JCAPER's recent activity
-
Comment on I'm tired of dismissive anti-AI bias in ~tech
-
Comment on Long-term experiences with Google search alternatives? in ~tech
JCAPER Link ParentI feel that it’s important to point out that one thing is Brave Search, another is Brave Browser. Those issues you mentioned are related to the Browser, not the Search (Not saying that you should...I feel that it’s important to point out that one thing is Brave Search, another is Brave Browser. Those issues you mentioned are related to the Browser, not the Search
(Not saying that you should give it another chance or that one thing is independent from another, just pointing out for clarity sake)
-
Electronic Arts slashes BioWare after ‘Dragon Age’ sales miss
26 votes -
Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tech
JCAPER Link ParentThe local models can also be censored. I tested the 8b version and 14b, 8b has no problems talking about Tiananmen square while 14b doesThe local models can also be censored. I tested the 8b version and 14b, 8b has no problems talking about Tiananmen square while 14b does
-
Comment on BYD's self-driving U9 jumps over obstacles in ~transport
JCAPER Link ParentYeah this. At first I also found it strange but when the cloud popped up, it was obviously just to make a cool cloud. Rainbow colors probably just made the most vibrant effect, not everything is a...Yeah this. At first I also found it strange but when the cloud popped up, it was obviously just to make a cool cloud. Rainbow colors probably just made the most vibrant effect, not everything is a political statement.
-
Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
JCAPER LinkI've been replaying cyberpunk 2077. But this time, on a new desktop (that I spent more money than I care to admit, it packs a 4090), and on my 4k samsung TV, with RTX overdrive. My previous...I've been replaying cyberpunk 2077. But this time, on a new desktop (that I spent more money than I care to admit, it packs a 4090), and on my 4k samsung TV, with RTX overdrive.
My previous playthrough was on my old laptop, which handled the game at high-medium settings.
I'll be the first to admit: there are weird graphics here and there, reflections not working right, ghosting, etc. But goddamn there are moments that I just stop and look around. When everything works just right, it's one of the most gorgeous games available.
Yesterday I had a moment. I was driving at night, it was raining, listening to the radio. Then this song "Delicate Weapon" starts playing. I just... Kept driving around. Idk what to call it, but it was borderline meditative. It was candy for my ears and eyes
I always argued and will continue to argue that graphics don't make a game, but damn can they go a long way when done right
-
Comment on Is there a free LLM frontend that works out of the box? in ~comp
JCAPER LinkNot exactly what you are asking, but since you mentioned that you use gemini mostly, you can use google ai studio for free with no limitations, with access to all of their modelsNot exactly what you are asking, but since you mentioned that you use gemini mostly, you can use google ai studio for free with no limitations, with access to all of their models
-
Comment on Stellar Blade: The fake outrage in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentMy experience was mainly on Reddit, but I expect to be the same or worse on others. Tildes is the best social group I joined for the same reason as you mentioned. People here don't assume bad...My experience was mainly on Reddit, but I expect to be the same or worse on others.
Tildes is the best social group I joined for the same reason as you mentioned. People here don't assume bad faith by default. I don't comment as much here but I enjoy reading the conversations
-
Comment on Stellar Blade: The fake outrage in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentI have a personal vendetta against these groups for an admittedly stupid/superficial reason: whenever they lock on onto a game, all discussions about that game become stupid, flametory, tiresome...I have a personal vendetta against these groups for an admittedly stupid/superficial reason: whenever they lock on onto a game, all discussions about that game become stupid, flametory, tiresome and frustrating.
I love to read opinions, I love to talk about games that interest me, I love to talk about what could've been, how great/bad this character is, how the music is great/bad, etc. But in these games, forget it. Saying anything just invites trouble.
Some examples of these games are Dragon Age Veilguard, The Last of Us 2, Battlefield 5 and, to a certain extent, Witcher 3.
In Veilguard, there's a huge focus on Taash, the non-binary character. While I also believe they were handled horribly, they are just a part of a wider story that was also badly writen. The focus on Taash is disproportionate, and honestly it doesn't take a genius to know why. But the result is all the same because of those groups, I have to be very careful if I talk about Taash, with all the disclaimers to make sure that other people understand where I'm coming from, because otherwise I will be lumped up with those groups. But I don't want to have all that work, so the result is: I just don't talk about Taash.
TLOU2 is worse in general. I just checked and sure enough, r/TheLastOfUs2 is still active to this day. 4 years of hating the game and ongoing.
I blame these guys for the following: I cannot criticize that game. If I say that I didn't like some part of this game offhandedly, like just a small comment, I will invite someone to write long essays on why I am wrong and it's actually great. I'm not exaggerating, it happened to me two times. One when I said that the ending felt off, it didn't make sense when just a few minutes earlier you were blowing up and killing people in brutal ways, and another when I said that the pacing was badly handled.
To be clear, I'm not complaining about people having different opinions - I'm a big boy, I can handle it - What I'm complaining about is how off handed comments about this game get reactions that other games wouldn't. I think that I made harsher comments about other games that did not invite the same zealousness as those two about TLOU2.
Then there was BF5... Ugh, saying that the game could've been an Alternative history game, or dieselpunk, somehow was controversial. EA/DICE wanted to make a game with a lot of customization, that's cool I thought, but maybe make it a setting where you have total creative freedom, don't try to make it as an historical game. And the campaigns, missed opportunity to tell stories about women that fought in WW2 in real life.
But the end result: people thought I was from those groups. A guy pissed off about the woman in the trailer, that can't handle the fairer sex fighting in a war. And once again, I blame those anti-"woke" groups. They poisoned the well and killed off any kind of discussion about the game.
-
Comment on "Valve are gathering the avengers": we believe Gabe Newell is assembling the ultimate dream team for the one game everyone's been waiting for in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentI'm cautiously optimistic that they will/are making another singleplayer game. Might not be the next one - I mean the one after Deadlock - but I'm betting that it's coming. Would love a new Portal...I'm cautiously optimistic that they will/are making another singleplayer game. Might not be the next one - I mean the one after Deadlock - but I'm betting that it's coming.
Would love a new Portal game, or new IP
-
Comment on "Valve are gathering the avengers": we believe Gabe Newell is assembling the ultimate dream team for the one game everyone's been waiting for in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentI (wrongly) assumed that the tweet that these guys used as source would have mentioned who these people were. I checked it a few minutes ago and if I had known, I wouldn't have shared. But I did...I (wrongly) assumed that the tweet that these guys used as source would have mentioned who these people were. I checked it a few minutes ago and if I had known, I wouldn't have shared.
But I did take it upon myself to try to check who these three devs were. I was unable to identify the Rockstar and Naughty Dogs one, but I was able to track down the id software. It's Timothee Yeramian.
Because of this, I'm inclined to believe that the other two are also legit, and it's not the first time I had heard that Valve was recruiting people and investing more into game making.
But yes, the article is trash, sorry about that
-
"Valve are gathering the avengers": we believe Gabe Newell is assembling the ultimate dream team for the one game everyone's been waiting for
23 votes -
Comment on Iran launches missile attack on Israel in ~news
JCAPER LinkGetting mighty tired of living through historic events… Israel, being bellic as it is, will undoubtedly reply in kind or worse.Getting mighty tired of living through historic events…
Israel, being bellic as it is, will undoubtedly reply in kind or worse.
-
Comment on Ubisoft needs the next ‘Assassin’s Creed’ to be a hit in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentAnd with Ghost of Yotei on the horizon, they better hope they don't launch too close to each otherAnd with Ghost of Yotei on the horizon, they better hope they don't launch too close to each other
-
Ubisoft needs the next ‘Assassin’s Creed’ to be a hit
14 votes -
Comment on The Steam subscriber agreement has dropped its forced arbitration clause, allowing gamers to take legal action against the platform in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentReading the article, it seems more like a reaction to arbitration becoming a less good option compared to the alternative, rather than Valve feeling generous all of a sudden. As much as I like...Reading the article, it seems more like a reaction to arbitration becoming a less good option compared to the alternative, rather than Valve feeling generous all of a sudden.
As much as I like Valve, this isn’t unprecedented. For example, the reason that refunds exist was not because they felt like it; it was because the EU, along with other countries, started to breathe down on their neck about it.
But still, credit where credit is due, Valve is still one of the most consumer friendly companies in gaming
-
Comment on An in-depth look at Romance in video games in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentThe first hour, absolutely. It's general history about romance in video games, how the Japanese studios embraced it while the Western studios shied away; how it became somewhat expected for a JRPG...The first hour, absolutely. It's general history about romance in video games, how the Japanese studios embraced it while the Western studios shied away; how it became somewhat expected for a JRPG to have romance, while western games were criticised for including it; how the stigma in the western market faded away little by little thanks to parody games and LGBT oriented visual novels; etc.
Eventually, he also talks about how some games included these mechanics. Some, have a linear story and the romance develops, regardless of you (player). Some, how only one character has personality and the other is a blank slate (player), so the character has to be written around a blank protagonist. Some, how mechanic and artificial the romance is, how if you keep giving gifts to a character eventually they sleep with you (and the sex being treated as a prize).
All in all, I think the first hour is worth it. But I'm biased, I have a soft spot for games with romance in them.
The rest, I couldn't tell you. I also didn't play any of them except for Katawa Shoujo, but I did play a few Visual Novels and dating sims years ago. I think that they were interesting, but then again, biased.
If there's at least one section that I would recommend, it's Katawa Shoujo. It's a story of a Visual novel that had everything to go wrong:
- risky subject (it's about disabled girls)
- made by 4chan volunteers (you know... Not exactly the embodiment of tactfulness)
- virtually no budget and marketing
And it became... A success... Against all odds. It's one of the most mature romance stories I've read in general, not just in VN. It's a story about a protagonist dealing with becoming disabled himself, and learning that these girls are not defined by their disabilities.
-
Comment on An in-depth look at Romance in video games in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentHe talks about those in the first hour or so. But he wanted to focus on games where the romance is the point of the game, instead of optional content, thus why he deep dives into specific games...He talks about those in the first hour or so. But he wanted to focus on games where the romance is the point of the game, instead of optional content, thus why he deep dives into specific games that are dating sims and visual novels
-
An in-depth look at Romance in video games
17 votes -
Comment on <deleted topic> in ~tech
JCAPER (edited )LinkAs someone who pays for Perplexity (search engine with AI) and uses Google at the same time, here's my two cents about search engines with AI VS traditional search engines. Usually my searches fit...As someone who pays for Perplexity (search engine with AI) and uses Google at the same time, here's my two cents about search engines with AI VS traditional search engines.
Usually my searches fit into these four criteria, it's been like this for years now:
- find the website that I want to access (basically I'm lazy to type in the url)
- find solutions to coding problems (python, SQL, etc)
- find opinions about products, games, etc (usually I check links from reddit)
- research miscellaneous things that I read online (fact check what some guy said, get more info about an article, etc)
I don't have a habit of doing any complex queries, at best I use "site:reddit.com" for example, but nothing more.
Eventually I tried out perplexity, and it changed how I do searches. It has both good and bad sides, which is why I still rely on Google.
Starting out with the bad:
- their response quality are highly dependent on the quality of the search results.
I know, "no shit sherlock", but let me elaborate. AI, no matter what model or what company, has trouble understanding things like jokes, sarcasm and lies. Some deal with it better than others, but it's a common problem.
I should mention, Google's Gemini is particularly terrible at this, Perplexity (which uses Sonar, Claude and GPT) in my experience doesn't have as many problems as Google's Gemini have.
So, if among those search results pops up a reddit thread, and there's a comment that says some joke, the AI may take it at face value and insert it in your response. Depending on the rest of the response, you may be inclined to believe it (if the rest looks ok, why would you mistrust one random part in the response?).
It's why, depending on what I'm looking for, I filter by results that I know that will be relevant. If I'm searching for opinions, I filter by reddit. If I'm searching for more factual results, I filter by academic links. For news, news websites, etc.
- they tend to treat the search results as the gospel of truth
This goes hand in hand with the previous point. The AI is instructed to read the sources and pass a summary of it to the user. And the AI will do just that.
But also, it depends on the model and topic. Claude Sonnet 3.5, the model that I mainly use in Perplexity, will every once in a while clarify nuances about what it said, without referring to any source, especially in more controversial topics. A few days ago I searched about if Pitbulls actually eat their litter mates (obviously not, but I was fact checking a photo), I had Sonnet clarify several times that there is a syndrome that could explain it, but that it's not unique to pitbulls.
But, in more niche topics, or that aren't controversial, the AI will generally trust what it read. Unfortunately I cannot remember what it was, but several weeks ago I searched about a topic, and the AI read a random comment on reddit and passed it on as if it was true. I didn't believe it and asked it fact check that point, and sure enough, it couldn't, there were no sources that could confirm what that redditor said. (I do remember the AI saying something along the lines "it could still be true", as if it was a prideful kid unwilling to admit they may have said something wrong lol)
The good:
- it's great at introducing you to a topic, and summarising it
Perplexity does not substitute proper deep dives, I still will read the articles if I need more details, but it's great at helping you get started. If you know nothing about a topic, it will give you a general idea of what it is. I found myself getting to know better several topics, which previously I wouldn't have bothered because I would have to deep dive a bit into some pages.
Some time ago, I found out that the Japanese in WW2 had plans to invade the USSR. Normally, finding out about this would involve searching google, learn about the plan's names, search about the plan, click the links, read about it. With perplexity it was like "Did the japanese plan to invade USSR?", and it answered yes, elaborated on it and provided the sources. Just like that I had everything I needed in one spot after one interaction.
- it's useful for comparisons, especially in type of products that I'm not familiar with
At least in the case of perplexity, there's a feature called "Pro Search", which basically turns your prompt into several different search queries and analyses all of them.
So for example, you want to compare product A with product B, the pro feature will search first about product A, then about product B, and then a final search about people comparing product A and product B, and gives you a final response with all the sources combined.
And when it's about products I'm not familiar with, I can ask about little details to understand why they matter and what's the difference in practice. E.g. why it matters if headphones are open or closed.
- because it reads and quotes sources, there's little to no hallucinations
Hallucinations is when an AI makes stuff up. They tend to happen after long interactions with them, and/or when you start going deep into niche subjects.
But in this case, it doesn't happen. Or at least, in my experience it never happened.
Because the AI will be always reading the sources and essentially repeating what they said, it never gets the chance to make stuff up. Obviously the new problem is that the search results have to be good, but assuming that you do a decent job at filtering by sources that are relevant, you will get decent responses.
- it's good at giving you references in documentations
I work with looker and lookml. Without going too much into it, it's a dashboard platform, and you need to code to make dashboards. For one reason or another, there isn't a lot of resource material readily available on the internet about lookml. In python you are almost guaranteed to always find someone with a similar problem to yours, in lookml it's rare.
Because of this, there's the expected consequence: none of the models I tried know a lot about lookml. Back in early 2023, I remember the first iterations of GPT 4 knowing absolutely nothing about lookml. Edit: hallucinations were constant. LLM's don't know that they don't know, so chatGPT would always make up functions that didn't exist
Thus, there's only the documentation. Thankfully, perplexity saves me a lot of time. Whenever I have a doubt or don't know how to do something, perplexity has been very useful at referencing the docs and telling me where to look at.
Where I am going with this
Idk if I'm doing a good job or not - probably not - but what I'm trying to say is that at the end of the day, AI in search engines are still imperfect and they don't substitute the traditional search engines. But they do introduce a new dynamic in searching.
I consider them a different tool, not a replacement, at the moment at least.
Whenever I want to find out something really quick, I use Google. For example, stock value, weather, translation of a word, meaning of a word, etc. Google will in all these cases show the information right at the top.
For a bit bigger/complex topics, I use perplexity. What's the function in lookml that does this, give me more information about this function in python pandas, what's a library that let's me do X, etc.
This new dynamic has been useful for me, both in my day to day and work, enough that I pay 20 euros a month. If Kagi offers something like this, a traditional search engine and an AI on the side, it's honestly the best of both worlds (that said, for transparency, I never used Kagi, I will research more after posting this comment)
I have a caveat with this sentiment, at least with the current top of the line models in mind. Gemini 2.5 pro is REALLY good at problem solving. If we argue that what it produces is "convincing looking text", then I would argue that it's semantics because it's convincingly good at solving coding problems, regardless of what we decide to call their outputs.
I use it in my work and has been a time saver, tasks that I would usually take a few days to do, now take one afternoon.
Edit: to be clear, I’m not talking about vibe coding. The time I save here is time that I would spend on google searches and browsing stack overflow