# comment question (blogs) — RSS Amplifier Recent posts from the 4 feeds in the RSS Amplifier directory that cover comment question. Page: Feed: --- ## [Laptop Smoking a Cigarette](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_080326.html) _2026-08-04 · Nicky FloweRSS_ I'd been thinking about the Hank Green Situation again today, and how bizarre his framing of it was: he got addicted to the "level of dopamine" the chatbots were giving him. "Level of dopamine", like, is he getting his blood tested? Does he think knowing the amount would tell him anything? People act like dopamine is some toxic party drug you have to watch out for, lest you get too dependent on… ## [Is a verge garden complete without a street tree?](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/is-a-verge-garden-complete-without) _2026-08-04 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ When you talk about verge gardens, do you mention street trees? Does the way you include (or ignore) street trees in your story add conflict or opportunity? ## [Synonyms for Content Creator](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_073126.html) _2026-08-01 · Nicky FloweRSS_ Product Vendor Output Spawner Yield Supplier Thought Contriver Glut Deviser Stuff Slinger Thing Flinger Pulp Pumper Load Dumper Scrap Chucker Grist Giver I'm a Fucking Downer I'm a Binge Thinner I'm a Big Dipper I'm a Big dipper, big dipper, big dipperrr Big dipper, big dipper, big dipperrr Big dipper, big dipper, big dipperrr Big dipper, big dipper, big dipperrr Nicky Flowers - I lost the plot at… ## [3 Different Council Verge Garden Policies](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/3-different-council-verge-garden) _2026-07-29 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ As part of preparing for the Verge Gardens for People and Planet workshop on Friday, I checked the latest version of the adjoining councils in that area. Three councils - three different policies. ## [Cool Pictures: Cyanolikes](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_072726.html) _2026-07-28 · Nicky FloweRSS_ 07/27/26, Goin' to the Buddhist temple // Fujifilm X-S20 // XF27mmF2.8 R WR I was reading this fantastic paper on the history and science of cyanotypes last night instead of sleeping and I drifted off thinking about how I could get into the cyanoworld with my digital camera. Easy! Today, I took the Acros film simulation recipe I use and cranked up the blue. It's a cyanolike . No chemicals, no… ## [Workshops and FAQs](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/workshops-and-faqs) _2026-07-23 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ I'm have three workshops coming up in the Brisbane region. The range of questions raised at workshops. I'm adding an FAQ section to the website with some of the most common or interesting questions. ## [Japan](https://darthmall.net/2026/japan/) _2026-07-21 · The Darth Mall_ A lovely vegan sushi restaurant Z found. One does not simply fly from Denver to Taipei… because there are no direct flights. So this year we decided to fly from Denver to Tokyo first, and then, after a few days, move on to Taipei. My wife is the only one among the three of us who has ever been to Japan. (1) The life-sized blue whale statue outside the science museum; (2) the model train at the… ## [Channel Surfing on America's 250th](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_072026.html) _2026-07-21 · Nicky FloweRSS_ Over-the-air TV in my (bay) area is hit-or-miss but when it hits, it gets weird. I recorded myself making a sort of VHS channel-flipping collage, taking the temperature of the country on its 250th birthday. We have a fever! I spent a bit agonizing over how to make my crappy tape rip better, but accidentally recording on EP mode plus not wanting to spend a million dollars on a good capture card…… ## [Dare to Suck](https://darthmall.net/2026/dare-to-suck/) _2026-07-17 · The Darth Mall_ Dare to suck is, for all intents and purposes, my friend Pete’s motto. I’ve been playing Irish music with Pete since about 2010, and for as long as I’ve known him, he has encouraged people in his seisiúns to dare to suck. (I recently learned the phrase did not originate with Pete, I believe it came from someone else he used to play with before my time.) He says it to newcomers to encourage them to… ## [National Street Tree Symposium: Trees Connecting Communities](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/national-street-tree-symposium-2026) _2026-07-13 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ That's the theme of the 2026 TREENET Symposium in Adelaide this September. ## [Auto-trade Cross-Exchange Gaps (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/WDoTFxi125CK) _2026-07-13 · **Sponsored**_ Find cross-exchange spreads, backtest strategies, and execute automatically with risk controls. ## [Beitou at Night](https://darthmall.net/2026/beitou-at-night/) _2026-07-11 · The Darth Mall_ Comments, questions, suggestions? Email me at comment@darthmall.net . ## [Crossing](https://darthmall.net/2026/crossing/) _2026-07-11 · The Darth Mall_ Comments, questions, suggestions? Email me at comment@darthmall.net . ## [Overgrown](https://darthmall.net/2026/overgrown/) _2026-07-11 · The Darth Mall_ Comments, questions, suggestions? Email me at comment@darthmall.net . ## [Nagoya](https://darthmall.net/2026/nagoya/) _2026-07-11 · The Darth Mall_ Comments, questions, suggestions? Email me at comment@darthmall.net . ## [Cool Pictures: Birdpeepin'](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_070526.html) _2026-07-06 · Nicky FloweRSS_ 07/05/26, Lake Merritt // Fujifilm X-S20 // XF 16-50mm Taking pictures through a pair of public binoculars is not easy and the pictures are bad. But the pictures? The pictures are good. BONUS BIRD BPHOTO This is a juvenile black-crowned night heron. If you're wondering why he looks like that, he just drank all of this: Nicky Flowers - I took 240 photos today... it's possible I'll have a hard time… ## [Cool Paths and Places Online Event (QHHCoP)](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/cool-paths-and-places-online-event) _2026-07-06 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ It's winter in Australia but we are aware of the extreme heatwaves in the northern hemisphere. Are you worried about what our next summer will bring? ## [Le Cafe’](https://darthmall.net/2026/le-cafe/) _2026-07-05 · The Darth Mall_ Comments, questions, suggestions? Email me at comment@darthmall.net . ## [Radical Centrism Won't Win!](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_070126.html) _2026-07-02 · Nicky FloweRSS_ The radical centrists would have you believe that nothing good can ever happen in America. Only half-measures that are incrementally less shit than whatever the fascists offer us is pragmatic enough. They will smear a Muslim man in New York trying to bring childcare & rent control to the people and for simply being who he is. When he wins, they write off the city’s population as freaks of nature… ## [Cool Pictures: I Only Took These to Prove a Point (That Living Was More Important Than Dying)](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_063026.html) _2026-07-01 · Nicky FloweRSS_ A lot of times I'll get back home from a photowalk and see that none of the shots turned out all that great. Luckily, that doesn't really matter anymore. Seeing a part of the world that isn't my bedroom and taking a piece of it home is enough to keep me going. It's proof I was out there! I'm alive and I still feel things other than despair! Even the bad photos prove that. 06/29, Wildcat Canyon… ## [Cool Pictures: Suboptimist (Fujifilm Simulation Recipe)](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_062226.html) _2026-06-23 · Nicky FloweRSS_ Today, I put my VHS copy of It! The Terror from Beyond Space in with with the laundry, set to speed wash. I have no idea how a B-movie ended up in my dirties. This is basically where I've been at lately. This film simulation recipe for X-Trans V cameras, Suboptimist, was an attempt to capture the flavor of my current state. Thankfully, going out and taking pictures and having ready-to-go Superia… ## [Get started with Turso (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/a0NEm0BOCfNZ) _2026-06-23 · **Sponsored**_ Create your Turso account to access the app. ## [Homes for koalas or homes for people?](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/homes-for-koalas-or-homes-for-people) _2026-06-22 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ It's been a busy week - I bought a new edition of one of my favourite books, went to a forum on affordable housing, and watched the local and state budgets come in with all the expected commentary. ## [Verge Gardens for People and Planet](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/verge-gardens-for-people-and-planet) _2026-06-18 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ "Verge Gardens for People and Planet" is the title of my presentation and workshop for the Peaks to Points Festival in July. Should I be doing these on zoom for wider reach? ## [crow countings](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_061626.html) _2026-06-17 · Nicky FloweRSS_ I wanted to make something that feels like one of those inexplicable 19 year old videos that pop up on your YouTube home page, like an oasis in the desert, and you're like "Thank fuck, something without an ad read". And so I did. Nicky Flowers - I missed making little videos!! I should do this more... - 06/16/26 - (send any comments/questions to hello at nickyflowers dot com) ## [Jerry's Map](https://darthmall.net/2026/jerrys-map/) _2026-06-16 · The Darth Mall_ This is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen. This fellow, Jerry, has been making this map of an imaginary place for decades . The map is incredible. His process is incredible. What a delightful way to spend one’s time. The entire 45 minute People Make Games video is worth your time. (It’s also available on Nebula , if you have a Nebula subscription.) Play Video: He Won’t Stop Building a Map… ## [Everywhere Foist Upon Us](https://darthmall.net/2026/everywhere-foist-upon-us/) _2026-06-10 · The Darth Mall_ We live in capitalism, its power seems inescapable — but then, so did the divine right of kings. Ursula K. Le Guin When I began writing this, I intended to make the case that there is no responsible use of “ AI ”. I was motivated by three separate encounters in a single morning of people arguing that the path forward is to adopt “ AI ” and find a way to do so responsibly. 1 2 3 In the course of… ## [The Journey from Cooperation to Collaboration](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/the-journey-from-cooperation-to-collaboration) _2026-06-05 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ Action is more popular than theory. But action alone can mean we get stuck. And theory can seem like hot air - until you’ve seen it applied in practice. Having the patience to combine them is hard. ## [Homeward Bound](https://darthmall.net/2026/homeward-bound/) _2026-06-04 · The Darth Mall_ Comments, questions, suggestions? Email me at comment@darthmall.net . ## [I Saw The Best Yard Sign Today](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_053026.html) _2026-05-31 · Nicky FloweRSS_ I couldn't get a picture but my new favorite yard sign looked like this: All other yard signs that aren't as good as this one should go — like, does anybody need to know who you want to be mayor? Let's put signs up that ask the tough questions. "What the fuck is going on?" is my idea for one but there are all kinds of good questions we should be asking our neighbors. How Much Blood Should Be… ## [Congress Is Trying to Ban Books](https://darthmall.net/2026/congress-banning-books/) _2026-05-27 · The Darth Mall_ Time again to call your representatives. In case you haven’t heard, back in February the Stop the Sexualization of Children Act (H.R.7661) was introduced in the House of Representatives. It is a book ban. It prevents federal money given to schools to be used for programs, activites, or books that include sexually oriented material ; which includes, by the way, lewd or lascivious dancing . I guess… ## [Cool Pictures: The Vibes Are Getting fUnky](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_051526.html) _2026-05-16 · Nicky FloweRSS_ 05/10 - 05/11, San Leandro + West Oakland // Fujifilm X-S20 // XF16-50mm // I really should be writing down my settings for later... I meant to take more pictures, but trying to fix my printer took over my week. That Brother was like a brother to me, or so I thought; brothers should never go out of warranty. I also have been trying to fix myself but, if you can believe it, it's less… ## [Zuverlässiges Hosting, Domains, Server (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/zHiqBWOF83eH) _2026-05-16 · **Sponsored**_ Zuverlässige Infrastruktur, niedrige Preise und skalierbare Server für deinen Webauftritt. ## [Start Local, then Scale Out Through Networks](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/start-local-scale-out-with-networks) _2026-05-15 · The Shady Lanes Project_ It’s the invisible connections - between people, places, and issues - that create opportunities for innovation and scale through collaboration. ## [I Wasn't Procrastinating, I'm Intentionally Slowing Down (Listen to My Podcast at Normal Speed, Though)](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_051126.html) _2026-05-12 · Nicky FloweRSS_ YEAR SEVEN OF "...AND ALSO WITH YOU" CAN BE FOUND HERE!! I meant to post about this here one whole week ago but I'm here now: my good friend Meys and I have been producing a wonderful show called "...And Also With You", which comes out every May 4th and consists of us reviewing Star Wars Episode IV one minute each year. You might have heard about it, I mention it about once a year. We rank the… ## [The Lure of Guerrilla Gardening](https://shadylanesproject.substack.com/p/the-lure-of-guerrilla-gardening) _2026-05-05 · Gayle Dallaston · The Shady Lanes Project_ Once you start thinking about verge gardening, you seeing unloved public land everywhere. The temptation to get stuck in and do something is strong. ## [Cool Pictures: High Stress, High ISO](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_042726.html) _2026-04-28 · Nicky FloweRSS_ 04/27 - Around my neighborhood // Fujifilm X-S20 // XF16-50mm // Custom Acros recipe, 12800 ISO i am very close to getting over my latest bout of depression, with a dash of being terrified of everything i have been stewing, and not the yummy kind tonight, i had a breakthrough: none of what i worry about will mean anything in 20,000 years (this \*is\* comforting to me) Nicky Flowers - If you are… ## [Looking for SSG](https://darthmall.net/2026/looking-for-ssg/) _2026-04-19 · The Darth Mall_ Ben nudged me to publish this list, so here it is. Also because Drew DeVault wrote about Zine (including the facts that both Hugo and Zola seem open to the use of large language models in their code base). Copy-left license Anti-AI contribution policy Binary executable for easy installation Good documentation Good error messages Extensible via a scripting language Fast Built-in image manipulation… ## [Cool Pictures: Berkeley Is Interesting](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_040926.html) _2026-04-10 · Nicky FloweRSS_ 04/05 - 04/08, Berkeley // Fujifilm X-S20 // XF16-50mm // All sorts of film simulations/recipes but mostly custom Velvia i've been walking around Berkeley a lot again this week; i needed to get out of the house for a while and it's more fun to photograph than where i live. i even stayed in a hotel for a couple days to let my girlfriend finish up the worst of the pest control at home (bless her),… ## [Cool Cartoons: Peanuts Except Bad](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_032926.html) _2026-03-30 · Nicky FloweRSS_ I bought the entirety of Peanuts for peanuts on Thursday and have been binging it with great interest. I grew up with the funnies and omnibuses of funnies from the library in my hands daily, but Peanuts never really struck me the way things like the more boisterous Calvin & Hobbes did. I guess turning 30 and getting really depressed helped make me get what's so special about the strip, especially… ## [NeoVim is Dead (to Me)? Long Live Who Knows What](https://darthmall.net/2026/neovim-is-dead-question-mark/) _2026-03-28 · The Darth Mall_ To date, I have written very little about “Artificial Intelligence” ( AI ). I am disheartened and exhausted by this bubble and its associated hype — perhaps you are, too — and have felt little motivation to whinge about it here. What would be the point? There are already ample sources of smart criticism of the hype. 1 In my own life, I simply avoid using these tools and do my best not to… ## [Find the "Date Added" in Git](https://darthmall.net/2026/find-date-added-git/) _2026-03-26 · The Darth Mall_ Until recently, I have been filing my photos under the date the photos were taken. I changed this for two reasons. First, because there is a difference semantically between the date I took a photo, and the date I published it on my site. This is perhaps not a huge deal, but it leads me to the second reason for distinguishing between the published date and the photographed date: the entries in my… ## [human.json and an AI policy](https://darthmall.net/2026/human-json-ai-policy/) _2026-03-26 · The Darth Mall_ This morning I learned about this informal protocol for vouching for sites that are made by people, not “Artifical Intelligence” ( AI ): human.json (Via Terence Eden ). It is easy enough to add one to a static site, so I did. I’ve vouched for a few friends and installed the browser extension (I did look through the code in the extension, and nothing jumped out at me as being malicious, but I am… ## [Museum People](https://darthmall.net/2026/museum-people/) _2026-03-20 · The Darth Mall_ This post is part of the March IndieWeb Carnival for 2026, “Museum memories,” hosted by James . I think of myself as a Museum Person. I come from a family of Museum People. I married a Museum Person. I take my kid to museums. We’ve been going to museums for longer than I can remember. The author (left) and his brother, aged about 4 and 3, at the National Museum of Natural History When I was… ## [A Scientist](https://darthmall.net/2026/a-scientist/) _2026-03-15 · The Darth Mall_ (5-year-old spots a book at the library with a penguin on the cover.) 5-year-old: What’s that book? (I take the book down from the shelf and hand it to him.) Me: Just so you know, this book isn’t about penguins, it’s about climate change. (Pause.) 5-year-old: I know… I need to know about climate change because I’m a scientist. Investing Climate Change: Scientists' Search for Answers in a Warming… ## [I Try To Keep the Neighborhood Informed About the Various Cats](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_031226.html) _2026-03-13 · Nicky FloweRSS_ Nicky Flowers - inkjetting my way into kitty cat heaven - 03/12/26 - (send any comments/questions to hello at nickyflowers dot com) ## [Is This Blog Post Conscious?](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_030826.html) _2026-03-08 · Nicky FloweRSS_ It's as conscious as any LLM can be. Which is not at all. No. I wrote two more paragraphs about the exhaustion I feel discussing the conscioussness of machine learning models and then, you're not going to believe this, I got exhausted and deleted them. It's not a conversation worth having. There's an unshakable faith in a small amount of people in the consciousness of Claude or ChatGPT or… ## [Eleventy is Now Build Awesome?](https://darthmall.net/2026/eleventy-build-awesome/) _2026-03-04 · The Darth Mall_ First off, I know I am being curmudgeonly here. You’ve been warned. It was announced yesterday that Eleventy is now Build Awesome , a new product being offered by Font Awesome . The change has been teased for a while, beginning with changing the color of the Eleventy mascot’s balloon from red to green, and then the addition of a weird slider over the Eleventy wordmark on the home page. For the… ## [What'd Those Cats Mean By That](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_022626.html) _2026-02-27 · Nicky FloweRSS_ Nicky Flowers - Still thinking about them... are they thinking about me?... - 02/26/26 - (send any comments/questions to hello at nickyflowers dot com) ## [Be a Good Neighbor](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_022426.html) _2026-02-25 · Nicky FloweRSS_ Nicky Flowers - This sign made me so sad I went crazy but I'm okay now - 02/24/26 - (send any comments/questions to hello at nickyflowers dot com) ## [Subaru: Be Part of the Problem](https://darthmall.net/2026/subaru-part-of-the-problem/) _2026-02-20 · The Darth Mall_ Subaru's 'Everyone You Love' ad for the 2026 Outback I was really struck by this ad from Subaru when I saw it because they are actually calling attention to how dangerous our roads are. Of course, their answer to the problem of dangerous roads is not to make roads safer. That would be ridiculous. No, to protect the people you love, buy a Subaru, obviously. By the way, did you know there are a lot… ## [Cool Pictures: New Fuji Goofin'](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_021026.html) _2026-02-10 · Nicky FloweRSS_ 02/09/26, Downtown Berkeley & UC Berkeley // Fujifilm X-S20 // XF16-50mm // All sorts of film simulations/recipes My wonderful girlfriend gifted me a new camera to replace my ancient and, sadly, dysfunctional digicams. This kind gift plus an unrealted emotional breakthrough 5 years in the making the other day has lifted me out of the beginning of the year doldrums. The news is going to keep trying… ## [Cool Pictures: I Picked a Strange Week to Turn 30](https://nickyflowers.com/blog/2026/post_012626.html) _2026-01-27 · Nicky FloweRSS_ 01/19/26, as my gf and roommate and I went to Chinatown // Olympus Stylus 120 // Harman Phoenix I 35mm 30! I feel quite different but that's mostly due to current events. I think we all feel different. But it's been very nice being 30, actually. I just didn't think I'd make it! 20 years ago, it felt like this impossibly distant thing for me. Here I am. Hello. Suuure, America is dead and dying, but…