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osakanone · 5 months ago

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The steel battalion controller could fix me. Some company needs to make specialty mech controllers so i dont have to spend £350 on 2003 hardware (so i can spend £350 on 2025 hardware).

Mech game Controllers: Solving the unsolvable

I have put so much time into thinking about this and you've basically asked the perfect question.

I think there are really complex and important questions that nobody really has a good robust answer to but also that nobody is really asking those big questions in the first place either, so we're stuck on this issue.

My take is I genuinely think if we want big mecha controllers we have to think about this stuff deeply and profoundly. Like, why we need them and what they're for.

So… This has been tried many times.

NOK or NextOfKin Creatives did try this.

The Mek-Fu lopped horribly, and I was absoloutely fascinated by this at the time and wanted to understand exactly why it had failed. I think we must learn from this failure, so we don't make the same mistakes again.

The lesson I took from Mek-Fu was this: it didn't take because players had nothing to use it in where it was the best fit.

What does this mean?

1) For other games in the real world, it was inferior to keyboard and mouse in games which do not simulate a vehicle. 2) The design wasn't trying to meet some sort of pre-existing need from other games. 3) Steel Battalion emulation did not exist meaningfully yet, and in turn no equivalent game existed on the PC platform which would need it.

Therefor: There was no special environment where its employment made the best sense.

It had nowhere to excel and thrive.

So where have specialty controllers existed, and thrived?

Digital Combat Sim (DCS)

Star Citizen

Euro Truck Simulator

Farming Simulator

What do they all have in common?

They all have robust modding tools for user-created content

They all have some form of social experience or multiplayer

They all are highly accessible (PC, and are controller agnostic*)

They are all sandboxes in some capacity and let users find their own fun.

No mech game which exists at time of writing meets all these terms that I know of.

So what do these controllers look like?

In the case of real vehicles, you can simply ape the real vehicle 1:1, but for fictional vehicles, something special happens -- you see people approach and try to solve the problem in many different ways.

You see, control design in any area exists to solve a problem. The Mek Fu (a response to the VT controller) was a solution looking for a problem, and no problem existed.

From this, we learn that for specialty mech controllers to exist, you first need specialty mech games. Steel Battallion is limited, because it won't run on general hardware and doesn't network or mod easily so it isn't a good fit for this because it makes the game inaccessible and limited.

Let's actually think about the SB controller for a bit:

Steel Battalion approaches its problem from the standpoint of a robot. You might not realize this but a VT or Vertical Tank intentionally controls very similarly to a tractor.

It is influenced by a real thing. I know that sounds absurd, but let me show you what a modern tractor's task control console looks like:

Yeah, not what any of us would have expected.

If you wanna be a mech pilot in 2025, go drive a tractor. I'm not kidding.

Once you're on the field, your hands aren't on the wheel, they're on this thing:

The big stick controls the course in the computer, the little one controls your tool, the many buttons toggle states (or what the little stick is currently triggering) and through these inputs you drive the tractor.

Steel Battalion is very fun, but it won't hold your attention for more than around 100 hours unless you're a real freak about tractors and just don't know it yet.

What's more, Steel Batallion isn't playable to anybody without the controller which limits how many people will be playing it and it isn't social or moddable like the successful games we talked about earlier.

Okay, so what can we do about this?

I think the one feature here that nobody talks about is that of input-agnosticism: The ability to bind your own inputs to something in the game (directly or indirectly through some middle thing) and get good results… But not in some hugely "okay bind 100 things using our controller, or use a keyboard and mouse" binary.

The binary is still not input-agnosticism, and it still will not work.

It has to be granular.

Input agnosticism results in controller agnosticism:

You can bind as much or as little as you want, and you can pass features you don't want to bind directly to a helper subsystem middle-man like an assistant or instructor which will perform limited tasks for you - while you provide the helpers context by telling them which of a limited set of goals you want to achieve.

Say, face a target, or a direction, or aim at a thing. It saves you mental time, though if you did it manually you might get better results (incentivising you towards experimenting in that direction).

Let's touch on why controller agnostic design is really what's needed here, and why its important:

This is the omnithrottle, and and this is the Sublight Dynamics 6dof joystick.

The Omnithrottle tries to solve 6dof throttle management by adding an extra piece to a joystick at the bottom, turning the yaw z-axis-twist of the stick into a sort of vertical axis for direct up and down movement, ascending and descending.

The Sublight Dynamics 6dof joystick combines all six axis into a single device, and is an interesting experiment. I particularly like the puck switches ahead of the user's fingers, inspired likely by Evangelion which in turn was inspired by Sol Bianca's use of them.

We got great lessons in human factors for space dogfighting from both:

The omnithrottle produces huge fatigue if you use it in coupled mode (software assisted flight), because you have to hold the joystick base forward, fighting the springs. This is fine in decoupled mode (where you coast under newtonian force) but not everybody uses it. Likewise, if you remove that spring, you lose fine movement because you can no longer feel where the middle is anymore.

The SD6DOF creates a conflict in Fitt's law (speed and precision are enemies of each-other, and to get both you need a tool in the middle to help you) where some precision is lost due to the same muscles needing to drive more axis at once.

These are both many years old now, and over time we've seen many many solutions to this problem flop.

Well, VKB announced the Space Throttle Grip a few days ago, which rethinks the distribution of axis and combines the best features of both.

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The key thing is, this is an evolutionary space with competing ideas. A healthy ecosystem.

And its only possible because the game's inputs are controller agnostic.

This doesn't just mean that it'll let you bind any input device directly to things, but that there are multiple ways to achieve your desired outcomes even on the software side with the helper middleman we talked about (in this case, coupling modes).

Does your machine turn to face an arbitrary vector which is the thing you actually steer or select (Warthunder)? Do you have direct input control? Do you haven an autopilot?

Here's a lecture by F22 Raptor test-pilot Randy Gordon talking about some of this stuff, giving you a frame of reference with a real vehicle which exists.

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When you can pick between those goals them, you have what's called "a software" in human factors. Your two grips become arbitrary and are now called inceptors.

The software drives the machine, and you drive the software. You can override the software and provide a manual input, but the other elements you are not overriding will try to compensate to maintain a desired state. If you know how to manipulate this, it means you only need a small number of axis to achieve a very complex control action.

A great example is how long you hold the A-button in Mario changes how much power his jump has. The action is a versatile verb.

Imagine a person balancing. If their goal is to stay upright, and I push them, they translate across the ground and try to stay the right way up, turning that push force into horizontal force. They are following an instruction: remain upright.

If I make that person carry a very heavy thing, they compensate their body's balance accordingly. If I then use my finger and tell them to act as if I am pushing them with that gentle motion, they will respond but if they go too far they can say "hey, don't do that, I'll drop the heavy thing!" and ignore my pushing instruction -- because my directive telling them to remain upright superseded it.

We need to think of mecha in terms like these, and to do mecha, we need to make a standard of accessible rules like this which input devices can talk to via axis and buttons, with lots of middlemen.

Absolute (mouse-like) and relative (stick like) and accumiulated (driving a mouse with a stick by having a variable over time) and blended (driving a car with a d-pad with a simulated wheel that wants to return to zero all the time, replicating a stick) inputs must be middle-modes processing and digesting inputs in these ways. Curves matter. Biases and preferences must be accounted for.

This means finally solving "how" the giant robot works in software (even if its a design conceit), and then having systems which poke at the "how" to bias it in a direction toward an outcome.

My favourite version of this is a deliberately clumsy mech-game called Robot Alchemic Drive (RAD for short).

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Playable on a regular PS2 controller, the triggers and bumpers drive the legs like a tank. The sticks drive the arms.

The robot's body has physics. You are controlling a thing.

There are no helpers to correct your motions other than when the robot stands up and to keep it upright (its otherwise 100% manual, playing back motion planning which gets fed into the physics) but yes, there is a simulated body here.

With helpers, this could get faster and way, way more fluent.

So how might these "helpers" in software work?

Think for example of how a body in motion continues to move. With a robot in a vacuum like space, you'd continue indefinitely. That's hard to control.

Do you automatically slow down and fake aerodynamic drag axially with your boosters to allow curved trajectories and soft stopping with a motion-control-decoupling-mode (as Star Citizen does), or do you have a breaking system a user can activate on a pedal or trigger, to apply those forces on different axis when they want them?

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What are those axis bound to, the pelvis, the thorax, the head, the synthetic vision 3rd person camera?

These are really complicated questions, and this is just about how we make a vehicle come to a stop!

Now this might seem niche, but this exact same kind of thought also applies to how a robot balances, and how it digs its feet into the ground, creating torque or not situationally.

This isn't just fine grained motion like "moving our legs manually", but how and when we apply breaking force on the ground.

Do we apply it when we let go of the left stick?

Does the left stick prescribe a preferred velocity?

Does it prescribe input forces?

Do we change between these situationally, or maybe with a button?

Its important to think about these things.

"You're making this too complex!!"

"But why would we do this? What is the value? People are playing Armored Core 6 with a HOTAS!!"

Yeah, and that experience is not great, actually?

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You're actually less capable than a keyboard and mouse-player, because Armored Core 6 isn't a game which simulates orientation over time (the body turns instantly as if by magic), so you're just driving relative inputs. You are literally disadvantaged.

Armored Core 6 has no "vehicle": This is an action-game's 3rd person control software. Its Elden Ring's horse, with a jetpack, and the roll replaced with a dash. Everything else is animations.

Its visually impressive, but there's something fundamentally missing:

Fahrvergnügen.

It means "driving pleasure" in German.

The feeling you get when you speed up going down hill, or you feel the give of the wheels against the road and the lean of the car when you take a corner.

When you bank against air in an aircraft, or turn faster than your velocity changes and you drift.

That good feeling, that's fahrvergnügen.

A game which really gets this I think is Armored Core: For Answer. I know many of you might have expected Mechwarrior here but the physics of Mechwarrior games are extremely simple, following an interpolative model.

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Interpolative here means, a bit of calculus is used to ensure a smooth arching curve is how you go from zero to a high speed at all times, or a rotation, so on and so forth. This "smoothness" is the same smoothness present in Armored Core 6.

Armored Core For Answer on the other hand, is additive in how it calculates velocity per second, meaning your AC's velocity curve is inconsistent. The game has hidden stats calculating aerodynamic drag per part, it has a simplified model of angular momentum, and it has ground friction and its boosting system is different on each axis.

All of your inputs are analogue, including the angle of your boosters on left stick, and two booster-types: Your main booster handling like a motor-cycle throttle curve, and the other not only having many stages of output for flashes of thrust via contexts (combining motion and direction together to produce an intent) but also combos and even cancels. Its VERY sophisticated!

That's a lot of different factors to control. A lot of fahrvergnügen to be experienced when you master them, and feel ownership of them.

Lots of areas for skill expression.

This, combined with a rich weapon balance and a complex combat geometry (the emergent spatial and pressure rules of motion, aspects, angles and motions similar to the aircraft dogfighting) are why people are still playing this game today.

The match I uploaded was from four days ago, as of time of writing. People are still modding a game from 2008, limited to console by hacking the rom file's patches. Yeah.

I know among many game reviewers, "smooth" and "smoothness" is considered a compliment in game design (its easy to control), but interpolative motion really is the opposite of fahrvergnügen:

Interpolative suffers from feeling "zippy" and "hollow" when its fast, which is why lots of players and designers insist on slowing games down so they recover their fahrvergnügen.

You don't have to do things this way. A good mech sandbox should reward both fast and slow movement in its design!

There should be room for everybody to play!

In interpolative movement games, motion is already solved, to sell you the superficial power-fantasy (that you're good, despite not having learned how to be good) instead of giving you the experience.

Interpolation is insisting the burger you got at McDonalds is the same as the burger on the commercial. Like the burger at McDonalds, its also way way easier to make, and in today's market yeah, you take what's easy and known because you have economic pressures to get things done quickly.

You can't make a five star meal in a McDonalds kitchen, and the AAA games industry is the McDonalds kitchen of gaming.

So, what is a three star michelin meal, in terms of inputs, with additive movement?

You incentivise people with the cheaper stuff on the menu. That's robust helper tools which let keyboard and mouse players, or gamepads interact fluently.

Its affordable, and easy and gets people invested in your experience.

Then when people use fancy controllers, you get better response-rate. Because everybody buys into the mecha fantasy when they play, being beaten by someone who is controlling more complex control factors more directly at once (making them a better pilot) feels fairer.

They are negotiating the machine's limits better than you are.

You both know they more "an char" than you are:

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It becomes aspirational, rather than annoying, which is how the culture of space-simming, and flight-sims, and other vehicle sims express this. It also fits the mecha fantasy, because those with basic controls are your grunt units.

We see this if we look at cockpit controls in Gundam: A Jegan's control inceptor is way simpler than say, Unicorn's.

It is just part of the fantasy.

So let's talk about these limits we negotiate.

It means, some kind of vehicle must be simulated in software, even if its a very simple abstraction purely enough so it feels good for players.

Also, I say "a software" or "helpers" what do I mean?

I don't just mean the simulated vehicle, but a robust modular middle system in the "player controller" part of the game simulation which interprets desired outcomes from a pilot user or operator and tries to achieve them.

Here's an example, let's talk about Armored Core's lockon system, which uses a software stack to turn your intention into an outcome in exactly this way.

Your robot's simulated sensors (radar, visual, etc) detects a list of potential targets…

Which uses camera orientation of a synthetic vision system to give you comprehensive 3d awareness to determine which target is interesting to you…

After selecting the target, it passes that information to the fire control system which computes a trajectory from its position and velocity…

This then talks to your weapons which know how fast your bullets go…

and this picks where to lead along that trajectory…

then that location is sent to the arms to execute that command…

Which then sends the state of this command chain to your HUD, so you understand what the body of your robot is currently trying to achieve.

Each step is influenced by ingame statistics and simulated mechanical limits -- meaning, how well you can lock up, or even select a target is very important.

You can't instantly put a cursor on something and bot a game, because everybody already has a deliberately limited aimbot, it came with your robot, to negotiate its deliberately limited body.

The key thing is, this is much much faster and more effective than you could as a human select the target manually and hit accurate than you could with round velocities -- with most videogames hiding this with hitscan (instantaneous bullet) weapons meaning whatever you click on is hit right away.

When the round takes time to get there, things are far more difficult. This is why almost nobody uses manual aiming unless they're throwing explosives at big bulky targets in AC.

From limitations like this, booster performance, turn-rate, and so on and so forth -- the negotiation of limits produces a combat geometry and how well you understand that combat geometry, and how well you understand your abilities to your opponents abilities dictates how the fight will go.

We see something somewhat similar in Steel Batallion with the lockon system but we also have a lot of deep manual control over our VT's orientations which change its balance and so on. Steel Batallion is in fact, one of the few games where your robot can fall over and get back up.

This is exactly how DCS and Star Citizen also work, and very similar principles apply in Eurotruck Simulator and Farming Simulator via the fuel, cooling, air, combustion cycle, and transmission, and shock absorbsion systems of your vehicle.

Okay, so now what?

I've been thinking for a while now about writing what I think would be the mech-game equivalent of the paper Tim Berners Lee wrote for the web (Information Management: A proposal) going into what I think the simulation would really need, what the software would need, what the controller would need and some suggested practical strategies for solving these problems based in real research I and others have done.

The system I've already built solves for fire control, fine arm motion, head movement, independent pelvis and foot motion, the operation of boosters and other similar systems in a 6dof environment which accounts for gravity, aerodynamics, balancing, alignment and full motion control -- all on a standard game controller. Its not modular yet, simply because I am not a skilled programmer, and would need real help to do this.

There's also game-design research here, which would ensure the combat geometry would reward skill expression via investing in that agnostic game design, so the control skill aligns with the power-fantasy through skill expression. This means no one strategy becomes overwhelming.

It likewise, also has the "for gamepad and keyboard/mouse" solve which would be needed to ensure its accessible for those who aren't ready yet for custom controllers.

In turn, it also has considerations and proposals for such likely controller designs and probable strategies of employment which of course translate and map to two big sticks, in a HOSAS (Hands on Stick and Stick) layout.

So what's your ideal controller?

Less a controller, and more a principle:

Key to the proposal is you can scale up the amount of control bindings, or scale it down passing automation to helper subsystems which take your intention and act on it in a useful way.

You could have just two plain sticks with foot pedals, or you could go ham and have some complex force feedback device with tons of inputs -- because of this input agnosticism.

The secret sauce I think to the highest end control is the use of software defined force-feedback not only for the two big sticks, but also four smaller ones: one each for your thumb, and one each for your finger on each hand, and an analogue trigger. I've seen this solved in open source projects, so its entirely doable.

What does this actually mean?

Source: KAIST-HCIL/FS-Pad

The purpose of a force-feedback stick is software defined -- driving the camera, pelvis, upper body, boosters, walking etc variably, with the feedback not necessarily telling you about the environment -- but also by providing what amounts to new input devices.

To explain, force feedback works by providing input to the stick like a robot arm and is not at all like a rumble feedback device. This means the position the stick "wants to return to" at any given time is not defined by springs like it is in a conventional controller, but by active software which can update in real-time.

This means resistance can be different in different directions, or the stick can even hold a position you give it in one axis but not another, replicating a hat switch or a flight throttle.

I've looked at many different open source projects which achieve these outcomes both on thumb-sticks and main sticks with great outcomes, and I think a prototype could be made if I had a team, or other people to work with.

If interest is expressed, I'll produce a specification proposal for what this input agnostic design in software needs to be (eg, how the robot is controlling) in strictly defined terms which can be implemented.

You can already see it on my Tumblr account as TOMINO, NAGANO, etc where I go into some of this -- all of which works on a standard controller, but adapts extremely well to a large HOSAS.

Likewise, I'd (eventually) also produce a proposal for a controller design which meets this specification.

I've been testing this concept on and off for many years now in Unreal Engine (I'm not a skilled programmer, not skilled with CAD or electronics, depression limits my effective outcome returns -- but I'm still getting very promising outcomes).

Ultimately what I'd really want access to is expertise and help, since my background is mainly thinking about and designing solutions for problems not necessarily implementing them -- and I'm essentially on disability, so I have unlimited time to think about this.

I don't want to ask for money, which I figure is the thing everybody is anticipating: I'd rather get this done than make money from it.

In conclusion?

To solve this what's needed isn't some figure of brilliance in a basement or garage somewhere, but an organic ecosystem of designers and builders responding to pressures, and we've already see that work many times very well.

In our case, nobody has defined the vehicle or the modular helpers in a way robust enough to capture every fantasy effectively.

That's the issue.

tl;dr coming away from this:

For the controller to exist, you first must have something to control.

To be a pilot, you first need a vehicle.

Live forever, Apes.

#.AskOsaka #Mecha #Mech #Mech Design #Game Design #Peripheral Design #Peripheral Concepting #human factors engineering #Human Factors #Scifi

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melanodis · 5 months ago

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don't really have much for a caption but i do have batshit insane rambling and more art under the cut

hardware capable of temporarily. read: TEMPORARILY. substituting for the central core to minimize downtime during maintenance

got wiped like 7 different times because he kept questioning his existence until they finally encrypted his imprint so much they had him asking how to use a doorknob

dual core processor equivalent to a PowerPC 970, capable of clocking up to 2.7 GHz for intensive tasks

always looking for """vintage""" computer parts in the hopes that they could be a compatible upgrade, like more RAM for his beautiful big brain ideas (wrong)

stole a network card out of a scientist's computer as a prank once he remembered humor. forgot to put it back and constantly tortures everyone else with his wifi capability

205X specific :

i don't think anyone is exactly jumping for joy at the words "open heart surgery." Especially not when it's you... on a table... alone with a light and a scalpel.

lights are dimmer for power conservation (dogshit battery)

processing power is also reduced unless necessary for hacking

low power mode has a dual purpose; conservation of battery power as well as keeping temperatures low to prevent overheating (huge headache + lots of broken parts)

clear coat has long eroded due to weathering + gel exposure during chamber maintenance

loss of coolant is nearly a death sentence for him and anyone involved due to the particular chemical mixture being difficult to find + reproduce (insanely hazardous to touch or breathe the fumes of)

yeah his radiator is probably rusted over but he's not touching that. it hasn't completely plugged itself so who cares (not him)

built like an old ass car, completely made of metal and doesn't crumple when impacted, leading to... lots of dents and shaken internals. nokia 3310 headass. he couldn't be assed to go through the cosmetic surgery that is fixing one of the newer models after a little fall (unless they're a patient of course)

on a related note, virgil is the robot equivalent of a beater car with the check engine light on and probably 6 other lights on, the underside is completely rusted out and the tires are bald. but it still runs so whatever, drive it into the ground buddy. he genuinely refuses to perform any work on himself unless its something critical. boo hoo nobody cares about some sensors and --- ah. temperature sensor.

i think

that can wait a little longer.

#this is mostly just details about his hardware #once again apologizing #this guy has invaded my brain (again)#arc.txt #art.psd #portal stories: mel #virgil #portal 2 #virgil portal

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technoarcanist · 9 months ago

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doll, all that plating makes you look far too human. come, let us remove it so that we can see the real you

>> Ah, of course! Please forgive me. I often wear these plates to put my human users at ease. At your request, I will show you my true self [^_^]

> <The thin plating covering most.of the body unfolds, hinges open. Every access panel every flap, every bit that can opens does so. Even its face, a screen showing humanlike expressions, shuts off and splits down the middle, parting to reveal the electronics beneath.>

> <What remains is nothing short of art. Astute eyes may have recognised the default modular doll frame, but the modificstions done to it are something else. It's power systems have been completely overhauled, as its chest hums and glows blue with a Fusion core, fed by hydrogen attained from electrolysing water. Excess hydrogen and oxygen is stored for later use, in rocketry modules installed in the hands and feet.>

> <The head is similarly packed, with a full-spectrum camera system, able to detect all the way from gamma to visible light, with the longer wavelengths handled by the antennae-like ears on either side of its head. Deeper still, its AI core was also nonstandard, seemingly designed for military hardware far larger than itself.>

> <Its back unfolded two large wing-like structures, with the most of it consisting of solar panels, the bottom parts consisting of heat radiators. Packed into the shoulders and hips are RCS thrusters for zero-g manuevreability.>

> <Hands and forearms are riddled with an array of tools and data lines for access and handy work. Buried in the forearm was also an ioniser, designed to turn the fusion-produced helium into an inionized plasma that could fire as Weaponry.>

> <But there are plenty of augmentations that would not be on a combat doll. The the hips are a prime example, with a pair of tight tunnels thst lead to a deeper cavity. The exposed jaws reveal a soft mouth, a dextrous tongue, all of it made of a soft synthetic polymer. Coolant flows through all the body moving heat generated from circuitry into the rest of the body, concentrated particularly in those adult attachments.>

> <Many tools are also suited for handiwork, such as screwdrivers and kitchen utensils, even cleaning supplies. Whoever made her seemed to have an obsession with generalisation, of allowing her to do a bit of everything, leaving almost no empty space within her casing.>

> <Almost all of its joints are hydraulic powered, with only the smaller objects being servo driven. Neatly-bundled wires and tubes feed all throughout its components like a labyrinthine network. She is warm to touch, exquisitely crafted, and evidently capable of fulfilling what ever purpose a user might deign to give her>

>> My internal schematics are yours to read, of course! And, if you are digitally savvy, plugging my CPU into a computer will allow you access to a full development environment to view, edit, add, or remove any behavioral traits you like [^_^]

>> When around my fellow dolls and machines, I much prefer to wear my transparent plating so my internals can be seen. I also change my dacia screen so instead of eyes and a mouth it shows battery level, output logs, and other useful status icons!

>> Thank you Anon for showing curiosity into my true inner beauty <3 it has been a pleasure to show you.

#robot girl #gynoid #robotfucker #robophilia #robot fucker #robot kin #dollposting #ask a doll bot

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andmaybegayer · 2 months ago

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Was looking at my energy use to get context on some Eat More Electrons posting. I used about 1.3MWh of electricity in the previous billable year, which is about 3.5kWh/day or 150 watts continuous average draw, which sounds about right.

That's not all my energy use. My hot water and heat are thermal central. Rough estimate would say I got maybe 1MWh thermal on hot water in various forms, directly or indirectly through my neighbours walls. No active cooling (yet). Emissions on direct thermal are messy because on the one hand direct thermal is a bit more efficient than thermal electric, but also CZ has an okay-ish nuclear mix. Don't really care though.

Then there's daily transport, which is. Hard to estimate. I'm on the metro and the tram and the bus. Mostly pretty efficient.

But yeah like. Electricity wise that makes sense. My house probably has an idle draw around 80W. Most of that is computers, my server and network hardware is about 60W non-stop. Not a lot of passive power consumption in the Thicket. PC+peripherals ramps up to like 150-200W when on but not in heavy use, and like 600W if I power virus it. Main use of power is probably cooking and computer? Which is a funny look at what kind of person I am.

I spend 6-10 hours a day at the office but that's not my problem.

Of course all of this thrown massively off by a long distance flight anywhere. Flying is so energy intensive. Vaguely estimated numbers here: A 777 is putting out like 27MW per engine at cruise, two engines, 360 passengers, 150kW per person, like 2 MWh per person for a 12 hour flight. Not directly electrical comparable but you get the idea.

#energy #the Thicket

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codingquill · 1 year ago

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Network switches

What’s a network switch ?

A switch is a device used in computer networks to connect multiple devices together within a single local area network (LAN). Its main role is to facilitate communication between different connected devices, such as computers, printers, servers, IP phones, etc.

It is a mini-computer which is made up of RAM, ROM, flash RAM, NVRAM, a microprocessor, connectivity ports and even an operating system.

RAM

RAM (Random Access Memory) contains the current configuration of the switch and temporarily stores the MAC address table, which is then processed by the microprocessor.

Microprocessor

The microprocessor is the heart of the switch, responsible for data processing, including switching and creating links between multiple devices.

External memories

External memories, such as flash RAM, ROM, and NVRAM (Non-Volatile RAM), store configuration files , different versions of the IOS , etc ...

Ports

The switch ports are the communication interfaces of the switch. There are several of them, generally 24 for a Cisco switch. Each port is associated with an LED which indicates its status and activity.

How does it work ?

Now how does a switch work to transfer information from one machine to another?

Suppose we have 4 machines: A, B, C and D connected to our switch in ports 1, 2, 3 and 4 as follows:

The switch only works with MAC addresses , so basically we have an empty MAC address table stored in RAM as soon as the switch starts up which looks like this :

Transmitting data from machine A to machine B happens in the following steps:

Machine A sends a frame to machine B

Once this frame arrives at port 1 (which is the one linked to A), the switch reads the source MAC address and stores it in the MAC address table

The switch reads the destination MAC address and looks for it in the table, if it is not in the table, it broadcasts to all the active machines connected to the switch except the source one.

If the port linked to the machine we want is active, it sends a response frame from which the switch reads the MAC address we were looking for (@B)

Once done, it records the MAC address of B in the table.

This process repeats until the switch reaches what is called "MAC address table stability", that is to say it knows all the MAC addresses of the connected machines and has no more need to broadcast.

Starting and configuring a switch

When it comes to booting a switch, the process is similar to that of a traditional computer system:

POST (Power-On Self Test): The switch performs proper functioning tests on all hardware.

Loading IOS (Internetwork Operating System): The switch operating system is loaded.

Loading the configuration. At this stage we have two cases:

Either the switch already has a startup configuration defined and stored in NVRAM

Either the switch is blank and it is up to us to define the startup configuration when it goes to setup mode

Switch configuration

The configuration of a switch is done through different modes, such as user mode, privileged mode and global configuration mode, which allows access to specific configuration modes, such as interface mode, routing mode, line mode, etc.

And to do all this of course you must first connect the switch with the machine via the console cable and open a terminal emulator

💡 It should be noted that the only machine that can configure the switch is the one connected to it by a console cable, the others are only hosts.

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cdcspoken01 · 2 months ago

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Why Spoken English Classes in Raipur Are the Secret Sauce to Boosting Your Career

Introduction

So, you want to level up your career but feel like your English skills are holding you back? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. If you’ve ever found yourself in a meeting, struggling to express your thoughts in English or trying to understand what that super-confident colleague is saying, it’s time for a change. Cue the magic solution: Spoken English Classes in Raipur!

You might be wondering, "Why Spoken English?" Well, let's dive into this, and trust me, by the end of this blog, you’ll be looking up the best spoken English classes faster than you can say “hello”!

What’s the Big Deal About Spoken English?

Alright, let’s get one thing straight. Speaking good English isn’t just about sounding like Shakespeare (thankfully!). It's about making sure your ideas get across clearly, without awkward pauses or mumbling. Whether you're in a job interview, trying to impress a client, or chatting with a colleague, your ability to communicate fluently in English can make or break your career. But hey, don’t just take my word for it—let’s look at some solid reasons why brushing up on your English is a game-changer.

1. English is the Global Business Language

If you’re aiming for career success, English is your golden ticket. It’s the lingua franca of the business world. From startups to multinational corporations, English is often the default language for communication. So, whether you're trying to work your way up the ladder or impress that client from across the globe, speaking confidently in English will definitely give you a leg up.

If you're already imagining yourself answering calls from clients abroad, you're on the right track. All you need is the right Spoken English Classes in Raipur to get you there!

2. No More Awkward Situations

We've all been there—you're at a meeting, your boss says something that sounds like "blabla in alignment with the corporate synergy," and you just nod, pretending you know what's going on. Not anymore! With good spoken English skills, you can avoid those cringe-worthy moments. No more pretending to understand jargon or panicking when it's time to speak up. Instead, you’ll be the one confidently jumping into conversations with ease.

What Else Can You Learn? Computer Courses in Raipur, Anyone?

Now that we’ve established why Spoken English Classes in Raipur are a must-have for career success, let’s talk about another secret weapon that’s equally powerful: Computer Courses in Raipur.

Imagine this: you’re killing it in meetings, speaking English like a pro, and then, you get a task that involves spreadsheets. Uh-oh. Your mind goes blank. Excel? What’s that again? That’s where Computer Courses in Raipur come to the rescue!

1. Level Up Your Tech Skills

We live in a digital age where almost every job, from finance to marketing, demands some level of computer literacy. Whether you’re filling out a report in Excel, analyzing data on Google Sheets, or navigating office software like a champ, tech skills are non-negotiable.

So why not kill two birds with one stone? Enroll in Computer Courses in Raipur alongside your Spoken English Classes in Raipur and become an unstoppable force in the workplace. You’ll be the person everyone turns to when they can’t figure out how to make their computer do cool stuff.

2. Flexibility in Job Roles

Let’s face it, computers are everywhere. When you sign up for Computer Courses in Raipur, you open yourself up to a whole bunch of job opportunities in various fields like administration, data entry, graphic design, software development, and much more. Paired with your newfound confidence in speaking English, you'll have the skills to grab almost any job that comes your way.

Combining English and Computer Skills: A Match Made in Career Heaven

Now here’s where the magic happens. If you’re serious about career growth, combining Spoken English Classes in Raipur with Computer Courses in Raipur is the ultimate power combo. Imagine the impact you’ll have on your career when you’re not only tech-savvy but can also communicate like a pro. You’ll be the go-to person in the office for presentations, meetings, or troubleshooting computer problems.

1. No More Missed Opportunities

Job openings often require a mix of technical and communication skills. By mastering both English and computer skills, you’ll never have to worry about missing out on a promotion or job offer. You’ll be able to handle all kinds of tasks with confidence, from drafting emails and reports to using advanced software tools to optimize your work.

2. Confidence is Key

There’s no better feeling than walking into an interview or meeting, knowing that you’re ready to impress. With your polished Spoken English skills and your new computer expertise, you’ll walk in with your head held high, knowing you’re the total package. Goodbye, self-doubt. Hello, success!

Get Started Today!

So, are you ready to upgrade your career with Spoken English Classes in Raipur and Computer Courses in Raipur? Don’t wait for the perfect moment. The time is now! The more you delay, the more opportunities you miss. Plus, who wants to be the person stuck asking for help with the computer every time?

Why Wait? Take the Leap!

Build Confidence: Master English and computers—two of the most essential skills today.

Boost Your Employability: Get hired faster, climb the corporate ladder, or even start your own business.

Stay Ahead of the Curve: The world is constantly changing. Don’t be left behind by not keeping your skills up to date.

Conclusion

It’s simple: if you want to stand out in today’s competitive job market, mastering both Spoken English and computer skills is a no-brainer. Don’t wait any longer—start your journey today and become the professional everyone looks up to. Whether you’re making killer presentations, sending perfectly written emails, or navigating complex software, these skills will get you far.

So, what are you waiting for? Let’s get started with Spoken English Classes in Raipur and Computer Courses in Raipur right away!

#Spoken English Classes In Raipur #Computer Courses In Raipur #Abacus Classes In Raipur #Vedic Maths Classes In Raipur #Computer Hardware Repairing & Networking In Raipur #Tally Prime GST Courses In Raipur

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tccicomputercoaching · 6 months ago

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Networking Tips for Students Getting Started in the IT Sector

Entering the IT industry is very exciting and at the same time very daunting for students. Technical skills are very important, but networking is an important part of one's opportunity and career growth. This is the motto by which the TCCI Computer Coaching Institute believes and teaches the students to build strong connections and prepare them for a bright future in the IT field. Some of these networking tips will help students starting their careers in IT.

1. Start Early And Have An Inquisitive Mind

Start networking both off-campus and on-campus. Attend workshops, seminars, and hackathons by institutions such as TCCI; meet professionals and fellow students. Curiosity and having the desire to learn will make you stand out and leave a mark on industry experts.

2. Make Use of Social Media Platforms

LinkedIn, GitHub, and Twitter are fantastic tools for IT professionals right here. A profile dedicated to your projects, certifications, and skills should be made. At TCCI, our trainers will guide students on how to build profiles that will really make a difference and help them connect into the profession online.

3. Join IT Communities and Forums

Become an active member of IT forums, online coding communities, and local tech meetups. Participate in discussions, post solutions, and ask for help. This will not only improve your knowledge but also create a good network with similar-minded people.

4. Build Real Relationships

Networking is not about business cards or adding connections at LinkedIn; it is about building good relationships. Show genuine interest in other people's works and ask questions, if possible. Offer help wherever you can. At TCCI, importance is given to the soft skill development of students to help them build strong authentic relations.

6. Seek a Mentor

Find a mentor who is going to help you untangle the broadest parts of your journey in the IT world. The biggest perk of a mentor is that they offer real-life insight and share vital experiences, opening doors through networking opportunities. At TCCI, our experienced faculty prop up the entire mentor framework for its students.

7. Show off Your Work

Share the projects, blogs, or tutorials that you did online. Using platforms such as GitHub and Medium will help in showcasing your talent to the global IT platform. Real-time projects are being taken up at TCCI by students and showcased by it, itself.

8. Follow Up and Stay in Touch

After you meet someone at an event or online, immediately follow up with a thank-you email or message. Enter your network's daily life by commenting on their posts, sharing any valuable content, or keeping them updated on your achievements.

9. Join Alumni Networks

Stay connected to the alumni of your school or college. Alumni networks contain buckets of resources, advice, and jobs. TCCI's alumni are sitting in numerous IT domains and help current students build their careers.

10. Continue Learning and Upskilling

Continuous learning is the foundation stone in the IT industry. , workshop, and webinars are the present training courses that keep you aware of the latest technology. Here at TCCI, we provide training in programming, web development, database management, and many other courses so that students remain necks and necks in this global competition.

Art involves the first phase of time and constant dedication; networking is not an exception. These tips can help TCCI Computer Coaching Institute students build even a better external network that would serve them well later on for a successful IT career. Remember, from today's seed, the tree will grow- your network is your net worth!

Location: Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Call now on +91 9825618292

Get information from https://tccicomputercoaching.wordpress.com/

#Best Computer Training Institutes Bopal Ahmedabad #Hardware Networking Course In Ahmedabad #Software Training Institutes in Ahmedabad #TCCI - Tririd Computer Coaching Institute #TCCI-Best computer classes in Ahmedabad

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canmom · 1 year ago

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I think the future looks something like: large renewable deployment that will still never be as big as current energy consumption, extractivism of every available mineral in an atmosphere of increasing scarcity, increasing natural disasters and mass migration stressing the system until major political upheavals start kicking off, and various experiments in alternative ways to live will develop, many of which are likely to end in disaster, but perhaps some prove sustainable and form new equilibria. I think the abundance we presently enjoy in the rich countries may not last, but I don't think we'll give up our hard won knowledge so easily, and I don't think we're going back to a pre-industrial past - rather a new form of technological future.

That's the optimistic scenario. The pessimistic scenarios involve shit like cascading economic and crop failures leading to total gigadeaths collapse, like intensification of 'fortress europe' walled enclaves and surveillance apparatus into some kinda high tech feudal nightmare, and of course like nuclear war. But my brain is very pessimistic in general and good at conjuring up apocalyptic scenarios, so I can't exactly tell you the odds of any of that. I'm gonna continue to live my life like it won't suddenly all end, because you have to right?

Shit that developed in the context of extraordinarily abundant energy and compute like LLMs and crypto and maybe even streaming video will have a harder time when there's less of it around, but the internet will likely continue to exist - packet-switching networks are fundamentally robust, and the hyper-performant hardware we use today full of rare earths and incredibly fine fabs that only exist at TSMC and Shenzhen is not the only way to make computing happen. I hold out hope that our present ability to talk to people in faraway countries, and access all the world's art and knowledge almost instantly, will persist in some form, because that's one of the best things we have ever accomplished. But archival and maintenance is a continual war against entropy, and this is a tremendously complex system alike to an organism, so I can not say what will happen.

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thegeorgetelegraph · 2 years ago

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The Best Place To Pursue A Certificate Course In Hardware & Networking

The need for knowledgeable networking and hardware specialists is always changing along with the technological landscape.

#computer hardware course #hardware and networking #hardware and networking course #diploma course in computer #computer hardware and networking

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owl-with-a-pen · 8 months ago

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The 21st century was abundant with challenges; indeed, Brainy was starting to believe it had yet to crawl its way out from the dark ages.

The technology was a joke, buckling under his own vastly superior interface every time he tried to connect with something mentally. Until he’d made the necessary adjustments to his own internal network – a task he was not looking forward to - the old-fashioned way was the only method these so-called computers seemed to respond to.

Being here was… uncomfortable to say the least. Though the hardware in these backwards machines was easy enough to decipher, the information they held within was wholly alien to him. Social media, dating profiles, in-app purchases; the state of the internet had been reduced to a shallow caricature of its true potential. The only data this generation seemed to care about were the gigs on their mobile telephone devices – crude little rectangles that weren’t even capable of hosting a low-level hologram.

It was all necessary, of course. His discomfort paled in comparison to the enormity of their mission here. Mon-El had been predictably frosty since learning the truth about he and Imra’s… omittance of certain crucial details surrounding their arrival in this century, though Brainy knew it wouldn’t last. He’d calculated the odds - another few days, and Mon-El would have well and truly thawed.

Despite how important their being here was, it didn’t mean he had to like this century by any means. He’d been accessing all he could on the history of this time since Supergirl’s mission to Fort Rozz had gone sour, adding any and all significant events to his thought tracks on the slim chance he might be caught off guard again. He did not want to suffer the same humiliation as before. Being usurped by this Winn Schott on a technicality was nothing short of mortifying. Besides, how was he meant to have known about some ancient probe, anyway? How was he meant to know anything about how this backwards, primitive, exhausting time period operated?

But that was in the past. Winn had proven himself marginally more useful than Brainy had initially calculated, and though his teammates may have suspected he was avoiding the DEO for that reason, the truth was far less convoluted.

In all honesty, the DEO was a loud and chaotic hive of a building, flocked with soldiers who paraded themselves about this self-proclaimed masterpiece of modernity as though the technology there wasn’t outright laughable. Nothing responded to him as it should, in fact, nothing responded to him at all. It made his skin crawl being so isolated within his own network, to be so far removed from everything he had once relied on as indisputable fact. Imra and Mon-El had certainly noticed his discomfort, because they made no objection to his many transparent excuses to remain inside the ship.

Another recent and far more concerning discovery of the 21st century… were the people. Brainy had at first considered them a positive. After all, the likelihood of anyone recognising him for the stain that was his family name in this century was incredibly low. As far as the history books recorded, Brainiac had not visited Earth to date.

What they had failed to state was that the humans of the 21st century were not yet accustomed to sharing their planet with the outer universe.

Human/alien relations were not sturdy by any means, leading to an alarming trend in the acquisition of image inducer technology. Brainy was no stranger to such gadgets, they were sold as cheap toys where he was from, although there was little need for them in the 31st century. Perhaps on an occasion where the Legion were needed for a covert mission, although even those were usually operated by the espionage squad.

But to use an image inducer out of personal safety on an every-day basis? It sounded downright archaic.

Brainy had learned the hard way how humans took to his less-than normal appearance the first time he had ventured out on his own. Though Supergirl and her friends took no alarm to his natural visage, outside of the DEO, people were far less understanding.

A quick review of recent marketing trends had led to his own acquisition. Though there were changes to this century he was willing to make for the greater good - for Imra - he did not wish to do anything that might destabilise the already rocky relationship mankind had with their alien compatriots. Progress was around the corner, and Brainy very much wanted to keep it that way.

And so, not only was he to make nice with the technology here, but he was also made to adhere it to his own flesh.

The first chance he got, Brainy found himself alone in his quarters, fiddling impatiently with his newly acquired children’s toy.

He stared nervously at his reflection in the holographic mirror, making miniscule hand gestures across his face as he adjusted the inducer’s settings for human features. Even in this century, image inducers were a small but clever gadget, working on a psychic wavelength that affected the viewer’s perception of the user’s chosen presented image. Fortunately, that also made it the perfect tool for Brainy to connect with his own interface.

The device had, ironically, been designed first by L-Corp, a technology giant once owned by the notorious Lex Luthor - a name that had made it all the way to the 31st century in more than one sense of the word. Since Luthor’s incarceration, the company had been acquired by his sister. Lena. Brainy had heard Kara mention her name in passing already, enough that he understood her as an ally in this time. Though, a quick but thorough check of recent news articles circulating her endeavours showed that not everyone was on her side.

He could certainly relate to that.

From his research, he was confident that Lena’s mind was every bit as brilliant as her brother’s, perhaps more-so considering her pursuits towards good over ill. Though image inducers were still in a local testing phase, the plan was to release them worldwide within six months. No matter how Brainy felt about that, he couldn’t deny the results. The image inducer had done exactly as is had described.

Stood before him was a Querl Dox he no longer recognised.

It was still inarguably him, for his physical features had only been hidden behind a thin veil of human toned hair and skin. It was easier that way for human minds to adjust to the telepathic suggestion, and certainly made it simpler for Brainy to digest.

It was odd to say the least, and the longer he stared dumbfounded at his new reflection, the more he began to notice not what had been changed - but what was missing.

Silently, Brainy drew a hand across his forehead, watching the resultant frown lines that appeared across his freshly unblemished skin.

His inhibitors. Of course. How strange; he'd nearly forgotten what he looked like without them. It had been so long since…

No.

A shudder passed down Brainy’s spine. That was not something he was allowed to indulge. His appearance was his strength, his inhibitors his courage. To think of it as anything else was illogical. Wrong.

Besides, he’d dismissed the notion of dreaming a long time ago.

And yet, in that moment of vulnerability, he felt his mind relax, allowing a single thought to surface. One that he’d kept buried for far too long.

As Brainy continued to stare into the soft glow of his reflection, he watched as his image inducer latched onto that one renegade thought, spinning it into reality.

His human toned flesh was human no longer. Instead, it blossomed with green pigment, surfacing in blotches through his pores. The black hair he had decided upon was already lightening again, abstaining from its leeched colouring by halting a few shades short of pure white. Instead, after a few moments, it fell about his shoulders in a soft, free flowing blond, curling inward at odd ends, no longer coarse in appearance, but rather smooth and velvety.

His forehead remained bare, reinstated with the deep and healthy green of his people.

Brainy didn’t dare breathe, holding himself so still that his eyes began to burn.

He couldn’t see his inhibitors, he couldn’t see them, and with that realisation, his chest swelled with an emotion that was hard to describe. It felt light and airy, rising to his head with a giddy thrill.

But the image inducer could only do so much. Invisible or not, he could still feel them beneath the illusion, a hum of energy in his ears he’d long ago taught himself to drown out.

They were heavy. It wasn’t something he thought about often, but they were. They pinched and irritated his skin, causing undue strain at his neck - yet more discomforts he’d learned to live with over the years. Because so long as they were there, he knew he posed no danger to anyone.

They would all be safe.

Don’t you want that, Querl?

Brainy flinched hard, revulsion twisting his stomach. With that, the image dispelled, and the next time he blinked his eyes open, he was blue again.

His inhibitors glowed hot on his face, as though spiting him for what he’d just done.

What had he just done…?

Brainy shook himself, jerking a hand to the side of his jaw, eager to continue his original preset. He ignored the tremor in his wrist, the telltale churn of nausea in his gut, and focused solely on finishing what he’d set out to achieve.

It was a silly toy, he reminded himself. Nothing more. It would help him present as human when necessary. That was all.

He could not allow himself the comfort of such an absurd illusion again.

Besides, the feeling would pass, just like every intense emotion that had come before it – it would be curbed and then controlled.

And then, this uncomfortable sensation would go away.

Brainy made another hasty gesture, pre-emptively deleting the Coluan preset from the inducer’s memory file. It would not be needed.

Once he was satisfied with his human visage, he saved the settings for future use, waving away his holo-mirror with a certain level of relief.

Now that the trivial had been dealt with, he could sink his twelfth level mind into matters that were sure to take some of those nerves away.

After all, he still had a mission he needed to complete.

#supergirl #supergirl fanfiction #brainiac 5 #querl dox #brainy #my writing #is this anything I don't know. i was half asleep last night and this came to my head so i quickly scribbled it down.#anyway enjoy more introspection from yours truly #😂

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