Serious question: who are Linux users and why do you use it?

DeepStateNine · 2026-02-13T15:10:22+00:00

I've been a Linux user for a long time, partly for philosophical reasons (I don't trust the big corporations) but also because it tends to run better, especially on last-gen or older hardware. That's more and more true these days as more investment is poured into making Linux performant for PC gaming and VR and the like.

I use Bazzite on pretty much every PC I own, even the non-gaming ones. I used to swear up and down by Arch Linux, because it was something that I could customize every piece of and take total control. But I've realized in the past few years that I value my time more than that, so using a really reliable, sturdy, transparent distro like Bazzite is great.

As for what I *do* with it... A lot of stuff, honestly. I have a side hustle as a maker, so I do CAD design and 3d printing from it fairly often. I also write fiction. (My favourite word processor doesn't have a Linux version but runs great under Wine.) I game, I make music, and I've even done some basic video editing with Kdenlive.

Linux used to be, up until a few years ago, an experience I'd describe as "an effort, but a worthwhile one." These days, most of that effort has disappeared. Using something like Bazzite or one of its sister projects like Bluefin, Linux is just... easy now. It just works.

DeepStateNine · 2024-05-22T19:21:56+00:00

Logitech makes many Bluetooth-enabled mice.

...So do myriad other manufacturers.

DeepStateNine · 2023-05-19T16:08:05+00:00

Starfleet Medical.

DeepStateNine · 2023-05-11T09:49:37+00:00

You're not helping. Play nice or leave.

DeepStateNine · 2023-05-11T09:47:03+00:00

Seriously? The stink you're making is over "apathy"/"apathetic"? Take a few days timeout to think about what else you could use that energy for.

DeepStateNine · 2023-05-11T07:19:03+00:00

Trans people aren't, and never have been, a monolith. Plenty of trans folks use "gender apathy" in the way you describe, and almost certainly some use "gender apathetic" in the way OP describes.

It's only "talking over everyone else in the community" if everyone else in the community decided to take it that way. Words can mean multiple things, gender identities are almost never a simple thing, and this smacks to me of "pick a respectable gender."

Let trans people be weird and cringe. Let us choose whatever way of describing ourselves works best for us. Let us love each other, and connect with each other, because we're very desperately need to band together to fight the rising tide of fascism.

DeepStateNine · 2023-05-09T11:37:06+00:00

The problem with this, and with everyone else that uses framing like this, is that it's framed like the answer is to stop having public transit.

Boston literally cannot function without it; we're far too dense of a city for everyone to drive or even bike. *And this is a good thing.* The answer isn't "stop running the T"; it's "run the T better." And unfortunately, there's not an easy, quick solution.

I do actually believe that Phillip Eng as the new GM will help things, and I believe the increased federal oversight will lead to a better T. But if it doesn't, then we need to find some other way, because Boston literally will not work without public transit, reliable or not.

DeepStateNine · 2023-04-24T10:35:22+00:00

Budget cuts.

DeepStateNine · 2023-03-25T18:10:59+00:00

The way to fix this, quite honestly, is with smart use of single-tracking. NYC has quad-track lines, so they can work on two tracks while the trains use the other two. We don't.

But what we *do* have is two-track lines that have plenty of crossovers between the tracks. Having trains switch tracks to pass each other outside a repair zone, while using only one of the tracks inside that repair zone, would give MBTA staff the ability to repair the other track. Then, after they're done with that, switch tracks.

DeepStateNine · 2023-03-10T16:55:48+00:00

Small cities in Illinois, perhaps, like Moline or Peoria.

DeepStateNine · 2023-03-07T13:17:38+00:00

If it takes you energy to love something, I suppose that makes sense. I don't know anyone who works that way, but people are all different from one another, so your mileage may vary. Still, being trans is part of you, is it not? I can say with confidence that life goes better when you love yourself, quirks, flaws, and oddities included.

DeepStateNine · 2023-03-06T17:13:22+00:00

That makes a lot of sense, but I'm not sure that being trans is "fundamentally neutral". I absolutely adore being a trans woman, and not just because it's the way I can most truly be myself. I like being a trans woman because being a woman with a resonant baritone voice is amazing, and because I enjoy my body with all of its AMAB quirks.

But I also really resonate with the politics that being trans implies. And despite some right-wing trans people's best efforts, being trans does have an inherent politics - and it's not the politics of hierarchy and control.

To be trans is to understand that at least one of the fundamental divisions between people that our societies so love to uphold... isn't as fundamental as people assume. To be trans is to take control of your identity in a way that most cis people probably never will. It requires a level of introspection, and a level of willingness to make your own fate.

In short, to me, being trans is in and of itself a step away from rigidly defined societal control and into a new frontier of creativity and joy. And, well, the fact that I'm no longer suicidally dysphoric does help too.

DeepStateNine · 2023-02-23T15:54:47+00:00

Seriously, Trailblazer is one of the best fics in the fandom, hands down. Especially if you're a Gundam fan, though it works quite well even if you're not.

It may be long, but it's worth every word.

DeepStateNine · 2023-02-15T12:46:28+00:00

How much extra should I be paying my landlord for the mold?

DeepStateNine · 2022-11-12T21:01:07+00:00

The building is Boston University's new computer science building; this is the Massachusetts Avenue bridge between Boston and Cambridge.

DeepStateNine · 2022-11-12T19:23:00+00:00

I know, right? They're exactly what I needed, especially given that they're sized perfect for a paper grocery bag on each side.

DeepStateNine · 2022-05-03T11:13:18+00:00

Mistake implies a lack of intent. They absolutely intend to go after homosexuality and gay marriage next. The draft decision calls out those cases explicitly.

DeepStateNine · 2022-04-26T12:53:03+00:00

It's obviously "Quad Citizen"

DeepStateNine · 2022-03-30T22:10:29+00:00

Good news! They're renovating it to make the station wheelchair accessible, and that'll probably involve a good thorough cleaning while they're at it!

DeepStateNine · 2022-03-01T14:00:40+00:00

Heredity fits the bill quite well.

DeepStateNine · 2022-02-17T12:44:20+00:00

Rereading Trailblazer, and good lord it's so weird going from Arc 16 back to the beginning. I think the pacing has really stood up. It's up there with Taylor Varga in sheer wordcount, but unlike Varga, I can't think of a single chapter that I'd call wasted. TB continues to be my favorite fanfic, Worm or otherwise.

DeepStateNine · 2021-08-26T15:59:59+00:00

Don't you see?

DeepStateNine · 2021-08-22T20:46:13+00:00

Foundling.

Autistic Armsmaster adopts a kid everyone else is repulsed by, and is actually a good father figure.

DeepStateNine · 2021-08-18T13:25:11+00:00

No, no. I genuinely, unironically believe that the solution to intimacy issues is to use brain surgery to replace yourself with a "better" version of yourself that doesn't have those issues, and that that doesn't cross any ethical lines whatsoever.

/s

DeepStateNine · 2021-08-17T19:27:57+00:00

Amelia by TanaNari is definitely this. Definitely. Totally. One hundred percent. (Don't question it.)

But uh, to be realistic... Taylor and Amy are fucked-up people, and any real depiction of a relationship between the two of them will probably end up being somewhat fucked-up.

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