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Comment Main one (Score 1) 70

The main missing point on your list:

- popular initiatives and regularly held referendums (i.e.: the general population voting on most decisions, and bringing new decisions to be voted upon).

i.e.: what a *direct* Democracy (a.k.a. the only *true* Democracy in the sense of directly giving political power (cratos) to the general population (demos) - not merely putting, in decision-making roles some "representatives" who will be then subject to legalized bribes... huh... sorry to "lobbying")

You might notice there's a certain overlap between "country that follow direct democracy" and "country which avoided the last two rounds of world war" (despite rampant fascism at the same time in the rest of the continent around). These might be at least somewhat linked.

Comment Language evolution (Score 1) 117

gender to objects they have an emotional attachment to.

Noun-genders have little (but not exactly zilch) to do with emotions, and a lot (but not everything) to do with the very complex and messy evolution of language.
(Some very old language, including reconstructed proto-indo-european, had two genders..."animate" and "inanimate".
then a messy lineage of sometime reassigning(*) them to- or co-using them along with- "masculine" and "feminine",
some time adding back a neutral on top of that to bring back inanimate and/or try to (partially**) assign objects(***),
then reshuffling stuff around.
English notoriously started putting all objects and inanimates into neutral, though there are a few exception where older noun-genders were kept around. I knew for ships for sure (as pointed out: because "navis" in Latin) I wasn't sure if submarines fall in the same category.

Given the answers I got: apparently yes, it's customary to use "she" for submarines too, as a sub-type of ship.

(*) modern French has notes of that (that were carried through latin). Normal noun-genders are masculine and feminine, but concepts tend to mostly feminine, agents tend to be mostly masculine. (But of course, French being French, it has fractal-pile of exception all the way down)
(**) German, lots of slavic languages (including my own Bulgarian) have neutral, but not all objects are neutral
(***) all neutrals aren't object: children are neutral in several language (bg: "dete" is neutral (to). I've heard that's the case in Finnish too?)

Comment Roots (Score 1) 117

The word used in a lot of slavic languages is masculine (something like: korab) (Imagine it in cyrillic. But, well, /. and unicode...)

BTW: So is the word used in French (le bateau, le sous-marin. Even "le navir" shifted to masculine gender-noun, even if in Latin navis was feminine).

It's the English where I wasn't sure if the "ships are feminine" extends to include submarine.

Comment PS/2 (Score 1) 74

I think the best IBM keyboards were from the PS/2 era.

Yup.
Those where Model M, and specifically the ones that established several standards, such as the PS/2 mini-DIN connectors and cementing the 10x-keys keyboard layout that the first model Ms introduced to PC AT two years before (bringing the Function key to the top compared to AT's model F, keeping the inverted T arrows unlike previous crosses on terminal keyboards) and which is still the standard for "full" keyboards to this day (with only minor recent additions of windows, context menu, and optionally media keys)

Those are the ones I was able to get the best speeds on with the fewest errors.

Same.
Started with a model M as a kid (though not really knowing back then), that my dad brought from work for our first *own* 386DX workstation (previously I we had only borrowed Toshiba laptops with 8086 and 286)
Eventually keyboard died after decade, went through a couple of cheap no-names (told you I didn't know much as youth)
Then eventually learned about Unicomp still making them, buying one and having the "oh, this is the keyboard of my childhood! so much better!" experience.
Then after the last model started failing (fun fact: since COVID-19 I work a lot with W aste W ater sequencing. The "W" started being unreliable, probably due to broken platsic stud at that location), I splurged on the New model F (IBM-style mechanism, but on a modern layout 104/105 like modern Ms, not the older F layout).

Comment Joe-6-pack (Score 1) 13

Is the issue that this is an obscure but default setting?

That, and:
- the fact that the general public doesn't understand the implications of having stuff left on "shareable"
- in general settings that affect privacy should be "opt-in", not "opt-out", because not every single person online will be attentive to the thousand of tiny settings hidden behind dark patterns that needs to be flipped so their privacy isn't utterly violated.

The UE could step in for the point 2 above.
Reporting on such unintentional leaks could help raise awareness of point 1 above.

Communications

NASA Satellites That Scientists and Farmers Rely On May Be Destroyed On Purpose (npr.org) 158

The Trump administration has reportedly directed NASA to draw up plans to shut down its Orbiting Carbon Observatory satellite missions, which provide vital climate and agricultural data for scientists, oil and gas companies and farmers who need detailed information about carbon dioxide and crop health. As NPR reports, the satellites are "the only two federal satellite missions that were designed and built specifically to monitor planet-warming greenhouse gases." From the report: It is unclear why the Trump administration seeks to end the missions. The equipment in space is state of the art and is expected to function for many more years, according to scientists who worked on the missions. An official review by NASA in 2023 found that "the data are of exceptionally high quality" and recommended continuing the mission for at least three years.

Both missions, known as the Orbiting Carbon Observatories, measure carbon dioxide and plant growth around the globe. They use identical measurement devices, but one device is attached to a stand-alone satellite while the other is attached to the International Space Station. The standalone satellite would burn up in the atmosphere if NASA pursued plans to terminate the mission.

NASA employees who work on the two missions are making what the agency calls Phase F plans for both carbon-monitoring missions, according to David Crisp, a longtime NASA scientist who designed the instruments and managed the missions until he retired in 2022. Phase F plans lay out options for terminating NASA missions.
The OCO missions would lose funding under the Trump Administration's budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2026, which begins Oct. 1 but has yet to pass. "Presidential budget proposals are wish lists that often bear little resemblance to final congressional budgets," notes NPR. "The Orbiting Carbon Observatory missions have already received funding from Congress through the end of the 2025 fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30."

"Draft budgets that Congress is currently considering for next year keep NASA funding basically flat. But it's not clear whether these specific missions will receive funding again, or if Congress will pass a budget before current funding expires on Sept. 30."
Wikipedia

Wikipedia Editors Adopt 'Speedy Deletion' Policy for AI Slop Articles (404media.co) 31

Wikipedia editors have adopted a policy enabling administrators to delete AI-generated articles without the standard week-long discussion period. Articles containing telltale LLM responses like "Here is your Wikipedia article on" or "Up to my last training update" now qualify for immediate removal.

Articles with fabricated citations -- nonexistent papers or unrelated sources such as beetle research cited in computer science articles -- also meet deletion criteria.

Comment Pressurized sphere (Score 5, Informative) 117

James Cameron did not use a sphere when he went to the Mariana Trench. {...} It was certainly no bathysphere.

Did. The pressurized space part of the Deepsea Challenger (as of the Trieste before her -- does English also use she for submarines?) was a pressure sphere at the bottom of the vessel.

As I recall it was a torpedo / cylinder-shaped submersible.

You're confusing the whole submarine including her outer shell and couple of tons of non-pressuized technical equipement, with the tiny pressure sphere within her where James Cameron sat.
See diagrams on her wikipedia page.

I think the confusion is due to the fact that the pressure sphere is embed within the hull of the vessel and not very visible, whereas on the Trieste it was clearly distinct and attached under the hull.

It is possible to descend to those depths using shapes other than spheres.

Possible? Probably.
Easy? Even less than when using spheres.
Economically feasible? It's definitely not cheap given the failed attempt of proving the opposite by Titan.

Comment M: membrane, F: capacitance (Score 1) 74

The M is a better buy than the F because it has more longevity. {...} The membrane lifespan is limited.

Given that sentence I might presume you mixed up and meant to say the "F" (capacitance) is the better buy over the "M" (membrane) on the grounds of "more longevity"?

Also:

My first PC was an IBM 5150 with the original keyboard. It was nice to type on, but {...} it also died.

Correct me if I am wrong, but the original PC shipped with a type F, right? The membrane type M came later as a cost-reduction, right?
(So you basically managed to kill the F tank with your typing :-D )

besides being very loud which I do not consider a feature

So I guess, you're not the kind of guy who adds after-market solenoids for extra "oomph"! XD

Comment Availability (Score 1) 74

From what I've been checking the project, it seems to me that:
- What eventually disappears is old stock from previous iterations of the project (e.g. the square machined case, before the current cast one) and small side projects (the split keyboard, the extra numpads, etc.) if all you want is to "get a model F", there's regularly something
- I am under the impression that the guy over plays a bit the "take them while they are still here!" marketing strategy.

Comment Re:ICCU problems (Score 1) 103

I'm aware of how they handle the recall. My 2 year anniversary with my Ioniq 6 was last Friday. (No more free EA DCFC for me.)

My point was the total number of cars that were repaired after an ICCU failure is very small. Lots of manufacturers have recalls, including for parts that can cause a vehicle to stop running. Ford is the worst. Every vehicle lineup has their issues, so just putting it in perspective.

2 years for me, no ICCU issues. No charging issues. They did replace my interior door panels under warranty for peeling clear coat.

Comment Again, gas stations too (Score 1) 103

Many of them are not as well-let or in as well-trafficked areas, often with no attendant oversight or even cameras.

Maybe the situation is different where you live.
But my local experience (Switzerland) the shop at the station closes during the night and cuts it light, so you also have less light too (only lights at the pump) and no attendant (you need to pay by card from the ATM-like between the pumps) neither.

In fact the EV charging station is slightly better: It has exactly the same illumination (because on highways it's also on the same rest area, either one extra stall next to the gas pumps if there's only a gas station, or a bunch of charging stalls next to the restaurant or hotel if there is one), but because usually you have a subscription to some charging network and have roaming between a lot of networks, you don't even need your wallet. So you would have had fewer reasons to get mugged, if mugging was something that happened in any significant frequency (but then again, Switzerland, insanely low criminality, so no mugging to begin with).

Comment New Model F: decent (Score 2) 74

Are they any good?

I am very happy with mine. It's build like a tank.
I did a "dental floss" mod to reduce the "ping" of the springs.
And added lifted feets in the back for adjusting the angle I prefer (I went for ESC Keyboard Flip Stand).
It's one of the earlier machined "square" cases.
(New Model F now also have injection-molded cases that look like the original IBM's).

Certainly not cheap.

Small volume production, driven by somebody who's insanely attentive to details.
On the other hand: it seems even more sturdy than the Unicomp Model M i have and those survive decades. I totally expect my Model F to outlive me. So diveded by the number of years, it seems to be okay-ish, if you're the kind of keyboard snob to like this type of keyboard (I'm guilty!).

For now, it seems to be that it was worth the investment. (Ask me again in a decade if I am still happy)

I would have got a Unicomp one if they still did Japanese layout. These new Model F ones do have JIS layout,

Note: They have the traces on PCB, but last time I checked and ordered they only ship keyboard pre-configured in ANSI (US) layout of the keys, with no key caps installed. (It's the buyers jobs to add or move barrels for other key layouts - I switched ANSI (US) to ISO (European) - and then to install the keycaps and check the springs.)
(Though the guy offer to change the barrels for a fee).
(You'll need to order the extra barrels and paddles and the unusually-sized space bar and either install them yourself or ask for a customisation and pay the guy)

but I've never actually used a Model F keyboard or these, so it's a fair chunk of change for an unknown quantity.

If you like Model M, you'll mostly like F, too.

They have both roughly the same keyboard feel (they are both using buckling spring, only the exact way the keyboard registers the key is different: "M" - paddle hits a membrane contact ; "F" - paddle change capacitance, it's solid state).

The changes are:
- sound slightly differently (slightly longer paddles, and entirely made out of metal, no plastic in the casing nor barrels so it resonates a bit more).
(sound is moddable if you - or anyone your share space with - don't like the "ping").
- unlike original IBM F, and like IBM and Unicomp M, key do bottom-out "hard" (if you have a keycap at hand, look at the stalk: it's not flat it's tappered. The original IBM "F" paddle had matching slots, so the end of the key's travel is dampened by the elasticity of the tappered end bending into the slots. The New's "F" paddles and the "M" paddles lack the slots and the key hits the bottom hard). I personally don't mind (I'm used already to stop pushing as soon as the I feel the "click" and the keyboard registers, I don't bottom out pushing at full strength), if you mind it's moddable.
- Unlike "M", both the new and original "F" are fucking heavy (entire casing is metal, no plastic parts).
- Unlike IBM and Unicomp: currently only come in USB, the PS/2 daughter board (Leiden Jar) wasn't ready yet last time I checked.
- Some complain about the USB-C connector (it's not as strongly latching as a USB B). I am happy: given the wait the keybord isn't going to move, so no risk to yank out the USB-cable.
- No built-in feet, you need to buy after market feet (e.g.: any adjustable after-market laptop feet would do, there are suggestions in the forum, I went for ESC Keyboard Flip Stand), the guy sell quite a choice of fixed-heigh feet (rubber, cork, etc.)

And last warning:
- If you end-up being as happy with yours as I am with mine (absolutely 0% buyers remorse) you might end-up wanting to buy another for your office, which is almost definitely not covered by company purchases which means you'll part with yet another chunk of change (ask me how I know :-P ).

Comment Re:ICCU problems (Score 2) 103

A tiny number of cars, but with very vocal responses because gotta drive them clicks!

Statistically, just 1% of the roughly 200,000 vehicles involved in the recall can have their ICCUs fail, which is 2,000 cars. Out of all the cars that are part of the latest recall for the failing ICCU, 41,137 Hyundai and Genesis EVs have already been fixed by Jan. 22, while another 14,828 Kia EV6s have had the remedy applied. Motor Trend concurred in a recent look at the issue: "Itâ(TM)s a big deal, but not one that individual E-GMP owners are statistically likely to face."

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