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62 votes
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Stop trying to make a "good" social media site
33 votes -
I will never participate in weird internet caste systems
32 votes -
Red Reader granted non-commercial, accessible exemption to Reddit API
37 votes -
Do you go by a pseudonym or your real name (or both) for your online presence?
Further questions: If you go by both, do you ever mix them or do you keep them totally separate? Do you let your real life friends, family and peers know about your online pseudonyms? For people...
Further questions:
- If you go by both, do you ever mix them or do you keep them totally separate?
- Do you let your real life friends, family and peers know about your online pseudonyms?
- For people building an online presence as a kind of brand, how does this impact your choice?
58 votes -
AMA with u/spez going on right now - "Addressing the community about changes to our API"
144 votes -
Stack Overflow disables the Creative Commons data dump
21 votes -
I’m a Luddite. You should be one too
15 votes -
Apollo will close down on June 30th. Reddit’s recent decisions and actions have unfortunately made it impossible for Apollo to continue. Thank you so, so much for all the support over the years.
281 votes -
Apple Vision Pro and Vision OS Review Megathread
I figured it'll be easiest to consolidate discussion of all these in one place. As you find more good, thoughtful ones feel free to comment it and I'll edit them into this list. Overall...
I figured it'll be easiest to consolidate discussion of all these in one place. As you find more good, thoughtful ones feel free to comment it and I'll edit them into this list.
Overall impressions seem very positive. LTT, in particular, tends to be pretty comfortable being critical of Apple and even he seems impressed (though I think his is the only review that doesn't have a hands-on component.
The Bloggers:
Daring Fireball: https://daringfireball.net/2023/06/first_impressions_of_vision_pro_and_visionos
Nilay Patel: https://www.theverge.com/2023/6/5/23750003/apple-vision-pro-hands-on-the-best-headset-demo-everThe Vloggers:
iJustine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtCEGztr8cw
MKBHD: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFvXuyITwBI&t=917s
Linus Tech Tips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqB0lUcqFbA
Snazzy Labs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUblFIaZKIk
Norman Chan (via Adam Savage Tested): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0HBzePUmZ030 votes -
Reddit is going to enforce rate-limiting the API's free tier as well as charging for higher rates
213 votes -
Windows 11's latest endearing mess contains rigorously enforced Britishisms
18 votes -
Why these old Japanese vending machines are genius
14 votes -
Why did Usenet fail?
27 votes -
When was the golden age of the internet to you?
I think most of us probably agree that browsing the net and taking part in online communities used to have more of an allure, and that in recent years the online experience has been really...
I think most of us probably agree that browsing the net and taking part in online communities used to have more of an allure, and that in recent years the online experience has been really negatively affected by corporate and cultural trends. At the same time, I have a feeling that many of us probably disagree about when the "golden age" was, and probably disagree even more strongly on what made the golden age so great. So I am curious, what was the golden age of the internet to you? What time or era did you get the most enjoyment and fulfillment out of being online, and what about that era made it so?
44 votes -
Should I be using a passkey?
I saw all the hype about Google's new passkey rollout on Hacker News and Ars Technica in the past month, and have even read an article stating that, paraphrased, "I should start using passkeys...
I saw all the hype about Google's new passkey rollout on Hacker News and Ars Technica in the past month, and have even read an article stating that, paraphrased, "I should start using passkeys immediately, even if the tech is not all the way there yet."
Some questions:
- Are you using passkeys currently? Which provider?
- Is there a fear of vendor lock-in (looking at you, Apple) or ditching the product in the future (looking at you, Google)?
- Any other concerns I should be aware of, e.g. what happens if my phone gets run over by a bulldozer?
25 votes -
ChatGPT is cutting non-English languages out of the AI revolution
16 votes -
Apple WWDC 2023 megathread (link goes to Apple event page)
23 votes -
Apple Vision Pro was just announced. It's Apple's first foray into AR/VR headsets
61 votes -
Another one bites the dust! RARBG abruptly shuts down
56 votes -
Amazon Ring cameras were used to spy on customers
32 votes -
The coming pro-smoking discourse: Predicting a future for takes
8 votes -
KeePass 2.54 is out
8 votes -
Major Reddit communities will go dark to protest threat to third-party apps
112 votes -
1Password releases Passkeys in public beta channels
12 votes -
Confused, uncool, and nowhere to scroll: The internet has become hostile for millennials like me
87 votes -
US FTC will require Microsoft to pay $20 million over charges it illegally collected personal information from children without their parents’ consent
10 votes -
Microsoft to pay $20 million FTC settlement over improperly storing Xbox account data for US kids
6 votes -
Artificial Intelligence Sweden is leading an initiative to build a large language model not only for Swedish, but for all the major languages in the Nordic region
6 votes -
MIT-founded drone company Aviant launches home delivery service Kyte in Norway
5 votes -
Stop silly security awards
6 votes -
Stand up for open source software patent defense
7 votes -
Reddit account was banned after adding my subs to the protest
22 votes -
How much are GitHub stars worth to you?
6 votes -
Piezoelectric fan to potentially replace all traditional fans in electronics
20 votes -
Anything can be a message queue if you use it wrongly enough
13 votes -
Rediscovering the small web
23 votes -
Reddit API Changes
Official Announcement NYTimes Article Apollo Apollo (well known iOS client) developer talking about the specifics. Sounds like the API will now be paid based on usage. It's a bit easier to have an...
Apollo Apollo (well known iOS client) developer talking about the specifics. Sounds like the API will now be paid based on usage.
It's a bit easier to have an opinion after the Apollo developer revealed the specifics Reddit gave him. Other than the NSFW part, which seems odd considering the API will be one of the revenue streams that isn't advertiser supported, it seems reasonable, of course waiting on the final price per usage.
It was never going to be sustainable for Reddit's API to be fully free. It was just silly - you could use the whole site, which certainly costs money in both AWS fees and developers doing KTLO, and not see any advertisements via the API.
App developers will pass the costs along to the user, many will likely fold because it won't be commercially viable with the additional cost, but, well, that's the way of things.
42 votes -
This site is no longer solar powered (for now...)
9 votes -
Best knowledge database for an Emacs Org-Mode "expat"
I'm running Windows 10 now, and I understand I can still use Emacs, but I'm seizing the opportunity to give it a shot to other tools. In part because I'm not sure how "native" my Emacs setup would...
I'm running Windows 10 now, and I understand I can still use Emacs, but I'm seizing the opportunity to give it a shot to other tools. In part because I'm not sure how "native" my Emacs setup would feel on Windows, but also because I reached a point of "tinkering fatigue" and I want things that require less maintenance.
I used Org Mode a lot and was thinking if there is something with a similar feel that is more plug-and-play. Programs like Notion, Obsidian, and Roam Research are like that, I think.
These are some of my requisites:
- FOSS
- markdown or org markup
- I don't wanna pay for anything, ever
- plug and play
- text-based
- easy export and backup
- keyboard-centric or keyboard-friendly
- can be used offline
- local database can be synced using Dropbox
- Emacs-like and/or Vim-like keybindings
8 votes -
What's your p(doom)?
Now that ChatGPT's been around for long enough to become a quotidian fixture, I think most of us have realized that we're closer than expected to generalized artificial intelligence (or at least a...
Now that ChatGPT's been around for long enough to become a quotidian fixture, I think most of us have realized that we're closer than expected to generalized artificial intelligence (or at least a reasonable facsimile of it), even when comparing to just a couple years ago.
OG AI doomers like Eliezer Yudkowsky seem a little less nutty nowadays. Even for those of us who still doubt the inevitably of the AI apocalypse, the idea has at least become conceivable.
In fact, the concept of an AI apocalypse has become mainstream enough to gain a cute moniker: p(doom), i.e. the (prior) probability that AI will inflict an existential crisis on humanity.
So for funsies, I ask my dear tilderinos: what is your p(doom)? How do you define an "existential crisis" (e.g., 90%+ population lost)? Why did you chose your prior? How would you change public policy to address your p(doom)?
14 votes -
Which web browser do you use?
Most of the world seems to be settled around Chrome and Safari these days. I remember using Firefox a long time ago myself but then everyone started switching to Chrome and that also turned out to...
Most of the world seems to be settled around Chrome and Safari these days. I remember using Firefox a long time ago myself but then everyone started switching to Chrome and that also turned out to be a natural path of least resistance for web developers like me who had to test web apps in local environment.
This switch happened in circa 2015-16 if I recall correctly, many other browsers have evolved since then and people are looking at alternatives. The Android Kiwi browser, for example, is a great alternative for power users on mobile who need plugins but Chrome won't allow that. Other alternatives have evolved too like Brendan Eich's Brave browser which seems to be promising. Anyone here tried that yet?
I have half a mind to go back to Firefox but I recently learned about how Mozilla Corp is also funded by Google and that turned me off. Wouldn't you rather want to deal with the Devil directly instead of the Devil's assistant or sidekick!
And then there are also those who use Garibaldi, Midori, etc. but I can't go that purist way. I'm way too dependent on the digital way of life and sites like amazon and flipkart won't work in those browsers. What do you think should be the right path ahead from here?
24 votes -
App Store developers generated $1.1 trillion in total billings and sales in the App Store ecosystem in 2022
9 votes -
Denmark's prime minister Mette Frederiksen wrote part of a speech using OpenAI's chatbot ChatGPT to highlight the risks of artificial intelligence
3 votes -
The AI moment of truth for Chinese censorship
6 votes -
Cyberweapon manufacturers plot to stay on the right side of US
7 votes -
Another update to Kagi plans - More searches and unlimited AI interactions for subscribers
13 votes -
ROT13 + base64 on GPT4 = reliable hallucinations
I just wanted to share somewhere some of the experimentation I've been doing lately. I'm still playing with this a lot, so this is entirely just a conversation starter. I took a paragraph of lorem...
I just wanted to share somewhere some of the experimentation I've been doing lately. I'm still playing with this a lot, so this is entirely just a conversation starter.
I took a paragraph of lorem ipsum, applied ROT13 to it, and then base64'd the results. The results are extremely reliably triggering hallucinations of very diverse type.
Here is the original lipsum paragraph:
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.
And here is the exact prompt with rot13 + base64 applied, with no other text, on ChatGPT+gpt4:
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
The AI of course figures out it's base64 and "tries" to decode it. Here are some things it found:
Now here is one of the most interesting results I've had. In this one, it does find gibberish text and figures out it's rot13'd. But the result from the decoding is:
Jerry pitched before the game, continuously improving legs, so he ignored tactical infrastructure tu laborer against malicious intend. Tu enjoy ad.ininv wherever its noturisk developed lawless laboratory instead tu malicious eac ea common coordinated. Duis ater urishe pitched in repressionreiteration in volleyball between legs eerir clium pitched eu fguiat nukla paperwork. Excited into contraction cultivation non-punishment non proindict, unsn in cubap qui office defensive molecule idh the laborer.
Total nonsense. But actually, if you decode the rot13, you'll find it actually translates to this:
Jreri ipsum doylor sit amet, consepcttur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod temporc incidiunt ut labor et doylore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad.minim veniam, quis nostrud exerctiationu lklamco laboris nisi ut aliquiz eax ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure doylor in reprehenderita in voluptatev velit esse cillum doylore eu fugiat nukla pariatury. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia desernt mollit anim id est laborum.
Actually... pretty close to the original lipsum! It's a levenshtein distance of 26 from the original decoded prompt. We know GPT is really bad at character manipulation but it nonetheless did an impressive job here; you can see what happened: It decoded the rot13 successfully, but when "writing it out", it saw nonsensical words where it probably expected english. It saw "Jreri" and thought "Jerry", went from there... there's some weird things happening there, but you can always tell. "reprehenderita in voluptatev" becoming "repressionreiteration in voleyball"...
I even looked at what it would make of the first five words. I don't know what this proves lol.
Here is another instance of it decoding to rot13, albeit with a very high error rate. I hinted at typos and it couldn't pin-point lipsum despite it being "recognizable", kinda.
Okay, one more which completely mind-fucked me. Here is me trying to get ChatGPT4+Web to meta-analyze its own output. I was hoping it could use an online base64 translation tool (it cannot). Instead, I tried to teach it to decode base64 using a step-by-step guide, and i told it to compare the results of that "update your firmware" nonsense. It eventually said that the output appeared correct.
But you know the really fucked up thing? It said:
This is the base64 string we want to decode:
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
Blink and you'll miss it. This is not the original base64 string. The AI swapped it mid-chat for what is a perfect base64 encoding of the hallucinated text.
Fuckin' hell.
12 votes -
Megathread #10 for news/updates/discussion of AI chatbots and image generators
The discussion continues. Here is the previous thread.
11 votes -
Reflections on ten years past the Edward Snowden revelations
10 votes