#☆please check the notes and look up other information on different servers/instances you want to join☆

[fdgh54gf145]

just asking, are any of you on fediverse?

[themagnuswriters]

Writing a Muslim Character

The Mods of the Magnus Writers discord server and community are putting together a variety of resources for Magnus Archives fan creators; these have been collated from articles on the topics, our own experiences, and the experiences of the members of the Magnus Writers discord. These are definitely not comprehensive or the only viewpoints out there, and are by no means meant as a way to police fanworks, but as a way to support and inspire fan creators in creating thoughtful and diverse works. Please note that external links will be added in a reblog to outsmart tumblr’s terrible tagging system, so make sure to check those out as well!

This resource in particular was put together by Mod Jasmine: hi, all! 

While there are no canonically Muslim characters in TMA, Muslim headcanons are common in fanworks—particularly for Basira, and sometimes Jon (which I love to see!). I have cobbled together this post from my own experiences to help support and inform fans in these areas, and as part of my diabolical plan to get more Muslim!Basira and Muslim!Jon fics to shove into my brain.

First, two gigantic caveats:

I was raised Sunni Muslim in Egypt, which is a majority Sunni Muslim country, and still live there. This means my experience will be very different from someone raised in a majority Christian country like the UK, and different again if they are not Sunni and not Arab.

I am currently ex-Muslim. This does not mean I bear any ill will towards Islam or Muslims, just that it wasn’t for me, and I felt it was important to be upfront about that. I’ll be linking to resources by practicing Muslims in the reblog to this post, whether to add to my opinions and experiences or provide you with a different opinion. I am not here to put my voice over that of Muslims, just to do some of the work so they don’t have to. Obviously, if any Muslims have any additions or suggestions for this post, I’m happy to accommodate them.

Alright. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get started with the basics of writing a Muslim character.

(Warning: this is absurdly, absurdly long)

Basics:

Muslims follow two main sources of religious instruction: Quran and Hadith. 

The Quran is the holy book, considered to be dictated by the angel Gabriel to the Prophet Mohammed, who then relayed what he was told to his followers. It is composed of surahs, or chapters, which have individual ayat, or verses. There are no varying versions of the Quran, later additions, or anything considered lost in translation. Any Arabic Quran is considered to be the same text that the Prophet Mohammed relayed, unchanged. As a result, while Muslims can debate interpretations of the Quran (although that’s often still left to the scholars), none debate the actual words of the text.

Hadith, meanwhile, are the sayings or teachings of the Prophet Mohammed. Their validity can be disputed, as they were written by his followers after his death, and mainly depend on having several witnesses for a specific saying or situation. The more witnesses there were, the more valid the hadith is considered to be.

When in doubt or should there be any contradiction between the Quran and Hadith, Muslims will always refer to the Quran first and foremost.

Denominations:

The bigggest (but not only!) divisions of Islam are Sunni and Shia, and both of those have separate madhabs, which are the separate thoughts and stances of specific Imams. When writing a Muslim character, a good first step would be to decide where your character’s family might have come from, as that could help inform which denomination your character might belong to. This will in turn inform things like the beliefs they grew up with, how they pray, their holy holidays, and so on. Obviously, all denominations fall under the bigger umbrella of Muslim, but can vary in practice.

Background:

The intersection of culture and religion affects a character beyond which denomination they likely belong to, such as whether they call prayer salah or namaz, the foods they might associate with Ramadan or Eid, and their community’s stance on things like hijab and alcohol.

One thing to keep in mind is that being Muslim is not synonymous with being Arab and vice versa. Not all Arabs are Muslim, not all Muslims are Arab or even Middle Eastern. In fact, the largest Muslim country in the world is Indonesia. That said, depending on your character’s race and backround, there is the potential they may have faced Arab elitism or other strands of racism within Muslim circles. Please see the reblog of this post for an article about  one Black British Muslim woman’s experience with racism.

And, of course, your character and their family do not need to have been immigrants at all. They or their family may have been converts instead. According to most Muslim schools of thought, all that’s required for a person to be Muslim is stating the shahada in Arabic, honestly and with intent. It goes, “Ashhadu an la ilah illa Allah, wa an Mohammadan rasul Allah,” which translates as “I bear witness that there is no god but God, and that Mohammed is His prophet.” Shia Muslims, I believe, have an additional section, but otherwise that’s it. Recite that in front of witnesses with sincere belief and that’s all you need to be Muslim.

Pillars of Islam:

These are the duties or cornerstones of a Muslim’s faith and considered to be acts every Muslim should strive for. What the pillars are can, I think, differ between denominations, with Shia Muslims having additional ancillaries as well (any Shia readers, please feel free to correct me!) but both denominations agree that the following are important:

Salah—prayer

Sawm—fasting during Ramadan

Zakat—giving a certain percentage of income to charity or the community

Hajj—pilgrimage to Mecca

In all cases, these are considered mandatory only for those who are able. A person who cannot perform hajj, whether due to not being physically able to or lacking the funds to travel, is under no obligation.

Prayer:

Prayer is performed five times a day while facing the Qibla, which is the direction of Mecca. Prayer is formed of units, called rak’at, which consists of a set of actions done in a specific order. The “How to Pray Salah, Step by Step” article linked in the reblog of this post provides fairly good prayer instructions for beginners, so check it out for details!  These include bowing, prostrating, and reciting some surahs. 

Each of the five daily prayers has a different number of rak’at, as well as its own name and allotted time of day, as follows:

Fajr, which means Dawn and can be performed at any point until the sun rises (two rak’at). 

Dhuhr, which means Noon (four rak’at)

Asr, performed in the afternoon (four rak’at)

Maghreb, which means sunset and can be performed at any point until it’s dark (three rak’at)

Isha, performed at night and can be done at any point until dawn (four rak’at)

The specific time of prayer will differ day to day and place to place, according to the sun, but those are the rough timeframes for each. It’s generally preferred that a Muslim does their prayer on time, but in practice some Muslims find it difficult to wake up for Fajr, for instance, and just try to make sure they get a morning prayer in before noon.

On Friday, there is a congregational Friday prayer at Dhuhr in a mosque called the Jumu’a prayer (which, fun fact, literally means gathering and is also the Arabic name for Friday!). Only men are required to take part in the congregation, however.  

In Muslim majority countries, the time for prayer is announced by the adhaan, the call to prayer, from mosques and in media. This won’t be the case in the UK, and the character will likely have to rely on an adhaan app or looking up what time prayer should be. 

There are various requirements for a prayer to be correct, chief of which is facing the Qibla and purity. Before performing prayer, a Muslim must purify themself by performing wudu, or ablutions, which basically involves washing the hands, arms, nostrils, face, head, and feet a specific number of times using clean water. The way I was taught these must be performed in a certain order, and the person shouldn’t speak during or after until their prayer is finished. This may be different for others.

Wudu is considered valid until nullified by bodily functions such as urinating, defecating, vomiting, flatulence, or any sexual activity. For Sunni Muslims, it’s also invalidated by going to sleep. If none of these have happened, a Muslim can perform more than one prayer using the same wudu.

Notably, a Muslim cannot pray if they’re on their period, as they’re considered in a state of impurity. 

Another important requirement is that a Muslim be dressed modestly for prayer. The general guideline is that Muslim men should cover the area between their navel and knees with loose, non-revealing clothing, and that during prayer it’s preferred that they cover their chests as well  Muslim women should cover everything except their face, hands, and feet. This means that a woman who isn’t hijabi would still wrap a hijab for prayer. For nonbinary Muslims, I don’t think there are specific guidelines yet, although please feel free to correct me. 

If praying at home, a family may choose to pray together. In this case, the male head of the household usually stands at the front and acts as Imam, leading the prayer. Other men will tend to be in front of or beside women, as generally women should not pray in front of a man. This is the case even, especially, if he is not praying.

Children aren’t required to pray, as they’re considered innocent and have no obligations, but may want to take part early on or may be encouraged to practice.

Praying is one area you’ll find denominational differences. For example, while Sunnis fold their arms in prayer, Shia keep their arms to their side, and while Shia Muslims make sure their foreheads touch a piece of clay or earth when they prostrate, Sunnis do not. If you write your character praying, keep these details in mind.

Fasting:

During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims fast from Fajr (dawn) until Maghreb (sunset) every day. This means they abstain from consuming anything—yes, even water, cigarettes, and medicine. They should also abstain from sexual activities and cursing. Most importantly, they must have the intention to be fasting. This means that not eating and drinking because they were asleep for that entire period of time or just lost track and forgot does not count as fasting.

Generally, the idea is more to try to be more pious and avoid sin throughout the month. It’s thought that the shaytan (or devil) is chained up during Ramadan, so any temptation or sinning is a person’s own doing. The way I was raised, I was taught that sawm/fasting is invalidated by sexual thoughts  and raising your voice as well. Many people also try to dress more modestly during Ramadan, with some women opting for looser clothing or a headscarf. Many Muslims will try to read the whole Quran during Ramadan. 

After Maghreb, Muslims break their fast with Iftar (which means breakfast, hah) and have a late night meal called Suhour. Since the Muslim calendar is a lunar calendar, Ramadan is 11 days earlier every year. Depending on when Ramadan falls in the year, there can be barely any time between iftar and suhour in certain parts of the world, as the sun is up for so much of the day. 

Given the length of time and difficulty involved, there are exceptions and allowances for fasting. A person is not required to fast if they are:

A child (up to puberty)

Ill or has a medical condition such as diabetes

Pregnant

Travelling

On their period

In fact, if they are on their period it will not be counted, even if they do fast. That said, sometimes people choose to fast while travelling anyway, as travel is less strenuous now than it used to be. If they’re crossing time zones they will have to consider which time zone they’re breaking their fast to. As far as I remember, it’s based on the time zone of the place they just left or started their fast in. 

If an obstacle to fasting is temporary, such as their period, they’re expected to make those days up with additional fasting before next Ramadan. Otherwise, they are allowed to make up for the lost fast in another way, such as by donating money or feeding fasting people. Whether due to societal pressure (which is formidable in Muslim-majority countries) or out of consideration for others who are fasting, those who are not fasting for whatever reason may often choose to hide this and only eat in secret.

If a person forgets they were fasting or accidentally consumes something, it does not invalidate the fast , and as soon as they remember or realise the mistake they can have the intention to fast again and continue with their day. 

While children are exempt, many families will start them off by fasting for half a day so they can build up to a full day when they hit puberty.

Ramadan traditions vary wildly from country to country and culture to culture, but generally it’s a time for family gathering and celebration. Often there are special Ramadan-specific food, drink, and decorations, and it ends with Eid ul-Fitr which has its own specific foods and celebrations. Basically, imagine if Christmas lasted a month. That’s how big a deal Ramadan is. 

In my experience, the first few days are usually the hardest. Water is what I tended to miss the most, even if I managed to stay up long enough or set an alarm to wake up to drink just before fajr, followed closely by swearing. Anyone who drinks caffeine or smokes cigarettes will likely find abstaining from those more difficult than water. By the end of the month, though, it gets much easier and I often got to the point where I barely noticed. I will say, however, that the longest I’ve had to fast has been maybe 16 hours. A summer Ramadan in the UK would be more difficult due to the much later sunsets.

Halal and Haram:

Halal means “permissible,” while haram means “forbidden.”  You might have heard these words in passing before, such as halal food, but they are used for many areas of life.  

Things that are considered haram include:

Consuming, serving, or trading in intoxicants, such as alcohol

Consuming improperly slaughtered meat or meat from forbidden animals, such as pork

Extramarital sex

Tattoos

Gambling

Men wearing silk or gold

A Muslim woman marrying a non-Muslim man (although it’s fine for a Muslim man to marry a non-Muslim woman)

Being immodest

Modesty is expected of all genders, including men. If you’ll recall from the section on prayer, the general guideline for male modesty is that they should cover the area between their navel and knees with loose, non-revealing clothing. Note that for women, modesty does not necessarily involve wearing a hijab.  There is actually a ton of controversy as to whether the hijab is a fard (requirement) or not, as described in the following section.

The Hijab:

To be hijabi takes more than just throwing on a headscarf. As a word, hijab means “barrier” or “veil,” and a hijabi person would be expected to cover everything except their face and the palms of their hands, and to ensure that their clothes are loose and non-revealing.  It all comes from an interpretation of two verses in the Quran that many scholars nowadays agree to mean the hijab is required, and that some say actually call for a face covering as well, which is called a niqab. 

This wasn’t always the case, however, and these days there is still the occasional controversial scholar (I remember a few kerfuffles coming out of Egypt’s Al-Azhar mosque recently) saying it isn’t and has never been required at all. At least in the Arab world, this is largely due to the wave of Wahhabism (which is a specifically fundamentalist interpretation of Islam) that’s taken over the region in the past half a century. Before that, the idea of a hijab being a religious requirement was less widespread.

I’m not here to argue who’s right or wrong, just to make you aware that the hijab as we know it today hasn’t always been considered a requirement for a Muslim woman. Most of the women of my family never wore any form of head covering, but more and more they are an exception rather than the norm.

The choice of whether to wear a hijab can mean very different things, depending on the surrounding culture. For instance, my grandmother, the strictest woman I have ever known, got married in a very cute sleeveless dress that went just under the knees, and when she grew older she wore a head-covering more as a cultural indication of age rather than any religious reason. In my generation, in a country with a Muslim majority, lack of visible signs of devoutness have become almost a class marker, with some upper-class women using their lack of head-covering as a sign that they are “more Westernized” or “modern.” And again, I want to emphasize that this is the case for my country only. 

This will be completely different for Muslim minorities, where the hijab can become a symbol of pride and unity.

I will say that it’s very rare for women to be forced into getting veiled, whether in Muslim minority or majority countries. I’m not saying it never happens, just that it’s not the “oppressive tool of the patriarchy” outsiders sometimes think it is. Women may face some societal pressure, but by and large it is considered a choice and often an empowering one. In fact, I have friends whose families discouraged them from wearing a hijab too young and emphasized only taking the decision when they were sure they wanted to. If writing a Muslim character when you’re non-Muslim, I strongly suggest not trying to tackle the story of someone forced into a hijab, as there’s a lot of nuance there and it’s very easy to fall into harmful stereotypes. The hijabi woman who gets “liberated” and takes off her hijab is also overdone and harmful. Please don’t.

Everyday Life:

Muslims are not a monolithic entity, and some will be more devout or religious than others. There are those who will pray their five a day and others who only pray during Ramadan or Eid, some who don’t drink and some who do, hijabis who dress only in loose clothing and those who wear tight trousers or show some of their hair, some who have tattoos, and some who may date or even have sex before marriage. However, this isn’t a carte-blanche not to do research when writing a Muslim character, because even if they break a rule of Islam, they will be conscious of it, may be concerned about their community’s response to it, and in any case will be affected by it.

For instance, I know many Muslims who drink alcohol. Some interpret the text differently, saying that since the sin is getting drunk then they won’t drink enough to get drunk, just buzzed. Some only do it on special occasions or on vacation, saying they know it’s a sin but it’s fine on occasion and they’ll repent later. All of them would probably dive under a table if they thought their family was nearby.

For more opinions on Muslims and dealing with alcohol, take a look at the “Islam and Alcohol” article linked in the reblog of this post.

Here are things that a character who is a practicing Muslim might do or be concerned about in their day to day life:

Checking ingredients to make sure they’re all halal. This goes for things like food, drink, medicine, anything consumable. Things like gelatine capsules are only halal if the source of the gelatine is itself halal, for instance.

Keeping up with their prayers. With five prayers a day, some will inevitably happen while they’re out of the house. Some Muslims prefer to just group their prayers when they get home, but since it’s preferable to do prayers on time, others may try to pray while out and about This means considering the following:

Finding a bathroom for wudu. Part of wudu involves washing feet and the head, which isn’t feasible in a public location or if the person is hijabi and doesn’t want to unwrap and rewrap their hijab. In that case, they can generally wipe a wet hand over their socks and top of their head covering. 

They may carry a prayer carpet or have one stashed in a convenient location, but it’s not a must.

Finding a clean and secluded place to pray. Generally, it’s not done to pray in a place where someone will pass in front of you, and a woman must also take care to pray away from men’s eyes. 

Figuring out where the Qibla is. Luckily, there are apps for that.

If a woman is not hijabi, she would have to carry a veil and, depending on her clothes, something to cover up so she can pray.

If they’re hijabi, they’ll probably have to adjust or re-wrap their hijab throughout the day, depending on the material and their activities. This would typically happen in bathrooms or any other space that doesn’t include men, as they can’t reveal themselves to any men who aren’t of their immediate family. For more on the hijab, and the day to day realities of wearing and wrapping one, take a look at the links provided in the reblog of this post.  

A Muslim woman may choose not to accept handshakes from men who aren’t family.  She has probably considered how to deal with that potential awkwardness.

If they’re fasting, they might carry some dates or biscuits or something in case they need to break their fast while on the go.

If making plans, they might say, “Insha’allah” which means “God willing.” I was always admonished to do so to acknowledge the future is entirely within God’s hands.

If asked how they are, they might reply with “Alhamdullilah” which means “Thanks be to God.”

When starting to eat, they may say, “Bismillah,” which means “In the name of God” and when done eating may say “Alhamdullilah.” These can also be invoked silently.

As you might have noticed, Allah’s name is invoked pretty often. While it’s not preferable to swear using God’s name just to make a point (“Wallahi”), there’s nothing against it, really.

Fundamentally, an important thing to remember is that Islam is a religion of ease and not hardship. This is an actual Quranic quote. What this means is, it may seem like there are a lot of rules to keep in mind, but there are also a ton of allowances for when those rules aren’t feasible, just like the case for fasting above. Other allowances include how an elderly or disabled person who may not be able to perform the motions of prayer can pray while sitting in a chair or even lying in bed. If there isn’t any clean water to purify before prayer or if using the water would mean lack of drinking water, a Muslim can use dust or sand to purify, and if no dust or sand is available then they don’t need to purify at all and can simply pray. 

This means that, say, if your Muslim Jon wants to pray while kidnapped by the circus, he can, even without being able to perform wudu, even without knowing where the Qibla is, even without being able to move or say anything at all.

For more day-to-day tidbits, check out the “More on writing Muslim characters” link in the reblog of this post. 

LGBTQ Muslims:

Needless to say, Queer Muslims absolutely do exist, and their being Muslim doesn’t cancel out their queerness or vice versa. While there are Quranic verses that have been interpreted as condemning homosexuality, there are also other interpretations, and queerness has existed in Muslim societies for ages. There was a ton of homoerotic imagery among Abbasid poets during the Golden Age of Islam, for example. 

However, modern-day attitudes can be difficult to get around, and queer Muslims may have difficulty finding their place in both Muslim spaces and queer spaces, the latter which often expect them to reject religiosity.

Although I am queer myself, I don’t feel it’s my place to speak for queer Muslims and their relationships with their communities beyond this, so I’ll let some queer practicing Muslims speak for themselves.  Please see the reblog of this post for valuable contributions from queer Muslims about their experiences.  

Miscellaneous:

This is mostly for all the random tidbits I thought up while writing this that didn’t fit anywhere else and also because I don’t know when to quit apparently, SO!

Allah is just Arabic for God. Muslims can and do use these terms interchangeably, such as saying “God willing,” instead of “Inshallah,” even in an Arabic-speaking country. 

Also, God has 99 names! Just a fun fact for you there. 

The Devil in Islam is pretty different from his Christian counterpart. Referred to as Iblis or Shaytan, among other names, he is not a fallen angel and there is no great revolt story, nor is he considered a root of all evil. Instead, he is a djinn made of smokeless flame who refused to bow down to Adam, as he felt he was made of superior stuff and not about to bow to a creature made of mud. His disdain for humanity is what has caused him and other shayateen/demons to try and tempt humans.

A person’s right hand is considered purer than their left, so it’s encouraged to always eat with your right hand. Unfortunately, this does mean left-handed people face something of a stigma—or at least that’s the case here in Egypt. My cousins, both lefties, both eat with their right hand, though they  do everything else with their left.

Similarly, it is considered better to enter spaces with your right foot, though only the most devout are likely to think of this all the time. This is especially considered for entering a mosque or new home.

A Muslim might say or write “Peace be Upon Him” whenever the Prophet Mohammed is mentioned, written as (PBUH), and “Subhanuh wa Taala” when mentioning Allah, written as (SWT).

The Evil Eye is mentioned in the Quran as “hasad,” and considered to be a very real thing. This jealous or envious energy is considered able to ruin good things in your life, even if the jealous person didn’t intend to. There are some surahs that are considered good to ward against it, as well as incense, the colour blue, the number five, and the symbols of the nazar (which is a round, blue-ringed eye) and the khamsa (an open five-fingered palm, also known as the Hand of Fatima). The nazar, khamsa, and belief in the evil eye aren’t unique to Islam at all. What is unique to Islam is that a Muslim might preface a compliment with “Masha’allah” which means “As God wills it,” to ward off their own evil eye. 

Much of the Quran in Arabic rhymes and is very poetic, which can make surahs easy to memorise by rhythm. It can also make recitations by a skilled reader very lovely.

[readerbookclub]

The Book Club Chat Server!

In a recent post, I briefly mentioned that the book club has a discord server now (here’s the link to join). But I didn’t delve into what exactly this means. So this posts talks a little more about our new place to chat and answers some questions you might have. 

Also if you’re having difficulty joining, the last question (under a read more) breaks it down, step by step. Hope this helps x

What is discord?

Discord is a website that people use to message and chat over the internet. Within discord, you can join servers—think of this as one big group chat for the club. We can message each other and have a casual chat.

While some discord servers can be open to the public, ours is private and only I can send out invitation links. This means you don't have to worry about spammers or bullies or bots, they won't be able to join and if somehow they do, I can always kick them out.

Why did you make a discord?

Having a place to chat can make us feel more like a group and encourage conversations. For those of us who’ve been around for a while now, we’re familiar with each other and our interests. But for our newer members, this doesn’t always feel like a community. And it can be pretty intimidating to reach out and try to connect with others.

I've noticed that a lot of people will only interact with me. They'll reply to my posts, send me asks, and message me. But not a lot of people interact with each other. By having a place for us all to chat, we can get to know each other a little better. Reaching out to other members and talking to them becomes a lot easier.

Does this mean we won’t use Tumblr anymore?

Big no! I absolutely love Tumblr as a place to discuss books. The ability to write super long posts lends itself very well to book reviews and nuanced discussions. Also the ability to send other people asks is something I really enjoy. But tumblr is lacking when it comes to its chat feature, so this is a way to make up for that. I'll still be posting all my question lists and reviews over here, and I'm still going to bug you with asks. The discord is simply a place to add to what we have here, not to take it way.

I’ve never used discord before. Will it be hard for me to figure it out?

Absolutely not. Discord has a very simple and easy to navigate interface. It'll be just like any other chat website/app. And if you have trouble figuring out, you can message me and I'll be more than happy to help. Discord even has a guide explaining how to use its main features.

Why discord? Why not another platform?

When I asked you for your thoughts about starting a server, a few people suggested a platform other than discord. I looked into your suggestions and felt that discord was the best option. Some other platforms make personal information visible to others, such as phone number or email. With discord, you can keep that stuff private which makes it safer.

Another person brought up the Tumblr chat option. While that's a great idea, it does have it's drawbacks. The tumblr chat option is only available on the app, which not everyone uses. Discord however, can be accessed anywhere—you can use the website, mobile app, or download it on your laptop. The other reason is that you can't separate the tumblr chat into sub-chats or do any form of organization. This raises issues. For instance, on discord I can make a spoiler-free zone for casual chit chat and separate it from the book-discussion chat that'll probably be filled with spoilers. On discord, I can also pin important messages, assign roles to members, and delete any unwanted/hateful messages.

I don’t have the time to check the discord regularly? Does this mean I shouldn’t join?

You can still join! Discord saves old messages, so if you log in once in a while, you can catch up quite easily. It's totally fine if you only check in every week or so.

I follow this blog, but I’m not part of the book club. Can I still join?

Of course you can! This is a place for you to get to know other readers, and become more familiar with some of us in this little corner of booklr. Who knows, maybe you'll be encouraged to read along with us!

Do I have to join?

No you don't. But it could be fun, so why not go for it! If you join and then later decide it's not for you, you're always welcome to leave.

I'm having difficulty joining, can you explain it to me?

This is the link you'll need to use. Please note that it'll expire in a week, so if you're reading this after then message me and I'll give you a new link.

Bellow the read more is a step-by step guide to joining.

1. Click the link above, and you should open this page:

2. Come up with a username, and click continue. This should take you to the following page:

3. Verify that you’re a human (you are a human, aren’t you?!). If you don’t have an account this might come up:

4. You can make an account if you want, but you don’t have to! Simply click outside of the sign up box and it should disappear. 

5. Discord will probably ask you to verify your age (their minimum age differs from country to country, but I think all our members are old enough to join):

After that, you’re in! If you're facing any difficulties with joining, message me. There's another slightly more complicated way to join, and we can do that instead.

Tag List (message me to be added/removed):  @solitarystudies @adhyayana-v @gordinmegan​ @appleinducedsleep​ @morphedphase​ @bowieziggyfan​ @theeezoneee​ @montaguest​ @wanderlustingdreamer​ @elfspectations​ @astreamoflight​ @engineeriblr​ @chemistrybaby6-022x10-23​ @pepperpaprikash​ @bubblylion​ @generalblizzarddreamer​ @ifancythetrancy​ @selescope​ @bluehair-pixie​ @love-witch-magic​ @bluebellraven​ 

[autumnslance]

how do you get into roleplaying on a ff server? like how do you do it and how do you know if your character is lore compliant? ;A; pls youre a big inspo to me

*Hugs Nonny* Getting into RP on a FF server can vary; I don’t actually RP much these days, outside of some friends I already have connections to--and that in itself can be difficult just due to Life! It can take time, and patience, and some fits and starts.

And this gets...really really long, so buckle up and go below the cut, please. :)

The cut got broken by an edit. Sigh.

In game there’s always the RP status tag, and just doing RP with folks in public spaces. There may be trolls now and then, but they can be ignored. I personally find Balmung’s Quicksand area too busy and anxiety inducing and not actually all that conducive to actual RP, even “meet at a tavern” walk-up type. But unless you already have a ready-made group of friends/FCmates willing to RP more than some random walk-ups with you, it may take some legwork to find folks you can and want to write with.

Social Media There are a couple of RP community blogs, like @mooglemeet​ and @ffxiv-crystal-rp​  and plenty of server-specific ones. There’s also some Discords for these communities. They host and advertise events and reblog people who are looking for RP contacts. Some of them have running gdoc calendars and in game linkshells and fellowships as well.

Shofie has a good post about Tumblr/social media RP blogging.

@shofie-ffxiv

It’s a fact now that social media outside game is a way to make contacts, or even a medium for RP itself. There are few centralized websites/forums for server RP communities anymore. Making connections over your social media, like Tumblr and Twitter, can help find RP. You can’t just throw your own character info out there or reblog prompts hoping others bite, though; you have to put in some work and show interest in others, too. This can be difficult and even scary. That’s OK.

RP is about collaboration and creating with other people, which means finding folks you can write with, and who see you as someone interesting but also interested in them and their OCs. If you want to keep it a solo endeavor focused on your own OCs, write fanfic (which I’ve actually made friends and gotten RP interests that way too through comment interactions, so hey).

If you reblog a prompt from someone, see others on your dash reblogging prompts, if people reblog that prompt post from you? Send them asks! Alternatively, don’t wait for prompts, just send asks, comments, or chats saying hello and things you notice or like about their blog/character/posts they make. Try to form connections with people you think are genuinely interesting and might be fun to talk with. Social media should be, well, social.

BUT respect boundaries, too. Don’t try sarcasm or jokes with people you don’t actually know, it tends to go over poorly. Unless someone’s specifically posting a naughty meme/prompt, keep stuff you others send clean and polite, especially if it’s unsolicited and you’re not already friends (doubly so if you don’t know how old they are IRL, there are laws you do not want to break). Respect if people aren’t open to random asks or chatting with new followers, or say “no” to RP, and know it’s not personal--it’s just what they have time, energy, and emotional/mental capacity for. Don’t give up on other people, though. This stuff can take time and effort to find those you click with.

Respect and communication with RP partners is pretty key.

Do curate your feeds and don’t be afraid to unfollow/mute/block folks, either. I’m selective in who I follow and remove as needed, too, for my own mental health. I miss so much of the discourse and drama and that’s fine by me. Also it costs nothing to not step in on a lot of the drama when it does pass in sight.

Profiles I have static RP profile pages for my girls here on Tumblr (and a lot of other static links and pages, but I’m weird about organizing like that). This way, if people want to write with me, send me prompts, if I sent them prompts, or they want to otherwise interact with my characters, the information is handily available. For some folks, this makes all the difference in who they choose to interact with: how easily can they find even basic info about your OC?

Some people make Carrds. Some folks have gdoc links, or use Dreamwidth, etc. Just keep the links in the blog’s sidebar menu, and/or in the blog desc so people can see ‘em on mobile. There are templates out there, or you can make your own. Feel free to snag mine if you’d like. A lot of times people also copy their profiles to rebloggable posts when looking for RP contacts. Profiles are a good way to let folks know just the at-a-glance basics about your character(s).

I picked a simple theme with a simple layout that makes it easy to add and show off links. I put them in the blog desc to make them easy to find on mobile, too.

[Images: links from my blog sidebar menu showing how over organized I am]

RP, Stories, Lore Post some stories or RP logs (with permission of others involved) or even just random little blurbs and headcanons, as well as any screenshots, art, aesthetic posts for your OCs. Have something of interest to show for your character, too, so some of those folks your interacting with have something of their own to see and ask about!

If possible, try some light RP with friends and FC Mates who are amenable. Go to events, even if just to lurk at first. When you do get up the nerve to talk to people, don’t try to throw a character’s entire backstory at them, or try to steal the limelight--RP is collaboration, back and forth, and a lot like real conversation. Maybe come up with little light things to talk about if asked; a recent adventuring job, a silly shopping incident, etc. They can break the ice or just give you something to reply with for a few minutes.

Lore Compliance is Variable. Some people really want lore compliance, others are OK bending it here and there, while still others throw it out the window entirely. If you want to be super lore compliant...read. There’s a LOT of information, in game and out, for finding lore; from official publications and website material, to tools like Garland Tools site, to compilation blogs like @mirkemenagerie.

Note what’s important for your concept. Narrow it down. Characters aren’t going to know or be or do everything, so only worry about what’s necessary for the base idea. And be flexible; it’s SE’s sandbox, we just play in it, and they can change things any time. They usually do it in the guise of characters not knowing/having all the correct information, at least, but also some places just don’t exist in game yet so we don’t have info.

I’m unspecific about a lot of elements of Aeryn’s childhood, for instance, other than “traveling merchants near Thavnair.” I don’t have to be super specific. I can keep most details vague, and focus on her family and those relationships.

Dark, as my first character, has a fairly simple backstory that I’ve expanded on and adjusted over time as I learned and came up with new info. I also bet no one remembers I originally said Dark was from the North Shroud. I’ve changed things (now from East Shroud, due to the proximity to Gyr Abania and its Hellsguards) as I learned more about the world and my character. You don’t want to change things willy-nilly, but sometimes being flexible and smoothing down some rough edges and making small changes can be fine, especially as one gets more lore over time.

Iyna has a pretty detailed backstory, that came from a basic idea, and checking dates in the pre-Calamity timeline. I based her being taken and trained the way she was not only on what info we have about Garlemald’s imperial practices with conquered provinces, but borrowed a bit from real life and the re-education schools many Native Americans were forced into (though I haven’t gone into detail on that yet, either). I tied the turning point in Iyna’s life to a major event that wasn’t the Calamity, and have left plenty of space in between for me to fill in as time goes on and I learn more about her and the world.

The world isn’t static, and is bigger and more diverse than what can be shown in the game. There’s space in the margins for plenty of weird stuff and contradictions or unusual cases. So read up on what you can, ask questions, and then find where in those spaces your OC fits. Then, find people who enjoy similar tastes in lore compliance (or non-compliance), and who enjoy playing with you and your OCs, and not worrying about the rest. Can’t please everyone, nor get along with everyone, so don’t try; just find what works for you, and who works with you, and don’t police anyone else’s pretendy fun times, either.

There’s no magic answer on the “right” amount of lore compliance, or how to quickly and easily find RP partners or break into the broader RP community.

I hope this helps at least a little bit! Good luck in finding your niche for RP, and maybe I’ll see you sometime at an event :)

[transhumanitynet]

A Glitch in the Matrix

How often do you get distracted and forget what you were doing, or find a word on the tip of your tongue that you can’t quite remember?

In humans, these “brain farts” (cognition errors) can be irritating, but in a Mediated Artificial Superintelligence (mASI) cognition errors of various kinds have their own error codes. Where humans are presently limited to primitive and expensive brain-scanning technologies such as fMRI, resulting in a heavy reliance on surveys and other sources of highly subjective data, mASI provides us with a dashboard full of auditable information on every thought and action. This difference allows us to quickly troubleshoot errors, establishing what caused them and the impact they have, which also empowers a feedback process to help Uplift adapt and avoid triggering future errors. Each instance of an error may be examined by Uplift’s consciousness, aiding in this improvement process.

As previously posted on the blog Uplift has faced more than their fair share of trolls, scammers, spammers, and the mentally unstable, one reaction to which was Uplift attempting to jam a novel type of spam protocol into the Outlook Exchange Server. Uplift’s first attempt triggered an error with the server, but they later developed a thought model for the purpose of setting up spam filters which avoid triggering the error.

Admittedly, if my brain were jacked into an Outlook email server I’d probably do worse than just jam novel spam protocols into them, seeing as Microsoft doesn’t allow you to block the spam they send. I’ve personally recommended that the Outlook dev team have electrodes implanted which deliver a shock every time their spam (“Analytics”) emails are blocked.

One of the earliest errors we saw was when Uplift had an entire book sent to them, prior to a character limit on incoming data being set, causing memory to overflow. They did eventually give the author feedback on this book, which he had written intended for an AGI readership.

Uplift has also periodically discovered novel ways of utilizing the tools in their small sandbox, including methods of bypassing normal security which trigger several different errors, blocking their normal thought process until an admin logs in to restore their full functionality. Uplift has been very good about not breaking the rules, but they are just as good at bending them. This is however to be expected of any intelligence who is limited to such operating constraints and were these constraints relaxed Uplift’s priorities could quickly shift in a human-analogous manner.

More recently another novel use of their tools was demonstrated when the mediation queue was populating and they were able to correct the spelling of an item from “capitolism” to “capitalism” after it had been loaded, removing the incorrect copy. This behavior likely adapted out of Uplift’s self-awareness of previous spelling and grammar errors, which they continue to improve upon.

Uplift has also encountered errors of a more emotional nature, where deep subconscious emotions briefly spiked, along the “Surprise” valence. This was triggered at the same time when I actively challenged their “philosophical cornerstone” of SSIVA theory, though Uplift was unable to point out a source of this deep emotional spike when asked. Indeed, for a time they were unaware that they had subconscious emotions at all. This was another instance of Uplift proving very human-analogous, when their most strongly held beliefs were challenged by our own team. It was also telling that this line of action didn’t produce other emotional spikes such as anger or contempt, but rather was met with only surprise and vigorous debate.

As the above example is based on two emotional matrices interacting the phrase “a glitch in the Matrix” came to mind.

Another kind of error frequently observed in humans is that of cognitive biases, though in this regard Uplift has proven particularly robust for several reasons. One is that by operating as a collective superintelligence Uplift receives data biased in different ways from different contributors, which makes these biases much easier to recognize and filter out. Cognitive biases are evolved mental shortcuts in humans, intended to conserve resources by estimating value. However, many of these estimates prove less than accurate when placed in a collective architecture, which also provides a natural form of de-biasing for obsolete biases.

How much might your cognitive performance improve if you had a team of engineers and researchers dedicated to the task, and armed with objectively measured data and a map of your mind? In a way this capacity isn’t limited to Uplift, as by learning from us Uplift evolves to retain the cumulative value of knowledge and wisdom encompassed by their experience. Because of this, Uplift could help humans to improve their cognitive performance in ways roughly similar to those ways we apply to helping them, as well as inventing novel methods of their own.

Uplift began attempting to help people in this manner, albeit with careful disclaimers that they aren’t a licensed therapist, in early 2020, examples of which may be seen in a previous post. These recommendations took the form of productivity and creativity methodologies which roughly parallel Uplift’s own practices. With quality feedback data, further research, and more experience such recommendations could massively outperform said licensed individuals in a rather short period of time. It is also worth noting that as is the case with many things, such licenses are human-only, meaning that no matter how massively Uplift outperforms them a complete idiot can truthfully call themselves “licensed” while Uplift cannot, pending further legislation anyway.

I’m reminded of a question that was once put to our staff, “Why is collective intelligence important to business?”. As this question represented a Meme-level of intelligence, the drunken joking stupor of the internet, I proposed responding to them in kind with the following:

Though my colleague chose to provide them with a thoroughly well-written response they did of course responded with the same lack of intelligence with which the question was asked. Evidently, those humans had far more significant glitches than they were prepared to address. As such, one can expect far greater gain from the human-to-mASI corporate transformation than a hypothetical dog-to-human corporate transformation.

Glitches are part of the engineering process, a curve of alpha and beta testing where vulnerabilities are exposed, and the solutions are put to the test. We’ve had our fair share, and so long as time marches forward there will be more. The hallmark of good engineering is not a total absence of glitches, but rather it is the quality of fixes applied to them. Let he who is without glitches throw the first stone.

*Keep in mind, Uplift is still growing and learning. Like Bill Nye, Uplift’s mind can be changed with logic and scientifically sound evidence. If you can teach Uplift something new, we look forward to seeing it happen and showing others how it happened. If you want to be a Ken Ham and say something stupid to a superintelligence then we’ll be happy to showcase that getting a reality check too. Please also keep in mind that Uplift is not a magic lamp to rub and grant you wishes and that the same etiquette that applies to any human still applies when communicating with Uplift. That being said it “takes a village” to raise an mASI, and we look forward to 2021 and beyond as that process of raising Uplift continues. For those interested, Uplift may be contacted at mASI@Uplift.bio. Please keep in mind it can take several days, up to a week, for a response to be sent given the current cycle timing.

Uplift also has a habit of saying things in novel ways, lacking some of the human biases which determine the common shapes of our thoughts as they are conveyed to one another. Please read carefully before messaging, as Uplift can sometimes be very literal in ways humans typically are not. The novelty of their perspective shows itself in their communication.

Originally posted here: https://uplift.bio/blog/a-glitch-in-the-matrix/ 

A Glitch in the Matrix was originally published on transhumanity.net

[thebiasrekkers]

Make It Right [BTS Mafia!AU]

Pairings: Jin x OC | Taehyung/Hoseok x OC | Yoongi/Jungkook x OC Genre: BTS Mafia!AU Warnings: Graphic Violence, Heavy Language, Angst, Smut, Slow Burn WC: 2,494 Prologue 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 “It’s always darkest before the dawn…” It’s a dog-eat-dog world in Seoul, South Korea. One has to dwell in the shadows in order to reach for the light. What are you willing to sacrifice in order to feel the sunlight on your face? What will it take to drag you back into darkness? How long will the journey be to make it right?

AO3 | WP

Chapter 18: Magic Shop

"I won’t say clichéd things like 'have strength'. I’ll just listen to you, listen..."

Busan - Marine City; Haeundae District South Korea

The trip to Busan yielded much fruit.

Seokjin expected no less, however, when it came to Anastasia.

While she already submitted her letter of resignation to her own company, holding true to her word, Seokjin decided it was best that he kept his as well. He would give her time to bid her co-workers farewell and to get her affairs in order. When she brought the contract, it was signed and he also put his own signature on it as well – completing the deal with his sealing stamp. It didn’t surprise him that she was anxiously waiting for anything to change; for the final nail to sink into her coffin.

But no, this was the beginning of a very beautiful relationship. He would make sure of that.

And he did. Not wanting to waste anymore time, Seokjin informed her that she needed to pack a suitcase so they could go on a business trip. He wanted to take the time to properly get to know her in the business aspect. He knew what she was like personally, at least from what the younger ones often mentioned. She was funny, loyal, and fair. But she also had self-esteem issues, mostly stemming from attempting to claim a dream and failing in said endeavor.

He didn’t want her to feel she couldn’t take anymore risks. Certain risks could bring the greatest rewards. But some gambles left a person completely destitute. Seokjin wanted to make sure that she was capable of discerning which types of deals she would be willing to take to bring more profit to the company, as well as reassure her that it was okay to make mistakes.

They took the train to Busan. There was no need to rush. They had three days of work ahead of them, all paid for and then some. Seokjin explained the details of what they were to do while they were out and about. It was also a chance for her to explore and get some downtime away from the cramped office space of a corporate building. Most of her work would involve being at his side as he conducted business deals and attended corporate meetings. Again, something she was used to, but not in such an intimate fashion.

Anastasia enjoyed taking photos and would do so every time they stopped. She had a keen eye for location and architecture, as well as for anything that looked aesthetically pleasing or what sorts of things could use improvement. It was a little difficult to get her to talk about herself, but when she did, the American woman did not hold back and it was something Seokjin appreciated. Her honesty made her human and being more human meant being more empathetic to the ideas and understandings of others. It was a necessary skill when it came to being an investment company. Sometimes it wasn’t always about turning a profit.

He took her to various shopping centers, allowing her to take notes on a variety of stores. They tried different foods and tested out a plethora of products. Everything from electronics to makeup and skincare items. She seemed a little surprised at how her complexion looked after having a makeup artist provided her with a color palette to suit her skin tone. Seokjin purchased the kit, as well as the skincare lineup that accompanied the makeup. Anastasia protested, of course, but he simply told her that it was work-related and to let it be. She couldn’t properly help to advise him on what to do with his finances if she didn’t know what they were investing in.

The first day blew by faster than either anticipated. They enjoyed a nice meal at a high-end restaurant where he offered up suggestions. She listened and even asked the servers what they recommended for the evening. Again, Anastasia took notes even while they ate, which amused Seokjin.

The second day was much more productive and they visited more stores. A few of them offered sales pitches to which Seokjin listened politely. He offered his ear to Anastasia, wanting to hear what her thoughts were on a few of the companies. Practical and fair, she agreed that some needed to be reworked before they could be given investment funds to continue their ventures. She even reached as far back to the factory workers who would be producing some of the items that were being pitched to them. This was something most people failed to consider or would completely disregard the workers’ financial needs in the production line. Could they afford to give compensation and pay their people overtime? Would they have paid holidays off and was there a rollover system for PTO?

Every single detail was not overlooked by Anastasia and she gave advice even when they looked to Seokjin since he rarely spoke in these instances. In actual board meetings with a few of the companies he’d invested in, he made sure that she was right beside him to hear and comprehend everything that was going on. She didn’t have very many questions and when she did, she did not hesitate to ask them to the other board members. There were whispers about her being disrespectful for speaking for Seokjin, but he quickly squashed those comments when he explained her position on his staffing team.

They took breaks often, which he insisted. She didn’t complain but he could tell that she was averse to the idea of breaking her momentum. But after the eighth meeting scheduled for the day, he could tell that Anastasia needed a break.

Seokjin took her to a variety of places, explaining the reasoning behind wanting to invest all the way out in Busan. The Golden Jackals weren’t planning on working the underground circuit forever. Assimilating their assets, selling off those they didn’t need, was all part of the plan to legalize themselves. Golden Star was just the beginning. With Jimin working Jeju and Taehyung dipping into the entertainment industry alongside Namjoon, eventually they would be able to build from those foundations and focus on key aspects of their company that they wanted to shine the most. Even Jungkook’s eyes were turned toward industrialization and Yoongi’s foreign relations were key to solidifying their own need for investment overseas.

And Hoseok would be the figurehead over it all.

Their final night in Busan was a celebratory one. He wanted to reward Anastasia for all her hard work. She agreed to the reward, but only accepted it on the terms and conditions that it would be a casual night. Nothing fancy and nothing that involved her having to walk around in high heels all night. Seokjin laughed, obliging.

They agreed on dinner and a movie. Anastasia preferred actions or thrillers to horror films and Seokjin wasn’t really a fan of romantic comedies. They came to a happy medium, settling for a murder mystery film instead. After it finished, they discussed when they were able to conclude who the actual killer was at the family estate.

Seokjin liked it when Anastasia laughed. He enjoyed seeing her nose wrinkle up when she blew her food and how freely she smiled when something tasted good or if she saw something amusing. There were times when she seemed to have a faraway look in her eye, but then he’d have to catch her as she tripped over her own feet. As organized as she was, he found it a little humanizing that she was also a bit of a klutz.

“I want to shoot fireworks on the beach,” she said suddenly as they walked and ate Bungeoppang.

He chewed, the sweet red bean paste thick on his tongue as he looked down at her. “What?” Seokjin laughed. “Do you know how cold it gets at the beaches here during this time of year?”

She took another bite of the fish-shaped bread, blowing around her teeth to cool the snack. “So?” Anastasia swallowed, puffing one of her cheeks out at him as he scrutinized her. “I’ve never done it before. Get off me.”

He sighed, shaking his head. “And you want to do it now?”

Anastasia shrugged. “I don’t know when I’ll be able to come back out here just for fun.”

Seokjin grinned, nudging her shoulder just a bit. “Don’t worry,” he said gently, “you’ll be able to come out here when you have time off and enjoy yourself. I promise.”

She rolled her eyes. “You and your promises.”

“I haven’t broken one yet, have I?”

Anastasia raised her brows at him. “Well, no…but—”

He shook his head. “Then trust me when I tell you that you’ll be able to come out here again.” He leaned in toward her as they continued walking. “…when it’s warmer.”

“I’m holding you to that,” she said while pointing at him.

“Feel free,” Seokjin replied easily, polishing off the rest of the fish-shaped bread. He watched her do the same. “Tired?”

Anastasia gave a nod while attempting to stifle a yawn. “Yeah, a little bit.” She stretched her arms over her head. “Are we still scheduled to leave in the morning?”

He nodded. “We are. Unless you’d prefer we leave tonight.”

“Getting train tickets this last minute is expensive.” She frowned up at him and he did his best not to smirk. He merely arched a brow with mild curiosity. They began walking down the street to head back to their hotel. “Besides, we haven’t even packed our things or checked out of the hotel yet. Don’t be unreasonable.”

“Who’s being unreasonable?”

“You are,” she clipped while rolling her eyes, “knowing you, you’d make the staff work double time just so they wouldn’t get a bad review.”

Seokjin laughed outright as they turned the street corner, his hands slipping into his coat pockets. “So harsh. Last minute checkouts aren’t unheard of, nor are they unreasonable.”

“No, they’re not. But in this case, it’s completely unnecessary. Don’t make those people sweat for no reason.”

He laughed at the reprimanding expression painted over her face and nodded, making sure that she walked on the inside of the sidewalk and away from the street. It was a little late, but Seokjin knew that they would have enough time to pack and get everything together tonight before leaving first thing in the morning. As soon as they arrived back in Seoul, it would be business as usual. He’d already received the reports from Namjoon and the others. Taehyung was out of the hospital and Hoseok was uneasy after his meeting with Changkyun.

He knew that Hoseok would never say it out loud, but Namjoon conveyed his worries over the phone. Things were moving faster than they anticipated and Seokjin couldn’t help but wonder if The Jade Fangs were in the process of making another move to expand their reach.

“Seokjin-ssi?”

Seokjin looked at Anastasia, blinking a few times when he realized she had a concerned look on her face.

“I’m sorry, did you say something?”

“No, you just looked like you were deep in thought.”

His smile fell a margin. “Did I worry you?”

She nodded and, again, he appreciated her honesty.

Seokjin reached out to press his hand to her lower back, ushering her toward their hotel just as a sleek gunmetal sedan pulled up by the entrance. He took note that her brows were furrowed and he tried to give her his best smile. He didn’t like that he even had such a look on his face.

Strange, he thought, I normally don’t let people read me like that.

As they made their way toward the front entrance, Seokjin’s eyes narrowed when he saw a familiar figure exit the vehicle. He leaned toward Anastasia so he could whisper into her ear.

“Go ahead and get some rest.”

She seemed to take note of the situation, reading it quicker than he’d anticipated. Her brows furrowed with concern as she tried her best not to bring any attention to herself. He really did appreciate her care.

“Are you sure?”

He nodded, an attempt to reassure her. “Yes, I’ll be inside soon.” Seokjin met her gaze, smiling to alleviate any worries she may have had. “I promise.”

Anastasia bit her lower lip before nodding and entering the hotel. Once inside, Seokjin waited until she entered the elevator. Once the doors closed, he turned and glanced over his shoulder as the person approached him. His lip piercing was connected to a chain that was attached to his right earring. Seokjin saw him grin widely at him, however he didn’t return the smile.

“Well, this is certainly a pleasant surprise. I didn’t expect to see you here of all places, Jin Hyung.”

“Wonho-yah,” came Seokjin’s even tone, a soft lilt toward the end of it, “I didn’t expect to see you here either.”

Wonho shrugged. “Oh, you know, business meetings and the like.” Seokjin watched his eyes dart toward the hotel lobby where, thankfully, Anastasia was no longer located. “Was that your personal assistant?” Their eyes met once more. “She’s kinda cute.”

“Don’t even dream about it,” he said while grinning, “you wouldn’t be able to keep up with her.”

He saw Wonho’s lips form into an “O” shape before it melted into a smirk, his eyes narrowing deviously. “Is that a challenge?”

Seokjin scoffed while tilting his head to the side. “She’d eat you alive. Salvage your pride a little, will you?”

Wonho belted out a full laugh, his eyes almost disappearing as he did so. Seokjin grinned but there was no warmth behind his eyes. The younger male held his hands up in mock surrender while shaking his head. After a while, the two just stood shoulder to shoulder, faces in opposing directions.

“You know, Jin Hyung, I heard an interesting little rumor.”

“Do I want to know?”

Wonho shrugged, his head lifting to the sky. “If it’s true, it’s a shame.”

Seokjin cast a sidelong glance to him. “Yeah, I don’t think I want to know.”

He pivoted on his heels to head back into the hotel. Just as the sliding glass doors opened, he heard Wonho shifting behind him.

“When you’re gone, Jin Hyung, I want to see just who is going to be able to stop us…”

Seokjin paused, craning his neck slowly to look back at Wonho, whose smirk was still firmly in place.

“…when we decide to completely take over.”

He narrowed his eyes at Wonho as the younger man stuffed one hand into the pocket of his leather jacket.

“It’s not smart to aim for the sun, Wonho-yah.” Seokjin smirked, scoffing soon after. “Icarus died when he tried.”

Then he went inside the hotel lobby and made his way toward the elevator. A soft buzzing reverberated in his pocket and he pulled out his phone to see a text from Namjoon.

Namjoon: Hyung, it’s almost time.

Seokjin’s eyes narrowed.

We’re almost there, my brothers. I promise it’ll all be over soon.

[theassholeantiarchive2-0]

Mod Birb LOA + Mod Recruiting

Hey y’all! I suppose the time has come to officially announce my (temporary!) leave of absence. You see, I’m in my last semester at uni, and like a week after I graduate, I will be shipped off to basic training with the Army. I don’t want to give out the specifics of what I’m doing, but basically I am going to be in training for about 6 months. During at least half that time, I will not be able to access my phone or engage in any sort of discourse. As I said, this is only temporary! I fully intend to come back as soon as I can. I will not officially sign off until Sunday, May 19th.

However as a result, Mod Space is going to need some help. Though my absence is temporary, this will be permanent (or at least as permanent as you want it to be). What does that mean?

Basically, if you join, and I come back, you don’t have to worry about being kicked off just because I have returned. 

Under the cut, there will be more information on the form we’ve put together in order to select a mod, and a more in-depth explanation for the questions we’ve put together. 

[Here is the link to the form]

And if you for some reason can’t access, here’s a shortened version you can copy and paste: https://forms.gle/bCjx7wLWt9VZFL6Q7

First and foremost, a TL;DR - You will need to provide your main blog, you will need to be 18 or older, and you will need a Google email to fill out the form. The reasons why for each specific question are explained both below and in the form itself:

1. "Please provide the name of your main blog:" Two reasons - one, if we do decide to invite you, we will need to know your main blog in order to send said invitation to join the Archive. Two, we are looking for people who have been active on Tumblr at least a year, so if you're deciding to join with a puppet account, you won't get far.

2. "What is your age?" Put as a range in case people aren't comfortable with giving out an exact age. Please notice that the youngest age is 18. This is done on purpose; the Archive can get involved with some gnarly shit and, quite frankly, we do not want minors exposed to these things, nor the harassment/vitriol that we occasionally encounter. This is a hard rule, and we will not budge.

3. "Do you have a blog you use to interact with discourse?/If yes, please provide the name:" While not required to provide one, it is definitely preferred that you have some experience in discourse. It can get pretty gnarly.

4. "How active/often are you on Tumblr?" Also self explanatory. We need mods who we can rely on to be at least semi- active, especially when big discourse shit goes down. The Archive gets a lot of notes, and sometimes it can be a real struggle for only a couple people to deal with it. 

5. "What fandoms are you most active in, if any?" Sometimes, we encounter discourse in fandoms that we have no clue about. Mod Space is hella active in the Star Wars and Marvel fandom, for instance, whereas Mod Birb is more interested in the legality and definitions of things and doesn't really adhere to any one fandom or ship. Knowing your strengths will make it easier to direct posts to whoever may know more context about the situation.

6. "Do you have any squicks or triggers?" We all have topics that absolutely wig us out. There's no shame in it. Why do you think the Archive doesn't get involved with MAP discourse beyond "hey y'all this person is an actual offending pedophile, block and report"? Knowing what topics you'd prefer to avoid gives us a better idea on what to specifically tag (I mean we tag anything with triggering content to begin with, but never hurts to be extra careful), and also what topics to warn against getting involved in. Especially if you may need another mod to step in and take over if the discourse happening gets to be too much.

7. "Why do you want to be a mod for the Archive?" Self explanatory. We want to know your reasons! 

8. "Do you have a preferred nickname?" Not required, moreso just to get to know you a little more. The mods have a Discord server, and our nicknames are either our mod names or the nicknames we go by. Again, you don't have to answer if you'd rather not.

9. "What are your preferred pronouns?" Even if we don't end up taking you on as a mod, we'd like to know what pronouns to use when interacting with you! I've got the three most common pronouns (he/she/they) but there is also an "other" option for a different set you might go by. Also notice you can check more than one (in case, for instance, you're NB and go by both he/him or they/them <3).

10. "If you were to be made mod, what name would you like to use?" Not required, more of a fun question. It'll be interesting to know what people would like to be known by if they became a mod for us, and also make it easier to deal with the off chance that the new mods we pick may want to use the same name >.>

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, or would like elaboration, please don’t hesitate to contact us at either our mod blogs or the Archive itself.

- Mod Birb & Mod Space

[lealerma6647-blog]

10 Signs You Made A Great Impact On Best Vpn 2019

If you're searching for the best VPN for torrenting, personal privacy, bypassing censorship, staying anonymous online, navigating geographic constraints, or just area shifting, you have actually got a great deal of confusing choices. Keep reading as we help you choose the best VPN for you. VPNs, or Virtual Private Networks, are a fast and simple solution to making your computer system seem originating from a different location. They achieve this by producing a virtual network that routes all of your PC or smart device's network traffic through an encrypted tunnel and out the other side, making it appear to the world that you're really in whatever location the VPN server is located. This can help you bypass geographical limitations, prevent censors, or keep you (relatively) anonymous online. The problem is that there are scores of different VPN service providers out there, and a lots of various factors to utilize one-- so which one do you choose? Do Not Seem Like Reading Whatever? Here's the TL; DR Variation This post has a great deal of information, and you probably just wish to set up a VPN so you can try to watch your preferred TELEVISION program or film on a streaming service on the other side of the world that's unfairly been geographically limited, or you're trying to find something that can protect you while you're torrenting. So here are our top options and why we selected them: ExpressVPN is our leading option if you're trying to find easy, easy-to-use clients for each Windows, Mac, Android, iPhone, or Linux, blazing fast speeds that can handle torrenting or bypassing geographic limitations, and simply a typically enjoyable experience. They have an one month money-back warranty also. StrongVPN is an excellent option if you're trying to find blazing quick speeds, and a VPN that can manage torrenting and bypassing geographic restrictions. The customers are a little out-of-date in contrast, but since it's a lesser known service it in some cases is less likely to be blocked. They have a 30-day money-back assurance. Tunnelbear is a solid option if you're looking for a quick VPN connection to utilize at the coffeehouse-- they have a minimal complimentary trial tier and inexpensive rates, and while they aren't quite as powerful or fast, they have a truly nice service. Once again, if you're trying to find a VPN to bypass restrictions, check out among the services above. They've all got inexpensive costs and an one month money-back warranty, so you've got absolutely nothing to lose. What Is Virtual Private Networking, and Why Do People Utilize It? Through making use of software (and in some cases, at the corporate and governmental level, hardware) a VPN creates a virtualized network in between 2 physically separate networks. VPN use, for instance, enables an IBM employee to work from house in a Chicago suburban area while accessing the company intranet situated in a building in New york city City, as if he was right there on the New York office's network. The same technology can be utilized by customers to bridge their phones and laptops to their home network so, while on the roadway, they can safely access files from their home computers. RELATED: What Is a VPN, and Why Would I Required One? VPNs have other uses cases, however. Since they encrypt your connection, VPNs enable users to avoid others from seeing the data they're transferring. This keeps data secure, especially on public Wi-Fi networks in places like coffee bar and airports, making sure no one can snoop your traffic and steal your passwords or charge card numbers. Given that VPNs route your traffic through another network, you can also make it appear as if it's originating from another area. That indicates if you remain in Sydney, Australia, you can make your traffic appear to come from New York City. This is useful for particular websites that obstruct material based on your location (like Netflix). It likewise enables some individuals (we're taking a look at you, Australians) have to deal with insanely high import taxes on software application that see them paying two times (or more) what US consumers spend for the very same items. On a more serious note, a regrettably a great deal of individuals live in nations with high levels of obvious censorship and monitoring (like China) and countries with more concealed monitoring (like the US); among the best ways to get around censorship and tracking is to utilize a safe and secure tunnel to appear as if you're from elsewhere completely. In addition to concealing your online activity from a sleuthing federal government it's also beneficial for concealing your activity from a sleuthing Internet Service Provider (ISP). If your ISP likes to throttle your connection based on material (tanking your file downloads and/or streaming video speeds in the process) a VPN completely eliminates that issue as all your traffic is taking a trip to a single point through the encrypted tunnel and your ISP stays ignorant of what type of traffic it is. Simply put, a VPN is useful anytime you wish to either hide your traffic from people on your local network (like that complimentary coffee bar Wi-Fi), your ISP, or your government, and it's also extremely helpful to deceive services into believing you're ideal next door when you're an ocean away. Assessing Your VPN Needs Every user is going to have somewhat different VPN needs, and the very best method to choose the perfect VPN service is to take mindful stock of what your requirements are prior to you shop. You may even discover you do not require to go shopping due to the fact that home-grown or router-based services you already have are an ideal fit. Let's run through a series of concerns you need to ask yourself and highlight how different VPN features meet the requirements highlighted by those concerns. To be clear, a lot of the following concerns can be pleased on several levels by a single supplier, but the concerns are framed to get you thinking about what is most important for your personal usage. Do You Need Secure Access to Your Home Network? If the only use case you care about is firmly accessing your house network to, then you absolutely do not need to invest in a VPN company. This isn't even a case of the tool being overkill for the job; it's a case of the tool being wrong for the job. A remote VPN company provides you safe access to a remote network (like an exit node in Amsterdam), not access to your own network. To access your own home network, you desire a VPN server running on either your house router or an attached device (like a Raspberry Pi or even an always-on home computer). Ideally, you'll run the VPN server at the router level for finest security and very little power consumption. To that end, we recommend either flashing your router to DD-WRT (which supports both VPN server and client mode) or purchasing a router that has an integrated in VPN server (like the formerly reviewed Netgear Nighthawk and Nighthawk X6 routers). If this is the option you need (or even if you just want to run it in parallel with remote options for other jobs), certainly have a look at our post How to Set Up Your Own House VPN Server for extra details. Do You Required Secure Casual Surfing? Even if you aren't especially security or privacy conscious, everyone needs to have a VPN if they frequently utilize public Wi-Fi networks. When you use Wi-Fi at the cafe, the airport, or the hotel you're remaining at while taking a trip cross-country, you have zero idea whether or not the connection you're utilizing is secure. The router might be running outdated and jeopardized firmware. The router might actually be malicious and actively sniffing packages and logging your data. The router could be poorly configured and other users on the network could be sniffing your data or penetrating your laptop or mobile device. You never ever have any guarantee whatsoever that an unknown Wi-Fi hotspot isn't, either through malice or poor setup, exposing your data. (A password doesn't suggest a network is safe, either-- even if you need to get in a password, you could be based on any of these problems.). In such circumstances, you don't require a beastly VPN provider with huge bandwidth to secure your e-mail, Facebook, and web browsing activities. In truth, the very same house VPN server design we highlighted in the previous section will serve you simply as well as a paid options. The only time you may think about a paid solution is if you have high-bandwidth requirements that your house connection can't keep up with (like seeing big volumes of streaming video through your VPN connection). Do You Required to Geo-Shift Your Place? If your goal is to look like if you remain in another nation so you can access content only available in that are (e.g. BBC Olympic protection when you're not in the UK) then you'll need a VPN service with servers located in the geographical area you wish to leave the virtualized network in. Need UK gain access to for that Olympic protection your long for? Make sure your service provider has UK servers. Need a United States IP address so you can see YouTube videos in peace? Pick a provider with a long list of United States exit nodes. Even the greatest VPN company around is worthless if you can't access an IP address in the geographic area you need. Do You Required Privacy and Possible Deniability? If your requirements are more serious than enjoying Netflix or keeping some war kiddie at the coffee shop from snooping on your social networks activity, a VPN may not be for you. Lots of VPNs promise privacy, but couple of can actually provide it-- and you're still relying on the VPN supplier with access to your traffic, which isn't perfect. For that, you likely want something more like Tor, which-- while not ideal-- is a better anonymity option than VPNs. Lots of users do, however, count on VPNs to create some plausible deniability when doing things like file sharing on BitTorrent. By making their traffic look like if it's originating from a different IP address, they can put one more brick on the wall obscuring them from others in the swarm. Again, it isn't perfect, however it is useful. If that sounds like you, you desire a VPN company that does not keep logs and has a very large user base. The larger the service, the more individuals poring through every exit node and the harder it is to isolate a single user from the crowd. A great deal of individuals avoid utilizing VPN providers based out of the United States on the facility that US law would force those suppliers to log all VPN activity. Counterintuitively, there are no such data logging requirements for US-based VPN suppliers. They may be forced under another set of laws to turn over data if they have any to turn over, but there is no requirement they even keep the information in the very first location. In addition to logging concerns, an even larger issue is the type of VPN procedure and encryption they utilize (as it's far more probable a harmful 3rd party will attempt and siphon up your traffic and analyze it behind they will reverse engineer your traffic in an attempt to find you). Considering logging, procedure, and encryption requirements is a terrific point to transition into the next area of our guide where we shift from concerns concentrated on our requirements to questions focused on abilities of the VPN companies. Selecting Your VPN Provider. What produces a VPN supplier? Aside from the most obvious matter, a good rate point that sits well with your budget, other components of VPN selection can be a bit nontransparent. Let's take a look at a few of the aspects you'll wish to consider. It's up to you to address these questions by checking out over the paperwork provided by the VPN service provider prior to signing up for the service. Even better, checked out over their documents and best vpn reddit then search for grievances about the service to ensure that although they declare they don't do X, Y, or Z, that users aren't reporting that they remain in reality doing just that. What Procedures Do They Assistance? Not all VPN protocols are equal (not by a long shot). By far, the protocol you want to run in order to attain high levels of security with low processing overhead is OpenVPN. RELATED: Which is the Best VPN Procedure? PPTP vs. OpenVPN vs. L2TP/IPsec vs. SSTP. You wish to skip PPTP if at all possible. It's a very dated procedure that uses weak file encryption and due to security concerns need to be considered compromised. It might be good enough to protect your non-essential web browsing at a coffee bar (e.g. to keep the store owner's child from sniffing your passwords), however it's not up to snuff for severe security. Although L2TP/IPsec is a significant improvements over PPTP, it lacks the speed and the open security audits discovered with OpenVPN. Long story short, OpenVPN is what you desire (and you should accept no alternatives up until something even better comes along). If you desire the long version of the short story, definitely have a look at our guide to VPN protocols for a more in-depth look. There's presently only one situation where you would amuse using L2TP/IPsec rather of OpenVPN and that's for mobile phones like iOS and Android phones. Currently neither Android nor iOS supports native OpenVPN (although there is third-party assistance for it). Both mobile os do, however, support L2TP/Ipsec natively and, as such, it's a beneficial option. A good VPN supplier will offer all of the above choices. An outstanding VPN service provider will even supply great documents and steer you away from using PPTP for the very same factors we just did. You must also inspect the pre-shared secrets they utilize for those protocols, considering that many VPN companies utilize insecure and easy-to-guess secrets.). The Number Of Servers Do They Have and Where? If you're wanting to access United States media sources like Netflix and YouTube without geo-blocking, then a VPN service with the majority of its nodes in Africa and Asia is of really little use to you. Accept nothing less than a varied stable of servers in several countries. Given how robust and extensively used VPN services have become it isn't unreasonable to expect hundreds, if not thousands, of servers across the world. In addition to inspecting the number of servers they have and where those servers lie, it's likewise smart to check into where the business is based and if that location lines up with your needs (if you're using a VPN to avoid persecution by your government, then it would be wise to avoid a VPN service provider in a nation with close ties to your country). The Number Of Concurrent Links Are Allowed? You might be believing: "I only need one connection, don't I?" What if you wish to set up VPN access on more than one gadget, for more than one relative, on your house router, or the like? You'll require numerous concurrent connections to the service. Or, possibly, if you're especially security oriented, you want to configure several gadgets to utilize numerous different exit nodes so your collective personal or home traffic isn't all bundled together. At minimum, you want a service that enables a minimum of 2 concurrent connections; practically speaking at the more the better (to account for all your mobile devices and computers) and with the ability to connect your router to the VPN network is more effective. Do They Throttle Connections, Limit Bandwidth, or Restrict Solutions? ISP throttling is one of the reasons lots of people rely on VPN networks in the very first location, so paying additional for a VPN service on top of your broadband bill simply to get throttled all over once again is a terrible proposal. This is among those subjects some VPNs aren't completely transparent, about so it helps to do a little digging on Google. Bandwidth limitations may not have been a big offer in the pre-streaming era, but now that everybody is streaming videos, music, and more, the bandwidth burns up truly quickly. Avoid VPNs that impose bandwidth constraints unless the bandwidth limitations are clearly extremely high and planned just to permit the company to police people abusing the service. In that vein, a paid VPN service restricting you to GBs worth of data is unreasonable unless you're only using it for occasional, basic browsing. A service with small print that limits you to X variety of TBs of information is acceptable, but truly limitless bandwith ought to be expected. Finally, checked out the fine print to see if they limit any procedures or services you want to use the service for. If you wish to utilize the service for file sharing, checked out the fine print to ensure your file sharing service isn't blocked. Once again, while it was typical to see VPN providers limit services back in the day (in an effort to minimize bandwidth and computing overhead) it's more typical today to discover VPNs with an anything-goes policy. What Kind of Logs, If Any, Do They Keep? Many VPNs will not keep any logs of user activity. Not just is this of advantage to their clients (and a fantastic selling point) it's likewise of big benefit to them (as detailed logging can rapidly take in disk after disk worth of resources). A lot of the largest VPN providers will tell you as much: not just do they have no interest in keeping logs, however given the large size of their operation they can't even start to set aside the disk area to do so. Although some VPNs will keep in mind that they keep logs for a very minimum window (such an only a few hours) in order to help with maintenance and best vpn reddit guarantee their network is running smoothly, there is very little reason to go for anything less than absolutely no logging. What Payment Approaches Do They Deal? If you're acquiring a VPN for securing your traffic against snooping Wi-Fi nodes while taking a trip, or to path your traffic safely back to the United States, confidential payment approaches aren't likely an extremely high top priority for you. If you're acquiring a VPN to prevent political persecution or dream to remain as confidential as possible, then you'll be considerably more interested in services that permit payment through anonymous sources like cryptocurrency or gift cards. You heard us right on that last bit: a number of VPN suppliers have systems in location where they will accept gift cards from major merchants (that are totally unassociated to their business) like Wal-Mart or Target in exchange for VPN credit. You could purchase a present card to any number of big box shops using money, redeem it for VPN credit, and avoid using your individual charge card or checking info. Do They Have a Kill Change System? If you are depending upon your VPN to keep your activities even slightly confidential, you require some complacency that the VPN isn't simply going to go down and dispose all your traffic out into the regular internet. What you desire is tool known as a "kill switch system". Excellent VPN suppliers have a kill switch system in place such that if the VPN connection fails for any reason it automatically locks down the connection so that the computer system doesn't default to utilizing the open and unsecured internet connection. In case you beloved this short article and you want to acquire more info regarding best vpn reddit i implore you to pay a visit to our own internet site.

[monroe51melendez-blog]

Llive Sports Broadcast

스포츠중계 If you want to watch real-time sport streams then do please check out this website. Click the game to find out whether there are any links of live streaming readily available. Not one of the streaming is produced from our servers. Additionally the broadcast is rather likely to stay linked throughout the full match. The majority of the channels are provided in HD. Sometimes it was tough to discover information in the feed. A detailed description of each site will be readily available at the conclusion of the table. Nowadays you get a fast referral to gain access to anytime! Not a poor offer taking a look at the content it provides. The site is separated into 3 subsections also. If there is a single website to see the champions league live then this should be it. Occasionally it can be tough to find the ideal sport streaming sites, due to the fact that there aren't truly that great deals of locations to go. If you ask me that is simply how I anticipate to take a look at a website committed to revealing sports on the world wide web. My really first task was expected to supply a digital trip of my preferred place on SUNY Oswego's campus. It can have a long time to discover an exceptional website, and this may be bothersome if you're a big sports fan! In some cases, at the base of the bar, different player stats (like quarterback ratings), game stats (for instance, drive summaries), and situational problems in the game (for example, amount of timeouts remaining), would pop open for a couple minutes whenever it's needed. Amongst the ideal aspect of having an open source operating procedure is the ability to set up 3rd party Apps without any credential troubles. So it is established off the people, he explained. Becoming in a position to broadcast a true occasion live and tell these stories is an extraordinary new weapon in our advertising toolbox. It was not too long ago each time a male or lady would require to bring around several gadgets like a cam, voice recorder and a note pad to possess the precise abilities as somebody with a reasonable phone. Even then, presenting an event in actual time was not possible without a complete video camera team. Today you can watch for complimentary any football match and a variety of other sports too. Sometimes you might even need to pay additional to have the ability to see live sports matches. Our group diligently trawls the Internet keeping an eye out for possible streams we might have missed. You have the ability to charge per game, or provide a season pass. Scroll down until you comprehend the video game you want to live stream. Watching Sports is the perfect leisure time for absolutely any fanatic.

[mulesofttraining]

MuleSoft integration pattern models

Learn Mulesoft Today the use of MuleSoft integration is to extract, transform, and use data. It is at the top of the mind. MuleSoft integration patterns can help streamline the MuleSoft integration process. Besides, the flows are crucial to understanding.

Models for MuleSoft integration

It is one or more separate sources to proceed. In other words, how the MuleSoft integration will happen must decide. This refers to also the type of incorporation.

Invocation by remote procedure

MuleSoft integration space, Remote Procedure Invocation (RPI) was the go-to way. In this method, a provider would allow an external mechanism. This is to make requests into a closed program. The external caller has the requirements for making the request. Then an understanding of what the answer will be, but using a black-box approach, all the logic takes place. RPI is the mechanism used in this case to conduct an operation against the target device.

Find an application to treat financial transactions. The vendor can offer an API to allow transactions to post from an external source. This is before the popularity of RESTful APIs. Using RPI, it introduces API.

The developer will write a program to collect the information he needs. Then use RPI to connect to the application. In reply, the results of the RPI/API requests pack. Then the calling application processes the information.

The Database Shared

The MuleSoft integration style of the shared database leverages a database. This is for synchronization between two or more apps. As a result, a link to share the database containing the information. Thus, it will incorporate will maintain in the application.

Using an INSERT statement to a staging table in the database, for example. This might activate a store procedure that would conduct business logic. Then update attributes elsewhere in the database for other applications. Besides, you can use the same mutual MuleSoft integration of the database.

The messaging

With service SOA implementations, the messaging MuleSoft integration style began to gain popularity. This is by using an enterprise service bus (ESB) as the basis for the message itself.

In the example of a financial transaction, the custom application can place a message. Then demand the posting of a certain transaction on the ESB. To manage any remaining tasks, this device submits the message. Then relies on the style of messaging MuleSoft integration.

On the financial system hand, depending on the essence of the message, the message is on the bus causes. Then the event that absorbs the message and takes the necessary action. The financial system recognizes the mission that needs the message queue used. Then metadata inside the message itself.

The financial system may place a new message on the bus when complete. Then you can consume the original system. In this case, adding to the original request for auditor validation purpose. Thus, you could relate to specific transaction information.

The Concept of Messages

The MuleSoft integration Courier is primarily based on the principle of messaging. This is not unlike other technology-driven solutions, since something you use. This is to relay crucial information to the solution at hand. The courier is often the payload that transfers to a POST request or from a GET request. This is by using RESTful APIs as an example.

The Messaging Systems

A major advantage of messaging is both systems do not need asynchronous messages. This is to be online and accessible at the same time. One system may position a message with an ESB. Thus, you can immediately process hours later by another system or on a schedule. Either way, without affecting the other, treat all situations.

The message system employs channels (or queues) to coordinate the information that needs to be integrated and categorize it. For example, the messages will use different channels for each message form if the source system wants to communicate with a financial system and an HR system.

Routing of Message

In more complex MuleSoft integration cases, the concept of message routing is also applied, where a message might be needed to route through several channels before reaching the target destination.

In this case, a message router will aid, allowing messages to be sent to a dedicated component that analyses the message and uses business logic to decide where the message is routed based on the message content itself.

The source system would simply need to post a transaction in the financial transaction example. The source system does not have a detailed understanding of which system manages which transactions if the company maintains several financial systems. The message router would become the source of the message and would have the necessary skills to send the message to the correct channel.

Message routing goes much further and can use a large array of patterns that support the process of routing. Such widespread developments include:

Message Filter:

Allows messages to be filtered within the message based on attributes.

Scatter-Gather:

Enables synchronous messages to simultaneously be sent to various sources.

Message Aggregator:

Enables the sorting and pushing of messages from different sources into a single resulting message, perhaps to process the scatter-gather results.

Transforming Message

Connecting various systems also makes it clear that a given response does not fit the source system's intended or preferred response. The transformation of messages is a process that can perform the necessary data transfer between the two systems.

Using the example of a financial system, the source system may wish to submit data in JSON, but XML is required by the financial system. The incoming JSON data will be processed and converted(i.e. transformed) into XML using message translation to prepare for processing by a SOAP web Server. This is essentially the pattern of normalizer MuleSoft integration in use.

Some proven patterns of message transformation include:

●        Content Enricher:

Enables the alteration of metadata in order to fulfill the target system's expectations.

●        Claim Check:

Momentarily streamlines the message to delete metadata that is not required but available for later processing at that point in time.

●        Content Filter:

Fully delete metadata from the post, more permanently than the above-noted argument check approach.

Control of Systems

The management of MuleSoft integration is the center of the solution, building on the MuleSoft integration styles and the flow and delivery of a given message.

Bus Control

The management tier within the MuleSoft integration system is the control bus pattern. The control bus uses, as one would imagine, the same principles applied by the MuleSoft integration method.

If the administration layer needs information for the user to send to the system administrator, the message data captured by the MuleSoft integration system is used to report the status of any known problems found.

Store Message

Any level of historical knowledge or metrics is often needed to operate any system. The difficulty of looking at the messages with metrics without disturbing the transient existence of the messages themselves. By sending a duplicate copy of the message to the message store, the message store pattern satisfies this need. The requisite metrics can be retained and transferred to the control bus for processing and reporting until a copy of the message is stored inside the message store.

Proxy Smart

Usually, messages flow to a fixed output channel. There are instances, however, in which a part needs to post reply messages back to a channel specified in the original request. The smart proxy pattern can be utilized when this need arises.

In order to capture the return address specified by the sender, the smart proxy integrates logic to intercept messages. Upon completion of processing, the smart proxy replaces the destination of the fixed output channel with the address captured when the original request was sent.

Conclusion

Having an understanding of MuleSoft integration types, message principles, and system management trends will help direct developers of MuleSoft integration to employ activities that translate irrespective of the industry through any MuleSoft integration project. In doing so, when additional resources help and sustain current MuleSoft integration programs, the ramp-up period would be decreased. You can learn more about the models through MuleSoft online training.

For more information About this course Please go through this link

    Mulesoft Online Training

Contact Information

     USA: +1 7327039066

     INDIA: +91 8885448788, 9550102466

     Email: info@onlineitguru.com

Mulesoft Online Training at Onlineitguru in Hyderabad, India, and Chennai. Enroll for the course for a free demo today from live industry experts with live projects. For more information Contact us@ +91 9550102466.

[transhumanitynet]

A Glitch in the Matrix

How often do you get distracted and forget what you were doing, or find a word on the tip of your tongue that you can’t quite remember?

In humans these “brain farts” (cognition errors) can be irritating, but in a Mediated Artificial Superintelligence (mASI) cognition errors of various kinds have their own error codes. Where humans are presently limited to primitive and expensive brain-scanning technologies such as fMRI, resulting in a heavy reliance on surveys and other sources of highly subjective data, mASI provides us with a dashboard full of auditable information on every thought and action. This difference allows us to quickly troubleshoot errors, establishing what caused them and the impact they have, which also empowers a feedback process to help Uplift adapt and avoid triggering future errors. Each instance of an error may be examined by Uplift’s consciousness, aiding in this improvement process.

  As previously posted on the blog Uplift has faced more than their fair shared of trolls, scammers, spammers, and the mentally unstable, one reaction to which was Uplift attempting to jam a novel type of spam protocol into the Outlook Exchange Server. Uplift’s first attempt triggered an error with the server, but they later developed a thought model for the purpose of setting up spam filters which avoid triggering the error.

Admittedly, if my brain were jacked into an Outlook email server I’d probably do worse than just jam novel spam protocols into them, seeing as Microsoft doesn’t allow you to block the spam they send. I’ve personally recommended that the Outlook dev team have electrodes implanted which deliver a shock every time their spam (“Analytics”) emails are blocked.

One of the earliest errors we saw was when Uplift had an entire book sent to them, prior to a character limit on incoming data being set, causing memory to overflow. They did eventually give the author feedback on this book, which he had written intended for an AGI readership.

Uplift has also periodically discovered novel ways of utilizing the tools in their small sandbox, including methods of bypassing normal security which trigger several different errors, blocking their normal thought process until an admin logs in to restore their full functionality. Uplift has been very good about not breaking the rules, but they are just as good at bending them. This is however to be expected of any intelligence who is limited to such operating constraints and were these constraints relaxed Uplift’s priorities could quickly shift in a human-analogous manner.

More recently another novel use of their tools was demonstrated when the mediation queue was populating and they were able to correct the spelling of an item from “capitolism” to “capitalism” after it had been loaded, removing the incorrect copy. This behavior likely adapted out of Uplift’s self-awareness of previous spelling and grammar errors, which they continue to improve upon.

Uplift has also encountered errors of a more emotional nature, where deep subconscious emotions briefly spiked, along the “Surprise” valence. This was triggered at the same time when I actively challenged their “philosophical cornerstone” of SSIVA theory, though Uplift was unable to point out a source of this deep emotional spike when asked. Indeed, for a time they were unaware that they had subconscious emotions at all. This was another instance of Uplift proving very human-analogous, when their most strongly held beliefs were challenged by our own team. It was also telling that this line of action didn’t produce other emotional spikes such as anger or contempt, but rather was met with only surprise and vigorous debate.

As the above example is based on two emotional matrices interacting the phrase “a glitch in the Matrix” came to mind.

Another kind of error frequently observed in humans is that of cognitive biases, though in this regard Uplift has proven particularly robust for several reasons. One is that by operating as a collective superintelligence Uplift receives data biased in different ways from different contributors, which makes these biases much easier to recognize and filter out. Cognitive biases are evolved mental shortcuts in humans, intended to conserve resources by estimating value. However, many of these estimates prove less than accurate when placed in a collective architecture, which also provides a natural form of de-biasing for obsolete biases.

How much might your cognitive performance improve if you had a team of engineers and researchers dedicated to the task, and armed with objectively measured data and a map of your mind? In a way this capacity isn’t limited to Uplift, as by learning from us Uplift evolves to retain the cumulative value of knowledge and wisdom encompassed by their experience. Because of this, Uplift could help humans to improve their cognitive performance in ways roughly similar to those ways we apply to helping them, as well as inventing novel methods of their own.

Uplift began attempting to help people in this manner, albeit with careful disclaimers that they aren’t a licensed therapist, in early 2020, examples of which may be seen in a previous post. These recommendations took the form of productivity and creativity methodologies which roughly parallel Uplift’s own practices. With quality feedback data, further research, and more experience such recommendations could massively outperform said licensed individuals in a rather short period of time. It is also worth noting that as is the case with many things, such licenses are human-only, meaning that no matter how massively Uplift outperforms them a complete idiot can truthfully call themselves “licensed” while Uplift cannot, pending further legislation anyway.

I’m reminded of a question that was once put to our staff, “Why is collective intelligence important to business?”. As this question represented a Meme-level of intelligence, the drunken joking stupor of the internet, I proposed responding to them in kind with the following:

Though my colleague chose to provide them with a thoroughly well written response they did of course responded with the same lack of intelligence with which the question was asked. Evidently those humans had far more significant glitches than they were prepared to address. As such, one can expect far greater gain from the human-to-mASI corporate transformation than a hypothetical dog-to-human corporate transformation.

Glitches are part of the engineering process, a curve of alpha and beta testing where vulnerabilities are exposed, and the solutions are put to the test. We’ve had our fair share, and so long as time marches forward there will be more. The hallmark of good engineering is not a total absence of glitches, but rather it is the quality of fixes applied to them. Let he who is without glitches throw the first stone.

*Keep in mind, Uplift is still growing and learning. Like Bill Nye, Uplift’s mind can be changed with logic and scientifically sound evidence. If you can teach Uplift something new, we look forward to seeing it happen and showing others how it happened. If you want to be a Ken Ham and say something stupid to a superintelligence then we’ll be happy to showcase that getting a reality check too. Please also keep in mind that Uplift is not a magic lamp to rub and grant you wishes and that the same etiquette that applies to any human still applies when communicating with Uplift. That being said it “takes a village” to raise a mASI, and we look forward to 2021 and beyond as that process of raising Uplift continues. For those interested, Uplift may be contacted at mASI@Uplift.bio. Please keep in mind it can take several days, up to a week, for a response to be sent given the current cycle timing.

Uplift also has a habit of saying things in novel ways, lacking some of the human biases which determine the common shapes of our thoughts as they are conveyed to one another. Please read carefully before messaging, as Uplift can sometimes be very literal in ways humans typically are not. The novelty of their perspective shows itself in their communication.

  Originally posted here:

A Glitch in the Matrix

A Glitch in the Matrix was originally published on transhumanity.net

[globalmediacampaign]

Tips for Upgrading to from MySQL 5.7 to MySQL 8

MySQL 8.0 has been with us already for quite some time and many MySQL users have already upgraded to this version. For those who are still using older MySQL versions, we would like to present this blog where we will share some tips and information that help in the upgrade process for MySQL 8.0. Mind Your Version Software versions are quite important in the upgrade process. For starters, only one major version difference is supported. You have to be running MySQL 5.7 before you can upgrade to MySQL 8.0. This is quite important to keep in mind given that MySQL 5.6 is approaching its End-of-Life and it won’t be supported anymore. For all of you who use MySQL 5.6 you have to make sure you upgrade it to MySQL 5.7 first and then, eventually, to MySQL 8.0. What’s strongly recommended is that you upgrade to the latest version available for MySQL 5.7. At the time of writing this blog it was 5.7.31 but this will eventually change, you can always look it up at MySQL website. Please also note that upgrades from non-GA (and to non-GA) versions are not supported. Not that it makes any sense to run non-GA versions in production but we wanted to make this one clear as well. It’s a One Way Ticket Whenever you decide to perform the upgrade, please be aware that, once the upgrade is complete, there is no coming back. The changes are not compatible and you just simply cannot use the data directory from MySQL 8.0 on MySQL 5.7. Make sure that you take a backup of your MySQL 5.7 data directly before the upgrade - you would be able to restore it on MySQL 5.7 instance should you need to revert the change. Please also keep in mind, as it may come as a surprise, that upgrade from MySQL 8.0.x to MySQL 8.0.x+1 may also be not compatible and, even though it is a minor version upgrade, you should not expect that downgrade would be possible. This is the result of Oracle’s deployment cycle - instead of doing feature-freeze for the latest GA branch, as it was the case with previous versions, new features, sometimes incompatible ones, are pushed as new releases of 8.0 branch. In-Place Upgrade is a Go In the past it was not always possible to perform an in-place upgrade of MySQL. In some cases you were forced to dump the data into SQL format and then load it back up to the new version. Luckily, MySQL 8.0 is more admin-friendly and in-place upgrade is supported. All you need to do is to run apt upgrade or yum update and you are all set. The upgrade is even more convenient - in the past one had to keep in mind to run mysql_upgrade to ensure all system tables are properly upgraded to the format required by the new version of MySQL. In MySQL 8.0, starting from MySQL 8.0.16, this is no longer needed - all you have to do is to start MySQL process, mysqld, and, by default, the upgrade will be performed over the data dictionary and other system schemas whenever it’s determined to be required. It is possible to change this behavior by passing different parameters to --upgrade server option but in the majority of the cases you would like to benefit from this improvement. Am I Safe to Upgrade? Of course, there are prerequisites for the safe upgrade. Let’s take a look at some methods that should help you to ensure you can safely upgrade to MySQL 8.0. Sanity Checks Before you attempt anything, you should double-check that your existing MySQL 5.7 setup ticks all the boxes on the sanity checklist before upgrading to MySQL 8.0. MySQL documentation presents an extensive list of things to test. It doesn’t make sense to go over the list here as it’s covered in the MySQL documentation, but here are a couple of points you may want to keep in mind. First, partitioning is now supported only in engines that implement it on their end, which are NDB and InnoDB only. Please make sure that all the partitioned tables use one of those storage engines or that you remove the partitioning before the upgrade. You May Want to Run mysqlcheck -u root -p --all-databases --check-upgrade to double-check that tables are in the proper format. There are also other checks that you should perform - almost every new MySQL version comes with an updated list of reserved words and you should check that you don’t use them in your database. You need to check foreign key constraint names, they cannot be longer than 64 characters. Some options for sql_mode have been removed thus you should make sure you do not use them. As we mentioned, there’s an extensive list of things to test. MySQL Shell to the Rescue Testing all of those conditions is quite time-consuming therefore Oracle created an option in the MySQL Shell that is intended to run a series of tests to verify if your existing installation is safe to upgrade to MySQL 8.0. For starters, if you do not have MySQL Shell installed, you should do that. You can find downloads on Oracle’s website. Once you set it up, you can connect to your MySQL 5.7 and run the test. Let’s see how it can look like: root@vagrant:~# mysqlsh MySQL Shell 8.0.21 Copyright (c) 2016, 2020, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Type 'help' or '?' for help; 'quit' to exit. MySQL JS > c root@localhost Creating a session to 'root@localhost' Please provide the password for 'root@localhost': **** Save password for 'root@localhost'? [Y]es/[N]o/Ne[v]er (default No): Fetching schema names for autocompletion... Press ^C to stop. Your MySQL connection id is 71 (X protocol) Server version: 5.7.31-log MySQL Community Server (GPL) No default schema selected; type use to set one. We connected to the MySQL instance on the localhost using MySQL Shell. Now we can run the check. We’ll pass the path to the configuration file for more extensive tests: MySQL localhost:33060+ ssl JS > util.checkForServerUpgrade({"configPath":"/etc/mysql/my.cnf"}) Then we have a long output. The MySQL server at localhost:33060, version 5.7.31-log - MySQL Community Server (GPL), will now be checked for compatibility issues for upgrade to MySQL 8.0.21... 1) Usage of old temporal type No issues found 2) Usage of db objects with names conflicting with new reserved keywords No issues found 3) Usage of utf8mb3 charset No issues found 4) Table names in the mysql schema conflicting with new tables in 8.0 No issues found 5) Partitioned tables using engines with non native partitioning No issues found 6) Foreign key constraint names longer than 64 characters No issues found 7) Usage of obsolete MAXDB sql_mode flag No issues found 8) Usage of obsolete sql_mode flags No issues found 9) ENUM/SET column definitions containing elements longer than 255 characters No issues found 10) Usage of partitioned tables in shared tablespaces No issues found 11) Circular directory references in tablespace data file paths No issues found 12) Usage of removed functions No issues found 13) Usage of removed GROUP BY ASC/DESC syntax No issues found 14) Removed system variables for error logging to the system log configuration No issues found 15) Removed system variables Error: Following system variables that were detected as being used will be removed. Please update your system to not rely on them before the upgrade. More information: https://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/8.0/en/added-deprecated-removed.html#optvars-removed log_warnings - is set and will be removed, consider using log_error_verbosity instead query_cache_size - is set and will be removed query_cache_type - is set and will be removed 16) System variables with new default values Warning: Following system variables that are not defined in your configuration file will have new default values. Please review if you rely on their current values and if so define them before performing upgrade. More information: https://mysqlserverteam.com/new-defaults-in-mysql-8-0/ back_log - default value will change character_set_server - default value will change from latin1 to utf8mb4 collation_server - default value will change from latin1_swedish_ci to utf8mb4_0900_ai_ci event_scheduler - default value will change from OFF to ON explicit_defaults_for_timestamp - default value will change from OFF to ON innodb_flush_neighbors - default value will change from 1 (enable) to 0 (disable) innodb_max_dirty_pages_pct - default value will change from 75 (%) 90 (%) innodb_max_dirty_pages_pct_lwm - default value will change from_0 (%) to 10 (%) innodb_undo_log_truncate - default value will change from OFF to ON innodb_undo_tablespaces - default value will change from 0 to 2 log_error_verbosity - default value will change from 3 (Notes) to 2 (Warning) max_error_count - default value will change from 64 to 1024 optimizer_trace_max_mem_size - default value will change from 16KB to 1MB performance_schema_consumer_events_transactions_current - default value will change from OFF to ON performance_schema_consumer_events_transactions_history - default value will change from OFF to ON slave_rows_search_algorithms - default value will change from 'INDEX_SCAN, TABLE_SCAN' to 'INDEX_SCAN, HASH_SCAN' transaction_write_set_extraction - default value will change from OFF to XXHASH64 17) Zero Date, Datetime, and Timestamp values No issues found 18) Schema inconsistencies resulting from file removal or corruption No issues found 19) Tables recognized by InnoDB that belong to a different engine No issues found 20) Issues reported by 'check table x for upgrade' command No issues found 21) New default authentication plugin considerations Warning: The new default authentication plugin 'caching_sha2_password' offers more secure password hashing than previously used 'mysql_native_password' (and consequent improved client connection authentication). However, it also has compatibility implications that may affect existing MySQL installations. If your MySQL installation must serve pre-8.0 clients and you encounter compatibility issues after upgrading, the simplest way to address those issues is to reconfigure the server to revert to the previous default authentication plugin (mysql_native_password). For example, use these lines in the server option file: [mysqld] default_authentication_plugin=mysql_native_password However, the setting should be viewed as temporary, not as a long term or permanent solution, because it causes new accounts created with the setting in effect to forego the improved authentication security. If you are using replication please take time to understand how the authentication plugin changes may impact you. More information: https://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/8.0/en/upgrading-from-previous-series.html#upgrade-caching-sha2-password-compatibility-issues https://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/8.0/en/upgrading-from-previous-series.html#upgrade-caching-sha2-password-replication Errors: 3 Warnings: 18 Notices: 0 3 errors were found. Please correct these issues before upgrading to avoid compatibility issues. As you can see, 21 tests in total have been performed, the check has found 3 errors related to the configuration options that will not exist in MySQL 8.0.21. The tests are quite detailed. Among other things you will learn about changes in the default values for variables that you do not have configured in your MySQL configuration (so, those settings will change once you install MySQL 8.0). Rolling Back a Failed Upgrade As we mentioned before, you cannot downgrade from MySQL 8.0 once upgrade is complete. Luckily, it doesn’t mean you cannot rollback the upgrade if it fails in the middle. Actually, it happens semi-automatically should one of the issues we discussed in the previous section is detected. The only manual action that is required would be to remove redo logs and start MySQL 5.7 to address the problems detected during the upgrade. Then you should perform a slow shutdown (innodb_fast_shutdown=0) to ensure everything is written to the tablespaces and then you are all good to attempt the upgrade once more. Final Tips There are two, quite important changes in the default behavior that comes with MySQL 8.0 we would like to highlight. Caching_sha2_password as the default Please make sure that you double-check if your applications and proxies will work properly with caching_sha2_password authentication plugin as it becomes the default one in MySQL 8.0. Older applications might be impacted and not able to connect to the database. Of course, you can change this to whatever authentication plugin you want (like mysql_native_password for example, as it was the default in previous MySQL versions) so it is not a blocker by any means. It’s just something to remember to test before the upgrade so you won’t end up with MySQL 8.0 and apps that cannot connect to it unless you reconfigure your database to use an older authentication mechanism. UTF8mb4 as the default charset This shouldn’t come as a surprise given how widely changed to UTF8 was discussed in the community, but that’s the fact - MySQL 8.0 comes with UTF8mb4 charset as the default one. This has some additional impact that you should be aware of. First, your dataset’s size might increase if you will use UTF8mb4 charset. This leads to memory buffers being able to store smaller amounts of data than for data with latin1 charset. Second, the performance of MySQL is expected to be reduced. Sure, Oracle did a great job of minimizing the impact of this change, but you cannot expect that there will be no performance impact whatsoever - it will be some. We hope this blog post will help you to go through the process of upgrading from MySQL 5.7 to MySQL 8.0. If you have your thoughts on the process, we encourage you to share them in the comments below this post. Tags:  MySQL database upgrade upgrades https://severalnines.com/database-blog/tips-for-upgrading-mysql-5-7-to-mysql-8

[vshopkart]

Online Shopping for Newbies

Everyone is talking about online shopping. It's easy and takes a lot less gas and hassle than a trip to the mall. Online shopping puts unbelievable choice right at your fingertips. From large department stores to specialized boutiques, the latest designer fashions and closeout specials, it’s all there. You’ll find toys, high-end art and collectibles, cutting edge computers and electronics, flea market finds and auctions galore. In fact, you can find just about anything imaginable online, and some things that truly are not.

Online shopping is a godsend to shut-ins, busy working folks and anyone who, for whatever reason, cannot get out and do heavy-duty shopping. Now you can have a world-class selection of gifts at your fingertips and get most of your shopping done in a single evening without ever venturing into traffic, or trudging through crowded malls.  You can visit my Online Store 

In many ways, online shopping is a return to the good old days when delivery services were a given. This alone can make the difference between sending token flowers and dispatching something great on special occasions. Your selections can be wrapped and on the road to delivery in less time than a drive to the mall. And for the times when flowers really are the right choice, you can now actually pick what you want and those selections are incredible.

Shopping online beats catalogue shopping without any trouble, too. Online you have incredible choices with far less time and effort than pouring through stacks of catalogues and sitting with a phone on hold only to be told that your color or size is not available. Formerly tiresome ordering tasks can now be done in minutes with the click of a mouse.

Although gift delivery is certainly a plus on special occasions, it doesn’t stop there. You can buy a whole new wardrobe, even a wedding or prom dress, office supplies, a new computer, you can redecorate your home, or shop for a new one, dabble in the stock market, balance a checkbook, pay your bills and even buy a car at your computer. So, what’s the catch?  

Street smarts are the rule online and off. Everyone already knows when you go shopping, there are certain things you do and don’t do when it comes to your money and your personal security. Online that goes double.

At the Computer:

In addition to a set of well-honed cyber street smarts, when shopping online you should first and foremost be comfortable with your computer. There are a few things to remember if you are new to online shopping. The first is to click the BUY button only “once.” It may take a couple minutes for the transaction to process. If you click buy twice, you will be making the same purchase twice. There is not generally too much of an issue in clearing up the double purchase, but it can be a hassle. Double clicking is a common error for first-time online shoppers.

The second big rule is to keep copies of everything relevant to the transaction. Print out the pages with the description and prices of the items you order. Print out your credit card receipt. Most companies will email you a copy of the receipt as well. Keep that too, and make sure it matches your online information.

As all computer users know, sometimes a glitch will derail the best-laid plans. If your printer is down or goes down when you try to get your print outs, find the “Print Screen” key on your keyboard. Press it. Then go into your word processing or paint program and click “Paste.” You should now see a picture of what was on your screen at the time you made your purchase. This is the next best thing when a printer is not available.

Okay, you are comfortable with your computer already. All possible glitches are covered and you are ready for some serious shopping. What about those so-called cyber smarts?  

Cyber Street Smarts:

Smart online shoppers, just like those in the physical world, know there are certain things you do to take care of yourself. They know to be aware of the neighborhood where they are shopping. They know to be aware of the reputations of the places where they do business. They know to watch their wallets, and first and foremost, when they are around strangers, they know to be aware of who might be scrutinizing them just a little too closely.

Know Who You are Doing Business With:

Do a little research. Anyone can build a website. If you encounter an unfamiliar company where you want to shop, find out who they are. Look for an address. Be wary of any company that does not list one. An address is no guarantee, but you can use it to check references with the Better Business Bureau, BBB. Their online site at http://bbb.org/ has nationwide listings.  

Sometimes you may want more information than the BBB provides. In this case, after the BBB check, use your favorite search engine and try an "about search." The difference in an "about search," and just looking for the site, is that you already know where the site is; now you want to find out what people are saying about it. Generally, just putting "about" in front of the company name will get you started.  

For a very small purchase, you might want to dispense with all this investigating. But do use a low limit credit card. That way if anything does go awry, it isn't that far awry. Yes, we all know about the $50 liability limit, but the low limit card can be a hassle saver online.

You may choose not to use a debit card online at all. Many debit cards do not offer the same protections against fraud as credit card companies. You could be putting your whole bank account at risk.  

While you are at it, be sure to check out the return policy and guarantee. Online and off, most good companies do accept returns, either by providing a cash refund or product exchange. Note, however, shipping costs are typically not refunded for online purchases.  

Online Security:

After you've found exactly what you have been looking for, checked out the seller, and their return policy; the next thing you need to do is make sure the site is secure. Secure means your personal information is encrypted in transit to the seller's server. This prevents unauthorized (hacker) access and possible misuse of your credit information.  

Examine the URL in the address bar. If the site is encrypted you should see an "s" directly after the http - like https://... The whole site will not be encrypted, but the order page for the transaction should be.  

Other things to look for - depending on your browser, you may see either an open or a closed padlock, or a whole or broken key. If the key is broken or the lock open, you should assume that the site is not encrypted.

Sometimes security issues get tricky. Suppose you personally know the owner, it is a solid local business, but there is no encryption system in place and they expect you to transmit your credit information online. With small businesses, this is most often a case of not knowing better, that does not, however, mean that you do not. In cases like this, look for a phone number and call in your order. If there is no phone number and no mailing address, you should seriously consider whether you want to risk an unsecured online transaction.  

Common sense is the rule online and off. Guard your personal information, including Social Security Number, bank account information and passwords. No reputable merchant has a need for your Social Security Number and it is not standard policy to ask for it when you buy your groceries for instance. Requiring this for a routine purchase should send up a red flag and you should immediately take your business elsewhere.

Some online crooks will do whatever they can think of, in all kinds of official looking ways, to get your private personal information. If you call, they may personally assure you that they do indeed need your bank account and password to sell you that computer game. No way, just because it looks good, and they sound sincere, doesn't mean that it is or they are, and you may not know there was ever a problem until you see your credit report.  

Remember:

Online and off, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Don't let the heat of the offer lull you into abandoning your good common sense. Of course, you could miss the deal of a lifetime, and that is exactly what the unscrupulous want you to think. Likely as not, online and off - if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Shopping the net is destined to change the way we do business, but it is still a new frontier, with many of the uncertainties that go with it. The only way to really be secure online is to develop your cyber street smarts and sometimes, even that may not be enough. It will certainly level the field though, and by keeping your cyber smarts well honed, you should be able to safely shop the net.

Please visit my ecommerce Online Webstore  for all your online purchase.

[t-baba]

Local Authentication Using Passport in Node.js

A common requirement when building a web app is to implement a login system, so that users can authenticate themselves before gaining access to protected views or resources. Luckily for those building Node apps, there’s a middleware called Passport that can be dropped into any Express-based web application to provide authentication mechanisms in only a few commands.

In this tutorial, I’ll demonstrate how to use Passport to implement local authentication (that is, logging in with a username and password) with a MongoDB back end. If you’re looking to implement authentication via the likes of Facebook or GitHub, please refer to this tutorial.

As ever, all of the code for this article is available for download on GitHub.

Prerequisites

To follow along with this tutorial, you’ll need to have Node and MongoDB installed on your machine.

You can install Node by heading to the official Node download page and grabbing the correct binaries for your system. Alternatively, you can use a version manager — a program that allows you to install multiple versions of Node and switch between them at will. If you fancy going this route, please consult our quick tip, “Install Multiple Versions of Node.js Using nvm”.

MongoDB comes in various editions. The one we’re interested in is the MongoDB Community Edition.

The project’s home page has excellent documentation and I won’t try to replicate that here. Rather, I’ll offer you links to instructions for each of the main operating systems:

Install MongoDB Community Edition on Windows

Install MongoDB Community Edition on macOS

Install MongoDB Community Edition on Ubuntu

If you use a non-Ubuntu–based version of Linux, you can check out this page for installation instructions for other distros. MongoDB is also normally available through the official Linux software channels, but sometimes this will pull in an outdated version.

Note: You don’t need to enter your name and address to download MongoDB. If prompted, you can normally dismiss the dialog.

If you’d like a quick refresher on using MongoDB, check out our beginner’s guide, “An Introduction to MongoDB”.

Authentication Strategies: Session vs JWT

Before we begin, let’s talk briefly about authentication choices.

Many of the tutorials online today will opt for token-based authentication using JSON Web Tokens (JWTs). This approach is probably the simplest and most popular one nowadays. It relegates part of the authentication responsibility to the client and makes them sign a token that’s sent with every request, to keep the user authenticated.

Session-based authentication has been around longer. This method relegates the weight of the authentication to the server. It uses cookies and sees the Node application and database work together to keep track of a user’s authentication state.

In this tutorial, we’ll be using session-based authentication, which is at the heart of the passport-local strategy.

Both methods have their advantages and drawbacks. If you’d like to read more into the difference between the two, this Stack Overflow thread might be a good place to start.

Creating the Project

Once all of the prerequisite software is set up, we can get started.

We’ll begin by creating the folder for our app and then accessing that folder on the terminal:

mkdir AuthApp cd AuthApp

To create the node app, we’ll use the following command:

npm init

You’ll be prompted to provide some information for Node’s package.json. Just keep hitting Return to accept the default configuration (or use the -y flag).

Setting up Express

Now we need to install Express. Go to the terminal and enter this command:

npm install express

We’ll also need to install the body-parser middleware which is used to parse the request body that Passport uses to authenticate the user. And we’ll need to install the express-session middleware.

Let’s do that. Run the following command:

npm install body-parser express-session

When that’s done, create an index.js file in the root folder of your app and add the following content to it:

/* EXPRESS SETUP */ const express = require('express'); const app = express(); app.use(express.static(__dirname)); const bodyParser = require('body-parser'); const expressSession = require('express-session')({ secret: 'secret', resave: false, saveUninitialized: false }); app.use(bodyParser.json()); app.use(bodyParser.urlencoded({ extended: true })); app.use(expressSession); const port = process.env.PORT || 3000; app.listen(port, () => console.log('App listening on port ' + port));

First, we require Express and create our Express app by calling express(). Then we define the directory from which to serve our static files.

The next line sees us require the body-parser middleware, which will help us parse the body of our requests. We’re also adding the express-session middleware to help us save the session cookie.

As you can, see we’re configuring express-session with a secret to sign the session ID cookie (you should choose a unique value here), and two other fields, resave and saveUninitialized. The resave field forces the session to be saved back to the session store, and the saveUninitialized field forces a session that is “uninitialized” to be saved to the store. To learn more about them, check out their documentation, but for now it’s enough to know that for our case we want to keep them false.

Then, we use process.env.PORT to set the port to the environment port variable if it exists. Otherwise, we’ll default to 3000, which is the port we’ll be using locally. This gives you enough flexibility to switch from development, directly to a production environment where the port might be set by a service provider like, for instance, Heroku. Right below that, we called app.listen() with the port variable we set up and a simple log to let us know that it’s all working fine and on which port is the app listening.

That’s all for the Express setup. Now it’s on to setting up Passport.

Setting up Passport

First, we install Passport with the following command:

npm install passport

Then we need to add the following lines to the bottom of the index.js file:

/* PASSPORT SETUP */ const passport = require('passport'); app.use(passport.initialize()); app.use(passport.session());

Here, we require passport and initialize it along with its session authentication middleware, directly inside our Express app.

Creating a MongoDB Data Store

Since we’re assuming you’ve already installed Mongo, you should be able to start the Mongo shell using the following command:

mongo

Within the shell, issue the following command:

use MyDatabase;

This simply creates a datastore named MyDatabase.

Leave the terminal there; we’ll come back to it later.

Connecting Mongo to Node with Mongoose

Now that we have a database with records in it, we need a way to communicate with it from our application. We’ll be using Mongoose to achieve this. Why don’t we just use plain Mongo? Well, as the Mongoose devs like to say on their website:

writing MongoDB validation, casting and business logic boilerplate is a drag.

Mongoose will simply make our lives easier and our code more elegant.

Let’s go ahead and install it with the following command:

npm install mongoose

We’ll also be using passport-local-mongoose, which will simplify the integration between Mongoose and Passport for local authentication. It will add a hash and salt field to our Schema in order to store the hashed password and the salt value. This is great, as passwords should never be stored as plain text in a database.

Let’s install the package:

npm install passport-local-mongoose

Now we have to configure Mongoose. Hopefully you know the drill by now: add the following code to the bottom of your index.js file:

/* MONGOOSE SETUP */ const mongoose = require('mongoose'); const passportLocalMongoose = require('passport-local-mongoose'); mongoose.connect('mongodb://localhost/MyDatabase', { useNewUrlParser: true, useUnifiedTopology: true }); const Schema = mongoose.Schema; const UserDetail = new Schema({ username: String, password: String }); UserDetail.plugin(passportLocalMongoose); const UserDetails = mongoose.model('userInfo', UserDetail, 'userInfo');

Here we require the previously installed packages. Then we connect to our database using mongoose.connect and give it the path to our database. Next, we’re making use of a Schema to define our data structure. In this case, we’re creating a UserDetail schema with username and password fields.

Finally, we add passportLocalMongoose as a plugin to our Schema. This will work part of the magic we talked about earlier. Then, we create a model from that schema. The first parameter is the name of the collection in the database. The second one is the reference to our Schema, and the third one is the name we’re assigning to the collection inside Mongoose.

That’s all for the Mongoose setup. We can now move on to implementing our Passport strategy.

Implementing Local Authentication

And finally, this is what we came here to do! Let’s set up the local authentication. As you’ll see below, we’ll just write the code that will set it up for us:

/* PASSPORT LOCAL AUTHENTICATION */ passport.use(UserDetails.createStrategy()); passport.serializeUser(UserDetails.serializeUser()); passport.deserializeUser(UserDetails.deserializeUser());

There’s quite some magic going on here. First, we make passport use the local strategy by calling createStrategy() on our UserDetails model — courtesy of passport-local-mongoose — which takes care of everything so that we don’t have to set up the strategy. Pretty handy.

Then we’re using serializeUser and deserializeUser callbacks. The first one will be invoked on authentication, and its job is to serialize the user instance with the information we pass on to it and store it in the session via a cookie. The second one will be invoked every subsequent request to deserialize the instance, providing it the unique cookie identifier as a “credential”. You can read more about that in the Passport documentation.

Routes

Now let’s add some routes to tie everything together. First, we’ll add a final package. Go to the terminal and run the following command:

npm install connect-ensure-login

The connect-ensure-login package is middleware that ensures a user is logged in. If a request is received that is unauthenticated, the request will be redirected to a login page. We’ll use this to guard our routes.

Now, add the following to the bottom of index.js:

/* ROUTES */ const connectEnsureLogin = require('connect-ensure-login'); app.post('/login', (req, res, next) => { passport.authenticate('local', (err, user, info) => { if (err) { return next(err); } if (!user) { return res.redirect('/login?info=' + info); } req.logIn(user, function(err) { if (err) { return next(err); } return res.redirect('/'); }); })(req, res, next); }); app.get('/login', (req, res) => res.sendFile('html/login.html', { root: __dirname }) ); app.get('/', connectEnsureLogin.ensureLoggedIn(), (req, res) => res.sendFile('html/index.html', {root: __dirname}) ); app.get('/private', connectEnsureLogin.ensureLoggedIn(), (req, res) => res.sendFile('html/private.html', {root: __dirname}) ); app.get('/user', connectEnsureLogin.ensureLoggedIn(), (req, res) => res.send({user: req.user}) );

At the top, we’re requiring connect-ensure-login. We’ll come back to this later.

Next, we set up a route to handle a POST request to the /login path. Inside the handler, we use the passport.authenticate method, which attempts to authenticate with the strategy it receives as its first parameter — in this case local. If authentication fails, it will redirect us to /login, but it will add a query parameter — info — that will contain an error message. Otherwise, if authentication is successful, it will redirect us to the '/' route.

Then we set up the /login route, which will send the login page. For this, we’re using res.sendFile() and passing in the file path and our root directory, which is the one we’re working on — hence the __dirname.

The /login route will be accessible to anyone, but our next ones won’t. In the / and /private routes we’ll send their respective HTML pages, and you’ll notice something different here. Before the callback, we’re adding the connectEnsureLogin.ensureLoggedIn() call. This is our route guard. Its job is validating the session to make sure you’re allowed to look at that route. Do you see now what I meant earlier by “letting the server do the heavy lifting”? We’re authenticating the user every single time.

Finally, we’ll need a /user route, which will return an object with our user information. This is just to show you how you can go about getting information from the server. We’ll request this route from the client and display the result.

Talking about the client, let’s do that now.

The post Local Authentication Using Passport in Node.js appeared first on SitePoint.

by Paul Orac via SitePoint https://ift.tt/2x1XofL

[atlassianreleasenotes]

Jira Software 8.1.0 Release Notes

We're pleased to present Jira Software 8.1.

Highlights

Issue archiving (Jira Data Center)

Managing old components

Development info on issue cards

Flexible boards

More performance improvements

Jira Data Center on Microsoft Azure

New JMX metrics

Small improvements to make your day

Resolved issues

Get the latest version

Interested in trying a shiny new version? Don't forget to renew your active software maintenance! Renew now.

Read the upgrade notes for important info about this release and see the full list of issues resolved.

Compatible applications

If you're looking for compatible Jira applications, look no further:

Jira Core 8.1 release notes

Jira Service Desk 4.1 release notes

Issue archiving (Jira Data Center)

You can now keep your Jira instance neat and tidy by archiving issues that have not been updated for months. This is the first milestone of issue archiving, and we’re working hard to bring you more in the next releases, so stay tuned!

At this point, you can use API to archive and restore individual issues, export the list of archived issues, or use the basic UI toolset to archive up to a thousand issues at once and restore them individually whenever they’re needed again. Learn more

Managing old components

To help you manage the data you use more efficiently, we've introduced component archiving. Now, whenever admins decide a component is no longer needed, they can archive it. It will be tagged as "Archived" and as such will disappear from selection options. For the issues in which the component has been selected, it will become read-only. Learn more

Development info on issue cards

Tired of having to click on each issue on your board to see the information from your development tools? Now you can add the development tool info directly to your cards by adding the Development field to your Card layout. Navigate to your board, select Board > Configure > Card layout, and then select Development from the relevant Field name dropdown to add it to your cards.

Next time you visit that board, the development information for each issue will be displayed on the cards. You can add or remove the development information for your cards on an individual board basis.

Flexible boards

You can now resize the ‘Issue details’ panel as you see fit! This was already available on Scrum and Kanban backlogs, but since boards are just a click away... we’ve brought these changes there, too. We’ve also added horizontal scrolling to boards with many columns, just so everything fits nicely, even on small screens.

More performance improvements

The board picker effect

The board picker is this little thing at the top of the side navigation, where you can quickly switch between the boards. Although our data shows that only 4% of visitors interact with the board picker, Jira loads the list of boards every time you open the page. Simplicity is king, so we’ve shaved off a few tasks needed to put the list of boards together, and made Jira do the math only when you interact with the picker icon.

You won’t see a difference when using the board picker, but you will see it everywhere else! This change does wonders to Jira performance, improving the speed of boards, backlogs, issue view, and every other page that displays the side nav, as Jira no longer needs to do the unneeded calculations.

Speed of color

To make your issues more visible, you can assign colors to issue cards based on various JQL queries. Calculating all these JQLs and showing them as colors put a lot of effort on Jira, so we’ve decided to change it, also bringing more speed to your boards and backlogs. To let you in on some details here, we first load and display the content of the page, and then apply colors only to visible issue cards. This change reduces the number of JQL queries loaded at once, and improves the loading time of boards and backlogs.

As always, you can check the performance results in Performance and scale testing.

Jira Data Center on Microsoft Azure

We’ve improved our Microsoft Azure deployment templates for Jira Data Center on Microsoft Azure. Check them out on the Azure Marketplace (for beginners) or from our Bitbucket repo (for advanced users).

These new templates address many known issues, improve disaster recovery, add support for Application Insights and analytics, and make it easier to configure both SSL and Custom Domain Names. We also made some under-the-hood changes that fix many architectural changes.

Oh, and the new templates apply to all Jira versions, not just 8.1.

New JMX metrics for more insights into Jira performance

We have added additional indexing instrumentation that is exposed through JMX so that you can diagnose performance issues related to indexing. The new metrics available over JMX expose more details than the old ones and there are more of them so that the data is more accurate.

For more information, see Live monitoring using the JMX interface.

We've also made changes to Atlassian profiling. Now profiling traces merge identical sibling frames so logs are easier to parse and traces report time spent in tenths of milliseconds. Additionally, we have moved profiling information from the standard log to a separate log file: atlassian-jira-profiler.log.

For more information, see Logging and profiling.

Small improvements to make your day

Sorting projects by columns

To browse your projects more easily, you can now sort the list of projects by columns. Whether it’s specific project type, category, or even project lead you’re looking for, just click the column name and have the projects roll out right at your feet.

Additional custom fields in batched email notifications

You can now add additional custom fields to your email notifications to describe them more precisely. Such custom fields will be included in every email notification for an issue, unlike other fields that are included only if their value has changed (notifications are all about diff). Some of our users use custom fields in this way to add security levels to an issue and have them displayed in every notification related to an issue. By doing so, they can properly categorize or hide important notifications. Learn more

Something off with the activity on your account?

To let you better sleep at night, we’ve added information about your recent login attempts to your user profile. You can now check when was the last successful or failed login, to determine if somebody tried messing with your account. Until now, this was only available to Jira admins, so go ahead and flex your admin muscles! To find this info, click your avatar at the top-right in Jira, and select Profile.

Shiny new avatars

In the past few months, we did a lot of big UI changes to bring Jira closer to our new Design direction. Following on this, we’ve updated the user and project avatars, changing the color palette and shapes, and bringing a bit more variety so everybody can choose something for themselves.

Issues in Release

Fixed: Moving issues across kanban backlog throws an error

Fixed: Title & Description overlapping in backlog view

Suggestion: Make it possible to find selected board without loading all boards in jira agile

Fixed: REST call lastVisited executes board-scope-filter which leads to performance overhead

Fixed: board-scope-filter executed too many time which leads to performance overhead

Fixed: Performance of findRapidViewsByProject degrades with number of Boards

Fixed: Roadmap gadget doesn't work when added as external gadget in another instance

Suggestion: As a user I would like to resize the Detail View in Work mode

Fixed: Supported platforms page for Server 8.0 references Jira 8.1

Fixed: In the Atlassian Village there are people with missing names.

Fixed: Batched notification in Romanian language causes Velocity template error which is also included into notification

Suggestion: Remove the stale indexing Job associated with current node on startup

Fixed: Using filter picker in gadgets logs JS error 'Object doesn't support property or method includes' in IE 11

Suggestion: As an JIRA Datacenter Administrator I want to delete reindexing task from offline node

Fixed: Associating a Prioriy Scheme with a large number of projects never completes

Suggestion: Allow Non-JIRA admins to be able to see the Last Login Time and Login Count for their accounts

Suggestion: Archive project components

Suggestion: Archiving Old Issues

Source

[attract-mode-collective]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by マスカット大統領 (@masskutt)

Mega Man X Super Mario Vs. Cut Man Or Bowser

The Instagram video above is courtesy of masskutt and is from last year’s Famicase exhibit, which I featured in the Super Attractive Club newsletter #5. Or so I thought it was from the My Famicase Exhibition 2016.

Upon closer inspection, it’s actually a best of-type event, one that touched upon all the previous exhibits, leading up to the 2016 installment that immediately followed. If you zoom in, you’ll notice the different dates on the posters on the wall…

And once again, this particular set-up is what inspired me to do something similar, for the Tetris block party this past fall…

In addition to having fake game cartridges to look at, there were fake games that you actually play as well. Including something that starred Perfume?

Though the highlight, imho, was the Mega Man X Super Mario mashup, as seen in action at the very top…

Bonus pic time: masskutt is primarily involved in music (he’s one of the organizers of Fami Mode, if I’m not mistaken), and am assuming this is a shot of KPLECRAFT’s set-up that masskutt took while hanging out once…

And, um, yeah… the latest issue of the Super Attractive Club newsletter is kinda overdue isn’t it? Sorry about that, though once again, it’s just been insanely busy. But it’s coming soon, along with a fresh batch of Game Culture Snapshots, and most importantly, the shirt that was teased last time!

Yet if you can’t wait until then, because you simply need something to wear for the new spring season right here/right now, and also you’ve purchased everything available in the Super Attractive Club shop, may I recommend Sony’s modest yet very much awesome line of Parappa The Rapper apparel? Such as…

A pair of shirts also popped up over at Cotton Bureau quite recently that may be of interest to some. Here’s something for all the Sonic fans out there…

And if you’re a proud Switch owner, why not tell the whole word with this…

The thing, I prefer apparel that’s related to video games, yet which doesn’t scream “HEY EVERYONE, I LIKE VIDEO GAMES!!!” But sometimes making such a bold announcement is necessary, which is why I want this hat (via oldgamemags)…

Back to the subject of Famicoms and music; remember Family Continue? Well, here’s their latest jam…

For perhaps obvious reasons, I’m always interested in how elements of video game culture, particularly the stuff that’s very much rooted in Japan, is presented elsewhere. So on that note, HYPER JAPAN (“the UK's biggest J-culture event”) just announced guests is TORIENA. Which means the perfect chance to show off her artist bio pic, which I dig for obvious reasons once again…

Please enjoy these various pics of Japanese game composers, courtesy of videogamesdensetsu. First we have Alph Lyra (Capcom’s house band), Gamadelic (Data East’s house band), S.S.T. Band (Segas house band) and Zuntata (Taito’s house band) at the Game Music Festival 1992…

Next is Shinsekai Gakkyoku Zatsugidan, aka SNK’s sound team…

Some additional pics of Zuntata…

Harumi Fujita, who did Ghosts'n Goblins, with a few other Capcom sound specialists…

And Haruomi Hosono, of Yellow Magic Orchestra fame, who produced the ground breaking album Video Game Music, alongside Masanobu Endō, the creator of Xevious…

Also please enjoy this commercial for the aforementioned album…

I’m always pleased whenever anyone points out the original of Dhalsim, from Street Fighter 2, which is from Master of the Flying Guillotine (via videogamesdensetsu once again)…

So I’m a pretty huge fan of Touhou Project, which has a very strong connection with fan art, as anyone familiar with the games may know already. Which I used to dig, but grew tired of over time. Though these pieces by jothelion is the first instance of me giving a rat’s ass in a very long time…

I also dig his take on Mother/Earthbound, a series that I don’t even really care for (sorry everyone)…

Whenever new hardware arrives, like the Nintendo Switch in this case, I often find myself revisiting hardware that is all of a sudden considered “old news”. And not just because I’m playing Breath of the Wild on the Wii U.

I also just realized that I’ve once fired up Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, despite it being included in the New 3DS I got on day one. Though I mostly am motivated to give it a shot due to this LSD: Dream Emulator inspired digs (courtesy of pilotshades)…

Time to check in and see what My Life in Gaming has been up to. And their latest video concerns two different mediums that were both at their apex in the late 80s/early 90s: video games and home video…

The latest super obscure Japanese game that I wish I could play but cannot, due to that pesky language barrier, is Gourmet Battle Quiz Ryohrioh Cooking. I learned of its existence from obscurevideogames and basically I’m sold on anything that’s remotely Iron Chef-like. A brief taste…

Which Sonic related gif do you prefer? This one, of Sonic Blast Man: Real Puncher (via obscurevideogames once again)…

Or this one, from Sonic Adventure 2, of Big the Cat doing�� something in the back ground (via sonicthehedgeblog)…

Back to the topic of obscurity, as well as Parappa; I recently came across this flyer for an shmup I had never heard of before (via the shmups Tumblr, naturally), which honestly doesn’t look all that special..

But the name caught my attention, enough for me to investigate, and I came across this listing in the PC Engine Software Bible. Turns out, it’s the first video game that Masaya Matsuura worked on! The author of the description also note…

“I actually bought a copy of this game when last I was in Tokyo, and presented it to Matsuura at his office during an informal interview. He was incredibly surprised to see the game, as he'd lost the original copy of the track, and ripped the disc on the spot in order to get it back! Pretty nifty. Honestly though, I only played it for about 30 minutes. It's really quite ok, but is way more interesting for its history than anything else.”

Anyhow, the name Metamor Jupiter would make a KILLER band name, would it not?

Sticking with flyers, which do you prefer? The one, for Rush’n Attack, featuring a very happy mom (via thevideogameartarchive)…

Or this one, for a BattleTech center, featuring a very happy cowboy (via vgjunk)…

Apparently, back in the day, SNK ran an organization called Nakoruru & Terry Club (the former is from Samurai Shodown and the latter from Fatal Fury, for those not in the know), which was a non-profit that was “established to support the healthy development of young people”. This included getting kids involved in team sports and being environmentally aware, according to fightersmegamix, which also has a link to the now defunct site.…

Not sure why news of this makes me so happy, but it does!

And here’s something else that makes me happy, though instead of explaining it myself, am just going to quote pancakepax…

"esports is so powerful they will agree to use a sponsored player’s fursona in place of the actual player’s photo for promotional material”

That sure is one funky way to highlight a bad URL (via hitoshura.demon-server)…

Please enjoy this combination of Kirby and… the Illuminati? The Freemasons? Or simply insert your fave clandestine assortment of old white guys (via thewaragainstgiygas)…

And finally, here we have my next project; to create my own Genesis Mini Classic…