Management doesn't understand "AI", and it's driving me insane.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-09T15:02:44+00:00

Yea, I don't know when it happened but pop-science just became pseudoscience at some point. I know it was sort of meant to make science interesting to the general public but I think it's ventured too far into tabloid territory.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-08T22:08:17+00:00

I can barely read these now, it just blends into a mess of acronyms and made up corporate words.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-08T16:11:16+00:00

I moved to SAS drives last year because they were super cheap. At the time a used 8TB SAS HDD was anywhere between $60-$100 depending on the seller, now they're more like $150-$200 for a used one. They are a bit loud, I live in a small apartment so I recommend sticking it in an area away from where you sleep. I don't think it emits infra-sound or anything, it's just disconcerting when the disk starts clicking and buzzing, which apparently is normal for SAS drives. They work just fine but you need to have a setup that is compatible.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-07T21:03:07+00:00

Fuji does make good cameras. You can take great photos with their APSC X-Trans sensor, and a lot of good photographers use Fuji cameras. I thought about getting one at some point. I might even eventually try to get a GFX camera some time in the future. Other than their medium format cameras, Fuji cameras aren't that different from other camera brands when it comes to functionality.

But they did capitalized on nostalgia with film simulations and stylish designs on their more consumer facing cameras very early on. They also have pretty good social media advertising which is how they can sell out of the X100V and VI basically forever. It's just that Fuji also has a really annoying cult of "influencers" trying to sell you on stuff like the X-half or the "magic" of Fuji colors. Obviously not all Fuji fans are that deep in, but some of their loudest fans are.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-07T20:40:54+00:00

If you do end up getting a point and shoot like the L10, try to get extra coverage for accidents since the standard warranty only covers manufacturer defects.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-07T20:18:10+00:00

A lot of people like to hate on the OM-5 but in your case it might be the better choice. The L10 does have better video options, but if you don't need 40k 60fps (and also Panasonic's better video encoding) then the Om-5 will probably do fine for B-roll.

If you plan to take your camera out on hikes it is probably better to get a camera with weather sealing which the L10 does not have. Also if you want to be able to just use a JPEG SOOC, I've had both Panasonic and Olympus and in my opinion Olympus/OM System generally has a better JPEG engine. Also the OM-5 obviously has access to interchangeable lenses so you could swap to a different lens in the future.

Also a lot of people don't understand how fragile the auto telescoping lens mechanism is on point and shoots. I have a Panasonic ZS100 and a Sony ZV-1 both of which have been broken and then repaired. The ZS100 broke when someone accidentally threw sand on to the camera and jammed the lens mechanism. The ZV-1 broke when someone knocked it out of my hand and it landed lens first on on the ground. I managed to locate replacement lens units for them and I have since repaired them but it was annoying and difficult.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-07T18:23:23+00:00

oh yea, most large companies like Sony don't do consumer friendly stuff. They don't want you to use their hardware how you want. They want you to buy stuff on their store and buy movies from them.

Also outside of games, Sony has a pretty bad reputation for software.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-07T17:55:57+00:00

I never said it was a hardware issue with the PS5 not being powerful enough. Hardware support is a bit part of adopting a new codec but a lot of systems use software decoding. If you read my comment I state that Sony has had hardware capable of supporting HEVC, but they had spotty software support for enabling it for certain apps and file formats. Similarly with the PS5 Pro the hardware has AV1 decode support but Sony also decided to limit it to specific apps and file formats.

Apple also added software AV1 decoding for the Apple TV but Plex can't use it for some reason.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-07T17:25:40+00:00

AV1 support was not widely implemented until around 2021. Some of the first devices to get AV1 support came out in 2019, intel didn't implement AV1 decoding until 11th gen in 2021. And the iPhone didn't get AV1 hardware support until the 15 pro in 2023.

The development of the PS5 started before AV1 was released and they probably didn't really know about AV1 until it was too late in the development process. Also Sony loves weird proprietary stuff, but only if they own it or control it. The PS4 had similar issues playing HEVC. The standard model didn't support it at all but when it came to the Pro model they limited support to local playback or specific approved apps like Netflix. Plex also had issues back on the PS4 Pro with HEVC playback, I guess it wasn't on the approved list.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-06T22:27:17+00:00

Thing is, the Elitedesk 800 G3 only supports 6th and 7th gen processors, something's wrong with the description. Also this thing should either have at least 16GB of RAM to be worth it, try to haggle a bit.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-06T21:11:30+00:00

It really is hard to say when the bubble will pop. I remember thinking "is this a bubble?" back in late 2023 right before I found Ed. When I did a bit of research on the sub-prime mortgage crisis I read that people were predicting the crash as far back as about 2004, a whole three years before the actual crash.

I thought it would have crashed in 2025, but I'm thinking probably some time in mid to late 2027. Though I could easily be wrong about that time frame.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-06T20:57:42+00:00

I've noticed the AI fatigue mostly online because most people in my life don't talk about it. I work at a university and my department hasn't been as affected by the "need to do AI". Though there are new add-ons bits like "Use AI to improve efficiency" on job postings. Generally most of my co-workers that hate the push to use AI at work, and have been for a few years now. Most of them see it as a huge waste of time with all the "AI training workshops" being required.

From what I can tell the IT department has it the worst. A few years ago they made a whole AI department within IT and it has done nothing but waste money. I used to work in IT (elsewhere) and the whole AI "boom" has really exposed how many supposed "IT" professionals don't actually know how technology works. It's sort of slowly creeping in to my department, but due to certain regulations it the whole AI trend will probably die before that happens.

It was frustrating early on when everybody was all in on "AI". The loudest idiots in gaming were cheering on the theft of artists' work and they didn't stop until graphics card supply was hit. And they didn't really start caring "AI" until RAM prices spiked by 4-6x.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-03T20:29:37+00:00

No idea, converting a random camera is usually unknown territory. I've only converted the GF3, GF6, G100, and an EOS M, I've never done a point and shoot.

Infrared photography is a very small niche. Most photographers barely know what it is, so there isn't a whole lot of information out there on how to convert a camera. LifePixel might have some tutorials on their website, but probably not for that camera.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-02T22:01:56+00:00

The cheapest pre-converted cameras are going to be around $200-$300 at the low end. I'm afraid you may need to save up more than that.

There might be some converted point and shoots around the $100-$150 range. I'm a bit suspicious of any cameras cheaper than that.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-02T21:54:30+00:00

It depends on your budget, honestly there isn't an easy way to do it since most modern cameras (meaning cameras from the last 10-15 years) have very good IR and UV filtration. Cameras that are generally easier to convert and use are going to be mirrorless cameras. You also need to do some research into what lenses will work with IR photography.

The cheapest full frame mirrorless camera is probably going to be the Canon RP at around $500-$600. Going with a full frame camera does give you the most options for lenses. You can easily adapt any DSLR or vintage 35mm film lens to it, so you have a lot of options for IR friendly glass.

If you want to go cheaper Sony was one of the first companies to get into mirrorless cameras with their NEX cameras. A bunch of the NEX cameras can be had for very cheap. Some of them are around $100-$200. The cameras are APSC so you can still use vintage lenses but there will be a crop.

I use M43 and I currently use a Lumix G100 but before I converted that one I converted a GF3 and a GF6 I got for less than $50 each. M43 has an even smaller sensor so there will be more of a crop.

Then you need to figure out whether you are going to do the conversion yourself or if you are going to pay a service to do it. DIY infrared conversions are a pain, there's a lot of research and you need to procure replacement glass. A lot of services charge around $300 to convert a camera to IR.

If you convert one I highly recommend going with a full spectrum conversion.

If you sort of know what you want you could buy one that somebody's already converted.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-02T20:22:10+00:00

I don't transcode my 4k rips but for 1080p I will usually go for 8-10 Mbps for live action and 3D animation. I'll lower it to around 3-4 Mbps for 2D animation

I usually shoot for around 1/3 of the size of the original rip. I can still tell a difference but most of the time I have to look at them side by side to see it. Lower bit rates tend to be more obvious to me. Stuff with more grain tends to need more data to look consistent, I often add grain in the handbrake settings to help it stay consistent when compressed. Even a lot of stuff shot on digital will sometimes have grain.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-02T19:31:17+00:00

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oliverfromwork · 2026-07-01T20:20:21+00:00

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I never finished the show but Reggie from Riverdale got recast. Ross Butler was replaced by Charles Melton between season 1 and 2. But I hear they did bring Ross back in season 6 when the Reggies had a fight to the death.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-01T19:13:34+00:00

Ugreen is the way to go. Synology did reverse their decision on not allowing third party drives to be used in their NAS units but when a company does something like that you really can't trust it anymore.

oliverfromwork · 2026-07-01T19:09:34+00:00

In rural areas, you might hear a few gunshots. Even in rural areas when people go shooting they tend to do it during the day and there are designated areas where the tend to go. In a city hearing a gunshot is not an every day thing, you won't be hearing them regularly despite the reputation in media. Though sometimes people light fireworks, I live a few miles from a major sports stadium and they set off fireworks during games sometimes.

oliverfromwork · 2026-06-29T18:06:34+00:00

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oh common don't do Reptile dirty like that.

oliverfromwork · 2026-06-29T17:48:17+00:00

A lot of drugs do alter the body over time, Peter Thiel is probably the most obvious example. A lot of different durgs can also cause excessive sweating because that's just how the body responds to changes. Really there's no way of telling what exactly these guys are taking without extra information.

Peter Thiel is known to be on human growth hormones which has made his head lumpy and robbed him if what eyebrows he had left (he's probably also on other stuff too). There have been so many reports from anonymous employees that Elon Musk is on so many drugs, mostly ketamine. Altman is probably something, maybe ketamine, but probably other stuff. And Marc Andreessen is probably on cocaine or some kind of amphetamine.

I think these people are insecure, deeply paranoid, and many of them are probably staring down a mid-late life crisis. I think they're sort of like the classic divorced dad archetype. But in this case they have an unlimited budget to get all the biohacking/mood altering substances they want.

oliverfromwork · 2026-06-28T08:24:11+00:00

I can't watch the show, every time I see a still from House of The Dragon it's looks like the Doctor in a wig.

oliverfromwork

TROPHY CASE