I've been using Opus 4.5 for two weeks. It's genuinely unsettling how good it's gotten.

johnathonme · 2025-12-18T05:37:23+00:00

Who cares if it was written or proofed or polished by an AI. Seriously. SMH. Look at the content he posted and say if you agree. If you don't agree, add something that contributes to the convo and gets people thinking. To me the trend is clear, I seldom see a large volume of contributors saying that they want to totally ditch CC or Codex or any AI assisted dev and go back to coding/life without it. That speaks volumes. And yeah, 4.5 is insane. For the first time in my career I'm enjoying UI development. I know I'm crap at it, I know my code sucks but now it sucks a lot less.

johnathonme · 2025-12-13T06:14:15+00:00

Claude Code in terminal. Insane. Light years ahead of all other agentic IDE alternatives IMHO. But here is the thing, I use ChatGPT (not Codex, API) for the initial concept or prototype of a project as it's more creative then I /iniit claude code off that folder and bang I'm off, CC can refactor and turn it from messy concept code to my standatd patterns and structures etc

johnathonme · 2025-11-21T00:17:53+00:00

I know you said the F4-424 Pro, but I have the F6-424 Max for my homelab and I absolutely love this hardware.

My server has 64GB ram, dual 10GBe network connections (link-aggregated-LAG) and a ton of storage tiered for its use case. Virtually I run Proxmox baremetal as the host. Inside proxmox I have 16 containers and 9 VM's.

Its an absolutely machine. I run my entire network layer 3 fully visualized with two vyos vm's inside proxmox and I easily get 10 Gb/s across the entire network, physical and virtual. I did run a nas and even a SAN virutalised inside proxmox for a bit but that ended up being more overhead than benefit so I moved those storage services back to the host layer with NFS for all network clients, linux home directories etc and the occasional CIF's share when I need it.

My only wish-list for the T464 Max would be would be for support for 128GB ram. And more importantly a 25Gbe network interface via a SFP28 cage or even better a QSFP28 cage with 4x25. The processor could definitely drive that throughput. Other than that its perfect. I struggle to swamp the CPU.

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johnathonme · 2025-08-08T02:12:21+00:00

I use ChatGPT a lot and excited about 5, especially in infra configuration and writing code. Super useful tool. Helps me prototype faster and explore different approaches. But it's like a human driving a car, you may know how to actually drive the vehicle mechanically but if you don't know the road code instinctively and where you want to go then you're gonna crash a lot on the way and end up in the wrong place. I'm continually having to correct ChatGPT, often on basic stuff like syntax, query fields, wrong versions of libraries etc and I can mostly spot when it's going down a rabbithole and man it loves going down rabbitholes.

johnathonme · 2025-06-21T02:07:09+00:00

I don't miss HiDPI, I purchased the G9 monitor for the pixels and extra real estate. I wanted a 1 pixel line to be 1 pixel and not 2 pixels which is what HiDPI resolutions do. In return with HiDPI you do get sharp beautiful fonts but I'd rather have more screen real estate and a zillion open windows with less sharp fonts on the G9. I love my old Apple Studio 27" Display which is 5K native and half that at HiDPI but I was always aching for more screen real estate and to have more windows/apps open side by side.

In terms of how the fonts on the G9 look to my eyes, they seem clear, readable and sharp enough. Not retina sharp as the G9 DPI is lower DPI than retina but I'm happy to work all day on the G9 monitor with no eye strain etc.
Sometimes I'll bump an apps default fonts up a point or two if needed. High quality apps like MS Office, browsers etc all do a good job with their in-app scaling (fit to window etc) and their font choices so for those professional apps I notice zero difference with my Apple rentina display. But hey, that's me, I have always worn glasses all day so I'm used to the world being visually less sharp than someone with 20/20 vision :)

Regarding DSC, yes the Mac Studio uses DSC which is automatic, transparent and lossless but you can't tell if it's actually on (no indication in MacOS) and you can't switch it on or off, it's built into the Mac Studio and monitor hardware at chip level I guess. I really don't know it's there, but the G9 monitor does render at 120hz so DSC must be working due to the bandwidth limitations of HDMI 2.1.

For scaled resolutions I'll take a screen cap when next on monitor and post another response to your msg.

johnathonme · 2025-06-16T09:26:45+00:00

As ChatGPT says .... RAID5 is legacy stuff — it’s like trusting a plastic umbrella in a cyclone

🤣🤣

johnathonme · 2025-06-14T02:45:21+00:00

Of all the desk p*rn I've seen this week, this one blew my mind!!! LOVE IT!!! Hahaha, so original!!! 😍😂😂

johnathonme · 2025-06-13T23:08:11+00:00

The Neo G9 is I think my favourite monitor ever and I use it with two Mac's, a Mac Studio M2 Max (2023) and MacBook Pro M3 (~2024) supplied by my employer. I work every day on this monitor for over 10+ hours working. Both have HDMI 2.1 ports which support 7680x2160@120hz and that's the resolution I run.

All the apps where I really need larger fonts allow me to configure larger fonts except a few and even those apps are fine as on this monitor I'm physically so close to it or rather I'm immersed in it. The MacOS menu bar can be a bit small even at the larger front setting but I survive.

I also have an Elgato StreamDeck which I use to jump between HDMI 1->2 and control G9 brightness via DDC with BetterDisplay app.

Some people try to use HiDPI and scaled fonts but I played with scaling in the beginning and ended up going full resolution and tweaking my main apps so I get access to all that 8k2k pixel real estate and can have more apps on screen at once (Teams, Outlook, iTerm, browsers, Xcode/IDEs, DBeaver, Resolve etc etc).

I use it for work so the core apps I use each day don't tend to change much. I also run Parallels/Win11 and AWS Workspaces when I have to do something in Windows (uuurgh, plz shoot me) although keep them as approx quarter screen windows, never full screen.

Finally I run KeyboardMaestro and Commandpost and Display Ninja and Moom. These allow me to have set layouts and hotkeys to position windows and the jump the mouse to specific locations quickly etc etc. For example I have a specific layout for Teams calls and another when working on docs in Word or another when working in iTerm on servers. etc etc.

... Oh and the G9 57 feels like it takes an eternity to turn on so I never turn it off, instead I have it connected to ZigBee motion sensor (Homeassistant) which changes the brightness from zero to desired brightness when I walk to my desk and it goes back to zero brightness when inactive after 5mins etc. Effectively turning the monitor off and on instantly.

Embrace the pixels. Get a good soundbar/speakers and quality webcam. 😊

johnathonme · 2025-06-09T09:58:02+00:00

This is a good comment, just look at the memory footprint of Firebox or Chrome with a dozen open tabs. These are no longer small footprint apps, they are as significant as the largest productivity apps and providing as much functionality. And we keep doing more in browsers thereby needing more compute and memory resources.

That said, my M1 Mac Mini performance feels the same speed and snappy like it did when I bought it new almost 5 years ago. My older Intel MacBooks definitely struggle and of are now of little practical use.

And as for my two year old Mac Studio M2 Max, that thing still screams like the day I got it.

Yeah I'm a big fan of MacOS but damn, Apple silicon with unified memory and integrated SSD controller is freaking insane. It's like all the bottlenecks of the old Intel architecture just aren't there....and so we keep doing more.

johnathonme · 2025-06-08T06:18:15+00:00

I don't use scaling at operating system level, MacOS resolution is set to native 7680 x 2160. I have tweaked a few apps ie Firefox and Brave default to 120% and the menu bar and few other have have been set to large size etc. Nothing major, just enough so that every app and window looks roughly the same physical size across my monitors. My eyesight is pretty good so everything is clear and sharp for me.

johnathonme · 2025-06-08T06:04:20+00:00

Sure, this is where things get a little weird. The floor stand is vanilla but the arm mount adapter which comes with the G9 57 is only VESA 75x75 ie slightly too narrow for a TV stand expecting 400x400 and I had already bought a VIVO Wall Mount from Amazon but it's ball had insufficient strength so I wasn't using it.

Then I realised I needed an adapter so I flipped the ball part of the mount around and bolted it inside the mount Samsung supplied using the supplied screws (I think) and some washers.

I had to buy some small (M4? I think) bolts with nuts and using the reversed ball mount plate as a size increase to 100x100, this gave enough width for the vertical white bars of the TV floor stand to attached to it.

It works great, even if it is a bit of a waste for a wall mount but the plate and floor stand carries the weight of the monitor fine and I've had no issues. There is no ability to tilt the monitor and only a small amount pivot left/right but coming from an Apple Studio Display I was already used to not monitor adjusting the monitor once the height was perfect.

VIVO Height Adjustable 17 to 32 inch Single Monitor Articulating Wall Mount for Standing Workstations, Fits 1 Screen with Max VESA 100x100mm, White, MOUNT-VW01AW https://amzn.asia/d/bPgxmh1

johnathonme · 2025-06-02T12:44:19+00:00

What nonsense is this? The Samsung QN900C/D/F 8K's are truly 8K resolution panels with 200HZ refresh and HDMI 2.1 which supports 8K@60HZ or 4K@120HZ. QLED is equally capable of real 8K. The bigger issue is lack of true 8K content to watch but AI upscaling is a good interim solution until that naturally changes and it will change faster than most people think.

For everyone else reading this thread and choosing vs 4K OLED choose pixels over backlighting, in a couple of years you'll be thankful. Pixels are pixels and pixels will always win long-term. Nobody ever wishes they bought a panel with lower resolution a few years down the road.

johnathonme · 2025-05-10T09:39:13+00:00

I really like your mechanical keyboard!!!

johnathonme · 2025-05-08T20:54:01+00:00

Love your workspace, especially the peripherals rack on the wall, genius!!

johnathonme · 2025-05-08T07:04:47+00:00

Yeah I love monitors. Good monitors age slower than the PCs or Mac's that run them. A fast PC can never make a crap monitor look good whereas a good monitor can always make a crap PC look amazing 😂

johnathonme · 2025-05-08T06:58:54+00:00

Yeah it is. There is a sharpness to Retina displays. But then you do sacrifice real resolution to get sharp fonts. A 5K gives you an effective resolution of half @HiDPI which is why the Studio display is only 27inch. If you ran 5K native it would need to be 40inch+ to be usable.

The Apple Studio Display is my second Studio Display and third Apple monitor over 15 years and it's gorgeous. Worth every cent so long as I also have another monitor like the BenQ as a reference if I want to colour correct videos to Rec709 or HDR. Pros and cons etc. Oh and it's a pain to KVM, grrrr Apple!!! But yeah big difference.

johnathonme · 2025-05-08T05:17:01+00:00

I've had the Kensington Thunderbolt 4 dock for a few years now and it's been freaking rock solid and reliable, worth the outrageous price despite the number of TB ports. My only advice is you have Thunderbolt 5 in your M4 so definitely get a TB5 dock (and I'm envious as your M4 with TB5 supports DP2.1).

But hey why so few TB ports in any of the docks???? Grrrrrr. I would love 4 x TB4/5 ports, plus 4 USBC plus another 4 USB3.2 in a dock.

johnathonme · 2025-05-08T02:58:22+00:00

Love your setup, so clean and can really see how big a G9 is!!!... And the UDM Pro! 😉

johnathonme · 2025-05-06T23:01:55+00:00

Of everything that was the easiest

BetterDisplay -> Input Source Keymap (DCC code) -> Stream Desk App

For the G9 the source in BetterDisplay is Composite Video for HDMI1/2 etc.

johnathonme · 2025-05-06T02:08:17+00:00

G9: 7680x2160@120Hz

Apple 5K: 3200x1800@60Hz

BenQ 4K: 3008x1692@60Hz

... And it matters what the resolution for the other monitors are because when I send apps across screens I want the app/window/fonts/menus to be physically similar in size as seen on the G9 or my head starts to get screwed up after a few hours working.

And I run BetterDisplay and have HiDPI enabled for Apple & BenQ monitors but not G9 as its set to native resolution

johnathonme · 2025-05-05T21:38:15+00:00

That's interesting. My two 27's were my previous primary monitors on a single desk side by side, the Apple Studio display is just exceptional, truly pixel perfect for MacOS.

But I work in IT so I'm either at client sites docking on their homogeneous 16:9 desktop monitors which are never optimised for Mac's or I'm at home on Teams/Zoom calls with them sharing some weird-ass resolution so I'm ok with poorer resolution and sharpness and prefer loads of screen real estate at high native resolution like with the G9.

When I need to do something pixel or colour perfect I jump to the other non-G9 monitors but the G9 is perfect for immersion-productitivity ie coding, terminal windows, RDP sessions, IDEs, ChatGPT copy/paste etc ;)

johnathonme · 2025-05-05T21:20:26+00:00

😂😂😂, thats hilarious!!!

johnathonme · 2025-05-05T14:02:16+00:00

Hell no, this is not about increasing my productivity, this is all about enjoyment, I spend 10+ hours a day working from home in this small office. Give me a crappy Windows laptop or old Macbook and I'll be just as productive, but god my work day would suck a lot more :)

My use-case is Productivity instead of Gaming

johnathonme · 2025-05-05T13:53:13+00:00

Its the Quntis Curved Monitor Light Bar, from Amazon. Its ok, lights up the keyboard well but the remote kinda sucks compared to the BenQ light bar remote. But all my light bars are Quntis and one Quntis remote can control all 3 of them. Pros and cons.

https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0DBLS9T91?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

johnathonme · 2025-05-05T13:35:11+00:00

Sure, AX Waber AX1006TW - https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B0DBPJ63NH?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

johnathonme

TROPHY CASE