@snow every plugin(-like) system without an enforced access permission system is just a giant "fuck you, you don't matter" to everyone who uses it. I will die on this hill. This includes apps (mobile and flatpak are mostly alright nowadays), plugins, and programming libraries (because leftpad should not be *allowed* to phone home).
Skype is shutting down in May. I've been using it to speak with my grandmother, and I am looking for an alternative, with the following features:
* can do live subtitles (in French)
* works without a phone number/sim card
* can call your contacts and be dialed (i.e. not only invite by email/calendar/url…)
* simple UI/UX (with big buttons) is far more important than feature rich.
I know various things that do some of the above, but I'm not sure what (other than Skype) does all of it.
Any help?
A keyboard with ten hundred keys by Attoparsec
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wC-24QeoQu4
In 2019, Iceland became one of the first countries to approve a four-day workweek. Here's how things have been going for them.
2021: "Trials of a four-day week in Iceland were an "overwhelming success""
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-57724779
2024: "Iceland’s economy is outperforming most European peers after the nationwide introduction of a shorter working week with no loss in pay."
https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/25/business/iceland-shorter-working-week-economy/index.html
2025: "The effects of the shorter workweek in Iceland have extended far beyond the office."
Called it. Wrote this back in Sept. 2024, about a clever Windows Powershell phishing scam that was targeting developers at the time. It uses a fake CAPTCHA that asks visitors to distinguish themselves from bots by pressing a combination of keyboard keys that causes Microsoft Windows to download password-stealing malware. Everyone said, bah, devs will never fall for this. Maybe, I said, but your average user would for sure.
Judging from the number of recent media reports, it appears this one is pretty widespread at the moment.
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2024/09/this-windows-powershell-phish-has-scary-potential/
On my quasi-blog: "Git without a forge"
https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/quasiblog/git-no-forge/
Most of my projects are hosted in bare git repositories on the web, and not on a forge site. I talk a bit about this: ways to send patches to a project like that (and which I personally prefer), and reasons why I haven't (yet?) changed my arrangements.
Program goes to Operating System, tears in eyes, says "my state, it is very bad"
Operating System says "is no problem, have good error reporting facility, detailed but concise report, contextual information included. you will submit bug there"
Program sobs loudly "but Operating System, I *am* error reporting facility"
"AI", aka GenAI, aka ChatGPT, aka:
LLM, not "artificial intelligence"
Dunning-Kruger machine
Mediocrity machine
Lazy machine
"I can't be arsed to do my homework"-machine
"I want to skip the real work"-machine
"I hate having to hire a human for this"-machine
Generative bullshit machine
Mansplaining as a service machine
Autocomplete it machine
Add yours!
Collecting them all here: https://www.maaikebrinkhof.nl/an-ai-by-any-other-name/
Trans woman, bisexual, someone's fiancée, forever a programmer, poly, and former total mess