Ben
@virtuo.uk
Demoscene, retro hardware, software engineering, reverse engineering, infosec, breaker and builder of stuff, hoarder of other stuff. Anti-algorithm. Say no to generative AI. N Wales, UK.
Stolen from Reddit, where it looks like it was stolen from mental bird site. But I like the message.
October 25, 2025 at 10:12 AM
Stolen from Reddit, where it looks like it was stolen from mental bird site. But I like the message.
Picked up a Retroid Pocket 5 on a whim, brilliant little thing. Just need to find a case that fits the grip.
October 7, 2025 at 6:39 PM
Picked up a Retroid Pocket 5 on a whim, brilliant little thing. Just need to find a case that fits the grip.
Another year another relentless doubling of our pet insurance premium.
September 29, 2025 at 1:20 PM
Another year another relentless doubling of our pet insurance premium.
2 whole days off work starts now, that's my summer holiday. Zero plans so it's going to be a waste.
September 17, 2025 at 4:57 PM
2 whole days off work starts now, that's my summer holiday. Zero plans so it's going to be a waste.
Hate this, reject cookies and then get forced to accept them, or pay. Paying doesn't even get rid of ads.
May 7, 2025 at 6:41 PM
Hate this, reject cookies and then get forced to accept them, or pay. Paying doesn't even get rid of ads.
Motherboard wasn't the problem, so I ordered a replacement CPU. Hoping it's the cache hierarchy crash bugs in the first batch of 5950x chips, so fingers crossed I get a newer version. Managed to knock some surface mount capacitors off one of my RAM sticks as well. So there's something else to fix.
April 16, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Motherboard wasn't the problem, so I ordered a replacement CPU. Hoping it's the cache hierarchy crash bugs in the first batch of 5950x chips, so fingers crossed I get a newer version. Managed to knock some surface mount capacitors off one of my RAM sticks as well. So there's something else to fix.
Pretty close to doing a full PC upgrade after something decided not to work. It's either the CPU or the motherboard (or the GPU..). Going to risk the cheapest fix and swap out the MB for now. Limp it another year or two. At least I can ditch Gigabyte, which has been nothing but pain.
April 14, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Pretty close to doing a full PC upgrade after something decided not to work. It's either the CPU or the motherboard (or the GPU..). Going to risk the cheapest fix and swap out the MB for now. Limp it another year or two. At least I can ditch Gigabyte, which has been nothing but pain.
3 more days and I step away from 20+ years of software engineering and into a different job. Needed the change, but it's going to be weird.
February 26, 2025 at 11:22 AM
3 more days and I step away from 20+ years of software engineering and into a different job. Needed the change, but it's going to be weird.
My watch frequently buzzes to congratulate me on a certain number of hours of being active. Which seems to be measured as "not asleep". Thanks.
February 11, 2025 at 1:54 PM
My watch frequently buzzes to congratulate me on a certain number of hours of being active. Which seems to be measured as "not asleep". Thanks.
Just watched season 2 of Squid Game on n'flix, wife pointed out that the background image shows the players in the first game already wearing the patches they get after voting to play on or not. Weird. (Mild spoiler alert)
February 5, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Just watched season 2 of Squid Game on n'flix, wife pointed out that the background image shows the players in the first game already wearing the patches they get after voting to play on or not. Weird. (Mild spoiler alert)
Since I refuse to entertain LinkedIn, I'll post for strangers here. New job!
a man wearing glasses and a tie is sitting in front of a desk .
ALT: a man wearing glasses and a tie is sitting in front of a desk .
media.tenor.com
February 4, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Since I refuse to entertain LinkedIn, I'll post for strangers here. New job!
In an effort to never finish a single project I start, I'm currently wasting time dropping in to random places on Google maps and wandering the streets. It's going to be a wonderfully unproductive year.
January 13, 2025 at 12:49 AM
In an effort to never finish a single project I start, I'm currently wasting time dropping in to random places on Google maps and wandering the streets. It's going to be a wonderfully unproductive year.
Bought a cheap wacom tablet to try speeding up diagram and wireframe design. The driver maps the drawing surface to your entire screen and just assumes you are running a 16:9 display. I hate it so much, and I'm going to have to hook it up to a Macbook with external display next week. 👎
December 27, 2024 at 10:46 PM
Bought a cheap wacom tablet to try speeding up diagram and wireframe design. The driver maps the drawing surface to your entire screen and just assumes you are running a 16:9 display. I hate it so much, and I'm going to have to hook it up to a Macbook with external display next week. 👎
Preparing for the Type 1 Diabetes Christmas roller coaster, a white knuckle ride of complete guesswork and feeling like shit for a week. 🎄
December 25, 2024 at 12:08 AM
Preparing for the Type 1 Diabetes Christmas roller coaster, a white knuckle ride of complete guesswork and feeling like shit for a week. 🎄
Never seen a Chester drawers ad in the wild, finally something of note to happen in 2024
December 20, 2024 at 4:34 PM
Never seen a Chester drawers ad in the wild, finally something of note to happen in 2024
Had a demo of a low-code application platform today. I have had a long standing negative opinion of low-code/no-code platforms, and thought maybe my mind could finally be changed. My mind has not been changed. At least they didn't try glazing everything with AI.
December 18, 2024 at 8:13 PM
Had a demo of a low-code application platform today. I have had a long standing negative opinion of low-code/no-code platforms, and thought maybe my mind could finally be changed. My mind has not been changed. At least they didn't try glazing everything with AI.
A couple of "... > Show less like this" on the bluesky discover feed has eliminated all those horrible promosky posts. I'm still offended that the algorithm thought I like Pokémon and anime (I do not). But it can be taught.
November 28, 2024 at 11:12 AM
A couple of "... > Show less like this" on the bluesky discover feed has eliminated all those horrible promosky posts. I'm still offended that the algorithm thought I like Pokémon and anime (I do not). But it can be taught.
Signed up, here's a screenshot
November 10, 2024 at 8:47 PM
Signed up, here's a screenshot