Tum's recent activity

  2. Comment on It's starting to look a lot like... Y2K in ~tech

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    Ah yes, null pointer strikes again. Maybe this will mean increased interest in Rust and ebpf?

    Ah yes, null pointer strikes again. Maybe this will mean increased interest in Rust and ebpf?

    3 votes

  3. Comment on Linux gaming and the Steam Summer Sale: What are your favorites? in ~games

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    I get a little overwhelmed with Dwarf Fortress. I love reading about it or watching someone who knows what they're doing build a fortress and follow the intricate stories being lived by their...

    I get a little overwhelmed with Dwarf Fortress. I love reading about it or watching someone who knows what they're doing build a fortress and follow the intricate stories being lived by their inhabitants... the only problem is I struggle to get to the level where I can become immersed in the social stories of my dwarfs.

    If anyone has a resource or guide to make this game a little less daunting to begin with I'd love to know!

    1 vote

  4. Comment on Spain has more green power than it can use in ~enviro

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    Or maybe they should expand the power transmission grid to countries without as much renewable energy (or have dams that can be filled).

    Or maybe they should expand the power transmission grid to countries without as much renewable energy (or have dams that can be filled).

    3 votes

  5. Comment on French power slumps as surging renewables push out atomic plants in ~enviro

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    I'm also confused about why they'd choose to shut off reactors as the economics of nuclear power plants is largely the time to build and associated capital costs, not the operating costs. You have...

    I'm also confused about why they'd choose to shut off reactors as the economics of nuclear power plants is largely the time to build and associated capital costs, not the operating costs. You have to pay interest rates regardless of if you run the reactor or not.

    Isn't the answer to renewable variability batteries:

    • Lithium ion for grid stabalisation/energy dense applications
    • Flow/hydro batteries to flatten the daily energy curve
    • Hydro batteries for long term fluctuations

    The problem is if these fluctuations are too large and you have no baseload to compensate you get over/under supply.

    edit: why aren't they using the transmission grid to move energy to countries who are using more expensive fossil fuels than shutting down nuclear power plants?

    7 votes

  6. Comment on The world’s most annoying man: Steven Pinker in ~humanities

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    I think this is Pinker's core argument. The idea is that social markets, trade and technological/medical progress are making life better for everyone and it's these trends which drive humanity...

    Pinker’s broad thesis is that, aside from a few unfortunate statistical blips like the Second World War and the rapid acceleration of climate change, for the most part life on Earth has been getting better all the time. Usually, he qualifies this by saying that Of Course There Are Still Terrible Problems and he’s Not Saying This Is The Best We Can Possibly Do

    I think this is Pinker's core argument. The idea is that social markets, trade and technological/medical progress are making life better for everyone and it's these trends which drive humanity forward. Yes, you can have bad or good policies, but as long as these underlying trends continue we can expect life to get better. The risks are that good or bad policies could disrupt/improve this.

    I feel the counter-argument people make is that he is saying everything is just peachy and if we just get out of the way everything will continue to get better. This clearly isn't the case. But if we apply rationality to the improvements we make hopefully we can positively augment these underlying trends.

    4 votes

  7. Comment on Ukrainians contemplate the once unthinkable: Losing the war with Russia in ~misc

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    If you only care about Ukraine having the equipment to defend itself then what really matters in this case is having the weapons and ammunition to hold out long enough for industrial capacity to...

    If you only care about Ukraine having the equipment to defend itself then what really matters in this case is having the weapons and ammunition to hold out long enough for industrial capacity to increase to the amount required for that defence. This isn't a request for unlimited support into the indefinite future, it's a request to bridge the gap until Europe has that capacity. This is Europe's hour of need, and it's not simply money that is needed.

    2 votes

  8. Comment on Ukrainians contemplate the once unthinkable: Losing the war with Russia in ~misc

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    The problem at the moment doesn't seem to be money, it's specific weapons and ammunition. Europe is giving Ukraine just about everything that isn't required for the bare minimum to defend...

    The problem at the moment doesn't seem to be money, it's specific weapons and ammunition. Europe is giving Ukraine just about everything that isn't required for the bare minimum to defend themselves. Germany is giving most of their air defence, many air forces are giving F16's and Gripens and they're so desperate for artillery shells that they're starting a fund to collectively buy it from abroad.

    At the moment they've reached the limit of their existing stockpiles and production capacity. Areas where they can scale up production is in modifying old weapons with cheap technology like drones and glide bombs, but this takes time and innovation.

    10 votes

  9. Comment on Fortress Europe isn’t working – Europe needs a workable migration strategy. Instead it’s attacking asylum seekers to placate the right. in ~misc

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    Here is the press release from the European Commission if you're interested. Also note that Europe plans to work with countries of origin to prevent smugglers from sending people to begin with....

    Here is the press release from the European Commission if you're interested. Also note that Europe plans to work with countries of origin to prevent smugglers from sending people to begin with. This isn't just about dangerous boat crossings.

    1 vote

  10. Comment on German state ditches Microsoft for Linux and LibreOffice in ~tech

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    Not entirely true. If you're making a commercial agreement the parties are bound by contract (or statute, if you legislate). I think the main benefit of open source is the ability to customise it...

    As The Document Foundation, the organization backing LibreOffice, put it, "The term digital sovereignty is very important here. If a public administration uses proprietary, closed software that can't be studied or modified, it is very difficult to know what happens to users' data."

    Not entirely true. If you're making a commercial agreement the parties are bound by contract (or statute, if you legislate). I think the main benefit of open source is the ability to customise it to your needs should you ever need to without having to make another commercial agreement. This is basically what copy-left contracts are doing: ensuring that - no matter what - you have the right to read and modify the code.

    edit: to be clear, I'm not saying either open source or proprietary source are better in all situations. When you buy software you're paying for someone else's development (which, if they have a lot of customers, can be considerable). If you're open source you either developing/extending it yourself or pay a vendor (like RedHat) to do it on your behalf.

    7 votes

  11. Comment on Steam Spring Sale suggestions in ~games

  12. Comment on Steam Spring Sale suggestions in ~games

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    Haha, sorry, it's been a very hot summer down under here! Changed!

    Haha, sorry, it's been a very hot summer down under here! Changed!

    6 votes

  13. Steam Spring Sale suggestions

    ~games Ask (recommendations)
    Steam Sale time again! Post any amazing games or hidden gems you think others would like. I'll start: Mr Shifty is an amazing 2d top-down that's crazy fun (especially for its price!). I'm about to...

    Steam Sale time again! Post any amazing games or hidden gems you think others would like. I'll start: Mr Shifty is an amazing 2d top-down that's crazy fun (especially for its price!). I'm about to get a SteamDeck, so am hunting these style of games in particular.

    42 votes

  14. Comment on Volodymyr Zelenskyy in bind over how to draft more troops as Russian forces advance in ~news

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    Probably a problem made even more difficult given the disparity in artillery and shells - both in the amount available and their attritional effect on the battlefield.

    Probably a problem made even more difficult given the disparity in artillery and shells - both in the amount available and their attritional effect on the battlefield.

    7 votes

  15. Comment on Forget technocrats - let's get some realitycrats in ~misc

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    I disagree: opening up the Italian Rail System to private competition has been a success. The formula seems to be: the state owns and maintains the lines, but there is open competition between...

    Trains aren't well suited to competitive pressures.

    I disagree: opening up the Italian Rail System to private competition has been a success. The formula seems to be: the state owns and maintains the lines, but there is open competition between operators; who each have the same base cost, so innovate to drive down prices and improve customer experience. This has led to lower fairs and more frequent trains, all while the operators also turn a profit.

    The choice isn't simply public or private; it's a regulated market, where state ownership of the underlying infrastructure provides a level playing field for operators to compete on.

    5 votes

  16. Comment on The US right’s underestimated brain in ~misc

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    How do you feel about recent student debt cancellation or subsidies for household adoption of clean energy? More broadly, investment in semiconductors and infrastructure along with the inflation...

    How do you feel about recent student debt cancellation or subsidies for household adoption of clean energy?

    More broadly, investment in semiconductors and infrastructure along with the inflation reduction act are intended to provide a broader economic and manufacturing base that should hopefully support American jobs.

    Yeah, the healthcare system isn’t ideal, but fixing it - when there are so many stake holders with financial interests - is no easy task. At least the poor have (somewhat expensive) coverage now, although there is definitely room for improvement.

    13 votes

  17. Comment on Can hydrogen help the world reach net zero? in ~enviro

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    I'm also sceptical about using hydrogen for long-haul travel: there just isn't enough energy density. But for short-haul flights it might make sense. There are infrastructure problems that could...

    I used to think hydrogen planes made sense, and they still might be an option simply by default, but realistically they make no sense in the short or long term.

    I'm also sceptical about using hydrogen for long-haul travel: there just isn't enough energy density. But for short-haul flights it might make sense. There are infrastructure problems that could be solved using short-haul hydrogen flights: mountainous regions such as Norway or New Zealand come to mind, where building tunnels and roads to service low population regions doesn't make economic sense.

  18. Comment on Can hydrogen help the world reach net zero? in ~enviro

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    This video was released 7 months ago, but nicely summarises the future potential production and use of emission free hydrogen. While it is clear that if you can use electricity, you should, some...

    This video was released 7 months ago, but nicely summarises the future potential production and use of emission free hydrogen. While it is clear that if you can use electricity, you should, some industries are difficult to electrify (such as steel and energy dense applications such as aviation), and for these hydrogen might be the answer.

    9 votes

  20. Comment on Five of the best Terry Pratchett books and suggestions for how to read Pratchett's work in ~books

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    Small Gods Thief of Time Night Watch Going Postal Making Money Of the 5, I think Small Gods is my favourite. That and Thief of Time are interesting takes on interesting concepts, and the Moist...

    Small Gods
    Thief of Time
    Night Watch
    Going Postal
    Making Money

    Of the 5, I think Small Gods is my favourite. That and Thief of Time are interesting takes on interesting concepts, and the Moist books are a great take on the nature of currency and money. Obviously the characters in all 5 are incredibly funny and interesting; but you can expect that as standard for Terry Pratchett.

    12 votes