Erica "digifox" Kovac
@digifox.binaryden.net
Software Engineer | Social Democrat | Pro-Nuclear, Pro-Growth | in the vicinity of "Tomboy Transfemme", she/her | Opinions are mine, not my employer's.
Pfp by @nicnak044.bsky.social
Pfp by @nicnak044.bsky.social
Pinned
let the version of the industry that does this repent through bankruptcy; if I pay for technology I expect it to serve *my* interests, not those who wish to control and surveill me
Software is a tool, and tools should serve the user above all else.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Can we talk a bit about the terms “First Amendment absolutist” and “free speech absolutist,” and whether they have any agreed-upon meaning?
I promise to try, to the utmost of my ability, to Be Respectful Of Other Opinions.
/1
I promise to try, to the utmost of my ability, to Be Respectful Of Other Opinions.
/1
February 18, 2026 at 10:18 PM
Can we talk a bit about the terms “First Amendment absolutist” and “free speech absolutist,” and whether they have any agreed-upon meaning?
I promise to try, to the utmost of my ability, to Be Respectful Of Other Opinions.
/1
I promise to try, to the utmost of my ability, to Be Respectful Of Other Opinions.
/1
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
yeah. short of twitter shutting down entirely, almost every single prediction of failure made when musk was firing everyone has come to pass. it just turns out that twitter power users value their network and racism more than a functional product
people did predict this! Apparently twitter had a reasonably complicated pre-docker setup that would be annoying for anyone to port
February 18, 2026 at 10:23 PM
yeah. short of twitter shutting down entirely, almost every single prediction of failure made when musk was firing everyone has come to pass. it just turns out that twitter power users value their network and racism more than a functional product
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
The decline of right wing cultural production is just due to the fact that they don’t like culture, they like the signifiers of culture, ie “classic sculpture means white people are better.” They don’t like art at all except for this purpose. They don’t even like the nerd stuff they whine about
February 18, 2026 at 4:06 PM
The decline of right wing cultural production is just due to the fact that they don’t like culture, they like the signifiers of culture, ie “classic sculpture means white people are better.” They don’t like art at all except for this purpose. They don’t even like the nerd stuff they whine about
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
meeting in person and trying out each others meatspace names once or twice and then immediately going back to screen names
February 18, 2026 at 9:49 PM
meeting in person and trying out each others meatspace names once or twice and then immediately going back to screen names
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Starting to wonder what planet these folks live on, because there's a long list of stuff they keep claiming you need to show ID to do (check out a library book; stay at a hotel) that everyone knows you... don't need to do that for.
Leavitt: "You need an ID to go and purchase alcohol. You need an ID to go to the library and check out a book. So the president thinks you should have an ID to vote in our nation's elections."
February 18, 2026 at 8:25 PM
Starting to wonder what planet these folks live on, because there's a long list of stuff they keep claiming you need to show ID to do (check out a library book; stay at a hotel) that everyone knows you... don't need to do that for.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Every metric eventually colonizes the behavior that it’s intended to measure.
It seems nuts to me that CNN has partnered with an online gambling site (Kalshi) and hypes their betting lines as “news” to report.
February 18, 2026 at 10:13 PM
Every metric eventually colonizes the behavior that it’s intended to measure.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Likewise, you put a real estate guy from Miami and a real estate guy from Shanghai in the same room and you're gonna get the American Psycho business card scene but with the grindset routines they post on social media
You put a redneck from Heilongjiang and a Redneck from Alabama in the same room and they'll be comparing pictures of the gizmos they built from scrap metal to grill 30 chickens at the same time
February 18, 2026 at 10:11 PM
Likewise, you put a real estate guy from Miami and a real estate guy from Shanghai in the same room and you're gonna get the American Psycho business card scene but with the grindset routines they post on social media
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
tbh i think a lot of this comes down to the hollowing out of state capacity in global nations
neoliberalism has basically driven so many states to P3s that people don't get "states doing things" is still possible, but not necessary radical
neoliberalism has basically driven so many states to P3s that people don't get "states doing things" is still possible, but not necessary radical
china is incredible in its own way but don't mistake that with it being a radical government
February 18, 2026 at 7:12 PM
tbh i think a lot of this comes down to the hollowing out of state capacity in global nations
neoliberalism has basically driven so many states to P3s that people don't get "states doing things" is still possible, but not necessary radical
neoliberalism has basically driven so many states to P3s that people don't get "states doing things" is still possible, but not necessary radical
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Trying to find some sources for public domain/creative commons images (specifically for any vintage sci fi novel cover art) and wading though AI slop fucking everywhere, including from formerly reputable stock photo platforms like Adobe
February 18, 2026 at 9:40 PM
Trying to find some sources for public domain/creative commons images (specifically for any vintage sci fi novel cover art) and wading though AI slop fucking everywhere, including from formerly reputable stock photo platforms like Adobe
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
this is cool
this is cool
this is really, really cool
this is cool
this is really, really cool
**Important update**
Some new details on what property owners can build by right on land zoned for residential under Pritzker's plan:
≤2,500 sq ft: 1 unit
2,500–5,000 sq ft: up to 4 units
5,000–7,500 sq ft: up to 6 units
7,500+ sq ft: up to 8 units
Some new details on what property owners can build by right on land zoned for residential under Pritzker's plan:
≤2,500 sq ft: 1 unit
2,500–5,000 sq ft: up to 4 units
5,000–7,500 sq ft: up to 6 units
7,500+ sq ft: up to 8 units
February 18, 2026 at 4:59 PM
this is cool
this is cool
this is really, really cool
this is cool
this is really, really cool
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
i think that the issue with "realism" as a concept in art is ultimately its circularity. once you move away from all but the simplest representational issues, you run into trouble. what is "psychological realism" for example? certain scientific ideas are rendered via abstraction by scientists too
That's a great term. "Realism" is limited and prone to pesky self-awareness about what you and the audience accept. "Convincingness" is about how much you believe in a world and its characters - finding and harnessing those necessary connections that make one relate to a story.
In the Official Marvel Try-Out Book, Jim Shooter said Marvel Comics (and I would say a lot of comics, sci-fi, and fantasy art in general) are not trying for realism so much as CONVINCINGNESS. I think about this term and what it means a lot.
February 18, 2026 at 9:18 PM
i think that the issue with "realism" as a concept in art is ultimately its circularity. once you move away from all but the simplest representational issues, you run into trouble. what is "psychological realism" for example? certain scientific ideas are rendered via abstraction by scientists too
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
NEW: I'm suing the Trump Admin over their move to terminate billions of dollars in energy and infrastructure programs nationwide. It's illegal, and it threatens Massachusetts' economic and environmental futures.
Not on my watch.
Not on my watch.
February 18, 2026 at 9:07 PM
NEW: I'm suing the Trump Admin over their move to terminate billions of dollars in energy and infrastructure programs nationwide. It's illegal, and it threatens Massachusetts' economic and environmental futures.
Not on my watch.
Not on my watch.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
My adolescence can be precisely described by the fact that I learned to touch-type by hanging out in a busy X-Files chat room on CompuServe where I had to break typing speed records to get my deep and insightful comments in before the conversation moved on
February 15, 2026 at 10:01 PM
My adolescence can be precisely described by the fact that I learned to touch-type by hanging out in a busy X-Files chat room on CompuServe where I had to break typing speed records to get my deep and insightful comments in before the conversation moved on
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
A bit part of the AI in art vs coding divide is about community norms
The software dev community as a rule detests copyright—it is associated with Oracle, SCO, etc
Artistic communities detest plagiarism
Both views are reasonable in their respective contexts!
The software dev community as a rule detests copyright—it is associated with Oracle, SCO, etc
Artistic communities detest plagiarism
Both views are reasonable in their respective contexts!
February 14, 2026 at 11:53 PM
A bit part of the AI in art vs coding divide is about community norms
The software dev community as a rule detests copyright—it is associated with Oracle, SCO, etc
Artistic communities detest plagiarism
Both views are reasonable in their respective contexts!
The software dev community as a rule detests copyright—it is associated with Oracle, SCO, etc
Artistic communities detest plagiarism
Both views are reasonable in their respective contexts!
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
For all the AI hate on here, it honestly is very funny the extent to which our tech overlords have to force the engineers to do gymnastics to prevent the computer from being a Democrat.
February 15, 2026 at 4:46 PM
For all the AI hate on here, it honestly is very funny the extent to which our tech overlords have to force the engineers to do gymnastics to prevent the computer from being a Democrat.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Even if you accept a very very optimistic view of how powerful LLMs are, I think we have clear evidence that they won't do much damage to white collar employment for decades:
Spreadsheets are 50 years old, and effective use of them could still like halve the size of the white collar workforce
Spreadsheets are 50 years old, and effective use of them could still like halve the size of the white collar workforce
February 18, 2026 at 5:36 AM
Even if you accept a very very optimistic view of how powerful LLMs are, I think we have clear evidence that they won't do much damage to white collar employment for decades:
Spreadsheets are 50 years old, and effective use of them could still like halve the size of the white collar workforce
Spreadsheets are 50 years old, and effective use of them could still like halve the size of the white collar workforce
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
If you don’t grow up with in the cultural background like people in the west do, it’s easy to forgot how insane and also dramatically compelling the Catholic Church is. One of the world’s oldest human organizations still operating with its own private city state, intricate hierarchy and ranks.
In anime, neither force nor time itself can prevail against the enduring mysticism, power, and corruption of Catholic Church
February 18, 2026 at 5:30 AM
If you don’t grow up with in the cultural background like people in the west do, it’s easy to forgot how insane and also dramatically compelling the Catholic Church is. One of the world’s oldest human organizations still operating with its own private city state, intricate hierarchy and ranks.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
The idea that the Chamber of Commerce is "left-wing" is beyond insane. It is completely disconnected from reality. Chamber of Commerce was to the right of Reagan.
libs getting the chamber of commerce in the national divorce, sure, why not, welcome aboard
www.reuters.com/world/us-cou...
www.reuters.com/world/us-cou...
February 18, 2026 at 12:47 AM
The idea that the Chamber of Commerce is "left-wing" is beyond insane. It is completely disconnected from reality. Chamber of Commerce was to the right of Reagan.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Capitalism is not sitting on a giant pile of gold. Kim Jong Un manages to do that in a socialist country.
Capitalism is a specific kind of economic system, only a few hundred years old, in which banks, corporate persons, and liquid markets in a variety of investment vehicles exist.
Capitalism is a specific kind of economic system, only a few hundred years old, in which banks, corporate persons, and liquid markets in a variety of investment vehicles exist.
Oh you're telling me that the evil big bad of your epic fantasy is a sadistic flying lizard who lives in a mountain with a hoard of wealth and comes down to prey on the common folk of the nearby village to burn them alive regularly?
The villain was always at least on some level, capitalism.
The villain was always at least on some level, capitalism.
February 18, 2026 at 5:06 AM
Capitalism is not sitting on a giant pile of gold. Kim Jong Un manages to do that in a socialist country.
Capitalism is a specific kind of economic system, only a few hundred years old, in which banks, corporate persons, and liquid markets in a variety of investment vehicles exist.
Capitalism is a specific kind of economic system, only a few hundred years old, in which banks, corporate persons, and liquid markets in a variety of investment vehicles exist.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Multiple red flags here:
- "Hobbyists," "prototype"
- Multiple unchallenged hype statements from people whose salaries depend on AI tool revenue
- Quotes Matt Shumer approvingly without noting his past history
- "Hobbyists," "prototype"
- Multiple unchallenged hype statements from people whose salaries depend on AI tool revenue
- Quotes Matt Shumer approvingly without noting his past history
February 18, 2026 at 2:51 AM
Multiple red flags here:
- "Hobbyists," "prototype"
- Multiple unchallenged hype statements from people whose salaries depend on AI tool revenue
- Quotes Matt Shumer approvingly without noting his past history
- "Hobbyists," "prototype"
- Multiple unchallenged hype statements from people whose salaries depend on AI tool revenue
- Quotes Matt Shumer approvingly without noting his past history
I'm still waiting for the explosion of high quality software out of this, but as far as I can tell it's still a lot of hobby projects on cocaine.
Last night, someone on this here website told me that no one is using AI agents yet and they're still way far in the future. But it's already happening.
A friend last year told me that most people are distracted by the idea that AI is "chatbots." I didn't get that at the time, but now I think I do.
A friend last year told me that most people are distracted by the idea that AI is "chatbots." I didn't get that at the time, but now I think I do.
"For much of the country, AI has come to mean ChatGPT, Google’s AI overviews, and the slop that now clogs social-media feeds. Meanwhile, tech hobbyists are becoming radicalized by bots that can work for hours on end, collapsing months of work into weeks, or weeks into an afternoon."
February 18, 2026 at 4:36 AM
I'm still waiting for the explosion of high quality software out of this, but as far as I can tell it's still a lot of hobby projects on cocaine.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
One thing that really distorts the discourse is the belief that any politician could become wildly popular by embracing a Full Left Economic Agenda, which then positions people to believe that every politician is intentionally limiting their own power in order to keep progressives in check
February 18, 2026 at 12:04 AM
One thing that really distorts the discourse is the belief that any politician could become wildly popular by embracing a Full Left Economic Agenda, which then positions people to believe that every politician is intentionally limiting their own power in order to keep progressives in check
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Recurring gripe: people on the left have social media and generative AI exactly backwards. Gen AI is the printing press: it cannot and will not be uninvented. It can run on a laptop at this point. Social media is a handful of specific companies with specific first mover and network effects.
February 18, 2026 at 12:41 AM
Recurring gripe: people on the left have social media and generative AI exactly backwards. Gen AI is the printing press: it cannot and will not be uninvented. It can run on a laptop at this point. Social media is a handful of specific companies with specific first mover and network effects.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
'Exports to China look dismal,' leader of busiest US seaport says reut.rs/4rVbTYk
'Exports to China look dismal,' leader of busiest US seaport says
Exports from the Port of Los Angeles, the busiest U.S. gateway for ocean trade, fell 8% in January to the lowest monthly output in nearly three years, Executive Director Gene Seroka said on Tuesday.
reut.rs
February 18, 2026 at 12:10 AM
'Exports to China look dismal,' leader of busiest US seaport says reut.rs/4rVbTYk
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
fwiw insofar as there’s a maga after trump, i think RFK, jr. is an underrated figure for inheriting it, he is unlikely to disappear whenever trump croaks
RFK, jr. is one of the few high profile people in the world who is as naturally and unpleasantly weird as donald trump, and for many of the same reasons
February 18, 2026 at 12:01 AM
fwiw insofar as there’s a maga after trump, i think RFK, jr. is an underrated figure for inheriting it, he is unlikely to disappear whenever trump croaks