Ben Evans

Queer, cisgender author / educator / software engineer mainly known for #architecture / #performance / #observability / #Java / #JVM

Much more likely to post pictures of #cats and rant about society, #antifascism, food and #queer stuff than tech, though. Cornishman in Barcelona.

Public Key

npub1u7qdl3l3levtxxcv4rfx6h6mevhxzrl8pk8tpkc4jn2tlz5akhkqc42fdr

NIP-05 Address

kittylyst@mastodon-social.mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsw0qxlclcluk9nrvx235ndtaduktnpplnsmr4smv2ef49l32wmtmqpz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerfw36x7tnsw43qz9thwden5te0wfjkccte9ekk7um5wgh8qatzshpu3k

Publishing to

relay.ditto.pub

relay.mostr.pub

Author Public Key

npub1u7qdl3l3levtxxcv4rfx6h6mevhxzrl8pk8tpkc4jn2tlz5akhkqc42fdr

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Last Notes

2026-10-04 10:42:47 UTC

Today is the 90th anniversary of the Battle of Cable Street.
Now, as then, They Shall Not Pass. #antifa #antifascism

2026-06-22 11:25:47 UTC

At this point, if you are still maintaining "No, I'm not racist, I think *all* human populations should be reduced, actually" then you know that you are doing so in the full knowledge that you are giving covering fire to odious racists and eugenicists.
So that's an instablock from me, then.

2026-05-09 11:17:17 UTC

This page is doing the rounds on the fauxdiverse - https://sinceyouarrived.world/taken - it is, frankly, alarmist. The vast majority of the data items sent by e.g. Firefox are of no concern and are needed for certain aspects of the web to function.
Also - the idea that there is some sort of sinister BigTech aspect to this is laughable. Some of these items have been present since at least HTTP/1.1 (1997) to my certain knowledge.

2026-04-15 08:03:32 UTC

This looks pretty damn cool - https://kottke.org/26/04/online-treasure-trove-secret-concert-recordings cc: @nprofile…h0ll

2026-03-19 20:34:07 UTC

Bears awake from hibernation in #Catalonia https://cdn-acn.watchity.net/acn/vod-catn/aead1d18-0cf4-4028-b28a-747f820cbec6/7cc30907-097f-4757-ad64-ef901fc76c89.mp4 #Catalunya

2026-02-24 16:56:15 UTC

Major discovery of Roman forum in #BCN - https://www.catalannews.com/society-science/item/2000-year-old-roman-forum-unearthed-beneath-barcelona-hotel - when the work’s complete it will be open for occasional public tours organized in conjunction with the city Government. #Barcelona #catalunya #catalonia

2026-01-23 16:46:11 UTC

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@nprofile…w4ya Related phenomenon: The consistency of description of the "machine elves" that many people, regardless of cultural background, experience when taking DMT.

2025-12-09 09:03:56 UTC

So, over on BSky, their Head of "Trust and Safety" has just suspended an account whose husband was abducted by ICE and then posted memes mocking the affected account.
Just in case you were wondering how this prediction was going: https://mastodon.social/deck/@kittylyst/115310163126309071

2025-11-09 08:18:11 UTC

This is incredible: Pre-writing an obituary for your enemy, who you pre-decease by nearly 5 years, and then having the outlet run the obit when the MF finally dies: https://www.statnews.com/2025/11/07/james-watson-remembrance-from-dna-pioneer-to-pariah/

2025-11-08 08:05:35 UTC

On the occasion of the death of noted racist, sexist and homophobe James Watson, a succinct & balanced retrospective of the woman whose work he relied so heavily upon - https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(12)60452-8/fulltext

2025-10-26 12:41:27 UTC

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@nprofile…35ec Does it apply to MPs? I thought it was only for ministers?

2025-10-20 09:47:12 UTC

Free as in Freedom - Linux install parties in #Barcelona #catalunya #Catalonia - https://luma.com/user/usr-R8SLmHSPSO8CXJD

2025-10-06 16:07:04 UTC

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Not only did these folks build out a whole bunch of ATProto-compatible components but they were able to raise a run-rate of $85k p.a for their infrastructure.
Obviously, a Fedi instance costs a fraction of that, but just imagine what community contributions of that size could do - such as pay community-funded devs to build the things that are missing here - things that their community may have some really fucking useful situational awareness of.
#fediverse #Blacksky #Bluesky

2025-10-06 16:03:09 UTC

Looks like there may well be a surge of users from Blacksky and the other "alternative" ATProto instances checking out the Fedi, or reactivating old accounts, given that they're now discovering that ATProto is a Potemkin Village of decentralization and that BSky still hold all the cards.
This time, can we please try not to act like assholes / the HOA while they find their feet.
#fediverse #Bluesky #activitypub #atproto

2025-10-04 07:36:29 UTC

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@nprofile…60lz And are marginalized people, who are being actively targeted and brutalized by their "opponents" supposed to just accept it with grace and "see the humanity" in those who have chosen to attack them?
Or do we have a right to defend ourselves?

2025-10-03 12:10:55 UTC

I become more and more convinced that Bsky is going to speedrun Twitter's arc and become yet another MAGA billionaire-owned US state media outlet very soon. Quite possibly before the US midterms.

2025-06-20 13:57:24 UTC

Sending up the Bat Signal that the #OpenTelemetry project is looking for documentation help - specifically translation into Bengali, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Chinese & Japanese (with a Ukrainian translation incubating as well) #opensource

2025-06-14 08:52:02 UTC

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@nprofile…9qhr This is despite the fact that "Single Market" access is indivisably linked to FoM as part of the "4 Freedoms", and that "Single Market access" is worse than full membership on every meaningful metric.
There's also the small matter that no political party with any realistic shot at power is prepared to even discuss the question of rejoining (hell, even a basic customs union is considered political rat poison - and for no adequately explained reason) /2

2025-06-14 08:48:45 UTC

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@nprofile…9qhr The UK (and Ireland) were never part of the Schengen agreement, and membership of it is not connected to EU membership - e.g. Switzerland and Norway are both Schengen states but not EU members.
Sorry to say, but the UK's numbers are not as rosy as some would like to believe. Yes, a stable majority of people would now vote to rejoin (& a larger one would opt for "joining the Single Market") but once the question of "Free Movement" is directly raised those numbers slide. 1/

2025-06-02 10:20:27 UTC

The free code school in #Barcelona that I support is having a funding drive: https://www.migranodearena.org/en/cause/support-free-tech-education-for-migrants-and-refugees- - we're at 1800 EUR & if we can hit 2000 EUR, we unlock an additional 1500 EUR of matching funds.
I have been personally matching donations - and I have 150 EUR of matching funds left. Help put us over the top (only 100 EUR more of new donations needed) and support #tech #education for #refugees and help them out of #poverty
#technology #Java #programming #catalunya #catalonia

2025-05-24 13:57:43 UTC

I think some #London friends might appreciate a season of Bleak #Cinema at the The Prince Charles Cinema - https://princecharlescinema.com/seasons-events/bleak-week/

2025-05-24 10:51:28 UTC

Come on, you lot - spend some more of my money.
I've only matched 105 EUR so far - there's almost another 900 EUR of my personal matching available - https://mastodon.social/@kittylyst/114539419084989415 #tech #charity #education

2025-05-18 10:26:00 UTC

A reminder that #abortion is *not* legal in Great Britain & requires "nod and an wink" consent from 2 doctors - https://observer.co.uk/news/national/article/police-could-search-homes-and-seize-phones-after-sudden-pregnancy-loss - and that the Truss Cabinet had, for the first time since the 1970s, a majority of forced-birth advocates.
#UK folks may wish to write to their MP & suggest that Parliament do something about this state of affairs. I would be rather concerned with what an in-thrall-to-the-US Reform govt might do in 2029. Oh, and #ACAB of course.

2025-05-14 13:48:21 UTC

Finally some good #AI news
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/114/506/496/707/484/928/original/0d3bf0c589ecee66.png

2025-05-10 10:44:13 UTC

First leg of the playoffs today. Come on, the O's. #leytonorient #football

2025-05-04 18:04:28 UTC

I am very pleased to discover that the Spurious Correlations website has added #AI (i.e. made-up) explanations for the correlations - https://www.tylervigen.com/spurious-correlations #programming

2025-04-25 08:39:00 UTC

Show me the Pull Requests.
I keep hearing #AI boosters / talking heads claiming that #LLMs have transformed software development, "it's not just about prototyping - AI is writing solid production code", etc.
So here's a challenge:
Share some AI-derived pull requests that deal with non-obvious corner cases or non-trivial bugs from mature #opensource projects. I'll also accept high-quality documentation that isn't just the sort of wasted space & slop that I always tell juniors not to write.

2025-03-20 07:12:59 UTC

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@nprofile…lpsz I use the #Obsidian GUI app as a decent-enough MD editor and an acceptable programming model if I want to use (or write) extensions.
The Obsidian vault is a git project - and you can either self-host a git server or use a hosted service (I just use a private GH repo).
I also have other tools that add or manipulate data in the repo, but they're all command-line and I wrote them myself.

2025-02-22 11:10:40 UTC

I am extremely displeased to learn that "data" is not a permitted top-level in the newly-opened South Sudan ccTLD. Won't someone think of the #tech entrepreneurs, please?

2025-02-21 12:49:28 UTC

This: https://blog.sshh.io/p/how-to-backdoor-large-language-models ... does not seem great. #ai #llm #programming

2025-01-26 15:19:10 UTC

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@nprofile…dtr9 @nprofile…args @nprofile…zaax At the free code school that I'm on the advisory board for, we always have to include content on explaining basic concepts of filesystems - almost all of our intake has no real concept of it before they join us.

2025-01-10 00:35:51 UTC

PSA: If your venue is in the US, you ain't a global conference. End of. The US is not a safe country any more, bruv. End of.#java

2025-01-09 14:22:52 UTC

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@nprofile…xt5t This does look quite promising.

2025-01-09 13:31:43 UTC

@nprofile…xt5t Are you aware of any Fedi apps that replicate the functionality of Facebook Events? Within my extended sphere it could well be the last piece we need to migrate away from FB.
Any leads greatly appreciated, especially for projects run by folks who I might see at FOSDEM.

2024-12-28 00:27:59 UTC

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@nprofile…25ma That looks lovely. Got a link to her website?

2024-12-27 13:29:45 UTC

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@nprofile…02z2 The first thing I say in my software performance class is: "If the answers don't matter, I can get them for you as fast as you like."
The work of David Graeber is also pertinent here, of course.

2024-12-27 11:40:38 UTC

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@nprofile…02z2 Determinstic results matter. "Agents" are a house built upon sand. No-one trusts what they bring & the obvious failures will become clear very soon.

2024-12-26 23:59:19 UTC

@nprofile…xlyc So, I have my Plex mostly working now. What's your username so I can add you?

2024-12-25 08:32:48 UTC

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@nprofile…vdcr Todos los gatitos son bonitos. Feliz Navidad, Bon Nadal i Nadelik Lowen.

2024-12-23 11:41:46 UTC

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@nprofile…j7g3 It is of variable quality IMO - if you know what you're buying you can get spectacular wine. But much of the good stuff is not exported outside of Spain (or even Catalonia) much.
The "grand marques" of Cava that everyone knows, e.g. Cordon Negro, are pretty mid especially when compared to equivalent champagnes such as Möet or Veuve.
However, the Corpinnats are unbelievable - buying direct from the vineyard I can spend 17 EUR & get a wine that will easily outmatch a 50-60 EUR champagne

2024-12-23 11:30:25 UTC

The Xmas delivery of Corpinnat (new marque that seeks to differentiate itself from Cava by being absolute top quality) has just arrived.

2024-12-23 09:07:51 UTC

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@nprofile…cg79 It looks like it requires a US PayPal account to exit cash from the system.

2024-12-22 22:01:12 UTC

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@nprofile…y4h5 "Piracy" is a loaded term. Downloading copyrighted material for personal use is legal in many jurisdictions worldwide. Not everywhere follows US norms.
Sites like Bandcamp & Mixcloud exist & there are plenty of ways to compensate artists.
Also, fuck Spotify: https://harpers.org/archive/2025/01/the-ghosts-in-the-machine-liz-pelly-spotify-musicians/

2024-12-22 21:59:36 UTC

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@nprofile…tdy3 I have zero tolerance for that.
Goodbye.

2024-12-22 21:49:25 UTC

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@nprofile…tdy3 That is quite literally the rhetoric used by the woman who spent years emotionally abusing me. You will forgive me if I refuse to co-sign it.

2024-12-22 19:03:17 UTC

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@nprofile…esuf Oh, completely. Hence the "massive IF" qualifier.

2024-12-22 16:33:13 UTC

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@nprofile…t0yf Yes.

2024-12-22 16:16:00 UTC

"Forget the myths the media's created about the White House. The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand."

2024-12-22 14:53:41 UTC

I've heard it reported that Trump has said he's prepared to keep funding Ukraine during his term if other NATO countries raise their contributions to 5% of GDP (from the current ~3%).
Assuming this is true (a *massive* IF, of course), how would you feel about this? Would you support this measure, if you live in a NATO country, if it meant Ukraine getting the resources they need?

2024-12-22 10:56:44 UTC

Long, thoughtful piece on just how awful #Spotify really is: https://harpers.org/archive/2025/01/the-ghosts-in-the-machine-liz-pelly-spotify-musicians/ - keep #music live and made by real artists & DJs. And don’t forget about platforms like https://bandcamp.com/ and https://www.mixcloud.com/

2024-12-21 23:56:59 UTC

Xmas viewing has arrived: 1. Black Mirror: White Christmas. 2. Go

2024-12-21 09:36:47 UTC

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@nprofile…ncl2
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/690/134/302/270/573/original/b9bcccb1d945929f.jpg

2024-12-20 17:22:12 UTC

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@nprofile…6wkw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UA_E57ePSR4

2024-12-20 17:21:28 UTC

Is there a long German word for scrolling through a list of friends, doing some group management, and hitting the name of a friend who has gone before the rest of us?
That sense of deraileur, of momentarily sensing that all is not OK? Can you distil it? How do you name it?

2024-12-20 12:41:56 UTC

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@nprofile…60lz @nprofile…6g2d Appreciated.

2024-12-20 11:12:24 UTC

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@nprofile…60lz My question was directed at @nprofile…6g2d who has clarified that is not what they meant.

2024-12-20 10:23:03 UTC

Happy First Spanish Astronaut Day to those who celebrate.
#antifascism #antifascist
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/684/653/186/377/078/original/db906bbad83f51cb.jpg

2024-12-20 10:11:46 UTC

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@nprofile…6g2d @nprofile…60lz I trust that you did not intend to imply without evidence that Mandelson is a paedophile. That appalling smear has been used against gay men since time immemorial.

2024-12-20 08:30:08 UTC

This is quite interesting: https://www.maths.cam.ac.uk/features/thinking-inside-box-new-insights-particle-physics-enigma?dm_i=6DCG,13ZLC,4ZBPEM,54LPS,1 #physics #quantum #qcd

2024-12-20 07:45:01 UTC

I just described the tradeoff of knowing they treat staff badly (including their landlords, who are actually employees) versus the appeal to tradition and the many other positives of Sam Smith's pubs as "Those Who Go To The Pub In Omelas"
https://archive.is/g6XTw
#scifi #sciencefiction #pub

2024-12-19 13:43:11 UTC

Someone drew a picture of my house.
I mean, of course, Joselito's house that I pay the mortgage on. #CatsOfMastodon #cats
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/679/759/433/574/017/original/39782cd4d5846952.jpg

2024-12-19 11:27:32 UTC

43 years. Always. IFYKYK. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJolJXdJYlc #cornwall #rnli

2024-12-19 08:16:40 UTC

@nprofile…fc7h You might find this thread & linked article interesting, if you haven't already seen it: https://mastodon.social/deck/@Tupp_ed@mastodon.ie/113678268420766336

2024-12-17 20:52:18 UTC

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@nprofile…9z7k https://www.redhat.com/en/jobs might be worth a look

2024-12-17 09:51:55 UTC

Published a minor update to my #postquantum #cryptography in #Java piece from yesterday: https://www.infoq.com/news/2024/12/java-post-quantum/
The AU government has announced similar rules, but they come in to force 5 years earlier than the US ones! #programming #quantum

2024-12-16 22:37:51 UTC

Seems like a good day to repost this: https://specificsuggestions.com/

2024-12-16 21:22:34 UTC

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@nprofile…6nzd That's great news! Let me talk to a couple of people & get back to you.

2024-12-16 19:21:43 UTC

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@nprofile…x759 @nprofile…44rh I know a number of UK-based CTO & senior tech bod forums who contain people who might be up for giving pro bono technical advice to small forums, if there was already a set of legal guidelines established.

2024-12-16 11:36:49 UTC

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I'll go first: Front Line Assembly. I didn't really listen to them, despite hearing their music in clubs and not really figuring out who they were for waaaaay too long.

2024-12-16 11:35:48 UTC

Here's a fun thread for a Monday.
Which band were you inexplicably late to the party on? As in, which band within the spectrum of music that you know you like did you somehow overlook for way too long?

2024-12-16 10:11:26 UTC

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@nprofile…da2x Thank you.

2024-12-16 09:45:23 UTC

Truly, we have arrived in the future - I write about something vaguely trendy and a small content mill immediately pounces on it, runs it through some AI slop and republishes it.

2024-12-16 09:43:21 UTC

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@nprofile…da2x You could have the courtesy to link back to my original article that you based this piece on & then rewrote using AI. https://www.infoq.com/news/2024/12/java-post-quantum/

2024-12-16 08:05:58 UTC

New by me: Post-Quantum Cryptography in #Java - https://www.infoq.com/news/2024/12/java-post-quantum/ #cryptography #quantum #programming

2024-12-15 19:24:58 UTC

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@nprofile…sqcg @nprofile…5lc3 @nprofile…emvm Huh. I had a free Copilot subscription due to my F/OSS project participation, but they seem to have shut down that type of free account a couple of months ago.
Any idea what the criteria are for a free subscription these days?

2024-12-15 17:08:47 UTC

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@nprofile…wl9d That is really good news, and for once even Jones can't find anything to complain about. Even a stopped clock...

2024-12-15 12:03:06 UTC

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@nprofile…t0yf In this case, copies of my books that retail for $50-$60.

2024-12-15 11:26:16 UTC

Simplistic takes about "oh noes, they asked for my email address, that means the download isn't really free" really just indicate that the person doesn't understand what the purpose of this type of gate is, and who the intended audience actually is.
Spoiler: If you're moaning about it, you're almost certainly not the target & the company providing the download doesn't really give 2 hoots about your data.

2024-12-15 10:15:15 UTC

LB: There's a bunch of good stuff entering the public domain on Jan 1st, including Faulkner, Hemingway and Woolf.

2024-12-14 10:06:58 UTC

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@nprofile…fc7h For the examples I have in mind:
1. Yes. The IP for the input data is unequivocably owned by the company producing the model and all necessary consents have been obtained.
2. My final sentence was: "There needs to be a conversation about whether training it represents an acceptable use of resources..." - so, it depends.
Given the much smaller number of variables generally needed for such models then the training costs *might* be acceptable, but we need to measure it.

2024-12-14 10:03:31 UTC

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@nprofile…nnnk They all look beautiful to me.

2024-12-14 10:02:44 UTC

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@nprofile…fc7h For models which have been trained on Internet or public data, absolutely.
For models which have been trained purely on private, provenanced, domain-specific data then it depends.
There needs to be a conversation about whether training it represents an acceptable use of resources, but private data models are not a priori unethical.

2024-12-14 09:57:22 UTC

Which one are you?
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/650/580/327/316/613/original/7fce8de757d6dcd2.jpg

2024-12-14 09:40:44 UTC

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@nprofile…dvyy @nprofile…dnwe Worse than that. OOP presumably thinks that drugs shouldn't be illegal (otherwise, why take them), but is prepared to use the power of the Carceral State to get revenge over a breakup. That's appalling.

2024-12-13 20:55:05 UTC

Occasional reminder: Even what are referred to as "good" Tories are still, to this day, carrying water for Andrew Windsor: https://archive.is/jhN83

2024-12-13 15:21:59 UTC

I'm pleased to announce that I'll be speaking at FunctionalConf 2025.
I had the great pleasure to attend in person in '16, and to speak remotely in '22 & I'm looking forward to this edition, where my topic will be: "Is Java 24 a Functional Programming Language?"
My 2022 talk is available online: https://lnkd.in/dYnCWAgf - back when Java 17 was the new kid in town.
If you'd like to attend, please use this discount code: ben-evans-10di$c-functional for 10% of #FunctionalProgramming #FnConf #Java

2024-12-13 09:00:06 UTC

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@nprofile…zs3d No-one from our our current place.

2024-12-12 12:46:54 UTC

Always nice to see massively out-of-their-depth & overpromoted managers failing upwards.

2024-12-12 11:30:53 UTC

Today, Matthew, I'm going to have floofy bed hair that makes me look a little bit like Baby Yoda. #StarWars
https://files.mastodon.social/media_attachments/files/113/639/613/855/075/930/original/a9412b89affd6e97.jpeg

2024-12-11 09:51:10 UTC

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@nprofile…j7g3 My understanding is that the parts which are sufficiently standardized are done and will ship in JDK 24 in March 2025

2024-12-11 09:38:52 UTC

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@nprofile…j7g3 https://openjdk.org/jeps/496 (& 497)

2024-12-11 09:36:31 UTC

TIL: 1.) I appear to know more about Lattice cryptography than I thought I did. #java
2.) I don't have #Covid (thanks booster shot from 2 weeks ago).

2024-12-10 09:06:44 UTC

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@nprofile…ncl2 Was this the one posted on Bartech (& did it also make it to LLM London)?

2024-12-09 22:40:25 UTC

So, the suspect in the recent CEO murder appears to have produced a manifesto that quotes this Reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/climate/comments/10j1le5/comment/j5i4x9z/

2024-12-03 03:40:58 UTC

This is quite a thing: https://archive.is/jhMBD

2024-11-27 12:38:44 UTC

Huge data centre in #Barcelona #catalonia will use 15 times more water than promised, companies have failed to register as "major users" https://www.techpolicy.press/why-we-dont-know-ais-true-water-footprint/ - why isn't this being talked about? An absolute disgrace, given the state of #catalunya water reserves.
And not just water - the datacentres alone will take the power requirements of 20k homes, impacting Catalonia's efforts to decarbonise.

2024-11-26 12:04:37 UTC

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@nprofile…6nzd https://defector.com/neither-elon-musk-nor-anybody-else-will-ever-colonize-mars

2024-11-26 11:52:41 UTC

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@nprofile…4mn6 @nprofile…saev @nprofile…sp4m But presumably that doesn't include Roy Kerr, who discovered the generalized Schwartzchild solutions to GR. (Sidenote - largely for @nprofile…rlj4 - it appears that "Roy Kerr" is also the real name of the mash-up artist known as "Freelance Hellraiser". Presumably not the same guy.)

2024-11-26 11:06:15 UTC

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@nprofile…saev Does that apply even to relatively widespread characters like Aleph - or are they special-cased somehow?

2024-11-25 12:06:48 UTC

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@nprofile…uh0n Cairo - Night Boat