introspect's recent activity
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Comment on How often do you brush your teeth? in ~life
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Comment on Faculty member fatally shot in University of North Carolina building in ~news
introspect LinkHmm, did a bit more digging on the shooter. Seems like his peers said he was a "nice", "quiet", and "humble" person. Did the Gao Kao (standardized testing) twice to get into a very prestigious...Hmm, did a bit more digging on the shooter. Seems like his peers said he was a "nice", "quiet", and "humble" person. Did the Gao Kao (standardized testing) twice to get into a very prestigious Chinese undergrad. Perhaps it was something personal.
Link here (article is in Chinese).
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Comment on iPhone 14, 14 Pro owners complain about battery capacity that’s already falling off in ~tech
introspect Link ParentI am only talking about their share of the smartphone market here, but I cannot recall a single flagship phone that launched in 2022-2023 that doesn't have a glued-on back that requires special...I am only talking about their share of the smartphone market here, but I cannot recall a single flagship phone that launched in 2022-2023 that doesn't have a glued-on back that requires special tools to remove, nor do any of them have official replacement parts available for purchase by the average consumer.
My point is, every large company is hostile to repair.
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Comment on Reddit is deleting all chat messsages made before 2023 in ~tech
introspect LinkAccording to a few who have requested a "takeout" of all of their data from Reddit, you can still see the old DMs in there. They still have the data; they're just being assholes.According to a few who have requested a "takeout" of all of their data from Reddit, you can still see the old DMs in there. They still have the data; they're just being assholes.
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Comment on Condensation / damp from garage floor. Can it be fixed? in ~life.home_improvement
introspect LinkMy dad had a damp concrete floor basement (unfurnished) that he was using as storage and his solution is leaving a dehumidifier there basically 24/7, and occasionally emptying the water container....My dad had a damp concrete floor basement (unfurnished) that he was using as storage and his solution is leaving a dehumidifier there basically 24/7, and occasionally emptying the water container. As far as I could tell, it wasn't too bad.
Sealing the floor definitely reduces condensation and would help with your problem, but personally I am not experienced enough about how you'd go about doing that.
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Comment on Do you tag your music? What's your method? in ~music
introspect LinkI just go with whatever tags they came with when I got them off of Soulseek. Those people tag them well, so all I needed to do was removing shit in metadata that's like "check out cringecoins...I just go with whatever tags they came with when I got them off of Soulseek. Those people tag them well, so all I needed to do was removing shit in metadata that's like "check out cringecoins ($CRINGE)" or random URLs.
To put that simply, the name, artist, genre, album, track number, and album art combo is all I need. Hell, probably don't even need the album art.
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Comment on Threads is the perfect Twitter alternative, just not for you in ~tech
introspect LinkThat was very well put and more or less aligns with my initial impression of Threads. From the birth of that platform a lot of the choices they've made are quite evident of their intent with...That was very well put and more or less aligns with my initial impression of Threads. From the birth of that platform a lot of the choices they've made are quite evident of their intent with Threads - mobile-only, where data collection gets intimate and personal, and a CVS-receipt-length list of things that they collect from you, which is at least twice as long as that of Twitter's on the iOS app store, if I recall correctly.
Modern social media in general tends to be mind-numbing, time-wasting content feeds that pulls you in and wrings you dry. After years of trying out various Meta products (let's be real, most people are on Facebook or Instagram), I feel like what I like the best is more like where I went when I was a kid - Baidu Tieba, an old-school-ish Chinese forum that has separate "subs" and sorts all replies to threads chronologically. I'm very young (23), but Chinese tech seemed to always lag a few years behind (at least that's how it was in 2008).
Since I can't go back there now due to real name verification requirements and the lack of a Chinese ID number, I'm stuck in a couple of places, namely 4chan and here. I don't really feel the urge to go seek out more places to go, especially not after I realized how much better I function after leaving Reddit. Used to have FOMO about this, but maybe I am not the party that's missing out anymore.
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Comment on 'The Three-Body Problem' is... bad in ~books
introspect Link ParentThe act of translation is not mere word-to-word like moving bricks from point A to point B, but more of an art in and of itself. If there were idioms missing in language X but present in language...The act of translation is not mere word-to-word like moving bricks from point A to point B, but more of an art in and of itself. If there were idioms missing in language X but present in language Y, the source material's language, then it is the translator's burden to bridge that gap.
I am under the impression that the translation is well done and faithful to its source, and that the difference in my perception is not caused by issues in translation but by the fact that some things are inevitably lost in translation and there isn't much to do about it. It is a shame, really, but in order to elicit some of those emotions and reactions, you'd almost have to rewrite some parts to adjust it to western expectations.
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Comment on 'The Three-Body Problem' is... bad in ~books
introspect LinkAs someone fluent in both Chinese and English, I would like to share my perspective with you. Initially, I began reading the book in Chinese, but the first chapter evoked such a powerful emotion...- Exemplary
As someone fluent in both Chinese and English, I would like to share my perspective with you. Initially, I began reading the book in Chinese, but the first chapter evoked such a powerful emotion in me that it became slightly overwhelming. Since I was not in a good mental state at the time, I decided to switch to reading it in English, which blunted much of that impact.
I'm currently in the middle of a half-hearted attempt to read it in Chinese, and what I've noticed is that I completely agree with you regarding the flatness of the characters in the English version - however, when the same ideas are conveyed to me in Chinese, the writing and the characters feel more natural in that context. I can't quite explain this phenomenon, but perhaps the more detached writing style and the difference in narrative focus make it a better match for a story of this caliber when it's in Chinese. I feel like you are missing much of that cultural context and emotional expectations, and thus it is totally understandable that you feel that way.
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Comment on Asking advice re search engines, search technique in ~tech
introspect LinkGeneral search advice (not sure about searching for poems since I am not too into poetry): Use alternative search engines (Bing, Yandex, Searx). DuckDuckGo, AOL etc. are powered by Bing anyways....General search advice (not sure about searching for poems since I am not too into poetry):
- Use alternative search engines (Bing, Yandex, Searx). DuckDuckGo, AOL etc. are powered by Bing anyways.
- Doesn't necessarily apply to poetry, but ask a large language model about it first, and regurgitate whatever new things it came up with into Google. I usually use ChatGPT not as definitive authority on my question but as a source of better search terms.
- If you have a snippet of the poem itself, put it in quotes. That would indicate that you want to perform an exact match search, and the full text is more likely to come up.
- Use dashes before words that you want to exclude. For example, when I search up some other poor chap or brand called Linus, I could do
-tech -tipsto avoid a certain other well-known Linus.
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Comment on What is one of your favourite plant-based dishes? in ~food
introspect LinkThe first thing that comes to my mind is stir-fried bok choy and shiitake mushrooms. I could be biased because I ate it growing up and it's a somewhat of a "homely" taste to me, but my friends...The first thing that comes to my mind is stir-fried bok choy and shiitake mushrooms. I could be biased because I ate it growing up and it's a somewhat of a "homely" taste to me, but my friends have tasted my very amateur rendering of that dish and they liked it.
IDK what others do for this dish but what I do is quite simple. You need bok choy and mushrooms (obviously), soy sauce, oil (vegetable, olive, canola, whatever), minced garlic, hoisin/oyster sauce, and green onions. You cut the veggies into whatever shape makes sense to you, and throw them into a cooking vessel in the order of oil -> garlic -> bok choy -> mushrooms -> all other condiments -> green onions. Timing almost doesn't matter because it's really hard to fuck this up. For more detailed instructions, you should look it up - I just go by gut most of the time and I have no idea what I'm doing.
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Comment on What text comparison software do you use? in ~tech
introspect Link ParentMore specifically, when you are comparing two files, say file A and file B, you want to select the file that you think you want to see the changes on and click "Select For Compare", and the one...More specifically, when you are comparing two files, say file A and file B, you want to select the file that you think you want to see the changes on and click "Select For Compare", and the one that you want to diff with "Compare With Selected". It was confusing at first but the "selected" document should be the primary document if you get what I'm saying.
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Comment on What consumeristic and somewhat pointless hobby do you have? in ~hobbies
introspect Link ParentThat's real interesting. The only time I shopped small business perfume oil on Etsy was for dupes of famous premium cologne brands that I can't afford, and since I can't afford the original, I of...That's real interesting. The only time I shopped small business perfume oil on Etsy was for dupes of famous premium cologne brands that I can't afford, and since I can't afford the original, I of course had no frame of reference as to how close it got besides "oh I guess it smells expensive, I'll wear it". Maybe I'll try some original scents from now on.
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Comment on What are your go-to mobile apps? in ~tech
introspect LinkBrave: the only browser that has a built-in adblock for iPhones, as far as I can tell. I uninstalled YouTube and watch it there. They can't make me see ads. Chance: lovingly crafted 4chan and...Brave: the only browser that has a built-in adblock for iPhones, as far as I can tell. I uninstalled YouTube and watch it there. They can't make me see ads.
Chance: lovingly crafted 4chan and alt-chan viewer with a very active and responsive developer. It does captcha solving and cloudflare logins, and it even lets you do read-only Reddit if you so desire. Dev's a "scrapechad", so he's not affected by API changes.
Discord: mobile discord is noticeably clunky and bloated, but I use it to chat with friends.
ChatGPT: they let you hit the Whispr API for free on the mobile app. I just copy the text and use it elsewhere. Lmao
Amazon: shittiest big company mobile app ever; they should be ashamed of how fucking slow it is. Still have it on my phone though.
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Comment on Something wrong with new game reviews (Dave the Diver) in ~games
introspect LinkThe game continuously introduces new mechanics, and even if it didn't, this gameplay loop appeals to people who like exploring, collecting, looting, etc., which, judging from the # of games that...Main game is a boring slow 2d underwater "harpooning fishes", mini game is "serving sushi" of the caught fishes
The game continuously introduces new mechanics, and even if it didn't, this gameplay loop appeals to people who like exploring, collecting, looting, etc., which, judging from the # of games that only focus on those features, there are quite a lot of them.
Art is very basic pixelated 2d, nothing unique.
Look closer. It's mostly 3D, and the 3D pixel art is gorgeous. 2D pixel cutscenes are lovingly animated and looks extremely modern - adds a lot to the experience.
30 years old SNES games
Pokémon releases the same damn game every year and people eat them up. Animal Crossing releases the same damn game and people eat them up. Zelda basically "enbiggened" breath of the wild and slapped on some new features (not saying that it's bad, I played through it once and will do so again), yet it's got overwhelmingly positive feedback. All three games have water-related gameplay, and they're probably all worse than Donkey Kong Country. What's your point? Games stick to what works, and DTD's underwater gameplay is serviceable for what they're trying to accomplish.
Uniquely great game
It's unique, imo, because it combines many "addictive" elements of other games into one game. Collecting? We've got a card system for those fish. Fishing? That's half the game. Playing number games? Go get staff to automate serving dishes and get those farms started. I'm only in the second chapter, and I heard they'll throw more shit at me. Personally stoked for it.
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Comment on 3D Printed Bluetooth Headphones in ~comp
introspect LinkThis looks neat, though I'm worried about the PLA + super glue construction - doesn't look too repairable. Would be nice to have a screw enclosure for the parts inside. Thanks for sharing!This looks neat, though I'm worried about the PLA + super glue construction - doesn't look too repairable. Would be nice to have a screw enclosure for the parts inside. Thanks for sharing!
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Comment on iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro rumored to feature big boost in battery sizes in ~tech
introspect LinkMy parents bought me a 14 pro as a congratulations for first job out of college (I'm young, I know). I have a battery pack. Phones in general have less and less selling points, and the only things...My parents bought me a 14 pro as a congratulations for first job out of college (I'm young, I know). I have a battery pack. Phones in general have less and less selling points, and the only things that would make me consider a new iPhone is USB C charging and sideloading applications - if they both happen for the 15, who knows, might just get myself one. Other than that, slightly better camera and processor along with a litany of small improvements are probably what they're trying to sell, so no thanks.
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Comment on <deleted topic> in ~talk
introspect LinkI think structured conversations can have its benefits, mostly to give those who are too timid to hop into an already mature and actively participated conversation. Though I do hope that they'd...I think structured conversations can have its benefits, mostly to give those who are too timid to hop into an already mature and actively participated conversation. Though I do hope that they'd allow you time to do non-structured conversations afterwards in that session, though.
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Comment on What consumeristic and somewhat pointless hobby do you have? in ~hobbies
introspect Link ParentYeah, I have a collection and it's becoming a problem... Bought a Ikea multi-tier kitchen cart thingy, and I keep the small ones in that.Yeah, I have a collection and it's becoming a problem... Bought a Ikea multi-tier kitchen cart thingy, and I keep the small ones in that.
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Comment on What consumeristic and somewhat pointless hobby do you have? in ~hobbies
introspect Link ParentIt was the red one! Damn, you do know your playing cards.It was the red one! Damn, you do know your playing cards.
I used to do it maybe a couple times a week, but I started doing it consistently (twice a day, at worst once a day) after hearing some stupid inspirational phrase that really stuck with me.
Some "feel good" thread on 4chan had this webm that said something along the lines of "anything worth doing is worth doing badly", so I started to just brush my teeth without really thinking about how long I'm brushing it and all other little details about doing it right. Whenever I don't feel like it, I just think about that phrase. This is very silly, but it worked for me.