winther's recent activity
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
winther Link ParentMy Neighbor Totoro is a great movie for all ages. I think more of it as a movie that is told through the eyes of kids, rather than a kids movie. Especially compared to many commercial western...My Neighbor Totoro is a great movie for all ages. I think more of it as a movie that is told through the eyes of kids, rather than a kids movie. Especially compared to many commercial western animation movies, that are just plain kids movies. I also have two daughters that remind me quite a bit of Satsuki and Mei, and what pulled me in was the incredible display of childhood glee, imagination, curiosity - and not the least their need for comfort. I like their father too, with how he simply acknowledges and encourages their curiosity. I have also seen it a couple of times with my daughters and they also love it, and just confirms for me that movies aimed at kids don't have to be this fast paced action galore fest that most other modern animations are these days. If it is good, slow paced stories can still grab their attention.
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Comment on What quotes inspire you? in ~talk
winther LinkIt is better to start somewhere than nowhere Useful at work as well as in private. I am generally one that is better than finishing things than starting them, so this quote is helpful.It is better to start somewhere than nowhere
Useful at work as well as in private. I am generally one that is better than finishing things than starting them, so this quote is helpful.
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Comment on Is there a way to filter out all link posts? in ~tildes
winther LinkYour can add filters to ignore tags. Most links will have a source tag. Så add source to filtered tags in your sidebar will hide probably almost all link posts.Your can add filters to ignore tags. Most links will have a source tag. Så add
sourceto filtered tags in your sidebar will hide probably almost all link posts. -
Comment on Google claims news is worthless to its ad business after test involving 1% of search results in eight EU markets in ~tech
winther LinkRegardless of the results of this, I find it really infuriating that Google does these experiments on users without their knowledge and consent. Google has become such a massive monopoly and an...Regardless of the results of this, I find it really infuriating that Google does these experiments on users without their knowledge and consent. Google has become such a massive monopoly and an everyday utility, that experiments like this have huge consequences. There was a journalist here in Denmark who fell victim to this, and of course it was pretty damn inconvenient in his line of work. Add to that the hours wasted on troubleshooting and not understanding what the hell was going on. Of course, Google is a private company and can do whatever they want with their service, but should stuff like this be legal when you have a monopoly like that? Not giving users the choice or the knowledge?
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Comment on EU slams the door on US in colossal defense plan in ~society
winther LinkI have heard more or less convincing theories all my life that the weapons industry and oil industry in USA holds massive political power. The recent moves by Trump isn't good for their business....I have heard more or less convincing theories all my life that the weapons industry and oil industry in USA holds massive political power. The recent moves by Trump isn't good for their business. Europe will buy less military equipment from US companies and allowing Russia back into the market will add more competition for the fossil fuel companies. Will we see some pressure from these industries or don't they have that much political power?
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
winther LinkI took my daughter to see the Oscar winning Flow and sadly it didn't live up to its very high praise I have seen and heard basically everywhere. Starting with the animation, which is impressive in...I took my daughter to see the Oscar winning Flow and sadly it didn't live up to its very high praise I have seen and heard basically everywhere. Starting with the animation, which is impressive in its own right, but I still think it mostly looked like a long tech demo. Especially with how the camera moved around honestly gave me vibes from computer game cut scenes. For an ambitious movie like this with some big themes presented with an attempt at poetic storytelling, its origin in Blender sadly really shows. The score was also kind of generic placeholder type stuff. The one thing that did work well was the animals. They definitely felt very animal-like. Very natural and convincing. Since it is called Flow it is likely meant to be like that, but the narrative was to me barely anything more than events that just flowed together without much beginning, middle or end. And then it just becomes somewhat repetitive. It does tie into the underlying theme of "the flow of nature" and I do appreciate the core message of trust, providing help and friendship, but as a whole it was honestly rather boring.
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Comment on Professional writer endorses short story written by OpenAI's new creative writing model in ~books
winther Link ParentIt is hard to really know what my opinion is when you know the story is AI written, but it does have the trademarks of what I see as typical AI writing. It is very verbose and often vague. It is...It is hard to really know what my opinion is when you know the story is AI written, but it does have the trademarks of what I see as typical AI writing. It is very verbose and often vague. It is written as something that tries to be "high brow" writing, but it lacks clarity and variation.
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Python Performance: Why 'if not list' is 2x faster than using len()
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Comment on Spotify takes down Andrew Tate pimping podcast after complaints in ~tech
winther Link ParentSpotify also has porngrind/goregrind bands which often has "questionable" song titles. It can be hard to find the lines between artistic license and what constitute an actual statement of an...Spotify also has porngrind/goregrind bands which often has "questionable" song titles. It can be hard to find the lines between artistic license and what constitute an actual statement of an opinion, but I think music (and other art forms) needs to at least initially be looked at with as a work of fiction. We generally allow for books or movies with plenty of immoral elements, but of course even those can be used to make a political statement where it isn't "just for fun" anymore.
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Comment on Is US President Donald Trump planning to invade other countries? in ~society
winther LinkHe said in his inauguration speech that he would see to a US that expanded its borders. I think he is serious. For a long time there was a weird consensus that Trump just said things he didn't...He said in his inauguration speech that he would see to a US that expanded its borders. I think he is serious. For a long time there was a weird consensus that Trump just said things he didn't mean as some sort of offensive tactic. If the last months have learned us anything it is that his words needs to be taken quite literally. He seems really motivated just to get USA look bigger on a world map. There isn't any deeper plan than that.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
winther LinkI have been trying to watch movies from countries that are very far from what I usually seek out. Azor is an Argentinian movie from 2021 which takes place in the 80s during the military rule....I have been trying to watch movies from countries that are very far from what I usually seek out.
Azor is an Argentinian movie from 2021 which takes place in the 80s during the military rule. Follows a Swiss banker taking care of his business interest in the country. Most of the movie is basically just business people talking in fancy looking hotels and restaurants. Could be set anywhere in the world. There is a point to that we barely see any regular Argentinian citizens, because this shows how people with power and money have just normalized the oppressive state and are working within that to make money. The dictatorship is barely acknowledged and this made it hard for me to distinguish what separated this from any normal business deals, and that could be entirely intentional. It shows that with enough normalization, there isn't any difference if you willingly turn a blind eye to the real consequences for real people in what you are doing. In that sense, it is a bit similar to The Zone of Interest but with even more distance and subtlety.
The Romanian film Bacalaureat (Graduation) from 2016 is similar in how it takes a subtle approach to show the corruption in Romania. The premise of a father with high ambitions for his daughter as she is about to embark for studying in England and just needs good grades for the final exam, seems like a minor drama. And it is a very enclosed personal family drama, but it exposes so much of Romanian society, which makes it really unique. The father has clearly lost faith in Romania and desperately wants a better future for his daughter, which in his mind means she needs to study and start a life in western Europe. Things start with a blow as she becomes the victim of a failed rape assault attempt, which naturally puts her upcoming exam performance in jeopardy. The father seems like a good honest man, but he feels forced to enter the corruption problem of Romania. This opens up interesting dilemmas on how to stay true to ones own morals within an immoral system.
Last night I took a wild swing with a very bizarre Chilean film La telenovela errante (The Wandering Soap Opera) which is filmed in the early 1990s but edited and released after the directors death in 2017. It is an absurd anthology of seven short films with a recurring theme of soap opera and satirizing Chilean society of the time. Being pretty unknowable about Chile there are likely a ton of things I don't get, though this review from The Hollywood Reporter helped a great deal. The first 3 scenes are the best, as they are funny on their own without any knowledge about Chile or its politics at the time. The later scenes turns into Lynchain absurdity and I lost interest quite quickly. One of those oddities that I am glad I gave a chance, but I didn't get a whole lot out of it.
Unsurprisingly I got the most out of the European film, but it always fun to explore something far beyond my usual horizons.
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Comment on What's a feeling you sometimes experience that you don't have a name for? in ~talk
winther Link ParentI get a sense of that from the start of the movie Collateral, before it turns violent of course.I get a sense of that from the start of the movie Collateral, before it turns violent of course.
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Comment on Mozilla sees surge in Firefox users thanks to EU’s Digital Markets Act in ~tech
winther Link ParentIn terms of good alternative open source browsers for iOS, I can highly recommend Orion browser. It is made by the people behind Kagi but can be used freely by everyone. Have been quite happy with...In terms of good alternative open source browsers for iOS, I can highly recommend Orion browser. It is made by the people behind Kagi but can be used freely by everyone. Have been quite happy with now for over a year without any substantial issues. And it has that swipe feature you mention. Didn't even know that, so thanks for learning me something new as well.
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Comment on Destruction - No Kings - No Masters (2024) in ~music
winther Link ParentI am not super well versed in Destruction but their new album popped up and while listening to it I thought it was pretty solid and this was just the song with an official video. I am listening to...I am not super well versed in Destruction but their new album popped up and while listening to it I thought it was pretty solid and this was just the song with an official video.
I am listening to it a second time now and it still solid, not groundbreaking. Which ain't a bad description for the band perhaps. I can definitely see that in general many songs are maybe 30-40 second too long. But it seems like the band is just having fun now. The opening track simply named "Destruction" is a solid head banging fest of self celebratory metal.
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Destruction - No Kings - No Masters (2024)
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Comment on Starbucking (2006) full documentary about a man who is visiting every Starbucks location in the world in ~food
winther Link ParentMore than a 1000 Starbucks open each year. Sounds pretty impossible to keep up worldwide.More than a 1000 Starbucks open each year. Sounds pretty impossible to keep up worldwide.
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Comment on An appeal to the community for non-algorithmic recommendations in ~talk
winther LinkI think I see what you are going for, and it is an interesting and admirable approach to recommendations. It is easy enough to just ask for something similar to XYZ and it will probably give good...I think I see what you are going for, and it is an interesting and admirable approach to recommendations. It is easy enough to just ask for something similar to XYZ and it will probably give good results. Asking more open ended and insisting that it is something I really can stand behind demands a bit more reflection.
So I have a fiction and a non-fiction book that came to mind.
The Clockwork Rocket by Greg Egan is a novel I have likely mentioned a few times here already, but with good reason. I think it is one of the best unique and mind-boggling science fiction novels and Egan does something no one else can do. It is set in a universe where the laws of physics are different than ours, mostly (in my layman understanding of it at least) from the speed of light not being a constant and thus the usual time dilation consequences of relativity work in reverse. The narrative is about a space mission saving the planet from annihilation, but it is everything around that that I found fascinating. Egan is able to make the thrill of scientific discovery and applying scientific reasoning and deduction into an exciting story. I admit it is full of stuff that I don't have the knowledge to fully comprehend, but you still get a sense that Egan knows his stuff and it is somehow still exciting to read simply because you feel the excitement and curiosity of the characters.
I enjoy learning about computer history in all its form and there are many great books I could recommend, from biographies to accounts from niche aspects of technical projects. To chose one that I think is a little overlooked, as I think there often is too much focus on business individuals as the true innovators, it would be The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and the Great Age of American Innovation by Jon Gertner. As the title says, it is about Bell Labs and illustrates how real innovation comes from a free academic environment where people work together to research, and not look for profit opportunities. All the success stories from Silicon Valley wouldn't have happened without the groundwork made by these now mostly anonymous people.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
winther Link ParentYes, I had to break that up into three nights. Amazing film though.Yes, I had to break that up into three nights. Amazing film though.
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Comment on Midweek Movie Free Talk in ~movies
winther Link ParentWell :) In this case it is naturally split into six parts of 90-100 minute each. That isn't as daunting as seeing it as a single 10 hour epic.Well :) In this case it is naturally split into six parts of 90-100 minute each. That isn't as daunting as seeing it as a single 10 hour epic.
I took a random chance yesterday and saw Faith Akin's Auf der anderen Seite (The Edge of Heaven) from 2007. It won for best screenplay in Cannes. I basically just watched it because I saw it will be removed from Mubi in a few days, and I am really glad I took such a random chance. This is very much a film about characters or personal portraits if you will. Every person in this are full of life and personal history. They are not just there to drive the plot forward. The narrative structure reminds me very much of one my favorite directors - Kieswlowski, with how it deals with random encounters and how all destinies are interlinked. This makes for a rather constructed plot, which I am usually not a fan of, but the plot is not the main point here - it is the characters and they all draw you in from the first second on screen.
It is a very tragic story, but in a strange way since you know the tragedy before it occurs. We see "Lotte's death" on screen, without knowing who Lotte is yet. When someone says "I am Lotte", the sadness instantly hits, even though it hasn't happened yet. Just waiting for the inevitable outcome. It adds an anxiety to the narrative that I don't think I have seen done like that before.
The different narrative threads sort of blends together, then drift apart, giving closure but also leaving things unresolved. I love films that does that.