Wes's recent activity
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Comment on Don't trust Firefox to backup your session in ~tech
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Comment on Tildes Book Club - March 2025 - Hyperion by Dan Simmons in ~books
Wes LinkMy thoughts are going to be very late this month as I've only just started the book on Thursday. I finally finished off my previous series though, so I see no more roadblocks along the way. I'm...My thoughts are going to be very late this month as I've only just started the book on Thursday. I finally finished off my previous series though, so I see no more roadblocks along the way.
I'm actually very excited to read Hyperion, and to discuss it with all of you in the near-future. Save some discussion topics for me!
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Comment on V-Rising dev update #29: Weapons of the night in ~games
Wes Link ParentIt's definitely an oddball of a genre. A little ARPG, a little Terraria, a little building, and a little resource gathering. That happens to click for me, but I understand that it won't for...It's definitely an oddball of a genre. A little ARPG, a little Terraria, a little building, and a little resource gathering. That happens to click for me, but I understand that it won't for everyone. If even one of those aspects turn you off, the whole game might too.
When I play with my group, we tend to tweak the server properties to reduce the grind. So farming materials is faster, players can carry more items, and waygates allow teleporting with any items in the inventory. We do however keep the actual combat difficulty high, and on the last server we played on brutal difficulty, which was great.
I'm afraid I can't comment on the controls because I play on KB+M, though WASD is actually my preferred control scheme for ARPGs. I'm super happy that Diablo 4 and Path of Exile 2 have finally added that as an option. Shame to hear it's not as comfortable on controller, though. Hopefully they'll add some more customization on that front in this upcoming update.
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Comment on V-Rising dev update #29: Weapons of the night in ~games
Wes LinkA new teaser video was just released. The version 1.1 update is named Invaders of Oakveil, and will be releasing April 28th.A new teaser video was just released. The version 1.1 update is named Invaders of Oakveil, and will be releasing April 28th.
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Comment on LocalSend: a free, open-source, cross-platform app to share files to nearby devices in ~tech
Wes (edited )LinkPreviously I've been using ShareDrop for quick transfers to mobile. Much to my surprise, it was "acquired by Limewire" (??) last month and is now considered badware. So that's not great. So in my...Previously I've been using ShareDrop for quick transfers to mobile. Much to my surprise, it was "acquired by Limewire" (??) last month and is now considered badware. So that's not great.
So in my mind, this recommendation comes at a perfect time. Though it maddens me that with all of our technology and protocols, that local file transfers are somehow still not a solved problem.
I did see in a recent Microsoft post that they're introducing some kind of share feature in the near-future though. Unclear exactly how it'll work, but hopefully that makes it possible without any additional software at all.
edit: Ran a few tests with LocalSend. Works quite smoothly!
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Comment on Enough with the bullshit (a letter to fellow bullshit sufferers) in ~tech
Wes Link ParentWhat a wild take! Absolute brain rot! Sorry, just kidding. In all seriousness, I agree with you completely. And as a side note, I really do appreciate the consideration you put into your comments...An exaggerated, hyperbolic writing style is native to the Internet, so common that it seeps into everything.
What a wild take! Absolute brain rot!
Sorry, just kidding. In all seriousness, I agree with you completely. And as a side note, I really do appreciate the consideration you put into your comments here on Tildes.
I find the issue often goes beyond just hyperbole, but also shows up in how we understand and discuss topics online. It’s so much easier to simplify things into a black and white view, and to ignore anything that doesn’t fit. That’s just how we’re wired. I spent a lot of my early years learning about the scientific method and how to overcome human biases, but still it takes mental energy to look at something from all sides, or to interrogate myself about why I've come to believe something.
Along that line, I think it’s easy to forget that not everyone has had that experience, or even recognizes the need for it. Many people grew up in a world where the goal wasn't to learn from the argument, but to win it. Sometimes that means shouting louder than the other person. Sometimes that means attacking or discrediting them.
For this reason, it feels like every online debate has been turned up to 11, no matter the subject. Even mildly-contentious topics become impossible to discuss with nuance. I find this is true even when two people largely agree on a topic, but still come down on opposite sides.
Take oil pipelines - are they a bad thing? On the one hand, they reduce the number of trucks and ships needed to transport oil, which will get moved either way. In the short term, they reduce pollutants. However, there's also market forces to consider. Pipelines make oil more affordable and thus more economical for consumers. In the longer term, this disincentivizes a migration to greener sources of energy. On this issue, two like-minded people may come to completely different conclusions based on their knowledge and priorities.
It seems so often that when this occurs, there’s an instinct to assume bad faith on the other participant. Instead of trying to understand why someone sees an issue the way they do, they treat disagreement as a proof of moral failure. The battle lines have already been drawn, and don't you dare step over them.
Unfortunately, social media has really acted to amplify this problem. Online voices are louder than ever, and forming insular groups is even easier. Can you imagine stepping into a Facebook group devoted to combating pipelines and trying to discuss the pros and cons of their construction? That's just not how the internet works today. There's no room for it.
What I find especially sad is that even attempting to explore the gray area between black and white - to understand what your opponent is saying, is often enough to get you expelled from your own tribe. You have failed the purity test. The Republican who votes for a progressive issue is marked a RINO forever.
If you're nodding along, it's worth acknowledging that this is also something we're especially guilty of on the political left. We are quick to pass judgement, and to use morality as a cudgel against those whose views do not completely align with our own. I have the strong impression this approach can be more alienating than persuasive.
Whether we're debating with our own kin or trying to cross party lines, though, I still believe that people are not as far apart as they seem. Even when they vehemently disagree on an issue, it's often for more subtle reasons that either party recognizes. They're just not given the time to explore the argument and understand where those differences come from.
I definitely agree that online communication is not in a good place right now. If more discussions were approached with curiosity rather than hostility, I expect we'd all be having more positive and productive exchanges.
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Comment on Enough with the bullshit (a letter to fellow bullshit sufferers) in ~tech
Wes (edited )Link ParentYou can check. For Google Ads, for instance, there's a setting in your account settings to disable personalization. You can also edit your retention period for how long to store data history....Have I not opted into all the “personalized ads” options yet? Or am just that weird of a person that they can’t figure out what it is that I’m really interested in seeing?
You can check. For Google Ads, for instance, there's a setting in your account settings to disable personalization. You can also edit your retention period for how long to store data history.
Since you're using Chrome, you can also edit your ads privacy permissions. This will have your browser report ad interests in a more privacy-preserving way than individual ad companies tracking you, though turning it on doesn't guarantee that they won't also do that (until some better legislation comes along).
chrome://settings/adPrivacyA final setting to check is third-party cookies. These are often used by third-party ad networks for sharing data. Google has been trying to remove this feature for years, but the CMA has prohibited them from doing so. They finally just made it a user toggle in a recent version of Chrome.
chrome://settings/cookiesI wish you the best of luck in improving the accuracy of your ads. And I apologize to everybody else whose faces are curling in disgust at this notion.
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Comment on Trapping misbehaving bots in an AI Labyrinth in ~tech
Wes Link ParentI definitely remember learning (and then having to unlearn) a number of false things from school. Damn that map of the tongue's taste buds! Actually, hallucination is not caused by learning on bad...I definitely remember learning (and then having to unlearn) a number of false things from school. Damn that map of the tongue's taste buds!
I think LLMs hallucinate because people 'hallucinate' and get confused too.
Actually, hallucination is not caused by learning on bad data. It's more so the result of how LLMs work as a fundamental concept. I'll not get too deep in the weeds here because there's plenty of better explanations online, but the basic idea is that they are statistical prediction machines. They don't inherently "know" anything, or have a database of facts. Instead, they have a model of token relationships. Tokens are like words, except they better map to the idea of concepts or things. The token for "dog" has some proximity to the token for "cute". These relationships are built by scanning a lot of data (like the web), and slightly adjusting the model weights every time they read something new. Every page, comment, or sentence makes just a tiny tweak to the existing model.
Once you've completed training, you can move on to inference. This is the step where you enter a prompt, like "I think dogs are...", and let the language model assign probabilities to the next word. With enough training data, you start to see useful and meaningful predictions.
Current models take this further so that instead of just completing thoughts, they can answer questions or other prompts. They work on the same principle of statistical token generation, but with a little work behind the scenes to make them conversational.
With enough training data, these models aren't limited to just writing reasonable sentences. They begin to develop emergent abilities like writing code, reasoning out problems, or transforming data. They are not suited to certain tasks such as performing math operations, or counting characters in words.
I personally don't understand why an AI crawler would even want the information from some blog post by some Joe Schmoe in the first place, especially over something like scientific journals.
Microsoft Phi is a Small Language Model that trains specifically on high-value data. Journals, papers, etc. The result is a language model that boasts high benchmark scores and does extremely well in some domains, but fails in conversational and natural language processing abilities. This kind of model is useful for specific niches, but falls down in applications like natural language processing (ie. actually understanding the user). Joe Schmoe's blog can still be of help in understanding how people interact online.
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Comment on Is there a way to filter out all link posts? in ~tildes
Wes LinkThis bit of CSS should also filter out any links that haven't been tagged yet. Since it's a client-side tweak though, it'll mean an inconsistent number of results are returned per-page. It can be...This bit of CSS should also filter out any links that haven't been tagged yet. Since it's a client-side tweak though, it'll mean an inconsistent number of results are returned per-page. It can be applied via extensions like Stylus.
.topic-listing li:has(.topic-title > a[href^="http"]) { display: none; } -
Comment on Do topic logs get deleted after a period of time? in ~tildes
Wes Link ParentMods (ie. users with certain permissions) cannot edit what you post. They'll never gain the ability to edit your comments on the site. They can't even remove comments right now, though such an...Mods (ie. users with certain permissions) cannot edit what you post. They'll never gain the ability to edit your comments on the site. They can't even remove comments right now, though such an option could come in the future.
They can however make changes to topics that you submit (for example, by swapping out a link). That is because submissions are not specifically "owned" by the submitter. It shouldn't be assumed that a link, title, or listed tags were always chosen by the original author. The idea is that they are curated and maintained by the community at large.
It is of course possible that Deimos himself could make changes in the database if he really wanted to. But in such a situation, a topic log would make no difference anyway.
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Comment on Do topic logs get deleted after a period of time? in ~tildes
Wes (edited )LinkYes, topic logs are deleted after 30 days. I understand that the idea is to avoid storing anything that isn't necessary as a matter of course. Similarly, individualized voting data is also deleted...Yes, topic logs are deleted after 30 days. I understand that the idea is to avoid storing anything that isn't necessary as a matter of course. Similarly, individualized voting data is also deleted after 30 days, and only the aggregate score is stored.
I'm sure I've seen Deimos comment more specifically on the reason for topic log cleanup (something about it no longer being pertinent after a month?), but I may be misremembering that part.
edit: Here's the announcement post with a few more details.
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Comment on How do you customize Tildes? in ~tildes
Wes LinkI wrote a few ad hoc CSS customizations. Here's one I use for better highlighting permalinked comments, and finding them when they're hidden beneath a collapsed parent (visual demo). /* Highlight...I wrote a few ad hoc CSS customizations. Here's one I use for better highlighting permalinked comments, and finding them when they're hidden beneath a collapsed parent (visual demo).
/* Highlight anchored comment, and any parents hiding it */ .comment:target > .comment-itself { outline: 1px solid var(--alert-color); } .is-comment-collapsed:has(:target) { outline: 2px solid var(--alert-color); } -
Comment on V-Rising dev update #29: Weapons of the night in ~games
Wes LinkI'm not sure if we have any V-Rising fans in the audience, but I get excited for each major release of this game. It scratches that powerful ARPG itch for me while bringing in a sense of...I'm not sure if we have any V-Rising fans in the audience, but I get excited for each major release of this game. It scratches that powerful ARPG itch for me while bringing in a sense of progression that I just don't get from other titles. Instead of focusing on "number go up", V-Rising has you frequently unlocking new abilities, structures, and forms of domination to really drive the power fantasy of being a vampire.
This blog post isn't a substantial one, but does show some of the new weapon types they're working on, as well as the system for coatings (weapon buffs). In previous posts, they covered the new potion system and weapon crafting mechanics. It seems like they're putting a lot of emphasis on letting you design your own builds with the upcoming 1.1 release.
I'm looking forward to jumping in again, and checking out the new map region and V-Bloods (bosses). No release date yet, though this one hints at it being "close at hand".
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V-Rising dev update #29: Weapons of the night
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Comment on US federal judge blocks Donald Trump administration from banning transgender people from military service in ~lgbt
Wes (edited )LinkAfter a month of crazy blanket bans and targeted attacks, I really hope we start seeing a wave of cases like this. Cases where the system has been allowed time to work, and obstacles are now being...After a month of crazy blanket bans and targeted attacks, I really hope we start seeing a wave of cases like this. Cases where the system has been allowed time to work, and obstacles are now being put in place where needed to slow the madness.
I have been losing faith in the checks and balances that seemed so integral to the system, but seeing stories like this does bring me some optimism again.
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Comment on eBay privacy policy update and AI opt-out in ~tech
Wes Link ParentYou remain the owner in the most significant way, which is that you may continue to use, adapt, or move your content. It's still yours. You can copy it to a blog post, or post it to another...That already pretty much makes me not the owner of my content for most practical purposes
You remain the owner in the most significant way, which is that you may continue to use, adapt, or move your content. It's still yours. You can copy it to a blog post, or post it to another website, or make any changes to it that you like. If reddit were the owner as suggested above, that wouldn't be possible.
Bear in mind that any site requires a license to store, display, and distribute content at the very minimum, Tildes included. These are basic prerequisites to hosting user content on a website. Most go further to include adapting/transformation, which is required for showing previews of posts or different display formats. And also copying, which is required for common features like caching or CDNs that duplicate data for performance reasons.
Reddit does go further than most in regards to the ability to sublicense and share with partners, which Tildes does not do. But the bulk of the bolded text is completely normal and required for this kind of website.
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Comment on eBay privacy policy update and AI opt-out in ~tech
Wes Link ParentIf you're talking about creating posts and comments, that content remain owned by you. The user agreement says that you grant reddit a license to use, store, display, and distribute them, but that...Reddit is a company that I haven't felt the need to quit, at least not yet, but I've been mindful about my behaviour there from the very beginning because it clearly states in their TOS that they own all content that I create on that platform.
If you're talking about creating posts and comments, that content remain owned by you. The user agreement says that you grant reddit a license to use, store, display, and distribute them, but that you remain the content owner.
Tildes works the same way.
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Comment on Have you ever witnessed the Butterfly Effect? in ~life
Wes Link ParentHaha, that's great! Thanks for the update, and I'm glad that you're both excited by it! I wish we had a stronger street food culture here in the West. I don't know how they do it, but somehow just...Haha, that's great! Thanks for the update, and I'm glad that you're both excited by it!
I wish we had a stronger street food culture here in the West. I don't know how they do it, but somehow just cooking or eating outside seems to unlock flavours that I never thought possible.
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Comment on Have you ever witnessed the Butterfly Effect? in ~life
Wes Link ParentI'm very curious. Do you mind sharing which country/region you took the trip to? I'm always interested in knowing where there's great food and feels.I'm very curious. Do you mind sharing which country/region you took the trip to? I'm always interested in knowing where there's great food and feels.
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Comment on What are your personal reading "rules?" in ~books
Wes LinkI read entirely by feel. Not braille - but in choosing my next book. If I've not read scifi in a while, I start getting an itch to read about other worlds and new species. If I've been reading too...I read entirely by feel. Not braille - but in choosing my next book. If I've not read scifi in a while, I start getting an itch to read about other worlds and new species. If I've been reading too much "light" content, I start to crave something more intellectual, to make me think. I try to keep enough books available that I always have something that fits my mood when starting something new.
Usually if I'm reading a series, I'll stick with it. I tend to be very forgetful, and need that continuity to hold onto the deeper stories. For that reason I often hold off on starting series until they're already completed, or nearing completion. For example, as much as I know I'll enjoy James S. A. Corey's new The Mercy of Gods, I'm holding off for at least a few more years before I jump into it.
I typically read just one book at a time, though currently I have a short story collection (Dangerous Women) I've been slowly working through. I will sometimes dip into it when I need a small breather from other reading, and when I'm not ready for something larger yet. I might carry this pattern forward into the future and choose another short story collection for brief respites.
I generally prefer audio over text when it's available. I read at night, and it allows me to close my eyes and start drifting off to sleep. Sometimes this means I don't make much progress. Other days, if I can't sleep, I might get through two weeks of reading in one burst. So my rate is very inconsistent.
I find that with audiobooks, the narrator is very important. I've begun to develop favourites and least-favourites. In some cases, I've even slotted them into theme. For example, George Guidall with his gravelly voice was a perfect fit for the dusty gunslinger in The Dark Tower. However, it did not work so well in The Left Hand of Darkness, which explores gender norms and their role in society.
I don't often re-read books, though I would like to. There's some titles I loved the first time through and I'd like to experience again. However, there's so much left to read, I guess I feel a bit guilty about "wasting" my reading time. Perhaps I should give it a go, and see if it really does feel wasted.
I use Goodreads to track books I've read, and those I'm interested in. I don't leave ratings, post updates, or use any of the social features, really. It's just a database for me that somebody else has to curate. I've added a couple people as friends on the site though, and I've realized that doing so has made me feel slightly judged in my reading choices. I don't think I've changed my patterns in response, but it is interesting to me!
Me too. It's the kind of muscle memory that can only be ingrained after a terrible loss. Having to retype that book report in middle school taught me a valuable lesson about the fragility of life, and of Microsoft Word.
Like @creesch above, I would never trust a browser session to exist forever. "Old tabs" are not a storage mechanism, nor a replacement for bookmarks. I treat them primarily as a short-term todo list.
I used to be a heavy tab user, but I found that workflow was actually very detrimental to me. I felt disorganized, and wasted too much of my time "managing tabs" instead of accomplishing tasks. When others would ask what I'm up to, I'd sigh and say "Just working on my tabs...", while absently clicking through the links my past-self opened for me.
This isn't a good approach. Instead of focusing on what I wanted to do, I was stuck going through all of those YouTube videos I'd opened, articles I thought I was interested in but didn't ever feel up to reading, and Wikipedia journeys that spiraled out of control. Hundreds of fleeting interests from months ago, still weighing me down today.
I think it's largely a problem of seeing the potential value from consuming content (learning, entertainment, whatever), but not being willing to pay the upfront cost (time and energy). Yes, you could watch that hour long video on the Common Myths of World War II, but are you actually interested enough in the subject to do so? If you're not interested now, why do you think you will be in three months time? It's like we keep making the wrong value assessment over and over, and it causes things to pile up. It's better to make a decision and move on. Do or don't watch the video. Don't just kick it down the road.
Nowadays, I've adopted a strategy of making a point of closing tabs when I'm done with them, and to do frequent clean ups to prevent them from piling up. At the moment, Tildes is my only open tab outside of a couple pinned forever tabs for email and Slack.
I still have friends that are tabaholics. I wish I could say "recovering", but that's not really true. They still spend hours "managing tabs" every day. They still need to say "Hold on, let me close my browser" when we try to play games, because they're inexplicably out of memory. I ask them, "Why not just declare 'tab bankruptcy' and simply close them all?". They look at me with horror in their eyes.
I no longer see the appeal of that approach. It's a weight I'd rather do without.