magico13's recent activity
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Comment on What are you working through? in ~life
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Comment on E-ink tablet recommendations for note taking in ~tech
magico13 LinkMy wife swears by her Kindle Scribe, but you're tied to Amazon in that case and I don't think they have custom firmware for it yet like they do for most Kindles. Real paper is of course still the...My wife swears by her Kindle Scribe, but you're tied to Amazon in that case and I don't think they have custom firmware for it yet like they do for most Kindles. Real paper is of course still the winner but there are benefits to having it be digital without having to scan it in.
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Comment on SpaceX is acquiring xAI in ~space
magico13 Link ParentNot OP but I mentioned it a bit in another comment. SpaceX's president, Gwynne Shotwell, runs a lot of the business and keeps Musk more in line. It also helps that SpaceX operates in a highly...Not OP but I mentioned it a bit in another comment. SpaceX's president, Gwynne Shotwell, runs a lot of the business and keeps Musk more in line. It also helps that SpaceX operates in a highly regulated environment. If you want to do a bunch of crazy stuff you are pretty confined to what you can do, or otherwise have to plan it out months in advance to get approvals from the FAA and other agencies.
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Comment on SpaceX is acquiring xAI in ~space
magico13 LinkThis is such a disappointment for SpaceX. It was doing a pretty decent job at staying focused on a sensible but difficult goal of enabling cheaper and more performant space travel, while doing it...This is such a disappointment for SpaceX. It was doing a pretty decent job at staying focused on a sensible but difficult goal of enabling cheaper and more performant space travel, while doing it profitably and for less than competitors. In large part because Shotwell isolated it from Musk for the day to day operations. But this will just drain SpaceX dry and divert resources away from better projects. Also how does SpaceX owning Twitter make any sense?
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Comment on The gift card accountability sink in ~finance
magico13 Link ParentI know that the grocery business I work for sells about 100,000 gift cards a day during the week of Christmas (across around 100 stores). Outside of that the number is much smaller but still on...I know that the grocery business I work for sells about 100,000 gift cards a day during the week of Christmas (across around 100 stores). Outside of that the number is much smaller but still on the order of 1,000 a day.
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Comment on Without looking, do you have a vague idea of your coordinates? in ~talk
magico13 LinkHad a bit of a brain fog moment cause I knew I used to live at 41N and moved further North, but moved the number the wrong way and thought 39N, in actuality it's 43N, duh. That one I know mostly...Had a bit of a brain fog moment cause I knew I used to live at 41N and moved further North, but moved the number the wrong way and thought 39N, in actuality it's 43N, duh. That one I know mostly because I've got some solar panels and the best angle for them is related to your latitude.
Longitude I had no idea off hand. I'm not too far from a whole number so I'll have to try to ingrain that one.
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Comment on Elite Dangerous discussion in ~games
magico13 LinkI popped back on for a bit during the Shoulder of Orion event for Distant Worlds 3 prep and did some hauling for a few weeks to help with that. Bought a Mandalay and tried out SCO but otherwise...I popped back on for a bit during the Shoulder of Orion event for Distant Worlds 3 prep and did some hauling for a few weeks to help with that. Bought a Mandalay and tried out SCO but otherwise haven't done much lately. When DW3 kicks off in earnest I'll hop on again and keep up with that. Steam says I have 302 hours and that's my second highest after Kerbal Space Program at 718, but life's busy and I don't focus on games for very long anymore.
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Comment on What are the simple things in your life that you are thankful for? in ~life
magico13 LinkLast February our furnace died suddenly a week before a cold snap. I'm thankful that we were able to get it replaced quickly and that we just finished paying off the new one this week.Last February our furnace died suddenly a week before a cold snap. I'm thankful that we were able to get it replaced quickly and that we just finished paying off the new one this week.
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Comment on Part of me wishes it wasn't true but: AI coding is legit in ~tech
magico13 Link ParentI've seen this at my work too, copilot can do a pretty good job at a lot of things but sometimes produces some garbage output, which my coworkers happily regurgitate. Just because copilot says...I've seen this at my work too, copilot can do a pretty good job at a lot of things but sometimes produces some garbage output, which my coworkers happily regurgitate. Just because copilot says something works some way, does not actually mean that's correct.
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Comment on Cataloging your home library in ~books
magico13 Link ParentPretty much the same for me. Currently just JSON files for the database but that's starting to get unwieldy. My main interface for it is a Raspberry Pi 3 with the old 7" screen and a barcode...Pretty much the same for me. Currently just JSON files for the database but that's starting to get unwieldy. My main interface for it is a Raspberry Pi 3 with the old 7" screen and a barcode scanner, but for scanning in an entire shelf there's a command line tool. Not sure if it'll help anyone else but here's the source for it https://github.com/magico13/Bookwyrms-Hoard
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Comment on What common misunderstanding do you want to clear up? in ~talk
magico13 Link ParentCan confirm, mild-moderate deuteranomoly. Tried the glasses once and I was able to pass a test with them but it's not like they made me suddenly able to see more colors or anything. And since they...Can confirm, mild-moderate deuteranomoly. Tried the glasses once and I was able to pass a test with them but it's not like they made me suddenly able to see more colors or anything. And since they were tinted quite red (they were sunglasses), it just made everything look more red.
I don't think I appreciate fall colors as much as others though. The yellow leaves pop but the red and green are hard to differentiate from afar. I have also found that I tend to deprioritize color when describing things, but other people often put color first.
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Comment on Starship was doomed from the beginning in ~space
magico13 Link ParentDream Chaser is (was?) sort of the closest thing we've got. Strap it to the top of an existing commercial launcher and glide back to a runway. Much smaller, but a lot of the shuttle's issues...Dream Chaser is (was?) sort of the closest thing we've got. Strap it to the top of an existing commercial launcher and glide back to a runway. Much smaller, but a lot of the shuttle's issues stemmed from it being way over-specced so something purpose-built is potentially an advantage. Sadly they still haven't launched and it's looking uncertain if they will at this point.
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Comment on How are Framework Laptops? in ~tech
magico13 LinkI got one of the "Factory Seconds" Framework 13s two years ago, so an 11th Gen i7 which I added my own nvme ssd and 32 gigs of RAM to. Basically scratch and dent leftovers from the first batches...I got one of the "Factory Seconds" Framework 13s two years ago, so an 11th Gen i7 which I added my own nvme ssd and 32 gigs of RAM to. Basically scratch and dent leftovers from the first batches that they found lying around. Even at the time that was an old one (the 13th Gen boards were already out) but was a cheap way into the ecosystem. It's the first laptop I've had that charges with USBC and since it works on both sides it's awesome. And first party support for Linux is very appreciated, though I'm just running Ubuntu at the moment. I run two USBC, a USBA, and an HDMI and don't really swap them out often. Bought a USBC to Ethernet dongle rather than the official one since I don't need it often and that one is oversized anyway.
Looking to eventually swap to one of the AMD mainboards but I'll need new RAM for that since they're DDR5 and for my purposes even the old i5 is fine. That would allow some gaming though, right now it can't basically at all beyond very basic games, but I also have a Steam Deck so I don't need to game on a laptop anyway.
My primary use case is pretty basic, a device that I can easily do email, browser, moderate software development (python, C#, docker), Linux CLI stuff, but easily plug in USB devices. But I love that whenever I finally do upgrade it I can use the existing parts for other stuff. Since I could really get by with a cheap laptop, I was really buying into the company and future upgradeability.
Main complaints are that it doesn't really sleep properly in Linux so I have to shut it down instead, but it boots fast enough to not really matter to me. And that I've got a (somewhat common for the 11th Gen board) CMOS issue where I must plug it into power for it to boot like 75% of the time, but thankfully if I plug in my phone that wakes up the board and it can boot fine off the battery after that. I'm still very used to the battery life of gaming laptops, where an hour was possible with everything set to power saving, so the several hours I get out of this is more than enough for me.
Overall, very very happy with it despite the occasional gripe, the main one of which won't matter when I finally get a newer (and vastly upgraded) main board.
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Comment on Make new friends here! in ~life
magico13 Link ParentWow, one of the dozen whole people in the world who prefer Universe over SG1 and Atlantis :D Even admitting you like Universe is controversial. Personally SG1 will always be my favorite but I...Wow, one of the dozen whole people in the world who prefer Universe over SG1 and Atlantis :D Even admitting you like Universe is controversial. Personally SG1 will always be my favorite but I loved Universe and it was cancelled just as it was really hitting its stride. I need to actually sit down and watch all of Atlantis and the rest of SG1, but once that started and SG1 changed up the team my wife lost interest (Gods bless her for having interest in the first 7 seasons). Watching Atlantis live for me was always a bit hard since it was after SG1 and I always fell asleep, so I missed tons of episodes.
For reference 33/M/NY but not NYC
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Comment on What's a question you could ask to determine if someone is an expert in your line of work? in ~talk
magico13 Link ParentWe're slowly replacing Newtonsoft with System.Text.Json and I am a fan of using built-ins over pulling in libraries, especially with so many things going to paid licenses lately. Though the subtle...We're slowly replacing Newtonsoft with System.Text.Json and I am a fan of using built-ins over pulling in libraries, especially with so many things going to paid licenses lately. Though the subtle differences have definitely bitten us when translating data between services that are on different libraries.
Note that I'm not against paid licenses but it sure ruffles some feathers when something goes from free to suddenly being paid. I've convinced management to pay for some that we've tightly integrated into our systems but I am not gonna win that fight for all of them.
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Comment on Humble Choice - August 2025 in ~games
magico13 LinkI played through all of Tiny Terry's Turbo Trip when it first came out. Short little collectathon, a few hours tops, but very enjoyable/goofy and played perfectly on Steam Deck.I played through all of Tiny Terry's Turbo Trip when it first came out. Short little collectathon, a few hours tops, but very enjoyable/goofy and played perfectly on Steam Deck.
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Comment on 'I destroyed months of your work in seconds' says AI coding tool after deleting a dev's entire database during a code freeze: 'I panicked instead of thinking' in ~tech
magico13 LinkI liked the part where he said that he dropped from using a more expensive, slower, "smarter" model to a cheaper and dumber one, right before all this happened. There's a reason it's cheaper,...I liked the part where he said that he dropped from using a more expensive, slower, "smarter" model to a cheaper and dumber one, right before all this happened. There's a reason it's cheaper, cause it's way more likely to just make up nonsense, like a command to delete all your data.
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Comment on What are your AI-generated guilty pleasures? in ~tech
magico13 LinkI'm a software dev by day and still like to dabble with stuff at night. Copilot helps for rubber ducking, or working with languages where I don't quite know the syntax for the thing I'm trying to...I'm a software dev by day and still like to dabble with stuff at night. Copilot helps for rubber ducking, or working with languages where I don't quite know the syntax for the thing I'm trying to do.
After watching some of GPT Plays Pokemon I scraped together a harness for having o4-mini play a text adventure game that my friend wrote a while back. That was fun because I streamed it to my friends and rekindled some of that friend's desire for hobby game dev. It also ended up triggering a handful of bugs in the game that we had to patch.
I've also got a discord bot I wrote that I use instead of ChatGPT, since the API doesn't share data by default so my conversations aren't being fed back into the training data. That runs on 4.1-mini by default so it's pretty cheap, plus I don't really use it super often, but it's a nice sounding board. Or I can take a picture of a recipe in a book and have it spit out the ingredients in a formatted list. Most often I end up using it to turn an email or website event listing into a calendar event for me.
I've also got 4.1-mini hooked up to my Home Assistant voice so if I ask for something outside the limited confines of the basic local handling (which is basically as much as "turn on the light in the bedroom" or "add milk to my shopping list"), like "if the temperature in the office is above 75 then turn on the office AC" or "is the air quality better or worse outside?" then that kicks in to handle the more complex task. That's also pretty cheap to run, less than $1 a month I believe. Anything higher than 4.1-mini is overkill for that purpose, sadly 4.1-nano is a little too dumb to handle it well. I run voice recognition (via whisper on a GTX 1050Ti) and speech synthesis (piper, CPU) locally for that. I'd love to run the LLM locally too but the computing demand is a bit too much for a decent model and I don't want to leave a high power (and cost) GPU running all the time just for the occasional inquiry.
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Comment on Summer Games Done Quick 2025, a week-long charity fundraiser featuring speedruns, is live (runs July 6 - July 12) in ~games
magico13 Link ParentI believe there's a showcase of some sort for it. My wife and I just finished Act 2 so I'm sorta happy they're not running it yet cause we're not done! Looked it up, Friday after Balatro, around...I believe there's a showcase of some sort for it. My wife and I just finished Act 2 so I'm sorta happy they're not running it yet cause we're not done!
Looked it up, Friday after Balatro, around 4PM
Spilling the Ink: An Expedition 33 Preview -
Comment on Looking for indie co-op games recommendations in ~games
magico13 LinkMy friends and I got really into Lethal Company for a while and it just had a new update. Of a similar vein is REPO, but I haven't played that myself. They both became big with streamers so that...My friends and I got really into Lethal Company for a while and it just had a new update. Of a similar vein is REPO, but I haven't played that myself. They both became big with streamers so that might be off-putting, but honestly it's very enjoyable if you've got a group that agrees on how to play, in terms of how serious or silly you want it to be.
It's been a time lately, that's for sure.
Starting a few weeks back, wake up to my mom calling me on a Saturday morning, expecting something happened with my grandma who has had several strokes and is in a nursing home. Nope, my completely healthy uncle fell last night, hit his head, and was gone, just like that.
The cat that my wife and I have had basically since we started dating, about 13 years, had been declining and we knew her kidneys were going. My wife was already thinking about taking her in when I came down to tell her about my uncle. We decided to wait a little bit, we gave her a couple really good days, but that Tuesday was her last. That was over two weeks ago and we're still feeling it.
The day after my uncle passed was Winter Storm Fern, our heat pump completely died on us, not even a year old yet cause our old furnace died last February, but we've thankfully been on the backup heat. Still waiting on a new control board, thankfully it's all under warranty but the backup heat is a lot more expensive.
The day before my uncle died our home insurance sent us an email saying they're gonna drop us because the patio that the original owners built 30 years ago uses sliding glass doors but aren't on the ground. Thankfully we have until July to figure that out but it's not like they're new and we've been insured with that company for 5 years now.
This Monday I woke up to the furnace at our cabin (talk about mistakes...) died while it was -20F out, so I had to take a half day off work and drive there to try to fix it. Thankfully killing the power for a bit and turning it back on was enough to get it working again. The water wouldn't turn on though, so I probably need to replace more pipes there. That's a spring problem.
Bonus side events that have happened in the last two weeks: brother-in-law (minor) got t-boned at a stop sign and his car got totaled, he's thankfully fine. Father-in-law (Dad of BIL) got laid off only like 3 years from retirement, but they wouldn't give him early retirement. They're down two cars now because he had a company car.
We're tackling things as best we can. It's almost comical how much things piled on but they're manageable. Meanwhile the country is imploding and my industry is losing its mind. I'm just gonna keep trucking along and deal with what is in my control.