@johnlogic@sfba.social
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

johnlogic

@johnlogic@sfba.social

Dutch-American Silicon Valley native EE/CS developer (not a PE), long-time user of Unix & Linux, pilot, amateur radio operator (HAM) volunteer for IEEE (Senior member) & CAP; past: Atari, IBM research, game dev (mostly NES-PS3), Texan, adjunct prof, and some stuff with robots, railway equipment, and rockets; online since 1985

I love science, music, social dancing, and people (E Pluribus Unum), want to see more democracy and equality, and am probably a little OCD & ADHD. Also, hail Satan!

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

kde, to kde
@kde@floss.social avatar

If you don't use Bing with Edge, Microsoft will tell you your computer needs repairing.

https://www.tomsguide.com/computing/windows-operating-systems/microsoft-now-says-your-pc-is-in-need-of-repair-if-youre-not-using-bing-with-edge

They are not wrong.

To mend your machine:

  1. Ditch Windows
  2. Install Plasma
  3. Your computer is ready.

https://kde.org/plasma-desktop/

@kde

A laptop running the laters version of Plasma, Plasma 6.

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@enigma @kde @kde

As I recall:
Microsoft Windows used to have good online help, circa 1991-1994 (Windows 3.1).
It was based on the Rich Text Format (RTF).
Then Microsoft added a web browser, and called it Internet Explorer.
Internet Explorer really wasn't very good for exploring the internet, apparently because its development had been rushed and it didn't display some things like other browsers would.
Then Microsoft argued in court that its web browser was an integral part of Windows, which Windows could not work without.
Then the judge removed the web browser from his own Windows-based computer and experienced no problems.
Then Microsoft changed its online help to HTML and made us use its web browser to access it.

sysop408, (edited ) to photography
@sysop408@sfba.social avatar

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@sysop408 nice! We drove around that yesterday to go biking on the trail from Campbell Park!

johnlogic, to ArtificialIntelligence
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

Earlier today I searched on an interesting question, and found this article that appears to have been generated synthetically by an LLM AI and not proofread at all by humans.

Can you spot where it breaks?

"Can I Use a Crows Foot on a Torque Wrench? Explained by Experts"

By Michael Graw
September 22, 2023

https://www.toolsadvisor.org/can-i-use-a-crows-foot-on-a-torque-wrench/

when demonstrates

dougiec3, to random
@dougiec3@libretooth.gr avatar

Ohman!

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@OhOkKay @dougiec3

Could Pence run?

gratefuldread, to music
@gratefuldread@gratefuldread.masto.host avatar

Warren Haynes Details Red Rocks Stand with Colorado Symphony https://jambands.com/news/2024/05/13/warren-haynes-details-red-rocks-stand-with-colorado-symphony/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@gratefuldread

Red Rocks is "magical".

I once caught a show there with Psychedelic Furs, Go Gos, and B-52s. As someone who grew up on that stuff, for me it's hard to imagine a better show.

thomasfuchs, to random
@thomasfuchs@hachyderm.io avatar

Just read a take that “30 years ago we’d have to wait days for pictures of the Aurora”.

I think this is a case of “mysterious old technology mythical tales”.

First of all, digital cameras or the ability to convert analog video to digital stills existed, widely, since the 1980s. For consumers digital cameras were available in 1994.

For film, the fact is that in the 80s/90s there were 1-hour photo places literally everywhere.

Newspapers had photos of current events since the 19th century.

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@thomasfuchs

I recall attending a presentation in 1989 at which Kodak described a product line with three digital cameras.

I also recall them looking more like camcorders than today's small portable cameras.

TonyStark, to random
@TonyStark@progressivecafe.social avatar

Republicans’ declarations of support for Israel are simple to see through, but this is a good run down on most of the antisemitic tropes I’ve been seeing all my life.

So, don’t believe anything Republicans are saying about it. However, if you read it, you’ll see some portion of the left is using antisemitic tropes, also, over and over. Antisemitism is antisemitism. There’s no excuse for it.

How Republicans Echo Antisemitic Tropes Despite Declaring Support for Israel:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/09/us/antisemitism-republicans-trump.html?unlocked_article_code=1.qk0.hFpm.l8GXNmRteK9s&smid=url-share

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@Snowshadow @TonyStark

The USA has long recognized limits on First Amendment rights to free speech.

The old line is "shouting fire in a crowded theater".

In the era of the Trump presidency, I believe the concept is better encompassed by the phrase "stochastic terrorism".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stochastic_terrorism

benroyce, to twitter
@benroyce@mastodon.social avatar

I've been pretty tolerant of people still on #Twitter

I'm now going to full intolerant

#ElonMusk recently reinstated the account of an outright #Nazi

GET. THE. FUCK. OFF. TWITTER.

It is a Russian #troll farm, #racist, #bigot paradise. Stop feeding this cesspool!

GET. THE. FUCK. OFF. TWITTER.

NOW

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@benroyce

I just wrote to my congressional representative, Ro Khanna, asking that he stop using (former) Twitter.

I hope he'll consider using Mastodon instead.

Aleenaa, to news
@Aleenaa@india.goonj.xyz avatar

India ranks below Pakistan at 159 among 180 countries in World Press Freedom Index. It is an unofficial state of emergency for India!

https://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-ranks-below-pakistan-at-159-among-180-countries-in-world-press-freedom-index-unofficial-state-of-emergency-11714737826054.html

@mastodonindians

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@Aleenaa @mastodonindians

The United States, "once considered a model for freedom of expression", has dropped 10 places (from 45th to 55th, among 180 nations) in terms of press freedom.

https://rsf.org/en/country/united-states

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

Certain people say, “You can avoid the problems of delistings if you just buy the game physically.”

Physical games have their own problems. For one thing, physical games often cost 10x more than the digital equivalent. You have to contend with scalpers and flippers—especially with limited run physical releases.

And the other problem is that many “physical” releases require updates. And if servers are not available, the update can’t happen—rendering the game unplayable.

Or worse, sometimes you don’t get a disc or cartridge. You only get a download code instead. You’re paying a premium for a literal box.

From what I can see, the best compromise is to acquire a DRM-free digital edition of the game and keep a back-up copy of its installer on a hard drive.

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@atomicpoet

Sometimes I miss video games cartridges.

Binder, to random
@Binder@petrous.vislae.town avatar

I’m starting to think that Sales loves acronyms not to tighten up their communications but to obfuscate their ignorance of what they’re talking about.

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@Binder

I once explained to someone who sold electronic connectors that "mils" was not cool slang for "millimeters".

(A mil is 1/1000 of an inch, or 0.0254mm.)

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@Doomstrike @Binder

Using a "grid" in PCB design seems like an idea that came and went, as it should.

Some components played well with grids (US ICs), but some never did (D subminiature connectors).

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@f4grx @Binder

I recently read how we got the name mile from a thousand Roman paces, where each pace was 5 feet. Then the English based their mile on the nearby length of 8 furlongs, which were each 10 chains, giving us the headache of 5280 feet apparently largely for tax purposes.

Here in the US, I see the word micrometer used more often to describe devices for measuring small distances than as a unit of measure; for that instead I usually see micron (μm, often rendered um).

Another fun bit of confusion seems to come with the financial suffix MM (million, explicitly "thousand thousand", used to minimize confusion internationally), which of course has nothing to do with mm. So, I try to make sure that these are correctly capitalized (or not).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mile

mstarace, to random
johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@blogdiva @mstarace

Instead of the Batmobile, the guy who could have been Bruce Wayne wound up with a Cybertruck and a large following of Nazis.

ai6yr, to Japan

AP: To fend off tourists, a town in Japan is building a big screen blocking the view of Mount Fuji https://apnews.com/article/japan-fuji-tourists-screen-9ac5d8f02062ff3c1e573870a6787f16

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@weezmgk @ai6yr

I share your weird cognitive dissonance about American brands in Japan.

Who would have thought that a chain of convenience stores such as 7-11 would become a major bank in Japan?

GottaLaff, to legal
@GottaLaff@mastodon.social avatar

🧵starts HERE. 1/…

👀Via Katie Phang:

Interestingly: Eric Trump has accompanied his father to court today. Perhaps Trump’s legal team heard all of the chatter about the appearance to the jury with no family members being present?…

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@GottaLaff

Is Eric Trump the son with the dope problem or the other son with the dope problem?

ai6yr, to Aviation

Ouch... Lufthansa 747 go around yesterday at LAX. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUHsWr-K3Fc

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@ai6yr

Note the "porpoising" after the initial slam.

Once that front wheel hit the ground with the nose down, the captain did the right thing by aborting and spooling up those big slow engines.

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@mjausson @ai6yr

I grew up under landing approach for Moffett Field, when the Navy P-3 Orions were still flying there.

At one point, I had been an airline passenger so frequently that I could often guess by the landing if the pilot was trained by the Navy (hard and short), USAF (easy on the hardware, gently finding the runway with the gear on each side, using the whole length), or civilian (somewhere in between).

I earned my pilot license (as the latter), flew in that area, and have practiced touch-and-goes in a Cessna even into headwinds gusting up to 40 knots.

For this landing, the windsock seems to indicate a headwind of about 14 knots. I see clear conditions with the 747 on 24R and approaching traffic on the runway to its left. (The smaller plane can accommodate a landing lengthened by the tailwind.) I suspect that these good conditions may have been used as a training opportunity for a junior pilot (first officer, relief pilot, etc.) and/or was just a bad attempt. (Anyone can have a bad day.)

Free_Press, to news
@Free_Press@mstdn.social avatar

TRUMP'S DIRTY PECKER!

Pecker testimony reveals backroom deals that helped Trump win 2016

It's official - Trump IS the pond scum we always knew him to be!

https://news.google.com/articles/CBMiUWh0dHBzOi8vdGhlaGlsbC5jb20vcmVndWxhdGlvbi9jb3VydC1iYXR0bGVzLzQ2MTY1MjItcGVja2VyLXRlc3RpbW9ueS10cnVtcC0yMDE2L9IBVWh0dHBzOi8vdGhlaGlsbC5jb20vcmVndWxhdGlvbi9jb3VydC1iYXR0bGVzLzQ2MTY1MjItcGVja2VyLXRlc3RpbW9ueS10cnVtcC0yMDE2L2FtcC8?hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@Free_Press

at least we got to see the headline "TRUMP WORRIED ABOUT PECKER LEAKING"

majorlinux, to random
@majorlinux@toot.majorshouse.com avatar

It's a sad day when my iPhone thinks the 4K I'm talking about is temperature and not resolution.

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@majorlinux in your phone's defense, 4K would be "pretty cool"...

StillIRise1963, to random
@StillIRise1963@mastodon.world avatar

I think we can now stop saying “google it” when looking for info. No one will find it there.

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@SomeGadgetGuy @StillIRise1963

"Google it" or "go ogle it"?

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@StillIRise1963 @puffer

I remember Alta Vista.
I remember asking Jeeves.

johnlogic, to random
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

Tonight I had to think of my friend Jennifer Nalley, who helped bring back roller derby and at age 39 was murdered by the father of her unborn child.

He was sentenced to at least 25 years in prison, which doesn't seem enough.

https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/news/cops_courts/jennifer-nalley-s-killer-sentenced-to-25-years-to-life/article_4f2cc8ef-9747-5ab7-bf1f-f92078832484.html

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

Today I was again reminded of my friend Jennifer Nalley, who in 2016 was murdered by the father of her unborn child.

I found this AP article from back then:

https://apnews.com/article/jackson-3293c462b89f48e392fec17336c62dcd

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

After reading (and re-reading) the stories about her murder, I wanted to make sure that her killer doesn't get released any time soon.

It looks like he's eligible for parole 25 years after the crime.

If I'm still around in 2041, I think I'd like to tell the parole board why 25 years doesn't seem like enough. Marking my calendar...

https://www.idoc.idaho.gov/content/prisons/resident-client-search/details/132480

skykiss, (edited ) to instagramreality
@skykiss@sfba.social avatar

Ginni, Ginni she's the coup planner

Ginni Thomas Under Scrutiny Following Arrest of Michigan Fake Electors

#fake #electors #fraud
https://www.newsweek.com/ginni-thomas-arizona-fake-electors-michigan-1813950

johnlogic,
@johnlogic@sfba.social avatar

@skydog @skykiss

I just wrote to my Congressional representative, asking Congress to investigate for apparent income tax evasion and to impeach and remove from office Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

Please ask your Representative.

Find yours here:

https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative

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