Akir's recent activity
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Comment on Popcorn! What's the best way to make it? in ~food
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Comment on Introducing all-new Amazon Alexa Tablets—powerful tablets with Alexa+ built in in ~tech
Akir Link ParentFrankly I've heard that about literally every internal division of Amazon. The amount of nothingburgers that have come out of their game studios alone must have cost them some untold billions of...Frankly I've heard that about literally every internal division of Amazon. The amount of nothingburgers that have come out of their game studios alone must have cost them some untold billions of dollars. I guess it's a good thing that rent-seeking is so profitable!
Though if I am being fair, Project Hail Mary was a pretty good movie, and that was made in-house, so maybe some things can still get done in the house that Bezos built. And obviously everyday work still gets done even if things are chaotic.
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Comment on Denmark government hack leaked 8.7 million citizen's ID's: the password was "123456" in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI know, I had the exact same urge to say that I have the same combination on my luggage.I know, I had the exact same urge to say that I have the same combination on my luggage.
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Comment on The return of phones with physical keyboards? in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI rarely need to type in Japanese but for the few occasions I do I'm really bothered by how I can never remember how to type this.(Also the romaji keyboard is funny. づ, pronounced "zu", is typed "du". There are reasons for this, but nevertheless this is amusing to me.)
I rarely need to type in Japanese but for the few occasions I do I'm really bothered by how I can never remember how to type this.
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Comment on Amazon uses its tracking data to guess whether shoppers have a flat butt and no friends in ~tech
Akir Link ParentYeah, but here's the thing: I'm an outlier. It's weird that I'm not buying things on Amazon. It's weird that I don't have a Meta account for instagram or whatsapp. But people who are invested in...Yeah, but here's the thing: I'm an outlier. It's weird that I'm not buying things on Amazon. It's weird that I don't have a Meta account for instagram or whatsapp.
But people who are invested in Amazon are probably not only buying things on amazon.com, they probably have Amazon Prime and are buying compulsively. They are probably buying groceries at Whole Foods Market. They're probably watching shows on Prime Video. They might be reading books on their Kindle or listening to their audiobooks on Audible.
There are many places they can bring datapoints in so I think that a lot of people are going to get weirdly specific predictions.
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Comment on Was watching a history YouTube video when I realized they are all AI in ~tech
Akir Link ParentTo be fair, I have been getting a lot of really shit recommendations from Youtube which has been leading to really low quality video essays in which the person reading the script clearly didn't do...To be fair, I have been getting a lot of really shit recommendations from Youtube which has been leading to really low quality video essays in which the person reading the script clearly didn't do much research and is giving some wildly untrue claims. But I'd still rather see human slop than machine slop, because at least there's a baseline of effort being made.
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Comment on Amazon uses its tracking data to guess whether shoppers have a flat butt and no friends in ~tech
Akir Link ParentHahaha, Jesus this is so incredibly inaccurate for me. To be fair, I stopped regularly buying things from Amazon quite a while ago. The only thing I bought from Amazon in 2026 was a soymilk maker...Hahaha, Jesus this is so incredibly inaccurate for me. To be fair, I stopped regularly buying things from Amazon quite a while ago. The only thing I bought from Amazon in 2026 was a soymilk maker which I bought out of points from my old Amazon card, which I am keeping open almost entirely to avoid damaging my credit score. Most of the inferences it had for me were some variation of "probably has a 3D printer" or "probably owns a GM vehicle" - given how many windshield wipers and filaments I've bought, I wonder how they could have ever figured that out?
The irony is that the greatest number of inferences it has for me is stuff that I have bought for other people. It has a huge number of them about how I enjoy mixology and drinks. I don't, I'm not a drinker, and I've never made a mixed drink in my life outside of a mixology class on a vacation. All of the time I spent looking up those products and buying them was because it was a very elaborate gift for my husband. There's a lot of other inferences for other kinds of gifts I've bought for other people. I guess I'm just uniquely altruistic?
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Comment on I'm having a glow up, but it sucks in ~life.men
Akir LinkHey, if it makes you feel better, statistically, being more attractive is going to lead you to higher odds of employment!Hey, if it makes you feel better, statistically, being more attractive is going to lead you to higher odds of employment!
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Comment on Was watching a history YouTube video when I realized they are all AI in ~tech
Akir LinkIt’s honestly getting to the point where it’s not worth watching YouTube anymore unless you can verify the creator. Google is all in on AI and they have no qualms on pushing AI content regardless...It’s honestly getting to the point where it’s not worth watching YouTube anymore unless you can verify the creator. Google is all in on AI and they have no qualms on pushing AI content regardless of the hallucinations and inaccuracies they contain. My husband often watches things from the recommendations feed and I often have to stop him and say “you know this is AI, right?” Sometimes he cares, sometimes he doesn’t.
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Comment on CGA-2026-10 🕹️🏚️ 🦇👻 INSERT CARTRIDGE 🟢 Spooky Mansion Adventures in ~games
Akir (edited )Link ParentI’m only upset that you hadn’t played from the times I told you about the kusoge glory. I will warn you that when you first get into the car EVERY VERSION OF THE GAME is a frustrating buggy mess...I’m only upset that you hadn’t played from the times I told you about the kusoge glory.
I will warn you that when you first get into the car EVERY VERSION OF THE GAME is a frustrating buggy mess that will have you flying off of the level geometry but the sequence will end and regular gameplay will resume and more fun is to happen.
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Comment on Humble Choice - October 2026 in ~games
Akir LinkSometimes it feels like my Humble Choice subscription is a Yakuza subscription. This is not a complaint. Though I guess it would be slightly more accurate to say it's a Sega subscription because...Sometimes it feels like my Humble Choice subscription is a Yakuza subscription.
This is not a complaint.
Though I guess it would be slightly more accurate to say it's a Sega subscription because it seems like all of their games get on there eventually. I can't recall when the last time it was that I actually purchased one of their games, which is weird because I actualy love their games.
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Comment on Blocking of unverified apps on Android starts in Brazil and other three countries in ~tech
Akir Link ParentA settlement does not mean that they are innocent, it merely means that they've reached a resolution with Epic. It should be noted that they were attempting to appeal the case but they actually...A settlement does not mean that they are innocent, it merely means that they've reached a resolution with Epic. It should be noted that they were attempting to appeal the case but they actually lost the last case on the grounds that they had created an illegal monopoly. When a United States court finds a corporation to be an illegal monopoly, you know something is wrong.
The settlement, in fact, is a subversion of law because it is quite literally going against the outcome of what the court had already decided. I frankly don't understand how or why such a thing was allowed to happen. The first version of this settlement was actually thrown out because, to my understanding, it was just an attempt by Google to cut a deal with Epic while still retaining their monopoly powers.
In any case, even if I were to accept that the terms of their settlement were to make them somehow not a monopoly anymore, I don't think I would be too comfortable with the fact that they have been not a monopoly for roughly seven months. Remember what the question was:
... are they really threatened by third-party app stores?
Unquestionably, yes, they were threatened enough to take action to block them. The only app store you could download through Google's own Play Store just came literally two months ago, exactly as a result of that Epic lawsuit - at least in the US market.
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Comment on ‘Digger’ majorly bombs with $8 million opening weekend, ‘Verity’ scores $32 million debut in ~movies
Akir Link ParentThat’s the thing that really surprised me. Not only did they produce this specific movie, but they spent $200M on it with huge marketing campaigns! That is a huge amount of money to spend of a...That’s the thing that really surprised me. Not only did they produce this specific movie, but they spent $200M on it with huge marketing campaigns! That is a huge amount of money to spend of a film that is so gonzo from a company that is so risk averse that they shelved completed films they were previously very confident in.
I’m just amazed at how incredibly incompetent their management is when it comes to figuring out what movies people like to see. But I guess that’s just what the movie market is like these days.
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Comment on Blocking of unverified apps on Android starts in Brazil and other three countries in ~tech
Akir Link ParentYes absolutely they are. They had a whole lawsuit with Epic over it.Yes absolutely they are. They had a whole lawsuit with Epic over it.
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Comment on Blocking of unverified apps on Android starts in Brazil and other three countries in ~tech
Akir Link ParentCorporations give bullshit reasons for the things they do literally all the time. You can go to every corporate website and find a mission statement about how they exist to serve humanity and to...Corporations give bullshit reasons for the things they do literally all the time. You can go to every corporate website and find a mission statement about how they exist to serve humanity and to make serve as stewards to the planet. Coca-cola, for instance, is an interesting case study because they tend to use the most grandiose language in their statement while producing the greatest amount of actual garbage littering the planet. So the official statements of a corporation are one of the least trustworthy things that they can say unless one of their representatives are in a court of some sort.
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Comment on Blocking of unverified apps on Android starts in Brazil and other three countries in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI notice that you tend to personify Google quite a lot. Google is not a person. They are an organization. They are run by a number of people with a number of different motivations. Is it really...I notice that you tend to personify Google quite a lot. Google is not a person. They are an organization. They are run by a number of people with a number of different motivations. Is it really unbelievable to you that some of them may be that they want to capture the market?
In any case you seem to be motivated to discount any evidence for any of these examples.
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Comment on Blocking of unverified apps on Android starts in Brazil and other three countries in ~tech
Akir Link ParentHow many examples do you have to see before you see a trend?How many examples do you have to see before you see a trend?
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Comment on The new Firefox is so snappy, even with uBlock Origin enabled! in ~comp
Akir Link ParentHuh. Maybe owning a Mac has spoiled me then? 🤷Huh. Maybe owning a Mac has spoiled me then? 🤷
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Comment on Blocking of unverified apps on Android starts in Brazil and other three countries in ~tech
Akir Link ParentFunny, I asked Claude to see if there were any studies about where malicious Android software came from, and it pointed me toward this study that says that by volume the greatest number of...Funny, I asked Claude to see if there were any studies about where malicious Android software came from, and it pointed me toward this study that says that by volume the greatest number of infections come from the Google Play Store.
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Comment on Why do we find Tildes (and Lobsters) more interesting than the alternatives? in ~tech
Akir LinkI want to recognize people. I want to care about them and see what they have to say. This has meaning in and of itself. Smaller forums have self-selected audiences who care about specific things...I want to recognize people. I want to care about them and see what they have to say. This has meaning in and of itself.
Smaller forums have self-selected audiences who care about specific things and are more caring about those things as you have mentioned.
More importantly I don’t want to have to shovel through 500 mostly identical comments to try to find something actually meaningful or unique. Especially when those comments are negative, hurtful, angering, or simply stupid. User moderation, for the most part, simply doesn’t work.
I prefer air popped as well simply because I don’t like it greasy, and every stove method tends to need at least a little bit of oil to aid with heat transfer. Air popping also helps because it dries out the popped corn which makes it even more crispy. The secret is to pop it directly into a paper bag so you can shake out the unpopped kernels, because - spoilers - every air popper sucks! I kind of want to experiment with making my own shroud to try to improve upon the design.
The irony of this super dry popcorn is that seasonings don’t stick well to it so you’ll actually have to moisten it if you want it strongly seasoned, and for that it’s best to lay it out on a baking sheet and do a quick spray with a spray bottle. Don’t do too much though; it shouldn’t look or feel wet in the least.
The best seasonings are peppers of different kinds. Black peppercorn is great, but also try good old fashioned red chili flakes, paprika, etc. Curry and other spice blends are also good to experiment with.
If you do want fat on your popcorn I really don’t blame you, just avoid butter. It blunts the flavors you want. Use a neutral vegetable oil. If you want that butter flavor, you would be better off purchasing flavacol or some other brand of butter flavored salt.