@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

flargh

@flargh@mastodon.social

Tech journalist, freelance writer and content creator with an IT background. Serial #Apple reporter/analyst/expert. Lifelong #gaming and #StarTrek fan. #80s music enthusiast, especially New Wave, synthpop and "college radio." Married with kids. Cat lover. https://mastodon.social/@flargh elsewhere, mostly. Personal account. 🖖

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RickiTarr, to random
@RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

America: You need to have health insurance!

Me: Cool, that makes sense, but it's going to cover my whole body, right?

America: Depends, do you use your teeth and eyes?

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@RickiTarr It's an honest mistake: teeth and eyes are purely hypothetical to the horrific alien slug-beasts that run everything.

flargh, to random
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

today's weather is too nice for pants

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@craiggrannell too nice for trousers too

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@craiggrannell you know what to think, luv. You just don't want to.

RickiTarr, to random
@RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

Artist, who creates a kickass character that people love: BTW the character is bi-sexual.

Incel Fan Bois: Whoa Whoa Whoa, actually they can't be, because...

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@RickiTarr @RegGuy Kor showed us the way.

gedeonm, to random
@gedeonm@mastodon.social avatar

Still kind of upset Tears for Fears’ Songs From The Big Chair wasn’t even included on Apple’s Top 100 Albums list. It’s one of the greatest albums of all time if not, the entire 80s.

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@gedeonm yeah, not thrilled with their list myself. But I recognize that these sorts of things are entirely subjective, and that some people just have shitty taste.

davemark, to apple
@davemark@mastodon.social avatar

😮😐
The more than $600 Mac battery replacement!?!

"top case with battery and keyboard for my MacBook Pro cost $615.12"

And that's if you do it yourself. Is this the new normal?

Details here, laid out by @lapcatsoftware —

https://lapcatsoftware.com/articles/2024/5/7.html

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@JPZ @davemark @lapcatsoftware I got a replacement battery for my '15 Retina MPB that I have to put in (in my Copious Free Time™). I'm normally ok with these things but not looking forward to it, as battery replacement involves applying solvents to get through the adhesive Apple uses to glue these batteries in place. Still, a fraction of what Apple charges, so worth my time.

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@davemark @JPZ @lapcatsoftware Thanks, Dave - I haven't installed it yet, though. I just have the kit sitting on top of the laptop, and when I see them, both of them sigh impatiently and tap their watches from time to time.

flargh, to random
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

But his conviction.

film_girl, to random
@film_girl@mastodon.social avatar

I don’t miss being in a newsroom that often these days but today, I definitely miss it. Man.

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@film_girl Funny, because I've never been happier not to be part of one at this point.

davemark, to TeslaMotors
@davemark@mastodon.social avatar

"Chinese automaker BYD is rolling out cars capable of driving more than 1,300 miles without refueling or recharging"

That's New York to Miami without a recharge. US cars are lucky to get 1/4 that range.

The bar has been set pretty high.

Oh, and they are priced at $13K. Yikes.

https://apple.news/AQV2DtmurQA-tW6Qln_7hPA

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@davemark Cool, except:

  • 100% US tariff on Chinese EVs makes it a $26K car.

  • The $13,000 model is Corolla-sized. Corollas sell in the US, but we're a land of SUVs, pickup trucks and CUVs, not compacts (largely because "light truck" CAFE loopholes exist).

  • It hasn't undergone NHTSA evaluation, which would likely force significant engineering changes and cost increases.

  • BYD has zero retail sales/ service footprint in the US. That will take BILLIONS to build out.

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@davemark I don't want to diminish that accomplishment. But understand also this is PHEV range, not pure EV. So now you have twice as many propulsion systems in your car to worry about, and other issues. There are big drawbacks to plug-ins, and their tepid US sales reflect that. This recent Motor Trend editorial highlights some of them.

https://www.motortrend.com/features/plug-in-hybrids-phev-just-say-no-opinion-feature/

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@davemark My problem isn't marketing hype, it's journalist credulity. Same shit I've been ranting about since the Angry Mac Bastards podcast

Without a public methodology or samples for third parties to test, mainstream journos blindly accept and parrot BYD at face value.

But auto/tech blogs covering this note range is because of efficiency improvements they made to the gas engine, not the battery.

So there's no EV "breakthrough" here - just a super-efficient small gas engine. (2/2)

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@davemark Post-script: We exist in a car bubble in the US thanks to byzantine federal tariff laws going back 60 years or more, CAFE standards in the 70s which were supposed to incentivize car makers to make fuel-efficient cars but instead give trucks and SUVs higher profit margins, and a web of protectionist and anti-consumer state laws too

I see a lot of "if BYD sold them the US, they'd DISRUPT the EV MARKET!" blather going around. Because of all that dead bureaucratic weight, I can only say:

Scotty, Star Trek III: Aye, if my grandmother had wheels, she'd be a wagon

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@davemark - Every company on Earth markets idealized versions of their products, which often pale under real-world scrutiny. BYD (and even Apple) is no exception.

As with Apple, I see a lot of the mainstream press (especially) regurgitating BYD's marketing spin with no critical analysis.

BYD is touting decent EV range combined with remarkable fuel range to acheive that 1300 mile range. But they haven't indicated how they tested. Is that city driving? highway? a combo? Top speed? (1/2)

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@davemark Always happy to shout my uninformed opinion from the rooftops! 😂

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@bazscott @davemark BYD Americas CEO Stella Lee told Yahoo Finance earlier this year that BYD had no plans to bring its EVs to the US market. End of story.

""It's an interesting market, but it's very complicated if you're talking about EVs," she said.

So outside (or perhaps more accurately because) of the myriad regulatory, legislative, and logistical challenges it would face, BYD simply doesn't have the will to make it happen here.

Everything can change, but that's the state of play now.

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@bazscott @glennf @davemark oh a lot more than that. https://reason.com/2024/04/29/china-is-doubling-down-on-electric-vehicle-subsidies/

flargh, to random
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

I wonder if vampires get an extra little jolt from draining victims who are well caffeinated

flargh, to random
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

me: I can't close my clothes dresser because the cat hopped in an open drawer and is napping there

them: move the cat

me: what kind of sick lunatic are you?

RickiTarr, to random
@RickiTarr@beige.party avatar

How much alone time vs socializing do you need?

For me there are a few people who are usually equalizing, and I can just be around them, so I won't count that. But generally, I find about 3 times a week, I'm game for socializing. A day in between to rest is usually nice, but the larger the gathering or if we go somewhere particularly noisy or I'm meeting new people that involves more effort, and my social battery empties sooner. I'm very curious where everyone else falls on this!

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@RickiTarr I used to love socializing but as I've gotten older I've decided that holidays, weddings and funerals are probably about the most I can stand.

flargh, to random
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

why are all 7/11 stores terrible

flargh, to random
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

Serial entrepreneur and serial killer are only two syllables apart

ChrisPirillo, to random
@ChrisPirillo@mastodon.social avatar

a good friend gave me some sage and i think i'm doing it right

flargh,
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

@ChrisPirillo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsyUa63NM1E

flargh, to random
@flargh@mastodon.social avatar

Decades of dystopian fiction have presented us with the idea that empires fall instantly because of some sort of external or internal calamity - natural disaster, zombies, nuclear war, military junta, rise of the robots, take your pick.

But it's worth considering that the Roman Empire took more than two centuries to collapse.

Want to know what it's like to live during the collapse of an empire?

Go take a look outside. You're living through it.

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