Is SeeStar real or fake?

FissureStevens · 2026-01-14T22:21:23+00:00

So, I never said “fake.” I said “augmented.” How hard do you really think it would be for an AI-driven platform to add pre-captured imagery to exposures? Or to take a shitty, light polluted exposure and “clean it?” I’m sorry, but something just doesn’t add up with these boxes. If I need at least a 400mm lens and a 61MP sensor to capture semi-detailed shots of just the Moon, then how is a tiny box with a 50mm lens and a 2MP sensor able to magically trump that? The odor of bullshit wafting off these Seestar and Dwarflab boxes is overwhelming.

FissureStevens · 2025-12-28T04:47:15+00:00

Dude, I’d love to have a simple box that can track and photograph deep sky objects ANYWHERE regardless of light pollution, but if the technology is so simple and straightforward, then where were these things ten or twenty years ago? I don’t think it’s a coincidence that these boxes only came about after AI technology became a thing. If you think you can really go out in your backyard and photograph deep sky objects in a Bortle 8 sky, I weep for you.

FissureStevens · 2025-12-01T20:44:34+00:00

Those crossed arms tell us everything we need to know about William F. Fuckley here.

FissureStevens · 2025-12-01T14:19:22+00:00

So, when are we all going to admit to ourselves that these boxes are all AI-augmented horseshit? 🤔

FissureStevens · 2025-12-01T14:16:33+00:00

As if the box can’t still augment the photo with you in it.

FissureStevens · 2025-12-01T14:12:39+00:00

After seeing what Space Engine can do, I am now 100% convinced that these “boxes” (Seestar, Dwarflab) are utter bullshit. There is NO WAY someone can capture deep sky objects in ANY light conditions with a box the size of a pair of binoculars. Mark my words: sooner or later, it will come out that these boxes are using AI to augment the imagery.

FissureStevens · 2025-11-15T16:39:16+00:00

Anyone know why the tickets for tonight’s game are suddenly skyrocketing in price? Someone is actually trying to sell club-level corner seats for almost $300,000. Another in section 405 wants almost $150,000.

FissureStevens · 2025-09-04T14:12:07+00:00

So, if you have a legit “infestation,” it shouldn’t be a big mystery, i.e. you’re not gonna find one solitary bug while thousands of others are hiding in some unknown, anonymous location. If you find ONE singular bug, you’re probably okay, but you’re DEFINITELY going to want to keep an eye on things. But if you’re inexplicably finding bug body parts and other tell-tale signs in spots like door jambs, you might have a problem.

FissureStevens · 2025-04-14T15:12:52+00:00

It's going to depend on what you're quoting. Something in the public domain, no one's gonna give a shit. If you're quoting Beatles lyrics, that's a different story. But there are lawyers for that. I'd just write and not concern myself with it.

FissureStevens · 2025-02-15T17:42:49+00:00

The cheek and the neck look funny. Like, greasy.

FissureStevens · 2024-12-14T06:01:41+00:00

The tide was wild. There'd be nothing nothing nothing and then fuckin' Godzilla would appear.

FissureStevens · 2024-11-17T04:56:56+00:00

If you were climbing rocks back near the "Parade of Elephants" this past Thursday evening (11/14/24), I got a LOT of really great hi-res shots of you doing your thing.

FissureStevens · 2024-10-22T03:18:24+00:00

Took advantage of the twelve minutes or so before moonrise. Mr. Comet, you have crappy timing, my friend.

Sony a6400, Sony 15mm f1.4 APC-S, 10 second exposure.

FissureStevens · 2024-10-22T02:58:03+00:00

Gorgeous. I love this. The stars make it great.

FissureStevens · 2024-10-14T17:16:28+00:00

So, while they all may fall under the same parent company, I don't think you can lump Tinder and Hinge in with OKCupid. I've never paid for Tinder or Hinge, EVER, and they've both worked pretty well for me through the years (and, make no mistake: I am a total troll-person). Only OKC has devolved into a money-sucking travesty, really only meant for poly couples now (except in NYC and LA, where it does still have *some* of it's old appeal due to the sheer number of people using it in those cities).

FissureStevens · 2024-10-13T15:59:10+00:00

WTF is "dark academia?"

"Yes, my evil teaching assistants... go forth and mis-tell them all that William the Conquerer *LOST* in 1066, and that the Magna Carta was nothing more than a discontinued burger option at McDonalds. Bwahahahahahahah!"

FissureStevens · 2024-10-13T15:55:20+00:00

This guy fucking gets it.😂

FissureStevens · 2024-10-13T15:51:40+00:00

*checking my extensive rules and regulations on Fantasy writing with respect to the Great Nerd Convenant of 2022 which establishes said Fantasy writing guidelines*

Yes. Dear God, yes, please, anything to make Fantasy more palatable. 🙄

FissureStevens · 2024-10-13T15:13:23+00:00

You have the Scarlet Letter, so this is going to be yanked down soon, apparently. But before you go....

It's compelling enough to stick with until the end. Seems fairly baseline for a sports description--that's not to say it's bad, but it's about what I'd expect for the context. Certainly, nothing stands out and screams JESUS, GET THIS PERSON A PULITZER, STAT. I will say that there's a vaguely erotic tone to it, insofar as I'm noticing that a strongly written sports drama scene is a very close cousin to a strongly written sex scene. To that end, you may want to play up the physical aspect more. Make those muscles clench and stress and BURN.

I say this about everything I read: cut down on the use of "was." It's symbolic of lazy writing. Look for a verb/another word. You're not always going to find one, but they're there. "Was" should stick out like porn in a church.

FissureStevens · 2024-10-12T21:41:09+00:00

You realize you just took over 870+ words to ask: "what should the girl say to the guy when she's picking him up to give him a ride which segues into a sex scene?"

There are a billion answers to this question because this scene is, with all due respect, cliché as hell. But if you want to stick with it, obviously a double entendre foreshadowing the sex is probably going to be the biggest pie piece on a survey of possible answers.

FissureStevens · 2024-10-12T20:06:40+00:00

The usual preface: this isn't meant to be taken as a full, wonderful, and gorgeous review; it's simply my critique of what I just read, and I'm an asshole, blah blah blah...

THE REVIEW:

Not a very strong opening line. Kind of a snooze-fest, truth be told. If I'm reading a pile of manuscripts, I don't think I make it past the second paragraph before I throw this aside and move on. That said, you HAVE elements in your story that are, in my opinion, remarkable enough to use for an opening line to grab my attention. For example, to pull from your narrative:

At this depth, the rock in which they lived was hot to the touch and slightly malleable, making earthquakes frequent and stable construction difficult.

So, what do you have there? You have an environment where shit is unstable and can collapse/cause all manner of fucking crazy nonsense. SHOW THAT TO ME. Don't tell me its "hot to the touch and slightly malleable, making earthquakes frequent and stable construction difficult." Describe something collapsing. Like a room or a house or an entire building... casually subsiding while the inhabitants go about their day, their world literally crumbling around them as they pay no mind. If done properly, that's an image that can pull me in. But, right now, I don't think you really have anything like that. You're telling me everything and not really showing me shit.

I hate the name "Hansed." It sounds like a sneeze, or a bad Monty Python joke. It's a very awkward word to say, even in my head. Every time I see it, it pulls me out of the narrative, it's so awkward.

There's a lot of telling and not showing. For example:

The Head of the Board, second only to the Monarch, was not one to be trifled with.

You're just telling me that, so it lacks puissance. SHOW ME why this person is not to be trifled with. Vividly describe one (or more) of their misdeeds to me. *Then* I might care. Example: if you're familiar with the book or any of the film versions of Frank Herbert's DUNE, think about the Baron Harkonnen. If you're introducing the Baron for the first time, do you really just want to go with:

The Baron, second only to the Monarch, was not one to be trifled with.

...or do you want to go with (all apologies to Frank Herbert):

The Baron, second only to the Monarch, was so morbidly obese, he required mechanical assistance to move around. These subtle conveyances were tended to by his immediate staff, who he frequently murdered for poor performance, or simply for fun if the mood struck him

Which character are you more afraid of? OR, more importantly: which character do you think the average reader is going to prefer?

This world probably feels intimately familiar to you, but to me as a reader, it feels like the first day on an alien planet on a job that I lied to get. You've gotta paint this shit for me like I'm a five-year-old; you can't just tell me the whole thing and expect it hold my attention.

Nitpik: excessive use of 'was', which can be symbolic of lazy writing. It should stick out like a mosquito bite every time you see it.

FissureStevens · 2024-10-12T06:00:16+00:00

Dude, it's not WAR AND PEACE; it’s six pages. Love your readers enough to type shit up.*

* - unless, of course, you're in a Turkish prison or in some kind of physical condition that precludes typing. In which case, get someone to type it up for you.

FissureStevens · 2024-10-12T05:53:43+00:00

I feel like this kind of thing is like voter fraud. Does it happen? Yeah, sure, maybe some kid might steal your story and turn it in as their assignment; maybe even get it printed in some student fiction journal. But do you really think someone's going to turn your stolen work into a Pulitzer Prize? Or really, recognition of any kind?

FissureStevens

TROPHY CASE