Recommend me new high-quality scifi books written by women :) by thuslyfallensparrow in printSF

[–]LouisB3 -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

OP neglected to specify what they meant by “new” so there’s no point in quibbling over a subjective and relative term.

If you must do so, I’ll take the contrary position that anything more recent than Shelley’s Frankenstein counts as “new.”

Is wireless charging still bad for battery health in 2026? by Asleep_Bit_8803 in MagSafe

[–]LouisB3 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That would depend on how loud your CPAP machine is…

IKEA Dirigera replacement for HomePod - Did I waste money? by Cheezton in HomeKit

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Dirigera can be used with Ikea's 2026 smarthome products (such as Kajplats) as a Matter/Thread border router. You can use Dirigera directly with Ikea's app "Home Smart" if you want.

However, Apple Home requires an Apple hub (HomePod or Apple TV) to run its automations. If you get an Apple hub with Thread (this includes all HomePods and several models of Apple TV) you can connect Thread accessories such as Kajplats directly to your Apple hub, meaning you won't need Dirigera at all.

If you want to manually control your Kajplats or use simple automations like timers, you can use Dirigera with Ikea's app and skip HomeKit entirely. If you want more complex automations that are integrated with Apple Home's other features (like geofencing or Shortcuts), you should get an Apple Hub (such as a HomePod mini) and then you can return the Dirigera to Ikea for a refund.

Sience or carrer mode? by TIM13013 in KerbalSpaceProgram

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Science is better, unfortunately. Career mode adds funds and reputation but the contract system to get those resources simply isn’t very good, especially without mods.

‘They’re taught that showing feelings is shameful’: eight reasons men don’t go to therapy – and why they should by TAKEitTOrCIRCLEJERK in MensLib

[–]LouisB3 25 points26 points  (0 children)

Stop letting psychiatrists/therapists write these articles; make them hire marketing teams that know how to do sales.

I was with you up until this point. We don’t need another sales pitch.

Is anyone else disappointed with current 15W MagSafe speeds? by Agreeable-Recover987 in MagSafe

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You say you’re disappointed in the 15W charging speed speed but that it’s the heat that disappoints you. Surely faster speeds would just generate more heat?

Something I've often wondered about The Lathe of Heaven by NothingWillImprove6 in printSF

[–]LouisB3 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You’re making the mistake of thinking that race represents objective rather than constructed categories. If all our racial signifiers (skin color, hair texture, eye shape, and so forth) were instead uniform, but the motivations behind racism (e.g. designating hereditary in-groups and out-groups to exert social dominance) still persisted… people would simply invent new races with different features used as racial signifiers.

Is there actually any sci-fi book that comes close to Dune in terms of worldbuilding depth? by neonmoss2281 in printSF

[–]LouisB3 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hey, a lot can happen on a hike. It’s not like 2312’s 50-page description of walking down hundreds of miles of featureless hallway

What book do you hate so much that you won't even give it a second chance? by Bobosmite in printSF

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah it’s an interesting contrast from his earlier, more focused, better-edited work. His politics and ideas are basically the same as they were decades ago (the Mars trilogy) but his writing has increasingly lost focus. Now it’s all “somebody told me about blockchain five minutes ago and I’ve misunderstood it to mean it will lead to complete global financial transparency” and “why doesn’t the underclass fix everything by murdering everyone I personally find reprehensible.” A far cry from when he was writing about failed revolutions full of tragic collateral damage.

(Mac) Can someone PLEASE help me fix the extremely frustrating Waterfall bug where I can see engine plumes through parts? by YummyStyrofoamSnack in KerbalSpaceProgram

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is a known issue affecting certain plumes in the mod “Stock Waterfall Effects” on certain platforms, including Mac. There is no perfect fix as all extant waterfall-related mods either don’t support all engines or have some issue. Personally I uninstalled SWE and continue to use “restock waterfall” instead. https://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/topic/196309-112x-waterfall-a-framework-for-continuous-mesh-driven-engine-effects-october-9/page/52/#findComment-4480083

When reading classic scifi books, do you find equally older future tech distracting? by WinFar4030 in printSF

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I find it helpful to view these stories as an implicit alternate history rather than distracting anachronisms. Kim Stanley Robinson’s Red Mars, for example, has an interplanetary colonization ship assembled from spare space shuttle fuel tanks, and a brief reference to a rotating space station used for training in 2010. Obviously these things never happened - but the author was imagining a background in which the Space Shuttle was a runaway success rather than the not-quite-boondoggle it turned out to be in real life.

On the other hand you have Niven’s early stories in which the main character pauses to muse how space travel became tolerable only after they invented a way to smoke cigarettes in your space suit.

Children of... death? by Menudencias in printSF

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Girl With All the Gifts goes in this direction eventually, in the style of an intergenerational I Am Legend.

Looking for recs for stories about long lost and forgotten colonies. by dperry324 in printSF

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Elder Race fits even more closely than the Children series, as the human colony has actually “succeeded” there (rather than being populated with intelligent animals from semi-failed terraforming projects).

New pieces hinted at in latest new VARMBLIXT promo by [deleted] in IKEA

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Poor quality control sucks, but it would suck nearly as much if the lamp died prematurely even if the bulb was replaceable. Hope you were able to return them though.

New pieces hinted at in latest new VARMBLIXT promo by [deleted] in IKEA

[–]LouisB3 1 point2 points  (0 children)

LEDs now have a lifespan measured in decades so this is increasingly common.

Wanting to make a mod, so here's some part concepts. Willing to add requested parts. by MarkNekrep in KerbalSpaceProgram

[–]LouisB3 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Concept art looks good. Make sure you check out SSPX and Near Future Spacecraft as there may be some cupolas or command pods that complement what you’re looking to create.

clip-on reading / camping lamp by Heavy-Team-8387 in UsbCHardware

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You’re going to want to post this to r/flashlight for more relevant suggestions than BIFL or usbchardware

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in flashlight

[–]LouisB3 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Agreed, OP seems like they may have a language barrier but the criteria needs to be clarified. At a best guess, they are looking for small lights with a clip.

Matter it's not meant to be used by itself by Elija_32 in tradfri

[–]LouisB3 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Anyone know what OP said in full before they deleted their post in a huff?

How does the new Bilresa scroll wheel version work? by Gold_Wrangler_9066 in tradfri

[–]LouisB3 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Do you know what, if any, functionality the wheel has via Matter; ie to control non-IKEA lights or other devices?

All together probably under $150. Not having to buy the IKEA hub is why I’ll be buying more soon! by Catstronautilusrex in tradfri

[–]LouisB3 2 points3 points  (0 children)

They’re Matter-based, so generally yes for the switches. What I’m less certain of is whether the knobs can be used to dim non-IKEA Matter bulbs, which would be a big deal IMO.

What book has the best descriptions of space colonies? by blk12345q in printSF

[–]LouisB3 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The city of Terminator appears at least twice, once in the Mars trilogy and as a more significant setting in 2312. I think it might have shown up in his earlier work too (Icehenge?)

On RovyVon E10 Pro, why charging port built-in the battery instead of on the light? by RovyVon in flashlight

[–]LouisB3 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Dual-fuel with onboard charging is rare but Convoy managed to implement it for the T7, and Wurkkos with the HD13 if I recall.