tesseractcat's recent activity
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Comment on Need a replacement for my old macbook pro, should I just get another one? in ~comp
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Comment on Need a replacement for my old macbook pro, should I just get another one? in ~comp
tesseractcat Link ParentI'm comparing the value you can get for used devices, mainly. So, for example, I can find a Macbook Pro M2 refurbished in 'Good' condition, on Ebay (with 32GB RAM and 512GB storage) for 990$. A...I'm comparing the value you can get for used devices, mainly. So, for example, I can find a Macbook Pro M2 refurbished in 'Good' condition, on Ebay (with 32GB RAM and 512GB storage) for 990$. A comparable Intel processor in the newest (2023-ish) generation, called Lunar Lake (soon to be succeeded by the new Panther Lake generation), is the 258V (https://www.cpu-monkey.com/en/compare_cpu-intel_core_ultra_7_258v-vs-apple_m2), which generally matches or exceeds the M2, although lags a bit with single core performance. I can find a Lenovo Slim 7i with the 258V on Ebay (32GB RAM and 1TB storage), open box for 750$.
The big thing is that the Lunar Lake generation came out after the M1/M2 generation, and approximately simultaneously with the M3 generation. The new Panther Lake chips will be competing with the M4/M5 generation, although it's hard to do price comparisons since most of those laptops haven't come out yet. It's tricky to do a fair comparison here, but I think comparing based on price for used laptops with similar benchmarks makes sense. When the new Intel chips come out, you can also compare with the latest Macs as well.
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Comment on Need a replacement for my old macbook pro, should I just get another one? in ~comp
tesseractcat Link ParentThe upcoming intel Panther Lake series looks like it will be competitive with the latest M-series chips. But I wasn't really comparing based on generation, but rather resale price.The upcoming intel Panther Lake series looks like it will be competitive with the latest M-series chips. But I wasn't really comparing based on generation, but rather resale price.
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Comment on Need a replacement for my old macbook pro, should I just get another one? in ~comp
tesseractcat Link ParentWell, Windows or Linux :^).Well, Windows or Linux :^).
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Comment on Need a replacement for my old macbook pro, should I just get another one? in ~comp
tesseractcat LinkWhile I agree with everyone in this thread that the M-series chips are very impressive and cost-effective, it isn't quite a total blowout. The Intel lunar-lake chips are pretty competitive with...While I agree with everyone in this thread that the M-series chips are very impressive and cost-effective, it isn't quite a total blowout. The Intel lunar-lake chips are pretty competitive with the older M1s/M2s. If you can get a 256V/258V chip (which also have better iGPU performance) for example, depending on what kind of prices you're looking at (a used Macbook Pro M2 can go for ~1k), it's possible to get a competitive deal in windows-land.
And Apple charges a premium for storage, so if you want a 1TB or 2TB hard drive, the Macbooks get less appealing. This isn't to say that the M-series Macbooks aren't very price competitive, it's only in certain niches where the Windows laptops win out.
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
tesseractcat Link Parent.cat domains have some strange restrictions the last time I checked (years ago), like requiring your site to have a catalan translation. I'm pretty happy with the .at domain..cat domains have some strange restrictions the last time I checked (years ago), like requiring your site to have a catalan translation. I'm pretty happy with the .at domain.
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
tesseractcat LinkFinally got around to starting a blog recently (https://tesseractc.at). I'm hoping that it can be a way to wrap up projects that don't have a good end-goal (I can just publish a blog post to cap...Finally got around to starting a blog recently (https://tesseractc.at). I'm hoping that it can be a way to wrap up projects that don't have a good end-goal (I can just publish a blog post to cap off whatever I've been working on).
With that in mind, I published my first blog post where I attempt to replicate a graphics technique used in the upcoming game Shadowglass. This is exactly the kind of thing that I want to put on a blog, because otherwise I would probably want to implement it into like, a game or something, but that would be an immense amount of effort.
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Comment on Cory Doctorow | AI companies will fail. We can salvage something from the wreckage. in ~tech
tesseractcat Link ParentWhat specifically are you trying to learn how to do? Generally, I would recommend making an account with one of the big 3 LLM providers (OpenAI/ChatGPT, Google/Gemini, or Anthropic/Claude), and...What specifically are you trying to learn how to do? Generally, I would recommend making an account with one of the big 3 LLM providers (OpenAI/ChatGPT, Google/Gemini, or Anthropic/Claude), and just talking to it. LLMs are pretty good at giving advice on how they should be used.
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Comment on Cory Doctorow | AI companies will fail. We can salvage something from the wreckage. in ~tech
tesseractcat LinkI respect Cory Doctorow for remaining consistent on his copyright opinions, and I mostly enjoyed this article. If you have the utmost belief that AI will fundamentally plateau somewhere below...I respect Cory Doctorow for remaining consistent on his copyright opinions, and I mostly enjoyed this article. If you have the utmost belief that AI will fundamentally plateau somewhere below humans, then the article seems correct. But I have to pull one quote from the article:
If there had never been an AI bubble, if all this stuff arose merely because computer scientists and product managers noodled around for a few years coming up with cool new apps, most people would have been pleasantly surprised with these interesting new things their computers could do. We would call them “plugins”.
There was never a world in which this didn't become an enormous, international phenomenon. Ever since Turing proposed the Turing test, it's been inevitable. The fact that you can now have a full conversation with a computer is strange and incredible, it would never have been relegated to something exclusively for techies.
Also, this sentence is not entirely true:
Now, AI is a statistical inference engine. All it can do is predict what word will come next based on all the words that have been typed in the past.
This is a common misconception. Modern LLMs are post-trained on reinforcement learning tasks, which means they're not only trained to predict the next word, but also trained to solve problems more effectively. And, in the case of the example used in the article, they are trained to recognize when they don't know something, in order to not hallucinate. Although, just like humans will often misremember things, this isn't perfect (but it has been getting noticeably better with new models).
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Comment on Tablet suggestions? in ~tech
tesseractcat LinkThe Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (2022 or 2024 models) can be found for very cheap used/refurbished (often <100$), and has pretty good stylus support (so, good for digital art if you want a really...The Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (2022 or 2024 models) can be found for very cheap used/refurbished (often <100$), and has pretty good stylus support (so, good for digital art if you want a really cheap standalone drawing tablet). I can't say how it would perform for Foundry VTT or mobile games, but my S6 lite has been pretty good for various art tasks. My one gripe with it is the aspect ratio, I would have preferred a more square aspect ratio, rather than the narrow-ish 16:10.
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Comment on Libertarianism is dead in ~humanities
tesseractcat Link ParentIf the only natural laws are anarchy, then don't you already have it? No need for a political movement.If the only natural laws are anarchy, then don't you already have it? No need for a political movement.
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Comment on The fetch()ening (plans for HTMX 4) in ~comp
tesseractcat Link ParentThe HTML standard included application-like capabilities from the beginning using the form element and the iframe element. You might be thinking of XML?The HTML standard included application-like capabilities from the beginning using the form element and the iframe element. You might be thinking of XML?
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Comment on The fetch()ening (plans for HTMX 4) in ~comp
tesseractcat Link ParentUltimately HTMX is just an extension of existing web ideas. Previously it was link/form -> whole new page, but with a few tweaks it's possible to do link/form/button -> partial new page. Just that...Ultimately HTMX is just an extension of existing web ideas. Previously it was link/form -> whole new page, but with a few tweaks it's possible to do link/form/button -> partial new page. Just that enables 80% of what SPAs are typically used for.
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Comment on The fetch()ening (plans for HTMX 4) in ~comp
tesseractcat LinkNot much to say, but HTMX is terrific, and really should be integrated into the HTML standard.Not much to say, but HTMX is terrific, and really should be integrated into the HTML standard.
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Comment on Body time and daylight savings apologetics in ~life
tesseractcat Link ParentWhat system that replaces capitalism would prevent the controversy about whether to have daylight earlier or later in the day? Even in a totally socialist country with worker owned production,...What system that replaces capitalism would prevent the controversy about whether to have daylight earlier or later in the day? Even in a totally socialist country with worker owned production, this would still be a problem.
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Comment on What have you been watching / reading this week? (Anime/Manga) in ~anime
tesseractcat (edited )LinkI've been watching City (The Animation). It's the next series by the guy who made Nichijou. To be honest, this caught me by surprise. I hadn't really been following the anime adaptation at all. I...I've been watching City (The Animation). It's the next series by the guy who made Nichijou. To be honest, this caught me by surprise. I hadn't really been following the anime adaptation at all. I had read and mostly enjoyed the manga, but the anime is like 10x better. It's possibly one of the best animated anime I've watched, period. Not to mention that they are nailing the timing of the comedy (which can sometimes suffer in comedic manga adaptations).
It sucks that it doesn't look like it's catching on that much. It's obvious that KyoAni is spending a lot of money on the show, so unless it's a big hit it probably won't be getting a second season. It's hard to tell if it's just that the western audience doesn't care as much though. It's definitely a style of comedy that I don't think will appeal to everyone.
I'd recommend City if you enjoyed Nichijou. City is more ambitious with it's scope, it has a much larger cast, with a lot of clever intertwining of storylines. It takes the same kind of approach as Nichijou and uses it to quickly jump between set pieces all over the City, which can be a little jarring, but generally comes together well. The latest episode featured a really impressive simultaneous cut of like 8 different character groups all at once, plus some claymation/stop motion smoothly blended with animation.
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Comment on Kindle modding wiki in ~books
tesseractcat LinkIf you don't already have an ereader, consider getting a Kobo device, instead of a Kindle. The Kobo ereaders are much more modding friendly, so there's no need to jailbreak or worry about an...If you don't already have an ereader, consider getting a Kobo device, instead of a Kindle. The Kobo ereaders are much more modding friendly, so there's no need to jailbreak or worry about an update bricking your device.
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Comment on Looking for the PC equivalent of Garage Band in ~creative
tesseractcat LinkUnfortunately there aren't that many good DAWs targeted at novices. If you do want to dive into a DAW however, I recommend Reaper (which is the WinRAR of DAWs, aka it has an indefinite evaluation...Unfortunately there aren't that many good DAWs targeted at novices. If you do want to dive into a DAW however, I recommend Reaper (which is the WinRAR of DAWs, aka it has an indefinite evaluation period). It's not super easy to use, but also not terribly hard to learn, especially if you're not doing anything complex. If you do go this route, I also recommend the synth/plugin Dexed.
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Comment on Have you made a video game? Can I play it? in ~games
tesseractcat LinkI've made a bunch of prototypes but never got all that close to releasing anything real. I'm pretty happy with what I've put up on my itch though: https://tesseractcat.itch.io/. I'd say I'm most...I've made a bunch of prototypes but never got all that close to releasing anything real. I'm pretty happy with what I've put up on my itch though: https://tesseractcat.itch.io/. I'd say I'm most proud of my concept for a flipnote style heist game, and a somewhat unique 3d modelling/drawing software.
My new years resolution was to put a game on steam but I don't think that's going to end up happening -.-
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Comment on "The Bullshit Machines" - A free humanities course on LLMs for college freshmen from UW professors in ~humanities
tesseractcat Link ParentI think you're right to be skeptical, and I didn't mean to present Andrej Karpathy himself as an unbiased figure, however I believe that if you watch the video you'll find that it is much less...I think you're right to be skeptical, and I didn't mean to present Andrej Karpathy himself as an unbiased figure, however I believe that if you watch the video you'll find that it is much less biased than the linked article.
For me, the biggest thing is what is the best deal I can get right now. So I don't look too much at when the various chips were released, just what the best value I can get at a certain price point is. It may not be 'fair' that Apple released their chips first, but on the other hand it's not exactly fair to compare the base price for Macbooks when they upcharge quite a bit for storage (and continue to sell base models with only 256GB).
The math is definitely different if you only compare new laptops, however my original post was regarding used laptops primarily.
I believe Intel and AMD are neck-and-neck in the laptop CPU space, with Intel gaining an edge recently.