MimicSquid's recent activity
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Comment on The journey of donating a body to science in ~science
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
MimicSquid LinkI picked up a survival crafting game called The Last Caretaker, knowing very little about it. It's still in early access, and definitely contains some rough edges, but the core loop of it feels...I picked up a survival crafting game called The Last Caretaker, knowing very little about it. It's still in early access, and definitely contains some rough edges, but the core loop of it feels really good. You play as a robot sailing the ocean and salvaging stuff, and that sounds like a game you've played a thousand times. This ine is different. The sailing feels like actual sailing, and maintaining and expanding your boat feels great. In choppy seas, the ship rocks as you walk, and you do feel the fear of going overboard. You can set the tiller and the throttle and then step away from the wheel if you need to; the ship doesn't stop because you let go of the wheel. It feels ponderous. Parallel parking a boat isn't an instantaneous affair, so it feels less like a boat-themed video game and more like you're moving something with a lot of mass. It's not perfect, but it feels good to play. And being a robot means that you're always keeping an eye on your battery. You, like everything else, need juice to survive. But when you need to keep the lights, the recycler, and the fabricator running on top of your own needs you can start to feel the squeeze. There can be downsides from having a unified resource that does everything, but when it's power it makes sense and feels good.
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Comment on Mink farming will end in Denmark by August 2029 after the government decided to drop plans to pursue an exemption to an EU-wide ban on the practice in ~enviro
MimicSquid Link ParentYes, but not by the corporation whose business practices started it. That's the definition of a negative externality. It's a side effect of a business practice that the company lets other people...Yes, but not by the corporation whose business practices started it. That's the definition of a negative externality. It's a side effect of a business practice that the company lets other people deal with rather than paying for the mitigation of the problem. Pollution is the classic example.
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Comment on Mink farming will end in Denmark by August 2029 after the government decided to drop plans to pursue an exemption to an EU-wide ban on the practice in ~enviro
MimicSquid Link ParentPandemics from factory farming are just another negative eternality for businesses to let other people suffer.Pandemics from factory farming are just another negative eternality for businesses to let other people suffer.
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Comment on What is your passion? And why? in ~life
MimicSquid Link ParentFirst off. I'm glad my comment stuck with you. In some ways, that's the truest compliment of all. With regards to your question, I do think we can all be known by our actions. It's true that we...First off. I'm glad my comment stuck with you. In some ways, that's the truest compliment of all.
With regards to your question, I do think we can all be known by our actions. It's true that we all have unknowable depths that we never express to the world, and in hiding those facets we are diminishing the degree to which we can be known. It's true of all of us that our truest self will always be for ourselves alone. But from another lens, we are only our actions. Is anything that is truly unknown that doesn't bubble up through our actions really part of who we are, or is it mental fanfiction for an audience of one? From that perspective, what you consume and what you generate (that is, the ways in which you interact with the world) are who you are, and anyone who knows the totality of that can be said to know you completely. But no one can be known so completely by another person. We're all just rough stones knocking against one another, coming into contact at fragmented ridges and valleys of identity as we roll along in the rock tumbler of life.
Your work may be produced in a way designed to be just the facts, but the person is an unavoidable substrate to the work you produce. You made this thing as opposed to all the others for reasons, and those reasons tell a story of their own.
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Comment on Men in tech #YesAllMen in ~life.women
MimicSquid Link ParentSeconding this. Two different women I know had exactly this pattern happen, and assuming it was perimenopause slowed down diagnosis.Seconding this. Two different women I know had exactly this pattern happen, and assuming it was perimenopause slowed down diagnosis.
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Comment on eMudhra to exit global SSL/TLS certificate business in ~tech
MimicSquid Link ParentOut of proportion to how much eMudhra cared about it. It's "Why are you nerds getting all fussy? It's not like it matters to us, so we're just going to leave rather than dealing with you getting...Out of proportion to how much eMudhra cared about it. It's "Why are you nerds getting all fussy? It's not like it matters to us, so we're just going to leave rather than dealing with you getting all sweaty. What does it matter, anyway?"
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Comment on eMudhra intermediate CA compromise in ~tech
MimicSquid Link ParentYeah, it's already been corrected to "is".Yeah, it's already been corrected to "is".
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Comment on 'Cracking the Cryptic' plays 'Order of the Sinking Star' with Jonathan Blow in ~games
MimicSquid LinkI do wonder whether they're going to do well at this. Cracking the Cryptic as a team seem to either be amazing at a kind of puzzle or just dismal. If it's outside the context that they understand,...I do wonder whether they're going to do well at this. Cracking the Cryptic as a team seem to either be amazing at a kind of puzzle or just dismal. If it's outside the context that they understand, they're worse than average at picking up hints. But that might be that they're not particularly good gamers, for all that they're excellent puzzle solvers in their arena.
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Comment on Alberta voters reject plan for referendum to leave Canada in ~society
MimicSquid LinkAs an American, I'm really glad for this result. We don't need any more local chaos, idiocy, or fragmentation.As an American, I'm really glad for this result. We don't need any more local chaos, idiocy, or fragmentation.
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Comment on What is your passion? And why? in ~life
MimicSquid LinkMy passion is media. That is, the ways we as humans tell stories to each other, and the purposes to which we put those stories. Be it an individually run podcast or video production channel, an...My passion is media. That is, the ways we as humans tell stories to each other, and the purposes to which we put those stories. Be it an individually run podcast or video production channel, an author self-publishing, theater and arts production, social media campaigns, corporate, governmental, and non-profit messaging, all the way up to how Hollywood or legacy publishing manages the challenges and efficiencies of scale.
I'm... maybe a touch autistic. People's reasons for their actions were entirely opaque and bizarre to me. In college I found psychology classes that gave me the basics, but it became clear that beyond our biology and neurochemistry it's the stories we inhabit and attempt to enforce on others that really answer why we do what we do.
It's been a thing for decades now, though my understanding and focus continues to shift within the broader sphere. There's a lot to know, and I know I'll never go beyond the surface on such a huge area. But there's always something new to see and delve into.
I'm always consuming media and its surrounding information. The media is just the beginning. What's the surface message? What are the creators assumptions, biases, or ideologies that color their message? What are their economic and ideological incentives for creating the media? How does it relate to their other work, or work by others in a similar sphere? The message in a vacuum is not the message.
Do you want to understand humans? Understand them by their works. Media is slow telepathy and mind control. It's one party trying to insert new information into the brain of others. What memes (in both classical and new senses) are being spread? While talk is cheap, in a networked world of information, it is through someone's media that you shall know them.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
MimicSquid Link ParentAw, man. When you said "upcoming release" I thought you meant 1.0, not just the latest EA update. I got all excited there for a moment.Aw, man. When you said "upcoming release" I thought you meant 1.0, not just the latest EA update. I got all excited there for a moment.
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Comment on Grand Theft Auto VI | Launch trailer in ~games
MimicSquid Link ParentSure, they're justified in charging whatever they want for any reason. That's entirely tangential to what it's worth, and more time invested doesn't change what a game is worth.Sure, they're justified in charging whatever they want for any reason. That's entirely tangential to what it's worth, and more time invested doesn't change what a game is worth.
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Comment on Grand Theft Auto VI | Launch trailer in ~games
MimicSquid Link ParentMy only statement was about "But its a good looking, huge game, that took a ton of effort to make. Surely its worth more than fc 27". Was the analogy of digging up sand too abstract for you? Let's...My only statement was about "But its a good looking, huge game, that took a ton of effort to make. Surely its worth more than fc 27". Was the analogy of digging up sand too abstract for you? Let's try again with something more similar:
What does anyone care what the effort was? If a person spent 10 years of their life slaving away making a videogame and it was good, would they be justified in charging more than an equivalently good game that someone shoved out the door in 6 months? Of course not. It's the quality that matters, not the duration of work.
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Comment on Anthropic says revenue jumped 45% to $16.8 billion in third quarter in ~tech
MimicSquid Link ParentThe "AI" part of that tagline is new. Yardi is one of the bigger names in real estate management software. No reason you'd know some unrelated industry's software, but they're not a small name.The "AI" part of that tagline is new. Yardi is one of the bigger names in real estate management software. No reason you'd know some unrelated industry's software, but they're not a small name.
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Comment on iPhone Duo sells out immediately, now backordered until next year in ~tech
MimicSquid LinkWithout that balance being clear, this is barely news.This is a combination of strong demand and severely constrained supply for iPhone Duo. It’s impossible to know the exact balance between the two, though.
Without that balance being clear, this is barely news.
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Comment on Grand Theft Auto VI | Launch trailer in ~games
MimicSquid Link ParentIf I offered you two bags of sand, one of which I shoveled off a pile at the local agricultural supply and took me 3 minutes, and one where I picked up each grain of sand with tweezers, would...If I offered you two bags of sand, one of which I shoveled off a pile at the local agricultural supply and took me 3 minutes, and one where I picked up each grain of sand with tweezers, would anyone be justified in disagreeing with me charging more for the tweezer sand just because it took more effort to gather? The value is in the enjoyment, not in the effort. Rockstar has priced it to make money, and they're interested in charging what the market will bear. They're a business and want to make money to cover their costs and make money for the future. But sale price and value aren't strongly correlated when it comes to video games. It is "worth" more than fc27? Almost certainly, given the terrible reviews. Will people pay more for it? Probably. But that will be because of its lineage and their feelings about prior games, not because Rockstar spent more than a decade on it.
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Comment on The carrion-eaters in ~life
MimicSquid LinkHaving entirely missed the original thing that happened, this feels like a prophet covered in sackcloth and ashes ranting at the sky. There's a deep emotional appeal here to engage in...Having entirely missed the original thing that happened, this feels like a prophet covered in sackcloth and ashes ranting at the sky. There's a deep emotional appeal here to engage in self-flagellation and hate everyone involved, but from outside the groups involved this really seems designed to be yet another swing on the same emotional ride rather than actually an attempt to get anyone off the ride.
(Also, customizing the "skip signing up" button to say "I'm a coward" isn't improving my opinion of the guy.)
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Comment on Anthropic says revenue jumped 45% to $16.8 billion in third quarter in ~tech
MimicSquid Link ParentMy belief is that they're building hype. If their more complete accounting has more realistic performance numbers, but their previous hype got people excited, the realistic numbers won't be an...My belief is that they're building hype. If their more complete accounting has more realistic performance numbers, but their previous hype got people excited, the realistic numbers won't be an invalidation, just... a different set of adjustments. And aren't you so excited for the opportunity to buy in advance so you can make money off the retail investors?
I don't think it's entirely bullshit, just... adjustments.
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Comment on Anthropic says revenue jumped 45% to $16.8 billion in third quarter in ~tech
MimicSquid Link ParentIf pointing out that they're not getting these numbers using GAAP ages poorly, I will be very impressed. Maybe they're doing just as well as they would like people to think they're doing. But if...If pointing out that they're not getting these numbers using GAAP ages poorly, I will be very impressed. Maybe they're doing just as well as they would like people to think they're doing. But if they were, would they need to be adjusting their numbers?
Both of my parents signed up to have their bodies donated, though I wasn't involved in setting it up. One donation has already happened. My mother had ALS, and decided on the date of her death, as we live in a place that believes in the personal freedom to decide when a medical condition is intolerable. So we just let the university know the expected window for pickup. Once she had passed and everyone had said their goodbyes, we called and her body was picked up within 15 minutes.