secret_online's recent activity
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Comment on Jet Lag Season 15 | Official trailer in ~hobbies
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Comment on Removing obfuscation in Minecraft Java Edition in ~games
secret_online LinkThis is actually pretty cool. For years I've been wondering if Mojang would try and force people over to the bedrock edition somehow, but doing this seems like they still want people tinkering...This is actually pretty cool. For years I've been wondering if Mojang would try and force people over to the bedrock edition somehow, but doing this seems like they still want people tinkering around with, and therefore playing, the java edition.
I suppose I'll convert my tiny mods over to the official mappings soon to make the upgrade easier. I'm sure the fabric/neoforge/architectury projects will be where most of the work is going to go, so it's nice they're releasing both obfuscated and non-obfuscated snapshots after the next major release.
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Comment on Removing obfuscation in Minecraft Java Edition in ~games
secret_online Link ParentAs mentioned in the post, they didn't even release the obfuscation maps until 2019, 5 years after the Microsoft acquisition. This is also years after Mojang had hired the co-founders of the Mod...Though I'm honestly shocked it wasn't done sooner, before the Microsoft purchase.
As mentioned in the post, they didn't even release the obfuscation maps until 2019, 5 years after the Microsoft acquisition. This is also years after Mojang had hired the co-founders of the Mod Coder Pack, which was one of the earlier toolchains for decompiling/deobfuscating the game. I wonder what prompted them to remove the obfuscation step altogether, since it probably would have been easier to just keep it in.
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Comment on Jet Lag Season 15 | Official trailer in ~hobbies
secret_online Link ParentEpisode 6 spoilers Yeah, this was the hardest the crew has even been DeutscheBahned. The chasers were so close from the start of the game day around Zurich, and kept catching up, except something...Episode 6 spoilers
Yeah, this was the hardest the crew has even been DeutscheBahned. The chasers were so close from the start of the game day around Zurich, and kept catching up, except something would just go wrong.
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Comment on What ridiculous thing would you spend billions on? in ~talk
secret_online Link ParentI'm glad someone linked it. There's also a video version for people who want a 5 minute watch with mouth-based sound effects (and the sequel).I'm glad someone linked it.
There's also a video version for people who want a 5 minute watch with mouth-based sound effects (and the sequel).
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft: What do you want to see in the next season? in ~games
secret_online Link ParentI can also offer up secret_offline for some AFKing. I've always wanted to set it up as a bot where you can request for it to afk at certain places, but I got discouraged pretty quickly every time...I can also offer up secret_offline for some AFKing. I've always wanted to set it up as a bot where you can request for it to afk at certain places, but I got discouraged pretty quickly every time I've tried. So for now I log in as them, walk to the spot, then restart the afk bot process.
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft: What do you want to see in the next season? in ~games
secret_online Link ParentIf you do end up needing to use a controller, Controlify makes this a much more bearable experience.If you do end up needing to use a controller, Controlify makes this a much more bearable experience.
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Comment on Tildes Minecraft: What do you want to see in the next season? in ~games
secret_online Link ParentI have preferred building tunnels under the nether to roof portals, but it does necessitate a project to build proper nether tunnels. Having been in charge of one of those before, it's a grind and...I have preferred building tunnels under the nether to roof portals, but it does necessitate a project to build proper nether tunnels. Having been in charge of one of those before, it's a grind and I don't really want to have to lead that again. Even replicating the simple tunnel design I put together out of common materials (the outer walls were 5x8, I think, mostly concrete and glass. No duping, but I had plenty of sand) over the 2k blocks we actually completed was a task.
If we do plan something like that, then it's nice to have everyone near one of the major axes so that you don't need humongous branches, which does limit building somewhat.
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Comment on Jet Lag Season 15 | Official trailer in ~hobbies
secret_online (edited )LinkEpisode 4 Nebula: https://nebula.tv/videos/jetlag-s15e4/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXCNpEOyHSk Episode 4 spoilers Congrats Adam and Michelle! They had a pretty much straight shot...Episode 4
Nebula: https://nebula.tv/videos/jetlag-s15e4/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXCNpEOyHSk
Episode 4 spoilers
Congrats Adam and Michelle! They had a pretty much straight shot for their run, so most of the excitement came from the chasers trying to catch up to them.
They do talk about this on the podcast, but this win wouldn't have happened if Adam and Michelle had won the coin flip as to who stayed on the train to Laon. If that coin flip had gone the other way, then Ben and Brian would have made the catch on Sam and Toby, leading to a very different game. Ben and Brian initially didn't agree to the coin flip (this was cut from the episode), but they agreed after it was pointed out that if both teams were to try catch them in Laon, Adam and Michelle would be able to run faster.
They also finally mention what movie Ben and Brian saw in Laon: it was Lilo and Stitch.
As an aside, Michelle is now the only undefeated Jet Lag champion.
My watching buddy and I predicted what would happen this episode before we started. I remembered their coin balance being low enough that a 1 hour train would have meant doing a challenge, which would have probably meant waiting for the next train, which then meant they'd be caught, which was my guess. But it turns out the train is only 33 minutes and they had time to make the connection, so the game was sealed. I'm glad they planned for this in production, more jet lag is always good.
While the train up to the observatory might've only cost 330 in-game coins, it ended up being quite expensive in real life. A return ticket is about 130 Francs, so multiply that by 6 and you're looking at nearly 800 Francs, or 1000 USD at current conversion rates.
There was some discussion on the podcast about the new setup with only two teams. The two other power ups were removed because they would have trivialised parts of the game, but the double stayed because it's fun. The more interesting thing to me was the reason why they made the original winner's region neutral rather than splitting the whole circle in half. If they had split it in half, then the line would have been right where they were standing, and whichever team was running would immediately go "rat mode". This way, the runners have a straightforward goal at the start, which is much more predictable for the chasers, and therefore better for the storytelling of the show.
I'm guessing there's probably at least a couple more episodes left in this season, which means there's a lot that can happen. I'm tentatively guessing that Sam, Toby, and Michelle are going to get the second place prize, but a lot can happen very quickly in Jet Lag.
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Comment on Jet Lag Season 15 | Official trailer in ~hobbies
secret_online (edited )LinkEpisode 2 spoilers I'm going to put this forward for one of the best episodes of Jet Lag yet. It's a bit of a shame to see Sam and Toby's run end like this, it seemed like they had a pretty good...Episode 2 spoilers
I'm going to put this forward for one of the best episodes of Jet Lag yet.
It's a bit of a shame to see Sam and Toby's run end like this, it seemed like they had a pretty good shot at winning it outright. It's maybe a good thing from the production side of things that that didn't happen.
I love that Ben and Brian left Paris for Laon, only to watch a movie and (almost) immediately get on a train back to Paris. Not much action from the two of them in this episode, though I do like the move to try and fly from Paris to Zurich. Them taking the train south would have put them in the worst possible position if they made the catch and became the runners.
The plan to go to Prunay and then zoom on through while the seekers are frozen was a fantastic plan, that fell apart through really no fault of their own. Their connecting train left as soon as they arrived in Reims, and the bus accident left them stranded for 45 minutes. From the podcast, the accident was them getting a scrape from another bus that had also pulled over. It seemed to be company protocol to wait for a technician to come out, inspect it, and sign a couple of forms before they could get moving again.
I love the accidentally perfect framing of the shot where Sam and Toby do the throwing challenge, it was wide enough to catch Adam and Michelle sneaking up on them.
Adam and Michelle had an interesting starting position. Drawing the pinpointing challenge when they pretty much knew where both chasers were was incredible luck, and the fact that it allowed them to get moving immediately was also pretty cool.
Adam getting the coin flip challenge for a second time was incredible. Nearly 500 individual flips this time, which is just so many.
This season has been pretty interesting. It feels like strategies from the previous Tag seasons aren't working as well, so they're having to try different things. It's been a great refreshing of the format, which I appreciate.
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Comment on Who’s playing Blood on the Clocktower? in ~games.tabletop
secret_online Link ParentI'd also be interested in playing with some Tildepeople, scheduling permitting (yay for the earth being a sphere!). Playing online is definitely a bit different to in-person. I do find solving...I'd also be interested in playing with some Tildepeople, scheduling permitting (yay for the earth being a sphere!).
Playing online is definitely a bit different to in-person. I do find solving tends to be a little more mechanical than social. The official app/website has text and video chat, a grimoire-like setup that you can fill in, and you can make little notes next to people so there's lots of opportunity to track as much or as little information as you like. I think the game design itself still holds up pretty well, and there's still lots of room for social plays.
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Comment on What game is your personal "Silksong"? in ~games
secret_online LinkBaldur's Gate 3. I was (and am) a big fan of Larian's previous game, Divinity: Original Sin 2 (if anyone wants to play co-op and can deal with timezones, reach out. I've run out of IRL friends...Baldur's Gate 3.
I was (and am) a big fan of Larian's previous game, Divinity: Original Sin 2 (if anyone wants to play co-op and can deal with timezones, reach out. I've run out of IRL friends interested enough in a playthrough) so when I heard that they were going to be making BG3 I was very excited for it.
I played early access when it first entered, did a couple of playthroughs and then stopped, waiting for the final release. Since then, I've done one full co-op playthrough, one more ongoing, an incredibly dishonourable honour mode playthrough, and an embracing the dark urge playthrough (that I needed to decompress after).
BG3 is not a perfect game. It has a steep learning curve; everyone I've talked to who hasn't played D&D 5th Edition struggled with the concepts, and people who haven't played a Larian game struggled with the inventory/hotbar management. The lower city is physically large enough to burn people out right near the end (though now I know the place well, it no longer feels as large to me. It's just that the actually important things are further apart). The story itself is running on empty at the very end and just makes it across the finish line. But in spite of all its flaws, it has been one of the most enjoyable experiences I've had. I love the world, I love the soundtrack, and now I look forward to whatever Larian does next.
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Comment on Who’s playing Blood on the Clocktower? in ~games.tabletop
secret_online LinkAnother person who's become addicted over the past year. Clocktower has become my default background YouTube to put on while making dinner and other such mundane activities. Unfortunately...Another person who's become addicted over the past year. Clocktower has become my default background YouTube to put on while making dinner and other such mundane activities. Unfortunately timezones mean that I don't get to catch most of the streams, but I'm also not a huge stream watching person so that doesn't matter.
I have a local group that meets occasionally, but unfortunately the venue they've been using is shutting down (last game this Friday). Quite often there'll be new players, but when there's not we've had some rather silly games. One of my favourites was a game of "Nobody Fucking Move" (one of the best teensies out there) that I storytold where the players drew their tokens, but didn't look at them. Everyone had to figure out which character they were. The Duchess did double duty of being the only real information the town had, as well as a mechanism for the evil team to figure out their own alignments and find each other.
I've recently found someone else at work who owns a grimoire, so the two of us are now running fortnightly games after work in the office. It's most players' first or second times playing, so it's been TB and they're starting to get the game. Still very execution shy (and I don't really want to introduce the Vortox just yet), but there's been some decent world building. The players all seem to get the premise and are happily talking to each other afterwards, which I count as a success.
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Comment on The video-game industry has a problem: there are too many games in ~games
secret_online Link ParentMy Steam wishlist has been slowly growing over the past 4 years, whereas it was kept under 10 before then. I still go through and trim it every once in a while, but it's currently at 41. There are...My Steam wishlist has been slowly growing over the past 4 years, whereas it was kept under 10 before then. I still go through and trim it every once in a while, but it's currently at 41.
There are still games that are an instant buy for me (Hades 2 going 1.0 this week was one of those, it's so worth it if Hades 1 was your thing), but more and more of those are games that have already released. Of those 41 games on my wishlist, 30 are already out, with 8 of those on sale. Games that I want are on sale and I'm not buying them because I have other games to be playing. Of the 11 that haven't released yet, only 3 of them are going to be "instant buy"s upon release with the rest joining that already growing list.
I'm with you on this one, there are amazing games that I'm playing. Experiences that are truly artful, mindless fun, and social experiences among them. I've come to terms with the fact that I won't get to everything on my wishlist. If I were to do another wishlist trim right now there would be 8 games removed from it. That's the price I pay for taking time to enjoy the games I've chosen to enjoy. I'd rather be doing this than rushing to complete everything I'm interested in at the time it comes out and before the next one comes out.
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Comment on Jet Lag Season 15 | Official trailer in ~hobbies
secret_online Link ParentI'm a bit late to posting this, I wasn't available at the usual time myself and my jet lag buddy usually watch. Not that it really matters. It's just a comment on Tildes. Episode 1 spoilers I love...I'm a bit late to posting this, I wasn't available at the usual time myself and my jet lag buddy usually watch. Not that it really matters. It's just a comment on Tildes.
Episode 1 spoilers
I love how having two teams of chasers competing changes the game. I don't think it would work for a non-guest season, but it makes for fun viewing here.
I think it shows the strength of the show how tense this was with so little action. The runners got to a place, stayed there for a long time (for challenges and curse reasons), then are now moving. But in that time, we've seen the start of some chaser strategy and unreliable trains.
Just on the unreliable trains, on the podcast (which was recorded with a live audience) they mention that there was some rearranging of events at Reims. There were two separate train delays, which is why the talk about a half hour delay then later say the train left an hour late. They didn't feel it was a good watching experience seeing them go in and out and in and out of the station, so they condensed it together.
While they were at Reims, Michelle was calling a local airport to see if they could charter a plane. It never happened, but if they were able to then the group would have to have a meeting to see if chartering a plane was allowed. There was no rule against it, but it wasn't really in the spirit of things. She did end up talking to someone at the airfield, using Google Translate, who wondered why she would want to take a plane to Laon when she could just take the train instead. She didn't know how to explain the situation they were in.
Toby's impressions of the other players were great. I feel Ben got a bit hard done by, but I loved Adam's impression. On the podcast, he said he loved editing that part. He mimed part of it on stage, but since a podcast is an audio only format I can't tell you which part that was.
One of the very first things said on the podcast (beyond the "we're so back") was explaining why Sam and Toby didn't veto the curse. The main reason was the doubled veto period which would have set them back a lot, and that they were planning to use this run to farm coins rather than get all the way to Jersey. As they're the first team, it's likely they'll have another chance at it, though not as guaranteed as previous tag seasons.
Both my watching buddy and I laughed out loud towards the end when Sam and Toby executed their plans to watch the station from the hill. The map slowly zooming out to reveal Ben and Brian being an hour behind was just golden. We did end up pausing for several minutes as we looked at the cathedral at Laon on Maps and Wikipedia. From what was shown in the show it looks like a magnificent building. I do wish it completed one year earlier so that it was the year 1234, but given the built the whole thing in only 85 years in the 13th century I can excuse them. Project management on that time scale is impressive in itself.
Great start to the season, I'm hoping I can get my watch buddy organised earlier so I can catch up, listen to the podcast, and prepare next week's comment.
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Comment on Musings on "Developer Mode" in ~comp
secret_online LinkIt has already been pointed out that the developer tools are exactly that: tools for developers. Your post seems to be approaching this from the perspective of haves and have-nots, but I (as a...It has already been pointed out that the developer tools are exactly that: tools for developers. Your post seems to be approaching this from the perspective of haves and have-nots, but I (as a developer, making me one of the "haves" in that model) don't see it that way.
Let's talk about the Android developer options. They're a bunch of very technical, device behaviour changing options, with a healthy dose of added security risks in there. These aren't "turn on Bluetooth" options, they're "how exactly do two Bluetooth devices negotiate a connection" options. Even I, a developer, don't need these for everyday device use. These are options that are used to test specific device configurations, a thing that a regular phone user does not need to do.
You mentioned browsers and the Discord desktop application (the latter is just a browser and the code for a web application tied up in a nice bow). The developer tools for the web exist because developers built the tools they needed to build websites (and later web applications), and now they're an expected part of the ecosystem and developers will stop testing against a browser that removes them. Opening up the panel to delete ads is not the purpose of these tools, the purpose of the Elements panel of the browser dev tools is to be a full editor for the content of a page. You can add, remove, modify, move, or copy any parts of the page because those are the tools that are useful. You can edit the looks of the page. You can pause the execution of JavaScript at any point to see what's happening. You can take a snapshot of the memory used by the browser to inspect it for memory leaks. You can record everything the browser is doing, from network requests, function calls, rendering timings, and more, because this information is useful when trying to build performant applications. The amazing part is that the browser dev tools are themselves built on web technologies, so there are browser extensions that add new functionality for specific use-cases (like particular libraries or frameworks).
It would be so easy for these tools to not exist or be locked behind some paywall. There could be a monetary divide between those who have the tools and those who don't. But there isn't, and we should be celebrating that. Professional tools, free and open, bundled with the software, only two clicks away. This is the easiest it's ever been. The gap between developers and non-developers is as close as it can possibly be. You might see it as a group of people being given extra power, but here you are given free reign with this same power. The opportunity to learn is being presented to you directly. The ladder has not been pulled up, in fact it's explicitly been put down, weighted, and reinforced. If you want to make this about class warfare, then I'm afraid you've got the wrong people.
Oh and as for that ChatGPT developer mode, that's just the LLM being instructed to output in a particular format. The model has some combination of dimensions that when given particular values corresponds to "things that look like what a developer would say" and it outputs text that looks like that. It doesn't have to be correct; LLMs don't know what correctness is, just what is statistically likely to come after what has come before. I wouldn't put too much stock into LLM jailbreaks or weird output formats as some indicator of hidden functionality.
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Comment on What are your favorite and least favorite airports? in ~transport
secret_online LinkThe best I've been through is definitely Changi in Singapore. It's been well over a decade since I've been through, but I liked it for all the reasons @DrStone mentioned. My least favourite is...The best I've been through is definitely Changi in Singapore. It's been well over a decade since I've been through, but I liked it for all the reasons @DrStone mentioned.
My least favourite is more a personal vendetta than it being a bad airport, but I will always remember Dubai International Airport (DXB) for one time I had to go through.
This was on my first real solo overseas trip and I had a connecting flight through DXB after a 14 hour flight (my tiredness definitely contributed to this experience). The flight arrived on time, but then we had to wait for around 15 minutes, then walk for 5 minutes in the opposite direction from where I my connection was to reach a tiny security checkpoint that wasn't even ready for us to even enter the main area. Once I was through, I then had a 20 minute walk to get from one end to the other. And my outbound flight was due to start boarding in... 20 minutes.
You'd think that it would be easy to get from one end of a long and straight building to the other, but being an airport (in Dubai as well) it's designed to make you spend money. Brightly-lit shops in windy paths designed to slow you down and make you buy stuff you don't need. I was tired, a little annoyed from the security checkpoint, and determined to walk to the other end to reach my flight. Which I did, boarding started pretty much when I got to the gate. I made my flight, no disasters happened, but I dislike that airport for being the worst straight line I've ever had to walk.
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Comment on What is the most insane, tedious, difficult, and/or noteworthy gaming achievement you have completed or given up on? in ~games
secret_online Link ParentOn interesting usage of achievements, the recent cosy game Wanderstop has achievements that you're likely to unlock during regular play, but they don't unlock immediately. Instead, they'll unlock...On interesting usage of achievements, the recent cosy game Wanderstop has achievements that you're likely to unlock during regular play, but they don't unlock immediately. Instead, they'll unlock like 20 minutes after you fulfil their requirements. For a game about burnout and trying to slow down after pushing past your limits, it's an interesting way to prevent players from rushing to do certain actions because the dopamine hit doesn't arrive.
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Comment on What is the most insane, tedious, difficult, and/or noteworthy gaming achievement you have completed or given up on? in ~games
secret_online Link ParentI love reading the books in games. People are always shocked when I say I have favourite books in Skyrim (A Hypothetical Treachery, The Locked Room, and A Game at Dinner. I... definitely have a...I love reading the books in games. People are always shocked when I say I have favourite books in Skyrim (A Hypothetical Treachery, The Locked Room, and A Game at Dinner. I... definitely have a type), but it's just part of the experience for me.
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Comment on What is the most insane, tedious, difficult, and/or noteworthy gaming achievement you have completed or given up on? in ~games
secret_online Link ParentTunic spoilers I know it's a bit late for this now, but in the accessibility options there's an option that brings up a popup where you can input Holy Cross patterns without worrying about timing....Tunic spoilers
- The Golden Path : I figured it out and wrote it down correctly, but ADHD prevents execution. Ask my kid to input it for me.
I know it's a bit late for this now, but in the accessibility options there's an option that brings up a popup where you can input Holy Cross patterns without worrying about timing. It even has a delete button in case you make a mistake.
I also didn't know about this until after I had followed the Golden Path.
There's a couple of nice things in there too. I've had people complain about the wind chimes fairy, and when I mentioned the accessibility options that helps with it they instantly understood what it was asking them to do.
Episode 6 spoilers
Congrats Ben and Brian on getting the first ever certificate of merit on the show! And to Adam for winning twice in one season.
This is the hardest anyone has been DeutscheBahned in the history of Jet Lag, it's almost sad. In both Nuremberg and Kassel the boys were planning on taking a train that would allow the chasers to catch them, but both times the chasers have been delayed. the first being an actual accident where the train hit a tree, but the second where they're just stuck for two hours not far outside town is just bad luck.
That said, there's still a fair amount of drama for the lack of action in the latter half of the game. Well edited.
I love that we have two Snack Zone segments where both teams eat the same train biscuit.
My favourite part of this week's podcast was when they talked about getting on that final small train. The conductor was an old man who was confused as to why the three boys were getting on this tiny local commuter train, and absolutely forbade them from filming. He later brought them up to the front of the train to show the controls and complaining about how the train was old and bad. He also wanted to talk about the Detroit Lions because he loved the Detroit Lions. Adam asked if he'd been to Detroit. Nope, but he loves the Lions. Brian asked if he liked football (soccer), to which he said no and called the player cowards. Still no filming.
The chasers decided to call the game a little early, though it was pretty much over anyway, so that they could get their closing shot in Frankfurt while it was still daylight. The camera falling over just before they say the name of the show was just pure comedy.
I think this was a great season of the game. Having two teams changed the format enough to keep it fresh, and I'd love to see another game in this format later on.