bilbodwyer's recent activity

  1. Comment on Help me find a "quote of the day" sort of app in ~tech

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    Thanks! That's going to be a good place to start for sure :)

    Thanks! That's going to be a good place to start for sure :)

    2 votes

  2. Help me find a "quote of the day" sort of app

    ~tech Ask (recommendations)
    In the simplest terms, I suppose what I'm looking for is just a "quote of the day" generator. Albeit, one that I can put my own quotes into. I have what I jokingly refer to as an "operating...

    In the simplest terms, I suppose what I'm looking for is just a "quote of the day" generator. Albeit, one that I can put my own quotes into.

    I have what I jokingly refer to as an "operating manual". Essentially it's just a constantly-updated evernote that contains rules for how I want to live (eg. "No drinking alone"), reminders about myself (eg. "You always feel better after exercising"), and my philosophy about aspects of life (eg. "In the news media, misery and controversy sell better than joy and harmony").

    I'd like to be able to receive bits of this "wisdom" throughout my day, ideally by way of some sort of notification on my phone. Does any such app/service exist? Bonus points for one that is open source and cross-platform!

    10 votes

  3. Comment on Not everyone has an internal monologue in ~life

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    I know what a banana looks like, so if I saw one I'd recognise it as a banana. And I can tell you that they're sort of long, thin, bendy, and usually yellow but occasionally green or brown. But...

    I know what a banana looks like, so if I saw one I'd recognise it as a banana. And I can tell you that they're sort of long, thin, bendy, and usually yellow but occasionally green or brown. But I'm not picturing anything in my head, not even if I close my eyes and concentrate really hard. There's no "image" there to speak of. I've asked people to rate their mental vision from 1-10 before, and I'd say I'm operating at maybe a 2 or a 3 for simple stuff like bananas, whereas others are coming back with 9s and 10s.
    It's even worse for faces. I live in a low key state of fear about being asked to e-fit the perpetrator of a crime!

    4 votes

  4. Comment on Not everyone has an internal monologue in ~life

    bilbodwyer
    Link
    I wonder how much this relates to the phenomenon of aphantasia. For example I can't picture images in my head very well at all, but I do have an internal monologue a lot of the time.

    I wonder how much this relates to the phenomenon of aphantasia. For example I can't picture images in my head very well at all, but I do have an internal monologue a lot of the time.

    4 votes

  6. Comment on MNT Reform open source, modular laptop crowdfunding campaign launches in February in ~comp

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    I forgive you. It is pretty ugly. I can almost deal with the thickness, but that trackpad/ball is just hideous!

    I'm sorry, but that's one ugly laptop. ARM-based too.

    I forgive you. It is pretty ugly. I can almost deal with the thickness, but that trackpad/ball is just hideous!

    2 votes

  7. Comment on Doctor Who S12E04: Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror in ~tv

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    100%. The constant "WHO IS THE DOCTOR" bollocks wound me right up, but a lot of the stories outside of that arc were pretty decent I think. [EDIT: trying to think of examples during Smith's era,...

    I strongly disliked the show during the Matt Smith years, and during Peter Capaldi's first season. Smith and Capaldi themselves were fine, but the plots got too self-referential and the show started disappearing up its own arse.

    100%. The constant "WHO IS THE DOCTOR" bollocks wound me right up, but a lot of the stories outside of that arc were pretty decent I think. [EDIT: trying to think of examples during Smith's era, and coming up blank!] Moffat's style-over-substance approach and his determination to leave his mark on the show were really grating aspects of Smith and Capaldi's eras, though I adore Capaldi as the Doctor. He was bringing some absolute A-grade talent to some occasionally very sub-par writing.
    Moffat and J.J. Abrams should team up to write something. With that many mystery boxes in the room we might solve some kind of quantum entanglement problem.

    Completely agree about Bill Potts. She was the best companion since Donna, though I found her ending to be really weak the first time around. Less so the second, admittedly: it was grim enough to make her a Cyberman for an episode.

    I'll dip into the new season while it's still on iPlayer, no harm in having a bash! I would like to rekindle my love for the show, and my daughter mentioned over the weekend that she's not seen Doctor Who in a while either.

    1 vote

  8. Comment on Doctor Who S12E04: Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror in ~tv

    bilbodwyer
    Link
    So I stopped watching Doctor Who about halfway through season 11. I really couldn't get on board with the writing, and felt that Jodie's performance wasn't really clicking for me. Graham (was that...

    So I stopped watching Doctor Who about halfway through season 11. I really couldn't get on board with the writing, and felt that Jodie's performance wasn't really clicking for me. Graham (was that his name?) was really doing it for me as a companion, but the other two felt really underutilised and boring, to say nothing of the convenience of the young lad's coordination condition disappearing and reappearing at the behest of the plot.
    I took another punt on the New Year's episode at the start of 2019, and enjoyed the shell-less Dalek stuff immensely, but the tail end I thought was pretty ropey (in truth I don't even remember what happened at the end now).

    With all that in mind... Would anyone recommend me to watch the latest season? I've watched since 2005 with Chris Eccleston as the (best) Doctor, and I feel like I may have simply grown out of the show, but I'd like to give it another bash if season 12 is better than 11 was.

    1 vote

  9. Comment on What's your favourite live album? in ~music

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    I (shamefully) never really listened to Rush. I think I'll need to start.

    I (shamefully) never really listened to Rush. I think I'll need to start.

    2 votes

  10. Comment on What's your favourite live album? in ~music

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    That's sounds amazing - I'll be checking it out on my way home from work :D

    That's sounds amazing - I'll be checking it out on my way home from work :D

    1 vote

  11. Comment on What's your favourite live album? in ~music

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    Another one of my favourites, this - excellent choice. I've not listened to much Townes Van Zandt, but I know my brother really loves him - I'll give it a listen!

    S&M by Metallica

    Another one of my favourites, this - excellent choice.

    I've not listened to much Townes Van Zandt, but I know my brother really loves him - I'll give it a listen!

    2 votes

  12. What's your favourite live album?

    ~music Ask (survey)
    I've been listening to Iron Maiden's Rock in Rio album on loop for a couple of days (I'm learning a bunch of the songs), and it's such a great album. Really wide selection of their hits from...

    I've been listening to Iron Maiden's Rock in Rio album on loop for a couple of days (I'm learning a bunch of the songs), and it's such a great album. Really wide selection of their hits from across their career, some classics, loads of new stuff, some deeper cuts (the Blaze tracks). It sounds amazing, to say it was all recorded on a single night. Absolutely amazing album, I can't think of a live effort that I enjoy more.

    What's your favourite live album?

    15 votes

  13. Comment on How to begin a novel, according to an AI in ~comp

  15. Comment on Tae Kim's Guide to Learning Japanese in ~humanities

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    Oh, I never discovered that! Might have stuck it out a bit longer if I'd have known that was an option, as I was just brute forcing the kanji as well - I didn't have the patience for their...

    Oh, I never discovered that! Might have stuck it out a bit longer if I'd have known that was an option, as I was just brute forcing the kanji as well - I didn't have the patience for their stories, and it's never how I've learned kanji before, apart from a very select few.

  16. Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    Yeah it had a few bum episodes here and there, but overall I loved the hell out of it. The last episode had me full on belly-laughing at the scene with the two stormtroopers shooting the tin can.

    Yeah it had a few bum episodes here and there, but overall I loved the hell out of it. The last episode had me full on belly-laughing at the scene with the two stormtroopers shooting the tin can.

    2 votes

  17. Comment on TV Tuesdays Free Talk in ~tv

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    If you're wanting to pick Mr Robot back up, I'd definitely recommend watching all of 3 as well. You'd miss a solid amount of groundwork if you skip.

    If you're wanting to pick Mr Robot back up, I'd definitely recommend watching all of 3 as well. You'd miss a solid amount of groundwork if you skip.

    4 votes

  18. Comment on Tae Kim's Guide to Learning Japanese in ~humanities

    bilbodwyer
    Link Parent
    I tried WaniKani myself last year, and didn't get on with it. I wasn't a fan of the ways they try to help you remember the radicals in order to be able to tell a story about each character down...

    I tried WaniKani myself last year, and didn't get on with it. I wasn't a fan of the ways they try to help you remember the radicals in order to be able to tell a story about each character down the line. I get the reasoning behind it, but it really frustrated me that I had to remember "tsunami" for the radical that legitimately just means water.
    On the other hand, I was approaching this as someone who has a degree in the language, and wanted to use a service to keep my eye in with kanji and vocab, not a total beginner. I can absolutely see how WaniKani would benefit a complete novice. Spaced repetition is definitely the way to go.

    3 votes

  19. Comment on The Animated history of Japan in ~humanities

  20. Comment on What are you doing this weekend? in ~talk

    bilbodwyer
    Link
    Fairly busy weekend ahead for me, but in the good way! Band practice this evening to train up our new drummer ahead of our first 2020 gig next month. Basically all day tomorrow we're filming the...

    Fairly busy weekend ahead for me, but in the good way! Band practice this evening to train up our new drummer ahead of our first 2020 gig next month. Basically all day tomorrow we're filming the music video to our new single. And Sunday is my third date with someone I really like :)
    Happy days.

    3 votes