ntngps's recent activity
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Comment on Today I shipped twenty apps and a screensaver in ~tech
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Comment on Fits on a floppy - a manifesto for small software in ~tech
ntngps LinkEvery byte matters! Thanks for this. It's so hard to make something great in a world where pretty much everyone will settle for "good enough".Every byte matters! Thanks for this. It's so hard to make something great in a world where pretty much everyone will settle for "good enough".
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Comment on I worked as a professional video editor until 2014. How much has changed since then? in ~tech
ntngps LinkCurrent video editor here. I've been dabbling since ~2010, went pro in 2018. Two big advances come to mind when I think about what's changed: The obvious one is hardware acceleration. In 2014 I...Current video editor here. I've been dabbling since ~2010, went pro in 2018. Two big advances come to mind when I think about what's changed:
The obvious one is hardware acceleration. In 2014 I used to dream about a computer that could edit FHD video without stuttering, and today my Mac Studio has built in ProRes hardware acceleration. Pretty great. Your rig can probably handle most 4K video without breaking too much of a sweat.
The less obvious one is auto-transcripts. In just the past couple years, ML-powered transcription has become so good that I can't imagine cutting docs without it. Premiere's built-in text-based workflow is really good, and it's one of the extremely few advantages I'd give Premiere over my preferred NLE, DaVinci Resolve.
Maybe that can be my bonus 3rd thing — Around 2014, Resolve was great for color grading and not much else. Today, it's a fully featured post-production suite, combining FCP's ease of use with Premiere's robust feature set. Give it a shot! It's free ;)
Similarly to Windows itself, Adobe doesn't really mess with Premiere's design for backwards compatability reasons. Another change since 2014 is the explosion of free YouTube tutorials on Premiere, so you shouldn't have any trouble finding dozens of learning resources.
But honestly, since you said video editing was a source of burnout in the past, maybe you shouldn't overthink it. Find a tiny project you can finish quickly and just have fun!
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Comment on Backrooms | Official trailer in ~movies
ntngps Link ParentMy favorite part of the Backrooms saga is how few discrete characters and lore have actually been explained. Watching this trailer, I get the sense that it's making the worst possible mistake by...My favorite part of the Backrooms saga is how few discrete characters and lore have actually been explained. Watching this trailer, I get the sense that it's making the worst possible mistake by giving us real characters. If anyone else was directing it besides Kane Pixels, the creator of the original series, I'd be worried. But I've appreciated his storytelling approach so far; I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
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Comment on Semisonic - Closing Time (1998) in ~music
ntngps LinkThe first time I heard this song was when my favorite Zelda fansite announced its closure and updated their homepage with a goodbye message and embedded this song (a rare thing at the time) to...The first time I heard this song was when my favorite Zelda fansite announced its closure and updated their homepage with a goodbye message and embedded this song (a rare thing at the time) to play in the background. Everyone has a unique perspective!
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Comment on New York Times quiz: Who’s a better writer: AI or humans? in ~tech
ntngps LinkCalling creative prose a "mistake" gives away the quiz makers intentions, I think. "Clunky phrases" in prose are a feature, not a bug. Writers play with language to evoke an image or emotion in...like this passage from Cormac McCarthy’s “Blood Meridian,” caused by the author’s aversion to punctuation: “As well ask men what they think of stone.”
A.I. used to make mistakes like these. But today’s systems are much more fluid than their predecessors — so fluid, in fact, that finding grammatical errors or nonstandard syntax is often a hint that you’re looking at a human’s prose, not a machine’s.Calling creative prose a "mistake" gives away the quiz makers intentions, I think. "Clunky phrases" in prose are a feature, not a bug. Writers play with language to evoke an image or emotion in the mind of the reader; it's not all about clarity and information.
Take the quote they cited, “As well ask men what they think of stone," which they attributed to a lack of punctuation. But that's wrong — McCarthy elided the word "might" at the beginning of the sentence to create a clear voice that evokes the time and place of Blood Meridian.
Sagan's quote, which has probably the clearest prose of the bunch (he was a fantastic pop science writer for this reason), ends with "surely spiritual," which plays with the /sh/ alliteration of those words in a way an LLM isn't currently capable of creating. -
Comment on Why do RSS readers look like email clients? in ~tech
ntngps LinkI switched from the RSS app I used for at least a decade, Unread, to the new version of Silvio Rizzi’s Reeder because he wisely decided that “read” and “unread” aren’t as useful in today’s world...I switched from the RSS app I used for at least a decade, Unread, to the new version of Silvio Rizzi’s Reeder because he wisely decided that “read” and “unread” aren’t as useful in today’s world of RIL and bookmarking services. Instead, the app is just one timeline whose position is synced between your devices. There’s no unread count, just a number representing how many articles are “newer” than your current timeline position. That alone was enough for me to switch.
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Comment on New books aren’t worth reading in ~books
ntngps LinkOne of the stupidest things I have ever read. Thanks for posting; needed a laugh today.One of the stupidest things I have ever read. Thanks for posting; needed a laugh today.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
ntngps Link ParentI’m a lifelong reader, and Oblivion was the first book I ever restarted as soon as I finished.I’m a lifelong reader, and Oblivion was the first book I ever restarted as soon as I finished.
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Comment on iOS 26 is here in ~tech
ntngps Link ParentI agree it's fine to have opinions on new design languages in mobile OSs, I have plenty of them myself! See my clarification here.I agree it's fine to have opinions on new design languages in mobile OSs, I have plenty of them myself! See my clarification here.
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Comment on iOS 26 is here in ~tech
ntngps Link ParentSorry, that last comment was callous. Of course it's worth discussing. I'm just tired of the news cycles driven mainly by grievance to drive clicks. Are there problems with Liquid Glass? Of...Sorry, that last comment was callous. Of course it's worth discussing. I'm just tired of the news cycles driven mainly by grievance to drive clicks. Are there problems with Liquid Glass? Of course. But there are nice things about it too. That's not my issue.
I feel like I've been reading the same article/complaints over and over for the past decade or so. Apple ships design changes and new features with obviously reproducible bugs and has consistently chosen to prioritize shipping even more new features instead of pumping the brakes for a year or two and really polishing what they've got. But hundreds, if not thousands, of online complains are clearly not going to change the way they operate.
That's what I meant by "important"; I didn't mean to compare the change to Liquid Glass to, like, the war in Ukraine. I agree that a company as large as Apple, with millions of customers, whose technology and products are virtually ubiquitous, should be held to a particularly high standard. But it's clear that our current economic system is ineffective in enforcing that standard. That is what I would like to think more about.
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Comment on iOS 26 is here in ~tech
ntngps LinkLooks fine. Some parts are uglier than others. Animation bugs abound. Will get refined back towards neutrality over time. Points toward a future of AR-first UI design. Typical Apple. Let's all...Looks fine. Some parts are uglier than others. Animation bugs abound. Will get refined back towards neutrality over time. Points toward a future of AR-first UI design. Typical Apple. Let's all find something more important to complain about, shall we?
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Comment on Paramount Skydance prepares Ellison-backed bid for Warner Bros. Discovery in ~movies
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Comment on iOS26 "Liquid Glass" - is it really such a big deal? in ~tech
ntngps Link ParentThere’s definitely good reasons why every company (including Apple) have walked back their more transparent designs over the years. And if many people enable the Reduce Transparency accessibility...There’s definitely good reasons why every company (including Apple) have walked back their more transparent designs over the years. And if many people enable the Reduce Transparency accessibility setting, why bother with Liquid Glass in the first place?
I think what will happen with Liquid Glass is the same thing that happens with all these transparent designs. I just hope it doesn’t take years for Apple to reach that conclusion. -
Comment on iOS26 "Liquid Glass" - is it really such a big deal? in ~tech
ntngps LinkLike any new UI design, many will be repulsed by Liquid Glass on sight simply because it's new and different. Many of those same people will grow used to it after some amount of time. Its most...Like any new UI design, many will be repulsed by Liquid Glass on sight simply because it's new and different. Many of those same people will grow used to it after some amount of time. Its most daring elements will be scaled back over its next few iterations until it finds some neutrality. Ultimately it's not going to change the way people actually use their devices. But MKBHD's video didn't spend much time on the most impressive parts of Liquid Glass: the physics and lighting system driving its animations. You can best see it in this part, when he slowly drags the Notification Center view down. Watch the bottom edge of the view as it slides down. The edge itself takes on different specular highlights, adjusts chromatic aberration, and refracts light according to the content behind it, all in real time at 120 fps. Watch here, too, at the top of the "Customize" button, and see how the top edge takes on a different specular highlight according to the content it's "reflecting". All this is very impressive on a technical level, and I would say that all these little touches, that might not be noticed individually, will add up to an experience that users ultimately find delightful. But will it be useful, and readable? The jury's still out.
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Comment on Are modern iPhones unusable without a case? in ~comp
ntngps LinkI always wanted to go caseless, but old iPhones just weren’t grippy enough. Then I got the 16 Pro. Something about the titanium and glass provides just the right amount of grip for me. I don’t...I always wanted to go caseless, but old iPhones just weren’t grippy enough. Then I got the 16 Pro. Something about the titanium and glass provides just the right amount of grip for me. I don’t love how the thin bezel tends to pick up phantom touches, but I love how light it is. Now I’m always caseless. YMMV, of course.
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Comment on The misogynistic, bigoted and crude US rally remarks Donald Trump hasn’t disavowed in ~society
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Comment on Kobo for a casual reader in ~books
ntngps LinkI had a similar feeling a couple months ago and ordered myself a Kobo Clara (didn't want/need the color screen) and regretted it within days. The UI was clunkier than my 2018 Kindle Paperwhite, it...I had a similar feeling a couple months ago and ordered myself a Kobo Clara (didn't want/need the color screen) and regretted it within days. The UI was clunkier than my 2018 Kindle Paperwhite, it ran way too slow, and the font options/layout customization weren't satisfying. It just wasn't worth it when my Kindle still worked fine. I returned the Kobo; maybe I'll try it again when they release a new one.
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Comment on Has anyone stopped caring about politics? in ~society
ntngps Link ParentThank you for writing this. It's so easy for Westerners (like myself) to become complacent. It's important for us to remember that complacency is exactly what the bad guys want.Thank you for writing this. It's so easy for Westerners (like myself) to become complacent. It's important for us to remember that complacency is exactly what the bad guys want.
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Comment on Hi, how are you? Mental health support and discussion thread (September 2023) in ~health.mental
I love the unified color palette and the simple design. I don't have a personal use for most of these, but I love how specialized they are — it's clear you really care. I did buy Wavelet, so thanks!