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1,039 karma · joined October 5, 2010

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getpost··on macOS Golden Gate Is a Buggy Mess
This isn't a new bug, it was present in MacOS Tahoe, but what happened to the tabs in the Maps app? The View menu still has Show Tab Bar and Show All Tabs itms, but they are always greyed-out. Cmd-T doesn't open a new tab, as was the case before Tahoe. (I count this as a bug in that the UI seems inconsistent with the function.) If anyone knows how to regain access to tabs, I'd love to hear it.
getpost··on Turn off and restrict access to Apple Intelligence features on Mac
Select the version from the pulldown menu at the top left of the screen.
getpost··on The Cold Email
Too late to edit my post. I did find this, "A History of Erlang"

https://lfe.io/papers/%5B2007%5D%20Armstrong%20-%20HOPL%20II...

getpost··on The Cold Email
I would love to read his reply, but of course I understand that correspondence is private. Do you know of something similar that is available on the web?
getpost··on Why Los Angeles Stopped Repaving Its Streets
I live in LA. It's a sensitive subject. My district concilwoman sends out mailings that extoll her ability to get repavements done. To me, it's absurd to claim credit for merely doing her job. Maybe she does perform miracles, but the situation described in the article is not accurate.

The article is dated Jan 27 2026. The following claim is not true, "The Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA) has not repaved a street since last June." That would be June 2025. There have been repavements in my neighborhood since June 2025, and before Jan 27 2026. At least one other repavement was completed nearby in the last month.

To me this is another article in a right-wing publication promoting the right wing view that blue states don't work, and only fascists will repave streets and make the trains run on time.

I agree that city funds are not managed efficiently, but as are as I'm aware, it's no different from any other large city in the US. I believe the culture that mismanages government funding can be improved through citizen advocacy, supported by proactive, accurate journalism.

Accurate financial information, such as has been published by LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia, is essential as well. See his report on LAPD Helicopter use, for example. https://controller.lacity.gov/landings/lapd-helicopters

getpost··on [dead]
On July 23, @CJHandmer provided an update on Terraform Industries' hardware and process to produce synthetic natural gas from solar power and air. "Other than plants and some cyanobacteria, I believe this is the first ever commercially useful capture and production of CO2 at scale." This is very exciting, clearly more than a minimum viable product.

(Terraform Industries in Burbank, California is not to be confused with the HashiCorp product. https://www.terraformindustries.com/

Are there competitors in this space?

Five 5 years ago CJ Posted, "I have left JPL to found Terraform Industries (@terraformindies) to bring gigascale atmospheric hydrocarbon synthesis into existence." https://xcancel.com/CJHandmer/status/1455102138288246790

getpost··on Goes-19 weather satellite enters Safe Hold mode
There's an app that updates the desktop https://downlinkapp.com/
getpost··on Most arguments are about ego, not ideas
Just as I know there is no such thing as bug-free code, I know that I am always wrong, in one way or another.
getpost··on A brief tour of the PDP-11, the most influential minicomputer of all time (2022)
Ha! The instruction that copies itself. I posted also posted it, 6 years ago. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24820583
getpost··on Jef Raskin, the Visionary Behind the Mac (2013)
> While the original Macintosh was by no means cheap, it was about half the cost of the Apple III

Made me look it up! I was developing Apple ][/III/Lisa/Mac software at the time. I used the Apple III to write Apple Pascal for the Apple ][, and the Lisa to develop for the Mac. I'd completely forgotten the initial pricing of the Apple III, which was stratospheric. The $7,800 config was 256K I think (~$31K in today's dollars).

"It sold initially for between $4,340 and $7,800, depending on the configuration. The original Apple III had many problems, and was replaced by a revised model in mid 1981, which featured 256K RAM, updated system software, and a lower price ($3495). A 5 MB external hard disk was also made available. The Apple /// sold very poorly and was replaced by the Apple ///+ ($2995) in Late 1983. The Apple ///+ was discontinued in 1985."

https://apple-history.com/aiii

getpost··on Didgeridoo playing as alternative treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea (2006)
Yes, it is almost as if the current administration doens't want people to acces medical information.
getpost··on iNaturalist
I didn't mean to suggest that iNat is proactive, they may well be.

IIRC, the exact chain of events was: Invasive Species Observation posted -> a curator at the LA Natural History saw the post and notified the CDFA (Agriculture Inspectors) -> CDFA contacts iNat to get email address -> CDFA contacts my SO. I don't recall whether iNat had a built-in messaging service at the time (they do now).

Regarding endangered species, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife evidently joined iNaturalist, in part to enhance their data collection. They seem to be monitoring iNaturalist and contacting users who have relevant observations. They seem very sensitive to privacy concerns, and cooperation is voluntary. I'm thrilled a state agency is engaging the public in protecting our natural resources.

These state employees have indeed been proactive.

getpost··on iNaturalist
That would be doxxing, not that it matters here.
getpost··on iNaturalist
I can hide my home-based observation locations, but others usually do not. People who post observations in my front yard cause other iNat users to visit. This hasn't been a problem in that there have been only a few additional visitors, and they are friendly. Still, I don't like my yard being publicized.

People who walk by the yard might tell their friends, but ordinary word-of-mouth can't be queried online. Not yet.

EDIT: We did have what turned out to be a significant invasive species observation. It was published in my SO's account with the location obscured. I looked up the species online and realized it might be a concern, so I killed it and put it in the freezer. In the meantime, the California Agricultural Inspectors got wind of it and contacted iNat to obtain the email address associated with the account. After making contact, they sent someone to pick up my specimen, and the later, 4 inspectors (yes, really, 3 inspectors and a supervisor) were sent to look for additional specimens. None were found.

Unrelated to this incident, I posted endangered species (not on our property) in my account, and iNat automatically obscures the location. Later on, I got an ~~email~~ message via iNat from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife asking for access to the precise locations, which I gladly provided.

getpost··on In Memoriam Robert Tinney
Benj Edwards wrote a nice profile on arstechnica[0] (Feb 11).

"Tinney went on to paint more than 80 covers for Byte, working almost entirely in airbrushed Designers Gouache, a medium he chose for its opaque, intense colors and smooth finish. He said the process of creating each cover typically took about a week of painting once a design was approved, following phone conversations with editors about each issue’s theme. He cited René Magritte and M.C. Escher as two of his favorite artists, and fans often noticed their influence in his work."

[0] https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/02/byte-magazine-artist...

getpost··on Richard Feynman Side Hustles
Off-topic, but I was interested to read Carl's Twitter bio[0], "I’ve spent a lifetime switching my Special Interest every year or two. By now I’m surprisingly knowledgeable in a lot of fields— a skill now obsoleted by AI."

That hits a bit close to home!

[0] https://x.com/carl_feynman/

getpost··on Tao Te Ching – Translated by Ursula K. Le Guin
> it's hard to translate it into Chinese.

It's a text about non-duality, among other things. Like the Heart Sutra, or the Diamond Sutra, or 101 Zen Stories, it's not supposed to make sense in an ordinary way. A successful translation is, like the original, intended to catalyze a shift in awareness.

EDIT: For those with a nerdy or scholarly bent, I suggest Red Pine's translation[0], which includes translation of historically relevant commentaries.

[0] https://www.amazon.com/Lao-tzus-Taoteching-Lao-Tzu/dp/155659...

getpost··on Is beef tallow making a comeback?
Brad Marshall[0] makes a case for the benefits of stearic acid (C18:0), which is predominant in beef tallow and cocoa butter. It acts as a beneficial metabolic signal that promotes mitochondrial fat oxidation, higher energy expenditure, and leanness—counteracting the obesogenic effects of polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs), especially linoleic acid.

[0] https://fireinabottle.net/every-fire-in-a-bottle-post-from-t...

EDIT: I'm sympathetic to Brad's argument and I'm concerned that RFK Jr's incompetence will interfere with ongoing research in this area of metabolism.

getpost··on Akin's Laws of Spacecraft Design (2011) [pdf]
Thank you for posting this!
getpost··on Akin's Laws of Spacecraft Design (2011) [pdf]
Tell us. What inspired you to say this?
getpost··on LAPD helicopter tracker with real-time operating costs
Kenneth Mejia, our progressive, data-driven controller audited LAPD helicopter use, and published his findings.

"The ASD program costs nearly $50 million annually while most of the flight time is not devoted to high priority events. Our audit found that the estimated annual cost to operate the helicopter program is $46.6 million (i.e., $127,805 per day or $2,916 per flight hour). There are 14 City departments whose annual budgets do not reach this amount;"

https://controller.lacity.gov/landings/lapd-helicopters

getpost··on Trying two dozen different psychedelics
> Like dosing on ketamine then getting up on stage and making Nazi salutes.

It's much more likely to be the Adderall.

"One reason that narcissists so commonly abuse drugs and alcohol is because the substances amplify their feelings of grandiosity and invulnerability. More so, narcissists often get stuck in the cycle of drug abuse because drugs readily cause the brain to deny there is a problem." https://illinoisrecoverycenter.com/narcissism-and-addiction/

Impulsivity mediates the association between narcissism and substance-related problems beyond the degree of substance use: a longitudinal observational study "A grandiose self-enhancement strategy should be reflected in motives of self-enhancement, such as increasing confidence through substance use." https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12...

Personality Disorders, Narcotics, and Stimulants; Relationship in Iranian Male Substance Dependents Population "correlation between stimulant use and histrionic personality disorder (P < 0.001) and antisocial and narcissistic personality disorders (P < 0.05)" https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4553170/

getpost··on American Heart Association says melatonin may be linked to serious heart risks
> you take that at sunset and let it reinforce your normal cycle

Yes, the way Michael Grandner explains it in this podcast[0], melatonin is an ancient molecule that signals, "it is dark." If you give it to nocturnal species, it wakes them up!

[0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQF_eopP1ys

getpost··on How Airbus took off
This is an interesting detail I had not heard. Can you link to a backstory on this? Why would such a contract ever be signed (especially for a technological product)?
getpost··on Unlocking free WiFi on British Airways
No, you don't, at least according to Robert Sapolsky https://www.amazon.com/Determined-Science-Life-without-Free-...
getpost··on Nine things I learned in ninety years
You're lucky to have that perspective.
getpost··on Los Alamos is capturing images of explosions at 7 millionths of a second
It's an apples-to-oranges comparison, but I'm reminded of the ~10^12 fps (1.7 ps exposures) demonstrated in work at MIT[0], which was for a completely different application.

[0] https://web.media.mit.edu/~raskar/trillionfps/

EDIT: Video with explanation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtsXgODHMWk

getpost··on Ozempic shows anti-aging effects in trial
In a recent podcast[0], Ben Bikman explained some of background and pitfalls of GLP-1 drugs. When the drugs were first prescribed, dosages were much smaller than the dosages now prescribed for weight loss. Microdosing might be a better and safer strategy.

The podcast is only 3 hours long! The GLP-1 discussion starts at 2:09:53.

[0] https://www.foundmyfitness.com/episodes/ben-bikman

EDIT: ycopilotFYT version https://www.cofyt.app/search/dr-ben-bikman-how-to-reverse-in...

getpost··on Backyard Coffee and Jazz in Kyoto
I'm working on this[0] 2 hr 52 minute interview with Craig about his new book. He makes the point national health care is a big part of what makes this work. There is a safety net, so people are empowered to take more financial risks.

[0] https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-rich-roll-podcast/...

getpost··on Highlights from the Claude 4 system prompt
In the deafault instructions, I tell it not to compliment me or apologize.
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