Rud @rmerriam@qoto.org
- Github
- https://rmerriam.github.io/
- Me stuff
- Born '48. The Woodlands TX, married
I am a retired software developer. Wrote my first FORTRAN IV in 1968. I am still writing C++. I have worked in embedded systems. I have done amateur robotics (non-destructive), including competing in NASA Centennial Challenges. The header image is from the Space Robotics Challenge.
Wrote for Hackaday.com for a few years about C++ with a focus on Arduino and Pi.
I am an Amateur Radio Operator, or Ham, licensed as K5RUD by the US FCC. That means I can build a transmitter without the FCC checking my build. Nobody but hams can do this.
Father of 2, although I lost my son in 2014. Grandfather of 3 (2m, 1f) and g-grandfather of 1 male.
I follow C++, legal, political, SF authors, and general random discussions.
Joined Nov 2022
With all the talk about drag shows, I have a lighter story.
Sometime in the late 80s/early 90s, my late father was out with some guys at a bar with a drag show. Some of the guys got loaded, like trying to stomp out the lights on the dance floor loaded.
One guy left for the restroom, and Dad followed. The guy checked the sign for "Men's Room," and just as he reached for the door, a 6-foot drag performer stepped out in full regalia of tall hair, plumes, etc. The guy looked at the performer, looked at the sign, looked back to the performer, and again at the sign. By then, the performer had moved on.
Dad was roaring at that point.
Horses are a poor analogy.
Wagons and ships provide better designs. Early cars had tillers from ships and brake arms or pedals from wagons.
@radehi @rmerriam But trying to design for that is a bit like giving early cars a stirrup and rein instead of pedals and steering-wheels, because t...
Rud
boosted
A few years ago I made this flow chart of which Mastodon posts end up in which timelines!
So, you can see how each instance will have a different local timeline, and even a slightly different federated timeline - and you can see why the federated timeline moves so much faster than the local one, too.
This is why it's important to boost good posts and use hashtags - the fediverse is fragmented and harder to search by nature.
Rud
boosted
🇳🇱
Well, lets see if they care anymore if I expose this shit on twitter. If you have an account there feel free to show some support:
I've been experimenting with Lists and Circles to see how they help. (But you and @cowgirlcoder haven't responded to a Circle msg, so don't think it works like I thought, e.g., a contact list.)
The issue is the balance between stagnating with a set of people versus dynamic exposure to a wider set.
@rmerriam Perhaps "keeping up" with the Local timeline isn't the point. Certainly you'll never "keep up" with the Federated timeline. I never read ...
Rud
boosted
The thing about Twitter is that it really lacks a lot of the features you'd expect from a true Mastodon replacement.
For example, there's no way to edit your toots (which they, confusingly call "tweets"—let's face it, it's a bit of a silly name that's difficult to take seriously).
"Tweets" can't be covered by a content warning. There's no way to let the poster know you like their tweet without also sharing it, and no bookmark feature.
There's no way to set up your own instance, and you're basically stuck on a single instance of Twitter. That means there's no community moderators you can reach out to to quickly resolve issues. Also, you can't de-federate instances with a lot of problematic content.
It also doesn't Integrate with other fediverse platforms, and I couldn't find the option to turn the ads off.
Really, Twitter has made a good start, but it will need to add a lot of additional features before it gets to the point where it becomes a true Mastodon replacement for most users.
Rud
boosted
Why is #youtube the default platform for how-to information?
I can #read, you know?
Better than I can understand spoken language actually, which is why this is such a pain.
#AudioProcessingDisorder
Rud
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I know people are giving great advice and linking great articles for those of us new to Mastodon, but here is one I don’t think I’ve seen - flesh out your profile asap. I know this is a more civilized place, but I still don’t like following new accounts on my instance when the profiles are completely empty. You may be missing an opportunity to connect quickly with some like minded folks if we don’t know what you like. #newtomastodon
Rud
boosted
#introduction
Connections are important! So posting again.
I’m here for #rustlang #embedded #linux #electronics #pcb #design and similar. #makers if you’re interested follow I’ll follow back let’s connect
BOOST for visibility please 🙏
Middle of the road is anyone I'm just mildly pissed at. /sarcasm off
@mathlover @freemo @taz Are we talking about neutral (apathetic), central, or bipartisan? I got lost somewhere. I blame coffee deprivation.
You should contribute to the discussion rather than observe if you have insights on what works.
@marc good insight..as a political scientists interested in the health of discourse, I'm way more interested in how it grows in a way that promote...
Just did my first unfollow under this policy. 😞
Boosting all the posts in a thread is not acceptable to me. There were 10-12 messages from that thread. I'd say boosting only the first post is acceptable. If I want to see the rest I'll read on.
Rud
boosted
Rud
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Today I watched #SheSaid, based on the book detailing the downfall of Harvey Weinstein. I was held to the edge of my seat throughout the entire movie. This movie is a must-see to bring light to sexual abuse, especially male sexual abuse against women in professional settings.
Rud
boosted
@Joel Fine, despitte my continued resistance to taking donations I will provide an account people can donate at if you really insist :) let me check what accounts I have to work with for that...
Rud
boosted
What's it with people reporting every single one they dont like.. 
Please, stop with that.
This is not #Twitter. Please use features like mute or block if you don't like people but stop reporting otherwise I'll start banning people who keep reporting for nothing 
I'm trying to keep things running with so many new people and it's such a waste of time to hear whatever you don't like
Otherwise go waste Elon's time, not mine
Rud
boosted
Understanding #Mastodon gets easier once you get the basic idea that federation between servers can be understood as homeomorphisms across hyperplanes between the Riemannian manifolds of toots, whereas the servers represent countable finite sets of discrete entities.
I grew up in Buffalo but move to Houston. Seeing the snow up there today makes me glad I moved.
Rud
boosted
now that our server qoto.org is (temporarily) not listed in the main mastodon website joinmastodon.org, it seems convenient to promote our server directly in the birdsite. Therefore please follow the link below and like or retweet the post, so that it will be ranked higher in the search field of the #birdsite
@freemo @Gargron
https://twitter.com/eantonicelli/status/1594080051494002688?t=DXyofpLz3gIXczviUa_TNw&s=19
- Github
- https://rmerriam.github.io/
- Me stuff
- Born '48. The Woodlands TX, married
I am a retired software developer. Wrote my first FORTRAN IV in 1968. I am still writing C++. I have worked in embedded systems. I have done amateur robotics (non-destructive), including competing in NASA Centennial Challenges. The header image is from the Space Robotics Challenge.
Wrote for Hackaday.com for a few years about C++ with a focus on Arduino and Pi.
I am an Amateur Radio Operator, or Ham, licensed as K5RUD by the US FCC. That means I can build a transmitter without the FCC checking my build. Nobody but hams can do this.
Father of 2, although I lost my son in 2014. Grandfather of 3 (2m, 1f) and g-grandfather of 1 male.
I follow C++, legal, political, SF authors, and general random discussions.
Joined Nov 2022
