#people in tech just tend to communicate clearly

[swinging-from-my-cable]

Me: I'm doing so well. Maybe being potentially autistic is inaccurate, and it's all just the ADHD.

Three aggressive shutdowns in three days that I have to partially or completely push through to the point my thoughts have trouble leaving my mouth later...

Me: yeah, this isn't normal.

[laughhardrunfastbekindsblog]

Headcanons (at least somewhat supported by evidence from the show) about how Tech's death impacted the rest of the squad (because season 3 APPARENTLY HAD NO TIME to go into this)

Sorry, all, I'm still not over how Tech's death was handled in season 3 and I don't think I will be for a loooooooong time (if ever)

Actually I'm still trying to process the fact that they dared to kill him off but here we are

If the show won't clearly portray the deeper and lasting effects of his sacrifice then I will 😭

Hunter: officially decided to retire because he couldn't bear the thought of losing anyone else. When Shep talked to him about settling down in "Tipping Point," Hunter still seemed reluctant ("He's become an integral part of this community. You all have. Any chance you've reconsidered staying permanently?", says Shep; "For soldiers, putting down roots is an occupational hazard," Hunter responds); but as soon as Tech dies, Hunter is done ("It's time to put being soldiers behind us.") I'll even go so far as to propose that Hunter's decision to give up on recovering Crosshair and instead focus completely on finding Omega stemmed from his grief over Tech and the fact that Crosshair was associated at all (through no fault of his own, of course) with Tech's demise.

Wrecker: memorizes the plans because Tech is no longer around to help remind him, and steps up to offer counterpoints to Hunter's plans, just like Tech (and Echo) would have done (whereas before Wrecker tended to just agree with whatever point was made)

Crosshair: I don't think we really see him ever get over Tech's death. He is the first to return to the matter at hand when Tech is brought up (both in "The Return" and in "Juggernaut"); he never even spares a glance (that we see, at least) at the one memento left of his brother; the one time he mentions Tech, it's when he's trying to convince Hunter and Wrecker to let him go in on what would be a suicide mission. I'm inclined to believe the tremors either started or at least worsened when he learned what happened to Tech. I'm even more inclined to believe that the reason why he didn't throw Tech's death in Hunter's face in "The Return" was because Crosshair completely blames himself for it. (Even more reason for the show to display Crosshair's reaction/eventual acceptance of Tech's death, but I digress...)

Omega: aside from her innate compassionate nature, Tech is the primary reason why she chose to do everything she did all through season 3 - she took all his lessons to heart, and not just the piloting/tactical lessons.

And she always did.

Okay this one REALLY hurts but I'm including it anyway... 💔

And even when the odds seem overwhelming, she continues finding ways to counteract the malicious designs of people/entities like Mokko and the Empire.

(I know there's more, but I'm not prepared to do a full rewatch yet.)

[randomly--accessed--memories]

Sir Pentious has... complicated feelings about his relationship with Vox. He used to idolize him– Pen tended to idolize all overlords, but Vox in particular was one of his favorites due to the tech empire he built for himself and how he seemed amenable to partnerships. Hearing he'd died was... disappointing, but this is Hell after all and maybe Vox being gone would leave an opening for him to finally begin his career as an overlord (it did not).

When he got the call from the Vees, recruiting him for a secret mission to rescue Vox from the Radio Demon himself, Pen was astounded. Vox was alive? And he'd seen him at the hotel but had either not recognized him or been too focused on Alastor to register his presence? The Vees gave him a vague idea of the state Vox was in, but he was shocked once he finally met him (literally: Vox zapped Pentious by mistake while shaking his hand). He didn't know Vox any more than any of his former customers would, but it was still jarring to see a man who'd always presented to the public as so powerful and in control act in such a high-strung, disorganized way.

Pentious managed to keep his cool around Vox and not instantly give the game away. It was weird, living at the hotel, slowly figuring out the finer details of the situation that the Vees had left out. Pen found himself surprisingly grateful that Alastor never took him even remotely seriously as a rival if this is what he does to people who do get his attention. Vox now followed Alastor around like a lost puppy and just could not stop breaking things. Pentious found himself being called upon to attempt to fix technology outside of his area of expertise more and more frequently. Vox was always frantic to fix his mistakes (when he could remember that he made them), so the two of them worked together; Vox explained how the technology functioned and Pen did the physical work of repairing the item, as well as the mental work of trying to make sense of Vox's rather disjointed explanations.

They talked while they worked. In group settings, Vox found Pen entertaining– he was dramatic and bombastic and could hold Vox's attention fairly easily as a result. Despite the circumstances of the situation, Pentious couldn't help but receive a bit of an ego boost from such a formerly powerful overlord treating him like he was someone worth paying attention to. But when they were alone– working to repair whatever new household appliance Vox had fried that day– was when Pen found himself actually getting attached to Vox. He could see glimpses of the intelligent, diligent, ambitious man trapped beneath all the noise. Vox still had actual, meaningful things to say, they just tended to go unnoticed in the rush of constant speech. Vox would occasionally become incredibly frustrated, feeling as though no one around him took him seriously or wanted to listen to his input on things. Pentious could relate to that.

Pen would listen though. He'd adjust the dial and try to tune into what Vox was actually trying to communicate. This wasn’t some stupid Egg Boi, after all; it was one of the most influential people in the whole Pride Ring, even if that part of his life was clearly, permanently over. Pentious was surprised at how patient he was capable of being and how much of a difference it made. Other than Niffty, most of the hotel residents had learned to sort of tune out most of Vox's chatter (either intentionally or unintentionally) and only tune back in when he said or did something that was obviously important or completely un-ignorable. It was so gratifying for Vox to finally have someone who was paying full attention to everything he was saying, as well as making a concerted effort to understand which parts were an attempt at a point and which parts were just absentminded rambling.

Once Vox and Pen felt as though they (mostly) understood each other, they were able to make progress. Vox started getting a better hold on his electricity and Pentious learned which strategies for keeping Vox on-task worked best. Instead of constantly fixing stuff, they started building things together. It was surprising for Pen to realize that he no longer only cared about Vox as a former overlord, but as a friend. They had fun together, both with and without the other hotel residents.

On some level, Pentious knew that if Vox weren't in the mental state that he was, he never would've given Pen a second glance. That thought made him uncomfortable; he couldn't help but feel like he was taking advantage in some way. But on the other hand, Pentious recognized that he was helping Vox (and Niffty too, eventually). Where did that leave him, morally? He mostly tried to tune those thoughts out though and just enjoy the present moment. It became very easy for him to forget why he was at the hotel in the first place, especially as he grew closer with the other residents too.

Eventually, approximately four months into his stay, Pentious was on a call with the Vees, reporting back about whatever was going on that week. Val casually mentioned how he and Velvette were going to kill everyone in the hotel once they got Vox back; they all needed to be punished for their complicity in this situation, not just Alastor. Pentious was shocked, especially when Velvette confirmed that, yes, that had been the plan all along, obviously. Pen had grown deeply attached to his life at the hotel and his new village of friends; he couldn't let them all die for something that wasn't even their fault. It was a hard choice, but as soon as he got off the call, he went straight to Charlie and came clean about how he'd been sent by the Vees to spy on the hotel and get Vox back. He didn't tell her the truth about Vox's situation though. Pen was desperate to preserve what he had at the hotel and he knew that if he revealed why the Vees wanted Vox back, everything would come crashing down (and that Alastor would probably kill him in retaliation almost instantly). Charlie forgave Pen, of course, and he was free to continue with the life and friendships he'd come to treasure at the hotel. Pentious wasn't sure if that was the right thing to do, morally. But he did it anyway.

[antianakin]

Wow so this episode REALLY hammered home that Hunter and the rest of the Bad Batch (sans Echo) just... aren't real clones. Like not even in the more scientific genetic aspect of it that they so clearly are closer to what we'd consider engineered offspring than a more legitimate clone, but in the emotional sense.

Hunter just never understands why it's important to Echo to save the clones. He initially assumes Echo's just trying to take down the Empire and Echo almost angrily replies that it's about saving "our brothers" and Hunter's only response is to say "sure, but when will it be enough."

Because whether it's "enough" or not so clearly isn't the point to Echo or Rex or Fireball or Gregor or any of the other clones who are working with them. Of course it's never enough, they're never going to save everyone. But they saved Howzer. They saved two more of Howzer's men. That's three clones who are still alive and free that would not have been otherwise and that means the world to those three clones. Of course it's sad that they couldn't save Howzer's other 6 men who got taken to the prison, but it still MATTERS that they saved Howzer and the two other left. It matters to TRY, to not just ABANDON all of the other clones to death and torture at the hands of the Empire that enslaved them.

But Hunter (and Tech and Wrecker) don't have the same values and priorities as the real clones. They just don't. We know that they didn't really view the war the same way the clones do based on how they've spoken about it in TCW. The clones generally tended to believe in lofty causes, to believe in ideas and ideals. They fought because they believed in the Republic, in freedom and justice. Rex said last season that he's always been fighting to save the Republic and can't really figure out how to stop doing it even when it's become an Empire. The clones had a lot of emotions about the war. As Rex said, they wouldn't exist without it, but many of them hate it because of how it kills them and traumatizes them. They believe in the cause and can't deny that they only exist because of it, but they don't care for the lack of choice they were given and the consequences it has for them. TBB seem to see the war as more of an extended mission without a lot of emotion attached to it. And they prioritize themselves and their own personal survival over literally everything else. They will never put themselves on the line to protect someone else unless they care about that person or someone they like cares about that person. Echo (and sometimes Omega) often have to cajole and convince the rest of the squad into doing things like that, unless they're on the mission because they're getting something out of it like money.

So for Hunter, he's prioritizing his family, which solely consists of Omega, Tech, and Wrecker, with the occasional admission of people like Echo, Rex, and Crosshair. But for Echo, all of the clones ARE his family in some way. They're one giant extended family, they're a community connected through an experience no one else can understand. But TBB are not, truly, clones. They aren't part of that community, they don't truly understand that shared experience because in many ways, they didn't share it. They isolated themselves from the other clones and alienated themselves from that community. They used a separate term to refer to the clones, even, to differentiate themselves even more. There's a reason that they all have such an easier time integrating themselves into the community on Pabu than they've ever managed to do with the clones.

They call themselves clones because they were raised on Kamino and created in a lab, but in all the ways that truly matter, they're not clones at all. And that couldn't have been made clearer this episode in that conversation between Hunter and Echo.

[ru5t]

Tech+ physical touch thoughts

Tech is, broadly speaking, touch avoidant. She always has been, going all the way back to her childhood and even, like, toddler-hood. It wasn't initially a direct result of anything, just a facet of her. Part of it is sensory -there's just something about physical contact that can really easily unnerve or overwhelm her- and the other part is a frame of mind she has about it, where touch is something reserved for people she's close to. Hugs really mean something to her, and she believes there's no reason for someone unfamiliar or even just a casual acquaintance to be touching her. It's not germphobia or purity nonsense it's just that she's always been... aware of her physical person and personal space, prefers it not be invaded, and as well she feels a particular why about touch as a love language. It's important to her, arguably he strongest language, and thus her least used because it's so important.

The specifics of why vary by verse but: as she got older and things unfolded, it all became more complicated and exaggerated. Her trauma compounded with the preexisting peculiarity, and touch began to carry not only her inherent reservations but heavier connotations. A not insignificant number of her triggers are specifically touch-based. At this point (in both her main and modern verse specifically) she doesn't like to wear necklaces or close collared shirts because of the way the sensation interacts with her triggers. She hates being touched by strangers, even in situations where it might be considered normal, will refuse things like handshakes, and will recoil from unsolicited gestures like a hand on the shoulder or back, etc from people she doesn't know. Obviously getting bumped into isn't her favorite, but unless it was obviously deliberate she can usually shake something like that off.

Casual touch is a situational privilege even among her close friends. She tends to be more patient and forgiving about it, typically just gently avoiding or sometimes removing touches she doesn't want (as opposed to jerking away or even the rare slapping and hitting she does with strangers). Sometimes she gets a little impatient and snappish — communication gets difficult for her when she's had a rough trigger day or is just broadly overwhelmed ("struggles to speak when triggered/overwhelmed" post is for a different day but it's a thing) so she's not always the gentlest about conveying her dislike. But she will let you know!

An exception/counter, is when she initiates the touch. If she reached out first it's generally fair game for someone else to stick with it until she finds wherever her limit for a given day is. At that point, she'll start to silently retreat. Close relationships are usually pretty good at picking up on when she's Done™ and know to give her space, but this is something that takes time to learn. If the silent recoil goes unnoticed she'll really try so very hard to speak up clearly and let them know what's going on with her without being callous. Success rates vary, patience is not her strong suit and overwhelm tends to set in so quickly. She might get slam dunked into panic nanoseconds after realizing she's done with being touched (and sometimes even before she notices she's done.) The trick overall is just to learn not to take offense about it even if her "don't touch me!"s come out a little hostile, because it’s (probably) not meant to be a slight against you. It really has very little to do with you at all.

As ever, Jack is also his own type of exception. There are still times when she'll duck a hug or shrug off some other gesture, but it's generally not as common. He simply does not possess the ability to set off her triggers, and he's so trusted and loved, so if she's dodging him either she's been set off by something else, or it's back down to the way she was as a kid, when it was simple, and she just didn't feel like it.

[jacensolodjo]

This might be completely off but as a white gen z american i think that white gen z americans tend to see the idea that everyone gets paid enough to live and latch onto that so hard that we don't care about the implications of the rest of communism. Like we can't really imagine what another political system is like for whatever reason (for me it was a language disorder but ik there's something structural going on, same reason so many usually white americans forget that there are people in other countries). and we don't have relatives who survived communism so we're just like "hey, something that claims to give you livable income, it's different than what we have right now which sucks so fucking bad, i like that" cause we're not even told to read the communist manifesto. we're told what capitalism and communism are on paper and then asked which we would prefer (this was literally a history class exercise i had that took the whole period). Ik you don't need me to explain it to you since you've seen people defending it for so long and I'm DEFINITELY not trying to make excuses for anyone because there aren't any, it just clicked in my own head that this is a *trend*. It's fucked. We aren't told that you can consider or theorize a society outside of either system. So we don't. And then we're told to pick.

Yeah. See, I have a problem with that if true (and in fact it ISN'T the first time I've had someone say that because of a few key points about communism and it sounding better than the experience with capitalism it was decided hey we should all be commies). Because the problem with that is the same problem as deciding because a bunch of boomers hate communism, and clearly the Red Scare was a bunch of (often antisemitic) hogwash on top of that, that communism really isn't all that bad after all. Which then turns into 'we support any country that isn't the US through the virtue of not the US even if that country is a genocidal hellhole'. (See the uptick in support for China, North Korea, russia of course is an obvious one. All of them are guilty of genocide in the present day, none of them are innocent or worthy of support. Citizens of those countries have been begging Westerners to stop supporting them, in fact.)

You (general you not specific) probably know people who have dealt with a communist regime, they just don't talk about it for myriad reasons (it was traumatic, they've tried talking about it before and had people--children-- shout them out about how they're totally wrong about why communism was terrible to live under, they don't owe anyone knowing where they came from, etc., or the big one: they learned not to talk about their opinions and experiences because that gets you sent to gulag).

Or the fact communism didn't die when the Wall fell. Even if places like China are tenuously considered communist, they are still using the same playbook. You have the russkis now completely believing they're bringing back the USSR (missiles, tanks, etc., have had CCCP painted on them). Which is, uh, bad. And you got western teenagers cheering it at the literal cost of Ukr life.

And I promise I am not trying to be condescending. You have a great advantage over many previous generations: you have grown up entirely with the internet and the tools to search it easily and quickly. (This is, of course, the big divide between Millennial and Gen Z. We watched computers and tech become ubiquitous. You have never known a time without a computer in every home.) You rebel against so many other things 'the System' tries to get you to believe. School doesn't or won't offer sex ed, you learn it on your own time anyway. School bans books, you find them and read them on your own regardless. There is no difference in doing that with pure politics (since book banning is political but 'softer'). Hell, you already do. You shine a spotlight on bigoted politicians all on your own. You argue for better gun control. You have an entire demographic scared of y'all being at voting age.

So, yes. It's hard not to feel a little frustrated when we're told to "read a book" (or any other comment we receive from people desperate to make us believe we are actually wrong and pretending we are the ones who need more education). When we've read more than we've ever needed to because some of us have desperately tried to figure out why. Why this political and economic theory. Why so many had to die. Why we're being told the ends justified the means when those means were mass torture and murder. Why it seems to be easier to say you're a communist than a socialist. Why it's as hard as deprogamming a cult member when it comes to making people understand the blood staining the word 'communism'. To say nothing of the fact that we don't need to read something when we have the experiences burned into our collective memory.

I've made posts about it before specifically pleading that people do their own research. You can and should look at communism just as critically as you do capitalism. Hell I have even shown how they aren't all that different after all. Communism actually lies to you more than capitalism. At least capitalism we know is built to exploit and yes even to kill. Communism is too but hides it behind 'proletariat' and 'bourgeoisie'. Or euphemisms like 'liquidate'. (Which is often where I know the other party has failed to fully read the book they claim to worship. There was no corruption of the message, mass murder was baked into it in the first edition. Either that or they want me to believe liquidate means something more benign.)

I am only a first generation American because my birth mother fled the Ukrainian SSR. My adoptive father is a McCarthy flavor anti-commie, unfortunately. There is a scene in 'For All Mankind' where the commie cosmonaut starts scoffing at a Vietnamese American about how she only hates communism because of her (white, adoptive) father. She puts him in his place by pointing out no, it is because she put in the work to research it and she is also only in the US because of communism. (I think this is my third time referencing it because it is THAT good. It is a vindication of everything people like me have dealt with our whole lives. And I have literally been told on this very same website I only hate communism cause of what the US govt tells me, or Boomers, or whatever else. Nevermind I'm a 34 year old Ukrainian American.)

This is all we want from people. To put in the work. We know you can. We know why you say yes to communism and we know you deserve better than both communism and capitalism. You have everything you need right here on the world wide web. You have us, fighting to get the atrocities out in the open. You have millions of people from former Soviet bloc areas who show you just by their culture the damage communism has done. Especially where that means they have LOST a connection to their culture. Or people who have fled China, North Korea. People who escaped the killing fields of the Khmer Rouge. Or floated in from Cuba.

(Note I am using 'you' in the general sense.) Also, there is something a tad bizarre to me about ascribing to a belief, an opinion, a theory, without doing your due diligence and learning about it as much as you can. I've mentioned it before about deciding communism is your political affiliation, and yet it seems you didn't look beyond a couple of bullet points in a presentation. We know you are capable of doing the research. So the question becomes: Why did you essentially stop? Didn't look any deeper after being given a short list of things communism does and capitalism does? That part is on you, not the education system.

It's like being told the Republican party says they believe in the safety of women and children in the bathrooms, lower taxes, and job security and since they all sound GREAT if laid out that way then Suzie Johnson who recently became voting age has decided she's going to be a Republican. But come to find out what they REALLY meant, which you'd find out after a bit of research is: they believe trans people shouldn't be allowed in the bathrooms that match their gender identity because 'rapists', they really mean they want to give tax cuts to people who don't actually NEED them and NOT Miss Johnson, and what they really meant by job security is that they want to make it so that anyone who isn't a cishet white man is less likely to get a job much less keep it. Essentially, only job security for the 'right' kind of person. None of that 'affirmative action crap'.

So essentially what I would and do say to any Gen Z (I also hesitate to just say 'white' because gosh I see so many kiddos of color who defend communism even tho statistically POC suffered so so much under communism just as much as capitalism and it isn't any better for them to defend it, either. Forever agog at 'you only hate communism cause you hate to see people of color winning'. It's been years and I'm still not sure what POC are 'winning' with communism) who labels themselves commie for the reasoning you mention: Do the work. Research the label you wish to attach to yourself. Ask questions. Do everything you already do for so many other things you rise up against. Don't politically label yourself something just because it might piss people off or because a couple things sound good. Because at best you look naive and at worst callous and uncaring about the victims of the people who shared the communist label. Which becomes heavily ironic when it seems the whole reason one decided to call themselves communist is they were told communism cares about the less fortunate and victims of people in power.

[tolkien-fandom-history]

2000s Tolkien Fanfiction Splash Pages

If you read Tolkien fanfiction in the 2000s, you probably passed a splash page or two in your quest for fic. These pages, located at the site's index page or homepage, served as a buffer between the visitor and the site's content. You often had to click to "enter" the site. They contained warnings; disclaimers; spiffy images and backgrounds; affiliate links, awards, webrings, and Yahoo! Groups; and (my favorite) invitations to LEAVE NOW if "offended" by the content on the site. (The LEAVE NOW link usually pointed to Google.com, though Least Expected helpfully invites wayward prudes to "Head on over to theonering.net or something.)

I grabbed the text from about a dozen splash pages from the early-mid 2000s (the oldest, King & Herald, was from 2007; all others are 2001-4) and made the word cloud above, which illustrates the climate and concerns of fanfiction archivists in the first years Tolkien-based fanfiction was online.

I'll share a few of my favorite splash pages below the jump.

Fanfiction was scary. Slashfic was scarier.

Many splash pages assumed that the people visiting the site were going to be offended by the content of the site, especially if that content was slash fanfiction. I already mentioned the LEAVE NOW links above. Also typical was the understanding that explicit fanfiction (especially slash) was for people over the age of 18. The splash page for Least Expected, circa 2001 and the earliest Tolkienslash archive on the internet, shows how splash pages foregrounded deterrence, even in a group that was unapologetic about its interests, reflecting the larger cultural panic about growing acceptance of sexuality, especially LGBTQIA+.

Sites spelled out very clearly what could be found there: adult-rated material, same-sex pairings, and real person fic (RPF), for example. The site Legolas in Chains even had illustrations. (Content warning for incest and non-con and graphic acts performed by stick figures; see the Legolas in Chains splash page here.) "I will not hold responsibility ..." writes the Legolas in Chains' archivist before launching into the text version of the warning, "just in case you don't get the picture above." This was an important cultural difference between fanfiction fandom in the 2000s and now: Archivists and group owners assumed it was at least partly their responsibility to shield "web surfers" (especially children) from the content on their sites and groups and made an effort to demonstrate that they were fulfilling this obligation.

Slash and adult-rated content weren't the only anxieties on archivists' minds. The words disclaimer, copyright, and permission occurred frequently too. And even larger than those words: please. While many of these splash pages are very direct and some use humor, they tend to be polite. The overwhelming sense from many of this is, "We're not harming you. Please just leave us alone."

2000s Tech.

Splash pages also showcase the rapidly evolving technology of the web. You wanted your splash page to show that you knew what you were doing. The splash page for Meduseld above is a beautiful example.

Splash pages often included banners and graphics, visitor counters, and of course, links to the guestbook. Images sometimes moved and twinkled. Colored text and patterned backgrounds showed the designer's HTML and CSS skills.

Splash pages also reflected the challenges of creating webpages (especially if you were trying to be cutting-edge) in an era where web standards were not universally adopted and sites displayed differently depending on the browser, OS, and resolution of your screen. Splash pages sometimes advised which resolution worked best with the site (some offered a choice!) and which browser the site had been designed in.

Affiliates: A Little Help from My Friends.

The splash pages for Middle Earth Romance Fan-Fiction and Meduseld both highlight the importance of a splash page in announcing your affiliates. The majority of these archives developed out of a community, usually on Yahoo! Groups, and linking to the group was essential. As Middle Earth Romance Fan-Fiction shows, sites also had "sister sites" sometimes: sites created by the same designer (but with different focuses) or that otherwise shared resources and collaboration.

The fanfiction community (okay, the internet in general) was also much more fragmented than it is today. Consider that, in the 2000s, there were dozens (probably hundreds, if not more) Tolkien fanfiction archives online. Many of these sites were small and highly specialized. Furthermore, search engine technology was rudimentary, so it wasn't like today when you visit a handful of sites (say, AO3 and Tumblr), type in a tag or search term, and there is your fannish experience, all in one place. You had to work to find groups and archives about what interested you--a challenge compounded by the fact that many of these groups and archives legit feared being sued by New Line or the Tolkien Estate and didn't want to be found.

Webrings, cliques, fanlistings, and awards were one way that small sites got the word out to friendly company. Once you found one site, you could meander through the webring to find others like it. You could join email lists (like Yahoo! Groups) to unlock even more access, since these groups were most often members-only. Most sites had both "Links" and "Link to Us" pages, and exchanging links with another site was common.

You can see my splash page collection here, using the earliest Wayback Machine capture I could find.

(Posted by @dawnfelagund)

[teamrushipandit]

How Non-Tech Professionals Can Succeed in Digital Marketing: A Beginner’s Guide

In the modern, fast-paced digital age, one of the most in-demand careers is digital marketing. Businesses use digital tactics, such as email marketing and social media, to increase their online presence. However, what happens if you are not a tech person? Is it possible for someone who isn’t IT to succeed in the field of digital marketing? Without a doubt, the answer is yes! Digital marketing is not limited to tech-savvy people; with the appropriate technique, anyone can become proficient in it.

We’ll look at which skills are most crucial to focus on and how non-IT professionals might launch a lucrative career in digital marketing in this article.

1. Recognizing Digital Marketing: It's Not Just Technology

There is much more to digital marketing than just code and technical terms. It all comes down to comprehending consumer behavior, producing interesting content, and distributing the appropriate message through the appropriate channels. People who are not technical tend to be better in these fields since their upbringing emphasizes creativity and communication.

Non-tech professionals can succeed in several fundamental areas of digital marketing, such as:

Content Marketing: Creating blog posts, videos, infographics, and podcasts.

Social Media Management: Managing platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter to engage audiences.

Email Marketing: Crafting email campaigns that nurture relationships with customers.

These are non-technical components of digital marketing that call for creativity, communication, and an understanding of consumer psychology.

2. Crucial Knowledge for Non-IT Digital Marketers

While having coding or IT abilities might be useful, even people without a computer background can simply pick up many crucial digital marketing skills. Focus on the following essential skills:

a. Proficiency in Writing and Communication

Getting the correct message in front of the right people is a major focus of digital marketing. Proficiency in written communication and compelling copywriting are crucial. Whether you’re creating email campaigns or social media posts, communicating with your audience clearly and persuasively is essential.

b. Creative Thinking

The foundation of digital marketing is creativity. Whether through distinctive graphic material, captivating social media methods, or creative email marketing, non-technical marketers can bring new, creative ideas to campaigns.

c. Analytical Thinking

Digital marketing doesn’t require you to be a tech specialist, but data analysis skills are essential. The majority of marketing platforms provide integrated analytics capabilities that don’t require technical expertise. You may evaluate the effectiveness of your efforts and modify your strategy by becoming familiar with these tools.

d. Basic Marketing Tools

Today’s marketing platforms are built to be user-friendly, even for non-tech users. Tools like:

Google Analytics: For tracking website traffic and user behavior.

Mailchimp: For email marketing campaigns.

Hootsuite or Buffer: For social media scheduling.

Canva: For designing social media posts and marketing visuals. These platforms are designed for ease of use, allowing you to handle various digital marketing tasks without any coding.

3. How to Begin Without Prior Experience in Tech

Although entering the field of digital marketing as a non-IT professional may seem difficult at first, with the correct approach, you can succeed in it. This is how you can begin:

a. Take Free Online Courses

Numerous online courses cover the fundamentals of digital marketing without delving deeply into complex technical subjects. Free courses on a variety of topics are available on websites such as Coursera, Udemy, and Google’s Digital Garage. Topics include email marketing, SEO, and social media marketing.

b. Get Hands-On Experience

Learning is best accomplished by doing. Launch your own blog, set up social media for a side project, or assist a buddy in running their company. You will gain practical expertise in understanding the operation of various digital marketing channels.

c. Specialize in Non-Technical Aspects

Pay attention to the non-technical facets of digital marketing, like:

Content Creation: Writing blog posts, creating videos, and designing infographics.

Social Media Strategy: Managing posts, engaging with followers, and running paid ad campaigns.

Email Marketing: Building email lists and creating campaigns.

Without knowing how to code, you can make a significant contribution to marketing initiatives by focusing on these areas.

d. Work together with IT Professionals

It helps to know enough to work with developers or IT experts, even if you’re not handling the technical side of things. Collaborating with them will enable you to take use of their abilities without feeling unwelcome in a digital team.

4. Dispelling the Myths: Coding Is Not Necessary

One widespread misunderstanding is that success in digital marketing requires knowledge of code. The great majority of digital marketing duties may be completed without touching a line of code, while it might be helpful in certain areas like advanced SEO or website optimization. The majority of marketing platforms and solutions are user-friendly and don’t require technical expertise to use.

User-friendly tools can handle tasks like campaign management, content creation, and performance report analysis. Thanks to plugins and visual editors, even simple activities like configuring a WordPress website can be completed without any technical knowledge.

5. Essential Digital Marketing Tools You Can Use Without IT Experience

To succeed in digital marketing, non-IT marketers can grasp the following technologies and platforms:

Google Analytics: Understand traffic patterns, user behavior, and optimize accordingly.

Canva: Create stunning visuals and social media content with no design or technical skills needed.

HubSpot: Manage your entire inbound marketing strategy, including content marketing, social media, and lead nurturing.

Facebook Ads Manager & Google Ads: Run paid ad campaigns to target specific audiences. These platforms come with easy-to-follow guides and tutorials.

SEMrush or Moz: Track keyword performance and optimize your content for SEO without needing a coding background.

 

6. Advantages of Digital Marketing for Non-Technical Backgrounds

Non-IT specialists frequently contribute special insights and advantages to digital marketing. Their strong points are creativity, communication, and customer-centric thinking, all of which are essential for crafting relatable and interesting marketing campaigns.

As a matter of fact, a large number of prosperous digital marketers have a variety of backgrounds, including journalism, sales, and communications. When creating successful ads, their ability to relate to consumers and comprehend their requirements frequently proves to be more important than technical expertise.

Conclusion It’s getting more and more normal to enter the field of digital marketing without any technical experience. You can succeed in this industry as long as you concentrate on developing fundamental marketing skills, making use of user-friendly technologies, and developing your creative side. Your journey to becoming a successful digital marketer can be boldly started by embracing the parts of the field that don’t require technical skills. For more, Visit now

[jasonblack901]

Interview with Viplove Bhojwani: Mastering Lead Generation in IT

Jason Woods: Hello, dear readers. I'm Jason Woods, and today I have the privilege of speaking with Viplove Bhojwani, a sales expert whose strategies have revolutionized lead generation for numerous IT companies. Viplove, welcome, and thank you for joining us.

Viplove Bhojwani: Thank you, Jason. It's fantastic to be here and discuss my work.

Jason Woods: Your reputation in the IT sales community is quite remarkable. Can you give us a brief overview of how you got into this field?

Viplove Bhojwani: Certainly, Jason. My journey began about 15 years ago when I took a sales position at an emerging tech firm. I quickly realized that the ever-changing nature of IT sales was both challenging and exhilarating. Over the years, I've honed my expertise in lead generation, which has become my specialty and passion.

Jason Woods: Lead generation is a critical component of any business. In your view, what makes it especially important in IT?

Viplove Bhojwani: In IT, products and services can be highly technical and complex. Lead generation is about more than just capturing interest; it’s about educating potential clients and helping them understand how a particular IT solution can address their specific needs. It's about forming a connection between technology and the people who can benefit from it.

Jason Woods: What strategies have you found most successful for generating leads in this sector?

Viplove Bhojwani: A multifaceted approach tends to yield the best results. This includes creating high-quality, informative content that addresses common pain points, ensuring robust SEO practices to improve online visibility, and engaging in personalized outreach. A particularly successful strategy involves leveraging professional networks and platforms, like LinkedIn, to connect with decision-makers directly.

Jason Woods: That sounds like a comprehensive strategy. Could you share an example where your approach made a significant impact on an IT company's lead generation?

Viplove Bhojwani: Absolutely. One IT security company comes to mind. Their solutions were top-notch, but their lead generation was lagging. We developed a series of educational webinars and whitepapers that positioned them as thought leaders. We also optimized their sales funnel and introduced a CRM system to nurture leads more effectively. The result was a 150% increase in qualified leads within a year.

Jason Woods: That's a staggering increase. Quality over quantity is essential, though. How do you ensure the leads you generate are likely to convert?

Viplove Bhojwani: That's true, Jason. Quality is crucial. It’s essential to have a clear definition of your ideal customer profile. We use a combination of lead scoring and targeted content to ensure that we're engaging with the most promising prospects. Additionally, regular feedback from the sales team and data analysis helps us fine-tune our methods to maintain a high-quality lead pool.

Jason Woods: With technology advancing rapidly, how do you keep your lead generation strategies up to date?

Viplove Bhojwani: Keeping up with the pace of innovation in IT is a challenge. I dedicate a significant portion of my time to education—attending industry events, following thought leaders, and analyzing market trends. This ongoing education allows me to adapt my strategies to the current landscape.

Jason Woods: Lastly, for IT sales professionals looking to improve their lead generation, what advice would you give?

Viplove Bhojwani: My advice would be to never stop learning and experimenting. The landscape is always shifting, and what worked yesterday may not work tomorrow. Always focus on the value you're providing to your prospects. Make your interactions meaningful, prioritize their needs, and demonstrate how your solution can make a difference for them.

Jason Woods: It's been enlightening talking with you, Viplove. Your expertise in lead generation is clearly a game-changer for IT companies. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.

Viplove Bhojwani: The pleasure was mine, Jason. I'm glad to share, and I hope your readers find these insights helpful. Thank you for having me.

[econrenuka]

Notes from Outlook for Economics Job Market 2023-24 NABE

06/10/2023

Jeff Ferris, Senior Manager and Economist, Amazon

Shilpi Mukherjee, Senior Economist, Keystone Strategy

Gustavo Suarez, Assistant Director, Division of Research and Statistics, Federal Reserve Board

Shalyce Tyson, Human Resources Specialist and Recruitment Coordinator, U.S. Census Bureau

Moderator: Emma Zetterdahl, Senior Manager, Economics Research, Spotify Advertising

This was actually a really helpful panel, hosted by mostly economists and people really close to economics research. I liked that they had a mix of people in consulting, tech and the government, and they gave a good picture of industry research in general. Specifically, attendees learned what skills private industry and the government are looking for in an economist.

Consulting and tech seem to be looking for causal, IO and time series at the moment. There is room for micro and macro theorists but they often tend to have some special skill that is related to working with data. They were clear that working with datasets seems to be the daily responsibility of most newly hired economists in industry and government. Machine learning and working with data are great skills to have now, and should be highlighted briefly either on the CV or with a link to a project on github. There was some discussion on making sure we show we are clearly practiced at thinking about economics problems and not just working with data, but I think the key takeaway is to be good at both.

Causal and structural estimation are critical since places in industry tend to have big data, and there is a lot of scope for different analyses. Structural is important to sort of pare down the question. Causal is the most generalizable.

For PhD versus MA, the opportunities are slightly different. Many times the economist role seems to be defined for someone who has a PhD. There are roles for MA students (e.g. survey statistician at the Census, data scientist at Amazon), but the idea for the economist position is to hire someone who has done some rigorous thesis work.

So what does the job look like for a new economist? In consulting, you'll be working with a supervisor on some project and performing some analysis that is assigned to you. This tends to be very technical and usually involves working with data. As you work your way up, you begin identifying the problems and choosing the problems. At the top, you decide broader direction in terms of which types of analyses work and which don't. In tech, you'll be handed a variety of tasks with little ambiguity to simply execute until you work up. Once you have more responsibility, you yourself might start scoping projects that have some more ambiguity. The more leadership you have, the more ambiguous the problems become. As you become a leader you become someone who chooses the direction.

The general consensus seems to be that as a fresh economist you'll be working on problems that have been identified and defined by someone else. Once you become a leader, you become the one to define the problems.

Hiring process: (1) In tech there are two phases. First, a phone screen, walking through a set of technical problems. Next, some more technical questions, questions on aptitude for leadership and how you approach problem solving. Don't bring up your job market paper as much for tech. They want to see how well you can approach a new problem (2) At the census: Submit resume and get certificate. Interview. (3) In consulting, specifically at keystone. First, there is a technical portion and you often discuss your job market paper. Next, there is an on-site interview. You might look over some technical problems with some company leadership. There is a behavioral portion as well. (4) At the Fed, you often start with AEA interviews. From there you receive flyouts. You present your job market paper, talk to the other economists there. They want to see your technical skills and communication abilities.

Overall, a very informative panel! A thank you to all the panelists who provided the information.

[tastydregs]

Former Google CEO Warns That Humans Will Fall in Love With AIs

Eric Schmidt, former Google CEO and coauthor of the book "The Age of AI," has said that he's worried humans will start falling in love with AI.

It's a fair concern, considering that, well, a good number of them already have.

"Imagine a world where you have an AI tutor that increases the educational capability of everyone in every language globally," Schmidt told ABC News in a Sunday interview, adding that this use case, among others, is "remarkable."

"And these technologies, which are generally known as large language models, are clearly going to do this," he continued.

"But, at the same time, they face extraordinary – we face extraordinary new challenges from these things," Schmidt added, before asking rhetorically: "what happens when people fall in love with their AI tutor?"

It's a particularly timely example, as just this week, The Washington Post reported that OpenAI tech is powering a Silicon Valley private school's newly-unveiled AI tutor.

While some might balk at the notion that some kid out there might actually develop romantic feelings for their AI tutor, it's really not that far-fetched. The internet is often a place where kids and adults alike — especially those who feel disaffected in some way — go to find community, friendship, and sometimes even digital romance.

It's therefore more than conceivable to imagine that human-mimicking chatbots, designed to offer help and care to users, could fill such a void.

And to that end, while LLMs and the bots that they power are hard enough to reign in on their own, humans have often proven to be even less predictable, and as exemplified by the Eliza Effect, tend to anthropomorphize even the most simplistic of chatbots. Plus, the better the bots get at sounding and acting like humans, the more those lines blur — not necessarily because of any machine manipulation, but because of the human desire for connection.

And elsewhere, the marketplace for AI companions is booming. Take the chatbots of "AI girlfriend" service Replika, for instance, which are designed to fill the role of a close companion.

Replika's success — the company claims it has two million users — goes to show that humans are capable of developing strong attachments to conversational bots designed to sound like real people.

And at the end of the day, as Schmidt told ABC, new and powerful technologies almost always come with unintended side effects, with the ex-Googler using the potent example of social media to illustrate how vast, and in many cases dire, those unintended consequences can be.

"What happened with social media is we, including myself, just offered social media because we had a simple model of how humans would use social media," Schmidt told ABC. "But, instead, look at how social media was used to interfere in elections, to cause harm. People have died over social media."

"No one meant that as [the] goal, and yet it happened," the former CEO continued. "How do we prevent that with this [AI] technology?"

READ MORE: 'This Week' Transcript 4-2-23: Joe Tacopina, Former Gov. Asa Hutchinson and Eric Schmidt [ABC News]

More on AI romance: Man "Sure" His AI Girlfriend Will save Him When the Robots Take Over

The post Former Google CEO Warns That Humans Will Fall in Love With AIs appeared first on Futurism.

[queenofthequillandink]

Batman's been insufferabe for the last week.

Like, Tim wants Jason back, now that he actually apologized for the attempted murder thing, but Bruce has been...intense. Like the Not Eating or Sleeping, Not Letting Anyone Else Take Care of Themselves Either kind of intense.

Dick is nearly beside himself, but is run so ragged he doesn't even have the energy to be distraught. Damian is clearly only still up and running due to sheer, stubborn refusal to go down. Cass keeps nearly nodding off while walking. Steph and Duke passed out in the medbay three hours ago, where Alfred's been hovering with growing disapproval since day two. Tim is the only one who's doing relatively okay because he's used to working through the sleep deprivation hallucinations.

And yeah, Tim's worried. You tend to be when your brother disappears from a summoning that includes words like "bride" and "sacrifice" in the same sentence. But here's the thing: back when Tim and Jason weren't on the best of terms on the Batfam, they had their own Super Secret Replaced Robins Club. By which Tim means they had cool tech that only connected to each other, which they kept after reintegrating with the Bats because one more set of secret backup is never bad.

Jason's SSRRC tech all indicates that he's fine. Communications either aren't getting through or they're being ignored, but his beacon is on and reading Jason's vitals just fine. His heartbeat's barely gone above resting the entire time he's been gone and when it has, it's been at fairly regular intervals and equivalent to him working out.

Since Jason having a fully functional communicator that he simply refuses to answer is completely in character for him, Tim's assuming he's just being a bitch. Or physically fine and biding his time for his own escape.

All of this is to say that when a glowing green tear rips itself into existence in the Batcave, Tim is wary, but half expecting Jason to walk out covered in ghost blood or something. His heartrate's up slightly, so he might have been escaping.

Instead, what looks like a perfectly normal cream-colored envelope drops out and the rip seals itself up seamlessly.

"Ransom note?" Cass asks, swaying.

"It could be tampered with, no one-" Bruce growls. Silly Bruce, if you wanted Dick to have any self control, you should have made him take a nap some time in the last two days.

Dick's already tearing the envelope open, reading aloud almost as an afterthought.

"'You are-' What? It says, 'You are cordially invited,' but 'cordially' is crossed out and it says 'reluctantly, because I know none of you will be normal about this' in... in Jay's handwriting." Dick's breathing hitches.

Bruce is already moving, but Tim is closer and fueled by eight cups of coffee and the growing suspicion that Jason is fucking with them. The invitation is in his hands and he's retreating around the Batcave, dodging an irate Batman as he reads from the beginning.

"'You are reluctantly, because I know none of you will be normal about this, invited to witness the marriage of Jason Peter Todd-Wayne, sometimes called The Red Hood, Defender of Crime Alley, Avenger of the People-'" Tim snorts at that one. Oh yeah, that's Jason's inner drama bitch all over. "Member of the Dead Robins Club-'"

Bruce looks pained, which like. Fair. Steph, stumbling out of the medbay raises one tired fist and says, "Holla," completely tonelessly.

"'Member of the Super Secret Replaced Robins Club-'" Tim mimicks Steph's fist pump. "Also holla. 'Former Outlaw and Titan to King Daniel 'Danny' James Fenton-Phantom, High King of the Infinite Realms, Defender of Amity Park, Keeper of the Tear Between Realms,' oooooo, ominous, 'Bridge between Human and Spirit,' yadda yadda, this guy has a lot of titles. Uh, scanning to the end..."

"Give me the paper, Tim."

Tim dodges Bruce again. "Blah blah blah, 'This is not written under duress, B get that stupid constipated look off your face,' he drops a bunch of all-clear codes... Oh! Here it is. Uh, the wedding's tomorrow at dusk in King Phantom's castle. It says transportation will be provided and then Jason's written, 'Wear normal people clothes or so help me God, I will burn the Manor to the ground and I'm only saving Alfie and the good cookie sheets.'"

Alfred looks touched. Tim is offended that he's apparently left to fend for himself in the burning Manor. Rude.

"We're not going."

Dick walks up to Bruce before anyone else can react, squishing his face between two hands and leaning in way too close. Tim subtly starts recording on his phone.

"Old man," Dick begins quietly with a brilliant, unhinged smile on his face. Bruce winces at Jason's nickname for him. "If you prevent me from going to my baby brother's wedding, Jason won't even have to light the match."

Tim stops recording because he's too busy falling off his chair laughing. But he did get Bruce's stupid face when Dick said it, so he figures Jason won't mind.

So one of those batfam interferes with a cult ritual where the cult is offering/sacrificing a bride to the King of the Dead to gain his favor but something happens and a batkid ends up in the ritual circle instead stories BUT make it funny

BATFAM AFTER A TIRELESS WEEK OF FIGURING OUT HOW TO GET JASON (Jason? idk we'll go with Jason for this blub) BACK

THE ROOM FLOODS WITH LIGHT AND JASON IS REVEALED IN THE CIRCLE

Jason: ah! What the hell guys?!

Nightwing: we brought you home- what are you wearing

Jason, in beach clothes holding a ectoplasm icee in one hand and his sunglasses in the other while being noticeably tanner and with a giant gemstone ring on his finger: clothes. Why the hell did you guys bring me back?! I was enjoying my vacation

Robin: vacation? You were abducted by a supernatural force for the purposes of a forced marriage to a monstrous entity.

Red Robin: who was it by the way? Hades? Satan?

Jason: Danny.

Jason: *takes loud sip of icee*

Jason: my fiancé's name is Danny but his "ruling name" or whatever is High King Phantom. He's the ghost king.

Batman: that is a more obscure diety than we expected. Did you discover how to break the marriage contract?

Jason: break the marriage contract? Why would I want to do that?!

Robin: because you were abducted.

Jason: yeah but then he cured my pit rage and he's a absolute sweetheart and funny. Now send me back. This is why none of you were invited to my bachelor party which you so rudely kidnapped me from

Batman: no.

Jason: no? Im getting married in two days and none of you are blowing this for me. Send me back or I wont give you any favors once I become queen or consort or whatever I'll be. Let me live out my shitty romance novel dreams

[nspiresoft]

5 Ultimate reasons why your business needs a website.

Irrespective of the size as well as the industry that a business exists in, a business and its online presence is bound to create a vast impact on its success. In today's modern era of businesses still tend to ignore the fact that today's generation of customers will surely checkout their website first before buying their products or services.

A web development company can fulfil the needs of an active and responsive website.

So, creating an impactful online presence, especially a website, is considered one of the most helpful ways of generating revenue, and while the way your website is built as well as its quality is very important as it has a lot of impact on your results, the whole and soul purpose of this article is to bring the spotlight on the importance of having a website.

Even today many businesses are hesitant in creating a website, because they still feel that they themselves as well as their business is not tech-savvy enough to battle in the market that's available online, and on the flip side of the things some businesses are worried about the price of the website.

But just like business in itself is a solution to a certain problems, they fail to realize that there is a solution for them out there too. Moreover, after reading this if you really need convincing, than here are 5 ultimate reasons why you should consider and after considering create a website for your business.

 Brand Presence

A website puts your brand and its products and services in spotlight, which helps you to clearly establish your brand presence, tells people who you actually are, what your principles are, what you really stand for and how your product is the right product for them, which eventually increases your chances to gain potential customers and drive sales into your business.

While having a website that describes you and your business the best and helps you drive revenue is something that can help you to stand tall and stand apart from your competition, not having a website can totally have an opposite impact as it won't be easy for people to find information that assures quality and reliability about your business.

 Credibility

A business without a website can at times face problems with their credibility as people more often than not may question about its reliability as well as legitimacy. Increasing your organization's credibility is by far one of the many reasons why your business needs to have a website, because there are several other businesses too in the market that are, or are looking to provide services that are similar to yours.

So, one of the best ways by which you can stand out, tall and apart is by giving your business a gift of a website that's not just great in terms of looks but also has the ability to clearly communicate good quality of information to your customer base.

Organic Traffic

The moment you create a website for your business, take it online, and optimize it according to the SEO, you more often than not have a very strong chance of showing up in the Google search results.

This showing up of your website in the search results not just provides you the ability to rapidly increase your customer base but also means that whenever someone is searching for a product or service that's related to yours, there are chances of your website popping up in their search results.

 Leads

Having a website for your business can help your chances of generating quality leads, and once people find you and your business online, it indirectly sparks a wave of curiosity and interest in their minds about your products and services and makes them want to know more about your business.

They even go further and contact you using the information that's available on your website, which further increases your chances of generating sales and increase your revenue. So even though creating and maintaining websites have a cost, if use correctly, they'll more often than not generate good ROI.

 Saves time and helps with customer service.

Getting calls from leads and prospects might be a good feeling but sometimes many business tend to get calls from prospects regarding questions that are pretty simple, like what's your location? What are the office timings? And the list goes on and on. Furthermore if the answer of your customer isn't answered the customer feels like they're being inhabited which makes them unhappy.

Calls also can distract a lot of your staff from doing their work. On the flip side of the things a website can easily reduce these incoming calls from the customers and increase productivity, as a website helps customers to find the information that they're looking for without which further nullifies the need to call, which further provides an all-round better user experience.

Conclusion.

Websites in today's time have become a very crucial aspect of businesses, and we sincerely recommend you to create a website for your business if you haven't create it already. Of course you can always improve your website over time but creating one should always be your first priority.

[chaosorchestrator]

Ok, so I see a lot of backlash against AI art (which probably doesn't technically count as art but there's not a better term yet), and initially I kind of thought people just didn't understand the technology.

Because I'm not on twitter and I'm only loosely connected to the professional artist community, I only recently learned that some people (apparently there's a big overlap with the crypto assholes here go figure) are basically using it to steal art commissions and taking training data from artists who have expressly requested not to have their art used in that way. These practices are absolutely unethical and they should be stopped from doing it.

That said, it does seem like there's a misunderstanding about the tech, and it's causing the backlash to spill over onto the technology itself, which I feel is unwarranted.

Before I explain why, let me first clarify what type of AI i'm talking about. people tend to use the term for any computer-generated art and while that's fine (that's just how language is), I'm talking about a specific type of program here.

What I'm not talking about is a program that stitches existing images together (like whatever godforsaken monstrosity belches up bored apes).

What I'm talking about is images made with machine learning.

to drastically oversimplify, when you feed a training input to an ai, the program examines clusters of pixels, creates a new value for each cluster and passes it on to the next layer. repeat the process a few dozen times and then look at the output. depending on how the output relates to the desired outcome, you send feedback back down to the beginning of the chain, tweaking numbers along the way. No part of the image is stored by the program, and the output is discarded. this is repeated hundreds of times and the transformations on each layer gradually learn what images of the type contained within the set tend to look like, and how shapes tend to be connected in them and so on.

Note that, while I know the above is accurate with respect to image analysis ai, I'm not as well informed about image generation. Still, the general principles are the same on the training side of things, and some cursory research suggests that the same techniques are used for this part.

So based on that, while we colloquially describe the process as "feeding" the AI, it's more accurate to say that the AI is "adjusted based on how it responds to" the data.

Good AIs usually also have some random noise introduced into the process, which keeps it from hewing too closely to the training set.

I've seen a comparison where there was a work based on various famous paintings compared with what was supposedly AI output which was clearly just bits of the original paintings awkwardly stitched together. I can confidently say that if this really was ai output it's either a shitty one or was given like 500 copies of each of the handful of paintings and nothing else.

While it is possible to do art theft with ai if you force it to as described above, in the same way a human might painstakingly create a forgery, used normally, what it does genuinely is more similar to learning than anything else. for that reason, while I recognize that the technology is being abused, and art is being used without permission when it really shouldn't be, it isn't technically art theft.

Given all of this, I would personally propose three broad rules be implemented and enforced ASAP.

Always disclose when an image is AI generated and not human-made

Implement (and respect) an opt-out option on websites where art is posted (in account settings, with the ability to make exceptions for individual images (I don't really understand why you'd want to opt out, but it should be your choice)

Keep a record of every work used for training and credit them somewhere anyone who wants to look can find it

These aren't meant to be comprehensive or anything, and I'm almost certainly missing some things

Assorted closing thoughts:

I use these AIs every now and then and still commission artists exactly as much as I did before (like once a month or so).

This is probably because the things I want the AI to make from me are things that i don't care enough about to commission ("soda cans in a cave") or something really abstract that I want to see a machine's take on ("colorless green ideas sleep furiously")

Capitalism is really the main problem here, but what else is new

Neural networks aren't just "based on" the functioning of the human brain; in an abstract sense it is literally the same process, just scaled down and simplified.

Watermarks will work decently well in keeping an ai from accurately mimicking your style, but will also probably make the AIs output cooler looking

What do you think? I'm interested in hearing as many different takes on this as I can find.

[shirecorn]

My letter to Gumroad

Hello

It cannot be stressed how incredibly disappointed I am in Gumroad these last few weeks. It's not so much the support of NFTs as it is the way you treat your creators and anyone who disagrees with you.

I am a digital artist, and I make digital content for sale. Trust me, I totally understand the allure of NFTs and as a company that empowers artists to sell their work, providing a platform for non-fungible tokens just makes perfect sense! I get it! If the world, technology, and blockchain were better, I would love to do NFTs myself because I would love to sell unique rights to my digital works and not just another download.

It's not just people who think NFTs are ugly trading cards that are against it. NFT's are based on the blockchain ledger, which is by design an electricity-intensive process not because it NEEDS to be, but because electricity consumption is the basis of cryptocurrency scarcity. This incentivizes massive farms that do nothing but grind away useless calculations that do not help humanity or the planet, but just try for a lottery spot on the ledger.

Maybe one day non fungible tokens will be based on a sustainable digital ecosystem, but that is not happening now and it won't happen any time soon. Even proof-of-stake is still based on the corrupt crypto system.

Your main userbase is artists. I'm sure you've noticed by now that artists tend to be more liberal and environmentalist. I suppose it comes from sensitivity and being in tune with the world around you, plus facing adversity and finding strength in community. You say you're a tech company but you shouldn't be. You should be an art-enabling company. Artists are your customers, your sellers, and the lifeblood to your company so you should exist to better serve them and not whatever the hot profit is at the moment. If you leave behind morals for the sake of profit, you could figure in losing a chunk of the general population but the profits will be worth it right? But you don't serve the general population. You serve sensitive, moral artists who don't like NFTs. Do you want to become a platform of ugly monkey dollmakers? Or do you want to stay a platform of incredibly diverse artists?

Perhaps more disappointing than the cash grab of NFTs is how you treat your userbase. Your twitter meltdown was a petulant display of fake superiority and condescension. Your response to hearing public outcry wasn't to listen, or even wait to see how big the outcry was and consider how it would affect your platform. No, your response was to imply nay-sayers were ignorant and stupid, and that making fun of them made you look hip and cool. That's the narrative for NFT "bros" who operate much like a cult. Stomp down and mock "ignorant" naysayers as people who don't understand and want to stay poor. Because of course it's ok to mock people as long as they're the stupid ones, right?

"People on both sides are going to be really disappointed when it’s 2023 and Gumroad still hasn’t shipped NFTs."

This implies that people against NFTs now will have come around and be begging you to do NFTs after a year. Those silly ignorant masses! They'll be sorry later!

Is this even remotely professional? Shame on you. A junior high kid has more sense of people's feelings than whoever is running outreach for a major "tech company" as you call yourselves. This is just revolting.

"if you want to be heard, you have to speak out"

This is extremely obvious, and then you say your email is mentioned "earlier in the thread" instead of providing it again. "is this true?" is so clearly not a humble "I may be wrong" concession, but just a "prove it" challenge to the angry backlash.

"(Reminder: We don’t use tweets to what to work on next.)"

Look. I'm sure I've made plenty of grammar and spelling mistakes in this very email, but I'm one person and you're an entire company. In addition to the sneering, rude "Neener neener I can't hear you" message itself, the missing words in your sentence announce to the world that absolutely no one is proofreading these tweets. No one is doing damage control. You let the same party who started this mess respond defensively to people calling you out like a child covering their ears with their hands. People are talking, telling you what they think and instead of listening for the good of your userbase and your company, you throw a tantrum and then direct them to email you (privately) in order for you to acknowledge they have an opinion at all.

Your public flailing requires a public resolution. "We have no NFT plans" is not an admission that you messed up, and it doesn't tell people you heard them either. it just sounds like "Geeze calm down I wasn't gonna do it anyway." Do you understand how childish you sound? You need to own up to the horrible performance. Your reaction to backlash should be to listen, judge your actions for the good of your company and userbase, and then announce how the feedback has affected your plans. If it hasn't had any effect, say that with your whole chest.

If these admonitions are reaching a separate inbox then whoever ran the twitter thread, then I still mean "you" personally. Until you have publicly apologized for this fiasco and demoted or fired the twitter coordinator, they speak for and represent the entire company and everyone in it.

They NEED to be replaced one way or another, because even if their actions reflect everything gumroad stands for, you at least want to pretend you aren't throwing a kindergarten fit when someone disagrees with you.Your public brand is absolutely abysmal and you have way more cleanup to do than just "we have no NFT plans right now actually but maybe in the future ;)"

I hope the mass numbers of shops closing scares you into remembering that you are a people company, not a tech company. You sell artists' efforts, not graphics cards. I hope you're horrified enough to turn your business around and listen to the people who bring in your revenue, and not the idiot who has the twitter password and a subscription to some crypto trading podcaster.

Once again, shame on you. Maybe you'll get yourself together before a mass exodus of sellers finds a better alternative, but I doubt it. Good luck with your brand, and I hope the next tweet is an apology by a new spokesperson instead of more crypto evangelism.

With disgust,

Shirecorn

[dana-chan-the-control-brain]

Hey, did you saw the film theory on Invader Zim on Membrane that Low-key makes sense

NO. IT. DOESN’T!

Okay, maybe this is my personal bias shining through, because I really don’t like Mattpatt sometimes... No. Okay, I have nothing against the guy personally. More frankly, I don’t like his fanbase or the way he structures his videos.

The way Mattpatt words and structures his videos acts like he’s the first person who thought of this idea, it’s the main contributor to why I stopped watching his videos a long time ago.

He speaks in a lot of rhetorics and strawman arguments rather than just saying what he wants to say. Like “If you don’t believe me... look no further then...” and that’s the one thing I ABSOLUTELY HATE on theory videos.

And some of Mattpatts own theories he doesn’t take seriously, but this is what you get when you base your INCOME off of youtube ad revenue and browse the reddit forums for new ideas. A completely monopolized way of theorizing. (and this is why there are several paragraphs in my current chapter of Tech Support of Zim’s Computer complaining about the concept of youtube entertainment in general.)

Sure, I don’t think Mattpatt will run out of theories... but I really hate the structure of his videos follows along strawman arguments, acting like he’s always arguing with an imaginary audience for entertainment value rather than just say what he wants to say.

That, and people will often cling to theories of someone with good editing software and a youtube channel then Their own opinions.

Something that I learned was incredibly dangerous to do. I learned my lesson with “That Guy with the Glasses dot com” and I don’t plan to act like I know something or am better than someone else cause I agree with someone who said something on youtube once.

I do watch Internet reviews and theory videos for entertainment, but that’s all they are to me. I don’t like to watch youtube videos to give me opinions on how I feel about things. And I seriously think a wide margin of his subscribers lack critical thinking skills at times, as well as a majority of the youtube audience, or from what I’ve seen in the comment section.

However, remember... These are just my thoughts on the matter... My thoughts are not law and I never claim them to be.

Like when I first joined the fandom and posed my GIR analysis questions... I even said:

“I don’t know if the fandom has talked about this in depth or not... I just got here... or if someone put it into this many words before but...”  

Also... the thing that bothers me about his Invader Zim theory...

A lot of Mattpatt’s sources are just..... Wrong...

(for the next few minutes I will be talking about this video, feel free to watch or don’t)

Okay.. “Membrane is an Irken” this has been a popular fan theory since before I even entered the fandom and there are old fics about this. I have read Irken Membrane stories before.

It’s not personally my cup of tea, but it’s fun to think about.

But the straws Mattpatt grasps in his video.... Really upset me because there is some thought to the theory back in the day.. ... Like back in 2002??? but like.... NOW?!

Okay, I’ll pick apart this a little... bit by bit...

He says that Membrane takes a hard stance against anything paranormal.

Kinda... but no.. Membrane never outright denies the existence of aliens. (except in ETF... which he mainly says out of frustration...) This is what Membrane says about “there are no aliens” in the show:

Membrane just says that there are no “intelligent” aliens...None that are able to travel the massive distance to Earth, anyways... If aliens existed at all, (like the cryptoids Dib talks of) they would have traveled the distance to the planet and communicated with them by now.

However, this is a nitpick of a minor issue. One that a majority of the fandom tends to overlook when viewing Professor Membrane and Dib’s relationship in general. 

And I do find it weird that he used this for evidence when he cut out the most important snippet from the full lecture he gives Dib here.... JUST to support his claim... as if he’s intentionally leaving that part out.... hmmmm

However, I can let this slide, because it’s a nitpick and really doesn’t change anything that Membrane is very dissuasive of Dib’s alien-hunting hobbies. (I have a theory as to why and I explain it here in my own way)

The point is, Membrane is dismissive of anything alien... maybe because he’s an Irken...okay, good, yes. fair. 

A lot of Mattpatts claims from then on are pretty solid, and I won’t bunk them with “But in my headcanon/Fanfic verse...”  Because what he is saying is all true.

Membrane denying the existence of aliens even after being taken to space jail doesn’t have much of an explanation and is played for comedy and there are many ways you can go with this, and I am not going to bring up my fanfics or my own headcanons to argue with him here.

Because there is no explanation, and he is going with the “Membrane is Irken” theory... So that’s very solid when he’s talking about Membrane denying the Hallucinations. 

Mattpatt claimed that Membrane wore his face covering at all times and had been dressed this way since he was a child.

I will not deny this. This is true.

However, isn’t bringing up Membrane’s childhood kinda put a hole in your own argument?

MEMBRANE WAS A CHILD.

He had been shown to have childhood memories in the comics and the show.

Irkens don’t really have a “Childhood” per say, at least not in the way that humans do. They are a smeet, then elite, then Invader..

If he’s claiming that Membrane came to earth as an Irken SMEET....How, why, and when? 

That kinda raises more questions than it answers.... What are you proving by bringing up Membrane’s baby pictures on Earth exactly? It kind of works against your own argument? 

Saying that they’re Irken because they all have the same hair.... that’s just stupid... and he’s citing the Invader Zim wiki on this .... oh boy.

Yeah, Like before I watched the show I thought Dib and Disguised Zim were the same character or brothers...

But I don’t think character design here is a solid enough reason in this case... At least not when it comes to the hairstyles... That’s a stretch.

“Hmmm Membrane’s hair forms an M shape... What could the M stand for? Mirken?! SUSPICIOUS!” (this is just a joke)

Also... the lack of ears thing... He did say it would be hard for Membrane to hear if his headpiece was covering his ears, but not necessarily... The entire thing is a headset and he is the man of science, he can really do whatever the fuck he wants cause Science is like magic in a show like this. So if Membrane wears a headset that doesn’t obstruct his hearing at all, I can buy it... Also.. it’s equally possible his ears got blown off in a chem lab accident or he’s legally deaf and that headset acts as a hearing aide and HELPS him hear... 

Actually, I always noticed how in Membrane’s original design from the show, the headset looked a lot like a hearing aid. Specifically one with a head clip, It’s one of the things I first noticed about his design in the show.

And it’s just something I always assumed because he’s a scientist who deals with explosions in his face on a daily basis... (in fact he experiences one in episode 2B) So on first viewing, I thought that his headset served as a hearing aid as well as prescription glasses and a communication device. 

I’m just throwing out possibilities because the “lack of ears” is also kinda a stretch.

Mattpatt complaining about “lack of nose” however... Okay, yeah I’ll give him that one. It’s a character design choice that is a little odd for Professor Membrane, but it does fit with the Irken theory, since a majority of human characters, in fact, all have noses. So, Yes the “lack of nose” does fit more into the Irken theory. 

However.... Florpus anime Membrane DOES have a nose...

Meant to be drawn in a more semi-realistic artsyle, you can clearly see the bridge of his nose here.

And he looks very similar to anime Dib... Sooooo... Shrug-city... 

It’s likely that Membrane not having a nose in the show is simply a stylistic choice than anything else. Basically, the bridge of the nose is there... we just don’t see it.

Especially since Nightmare Membrane has a nose as well..

Membrane is like Home Improvement’s Wilson. We will never see his face, and that’s part of the gag. The man probably sleeps in his labcoat honestly...

I also find the voice pattern thing a bit of a stretch. Membrane and Zim are just eccentric characters who yell to emote or emphasize a point or emote stronger. And Membrane’s inflections are never the same as Zim’s.

Remember, no other Irken TALKS like Zim. Professor Membrane doesn’t really go around screaming: “I AM PROFESSOR MEMBRANE” either..... 

If anything... it just kinda proves both characters have auditory processing issues or hearing problems more then anything.

And there is a lot of screaming on this show.... Screaming from Dib, screaming from Membrane, Screaming from GIR, screaming from Zim... Screaming is funny... and characters scream so much that the characters with their mouths wide open is somewhat a staple of the show.

This is more because of Johnen Vasquez’s voice direction...

Especially since no other Irken really talks like Zim..

Zim’s manor of Speach is strictly a Zim thing and not an Irken thing.

Professor Membrane’s manner of speech is simply a Membrane thing and not a human thing.

I will give Mattpatt that. That a lot of tech in the show looks similar to Membrane’s. I feel this is mostly a stylistic choice, but it really does fit in with the Irken theory. 

Like that Zim just so happens to use the same operating system as Dib is played off as a joke. But it does add some small credence to the theory here... I need to point out when he does get it right... some pats on the back.

These are very good points and does follow through with what he’s trying to prove by the end of the day.

(even if Membrane was lying about the destruction of all mankind with the beans thing, but that’s a minor nitpick here) 

But his entire paragraph comparing Membrane’s tech to Irken tech is a really good one. Props there.

This whole paragraph about there being only Tall or short irkens cause their society is height based and there are no “medium-sized” irkens....cause they were “dealt with”

Okay.

....

Sure Mattpatt. Let’s just entirely ignore the existence of the Frylord and this entire character even though you mentioned it in the synopsis at the start of your video... Showing that Taller irkens are in positions of power against the shorter, also... Zim is a tiny irken... there are many Irkens that stand taller then Zim.

Being tall in Irken society is a rarity, and Almighty Tallest Purple said that he and Red “became” the Tallest. How? We don’t know, but we do know at one point the current Tallest looked like this:

How do Irkens get that Tall? Body modifications? Maybe... it’s never explained, but considering the Frylord is super big and probably eats a lot of snacks might have something to do with it. We don’t know.

It’s safe to say that being Tall in their society is a rarity and Tallests are either born or made special from the cloning chamber from the get go.

Not to mention, Membrane is Taller than the current Tallest are already...

 and you said earlier in the video that Membrane would have gone to Earth as a child...

When he was no taller than a wrapped Christmas box of socks...

So why would Membrane take refuge on Earth at this point? Mattpatt says that Membrane was sent on a mission to Earth because the Tallest felt threatened by his rule...

BY MEMBRANE’S RULE?!?

HE’S THE SIZE OF A CHRISTMAS BOX OF SOCKS!

What do they have to be threatened by? 

Because... Mattpatt DID bring up Membrane as a child earlier in the video... meaning Membrane came to earth when he was about the same size as Zim.

SO THEY HAD NOTHING TO BE WORRIED ABOUT AND HAD NO EVIDENCE TO BELIEVE MEMBRANE WOULD GROW TO BE TALL ORE EVEN VIEW HIM AS A THREAT

You bunked your own argument. Congradulations.

Membrane conquered the world through his inventions. In a way, sure. Membrane Labs does own a lot of stuff. But he doesn’t own everything. A majority of the Corporations that keep the population stupid usually don’t have anything to do with Membrane Labs and aren’t affiliated at all. 

But this does fit into the “Membrane is an Irken” theory so I will give him that one.

However, Membrane being an evil corporate dictator is a hot take I never really appreciate at all and I can never get behind it.

It hits too close to home in the real world, and I always like to view Membrane as a self-made man and a World loving hippie at his core who just wants to make the world a better place, much like his son, but he actively does something about it. (which can also be why he encourages Dib with real science so much cause he knows Dib wants to save the Earth as much as he does)

Just calling Membrane a capitalist billionaire that doesn’t care about the little guy kinda seems disingenuous towards his character for me. 

Especially when Membrane in “Ten Minutes to Doom” created a machine (foodio) that completely end world hunger... which was in BETA in the unreleased episode...

 but by the time the movie rolls around... Foodio exists... past his BETA, meaning that he’s probably no expensive than a common household microwave and can materialize food from nothing:

Yeah. Membrane completely ended world hunger off-screen. thanks. (something no capitalist would ever do...)

Membrane also does appearances for charity (in the comics), and often takes funding for sponsorships when he is low on funds and he had to find a cure for pig mouth. 

Sure “Membrane conquered the world” fits the Irken theory...

But I never appreciate that take on his character and that is admittedly, very personal bais. 

I just wanted to say my peace a little bit here about how I 100% don’t vibe with the “Membrane capitalist/billionaire scum” especially since he ended world hunger...and invented a cure for the un-common cold.

Works for the theory, so good on Mattpatt for that one, but I personally don’t vibe with it.

Mattpatt compared Zim and Dib’s head shape as something to argue... Like because Dib has a similar head shape to Zim... that Dib has to be an alien... Okay... But If you look at the Invader Zim artbook (which I own)

The show has a very distinct look on how they draw characters’ heads. It’s a very distinct stylistic choice and there are pages upon pages in the artbook describing the style and how it looks in motion, and many revision notes to the Korean animators.

There are lots of pages on the artbook describing in detail the differences between the main characters’ heads, what to do, and what not to do.

It’s a difficult style to replicate, and Dib having a big head was mostly a joke from the showrunners to the showrunners, cause they kept drawing Dib’s head slightly bigger to make him look more appealing.

A majority of the audience doesn’t really notice because all the children in the show have big heads. All the kids are like 3-4 feet tall and have huge heads. 

Also... Dib’s head is far more rounder then Zim’s in the comics and the Movie... comparing their head shape as an arguing point, when Dib’s head shape changed midway season 1 when the designs got slightly more streamlined is just... bad form..

Dib and Zim’s heads never really look the same from the early episodes as they do later on.

Comparing this character design similarity just because of the artstyle is really stupid.

This is the most infuriating thing about the video... because Mattpatt disproves his own argument with his own footage not a few seconds earlier. 

He claims that Gaz sarcastically mentioning she has a squeedly spooch is a canon fact...... but ... hmm.. Mattpatt... can I rewind the footage of your video, please?

Where’s her squeedly spooch?

IS IT BEHIND HER CLEARLY HUMAN ORGANS?! I DON’T SEE IT?

And this isn’t just a stylistic choice... here’s a picture of another human’s organs for comparison.

Mattpatt literally disproved his own argument and ignored the fact that we saw an X-ray of Gaz’s organs in the very same episode...

Gaz doesn’t have a squeedly spooch and she literally was being sarcastic.

and the whole thing is disproved very easily.

Everything Mattpatt says in between those two points, about Dib being taken aboard an alien ship as a baby, and that there is no mother, and the Clone theory... That is all good stuff and this is what the theory video should have speculated and focused on, because there is some digging to be had here... I feel he focused a lot on the wrong points in his video...

And this is the most outrageous point he makes in his video. It’s the thing that pissed me off the most... and lead me to write this essay in the first place.

He claimed Eric Trueheart himself confirmed the clone theory and had story plans where Dib would discover his clone origins.

HE DID NOT!

IN FACT, Eric Trueheart himself published Volume One of the Invader Zim script book AND THIS IS WHAT HE SAID:

Eric neither confirmed nor denied the rumor.

But for Mattpatt to blatantly say that Eric said that Clone Dib was a planned thing by the screenwriters?!

He is BLATANTLY putting words into a Screenwriter’s mouth! Something that you should NEVER do.

Because it is 100% a lie.

He had no source for this claim. He probably just read the same rumor on the wiki and has no source.

This is the reason why I don’t trust videos like Mattpatt. The truth is often stretched for entertainment value, or information is just made up to prove “they were right” about whatever the topic of the day was. He doesn’t even bother to cite the source he got “Eric Trueheart’s word of mouth” from... because it was wrong.

Sorry if this whole thing is more hostile than it intended to be... But Mattpatt was looking at the ENTIRELY wrong evidence for this show....

Irken Membrane is a fun theory... but Mattpatt picked the entirely wrong topics and points of discussion, even to the point of hiding the truth and straight-up lying to his audience about his sources.

It’s kinda like saying “Birds eat ghost peppers because they’re part dragon and dragons can handle spicy food”

While, yeah, Birds are descended from dinos, it’s kinda missing the full story there and it’s not the reason why birds can eat spicy food.

Irken Membrane is a fun fan theory... do what you want with it. I am not here to dissuade Irken Membrane headcanons...

I’m just here to encourage critical thinking, and perhaps NOT put words into content creators' mouths when there is no credible source for it just because it benefits your argument.