krellor's recent activity
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Comment on Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy under fire at Warner Bros. amid box office flops: ‘We didn’t want to fail’ David Zaslav in ~movies
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Comment on Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy under fire at Warner Bros. amid box office flops: ‘We didn’t want to fail’ David Zaslav in ~movies
krellor Link ParentI don't have any knowledge of the test screening process, but can see why it would and wouldn't work. Compromises are often worse than either option, being an averaging of the things that are...I don't have any knowledge of the test screening process, but can see why it would and wouldn't work. Compromises are often worse than either option, being an averaging of the things that are off-putting and appealing into someone no one likes. But market testing gives valuable insight into what people like or dislike about an offering, whether a movie or a product. Add long as you don't let the feedback turn into an averaging out of everything that makes the offering appealing, then the feedback let's you tune it into something even better, like in your examples.
This is the basics of the strategies I learning when finishing my graduate marketing studies. Understand what people like and don't like, but don't let all the feedback erode what the offering actually is.
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Comment on Life altering PostgreSQL patterns in ~comp
krellor (edited )Link ParentAgreed. Like most things, consistency within the project is king.Agreed. Like most things, consistency within the project is king.
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Comment on Life altering PostgreSQL patterns in ~comp
krellor Link ParentIn those situations I typically create an auto incrementing integer as the PK, and a separate UUID that can be exposed for public API invocations. That let's me handle foreign keys and other...In those situations I typically create an auto incrementing integer as the PK, and a separate UUID that can be exposed for public API invocations. That let's me handle foreign keys and other internal operations like joins with integers which are more efficient at scale, and have UUIDs for public reference.
The largest public facing platform I ever managed was a massive regulatory database that allows the public to generate accounts and API tokens, allowed for custom query creation through the API or a web interface, and allowed third parties to build apps on top of our APIs using rate limited accounts. That was a ton of fun to optimize, and the work that went into it was quite the education. Ultimately I ended up having the relational database that the queries would run against using set operations against the internal keys to build a result set that only included unique IDs of what to return, and then a separate select behind the scenes against a denormalized warehouse of the data so that the request doesn't have to materialize data across so many foreign keys relationships.
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Comment on Life altering PostgreSQL patterns in ~comp
krellor LinkThe only one I disagree with is strictly adhering to singular name forms for tables. I disagree that the majority of queries will result in selecting individual records. In fact, my experience is...The only one I disagree with is strictly adhering to singular name forms for tables. I disagree that the majority of queries will result in selecting individual records. In fact, my experience is that for major applications, I'm mostly working with collections of things, and uniformly referencing collections in plural form and individuals in singular makes for intuitive code.
That said, if you find a situation where the reverse is true, you shouldn't be dogmatic either way. But also, English grammar is just a guideline to aid in readable code. If you need to take a few liberties with spelling or names, as long as it is documented do what makes sense.
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Comment on Things progressives get wrong in ~society
krellor (edited )Link ParentI think one thing worth mentioning is that venue is important. Or, at least I think venue is important. I moderate the types of conversations I have and positions I take depending on the topic I'm...I think one thing worth mentioning is that venue is important. Or, at least I think venue is important. I moderate the types of conversations I have and positions I take depending on the topic I'm in and the nature of the initial post. I rarely comment in the niche topics like LGBT, and if I do I avoid setting up a debate. On the other hand, I'm game for a bit of a scrum in the weekly politics thread.
I think in general Tildes users could do a bit better at modulating their behavior based on the topic; it's what all the tags and tag filtering is for. I don't think people should go into the LGBT topic and downplay the harm to trans persons with the current politics. However, it feels different if they want to have a debate about political expediency in the weekly politics thread in relation to a posted op-ed. Whether I agree or not, I'm usually happy to debate a position in the right thread with people in the right frame of mind.
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Comment on When is pet insurance worth it? in ~life.pets
krellor LinkIt's been a while but I had two dogs covered by insurance their entire lives. I did my research and picked a company that covered just about everything as a flat percent coverage of cost, optional...It's been a while but I had two dogs covered by insurance their entire lives. I did my research and picked a company that covered just about everything as a flat percent coverage of cost, optional annual maximum, and ability to change the copay percent to adjust premium price.
When they were young, the plans were fairly cheap, maybe $350/ year. But what I hadn't factor in is that since these were term plans on a 12 month basis, each year the price went up as the dogs got older. Ultimately they went up to about $1,100/year. I would have preferred a policy that was higher in the beginning but more stable overall, but I'm not sure what the market offers.
Overall I was satisfied, though I spent far more on premiums than the policy ever paid out. My dog's were healthy, and I choose a higher flat copay before coverage kicked in too have lower premiums but high annual coverage of they did kick in. I want worried about a few hundred dollars, but several thousand dollars.
It was nice in their later years, high annual premiums aside, because when the big unexpected illnesses did come up, cost was never a factor. We lived by a vet teaching hospital which offered excellent care, but correspondingly high prices. So with insurance, an expensive procedure wasn't an issue and we could focus on quality of life.
If you are the kind of person that would bettetr yourself to pay for your pets, then I do recommend coverage for catastrophic coverage. I would just pay attention to the details. Read the fine print before committing.
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Comment on I'm alarmed by the apparent lack of an actual deep state in ~society
krellor (edited )LinkThe only deep state I'm aware of is really just the inertia or momentum of a large, distributed, and unwieldily bureaucracy. I very much doubt any substantial portion of government is beholden to...The only deep state I'm aware of is really just the inertia or momentum of a large, distributed, and unwieldily bureaucracy. I very much doubt any substantial portion of government is beholden to foreign powers. On the contrary, most are either just trying to make a living, or rationally interpret and implement lawful orders. If there are any pockets of actual malice or plotting, it is just that; pockets in a vast assemblage of career public servants.
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Comment on How can one determine "true" sentiment? in ~society
krellor (edited )LinkUniversities use the idea of institutional disconfirmation to try and remove individual biases inherent in scholarship through the use of scientific merit panels, etc. The idea is that if the goal...Universities use the idea of institutional disconfirmation to try and remove individual biases inherent in scholarship through the use of scientific merit panels, etc. The idea is that if the goal is generalizable knowledge, without the individual bias, that by assembling a panel of diverse thinkers to do reviews, you end up with a more "true" result, in the sense that it is generalizable to more realms in society.
My strategy in the situation you describe is to try and be your own panel, and you treat each source or community as a members opinion that you synthesize into a greater whole. Read a variety of sources and ask a variety of questions, of yourself and if you can, others. You aren't going to get a perfect feel of the population. But if you practice your perspective taking, you should be able to understand the appeal of perspectives you disagree with, and critically construct what kinds of groups might have that perspective, their size, etc.
Your goal isn't to refute or affirm others positions, but to understand them and the appeal. I'm less sure about the Canada as a state thing because that is so new and out of left field, but the two other examples have some pretty obvious thought processes and demographics behind them to deconstruct. I didn't have time on my lunch break, so consider this the eternal mathematicians prerogative to leave something as an exercise for the reader. But you should be able to read an interview or news article about LGBT or middle east issues, and construct a profile for the different groups and why they might feel the way they do, and extrapolate from there.
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Comment on "A calculator app? Anyone could make that." in ~comp
krellor LinkThat was a fun read. I had a chuckle at the end because when I read the first few lines I thought "why not symbolic representation?" Then I forgot about that as I was entertained by the journey,...That was a fun read. I had a chuckle at the end because when I read the first few lines I thought "why not symbolic representation?" Then I forgot about that as I was entertained by the journey, only to have them end at symbolic representation, but in a way that makes it efficient enough to run on a phone calculator app.
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Comment on US farmers feel painful impact of new policies in ~society
krellor (edited )Link ParentI gave you a copy pasted response since you and mimic both replied to me with similar comments. Do you think I had any personally directed intent in a copy-paste? I'm sorry you feel slighted or...since you seemed under the impression that I was unaware that conflation of socialism with state-ownership is common.
I gave you a copy pasted response since you and mimic both replied to me with similar comments. Do you think I had any personally directed intent in a copy-paste?
I'm sorry you feel slighted or that I gave the impression that you don't know that socialism has a broad and ambiguous definition.
All the comments beyond that have been you assuming I still did not understand your first reply to me and me being frustrated by that (especially given that your assumption of confusion was wrong, given the follow up from the person I replied to).
Actually, no. The main reason I've made any of my replies beyond the copy-paste is because of what I perceived as rudeness in your reply, not confusion. The first thing you said after my copy-paste (which I hope in hindsight is self evident not to have had any personally directed intent since I said it to multiple people) was:
I don't think that reply makes any sense when you consider the context of the comment I was replying to in the first place, which was worded "nobody wants socialist farms, corner stores, etc."
Which came across as rude, though maybe it wasn't intended as such. Also, I'm not sure how to read it as anything other than disagreeing with me on the ambiguity of the definition, since that's really all my copy pasted comment said.
This whole thing really feels like you interpreted my first and second (copy-paste) reply to you as some sort of criticism. That wasn't my intent. Afterwards I responded to the perceived rudeness and, ironically, criticism of my disambiguating.
Perhaps we both need to learn to let go of perceived slights on the Internet and give a more generous reading to others posts?
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Comment on We found the $2 trillion in US government spending cuts that Department of Government Efficiency seeks in ~society
krellor LinkI was pleasantly surprised in the accuracy of this article. I'm always leery of headlines like this because usually when I get into the details I see major flaws. Here though, at least the big...I was pleasantly surprised in the accuracy of this article. I'm always leery of headlines like this because usually when I get into the details I see major flaws. Here though, at least the big picture seems to line up with my experience. I looked at the authors bio and didn't see any government or policy background, but clearly he's listening to well informed people.
To give an example supporting his contractor waste example: in the government we get a finite number of government positions that we can fill. Even if we get more money and new responsibilities, even at an agency or SES level, we rarely get authorization to hire new GS positions.
The problem is that I then have to hire more people through contracts, either fixed fee, which requires careful scoping, or cost plus, which can lead to misaligned incentives. Which means more time spent fighting fraud and enforcing performance under contracts. Which most of my peers are afraid to do, so I collect problem contracts to hold to account.
Heres a real scenario: I have a position that is performing an inherently governmental function, meaning it requires making a decision on behalf of the government. I should hire a GS 12-15 to fulfill the role, at a cost of $120-$150k per year to lead a team. But I don't have authorization to do that. So instead I put that work on a contract, and end up paying around $260k/year for the work. Worse, because it is inherently governmental, a contractor can't actually make the final decision on certain things. They have to write up a summary of what they assessed, and then send it to a GS lead, or even an SES for approval, to have a government decision on record. So I pay way more for the position, and create an inefficiency.
The argument against hiring more GS is usually a hand wavy argument about GS inefficiency. Which can also be true. But the fix there is top down managerial and performance requirements. Like in most organizations, there are legitimately bad and lazy managers who don't know how or don't care how to incentivize employees, track performance, justify rewards for good employees, and PIP and dismiss bad ones.
The article does a good job of identifying contracts as a major source of waste, but the agencies are reliant on them because we aren't allowed to increase GS at the same time as Congress heaps more on us. Even individual data calls from individual house reps and senators creates an increasing burden. I would welcome a new top down administrative and management framework, rather than the toothless checkbox we have today, if it meant I could hire functions the right way, especially if I could hire remote to avoid paying folks the cost of living adjustment of the NCR.
Just by introducing some of these reforms in my AOR, I've cut total costs by about a third while improving turnaround and performance. That is the sort of thing Congress or a better version of doge, should mandate rolling out government wide.
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Comment on US farmers feel painful impact of new policies in ~society
krellor Link ParentThis doesn't feel like a productive discussion. Either you are looking to argue what someone else was thinking, which I have no interest in and isn't productive; Or you are trying to make the...This doesn't feel like a productive discussion. Either you are looking to argue what someone else was thinking, which I have no interest in and isn't productive; Or you are trying to make the point that I shouldn't have suggested there was confusion on the use of socialism between you and qob, which feels weird and unproductive; Or you are looking to debate some aspect of socialism, which I've fairly carefully avoided expressing an opinion on; or something completely different that is unproductive by nature of me not knowing what it is.
The only reason I brought in the definition of socialism was to show how it can contribute to confusion if you aren't clear about what type is being discussed. That qob never clarified one way or another, or responded congenialy, etc isn't really the point, at least for me, because I never said anyone was right or wrong, never laid criticism on anyone's post, etc. All I did was drop in a point about a possible different use of socialism. I never said any one use was right or wrong, etc.
There was potential confusion in the intended meaning of a word between two people, and I pointed that out. That is the beginning and the end of my intent and interest in this matter.
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Comment on US farmers feel painful impact of new policies in ~society
krellor Link ParentI mean, I said I suspected they were referring to state ownership. You can ask them yourself. Otherwise I'm not sure why someone would intentionally describe a food co-op or CSA as a dystopian...I mean, I said I suspected they were referring to state ownership. You can ask them yourself. Otherwise I'm not sure why someone would intentionally describe a food co-op or CSA as a dystopian nightmare. Unless they hate the crunchy granola crowd just that much. I've often seen people disagree about socialism with different versions of it in mind, so it is usually worth more specifically clarifying what is meant with respect to ownership, state vs community, and to what extent, promoting community owned vs outlawing private ownership.
From Merriam Webster's definition of socialism:
any of various egalitarian economic and political theories or movements advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods
That leaves a lot of room for confusion to simply use the word "socialist."
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Comment on US farmers feel painful impact of new policies in ~society
krellor (edited )Link ParentSee my response to mimic squid:See my response to mimic squid:
Sure, but since socialist can refer to cooperative or government ownership it is worth disambiguating. Otherwise people just talk past each other. It's a rather disappointing ambiguity of the definition, given that many strongly oppose state ownership but are just fine with a member owned good co-op.
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Comment on US farmers feel painful impact of new policies in ~society
krellor (edited )Link ParentSure, but since socialist can refer to cooperative or government ownership it is worth disambiguating. Otherwise people just talk past each other. It's a rather disappointing ambiguity of the...Sure, but since socialist can refer to cooperative or government ownership it is worth disambiguating. Otherwise people just talk past each other. It's a rather disappointing ambiguity of the definition, given that many strongly oppose state ownership but are just fine with a member owned food co-op.
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Comment on US farmers feel painful impact of new policies in ~society
krellor Link ParentA member owned co-op or member owned CSA isn't the same as state run grocery stores, which is what I think qob was referencing.A member owned co-op or member owned CSA isn't the same as state run grocery stores, which is what I think qob was referencing.
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Comment on The feckless opposition in ~society
krellor LinkI'm sort of in the "all of the above" camp with the Democrats. I agree with the article that they weren't doing the right things, and I agree that their messaging on the things they did was bad...I'm sort of in the "all of the above" camp with the Democrats. I agree with the article that they weren't doing the right things, and I agree that their messaging on the things they did was bad and through rose tinted glasses. Jeffries is right though, in that the Democrats lost folks because people didn't see their pain reflected in the Democrats messaging.
My biggest gripe at this moment is that these people seem to have abdicated their responsibility, or are just too inept to know what it is. The minimum they could do is generate the same kind of viral press that gives cover to people who are more exposed to retribution. The Democrats need to find a message that carries and compete with the Republican narratives in non traditional media.
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Comment on Attorneys are resigning in response to orders from US President Donald Trump's government in ~society
krellor Link ParentI think there is an interesting conversation that could be had around the difference in model attorney-client relationships between private lawerying for an individual interest vs representing the...I think there is an interesting conversation that could be had around the difference in model attorney-client relationships between private lawerying for an individual interest vs representing the government.
I think the closest you get is agency general counsel, who have a fairly straightforward role to advocate and represent their agency. E.g., the OGC for the EPA. I think attorneys general have a much harder time defining their client which could make the application of the model rules difficult. Especially when you potentially uphold the interests of three coequal branches of government.
There is an added layer though, at least for US attorneys general, in that they take an oath of office like all federal employees to uphold the constitution. I haven't thought much about the ethics of deconflicting the oath of office and the professional code. I suppose it could be analogous to federal doctors and the Hippocratic oath, though the latter here seems less likely to come into conflict with the oath of office.
I generally find the resignation argument compelling as the most effective way to uphold both sets of responsibilities and send a message. However, sometimes leaving a role might make room for others to do more damage, which might run a foul of the oath of office.
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Comment on What is the purpose of government? in ~society
krellor (edited )LinkAbsorb risk and cost that cannot be otherwise managed, e.g. large scale infrastructure, funding basic research, etc. Mediate and enforce civil contracts. Provide a sufficient safety net to promote...- Absorb risk and cost that cannot be otherwise managed, e.g. large scale infrastructure, funding basic research, etc.
- Mediate and enforce civil contracts.
- Provide a sufficient safety net to promote reasonable risk taking in the market, e.g. nobody wants to bet it all on a small business or new line of work if the consequence for failure is starving in the winter. And refusal to retrain or start businesses slows economic growth.
- Provide sufficient regulations to prevent individuals or companies from creating negative externalities, e.g. prevent a tragedy of the commons.
- Maintain a monopoly on violence so that civil laws are maintained.
I suspect people with different views would be most likely to object to the bullet about social safety nets, about monopolizing violence, and about regulations and negative externalities.
I agree, though I would put a slight, one might say, marketing spin on it. Marketing isn't just getting people to buy junk. It can very much be to understand what people like and think, including about art and style, to perfect it. So to my relatively out of touch thinking, understanding of your scenes are hitting the mark artistically is marketing.
Have a great night!