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1 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/…
2 <channel>
3 <title><![CDATA[Rudism.com]]></title>
4 <description><![CDATA[Rudism.com]]></description>
5 <link>https://rudism.com</link>
6 <generator>RSS for Node</generator>
7 <lastBuildDate>Mon, 14 Jun 2021 16:19:33 GMT</lastBuildDate>
8 <atom:link href="https://rudism.com/rss.xml" rel="self" type="ap…
9 <item>
10 <title><![CDATA[Pinebook Pro Arch Linux Alternative]]></titl…
11 <description><![CDATA[<p>In a <a href="/installing-arch-linu…
12 <ul>
13 <li>Full-disk LUKS encryption on root partition</li>
14 <li>Minimal Manjaro install on the <em>Unstable</em> branch</li>
15 </ul>
16 <p>I take no responsibility for anything good or bad that happens as a r…
17 <h2 id="Step-1-Obtain-Manjaro"><a href="#Step-1-Obtain-Manjaro" class="h…
18 <p>It’s an <code>xz</code> archive, so decompress it and write it to a…
19 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
20
21 <h3 id="Step-1-1-Boot-Manjaro"><a href="#Step-1-1-Boot-Manjaro" class="h…
22 <h2 id="Step-2-Connect-to-the-Internet"><a href="#Step-2-Connect-to-the-…
23 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
24
25 <p>Obviously put your own wifi SSID and password in at the prompts. If y…
26 <p>At this point I did a <code>sudo pacman -Syyu</code> to update my SD …
27 <p>After my system update completed, I rebooted.</p>
28 <h2 id="Step-3-Install-the-Manjaro-Installer"><a href="#Step-3-Install-t…
29 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
30
31 <p>The instructions then say you need to reboot. I was skeptical, but di…
32 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
33
34 <h2 id="Step-4-Install-Manjaro"><a href="#Step-4-Install-Manjaro" class=…
35 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
36
37 <p>Then I started the installer:</p>
38 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
39
40 <p>From the menus that followed I selected Pinebook Pro (obviously), Min…
41 <p>For the filesystem I chose <code>ext4</code>, and I selected <code>Ye…
42 <p>After a little while it spit out a fun little message:</p>
43 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
44
45 <p>I stuck my fingers in my ears and said “LA LA LA” and pretended n…
46 <p>I was also prompted a couple times to set my full disk encryption pas…
47 <p>Near the end after it did a system update and ran <code>mkinitcpio</c…
48 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
49
50 <h2 id="Step-5-Reboot-and-Fix-Stuff"><a href="#Step-5-Reboot-and-Fix-Stu…
51 <p>At this point you’ll want to connect to wifi again, which I did by …
52 <p>Now, I’ll be completely honest here. I don’t really understand th…
53 <p>The next step I don’t understand is to get rid of the weird CRC err…
54 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
55
56 <h2 id="Step-6-Optional-Steps"><a href="#Step-6-Optional-Steps" class="h…
57 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
58
59 <p>I also installed <code>base-devel</code> and <code>yay-bin</code> (my…
60 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
61
62 <p><code>plymouth</code> is already installed on Manjaro, so I took some…
63 <p>This fixed that:</p>
64 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
65
66 <p>I’ve noticed that some time after booting I get the following error…
67 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
68
69 <p>I don’t know what that is or how to fix it yet. Everything seems to…
70 <p><strong>Edit:</strong> After a bit more tweaking, here is the <code>m…
71 <p><code>/etc/mkinitcpio.conf</code>:</p>
72 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
73
74 <p>Remember to run <code>sudo mkinitcpio -P</code> if you edit that file…
75 <hr>
76 <p><strong>Note:</strong> This is a highly cleaned-up and euphemistic ac…
77 ]]></description>
78 <link>https://rudism.com/pinebook-pro-arch-linux-alternative…
79 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/pinebook-pro-arc…
80 <pubDate>Sun, 13 Jun 2021 13:39:00 GMT</pubDate>
81 </item>
82 <item>
83 <title><![CDATA[Three Million CE - Episode 6]]></title>
84 <description><![CDATA[<p>The station’s docking bay doors s…
85 <p>It wasn’t normal. Mining colonies in the Orubus Belt were xenophobi…
86 <p>“Initiating automatic docking procedure.”</p>
87 <p>The ship’s voice reminded Dak of his sister, to the extent that he …
88 <p>“What do your scans show, Aylix?” Dak asked out loud.</p>
89 <p>“There are three thousand seven hundred and three humanoid lifeform…
90 <p>Dak nodded. The station grew larger on the viewscreen at a steady pac…
91 <p>“I recommend caution,” Aylix added. “It could be a trap.”</p>
92 <p>Dak changed into his carbon fiber bodysuit while Aylix finished docki…
93 <p>“Best watch yourself here, stranger,” said one of the men. “We …
94 <p>“Appreciate the warm welcome,” said Dak. “Your message mentione…
95 <p>The miner who had spoken–a toothpick compared to his silent compani…
96 <p>“When she needs to,” said Dak. “Will she need to?”</p>
97 <p>“I reckon she will,” said the miner. “Come. The Foreman will gi…
98 <p>The taller, heavier, less talkative miner stepped forward and held ou…
99 <p>“No weapons, no job,” said the smaller miner. “No job, no rewar…
100 <p>Dak sighed.</p>
101 <p>The interior of the station was hewn from rusty metal pipes. The wall…
102 <p>The two miners led Dak up a set of rattling stairs to a catwalk overl…
103 <p>In the room, sitting behind a desk, was the most obese man Dak had ev…
104 <p>The miners waited outside the office. They didn’t bother introducin…
105 <p>“I take it you’re interested in the reward,” the Foreman said. …
106 <p>“Syphon,” said Dak. “Dak Syphon.”</p>
107 <p>The Foreman leaned forward in his chair. “We can’t offer currency…
108 <p>Dak put the bottle back down on the desk. “What’s the job?”</p>
109 <p>“There’s a large debris field on the other side of our planetoid,…
110 <p>“You want me to retrieve it?” asked Dak.</p>
111 <p>“Hardly,” said the Foreman. “I want you to destroy it, and idea…
112 <p>Dak blinked. “The… necromancer?”</p>
113 <p>“Yeah. The necromancer. A magister of the dark arts,” continued t…
114 <p>Dak crossed his arms. Was the Foreman pulling his leg, or just stupid…
115 <p>“He’s been sabotaging the station, making us look like fools when…
116 <p>“Kidnapping?” asked Dak.</p>
117 <p>“Aye,” said the Foreman. “Two younglings went missing from thei…
118 <p>“The necromancer took them?” Dak asked incredulously.</p>
119 <p>“Look,” sighed the Foreman. “I don’t need you to believe me. …
120 <p>“And the kids?” asked Dak.</p>
121 <p>“The ship is the job,” said the Foreman. Then he shrugged. “If …
122 <p>It seemed like a simple enough task, despite all the nonsense about n…
123 <p>Dak shook hands, then returned to the catwalk where the two miners wa…
124 <p>“Dak, can you hear me?” Aylix’s voice sounded in Dak’s head. …
125 <p>Dak sighed loudly.</p>
126 <p>“Never mind, don’t answer,” said Aylix. “I know how much you …
127 <p>If this colony was like the one he grew up in, then Dak knew the answ…
128 <p>“If they can walk, they can work,” the skinny miner shouted. “Y…
129 <p>Dak gritted his teeth.</p>
130 <p>“Those poor kids,” Aylix said through his lattice. </p>
131 <p>“Yeah,” whispered Dak, hoping that the clattering and hissing mac…
132 <p>“Did you say something?” the skinny miner shouted.</p>
133 <p>“God damn it,” said Dak.</p>
134 <hr>
135 <p>Calling the debris field “large” had been an understatement. The …
136 <p>“Any sign of the freighter, Aylix?” asked Dak.</p>
137 <p>“Scanning,” said Aylix. “It may take a while, there’s a lot o…
138 <p>Dak leaned back in his seat and put his feet up on the cockpit dash. …
139 <p>“Was that anything like the colony you grew up in?” Aylix asked t…
140 <p>“Mmm hmm,” said Dak. “Not as bad though. They didn’t send us …
141 <p>“Did you work in the mines?” asked Aylix.</p>
142 <p>A distant memory forced itself into Dak’s consciousness. His Forema…
143 <p>“I… left before I turned fourteen,” said Dak.</p>
144 <p>“What happened?” asked Aylix.</p>
145 <p>“An accident,” said Dak. “My sister, she…”</p>
146 <p>“You mean Aylix,” interrupted Aylix. “My namesake.”</p>
147 <p>“She… died. I didn’t want any part of the colony after that.”…
148 <p>“And they let you leave?” asked Aylix.</p>
149 <p>“No, it wasn’t that easy. I had to…”</p>
150 <p>“Are you telling me the truth, Dak?” interrupted Aylix.</p>
151 <p>Dak remained silent.</p>
152 <p>“What did you do, Dak?” asked Aylix.</p>
153 <p>Dak shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut.</p>
154 <p>“What did you do to me?” Dak’s sister’s voice pleaded over hi…
155 <p>“Shut up!” cried Dak. “We’re done talking about this.”</p>
156 <p>“A probe has located the freighter,” said Aylix, no longer using …
157 <p>Dak leaned toward the viewscreen. “Show me.”</p>
158 <p>The viewscreen flickered, then centered on a large shadow, slowly dri…
159 <p>“Looks like a derelict,” said Dak.</p>
160 <p>“The probe detects five humanoid lifeforms aboard,” said Aylix.</…
161 <p>The math added up. One kidnapper plus four kids. Dak grimaced. Firing…
162 <p>“Move in,” said Dak. “Let’s see if necromancers answer their …
163 <hr>
164 <p>They had stolen the smallest mining skiff they could find, figuring i…
165 <p>“Relax, Sh’ren,” said Jotu. “If anyone was following us, they…
166 <p>“Did we do the right thing, Jotu?” asked Sh’ren.</p>
167 <p>“Of course,” said Jotu. He reached over and stilled her fidgeting…
168 <p>Jotu placed his hand on Sh’ren’s belly. “You’ve started showi…
169 <p>“But we have nothing, Jotu!” said Sh’ren. “Where will we go? …
170 <p>The door to the cargo bay flew open, and Taila and Koru burst into th…
171 <p>“No!” Taila cried as she climbed onto Sh’ren’s lap. “We don…
172 <p>“Yeah!” said Koru, puffing his chest out. “I hate the colony! I…
173 <p>“What have I told you two about eavesdropping?” Sh’ren scolded …
174 <p>“Yes, Sh’ren,” the two children said together. Taila slunk to t…
175 <p>“Such brats,” said Sh’ren, though her warm smile revealed how s…
176 <p>“I do too,” said Jotu. “That is why we can’t go back. What li…
177 <p>“Stop it!” said Sh’ren. She started weeping. “Just stop!”</…
178 <p>Jotu squeezed Sh’ren’s hands. “When you became their matron you…
179 <p>“But where will we go?” Sh’ren asked, staring hard at Jotu thro…
180 <p>Jotu let go of Sh’ren’s hands and looked away. It was time to tel…
181 <p>“Jotu? What is it?”</p>
182 <p>Jotu closed his eyes. “Before we left, I was in contact with… Wit…
183 <p>Jotu retrieved a small object from a pouch on his belt and held it ou…
184 <p>“It’s a communication device,” said Jotu. “I can use it to si…
185 <p>“Who gave this to you, Jotu? Who in the colony would dare keep such…
186 <p>“He is not of the colony,” said Jotu. “Not anymore.”</p>
187 <p>Sh’ren’s eyes opened wide, and the color drained from her face. �…
188 <p>“He is not what they say he is,” said Jotu. “He is my… He wis…
189 <p>“He is a necromancer!” shouted Sh’ren.</p>
190 <p>“That is not true,” said Jotu, trying hard to remain calm. “The…
191 <p>“Do not speak his name!” Sh’ren cried in horror. She put her he…
192 <p>Sh’ren’s quiet weeping pierced Jotu’s heart. His confession had…
193 <hr>
194 <p>After a cycle of careful navigation through scattered wreckage and de…
195 <p>“We’ve been spotted,” said Aylix. “The freighter’s hailing …
196 <p>“Bring it up on screen.”</p>
197 <p>A man’s head appeared on the viewscreen. A hood obscured the top ha…
198 <p>“Go away,” said the man.</p>
199 <p>“I’ll be happy to,” said Dak. “Once the children are safely r…
200 <p>“The children are none of your concern,” the man barked back. “…
201 <p>Aylix spoke through Dak’s lattice. “He’s bluffing. The freighte…
202 <p>“I’m not leaving without the children,” said Dak. He meant it. …
203 <p>The man on the viewscreen fidgeted with his beard, then his expressio…
204 <p>“I know they’re not dead,” said Dak slowly. “I scan all four …
205 <p>The man’s steely expression gave way to panic. “What? No, those a…
206 <p>The viewscreen blinked off.</p>
207 <p>“He’s powering up the freighter’s engines,” said Aylix.</p>
208 <p>“He’s running?” asked Dak.</p>
209 <p>“Unlikely. The freighter’s propulsion systems are too structurall…
210 <p>Dak stroked his chin. “What kind of engines?”</p>
211 <p>“Primitive combustion tech,” replied Aylix.</p>
212 <p>“If the propulsion systems are shot, where does the energy go?” a…
213 <p>“Nowhere,” said Aylix. “It stays in the engines.”</p>
214 <p>Dak’s eyes opened wide. “Does that mean what I think it means?”…
215 <p>“Yes,” said Aylix. “Judging from the energy accumulation rate, …
216 <p>Dak nodded. “Hypothetically speaking, how much time would we need t…
217 <p><em>“Hypothetically,”</em> said Aylix, “a hundred millicycles s…
218 <p>“So, another hundred fifty to cut through the freighter’s hull. W…
219 <p>“More like five hundred and eighty, now,” said Aylix.</p>
220 <p>“Do it,” said Dak.</p>
221 <p>“What happened to hypothetical?” asked Aylix.</p>
222 <p>“Shit’s about to get real,” said Dak.</p>
223 <hr>
224 <p>After she calmed down, Sh’ren left to tell stories to the youngling…
225 <p>An incoming message beeped on his console. Jotu reached back and clos…
226 <p>“Father,” said Jotu. “We’ve reached the coordinates. Are you …
227 <p>Kareth shook his head and frowned.</p>
228 <p>Jotu shifted uneasily in his seat. “What’s wrong, Father?”</p>
229 <p>“I can’t join you as planned, Jotu. You must use the stone as I s…
230 <p>“Why!?” interrupted Jotu. “You said you’d join us! We can’t…
231 <p>“Jotu!” Kareth commanded. Jotu fell silent.</p>
232 <p>“It is no longer safe to wait,” continued Kareth. “Signal a shi…
233 <p>“I don’t want to leave you, Father,” said Jotu. He fought the t…
234 <p>“Fear is a transient thing,” said Kareth. “You mustn’t let it…
235 <p>Jotu sniffled. “Yes, but you’re not…”</p>
236 <p>“But you overcame,” interrupted Kareth. “You were scared when y…
237 <p>“Yes, but…”</p>
238 <p>“But nothing,” said Kareth. “Fear must drive action, not inacti…
239 <p>Jotu thought back to the night he first found the stone and heard Kar…
240 <p>“Very well, Father,” said Jotu. “I will do as you say.”</p>
241 <p>Kareth nodded. “Jotu, my son. Before you go, know that I…”</p>
242 <p>A sound from behind Kareth interrupted him. He turned, facing away fr…
243 <p>“Father? What happened?” Jotu said, leaning forward.</p>
244 <p>“Why are you here?” cried Kareth, stepping away from the viewscre…
245 <p>Jotu’s heart raced. He slammed his fists on the console. He watched…
246 <p>There was a flash. Kareth toppled backwards and his arms flailed. For…
247 <p>“Father!” Jotu screamed. His breath came to him in short gasps. H…
248 <p>The smoke cleared, and a figure moved forward into focus–a man in a…
249 <p>Jotu’s eyes narrowed. Once Sh’ren and the children are safe, he t…
250 <hr>
251 <p>Dak didn’t like the look the kid was giving him. He knew that look.…
252 <p>The ship rumbled. A twang sounded above Dak’s head, and he ducked t…
253 <p>Dak took a closer look at the body on the ground. The so-called necro…
254 <p>“Time’s almost up, Dak,” Aylix said through the lattice. “Gra…
255 <p>The ship rumbled again. The ceiling in the corner of the room collaps…
256 <p>“I don’t see any kids,” said Dak.</p>
257 <p>“You’re right on top of them,” said Aylix. “The engines are b…
258 <p>The fog of dust from the collapsed ceiling thinned as it settled. Dak…
259 <p>“The engines have melted through their housings,” warned Aylix as…
260 <p>Through a small rectangular window on the nearest pod, dark-skinned w…
261 <p>“They’re in some kind of pods,” said Dak. “Too heavy to move.…
262 <p>“Come back,” said Aylix. “If the engines don’t blow first, an…
263 <p>Dak ran his hands up and down the sides of the woman’s pod, failing…
264 <p>“Dak, you don’t want to die like this. Not like I did.” Aylix w…
265 <p>Dak pounded his fist against the coffin-like pod in frustration. He t…
266 <p>Running as fast as his legs could take him, lungs burning as he gaspe…
267 <p>“Plotting a course for anywhere-but-here, top speed…” Aylix’s…
268 <p>“No!” cried Dak. “Not yet!”</p>
269 <p>“Those engines are going to explode any nanocycle now, and take us …
270 <p>“Wait!” Dak struggled to his feet. He felt faint, and his skin wa…
271 <p>“Use the pulse cannon, cut away the hull of the room I was in,” s…
272 <p>“Dak, this is crazy,” said Aylix. “You’re putting yourself in…
273 <p>“Do it!” yelled Dak.</p>
274 <p>The viewscreen lit up with the pulse cannon’s blast. A section of t…
275 <p>“Zoom in,” said Dak. The viewscreen magnified the blasted section…
276 <p>“Dak! You don’t want her! She’s not worth…”</p>
277 <p>“There!” Among the floating shards of hull, Dak spotted two of th…
278 <p>“Emergency protocols activated,” came Aylix’s voice.</p>
279 <p>A slight vibration rattled through the ship. The viewscreen became a …
280 <p>“Wait! What the fuck are you doing?” cried Dak. “The pod…!”…
281 <p>The viewscreen flashed, bathing the cockpit in brilliant white light.…
282 <hr>
283 <p>Two miners stood guard next to Aylix’s open cargo bay doors. The sa…
284 <p>“Where’s my payment?” asked Dak.</p>
285 <p>“The Foreman’s on his way,” said the smaller miner. Dak wondere…
286 <p>Why was the Foreman getting involved? Dak’s business with the colon…
287 <p>Every inch of Dak’s skin burned and itched. Daggers pierced his mus…
288 <p>“I don’t like this,” Aylix said through Dak’s lattice.</p>
289 <p>Dak didn’t like it either, but he needed the fuel and moonshine mor…
290 <p>“Mister Syphon,” the Foreman’s voice rang across the docking ba…
291 <p>“The necromancer is dead,” said Dak. “Pay and I’ll be on my w…
292 <p>“Ah, about that,” said the Foreman. “It’s my understanding th…
293 <p>Dak shook his head. “I shot him.”</p>
294 <p>“You have proof of this?” asked the Foreman. “How do I know you…
295 <p>“You think <em>this</em> happened to me in the comfort of my ship?�…
296 <p>The foreman scratched his chin, a smug expression on his face. His ey…
297 <p>“Seems I’m mistaken,” said the Foreman. “You were on the frei…
298 <p>Dak followed the Foreman’s gaze to the rear of Aylix’s cargo bay.…
299 <p>“I have nothing that belongs to you,” Dak sneered.</p>
300 <p>“Well, perhaps not to me,” said the Foreman. “A Takkah barge ca…
301 <p>The foreman nodded at the two miners. The smaller one aimed his rifle…
302 <p>“Dak…” Aylix said through his lattice. “Dak think hard before…
303 <p>“Exactly,” Dak said out loud. “Three…”</p>
304 <p>The Foreman looked at Dak and cocked his head. “What did you…”<…
305 <p>The smaller miner was the first to fall. A hole ripped through his br…
306 <p>“Two…”</p>
307 <p>Before the first miner’s corpse hit the ground, Dak hit the second …
308 <p>“One…”</p>
309 <p>The Foreman looked wide eyed at the two bodies, then fell to his knee…
310 <p>“Wait!” cried the Foreman. “Don’t you realize what Takkah wil…
311 <p>Dak studied the dark tattoo splayed across the fat man’s face. He w…
312 <p>“I don’t know,” said Dak. “Maybe something like this?”</p>
313 <p>He pulled the trigger. The Foreman’s body slumped forward with a sa…
314 <p>“Zero.”</p>
315 <p>Dak put his hands on his hips and turned to face Aylix. “Well,” h…
316 <p>“No shit,” said Aylix.</p>
317 <p>“They’re probably not going to pay me now,” said Dak.</p>
318 <p>“No shit,” said Aylix.</p>
319 <p>“We better get outta here,” said Dak.</p>
320 <p>“No shit,” said Aylix.</p>
321 ]]></description>
322 <link>https://rudism.com/three-million-ce-episode-06/</link>
323 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/three-million-ce…
324 <pubDate>Sun, 25 Apr 2021 23:11:00 GMT</pubDate>
325 </item>
326 <item>
327 <title><![CDATA[No Podcast This Month (03/21)]]></title>
328 <description><![CDATA[<p>Unfortunately I haven’t had enoug…
329 ]]></description>
330 <link>https://rudism.com/no-podcast-this-month-03-21/</link>
331 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/no-podcast-this-…
332 <pubDate>Sat, 27 Mar 2021 21:23:00 GMT</pubDate>
333 </item>
334 <item>
335 <title><![CDATA[Three Million CE - Episode 5]]></title>
336 <description><![CDATA[<p>There was no doubt about it–the o…
337 <p>Zuli made the sign of the Prophets across her face and muttered a sho…
338 <p>“Are you certain of these coordinates?” Zuli said. “They are ta…
339 <p>“Yes, I’m sure!” the old man’s voice came crackling over the …
340 <p>Zuli frowned. She had no intention of breaking her promise.</p>
341 <p>“No worries,” Zuli said. “The Prophets shall watch over us, eve…
342 <p>“Yeah, yeah,” the old man’s voice blurted. “Just let me know …
343 <p>Zuli scowled and released her finger from the comm button. She made t…
344 <p>Zuli flicked her finger across the navigational chart on her console …
345 <p>A red dot started flashing inside the empty map of the Orubus Belt. Z…
346 <p>A distress signal! Based on its proximity to their destination, inter…
347 <p>“What are you doing? Why have you changed course?” the old man’…
348 <p>Zuli sighed. “No worries, friend,” she replied. “I have detecte…
349 <p>“No!” cried the old man. “You promised to take me!”</p>
350 <p>“I did promise,” said Zuli. “And I will take you. If you are un…
351 <p>“Gah!” the old man cut Zuli off with a frustrated grunt. “Do wh…
352 <p>Zuli sighed. The ship’s sensors indicated that the old man was stil…
353 <p>“I’m fine where I am,” said the old man.</p>
354 <p>The old man’s answer didn’t come as a surprise. He hadn’t left …
355 <p>Zuli released the comm button and returned her attention to the main …
356 <hr>
357 <p>Desmond sat under the desert planet’s perpetual night sky at the ed…
358 <p>“I am <em>not</em> eating one more of those… Those <em>things</em…
359 <p>“Fine,” said Doyle, looking down at the mound of oozing baby sand…
360 <p>That could take a while, thought Desmond. With an adequate supply of …
361 <p>“Don’t worry I’ll keep my distance,” Sarah called back. “Th…
362 <p>Doyle sniffed his armpit and scrunched his nose. “Oh, <em>you’re<…
363 <p>Doyle trudged across the sand to where Desmond was sitting. He tossed…
364 <p>“Is there anything we can do to get the stove or the bath back? Eve…
365 <p>Desmond shook his head. “No bueno, bruh. There’s barely enough ju…
366 <p>Sighing, Doyle collapsed to a sitting position next to the pile of sa…
367 <p>“Nah, it’s one-way. If there’s a response you’ll know. Dudes …
368 <p>Sarah appeared at the ship’s doorway. She stomped across the sand t…
369 <p>“You know,” said Desmond. Sarah stopped, her back still turned.</…
370 <p>“I think Heady would be pretty impressed with you guys,” continue…
371 <p>Doyle gave a snort of laughter.</p>
372 <p>“Fuck it,” said Sarah. She turned and sat down next to Doyle and …
373 <p>Desmond looked past Sarah to the large mound of sand in the distance …
374 <p>A sudden gust of wind from above kicked sand up around the ship. Bae …
375 <p>“Is that a sandstorm?” asked Doyle.</p>
376 <p>Desmond looked up. “Nah, bruh,” he said, and pointed. “Look!”…
377 <p>A glowing spherical craft descended from the sky, blasting gusts of w…
378 <p>The sphere went dark, then a doorway slid open and a ramp extended to…
379 <p>The woman made a gesture in front of her face with her hand, then sta…
380 <p>Doyle jumped to his feet. “Yeah! Oh God do we ever!” he cried, an…
381 <p>“Dude, keep back, we don’t know why she’s here yet…” said D…
382 <p>“What? She got the distress signal! She literally just asked if we …
383 <p>“Wait, you can understand her?” asked Sarah.</p>
384 <p>A confused expression crossed Doyle’s face. He ran a finger across …
385 <p>“Yeah,” said Doyle. “I mean, I know she’s not speaking Englis…
386 <p>The woman spoke again.</p>
387 <p>“That’s right!” said Doyle. “That asshole who took the Ark, h…
388 <p>“Universal translator?” said Sarah. “What is this, Star Trek?�…
389 <p>“Fascinating,” said Desmond.</p>
390 <hr>
391 <p>“The man who took your ship gave you this?” Zuli asked, turning t…
392 <p>The man named Doyle stuffed two more green food cubes into his alread…
393 <p>“I’m sorry but I have no idea what this is,” said Zuli. She han…
394 <p>The man and his young female companion ate ravenously as Zuli watched…
395 <p>“So the two of you were stranded all alone on that planet? You poor…
396 <p>“Four of us,” said the girl named Sarah. Sarah pointed at the lar…
397 <p>“Ah, yes, my apologies,” said Zuli, bowing her head. The translat…
398 <p>The robot spoke to Doyle in their native tongue. Doyle nodded, then t…
399 <p>“Desmond says if you’ll grant him access to your ship’s compute…
400 <p>The robot spoke to Doyle again.</p>
401 <p>“Also he wants to know if he can recharge somewhere.”</p>
402 <p>“Of course,” said Zuli. “As you must eat food to live, your fri…
403 <p>Zuli continued to watch Doyle and Sarah as they ate. The poor things …
404 <p>“Baths!?” Sarah interrupted. Chunks of green food cube and spittl…
405 <p>Zuli smiled and nodded. “Please, for as long as the Prophets’ pat…
406 <p>Doyle grinned and nodded. Sarah shrugged and continued eating. The st…
407 <hr>
408 <p>Sarah stared awe-struck at a small nozzle jutting from the wall above…
409 <p>It was the longest, most luxurious bath Sarah had taken in all the tw…
410 <p>Sarah didn’t recognize the frail, alarmingly thin girl who stared b…
411 <p>Despite her tummy ache, the bath had invigorated Sarah, and she decid…
412 <p>To Sarah, the ship felt strangely reminiscent of the Nikola’s Child…
413 <p>It felt strange to think that her life with Nikola’s Children was o…
414 <p>After Sarah passed through the mess hall and into another hallway, th…
415 <p>“Shhh,” Sarah hushed the rhino-pig as she followed the whispering…
416 <p>“We’ll be together again soon,” the man said in a strained, ras…
417 <p>The old man started whimpering. Was he crying?</p>
418 <p>“Oh my child,” said the man. “Oh my sweet, sweet child what hav…
419 <p>The ship trembled and Sarah’s vision went blurry again. Fear grippe…
420 <p>The noise of somebody falling in the hallway startled Sarah.</p>
421 <p>“What was that? Who’s there?” the old man barked. Sarah grabbed…
422 <p>The sound of the old man in the hallway faded. Sarah stood and looked…
423 <p>The sense of dread that had gripped Sarah intensified, but she felt c…
424 <p>The billowing mist in the open container gradually thinned, revealing…
425 <hr>
426 <p>Doyle rolled around on the sweat-soaked sheets covering the bed in hi…
427 <p>Laying on his back, Doyle tried massaging his abdomen, sending shiver…
428 <p>His legs wobbled as he stood up. Clutching his stomach, Doyle walked …
429 <p>Doyle stumbled across his quarters and out into the hallway. He start…
430 <p>All Doyle knew was that bad things were happening inside of him, and …
431 <p>As he lurched through the hallway, Doyle felt his body tremble. Was t…
432 <p>A sudden jolt of pain in Doyle’s abdomen sent him crashing to his k…
433 <p>Doyle struggled back to his feet and continued down the hallway. He r…
434 <p>Doyle reached the mess hall and spotted some green food cube leftover…
435 <p>“What was that? Who’s there?” Doyle heard a voice say from furt…
436 <p>“Help,” Doyle tried to yell. It came out as more of a hoarse whis…
437 <p>Through pain and blurry vision, Doyle saw what looked like an old man…
438 <p>“Yes,” said the old man.</p>
439 <p>Doyle’s spirits lifted. He had done it! He had found help!</p>
440 <p>The old man, Doyle’s savior, spoke as Doyle’s senses faded and he…
441 <p>“Yes,” the man said again. “You’ll do nicely.”</p>
442 <hr>
443 <p>“We’re less than a cycle away now, I should let the old man know,…
444 <p>She sat in a chair at the center of the bridge, facing a large curved…
445 <p>“My friends?” Desmond asked. He had learned enough of the woman�…
446 <p>“In their quarters,” said Zuli, after glancing at one of the cont…
447 <p>“They had, difficult time on planet,” said Desmond.</p>
448 <p>Zuli nodded. “It is good that the Prophets led me to you.”</p>
449 <p>“Prophets?” Desmond asked. The word Zuli had used was unknown to …
450 <p>“Yes, the Prophets,” said Zuli. “You do not know the Prophets? …
451 <p>Desmond recognized that word. Heady Armstrong, the Youtuber whose vid…
452 <p>“Ah, religion,” said Desmond. “No, I have no religion.”</p>
453 <p>Zuli nodded somberly. “Perhaps I can teach you of…”</p>
454 <p>The ship shook slightly and one of the panels in front of Zuli starte…
455 <p>“I do not know,” said Zuli. “A millicycle ago there was nothing…
456 <p>“Something?” asked Desmond.</p>
457 <p>“Yes,” said Zuli. She looked up at Desmond. “Oh! You are glowin…
458 <p>Desmond looked down. Glowing blue lines had appeared, tracing intrica…
459 <p>“Are we close to it?” asked Desmond.</p>
460 <p>“Too close,” said Zuli. “I cannot stop our approach. The ship h…
461 <p>The ship shuddered again. “Can I see?” asked Desmond, pointing at…
462 <p>“Yes,” said Zuli. She made some gestures against the control pane…
463 <p>“Is that it?” asked Desmond.</p>
464 <p>Zuli nodded and pointed at the large darkened screen. “Something is…
465 <p>Desmond looked again. There was a spot at the center of the screen th…
466 <p>A series of whirring and clacking noises rang through the bridge. Des…
467 <p>Even if Desmond didn’t know what that thing on the screen was, his …
468 <p>“We should leave,” said Desmond.</p>
469 <p>Zuli stared with her mouth open. “I am trying,” she said. An alar…
470 <p>“What is it?” asked Desmond.</p>
471 <p>“One of the ship’s airlocks is opening,” she said. “Your frie…
472 <p>“Whoah,” said Desmond. He tested his control over his new robot s…
473 <p>–</p>
474 <p>It was a child. Or at least what remained of one. Sarah stared at the…
475 <p>The sound of footsteps in the hallway broke Sarah from her stupor. Sh…
476 <p>Sarah scrambled to another stack of containers. She peeked out from b…
477 <p>The old man knelt next to his container and turned the dial to releas…
478 <p>The old man tenderly lifted the corpse and cradled it in his arm. The…
479 <p>The old man started walking back toward the door. Sarah crouched, get…
480 <p>The high pitched bark was unmistakable–Bae had made the same sound …
481 <p>“Filthy creature,” the old man said. The rifle fired before Sarah…
482 <p>It felt like her heart had stopped in her chest. Sarah wanted to scre…
483 <p>Sarah’s mind was a jumble–whether seconds passed or minutes, she …
484 <p>It pained Sarah to think of Bae’s little body–kicked aside like a…
485 <p>The ship started trembling again as Sarah stormed after the old man. …
486 <p>The dim lights were flickering now, creating an eerie strobe effect a…
487 <p>A control panel jutted from the wall behind the old man. Across the h…
488 <p>Doyle!</p>
489 <p>The old man continued his ritual around the child’s corpse, ignorin…
490 <p>The ship’s trembling intensified. The old man finally glanced towar…
491 <p>Now was her chance! Sarah charged into the hallway and sprinted as fa…
492 <p>The inner airlock door hissed and slid up into the ceiling.</p>
493 <p>Doyle didn’t look so good. He clutched his stomach and winced.</p>
494 <p>“What the fuck, Sarah!” Doyle said. “How did you know that butt…
495 <p>Sarah looked at the control panel. She hadn’t noticed before that t…
496 <p>“You’re too late!” cried the old man. “The sacrament is compl…
497 <p>The old man pointed his rifle at Sarah and Doyle and took a step forw…
498 <p>The old man, still aiming the rifle, glanced back at the child’s bo…
499 <p>“It was my fault,” the old man said. His demeanor changed–a pro…
500 <p>Sarah inched forward while the old man’s attention was on the child…
501 <p>The old man spun to face Sarah. The sadness in his eyes vanished. “…
502 <p>Sarah saw the old man tighten his grip on the rifle. She shoved Doyle…
503 <p>“Grab something!” Doyle shouted.</p>
504 <p>Sarah scrambled toward the hallway and grabbed the edge of the inner …
505 <p>“Blood for blood!” the old man screamed over the howling wind. Th…
506 <p>As Sarah watched the old man’s body tumble away from the ship, she …
507 <p>Desmond retrieved Doyle with one arm and pulled Sarah from the airloc…
508 <p>The blue lines on Desmond’s body and the light surrounding him fade…
509 <p>“I didn’t know you could do that!” Sarah said excitedly.</p>
510 <p>“Dude, neither did I!” said Desmond.</p>
511 <p>“Doyle did you see that? Did you know he could do that?”</p>
512 <p>Doyle curled up into a fetal position and moaned.</p>
513 <p>A familiar sound rang out from further down the hallway. Sarah perked…
514 <p>There at the end of the hallway, a large sooty stain on her side, sto…
515 <p>Sarah felt like her heart was going to explode as she ran toward Bae.…
516 <p>“Aw, look at that,” said Desmond. “Isn’t that cute?”</p>
517 <p>“I think I shit myself,” moaned Doyle.</p>
518 <hr>
519 <p>Desmond sat at the mess hall table and stroked Bae in his lap. Despit…
520 <p>“So do you think you can do that blue glowy thing again? And those …
521 <p>“I know right? But I can’t control it,” said Desmond. “It’s…
522 <p>“What triggered it?” asked Sarah. “Something that old man was d…
523 <p>“Nah,” said Desmond. He still didn’t know what the thing was th…
524 <p>Zuli entered the mess hall, carrying a covered tray in her arms. “W…
525 <p>“Did anyone see what happened to that gross corpse the old man had …
526 <p>Doyle shrugged. “Probably blown out the airlock.”</p>
527 <p>“I watched the old man go, but I didn’t see that,” said Sarah. …
528 <p>“Where else could it have gone?” asked Desmond. He hadn’t seen …
529 <p>“Anyway, what’s on the menu?” Doyle asked, staring suspiciously…
530 <p>“Do not worry,” said Zuli. “The ship’s harvester drones proce…
531 <p>Doyle sighed with relief.</p>
532 <p>“I’ll eat anything,” said Sarah. “I mean, anything is better …
533 <p>Zuli pulled the cover off the tray, revealing a steaming pile of baby…
534 <p>Desmond looked down at Bae, who was squirming to get out of his arms.…
535 <p>Sarah calmly slid her chair away from the table, stood up, and turned…
536 <p>“Where are you going?” asked Zuli.</p>
537 <p>“To the airlock,” said Sarah. “There’s a big green button cal…
538 ]]></description>
539 <link>https://rudism.com/three-million-ce-episode-05/</link>
540 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/three-million-ce…
541 <pubDate>Mon, 01 Mar 2021 05:59:00 GMT</pubDate>
542 </item>
543 <item>
544 <title><![CDATA[Common Postgresql Mistakes]]></title>
545 <description><![CDATA[<p>I’m not sure how common these mis…
546 <h2 id="The-Multiple-Meanings-of-STRICT"><a href="#The-Multiple-Meanings…
547 <figure class="highlight sql"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span c…
548
549 <p>In the above example where you’re using <code>STRICT</code> in a <c…
550 <figure class="highlight sql"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span c…
551
552 <p>The above function is declared with the <code>STRICT</code> keyword. …
553 <p>That is <strong>not</strong> what <code>STRICT</code> means on a func…
554 <h2 id="Array-ANY-Versus-ALL-in-WHERE-Clauses"><a href="#Array-ANY-Versu…
555 <figure class="highlight sql"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span c…
556
557 <p>If you’re like me, you might think it logically follows that if you…
558 <figure class="highlight sql"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span c…
559
560 <p>What the above statement is actually matching is the case where <code…
561 <figure class="highlight sql"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span c…
562
563 <p>The correct way to query what you want is to either flip the equality…
564 <figure class="highlight sql"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span c…
565
566 <p>In the above example you will return all rows except for the ones whe…
567 ]]></description>
568 <link>https://rudism.com/Common-Postgresql-Mistakes/</link>
569 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/Common-Postgresq…
570 <pubDate>Fri, 05 Feb 2021 10:43:00 GMT</pubDate>
571 </item>
572 <item>
573 <title><![CDATA[Podcast Bonus: DESMOND.LOG]]></title>
574 <description><![CDATA[<p>This month’s podcast episode is a…
575 <p>If you’re familiar with Patreon, think of supporting my podcast as …
576 ]]></description>
577 <link>https://rudism.com/podcast-bonus-desmond-log/</link>
578 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/podcast-bonus-de…
579 <pubDate>Sun, 31 Jan 2021 05:20:00 GMT</pubDate>
580 </item>
581 <item>
582 <title><![CDATA[Three Million CE - Episode 4]]></title>
583 <description><![CDATA[<p>A hook formed out of thin wire carv…
584 <p>The sound of shifting sand came from the loose end of the wire. Doyle…
585 <p>“Come on you little bastard,” whispered Doyle.</p>
586 <p>A small hole appeared in the ground next to the wire, and a pale fing…
587 <p>Doyle sneered at the pile of dead worms. That last one made two dozen…
588 <p>Doyle and Sarah had been ecstatic when they first discovered the crea…
589 <p>Fuller bellies and clearer heads ushered in the realization that the …
590 <p>“How many is that, my dude?”</p>
591 <p>Doyle looked over at the pile of cables and computer components that …
592 <p>“About two dozen,” said Doyle. “Should be more than enough. Yes…
593 <p>“Shit, bro,” said Desmond. “I wish I could do more to help you …
594 <p>Sighing, Doyle glanced over at the derelict spaceship that he, Sarah,…
595 <p>And best of all, it had power.</p>
596 <p>Somewhere deep in the ship’s guts was a backup power source. A powe…
597 <p>Despite it’s odd proportions, Desmond had claimed the ship’s tech…
598 <p>“You’re not useless, Des,” said Doyle. “In fact if you can fi…
599 <p>“Not yet,” said Desmond. “And you should probably do that on th…
600 <p>“What?” asked Doyle.</p>
601 <p>“The ship’s water supply isn’t what it was when we first found …
602 <p>“No way to… Wait, what?”</p>
603 <p>“All waste water in the ship is purified and re-circulated,” said…
604 <p>“So, you mean we’ve been drinking our own…?”</p>
605 <p>“Yeah. Well, not just yours. Obviously the ship’s previous crew w…
606 <p>Doyle’s eyes widened. “So, the bath… We’re bathing in…”</…
607 <p>“Recycled urine,” Desmond said matter-of-factly.</p>
608 <p>“Do <em>not</em> tell any of this to Sarah,” said Doyle. He was c…
609 <p>Doyle zipped his pants back up, deciding to wait. As disturbing as it…
610 <p>“I have been making some progress on that other thing,” said Desm…
611 <p>“What?” asked Doyle. He narrowed his eyes and glared down at the …
612 <p>Doyle looked to the far corner of the ship’s cabin–the corner tha…
613 <p>“Just watch this,” said Desmond.</p>
614 <p>Two blue lights appeared on the smooth surface of the statue’s head…
615 <p>“Wow,” said Doyle. “Uh, neat. Its eyes light up.”</p>
616 <p>“Yeah!” said Desmond with alacrity. “And that’s not all, watc…
617 <p>As Doyle watched, either the eye lights moved across the surface or t…
618 <p>“Huh,” said Doyle. “Can it walk, or do something useful?”</p>
619 <p>“Not yet!” said Desmond. “But I’m close to…”</p>
620 <p>“That’s great,” Doyle cut him off. “Just make sure you’re n…
621 <p>“Yeah, yeah,” said Desmond. Doyle didn’t know if artificial int…
622 <p>“Sarah should be back from scouting the city soon,” said Doyle. �…
623 <p>“Oh, by the way,” said Desmond, “I’ve been noticing something…
624 <p>“Oh?” said Doyle. He put Desmond down and started gathering up th…
625 <p>“At first I thought my accelerometer was acting up, but it’s too …
626 <p>“Tremors? You mean like earthquakes?” asked Doyle.</p>
627 <p>“Yeah,” said Desmond.</p>
628 <p>“Huh,” said Doyle. “That is weird.”</p>
629 <hr>
630 <p>Ancient, crumbled husks of once imposing towers and the sand-blasted …
631 <p>The sky had remained dark in all the weeks since the Ark crashed on t…
632 <p>The only food that she and Doyle had managed to find were the vile-ta…
633 <p>Sarah had noticed other signs of life too–paw prints, mostly mouse-…
634 <p>The wind had started to pick up. It wasn’t too strong yet, but Sara…
635 <p>Having to eat worms again would suck, Sarah thought. But at least the…
636 <p>Doyle wasn’t <em>that</em> bad to have around. He had managed to ge…
637 <p>As Sarah began retracing her path through the city streets, she heard…
638 <p>Sarah unholstered her concussion pistol and crept along the ruined wa…
639 <p>Sarah stepped gingerly through the ruined section of wall into the bu…
640 <p>Sarah squinted and scanned the back wall of the hollowed-out building…
641 <p>Shielding her eyes from the starlight with her hand, Sarah studied th…
642 <p>The plan was simple. Sarah shifted her weight and prepared to sprint …
643 <p>Sarah licked her lips. Whatever the animal was, it had to taste bette…
644 <p>Her stomach growled. The animal under the slab squealed. Sarah pushed…
645 <p>Five paces from the back wall, Sarah started to brace herself, planni…
646 <p>Sarah’s shoulder slammed hard into the back wall, and she collapsed…
647 <p>When her diaphragm relaxed, Sarah sucked air into her lungs in brayin…
648 <p>A close-sounding snort startled Sarah. She looked up. Staring back at…
649 <p>Sarah turned onto her belly, pressed her hands into the ground and ra…
650 <p>With her sense of curiosity now outweighing her fear, Sarah decided t…
651 <p>Sarah felt around on the ground in the dark until she found what she …
652 <p>“Bacon,” said Sarah softly. She put the chunk of cement down and …
653 <p>Sarah grabbed the chunk of cement again, then jammed it under the reb…
654 <p>More and more dust and stones fell on Sarah’s head, and the sound o…
655 <p>Sarah sat with her back against the wall, coughing. When the dust cle…
656 <p>Sarah smiled. She looked up and saw dust and dirt blowing over the to…
657 <p>“Come on, Bacon,” said Sarah. She scooped the rhino-pig up in her…
658 <hr>
659 <p>“The wind is really starting to pick up, I’m a bit worried about …
660 <p>“She’s gone out to the city every night since we found the ship,�…
661 <p>Doyle shrugged. He wrinkled his nose at the steaming pile of worms in…
662 <p>“So what do you think is behind the facade?” asked Desmond. “Wh…
663 <p>“I dunno,” replied Doyle. “She carries that gun of hers around …
664 <p>“Why don’t you ask her?” Sarah’s voice came from the ship’s…
665 <p>Doyle jolted at the unexpected voice and almost fell off the stove. H…
666 <p>“Holy hell, what happened to you?” asked Doyle. He slipped off th…
667 <p>“I’m fine,” said Sarah. “Here.” She held her bundled up jac…
668 <p>“I think her leg is broken,” said Sarah. “Take her outside and …
669 <p>Doyle’s brain was overloaded–he had so many questions. He looked …
670 <p>“What happened to your… What the hell is… Where did you… How …
671 <p>“Her name is Bae. I found her in the city. I hurt my leg and lost m…
672 <p>Doyle carried the jacket with the strange animal out of the ship. He …
673 <p>“Des, make sure Doyle doesn’t hurt Bae Bae,” Sarah called from …
674 <p>“Bae Bae?” Doyle said. He looked down at the gray pig-like animal…
675 <p>“Doyle, bruh. I know a lot’s going down right now, but I need to …
676 <p>“Yeah. What about them?” said Doyle.</p>
677 <p>“They’re not so micro anymore.”</p>
678 <p>Doyle tore his attention from Bae. The ground was vibrating. Loose gr…
679 <p>“I feel it,” said Doyle. He looked into the distance toward the c…
680 <p>“I don’t think so,” said Desmond. “The seismic activity seems…
681 <p>“What the hell is that?” Doyle interrupted. A small cloud of dust…
682 <p>“Point my camera,” said Desmond.</p>
683 <p>Doyle set the jacket with Bae on it aside and scrambled over to where…
684 <p>“Ummm, I don’t know, dude,” said Desmond. “Point me at Bae.�…
685 <p>“What?” asked Doyle.</p>
686 <p>“Sarah’s new friend, let me see her.”</p>
687 <p>Doyle pointed the camera to where the small creature was still sittin…
688 <p>“Mmm hmm,” said Desmond. “I think… Yup, that’s probably it.…
689 <p>“What’s probably it?” said Doyle. He squinted into the distance…
690 <p>“I think Bae’s mom followed Sarah home,” said Desmond.</p>
691 <p>Doyle dropped his arm. He opened his mouth, but failed to find any wo…
692 <p>“Hard to believe something so adorable could grow into such a muscl…
693 <p>The thing had approached close enough for Doyle to make out some deta…
694 <p>“S… Sarah!” Doyle shouted. He backed away from the angry chargi…
695 <p>“Sarah what did you do?!”</p>
696 <p>The ground started shaking harder, and Doyle tripped. He landed in a …
697 <p>“So, again, I know you got a lot on your plate at the moment,” De…
698 <p>Bae started to mew.</p>
699 <p>Doyle scrambled to his feet and gathered up Desmond. He turned, ready…
700 <p>As he took his first step toward the ship, the ground beneath Doyle�…
701 <p>Bae continued to mew somewhere behind Doyle.</p>
702 <p>“Desmond!” cried Doyle. The pit continued to grow in diameter at …
703 <p>“Stay back!” Desmond’s voice came muffled. He had reached the c…
704 <p>Before Desmond could finish, the sand at the center of the pit explod…
705 <p>A dark object thudded against Doyle’s shoulder and onto the ground.…
706 <p>Bae’s distressed mewing stopped. Doyle turned, more in preparation …
707 <p>Bae’s mother had arrived. The size of a tank built from pure muscle…
708 <p>Doyle suddenly realized that, should the raging rhino-pig one the one…
709 <p>The rhino-pig barreled into the sand-worm head-on, ripping a gash wit…
710 <p>Doyle felt a tug on his arm as he watched the battle, wide-eyed in te…
711 <p>The sand-worm had released its grip, revealing a circular bleeding wo…
712 <p>Then the sand-worm retreated, disappearing beneath the sand, like it …
713 <p>The stillness felt eerie to Doyle. The rhino-pig stood at the center …
714 <p>“Bae!” Sarah cried. She ran out of the ship and started making he…
715 <p>“Sarah, no! Stay in the ship!” Doyle yelled. But too late. The gi…
716 <p>“Sarah for fuck’s sake!” Doyle shouted.</p>
717 <p>Sarah turned and screamed when she saw the rhino-pig rushing up the s…
718 <p>“Shit,” Doyle whispered. Sarah braced herself. The rhino-pig was …
719 <p>Sarah, knocked down by the sand-worm’s emergence, was getting back …
720 <p>“Sarah!” Doyle cried as he sprinted. He stopped when he reached h…
721 <p>Doyle pointed. “Ship! Safe!” he said between gasps.</p>
722 <p>Sarah looked from Bae to Doyle, then nodded with a look of grim deter…
723 <p>A monstrous shriek hit Sarah and Doyle like a powerful blast of wind.…
724 <p>Doyle felt Sarah grip his arm. The sand-worm reared back. Even if the…
725 <p>The sensation of being eaten alive was not at all what Doyle had expe…
726 <p>Several seconds passed, and Doyle opened his eyes slightly. He saw Sa…
727 <p>Doyle opened his eyes wider and turned toward the ship. There, next t…
728 <p>“Check it, dudes! I got the robot working!” Desmond’s voice cam…
729 <p>Doyle exhaled, then collapsed. He leaned back and stared up at the st…
730 <p>Sarah entered Doyle’s vision, staring down at him. “You okay?” …
731 <p>Bae, wrestled herself free of Doyle’s arms and limped across his ch…
732 <p>Desmond walked his new robot body over and joined Sarah staring down …
733 <p>Doyle started laughing, then Sarah did too. Doyle laughed so long and…
734 <p>“I’m hungry,” said Sarah.</p>
735 <p>Doyle nodded in agreement. He wondered if then would be a good time t…
736 <p>“First I need another bath,” said Sarah. “And I <em>really</em>…
737 <p>“Just make sure to do that on the ship,” said Desmond.</p>
738 <p>“Why?” asked Sarah.</p>
739 <p>“Trust me,” said Doyle, before Desmond could respond. “You do <…
740 ]]></description>
741 <link>https://rudism.com/three-million-ce-episode-04/</link>
742 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/three-million-ce…
743 <pubDate>Thu, 31 Dec 2020 04:42:00 GMT</pubDate>
744 </item>
745 <item>
746 <title><![CDATA[The Simulation Hypothesis and Life, the Univ…
747 <description><![CDATA[<p>I have been obsessed with this idea…
748 <ol>
749 <li><p>Reality is a simulation, just one of many experiments created to …
750 </li>
751 <li><p>The creator has encoded hidden messages into each experiment to k…
752 </li>
753 <li><p>In every reality, there is a book called <em>The Hitchhiker’s G…
754 </li>
755 </ol>
756 <p>Enjoy your remaining time!</p>
757 ]]></description>
758 <link>https://rudism.com/the-simulation-hypothesis-and-life-…
759 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/the-simulation-h…
760 <pubDate>Thu, 03 Dec 2020 11:54:00 GMT</pubDate>
761 </item>
762 <item>
763 <title><![CDATA[The Hint Line]]></title>
764 <description><![CDATA[<p>The phone rang at around three in t…
765 <p>I guess for you to understand why something as innocuous as a ringing…
766 <p>When I was in high school, I was a gaming fanatic who was blessed wit…
767 <p>I started my freshman year at university in ‘92. My parents kept pa…
768 <p>Wandering around campus during the day was something I tended to avoi…
769 <p>My prospects were grim. The postings on the board were all volunteer …
770 <p>To my dismay, the cork board hanging in the dimly-lit hall outside th…
771 <p>DO YOU LIKE VIDEO GAMES?<br>CALL FOR MORE INFO</p>
772 <p>There was a phone number printed at the bottom of the sheet. My heart…
773 <p>I felt absurdly protective of that little piece of paper. In my mind …
774 <p>Expecting it to go to a machine so late at night, my fear over even t…
775 <p>“Hello?” said the woman. She sounded alert, not like someone who …
776 <p>“Hi, I hope it’s not too late. I’m calling about the, uh, video…
777 <p>There was a pregnant pause, and for a moment I feared that I had lost…
778 <p>“I’m assuming you can read,” the woman stated. She hadn’t sai…
779 <p>“Huh?” I asked.</p>
780 <p>“Are you literate? Capable of comprehending the written English lan…
781 <p>“Uh, yeah,” I said. I looked at the creased paper in my hand. Was…
782 <p>“Do you live alone? And do you rent or own your current residence?�…
783 <p>“I’m living out of the dorms at the U,” I answered.</p>
784 <p>“Perfect,” said the lady. “The job pays one twenty. Give me you…
785 <p>My brain tried to process the number she had said as I rattled off my…
786 <p>Monday morning rolled around and a loud thud woke me up before the su…
787 <p>There was a note and an envelope inside the box, sitting on top of a …
788 <p>The letter explained that my new employer was a software company on t…
789 <p>My roommate must have woken up suspecting that I had gone crazy, laug…
790 <p>It was a modest two-bedroom apartment. One of the rooms was furnished…
791 <p>My parents practically disowned me when I dropped out of university a…
792 <p>Times changed. The internet went from AOL keywords and web directorie…
793 <p>The company name on the paychecks changed a handful of times over the…
794 <p>The prospect of having to find a real job was perhaps the most terrif…
795 <p>Time passes quickly when every day is the same as the last. My routin…
796 <p>I was playing computer games last week when the phone rang for that f…
797 <p>“Hello?” I said hesitantly.</p>
798 <p>“Is this the hint line?” asked a man.</p>
799 <p>I cleared my throat. “Uh, yes?” I said.</p>
800 <p>“How do I get past the seventh topaz gate?” asked the man.</p>
801 <p>I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. For the phone to ring a…
802 <p>“The seventh gate. Topaz. What’s the key?” said the man.</p>
803 <p>I moved the handset away from my ear and looked at it. My eyes follow…
804 <p>“Hold on,” I told the man.</p>
805 <p>I flipped through the pages until I found a table of contents. I ran …
806 <p>“I’ve got it,” I said into the phone. “Ready?”</p>
807 <p>“Mmm hmm,” the man breathed.</p>
808 <p>I read the ten digit number to him.</p>
809 <p>“Thank you,” said the man. There was a click, and then a dial ton…
810 <p>I stared at the handset for a while longer before hanging it up, then…
811 <p>When I closed the hint book, I noticed that my hands were shaking. I …
812 <p>The phone rang again the next day. And then twice the day after that,…
813 <p>I picked up the phone. “Hello?” I said.</p>
814 <p>“Hello, is this the hint line?” It was a woman’s voice on the o…
815 <p>“Yeah,” I said. “What game are you calling about?”</p>
816 <p>The woman didn’t reply.</p>
817 <p>“I’m happy to provide you with a hint, but I need to know what ga…
818 <p>“I don’t, uh…” the woman started hesitantly. “I mean, it’…
819 <p>There was a click on the line, and then a dial tone. The abruptness w…
820 <p>Instead, the single relevant link I found was to a discussion on an o…
821 <p>The video showed an old CRT television set in a dark room displaying …
822 <p>Back on the forum, I read some of the replies to the video. Someone h…
823 <p>I felt sweat rolling down my face as I pulled my cell phone from my p…
824 <p>The forum discussion continued with messages from people who had call…
825 <p>New phone numbers? I pulled the hint book toward me on the desk, flip…
826 <p>After several rings, a man answered. “Hello?” he said.</p>
827 <p>“Is this the hint line?” I asked.</p>
828 <p>The man on the other end cleared his throat. “Uh, yes,” he said. …
829 <p>“How do I get past the second golden Minotaur?” I asked.</p>
830 <p>“Second golden… huh?” said the man.</p>
831 <p>“The second Minotaur. Golden,” I repeated. “What’s the key?�…
832 <p>“Hold on…” the man said. The faint sound of flipping pages hiss…
833 <p>“I’ve got it. Ready?” said the man.</p>
834 <p>“Mmm hmm,” I breathed. I stared at the number for the second gold…
835 <p>The numbers didn’t match.</p>
836 <p>“Thank you,” I said, and hung up.</p>
837 <p>I slammed my hint book shut and shoved it toward the back of my desk.…
838 <p>The final post in the thread was from less than an hour earlier. The …
839 <p>There was a sudden pounding at my door.</p>
840 <p>“Hey! Is someone there?” I heard a muffled man’s voice come thr…
841 <p>There was a loud thud and the pounding stopped, followed by a gravell…
842 <p>DO YOU LIKE VIDEO GAMES?<br>CALL FOR MORE INFO.</p>
843 <p>The second was a hand-written note, messily scribbled in red ink. “…
844 <p>The university campus is typically a twenty minute bike ride from my …
845 <p>A minute passed, then I watched a young man come in through the entra…
846 <p>I wonder how long he’ll have to wait for his phone to ring.</p>
847 ]]></description>
848 <link>https://rudism.com/the-hint-line/</link>
849 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/the-hint-line/</…
850 <pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2020 03:45:00 GMT</pubDate>
851 </item>
852 <item>
853 <title><![CDATA[Three Million CE - Episode 3]]></title>
854 <description><![CDATA[<p>Orange fingers of flame gripped the…
855 <p>Three yellow parachutes deployed from the uppermost section of the Ar…
856 <p>Crumbled ruins of an ancient city cast quick-moving shadows across a …
857 <p>Stillness settled, as though the night were eager to claim it back af…
858 <hr>
859 <p>Doyle rode his bike through the University campus as often as he coul…
860 <p>The bike path meandered past and around most of the buildings, and Do…
861 <p>He stared up at the woman. She stared back down at him, forgetting br…
862 <p>“Oh my God I’m so sorry!” cried the woman. “Are you alright?�…
863 <p>Doyle got to his feet. He was out of breath, and guessed he’d have …
864 <p>This doesn’t look like a term paper, Doyle thought as he studied on…
865 <p>Was this how it went? Doyle couldn’t remember. The edges of his vis…
866 <hr>
867 <p>The next sensation Doyle became aware of was the taste of dirt. He ch…
868 <p>“Kirsten? Where’s… Where’s my bike?” Doyle’s voice came o…
869 <p>“Get your… hands off me you… you pervert.”</p>
870 <p>Doyle recognized the woman’s stilted, protesting voice, but it wasn…
871 <p>As his vision cleared, Doyle was able to discern that the sky was dar…
872 <p>Behind him, Doyle saw the stasis chamber–it looked like a large ref…
873 <p>“Are you dudes okay?”</p>
874 <p>A man’s voice, this time. One that Doyle also recognized. It came f…
875 <p>“I had to eject your stasis chamber. That gnarly crash landing tota…
876 <p>The inside of the stasis chamber was too dark for Doyle to make out a…
877 <p>“Nah, bruh. I’m not Heady. Or at least I don’t think I’m Head…
878 <p>Doyle stood up. His knees wobbled and he almost fell, but he managed …
879 <p>“What kind of stupid game are you playing, Heady? Come out of there…
880 <p>“Nah bruh, the Ark’s sensors got pretty janked up when we landed.…
881 <p>A memory bubbled up through the murk into Doyle’s consciousness. Th…
882 <p>“Heady? Where are you?” Doyle said. He reached the stasis chamber…
883 <p>“Heady? Heady is that really you?”</p>
884 <p>Doyle spun around. The young woman–Susan? No Sarah–was sitting up…
885 <p>“I’m not Heady,” said Heady’s voice. “Heady was just a part…
886 <p>“Quit messing around Heady,” said Doyle. He stuck his head in the…
887 <p>“Desmond?” Sarah’s voice came, sharper than before. “What hap…
888 <p>“I don’t know, bruh.” Heady’s voice came from the empty chamb…
889 <p>“Heady,” interrupted Doyle. “Where the hell are you? I can hear…
890 <p>“That’s not Heady, you dipshit,” said Sarah, still sitting on t…
891 <p>Doyle stared at Sarah blankly. “Heady is talking to us through the …
892 <p>Sarah shook her head. “No, that <em>is</em> the computer. It’s us…
893 <p>“I’m using the speech and vocal patterns that were provided to me…
894 <p>“Your training…” said Sarah, trailing off. Her eyes widened. �…
895 <p>Doyle turned and looked at the stasis chamber again. “Look, compute…
896 <p>Before he could finish, Doyle felt hands on his back forcefully shove…
897 <p>“Asshole! This is <em>your</em> fault! How long has it been? He cou…
898 <p>Sarah grunted with frustration, and started kicking dirt at Doyle.</p>
899 <p>“Augh! Stop that!” cried Doyle, raising his arms defensively to p…
900 <p>When the onslaught stopped, Doyle lowered his arms and looked at Sara…
901 <p>“Now, look!” said Doyle. “Let’s just talk about this like mat…
902 <p>An explosive force of air cut Doyle off. The too-bright stars spun ar…
903 <hr>
904 <p>A brilliant halo of light encircled the full moon like a crystal ball…
905 <p>“Ice crystals,” said Kirsten.</p>
906 <p>“Hmm?” Doyle breathed.</p>
907 <p>“The Moon halo,” replied Kirsten, pointing up at the sky. “It�…
908 <p>Doyle turned his head to look at her. She was laying on her back next…
909 <p>“Did we finish that whole thing?” asked Kirsten with a grin.</p>
910 <p>“Afraid so,” said Doyle. He smiled at her, but she turned away.</…
911 <p>“I should go,” said Kirsten. “I don’t even know why I’m her…
912 <p>Doyle looked back up at the brilliant ring of light in the sky and si…
913 <p>“Yeah, smart ass,” said Kirsten. “I mean out here, drinking a …
914 <p>“I figured you just liked the company,” said Doyle. He felt his h…
915 <p>“You’re sweet, Doyle,” said Kirsten. She still wasn’t looking…
916 <p>He didn’t know what that meant. Kirsten and Doyle had seen each oth…
917 <p>Kirsten sighed. “I don’t want my time here to end,” she said. �…
918 <p>“Who said your time here has to end?” said Doyle. “From what I …
919 <p>“It’s not my job that’s in jeopardy,” replied Kirsten. She tu…
920 <p>“I’ve got a decision to make, Doyle. A big one. There’s a right…
921 <p>“And what if you pick the wrong one?” asked Doyle.</p>
922 <p>“I don’t know if I could forgive myself for that,” said Kirsten…
923 <p>The two of them remained silent for a while, listening to the cricket…
924 <p>“When I was little,” said Doyle, “I became friends with a new k…
925 <p>“What happened?” asked Kirsten.</p>
926 <p>“They went too far,” said Doyle. “I’m not sure exactly what t…
927 <p>“That’s awful,” said Kirsten.</p>
928 <p>“Yeah,” said Doyle. “I let fear dictate my actions. I let it le…
929 <p>Kirsten cleared her throat and stood up, brushed off her dress with h…
930 <p>“Thanks for being my plus one, Doyle,” said Kirsten. She started …
931 <p>“Any time,” said Doyle.</p>
932 <p>“I suspect you’ve helped quite a lot more than you could possibly…
933 <p>Doyle sat up and watched as she walked away. “Can I see you again?�…
934 <p>Kirsten paused for a moment. “Yeah,” she said, without looking ba…
935 <p>Smiling, Doyle laid back down. The shimmering crystal ball surroundin…
936 <hr>
937 <p>Doyle squinted as he emerged from the fog of unconsciousness. Blurry …
938 <p>“Quizzot klax’zgath grizzum?” asked a strange high-pitched voic…
939 <p>“Um, what?” asked Doyle. He looked in the direction the voice had…
940 <p>The pale man scratched his head, then repeated himself. “Quizzot kl…
941 <p>Doyle shook his head. Movement in the sky drew his gaze upward, and h…
942 <p>The man raised his arms and sighed in obvious exasperation, then vani…
943 <p>Doyle blinked. There was the stasis chamber. There was the half-mile …
944 <p>“Quagnazz!” shouted the man. “Kluzatt ha’gar when the transla…
945 <p>“Hang on,” said Doyle. “I understood that last bit. What did yo…
946 <p>“I said let me know when the translator cells start working,” sai…
947 <p>There was a loud screeching noise, followed by a rumbling as the dirt…
948 <p>“What are you doing to the Ark?” Doyle asked, alarmed.</p>
949 <p>“Impounding it,” said the man. “Your–what did you call it? Ar…
950 <p>The Ark creaked in protest and started to move as the flying green du…
951 <p>“Uh, this one,” said Doyle. The flying green dumpster loosened it…
952 <p>The man stared at Doyle for a moment before bursting into laughter. �…
953 <p>Doyle blinked. “What do you mean, nobody’s <em>from</em> Earth? E…
954 <p>A confused expression formed on the man’s face. “What are you som…
955 <p>The man waved his hand at the half-mile trench that the Ark gouged in…
956 <p>The creaking noises from the Ark intensified. The dirt walls of the t…
957 <p>“Ah,” said the man. “At this point I am legally bound to inform…
958 <p>“Uh, hang on,” said Doyle, staring dumbfounded at the two halves …
959 <p>“Ooh,” said the man, then sucked air in through his teeth. “Pro…
960 <p>The man turned and surveyed the scarred mess of dirt and debris that …
961 <p>“You’re not going anywhere, dickweed!” came Sarah’s voice. Sh…
962 <p>“That’s <em>my</em> Ark and those are <em>my</em> videos and <em>…
963 <p>Not again, thought Doyle as the concussive blast from Sarah’s weapo…
964 <hr>
965 <p>A swirling white maelstrom of mist danced with the falling snow in fr…
966 <p>Kirsten opened the door and greeted him with a thin smile.</p>
967 <p>“Hello Doyle, thanks for coming. Come in out of the cold,” she sa…
968 <p>Doyle stomped the snow off his boots and wiped them on the mat outsid…
969 <p>“Let me take your coat,” said Kirsten as she closed the door behi…
970 <p>Doyle unzipped and Kirsten got behind him to pull the heavy down jack…
971 <p>“Here, I brought this,” said Doyle, presenting the bottle of wine…
972 <p>Kirsten took the bottle and led Doyle down the hallway to her living …
973 <p>“You really went all out with the decorating this year,” said Doy…
974 <p>“Kirsten’s the Christmas Queen!”</p>
975 <p>Doyle saw who had spoken. Ted, one of Kirsten’s colleagues at the u…
976 <p>For months Ted had been intruding on Doyle’s life. Kirsten had cut …
977 <p>“Hi Ted,” said Doyle.</p>
978 <p>“Hi Doyle, good to see you again,” said Ted.</p>
979 <p>There was an awkward silence, then Doyle saw Kirsten make some kind o…
980 <p>“Ah, yes. Well, before I go… Doyle, there’s something Kirsten a…
981 <p>“No there isn’t!” Kirsten said forcefully. “Come on Ted, I’…
982 <p>Ted shook his head. “Kirsten, I need to be here when you tell him.�…
983 <p>“Tell me what?” asked Doyle.</p>
984 <p>“Excuse us a moment, Doyle,” said Kirsten. She grabbed Ted by the…
985 <p>Months of secrets, phone calls, canceled dates, never telling Doyle w…
986 <p>No. Kirsten wasn’t that sort of person. She was kind. She would nev…
987 <p>Steeling his nerves, Doyle marched through the living room to the kit…
988 <p>“Kirsten, I…” said Doyle. The words caught in his throat.</p>
989 <p>Ted and Kirsten stared at him, both expressionless.</p>
990 <p>“Kirsten I love you,” said Doyle. He finally got it out, after al…
991 <p>Kirsten opened her mouth, but remained silent.</p>
992 <p>“You’re the only thing I care about,” continued Doyle. “And w…
993 <p>Doyle took a step forward and reached into his pocket. He gripped the…
994 <p>Kirsten took a step backward. She bumped into Ted, whose eyes had ope…
995 <p>After stepping around the island, Doyle got down on one knee.</p>
996 <p>“Oh… Oh…” Kirsten managed to gasp. “Ted, I…” She starte…
997 <p>“Don’t answer right away,” said Doyle. “I just want you to kn…
998 <p>“Doyle, maybe this isn’t the best time to…” Ted started. Doyl…
999 <p>“Kirsten,” said Doyle. He closed the jewelry box and put it on th…
1000 <p>Kirsten’s cheeks were wet with tears.</p>
1001 <p>Sweat poured down Doyle’s forehead and he could feel it dripping do…
1002 <p>This isn’t how it happened, thought Doyle. There was a blinding fla…
1003 <hr>
1004 <p>“I’m sorry for shooting you,” said Sarah.</p>
1005 <p>Doyle, sitting against the stasis chamber, grunted and rubbed the bac…
1006 <p>“Not the first time,” Sarah clarified. She was sitting next to Do…
1007 <p>“He said this isn’t Earth,” said Doyle. “If this isn’t Eart…
1008 <p>“I have good news and bad news, my dudes,” Heady’s voice came f…
1009 <p>Sarah and Doyle both looked up in surprise.</p>
1010 <p>“Desmond?” asked Sarah. “How are you still here? When the Ark w…
1011 <p>“I transferred a copy of myself to this stasis chamber when I reali…
1012 <p>“But how is that possible?” Sarah asked. Doyle followed her gaze …
1013 <p>“Well, that’s where the bad news comes in,” said Desmond. “Ba…
1014 <p>Doyle’s heart sank. Over three hundred years? That meant everything…
1015 <p>“How long?” asked Doyle.</p>
1016 <p>“Two million, nine hundred and ninety six thousand, eight hundred y…
1017 <p>Doyle’s brain struggled to comprehend what he had just heard. It wa…
1018 <p>“So, here’s the deal dudes,” continued Desmond. “My training …
1019 <p>“Ah, heh heh,” Sarah gave a nervous chuckle. Doyle shot her an an…
1020 <p>“So that’s why it took me a little longer to find my way here,”…
1021 <p>“A <em>little</em> longer?” cried Doyle. “Three million years i…
1022 <p>“So I got a look at that city over there from the Ark’s sensors w…
1023 <p>Doyle shook his head. He remembered the documents he had seen at the …
1024 <p>Sarah snapped her head at Doyle with a confused expression on her fac…
1025 <p>“Never happened, bruh,” said Desmond.</p>
1026 <p>“What?” asked Doyle.</p>
1027 <p>“I mean, the nukes were there, but I never launched them,” said D…
1028 <p>“What the fuck are you guys talking about?” asked Sarah.</p>
1029 <p>Doyle ignored her. “So, the payloads? They’re still…”</p>
1030 <p>“Still on the Ark, bruh,” said Desmond.</p>
1031 <p>Sarah and Doyle sat in silence for a while. A light, warm breeze star…
1032 <p>“So what are we gonna do now?” asked Sarah.</p>
1033 <p>Doyle reached over and retrieved the small white slate from the dirt …
1034 <p>“We’re going to get the Ark back,” he said.</p>
1035 <p>“How are we gonna do that?” said Sarah.</p>
1036 <p>Doyle turned the slate over in his hands and studied the strange alie…
1037 <p>Doyle sighed. “Fuck if I know.”</p>
1038 ]]></description>
1039 <link>https://rudism.com/three-million-ce-episode-03/</link>
1040 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/three-million-ce…
1041 <pubDate>Sun, 01 Nov 2020 04:59:00 GMT</pubDate>
1042 </item>
1043 <item>
1044 <title><![CDATA[Three Million CE - Episode 2]]></title>
1045 <description><![CDATA[<p>“The engineering team has been ha…
1046 <p>Shadow cloaked the three Board members–amorphous dark figures again…
1047 <p>“The Ark launches in one week, Commander Chin,” said one of the b…
1048 <p>“Yes, sir, I know that,” said Commander Chin. He felt the heat of…
1049 <p>The middle shadow nodded, and Commander Chin stifled a relieved sigh.…
1050 <p>“What of Deluge?” came the voice from the darkness.</p>
1051 <p>Commander Chin had been waiting for this question. He smiled. “We t…
1052 <p>The middle figure nodded again. “Excellent job, Commander Chin. Whe…
1053 <p>Commander Chin nodded. He stood and saluted by crossing his arms in f…
1054 <p>“The Children be praised,” said the shadowy figure, and Commander…
1055 <hr>
1056 <p>“Do you remember the one where you stuck a Roman candle in your but…
1057 <p>Heady sighed. “Yep, I remember alright. I still have the scar.”</…
1058 <p>Sarah stopped giggling and gawked at him. “Oooh,” she said. “Ca…
1059 <p>“How far down does this go, exactly?” Doyle asked. Sarah glanced …
1060 <p>“It won’t be long, just chill,” said Sarah. She looked Doyle up…
1061 <p>“Sarah,” said Heady. “Exactly how deep underground is the compo…
1062 <p>“Oh, it’s pretty deep,” said Sarah. “It has to be, to hold th…
1063 <p>“The Ark? What’s that?” asked Doyle.</p>
1064 <p>Sarah suppressed the urge to scream. Why couldn’t Shit-for-Brains s…
1065 <p>“I’d like to know what the Ark is too, Sarah,” said Heady.</p>
1066 <p>“Oh!” said Sarah. “Well, the Ark is our ship. It’s going to t…
1067 <p>“The… Apocalypse? New Place?” asked Heady. “Hold up, come sta…
1068 <p>Sarah’s heart skipped a beat. She couldn’t believe this was happe…
1069 <p>“I know it sounds corny,” said Sarah, blushing a little. She hadn…
1070 <p>Doyle’s face perked at the mention of scientists. He lowered the ca…
1071 <p>“Um, yeah, I seen her around,” said Sarah, disdain in her voice. …
1072 <p>“Hold up a sec,” said Heady. “Ship? NASA? Stasis chambers? Are …
1073 <p>“Yeah,” said Sarah.</p>
1074 <p>“Preposterous,” said Doyle. “And the ‘Ark?’ Couldn’t you …
1075 <p>“Fuck you,” said Sarah.</p>
1076 <p>“Wait, wait, wait…” said Heady. “What exactly does being ‘i…
1077 <p>“On the Ark,” replied Sarah. “I don’t know how it works, that…
1078 <p>“This is nonsense” said Doyle. He sounded irritated. “Even if I…
1079 <p>“We’re not going to the Moon you idiot,” said Sarah. “Why wou…
1080 <p>The elevator finally came to a shuddering halt and the doors slid ope…
1081 <p>Heady nodded, but said nothing. His mouth was agape.</p>
1082 <p>“Fuck,” said Doyle. “I need to know where Kirsten is. How do I …
1083 <p>Sarah thought for a moment. This seemed like the perfect opportunity …
1084 <p>Sarah took a left out of the elevator and Heady and Doyle followed he…
1085 <hr>
1086 <p>Doyle felt terrified and angry. From his research he knew the cult wa…
1087 <p>“This video is going to go so viral!” whispered Heady. “Can you…
1088 <p>“No I don’t believe it. I don’t believe any of it,” Doyle whi…
1089 <p>“You, Boyle,” said Sarah.</p>
1090 <p>“It’s Doyle,” said Doyle.</p>
1091 <p>“Whatever. The computer in here can access the personnel records so…
1092 <p>Doyle sat down at the console. He opened the drawer and fished throug…
1093 <p>Sarah saw what Doyle was holding and gasped. “Give me that!” she …
1094 <p>“Oh my God!” cried Sarah. “This is personal!”</p>
1095 <p>Doyle scoffed. Did she think he cared about some girly diary or whate…
1096 <p>“Don’t fucking laugh at me!” yelled Sarah. Doyle leaned forward…
1097 <p>Sarah let out a deflated whimper, spun and pulled the door open, then…
1098 <p>“Shit,” said Doyle. “Heady, make sure she doesn’t do anything…
1099 <p>Heady nodded with a determined expression on his face. “This is gon…
1100 <p>Doyle returned his attention to the cabinet by his legs and managed t…
1101 <p>After tapping through some menus, Doyle found what he was looking for…
1102 <p>Doyle groaned and started tapping the screen haphazardly, desperate t…
1103 <p>Doyle soon found his way to a list of documents that looked like they…
1104 <p>Doyle skimmed through the paragraphs of text and diagrams without und…
1105 <p>But there the words were: Nuclear warheads.</p>
1106 <p>A sense of dread filled Doyle as he began to comprehend more of the d…
1107 <p>Feeling a sense of panic rising within him, Doyle reflexively wheeled…
1108 <p>No. Fuck, no. Can’t think like that. Doyle stood up and rushed to t…
1109 <hr>
1110 <p>Sarah led Heady through the hallways toward the Ark chamber. Heady fo…
1111 <p>“This way, it’s not far,” said Sarah. “The Ark is really big,…
1112 <p>“What’s in the bottom half?” asked Heady.</p>
1113 <p>“I dunno,” said Sarah. “The computer and engines, I guess. Fuel…
1114 <p>They came to a junction with a larger hallway. Sarah motioned for Hea…
1115 <p>“Good,” said Sarah. “It’s just Officer Wiebe, he’s a push-o…
1116 <p>Sarah strolled around the corner, leaving Heady out of sight.</p>
1117 <p>“Wiebe, I’m relieving you,” said Sarah to the gray-haired offic…
1118 <p>“Huh? I wasn’t told,” replied Officer Wiebe.</p>
1119 <p>This irritated Sarah. “I’m on Ark duty tonight!” she said. “S…
1120 <p>Officer Wiebe sighed. “Whatever,” he said. “I need to take a pi…
1121 <p>Sarah watched as the old man walked away down the central corridor. S…
1122 <p>“Holy crap,” said Heady. “I thought I was done for. I guess the…
1123 <p>“Come on,” said Sarah as she grabbed Heady and pulled him into th…
1124 <p>Heady raised his phone and filmed the large double doors that Officer…
1125 <p>Sarah retrieved her dad’s key card from her pocket. The card was on…
1126 <p>Sarah pushed the doors to the Ark chamber open, and she and Heady ste…
1127 <p>“Holy shit,” said Heady.</p>
1128 <p>A large glass window revealed the boarding deck to be a metallic floo…
1129 <p>“Come on,” said Sarah. “You’ll get way better footage down th…
1130 <p>Heady was still filming and staring dumbfounded at the Ark through th…
1131 <p>“Call that elevator with this,” said Sarah. “I need to, uh… I…
1132 <p>Still looking dazed, Heady tore his eyes from the Ark. He turned to l…
1133 <p>Once Heady’s back was turned, Sarah slid her dad’s key card into …
1134 <p>Sarah followed Heady onto the elevator. He looked like a kid who had …
1135 <hr>
1136 <p>Commander Chin leaned back in the brown leather chair in his living q…
1137 <p>The few weeks leading up to the launch had been more hectic and stres…
1138 <p>His doorbell sounded as he picked up his book. He sighed, put the boo…
1139 <p>“What is it?” asked Commander Chin.</p>
1140 <p>“Just wanted to inform you that Officer Jefferies relieved me on Ar…
1141 <p>Commander Chin became confused. “Wiebe, is that you?” he asked. …
1142 <p>“Yeah,” said Officer Wiebe. “I thought I had Ark Chamber all ni…
1143 <p>What the hell was Officer Jefferies doing taking over Ark Chamber? Th…
1144 <p>“I don’t know what Officer Jefferies is up to,” said Commander …
1145 <p>Before he could respond, the radio on Officer Wiebe’s shoulder crac…
1146 <p>“Commander Chin, do you read me? I think… They got my… I don’…
1147 <p>Commander Chin grabbed the radio off of Officer Wiebe’s shoulder an…
1148 <p>“She shot me, sir,” came Officer Thompson’s voice. “Jefferies…
1149 <p>Commander Chin’s jaw dropped and he looked at Officer Wiebe, who st…
1150 <p>The silence that followed felt like it lasted a hundred years.</p>
1151 <p>“Yes,” came Officer Thompson’s reply.</p>
1152 <p>Commander Chin dropped the radio and sprinted to his desk where he co…
1153 <p>His legs suddenly felt weak and Commander Chin dropped to his knees. …
1154 <p>“Go,” said Commander Chin in a strained voice. “Get to the fuck…
1155 <hr>
1156 <p>Doyle moved as quick as he could through the hallways while still kee…
1157 <p>The large hallway ended at a set of enormous double doors. There was …
1158 <p>“All units, head to the Ark Chamber immediately,” said the voice.…
1159 <p>“Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit,” mumbled Doyle as he pushed his way t…
1160 <p>A large window revealed what could only be the Ark. A giant white pil…
1161 <p>Way down there, in front of what looked like a gangplank leading to a…
1162 <p>“Oh, fuck,” moaned Doyle. He glanced around the room he was in, a…
1163 <p>“I mean, that’s probably not what it looks like, right?” Doyle …
1164 <p>The countdown continued and the sirens blared and Doyle tapped his fo…
1165 <hr>
1166 <p>Heady backed away from the madwoman pointing a gun at him.</p>
1167 <p>“Trust me,” said Sarah. “You’ll love it at the New Home.”</…
1168 <p>“It’s not that I don’t trust you,” said Heady, desperately co…
1169 <p>“Your fans? Who cares about them? You’ll have me!” said Sarah. …
1170 <p>Heady glanced back over his shoulder at the light shining out of the …
1171 <p>“Can’t we talk about this?” asked Heady. “I mean, we can make…
1172 <p>Sarah paused, her pistol lowered slightly and she stopped moving towa…
1173 <p>“Sure!” said Heady. “I think the fans would love you! We could …
1174 <p>Sarah shook her head. “No,” she said. “No there’s no point. E…
1175 <p>Heady’s panic renewed as Sarah started moving toward him again. He …
1176 <p>It was hard to tell in the dimly lit hangar, but it looked like a man…
1177 <p>“Doyle?” Heady said.</p>
1178 <p>Sarah smirked and shook her head. “You think I’m gonna fall for t…
1179 <p>Before Heady could answer, Doyle screamed out “Geronimo!”</p>
1180 <p>Sarah spun around at the sound behind her. Doyle grunted as he tackle…
1181 <p>Heady stood up and moved toward the Ark. All signs of the entrance ha…
1182 <p>“Doyle!” Heady cried, and slammed his fists against the ship. “…
1183 <p>The ship started rumbling, then the entire hangar. Heady stepped back…
1184 <p>A blast of intense heat and a booming explosion knocked Heady over. H…
1185 <p>Then the roaring ceased. The floor stopped moving and shaking. Heady …
1186 <p>Heady followed the pillar of smoke with his eyes, up through the gap …
1187 ]]></description>
1188 <link>https://rudism.com/three-million-ce-episode-02/</link>
1189 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/three-million-ce…
1190 <pubDate>Sun, 13 Sep 2020 03:49:00 GMT</pubDate>
1191 </item>
1192 <item>
1193 <title><![CDATA[Three Million CE - Episode 1]]></title>
1194 <description><![CDATA[<p>“Punch me as hard as you can, bru…
1195 <p>A shirtless, flaxen-haired Heady Armstrong pounded his fists into his…
1196 <p>His friend, also laughing, stepped back until he was out of the frame…
1197 <p>“Here I come dude, you sure?” the unseen friend called out.</p>
1198 <p>“I’m ready! Do it bruh!”</p>
1199 <p>Heady’s friend barreled into view and raced across the screen. Head…
1200 <p>“Officer Jefferies?”</p>
1201 <p>Sarah looked up from the phone hidden beneath the monitoring control…
1202 <p>“Officer Jefferies, the highway outpost has radioed that they saw a…
1203 <p>“I heard the report too,” Sarah lied. “I’m not stupid y’kno…
1204 <p>Officer Thompson nodded. “Yes, sure. Just making sure you got the m…
1205 <p>“Right,” said Sarah curtly and forced a disingenuous grin. “Mes…
1206 <p>Officer Thompson frowned and peered closer at the array of display sc…
1207 <p>“Not yet,” said Sarah. She hated Thompson so much. Why did he hav…
1208 <p>“Make sure you do, Jefferies,” said Officer Thompson. “Before y…
1209 <p>Sarah hated the way Officer Thompson called her “Jefferies.” Ever…
1210 <p>Officer Thompson held his arms crossed out in front of him, forming t…
1211 <p>“Dickweed,” Sarah muttered under her breath. “Children be prais…
1212 <hr>
1213 <p>“Are you sure this is the way?” Doyle Tingler asked. They had tur…
1214 <p>“Yeah,” replied Heady Armstrong. “My boys scouted the coordinat…
1215 <p>“Ah,” said Doyle. “Can I assume that by ‘your boys’ you are…
1216 <p>“Yeah,” said Heady Armstrong. “And they’re not idiotic videos…
1217 <p>“Mmm,” said Doyle. “That’s where you’re wrong. You see, the…
1218 <p>Doyle enjoyed ribbing Heady about his YouTube channel. Heady and his …
1219 <p>“Uh huh,” said Heady. “If I’m such an idiot then why did you …
1220 <p>“I didn’t say <em>you</em> were an idiot, Heady. Only your videos…
1221 <p>“Those millions of idiots paid for my house,” said Heady. “And …
1222 <p>“Don’t rub it in,” Doyle said, and sighed. “Look, I’m grate…
1223 <p>“Because of my millions of idiots?” Heady shot back.</p>
1224 <p>“Well, yeah,” said Doyle.</p>
1225 <p>“Do you really think this will work?” asked Heady. “I mean, I k…
1226 <p>“I really think so, Heady,” said Doyle. “I mean, despite appear…
1227 <p>“Don’t sweat it, bud,” said Heady. “Kirsten was–<em>is</em>…
1228 <p>Doyle did his best to stifle the sudden wellspring of emotion he foun…
1229 <p>Doyle snapped out of his thoughts when his eye caught a glint in the …
1230 <p>Heady relaxed the accelerator and cut the lights. The sound of the gr…
1231 <p>Heady pulled off the road and maneuvered the car behind some trees be…
1232 <p>Doyle unfastened his seatbelt and opened the car door. “You don’t…
1233 <p>“Hopefully not,” said Heady.</p>
1234 <p>The two men shut the car doors and started walking along the tree lin…
1235 <p>“Keep an eye out for a red cloth tied around one of these tree bran…
1236 <p>The men walked in silence for a while, trading nervous glances down t…
1237 <p>“I’m not going to make those videos for ever, you know,” Heady …
1238 <p>Doyle glanced at his friend’s face, pallid in the moonlight and bru…
1239 <p>“I mean, that’s why I’m collabing with you on this in the first…
1240 <p>“I hope so,” said Doyle. “People haven’t cared about Nikola�…
1241 <p>“That’s because they’re so good at keeping a low profile,” sa…
1242 <p>“Maybe,” said Doyle. “But honestly I just want some kind of sig…
1243 <p>“I’m sure she’s OK,” said Heady. “She’s just confused. Th…
1244 <p>Doyle stopped and put his hand on Heady’s shoulder. “Shh,” he s…
1245 <p>“What is it?”</p>
1246 <p>Doyle pointed. Wound around a branch of one of the trees, a thin scra…
1247 <p>Heady reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He start…
1248 <p>Doyle held the phone up and pointed the camera at Heady.</p>
1249 <p>“Yo yo yo what’s up Heady Nation?” Heady cried using the exagge…
1250 <p>Doyle lowered his head and sighed. Everyone told him he was always to…
1251 <hr>
1252 <p>“Officer Jefferies, report please.”</p>
1253 <p>Sarah watched and giggled as Heady Armstrong attempted to eat twelve …
1254 <p>“Officer Jefferies! Report!”</p>
1255 <p>Sarah jerked her head toward the speaker on her console, then paused …
1256 <p>“Uh, yes?” said Sarah, holding the intercom button.</p>
1257 <p>“The motion detectors around section nine have been lighting up lik…
1258 <p>Sarah looked at the array of displays on her control panel, and direc…
1259 <p>“Uh, nothing?” she said hesitantly. It wasn’t exactly a lie.</p>
1260 <p>There was a short pause before the speaker crackled back to life.</p>
1261 <p>“Officer Thompson has informed me that the camera in section nine i…
1262 <p>Sarah scowled. Damn that Officer Thompson. “Well, I mean the camera…
1263 <p>“Officer Jefferies, please do your job and find out what’s going …
1264 <p>“Right, sending a drone,” said Sarah. She looked longingly at her…
1265 <p>Sarah wheeled her chair closer to the touch screen near the right edg…
1266 <p>Sarah grabbed her phone and was about to continue watching her video …
1267 <p>“Officer Jefferies, report.”</p>
1268 <p>Sarah groaned. It would take the drone thirty seconds to reach sectio…
1269 <p>“Right, yeah,” she said into the intercom. “Drone launched. I�…
1270 <p>Sarah fumed while she resumed her video. She pictured Officer Thompso…
1271 <p>Heady Armstrong stared back at her.</p>
1272 <p>Sarah looked at the familiar face staring up from her control panel, …
1273 <p>“Officer Jefferies, report,” came Commander Chin’s exasperated …
1274 <p>Sarah sat back down and slammed her fist on the intercom. “I…! He…
1275 <p>“Officer Jefferies?”</p>
1276 <p>“Um… All clear, Commander,” said Sarah. She watched as the dron…
1277 <p>“Please confirm, did you say all clear?” Commander Chin asked.</p>
1278 <p>“Confirmed,” said Sarah. “Drone shows some wildlife near sectio…
1279 <p>There was a long pause. Sarah did her best to control her breathing a…
1280 <p>Sarah pressed the intercom button again. “Um, I’m going to recall…
1281 <p>She turned to her console’s touch screen, recalled the drone, grabb…
1282 <p>“Very good Officer Jefferies. Officer Thompson will meet you out th…
1283 <hr>
1284 <p>“I don’t hear it anymore. Is it still there?” whispered Doyle.<…
1285 <p>Heady peaked his head up over the bush. All he could see above them w…
1286 <p>“I think it’s gone,” said Heady.</p>
1287 <p>Doyle sighed with relief.</p>
1288 <p>“Do you think it spotted us?” asked Heady?</p>
1289 <p>“Are you serious?” said Doyle. “A drone the size of a Jeep pops…
1290 <p>“Well, what should we do?” asked Heady.</p>
1291 <p>“Let’s just get out of here,” said Doyle. “Look at this place…
1292 <p>“We can’t leave!” said Heady. “That drone didn’t vanish int…
1293 <p>“Who knows,” said Doyle. “All I know is that whatever this plac…
1294 <p>“All that money,” said Heady. “You found receipts for millions …
1295 <p>“You’re right,” said Doyle, looking past Heady. “We can’t l…
1296 <p>Heady turned around and saw a red haired man wearing what looked like…
1297 <p>“Run,” whispered Doyle, and the two men sprinted toward the neare…
1298 <p>Neither of them looked back as they ran. Heady reached the pillar fir…
1299 <p>“Do you think he saw us?” asked Heady.</p>
1300 <p>“I wish you’d stop asking that,” said Doyle. He peeked around t…
1301 <p>“Maybe he’s waiting for backup,” suggested Heady. “Give me yo…
1302 <p>“Why?” asked Doyle. He reached into his pocket and pulled his pho…
1303 <p>“Stay hidden. You film with mine so they can’t confiscate the foo…
1304 <p>“Wait, what do you mean take you away? What are you going to…”<…
1305 <p>Before Doyle could stop him, Heady stood, put his hands up in the air…
1306 <hr>
1307 <p>Sarah leered at Officer Thompson from behind her own concrete pillar.…
1308 <p>She thought about what her next move should be. She had to get Office…
1309 <p>Sarah was out of options and running out of time. She made up her min…
1310 <p>Someone yelled out at the same time, startling her. She shut up and d…
1311 <p>“Don’t shoot! I surrender!” she heard Heady shout. Sarah watche…
1312 <p>She watched Officer Thompson fumble with his radio, getting visibly f…
1313 <p>Sarah released her radio trigger and lifted her own concussion pistol…
1314 <p>“Officer Thompson? Officer Jefferies? Report!”</p>
1315 <p>The voice of Commander Chin came from her radio with a burst of stati…
1316 <hr>
1317 <p>Doyle came running up behind Heady, who was staring dumbfounded at th…
1318 <p>“What the hell did you do?” asked Doyle.</p>
1319 <p>“Nothing, he just collapsed,” said Heady.</p>
1320 <p>“What? Like he had a heart attack?”</p>
1321 <p>“No,” said a woman’s voice. “Like he was hit by an incapacita…
1322 <p>Heady and Doyle both spun around to see a tiny-framed and young looki…
1323 <p>The girl put her pistol into a holster on her thigh, then retrieved a…
1324 <p>“Wha… What are you going to do with that?” asked Doyle. He took…
1325 <p>The woman approached with a wide grin on her face, holding the baton …
1326 <p>Sarah grabbed Heady’s arm, then spun him around so he was standing …
1327 <p>“Hi Heady,” said Sarah, then snapped a photo. “We’ve got to g…
1328 <p>“What…? Who… Who are you?” asked Heady.</p>
1329 <p>“Oh me?” said Sarah. “Just your biggest fan.”</p>
1330 ]]></description>
1331 <link>https://rudism.com/three-million-ce-episode-01/</link>
1332 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/three-million-ce…
1333 <pubDate>Mon, 24 Aug 2020 00:01:00 GMT</pubDate>
1334 </item>
1335 <item>
1336 <title><![CDATA[Simple CSS Theme Switcher]]></title>
1337 <description><![CDATA[<p>I spent a bit of time this evening …
1338 <p>Here’s a quick summary of how I implemented it. (The actual styling…
1339 <h2 id="Alternate-Stylesheets"><a href="#Alternate-Stylesheets" class="h…
1340 <figure class="highlight html"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span …
1341
1342 <p>Even without any JavaScript at all, just giving the stylesheets <code…
1343 <p>Obviously nobody is actually going to use that, because there’s no …
1344 <p>The nice thing about using this as a base, however, is that the brows…
1345 <h2 id="Toggle-Switch"><a href="#Toggle-Switch" class="headerlink" title…
1346 <figure class="highlight javascript"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre>…
1347
1348 <p>You can see that all it’s doing is setting or removing the <code>lo…
1349 <h2 id="Loading-the-Theme-Initially"><a href="#Loading-the-Theme-Initial…
1350 <figure class="highlight html"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span …
1351
1352 <p>The problem with that approach was that since the pages generally loa…
1353 <figure class="highlight html"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span …
1354
1355 <p>This causes the browser to render the correct stylesheet paths on the…
1356 <p>If you’re a noscripter and have JavaScript disabled, you’re stuck…
1357 ]]></description>
1358 <link>https://rudism.com/simple-css-theme-switcher/</link>
1359 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/simple-css-theme…
1360 <pubDate>Wed, 01 Jul 2020 22:07:00 GMT</pubDate>
1361 </item>
1362 <item>
1363 <title><![CDATA[Blu-ray Catch-up 06/21]]></title>
1364 <description><![CDATA[<p>Here are my possibly-coherent rants…
1365 <h2 id="The-Legend-of-Korra"><a href="#The-Legend-of-Korra" class="heade…
1366 <p>Korra took a little longer for us to get into. In fact my older kid d…
1367 <h2 id="Survivors-1975"><a href="#Survivors-1975" class="headerlink" tit…
1368 <p>The first season is incredibly good, but it goes downhill quickly aft…
1369 <h2 id="The-Matrix-Trilogy-and-The-Animatrix"><a href="#The-Matrix-Trilo…
1370 <p>I worked out a process to incorporate the commentaries into my digita…
1371 <p>This was also the first time I watched the animated features that the…
1372 <p>There’s a fourth film in the series slated to come out soon that fe…
1373 <h2 id="The-Star-Wars-Prequel-Trilogy"><a href="#The-Star-Wars-Prequel-T…
1374 <h2 id="Iron-Sky"><a href="#Iron-Sky" class="headerlink" title="Iron Sky…
1375 <p>Personally, they had me at Nazis on the Moon. You’d have to be very…
1376 <p>After ripping and re-watching and falling in love all over again with…
1377 ]]></description>
1378 <link>https://rudism.com/blu-ray-catch-up-06-21/</link>
1379 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/blu-ray-catch-up…
1380 <pubDate>Sun, 21 Jun 2020 11:18:00 GMT</pubDate>
1381 </item>
1382 <item>
1383 <title><![CDATA[Quit Whining about Apple and Just Stop Using…
1384 <description><![CDATA[<p><em>Note: I have changed the name o…
1385 <h2 id="The-Controversy"><a href="#The-Controversy" class="headerlink" t…
1386 <blockquote>
1387 <p>“Because of the market power that Apple has, it is charging exorbit…
1388 </blockquote>
1389 <p>Much of the controversy lies around Apple’s selectively enforced po…
1390 <p>Yo’s plan seems to have been to follow the Netflix and Spotify mode…
1391 <p>In this case, instead of giving Yo a pass as they did Netflix and Spo…
1392 <blockquote>
1393 <p>“Apple wants to own iPhone consumers so that anyone who wants acces…
1394 </blockquote>
1395 <h2 id="The-Discrepancy"><a href="#The-Discrepancy" class="headerlink" t…
1396 <p>There are other anomalous examples as well–The Audible app has no i…
1397 <blockquote>
1398 <p>“It’s baffling to me. I can buy a USD1k+ device and still not be …
1399 </blockquote>
1400 <p>If Apple remained consistent and diligent in their policy to demand a…
1401 <p>Except that in this case the new email service was founded by a compa…
1402 <p>I would like to take a brief moment here to point out an amusing hypo…
1403 <h2 id="The-Solution-for-Developers"><a href="#The-Solution-for-Develope…
1404 <p>The answer to that for developers seems just as obvious as Apple’s …
1405 <blockquote>
1406 <p>“30% does seem a little bit high. What justification does Apple use…
1407 </blockquote>
1408 <p>While I am in complete agreement that Apple’s policies and practice…
1409 <p>Let’s say we tear down Apple through legal means–we send them the…
1410 <p>Let’s say, hypothetically, that the Yo email service, through brill…
1411 <blockquote>
1412 <p>“Bitch please.” –Me, this blog.</p>
1413 </blockquote>
1414 <p>I don’t know, it seems silly to me to cry about monopolies. The sol…
1415 <p>That doesn’t necessarily mean making your product or service comple…
1416 <h2 id="The-Solution-for-Consumers"><a href="#The-Solution-for-Consumers…
1417 <p>I know that the devices are pretty and feel nice and maybe your frien…
1418 <h2 id="Sigh…"><a href="#Sigh…" class="headerlink" title="Sigh…"><…
1419 <p>Maybe the ultimate solution is an anti-trust legal one. Maybe compani…
1420 <p>My hopes for such legal action ever succeeding are not particularly h…
1421 <p>My first computer in grade school was a Macintosh Classic and I grew …
1422 ]]></description>
1423 <link>https://rudism.com/quit-whining-about-apple-and-just-s…
1424 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/quit-whining-abo…
1425 <pubDate>Fri, 19 Jun 2020 13:04:00 GMT</pubDate>
1426 </item>
1427 <item>
1428 <title><![CDATA[Installing Arch Linux on the Pinebook Pro]]>…
1429 <description><![CDATA[<p><em>Obsolescence Notice (June 2021)…
1430 <hr>
1431 <p><strong>Note:</strong> <em>Here is the original article for historica…
1432 <p>I recently received my <a href="https://pine64.org/">Pinebook Pro</a>…
1433 <p>(I mean, I would have wiped it and installed Arch Linux eventually ev…
1434 <p>This isn’t a review of the Pinebook Pro yet–though my initial imp…
1435 <p>Also, I’m writing this in June of 2020. If the current date that yo…
1436 <h2 id="Step-1-Obtain-Arch-Linux-ARM"><a href="#Step-1-Obtain-Arch-Linux…
1437 <h2 id="Step-2-Create-a-Bootable-Micro-SD-Card"><a href="#Step-2-Create-…
1438 <p>The image you downloaded from Github was probably compressed (has a <…
1439 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1440
1441 <p>The next step is to burn it to your SD card. You’ll probably want o…
1442 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1443
1444 <p>This will take a while, but once it’s done you can put the SD card …
1445 <h2 id="Step-3-Boot-into-Arch-Linux"><a href="#Step-3-Boot-into-Arch-Lin…
1446 <p>Trying to boot with my Kingston SDHC cards inserted resulted in the p…
1447 <p>It was only as I was dejectedly loading up Pine64’s website to see …
1448 <h2 id="Step-4-Realize-That-You-Forgot-Something-Important"><a href="#St…
1449 <p>The first thing I tried was based on the <a href="https://wiki.archli…
1450 <h2 id="Step-5-Partition-the-eMMC"><a href="#Step-5-Partition-the-eMMC" …
1451 <p>In a typical Arch installation, you would create two partitions on yo…
1452 <p>The forum guide does not resemble that at all. Instead of having boot…
1453 <p>I ran <code>fdisk /dev/mmcblk2</code>, created a new partition table …
1454 <h2 id="Step-6-Copy-the-Files"><a href="#Step-6-Copy-the-Files" class="h…
1455 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1456
1457 <h2 id="Step-7-Copy-the-Files-the-Right-Way"><a href="#Step-7-Copy-the-F…
1458 <p>The Arch wiki gives this suggestion to copy an existing Arch install …
1459 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1460
1461 <p>The only problem with that is that <code>rsync</code> isn’t availab…
1462 <h2 id="Step-8-Write-the-boot-Partition-s"><a href="#Step-8-Write-the-bo…
1463 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1464
1465 <p>Would those seemingly very specific <code>seek</code> values apply ev…
1466 <p>But what’s the worst that could happen? YOLO!</p>
1467 <h2 id="Step-9-Freak-Out-Because-You-Think-You-Just-Bricked-Your-Brand-N…
1468 <p>Thankfully, booting from the SD card still worked, so my Pinebook Pro…
1469 <h2 id="Step-10-Do-the-Ominous-Thing-the-README-Warned-You-About"><a hre…
1470 <blockquote>
1471 <p><strong>Note:</strong> I have not tried writing this image to eMMC as…
1472 </blockquote>
1473 <p>Again, not being super familiar with how boot partitions and EFI and …
1474 <p>But what’s the worst that could happen? YOLO!</p>
1475 <p>I put the SD card back into my other computer, re-flashed the Arch im…
1476 <p>After booting the Pinebook Pro back to Arch using the SD card, I moun…
1477 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1478
1479 <p>Once that completed (thankfully without incident), I ran <code>powero…
1480 <p>BAM! Never had any doubt. Welcome to Arch Linux.</p>
1481 <h2 id="Step-11-Resize-your-Root-Partition"><a href="#Step-11-Resize-you…
1482 <p>In order to resize an existing partition to use unallocated sectors o…
1483 <p>After the new larger partition has been created in place of the old o…
1484 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1485
1486 <p>Now you can mount it and check how big it is and it should be the ful…
1487 <p>Once I finished all of the above, I booted back into Arch off the eMM…
1488 <p>Running <code>pacman -Syyu</code> on a fresh install of Arch and then…
1489 <h2 id="Step-12-Apply-Dorky-Badass-Powered-By-Arch-Linux-Sticker"><a hre…
1490 <p>I bought a sheet of 10 of these for $10 several years ago and have no…
1491 <h2 id="Step-13-Pontificate-on-How-You’ll-Do-it-Next-Time"><a href="#S…
1492 <p>Anyway, after I’ve had more time to play with the Pinebook Pro I’…
1493 <h2 id="Addendum-2020-06-09-LUKS-Encryption"><a href="#Addendum-2020-06-…
1494 <ol>
1495 <li>Boot into SD.</li>
1496 <li>Mount and backup your unencrypted <code>/dev/mmcblk2</code> partitio…
1497 <li>Use <code>fdisk</code> to delete your unencrypted partition on the e…
1498 <li>Create a new bootable partition beginning at the same sector with a …
1499 <li>Format the first partition using <code>mkfs.ext4</code>, this will b…
1500 <li>Use <code>cryptsetup</code> as in the <a href="https://wiki.archlinu…
1501 <li>Mount the second partition to <code>/mnt</code> and then create a <c…
1502 <li>Use the <code>rsync</code> command to restore the backup you took ea…
1503 <li>Use <code>genfstab -U /mnt</code> to create a new fstab at <code>/mn…
1504 <li><code>arch-chroot /mnt</code> to get into your restored installation…
1505 <li>Follow the “Configuring mkinitcpio” steps in the Arch Wiki linke…
1506 <li>Follow the “Configuring the bootloader” step from the wiki, only…
1507 <li>Should be able to reboot into your encrypted root now. Next step is …
1508 </ol>
1509 ]]></description>
1510 <link>https://rudism.com/installing-arch-linux-on-the-pinebo…
1511 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/installing-arch-…
1512 <pubDate>Sun, 07 Jun 2020 00:04:00 GMT</pubDate>
1513 </item>
1514 <item>
1515 <title><![CDATA[Blu-ray Catch-up 05/20]]></title>
1516 <description><![CDATA[<p>Welcome to the next segment in my o…
1517 <h2 id="And-Now-For-Something-Completely-Different"><a href="#And-Now-Fo…
1518 <h2 id="The-Meaning-of-Life"><a href="#The-Meaning-of-Life" class="heade…
1519 <h2 id="Avatar-The-Last-Airbender"><a href="#Avatar-The-Last-Airbender" …
1520 <p>Best. Show. Ever.</p>
1521 <h3 id="Bill-and-Ted’s-Excellent-Adventure-and-Bogus-Journey"><a href=…
1522 <p>The first movie was derided in reviews when it came out as having un-…
1523 <h3 id="Spartacus-Lolita-Dr-Strangelove"><a href="#Spartacus-Lolita-Dr-S…
1524 <h3 id="Tremors"><a href="#Tremors" class="headerlink" title="Tremors"><…
1525 ]]></description>
1526 <link>https://rudism.com/blu-ray-catch-up-0520/</link>
1527 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/blu-ray-catch-up…
1528 <pubDate>Sun, 31 May 2020 11:28:00 GMT</pubDate>
1529 </item>
1530 <item>
1531 <title><![CDATA[How to Add Rifftrax Directly to a Movie's Au…
1532 <description><![CDATA[<p>I’m not even going to talk about …
1533 <p>Since I’m in the process of ripping all of my DVDs and Blu-rays to …
1534 <p>This assumes you have <code>mkvtoolnix</code>, <code>ffmpeg</code>, a…
1535 <h3 id="1-Extract-the-Primary-Audio-Track"><a href="#1-Extract-the-Prima…
1536 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1537
1538 <p>This will list all of the video and audio tracks in the <code>mkv</co…
1539 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1540
1541 <p>The above command will extract the track with id <code>1</code> to a …
1542 <h3 id="2-Trim-Rifftrax-Audio"><a href="#2-Trim-Rifftrax-Audio" class="h…
1543 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1544
1545 <p>That will create a new <code>rifftrax-trimmed.mp3</code> file from yo…
1546 <p>If at the end of this process, you watch the movie with your new Riff…
1547 <h3 id="3-Up-mix-Rifftrax-Channels"><a href="#3-Up-mix-Rifftrax-Channels…
1548 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1549
1550 <p>If your movie only has stereo audio you can do this:</p>
1551 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1552
1553 <h3 id="4-Mix-Movie-Audio-with-Rifftrax"><a href="#4-Mix-Movie-Audio-wit…
1554 <figure class="highlight plain"><table><tr><td class="gutter"><pre><span…
1555
1556 <p>You should replace <code>-b:a 640k</code> with whatever the bitrate o…
1557 <p>The above command will create a new <code>riff-combined.ac3</code> fi…
1558 <p>You can now listen to <code>riff-combined.ac3</code> in <code>vlc</co…
1559 <h3 id="5-Add-Combined-Rifftrax-Track"><a href="#5-Add-Combined-Rifftrax…
1560 <p>To test it out, open your newly multiplexed <code>mkv</code> in <code…
1561 ]]></description>
1562 <link>https://rudism.com/how-to-add-rifftrax-directly-to-a-m…
1563 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/how-to-add-rifft…
1564 <pubDate>Sat, 23 May 2020 17:13:00 GMT</pubDate>
1565 </item>
1566 <item>
1567 <title><![CDATA[David Lynchathon]]></title>
1568 <description><![CDATA[<p>The next stack of films I have subj…
1569 <h2 id="Eraserhead-1977"><a href="#Eraserhead-1977" class="headerlink" t…
1570 <h2 id="Dune-1984"><a href="#Dune-1984" class="headerlink" title="Dune (…
1571 <h2 id="Blue-Velvet-1986"><a href="#Blue-Velvet-1986" class="headerlink"…
1572 <h2 id="Lost-Highway-1997"><a href="#Lost-Highway-1997" class="headerlin…
1573 <h2 id="Mulholland-Drive-2001"><a href="#Mulholland-Drive-2001" class="h…
1574 <p>That was previously my entire Lynch collection, but while I was watch…
1575 ]]></description>
1576 <link>https://rudism.com/david-lynchathon/</link>
1577 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/david-lynchathon…
1578 <pubDate>Sun, 03 May 2020 18:21:00 GMT</pubDate>
1579 </item>
1580 <item>
1581 <title><![CDATA[Escapes from New York and L.A. Review]]></ti…
1582 <description><![CDATA[<p>Escape from New York is a timeless …
1583 <p>Escape from L.A. is a 1990s theme-park CGI dumpster fire that can’t…
1584 <p>Neither of the blu-rays I own for these movies has any extras whatsoe…
1585 <p>Anyway, if you’re just going to watch one, obviously watch New York…
1586 ]]></description>
1587 <link>https://rudism.com/escapes-from-new-york-and-la-review…
1588 <guid isPermaLink="true">https://rudism.com/escapes-from-new…
1589 <pubDate>Sat, 02 May 2020 23:56:00 GMT</pubDate>
1590 </item>
1591 </channel>
1592
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