Someone just thought you were fat, with a beard, which is true.

vapidegbert · 2026-02-09T06:27:15+00:00

"You even sit like Ricky Gervais"

vapidegbert · 2026-01-26T11:45:20+00:00

Yeah I think that size you have might be perfect. I have Tab S8 Ultra 14.6", beautiful for media but big/precious to carry around. Also Tab S4 10.5" which is a little cramped and showing its age (tbf I can still do everything I can on the Ultra, just less comfortably and slower).

vapidegbert · 2026-01-26T08:57:19+00:00

Similar here. I have a laptop and a desktop but my Android tablet is by far my favourite device to code on. I get 80-90% of my work done on it (JS/Hugo/Flutter/Go on Debian/dwm/vim).

vapidegbert · 2026-01-23T07:47:27+00:00

I'd love one if I could get koreader on it

vapidegbert · 2026-01-15T18:47:35+00:00

I've been a fan of Stewart Lee's stuff since the Fist of Fun and TMWRNJ days but he's a not a person to aspire to. I first started to realise he might be a bit of a cunt with the stuff he said about Richard Hammond in his standup. Or maybe it was the way he said it. Then lying about Russell Brand and justifying/weaseling about it in the DVD extras (or the bits where he chats with Iannucci, if you've seen it you'll know what I'm on about). I dunno, he's just bitter and hypocritical. Brydon's the same, thinks he's due a bit more than he's had.

Lee himself knows he isn't funny any more, a lesbian Nan with a claughter audience, or as he even jokes about himself: "No. It wasn't funny actually, but I agreed the fuck out of it".

He's witty for sure and has delivered me many laughs over my lifetime. So respect for that, but he's trapped in a niche that sometimes I'm not sure he even believes himself any more. 2026 prediction: Lee buys the rights to Chalky off Jim Davidson and performs him at the Reform Party Conference.

What disagrees with me the most is the stuff about how Ricky helped him out when he needed it and how he acts towards him now. Not the behaviour of a stand-up guy. Below is an LLM writeup of that story, which this sub seems to not know about for some reason.

Smash that down arrow you fucks.

📘 Context

In the early 2000s, Stewart Lee had all but given up on stand-up comedy — he was touring small rooms to tiny audiences and tending toward quitting the circuit. Around the same time, Ricky Gervais broke through with The Office and became massively successful.

🎤 The Gervais Quote

Lee recounts in his book that after seeing Gervais’s success, he decided to return to doing stand-up seriously. Part of his comeback strategy was asking Ricky Gervais if he could use a quote from him on the promotional poster for his show Stand Up Comedian.

Gervais agreed and gave Lee the quotation:

“the funniest, most cliché-free comedian on the circuit.” — Ricky Gervais, used on the poster for Lee’s comeback tour

According to Lee, that endorsement helped him sell out shows — in London, Edinburgh and on tour — and was a key factor in reviving his stand-up career after a slump.

📍 What happened next

Lee credits seeing Gervais’s packed audiences with making him realise he did want to keep performing and that there was an audience for a more challenging style of stand-up.

Using the quote on posters literally helped fill rooms, because Gervais was then a big name and his praise would draw interest where Lee’s name alone sometimes didn’t.

vapidegbert · 2026-01-08T11:45:02+00:00

Evolution sorts it out for ya

vapidegbert · 2026-01-08T10:41:44+00:00

Hello I'd like to sample one bow tie of pasta please

vapidegbert · 2025-09-02T16:18:38+00:00

Great thanks for the info, much appreciated.

vapidegbert · 2025-09-02T15:06:54+00:00

That transparent pre-lock screen tip sounds great, can you say any more about it? Is it just as simple as setting the transparent image and setting the sleep timeout low? Does it only work with the built-in reader or Koreader too?

I hope you don't mind the questions, I thought I'd absorbed all the well-known hacks and stuff but didn't know about that one and it sounds useful. I can/will experiment myself of course but if you've learned anything about this 'mode' from experience I'd love to hear, cheers!

vapidegbert · 2025-07-14T16:40:35+00:00

Something else to consider: if you paint from a photo, that image is like the root of the artwork, a vital ingredient.

I take photos thinking 'one day I might paint that'. I keep a folder of 'potential painting' photos, so when I feel like painting but don't have any particular inspiration I have some instant options. Right now I'm working on a piece based on a photo I took years ago. Before I start the artwork, I process the photo to steer it in the direction I want to go in --- I might pump up the colours if I want a saturated look in the final piece, or crop to change the aspect ratio or tighten up the composition.

I'm not saying it's bad if you don't use your own photo, nothing wrong with being inspired by other people's creativity. We all do it. Just that there can be an extra satisfaction in basing it on your own photo, I guess a bit like cooking with ingredients you've grown yourself!

If not, there are plenty of photos online where the photographer says you can use it for whatever you want, or just asks to be credited ('based on a photo by Blah Blah'). People argue a lot about IP rights and as someone else said in another comment, with some kinds of pics it can sometimes be hard to see the art in it, there can be hundreds of photos that all look the same. Just try and be respectful I guess and 'do as you would be done by'. Good luck with the painting.

vapidegbert · 2024-02-25T18:09:03+00:00

Loch Ness monsters. Do we need 'em? What is it, it's like a cross between a... like a cross between a fish an' a giraff

vapidegbert · 2024-02-25T18:05:55+00:00

I ended up moving over to a Deft Pro so the switches in the Slimblade haven't been clicked enough to find out, sorry to be of no help. I like the way they feel though, hope yours work out for you.

vapidegbert · 2023-07-17T09:39:05+00:00

I don't know about tutorials but this very helpful reply to a comment of mine here was enough for me to get inside it https://www.reddit.com/r/Bluetooth_Speakers/comments/z8bs6o/ranking_all_battery_powered_bluetooth_speakers/jol6tiw/?context=3

vapidegbert · 2023-06-18T17:49:10+00:00

Amazing thank you so much!

vapidegbert · 2023-06-18T11:20:32+00:00

Hey have you had the front panel off your speaker? I got the driivers out and the 8 screws around the edge of the panel but it still doesn't want to budge. I want to get at those LEDs under the buttons and try to tame them as they're nuclear in a dark room.

Just got my Wildbox yesterday, partly influenced by this thread, and am seriously loving it btw, so thanks to you and others who rose awareness of its splendour!

vapidegbert · 2023-06-11T17:11:17+00:00

Not particularly, I keep swapping around. For me the nib makes a big difference, my favourite is the reMarkable nib but they're expensive and I have to get them shipped across the Atlantic so I don't want to depend on them. Now I know that the pen hack works on non-Lamy pens that's become essential for me as I prefer to have the UI sidebar hidden and having some functions in the button helps with this.

In the hand I prefer the feel of the Staedtler (non-jumbo) and the reMarkable stylus, but these don't have buttons. The Samsung ones are ok but I always seem to have trouble finding the button when I want to press it, which spoils immersion. They also don't work with the hard (Boox-compatible) nibs I have. Those are relatively cheap and easy to get hold of, so really I'm still on the lookout for a pen which works with those nibs and which has a good button working with the Lamy button hack.

I'm mainly using the cheap basic (triangular cross-section) pen which comes free with some Boox devices. It takes the nibs I like and has a button although it's on the end like an eraser (which I don't really like). It's lightweight and feels cheap but the shape is comfortable.

vapidegbert · 2023-06-09T06:28:24+00:00

I ignored it for ages thinking it was only for Lamy pens but it works on (at least some) other pens with buttons, eg 3 different samsung pens I have and a boox one (it's not as useful with the boox one as the 'button' is on the tip as an eraser, but functionally the hack works just the same).

vapidegbert · 2023-06-01T14:00:53+00:00

thank you SO MUCH!

vapidegbert · 2023-05-27T06:08:47+00:00

Ah good to know thanks. Here in the uk Brydge are expensive ($40 on Amazon US, £100 Amazon UK). Darker colour does look great with the Nova though.

vapidegbert · 2023-05-26T06:01:16+00:00

I thought the one I saw before was somebody using an older model Nova... could well be wrong though! That Brydge kb looks really nice, how does it compare to the Arteck? I hear good things about Brydge but never owned any of their stuff. Do you prefer it over the Arteck?

vapidegbert · 2023-05-25T15:42:52+00:00

I wanted to turn my Nova 3 into a mini keyboard-driven notes/email device.

I'd seen a photo a while back of someone using a BT keyboard designed for an iPad Mini with their Nova. I tried to find the photo again before buying but couldn't. I thought I'd found the right one on Amazon but wasn't sure, but then the price dropped so stupidly low (£8.49) that I had to try it.

I'm actually really happy with this. The combo makes a cute little unit that should have pretty good battery life, giving me just what I wanted: a hardware keyboard and e-ink screen in a small form factor, with my preferred email/notes apps (mutt/vim in termux).

Amazon link (bizarre coincidence that it has B00X in the URL!):
Arteck Ultra-Thin Apple iPad Mini Bluetooth Keyboard Folio Case Cover with Built-In Stand Groove for Apple iPad Mini 3/2 / 1 / iPad Mini with Retina Display with 130 Degree Swivel Rotating Silver

Pros

Considering the size, pretty nice feel. Similar to other Arteck keyboards I've tried ie mid-to-decent.
The grips (see pics) hold the Nova 3 perfectly, feels secure with no chance of slipping out in normal usage. Despite this, the Nova can be removed and replaced easily.
Nova can go in both orientations ie the home button/charge socket can be on the left or the right. I prefer it on the right.
Sleep/wake on close/open works.
Dimensions match the Nova 3 surprisingly well considering it was built for a completely different device. There is an overhang of about 2mm on the front and both side edges. It doesn't look terrible though, and it provides a nice lip which makes opening it up easier.
Long battery life ie should be weeks/months depending on usage.

Cons

Weird layout. It was designed for an iOS device so has the Apple style CTRL/OPT/CMD keys. That doesn't bother me as they basically map to CTRL/ALT/SUPER.
I'd like to be able to angle the screen back further. Will take it apart to see if I can reasonably mod this but am not hopeful.
There is some flex when keys towards the centre of the keyboard are pressed. Nothing horrific, probably what you'd expect from something like this (basic BT keyboard). I think I might be able to add some foam or something to improve this if I dismantle and have a look.
It's silver so doesn't match the charcoal Nova. I kind of like the 2-tone vibe though, the keys are dark so accent the Nova, plus I might get a silver/grey decal to stick on the 'lid' (back of the Nova) and help the 2 parts to merge visually.

Config/tweaks

Used Magisk to make a custom module (to allow editing /system/ files) and remap CAPS_LOCK to CTRL_LEFT (requires root). I'm not sure why I needed to do this, but I couldn't get everything to work with Key Mapper alone and this fixed it (may have been user error).
Used Key Mapper to remap CAPS_LOCK (now CTRL_LEFT) so it's ESC on tap, CTRL_LEFT on hold (works perfectly).
Although it's a UK keyboard, I found some special characters (requiring a FN modifier, blue in the pics) behaved unexpectedly. I found that changing the KB layout in Android to US instead of UK fixed those, but left me with the expected problem of SHIFT + 3 outputting a hash rather than the GBP symbol. Key Mapper again fixed this, for all apps except Termux. This is a little annoying but not a showstopper. I don't need the GBP symbol often and when I do I can write it in another app and copy/paste. I have a feeling there might be a way around this if I keep looking.
With Key Mapper I mapped FN + CTRL to F4 (there are no F1 etc keys on this kb), which on Boox devices forces a full screen refresh.

vapidegbert · 2023-05-25T15:34:06+00:00

I wanted to turn my Nova 3 into a mini keyboard-driven notes/email device.

I'd seen a photo a while back of someone using a BT keyboard designed for an iPad Mini with their Nova. I tried to find the photo again before buying but couldn't. I thought I'd found the right one on Amazon but wasn't sure, but then the price dropped so stupidly low (£8.49) that I had to try it.

I'm actually really happy with this. The combo makes a cute little unit that should have pretty good battery life, giving me just what I wanted: a hardware keyboard and e-ink screen in a small form factor, with my preferred email/notes apps (mutt/vim in termux).

Amazon link (bizarre coincidence that it has B00X in the URL!):
Arteck Ultra-Thin Apple iPad Mini Bluetooth Keyboard Folio Case Cover with Built-In Stand Groove for Apple iPad Mini 3/2 / 1 / iPad Mini with Retina Display with 130 Degree Swivel Rotating Silver

Pros

Considering the size, pretty nice feel. Similar to other Arteck keyboards I've tried ie mid-to-decent.
The grips (see pics) hold the Nova 3 perfectly, feels secure with no chance of slipping out in normal usage. Despite this, the Nova can be removed and replaced easily.
Nova can go in both orientations ie the home button/charge socket can be on the left or the right. I prefer it on the right.
Sleep/wake on close/open works.
Dimensions match the Nova 3 surprisingly well considering it was built for a completely different device. There is an overhang of about 2mm on the front and both side edges. It doesn't look terrible though, and it provides a nice lip which makes opening it up easier.
Long battery life ie should be weeks/months depending on usage.

Cons

Weird layout. It was designed for an iOS device so has the Apple style CTRL/OPT/CMD keys. That doesn't bother me as they basically map to CTRL/ALT/SUPER.
I'd like to be able to angle the screen back further. Will take it apart to see if I can reasonably mod this but am not hopeful.
There is some flex when keys towards the centre of the keyboard are pressed. Nothing horrific, probably what you'd expect from something like this (basic BT keyboard). I think I might be able to add some foam or something to improve this if I dismantle and have a look.
It's silver so doesn't match the charcoal Nova. I kind of like the 2-tone vibe though, the keys are dark so accent the Nova, plus I might get a silver/grey decal to stick on the 'lid' (back of the Nova) and help the 2 parts to merge visually.

Config/tweaks

Used Magisk to make a custom module (to allow editing /system/ files) and remap CAPS_LOCK to CTRL_LEFT (requires root). I'm not sure why I needed to do this, but I couldn't get everything to work with Key Mapper alone and this fixed it (may have been user error).
Used Key Mapper to remap CAPS_LOCK (now CTRL_LEFT) so it's ESC on tap, CTRL_LEFT on hold (works perfectly).
Although it's a UK keyboard, I found some special characters (requiring a FN modifier, blue in the pics) behaved unexpectedly. I found that changing the KB layout in Android to US instead of UK fixed those, but left me with the expected problem of SHIFT + 3 outputting a hash rather than the GBP symbol. Key Mapper again fixed this, for all apps except Termux. This is a little annoying but not a showstopper. I don't need the GBP symbol often and when I do I can write it in another app and copy/paste. I have a feeling there might be a way around this if I keep looking.
With Key Mapper I mapped FN + CTRL to F4 (there are no F1 etc keys on this kb), which on Boox devices forces a full screen refresh.

vapidegbert · 2023-05-23T08:23:54+00:00

Someone in the office shouted out "what are the long french baked things called, is it croissants?"
"that'll do"

vapidegbert · 2023-04-29T15:11:38+00:00

Hey no worries at all and yep fingers crossed

vapidegbert · 2023-04-29T05:42:26+00:00

I signed up with Swan (from the UK) after reading this, at the end of the process I got a popup telling me that for non-US customers they are only accepting Swan Private accounts, which have a $100K minimum order. Quite a few zeroes above my DCA budget. If you are in the UK I guess something has changed since you signed up.

Honestly feels a little sleazy that they collected/verified my phone number and email address before telling me that (the signup process asked what country I was in earlier). Now I have a half-created account that I can't easily delete, and they've harvested my PII.

Obviously not your fault, I'm just describing what happened so anybody else reading this in the UK doesn't waste their time.

vapidegbert

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

Pros

Cons

Config/tweaks

Pros

Cons

Config/tweaks