You might wonder how I got here. I was looking into chiptune music, and a colleague recommended Jeremy Blake’s music, which is indeed awesome if you are into this stuff. I recommend listening to his album called “Superstructures”. This album is created using a tracker, similar to the trackers I used on the Amiga 500 back in the days. My favorites were Protracker and later when I had a MIDI keyboard Octamed. It turns out Jeremy is using a Dirtywave M8, which can also be built using open source software and one of these handheld gaming consoles. Houston we have a project!
Tag: opinion
The danger is the point.
I recently came accross a text on riding motorcycles and the danger that comes with it. I hope that the text below makes you realize that in some hobbies, the danger is actually the point:
People who do not ride think the danger is the problem. They are wrong about that. The danger is part of the point. Not in a reckless way. Not in a death wish way. In an honest way.
A motorcycle does not pretend to be safe. It does not wrap you in steel and airbags and tell you everything is fine. It puts you out in the open and it tells you the truth. This is real. Pay attention. That is the thing nobody talks about.
The thrill and the danger are not two separate things. They are the same thing. The reason it feels so alive is because it actually matters. Mistakes have consequences out here.
The stakes are real and something happens to a person when the stakes are real. You wake up, you focus, you stop thinking about everything else because there is no room for it. There is only the road and the bike in the next corner.
Most of modern life is built to remove risk, to smooth everything over, to make sure nothing can ever go wrong. A motorcycle gives it back to you. The danger, the focus, the feeling of being awake.
It is not safe. That was never the point. The point is that it is real.
For me this resonates very much with riding the S1000RR on several tracks in Europe with the awesome Racing School Europe. Nothing comes close to trying to hit your brake point at the end of the Mugello Straight while going over 300kph and forcing your head and eyes to look at the next markers so you actually make the corner. The importance of getting it right makes the fog in your brain disappear.
Addictive Intelligence
The past months were hectic. Artificial Intelligence has changed my daily work faster than I expected. In just a few weeks, it went from a fun experiment to something that reshaped how I “write” software, how I think, and even how tired my brain feels at the end of the day. It brings cool new possibilities, but also new challenges. I thought I’d write some of it down for future reference.
Are you de-skilling?
This week a colleage of mine shared an interesting video describing AI (mainly Suno) as problematic to the musical industry in the sense that musicians will become less and less skilled in making truly original music. It coins the term “de-skilling”, which perfectly captures something I also see in the software development area, even though it is beautifully hidden by the “impressive results”.
GT7 Safety Ratings Broken
I regularly play Gran Turismo 7 on my playstation 5. Fanatec Direct Drive steering wheel, seat, pedals, the works. I even have a pit crew telling me when my tyres are warm or cold, and which laps I need to pit in by using EzioDash Pro. I put great effort in keeping my SR (Safety Rating) as high as possible, hoping that I get placed in lobbies where people behave. I very regularly get the “Clean Race” bonus, and my SR is maxed out. Yet still I get into lobbies with dimwits like NicoTabe or JabCrash. Last week I noticed that these dirty drivers actually get increased safety ratings. This video clearly shows the problem:
Warmtestore review
Toen we een huis kochten met een open haard, was ik super enthausiast. Een vuurtje stoken was al snel gedaan en het oogt en ruikt fantastisch. Het enige nadeel van een open haard is dat er niet veel warmte vanaf komt: het rendement van een open haard is zo’n 15%. Al snel keken we naar een haard (niet open dus), omdat dat makkelijker stookt, veiliger is, minder rook en stank produceert, en niet onbelangrijk: het rendement van een gesloten haard is zo’n 75% tot 85%.
Apple Watch 8 Uninstalled
After wearing a simple Pulsar analog watch for years, and then not wearing a watch at all, I convinced myself a month ago that an Apple Watch 8 would be an improvement. Part of that decision was based on my hipster IT colleagues being surprised I was not wearing a smartwatch. I also noticed my girlfriend practically can’t live without hers, and then I saw this endless stream of youtube videos with raving reviews of (lets be honest) pretty biased people.
Salarisverhoging Leraren Basisschool
Ben je leraar in het basisonderwijs en wil je weten wat je nieuwe salaris wordt nu er een akkoord is over het dichten van de salariskloof tussen het PO (Primair Onderwijs / basisonderwijs) en het VO (Voortgezet Onderwijs)? Aan de hand van de huidige salarisschalen voor PO, salarisschalen voor VO, en de uitleg van de Algemene Onderwijsbond kom ik op onderstaande nieuwe schalen, treden en salarissen.
Voor uw eigen veligheid
Sinds 21 maart vraagt onze regering ons om binnen te blijven bij verkoudheidsklachten. Sinds 23 maart last onze regering alle bijeenkomsten en evenementen af. Dat de KNVB denkt dat die regel niet voor hen geldt is nog even tot daaraantoe. Toch wordt onze vrijheid niet zodanig beperkt dat we niet naar buiten kunnen, of zelfs tegen het advies in elkaar kunnen bezoeken. Wat ook niet is veranderd is dat we net als de KNVB vinden dat maatregelen vooral over anderen gaan, en niet over onszelf.
Even geen donor meer
“Niertransplantatiefietsen” worden ze onder artsen wel eens genoemd. Tot nu toe had je grote kans dat je de nieren, longen of andere organen van deze gezonde motorrijder had kunnen ontvangen. Zodra ik me mocht registreren heb ik gelijk aangegeven dat ik volledig donor wil zijn. Omdat ik niet geloof in leven na de dood, en wel geloof in het helpen van anderen.