#but it doesn't need to be a part of consumer electronics

[21st-century-minutiae]

Graphical capacity is measured in pixel density. The more pixels per unit space, the finer the level of detail possible. A '4k' monitor is a display device with around 4000 pixels horizontally. This can imply very small pixels or a very large screen. '4k graphics' refers to visual output that produces images designed for an image with about 4000 pixels horizontally. Smaller/lower resolution monitors are incapable of displaying 4k graphics, as they need to combine the pixel information together to shrink it to fit. High resolution monitors can display low resolution images just fine by extrapolating the image, or by using less space to display it.

High resolution graphics require greater processing power, more computer memory, and better graphics drivers. This can reduce performance by making the computer slower or to have a lower time resolution (fps), or it can be handled with more and more expensive hardware. Generating high resolution, realistic graphics requires extremely expansive image modelling. Each step up in finer levels of detail requires more and more simulation or texture modelling to get the diminishing returns. All this compounds to make older generations of computers obsolete.

Comparatively, lower resolution effects have exponentially lower requirements. The cost is that, once one has been exposed to higher resolution graphics, it appears less realistic. This race to the bottom/top is well known in the early twenty-first century computer and game enthusiasts.

As a direct reaction, 'indie' graphics have risen in popularity. By producing stylized output, one can create very enjoyable low resolution graphics that don't look 'wrong.' It is only when one is attempting to produce 'realistic' graphics that there is the infinite resolution problem.

unironically the constant push for higher-fidelity graphics in games is so frustrating. there's no breathing room for PC or console hardware. any and all gains in hardware performance are immediately mulched by developers deciding their game needs to be 210gb and run at 8k resolutions with completely unoptimized high-resolution textures for every fucking thing on screen and also every light needs to have 4k dynamic shadow maps and volumetric effects and there's egregious particle effects all over the place

[triptychcryptid]

Okay, I have a very weird/dumb idea for that AU where the Grunks end up in the 60's. XD First off, Stan would have inherited an ability from his mother. He'd be an Empath, which means he can feel what others feel. Thanks to @localcanadiancreature62 for pointing out that the ability could explain why he's so charismatic, charming, and so good at manipulating. XD

Caryn would be the only person who knew, and she'd help him learn how to control it and block it out when he needs to, then eventually it just became a part of him, like breathing. Something he doesn't think about. He wouldn't tell Ford or Sherman because he didn't want their Dad to find out.

Anyway, Sherman ends up back in the 60's as well somehow and his reaction to walking into the pawn shop and seeing his brothers is "...What are YOU guys doing in the past?" And they're like "... US?! WHAT ABOUT YOU!?" And he legit has no idea. XD As far as he can tell, he was at work (NASA) there was a blue light, and he was here. Ford thinks whatever happened with his portal may have fucked with the instrument Sherman was working on somehow and pulled him in with them.

So they get talking to their Mom who had started thinking of leaving Filbrick anyway because of the way he treats her and the kids, but it's the 1960's. It's very hard to leave your husband. You can't get your own credit card, it's very hard to get a car or house on your own, or keep your money separate. Now that she's seen what happened to her boys because of him (Sherman leaves on his own at 17 because now he and Caryn are the sole recipients of Filbrick's abuse. He gets himself help and becomes a much better person. He takes care of himself physically, runs marathons and is incredibly intelligent as well. He becoms the father/grandfather he wanted growing up and is very close with his kids and grandkids.He cuts ties with his father, and unfortunately Caryn later on when she can't except his help and won't leave Filbrick out of fear) she's more determined to leave.

The boys all separately decide it's time to get rid of Filbrick. Without saying a word to each other about their plans or anything, one goes out and cuts the breakline on Filbrick's car, knowing he's going on a three day trip with his friends the next day. One puts water and sugar in the gas tank. One puts in too much oil.

Anyway, Filbrick dies, but figures out it's the boys that killed him, so he decides to haunt them. He runs into Bill in ...I guess purgatory? Who decides to use him as a pawn to get the twins. Filbrick's not stupid or easily taken in, but he IS consumed with rage. Bill teaches him how to possess people.

He makes the mistake of posessing Caryn at one point and grabs Stan to punch him, but her Psychometry kicks in and he sees everything he did, and everything that Stan went through because of him. He has no idea what that was, and Ford grabs Stan, pushes him behind him and gets ready to square off with Filbrick. Filbrick grabs Ford's lapels and gets hit with Ford's entire life. And what Bill did to him. And Stanley. While he's distracted, Sherman quickly writes a symbol on Caryn's forehead that's meant to repel demons, but not before grabbing Caryn/Filbrick's hand so he can get an extra helping of "LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO ME, ASSHOLE"

Filbrick gets kicked out of Caryn and can no longer possess people. He can only speak through electronic devices or possess smallish animals. So after some failed attempts (because no one wants to listen to him) of talking to his sons through the radio, he possess an Italian Greyhound and talks to them through it. The boys (old AND young) all laugh their assess off at this for the first few days. Like he can't do ANYTHING without setting them off.

[mint-in-the-moonlight]

I used to think about offerings as making a sacrifice for the gods, i.e., giving something up for them. However, after doing more research and contemplating the topic, I came to the conclusion that it makes more sense to me, and it is seemingly closer to historical Roman practices, to think of it as sharing something with the gods.

I think this shift helped me in many ways but most importantly, I don’t feel like I need to "suffer" to please the gods. Instead I can share stuff with the gods.

With this framing, I feel like you can get a little creative with your offerings as long as you keep the core in mind and follow some general traditions, like offering part of a meal or drink first before you consume it, saying some sort of prayer with it, etc. If we count in the need for solitary practice and the general unavailability of open fire, many traditional Roman ways of giving offerings are just not really doable anymore. As a revivalist, I feel we can substitute and get a little creative as long as we keep the underlying standards.

So, for example, while I mostly do libations of water or alcohol, sometimes I offer part of some other drink I'm drinking. If I'm outside or somewhere with a sink, I pour out some (if that is safe), or offer the first sip I drink. This doesn't necessarily need to be one of the standard liquids that are offered, I just like sharing my little fruity drink with the gods and thanking them for their blessings.

On the topic of electronic offerings, I find myself unhappy with the "offering" part of the term. Making an electronic "offering", I'm thinking mainly of the moodboard/Pinterest board kind, is more of a contemplative activity, a sort of meditation. For the ones I've done, in the form of "moodboards", I felt compelled to think deeply about the imagery and symbolism that I associate with a certain deity and how to incorporate elements particular to my request. So I think they're perfectly okay to do as long as we understand that they're not really "offerings" per se, and they're more done for our sake. They should be supplemented with at least a prayer, and ideally a physical offering or libation.

In conclusion, as long as we keep the general structure, remember what the purpose of giving offerings is, we can somewhat adapt giving offerings to our situations and lifestyles. But offerings should always come with some amount of effort, a moment of prayer or silent contemplation. Offerings have a purpose, and while we don't always need to be extremely formal and structured with them if we don't feel the need to, they are meant to honour the gods. And nothing honours the gods less than carelessness.

With that being said, I also didn't address other kinds of offerings in this post (I just focused on libations and electronic offerings for uhhh... reasons), so keep in mind that there are more ways to give offerings than what I've outlined here.

[ms-demeanor]

Hey! I appreciate your perspective on computer-based things. I think I need to get a laptop and would love your opinion on decent brands. If you don't have an opinion or want to answer please disregard the q.

Context: I'm often on the move and really want something small, light, and that will last a long time. I'm bad about buying new things or taking things to be fixed so ideally it's not something that dies quickly or needs frequent repairs. For a while I used an iPad for this but I need more of a keyboard than tablets have and the shelf life of an iPad is shorter than it should be for the cost. Mine is 7 years old and only works while plugged in... I liked my Macbook Pro I got for college but it's almost 15 years old and given I haven't needed a new one since I don't think spending all that on a Mac makes sense either. I use a gaming PC mostly but I'm going to need to travel a lot more in the upcoming year. I'm ok to spend up a bit since I want it to last.

I think you're going to have to adjust your expectations about the average functional lifespan of electronics. Seven years is a lot to get out of any tablet and fifteen years is way way way above average for a computer.

At work we estimate that the functional lifespan of a laptop will be around five years and the functional life of a desktop will be around seven years; we include upgrades in that lifespan, like adding RAM and storage.

It is not *unusual* to get more than five years out of a laptop or seven years out of a desktop, but if you are a heavy user of anything other than a browser and a word processor, that's about the time when you'll find that the computer feels slow enough to be frustrating. This isn't a hard limit, and it's not something that everyone experiences because people use computers differently, but if you're an artist and you use a drawing program that program will start to feel slow after a while because as updates and patches and drivers have been tweaked for newer devices they've slowly left your device in the dust.

This isn't planned obsolescence, by the way. Computer manufacturers try to "future proof" their devices to a certain extent, but you just can't anticipate certain kinds of changes. Maybe your laptop was manufactured before there were consumer SSDs available so its operating system doesn't take the advantages and limitations of SSDs into account. Maybe your desktop was built for DDR3 RAM and we're now on DDR5 and people aren't writing programs to the standard of the old technology, they're taking advantage of the standards of the new technology.

Since you were able to use your devices comfortably for such a long time, it sounds like you're not a very heavy user and don't need to worry too much about beefing up your specs. However it does sound like you want to keep your computer and use it as long as possible while paying a reasonable price for it (which is good! I think we should all try to extend the lives of our electronic devices as much as possible!).

I actually think you sound like a good match for a Framework laptop.

Framework is a company that makes laptops that are a lot more modular than what's on the market these days. They're mean to be easy to open up for upgrades and sturdy for heavy use. Most of the parts of the laptop are easily replaceable - including the screen - so you can use them for a long time and easily make upgrades that will help the computer feel fresher.

They're a bit more expensive than comparable PCs but much easier to repair if you aren't comfortable opening up your own computer (framework is intentionally built to be easy for people who are non-technical to work on their computers), and they are a LOT less expensive than comparable macs.

I still think you're probably looking at around 7 years of regular use out of a Framework and it won't *break* at that point, it will just. Probably be a bit slow and frustrating. You might not be able to get parts for it after a certain point. You eventually won't be able to upgrade the OS. But that's true of all computers.

I've still got my 2005 macbook. It still turns on, I can still use garage band on it. But it doesn't connect to the internet and uses such an old USB standard that it is extremely slow to transfer data on or off of and it cries and freezes if i try to use photoshop. It's not broken, it's just no longer useful as a daily computer.

What I'm defining as functional here is "Is able to run multiple programs (including at least one browser with 50+ tabs open and two office suites) at the same time for 8-10 hours a day without crashing, freezing, or losing data and restarting is not a major inconvenience."

In those terms, it does sound like you're probably in need of an upgrade (I can't imagine that your current machine is particularly quick) and I think that a framework laptop would suit your needs well.

If you're looking for something somewhat less expensive, you can generally find a decent thinkbook with a 12th or 13th gen i5 processor, 16GB RAM, and a 500GB SSD for around $700-ish, which is the low end of what I think you're going to pay for a decent laptop. I'm reccing lenovo here because I personally like them and have found them to be very easy to crack open for repairs and upgrades. Stick to the thinkbook over the thinkpad because that's the business line and is a bit sturdier and they are designed to be easier to upgrade over time.

Actually, here's a thinkbook with a 12th gen i5, 40GB RAM, and a 1tb SSD for under $700. That's a shockingly good price for that laptop; the reseller OEMGenuine is one I've purchased from many times before for work and I've found them to be reliable, though the reason those specs are so good is because they've added aftermarket parts, so your RAM and SSD won't be under warranty from Lenovo.

For Framework you're looking at at least $1000, but it's easy to plug and play with upgrades so you can start out with lower specs (except processor, don't cheap out on the processor) and upgrade later. The framework is a bit smaller and easier to travel with, but I have a laptop quite similar to the lenovo and it's not a huge pain to move around - it's very light but the 15" screen might be bigger than you're looking for.

If you're willing to spend a little bit more and you're very uninterested in doing your own upgrades and would prefer the most computer you can get for your money right out of the gate, this is a 12th gen i7 thinkpad with 40GB RAM and a 2TB SSD for $1150. (I've not ordered from this reseller before, so maybe check over their terms if you're considering purchasing from them.)

[mariacallous]

If there's one word on your mind this week, it's probably tariffs. Last week, President Trump announced sweeping tariffs on foreign goods imported into the US, setting the stage for a global trade war and stoking fears of a recession. A blanket 10 percent tariff on all imports kicked off on Saturday, April 5, with additional reciprocal tariffs on 60 countries to take effect by April 9.

It's a wildly dynamic situation that's changing by the day, but you might wonder how this affects you. The first thing to know is that tariffs are paid by the company importing a product into the country. In short, that fee affects their bottom line, so companies often pass those costs on to consumers by increasing the price of the goods.

Here's an example from Jason Miller, a professor of supply chain management at Michigan State University: Let’s say a laptop costs $400 at import in the US. A retailer would then add an average gross margin rate of 30 percent—how much revenue the retailer retains after deducting the cost to produce or acquire the item—and that laptop will now cost $571. That's the price you'll pay at a big box store.

China exports a lot of laptops to the US, and as of April 9, you'll have to factor in the 104 percent tariff, according to the latest figures. Based on historical data that suggests 95 percent of the tariff is absorbed by the importer, the import price jumps by $395 to $795, and if the retailer passes those costs to you, the new total you'll pay at the store is $966. That represents 69 percent inflation, and the retailer's gross margin rate is lowered to 18 percent. Basically, you pay more, and the retailer earns less.

Every country has been affected by Trump's tariff salvo. While many product categories will likely see prices rise, electronics is a big one. "There’s not any major electronics-producing nation that’s not substantially affected by tariffs," Miller says, including Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan, and India. He believes tariffs will be negotiated for many countries, but expects the tariffs on China to stay.

That will heavily impact the prices of goods like smartphones, laptops, and video game consoles. Smartphones are the largest import from China, with laptops sitting in second. Miller says it's important for consumers to understand that while there were tariffs on some goods from China before, there were zero tariffs on electronics like smartphones and laptops as of January 2025.

His advice? If you were planning on upgrading your laptop, tablet, or smartphone soon—maybe the battery is lackluster or it's just too old—do it now. “Buy it now. Do not wait, it makes no sense to do that,” he says. You likely won't see prices rise for a few months as companies have stocked up on goods ahead of the impending trade war, but if nothing changes in the coming weeks, Miller expects to see prices soar starting in June or July.

Miller rattled off various categories outside of electronics that would also be affected, specifically from China, which is the second largest source of imports to the US behind Mexico:

Furniture

Shoes and apparel

Microwave ovens

Silverware, plates

Blinds, linens, and curtains

Toys

Solar panels

Building materials, like vinyl flooring

Cashews

Candles

Fans

Air conditioner parts

Golf clubs

Exercise equipment

Keyboards

Auto parts

Christmas ornaments and Home Decor

Toilets

Food blenders

Seafood

Outside of higher prices, Miller says consumers should expect less product variety. “What importers are going to do is they're only going to import their most profitable, best-selling items for which they know they can still make a profit under these tariff regimes.” Apple will still import its iPhones, but a smaller smartphone maker that doesn't sell many units of a specific model may skip the US market entirely. It will also negatively impact any product where there's already a lot of consumer sensitivity to price increases.

How Are Companies Reacting?

A few companies have already made tariff-related announcements on their products. Nintendo canceled the original April 9 preorder date for the Switch 2 video game console and has yet to provide a new date, though its June 5 launch window hasn't changed.

Jaguar Land Rover Automotive is pausing auto shipments to the US this month. And Framework, known for making repairable laptops, is also pausing sales on a few models of its base Framework Laptop 13. Razer seems to have paused direct sales of its laptops in the US, though the company hasn't responded to our request for comment. Fujifilm announced a new Instax 41 camera today, but says it “has not yet determined the camera's pricing for the US market.”

WIRED reached out to more than 70 companies, from electronics manufacturers to coffee companies, asking if they could share any details about potential price increases on imported products. The vast majority, like Garmin, Oura, Amazon, Logitech, OnePlus, and Steelcase, declined to comment, while others said it was too early to discuss pricing. Still, some companies responded.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Popular home office furniture brand, Branch, says it has been preparing for trade policy changes for some time, finding efficiencies in its supply chain to absorb the impact of tariffs with minimal increases to pricing. The company says there's a lot of uncertainty: “Candidly, we may need to adjust some prices in the coming months, particularly for products sourced from countries where tariff rates came in significantly higher than we anticipated.” Branch says if there is a price change, it will be to protect margins rather than to expand them. It's worth noting that Branch's Ergonomic Chair, long recommended in WIRED's Best Office Chairs guide, used to be $339 but is now $359, though Branch says the price was adjusted before tariffs were announced.

Drip coffee maker Moccamaster says it may absorb “some short-term pressures at the US level," though it's too early to confirm whether prices will increase. Portland-based coffee machine maker Ratio says it's holding prices steady through April, but “tariffs this high will unequivocally compel higher retail prices—potentially much higher. We are a small business that was already struggling with increasing costs.”

Moment, which makes camera bags and photo equipment, says it will increase prices on “most items” by $5 to $10 next week, though the company says some prices will stay the same and some will go down. “Unfortunately, these tariffs make it impossible for us to continue without cheapening the quality, laying off the team, or forcing our mom-and-pop suppliers out of business,” the company says in a newsletter it sent out to subscribers.

Supernote, a company that makes digital notebooks, pointed to a statement it made on Reddit. It's implementing a price increase in the US by the end of April: “We are actively adjusting our supply chain to mitigate the long-term impact of these tariffs," the company says on Reddit. ”These adjustments take time, especially with the new tariffs hitting everything from people to penguins, which makes the situation more complicated. It's going to be a tough time."

The company behind smart bird feeders from brands like Harymor and Sehmua, says it's exploring strategies to absorb costs internally, with no price adjustments—"We are facing rising expenses that directly affect our profit margins. … We recognize the competitive nature of the market and the price sensitivity of our customers."

Meanwhile, Samsung hasn't responded to our request for comment yet, but the company told Reuters the tariffs don't affect its TVs as much since most are produced in Mexico.

We'll keep adding information from brands as we receive it. While it's too early to make a definitive statement on an ever-evolving situation, we can probably expect higher prices on almost everything if the tariff situation remains unchanged. The last thing we want is for everyone to panic buy, but if you need a new phone, a mechanical keyboard, or an air purifier, you should probably start looking now.

[andmaybegayer]

Last Monday of the Week 2025-05-26

You must believe that it will go on forever

Listening: Listened to the soundtrack from The People's Joker, which you can roughly find here

There are a lot of bangers in this one but I do think I have to put down Back of the Truck

You should definitely watch The People's Joker it is a truly incredible piece of art. It is literally the only piece of Batman media I have ever consumed start to finish.

Reading: A bunch of scattered articles on ocean plastic in an attempt to better understand some of the claims made in a book I read a while ago, still piecing those together.

Also a lot of electronics part specs because I'm trying to do another PCB project and I am in the hell that is finding parts that are cheap, in stock, and well documented. This is a fight you can win but it involves giving up the part of yourself that doesn't understand how Molex names their parts.

Watching: Watched Les Barbouzes/The Great Spy Chase, a French spy comedy film from the 60's where the conceit is "what if five different countries sent their spies to recover some valuable documents at the same time and they all had to play nice while trying to get one over on each other.

It's very funny! Genuinely some incredible comedy in this movie, but also, Le Racisme! Le Racisme is relatively limited and you should still probably watch this.

In addition to this, at bad movie night Rollergator, a movie by a director who has featured here before when he did Legend of the Rollerblade Seven which is the worst movie we've ever run at Bad Movie Night. Rollergator is about a girl who finds a tiny purple gator puppet who raps and also does one Le Racisme (American) when he does impressions as a bit.

The director of these movies (Donald G. Jackson) Made a like million dollars on one movie and then pioneered the concept he called "Zen Filmmaking" which is when you don't write a script and just wander around easily accessible sets freestyling it. The movies he produces are both unwatchably bad and have negative production value, with untraceable plots, inaudible audio, and pointless dialogue. I cannot really recommend that you watch this one.

Playing: A few more levels of Skin Deep, in part because my partner wanted to see it. Playing or talking video games around them (and a few of my other friends) is funny because it makes me feel like the Video Game Ulysses Ogre. I'm all "Aaaah ogre so stupid ogre can only just make use of smoke grenades, ogre not even begin to correctly employ jiggle peeking" meanwhile they're like "yeah I get frustrated at Arkham Asylum on easy."

Also more Echo Point Nova which is rapidly becoming one of my favourite shooters. I feel like I'm not doing myself any favours refusing to use a controller here, aim assist would probably be great, but I am getting shockingly good at playing Clay Pigeon on the hoverboard guys with my shotgun.

Making: 3D printed speaker stands for my PC speakers, which need some work or maybe just some cleverer design to prevent them from leaning way forwards. Still working on it. Continuing to fiddle with various designs for my new desk setup.

Tools and Equipment: I finally bought some noise cancelling wireless earphones and they are kind of killer for the metro. I have previously worn earplugs on the metro but they are way more inconvenient. I have known how good ANC is for a long time but it really cannot be overstated how nice it is to be able to a) listen to music on the metro without blowing your eardrums out and b) just suppress ambient noise for a bit. Sometimes I've been throwing them in if I want to keep listening to a podcast while I boil the kettle or turn on the microwave.

These are the new CMF Buds 2 which were like USD 50-ish? I'm sure if you get a new Sony it's better and these definitely struggle with more variable, less monotonous noises, but they're great for the price.

[lunarsilkscreen]

An Alternate Take on Wonka

It was a job interview; and despite the bleak hunger games outlook (especially in the original) every child got both what they needed and deserved.

Augustus Gloop was a tourist. If anything; Wonka gave him an excellent experience in chocolate as a Theme Park. Unlimited free chocolate and a chocolate roller coaster slide.

That it's portrayed as something *inherently dangerous* comes from Wonka's showmanship. As we don't actually see what happens afterwards.

Veruca Salt gets in the way of production and is sent down the management chute. Just another set-up for "Theme Park Day".

She represents cunning business tactics and poaching of skilled employees, and business practices. She doesn't need the factory because her father could simply buy one AND THE staff for her.

There's this constant view that the machinery is dangerous, and it is. Dangerous. But not on theme park day; a day where the entire factory is set-up for small children to walk through. And Wonka still wants his brand to be successful and to network with the people he's selected. Politicians, Competition, Overseas Expansion, even a protege.

Violet Blueberry Beauregard learns as much as she can from Wonka, until she's literally stuffed to the gills with both knowledge and Wonka's experience. She doesn't need the factory, because she wants and has the ability to start her own; or become a successful politician.

And Mike TeeVee represents something else; somebody who's dreams and future are on a completely different profession; Television and Electronics. Very useful to Wonka; but not as his employee.

He questions Wonka's motives about advertising and what exactly his motives are about on air broadcasting. He's a product and literal child expert on television. He successfully criticizes and demonstrates the failings of his approach to television marketing.

And then Charley; either the whole thing was set-up just for him specifically. Which is possible, or its because he's an incredibly smart and resourceful kid. He's just there for the ride, not to become rich and v famous, or a world class chocolatier. Just for the experience.

Unlike everybody else; he has absolutely nothing he can offer Wonka. No political or business dealing, he's just some street urchin with no future to Wonka.

And Wonka treats him as such.

Despite the other kids literally being sucked and thrown into trash chutes and waste receptacles; Charlie is the only child he treats like trash.

Whether it was an act, or something else that changed Wonka's mind (at different timeline points for story reasons) Wonka eventually realizes; this kid is very much like himself. Maybe not a Candied Moosiér like himself; but somebody capable of great that has no way to realize his own goals or dreams.

The chocolate factory give away represents two very different things; perhaps Charlie could become like Wonka, or he could use it up completely and do as he wishes to pursue a goal he otherwise couldn't.

The factory, after-all has been shutdown for years and Wonka himself is looking into automation and expansion while not wanting to or needing to continue working simultaneously.

And Charlie on the other hand; enjoyed the factory tour and got more out of it. He enjoyed the Tour like a Tourist, he observed the inner workings, even the stuff Wonka didn't want to showcase despite making a big show of not showing it. He consumed knowledge and candy alike like the other children and didn't get full of it.

He didn't treat the staff like pets, he observed and learned about the things he didn't know instead of trying to take it apart.

And the biggest part; he understood and liked what Wonka Candy Products stood for; so much so, that despite having the gobstopper; either unlimited candy for life, or a guaranteed payday and ability to revenge Wonka into bankruptcy, he took neither of those.

Because he knew when to stop eating candy, and that simply not supporting the candy anymore would be damaging enough after having been on the tour only 10 people got to go on.

Plus he embodies that "I'd rather work for it myself" ethic that boomers enjoy.

[savvyhrms01]

Simplify Tax Season: How Tax Management Software Lowers Stress and Saves Time.

Every year, a lot of us dread tax season, but it doesn't have to be that difficult and time-consuming. If the right tools are available, a typically chaotic period can be turned into a controlled, well-organised procedure. Among the best instruments for this? Software for tax management.

Let’s break down how this technology makes tax time simpler and far less stressful.

Organize Everything in One Place No more digging through receipts, spreadsheets, or email threads. Tax management software centralizes your financial documents—income reports, expenses, payroll data—all in one secure platform. Everything is where it should be when you need it.

Automatic Calculations Mean Fewer Mistakes Errors are more likely to occur when numbers are calculated by hand, and they can be costly during tax season. By automating computations according to current tax regulations, the tax software system helps you stay out of trouble and guarantees that your figures are correct right away.

Save Hours on Preparation Tax software does the heavy lifting for you, saving you days of data collection, form completion, and double-checking entries. To save you time, a lot of platforms even provide guided filing procedures that take you step-by-step through the entire process..

Stay Updated and Compliant Tax laws change often. Quality software updates regularly to reflect new regulations, so you don’t have to track every rule change manually. This keeps your business compliant without added effort on your part.

Easy Filing and Quick Access to Reports Most tax platforms allow you to file electronically, often directly through the software. You can also pull detailed reports at any time, whether for internal review or for sharing with your accountant or auditor.

Concluding remarks

If you've ever felt overworked or behind schedule during tax season, you might want to think about investing in tax management software. It will not only simplify your life but also guarantee accurate, timely, and efficient tax processing.

[incitytowing]

How to Sell a Damaged Vehicle Through Cash for Cars?

Are you struggling to get rid of your damaged car? Are you wondering if anyone would actually pay cash for a non-running vehicle? Are you looking for the easiest way to turn that wreck into real money? You're in the right place. Selling a damaged vehicle may feel like a headache, but it doesn't have to be. Thanks to Cash for Cars services, you can turn your unwanted or accident-damaged vehicle into fast cash without dealing with shady buyers or endless paperwork. In this blog, we'll cover how to sell a damaged vehicle through Cash for Cars step-by-step and explain why this method is the most hassle-free and profitable option for vehicles in poor condition.

🚗 What Is "Cash for Cars"?

Cash for Cars is a service that buys old, broken, accident-damaged, or scrap vehicles for instant payment. These buyers typically:

Offer free quotes

Handle towing and pickup

Pay you on the spot

Accept cars in any condition

Whether your car has been in an accident, has a blown engine, or failed its MOT, the parts or scrap metal still have value—and that's what Cash for Cars companies pay for.

💡 Why Choose Cash for Cars for a Damaged Vehicle?

Here are the top reasons why Cash for Cars is ideal for damaged vehicles:

✅ Quick and Convenient – No need to fix, list, or negotiate with buyers.

✅ Instant Payment – Many services pay in cash or bank transfer the same day.

✅ No Hidden Fees – Most include free towing and no admin charges.

✅ Any Condition Accepted – Wrecked, non-starting, or even fire-damaged cars are welcome.

✅ Eco-Friendly Disposal – Responsible recyclers often dismantle and reuse parts.

📝 Steps to Sell a Damaged Car Through Cash for Cars

1. Gather the Car's Details

Before contacting a service, get the following information ready:

Make, model, and year

Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)

Current mileage

Level and type of damage

Whether the car starts or drives

Registration and ownership documents

Being transparent helps you get a fair and precise price quote.

2. Request Multiple Quotes

Reach out to a few reputed Cash for Cars services (local or national). Provide the details above and request quotes. Compare:

Price offered

Whether pickup is free

Speed of payment

Customer reviews

Pro Tip: 

Some services may offer more for vehicles with reusable parts, such as good tyres, alloy wheels, or working electronics.

3. Choose the Best Offer

Don't automatically go for the highest quote—ensure the service has a stellar reputation. Read reviews, check their policies, and confirm they:

Don't charge extra for pickup

Provide a written confirmation

Accept vehicles as-is

4. Arrange Pickup and Paperwork

Once you accept the cash for cars offer:

Book a convenient time for pickup

Sign over the logbook (V5C) to the buyer

Inform the DVLA (UK) or the relevant authority that you've sold the vehicle

Get a bill of sale or receipt for your records

Important: 

Remove your personal belongings, cancel your insurance, and return the tax disc if applicable.

5. Get Paid!

On the collection day, the buyer should review the car (no surprises if you were honest about the damage), and pay you on the spot. Most services pay via:

Instant bank transfer

Cash (where legally allowed)

Cheque

🔧 What If the Car Is Beyond Repair?

Even if your car is lost, it still has scrap value. The metal, engine parts, wheels, and even the battery can be recycled. Cash for Cars services will often:

Take it to an authorized treatment facility (ATF)

Break it down for recyclable materials

Safely dispose of fluids and waste

It is a much greener and more rewarding option than letting it sit and rust away.

⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Accepting the first quote without comparing

❌ Not revealing significant damage (may reduce payout)

❌ Forgetting to cancel road tax or insurance

❌ Leaving personal documents or items in the car

✅ Final Thoughts

Selling a damaged vehicle doesn't have to be complicated or time-consuming. With the help of a trusted company offering Cash for Cars in Calgary, you can skip the repairs, avoid dodgy buyers, and walk away with cash in hand—often within 24 hours. Whether it's a non-runner, flood-damaged, or a total write-off, there's value to be found—and companies ready to pay for it. Are you prepared to sell your damaged car? Contact Incity Cash for Scrap Cars today, and turn that burden into cash in just a few simple steps.

[quickparts14]

Material Choices in 3D Metal Printing: A Guide for Designers

The fast growth of metal 3D printing has changed how engineers and artists think about manufacturing things.  Metal printing gives designers more freedom, allows for complicated shapes, and speeds up the prototyping process for everything from aircraft parts to medical implants.  But picking the right material is very important to make sure the end part works well, lasts a long time, and doesn't cost too much. We will introduce you to the most common metals used in 3D printing, their properties, and considerations for selecting the best material for your particular application.

Why Material Choice Matters in Metal 3D Printing

The metal 3d printing can fabricate delicate structures and geometries that are difficult to impossible to make by subtractive or formative processes. However, these printed parts depend much upon the properties of the metal selected. Factors such as strength, ductility, corrosion resistance, and thermal stability all influence whether a material is suitable for your design's intended use.

Common Metals Used in Metal Printing

1. Stainless Steel

Properties: Corrosion-resistant, fine mechanical properties.

Applications: Aerospace, automobiles, medical devices, consumer products.

Considerations: Balance of strength and corrosion resistance; good for functional prototypes and final parts.

2. Titanium Alloys

Properties: High strengths relative to weight; highly corrosion resistant; biocompatible.

Applications: Aerospace, medical implantation, and high-performance engineering.

Considerations: Expensive and difficult to process; if weight and durability are critical, go for this material.

3. Aluminum Alloys

Properties: Lightweight with good thermal and electrical conductivity, decent strength.

Applications: Aerospace components, automotive parts, consumer electronics.

Considerations: Less strong than steel or titanium, but excellent for weight-sensitive applications.

4. Nickel-Based Superalloys

Properties: Outstanding high-temperature strength, oxidation, and corrosion resistance.

Applications: Turbine engines, heat exchangers, and aerospace applications.

Considerations: More challenging to print due to its melting behavior; ideal for high-stress, high-temperature environments.

5. Cobalt-Chromium Alloys

Properties: High wear resistance, strength, and biocompatibility.

Applications: Medical implants, dental prosthetics, and jewelry.

Considerations: It is suitable for applications where precision and durability are paramount concerns.

Factors to Consider When Selecting Metal Materials

Mechanical Properties: Does your part need to have higher strength, more ductility, or better fatigue resistance? Aerospace considerations, for example, require lightweight but durable materials such as titanium or aluminum.

Corrosion Resistance: In moist or chemically reactive environments, the best materials would be stainless steel, titanium, or nickel alloys.

Temperature Resistance: High-temperature applications, such as turbine blades or engine parts, usually prefer superalloys or cobalt-chromium alloys. 

Cost and Processability: Some metals might be simply too expensive or complicated to print, such as titanium and superalloys. Try to balance performance needs with budget constraints.

Design Complexity: Depending on the printability and post-processing requirements of the metals, intricate geometries can be created better with one kind of metal than another. 

Post-Processing Needs: Consider whether your part will require heat treatment, surface finishing, or machining after printing, as this can influence the choice of metal.

Choosing the right metal printing material involves balancing your design’s functional requirements with material properties, processing considerations, and budget. 

By staying informed about the most commonly used metals in 3D printing and their applications, you'll be better equipped to leverage this transformative technology for innovative and effective design solutions.

[rametarin]

This underlines an important difference that architecture and software/firmware can make.

We'll start seeing a better return on investment in terms of computing power for watt consumed within the next 30 years, as optoelectronic components start replacing conventional electronics. Light based transistors consume less energy and produce less wasted energy in the form of heat, with faster and more efficient movement to process faster. This translates into absurdly energy sipping computers that will make today's personal PCs look like old timey factories run with coal smokestacks and burning environmental and worker safety regulations.

Then imagine these optoelectronic transistors getting the double whammy of neural net circuits to function in, and assembly level programs with which to run on them, maximizing their architectural real estate for results. The amount of infrastructure required for them absolutely will, inevitably, shrink down as compact as the personal computer did from the gymnasium sized mainframes of yore made of vacuum tubes and government grants. And these specialized AI networks of today being replicable and insertable into a personal PC, as we do graphics cards today.

The most interesting part will be seeing how the AI that combines and consolidates the sum total of human knowledge on the internet will merge and sort until it has only very few constants to keep in memory it can use to shorthand what it sees so it doesn't spend all its time duplicating files for redundant amounts of memory and hard drive space retention. Similar to the way you don't need to memorize the individual way every word in the dictionary is written, you just need to memorize the 26 Latin letters of the alphabet to form over hundreds of thousands of unique words. Exactly what fundamental constants of art and photography it keeps for shorthand because it saves energy or space in order to efficiently reproduce enough images uploaded to the internet to be worth it, will be a very interesting thing to know.

[andmaybegayer]

Last Monday of the Week 2023-06-26

I have learned so many new things about the specifics of the GPL against my will.

Listening: Remembered that I was kind of hyped for Rodrigo y Gabriela's new album "In Between Thoughts... A New World" which is just a lot of showing off on the guitar. Very much the soundtrack to a movie that doesn't exist.

Reading: Finally remembered the books I was reading long enough to finish Children of Time. Bizzare ending, not bad, but I can see why this might lead to a less well received second book. Spidertech gets increasingly ridiculous in ways that are just on the balance of predictable and ridiculous that I find very funny. They do computing on ants. Also there is an entire society of intelligent mantis shrimp in the periphery of this book. They need a spin-off.

Started Kaiju Preservation Society by Scalzi. I have not in fact read very much Scalzi but this one did sound funny and I was down for sci-fi comedy.

Watching: Continuing the Fast and Furious Watch, with The Fast And The Furious (2009) which is the second movie called that. This feels like it's resetting the storyline so that they can go wherever they're planning on going with this. I liked it a normal amount! There is a level of restraint on display that does not come to mind when I tell you that within 5 minutes of the movie starting, Vin Diesel has driven a car underneath an exploding fuel tanker truck.

Playing: a lot of Mars First Logistics, the recently-in-early-access mars cargo robot building game.

A good balance of constrained and freeform, parts are slowly meted out as you progress through the "story missions" in as much as those exist, which sees you building a rocket, a biosphere, a rover soccer stadium, a resort, etc. out of ever more unwieldy components in ever more inhospitable terrain.

At times navigation can become just straight up ridiculous, forcing you to either charge up and down steep hills with unstable cargo or attempt to gradually work your way the slow way around. A very forgiving vehicle reset and a less forgiving cargo reset goes a long way to making this manageable. You always have the option to strap rockets to your vessel and cast yourself to the wind, which comes in handy pretty often.

Making: Sat down with FreeCAD and sketched out the apartment for future use, now I need to do the furniture. FreeCAD is not the best or the worst CAD package I've used but it's basically the only one that runs on Linux, unless you have several thousand dollars to drop on Siemens NX. A halfhearted attempt to throw the skeleton of the apartment at povray resulted in this brutalist masterpiece.

Tools and Equipment: I got the iFixit Prying and Opening Tool Kit which is a set of plastic wedges, spudgers, and cards intended for opening electronics. I've always just kind of done this with whatever is lying around and I gotta say it's a big improvement. They're decidedly consumable parts, but they're also cheap enough to justify that.

[evtlblogindia]

EVTL India Helps You Ensure Lawful Sales in India with BIS Certification for Smart Watches

The Indian smartwatch market is experiencing swift growth, fueled by rising consumer interest and advancements in technology. However, understanding and navigating the local regulatory environment is essential for manufacturers and distributors who want to operate legally and succeed in this space. This article emphasizes the importance of BIS Certification for Smart Watches in India and explains how EVTL India supports companies like yours to achieve compliance, ensure lawful sales, and effectively enter the market.

Introduction: Why BIS Certification Matters in the Indian Smartwatch Market

 India’s standards for product safety and quality are governed by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). For any business looking to sell smartwatches here, obtaining BIS certification isn’t just a legal requirement—it's a key step toward building trust with customers and securing long-term success. This certification confirms that your product meets safety and quality benchmarks, safeguarding both your brand and the end consumers. EVTL India specializes in guiding companies through this process, making compliance straightforward and helping you gain smooth access to the Indian market. 

Understanding BIS Certification for Smartwatches: What You Need to Know

BIS certification for smartwatches involves a thorough review of several critical aspects to ensure safety and reliability for users. The process includes strict testing and assessment in areas such as: 

Electrical Safety: Guaranteeing that internal electrical components, such as charging circuits and circuitry, meet safety standards to prevent electrical hazards. 

Mechanical Safety: Checking the watch’s build quality, materials, and parts to ensure durability and prevent injuries caused by breakage or defect. 

Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC): Making sure the device doesn't interfere with other electronic devices and complies with electromagnetic emission limits. 

Radiation Safety (if applicable): For smartwatches with wireless features or those emitting radiation, additional safety standards must be satisfied. 

Chemical Safety: Verifying that all materials, including batteries and internal components, are non-toxic and meet environmental regulations. 

Performance Standards: Testing the watch’s functionality, display clarity, and overall performance to confirm it meets required specifications.

Conclusion: Strengthening Your Smartwatch Business in India 

EVTL India is one of the leading BIS Consultant in India, helping manufacturers obtain their BIS licenses hassle-free. Securing BIS certification is a crucial step for success in the Indian smartwatch market. EVTL India is dedicated to helping companies like yours navigate complex regulatory requirements, ensuring you can sell legally, expand your market reach, and build a trustworthy brand. Partnering with EVTL India means gaining a reliable ally in your certification journey, enabling you to establish a solid presence in India. Keep in mind that BIS certification isn’t just a regulatory box to tick—it’s a foundation for offering consumers a safe, dependable product and establishing your reputation as a trusted provider.

[brainfuzz]

People are so fucking stupid. Everything has electronics in it. All your "smart" devices? Electronics. Your red-blooded American car? Has a computer in it. Your fridge/stove/washing machine/dryer, anything? Has a computer in it.

Let me explain how trickle down economics actually works.

A major company, let's say someone like Pepsi, needs to upgrade the workforce's computers. So they contact Dell and arrange to purchase/lease thousands of pcs. All of those pcs have parts made in China, which has a stupidly high tariff on it. So the cost to make those pcs goes up, which Dell then passes on to Pepso. Pepsi of course isn't going to just oh well, guess our profits will go down now because expenses are up, they're going to raise the price of their products. Which, by the way, isn't just Pepsi - they own Frito-Lay and Quaker Foods too, and a shitload of other brands. Now your soda, Cheetos, Cap'n Crunch, oatmeal and granola bars are going to go up to keep their margins the same.

Look! It's trickled down to the consumer! Not the profits, no that stays with the rich investors, but the costs have certainly made their way downstream.

That's just one piece in a huge supply chain. That doesn't touch the actual food/ingredients being imported, or the increased cost of production machinery parts, or fleet truck parts. All of those things have aspects that are imported, and they're all going to go up. And we, the consumer, are going to bear the cost of that. I used replacing pcs as an example simply because that's what the original tweet was about.

And before some shitwit trumpets how its going to force the US to produce more in-country instead of importing? We do not have the infrastructure to do that. Its going to take years to get there. In the meantime, prices will go up, and you can bet they won't come back down. Covid pricing showed that once companies jack up the price, they don't lower it once things "go back to normal," they just enjoy increased profits.

[orbitandskyline]

Legacy Tool Management: Prolonging the Lifespan of Semiconductor Equipment

In an industry driven by rapid innovation, legacy semiconductor tools continue to hold vital importance—especially in manufacturing processes based on mature nodes such as 180nm to 45nm. These nodes are indispensable for producing reliable, cost-efficient chips used in consumer electronics, automotive systems, and IoT devices. Rather than being phased out, legacy tools are being recognized as strategic assets in sustaining global semiconductor supply chains.

The Market for Mature Nodes: A Growing Opportunity

The demand for legacy node technologies remains strong, with the market size surpassing $50 billion. Industrial, automotive, and smart device sectors heavily rely on these nodes due to their affordability and proven reliability. As a result, manufacturers are prioritizing efforts to maximize the performance and longevity of legacy equipment to meet this ongoing demand.

Why Extend the Life of Legacy Tools?

Extending the lifespan of existing semiconductor tools offers numerous advantages:

Cost Savings Revitalizing current tools eliminates the need for hefty investments in new equipment.

Operational Continuity Ensures uninterrupted production of high-demand, mature-node products.

Sustainability Reduces electronic waste and supports eco-friendly manufacturing by lengthening equipment lifecycles.

Navigating the Challenges of Legacy Equipment

One of the core obstacles in legacy tool management is sourcing spare parts—particularly electronic components that typically have a lifecycle of just five years. As OEMs shift focus to advanced technologies, replacement parts for aging tools become increasingly scarce.

To maintain uptime and production efficiency, fabs must implement a proactive strategy involving detailed supply chain oversight, ongoing vendor collaboration, and strategic inventory management. A failure in this area can result in significant production delays and financial losses.

Orbit & Skyline: Leading the Charge in Legacy Tool Support

Recognizing the critical need for legacy tool solutions, Orbit & Skyline has invested heavily in supporting fabs worldwide through its dedicated Center of Excellence—a cutting-edge facility tailored to legacy tool challenges.

What Sets Orbit & Skyline Apart?

With more than 15 years of industry experience and a global team of over 500 engineers, Orbit & Skyline delivers comprehensive, end-to-end support for legacy equipment. The company’s strengths include:

Managing over 3,000 tools globally across etch, deposition, and clean processes

Securing spare part continuity via strong OEM and third-party relationships

Designing innovative, customized solutions for legacy systems

Developing resilient supply chain strategies to counter obsolescence

Learning from Industry Leaders: TSMC’s Example

Even the most advanced semiconductor companies, like TSMC, continue to benefit from mature node production. Despite its cutting-edge reputation, TSMC’s legacy fabs contribute significantly to its revenue. Their success underscores how optimizing legacy tool performance can drive long-term value and sustained growth.

Final Thoughts

As the semiconductor industry evolves, legacy tools will remain a cornerstone for producing essential chips efficiently and sustainably. Orbit & Skyline stands at the forefront of this movement, offering the expertise, infrastructure, and global reach needed to help fabs extend equipment life, improve performance, and stay competitive.

With a proven track record and robust solutions, Orbit & Skyline transforms aging tools into assets—ensuring that legacy doesn't mean obsolete, but rather, enduringly valuable.

[aluminiumfoundryservice]

Aluminum Casting: Beyond Cars and Planes

In the manufacturing process of Aluminum casting, molten metal is poured into a mould to make a desired shape. Due to its lightweight and resistance to corrosion, it is used a lot in the aerospace and automotive businesses. In the car industry, Aluminum castings are used to make engine blocks, transmission housings, wheels, and parts that hold things together. It is used for structural parts and fuselage parts in the aircraft industry. Aluminum casting has also been used in the building industry for things like window frames, doors, architectural elements, electronics housings, heat sinks, and medical equipment. This shows how versatile it is and how well it can meet strict safety and health standards.

Background on the History of Aluminum Casting

Aluminum casting has a long past that goes back to the early 1800s. The Hall-Héroult process, which came out in 1886, was the first step in its development. Due to its lightweight and resistance to corrosion, it was used in many businesses. When die casting was invented in the early 1900s, it made production more efficient and accurate, which led to more uses for Aluminum in aircraft and cars.

Casting Aluminum in consumer goods

Aluminum foundry service is used to make many home goods, electronics, tools, and furniture because it is strong and looks good. It is used to improve the function and look of cookware, fixtures, casings, heat sinks, and furniture. Aluminum casting is also useful in the electronics industry because it improves speed and design.

Aluminum casting is used in many industries.

Casting Aluminum is used a lot in many industries, such as machinery, building, and energy. Its high strength-to-weight ratio improves performance and fuel economy, and its architectural properties make it strong and look good. It is used in turbine housings and heat exchangers in the energy industry because it doesn't rust and conducts heat well. The way Aluminum casting has changed over time shows how important it is in current design and manufacturing in many areas.

The use of Aluminum casting in medicine

Casting Aluminum is an important process in the medical field because it lets people make complicated shapes and light parts that are used in a wide range of situations, such as surgical equipment, prosthetics, and diagnostic tools. Its natural qualities, like not rusting and being compatible with living things, make it a great choice for healthcare, making sure that it lasts and keeps patients safe.

New developments in the technology of casting Aluminum

Aluminum casting has many benefits in healthcare, such as being lightweight, accurate in terms of size, and able to use advanced casting methods. It lowers the weight of medical tools, which makes them easier for patients and healthcare workers to use. Advanced casting methods also improve the performance of the device, which leads to better outcomes for patients. Case studies show good use of the material in real-life medical situations, like how well Aluminum-cast orthopaedic implants work.

Thoughts on the Environment

3D printing and additive manufacturing are two big steps forward in Aluminum casting technology that has made output more accurate and faster. With these technologies, medical gadgets can be quickly prototyped and changed to fit the needs of each patient. These improvements not only make production more efficient but also cut down on waste. Because Aluminum casting is naturally eco-friendly and can be recycled a lot, it is a smart choice for the medical field.

Effects of Aluminum Casting on the Economy

Aluminum casting has a big effect on the economy and supports many jobs in research, design, and manufacturing. Automobile, aerospace, and building companies have been the main drivers of the industry's steady growth. The global Aluminum casting market is expected to grow as more lightweight materials are used and new markets open up, especially in Asia-Pacific. The move toward electric vehicles and improvements in casting technologies and recycling methods are some of the things that could help Aluminum casting grow in the future.

Problems that the Aluminum casting industry has to deal with

There are many problems that the Aluminum casting industry has to deal with, such as competition from other materials, issues with technology and production, problems with rules and the environment, and the need to lower carbon pollution and make practices more environmentally friendly. Composite materials and plastics are becoming more popular, which is bad for Aluminum's market share. Small and medium-sized businesses can't spend much at first, either. Improving production efficiency and quality control is very important for the business to stay alive.

Final Thoughts

Aluminum casting is used for more than just cars and planes, and its future looks bright as it continues to improve. In fields that are changing, innovation and flexibility are very important. The future of Aluminum casting is likely to open up new opportunities in many fields, making manufacturing more efficient and environmentally friendly.