When it comes to writing code, there is a huge difference between code that works and code that works *well." Lets say you’re tasked with writing a function that takes an array of RGB values and converts them to grayscale. ChatGPT is probably going to give you two nested loops that iterate over the X and Y values, applying a grayscale transformation to each pixel. This will get the job done, but it’s slow, inefficient, and generally not well-suited for production code. An experienced programmer is going to take into account possible edge cases (what if a color is out of the 0-255 bounds), apply SIMD functions and parallel algorithms, factor in memory management (do we need a new array or can we write back to the input array), etc.

ChatGPT is great for experienced programmers to get new ideas; I use it as a modern version of “rubber ducky” debugging. The problem is that corporations think that LLMs can replace experienced programmers, and that’s just not true. Sure, ChatGPT can produce code that “works,” but it will fail at edge cases and will generally be inefficient and slow.

There are really two reasons ECC is a “must-have” for me.

• I’ve had some variant of a “homelab” for probably 15 years, maybe more. For a long time, I was plagued with crashes, random errors, etc. Once I stopped using consumer-grade parts and switched over to actual server hardware, these problems went away completely. I can actually use my homelab as the core of my home network instead of just something fun to play with. Some of this improvement is probably due to better power supplies, storage, server CPUs, etc, but ECC memory could very well play a part. This is just anecdotal, though.
• ECC memory has saved me before. One of the memory modules in my NAS went bad; ECC detected the error, corrected it, and TrueNAS sent me an alert. Since most of the RAM in my NAS is used for a ZFS cache, this likely would have caused data loss had I been using non-error-corrected memory. Because I had ECC, I was able to shut down the server, pull the bad module, and start it back up with maybe 10 minutes of downtime as the worst result of the failed module.

I don’t care about ECC in my desktop PCs, but for anything “mission-critical,” which is basically everything in my server rack, I don’t feel safe without it. Pfsense is probably the most critical service, so whatever machine is running it had better have ECC.

I switched from bare-metal to a VM for largely the same reason you did. I was running Pfsense on an old-ish Supermicro server, and it was pushing my UPS too close to its power limit. It’s crazy to me that yours only pulled 40 watts, though; I think I saved about 150-175W by switching it to a VM. My entire rack contains a NAS, a Proxmox server, a few switches, and a couple of other miscellaneous things. Total power draw is about 600-650W, and jumps over 700W under a heavy load (file transfers, video encoding, etc). I still don’t like the idea of having Pfsense on a VM, though; I’d really like to be able to make changes to my Proxmox server without dropping connectivity to the entire property. My UPS tops out at 800W, though, so if I do switch back to bare-metal, I only have realistically 50-75W to spare.

Social media companies, adult websites, whatever, can try to find ways to block children from accessing their content, but kids will always find a way around it.

It’s the parents’ responsibility to control their children. I’ve said 1000 times, children don’t need access to smartphones and tablets. A desktop PC or laptop with strict parental controls is adequate enough for school work, learning about technology, and some basic entertainment.

When a child is old enough to work and pay for a smartphone themselves, then they’re old enough to have a smartphone. A prepaid flip phone with basic voice and SMS is more than enough for a 15-year-old.

I have a few services running on Proxmox that I’d like to switch over to bare metal. Pfsense for one. No need for an entire 1U server, but running on a dedicated machine would be great.

Every mini PC I find is always lacking in some regard. ECC memory is non-negotiable, as is an SFP+ port or the ability to add a low-profile PCIe NIC, and I’m done buying off-brand Chinese crop on Amazon.

If someone with a good reputation makes a reasonably-priced mini PC with ECC memory and at least some way to accept a 10Gb DAC, I’ll probably buy two.

Kudos for posting an actually unpopular opinion.

I’m not vegan in the sense that I do still use animal products; I realize that it’s wrong, but it’s difficult to get away from. I haven’t eaten meat in over a decade, so I guess that “vegetarian” is probably the best description.

That being said, I have FAR more respect for those who go hunting and fishing than for those who eat meat from a restaurant or supermarket. Eating a hamburger or a steak is easy. You simply go to a store and buy it. Yet people stick their head in the sand and ignore the fact that factory farming is a brutal practice that causes an absolutely disgusting amount of pain and suffering for animals. The masses conveniently ignore that fact and continue on with their meat-based diets.

Hunting an animal for food means that although you’re killing the animal, it’s still lived a natural life. It hasn’t suffered on a factory farm and been raised solely for human consumption. Hunters cause far less suffering than farmers.

You act like this is a negative thing that they’re choosing to ignore. If anything, this will make them even more supportive of him; most of them would do the same if they could get away with it.

Leader of a terrorist organization endorses another terrorist organization. Can’t say I’m surprised.

That’s kind of the point I was trying to make. They feel so different, I can’t imagine one being a viable alternative to the other.

I couldn’t care less what happens to the wine industry, but are people really using weed as an alternative? They’re completely different experiences. I enjoy drinking, but cannabis is in no way pleasurable to me at all.

Children can have phones, tablets, etc when they are old enough to purchase them with their own income.

Before that, a desktop with parental control software is more than enough for schoolwork.

Several weeks ago, I saw a guy riding a motorcycle with the American flag flying from the back of his bike and the confederate flag sewn on the back of his jacket. I do not live anywhere near a southern state.

I can’t fathom the amount of mental gymnastics it takes to proudly fly the flags of two opposing parties in a major war and still somehow believe it represents your views.

I agree with you to a certain point.

When somebody finishes high-school and becomes an adult, they should develop a useful skill that they can turn into a career. This might be going to college for STEM, it might be a trade-school, or it might be an apprenticeship as a skilled tradesman. I wouldn’t discount all liberal arts degrees either; a degree in graphic design can be well worth the time.

The important thing is that people entering the workforce can say “I’m a doctor,” “I’m a plumber,” “I’m an auto mechanic,” “I’m a software developer,” etc. Be able to say “I do something.”

Going to college for an undergraduate degree in art history? That’s something you should do after you’re already established in your career and you feel like you’d like to learn something more. Going to school to learn to be a chef, paint cars, build furniture, etc, they might not be STEM or law degrees, but they’re useful.

I guess in summary, kids should go to school to learn a useful skill. Adults should go to school for whatever they want.

This is kind of a shit article. Most of these are just old hardware that eventually had modern improvements, not “trends.”

A “trend” is cold cathode black lights inside the case, not a silly naming scheme for CPU revisions.

Everybody who keeps saying “just go” seems to be assuming that OP works in an office job where you can just come back and finish your work after your appointment.

What if they’re an air traffic controller, they’re operating factory equipment, monitoring a nuclear reactor, etc. Some jobs require a person to be present and attentive. Now they have to talk to their manager, find someone to cover for them, etc. Mental health treatment should be easily available without having to jump through hoops. I understand their frustration.

I think you might be misunderstanding what I’m trying to say. I’m not discounting the value of human culture. I enjoy various types of art, and I am grateful for the people who produce it.

What doesn’t interest me in the slightest is urban “culture.” By that I mean going to restaurants, attending parties, seeing live music, walking to the corner pub, etc. I haven’t done any of these things in years, and I’m happy. If I discover a musician I like, I’m going to spend some money and buy their record, but I don’t need to be surrounded by a crowd of people listening to them live.

You mention the term “anti-social behavior,” but that doesn’t describe everyone who’d rather live in a rural area than a city. Some of us just like our peace and quiet. As far as subsidizing roads and shipping to rural areas, you like to eat, right? Where do you think the food came from? You live in a house or an apartment, right? Where did the wood, concrete, and raw materials come from? A huge amount of agriculture and production comes from rural areas, and it’s always going to be necessary to have roads and infrastructure to support this. The fact that I live in the same area that supplied your food doesn’t mean that your tax dollars are paying for roads solely so that I can drive on them.

I understand that people like you enjoy the busy life of a city and that you can legitimately take advantage of what a city offers. I’m not like that. Large gatherings of people don’t make me happy; they just make me want to leave. My original argument was that a lot of people live in cities because they have to for work. Some of them, like you, live in cities because it makes them happy. For the people that live in urban areas because they have to, I was speculating that many of them might move to more rural areas given the option. I’m not trying to shit on your lifestyle (although I do have strong negative opinions about bicycles on roadways), and I would hope that you extend the same courtesy. Life is short, and in a perfect world, everyone could live in a place that they enjoy.

I feel the same as you, but you really can’t deny the fact that the engineers at his various companies have managed to design some really great tech despite their CEO.

Not just spacecraft either. Starlink is really the first usable satellite broadband, and Tesla has mastered the art of putting advanced powertrain in terrible automobiles.

If you feel that way, then you probably should live in a city. Some people prefer city life; there’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s not for everyone. I have no desire to be around other people, and the “cultural” aspect of urban living holds no interest to me. I get enough human interaction through work. At home, I want to be un-bothered by other people and go about my business in solitude.

I’m interested to see if this rural/urban divide is going to shift in the future. With the ballooning cost of real estate and the rise of remote work, a lot of urban liberals are moving to more rural areas.

There’s certainly a group of people that enjoy city life, but a lot of people (myself included) just want some peace and quiet and only lived in or near cities to be close to work.

We had laundry, but nobody really used it except for the officers. They got their uniforms nicely washed and pressed. Enlisted got their uniforms balled up with the rest of the laundry from their berthing and shoved into an industrial washer. If you were lucky, your stuff was on the outside of the laundry ball; most of the time it barely got wet.

Most people used the self-serve laundry. We had something like 8 or 10 washers you could use on a first-come-first-serve basis. Usually half were broken.

This was on a small boy, early 2000s.

It’s been a while, but I think they changed the coveralls, too.

It all just seems like such a waste. I get that the old NWUs could be worn anywhere. Underway, in-port, out in town, etc. Would have been a lot more cost-effective for the powers-that-be to just say “you know what, just wear coveralls everywhere, as long as they’re not covered in paint.”

I have a stack of ancient uniforms that replaced a stack of even more ancient uniforms. The Navy changes their uniforms faster than the ship’s laundry can pretend to wash the last set.