Kelson
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kvibber.com
Kelson
@kvibber.com
45 followers 52 following 170 posts
Techie, software developer, hobbyist photographer, sci-fi/fantasy and comics fan in the Los Angeles area. He/him. More often at @notes.kvibber.com or my website https://kvibber.com
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kvibber.com
Kelson @kvibber.com · Nov 6
I drop in here from time to time, but usually if I'm on social media it's in the Fediverse, where I'm @[email protected]

Thanks to Bridgy Fed, though, you can see (most of) my Fediverse posts here in Bluesky at @notes.kvibber.com
Reposted by Kelson
retrocomps.bsky.social
Writing BASIC Adventure Programs for the TRS-80 (Frank DaCosta, 1982) (Source.)
The cover for a book, "Writing BASIC Adventure Programs for the TRS-80", by Frank DaCosta. The call text reads, "Create exciting computer games while you learn valuable new programming techniques!" A dragon curls around a TRS-80, taking a swipe at a knight who is standing on the keyboard, his sword raised to take a swing at the fearsome beastie perched on the monitor and disk drives.
September 22, 2026 at 12:05 AM
Reposted by Kelson
davidrevoy.com
Resonance

Bonus speedpaint: www.peppercarrot.com/en/miniFanta...

#webcomic #krita #miniFantasyTheater
Panel 1. Cepper, the gothic sorceress, stands on her high chair, in her painting workshop, with an empty canvas in front of her on the easel. Her expression is blank, staring in the void. On his perch nearby, her Avian Intelligence (AI) Parrot speaks out loud a notification. > Parrot: "Breaking news: *Penguin Academy* authorizes grimoire contributions made with Avian Intelligence." > Parrot: "Third major magic school this week after the *Pointy Hat* and *Daemon*." > Cepper: "..." Panel 2. The Parrot leans forward, studying Cepper's face. She hasn't moved. > Parrot: "I thought that would make you furious." > Cepper: "No. It's been like this every day for weeks now, so much so that I've lost my ability to feel outraged..." > Cepper (smaller): "And all motivation..." Panel 3. General shot in the workshop, Parrot process while Cepper slowly pick one brush from a pot aside of the canvas. > Parrot: "So what are you going to do?" > Cepper: "Paint what I actually feel." Panel 4. Close up of Cepper applying a brush stroke on the canvas. Her voice is quiet, her eyes still blasé, but trying to focus on the canvas. She made a first step. > Cepper: "If this resonates with someone... that will be well enough." > Cepper: "Enough to not feel alone in this."
September 2, 2026 at 4:26 PM
kvibber.com
I've been using the #Fairphone4 for the past month, since my old phone started expanding. (You don't want your phone to expand! 😱)

It's running /e/OS (a deGoogled Android fork built on LineageOS), since Murena's the Fairphone's only US reseller.
September 2, 2026 at 4:28 AM
kvibber.com
#Blaugust2026 Wrap-Up

I wrote 20 posts (of a goal of 31), including reviews of two books, a game, my dying phone and its replacement. I also finished some older drafts and revived my dormant Les Mis blog with a Star Trek post (really).

journal.kvibber.com/2026/08/blau...

#blaugust
Blaugust, or What the Heck: I'll Do Two Overlapping Blogging Challenges | K-Squared Ramblings
I know, I'm already doing 100 Days To Offload. But I can't esist the wordplay in the name Blaugust.
journal.kvibber.com
September 2, 2026 at 3:08 AM
kvibber.com
New book review on my website!

The Confidence Game, Maria Konnikova
★★★★☆

kvibber.com/reviews/book...

An interesting read on how con artists operate, and the psychological traits they manipulate in the rest of us. Roughly structured around different phases of a con, and il…
The Confidence Game (Maria Konnikova)
An interesting read on how con artists operate, and the psychological traits they manipulate in the rest of us. Roughly structured around different phases of a con, and illustrated with real cases, some...
kvibber.com
August 21, 2026 at 7:51 AM
Reposted by Kelson
theonion.com
Historians Reveal Terra-Cotta Army Result Of Perfectionist Sculptor Screwing Up Soldier Statue Thousands Of Times https://theonion.com/historians-reveal-terra-cotta-army-result-of-perfection-1846260221/
Historians Reveal Terra-Cotta Army Result Of Perfectionist Sculptor Screwing Up Soldier Statue Thousands Of Times
August 19, 2026 at 9:00 PM
kvibber.com
Book review: To Each This World, Julie Czerneda ★★★★★

Standalone hard sci-fi in which we negotiate the future of humanity with aliens who think *very* differently from us.

Multiple alien biologies, space colonies, polymorphic artificial lifeforms, and more.
kvibber.com/reviews/book...
To Each This World - Review
Standalone hard sci-fi featuring multiple alien biologies, space colonies, polymorphic artificial lifeforms with a sense of humor, quantum-entangled tech-mediated telepathy and disposable avatar bodie...
kvibber.com
August 13, 2026 at 3:26 PM
Reposted by Kelson
gailsimone.bsky.social
🎶🎶

Why are there so many
Songs about Mothra?
And why she has friends in a clam

She’s Queen of monsters
That live on an island
Shoots webs from her
Diaphragm

So some will say and
Some call them titans

I know they’re wrong
Can’t you see?

1/
August 13, 2026 at 12:48 AM
kvibber.com
New on my website: When #LesMiserables showed up (as an eBook on a PADD, of course) on Deep Space Nine, and Sisko had to figure out how be Inspector Javert to his opponent's self-image as Jean Valjean.

kvibber.com/les-mis/othe...

#StarTrek #DS9 #Blaugust
Starfleet vs. Jean Valjean?
Les Misérables shows up in an episode of Deep Space Nine, fitting into the Maquis/Cardassian/Starfleet conflict.
kvibber.com
August 9, 2026 at 3:19 PM
Reposted by Kelson
davidrevoy.com
New blog-post: "When online commenters 'detect' my art as AI"

→ www.davidrevoy.com/article1164/...
Screenshots of comments from various platforms: - but is WAY to similar to Al - Is this Al or just made to look that way? - was the ai style in purpose too? 3 - Your art looks like low quality Al - Trying to figure out if this is ai - Dang, it's crazy seeing the source art style to so00o many of those Al slop comics, kinda surreal. - I have a feeling the faces feel off - this isn't the transcript, this is just the exact same script you gave to the Al - this art looks hella ai generated - Nice comic. What prompt? - Shitty Al art - AI? LMAO . - You must be John Art because it seems that it stole from you the most - Is it me or the proportions looks like Ai art?
August 5, 2026 at 8:04 PM
Reposted by Kelson
davidrevoy.com
Authenticity Problem

Bonus timelapse: www.peppercarrot.com/en/miniFanta...

#webcomic #krita #miniFantasyTheater
Panel 1. The gothic sorceress, Cepper, finishes a painting in front of her easel, palette in hand. She looks happy. Nearby, on a pedestal, her Avian Intelligence (AI) Cyber Parrot watches her. > AI Parrot: "Shall I assist with finishing that piece?" > Cepper: "Absolutely not! I love the process, and my art will stay **handmade**." Panel 2. later at the exhibition, Cepper stands beside her painting, shock written across her face. In the foreground, silhouettes of anthropomorphic creatures and humans reacting to her work. > Narrator: "Later, at the exhibition." > Audience: "Did you purposely make it look like Avian Intelligence created it?" > Audience: "It totally looks AI-generated!" Panel 3. Cepper facepalms as she overhears the audience attempting to justify their observations. > Audience: "Yeah...the yellow tint is a dead giveaway." > Audience: "...and this style, I mean, common!" > Audience (smaller): "And the fingers!" Panel 4. Later, in dim lighting, Cepper sits cross-legged on the floor after the exhibition. The crowd disperses in the background. She stares vacantly, chin resting on her fist, processing what just happened. Beside her, the AI Parrot look at her art. > Parrot: "Did I ever tell you how much I learned my skills from your art?" > Parrot: "The hundreds I made a minute ago are really in the same vein." > Parrot (in small): "Love your yellows!" > Cepper: "Shut up."
August 5, 2026 at 4:48 PM
kvibber.com
New book review on my website!

Always Coming Home, Ursula K. Le Guin
★★★★★

kvibber.com/reviews/book...

Not a novel, not quite a short story/poetry collection, but a fascinating, thorough exploration of an imagined post-apocalyptic rural utopia in a far-future Napa Valley.
July 29, 2026 at 7:51 AM
kvibber.com
#AI uses em-dashes because blogs do. Think about it: #WordPress powers a huge chunk of the web, so it's highly represented in #LLMs' training data. And WordPress has auto-converted ASCII punctuation to real typography since 2003.

https://journal.kvibber.com/2026/07/em-dashes-and-wordpress/
AI Uses Em-Dashes Because Bloggers Do | K-Squared Ramblings
WordPress powers a huge chunk of the web, so it's highly represented in LLMs' training data. WordPress also auto-converts ASCII punctuation to real typography, and it has since 2003. Think about it...
journal.kvibber.com
July 27, 2026 at 7:09 PM
kvibber.com
3 years on, I still use my #PineTab2 on a regular basis. It's not fast or powerful, but it's a #tablet that runs standard #Linux (and its desktop/command-line apps), with a detachable real keyboard and trackpad, good for writing and coding.

kvibber.com/reviews/prod...
#review
PineTab2 - Review
The PineTab2 is not a *great* computer. But it's a hyper-mobile Linux tablet that can run desktop and command-line apps natively, with a touchscreen and an optional physical keyboard, for a budget pri...
kvibber.com
July 16, 2026 at 12:56 AM
kvibber.com
On preserving internet freedom in the face of legal pushes for age-gating and other forms of surveillance. We're all tired, in part because it feels like there are only 5 big sites, so why protect them?

Because the Internet is more than them. It's all of us.

dustycloud.org/blog/what-ha...
What happened to the fight for the Internet? -- Dustycloud Brainstorms
dustycloud.org
July 1, 2026 at 3:49 AM
kvibber.com
5-Star book review: #Tehanu, #UrsulaKLeGuin

A character-driven look at the lives of ordinary people in a world of magic, especially the women and children (and not a few men) caught underfoot when wizards, heroes and villains fight. And (of course) dragons.

kvibber.com/reviews/book...

#Earthsea
Tehanu - Review
A character-driven look at the lives of ordinary people in a world of magic, especially the women and children (and not a few men) caught underfoot when wizards, heroes and villains fight. And (of cou...
kvibber.com
June 18, 2026 at 3:44 AM
kvibber.com
10 years ago, a local Del Taco's mis-spaced sign offering FRE SH A VOCA DO gained immortality as "Free sha-VA-ca-doo" on Vine (remember those?).

Someone at the restaurant appears to be nostalgic for the meme, because it's back on the sign today.

journal.kvibber.com/2026/06/free...

#FreeShavocado
A square red DEL TACO sign stands on a post above two narrower signs, one with movable lettering and the other indicating that the 'DRIVE THRU' is open late. The custom sign between them reads 'FRE SH A VOCA DO'. Behind the sign it's a mottled sky, some white, some blue. A skinny tree tied to two support poles, with mostly empty branches (but a few leaves finally starting to bud), stands next to it. Cars can be seen on the road behind the signpost, and some low buildings across the way. The other side of the sign. It's seen from a bit further away, so I used digital zoom and the image is a bit blurrier. The DEL TACO and drive-through (sorry, drive thru) signs look the same. At first it looks like the tree is missing, but it's just mostly hidden behind the signs. From this side the sky is a dull gray, and the sign reads 'FRE SH A GUACA MOLE' instead.
June 13, 2026 at 3:56 AM
kvibber.com
I finally watched the first season of #Murderbot. It's a pitch-perfect adaptation, and Skarsgård is dead on as the socially-anxious security cyborg who just wants to be left alone to watch its shows.
kvibber.com/reviews/tv/m...
#TV #SciFi
June 2, 2026 at 2:50 PM
Reposted by Kelson
kenlowery.bsky.social
Yes yes YES. Get a library card, get Libby, go nuts
alexdecampi.bsky.social Alex de Campi @alexdecampi.bsky.social · Jun 2
If this is you: go purchase yourself an inexpensive e-reader like a Kobo or the one @josie.zone is nuts about, crucially it should be JUST BOOKS no browser/apps, and then hit me up bc I have SO many book recs for you

A chapter or two before bedtime is much more fun and restful than scrolling
mims.bsky.social Christopher Mims @mims.bsky.social · Jun 2
Loving the "everyone needs a hobby" discourse on Bluesky, fully agree with it.

One caveat: of course, not everyone has the time or energy for such things. I do think sometimes people end up only having Phone as a hobby 'cause it's the one thing they can cram into spare moments, or it's the easiest.
June 2, 2026 at 2:28 PM
Reposted by Kelson
erininthemorning.com
Trans people are not “fighting for unpopular positions that society isn’t ready for.”

Trans people are fighting to KEEP the rights we have enjoyed for decades.

We have been able to legally change our gender markers since the 70s and before.

Same with bathrooms, sports, youth, all for decades.
May 20, 2026 at 11:33 PM
Reposted by Kelson
greblin.bsky.social
wouldn't it be funny if EVERYONE blocked this Attie AI account @ bsky.app/profile/atti... before they could do anything with it
March 29, 2026 at 2:29 PM
Reposted by Kelson
samadams.bsky.social
the party that wants to require ID to vote abruptly invalidating a thousand people’s IDs overnight seems like a pretty giant flashing red light
February 26, 2026 at 4:55 PM
Reposted by Kelson
ironspike.bsky.social
THIS.

None of them actually give a shit about, say, women's sports, or comic books, or Star Wars. It's obvious cuz if they try to tackle the subjects in depth, they just embarrass themselves. They don't know basic shit!

5 WNBA players!
Han Solo's homeworld!
3 2025 Eisner winners!

Zip! Zero!
adamserwer.bsky.social Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · Feb 18
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 7:28 PM
Reposted by Kelson
anildash.com
It is a vile scandal that 2 of the biggest AI companies in the world attack children by inciting them to self-harm, and by generating sexually exploitative imagery of kids for profit. I wanted to document this so that people in tech will stop saying they don't know: www.anildash.com/2026/02/18/t...
How did we end up threatening our kids’ lives with AI? - Anil Dash
A blog about making culture. Since 1999.
www.anildash.com
February 18, 2026 at 5:40 PM
kvibber.com
New short story review on my website: Solitude, Ursula K. Le Guin ★★★★★

hyperborea.org/reviews/book...

The people of Eleven-Soro live alone except for a bare minimum of human interaction. But what is that bare minimum, and what does it mean for people who avoid all other contact?
Solitude - Review
The people of Eleven-Soro live alone except for a bare minimum of human interaction. But what is that bare minimum, and what does it mean for people who avoid all other contact?
hyperborea.org
February 10, 2026 at 4:59 PM