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  • Easy. I work hard, I like to take it easy when I game.

    That is to say, in games that offer you these choices, Warrior is Easy, Rogue is Normal, and Mage is Hard. Mages have powerful spells, but they're limited by mana costs. They're also more fragile, and they're often pitted against people who can attack with no such cost and take more damage. Mages, thus, are at a disadvantage.

    Rogues are limited by ammo if they use bows. They don't typically use swords, but can use daggers. They're quick, but not as strong as warriors.

    Warriors can take a lot of damage and do a lot of damage.

    Make it D&D and it's a different story. I typically roll a mage and subclass into thief or assassin, because those characters tend to think like I do. Strategy, planning.

    With Skyrim, it's sneak thief every time because the game is geared for that.

    Games are very seldom fair for all the choices you can make. I think D&D tries more than most. Most games are straight up unfair to mages. That's one thing I like about Hogwarts Legacy. You have to play a mage (a witch or a wizard). Despite the fact that the books were written by a bigot, you can be trans, and there's a trans character in the game. For some people, it's not enough. Fortunately, they don't have to play the game, and it goes on sale for ten bucks all the time. It was also free on Epic once. So you really don't have to pay that much for it, and once you get a broom, you got your money's worth because flying is awesome. Anyway, the game is geared towards magic use, and it makes magic fun. And it's never really hard, either. So you can play it casually.

    With Cyberpunk 2077 I also went with the mage build. It's not immediately apparent which is which in Night City. Your first choice is Streetkid, Nomad, or Corpo. These are back stories. They don't matter, except Nomad gets you a cooler bike and Corpo gets you a cool line. No, the class choice comes down to your cyberdeck. If it's got the hacking modules, I forget what they're called right now, you're a mage. If you have a Sandevistan (slow time), you're a rogue. The berserker one is warrior. The latter two just make the game harder. This is another game geared toward mages, except mages here are called Netrunners. A Netrunner can hack several things at once, cause enemy guns to misfire, blind enemies, and even spread a plague amongst them. And that's low level stuff (that can level). The high level stuff is straight up nasty. I mean, if you're not a Netrunner in Night City, you're challenging yourself for some reason. Or you wanna be David Martinez from the Netflix anime about the game. But you'll never be as good as him because his Sandevistan was special. You don't get that one. And the berserker decks are just dumb. They're there to check a box.

  • I was the car behind him the other day. Except it was a truck or SUV, like an Escalade or something. You know, those guys who think they own the road. The funny thing is, they had just run a red light in front of me. They didn't beat the yellow, either. It was red when they got there. They just decided the red light was only for the working folks. Fortunately they didn't get hit crossing. Got a few horns though. So I thought it was funny as hell that I rolled up behind them at the next stop. They were the first one there, and they rolled just past the line right onto the crosswalk. Absolutely tracked for how they'd been driving.

    Maybe I could have downloaded the dashcam video and posted it somewhere, but I'm not a rat. The cops will catch this guy eventually. I don't need to be a part of it. People bitch about the cost of the ticket, but they don't realise they're not just paying for the one time they got caught, they're paying for all the times they didn't. That they didn't get away with it and now the bill has come due. That's what their saved time was worth. If it's too much, maybe next time they'll just leave earlier, drive safer. If it's not... they won't learn.

  • What exactly are you trying to accomplish?

    People (mostly those who use Android phones) called Apple selfish for not opening AirDrop to competition. The EU forced them into an open protocol, but Google has selfishly limited it to phones from the last year hoping people will buy new phones for the feature, proving yet again that Google is probably more evil than you give them credit for. At least Apple shit works with Apple shit. The walled garden is indeed a thing, but hey, it works awesome. Like universal clipboard. And how you can just... use your iPhone... on your Mac. And the shit just works. I can cast my Mac to my Apple TV with nearly zero latency. I'd game on it like that... I mean, if Macs didn't suck for gaming.

    Anyway, if you just want an open thing where any two phones can send files across a decent distance (like, not seeing each other or through a wall), that's basically not going to happen. What you need is a sort of "town square" application where you can send a file to anyone using the app who is within X metres of you. And that's fine but everyone will have to have the app. Now if you're face to face, it gets a lot easier. I have an iPhone (16 Pro Max) and a Galaxy (S10) and I can easily toss files between them. Be on the same WiFi network, have one as a server, have the other connect to it, download files, it works both ways. Of course, I trust myself on my own FTP server. I may not trust you and you may not trust me. So having something that open is kind of a no go.

    If you wanna be a 1337 ha... yeah, I'm not gonna use all the symbols... you can build a Raspberry Pi type thing, a little self contained computer that has a web server on it. It's on the network, you put a QR code on the case that connects people to it, and they can download off of it. You just make the shared folder write protected so they can't upload anything (like a virus). This is pretty easy stuff for someone who knows how. Maybe you attach a 2TB SSD and put some music and movies on it and just let people come take what they want. Sneakernets have been around for decades, but WiFi makes it a bit easier. Of course that's piracy focused, but that's not the only use, just the most easy to explain.

    There are options, but they require participation and cooperation. The cool thing about iPhones is, you could just turn AirDrop on and get memes dropped to you. Even with the 10 minute limit, I just turn it on every 10 minutes at conventions. It's still fun. And really, you can just grab any old secondhand iPhone off Swappa or some other kind of site, or a local pawn shop, just make sure it's not account locked or you're buying a paperweight. You can't (easily) steal an iPhone and some people sell them locked just to screw with people. And people are upgrading theirs all the time, you should be able to get an 11, 12, or 13 fairly cheap.

  • I self-hosted Plex and Jellyfin on Windows. It's fine. But as others have said, Windows machines tend to be too power-hungry. Honestly I think that's more a symptom of x86-64. Changing the OS from Windows to Linux does not magically change the power needs of the hardware. (However, Linux tends to demand less of the hardware, especially if there's no GUI.)

    I now self-host Plex on a Mac mini (M2 Pro, 16GB RAM/512GB SSD). M2 Pro in Intel speak is like i5 as in, it's the "next one up" and "good enough for most people" but not the low entry into the platform (M# base or i3), though I'd say M4/M5 base is better than M2 Pro. Just like going 2-3 generations newer, the i3 gets closer to and may surpass an older i5.

    There's a reason self-hosters prefer Linux, but I'd think it would be more about the hardware than the software. Windows is problematic because you're opening ports and Windows is a target due to its massive market share. Mac is kinda (/sorta /not really) UNIX based, and Linux is, well, it's Linux; neither is bulletproof, but both are better than Windows because they're not really being targeted. That said, the MacBook Neo and Mac Mini going for $500 if you're a student, $600 otherwise is getting a lot of people sick of Microslop's BS to switch, and the Neo in particular is forcing the PC market to get competitive as macOS market share is rising — this also makes it more of a target. You're always at some risk online and a little common sense goes a long way.

  • I saw an Audi driver on the road the other day. I thought, that's a nice car, it probably cost as much as my home.

    Then I realised he hadn't opted for the turn signal subscription. Shame, that. Guess he's really not as affluent as he'd have you believe.

    /s if it wasn't obvious.

    That said, I've been following smartphones for over 20 years and I've never heard of Audi making one. But maybe you know something I don't. Because I'm curious as to why in a conversation about Apple (and by extension other phone makers) and you bring up Audi. Do they make a phone? Educate me.

  • I'm not going to argue the point. I will say however, that I am eagerly awaiting the smartphone from the EU. I don't recall if Finland is in the EU or not. I think they joined at the start of the Ukrainian crisis. Or maybe not. I'm not sure. I know they have Nokia and Nokia has done some interesting things. There's also Jolla, I think out of Sweden. I'm not ignorant to what currently exists, at least not completely. And I generally like the things the EU does. But if they can't produce a tech company that can exist under their bureaucracy, I think that says a lot about how much they should extend to American companies.

  • If you mean MacRumors commenters, I think a lot of them are Apple shareholders, and/or long-time Mac users.

    If they're not shareholders, I only really have a guess. I remember back in the day, there were like four computer platforms. Apple, Atari, Amiga, and IBM/Compatibles. Of those, only Apple remains. IBM/Compatible is now "Windows" and Linux isn't really a category — that is to say, free Linux software exists, but when it comes to paid software, it's basically Windows... and occasionally Mac. Microsoft didn't get huge by magic or accidentally. They were good once. IBM folded a long time ago, at least in the consumer space. They do still exist. But for a while, they were making Macs. IBM made the PowerPC chip that powered Macs in the late 90s, early 00s. The same architecture also powered the Xbox 360, and maybe one other console (GameCube? Not sure). Anyway, Apple is basically the only old school computer company left that still makes its own software. On the Windows side, you have Dell, HP, Lenovo, and more, but they don't make the software that runs on their hardware. It's all super generic stuff with their logo on it, but it runs Windows. Macs still run macOS by Apple. So the loyalty is understandable. Doubly so on phones, because you either have the iPhone, which is like a handheld Mac, it runs macOS but with a different desktop environment (and it's called iOS)... and then you have what amounts to spyware sold by an advertising company (Google) and licensed like Windows, to people making generic phones and badging them like PCs. Android phones are weaker than iPhones as far as raw compute power, they cost about the same, and Google makes more than the base iPhone costs, on average, per person for the personal data they collect and sell.

    So to sum it, loyalty to Apple is because they've been around for 50 years, they're primarily a computer company, and you are the customer and not the product. AND anyone who invested in them early on is rich now. If YOU hate Apple, but somehow you went back in time to 1997 or 2007 (before the iMac unveiling, or before the iPhone unveiling), dollars to donuts you invest your whole life savings in Apple. Why TF wouldn't you take that free money?

    That said, raw compute power is not 100% of a phone's experience. My 7 year old Galaxy S10 has a better keyboard than my 1.5 year old iPhone 16 Pro Max does, and the S10's keyboard doesn't hallucinate shit after I've typed it. iOS has been known to do that. I also wanted to turn that old Android phone into a cosplay prop. I did a few things you can't do on an iPhone. Case, that's easy, both of them can do that. But changing the grid and the icons? The latter is possible on iOS, but a huge pain in the arse. The former isn't. Having a 3x3 grid of 200% scaled icons to turn a modern smartphone into the NookPhone from Animal Crossing: New Horizons is simply not possible on iOS. So, there are valid reasons people use Android, and I don't just assume they're up Google's arse because they chose an advertising company over a computer company. Though, some of them are. Just like some iPhone users are insufferable twats about having the superior phone that anyone can buy. It's not like that one Ferrari you can only buy via invitation from the company because you've owned so many of their previous models.

  • Everyone here sucks, or whatever the term is in the "Am I the asshole?" threads when everyone is in the wrong.

    Apple knows what the EU regulations are and as a company that wants to do business in the bloc, they have to abide by their rules. Also, China and the Middle East are stricter and Apple happily kowtows to them. And of course Apple bends over for the US regime as well. So what's different about doing it for the EU?

    On the other hand, there's a reason there are no major companies operating out of the EU. The EU is where innovation goes to die. Like the US, it's tech rules made by people who neither understand nor love tech. EU does fight for their citizens, but the fact remains that the EU is also hurting its citizens here. Apple doesn't have to play ball, they can take their ball and go home, and still sell a lesser product to the EU for the same money. Apple is not going to take a loss here. Only people losing will be those living in the EU.

    Apple says the EU wanted too much of your personal data. The EU didn't respond to that. All they really said was "Apple wanted a blanket exception and that is not an option." Apple still gets to wear its privacy hat, and the EU look like arseholes.

    Also, I didn't read Apple's message as "blaming the EU." It was more that they just said due to the way things are over there, Siri AI will not be available there. Sure, they chose their words carefully, but my read on it was "it is what it is," not "it's all their fault." More of an "agree to disagree" kind of thing. Like "they want X, we want Z, we tried Y for a while but they won't budge and honestly we don't want to either, so this is what happens next." Now the citizens of the EU can just roll over and take it, or they can contact the EU leadership and whatnot and tell them they want less regulation. Who knows.

  • Gamers do, because game devs suck up to Microsoft by not putting PC games on Linux or macOS. Sadly, even "indie" devs.

  • Clarification: You can disable all the AI stuff with one switch.

    Furthermore, the hardened forks of Firefox don't have it.

    Still better than contributing to the chromium monopoly.

  • Unless you absolutely want to contribute to the chromium monopoly, Firefox is right there and still free. If you're concerned about the telemetry, LibreWolf is worth looking at.

  • Well, the reason All Might stuck around is kinda spoilery, it's revealed in the last season. But it's also not really plot crucial. In the last season, we learn that Midoriya no longer really reveres All Might. He did when he was younger, but since he's inherited his power and made it his own, he now has his own goals and ideals. He still wants what All Might wanted, to be a Symbol of Peace, but there's more to it. He outright states that Uraraka is his hero because she's kind of an underdog and she fights for reasonable things, for personal goals. She goes above and beyond, but she isn't over the top like some of them (and not just Bakugo). Also, All Might reveals that Midoriya is his hero now, because Midoriya carries his own power. So, that's why All Might stuck around, he was genuinely concerned for Midoriya's advancement.

    He was never really gonna make a comeback since he was getting worse and worse. He did, however, come back a little in a Batman or James Bond sense with a bunch of gear. It was cool to see but was a little extra and kind of unnecessary. So I stand by my assertion that Horikoshi should have killed him off.

  • At that point we can just say that, let’s just let the girls and boys play together so the Trump-Epstein coalition doesn’t come in to examine their genitals.

  • Well, my wife’s fandom is My Hero Academia and my most controversial opinion on it is that All Might should have died in the USJ incident at the end of season 1. He was pretty useless anyway after that, and it would have been a great “holy shit” moment that would have motivated Midoriya more.

    Most in the fandom don’t agree. I stand by it.

  • I think it’s newer EVs charge faster. Fast charging was originally a premium feature in smartphones. Then they all did it. Then it came out that iPhones (and some Android phones) charged faster with an iPad (better) charger. Then year after year they got faster and faster.

    Faster charging can degrade batteries faster, but also newer batteries guard against it better.

    The newer the battery/charging tech, the better things are.

  • Essentially it’s what a chocolate bar is.

    I forgot; around the holidays you may see “peppermint bark.”

  • Also, everyone (including me in my other post) is going savoury — how about sweet? Aero bar, in mint. Perfection. Bark candy mostly only comes in chocolate, or dark chocolate. Sometimes vanilla (white chocolate, which is not chocolate, it's vanilla and vanilla should own it because "white chocolate" is awesome, though it should really be called "Vanilla candy bark," but "bark candy" is really only known as... chocolate... hence "white chocolate"). Fun fact, I've had all kinds of bark candy. When I was a kid, I got it in orange and raspberry as well. Now it's only chocolate and... what I mentioned. Oh and mint chocolate, like Andes mints, but also those pastel-coloured mints that sometimes have the little white balls of hard sugar on them (I think those are just straight up mint bark though).

    Again why TF don't we have bark candy in other flavours?

  • Shepherd's Pie, though I confess I've never made it with mutton. If you use ground beef, it's called Cottage Pie.

    I use hot Italian sausage. I don't think there's a name for doing that. At that point you're mixing up Cottage Pie with bangers and mash (mashed potatoes and sausage). And I'm okay with that. All those dishes are good. Mixing things up is what I do.

  • I thought that was kind of the point of all of them.

    I have the ChatGPT app on my iPhone. I don't love it, but I do like it for what it is. I also don't pay for it. Siri and Apple Intelligence made a bunch of empty promises. Hell, Star Trek: The Next Generation set us up for so much disappointment in the 2020s. The fact that you can't just talk to your phone and have a full on conversation with it is pretty damn disappointing in 2026. Well, you can with an app, but it's creepy and it's driving up the cost of computer parts, so it's one hell of a monkey's paw.

    But at the same time, I was giving a coworker a ride home, and Michael Jackson came up in conversation. I was a big fan in the 80s but really stopped caring about him in the 90s (not because of the allegations; I just moved on to rock and metal). My coworker mentioned a music video with Magic Johnson in it, and I asked ChatGPT what it was. While driving, because it has a voice prompt. I spoke to it like I'd speak to any passenger in my car. I said — this is right outta the app's history — "I heard there was a music video that Michael Jackson did that Magic Johnson was in it. Do you know what that is? I'm just gonna take what I said." That last sentence wasn't to ChatGPT, I just didn't hit the end/send button hard enough and it kept recording. The context baffles me, too. Anyway, the video was "Remember the Time" and it gave me four paragraphs about it, but I was driving, so it just spoke them, through CarPlay.

    I don't love ChatGPT, but this is the kind of shit we were promised with Siri 10 years ago. Just to be able to ask it a question and have it answer you, no muss, no fuss.

    There's no reason why you should ever have to touch your phone. You should be able to do it all by touch if you want to. Especially if you have earbuds, you should be able to ask it 90% of what you'd look up manually and have it just tell you. That's the future. Google is probably most of the way there, and I like Android, I like customising the home screen, the lock screen, widgets, I like having a keyboard that doesn't censor you and change what you say after you say it because what you said wasn't politically correct — in no uncertain terms, fuck iOS for that — but I also don't like Google and their data selling policies. Google is pretty much scum. Not that Apple are saints, but I still think of them as the computer company that made the Macintosh. I use Macs at home. I don't like how they're getting into services (though I do love Apple Music). I do love that they're getting rid of the bean counter, Tim Cook, and getting an actual engineer as CEO starting in September (John Ternus). Tim Cook seems like a nice guy, but I don't think he took Apple in the right direction, though I'm sure the shareholders vehemently disagree since he made them rich. Also, the M-series Macs have been great. I just hope Ternus makes them better.