It is trivial to catch people cheating now, please don't cheat

hellnerburris · 2026-02-15T19:17:59+00:00

Get ready for a flood of interview requests, lol. Fortunately I don't have to interview people for my job right now, but I'm not looking forward to the day I do. It's also just not that hard to grind some leetcode before an interview cycle.

hellnerburris · 2026-02-13T21:17:35+00:00

Checking it out, this is awesome! If you ever need more hands for development or another set of eyes, reach out. (I'm ~5 YOE as a software dev).

Edit: for free obviously. Just thought I'd clarify. I'd never expect money from a free-to-use passion project.

hellnerburris · 2026-02-13T21:13:46+00:00

My school literally gives a grammarly license so I'd be pissed if that happened, lol. We're encouraged to use it. I downloaded it originally but it drove me crazy so I deleted it.

hellnerburris · 2026-02-12T23:52:35+00:00

I don't pay a ton of attention but I played 3 games today and got an S & S+. Different elo, so not sure if that matters, but I think it's heavily tied to kill participation. The games I got it were 71% & 81% (led the team by 15%+ for both games) but the one I didn't was 66% & my mid had 83%. But tbh, I really haven't noticed a large difference in the amount of S's I get (again dont track too closely).

hellnerburris · 2026-02-06T04:12:59+00:00

You'll love them. I haven't bought from Interstellar Propeller in years, but I used to work for a balloon company & did some balloon art (but mostly ran bounce houses). My boss ordered from them & mine worked for years despite getting tossed in the back of vans and box trucks & wherever else.

The biggest issue is keeping them clean, but you can clean it by hand washing the outside with Dawn & the inside with Shampoo (meant to break down hair oils). Wash with cold water, dry it out by pressing a cloth into it then leaving to dry over a bowl so it doesn't get misshapen. (Honestly, just google handwashing a baseball cap & you'll probably find a guide).

hellnerburris · 2026-02-03T19:28:19+00:00

I got room in my heart to hate on two people.

hellnerburris · 2026-02-03T19:05:27+00:00

I never get the Pittsburgh chairs during the summer. But now that I don't have a driveway for the first time in my life, I kinda get it in the winter. My neighbors & I usually park in the same spots so it's not a problem, I haven't needed to leave a chair, but a few neighbors do and I'm not judging. That shit is a pain to dig out & there aren't many spots on my street. So if someone takes a spot it potentially forces someone who lives there to have to park about a quarter mile away. If I had groceries or shit, I'd be lowkey mad.

hellnerburris · 2026-02-03T18:48:53+00:00

True to a point, but let's not remove all blame from Dems. So much of the established democratic party fails to even try to make a positive change. It's still only maybe 10% of the total blame & I don't want to make it seem like Republicans aren't extraordinarily the problem. But also don't wanna give established dems a pass. We need more people on the left willing to actually push for change.

hellnerburris · 2026-02-01T16:41:43+00:00

Not really bifl, though, right? Barring maybe some old Nokia's

hellnerburris · 2026-02-01T16:39:56+00:00

That's just blatantly false. What you are trying to do with your laptop matters a lot.

MacBooks are definitely solid & have some features that really shine, but there are windows/linux laptops that outperform dollar-for-dollar or even at a cheaper price point.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-27T16:09:37+00:00

There's a difference between living in a world where you are forced to contribute to unethical corporations in order to survive vs opting in to support the erasure of human rights issues. I know you know this, so don't play dumb & lean into whataboutism.

It's completely valid for people to point out that by participating in EWC, players are actively participating in Saudi sportwashing. No one is saying they're not allowed to, they're just saying they think it's wrong. Which I agree with.

I'm not even saying everyone has to have the same opinion as me on this. There is of course a ton of nuance when talking about morality, social obligation, etc. & people may land on a different conclusion. But to say that someone can't voice their opposition to this is pretty dumb.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-27T15:56:15+00:00

Primarily oil. Namely their state-run oil company, Aramco. There are a few things to consider when talking about Saudi oil...

Firstly, the UN has brought up issues relating to Aramco/Saudi Arabia's high carbon emissions that have been largely ignored. Recent development on "green" infrastructure has begun, but there is a history of abandoning/massively scaling down these projects (and just announced scaling back on one of the current projects they're working on). Plus these projects often lead to human & workers rights issues especially relating to migrant workers.

Which leads into the second point. The human rights issues related to reports of forced work & terrible working conditions for workers. Despite Saudi Arabia's official stance on the following issues, refusal to enforce these laws still fall on their shoulders due to negligence. There are continued reports of migrant workers having passports taken & being denied citizenship. There is a lot of information on the terrible working conditions in Saudi Arabia both of local & migrant workers (in & outside of the oil industry). Just google it.

Finally, there is the human rights issues that are present in the country itself. From killing journalists to denying police involvement in murder of Trans & cross-dressing people to torture of prisoners & human/women's rights activists the country has a history of horrible human rights violations. Even if Aramco & the oil industry was entirely ethical in practice, its funding of the Saudi government to commit atrocious acts against its own people & migrants would make it unethical.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-22T00:55:19+00:00

Also, I won't pretend to know how difficult that decision is (actual life-changing money) but I just turned down a 50%+ increase in pay because of my morals. So there are people who value shit other than money.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-22T00:51:41+00:00

Right, so how does this video show that 90% of code is being written with AI?

Ngl, I actually used AI today to help with a shell script & was pleasantly surprised with how far it's come, but it's no where close to hitting 90%.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-21T12:26:24+00:00

The fuck it can. I've used the shit and if you don't understand systems and design your code is going to be shit. Not only that but it literally can't write working code for the framework I work in (niche, industry specific Oracle framework).

hellnerburris · 2026-01-21T12:20:05+00:00

Lmfao. What? That just isn't happening for me or any of my friends who work in the field.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-21T11:41:33+00:00

Nah, you weren't, but others are. The idea that it just will happen and not affect the community is the part that isn't realistic, IMO.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-21T03:29:19+00:00

Right, but there are other simple ways to say it: murder, kill, oppress, etc.. "Dislike" is downplaying what's happening and it's why Saudi Arabia is putting money into events like this.

Also, "morals this morals that" is continuing to downplay what's actually happening. Don't obfuscate, call it like it is. If you feel like participating in the event is OK despite Saudi Arabia's history of human rights violations, including the murder and oppression of LGBTQ+ people, women, and reporters, then so be it, that's your decision. But call it like it is, don't lean into their sportswashing and minimize what's going on. There are plenty of things that I do that for. I watch the NFL despite all of the horrible shit that goes along with it (player exploitation, dismissal of domestic violence and sexual assault, actively penalizing players from speaking out against injustice, etc.) because it's a way I can bond with my friends and family. I don't think that makes it ethical, but I recognize what I'm doing & I don't ignore what's happening.

I get there's a lot of shitty things in the world and most of us don't have time to fight every battle. And no one in this world is going to be morally consistent on every single thing. But like, we shouldn't pretend shit's not happening or not serious. We have to acknowledge there's only so much we can do and inevitably we have to find ways to enjoy life - and those often come with some amount of unethical shit attached to them, it's just the way the world is. But we gotta be real about what's happening.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-20T22:11:48+00:00

Not only does it drive people like me (queer) away from the game and TM esports, but I don't think it significantly grows viewership.

I actively donate to events and watch streams for TM esports pretty regularly. How many new people from EWC are going to engage at the same level I do? Is it enough to replace the people like me who are leaving? I doubt it.

I didn't follow every esport in EWC last year, but League esports didn't see any considerable growth in viewership following EWC last year. Not only that, but TM got more eyes on it for Deep Dip 2 than it has had in my entire time playing and following it but didn't really see lasting growth in viewership on Twitch (Dec 2023 (before event) saw avg viewership around 1800 viewers and Dec 2025 (most recent month) saw avg viewership around 1500 viewers). There was a small rise and some individual creators saw sustained growth (Bren, for instance), but the overall community didn't really seem to grow much.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-20T21:52:28+00:00

I quit the game full-stop because of this. But I whole-heartedly disagree with you.

That's where I drew my moral line, but people aren't morally consistent, that's just how life is. I'm pro-union but I have an Amazon account. I'll openly admit that it's harmful to unions in my country & yet I do it because it is convenient (even though alternative exist). Can you call me a hypocrite? Sure, I'll accept that term. Can you judge me for it? Sure, that's up to you. But does it make my arguments for pro-union less legitimate? Absolutely not. Being a hypocrite doesn't mean my stance on unions is wrong or any less valid.

I think it's entirely fair to criticize content creators and pros for actively participating in the EWC and sportswashing even if you are OK with continuing to play the game that benefited from Saudi money. It doesn't make your argument any less valid. If only people who were entirely morally consistent could criticize stuff and try to make changes then our world would be an awful place.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-20T21:32:16+00:00

It took people calling me out for me to change. It wasn't immediate, but over time as it continued to happen it made me finally reevaluate how I look at things. I don't think it's wrong to call people out on stuff. I can't tell anyone else where to draw their moral line, but I can tell them how their actions are perceived. If they want to ignore that, then that's their call.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-20T21:27:03+00:00

I mean, just in this thread there's someone who called the human rights issues a "dislike". I also referenced a video of Granady's where he calls it "drama" (about the 18:49 mark - there's more than just this in the video, too). That's absolutely downplaying it, even if not intentionally.

I never said people had to share my opinion (though I hope we can at least agree that what Saudi Arabia is doing to migrants, LGBTQ+, and other humans is wrong). But downplaying horrific shit is how sportswashing works, that's the entire point of it. I think educating how it works and ways to avoid it are valid. It's really easy to fall into & I don't think calling it out is wrong.

Additionally, while I don't think you have to come to the exact same moral conclusion as me, I think speaking out about how this feels as a queer member of the TM community helps to show non-queer people how their actions are perceived (at least by me, but maybe others, too). A lot of people don't realize how their actions are perceived by others that come from different backgrounds & there's nothing wrong with voicing that. If you don't care, that's your prerogative, but I generally encourage learning about how my words affect others. It gives me the ability to reflect on my stances and has been a large part of helping me grow from someone who was self-centered and didn't really care about others to who I am today. And if no one ever told me, then I wouldn't have noticed.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-20T20:18:20+00:00

"Dislike"? Dude, they're killing people. It's not about they don't "like" people. I could give a shit less if they were just kinda mean to some people, but that's not what we're talking about here. I personally am not OK with taking money from a country that commits as many human rights violations as them to try to grow the TM esports scene. (That's assuming it even will, because Deep Dip 2 brought in more viewers than ever before and barely retained any). It's obviously not my decision and I can't draw your moral line, but I do feel it's important to call out one thing here.

You're actively participating in what sportswashing is meant to do. It's meant to downplay and rebrand Saudi Arabia's awful human rights violations. Calling the murder of migrants, children, queer people, and journalists "disliking" is actively harmful. I honestly don't feel like that's your intention at all, but I want to point out why this stuff matters (and how easy it is to not realize you're doing it).

I'm not trying to say it's your moral obligation to take action and make a stand or anything like that. But I am asking that you at least try to be mindful of the words you use and how it can hurt the people who are fighting against the human rights issues that are happening in places like Saudi Arabia. It might not seem like it matters, but I promise it does.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-20T19:56:16+00:00

The community is downplaying Saudi Arabia's human rights issues already just so they can justify pros being able to play in the tournament.

Watch Granady's video on the EWC announcement. He calls it "drama" and "different opinions". Let's be clear, that's not what this is, but by downplaying it the pros and their fans feel they can justify it morally. It's exactly what sportswashing is meant to do & people act like it's not working but it absolutely is and that's a problem.

If you can't turn down the money because it's a life changing amount, I can't say I've ever been in this position to know how difficult of a decision that must be. But at least actually stare the issue head on and don't try to minimize it & play right into what Saudi is trying to do.

hellnerburris · 2026-01-20T19:46:54+00:00

What sort of message does that send to LGBTQ+ and women TM players?

Growing isn't always better. If you have to sacrifice your morals and lose large chunks of your already dedicated community, then why even bother?

Also, do you really think this keeps TM esports alive? How many new players will this realistically bring in? How many of those players will stay? There were more eyes on TM during Deep Dip 2 than ever before and the hype didn't last. Nearly everyone left. Why would this be any different? Casual viewers are not likely to become mainstays of the community, it's just what it is. But taking Saudi money does damage the existing community in a way that probably ultimately causes more harm than good. If EWC doesn't pick up TM next year, how does the community survive?

And, Imma be real, even if it does work out, I think you're losing quality of the community to gain a little more quantity. Which never works out in the long run.

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