Nah, just somebody who was lucky enough to soar with some actual sword masters over the years. I’m no Jill Bearup, but I know which end goes into the other guy.

You obviously haven’t fought anyone with a sword. And before you ask, yes I have.

It’s also called being ready for anything. It’s what you do when you aren’t entirely sure what the idiot on the other side is going to do.

The world’s best swordsman isn’t afraid of the second best swordsman. He’s afraid of the world’s worst swordsman, cause he can never be sure what the idiot will do.

Same principle.

I’m 58, and the only “code” I’ve ever written is hexadecimal for the Apple ][+ we had back in high school. Which isn’t even remotely close to what actual code is. Thanks for the attempt at insult, but it’s my reality, so fuck you too.

Some questions:

What version of Linux does Fedora install? Is it directly compatible with Windows software such as games and OBS, or does it require modifications/compatibility installations such as WINE? Does it have documented support online or is it a matter of haunting forums and such for when problems occur? And no matter how solid an OS is, I will tend to break it, generally by doing stupid shit, but I will break it. Before putting it back together. Which is generally how I tend to learn software.

Frankly, I don’t care.

I’m going to keep using Windows 10, updates or not, until I absolutely have no other choice, hoping against hope that the cracks in the Recall/AI monolith with have spread wide enough that a future Win 12 or 13 won’t have them in it. I don’t run a business. I don’t keep sensitive information on any internet capable devices and my work uses the AS400 system.

I know Linux is a thing, and about a dozen years ago I spent a year using Ubuntu exclusively. While appreciating the OS, I got tired of chanting magic spells at computer every time I wanted to use software I liked on it, and so went back to Windows.

These days, despite being a reasonably tech savvy person approaching 60, I’m getting to the point where I’m just not up to learning/relearning an OS unless there is a critical need, and using Windows 10 there just isn’t. At least not for me.

As someone who lived during a large chunk of the Cold War, let me add some personal perspective on this. You are absolutely right in that the Soviet Union and the West were in a war from WWII on. A spy war, an economic war and several hot proxy wars.

The US lost nearly all of those, but they did win the economic war, and in doing so broke the USSR economically and politically.

After the USSR fell, the Cold War was over. Done. Finito. To emphasize this, capitalism came pouring into all the former SSR’s and former Soviet citizens got to taste consumerism triggering chaos that took a full generation to hammer out. And then the 2010’s came along and Russia began using it’s natural resources to become more and more integrated with Europe.

To the point where some analysts were beginning to be worried that Russia might come to dominate the EU economically.

In fact, if Putin had waited another 5 years Europe would likely have become so dependant on Russian natural gas that they would literally have been unable to effectively protest any move Russia made, in fear of them turning off the tap. Russia was on the road to being THE dominant power in Europe, and Putin literally threw it ALL away chasing dreams of a renewed Russian Empire.

Weirdly enough, actual lifespan comparisons seem to be very hard to find. Studies showing slightly higher disease (4%) rates. Higher rates of eating things their owner didn’t give them. Higher dangers from traffic, cars, etc. but I have yet to an actual study with lifespan numbers, let alone the 3-5 yrs vs 10-15 I’ve seen bandied about.

I’m still looking for it as a lower lifespan sounds logical, but I’ve seen enough things defy apparent logic to not just accept the statement without supporting documentation.

Let me clear. I support in principle the statement that indoor cats live longer, I just haven’t found the proof for it yet.

Appreciate not getting a snarky comeback. My personal experience has been outdoor/indoor cats lead long, satisfying lives. But my experience could be an outlier which is why I asked for your source.

Will definitely give this a read once I’m done work. Again, much appreciated

Then can you quote your source for your statement? My experiential information is counter to your claim, so I would like to see your data so I can improve my understanding.

Growing up, (I’m in my 50s) we had an orange tabby that went indoors and outdoors as much as he wanted. The cat supplemented his kibble by killing and eating (confirmed by observation) birds and rodents in the area. He lived to be 23. Most cats like him that I’ve known all had lifespans into the high teens.

I think you mean feral, as opposed to outdoor. In which case I would agree with your statement.

I should add, that as an adult, I currently own two cats obtained from rescue services and both are exclusively indoor cats.

So no, you have no actual data to support you. Check

AS a bystander in all this, could all of you… CITE YOUR DAMN SOURCES! If you have proof of your assertions via studies or research papers, LINK THEM!

Why?

Because this topic is of interest to me and I want to be informed with actual scientific data. Not by a person, but by peer-reviewed studies.

Quantity has a quality all its own

Some might argue that we already are lucky, considering where we live 😀

I don’t know if it makes a difference, but I’m in Canada and I’ve noticed none of this. No video load delays, no anti ad-blocker pop ups, none of it. I’m not going to stop using Firefox or Ublock Origin though.

Used Ubuntu Linux for a year back around '08-'09. Didn’t have a great experience and went back to Windows. Since then I’ve never had a reason to try it again. That said, I’ve nothing but respect for those that use a flavour of Linux or Mac OS. At the end of the day doing the things you need done is what matters and if a different OS than mine gets you there, that’s awesome.

The day I can’t get around youtube ads is the day I stop using youtube. I already refuse to use it on my mobile device or my TV, due to the ads.

You can’t unexecute someone if you got it wrong, and the system has gotten these cases wrong more than once.

It’s actually pretty easy to permanently disable updates in Windows.

• Go to Services.msc
• Find Windows Update Services
• Changed it to Disabled

Done.