@jkohlmann@mastodon.social
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jkohlmann

@jkohlmann@mastodon.social

He / him · #Manhattan #NYC · Staff software engineer https://mastodon.social/@nytimes Dev+design, #HCI, #DesignSystems, listening, empathy, #house #music, video #gaming, #photography, #cat photos, Black feminism, #BlackLivesMatter, trans rights, Palestinian liberation, antiwhiteness, broken systems, labor organizing @NYTGuildTech. My profile is searchable.

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Gte, to random
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As the world reals with a sharp authoritarian turn we’ve got right wingers openly courting authoritarianism, fascism, and trying to dismantle and diminish governments. And on the technology side we’ve got the same but with a different spin—vertical integration makes for the best products.

If all you care about is making the best possible products in a vertical silo I submit to you that you’re more interested in the trains running on time than I think you realize.

jkohlmann,
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@Gte “Apple fanatics are fascists” is both on-point and a conversation they are absolutely not equipped to deal with

jkohlmann,
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@Gte Fair enough. I stand by “not equipped to understand fascism”, though; hope they’re up to learning

jkohlmann,
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@Gte Well said. I’m definitely out of pocket here. Though it seems like there’s been a lot of acceptance of numerous individually and systemically bad things for decades that’s taken the E.U. to finally start giving people some clues

jkohlmann,
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@Gte Meanwhile, I still remember when Michael Jurewitz described Apple’s attitude towards third-party developers as “animal husbandry”

jkohlmann, to random
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Worth thinking about the ways in which Apple’s anti-competitive business strategy has actually accelerated surveillance capitalism as other companies large and small have struggled to compete with their closed ecosystem https://www.theverge.com/2024/3/21/24105363/apple-doj-monopoly-lawsuit

skinnylatte, to animals
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My cat runs out of the toilet screaming every day.

Same

jkohlmann,
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@skinnylatte Please give her extra pets for me!!! 🐱🖤🧡🙇🏼‍♂️💓

jkohlmann, to techno
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Timeless. “Deeparture in Time” by Aril Brikha https://piped.video/watch?v=VCNQNXOT73w

jkohlmann, to random
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I think I’m beginning to understand the lasting appeal of Final Fantasy VII. Lots of plucked heartstrings.

jkohlmann,
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Come for the noir cyberpunk anti-corporate setting, stay for the beautiful melancholy of friends clinging on to hope and each other

jkohlmann,
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Oh, and the soundtrack. I need to replay Chapters 5–7 just for the new music alone

18+ jkohlmann, to random
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I’ve just finished the ending cinematic and am rolling credits! This animation is timelessly evocative. They really went all out back in ’97

jkohlmann,
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Well, now it’s time for Remake

jkohlmann, to random
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Playing the original Final Fantasy VII has been a fascinating, worthwhile, occasionally frustrating pastime (caveat: amidst ongoing genocides, which I refuse to forget about)

Apart from the obvious (“how did they put so much stuff in this game / holy cow the sheer lavishness is apparent at almost every turn”)…

jkohlmann,
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…Nobuo Uematsu’s Final Fantasy VII original soundtrack and arrangement is as excellent as anyone has ever said. Truly enriches and deepens the experience through its meticulous, memorable compositions. The music makes this game work for me, more than almost anything else.

jkohlmann,
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While not surprising, especially for era, perhaps, the soundtrack has been a powerful example of conveying emotion. When you’re doing that authentically and successfully, the constraints / economy / fidelity of production frankly matter way less

jkohlmann,
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Oh, the writing is also doing some heavy lifting in this game. Again, not surprising, but in particular I found that the writing and music together create a degree of mystery, affinity, urgency, etc. that the understandably limited graphics can’t always accomplish on their own.

That said, I was surprised by how evocative I found the world map’s artwork, considering it lacks the polish of the pre-rendered 3D backdrops. I am cognizant of how much work the accompanying music is doing here, though!

jkohlmann, to random
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Well in to the original Final Fantasy VII and at this point I have no freaking idea what’s going on. This rules

jkohlmann, to random
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“After conducting interviews with over 60 players for this article, it’s clear that the propaganda of Helldivers 2 inherently encourages people to band together. But some are acting in bad faith, spinning the clear satire into an overly serious military role-play — one that extends beyond acts like consecrating someone as public enemy number one.” https://www.polygon.com/24093674/helldivers-2-discord-meta-role-play-fandom-joel

jkohlmann, to random
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Still cannot believe that original Final Fantasy VII title screen music. Are you kidding me

jkohlmann, to random
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It’s a product of its time and tech, but I am appreciating the aspects of Final Fantasy VII’s original soundtrack arrangement that give it a techno-adjacent sound. As deservedly grandiose as full orchestra arrangements are, I need those industrial pipe and tambourine hits! Plz 🥺

jkohlmann,
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Like, I love the original battle victory specifically because it’s seriously arranged and voiced like a melodic techno track

jkohlmann, to random
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Alright, we’ll see if I can get thru the PS4 port of the original Final Fantasy VII this weekend

jkohlmann,
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Great choice to put the main menu music on the PS4 / PS5 Home Screen for this one. I know the tune, but the original arrangement is such a delight

jkohlmann,
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I know people know, but fuck is this hitting

jkohlmann,
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Also, I am familiar with the Final Fantasy VII soundtrack, but damn does the original arrangement sound wonderful

jkohlmann, to random
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When you’re sleepy but also kinda mad about it?

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