Promonk's recent activity
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Comment on Sony pulls back from PlayStation games on PC in ~games
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Comment on British Columbia announces it is making daylight time permanent after years of promises in ~society
Promonk Link ParentSomething I've always wondered about that song: did Dolly not get a lunch break? I've never had an employer roll my lunch break into my shift like that, but maybe that's just peculiar to my...Something I've always wondered about that song: did Dolly not get a lunch break? I've never had an employer roll my lunch break into my shift like that, but maybe that's just peculiar to my state's asinine labor laws.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Promonk LinkThis week I tried again to get into Persona 5 Royal, but I've bounced off again, albeit a little more softly than in previous attempts. This time it was the pacing that was the biggest obstacle....This week I tried again to get into Persona 5 Royal, but I've bounced off again, albeit a little more softly than in previous attempts.
This time it was the pacing that was the biggest obstacle. I'm engaged with the plot and the battle mechanics, but the tutorials and introduction are glacially slow in rolling out. I've said in the past that JRPGs are like stray cats: it takes a little time and effort to gain their trust well enough for them to allow you to play with them, and nowhere is that more true than in Persona games. It took me about 7.5 hours of playtime before I felt like I was released to actually play the game, and even then some pretty substantial guardrails were still up.
I have my doubts that the developers' expectations regarding the duration of play sessions will align with my own, but from what I've seen of the first Palace, it seems like it should be manageable. I'm hoping that the hour-long exposition sequences with few-if-any opportunities to save are mostly features of the tutorial, because I don't know how frequently I can jam them into my life otherwise.
So I took a little break from that and started my first A Link to the Past Randomizer run. I must've played that game three dozen times over the years, but I've never broken sequence before, so it's been a bit of a learning process. I had to dip into the spoiler txt to learn that you can bypass the Master Sword check at Agahnim's tower with the Magic Cape, because that would never come up if you weren't intentionally breaking sequence. I'm impressed with the resources the ALttPR community has built to help people give it a go, but I don't really have much to say aside from that.
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Comment on Statement from Dario Amodei on our discussions with the Department of War in ~society
Promonk LinkSeems like a drawn line, and that takes a modicum of gumption, at least. The logic in the argument getting there is fucking bonkers in its own right, though. The bit about how they'd go along with...Seems like a drawn line, and that takes a modicum of gumption, at least. The logic in the argument getting there is fucking bonkers in its own right, though.
The bit about how they'd go along with mass surveiling citizens of other countries, but not domestically, was not especially reassuring. Can't imagine Anthropic's prospective international customers will be hyped to hear that.
My favorite part is where he seems to suggest that he'd be fine with autonomous killbots, if only they were good enough. Claude and his siblings are still too fallible, though. Shucks.
I'd rather you just didn't do those things altogether, Chief. Kinda seems like an asshole move, all things considered. I'd also like it if you didn't suck up all the RAM and water and dollars in the frigging universe while you were at it, if at all possible.
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Comment on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested and in custody on suspicion of misconduct in public office in UK in ~news
Promonk Link ParentWhat would it even mean to take the connection seriously, though? The DoJ doesn't seem much interested in filing charges against anyone, and the FBI (nominally the US counterintelligence agency)...What would it even mean to take the connection seriously, though? The DoJ doesn't seem much interested in filing charges against anyone, and the FBI (nominally the US counterintelligence agency) is ... maybe on vacation or something? Their Slack has an "out of the office Mon & Tues" badge, but it's Thursday and they haven't responded, so I don't know.
I don't see people queuing up to storm the Bastille yet, so that's good, I guess?
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Comment on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested and in custody on suspicion of misconduct in public office in UK in ~news
Promonk Link ParentI had thought the potential Israel connection was already a known possibility, given Maxwell's family ties. Lately though it seems like it's hitting people as a new revelation.I had thought the potential Israel connection was already a known possibility, given Maxwell's family ties. Lately though it seems like it's hitting people as a new revelation.
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Comment on Recommend me some deep dive YouTube videos / Portland trip recs! in ~travel
Promonk Link ParentThe Wahkeena-Multnomah loop is a bit more effort than Ten Falls, IIRC. The forest still shows heavy signs of the fires, but it mostly missed the immediate Multnomah Falls area, and it's still well...The Wahkeena-Multnomah loop is a bit more effort than Ten Falls, IIRC. The forest still shows heavy signs of the fires, but it mostly missed the immediate Multnomah Falls area, and it's still well worth a visit. It tends to be a bit more crowded than Silver Falls SP, though.
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Comment on I'm annoyed with mundane revisionist history in ~talk
Promonk Link ParentAnecdotally, the DVD player was a big draw for me. It definitely influenced my decision to buy a PS2 at launch, and it was my first DVD player to boot. It also helped that it played most of my...Anecdotally, the DVD player was a big draw for me. It definitely influenced my decision to buy a PS2 at launch, and it was my first DVD player to boot. It also helped that it played most of my catalog of PSX games, though I never ended up selling my busted-ass PSX that you had to flip over while running or it overheated. The launch price was a little steep for a new console at the time, but the array of functionalities it offered more than made up for it.
I'm wary of overgeneralizing from my own personal experience, but I gotta think I wasn't the only one out there who did that calculus. I'm not that clever.
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Comment on Norway's parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of maintaining the country's monarchy, rejecting a proposed change to a republic in ~society
Promonk LinkThe idea of a nation having a pet family is so bizarre to me. Doubly so when the privilege afforded them by dint of their lineage only seems to make them rich for no apparent reason and shield...The idea of a nation having a pet family is so bizarre to me. Doubly so when the privilege afforded them by dint of their lineage only seems to make them rich for no apparent reason and shield them from the consequences of associating with the world's most notorious child abuser – post- 2008 conviction, I might add.
To each their own, I suppose. Lord knows my own benighted country has more than its fair share of nonsensical mores and institutions.
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Comment on SpaceX is acquiring xAI in ~space
Promonk Link ParentIt's this. I know technologically minded people who don't understand that vacuum insulates. They think, "space is cold, right?" and never consider that you need some form of physical contact to...... and/or overestimating the rate of heat exchange in near-vaccuum.
It's this. I know technologically minded people who don't understand that vacuum insulates. They think, "space is cold, right?" and never consider that you need some form of physical contact to dissipate the majority of the heat electronics produce.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Promonk (edited )LinkI had been playing Schedule I, but I think I've about reached the end of the content that's available at the moment. It's a pretty basic management sim in which you manufacture, mix, package and...I had been playing Schedule I, but I think I've about reached the end of the content that's available at the moment. It's a pretty basic management sim in which you manufacture, mix, package and sell illegal drugs (well, about half the drugs are illegal where I live). You can sling by yourself or delegate product to dealers to sling for you for 20% of the revenue.
The game is in early access, but I rate it as just barely in beta. Progression is pretty barebones as yet, and many aspects are poorly tutorialized. For instance, I spent maybe two or three play sessions just building capital because the game never bothered to mention that I needed to engage with a turf war mechanic before I could progress. It had introduced a rival cartel, but it never explicitly explained that I needed to build influence to open new regions.
It's also pretty buggy, especially as regards worker assignments. You can hire chemists, botanists, handlers/packagers and janitors in addition to dealers, but often they will simply stop working with little or no explanation given as to why. Sometimes it's a problem with pathing, sometimes their assignments are invalid, and sometimes it seems it's just because they feel like it. There is a mechanic where you're supposed to beat your workers to get them working again (which I could entirely do without), but it's no help if they bug out or their pathing is screwed.
I've also experienced really frustrating bugs involving police. There are a couple of sections of road that will be blocked by police checkpoints about every other day. If you want to pass, you have to submit to a frisking (which involves a minigame that allows you to hide contraband on your person) and a vehicle search. If the cops don't find anything they're supposed to let you pass, except sometimes the cops' AI bugs out and they tell you everything's good, but when you go to leave they alert Metal Gear Solid-style and whip out the tasers. You can run and hide until they think it must've been the wind, but the "stealth" mechanic seems kinda busted and in bad need of balancing. It's also far too easy to reset the cops' alerts, such that they end up spotting you from the next ZIP code and begin the countdown over again.
All in all, I've put about 30 hours in, which is actually pretty good for my 21st century attention span. The primary gameplay loop is fun if a little repetitive. It's got a ways to go before it's ready for release, but the devs are active and engaged. I feel pretty good about having grabbed it in EA.
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Comment on Xikipedia in ~tech
Promonk Link ParentI'd argue that one of the things that's kept Wikipedia out of the Enshittification whirlpool is the lack of interest in engagement. Hank Green recently posted a video going into this very topic:...I'd argue that one of the things that's kept Wikipedia out of the Enshittification whirlpool is the lack of interest in engagement.
Hank Green recently posted a video going into this very topic: https://youtu.be/9zi0ogvPfCA
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Comment on You are being misled about renewable energy technology in ~enviro
Promonk Link ParentWhy can't those things draw power from the electrical grid?Why can't those things draw power from the electrical grid?
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Comment on German chain Aldi bets big on cheaper groceries as US shoppers feel squeezed in ~finance
Promonk Link ParentYes. Aldi Nord operates as Trader Joe's in the US.Yes. Aldi Nord operates as Trader Joe's in the US.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Promonk Link ParentIf you do end up giving Remake or Rebirth a try, come back and let us know what you think. I'm curious what someone without all the nostalgic baggage would think of it. The story is very much...If you do end up giving Remake or Rebirth a try, come back and let us know what you think. I'm curious what someone without all the nostalgic baggage would think of it.
The story is very much contiguous between the two, so I'd advise starting with Remake. The pacing in that one is a bit odd, as they stretched what was about four hours of the original game into something like 20-30 hours in the remake, depending on your obsessiveness.
Oh, and bear in mind that the dudes in the black cloaks were in the first game, whereas the ghost-y things in black cloaks are original to the remakes. Seems like that should be explained to someone new to the story.
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Comment on The Dark Tower Wizard in Glass, is the second half better? in ~books
Promonk (edited )Link ParentThat first book of Dune in particular is chock full of pithy aphorisms like that. One that sticks out to me is: "To know a thing well, know its limits. Only when pushed beyond its tolerances will...That first book of Dune in particular is chock full of pithy aphorisms like that. One that sticks out to me is: "To know a thing well, know its limits. Only when pushed beyond its tolerances will its true nature be seen." I don't know as I'd take that as a verity, but God damn if it ain't a great epigram.
Dune is one of those books sort of like the Silmarillion that is super dense and packed with unfamiliar names and vocabulary, which turns a lot of people off early on. Most of the weird vocabulary is there for a purpose though, so it's actually well worth wading through the early flood of strangeness.
One thing that the recent movie adaptations...
Oops. Looks like I hit "post" when putting my phone in my pocket.
Anyway, a perspective that the new movies gave me that I had never really thought of before is that Dune is a story about the difference between fate and destiny. Everyone in the story is entrapped by fate, except Paul Muad'Dib (and later, his son Leto II), who is a man of destiny. Fate is ordained for you, whereas destiny is something a person achieves. Paul is the only character who can fully choose his destiny; everyone else in the universe is along for the ride, more or less.
I don't know what it was about the movies that made that so much clearer for me, but I look forward to revisiting the first book with that in mind.
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Comment on 2025 was a dumpster fire, so I made it into a model | Light-up flaming dumpster sculpture in ~hobbies
Promonk LinkI was reminded of this channel by @cfabbro's post the other day, but didn't mention it for some reason. This guy's videos are maybe a little less edutaining than Something Wicked's, but no less...I was reminded of this channel by @cfabbro's post the other day, but didn't mention it for some reason.
This guy's videos are maybe a little less edutaining than Something Wicked's, but no less whimsical. His compositions remind me of single-panel cartoons in their absurdity, but brought into three dimensions. His narration is a treat, too.
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2025 was a dumpster fire, so I made it into a model | Light-up flaming dumpster sculpture
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Comment on What's a culture shock that you experienced? in ~talk
Promonk Link ParentYeah, cold weather can be manageable if it stays bitch-cold and dry. You get nosebleeds and chapped lips, but you can generally manage to get by provided the plows keep running. That's not how...Yeah, cold weather can be manageable if it stays bitch-cold and dry. You get nosebleeds and chapped lips, but you can generally manage to get by provided the plows keep running.
That's not how winter weather works west of the Cascades. We rarely get cold fronts that really blast freeze us, we most often get fronts that chill us down to the twenties/negative single digits at night, warming to the mid-thirties/positive single digits during the day. That means wet, warm snow mixed with freezing rain and fog that then solidifies overnight, melts just enough to get slicker than owl shit during the day, rinse, repeat. In the bigger cities like Portland, Seattle and Tacoma that have hilly terrain we HAVE to more or less shut down and wait it out. It's just too treacherous.
Of course, that doesn't stop transplants and the pathologically stubborn from trying. Hence those viral videos I referred to.
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Comment on What's a culture shock that you experienced? in ~talk
Promonk Link ParentI've had to explain this to a friend who moved from Oklahoma to the PNW of the US. He's a very "you think it's bad here, you should see it back home" type of fella, and I had to explain that the...This winter has defeated me though - while we have excellent snow cover, we've had multiple rounds of freezing rain, even when the temp is well below freezing which just doesn't happen here. And just this week we had a 12 hour period overnight where the temp was above freezing so some stuff melted then promptly refroze in the morning when the temp dropped again. So there's just a stupid amount of ice everywhere and that's fucking annoying to run on.
I've had to explain this to a friend who moved from Oklahoma to the PNW of the US. He's a very "you think it's bad here, you should see it back home" type of fella, and I had to explain that the trouble with winter weather here isn't the cold, it's that we constantly vacillate between just sub-freezing and just super-freezing, which turns the world into a treacherous ice rink.
If you've ever seen viral videos of Portland drivers unable to deal with winter weather, that's why: they aren't just incapable of driving in snow (though they are that, too), they're dealing with half an inch or more of solid ice that's melted a bit and refroze a half-dozen times.
I couldn't help but notice a distinct absence of Steam in your calculations. I suspect they might have more influence on the market than you appreciate.
That is a bold statement that I don't think I've ever seen anyone claim before, certainly not so confidently. Would you care to expand?