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Comment Define "bit" (Score 1) 106

From the original article at https://www.sciencedirect.com/...:

"The game “Twenty Questions” has been popular for centuries1 as a thinking challenge. If the questions are properly designed, each will reveal 1 bit of information about the mystery thing. If the guesser wins routinely, this suggests that the thinker can access about million possible items in the few seconds allotted. Therefore, the speed of thinking—with no constraints imposed—corresponds to 20 bits of information over a few seconds: a rate of 10 bits/s or less."

I mean, by the standard of a true/false condition I guess that's a "bit", but even following the dodgy math above, saying "No, it's not bigger than a breadbox" is one "bit" and then comparing it to data throughput is a questionable comparison at best.

Comment Linux desktops make more sense? (Score 1) 239

"GNOME, KDE, Pantheon, Xfce, Mint, Cinnamon... the list goes on and on. [...] The desktop just makes more sense."

Look, if he picked a specific Desktop like Cinnamon I could treat it as author's preference, but that's quite the statement when referring to every single Linux desktop environment. Are we really claiming xfce (which was name-checked specifically) makes more sense to the average user? Even setting xfce aside, I still want to scream every time I encounter Ubuntu's default ALT-Tab behavior, and I'll never understand why so many file managers insist on opening a new window every time I click on a folder. (Yes, I've read why it's better in theory; I still find it maddening in practice.) I have a hard time accepting "All (major?) Linux desktops make more sense than the Windows desktop", especially without any justification for that statement.

Also, maybe I'm just confused here, but aren't Mint and Cinnamon the same interface? I know Mint can use other desktops like MATE, but when I hear "Mint desktop" I kind of assume they mean Cinnamon.

Comment Re:Effects of accelerated listening on everyday li (Score 1) 82

Ultimately up to you, but there's something to be said for viewing less but enjoying what you do view more fully, or even just allowing yourself time to experience and react to something. It can be like taking time to savor and really enjoy a meal instead of scarfing it down so fast that you can barely taste it.

(Though as someone who frequently is watching TV while doing something else, I really don't have that much room to talk. And the value of taking it relatively slowly may depend a lot on what it is you're watching anyway.)

Comment Re:Effects of accelerated listening on everyday li (Score 1) 82

That was another effect though... I felt like I was generally becoming more impatient. And it seemed like any slim benefits I was getting from absorbing more content (or just absorbing it faster) was outweighed by the more frequent (and frequently unwarranted) feelings of frustration and impatience.

Again, not that I never listen at faster speeds now. I just moderate it more. I'd hate to get to a point where I couldn't just go see a movie in theaters because the pacing would frustrate me.

Comment Effects of accelerated listening on everyday life (Score 2) 82

I occasionally listen to speeds up to x1.4 (*rarely* x2, and mainly for review), but I feel like it started to have a damaging effect on me. It felt like it was making it harder to focus on real conversations happening at "normal" speeds. I already trouble with my focus drifting if I'm not careful, so I largely went back to normal speeds for fear of having a negative impact on my interactions with others. (Though I do still use accelerated speeds for some sources. x1.2 is pretty normal for me for sources that speak slowly for extra clarity.)

Not exactly a scientific proof that this is a normal effect—heck, I can't prove it for a certainty on myself—but it has made me cautious about how frequently I use accelerated listening speeds. Kind of curious if anyone else has experienced similar effects.

Comment SMB on Commodore 64 (Score 1) 202

Setting aside arguments about trademark (which are stronger but have already been eloquently made by others), they currently make it available via subscriptions to Nintendo Switch Online. They also sell it for the 3DS. There's also the NES classic. Why wouldn't they block a port to another system for a game that they're currently actively selling, on multiple platforms no less?

And, yeah, they aren't likely to make it for the Commodore 64. They aren't likely to make it for the Xbox either. If someone started distributing it for the Xbox, do you think Nintendo would leave that alone? They aren't going to stand by people giving away copies of their IP, regardless of the property.

https://www.nintendo.com/switc...
https://www.nintendo.com/games...
https://www.nintendo.com/nes-c...

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