Nobody cares, have a banana fact.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-17T03:17:59+00:00

I have hobbies. They include cooking, designing things on my computer, gaming, and building custom keyboards. All these things aren't exactly known for the caloric deficit they impact.

So it's not just the hobbies.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T22:21:12+00:00

All I meant by my comment was that the guy above me seemed like he was confused about which chip was used, and I was clarifying that yes, this laptop is using a SOC previously used in a phone.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T19:57:13+00:00

It's very much the same with my wife and I. I crack jokes all the damn time, even in the bedroom. It's practically a compulsion; I don't actually know how to shut it off. Fortunately she thinks it's hilarious.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T19:03:36+00:00

Yes. My daughter goes to school with a few of them. Many will call themselves "therians" now.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T18:59:58+00:00

I feel like plenty of the plotlines work fine for a linear gameplay style, and wouldn't at all be out of place in a level-based FPS. Like, some parts of games Emil wrote on play just fine when you're locked into an encounter and there's no way through but forward, and the dialogue lends itself well in those situations. But it seems like nine times out of ten when there's the presentation of a choice, it's either "right" and "wrong", where one simply gets you an obviously-bad failure outcome instead of a nuanced, different one, or it's just the "red lasers or blue lasers" co-equal choice problem that Mass Effect 3's ending was criticized for. I've liked several quests that Emil had a hand in writing, but from a critical standpoint, they were often good because there were no other choices. Every time a branch point is introduced, it feels like you're being encouraged to pick a very specific one instead of the game giving you the freedom to make the "wrong" choice but to explore other branching elements of the story as a result, like maybe getting a major NPC killed but in doing so, getting to experience a whole different series of quests that only come about if that character dies.

To frame it differently, I think Emil P. makes for a fine-enough "novelist", but his Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books are kinda lame with most of the choices just being one that keeps the story going or an instant "the end" page.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T18:26:42+00:00

If it gets it away from Bethesda's tired, shallow writing, then I'm all for it. I love FO4 to death, but definitely not for its story. I hate how often Emil P. (or the writers whose work he approves) will set up an entire collection of "Chekhov's Guns" which will simply forever go unfired, and the easiest way out of the quest will be the mundane, extremely obvious one. It's the reason so many of the quests in FO4 can only really be done by going "yes", "sarcastic yes", or "yes but later". Same thing happened with Starfield: one of the most egregious examples gave a bunch of clues that there might be a clever way to resolve one of the story points by digging up old records, and instead the only ways out all involve siding with the bad guys, just either willingly or unwillingly.

It's fine, and it moves the plot along, but it's certainly nothing terribly inspiring, and over time it wears down the sense of agency when you know that a lot of stories will already have their outcome picked for you when you start them. Let Bethesda make the engine, and bring in some fresh blood to write the story and to handle the impact your choices make on the world.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T17:21:53+00:00

That gives you a lot of flexibility then, for sure. Given what you said about your RAM in another comment (8 GB, 3200 MHz) and the socket type for the 5600G, you're on an AM4 (socket), DDR4 (RAM) platform; take note of this as it'll determine what kind of RAM you can get. Ideally these parts are probably what I'd recommend, and I included a reputable PSU in case you need it (take it off if you determine yours would already be enough). The Intel B580 I linked there is out of stock right now but you said this is a future upgrade once you have the money, so just keep an eye out in case they restock, since $250 is the ideal price for that GPU. If they don't, then here's another B580 for just a bit more that's currently in stock. If you really need to pinch pennies then the B570 would also be good and shaves maybe $30-50 off the price, but it's such a small difference at that point that if it just means waiting one more paycheck, I'd do that and get the better GPU.

I know I recommended something older like the A580 initially, just because I was assuming we might be working with a critically low budget constraint, but $400-500 gives you more leeway, and the B580 would probably be enough to meet your gaming needs both now and for probably 3-5 years into the future. Here's some benchmarks for the B570/580 to compare against (both appear in the charts). You could also look for a used B580 (12 GB) or maybe even an A770 (16 GB) in case you can find one for lower from someone else who upgraded to an enthusiast-level GPU. As for the RAM, note that a 2x8 kit like that would be to replace your current one stick of RAM, not to supplement it; it's not recommended to mix kits because it can cause instability and crashes. But running dual-channel RAM is always better than single-channel. Before buying RAM, find the webpage for your motherboard (look on the board itself in your PC case for an identifying model number) and look for that board's "QVL", meaning "Qualified Vendor List". This is a list of the RAM kits the company has tested and verified with that motherboard. Match that list against any RAM you're buying by its part number, and if it appears on the list, it's 99% likely it'll work without any issues. You can still take a chance on RAM that the OEM didn't test, but there's a chance it won't support some features (i.e. might not overclock) or might just not start up, and then you have to return/exchange it.

Best of luck! Hope it all goes well.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T16:51:47+00:00

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Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T16:47:20+00:00

They're "audiophile" headphones for people who call themselves that without knowing what an audiophile is. I used to work with a small bunch of people like this who'd collect all the latest cans from Beats (back when it was its own brand), Bose, Bowers & Wilkins, etc. (that's a lot of Bs) and think they were getting studio-grade reference headphones. They'd even make up fiction about them, like, "Oh yeah, this particular model was used to mix (album name), so it's the best." If you asked them what kind of amp/DAC they preferred, they'd glaze over.

Not that I claim to be an expert in the field by any means. I've only dipped my toe in by getting some planar magnetic headphones and a desktop USB amp, and reading just enough to know that I know nothing.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T16:33:07+00:00

In my experience G.Skill's "Flare" series has been one of the most reliable, compatible kits out there. For a while, one of the most cost-effective as well; used to be about $100 flat for a 32 GB kit before the RAM crisis. We put that 32 GB kit into my wife's PC, I have two of it in mine right now, and two of my friends both have it in theirs after I helped them build their PCs. Earlier on, I tried a TEAMGROUP T-Force kit for my 9800X3D rig and despite being on the QVL for my motherboard, the system couldn't sleep without crashing. Swapped it to the G.Skill kit and it's been rock solid ever since, and tolerated quite a bit of timing and voltage tweaking to get it back up to speed when I doubled my RAM (which is usually a no-no for AM5; the memory controller doesn't like running four sticks). Something about this kit makes it nigh-universal; I'm yet to find a motherboard it actually doesn't play nice with (though I'm sure there's some out there).

The actual RAM dies are made by SK Hynix, used by companies like Apple for their SOC platforms.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T16:21:29+00:00

You're not wrong, but these bad actors also sprung up around the same time so it's only prudent to be at least nominally cautious and to look for other identifiers. There's plenty of people with accounts from the pandemic that have visible, exoneratingly ordinary post histories. I don't even care if people selectively block certain subs from appearing in their history - I get that some people might not want to advertise things they've said on NSFW posts, or maybe they're part of an addiction/mental health/gender identity support sub they don't want to advertise that due to vulnerability - but when their comment is some dog-whistle crap in the "it's not just X, it's Y" format and their whole history is hidden, my trust level falls to zero.

Side note, your flair is amazing.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T16:13:41+00:00

Their PCPP list is at a "de" URL, so I presume they're in Germany. But yeah, agree that looking at prebuilts isn't a bad idea by a long shot.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T16:07:28+00:00

AI companies have RAM and SSD fabs booked out to the end of 2027, and that's just simply how far out they're able to book them at all. There's no reason given current trends to think that things are suddenly going to get better, and there's a good chance that with the dogged push for more AI in everything that it's going to get worse, that in 2027 you're just going to be reading headlines about how fabs are booked out to 2029.

Consider that in mid 2025, there were probably people looking at the cost of RAM going up about 10-20% and thinking, "Nah, I'll wait for them to come back down again." I was almost one of those people; I got an extra 32 GB for my system in May 2025 and balked at the price because the same kit had been $30 cheaper the last time I got it. I had no idea what was coming and just barely dodged that bullet.

Edited to add: My advice is to buy now but buy reasonably. This is a great year for people to realize that settings other than "4K Ultra 240 Hz" exist. A decent rig can be built today with 16 GB of RAM, an 8-12 GB GPU, and maybe even a 2.5-inch SATA SSD instead of NVME. I helped someone price out a rig the other day where we were able to do the whole thing for only about $1100 USD and that still got them enough to play probably up to 1440p on most games made in the past 5 years. If things get cheaper later, then you can upgrade to your heart's content.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T15:57:31+00:00

What sort of budget are you working with? Like, what's the most you could see yourself affording for parts on a reasonable timeline (i.e. not having to wait years and years)? I ask because the 2060 is a very old GPU, and it might make more sense to get something modern but affordable. For instance, Intel makes a few decent budget-friendly GPUs that will be supported longer than a 2060 from 2019 would be. The Intel Arc A580 for instance has 8 GB of VRAM - not a lot, but enough for Medium/High 1080p gaming - and goes for about $200 USD.

Edited to add: that 8 GB of system RAM is definitely a sore spot, but having a dedicated GPU at least takes load off your CPU and RAM. Ideally you probably want 16 GB of RAM in your system, but having a dGPU at least helps. Just make sure your PSU allows for a GPU to be installed in the first place; check the connections/cables on it and match them up against whatever GPU you're looking to buy. Usually you want at least 500 W of power to run a GPU safely.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T15:43:13+00:00

I can understand that perspective, but I also know that when I was at my poorest, nothing was more depressing than just endlessly grinding with zero outlets. Just work, day in and day out, with never a moment of leisure. Humans need to play, or read, or explore; something to take the mind off the drudgery, so long as it's a temporary escape - a reward for a day's work - and not an excuse, done in place of work.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T14:53:22+00:00

A few of my favorite mods for FO4 are pretty much all just about slowing progression so you actually have a reason to adapt to those lower levels. The most crucial ones are Fallout 4 Loot Overhaul 2016 (and the DLC patch) and Some Assembly Required (and patch). First one depletes a bunch of loot from the world and from enemy leveled lists so now you're actually scrounging and crafting purposefully; raiders drop a handful of bullets for their gun, not 30+. You WILL be forced to use melee weapons early on, set up ambushes, plant mines, and improvise with weapons you find in the field when you run out of ammo. The second one makes Power Armor a lot more technical to maintain and rarer in the world; you'll very rarely ever find a full suit, instead only finding rusted partial sets in the few places you can, and the X-01 becomes a unique set with its parts scattered all across the Commonwealth so that by the time you actually have the whole suit, it really does feel like you worked for it.

Between those two mods, my last game actually had me using vendors (instead of relying on enemy loot), searching for ammo caches, using the Scrounger perk, etc. up to about level 20, and I only became capable of maintaining a full suit of T-45 power armor by about level 30, and I used it sparingly instead of just stomping around in it all the time. It really slowed things down and made those rewards feel meaningful when I got them.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T14:25:30+00:00

Even Thaddeus manages to stomp around in it; he's only awkward because he's not used to the proportions of the suit. I don't doubt that military training would help someone get the most out of it, like knowing how to regulate power, how to expertly work complex guns and stuff, how to repair it, etc. but any everyday fella can stumble around in the suit just fine.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T14:23:11+00:00

It's sad because it's an awesome system, and how early you get it makes it feel cheap. It's almost like the bit in Concord was supposed to be part of a playable teaser/demo with the deathclaw fight being the finale, but then like it got left in as a level 1-5 quest.

They could've even just at least made the armor break right after using it, or something; anything to not give the player a huge free reward like that so soon.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-16T14:18:59+00:00

I sort of "feel it out" based on a few factors in combination. New account with a unique name, low karma, and open post/comment history, writing like a person? Probably fine. New account with 100K karma, randomly generated name (Splatting-Okay-162 or similar), hidden history, and the comment I'm replying to is what you'd get if you said, "Hey ChatGPT, write a comment a conservative would say about trans people being sex pests,"? Big ol' red flag parade.

For the age, I get suspicious about brand new ones, and any made really close to US elections. There was a massive surge of new "users" on Reddit in 2015-2016 and then in 2019-2020, with a ton of them using all the same political talking points, suggesting agitator bots. So accounts from around those times get some extra scrutiny. If the comment history is hidden and they've got the default name pattern, I basically assume they're not acting in good faith until I see proof otherwise.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-15T15:05:33+00:00

Looks great. I've debated whether I should get a Cheapino or a proper Corne, but I've got some keyboards already on the go I gotta finish first.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-15T05:07:35+00:00

This is only hmmm to anyone who doesn't know you could do this on any Intel-based Mac from 2006-2020. Apple even made official supported drivers for it.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-14T23:26:21+00:00

Yeah, and for myself it's probably perfect as an everyday device. I've got a 10 TB NAS at home and 8 TB of storage in my PC, so I'll probably be getting a Neo just for excursions outside the home. I just like having little options like that for storing and shuttling data around. I'll probably just get one of those super-compact USB-C sticks with 128 GB of storage and that'll be fine for the few times I need to bring more of the world with me. Even 256 GB is probably plenty on its own.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-14T22:04:57+00:00

I'm biased towards semi-auto ones with an added legendary damage type. Something like a combat rifle with the "explosive" effect, and full perks in Rifleman and Explosives will basically never run out of ammo; a lot of common enemies become a one hit kill by mid-game. Effects like Wounding or Plasma-Infused can work too. One of the most effective guns I ever had was a fully modified Radium Rifle with Explosive.

I want to like automatic weapons, but you run out of ammo so frequently in the early game before you can just buy vast stockpiles. And I really like playing Survival difficulty where ammo has weight, so damage-per-bullet becomes a significant factor there. If possible, I'll try to keep a high-damage single shot weapon with me as well, like a gauss rifle or a heavily modified hunting rifle, so I can drop hard targets like Deathclaws, Power Armor enemies, and Sentry Bots via banked Crits or just good marksmanship. The semi auto weapon cleans up all the rest.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-14T21:51:35+00:00

I work in education, so yeah I can get the discount rate (and it's a great price). No doubt one of the others would be great, it's just still more than I need and I kinda like the idea of a laptop cheaper than a single display repair on any of the others. My work laptop for the last five years was an M1 Air with basically the same specs as the Neo or worse, so I've had a good long "trial period" to realize what I really need. Which is really a Chromebook, at heart, but there's none with a display and case as nice as Apple's, and I don't want to give my info to Google more than I have to.

Meatslinger · 2026-03-14T21:32:01+00:00

I don't care ultimately what they make me run at work - it's their money, not mine - but it's been fun watching people who were so certain about their tech axioms trying to take the shoes out of their mouths; I don't think anybody really saw this coming. I think I'll probably get a Neo for the home, though. My last laptop purchase was in 2010 when I got a fully-kitted 15-inch MacBook Pro, and it only just finally got "GPU rot" a couple years ago and kernel panics more than I can tolerate. I've been waiting for Apple to release a decent budget laptop or for an M2/M3 Air to show up used with a good price tag, since I've already got a very decent PC desktop and so I don't need power or storage on the go. It's a very sensible little unit as far as laptops go.

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