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    1. Year in Review: Games of 2022

      What were your highlights for the year? What were the best things you played? What surprised you? What let you down? Reflect back on the year and talk about anything and everything related to your...

      What were your highlights for the year? What were the best things you played? What surprised you? What let you down?

      Reflect back on the year and talk about anything and everything related to your gaming experiences in 2022. You do NOT have to limit it to 2022 releases -- anything you played this year counts.

      Meta note: Yes, I know this is still a tad on the early side, but I'm trying to space these posts out between groups so that they don't step on each others' toes. I also plan to post this to ~books, ~movies, ~television. I'm not active in ~anime, so if someone wants to take up the mantle for that group (or any others you feel need a Year in Review post), go for it!

      7 votes
    2. Help me find vehicle customization video games

      Hi, lately I've been thinking a bunch about Phantom Crash, which I played on an XBox. It was a mecha battle arena game. It had two main modes (three if you count skipping through interminable...

      Hi, lately I've been thinking a bunch about Phantom Crash, which I played on an XBox. It was a mecha battle arena game. It had two main modes (three if you count skipping through interminable conversations with NPCs). First, you'd take your mech into an arena and blow people up. Then you'd go to your garage, spending your winnings on upgrading your mech.

      The degree of customization you could achieve was striking. There were big options like wheels / legs / hover platform, and a variety of energy / mass / missile weapons. You could get different aim assist chips that had meaningfully different characteristics. You could tune almost any piece of equipment to be lighter or heavier, and a heavier gun really felt more powerful in the arena.

      TBH the actual combat was only alright, but we loved the game anyway.

      Are there any other games out there that have this kind of feedback loop? Playable today is best, but I'd also go down an internet archaeology hole.

      8 votes
    3. Fortnightly Programming Q&A Thread

      General Programming Q&A thread! Ask any questions about programming, answer the questions of other users, or post suggestions for future threads. Don't forget to format your code using the triple...

      General Programming Q&A thread! Ask any questions about programming, answer the questions of other users, or post suggestions for future threads.

      Don't forget to format your code using the triple backticks or tildes:

      Here is my schema:
      
      ```sql
      CREATE TABLE article_to_warehouse (
        article_id   INTEGER
      , warehouse_id INTEGER
      )
      ;
      ```
      
      How do I add a `UNIQUE` constraint?
      
      3 votes
    4. TV Tuesdays Free Talk

      Have you watched any TV shows recently you want to discuss? Any shows you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here. Please just try to provide fair warning of...

      Have you watched any TV shows recently you want to discuss? Any shows you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.

      Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.

      9 votes
    5. Day 6: Tuning Trouble

      Today's problem description: https://adventofcode.com/2022/day/6 Please post your solutions in your own top-level comment. Here's a template you can copy-paste into your comment to format it...

      Today's problem description: https://adventofcode.com/2022/day/6

      Please post your solutions in your own top-level comment. Here's a template you can copy-paste into your comment to format it nicely, with the code collapsed by default inside an expandable section with syntax highlighting (you can replace python with any of the "short names" listed in this page of supported languages):

      <details>
      <summary>Part 1</summary>
      
      ```python
      Your code here.
      ```
      
      </details>
      
      13 votes
    6. ChatGPT part 2: Let’s talk implications

      The previous thread is pretty crowded with running a variety of prompts. I would like to create a separate one dedicated to talking about the implications and applications of such AI systems in...

      The previous thread is pretty crowded with running a variety of prompts. I would like to create a separate one dedicated to talking about the implications and applications of such AI systems in the everyday world.

      19 votes
    7. Weekly US politics news and updates thread - week of December 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.

      8 votes
    8. Weekly coronavirus-related chat, questions, and minor updates - week of December 5

      This thread is posted weekly, and is intended as a place for more-casual discussion of the coronavirus and questions/updates that may not warrant their own dedicated topics. Tell us about what the...

      This thread is posted weekly, and is intended as a place for more-casual discussion of the coronavirus and questions/updates that may not warrant their own dedicated topics. Tell us about what the situation is like where you live!

      6 votes
    9. Day 5: Supply Stacks

      Today's problem description: https://adventofcode.com/2022/day/5 Please post your solutions in your own top-level comment. Here's a template you can copy-paste into your comment to format it...

      Today's problem description: https://adventofcode.com/2022/day/5

      Please post your solutions in your own top-level comment. Here's a template you can copy-paste into your comment to format it nicely, with the code collapsed by default inside an expandable section with syntax highlighting (you can replace python with any of the "short names" listed in this page of supported languages):

      <details>
      <summary>Part 1</summary>
      
      ```python
      Your code here.
      ```
      
      </details>
      
      15 votes
    10. Let's talk about ChatGPT

      Edit: Some interactions with the bot I posted in the comments, if you are curious about potential prompts: https://tildes.net/~tech/13lj/lets_talk_about_chatgpt#comment-7lw6 I have been...

      Edit: Some interactions with the bot I posted in the comments, if you are curious about potential prompts: https://tildes.net/~tech/13lj/lets_talk_about_chatgpt#comment-7lw6


      I have been obsessively reading about ChatGPT since it came out. I'm going to skip introducing it for those who don't know yet (please go ahead and click the link, and do some googling), because I just.. need to vent.

      I have experimented with it. A bunch. I'm also pretty familiar with GPT's capabilities from before. And ChatGPT still took me by surprise.

      Still, as of four days ago, I did not believe we were there yet. Hell, I didn't believe we would get there within my lifetime, and now, it's there.

      "But Adys, you don't understand the limitations!"

      Yeah, no, see, I understand the limitations. I understand this is the version that is still in its infancy, is crippled by stupid decisions from OpenAI, is not running on GPT-4 yet, and doesn't yet have things such as some layer of eg. checking correctness.

      But I also understand the potential. HN has been full of people crying out how we're not at AGI yet but DOES THIS MATTER? Planes are still decades away from displacing most bird jobs.

      I think anyone who isn't currently in utter shock at how good ChatGPT is, is either:

      • Somehow woefully misinformed (eg. the less tech literates I've shown it to have asked me "Can't Siri do this?")
      • In complete denial about the potential of the technology
      • Utterly thick

      I want to cry on every corner of every street that we are at the edge of the AI revolution.

      The "problems" that are left are not necessarily easy, but they're also not necessarily hard. For example, GPT's tendency to bullshit is problematic but there are ways to verify output, and those ways can themselves be automated and feed back into GPT.

      I have never, in my life, been so taken aback by a technological advancement. I'm flashing back to the scene in Westworld: "It's not possible. Technology isn't there yet."

      Like, no, this isn't skynet, person of interest, westworld, or anything like this. But it is something. Something very different, very unique. The world is about to completely change. And I want to stress this: EVERYONE I've seen argue against this has been in very obvious denial. I'll be happy to hear you out if you disagree, but if your only argument is that this isn't exactly the AI you expected / it can't solve the exact problem you throw at it, I'll refer you to better birds and faster horses.

      37 votes
    11. Help me understand how I feel about a particular style of watch

      There's a type of watch that's very popular. It has a clean, clear, design. It's definitely a classic. I have mixed feelings about it because of the origins of the design. The watch is big. I has...

      There's a type of watch that's very popular. It has a clean, clear, design. It's definitely a classic. I have mixed feelings about it because of the origins of the design.

      The watch is big. I has a black dial with white numbers and index marks. At the 12 o'clock position there's a triangle. There's plenty of lume on the dial. They usually have a leather strap, and that strap often has two rivets.

      Sometimes the dial has two index rings, the inner ring has hour markings and the outer ring has minute markings.

      IWC makes the most well known example: https://www.iwc.com/en/watch-collections/pilot-watches/iw329301-big-pilots-watch-43.html

      There are lots of homages:

      https://whamond.com/products/laco-watch-pilot-original-heidelberg-39-862094?variant=20123598716982&currency=GBP&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&gclid=CjwKCAiAp7GcBhA0EiwA9U0mtgW5zl3U-UDVpOj2xzQugfY8gjG7C01nWLIjDNRRPNV9C5Ybim0tFRoCrtUQAvD_BwE

      https://www.jurawatches.co.uk/products/laco-watch-pilot-basic-aachen-42-861690-2?utm_medium=PPC&utm_campaign=Shopping&variant=10940401025060&sfdr_ptcid=3694_524_461850736&sfdr_hash=d57409f84f1ff15872832c2e5817a3ae&gclid=CjwKCAiAp7GcBhA0EiwA9U0mtpzVPcdQyfLtQzP4-E5jrfi5c7FKYtNrpJD8SnV0DqRqgYthNF70PBoCXgcQAvD_BwE

      https://shop.diywatch.club/products/new-arrival-diy-watchmaking-kit-f01-lite-vintage-pilot-watch-with-date?variant=42068938358997

      https://www.watchshop.com/watches/mens-sekonda-aviator-watch-3347.pdp

      https://mwcwatches.com/products/vintage-ww2-style-german-pilots-watch-1

      This style of watch is called "B Uhr", or "B Uhren"and you get many results if you use that search term. It's German, and it's an abbreviation for "Beobachtungs-uhren" which means "observation watch".

      My problem with the watch is that is that it was specifically designed for the Luftwaffe in WW2.

      https://monochrome-watches.com/the-history-of-the-pilot-watch-part-five-b-uhr/

      After the war other airforces, including the British RAF, started using very similar watches.

      Most watch sellers do not celebrate the Nazi history of the watch. But some do: https://b-uhr.com/en/collection/b-uhr-luftwaffe-flieger-chronograph.html

      So, I don't know how I feel about this watch. Can its clean design be appreciated when I know of its Nazi link? Can I separate the creator from the product?

      8 votes
    12. Day 4: Camp Cleanup

      Today's problem description: https://adventofcode.com/2022/day/4 Please post your solutions in your own top-level comment. Here's a template you can copy-paste into your comment to format it...

      Today's problem description: https://adventofcode.com/2022/day/4

      Please post your solutions in your own top-level comment. Here's a template you can copy-paste into your comment to format it nicely, with the code collapsed by default inside an expandable section with syntax highlighting (you can replace python with any of the "short names" listed in this page of supported languages):

      <details>
      <summary>Part 1</summary>
      
      ```python
      Your code here.
      ```
      
      </details>
      
      16 votes