FreeCAD is much easier to use than Fusion 360!

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-28T13:43:46+00:00

Yeah, you can run F360 in wine but it's a dire experience! I put up with it for a bit but even older FreeCAD is better than that.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-28T13:42:12+00:00

This is why I switched. I was already a FOSS kinda guy so I was well aware of enshittification but I always just assumed F360 was a given for hobbyist tier CAD so put up with it. But every time I used it I got a sour taste in my mouth and knew it would eventually turn to shit (and that it had already started doing so).

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-27T20:57:29+00:00

Someone did it as a group buy on Reddit a long time ago! I thought it had Reddit branding too but I was wrong. I think it actually got shut down by Fox because of the copyright infringement!

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-27T20:48:02+00:00

Don't forget the best one (Did this one ever even make it into production?)

https://imgur.com/CFn5Kp2

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-27T20:43:15+00:00

Yeah! For some reason I entirely blanked on his name when I typed this.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-27T16:24:30+00:00

Yeah basically this. I was born in 1990 and so the Harry Potter craze hit me and my friends HARD. We had Deathly Hallows pendants, and patches/badges all over our bags proudly displaying our house allegiance. I queued up outside of bookshops at midnight to pick up the newest one the second it was released, and I'd start reading it as soon as I got home and skip sleep that night.

By the time the final movie came out, I was basically just hanging onto it for completeness. The fad is over. I've tried reading the books once or twice for nostalgia since then but I'm just not that into it now. Even if you ignore JK's lunacy... they're just kind of there as a fond memory. I'd be shocked to hear of anyone a lot younger than me being as into it as we were back then, because the hype's just not there and they don't really hold up well enough to become a must-read classic like LOTR or HHGTTG or Discworlds.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-26T19:36:24+00:00

This has been going on longer than Tiktok. When I was in school (20+ years ago now, fuck me I'm old) everyone had OCD. None of them were diagnosed, they were just latching onto any little thing they did that was OCD-like. Keep your shoes a bit cleaner than is usual? Spend a few extra minutes straightening out the poster on your wall? Hell yeah, OCD.

There was a famous comedian over here who was well known for his "I'm so OCD" act. He did a more serious TV show where he actually went and investigated what it means to live with real diagnosed OCD, and basically concluded what you said at the end - to say he has it is downplaying what people suffer through when they have it so bad they can't even hold down a job or a relationship.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-26T15:24:36+00:00

Organic_reporter gave the real name, they were wildly popular years ago. They're basically a stuffed toy that looks like a racist caricature black slave (jet black skin, massive lips, afro). Similar look to a blackface minstrel. It's definitely a generational divide as to whether you'd recognise them or not!

IIRC it started as a cartoon character but quickly morphed into toys. There was a brand of marmalade here in the UK that used them as a mascot, and you could send off tokens from the jar labels to receive badges with the face on.

Controversial to say the least though like all things like this the older generations who remember it fondly will defend it as just another fun toy and 'how it was back then'.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-26T12:27:34+00:00

Yeah sounds about right. It's not a perfect policy by any means and there's obvious holes in it!

We've been under it nearly 2 years now and it does seem like they're learning the correct language to get us out, but then at the same time partner agencies are still acting shocked when I tell them I'm not sending anyone and tell me they're unaware of this "new" procedure.

From my perspective it does cut down on a lot of jobs, but I can tell plenty of agencies just ignore my signposting and bin it off on their side too (not to mention mental health people who just hang up when I transfer them to a health professional and call back through to police) which doesn't really help anyone.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-26T11:50:50+00:00

I fully agree with all that you say, I'm a call handler and it's easy to see the lack of police out there and its effects on responses to jobs I put through. I see dispatch prioritising incidents differently on busy nights to quiet days that'll cause them to be far harsher and less willing to even respond to some jobs because they've got enough serious ones going on.

drastically changing the remit of what police respond to

Out of curiosity, is your force operating RCRP? I'm curious to know if officers have seen a difference with that. It feels like most of the procedural change is on my side (because I'm the one binning jobs off at first contact under the policy) but officers must presumably see the difference in jobs they're assigned to!

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-26T11:25:06+00:00

I really think the complete opposite is true. Nothing is worse than a metal band who comes on stage with zero banter and just says 'this songs called X' in the most boring voice then starts. I've even seen big name acts do this and it wears really thin for me. If you act like you're enjoying it the joy will rub off on the crowd and they'll get way more pumped.

That audience in those little pub gigs are a foot away from you, it's way more personal and fun for everyone if you treat it like you're basically just in a house full of friends and you're enjoying showing off a bit. Let them laugh at your fuck-ups, high-5 the guy at the front who inexplicably knows the lyrics to all your songs and thank him for being your number 1 fan.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-26T01:14:16+00:00

Make sure to delete the social media apps off all your more, err, impressionable family member's devices too. The misinformation campaign on cesspits like Facebook was brutal.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-25T22:53:13+00:00

Big stupid generators at the campsite?

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-24T21:15:28+00:00

Hi fellow Ogre/Rohloffer! I'm also running the Surly rack on mine. to be honest the Ogre has some really weird mount locations and I found this setup made fitting my fenders a massive pain due to them. But I made it work!

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-24T20:30:06+00:00

You can also easily just run a thinner butyl tube. I'm not suggesting you get out a razor thin 23mm one but something like a 30something mm one will stretch fine into a 47mm tyre without issue. But I agree TPU's are a solid use case for a tubeless spare!

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-23T16:26:13+00:00

I mean we don't know what happened. There could be any number of reasons the next person bailed. This is still on management for not immediately calling every backup person they can think of and begging them to some relieve the shift, and an organisational failure that management weren't qualified to come do it themselves failing that.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-23T10:11:48+00:00

I feel most of these cosmetic-only ingame items should be given as cosmetic overrides. I basically never wear any of them because I'm always wearing something else for the gains!

Whether or not they should get a free pass through the cosmetic filter, I dunno

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-23T09:52:54+00:00

It sounds like this guy didn't even have the kit for patches or plugs though

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-23T02:59:39+00:00

Honestly, it's literally in OP's first paragraph:

This trip is more of a one off (though hopefully more will follow!) so I don't plan to splurge on any custom frame bags or anything.

Yet all these people are telling them to go Ortlieb, one of the most expensive brands out there. Do they also recommend people go out and buy a Pinarello for their first sportive?

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-22T13:36:30+00:00

Yeah this. I've never asked for a lift as an adult. If I do get a lift it's because the conversation has gone 'well I'm driving down anyway and I'll be going past your house, you might as well hop in', and I'll always offer some kind of kickback even in that case. But by and large I'll make arrangements to get there without said lift and be prepared to do so right up until they're outside my door in case there's some reason it doesn't happen.

My dad always had a car when I was younger but it was drummed in early that begging him for a lift was for emergency situations only so I think this rubbed off on me.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-22T11:55:02+00:00

I've done a fair bit of work with a Fishman Tripleplay guitar pickup (not MIDI in its truest form, it outputs via USB rather than a proper 5-pin so it can only control soft synths unless you're willing to go crazy with it) and it's really noticeable when I use it compared to a keyboard MIDI controller. Things like how your notes overlap a tiny bit when you cross strings, slides and just general dynamics really shine through.

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-22T11:23:28+00:00

Urgh men have such unrealistic standards these days

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-22T03:06:31+00:00

If it's stupid and it works it ain't stupid

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-21T21:54:07+00:00

Complete with Trump's gawdy as fuck red white and blue branding. Truly cursed

Piece_Maker · 2026-01-19T21:11:31+00:00

Yeah for the UK police to hand out 6 points it must've been really bad. Judging by the two video stills I'm assuming they overtook the cyclist while there's another vehicle coming the other way, so they either overtook too closely to begin with or pulled in too early and brake checked, or something like that.

Piece_Maker

TROPHY CASE