I apologize if this is the wrong topic for this post, and if this feature already exists, I apologize for that too. I looked around and couldn't find it (it's possible I could have missed it). But I thought a dark mode for Tildes would be most excellent. Right now, there's a lot of white space and combined with my 24" monitor, this site lights up my whole room like it's in the middle of the day. Anyways, thanks for reading. :)

Here's a list of a things that came out in this past week, up through Friday. Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

Notes:
If you spot any mistakes, let us know.
Parental Advisory version of all albums linked (so NSFW).

Ghostemane & Parv0 - Human Err0r | Song.link says Single but is actually EP.
Idris Elba Presents: The YARDIE Mixtape | No song.link. Can't find anywhere. Linked his record label's official soundcloud, since that's where the other Idris Elba Presents are located, so I assume this one will show up there eventually too.

Thank you to @Cleb, @cfabbro, and @Bauke!

I've never really been that into video games. When I was young, I played a lot of RPGs on the SNES and PS1. Within the last couple of years, I dipped my toes back in the water and tried a few out. I tried Skyrim on a friend's recommendation, but it was just a little too involved and open-world for me. I got Cities:Skylines, which I love because I love city builder sims, but that game just does not run well on any of my underpowered computers. And I loved Ori and the Blind Forest, a beautiful platformer, and I'd play it again right now if it wasn't Windows-only.

Here are my requirements. First, it needs to run well on a low-powered machine without making the fan go insane. I've got a MacBook Air 2012 and a ThinkPad x250 (Linux). Neither of these are the ideal gaming experience, I know, but I'm not looking for amazing graphics or bleeding edge technology or something super immersive. Pixel graphics are fine with me. It reminds me of my youth, anyway. I played both Skylines and Ori on my Intel NUC 4th Gen and while it worked, they both really taxed that little machine. I was able to finish Ori, but once a city reaches a certain size in Skylines, it gets unplayable.

I'm not looking for stress. I like RPGs and sims. But it doesn't have to be really hard or frustrating. I don't want to feel chased in a game. I prefer to feel that I'm driving the action and I can go at my pace. I want to feel like if I look away for a moment, I'm not going to lose everything. I'm a casual. I also don't mind if there's no defined ending of a game. For me, I'm more looking for a diversion and a slow build over some kind of constant progression/achievement type scenario.

If it has full controller support, that would be ideal. I've got a Steam controller, and I prefer using a controller to play a game. I've never liked using the keyboard to play. I'm not totally against it, but I guess I just never got into computer gaming. I pretty much always played on consoles in the past.

Linux or macOS only, please. I did have Windows installed once so that I could play games, but I'm not bothering with that anymore. I don't want to have to boot into another operating system just to play a game. I want to be able to hop in and out of a game while using my daily driver computer.

So in my research, I've looked into Terraria and Stardew Valley. These might be what I'm looking for. But I really don't know. Do either of these scratch my itch? Is there another game that I would enjoy based on what I've told you? Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

EDIT: Thank you everybody for your awesome suggestions. I'm still happy to hear more, as I plan to add the ones that really interest me to my wishlist and revisit later. I ended up getting Hollow Knight yesterday and I spent the whole day playing it. It's very engrossing, and it's the perfect game for me. It's so much like Ori, and that game blew me away. Chilled out, go at your own pace, exploring dungeons, challenging but not impossible (though the first Hornet fight was pretty tough for me). The game runs fine on my ThinkPad x250 (i5-5300U) in Pop!_OS Linux, apart from the initial movie scene stuttering--I just had to skip past it, unfortunately. It's such an awesome game, and I'm glad to see they've already announced a sequel. If you know of any other games that are like Ori and Hollow Knight, let me know.

Whenever I search for information about something - especially about a news event - Google returns me a lot of results from Australian sites. Any foreign sites come further down the list, sometimes even on the second page of results. I've never really paid much attention to this behaviour, beyond some occasional mild frustration at not being able to find local sources.

However, this came to a head this week when I was searching for a local US-based news article about something I'd read in an Australian news site, so I could post that local US article here on Tildes (I always try to get as close to the source as possible). But, try as I might, I just could not find any good non-Australian articles about this news! It was almost like Google was deliberately blocking my attempts to read non-Australian sites. I mean, it's possible that this news wasn't reported outside Australia, but that's unlikely, seeing as it was Uber's announcement about trialling electric aircraft in Texas and Victoria. That had to get American coverage. But I struggled to find it in my searches.

I then noticed something I've never noticed before: at the bottom of my Google searches, there's a small line which tells me my current location. It's as specific as my local council area, not just my state or the country.

Is this location affecting what Google shows me in my searches? If so, how do I remove this restriction?

For context: I use Chrome, but I only sign in when I'm accessing a Google service (usually the Calendar). After I've finished with the service, I sign out. So Google isn't tracking me as a person, it's just tracking my browser's search activity.

EDIT: Thank you all. I've already set up DuckDuckGo as my default search engine, and am trying it out.

Hi everyone! Per admin recommendation I'm posting this in comp.

I would like to switch Staining The Timbre from a blogspot domain to its own. I can handle the paperwork and whatnot associated with the url change, but I would like to hire a web designer to spruce up the joint a bit. Right now I'm using a default theme provided by Blogspot and, while it serves its purpose, it makes the page look like it's run by a high schooler.

It should be a relatively basic project. I don't need anything for commerce set up, or anything I think of as "crazy". Just a very basic blog layout that looks professional on both desktop and mobile (the latter is a little lacking in particular right now). Archive links, Tags, ability to comment on posts, Contact Info, and one that preferably preserves the large-picture format the site currently has; that's about it, aside from being able to create the posts themselves.

If anyone is interested please send me a private message. This is very much still in the quoting phase, but I appreciate any assistance you all can provide me in getting an idea on cost.

Thanks in advance!

Here's a list of a things that came out in this past week, up through Friday. Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

Notes:
If you spot any mistakes, let us know.

Gloryhammer - Legends from Beyond... || Deluxe Album linked

Thanks to @Cleb, @cfabbro, and @Bauke!

Posting this as a text post so that nobody has to go to Gab, but the source is here if you really want to. Full post copied below:

An update on "New Gab" and what to expect:

Progress on our new codebase is going well. For those who don't know, our plan is to fork existing open source software, Mastodon, which is based on the ActivityPub social networking protocol.

What does this mean in layman's terms?

• Gab will become an open source project, meaning developers from around the world can contribute the project and help us build.
• Gab will get several new features and PRO benefits, such as video uploading.
• You'll be able to log into and use dozens of existing mobile apps that exist on both App Stores with your Gab account and use Gab through these apps.
• We will be porting over all of your Gab posts, followers, etc to this new codebase.
• Gab will be getting a fresh paint job and be much more "user friendly." (See a mockup below, which isn't final.) Don't worry, it won't look anything like Mastodon (for those of you who know it is,) it will look like Gab.

What does the timeline look like for this going live?

At the moment we are working on building in Gab features that this open source social networking protocol does not currently have. Things like Gab Groups and editing. We are also finalizing a fresh redesign of the Gab interface. Once these two things are done, we will start porting over all existing Gab data. During this time we will invite Gabbers to beta test New Gab and give us feedback. Once Gabbers give us the go ahead we will finalize the transition and push it to Gab.com. All of these steps will occur over the next few weeks.

Why are you doing this?

• Moving Gab to open source brings transparency and additional help from developers in our community from around the world.
• Moving to the ActivityPub protocol as our base allows us to get into mobile App Stores without even having to submit and get approval of our own apps, whether Apple and Google like it or not.
• Ultimately we want to make Gab more user friendly, perform better, and be a product you all love. This will accomplish all of those things.

We are excited to share this with you and will have more information soon.

Thank you

This is a pretty interesting move by Gab. They had been kicked out of app stores, and like the post mentions, this will allow them to just piggyback on existing apps that work with Mastodon instead of needing their own. I saw at least one app dev say that they'd specifically block it from being used on Gab, but they probably won't all do that, and I'm sure they'll probably end up with some options.

People in the fediverse don't seem very happy about this overall, but it's probably also not a big deal. The main dev of Mastodon posted:

So Gab has decided that their own code that they spent $5M of investor money developing is so unsalvageably bad that they're going to use Mastodon's code instead, with the added bonus of leeching off of our apps (with Gab apps being banned from app stores)

This is an early warning to fellow admins to be vigilant and domain-block them on sight, when/if they appear (unconfirmed whether they intend to federate), and to app devs to consider if blocking Gab's domains from their app is necessary.

Remember that Gab is a sinking ship and they're basically grabbing onto Mastodon like a parasite in a desperate attempt to get attention from the "drama" of doing so.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/gab-is-in-full-meltdown-and-founder-andrew-torba-blames-the-deep-state

Torba has no self-awareness to see how pathetic it looks that his master race ass is incompetent at making a working website so he has to resort to using software made by a Jew instead.

App devs will block their domains, server admins will block their domains, and that'll be the end of that.

I have been listening to "Darknet Diaries" and it's a great podcast, but I am looking for more. Maybe more technical.

Does anyone have any good recommendations? Thanks!

Edit: if you are like me, and learning about this stuff, here is an interesting and hilarious episode of mini-stories from Darknet Diaries: https://darknetdiaries.com/episode/22/

Here's a list of a things that came out in this past week, up through Friday. Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

Notes:
The Waterboys - Where The Action Is || Deluxe album linked
Sting - My Songs || Deluxe album linked
Octave One - Locus Of Control || song.link says single, but it's EP
Mavis Staples - We Get By || song.link spotify link is to single... linked spotify to album too
Fleshgod Apocalypse - Veleno || Deluxe album linked
The 1975 - Notes on a Conditional Form || No song.link... official site instead
YG - 4REAL 4REAL || No "parental advisory" version linked... so NSFW
The Lonely Island - The Unauthorized Bash Brothers Experience || no song.link, spotify and netflix instead

Thanks @Cleb and @cfabbro for the help this week!

Here's a list of a things that came out in this past week, up through Friday. Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

Notes:
Bow Wow - Greenlight 6 || no song.link yet, soundcloud link instead
DUCKWRTH - The Falling Man || linked no "parental advisory" version (so NSFW warning)
DJ Khaled - Father of Asahd | linked no "parental advisory" version (so NSFW warning)
Ghostemane - Opium || says single but is EP
Megan Thee Stallion - Fever || linked no "parental advisory" version (so NSFW warning)
Second Still - Violet Phase || no song.link yet, bandcamp link instead
slowthai - Nothing Great About Britain || two versions on song.link with different links, included both

Thank you to @Cleb, @cfabbro, and @Bauke for the help!

I thought I've been looking for a good password manager, but I'm not sure that's what I really need.

Here's my use case:

• I currently have a Google Sheet in my Google Drive that contains all my ID/passwords for everything
• In addition I have personal info in there like SSNs and Credit Cards #s
• I want to be able to have instant access to all of the info from my ancient iPhone and my laptop

Things I've tried:

• I messed around with Last Pass a bit and found it couldn't actually fill in the passwords in the apps I was using so I'd have to manually type them, which is a deal breaker for me.
• I've been using FireFox's LockBox and it's a bit better on that front but doesn't actually remember what the password goes to the app so I have to look it up each time, but it does populate them in the appropriate fields.
• Password-protecting a Google Sheet is apparently impossible but was a solution I was after for some time (Excel and Libre can do this..so +1 for software)

Other info:

• I am currently using an iPhone 5 but I plan to "upgrade" to a Samsung Galaxy S7 sometime in the near future. Perhaps that's why the functionality of these password managers seem so inconvenient for me? Would they work better on a modern phone?

What I'm after is perhaps two solutions:

• A password manager that crosses the bridge from desktop FireFox to the apps on my phone, and fills in the password for me automatically. That would allow me to feel like I could move to more random passwords for things.

• Some encrypted, password-protected site/app that could store plain text notes for sensitive things like SSNs and Credit Card #s that would stay in sync between a laptop and a smartphone.

Go ahead and mock me for my terrible security and ancient phone. I deserve it! But when you're done, I'd appreciate some guidance.

EDIT: Sounds like first priority should be to update my phone. Then there appear to be plenty of options to try. Thanks everyone so much!

Alright so some stuff happened preventing last week's list from coming together until late enough where it would be too close to this one. As a result, I'm going to rework this to make it easier for the person I'm working with and plan on these coming out on Friday nights. This week, we have a big-ass list with both weeks shoved together. Sorry for the delay...enjoy :)

Here's a list of a lot of things that came out in this past week (and this time, the week before). Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

Thank you to @Cleb for the help and @cfabbro for the links!

Notes:
If you spot any mistakes please let us know.

Charlotte - Nowhere To Hide EP || Couldn't find EP, so linked to two singles included on it.

Jay Gwuapo - From Nothing, Pt. 1 || Linked to no "parental-advisory" version. So presumably NSFW language. ;)

Jeffrey Brooks - The Passion || No song.link. Linked to bandcamp instead.

Leven Kali - Leven Kali: Low Tide || Linked to no "parental-advisory" version as well.

Newsboys - United || "Deluxe" album linked to.

NOTS - 3 || No song.link. Linked to bandcamp instead.

PnB Rock - TrapStar Turnt PopStar || "Deluxe" album linked to.

Smokepurpp - Lost Planet 2.0 || Linked to no "parental-advisory" version as well.

Stunna 4 Vegas - Big 4X || Linked to no "parental-advisory" version as well.

Young Nudy & Pi'erre Bourne - Sli'merre || Linked to no "parental-advisory" version as well.

Right now if a post is tagged with 'spoiler', that tag appears in its own color which is good. However, if you are interacting with a user and click through to their profile, there is no indication that some of their comments may have been in these spoiler threads and thus contain spoilers (just happened to me, thankfully for show I don't watch). It might be nice to somehow indicate these potential spoilers on the user page so that they can be skipped over.

Someone pings you in slack or github (or discord or on a forum post or wherever) asking for something. Perhaps some advice or a code review. After you help them out, they say "Thanks!". In normal conversation, I would respond with a "You're welcome" or "no problem" or something.

The problem I have is that while I want to be polite and acknowledge their thank you message, I don't want to generate notifications or otherwise distract people. Responding with a github comment will notify and probably email any involved persons. Slack and discord it depends on the channel, but many channels have low enough traffic that I will check every time theres a new message in that channel (and I'm sure I'm not the only one monitoring those channels).

Its not really a big deal and no one is going to get angry about it - but it can distract people or ruin their flow while working and I want to avoid that. In my mind, a reaction emoji is perfect for this. It acknowledges the comment or message if someone looks, but doesn't send notifications or light up the channel name.

...but which reaction should I use? I've never seen a "you're welcome" emoji. I've been typically using a thumbs up (:+1:), but that can look as if someone is seconding the thanks rather than me trying to acknowledge it.

Is there a better way to say "you're welcome" or "no problem" in this situation? Is there a better reaction emoji on github/slack/discord/your communication platform of choice? Should I stop worrying about possibly savings other people an email or small distraction and just say "np" or something?

week six comes slightly early, because i have way too many links and i actually started writing this yesterday because it's just over a page and fuck writing all this in one day, lol. the [LONGFORM] tag continues and finally returns, offering up two pieces to us today.

the usual note: common sense should be able to generally dictate what does and does not get posted in this thread. if it's big news or feels like big news, probably make it its own post instead of lobbing it in here. like the other weekly threads, this one is going to try to focus on things that are still discussion worthy, but wouldn't necessarily make good/unique/non-repetitive discussion starters as their own posts.

Week 1 thread • Week 2 thread • Week 3 thread • Week 4 thread • Week 5 thread

News

General Stuff

• from FiveThirtyEight: What The Potential 2020 Candidates Are Doing And Saying, Vol. 16. a pretty quiet week for most of the candidates. most of the highlights came after the end-date for this volume and will be reflected in next week's.

• from NBC News: Can a woman beat Trump? Some Democrats wonder if it's worth the risk. even though it's pretty inane, this topic is probably going to be a recurring theme, because voter preferences are some of the absolute weirdest, most unfathomably illogical shit possible. electability is a large part of why this is probably going to be a theme: clinton might have poisoned the well for all of this year's "first" candidates by fucking up in 2016, and that might make voters hesitant to pull the lever for another one. but again, who the fuck knows. voter preferences have an uncanny tendency to make zero sense.

• from the Guardian: Black female voters to Democrats: 'You won't win the White House without us'. another recurring topic is going to be the black female vote, which is consistently the most democratic bloc possible. in really any place where there's a significant minority vote, democrats have to turn these voters out significantly, and obviously presidential primaries and elections aren't exceptions to that rule. most of the candidates don't seem to be doing the best job of winning them over yet.

• from Reuters: Democratic presidential candidates seek union support at workers' forum. union voters could be significant in the democratic path to the presidency, and so you're seeing a lot of democrats try and angle themselves as union candidates also. which one will win out here? i have no fucking clue.

• from NPR: The Democratic Field Is Set: 8 Questions About What Comes Next. NPR offers up a series of questions about the trajectory of the primary, which will probably aid us in the coming months:

1. How far does name identification go?
2. It's there for Biden now, but can he prove himself?
3. Can Bernie Sanders expand beyond his loyal base?
4. Does Pete Buttigieg continue his momentum?
5. Does Elizabeth Warren find her lane?
6. Does Beto O'Rourke get edged out or does he find his way in?
7. Can Kamala Harris supercharge her candidacy – and fend off Biden in South Carolina?
8. Can others have a breakout moment?

Joe Biden

• from the Atlantic: Unlike His Rivals, Biden Sees Trump as an Aberration. we begin this week with how biden is framing his candidacy. one of the cruxes of biden's campaign is that trump doesn't reflect a change of values in the american public or even in the republican party, necessarily. in his view, the status quo hasn't really changed, and if we return to electing people like biden then trumpism will effectively cease. whether you buy that, i leave up to you.

• from Vox: The health care industry is betting on Joe Biden in its war against Medicare-for-all. another thing about biden is that he has very decisively positioned himself against medicare-for-all, which mostly reflects his status as an establishment candidate. this, as it happens, is super great if you're a lobbyist for the healthcare industry, which is unsurprisingly and firmly in biden's camp in this election.

• from Buzzfeed News: Joe Biden Backs A Public Option — Not Medicare For All — As He Argues For Electability. as far as biden is concerned though, this is mostly a matter of electability. among his other points of policy: "[a] on noncompete clauses ... a $15 minimum wage and ... a more simplified process for issuing professional licenses."

• from the Guardian: 'Battle for America's soul': Biden comes out swinging at first 2020 event. beyond that, biden also has this for policy: "reversing Trump’s tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations" and "enacting the so-called “Buffett Rule” – which would apply a minimum tax rate of 30% on individuals making more than $1m". he's supposed to unveil more of this in the near future.

• from Slate: 10 Questions Joe Biden Needs to Answer About His Views on Race. Slate offers up 10 questions that they feel joe biden is obligated to give us better answers on, thanks in no small part to his incredibly long history of being a dumb politician who might now be on the wrong side of the political traintracks.

Bernie Sanders

• from Buzzfeed News: Bernie Sanders Is Getting A Shadow Organizing Campaign In The Midwest. bernie sanders has had a quiet week in the media, relatively speaking. one of the only notes from this week about him came in the form of people realizing that yes, our revolution does actually exist and yes, it does actually do things. the sanders campaign is probably going to need things like this to win this year.

Beto O'Rourke

• from the Guardian: Beto O'Rourke is coming to California. Can the trip redeem his campaign?. beto has been busy in california the past few days trying to drum up support, which is easier said than done because he's on the wrong side of a wave now. he's been quietly slipping in the polls for the past little while, to a point where he's now usually sixth or so in the order. will stumping in california help with this at all? probably not, but he's gotta do it at some point.

• from NBC News: Beto O'Rourke releases $5 trillion plan to combat climate crisis. on the policy front, he's finally getting around to expanding on what he's running on. his climate change plan is fairly extensive:

The plan begins with proposed executive actions, including rejoining the Paris climate agreement on day one of an O’Rourke administration and moving quickly to raise efficiency standards for buildings, cars and appliances. Longer term executive actions include setting a net-zero emissions carbon budget for federal lands by 2030 and adding more national parks and monuments to protect land and seascapes.
The meat of the O’Rourke plan is a promise to send Congress, as his first piece of legislation, a bill that would mobilize $5 trillion over the next 10 years to upgrade infrastructure and spur innovation — including more than a trillion dollars in tax incentives to reduce emissions, and $250 billion dedicated directly to research and development.

• from Buzzfeed News: Beto O’Rourke Is The Latest Democrat To Make Climate Change Central To His Campaign. Buzzfeed News helpfully fills in some of the other details, such as this:

His plan, starting day one in the White House, would include spending a record $5 trillion on climate action over ten years and mandating the US reduce its emissions to net zero by 2050. (This means the nation, by midcentury, would no longer be emitting more climate pollution into the atmosphere than it was pulling out of it through trees and other ways.)

Elizabeth Warren

• from POLITICO: Warren puts Bernie on defense. POLITICO pitches the interesting take that warren is putting sanders on defense by pushing a shit ton of policy. this seems... dubious? at best, given that warren is polling at literally half of what sanders does, sanders has greatly outraised her, and in general the two just have not interacted especially significantly at any point in the campaign so far. but a take is a take.

• from Truthout: [LONGFORM] Elizabeth Warren’s Student Debt Plan: An Outsized Economic Boon for People of Color. truthout provides an analysis of elizabeth warren's student debt plan, suggesting that it would be the best for people of color. this is interesting, because...

• from Slate: Elizabeth Warren’s Student Loan Forgiveness Plan Mostly Helps the Middle Class, Think Tank Finds. one of the big takeways most other sources have had is that it would be a boon for the middle class instead. figure that one out.

Pete Buttigieg

• from the Atlantic: Authenticity Just Means Faking It Well. this article is more about authenticity than it is about buttigieg, but its catalyst is buttigieg so i'm placing it in this section. what constitutes "authenticity"? who the fuck knows, honestly, but buttigieg is apparently it in a way that resonates with voters.

Opinion/Ideology-driven

• from Truthout: [LONGFORM] None of the 2020 Frontrunners Go Far Enough on Climate. Truthout opines that realistically, absolutely none of the current frontrunner candidates have a compelling platform on climate change that will work. this might change now that o'rourke has actually unveiled a comprehensive plan, but in general outside of inslee (who is running as The Climate Change Candidate), so far climate change hasn't really played much of a role in the primary.

• from the Guardian: Joe Biden is the Hillary Clinton of 2020 – and it won't end well this time either. this take opines that biden is basically this cycle's hillary clinton and that biden basically does not get it. perhaps the best distilling of this argument is in this paragraph:

Biden’s answer to Trump isn’t systemic change that will make America a more equitable place. He’s not offering progressive policies like Bernie Sanders or Elizabeth Warren. His is the vaguest and most centrist of battle cries: let’s go back to, you know, “all those good things”. Let’s go back to a time where racism was a little more polite and white people could pretend America was a post-racial society. Let’s fight for the soul of America by pretending that Trump is the problem, not just a symptom of the problem. Let’s pretend that Charlottesville was a direct result of Trump – an aberration – and not a product of a racism that has always existed in America. Let’s rewind the clock a few years to when everything was just fine and dandy.

• from the Guardian: Bernie Sanders v the Democratic establishment: what the battle is really about. this piece takes an interesting alternative frame on the major split that seems to divide sanders from the rest of the democratic party. in essence, it is this:

The Shakir-Tanden debate about money in politics at Cap is also the larger debate Sanders is sparking in the Democratic party. Joe Biden opened his presidential bid by allowing a Comcast executive to host a fundraiser for him at his home in Pennsylvania. Sanders, on the other hand, has written off such fundraisers and is insisting on relying on small donor funders, not corporate executives or lobbyists.

anyways, feel free to as always contribute other interesting articles you stumble across, or comment on some of the ones up there.

EDIT: minor grammatical stuff

...Sunday isn't that far from Thursday...

...I'm sorry!

Here's a list of a lot of things that came out in this past week, mostly up through Friday. Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

AJR - Neotheater (Electropop, Trap [EDM]) || Song.link - Spotify

Alan Parsons - The Secret (AOR) || Song.link - Spotify

Aldous Harding - Designer (Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Folk) || Song.link - Spotify

Amon Tobin - Fear in a Handful of Dust (Electroacoustic, Progressive Electronic) || Song.link - Spotify

Aries - Juramento Mantarraya (Art Pop, Indie Pop, Psychedelic Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Awaken I Am - The Beauty In Tragedy (Post-Hardcore) || Song.link - Spotify

Bailen - Thrilled To Be Here (Indie Rock, Americana) || Song.link - Spotify

Bear's Den - So That You Might Hear Me (Indie Folk, Indie Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Billie Marten - Feeding Seahorses by Hand (Singer/Songwriter) || Song.link - Spotify

blackbear - ANONYMOUS (Alternative R&B) || Song.link - Spotify

Black Zone Magick Chant - Voyage Sacrifice (Ambient, Drone) || Song.link - Spotify

Catfish and the Bottlemen - The Balance (Indie Rock, Post-Punk Revival) || Song.link - Spotify

Chelou - Out Of Sight (Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Claude Fontaine - Claude Fontaine (Psychedelic Pop, Bossa nova, Pop Reggae) || Song.link - Spotify

Co Cash - F.A.C.T.S. (Trap Rap) || Song.link - Spotify

Craig Finn (of the Holy Steady) - I Need A New War (Singer/Songwriter) || Song.link - Spotify

The Cranberries - In the End (Pop Rock, Alternative Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

The Damned Things - High Crimes (Hard Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Danko Jones - A Rock Supreme (Hard Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Delsbo Beach Club - A burger in Åkersberga (Indie Pop, Indie Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

DJ Nate - Take Off Mode (Footwork) || Song.link - Spotify

Dub Trio - The Shape of Dub to Come (Math Rock, Dub) || Song.link - Spotify

Dylan Scott - Nothing to Do Town (Dylan Scott) || Song.link - Spotify

El Momo a.k.a Mario Maher - Sueños reales (Hip Hop) || Song.link - Spotify

Ezra Collective - You Can't Steal My Joy (Jazz Fusion) || Song.link - Spotify

Farruko - Gangalee (Reggaeton) || Song.link - Spotify

Foxygen - Seeing Other People (Glam Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

George Benson - Walking to New Orleans (Rock & Roll, Rhythm & Blues) || Song.link - Spotify

The Get Ahead - Deepest Light (Americana) || Song.link - Spotify

Guided by Voices - Warp and Woof (Indie Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Hannah Cohen - Welcome Home (Art Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Hardline - Life (Hard Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Hembree - House On Fire (Alternative Rock, Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Hillsong United - People (CCM) || Song.link for "LIVE/VISUAL" - for "LIVE" - Spotify

IamSu! - Its Always Pure Love (West Coast Hip Hop) || Song.link - Spotify

In the Valley Below - The Pink Chateau (Indie Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Jackie Mendoza - LuvHz (Indie Pop, Psychedelic Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Jacob Latimore - Connection2 (Pop Rap) || Song.link - Spotify

James TW - Chapters (Singer/Songwriter) || Song.link - Spotify

JJ Cale - Stay Around (Blues Rock, Country Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Josefin Öhrn + The Liberation - Sacred Dreams (Art Pop, Psychedelic Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Josh Ritter - Fever Breaks (Indie Folk, Folk Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Justin Garner - Imprint (Contemporary R&B) || Song.link - Spotify

Justin Moore - Late Nights and Longnecks (Contemporary Country) || Song.link - Spotify

Kelly Finnigan - The Tales People Tell (Soul) || Song.link - Spotify

Kevin Abstract - ARIZONA BABY (Alternative R&B, Pop Rap) || Song.link - Spotify

Kevin Morby - Oh My God (Singer/Songwriter, Folk Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Kiefer Sutherland - Reckless & Me (Country Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Fishing For Fishies (Boogie Rock, Psychedelic Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Lamb - The Secret Of Letting Go (Art Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Local Natives - Violet Street (Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Lord Dying - Mysterium Tremendum (Sludge Metal) || Song.link - Spotify

Maddie & Tae - One Heart To Another EP (Contemporary Country) || Song.link - Spotify

Marina - LOVE+FEAR (Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Marissa Nadler And Stephen Brodsky - Droneflower (Singer/Songwriter, Ethereal Wave) || Song.link - Spotify

Matt Martians - The Last Party (Alternative R&B) || Song.link - Spotify

The Mountain Goats - In League With Dragons (Indie Folk, Singer/Songwriter) || Song.link - Spotify

NBA Big B - 5th God (Trap Rap) || Song.link - Spotify

New Years Day - Unbreakable (Alternative Metal, Alternative Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Nick Murphy (AKA Chet Faker) - Run Fast Sleep Naked (Indietronica) || Song.link - Spotify

Nils Lofgren - Blue With Lou (Heartland Rock, Singer/Songwriter) || Song.link - Spotify

Olivia O'Brien - Was It Even Real? (Contemporary R&B) || Song.link - Spotify

OLSSON - Tropical Cologne (Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

OMB Peezy - Preacher To the Streets (West Coast Hip Hop) || Song.link - Spotify

Otoboke Beaver - Itekoma Hits! (Hardcore Punk) || Song.link - Spotify

P!nk - Hurts 2B Human (Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Party Favor - Layers (Trap [EDM]) || Song.link - Spotify

Peakes - Absent In Person EP (Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Peter Doherty & The Puta Madres (Indie Pop, Folk Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

The Pilgrim - Walking Into The Forest (Psychedelic Rock, Folk Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Pure Bathing Culture - Night Pass (Dream Pop, Chillwave) || Song.link - Spotify

Radical Face - Therapy EP (Indie Pop, Folk Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Rob Thomas - Chip Tooth Smile (Pop Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Rodrigo y Gabriela - Mettavolution (Acoustic Rock, Flamenco nuevo) || Song.link - Spotify

ScHoolboy Q - CrasH Talk (Pop Rap) || Song.link - Spotify

Sid Le Rock - Scenic Route (Electronic, House) || Song.link - Spotify

Sneakk - SAY LESS (Contemporary R&B) || Song.link - Spotify

SOAK - Grim Town (Singer/Songwriter) || Song.link - Spotify

Spotlights - Love & Decay (Post-Metal, Atmospheric Sludge Metal) || Song.link - Spotify

The Story Changes - To Hell With This Delicate Equation (Alternative Rock, Emo-Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Sublime With Rome - Blessings (Ska Punk) || YouTube for "Light On" - for "Wicked Heart" - Spotify

SUNN O))) - Life Metal (Drone Metal) || Song.link - Spotify

Teen Daze - Bioluminescence (Chillwave) || Song.link - Spotify

Tesla - Shock (Hard Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Tiny Fighter - Tell Me EP (Indie Rock, Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Trade Wind - Certain Freedoms (Alternative Rock) || Song.link - Spotify

Various Artists - For the Throne (Music Inspired by the HBO Series Game of Thrones) (Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Various Artists - UglyDolls (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Walker Lukens - Adult (Pop Rock, Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

The Well - Death And Consolation (Stoner Rock, Doom Metal) || Song.link - Spotify

Winnetka Bowling League - Cloudy With A Chance Of Sun EP (Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

YFL Kelvin - Neva Lookin Back (Trap Rap) || Song.link - Spotify

Your Heart Breaks - Drone Butch Blues (Indie Folk, Indie Pop) || Song.link - Spotify

Spotify Master playlist, all albums (minus the two 'various artist' sets above)

Notes:
If you spot any mistakes please let us know.

Thank you to @Cleb, @cfabbro, and @Amarok for the help!

Hillsong United - People || has two versions? live and live/visual. linked both since they have different results.
Sublime With Rome - Blessings || album not due til May 31. linked 2 youtube singles, and spotify has 4 tracks.

I, personally, have a lot of music I listen to, but I can't just throw anything on when I want to jam. I have certain bands and certain genres whenever I'm feeling strongly one way or the other. Sad usually gets (to name a few) The Smiths, Blue October, or Motion City Soundtrack. Angry gets Periphery, some early Coheed and Cambria, or some early Incubus. Happy might get Weezer, Fleetwood Mac, or Polyphia. To name a few examples.

Or sometimes, I'm just feeling a certain band/sound and nothing else for days at a time. At the moment, it's been Thank You Scientist. If you can't put bands to emotions, what have you stuck on repeat lately?

It is my understanding that if you are looking at an object falling into a black hole from a remote viewpoint, then the object will appear to take “forever” to complete the fall into the black hole. The object is effectively frozen in time at the black hole’s event horizon, from the remote viewer’s POV.

Is this the correct interpretation so far? If so, let’s remember that.

It is also my understanding that a black hole can increase in mass as it captures new objects. The mass does increase from an external viewpoint. Is this accurate?

If I understand known science on the above points, then the paradox I see here is that while the visual information is frozen in time from the external POV, the mass of the black hole does increase from the external POV. So is this where the Holographic Principle comes in? Or is there another explanation here, or am I off-base entirely?

Or is it just that the accretion disk gains mass and black holes never increase in mass from an external POV, after they are initially formed?

Is this known?

Please either attempt to answer my tortured question, or point me to material that might lead me ask a better question.

Thanks!

Here's a list of a lot of things that came out in this past week, including many which are set to release on Friday. Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

(oh and don't bully me for the genre tags, a lot of these things have very limited resources available and I couldn't individually listen to everything and determine what fits best, so I'm pulling from third parties and an artist's past work a lot of the time)

Thanks to @Cleb for the help again and @cfabbro for grabbing the song.link urls!

1THE9 - XIX (K-Pop) | Song.link

After the Burial - Evergreen (Metalcore, Djent) | Song.link

Allegaeon - Apoptosis (Technical Death Metal, Progressive Metal) | Song.link

Angélique Kidjo - Celia (Fon Music) | Song.link

Anna Tivel - The Question (Indie Folk, Singer/Songwriter) | Song.link

Ann My Dice - Thorn EP (Metal) | Song.link

Bananarama - In Stereo (Dance-Pop, Electropop) | Song.link

Beauty Queen - Out Of Touch EP (Indie Pop) | Song.link

Bells Atlas - The Mystic (Neo Soul) | Song.link

Bernard Fowler (of Rolling Stones) - Inside Out (Rock) | Song.link

Beyoncé - Homecoming: The Live Album (Contemporary R&B, Pop) | Song.link

Cage The Elephant - Social Cues (Indie Rock, Alternative Rock, Indie Pop) | Song.link

Cayucas - Real Life (Indie Pop, Sunshine Pop) | Song.link

Countless Goodbyes - Cycles (Metal) | Song.link

The Cringe - Everywhere You’ve Never Been (Rock) | Song.link

Daniel Norgren - Wooh Dang (Contemporary Folk) | Song.link

Diane Coffee - Internet Arms (Art Pop) | Song.link

Dinah Jane - 1 (Contemporary R&B, Dance-Pop) | Song.link

Drugdealer - Raw Honey (Psychedelic Rock) | Song.link

Erick Sermon - Vernia (East Coast Hip Hop, Boom Bap) | Song.link

Faith Eliott - Impossible Bodies (Indie Folk, Chamber Folk) | Song.link

Fat White Family - Serfs Up! (Neo Psychedelia) | Song.link

Field Medic - Fade Into the Dawn (Indie Folk, Singer-Songwriter) | Song.link

Flaural - Postponement (Psychedelic Rock) | Bandcamp

Foolio - Never Wanted Fame (Trap Rap, Pop Rap) | Song.link

Fredo Bang - Big Ape (Trap Rap) | Song.link

Grand Magus - Wolf God (Heavy Metal) | Song.link

Gus Dapperton - Where Polly People Go to Read (Hypnagogic Pop, Indie Pop) | Song.link

Heart Attack Man - Fake Blood (Pop Punk, Power Pop) | Song.link

Heather Woods Broderick - Invitation (Singer/Songwriter, Art Pop) | Song.link

Heavy As Texas - Heavy As Texas (Heavy Metal) | Song.link

Hit-Boy & SOB X RBE - Family Not A Group (West Coast Hip Hop) | Song.link

The Hot Sardines - Welcome Home, Bon Voyage (Jazz) | Song.link

Izzy Bizu - Glita EP (Pop Soul) | Official site

Jade Bird - Jade Bird (Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Folk, Country Pop) | Song.link

Jahkoy - 404 (Contemporary R&B) | Song.link

JOHNNYSWIM - Moonlight (Folk Pop) | Song.link

Jonatha Brooke - Imposter EP (Singer/Songwriter) | Song.link

Jung Seung Hwan - Dear My Universe (K-Pop) | Song.link

Kelsey Lu - Blood (Art Pop) | Song.link

Kinbrae - Landforms (Ambient, Progressive Electronic) | Song.link

Lizzo - Cuz I Love You (Pop Rap, Contemporary R&B) | Song.link

Loyle Carner - Not Waving, But Drowning (UK Hip Hop, Jazz Rap) | Song.link

Maren Celest - I Saw The Sun (Lofi Indie) | Official site

Mark Peters - New Routes Out Of Innerland (Progressive Electronic) | Song.link

Menoh Beats - MENOH! (Instrumental Hip Hop) | Song.link - Soundcloud

Mitch Woods - A Tip Of The Hat To Fats (Blues) | Song.link

NCT 127 - Awaken (K-Pop, Dance-Pop) | Song.link

The O’Jays - The Last Word (Pop Soul) | Song.link

Pamplemousse - High Strung (Garage Rock) | Song.link

Peggy Gou - Moment EP (Nu-Disco) | Song.link

Pi'erre Bourne - The Life of Pi'erre 4 (Trap Rap, Cloud Rap) | Song.link

Pivot Gang - You Can't Sit With Us (Trap Rap, Pop Rap) | Song.link

Pressa - Prestige (Trap Rap) | Song.link

Raffi - Motivational Songs (Children’s Music) | Song.link

Russ Tolman - Goodbye El Dorado (Roots Rock) | Song.link

Sabbath Assembly - A Letter Of Red (Psychedelic Rock, Hard Rock) | Official site - Bandcamp

Sad Planets (Patrick Carney and John Petkovic) - Akron, Ohio (Alt Rock) | Song.link

Sarah Mary Chadwick - The Queen Who Stole The Sky (Art Pop) | Song.link

Seaway - Fresh Produce (Pop Punk) | Song.link

Shotgun Sawyer - Bury The Hatchet (Blues) | Song.link

Shy Glizzy - COVERED N’ BLOOD (Trap Rap) | Song.link

Smokepurpp - Lost Planet (Trap Rap) | Song.link

Starbomb - The Tryforce (Comedy Rap, Nerdcore) | Song.link

Stealing Sheep - Big Wows (Psychedelic Pop) | Song.link

Super Junior-D&E - Danger (K-Pop) | Song.link

The Tallest Man on Earth - I Love You. It's a Fever Dream (Singer/Songwriter, Contemporary Folk) | Song.link

Tech N9ne - N9NA (Hardcore Hip Hop) | Song.link

TR/ST - The Destroyer - 1 (Synthpop) | Song.link

Tripsitter - The Other Side Of Sadness (Soft Rock) | Song.link

The Vamps - Missing You EP (Electropop) | Song.link

Various Artists - MOOMINVALLEY (Official Soundtrack) - (TV Soundtrack) | Song.link

Wand - Laughing Matter (Psychedelic Rock) | Song.link

Wargirl - Wargirl (Indie Pop) | Song.link

Your Heart Breaks - Drone Butch Blues (Indie Pop) | Song.link

Notes from cfabbro:
I will check again tomorrow and update below links as required.

Flaural - Postponement | no song.link yet, bandcamp linked
Izzy Bizu - Glita EP | not released yet? no song.link yet, official site linked
Maren Celest - I Saw The Sun | book+album art project? no song.link, official site linked
Menoh Beats - MENOH! | not released yet? song.link is single, soundcloud is single, no official site?
Sabbath Assembly - A Letter Of Red | not released yet? no song.link yet, official site and bandcamp linked

Here's a list of a lot of things that came out in this past week, including many which are set to release on Friday. Of course, there's no way to be completely comprehensive with this and I avoided including things where information was too lacking, so feel free to mention anything that isn't on here that you think is worth mentioning. Beyond that, if you have any thoughts of any of these albums, it would be great to hear them :)

(oh and don't bully me for the genre tags, a lot of these things have very limited resources available and I couldn't individually listen to everything and determine what fits best, so I'm pulling from third parties and an artist's past work a lot of the time)

Thanks for the help this week, @Cleb!

88GLAM - 88GLAM2.5 (Trap Rap)

Aaron Lewis - State I’m In (Contemporary Country)

ALL TVVINS - Just To Exist (Alternative Dance, Indie Rock)

All Your Sisters - Trust Ruins (Industrial Rock, Post-Punk)

Anderson .Paak - Ventura (Neo-Soul, Contemporary R&B)

Andy Black - The Ghost of Ohio (Pop Rock)

Astrid - Fall, Stand, Dance (Indie Pop, Pop Rock)

Band of Skulls - Love Is All You Love (Garage Rock Revival, Alternative Rock)

Bars Of Gold - Shelters (New Wave, Indie Rock, Post-Hardcore)

Beat Music - Beat Music! Beat Music! Beat Music! (Jazz-Rock, Electronic)

Bibio - Ribbons (Folktronica, Hypnagogic Pop)

Big Business - The Beast You Are (Hard Rock, Heavy Metal)

Big Search - Slow Fascination (Indie Pop)

Black Flower - Future Flora (Afro-Jazz, Jazz-Funk)

Broken Social Scene - Let's Try the After - Vol. 2 (Indie Pop, Indie Rock)

Bruce Hornsby - Absolute Zero (Art Pop, Singer/Songwriter)

BTS - Map of the Soul: Persona (K-Pop)

The Budos Band - V (Jazz-Funk, Heavy Psych, Afrobeat)

Caskey - Black Sheep 4 (Trap Rap)

The Chemical Brothers - No Geography (Big Beat, Acid House)

The Cradle - The Glare of Success (Indie Folk)

Cris Jacobs - Color Where You Are (Singer/Songwriter, Acoustic Blues)

Damien Jurado - In the Shape of a Storm (Indie Folk, Singer/Songwriter)

Eli "Paperboy" Reed - 99 Cent Dreams (Soul, Rhythm & Blues)

Emily Reo - Only You Can See It (Indie Pop)

Emma Bunton - My Happy Place (Pop Soul)

Eric Reed - Everybody Gets The Blues (Jazz)

Fontaines D.C. - Dogrel (Post Punk Revival)

Glen Hansard - The Wild Willing (Singer/Songwriter, Electronic)

Gone Cosmic - Sideways In Time (Psychedelic Rock)

​iann dior - nothings ever good enough (Emo Rap)

Intellexual (Nico Segal & Nate Fox of The Social Experiment) - Intellexual (Indie Pop)

Inter Arma - Sulphur English (Post Metal)

Jesse Rutherford - GARAGEB& (Alternative R&B, Electropop)

Jess Ribeiro - Love Hate (Singer/Songwriter)

John Paul White - The Hurting Kind (Singer/Songwriter, Folk Rock)

Junodream - Terrible Things That Could Happen EP (Indie Rock)

Khalid - Free Spirit (Contemporary R&B, Neo-Soul)

KSI & Randolph - New Age (UK Hip Hop)

The Leisure Society - Arrivals & Departures (Chamber pop, Indie pop)

Lloyd - Black Haze (Pop Rock)

Lowly - Hifalutin (Indie Pop)

LSD - Labrinth, Sia & Diplo Present… LSD (Psychedelic Pop, Electronic)

Marshmello & SOB X RBE - Roll the Dice - EP (Pop Rap)

Melby - VCR (Psychedelic Pop, Indie Pop)

Melissa Etheridge - The Medicine Show (Pop Rock, Singer/Songwriter)

M Huncho - Utopia (Trap Rap)

MISSIO - The Darker the Weather // The Better the Man (Electropop)

MONKEY3 - Sphere (Stoner Rock, Space Rock)

Mystery Skulls - Back to Life (Electropop)

Native Harrow - Happier Now (Indie Folk, Folk Pop)

Norah Jones - Begin Again (Jazz Pop)

NUMENOREAN - Adore (Atmospheric black metal)

Odonis Odonis - Reaction EP (Electro-Industrial, Industrial Rock)

Pixel Grip - Heavy Handed (Synthpop)

Reese McHenry - No Dados (Garage Rock)

RiFF RAFF - PiNK PYTHōN (Trap Rap)

Rory Fresco - True Story (Pop Rap)

Sara Evans - The Barker Family Band (Country Pop)

Sebastián Yatra - FANTASÍA (Reggaeton)

Shovels & Rope - By Blood (Alt. Country)

Sophie Auster - Next Time (Singer/Songwriter)

Tellavision - Add Land (Electronic, Pop)

Theories - Vessel (Grindcore)

Thomas Henley - Epoque EP (Electronic)

Through The Noise - Dualism (Nu Metal, Post Hardcore)

Tom Speight - Collide (Singer Songwriter)

Walking On Cars - Colours (Pop Rock)

Yours Truly - Afterglow EP (Progressive Pop)

Zvi - Deer Pink (Drone Metal, Experimental Rock)

I've noticed a small typographical detail. When you look at messages at one's user page, second level headers (aka <h2>) are shown with a smaller font. I really appreciate that. Don't see rules for other header levels, but as is the feature is pretty cool.

I have an undergrad degree in polisci. I was planning on going to law school, but got rejected everywhere I applied. I am really reconsidering going to law school. Last couple years, I realized that I have a genuine interest in coding, and I could pursue it as a career. I learned C++ with online tutorials, and I think I am proficient at it, or at least have the potential to be much better.

Anyway, money is tight, so I would really appreciate any input you have about a career change. Thank you!

(If this belongs on another sub, please let me know)

EDIT: I am in the U.S. I can move states if necessary.

I'm looking for a cheap small factor mechanical keyboard. I love the looks of XD64 or a JJ50. How do i go about it? I Don't want the numpad, don't care about leds and prefer more retro/sober styles than the ones with wings and dragons and lasers blazing across the keys.

I live in Brazil, so i'll have to import everything. I'm looking to buy everything from one place if possible.

I was looking at KPrepublic. What do i need for the xd64?

1. Plastic case
2. Key caps
3. XD64 PCB with gateron switchs (Kit 10)

Do i need plate and stabilizers? It's already $91 without it. If it's necessary, i think it would be a better idea to just buy a Durgod Taurus k320 since it's cheaper.

What do you guys think?

EDIT: Got a Magicforce 68 for $47. Thanks for the help!

Hi, simple request here, can we have a dedicated channel group for the economy & related financial topics? It is an important enough field of topics that deserves to be on its own and not just labeled via tags, IMO. Especially with interesting developments and happenings which may be driving political and other news, it would be nice to have them easily in one place.

Now that I look again, ~politics probably deserves its own too, although I can see how that might turn into the most raucous part of the Tildes community. Economics is usually a bit more dry though--it's nicknamed the "dismal" science after all--so hopefully that would be less of an issue.

Thanks.

I was browsing r/privacy today and I came across this guy going on about how Mozilla was just pretending to be privacy focused. Here's his comment. Now I don't really know what to think of this, and frankly, I'm getting really exhausted of hearing about how all the things I'm using aren't actually trustworthy. So can so someone put my mind to rest? Does this guy's claims have any truth to them? Thanks.

The one thing people didn't learn regarding Trump and is repeating itself with AOC.

When you consider a politician stupid, it actually empowers them to be crafty. I think Trump would love for you to think he is stupid.

When you constantly attack a politician, you actually give them more followers. It's strange, but the Streisand Effect is real, especially in this Internet era.

The biggest weapon in someone's arsenal is to actually just talk about what they are for. Not attack their opponent and give them press. The rules have changed.

As per title. Furthermore: how do you feel about that?

I just realised I haven't told my father I've moved to another city 500 miles away, and in fact, haven't spoken with him for a few months now. This is the case for me because I never really respected him for various life choices he made, as well as being a Jehovah's Witness (he isn't an exclusionary man however, and sometimes I feel like he uses religion as a way to escape how miserable his life otherwise is). My mother, who I love very much, thankfully divorced him 15 years ago.

On the whole, I know my father loves me, but yet I don't feel the reverse. This at times, like now, fills me with guilt because—despite having perfectly valid reasons to not be close to him—fundamentally he is my biological parent and there is always going to be that connection. I don't know how to handle that, even though I'm now nearly 24.

Often at times, like now, it makes me feel kind of sad. And it's often compounded by other various bits of life that make me feel down too.

Does anyone else have similar experiences? How do you deal/have you dealt with this?

What’s up tildorans, This is more of a thought experiment then anything else, is the impact of consuming calories more or less impactful then producing the electricity needed to power the bike? And I also understand this is extremely affected by circumstance. Let’s say you eat beef 3 times a day and live in a part of the world where power is mostly generated via nuclear or hydroelectric. At that point, would the impact via electricity be less then the one via calories? What if you flip the spectrum and you’re a vegan living somewhere that produces all its energy via coal and oil, how does that affect the equation? Thanks

I'm trying to get onto the podcast bandwagon, and so wondered if anyone can recommend any?

Tech podcasts are certainly interesting to me but anything geeky (tech, gadgets, science etc. as opposed to cartoons, comics, pop-culture - have no interest in any of those topics) would be ace.

Thanks!

Hey everyone, thanks to you who posted in the original Workshop Wednesday; I think it went really well! Here we are for week 2 (sorry it took me til noon, I was busy this morning!)

Some questions:

• do we need a new topic every week? Or will one be enough?
• any other comments/suggestions?

Please begin your comment with [META] to discuss these. Otherwise, I'll copy and paste the guidelines from last week.

What's a workshop?

Basically, a workshop is when you have a bunch of people with poems or stories they've written, and everyone gets together, reads everyone's work, and comments on it, sharing what they got out of it and what the author could do to improve the work for publication. I used to do a lot of them in college, and I've missed the dynamic since graduating. I thought others might also be interested, so here goes nothing.

How this'll work (for now, anyway)

Each week, I'll post a "Workshop Wednesday" post. If you have a poem or (short) story you'd like workshopped, post that as a top comment. Then, read others' top comments and reply with what works/doesn't work/questions you have/ideas you have for the piece that could make it better. If you post some writing, try to comment on at least two other people's pieces as well -- we're here to help each other improve.

Releases of the week 23/02/2019 - 01/03/2019

Featured Release

Solange - When I Get Home (Neo-Soul, Alternative R&B)

Solange has unveiled her new album, When I Get Home. Spanning 19 tracks, it marks Solange’s fourth album to date and serves as the follow-up to her 2016 opus, A Seat at the Table.
When I Get Home was written, performed, and executive produced by Solange herself, but she was hardly in the studio. Among the album’s many contributors were Earl Sweatshirt, Panda Bear, Tyler the Creator, Blood Orange’s Dev Hynes, Sampha, Pharrell Williams, Gucci Mane, Playboi Carti, Raphael Saadiq, Metro Boomin, The-Dream, Cassie, Abra, and The Internet’s Steve Lacy.
“Y’all! I’m filled w so much joy right now!!! Wow! I can’t thank y’all enough for this moment and for all the feelings i feel in my body!” Solange wrote in a tweet. “I’m bringing home w me everywhere I go yalll and I ain’t running from shit no more. Your love lifts me up so high. Thank you!”

Source: Consequence of Sound

Listen to single

Stream

Other Notable Relases

Pond - Tasmania (Neo-Psychedelia, Psychedelic Pop)

Listen to single
Stream

2 Chainz - Rap or Go to the League (Trap Rap, Southern Hip Hop)

Listen to single
Stream

Sun Kil Moon - I Also Want To Die In New Orleans (Contemporary Folk, Spoken Word)

Listen to single
Stream

T-Pain - 1UP (Alternative R&B, Trap Rap)

Listen to single
Stream

Feel free to discuss or feature any and all other releases in the comments below

Discussion Points

Have you listened to any of these releases?
What are your thoughts?
What are you looking forward to listen to?
What have you enjoyed from these artists in the past?

// All feedback on this format welcome.

I hope this is the appropriate Tilde for this. If no one has any input it will still have helped me to type this out.

TL;DR In over my head with marriage, foster care, family, and work.

My wife and I became foster parents about 1.5 years ago with the intention to not adopt, but to care for children 3 and under while bio parents worked to regain custody or other permanent placements were arranged. Our first placement was two girls (7 mo and 2.5 yrs) despite wanting to do just one kid at a time (especially to start). We had them for 6 weeks and mom got them back. We had another placement (8 mo boy) for about another 6 weeks. There was a considerable lull and we were getting frustrated about not getting any new placements when the girls from our first placement were placed into custody again. So we were able to take them in again (now about 1.2 and 3.5 yrs). FF to now and we've had them for about 6 months.

We never really intended to have more than one child and for quite this long and we're struggling. My wife has always had a little less ability to weather stressful situations like this and these last 2-3 weeks I'm carrying a lot of weight. In the meantime, bio mom has gotten pregnant and there's not another hearing regarding custody for another 9 months. We fully expect that she will not be able to take them back at that time (or really realistically ever). What should probably happen would be that the county could place the kids into permanent custody (basically getting them adopted). However, from what we've heard from other foster families, temporary custody could drag on for years.

So, our main dilemma is this. We are not equipped (as a couple) to care for these kids for years. With the likely prospect of no change in custody in the near future, it feels like the best thing for these kids would be to get them into the care of someone looking to do this long-term, perhaps to eventually adopt. That being said, we absolutely love them and it feels like some kind of betrayal to force them to make yet another transition. On the other hand, with our limitations, it seems like that is inevitable anyway. Do we try to make that happen sooner?

Some other data points:
Our fostering license expires in October (about a month after the hearing is scheduled) and we don't intend to continue fostering (at least for a while, and definitely not with our current agency).
We don't have many family members close by to give us a hand with the kids, making us feel isolated and making it hard to get breaks from the kids. Our agency has not been very helpful with lining up respite care, but we're trying to be more aggressive about that now.
I've got things pretty well lined up to retire in about 5 years. My company is also just now kicking off a major project of a similar time frame and I'm in a good position to really make a mark before moving on. It will probably require some serious time commitments and effort to do it the way I want to.

Thanks for listening.

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

Hello !

I've been interested in reading some works from famous Beat Generation authors like Jack Kerouac, William Burroughs, Carolyn Cassady, Allan Ginsberg, etc.

I have yet to read any of their works but I'm not quite sure where to start. I've been thinking of 'On the Road' by Kerouac but the reviews I've been reading have been mixed. It doesn't seem like it's for everybody, especially considering the writing style. I've also been thinking of 'The Dharma Bums', also by Kerouac since it seems to be more spiritual, which is something that really resonates with me.

Anyway, if you have any recommendations/opinions I'd be more than happy to hear them. Thanks !!!