stu2b50's recent activity
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Comment on US Congress passes Donald Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' cutting taxes and spending in ~society
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Comment on US Congress passes Donald Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' cutting taxes and spending in ~society
stu2b50 Link ParentWhat about that is feudalistic? Feudalism has a definition, it doesn’t just mean “backwards”. Feudalism was a specific social framework fundamentally orienting around the inability for any given...What about that is feudalistic? Feudalism has a definition, it doesn’t just mean “backwards”. Feudalism was a specific social framework fundamentally orienting around the inability for any given power to centralize authority over an area, thus requiring a decentralized system of patronage between warrior-leaders.
Even by the late medieval period, feudalism began to wither as absolute monarchs like the sun king managed to consolidate power and standing armies began to form.
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Comment on What is your opinion whenever you see news/opinion that tech companies are relying more on chatbots rather than junior developers/interns? in ~tech
stu2b50 LinkI don't think any effects like that have manifested yet. The market for college grads is bad, but that's mainly due to volatile economic conditions. Low level hires are an investment, and it's a...I don't think any effects like that have manifested yet. The market for college grads is bad, but that's mainly due to volatile economic conditions. Low level hires are an investment, and it's a tough sell when markets can swing wildly.
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Comment on I've always found the common approach that websites take to changing the email associated with an account iffy but I am not sure if I am wrong in ~tech
stu2b50 Link ParentI'm disagreeing, I don't think there's any point in requiring a password for email changes. It doesn't add any additional security in this scenario, and just adds more friction for normal users.I'm disagreeing, I don't think there's any point in requiring a password for email changes. It doesn't add any additional security in this scenario, and just adds more friction for normal users.
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Comment on I've always found the common approach that websites take to changing the email associated with an account iffy but I am not sure if I am wrong in ~tech
stu2b50 LinkIf the attacker has physical access to your device and you don't have 2FA, you're kinda screwed anyway? Let's say you required a password to change the email. All the attacker needs to do is...If the attacker has physical access to your device and you don't have 2FA, you're kinda screwed anyway?
Let's say you required a password to change the email. All the attacker needs to do is change your password with the "I forgot my password" option, and... yeah now they have the password to the account, so they can change the email anyway.
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Comment on Laser-wielding device is like an anti-aircraft system for mosquitoes in ~tech
stu2b50 LinkLooks neat, although I do feel like a lot of it is more rule of cool than anything practical. There is the danger of retina damage, but the way I’d actually use it is I’d put it in a room where...Looks neat, although I do feel like a lot of it is more rule of cool than anything practical. There is the danger of retina damage, but the way I’d actually use it is I’d put it in a room where flying insects accidentally got in, turn it on and leave.
That being said, you can just use a misting spray with some soapy water. But lasers are cool.
Honestly, what I’d want is something that could kill larger insects, like roaches or something. Those are much more annoying to manually kill.
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Comment on Question about REST APIS and encryption in ~tech
stu2b50 Link ParentTo be honest, you're really overthinking things. Again, the thread model is the most important part of security. Just like in real life, there's no point in reinforcing your door but leaving your...To be honest, you're really overthinking things. Again, the thread model is the most important part of security. Just like in real life, there's no point in reinforcing your door but leaving your lock the same.
No one cares about your financial data. The only hackers you'll encounter running your server for your own personal use are dragnet operators who loop through IP blocks looking for basic misconfigurations, like database servers on public ports with admin/admin accounts. And even those hackers do not care about your financial data - they're looking for passwords and credit cards and other things that can be packaged and sold.
Just do it. It's fine.
As an aside, homomorphic encryption is way above your level of expertise from everything else on the thread. It's a very young field of active research. I wouldn't bother.
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Comment on Question about REST APIS and encryption in ~tech
stu2b50 LinkYep. They just make sure that doesn't happen. But to be more clear, what you were talking before is called End-to-End encryption, where the client encrypts and decrypts the data. E2EE, on a design...But if Google can decrypt the data and that implies they store the keys on a server from what I can tell from my reading, how it is protected if someone malicious gains access to the database? If that person got access to the database and the keys that Google uses to decrypt the data, wouldn't that compromise the data?
Yep. They just make sure that doesn't happen.
But to be more clear, what you were talking before is called End-to-End encryption, where the client encrypts and decrypts the data. E2EE, on a design level, really changes how the application can work, however. With E2EE, the server must be little more than a dumb data storage location. After all, all it has is encrypted blobs; you can't do server side search, or any other kind of server processing. You can't allow another user to have the data unless you give that user your personal key.
Whether or not the company values privacy aside, E2EE only works for some kinds of applications.
For the second question, you're getting more into threat models. If an attacker has complete access to the server, yes, you're just screwed. You're always screwed (unless it's E2EE). The server always has to have enough data to decrypt its own data, after all. You are defending against, say, a bad database configuration that unknowingly allows attackers to get access to the data; they've only comprised the database in this case, so any encrypted data is still encrypted, since they don't have access to the secret.
All that is to say, you have a choice: you can make this webapp E2EE, which would mean that essentially 100% of the business logic needs to be done on the client, and the server is little more than a repository to store encrypted blobs for users.
Or, you can have logic in the server, but the data must come in unencrypted. You can encrypt it further if you want, but honestly I don't think it's particularly worth the effort for a simple server written just for your own personal use. Just harden the server it's hosted on.
The transport layer will automatically have encryption from HTTPS.
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Comment on How a controversial Danish ‘parenting test’ separated a Greenlandic woman from her children in ~life.women
stu2b50 Link ParentDenmark is just a pretty racist place. They have a zoning law, which quite literally in the letters of law, defines people as either “western” or “non-western”, with the definition of “western”...Denmark is just a pretty racist place. They have a zoning law, which quite literally in the letters of law, defines people as either “western” or “non-western”, with the definition of “western” being that your parents are from
27 EU-member countries, Andorra, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland, Vatican City, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand
Notably, citizens are NOT automatically included either, so an immigrant from Norway would be counted as “western” but a Danish citizens who was born in Denmark but whose parents were immigrants would not count.
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Comment on The reason movie trailers give so much away: "a necessary evil" in ~movies
stu2b50 Link ParentIMO the latter. The reality is that the media landscape is very competitive now. A movie needs to compete with TikToks and youtube videos and the newest video game and so forth and so on. If...Is the selection for such focus groups really bad, or really good and shows the contrasts between an average Joe and an enthusiast who'd voice their opinions?
IMO the latter. The reality is that the media landscape is very competitive now. A movie needs to compete with TikToks and youtube videos and the newest video game and so forth and so on. If you're not "in" to cinema, then a vague trailer just isn't going to outcompete the rest for attention. You need a strong hook, and often that requires revealing some of the plot.
For what it's worth, I also don't think it's the case that spoilers harms the experience all that much for people. Personally, I've watched several movies in the last year because someone spoiled something that caught my attention.
In some way's, it's similar to in media res on a meta level.
If you knew that Vader is Luke Skywalker's father, does that really make the Star Wars movies an unenjoyable experience to watch? I wouldn't say so.
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Comment on Thailand moves to de-legalize weed in major drug-policy u-turn in ~society
stu2b50 Link ParentIt’s less about control of supply and more about control of demand. It’s not an immutable fact that people will desire weed. My experience is that two main things make weed use almost nil compared...It’s less about control of supply and more about control of demand. It’s not an immutable fact that people will desire weed. My experience is that two main things make weed use almost nil compared to the US: one is simply a stronger culture of following laws and authority. That goes for democracies and oligarchical single party states in east Asia.
Second, is that the social stigma is immense. You will become a social pariah. Weed smoking is cool in the US. It was considered something degenerate low-lifes did when I was growing up, and even bearing near people like that would just spread misery and poverty.
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Comment on Thailand moves to de-legalize weed in major drug-policy u-turn in ~society
stu2b50 Link ParentI was answering a question by someone as to why someone would support banning marijuana when alcohol is legal. I expressed why I think marijuana is more harmful socially than alcohol. No more, no...You suggested that bans on cannabis are broadly good, and I responded to that.
I was answering a question by someone as to why someone would support banning marijuana when alcohol is legal. I expressed why I think marijuana is more harmful socially than alcohol. No more, no less.
I don’t particularly think it’s possible to put the genie back in the bottle in the US. But it is in Thailand and Japan and China and Taiwan and many more.
If it is feasible to ban cannabis consumption, then yes, I absolutely support the ban.
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Comment on Thailand moves to de-legalize weed in major drug-policy u-turn in ~society
stu2b50 Link ParentI think the balance of civil liberties vs social good is one that is inherently subjective, and that many societies today have decided more towards the latter and that’s fine. I spent many years...I think the balance of civil liberties vs social good is one that is inherently subjective, and that many societies today have decided more towards the latter and that’s fine.
Maybe we need to stop convincing ourselves that banning substances is an effective means of treating addiction, or that, if it were, that would justify encroaching upon civil liberties.
I spent many years growing up in Taiwan and it was pretty effective, yes. That’s not to say that in any way there weren’t tobacco smokers getting lung cancer and bad alcoholics, but I in no way think anyone’s lives would have been better if weed or any other drug that wasn’t illegal was illegal.
Honestly I think the common western view that the many east and southeast Asian countries with heavy recreational drug restrictions (which is almost all of them) just have them because they’re all stupid or barbaric or something is incredibly paternalistic. People can decide different tradeoffs for their country. It’s OK.
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Comment on Thailand moves to de-legalize weed in major drug-policy u-turn in ~society
stu2b50 Link ParentAll of Asia has a great deal of trauma towards any mind-altering chemicals that are smoked due to the opium war. Tobacco gets a pass since it existed and was common before. I don’t think my...All of Asia has a great deal of trauma towards any mind-altering chemicals that are smoked due to the opium war. Tobacco gets a pass since it existed and was common before. I don’t think my parents understood that weed and opium were different until a few years ago.
Second, to be honest, as someone that has done weed, maybe it should be banned? I feel like the negatives of weed are really downplayed. IMO weed’s danger is that it is just an ambition killer. Compared to alcohol, weed lasts waaay longer and just makes you want to do nothing. I think everyone has some college friends who are basically in a perpetual loop of working dead end retail jobs, spending their money on weed, being high all day, repeat. I highly doubt this life would be endurable if they weren’t high all the time.
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Comment on You're going to use Gemini on Android whether you like it or not in ~tech
stu2b50 Link ParentThey do care about it. They care about it because it's a product differentiator, and Apple isn't set up to make use of said data, so it's a win-win for them. That's different than Google, who does...They do care about it. They care about it because it's a product differentiator, and Apple isn't set up to make use of said data, so it's a win-win for them. That's different than Google, who does have the infrastructure to ingest and use the data.
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Comment on Post graduation job search in ~life
stu2b50 Link ParentIt depends on how you're measuring whether or not OP is "using" his degree. I'm sure they could get, say, a phone support role with a BS in CS degree. But that's because anyone with a bachelors in...It depends on how you're measuring whether or not OP is "using" his degree. I'm sure they could get, say, a phone support role with a BS in CS degree. But that's because anyone with a bachelors in anything could get a IT phone support role. The CS degree isn't helping there.
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Comment on Post graduation job search in ~life
stu2b50 (edited )LinkTo be frank, programming (more often called "software engineering" rather than "programming", in terms of job titles) is the main occupation that a computer science degrees unlocks. IT is really...To be frank, programming (more often called "software engineering" rather than "programming", in terms of job titles) is the main occupation that a computer science degrees unlocks. IT is really somewhat tangential.
It would be like asking if a physics major can work as a car technician. For IT, what they'd really look for is specific knowledge about specific technologies, like internet networking. IT has its own degrees, as well as a myriad of certificates, for accreditation.
If you don't like programming, well, is what it is, you can either go back to school to retool in another area or just deal with it and program. For what it's worth, you do less and less actual coding as you move up the career ladder and more software architecturing.
I don't think you have much more you can do other than go search for entry level software engineering positions and apply apply apply. I would anticipate at least applying to a few hundred spots.
You will likely have to move out of where you live. You can do so after you get the offer, but just anticipate it being a condition.
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Comment on South Korea banned dog meat. So what happens to the dogs? in ~food
stu2b50 Link ParentI don’t think there’s any issue with personally not wanting to eat any kind of meat. Where it gets dicey is when it’s used as some kind of universal moral imperative. First, in practice culinary...I don’t think there’s any issue with personally not wanting to eat any kind of meat. Where it gets dicey is when it’s used as some kind of universal moral imperative.
First, in practice culinary taboos are just arbitrary and come from cultural history and norms, rather than any kind of actual, objective backing.
Second, this line of reasoning is often used as a dogwhistle to denigrate other cultures as barbaric (when, again, it’s mostly arbitrary). See: the “Haitian eating our cats” story that was peddled the last US election cycle.
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Comment on ‘Lilo & Stitch 2’ live-action movie set at Disney in ~movies
stu2b50 Link ParentIt has a 93% audience score. The original animated lilo and stitch has a 78% audience score. Not to mention that box offices sales wouldn’t have a long tail if the movie was outright bad. Ads can...It has a 93% audience score. The original animated lilo and stitch has a 78% audience score.
Not to mention that box offices sales wouldn’t have a long tail if the movie was outright bad. Ads can get butts in seats for the first few weeks but months later only word of mouth will do the trick.
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Comment on South Korea banned dog meat. So what happens to the dogs? in ~food
stu2b50 Link ParentSure, that’s why I said “genetically brainwashed”. Either way, the point is that dog’s “love” for humans is to a large extent an artificial product of human creation. That is what it is, but it...Sure, that’s why I said “genetically brainwashed”. Either way, the point is that dog’s “love” for humans is to a large extent an artificial product of human creation. That is what it is, but it seems a bit rich to use it as metric for ethical killing.
No. For one, there needs to be a lack of military authority. That is, no one can successfully establish a monopoly on violence. In that scenario, the companies exist under the umbrella of a government with a monopoly on violence.
Second, is that there needs to be continual layers. Within a “fief”, in an actual feudal system, the lord still doesn’t have centralized authority, and as a result they need patronage systems with lesser warlords. It’s turtles all the way down.
Third, feudalism is very much a breakdown of the technology of administration. Why would these companies not be able to absorb their enemies? Did we forget what excel is?