turmacar's recent activity
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Comment on US Republican Party representative introduces bill to amend the 22nd Amendment, seeking to allow a third Donald Trump term in office in ~society
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Comment on Valve's Steam page currently lists a second mystery game alongside Deadlock, sending Half-Life 3 theorists into another frenzy of speculation in ~games
turmacar That patch dropping was almost as crazy as the technical achievement. Just came out awhile after the release because the dev thought they could. I think a lot of people spent awhile in game just...That patch dropping was almost as crazy as the technical achievement. Just came out awhile after the release because the dev thought they could.
I think a lot of people spent awhile in game just playing with bottles even if they'd already finished it. I know I did.
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Comment on Valve's Steam page currently lists a second mystery game alongside Deadlock, sending Half-Life 3 theorists into another frenzy of speculation in ~games
turmacar Yes? Probably? Could just be there's less straight up hallway sections and more arena-y bits where/when there are larger numbers of enemies. They do a decent job of ducking into cover and trying...Yes? Probably? Could just be there's less straight up hallway sections and more arena-y bits where/when there are larger numbers of enemies. They do a decent job of ducking into cover and trying to flank and such. Could draw a comparison to something like Metro series' human enemies.
Like y'all were talking about with F.E.A.R. so much of it comes down to level design to highlight the areas the enemy AI works well and lessen areas where it falls down. Halo is another one that got a ton of praise for their AI at the time and it was mostly a few simple rules operating in tandem. The longer you're "out of cover" (in their sight-line) the better their "aim" (the firing cone of their gun) gets for example.
Enemy AI in gaming is mostly the art of convincing the player the computer doesn't have enough knowledge to instantly defeat them.
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Comment on Stablecoins are non-fungible, bank deposits are fungible in ~finance
turmacar Except you're paying that service fee for access, convenience, and security. "Free" credit is still relatively recent, which is why there are still cards you explicitly pay to have access to the...Except you're paying that service fee for access, convenience, and security. "Free" credit is still relatively recent, which is why there are still cards you explicitly pay to have access to the better deals. Dealing purely with cash/debit it can often necessitate a small claims court filing if there are issues.
The 'rewards' are like loyalty cards at a coffee shop. They're a reason to use that card over a competitor, even if the only difference is the number of points you have.
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Comment on Valve's Steam page currently lists a second mystery game alongside Deadlock, sending Half-Life 3 theorists into another frenzy of speculation in ~games
turmacar Not particularly, or at least not notably moreso than any other game from 2020 compared to 2000s FPSs. Alyx's big deal was being a stunningly well implemented VR game. I like VR, but even now a...I haven't played HL Alyx to know what the AI is like there but I have to imagine it's a big step up from HL2, right?
Not particularly, or at least not notably moreso than any other game from 2020 compared to 2000s FPSs.
Alyx's big deal was being a stunningly well implemented VR game. I like VR, but even now a majority of games feel more like tech demos than anything. Alyx was at least on par with the HL Episodes and did a great job feeling smooth with movement options and fidelity of the world.
Half Life as a driver/indicator of progress is one of the more interesting things Valve has always said they were using the series for and I really don't know what kind of sea change they'd be aiming for with HL3, which I think has been a lot of the problem. HL1 was pushing stories in games and cohesive level design, HL2 was pushing physics engines and larger narratives, HL episodes were pushing distribution models, and Alyx was pushing VR. I would like a continuation/finale to the Half Life story but don't know what they could be doing from an innovation side.
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Comment on US introduces additional export restrictions on AI-chips in ~tech
turmacar How does that even work if most of those chips aren't produced in the US? Designs can't be sent to the chip factories in Taiwan/Korea?How does that even work if most of those chips aren't produced in the US? Designs can't be sent to the chip factories in Taiwan/Korea?
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Comment on This could be the beginning of the end for fire insurance in California in ~finance
turmacar We've had a solid few decades of "let insurance handle it" instead of investing in infrastructure or painful longer term solutions. For better or worse it seems like we're hitting the crux point...We've had a solid few decades of "let insurance handle it" instead of investing in infrastructure or painful longer term solutions. For better or worse it seems like we're hitting the crux point where that's no longer viable.
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Comment on What hard scifi books could you recommend? in ~books
turmacar Children of Time and it's sequels are fun, dealing with the (millennia) long term fallout of Earth 'nuking' itself back to the stone age right as the first terraforming projects are about to be...Children of Time and it's sequels are fun, dealing with the (millennia) long term fallout of Earth 'nuking' itself back to the stone age right as the first terraforming projects are about to be completed. Setting up humans on generation ships that have had to bootstrap their tech from the ruins interacting with remnants humans left in space.
The Lost Fleet series are definitely more "B-movie" sci-fi, at least plot wise, but I appreciate the amount of thought put into "fleet battles when you have to account for speed-of-light delay are really hard".
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Comment on What hard scifi books could you recommend? in ~books
turmacar I do think those Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained are the best of them, and they 'end nicely' instead of being super open-ended or a cliffhanger, but if you're not aware he's written a couple...I do think those Pandora's Star and Judas Unchained are the best of them, and they 'end nicely' instead of being super open-ended or a cliffhanger, but if you're not aware he's written a couple sequel series in the Commonwealth. The Void trilogy had some interesting stuff going on with the development of the world, the ones after that I haven't read yet.
I think he does a great job bringing the Opera back to Space Opera but understand the criticism that the cast is large enough that it can take awhile to circle back to what a given character is doing.
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Comment on Honey did nothing wrong in ~tech
turmacar The cherry on top is that they do so even if they don't find a discount, they just blanket take credit/revenue regardless of if Honey interacts with your purchase at all.The cherry on top is that they do so even if they don't find a discount, they just blanket take credit/revenue regardless of if Honey interacts with your purchase at all.
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Comment on The average American spent 2.5 months on their phone in 2024 in ~tech
turmacar All those things are true. I just distrust blanket statements from raw number stats. I spent at least 24 hours of my 4 day Christmas trip to relatives using my phone. 16 hours using GPS to/from...All those things are true. I just distrust blanket statements from raw number stats.
I spent at least 24 hours of my 4 day Christmas trip to relatives using my phone. 16 hours using GPS to/from their house in another state, ~6 hours of audiobook walking my dog. I think it would be silly to add sleep tracking to that, but that would easily add ~30 hours of 'use'. None of which includes the time I spent scrolling the internet during the football game or any other bad use of my phone.
If you want to track bad eating habits but do so by tracking "time in restaurants", without distinguishing between visiting with friends at a sushi restaurant or someone spending time alone gorging themselves at an all you can eat buffet, it's a bad stat. Regardless that higher is 'probably' worse.
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Comment on The average American spent 2.5 months on their phone in 2024 in ~tech
turmacar All of these stats rub me the wrong way because they basically ignore quality in favor of quantity. Granted, because quality of time is dramatically harder to measure. If you assume 2.5 months per...All of these stats rub me the wrong way because they basically ignore quality in favor of quantity. Granted, because quality of time is dramatically harder to measure. If you assume 2.5 months per year is spent blearily swiping through Facebook/TikTok/etc., yeah that's not great, but most people aren't doing that.
Like Wolf_359 says people are still people, and instead of going to the corner pub or holding a ball they're socializing remotely while doing other things or with a different social group. I'd bet there's a difference between checking a message notification within 10 minutes and most other notifications, but that's probably not as dramatic a graph.
People check their phone within 10 minutes of waking up? It's my alarm clock, and then during the morning routine it's music/news/personal updates. That I'm not waiting to sit down with a Victrola/newspaper/checkbook/journal but doing it while I'm showering and making breakfast frankly seems an inane distinction. The version from a few decades ago might be that the new generation is crazy because they just tune the radio to something in the background instead of siting down to appreciate music.
That the younger generation is more anxious about losing the device that controls access a significant portion of their lives also isn't surprising. If my phone is missing I can't do 2FA for work, which is a huge hassle. It's all the problems of losing your wallet and your journal and your remote secure identification and the fastest way to communicate to fix those problems. If you're retired some of that isn't an issue, and you probably use the device for far less.
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Comment on What long standalone book is worth its page count? in ~books
turmacar Just gonna pile on with your friend. :) Worm is probably the best superhero world written, even in the decade+ since it finished with The Boys/Watchmen/Marvel exploding in popularity/talent. It...Just gonna pile on with your friend. :)
Worm is probably the best superhero world written, even in the decade+ since it finished with The Boys/Watchmen/Marvel exploding in popularity/talent. It has an explanation for why the "cops and robbers" vigilante/villain dynamic is tolerated by society and (eventually) an explanation for why powers exist. Along with more believable personalities and interpersonal conflicts for everyone involved.
Granted despite the format the word count definitely puts it more in the vein of a long book series than a single book.
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Comment on Google says AI weather model masters fifteen-day forecast in ~enviro
turmacar What does that mean then? Being reliant on government provided data makes sense, that's generally who operates weather satellites, being reliant on the models seems odd. It's neat they were able...But he said these forecasting systems are reliant on the weather prediction models that are already running, such as that operated by ECMWF.
What does that mean then? Being reliant on government provided data makes sense, that's generally who operates weather satellites, being reliant on the models seems odd.
It's neat they were able to outperform models using old data. It seems a no brainer to be running it using current data to see if it actually can predict out 15 days and generate a track record of being right.
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Comment on What short book series is worth more than its page count? in ~books
turmacar Absolutely understand the sentiment, but Sandman is held up as an example of "Comics as art" for a reason. Libraries, second-hand, and other ways exist to read it without giving him money.Gaiman
Absolutely understand the sentiment, but Sandman is held up as an example of "Comics as art" for a reason. Libraries, second-hand, and other ways exist to read it without giving him money.
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Comment on Inside the war against excessive headlight brightness in ~transport
turmacar I get that it's hard to point to specific instances. But the over all trends seem maddeningly in line with each other....The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s data shows that headlight brightness has roughly doubled since 2015.
Despite the increase in headlight brightness, data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that fatal crashes in dark conditions remain relatively stable. In fact, crashes on lighted roads have risen slightly over the past two decades. It raises the question: Is all this extra brightness actually doing anything?
I get that it's hard to point to specific instances. But the over all trends seem maddeningly in line with each other....
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Comment on What’s your “I didn’t know I needed that” item? in ~life
turmacar From the Artemis page, for them at least it's a flash drive. Apparently they had over 3 million names so that'd need to be some real tiny engraving! So instead the names are stored by trapping...From the Artemis page, for them at least it's a flash drive. Apparently they had over 3 million names so that'd need to be some real tiny engraving! So instead the names are stored by trapping electrons in bit buckets.
Very cool. Will need to pay more attention for future launches.
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Comment on Pine64 November update: Something borrowed something new in ~tech
turmacar For PineTime, I don't suppose you've ever had a Pebble to compare it too? I've kind of been going the opposite way with Gamin watches since they imploded, but I do miss the simplicity of the...For PineTime, I don't suppose you've ever had a Pebble to compare it too?
I've kind of been going the opposite way with Gamin watches since they imploded, but I do miss the simplicity of the Pebble watches.
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Comment on Great shows with interesting premises? in ~tv
turmacar For All Mankind is pretty fantastic. "Russia landed on the moon first, so the Space Race accelerates" is the premise. Nicely has a small time skip between seasons which gives them the space to not...For All Mankind is pretty fantastic.
"Russia landed on the moon first, so the Space Race accelerates" is the premise.
Nicely has a small time skip between seasons which gives them the space to not stagnate story wise.
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Comment on Automatic braking systems save lives. Now they’ll need to work at 62 MPH. in ~transport
turmacar Personally the worry isn't the systems as much as it is the overconfidence in the capability of the systems, like a lot of new car/tech stuff. A lot of people, for whatever reason, trust the tech...Personally the worry isn't the systems as much as it is the overconfidence in the capability of the systems, like a lot of new car/tech stuff. A lot of people, for whatever reason, trust the tech implicitly until they experience a downside firsthand. And those downsides are so downplayed by marketing you usually have to hunt for what they even might be.
Have a friend who was convinced the autobraking was foolproof because the salesman had them drive the car at a wall at the dealership. Never questioned if it had any limitations at all. Hoping the "Above 55mph 100% of collisions occurred" might make them tailgate less on the highway at least.
As with a lot of this, a better overarching solution is not to make driving a task with less human interaction. Spending possibly hundreds of hours being lulled into a sense of security by the automation that nothing bad can happen, only to have to take action in a split second to avoid death, is not a recipe for safety. Having less people operating vehicles is. Preferably trained professionals on mandated in grade separated travel corridors depending on speed/distance. Like a modern tiered transportation system involving cars, but also having trains/trams/bikes/walking spaces all separated instead of requiring everyone to drive everywhere.
They very specifically don't. They see it as handouts and an anomaly at best. There's a reason they keep working for ending everything from government regulation/oversight to programs like medicare.
They think they way for the average person to prosper is full deregulation and basically a return the the Articles of Confederation where the federal government is mostly mechanism for diplomacy and a way of organizing the military.