darreninthenet's recent activity

  1. Comment on 'The Marvels' ends box office run as lowest-grossing MCU movie in history in ~movies

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    I've not seen it yet, what were its issues please?

    I've not seen it yet, what were its issues please?

    2 votes

  2. Comment on What are your top three video game soundtracks? in ~games

    darreninthenet
    Link
    It seems to have been forgotten by many but the Age of Conan soundtrack was awesome and IIRC won a music industry award.

    It seems to have been forgotten by many but the Age of Conan soundtrack was awesome and IIRC won a music industry award.

    1 vote

  3. Comment on GPT-4 understands in ~tech

  4. Comment on GPT-4 understands in ~tech

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    How would you say Claude compares in terms of features and capabilities? Is ChatGPT noticeably better but just not worth the cost (to you) or is it better at some things and ChatGPT better at others?

    How would you say Claude compares in terms of features and capabilities? Is ChatGPT noticeably better but just not worth the cost (to you) or is it better at some things and ChatGPT better at others?

    2 votes

  5. Comment on Introducing Surfboard for Tildes in ~tildes

  6. Comment on Which character from a story has impacted you most significantly, and why? in ~talk

    darreninthenet
    Link
    My wife and I watched the play of A Little Life a few days ago (it was a cinema screening of the play). She's read the book beforehand, I hadn't. It was three and a half hours of watching somebody...

    My wife and I watched the play of A Little Life a few days ago (it was a cinema screening of the play). She's read the book beforehand, I hadn't.

    It was three and a half hours of watching somebody circle a drain after they spent their entire life from 8 years old being heavily abused and then destroying everything that was good in their life because of that abuse and when finally it started working out, other shit turned up that destroyed the rest of it.

    The character of Jude St. Francis will stay with me for a few more weeks I reckon.

    My wife and I discussed it afterwards - at least when reading 800+ page book you put it down and reflect and recover between reading sessions. Watching the play was just watching non-stop trauma being inflicted on somebody and was exahausting and harrowing.

    By the way, it was fantastically acted and produced and I would recommend it to anyone who won't have issues with the obvious trigger warnings. Just be prepared to only want to watch the Disney channel for a few weeks afterwards, or maybe cool off with something less disturbing like The Exorcist or Clockwork Orange afterwards 😮‍💨

    2 votes

  7. Comment on What game, in your opinion, has the best graphics? in ~games

    darreninthenet
    Link
    Others have mentioned Cyberpunk 2077 with it's amazing fidelity and light tracing but I'm amazed nobody's mentioned the quality of the facial and body animations, they are incredibly realistic in...

    Others have mentioned Cyberpunk 2077 with it's amazing fidelity and light tracing but I'm amazed nobody's mentioned the quality of the facial and body animations, they are incredibly realistic in terms of reading facial expressions and body language.

    1 vote

  8. Comment on Yes, you can measure software developer productivity in ~tech

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    Although it doesn't measure the 3-4 hours I sat with a notebook and pen where-the-fuck-I-like planning and brainstorming the next project 🤦🏻‍♂️

    Although it doesn't measure the 3-4 hours I sat with a notebook and pen where-the-fuck-I-like planning and brainstorming the next project 🤦🏻‍♂️

    6 votes

  9. Comment on What’s in your go bag for the apocalypse? in ~life

  10. Comment on What’s in your go bag for the apocalypse? in ~life

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    How do you keep the water potable?

    How do you keep the water potable?

    4 votes

  11. Comment on Unlimited Kagi searches for $10 per month in ~tech

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    You mean racist right wing tabloid

    You mean racist right wing tabloid

    6 votes

  12. Comment on How often do you brush your teeth? in ~life

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    There are other ways of sorting bad breath if it's an issue though

    There are other ways of sorting bad breath if it's an issue though

    2 votes

  13. Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    The development studio for that game was setup by ex-Blizzard (from when they were good) WoW devs.

    The development studio for that game was setup by ex-Blizzard (from when they were good) WoW devs.

  14. Comment on Bringing back the minimal web in ~tech

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    I think that's driven by a need to survive - each generation seems to have a tougher time financially whilst the world around them gets technologically and scientifically more advanced, and those...

    I think that's driven by a need to survive - each generation seems to have a tougher time financially whilst the world around them gets technologically and scientifically more advanced, and those with money get wealthier. A gen-z (or really any post-boomer generation) born into a family with a reasonable amount of money will do just fine but the rest largely struggle and are left fighting for scraps - it would take a hugely strong willed personality to not become selfish in that situation, and it would take a strong willed personality with charisma to bring everyone else along for that ride and break the cycle.

    I just don't see that happening with the control over the media preventing such a charismatic individual from becoming known.

    3 votes

  15. Comment on Ozempic cuts alcohol cravings. Liquor companies aren’t ready. in ~health

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    I wish they would do that here in the UK - my wife can't get the normal dose of her diabetes medication because it's being sucked up by people wanting a quick and easy weight loss pill, so she's...

    I wish they would do that here in the UK - my wife can't get the normal dose of her diabetes medication because it's being sucked up by people wanting a quick and easy weight loss pill, so she's having to take a lower dose for now and watching her blood sugars remain higher than they should be 🤬

    It's only available on prescription here as well - the government just needs to say "no more off label prescribing until the supply issues are sorted"

    11 votes

  16. Comment on A British Columbia study gave fifty homeless people $7,500 each. Here's what they spent it on. in ~finance

    darreninthenet
    Link
    I'm not convinced of the value of this study: "we set out to see if homeless people really would spend free cash on drugs and alcohol" "we excluded all addicts and alcoholics" 🤔
    • Exemplary

    I'm not convinced of the value of this study:

    • "we set out to see if homeless people really would spend free cash on drugs and alcohol"

    • "we excluded all addicts and alcoholics"

    🤔

    38 votes

  17. Comment on USENET, the OG social network, rises again like a text-only phoenix in ~tech

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    One of the most popular Windows UseNet clients was Forte Agent (which had a free version back then called Free Agent) - it's still being updated and sold today!

    One of the most popular Windows UseNet clients was Forte Agent (which had a free version back then called Free Agent) - it's still being updated and sold today!

    2 votes

  18. Comment on Young climate activist tells Greenpeace to drop ‘old-fashioned’ anti-nuclear stance in ~enviro

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    Even the original founder of Greenpeace is pro-nuclear. Actually, might be Friends of the Earth... but it's definitely one of them 🤦🏻‍♂️

    Even the original founder of Greenpeace is pro-nuclear.

    Actually, might be Friends of the Earth... but it's definitely one of them 🤦🏻‍♂️

    3 votes

  19. Comment on Meet Your Tildes Neighbour: August 2023 Edition in ~talk

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    Varied and challenging wargame that can be as complex as you like - want to throw some mechs on a map and have them fight it out using landscape as cover? Check Want to add rules in for off field...

    Varied and challenging wargame that can be as complex as you like - want to throw some mechs on a map and have them fight it out using landscape as cover? Check

    Want to add rules in for off field artillery that arrives several turns later? Go for it. Add some tanks, planes, helicopters, boats, submarines and hovercraft? Yup.
    Infantry? Of course! How about rules for picking up another mechs blown off arm and using it as a club? Or for creating smoke (that moves with the wind) by setting fire to a forest? Or rules for desert worlds, high-g (and low-g) and atmosphereless worlds?

    And then go for a rich lore that spans literally thousands of years and a choice of literally thousands of different mechs and vehicles in different specs, or the choice to simply invent your own.

    And on top of all that - it's perfectly rules legal to play with whatever proxy miniatures or tokens you like. As long as the other player knows what it is and which way it's facings you can (rules legally) play with bottle caps if you like. And you won't get stung by power creep - the rules haven't broadly changed for decades and you aren't forced to buy the latest miniatures (see previous point).

    Downside? The rules are a little crunchy with lots of modifiers to remember but the box sets come with reference sheets to help with that, and obviously the more you add in the more there is to remember. If you can I would start by seeing it there's a local club to you that can introduce you.

    There are also two variants - "Classic" (the game I described above) and Alpha Strike. The latter is much faster to play and less crunchy but is more like playing a normal wargame - some people say start with Alpha Strike but I don't agree as it's a completely different game. If you can get through the slightly steep learning curve I've never played a richer more detailed wargame than Classic Battletech.

    1 vote

  20. Comment on Meat eaters of Tildes - what have you tried to make use more ethical? in ~food

    darreninthenet
    Link Parent
    Honestly, I don't think we could afford the toilet paper

    Honestly, I don't think we could afford the toilet paper

    1 vote