grissallia

grissallia, 1 year ago to gaming

I'm not one for "New Year's resolutions", but I am one for overly ambitious projects.

For 2023, Project365 is "One New Game Per Day".

Given that I have 634 unplayed games in my Steam account and {mumble} unredeemed bundle Steam keys, there's a reason my unplayed collection is tagged "Pile of Shame".

I'll pin this to my profile, and give a brief summary here each day (or x, if I miss x days due to work or stuff).

I'll play 15-30 minutes of (at least) one new game I've never played before (or played less than 15 minutes of). I'll give every game at least 15 minutes, even if I hate every minute of it.

I'm also open to suggestions; if you reply to this thread with a game, I'll schedule it, or tell you what I thought of it.

One of the things that's come up is that I have a bunch of games that I've played once, and not touched again.

Unplayed games: #NewPlay
Trying a game again: #RePlay
Going live on Twitch: #GrissGames

I'll hashtag these with #Project365ONG so you can mute it if you're not interested.

#Project365 #Gaming

grissallia, 4 months ago to random

So, it's the first of January again, and it's time to lay out my plans for my #Project365 #2024Project

It's going to come in two parts this year, because it's touching on a sensitive topic, so some of the posts will have a CW, and some hashtags to filter them.

Top level is #2024Project. Someone asked if they could join in on a daily project, and I said sure, that I'd use a top-level hashtag for anyone who wants to join in at a "daily project" level, but doesn't want to join in the actual project. Feel free to use this one in your daily project posts. I could even make a list, if you want!

Project level is #2024HealthProject. It's just a daily check-in for accountability on getting healthier, and for the folks who want the accountability thing on this in particular, and asked if they could join in.

I'll be using two separate hashtags to separate the personal posts. The second ones will also get a CW.

The first will be my daily check-in #HealthyAllie2024, with two goals:

• Drink 2L of water per day, in addition to other liquids. I don't drink enough water. I have a notated drink bottle which will at least let me know how far I got each day.

• A minimum of Five minutes of exercise six days a week, with Sunday as a "rest" day, increasing by five minutes per day each month, with a goal of doing a minimum of 60 minutes of exercise per day by December.

I'm really trying hard not to overcomplicate this, because I don't want to give myself an extra burden by committing to lengthy exercise reviews, but I might make some comments.

The second will come with a CW and be hashtagged with #LessAllie2024. Will be at least monthly, and it will be about weight loss. The hashtag & CW are for the folks for whom this is a triggering subject, so they can mute it. I'll explain more in a separate post.

Gonna unpin my old project post, and pin this one, and off we go again.

#Project365 #2024Project #2024HealthProject #HealthyAllie2024

grissallia, 9 months ago to random

I'm sitting here trying to process the Seagate "support" experience I've had over the past nine days, and the only word is "enshittification", per @pluralistic

It's as if Seagate management set out to individually enshittify every single step of the support process to making as close to impossible to get support for a consumer level product, without just saying "Fuck you."

There are virtually no consequences for this deliberate enshittification of their support process. What other options are there?

Seagate no longer have a support number.

Seagate no longer have a support email address.

Seagate have a pop-up live chat. That's it.

The live chat will intermittently lose contact with the server and just say "Error" forcing you to reload the entire webpage.

The only way they could enshittify this process further would be to replace the apparent "live agents" with AI chatbots, and that may well be an improvement.

1st August: my less-than two year old Seagate Barracuda drive failed under warranty. After navigating my way through the live chat, and providing all of my information, I asked for an advance warranty replacement, which i was promised (per the chat logs). I receive an RMA form. I wait.

4th August: I put my RMA details into the Seagate RMA lookup to find out what's happening.

"Invalid details."

I reach out by the Live Chat. I have to enter ALL of my details again, in spite of having an RMA number.

The live agent officiously tells me to "be patient" and "you will get your drive", and that sometimes the form is slow to update.

7th August: The form is still reporting invalid. I reach out via Live Chat again. I provide all my information, yet again. The agent insists he has to create a new case, in spite of me having an RMA number. "This is your case number, please note it down for reference."

Him: "Oh, the lab is waiting for your faulty drive."

Me: "This was advance replacement."

Him: "It wasn't."

Me: "Here's a screenshot of the agent telling me it was an ARO."

Him: "Oh, OK. I'll arrange an ARO. You'll get some forms in your email, and a link to provide credit card details in case you don't send the drive back. This is your case number.

Me: "Fine."

ARO form. Nothing else. No link. No details.

9th August (today): An email from another new person at Seagate with my case number. No other information. I reply via email "What's the next step."

"Thank you for your email, this email address is not monitored. Please use Live Chat."

I. Go. To. Live. Chat.

AI bot: "Please enter all of your information:"

Me: "No. Here's my case number. Sort it out."

Live agent: "How can I help?"

Me: "I received an email from Support. I cannot reply via email. I don't know where my replacement hard drive is."

Agent: "Actually, you can reply via email, it's just faster via live chat."

Me: "Here's a screenshot FROM SEAGATE telling me I CANNOT reply via email."

Agent: "Oh. Please wait."

Eons pass. Glaciers melt. [#Enshittification continues.]

grissallia, 9 months ago to random

OK, so... time to infodump on the new rig.

• History
• New specs
• Build process
• Mistakes

This will likely be the last large-ish tax refund I get. I last built a new-ish PC in March 2018, with a new GPU Sept 2018 (GTX 1070 Ti Mini), a CPU upgrade in July 2021 (i9-9900k), and a new GPU & PSU upgrade in July 2022 (RTX 3070 Ti & Corsair 850W modular PSU).

I put the 2018 build on my credit card, something I won't do again. Since then, I only upgrade if I've saved, or gotten a tax refund, or both.

The starting point for my 2018 build was an ITX system I purchased from my previous employer at the end of 2016. It was a fairly beefy shoebox proof-of-concept build (in a Silverstone SG06 case) that we'd done that was no longer required when we were acquired, and I swooped in before it was listed as an asset in the purchase and bought it.

2018 Specs:
Mobo: Gigabyte GA370N WIFI
CPU: Intel i5-8400 8th Gen
RAM: 16Gb (2x8Gb) DDR4 3200MHz
Cooler: Noctua NH-L9i
SSD: Samsung 960 EVO 250Gb
Graphics: GTX 1050 Ti*
Case: Silverstone SG06*
(carried over)

I'd purchased the 1050 Ti in 2017. I'd seen it on special, got all ADHD impulsive and chucked it on the credit card as an upgrade from whatever I'd had before.

Because it was an ITX-based system, and I decided to re-use the existing case, this lead to some decisions that went on to bite me down the line. I had this vision of this tiny little ninja powerhouse of a PC, none of that silly RGB lighting, and damned if I was going to let things like reality or cooling to get in my way.

The first build problem was the USB 3.0 case header. I think for maybe the first time in any PC I've built (and there are a LOT), I mashed one of the pins on the motherboard, and it snapped off. It turned out that it wasn't necessary*, and the lack of that pin meant that the front USB ports were restricted to USB 2.0 speeds.

All up, it wasn't a badly performing system for what it cost me, and I burbled along quite happily for six months.

Then my kids bought me a second-hand Vive OG VR system for Father's Day in 2018; the 1050 Ti was really struggling and so I kept an eye on prices until I saw a ridiculously cheap (relatively!) Zotac GTX 1070 Ti mini that would fit in my little ITX case.

In November, as the weather was heating up, I realised the GPU was overheating. I assumed that it was just lack of cooling in the case, and bought a Corsair AIR 240, a mATX case with an acrylic window. I didn't want a windowed case, but I needed airflow, and I wanted a case that would still fit on the left hand side of the monitor shelf I'd hacked together from IKEA parts.

I transferred it all to the new case. I turned it on. The funky little Zotac card lit up. Oh? It has a light. Cool. Hadn't noticed it in the small case.

Turns out that the reason it was overheating was because some numpty had been playing with fan curves just after installation in Sept, and forgot.

grissallia, 9 months ago to random

safelosing [ seyf-loo-zing ]

noun

1. (ADHD): the act of carefully putting something very important in a safe place so as not to lose it, then forgetting where you put it.

grissallia, 9 months ago to random

GP: "OK, I want you to use the steroid inhaler twice a day."

Me: "Last time I did that I ended up with a terrible oral thrush, and I rinsed so much to try and avoid it."

GP: "Don't worry. As long as you rinse properly, you will be fine."

Me, 24 hours later. "What's this horrible taste..." [grabs mirror and torch]

grissallia, 3 months ago to random

For anyone who’s been following along with our housing tribulations over the past few years, here’s today’s new twist.

Now you see it, now you don’t.

Space where the sign was until an hour ago, with the owner having failed to sell the houses, and choosing to continue with them as investment properties. Yes, the house is still sinking.

grissallia, 6 months ago to random

Wait what...?

THAT'S who the "High Profile Man" is?!?

[string-of-expletives]

grissallia, 3 months ago to random

"Instill THREE drops into the ear, three times per day"

Umm... how do I know how many drops came out if I can't see it?

grissallia, 3 months ago to random

Into the first aid module of the training, and the acronym, COWS.

C - Can you hear me?
O - Open your eyes
W - What's your name?
S - Seems like someone had an oopsie!

(I can't remember S, so my brain helpfully filled that in instead)

grissallia, 2 months ago to random

NewsCorp definitely aren’t mad at MetaFace.

“and another thing: im not mad. please dont put in the newspaper that i got mad.” - dril

grissallia, 10 months ago to random

Transphobes demanding I scientifically prove gender identity exists: fuck you.

You’re a meat bag walking around controlled by a ghost. Scientifically prove you exist. Show me on an fMRI where your love of chocolate is. Show me in your DNA why you’re attracted to people of the opposite gender. Show me in your blood tests why you’re such a hateful little asshole.

Show me the science that proves your consciousness exists.

grissallia, 9 months ago to random

Shot & chaser. Fuckers.

image/jpeg

grissallia, 8 months ago to random

Here's a fun* little lesson I learned the expensive and hard way on this PC build.

Firstly, take a look at these images. They're screenshots from an animated GIF in a Corsair email I just received.

A motherboard with four Corsair memory modules installed.

grissallia, 7 months ago to random

I would, once again, like to thank* Malcolm Turnbull for his contributions to broadband internet in Australia, in particular, his genius** “multi-technology mix” solution***

grissallia, 9 months ago to random

What I love about there being such a long break between building my own PCs, is that I have to learn about things like DDR5, and trying to work out whether it's better to have 2x32Gb sticks or 4x16Gb sticks, or what the difference (in real world terms) there is between CL 36-36-36-76 RAM and CL 36-44-44-96 RAM, and having Google expose me to a lot of results from people who obviously have almost no idea what they're talking about.

grissallia, 4 months ago to random

Perfect. Just shattered the screen on my phone. First time ever.

grissallia, 11 months ago to random

Called nurse-on-call.

grissallia, 6 months ago to random

Some time around 2015 or so I had a horrifying experience where I was at work on a really windy day, and a branch was just banging on the wall outside all day.

The constant noise seemed to ratchet up my stress levels all day until I literally shut down. First I lost the ability to speak, then to even walk.

I stumbled out of my office, and the office manager called an ambulance, and I was hospitalised, but nothing was found. The doctors ultimately put it down to some kind of migraine, whereas I assumed it to be some kind of overstimulation thing.

However, it seems to be that since then, if I'm under too much stress, I start stuttering.

It's uncommon, and usually related to work stress, or occasionally emotional stress.

I can still (for the most part) think fluently, but attempting to speak results in a stutter, and I just have to wait it out.

The thing is, it doesn't seem to fit any categorisation I can find. It doesn't seem to fit selective mutism, and everything I can find about stuttering seems to indicate that when it starts it doesn't stop, whereas when the source of stress is removed, I'm usually OK within a few hours, or after a good night's sleep.

It's terribly embarrassing when it happens, but it's usually a sign that I need to relax, like, immediately.

It's never happened during a psychologist appointment.

Until today, when I apparently stepped on an emotional landmine. Towards the end of the session, I started talking about some deeply traumatic memories that unblocked last week... and my heart started pounding, and I started to lose my ability to speak, until nothing would come out except a stammer, unless I made a huge effort, and even then, it's incredibly slow.

I can still type though, so I grabbed my phone and typed out what was happening, and she was able to talk me through some exercises to get me talking (slowly), and safe enough to drive home, but we were over time by that point, so there wasn't time to explain beyond more than a brief "nervous system response to flashback" just WTF happened to me.

I don't understand it. Google isn't helping AT ALL, because nothing fits. I can think the words, but they won't come out when I try to speak, but eventually I'm OK again.

I've always just assumed it was stress-related "autism" thing, but now I don't know. I couldn't seem to find anything that seems to fit the experience, of a temporary stutter in that circumstance and I just want to know if other people have had this experience.

I'm guessing I've spent more than a hundred hours talking to psychologists over the years, and it's just never happened before.

grissallia, 4 months ago to random

How many spare network cables is too many?

(Asking for a friend.)

grissallia, 9 months ago to random

OK, can I ask what might be a silly question for an adult?

I had someone mock me a few days ago for "always going to the doctor", except (other than transition-related stuff) I only go to the GP when it's required for work. I don't go by choice (since they don't bulk bill!)

How do I know when I should go to the doctor?

I went to the doctor on the 18th. She said sinusitis. My non-stop cough cycled through hacking and productive, to hacking and dry, back to hacking and productive, and now I've had laryngitis for almost a week, with my ADHD psychiatrist telling me "Stop talking, don't talk for a week."

My head and lower abdomen are aching from coughing every 5 to 15 minutes. The cough becomes non-stop if I move around.

But that snarky little quip about me going to the doctor has now made me feel like I should just wait it out.

grissallia, 10 months ago to random

It's been a very long time since it was established that I should not be left alone with an idea and Photoshop.

Found this buried about six folders deep while I was looking for something else.

grissallia, 3 months ago to random

"I wonder how many logins I need to update for my email address?"

[Search for birthname email address in 1Password]

Right.

grissallia, 3 months ago to random

OK, so. My kids have a habit of opening bags of corn chips, and then they go stale.

Today it occurred to me, while staring into yet another partially full bag of stale corn chips: "Maybe I could put them in the #AirFryer for a few minutes?"

Yes. Yes you can. Maybe this one of those obvious things that everyone knows about and I'd just missed the memo, but in case not...

#AllieHack #LifeHack

grissallia, 2 months ago to random

Nose is running, coughing and spluttering, head is aching.

Don't want to call in sick though.