kfwyre's recent activity
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Comment on Creative short story writing contest—prize for winner! (2025-01-07) in ~creative
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Comment on Creative short story writing contest—prize for winner! (2025-01-07) in ~creative
kfwyre Link ParentThis was so cute and so heartwarming! Absolutely perfect for kids — your rhyme, rhythm, and message are all on point. I’m a bit of a Hal myself. I am, uh, rather tall in real life and have been...This was so cute and so heartwarming! Absolutely perfect for kids — your rhyme, rhythm, and message are all on point.
I’m a bit of a Hal myself. I am, uh, rather tall in real life and have been that way since like, kindergarten. As such, every adult in my life at the time told me I needed to play basketball and, at their behest, I did for (too) many years.
Only problem was that instead of being skilled on the court, I was clumsy, fumbsly — a mess in disguise. I constantly had the sense not that I was too big but that I couldn’t live up to my height. A story like this would have spoken strongly to me when I was young.
Outstanding work, fefellama.
Also, if you ever do end up getting this published, I’m absolutely buying copies for my nephews.
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Comment on Creative short story writing contest—prize for winner! (2025-01-07) in ~creative
kfwyre Link ParentThis was such a creative interpretation of the prompt. I absolutely love what you did with it! The story did not pan out at all like I initially expected it to, and that was wonderful. I won’t say...This was such a creative interpretation of the prompt. I absolutely love what you did with it!
The story did not pan out at all like I initially expected it to, and that was wonderful. I won’t say more because I want other readers to have the same experience I did, but I want to commend you for creating such an interesting and tight narrative here.
Fantastic work, CannibalisticApple!
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Comment on Creative short story writing contest—prize for winner! (2025-01-07) in ~creative
kfwyre LinkI am genuinely blown away at the quality of these submissions. I’ve finally read through all of the stories, and I’m glad I’m not @TheMeerkat because I would have NO clue how to select a winner!...I am genuinely blown away at the quality of these submissions. I’ve finally read through all of the stories, and I’m glad I’m not @TheMeerkat because I would have NO clue how to select a winner!
I’ll be individually exemplarying all submissions (because I genuinely do think they’re all exemplary). Normally I do that privately, but I’m announcing it here because the 8 hour cooldown for me means that some are going to get it before others, and I don’t want people to think that I’m attempting to sway the judge or play favorites. I honestly liked each story submitted for different reasons.
A big thank you to everyone who submitted their work. I know it can be scary to put your creative work out there for anyone, much less internet randos (who, on the whole, are not known for being kind — though I’d admittedly argue that we lean toward kindness more here than in most other places online).
Also, I thought it was interesting how many parallels there were between distinct stories. Cats and allergies! Who would have thought they’d be such common focuses? As someone who does have genuinely awful allergies, including to cats, many of these stories make me feel very seen. 😂
Also, a question for both TheMeerkat as well as the authors: are there thoughts on compiling these into a site or an ebook or whatnot? As I read through these, I realized that we basically have a full themed short story anthology here. It feels like it might be worth it to make it cohesive or give it a place to live?
No pressure or anything, but I wanted to throw out the idea — especially if these continue. It would be cool to have definitive archives of the prompts and each story submitted.
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Comment on Save Point: A game deal roundup for the week of January 19 in ~games
kfwyre LinkFanatical Build Your Own Elite VR Bundle Has a bunch of VR games at very cheap per-game prices (which is rare -- VR games don't tend to get the same steep discounts as regular Steam games)....Fanatical Build Your Own Elite VR Bundle
Has a bunch of VR games at very cheap per-game prices (which is rare -- VR games don't tend to get the same steep discounts as regular Steam games). Additionally: you can pick and choose which ones you want.
Of these, the only one I've played is VR Furballs - Demolition, which I would give a soft recommendation. It reminded me a lot of the Boom Blox games back on Wii (which I loved), but feels clunkier. If you're not familiar with Boom Blox (likely), then you can think of the game as a sort of VR Angry Birds.
At full price I don't know that I'd endorse it, but for the price in the bundle, I'd say go for it -- especially if you have kids. It's definitely aimed at younger audiences.
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Comment on Tildes Book Club Spring and Summer schedule 2025 in ~books
kfwyre LinkThe ebook for Ted Chiang's Stories of Your Life and Others just went on sale for $2 USD if anyone wants to pick it up for cheap in advance of September. Links are to US stores: Kindle Kobo Nook...The ebook for Ted Chiang's Stories of Your Life and Others just went on sale for $2 USD if anyone wants to pick it up for cheap in advance of September. Links are to US stores:
I'm not sure if the deal is available outside of the US (can someone let us know?).
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Comment on Marvel Snap has also been banned in the US following the TikTok shutdown in ~games
kfwyre LinkWhile many were expecting the U.S. to shut down TikTok within its borders if parent company ByteDance didn't sell it to a Western buyer, it was a bit more of a surprise when Marvel Snap went dark as its publisher is also owned by the same company.
For those unaware, Marvel Snap was developed by Second Dinner and was published by ByteDance-owned publisher Nuverse, which is what led to the ban.
Ben Brode, Second Dinner's Chief Development Officer and Co-Founder, took to BlueSky to discuss the ban and state that it was a surprise to them too.
"Unfortunately, Marvel Snap is temporarily unavailable in U.S. app stores and is unavailable to play in the U.S. This was a surprise to Second Dinner and our publisher Nuverse," Brode wrote. "We’re actively working on getting the game up as soon as possible and will update you once we have more to share."
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Marvel Snap has also been banned in the US following the TikTok shutdown
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Comment on Buying a game from a director that you really have problems with (Kingdom Come) in ~games
kfwyre LinkThirteen Ways of Looking at a Work I It stands alone On no landscape An isolation II the utter narcissism of thinking you, just you (lonely you) have any sort of impact on the world III “I don’t...Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Work
I
It stands alone
On no landscape
An isolationII
the utter narcissism of thinking
you, just you (lonely you)
have any sort of impact on the worldIII
“I don’t watch every single step I take,
but when I know there’s shit around,
you better believe I avoid it.”IV
A fire you cautiously approach
Warm
(—inviting?)
Destructive
(—menacing?)V
“Tragedy of the commons,”
they say.
And you believe them.VI
why this one
when there are so many others
why not this oneVII
I am not who I was yesterday
I am not what I did yesterday
I am what I feel now about yesterdayVIII
theenemyoutput
of my enemy
is myfriendenemyIX
bad people often hide
themselves
behind good thingsX
sometimes you just want to see
what all the fuss is about
(you know?)XI
endorse it?!
i want to
tear. it. apart.XII
you can taste the differenceXIII
The river is moving.
The blackbird must be flying. -
Comment on Recommend your social/softer science fiction books in ~books
kfwyre LinkIt’s been a looooong while since I read it, but I think Connie Willis’s Bellwether fits the bill almost perfectly. The only things I remember about it are: It’s about trends and fads. I loved it....It’s been a looooong while since I read it, but I think Connie Willis’s Bellwether fits the bill almost perfectly. The only things I remember about it are:
- It’s about trends and fads.
- I loved it.
And since I don’t remember anything about it, maybe that means I’m due for a reread?
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Comment on GOG joins European Federation of Game Archives, Museums and Preservation Projects (EFGAMP), expanding its game preservation efforts in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentI absolutely did, but I whiffed the link. It’s now fixed. Thanks, Protected!I absolutely did, but I whiffed the link. It’s now fixed. Thanks, Protected!
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Comment on GOG joins European Federation of Game Archives, Museums and Preservation Projects (EFGAMP), expanding its game preservation efforts in ~games
kfwyre (edited )Link ParentFor a while, I tried to put my money where my mouth was and buy DRM-free games where I could. This meant prioritizing buying from GOG or itch.io first, with Steam being the fallback. It worked...For a while, I tried to put my money where my mouth was and buy DRM-free games where I could. This meant prioritizing buying from GOG or itch.io first, with Steam being the fallback.
It worked well for some stuff. GOG has a decent selection of indie titles, as well as some bigger names from older years. If you’re trying to keep current, then it’s not a great platform, but if you fit in to the r/patientgamers model then it’s excellent.
One problem I repeatedly ran into, however, was that some developers’ GOG builds would lag behind their Steam counterparts. A particularly egregious example was Nuclear Throne. The devs uploaded a build of the game for sale, then didn’t touch it for years, despite the Steam version getting frequent updates during that time. I bought it on GOG thinking I was doing the “right” thing, only to end up with a build that was way out of date. I felt like I’d gotten punished for trying to buy on GOG.
I’m not sure how current it is, but there is this spreadsheet which aims to track issues like that in GOG’s library.
The other issue that I ran into was Linux support. GOG made an earnest attempt at offering Linux builds for games where possible, and going so far as to test those Linux builds on Ubuntu. This initiative didn’t seem to remain a priority though, and they then released their GOG Galaxy launcher with no Linux support (and no future plans for it).
Currently, the best way to enjoy GOG on Linux is through third-party tools like Heroic or Lutris. It’s nice that those exist, but having to jump through third-party hoops to play a build of a game that might not even be up to date adds a lot of friction.
Steam, by contrast, has made gaming on Linux so smooth it’s invisible. After spending a few years mostly on GOG, I ended up coming back to Steam as my primary platform. I even ended up re-buying a lot of games I bought on GOG simply to reduce the friction associated with them. Now that the Steam Deck is out, I’m essentially fully locked into Steam’s ecosystem, despite the fact that I really do love GOG and what they stand for.
I sound like I’m a little sour on GOG, but that’s painting a bit of an unfair negative picture. Yeah, Nuclear Throne didn’t update, but plenty of other games did, and I played dozens of other games just fine. My mini GOG review is one of those “played for thousands of hours; thumbs down” ones where someone gets TOO close to something to the point that small flaws get magnified out of proportion.
The truth is that, if you’re willing to put up with some minor annoyances, then GOG is worth it. I still love GOG despite moving away from them, and I really do want to see them be successful. I make it a point to buy exclusive releases on there that I’m interested in. If I were gaming on Windows instead of Linux, they’d probably still be my primary (especially with a unifying launcher like Playnite).
Even Linux support is much better now thanks to Proton and Heroic or Gamehub — tools that weren’t available at the time I switched off of GOG. The main issue you’ll have likely won’t be technical: it’ll likely be that you can’t find a game you specifically want in their library, since their catalog is significantly smaller than Steam’s.
As a closing note, I’ll add that, when I was on GOG, I did keep backups of the installers for my games, and I never felt “safer” regarding my games library. Steam could die tomorrow and I’d be cooked, but if GOG died tomorrow I’d still have a lot of great things to play…
…or I would, if I hadn’t cleared the backups to save space 🙃
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Comment on Starting a community-maintained Tildes source code fork in ~tildes
kfwyre Link ParentI’m also not sure how federation works with the site’s privacy focus. I joined the fediverse briefly and then realized it’s sort of a privacy nightmare, as my content was being duplicated across...I’m also not sure how federation works with the site’s privacy focus. I joined the fediverse briefly and then realized it’s sort of a privacy nightmare, as my content was being duplicated across dozens of servers, including some that could have been acting maliciously.
I’m not technical enough to know if there’s a good way to do “privacy preserving federation,” but I lean towards a centralized model as being better in that regard. Consider our recent discussion about deletion of user content and how that would become a substantially more complex problem if Tildes were federated.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentI feel the same way about A Hat in Time. I don’t know why I don’t love it (by all accounts I should), but I’ve given it two solid attempts, multiple hours each time, and I just… don’t connect with it.I feel the same way about A Hat in Time.
I don’t know why I don’t love it (by all accounts I should), but I’ve given it two solid attempts, multiple hours each time, and I just… don’t connect with it.
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Comment on Tildes Book Club - Ministry for the Future - How is it going? in ~books
kfwyre LinkI made the mistake of starting the book right before GDQ, so I dove into it and then almost immediately put it on pause for a week. GDQ is now over though, and I’m eager to get back to it. It had...I made the mistake of starting the book right before GDQ, so I dove into it and then almost immediately put it on pause for a week.
GDQ is now over though, and I’m eager to get back to it. It had me hooked.
Like many have mentioned, that first chapter is a hell of an opener.
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Comment on Awesome Games Done Quick 2025, a week-long charity fundraiser featuring speedruns, is live (runs January 5 - January 11) in ~games
kfwyre (edited )Link ParentThis TGM showcase is unbelievable right now. The skill on display is genuinely breathtaking. And the announcer just killed it: EDIT: It’s finished. Shirase mode was stunning. I don’t think I...This TGM showcase is unbelievable right now.
The skill on display is genuinely breathtaking.
And the announcer just killed it:
Let’s give it up for our Tetris Grand Masters! I’m afraid if we line them all up they’ll disappear on us.
EDIT: It’s finished. Shirase mode was stunning. I don’t think I blinked! Tell your pals they did an incredible job! EricICX in particular had a series of excellent runs. I couldn’t stop watching his screen (although at the beginning I thought it was mackie’s because the nametags didn’t match up with the stacks).
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Comment on Starting a community-maintained Tildes source code fork in ~tildes
kfwyre Link ParentI agree. “Wave” feels very generic to me and has a lot of preexisting collisions (anyone remember Google Wave?), but “Wavelet” is specific and feels good to me.I agree. “Wave” feels very generic to me and has a lot of preexisting collisions (anyone remember Google Wave?), but “Wavelet” is specific and feels good to me.
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Comment on Starting a community-maintained Tildes source code fork in ~tildes
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Comment on Awesome Games Done Quick 2025, a week-long charity fundraiser featuring speedruns, is live (runs January 5 - January 11) in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentI’ve never actually been in person, so I have no idea about the specifics of the badge system to be honest. Badges might just be for runners and staff and whatnot. I’m sure you can ask someone and...I’ve never actually been in person, so I have no idea about the specifics of the badge system to be honest. Badges might just be for runners and staff and whatnot.
I’m sure you can ask someone and they’ll help you out. The GDQ community is super kind and welcoming.
Best of luck!
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Comment on Awesome Games Done Quick 2025, a week-long charity fundraiser featuring speedruns, is live (runs January 5 - January 11) in ~games
kfwyre Link ParentAh, that’s so cool! If I were there in person I’d love to meet up, but alas, my husband and I attend GDQ from the comfort of our own couch. I’m not sure if you can watch the event or do any of the...Ah, that’s so cool! If I were there in person I’d love to meet up, but alas, my husband and I attend GDQ from the comfort of our own couch.
I’m not sure if you can watch the event or do any of the cool in-person extras without a badge, but if you can and have time, I would definitely check some stuff out.
If you’re still around (and free) on Saturday afternoon, they’ve got a run of Crazy Taxi with a live band. The music from the game itself is iconic (The Offspring), but also not stream friendly due to copyright, so instead of simply muting it for the run, they’re having a band play covers. It’ll certainly be great on stream, but it’ll undoubtedly be 1000x better in person.
Hope you’re able to set up some impromptu meet ups with fellow Tildebeasts!
This one’s short, but you’ve packed a lot into it!
I loved your use of second person. Structurally, the repetition of the jogging actions framed by the podcast topics work really well at creating quick time and topic progression in just a few words.
I also liked that the story sort of bucks the “individual hero” motif of a lot of other fiction. The actions of one individual here are certainly important, but this story feels more like it’s about the systems that individual (a.k.a. “us”) operates in. Your use of a desire path as a symbol is also really powerful, anchored by the weight loss nod and community recognition for someone who was initially unhappy but decided to make a change. Really beautifully done. You’re skillful with your details and have great word economy!
This feels like a modern parable. I’m currently reading The Ministry for the Future for the Tildes Book Club, and this also feels like it could be its own chapter in that book.
Excellent writing, GoatOnPony.