sparkle's recent activity

  1. Comment on Graduated again, not sitting in a field this time, AMA in ~talk

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Well, this fish-bulb believes in you!

    Well, this fish-bulb believes in you!

    1 vote

  2. Comment on Graduated again, not sitting in a field this time, AMA in ~talk

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Well, clearly not a short temper. Are you sure you're really a kwyjibo (¬_ ´¬ )

    Well, clearly not a short temper. Are you sure you're really a kwyjibo (¬_ ´¬ )

    1 vote

  3. Comment on Graduated again, not sitting in a field this time, AMA in ~talk

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Well that makes sense. Fal 'Ngeestra in the Culture series is precognizant (of a sort) which would fall into the meaning of fortune, to a certain extent. I'm impressed with the linguistic skills...

    Well that makes sense. Fal 'Ngeestra in the Culture series is precognizant (of a sort) which would fall into the meaning of fortune, to a certain extent.

    I'm impressed with the linguistic skills of a big, dumb, balding, North American ape ;)

    2 votes

  4. Comment on Caught the cycling bug. Anyone else? in ~hobbies

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    I've always been curious about the logistics behind international cycling. Do you pay extra to fly your bike? Or rent/buy one there? Any contingency plan for if it gets lost/stolen besides give up...

    I've always been curious about the logistics behind international cycling. Do you pay extra to fly your bike? Or rent/buy one there? Any contingency plan for if it gets lost/stolen besides give up and come home? Does immigration give you a hard time due to the uncertainty of the travel? Do you pack/purchase food to cook like dehydrated camping meals or just stop in towns for meals?

    I've always been drawn to the allure and freedom of cycling but never had the time or money to really look into it deeply. Of course now I have money but not time... Lol

    1 vote

  5. Comment on Yum Brands sells Pizza Hut to private equity firm LongRange Capital and Yum China for $2.7 billion in ~food

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Unfortunately vestigial kitchen removal (kitchenectomy) is an elective surgery and insurance won't cover it, so Tim is just saving his money or hoping for a car accident that will make it a...

    Unfortunately vestigial kitchen removal (kitchenectomy) is an elective surgery and insurance won't cover it, so Tim is just saving his money or hoping for a car accident that will make it a necessary surgery.

    6 votes

  6. Comment on When is a bird a ‘birb’? An extremely important guide. in ~enviro

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Hah ok I'll concede that mention that I missed. However, the image in rule 2 is clearly a borb! It's simple really - as a birb approaches sphere status, it simultaneously approaches borb totality....

    Hah ok I'll concede that mention that I missed. However, the image in rule 2 is clearly a borb! It's simple really - as a birb approaches sphere status, it simultaneously approaches borb totality.

    However, to the best of my knowledge, no borb has reached totality. The closest is in fact, the oft overlooked aquatic borb - the pufferfish. Although this is more appropriately known as a florb or a blorb.

    4 votes

  7. Comment on When is a bird a ‘birb’? An extremely important guide. in ~enviro

    sparkle
    Link
    Audobon should have consulted me on Rule 2. A round birb is properly known as a "borb"! You would think that a world renowned publication could get that right.

    Audobon should have consulted me on Rule 2. A round birb is properly known as a "borb"!

    You would think that a world renowned publication could get that right.

    14 votes

  8. Comment on Favorite recipes you've come up with in ~food

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    That's fair - I guess in my mind I had like fried tortillas like tostadas as a base instead of just pan cooked like wheat tortillas. I feel you on the lack of good Mexican grocery staples - I grew...

    That's fair - I guess in my mind I had like fried tortillas like tostadas as a base instead of just pan cooked like wheat tortillas.

    I feel you on the lack of good Mexican grocery staples - I grew up with abundant access to everything Mexican and now that I'm far up north, there's practically nothing :'(

    At least I can grow my own peppers!

  9. Comment on Arch User Repository compromised, 1500+ packages affected in ~tech

    sparkle
    Link
    I wonder if the compromise involved taking over orphaned packages? A lot of the compromised packages look old - there's a lot of python2 packages for instance. And I know for a fact that...

    I wonder if the compromise involved taking over orphaned packages? A lot of the compromised packages look old - there's a lot of python2 packages for instance. And I know for a fact that neovim-nvim-treesitter was recently abandoned due to a ahem slight feud.

    7 votes

  10. Comment on Access to Fable and Mythos 5 cut off after US government order in ~tech

    sparkle
    Link
    On the plus side, Anthropic can now use the tagline "so good the US government shut it down" /noise

    On the plus side, Anthropic can now use the tagline "so good the US government shut it down" /noise

    13 votes

  11. Comment on Favorite recipes you've come up with in ~food

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Could you use corn tortillas as a wheat and egg free mini-pizza base as well? I do a similar dish to yours but with wheat tortillas as a base for a quick and easy dinner and they're fantastic.

    Could you use corn tortillas as a wheat and egg free mini-pizza base as well? I do a similar dish to yours but with wheat tortillas as a base for a quick and easy dinner and they're fantastic.

  12. Comment on Are there any games that had their development abandoned that you followed where you wish that continued/completed development? in ~games

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Yeah I saw a video detailing the whole chronicle awhile ago and it reminded me that it existed. There's probably a court order or legal loophole that says if he completely abandons it, then he's...

    Yeah I saw a video detailing the whole chronicle awhile ago and it reminded me that it existed. There's probably a court order or legal loophole that says if he completely abandons it, then he's in trouble which is why he fired everybody and became the sole dev. But yeah, I remember telling myself when they released those absolute garbage "state of play" videos that it probably wasn't gonna happen.

  13. Comment on Queer joy - Share what makes you happy, proud or loved in ~lgbt

    sparkle
    Link
    I don't really play Final Fantasy XIV anymore - but shout-out to all my fellow pans on there (at least on Aether and I imagine Crystal too, if not others!) and the many pride events and parades...

    I don't really play Final Fantasy XIV anymore - but shout-out to all my fellow pans on there (at least on Aether and I imagine Crystal too, if not others!) and the many pride events and parades we've created marching through Mor Dhona, Thanalan, La Noscea, etc.

    A lot of you Adventurers have helped me feel comfortable with who I am and I thank you for that. It's the little things and the inclusion and acceptance that really set it home and make me proud 🥲

    10 votes

  14. Comment on Are there any games that had their development abandoned that you followed where you wish that continued/completed development? in ~games

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Speaking of failed Kickstarter games - mine is Chronicles of Elyria. Backed and unfortunately was dumb enough to invest more money post-Kickstarter into a product that ultimately wound up being...

    Speaking of failed Kickstarter games - mine is Chronicles of Elyria. Backed and unfortunately was dumb enough to invest more money post-Kickstarter into a product that ultimately wound up being absolute vapourware.

    Jeromy (Caspian), if for some reason you got a Tildes invite and read this, please respond - you're either a piece of shit con artist or a narcissistic dev who bit off more than he could chew and can't admit you're at fault.

    Your tale with Birth of Civilizations sounds very very similar to mine - cool concept but little/nothing to show. I probably dodged that bullet by virtue of just tuning out all Kickstarter game announcements.

    5 votes

  15. Comment on Summer blanket recommendations? in ~life.style

    sparkle
    Link
    My grandma crocheted me a summer blanket a long time ago and it's fantastic - it's a thick yarn but has a very holey pattern - most of them are big enough to fit toes and fingers through but...

    My grandma crocheted me a summer blanket a long time ago and it's fantastic - it's a thick yarn but has a very holey pattern - most of them are big enough to fit toes and fingers through but nothing else (without stretching). It has a nice weight to it (I need something on top of me otherwise I can't sleep) and it's both cooling and warming thanks to all the little openings. I don't sleep under it at night anymore but I do nap pretty hard with it in the summers.

    I have no idea what it's called though - maybe a patterned afghan or a lace throw?

    4 votes

  16. Comment on Looking for headphone recommendations in ~music

    sparkle
    Link
    My Sony WH-H900N would fit the bill perfectly, with the exception of 2.4GHz connectivity. They're comfortable over the ear with good sized ear cups, on-ear controls, Bluetooth, wired connection...

    My Sony WH-H900N would fit the bill perfectly, with the exception of 2.4GHz connectivity. They're comfortable over the ear with good sized ear cups, on-ear controls, Bluetooth, wired connection (thin, cat attractive cable included so you would need to add your own cat proof one - I nylon braid wrapped mine), the microphone is so bad it might as well not even exist, decent ANC despite that, and when I got them... 8 years ago? they were around 200USD.

    Not sure if they're still around or what the equivalent model is, but it's possibly worth a look.

    Although the Sennheiser mentioned elsewhere is also very very attractive - I might even look into a pair for myself...

    2 votes

  17. Comment on I think Anthropic and OpenAI have found product-market fit in ~tech

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    My company has already started imposing token limits and sending out memos to reduce usage. And because our private equity enshittifier overlords said we didn't make enough money for them last...

    My company has already started imposing token limits and sending out memos to reduce usage. And because our private equity enshittifier overlords said we didn't make enough money for them last year, nobody got raises and at this rate I highly doubt we're getting raises next year either - which will probably mean the collapse of the company. I'm already looking for the way out, just a matter of time now...

    We've probably had a 15% turnover from the no raises stance already. There's been no replacements - they went all in on "AI will make up the differences". Nobody is happy except the one guy who's been harping about how amazing AI has been.

    2 votes

  18. Comment on Hot or Not: Temperature guessing game in ~creative

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    That's a fair perspective I hadn't considered before, thank you!

    That's a fair perspective I hadn't considered before, thank you!

    1 vote

  19. Comment on Hot or Not: Temperature guessing game in ~creative

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    Not intending this to be a hrr-drr 'Murican's freedom units comment, but does it matter in this case? The goal of the game is comparison and Fahrenheit, Celsius, Kelvin, or Rankine scales are all...

    Can you add a Fahrenheit option?

    Not intending this to be a hrr-drr 'Murican's freedom units comment, but does it matter in this case? The goal of the game is comparison and Fahrenheit, Celsius, Kelvin, or Rankine scales are all the same where higher numbers = hotter.

    Though I suppose there could be an argument for there not being decimals in the Celsius readings, leading to "skipped" Fahrenheit degrees, e.g., 20C is 68F while 21C is 70F. But if the source information is coming in Celsius anyway and decimals aren't present to begin with, not sure that matters much anyway.

    2 votes

  20. Comment on 'The Boys' has ended. What are your thoughts? in ~tv

    sparkle
    Link Parent
    This was my sentiment as well. I think the last episode I watched was the one at the... pseudo-conservative convention? I felt rather ill at ease after that episode, not because of the violence or...

    I also think satire generally does the opposite of what it's setting out to do, by giving it attention that isn't outright negative (since it's at best making light of the situation by turning it humorous, and at worst giving something for supporters to be turned on by)

    This was my sentiment as well. I think the last episode I watched was the one at the... pseudo-conservative convention? I felt rather ill at ease after that episode, not because of the violence or anything but just the treatment of the situations. It came across as more "haha we're laughing at you" which just makes the left double down on "they're all idiots" and the right double down on "they hate us because we're right" and who does that benefit more really?

    There were lots of other issues too but the writers nearly agreeing with the far right by legitimizing their thoughts with humour just made me feel really uncomfortable.

    I didn't really watch it beyond that - I just lost complete interest in the show and no desire to finish it either.

    2 votes