aphoenix's recent activity
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Comment on Introductions | April 2023 in ~talk
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Comment on Reddit is going to enforce rate-limiting the API's free tier as well as charging for higher rates in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentYes, the documents on the Philosophy of Tildes are probably a good place to look into what this site is more about. I think that I actually summed it up pretty well with "narrow but deep" and if...is there anything saying there can't be these things? Does anything expressly prohibit a ~cats beyond a lack of current demand?
Yes, the documents on the Philosophy of Tildes are probably a good place to look into what this site is more about. I think that I actually summed it up pretty well with "narrow but deep" and if you add in "don't be a jerk" then that's a pretty effective tl;dr but generally people will not have the ability to make groups, and ~cats will probably never be a thing here.
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Comment on Reddit is going to enforce rate-limiting the API's free tier as well as charging for higher rates in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentI should stipulate that when I talk about "old reddit" I mean before the Digg exodus (I started using Reddit in 2005), so I mean that the feel of this site hearkens back to the days of Reddit...I should stipulate that when I talk about "old reddit" I mean before the Digg exodus (I started using Reddit in 2005), so I mean that the feel of this site hearkens back to the days of Reddit circa 2006 - 2009. Even so, it's better than reddit was at that time, from the stance of what is and isn't allowed.
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Comment on Reddit is going to enforce rate-limiting the API's free tier as well as charging for higher rates in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentI think of them all, generally, as pros as well, but there are a few associated things to think about, and each of these are also more complicated than just pro or con; they're not good all the...I think of them all, generally, as pros as well, but there are a few associated things to think about, and each of these are also more complicated than just pro or con; they're not good all the time, they're not bad all the time, they just are.
There is generally not as much site content. This means that you can consume everything in a single visit and not miss out on much. This means you don't really veg out and doomscroll, but it also means that you can actually just run out of current content.
Some type of content are just not available at all. There are some communities that I enjoy that don't have an analog here and generally cannot exist because of the nature of this site. An example might be r/BestOfRedditorUpdates where you can read a fair amount of creative writing exercises, but also a fair amount of actually interesting things that happen to people. Another example: there's no videos of, say, cats doing cute things. For me that's great - I downvote every cat picture I see on reddit - but other people might love that sort of thing. So some content just will not ever exist here and if it's your particular jam, then you have to fill that somewhere else.
I don't laugh that often here. That's not to say that there aren't funny people or funny comments ever, but that most days do not trend towards humour. I like to laugh, and one might guess from looking through my comment history that I was a seriously minded person, but I laugh all the time about almost everything. At an oncology appointment with my dad the other day, we were talking about tools, and he was asking me why I didn't have a specific tool, and I said, "Well, all I really have to do to get one is... wait." And it took him a sec, but there was a lot of laughter, despite the relative seriousness. But on Tildes, I usually try not to crack jokes, and I think most people are the same, though @NoblePath legitimately made me laugh out loud in the introductions thread a little while ago, which was notable enough that I still remember it.
This is generally controversial, but I find that the tech content here is relatively lacking; numerous other people find it overwhelming. This is related to the breadth of content available, but I go to other locations for most tech news.
If any of these are things that you value, then you probably want to look at also dipping a toe in other communities, and I think that doing so is important, because one of the things that has made Reddit suck is the idea that it can be for everyone. When you make your site for everyone, it's for nobody.
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Comment on Reddit is going to enforce rate-limiting the API's free tier as well as charging for higher rates in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentI say this as a long-time Tilderino, and someone who loves this site: this isn't a viable Reddit alternative as Reddit exists right now. It doesn't scratch the same itches that Reddit does; there...I say this as a long-time Tilderino, and someone who loves this site: this isn't a viable Reddit alternative as Reddit exists right now. It doesn't scratch the same itches that Reddit does; there are almost zero low effort comments, and almost everything is set to encourage people to take part in good faith and in relative depth. Reddit is broad but shallow; Tildes is narrow but deep. It's much more in line with how Reddit was years ago.
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Comment on Reddit is going to enforce rate-limiting the API's free tier as well as charging for higher rates in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentI urge you to talk to Christian, an eminently reasonable person, about your purchase. There may be something they can do.I urge you to talk to Christian, an eminently reasonable person, about your purchase. There may be something they can do.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
aphoenix Link ParentOh I should try it in VR. I almost have it working now though - I disabled some things such as scroll-to-turn things, and that has helped. I think I mostly need to set up / update some keybinds to...Oh I should try it in VR. I almost have it working now though - I disabled some things such as scroll-to-turn things, and that has helped. I think I mostly need to set up / update some keybinds to make things just slightly better and then I'll be set.
But it is definitely clunky as heck.
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Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv
aphoenix LinkI watched FUBAR from Netflix, which is Arnold Schwarzenegger's new TV series. It is rife with fan service and nods to Arnie's career, like the Tom Arnold cameo, Arnie talking about how he love...I watched FUBAR from Netflix, which is Arnold Schwarzenegger's new TV series. It is rife with fan service and nods to Arnie's career, like the Tom Arnold cameo, Arnie talking about how he love Danny DeVito, jokes about "Choppah Parenting", etc. The writing is formulaic; it's like they had meetings where they talked about popular articles from TVTropes, and figured out how to put them in, because only one single unexpected thing happened in the entire series. It's currently rated a quite fair 6.5 out of 10 on IMDB.
I loved it, and I hope they get greenlit for season 2.
Arnie is, well, Arnie, and he obviously knows that the show is silly and fun, but every other cast member is also in on how silly and fun everything is, and they're all well cast.
Gabriel Luna (Ghost Rider in Agents of SHIELD, and also from The Last of Us) is The Bad Guy, who all Arnie's fault, and he just chews the scenery delightfully. I can hear the director saying, "Can you be raspier and more melodramatic? No, no, even more melodramatic? Can you just say it's-all-your-fault-that-I-am-evil?" Fortune Feimster (Mindy Project, Office Christmas Party) and Travis Van Winkle (You, Friday the 13th) are both great as sassy spies. Fabiana Udenio (Alotta Fagina from Austin Powers) as Arnie's ex-wife is great and sexy, and it's great to see a woman who is almost 60 allowed to be sexy, but she's also sweet and conflicted (in a straight-forward way - everything about this is straight-forward). Aparna Brielle (AP Bio), Milan Carter (? new to me) are both allowed to shine in a few scenes, and they do the "can the geek get the sexy girl, oh the girl is a geek too!" trope pretty well. Monica Barbaro (Top Gun: Maverick) is great as the daughter; she's super believable as Arnie's kid, and one of my favourite parts is Arnie and her doing impressions of each other.
I realize that I'm not basically just listing people that I like, but there's no shortage of them in this, like Andy Buckley who just plays the same character as he is in the Office, and Jay Baruchel who is basically playing Jay Baruchel, Barbara Eve Harris who always plays competent doctors or cops, and Scott Thompson from Kids in the Hall. Dustin Milligan, who I recall being quite fond of in Schitt's Creek, is completely different and deplorable in this, and is another example of a character whose story had not a single surprise in it, but was still enjoyable.
Actually that does remind me of the one single story that I did not really expect to see, which might be something that I related to quite a bit. Arnie's son (Devon Bostick from The 100) is married with a kid, and about halfway through it is revealed that his wife was pregnant when he met her, and the child was not biologically his. Arnie and family all absolutely dote on the grandchild, though, and are unquestionably and fiercely devoted to her. This reminds me a lot of my own family - my eldest daughter is genetically distinct from me, as my wife was slightly pregnant when we started dating, and like the character in the show, she is 100% part of the family. Actually, this led to probably the only situation in which I could say this; in several parts of the series, Arnold Schwartzenegger reminded me quite a bit of my mom, in that she would also kill or maim someone who threatened her grandkid.
Overall, the show was a ton of fun. It doesn't really push any boundaries, it's not particularly smart, and I learned absolutely nothing. If you wanted to see a limited run series that was a mashup of 70s spy flicks, 80s action movies, 90s comedies, and 00's romcoms, then this is it.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
aphoenix Link ParentHa, you nailed it, I just want git commits. I'm usually more interested in the "why" I'm making a change, because I used to find myself taking out cards from decks, then coming back to the deck...Ha, you nailed it, I just want git commits. I'm usually more interested in the "why" I'm making a change, because I used to find myself taking out cards from decks, then coming back to the deck months later and thinking "Oh, I should add [Card]" when that's a card I had already removed for a specific reason.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
aphoenix Link ParentTabletop Simulator is just slightly more tedious to resolve as in-person paper magic, because it doesn't really give you many advantages. There are things that are a bit easier like searching your...Tabletop Simulator is just slightly more tedious to resolve as in-person paper magic, because it doesn't really give you many advantages. There are things that are a bit easier like searching your deck, as you don't have to look through all the cards, you can just type in what you are looking for. There are things that are more difficult, like quickly cascading; I found my cascade deck a bit painful to play. I found that for the most part, as I got comfortable with the mouse movements, it was just slightly slower in general than playing in paper. I also have a landfall deck that ends up playing a lot of lands, and I misplayed at one point by playing too many; luckily someone else was watching and called me on it, but there's no rules enforcement at all. Also I find it kind of rough on a Mac with a magic mouse. Oh, and one thing that you may specifically find annoying is that cards with multiple faces are a bit janky to deal with.
That looks like a fun deck! There are a couple of things in there that I think I might want to add to my loads-o-lands Omnath deck, so thanks for the ideas. Standstill is awesome, I hope that it works out as you anticipate.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
aphoenix Link ParentMoxfield has all of the things that I want in a deckbuilder and no significant drawbacks thus far, and I've introduced several people in my playgroup to it as well. I was using TappedOut and a...Moxfield has all of the things that I want in a deckbuilder and no significant drawbacks thus far, and I've introduced several people in my playgroup to it as well. I was using TappedOut and a standalone app for most things before this, and this feels like an upgrade across the board. I especially like the "Primers" that you can write for each deck, because I'm old and forgetful and sometimes forget the specifics of decks, like "What is it I'm tutoring for?" or "what is the win condition?". For most of my decks, I do a little write-up and then that's enough to remind me how I expected to pilot the deck when I built it. I also like keeping track of changes, and while there's no changelog built in to Moxfield, you can use the primer as a changelog so you can remember what changes over time and why.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
aphoenix LinkI've been playing Magic - mostly EDH - and doing so using Tabletop Simulator. It's a bit clunky, but quite a bit of fun. @Streblo turned me on to MoxField and I've been adding the decks that I...I've been playing Magic - mostly EDH - and doing so using Tabletop Simulator. It's a bit clunky, but quite a bit of fun. @Streblo turned me on to MoxField and I've been adding the decks that I play to it, which was fortuitous, as the primary means of bringing decks into Tabletop Simulator is via a decklist tool, so it took 30 seconds to get up and running.
My brother is hosting the games; I think there's a fair amount of setup that he put into it, but it has been pretty much log in, immediately play for me, which has been great. We previously played some Gloomhaven on Tabletop Sim, and it was pretty good for that to.
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Comment on How do you decide if a piece of music is good? in ~music
aphoenix (edited )Link ParentYour insightful comments about country seem to really mesh with @TooFewColours great comment about authenticity; it can be hard to swallow a song about being a working man delivered by a multi...Your insightful comments about country seem to really mesh with @TooFewColours great comment about authenticity; it can be hard to swallow a song about being a working man delivered by a multi millionaire. I think that, as a whole, this doesn't mean that country is bad. While I don't want to be defending the Garth Brooks or Toby Keiths of the world, I would say that people who write songs - or, more generally, make art - do not have to do so from a place of first-hand knowledge, but that it does help to loan authenticity. One need not be a working man to write a song that resonates about being a working man. It does, however, require empathy to write that song in an effective and authentic way.
With regards to Rap, you said "I really didn't like the negativity, disrespect, and violence" and I think that a key thing that you didn't say was "Rap is bad because of these things I don't like". What I was fumbling towards in my lengthy top-level comment is that there are a subset of people who say and think things like, "Rap isn't good" when they mean "Rap isn't for me". I used to conflate those things myself, and I did so from a place of ignorance.
Genres are just generally too vague to talk about music.
I think that genres are generally just tools for conveying information about music, which allows us to organize our understanding of songs relationships with each other. I think it is an incredibly useful tool for talking about music, but what people often do is generalize to a whole genre based on limited interactions with the genre. We might listen to three pop songs and then think "I don't like these three songs, so I don't like pop music", and that's where the problem lies with genres. This is not limited to music either; any art form is subject to this, and more broadly just about everything humans do. We make generalizations, and making generalizations with limited information, and those generalizations are sometimes useful, but more often ignorant and useless.
re: classical music, I meant formal (ie. non-folk) European music that spans roughly the 9th century via Gregorian chants to Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern / Neoclassical music, until the general dissolution of stylistic unification with the onset of popular contemporary music. Or, less pompously, orchestral music that isn't for movie soundtracks. I think part of the issue is that if I was writing something scholarly, I would use the correct "expert" term for whatever I was discussing, instead of the more day-to-day / OED version that people use. That said, i think this is an example of how Genres can be quite useful when discussing things; if I was writing an article and I said something like "this soundtrack shares similarities with some Romance Era compositions" then that could have a particular meaning and set a particular tone, distinct from if I said, "this soundtrack shares similarities with some Baroque Era compositions" - one could deduce generally what the soundtracks might sound like.
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Comment on How do you decide if a piece of music is good? in ~music
aphoenix (edited )LinkI'll preface this by saying that I probably overthink music a lot. I have studied and listened to music a lot over the years. The things I think about when evaluating music are: does the music...- Exemplary
I'll preface this by saying that I probably overthink music a lot. I have studied and listened to music a lot over the years.
The things I think about when evaluating music are:
- does the music make me feel something?
- does the music require expertise to make?
For me, the former is much more important than the latter, but this is almost a non-answer, as it turns the question into a form of "what music do you like?" so I'll try to talk about feelings in music.
When I was a young, I would listen to hard rock or "classical" (I hate the term, but it causes you to know what I mean), almost to the exclusion of all else, when left to my own devices. I would say things like, "[Genre] sucks!" when asked, where the genre could be anything popular, or out of my immediate comfort zone. As I got older, I removed some genres from the list of genres that suck; I started listening to more jazz, so I would never say "Jazz sucks", for example. As time went on, I maintained a list of genres that I didn't like because I thought they were bad, and they were mostly variants of the Big Three That People Don't Like - Pop, Country, Rap - and then one day one of my friends threw on a Tupac album and said, "hey, actually listen to this and feel it," and I shut my mouth and listened.
I still sometimes have kneejerk reactions to things; I'm only human. But that day was one where I elected to let go of all my preconceived notions of what I like and what I don't like, and to listen to music without trying to bring all my stupid baggage with me when I listen to something.
When I listen now, I am listening for things like:
- if it has a tune, is the tune catchy
- does the rhythm make me want to move
- does the song bring me something new and interesting
- does the song bring me something familiar and comforting
- is there a message, and how do I feel about that
And with all music, instead of facing it with the attitude of "will I like this" I face it while thinking "what do I like about this" which makes a lot of difference. And I try to never think of things like "is this too popular for me to like" because I was the embodiment of "you wouldn't know this cool band that I like" from age 13 to 16 and nobody liked it. Popular music tends to be popular because it makes people feel things, and feeling things is good. And yes, some of it is a bit soulless now - there are sound engineers who catchy-ify everything they can get their hands on - but that doesn't mean it's not good.
All that is not to say that there aren't genres that I prefer - if I'm putting on music that's my own choice, it is likely to be in my preferred genre, or my preferred artists. But I also add and curate lists for my wife and kids, and select good music that I think they'll love as well, and sometimes I throw on things that none of us have heard, and sometimes my kids bring up songs that they've heard and want to listen to, and I take them in with an open mind, like "World's Smallest Violin" which seems like it's everywhere on TikTok but is a fun and catchy song, or a boatload of Nicki Minaj, who likely wouldn't be my cup of tea normally, but who makes a lot of pretty good stuff. They all make me feel pretty good, so I think the music is pretty good.
Beyond that, there are things that I think are important and difficult, like Coltrane's Giant Steps, which don't really resonate with me deeply, but are incredible from an expertise standpoint; the music itself is jagged and complex and most of my appreciation comes from an almost mathematical understanding of what is going on. I think that's also an important part of music.
I also would say that just because a piece of music doesn't make me feel something and doesn't seem like it requires much in the way of expertise, I don't necessarily dismiss it as "not good", but think about it more as "not for me". I'm struggling to remember the exact song, but I heard one today by Justin Timberlake that fit this. I generally enjoy listening to JT sing - he is superlatively talented - but this song had me unenthusiastic the entire way through, and it seemed relatively simple (four chords, I could have sung and played every single part with ease). But it was popular enough that other people listen and enjoy it, so it just wasn't for me.
I think where I draw the line on what is "bad" tends to be at competence for making music. I have seen any number of live bands that were bad, but it mostly came down to the fact that they did not play the music well for some reason, be it drunkenness, stage fright, or some other issue. I have left shows that were playing bad music, and endured many more.
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Comment on Norway beat Canada 3-2 at the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship – only the second win ever for the Norwegians against the Canadians in ~sports
aphoenix LinkWhat a great game. As a Canadian, Norway deserved the win, and probably in regulation. I hope it lights a fire in team Canada, because they squeaked a point out that they didn't deserve; they need...What a great game. As a Canadian, Norway deserved the win, and probably in regulation. I hope it lights a fire in team Canada, because they squeaked a point out that they didn't deserve; they need to play cleaner and light up the scoreboard, not the penalty box.
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Comment on Tildes Video Thread in ~misc
aphoenix LinkHank Has Cancer - I enjoy Vlogbrothers a lot, and Hang Green is a treasure. The announcement is informative, and touching.Hank Has Cancer - I enjoy Vlogbrothers a lot, and Hang Green is a treasure. The announcement is informative, and touching.
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Comment on Are you nice or kind? in ~life
aphoenix Link ParentI'm like "yeah we got manners, but fuckin' buddies still fight And fuckin' swear and fuckin' drink all night" Like this one time, me and fuckin' buddy are out havin' a dart And fuckin' buddy burns...I'm like "yeah we got manners, but fuckin' buddies still fight And fuckin' swear and fuckin' drink all night" Like this one time, me and fuckin' buddy are out havin' a dart And fuckin' buddy burns a hole in my coat And I was like "fuck bud" 'cause the coat was pretty new right? And he's like "fuck you, " so I put his head in a snowbank Just started fuckin' feeding him the right left Like fuckin' boom, boom, boom, "you had enough yet?" And he's like "okay, okay, fuck, chill out, shit" So I pulled him out of the snow and we went out for a rip.
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Comment on Monitor recommendations? in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentYou are set! You can do two monitors: source 16" source 14" So you could go with multiple less expensive monitors if that's your desire. With regards to those specific models, I have never had a...You are set! You can do two monitors:
Up to two external displays with up to 6K resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors (M1 Pro) or
Up to three external displays with up to 6K resolution and one external display with up to 4K resolution at 60Hz at over a billion colors (M1 Max)So you could go with multiple less expensive monitors if that's your desire.
With regards to those specific models, I have never had a Phillips monitor, but I have had a couple of Dells, and they have been fine. The Dell writeup on rtings says it would likely be a good choice- tl;dr good budget 4k that's great for office work (has an 8.7 rating).
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Comment on Monitor recommendations? in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentI thought I wouldn't be happy with it, but I'm quite happy with it. Of course, having a 5k monitor helps, because I do effectively use it as three screens. I am considering getting an 8K ultrawide...I thought I wouldn't be happy with it, but I'm quite happy with it. Of course, having a 5k monitor helps, because I do effectively use it as three screens.
I am considering getting an 8K ultrawide at some point.
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Comment on Monitor recommendations? in ~tech
aphoenix Link ParentIt's a real frustration - when I got this laptop, I was super excited, and didn't even think to check if it could run multiple monitors. It's such a misstep from Apple, because otherwise this is a...It's a real frustration - when I got this laptop, I was super excited, and didn't even think to check if it could run multiple monitors. It's such a misstep from Apple, because otherwise this is a fantastic machine - probably the second best laptop I've ever had, with the best being, unfortunately, the one that this one replaced - and I think they recognized that it was a misstep, because I don't think the later M1 or the M2 Macbook Pros have the issue.
I've gotten around it in a variety of ways when needed - I can use my iPad as a third monitor, and I've got an apple TV that I can use as a third monitor - but I mostly made the adjustment to just one external monitor, and leaned into tiling and multiple desktops. I've always used multiple desktops, but now I use them even more, and coupled with decent windows management, it's pretty palatable.
We had no problems playing it in a family setting. There may have been a card or two that my son didn't know how to answer, but we just had him pick a new one, and for the most part the kids can just play and it's lots of fun.