andrewsw's recent activity
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Comment on YouTube is testing a three-strikes policy for ad blocking in ~tech
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Comment on YouTube is testing a three-strikes policy for ad blocking in ~tech
andrewsw Link ParentYes! I grew up on broadcast television. A few ads in my show is not a big deal. But I'll be damned if I'm going to watch android and ios bots argue about who has the better phone for 2 minutes....Change the "skip ads" button to "skip this ad". I'll watch a 15 second ad, I won't watch a 2 minute ad.
Yes! I grew up on broadcast television. A few ads in my show is not a big deal. But I'll be damned if I'm going to watch android and ios bots argue about who has the better phone for 2 minutes.
The other day, I'm not even joking, I got an ad that was 45 minutes .... yes 45 MINUTES!! ... of some mega-church preacher. For a 3 minute video.
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Comment on Nostalgia -- what programs do you miss? in ~tech
andrewsw Link ParentGnuCash is a solid application that offers true double-entry book-keeping, something Quicken does not offer (or didn't last time I used it in earnest). It was fun to contribute to -- it served my...GnuCash is a solid application that offers true double-entry book-keeping, something Quicken does not offer (or didn't last time I used it in earnest).
It was fun to contribute to -- it served my needs in my small business, and also scratched my programming itches at the time. We still use it, today.
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Comment on Do you think life was better in the past? in ~talk
andrewsw LinkIn terms of self-actualizing lifestyles -- where people work for their own good and the good of their neighbors and family -- I think we probably peaked somewhere around the late bronze age (no,...In terms of self-actualizing lifestyles -- where people work for their own good and the good of their neighbors and family -- I think we probably peaked somewhere around the late bronze age (no, I'm not kidding). Ideally, we'd go back to that lifestyle, for most people, with the addition of modern medicine and communication. This would probably require a pretty significant reduction in the population, but it seems like we're gonna take care of that pretty soon, anyway.
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Comment on Are phones really listening to us at all times? in ~tech
andrewsw LinkI think the main issue, that everyone is skirting around, is we can't trust anyone to tell us the truth here. And, we can't trust them because every time we turn around we learn another way that...I think the main issue, that everyone is skirting around, is we can't trust anyone to tell us the truth here.
And, we can't trust them because every time we turn around we learn another way that the surveillance corporate-state is watching us and lying to us about it. They simply cannot be trusted.
So, for all the people saying it's not practical, there's not evidence, etc. They're correct. But, they're also missing the point -- we absolutely cannot trust anyone.
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Comment on Remote work to wipe out $800 billion from office values, McKinsey says in ~life
andrewsw Link ParentWe went fully remote early in the pandemic and haven't looked back. It expanded our applicant pool (when we were hiring... sigh), enabled presence in more time zones, and allowed sales to be...We went fully remote early in the pandemic and haven't looked back. It expanded our applicant pool (when we were hiring... sigh), enabled presence in more time zones, and allowed sales to be reasonably local with prospects. It's been a huge win for the company, in terms of rent savings, and for the employees.
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Comment on Remote work to wipe out $800 billion from office values, McKinsey says in ~life
andrewsw Link ParentThis, 1000 times. I really don't care if a bunch of real estate developers lose money. That money was all ill-gotten gains from paving paradise, anyway.This, 1000 times. I really don't care if a bunch of real estate developers lose money. That money was all ill-gotten gains from paving paradise, anyway.
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Comment on Nostalgia -- what programs do you miss? in ~tech
andrewsw LinkI might be the first one to say this, but... Word Perfect 5.x -- DOS based word processor with something akin to tags for formatting, e.g. {bold}emphasized words{/bold} except I don't remember the...I might be the first one to say this, but...
- Word Perfect 5.x -- DOS based word processor with something akin to tags for formatting, e.g.
{bold}emphasized words{/bold}except I don't remember the exact syntax - Intuit's Quicken and Quickbooks, from before Intuit realized they were feature-complete, and had reached market saturation, and began enshittifying them. That was super disappointing, but it drove me to start using GnuCash, and working on the reporting system, therein, got me back into writing software, so thanks Intuit!
- Word Perfect 5.x -- DOS based word processor with something akin to tags for formatting, e.g.
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Comment on Men are lost. Here’s a map out of the wilderness. in ~life.men
andrewsw Link ParentI find this whole conversation super interesting. You're talking about (a version of) choice paralysis here. I wonder about the impact of global social networks here. Not only is there a diversity...I find this whole conversation super interesting.
You're talking about (a version of) choice paralysis here. I wonder about the impact of global social networks here. Not only is there a diversity of choice of masculine examples within a given culture, there's an entire planet's worth of choices as well. We're drowning in examples from all corners of the globe, all economic strata, etc. Throw in the breakdown of local cultural norms that supported developing young people into fully realized adults (ignoring how terrible some of those norms were, especially ina modern context), and it's easy to see how there's a lack of direction.
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Comment on Men are lost. Here’s a map out of the wilderness. in ~life.men
andrewsw Link ParentAnd, let's not forget there's an economic component to this as well: the jobs that would have been available to these young men are gone, or pay starvation wages. So, not only is there a lack of...The group of young men we're talking about is generally not the highest functioning group to begin with. Broadly speaking, they would have experienced purpose and success in previous generations simply by their place as cis men atop the social structure. I don't think their struggles are about being themselves, it's about finding themselves unimportant.
And, let's not forget there's an economic component to this as well: the jobs that would have been available to these young men are gone, or pay starvation wages. So, not only is there a lack of cultural direction, there's a lack of economic direction as well. So, even if the cultural issues were solved, these folks would still be suffering.
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Comment on Plastics have shaped nearly every aspect of society. Now what? in ~enviro
andrewsw Link ParentThe commonality between all these things is people. People hurt the environment.The commonality between all these things is people. People hurt the environment.
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Comment on How are y'all dealing with inflation? in ~finance
andrewsw LinkMostly just watch in amazement and wonder if I'll make it long enough to see the other side. Oh, and I'm trying to grow as much food as I can. Not really succeeding, but making gradual progress.Mostly just watch in amazement and wonder if I'll make it long enough to see the other side.
Oh, and I'm trying to grow as much food as I can. Not really succeeding, but making gradual progress.
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Comment on July 3 was Earth’s hottest day on record — until July 4 in ~enviro
andrewsw Link ParentHow do you define "fine"? What are our goals?We will be fine. We just have to keep working towards our goals.
How do you define "fine"?
What are our goals?
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Comment on Weekly US politics news and updates thread - week of July 3 in ~news
andrewsw Link ParentI'm not sure how those address politicians' lies to the public, though. Don't get me wrong, I agree that these are good things that should be done, but they don't address the lies in any...I'm not sure how those address politicians' lies to the public, though. Don't get me wrong, I agree that these are good things that should be done, but they don't address the lies in any substantive way I can see.
Hmmm... well, okay, I guess regulating the media could help, in terms of regulation around fact checking and possibly making media liable for disseminating known falsehoods. But I'm not sure how that really works with a free press.
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Comment on What's good to cook on a propane grill? in ~food
andrewsw Link ParentStrong second. Hands down the best homemade pizza ever. I don't even miss the browning on top because that flame grilled crust is so good. I put the cheese on before the other toppings, so it...Strong second. Hands down the best homemade pizza ever. I don't even miss the browning on top because that flame grilled crust is so good.
I put the cheese on before the other toppings, so it helps it melt.
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Comment on Weekly US politics news and updates thread - week of July 3 in ~news
andrewsw Link ParentIn all seriousness, how do we stop politicians lying to us? I think until that problem is solved, there's not much to be done. How many people have the time to work all their jobs, run their...In all seriousness, how do we stop politicians lying to us? I think until that problem is solved, there's not much to be done. How many people have the time to work all their jobs, run their lives, and fact check politicians, in the midst of all the sobbing at the hopeless future?
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
andrewsw Link ParentI used Haskell in production for several years and it was fantastic. It performed well, the type system was a truly useful protection against a whole class of bugs (the marketing story around it...I used Haskell in production for several years and it was fantastic. It performed well, the type system was a truly useful protection against a whole class of bugs (the marketing story around it is more than just a story), and I miss it, these days. I loved it so much that I'm now of the opinion that there is no point to the middle ground between the fully static, expressive types like those in Haskell, or go fully dynamic.
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
andrewsw Link ParentDo you want to develop a project structure which this tool would implement, or replicate existing project structures? Have you considered a tool like Debian's update-alternatives? I think it...Do you want to develop a project structure which this tool would implement, or replicate existing project structures?
Have you considered a tool like Debian's
update-alternatives? I think it basically manages a farm of symlinks through known locations to different implementations. There might something of value for you in there.Edit: mistaken command name...
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
andrewsw Link ParentKudos for doing reimplementations in other languages. I did some Octave/Matlab -> Haskell, and some Java school work in Scheme, concurrently. Super fun and educational.Kudos for doing reimplementations in other languages. I did some Octave/Matlab -> Haskell, and some Java school work in Scheme, concurrently. Super fun and educational.
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Comment on Let's add (and rearrange?) some groups + a few notes about other short-term plans in ~tildes.official
andrewsw LinkMaybe there's a place for this already, but I'm super new haven't found it, yet. I am learning I'm more neurodivergent than I had previously realized and have found great support from some of the...Maybe there's a place for this already, but I'm super new haven't found it, yet. I am learning I'm more neurodivergent than I had previously realized and have found great support from some of the neurodivergent groups on other sites. So, let me throw that out there as a potential thing, though maybe it's just ~health with some tags?
it's awful. You lose a couple of seconds for every interruption and either have to back up or infer. So, not only is it jarring to have a cut just land at a random location, but it also drops some of the frames, leaving a broken viewing experience.