There are apparently OpenVPN profile you can import, but as I said in my earlier comment - I just couldn’t get it to work (connection attempts would just time out).

I still have like ~18 months of PIA left (joined under a 100% cashback offer), but will likely switch to Proton or Mullvad afterwards - as they both seem to work better under Linux from what I’ve read.

I’m sure over time I’ll tinker more under the hood over time, but for now - I’m just trying to ease myself into Linux with pre-configured installers when particular apps aren’t available through the Cachy Package Manager.

30-odd years of Windows usage has dulled my IT skills!

I barely know what I’m looking at! 😅

Pretty sure I tried poking around that file on Bazzite also to see if I could locate the RPM to try and do a manual terminal install - but gave up after a few minutes.

Sample size of 1, here.

Bazzite was my initial entry-point into Linux, but I bounced off it within 48 hours as its immutable nature made it impossible for me to install the native PIA VPN client and for the life of me I couldn’t get the OpenVPN to play nice.

Currently on CachyOS, and seems to run just fine - giving an end user just enough rope 😅

Plus it’s Arch underneath the hood too, so I can still cheekily say that I run Arch!

ETA: I wonder if/how long I would count as part of this Bazzite cohort?

Unironically, you’re missing out.

Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are both just ways to project the smartphone already in your pocket onto an additional screen (like plugging a second monitor to your laptop or PC).

Manufacturers like GM and Tesla hate it because it stops your data from being readily collected and stored with the purpose of building up a profile of ‘you’ that they can then sell to advertisers and insurance companies.

Now if only manufacturers had the good sense to keep things like climate control as physical switches - that’s my own personal bugbear. 🤬

Yeah, in hindsight it really landed at an opportune time.

It’s a crying shame how greedy companies like Nvidia & Micron have gotten from back-to-back runs on their products - it feel like it will take a generational downturn for them to pull their heads in, and return to the more modest profit margins of the past (which even then was around 30%, IIRC).

Ah, completely forgot that Intel 6th gen introduced DDR4 - I would’ve sworn it was much more recent than that!

You’ve certainly gotten your money’s worth out of your system - that’s for sure!

I went from a 3570K, 16GB, GTX 670 -> GTX 1080 (later SLI’d), to my current rig:

5950X, 32GB, RTX 3090 -> RX 7900 XTX

Just before the Ethereum mining rush took off, and with the current pricing due to AI fuckery - I don’t think I’ll be switching up anytime soon.

I get where you’re coming from, and in certain situations where you can’t otherwise get around it, you can configure your home network to not allow the Smart TV to phone home with telemetry or to accept any inbound external network traffic, so it can only access local network data such as your PC for Steam link.

I’m not confident enough to configure my home network that well (yet), hence I just opt to have the TV air gapped instead

The thing with smart TVs is that you don’t need to connect them to your network to use them.

LG, unfortunately, still make the best OLED displays at the moment, and Samsung are arguably even worse when it comes to not respecting their customers.

Our C2 65in is hooked up to an Apple TV for all of our media streaming needs.

64GB of DDR3 RAM in a system of that era is straight nuts!

Windows 11 was legitimately the reason for me selling my RTX 3090 and buying a 7900 XTX as a replacement; just so I could switch to Linux head first.

Already on my 2nd distro, as while Bazzite was my preferred entry point - it was locked down to the point that I could not install PIA VPN.

So far, CachyOS has caused minimal headaches - none of which couldn’t be quickly solved with a search query.

Will see how I go getting VirtualBox up and running as Power BI remains one of those programs that I do need to use from time to time.

The US Economy after the inevitable, next global depression:

Oh, I understood - your comment g actually triggered a curiosity in me as to why we don’t combine the two methods (boiling and falling) to “double-dip” on electricity production.

I’m sure there are plenty of practical reasons why not, but I genuinely don’t know.

Now here’s an idea - we boil the water to turn turbines, and then have the steam collect and pool in an upper chamber before running through another turbine into the first boiling chamber below?

I am assuming that’s a GTX 480 and not an RX 480; if so - kudos for not having that thing melt the solder off the heatsink by now! 😅

Honestly, if you don’t mind gaming at 1080p, and keeping graphical settings reasonable in order to maintain a playable frame rate - you could be OK for a couple more years.

Otherwise if the upgrade itch just becomes too much, the Steam Machine could very well be a suitable entry point - provided that RAM model prices don’t continue to skyrocket.

I truly cannot wait for the day that the current AI bubble bursts.

Pre-COVID, when the Ethereum mining went crazy… so around the time of the RTX 2000 series? Which honestly was pretty lacklustre compared to the GTX 1000 series…

So yeah, it’s been a while!

Perfect timing, I got this notification just as I saw this post:

If you know, you know. If not, highly recommend checking it out!

Russia might have him by the balls, but word on the street is that Bill Clinton has a fair bit in on him too.

In a lot of places, rotisserie chicken are a loss-leader - they are sold below cost in order to entice more shoppers in the hopes that they will buy enough other things to more than make up for it.

Costco does this, not only on their hotdogs but also on their chickens also.

A lot of other times, raw commodity materials are more valuable than finished goods because of the implied value; ie there is an opportunity cost associated with transforming it into a finished good.

They popped up on my YouTube shorts feed a few weeks ago; as best as I can tell they’re a fan-made set of booster cards, with the purpose of parodying/piggybacking on the current booster cracking (gambling) craze - right down to the fact that it has its own set of rare ‘chase’ cards.

I just find the low-effort art style and names charming, without ever feeling the need to participate.