@david_megginson@mstdn.ca
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

david_megginson

@david_megginson@mstdn.ca

#Tea drinker. Urban dweller. #Gardener. Classical guitarist. #Standards wonk. Grounded pilot. Pantheist. Jane Jacobs fanboy. #Language nerd. 25-year #vegetarian. 30-year #Linux user. #Disabled. Open-* and humanitarian #aid person. Former medieval philologist (Ph.D, Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Toronto, 1993). Living on unceded Anishinabe Algonquin territory.

Header picture: Large reddish-orange letters spelling "Hintonburg", some lying flat on the sidewalk for use as benches.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

sfwrtr, (edited ) to fediverse
@sfwrtr@eldritch.cafe avatar

: I have found what looks like a bug in Safari for iPhone ALT text display when Add to Home Page is used to App-ify the page. However, I can't find a non-Mastodon webpage that definitely has pictures with ALT text so I can test if it's just a vanilla Mastodon or GlitchSec skin issue.

Could you please reply with webpages you know have text besides Mastodon? Thanks!

Edit: Mastodon is also putting a title= attribute with the alt= attribute on the img tag so that a tool tip shows up. (The alt tag is only valid on the img tag.) Safari on iOS seems to be ignoring the title= attribute.


david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@sfwrtr https://davidmegginson.github.io/fgfs-scenery-build/gallery.html

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@sfwrtr No, I just checked, and they're all on the img elements. What's telling you that they're not?

You can confirm by looking at the source on GitHub: https://github.com/davidmegginson/fgfs-scenery-build/blob/main/docs/gallery.html

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@sfwrtr Alt text isn't meant to be visible by default, only when accessibility options are turned on.

You're right that you also need to use the title attribute if you want to ensure that the text pops up on mouse-over in a browser-portable way (and even then, there's mobile/tap to consider).

title is also an accessibility recommendation for elements that don't support alt text, like a figure containing an svg graphic (IIRC).

Sk8cat, to mastodon
@Sk8cat@mas.to avatar

so like how does this all work? I don't really get it someone techy explain to me like I am 5

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@Sk8cat asked

Is there a better way to find friends and such or do I just need to hang around??

Yes! If your site allows (most do), follow for topics that interest you, like or , places you care about, like or , or groups you identify with, like .

I suggest using the website to follow hashtags, because some apps don't support this feature (but posts for a hashtag will still appear in your feed in apps once you've followed it).

david_megginson, to Sliderules
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

Solving 2×2=4 is the for any slide rule with the basic D and C scales, including the :

  1. Adjust the wheels (or slide) to put 2 above 1
  2. Keeping the alignment, read 4 over 2.

Not so hard, was it? There's a lot of unnecessary mystification around , but they're simple tools at heart.

You can also try this with the online simulator at https://cardboard-computer.org

Closeup of a homemade circular slide rule showing 4 on the outer D scale above 2 on the inner C scale.

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

Currency conversion with a slide rule (circular or straight) is also simple. For example, today 1 British pound is worth 20.9 Mexican pesos:

  1. Put 2.09 above 1.
  2. Keeping the same alignment, read pesos above pounds (or vice-versa) anywhere on the wheel

For example, 450 Mexican pesos is approximately £21.50.

Closeup of a homemade circular slide rule showing 4.5 on the outer D scale above 2.15 on the inner C scale.

david_megginson, to Sliderules
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

I tried a prototype of the with paper glued onto thick, corrugated box cardbord. It's easy to use, but looks messy.

https://cardboard-computer.org

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@deborahh That's interesting — or I could spray with the fixative people use for charcoal drawings. But I like the beeswax idea.

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@deborahh Thanks!

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@deborahh Same for laser toner?

david_megginson, to writing
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

A relationship that begins with mutual annoyance, insults, and an unwillingness to respect each-others' choice of career and place to live isn't likely to end well. At best, the two people can part with civility and seek out more respectful and sympathetic partners.

On an unrelated note, I can't figure out why keeps rejecting my scripts.

elly, to random
@elly@front-end.social avatar

Front-end development’s identity crisis
🔗 https://ellyloel.com/blog/front-end-development-s-identity-crisis/

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@mjgardner @elly Well put. And may I add, learn standards, not frameworks — web standards compliance and browser interoperability have come far since the 1990s.

That's not to say that a well-chosen library or two isn't sometimes helpful — backend or frontend — but as soon as someone identifies primarily as an "Angular developer" (or "Ruby on Rails", or "JQuery," or "Node.js" …), I assume they have at best a superficial understanding of the web.

jenbanim, to random
@jenbanim@mastodo.neoliber.al avatar

tooters, what's your take on electric mopeds?

In the same way that e-bikes are better suited for higher speeds and longer distances than electric scooters, electric mopeds seem like they could fill a currently empty niche, but I've never actually seen one here in Seattle

Of course they require a license and insurance to drive, so that ups the cost, but are they something that we should push for?

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@jenbanim Like e-bikes, I think they'd be more of a "cool" factor than a benefit for the environment.

Active transportation or public transit (for those physically able) are always better than any personal electric vehicle because of the social-justice issues around extracting the minerals for the batteries, and the toxic environmental issues of disposing of them after they're done.

And many disabled people will still need fully-enclosed, 3- or 4-wheel vehicles of some kind for accessibility.

david_megginson, to Sliderules
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

#CardboardComputer prototype no. 2 (advanced version) solving the problem 5×25=75.

I cut the plastic cursor out of some stiff plastic "clamshell" packaging I pulled from the recycling bin.

Lessons from this iteration:

  1. Be more careful drawing the hairline on the cursor next time.
  2. Precise wheel alignment is very important, and I need to cover that more in the DiY instructions.

I'm going to glue these onto cardboard backings.

#slideRules #DiY

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@deborahh True, but in certain cases, it really is easier. I can do a lot of approximate currency or distance conversions faster with a little commercial circular slide rule than I can with my smartphone: I just spin the wheel to set the ratio once, then read the equivalent for any price or distance around the outside. It even works when I'm wearing gloves or mittens. 🙂

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@deborahh I get overwhelmed by notifications and clutter myself — modern apps are very noisy (literally and visually) and needy (please pay attention to ME!).

That's why I often make my windows fullscreen on my laptop, so that I won't see anything else, and why I use web sites rather than apps on my phone whenever possible.

david_megginson, to Sliderules
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

What's a Thursday without more #CardboardComputer news? 🙂

  1. There is now a home page with a virtual version that you can drag around manually to solve problems.
  2. The basic and advanced exercise pages now have help deeplinks directly to the relevant sections in the guide.

(I learned a bit making touch events work with SVG on mobile devices.)

https://cardboard-computer.org

#slideRules #DiY #SVG

BrownKnowser, to photography
@BrownKnowser@mstdn.ca avatar

Random photo of the day.

#photography #random #photooftheday #POTD #dailyphoto #OttawaPhotographer #Ottawa #Glebe #sign #urban #pharmacy #apothecary

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@BrownKnowser Didn't that just catch on fire last Sunday?

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@BrownKnowser https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/firefighters-extinguish-3-alarm-fire-at-bank-street-pharmacy-in-the-glebe-1.6820041

david_megginson, to Ottawa
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

How does your garden grow?

Late-March cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, basil, eggplants (aubergines), and zucchini. Hardiness zone 5a/b, east-facing window.

david_megginson, to tea
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

Bliss (n): Masala chai with lots of milk late on a March afternoon.

jbaty, to emacs
@jbaty@social.lol avatar

My whole experience is tailored around evil-mode. I have an irrational urge to drop evil and go native. Has anyone survived this sort of extraction?

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@jbaty Wow! I'd never heard of evil-mode (I learned keybindings first, decades ago, and am still fuzzy on the less-common vi ones, so it wouldn't have made sense for me).

You'll use more keystrokes with default emacs bindings, but you'll be able to do a lot more (and remember how to do it). And since commands should represent less than 1% of your typing regardless, the overall difference in keyboard use will be negligible. The only challenge is the re-learning curve.

kdorse, to random
@kdorse@ottawa.place avatar

Horrifying. Likely not a factor here, but rising sea levels is going to mean a lot more of this. https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/03/26/us/baltimore-bridge-collapse?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@kdorse More likely, higher sea levels would mean that existing bridges make some ports inaccessible for larger ships, or that those ships could enter or leave only at low tide (which, in turn, could require dredging new channels and/or destroying more reefs 😥).

vlrny, to random
@vlrny@disabled.social avatar

Today's victory is getting all my biweekly meds sorted.

It took three hours, many cups of tea, two naps, snacks, and one small meltdown, but...

NAILED IT!
finger snaps

david_megginson,
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

@vlrny Maybe your inner vegan is fighting you. 🤷‍♂️

david_megginson, to Sliderules
@david_megginson@mstdn.ca avatar

The is looking spiffy with the @creativecommons CC0 Public Domain Mark attached.

https://cardboard-computer.org

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