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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: June 11th, 2023

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  • this is not true.

    it entirely depends on the specific application.

    there is no OS-level, standardized, dynamic allocation of RAM (definitely not on windows, i assume it’s the same for OSX).

    this is because most programming languages handle RAM allocation within the individual program, so the OS can’t allocate RAM however it wants.

    the OS could put processes to “sleep”, but that’s basically just the previously mentioned swap memory and leads to HD degradation and poor performance/hiccups, which is why it’s not used much…

    so, no.

    RAM is usually NOT dynamically allocated by the OS.

    it CAN be dynamically allocated by individual programs, IF they are written in a way that supports dynamic allocation of RAM, which some languages do well, others not so much…

    it’s certainly not universally true.

    also, what you describe when saying:

    Any modern OS will allocate RAM as necessary. If another application needs, it will allocate some to it.

    …is literally swap. that’s exactly what the previous user said.

    and swap is not the same as “allocating RAM when a program needs it”, instead it’s the OS going “oh shit! I’m out of RAM and need more NOW, or I’m going to crash! better be safe and steal some memory from disk!”

    what happens is:

    the OS runs out of RAM and needs more, so it marks a portion of the next best HD as swap-RAM and starts using that instead.

    HDs are not built for this use case, so whichever processes use the swap space become slooooooow and responsiveness suffers greatly.

    on top of that, memory of any kind is built for a certain amount of read/write operations. this is also considered the “lifespan” of a memory component.

    RAM is built for a LOT of (very fast) R/W operations.

    hard drives are NOT built for that.

    RAM has at least an order of magnitude more R/W ops going on than a hard drive, so when a computer uses swap excessively, instead of as very last resort as intended, it leads to a vastly shortened lifespan of the disk.

    for an example of a VERY stupid, VERY poor implementation of this behavior, look up the apple M1’s rapid SSD degradation.

    short summary:

    apple only put 8GB of RAM into the first gen M1’s, which made the OS use swap memory almost continuously, which wore out the hard drive MUCH faster than expected.

    …and since the HD is soldered onto the Mainboard, that completely bricks the device in about half a year/year, depending on usage.

    TL;DR: you’re categorically and objectively wrong about this. sorry :/

    hope you found this explanation helpful tho!


  • the DLC are pricey, but they’re also proper, old school expansions adding lots of content that actually enhances the game.

    it’s perfectly playable without the DLC, and there’s a LOT of DLC-sized mods on the workshop!

    kind of a fundamental problem with modern DLC: they generally don’t get cheaper over time (remember when that was an actual thing? not just sales, but actually lower prices for older games?).

    if you keep up with the releases it’s super okay at about 20/25€ once a year, maybe twice, bur if you’re late to the party it’s a whole lot of cash all at once!

    exactly why paradox introduced a subscription for Stellaris’ DLCs at 10€/month… honestly kinda worth it, if you know you’re just gonna play for a while and then move on…still wish stuff would just get cheaper at some point again…


  • and your source measured the effects of one single area that cathartic theory is supposed to apply to, not all of them.

    your source does in no way support the claim that the observed effects apply to anything other than aggressive behavior.

    i understand that the theory supposedly applies to other areas as well, but as you so helpfully pointed out: the theory doesn’t seem to hold up.

    so either A: the theory is wrong, and so the association between aggression and sexuality needs to be called into question also;

    or B: the theory isn’t wrong after all.

    you are now claiming that the theory is wrong, but at the same time, the theory is totally correct! (when it’s convenient to you, that is)

    so which is it now? is the theory correct? then your source must be wrong irrelevant.

    or is the theory wrong? then the claim of a link between sexuality and aggression is also without support, until you provide a source for that claim.

    you can’t have it both ways, but you’re sure trying to.






  • not necessarily, but it can be a good idea to have a distributed, tamper proof ledger of transactions.

    that way anyone can provide proof for basically anything to do with the service: payment, drive, location, etc.

    it might also have advantages from a security perspective for riders and drivers.

    there are advantages, they’re not entirely necessary, but they may well be the best option for a distributed network (i.e.: no central server infrastructure, at least not beyond some simple software repository for downloads/updates)






  • oh, damn, you’re right!

    i got that mixed up; i thought ranked choice also includes proportional representation, because it frees up your secondary vote to be for whoever you want it to be, without pressure to vote for a canditate that “has a chance of winning”, thus alleviating the issue of strategic voting…but that’s pretty much the only thing it does.

    but the proportional representation is tied to the way mandates/seats are distributed, which isn’t tied to the how the vote works.

    so if the senate still had the same number of seats per state, it wouldn’t fix representation, because the weight of the votes still wouldn’t be equal…

    yeah, sorry for the confusion…long day…but thanks for the polite correction!


  • gerrymandering is rendered obsolete by points 1 and 2 on the list…so that’s already included in the OP ;)

    the reason gerrymandering is a thing, is because of the first-past-the-post/winner-takes-all voting system, which ranked choice replaces.

    ranked choice allows propotional representation, which also fixes the 2 party problem!

    edit, also fixes your point 2, because under ranked choice there is only a popular vote (also just known as “a vote”, because there isn’t any other one left)

    nvm, got something mixed up…shouldn’t comment when half asleep…






  • actually, the law leaves remarkably little room for interpretation in this case.

    here’s the law in full, emphasis mine:

    Strafgesetzbuch (StGB) § 202a Ausspähen von Daten (1) Wer unbefugt sich oder einem anderen Zugang zu Daten, die nicht für ihn bestimmt und die gegen unberechtigten Zugang besonders gesichert sind, unter Überwindung der Zugangssicherung verschafft, wird mit Freiheitsstrafe bis zu drei Jahren oder mit Geldstrafe bestraft. (2) Daten im Sinne des Absatzes 1 sind nur solche, die elektronisch, magnetisch oder sonst nicht unmittelbar wahrnehmbar gespeichert sind oder übermittelt werden.

    the text is crystal clear, that security measures need to be “overcome” in order for a crime to have been committed.

    it is also obvious that cleartext passwords are NOT a “security measure” in any sense of the word, but especially in this case, where the law specifically says that the data in question has to have been “specially secured”. this was not the case, as evident by the fact that the defendant had easy access to the data in question.

    this is blatant misuse of the law.

    the data law makes no attempt to take into account the intent of the person, quite differently from when it comes to physical theft, which is immediately and obviously ridiculous.

    you mentioned snooping around in a strangers car, and that’s a good comparison!

    you know what you definitely couldn’t be charged with in the example you gave? breaking and entering!

    because breaking and entering requires (in germany at least) that you gained access through illegal means (i.e.: literally broke in, as opposed to finding the key already in the lock).

    but that’s essentially what is happening in this case, and that is what’s wrong with this case!

    most people agree he shouldn’t have tried to enter the PW.

    what has large parts of the professional IT world up in arms is the way the law was applied, not that there was a violation of the law. (though most in IT, like i am, think this sort of “hacking” shouldn’t be punishable, if it is solely for the purpose of finding and reporting vulnerabilities, which makes a lot of sense)


  • actually, that’s not what the law says.

    the law says that “overcoming” security measures is a crime. nothing was “overcome”.

    plaintext is simply not a “security measure” and the law was applied wrong.

    there may have been some form of infringement in regards to privacy or sensitive data or whatever, but it definitely wasn’t “hacking” of any kind.

    just like it isn’t “hacking” to browse someone’s computer files when they leave a device unlocked and accessible to anyone. invasion of privacy? sure. but not hacking.

    and the law as written (§202a StGB) definitely states that security measures have to be circumvented in order to be applied.

    that’s the problem with the case!

    not that the guy overstepped his bounds, but that the law was applied blatantly wrong and no due diligence was used in determining the outcome of the case.