ButteredToast's recent activity
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Comment on Buying facemasks in the hope of avoiding becoming permanently disabled due to long COVID in ~health
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Comment on Governor Gavin Newsom orders homeless sweeps throughout California in ~life
ButteredToast Link ParentI'm in favor of this method too, but it has a thorny component that perhaps hasn't been getting enough attention, at least in the context of US cities, and that's ensuring and increasing...Method one: Reduce the number of homeless people by devoting resources to fixing the issues that cause homelessness.
I'm in favor of this method too, but it has a thorny component that perhaps hasn't been getting enough attention, at least in the context of US cities, and that's ensuring and increasing effectiveness of the resources devoted. Vast sums have gone into the cause in west coast cities to proportionally little effect.
That doesn't mean to stop putting resources towards reducing homelessness or to not increase how much is given, but increased accountability is direly needed.
Writing this, it seems to me that this might be the single most important change that can be made right now. The more money gets poured into the issue without materially improving it, the less favorable the greater public and political climate is going to be towards these programs and the more likely it is that they'll be cut.
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Comment on California Forever pulls measure to build Bay Area city in ~design
ButteredToast (edited )Link ParentI don't think it would be much of an exaggeration to say that reshaping the existing SF Bay Area metro into something resembling a series of interconnected European-style people-friendly towns is...I don't think it would be much of an exaggeration to say that reshaping the existing SF Bay Area metro into something resembling a series of interconnected European-style people-friendly towns is for practical purposes impossible, at least on any reasonable timeline. It would be a costly, lengthy uphill battle to convert even a tiny corner of it.
It's like trying to build a snowman in the middle of the Sahara. Bring all the snow you want, but it's all going to melt and then quickly evaporate.
The only way I see this changing is if California manages by some miracle rid itself of prop 13 so wealthy and pseudo-wealthy inheritor NIMBYs can't keep their land locked up in perpetuity for the cost of couch change.
EDIT: Added qualifier
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Comment on The deadliest of all dead ends in the 3D printing industry in ~tech
ButteredToast Link ParentNot sure of the exact process they use, but several of the newer rocket companies including SpaceX also make heavy use of 3D printing to manufacture their rocket engines, where it’s advantageous...The situation is different with metal powder printers I think, because there you can do stuff like drastically reduce the number of parts when producing complicated engine manifolds for example - those are relatively low-volume anyway and the assembly cost is probably high, so it actually helps. And the parts can be relatively large too iirc. This is already used in some jet plane motors. But the printers are only financially accessible for non-small companies.
Not sure of the exact process they use, but several of the newer rocket companies including SpaceX also make heavy use of 3D printing to manufacture their rocket engines, where it’s advantageous to be able to for example print plumbing right into walls and blocks, removing complicated and failure prone external parts. It also enables design iteration at a pace that’s uncharacteristic of traditional processes.
Even the cheapest rocket engines are not exactly pocket-change cheap though, and the added reliability and speed are well worth the costs involved.
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Comment on The deadliest of all dead ends in the 3D printing industry in ~tech
ButteredToast Link ParentI've been considering buying a 3D printer on-and-off for years for exactly this sort of thing. The thing about CAD isn't that I'm averse to learning it. It's weird for sure, but nothing worse than...I've been considering buying a 3D printer on-and-off for years for exactly this sort of thing.
The thing about CAD isn't that I'm averse to learning it. It's weird for sure, but nothing worse than anything of there other things that I tinkered my way to usability with (which includes early-2000s Blender). The patience is there. What rubs me the wrong way is how the prevailing programs are either Windows-only or run like garbage even on high-spec machines (hello Fusion 360). If it were like image editors or IDEs or just about anything else where there were options that work well on macOS I'd be much more inclined to spend time on it.
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Comment on How Apple just stole "AI" from everyone else in ~tech
ButteredToast Link ParentAt the risk of being uncharitable, it feels like a lot of people immediately wrote off Apple's LLM stuff as yet another ChatGPT wrapper the second they saw the word "OpenAI" when skimming.At the risk of being uncharitable, it feels like a lot of people immediately wrote off Apple's LLM stuff as yet another ChatGPT wrapper the second they saw the word "OpenAI" when skimming.
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Comment on How Universal burned a swath through the heartland and south, “sold fun” and propelled ‘Twisters’ to $80m+ opening in ~movies
ButteredToast Link ParentIt hadn't occurred to me until reading this phrase, but more standalone walk-up friendly movies have become somewhat rare, haven't they? The sorts of movies one might go out to watch on a whim...is more walk up heavy
It hadn't occurred to me until reading this phrase, but more standalone walk-up friendly movies have become somewhat rare, haven't they? The sorts of movies one might go out to watch on a whim used to be pretty common through the 90s and 2000s, but for a while now the box office has skewed towards sequels, extended universes, and other sorts of movies that don't work as well without having first watched associated media.
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Comment on Google confirms Play Store mass app deletion based on new quality standards—now just six weeks away in ~tech
ButteredToast Link ParentYeah, there's good stuff on there but expect to be digging for a while to find it. Some curation would do wonders.Yeah, there's good stuff on there but expect to be digging for a while to find it. Some curation would do wonders.
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Comment on US President Joe Biden announces that he will not run for re-election in ~news
ButteredToast (edited )Link ParentHillary and Obama were very different candidates, that much I think is difficult to dispute. Obama in many ways was a clean break from not just Bush Jr, but also from his predecessors. Here you...Hillary and Obama were very different candidates, that much I think is difficult to dispute.
Obama in many ways was a clean break from not just Bush Jr, but also from his predecessors. Here you have this young (for presidential standards at least), mentally sharp, well spoken man who's a fresh face in the political spotlight. He connects with and motivates younger voters to a degree that his opponents could never dream of, largely because he doesn't feel so hopelessly out of touch.
Hillary on the other hand, unfair as it may have been, I believe was received as a something as a "return to regularly scheduled programming", being seen as a representation of the establishment and continuation of the pre-Obama era. I suspect that a great number of the votes she got weren't out of enthusiasm for her as a candidate, but out of her not being Trump, which unfortunately wasn't enough.
I voted for her but she really wasn't what people were wanting.
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Comment on Computer monitors that are good for watching videos? in ~tech
ButteredToast Link ParentGreat to hear! Flat panel display technology has come a long way in the past couple of decades. It's great that this level of performance is available relatively inexpensively.Great to hear!
Flat panel display technology has come a long way in the past couple of decades. It's great that this level of performance is available relatively inexpensively.
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Comment on You don’t need a pickup truck, you need a cowboy costume in ~transport
ButteredToast Link ParentPower at least could be addressed pretty easily with an electric version. The other shortcomings would require a larger redesign. I’ll admit that I’m a bit biased towards small cars as a result of...Power at least could be addressed pretty easily with an electric version. The other shortcomings would require a larger redesign.
I’ll admit that I’m a bit biased towards small cars as a result of the smaller than average garage on my house. It’s frustrating when the overwhelming majority of vehicles currently being sold in the US won’t fit in it unless it’s modified considerably.
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Comment on You don’t need a pickup truck, you need a cowboy costume in ~transport
ButteredToast Link ParentThey're both very capable small cars that edge each other out in different ways. Fit is much better if you have tall cargo, Matrix is better for long cargo (front passenger seat down + back window...They're both very capable small cars that edge each other out in different ways. Fit is much better if you have tall cargo, Matrix is better for long cargo (front passenger seat down + back window open = as long or longer than a truck bed). Fit is better as a little city car that can be parked darn near anywhere, Matrix is better all-rounder/adventure car (especially the AWD version, which is popular in the PNW and Canada for its better cold weather and off-roading capabilities).
I'd love to have either and preferably both available on the modern North American market.
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Comment on A summer Covid-19 wave in ~health
ButteredToast Link ParentI still wear a mask for flights, but I’m more worried about airports than the airplanes. Based on what I’ve read, since the pandemic planes have had high grade filters installed in their air...I still wear a mask for flights, but I’m more worried about airports than the airplanes.
Based on what I’ve read, since the pandemic planes have had high grade filters installed in their air circulation systems which dramatically reduce the chance of contracting any kind of airborne illness on them, and unless they’re one of the newer planes built with carbon fiber, humidity is also very low which studies have shown has a strong effect on how long the virus can survive in the air. I doubt any of this is true in airports.
So during air travel, I wear a 3M Aura N95 which is reasonably comfortable and easy to get a good seal with, but will remove it for short periods (~20-30m) on the flight to eat. This hasn’t failed me in the 12+ flights I’ve been on since 2021, though admittedly that’s a small enough sample size that it could just be dumb luck.
For shopping, I do a combination of a less cumbersome KN95 and going during the least busy days/times, when possible. The latter is not a flexibility that everybody has the privilege of, though.
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Comment on You don’t need a pickup truck, you need a cowboy costume in ~transport
ButteredToast Link ParentThe US suburb in which I live, while not being an endless expanse of nothing but houses (it’s broken up by clusters of shops, trees/green space, etc), sidewalk coverage is spotty at best and...The US suburb in which I live, while not being an endless expanse of nothing but houses (it’s broken up by clusters of shops, trees/green space, etc), sidewalk coverage is spotty at best and bikers will find themselves on the road alongside traffic more often than they’d like.
There are still too many big trucks and SUVs on the road here, but small cars seem to be the compromise that least some people make. I see a number of Honda Fits, Toyota Yarises, Chevy Bolts, Smart ForTwos, and Fiat 500(e)s along with the occasional odd Japanese Kei car/truck.
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Comment on You don’t need a pickup truck, you need a cowboy costume in ~transport
ButteredToast Link ParentThere's a functional difference between a sedan and a motorcycle/bicycle in that it's sheltered from the elements however, which is a very important distinction for much of the US for at least one...There's a functional difference between a sedan and a motorcycle/bicycle in that it's sheltered from the elements however, which is a very important distinction for much of the US for at least one season, sometimes multiple. While two-seater non-sports cars exist, the number of models that are sold in the US can be counted on one hand and make undesirable tradeoffs unrelated to passenger count.
Something that would improve this situation a lot is for it to become standard for seats to be easily removable in small cars, much as they are in minivans. Something as tiny as a Fiat 500/500e for instance becomes considerably more compelling if you can just ditch the vestigial back seats and turn it into a two-seater with decent cargo capacity and could help drive sales in the category.
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Comment on You don’t need a pickup truck, you need a cowboy costume in ~transport
ButteredToast Link ParentHave never driven one, but the Matrix looks like it was another member of the high utility, no nonsense group of Toyotas. Tons of cargo space, all non-driver seats (even front passenger) can fold...Have never driven one, but the Matrix looks like it was another member of the high utility, no nonsense group of Toyotas. Tons of cargo space, all non-driver seats (even front passenger) can fold down, glass on its rear hatch can open, and yet it drives, parks, and is priced like a Corolla. It’s not the prettiest or most sexy looking car but is absurdly practical.
There’s very few cars like that still being made.
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Comment on You don’t need a pickup truck, you need a cowboy costume in ~transport
ButteredToast Link ParentIt's not just station wagons that are limited in number, but really any type of hatchback that isn't an SUV or crossover. What few exist, like the hatch variants of the Corolla and Civic, cost...It's not just station wagons that are limited in number, but really any type of hatchback that isn't an SUV or crossover. What few exist, like the hatch variants of the Corolla and Civic, cost more.
As someone who likes their vehicle to provide more utility than a sedan can deliver but doesn't necessarily need an SUV, this is frustrating.
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Comment on IVF alone can’t save us from a looming fertility crisis in ~health
ButteredToast Link ParentAnother pattern that may be relevant is that many of the people audibly concerned about overpopulation on the internet 10-20 years ago were in a stage of life where having children wasn't in any...Another pattern that may be relevant is that many of the people audibly concerned about overpopulation on the internet 10-20 years ago were in a stage of life where having children wasn't in any way smart, practical, or desirable which makes it a lot easier to make sweeping statements on the subject. Many of those same people are now at the age where they're settling in and feeling both biological clocks ticking and pressure from family and peers, which intuitively would be a powerful force in shifting views/opinions.
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Comment on Valve runs its massive PC gaming ecosystem with only about 350 employees in ~games
ButteredToast LinkIn a similar vein, back in 2015 WhatsApp only had 50 engineers despite at that point providing dependable service to 900 million users. Wise management, capable employees, and smart design can get...In a similar vein, back in 2015 WhatsApp only had 50 engineers despite at that point providing dependable service to 900 million users.
Wise management, capable employees, and smart design can get you an astonishingly long way in the tech world. The hypersonic growth and bloat that's been characteristic of VC-backed tech companies in the past decade+ is not at all a requirement when the right people are involved.
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Comment on IVF alone can’t save us from a looming fertility crisis in ~health
ButteredToast Link ParentAside from the economy, there is also the issue of the number of elderly needing care and support greatly outstripping the number of young people able to provide it. The most frequently proposed...Aside from the economy, there is also the issue of the number of elderly needing care and support greatly outstripping the number of young people able to provide it. The most frequently proposed solution is something along the lines of caretaker androids, but it's not clear that the technology developments required for those to become real will happen in time, plus there's potentially ethical concerns (can people thrive when taken care of by machines instead of other people, etc).
There's a ton of things like this in health where we're on the cusp of achieving true understanding and being able to treat the cause instead of the effect, which is exciting and probably one of my biggest sources of optimism.