aetherious's recent activity
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Comment on How do you take notes while reading? Do you have a “marginalia” process? What has helped you learn better and retain new knowledge? in ~creative
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Comment on How do you take notes while reading? Do you have a “marginalia” process? What has helped you learn better and retain new knowledge? in ~creative
aetherious Link ParentThanks for sharing this! I've been manually copy-pasting my highlights from the My Clippings file to Obsidian but this will save me quite some time.Thanks for sharing this! I've been manually copy-pasting my highlights from the My Clippings file to Obsidian but this will save me quite some time.
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Comment on Earth Day 2024 megathread in ~enviro
aetherious LinkSoundsRight This is ironic considering the other recent post about Spotify lowering artist commissions, but there's an initiative with UN that made Nature an artist so all tracks listing Nature as...SoundsRight
This is ironic considering the other recent post about Spotify lowering artist commissions, but there's an initiative with UN that made Nature an artist so all tracks listing Nature as an artist have the money from them go to conservation efforts. I am not active on any social media so I'm not sure how else they've promoted it, but the website is interesting. -
Comment on Instagram generated almost 30% of Meta’s revenue in early 2022 in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentWhatsApp does directly generate revenue. It has WhatsApp Business API for companies to broadcast messages to customers and have two-way conversation. It has a per message charge, which varies by...WhatsApp does directly generate revenue. It has WhatsApp Business API for companies to broadcast messages to customers and have two-way conversation. It has a per message charge, which varies by region. Over the last two years, it's grown since Meta opened up their API in May 2022 and more tools popped up for businesses to use to send messages through. It's a small fraction of their revenue currently, but they are focused on increasing it.
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Comment on Megathread: April Fools’ Day 2024 on the internet in ~talk
aetherious LinkFrom a book publishing professional services marketplace, ReedsyMatch: A Revolutionary Dating App for WritersFrom a book publishing professional services marketplace, ReedsyMatch: A Revolutionary Dating App for Writers
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
aetherious Link ParentThanks for clarifying! Repeating free trial wouldn't work for me because then I wouldn't integrate the paid features into my regular workflow. Since research is something I have to do...Thanks for clarifying! Repeating free trial wouldn't work for me because then I wouldn't integrate the paid features into my regular workflow. Since research is something I have to do consistently, I like having a particular process that always just works.
I would second the suggestion @skybrian gave to talk to actual users because a very small percentage of your free subscribers are likely to convert to paid subscribers. Free is good for reaching a wider audience but ultimately, the ones who pay would be the users you would want to focus on and spend the most time understanding how to meet their needs.
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
aetherious (edited )Link ParentAs someone who uses one of those free tab management extensions and a few other similar tools that have a freemium business model, I can give you my two cents on this. The cycling through the free...As someone who uses one of those free tab management extensions and a few other similar tools that have a freemium business model, I can give you my two cents on this.
The cycling through the free and paid features would be a deal-breaker for me in both your scenarios because the number of days of using paid features isn't as important to me as the consistency. I wouldn't want to keep track of when features would stop working for me and then restart again. This would be break my usual research workflow. Your assumption that would upgrade to get rid of the inconvenience might be faulty, since they might just uninstall and look at other alternatives. A regular adoption is first necessary for me to consider paying for a tool, otherwise if it's too frustrating to deal with in the trial period, I would stop using it.
A much better option for me would be a clear free trial that tells you which features are paid and won't be available after the trial period. I've seen some implement a refer people to unlock paid features - you could perhaps explore this to give free users access to paid features.
PS - Wouldn't you use some sort of P2P alternative to tildes and reddit by any chance?
I'm guessing you're referring to Aether? I know of it but never used it myself, my username just has to do with the word itself rather than any particular reference.
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Comment on Non-fictional books about getting to know emotions? in ~books
aetherious LinkYou might want to try Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience by Brené Brown. It's structed like a dictionary of emotions. I haven't read her other...You might want to try Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience by Brené Brown. It's structed like a dictionary of emotions. I haven't read her other books since I wasn't sure I would connect with her other writing, but I found this incredibly insightful. It's around 300 pages and it's more about langauge of emotions rather than connecting with them, but it's still worth the read.
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Comment on Who makes money when AI reads the internet for us? in ~tech
aetherious LinkI'm curious about how monetization will change in the near future as a result of this. As a reader/user, I strongly prefer reading these AI-generated summaries because SEO-driven web had become a...I'm curious about how monetization will change in the near future as a result of this. As a reader/user, I strongly prefer reading these AI-generated summaries because SEO-driven web had become a bane on the usefulness of search engines with a lot of cluttered information just filled with keywords to rank higher and get clicks to serve ads rather than focus on actually providing useful information. I can't say I feel particularly bad for the websites that published low-quality keyword-stuffed content that dominates search engine result pages but I can empathize with publications that don't get the engagement they deserve for their original content but I don't see this AI summary feature going away anytime soon so I am eager to see some smart people figure out workarounds to find some fair monetization.
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Comment on Online anonymity: study found ‘stable pseudonyms’ created a more civil environment than real user names in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentI think there's also something to be said about real names reducing the barrier between your online identity and real life identity, which makes people over-invested in the opinions they share...I think there's also something to be said about real names reducing the barrier between your online identity and real life identity, which makes people over-invested in the opinions they share since it's tied to their personal reputations and they can't go back on what they've said in the past even if it was misguided. Having measured discussions then is difficult when any dissenting opinions are viewed as a personal attack, so you would only get more and more entrenched in whatever initial opinion you held. Most people I know are not great at admitting when they're wrong and I can't imagine it's easier to do that if all of your opinions are documented online with your real name.
Social media does also make it feel like you have to share your opinions and build your "personal brand" when you see so many people do it, so going from sharing professional opinions to genocide debates seems just like an evolution of that. I wouldn't even link this to intelligence, social media companies invest a lot of money into increasing engagement to tap into all sorts of different psychographics.
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Comment on In search of approachable, readable philosophy (or philosophy-adjacent) books to help me navigate the world in ~books
aetherious LinkI would like to recommend How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question by Mike Schur. It focuses on ethics but I found it helpful as a very accessible introduction to different...I would like to recommend How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question by Mike Schur. It focuses on ethics but I found it helpful as a very accessible introduction to different philosophers and also very pertinent to finding meaning in terms of being a better person. I am biased since I loved The Good Place and pretty much all the shows Mike Schur has been behind and his humor is right up my alley but if I was to be unbiased, I would still say that it makes philosophy accessible. Some might find it too simple but as an inteoduction, it's great.
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Comment on OpenAI quietly removes ban on military use of its AI tools in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentThere's also a possibility they won't selectively censor and just give unrestricted access. There are so many uncensored LLMs now trained on all kinds of datasets and that's just those that are...There's also a possibility they won't selectively censor and just give unrestricted access. There are so many uncensored LLMs now trained on all kinds of datasets and that's just those that are open source, who knows what OpenAI models can do.
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Comment on Netflix reveals viewing data for its entire catalogue for the first time in ~tv
aetherious Link ParentFrom the shows I've watched, I'd rank them as: BEEF The Diplomat (personally, I liked this more but BEEF is an A24 production and certainly more artistic) Queen Charlotte You XO, Kitty Love is...From the shows I've watched, I'd rank them as:
- BEEF
- The Diplomat (personally, I liked this more but BEEF is an A24 production and certainly more artistic)
- Queen Charlotte
- You
- XO, Kitty
- Love is Blind (this might just qualify for the lowest out of all of them, it's terribly reality tv)
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Comment on OpenAI announces leadership transition in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentNot just the employees, but also the Microsoft executives found out just a few minutes before the announcement went out to the public.Not just the employees, but also the Microsoft executives found out just a few minutes before the announcement went out to the public.
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Comment on New Zealand Matrix fan film becomes oldest active torrent in the world in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentI've considered doing it but haven't got around to it but I might have to. There are several YouTube videos I enjoy that I would like to go back to.I've considered doing it but haven't got around to it but I might have to. There are several YouTube videos I enjoy that I would like to go back to.
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Comment on What have you been listening to this week? in ~music
aetherious LinkI've been on a kick of listening to the orchestral versions of some songs I like. They've all been so beautiful, I think this might be my new favorite style of cover (or would remix be more...I've been on a kick of listening to the orchestral versions of some songs I like. They've all been so beautiful, I think this might be my new favorite style of cover (or would remix be more appropriate?):
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Comment on New Zealand Matrix fan film becomes oldest active torrent in the world in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentJust speculating here but I assume torrents are still legally frowned upon. YouTube is considered more publically acceptable and accessible.Just speculating here but I assume torrents are still legally frowned upon. YouTube is considered more publically acceptable and accessible.
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Comment on New Zealand Matrix fan film becomes oldest active torrent in the world in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentI never saw the original but it's funny how the most random things will persist on the internet. You can never predict what will catch some people's fancy and they'll like it enough to continue...I never saw the original but it's funny how the most random things will persist on the internet. You can never predict what will catch some people's fancy and they'll like it enough to continue sharing it
yearsdecades later. -
Comment on New Zealand Matrix fan film becomes oldest active torrent in the world in ~tech
aetherious Link ParentThere's also something to be said about the longevity of torrent as an archival medium. There are so many videos in my YouTube playlists that have been taken down (along with the very frustrating...There's also something to be said about the longevity of torrent as an archival medium. There are so many videos in my YouTube playlists that have been taken down (along with the very frustrating aspect of it that doesn't even mention the title of the video when it's gone). Accounts get suspended, lost - what happens when the original uploader's account is inactive and isn't transferred to someone else? Torrents, on the other hand, continue on as long as someone is seeding them.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~games
aetherious Link ParentFair enough! I also played them for a while until it got repetitive. They're still games I go back to occasionally since they're great for when you want to unwind.Fair enough! I also played them for a while until it got repetitive. They're still games I go back to occasionally since they're great for when you want to unwind.
I use Obsidian to save all my notes. I started using it about 2 years ago when I came across the book How To Take Smart Notes by Sönke Ahrens. I don't use the Zettlekasten method exactly as mentioned in the book, but this was the book that finally made me stop using a bunch of different note-taking tools and consolidate it into one place where it's actually useful to me and something I can go back to instead of buried in a folder or app somewhere that I won't look at again. The biggest takeaway for me from this was that with a system in place, when you do sit down to write, you don't have to go looking for ideas or start research, because you will have a foundation to start with already if you've been saving everything that interests you.
The other big thing I've started doing because of this which has really helped is format-based categorization instead of topic-based categorization, which is much quicker. So I don't have to think about whether to put a book I read about psychology and history goes into which folder or about the most appropriate tags that summarize the book, I just add it to the Books folder. I have folders for almost all types of media I consume from movies to TV, because I like connecting ideas together from fiction and non-fiction as I write a bit of both.
As for other tools, I have Zotero on my laptop which I use as a web clipper of sorts since it saves local copies of web pages and PDFs along with citations, Omnivore on my phone as a read-it-later app, and for Kindle, the My Clippings file for the highlights which I was manually exporting every once in a while. All of this syncs into Obsidian, where I can then link to notes or even headings within the notes when I do write.