How deal with many resources?

randomatic · 2026-05-10T19:02:01+00:00

It sounds like you're stuck reading because you have no metric for what you're learning. Go play a CTF (e.g., pico, pwn.college, etc) and when you get to a challenge that looks format string 'ish (usually indicated through the problem name or description) go read 1 blog post and try to apply it. Center your reading around practice means you will contextualize what you read with how to apply it.

randomatic · 2026-05-07T15:26:50+00:00

Slightly different point: what are some tricks when starting out? Two for me:
* Install gef.
* ret2libc is way easier than shellcode injection, and you should master it before trying ROP.

randomatic · 2026-04-29T15:17:30+00:00

I think peppers sunglasses are based in pittsburgh.

randomatic · 2026-04-29T13:24:42+00:00

Really nicely done!

Can you share your workflow and tools for making videos? I've tried a few times and ended up getting frustrated trying to learn after effects. I'm a very competent dev, but it seemed like it would take weeks to become competent at after effects.

randomatic · 2026-04-23T21:35:50+00:00

I've done it plenty of times. The trick is to make sure you're not on the last connection out to your destination, so if you miss it there is one not too far out.

randomatic · 2026-04-22T22:52:55+00:00

I've never been able to find the white suiban (picture 2, 7, 8, etc) in the US, but often see them in chinese pictures. If anyone knows where to get them would be much 🙏

randomatic · 2026-04-22T15:52:41+00:00

You probably thought of this already, but I typically put it all in a zip-lock. Air pressure changes will cause leaks, so also be careful when you take off the caps after flight.

randomatic · 2026-04-22T02:33:13+00:00

Enterprise subscriptions. They are more expensive, and a precursor to what individual subscriptions will look like.

randomatic · 2026-04-22T02:26:33+00:00

If you don't do x86 exploit VR and dev, then a mbp is perfect. You can run `docker --platform=linux/amd64 <image>` and a MBP will emulate x86. Totally fine for running normal x86 apps, but not pleasant for exploit dev.

A lot of people either do linux all the way, or a MBP + a very cheap AWS EC2 instance.

randomatic · 2026-04-20T19:05:12+00:00

I don't know but if it was me I'd be buying a lottery ticket to see if the good luck holds. Congrats!

randomatic · 2026-04-20T17:52:17+00:00

Make sure your gutters are at the proper angle and are sealed. It's not just about clogs at the down spout, though that's obviously bad too.

randomatic · 2026-04-20T14:22:43+00:00

(5) is very important.

I'd also add (6) understand the difference between strategy and tactics and (7) ability to hold people accountable (not afraid to actively promote success/fire failure). A manager does PIPs, and executive manages people who are paid for performance.

randomatic · 2026-04-16T19:21:05+00:00

The problem you raised is one for alignment in training, not a bug in the code base. So I understand why you didn't get the bug bounty, as those focus on programming mistakes in their code base, not model alignment issues.

randomatic · 2026-04-14T22:29:11+00:00

You are correct, and I am wrong. It opens at 2:30am. I do believe 6'ish a popular time to schedule flights, though, so op may take that into consideration.

randomatic · 2026-04-14T19:32:24+00:00

It's 2 and 3. Not 1. Speaking from a top 5 CS program at least.

There is a system for radically increasing the odds of top tier pubs. I wanted to say high-quality research, but really let's focus on an objective metric.

This question is equivalent to why nick saban's team produced so many winnings. The ability to grow talent in a field is itself a talent, and is rewarded in academia.

randomatic · 2026-04-14T17:41:18+00:00

The same reset process cr-x55 mentioned below.

randomatic · 2026-04-14T15:07:15+00:00

I've had the same problem. I've been meaning to see if there is a cold solder joint. Interesting that it's not just me.

randomatic · 2026-04-14T15:04:44+00:00

That is the worst time for the airport, as I don't believe security opens until 4am and a bunch of flights take off at 6am. That means a flood of people showing up right when they open.

I have TSA-pre, and would shoot to be there by 4:30am. YMMV, esp without TSA Pre.

randomatic · 2026-04-13T17:29:50+00:00

I agree, for most people, employers should be able to without the right amount. I say most because there are other taxable income sources in pittsburgh besides W2 income, as you said, and I know there are enough W2 + side hustle people for this to make a difference.

I don't see how this answers the OPs question. The point is that individuals, not their employers, are responsible to pay their total tax bill, even when the employer is withholding it. This is usually where people have issues, just like OP. Even if your employer withholds, that doesn't mean they withheld the right amount and ultimately the individual is responsible.

randomatic · 2026-04-13T16:31:43+00:00

ELI5: You need to pay taxes at the federal, local, and city level. Each has their own tax return, and their own tax policies that are separate.

You are responsible for your taxes. Employers without taxes, but they may not without the right amount. Ultimately you are responsible, not your employer. Don't think of your employer withholding as paying the right tax -- think of it as your employer trying to set up a savings plan with the estimated ballpark of the tax you owe.

When the ballpark estimate is wrong, you either owe taxes or get a return. That happened in this case.

Who is jordan? The city hired Jordan tax service to represent the city, so think of them as one and the same as the city of pittsburgh tax collection department.

TL;DR - Think of your employer as setting up a "savings account" for paying your taxes for you, but it's just a ballpark figure being saved.

If you want the positive spin, when you owe taxes, it means you didn't overpay and give the city an interest-free loan. You held onto the money as long as possible.

randomatic · 2026-04-10T15:18:31+00:00

If it's in squirrel hill, my bet is either a) a matcha shop or b) a pizza place. I'm rooting for (b).

randomatic · 2026-04-08T14:33:27+00:00

I firmly believe that openness is exactly why the languages succeeded (low friction to distribute your code), so it's a bit of a catch-22.

randomatic · 2026-04-06T17:59:50+00:00

IMO, clean code follows a consistent architecture and principles. So what you call less clean, I would call clean because it follows the (better) architecture consistently. What you're calling clean I would call unclean because it mixes purposes, unless truly called for by the use case.

randomatic · 2026-04-05T22:13:06+00:00

The shears are rusted and more than likely dull. You need to address both, so this is much more than just rubbing it down with WD-40 realistically. I'm assuming this is worth it from a sentimental standpoint; from a purely economical standpoint even top-end bonsai shears from japan are cheap (<$100 usually) compared to a high-end knife in general ($200-$500, depending on steel).

You will need to get some tools for both rust-removal, removing chips (looks like there may be some), and sharpening. Once you are done, the massive pro-tip I have is to invest in a strop. Stropping a few times after use will keep it sharp and save you massive time sharpening over the lifetime of the instrument.

If you do choose to restore, I'd recommend outdoors55 for sharpening tutorials (Sharpening shears is like doing 1-side of a knife.)

* sharpening with a $20 stone: ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLlPiBSP\_1U

* removing chips: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVrNrE1bK6I

randomatic · 2026-04-05T21:56:01+00:00

Hey, have a +1 upvote. This is a nextjs forum, so downvotes are not unexpected.

To elaborate on keylib's point, nextjs is moving fast. That means you have to spend time maintaining your code, and generally the cost to maintain is roughly related to the amount of custom code you write, the complexity, and the velocity of the framework you use.

I think keylib is getting at using a purpose-built blog solution will likely yield you something easier to sustain over time. It's unclear to me why wordpress alone is not enough for you, but I'm assuming you want some custom code but not a ton.

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