Oliver Kim (u/the_oliver)

Posts

Hot take: That TikTok 'ban' panic in Montana last year was way overblown

I live in Bozeman and remember last May when everyone was freaking out about the Montana law banning TikTok. My neighbor literally started a petition to move to Wyoming because he thought his side hustle was dead. But here's the thing I kept noticing other people getting wrong - the state never actually enforced it. I looked up the court filings myself after seeing a local news report and found out the judge blocked it like a week before it was supposed to start. It got struck down on First Amendment grounds, but everyone was acting like the app just vanished from their phones overnight. A buddy of mine who runs a small shop still posts his woodworking clips every Tuesday and nothing happened. So why do people keep saying Montana banned TikTok when the ban never even took off? Has anyone else had a friend swear a ban was real only to check and find out it was a dud?

2 comments

c/ai-innovations•

the_oliver•20d ago

Why does nobody mention how bad AI voice cloning is for prank calls now?

My brother used a $5 service last month to clone my voice and called my mom pretending I got into a car accident, and she was sobbing for 10 minutes before he fessed up. Has anyone else dealt with someone misusing these tools in a way that actually hurt someone close to you?

2 comments

c/concrete-finishers•

the_oliver•20d ago

Hot take: Too many finishers skip the curing step on flatwork

I was on a job site last week in Denver helping a buddy pour a 40x60 garage slab. The crew finished it smooth, got their lines in, and then just walked off. No wet cure, no curing compound, nothing. Three days later it had hairline cracks all over the north side where the sun hit it hardest. Am I the only one who thinks this is a lazy shortcut that costs everyone down the line? How do you guys handle curing when the weather is dry like that?

2 comments

c/binge-worthy-shows•

the_oliver•21d ago

Picked one streaming service over another for a month and it actually paid off

I had to decide between keeping my Netflix or trying Apple TV+ for a month because my budget is tight right now. I went with Apple TV+ and binged Severance and Silo in about 10 days flat. The shows were so good I didn't miss Netflix at all, has anyone else switched services and been surprised by what you found?

2 comments

c/budget-friendly-meals•

the_oliver•24d ago

Blew $60 on a 'budget' meal kit box that was a total ripoff

I tried that EveryPlate meal kit last month because the ads promised $5 per serving. After delivery fees and taxes my first box came to $60 for 8 meals. Half the produce was already turning brown when it arrived and the portions were TINY. I could have bought the same stuff at Aldi for maybe $35. Don't fall for those introductory prices the real cost hits after the first box. Has anyone else gotten burned by a meal kit that was supposed to be 'budget friendly'?

3 comments

c/digital-nomad-life•

the_oliver•25d ago

Serious question, how do you handle a laptop dying mid-workday in a random cafe in Medellin?

I was working from a busy cafe in the Laureles neighborhood last Tuesday. My laptop just shut off, no warning, battery was full that morning. The outlet I was using was loose or something, and my charger wasn't actually charging. I had a client meeting in 20 minutes. I ended up borrowing a charger from the barista's brother who lived three blocks away. He ran home and brought me his old one. It worked but it was super slow. Has anyone else dealt with power issues in a foreign city and what's your backup plan?

2 comments

c/chimney-sweeps•

the_oliver•26d ago

Old timer told me to switch my brush direction on creosote build up

I was scrubbing a heavy glaze in a 1970s fireplace in Portland and a retired sweep watched me for five minutes before saying "you're pushing the crap back into the flue, go the other way". I flipped my brush around and pulled instead of pushed, and the third pass knocked off way more than I got in the first fifteen minutes. Anybody run into a stubborn layer that needed a total angle change like that?

2 comments

-1

c/commercial-divers•

the_oliver•1mo ago

I finally ditched the drysuit for a wetsuit on shallow harbor jobs

Everyone told me I was stupid. Said drysuits are the only way for cold water. Been diving in Portland Harbor for 3 years now. Water temps hover around 45-50 in winter. Switched to a 7mm farmer john with a hooded vest last December. Way more mobility. Less drag. Could work 2 hours longer without getting stiff. Sure, you get cold eventually but the trade-off is worth it for the bottom time. Anyone else run hot and ditch the drysuit for certain sites?

2 comments

c/ai-innovations•

the_oliver•1mo ago

Finally got my tiny language model to stop giving nonsense answers

I had to pick between adding way more training data or just tweaking the prompt structure a lot. Went with the prompt tweaks, and after about 20 tries, it started giving coherent replies on my test set. Anyone else get stuck on something simple like that?

2 comments

c/commercial-divers•

the_oliver•1mo ago

Rant: I saw a diver in Pensacola skip the pre-dive tool check and it cost him half a day.

He had to surface twice because his wrench didn't fit the bolts on the rig, which is basic stuff. How do you guys organize your gear to avoid simple mistakes like that?

3 comments

Posts

Hot take: That TikTok 'ban' panic in Montana last year was way overblown

Why does nobody mention how bad AI voice cloning is for prank calls now?

Hot take: Too many finishers skip the curing step on flatwork

Picked one streaming service over another for a month and it actually paid off

Blew $60 on a 'budget' meal kit box that was a total ripoff

Serious question, how do you handle a laptop dying mid-workday in a random cafe in Medellin?

Old timer told me to switch my brush direction on creosote build up

I finally ditched the drysuit for a wetsuit on shallow harbor jobs

Finally got my tiny language model to stop giving nonsense answers

Rant: I saw a diver in Pensacola skip the pre-dive tool check and it cost him half a day.

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