https://stateofcreate.co/


Bottom line they found is that tiktockification and the algorithm and general enshitification of the internet have made getting noticed on social media incredibly difficult. The Influencer Bubble has or will be bursting soon.

Quote:Creators have begun to realize that they don’t actually own the relationships with their own fans on many of the major platforms. They don’t have emails or contact info. They don’t have any way to continue reaching those fans if they ever go somewhere else. The platforms keep all of that for themselves.

But if you don’t own the fan relationships, then ultimately they’re not your fans. They’re just the platforms’ users.

https://gulfof.mapquest.com/

Truly, all the best shows are on Nextdoor these days... why would I remove this gem?!
   

See: https://archive.is/https://www.nytimes.c...-musk.html
This isn't about just backing up data from your PC. All government and financial records pertaining to you, you should back up and keep both electronic and paper copies. Put the latter in a safe or firebox or something.
We have no idea what data is going to be lost, destroyed, misused, altered... I find that bad people are much more imaginative than me about doing evil shit. Protect yourself and preserve your data. It can't hurt, and it might help.

This should be shared far and wide: https://kolektiva.media/w/6iqzQtGqGSKbeFndBkEcm7
The main topic is DIY HRT, specifically, how to make it at home with equipment you can buy on a modest budget.
Notably, the guy giving the talk made 100 years worth of estradiol for $400, and most of the cost was the glass bottles (each of which is a 1 year supply.)
Obviously this is not the end-all of DIY HRT instruction, but really a starting point. But he makes a compelling case that doing this isn't nearly as hard as it might seem.

Check this out: https://www.bforartists.de/
This is a fork of Blender which makes the UI actually usable. If you have ever used Blender (or attempted to), you know that its approach to a so-called "user interface" is a crime against design.
Well, someone made it not suck!

Alright, I'm going to consider refurbing a laptop to try to get on the Linux train. I have just a ton of questions.
Is Ubuntu the most updated / maintained?
What are Ubuntu's corporate interests? Take this as the big privacy question.
Is Ubuntu whoring my data out to China, the US, or the US / China meth hooker backroom where government is carried out?
What's up with Ubuntu One? Do I need an online account to use Ubuntu? Is Ubuntu One defunct?
If I use Ubuntu without an online account, is my disk encrypted (talking default noob settings here)? Do I create a security key for recovery? How's recovery work? Related, will Titan keys work with Ubuntu?
Anything big that doesn't work with Ubuntu? Sites or services?
Does Ubuntu have an app store or what?
Does Ubuntu come with browsers? How about VPNs and stuff? How's it do interacting with the Google online ecosystem?
Does Linux need antivirus? I know some times in the past people claimed Apple and Linux straight up don't need antivirus.

What's the best free antivirus for Windows in February 2025? I have AVG and it's brutalizing me with nag screens, like, suddenly, so I'm going to have spend 20 minutes this week going through a rabbit hole of settings just to see if it's still actually protecting me for free or what.
Yeah, I know, I know, Winblows. Sorry.

Content warning for torture and murder on this thread.
https://www.kare11.com/article/news/crim...feeeb2d1bd
Trying to look up media sources for this, all the headlines are "no evidence of hate crime" which is fucking absurd. He was tortured for a month. Nobody does that for a "normal" murder, whatever that is.
There is no punishment severe enough for the people who did this. None of them should ever be allowed in society again, regardless.
Nobody deserves to go through something like this. There are really no words.

Not a good time to be Ukraine!
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...dates-news
https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/t...index.html
The US, Russia, and Saudi Arabia have met to discuss what to do about Ukraine. Notably, representatives from Ukraine are not present. Imagine a bunch of people meeting to decide your future... without you!
Russia will probably keep eastern Ukraine and Crimea. At this point, they've held onto those long enough that it's unlikely they will be rolled back. I assume not giving Ukraine NATO membership will also be a requirement of any deal. Ukraine will end up being the big loser here. Ukraine claims Russia has lost 800K troops in the war, while Ukraine has lost only 5% of that number. Russia releases no official numbers so we can't be sure. Even so, it's likely Russia lost a lot more troops than Ukraine. Usually the case for invaders.
Ending the war is in everyone's interest. Anything to stop the bloodshed. I don't think Ukraine will be happy with the outcome. Russia was always pretty clear about what they wanted out of this, and it looks like they'll get it. The US might think twice about trying to expand NATO onto Russia's doorstep again.