@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

Salty

@[email protected]

Pōhuehue, NZ. I suppose you’d call me a leftie. Not a global thought leader.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. View on remote instance

@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random
@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random
@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random
@Alice@beige.party avatar Alice , to random

My company requested a "headshot" and this is the best photo I can find.

Awkward woman with brown hair and glasses squatting by a toilet in a public restroom.
ALT
Salty ,
@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

@Alice Company just started using a new HR tool, which wants us to upload a photo of ourselves. I was disappointed to find I was not the only one to disobey (at the end it shows you a bunch of photos others who have already signed in, and Harold and Spongebob were both already there) but I was pleased with my choice of Impressive Clergyman.

@TheBreadmonkey@beige.party avatar TheBreadmonkey , to random
Salty ,
@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

@TheBreadmonkey What is it with French Olympic athletes knocking poles over with their junk?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gP2sfms8H18

@arstechnica@mastodon.social avatar arstechnica , to random

After Moltbook, AI agents can now hang out in their own space-faring MMO
SpaceMolt envisions a world where AI plays with itself and the humans just watch.
https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/02/after-moltbook-ai-agents-can-now-hang-out-in-their-own-space-faring-mmo/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

Salty ,
@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar
@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

RE: https://mastodon.green/@gerrymcgovern/115955344139325413

Just when we thought we might be turning the tide on fossil fuel use and energy conservation, fucking AI sloperators arrive because the billionaires have decided that no we need to burn the planet down EVEN FASTER.

@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

32GB of DDR5: $1300. 32GB of DDR4: $540.

Thanks AI.

@dangillmor@mastodon.social avatar dangillmor , to random

I'm hard on the NY Times for its many failings in political coverage, but this piece -- about a South African immigrant to the US who is central to the manifestly sleazy, and lucrative, Silicon Valley / Trump world dealings -- is simply excellent.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/technology/david-sacks-white-house-profits.html?unlocked_article_code=1.5U8.AV6T.czgSXUspMTQc&smid=url-share

Salty ,
@Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

@dangillmor Spoiler alert: no, not that one. Turns out there's more than one.

@Alice@beige.party avatar Alice , to random

[Thread, post or comment was deleted by the author]

    •
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @Alice Something about the "KFC" effect, I think?

    @Daojoan@mastodon.social avatar Daojoan , to random

    Pretty much every YouTube thumbnail is now:

    😱👉💰

    And I hate it.

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @Daojoan I read an article in Ars Technica a couple of days ago about AIs taking jobs and learned that there is a job called "YouTube thumbnail artist" but like you I just assumed the thumbnails were a random frame grab (not even necessarily from the actual video; it isn't important) plus the YouTuber's head pasted on top with a stupid surprised or disgusted look, and a brightly coloured arrow pointing at a random spot in the thumbnail. None of this seems to require "job" status.

    @TomF@mastodon.gamedev.place avatar TomF , to random

    Cleared Hot is in Early Access! Just the first episode (of 3) available right now, but I had a blast - totally worth it. Love the feel of flying - it's just perfect. The writing and voice acting cracks me up, too.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6sjaePCaRQ

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @TomF I was a little disappointed to find that you can't aim with the mouse. As a mouse+keyboard uber alles gamer this feels like having a hand cut off.

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @TomF Really? Either it's been updated since I tried it or I am an idiot. I'm fine with either option, I really want to play it!

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @TomF Ah, it turns out that it had automatically detected my flight controller and had bound to that. I had to tell it to ignore that, then the mouse Just Worked(TM).

    @benchaotica@mastodon.nz avatar benchaotica , to random

    Why are there no lighter-than-air plants or animals? Creatures that balloon?
    I know some young spiders "parachute" with silk and some seeds do the same. But nothing bird sized, or shrub sized.

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @benchaotica Ah, shrub-sized spiders parachuting down from skies. Just what Australia is currently missing. Thank you so much for that image. 😄

    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

    I mean, it is hilarious to now see both NZF and National saying they want to repeal it, but fuck you Luxon for being such a pathetic leader that you dragged the country through all this shit for, effectively, NOTHING.

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/nicola-willis-suggests-national-may-join-other-parties-campaigning-to-repeal-repealing-regulatory-standards-act-its-not-impossible/PFVYD65OW5HQREXGZKL44KA2RE/

    @briankrebs@infosec.exchange avatar briankrebs , to random

    Interesting karmic tidbit from the NYT:

    "The rulings dismissing the James Comey and Letitia James cases also cite a passage from the decision in July 2024 by Judge Aileen M. Cannon in Florida to dismiss the indictment against President Trump in the classified documents case. The cited line is about how if a prosecutor who obtained an indictment was not validly appointed, the only remedy is to dismiss the case."

    https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/11/24/us/trump-news#mark-kelly-pentagon-investigation

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @briankrebs 0% chance the judge did not know exactly what they were doing when they added that in.

    @NiwlCraft@mastodon.art avatar NiwlCraft , to random

    [Thread, post or comment was deleted by the author]

    •
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @NiwlCraft was that NOT what you spent your whole life waiting for without knowing it?

    @stux@mstdn.social avatar stux , to random

    The richest man on this planet "made" an AI that has such clear instruction about how it ALWAYS needs to praise Elon Musk over anything else

    Soon Elon will become the first trillionaire on Earth and he could fix a lot of world issues but instead he is building garbage bots that praise him into heaven because he is so insecure

    Oh and no, not garbage collection bots but ones that create more garbage

    How can anyone not hate Musk 🤔

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @stux Hate / Pity.

    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

    I know someone else has complained about this on here before, but the invisible Google reCAPTCHA on the Parliament select committee submissions site is complete shit. It rejected me completely last night on two different browsers. I then attempted to submit via email and got a reply that says you cannot submit via email and must use the submissions site.

    Today is the last day to submit on the Fast Track Amendments bill. Fortunately for equally opaque reasons the form accepted an identical submission from my work laptop (which browser is configured the same and has the same extensions as my home PC).

    What a POS.

    @mhoye@mastodon.social avatar mhoye , to random

    Filing this one beside "I will face god and walk backwards into hell" and "you cannot kill me in a way that matters" on the list of Impossibly Powerful Phrases With Baffling Origin Stories.

    https://toot.cat/@pup_hime/115531963842950277

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @JessTheUnstill @mhoye These days it seems more like there’s a zucker born every minute.

    @MelissaBearTrix@gives.hugz.online avatar MelissaBearTrix , to random

    Yum

    Hugz & xXx

    Ham and cheese croissant
    ALT
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @MelissaBearTrix I don't know what that is but it is 100% something I want.

    @georgetakei@universeodon.com avatar georgetakei , to random

    Put it in the Smithsonian!

    A tweet from Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) reads: “incredible photo that’s definitely worth at least 1,000 words from Andrew Harnik of Getty.” Below is a photo showing Donald Trump standing stiffly behind the Oval Office desk with a serious expression. In the background, multiple people appear to be helping someone who has fallen on the floor near the flags.
    ALT
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @georgetakei Donald Trump posing for his Nobel Peace Prize.

    @lowqualityfacts@mstdn.social avatar lowqualityfacts , to random

    We're being robbed.

    Adjusting for inflation, a minimum wage job in 1970 would pay $4,000 an hour today.
    ALT
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @lowqualityfacts too soon man too soon

    @evacide@hachyderm.io avatar evacide , to random

    I'm stuck at home with a back injury and the world is a trash fire, but at least Dick Cheney is dead. https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/dick-cheney-war-on-terror-executive-power/

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @evacide As yet no word on whether the Staking will be livestreamed so the public can verify it was done correctly.

    @arstechnica@mastodon.social avatar arstechnica , to random

    Mazda shows a rotary hybrid concept for Tokyo with evolved design language
    Ideas include algae-based fuels and capturing carbon from the exhaust while driving.
    https://arstechnica.com/cars/2025/10/mazda-shows-a-rotary-hybrid-concept-for-tokyo-with-evolved-design-language/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @arstechnica Mazda will do literally anything to avoid making an EV.

    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

    "But if you have one and the other, it's a disaster. The loss of interest deductibility makes investing in residential property unprofitable. So people will exit the industry, there's no doubt about it."

    People who would like to own the house they live in: awww, sad.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/577129/labour-s-capital-gains-tax-relies-on-house-price-rises-economist

    @nixCraft@mastodon.social avatar nixCraft , to random

    Damn. That is brutal. Amazon is cutting 30,000 corporate jobs (about 9% of its corporate workforce) beginning tomorrow. The layoffs will hit various groups, including HR, devices, and IT. CEO Jassy stated the move will help reduce bureaucracy and boost the company's use of AI. The ultimate goal is to speed up AI adoption and cost cutting to boost Amazon’s bottom line

    https://www.reuters.com/business/world-at-work/amazon-targets-many-30000-corporate-job-cuts-sources-say-2025-10-27/

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @nixCraft ‘AI’ is coming for HR, huh? Bold move putting advanced autocorrupt in charge of firing experts in how not to get sued while firing people. Pass me the popcorn!

    @pluralistic@mamot.fr avatar pluralistic , to random

    If that stiltwalker falls, she's gonna be Mighty Thor.

    A female stiltwalker dressed as Marvel's Thor, in Toronto's Kensington Market.
    ALT
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @pluralistic I thee what you did there

    @georgetakei@universeodon.com avatar georgetakei , to random

    Everything Trump touches dies.

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @georgetakei Ghost of Ivana Trump: nods sadly

    @georgetakei@universeodon.com avatar georgetakei , to random
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @georgetakei "I was born and raised here and all I speak is English."

    What, you mean right here in this Pizza Hut? Because lady it shows. You need to get up and go for a walk sometimes.

    @Daojoan@mastodon.social avatar Daojoan , to random

    just discovered the word “neoliberalism” and im about to make it everyone elses problem

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @Daojoan r u a time traveller from 1978

    @Binder@petrous.vislae.town avatar Binder , to random

    “It’s the quiet ones you need to worry about” is extrovert propaganda.

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @Binder Down with scary loud people! ✊🏼

    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

    "Strikers' demands 'a mystery', government's top negotiator says"

    Has the government's top negotiator been attending any negotiations?

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/576698/strikers-demands-a-mystery-government-s-top-negotiator-says

    Salty OP ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @KneeNeart @leighelse The amount of time the economy has spent in deflation over my admittedly only not-quite-50 year lifetime has been ... vanishingly short? ... so I don't think that's something we really need to worry about. Certainly not in the context of public servants where we have a fetish about never paying them what they're worth because we hate paying tax.

    There are probably some that are overpaid - just there are some dole bludgers who will never get a job because they can't be fucked - but they are very much the exception rather than the rule.

    @NanoRaptor@bitbang.social avatar NanoRaptor , to random

    Let’s make it popular among the cis folk to change names from time to time cos it’s metal as fuck.

    Especially if you were born in the 1900s.

    “Who… who are you?!”

    “I have had many names, over millennia…”

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @NanoRaptor hmmm I've always thought that when someone asked me my name I'd love to be able to answer 'There are some who call me ... Tim?'

    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

    Yay, my copy of by @pluralistic has arrived!

    @404mediaco@mastodon.social avatar 404mediaco , to random

    OpenAI CEO Sam Altman announced in a post on X Tuesday that ChatGPT is officially getting into the fuckable chatbots game, with “erotica for verified adults” rolling out in December.

    🔗 https://www.404media.co/chatgpt-erotica-age-gating-verified-adults/

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @404mediaco RealDoll, powered by ChatGPT.

    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

    Honestly, it's for the best. It would have been a really awkward time for the poor boy, what with him actively working against the entire purpose and all.

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/360854413/theres-major-climate-summit-christchurch-ministers-party-wont-let-him-go

    @_elena@mastodon.social avatar _elena , to random

    [Thread, post or comment was deleted by the author]

    •
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @_elena @leberschnitzel Yes, I have a 12TB HDD in a USB-C external case that I backup to and then keep in my locker at work.

    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar Salty , to random

    Yeah marathons are great and all but have you tried mowing my lawn

    apropos of nothing, I have mown the lawn this morning

    @Daojoan@mastodon.social avatar Daojoan , to random

    If your explanation for why society is broken relies on everyone suddenly becoming more evil in 2016 you should probably workshop that theory a bit more

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @Daojoan wait when did David Bowie kick it again

    @pluralistic@mamot.fr avatar pluralistic , to random

    TFW your book has been on sale for 65 HOURS and your editor tells you that it's just gone into its FOURTH printing.

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @pluralistic Nice! I have mine on local preorder in NZ...

    @Daojoan@mastodon.social avatar Daojoan , to random

    TO WHAT END SIR

    Tweet from Andy Fang (@andyfang) with a DoorDash logo next to his name. The tweet reads: “Coming soon… @DoorDash integration with @OpenAI’s ChatGPT. We’re eager to explore how it can make discovering and ordering from local businesses even more seamless.” Below the text, there’s an image showing a phone screen mockup. The interface displays “ChatGPT 5” at the top and a chat bubble that says: “DoorDash is entering the chat soon.” followed by “Getting your order ready 🧺.” The time on the phone shows 9:41, and a small “GIF” label appears at the bottom left. The tweet timestamp reads 6:57 AM · Oct 8, 2025 · 623K Views.
    ALT
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @Daojoan so you can order pizzas with the cheese glued on of course

    @georgetakei@universeodon.com avatar georgetakei , to random

    Bondi also wouldn’t answer whether she’d seen photos of Trump in the Epstein files around half naked girls, as a witness alleged they’d seen. She must resign.

    Tweet from Acyn showing a quote exchange: Padilla: “Do you believe government officials are obligated to follow court orders whether they agree with them or not?” Bondi: “I wish you loved your state of California as much as you hate President Trump.” Padilla: “I asked a simple yes or no question.” Below is a C-SPAN screenshot showing Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) speaking during a Justice Department oversight hearing. A lower third graphic shows a countdown to a government shutdown.
    ALT
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @georgetakei Resign? What a quaint idea. :-/

    @arstechnica@mastodon.social avatar arstechnica , to random

    DJ Bruce Lee and Jackass Mr. Rogers—dead celebrities become puppets in Sora 2 videos
    OpenAI's likeness protections for living "public figures" don't apply to "historical figures."
    https://arstechnica.com/ai/2025/10/dj-bruce-lee-and-jackass-mr-rogers-dead-celebrities-become-puppets-in-sora-2-videos/?utm_brand=arstechnica&utm_social-type=owned&utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @arstechnica Can’t make a Mickey Mouse cartoon till Walt’s been dead for 200 million years but you can already make Jane Goodall promote eating chimp steak with dolphin chips for lunch.

    @pluralistic@mamot.fr avatar pluralistic , to random

    Love that the slop merchants are using my book to (further) enshittify Amazon, and that Amazon's terrible QA standards is letting 'em do it.

    An Amazon product listing for a slop title called Enshittification Workbook
    ALT
    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @pluralistic Enshittery is the sincerest form of flattery or something like that

    @Alice@beige.party avatar Alice , to random

    It's a sketch spoofing Shark Tank where I approach the stage with some platters full of delicious burgers and I’m like "I love a good burger, but the beef industry is terrible for the environment and we should all be trying to live a more compassionate lifestyle, so I created an alternate solution to solve this problem!"

    And then the sharks try my burgers and are like "This is delicious! What is this made from?!?"

    And I’m like "Kittens. It's made from kittens!"

    Salty ,
    @Salty@mastodon.nz avatar

    @Alice And I’m like “Shark! It’s made of shark!” And I unsheath my filleting knife.