papasquat's recent activity
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Comment on China, Russia may build nuclear plant on moon to power lunar station, official says in ~space
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Comment on Why are integrated batteries so accepted? in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentThe iPhone 6 also has a 1800mAh battery, which would be a complete nonstarter today. Everything in a phone is a tradeoff. You can have a thin phone with a 3.5mm jack, and good battery life, but it...The iPhone 6 also has a 1800mAh battery, which would be a complete nonstarter today. Everything in a phone is a tradeoff. You can have a thin phone with a 3.5mm jack, and good battery life, but it wouldn't perform well. Or you could have a thick phone with a 3.5mm jack, good performance and good battery life. Most people buying phones prefer thin, powerful phones that last a long time. Comparitively few really care that much about a 3.5mm jack.
There were Android brands selling phones with 3.5mm jacks long after apple got rid of theirs. If I remember correctly, Samsung even made an ad explicitly pointing this out and making fun of Apple for it. Turns out that none of those phones outsold the iPhone. So was a 3.5mm jack really that important to most consumers? Probably not.
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Comment on PanGui - A cross-platform UI library with a razor sharp focus on performance, simplicity and expressive power in ~comp
papasquat Link ParentIsn't that just a virtual machine then? The whole point of electron is that it enabled developers who were used to developing web apps in JavaScript to develop desktop apps. If we're no longer...Isn't that just a virtual machine then?
The whole point of electron is that it enabled developers who were used to developing web apps in JavaScript to develop desktop apps. If we're no longer fully implementing a browser engine, and we're no longer using JavaScript, we've just come full circle and reinvented the JVM.
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Comment on Why are integrated batteries so accepted? in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentNot me. I have operating systems for various stuff that wouldn't really be suited for use cases other than what I use them for. I use arch on my laptop which I really wouldn't want to run a server...Not me. I have operating systems for various stuff that wouldn't really be suited for use cases other than what I use them for. I use arch on my laptop which I really wouldn't want to run a server on, Debian for my container host, which I wouldn't want my laptop on. Proxmox for my hypervisor which I wouldn't want on anything that's not a VM host, pfsense on my router, homeassistant on my home automation server.
All of those things make sense, but managing all of them is a pain. Plus all the proprietary stuff like my Windows PC for gaming, Kindles for ebooks, android phones, android TVs. Granted, these are a bit easier to manage but I still need to install updates and reboot them every so often, and every little bit adds up.
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Comment on Why are integrated batteries so accepted? in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentThis is something I've unfortunately had to realize as well. It's not just that I've gotten older and I have less time to tinker than I used to, but it's just that I have so many fucking devices...This is something I've unfortunately had to realize as well. It's not just that I've gotten older and I have less time to tinker than I used to, but it's just that I have so many fucking devices now.
I have a gaming computer, I have a personal laptop, I have a work laptop, I have two cell phones (both computers), I have a home server, a NAS, 4 smart TV dongles (which are computers), a car infotainment system, an e-reader, and on and on and on. They're all computers, they all require updates, and they all have various bugs, idiosyncrasies, and security vulnerabilities.
I honestly kind of hate it, and I don't know how anyone could have a DIY style operating system on all of them and also do their due diligence on updates and keeping them running.
I used to dream that one day, we'd all have powerful smart phones that would be our one device, and it would do everything we need, but it seems like as time goes on, we all just end up getting more computers, and they all have to be managed by someone else to avoid going insane.
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Comment on Why are integrated batteries so accepted? in ~tech
papasquat Link Parent"copy apple" worked not because of the association with apple, but because people generally like the things apple does. A lot of people got grumpy over the removal of the 3.5mm jack, but it..."copy apple" worked not because of the association with apple, but because people generally like the things apple does. A lot of people got grumpy over the removal of the 3.5mm jack, but it enables phones to be thinner and have better battery life, which are virtually the most important thing about a phone for an average consumer. Yes, you can have a removable battery phone that's thin, waterproof, and with good battery life, but it's harder, which means more expensive, and it's not something that super important to the average consumer so it doesn't get designed in.
If people were really clamoring for removable batteries in 2025, we'd see removable batteries.
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Comment on Why are integrated batteries so accepted? in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentI'm sure some people used them, but most didn't. As battery capacities got higher, the use case just kind of went away. The proof is in the pudding though. If user swappable batteries were...I'm sure some people used them, but most didn't. As battery capacities got higher, the use case just kind of went away.
The proof is in the pudding though. If user swappable batteries were something people cared about, they'd still make phones with that feature. It's not like nothing in the world has user swappable batteries after all. Handheld radios, drones, digital cameras and a number of other electronics have user swappable batteries standard. It's just that for phones, it's not nearly as high priority for most people as having a phone that's resilient, thin, light, and with good battery life, and a user swappable battery makes it harder to do all of those things.
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Comment on Why are integrated batteries so accepted? in ~tech
papasquat LinkThis is most prevalent on phones, and I don't think it has much to do with advantages to the manufacturer, it mostly has to do with customer demand. When swappable batteries were common in...This is most prevalent on phones, and I don't think it has much to do with advantages to the manufacturer, it mostly has to do with customer demand.
When swappable batteries were common in smartphones, not many people used them. It was easier to just charge your phone at night. At the same time, thinner, lighter, and more waterproof phones became big competitive selling points. Those are things that are very hard to do if you have a removable battery, because you need to have very good gaskets sealing the battery compartment off, while still making it accessible.
Portable battery packs and USB-C PD were the final nail in the coffin for portable batteries. It's easier to just plug in your phone to a power bank for fifteen minutes than take the case off your phone to swap a proprietary battery pack out.
At this point the only real advantage as a consumer would be easy replacement of a phone battery once it wears out, but I can just take it to a shop and have them do that for 40 bucks every 2 years or so. I'd much rather have a lighter, thinner, more waterproof phones with a higher capacity battery than that small advantage.
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Comment on What's something that makes you feel like we're living in the future? in ~talk
papasquat Link ParentThe missing element is that the computer in Star Trek was seemlessly able to correlate data that's ostensibly kept in various databases and sensor feeds. RAGs and AI agents have gotten better and...The missing element is that the computer in Star Trek was seemlessly able to correlate data that's ostensibly kept in various databases and sensor feeds.
RAGs and AI agents have gotten better and are now able to base responses on AI searches, but that sort of data correlation (what they'd call sensor fusion in the military) is still pretty clunky and rudementary.
All the time in Star Trek, they'll be like "how likely are we to be sucked into that black hole if we beam the passengers out of the transport before going to warp".
To be able to calculate that, the computer would need to take a measurement of the black hole to know how strong it is, query the navigation to understand the ship's current position, use the sensors to know where the transport is, what speed and vector it's on, scan the transport for life forms to know how many people were on it, query the transporters to get an estimate of how quickly they can transport that many people, talk to the engine control systems to get a current status to know how quickly the ship can get to the transport and know how quickly warp can be engaged, then crunch all those numbers and give it back.
We don't really have any AI that can do that seamlessly yet. It's feasible, but it would require either a ton of manual labor to set up, beforehand for that use case, or a very smart AI to figure out how to set up on the fly.
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Comment on What's something that makes you feel like we're living in the future? in ~talk
papasquat Link ParentThe progress of LLMs has turned me into a Luddite. Personally I've always been a tech optimist and big sci fi fan. I always thought that in sci fi stories like Dune, where a society has altogether...The progress of LLMs has turned me into a Luddite. Personally I've always been a tech optimist and big sci fi fan. I always thought that in sci fi stories like Dune, where a society has altogether banned AI, it was a marker of a backwards society that are fearful of things that seem too complicated, like the reaction a caveman would have to a light bulb.
Now that it seems we may be on the precipice of being able to build a machine that, if its not self aware, at least can make a very convincing approximation of self awareness, I'm not so sure.
AI alignment is such a ridiculously complex field, with so many ways you can royally fuck up, and the stakes are potentially the entire fate of humanity. I totally get why a society would say screw it; the stakes are too high and the benefits are not worth the risk.
Even if they don't subtly misalign from their owners (which is a huge if), the consolidation of a virtually infinitely scalable intellectual labor pool into the hands of a few dozen billionaires is almost certainly a guarantee of a dystopia as well. The fact that these things need so much compute pretty much guarantees that a normal person will never have a chance against large corporate interests when it comes to competing with this technology.
It makes me very scared, and has really started me down the road of thinking if any of it is worth it.
I mean, we could have a utopia right now with the if we worked together on it. The problem has never been that we're not smart enough to figure out solutions to our problems. The problem has always been that we can't work together to solve them. I don't see how AI could possibly do anything but make that roadblock worse. -
Comment on What's something that makes you feel like we're living in the future? in ~talk
papasquat Link ParentNot sure about apple, but unless you explicitly turn it off, android phones automatically keep your location history in google's cloud, even if you don't have the map open.Not sure about apple, but unless you explicitly turn it off, android phones automatically keep your location history in google's cloud, even if you don't have the map open.
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Comment on ‘Fast & Furious’ star Vin Diesel implores Universal to “please tell the best fans in the world when the next movie is coming out” in ~movies
papasquat Link ParentI get that marketing is usually around the entire cost of a films budget, but even then 300 + 300 = 600 < 700. Shouldn't that film have made 100m of profit? I know Hollywood accounting is bizarre,...I get that marketing is usually around the entire cost of a films budget, but even then 300 + 300 = 600 < 700. Shouldn't that film have made 100m of profit? I know Hollywood accounting is bizarre, so I assume I'm missing something here.
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Comment on There must be Nazis in the White House. EO 14188 -> 14/88. in ~society
papasquat Link ParentThe fact is that the order is numbered 14188. The conspiracy theory is that that numbering was intentionally chosen as a dogwhistle to white supremicists. We don't (and we probably can't) have...The fact is that the order is numbered 14188. The conspiracy theory is that that numbering was intentionally chosen as a dogwhistle to white supremicists. We don't (and we probably can't) have proof that that the numbering was intentional, thus it's a theory. We know that intentionally numbering an executive order to clandestinely signal white supremacy would require multiple people working in secret together, thus, it would be a conspiracy.
That makes it a conspiracy theory. That doesn't mean it's not true.
Conspiracies are very real and theories about them are often proven to be true. It's still a conspiracy theory though.
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Comment on There must be Nazis in the White House. EO 14188 -> 14/88. in ~society
papasquat Link ParentActually, yeah. I really do. Trump seems to think so too, he bragged about it during his last campaign....Do you believe that Trump could literally just randomly shoot someone in the street without consequence?
Actually, yeah. I really do. Trump seems to think so too, he bragged about it during his last campaign.
The entire conservative apperatus has been captured by Trump in a way that it hasn't been ever before in the last century. Entire industries exist solely to justify his actions, to the point that he can do literally whatever he wants without losing his base now. He's completely destroyed the economy in three months despite running primarily on the economy, and he hasn't lost any support among his base. He has carte blanche for the next four years.
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Comment on What's a secondhand heartbreak you've experienced? in ~talk
papasquat LinkI got divorced and went through my own really bad heartbreak, and during the course of that, a friend of mine invited me to play kickball with some friends of his that had a team. Over the course...I got divorced and went through my own really bad heartbreak, and during the course of that, a friend of mine invited me to play kickball with some friends of his that had a team. Over the course of that, I became really good friends with a couple who had just gotten married.
I got really close to them, and we went out drinking at least once a week, we went on trips all the time, I crashed at their house all the time, and they jokingly referred to me as their adopted son despite being like six years older than them. I met people that I would have never met otherwise, got exposed to a whole world of queer culture I never knew existed, and just generally had a sort of second renaissance in my life because of them. We hung out all the time and they both gave me good advice with dating while I was getting back into it, met some really horrendous girlfriends I had for brief periods over the years, and got to see me eventually meet a great woman and get engaged.
They separated about a year ago, and it was absolutely crushing. They were always such a great couple, and they always thought of me as "divorced guy", but now they were in that boat too. I wouldn't wish that pain on anyone, and it sucks having to split my time between them. They both have new relationships now, and unfortunately I barely see them anymore. It sort of feels like the magic of that era has unfortunately, and what the three of us, and some other friends we had at that time is mostly gone.
I'm still friends with them and I think I'll always cherish their friendship, but I doubt it ever goes back to the way it used to be.
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Comment on Thoughts on ProWritingAid in ~creative
papasquat LinkJust dropping in to say that Got a chuckle from me. I can honestly tell by your post that you're a very talented writer. That line in particular was extremely well done, not only in execution, but...Just dropping in to say that
Apparently I write too good to get use from it.
Got a chuckle from me. I can honestly tell by your post that you're a very talented writer. That line in particular was extremely well done, not only in execution, but in specifically where it was sprinkled into your post. Carry on, and if you have anything published, I'd love to read it just based on your post.
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Comment on Nintendo President on the new Switch 2, tariffs and what's next for the company in ~games
papasquat Link ParentIt seems kind of inherent that the top selling games have the highest budgets for the most part. Like, yeah, those games only have massive budgets because they know there's a market to support...It seems kind of inherent that the top selling games have the highest budgets for the most part. Like, yeah, those games only have massive budgets because they know there's a market to support them, because having a huge budget lets them produce impressive looking graphics, afford massive marketing campaigns and so on. If the highest selling games were all indies that were made by one person, why would studios ever invest hundreds of millions of dollars into developing a AAA game?
That doesn't mean there's not an absolutely thriving AA and indie game scene. There is. Indie games continue to sell like absolute madness on steam, and every so often you get a balatro, a vampire survivors, or a stardew valley. It's not like movies made by one person or tiny teams ever top the box office. I think literally the only example I can even think of is the Blair Witch Project. The Indie game industry is comparitively far healthier than the indie movie scene has ever been.
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Comment on Minecraft’s problems aren’t just the new features in ~games
papasquat Link ParentI think once Microsoft bought the game, they really missed the mark on what was interesting for me about the game. I always, like you, loved building a base, designing new mechanisms, automating...I think once Microsoft bought the game, they really missed the mark on what was interesting for me about the game.
I always, like you, loved building a base, designing new mechanisms, automating stuff. I liked designing sheep farms, redstone powered mine cart systems, monster harvesting machines and so on. I wish the game had gone further into that direction instead of the RPG direction. There are tons of games that do RPG stuff better that have actually decent combat, stories, and immersive environment, none of which have been Minecraft's strong suits.
I wonder if the fact that every kid in the developed world is (was) obsessed with Minecraft has something to do with that. I honestly don't know what aspect of the game kids mostly engage with, so I couldn't really speculate.
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Comment on Clobazam, an anti-anxiety drug, is polluting our waterways – Swedish study found traces of the drug had altered the way wild Atlantic salmon migrate in ~enviro
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Comment on Ai 2027 in ~tech
papasquat Link ParentI think a lot of people fall into the same trap Marx fell into all those years ago. Namely that we're headed to a utopia as an inevitability for some reason. People at some point will just get...I think a lot of people fall into the same trap Marx fell into all those years ago. Namely that we're headed to a utopia as an inevitability for some reason. People at some point will just get tried of oppression when the system breaks down enough, revolt, and everyone will live in an equal, happy society.
No one's ever answered the question of why would that happen?.
Entire generations of people have lived, reproduced, and died while being horribly oppressed the entire time, living in terrible conditions. Most of those people didn't rise up and take control of the system. In miniscule amount of cases where they did, in most cases they instituted oppression of their own, and while their descendents were better off, the society as a whole wasn't.
Why would AI give us a egalitarian utopia? We could have an egalitarian utopia right now if everyone got on the same page. We could have had it for hundreds of years in fact, but we haven't because of flaws inherit in the human psyche.
How would AI change that, short of oppressively taking control over everything?
I just can't concieve of a world where we suddenly live in Star Trek, and I especially can't concieve of AI being the thing that suddenly enables it.
To me, the most realistic scenario is the people currently with most of the worlds power use AI to consolidate what little they don't already control (namely labor), and everyone else's life gets far worse so that theirs can get slightly better.
Crewed spaceflight has mostly always been a political stunt. We don't really gain a whole lot from sending humans back to the moon. The costs are absolutely gargantuan compared to probes and rovers, so the main benefit to justify the cost is just bragging rights.
That said, Artemis is still planning on landing humans on the moon in 2027. I expect there will be delays, but I have no doubt it'll happen sometime soon.