JCAPER's recent activity
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Comment on Stop Killing Games petitions hit the target for both UK and EU in ~games
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Comment on Stop Killing Games petitions hit the target for both UK and EU in ~games
JCAPER LinkI am really surprised. I never imagined it was going to do it. In just a couple of weeks, it managed to get around 500k signatures for EU, when it took almost a year to get the same amount. I...I am really surprised. I never imagined it was going to do it.
In just a couple of weeks, it managed to get around 500k signatures for EU, when it took almost a year to get the same amount.
I think pirate software, ironically, saved the movement
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Stop Killing Games petitions hit the target for both UK and EU
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Comment on I deleted my second brain in ~tech
JCAPER LinkLike others, I never got a "second brain" working. I tried a few times, because everyone on the internet that uses them swears by their mothers that it's great, but it never clicked for me. I'm...Like others, I never got a "second brain" working. I tried a few times, because everyone on the internet that uses them swears by their mothers that it's great, but it never clicked for me. I'm more of a "random" and quick note taker, I just need to write down whatever I need in the fastest way possible, I don't have the patience to decide/look for the "right" place to store a page and then moving them around... Honestly, at least for me, that part of the process is a waste of time. Maybe for others it helps saving time later, but for me I don't think it would.
I use Anytype nowadays (it's like Notion, but privacy focused and local), and I just have two spaces: personal and work. For work, I have two categories, one is for "permanent" things, like IP addresses, our team email addresses, useful queries that I reuse, etc, and the other is for tasks that I need to complete, and these tasks have just one flag, which is either complete or not.
So what I do when I need to write something down at work is, always have anytype open in the work space, and whenever I need to write something down, I click on a single button and then start typing. I don't waste time organizing or anything and, if for some reason I need to find something later, I can just use the search feature.
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Comment on Steam Summer Sale 2025: Hidden gems in ~games
JCAPER LinkIf anyone likes Visual Novels, or wants to try one out, I highly recommend Steins;Gate, it's only 2,69€. The anime is also great, but the VN's visuals are really beautiful, and it's worth it...If anyone likes Visual Novels, or wants to try one out, I highly recommend Steins;Gate, it's only 2,69€. The anime is also great, but the VN's visuals are really beautiful, and it's worth it exploring different branches of the story.
In short, it's a time travel story, where the protagonist manages to find out a way to send SMS's into the past through a microwave. He also has a few screws loose, which makes him highly entertaining to read and listen.
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Comment on ‘Lilo & Stitch 2’ live-action movie set at Disney in ~movies
JCAPER LinkI really do not get the appeal of these live action movies. Blows my mind every time I'm reminded that they printed moneyI really do not get the appeal of these live action movies. Blows my mind every time I'm reminded that they printed money
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Comment on Your brain on ChatGPT: Accumulation of cognitive debt when using an AI assistant for essay writing task in ~tech
JCAPER LinkYeah this is one of my fears. I think that in general, we (humans) tend to be lazy. Even the most proactive people will be “lazy” in one thing or another - be it big or small - like using capsules...Yeah this is one of my fears. I think that in general, we (humans) tend to be lazy. Even the most proactive people will be “lazy” in one thing or another - be it big or small - like using capsules to make a coffee instead of grinding the beans yourself, ordering uber instead of making dinner, using a phone instead of walking down the street to talk to your cousin, etc etc.
Basically, whenever we find a convenient solution - that is, a solution that lets us skip some work to reach the same end - we will tend to use it.
A solution that lets us skip thinking… Yeah I can see it. I can see people outsourcing a lot of things to the AI, from small things like helping them craft an email to big decisions of their life. Maybe not all the time, maybe not in a dystopian manner, but I can see some of it.
There’s still a lot of entropy between the user and the “output”. Like, you need to craft an email and you want the AI to do it for you, the time you spend giving context and explaining what you want to say, will make many people just not bother and write themselves. But if these tools get better and can get more context automatically - like how Google promises with Gemini in their products - if this entropy gets minimized, I can see this effect of “skipping” be more pronounced.
In the end, this just proves one thing I’ve been saying for years: we live in the age of convenience and information. With some taps, you can find out the name of that star or who did what in where in 1905. Our education systems, globally, should reform and pivot to teach and focus on critical thinking. There’s no need to memorize things anymore, we can find out about them with the thing in our pocket. Instead, we need to learn to think and know what to do with that information
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Comment on Steam finally goes native on Apple Silicon in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentThey seem to be working on a proton version for arm devices. Don’t know if they are planning to make it work with macOS, but it’s promising...They seem to be working on a proton version for arm devices. Don’t know if they are planning to make it work with macOS, but it’s promising
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Comment on As consumers switch from Google Search to ChatGPT, a new kind of bot is scraping data for AI in ~tech
JCAPER Link ParentIn my experience, at least with top of the line models Gemini Pro 2.5, these LLMs are really good at sticking with what the source says. But, to be clear, I'm talking about top of the line models,...In my experience, at least with top of the line models Gemini Pro 2.5, these LLMs are really good at sticking with what the source says. But, to be clear, I'm talking about top of the line models, not lightweight, like the LLM that google search uses
But even so, I wouldn't blindly trust its output. There are some issues that I've noticed with time.
For example, when it comes to memory, they're good at remembering and paraphrasing what the source says, but I've noticed a few times things like:
- misinterpreting what the source said;
- conflating points
- subtle gaps in logic (I'll explain this one at the end, it's a bit weird to explain)
For my daily use, and as a fan of notebooklm, I generally trust the LLM when we're talking about topics that I'm familiar with and that are simple. Complex technical documents or topics that I know nothing about, I still use it to have a general idea of what it's about but I don't trust its conclusions, instead I use it to help me pinpoint whatever I'm looking for.
*Subtle gaps in logic:
imagine a situation in a story where it started snowing outside, and character A is inside a room without windows. The text does not mention anything about if character A knows that it's snowing or not, it just says that it started snowing, and character A is inside a closed room.
We, humans, know that that character A can't know that it's snowing, because it's implied that they are inside a room without windows, so they couldn't see the snow outside.
The LLM, if you ask this question directly "Does character A know that it's snowing?", it will likely answer correctly. It will "think" about it, reach the same conclusion as above, and say no.
BUT, if you ask something else, where the main point isn't about if character A knows that it's snowing or not, it may mistake and say/imply that they know. For example, imagine that you ask "how is the character A feeling? Write a dialogue line from them.", it may answer: "I can feel the familiar cold from the snow outside".
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Comment on Inside the ‘Dragon Age’ debacle that gutted EA’s BioWare studio in ~games
JCAPER Link ParentAs a Bioware fan since 2010, I had already realized some years ago that recent Bioware was not the same one as before. I've followed David Gaider for a bit (original DA series lead writer and a...As a Bioware fan since 2010, I had already realized some years ago that recent Bioware was not the same one as before. I've followed David Gaider for a bit (original DA series lead writer and a Bioware OG) and between what he said, and people leaving the studio, it was sadly clear that the only thing left in the studio was the name. Every talent that delivered the fan favorites had already left.
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Inside the ‘Dragon Age’ debacle that gutted EA’s BioWare studio
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Comment on Apple introduces iOS 26 with Liquid Glass redesign in ~tech
JCAPER LinkAs a huge Aero theme fan that still resents (a bit) that we moved away from it, this is promising to me because it might inspire others to go back to the glass look. I look at Windows Vista and 7...As a huge Aero theme fan that still resents (a bit) that we moved away from it, this is promising to me because it might inspire others to go back to the glass look.
I look at Windows Vista and 7 and compare it to the recent OS's in general, and formers look more vibrant, colorful, hopeful. I never appreciated the simplist/minimalist design that we got in Metro for example. They just look... Boring.
Yay for.........Squares........I guess...
I talked about windows here but this honestly applies to every other GUI in other OS's too (imo)
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Comment on Starlink is surprisingly good, actually in ~tech
JCAPER Link ParentI used to believe I could separate "the art from the artist," but Elon Musk changed my view. If I had to choose between no internet or using Starlink, I would choose no internet. And I say this as...- Exemplary
I used to believe I could separate "the art from the artist," but Elon Musk changed my view. If I had to choose between no internet or using Starlink, I would choose no internet.
And I say this as I realize how much I rely on the internet and know it would be difficult, possibly for months or even a year or two, to go without it.
This may sound dramatic and empty bravado, but I mean it. Elon Musk has promoted far-right parties in Europe and poses a threat to our democracies and the EU. Like you, I will never purposely give him any money.
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Comment on Zootopia 2 | Teaser trailer in ~movies
JCAPER LinkI have no idea what I watched nor do I know what I should take away from it, other than Zootopia is getting a sequel... Which is cool, I did like the first oneI have no idea what I watched nor do I know what I should take away from it, other than Zootopia is getting a sequel... Which is cool, I did like the first one
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Comment on I don’t care whether you use ChatGPT to write in ~tech
JCAPER Link ParentWith very little fiddling, you can make them not do those conclusions and even not speak in their "usual way". I can tell that you imitated GPT (perhaps not consciously, it's just that GPT is the...With very little fiddling, you can make them not do those conclusions and even not speak in their "usual way". I can tell that you imitated GPT (perhaps not consciously, it's just that GPT is the most popular LLM used), but Claude and Gemini for example have different writing styles. And by default, they're harder to detect by surface reading, imo at least. They also have their own way of concluding their responses, where Gemini will literally say "in conclusion" and claude... I can't quite describe it, but it's different to GPT.
Not taking a side on this discussion of authored, just clarifying that they're not THAT easy to catch. It's why Google, Anthropic, OpenAI and others are starting to leave "weird" characters in the text for AI detectors to have something to work with (these characters are just a bit different of - and ' for example). As their models get more intelligent and users are able to manipulate the LLM to do what they want, I expect that they will get more and more difficult to spot
Edit: to add, OpenAI released some time ago GPT 4.5, which is meant to sound as natural as possible, like a person. Thankfully though, it's expensive as hell to use. Point is though, there is an interest to make LLM's that sound like normal people
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Comment on What is the current state of Linux on phones? in ~tech
JCAPER Linkhave you considered degoogled Android versions, like /e/OS for example? (I'm assuming that by SW practices you mean google's spyware). There's phones, like Fairphone, that you can buy with these...have you considered degoogled Android versions, like /e/OS for example? (I'm assuming that by SW practices you mean google's spyware). There's phones, like Fairphone, that you can buy with these versions installed by default.
Anyway, I never used one because.... Well, there's just no reason. They support just basic features and have no apps, so you might as well just get a dumb phone instead. AFAIK, that's still the case today
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Comment on I don’t care whether you use ChatGPT to write in ~tech
JCAPER LinkOn a conceptual level, I agree with the author but with several disclaimers and nuances. If I have to pick between two wallpapers, I will pick the one that is more appealing to me, regardless if...On a conceptual level, I agree with the author but with several disclaimers and nuances. If I have to pick between two wallpapers, I will pick the one that is more appealing to me, regardless if it was made by someone in Gimp or by an AI. (I never check where my wallpapers come from, so I may have already done this without knowing)
Some of my nuances are:
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a LOT of works (be it text or images) made by AI are lazy. Whatever the reason, I do notice that a lot of people just grab a prompt, run it, and then copy paste the output as-is. This rarely comes out well, and shows a lack of care for their “work”. There are exceptions, there are people that create outputs and work on several iterations until they get the result that they want (and some really do go the distance), but these are the exceptions and not the rule
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if I’m reading a blog, or comments or posts in a social media website, my expectation is that I am reading and/or talking to a human. I will be disappointed - if not pissed - if I find out that you were using an AI to talk to me. I don’t mind if you use an AI to aid you in writing (I do it as well), but I mind if it was the AI that thought and replied to me. If I wanted to talk to an AI, I would just go to aistudio
Personally, I’m writing an interactive fiction game for fun. My writing style is - and I’m not being humble - akin to writing an informational guide. LLMs such as Claude and Gemini help me immensely at flourishing my writing, but they are by no means perfect. For example:
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If I ask them for ideas, it just comes out the most generic, predictable, irrational, B movie tier, plot points. They are terrible at this
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If I ask them to point out “tell instead of showing” passages, they do a fine job, but they are terrible at providing alternatives (they understand the difference in showing vs telling, but they fall back to always the same type of reactions like knuckles becoming white and jaw tensing, it’s as if they don’t know any other type of human reaction)
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they are “intelligent” but they can also be pretty dumb in some scenarios. For example, imagine that your character doesn’t know the name of a machine, but another character does, and you’re writing from the perspective of the former, the AI doesn’t realize that the former shouldn’t know, and writes the name anyway.
But before I bore you with more examples, here’s where I’m getting at: if instead of all that, I just write the passages myself, and then ask the AI for help to review and flourish what I already wrote, with instructions in the system prompt that I’ve been developing over the months, it really is a “life saver”. It grabs my “informational guide” and makes it a lot more presentable. Obviously, it doesn’t always come out good, but it helps a lot.
If I were to read a book or game where the author did this, personally I wouldn’t mind at all. The secret is the author gave a crap about it or not, and if it’s good.
That’s why, at least in concept, I agree with the author
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Comment on Scientists developed a questionnaire to find out if your cat is a psychopath in ~life.pets
JCAPER Link Parentshowed the pdf to mine. They just stared at me. What does it mean?showed the pdf to mine. They just stared at me. What does it mean?
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Comment on Well, today was scary (blackout in Portugal and Spain) in ~life
JCAPER (edited )Link ParentAfter yesterday, I’m seriously considering getting an UPS too. And some power banks with solar panels, one of those survival radios and survival kits as I mentioned above. Eh maybe I’m being...After yesterday, I’m seriously considering getting an UPS too. And some power banks with solar panels, one of those survival radios and survival kits as I mentioned above. Eh maybe I’m being paranoid and will never need them, but screw it, I don’t care, would rather have them than not now.
But yeah I also knew that there would be panic. I took the longest but least busiest road home and avoided intersections that had traffic lights.
Thankfully, I’ve the habit of always keeping some food and necessities that last me for a few days, I never let anything that I need run out before I buy more. But still, if I didn’t have those, can’t say if I wouldn’t have joined those people in those queues. This felt like covid all over again lol
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Comment on Well, today was scary (blackout in Portugal and Spain) in ~life
JCAPER Link ParentWill do and hopefully I will never have to do that lolWill do and hopefully I will never have to do that lol
I recommend watching part 2 as well. He “interviews” a dev that is cynical about the movement. (Using quotation because he himself hesitated to call it an interview lol)
Although I don’t agree with some points, he provided a lot more substance on where this movement could go wrong and without being an ass about it.
For example, I feel that he focused too much on “how are we going to do this for existing games” rather than on “how are we going to develop future games with this in mind”. And the movement is about the latter, it’s not meant to be retroactive.
But again, I recommend hearing him out