Barney's recent activity
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Comment on Manifestos, fear, and ‘loser thinking’: inside Proton’s AI reckoning in ~tech
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Comment on Manifestos, fear, and ‘loser thinking’: inside Proton’s AI reckoning in ~tech
Barney Link ParentAhh, I misinterpreted your initial post then. Thought that with "how much of a hassle it would be" you implied that it wouldn't be easy, instead of the literal interpretation.Ahh, I misinterpreted your initial post then.
Thought that with "how much of a hassle it would be" you implied that it wouldn't be easy, instead of the literal interpretation.
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Comment on Manifestos, fear, and ‘loser thinking’: inside Proton’s AI reckoning in ~tech
Barney Link ParentI think that's generally a good indicator that you (or anyone) might be relying on a given provider too much. "Don't put all your eggs in one basket" as they say. We can never know what the future...this is seriously making me think about how much of a pain it would be to switch.
I think that's generally a good indicator that you (or anyone) might be relying on a given provider too much. "Don't put all your eggs in one basket" as they say. We can never know what the future holds and whether the companies we trust today will remain trustworthy tomorrow.
For email in particular, as long as you have and use your own domain (which I would very highly recommend), switching providers is trivial.
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Comment on Growing number of families in Denmark are taking children with special needs out of regular schools, saying the system fails to accommodate neurodivergent students in ~life
Barney LinkSpecial needs children should not attend regular schools. There's of course nuance here since every child is different, but as someone with close ties to the education system, it's a lose-lose...Special needs children should not attend regular schools. There's of course nuance here since every child is different, but as someone with close ties to the education system, it's a lose-lose situation for everyone if they do. There's simply not enough resources and teachers (nor are they qualified the majority of the time) in regular schools to dedicate the time, effort and care to these kids that they need.
Between this, various integration issues and the generally difficult state of education in most countries, schools and teachers are already near their limit, with teacher burnout at record high.
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Comment on Proton to ‘re-interview’ staff about AI to see who gets to keep their job in ~tech
Barney (edited )Link ParentI tried protonmail before settling on Tuta + my own domain a while ago, and what annoyed me most was just how incessant their self-advertising was. I received more emails from Proton itself trying...I tried protonmail before settling on Tuta + my own domain a while ago, and what annoyed me most was just how incessant their self-advertising was.
I received more emails from Proton itself trying to sell me their products than from other spam sources. I get it, they want to sell a product, but come on.
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Comment on If you use your computer in a dark environment, buy a monitor light! in ~tech
Barney Link ParentYep, that's exactly it. It attaches to the top or back of your monitor and illuminates your desk right in front of it.Yep, that's exactly it. It attaches to the top or back of your monitor and illuminates your desk right in front of it.
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Comment on If you use your computer in a dark environment, buy a monitor light! in ~tech
Barney Link ParentThat looks fascinating, never seen anything like it haha. Very cool!That looks fascinating, never seen anything like it haha. Very cool!
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Comment on If you use your computer in a dark environment, buy a monitor light! in ~tech
Barney Link ParentDoes it not bother you that the light coming from the lamp (presumably offset to a side) is not is one-sided? Or do you have your lamp centred somehow?Does it not bother you that the light coming from the lamp (presumably offset to a side) is not is one-sided? Or do you have your lamp centred somehow?
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If you use your computer in a dark environment, buy a monitor light!
I am a hobby programmer and spend most of my evenings coding. My monitor has a built-in backlight, but I've always found that just a bit too weak for my liking. Turning on the lamp in the room is...
I am a hobby programmer and spend most of my evenings coding. My monitor has a built-in backlight, but I've always found that just a bit too weak for my liking. Turning on the lamp in the room is too bright and produces glare, using a table lamp is directional and imbalanced. Using an LED strip on the underside of the table does not illuminate my desk at all, so it's not particularly useful.
Recently, I stumbled across monitor lights again, and for some reason impulse-bought one. A super simple ~45cm wide, dimmable straight one with warm white colour. Let me tell you this thing is incredible. It provides exactly enough light without producing glare. The light comes from the centre and my hands cast an unobtrusive shadow. I've only used it for a couple of hours at this point, but the difference is remarkable. My eyes feel way less strained.
For context I'm using a 32:9 UW monitor with 1800R curvature, so this doesn't cover more than ~40% of the screen, yet there is absolutely no visible glare at all! The monitor looks completely unaffected.
Do you use one as well? What's your experience with it?
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Comment on Solo developer rebuilds Adobe Creative Suite in Rust using Claude, releases it free to all in ~tech
Barney Link ParentI don't know what you mean. It only committed ~3000 LOC across 16 commits over the past hour. That's less than 1 line / second. Perfectly possible for a solodev (obligatory /s).What I am 100% standing behind, no matter what, is that the vibe amount is high in this project.
I don't know what you mean. It only committed ~3000 LOC across 16 commits over the past hour. That's less than 1 line / second. Perfectly possible for a solodev (obligatory /s).
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Comment on "What do we do with Jacob Geller?" (Self admitted sexual assault, removed from Nebula streaming) in ~tech
Barney Link ParentI may have been inaccurate in my post. This is the bulk of what I was trying to say. People with a criminal past, such as petty theft, vandalism, drug abuse etc. should not be viewed as criminal...I may have been inaccurate in my post.
Whatever he did (confessed to doing) a decade ago, in my opinion he has paid whatever social debt he incurred in full. He is almost certainly not the same person now that he was then.
This is the bulk of what I was trying to say. People with a criminal past, such as petty theft, vandalism, drug abuse etc. should not be viewed as criminal forevers, if they are able to change. Proportionate punishment, acknowledgement of growth and repentence is how we advance as a society.
people can grow and change and should be allowed forgiveness' place. But I still often hear it as a, 'your reaction is wrong' place, a 'why would you stop watching his videos nothing about them has actually changed' place.
I did not say that. You are well within your rights to not watch any of his videos. (And again, I wasn't even talking about him.) A lot of the sentiment, however, seems to describe people as something they did or were in the past and make that their eternal, defining trait. Should someone convicted with possession and use of drugs at the age of 21 be viewed as a druggie their entire life, even after they've been clean for 10 years? Of course not. That doesn't mean their past should be treated as if it had never happened, but it should not be their defining trait forever, particularly when they've clearly changed.
"digital judgment is almost always extremely overbearing" and "refusing to accept growth is unconducive to a progressive and supportive society" after a guy ADMITS to committing sexual assault
I did specify that I was not talking about his case, but about criminal pasts in general. I do appreciate you responding in a much more civil manner than @286437714, and for the short apartes after quoting me.
In Geller's case specifically, whether someone can look past what he did is up to them. You are completely justified in feeling hurt and not consuming any of his content going forward is, even in my opinion, not a disproportionate response to his past. I wasn't trying to insinuate that.
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Comment on "What do we do with Jacob Geller?" (Self admitted sexual assault, removed from Nebula streaming) in ~tech
Barney Link ParentI should not even bother reading your comment after the outlandish accusation of supporting the perpetrators, but I will. When the third sentence of my post was I was neither talking about this...I should not even bother reading your comment after the outlandish accusation of supporting the perpetrators, but I will.
Your stated concerns and 'won't anybody think of the perpetrators?' line of reasoning are easily disproven by a cursory read on the subject.
When the third sentence of my post was
I have no idea who this guy is, so take everything I say as my opinion about holding people accountable on the internet decades later.
I was neither talking about this specific case, nor about sexual assault. I was talking about disproportionate outrage and response to various actions one did in the past. I was not defending anyone and the second half of my post is what I was trying to say. The fact that your accusations and attacks are marked as "exemplary" is baffling. What makes you think that you're allowed to throw unfounded attacks around? This is the internet and people are way too comfortable accusing others since there are no repercussations for their actions.
Your entire comment is about giving someone the benefit of the doubt, as if some online mob has formed and visited these consequences on him.
You're still thinking that I am talking about him and this case, when I made it clear I was not. You're really trying to read something into my post that I did not say. This is unfortunately becoming increasingly common, where people respond to what they want to engage with and not what the other person was saying. Sort of like a reverse motte-and-bailey.
I am disappointed leaping to the defense of a perpetrator is still a society-wide issue; I am angry to see it so highly upvoted here.
I wanted to have a discussion about accountability and what it means or should mean to live with a criminal past, but every debate seems to devolve into twisted interpretations and fabricated outrage these days. Truly unfortunate.
I understand what you are saying and you are preaching to the choir. I agree with the overall content of your comment, but it was neither related to what I said, nor was it appropriately phrased or delivered.
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Comment on "What do we do with Jacob Geller?" (Self admitted sexual assault, removed from Nebula streaming) in ~tech
Barney LinkI find things like this deeply unsettling. People on the internet seem to be completely disconnected from reality and digital judgment is almost always extremely overbearing. I have no idea who...I find things like this deeply unsettling. People on the internet seem to be completely disconnected from reality and digital judgment is almost always extremely overbearing.
I have no idea who this guy is, so take everything I say as my opinion about holding people accountable on the internet decades later.
First of all, what even is "sexual assault"? In many cases, certainly legally, an unwanted kiss on the cheek qualifies. In other cases it's used as a more formal phrase for rape. At some point we need to acknowledge those things are not even remotely close to being the same severity. The internet really likes to jump to conclusions and that's not a good thing.
An example I'd like to bring up is Daniel Greene's sexual assault case from around a year ago. He was effectively burned at a virtual stake before the entire story (by Naomi King) turned out to be fabricated, and she later acknowledged that their physical relationship was consensual. While the allegation of assault was retracted, the public fallout had a lasting impact on his reputation and livelihood.Second, even minor crimes or vandalism expire after 5 to 15 years under statute of limitations laws, depending on where you live. Holding someone accountable often decades after it happened, particularly if it happened in a person's formative years as a young adult, is very hypocritical. People on the internet love acting like saints when it comes to someone else's wrongdoings, but I guarantee you that almost everybody could be found having done something that would "warrant" a beating according to the internet.
I think we would all benefit from a little introspection and seeing people for who they are now and how they've grown instead of a fossilised, set-in stone picture of what they were in the past.
Naturally, some actions are so severe that they cannot be undone and the consequences will linger throughout the person's entire life. Even still, I believe that people can and do change, often drastically, and shunning benefits nobody. Refusing to accept growth is unconducive to a progressive and supportive society. This goes for former drug addicts, former bigots, former homophobes etc.
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Comment on Billing for web hosting in ~comp
Barney Link ParentI think it's not unlike a person with 0 knowledge about cars being charged extra for an oil change. It's "worth it" to them because they can't realistically do it themselves, but if a garage down...I think it's not unlike a person with 0 knowledge about cars being charged extra for an oil change. It's "worth it" to them because they can't realistically do it themselves, but if a garage down the road does it for half the price, the first one could reasonable be called a ripoff.
From the main post:
I want to work toward establishing good business practices, and that means charging people fairly - i.e. never simply because I can.
That's precisely what this $10 fee is though. It's not a fair charge. You'd have more trouble finding people to host your site for $10 than for $5 or less.
Of course, they can do whatever they want, it's a free market after all. However, since they explicitly posted here asking about the price, it's worth noting that it is without a doubt unreasonable.
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Comment on Billing for web hosting in ~comp
Barney (edited )Link ParentYou seem to have misread their message. They are charging $10/month, not $10 for 3 months, which is very expensive for static site hosting. Even $3.33 is expensive for what it is, but $10 is well...3.33 per month after is not expensive at all
You seem to have misread their message.
$50 for setup and $10/month
They are charging $10/month, not $10 for 3 months, which is very expensive for static site hosting. Even $3.33 is expensive for what it is, but $10 is well into ripoff territory. Static sites have effectively 0 maintenance overhead, so this is purely a "I charge this because I can" fee.
OP deciding to use a VPS instead of a completely free option is on them, not the client.
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Comment on New app: Sheets - Manage Ghostty/Kitty/Alacritty themes easily! in ~tech
Barney Link ParentFunny you mention that because I almost exclusively say "I started / loaded the dishwasher" haha. But I get what you mean. It is unfortunate it's come to this, but alas. Thank you for your input!Funny you mention that because I almost exclusively say "I started / loaded the dishwasher" haha. But I get what you mean. It is unfortunate it's come to this, but alas.
Thank you for your input!
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Comment on New app: Sheets - Manage Ghostty/Kitty/Alacritty themes easily! in ~tech
Barney Link ParentRight, but that still implies that you're the one writing the code, no? I feel like there's a near infinite number of phrases that describe LLM-coded, or indeed even LLM-assissted projects better...Right, but that still implies that you're the one writing the code, no? I feel like there's a near infinite number of phrases that describe LLM-coded, or indeed even LLM-assissted projects better than "vibecoded".
This is probably just me being old and grumpy though.
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Comment on New app: Sheets - Manage Ghostty/Kitty/Alacritty themes easily! in ~tech
Barney (edited )Link ParentMy comment is truly off-topic now, but I really really really dislike the term vibe coding. (not aimed at you, of course) Before the AI days, I used the term for small apps I wrote for fun and to...My comment is truly off-topic now, but I really really really
hatedislike the term vibe coding. (not aimed at you, of course)Before the AI days, I used the term for small apps I wrote for fun and to fulfil a purpose. I needed to extract something form a binary file, patch something etc. These apps were written with personal usage in mind without proper error handling and without any thought going into their designs. They were designed based on vibes and how I thought a given algorithm should work. I was usually also watching something while writing them. It was a descriptor for projects that were unserious. Not unlike "vibe based performance analysis".
I really don't see how getting an LLM to write code for you is in any way, shape or form related to the English word 'vibe'. :(
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Comment on It breaks a village in ~comp
Barney Link ParentI largely agree with you except about this: The overall quality of software development has been a joke in my opinion for at least 2 decades. Most webdevs nowadays are so far removed from the...I largely agree with you except about this:
Like an artisinaly crafted closet versus an ikea wardrobe. There are certainly more of the latter in existence, and the quality difference in the example is more profound in the furniture example than in the coding one.
The overall quality of software development has been a joke in my opinion for at least 2 decades. Most webdevs nowadays are so far removed from the underlying hardware that 10-20-40% performance costs are negligible. Try that in a real engineering field. The rate at which software is getting slower and worse is astonishing and the only reason it's acceptable is that software is still largely profitable, but I digress. AI trained on decades of mistakes is not going to make it any better either.
In your example, an IKEA wardrobe is perfectly fine to store clothes in. The hinges may be a bit unstable or make some noise, the legs could be wobbly but you can store your things in there just fine. Bad software is not like that.
An anecdotal example: On my work phone, which is weak by modern standards but would have been an absolute powerhouse a decade+ ago, Microsoft Teams takes anywhere between 10 and 20 seconds to open. Sometimes the keyboard popup takes multiple seconds too. Restarting the phone is at least a 3-minute endeavour.A lot of software is of very poor quality and has been even before AI so this will not change and I am not blaming AI for it. But I wager that in an era where AI writes most software, hand-written software will distinguish itself by being significantly higher quality, mainly because the people who choose to hand-write software are, on average, going to be better.
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Comment on Overview of the proofs behind the Navier-Stokes $1 million millennium prize problem in ~science
Barney (edited )LinkThis is deeply disturbing on many levels, which I will not dive into here, but perhaps in another post / topic, because I think there's an interesting conversation to be had here around AI proofs...This is deeply disturbing on many levels, which I will not dive into here, but perhaps in another post / topic, because I think there's an interesting conversation to be had here around AI proofs and the future of mathematics in general.
Nonetheless, OpenAI disgusts me.
While unlikely, we cannot rule out that de-identified data derived from their usage of our products helped improve our models.
Yeah, right. As of the initial publishing of the paper, it only had 16 citations, which is laughable for a proof of this size, not to mention it didn't credit the team that has been working on this problem for years and were close to solving it, Diego Córdoba and Luis Martínez-Zoroa.
OpenAI now amended the paper to include additional references, but at best, this is blatant plagiarism. Why do we allow this? Why are they not held accountable? Why can years or decades of hard work be stolen so easily? Breaks my heart.
Here is a link to the originally published paper with its 16 references. 16 references for 165 pages.
Email addresses are the main use case for the average person I'd say. If you ever feel like it, you can always hook it up to Codeberg / Github / Cloudflare pages and host a static site of something.
A blog, photos of your cats etc. It's pretty cool, and completely free.