bl4kers's recent activity

  1. Comment on The destruction of the soft power of the United States in ~society

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    I think this is especially true for memories related to foreign affairs. Firsthand, lived experiences tend to feel longer and have larger personal impacts. Whereas most folks don't remember other...

    I think this is especially true for memories related to foreign affairs. Firsthand, lived experiences tend to feel longer and have larger personal impacts. Whereas most folks don't remember other countries' bad events from 5 or 10 years prior, probably due in part to the attention economy. The exception would be major geopolitical events like Brexit

    10 votes

  2. Comment on The Browser Company announces Arc Browser will no longer be their flagship product in ~tech

    bl4kers
    (edited )
    Link
    Archive: https://archive.is/y3VWd More context: It appears this tweet is a direct follow-up to their recent video titled "What have we been up to? (CEO Update)" This major announcement was at the...

    Archive: https://archive.is/y3VWd

    More context:

    • It appears this tweet is a direct follow-up to their recent video titled "What have we been up to? (CEO Update)"

    • This major announcement was at the bottom of their recent release notes

    Commentary:

    I've been using Arc for a year and a half now. While I noticed their slow-down in the past few months, I didn't expect this outcome. It sounds like it's been placed on long-term support with no new features planned. I've reported a handful of bugs to them since switching. Two medium-priority issues still haven't been fixed for months, despite direct responses from staff members stating they were working on a fix. It seems their staffing has been heavily reallocated.

    It's pretty disappointing to see how much the company is doubling down on LLMs to replace user agency on the web. I suppose I'm glad the original Arc won't be replaced by a very different 2.0 version. However, I've still lost a lot of confidence in their ability to manage Arc effectively while on the back burner.

    I set up ArcWTF recently since I found the official Arc for Windows application to be lacking. So maybe I'll try that on other devices. I was an avid Firefox user before Arc, but with the recent Google monopoly ruling I fear for their future as well. TechAltar's recent video does a good job of explaining why Mozilla appears to be pivoting into advertising since they're not financially independent.

    Maybe I'll try looking at Zen Browser again. I spend so much time in a browser that changing feels like a major life decision.

    15 votes

  4. Comment on How should Europe build its own Silicon Valley? in ~tech

    bl4kers
    Link
    Silicon Valley has a good track record of, and is arguably financed entirely on the premise of, finding a market to "disrupt" by creating technology that skirts past existing laws/regulations and...

    Silicon Valley has a good track record of, and is arguably financed entirely on the premise of, finding a market to "disrupt" by creating technology that skirts past existing laws/regulations and engaging in anticompetitive behavior to create monopolies in the long-term. With that in mind, I don't know why Europe would look at Silicon Valley for inspiration.

    If they want to spur more technology companies, the traditional methods of subsidizing a sector should work decently well. If they want to compete 1:1 with Silicon Valley money, that would require, for lack of a better phrase, selling their soul (e.g. privacy, labor laws, profit over people)

    32 votes

  5. Comment on Kagi Translate in ~tech

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    They always have been Source: History | Kagi's Docs

    They always have been

    In the first couple of years (2018 - 2019) Kagi was focused on AI technology, driven by the notion that any future search engine will need to have a strong instant question-answering component.

    Source: History | Kagi's Docs

    12 votes

  6. Comment on Mindless games, preferably mobile in ~games

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    There's a free variant of this on F-Droid. Looks like a Flash game but is still quite enjoyable and addicting

    suika

    There's a free variant of this on F-Droid. Looks like a Flash game but is still quite enjoyable and addicting

    1 vote

  7. Comment on US election results (other than presidential) thread in ~society

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    I wonder how effective that will be. Can the ultra-wealthy just buy property in another state to get around this?

    I wonder how effective that will be. Can the ultra-wealthy just buy property in another state to get around this?

  8. Comment on New York Times Tech Guild goes on strike (gifted link) in ~tech

  9. Comment on best option for a bare-bones message board/forum? in ~comp

    bl4kers
    Link
    I'd check out the Gemini protocol or something like Boardhost might fit your needs. I know Discourse is pretty popular but is probably about the same effort as a Tildes fork

    I'd check out the Gemini protocol or something like Boardhost might fit your needs. I know Discourse is pretty popular but is probably about the same effort as a Tildes fork

    1 vote

  10. Comment on I'm liking Webflow - is there a (free?) way to get the similar design experience on WordPress? in ~tech

    bl4kers
    Link
    I wouldn't recommend WordPress given the recent community implosion. Trust that's been eroded is very difficult to earn back. I'd check out Webstudio or Silex or Weebly

    I wouldn't recommend WordPress given the recent community implosion. Trust that's been eroded is very difficult to earn back.

    I'd check out Webstudio or Silex or Weebly

    7 votes

  11. Comment on Best solution to extract PDF data? in ~comp

  12. Comment on ‘Venom 3’ slinks to $51 million, lowest opening weekend of comic book trilogy in ~movies

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    The first one was good. Tonally very unique, playing into a pseudo-romantic relationship between Eddie Brock and the symbiote

    The first one was good. Tonally very unique, playing into a pseudo-romantic relationship between Eddie Brock and the symbiote

    9 votes

  13. Comment on The "dirty side" of a hurricane, explained in ~enviro

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    Question I've been wondering: Where do people go when evacuating for a hurricane? Is it just a hotel stay a state or two north?

    Question I've been wondering: Where do people go when evacuating for a hurricane? Is it just a hotel stay a state or two north?

    5 votes

  14. Comment on Studio slump: Lionsgate’s last six films have all been box office busts in ~movies

  15. Comment on Looking for a Switch game thats fun but requires little commitment in ~games

    bl4kers
    Link
    My favorite game on the Switch is Wilmot's Warehouse. It starts off short & easy and then each play session ramps up. Not sure if they extend beyond 20 minutes at the end, but if you like...

    My favorite game on the Switch is Wilmot's Warehouse. It starts off short & easy and then each play session ramps up. Not sure if they extend beyond 20 minutes at the end, but if you like organizing it's a very rewarding game

    2 votes

  16. Comment on Looking for a Switch game thats fun but requires little commitment in ~games

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    I recommend Roundguard over Peglin. It has less RNG strife and is a longer game with deeper gameplay. It has a higher rating on Steam too

    I recommend Roundguard over Peglin. It has less RNG strife and is a longer game with deeper gameplay. It has a higher rating on Steam too

    5 votes

  17. Comment on ‘Terrifier 3’ takes over box office as ‘Joker 2’ suffers 82% 2nd weekend drop in ~movies

    bl4kers
    Link
    For the uninitiated, what's the appeal of the Terrifier series? I don't think I know anyone who's seen it or talked about it

    For the uninitiated, what's the appeal of the Terrifier series? I don't think I know anyone who's seen it or talked about it

    6 votes

  18. Comment on Boeing to lay off 10% of employees as strike stalls airplane production in ~transport

    bl4kers
    Link
    As someone who worked at a very large company that's still dwarfed by this number, it's bonkers to think any company can effectively manage this amount of people. It's the size of a small nation.

    The company has about 170,000 employees worldwide, many of them working in manufacturing facilities in the states of Washington and South Carolina.

    As someone who worked at a very large company that's still dwarfed by this number, it's bonkers to think any company can effectively manage this amount of people. It's the size of a small nation.

    14 votes

  19. Comment on How's the iPhone experience on Google Fi in late 2024? in ~tech

    bl4kers
    Link Parent
    In short, because they're inept and only seem to care about their flagship stuff. Fi has been on the back burner for a long while now, and being a vertical integration with their phones also makes...

    In short, because they're inept and only seem to care about their flagship stuff. Fi has been on the back burner for a long while now, and being a vertical integration with their phones also makes it a target for criticism regarding anticompetitive behavior

  20. Comment on How's the iPhone experience on Google Fi in late 2024? in ~tech

    bl4kers
    Link
    I was a longtime Fi user with an iPhone partner as well. I realized Fi will get axed at some point so I switched to Tello. It's cheaper, has the same coverage, and they don't sell/use my data AFAIK

    I was a longtime Fi user with an iPhone partner as well. I realized Fi will get axed at some point so I switched to Tello. It's cheaper, has the same coverage, and they don't sell/use my data AFAIK