adespoton

@adespoton@lemmy.ca

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨From Zip To Nought: The Rise And Fall Of Iomega⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  Despite the fact that click death was avoidable with a simple bracket OR an updated driver AND only affected their very first product, I won’t really miss them.

  If Jazz drives had been their first product and at a reasonable price point, things probably would’ve gone differently for them.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Okay... so how do depressed people even have relationships? Did they get depresion after they already got into the relationship or did they actually went dating while having depression?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago⁩:

  Depression is a clinical chemical state; people respond to it in many different ways; some respond by chasing dopamine highs.

  Many socially active people are actually depressed, and the activity is their way of attempting to deal with it.

  Many introverted people aren’t depressed at all, and enjoy their own company more than that of others.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Someone has publicly leaked an exploit kit that can hack millions of iPhones⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  It appears to be related to exploit code that was sold by a US contractor to a Russian group; the exploits it uses are all patched on recent OS versions, but older versions of iOS 17 and 18 are vulnerable.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Has the scientific community ever reconciled with the fact global warming is going to happen and there is no stopping it?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  They said your statement was incorrect; either there’s a way to salvage the planet in a habitable form, or there isn’t — but “indistinguishable from magic” doesn’t come into it.

  Personally, I think energy is only a portion of the problem space; we need to slow climate change enough that humanity can continue to adapt with it.

  After all, we survived multiple ice ages; will the climate destroy our technological advances, or will those advances enable us to adapt to a changing world?

  The world is likely highly overpopulated at the present, but we can lose a significant chunk of humanity and still preserve the body of knowledge and many of the technologies that we currently enjoy.

  Collapses are inevitable, but total collapse is still avoidable.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Has the scientific community ever reconciled with the fact global warming is going to happen and there is no stopping it?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  Mitigation is always possible. If we don’t do it intentionally, eventually the climate will force our hand. This will result in billions of human deaths, extinction of many organisms, and massive destruction of the current global ecology, but it will happen.

  Remember, the Sahara wasn’t always a desert, and North America was more than once covered in ice.

  We’re likely to die off due to poisoning the environment long before the climate makes a significant dent in our 8bn population.

  We’re not going to escape sea level rise or some places becoming uninhabitable, nor a redistribution of water and total destruction of all weather models. But we can slow the changes to the point where we can adapt faster than the climate changes… and the more we mitigate, the more lives we save along the way.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Windows 11 is finally getting a movable taskbar⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩:

  I bet it moves to Windows 10.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨As a Chinese American, if I wanna travel internationally, is it better to just say I'm American, or pretend to be a Chinese National (to hide from Anti-American sentinments)?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  As a Canadian… Americans pretend to be Canadians abroad all the time. As a result, everyone thinks I’m American at first, until they realize I behave differently.

  I can usually spot the American in a crowd, no matter their skin colour. It’s generally in the worldview they project.

  I can also usually spot the Chinese in the crowd for the same reason.

  Unless you can fake the “We’re the best” attitude instead of the “nobody’s better than I can be” attitude, I wouldn’t try to fake being Chinese in many places. You’ll just come off as fake.

  Better to just be yourself and hold the views and attitudes you actually hold. If you’re worried about how others will receive that, just be more private with the personal information you share.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Why are people so rude on Reddit compared to the Fediverse?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  Reddit is big enough that it’s a microcosm of humanity. The Fediverse hasn’t reached that level yet.

  When I was on Reddit, most of the subreddits I hung out on were small, supportive, and friendly. A few I monitored weren’t — on purpose, so I could see what was going on in other places.

  Funny thing is, for the most part, I’ve found matches for all those subreddits on Lemmy communities— although I had to browse through a bunch of hosting services to build up the same level of diversity.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If a US bank only insures your money up to 250k does that mean I have to visit four different back to have a million dollars insured?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  Most people who put more than 250k in a single bank in a single account type won’t be using the bank’s insurance for protection.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Is LM Studio's GUI safe despite being closed source?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  Unless that’s backed up by a wireshark session demonstrating no data sent, or a reversing analysis that shows a lack of capability in the software, the policy is just words.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Explain it like I'm 5: Why is everyone on speakerphone in public?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago⁩:

  For me, speakerphone goes on temporarily if I need multiple people to be able to both listen and speak to an existing conversation.

  Otherwise, they join the call on their own devices.

  I find holding a phone up to my cheek really annoying though; I could see secondary exceptions for people with wireless headphones whose batteries had just died.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨14,000 routers are infected by malware that's highly resistant to takedowns⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  How about neither?

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨People who grew up with Vietnam and the Cold War, is Iran going to be the new vietnam or just a semi cool war?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Totally different. This is a multi-way religious war with Sunnis and Shias taking sides, and then Jews and Christians piling in. And on top of that is oil and nuclear weapons.

  Iran has been kept destabilized by the rest of the world for the past 50 years because it brings stability to the rest of the region. KSA, UAE, Oman and Qatar are all quite happy to have Iran playing defense, as is Pakistan (traditional Persian lands and culture overlap most of the current national boundaries).

  The main players in the Middle East have been fighting for the last 3,000 or so years, and it hasn’t been a cold fight. The US is traditionally willing to pour just enough weaponry into the area to keep things off balance.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨If I was a college athlete instead of accepting money out right. If I created a charity where they could "donate", and keep all the money? Is this illegal or illegal how so?⁩ ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  That’s the way; study political science in university and set up a PAC towards your election for some far off date. Have anyone interested donate to the PAC, and then spend years trying to get elected after you graduate, using those funds for your campaign — many different types of activities can count as campaigning.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Android phones don’t have a BIOS for the same reason that Macs don’t have a BIOS and Raspberry Pis don’t have a BIOS — they run on the ARM architecture, not the Intel-compatible PC architecture.

  As such, the bootloader system is compliant with a totally different reference system; ARM (Acorn Reference Machine) has been around almost as long as the IBM PC compatible architecture.

  As for the “why are phones more locked down” bit, it’s because they’re supposed to be appliances, not general computing platforms. You want your phone to always work, so if you receive a phone call, text or email, it’s likely going to work.

  Although the real answer is that if you buy a computer, you own the computer and get to decide what goes on it (well, unless it’s locked down to Windows or macOS). Phones contain bits that are owned by your carrier, bits that are owned by the manufacturer, bits that are owned by the software developer. And each of those groups doesn’t want anyone else messing with their private software.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What to do with an old iPhone that I no longer use?⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Remember that old phones with no SIM are still able to call 911. You can use them as emergency call boxes.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨[deleted]⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  I have to admit I’m pretty ignorant in low-end laptops.

  Business class laptops tend to be able to charge at 100W over USB-C, but often have a dedicated charging port as well (Magsafe for Apple, rectangular charge port for Lenovo, for example).

  For any laptop that draws 100W or less, I believe they’re required to charge over USB-C in the EU. Barrel jack is cheaper though, so they can shave a couple of dollars off the price by using it, which could lead to significant profits in increased sales, since most of the competition is using the same basic parts.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨New AirSnitch attack bypasses Wi-Fi encryption in homes, offices, and enterprises⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Key summary:

  A device authenticated to a wifi router can abuse MAC IDs to become an AitM between the router and any other device on any of the router’s networks.

  This attack can be pulled off from a compromised IoT device on a guest network that is supposed to be limited to Internet access and not be able to see other devices.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨AI Bros Wanted Trump. Now They Learn What Happens When You Tell Him No.⁩ ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  On the plus side, the US government has now ensured Anthropic will do more than the bare minimum in the US.

  Of course, that means it’s now OpenAI making kill decisions.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Westerners, what's your impression on the Chinese Diaspora? And what does the people around your area of residence think of the Chinese Diaspora?⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  What exactly do we consider the Diaspora to be? First generation?

  Because there are people living in my area whose ancestors came from China 200 years ago.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨What is OAuth?⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  I’m left with the same questions at the end of that as at the start.

  Also, how does OAuth integrate with Passkeys? Because they seem like compatible concepts.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Is there a program to speed up the process between my external harddrive and USB? If used to run super fast now it seems to slow down. Hopefully something I can use offline. Thx⁩ ⁨⁨4⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Along with the other advice, it’s worth noting that “USB” ports can have different specs; make sure you’re plugged into one that supports USB 3.1 or higher.

  Also, USB is CPU-bound; if the CPU is busy doing other things, peripheral communication slows down.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨An AI Agent Published a Hit Piece on Me – More Things Have Happened⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Isn’t “theshamblog” AI generated? So in this case, including the Ars article it’s referencing?

  The pieces are dated 2024.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Audio cable measurements are driving me crazy — why don’t they null?!?⁩ ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩:

  Here’s a simple answer: cables going from analog input devices to DSPs, mixers, etc. need proper shielding and should be as short as possible, with low-resistance connectors. Otherwise, EM radiation can be picked up and interfere with the signal.

  Anything traveling digitally? It just needs to arrive at the destination in a timely manner; your cable would have to be really bad to have any influence.

  Cables out to analog speakers? As long as you have a decent signal, these can use the crappiest connections and unshielded cables — the worst thing they’ll do is provide interference for OTHER cables they’re near. Just adjust your EQ until the speakers provide the response you’re looking for.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Is ironing clothes significantly less common now?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  Funny thing is: I switched from cheap T shirts to dress shirts after I bought one good quality one for a job interview.

  They’re don’t get hot in the heat, wick away moisture, keep you warm when it’s cold, don’t shrink or wrinkle, last a good 10 years of heavy use and look professional no matter who you’re with.

  I don’t know why my parents’ generation ever abandoned them.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Is ironing clothes significantly less common now?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  I wear a dress shirt to work every day. They’re all no-iron; they don’t wrinkle and are wearable out of the dryer.

  Textiles have come a long way in the past 50 years.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How Big Tech Killed Online Debate⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  This might be romanticizing the early Internet.

  I can remember plenty of flame wars in the late 80s and early 90s that were all about shutting down meaningful discussion. Informed debate flourished in niche areas, but it still does today, in a similar volume. What’s changed is the massive volume of social media that’s grown up around it, including many types of voices that were in short supply on the Internet in 1989, and many of which are uneducated and/or tribal in nature.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Too much open-source AI is exposing itself to the web⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  Nothing xenophobic about it. That’s just the model we already have documented information about. Notice I mentioned CCP and government, not “the Chinese”.

  That’s like calling someone an antisemite for being against the Israeli or Iranian government.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨How on earth do I fix my trackpad?⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  Do you know which trackpad you have?

  I’ve had that experience before on some laptops where the battery that sat right under the trackpad started to inflate.

• ⁨Comment⁩ on ⁨Too much open-source AI is exposing itself to the web⁩ ⁨⁨1⁩ ⁨month⁩ ago⁩:

  Ollama with standard Gemma2 model open to the Internet. What could go wrong?

  I call out this one because the Chinese government has already examined it for exploits and flaws.

  Letting it run outside a sandbox on the Internet is tantamount to sharing any information and capabilities it has with the CCP.