Zorind's recent activity
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
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Comment on US President Donald Trump isn't building a ballroom in ~society
Zorind LinkLooks like this is maybe confirmed? Or at least now being speculatively reported on by CNN: https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/19/politics/east-wing-secret-bunker-construction-details AndLooks like this is maybe confirmed? Or at least now being speculatively reported on by CNN:
https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/19/politics/east-wing-secret-bunker-construction-details
White House director of management and administration Joshua Fisher said broadly that the overall ballroom project will “(enhance) mission critical functionality,” “make necessary security enhancements” and “(deliver) resilient, adaptive infrastructure aligned with future mission needs.”
… he indicated that the “top-secret” work taking place underground …
“There are some things regarding this project that are, frankly, of top-secret nature that we are currently working on. That does not preclude us from changing the above-grade structure, but that work needed to be considered when doing this project, which was not part of the NCPC process,” he said.And
“With a high degree of confidence, I would say that all of the subterranean structures,” including the PEOC, heating and air utilities, and underground facilities for the White House Military Office and US Secret Service Uniformed Division, “all of that seems to be gone,” the second source said.
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Comment on Curl will end its bug bounty program by the end of January due to excessive AI generated reports in ~comp
Zorind Link ParentI think it’s a time commitment issue on the developer’s side of things - curl is still lead basically by one guy (though there are lots of people who are “maintainers” and contribute, but not as...I think it’s a time commitment issue on the developer’s side of things - curl is still lead basically by one guy (though there are lots of people who are “maintainers” and contribute, but not as much as the lead).
It's about sustainability too. #curl is a small project. We cannot spend multiple hours every day arguing with people who want money for having found what is perhaps a bug - but often is not even that.
It drains us. It drowns us.
Onward and upward! -
Comment on Why should anyone care about low-level programming? in ~comp
Zorind Link ParentI’m gonna have to actually read & reply to this later, but I also watched Randy for a while! Relevant mention to this post for sure.I’m gonna have to actually read & reply to this later, but I also watched Randy for a while! Relevant mention to this post for sure.
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Comment on What's a culture shock that you experienced? in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentI am a very average looking white guy, and went to a Thai grocery store in San Jose, California because I was trying to pick up some ingredients for dinner. I am standing there, one of maybe three...What occurred to me was that there was a key difference between my wife's experience in northern Idaho, and my experience in southern California. At no point did I feel threatened. I felt uncomfortable, sure, but I never felt in danger.
I am a very average looking white guy, and went to a Thai grocery store in San Jose, California because I was trying to pick up some ingredients for dinner. I am standing there, one of maybe three white people in the store, looking at the aisle of fish sauce, thinking to myself “I did not know there were this many brands of fish sauce”. I look up a couple on my phone, and then grab one. As I go to put the other one I had back, this older Asian woman whose height is maybe up to my shoulder comes up, says “no no”, and gestures for me to put the one I had grabbed back, and take a different one from further down the aisle. I don’t even remember if she said anything else, but it was clear I looked helpless and was making a rookie mistake.
I try to pay it forward by always saying yes when anyone asks if I can grab them something off the top shelf.
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Comment on Recommendations needed: Favorite “comfort” movies in ~movies
Zorind Link ParentI do often quote “we have purposely trained him wrong, as a joke” and “that’s a lot of nuts”I do often quote “we have purposely trained him wrong, as a joke” and “that’s a lot of nuts”
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Comment on Recommendations needed: Favorite “comfort” movies in ~movies
Zorind Link ParentKUNG FURY! Edit: Have you ever seen “Kung Pow: Enter the Fist”, it might be up your alley, or you could hate it. It’s like a parody of badly dubbed movies, using footage from an older Hong Kong...KUNG FURY!
Edit: Have you ever seen “Kung Pow: Enter the Fist”, it might be up your alley, or you could hate it. It’s like a parody of badly dubbed movies, using footage from an older Hong Kong film with a new main character edited in and the entire movie dubbed to create what is now arguably a cult classic. It’s quite a bit “off beat” in its humor.
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Comment on Recommendations needed: Favorite “comfort” movies in ~movies
Zorind LinkThe Secret Life of Walter Mitty, it’s a bit cheesy and apparently not super critically well received, but to me it’s like a fantastical version of a “slice of life” film. The Princess Bride The...- The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, it’s a bit cheesy and apparently not super critically well received, but to me it’s like a fantastical version of a “slice of life” film.
- The Princess Bride
- The Greatest Showman
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
Zorind Link ParentWith this setup, is Shelley basically a wrapper for whatever LLM you tell it to use, and you provide your own access key for that LLM? I might actually have to poke around with it at some point....With this setup, is Shelley basically a wrapper for whatever LLM you tell it to use, and you provide your own access key for that LLM?
I might actually have to poke around with it at some point. I’ve been hesitant to try out anything other than VSCode’s tab-autocomplete LLM, but I know that my work is probably going to start wanting us to use more agentic LLM-focused workflows at some point. And I’m struggling to figure out what a good learning resource for that would be. It seems like exe.dev / Shelley might be a good way to try it out in a fairly risk-free way?
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Comment on What's something you're "in too deep" on? in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentMy parents gave me the choice of going into public school at 6th grade or 5th grade, and I chose 5th grade because I had friends from sports that were going into 5th grade. (I technically re-took...My parents gave me the choice of going into public school at 6th grade or 5th grade, and I chose 5th grade because I had friends from sports that were going into 5th grade. (I technically re-took 5th grade, but I was at the age cutoff where I was either going to be one of the youngest 6th grader or towards the older end of 5th graders).
I’m a pretty introverted person, so the change to public school was a lot, but luckily I found an extracurricular (theatre) I enjoyed and was able to make friends there, which gave me a group to hang out with at lunch and after school.
Now, when I went to college, the biggest culture shock was Pop vs Soda, and I did get teased by one of my roommates for that.
I think the biggest difficulty would likely be misconceptions from others about your homeschool experience (basically every single time it came up people would say things like “wow I’d have no idea you were homeschooled”), or depending on how your kids do with homework and studying and how those sorts of assignments might be different in college, and not having the experience to draw on for motivation/how to study effectively/etc.
I guess I didn’t really answer your questions about pros/cons, but maybe that provided some insight? The most important thing is finding a way to make friends or people you can hang out with and study with in college IMO, and making sure they know what they can likely expect in terms of homework and assignments and tests.
Whether that comes from going to public school earlier, or from the ap-like classes and AP tests in a homeschool environment, I think either way is likely OK. (Also, with neurodivergent diagnoses, make sure to reach out/register with the university for accommodations. At the school I went to, most of the professors were good about it, but there were a handful that were not, and having “official” accommodations through the university made it easier to raise that up as a problem/get needs addressed)
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Comment on Moving out soon. Think out loud with me regarding saving money vs. quality of life. in ~life
Zorind LinkDoes your current place have in-unit laundry? I have never lived anywhere without in-unit laundry since college, and I don’t think I could do it. I would take the house with roommates on the...Does your current place have in-unit laundry?
I have never lived anywhere without in-unit laundry since college, and I don’t think I could do it.
I would take the house with roommates on the in-unit laundry alone (with the cost savings, doubly so). If the difference you’re looking at is really around $1,000 per month, that savings is definitely worth it, especially since you won’t need to buy a bunch of furniture. Having your own bedroom and bathroom is a pretty good deal, so as long as you don’t completely dislike the other people in the house I think you’ll be OK.
However, I would highly, highly recommend taking at least $500 of that $1000 difference each month, and put it into a Money Market or high yield savings account at your bank - should be at least 2-3% APY. That way, you have money set aside for unseen expenses, or for helping you move out of the place with housemates if you truly don’t like it.
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Comment on I am kinda curious about the demographics of Tildes in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentNever really been interested in carving unfortunately. My first foray into woodworking came from making theatre sets, so very much not small scale, and also not very “quality” woodworking. Sci-Fi...Never really been interested in carving unfortunately. My first foray into woodworking came from making theatre sets, so very much not small scale, and also not very “quality” woodworking.
Sci-Fi and fantasy-adjacent Sci-Fi is cool! I do tend to like hard sci fi, but I’m also a sucker for fantasy. Good luck with your current novel, hopefully it gets easier as you keep working on it.
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Comment on What's something you're "in too deep" on? in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentNot the person you’re replying to here, but you might find it interesting to take a community college class on Ancient Greek Philosophy, or other Philosophy classes if you can find one! I got a...Not the person you’re replying to here, but you might find it interesting to take a community college class on Ancient Greek Philosophy, or other Philosophy classes if you can find one!
I got a minor in Philosophy to go along with my Software Engineering degree, because I enjoyed one of the required ethics classes I took that much (and because I was moderately interested in Stoicism at the time).
I really liked Aristotle and his approach to ethics that’s now broadly referred to as “virtue ethics”. I think we read a few articles by Martha Nussbaum and some by Alasdair MacIntyre.
I also took course on Applied Indigenous philosophy, where we explored some different ideas such as a kinship theory of ethics, influenced largely by Māori concepts. One article I recall reading was “Ngāti Kahu Kaitiakitanga” by Margaret Mutu, but I don’t know if it’s available for free anywhere.
I don’t know that I have a favorite “philosopher”, but along with Aristotle and the articles above, I did really like reading Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations, Viktot Frankl’s Man's Search for Meaning, a couple of Camus books, though I really should read some more of them before I actually recommend them, and Walker Percy’s Lost in the Cosmos. …I may have been having a rough go of it during college.
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Comment on I am kinda curious about the demographics of Tildes in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentShe is very pretty, and I think she knows it.She is very pretty, and I think she knows it.
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Comment on I am kinda curious about the demographics of Tildes in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentDo you still do any woodworking, or just writing? If you don’t mind sharing more about what you write, I’d love to hear more about it, or what genres you write in? I keep trying to pick up simple...Do you still do any woodworking, or just writing? If you don’t mind sharing more about what you write, I’d love to hear more about it, or what genres you write in?
I keep trying to pick up simple woodworking as a hobby, but I think it’s probably reliant on me getting a house with a garage I can actually work in, rather than trying to woodwork in an apartment.
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Comment on I am kinda curious about the demographics of Tildes in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentPics: https://postimg.cc/gallery/cvsDN1z Thanks! Her name is Ears lol. She’s been settling in OK but is still both very curious and wary about our apartment. Luckily she does know me and my wife...Pics: https://postimg.cc/gallery/cvsDN1z
Thanks! Her name is Ears lol. She’s been settling in OK but is still both very curious and wary about our apartment. Luckily she does know me and my wife fairly well as we’d been over to visit her/house sit where she was quite a few times over the past few months.
(@DefinitelyNotAFae you can see her too)
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Comment on I am kinda curious about the demographics of Tildes in ~talk
Zorind LinkLate 20’s/M/Ohio (USA). Software Engineer (Satellite ground comms). As far as I know, I don’t work for @devalexwhite lol. Adopted a cat this weekLate 20’s/M/Ohio (USA). Software Engineer (Satellite ground comms). As far as I know, I don’t work for @devalexwhite lol.
Adopted a cat this week
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Comment on What's something you're "in too deep" on? in ~talk
Zorind Link ParentI was homeschooled for most of elementary school, but when to public school for 5th grade through high school. My only concern with going directly from homeschooled to college/university, if...I was homeschooled for most of elementary school, but when to public school for 5th grade through high school.
My only concern with going directly from homeschooled to college/university, if that’s the plan, would be how large of a change that would be “all at once” and how the social dynamics would be vastly different.
But my homeschooling experience was positive, and it sounds like you’re doing a great job with AP-lite courses and making sure your kid is getting an actual education
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Comment on Toll roads are spreading in America in ~transport
Zorind Link ParentI really liked how the express lanes were done in the areas of the SF Bay Area I lived - express lanes really only charged during periods of high congestion, and were free with 2+ people in the...I really liked how the express lanes were done in the areas of the SF Bay Area I lived - express lanes really only charged during periods of high congestion, and were free with 2+ people in the car.
I generally dislike the idea of entirely restricting roads based on tolls - IMO, roads should be public-access, and that means they should be free. And I don’t love the idea of third-party companies (like EzPass) taking a cut of the toll.
Ideally, we’d charge something at the DMV based on vehicle weight & miles driven, since the gas tax ignores EVs and apparently is political suicide to raise. But I guess since we don’t have the infrastructure in place for that, toll roads do make sense.
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Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp
Zorind Link ParentSo it’s not an actual assembly language as far as I know, and maybe not what you’re looking for at all, but the game Exapunks is a game where the main gameplay is writing assembly instructions for...So it’s not an actual assembly language as far as I know, and maybe not what you’re looking for at all, but the game Exapunks is a game where the main gameplay is writing assembly instructions for the EXAs to “hack” things. It’s a pretty fun game!
Either way, I would highly recommend it, even if it’s not exactly what you’re looking for
I’ve now seen monogame pop up in a couple comments across tildes and/or mastodon, and would love to hear more about your thoughts on using it.
I’m a software developer professionally, and have dabbled with Godot on the side just for fun, mostly when work is slow & not exercising the programming part of my brain. I’ve been thinking about maybe looking into Monogame instead, and was wondering if there were any helpful resources you used for it, or any thoughts you might be willing to share about your experience using it?