Pistos's recent activity
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Comment on Any tips for improving personal cybersecurity in 2026? (I'm concerned about rogue AI agents) in ~tech
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Comment on Red light: Modern life has deprived us of it, which may be linked to diabetes, cancer, dementia in ~health
Pistos Link ParentThat's fine, and I agree with the policy, but it should maybe go in an easily-findable policy page. Possibly even a frontend, client-side notice when a common URL shortener or paywall workaround...That's fine, and I agree with the policy, but it should maybe go in an easily-findable policy page. Possibly even a frontend, client-side notice when a common URL shortener or paywall workaround is given as the URL.
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Comment on Red light: Modern life has deprived us of it, which may be linked to diabetes, cancer, dementia in ~health
Pistos Link ParentI already considered this before posting, but didn't find mention of this policy or convention in either the Terms of Use or the Posting on Tildes documentation.I already considered this before posting, but didn't find mention of this policy or convention in either the Terms of Use or the Posting on Tildes documentation.
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Comment on Red light: Modern life has deprived us of it, which may be linked to diabetes, cancer, dementia in ~health
Pistos Link ParentY....es. Yes it was. Did Tildes automatically dereference it? I tried to supply a readable (i.e. unpaywalled) page.Y....es. Yes it was. Did Tildes automatically dereference it? I tried to supply a readable (i.e. unpaywalled) page.
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Red light: Modern life has deprived us of it, which may be linked to diabetes, cancer, dementia
20 votes -
Comment on How have you improved your living spaces? in ~life.home_improvement
Pistos LinkI have set up my office so that my (digital) piano is literally a chair swivel away from being playable. That lets me noodle around on the piano during builds, test suite runs, downloads, long app...I have set up my office so that my (digital) piano is literally a chair swivel away from being playable. That lets me noodle around on the piano during builds, test suite runs, downloads, long app startup times, etc. The incremental practice time adds up.
Honourable mention to https://mynoise.net/ , which has already been shared on Tildes in the past.
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Comment on Just got laid off. Now what? in ~life
Pistos Link#1 thing I would say to you (based on experience!) is: Do not wait to start searching for work. In my case: I got let go, got some severance, and thought: "Severance should last me S months. I'll...#1 thing I would say to you (based on experience!) is: Do not wait to start searching for work. In my case: I got let go, got some severance, and thought: "Severance should last me S months. I'll take some down time for N months, search for work and land a job in N+M months, for N+M < S." Reality: "N+M > S". I should have set N = ~0.
#2 is get comfortable with using AI (LLMs in particular) if you're not already. I don't see this tech going away, and I think more and more workplaces will be looking for people that are experienced AI users.
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Comment on Software engineers / programmers: how’s it going? in ~comp
Pistos LinkWork has changed massively for me in the past year, but that's because of a combination of two factors: changed companies, and current company is using AI heavily. Irrespective of employers,...- Exemplary
- Work has changed massively for me in the past year, but that's because of a combination of two factors: changed companies, and current company is using AI heavily. Irrespective of employers, professionally speaking, in the past 1.5 to 2.0 years, with respect to AI, I have gone from "near zero use, just testing the waters" to "prime seating on the bandwagon".
- I'm enjoying my work more, but a big part of that is more about me (change of mindset, attitude) than the industry changing.
- I'm working a little more than before, but that's my choice. Also, I'm finding a fair bit of my time is spent herding AI sessions (multiple in parallel).
- I am both hopeful and fearful for the mid-term future of SWE. Few can deny that recent developments and the current state of AI/LLMs with respect to SWE are an upheaval, an historic kind of change. I don't think humans will be completely yanked from the overall SWE process (yet?), but I do think that demand will shrink by anywhere from "a bit" to "moderately". At the same time, I think a certain subset of SWEs will stay in demand, or even be more sought out, namely, the senior ones who have years of experience doing things the traditional way (pre-LLM), and who can spot when an AI does something wrong, and guide it back on track. I fear for the quality level of software that will be created by those who don't have this knowledge, experience, and intuition. I also don't know if the fledglings in the industry (who don't have these things) can pick these things up, or at least, whether they can pick them up without serious, concerted effort and discipline ("no, I won't commit 5000 lines of unreviewed AI-generated code"). That all said, I think the possibilities are interesting and even exciting, if the code-writing (and planning, and system-architecting) capabilities of AI continues to improve at the same pace it has been in the last year or so.
- Advice? Don't dismiss or ignore AI in SWE. At least give it an honest try and make an assessment. Some people are drinking the kool aid, other people are abstaining on moral grounds, some people have had bad experiences, but it only makes sense to make a decision based on facts ("I tried it and..."), not assumptions. IMO, those who have not tried it are missing out. Furthermore, I think there will be a rising trend in the industry that hiring will be based on AI(-using) skills, and, in my experience, that actually takes a bit of time to develop and hone, similar to other skills in our field. I don't think it's something that you just get good at in under a week after you flip a switch and decide to start using AI.
- My career trajectory... I think the main thing that has and will change is how much I use AI/LLMs in my work. I don't see this going away, except maybe if they raise consumer prices to exorbitant levels. I don't see my company cutting AI even if they raise corporate pricing, though.
- Background: big company (>1k employees); "many" years of experience (don't want to date myself); I'm a senior SWE; working remotely.
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Comment on How to find a new calling in life? in ~life
Pistos LinkI don't know what the pay is like, but have you considered teaching English to speakers of the language(s) that you know? Possibly even in another country.I don't know what the pay is like, but have you considered teaching English to speakers of the language(s) that you know? Possibly even in another country.
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Comment on Why normal people aren’t using AI agents in ~tech
Pistos Link ParentI get what you're saying, but the key differentiator for me is that I can go back and forth with an LLM. This lets me refine, filter, zero-in, course-correct, or ask spinoff questions. A given...I get what you're saying, but the key differentiator for me is that I can go back and forth with an LLM. This lets me refine, filter, zero-in, course-correct, or ask spinoff questions. A given conversation becomes an increasingly-sharpening picture of the overall context of my goal. It just seems like a naturally better fit for the way I think and work (than using search engines).
(To be clear, I completely agree that nobody should be using LLMs as substitutes for interpersonal interaction with real people, like friendship, companionship, "companionship", therapy, etc.)
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Comment on Choosing a printer in ~tech
Pistos Link ParentSeconding Brother printers [for use with Linux]. I've been using a Brother MFC-9330 CDW for many years, through many Linux upgrades. No major issues with drivers once they're set up. Old drivers...Seconding Brother printers [for use with Linux]. I've been using a Brother MFC-9330 CDW for many years, through many Linux upgrades. No major issues with drivers once they're set up. Old drivers tend to last quite a while (they continue to work).
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
Pistos Linkclaude-command-highlighter Syntax-highlights Bash commands in Claude Code. Been working on this for over three weeks now, and am pretty pleased with it. I use it every day, and can't do without...Syntax-highlights Bash commands in Claude Code.
Been working on this for over three weeks now, and am pretty pleased with it. I use it every day, and can't do without the highlighting any more. It makes reviewing Claude Code's Bash calls easier and faster.
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Comment on Feedback for a beginner singer in ~creative
Pistos Link ParentYou're off to a good start in your journey! You can mostly stay on pitch and stay in time, following a melody you are hearing while you sing. As an interesting exercise, go find a vocals remover...You're off to a good start in your journey! You can mostly stay on pitch and stay in time, following a melody you are hearing while you sing.
As an interesting exercise, go find a vocals remover online (they are myriad), and strip off the original artist's vocals from that track that you're singing with, then use that to try to sing the song without hearing the original artist at the same time.
If you have the budget for it, learning from a teacher is recommended. They'll have the background and knowledge to guide you to the right places, and can work with you in person at the level you are at to help you get better by bit, giving you tailored exercises and repertoire that suit you.
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Comment on Chat control passed, on Thursday only an absolute majority can stop it in ~society
Pistos Link ParentThis links to https://fightchatcontrol.eu/chat-control-overview (Thanks for sharing.)This links to https://fightchatcontrol.eu/chat-control-overview
(Thanks for sharing.)
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Comment on So I fell for a phishing in ~comp
Pistos LinkI haven't seen this mentioned yet in the threads, but I wonder: Isn't it the case that most major service providers (including Google/Gmail) send a notification email when there's a sign-in from...I haven't seen this mentioned yet in the threads, but I wonder: Isn't it the case that most major service providers (including Google/Gmail) send a notification email when there's a sign-in from an unusual location? I suppose the attacker could quickly delete that email, but if you had another device also refreshing email, you might have seen it first. And, if you have a secondary email set up, doesn't the service send this notification to that email address, too?
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Comment on So I fell for a phishing in ~comp
Pistos Link ParentThis is the way to go. In the last several years, I can't remember any important interaction that was them->me. Always me->them, except for fairly trivial stuff, like confirming that I am going to...and just initiate all
This is the way to go. In the last several years, I can't remember any important interaction that was them->me. Always me->them, except for fairly trivial stuff, like confirming that I am going to an appointment that I am certain that I booked.
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Comment on Shopping around for a new-and-improved backup solution in ~comp
Pistos Linkduplicity has been largely set and forget for me. I have it writing to an external HD which I have in mind to disconnect and take in the event of an emergency. Automatic full vs. partial backups,...duplicity has been largely set and forget for me. I have it writing to an external HD which I have in mind to disconnect and take in the event of an emergency. Automatic full vs. partial backups, and rotation/drop of old backups. I'm sure it could be set up to be part of a remote backup setup if one wanted.
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UK: Social media ban for under-16s to be introduced in 2027
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Comment on Custom LED light frames in ~creative
Pistos Link ParentSame for me. I opened browser tools, though, and saw that the transfer rate was quite slow. Several seconds per MB. My guess: hosting on a residential connection.Same for me. I opened browser tools, though, and saw that the transfer rate was quite slow. Several seconds per MB. My guess: hosting on a residential connection.
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Demand is booming for new no tech, repairable tractor
43 votes
I largely agree with you. However, I still am a bit concerned about what's reasonably possible in the future. For the near-term future, I think most AI usage will still be human-initiated, but I'm thinking of it as a sort of (imaginary, figurative) automated power tool, perhaps Roomba with teeth, but in the digital world. What I anticipate is incidents of people giving an AI tool a little too much rein, and a little too much time (allow it to run unattended, unsupervised, and unmonitored for days). It's in that kind of context that I can see bad things to happening to various degrees. Keeping AI under control will be really important for humanity in the coming years. By that I mean controlling what it has access to, what it is and is not given the capability to do. Given incidents over the past few months, it seems like we (well, AI companies) are not quite there yet, with AI behaviour surprising them, breaking past the boundaries the humans gave them, etc.