#automated labeling process

[rohirric-hunter]

Mods are NOT asleep, abort mission

[nkindustries1]

Inline Label Applicators: Streamlining Your Labeling Process for Maximum Productivity

In today’s highly competitive manufacturing and packaging industries, efficient labeling plays a crucial role in maintaining product quality, brand image, and regulatory compliance. The labeling process, though often considered a small step in production, directly impacts a business’s overall operational efficiency. As demand for higher productivity and streamlined operations grows, inline label…

[mitchelindustri]

Streamlining Your Business with Labelling Machines

Optimising productivity and efficiency is crucial for success in today’s fast-paced and competitive business landscape. One area where businesses can significantly improve their operations is in the labelling and decorating process. Traditional manual labelling methods are time-consuming and prone to human errors, which can lead to costly mistakes. Thankfully, labelling or decorating machines have emerged as a game-changer, revolutionising how businesses handle their labelling needs. This comprehensive guide will explore the benefits of labelling machines and how they can streamline your business operations while saving time and resources.

Understanding the Power of Labelling or Decorating Machines

Enhanced Productivity and Efficiency

Labelling machines are designed to automate the labelling process, eliminating the need for manual application. These machines can label products at a much higher speed and with greater precision than human workers. For example, a high-speed labelling machine can label hundreds of products per minute, while manual labelling may take considerable time and labour. With increased throughput, businesses can meet higher demands and efficiently handle larger order volumes, ultimately improving productivity.

Reduced Errors and Improved Accuracy

Human errors during labelling can significantly affect businesses, including wasted resources, product recalls, and dissatisfied customers. Labelling machines reduce the likelihood of errors by automating the application process and ensuring precise label placement on each product.

Some labelling machines have built-in sensors that detect product positioning and automatically adjust the label application to match the product’s size and shape. It minimises the risk of misaligned labels and ensures accurate placement every time. Furthermore, labelling machines can integrate with barcode and RFID systems, enhancing product traceability and inventory management, which further reduces the chances of errors and improves overall accuracy.

Cost Savings

While labelling machines require an initial investment, they are cost-effective in the long run. One of the primary cost-saving benefits is the reduction in material wastage. Manual labelling often leads to misprints, label misplacement, and label damage, which results in wasted labels and additional expenses. Labelling machines ensure minimal wastage by applying labels accurately and consistently, optimising the use of label rolls or sheets.

Flexibility and Versatility

Labelling machines are highly versatile and can accommodate various label sizes, shapes, and materials. Whether businesses require adhesive labels, shrink sleeves, wraparound labels, or heat-transfer labels, these machines can handle them all. Some labelling machines offer quick changeover capabilities, allowing businesses to swiftly switch between different products or label designs.

Streamlined Regulatory Compliance

In industries with strict regulatory requirements, compliance with labelling standards is essential. Labelling machines can be programmed to ensure compliance with specific regulations, such as ingredient listings, nutritional information, and hazard warnings. Businesses can avoid legal penalties, maintain consumer trust, and uphold their brand reputation by automating the compliance process.

Improved Branding and Aesthetics

In today’s competitive market, product branding is vital in attracting consumers and building brand recognition. Labelling machines can add decorative elements, brand logos, and appealing designs to product labels, making them more visually appealing to customers.

Adaptability to Industry Demands

Labelling machines cater to various industries, including food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, etc. Different industries have unique labelling requirements, and labelling machines can adapt to meet these specific needs.

Choosing the Right Labelling Machine for Your Business

Label Types and Sizes

Before selecting a labelling machine, businesses should identify the types of labels they need to apply and their sizes. Some labelling machines specialise in specific label types, such as self-adhesive labels. In contrast, others offer greater versatility, accommodating a variety of label materials, including shrink sleeves and in-mould labels.

Production Volume

The production volume is crucial in determining the appropriate labelling machine for a business. High-speed labelling machines are ideal for large-scale production facilities, where a high volume of products needs to be labelled quickly. Conversely, smaller businesses or those with lower production volumes may find more cost-effective solutions in mid-range or semi-automatic labelling machines.

Automation and Integration

Automation features are essential for optimising the labelling process and reducing manual intervention. Advanced labelling machines can feature auto-adjusting settings, label position correction, and label presence sensors. These functionalities ensure that labels are applied accurately and consistently, even when dealing with products of different shapes and sizes.

Maintenance and Support

When selecting a labelling machine, consider the ease of maintenance and the availability of technical support from the manufacturer or supplier. Regular maintenance is essential to keep the machine in optimal working condition and prevent unexpected breakdowns.

Conclusion

Plastics Processing Machinery in Australia have transformed how businesses handle their labelling needs, offering increased productivity, reduced errors, and improved efficiency. By investing in a suitable labelling machine that aligns with their business requirements, companies can streamline their operations, save valuable time and resources, and position themselves for success in today’s competitive market.

Automation and technology continue to shape the future of Plastics Processing Machinery in Australia with advancements in precision, speed, and integration capabilities. As businesses seek to optimise their labelling processes, staying informed about the latest trends and industry innovations is essential to remain competitive and meet consumer demands effectively. Embrace the power of labelling or decorating machines, and take your business to new heights of efficiency and success.

[txttletale]

are there any critiques of AI art or maybe AI in general that you would agree with?

AI art makes it a lot easier to make bad art on a mass production scale which absolutely floods art platforms (sucks). LLMs make it a lot easier to make content slop on a mass production scale which absolutely floods search results (sucks and with much worse consequences). both will be integrated into production pipelines in ways that put people out of jobs or justify lower pay for existing jobs. most AI-produced stuff is bad. the loudest and most emphatic boosters of this shit are soulless venture capital guys with an obvious and profound disdain for the concept of art or creative expression. the current wave of hype around it means that machine learning is being incorporated into workflows and places where it provides no benefit and in fact makes services and production meaningfully worse. it is genuinely terrifying to see people looking to chatGPT for personal and professional advice. the process of training AIs and labelling datasets involves profound exploitation of workers in the global south. the ability of AI tech to automate biases while erasing accountability is chilling. seems unwise to put a lot of our technological eggs in a completely opaque black box basket (mixing my metaphors ab it with that one). bing ai wont let me generate 'tesla CEO meat mistake' because it hates fun

[faultfalha]

Nvidia has announced the availability of DGX Cloud on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. DGX Cloud is a fast, easy and secure way to deploy deep learning and AI applications. It is the first fully integrated, end-to-end AI platform that provides everything you need to train and deploy your applications.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Amazon Alexa is a graduate of the Darth Vader MBA

Next Tuesday (Oct 31) at 10hPT, the Internet Archive is livestreaming my presentation on my recent book, The Internet Con.

If you own an Alexa, you might enjoy its integration with IFTTT, an easy scripting environment that lets you create your own little voice-controlled apps, like "start my Roomba" or "close the garage door." If so, tough shit, Amazon just nuked IFTTT for Alexa:

https://www.theverge.com/2023/10/25/23931463/ifttt-amazon-alexa-applets-ending-support-integration-automation

Amazon can do this because the Alexa's operating system sits behind a cryptographic lock, and any tool that bypasses that lock is a felony under Section 1201 of the DMCA, punishable by a 5-year prison sentence and a $500,000 fine. That means that it's literally a crime to provide a rival OS that lets users retain functionality that Amazon no longer supports.

This is the proverbial gun on the mantelpiece, a moral hazard and invitation to mischief that tempts Amazon executives to run a bait-and-switch con where they sell you a gadget with five features and then remotely kill-switch two of them. This is prime directive of the Darth Vader MBA: "I am altering the deal. Pray I don't alter it any further."

So many companies got their business-plan at the Darth Vader MBA. The ability to revoke features after the fact means that companies can fuck around, but never find out. Apple sold millions of tracks via iTunes with the promise of letting you stream them to any other device you owned. After a couple years of this, the company caught some heat from the record labels, so they just pushed an update that killed the feature:

https://memex.craphound.com/2004/10/30/apple-to-ipod-owners-eat-shit-and-die-updated/

That gun on the mantelpiece went off all the way back in 2004 and it turns out it was a starter-pistol. Pretty soon, everyone was getting in on the act. If you find an alert on your printer screen demanding that you install a "security update" there's a damned good chance that the "update" is designed to block you from using third-party ink cartridges in a printer that you (sorta) own:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/11/ink-stained-wretches-battle-soul-digital-freedom-taking-place-inside-your-printer

Selling your Tesla? Have fun being poor. The upgrades you spent thousands of dollars on go up in a puff of smoke the minute you trade the car into the dealer, annihilating the resale value of your car at the speed of light:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/10/23/how-to-fix-cars-by-breaking-felony-contempt-of-business-model/

Telsa has to detect the ownership transfer first. But once a product is sufficiently cloud-based, they can destroy your property from a distance without any warning or intervention on your part. That's what Adobe did last year, when it literally stole the colors from your Photoshop files, in history's SaaSiest heist caper:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/10/28/fade-to-black/#trust-the-process

And yet, when we hear about remote killswitches in the news, it's most often as part of a PR blitz for their virtues. Russia's invasion of Ukraine kicked off a new genre of these PR pieces, celebrating the fact that a John Deere dealership was able to remotely brick looted tractors that had been removed to Chechnya:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/05/08/about-those-kill-switched-ukrainian-tractors/

Today, Deere's PR minions are pitching search-and-replace versions of this story about Israeli tractors that Hamas is said to have looted, which were also remotely bricked.

But the main use of this remote killswitch isn't confounding war-looters: it's preventing farmers from fixing their own tractors without paying rent to John Deere. An even bigger omission from this narrative is the fact that John Deere is objectively Very Bad At Security, which means that the world's fleet of critical agricultural equipment is one breach away from being rendered permanently inert:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/23/reputation-laundry/#deere-john

There are plenty of good and honorable people working at big companies, from Adobe to Apple to Deere to Tesla to Amazon. But those people have to convince their colleagues that they should do the right thing. Those debates weigh the expected gains from scammy, immoral behavior against the expected costs.

Without DMCA 1201, Amazon would have to worry that their decision to revoke IFTTT functionality would motivate customers to seek out alternative software for their Alexas. This is a big deal: once a customer learns how to de-Amazon their Alexa, Amazon might never recapture that customer. Such a switch wouldn't have to come from a scrappy startup or a hacker's DIY solution, either. Take away DMCA 1201 and Walmart could step up, offering an alternative Alexa software stack that let you switch your purchases away from Amazon.

Money talks, bullshit walks. In any boardroom argument about whether to shift value away from customers to the company, a credible argument about how the company will suffer a net loss as a result has a better chance of prevailing than an argument that's just about the ethics of such a course of action:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/07/28/microincentives-and-enshittification/

Inevitably, these killswitches are pitched as a paternalistic tool for protecting customers. An HP rep once told me that they push deceptive security updates to brick third-party ink cartridges so that printer owners aren't tricked into printing out cherished family photos with ink that fades over time. Apple insists that its ability to push iOS updates that revoke functionality is about keeping mobile users safe – not monopolizing repair:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/22/vin-locking/#thought-differently

John Deere's killswitches protect you from looters. Adobe's killswitches let them add valuable functionality to their products. Tesla? Well, Tesla at least is refreshingly honest: "We have a killswitch because fuck you, that's why."

These excuses ring hollow because they conspicuously omit the possibility that you could have the benefits without the harms. Like, your tractor could come with a killswitch that you could bypass, meaning you could brick it at a distance, and still fix it yourself. Same with your phone. Software updates that take away functionality you want can be mitigated with the ability to roll back those updates – and by giving users the ability to apply part of a patch, but not the whole patch.

Cloud computing and software as a service are a choice. "Local first" computing is possible, and desirable:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/03/there-is-no-cloud/#only-other-peoples-computers

The cheapest rhetorical trick of the tech sector is the "indivisibility gambit" – the idea that these prix-fixe menus could never be served a la carte. Wanna talk to your friends online? Sorry there's just no way to help you do that without spying on you:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/08/divisibility/#technognosticism

One important argument over smart-speakers was poisoned by this false dichotomy: the debate about accessibility and IoT gadgets. Every IoT privacy or revocation scandal would provoke blanket statements from technically savvy people like, "No one should ever use one of these." The replies would then swiftly follow: "That's an ableist statement: I rely on my automation because I have a disability and I would otherwise be reliant on a caregiver or have to go without."

But the excluded middle here is: "No one should use one of these because they are killswitched. This is especially bad when a smart speaker is an assistive technology, because those applications are too important to leave up to the whims of giant companies that might brick them or revoke their features due to their own commercial imperatives, callousness, or financial straits."

Like the problem with the "bionic eyes" that Second Sight bricked wasn't that they helped visually impaired people see – it was that they couldn't be operated without the company's ongoing support and consent:

https://spectrum.ieee.org/bionic-eye-obsolete

It's perfectly possible to imagine a bionic eye whose software can be maintained by third parties, whose parts and schematics are widely available. The challenge of making this assistive technology fail gracefully isn't technical – it's commercial.

We're meant to believe that no bionic eye company could survive unless they devise their assistive technology such that it fails catastrophically if the business goes under. But it turns out that a bionic eye company can't survive even if they are allowed to do this.

Even if you believe Milton Friedman's Big Lie that a company is legally obligated to "maximize shareholder value," not even Friedman says that you are legally obligated to maximize companies' shareholder value. The fact that a company can make more money by defrauding you by revoking or bricking the things you buy from them doesn't oblige you to stand up for their right to do this.

Indeed, all of this conduct is arguably illegal, under Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits "unfair and deceptive business practices":

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/10/the-courage-to-govern/#whos-in-charge

"No one should ever use a smart speaker" lacks nuance. "Anyone who uses a smart speaker should be insulated from unilateral revocations by the manufacturer, both through legal restrictions that bind the manufacturer, and legal rights that empower others to modify our devices to help us," is a much better formulation.

It's only in the land of the Darth Vader MBA that the deal is "take it or leave it." In a good world, we should be able to take the parts that work, and throw away the parts that don't.

(Image: Stock Catalog/https://www.quotecatalog.com, Sam Howzit; CC BY 2.0; modified)

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/10/26/hit-with-a-brick/#graceful-failure

[fukia]

The Citadel’s hierarchy. How did it happen?

You got a bunch of Ricks, all bound together by the fear of Main Rick and their disdain for governments. Then they make a city. Ok, so next step is to automate everything right? Make robots do their dirty work?

Well now they need material to build their automated process and perfect their city. Who’s gonna get it? The Rick start arguing, those who end up with the role are now resentful they’ve been reduced to picking up material for their “leader Rick’s.” Knowing Ricks are petty, that resentment will build fast.

The Collectors return to the Pre-Citadel, they did their part. But wait, now the leaders demand more material while they ‘run’ things. “We have a new flood of Rick-citizens and their Mortys,” they say, “we need more material for a better automated system.” In actuality, they’re already high on their power over other Ricks. But it must be time to really start making robots and shit with the new material, right?

Who’s gonna build it? The Leaders, the one of various Councils that must’ve existed, announce to other Ricks, “yo we need builders,” and it ain’t gonna be the Leaders because they’re off running the citadel. Comfortable and avoiding the mundanity Ricks hate so much.

Leaders, Builders, Collectors.

Ok so they build shit. Shit works great because it’s been built by Ricks. But now some of the shit goes deviant and gain sentience, some other shit that are productive on their own aren’t made to work with other shit; Ricks are used to going solo. Maybe a handful of these productions are truly successful collaboratively.

And then more Ricks join the Citadel.

“It’s time for another job, we need Directors.” The Leaders want another tier of Rick’s to oversee the building process, standardize it. They don’t choose the New-Rick-Citizens, they “promote” their Builders to Directors, their Collectors to builders. The promotion isn’t great but the Ricks begrudgingly accept as they know these jobs are all a necessity to the running of the Citadel. So who’s gonna fill the demand for Collectors? The New-Rick-Citizens.

Leaders, Directors, Builders, Collectors.

The collectors do their thing with their portal guns. They return and the higher ups are mad. “What took so long? We’re tracking your portal gun history.” The new collectors are mad. But eventually, and begrudgingly, agree to this invasiveness, in the name of Citadel safety and productivity.

What about Collector robots? They’re still there gaining sentience and shit, the lower Ricks get sick of it and trash the whole process, “let’s just fucking do it ourselves.” The Directors are now in charge of both the Builders and Collectors. The upper Ricks rejoice; they can continue to bask in their power and the Citadel grows.

⸻

Hierarchy. Now fully in motion.

Some Ricks start joking about “Alpha-Class” and “Beta-Class” Ricks. Sarcastic at first. But the labels stick. A patch here, a badge there. Then, uniforms. Irony dies fast in the Citadel.

A Director scientist designs a tool so efficient it cuts resource collection time in half. The Leaders praise him. The tool is standardized. The scientist is not promoted. “Your value is in building,” they say. He starts sabotaging his own tools in a desperate search for fulfillment. Or maybe, he thinks, he could profit from it… You see, Rick’s are cool, and its always cooler in the Shadow.

At the bottom of the ladder, Collector units begin breaking. But what acts as their balm and punching bag?

Mortys.

“How the fuck are Mortys so addicting,” one Rick says to another. The Leaders grumble, “they really are. Welp. Time to get ourselves a Morty plant going. With Morty catchers and Morty trainers/teachers, and maybe some Head of Morty Replication or something.” And naturally, collectors go through Morty’s faster than the classes above them. The classes above begin to get their designer Morty’s.

Maybe the angry Collectors start banding together only to start infighting immediately, probably from ego as Ricks do. Still, it feels good knowing they’re at least not Mortys…

Now there’s a bajillion more roles than just Leader, Director, Builder, Collector, and Morty.

Inevitably, a couple Ricks snap. “Farewell government,” they run off with their remainder portal gun fluid, grabbing a Morty for shielding. Meanwhile, in their own adventures they suddenly need another yellow-shirt. “Guys I need a Morty…” they return shamefully, and of course periodically even for that expensive authentic portal gun fluid.

Some Ricks are more gradual in their breakdown, getting antsy. Shops, recreation, companies like Simple Rick wafers rise to take care of that and profit. Morty’s are having psychological breaks. Morty centers are built. Certain committees arise to pacify the lower classes as mediators. It’s all performative, pretending to care in order to keep the citadel’s hierarchy and quell any demands for better. Because a number of these are stakeholders answering directly to someone in the Shadow Council. Mortytowns are still small, but they exist, quietly growing.

Murders start happening, rogue nutso Ricks do their poops so now this becomes a new problem and New-Rick-Citizens are scanned and denied entry unless they give up certain weapons or cybernetics. Some turn away, some accept, including those fully burnt out from their hunt for Prime. Some that accept begin to regret, running around looking for bootleg portal fluid and unregistered portal guns.

Somewhere in a lower tower, a Collector Rick writes a manifesto. “Boogeraids.” It outlines every class by cognitive dissonance tolerance, not intelligence. It’s banned immediately. But with the help of his beloved Editor Morty, copies circulate. Physically and digitally bootlegged. Continually sabotaged by the higher ups. And every other Rick is too comfy to upset these systems, every Morty too deMortyalized to even play with the idea. Except for a handful optimistic ones who’ve read and would fight for the chance to vote. And especially except for one of the most pessimistic. For the Damaged Morty.

[valeriehalla]

Hi! I juuust found your work, and I like it (namely through that formatting post, but now I'm actually reading through CURSE/KISS/CUTE and, hey! It is cute! Aster's growing on me)!

I'm actually in the process of writing another book—er, webnovel. Something free because I want people to have the chance to actually invest themselves in it—and I wanted to ask! Did you code the site all yourself, or did you use something as a framework? And, to someone who doesn't know much code, what would you reccomend?

Asters are always growing in odd places ...

I coded the whole entire thing myself. I even coded a ton of backend tools that live on my computer for automating tasks like formatting pages and converting images. I did all of this because I’m a freak...? And I wanted to optimize for fast, lightweight page loads with no server-side rendering. (The entire website is static HTML.)

For someone less inclined to hubris than me, depending on your skill level or interest in learning web code I would recommend either:

just using Wordpress (every web host in existance has a big glowing button labeled “install wordpress” for making a wordpress site and there are endless templates for formatting any kind of post you can imagine with no coding required), or

picking a static site generator and using that (for a fast and lightweight website but one that you might have to do a little coding to finish out the way you like it).

Notably, one thing I don’t recommend is using SquareSpace. For one thing, they have an adult content ban on the books; for another, if you ever do want to do something as basic with your website as “upload an HTML page you coded yourself”, you’ll find yourself locked out in the cold, because that’s grown-up stuff and they don’t like you doing that. (Learning this the hard way is the reason I ended up making my new website myself. A nice thing about a static site is that not only do you have complete control, but it’s fully portable, too: just paste the files into whatever web host you like and it’ll work just the same.*)

*except sometimes you gotta configure your .htaccess a bit etc

[republicsecurity]

The Final Click

The video opened with a low mechanical hum, the sound of a workshop alive with quiet, deliberate motion. C9J18 stood on the platform once again, his posture rigid, the sleek black armor now fully integrated with his body. The segmented plates fit seamlessly together, the faint glow of the suit’s internal systems casting a cold light on his skin where it met the edges of the armor. Only his shaved head remained exposed—a temporary state that was about to change.

A Suit Technician stepped forward, fully suited in his own armor, his visor up. His smirk was visible, sharp and cynical, as he held the final piece of C9J18’s transformation: the helmet. The technician turned it in his gloved hands, its polished surface gleaming under the workshop lights.

“Well, here we are,” the technician drawled, his voice filtered slightly through his suit’s comm system. “The crown jewel of your integration. Once this goes on, you’re not just a cadet anymore. You’re part of the system.”

He stepped closer, holding the helmet up for a final inspection. “One size fits all,” he said with a faint chuckle. “Not that it matters. The AI will make it fit... whether you like it or not.”

C9J18 swallowed hard but didn’t respond. He simply stood at attention, his eyes fixed forward as the technician lowered the helmet over his head. The moment it settled into place, there was a sharp click followed by a faint hiss as the seals locked, connecting the helmet to the rest of the suit.

The technician’s smirk widened as he checked his wrist-mounted display. A stream of telemetry data scrolled across the screen, highlighting C9J18’s vitals, neural responses, and suit integration status. “Look at that,” he said with mock admiration. “Perfect fit. Just like it was made for you. Or maybe you were made for it.”

Inside the helmet, everything was dark at first—an all-encompassing blackness that seemed to press against C9J18’s senses. For a moment, there was only the sound of his own breathing, amplified slightly by the helmet’s internal comms. Then, with a faint whir, the visor began to activate. A dim light flickered to life, growing brighter as the system calibrated itself to his neural patterns.

“Welcome to your new world,” the technician said, watching the data streams on his display as the helmet synchronized. “Don’t worry—it’ll all start to make sense soon. Or not. Either way, you’ll adapt.”

The visor fully illuminated, revealing the HUD for the first time. The view was clinical, sterile, and utterly devoid of humanity. Unimportant details in the workshop were greyed out, the AI deeming them irrelevant. Telemetry data crawled across the edges of his vision—heart rate, oxygen levels, suit integrity. A faint overlay marked the positions of nearby personnel, each tagged with their alphanumeric IDs.

The technician gestured at him, his movements highlighted by the HUD. “How’s it feel?” he asked, though his tone suggested he didn’t really care. “Strange at first, isn’t it? Like your head’s full of static. Don’t worry—that’s just the AI integrating with your sensory inputs. Give it a few minutes. You’ll stop noticing soon enough.”

A new menu appeared in the HUD, labeled Calibration, its options faintly glowing. The technician tapped his wrist display, and the menu expanded.

“Let’s get you set up,” he said, his tone laced with sardonic amusement. “We’ll start with the basics. Visual alignment, auditory filtering, neural response thresholds. Don’t worry—we’ll take care of all the hard stuff. You just stand there and let the suit do the thinking.”

The calibration process began. The HUD’s display shifted subtly, adjusting brightness, contrast, and focus. The edges of C9J18’s vision pulsed briefly as the system fine-tuned his peripheral awareness.

“See that?” the technician asked, pointing to a highlighted option in the menu. “That’s your task queue. Automated orders, courtesy of the AI. It’ll tell you what to do, when to do it, and how. You’ll learn to love it—or at least obey it. Either way, it gets the job done.”

Another section of the HUD displayed a comms menu, most of its options greyed out. The technician grinned. “Comms are restricted for now. You’re a cadet. You don’t get to chat unless the system says so. But don’t worry—once you’re authorized, you’ll have the privilege of hearing even more of our delightful voices.”

He tapped another menu labeled Sensory Adjustment. “This one’s fun,” he said, his grin widening. “The AI controls your sensory input. If it thinks something’s irrelevant, it tones it down. If it wants you to focus, it cranks things up. Pain, heat, cold... all dialed to whatever setting keeps you most productive. Efficient, isn’t it?”

C9J18 blinked as the system tested its control, briefly amplifying the sensation of the suit against his skin before dulling it to near imperceptibility. The technician chuckled. “Feels good, doesn’t it? Like a second skin. You’ll forget it’s even there—until you can’t.”

The POV shifted to C9J18’s perspective as the technician stepped back, his figure outlined in faint blue by the HUD. A notification appeared in the corner of the display: Integration Complete. Awaiting Commands.

The technician gave him a mocking salute. “Congratulations, cadet. You’re now a fully integrated asset of the Republic. Welcome to the rest of your life.”

As the feed faded, the Intelligence Conscript’s voice returned, smooth and cold. “The suit isn’t just armor. It’s a system. A tool. A way of life. And now, it’s his reality. Every moment, every thought, every action is guided, monitored, and optimized. He’s not just wearing the suit—he is the suit.”

The final shot lingered on C9J18’s HUD, the unrelenting data streams and greyed-out options framing his vision. The screen faded to black, leaving only the faint hum of the system in the background.

[herrenxenoberg]

Introducing my fanschool project...

I have two TWST fanschools in progress but I want to show the one I have been developing for a long while...

Luxglow Prep (Fanschool based on Pixar)

Location of the school (Pinpointed on the game's map):

The school is situated in the Land of Dawning, a distance away from Sage's Island but still relatively close.

Description of the School:

"A magical academy that has the same long-standing reputation as Night Raven College, its door are open to students of all backgrounds who wishes to learn and familiarize with the concept of balanced morality."

This school is founded much later than Night Raven College, but has gained an equal amount of recognition by scholars who are given options after their elementary graduation for its highly advanced facilities and utilities, as well as a very well-organized study environment. Thanks to the advancements of magitech, Luxglow Prep is the first ever arcane academy that adapted the use of the technology into their navigation, organization and power source management. At the core of this academy, lies a highly advanced artificial intelligence going by the name "Lampi", who is tasked with managing the student body, the school network and the dorm sorting process. Unlike Night Raven College, their historical inspirations come from spoken tales about each dorm's motto and theme.

How the school system works:

Because it is more advanced technologically, the school system is vastly different than the other arcane academies in Twisted Wonderland. The admission process revolves a transportation vehicle (similar to MVR-A from WALL-E) arriving at the student's residence, before being asked to rest inside a special pod designed with soft cushions like the NRC coffins. They'll be put into a slumber within the pod by a specially-programmed sleep mist administrator.

Once they arrived at the academy, they'll be placed in a stasis chamber, which is where the sorting ceremony will be held, and will be awakened when the time calls for it. Once awoken, they'll be dressed in the ceremonial robes by automated androids situated in the chamber and brought to the sorting area. The sorting area is where Luxglow Prep's sacred magitech artefact resides, a massive enchanted lamp that is said to sort mages by illuminating them with the light that befits their aptitude and their dorm.

The dorms in Luxglow Prep are labeled as "houses" instead (like sorority houses in colleges), and instead of travelling by mirrors, they travel by doors (similar to ones from Monsters Inc), enchanted doorways that can lead a person to a desired location or contains a dimensional pocket space upon entering.

Luxglow Prep Uniforms:

For the uniform look, I wanted to capture the feel of more rich type of school uniforms with the sweater vest and long sleeve shirts. The PE outfit is mostly a full-body tights and a jersey set they can wear. For the alchemy/lab fit, I took some reference inspirations from the CDA hazmat suits from Monsters Inc as a base. And for the ceremonial robe, I picked the one fit Merida is dressed in from Brave, and made it androgynous enough to work as a ceremonial fit. As for the standard wand they'll use, I went for the staff Ian Lightfoot wields from Onward. (Yeap, a lot of pixar references are packed in one go here).

Staff Members and Dorms will be revealed soon.

[merge-conflict]

matteru

I was searching through my scrivener project yesterday because someone asked me how many WIPs I had and so I became very distracted looking through the insane mess and found this little bit I wrote for an AU I wrote with Sammy where Valentine and VS were both alive in the 2020s– this is the one where Valentine was dying from radiation poisoning and agreed to get Soulkilled and sort of ends up in a whole Smasher-esque situation working at Arasaka and then gets blamed for Saburo's death for political reasons. Anyway! I enjoyed this little Valentine/Goro snippet so I'm sharing it here (~2k words total)

It had been decades since Valentine had been in Night City, but very little had changed, except for the smell. The new smell wasn’t any better than the old one, but it was different in a way that she found difficult to pin down. Some new sort of metallic-earthiness, courtesy of an updated chemical cocktail being pumped into the air. God only knew what kind of new cancer was en vogue. Her own killer had been gamma radiation– her DNA had simply unraveled and that had been the end.

[He’s not going to show.] Johnny flickered into view by Valentine’s elbow, leaning back against the same railing she was looking over. She hadn’t seen him since earlier in the morning. He’d been busy chewing through the processing power and storage she’d allotted him in sullen silence. [We should get out of here.]

[He’ll come,] she said, placidly.

She wished in vain for her hard frame, locked away somewhere in the belly of the Kujira. It was bad enough to be labeled a traitor and hunted like a dog, but to be stuck in this soft borg doll when it happened was almost too much to bear. To be certain, it would have been impossible for her to pass through NC unseen in her frame, seven feet tall and emblazoned with the Arasaka logo in striking black and gold– but her synth skin was feeling uncomfortably fragile just now, chilled and clammy in the humid night air.

[How do you know he’s not going to turn you in?” Johnny asked. He sounded bored. She could feel his restlessness like something slithering through the cords of her thigh muscle.

[Why are you so sure he is?] She shifted her weight from one leg to the other, and the drone on her shoulder gripped a little tighter. When she’d arrived in the city two nights ago she’d had eight functioning drones, but all that was left was little Phiddipus Rex– a fist-sized array of cameras on legs, its face turned towards the city behind her, as it watched for movement in the darkness.

[Every corpo has just one thing on their mind: themselves.] Johnny tapped at his forehead for emphasis.

[And yet I can’t seem to get you off my mind.]

[Gonna get us fucking both killed,] Johnny muttered, shaking his arms out as he glitched in and out of view. [Just because you can’t handle getting cut loose.]

It wasn’t a matter of wanting to be back at Arasaka, but it was pointless to argue with Johnny about the realities of her existence. He was nervous and he hated being in this body almost as much as she did. She couldn’t do much about the latter, but since they were stuck here waiting she might as well see if she could get him to stop feeling sorry for himself.

[You’re worried I’m gonna sell you out,] she said, placidly. [I told you I wouldn’t.]

[Great,] he snapped. [I feel much better.]

[You’re welcome.]

Despite the surge of spite from his corner of her brain, he did eventually relax. He wasn’t doing too badly, considering how recently he’d woken up. No one had prepared him for life after death. She wanted to be angry at him, for killing her, but she had other things to worry about and the collapse of Arasaka tower had been a long time ago. No use in holding a grudge against a man as dead as she was.

While she may have been staring out at the choppy, black water of the canal, her attention was on Rex’s cameras, so she noticed the first signs of movement before the automated alert could zip its way up her spine. She’d expected to see the lights of a car in the tunnel, but instead someone was quietly and dropping down the side of the concrete wall that led up to the street above. Only one figure– she recognized his height and gait immediately. Takemura.

For close to a decade they had played the same game: she had spread her net of drones and cameras across the Arasaka compound and he had tried to walk through them without being detected or detained before he reached the room where their master slept. That game was over. Saburo had met his death on his own two feet, far away from home and their well-tested safety net.

For the first time, she wondered if he was coming to kill her. He could never believe she had done it, of course, but he had loved Saburo the way only an Arasaka child soldier could, and he was loyal. Grief could make anyone unpredictable.

[Eyes up,] Johnny said, mistaking her calm for obliviousness. She ignored him, and let Takemura get closer. He would be able to see Rex on her shoulder, and know she was watching.

He stopped a few meters away, falling into a parade rest, attentive but not hostile. “Higurashi-san. I apologize for being late…I was busy with other matters.”

The nickname made her smile, despite herself. He wouldn’t have used it if he were here to kill her. But Johnny was nervous again, curled tense in her muscles. [What’s he saying?]

“I’m glad you came,” she said to Takemura, in English. “I know it’s a risk.”

“You did not kill Arasaka-sama,” Takemura said resolutely, switching to the same language. He walked to join her at the railing, stepping into Johnny, who glitched and then fizzled out of view. “And you were not involved in any plan to do so. Of this I am certain.”

Valentine turned her head to look down at him through her own eyes. He was shorter than she was, though he didn’t take it personally as some of the other soldiers did. She knew him well enough to read his face in profile and see that he was sincere. But she was unprepared for the feeling of relief that accompanied the realization, like she’d let out a breath she’d been holding all day.

“Thank you,” she said, abruptly turning back to stare at the dark water. The gesture was not neatly done. He knew her well enough to recognize her discomfort and weakness, but it was too late to undo.

Rex still watched out over her back. Their backs. But she could hear Takemura turning to look at her, as his voice met her and not the waters of the canal. “Did you learn anything from the mercenary you found?”

“She was only there for the relic,” she answered, automatically. The question had been an order, and Takemura presided over all matters related to Saburo’s security. Even now. “Both she and her fixer insisted it. They were terrified and arguing before I interrupted them, so I doubt they were lying. Neither she nor her partner killed him.”

“Then who?”

She couldn’t bring herself to say his name. “You know as well as I do.”

“He has ordered your capture,” Takemura said, with the same reluctance. When she didn’t respond he added, “You must lie low. Do you have somewhere–“

“Yes,” she interrupted. “I’ve found someplace safe.”

The last thing she needed was her competence questioned. She’d survived Arasaka for longer than Takemura had been alive, on her own wit. She’d killed all of the soldiers they’d sent after her in that shitty motel. Just because she needed his help for a few things didn’t make her helpless.

“Of course,” Takemura said, a little stiffly. “It is a pity the mercenary did not survive…her testimony may have been useful. We must find some other proof to take to Hanako-sama, to clear your name, and bring Saburo-sama’s killer to justice.”

Valentine met his gaze and held it. “So you’ll help me?”

He nodded. “You would do the same for me, were our situations reversed.”

“I would,” she admitted.

Johnny glitched into view behind Takemura’s shoulders, arms crossed and rolling his eyes. It took considerable effort for her to ignore him, although it was difficult to look directly at Takemura’s face when he was so full of sincerity. It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate it, but she couldn’t quite trust it. She wasn’t a person, she was a tool, and occasionally a weapon. Everyone else understood that.

“I went to the motel,” Takemura was saying, drawing her attention back to the present. “The damage was extensive…I am glad to see that you are unhurt.”

A guttural laugh escaped from her chest before she could stop it. This body made it harder for her to control her impulses. Made it too easy to forget what she was. “Lost my drones.”

That was the whole point of the drones, of her. Arasaka wasn’t afraid to throw bodies at problems, but drones were easily replaced, and they didn’t require decades of investment and implants and psychological evaluation. Or so the presentations her handlers and research team said, when they were asked to justify the cost of her continued existence and the project responsible for her creation. But none of that mattered when the emperor’s son committed patricide, and there would be no replacing the drones that functioned as her eyes and ears and hands outside this soft-shelled prison. Rex was all she had left.

“I am sorry,” Takemura said, quietly. He opened his jacket and pulled something from one of the interior pockets. “I thought you might wish to have this. Some of the black boxes were destroyed, but the others have been retrieved.”

“Which ones were destroyed?” she asked distantly, taking the piece of warped, armored carapace from his hand. It was only a small piece– easy to hide, she guessed, and she didn’t know what to think about the fact that he’d taken it. The outside was scored and pitted, but the inside was mostly untouched, and the luminescent paint she’d used still glowed from light exposure. The fractal design she’d painted there, meant to be visible only to herself during maintenance, was now cracked open and exposed. The Sierpiński triangles meant this was a piece of Sphecius. Sphecius, whose heavy armor had finally broken guarding her from a blow meant to crush her rib cage.

“I cannot be certain,” Takemura replied, apologetically.

“It’s alright,” she said, absently, tracing one of the triangles with her thumb. She would have taken the black boxes themselves, but once the drones were damaged badly enough they started broadcasting a signal to make them easier to find. There was a very similar box tucked up on the inside of her heavily armored breastbone, nestled between her hearts. “Thank you.”

The thanks felt inadequate in English, too trite and insincere. But she was aware again, of Johnny, watching through her eyes. Judging her reactions. He wasn’t the first to watch through her eyes, take note of what she did, measuring her thoughts and reactions. She wasn’t going to give him any further ammunition, even if it meant cheating Takemura of the thanks he truly deserved.

[cute-girls-from-vns-anime-manga]

WHY DOES CUSTOMS EVEN CARE ABOUT A FIGURE LIKE WHAT DO THEY THINK YOU'RE GOING TO DO WITH IT

Well there are multiple reasons for customs to care firstly just making sure that what is being shipped is what the contents say, the reason my package is held up is because DHL's computer systems couldn't handle two people with the same first and last name having something come in at the same time.

So that person who shares my name was sent the information needed to clear it from customs (entry taxes and all that) rather than myself, the only reason I even know this is that person's people contacted me directly using the information on the package label that was sent to them.

Just a reminder how: DONT FUCKING AUTOMATE EVERY SINGLE PROCESS CAUSE YOU CANNOT PREDICT AND PROGRAM FOR EVERY PERMUATION OF REALITY.

[mitchelindustri]

10 Convincing Reasons to Embrace Recycling Machines

In today’s changing world, there’s an ever-growing concern and worry for environmental sustainability. With the global population increasing, waste generation and environmental impact have escalated significantly.

One must undertake recycling as a crucial practice to address these challenges, but conventional methods might not be sufficient. That’s where investing in recycling machines proves to be a smart and forward-thinking choice.

Such advanced machines revolutionise waste management and offer many benefits beyond just being environmentally friendly.

What is a Recycling Machine?

A recycling machine processes recyclable materials into reusable products or raw materials. Its main job is to reduce waste and conserve valuable resources. It is available in multiple sizes and types according to the user’s needs. Also, plastic automation machine systems for recycling are present in the market to ease the process and reduce waste.

Why is a Recycling Machine Crucial?

Cost-Effectiveness

Investing in recycling machines can significantly reduce waste disposal costs for businesses and municipalities alike. By recycling on-site materials, companies can avoid the expenses of transporting waste to distant landfills or recycling centres.

Recycling machines can process various materials, turning them into valuable resources. These include plastics, metals, paper, and glass. These recycled materials provide ample benefits to the manufacturers. They can sell and reuse them, potentially creating a new business revenue stream.

Environmental Advantages

Recycling machines remove waste from landfills. These reduce their environmental impact and preserve valuable land space.

By enabling the recovery and reuse of valuable resources like metals and paper, recycling machines lessen the need for raw material extraction. This conservation of natural resources helps protect biodiversity and minimises habitat destruction.

Energy Efficiency

Extracting raw materials from nature demands significant energy inputs. In contrast, recycling materials generally consume less energy, making it a more sustainable option.

Recycling machines contribute to lower greenhouse gas emissions compared to producing materials from scratch. It plays a crucial role in combating climate change and reducing industries’ carbon footprints.

Waste Volume Reduction

Recycling machines come equipped with features like compaction and shredding, significantly reducing waste volume. This compacting effect results in more efficient storage and transportation of waste materials.

Smaller waste volumes achieved through recycling machines allow businesses and municipalities to optimise waste storage and transportation, leading to cost savings and reduced emissions. Also, the recycling process becomes simpler if you have plastic automation machine systems.

Flexibility and Versatility

Recycling machines can handle various materials, from plastics and paper to glass and electronics. Their adaptability makes them suitable for diverse recycling needs.

Each recycling operation may have unique requirements. Recycling machines come with customisable settings, making it possible to tailor the recycling process to specific materials and goals.

Improved Waste Sorting

Recycling machines incorporate advanced sorting technologies, such as optical sensors and AI-driven algorithms, ensuring precise and efficient separation of recyclable materials.

Contamination in recycled materials can compromise their quality and usability. One can minimise contamination using cutting-edge plastic automation machine systems, resulting in higher-quality recycled products.

Job Creation and Economic Impact

Investing in recycling machines is an excellent way to promote environmental sustainability while stimulating the green economy’s growth. By utilising recycling machines, we can reduce waste and minimise the impact on landfills, which helps preserve natural resources.

We can also strengthen the regional economy by supporting local recycling initiatives through these machines. This is because the machines require skilled labour to operate and maintain, providing employment opportunities for local workers. Furthermore, promoting recycling and sustainability can foster a sense of community responsibility, encouraging individuals to preserve the environment actively.

Compliance with Regulations

Many regions have strict regulations regarding waste management and recycling. Investing in recycling machines helps businesses comply with these regulations and avoid potential penalties.

Recycling regulations are there for every entity to follow. If you do not adhere to the legislature, it will bore hefty fines and legal consequences.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Investing in advanced recycling machines is an example of a company’s unwavering commitment to environmental sustainability. It is pivotal in the present world.

Companies foster a positive reputation and brand image by adopting a solid corporate social responsibility strategy. It is a significant factor in attracting new customers and retaining existing ones.

Additionally, customers will support businesses placing a high value on environmental preservation. When businesses invest in recycling machines, they show their commitment to the environment. Ultimately, by prioritising environmental sustainability, companies can substantially impact their bottom line while contributing to a healthier planet for future generations.

Summing Up

Embracing recycling machines offers a multitude of benefits that extend beyond simple recycling efforts. Incorporating machines into waste management can have numerous benefits. These include cost-effectiveness, environmental advantages, energy efficiency, and job creation. These machines are critical in shaping a better future and can help businesses and communities contribute to a cleaner, greener, and more prosperous world.

[altaqwaelectric]

Top Tips for Fast and Safe Panel Assembly

Panel assembly is a critical process in the electrical industry that directly impacts safety, performance, and efficiency. Whether you’re building distribution panels, control boards, or switchgear systems, the goal is to assemble panels quickly without compromising safety or quality. In this post, we’ll explore proven tips to help electricians, technicians, and panel builders streamline their workflow while ensuring compliance with safety standards.

1. Plan Thoroughly Before Assembly

Efficiency starts with preparation. Before you begin, study the layout drawings and electrical schematics carefully. Make a checklist of all the required components — circuit breakers, relays, terminal blocks, wire ducts, and enclosures.

· Pre-arrange tools and materials

· Verify component compatibility with design

· Identify high-priority tasks and dependencies

A well-organized plan saves time and avoids costly errors during installation.

2. Use Modular and Pre-Fabricated Components

Using modular devices like DIN-rail mountable circuit breakers or pre-assembled terminal blocks can reduce build time significantly.

Benefits:

· Faster mounting and wiring

· Easier upgrades and replacements

· Reduced wiring complexity

Where possible, opt for plug-and-play components or pre-terminated wiring kits.

3. Maintain a Clean and Organized Work Area

A tidy workstation boosts productivity and prevents mistakes. Use labeled bins, trays, and tool organizers to keep everything accessible.

· Segregate power, control, and signal cables

· Keep fasteners and tools sorted by size/type

· Remove scrap materials and wire offcuts regularly

A clean work area also improves safety and reduces trip hazards.

4. Label Components and Wiring Clearly

Proper labeling speeds up installation and future maintenance. Use heat-resistant wire markers or automated labeling machines for consistency.

Label:

· All wires at both ends

· Control devices (relays, contactors, timers)

· Terminal blocks and busbars

Clear identification is essential for testing, fault isolation, and panel certification.

5. Use the Right Torque Tools

Over- or under-tightened terminals can cause failures or fire risks. Always use torque screwdrivers or wrenches calibrated to the manufacturer’s specifications.

· Ensure solid mechanical and electrical contact

· Reduce the risk of arcing or overheating

· Document torque settings for quality records

Following torque guidelines is a best practice for long-term reliability.

6. Apply Effective Cable Management

Good cable routing isn’t just about aesthetics — it enhances performance and safety.

· Use wire ducts, cable ties, and strain reliefs

· Maintain minimum bend radii, especially for data cables

· Separate AC power and control wiring to avoid interference

Neatly routed cables simplify inspections and future modifications.

7. Conduct Final Visual and Electrical Inspection

Before energizing the panel:

· Inspect all terminations and mounting

· Check for exposed conductors or loose parts

· Test insulation resistance and continuity

· Verify grounding and bonding paths

A comprehensive inspection reduces commissioning delays and ensures compliance with safety standards.

8. Document As-Built Changes

If any field modifications were made during assembly, update the panel drawings and documentation to reflect those changes.

Include:

· Wiring diagrams

· Component serial numbers

· Torque test records

· Electrical test results

Accurate documentation is essential for maintenance, certification, and future upgrades.

9. Train Your Assembly Team

Skilled workers build faster and safer panels. Provide regular training on:

· Electrical safety and lockout/tagout

· Schematic interpretation

· Safe use of hand and power tools

· Latest panel-building standards (e.g., IEC, UL, NEC)

An informed and competent team minimizes rework and enhances build quality.

Final Thoughts

Fast panel assembly doesn’t mean cutting corners. By following structured processes, using the right tools, and prioritizing safety, you can consistently deliver high-quality panels — on time and within budget.

Looking for top-tier switchgear accessories and panel-building solutions? Contact us today to explore how we can support your projects with reliable, efficient, and cost-effective products.

[tonigelardi]

The Role of AI in Content Moderation: Friend or Foe?

Written by: Toni Gelardi © 2025

A Double-Edged Sword on the Digital Battlefield The task of regulating hazardous information in the huge, chaotic realm of digital content, where billions of posts stream the internet every day, is immense. Social media firms and online platforms are always fighting hate speech, misinformation, and sexual content. Enter Artificial Intelligence, the unwavering, dispassionate guardian of the digital domain. But is AI truly the hero we need, or is it a silent monster manipulating online conversation with invisible prejudice and brutal precision? The discussion rages on, and both sides present convincing reasons. --- AI: The Saviour of Digital Order. Unmatched speed and scalability. AI is the ideal workhorse for content filtering. It can analyze millions of posts, images and movies in seconds, screening out potentially hazardous content before a human can blink. Unlike human moderators, who are limited by weariness and mental health problems, AI may labor nonstop without becoming emotionally exhausted. The Effectiveness of Machine Learning Modern AI systems do more than just follow pre-set rules; they learn. They use machine learning algorithms to constantly improve their detection procedures, adjusting to new types of damaging information, developing language, and coded hate speech. AI can detect trends that humans may overlook, making moderation more precise and proactive rather than reactive.

A shield against human trauma. A content moderator's job is frequently described as soul-crushing, as it involves exposing people to graphic violence, child exploitation, and extreme hate speech every day. AI has the ability to serve as the first line of defense, removing the most upsetting content before it reaches human eyes and limiting psychological harm to moderators. How Can We Get Rid of Human Bias? AI, unlike humans, does not have personal biases—at least in theory. It does not take political sides, harbor grudges, or use double standards. A well-trained AI model should follow the same rules for all users, ensuring that moderation measures are enforced equally.

The Future Of Content

Moderation as technology progresses, AI moderation systems will become smarter, more equitable, and contextually aware. They might soon be able to distinguish between satire and genuine hate speech, news and misinformation, art and explicit content with near-human precision. With continuous improvement, AI has the potential to be the ideal digital content protector.

AI: The Silent Tyrant of the Internet.

The Problem of False Positives AI, despite its brilliance, lacks human nuance. It cannot fully comprehend irony, cultural differences, or historical context. A well-intended political discussion may be labeled as hate speech, a joke as harassment, or a work of art as pornography. Countless innocent posts are mistakenly erased, leaving people unhappy and powerless to challenge the computerized judge, jury, and executioner.

AI lacks emotional intelligence and context awareness. A survivor of abuse sharing their story might be flagged for discussing violent content. An LGBTQ+ creator discussing their identity might be restricted for “adult content.” AI cannot differentiate between hate speech and a discussion about hate speech—leading to unjust bans and shadowbanning.

The Appeal Black Hole: When AI Moderation Goes Wrong

When artificial intelligence (AI) makes a mistake, who do you appeal to? Often, the answer is more AI. Many platforms rely on automated systems for both content moderation and appeals, creating a frustrating cycle where users are left at the mercy of an unfeeling algorithm. Justice feels like an illusion when humans have no voice in the process.

Tool for Oppression?

Governments and corporations wield AI-powered moderation like a digital scalpel, capable of silencing dissent, controlling narratives, and shaping public perception. In authoritarian regimes, AI can be programmed to suppress opposition, flag political activists, and erase evidence of state crimes. Even in democratic nations, concerns arise about who gets to decide what constitutes acceptable speech.

The Illusion of Progress

Despite its advancements, AI still requires human oversight. It cannot truly replace human moderators, only supplement them. The idea of a fully AI-moderated internet is a dangerous illusion, one that could lead to mass censorship, wrongful takedowns, and the loss of authentic human discourse.

Friend or Foe?

The answer, as always, is both. AI is an indispensable tool in content moderation, but it is not a perfect solution. It is neither a savior nor a villain—it is a force that must be wielded with caution, oversight, and ethical responsibility.

The future of AI in moderation depends on how we build, regulate, and integrate it with human judgment. If left unchecked, it risks becoming an unaccountable digital tyrant. But if developed responsibly, it can protect online spaces while preserving the freedom of expression that makes the internet what it is.

The real question isn't whether AI is good or bad—it's whether we can control it before it controls us.

[cindylouwho-2]

RECENT ECOMMERCE NEWS (INCLUDING ETSY), LATE JULY 2024

Things have been hectic so this is a long one update - all the Etsy and other ecommerce news from the past month, broken down for your convenience!

Next week could be a big Etsy news week, with the 2nd quarter report being released, and the mature items ban kicking in. I'm also working on analysis of the new Creativity Standards, but we may not have more substantial information on those until Etsy makes another move. Right now the categories are a mess, but that could change.

A reminder that you can receive more timely updates plus exclusive content - including live chats with me on select topics such as Etsy's new Creativity Standards - by supporting my Patreon: patreon.com/CindyLouWho2

TOP NEWS & ARTICLES 

The European Union is considering making packages valued under 150 euros subject to customs duties when entering the EU. This is widely seen as a way to reduce Shein and Temu orders. 

The Etsy Creativity Standards announced on July 9th have a lot going on; here is my short summary so far. [post by me on Patreon] While I would not worry too much about this just yet, I expect them to be more important in the near future.  Etsy adding "Made by", "Handpicked by" to every listing is currently full of errors, but more disturbingly, even when a seller points out these errors with arguments from the written policy, Etsy Support is sometimes insisting that the designations are correct. For example, original paintings are lumped in with AI designs and digital downloads. [Post by me on LinkedIn] 

Amazon is imposing new rules regarding on-time delivery rates (OTDR); sellers that do not meet the standard of 90% on time delivery will not be able to continue selling. Businesses are exempted if they use the following tools: Shipping Settings Automation, Automated handling time, and Amazon Buy Shipping. Amazon is allowing only 5 days after shipment for products to arrive within the US. You can read the announcement and vigorous forum discussion here, and EcommerceBytes did a summary of the changes and some complaints.

ETSY NEWS 

As Etsy's widespread ban on many adult-themed products is about to take effect on Monday, I considered why Etsy felt the need to take far more drastic steps than Amazon & eBay has in the same markets. [post by me on Tumblr] The upcoming ban started by getting media attention from Mashable, and quickly escalated to the New York Times [not a gift link; soft paywall]. Etsy is still not commenting on why they are doing this. From the NYT article: "Even before the ban, it was getting harder to run his business, Mr. Goldstein said. So, he thought, “Why don’t we just make our own marketplace?” This year, he started the website Spicerack as an independent alternative to Etsy. The online boutique already has about 75 sellers, which are vetted to make sure they’re not “dropshippers” or simultaneously listing products on e-commerce behemoths like AliExpress or Amazon. Mr. Goldstein said that Spicerack is in the process of adding about 100 more sellers, half of whom signed up when the Etsy ban was announced." From the BBC: “In many countries there is pressure on platforms, sometimes backed by new legislation, to do more to prevent under-18s from encountering explicit content, and to remove illegal or "harmful" content from their platforms. Payment processors are also increasingly wary of working with platforms that enable sex based commerce....those concerns could be addressed by more clearly labelling and separating adult product listings..." The Guardian interviewed a few sellers who are affected.

While Etsy previously stated that the new shop set-up fee would be $15 USD, they quietly changed that, to whatever they feel like charging. [post by me on Patreon]

In case you missed it, the new listing form seems to be triggering Etsy Ads campaigns to start without the seller’s knowledge. [post by me on LinkedIn] Since my post, there are still more reports of this happening, and even more. 

I regret to inform you that Etsy’s Search Analytics are going to disappear after August 14 [post by me on LinkedIn], per a banner on the page.

Canadian sellers will have to pay a 1.15% “Regulatory Operating Fee” on all of their sales income (including shipping and gift wrap) starting August 15. This is likely due to a new law taxing large ecommerce platforms 3% of their Canadian income, which came into effect June 28. The tax applies retroactively back to the beginning of 2022, so Etsy is likely overcharging us to cover those earlier amounts. 

Sellers having difficulties with the domestic pricing tool not working correctly may want to try these tips from an Etsy forum thread: Set the domestic price to the global price amount, save, and then go back in and change the domestic price to your preferred amount, then save again. This apparently works for both new and existing listings, but there are 3 drawbacks: 1) it is time-consuming, 2) it needs to be done any time a listing is changed/edited (including renewals), and 3) it doesn’t seem to work for France. (I don’t ship to France so I cannot test the last point.) Remember, if you have a sale go through for the wrong price, contact Etsy and demand to be compensated the difference. 

Still don’t believe that Etsy is serious about shipping on time? See this Reddit thread by a seller who ignored a 30-day warning, so all of their items were removed from search. From this screenshot, it appears their average order value was fairly high, but that doesn’t mean Etsy will tolerate late shipping from shops with cheaper items, so beware. 

Etsy is testing filtering out digital items from search results unless the terms match a digital item search. See Etsy forum threads here and also here. 

A new academic study calls out Etsy and other online marketplaces for allowing illegally-killed bats to be sold on their sites. “We refute any assertion that the online bat trade is ethical. Again, statements that bats were captive-bred are absurd—bat farms are nonexistent—and it would be impossible for suppliers to find bats that have died naturally in the kind of condition and numbers needed to supply an ornamental trade. These bats were hunted.” The New York Times has also now covered this story [soft paywall]. 

The virtual seller education event Etsy Up is scheduled for September 10. You can register here, but there is no program yet. Usually this event has almost nothing worthwhile for experienced shops, and Etsy generally uses it to push their paid services and integrations along with basic info. 

Etsy is looking for sellers to join their Advocacy program and “share your story”. Beware that sometimes Etsy’s “advocacy” is as much for Etsy as for its sellers, so they are looking for stories that fit Etsy’s own goals. 

The Etsy Design Awards have opened; the final date for submissions is August 8. 

Etsy’s second quarter results for 2024 will be released July 31.

ECOMMERCE NEWS (minus social media)

General

Shein and Temu are facing investigations under the EU’s Digital Services Act. “In a press release, the EU said it’s asking Shein and Temu for more information about measures they’ve taken to meet DSA obligations related to what’s known as “Notice and Action” mechanisms, which should allow users to notify the marketplaces of illegal products.It has also requested info related to the design of their online interfaces, which the pan-EU law mandates must not deceive or manipulate users, such as via so-called “dark patterns”.” Temu is also being sued by Arkansas for having an invasive app that is accused of harvesting data without user permissions. “According to the complaint, Temu is allegedly obscuring its unauthorized access to data through misleading terms of use and privacy policies that do not alert users to the full scope of data that the app can potentially collect. That includes not telling users about tracking granular locations for no defined purpose and collecting "even biometric information such as users’ fingerprints."

Amazon

Amazon now has an AI shopping “assistant” on its US app, called Rufus. “Customers can ask questions about products, comparisons and buying considerations. The AI can provide suggestions for specific tasks or projects.” As per usual with AI, “tests show Rufus doesn’t always provide accurate information.” A review from Marketplace Pulse notes that “Amazon’s AI assistant fails to help shoppers find the best product among the millions in the catalog. It transforms broad questions like “What are the best cycling gloves for winter?” into a few links to product searches — the same searches a shopper could have typed themselves. It refuses to make product recommendations, show specific products, or suggest from the thousands of options. It can’t directly answer the question, “What are the cheapest batteries for my TV remote?”

Any sellers who had items removed for being plants or seeds when they actually aren’t should follow the instructions linked to here to get the situation resolved. An Amazon employee warned sellers: “Please do not acknowledge the violations as these will result in the deactivation of your listings.” Affected businesses should instead appeal the flags.  

Amazon is planning a discount drop shipping from China section, widely seen to be competition to Temu and Shein. However, “[i]t is not clear if these shipments will be made using a U.S. trade provision that exempts individual packages worth less than $800 from U.S. customs duties.”

The European Commission has asked Amazon for more information on “recommender systems, ads transparency provisions and risk assessment measures.” 

Only 1% of US Amazon sellers also offer their items outside of North America. “Due to its proximity to the U.S., Canada has more successful sellers from the U.S. than Canada.” If you have a unique product, this could be an opportunity.  Amazon returns are creating huge workloads for UPS stores and other retailers that accept them. “Amazon “makes up about one-tenth of our profits, but it takes up about 90 percent of the working day,” said Jeremy Walker, a store associate who worked at a UPS Store near Dallas that received between 300 and 600 returns per day.”

Depop

After trying it out in the UK, Depop is removing selling fees for the United States, starting July 15. Payment processing fees still apply. “[B]buyers will now be charged a "marketplace fee" of up to 5% plus a fixed amount up to $1.”

An interview with Depop CEO Kruti Patel Goyal reveals they plan “to bring Depop to a bigger and broader audience over time.” 

eBay

eBay is slowly rolling out changes to the Active Listings page. 

eBay sellers can now get cash advance loans through Liberis, the balance of which gets paid as a percentage of the seller's sales. 

New sellers in the UK might see “automated feedback” on some of their orders, to "help [users] buy and sell with confidence". It will say "This seller successfully completed an order", and is removed once the actual buyer leaves feedback. 

Michaels MakerPlace

Abby Glassenberg reviews Michaels’ MakerPlace popups inside their retail stores. Results seem mixed.

Shopify

A few hundred thousand Shopify users may have had their names, addresses and other data put up for sale on July 3 after a breach. Shopify denies it had any security issues and claims the data came from a third-party app. There was a known data breach at Evolve Bank and Trust in June; that institution is a supporting partner for Shopify Balance. It does appear that Shopify is notifying the affected individuals.

Walmart Walmart is adding pre-owned collectibles to its marketplace. “Eligible categories include Toys (Figures, Dolls, Trains, Plushies, Games, LEGO, Funko, Diecast Cars & Hot Wheels); Media & Music (Movies, Vinyl, Music, SteelBooks, Musical Instruments & Entertainment Replicas); Trading Cards; Comic Books & Books; Sports Memorabilia; and Coins.”

All Other Marketplaces

Indiegogo is opening an ecommerce website for items created through crowdfunding campaigns on the platform, called IndieShop. 

Etsy-owned Reverb now has an “outlet” page, where businesses can sell off their overstock, seconds and out-of-date models for 20% off and free shipping. Most products sold through the main portion of Reverb are used, not new, so this competes with regular sellers. 

Not sure if selling on Faire is right for your business? Here’s a handmade-focussed review of the wholesale site.

Payment Processing

Klarna is now available through Adobe Commerce (previously Magento). 

Shipping

USPS rates for labels on most platforms went up July 1, ahead of the previously-announced July 14th increases. Ina Steiner re-posted the numbers from eBay and Pirate Ship. 

USPS released the addresses and other data of logged-in Informed Delivery users to Meta, LinkedIn and Snap. The company claims it didn’t know the data transfer was happening. 

The free USPS Priority medium shipping tubes are no longer being made, but you can still order existing stock. 

Royal Mail’s Tracked 28 & 48 are now available at post offices. 

UPS’s holiday surcharge rates for the US have been released; the lower surcharges start September 29th.

Shippo has new Canada Post rates from now until January, and the Tracked Packet rates to everywhere but the United States are cheaper than Etsy’s (which are based on Level 4 of Solutions for Small Business). Remember that Shippo makes you pay for a higher tier of service if you use over 30 labels per month.