ShroudedScribe's recent activity

  1. Comment on US drug control agency will move to reclassify marijuana in a historic shift, AP sources say in ~news

    ShroudedScribe
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    They really need to determine another way to test. Some type of motor skills test would probably be best (assuming the individual does not have a disability that would interfere with).

    They really need to determine another way to test. Some type of motor skills test would probably be best (assuming the individual does not have a disability that would interfere with).

    1 vote

  2. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

    ShroudedScribe
    Link Parent
    Neat. Over 10 years ago I did all the info gathering with a WMI batch script. Company had a lot of PCs at remote sites and sometimes mobile that had infrequent internet connections and needed to...

    Neat. Over 10 years ago I did all the info gathering with a WMI batch script. Company had a lot of PCs at remote sites and sometimes mobile that had infrequent internet connections and needed to be properly inventoried.

  3. Comment on Spotify lowers artist royalties despite subscription price hike in ~music

    ShroudedScribe
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    If they're losing money, it's likely due to their questionable financial decisions, such as the massive amounts spent to get Joe Rogan exclusively on their podcast platform.

    If they're losing money, it's likely due to their questionable financial decisions, such as the massive amounts spent to get Joe Rogan exclusively on their podcast platform.

    3 votes

  4. Comment on Clothes shopping as a short & fat (trans) guy with narrow shoulders in ~life.style

    ShroudedScribe
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    Have you tried any thrift stores? I'm located in the US, but both myself and my partner often have trouble finding well fitting clothes in department stores. Thrift stores aren't limited to the...

    Have you tried any thrift stores? I'm located in the US, but both myself and my partner often have trouble finding well fitting clothes in department stores. Thrift stores aren't limited to the ~5-8 brands you'll see in one department store, so your odds may be better that you'll find something that fits. Only downside is if you find something you like but the size isn't right, you'll almost never find the same thing in a different size.

    Bonus points because you're helping the environment.

    3 votes

  5. Comment on Looking for free or cheap places to learn some SQL and XML in ~tech

    ShroudedScribe
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    In addition to the great resources everyone else has shared, if you're looking for somewhere to practice or test (beyond something like codecademy interactive exercises), you can install a free...

    In addition to the great resources everyone else has shared, if you're looking for somewhere to practice or test (beyond something like codecademy interactive exercises), you can install a free version of Microsoft SQL on your local computer - it's the developer version on their downloads page.

    Then install SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) on your local computer as well, and you can connect the developer server and create databases, tables, views, stored procedures, etc exactly as you would in an enterprise (Windows) environment.

    If you want some test data, Microsoft has a set they call AdventureWorks.

    And keep in mind all of this information is assuming your (current or future) employer is using MS SQL. There are some variations between MS SQL, MySQL, and Oracle's implementation, but focusing on learning one will get you far enough to work with any of them (perhaps with a translation cheat sheet by your side).

    2 votes

  6. Comment on What's the best way to avoid scams when being paid by strangers on the internet? in ~finance

    ShroudedScribe
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    In addition to payment security, you should come up with a good contract and require a signature before starting work. If you're doing graphic design or similar, IAGA has some great resources....

    In addition to payment security, you should come up with a good contract and require a signature before starting work. If you're doing graphic design or similar, IAGA has some great resources.

    Zoho has a free plan and you can send a certain number of docs out for e-signature that way.

    And for the payment part, I'm echoing what other people have said about taking half as a deposit before you start. Consider a payment processor (helsim is probably my favorite) that allows your customers to pay via ACH or credit card. You will pay some fees, but you can adjust your pricing to account for that - it's a standard business practice these days. These processors will charge an additional fee for things like chargebacks, but you can CYA in your contract and make it clear you will go after them if they try to pull anything like that.

    5 votes

  7. Comment on What cooking techniques need more evidence? in ~food

    ShroudedScribe
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    Searing a roast before you put it in the crockpot for hours. I've found this makes zero difference and is just an added step. You can't possibly taste the sear when the intent of the crockpot is...

    Searing a roast before you put it in the crockpot for hours. I've found this makes zero difference and is just an added step. You can't possibly taste the sear when the intent of the crockpot is to make the meat incredibly tender, right?

    3 votes

  8. Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv

    ShroudedScribe
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    Only been through two episodes so far, but loving it! I would absolutely be binge watching if some unrelated circumstances were different. Hoping to get through most of it over the next few days!!...

    Only been through two episodes so far, but loving it! I would absolutely be binge watching if some unrelated circumstances were different. Hoping to get through most of it over the next few days!!

    Without spoilers, there's tons of nods to various objects and beings in the game. And that goes beyond surface level references - a few slightly obscure things too!

    My wife has been reading the recaps from The Vulture after each episode. Here's the link to the episode 1 recap (with spoilers for only episode 1). Those recaps really dig into some of the details.

    3 votes

  9. Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv

  10. Comment on What AI tools are you actually using? in ~tech

    ShroudedScribe
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    Someone here recommended using ChatGPT to generate cover letters for job applications. I've started doing this along with getting suggestions of what to highlight on my resume per job description....

    Someone here recommended using ChatGPT to generate cover letters for job applications. I've started doing this along with getting suggestions of what to highlight on my resume per job description.

    It hasn't been long enough to report success or failure, but keeping my fingers crossed. I've been job hunting for over 3 years so I welcome any new suggestions.

    1 vote

  11. Comment on I bought a house, now what? in ~life.home_improvement

    ShroudedScribe
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    I'm going to re-emphasize the cleaning and painting before you move in. And for everything else: If you need any services done, ask your realtor for suggestions. Yes, even months or years after...

    I'm going to re-emphasize the cleaning and painting before you move in. And for everything else:

    If you need any services done, ask your realtor for suggestions. Yes, even months or years after buying, your realtor will be happy to give suggestions, because that means they're on your mind and you might recommend them to someone else. Realtors know service people in the area who actually show up and get shit done for reasonable prices, because that's required to sell homes if they aren't in perfect condition.

    If you're capable, and the house has lots of carpet, buy a carpet cleaner on sale and get it over with. I've seen the rentals for anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 of the price of just buying your own.

    If the seller didn't have someone come do a deep clean, probably worth paying for. Otherwise you'll be playing catchup trying to keep everything clean.

    And painting is either something you can do yourself OR hire someone. Materials to do it are pretty cheap. If you need something like retexturing large areas, or maybe reaching heights you're uncomfortable with, it could be worth hiring someone.

    2 votes

  12. Comment on Does anyone else have really strange FedEx driver stories? in ~talk

    ShroudedScribe
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    One time I ordered a used, but still in box, Steelcase Leap chair. I saw the FedEx truck, waited behind my screen door (where I was likely not visible), and saw him idle there for maybe 2 minutes....

    One time I ordered a used, but still in box, Steelcase Leap chair. I saw the FedEx truck, waited behind my screen door (where I was likely not visible), and saw him idle there for maybe 2 minutes. He took off, and the package was marked as delivered immediately after.

    I called FedEx right after and they said they were closing so they would address it in the morning. The next day it showed up. I think someone realized they weren't getting away with it.

    4 votes

  13. Comment on Do US voters care about policy even a little? in ~misc

    ShroudedScribe
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    I would agree with what most people are suggesting - Biden has a PR problem, but is actually doing some really good things in the "background" that should be advertised better. One can certainly...

    I would agree with what most people are suggesting - Biden has a PR problem, but is actually doing some really good things in the "background" that should be advertised better. One can certainly argue that news outlets get more traffic from negative headlines and clickbait that don't really benefit from talking about positives.

    One thing I recall reading is how Biden did a lot of coordinating with companies on how to handle the rail strike. The public decision that was first put out made it seem like he was union busting, when the reality is that he determined rail worker rights were something that could be better discussed in the background with the rail companies themselves. (Probably as a trade off for future favoritism.)

    3 votes

  14. Comment on Why do some people posting ChatGPT answer to the discussion/debate/question? in ~tech

    ShroudedScribe
    Link Parent
    Considering Reddit has made some huge data sales deals, this isn't impossible. But it seems like a faulty strategy to improve data, especially when half of the replies to something on social media...

    Considering Reddit has made some huge data sales deals, this isn't impossible.

    But it seems like a faulty strategy to improve data, especially when half of the replies to something on social media are smartass jokes, insults, and/or non-responses.

  15. Comment on What's a game that you feel is almost great? in ~games

    ShroudedScribe
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    Perhaps only a controversial opinion in the sense I link this game enough that I think it could achieve greatness, but: Starfield I was hoping for Fallout in space but it ended up being closer to...

    Perhaps only a controversial opinion in the sense I link this game enough that I think it could achieve greatness, but:

    Starfield

    I was hoping for Fallout in space but it ended up being closer to Skyrim in space. I didn't feel very attached to any of the characters (I'm not going to give spoilers so I'll leave it at that). It was very repetitive in level design.

    But I absolutely love what they did with how the gunplay feels and how you can mod your weapons (though it is very similar to Fallout 4). It's not the only modern game with good gunplay, but that core mechanic was executed extremely well in my opinion. The variety of weapons had a different feel to them and all the mods let you make them even more different.

    I ended up enjoying the side quest lines much more than the main one. My favorite being the United Colonies one. There were also a couple of interesting exploration-based quests towards the end of the main quest line.

    But ultimately the things that make it unique ("in space") are mostly the things that make it bad. I found the flight combat to be awful. 100s of planets could be cool, but most of them are boring and repetitive with copies of caves and such from other planets. Planets without major cities feel lifeless, even though many of them have flora and fauna. And the game punishes you (forcing you to grind) at one point if you don't put points into specific parts of the skill tree.

    Semi-early game spoiler

    I honestly feel like they made a fork of the new elder scrolls game they're working on. The powers feel like a direct copy of Skyrim.

    4 votes

  16. Comment on What are some of your favorite PlayStation 1 games? Any odd or unique ones worth playing? in ~games

    ShroudedScribe
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    I was going to mention Ape Escape! I never got too far into it, but a very unique concept for a game.

    I was going to mention Ape Escape! I never got too far into it, but a very unique concept for a game.

    2 votes

  17. Comment on Backdoor in upstream libxz targeting sshd in ~comp

    ShroudedScribe
    Link Parent
    Just keep your backups there and visit a couple times a year! :)

    Just keep your backups there and visit a couple times a year! :)

    11 votes

  18. Comment on Nobody warned electric vehicle owners how quickly they would burn through tires in ~transport

    ShroudedScribe
    Link Parent
    Not an EV, but I enjoyed my (kinetic) hybrid Honda CR-Z. It was released as a 2-seat in the US, but somehow had a backseat in the UK. How anyone could fit behind the front seats is a mystery to me.

    Not an EV, but I enjoyed my (kinetic) hybrid Honda CR-Z. It was released as a 2-seat in the US, but somehow had a backseat in the UK. How anyone could fit behind the front seats is a mystery to me.

    1 vote

  19. Comment on Visa, Mastercard settle long-running antitrust suit over swipe fees with merchants in ~finance

    ShroudedScribe
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    Anyone know what this realistically looks like? I'm familiar with Helsim, who is very transparent with their fees, and I'm curious if they will show that the fees have reduced in the near future.

    Anyone know what this realistically looks like? I'm familiar with Helsim, who is very transparent with their fees, and I'm curious if they will show that the fees have reduced in the near future.

    2 votes

  20. Comment on How do you store ”loose” tech hardware? in ~tech

    ShroudedScribe
    Link Parent
    I highly recommend just getting a large roll of Velcro and cutting it yourself. The entire surface is Velcro, so you shouldn't run into this problem.

    I highly recommend just getting a large roll of Velcro and cutting it yourself. The entire surface is Velcro, so you shouldn't run into this problem.