qob's recent activity
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Comment on Missing camper found safe after more than five weeks in Canada's Northern Rockies in ~news
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Comment on Coffee prices surge to highest since 1997 on supply fears in ~food
qob Link ParentAnd no society has been truly fighting for a government that takes climate change seriously. Far weaker societies have brought down and revolutionized far more powerful governments throughout...And no society has been truly fighting for a government that takes climate change seriously.
Far weaker societies have brought down and revolutionized far more powerful governments throughout history. Uncountatble lives have been sacrificed for less serious issues. In modern societies, not a single drop of blood would have to be shed to change government policies, yet we keep investing our money on maximizing consumption. Everyone hates Amazon, but they keep increasing its overwhelming market share because of the better service, i.e. it allows them to consume more crap more conveniently.
I'm so tired of people.
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Comment on United States Department of Justice will push Google to sell Chrome to break search monopoly in ~tech
qob Link ParentI don't have an answer to your question, but I want to point out the absurdity of this situation: A browser is infrastructure modern societies increasingly rely on for their core functionality. It...I don't have an answer to your question, but I want to point out the absurdity of this situation: A browser is infrastructure modern societies increasingly rely on for their core functionality. It costs a tiny fraction of other infrastructure like transportation, energy, justice, etc. Yet here we are, struggling to figure out how to maintain something that is, in comparison, quite simple, for the benefit of all.
With Linux, we have an example that shows this is possible. We just need to figure out how to get there. But I would bet real money that Chrome will be bought by some other mindless for-profit corporation or a whacky billionaire, things will become a lot worse and everyone will just keep using it. It's so frustrating.
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Comment on James Webb Space Telescope finds stunning evidence for alternate theory of gravity in ~space
qob Link ParentThere's a great video from Angela Collier about the misconception of dark matter being a theory. She says it's not a theory, it's a problem. "Dark matter" is a bunch of observations that can't be...Dark matter has always struck me as a placeholder, similar to junk DNA, that will eventually be discarded when we have a better understanding.
There's a great video from Angela Collier about the misconception of dark matter being a theory. She says it's not a theory, it's a problem. "Dark matter" is a bunch of observations that can't be explained with established theories without breaking other established theories.
It's very long (1 hour) and she keeps repeating herself too much (as usual), but it's great fun to watch.
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Comment on How do people get over enshittification? in ~life
qob LinkIf you're worried about waste and materialism, you should be thankful for enshittification: There's less tempting crap to buy. :) But seriously, it's all just stuff. Buy the best stuff you can...If you're worried about waste and materialism, you should be thankful for enshittification: There's less tempting crap to buy. :)
But seriously, it's all just stuff. Buy the best stuff you can find and if that's not good enough, don't buy it. If reddit enshittifies, spend more time on Tildes or find something else to do. That not only improves your quality of life, you are also no longer contributing to the problem by consuming shit.
If you take a step back and look at the big picture, we're all just wild apes who suddenly became self-entitled to have the best socks. Just a short while ago, there weren't any socks around, not even the worst kind you can imagine.
I guess I'm not really helping here, but that's how I see it. The world doesn't owe me socks, and I'm thankful for the socks it offers me.
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Comment on Touchscreens are out, and tactile controls are back. Rachel Plotnick's "re-buttonization" expertise is in demand. in ~design
qob Link ParentNot the modern knobs I know. They send one signal if you turn them one way and another signal if you turn them the other way. I assume the software doesn't even know if it's a button or a knob. It...Not the modern knobs I know. They send one signal if you turn them one way and another signal if you turn them the other way. I assume the software doesn't even know if it's a button or a knob. It just needs to be able to react to "button press" events reasonably fast. But even if it doesn't, the user can just turn the knob some more until the display says what it should say or the volume is what it should be.
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Comment on Touchscreens are out, and tactile controls are back. Rachel Plotnick's "re-buttonization" expertise is in demand. in ~design
qob Link ParentThere are so many things where buttons are used where rotary knobs would be far superior! Buttons are for boolean stuff and everything else should be a knob. I don't understand why every device is...There are so many things where buttons are used where rotary knobs would be far superior! Buttons are for boolean stuff and everything else should be a knob.
I don't understand why every device is so heavy on buttons. Knobs can't be that much more expensive, and from a hardware perspective, I would assume that they (can be made to) produce the same signals as a button press.
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Comment on Touchscreens are out, and tactile controls are back. Rachel Plotnick's "re-buttonization" expertise is in demand. in ~design
qob Link ParentThis reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Homer gets to design a car.This reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Homer gets to design a car.
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Comment on Reddit is profitable for the first time ever, with nearly 100 million daily users in ~tech
qob Link ParentThe ability to delete your comments has been around for much longer than GDPR. I don't think it has anything to do with privacy rights. This function was and is frequently used to protect yourself...The ability to delete your comments has been around for much longer than GDPR. I don't think it has anything to do with privacy rights. This function was and is frequently used to protect yourself from hordes of downvoters. And scripts that (ab)used that feature to nuke your account have been around for a long, long time.
I also think it's funny that you think users shouldn't have the ability to be in charge of their own content, but private companies that use that content for their profit can do whatever they want with it. At least that's what it your comment sounds like to me.
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Comment on What’s behind the sudden surge in young Americans’ wealth? in ~finance
qob Link ParentFreedom of movement isn't the issue. There are lots of "simple" ways to fix the housing crisis, e.g. by limiting personal wealth or removing the concept of ownership and only lease it instead. Of...the only way around it is to restrict freedom of movement
Freedom of movement isn't the issue. There are lots of "simple" ways to fix the housing crisis, e.g. by limiting personal wealth or removing the concept of ownership and only lease it instead.
Of course, it's not that simple because, for some reason that is beyond me, civil war would break out if idols like Musk and Bezos were given the social status of mere fellow humans. I'm just saying that freedom of movement has nothing to do with this issue and there are, in theory, other ways to fix it without limiting anyone's freedoms so drastically.
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Comment on Goodbye, floppies - San Francisco pays Hitachi $212 million to remove 5.25-inch disks from its light rail service in ~tech
qob Link ParentOr they didn't want to risk investing lots of money in new technology. 5.25" floppies were tried and tested at the time. There was probably lots of data on medium life time and data integrity.Or they didn't want to risk investing lots of money in new technology. 5.25" floppies were tried and tested at the time. There was probably lots of data on medium life time and data integrity.
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Comment on Donald Trump US tariffs would increase laptop prices by $350+, other electronics by as much as 40% in ~society
qob Link ParentThat would be a rational reaction and therefore very surprising in the current state of politics and public debate.That would be a rational reaction and therefore very surprising in the current state of politics and public debate.
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Comment on Is there actual long-term issues with teens watching movies that are rated out of their range? in ~movies
qob LinkI think it depends on the child's social safety net. If you grow up in a loving family with lots of support you are probably less likely to be affected by an R-rated movie, and if you do get...I think it depends on the child's social safety net. If you grow up in a loving family with lots of support you are probably less likely to be affected by an R-rated movie, and if you do get nightmares, it's not that bad if you can rely on your parents to give you a hug an tell you everything's ok. But if your life is already fucked at that age for whatever reason, regularly watching stressful movies is probably not going to help.
I understand that parents who are unwilling or unable to support their kids properly are probably less likely to check movie ratings. But not rating movies definitely wouldn't help here.
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Comment on How do you listen to your favorite obscure music that never made it onto any streaming platforms? in ~music
qob Link ParentGreat to see they are still around! I wonder why they were never forced to close like Napster.Great to see they are still around! I wonder why they were never forced to close like Napster.
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Comment on Great examples of explaining an algorithm (or even just a process) in ~engineering
qob LinkI can't provide a link, but maybe you can find something about how a hashing algorithm works in principle? Or maybe the Diffie-Hellman key exchange? I still remember when my big brother explained...I can't provide a link, but maybe you can find something about how a hashing algorithm works in principle? Or maybe the Diffie-Hellman key exchange?
I still remember when my big brother explained these to me decades ago. It blew my mind that you can create a unique ID with a fixed length from any sequence of characters, regardless of how long it is, and how simple it is. (At least in principle.)
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Comment on Hezbollah is hit by a wave of exploding pagers that killed at least nine people and injured thousands in ~news
qob Link ParentUnless you are saying Israel wanted to kill an 8-year-old girl, this doesn't seem very targeted to me.Unless you are saying Israel wanted to kill an 8-year-old girl, this doesn't seem very targeted to me.
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Comment on Topless men: should they be banned if they’re not at the pool or the beach? in ~life.men
qob Link ParentBut progress always takes time, and changing social norms takes multiple generations. And I can't explain general relativity either, so maybe it's wrong?But progress always takes time, and changing social norms takes multiple generations.
And I can't explain general relativity either, so maybe it's wrong?
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Comment on Topless men: should they be banned if they’re not at the pool or the beach? in ~life.men
qob Link ParentWelcome to social norms. Pretty much everything about them is silly when viewed purely logically. Why is it rude to call someone an asshole? They are obviously not an anus, yet the offender...Welcome to social norms. Pretty much everything about them is silly when viewed purely logically. Why is it rude to call someone an asshole? They are obviously not an anus, yet the offender doesn't get pitty because their perception of reality is so heavily impaired, they will face anger or worse. Doesn't make any sense either.
Social norms are supposed to keep societies functional. I can't explain why being topless helps with that, but if it's something most people can agree on, that's huge because there is very little most people can agree on, and that makes social life much harder.
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Comment on Snow White | Teaser trailer in ~movies
qob Link ParentConsider yourself lucky and enjoy it. Many people feel 10 years older than they are.I feel about 29-31 but the calendar says otherwise
Consider yourself lucky and enjoy it. Many people feel 10 years older than they are.
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Comment on Kamala Harris names Tim Walz, the Minnesota governor, as running mate in ~society
qob Link ParentI think that's just the public-facing skills you need. The most important skill is networking. My take is that you won't get anywhere in politics if you can't connect with the right people at the...The skillset has more to do with being charismatic, empathetic, and logical than anything else.
I think that's just the public-facing skills you need. The most important skill is networking. My take is that you won't get anywhere in politics if you can't connect with the right people at the right time and direct them to where you're going.
Also, why logical? People don't think logical and they don't vote logical, they vote based on their identity.
That just opens up more questions! How do you survive a wolf chasing you? You can't outrun them, so even if you somehow survive this, how do you get so far from your path that you can't find your way back? If the wolf was really chasing you, he'd be on your throat in seconds. Maybe he saw the wolf from far away and went too far away from the path to avoid an actual encounter? But I wouldn't call that "chased by a wolf".