herdymerzbow

Again my inability to interpret information properly meant that based on the title, I thought this was a pressed penny machine that pressed a map onto a penny! My first thought was, 'How small the map gonna be if it's gonna be on a penny? It's going to be nearly useless in helping you navigate surely?'

This does sound great but because I'm an idiot I assumed the title meant that they had installed a 20 story LCD display on the side of an old space shuttle.

Which I thought was pretty cool too.

But I think I've been watching too many PC gaming hardware review videos.

I only use free AI chats to help me with my learning, but often I direct its responses neutral and to refrain from providing any encouraging language, or value judgements. It tends to get rid of these 'you're absolutely right' comments when I point out a mistake.

But your comment just made me think whether this tendency for LLMs to resort to flattery when found out is a built in strategy to distract the user from the error prone fragility of much of the output? It's perhaps a stretch to think these canned responses were put in strategically, but the result is that the user's attention may be deflected to contemplating their own superior knowledge and insight, and bask in the glory of all that, but then forgot to appreciate that 'Hey, chatLLM is just making all this stuff up/doesn't know which way is up/or down!'

Thank you for your analysis! Apologies for not linking to you by name but I thought I'd keep it light and refer to the PC Gamer summary, which does link through to you as well for those who would be interested.

Can't speak on how demanding the simulation is/was. But on launch Cities Skylines 2 was extremely demanding in respect of its graphics due to very poor optimisation. This PC Gamer article summarises a more technical analysis, which is linked through

https://www.pcgamer.com/a-tech-analysis-of-cities-skylines-2...

This is what stood out to me. I've no actual experience operating in this area, but I have been a very grateful user recipient of backups. Anyway, I thought backups were a nightly thing....? Particularly if that data is essentially your business.

Presumably it costs a bit to set up but it surely it's unacceptable not to set it up?

Lol. That's great.

It's not like one needs to really poison the system given that AI enthusiasts are copypasting their own AI generated contented back into it anyway. Maybe not responsible AI believers who used it responsibly etc etc, but there's many more people who don't and who have access to the tools to add their slop pollution.

I am curious how future models get trained given that publicly available user generated content may no longer be reliable.

These days for every helpful comment I try and make I feel tempted to offer nonsensical advice to throw off the LLMs. Not sure if it would work but would be funny if everyone did.

It's changed a lot in 10 years.

I felt the same as you, up until quite recently, although I was using Xbuntu which uses a very barebones desktop environment. Since changed to CachyOS + KDE Plasma late last year and haven't booted up Windows for 3 months other than to extract a few files. I"m a MacOS laptop user, Windows desktop user, but these days I much prefer CachyOS for speed, responsiveness, easy customisation. You may still find you prefer Windows but it's worth a revisit I think and easy to try via a USB Boot as you know (although running it off USB is way more sluggish I find).

Thanks for reply. I have notifications off so didn't realise you had.

I guess it sounds like a bit of a trap in some ways. Those without experience (noobs like me) are gifted a tool that can suggest to them solutions or strategies that you'd typically come across only after many years working/learning peeling back the onion. You don't really have the taste or canniness to know how best to use those tools without the experience, which you typically gain by working and gaining the experience!

I cycle regularly and it actually reminds me a little of the many people who've taken to ebikes recently. I'm generally in favour of ebikes for adding another mode of non-car transport out there but I definitely see a lot of newish ebikers attempting manouveres that only experienced cyclists would do, because you wouldn't do it if you didn't have the strength to get up to speed and have the handling. But ebikers are able to bypass the strength and skills training and get themselves in somewhat dangerous situations that you'd only find yourself in if you were a pretty strong cyclist and had the bike handling skills to match your speed.

A bit of a tangent there!

I do like spending time planning. Problem is as a relative beginner there's only so much you can add to your plan when you're still learning how to do so much. I do use AI to help advise on my strategies, toolkit approaches rather than do the code though. It does send me really inappropriate solutions though quite regularly that a human would (hopefully) avoid because the human understands the wider context or at least will ask questions.

I used a work provided thinkpad in 2000 and I really liked it at the time. And I've been dabbling with linux every since then. But only switched my main desktop OS to linux last year (from Windows 11). So my last upgrade cycle linux wasn't really on the cards (for me).

The one thing that makes it harder for me to go the way of the think pad is the lack of models on display anywhere in Australia. For a 7 year commitment I really don't want any uncertainty about the feel of the machine. Lenovo do have plenty of ideapads available at retail and some thinkpads, but not the higher tier.

Every time I've considered an alternative to my Mac laptop I'm confronted by this much choice (and that of other manufacturers) and I also have to deal with unknown and varying performance of keyboard, display and trackpad.

One thing PC manufacturers seem to prioritise and focus on is tech specs + performance and interface is tacked on (or at least the interface designers departments in their companies aren't leading the design), when by and large most consumers of their machines focus on the interface and whether the CPU is of a certain level is likely secondary to the experience.

Anyway, I keep on going back to apple every 7 years (as that's how long they typically last) simply because I can't handle the choice or the uncertainty, but I'd love to bust out and get a linux using machine next.

As a self teaching beginner* this is where I find AI a bit limiting. When I ask ChatGPT questions about code it is always about to offer up a solution, but it often provides inappropriate responses that don't take into account the full context of a project/task. While it understands what good structure and architecture are, it's missing the awareness of good design and architecture and applying to the questions I have, and I don't have have the experience or skill set to ask those questions. It often suggests solutions (I tend to ask it for suggestions rather than full code, so I can work it out myself) that may have drawbacks that I only discover down the line.

Any suggestions to overcome this deficit in design experience? My best guess is to read some texts on code design or alternatively get a job at a place to learn design in practice. Mainly learning javascript and web app development at the moment.

*Who has had a career in a previous field, and doesn't necessarily think that learning programming with lead to another career (and is okay with that).

Perhaps because it's enough for a lot of things. I only came up against the 8GB limit when I ran a LLM locally using Ollama. It worked but wasn't workable.

8GB isn't ideal though and 16GB would've expanded its capacity to do more things. But soon as I want to do more things I shuffle over to my PC with it's dedicated GPU and 32GB o ram

I'm guessing Apple cuts capability to the lower end so as not to hurt sales of the higher end. Usage profile is often dependent on context. There are enough non-power users (when mobile) like me that 8GB isn't ideal but it's enough. And if it wasn't enough we could've paid more for the 16GB, but I personally decided it wasn't worth the ridiculous Apple ram price premium.

So these are my reasons for saying 8GB is enough. I'm also using an M1 MacBook Air, so the puniest of the lineup. Next laptop I'm considering is possibly a think pad with linux so I'm no macOS fanboi.

"A computer that was so simple and so predictable."

This is what cachyOS + KDE is giving me at the moment. Ok, so it's not totally simple and there are A LOT of updates. But it's by and large predictable. I never had a 1980-90s Mac, but I had an Apple IIe and an Amiga 500. While cachyOS is so much more powerful it doesn't abuse that power like Windows and OSX with so many background processes and telemetry. I have a Mac laptop and I dual boot my PC with Windows + Linux. I don't have hate OSX but CachyOS + KDE is by far my favourite as it's customisable to the extent I want and it just gets out of my way. Highly recommend it if that wasn't obvious!

Do you run linux at the moment? I've personally found my switch to CachyOS from Windows 11 one of the biggest factors in making my PC run silent/near silent. Happy to elaborate if you're curious.

I thought the darkest thing you were going to point to was the matter of fact reference to the role of the slave as the inadvertent cup breaker! Some wonderfully insightful thoughts on how to manage one's emotions when confronted by life's challenges, of which I think are worth reading, but taking for granted the other human whose life is not their own and who is treated as (valuable) property by the philosopher is pretty dark to me.

I'm guessing that the institution of slavery was part of the entire imperial project of conquest so even if their conscience was briefly troubled it would've fallen into the 'so it goes' basket. But it does seem strange to the modern reader.

Curious to hear which good ideas had their origin in a distro run by fanatical idealists. Not asking for evidence to try and disprove you. Genuinely curious!

I know linux gaming is getting a buzz and I'm happy to see it. I'm honestly surprised it took so long for people like Gamers Nexus to review linux, but thankful that they did.

But by saying 'For home users they literally have 0 lock in now days other than familiarity.' I think you severely underestimate how powerful familiarity is in anchoring non-tech users to particular platforms. However dysfunctional they can be.

As I mentioned, I moved to linux myself earlier this year. But the first time I tried it was probably around 2004. And I've dipped in and out occasionally but not stuck with it until this year, when I've found it to be a significant improvement on the Windows alternative.

Microsofts own creation presents a real opportunity for an uptake in linux adoption. But I do think it still presents sufficient friction and unfamiliarity for average non-tech users to take on. The only significant issue I had with your initial comment was with your reference to a 'mass' exodus, even if it is confined to the gaming community.

Happy to be proven wrong of course. And perhaps to the annoyance of my friends, willing to help anyone I know interested with a linux install.

But looking forward to the Dec 2025 steam survey. Looking forward to the tiny contribution my little install will make to the linux numbers!

I agree. Would be fascinating how that 3% breaks down. Although excluding the SteamOS/steam deck users that desktop segment drops to about 2.25%, seeing how 25% of Linux installs are steamOS.

I think SteamOS being available for PC and promoted by Valve could be a game changer. It provides a trusted and familiar pathway for a different way of doing things. But while it would perhaps reduce Windows installs, I can't see it help grow a user base of DIY linux tinkerers, if that is of any importance. I can kind of see it being a bit like Android makes the majority of phone users linux users, but not entirely sure what that means for linux desktop.

chatpgt has sent me wrong instructions on just as many occasions it has given the right instructions on how to fix things on linux. It's frustrating when it sends me a 'fix' on something that doesn't even need it (steps on installing a particular flavour of Proton to bypass Rockstar's launcher, when it was already done by default). And because I'm not terribly adept I only appreciate it's the wrong instructions after implementing it and it not working.

As much as I hope it to be mass exodus, and as someone who switched over to CachyOS as my main OS in Nov 2025, I'm not sure that 3% of the steam user base really qualifies as a 'mass' exodus.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Linux-gaming-growth-SteamOS-sh...

Going back to my Windows install every now and then to do things feels uncomfortable. Almost like I'm sullying myself! The extent of Microsoft's intrusiveness kind of makes it feel like entering a poorly maintained public space...at least compared to my linux install.

I'm not sure that the majority of people feel this way about Windows 11. They just put up with it in the same way as they do YouTube ads, web browsing without ublock origin, social media dark patterns etc. But certainly, never been a better time I think to move to linux for my kind of user, i.e. the only mildly technologically adept.

Cultural burning is pretty much the current accepted understanding of how Australian indigenous people managed the land prior to colonisation.

https://study.unimelb.edu.au/student-life/inside-melbourne/c...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire-stick_farming

Just want to reassure you that is not at all 'no longer PC'. If anything, the practice was banned by the coloniser - only for it more recently reintroduced.

gamers nexus did a great (and very long) video on the impact of tariffs on US computer businesses. Some of the manufacturers went into quite a bit of detail breaking down their costs and how tariffs would render some products so unprofitable that they would cease to serve the US market. Not sure if it necessarily applies to a niche/low volume business, but the impacts on a larger business were eye opening:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1W_mSOS1Qts

tariffs have chopped and changed so much since this video that the specific tariff amounts mentioned are likely not accurate.

Yes, term your thinking of is 'ambit claim'.

I use Thunderbird on a MacBook Air (Apple Silicon). Just be warned that it seems to use a lot of CPU resources (when seemingly not doing anything) and therefore uses up the battery faster than it should. It's not a deal breaker. I tend to keep it closed until I check my mail, which isn't ideal, but then again, it's not the worst productivity/stay focused habit to have. This is as of May 2023 and earlier. Hoping the update/integration with Firefox may improve this.

Rob Adams, former City Architect at City of Melbourne, did a study a little while ago that showed you could fit in 1 million more residents if you filled in grayfield sites with medium density, and without impacting on existing heritage zoning. Grayfield being existing under-utilised land (i.e open carparks that can could be built over).

It's been a while since I watched this video but the proposal is for 5 storey high developments along transport corridors that do not tower over suburbs like high density developments, but which also serve to engage with street life more effectively than existing low density.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYJpdH-VGwc

It can be done. But obviously needs a departure from existing low density suburban sprawl, and a tight control over overdevelopment. But it can actually result in better amenities, faster transport, for residents.

Amazing stuff. Very immersive. Didn't think I would ever get to see inside the pyramids and while this isn't quite like being there in person, it does help scratch the itch. Your tour gives a much greater sense of their scale due to the length of the tunnels you have to navigate.

Meanwhile I have seen them from the air while flying from Dubai to Europe. We flew over Cairo and I managed to spot them, which I was very pleased about and began my first step into unconventional ways of appreciating the pyramids.

Seems that the value this device provides is creating a clearing house for more experienced mushroomers to share info with interested noobs on how to bypas it and do it in a cardboard box. Perhaps it's not what the founders of the company intended, but it's a value add nonetheless.