granfdad's recent activity

  1. Comment on In Berlin, I experience icks I never thought possible in ~travel

    granfdad
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    At the end of this article is a little note that says: "You are reading a pseudonymous post from a friendly neighborhood writer as part of our limited-run Hate Read pop-up newsletter! These are...
    • Exemplary

    At the end of this article is a little note that says: "You are reading a pseudonymous post from a friendly neighborhood writer as part of our limited-run Hate Read pop-up newsletter! These are not real names! Stop trying to Google them lol!"

    I was curious, and read the rest of the "Hate Read" articles. Ironically, they're all so bad I feel the need to write about them here. I don't quite know what brief the writers got for these articles, but the whole idea of "just whine about shit that doesn't matter for a few hundred words" makes me sad. The intro to the series ends with "But what if, in the end, sowing discord, snark and a healthy spray of cattiness is what really brings us all together?" as if the idea of complaining about stuff is a new concept and not 90% of internet traffic that isn't pornography. It's not really the kind of conversation that we need more of, is it? But who knows, maybe my optimism is more common than I think it is, and I just so happen to miss a large chunk of positive online discussion.

    19 votes

  2. Comment on I applied for a software role at FedEx and was asked to take this bizarre personality test in ~life

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    This isn’t an anti-reddit site, imo if the link is conducive to conversation then it’s fine.

    This isn’t an anti-reddit site, imo if the link is conducive to conversation then it’s fine.

    20 votes

  3. Comment on What ecelebrity did to my brain in ~arts

    granfdad
    Link
    Posting this as a comment rather than body text as I don't want to sway the tone of the thread. Jreg is a youtuber that I intermittently keep up with, I know some of the inside jokes, but I don't...

    Posting this as a comment rather than body text as I don't want to sway the tone of the thread. Jreg is a youtuber that I intermittently keep up with, I know some of the inside jokes, but I don't really get that deep into the videos. I thought this was going to be a more serious video in the realm of "I want(ed) to die" and "I (Don't) Want To Be Famous", only to be (of course) hit with his classic infinitely-layered-hyper-satirical irony, or whatever it's called. This is the first time I think I've "seen through" one of his videos. It seems as though he's trying to maintain a sense of self awareness, but then be aware of the self awareness, but then be aware of that self awareness ad infinitum, while still keeping some level of sincerity. There's a half-baked refusal of his own defeatist point of view that's trying to present him as promoting both his direct words and the opposite of what they mean. He does this a lot, sure, but something about this specific video makes me mad. It's almost as if he's pretending to be aware of the insanity of the point he's making, without actually understanding.

    In my mind, this video is tragic a companion piece to "my external circumstances have nothing to do with how i feel", but it's the complete opposite. Instead of making fun of a refusal by [character] to examine their external circumstances in order to imply that it they do play a part in [character]'s mental health, he's very seriously putting all blame on external circumstances, while pretending that he believes his internal monologue is still in some way responsible.

    I don't know if any of this makes sense, my feelings are very conflicted and I haven't actually been able to knuckle down what exactly irks me so much about this video.

    5 votes

  5. Comment on People with a "second brain": Why? How? in ~life

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    I'm just about to start at university for design, I don't know what kind of note taking I'll need for that so that's not factoring in quite yet. Apart from that - which is only a "hobby" until...

    I'm just about to start at university for design, I don't know what kind of note taking I'll need for that so that's not factoring in quite yet. Apart from that - which is only a "hobby" until next month - I produce music which doesn't need much note taking outside of my audio workstation (I have a physical notebook for when I'm learning about stuff), and I casually do worldbuilding for a fantasy setting and cyberpunk setting. For those things, Obsidian seems to work fine. I find that I have fleeting ideas - either creative or introspective - that disappear into the ether because I don't have an outlet for myself. I'm not even entirely sure that it's a bad thing, but it does mean that I end up never expanding upon any of the ideas. These are ideas that aren't detailed enough to require that I make a specialized system just for them (e.g. both of my worldbuilding settings have a wiki), so they never get any attention. Whenever I've had note systems in the past, I've felt like I was forcing myself to write stuff down, it didn't come naturally.

    1 vote

  6. Comment on Theory: All children love Darude - Sandstorm in ~music

    granfdad
    Link
    As a former child, I can confirm that Sandstorm bangs. It wasn't 20 years old when I first heard it BUT I also wasn't around when it came out so do with this info what you will.

    As a former child, I can confirm that Sandstorm bangs. It wasn't 20 years old when I first heard it BUT I also wasn't around when it came out so do with this info what you will.

    4 votes

  7. Comment on People with a "second brain": Why? How? in ~life

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    I think the problem is that I don't have many thoughts I consider worth writing down. I don't know if I'm expecting too much from myself, or if I actually have not much mental depth lmao

    I think the problem is that I don't have many thoughts I consider worth writing down. I don't know if I'm expecting too much from myself, or if I actually have not much mental depth lmao

    2 votes

  8. Comment on People with a "second brain": Why? How? in ~life

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    That's interesting. Would you say that you find yourself writing more because you have obsidian? As in, do you have more thoughts that you consider turning into writing because you have the tool?

    That's interesting. Would you say that you find yourself writing more because you have obsidian? As in, do you have more thoughts that you consider turning into writing because you have the tool?

    2 votes

  9. Comment on People with a "second brain": Why? How? in ~life

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    I don't quite understand this comment, are you referring to the option to choose not to write something down? or the option to write something short down?

    I don't quite understand this comment, are you referring to the option to choose not to write something down? or the option to write something short down?

    1 vote

  10. Comment on People with a "second brain": Why? How? in ~life

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    Obsidian is what I use for my fantasy world-building at the moment, as it's super easy to make a wiki style setup, but I'm curious as to what everyday things you write down? Also I agree with the...

    Obsidian is what I use for my fantasy world-building at the moment, as it's super easy to make a wiki style setup, but I'm curious as to what everyday things you write down? Also I agree with the idea of being a "compulsive tinkerer", that could be a part of my misunderstanding of the function of a 2nd brain.

    1 vote

  11. Comment on People with a "second brain": Why? How? in ~life

    granfdad
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    This question might seem disingenuous, but why do you need to write something down if you don't need to remember it? My memory is definitely not superhuman, but maybe I don't have enough thoughts...

    The whole point is that you don't have to remember it anymore after writing it down.

    This question might seem disingenuous, but why do you need to write something down if you don't need to remember it?

    It's possible that you have an unusually excellent memory, and really have no need for notes!

    My memory is definitely not superhuman, but maybe I don't have enough thoughts I consider worth keeping? You mention you use your 2nd brain to stay on track, is that just in the form of a todo list?

    2 votes

  12. People with a "second brain": Why? How?

    ~life Ask
    I've been looking around at different note-taking apps (Notion, Obsidian, Anytype, Joplin, Logseq, etc.) after seeing a few videos about the idea of having a "second brain", and only how has the...

    I've been looking around at different note-taking apps (Notion, Obsidian, Anytype, Joplin, Logseq, etc.) after seeing a few videos about the idea of having a "second brain", and only how has the the thought popped into my mind, "What's the point?". A “second brain” seems like it would require spending too much processing power on something that only exists to exist. What are the chances there you're going to remember any given thing after writing it down? You haven’t filled up your first brain yet. This all sounds very pessimistic - my intention is not to insult anyone's choice to use these tools, but I'm curious of what benefits people have gotten from their "second brains". Maybe I'm just the wrong kind of person for it, or maybe it's just that I'm not used to writing things down.

    Edit: I'm coming to an interesting conclusion that many people use their version of a second brain for things they need to do. This isn't really what I was referring to, I was more looking at it as a form of journaling or personal research, which might be less common?

    33 votes

  13. Comment on Tildes Gaming Club, January 2024: Tinkering in ~games

    granfdad
    (edited )
    Link
    You can't talk game tinkering without talking modding, and you can't talk modding without talking Skyrim, so here I am talking about Skyrim. Skyrim has probably the most dedicated modding...
    • Exemplary

    You can't talk game tinkering without talking modding, and you can't talk modding without talking Skyrim, so here I am talking about Skyrim.

    Skyrim has probably the most dedicated modding community of any game ever, with the exception of (maybe) gmod. I can't imagine any game will surpass it in terms of sheer number, complexity and quality of mods - certainly not any other bethesda game. From fundamental engine fixes to entire new games, almost everything has been touched in some way by someone.

    It's interesting how - despite the game being so open and accessible, due to the engine tools provided - the actual engine is incredibly hostile to modders. Many parts of the game are baked into game saves, meaning that if you get something wrong and make a save with a broken mod - any save from that point is either broken, or doomed to fail at some point. Attempts have been made to mitigate this issue, but so far nobody has attempted to completely work around this issue. I'm not even sure it's possible.

    From a non-technical standpoint, the quality of mods is also incredible. From ~2020-2022, there was basically a game-changing mod being released every week. IMO, honourable mentions include True Directional Movement, TrueHUD, Happy Little Trees and anything Jayserpa has ever touched. Things have slowed down on account of some atrocious decisions thanks to Bethesda, but I have no doubt that the scene is going to remain strong for the next 5 years at least.

    Of course, with any large enough online community (gaming and tech combined, too), there's going to be a fair share of toxicity and controversy. Easy to ignore for modders not involved in the scene, but my god is it everywhere. The two largest issues right now are the use of AI voice cloning (especially in relation to NSFW mods), and conduct among some of the larger modders (link is only one example, there are so many that the list would be as long as this post). I personally don't think that AI generated SFW content is a problem in the modding scene, as long as the content is non-commercial, and that the fight against AI should be more concerned about corporate exploitation, but it's still a relatively heated debate among modders.

    There's also the issue of Creations, a new microtransaction system integrated by bethesda, not unlike their old Creation Club content. The addition of this system required with an update to Skyrim, which broke Skyrim Script Extender, a foundational mod that is relied on by many modders. Here's a link to information about both the update and the microtransactions, should anyone want to know more.

    Modding skyrim is such a different beast to any other modding scene I've ever experienced, and - if you're able to work around the occasional bad actor, and handle the occasional NSFW jumpscare when clicking on a mod that really doesn't need to have NSFW stuff in it's screenshots (regardless of whether or not the mod itself is NSFW) - then it's a great hobby supported by some amazing and creative people.

    Here's some resources for those looking to get into modding Skyrim:

    For those who just want to play modded skyrim without doing any of the modding themselves, check out Wabbajack, or Nexus Collections for (mostly) high quality modlists, with (mostly) hands off installers!

    10 votes

  14. Comment on Harmony in ~music

    granfdad
    Link
    There's one song that immediately comes to mind when I hear the phrase "harmonies that create emotional response", Veil of Oblivion by Erang. It's an incredibly simple track, 2 synths - only one...

    There's one song that immediately comes to mind when I hear the phrase "harmonies that create emotional response", Veil of Oblivion by Erang.

    It's an incredibly simple track, 2 synths - only one at a time - and some sound effects. It's basically carried by the way the sound design and story interacts with the harmony (which is perhaps not what you're asking for, but I think it still counts). The harmony is almost a lullaby, mostly warm and comforting, but there's an atmosphere of longing as the progression... progresses. That longing is basically forced into the limelight by the sound design, a muted bass robs you of any warmth that the harmony could provide, and the remaining airiness takes over. The tone of the harmony is completely different when using the synth it does compared to if it had been played with a violin or some deeper instrument. The track isn't only cold, (to me) it embodies the feeling of becoming cold (I don't mean this in a metaphorical sense, I literally mean temperature-wise).

    Then the two switch places. In the last minute of the song the second synth kicks in, basically the exact opposite of the first - bassy and muffled, the reverb further filling out the lows. It would be warm if it weren't for the harmony, which refuses to resolve, instead fading out without providing any relief. There's not a single moment of peace across the whole 4:05, despite it being almost within grasp.

    The album art and title (Another World, Another Time) also paint a pretty good picture of the tone of the track, along with the context for the rest of the album. The first track in the album has an accompanying poem:

    There are ages that left the memories of men


Like a timeworn stone under the rain.


And amongst them, one is lost forever: Far as the oldest stars, its light has gone out of our world…

    Veil of Oblivion so perfectly captures the apocalyptic yearning that I'm basically forced to stop and listen with all my focus anytime it comes on.

    This just turned into me rambling about one of my favorite songs, but it really was the immediate thing I thought of when I read your post, so I hope this has at least somewhat contributed to your curiosity :)

    1 vote

  15. Comment on Is fandom.com actually getting worse? in ~tech

    granfdad
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    They sell user data. It's pretty detailed in their privacy policy, and you can see exactly what services they use to do so with... an Adblocker. They also do site sponsorships (See their...

    They sell user data. It's pretty detailed in their privacy policy, and you can see exactly what services they use to do so with... an Adblocker. They also do site sponsorships (See their sponsorship with McDonalds which, despite techinically being an ad, was NOT blockable as it replaced the content on the page), and own the game retailer Fanatical along with Metacritic, GameFAQs and Gamespot, which all add to the pool of data they sell. Up until early 2022 they also owned D&D Beyond, which allowed for users to purchase digital copies of books for the TTRPG Dungeons & Dragons.

    20 votes

  16. Comment on Cyberpunk 2077 — Update 2.1 overview in ~games

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    Stealth AI is pretty basic, but fun nonetheless - focusing on your hacking skills will give you a massive advantage and there's plenty of good stealth cyberware available. I'm the complete...

    Stealth AI is pretty basic, but fun nonetheless - focusing on your hacking skills will give you a massive advantage and there's plenty of good stealth cyberware available. I'm the complete opposite, tanky shotgun is my favourite playstyle.

    3 votes

  17. Comment on Cyberpunk 2077 — Update 2.1 overview in ~games

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    Lifepath doesn't really effect gameplay or story outside of the immediate intro. I always feel like streetkid makes the most sense with the way V is written, though.

    Lifepath doesn't really effect gameplay or story outside of the immediate intro. I always feel like streetkid makes the most sense with the way V is written, though.

    3 votes

  18. Comment on Do you have a favorite YouTube video? I want to know! in ~talk

    granfdad
    Link
    Coming in at a whopping 6 seconds: denial anger bargaining depression acceptance by JC Foster Takes It To The Moon. Such a genius concept executed perfectly.

    Coming in at a whopping 6 seconds: denial anger bargaining depression acceptance by JC Foster Takes It To The Moon. Such a genius concept executed perfectly.

    4 votes

  19. Comment on Trigger warning: Faced with professional discipline and a requirement to take training to keep his psychology license in Canada - Jordan Peterson shares his beliefs re trans people in ~lgbt

    granfdad
    Link Parent
    I had this observation too, going back over each sentence they are clear but holistically it is a fucking slog. Maybe it's just that I've seen so much of the same points made by others that my...

    I had this observation too, going back over each sentence they are clear but holistically it is a fucking slog. Maybe it's just that I've seen so much of the same points made by others that my eyes glaze over, but I really need to focus to get any meaning out of the words...

    7 votes

  20. Comment on Make the Wayback Machine the real internet in ~tech

    granfdad
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    Might I suggest that you also add those to the UESP?, it is signifigantly better than the wikia both from a site perspective (fandom is an absolutely garbage site) and a content perspective (I've...

    Might I suggest that you also add those to the UESP?, it is signifigantly better than the wikia both from a site perspective (fandom is an absolutely garbage site) and a content perspective (I've seen claims of people adding completely unsourced headcannon into wikia pages, though I haven't seen it myself).

    EDIT: I should add that the UESP isn't exclusively lore related like TIL is, and thus there would be room for them, there is already a interviews page. If you find you dont have the time to add to the pages but do want them there, I can update it myself if you give me the OK.