plutonic's recent activity
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Comment on Presenting a new (old) way to solve the "album problem" when streaming music in ~music
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Comment on Excerpts from actual one-star Amazon.com reviews of books from Time’s list of the 100 best novels from 1923 to the present in ~books
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Comment on The everything, everywhere, all at once corruption story in ~society
plutonic Link ParentYou're right, the word corrupt is not correct. Deeply hypocritical is better. While the Senate is who approves candidates, it should be able to say yes or no to a candidate based on their...You're right, the word corrupt is not correct. Deeply hypocritical is better. While the Senate is who approves candidates, it should be able to say yes or no to a candidate based on their testimony, not refuse to even allow a candidate to be brought forth, which the President has ever right to do. (I could be wrong here, I'm not an American)
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Comment on The everything, everywhere, all at once corruption story in ~society
plutonic Link ParentI would argue denying Obama his Supreme Court pick using the excuse they did and then pushing through Trump's during an election is extremely unfair and corrupt.I would argue denying Obama his Supreme Court pick using the excuse they did and then pushing through Trump's during an election is extremely unfair and corrupt.
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Comment on Moving from Cinnamon to Xfce fixed my video playback stutter on Linux Mint in ~tech
plutonic LinkI had this exact problem on my Mint setup, the only fix was a reboot and then I would get smooth video for a couple days before going back to stuttering. This was on an older PC that I had...I had this exact problem on my Mint setup, the only fix was a reboot and then I would get smooth video for a couple days before going back to stuttering. This was on an older PC that I had previously run Windows 7 on until the absolute bitter end. At some point I upgraded to a new PC with much more horsepower and the problem has not resurfaced. I don't think I've rebooted my system for over 6 months now (go Linux!) and video is still smooth. Using Mint Cinnamon and VLC on both setups.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic (edited )LinkFinished Stella Gibbon's 'Cold Comfort Farm' Published 1932. I actually enjoyed this novel a lot more than I thought I would. A comedy/parody classic. Never silly, never over the top. Very well...Finished Stella Gibbon's 'Cold Comfort Farm' Published 1932. I actually enjoyed this novel a lot more than I thought I would. A comedy/parody classic. Never silly, never over the top. Very well written and the ending is great. Always nice when something exceeds your expectations.
Finished Wolfgang Von Goethe's 'Faust Part I' Published 1808. It's always interesting to read such a famous and well known piece of literature. Sometimes they go well, sometimes not so much. This is a really good read, not too difficult at all and beautiful poetry of course. Must be something to read in the original German.
I knew it was supposed to be more challenging but I was feeling really good about Faust after finishing it and moved immediately into:
Wolfgang Von Goethe's 'Faust Part II' Published 1832. Well, well. This is a completely different beast. Huge parts of this novel are nearly incomprehensible. The beginning, there is a town celebration of sorts after Mephistopheles convinces the Emperor to invent paper money enriching the town and it's peoples greatly but of course the wealth is just an empty illusion. This part was really a total mystery, very hard to follow. Act II features Wagner creating 'The Homunculus' which is an artificial being without any physical presence, this sounds strange and it is, but I found I could follow it and understand it with some help from GPT, though parts of it are still pretty opaque. Act III: Impossible. Written as if it were a Greek Tragedy which I am not super familiar with. I read the words on the pages but the meaning was completely lost to me, even when having my hand held by GPT. If I went through it with line by line explanations then possibly I could have gotten more from it, but I'm no student of literature and I don't have time for that. Extremely difficult. If the work is so difficult that a regular reader cannot understand it whatsoever has the Author failed? Does Goethe even expect anyone to understand this? Who the hell am I to say Goethe has failed the reader with this Act?
Here's what Goethe has to say about Act III: "I never doubted that the readers for whom I effectively wrote would grasp the principal significance of the portrayal straight away. It is time that the impassioned dispute between classicists and romantics should finally be reconciled. The principal thing is that we should properly cultivate ourselves; the source from which we do so would not matter, if we did not have to fear the possibility of miscultivation by appealing to false models. For it is certainly a broader and purer insight into and around Greek and Roman literature to which we owe our liberation from the monkish barbarism of the period between the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Is it not from this high level that we can learn to appreciate everything in its true physical and aesthetic value, both what is oldest and what is newest?"
Act IV: Back to reality, things are making sense again and I can follow and understand this. Great!
Act V: I'm just starting this now and the book is maybe 25 pages from completion. Looking forward to finishing this one.
Faust Part I: A good read and where most of the lore of Faust comes from.
Faust Part II: Something best left for Literary Study. -
Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentOK, so these shows are 'loosely based' off the book, I would say loosely indeed. I am definitely aware of the gross minstrel shows that went on and 'Some of these shows were essentially minstrel...OK, so these shows are 'loosely based' off the book, I would say loosely indeed. I am definitely aware of the gross minstrel shows that went on and 'Some of these shows were essentially minstrel shows that utilized caricatures and stereotypes of black people, and thus inverting the intent of the novel.' makes sense then. So really the negative connotation with Uncle Tom is really just a mis-representing or twisting of the novel itself. Interesting.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentI found this book a bit strange, I think the pulp-culture understanding of this book and what is actually in the book is very different. Uncle Tom? Isn't the guy a hero? Why does 'Uncle Tom' have...I found this book a bit strange, I think the pulp-culture understanding of this book and what is actually in the book is very different. Uncle Tom? Isn't the guy a hero? Why does 'Uncle Tom' have a negative connotation in pulp culture and how did they get that from this book? Maybe I just completely mis-understood it.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentAn amazing accomplishment for someone who was only 23 at the time they wrote it. Looking forward to reading more of her work.An amazing accomplishment for someone who was only 23 at the time they wrote it. Looking forward to reading more of her work.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentI read it as the first book is all just character development, we get the super rich back stories of each character on the ship. The second book is where it becomes plot based and we close in on...I read it as the first book is all just character development, we get the super rich back stories of each character on the ship. The second book is where it becomes plot based and we close in on the time tomb. The pacing is a masterpiece in the second book, I remember flipping pages so fast as it closes in on the climax, such a fun reading experience!
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentPersonally I'm totally happy with just the first 2 books. I pretend the other books don't exist, it's better that way ;)Personally I'm totally happy with just the first 2 books. I pretend the other books don't exist, it's better that way ;)
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentTell me about what you thought of this book! What character did you like best? What is your take on Singer? What did this book say to you, did you identify with the lonely solitude of it? I found...Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Tell me about what you thought of this book! What character did you like best? What is your take on Singer? What did this book say to you, did you identify with the lonely solitude of it? I found it a deep look into the human condition, very read characters in very real circumstances living very real but lonely lives.
I still think about Mick, how she was young with hopes and dreams but then what happens to Singer destroys her, the realities of life set in and her dreams are now fading, her story is very tragic.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentAfter loving the first 2 Hyperion books (without any doubt the best sci-fi book I have ever read, I really see them as a single book split in 2) I couldn't even finish the third book it was so...After loving the first 2 Hyperion books (without any doubt the best sci-fi book I have ever read, I really see them as a single book split in 2) I couldn't even finish the third book it was so bad. I think I made it about halfway before tossing it. Hopefully it gets better for you, but it didn't work for me at all especially after how amazing the first 2 are.
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Comment on Anyone else a bit unnerved by the number of visible satellites? in ~space
plutonic LinkPersonally I like it because it makes me think I live in the future I thought I would when I was a child. Many, many other things have fallen short of my childhood future but the night sky isn't...Personally I like it because it makes me think I live in the future I thought I would when I was a child. Many, many other things have fallen short of my childhood future but the night sky isn't one of them, all we need now is a giant orbital space station that would be visible to the naked eye :)
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Comment on ‘It’s shameful’: New York’s elite lash out at Zohran Mamdani’s second-home tax in ~finance
plutonic Link ParentThis really goes to show just how out touch these people are with reality, imagine having that much wealth and still crying that you are hard done by. Unbelievable.This really goes to show just how out touch these people are with reality, imagine having that much wealth and still crying that you are hard done by. Unbelievable.
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Comment on Do you prefer chunky or smooth peanut butter? in ~food
plutonic Link ParentApparently this might be a Canadian thing, which is very strange as we rarely get products first. I guess we also function as a test market sometimes? It has a more-roasty, stronger peanut...Apparently this might be a Canadian thing, which is very strange as we rarely get products first. I guess we also function as a test market sometimes? It has a more-roasty, stronger peanut flavour, I don't think anything else has been added just roasting the peanuts longer.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
plutonic Link ParentInteresting! Thanks for the tidbits, as it is considered the greatest work ever written in German I am not surprised that some German idioms have come from it. Look at how much of modern English...Interesting! Thanks for the tidbits, as it is considered the greatest work ever written in German I am not surprised that some German idioms have come from it. Look at how much of modern English comes straight from Shakespeare.
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Comment on Did wokeness leave us worse off? (gifted link) in ~society
plutonic Link ParentMy Son-in-law (mid 20's) is dating someone who identifies as 'non-binary' and goes by 'they-them'. No problem, I support people's choice to present and call themselves what they want and I will...My Son-in-law (mid 20's) is dating someone who identifies as 'non-binary' and goes by 'they-them'. No problem, I support people's choice to present and call themselves what they want and I will respect that as much as possible. The problem my brain has is his partner physically presents as what my brain considers to be fully 'female'. So I screw it up sometimes, I find I have to consciously pre-think out my sentences to make sure I am using they/them because my brain sees a 'female' and says 'she/her' automatically. They have never make a big deal out of it and I never make a big show of apologizing when I do screw it up, I hope they respect that I am trying my best and I fully support their right to be non-binary and present however they wish.
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Comment on Do you prefer chunky or smooth peanut butter? in ~food
plutonic LinkI don't have too much preference between Chunky and Smooth, I think each has its place, but this new trend of making a 'Dark Roast' peanut butter is where it's at. Jif Dark Roast is my personal...I don't have too much preference between Chunky and Smooth, I think each has its place, but this new trend of making a 'Dark Roast' peanut butter is where it's at. Jif Dark Roast is my personal favourite, but no longer buying do to being Canadian and Jif being American, I'm glad Kraft now has a Dark Roast version but it just isn't as good as the Jif :(
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Comment on Did wokeness leave us worse off? (gifted link) in ~society
plutonic Link ParentYes, an effort should absolutely be made to call people what they want, anything else is really being an asshole. But there is something to say about trying to make things easier for those around...Yes, an effort should absolutely be made to call people what they want, anything else is really being an asshole. But there is something to say about trying to make things easier for those around you. If someone chooses to go with their difficult to pronounce name or use irregular gender pronouns they should accept that people are going to screw it up and as long as it isn't coming from a hateful place they should just accept that is how it is going to be. My real first name has 2 very common spellings and when in a situation where it doesn't matter and someone asks which spelling I use I usually tell them to spell it anyway they want because it doesn't matter to me (this actually gets me weird looks sometimes).
Same story for me! I've always listened to music this way, maybe it also has something to do with listening to mostly electronic music? Chances are if I like the artist I'll enjoy the entire album. For finding new music, I'll quickly listen to ~10 seconds of the first 3-4 tracks on the album, if I like the sound I listen to the whole album / EP.