ourari's recent activity

  1. Comment on What is something that, surprisingly, worked? in ~talk

    ourari
    Link Parent
    TIL a "friction ball" is a thing.

    TIL a "friction ball" is a thing.

    2 votes

  2. Comment on ‘Not for machines to harvest’: Data revolts break out against AI in ~tech

    ourari
    Link Parent
    Not the same, as the difference I pointed out is about the intention behind it, the implicit agreement.

    Not the same, as the difference I pointed out is about the intention behind it, the implicit agreement.

    3 votes

  3. Comment on <deleted topic> in ~life.pets

    ourari
    Link Parent
    Absolutely. Got a few of those fishing rod toys. Took my time to select plastic-free ones. Cats liked them well-enough, but interest faded after they chewed through the rope. A few months ago,...

    They probably will enjoy the free toys such as boxes or paper bags over expensive toys.

    Absolutely.

    Got a few of those fishing rod toys. Took my time to select plastic-free ones. Cats liked them well-enough, but interest faded after they chewed through the rope.

    A few months ago, when I was doing some gardening, they showed interest in the bamboo I was cutting. Tried to play with them a bit, and they absolutely love chasing a long leafy branch of bamboo through the garden. Every single day since, one of 'em comes to get me to lead me to the 'playing spot'.

    Gonna need more bamboo...

    7 votes

  4. Comment on Known for photographs showing hundreds of naked people posing in a wide variety of environments, US artist Spencer Tunick has gathered thousands to pose naked in Finland in ~arts

  5. Comment on The shady world of Brave selling copyrighted data for AI training in ~tech

    ourari
    Link Parent
    I know they do, but it is not all they recommend. They don't just yank things off the page at a moment's notice, but take their time weighing their selection.

    I know they do, but it is not all they recommend. They don't just yank things off the page at a moment's notice, but take their time weighing their selection.

    3 votes

  6. Comment on The shady world of Brave selling copyrighted data for AI training in ~tech

  7. Comment on ‘Not for machines to harvest’: Data revolts break out against AI in ~tech

    ourari
    Link Parent
    Being crawled by search engines is different than being crawled for AI training sets. The understanding is that search engines help people to find your stuff where you put it for them to see....

    Being crawled by search engines is different than being crawled for AI training sets. The understanding is that search engines help people to find your stuff where you put it for them to see. Scraping for AI boils down to taking it and stripping it of its owner and context.

    https://searchengineland.com/crawlers-search-engines-generative-ai-companies-429389

    Yes, people have shared things on Reddit, with the understanding that they were sharing it on Reddit and specifically with the communities of particular subreddits.

    Would you really want to live in a world where anyone could take whatever they see? Better close your curtains and hide anyone and everything you care about.

    12 votes

  8. Comment on ‘Not for machines to harvest’: Data revolts break out against AI in ~tech

    ourari
    Link
    Mirror in case of paywall: https://archive.is/KRHVh

    Fed up with A.I. companies consuming online content without consent, fan fiction writers, actors, social media companies and news organizations are among those rebelling.

    Mirror in case of paywall: https://archive.is/KRHVh

    15 votes

  10. Comment on We must end the tyranny of printers in American life in ~tech

    ourari
    Link Parent
    Same, and it's one of the few purchases that unequivocally changed my life for the better.

    I have a cheap mono laser, which has been running flawlessly for many years. I spend £20 or so every couple of years (or few thousand prints) on a new, unbranded, toner cartridge and that is all.

    Same, and it's one of the few purchases that unequivocally changed my life for the better.

    2 votes

  11. Comment on What are the best cover songs that reinterpret the original into a different genre, style, or mood? in ~music

    ourari
    (edited )
    Link
    Ray Barretto - Pastime Paradise (invidous) The beginning is similar to the original, but after those two+ minutes, the instrumental part kicks in and lifts it to a level all its own. Almost 3...

    Ray Barretto - Pastime Paradise (invidous)
    The beginning is similar to the original, but after those two+ minutes, the instrumental part kicks in and lifts it to a level all its own. Almost 3 times as long as the original, but never bores.

    Original by Stevie Wonder (invidious), which was sampled for Coolio - Gangsta's Paradise (invidious)

    Don't take this one too seriously:
    Walter Murphy - A Fifth of Beethoven (invidious)
    Turned Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 into a successful 1970's disco floor-filler.

    Sampled later on by A+ and Robin Thicke for hits of their own.

    Henri-Pierre Noel covered (inv) Murphy's version on the piano. If you like this, check out Noel's "Diskette".

    I'll probably edit some others in later as I think of them.

    3 votes

  12. Comment on Why do cloud providers keep building datacenters in America's hottest city? in ~tech

    ourari
    Link Parent
    My pleasure. Thanks for your efforts toward positive change!

    My pleasure. Thanks for your efforts toward positive change!

    1 vote

  13. Comment on Why do cloud providers keep building datacenters in America's hottest city? in ~tech

    ourari
    Link
    Reminds me of how much CO2 all of our photos stored in the cloud emit. Most of those photos are barely looked at, if ever. Number of Photos (2023): Statistics and Trends ‘Dark data’ is killing the...

    Reminds me of how much CO2 all of our photos stored in the cloud emit. Most of those photos are barely looked at, if ever.

    We should practice data-degrowth before building more of these high emitters.

    19 votes

  14. Comment on The shady world of Brave selling copyrighted data for AI training in ~tech

  16. Comment on What are some of your favorite names for the users of Tildes? in ~talk

    ourari
    Link Parent
    Yes, users has a negative connotation. Like we're here to take, not give. Like we are dependent on the service, that it's not mutually beneficial, a symbiosis. Members, contributors, participants,...

    Yes, users has a negative connotation. Like we're here to take, not give. Like we are dependent on the service, that it's not mutually beneficial, a symbiosis. Members, contributors, participants, people are all better.

    2 votes

  17. Comment on What are some of your favorite names for the users of Tildes? in ~talk

    ourari
    Link Parent
    I never liked users. Too passive, and has a negative connotation. Like we're only here to take, not give. We're participants, contributors, members. Those are not 'cutesy': they are better...

    I never liked users. Too passive, and has a negative connotation. Like we're only here to take, not give. We're participants, contributors, members. Those are not 'cutesy': they are better descriptors.

    'People' is good too.

    7 votes

  18. Comment on YouTube is testing a three-strikes policy for ad blocking in ~tech

    ourari
    Link Parent
    Google screwed us over many years ago, by getting rich off of abusing our privacy and - at that time - naivety. Then they did what every Silicon Valley company has done and is still doing (hello...

    I think it boils down to just a little disdain for a company that is worth 1.5 trillion dollars

    Google screwed us over many years ago, by getting rich off of abusing our privacy and - at that time - naivety.

    Then they did what every Silicon Valley company has done and is still doing (hello ClearviewAI & OpenAI):

    • Pretend rules and precedents don't apply because 'new tech'
    • Rob everyone blind (neo-colonial extractivism)
    • Use loot to oppose, delay, weaken regulation
    • Use loot to create a nice work environment for talent
    • Make yourself inevitable by buying up the competition & big destination sites like YouTube
    • Make yourself inevitable by leveraging your market domination to subvert open standards to become gatekeeper, successfully undermining competitors (open web vs. Chrome, PageRank, Google AMP, etc. Android)
    • Pay competitors to make your products default (Google paid billions to make search default in both Firefox and Safari)
    • Use loot from one market to enter and overwhelm other markets
    • Keep robbing everyone blind with the added air of legitimacy thanks to your lobbyists, PR, and talented workers who trick themselves into thinking they're Doing Good and spread the gospel

    I probably missed a bunch of things, feel free to add!

    Oh, and I have something to say about YouTube and Premium and ad blocking specifically:

    When you're not blocking ads, you're also not blocking trackers. So you're forced to sit there and pay attention to ads while they get to track you. If you pay for Premium you don't get ads, but they don't just get your money. They also get precise identifying data (name, location, possibly bank info). You're likely to forget that the tracking will continue even more effectively, because you're not reminded by ads.

    I should add, take my opinion piece here with a grain of salt because I am a bitter and grumpy old man who feels there is a point where you make an immoral amount of money.

    Same, same. Also bitter about how we never got the internet we dreamed of.

    Maybe Lina Khan, the EU and the current trend of imploding platforms will pave the way to a better future.

    22 votes

  19. Comment on Where do you stand on climate change? in ~talk

    ourari
    Link Parent
    This climate comic kind of condenses your points and might be useful outside of Tildes, out there in the vast wilderness of the internet. https://rosemarymosco.com/comics/climate/climate-truths

    This climate comic kind of condenses your points and might be useful outside of Tildes, out there in the vast wilderness of the internet.

    https://rosemarymosco.com/comics/climate/climate-truths

    7 votes

  20. Comment on Linux could be 3% of global desktops. What happened to Windows? in ~tech

    ourari
    Link
    If that is the source, I suspect linux is under-represented and windows is over-represented. Privacy add-ons for browsers can modify the browser header to look generic. I use Firefox and Linux,...

    As Statcounter explains, its numbers come from tracking code installed on more than 1.5 million websites across the globe,

    If that is the source, I suspect linux is under-represented and windows is over-represented. Privacy add-ons for browsers can modify the browser header to look generic. I use Firefox and Linux, but it might look like I use Chrome on Windows.

    13 votes