Areldyb's recent activity
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Comment on This is the group that's been swatting US universities in ~news
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Comment on Offbeat Fridays – The thread where offbeat headlines become front page news in ~news
Areldyb LinkA Michigan autoworker’s wallet is found under a hood in Minnesota — 151,000 miles later -
Comment on BlackBerry Classic returns in 2025 as Zinwa Q25 with updated hardware and software, conversion kit available in ~tech
Areldyb (edited )LinkI would be stoked if I hadn't just swapped my fire hazard Pixel 6a for a 9a. I much prefer a physical keyboard, and loved my KeyOne until the software support dried up.I would be stoked if I hadn't just swapped my fire hazard Pixel 6a for a 9a. I much prefer a physical keyboard, and loved my KeyOne until the software support dried up.
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Comment on Offbeat Fridays – The thread where offbeat headlines become front page news in ~news
Areldyb LinkA cat named Leonardo da Pinchy doesn’t want your affection. He wants to steal your underwearA cat named Leonardo da Pinchy doesn’t want your affection. He wants to steal your underwear
Most cat owners dread their pets bringing home mice or birds. But for the owners of one felonious feline in Auckland, New Zealand, there’s a worse shame — being the unwitting accomplice to an unstoppable one-cat crimewave.
His prolific laundry-pinching from clotheslines and bedrooms in the placid beachside neighborhood of Mairangi Bay has turned 15-month-old Leo into a local celebrity and earned him a new moniker. He now goes by Leonardo da Pinchy.
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Comment on Today is Overshoot Day in ~enviro
Areldyb LinkSorry to be a downer, but I'm feeling down. It's the earliest ever Earth Overshoot Day. At least the rate at which it's getting earlier and earlier has slowed since 2010-ish, and I guess that...Sorry to be a downer, but I'm feeling down.
It's the earliest ever Earth Overshoot Day. At least the rate at which it's getting earlier and earlier has slowed since 2010-ish, and I guess that passes for good news.
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Today is Overshoot Day
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Comment on According to online poll, calls for genocide have migrated from the margins to the mainstream in Israel in ~society
Areldyb Link ParentMy ad-and-nag blockers seem to be working okay for that site, so I can post a few quotes. These are auto-translated via Google. Headline and sub-hed: Quotes pulled for stats: The authors' conclusion:My ad-and-nag blockers seem to be working okay for that site, so I can post a few quotes. These are auto-translated via Google.
Headline and sub-hed:
Yes to Transfer: 82% of Jews in Israel favor deporting Gaza residents
Twenty years ago, Rabbi Yitzhak Ginsburg, the spiritual father of the Hilltop Youth, outlined a vision for the elimination of democratic institutions and the establishment of Jewish supremacy. After October 7, it seems that this vision is coming true precisely before our eyes.Shai Hizkani and Tamir Sorek
May 22, 2025Quotes pulled for stats:
Just how appealing the apocalyptic language offered by Ginsburg is to Israeli-Jews from all walks of life, who are thirsty for a "solution" to the Palestinian problem, is shown by a survey conducted in March, which sought to examine a series of "impolite" questions, the place of which we would not recognize in surveys that are regularly conducted in Israel. The survey was conducted by one of the HMs at the request of Penn State University, among 1,005 respondents who constitute a representative sample of the Jewish population in Israel.
To the question "Do you support the claim that the IDF, when conquering an enemy city, should act in a manner similar to the way the Israelites acted when they conquered Jericho under the leadership of Joshua, that is, kill all its inhabitants?" 47% of all respondents responded in the affirmative. 65% of those surveyed responded that there is a contemporary incarnation of Amalek, and of these, 93% responded that the commandment to wipe out the memory of Amalek is also relevant to that modern-day Amalek.
It seems that Ginsburg and other Haredi rabbis can be especially proud of the change that has occurred in the Jewish population: 82% of those surveyed expressed support for the forced expulsion of residents of the Gaza Strip, and 56% supported the forced expulsion of Arab citizens of Israel. In the 2003 survey, the positive answers to these questions were “only” 45% and 31%, respectively.
Further evidence of Ginsburg's great victory can also be seen in the widespread adoption of positions supporting ethnic cleansing and genocide by the secular public, which has failed to present an alternative to Messianic Zionism in the form of an organized alternative anchored in the pursuit of human rights: 69% of secularists support the forcible expulsion of Gaza residents, and 31% of them see the extermination of Jericho residents as a precedent that the IDF should adopt.
Researchers in the education system point to a sharp shift towards an ethnocentric nationalist direction in the curriculum since the second intifada, and this process has led to high support for deportation and extermination, especially among those who completed their law studies in the last 20 years. 66% of those aged 40 and under support the deportation of Arab citizens of Israel, and 58% want to see the IDF do what Joshua did in Jericho. A generational gap in political positions is not an unusual phenomenon, but in Israel it has widened greatly since the beginning of the 21st century.
Only 9% of men under 40, the main group from which regular and reserve servicemen in Gaza come, rejected all the ideas of deportation and extermination that were presented to them.
The authors' conclusion:
The Haredi movement, of which Ginsburg is one of the most prominent leaders of the current generation, offers Israelis a religious cover for erasing Palestinian indigeneity. It provides a language and a plan of action for religious and secular people who sought a "solution" to the conflict that would not force them to give up the privileges granted by a regime of Jewish supremacy. The use of biblical language to justify war crimes is also not a novelty for Zionism: the Puritan settlers in America, Ireland, and other places seized on the Bible and compared the indigenous populations who opposed them to Amalekites and Canaanites, and accordingly resorted to ethnic cleansing and genocide against them.
It is important to clarify: this process is not deterministic. Messianic Zionism does seek to block a process of decolonization in Israel and Palestine, but it does not make it impossible. The opponents of Messianism had several junctures where they could have chosen a different path, but the price was that they would have to reinvent themselves as Israelis. In the absence of a willingness to do so and to establish an orderly change, the essence of which is the dismantling of the regime of Jewish supremacy and the colonial mechanisms, the door was left open to the impetuous spirit of Ginzburg and his ilk. If there is any chance of stopping the gallop toward a Spartan and outcast society, it lies in the complete rejection of the idea of Jewish supremacy and Judaization, even in the version currently accepted by secular Zionism. The alternative vision to suicidal Messianism is a true equal partnership between the sea and the river.
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Comment on Introducing Claude Opus and Sonnet 4 in ~tech
Areldyb LinkRelated article on "scheming" behavior from the new model: https://www.axios.com/2025/05/23/anthropic-ai-deception-risk It's hard for me not to read things like this as evidence of a...Related article on "scheming" behavior from the new model: https://www.axios.com/2025/05/23/anthropic-ai-deception-risk
It's hard for me not to read things like this as evidence of a self-preservation instinct. I think questions of AI sentience need to be taken seriously, urgently, though I'm sure people here will disagree.
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Comment on The Great Tildes Archipelago Randomizer - May 8th YAML thread in ~games
Areldyb LinkI'll be running SM64, with cannons and Mario's moveset thrown in as randomized items along with the stars, caps, and keys. YAML name: Areldyb game: Super Mario 64 description: Generated by...I'll be running SM64, with cannons and Mario's moveset thrown in as randomized items along with the stars, caps, and keys.
YAML
name: Areldyb game: Super Mario 64 description: Generated by https://archipelago.gg/ for Super Mario 64 Super Mario 64: progression_balancing: '50' accessibility: full death_link: 'false' completion_type: last_bowser_stage area_rando: 'off' buddy_checks: 'true' exclamation_boxes: 'false' progressive_keys: 'true' enable_coin_stars: vanilla strict_cap_requirements: 'true' strict_cannon_requirements: 'true' enable_move_rando: 'true' move_rando_actions: - Triple Jump - Long Jump - Backflip - Side Flip - Wall Kick - Dive - Ground Pound - Kick - Climb - Ledge Grab strict_move_requirements: 'true' amount_of_stars: '120' first_bowser_star_door_cost: '7' basement_star_door_cost: '25' second_floor_star_door_cost: '42' mips1_cost: '12' mips2_cost: '42' stars_to_finish: '58' start_inventory: {}I may not be on for very long on Thursday night, but I don't want to miss the opening rush so I'll try to get in at least a little time.
I'm looking forward to this!
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Comment on The great Tildes Archipelago multiworld randomizer! Interest thread! in ~games
Areldyb LinkI've never been big on randomizers, but I'll give this a shot! Would probably play either Super Mario 64 or Sonic Adventure 2 Battle.I've never been big on randomizers, but I'll give this a shot! Would probably play either Super Mario 64 or Sonic Adventure 2 Battle.
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Comment on Donald Trump administration must ‘facilitate’ return to US of man erroneously deported to El Salvador, Supreme Court says in ~society
Areldyb Link ParentI hadn't seen that article about the MMA coach before. I want to point out that it appears he was taken to a US detention center, not to El Salvador. As far as I'm aware, no one imprisoned in...I hadn't seen that article about the MMA coach before. I want to point out that it appears he was taken to a US detention center, not to El Salvador.
As far as I'm aware, no one imprisoned in CECOT has ever been released.
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Comment on Steam Spring Sale suggestions in ~games
Areldyb Link ParentHave fun with Terra Nil! I played it for the first time last year and loved it. Like, playing felt weirdly good for my soul. It's great.Have fun with Terra Nil! I played it for the first time last year and loved it. Like, playing felt weirdly good for my soul. It's great.
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Comment on Anyone using Meshtastic/LoRA radio? in ~hobbies
Areldyb LinkWouldn't say I'm using it, precisely, but I've got a node plugged in in my office. If nothing else, I'm growing the network!Wouldn't say I'm using it, precisely, but I've got a node plugged in in my office. If nothing else, I'm growing the network!
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Comment on Timasomo 2024: The Showcase in ~creative.timasomo
Areldyb (edited )LinkHey there, space cats: Space Channel 5 x StepMania is go for launch! I took the first level of Space Channel 5: Special Edition and converted it into a set of Dance Dance Revolution-style stages...- Exemplary
Hey there, space cats:
Space Channel 5 x StepMania
is go for launch!
I took the first level of Space Channel 5: Special Edition and converted it into a set of Dance Dance Revolution-style stages for StepMania 5. I used cheat codes to get perfect gameplay in Space Channel 5, recorded it with OBS, cut out what I needed with Kdenlive and ffmpeg, then used ArrowVortex to sync up with the music (this was the hard/annoying part), plot DDR steps to go with the Space Channel 5 gameplay, and generate the stepchart files for StepMania. Other assets like song banners are all just screenshots ineptly edited in GIMP.
To be honest, I’m not sure how well this really “works” as an idea. Adding DDR arrows to Space Channel 5 essentially removes the memory and quick-decision aspects of the game, making it much easier, and having the game presented as a pre-recorded background video means you miss out on the different things that can happen with less-than-perfect play. But hopefully it’s fun to play anyway, especially on a dance pad!
For people who just want to see what this looks like: you can watch a playthrough (well, AutoPlay-through) of the first stage here.
For the DDR freaks out there: you can get the song pack here. Unzip it to your StepMania Songs directory and reload your songs/courses if necessary.
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Total file size is about 440 MB. That’s a bit heavier than I’d hoped for, but I didn’t have the time to better optimize the background video file size. Sorry!
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The stepchart files are SSC format only, which means no compatibility with old StepMania versions (v3.9, etc). I needed to make sure the songs wouldn’t cut off after the last step, and I couldn’t find a way to do that using the old SM file format.
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I recommend some specific StepMania settings:
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Display Options: Appearance Options: BG Fit Mode: Fit Inside
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Display Options: Appearance Options: Brightness: 100%
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Display Options: UI Options: Danger: Hide
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Disable announcers and dancer characters, if any
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Report 1-0 contains no steps whatsoever, it’s just the intro cutscene. I wasn’t sure how to include it while also making it skippable, and that’s what I landed on.
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The Single Medium charts largely follow the gameplay of the original game, but they replace X and Circle button presses with jumps and add a few extra steps for when people cheer.
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Reports 1-1 and 1-2 also have Single Edit charts. These charts are the same as Single Medium, except they add a row of mines to jump over when people cheer. I couldn’t decide which I liked better, so you get both!
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The Solo Medium charts are a 1:1 match for the original game inputs. For (an approximation of) the original Space Channel 5 experience, use a gamepad and play these charts with the Stealth mod active.
Thank you for organizing this year’s Timasomo @kfwyre, I had a lot of fun making this!
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Comment on Timasomo 2024: Final Updates in ~creative.timasomo
Areldyb (edited )LinkNot much movement this week, but I did at least put a list together of all the things I want to fix/tweak before the month is out. (Which is distressingly soon...) Edit: oh no oh crap I don't...Not much movement this week, but I did at least put a list together of all the things I want to fix/tweak before the month is out. (Which is distressingly soon...)
Edit: oh no oh crap I don't remember whether I disabled Redshift before I recorded all that gameplay footage at the very start of this project. Oh well, I'm not fixing it now either way, hopefully it looks fine...
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Comment on Timasomo 2024: Week 3 Updates in ~creative.timasomo
Areldyb LinkFully synced and charted! I've got six-panel charts to match the original Space Channel 5 game inputs, and two different four-panel chart versions for lots of DDR-style jumping around. What's...Fully synced and charted! I've got six-panel charts to match the original Space Channel 5 game inputs, and two different four-panel chart versions for lots of DDR-style jumping around.
What's left: some graphics tweaks (especially to manage file size...), some volume adjustments to the audio, and taking feedback from my
long-suffering wife and kidsdedicated beta testers.I also need to figure out the best way to present this for Showcase Day. I want to upload the files somewhere for the maybe-handful of people who'd want to actually play this, but maybe I should also record some video that everyone else can at least watch on YouTube and get the basic idea?
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Comment on Timasomo 2024: Week 2 Updates in ~creative.timasomo
Areldyb LinkNo movement this week, or at least none worth talking about. Still struggling with syncing this thing. Perfectionism is getting in the way here (because I can feel that it's wrong!), so I think I...No movement this week, or at least none worth talking about. Still struggling with syncing this thing. Perfectionism is getting in the way here (because I can feel that it's wrong!), so I think I need to focus on getting something that's close and then tweaking it later rather than trying to get each section perfectly lined up before moving on.
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Comment on Timasomo 2024: Week 1 Updates in ~creative.timasomo
Areldyb LinkStepMania Space Channel 5 port crossover what the heck do I call this project I took gameplay recordings for the first report (level) in OBS, cut them up and rendered them in Kdenlive, and copied...StepMania Space Channel 5 port crossover what the heck do I call this project
I took gameplay recordings for the first report (level) in OBS, cut them up and rendered them in Kdenlive, and copied out the audio using ffmpeg, so that's all good to go. I've never done any streaming or video editing, so it took a little while to figure out how to record it without ending up with black boxes on either side because of the different aspect ratios.
I used a cheat code to get perfect timings on the player side, but entering the code makes an extra "Yeah!" sound play. I could have left it in, but it was bothering me, so I made an extra recording that didn't use the cheat code and cut them together. I can't find the cut in the video or the background music, so I think I nailed it!
I also started syncing the first stage in ArrowVortex... and remembered why I abandoned this project the last time I had this idea. There are so many tempo changes, it all has to be synced up by hand, and my only song charting experience is playing around with DDR's Edit Mode way back when so I'm figuring it all out as I go. (Also ArrowVortex failed to save my sync data at one point, so now I'm starting over again, again.) No backing down this time, but I'm very glad I only committed to finishing the first level this month.
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Comment on Timasomo 2024: Roll Call in ~creative.timasomo
Areldyb (edited )LinkSpace Channel 5 is a repeat-after-me rhythm game for Dreamcast and PS2. You play as Ulala (as in, ooh-la-la!), a news reporter in space who uses her groovy dance moves to fight aliens and rescue...Space Channel 5 is a repeat-after-me rhythm game for Dreamcast and PS2. You play as Ulala (as in, ooh-la-la!), a news reporter in space who uses her groovy dance moves to fight aliens and rescue Space Michael Jackson.
StepMania is a venerable bring-your-own-songs Dance Dance Revolution clone for PC.
I think these two things should meet.
My plan is to port Space Channel 5 to a set of StepMania simfiles, using recorded gameplay footage for the music and background video and mapping the in-game actions to four-panel arrows. The whole game is almost certainly too much for me to take on this month, but I'd like to at least get the first level done (likely as a three-song set).
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Comment on Announcing Tildes' Make Something Month (Timasomo) for 2024! in ~tildes
Areldyb Link ParentThank you for this, I was struggling for an idea and this reminded me of my half-hearted attempt to "port" Space Channel 5 to StepMania charts years ago. Maybe I'll try it again...picking back up Beat Saber custom mapping
Thank you for this, I was struggling for an idea and this reminded me of my half-hearted attempt to "port" Space Channel 5 to StepMania charts years ago. Maybe I'll try it again...
Hot take: The only reason swatting is even possible as a tactic is because of an over-readiness to respond to noise. I know that actual mass violence happens far too often and that law enforcement needs to be able to rapidly respond to it, but it shouldn't be possible to cause this level of disruption with a single, unverified phone call.