malcircuit

malcircuit, 4 months ago to random

Can we just stop using Discord and go back to using forum sites?

I realize it's (comparatively) super easy to set up, but y'all realize it's just going to bite us all in the ass as soon as someone at Discord decides they need to turn up the profit ratio?

It's a ticking time bomb. The whole thing is going to follow the enshittification process, and anything of value on there is going to be lost/sold/destroyed.

malcircuit, 9 months ago to random

Corporations love to tell you about how you can "save the planet" or whatever by buying things made from recycled materials, using less water, buying an efficient car, using paper straws, or <insert trending thing>

Those things might help, but the problem isn't the choices we make, it's the options we're allowed to choose from. Your options aren't optimized for eco-friendliness, they are optimized for profit.

That's why the planet is burning. It's not because you didn't recycle the pizza box.

malcircuit, 9 months ago to random

Looking at the behavior of some CEOs, I feel like they'd actually be the easiest people to replace with AI

malcircuit, 9 months ago to random

I've stopped caring about new tech and become more political because in general we have sufficient technology to make everyone's lives better.

The problem isn't that we don't have enough or good enough technology. The problem is that the people in power aren't interested in making everyone's lives better.

malcircuit, 14 days ago to solar

Gonna try to do some #solar #astrophotography inside today while I work.

One of the perks of a) working from home, and b) having a large south-facing window.

Not really ideal optically, but the only alternative is leaving my scope outside mostly unattended.

malcircuit, 9 months ago to random

Good article about the LK-99 hubbub that was just posted. It does a good job of covering what's happened up until now, and isn't overly pessimistic or optimistic.

https://www.cnet.com/tech/computing/lk-99-superconductor-maybe-a-breakthrough-maybe-not-so-much/

malcircuit, 9 months ago to random

I immediately get a little exasperated whenever I see someone post about how much we could reduce greenhouse gas emissions if we did this thing or implemented this technology or invest in this research.

I'm going to keep saying this over and over again until people listen: the problem is not, and never has been, a lack of ideas about how to tackle the climate crisis.

The problem is that the people in power DON'T CARE. They don't want to make our lives better. They don't want to solve problems.

malcircuit, 8 months ago to astrophotography

Well, looks like my #astrophotography run last night was a bust. Not sure whether it was a thin layer of clouds or light pollution, but all the images are too bright to do anything with.

It might have worked last week because I was using a Ultra High Contrast filter, which I didn't use last night. That was intentional, because I wanted to see how much difference it makes. Apparently the answer is "a lot"

malcircuit, 6 months ago to random

Facist ideology is basically the idea that there is a way the world ought to be, and our moral and civic duty is to bring that about, no matter the consequences. It says that there is a righteous destiny for society, and to deviate is evil.

Fighting fascism starts in your own mind. It is as simple as acknowledging reality for what it is, and accepting it without judgement. It means accepting that our shared destiny is not preordained or inevitable. It means recognizing our impact on others.

malcircuit, 2 months ago to astrophotography

I realized what it is about the eclipse image set that makes it so challenging to find and use #astrophotography tools to align them all.

In many cases with astro images, the goal is stacking, i.e., aligning a feature of interest across multiple images where that feature is positioned arbitrarily. In effect, you're "solving" for a single, static variable, and assuming anything that doesn't correlate with it is noise and can be safely eliminated.

/1

malcircuit, 5 months ago to random

I'm anti-war because the more I learn about history, the more it's clear that wars have a legacy that extends for decades or centuries beyond when they officially end.

And I don't mean only the lives lost.

The propaganda drives people insane and clouds their vision for decades. All of the things people "had" to do to "win" end up bringing about unintended and unanticipated consequences that never really disappear from society.

The madness incites more madness.

malcircuit, 6 days ago to solar

Managed to catch a just-shy-of-X1-class flare a few hours ago when I put my scope out on the deck.

The complex chaos of magnetic fields — that is much, much larger than the size of Earth — designated as Region 3664 and Region 3668 (center right sunspot smudge) has been spawning a great number of flares recently, flinging an truly stupendous amount of energy and relativistic particles out into the solar system.

#solar #astrophotography

malcircuit, 9 months ago to random

Ba'al: Do you not know the pain you will suffer for this impudence?

O'Neill: I don't know the meaning of the word. Seriously. Impudence. What does that mean?

malcircuit, 2 months ago to astrophotography

Immediately runs to buy BlurXterminator

The fact that it claimed to be "AI-powered" made me extremely skeptical of BlurXterminator, but now that I understand how this tool works on a technical level, I'm sold.

https://www.youtube.com/live/5_Dg7bYu-E8

#astrophotography

malcircuit, 7 months ago to random

The more you learn about the practical reality of space travel and read sci-fi that reflects that, the more you realize that humanity will probably never leave the solar system. Some people might make it as far as Alpha Centauri, but only on generation ships that won't ever return.

There is no other habitable planet or moon that we can reach. Anyone that tries to colonize Mars will probably die there. Earth is a very special place for us.

As the climate activism meme says, there is no Planet B

malcircuit, 9 months ago to random

Weakness and ignorance are not barriers to survival, but arrogance is — Cixin Liu (from Death's End — Three Body Problem, book 3)

malcircuit, 7 months ago to random

The reality of using SSDs:

Copy 100 GB directory of RAW images: 5-10 minutes

Copy 90 GB folder with ~200k files, many of which are tiny: 5-500 days (estimated, and constantly changing) :blobcateyes: :blobsweat:

malcircuit, 7 months ago to astrophotography

Them, imagined: Mallory, it's been so nice out the past several days. Where's all the new #astrophotography pics?

Me: Here's a disappointing (to me) pic of NGC7635 (Bubble Nebula) for you

malcircuit, 5 months ago to random

Internet civility tip:

95% of shit people post was never intended by them to be an "argument". This isn't a debate club where you need to systematically dismantle every incorrect opinion that crosses your path.

Some people (me) get very annoyed when they're shooting the shit with their computer friends and some rando drops in to post a wall of text about how this minor thing you said in passing is wrong and here's why.

I don't care.

If I wanted to know, I'd ask.

malcircuit, 10 months ago to random

Annoying work thing: being asked to give a short 5-10 minute progress update on a thing, being last on the list, and ending up almost running out of time in the meeting to do your update because the other people go over by like 10-15 minutes

malcircuit, 3 months ago to random

What's the easiest way to make a single cup of coffee without using Keurig-type thing with the pods?

malcircuit, 3 months ago to random

Butlerian Jihad when?

malcircuit, 2 months ago to random

Them: All of these new regulations could make cars to expensive for the average consumer.

Me: Maybe that's the way it should always have been.

malcircuit, 1 month ago to random

I'm starting to feel like I don't actually know how to get myself to stay focused in way that's sustainable and healthy.

I definitely feel like I could be productive right now, but I don't know how to work with my brain instead of simply beating it into submission with negative emotions.

malcircuit, 9 days ago to solar

The sun from a few hours ago. I'm really enjoying this weird semi-inverted technique I've discovered. Really makes the details pop

#solar #astrophotography