Banazir's recent activity
-
Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
-
Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Banazir LinkSince 1.0 came out last week, I've been playing Valheim on a private server with friends. I'm so happy that this game has been doing well, I first heard about it all the way back in 2019 when I...Since 1.0 came out last week, I've been playing Valheim on a private server with friends. I'm so happy that this game has been doing well, I first heard about it all the way back in 2019 when I was excited to hear about an upcoming Linux-compatible survival game. I've been following it loosely since, but the only other time I've actually put this many hours into it was in 2021 when the early access version first launched.
First off, the game feels super familiar but there's obviously some polish. There's an intro cinematic that plays every time the game opens (it's skippable, but worth watching the first time or two), and the menu has a list of cinematics to re-watch, most of which I haven't seen. Building is easier with new snapping settings, but mechanics such as stability and smoke points are for the player to figure out on their own. There's a few new creatures in early areas that add a frightening level of danger that we were woefully underprepared for, and overcoming those adds a nice mid-level step between bosses in the early game. I can't speak for anything past the second boss, as I never got past the swamps 5 years ago (lost my stuff, then lost my second-best stuff trying to get it back, then lost my third-best stuff trying to get that back, then quit) and I haven't done much in the swamps yet.
Playing with friends is far superior to playing solo, in my opinion. We had a server back in 2021 but didn't cooperate nearly as much as we did now, so it was basically single-player with resource competition. Now we're able to pool resources, such as multiple people using a single advanced crafting station, and everyone is able to specialize a little. Two friends have been out exploring the map, one by water and one by land, which gives us a direction to push toward. Others are focused on building, and I'm settled somewhere in the middle with both combat and resource gathering (I spent 2.5 hours last night basically just mining copper and tin). We have a small portal hub set up so advanced resources are within reach for everyone, including those who aren't pushing story progression, but nobody is forced to engage in content they don't want to. We have the server set up with the
playerprogressionflag, so upgraded raids only hit the people who have beaten the specific boss needed for each raid.There's still small issues, mostly QoL pain points, and many of those have mod fixes that are extremely tempting to use. Our "village" area has a crack into the void beneath the map in the ground, luckily it's positioned so nobody can fall into it. The only bug we found was solvable with a server restart, and other than that server performance has been fine even on a VM with 2 cores and 4 GB of memory (I could probably drop a core and not notice). Overall, the game still has a very indie feel where the limitations are noticeable but not problematic, and there's plenty of fun to be had solo or in groups. If you're a fan of open-world survival/crafting games, come try this one out too! It's actually worth the hype.
-
Comment on Valheim | 1.0 release date reveal trailer – 9th September 2026 in ~games
Banazir Link ParentLast time we solved that by building separate bases with a portal hub. Not sure how much activity we'll get this time but I like the idea of building together.too many cooks" can be an issue with base building decisions and goals
Last time we solved that by building separate bases with a portal hub. Not sure how much activity we'll get this time but I like the idea of building together.
-
Comment on Valheim | 1.0 release date reveal trailer – 9th September 2026 in ~games
Banazir Link ParentI basically quit entirely after losing my best gear on the other side of a sea I needed to cross to reach the next boss. I tried to retrieve it twice and died both times, never got a portal set up...I basically quit entirely after losing my best gear on the other side of a sea I needed to cross to reach the next boss. I tried to retrieve it twice and died both times, never got a portal set up either so I had to brave the sea serpents. It was enough of a setback to set me off that save, and the server was dwindling anyway.
-
Comment on Valheim | 1.0 release date reveal trailer – 9th September 2026 in ~games
Banazir Link ParentYeah, my friends have asked me to spin up a server again. We last played together almost 5 years ago, and I don't think any of us have played it much since. It's going to be glorious chaos again!Yeah, my friends have asked me to spin up a server again. We last played together almost 5 years ago, and I don't think any of us have played it much since. It's going to be glorious chaos again!
-
Comment on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Switch 2) | Zelda 40th anniversary Direct trailer in ~games
Banazir Link ParentI fully expect that we'll see a slew of videos where people play a variety of instruments to play the songs in-game. Releasing the ocarina now and showing the microphone interaction is brilliant...I fully expect that we'll see a slew of videos where people play a variety of instruments to play the songs in-game. Releasing the ocarina now and showing the microphone interaction is brilliant marketing, and if I didn't have several unplayed instruments I'd pick up an ocarina too.
-
Comment on Small talk, ice breakers, lines in ~talk
Banazir LinkI like "What do you do?". When they inevitably respond with their job, I respond with "No, what do you do?". It makes people start thinking of themselves as more than just a job, and I can usually...I like "What do you do?". When they inevitably respond with their job, I respond with "No, what do you do?". It makes people start thinking of themselves as more than just a job, and I can usually get more fun answers.
-
Comment on What made that wedding that you attended particularly memorable? in ~life
Banazir Link ParentYeah, we're part of the WELS denomination, it's unfortunately more conservative than I would like. There's some solid community roots here that my wife and her family have built over several...Yeah, we're part of the WELS denomination, it's unfortunately more conservative than I would like. There's some solid community roots here that my wife and her family have built over several decades though, so uprooting us isn't a likely option without moving out of the area entirely (which would be even harder to do). Something like ELCA or even LCMS would be better since I have disagreements with how certain items are presented.
We did try having our pastor start our wedding with that Princess Bride line, but since it was literally his first wedding (he was a young guy who had to step into the lead pastor's shoes earlier than expected), he wanted to keep things more formal.
-
Comment on 1Password wades into a right-wing mess after funding a Linux project in ~tech
Banazir Link ParentThe "questionable leadership" is a single tweet the CEO made, but donations and activity show a more leftward lean. Basically Proton got hit with yet another smear campaign and this one is...The "questionable leadership" is a single tweet the CEO made, but donations and activity show a more leftward lean. Basically Proton got hit with yet another smear campaign and this one is sticking. They're not 100% perfect, but they are (at the moment) the best general option that I'm aware of.
-
Comment on 1Password wades into a right-wing mess after funding a Linux project in ~tech
Banazir Link ParentCare to define the "questionable leadership"? Because the only thing anybody ever points to is a single tweet from Andy Yen, while there is a lot more evidence for him leaning left.Proton Pass, well, Proton also has questionable leadership.
Care to define the "questionable leadership"? Because the only thing anybody ever points to is a single tweet from Andy Yen, while there is a lot more evidence for him leaning left.
-
Comment on Industry Standard Tools in ~life.home_improvement
Banazir Link ParentAdmittedly, all of my personal experience and most of my instruction - both in-person and via video - has been through the lens of a one-man shop. Black Bear Forge and Nils Ogren are the only...Admittedly, all of my personal experience and most of my instruction - both in-person and via video - has been through the lens of a one-man shop. Black Bear Forge and Nils Ogren are the only professionals I watch regularly that I'm aware of (I'm not sure if Torbjorn Ahman is a full-time blacksmith), and I don't think either of their setups are what I would consider "industrial". At this point I still dream of just a small shop like Nils recently moved out of, my setup is still small and portable by necessity.
As an aside, I dug back to old conversations to see who else was mentioned as a blacksmith here... it was you. So yeah, pretty small group.
-
Comment on Industry Standard Tools in ~life.home_improvement
Banazir Link ParentYou're not the only one here, I'm an amateur but very much a blacksmith. I know there's been a couple others mentioned here as well but can't find the old comments with names. The problem I have...You're not the only one here, I'm an amateur but very much a blacksmith. I know there's been a couple others mentioned here as well but can't find the old comments with names.
The problem I have with the blacksmithing section is that there isn't really a blacksmithing industry in the same way that there used to be. Industrially forged parts are going to be drop-forged or done using forges and power hammers at a scale that no consumer can afford to set up. I just don't see how the section could be both accurate for industry and useful at a consumer level. What we got instead is "options if you want to pick up the hobby", in which case it's mostly serviceable.
That said, I mostly agree with your critique. I'd say Centaur Forge is fine to have there, Ken's Custom Iron makes great tong kits (don't buy your tongs, make them!), and the inclusion of a propane forge is fine even though I don't think there's even a hobbyist standard.
-
Comment on What made that wedding that you attended particularly memorable? in ~life
Banazir Link ParentYou did kind of catch one of the core parts of Christianity though. Christians believe that when believers die, they are reunited with God in heaven where they will live eternally. This is the...You did kind of catch one of the core parts of Christianity though. Christians believe that when believers die, they are reunited with God in heaven where they will live eternally. This is the "live again after we die" that you mentioned. What happens to non-believers is less clear - the book of Revelations, which describes the end times, claims their souls will be cast into a lake of fire alongside Satan. What happens after that isn't really mentioned. The idea of Hell as a place of punishment that is ruled by the devil is a pop culture fabrication, however.
-
Comment on What made that wedding that you attended particularly memorable? in ~life
Banazir Link ParentChristianity is broken into many denominations, all of which believe the same core tenets but differ in the details. Lutheran is one of those denominations, named after its founder Martin Luther....Christianity is broken into many denominations, all of which believe the same core tenets but differ in the details. Lutheran is one of those denominations, named after its founder Martin Luther.
For a very long time the Catholic Church was the most dominant Christian belief system, and they had significant political power. There was also the Eastern Orthodox Church but that's a different story. In the early 1500's, a big schism formed due to disagreements with some church practices and the church fractured. Catholicism remained as a major denomination but many other protestant denominations, including Lutheran, Calvinist, Methodist, Protestant (a specific denomination), and Anglican all formed as a result.
If you want more info, I recommend looking into the Reformation as a general starting point. I can also answer more specific questions that you have.
-
Comment on What are your "how on earth did I not learn this sooner" tech moments? in ~tech
Banazir LinkSome additional helpful comands: man man - learn about types of man pages and documentation. The C stdlib and Perl libraries have their documentation baked into manpages. apropos - this will...Some additional helpful comands:
man man- learn about types of man pages and documentation. The C stdlib and Perl libraries have their documentation baked into manpages.apropos- this will search man pages to find commands similar to your search term.which- if you want to know the path to the executable you're calling, especially if you have multiple versions, then this will find it. Usels -l $(which <command>)to see if it's a symlink. The usealternativesto check if it's naively managed or if you have to use another tool to change the link.
-
Comment on What are your "how on earth did I not learn this sooner" tech moments? in ~tech
Banazir Link ParentNote that this highly depends on your desktop environment in Linux. I use AwesomeWM (which is just a window manager and not a full desktop environment) and I do not have any of the standard...Note that this highly depends on your desktop environment in Linux. I use AwesomeWM (which is just a window manager and not a full desktop environment) and I do not have any of the standard shortcuts outside of copy/paste.
-
Comment on What made that wedding that you attended particularly memorable? in ~life
Banazir Link ParentI agree with both points. My wife and I are Lutheran, and we trimmed out the communion and all the hymns from our mostly-traditional wedding ceremony - almost none of the guests would be able to...I agree with both points. My wife and I are Lutheran, and we trimmed out the communion and all the hymns from our mostly-traditional wedding ceremony - almost none of the guests would be able to participate in the communion (since Lutheran communion excludes non-Lutherans, even if they're Christians in another denomination) and we had enough non-Christian guests that we didn't want to make feel left out or forced to participate. The vows had nods to our favorite geeky interests, but not overt quotes, and I think they went smoothly.
-
Comment on What made that wedding that you attended particularly memorable? in ~life
Banazir LinkWe were told to dress in a way that made us feel magical. Most of the guests, especially the older folk, wore pretty standard semi-formal attire. I chose to dress in a tie-front shirt from the...We were told to dress in a way that made us feel magical. Most of the guests, especially the older folk, wore pretty standard semi-formal attire. I chose to dress in a tie-front shirt from the renfest and a bright red woven vest. A friend who saw pictures after asked why I looked like a hobbit, which is the exact vibe I was going for!
The ceremony was short and the celebration was long, the venue was gorgeous inside and out and the food was splendid. As a guest I felt comfortable and welcomed but I also felt the weight of the occasion. I think that was as perfect as I have ever felt as a wedding guest.
Coming from someone whose wedding was less than two years ago, I think there are two key things for you to keep in mind:
- Guests will enjoy the celebration more if they have less to worry about. If you have separate ceremony and reception venues, print out bulletins with ceremony and reception timing on one side and a map with instructions to the reception on the back. If you have an online RSVP form, include info about dress code, food options, and alcohol content. Your guests are here to celebrate, so make that part easy to do!
- This is your and your fiance's special day, nobody else's. Do not feel the need to sacrifice your own comfort for your guests. I'm not saying to be a bridezilla, but if you have an idea of what you want but you're not sure anybody else will enjoy it, just go for it! We had gourmet hot dogs from a local restaurant served at our wedding reception, and it went great! My brother and SIL just got married this weekend and the reception was very low-key, dinner was just cheap pizza and all the music was played through my old laptop hooked up to a speaker system. The wedding I mentioned above was at a railroad museum with antique steam engines around the property and old red brick buildings you could stroll among, and the dinner was professionally catered. Let your wedding be memorable in the way you enjoy.
Congratulations on the engagement! If you have questions, feel free to ping me.
-
Comment on What are your current pain points with Linux? in ~tech
Banazir Link ParentIt's XFCE, I've generally preferred it when I pick a DE (usually a tiling WM user, but I wanted this to be something anyone else could use) but I also use a desktop far more than a laptop. I think...It's XFCE, I've generally preferred it when I pick a DE (usually a tiling WM user, but I wanted this to be something anyone else could use) but I also use a desktop far more than a laptop. I think I can get away with just setting the timeout to an hour rather than trying to disable it altogether, that would be good enough.
-
Comment on What are your current pain points with Linux? in ~tech
Banazir LinkRight now? Power management and sleep. I'm using an old Thinkpad running Fedora to play the music for my brother's wedding tomorrow (technically today now). I have pre-ceremony and processional...Right now? Power management and sleep.
I'm using an old Thinkpad running Fedora to play the music for my brother's wedding tomorrow (technically today now). I have pre-ceremony and processional music, but by the time the recessional comes up the laptop has put itself to sleep and locked. If I'm quick enough that won't be a problem, but I'd rather that it just obey my power settings and keep itself awake.
I've been using Linux for a bit over 15 years now, so you'd think I would have basics like this figured out.
For what it's worth, I've been running a Valheim server for the past week on a VM with 2 cores and 4 GB of memory and it has handled everything like a champ. I think peak memory usage was 1.7 GB and CPU usage has never gone past 40%.