• miridius@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    5 days ago

    Most software is a terrible pile of unreadable code with no tests and horrible architecture choices, that somehow manages to keep working just through the power of years of customers finding bugs and complaining loud enough to get them fixed.

    If you write any automated tests at all, you’re already better than most “professional” software companies. If you have a CI/CD pipeline, you’re far ahead.

  • rodbiren@midwest.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    9 days ago

    A whole bunch of welds in nuclear reactors are visually inspected using cameras duct taped onto the end of incredibly long poles which also get duct taped together. This would be the inside of BWR plants near the fuel and jet pumps. There is also an “art” to moving the cameras and poles around to get the shots you need. And if you get stuck the talented people know how to get you unstuck. There are also cameras just duct taped to ropes that the camera handler “swims” to certain spots.

    Don’t get me wrong, we have cool ultrasonic inspecting robots as well, but I was absolutely blown away by what visual inspection looked like in practice.

    PS: The high dose fields make the camera look like it is being blasted with colorful confetti because of the high energy particles bombarding the camera module.

  • HexesofVexes@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    9 days ago

    In the UK, slot machines fall into 4 main categories. Of particular interest are category C machines, as these can remember a fixed number of previous games. I.e. the “myth” that a machine is “about to pay out” because “someone lost a lot to it” can hold for these games.

    Cat A and B machines are completely random, previous games can have no impact on probabilities of winning (though pots can climb).

    Online games have different rules, not always fair ones!

    Oh, and ALL games (in a physical location) must (by law) show “RTP” (return to player) somewhere. It usually gets stuck it in a block of text in the manual since no-one reads them. (If it’s below 97.3% just go play roulette as it offers better returns).

  • Brad@beehaw.org
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    10 days ago

    Not exactly secret, but not very well-known. In many states your credit score can be used as a factor in determining the cost of auto insurance for you. Lower credit scores can equal higher premiums.

  • Skanky@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    10 days ago

    A lot of the “generic” or “store brand” packaged foods are literally the same exact product as the name brands, only in different boxes/bags

  • csolisr@hub.azkware.net
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    8 days ago

    @protein Many things that you’d think would be under lock and key… are not. Credentials for, say, a database of subscribers to a telephone company? Just ask the team and say you’re working on an integration, they’ll happily send you the password in plain text

  • nik9000@programming.dev
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    9 days ago

    We knew spooks were all up in the phone network. They’d show up and ask installers to run them some cables and configure ports in a certain way. I was friends with folks who were friends with the installers.

  • AdamEatsAss@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    10 days ago

    All your fancy shampoos, body wash, and dish soap are exactly the same. Just different smells, colors, and water contents. Also, all mainstream brands are owned by a total of 3 companies.

    • yuri@pawb.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      If you’re using CG approved products this isn’t necessarily true. Highly recommend for anyone with even a tiny bit of natural curl, you might actually have some beautiful ringlets in there if you care for em properly.

    • Jo Miran@lemmy.ml
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      Wash your hair with conditioner instead of shampoo. Both have detergent so they will both clean your hair, but conditioner is less harsh.

      • Okokimup@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        10 days ago

        Depends on hair type. Conditioner can be heavy on baby fine hair. I almost never condition my chicken feathers.

        • BearOfaTime@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          10 days ago

          Most lotions contain dimethicone, a silicone relative.

          They both work by being moisture barriers, preventing moisture loss (for hand lotion).

          As someone who struggles with skin issues, I don’t even bother with lotions that don’t have dimethicone, they’re practically useless for me.

        • bleistift2@sopuli.xyz
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          10 days ago

          For long hair it helps with combing. Just like the old silicone spray for ballpoint mice, it reduces friction with the comb.

      • yuri@pawb.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        10 days ago

        This is only really beneficial for certain types of hair, and definitely don’t do it with conditioners containing sulfates, parafinss, or silicones. This site has a comprehensive list of products that aren’t filled with garbage what’ll leave your hair drier than it started.

          • yuri@pawb.social
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            0
            ·
            10 days ago

            If your hair is neither thick nor fine and you’re not having any problems with buildup or dryness, you’re totally fine to just keep doing what you’re doing. Also if you’ve got straight and/or short hair you can probably ignore the no-sulfates/silicones stuff.

            Most hair care products are designed for a specific kind of hair, usually straight and pretty flat. I started using black hair care products and my hair went from wavy and frizzy to natural ringlets and only sorta frizzy! SheaMoisture is my personal favorite brand.

    • retrospectology@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      I don’t think this one is true. I’ve definitely had different brands and types of shampoo and conditioner give better and worse results for my hair.

    • BearOfaTime@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      Yes, no, sort of.

      I mean shampoo is definitely not the same as laundry soap.

      And even between shampoos, there are differences (as anyone with skin conditions can attest).

      Are products in any one category largely the same? Yes. But there are differences.

    • ValenThyme@reddthat.com
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      Having just switched from Old Spice Swagger to SheaMoisture products I can assure you that ‘different smells, colors and water contents’ result in radically different outcomes in hair softness and smoothness!

      • BCsven@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        10 days ago

        They are generalizing, because if you delve into non major brands some are glyvlcerine based some, have aloe base , oatmeal etc rather than ethylene glycol and sodium laurel sulfate type standards ingredients (coconut extract is that nautral source of sodium laurel sulfate, some natural branda might be actual cocunut milk, but many use manufacture chemical additive)

  • ianovic69@feddit.uk
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    10 days ago

    I don’t know how well known this is by now, but just in case, I’ll add it.

    The quality of your speakers is not affected by the cable from your amp.

    The connectors are more important in terms of physical contact, but almost any new connector will do. The wire itself makes no difference. Pay as much as you want but the sound will not be any different than if you used metal coat hanger wire.

    • doom_and_gloom@lemmy.ml
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      Pay as much as you want but the sound will not be any different than if you used metal coat hanger wire.

      The speakers won’t sound too good after the coat hanger has caught them on fire, though.

      • ianovic69@feddit.uk
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        10 days ago

        Username checks out! /s

        No, they’ll be fine. And if they are connected reasonably well, will sound as good as any other speaker cable.

        Of course, there are one or two scenarios where that can change, but for most people they aren’t applicable.

        • doom_and_gloom@lemmy.ml
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          edit-2
          9 days ago

          Are you talking specifically about powered speakers? Certainly, resistance is a lesser concern when you’re passing almost no current.

          But it’s important to have a heavy enough gauge cable between amplifiers and passive speakers so that there is not too much resistance, as this will cause it to overheat and potentially start a fire.

          Generally speaking, I think a coat hanger’s gauge is too small for common amplifiers. Plus, if it’s iron then it’s going to have a higher resistance compared to standard materials, meaning more voltage drop and more heating.

          • ianovic69@feddit.uk
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            0
            ·
            9 days ago

            Powered, as in active? No, those are connected internally. Cabling is then between the internal amp and a preamplifier, which is line level.

            I would point you to the overwhelming lack of any reported incidents of speakers or amplifiers catching fire because the wires were too thin. This is simply fiction.

            Coat hangers are generally much wider than any speaker wire, and the metal used makes little to no difference to the sound or the load. It is of no importance, you can do this safely.

            As I’ve said, there are a few scenarios where you could run into problems, but these are very much outside of home hifi.

    • JohnSmith@feddit.uk
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      Master Handbook of Acoustics is your friend if you want to learn what to do to your room. Overkill for most, admittedly, but it contains everything you need to know.

        • JohnSmith@feddit.uk
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          10 days ago

          I made couple of bass tramps tuned to the room’s main resonant frequencies, which I measured. I followed instructions from the book.

          I added sound absorber panels to the walls and ceiling to kill immediate reflections from the main speakers plus a sprinkling of additional panels to kill reflections and also act as decoration. I also needed to move one radiator because it was in the worst possible location for my setup.

          The room got thick curtains to improve absorption, and they also darken the room as it is dual use music listening and home cinema room. A few defraction elements went into the ceiling for a good measure. The ceiling is made of custom panels that I made myself from wood and fabric to allow sound energy through to the various acoustic elements behind them.

          I also spent a fair amount of time with subwoofer placement, but in the end it became a bit of a compromise between sound and placement of furniture. Nothing a bit of signal processing can’t deal with, mind.

      • ianovic69@feddit.uk
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        9 days ago

        Not really. Most home hifi won’t be affected. I think that’s a reasonable generalisation.

        • fmstrat@lemmy.nowsci.com
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          8 days ago

          By your reasoning I could use some 24 gauge wire that came with a pair of Walmart computer speakers with a receiver paired with 3-ways each with 10" woofers. Or even better yet, between a plate amp and sub as a fire starter.

          I don’t disagree with your overall premise, but it’s too reductive, even for home theater. Throw in a “16ga in most non-sub applications” and only then does it become true.

          • ianovic69@feddit.uk
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            0
            ·
            8 days ago

            You’re being way too pedantic. I said most home hifi and you’re example isn’t.

            If you want me to be more specific, this article will cover pretty much anything you want know.

      • stealth_cookies@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        10 days ago

        Not quite, conductor diameter is important to supply proper current, which will change depending on the impedance of your speaker. There are other values like inductance and capacitance in a wire that could affect how your speaker sounds. The good news is that you can pretty much buy any cheap 16 ga copper speaker wire and not worry about it, as it would take effort to make a speaker wire that sounds bad (and those companies are the type to try to charge you $1000/ft for it!)

        • BCsven@lemmy.ca
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          10 days ago

          Thanks.

          I always shy away from the ad hype of products, I have been in different industries, and have seen that a $ product vs $$$ product is sometimes identical innards, and a refreshed outer…which didn’t cost the manufacturer anything extra.

          I have tried to explain this to my spouse, but she will still gravitate to buying the more expensive; equating cost with quality

      • LowtierComputer@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        10 days ago

        Yes! What he said is certainly a generalization for most speaker setups. Low resistance, larger gauge wire is of course better, but won’t be noticeable on your average sound system.

    • MorrisonMotel6@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      Adding to this, you probably don’t know how good your speakers are or not because you’re listening to your room, not your speakers. If you have given zero thought to acoustic treatment where you listen to music, you definitely don’t need to upgrade your audio equipment in any way. No amount of money you spend on equipment will help you enjoy music more until you treat your room

      • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        9 days ago

        Who the fuck is up upvoting this dumb take? So you’re actually trying to argue there is no difference between a pair of $20 speakers and a $500 surround sound system with amp if they aren’t in the perfect room? That’s some music snobbery on a level I’ve never seen before.

        • tearsintherain@leminal.space
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          edit-2
          9 days ago

          Nothing dumb about it, it’s actually quite on point. They didn’t mention price points or comparing speakers, but that the actual sounds heard from any speakers in a room depends greatly on room treatment (things like reflections, absorption, standing waves). This is where good usage of dsp room correction can help, along with rugs.

        • MorrisonMotel6@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          9 days ago

          Nobody is talking about a perfect room, and you are severely contorting what I said to meet your own agenda.

    • scottywh@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      9 days ago

      This is a funny joke and all but it’s so far from actually true.

      Source: 27 years working in I.T.

    • mspencer712@programming.dev
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      What? Did I turn it off and on again? I’m a very smart technology person, of course my big brain already thought of that. I develop software for a living. It couldn’t be that simple or I wouldn’t be calling you.

      . . .

      Turning it off and on again worked. My shame is immense and I have wasted everybody’s time.

      (And that is how I learned to embrace my own idiocy and do the recommended, simple troubleshooting tasks without questioning them.)

      • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        9 days ago

        Dude, I just had my mechanic call and tell me my car was out of oil. I’ve never felt so dumb and ashamed.

      • librejoe@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        9 days ago

        isn’t that what they are researching with psilocybin? I could use that big time to reset my head. I have severe health anxiety.

    • Mathazzar@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      10 days ago

      The navy manual for troubleshooting equipment in the field includes “lift 3-6 inches and drop”

      • AdamEatsAss@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        10 days ago

        Percussive maintenance can help sometimes. It’s not a permanent fix but you can’t always do the right fix in the middle of the ocean. Things it can help with: dislodging debris in mechanical components, reseating electrical connections that are corroding, and making yourself feel better.