#and use pretty much all the features of the full app!

[aurosoulart]

ohhhh my god. I can finally share my art with people who don’t have headsets 😭😭😭

the mobile app for the art program I use is in open beta and you can get it from our Discord channel here. works on both iOS and Android

[archaeren]

Hello!! I hope you're having a good day ^^ I came across your post about writing non-linearly on Notion and I'm excited to try it out because the advice resonated with me! Though, I'm really new to using the app and, if possible, need help with how to do this part: 'where every scene is a separate table entry and the scene is written in the page inside that entry.' ;v;

Hello! Thank you so much for messaging!!! Since that post about writing non-linearly (linked for context) blew up roughly ten thousand times as much as anything I've ever posted, I've been kind of meaning to make a followup post explaining more about how I use Notion for writing non-linearly, but, you know, ADHD, so I haven't done it yet. XD In the meantime, I'll post a couple screenshots of my current long fic with some explanations! I'd make this post shorter, but I'm unable to not be Chatty. XD (just ask my poor readers how long my author notes are...) (There is a phone app as well which syncs with the desktop/browser versions, but I work predominantly in the desktop app so that's what I'm gonna be showing)

(the table keeps going off the right side of the image but it's a bunch of unimportant stuff tbh) So this is more complicated than what you'll probably start with because I'm Normal and add a bunch of details that you might not need depending on what you're doing. For example, my fic switches POVs so I have a column for tracking that, and my fic follows a canon timeline so I have a column for dates so I can keep track of them, and I also made columns for things like if a scene had spoilers or certain content readers may want to avoid, which they can access in my spoiler and content guide for the fic. (As I said, I'm Normal.) I also do some complicated stuff using Status and estimated wordcount stuff to get an idea of how long I predict the content to be, but again, not necessary. Anyway, you don't need any of that. For the purposes of this explanation, we're just gonna look at the columns I have called Name, Order, and Status. (And one called Part, but we'll get into that later) Columns in Notion have different types, such as Text, Numbers, Select, Date, etc, so make sure to use the type that works best for the purpose of each column! For example, here I'm using Select for Character POVs, Number for Order and WC (wordcount), and Text for the In-Game Date. Okay let's get into it! Name is a column that comes in a Notion table by default, and you can't get rid of it (which drives me up the wall for some purposes but works totally fine for what we're doing here). As you can see on the scene I've labeled 'roll call', if you hover over a Name entry, a little button called 'Open' appears, which you click on to open the document that's inside the table. That's all default, you don't have to set anything up for it. Here's a screenshot of what it looks like when I click the one titled 'I will be anything for you' (I've scrolled down in the screenshot so you can see the text, but all the data fields also appear at the top of the page)

(This view is called 'side peek' meaning the document opens on one side and you can still see the table under it on the left, which is what mine defaults to. But you can set it to 'center peek' or 'full page' as well.) All my scenes have their own entry like this! Note that I've said scenes, not chapters. I decide the chapters later by combining the scenes in whatever combination feels right, which means I can often decide in advance where my chapter endings will be. This helps me consciously give most of my endings more impact than I was usually able to do when I tried to write linearly. So hopefully that gives you an idea of what I mean by writing inside the table and treating the table as a living outline. The 'Status' column is also pretty straightforward, and might require a little setup for whatever your needs are. This is another default column type Notion has which is similar to a Select but has a few more specialized features. This is how mine is set up:

(I don't actually use 'Done', idk why I left it there. Probably I should replace it with 'Posted' and use that instead of the checkmark on the far left? whatever, don't let anyone tell you I'm organized. XDD)

Pretty straightforward, it just lets me see easily what's complete and what still needs work. (You'll notice there's no status for editing, because like I mentioned in my other post, I don't ever sit down to consciously edit, I just let it happen as I reread) Obviously tailor this to your own needs! The Order column is sneakily important, because this is what makes it easy for me to keep the scenes organized. I set the Sort on the table to use the Order to keep the scene ordered chronologically. When I make the initial list of scenes I know the fic will have, I give all of them a whole number to put them in order of events. Then as I write and come up with new scene ideas, the new scenes get a number with a decimal point to put them in the spot they fit in the timeline. (you can't see it here, but some of them have a decimal three or four digits deep, lol). Technically you can drag them to the correct spot manually, but if you ever create another View in your table (you can see I have eight Views in this one, they're right under the title) it won't keep your sorting in the new View and you'll hate yourself when it jumbles all your scenes. XD (And if you get more comfortable with Notion, you probably will at some point desire to make more Views) The Part column isn't necessary, but I found that as the fic grew longer, I was naturally separating the scenes into different points along the timeline by changes in status quo, etc. (ex. "this is before they go overseas" "this is after they speak for the first time", stuff like that) in my mind. To make it easier to decide where to place new scenes in the timeline, I formalized this into Parts, which initially I named with short summaries of the current status quo, and later changed to actual titles because I decided it would be cool to actually use them in the fic itself. Since it's not in the screenshots above, here's what the dropdown for it looks like:

(I've blocked some of the titles out for spoiler reasons)

Basically I only mention the Parts thing because I found it was a useful organizational tool for me and I was naturally doing it in my head anyway. Anyway, I could keep talking about this for a really long time because I love Notion (don't get me started on how I use toggle blocks for hiding content I've edited out without deleting it) but that should be enough to get started and I should really, you know, not make this another insanely long post. XDD And if anybody is curious about how the final results look, the fic can be found here.

[eintausendschoen]

"Nothing."

— for madnurse on AO3, inspired by chapter 6 of "600 deserved strikes" (<- fic rec for the stout of heart) || full edited render of this lineart/sketch

Poseidon's design is neal-illustrator's as referenced in the fic.

"Poseidon’s eyes burned with a terrible, unfathomable light. For a moment, the god said nothing, letting the answer hang in the waterlogged silence. Then, with a slow, deliberate movement, he spread his arms. The gesture was alien, almost human, and it struck Odysseus harder than any blow. It was an offering, an embrace. Odysseus froze, disbelief flickering across his hollowed features. Was this a trick? A final test? ..."

👀 details below 👀

This is the first full render of anything I've done for near three years, and keeping it black and white was enough for practice. I tried colour, but it wouldn't convey the atmo as well.

Part of my resolutions for 2025 is to get back into shape again. Haven't had as much joy painting since the Cyclops Saga aired and gigi's and mircsy's stunning animatics dislodged a real old bottlecap on my joy of the arts. Being part of this fandom brought a huge breath of fresh air to a house full of grief and stale air.

So, ... thank you, the fan creators in the fandom, for your tireless work and passion and your tremendous loveliness.

💙 Happy new 2025 ✨🙇‍♀️🙏

Bonus for realness, folks, because my painting process is usually smth like this: As long as there's an angry Klingon in there, I AIN'T FINISHED. And yeah - CLIP Studio on my phone, that's all atm, I use pretty much the vanilla brushes and edit for contrast in another app after exporting - so the stuff is probs not very printable aside A6, but maybe in the future I'll do larger formats.

[hunkpossession0]

Stealing my former high school bully’s body was so easyyy. Look, now I am hot, and the best part is that I’m gay.

I leaned back in the plush leather seat of his—no, my—new car, savoring the feeling of power. God, I’d waited so long for this. All those years of torment, the sneers, the shoves into lockers, the homophobic slurs... they were all a distant memory now, fading away like smoke. The only thing that mattered was this body I was now inhabiting, perfectly sculpted and oozing confidence.

I smirked at the reflection in the rearview mirror. His—my—strong jawline, the chiseled features that had made everyone swoon, and those piercing blue eyes that used to look down on me with contempt were now mine to control. And control them I would.

The plan had come to me after a particularly rough night, one too many drinks mixed with the lingering bitterness of my high school years. I’d always been obsessed with the idea of revenge, but not the kind that left scars. I wanted something deeper, more satisfying. I wanted to become him. To live the life he’d never appreciated and do it better.

It wasn’t hard to find a spell. You’d be surprised at how many dark corners of the internet are devoted to body swapping. A few emails, a payment sent in crypto, and a strange-looking amulet later, I was ready. The ritual was simple enough—though it took a lot of concentration. But the moment I slipped it around his neck while he slept, it was over in seconds. I woke up in his bed, in his skin, and he… well, I don’t know where he is now. I like to imagine he’s trapped somewhere, conscious of what’s happening but completely powerless.

The first thing I did was check myself out in the mirror—really take in everything I’d just acquired. This body wasn’t just hot; it was perfect. Years of disciplined workouts, clean eating, and who knows what else had transformed him into someone who looked like they walked straight off a magazine cover.

Actually, make that literally off a magazine cover. I found a stack of fashion magazines under his bed with his stupidly gorgeous face plastered on them. He’d somehow turned his pretty-boy looks and gym rat habits into a full-fledged modeling career. I guess that explained the ridiculous number of selfies on his phone, each one showing off a different outfit or a perfectly timed flex in front of the mirror.

So yeah, I wasn’t giving up the gym. If anything, I was leaning into it. It’s not like I had to do much to maintain this body—he’d already done the hard work, and now I was reaping the benefits. I still hit the gym daily, if only to flex for the mirrors and admire my reflection. The attention I get now is incredible, and the best part is, I can be shameless about it.

Of course, I couldn’t wait to see what Grindr was like from this side of things. Installing the app was the first thing I did once I figured out the password to his phone. The moment I uploaded a shirtless pic, the notifications started rolling in—an endless stream of thirsty messages. Guys were practically lining up for a chance with me, throwing compliments, and I have to admit, I loved every second of it.

I’d spend hours swiping through profiles, chatting up whoever caught my eye. The way people reacted to me now was night and day compared to before. No more awkward small talk, no more second-guessing myself. I could tell someone to meet me at the gym just to watch me lift, and they’d show up without hesitation.

And the best part? I’ve started getting more gigs, just from a few posts on social media showing off his—no, my—body. Modeling agencies are all about that lean muscle, those killer cheekbones, that smirk that could melt anyone on the other end of the camera. He’d never really appreciated what he had, but I’m about to take this career to the next level. I’ve already got a photoshoot lined up for some luxury brand—an easy way to rake in the cash while showing off.

His—my—Instagram is blowing up too. I’m always in the gym, flexing and posting thirst traps for the masses. The likes pour in, and the comments? They’re pure gold. People are practically worshipping me, and I’ve only just begun. This body was wasted on him, but now that it’s mine, I’m going to enjoy every moment of it.

Every time I flex, every time I see a new message pop up on Grindr, it’s a reminder of just how sweet this revenge is. Not only did I take his body, but I’m living his life better than he ever could. I’m hotter, more confident, and finally free to be myself in the best possible way.

This is just the beginning.

[nyerus]

🎧A Guide to the TGCF Audio Drama🎭

With the release of the new season of the fabulous TGCF audio drama, I wanted to make an updated guide on how to make an account, purchase, and listen (with English subs) to it! Hopefully, this will help more people enjoy it and join in on the fun!

As a quick reminder, the audio drama is based on the revised version of the novel! It's a very faithful adaptation, but if you're a new fan, that might throw you for a loop! If you need an overview of the different versions of TGCF, check out this post first!

Part One: Making an Account & Purchasing

The process is a lot easier than you may expect! The site where the audio drama is hosted is "missevan.com," also known as "MaoerFM." They are one and the same!

Check out these infographics to create an account and buy the audio drama. (Due to tumblr compression, they may be difficult to read. If this is the case, please view these images in full-screen and preferably on a web browser for best quality!)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

General Info:

It costs 319 diamonds for the first season, and 359 diamonds for the second season of the TGCF audio drama. This was less than $5 USD, for each season. Future seasons will likely be similarly priced.

Episodes typically release weekly. Mini-episodes/bonus content releases intermittently, and often continues after the main season "ends."

This guide will work for any other audio dramas you want to purchase and support (such as MDZS)! They obviously have different costs, but the process of buying is pretty much the same.

Account/Registration Info:

If you do not see your country/region code listed when making an account, it is unfortunately unavailable there. I do not know any workarounds at the moment, apart from asking a friend/relative in a different country to help you out! If anyone does know other options, please let me know!

Step One of the guide is technically optional, as logging in on the app for the first time will automatically create a new account, if there’s not already one associated with your mobile phone number. I recommend doing that step anyway, as it will ensure that you have a password linked to your account. Several people in the past have reported that they sometimes cannot receive the verification code to log in. (Especially from South America and SEA for some reason.) Having a password bypasses this, if it happens to you.

Unfortunately, it seems that you MUST register with a mobile number to begin with.

Otherwise, you can use an existing Bilibili/QQ/WeChat/Weibo account if you have it. They all require a number for registration too, as far as I know, so you may run into the same problem. They may still be worth trying if you have no other options! Once again, if anyone is aware of other workarounds, do let me know.

Additionally, it’s possible to link your account to an email AFTER you register with a mobile number. (There’s no escaping that, from what I can tell.) You can then use that to log in.

It seems useful to have your email and a password associated with your account, especially in case your country code gets nixed from availability -- which has been known to happen without warning in the past.

The mobile browser seems to prefer you log in with a number/email and a password, rather than a verification code.

LINKING AN E-MAIL TO YOUR ACCOUNT (Optional)

This must be done via web browser, or with your mobile browser set to desktop mode. It’s VERY easy if you use a browser with an auto-translate feature like Google Chrome:

(These images are the MTL translated versions!)

Unfortunately yes, you will need to receive a verification code via mobile number to enable this. The second verification code gets sent to your email, though! (Try not to lose your password, because I'm pretty sure you'll still have to use your phone to verify and change it.) Don't forget to check your spam folder if you don't see it. It will be from "猫耳FM."

Once again, this is optional! I just wanted to include it as an extra avenue for people who may struggle with the verification codes, as they can be finicky. And it happened to me while I was making this section, so I knew I had to....

Part Two: How to Enable English Subtitles

First things first: there are no official English subs for the TGCF Audio Drama. Though I'm fairly sure this applies to all dramas on MaoerFM.

However, there are Chinese (Simplified) subs for each episode.

OPTION ONE: MTL

The main method that non-Chinese speakers have been using to understand the Audio Drama is via MTL (machine translation) on those subs! Browsers like Google Chrome not only have auto-translate, but it works in real time as you watch/listen to the episode.

Make sure that it's turned on and that you've selected English -- or your preferred output language!

Be aware there are TWO types of subtitles on MaoerFM. There are the official subs, and the temporary subs.

At the bottom of the audio player, there is a button labelled "字幕," which is circled in purple in the image below. If it is there, it means that episode has official subs available, and you can toggle them on/off. Meanwhile, the "弹" that the green arrow is pointing to is known as the "barrage." That's the scrolling text that you will see filling the screen. It's other fans screaming and crying in chat. You can turn it off if it feels overwhelming!

New episodes may take anywhere from a few hours to a day or two to be officially subtitled. (The bonus episodes don't have official subs for whatever reason.) In the meantime, there will be subtitlers working on adding temporary subs! I'd advise waiting a little while before listening to a new episode so they have more time to work, and you'll have better coverage!

While official subs are entirely separate, the temporary subs are part of the barrage. So you will have to keep the barrage turned on. (Notice how there is no "字幕" button next to it yet!) Unlike the rest of the barrage, the subs will be stationary, color-coded, and at the very bottom of the window -- so they're easy to differentiate.

However, since the barrage can be a lot if you aren't used to it, there is a way around it.

Hit the settings menu (blue circle) and block the scrolling comments. You can also turn off the top ones, but just make sure not to turn off the bottom ones -- because those are the subs!

DO NOTE that this all works best on desktop! If everything's gone correctly, you should have something like these:

Right -- regular view, temporary subs Left -- full-screen, official subs

It's possible to get this to work on mobile if you enable desktop mode in your Chrome app. You will probably need to refresh a few times after that, or open the page in a new tab to have it work properly. Then it's the same steps as above!

You should have something like these:

Right -- landscape mode Left -- portrait mode

The scaling on mobile can be troublesome, and I have noticed that the auto-translate is slower than on desktop. It seems to take an extra second or two to work on each line -- whereas on desktop it's pretty instant -- and that can get annoying, especially in fast-paced scenes.

Additional Info:

This does not work for the mobile app! It is for the website ONLY!

If the translation stops working, refreshing usually fixes it.

There are potentially other options to using Chrome. Any browser that has an auto-translate will work, assuming it's as quick as Chrome's. If anyone has tried other browsers and seen success, please leave a reply!

OPTION TWO: FANSUBS

TreasureChestSubs here on tumblr have been doing high-quality fansubs for several audio dramas, including TGCF as of recently! However, at the time of making this guide, their TGCF translations currently only cover the first few episodes of season one. You will need to request an invite to their Discord server via the form in their posts. Please do check them out if you're interested.

I don't personally know of any other fansubbers who are actively working on the audio drama right now. But I do want to mention that Xyra_Rei on twitter has a Discord server where they share some translated snippets from various episodes. There are other great resources by fellow fans, too. Links and more info about the server can be found in the pinned post on their profile!

Part Three: Enjoy!!!

I hope this updated guide helps more people experience the wonder that is the TGCF audio drama (or really, any audio drama)! I cannot overstate how good it is in every aspect, and I think every TGCF fan deserves to be able to hear it for themselves! 💖

[ms-demeanor]

Hi, sorry to bother you, but we spoke a few months ago about Tumblr Support’s response to seizure and eyestrain inducing ads. And while it is good to report that they’ve added a feature to report those ads, I wanted to ask for some advice

I’ve messaged staff no less than ten times about this feature not working. The same ads show up on my dash, over and over again, no matter how many times I report them. I’m up to date with my software, and still I’m put in danger by being on this site, and I can only use mobile as I do not have a desktop

Should I just quit tumblr at this point? Staff really don’t seem to care. I tried my best to give them my patience, but this has been disappointing for months now, and none of it is getting solved regardless of how much people message them. Is there anything we can actually do about it? Nobody outside our sphere is taking notice

Some of this unfortunately just has to do with the way that ads are served. Reporting the ad will get that instance of an ad removed after a certain number of reports, but depending on how that ad is served, you might be seeing the same flashing visual ten times and the ad system considers it a different ad each time (think of it like ads on a bus - you are reporting the ad on bus 249, but not the ad on bus 250 even though they are showing you the same image; sometimes the flashing image will be one campaign - so all on bus 249 - and it won't get served to you again, sometimes the flashing image will be scattered in a dozen different campaigns with different names and metadata perhaps with the explicit purpose of getting past user reports because advertising is a garbage industry full of horrible shitheads). Unfortunately I'm not sure there is anything that can be done beyond reporting the individual ads in terms of getting them removed; online advertising is generally minimally supervised by humans, which is how you end up with things like starvation-bait diet ads getting blasted all over the site with a terrible history of pro-ana networks.

Since you're using tumblr exclusively on mobile, it seems like your two other options are:

Turn off autoplay which should (in theory) stop any video (including ads) from playing in the app unless you allow it. Here's how to do that on iOS and Android.

Use the app exclusively from your mobile browser with an adblock enabled (won't work for iOS, changes the user experience pretty drastically).

There's one possible other option that I am not *recommending* I am simply stating that it is an option to explore: you could look into an adblocker like AdLock that does global video blocking on a mobile OS. The reason I'm not recommending it is that these kinds of adblockers cost money and are not known for being very reliable. It is something to investigate more if you are out of all other options

It seems likely that you've already turned off the autoplay, so that's probably not useful advice. If you haven't tried using tumblr in a mobile browser with ads blocked, that might be worth giving a shot before you give up on the app as a whole.

It's a really shitty situation and I'm sorry you're dealing with it.

[reclinepilled]

coffee beans

cw: nothing other than language and cheesiness 😭 no fem/masc reader, completely up to you.

desc: barista!ellie hates her job until a cute customer catches her eye and jesse helps her out

a/n: this is my first post, i didn’t lnow wjat to write so i kinda just blurted something out so sorry if this is bad😓 this is extremely cheesy as well, but i like that stuff! i love feedback (not rude) as well <3 also none of the dividers i use are mine, except for the solid colored ones. ill have to find the creator of the really cute ones.. other than that enjoy! <3333 reblogs are welcomed

wc: 1k

PLEASE READ HERE TO HELP PALESTINE.

working in a busy coffee shop, full of bright colors, with people all around, posing for their hopefully viral posts, wasn’t exactly ellie’s “dream job”. the hordes of people that came in during the winter should be illegal. she’d rather be helping people find vinyl’s they’d been searching the markets for, or maybe starting a band straight out of joel’s garage with her close group of friends.

though, she became accustomed to being here. whatever helped her with the stressful expenses she has to pay as a college student.

she rang up the same order that had gained popularity on some app, which felt like the millionth time today. she lets out a sigh, not even looking up, “your total will be 17.20, cash or card?”

“card, please,” your eager voice responds to an unamused barista. that’s when ellie actually looks up. she scans your features, adorned in a little snow, immediately taken aback. her saying you were gorgeous would be an understatement.

she took in your radiant skin, under the annoying glow of the menus above the prep area behind her. and your eyes. they were so captivating and comforting. the way they were all doe made her heart flutter a little, she swears.

you were a lot different than the other girls that came into the shop, all carbon copies of each other. it made her question reality honestly. however, you were different in every aspect. from your style to your energy, she just had to have you.

“o-of course, just tap it here,” ellie clears her throat and spins the payment machine around, looking up at you. you follow her instructions as you notice her hands. they we’re slender and looked fairly cold but so soft, you thought. her short, messy hair was charming. her style that made her look like someone’s grandpa was also very attractive, for some odd reason you felt like a creep being attracted to a worker, who looks like she very much hates her job as is.

“thank you. your order will be done shortly, pretty,” ellie says flashing you a smile. you blink a couple of times, malfunctioning from a compliment you hear quite often. you smile and nod, feeling your face heat up.

as ellie watches you walk off, she jogs to the kitchen in the back. “jesse?” ellie looks around looking for him. “i’m over here ellie, what’s up?” he looks up at her from a drink he was crafting. “can i take out this order please?” ellie shows him the freshly printed receipt. “less work for me? sure,” he says as he continues to to make one of the orders. “yesss,” ellie grabs your order off of the counter next to jesse and heads out of the kitchen.

now taking a seat at booth far off in the corner, you take off your tote bag and rip off your scarf. you look out of the window next to the comfy booth, in awe of the snow falling so gracefully. your attention was stolen by the outside environment, until you felt the presence of someone walking over. you quickly snap your head to the culprit. that culprit being the barista holding your order.

“it’s finished already?” you say, surprised. “well, you could say that..” ellie hands your order over, that had actually been for someone else who ordered before you. she was just really eager to just talk to you. your eyes lit up excitedly, she found that really cute. you take a sip happily.

“your shirt,” you say looking at her torso, “i love that band so much, even though they are newer. their music is very different,” you say, now looking back up at her. “yea, i totally agree,” ellie awkwardly leans on the booth seat opposite to you. truth is, ellie had no idea who this band was. it was just a random shirt she picked up from walmart, honestly.

“um anyways, i like your outfit. not everyday i see someone as stylish as you,” she motions to your cute leg warmers. “really? thank you,” you sort of giggle as you say that. ellie found that cute too, she was so far in.

what ellie thought was going smoothly and definitely not awkward, was interrupted by her coworker.

“ellie, wrap it up. i can’t be working in the back and working the register,” a man with a wolfy haircut says as he grabs ellie’s shoulder.

“jesse, fuck off. i am clearly preoccupied,” ellie’s demeanor quickly changes as she rolls her eyes, turning to him. jesse grabs his heart, looking offended. he was obviously being sarcastic. “i just blessed you and you’re cursing me out?”

“yo- you didn’t bless me.. i’m helping you”

“want me to help you and speed this up?” jesse pulls out a notepad from his tool pouch, hastily writing something down. you hold back from letting out a boisterous laugh from their interaction.

“jesse, the hell are you writing,” she says through gritted teeth, clearly embarrassed. ellie tries to read what he’s written, but jesse is already ripping it out handing you the paper. “jesse, just stop, she’s already paid!” ellie’s eyes widen with anger from annoyance.

“yea i’ve-“ jesse cuts you off, “don’t worry, just read it,” he flashes you a quick smile as he walks back to the counter.

you read the paper as you slowly smile, then you look up at ellie. you hand her the paper. ellies face immediately turns all fifty shades of red. “god, i hate him sometimes. he’s so.. childish,” ellie says as she balls the paper up, looking away to hide her embarrassment.

“don’t worry, i find you cute too,” you say smiling, looking into her beautiful, jade eyes. ellie laughs awkwardly, inhaling while fixing her posture. she takes a seat opposite of you, “so would you like to go somewhere later, like.. i-i don’t know,” she trails off. “just give me your number and we could talk about it later,” you say while looking at her nervous composure.

“cool,” she looks at you as well, finally relaxing for once. she writes down her number on a napkin that was left on the table and hands it to you. “i’ll see you soon then?” you say, watching her stand from the booth.

“definitely,” flashing you a smirk as she jogs back over to the register.

reclinepilled

please do not plagiarize any of my works or post them on other websites without given permission !

[autismcatboy]

i hear the sunspot is a story about being human first, disabled second and a bl third. it doesnt flow like a bl and has very brief moments of romance because its not intended to be read/watched a romance.

the mangaka did not write it as a BL because she herself wasnt even familiar with it as a genre until after she started publishing. she was writing a story that just happens to also feature queer romance.

the live drama is not going to end with them getting together. its an adaption of just one series within the story and even at the most current series, they only barely got together.

the story is not unrealistic in how it handles communication (or lack thereof). its a lot easier to judge characters (and people in real life) when you think you have all the pieces, but the reality is we know very little about how others truly feel and when you have a lot going on and pulling you in different directions, its hard to know it yourself.

continued below the cut, spoiler free.

taichi and kohei are busy adults. between work/school, family and personal health, they dont have a lot of free time. many people dont have ways to contact friends they made in school because usually, you just see each other and dont think about exchanging contact information until later.

exchanging contact information is a bigger step to take in japan compared to places like the us. taichi uses a flip phone until hes pushed to get a smartphone after it breaks. data plans are expensive and many are selective about when and how they use them, and chatting apps like line are usually the main form of communication method. many people in the us dont like to give out their number or social media (which is also a feature of line) to people they know, like coworkers or classmates.

theres some pretty big assumptions about japanese culture and what its like to be a young adult by fans watching the drama that, in my opinion, just arent realistic. you're thinking like a bl fan and not like what people actually do in real life.

i hear the sunspot is a story about navigating the awkward, the hardships, fumbling and coming to terms with the things we may not like about ourselves. this isnt just about being disabled. able bodied, fully healthy people have things they dont like, push off and ignore. we see this in taichi, and how he continues to push that hes happy, nothing is wrong, he's just a big goofball and doesn't have anything below the surface and a lot of you have fallen for it.

relationships rarely go "we met, we fell in love, and now we are together and everything is perfect with only mild and entertaining drama." in fact id say they almost never do. people get scared to get close to other people, people dont think about if their feelings are romantic love or not when theyve never considered they might be gay. people get busy and distract themselves from addressing the things theyre not ready to look at and understand. all of these things happen much more often and often subconsciously, too.

people are mean and bullheaded when they feel like their comfort zone is threatened. people *run* when they feel like their status quo might change and they dont know what that will look like.

its easy to say someone is being ridiculous when you dont have their full story or dont stop to consider their circumstances. will it be different from how you'd react? absolutely. you lived a different life and had different experiences shape who you are.

but its equally as ridiculous to assume you know exactly how you'd react better than someone in their situation. no one is perfect, and definitely not 20 something year olds figuring out how to be adults after tough moments completely changed their childhoods. your early 20s, especially, is about thinking youre an adult and realizing just how little you know about adulthood. its easy to look back on when i was taichi and kohei's ages and say "oh there is a /lot/ that i fucked up with and couldve done better".

i hear the sunspot is about being human. the mistakes, the drama, the pain and the laughter. it happens to also have a gay love story but its not written to *be* a gay love story or even to be any love story in the first place.

if youre not willing to wait, and consider all the troubles that come before and during their relationship, this is not the story for you. save yourself the time, its got a long way to go. maybe come back in a few more years and see if the story resonates differently.

theyre not going to dive right into a relationship when they still barely know themselves.

[notsogoodphotographer]

Hi i want to talk about my all time favorite camera 📸

pls ignore all my grammar mistakes, i’m not professional reviewer 😂 i just wanna talk about this camera.

This is the Sony RX1Rii, this is the third and “most recent” version of this camera. i put “most recent” in quotes because this camera is almost 10 years old. don’t like the old age fool you because this camera can keep up with the newest cameras in its niche.

This little point and shoot sports a 42mp full frame sensor. YES, F U L L F R A M E!! This tiny camera is actually smaller than all the x100 series (minus the lens on it). The camera has an incredibly sharp Zeiss Sonnar 35mm f2 glued to. This camera has 399 af points, with eye AF. The camera is incredibly fast and accurate!! the camera is pretty much a tiny packaged Sony A7Rii!

One of my favorite features of this camera is the pop-up EVF! This is a feature that was added to only this version of the camera and it’s a feature that i wish sony continued to incorporate into some of their other smaller cameras like the A7c or a6k series!

The camera does shoot video up to 1080 120fps, but does not have picture profiles such has S-log or HLG. This was a camera made strictly for photos, which is probably for the best because the battery life on this camera is terrible, any kind of prolong video shooting would absolutely burn through these batteries in minutes.

That brings me to my next point, my cons. There’s not many but i figured i’d point them out anyways for those who are interested in this camera. these aren’t make it or break it cons, these are just issues that hinder it from being the greatest camera ever released (IMO)

1) battery life, i believe it’s rated for like 220 shots. Ive definitely gotten it to last twice than that. That tiny body processing all that data on some of the tiniest batteries makes sense why it’s so bad. Luckily batteries are cheap and like i said they’re tiny, so they’re pretty easy to carry around!

2) no picture profiles in video. i know i touched on it briefly up above and this camera is mainly a photo camera AAAAAND hybrid cameras were just beginning to grow in popularity around the time this camera came out but it would’ve been amazing to have s-log in this camera for little snippets here and there. i know at the time IG and other photo sharing apps were mainly photo sharing apps, and a camera that was built strictly for photo has no business having usable picture profiles in video.

3) no crop mode in RAW. this one is weird to me because i know the A7Rii has an APS-C mode where you can shoot RAW photos with an inbody crop and there’s times that i’d love to shoot something at 50mm (35mm + sony’s 1.5x aps-c crop). there is a digital zoom option but that’s for jpg only.

4) PRICE!!!! why the fuck is this camera still being sold for $3200??!! this is a 10 year old camera with outdated tech. i bought mine used for $1900 (which is about the price of the fuji x100V at the time of purchase) and i still think that’s a little too much.

that’s really about it aside from minor complaints of not having tele/ wide converters. i’m also sure all of those cons stem from the small battery. I’d love to see all of these corrected in a Mk3 one day, but as of a couple weeks ago sony just discontinued the Rx1rii’s production. I’m being a little hopeful but maybe that means we’re getting a successor, i doubt it but a boy can dream.

I don’t really do reviews or anything but this camera has had my heart for the past 9 months so i had to show it off/ talk about it. this to me in the perfect everyday camera. it never leaves my side and comes with me to any and every trip! Im always blown away by the photos i create with this little camera and i know whenever a mk3 comes out im going to hop on the chance to buy on immediately!

[bubu0h]

How I Manage my personal AO3 e-library Archive

Download everything I want/hope to read in EPUB format. I try to anyways... if I notice I got too many tabs open on my browser, time to download If multi-chapter remember first to press 'Entire Work' and then 'Download'

2. I use Book Story (Android App) to manage the mess that is my downloads folder - this app is a great book database manager AND scroll reader with Big letters as well - The app has this fantastic feature that allows me put the books into 'Reading' 'Already Read' 'Planing' 'Dropped' categories; I move the books around and it helps me keep a visual tab on them - , plus if you like scroll reading this one is fantastic at that as well.

Periodically I update the BACKUP of the folder(s) were the copies of books live. KEEP A BACKUP OF YOUR BACKUP , if you mess around and don't got no backup is really painful and irreversible.

On my computer I then make a copy of my messy ass downloads folder from my phone into my computer. While looking at the visual information the app provides me I delete books that I 'Dropped' and I move 'Already Read' books into my computer E-Library Data Base (I use Calibre) that's my main book hub where I will quickly notice what books need covers and I take my time working to finding an image I like for the book , so I can recognize them books by just looking at the covers I am terrible at remembering book titles

If you are curious this is what Calibre looks like - this is just AO3

3. To read EPUB books I use Libera FD Is frankly the best reader I have tried because I prefer page turning. If you like scroll reading Book Story is much better option for scroll reading.

Libera FD can customize pretty much EVERYTHING and is very very feature rich ( it can be overwhelming) HUMONGOUS FONT SIZE , you can download any font you want to use, replace words if I want to , it has OLED dark mode for reading at 3 am, you can configure it so it reads to you (using TTS) , several reading modes including auto scroll and speed reading mode, and so much more; the dev(s) are still updating and adding functions to it is kind of amazing I am probably not using it to its full potential You can sort books by 'Genre' which is how the app recognize the tags from the website.

Here some visuals of Libera FD (I wrote in the ALT of pics, click on it)

Book Story is a neat app , less overwhelming and the UI is a lot more intuitive. It looks like this for me , you can configure the essentials to your preference. Is a fairly new app be patient with it (sometimes just give two minutes to cook) , it is still being updated. The dev is very active if you got suggestion or present bugs.

4. How to provide enrichment to glorious magnificent authors , that share their passion with us for free. When you open any ao3 .epub on either of these apps the links are underlined. I tap on the link it leads back to the original posted website page at the beginning of every book you get from A03.

Tap the link, keep it open in your browser and star reading.

Open a note taking app.

I usually take notes about my silly musings as I read, copy quotes and whatever else I want to leave in the comment section of the chapter I am on. Cut and paste and that's it. I load the next chapter in the website and then continue reading the next chapter on the reading app (I comment on all the chapters if I have something to comment, sometime I don't have anything to say so I don't . Figure it makes authors happy and i find it very fun. Sometimes they answer back it feels nice) remember to leave kudos and comments specially if you are rereading.

I use Quillpad (android app) the most important feature of any note taking app you choose, in this case in particular, is that it saves your notes automatically (I used some apps that didn't it was devastating losing all my notes like that. I though that as long as I didn't close the app it was fine turns out not - some you have to manually save - and sometimes it would timeout and gone , all my notes gone. With Quillpad I haven't lost notes)

I haven't taken the time to figure out if Librera has a feature for annotation that could be useful for commentary note taking

I think that's all I can think of sharing on this topic. I am open to questions and adding things to this post with visual aid and whatever I can do to help , do let me know.

Keeping a copy of books safe and easy to find KEEP BACKUPS OF YOUR BACKUPS

-Updated Nov. 11 , 2024.

[raventrinkets]

Where or how did you learn to draw?? You're so good at it 😭

Aww thank you!! I'm mostly self-taught, so it's been a lot of trial and error. I started with realism before going stylized, and I still draw mostly still life, especially pet portraits, in my free time! I'm honestly still pretty new to digital art.

When I first watched ROTTMNT, I fell in love with its bright, colourful art style and attention to detail. It’s one of the few shows that's held my full attention LOL. I ended up redrawing a lot of screenshots, which helped me learn a LOT (legit finally understood how line art worked thanks to this)! Eventually I felt comfortable making fan-art, mostly thanks to the Risetober challenge. And SO many silly doodles in my class notes.

I've never been good at putting HOW I learned these things into words, sorry! BUT I'll include some more detailed stuff under the cut if anyone is interested. Honestly, drawing Rise makes me insanely happy, and I think that helps more than anything else!😂

Thank you so much!!

If you're curious what I use to make my stuff, I use Procreate and Procreate Dreams on the iPad.

I always start with a quick 'pencil' sketch, which I then do a rough inking over (I generally either use the inking brush Mercury or Baskerville for this). Once this looks good, I go over and do a final line art with the inking brush Baskerville. It has a pretty intense stabilizer, so it takes some getting used to, but it'll keep the lines smooth! Then I colour in everything (I have saved colour palettes for each of the turtles, which makes this step WAY faster), and shade (again with Baskerville). I'm sure better brushes exist out there, but these all come with the base app and they're what I've use for everything thus far😅

A really good website I've found for learning how to draw figures and proportions is called Line of Action! One of it's most interesting features (at least for me) is it's timed classes, which basically gives you 30 seconds to 10 minutes to draw a person. This helps you to learn how to quickly block out a pose, which is really handy when drawing.

Also, because I did mention class doodles, here is one of my first ever bits of Rise fan-art (drawn during a very boring lecture).

[autumnslance]

Hi! I’ve been trying to make an introductory post for my WoL, but when I tried doing so freeform it ended up overly long and full of rambling. I’ve searched for templates all over the internet, but the only ones I can find are in the general style of D&D character sheets that include irrelevant information about stats while not properly dedicating space to the actual character traits. I saw the format you used for your OCs, and it seems to be about what I’m looking for. Is there any chance you could provide a blank template along those lines for me and others who might have the same problem?

Funnily, while I keep them all similar, I didn't have a template before now. Also reminds me I need to do some updating and revision on my own OCs, it's been awhile and they can use a refresh for character and plot updates.

I recommend making static pages over posts; easier to track and edit. I am a stickler for organization, so keep my pinned post to the bare basics with links to the profiles and other pages, to keep from stretching the post to a mile long, in part, and to keep the info where it's easily read and relevant. Also because mobile app view won't show one's theme and links, and the pinned post is more likely to be seen and accessible than a sidebar or menu.

I have tutorials on how to set a custom theme (and access full blog features) as well as how to create those static blog pages. Tumblr may have made some updates since, but the gist is the same, and the Help pages have newer details if necessary.

I do urge keeping colors and format simple, accessible, and reader friendly, including screen reader friendly. A row of asterisks or tildes as a separator line are usually individually read out by screen readers, as is the code used to make those fancy hard-to-read gothic letters folks use for "aesthetics." In a lot of my profiles, I split sections with images of the character (which should also use alt text if we're trying to be kind and inclusive, and it's to the point of a profile page anyway).

I think I will put the intro and template here in the post under a cut, and then in a Reply Comment add a link to the Google Doc version, cuz of how Tumblr is about external links. An actual blank copy-pasta is on the GDoc, what's below has some thought processes for each section for guidance.

This a pretty modular template, that can be added to or subtracted from as needed. Move descriptive blocks around as they seem more or less relevant for your OC, substitute things that make sense over things that don’t; this is just a starting point!

I see these as broad strokes; a quick introduction and general overview of your character, meant to give an at-a-glance idea of who they are. It’s handy for other writers and artists, and even oneself for keeping track of some details. I recommend practicing succinct writing here; these blocks should each stay between 100-300 words or thereabouts. Use links to other pages and tags to point toward longer details and stories (and keep them handy for yourself!). It also makes it much easier when you want to revise things when characterization marches forward, or if you want to retcon something entirely.

But these are all just my opinions and ideas on how I approach OC profiles after making them in some form or another for about a quarter century. Make it as long or short as it needs to be, change it up, go nuts, I ain’t your mom, and so on 😉

-

Statistics: The basics; barebones, at-a-glance stat blocks, handy for quick reference. Can be added to or shortened as needed. If a stat starts to word wrap on a standard screen, trim it and move that extra detail to the “Description” paragraph below the list.

Race: (for FF14 fantasy possibilities) Nationality: (or Ethnicity, whatever works. Where are they from, as that helps shape them?) Height: (both feet/inches and centimeters are handy here) Eyes: Build: (I prefer this to weight, as that’s ridiculously variable depending on one’s build, which is more important visually anyway; are they broad, stocky, skinny, muscular, stringy, etc) Hair: (color, type, texture, preferred lengths and styling) Skin: (sometimes I fold scars into here, if there’s nothing too outstanding) Scars: Voice: (how do they sound?) Nameday: Age: (depends on your personal timeline for your OCs, but I recommend an age range over specifics; mid-20s, 25-35, late teens, a little over a century, etc. Less updating and fits with the handwaved time bubble anyway) Disciplines: (what are their main job[s]? The adventuring or professional skills they’ve learned?) Hobbies: Birthplace: Current Home: Occupation: (Their actual day job, different from or part of their disciplines?) Signature Items: (A particular weapon? A piece of jewelry? Always wear a specific coat?)

Description: A very short "immediate impressions" type description; what would someone "on the street" see when meeting/looking at your character on a typical day? Taking some of the info from the stats but then how you want those barebone facts to be seen; is the OC elegant, or rough? Expensive clothes or simple attire? Any particular smells, or sounds? I recommend around 100 words.

Biography: Very brief, general overview of the backstory that led them to the point where they become a story protagonist (adventurer, the WoL, or other roleplay archetype). Don't have to go into great detail, keep it short and simple; it's a blurb that sets up how they got here in broad strokes. I think my longest bio is around 300 words, and it probably shouldn’t go over that here.

To get more details, one can always link to specific stories, or to a tag. I have multiple OCs, so I might make my tags something like "Aeryn Backstory" or "Iyna Lore" or "Punchy History" or some combo thereof (I usually try to keep them consistent though for ease).

Persona: What face do they present to the world? How are they perceived by the public, acquaintances, coworkers, family, actual friends? Some of these answers will be the same, some may change depending on if and how they code switch in various social situations.

From there, what lies underneath the surface? What are some general internal attitudes, traits, feelings?

A hundred words for outward demeanor and another one hundred for innermost self ought to cover the general broad strokes.

Romance: If so inclined, details about the OC's relationship details; sexual and romantic orientations, relationship history, current situations, how they view and approach intimacy (or not!).

Links to relationship tags or stories or art can work well here, too.

Echo: Does the OC have an Echo at all? Is it a "typical" Echo, or do they have some special abilities, some things they're better at than others? How does it affect them, how do they feel about it?

This is another section that may be a free space section to remove or swap to something else relevant to the character.

Hobbies: The stuff outside of work and heroics. Ways they relax, special interests, side jobs, things they enjoy, and so on. This can be an expansion of the listing in the stat block, or you can cut out one or the other to avoid redundancy.

Companions: What’s their chocobo like, or do they have another favored mount? What pet(s) do they have? Are they practically a Disney Princess? Have a familiar? Do they prefer arcane entities? Technological constructs? Or do they eschew companions entirely?

How to find the OC in game: This is where I list things like realm and data center, and addresses for the FC house and personal house or apartment. Not necessary if you don't want folks to go looking.

Links: The links can be scattered through the post in relevant sections, or gathered together here. I tend to put my basic tag for the character, if I have an aesthetic tag for them, their story tags, any links to art references or other miscellaneous items I want easily found for myself and others. I often put this close to the top if a profile is longer and I want those links to be quick referenced.

OOC: Any particular notes one wants to make about the character from a meta perspective. Can also be combined with the Links.

[tequitoclown]

List of programs and stuff I use

[pt: List of programs and stuff I use ./end pt]

Disclaimer: This is in no way trying to say I have the best setup of all time or anything. The point of this post is mostly to introduce people to cool things they may not know about, or a place to point to when someone asks what I use!

(Last updated: 6/28/24)

Browser

[pt: browser ./end pt]

Firefox (Windows/Linux/MacOS/Android/IOS) - Obviously I recommend Firefox above all else, especially with chromium-based browsers moving onto manifest V3.

Bitwarden (Windows/Linux/MacOS/Android/IOS) - Good password manager! Used it for years with no complaints!

AdNauseam (Firefox/Chrome) - My adblocker. It's built upon uBlock Origin and has all the same features, but it actively clicks on the ads to waste advertiser money. If that's not up your alley, uBlock Origin is fantastic too!

Wayback Machine extension (Firefox/Chrome/Safari) - Allows you to make snapshots of pages, or view old snapshots if a page isn't loading correctly!

XKit ReWritten (Firefox/Chrome) - Pretty much a must-have for Tumblr. Has a ton of features to make navigating this site much better. Full feature list here!

Discord

[pt: Discord ./end pt]

Vencord (Windows/Linux/MacOS) - A modified Discord client that adds support for plugins and themes. Basically allows you to install plugins from a massive list that improves Discord. (Technically against ToS. Basically, don't post that you're using it in big servers, and turn off your themes before sharing screenshots.)

Bunny (Android/IOS) - If you miss Vendetta for Discord, Bunny is an actively maintained fork of Vendetta! Basically the same as above, but for Android/IOS instead of desktop. Same warnings about ToS apply.

Aliucord (Android) - Miss the old Android app feel, and still want to have plugins/themes? Pretty cool but has a less impressive theme/plugin selection. Same warnings about ToS apply.

Bluecord (Android) - Another Discord modification without the new Discord UI!

Youtube

[pt: Youtube ./end pt]

Freetube (Windows/Linux/MacOS) - A desktop Youtube client with adblock and sponsorblock built in. Still in beta, but very good.

Sponsorblock (Firefox/Chrome) - Pretty much a must-have for watching Youtube these days. Automatically skips over sponsors, self-promos, interaction bait, outros, intros, etc. Highly configurable!

Dearrow (Firefox/Chrome) - Haven't used this very long but I love it. Gets rid of vague or clickbait titles/thumbnails and replaces it with descriptive and more accurate thumbnails. Also built into Freetube now!

Newpipe (Android) - Lightweight Youtube client. I haven't used it myself much but people swear by it!

ReVanced (Android) - Modded Youtube client with Sponsorblock, Return Youtube Dislike, and Youtube Premium features. Doesn't support Dearrow as of 6/25/24 :( (PLEASE BE CAREFUL INSTALLING THIS. If you don't know what you're doing, you can cause some damage!)

Spotify

[pt: spotify ./end pt]

Spicetify (Windows/Linux/MacOS) - Spotify modded client. Has adblock, themes, etc! Think Vencord, but for Spotify.

Misc.

[pt: Misc ./End pt]

Obsidian (Windows/Linux/MacOS/Android/IOS) - Basically a personal wiki for notetaking! A bit of a learning curve. Fanfic writers and worldbuilders... go feral.

Notepad++ (Windows) - A must-have text editor. Might be on more platforms but can't confirm?

Mullvad VPN (Windows/Android) - The only VPN I can 100% recommend. Cheap, fast, and really cares about your privacy. It's a little under $6 USD a month!

NVDA (Windows) - A free screenreader I use for reading large blocks of text. (Notice: I am not visually impaired to the point I rely on a screenreader to navigate my PC. I use it on occasion to read text to me because I have a hard time reading. If you're looking for advice on screenreaders for the visually impaired unfortunately I'm not a good source! Maybe check out the #visually impaired, #blind, or #accessibility?)

Syncthing (Windows/Linux/MacOS/Android) - Lets you sync folders across devices. It's especially good with Obsidian.

"Tequito, I didn't find what I wanted!"

[pt: "Tequito, I didn't find what I wanted!" ./end pt]

I'm sorry. :( If you're looking for a program I have personally mentioned using in the past, feel free to shoot me an ask or DM! Or hey... maybe try searching the letters "FMHY" and having a look around? *wink*

[pinkacademic]

Studying Language

Sorry I've been rather inactive, I'm slowly trying to get back into the swing of things!

This is something I’m actually qualified to talk about! I speak three languages fluently, albeit in need of a little practise, and I’m learning one more currently, with one on pause due to time constraints. Nevertheless, I feel pretty confident in my information lol. I’m also a qualified TEFL teacher and have worked abroad teaching English!

Full immersion is the best option. The best thing you can do is spend your time in a country that speaks your target language and force yourself to learn, once you have the “Hello,” “Goodbye,” “Where is the bathroom?” all mastered. In Ireland, there are places called Gaeltachtanna where you go for different lengths of time depending on the course and live in a town speaking exclusively Irish, usually staying with an Irish-speaking family, and going to classes for the language and for games and dances. Of course, that’s not an accesible option for everyone, so you could try going to places like your nearest Asian market, Eastern European market etc, and any areas in your city with a lot of immigrants that might speak your target language. If you have friends who speak that language, natively or just to a better level than you, ask to meet them for coffee and chat as much as you can in your language.

Immersion Part Two: Culture. The people who speak your target language natively do so not just becaus that’s the place in which they exist, but because that’s the place that they live- they get their groceries there, they go to school there, and their language developed because of the day-to-day, as well as unique aspects of their culture such as dances, music, and especially food. Learn about the culture of the country or countries that speak your target language. Eg, fold a paper crane or eat sushi if your language of choice is Japanese, watch an telenovela or go to a salsa class if your goal is to learn Spanish.

Watch TV shows in your Target Language. If you can’t access the locations, and even if you can, watching TV or movies is great because it’ll help you understand the cadences of natural speech that you can’t get from a textbook or formal class situation. Start with movies you might be familiar with like Disney movies (I will die on the hill of “Mother knows Best” from Tangled is better in Spanish). You can also combine your subtitles and audio, using subtitles in your own language at first, and challenge yourself to changing the subtitle.

Similar to the above points, use YouTube or Twitch to your advantage too. That’s probably a lot easier if your target language is English, but there are creators that speak in their non-English native language too. My friend watches a Mexican Minecraft YouTuber called Quackity who has a Minecraft server modded to feature a live translator between Spanish and English, which is very cool.

Read books in your Target Language. We don’t love The Chronicles of the Boy Wizard in this house, but the books are available in 85 languages. The Hobbit also has a tonne including Cornish, Thai, and Ukranian, and Twilight has about 37 translations, just to list a few well-known examples. Learn especially about books written originally in your target language.

Consume Media Originally from the Country or Countries that Speak that Language. Read the Witcher, watch Física o Química, join the dubbed vs subbed anime bloodbath. It can be so beneficial to your understanding of a language to see how those who speak it write it themselves, not just for localisation purposes. It can especially be useful for slang and dialects.

Duolingo and other apps. I’m swiftly approaching my 365 day duolingo streak,* and I fully intend to celebrate with pierogis and a green cake. But there are other options out there, and all of them are great for beginners. I can only speak about Duolingo as its the one I use, but I’m having a lot of fun with the layout of it. However, I do need real practice if I’m going to become actually fluent.

That’s it! I hope this has been helpful!

*I've surpassed it since writing this!! I'm at 400+!!

[blackjackkent]

Programming object lesson of the day:

A couple days ago, one of the side project apps I run (rpthreadtracker.com) went down for no immediately obvious reason. The issue seems to have ended up being that the backend was running on .NET Core 2.2, which the host was no longer supporting, and I had to do a semi-emergency upgrade of all the code to .NET Core 6, a pretty major update that required a lot of syntactic changes and other fixes.

This is, of course, an obvious lesson in keeping an eye on when your code is using a library out of date enough not to be well supported anymore. (I have some thoughts on whether .NET Core 2.2 is old enough to have been dumped like this, but nevertheless I knew it was going out of LTS and could have been more prepared.) But that's all another post.

What really struck me was how valuable it turned out to be that I had already written an integration test suite for this application.

Historically, at basically every job I've worked for and also on most of my side projects, automated testing tends to be the thing most likely to fall by the wayside. When you have 376428648 things you want to do with an application and only a limited number of hours in the day, getting those 376428648 things to work feels very much like the top priority. You test them manually to make sure they work, and think, yeah, I'll get some tests written at some point, if I have time, but this is fine for now.

And to be honest, most of the time it usually is fine! But a robust test suite is one of those things that you don't need... until you suddenly REALLY FUCKING NEED IT.

RPTT is my baby, my longest running side project, the one with the most users, and the one I've put the most work into. So in a fit of side project passion and wanting to Do All The Right Things For Once, I actively wrote a massive amount of tests for it a few years ago. The backend has a full unit test suite that is approaching 100% coverage (which is a dumb metric you shouldn't actually stress about, but again, a post for another day). I also used Postman, an excellently full-featured API client, to write a battery of integration tests which would hit all of the API endpoints in a defined order, storing variables and verifying values as it went to take a mock user all the way through their usage life cycle.

And goddamn was that useful to have now, years later, as I had to fix a metric fuckton of subtle breakage points while porting the app to the updated framework. With one click, I could send the test suite through every endpoint in the backend and get quick feedback on everywhere that it wasn't behaving exactly the way it behaved before the update. And when I was ready to deploy the updated version, I could do so with solid confidence that from the front end's perspective, nothing would be different and everything would slot correctly into place.

I don't say this at all to shame anyone for not prioritizing writing tests - I usually don't, especially on my side projects, and this was a fortuitous outlier. But it was a really good reminder of why tests are a valuable tool in the first place and why they do deserve to be prioritized when it's possible to do so.

[dayseternal-blog]

Hey Days!!!

This might sound like a stupid ask, but is the AO3 app legit? I feel like it would be easier if we can view everything in an app 😄

Hello! Not a stupid question. This topic has brought up a ton of discussion across fandoms, and so I’ll summarize what I’ve seen (mostly from following ao3commentoftheday’s tumblr blog).

There will likely never be an official ao3 app because

1. Too much manpower is required to create, maintain, and then continually do app updates, like whenever phones update to a new version. And since Ao3 is completely volunteer-driven, they probably don't have the manpower to spare on an app. They'd rather use their manpower to keep the regular website running for all of their millions of users.

2. Apple has policies about adult content, and fanfiction is full of spicy, problematic, and disturbing content. Ao3 would never delete or censor people's stories just to have an app available on Apple. Apple would never allow Ao3 as it is currently.

3. Businesses push for people to download their apps because they can force advertisements on their viewers, and viewers can't block the ads if they're on the app. So they can make money. Ao3 doesn't even have ads in the first place because everything is run through donations. There would be 0 gain for Ao3 and only a waste of manpower.

4. Ao3 is already reader-friendly on the phone from the website. They already put a lot of effort into the current website, so an app wouldn't add anything.

From what I've seen, here's a summary of reasons to NOT use an unofficial Ao3 app:

You would be giving your login information to a third party.

You have to pay to download some of these unofficial apps to cover the labor costs for the people who created the app.

Because fanfic writers upload their stories for free online, some feel that it's unfair profit for the app creators. I don't personally feel that way, though I understand that viewpoint. It's something to take into consideration.

Alternatives that other tumblr users have suggested instead of using an app:

Add a different mobile browser dedicated to opening fanfiction.

Download fics from Ao3 you enjoy as e-readers and adding them to the Kindle app so you can read them whenever you want. All Ao3 writers automatically consent to having their fics downloadable when they post on Ao3.

On Apple devices, apparently you can bookmark a Safari page onto your phone's home screen.

On Chrome, apparently you can do the same thing. Go to the three dots from the page you want to save, choose the Add to Home screen option, and then you'll have an icon shortcut.

Bookmark your main Ao3 search tags on your browser.

If you just want things to be "easier" and you're wishing for certain features, you can try out the publicly available site skins, like Reversi (for dark mode) or this one for dyslexia. Here are the Ao3 Instructions on using skins. Others use site skins to block certain users or hide fic stats (like views and kudos counts). That blog I follow Ao3cotd made a bunch of cute ones, like I use their pink one, or there's this pretty firefly one, art deco one, dark galaxy theme, pink and green frog theme, and this peach theme they made. They deleted their code for the pink one 😥, but since I'm using it, I still have the code on my account, so lmk if you want it.

That was probably a longer answer than you needed, but I hope it helps!