first-must-burn's recent activity
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Comment on What’s the best 3D-printed thing you have? in ~talk
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Comment on Where can I find the best lanyard? in ~life.style
first-must-burn (edited )Link ParentIf you don't care about being able to unweave it quickly, here are two nicely document documented techniques: Flat braid Double cobra knot belt Both of these have the advantage of working from one...If you don't care about being able to unweave it quickly, here are two nicely document documented techniques:
Both of these have the advantage of working from one end. As long as you make the strands long enough, you can braid until you're happy with the length and cut ofd the rest. My technique, which I've tried to explain below, requires you to start with the warp loops about 120% longer then the target length, and if you get it wrong, you pretty much have to rip it out and start all over.
Also, here's a video that details of a lanyard making process that's very similar to mine.
First-Must-Burn's survival belt
I sort of made it up as I went along, and I've never seen anyone else do anything like it.
This video has a similar setup to the rig I use for weaving https://youtu.be/0BRRKFi9cdM
The viedeo shows you how to loop the cord through the buckle to make the warp, then the free end becomes the weft. The ha seat thing about lopping the warp is keeping the strands from getting tangled.
The difference in my technique than the video is that rather than taking the weft back and forth through the weave, I pass a loop through from one side. Each loop catches the end of the one before it.
Here's a very bad illustration: https://ibb.co/XrvxLpvf
The green, yellow, red are the same piece of cord, just using the colors to illustrate. The black marks show the alternations of the warp:
- Pass a loop, the green loop, through the warp, going over/under. Because it's a loop, there will be two strands together. When you're done, there will be a loop sticking out the opposite side. Leave that for now.
- Pass another loop (yellow loop) from the same side as before, but alternate the over under from the previous loop.
- Hook the loop end from the green loop over the yellow loop, and tighten up the green loop. The yellow loop keeps the green loop from pulling through.
- Now start a third loop, the red loop. You'll do the same over/under as the green loop. When you're done, pass the end of the yellow loop over the red loop, and tighten the yellow loop
- Keep going until the end. At the very end, don't make a loop, but weave the free end in, use it to catch the previous loop, and weave the free end back through one final?time. It should be very tight by now. Having a lacing needle will help, but you can also do it with forceps/hemostats or narrow needle nose pliers.
- I did find a way to make the keeper part of the weave, but the simplest way to add it is just to weave a little bit of extra paracord in on both sides and leave it loose enough to capture the free end of the belt.
One other difference from the video: I found that to get the tightest weave, you must let the warp shorten as you weave. Think of it as going "back and forth" through the weft, so it can't be as long as it was origjally. So instead of zip-tying the buckle end, I'd secure it with some cord or a strap that you can lengthen as the belt shortens. I fins that the warp needs to start out about 120% longer then you want the finished length to be.
Why go through this trouble?
- When you do a traditional weave, the whole free end of the cord has to be pulled through the alternating warp every time you add a row. Because my method pulls a loop up, you don't have to do that.
- Because a traditional weave goes back and forth like that, you'd also have to do that to unweave it. With my method, if you ever want to undo it, unweave that last end and start pulling. Because each loop secures the one before it, they will slip out one by one.
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Comment on Where can I find the best lanyard? in ~life.style
first-must-burn Link ParentWhen I was elementary / middle school aged, I non-ironically carried all kinds of things around in a fanny pack that I wore everywhere for many years. We called it my "pouch". It started because I...When I was elementary / middle school aged, I non-ironically carried all kinds of things around in a fanny pack that I wore everywhere for many years. We called it my "pouch". It started because I didn't like wearing real pants, and putting lots of things in the pockets of sweatpants is a recipe for injury or embarrassment. But it survived the transition to jeans. I was very socially awkward, so while it certainly didn't help, this was probably not the weirdest thing about me.
On the plus side, I always had bandaids, lighter, duct tape, pocket knife (ironic), pliers,
trip wirestring, etc. -
Comment on Where can I find the best lanyard? in ~life.style
first-must-burn Link ParentMy first iteration was a buckle from a belt where the strap had started to flake, later I used a belt buckle I ordered online. Here's a picture The warp and the weft are all one continuous piece....My first iteration was a buckle from a belt where the strap had started to flake, later I used a belt buckle I ordered online.
The warp and the weft are all one continuous piece. It's hard to explain with words, but I start by making long loops through the buckle that become the warp, then I start weaving loops the other way.
Pretty much any spot on the belt can hold the pin of the buckle, so it's very adjustable.
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Comment on Where can I find the best lanyard? in ~life.style
first-must-burn LinkMy key chain is a carabiner I got from Home Depot (not Nitize but I second @r3qn65 's recommendation). The rest is a woven section of paracord about 6" long which is perfect for pulling them from...My key chain is a carabiner I got from Home Depot (not Nitize but I second @r3qn65 's recommendation). The rest is a woven section of paracord about 6" long which is perfect for pulling them from my pocket. I'd say paracord is perfect for what you described because it will be very strong and unlikely to break. There are about 10 million paracord keychain videos on youtube you could adapt to your needs, so you can really customize how long, how thick (by braiding or weaving it), etc.
Mine is a "survival keychain" because the weave is a kind of double interlocked crochet that is held close by a single knot. If I need the cord more than I need the keychain, I can undo that one knot and quickly unravel the whole thing. I made it ten years ago, so I'd have to sit down and figure out how again. But it's nearly perfect as a keychain.
Offtopic, but I made my belt the same way. It's woven from paracord, but the weft is a loop pulled through, and then the free end is caught by the next loop, and so on. So in a pinch, I could pull it out into 160 feet of paracord. It's the most comfortable, durable belt I've ever owned.
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Comment on Academia do be strange in ~science
first-must-burn LinkI was a grad student in the US from 2004 to 2013. Back then stipends were a pretty flat $2k/mo. Part of why I chose CMU was because that's a living wage in Pittsburgh, but it's barely lodging in...I was a grad student in the US from 2004 to 2013. Back then stipends were a pretty flat $2k/mo. Part of why I chose CMU was because that's a living wage in Pittsburgh, but it's barely lodging in Cambridge or Palo Alto. Because faculty are responsible for raising their own funding, each one is a little fiefdom, and they have nearly absolute power over the career trajectory of their students. If there is some conflict with other faculty that mainly affects a student, their advisor may not "go to bat" for them because the students are transient, but the relationships with other faculty must be maintained for a long time.
I think the biggest determiners of a grad student's success will be
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whether their advisor is a good fit personality-wise. If you think grad school is a 50-60 hours-per-week job and your advisor wants 100 (especially if they work that schedule themselves), it's going to be rough going.
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whether their advisor has a stable source of funding - going through grad school on a well-funded project means having lots of access to tools, more senior students students to work with and learn from, and plenty of interesting problems to solve. In a funding drought, you're getting pulled from one topic to another in order to pursue small grants that may be topically unrelated. That (plus some medical issues) is how you might end up in grad school for 9 years.
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how their advisor is doing personally and professionally - a family issue, a startup that takes off, a startup that fails - All of these affect the energy that the advisor is putting into their students and their grant and paper writing.
My favorite part of grad school was getting to design a new lab for an embedded software engineering class. The teaching was great, but the rest of it is so ... unreal that I could not have stayed in academia.
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Comment on What’s the best 3D-printed thing you have? in ~talk
first-must-burn LinkOh gosh, what a neat thread. I mentioned telescope parts in a reply elsewhere in this topic. My Catan Jr holders were frequently used when my daughter was younger and have now transitioned into a...- Exemplary
Oh gosh, what a neat thread.
I mentioned telescope parts in a reply elsewhere in this topic.
My Catan Jr holders were frequently used when my daughter was younger and have now transitioned into a steady seller on Printables. Not "quit your day job" good, more like "coffee a few times a month" good.
I have a bracket I designed that slides on the rail of my headboard and holds my cpap hose. This makes it much more comfortable to use.
There is also a tiny piece of plastic that grips the hose of the shower head and tips it up so it is at the right height for me. It was the first thing I printed when we moved into this house almost a decade ago.
Our wrapping paper station gets regular use. Instead of constantly buying those tiny rolls of crap paper or finding out we don't have enough and having to run to the store for more, we can use large rolls of high quality paper. The holder makes it easy and practical to manage and store them. 3 double sided rolls of paper with fairly generic designs has proven to be sufficient for all our wrapping needs.
There is one more thing I am super proud of, but it involves helping an abuse victim in my family, so you may not want to read it.
Trigger warning for sexual abuse
Someone I am close to in my family (I will refer to them as M) was abused by another family member when they were very young.
A few years ago, M began to uncover and deal with the trauma around the abuse. During that time, the house where the abuse happened (it had been sold out of our family decades ago) came up for sale. First M wanted to buy it and raze it, which was not practical financially. Then they wanted to send a note to the new owners. I gently tried to dissuade them from this, because that would be an awful burden the new owners didn't deserve.
As an alternative, I offered to build a dollhouse scale model of the house. With M's consent and their therapist's blessing, I asked about what would be important for the model. They said it would be important that the doors worked. The original house also had bars on the windows, and they wanted the bars to be able to be removed and the windows to be opened. A lot of the reparenting that they were doing was about escaping the place where it happened, so these details were important.
The house model walls were made out of foam core, but the moveable windows and doors were all modelled and 3D printed. I modeled the fencing for the back yard and made it so they could add a gate, which was never there in the original.
Then I made models of all the furniture that had been in the house that we could remember. When I gave it to M, I told them that they should feel free to destroy it if that's what they needed. And that I could make it again if that would help. But they ended up keeping it.
Recently M wrote an amazing essay about the abuse and their recovery, and the house was mentioned. So though this project happened years ago, it has on my mind lately. Here's a little excerpt:
For years, I get this nightmare dollhouse out, set it up on the basement floor, arrange the furniture into the rooms. My hands remember what to do. ... When everything is in place, I check inside myself to see if anything else is needed here. I make a sweep of the open drawer and all the alcoves and recesses where I sometimes find parts of myself when they have a request. Sometimes I listen in and then spend some time imagining, raging, rearranging to meet a need. Most of the time, though, the only thing to do is feel my full size and walk away.
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Comment on What’s the best 3D-printed thing you have? in ~talk
first-must-burn Link ParentYour locker customization caused me to flash back to middle school and high school and the yearly beginning-of-school ritual of installing [lockermate...Your locker customization caused me to flash back to middle school and high school and the yearly beginning-of-school ritual of installing [lockermate shelves](https://paperpro.com/adjustable-double-locker-shelf-drawer-blue html). They could just about last a year before being totally destroyed, but I could never understand how most people just piled their stuff in the locker so it was spilling out every time they opened it.
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Comment on What’s the best 3D-printed thing you have? in ~talk
first-must-burn Link ParentHave you seen the Hadley. It is an almost fully 3d printed reflecting telescope built around a 114mm spherical mirror. One of my friend's dad was in his 90s, and super in to astronomy, so we...Have you seen the Hadley. It is an almost fully 3d printed reflecting telescope built around a 114mm spherical mirror.
One of my friend's dad was in his 90s, and super in to astronomy, so we started out by printing the base parts to the telescope. He had a bunch of his own parts (lenses, mounts, the motorized pointing base), so the three of us ended up working together designing custom parts that were a mixture of his ideas for what he wanted and the practicalities of designing for 3d prints. He loved how flexible and adjustable the Hanky design was, said it was like having an optics lab in his living room.
He had a doublet lense that he had been given years ago and not had an opportunity to do anything with (it might have come from a submarine periscope). So we built a whole second refracting telescope modeled on the hadley's modular framework.
When the eclipse came through a few years ago, we built sun screens for them, and he got to use the scopes we designed and built to photograph the eclipse.
Unfortunately he passed away last year, but the enjoyment it gave his last few years makes it one of my favorite projects ever.
One upshot of this is that I have a ton of custom modeled components based on the hadley framework, so I can share STEP or Solidworks (hobby edition) files with you that would be a starting place if you wanted to retrofit your dobsnian onto the framework.
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Comment on Which covers did it better than (or put a fresh twist on) the original? in ~music
first-must-burn Link ParentFrom a slightly older generation, it was Garth Brooks doing it. I think it's a suerior cover, but he was also formative to my music experience.From a slightly older generation, it was Garth Brooks doing it. I think it's a suerior cover, but he was also formative to my music experience.
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Comment on Have you played with bubbles recently? in ~talk
first-must-burn LinkMy sister has a set that has a bucket for the soap and the wand is two sticks with fluffy ropes between them. Something similar to this set on Amazon. They hold a lot of soap, so they make huge...My sister has a set that has a bucket for the soap and the wand is two sticks with fluffy ropes between them. Something similar to this set on Amazon. They hold a lot of soap, so they make huge bubbles. They are super fun.
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Comment on Which covers did it better than (or put a fresh twist on) the original? in ~music
first-must-burn (edited )LinkThought Miley Cyrus' cover of Jolene mentioned elsewhere is good, the White Stripes live cover is tops for me. Nobody puts more emotion in it than Jack White. Also Dead Sara's Heart Shaped Box...Thought Miley Cyrus' cover of Jolene mentioned elsewhere is good, the White Stripes live cover is tops for me. Nobody puts more emotion in it than Jack White.
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Comment on Which covers did it better than (or put a fresh twist on) the original? in ~music
first-must-burn Link ParentThis is one I was going to mention, so I'll second it instead. *Where Did You Sleep Last Night * is great.Nirvana Unplugged. The whole album is great and has many covers, once again you wouldn't know if you weren't familiar with the songs, but where did you sleep last night is extraordinary.
This is one I was going to mention, so I'll second it instead. *Where Did You Sleep Last Night * is great.
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Comment on The Punisher: One Last Kill | Official trailer in ~tv
first-must-burn LinkIt's so weird to me to see the disney logo cheerily displayed over some thing so violent. To be clear, I have no beef with the violence per se. It makes sense for the story them are telling. But...It's so weird to me to see the disney logo cheerily displayed over some thing so violent. To be clear, I have no beef with the violence per se. It makes sense for the story them are telling. But the juxtaposition of that with disney, clashes with the sacharin "family friendly" vibe of the Disney channel from my childhood.
I know it hasn't been that way for a while now, but it still catches me from time to time. -
Comment on Why Microsoft’s war on Windows’ Control Panel is taking so long in ~tech
first-must-burn LinkMy rule of thumb is, to the greatest extent possible, use every other version of windows. 95 - a mess 98 - good ME - a mess 2000/xp - good Vista - a mess Windows 7 - good Windows 8 - a mess...My rule of thumb is, to the greatest extent possible, use every other version of windows.
95 - a mess
98 - good
ME - a mess
2000/xp - good
Vista - a mess
Windows 7 - good
Windows 8 - a mess
Windows 10 - goodBy this reckoning, windows 11 will be a mess and Windows Chinchilla (or whatever they call what comes after 11) will probably be okay.
My working theory is that from the success of a good release, Microsoft tries something "innovative" that nobody really wants. Product managers invent problems to solve in the hopes of triggering some kind of gold rush user migration. Of course, they never suceed because fundamentally if an OS is doing well, you should not notice it all.
All this causes enterprise customers (who never migrated to the odd version) to start making noise. Microsoft then locks those product managers up in whatever vault they keep them in and goes back to their core value proposition, which is being a boring but scalable business OS.
The cycle was a bit skewed with Windows 10 because they kept it around for so long. Also, Windows 11 is basically just a rename of the perennial Windows 10 update. Other than changing the start menu and adding AI, it's less of an update than usual. So the pattern may finally break down.
Who knows. I may tell my grandchildren (via neural implant) that I lived through the rise and fall of Microsoft Windows.
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Comment on AI Coding agents are the opposite of what I want in ~comp
first-must-burn Link ParentYou should be able install Cline and configure your copilot account as the back end model. When we had copilot at our last job, the admins were able to turn on access to Claude Sonnet as well. I...You should be able install Cline and configure your copilot account as the back end model. When we had copilot at our last job, the admins were able to turn on access to Claude Sonnet as well. I really like Cline as a development tool.
To speak more to your original post, you might try an agent prompt like, "Use git to find the uncommitted changes / changes on this branch vs main and review those changes." You can be more specific about the files that get reviewed and the nature of the review (algorithm complexity, etc.).
Though to get it to interact reliably with git, I had to make a .clinerules file with an entry like "When you run a git command, run it with `git --no-pager command` so you get the full output."
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Comment on Competence is lonely. Nobody talks about why. in ~health.mental
first-must-burn Link ParentThat's a real bummer. I hope you have a lovey reunion when she gets a break.That's a real bummer. I hope you have a lovey reunion when she gets a break.
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Comment on Competence is lonely. Nobody talks about why. in ~health.mental
first-must-burn Link ParentThis is so hard, especially if you have formed attachments and genuinely care for them. My therapist always says, "If you don't care for yourself first, you won't have the resources available to...For my friends, I liked being the "mom" at first, because I do genuinely like helping and comforting people, but after years of giving emotional energy and not getting it back, I'm just exhausted.
This is so hard, especially if you have formed attachments and genuinely care for them. My therapist always says, "If you don't care for yourself first, you won't have the resources available to care for others." Sometimes this is framed as "you can't pour from an empty cup." I find this difficult to do in practice because there's always someone that needs help with something. But I have gotten better at finding a balance where I can take time for myself and feel refreshed by it rather than guilty.
I wonder if you could have a partner, family member, or trusted friend "be your manager" with respect to your friend groups and help you evaluate which things to get involved in.
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Comment on Competence is lonely. Nobody talks about why. in ~health.mental
first-must-burn Link ParentI know the other thread points to the idea that you will fall into this role anywhere you go, but I wanted to offer a different perspective. I do think once you've become the key player, you can't...I know the other thread points to the idea that you will fall into this role anywhere you go, but I wanted to offer a different perspective. I do think once you've become the key player, you can't undo that at the same company, but I think that by understanding that dynamic and being intentional, you might control how it happens at a new place.
I was the glue/competent go-to at my last job, and it really did stress me out, especially when people were going in direction for "business reasons" that didn't make sense to me.
I switched to a new role at a different company that's in a similar place in terms of startup lifecycle, similar kind of product, but a different market. I'm among the most senior people on the team, but as I "get my sea legs" with the new product/team/market, I'm mindful of the ways that I take responsibility. I'm trying to keep at least some of my responsibilities in the "teach a person to fish" category, and making sure that other people are involved in my work so that I don't become a tower of knowledge. It's still fairly early, but so far, it seems to be working.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
first-must-burn Link ParentYes, this is what I need. I don't have a good bedtime routine or very good sleep discipline, and my life/schedule/family obligations are very chaotic, so I haven't managed to fins time to tackle...Yes, this is what I need. I don't have a good bedtime routine or very good sleep discipline, and my life/schedule/family obligations are very chaotic, so I haven't managed to fins time to tackle this (and to many other things).
Thank you for your kind words! They have said they are okay to have it shared on an individual basis. Let me get back to my computer and remove some identifying information from it, and I'll DM you a link.