Posts

I Read It on the Internet

Jun 20, 2022 · 1 min read · Prattle

I feel like we all need to stop using 'Did you read that on the internet?', in such a derogatory way. The internet contains just about all writing at this point. It contains academic journals, books, and intelligent discussions by professionals, often on Reddit. Snarky comments about Reddit also apply - the space …

There's No Such Thing as a Rodent

Jun 20, 2022 · 4 min read · Language Philosophy

Fun fact: There's no such thing as a fish. This 'QI'-style factum results from the notion that fish do not all belong to the same genus (or 'family', or 'phylum', or some other Biological category). If we take one genetic branch of fish as the real fish, then we miss out a lot of animals which everyone calls 'fish'. …

I Will Prove vim is Easy

Jun 16, 2022 · 2 min read · Prattle Linux Memoirs

It's literally three commands: i to insert text Escape to not insert text ZZ to save and exit An old girlfriend once asked me if she could write a website. This came out of the blue - she had no experience with computers beyond installing Sims. "Is it easy?", she asked. I said "yes", then showed her: 1 2<BODY> 3 <H1> …

You are a Utility Monster

Jun 7, 2022 · 3 min read · Philosophy Utilitarianism

Robert Nozick created his 'utility monster' thought-experiment to show a fatal flaw in Utilitarianism. Utilitarian theory is embarrassed by the possibility of utility monsters who get enormously greater sums of utility from any sacrifice of others than these others lose...the theory seems to require that we all be …

Comparisons are Fine

May 27, 2022 · 3 min read · Prattle

I've seen a meme trending hard of late. Not a 'funny picture' meme, but an idea: 'Don't compare your thing to another, just show us your thing. Don't say why it's better than the other thing, just tell us what it does'. This advice might work in some limited way to stop bad writing, but then we may as well just stop …

Leaving Passwords

May 25, 2022 · 3 min read · Prattle FOSS

We're all going to die, so we have to share passwords. When family die, we already have a mountain of nonsense to deal with, and I have no doubt that we'll see a growing number of people wrestling with American corporations, attempting to regain access to Coinbase accounts, banking apps, et c. Clearly, we would all …

GPL Worries

May 17, 2022 · 1 min read · FOSS

The GPL states that any users can use the source code under the GPL, or any later version released by the Free Software Foundation. So the entire FOSS movement hinges on the continued sanity of the Free Software Foundation. Theoretically, a GPLv4 could come out, allowing people to not release the source code, which …

FOSS Enthusiasts aren't Enthusiastic Enough

May 13, 2022 · 3 min read · Prattle FOSS

Games I hear Linux podcasts and bloggers pulling themselves back, with an eye to keeping things realistic, and too many end up with unwarranted pessimism. 'You have to admit that computer games are just better on Windows'. And I won't disagree, but I don't see why they phrase the situation like that. Linux is the …

The Tell Rick and Morty Missed

May 9, 2022 · 1 min read · Prattle

Rick & Morty's parallel episodes show myriad alternative versions. There's Fat Rick, Juggling Rick, et c. From the point of view of Fat Rick, all alternative Ricks have an easy tell - they are all skinny. And of course the Drama-Morty can instantly spot alternative-universe Morties because they don't have the same …

Silent Mode was a Mistake

May 7, 2022 · 1 min read · Prattle FOSS

My phone bings three times, and I really want to tell it 'listen, matey, if I haven't answered the first three bings, I won't answer the next'. I wander over and tell it to shut up. Of course if I forget to turn off silent mode, I could miss something important in a few hours. The entire approach here misunderstands …