Diff's recent activity
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Comment on Charlie Kirk shooting: US President Donald Trump says suspect in custody in ~society
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Comment on Charlie Kirk shooting: US President Donald Trump says suspect in custody in ~society
Diff Link ParentSpaces around the emdash, this pickle's made of meat.Spaces around the emdash, this pickle's made of meat.
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Comment on Donald Trump Department of Justice is looking at ways to ban transgender Americans from owning guns, sources say in ~lgbt
Diff Link ParentThe ideology doesn't make sense because it's not internally consistent. They're trying to get anyone diagnosed with body dysphoria as ineligible to own a gun.The ideology doesn't make sense because it's not internally consistent. They're trying to get anyone diagnosed with body dysphoria as ineligible to own a gun.
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Comment on Vivaldi takes a stand: keep browsing human in ~tech
Diff Link ParentI kept it around for a while on my machine to have Chromium representation to test on, but while the sites themselves are relatively snappy, the UI feels slow, stuttery, and unpolished. I've just...I kept it around for a while on my machine to have Chromium representation to test on, but while the sites themselves are relatively snappy, the UI feels slow, stuttery, and unpolished. I've just replaced it with Chromium proper.
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Comment on AI eroded doctors’ ability to spot cancer within months in study in ~tech
Diff Link ParentAnd anything with AI is going to be at risk of an internet or service outage. Or an outright service collapse.And anything with AI is going to be at risk of an internet or service outage. Or an outright service collapse.
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Comment on Is chain-of-thought reasoning of LLMs a mirage? A data distribution lens. in ~tech
Diff Link Parent"Usually", sure, but there's a lot of weight on that word. People usually put a variable amount of effort into things based on a large variety of factors. The difference is that people are..."Usually", sure, but there's a lot of weight on that word. People usually put a variable amount of effort into things based on a large variety of factors. The difference is that people are additionally capable of actually constructing logical arguments and extrapolating existing data into new areas. This is showing that LLMs are only capable of interpolating within their training data, and Chain-of-Thought is more about fine tuning the placement of that interpolation rather than any actual logical reasoning.
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Comment on Tilde is kill? in ~tildes
Diff Link ParentWhen I was a lad, I used to give the wrong date for my own August birthday all the time. August was meant to be the 9th month of the year. Did make it difficult to recover my Nickelodeon account...When I was a lad, I used to give the wrong date for my own August birthday all the time. August was meant to be the 9th month of the year. Did make it difficult to recover my Nickelodeon account one time though.
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Comment on I am new to Mac OS, give me your favorite or preferred settings/ tools! in ~tech
Diff LinkGive Stage Manager a try! You can find it in Settings > Desktop & Dock. It's a very different workflow, and I don't even use it all the time, but it has its times to shine. When you fire it up, it...Give Stage Manager a try! You can find it in Settings > Desktop & Dock. It's a very different workflow, and I don't even use it all the time, but it has its times to shine.
When you fire it up, it collapses each app into its own collection in a strip on the side of your screen. From there, you can drag windows from each app into collections together, and when you Cmd+Tab to an application from a different collection, it'll activate that collection. Only the active collection's windows appear on your screen, and the rest return to the strip. So I can have one desktop with a collection for creating graphical assets, a collection for optimizing assets, and one desktop with collections for authoring/building and previewing the final result.
It's kind of like having separate desktops within your desktops.
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Comment on I am new to Mac OS, give me your favorite or preferred settings/ tools! in ~tech
Diff Link ParentThe dark side is where the heart is. And my heart is anywhere you are. Anywhere you are is the dark side.The dark side is where the heart is.
And my heart is anywhere you are.
Anywhere you are
is the dark side. -
Comment on AI’s ability to read and summarize is making it a useful tool for scholarship in ~humanities.history
Diff Link ParentAgreed on Mistral, but it is worth pointing out that these are entirely different flavors of Joe we're talking about. There are many Unaverage Joes who theoretically can inspect source code, and...Agreed on Mistral, but it is worth pointing out that these are entirely different flavors of Joe we're talking about. There are many Unaverage Joes who theoretically can inspect source code, and we even have some (limited, inadequate) infrastructure around this.
There are no Joes who can authenticate that LLMs aren't hiding secrets. And the only Joes that can build an LLM (let alone rebuild someone else's) from source are less Average Joe and more Unholy Corporate Amalgamation Joe. Like you say, competing UCA Joes provide something of a counterbalance in that there are options, but it's quite limited.
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Comment on AI’s ability to read and summarize is making it a useful tool for scholarship in ~humanities.history
Diff Link ParentThere are models with that label but it's pretty much just a functionless label. Training an LLM is beyond Average Joe, and he who controls the training is the only person who controls the source....There are models with that label but it's pretty much just a functionless label. Training an LLM is beyond Average Joe, and he who controls the training is the only person who controls the source. It can be massaged in any number of ways, and it's not like you can do an independent or reproducible build.
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Comment on What's the deal with sites that ask if you want to sign in with your password or an emailed code and then after you use your password, they still email you a code? in ~tech
Diff Link ParentTumblr is one such site, when you enter your username they offer to send you a link to log in, which you can decline in order to enter your password. I haven't had them insist on still sending me...Tumblr is one such site, when you enter your username they offer to send you a link to log in, which you can decline in order to enter your password. I haven't had them insist on still sending me an email to verify afterwards though.
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
Diff LinkI've been working on a 3D SVG Editor built on the Zdog library. So far it's coming along pretty well. Toiling away at undo/redo history, it's a little bugged for editing properties, but I think...I've been working on a 3D SVG Editor built on the Zdog library.
So far it's coming along pretty well. Toiling away at undo/redo history, it's a little bugged for editing properties, but I think soon it'll be ready to start creating Things™ in Zoodle directly rather than manually stuffing them in the side. Biggest hurdle left is somehow crafting a 3D equivalent of the classic vector pen tool. Maybe I'll do it like Blender and just expose and allow users to directly manipulate the control points.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~design
Diff (edited )Link ParentCatapult is the entity behind just the font, not the PSA. The PSA was a joint effort by FACT and the MPA, which ripped the music and used the XBAND Rough font created by Catapult. Interestingly, I...Catapult is the entity behind just the font, not the PSA. The PSA was a joint effort by FACT and the MPA, which ripped the music and used the XBAND Rough font created by Catapult.
Interestingly, I can't find Catapult. They don't seem to exist anymore, and they're certainly not selling their font right now in 2025. So
given the music thing,[1] I do wonder if FACT and the MPA actually legally licensed the font or if they pirated a ripoff. My searching only brought up this Hacker News comment that seemingly was able to find more information, that says that Catapult was defunct at that point and the font was almost surely pirated as well. -
Comment on SuperCard X enables contactless ATM fraud in real-time in ~tech
Diff Link ParentLooks like there's quite a few interesting examples on the Wikipedia page. Apparently software built on HyperCard was also bought and sold by businesses, too.Looks like there's quite a few interesting examples on the Wikipedia page.
the French automaker Renault even used HyperCard as the basis for their inventory system. – ITWorld
Apparently software built on HyperCard was also bought and sold by businesses, too.
Activision, which was until then mainly a game company, saw HyperCard as an entry point into the business market. Changing its name to Mediagenic, it published several major HyperCard-based applications, most notably Danny Goodman's Focal Point, a personal information manager, and Reports For HyperCard, a program by Nine To Five Software that allows users to treat HyperCard as a full database system with robust information viewing and printing features.
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Comment on The dangers of vibe coding in ~tech
Diff Link ParentAh do keep in mind I am just some rando jumping in on the middle of a conversation, but it's a sentiment I have heard before so hopefully not stuffing words in c-w-s's mouth.Ah do keep in mind I am just some rando jumping in on the middle of a conversation, but it's a sentiment I have heard before so hopefully not stuffing words in c-w-s's mouth.
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Comment on The dangers of vibe coding in ~tech
Diff Link ParentWriting code isn't too difficult, at least once you learn the formats the computer expects and have a working mental model of what it's doing with your code. The hard part of writing code is...Writing code isn't too difficult, at least once you learn the formats the computer expects and have a working mental model of what it's doing with your code.
The hard part of writing code is knowing how to architect it. Knowing what paths are worth pursuing and which will end up writing you into a corner filled with spaghetti.
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Comment on I'm tired of dismissive anti-AI bias in ~tech
Diff Link ParentNot talking about styles, like you say, the issue is whether the models themselves are derivative works. When assessing that, it's hard to ignore the fact that they are competing in the market...Not talking about styles, like you say, the issue is whether the models themselves are derivative works. When assessing that, it's hard to ignore the fact that they are competing in the market with the copyrighted content they acquired and ingested against all licensing agreements and all explicit notices that "This work is not to be used in the training of AI models." It's not arguable that they've done this. Especially because it's clear that these models are copying, however lossy that copy is. Only whether it's defensible by claiming it falls under fair use.
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Comment on I'm tired of dismissive anti-AI bias in ~tech
Diff Link ParentTo my knowledge nobody has attempted to collect any data, the anecdotes are just deafening from every corner of my art and graphic design networks. Everyone's department is downsizing, not...To my knowledge nobody has attempted to collect any data, the anecdotes are just deafening from every corner of my art and graphic design networks. Everyone's department is downsizing, not growing.
I don't know much actually about how the masses are accepting it, only that clients and managers are using it and demanding its use.
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Comment on I'm tired of dismissive anti-AI bias in ~tech
Diff Link ParentNot at all. It's cheaper, and for some people that's all that matters. It's also good at convincing ignorant middle managers to eliminate jobs and heap additional, more tedious, less interesting...- The anti-AI art narrative seems to contain a contradiction
Not at all. It's cheaper, and for some people that's all that matters. It's also good at convincing ignorant middle managers to eliminate jobs and heap additional, more tedious, less interesting work on their existing employees despite the quality issue. It's not a contradiction, these issues stem from different sources.
It's also led to severe distortions of expectations and devaluing of the effort people put into art. Artists get told "this took you 14 hours? smh AI could do better in 10 seconds." In shirt/sign/print shops, someone bringing in a screenshot of a photo in text messages that their grandson sent to them is not new. We digitize things for people all the time. But AI is increasing the frequency of these events, and it's also trashing their expectations for turnaround. We've told people that their design is not suitable for print and would have to be recreated from scratch and had them ask moments later in the same conversation if they could see it already. People are impatient, but it's new to have people expecting that we toss it at the machine and it'll be done in a few minutes like a microwave burrito.
Heck, did you instruct it to mangle the emdashes or is it doing that on its own?