@robert Thanks for doing this in the first place, this instance was great. :)

@nindokag Yep, some doctors commented a while ago that this year there were so, so many fewer kids with colds and the flu than usual.

@suivran (I assume you are talking about how we burn lines around big forest fires to contain the fire when it gets there and stop it from spreading? If it's not this I don't know what it is about.)

@suivran Which is why we use firefighters to put out fires, and not the more obvious waterfighters or earthfighters. Many people think their fire powers are useless, but they are not.

Is there a ttrpg term for a warlock pact with a corporation? Best case scenario, I'm gonna need one

Just discovered that in Crusader Kings 3 you don't choose technologies to "research", you pick what technology your character is "fascinated" by and then it is discovered a few years earlier than normal.

I love this idea.

#ck3

Browsing the #factorio wiki is a shot in the dark.

You might get to a nebulous explanation of the mathematical theory of arbitrary optimal balancers.

You might get to the part that teaches how to look to both sides before crossing the rails.

You know, a video game about unionising could be kind of fun. You gotta run around your Satisfaction Centre or whatever stealthily trying to get your coworkers to come to your side, dodging management, dropping union leaflets, all while making sure your work is being done.

Kind of like a stealth game/farm simulator game?

@The_T By a lot in common, I mean that clickers are in a big way about "automation" (though what you are automating is very different).

@The_T Factorio definitely has a lot in common with clickers.

But even going further away, it is a bit similar to looking at build guides for an RPG or even sequences for fighting games.

Factorio just takes that to the extreme.

@big_chip And social network did it by looking at what needed improvement - better editors, usable templates, a way to search for specific people - and doing that... but only inside their walled garden.

Heck, eventually big corps started giving people gigabytes of server space for free as part of their "cloud" stuff, and complete online office suites to edit files. But not a simple "make some pretty, lightweight HTML+CSS and host it".

@big_chip Yeah, the barriers that we have now were carefully crafted over time.

At first it was just companies trying to "monetize" personal webpages, and taking more and more control - putting things in people's pages for their own benefit. Eventually it became more deliberate, trying to prevent people from linking to anything outside their control.

Social networks are actively working to draw people away from other websites. It is a very real barrier that is hard to overcome.

Somehow the barrier to have your own website had been both raised and lowered at the same time.

The thin was that one was a website and one was a “website”.

Everything (more or less) was now inside the walled garden of social media.

So heres the thing. People don’t host their own website as often now because the barrier has been raised up.

Tech wise is may not have been raised a huge amount but it’s been raised none the less. And the perception of the barrier to entry looks, to most people, to be very high.

@crowlad Do you mean physical devices (those with e-ink and everything), or just good apps?

If it's apps, I had the best look with FBReader (for android). I like just using a device I already carry around.

Writing a TRRPG and adding the following "Rule 0":

Game designers usually don't know if you change the rules, and even if notified are powerless to stop you or retaliate in any way. Don't let game designers fool you: you don't need their authorization to change rules, create your own game, or play a different game.

However, this game is meant to be complete and playable as is, with no external rules required. If there is a problem with the game, feel free to call our customer support.