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    1. Business idea and feedback thread

      I was reading the potential gatorade-esque business idea thread @daychilde put up the other day and it got me thinking about all the potential business ideas my partner and I have been kicking...

      I was reading the potential gatorade-esque business idea thread @daychilde put up the other day and it got me thinking about all the potential business ideas my partner and I have been kicking around. I'm hoping folks can post their prospective business ideas here and folks within those industries and provide feedback, insight, or hurdles to the ideas. Kind of like the hobby thread from a few weeks ago. Excited to hear what everyone is thinking about!

      34 votes
    2. The first Tildes Short Story Exchange is now open to submissions! (May 2025 edition)

      1. Announcement The first Tildes Short Story Exchange is now open to submissions! As previously announced, the first edition of the Tildes Short Story Exchange is now open to submissions! Click...

      1. Announcement

      The first Tildes Short Story Exchange is now open to submissions!

      As previously announced, the first edition of the Tildes Short Story Exchange is now open to submissions!

      Click here for all the information!

      1. Introduction

      I have, on many occasions, considered creating a fiction writing and feedback exchange workshop on Tildes. As these things often go, I exaggerated my plans, detailing them endlessly without ever putting them into action. This post is an attempt to break the cycle of procrastination, and I am doing so by forcing myself to adopt a much simpler approach.

      2. Goals

      The main goal of the Tildes Short Story Exchange is to allow people to get feedback on their short stories. Is it any good? How can I improve it?

      3. Why only short stories?

      Although there are many writing genres people like to share, short stories are among the most practical. They can be read much more quickly than novels and novellas, and their evaluation is simpler than what poetry requires. A simple, defined, and easy-to-understand prompt is conducive to creation. Every month, participants will know that the Tildes Short Story Exchange is a place to get feedback on short stories. They will feel compelled to write as a result.

      4. Position on LLMs

      This is a workshop for humans. Producing human connection is one of its main goals. Because of that, all submissions must be human-generated, both in full and in part. That said, LLMs can be used for the same things traditional tools such as Google Docs or Microsoft Word have been used for in the past: proofreading. Additionally, it is allowed to use LLMs to assist in translating into English text that you wrote yourself.

      5. About the submissions

      For the purposes of the TSSE, a short story is a work of fiction with 7,500 words or fewer. This is based on the classification by both the Hugo and Nebula awards. Stories that go a little above that will, of course, be accepted within reason. All submissions must be in English.

      6. How to submit your short story

      You may use any website, blog, format, or platform to share your story!

      If you are inclined to share a PDF, please also share your story in a format that is open, allowing it to be easily converted and better displayed on mobile devices such as phones, tablets, Kindles, etc. Some good formats for that are .docx, .rtf, .odt, .epub, .mobi, .txt, .md (markdown).

      If you are sharing your story on something like Google Drive or Microsoft Office Online, make sure to set the appropriate permissions!

      I will make an effort to read and provide feedback on as many submissions as I can, and if you share it in an open format, it will at the very least have me as a reader!

      You may also use detail markdown blocks to paste your story on Tildes itself (see "Expandable sections" in the Tildes docs here).

      7. Example submissions

      All short story submissions should be top-level comments on this post.

      I drafted below an example submission that I encourage you to use. There are a few additional suggestions in there!

      Title: My Super Cool Story  
      Genre(s): Science fiction, romance  
      Expected feedback: In this story I need feedback on story, language, everything. You can be as ruthless as you want. I can take it!  
      File: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ffWEjR7qP3Gfn693cLvOaRujetl6b_5x/
      
      Title: The Day My Dog Died  
      Genre(s): Drama  
      Expected feedback: I'm really insecure about the ending. This is a very personal story—be gentle with me!  
      File: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ffWEjR7qP3Gfn693cLvOaRujetl6b_5x/
      

      8. How to provide feedback?

      All feedback should be a direct response to short story submissions.

      Feedback should always follow the guidelines put forth by the writer, but anything that is not explicitly prohibited can be understood to be allowed. There will be no strict rules on how feedback must be written, but I would suggest that everyone provide something potentially helpful to the improvement of the story. That is, of course, highly subjective.

      9. How are rules going to be enforced?

      Given that I am a regular Tildes user with no administrative privileges, all rules in this project will serve merely as guidelines that I suggest participants follow. There will be no enforcement or consequence for not following the guidelines. That means there will be no score, and no “feedback points” will be awarded. It is suggested that everyone seeking feedback provide at least one piece of feedback prior to posting their own story. But that will be entirely based on the “honor system,” and no admonitions will be made toward those who seek feedback without providing it.

      10. What will be the schedule?

      The TSSE will feature one post on the 1st day of each month. This is to help with mnemonics so people always remember when it will happen. That will help them get their “creative mojo” working every month.

      Exceptionally for this first edition, given that it is already May 3rd, the Tildes Short Story Exchange – First Edition will go up next Monday (May 5th) and remain as the current post until June 1st, when it will be replaced.

      Within that period, everyone will be free to post their short stories and their feedback at their own leisure.

      The schedule may change to once every two months if there is not enough activity.

      2. Quick info

      This is the beginning of a permanent short fiction workshop on Tildes! Anyone is welcome to post their short stories and get feedback on them. For more information, please click on the information box above or visit the introduction post.

      The TSSE will feature one post on the 1st day of each month. Exceptionally, this first edition will be up from today (Monday, May 5th) until June 1st, when it will be replaced.

      During that period, everyone will be free to post their short stories and their feedback at their own leisure.

      3. How to submit your short story

      You may use any website, blog, format, or platform to share your story!

      If you are inclined to share a PDF, please also share your story in a format that is open, allowing it to be easily converted and better displayed on mobile devices such as phones, tablets, Kindles, etc. Some good formats for that are .docx, .rtf, .odt, .epub, .mobi, .txt, .md (markdown).

      If you are sharing your story on something like Google Drive or Microsoft Office Online, make sure to set the appropriate permissions!

      You may also use detail markdown blocks to paste your story on Tildes itself (see "Expandable sections" in the Tildes docs here).

      4. Example submissions

      All short story submissions should be top-level comments on the TSSE posts.

      I drafted below an example submission that I encourage you to use. You are not forced to follow this model—feel free to add any information you want in your submission.

      Click for the examples
      **Title**: My Super Cool Story  
      **Word count**: 949
      **Genre(s)**: Science fiction, romance  
      **Expected feedback**: In this story I need feedback on story, language, everything. You can be as ruthless as you want. I can take it!  
      **File or link**: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ffWEjR7qP3Gfn693cLvOaRujetl6b_5x/
      
      **Title**: The Day My Dog Died 
      - **Word count**: 1500
      **Genre(s)**: Drama  
      **Expected feedback**: I'm really insecure about the ending. This is a very personal story—be gentle with me!  
      **File or link**: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ffWEjR7qP3Gfn693cLvOaRujetl6b_5x/
      

      5. How to provide feedback?

      All feedback should be a direct response to short story submissions.

      Feedback should always follow the guidelines put forth by the writer, but anything that is not explicitly prohibited can be understood to be allowed. There will be no strict rules on how feedback must be written, but I would suggest that everyone provide something potentially helpful to the improvement of the story. That is, of course, highly subjective.

      35 votes
    3. Weekly US politics news and updates thread - week of May 5

      This thread is posted weekly - please try to post all relevant US political content in here, such as news, updates, opinion articles, etc. Extremely significant events may warrant a separate...

      This thread is posted weekly - please try to post all relevant US political content in here, such as news, updates, opinion articles, etc. Extremely significant events may warrant a separate topic, but almost all should be posted in here.

      This is an inherently political thread; please try to avoid antagonistic arguments and bickering matches. Comment threads that devolve into unproductive arguments may be removed so that the overall topic is able to continue.

      15 votes
    4. I'm thinking of starting a business making basically gatorade-type powder. Seeking advice.

      I used to make soap and body products, and I really enjoyed it. I loved making nice-smelling things that people really liked. We were really on the verge of online sales, so we went to markets and...

      I used to make soap and body products, and I really enjoyed it. I loved making nice-smelling things that people really liked. We were really on the verge of online sales, so we went to markets and sold that way. Didn't end up taking off just because we really didn't get the sales base. Online would have helped.

      I was talking recently to my wife about making her some gatorade-type hydration beverage with electrolytes. Because we're trying to save money where we can.

      I was looking up what goes into most electrolyte products, and pricing them out. What's annoying is that it would be around $75 to get what I needed. But that would give me around 1000 ½L servings, give or take.

      And with that, I went down the rabbit hole of "Why not see if I can package some up and sell?"

      At the most basic level, it would probably cost around $1.50 to create a 100-serving jar, which I could probably label and sell for something like $10 - which sounds like huge profit, but I think is probably around a reasonable level. Which would mean around 10¢ per serving to my customers.

      As I've been expanding on the idea, I feel I could offer mutiple versions:

      • The basic one that has no flavor or sweetner, just the electrolytes
      • Flavored cersions with sugar for energy, artificial sweetener for folks like me who don't want the sugar but might want the electrolyes
      • Custom blends on demand, i.e. since I have to limit my salt and potassium but could benefit from the magnesium and calcium, I might have a flavored artificial-sweetner one with just two electrolytes. I could have main flavors with color (as it makes them taste better, yay silly brains) but offer no-color blends for those that preferred

      Paired with an online shop, I think it might be enough to be interesting to people - being able to offer more flavors than the norm. And things I'm not sure some have though of - being able to add this to a protein shake, so flavors relevant to that might be interesting (i.e. getting to play with some "dessert" flavours that would be weird in a drink).

      I've got a ton of research to do - and to see how I could start hopefully under cottage food laws with less registrations and fees.

      But I'm curious to know if this sounds interesting, what ideas you have, and most importantly, if you've run your own small hobby style business in any relevant sort of way, what advice and ideas you might have to help me as I look at this possibility.

      Basically, I'm trying to keep afloat here, and I'm not picking up business clients as quickly as I need, and I think doing this would not only be fun, but perhaps profitable as well.

      18 votes
    5. Tildes Minecraft Survival

      Server host: tildes.nore.gg (Running Java 1.21.4) Bluemap: https://tildes.nore.gg Playtime Tracker: https://tildes.nore.gg/playtimes.html Tildes website extension (shows online status & location):...

      Server host: tildes.nore.gg (Running Java 1.21.4)
      Bluemap: https://tildes.nore.gg
      Playtime Tracker: https://tildes.nore.gg/playtimes.html
      Tildes website extension (shows online status & location): Firefox (Desktop and Android) - Chrome
      Verification site: https://verify.tildes.nore.gg
      Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/TildesMC

      Plugins and Data Packs Data Packs:
      • Terralith - Overworld terrain upgrade
      • Nullscape - End terrain upgrade
      • Armor Statues [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Bat Membranes [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Cauldron Concrete [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Husks Drop Sand [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Mini Blocks [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • More Mob Heads [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Player Head Drops [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Silence Mobs [Vanilla Tweaks]
      • Wandering Trades [Vanilla Tweaks]

      Plugins:

      • Bluemap - Adds a live 3D web map
      • Clickable Links - Makes http URLs in chat clickable (only for registered players)
      • CoreProtect - Records all block/container/mob changes (Anyone can look up changes with /co inspect)
      • EasyArmorStands - GUI for editing armor stands
      • Hexnicks - Enables Tildes usernames to be displayed
      • LuckPerms - Locks down unregistered users
      • Nerfstick - Allows survival use of the minecraft:debug_stick item (requires admin to spawn in)
      • Rapid Leaf Decay - Increases the speed of leaf decay by 10x
      • WorldEdit - Used for occasional admin stuff
      • WorldGuard - Prevents unregistered users from changing anything in the world

      The server operates on a soft whitelist. Anyone can log in and walk around, but you need a Tildes account to gain build access.


      New Thread

      19 votes
    6. ssh git@sr.ht is asking password and denies me

      Hey guys. I'm trying to make the connection between my system and Sourcehut. I created my Ssh key and added pub key to the Sourcehut. Added the private key with the ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 code...

      Hey guys.

      I'm trying to make the connection between my system and Sourcehut. I created my Ssh key and added pub key to the Sourcehut. Added the private key with the ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519 code after the "eval" thing.

      Whenever I try ssh git@sr.ht, it asks for password. I do not know what password it is and I'm entering my passphrase but it says permission denied.

      On Github side, I managed everything without problem tho. Any hints?

      EDIT: I removed Git and SSH keys completely. Reinstalled Git again. Followed the instructions step by step for the SSH keys and it worked this time. I have no idea what I did different this time but it works now after 3 hours of hell.. I suspect that I made a typo in config file in SSH directory. Thanks for comments guys! I love you all!

      13 votes
    7. [SOLVED] How to use Amazon Prime Video with Librewolf ( Firefox Clone ) ?

      I watch Amazon Prime Video with Librewolf, but today I got the error message below. I already have DRM enabled. Any ideas how to fix this? Prime Video is incompatible with your current operating...

      I watch Amazon Prime Video with Librewolf, but today I got the error message below. I already have DRM enabled. Any ideas how to fix this?

      Prime Video is incompatible with your current operating system or web browser. You must update to watch Prime Video titles. Review the Prime Video system requirements. If the problem continues, please contact Amazon Customer Service and refer to error 7132.

      Edit:

      I fixed the problem by removing Librewolf and reinstalling it.

      9 votes
    8. Anyone on Tildes tried Bazzite or similar Fedora Atomic distros?

      I have been planning to make the switch to Linux as a daily driver for a while and have researched many different distros. I have seen a lot of discussion online about Bazzite and other similar...

      I have been planning to make the switch to Linux as a daily driver for a while and have researched many different distros. I have seen a lot of discussion online about Bazzite and other similar distros based on Fedora Atomic. It sounds like it would be more stable, and less likely for you to accidentally break something, but installing software other than Flatpaks requires running it in some kind of container such as Distrobox. Some people say it's annoying, others say it's good since you mess up the container rather than your system.

      I have used SteamOS on Steam Deck, and notice that things have "just worked" more than what I have personally seen with "normal" distros on laptops or desktops. For example, I've never really had any issues installing things and running software on SteamOS, but someone I know using Mint has seen seemingly minor things cause massive glitches on their system, or they've run into strange difficulty just installing certain programs like Steam. Would one of these types of distros, especially Bazzite which specifically is trying to be like SteamOS, be closer to that Steam Deck experience?

      Has anyone here tried one of these distros and had any thoughts? Anything you loved, or was anything a deal breaker?

      13 votes
    9. Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of May 4

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week! Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle...

      Add awesome game deals to this topic as they come up over the course of the week!

      Alternately, ask about a given game deal if you want the community’s opinions: e.g. “What games from this bundle are most worth my attention?”

      Rules:

      • No grey market sales
      • No affiliate links

      If posting a sale, it is strongly encouraged that you share why you think the available game/games are worthwhile.


      All previous Save Point topics

      If you don’t want to see threads in this series, add save point to your personal tag filters.

      10 votes