turmacar's recent activity

  1. Comment on How easy is it to shut down our modern world by attacking the systems that synchronise time and space? Meet the jammers at Jammertest, an open-air hacking festival in Norway, finding out. in ~tech

    turmacar
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    I wish they'd gone more into the vulnerabilities they think changing clocks opens up. Maybe it's as simple as messing with logs and message sent times, which could be bad. But I would think you'd...

    I wish they'd gone more into the vulnerabilities they think changing clocks opens up. Maybe it's as simple as messing with logs and message sent times, which could be bad. But I would think you'd have to affect a massive area for that.

    If the ATM sends a message that it is cryptographically certain happened yesterday that I deposited $5K and want to withdraw it now, that's all well and good, until it gets to the bank's servers who are not affected and reject them. Maybe I'm giving the banks too much credit, having just listened to The Glitch podcast.

    I recently setup chrony on a raspberry pi because it wasn't doing much on my network. ~$30 for the GPS antenna and adapters to coax cables so I could run it outside easily. Having nanosecond certainty of my gaming lag is basically pointless of course but it was a neat little project.

    3 votes
  2. Comment on ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ snags no. 2 with $15.4m as ‘Spider-Man’ nears ‘Avatar 2’; ‘Dog Stars’ put to sleep in ~movies

    turmacar
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    For whatever reason WB seems to basically have abandoned them for ~20 years. There's this movie, Space Jam 2 and the new Looney Tunes episodes they quietly slumped onto their streaming platform a...

    For whatever reason WB seems to basically have abandoned them for ~20 years. There's this movie, Space Jam 2 and the new Looney Tunes episodes they quietly slumped onto their streaming platform a few years ago. Other than merch, that's about the cultural impact of Looney Tunes in this millennium. It's a self created problem.

    Disney seems to have started to noticed the same problem with 'vaulting' movies so they first put some on Netflix and then created Disney+. You have to generate nostalgia in new generations for the IP to stay relevant. Of course Disney is in the much more priviledged position of having dedicated parks, etc.

    5 votes
  3. Comment on Luigi Mangione pleads guilty to federal stalking charges in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO in ~news

    turmacar
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    A lot of things make me think of Discworld, but I've been thinking about this exchange from Going Postal a lot since the health insurance CEO was shot: (edit: I should've scrolled farther before...
    • Exemplary

    A lot of things make me think of Discworld, but I've been thinking about this exchange from Going Postal a lot since the health insurance CEO was shot:

    “Do you understand what I'm saying?" shouted Moist. "You can't just go around killing people!"

    "Why Not? You Do." The golem lowered his arm.

    "What?" snapped Moist. "I do not! Who told you that?"

    "I Worked It Out. You Have Killed Two Point Three Three Eight People," said the golem calmly.

    "I have never laid a finger on anyone in my life, Mr Pump. I may be–– all the things you know I am, but I am not a killer! I have never so much as drawn a sword!"

    "No, You Have Not. But You Have Stolen, Embezzled, Defrauded And Swindled Without Discrimination, Mr Lipvig. You Have Ruined Businesses And Destroyed Jobs. When Banks Fail, It Is Seldom Bankers Who Starve. Your Actions Have Taken Money From Those Who Had Little Enough To Begin With. In A Myriad Small Ways You Have Hastened The Deaths Of Many. You Do Not Know Them. You Did Not See Them Bleed. But You Snatched Bread From Their Mouths And Tore Clothes From Their Backs. For Sport, Mr Lipvig. For Sport. For The Joy Of The Game.”

    (edit: I should've scrolled farther before responding)

    I work adjacent to healthcare and have friends who are doctors and nurses. Heath Insurance companies have killed millions of people and made the lives of millions more, worse. Everyone that's worked in healthcare has dozens of stories that are all worse than the last. The one I keep remembering was a man who was a prime candidate for a treatment that would have restored the use of his legs who was denied coverage by an adjuster on a phone who never saw him.

    I don't condone murder. But every, single, person involved in that industry should indicted on manslaughter charges. It's extremely disturbing how banal they are about ending lives, metaphorically or otherwise.

    51 votes
  4. Comment on Why does Opera GX rarely come up in browser discussions? in ~tech

    turmacar
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    IIRC Opera was the first browser with tabs as well. Possibly with sync between PCs/ devices? They definitely got a bit bloated and the transition to chromium was absolutely botched. (For a while...

    IIRC Opera was the first browser with tabs as well. Possibly with sync between PCs/ devices?

    They definitely got a bit bloated and the transition to chromium was absolutely botched. (For a while your "bookmarks" was a static html page that just listed them all alphabetically.)

    Vivaldi is doing a pretty good job of carrying on the original spirit and you can disable features you're not interested in.

    1 vote
  5. Comment on I built another damn To-do app in ~comp

    turmacar
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    I'm pretty firmly in the camp of there is a functionally infinite market for to-do apps because everyone's brain and organization style works slightly differently. Finding the right app is...

    I'm pretty firmly in the camp of there is a functionally infinite market for to-do apps because everyone's brain and organization style works slightly differently.

    Finding the right app is unfortunately also a huge problem. This seems neat.

    4 votes
  6. Comment on 2,871 abandoned and little-known US airfields in ~transport

    turmacar
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    I know there's at least one larger one in Florida(?) that gets a lot of time on social media for having things like low Stop signs so wings will clear them. There's a handful of much smaller...

    I know there's at least one larger one in Florida(?) that gets a lot of time on social media for having things like low Stop signs so wings will clear them.

    There's a handful of much smaller developments I know of still in the Pacific NorthWest. Tend to be a 1.5k-3k' paved or grass strip and ~5+ houses with hangars in addition to garages. You probably have a better chance of winning the lottery than buying one of those houses unless you're a family friend though.

    The site above has at least one in my town that got swallowed by the nearby city and the main remnant is the long diagonal layout of a few parallel streets that were where the taxiway/runway was. Others were just completely plowed under.

    2 votes
  7. Comment on 2,871 abandoned and little-known US airfields in ~transport

    turmacar
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    I love this site. Came across it a few years ago when I heard that a local theme park used to have/be an airport. Turns out, absolutely true The maintainer does a great job in gathering whatever...

    I love this site. Came across it a few years ago when I heard that a local theme park used to have/be an airport. Turns out, absolutely true The maintainer does a great job in gathering whatever information they can.

    The US is still one of the best places from General Aviation from what I've heard. Fairly lenient on when/where you're not allowed to go places and, except for larger airports, most services are free to the user.

    The boom in the 50s from all the WWII aviators and the explosion of the middle class lead to a large flying culture that's still hanging on even as, like everything else, it gets ever more prohibitively expensive. In the 50s-70s you could get a new small plane for roughly the price of a new nice car. Now they're 3x or more that, starting in the $300+k range. There's a thriving used market and "kit planes" that are cheaper. But nothing approaching the heyday.

    A lot of little towns still have wee municipal airports all over the country. You can fly into the little one near the Grand Coulee Dam for example and there's an old police cruiser as a 'courtesy car' that is first-come-first-served and you're just asked to fill with gas on your way back. Vaguely hoping the up-and-coming electric planes and newer engines that use car gas and other revamps with the FAA will push for GA growth again. People have been trying for a long time, but the general economic trajectory and wealth concentration aren't exactly helping.

    12 votes
  8. Comment on Tildes Book Club - Have you started A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers? in ~books

    turmacar
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    One of the best things about Wayfarers is I think everyone I've talked to about them has ranked them differently. 3 was my favorite because aspects of it reminded me of the best parts of Speaker...

    One of the best things about Wayfarers is I think everyone I've talked to about them has ranked them differently. 3 was my favorite because aspects of it reminded me of the best parts of Speaker for the Dead.

    2 votes
  9. Comment on Stellantis to sell small Fiat Topolino electric vehicle for $13,995 in US in ~transport

    turmacar
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    WA has a category for vehicles not allowed on highways, kei trucks tend to have one of those plates. Admittedly they can at least get up to ~55 mph. Central Seattle/Portland I could maybe see this...

    A low-speed vehicle conversion kit can boost the top speed to 25 mph to make it street legal on roads with speed limits of 35 mph or less, according to the trans-Atlantic automaker.

    WA has a category for vehicles not allowed on highways, kei trucks tend to have one of those plates. Admittedly they can at least get up to ~55 mph. Central Seattle/Portland I could maybe see this as a little grocery-getter / mobility aid? Hopefully it has the torque to maintain speed up hills. Would think something like a Gator utility vehicle would be a better form factor.

    7 votes
  10. Comment on Jamie Hyneman on MythBusters fame and why he and Adam Savage never socialized in ~tv

    turmacar
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    It was a bit of a disappointment as a kid learning they weren't "Best Friends", but I think it's also an important example of a great professional relationship. Even if you get along great with...

    It was a bit of a disappointment as a kid learning they weren't "Best Friends", but I think it's also an important example of a great professional relationship. Even if you get along great with coworkers work can just be work.

    37 votes
  11. Comment on Slate Truck preorder starts at $24,950 in ~transport

    turmacar
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    Mine said Jan-Mar 2027 so I was willing to go ahead with that. Really no idea how they're doing the timing. Curious if there will be any telescoping as people with reservations drop out. Very...

    Mine said Jan-Mar 2027 so I was willing to go ahead with that. Really no idea how they're doing the timing. Curious if there will be any telescoping as people with reservations drop out.

    Very cautiously optimistic. This is coming along at a good time in my vehicle cycle and every other EV I've looked at there's at least one deal breaker. Between the price, how barebones their 'stock' configuration is, and the amount of options it seems like a silver bullet for my needs. Really hoping nothing changes that.

    2 votes
  12. Comment on Ruins of the web: Hello Internet in ~tech

    turmacar
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    o/ Really liked that Grey and Brady were both nerdy in different ways. Cortex is/was interesting but Grey and Mike could form quite the echo chamber.

    o/

    Really liked that Grey and Brady were both nerdy in different ways. Cortex is/was interesting but Grey and Mike could form quite the echo chamber.

    1 vote
  13. Comment on Final Fantasy Resonance | Trailer in ~games

    turmacar
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    Cool looking art style.

    Cool looking art style.

    1 vote
  14. Comment on The US Supreme Court's Republican appointees end civil rights redistricting protections in ~society

    turmacar
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    The GOP never brought the nominations to a vote. At one point Obama nominated Merrick Garland, who had been suggested as a good compromise option by the republicans. But they explicitly said they...

    The GOP never brought the nominations to a vote. At one point Obama nominated Merrick Garland, who had been suggested as a good compromise option by the republicans. But they explicitly said they would not bring any nominations to a vote until the next president was elected.

    I have no idea if there's some congressional procedure to force a vote, especially by the minority party.

    17 votes
  15. Comment on Corporations can vote in some Delaware elections, judge says in ~society

    turmacar
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    This is from the reddit discussion, but the philosophical argument the judge references in the decision's introduction is this one which is a write-in submission to a magazine. The author is...

    This is from the reddit discussion, but the philosophical argument the judge references in the decision's introduction is this one which is a write-in submission to a magazine.

    The author is barely a published philosopher, much less a well known or respected one. Not trying to disrespect Diogo Joao Baptista Gomes, but I can't imagine he wrote 3 paragraphs for a magazine contest question in 2022 expecting it to be the basis of a legal decision saying corporations can vote in the US.

    It very much seems like the Judge went to the nth google page or asked an AI for a supporting argument for "What is a Person?" and got this.

    22 votes
  16. Comment on Battery costs just plunged 70% — this changes everything in ~enviro

    turmacar
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    That's what I was told to expect, ended up being ~$4k but I'm not sure how much of that was them having to bring part of the main panel up to code for the permit. This was just for the sub-panel,...

    That's what I was told to expect, ended up being ~$4k but I'm not sure how much of that was them having to bring part of the main panel up to code for the permit. This was just for the sub-panel, they didn't install the solar or batteries really, that's all plug-n-play to the sub-panel / "Smart Transfer switch".

  17. Comment on Battery costs just plunged 70% — this changes everything in ~enviro

    turmacar
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    They're these. Folded up each one is about 3x2 feet and maybe 4 inches thick and about 25 lbs. Pretty manageable, and they came with a bag. It's not the smallest setup, probably more intended for...

    They're these.

    Folded up each one is about 3x2 feet and maybe 4 inches thick and about 25 lbs. Pretty manageable, and they came with a bag. It's not the smallest setup, probably more intended for RVing but they could be packed relatively easy in a car if there's space. Probably wouldn't want to put too much weight on top of them.

    Each panel has it's own connector that daisy-chains to the next so you could only take a few if you wanted, but that would mostly save on weight.

    1 vote
  18. Comment on Battery costs just plunged 70% — this changes everything in ~enviro

    turmacar
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    Just to give some anecdotal numbers. I got ~10kWh of batteries with ~1kW of solar panels installed last September in WA. (Jackery) It hasn't been quite a year but I've been keeping running stats....

    Just to give some anecdotal numbers.

    I got ~10kWh of batteries with ~1kW of solar panels installed last September in WA. (Jackery)

    It hasn't been quite a year but I've been keeping running stats.

    The solar panels (~$1k) generate ~$200/yr, they'll pay for themselves after ~5 years. It's a very small set, they're mostly geared towards taking the solar/battery set camping where they'd keep whatever you wanted charged the whole time.

    The batteries (~$6k) charging during non-peak ($0.09/kWh) and running most of the house during peak hours ($0.22/kWh), save ~$400/yr. That's a significantly longer ~15 year payoff. But they've already been really nice during the occasional power outage.

    Installation price I'm not counting because it makes me feel better :) but ~$2k is apparently average. Cheaper/more batteries would be nice to factor in less wear on the batteries, and upgrades don't need a professional/permitted installer. I also have a gas furnace so they weren't stressed much in winter.

    For pure money saving/generation I'd prioritize solar and target batteries as a backup solution unless your electrical price has bigger swings. Electrical companies will give you bill credit for electricity that goes back into the grid.

    3 votes
  19. Comment on Google Search as you know it is over in ~tech

    turmacar
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    I'm sure the PR response is to ask it to check / fix it's work. In practice with the current models I've messed with that only works so well unless you know the right questions to ask. Google...

    I'm sure the PR response is to ask it to check / fix it's work. In practice with the current models I've messed with that only works so well unless you know the right questions to ask. Google seems to be claiming they've fixed that and 'lil timmy can make an OS from scratch just by asking for it, but I guess we'll see.

    Kind of torn, because if nothing else there are some abandonware apps ( Minuum keyboard ) that I miss that would be nice to have working recreations of. Who knows how much it would cost or if it could make stable versions that I could trust though.

    All this is also an existential threat to the Internet as a whole. If Google isn't driving traffic to websites but just 'doing it for you' a lot of places that rely on ad revenue are going to die off. That has pros and cons but it's definitely a change they're forcing on everyone.

    9 votes
  20. Comment on Is solar about to get way better? (I did the math) in ~enviro

    turmacar
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    I've not pulled the trigger on getting a full solar install yet, I was quoted ~$40k for a rooftop system. Absolutely agree on getting as much installed as soon as you can though. There will always...

    I've not pulled the trigger on getting a full solar install yet, I was quoted ~$40k for a rooftop system. Absolutely agree on getting as much installed as soon as you can though. There will always be something newer / cheaper on the horizon.

    I ended up getting a battery system that allows me to run my house on non-peak electricity. It came with two 500W solar panels, mostly meant for using the battery for camping. Having just that 1kW of solar on top of an arbor for the last year they've generated ~$200, which is a month's electric bill in spring or fall. The solar panel part of the system will pay for itself in 5 years. I'm probably going to buy another set.

    1 vote