bonsai_angel's recent activity
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Comment on Over 1000 games on GOG lack updates, languages, and additional content in ~games
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Comment on New label suggestion: a removable "One-sided" label that gradually reduces the comment's visibility in ~tildes
bonsai_angel LinkThis is such a bad idea, and so steeped in the style of other similarly bad ideas, that all I can do is cast a vote against it, and advise others to ignore and discourage this type of behavior...This is such a bad idea, and so steeped in the style of other similarly bad ideas, that all I can do is cast a vote against it, and advise others to ignore and discourage this type of behavior wherever it shows up.
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Comment on PC upgrade vs replacement in ~tech
bonsai_angel Link ParentThe other video I linked to only commented briefly on the 5060, so if you want the full explanation with benchmarks, watch this section here. In one test, the 5060 on pcie 3.0 drops down to...The other video I linked to only commented briefly on the 5060, so if you want the full explanation with benchmarks, watch this section here. In one test, the 5060 on pcie 3.0 drops down to performance levels just below a 3060, and then shoots right back up to ~120 fps. Does not seem like a good experience. And yea apparently it uses an 8x interface.
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Comment on PC upgrade vs replacement in ~tech
bonsai_angel Link ParentI upgraded a pcie 3.0 system with a 9060 xt 16gb and it works beautifully. Something about it using all the pcie lanes, where cards like the rtx 5060 only use half, and expect higher bandwidth to...I upgraded a pcie 3.0 system with a 9060 xt 16gb and it works beautifully. Something about it using all the pcie lanes, where cards like the rtx 5060 only use half, and expect higher bandwidth to compensate.
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Comment on PC upgrade vs replacement in ~tech
bonsai_angel Link ParentGood catch about XMP and Intel. The PCIe 3.0 thing I mentioned came from a digital foundry video about the 9060 XT and RTX 5060 (relevant section linked).Good catch about XMP and Intel. The PCIe 3.0 thing I mentioned came from a digital foundry video about the 9060 XT and RTX 5060 (relevant section linked).
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Comment on PC upgrade vs replacement in ~tech
bonsai_angel (edited )LinkYour ryzen 3 1300 only has 4 cores and 4 threads (no hyper-threading). You could easily get a cpu with 8 cores 16 threads, while keeping your same motherboard. Also check what speed your ram is...Your ryzen 3 1300 only has 4 cores and 4 threads (no hyper-threading). You could easily get a cpu with 8 cores 16 threads, while keeping your same motherboard. Also check what speed your ram is running at. If it's 2133mhz then check if your ram supports 3200mhz and enable the xmp profile in your uefi/bios to run it at full speed. Or when you buy new ram, make sure it says XMP 3200. (edit: Apparently the xmp name applies only to intel, and amd calls it something else. That would be an important thing to look into.)
I don't know what you use your computer for. If it's games, you can also get a huge upgrade from a variety of newer video cards, but be careful with that old PCIE 3.0 slot. The nvidia 5060 suffers from the lower bandwidth, while the radeon 9060xt does just fine. You still only need 16gb of ram for the big new games, but vram on these cards should be more like 12gb. And running ddr4 ram at 3200mhz really does help.
You will probably have to upgrade your bios to get support for newer CPUs. Just start scrolling through this list on wikipedia and stop at Zen 3 (or earlier).
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Comment on Looking for feedback and just art criticism of my work in ~creative
bonsai_angel LinkYou should think of these two photos you posted as early experiments, and ask yourself what they accomplished, if anything. I personally don't think they are interesting to look at, but that is...You should think of these two photos you posted as early experiments, and ask yourself what they accomplished, if anything. I personally don't think they are interesting to look at, but that is usually the case with early experiments in making art. Make more, and see how long it takes you to get bored.
As you do that, think about why you want to suture cracks in pavement and put shackles on your body. Is it important that you do it with thread, and sew it into the photo? It might be, or it might not. Eventually, you want to get to a place where you're doing things for a reason, where every photo is teaching you something new, and they all have something to say about each other.
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Comment on Is trying to become an author insane in times of LLMs? in ~tech
bonsai_angel LinkAll art is a dying art at this point. What's insane is asking whether it's worth it, trying to make art. The answer is always no. But if it's possible to make art, and you feel compelled to do so,...All art is a dying art at this point. What's insane is asking whether it's worth it, trying to make art. The answer is always no. But if it's possible to make art, and you feel compelled to do so, then you shouldn't have to ask. As for the AI thing, no, absolutely not, LLMs are not going to be writing great fiction, EVER.
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Comment on Advice on poor Linux performance vs Windows in ~tech
bonsai_angel Link ParentMy first thought with the choppy 4k video was that you're not using hardware decoding, meaning the video is being decoded on the cpu instead of the gpu. Some media players like mpv have hardware...My first thought with the choppy 4k video was that you're not using hardware decoding, meaning the video is being decoded on the cpu instead of the gpu. Some media players like mpv have hardware acceleration disabled by default. Not sure about VLC, but you should check. It's the only way a lot of lower-end computers are able to play high def video at all.
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Comment on At the end of our ropes in ~health.mental
bonsai_angel LinkThe phones are a problem for everyone at that age. It's okay to keep trying, and to expect some improvement. Find a spot where he can actually put the phone away until chores or homework are done....The phones are a problem for everyone at that age. It's okay to keep trying, and to expect some improvement. Find a spot where he can actually put the phone away until chores or homework are done. Explain that this is an essential life skill, and part of becoming an adult now. If he's fighting you on it, then yeah it's going to be impossible, but I think it's a fight worth having.
Hopefully at that age he can understand you are actually worried about him. Maybe talk to him about what he thinks adulthood will look like in a couple years. Is he looking forward to it? Has he thought about it at all? Maybe he feels like he's on track and doing fine, but maybe not.
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Comment on What "one-hit wonder" do you think has a discography worth exploring? in ~music
bonsai_angel LinkHarvey Danger. The album with Flagpole Sitta is called Where have all the merrymakers gone.Harvey Danger. The album with Flagpole Sitta is called Where have all the merrymakers gone.
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Comment on Hi, how are you? Mental health support and discussion thread (August 2025) in ~health.mental
bonsai_angel Link ParentWow you should probably just tell her now huh?Wow you should probably just tell her now huh?
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Comment on When is the last time you made a new friend? That lasted. in ~life
bonsai_angel LinkI try not to think about itI try not to think about it
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Comment on Victories and challenges: An A[u]DHD community and support fortnightly thread #5 in ~health.mental
bonsai_angel Link ParentThat's basically how I feel about it. I don't find a lot of value in telling people who I am, even when it comes to what I spend my time doing. The "no labels" attitude everyone used to have is...what would the label be for, other than as a heuristic for other people to box me into a set of their own prejudiced expectations?
That's basically how I feel about it. I don't find a lot of value in telling people who I am, even when it comes to what I spend my time doing. The "no labels" attitude everyone used to have is looking pretty appealing again these days. You know, as long as I remember to apply it to myself, and not use it as yet another way to judge the people around me. Or try to control how they think of me. Damn there's really no way out is there.
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Comment on What happens when a Windows virus runs on Linux? in ~tech
bonsai_angel (edited )LinkThe only safe way to install old games is to use retail discs, or verify disc images using redump.org. You can check the hash of your downloaded disc image against the hashes on redump, but you...The only safe way to install old games is to use retail discs, or verify disc images using redump.org. You can check the hash of your downloaded disc image against the hashes on redump, but you need a tool to do so. I use teracopy on my windows xp machine. Look on archive.org for disc images with "redump" in the title, and the hashes will usually match what is in the redump database.
Patches and no-cd cracks are more of a problem. I would love to learn how those cracks actually work, and how to validate them to make sure nothing malicious is going on, but I haven't gotten around to it.
As for wine, if you run it with user permissions it can access anything on your system that your user can access. A virtual machine is safer, but remember that the guest OS will usually have access to your network by default, which isn't safe at all.
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Comment on Working on a ~2008 dream gaming computer running Vista (in an old server) in ~comp
bonsai_angel LinkI don't consider it dangerous running an outdated operating system on my network. You have to be a lot more careful about what you install, and what websites you go to, but being connected to the...I don't consider it dangerous running an outdated operating system on my network. You have to be a lot more careful about what you install, and what websites you go to, but being connected to the internet by itself isn't really a problem. Just make sure upnp is disabled on your router, so you're not forwarding any ports to the vista computer. You can also see if your router has a "guest network" feature, where computers on the guest network are allowed internet access, but no access to the other computers on the LAN. Vista would go on the guest network.
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Comment on Looking for a low-profile desktop gaming PC in ~tech
bonsai_angel Link ParentI love that they managed to fit a full-width video card in there sideways. Make sure you get all the ram you want, because it only has 2 slots for laptop-sized ram modules.I love that they managed to fit a full-width video card in there sideways. Make sure you get all the ram you want, because it only has 2 slots for laptop-sized ram modules.
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Comment on Looking for a low-profile desktop gaming PC in ~tech
bonsai_angel (edited )LinkI bought one of these lenovo slim towers recently. It's the only smaller form-factor machine I could find at that price range that had 32 GB of ram, a 1 TB nvme, and a respectable processor. You...I bought one of these lenovo slim towers recently. It's the only smaller form-factor machine I could find at that price range that had 32 GB of ram, a 1 TB nvme, and a respectable processor. You can run it on its side without covering a vent, but there are no rubber feet, so it will slide around if you don't put something under it. I haven't tried gaming on it. And I don't know what the market looks like for low-profile video cards, but they do exist, if you need to upgrade. Fans are quiet when idling but can get loud under heavy load.
edit: You would need a video card to play a game like killing floor 3. See the game benchmarks at the bottom of this notebookcheck review of the integrated graphics chip. I would probably put one of these in there, but you'd have to make sure the power supply could handle it, and I'm not totally sure every low-profile card will come with a low-profile metal bracket, which is essential.
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Comment on Trying to fully ditch Windows for streaming. So close, but this audio issue is breaking me. in ~tech
bonsai_angel LinkThat blog post makes it sound like the nvidia 960 gtx won't work in windows 11, which isn't true. I don't know if you're switching to avoid a hardware upgrade, but win11 apparently requires WDDM...That blog post makes it sound like the nvidia 960 gtx won't work in windows 11, which isn't true. I don't know if you're switching to avoid a hardware upgrade, but win11 apparently requires WDDM 2.0 which is associated with the direct3d feature level 11_1 onward, according to the chart on this wikipedia page: Feature levels in Direct3D. The 960 gtx is from the maxwell generation, and they all support feature set 12_1, so they're in the clear.
I'd recommend keeping the linux machine around as a side project and continuing to use windows until your audio issues clear up. You can bypass the TPM 2.0 check in windows 11 if you create the install media using rufus, and if you still want to avoid win11 altogether, you can install windows 10 iot ltsc and keep getting updates until 2032.
edit: Sorry, I know these kind of answers are annoying. But I've built a lot of linux machines over the years, and problems like the one you're describing will drive you completely insane. Better to take your time with it if you can.
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Comment on The future is Niri in ~comp
bonsai_angel Link ParentLet me know if you find a good bare-bones config+style that doesn't need to be dissected and put back together to get it to work. I'd be happy if it just looked like the i3 status bar, but even...Let me know if you find a good bare-bones config+style that doesn't need to be dissected and put back together to get it to work. I'd be happy if it just looked like the i3 status bar, but even getting vertical separators between modules requires some css hacking. I guess the buttons are fine as an alternative, but it's crazy that you can't just change all those colors on one line, or even one section of the css file. It looks like it's all styled by separate button IDs, so you have to change the colors for each one individually! I even saw the :hover pseudo-class in there, containing yet another color.
I use gog for old games, but even then it's hard to know what you're getting. The game might work on the version of windows it was originally released for, or it might not, due to being updated for modern windows. The minimum requirements often list Windows 10, and then I find that it runs on Vista or XP. Then some games that are proper new releases or remasters contain old versions as extra content (under Goodies on the store page), so you have to know to look there as well.