Akir's recent activity
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Comment on Tawny Newsome gives update on live-action Star Trek comedy in ~tv
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Comment on What private companies are you happy doing business with? in ~talk
Akir Link ParentIt’s so weird that rsync.net’s extremely plain website immediately makes me trust them more than any storage provider I have ever seen. I guess at some point I began to associate shiny animated...It’s so weird that rsync.net’s extremely plain website immediately makes me trust them more than any storage provider I have ever seen. I guess at some point I began to associate shiny animated sales websites with sketchy business practices. It’s also really refreshing how forward they are about what it is that they are selling. So many of these pitch websites seem like they are trying to hide what they are doing for whatever reason.
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Comment on Nose dilators in ~health
Akir LinkBoy if this isn’t a concept I’m uncomfortable with! I’m categorically against installing things that you insert into your body that a doctor has not prescribed, and putting things into your...Boy if this isn’t a concept I’m uncomfortable with! I’m categorically against installing things that you insert into your body that a doctor has not prescribed, and putting things into your airways is particularly alarming. So my recommendation is to ask the doctor which one they recommend.
The real issue here is that breathing is a bit more complex than just the outside part of your nose and if you are snoring that is potentially a symptom of sleep apnea, a condition which raises your risks for a number of deadly diseases. So really, do see your doctor about it!
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Comment on Consumer Electronics Show 2026 in ~tech
Akir Link ParentIt was some “truly wireless TV” that used an electric pump to create suction so it would stick against glass.It was some “truly wireless TV” that used an electric pump to create suction so it would stick against glass.
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Comment on How to practically liquidate lots of little things of moderate value in ~finance
Akir Link ParentHow would you suggest finding these kinds of businesses? I can't think of what I'd search for.How would you suggest finding these kinds of businesses? I can't think of what I'd search for.
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Comment on Consumer Electronics Show 2026 in ~tech
Akir LinkI don't follow CES news but I have happened across a lot of social media posts about people being upset about how everything this year is basically just the same old shit but with more AI. One...I don't follow CES news but I have happened across a lot of social media posts about people being upset about how everything this year is basically just the same old shit but with more AI. One TikTok video I saw was someone exaggerating saying that the whole show was robot vacuums, and the one that I actually saw someone really get excited about was someone producing a glorified clone of the Novint Falcon.
Frankly, consumer tech has been kind of shit for the past decade. Cell phones and tablets have basically become what we call tech now, so companies aren't really doing too much innovation in general. The only thing I can remember from last year's CES was a TV that took batteries that if you didn't regularly replace, it would fall off the wall. And honestly, it feels like every year is just display manufacturers talking about technology that seems to be continually "coming soon" but I can't get very excited about because improving picture fidelity more and more gives vanishingly small returns.
Perhaps more importantly, if I actually wanted to follow CES reveals I'd need to look through tech reporting, which is an endless parade of "journalists" glazing these companies no matter how useless their garbage ewaste products are or how unlikely it is that it will ever come to market.
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Comment on Hurricane vs. Tiny Houses in ~engineering
Akir LinkI honestly found this video kind of frustrating. The guy constantly talks about affordability completely avoiding the elephant in the room: the land these houses are built on is usually already...I honestly found this video kind of frustrating. The guy constantly talks about affordability completely avoiding the elephant in the room: the land these houses are built on is usually already worth millions of dollars by itself. The only people affording these houses are already multi-millionaires or people who are inheriting them. He finally starts talking about the obvious solution to these houses falling apart at the end and he basically brushes it off and ignores that the real thing to examine is our knowledge of environmental science.
The actual experiment is cool and interesting, but it feels like bending over backward to say that the research will have any affect on the average person who is increasingly unable to afford any house, let alone beachfront property.
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Comment on What private companies are you happy doing business with? in ~talk
Akir Link ParentThe right to repair thing is completely valid and I don’t think there are many if any informed individuals who would disagree with you, but I don’t see the planned obsolescence. iPhones still tend...The right to repair thing is completely valid and I don’t think there are many if any informed individuals who would disagree with you, but I don’t see the planned obsolescence. iPhones still tend to be supported longer than most Android phones to my knowledge, and it’s only been fairly recently that Android phones have even started to improve their lifecycle support. It wasn’t that long ago that the average Android phone would only get 2-3 years of support after launch. On the computer side, Apple is the only company I am aware of who has an actual timeline for how long software will continue to support the hardware and, on top of that, consistently makes hardware good enough to exceed that timeline. On the other hand if you bought your PC with windows 10, there was a good chance you would not be allowed to upgrade it to windows 11.
The only product in Apple’s lineup that I think planned obsolescence is a problem is their AirPods, which lies entirely in their non-replaceable micro-batteries.
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Comment on A photo essay of 20+ tech museums across the world in ~tech
Akir LinkI was a bit confused because I thought the author was using “tech” to mean computers, as it seems the world has gone to define it; seeing railway cars made me think I got to the wrong page or...I was a bit confused because I thought the author was using “tech” to mean computers, as it seems the world has gone to define it; seeing railway cars made me think I got to the wrong page or something. It doesn’t help that after the first few it’s almost entirely computer museums. It would have really helped if the author spent more time talking what the museum is actually about. I literally walked away not knowing what the point of ACME is. And when it came to the computing museums it would have been nice to know what the purpose of them was as well. What stories did they try to tell? Were they focused on the advancement of processor design, the stories of the major players of history, a visual compendium of industrial design, or what? That is what would make me go to a museum, not the stylish layouts or size of the collection.
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Comment on What private companies are you happy doing business with? in ~talk
Akir Link ParentIf grocery stores count, then WinCo all the way! They are not a co-op but they are employee owned, and they have huge stores with major variety. The workers seem to be happier than any grocery...If grocery stores count, then WinCo all the way! They are not a co-op but they are employee owned, and they have huge stores with major variety. The workers seem to be happier than any grocery chain I’ve ever seen.
That being said the place I shop at the most is a local green grocer, and they are the tops in my book.
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Comment on What’s a point that you think many people missed? in ~talk
Akir Link ParentUgh, I literally just got an email just a few days ago letting me know that my healthcare provider just settled a class action lawsuit because they were selling data to marketing companies. It’s...Ugh, I literally just got an email just a few days ago letting me know that my healthcare provider just settled a class action lawsuit because they were selling data to marketing companies. It’s simply disgusting.
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Comment on What’s a point that you think many people missed? in ~talk
Akir Link ParentI can’t speak for boots in particular but the price-quality link has been degrading for the last few decades and it seems there’s no way it will slow down, let alone reverse. This is especially...I can’t speak for boots in particular but the price-quality link has been degrading for the last few decades and it seems there’s no way it will slow down, let alone reverse. This is especially true when it comes to clothing and accessories. It’s not too hard to find $200 articles of clothing at high end stores that are made entirely of synthetic fibers - plastic, basically. Even quality sewing techniques are becoming more rare. Shoes are harder for me to judge because I try to buy as few as possible but the last time I went I noticed that it’s basically impossible to get the quality of shoe I got for $50 a decade ago even at $80, and outsoles are generally made with much less dense materials than they used to be. A particularly weird cost cutting measure I have seen is that a lot of stores seem to have fewer slip-proof options, a feature that should be near-universal.
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Comment on What’s a point that you think many people missed? in ~talk
Akir Link ParentIt seems like false equivalencies are effectively universal in advertising. The one that bothers me the most right now are these ads saying “the more you spend the more you save.” It’s a...Something important to keep in mind is false equivalencies, especially in advertising.
It seems like false equivalencies are effectively universal in advertising. The one that bothers me the most right now are these ads saying “the more you spend the more you save.” It’s a fundamentally false statement. If you are spending more you are doing the opposite of saving.
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Comment on What’s a point that you think many people missed? in ~talk
Akir Link ParentCoincidentally I ended up accidentally teaching a math-heavy course when I am famously poor at mental math. My lack of skill at it made me think that I would be a terrible teacher, but...Coincidentally I ended up accidentally teaching a math-heavy course when I am famously poor at mental math. My lack of skill at it made me think that I would be a terrible teacher, but surprisingly my students are all getting it fairly easily. Being able to teach the different methods of solving problems is key, it turns out, and sucking at mental math means that I know many of those methods.
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Comment on Doppi, the nicest player for your music files in ~tech
Akir Link ParentCoincidentally I heard a news story that Bose is doing this to one of their sound system components today.Coincidentally I heard a news story that Bose is doing this to one of their sound system components today.
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Comment on Mac advice for a long time Windows user in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI actually had to make sure that tap-to-click was reenabled on my mac because the actuator on my trackpad had fizzled out and I'm too cheap and lazy to replace it. It's kind of annoying, though,...I actually had to make sure that tap-to-click was reenabled on my mac because the actuator on my trackpad had fizzled out and I'm too cheap and lazy to replace it. It's kind of annoying, though, because it doesn't disable the press-to-click behavior. I ended up just developing a sense of how much pressure to put on it.
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Comment on Humble Choice - January 2026 in ~games
Akir LinkHasn’t Sonic Frontiers already been in one of these? I already have it in my library and most of them have come from previous HC rounds.Hasn’t Sonic Frontiers already been in one of these? I already have it in my library and most of them have come from previous HC rounds.
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Comment on Mac advice for a long time Windows user in ~tech
Akir Link ParentI'm actually finding that more and more MacOS applications actually do close entirely when all the windows are closed these days. It's probably about 50/50 with the applications I use frequently....I'm actually finding that more and more MacOS applications actually do close entirely when all the windows are closed these days. It's probably about 50/50 with the applications I use frequently. Preview, for instance, will close itself after you select another application's window if there are no open windows.
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Comment on What are some stories of progressivism gone wrong in implementation? in ~society
Akir Link ParentWatt meter on an EV is basically the equivalent to a tachometer on an ICE car. I used to drive up fairly steep hills daily for work and I would see it go in the 80s or 90s.Watt meter on an EV is basically the equivalent to a tachometer on an ICE car. I used to drive up fairly steep hills daily for work and I would see it go in the 80s or 90s.
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Comment on touchHLE: a high-level emulator for iPhone OS applications in ~tech
Akir LinkFantastic! Maybe this means we will be able to see some of the hundreds of games and apps that are no longer maintained and runnable with modern iOS become playable again. I wonder how much effort...Fantastic! Maybe this means we will be able to see some of the hundreds of games and apps that are no longer maintained and runnable with modern iOS become playable again. I wonder how much effort there has been on archiving them?
As someone who has steadfastly avoided subscribing to Paramount+ and thus all of the new trek stuff, I wonder how much politics has to play with it? Perhaps in a world where fascism is on the rise, tales of a progressive essentially communist society are considered risky, to put things mildly.
That, and the trend of shows being made for second screen viewing probably doesn’t mesh well with the commonly philosophic approach of trek classic.