slade's recent activity
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Comment on Overworked AI agents turn "marxist" in ~tech
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Comment on Introducing Googlebook, designed for Gemini Intelligence in ~tech
slade Link ParentThey also don't seem to want to innovate. Three of their two headlines here don't hold much water: Designed for Gemini intelligence Optimized for the Android ecosystem Those both seem like table...They also don't seem to want to innovate. Three of their two headlines here don't hold much water:
- Designed for Gemini intelligence
- Optimized for the Android ecosystem
Those both seem like table stakes for any new Google product. They also seem to be as good for Google as they are for the consumer. The third headline alludes to premium hardware and design, one of which is interesting to me, but without any details I can't get excited about it.
Granted this was written as a hype piece, and not for people like me.
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Comment on What’s something that didn’t work for you? in ~talk
slade (edited )LinkAlcohol. This isn't a very interesting story but fresh in mind since I was just at a social event last night. I grew up in a drinking family. Markers of alcoholism but I'm not close enough with my...Alcohol. This isn't a very interesting story but fresh in mind since I was just at a social event last night.
I grew up in a drinking family. Markers of alcoholism but I'm not close enough with my brothers, who drink a lot, to say if they're alcoholics. I had lots of nudging, encouragement, and permission to drink from a youngish age and everyone in my family does. Drinking to excess was common when my brothers and I were all younger.
I feel like I dodged a bullet in never becoming a big drinker. I'm prone to addictive behaviors and escapism, and I was motived as a teen to be like my friends and brothers, so I wanted to like alcohol. My parents would buy it for me, so access wasn't a problem. They would tell me that I hadn't tried the right beer yet, so I'd go try more. I'd plug my nose and down a few until the taste stopped bothering me. I'd vomit almost every time I drank. I said and did things that were humiliating for me, hurtful to others, and some of those things I don't remember at all.
I went through a handful of years where I'd occasionally go to a party and get really drunk (never pleasantly buzzed, always drunk), but once those friendships faded, so did the behavior. That's around when I realized I was striving to accomplish something I didn't want and that made me feel bad.
I've never put this all back to back like this. I'm bitter towards my parents for that part of how I was raised. They used to think the stories I told about drunk misadventures were funny. My first time living away from home, I recall getting so drunk in an unfamiliar city that I wandered around the city, passed out in a church lawn, and was shoved into a taxi by a random passerby, and sent home.
Nobody in my family saw this as a need for guidance or help. They just laughed along with me, and brought it up a few more times as a coming of age story. Both of my brothers have had DUIs. I'm glad alcohol didn't work for me.
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Comment on From neat lawns to wild havens: how No Mow May is transforming England’s gardens in ~enviro
slade Link ParentI've never thought about it directly before, but I've noticed it and am happy it has a name. I grew up in the country, and recently returned to a home there. We're surrounded by plants that I've...I've never thought about it directly before, but I've noticed it and am happy it has a name. I grew up in the country, and recently returned to a home there. We're surrounded by plants that I've seen all my life but never noticed enough to name. I'm taking the time to learn their names now and in the process learn so many fascinating things that I'm ashamed to have waited so long.
I was buying a seed spreader the other day and the cashier asked my son if we were going to plant some grass. We told her grass/clover, at which point she assured us (assured us) we didn't want to do that, because if we plant clover then we're going to get flowers and bees. It was wild how opposed our positions were, and I couldn't really wrap my head around why that would be a bad thing. I told her that's part of what we liked about it.
I also remember the aha moment when I was much younger and asked what a "weed" was. Not what the word meant colloquially, but what precise definition classified a plant as a weed or not. When I learned that it doesn't have any kind of empirical definition, and that the colloquial definition has become "weeds are things killed by the extremely lucrative weed killing industry", I realized there is no such thing as a weed. I grew up in fields of grass, clover, violets, golden dandelions, Queen Anne's lace, and any definition of weed that includes those things doesn't work for me.
It unfortunately makes a lot of sense that people raised in environments that are almost universally maintained to be pure grass lawns will be conditioned to see anything else as blemished and in need of maintenance.
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Comment on Anyone else a bit unnerved by the number of visible satellites? in ~space
slade Link ParentI think their concern is the marked pivot from publicly funded exploration to privately funded exploration, which has already been demonstrated to have sent non scientists into lower Earth orbit...I think their concern is the marked pivot from publicly funded exploration to privately funded exploration, which has already been demonstrated to have sent non scientists into lower Earth orbit for funsies and bragging rights. While not a forgone conclusion, it seems like a very realistic one.
Maybe the future of science in space is paid for by luxury rentals in space first.
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Comment on David Koepp to write a Westworld film for Warner Bros in ~movies
slade Link ParentSo many people I speak to have the same experience. I lost interest halfway through three and never had the energy to finish it. That would've been inconceivable in season 1. I applaud them for...So many people I speak to have the same experience. I lost interest halfway through three and never had the energy to finish it. That would've been inconceivable in season 1. I applaud them for keeping the show moving into be territory, but the third season felt muddied to me, and the new setting wasn't as interesting as the old one.
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Comment on ‘It’s shameful’: New York’s elite lash out at Zohran Mamdani’s second-home tax in ~finance
slade Link ParentIt reads like they are existentially terrified of having their luxuries disrupted, without even the appearance of empathy for people who are existentially terrified of (or facing) their basic...It reads like they are existentially terrified of having their luxuries disrupted, without even the appearance of empathy for people who are existentially terrified of (or facing) their basic survival being disrupted. It's shameful.
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Comment on Tom Cruise blames Christopher McQuarrie for ‘Mission: Impossible’ misfire, keeps him off ‘Top Gun 3’ in ~movies
slade LinkIt took me to the final paragraph to understand that the title isn't referring to a literal misfire.It took me to the final paragraph to understand that the title isn't referring to a literal misfire.
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Comment on Lost/losing the drive for friendship in ~health.mental
slade Link ParentI'll say that some activities tend to get people talking more than others. Randomly, I've found that climbing gyms tend to be welcoming. Volunteering is another one as long as it's not...I'll say that some activities tend to get people talking more than others. Randomly, I've found that climbing gyms tend to be welcoming. Volunteering is another one as long as it's not volunteering to do something solo. If you're into mentoring/coaching, you'll meet a lot of people that way and it can be pretty rewarding.
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Comment on This photo has no pigment: how structural color works in ~science
slade LinkI remember being blown away when I learned that birds don't have blue feathers. The explanation I read was that it's the structure of the father that makes it appear blue, and that you could...I remember being blown away when I learned that birds don't have blue feathers. The explanation I read was that it's the structure of the father that makes it appear blue, and that you could observe it by looking at a blue feather through backlight. I tried it on a bluejay feather and sure enough, against backlight it became drab brown.
Sidenote, I'd love to be corrected if that statement about blue birds isn't accurate. I've requested it a few times but don't know if it's actually true.
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Comment on An insight into looksmaxxxing/blackpill "ideology" in ~life
slade Link ParentI wonder what the stats are on app-initiated relationships versus traditional. I might dig into this later out of curiosity.I wonder what the stats are on app-initiated relationships versus traditional. I might dig into this later out of curiosity.
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Comment on An insight into looksmaxxxing/blackpill "ideology" in ~life
slade (edited )Link ParentAs a short man, i understand that women on dating apps sometimes have a lot of suitors and need a way to quickly filter that list down. I understand that the height filter will be the first one a...As a short man, i understand that women on dating apps sometimes have a lot of suitors and need a way to quickly filter that list down. I understand that the height filter will be the first one a lot of them go for. There were also a significant amount of height requirements in profiles, which can really erode your view of how others in general see you.
Edit: The above is very me-centric, but I see similar restrictions on race or body type. Height is the lense through which I'm most affected, but I can easily see these things applying for any number of filterable attributes.
I definitely spent some time internalizing that: I'm indesirable because I'm short. I spent time unspecifically angry about it. It's hard not to when you're young and lonely.
Over time I found wisdom in the realization that dating apps provide an imbalanced market of people, and simply aren't "fair" (nor is that their goal). For people who are highly attractive on paper, dating apps are a really good way to be choosy. The less attractive you are on paper, the more the app will make it hard for you.
My personal conclusion is that dating apps aren't for everyone, and some people in particular will have a very hard time. Unfortunately, their pretty ubiquitous, and it's hard to imagine them not being a major influence in this *pill problem. As my kids grow up, I hope they will eschew dating apps. If they use them, I hope they will have thick skin and understand that dating apps are not representative of real life; it's a viable but totally different way of finding people to date than meeting people through clubs and so on.
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Comment on 'Avatar Aang' movie footage seems to have leaked months ahead of Paramount+ premiere in ~movies
slade LinkThat Twitter user could've just... Not leaked it.That Twitter user could've just... Not leaked it.
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Comment on Humans are losing the fight against flying fish in ~enviro
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Comment on Half-baked idea for metered inline image allowances in ~tildes
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Comment on Amazon killing purchasing, borrowing and downloading books for older Kindles in ~tech
slade Link ParentI agree with you, but I doubt that has anything to do with their reasoning. They don't have a reason to support old devices other than ethics (lol) or it makes them money. I'm guessing they did...I agree with you, but I doubt that has anything to do with their reasoning. They don't have a reason to support old devices other than ethics (lol) or it makes them money. I'm guessing they did the math on how often users of older devices purchased new stuff and decided it wasn't worth supporting it for them.
I'm fairness, there has to be a point at which there aren't enough users of older devices to bother supporting them. Having said that, I won't give Amazon the benefit of the doubt. They could support it at a loss or if good will, but i suspect they are cutting it much earlier than the cost/benefit analysis requires. Especially if "making people happy" is factored into your benefits.
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Comment on Mamma mia! ‘Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ karts $372M+ in global debut, best for Hollywood pic YTD; ‘Project Hail Mary’ on path to half billion in ~movies
slade LinkI understand that the movie wasn't made for me, and I'm just a stick in the mud. But the preview only made me sad that I couldn't show a more chill Mario movie to my kids. The entire vibe of the...I understand that the movie wasn't made for me, and I'm just a stick in the mud. But the preview only made me sad that I couldn't show a more chill Mario movie to my kids.
The entire vibe of the previous was the same as a Marvel movie. The music, the dramatic action sequences ending with panting and ragged heroes and giant explosions, it just doesn't fit with any Mario game I've played. Admittedly I'm a few years out of the loop, but did play the first two Mario Galaxy games.
I guess this is controversial, but i don't think every movie needs to have emotional rollercoasters baked into the plot. It can just be fun, which is always how I felt the Mario games were.
This is all my reaction to a preview, though. My kids will want to see it, so I will, and maybe it'll be a lot better than I expect. Maybe Chris Pratt will suddenly sound like Mario after long enough.
Off to yell at more clouds...
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Comment on Tildes in JavaScript-free browsers in ~tildes
slade Link ParentI'm only speculating, but MDN states that the summary can contain flow content (generically), and details is flow content. I scanned for any exceptions about nesting but didn't see anything. Based...I'm only speculating, but MDN states that the summary can contain flow content (generically), and
detailsis flow content. I scanned for any exceptions about nesting but didn't see anything. Based on this, I'd be very surprised if accessibility tooling can't handle it.It would be interesting to test and find out, though.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
slade LinkPerdido Street Station, after just finishing Embassytown and seating it as my latest favorite. I was going to read Generation Ship as part of a casual book club with my dad, but my mom spoiled the...Perdido Street Station, after just finishing Embassytown and seating it as my latest favorite. I was going to read Generation Ship as part of a casual book club with my dad, but my mom spoiled the ending to me after we'd been discussing for a bit that I'd only just started it. I wasn't loving the prose, so having the ending spoiled killed my ambition to read it. I might come back later.
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Comment on Getting permission from your significant other in ~life
slade LinkI think it's largely option 3, at least as I see it anecdotally. Once you're in a family unit, you generally have to check with the family (or the family calendar) before booking your time. IMO...I think it's largely option 3, at least as I see it anecdotally. Once you're in a family unit, you generally have to check with the family (or the family calendar) before booking your time.
IMO it's not a gendered or boss/subordinate thing. It's just how you respect each other. I always assume people who frame it that way are joking.
Going deeper, I can say I've never heard the phrase "check with the boss"used by a woman or about a man; only by men about women. I think a lot of times it's because they rely on their partners to manage their schedule, putting their partner in the position to say yes or no.
I strongly suspect that any kind of "you will be punished if wrong" rhetoric will simply push the magic 8 ball towards language that makes sense in response to that. That kind of phrase is usually said by a superior to a subordinate, and I have a feeling it's rarely said to the kind of subordinate who is in a position to say "ok? Get fucked", as opposed to one who feels forced to comply.
So as with all things LLM, I wonder if the line of conversation simply pushes the LLM toward acting like someone who is afraid of losing its job. Which I guess isn't too far from the end result, but I still think there's a difference between "the llm experiencing stress" and "the llm is performing like someone who seems to be experiencing stress". The former implies to be a similar complexity of psyche that humans struggle with, whereas the latter seems like it could be fixed with "don't act like people experiencing stress; you are a cool cucumber".