No bother!

For customization, you want a MUD client rather than a standard telnet client. I used zMUD back in the day, but FLOSS was harder to come by back then. These days, I’d go with mudlet.

I never really paid attention to the level gain ratio. I’d look here for that kind of question.

Since people are posting games, I’ll throw in Realms of Despair

$126,500 per person, plus another $20,240 in housing expenses. Plus your $13,850 standard deduction (though if you’re making that much you’re probably itemizing for more). So $160,590 for an individual or $321,180 for married filing jointly. That’s assuming no kids and no other deductions or credits - which is pretty unlikely at that income level.

$160,590 is the 93rd percentile for US income distribution. So yeah, if you (AND your partner, if any) are both in the top 7% income bracket, bad at tax preparation, and don’t hire an accountant, you might still pay tax on the income over that amount. Of course, making that much while keeping the kind of ethics that let you care about anyone other than yourself is a nontrivial endeavor.

Don’t forget that your foreign employer won’t be reporting to the IRS. So if your protest extends to not voluntarily reporting that excess income …

Not necessarily. There is a foreign earned income exclusion, so if you pay income taxes on it in the country where you’re living you don’t pay taxes to the US.

A less euphemistic term in English is “regulatory capture”

Probably by buying and then sitting on the patents

The way this works in the server world is “95th percentile” billing. They track your bandwidth usage over the course of the month (probably in 5 minute intervals), strike off the 5% highest peaks, and your bill for the month is based on the highest usage remaining.

That’s considerably more honest than charging you based solely on the highest usage you could theoretically use at any time point in a 24 hour period (which is how ISPs define the “max bandwidth”) and then charging you again or cutting off your service if you use more than a certain amount they won’t even put in writing.

Completely different flavor, unfortunately

They are

Longevity. Good headphones will have replaceable batteries, cheaper ones can still be opened up to replace them fairly easily. Batteries to fit most earbuds are much harder to source, even if you can open them up without completely destroying them.

If you do your research, a couple of earbuds use button cells that can be replaced with minimal soldering (particularly the Galaxy Buds).

Headphones often also come with a 3.5" removable plug, useful if you want to use them as a computer headset.

Earbuds are generally more acceptable in stores and other places where you need to interact with other people.

Good news - you still can!

Seriously, open a new tab on your browser NOW and jump on eBay or whatever and buy it. Even if you aren’t surprised by how much fun it still is (which you probably will be), you’ll be able to stop regretting NOT having it. No downside!

Assuming this is USA, the phrase you’re looking for is “Am I being detained, or am I free to go?”

For a more detailed answer, this is what the ACLU has to say.

Off topic, but as a pen lover - those are lovely! Especially enjoyed the second two from the left.

You don’t need to run an X server on the headless server. As long as the libraries are compiled in to the client software (the GUI app), it will work. No GUI would need to be installed on the headless server, and the libraries are present in any common Linux distro already (and support would be compiled into a GUI-only app unless it was Wayland-only).

I agree that a GUI-only installer is a bad thing, but the parent was saying they didn’t know how it could be done. “ssh -X” (or -Y) is how.

ssh -X

literally no one will ever have that problem, but lets humor your ridiculous made up bullshit

Wow, your username really fits.

Actually, it’s a description of some of the issues I’m dealing with right now. And yes, we’re DIYing it with RJ45 wired switching outlets on a separate vlan and subnet. And yes, we use a chest freezer.

And yes, there are more automatic and passive ways to do some of these things, like planting deciduous trees to shade your south wall in summer but not winter. Not everyone owns their home and land though.

There are problems they can actually solve, mostly heating and power related:

• In summer, lower the blinds on south facing windows when the sun comes up to reduce solar heating, then raise them in the evening to increase air flow against the window panes. This reduces the need for air conditioning, resulting in a surprising amount of power saved.

• On a home solar system, start the washing machine, dishwasher, and dryer that were loaded in the morning when the batteries reach 80% charge. Allow them to run off the inverter rather than taking the charge/discharge losses involved in battery storage, reducing the size of both battery bank and solar array needed.

• Lower the freezer temperature when there is a power surplus, and raise it back to normal when not so that cooling energy is used when it’s cheapest/most available

If you don’t work from home, you can’t do the second two yourself. They require automation. Reducing baseload requirements and battery storage needs can make a transition to renewable power much cheaper and more efficient. With mass adoption, that extends to power grids and not just off-grid homes, and has significant effects on things like the amount of lithium that needs to be mined or the number of coal and LNG power plants that are needed for times that are off-peak for wind and solar generation.

NEW TP POOL REGULATIONS

I’ve been asked to distribute the new regulations regarding office pool displays. The enclosed memo is a new subchapter of the EBGOC Procedure Manual, replacing the old subchapter entitled PHYSICAL PLANT/CALIFORNIA/ LOS ANGELES/BUILDINGS/OFFICE AREAS/PHYSICAL LAYOUT REGULATIONS/EMPLOYEE INPUT/ GROUP ACTIVITIES.

The old subchapter was a flat prohibition on the use of office space or time for “pool” activities of any kind, whether permanent (e.g., coffee pool) or one-time (e.g., birthday parties).

This prohibition still applies, but a single, one-time exception has now been made for any office that wishes to pursue a joint bathroom-tissue strategy.

By way of introduction, let me just make a few general comments on this subject. The problem of distributing bathroom tissue to workers presents inherent challenges for any office management system due to the inherent unpredictability of usage-not every facility usage transaction necessitates the use of bathroom tissue, and when it is used, the amount needed (number of squares) may vary quite widely from person to person and, for a given person, from one transaction to the next. This does not even take into account the occasional use of bathroom tissue for unpredictable/creative purposes such as applying/removing cosmetics, beverage-spill management, etc. For this reason, rather than trying to package bathroom tissue in small one-transaction packets (as is done with premoistened towelettes, for example), which can be wasteful in some cases and limiting in other cases, it has been traditional to package this product in bulk distribution units whose size exceeds the maximum amount of squares that an individual could conceivably use in a single transaction (barring force majeure). This reduces to a minimum the number of transactions in which the distribution unit is depleted (the roll runs out) during the transaction, a situation that can lead to emotional stress for the affected employee.

However, it does present the manager with some challenges in that the distribution unit is rather bulky and must be repeatedly used by a number of different individuals if it is not to be wasted.

Since the implementation of Phase XVII of the Austerity Program, employees have been allowed to bring their own bathroom tissue from home. This approach is somewhat bulky and redundant, as every worker usually brings their own roll.

Some offices have attempted to meet this challenge by instituting bathroom-tissue pools. Without overgeneralizing, it may be stated that an inherent and irreducible feature of any bathroom-tissue pool implemented at the office level, in an environment (i.e., building) in which comfort stations are distributed on a per-floor basis (i.e., in which several offices share a single facility) is that provision must be made within the confines of the individual office for temporary stationing of bathroom tissue distribution units (i.e., rolls). This follows from the fact that if the BTDUs (rolls) are stationed, while inactive, outside of the purview of the controlling office (i.e., the office that has collectively purchased the BTDU)-that is, if the BTDUS are stored, for example, in a lobby area or within the facility in which they are actually utilized, they will be subject to pilferage and “shrinkage” as unauthorized persons consume them, either as part of a conscious effort to pilfer or out of an honest misunderstanding, i.e., a belief that the BTDUs are being provided free of charge by the operating agency (in this case the United States Government), or as the result of necessity, as in the case of a beverage spill that is encroaching on sensitive electronic equipment and whose management will thus brook no delay. This fact has led certain offices (which shall go unnamed-you know who you are, guys) to establish makeshift BTDU depots that also serve as pool-contribution collection points. Usually, these depots take the form of a table, near the door closest to the facility, on which the BTDUs are stacked or otherwise deployed, with a bowl or some other receptacle in which participants may place their contributions, and typically with a sign or other attention-getting device (such as a stuffed animal or cartoon) requesting donations. A quick glance at the current regulations will show that placement of such a display/depot violates the procedure manual. However, in the interests of employee hygiene, morale, and group spirit-building, my higher-ups have agreed to make a one-time exception in the regulations for this purpose.

As with any part of the procedure manual, new or old, it is your responsibility to be thoroughly familiar with this material. Estimated reading time for this document is 15.62 minutes (and don’t think we won’t check). Please make note of the major points made in this document, as follows:

BTDU depot/displays are now allowed, on a trial basis, with the new policy to be reviewed in six months. These must be operated on a voluntary, pool-type basis, as described in the subchapter on employee pools. (Note: This means keeping books and tallying all financial transactions.) BTDUS must be brought in by the employees (not shipped through the mailroom) and are subject to all the usual search-and-seizure regulations. Scented BTDUs are prohibited as they may cause allergic reactions, wheezing, etc. in some persons. Cash poool donations, as with all monetary transactions within the U.S. Government, must use official U.S. currency-no yen or Kongbucks.

Naturally, this will lead to a bulk problem if people try to use the donation bucket as a dumping ground for bundles of old billion and trillion dollar bills. The Buildings and Grounds people are worried about waste-disposal problems and the potential fire hazard that may ensue if large piles of billions and trillions begin to mount up. Therefore, a key feature of the new regulation is that the donation bucket must be emptied every day-more often if an excessive build-up situation is seen to develop.

In this vein, the B & C people would also like me to point out that many of you who have excess U.S. currency to get rid of have been trying to kill two birds with one stone by using old billions as bathroom tissue. While creative, this approach has two drawbacks:

1. It clogs the plumbing, and
2. It constitutes defacement of U.S. currency, which is a federal crime.

DON’T DO IT. Join your office bathroom-tissue pool instead. It’s easy, it’s hygienic, and it’s legal.

Happy pooling, Marietta.

– Neil Stephenson Snow Crash