tech-taters's recent activity
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Comment on Linus Torvalds says Linux is not "anti-AI", tells haters to 'fork it' and 'just walk away' in ~tech
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Comment on Linus Torvalds says Linux is not "anti-AI", tells haters to 'fork it' and 'just walk away' in ~tech
tech-taters Link ParentI work for a large company as a software engineer and use (mainly) Claude Code for my AI-tool-of-choice on a daily basis. It’s not being shoved down our throats, but naturally executives want to...I work for a large company as a software engineer and use (mainly) Claude Code for my AI-tool-of-choice on a daily basis. It’s not being shoved down our throats, but naturally executives want to understand what’s good and what’s BS, so they encourage use and exploration.
My colleagues and I all broadly enjoy using Claude Code because it actually works and can do some pretty heavy lifting in everything from writing code to data processing and orchestrating tasks. There are some programming tasks in particular that are trivial for AI to do, but would take me quite a while to do by hand. We do some embedded software work and often have to port code to new hardware. AI tools can accomplish this glorified copy-paste-rename job with minimal intervention in half the time it takes me. I can do more important work in the meantime.
For AI-generated code that actually gets merged into our key code bases, we are all reasonably diligent about auditing the code and making sure it’s correct and maintainable. We all still have to go through the same code review process.
The only time we genuinely “vibe code” (ie don’t even read the code) is for single-use scripts that we won’t be using tomorrow.
We are in a comparatively conservative (risk-wise) corner of the industry so we’re probably on the sober-side of AI adopters. But we all find it genuinely useful and are working to establish a decent culture surrounding its treatment.
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Comment on Apple sues OpenAI for stealing trade secrets to build AI hardware in ~tech
tech-taters Link ParentMy colleagues and I have noticed that Claude Code seems to have gotten more expensive lately. Whether the cost per token has increased, or the application itself just likes to use more tokens,...My colleagues and I have noticed that Claude Code seems to have gotten more expensive lately. Whether the cost per token has increased, or the application itself just likes to use more tokens, we’re not sure. But we’re actually able to use a significant portion of our individual budgets now. Previously, it felt difficult to really spend much.
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Comment on Solar with grid connectivity, but no networking? in ~life.home_improvement
tech-taters LinkSeconding Enphase. Just got a 16 panel with battery backup installed last year. I’m 99% sure basic functionality isn’t dependent on internet connectivity. The app of course requires connectivity....Seconding Enphase. Just got a 16 panel with battery backup installed last year. I’m 99% sure basic functionality isn’t dependent on internet connectivity.
The app of course requires connectivity. My installer has also used the connectivity to remotely diagnose an issue on the system.
I have heard of people using HomeAssistsnt automations to pull data for local dashboards, but I am not sure if that data can be sourced offline.
I can say for sure that the panels and battery worked fine whenever my internet has been down.
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Comment on Ring camera is getting more and more annoying in ~tech
tech-taters LinkFor less-techy people who are already using Apple products, I'd recommend looking into HomeKit cameras and HomeKit Secure Video (HKSV). Very easy setup and about as privacy-preserving as you can...For less-techy people who are already using Apple products, I'd recommend looking into HomeKit cameras and HomeKit Secure Video (HKSV). Very easy setup and about as privacy-preserving as you can get without full local recording. I think it's an easy sell to a family member who wants to move off Ring cameras, but isn't ready to self-host Frigate.
Supported cameras are run completely-offline and only talk to you Home Hub (likely an AppleTV). The ATV runs machine learning models locally to detect some basics like people and vehicles.
To store any footage, you do have to subscribe to iCloud+. The subscription gives you general iDevice storage, plus separate storage for HKSV. If configured, the ATV will send end-to-end encrypted video here for storage and playback.
If I'm going to trust my camera footage to a 3rd party, it better be end2end.
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Comment on How are we all feeling about piracy these days? in ~movies
tech-taters Link ParentSeconding the *arr stack. Sonarr and Radarr track your TV shows and Movies. Jellyseer takes your requests and sends them to the above. Prowlarr looks at what’s missing in your collection and...Seconding the *arr stack. Sonarr and Radarr track your TV shows and Movies. Jellyseer takes your requests and sends them to the above. Prowlarr looks at what’s missing in your collection and searches your choice of public/private teachers, then sends located torrents to Qbittorrent for downloading.
I use Jellyfin to stream the media instead of plex since it is free and open source. It also seems to work just as well. Haven’t been a fan of the direction Plex is moving as a company.
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Comment on Competence is lonely. Nobody talks about why. in ~health.mental
tech-taters Link ParentIf you’re feeling passive aggressive: nohello.netIf you’re feeling passive aggressive:
nohello.net
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Comment on Seeking guidance on a week long LA to Bay Area trip in ~travel
tech-taters LinkMy two cents as another San Luis Obispo fan, stop here, not Santa Barbara. SB is kind of crowded and expensive, and genuinely not as pretty as the SLO area. Avila and Pismo beach are classic...My two cents as another San Luis Obispo fan, stop here, not Santa Barbara. SB is kind of crowded and expensive, and genuinely not as pretty as the SLO area.
Avila and Pismo beach are classic California “Beach Towns”. Depending on budget, there are some fantastic cliff-side hotels in the area. Or, you can always enjoy the towns and stay overnight in SLO city, 15 minutes away. Can also go out to Morro Bay and see Sea Otters and Morro Rock.
In the area, I recommend Splash Cafe for chowder and High Street Deli for a comically large sandwich.
If you are into wine, then you can’t skip Paso Robles (near SLO), Napa Valley, or the criminally underrated Livermore (next to Pleasanton) wine country. California also has a lot of craft beer if that’s your thing.
For big trees, I think Muir Woods is closer than Calaveras. Haven’t been to Calaveras, but Muir Woods is always lovely, if a bit crowded. You could feasibly do a short day in San Francisco combined with a half day in Muir Woods (hour-ish north).
Happy to elaborate on anything or add recommendations!
Edit: forgot to say, don’t stay in Fremont if you can avoid it lol. It’s boring and has bad traffic. Sounds like that is combined with the Wedding in some way, so stay in Pleasanton if you can.
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Comment on YouTube is awful. Please use YouTube, though. in ~tech
tech-taters Link ParentI think your idea is interesting, but I don’t see why anybody would develop for this platform. Unless you pay a subscription to attach Backend A, why would people produce content and post it...I think your idea is interesting, but I don’t see why anybody would develop for this platform.
Unless you pay a subscription to attach Backend A, why would people produce content and post it there? There’s only so many people like the Article Author who will make high quality content for fun, and only so many groups who have the funding to produce content in the PBS model.
It’s one thing if this platform is the Original Video Platform, but I think it would be extremely difficult to get a critical mass of people to buy-in.
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Comment on I fixed my lactose intolerance -- by chugging all the lactose in ~health
tech-taters LinkI was lactose intolerant from my teenage years through early 20s. Usual pain, gas, and diarrhea. I went with Lactaid during most of this time and it worked okay, but never perfect. In my mid 20s,...I was lactose intolerant from my teenage years through early 20s. Usual pain, gas, and diarrhea. I went with Lactaid during most of this time and it worked okay, but never perfect.
In my mid 20s, I started taking probiotics for unrelated reasons, as well as eating more European plain yogurt. I was taking the probiotics for maybe 4-6 months. (Florastor brand name)
It took me a while to really notice, but I seem to be totally fine with lactose now. I’ve stopped the probiotic, eat less yogurt, and don’t take lactase.
According to a nurse in my family, I’ve seeded my gut biome with the right lactobacilis cultures. Would recommend since it seems like a pretty harmless test besides the cost of supplements.
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Comment on Opinions on NPU laptops? in ~comp
tech-taters LinkAs others mentioned, NPUs are highly specific pieces of hardware. If you can share more about your use cases, we can better advise you. Essentially, if you do not plan to use Generative AI tools...As others mentioned, NPUs are highly specific pieces of hardware. If you can share more about your use cases, we can better advise you.
Essentially, if you do not plan to use Generative AI tools in applications such as Photoshop or Video Editors, I think you should save your money.
Most software does not yet take advantage of this kind of hardware, or simply has no need for it.
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Comment on Can I hope to defeat telematics in a new car? in ~transport
tech-taters Link ParentMiata Is Always The Answer My wife and I love ours. I’m a decently sized guy and fit just fine, though I’m still under 6ft. You can squeeze a surprising amount of junk in the little trunk, and...Miata
Is
Always
The
AnswerMy wife and I love ours. I’m a decently sized guy and fit just fine, though I’m still under 6ft.
You can squeeze a surprising amount of junk in the little trunk, and Miata luggage racks are easily the coolest car accessory on the planet.
Get your manual transmission while you can.
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Comment on What's a quantum computer? in ~tech
tech-taters Link ParentThanks for the article! That was an interesting read. You’re right that it’s not as simple as I made it out to be. I read a bit more, and it seems like the additional difficulty is primarily with...Thanks for the article! That was an interesting read.
You’re right that it’s not as simple as I made it out to be. I read a bit more, and it seems like the additional difficulty is primarily with Asymmetric Encryption. My understanding was “just plop AES 256 in” but that is evidently not close to the whole picture. For Symmetric Encryption, it does sound reasonably easy to upgrade.
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Comment on What's a quantum computer? in ~tech
tech-taters Link ParentNot a quantum expert, but I am a “conventional” computer engineer. Essentially, most encryption algorithms are “secure” because the amount of computation required to guess the right answer is...Not a quantum expert, but I am a “conventional” computer engineer. Essentially, most encryption algorithms are “secure” because the amount of computation required to guess the right answer is functionally infinite. Like “all computers on earth, running for 1 million years” territory.
Quantum computers posed a threat to certain encryption algorithms, but not all. This is because the math used to obscure the right answer happens to be easily guessable by quantum computers.
There have been known “quantum proof” encryption algorithms for decades, they just weren’t used for one reason or another. These are quantum proof simply because the obscuring math happens to not be easily done by quantum computers. They end up in the same case of “you need infinite compute” to break the encryption.
These algorithms weren’t designed to be quantum proof. They just happened to use different math for the encryption.
Most systems should/have/will update to quantum proof algorithms in the near future, because it’s fairly easy to upgrade and the algorithms are just generally better at all aspects of encryption.
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Comment on What is your 'Subway Take'? in ~talk
tech-taters Link ParentI can think of one, the first or second exit off the Oakland Bay Bridge going west into the city. But I generally agree with you, they’re not common.I can think of one, the first or second exit off the Oakland Bay Bridge going west into the city. But I generally agree with you, they’re not common.
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Comment on Tips/guides to turn my home into a smart home? in ~tech
tech-taters LinkI am just getting started with my smart home functionality too. I opted to go for HomeKit for the privacy and offline functionality. I think it's ridiculous that ecosystems exist that do not work...I am just getting started with my smart home functionality too. I opted to go for HomeKit for the privacy and offline functionality. I think it's ridiculous that ecosystems exist that do not work if your internet goes down. The only argument is that you don't need to buy a hub device, which is silly when you're buying $20 light bulbs, $30 switches, and $500+ shades (well in my case). It's not a cheap project.
I have an ethernet Apple TV as the Home Hub, and it also acts as my Thread Border Router. I am trying to only buy Matter over Thread devices, but have a couple Matter over Wifi light bulbs. I have an Eve smart plug that is MoT and does a good job of expanding Thread range to my MoT roller shade in our primary bedroom.
I have an Unraid server that I might run HomeAssistant on at some point. I think going down that route is powerful, but from my understanding, not simple. I think that's edging into "Home Labbing is my hobby". At least for my basic house functions, I don't want to worry about it. My server is also far from robust.
My device list is currently:
- AppleTV 4K (Ethernet HomeKit Hub and Thread Border Router)
- 2x LIFX RGB bulbs (Matter over WiFi)
- 1x Eve Smart Plug (Matter over Thread)
- 1x SmartWings Roller Shade (Matter over Thread)
- 1x Ecobee Thermostat (HomeKit over Wifi)
I am trying to stick with Matter, partially to support the open standard, partially to cover-my-butt in the event I want to change ecosystem. I think Thread mesh networks is a cool idea, and I like that the devices are not directly connected to my WiFi network. I am always skeptical of IoT device security. I think having them on a separate protocol and 100% offline is a good reduction/diversification in the risk area. (until of course we get Thread-based malware lol)
I am somewhat happy with the feature support from the HomeKit ecosystem. There are some features like "Dim over time" that you can't do without some HomeAssistant hack. It seems to do the basics well though, so overall happy with the state so far.
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Comment on AirPano - Lut Desert, Iran in ~arts
tech-taters LinkGreat photos, thanks for sharing! I found the contrast between the barren desert and cyberpunk guy sitting on the roof of a Tacoma with a headset pretty funny.Great photos, thanks for sharing! I found the contrast between the barren desert and cyberpunk guy sitting on the roof of a Tacoma with a headset pretty funny.
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Comment on What common misunderstanding do you want to clear up? in ~talk
tech-taters Link ParentIn the spirit of clearing up misconceptions, I’m gonna hit you with a friendly ACTUALLY. It sounds like you’re referring to the whole package that companies like Intel distribute and the general...You can also make a case that current-day, multi-core, hyper-threaded CPUs aren't actually "CPUs" at all, since they often integrate graphics processing and split control and arithmetic between cores.
In the spirit of clearing up misconceptions, I’m gonna hit you with a friendly ACTUALLY.
It sounds like you’re referring to the whole package that companies like Intel distribute and the general tech-savvy population calls a CPU. Those are better considered SoCs (System on a Chip), since they do all those functions you listed. Maybe I misunderstood you though.
It’s still correct to call each individual CPU core a CPU, even if it’s not so central anymore. Though the only person that will sell you just a CPU these days is an IP vendor, and that’d just be the design for one.
Also, AMD is still selling SoCs in the same sense as Intel. Their products generally have CPUs, Memory Controllers, I/O Controllers, etc in a single package (okay, okay, it’s a System on Chiplets). They just leave off the GPU more often than Intel does.
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Comment on Looking for music solutions for my car; can anyone recommend a digital audio player? in ~transport
tech-taters Link ParentAs far as I’ve seen, the only “permission” a Bluetooth receiver request is to sync contacts, for the purposes of using the in-car voice control. Maybe one to make calls as well. If you choose a...As far as I’ve seen, the only “permission” a Bluetooth receiver request is to sync contacts, for the purposes of using the in-car voice control. Maybe one to make calls as well.
If you choose a Bluetooth based music player, it might not even ask for that. If it does, you just deny it. You won’t lose music player functionality.
To specifically address the Ford case, that can only happen if the car software integrates the Bluetooth receiver. Nobody can snoop your text messages (realistically anyways) with an offline music player.
Essentially, Bluetooth isn’t the problem there, it’s Ford (assuming you have the story right, I’m not making any assertions about that)
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Comment on What common misunderstanding do you want to clear up? in ~talk
tech-taters LinkCPU does not mean computer. It’s Central Processing Unit. The CPU is a complex digital circuit that is microscopically etched into a silicon crystal. (Shoutout @FlareHeart for clearing that one...CPU does not mean computer. It’s Central Processing Unit. The CPU is a complex digital circuit that is microscopically etched into a silicon crystal. (Shoutout @FlareHeart for clearing that one up) The computer is a box with a bunch of parts inside. Or a person/job title if you go back 50ish years.
Every* computer has at least one CPU, nowadays more like 4-12. A CPUs job is to read instructions and do simple operations like addition, subtraction, and moving data.
Yes there are definitely times I write code by hand. I can see a good argument for templating a codebase by hand, filling it in partially, and then letting AI follow your lead.
As others have said, AI can be very effective when you’re already an expert on the codebase, which I agree should involve hand-writing code.
As for being effective without AI, I think it’s going to be heavily dependent on your corner of industry.
Good quality code generally isn’t a selling point, so it’s going to be a matter of company culture. Poor culture is going to push fast iteration with AI slop, good culture is going to give you the option to choose the best approach.
That said, I suspect SOME AI usage is going to increasingly become the best approach. When I hear people insist on hand-written code, it reminds me of “C is too high level, I have to write assembly”, and other historical developments. Obviously there’s a time and place for every tool, I have to write assembly from time to time, but by and large AI assistance in programming is going to become more normalized.
I would be extremely wary of hiring someone who went out of their way to not use AI in a professional context. Not a deal breaker, but it does make me question whether they’re going to be a stubborn PITA. Again, not a requirement, but do you really want to put that in the hiring team’s mind? And for some of the boring, tedious work, I wouldn’t want my team spending unnecessary time doing that by hand.
Ultimately everyone just needs to be reasonable and cognizant of the pros and cons.