The Gnome overview is simple enough to use that people think there’s nothing to it.

I’ve never had a better tool for interacting with apps, and I’ve worked with a lot of tools / DEs. There are some that are arguably more fun, or that clearly give better customization options.

…but just being a clean tool that works, provides what you need, looks good doing so, and gets out of your way? Gnome, hands down.

yes. this is why we’re all here discussing alternative energy and fossil fuels. But ignoring you’re enemies’ strengths is not exactly the smoothest move.

Solar is, on a consumer level, possibly more cheap than gas for a car now, in many areas. But more is actually done with oil->gasoline framework, including plastics and chemicals which would all need to be developed into new processes. I don’t disagree that we need to replace these, but oil is literally free energy, and it’s a substance with a lot of uses.

And that fact is one of the big reasons that oil is so hard to compete with - it is literally energy we do not have to generate. All other forms of energy we must actually capture the natural energy flow. In oil, it has already been captured - we’re burning biomatter from years long gone. That’s what makes it hard to compete with. Although, the competition is getting better, and that’s good.

as far as the costs for a vehicle go - I actually live on solar, with a very cost effective system at $25k, 14kw.

If I had an electric car and drove 15k miles per year, I’d need up that system by 11kw at least. That’s adding about $20k to that system.

Where I am, gas is cheaper tha than $3/gallon, but let’s say it’s $3/gallon.

at 30mpg gasoline, that’s about $1500. At 30mpge, with my lower-than-average system costs, that’s $2000. …and that’s not including maintenance and repair to that system.

Sure, there are a ton of other factors to take into account, both for and against. But electric is no clear winner from a personal-benefit perspective - particularly when you take cold weather into account for lithium batteries, and the inability to resolve an out-of-fuel situation easily. Sure, there are services. …maybe. depending where you are. But, it’s far from ideal for a lot of people.

anyways - no, nuclear is definitely not as cheap, but it provides base load power, which is critical. only alternatives there are fossil fuels, geothermal, and hydro. But the main draw for 3rd and 4th gen nuclear is how low-impact and environmentally friendly it can be, while still providing base load power.

now, if Sodium ion batteries live up to their promise of cycle longevity, then providing base load could be done by lots and lots of storage. maybe not cost effectively, yet, but it could, maybe.

thanks! You’ve satisfied my curiosity, and piqued my interest in MX Linux.

I wasn’t asking for “proof”, I was asking for curiosity.

Agreed all around, with one caveat.

On chemistry - Sodium Ion is a pretty solid bet for many reasons - material availability, energy density by weight, longevity (for some chemistries - others are only comparable to lithium), low-temperature operation for charge and discharge, cost, power (charge and discharge speed), very high round-trip efficiency… Also, it’s ecologically sound, in comparison with any other battery tech out there currently, and it’s at the beginning of it’s innovation arc. Also, it’s a tech heavily invested in by China, which has already spurred competition in other countries.

I’ll be attaching myself to that chemistry here in the next couple years to the tune of what I expect to be about ~$8k for about 50kwh of battery, as I’ll need a bank of them for my place soon that can handle quite a few days without sunlight while running a modest workshop and basic home needs. I might need to go larger than that, but… …energy storage isn’t cheap, and I can add to that at any time, unlike with lead acid storage.

I think that both putting your pet down and not doing so must be an honest consideration.

As their caretaker, you can empathize with them the most. Imagine what you would want in their situation, and do it. You have the ability to cognize this - they do not.

There are humane services that will come to your home so they don’t even have to leave a familiar environment. But sometimes, your buddy still has joy in life, even though he’s all wobbly.

…in the end, the truth is that it’s a judgment call, and you do the best you can - and make your choices in a way that, if they were there in your head with you, and could understand your choices, they would love you for it, and that you can love yourself for.

age 8+ 💀

Because we don’t need to generate the energy, therefore it’s got a cost advantage, even though the true cost of it is that it contributes massively to climate problems.

That is: batteries must be charged, the plants to make biofuels must absorb solar energy for at least half a year to have energy present, the solar panels to power the grid must sit and soak up that energy, generators must be physically turned for hydro.

the only things that have pre-existing energy that we just “tap for free” are oil, coal, natural gas, and nuclear.

the best track for us to go on is to go for 3rd or 4th gen nuclear, and sodium ion batteries, imo. Solar is a close second. Hydro would be up there, but it’s too disruptive ecologically.

distro?

if you have an extra drive around, you could try a fresh installation on that drive, then do the things on that that cause crackle.

Trolley Man, you’re a problem.

yep. tha’s them.

No problem. It’s fake. No need to look deeper.

A small, illusory feeling of power to cover up the larger power imbalances they participate in in life where things don’t go their way, but they’re unwilling to process.

Some cats have zero fucks given. Other cats have a hard line. yet others have a line that, when pushed, slowly, over years, results in a greatly expanded cuddle zone.

this was my thought, too.

Thanks for this, it’s nice to see a correct answer. I’m tired of people who claim to love Star Trek but don’t even know the lore.

Sort through the emotional issues. I know this is probably typical advice, but seriously. Even though it takes a while, and looks impossible, process those feelings. It’s not impossible, because it’s a learned skill. . When you start off, making progress is dreadfully slow. but as you learn how, doing it becomes easier.

You don’t have to sacrifice who you were to become someone you’d want to be. Who you were will always be a part of you, anyways. But as you grow, it ceases to be the dominant voice - just, something to consider.

The universality or lack thereof don’t really matter to me as much as the accuracy and viability of an opinion.

…but to the point…

The OS has access to everything on the OS, and that means whoever made the OS does (technically) as well. That is true. But it does not make it pointless to use encryption. It means that you have a vulnerability, and anyone who is in the position to exercise that vulnerability can do so. …but:

• anyone who is not in the position to exercise that vulnerability obviously can’t, but they could read plaintext by sniffing your connection - unless you use e2ee.
• The ones who are in a position to exercise that vulnerability must either know you are a target of interest or create a massive monitoring program, monitor everyone, and find you via that method. Both of those circumstances have constraints, and while you are in a safe space due to those constraints, it’s still worthwhile to use e2ee, as that may keep you out of the areas where a bad actor’s affect on you is not constrained.

Security is cat and mouse. If you’re actually caught up in that you the point where you are a real target or task potential target, get Graphene, and be mindful how you use it, or avoid smart phones altogether.

If not - assume that you’re not on their radar until there’s a realistic indicator that you are. …and use best practices, like e2ee, wherever you can.