video and at the linked time I was wondering if there was any technique being used because it looks almost random but sounds quite good. The only thing I could see is he was using only the white keys.

      5 votes
    3. How do you structure larger projects?

      I'll be writing a relatively large piece of scientific code for the first time, and before I begin I would at least like to outline how the project will be structured so that I don't run into...

      I'll be writing a relatively large piece of scientific code for the first time, and before I begin I would at least like to outline how the project will be structured so that I don't run into headaches later on. The problem is, I don't have much experience structuring large projects. Up until now most of the code I have written as been in the form of python scripts that I string together to form an ad-hoc pipeline for analysis, or else C++ programs that are relatively self contained. My current project is much larger in scope. It will consist of four main 'modules' (I'm not sure if this is the correct term, apologies if not) each of which consist of a handful of .cpp and .h files. The schematic I have in mind for how it should look is something like:

      src
       ├──Module1 (Initializer)
       │         ├ file1.cpp
       │         ├ file1.h
       │         │...
       │         └ Makefile
       ├───Module2 (solver)
       │          ├ file1.cpp
       │          ├ file1.h
       │          │...
       │          └ Makefile
       ├───Module3 (Distribute)
       │          ├ file1.cpp
       │          └Makefile 
       └ Makefile
      

      Basically, I build each self-contained 'module', and use the object files produced there to build my main program. Is there anything I should keep in mind here, or is this basically how such a project should be structured?

      I imagine the particularly structure will be dependent on my project, but I am more interested in general principles to keep in mind.

      14 votes
    4. Is Tildes 18+?

      I was thinking about posting this to ~news, but suddenly I've realised that I don't know if the word “fuck”, or any of the Seven Dirty Words, are allowed in titles. Is Tildes adults-only? Should...

      I was thinking about posting this to ~news, but suddenly I've realised that I don't know if the word “fuck”, or any of the Seven Dirty Words, are allowed in titles. Is Tildes adults-only? Should people write something like “f***” in titles instead?

      11 votes
    5. State of WebRTC outside of major browsers

      I've been trying to set up a reliable lightweight solution for high quality, low-latency webcam (v4l2) streaming from Linux server to browsers, allowing for small (1-5) number of concurrent...

      I've been trying to set up a reliable lightweight solution for high quality, low-latency webcam (v4l2) streaming from Linux server to browsers, allowing for small (1-5) number of concurrent viewers.

      The obvious choice here is WebRTC, which when used through browser APIs, works wonderfully. It has low latency and automatic quality adjustment depending on network performance.
      I also checked out RTSP and RTMP, which are not supported without browser plugins. Next candidates were DASH and HLS, but while they provide high quality, they also have high latency.
      For a while I used MPEG1 streaming through Websockets (using jsmpeg library), which worked and had low latency, but the video quality was bad.

      Back to WebRTC - It seems like reliable, lightweight and maintained projects are really hard to find. So far I've found a few WebRTC media servers, but they're overkill for my use case:

      • Janus
      • MediaSoup
      • Kurento (unmaintained)

      I also tried implementing this functionality using low level Gstreamer elements in Python using PyGObject, but that's proving to be rather complicated with a ton of extremely low level implementation details.

      If anyone has tried doing something similar, I'd really like to hear what (if any) problems you had and if you found any sane solutions. Next thing on my list is using headless Chromium in combination with Puppeteer, but I'd really prefer more lightweight solutions.

      9 votes
    6. Why is my SCHUFA information contradictory?

      Hi everyone. I'm in a more or less of a dilemma here. For the ones that don't know, SCHUFA is monopolistic credit agency in Germany. The good news is that my wife is pregnant and now we need to...

      Hi everyone.

      I'm in a more or less of a dilemma here.
      For the ones that don't know, SCHUFA is monopolistic credit agency in Germany.

      The good news is that my wife is pregnant and now we need to move to a new apartment with one extra room. Luckly, a friend of us is also moving and we simply got in contact with his landlord. We sent the information about our salaries and answered a few general questions and all is well for him. But, the landlord also wants our SCHUFA score.

      We weren't worried at all because we don't have any credit cards or any loans and we are very frugal with our money. We really only spend money for our basic necessities and doing our holidays. We don't have any debts; we pay everything in a timely manner.

      Then, my SCHUFA-BonitätAuskunft arrived. I look at the first page, which is in this diploma-like format and it says: "We had only positive contractual information at our disposal." (Es liegen uns zum XX.XX.XXXX ausschliesslich positive vertragsinformationen vor.)

      "Great!", I thought. Then, I turned to the next pages and I see "Explanatory informations for your certificate" and there it says that I'm a high risk person. Basically, my result is 335, right in the middle (scale from 100 to 600).

      We have a high netto salary and it seems this doesn't count for anything. My guess is that they don't have almost no history about me (I'm only living in Germany for 4 years) and since we are not big spenders, basically we are high risk because they don't have data to infer the risk. A few months ago I opened a new bank account on Commerzbank and I guess my SCHUFA score was good enough to open a new bank account, so I don't understand.

      How is it possible that in my certificate diploma-like paper says that they have only have positive information about me and then on the explanatory pages say that I'm a high risk person in basically every sector (Banken, Telekommunikation, etc)?

      Now we also asked the SCHUFA score only for my wife and let's hope for the best.

      3 votes
    7. What would be a good security setup for me?

      So: I keep all my passwords in my password manager (Bitwarden) All my 2FA codes are generated by AndOTP on my phone. My 2FA backup codes are also in Bitwarden, which I think is a bad idea, because...

      So:

      • I keep all my passwords in my password manager (Bitwarden)
      • All my 2FA codes are generated by AndOTP on my phone.
      • My 2FA backup codes are also in Bitwarden, which I think is a bad idea, because that defeats the purpose of 2FA. So where should I put those?
      • I have my Bitwarden 2FA backup code in my wallet and in a safe at my house. Is that a good idea for the other backup codes?
      • Is there anything I'm forgetting here?
      8 votes
    8. Going to work in South Africa, with a depression prescription

      Good news: I'll be starting my new work in Cape Town, South Africa soon. Not so good news: I have depression, and is currently on the antidepressant Sertraline. My question would be the following:...

      Good news: I'll be starting my new work in Cape Town, South Africa soon.

      Not so good news: I have depression, and is currently on the antidepressant Sertraline.

      My question would be the following:

      How are prescriptions of the antidepressant handled in the South African health care system? Can I obtain, from either a GP or a Specialist, a sort of "long-standing" prescription, valid for (say) a few months, that will allow me to refill at pharmacies or dispensing GPs, without me having to be referred to a Specialist each time I need a refill? I understand that recurring examinations by a Specialist are likely necessary, but I don't expect those to be frequent, as my condition is fairly stable now.

      Also a related question: I'm otherwise young and physically healthy, not affected by chronic conditions except depression. However, it seems that any health insurance schemes there that cover my condition would be rather expensive. Those policies typically include a broad coverage of chronic conditions, most of which I don't foresee a need. For one like myself, what suggestion would you give in terms of health insurance selection?

      Many many thanks <3

      7 votes
    9. Posting original links (own content)

      What is our policy about posting original contents (e.g. me submitting a blog post I wrote, which I just did a few minutes ago)? IMO, if it is a personal blog, it should be okay, and not really...

      What is our policy about posting original contents (e.g. me submitting a blog post I wrote, which I just did a few minutes ago)?

      IMO, if it is a personal blog, it should be okay, and not really different from submitting a text topic here. Especially if the blog is not tracking you.

      15 votes
    10. Is a password manager essential?

      I feel like it's impossible to remember passwords that are long, random, and unique for every service. I have too many accounts. On the other hand, I don't like the idea of giving up control of my...

      I feel like it's impossible to remember passwords that are long, random, and unique for every service. I have too many accounts.

      On the other hand, I don't like the idea of giving up control of my passwords to a password manager and using the ones it generates and stores. It feels weird that I wouldn't "know" my passwords.

      Is this a hangup I should just get past? What do I do if I need to login somewhere but cannot access my password manager?

      30 votes
    11. Error when logging in using a password manager

      I'm using Safari 12.0.2 on macOS 10.14.2 (Mojave). The same issue also occurs on iOS 12.1.2 (using Safari). When using 1Password to autofill with the browser extension on macOS or the "autofill"...

      I'm using Safari 12.0.2 on macOS 10.14.2 (Mojave). The same issue also occurs on iOS 12.1.2 (using Safari).

      When using 1Password to autofill with the browser extension on macOS or the "autofill" feature on iOS an error message pops up: username: String does not match expected pattern.

      I have to either use the browser supplied autofill on macOS or manually copy/paste username and password into the corresponding fields. On iOS there's an autofill API which I have set to use 1Password in the browser, also causing the error

      Edit: Video of the issue

      9 votes
    12. Help: I just received a mail from my own email, can't know if phishing or I'm hacked

      I just received a mail from my own e-mail address, hosted on Gandi on my own domain name. It said that the sender has hacked me, used malware, keyloggers and RDP to get my passwords and copy all...

      I just received a mail from my own e-mail address, hosted on Gandi on my own domain name. It said that the sender has hacked me, used malware, keyloggers and RDP to get my passwords and copy all my files to his own computer, and took videos of me while watching adult content using my webcam (I never noticed the light turning on for it). Claims they've been doing this for a few months. Gives a bitcoin address and wants $1000 (a sum I can't and won't give, don't even have a fraction of it) in 48 hrs, or else will share the videos with my contacts. It said something about a pixel the message included.

      I viewed the message from K-9 mail on android (which didn't tell anything about pixels or whatnot), and when I went back on my computer to check the headers and stuff, the message was deleted.

      Now, is this some sort of phishing or or have I really been pwned? I feel like it's just phishing, but the message deleting itself kinda gave me shills of fear. I promptly changed my password for the mail account.

      10 votes
    13. How to make money with Wordpress

      I have just graduated from uni, and am preparing for masters next fall. I'm a humanities student, but have some programming knowledge. Currently I'm looking for literary translation jobs, but...

      I have just graduated from uni, and am preparing for masters next fall. I'm a humanities student, but have some programming knowledge. Currently I'm looking for literary translation jobs, but should I fail that, I want to find some light freelance work (so that I can spare more time to my studies), and looking at e.g. freelancer.com, Wordpress is still quite popular.

      What are some good introductory material for Wordpress and PHP, that preferably does not assume total beginner to programming? How much can I expect to make, for how much effort? I'd be content if I could make $200-250 w/ 3-5hr work per day, or a couple full days a week, that's all I really need and such hours would mean that I could keep on doing such work even when I'm writing my thesis. I'm in Turkey, FWIW.

      7 votes
    14. Seeking help on a Tasker set up

      I have a Fitbit blaze. It doesn't have a proper api, you can only get the data it generates. However it does have push notifications and a music controller. My idea was to set up a playlist of...

      I have a Fitbit blaze. It doesn't have a proper api, you can only get the data it generates. However it does have push notifications and a music controller.

      My idea was to set up a playlist of empty music files to act as menu options. E.g. track one would be named "turn phone off" and so on. This works as fine as a single menu option but when using multiple option, VLC just plays through the entire playlist.

      Is there a music player that selects one track on a playlist and then stops? Or can I set this in VLC?

      11 votes
    15. Need help with Switching to linux

      Hi all, Hope ya'll doing good. I am done with windows. So I want to switch to linux. I have used it a few times. I just wanted to know, how long will it take to have it setup? Also, I am learning...

      Hi all, Hope ya'll doing good. I am done with windows. So I want to switch to linux. I have used it a few times. I just wanted to know, how long will it take to have it setup? Also, I am learning data science. Will switching to linux have any serious implications? Thanks

      29 votes
    16. Seeking help on how partitions will work when dual-booting.

      I plan on dual-booting Linux soon, and I am wondering on how to handle partitions. I have 3 drives in my computer: an SSD that Windows 10 boots from, a second SSD with one partition and some...

      I plan on dual-booting Linux soon, and I am wondering on how to handle partitions. I have 3 drives in my computer: an SSD that Windows 10 boots from, a second SSD with one partition and some unallocated space intended for Linux, and an HDD.

      When I install Linux on that SSD, how can I prevent Windows from messing with the Linux partition and vice-versa? Can Linux and Windows both read and write to the HDD partitions without complaining about the other modifying them?

      4 votes
    17. Struggle setting up Tildes development environment

      I'm interested in possibly developing a tildes client. In order to experiment with the currently disabled API, as well as to become more familiar with how Tildes works internally, I've been trying...

      I'm interested in possibly developing a tildes client. In order to experiment with the currently disabled API, as well as to become more familiar with how Tildes works internally, I've been trying to set up a Tildes development environment on my machine following the instructions on the docs site. I've run into a problem with the 'vagrant up' stage of the setup.

      ...  
      ==> default: Running provisioner: salt...  
      Copying salt minion config to vm.  
      Checking if salt-minion is installed  
      salt-minion was not found.  
      Checking if salt-call is installed  
      salt-call was not found.  
      Using Bootstrap Options:  -F -c /tmp  
      Bootstrapping Salt... (this may take a while)  
      bash: /tmp/bootstrap_salt.sh: /usr/bin/sh: bad interpreter: No such file or directory  
      The following SSH command responded with a non-zero exit status.  
      Vagrant assumes that this means the command failed!  
        
      /tmp/bootstrap_salt.sh  -F -c /tmp  
        
      Stdout from the command:  
        
        
        
      Stderr from the command:  
        
      bash: /tmp/bootstrap_salt.sh: /usr/bin/sh: bad interpreter: No such file or directory  
      

      So the Salt provisioning is failing, and it seems like it just has the wrong path to the shell it needs, but while I could probably just tweak this script, it seems like that goes against the concept of using Vagrant in the first place. I was wondering if anyone else ran into this problem, or if the bug lies between the seat and the keyboard.

      15 votes
    18. Where to check and submit game length times?

      I was wondering where one can find (and submit) how long it takes to finish a game. After a quick online search I did find one or two pages where petiole post this, but none looked really good. So...

      I was wondering where one can find (and submit) how long it takes to finish a game.

      After a quick online search I did find one or two pages where petiole post this, but none looked really good. So I'm wondering if more regular gamers here have a recommendation.

      11 votes
    19. How Do I Make A Database?

      Hello everyone! I've recently got an idea for a Database as a Service I'd like to create. The only issue is - I don't know how to create or host a database! I've only ever used Mongoose/mLab with...

      Hello everyone!

      I've recently got an idea for a Database as a Service I'd like to create. The only issue is - I don't know how to create or host a database!

      I've only ever used Mongoose/mLab with Javascript, and a minimal amount of Postgres with Python.

      If I'm looking to create a database that will, eventually, be able to store images, songs, and videos, where should I start my homework?

      I can create the backend and the frontend with no issue - just stuck on this part here. If it's of any relevance, I most frequently use the MERN stack.

      13 votes
    20. any sites like 23andme that dont sell your DNA to corporations?

      I'd really like to have a DNA test done to know my family history beyond 2 generations (adopted relatives) I've heard numerous times that 23andme will abuse the information they obtain and either...

      I'd really like to have a DNA test done to know my family history beyond 2 generations (adopted relatives)

      I've heard numerous times that 23andme will abuse the information they obtain and either target you with ads or sell your DNA to marketing agencies, are there any non invasive DNA tests available online or elsewhere?

      14 votes
    21. How important is response time in monitors and how distinguishable is it?

      I'm currently looking for a new monitor and I have the ASUS MG279Q, the ASUS PG248Q and the ASUS MG278Q. Now, my setup is not the highest end, but decent with an i7 and a 1060 3GB, and there are...

      I'm currently looking for a new monitor and I have the ASUS MG279Q, the ASUS PG248Q and the ASUS MG278Q. Now, my setup is not the highest end, but decent with an i7 and a 1060 3GB, and there are three concerns I have currently not found an answer for:

      1. The (potential) difference in quality between the MG279Q's IPS panel and the MG278's TN panel
      2. And the delay difference, the TN panel having a 1ms response time and the IPS' 4ms
      3. If my setup can even handle 1440p/144Hz (I don't need to play on the highest settings, nor do I need to reach those 144 FPS), in which case I would tend more towards the PG248Q

      I'd love to upgrade towards 1440p as the screen real estate would be good for working (which I do a lot on the PC) and I would, I could later upgrade my GPU if the performance in games isn't satisfactory. I think my setup wouldn't have any issue handling day to day tasks and if need be I can play on lower resolutions or lower graphic settings. Also I wonder how large the difference between the IPS and TN panel is and if it's noticeable, particularly with colours.

      Does anyone of you have experience with the subject or with the monitors named in particular?

      20 votes
    22. Feeling totally stuck trying to work out music production

      For about a year I have been trying to work out how to make music. I want to make stuff like the OP-1 videos on Red means recording. I have a midi keyboard and LMMS on my desktop but I just can't...

      For about a year I have been trying to work out how to make music. I want to make stuff like the OP-1 videos on Red means recording. I have a midi keyboard and LMMS on my desktop but I just can't work out how to do anything.

      Does anyone have any tips or resources? Everything I have found has been so specific to a certain tool that I can't use it or so theoretical I don't understand what to do with it.

      13 votes
    23. Getting Started as a Developer from Scratch

      I have been interested in making the gradual career change to software development from my current humanities field. This stems from a handful of different places. Of course the pay and...

      I have been interested in making the gradual career change to software development from my current humanities field. This stems from a handful of different places. Of course the pay and flexibility are strong drivers but I like the idea of a field that is somewhat of a creative expression; one where you can manifest your knowledge and experience into something tangible.

      I have no experience with programming other than SQL use in ArcGIS and am hoping to gain some knowledge about the field; so anything would be helpful. Whether what to expect from this line of work, where someone with no experience should look to get started and what to expect, personal journeys, etc.

      Cheers!

      14 votes
    24. What are the best practices for passphrase security?

      This is a sort of continuation of a previous topic I posted. This weekend I will be wiping and reinstalling my computer and encrypting all of my drives in the process. In doing so, I will have to...

      This is a sort of continuation of a previous topic I posted. This weekend I will be wiping and reinstalling my computer and encrypting all of my drives in the process. In doing so, I will have to choose secure passphrases. As such, I have some questions about how best to do this:

      1. I have three drives that will be encrypted. Is it okay to have the same passphrase for all of them, or should I have different ones for each?

      2. In looking up info on this topic, I came across this article which recommends something called a Diceware wordlist. The premise is that you roll dice which match to a list of 7000+ words. You then string six or more of these words together which become your passphrase. Is this a sound way to generate one?

      3. Rather than using the Diceware wordlist, couldn't I roll my own password of the same type using six "random" words of my choosing? I feel like that would be easier to remember, but am I weakening security in doing so?

      4. If the Diceware method is to be trusted, does that mean I do not need to pepper my passphrase with digits, mixed case, and special characters? Or should I add these anyway?

      5. I'm also considering changing over passwords on a lot of my online accounts based on this method. I like the idea of using a single passphrase as a root, but how do you modify it so that it is different for each account? Would I do something like [dicewarewords]tildes, [dicewarewords]spotify, [dicewarewords]ubuntuforums, etc.? I feel like it would be too on-the-nose, and it would make it easy to guess my other passwords if one were compromised. On the other hand, I don't like the idea of using a password manager to generate a random string for me. I'd like to still be able to login even without my password manager.

      6. For people that have used something like this, how do you then deal with password restrictions on sites? I know that no matter how great I set things up I'm still going to have to make exceptions for sites that that either require or forbid numbers, mixed case, or special characters, have character limits, or make me change my password frequently.

      14 votes
    25. I might be intersex?

      Recently I have noticed something odd about my genitals, and believe I might be intersex of some sort (assigned male if it matters). The problem is that I don't know where to start researching and...

      Recently I have noticed something odd about my genitals, and believe I might be intersex of some sort (assigned male if it matters). The problem is that I don't know where to start researching and taking steps about it, so any help would be appreciated, especially if it is not US centric.

      11 votes
    26. Are tildes passwords salted?

      I was reading over tildes' privacy policy and saw that passwords are stored hashed, but are they salted as well?...

      I was reading over tildes' privacy policy and saw that passwords are stored hashed, but are they salted as well?

      https://defaultnamehere.tumblr.com/post/163734466355/operation-luigi-how-i-hacked-my-friend-without#fnref:salted

      not that tildes is big enough atm to have big public database breaches, but in the future it's a good idea to store passwords with a secure salting system, especially to help users that might have common passwords like "Diane" in the Tumblr post.

      26 votes
    27. Audiobook version of the Bible with historical context?

      Hi there, I was curious if there exists a version of the Old and/or New Testament that provides historical context for the language and events. I'm thinking something like the New Oxford Annotated...

      Hi there,

      I was curious if there exists a version of the Old and/or New Testament that provides historical context for the language and events. I'm thinking something like the New Oxford Annotated Bible. However, the kicker is I want to listen to it as an audiobook. I'm not 100% sure what that experience would be like given that I believe most of the annotation occurs as footnotes, but I'm sure it could be done.

      I've been meaning to read the good book but never got around to it. I think it's a lot more likely to happen if it's an audiobook as that's how I consume most books at the moment.

      Does anyone know of something like that?

      6 votes
    28. Editing tags?

      I have posted a few topics on tildes so far, and someone edited the tags on it. I looked at that person's profile but couldn't see any indication that they were a mod. I am aware of the coming...

      I have posted a few topics on tildes so far, and someone edited the tags on it. I looked at that person's profile but couldn't see any indication that they were a mod. I am aware of the coming 'trysf' system, but I think it hasn't been implemented yet. My question: how does one edit tags? Is this a certain account age required?

      11 votes
    29. What are the best practices regarding personal files and encryption?

      Over the past year I have done a lot to shore up my digital privacy and security. One of the last tasks I have to tackle is locking down the many personal files I have on my computer that have...

      Over the past year I have done a lot to shore up my digital privacy and security. One of the last tasks I have to tackle is locking down the many personal files I have on my computer that have potentially compromising information in them (e.g. bank statements). Right now they are simply sitting on my hard drive, unencrypted. Theft of my device or a breach in access through the network would allow a frightening level of access to many of my records.

      As such, what are my options for keeping certain files behind an encryption "shield"? Also, what are the potential tradeoffs for doing so? In researching the topic online I've read plenty of horror stories about people losing archives or whole drives due to encryption-related errors/mistakes. How can I protect against this scenario? Losing the files would be almost as bad as having them compromised!

      I'm running Linux, but I'm far from tech-savvy, so I would either need a solution to be straightforward or I'd have to learn a lot to make sense of a more complicated solution. I'm willing to learn mainly because it's not an option for me to continue with my current, insecure setup. I do use a cloud-based password manager that allows for uploading of files, and I trust it enough with my passwords that I would trust it with my files, though I would like to avoid that situation if possible.

      With all this in mind, what's a good solution for me to protect my personal files?

      26 votes
    30. What's the origin of the name of this website?

      I got invited recently and registered my account, but since hearing of it I was curious of where the name comes from. Tildes are dyacritics in Spanish that you put on top of vocals líké thís, and...

      I got invited recently and registered my account, but since hearing of it I was curious of where the name comes from. Tildes are dyacritics in Spanish that you put on top of vocals líké thís, and they stress syllables and help with pronunciation. Now, it is a coincidence, isn't it?

      14 votes
    31. Looking for opinions on how to moderate a community

      Hello. I moderate a reddit sub with about 450 thousand people and we have had trouble with transgender people facing abuse from idiots in two different threads. In one of them, a woman chimed in...

      Hello.
      I moderate a reddit sub with about 450 thousand people and we have had trouble with transgender people facing abuse from idiots in two different threads. In one of them, a woman chimed in and it got ugly (4 bans in the first 12 comments), in the other a trans woman took part and got shit for it (also featured a few users banned).

      Now, each of them had a very different approach. The first got defensive and stopped participating, while the second took the time to respond to the stupid but not offensive ones, trying to educate them.

      So even if this is something that bothers me a lot and makes considerably angry, I realised that maybe I should take a more nuanced view on this, and I should actually ask for more opinions on how to handle thiS, instead of simply applying my own standards and maybe making things worse and/or missing a chance to make things better. And since Tildes has always provided me with intelligent, thoughtful and interesting points of view and opinions, I thought this would be the best place for this question.

      And so here I am, asking anyone that would care to give an opinion: what would a good moderator do? How harsh or lenient should we be with ignorant but not offensive comments? Should we get involved at all if the discussion is not offensive? What would make our sub a nicer place to everyone? Any other thoughts?

      Thank you very much to all.

      20 votes
    32. Learning English from the ground up

      There was a recent thread on ~talk about which linguistics habits people find annoying, and much to my horror, I have most of those which were mentioned. After thinking about it a little more, I...

      There was a recent thread on ~talk about which linguistics habits people find annoying, and much to my horror, I have most of those which were mentioned. After thinking about it a little more, I realized that a lot of these habits were picked up from the media I consume and the people I interact with. I also feel that this problem is exacerbated by my poor knowledge of English grammar.

      While I was taught grammar at an elementary level in school, I didn't quite grok it back then, and mostly relied on my instinct, as to what "sounded" right. I have since forgotten most of what I had learnt, and my instinct is failing me - my grammar is atrocious, my punctuation is terrible and I only have auto-correct to thank for my spelling.

      I understand that English, like other languages, is constantly evolving. What is wrong now might be right tomorrow. However, I believe that this is no excuse for my shortcomings as there is merit speaking and writing in accordance with what is considered correct in the present day.

      I would like to learn English from "first principles", and would greatly appreciate if some users could suggest some books/resources which could help me (bonus points for resources pertaining to British English). Any other suggestions would also be great.

      Thanks, and have a nice day.

      24 votes
    33. Why is there guid-like parameter when requesting js or css?

      Hi, I looked through JS files and I noticed that all JS and CSS are called with weird parameter. tildes.css?aadf6c54 tildes.js?e6d30b42 third_party.js?4393e99 (I changed the string after ?) Does...

      Hi, I looked through JS files and I noticed that all JS and CSS are called with weird parameter. tildes.css?aadf6c54 tildes.js?e6d30b42 third_party.js?4393e99 (I changed the string after ?)

      Does anyone know why is it done and what does it mean?

      6 votes
    34. Batch-saving websites for offline viewing

      Anybody here have a good setup for batch-downloading articles/news from several sites you specify, similar to youtube-dl but for general websites? I'm sure it could be scripted with not too much...

      Anybody here have a good setup for batch-downloading articles/news from several sites you specify, similar to youtube-dl but for general websites? I'm sure it could be scripted with not too much effort but I'm interested what polished solutions there are.

      The idea would be so people with rare internet access could go to a hotspot weekly or something and sync that week's worth of content.

      12 votes
    35. Windows Controlled Folder Access

      I recently enabled controlled folder access in Windows 10. It restricts programs from modifying folders in a blacklist. I have all of the music/pictures/videos/documents/desktop folders and...

      I recently enabled controlled folder access in Windows 10. It restricts programs from modifying folders in a blacklist.

      I have all of the music/pictures/videos/documents/desktop folders and folders containing backups added, is there anything else I should consider adding?

      7 votes
    36. Where are the posting buttons?

      I've noticed in the last few days that buttons to post a new topic or comment seem to have disappeared from the site. I have to add /new_topic manually to open a post form and press Ctrl+Enter to...

      I've noticed in the last few days that buttons to post a new topic or comment seem to have disappeared from the site. I have to add /new_topic manually to open a post form and press Ctrl+Enter to post it.

      Is it just me?


      EDIT: If anyone having the same problem with Firefox, it's probably some rogue uBlock Origin filter. What helped me:

      • Go to the uBO settings.
      • Go to the "Filter lists" tab.
      • Push "Purge all caches" and then "Update now".
      • Wait for it to update.
      • Delete all caches and reload the page.

      Either that, or simply disable cosmetic filtering for the site.

      10 votes
    37. What is the purpose of the Activity tab at the top?

      The Most Votes/Most Comments/Newest are self explanatory, but what does "activity" mean? I looked at the FAQ and Mechanics blog posts and I didn't see anything explaining it. Is it similar to...

      The Most Votes/Most Comments/Newest are self explanatory, but what does "activity" mean? I looked at the FAQ and Mechanics blog posts and I didn't see anything explaining it. Is it similar to Reddit's "Hot" view? I'm especially curious because it appears to be the default.

      11 votes
    38. Baseball rules/scoring question

      It's the bottom of the 9th. Bases are loaded, and the home team's cleanup batter hits a home run. What is the final score? Does the game end immediately at 1-0 when the first runner crosses the...

      It's the bottom of the 9th. Bases are loaded, and the home team's cleanup batter hits a home run. What is the final score? Does the game end immediately at 1-0 when the first runner crosses the plate, or is it 4-0 with all runners allowed to score?

      5 votes
    39. Question about how votes affect comment placement

      Sorry if this has been discussed already, I wasn't sure how to find it. I'm curious if votes on child comments affect the placement of their parent comments. Imagine this scenario: Comment 1 (25...

      Sorry if this has been discussed already, I wasn't sure how to find it. I'm curious if votes on child comments affect the placement of their parent comments. Imagine this scenario:

      • Comment 1 (25 votes)
      • Comment 2 (2 votes)
        • Comment 3 (150 votes)

      In this example, would the popularity of #3 cause #2 to be positioned above #1?

      Edit: Oh the nested list formatting looks weird. Comment 3 is meant to be a child of Comment 2, if that wasn't clear.

      8 votes
    40. Is there anyway to redirect to compact reddit on iOS?

      I dislike reddit's mobile site, as it is slow, filled with app popups, and my content blocker ends up creating software gore situations. On the other hand, i.reddit.com is faster, simpler, and the...

      I dislike reddit's mobile site, as it is slow, filled with app popups, and my content blocker ends up creating software gore situations.

      On the other hand, i.reddit.com is faster, simpler, and the one popup it has is easy to block with element hiding.

      Unfortunately, tapping on a username or subreddit link automatically redirects me to the newer mobile site, and I have to add /.compact to the end of the url.

      On Android, this is easily fixed by installing an Firefox extension to always use i.reddit, but iOS Firefox doesn't support addons.

      So is there anyway to avoid going to reddit's new mobile site? Maybe use a pi-hole to redirect www.reddit.com?

      5 votes
    41. Advice for those who want a computer science career?

      Those that have pursued a career that deals with any type of computer science, what advice would you give to students before they get a job in it? What do you do on a daily basis? What would you...

      Those that have pursued a career that deals with any type of computer science, what advice would you give to students before they get a job in it? What do you do on a daily basis? What would you have wanted to know before you started?

      17 votes
    42. Collapsed comments?

      I'm starting to see occasional collapsed comments when I open threads. The first time I saw one, I thought I'd accidentally collapsed the comment myself, but this one was definitely already...

      I'm starting to see occasional collapsed comments when I open threads. The first time I saw one, I thought I'd accidentally collapsed the comment myself, but this one was definitely already collapsed when I opened the thread.

      Is this related to the "tagging" system that Deimos discussed the other day? At the time, he said that "tags" wouldn't have any effect. Are these effects now working? What are the effects? Also, there was no actual decision about what the different tags would be, and what they would mean. As I said in that thread, I decided not to use these tags until: a) they were agreed and defined; b) they actually did something. I thought they were just placeholders for now. I'm confused.

      Or is there some other feature operating here? For example, people keep talking about "whisper" comments, and I'm not sure if they're just fantasising about a feature they would like, or if it's something that's actually planned. Are these those "whisper" comments?

      25 votes