Friends don't let friends use Duolingo. When it comes to Japanese, there are so many better ways to learn than giving money to a company that's firing its workers and replacing them with AI. Here's our roadmap for a cheap and effective Duolingo alternative.

https://unseen-japan.com/learn-japanese-without-duolingo/

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #japanese

I love that the code for "why the hell are we waiting for a green light at a crossing when there are no cars in sigh?" among my friends is now a rhetorical question of:

"Are we in Germany or what?"

hello fedi! i am nora and i have a cute little jewelry store focused on fused glass! https://nora.jewelry/

shares help me out!

#sellingonmastodon #artisan #jewelry

My new year's resolution is to blame individuals even less for what is due to systemic shittiness.

You're going by car or plane rather than by train? Is it because you are an asshole? No, it is because the trip will take you 30 minutes by car and 3 hours by train. And the train ticket is four times the price of an air ticket.

Your lifestyle is unhealthy? Is it because you are a lazy fuck? No, it is because paying your bills requires you to spend most of your time in a workplace that doesn't offer any healthy lunch options and in a job that leaves hardly any time for exercise.

Of course individuals make different choices in the same environment. Some of us are strong (or wealthy or educated) enough to resist even fierce systemic pressure and live healthy and sustainable lives.

But when the system is working against you, you haven't failed if you are unable to resist. And even if you resist, that's a hollow victory with so many others losing.

I've arranged the history of the Internet into various Ages in my head

Ancient Age - 1975-1985 - basic computer-to-computer communication developed, the foundation of networking, dial-up BBSes, academic networks

Founding Age - 1985-1992 - the "network" starting to coalesce, early adopters, Usenet's ascendancy, email, etc.

Golden Age - 1992-1999 - the first wave of mass adoption, first HTML-based browsers, explosion of new sites, the Dot Com boom/bust, "the internet" becomes a household name, Y2K aesthetics, IRC

Silver Age - 2000-2007 - post-Dot Com, basic e-commerce possible, forums and community websites reign supreme, the development of "meme culture" as it becomes known today

Bronze Age - 2008-2014 - ascendancy of social media and YouTube, the introduction of smartphones, Occupy and Arab Spring, newfound optimism in the capability and connectivity of the internet, technology becomes easier to use

Age of Fire - 2015-2022 - social media platforms begin closing off, rise of GamerGate/neo-fascism/misinformation, streaming services dominate media, most of the remaining Gold/Silver Age communities fold into the modern internet, the final fall of IRC and rise of Discord/Telegram/Whatsapp

The Dark Age - 2022-Present - the murder of Twitter and Net Neutrality, the explosion of Large Language & Diffusion Models ("AI"), the destruction of legacy media, ascendancy of fascist propaganda, fracturing of communities seeking refuge from the Dead Internet (bots, "AI slop")