artvandelay's recent activity
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Comment on What's something new you started doing this year? in ~talk
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Comment on What's something new you started doing this year? in ~talk
artvandelay Link ParentCongrats on the new job! Hope you enjoy your new software engineering role!Congrats on the new job! Hope you enjoy your new software engineering role!
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Comment on Norwegian payment service Vipps becomes world's first company to launch competing tap-to-pay solution to Apple Pay on iPhone – follows agreement with European regulators in ~tech
artvandelay Link ParentInteroperability like that feels like a dream though I think it's definitely possible. Japan sorta has this already with its IC card interoperability. For anyone unfamiliar, Japan has 10 major...Interoperability like that feels like a dream though I think it's definitely possible. Japan sorta has this already with its IC card interoperability. For anyone unfamiliar, Japan has 10 major brands of "IC Cards" or contactless smart cards that are primarily used to pay for your subway or bus fare. In essence, different regions of Japan have their own prevailing IC card brand. The Tokyo area has Suica and Pasmo while the Osaka region has ICOCA for example. When these cards took off in the 2000s, some companies had agreements for interoperability but it wasn't a nationwide thing. Starting in 2013 however, the 10 major brands came to an agreement called the "National Mutual Usage Service" which let's you use a popular brand of IC card from one region and use it in another region of Japan. It's quite convenient, especially if you're traveling around a lot. I'm actually just wrapping up a trip around Japan and I bought one metro card in Tokyo and used it in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka which was extremely convenient.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
artvandelay LinkI'm currently in Japan and have been enjoying Densha De Go (電車でGO!) more than I thought I would. For the unfamiliar, Densha De Go is a train simulator game where you can either drive or conduct...I'm currently in Japan and have been enjoying Densha De Go (電車でGO!) more than I thought I would. For the unfamiliar, Densha De Go is a train simulator game where you can either drive or conduct various trains available throughout Japan. I've been playing the arcade version which has you driving a Yamanote Line train, which is one of the main JR train lines circling Tokyo. The game seems simple on the surface, at least for the driving. You're simply accelerating and braking at the correct moments to get the train from station to station and stop the train at the correct position in the station. It's quite relaxing but also kinda addicting trying to stop the train at exactly 0cm while scoring as long a chain as you can.
The only difficult part about the game is the fact that it's entirely in Japanese. All versions of the game from 1996 till now have only been in Japanese with only some UI elements in English. Luckily, the game has a decent English-based following, to the point that there are English guides to help you figure out what everything means. I've just relied on those to figure the basics out and have fun. Definitely recommend anyone into trains try it out. I'm still in Japan for the next few days and am kind of tempted to buy it for the Switch to take back home.
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Comment on 2024 Spotify Wrapped thread in ~music
artvandelay LinkTop 5 Artists Balming Tiger Atarashii Gakko Le Sserafim Ive Royal Blood Top 5 Tracks Buriburi by Balming Tiger Say Yes by One Top Otonablue by Atarashii Gakko Eve, Psyche, and the Bluebeard's Wife...Top 5 Artists
- Balming Tiger
- Atarashii Gakko
- Le Sserafim
- Ive
- Royal Blood
Top 5 Tracks
- Buriburi by Balming Tiger
- Say Yes by One Top
- Otonablue by Atarashii Gakko
- Eve, Psyche, and the Bluebeard's Wife by Le Sserafim
- 풍년 by 국립국원
Overall a pretty accurate list of the random stuff I listen to. I'll be honest, I was a bit surprised 풍년 made it on here. For anyone wondering, it's the song that plays on the Seoul subway in the trains before they make an announcement about what other services you can transfer to. I know it sounds weird but it's just such a catchy track. I imagine part of the reason why it showed up on my top 5 is that the track on YouTube Music is 1 minute long and I'd just have it on loop. I'm usually a big Kendrick Lamar fan and I usually listen to a lot of his music but I guess this year I ventured away from his stuff.
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Comment on Great shows with interesting premises? in ~tv
artvandelay Link ParentI've been meaning to read the book myself. I've heard the show is pretty faithful to the book so I can only assume tje book is really good too. I'm currently slowly going through Bullet Train by...I've been meaning to read the book myself. I've heard the show is pretty faithful to the book so I can only assume tje book is really good too. I'm currently slowly going through Bullet Train by Kotaro Osaka since I loved the movie. I guess I'll add Shogun to my list afterwards haha.
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Comment on Great shows with interesting premises? in ~tv
artvandelay Link ParentWhile I haven't been able to get into Succession, I'll give a +1 here for Shogun. It's loosely based on real life events and really embeds you into the conflicts within Japan around that time...While I haven't been able to get into Succession, I'll give a +1 here for Shogun. It's loosely based on real life events and really embeds you into the conflicts within Japan around that time period. It's no surprise that Shogun was one of the most streamed shows when it first dropped.
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Comment on Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024 - Results in ~sports.motorsports
artvandelay Link ParentThat's such a tragic statistic. I understand having an off year but man, this is next level.That's such a tragic statistic. I understand having an off year but man, this is next level.
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Comment on Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024 - Results in ~sports.motorsports
artvandelay LinkCongrats to Max on #4, a well deserved championship. I didn't follow this season too closely, especially after the domination last year. It seems like Red Bull lost a bit of their edge this year...Congrats to Max on #4, a well deserved championship. I didn't follow this season too closely, especially after the domination last year. It seems like Red Bull lost a bit of their edge this year and there was a proper 3-way fight between Ferrari, McLaren, and Red Bull with Mercedes sometimes getting close in 4th. Perez feels a bit more lost this year, especially after the Miami race. While Max was winning races and getting on the podium, Perez was in the bottom of the points and on occasion, not scoring any at all. I think Red Bull would've been closer had Perez had good form.
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Comment on What's on your Christmas wish list? in ~life
artvandelay LinkI ended up buying a Christmas present for myself early since I have a trip coming up and wanted them for the trip, a pair of new headphones: the Focal Bathys. For the last 3 years or so, I've been...I ended up buying a Christmas present for myself early since I have a trip coming up and wanted them for the trip, a pair of new headphones: the Focal Bathys.
For the last 3 years or so, I've been using a pair of Sony WH-1000XM4s. They have been great. They sound great, travel well, and the battery life is amazing. Only trouble for me is comfort. I have a big head and big ears and while they fit over my head just fine, they crush my ears. It's not too big of an issue but after buying a pair of Sennheiser HD6XXs that truly surround my ears and have enough depth to not touch my ears as I wear them, I wanted a replacement. I took a look at the more "reasonably" priced options closer to 300-500 dollars but they all had one or another compromise that I wasn't a fan of. The Bathys seemed to have it all (besides price) so I ended up buying it.
So far, my experience has just been okay, which is a bit disappointing given the price of these. The sound quality is amazing, definitely my favorite from a pair of bluetooth wireless earphones. The case is perfectly fine and they surround my ears just fine too. There are two things about these that do disappoint me though. First is ANC. I knew it would be hard to match the level of ANC of the Sony's but man, I feel like these have worse ANC than my AirPods Pros and those are just in-ear buds. The second, and more sad disappointment, is the size. While they surround my ears just fine, I feel like the headband is just a touch too small for my big head. The first time I wore it, it felt like the headphones were pulling up on my ears just to fit over my head. It's gotten better of the last week of me wearing it but its still not great.
I bought these on headphones.com so luckily they accept returns for 365 days. I'll give it a few more weeks, especially after I get back from my trip before I decide if I want to keep these. If I do end up returning them, I might go to the Apple store and try out the AirPods Max's again because they fit just fine the last time I tried them, they were just super heavy lol.
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Comment on I just bought a 64GB iPad, anything I should know/do? in ~tech
artvandelay LinkIf this is your first iOS device in a while, I'd recommend just being patient with learning how to make the most of your iPad. iOS is very different from Android even if they may seem similar on...If this is your first iOS device in a while, I'd recommend just being patient with learning how to make the most of your iPad. iOS is very different from Android even if they may seem similar on the surface. Notifications work completely differently, the homescreen is pretty limited, and there will always be one or two extra steps to get things between your iPad and non-Apple devices.
That being said though, for the things you want to do with your tablet, the iPad should do really well. I used OneNote on my iPad for a while and it worked fine enough. It would sync fast enough with my other devices and would play fine with the Apple Pencil. The A-series chips are also pretty powerful so you should be more than satisfied with gaming on the iPad. Thermals will leave a lot to be desired though so it'll get real warm real quick.
I think with a third party stylus, you miss out on some features like the charging notifications, easy tool changing, and software features like scribble to text throughout the OS. Third party styluses just act like a finger so I think some apps may not react the way you expect. You could buy an Apple Pencil off Ebay or something if you really want to try it out and see if you like it.
I can speak a bit about your side question too. If you're in the US, there is no F-Droid type third party app store unfortunately. At least, not yet. You can still sideload apps but the experience is sub-optimal. You're limited in how many apps you can side-load and you have to refresh/reload the apps once a week. I found myself often forgetting to refresh my side-loaded apps on my iPad that I eventually gave up.
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Comment on What have you been watching / reading this week? (Anime/Manga) in ~anime
artvandelay Link ParentI absolutely love all the scenes with Hakase, Nano and Sakamoto, never fails to make me laughI absolutely love all the scenes with Hakase, Nano and Sakamoto, never fails to make me laugh
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Comment on I think I've failed the United States in ~society
artvandelay Link ParentI started typing a response to OP but I realized I was basically just repeating what you mentioned here. The point about moving the needle at the micro level is something that I think a lot of...I started typing a response to OP but I realized I was basically just repeating what you mentioned here. The point about moving the needle at the micro level is something that I think a lot of people tend to ignore. Local politics matter a lot more than you'd think because they directly affect the taxes you pay on a day-to-day basis, the local infrastructure you rely on like roads, sidewalks, bike trails, and so much more. Your vote also carries a lot more weight, relatively speaking, because of the smaller overall population. You can see this all over the country, lots of election races are being determined with gaps under 1000 votes, many under 500. So, while your vote at the national level may not feel like it matters much, especially if you live in a "safe" blue/red state, they matter a ton at the local level and can really influence/change how your city/town feels.
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Comment on What have you been watching / reading this week? (Anime/Manga) in ~anime
artvandelay LinkI have started properly watching Nichijou (2011) and started reading City (2016), both by Arawii Keiichi. These series probably don't need any introductions lol. I've watched many clips of...I have started properly watching Nichijou (2011) and started reading City (2016), both by Arawii Keiichi. These series probably don't need any introductions lol. I've watched many clips of Nichijou over the years and have laughed but I've never seen the whole thing so I thought I'd finally do so. Absolutely love how over the top the animators make regular day-to-day things look.
City has also been enjoyable and I thought I'd try getting into it after the anime announcement recently. It's definitely more on the surreal side of things compared to Nichijou but it's still really enjoyable. Really look forward to the anime adaptation of it.
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Comment on How the heck do you go about moving cross country? in ~life
artvandelay Link ParentRental P.O box was actually something I didn't even consider but would work too. I believe the USPS lets you rent P.O boxes so you could rent a P.O box as you live in an Airbnb and explore a...Rental P.O box was actually something I didn't even consider but would work too. I believe the USPS lets you rent P.O boxes so you could rent a P.O box as you live in an Airbnb and explore a neighborhood for a bit. Overall the Airbnb + P.O Box option wouldn't be cheap but it would be a hell of a lot cheaper than trying to break a lease and sign a new one elsewhere.
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Comment on How the heck do you go about moving cross country? in ~life
artvandelay LinkI mentioned this in another comment but the best way to get a feel for things is to actually live in and explore the area you want to move to. People usually go about this in a few different ways....I mentioned this in another comment but the best way to get a feel for things is to actually live in and explore the area you want to move to. People usually go about this in a few different ways. You could just get a hotel room near the area you want to live in and try to get a feel for things over a weekend. If you want to get a more natural feel, you could go for an Airbnb apartment/home for a week/month and really get a feel for things.
A cheaper way to also get a surface level feel for an area could be POV walking videos on YouTube. It's definitely not the best way to explore a neighborhood and it might be hard to find videos depending on the area you're trying to move to but I like watching them just to get a basic idea of how things look/feel.
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Comment on How the heck do you go about moving cross country? in ~life
artvandelay Link ParentA big +1 to taking transit around a city and exploring neighborhoods of whatever city you want to move to. While you can get a rough idea of what a neighborhood is like on the internet, nothing...A big +1 to taking transit around a city and exploring neighborhoods of whatever city you want to move to. While you can get a rough idea of what a neighborhood is like on the internet, nothing matches first-hand experience. I recently experienced this myself funnily enough. I've been looking at moving into the big city near the suburb I live in. People on the internet recommended a handful of neighborhoods and mentioned that the neighborhoods I was originally looking at aren't the best choice for someone in their 20s like myself. Well, I checked out the neighborhoods the internet mentioned and really wasn't a fan. Walking through the neighborhoods I was looking at originally, I really liked them and started focusing my apartment search around those neighborhoods.
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Comment on What's the biggest YouTube channel still run by just one person? in ~creative
artvandelay Link ParentYeah its genuinely super impressive because his main videos aren't simple to make. There's a lot of research that goes into them and a lot of planning just to get the main shots he gets....Yeah its genuinely super impressive because his main videos aren't simple to make. There's a lot of research that goes into them and a lot of planning just to get the main shots he gets. Definitely recommend anyone even mildly interested in electronics to check out his channel because he does a great job of explaining things.
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Comment on What's the biggest YouTube channel still run by just one person? in ~creative
artvandelay LinkI think Electroboom might be up there. I think he's stated many times over the last few years that his channel is just him. He doesn't have any camera operators, sound engineers, or editors, he...I think Electroboom might be up there. I think he's stated many times over the last few years that his channel is just him. He doesn't have any camera operators, sound engineers, or editors, he does everything himself. Honestly super impressive.
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Comment on Japanese workers in their twenties turn to resignation agencies in ~life
artvandelay Link ParentThey definitely seem to be trying to change this in Japan but it's very much an uphill battle. In a recent CNN article about the same topic, they write that the Japanese government have started...yet it seems that they also collectively reinforce and perpetuate the norms that lead to overwork
They definitely seem to be trying to change this in Japan but it's very much an uphill battle. In a recent CNN article about the same topic, they write that the Japanese government have started stepping in to try and mitigate the situation. They apparently maintain a list of what are called "black firms", where this high-pressure culture is the norm, these firms are then blacklisted by the labor bureau so people know which companies to avoid.
I started writing things down to try and be more organized at work and I've also started taking my mental health more seriously.
For the former, I've always been pretty disorganized. In the past, using a daily planner never seemed to work out well for me and I'd always stop after just a few days of trying. While being disorganized seemed to be just fine in school and university, it hasn't worked well for work. As I now need to juggle around more tasks for work to improve my numbers for productivity and velocity, I started writing things down to help me remain organized. Writing things down has helped me keep track of who I need to respond to on Slack, what tasks I need to finish for the day, and also keep context of the tasks I work on as I switch between them. As we close out another half, I look forward to looking back at my journal of the last 4-5 months and actually remembering what I did while I write about my impact.
For the latter, I've known for a while now that I may have anxiety, depression, and/or ADHD. I've always kinda just brushed it off and never really took it seriously but after some pushes from friends I decided to finally take advantage of the resources provided to me by my work and see a therapist and psychiatrist. My psychiatrist did confirm that I have some mild anxiety and depression which feels liberating in a way. My therapist so far has just been helping me go through my emotions and also figure out how to channel my stress into more healthy habits. So far we've only just discussed some breathing techniques but I'm hoping we'll learn more as time goes on.