derekiscool's recent activity
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Comment on What are you no longer a fan of? in ~talk
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Comment on US Pentagon declares Anthropic a threat to national security in ~society
derekiscool LinkThe absolute stupidity of banning your entire military industrial complex from using the best AI tool is astounding. I just can't comprehend doing something this moronic, petty, and damaging to...The absolute stupidity of banning your entire military industrial complex from using the best AI tool is astounding. I just can't comprehend doing something this moronic, petty, and damaging to the country because your feelings got hurt for being rejected.
I have to imagine that when this goes to court, it will be overturned. There's 0 credible reason for this ban.
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Comment on US President Donald Trump reviews executive order for nationwide voter suppression in ~society
derekiscool (edited )LinkA question for somebody who's literate in the legal system: Is there any actual legal basis for this? I read a summary of the powers granted by National Emergencies Act (NEA), and elections aren't...A question for somebody who's literate in the legal system: Is there any actual legal basis for this? I read a summary of the powers granted by National Emergencies Act (NEA), and elections aren't mentioned once. On top of that, wouldn't any law giving power of elections to the president be unconstitutional since it's very clearly spelled out that elections are run by the states?
Edit - Putting on my conspiracy hat for a minute: One thing that intrigues me is the inclusion of banning voting machines and forcing hand-counted paper ballots. I'm actually all in favor of paper ballots and hand-counting them alongside the tabulation machines to verify accuracy. But there's some decent statistical evidence out there that voting machines in swing states were compromised in favor of republicans. Paired with the shady last-minute updates that were done to the machines, there's a very real possibility that the election was truly fraudulent in favor trump.
I wouldn't be surprised to see the ban of voting machines disappear in the final version of this, and if it does - that all but screams confession to me.
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Comment on Netflix ditches deal for Warner Bros. Discovery after Paramount’s offer is deemed superior in ~movies
derekiscool Link ParentIt really does. Totally unrelated, but I just bought a 5TB HDD and downloaded BitTorrent for the first time in over a decadeIt really does. Totally unrelated, but I just bought a 5TB HDD and downloaded BitTorrent for the first time in over a decade
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Comment on Netflix ditches deal for Warner Bros. Discovery after Paramount’s offer is deemed superior in ~movies
derekiscool LinkWhelp, this is incrediblely disappointing. Another giant media corporation soon-to-be directly controlled by a far-right billionaire family. Time to cancel HBO...Whelp, this is incrediblely disappointing. Another giant media corporation soon-to-be directly controlled by a far-right billionaire family. Time to cancel HBO...
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Comment on Discord: Getting global age assurance right: what we got wrong and what's changing in ~tech
derekiscool Link ParentLike sparkle said, children have cards in their name as authorized users of a parent's credit card. My son is less than a year old and has a card in his name (to give him a head start on building...Like sparkle said, children have cards in their name as authorized users of a parent's credit card. My son is less than a year old and has a card in his name (to give him a head start on building credit, if you're wondering why.)
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Comment on Anyone get into caffeine (coffee/tea) as an adult? in ~food
derekiscool LinkNot me personally, but my MiL started drinking coffee at ~56, just a few years before she retired. To paraphrase her, there were a lot of morning drives that would have been easier with caffeine....Not me personally, but my MiL started drinking coffee at ~56, just a few years before she retired. To paraphrase her, there were a lot of morning drives that would have been easier with caffeine.
In my experience, as somebody who's gone through periods of lots of coffee or zero caffeine - once you get adjusted to it for the first time, the effects are kind of negligible even after long periods of abstinence.
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Comment on Leaked email suggests Ring plans to expand ‘search party’ surveillance beyond dogs in ~tech
derekiscool Link ParentAs far as I know, Eufy security and doorbell cams only store footage locally by default. Granted, the app is still the primary way to interact with them, so theoretically, it would be possible for...As far as I know, Eufy security and doorbell cams only store footage locally by default.
Granted, the app is still the primary way to interact with them, so theoretically, it would be possible for them to access your footage. But you could also just disconnect it from wifi and access footage exclusively via the microSD if that's what you wanted.
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Comment on Warner Bros. Discovery considers restarting talks with Paramount in ~tv
derekiscool LinkI would prefer not to have all media consolidated into mega corporations, but I uncomfortably find myself rooting for Netflix. Paramount ruins almost everything it touches, and the Ellison will...I would prefer not to have all media consolidated into mega corporations, but I uncomfortably find myself rooting for Netflix. Paramount ruins almost everything it touches, and the Ellison will certainly use the extra control of media to spread more right-wing propaganda.
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Comment on Border czar Tom Homan says Minnesota immigration surge is ending in ~society
derekiscool LinkI hope the people of Minnesota get some peace and quiet soon. They've dealt with so much. I don't have faith that this will last, though, and I fear they are just moving on to terrorize the next...I hope the people of Minnesota get some peace and quiet soon. They've dealt with so much.
I don't have faith that this will last, though, and I fear they are just moving on to terrorize the next blue city on the list.
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Comment on The ten best and ten worst US foreign policy decisions in ~humanities.history
derekiscool LinkRegardless of opinions on the "accuracy" of the ordering/choices, there's some interesting history in this list. It's obviously too soon to fully judge the ramifications, but everything is...Regardless of opinions on the "accuracy" of the ordering/choices, there's some interesting history in this list.
It's obviously too soon to fully judge the ramifications, but everything is pointing to the entire past year of foreign policy making the worst 10 list. It would be very interesting to revisit this list in 10-15 years.
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool Link ParentI don't have an issue with protecting children (and agree with you, in fact. They are very vulnerable and easy to manipulate), but I strongly disagree with basically every method that governments...I don't have an issue with protecting children (and agree with you, in fact. They are very vulnerable and easy to manipulate), but I strongly disagree with basically every method that governments are implementing. There are much more secure ways to do it and we should focus on those, in my opinion.
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool Link ParentI don't like any solution that requires me to send any personal information. It's just setting up the perfect system for tons of powerful actors to misuse your data (whether that be corporations...I don't like any solution that requires me to send any personal information. It's just setting up the perfect system for tons of powerful actors to misuse your data (whether that be corporations selling, leaking, and analyzing it, or the government creating profiles on us with nefarious purposes).
Outside of the big social media platforms, I'm not sure I agree that there is much benefit to age verification anyway.
The only age gating I would be comfortable with is some sort of standardized router level age-gating. Where incoming connections send include a flag indicating minimum age, and the verification is handled locally. And for cellular devices, it could be handled on the device as well.
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Comment on Why Google just issued a rare 100-year bond in ~finance
derekiscool (edited )Link ParentFor a layman, *what does "no meaningful restrictive covenants" mean? Edit: *For a layman, *what does "no meaningful restrictive covenants" mean?
Edit: *
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool Link ParentThat wasn't specified before they updated their press release. It's a bit better than a face/ID scan, but I'm still not a fan. Though, I imagine they've already been doing this behind the scenes...That wasn't specified before they updated their press release. It's a bit better than a face/ID scan, but I'm still not a fan.
Though, I imagine they've already been doing this behind the scenes for years anyway.
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool (edited )Link ParentI mean, functionally, Discord is a really good piece of software. It has tons of features that work well and make the experience of using it quite nice. Everything with voice, video, screen...I mean, functionally, Discord is a really good piece of software. It has tons of features that work well and make the experience of using it quite nice. Everything with voice, video, screen streaming, and text chat is pretty good, in my opinion, and I dont know of any other app that does them all as well.
The "forums" implementation is terrible, I agree. But as a communication app for a small group of friends, it's top-notch. I want all the text, voice, streaming, and video in a single app.
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool Link ParentI don't like that, but at least it's open source so people can see exactly what's being committed.I don't like that, but at least it's open source so people can see exactly what's being committed.
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool Link ParentYeah, sadly there aren't any good alternatives if you're looking for a discord-like experience. Honestly, I wish a company like Proton would release a Discord alternative. I would happily pay for...Yeah, sadly there aren't any good alternatives if you're looking for a discord-like experience.
Honestly, I wish a company like Proton would release a Discord alternative. I would happily pay for a privacy focused option.
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool (edited )Link ParentThat just sounds like right-wing propaganda used to justify ID/face capturing. How is age verification actually going to combat child predators? Adults can still communicate with children in...That just sounds like right-wing propaganda used to justify ID/face capturing. How is age verification actually going to combat child predators? Adults can still communicate with children in either environment.
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Comment on Discord will require a face scan or ID for full access next month in ~tech
derekiscool (edited )LinkI'm wondering how adept these age verification tools are, and if AI is actually a good use-case for bypassing them without scanning your own face. Has anybody experimented with using AI generated...I'm wondering how adept these age verification tools are, and if AI is actually a good use-case for bypassing them without scanning your own face. Has anybody experimented with using AI generated faces to trick these tools?
I read that, in the past, some age verification tools have been tricked by things as simple as screenshots of posed faces in Garry's Mod. I assume that those simple tricks have been patched out, but I imagine AI generated faces would be much more difficult to detect.
I used to love hockey (watching it). Then there was a bit of a kerfuffle a few years ago about showing support for LGBTQ which basically led me (and many others) to realize that a large portion of NHL players are homophobic/bigoted. I completely stopped watching after that. And I'm sad to see that I made the correct choice after seeing how (most of) the US players gleefully celebrated with a fascist government.