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• Post #4316545

  Anyone else in the Bay Area interested in exploring some retro tech ideas for kids (and adults) classes and activities? Starting with the following idea - typing classes (after school/weekends during the school year, camps during some breaks and summertime - with more than just typing) Where people learn typing using actual typewriters and mechanical keyboards attached to somewhat retro computers. Not internet based games. And perhaps linked to other activities like making zines and artworks

• Post #4316544

  Decades ago I had a very complex set of personalized shell scripts and settings (for my Unix systems I used) and a set of apps and shortcuts I used on my personal machines. But a very wise mentor pointed out to me that most systems I might touch (at a client’s network or when helping a friend or family member with their devices) wouldn’t have the customizations I was used to. So I would either not be able to help or be far slower and more prone to errors when I did.

• Post #4316543

  generic advice for MOST businesses for their emails and website. Do not ask your SIGNED IN CUSTOMERS to sign up for your mailing list - in the email FROM YOU that you just sent them. Or to signup for your mailing list for a 20% new customer discount (or whatever your offer is) WHEN THEY ARE LOGGED IN to their account of many many years with you. I see this all the time - like daily. It isn't a deal breaker but it is friction and makes long time customers feel a bit less favorably

• Post #3928870

  Late night future campaign idea ( #ttrpg ) probably for Pathfinder 1e but could probably homebrew this for 5.5e PCs play familiars or animal companions of missing (perhaps dead) adventurers. In Pathfinder 1e familiars aren’t summoned spirits as in 5e/5.5e but real creatures enhanced by the process to get a familiar as similarly animal companions likewise are (not a spell as in current D&D). But RAW such creatures lose thier abilities when dismissed or their master dies So I change that

• Post #1345662

  Apparently to create a new Google account (which I need to do to access a google group that I was added to with an email that isn’t associated with any google account) you have to have a cell phone capable of sending sms messages. That I do isn’t an issue - but that so much is then gated and dependent on you having access to a cell phone seems problematic. Yes most people today have one but not everyone (my child for example though a tween does not have a phone and won’t for a many years)

• Post #1345661

  filing taxes is never all that fun but this year in particular it is just icky - from the many changes (that don't actually have much positive impact for most regular or even somewhat well off Americans) to the ick factor of the upsell to the current president branded "accounts" for kids. (and my child falls into the category of "doesn't actually get anything" but could get that account - I declined it as the minimal tax savings for my child...

• Post #1345660

  the challenge with migrating away from Google (which has been a slow process) is that many of the alternatives out there while better than Google in many ways get some really basic stuff wrong or just don't even have it. Today's example - Apple Maps which I greatly prefer to Google maps for directions (their driving directions in car are night and day better than Google's) Does not, it seems, have an easy way to save a place for future reference at least not one that I...

• Post #1345659

  Does anyone have a checklist for migrating phones these days? I’ve had an iPhone 11 (pro max) since around when it launched. Need to update it and my wife’s soon. Will stay with an iPhone but likely also switching carriers. Keeping the same phone number I know is not hard. But I’m worried about missing something and creating issues for me in the future. - ensuring I don’t lose any of my photos or my usage logs for apps like podcasts (decades of data on which episodes I’ve heard)

• Post #916489

  RE: https://wandering.shop/@xgranade/116327572078249938 This is the type of fun April Fools content that I remember and look back fondly on. No tricks nothing deceptive just a perfect bit well made and targeted to their customer demographic (well at least us older fogeys)

• Post #916488

  today is typically my annual "ignore the internet" day - any "real" news I'll catch later in the month and I generally get to avoid the inevitably stupid stuff that otherwise gets posted and shared and reposted today. I'm doing a bit of a hybrid this year - can't be entirely offline today (am literally in the process of one of the biggest transactions I've ever done) But neither am I going to give most things much of my, limit...

• Post #916487

  A survey - how many TVs do you have in your home? (and in the replies how often are any of them on - and perhaps whether primarily used for live tv, streaming, game consoles, or something else (apps/music/art displays etc) (poll doesn't allow for more than 4 options so if you select 3+ feel free to leave a reply with how many it is actually)

• Post #916486

  One (of many) reasons I love living in the Bay Area is that yesterday my wife and I went to a friends & family soft opening for a new business in the town next door to ours (a new location of a Shake Shack) while we were there the mayor of Sunnyvale (the town next to ours) was also there getting his lunch (he promotes all the businesses in his town via his social media channels) Today - his FB feed is about raising the Trans flag over City Hall & celebrating diversity.

• Post #916485

  Simple example of unavoidable AI embedding in it a biased view of the world Did a search for (going to slightly edit my actual search for privacy reasons) Science fiction author with a wife named [hidden] The AI results said “there is no male science fiction author with a wife named [hidden] perhaps you meant a science fiction author named [hidden]” Somehow the idea that perhaps it was a non-male science fiction author with the wife didn’t occur to the AI

• Post #916484

  Anyone else woken up by an earthquake alert in the Bay Area? Has anyone felt an actual earthquake?

• Post #916483

  Random thought that occurred to me earlier today - I’d love it if books sold in translation included a way to read the original text as well. In physical print obviously this is a layout challenge - and doubles the likely size of the work. But digitally imagine if every book sold had an option to see the original text. Perhaps with a variety of formatting options (including the correct pagination for works where that matters I think manga have at times had this. Or something like it.