> Satire only hits the spot when it's somewhat based in reality.
>
> I think the problem is that your lack of experience with Linux is preventing you from recognizing what's funny and what's just incorrect...

>Here again... why would you set a TERMINAL text editor like Nano to be your default GUI based text editor?

First, let me be clear that Ubuntu/Mint/etc are perfectly usable. Modern Linux distros can be as easy or easier than Windows. My commentary is about older distros and why they didn't gain traction.

You seem to have made my point for me. In response to saying older Linux is overly complex, I was pointed to Nano. When I performed a search for basic Nano use, the first results launched immediately into various options like what I cited. At no point did either source mention a distinction between terminal based applications and GUI based ones in the context of Linux. So in an attempt to rebuff my statement Linux can be complicated, you've simply resorted to saying I'm not experienced enough to tell the difference between terminal and GUI system. As if mainstream users are supposed to eagerly learn the distinction so they can use Linux. So instead of rebuffing me successfully, you've just further hammered home my point. Can you imagine an average computer user trying to figure out Nano, and tech support rebuffs "Oh well you need to know the difference between terminal based programs and GUI ones." Now modern systems like Mint and Ubuntu are perfectly usable. But older systems? I've flat-out ran Linux distros that when installed out of the box don't even have a windowing system (one must be installed via a terminal). I don't think the average computer user has an abstract enough grasp of computers to realize their windowing system is itself an application.

I asked ChatGPT to generate a set of satirical commands that poke fun at how basic tasks that can be complex on Linux. So it wasn't a hallucination, it was intended as satire.

I shared the instructions below in a separate post, but I'll share them here too. Below are the commands to set Nano as the default editor from geeksforgeeks, and they're real. In Windows this can be accomplished by right clicking a text file, selecting properties, and pushing the "change default program" button. On Linux, we get to enter the joys of environment variables and editing shell profiles through the command line. You cannot seriously tell me with a straight face this garbage would ever reach mainstream adoption. I'm being harsh with my rhetoric, but I've seen way too many "oh geesh really it's easy!" posts that are really just attempts to say "it's easy for ME because I'm super smart." As if everyone will gasp and proclaim "wow, that person thinks this hard thing is easy, they must be uber!" Sorry, but that isn't helpful. To be less condescending toward Linux, the reality is many Linux distros are designed for software developers, not mainstream users. The command line stuff is useful because it makes it easy to automate various tasks and integrate different programs, which is what is needed for servers. But it's complicated because it's designed to integrate with serious software engineering workflows, not the daily needs of an office worker. So anyone who thinks it's "super easy" is either truly suffering from the curse of knowledge, or show-boating. And I think when it comes to Linux, often it's a young guy trying to show-boat. Anyway, here are the instructions to set Nano as the default text-editor:

"""Here's how to set nano as the default editor in the command line:

                Open your terminal
                Edit your shell profile (usually .bashrc for bash). You can use nano itself to edit this file:

nano ~/.bashrc

                Add the following lines to the end of the file:

export EDITOR="nano"
export VISUAL="nano"

                EDITOR is the most commonly used environment variable for the default editor.
                VISUAL is a fallback variable used by some programs. Setting both ensures wider compatibility.

Save the changes and exit the editor (usually Ctrl+O to save, Ctrl+X to exit).

Refresh your shell configuration to apply the changes. You can do this by either restarting your terminal window or running:

source ~/.bashrc """

https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/...

It's fantastically accurate. Linux historically pandered to egos, not just good design. There's a thrill of typing up a complicated looking command and getting an impressive cascade of text that's moving too fast to read, while fantasizing about everyone in the coffee shop being impressed. Thus, a great many tasks that could have been easy to perform were hidden behind esoteric and non-obvious commands for the sole purpose of creating an intellectual moat. "Oh he's got shades and Linux, must be one of those super hackers!" And while I'm burning karma to speak the truth anyway, this fact frankly applies to EMACS to some extent.

Ubuntu/Mint started to move Linux to mainstream when it focused on being a good, usable OS. It included wild, progressive ideas like having a web browser built-in, or allowing the user to install a program without knowing how to push around a g++ compiler. Don't get me wrong, I'd rather develop on a Linux box than Windows, but I'm also not a GNU extremist that thinks my spread-sheet program needs to be delivered in .cpp files. Just to make my point, here are the actual steps to set Nano as the default text-editor. On Windows, this can be accomplished by right clicking a text-file, selecting properties, and hitting the "change default program" button. On Linux we need to:

"""Here's how to set nano as the default editor in the command line:

        Open your terminal
        Edit your shell profile (usually .bashrc for bash). You can use nano itself to edit this file:

nano ~/.bashrc

        Add the following lines to the end of the file:

export EDITOR="nano"
export VISUAL="nano"

        EDITOR is the most commonly used environment variable for the default editor.
        VISUAL is a fallback variable used by some programs. Setting both ensures wider compatibility.

Save the changes and exit the editor (usually Ctrl+O to save, Ctrl+X to exit).

Refresh your shell configuration to apply the changes. You can do this by either restarting your terminal window or running:

source ~/.bashrc """

https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/...

What always kept Linux from gaining mainstream adoption is that many features were just intended to stoke egos. Post-Ubuntu/Mint, things have changed for the better. I think programmers fantasized about everyone thinking they're-super smart with their text command interfaces. Thus, instead of providing a simple text-editor, the user was required to engage in a lengthy ritual to get anything working. Not because it was needed, but because it made the users feel super 1337. The following is a fairly accurate set of commands required to create a simple text document in an older Linux system, which may or may not have been written by AI:

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

# Step 1: Invoke the Partition Ordinance to delineate storage boundaries
sudo fdisk --create --primary /dev/sda

# Step 2: Ratify the Ext4 Filesystem Decree on the newly defined partition
sudo mkfs.ext4 --force /dev/sda1

# Step 3: Establish the Mountpoint Sanctuary for operational readiness
sudo mkdir -p /mnt/working_volume
sudo mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/working_volume

# Step 4: Summon the Text Daemon under strict supervision
sudo systemctl start textd.service

# Step 5: Audit Daemon Activation via journaling mechanism
sudo journalctl -u textd.service --since "5 seconds ago" --no-pager

# Step 6: Acquire a Dedicated Text Session with the daemon
textctl session --create default_session

# Step 7: Instantiate Document Buffer within the session context
textctl buffer --new --name official_document

# Step 8: Assign Buffer to the Sanctified File Path
textctl buffer --save-as /mnt/working_volume/official_document.txt

# Step 9: Transition into Composition Protocol
textctl edit --enter --mode composition

# Step 10: Authoritative Text Composition (meticulous attention required)
# [Insert your meticulously crafted text here]

# Step 11: Securely Exit Composition Protocol
textctl edit --exit

# Step 12: Commit and Broadcast Document Finalization
textctl buffer --commit --notify all

# Step 13: Dismount the Volume to preserve systemic integrity
sudo umount /mnt/working_volume

# Step 14: Conclude Text Daemon Operation
sudo systemctl stop textd.service

# Step 15: Declare Protocol Completion with Official Affirmation
echo "Protocol complete. Document available at /mnt/working_volume/official_document.txt"

This is very much new. The screwflies made it through the containment gap that has held them back for a generation. They are moving north toward the US again, and fast.

After a few rounds of docked online Knockout Tour, when I switch to portable mode my Switch 2 is pretty warm. I'm fairly confident that an unregulated dock market would result in plentiful burned out Switch 2's. This would then incite the ire of Slashdot over expensive Switch 2's burning out, even though it would have been an issue with the dock's cooling system. And I'm sure the EU would still find a way to fine Nintendo infinity billion dollars over it. Realistically, it probably is better to have docks cleared with Nintendo to make sure they handle the cooling properly.

The diathesis-stress model suggests that mental health issues arise based on a combination of genetic factors and environmental ones. So you are correct that there was likely an underlying issue. However, we can identify and control environmental risks, which can improve outcomes for those at risk. For example, someone with high blood pressure problems should limit salt intake. Can a healthy person use salt? Sure, it's harmless. But it's especially bad for certain people. Social media is now a known risk factor for anxiety, depression, self-harm, etc, especially for at risk teenagers. It took time for the evidence to build up for that, and now it's looking like AI has its own risk factors.

The sole purpose of a business is to make profits, but as with all human endeavors that is bound by ethics. Unfortunately, a lot of psychopaths seem to think that free-market is this magical place where unethical behavior is suddenly acceptable. Islam specifically has rulings about business - first that businesses have a right to earn a profit, but also that they shouldn't overcharge. Christianity, similarly, has admonishments for unethical business practices. In fact, one famous story involved Jesus flipping the table of people who tried to maximize profits unethically. So no, businesses are NOT free to just "maximize profits" without question.

The only thing that will work will be to ban advertising to children who are supposed to be focused on schoolwork. In particular, to fine the companies being promoted in the ads.

Imagine how much he could have accomplished in 7!" - Doom

  Curiously enough, not observing the sabbath was punishable by death in Levitical law. Being lazy was not as far as I recall.

Yeah, I played Fortnite a lot, and one day decided to get a skin. I didn't realize they were randomized, so I ended up hunting skins for hours until I managed to hunt something down. Then it hit me: what the hell just happened to me? It was like those ads that beg you to click them to see the mystery, and when you do the mystery is just hidden behind more clicks.

I deleted my Fortnite account and never looked back (and never even used the skin I bought). I know addictive behavior in myself when I see it, and that wasn't going to end well.

Did you actually read the essay?

As one person who likes thinking to another, I think you'd enjoy it. And after you read it, you would have much more specific things to insult me over. In my experience, precise, targeted, and entirely true insults are far more gratifying.

WELL WELL WELL. We meet again, my favorite CS department member. Alright here is an essay for you: It suggests o3 is qualitatively different than older generation LLMs. I look forward to your take on it.

https://arcprize.org/blog/oai-...

I was more or less thinking that it would be untraceable in the context of launching a second strike in response to a decapitation strike. In theory, it might eventually get back to the country that launched the strike. In practice, it would take a very long time in terms of mounting an effective second strike. I guess nuclear subs could just hang out until it was established who-dunnit?

Well yes. But nukes that can't be traced back to their origin is definitely the plot to a video game.

METAL DRONE!