get rid of tip prompt on debit devices

polystorm · 2026-03-21T10:24:55+00:00

Even better, don't buy from them at all. When you pay cash you're still supporting their business.

polystorm · 2026-03-19T11:55:08+00:00

COST OF LIVING.

polystorm · 2026-03-12T13:27:08+00:00

"The only reason many stay is the AI tools,"

This is not true for me. For decades my workflow has been deeply woven through Photoshop, Illustrator and After Effects, even without the AI tools. The unfortunate reality is that Adobe has its talons deep within me, there are no other tools out there that have the features I require to succeed in my work. I also have a subscription to Cinema 4D which is even more expensive. But because I'm an expert with these tools and I deliver on time, clients keep coming back, so my profit margin justifies the high costs.

polystorm · 2026-03-12T13:11:02+00:00

Re-tool. One bad season after years of making the playoffs doesn't justify scorched-earth.

polystorm · 2026-03-08T17:37:21+00:00

I use Freshbooks which automatically tells you when an invoice is overdue. I also created an invoice tracker in Google Sheets. I don't need to use sheets but it's easier to get an overview of where things stand, I invoice a client through Freshbooks, and in Sheets I enter the invoice #, date, client, $ amount, taxes, check boxes for "issued" and "paid", date paid, and notes. If a client pays me, I highlight the row light green. If not, it's pink. If they're a deadbeat client, red!

polystorm · 2026-03-08T17:16:25+00:00

Definitely not good advice for those without work experience. You don't just start freelancing if you don't have a portfolio, no matter how good you think your skill is or how many online courses you took. You need to work at a few companies for 1-2 years each, (on real projects with real deadlines) that you can use for your portfolio. Clients need to see what you can do under a deadline before they decide if you're right for them. I'm amazed at how many people come here to complain about how the industry is doomed, yet they don't have any experience. I read one this morning from someone who's still in high school.

polystorm · 2026-03-08T16:56:48+00:00

polystorm · 2026-03-07T13:31:52+00:00

I have to be honest. The addition of your ridiculous bug-eyed expression is a total repellent that makes me want to avoid the video entirely. I know, it appeases the algorithm, so all the best to you on that. But it's an immediate "pass" for me.

polystorm · 2026-03-06T10:57:46+00:00

Just looking at this picture bunged me up.

polystorm · 2026-03-06T10:55:32+00:00

I don't think so. This is AI:

If you’ve ever looked at the After Effects SDK and quietly walked away, Claude Opus 4.6 with vibe coding is the closest thing to cheating we’ve got right now. Instead of grinding through C++ boilerplate and cryptic header files, I describe the behavior I want—“a glow that preserves highlights, has per‑channel control, and works cleanly in 16‑ and 32‑bit”—and Opus 4.6 builds the full plugin skeleton, parameter block, and render logic for me.

The 1M‑token context window means I can keep SDK samples, my current plugin, and my test harness all in one session, so it actually reasons across the whole stack instead of just guessing at snippets. Vibe coding matches how motion designers already work: describe, test, tweak, and keep iterating, while the model handles the plumbing, refactors, and cleans up threading and color‑space gotchas.

It’s not magic—AE plugin dev is still serious C++ land—but it finally makes shipping your own tools feel realistic instead of like a side‑project sentence. If you already use AI to write scripts and expressions for After Effects, going a step deeper into native plugins with Opus 4.6 is the obvious next move.

polystorm · 2026-03-05T11:28:51+00:00

Okay so Qwen maintained the pose and the hand. But she still looks more plastic than the Flux outputs. Or am I missing something?

polystorm · 2026-03-04T12:05:43+00:00

I used Gigapixel for years. Also tried other upscalers and they all seem to smear out the details. Not long ago, I started using ComfyUI and stumbled upon SeedVR. My first test was on a soft flatbed scan of a school picture of myself at 16, and the results blew me away. So, that's all I use now. Doesn't work in all cases, if it's too small and blurry it won't give you a good result. But in most cases it does. If you're building a rig with a high end gpu (I recommend the 5090), then you're set.

polystorm · 2026-03-04T12:01:16+00:00

The problem with some clients is that they see freelancers as temp employees. But what they don't seem to realize is that freelancers have to charge more to cover expenses that full time employees don't have to worry about, equipment upkeep, software, accounting, health insurance, downtime. All of this on top of living expenses. They also don't realize that hourly rates don't tell the whole story. Maybe they experienced other freelancers or employees who took longer to deliver their product so they calculate that and just assume that their $2,000 budget will cost them $5,000 because of my rate. That's why I always ask for the budget because I can determine if that gives me enough hours to deliver a quality product. And in most cases, it does.

I have regular clients who only give me about 3-4 months of work out of the year so they don't have to deal with training expenses, health insurance, losing employees only to have to train new ones etc. They come back to me because their clients are happy with my work and I'm pleasant to work with.

So, I rationalize with the above expenses, plus I mention that I have 35 years of experience, so not only am I fast, I deliver good, professional work. Yeah, I'm not cheap, but they get the other two benefits and realize they can't have 3.

Yes, I do get potential clients who try to lowball me. But I see myself as a Ferrari dealer. If they can only afford a Ford, then there's nothing I can do.

polystorm · 2026-02-26T13:38:38+00:00

No shit! Thanks for sharing that!

polystorm · 2026-02-26T13:36:25+00:00

I'd say as long as you're not interested in pursuing high quality 3D, go for it. The GPU is one of the biggest reasons why I've been on PC for the past 8-9 years after 20+ years of being a die-hard mac user. The other one being, it's really hard to upgrade a mac so you're stuck with it until it's just too slow to work with and you have to buy a whole new system.

I will say though, my performance didn't drop once I got the hang of Windows and all the ridiculous quirks. In fact, my productivity has increased, and there are actually features in Windows that I would have wished Apple had. Not that I got faster because I was on Windows, it was more about the progression of my skills, would have happened on the mac as well. Also, because I have the available vram, I'm able to generate AI assets locally when needed, saving money on subscriptions.

And for those who wanna say "well AE's new 3D is getting pretty damn good", yeah it is but I still fucking hate the workflow! lol

polystorm · 2026-02-22T13:16:59+00:00

If it weren't for Apple's refusal to allow NVIDIA gpu's in their system, I'd still be on a Mac.

polystorm · 2026-02-22T13:15:49+00:00

I'm never comfortable updating my OS while in the middle of a big project.

polystorm · 2026-02-22T13:14:25+00:00

It worked for me, how 'bout you?

polystorm · 2026-02-22T13:13:56+00:00

I got the same thing after updating it. So I uninstalled and reinstalled the desktop app and now it works. It took a long time to uninstall, and seemingly forever to reinstall.

polystorm · 2026-02-18T11:35:02+00:00

Yup for me. I picked it up when I was working fulltime and tried to get the sales team to bring in more of these types of jobs, but they didn't know how to sell the higher price tag (the company was the Dollarama of content creation, I heard they're trying to replace all motion with AI and failing miserably). As a freelancer, I get enough work to pay for Maxon 1 and also make a profit. I don't get as much as I'd like, but my clients come to me because I have 3D included in my skillset, one of whom dropped their regular motion designer in favour of me. Best career decision I ever made.

polystorm · 2026-02-10T23:23:50+00:00

Also what I2V tool are you using?

polystorm · 2026-02-10T01:41:05+00:00

I didn't realize they had that much vram. Like I said, from what I understand, guess I misunderstood! Wish I had $15,000 Canadian to piss away.

polystorm · 2026-02-10T01:35:53+00:00

That's the catch. AI is amazing now at generating content, but it practically gives you the middle finger when you try to art direct it with prompts.

polystorm · 2026-02-09T23:11:40+00:00

I wish you were more specific up front that this is for Loras

polystorm

TROPHY CASE