tlalexander's recent activity
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Comment on Denmark's vegan party says it has enough support to run for parliament – the party, founded in 2018, reached the 20,182 declarations needed on Thursday in ~news
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Comment on Portland protesters say federal officers in unmarked vans are detaining them in ~news
tlalexander Link ParentYep. The more I learn about libertarianism from people who actually read the theory, the more I realize how often people straw man them and just don’t understand. I’m still surprised from when my...Yep. The more I learn about libertarianism from people who actually read the theory, the more I realize how often people straw man them and just don’t understand. I’m still surprised from when my libertarian roommate said federal hospitals should go to the workers because they’re the ones doing the work to keep them going. It’s like... okay you’re not what I thought.
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Comment on Star Trek: Lower Decks | Trailer in ~tv
tlalexander Link ParentEven Picard feels that way too. Like how the holograms in Picard are significantly worse than holograms of the Star Trek universe before.Even Picard feels that way too. Like how the holograms in Picard are significantly worse than holograms of the Star Trek universe before.
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Comment on What is something that most people don't realize is harmful? in ~talk
tlalexander Link ParentMuch more effort could be put towards these services if they were not illegal, schools could use these services if they were not illegal. We could standardize on these instead of expecting most...Much more effort could be put towards these services if they were not illegal, schools could use these services if they were not illegal. We could standardize on these instead of expecting most people to buy books. And books are only one part of the intellectual property story. We still have people dying in America because they can’t afford insulin, which is also an intellectual property issue. We need to change the laws, not just subvert them.
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Comment on What is something that most people don't realize is harmful? in ~talk
tlalexander LinkIntellectual property restrictions! They dramatically increase cost by intentionally giving monopolies to control of information. This has dramatic second order effects on innovation that I...Intellectual property restrictions! They dramatically increase cost by intentionally giving monopolies to control of information. This has dramatic second order effects on innovation that I strongly believe keeps the overall rate of innovation much lower. Of course now companies have adapted to market with intellectual property restrictions and many people have a hard time imagining how things would work without them.
But open source software development provides some insight in to how engineering works in a world without intellectual property restrictions. And in the hardware world it’s quite interesting. 3D printers were $50k or so for 20 years until the patents expired. Then a bunch of hackers in a distributed fashion figured out ways to make them work with a cheap parts list, and 15 years after patents expired you can get a decent 3D printer for $300 or less. Even in 2010 stratasys was pushing their “entry level” printer at $30,000. Ten years later and you can buy a machine of comparable capabilities for $1000. That is a 30x reduction of cost that happened because hackers and businesses alike worked on improvements and shared what they learned as open source.
Businesses like Prusa Research prove that an apparently very successful business can coexist in a market of clones. Josef Prusa couldn’t be happier that his design is the most manufactured 3D printer in the world. The Prusa machine costs $750-1000 while clones cost $300 but the difference in quality means many customers choose the more expensive original rather than a clone.
This means we could have open source washing machines which can be repaired indefinitely rather than going to the landfill. We could have open source automobiles with commodity parts and a proven history of safe operation. And if we had open source medical research and drug manufacturing we would have cheap drugs. Of course research is needed and an open source world would need to intentionally direct resources towards drug research etc, but this seems totally doable. Our costs would net go down due to the benefits of open sharing versus siloed development and huge executive bonuses.
Intellectual property restrictions have in my opinion led to a dramatic reduction in quality of life worldwide. How many developing nations would benefit from an open source Maytag style washing machine that they could easily manufacture themselves? It would save them from having to design from scratch something which has already been designed over and over, and would ensure they don’t become too economically reliant on predatory manufacturers in more developed areas nearby.
Even if my theory has some flaw, I think this concept seriously needs to be studied. I really want to see some economists who will take this idea seriously. Can you imagine if every person with an internet connection had access to a world library full of every book ever written? Our economies would need to adapt but I believe we can do so mindfully and with minimal disruption. The end result would be a stronger smarter world.
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Comment on Time to upgrade your monitor - Optimizing a display setup for programming in ~comp
tlalexander Link ParentI can only surmise that “Easter egg flashlight mode” is intentional and the comment that it is a “broken dark mode” is a misunderstanding. Though the website sure makes you think it would be a...I can only surmise that “Easter egg flashlight mode” is intentional and the comment that it is a “broken dark mode” is a misunderstanding. Though the website sure makes you think it would be a normal dark mode!
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Comment on Any experiences with AllSides for interpretation of news? in ~news
tlalexander LinkI don’t have experience with allsides. I have however previously come across Knowhere news which seems pretty good: https://knowherenews.com/I don’t have experience with allsides. I have however previously come across Knowhere news which seems pretty good:
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Comment on Bajoran culture is my feminist and queer inspiration in ~tv
tlalexander Link ParentOh wow thank you! This is great hah I never would have known this exists.Oh wow thank you! This is great hah I never would have known this exists.
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Comment on Bajoran culture is my feminist and queer inspiration in ~tv
tlalexander Link ParentGood to know! I’m on the 5th season of Voyager and will have to find something new after that. Maybe I’ll give DS9 another shot.Good to know! I’m on the 5th season of Voyager and will have to find something new after that. Maybe I’ll give DS9 another shot.
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Comment on Bajoran culture is my feminist and queer inspiration in ~tv
tlalexander Link ParentWell that’s good. As a man I’ve never received advances like that but he seemed to be really forward. I assume that could make some women uncomfortable but I don’t know.Well that’s good. As a man I’ve never received advances like that but he seemed to be really forward. I assume that could make some women uncomfortable but I don’t know.
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Comment on Bajoran culture is my feminist and queer inspiration in ~tv
tlalexander LinkThe article brushes past Bashir being really creepy towards women. I’m glad to learn (from the article) that this behavior is just in early seasons. But after working my way through most of Star...The article brushes past Bashir being really creepy towards women. I’m glad to learn (from the article) that this behavior is just in early seasons. But after working my way through most of Star Trek Voyager I found the male dominated (and in the case of Bashir, almost predatory) cast of DS9 to be pretty off putting. I only watched a few episodes before returning to Voyager, though that show has its own issues. The article is spot on about Ro Laren however and it’s great to see characters and cultures like hers. I’d also recommend Voyager for some great female roles, including Captain Janeway, B’Ellana Torres, and Seven of Nine.
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Comment on Donald Trump administration makes move to completely roll back US methane pollution regulations in ~enviro
tlalexander Link ParentBut that’s the status quo - there aren’t consequences for the crimes of US presidents. Obama didn’t go after Bush Jr for the same reason. There literally already are not consequences for the many...But that’s the status quo - there aren’t consequences for the crimes of US presidents. Obama didn’t go after Bush Jr for the same reason. There literally already are not consequences for the many crimes committed by US presidents since the country was founded.
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Comment on Four major US publishers sue Internet Archive for copyright infringement, alleging that it has illegally offered more than a million scanned works to the public in ~books
tlalexander Link ParentThe internet archive does loan out limited copies of their books using DRM normally. They use an adobe DRM format. But during the pandemic they removed loan limits so they suddenly started loaning...The internet archive does loan out limited copies of their books using DRM normally. They use an adobe DRM format. But during the pandemic they removed loan limits so they suddenly started loaning out unlimited numbers of books. They are however still protected by DRM.
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Comment on How Western media would cover Minneapolis if it happened in another country in ~misc
tlalexander LinkSpicy and not wrong. I like it.Spicy and not wrong. I like it.
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Comment on John Krasinski's 'Some Good News' sells to ViacomCBS following massive bidding war in ~tv
tlalexander LinkThis makes me want to link to the YouTube video by “Some More News” discussing “Some Good News”. https://youtu.be/QW7LBc9Q4GAThis makes me want to link to the YouTube video by “Some More News” discussing “Some Good News”.
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Comment on What's the last piece of technology that truly impressed you? in ~tech
tlalexander LinkI just got a 360 degree spherical camera and it’s pretty neat! I got the GoPro fusion which is cheap now that they’ve replaced it with a not-much-improved new model.I just got a 360 degree spherical camera and it’s pretty neat! I got the GoPro fusion which is cheap now that they’ve replaced it with a not-much-improved new model.
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Comment on Microsoft is bringing Linux GUI apps to Windows 10 in ~tech
tlalexander Link ParentShortly after hell freezes over Microsoft could contribute to Wine so it works perfectly on their own Windows based Linux distro.Shortly after hell freezes over Microsoft could contribute to Wine so it works perfectly on their own Windows based Linux distro.
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Comment on Has DuckDuckGo recently started giving you significantly worse results? in ~tech
tlalexander Link ParentI default to DDG but I’m constantly using the !g flag to reroute to google. I also feel like I don’t get the basic product page anymore when I search for something - too much amazon. Just a...I default to DDG but I’m constantly using the !g flag to reroute to google. I also feel like I don’t get the basic product page anymore when I search for something - too much amazon. Just a feeling, I’m not totally sure.
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Comment on Americans are starting to venture out to dine at restaurants in ~food
tlalexander Link ParentYep. I’m her in California just watching. I don’t want people to get ill but I suspect this will not go well. Perhaps some places will be fine but I imagine others will have more deaths.Yep. I’m her in California just watching. I don’t want people to get ill but I suspect this will not go well. Perhaps some places will be fine but I imagine others will have more deaths.
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Comment on What's your favorite defunct website? in ~talk
tlalexander LinkI mean I’m just pretty impressed that the website for the movie Space Jam is still up: https://www.spacejam.com/I mean I’m just pretty impressed that the website for the movie Space Jam is still up:
I mean animal agriculture is super destructive to the environment soo...