I'm still here @longjohnsilversprotege - Tumblr Blog

wikipedia no longer being anywhere near the top of search results when looking up anything feels eviscerating

#they really said “you can’t use wiki as an academic source-use our garbage AI that’s even less reliable”#and you can’t even opt out of it

no but you can FORCE it away. use ublock origin and copy paste the blacklist i made into the filters to be able to remove the bullshit AI overview that google forces. it also removes youtube's forced ads (at least until they fix it)

you can also use the ublacklist extension and use this blacklist of AI image generation websites to curate your google image results

there are ALWAYS ways around stuff. it's just a matter of looking into it and asking around

nicenice7

I'M FREE

alistairsprayerwarrior

FOR WIKIPEDIA!!!!

queeranarchism

Also: bookmark Wikipedia and if you already know that it's the wiki that you want, go DIRECTLY to Wikipedia and use the search bar there.

Every time you Google anything, they get data that they can sell, their advertisers get exposure that they pay for and their datacenters use a fuckload of energy. Bookmark Wikipedia.

mazout-fm

For the love of all that’s unholy, please bookmark your favourite websites and stop googling them OMG

You can even add Wikipedia in the quick search engine list on Mozilla Firefox - on your computer and on your phone 🦊 - just select the Wikipedia icon next to your search bar

kawuli

random PSA, I know a lot of people use duckduckgo as a Google alternative search engine, but it always kind of annoyed me when I was using it because it felt like No Name Brand Google

I have switched to using Startpage.com and vastly prefer it. for one thing, instead of displaying an "AI summary" at the top of the search results (unless you turn it off, yes I know), it displays the first paragraph of the Wikipedia article, with link, whenever it finds one that's relevant.

also a waaayyyyy better sense of design than duckduckgo

also private, European based, least annoying search I've used lately (RIP old "don't be evil" Google)

yomikoreadsbooks

Keeping a list of Google alternatives just in case…

saxifraga-x-urbium

i have one of those, scraped from multiple different rec posts:

Search Engines

Infinity Search is an alternative search engine with a special focus on privacy

DuckDuckGo is a popular search engine for those who value their privacy and are put off by the thought of their every query being tracked and logged. Uses bangs, ![site] for in-page search (sells your data to microsoft and draws from fucking bing)

WolframAlpha is a privately owned search engine that allows you to “compute expert-level answers using Wolfram’s breakthrough algorithms, knowledgebase, and AI technology.” A data search engine.

Boardreader is a search engine for forums and message boards. It allows you to search forums and then filter down results by date and language.

Based in France, Qwant is a privacy-based search engine that won’t record your searches or use your personal details for advertising. Uses “&” as a bang search.

Another privacy-based search engine is Search Encrypt, which uses local encryption to ensure that users’ identifiable information cannot be tracked. Metasearch across multiple engines.

Offering unbiased results from several sources, SearX is a metasearch engine that aims to present a free, decentralized view of the internet. Can be self-hosted.

Gibiru’s tagline is “Unfiltered private search” and that’s exactly what it offers. Requires AnonymoX Firefox add-on for privacy.

Disconnect allows you to conduct anonymous searches through a search engine of your choice.

Swisscows provides fully encrypted searches to protect your privacy and security. Built-in violence/porn filter cannot be overridden.

MetaGer offers “Privacy Protected Search & Find” through its anonymised search. A plugin will allow it to be made a default.

Gigablast is a private search engine that indexes millions of websites and servers real-time information without tracking your data, keeping you hidden from marketers and spammers. Variety of filtration and refinement options for searching.

Oscobo is a search engine that protects your privacy while you search the web. By not using any third-party tools or scripts, your data is protected from hacking and misuse. Has a Chrome extension to allow use in toolbar.

https://search.marginalia.nu/ an independent DIY search engine that focuses on non-commercial content, and attempts to show you sites you perhaps weren't aware of in favor of the sort of sites you probably already knew existed. Use old-school searching rather than query-based for the best results.

https://www.mojeek.com/

https://wiby.me/ - It’s goal is to index as many personalized websites as possible, and NOT commercial sites.

https://4get.ca/ it works a lot like SearX, but honestly better. It doesn’t have its own index, but pulls from many others. I think it’s the best for research, since it allows you to search for answers from different indexes, is easy to configure, add free, and avoids censorship as much as it can.

https://www.searchenginemap.com/ for more on how search engines relate to each other.

https://yep.com/ is a crawler

https://www.etools.ch/ retrieves from Google, Mojeek, Bing, and Yandex, like Searx

https://www.dogpile.com/

https://searxng.org/ (next gen Searx)

https://luxxle.com/ - possibly conservative?

https://presearch.com/ - good for academic?

https://kagi.com/smallweb - free/randomised Kagi.

Other Searchers

www.refseek.com - Academic Resource Search. More than a billion sources: encyclopedia, monographies, magazines.

www.worldcat.org - a search for the contents of 20 thousand worldwide libraries. Find out where lies the nearest rare book you need.

https://link.springer.com - access to more than 10 million scientific documents: books, articles, research protocols.

www.bioline.org.br is a library of scientific bioscience journals published in developing countries.

http://repec.org - volunteers from 102 countries have collected almost 4 million publications on economics and related science.

www.science.gov is an American state search engine on 2200+ scientific sites. More than 200 million articles are indexed.

www.base-search.net is one of the most powerful researches on academic studies texts. More than 100 million scientific documents, 70% of them are free.https://cosine.club/ is an electronic music similarity search engine

saxifraga-x-urbium

re ehrc guidance. which is not legally binding.

learndirt

Irrigation can be especially important if you garden in arid or semi-arid climates, and can also be extremely helpful during dry seasons and droughts. In this guide we’ll delve into all aspects of garden irrigation, so you’ll be confident that you can get your plants the water they need to thrive! How Much Water Do Vegetables Need? A common rule of thumb is that vegetables need 1-2" of water per week during the summer. You’ll see this range cited on various websites, but there’s more to it than that which we need to discuss. First it’s important to note that any recommended weekly water volume includes rainfall. This means a climate with 30" of average annual rainfall only needs to irrigate 22" of additional water per year to reach 1" per week (if that’s their goal). We also cannot assume that 1-2" per week […] CLICK HERE TO KEEP READING FOR FREE

cptapathy

Like in the USA, queer british history is tied to black british history. Unlike the USA we never hear their names

It's black history month in the UK, but no child I know of has been taught about black queer history.

So join me in learning about it.

Learn about Pearl Alcock who set up the only gay bar in brixton at the time as a refuge for black gay men.

Ted Brown one of the organisers of the first UK pride rallys in 1974

Justin Fashanu the first openly gay footballer in 1990.

The fact that the UK GLF was inspired by the black panthers revolutionary convention in 1970.

Or Ivor Cummings "the gay father of the windrush generation"

When we understand that our history is diverse, it changes our outlook. I hope that this Black History Month, we all take the time to uncove

I'm sure there are 100s more names to go on this list, but I don't know them. I can't find them. Kinda the point if racism and homophobia tho isn't it? To hide the culture and history of black queer people, to make black queer people feel like their alone, feel like there was noone who came before to look up to and be seen by.

depsidase

isuggestlandback

You know how right wing media runs off of BIG SCARY EMOTIONS instead of fact?

Left wingers do this too. Except instead of "THEY'RE EATING THE CATS AND DOGS" it looks like:

"No one else will ever accept you."

"You're too oppressed to be understood by anyone but us."

"Anyone outside our group is dangerous."

Check in with yourself about how online communities make you feel.

Do they make you feel hopeful, or hopeless? Connected, or isolated? Accepted, or tolerated?

Do they encourage you to think for yourself, and use critical thought? Or do they ask you to accept without thinking and toe the line? Is there open communication, or are differing opinions bullied into silence?

Beware of anyone who tries to isolate you.

Beware of anyone who tells you no one else will ever love you like they will, that no one else will ever accept you.

Beware of anyone that tells you life is nothing but pain, or that there is no hope.

Hopeless, lonely people are easily controlled.

I know things are scary right now. I'm scared too.

Look out for people who WANT you scared.

Try to find spaces that make you feel like change is possible. Look for people who make you feel empowered to do something!

Look for the helpers.

ihazyourkitty

"Beware of anyone who tries to isolate you. Beware of anyone who tells you no one else will ever love you like they will, that no one else will ever accept you." "Hopeless, lonely people are easily controlled."

^THIS!!!!

There are many valid reasons to be angry, or scared right now. But don't give up on hope, and don't let anyone isolate you.

Keep healthy boundaries. Find communities that aren't just in a constant state of doom. Find communities who also help and support one another, and who act in ways to help facilitate meaningful change in the world. And for the love of all that is good, please stay away from people who would weaponize your trauma/pain in order to control you whilst otherizing someone else!

tzikeh

Maryland will become the first US state to ban surveillance pricing in retail stores, after passing Protection from Predatory Pricing Act.

Jesus fucking christ that this exists in the first place

boyslit

I WAS FUCKING WONDERING WHAT THOSE DIGITAL PRICE TAGS WERE ABOUT SUDDENLY i had hoped they were so the workers didn't have to finagle those little papers into the slider part anymore 😭

eclipticasolaris

Hi, yes, that is the OFFICIAL excuse made to me by the guy replacing the paper tags with digital ones at my local Walmart, but the end goal is to remove the numbers off the shelf entirely, replacing them with QR codes that you have to scan with the app…. Which requires your login information….. and also stores your card information so even if you didn’t use your Walmart account at the physical checkout, if you used a card they recognize, they assign that purchase to your Walmart account purchase history.

I explained very clearly to the manager my issue with the meat section not having the price tags listed, and they claimed it was only going to be for the meat, since meat is by weight, and the price of each item is printed on the packs of each item.

Sure. That’s how they get their foot in the door. Fast forward not even two weeks, and here we are:

Bar codes. No prices, no item descriptions. No price stickers on the individual items. Heck, not even the name of the item that is SUPPOSED to be there.

No. The only way to see the price is to scan it on your phone app, which is also recording what you looked at recently, as a way of gauging what you might be looking for in the future.

So here’s what we’re gonna do gang:

Every time you go into a store that has implemented these price-less tags:

Take 1-3 items up to the cash register. Ask the cashier for the price, or hit the price check item on the self checkout, which will likely call over the attendant.

Express that you didn’t actually want it, you just couldn’t see on the shelf how much it was.

POLITELY, AND WITH A THANK YOU FOR THE PRICE CONFIRMATION, Give the items to the cashier or attendant to put back.

When they inevitably try to push the app, politely decline. If pressed for why not, say you don’t want to have to carry your phone in-hand the whole time you are shopping in order to see how much things cost. (Not having cell service or data to use the app is NOT a valid excuse, as stores already often have complimentary WiFi AND more stores will provide WiFi rather than give up on this push for surveillance pricing)

If it’s a shelf-stable item, the cashier will have to set it aside, taking up room in their limited operating space, and eventually pass it off to someone to put in a holding area to put back later. If it’s a fridge/freezer item, it might have to get tossed due to food product sale regulations.

In either case, you are making it a pain in the ass for them to have these digital bar codes. Tie up the checkouts. Give the employees more busywork that the company has to pay them to do. Hurt their bottom line having to toss the pint of ice cream you carried around in your cart for 20 minutes before giving it back to the cashier.

Yes, call your reps. Yes, push for more legislation like this in more places. But also take an extra minute out of your shopping trip to MAKE IT HURT for companies to pull this shit.

antisocialxconstruct

I've seen some people in the notes express (very fair) concern that this is only going to inconvenience already under-paid laborers, and not have any impact on corporate. While I can't speak for every company or every store, I do work in a grocery store and I can tell you this is precisely the kind of thing that would have an impact, especially if people are doing it en masse. Stores absolutely track their shrink numbers, and they do draw distinctions between what gets stolen, damaged, or wasted for other reasons. If people are making it clear that the reason they're bringing things to the cashier is that the prices are not adequately represented on the displays, and rather than improving business it's wasting product, slowing down transactions, and causing confusion and mistrust in customers, that is a language that shareholders speak.

hyenaswine

i think people are starting to confuse class analysis with bioessentialism. like... no not all men do this, but Men as a constructed social class do do this. that's still okay to say. that is regular material analysis of the world around us.

effemimaniac

have you noticed that they don't even want you right clicking anymore

jofiah

Yeah! you can do it to a youtube video and take a snapshot of that frame if it's paused, or open the thumbnail in a new tab if it hasn't started playing yet

endearmint

[ID: Screenshot of the reblog tags by @/thebowlingalley on this post which read, "btw / shift+right click on firefox bypasses a website's shitty custom right click menu / WHATTTTTTT / PREV WAHT????????" End ID.]

elfwreck

There are sites that block shift-right-click. Fortunately, there are fixes for that.

Download Absolute Enable Right Click & Copy for Firefox. Force Enable Right Click & Copy

Chrome version:

Force Enable Right Click & Copy

gardencorekid

With all the talk about telling people to start planting and growing crops to feed themselves and their communities during this time of crisis, I’m surprised I haven’t seen much about HOW MUCH to plant to feed people. Here’s a good article to serve as a jumping-off point, to give people an idea of when to plant and how much to plant to keep people fed. Keep in mind that unless you live on a fairly sizeable plot of land that has ideal growing conditions, you probably won’t be able to completely feed a family of four, at least with traditional gardening methods. However, you can still heavily supplement your diet with homegrown food if you plot your garden carefully.

It's time to plan the vegetable garden, but how much should you plant per person to feed your family?

Some things you can do to save space include growing plants in stackable towers rather than flat rows. Not everything can grow this way, but growing herbs or even strawberries or some kinds of tomatoes in them can save a lot of space. Bonus points if you can get some vertical vining plants like beans or tomatoes to grow up the sides of them to maximize the space used.

Hanging planters can also be used for things like tomatoes, herbs, some berries, etc. The people who grew up watching TV in the 2000s may remember ads for the topsy-turvy tomato planter. I can’t vouch for the effectiveness of them, but it may be good inspiration for creative DIY hanging planters.

Many people don’t seem to know this (to be fair, it’s not very intuitive), but small melons and gourds can be grown vertically on a trellis. You will need pantyhose or something else that can act like a sling for when the fruit gets large enough, and you’ll also want to make sure the trellis is very sturdy. Here is an example of a watermelon growing on a trellis, with squash growing in the background:

Other good options that require a bit more DIY are hydroponics towers and walls. It’s basically just a series of pipes with holes for plants to grow out of. The only downside is they will require very regular fertilization and supplementation with other micronutrients that are essential for plant growth, because the plants are typically grown in either a non-nutritious medium like coconut coir or nothing at all.

Planter walls are the next step down, basically just building shelves with pots in them to fill with soil. Put these on a wall that gets good morning sun and some afternoon sunlight for best results. These and hydroponics both also have the advantage of being able to hook up to your gutters so that rainwater will go towards watering your plants rather than just being wasted.

If you want to get really fancy, aquaponics is the next step up. With aquaponics, you create a system that circulates water between plants and a tank full of fish. The fish waste provides fertilizer for the plants, and the plants help filter out the waste so the water stays cleaner. I’ve heard they’re a bit tricky to establish, but once you find the right balance, all you’ll need to do is feed the fish. This has the added bonus of providing a source of fish for people who can’t eat things like nuts and legumes but need protein. Here is a link to an article explaining what aquaponics is, how it works, and how it differs from hydroponics.

WHAT IS AQUAPONICS? What is Aquaponics? Many definitions of aquaponics recognize the ‘ponics’ part of this word for hydroponics which is gro

I also want to add that if you don’t have the space or ability to maintain a large garden, there are other options. Find or create a group with access to enough food to supplement or completely fulfill your diet, and offer another service. If you have space for a vermicompost bin or tower, that can still help contribute to the garden. Learning other skills like soap making, cooking, sewing/knitting/crocheting, electrical skills like wiring and soldering, welding, woodworking/carpentry, etc. means you will still have valuable skills to contribute towards the group, and this will set up the basis for a larger mutual aid network within your community.

queeranarchism

Unless you have a huge amount of land, resources, a shitload of free time and a lot of gardening skills, trying to live completely off your own garden within a year is a ridiculous idea.

Most of us can’t do it ever even if we use all our space perfectly. Some of us can do it after years of building those skills, and we might still have bad years. And in the end, what does it get us? Self-reliance is a right-wing preppers dream but it isn’t what we should be aiming for.

If we’re thinking about collective survival and we’re looking at food as part of that survival, there’s two things that work:

Start a community garden. Bring together the resources, time and skills by getting together in a big group.

Or learn to grow a few crops really well and share them with all your friends.

The last one is what I’m going for and it works great. You can chose a few crops that are perfect for your soil, shade/sun conditions, skill level, amount of time, etc. Perfect those crops so you’ll have a huge harvest, and share share share. With a couple of friends doing the same, it’s much easier to get to a point where you’re no longer relying on stores for your fruit and veg.

queeranarchism

If you have permanent long term space but limited time? Fruit trees and berry bushes.

If you have a lot of nice soil and can do physically exhausting work? Potatoes, pumpkins, zucchini.

If you have a green house? SOOOO many tomatoes. Fruits that require warmth. etc.

Are you a gardening nerd with time and an interest in learning complicated plants? Take on the challenges like broccoli, cauliflower and depending on your needs, location and options, maybe cannabis? Or build a permaculture garden if that’s your thing.

If you have a balcony or window sill or prefer to do light work in high mobile planters due to limited space or mobility? Leafy greens, herbs, radishes, carrots, maybe a small tomato plant.

Together, we have complementary needs and abilities.

blackgirlnerds

Black Comic Alliance Announces Stage 2: DCBlackout, Escalating Calls for Structural Change at DC Comics

The Black Comic Alliance, the collective of content creators behind the viral #DCSoWhite campaign, has officially announced Stage 2 of its advocacy movement: DCBlackout, a coordinated protest calling on readers, supporters, and content creators to withhold financial support and pause content creation tied to DC Comics publishing initiatives until meaningful structural changes are made around…

boywonderturnedhunkwonder

TEN in FIFTY years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

mysteriousbeetle

[ID: Text that reads: "In almost 50 years, DC has only had 10 Black ongoing series in its mainline continuity, with only 1 surpassing 50 issues, and not a single [title led by a] Black woman. They constantly blame sales, but they're playing a game with the deck stacked against us. This needs to stop," said James Portis III, also known as JPenumbra. /End ID.]

aromantic-diaries

"everyone should get more aromantic" can appeal to tumblr's sensibilities but I genuinely think everyone should also get more asexual. I don't mean everyone stop having sex, what I mean is

Sex is not essential. You can live without it. Full stop.

Not having sex isn't shameful or a sign of failure. It also doesn't make anyone boring.

You are not entitled to having sex with anybody and nobody is entitled to having sex with you.

Sex is not what makes someone an adult.

Nobody's worth is defined by how much sex they have or don't have.

Sex is not equally important to everyone.

You can have fulfilling and happy relationships without sex.

You should only have sex on your own terms, not because you feel like you owe it to someone, or because you feel like you'd be incomplete without it.

Know your boundaries around sex and be firm about them. Know how to respect other people's boundaries.

The previous point also applies when it comes to discussing sex. If someone doesn't wanna talk about it or hear about it you have to back down.

Anything can be sexual but not everything has to be sexual.

liberalsarecool

Every racist MAGA/GOP/KKK slippery slope prediction is worthless.

wutheringheightsfilm

every day it just concerns me how little compassion people have. no compassion for those living in the global south. no compassion for immigrants. no compassion for disabled ppl. no compassion for addicts. no compassion for prisoners. no compassion for children. like holy shit ...

wutheringheightsfilm

i made a separate post about this but actually there are plenty of people cough white people who care about animals more than they ever do human people . not what i'm talking about make your own post

nourishedbytime

novella-november

Are you in the USA? Do you have the Libby library app?

Meet Libby. Discover and enjoy ebooks and audiobooks from your local library.

If not, download it to your phone, and under "Add library card" select the button to search for a library and start typing in "queer"...

[ID: A screenshot of the Queer Liberation Library Libby main page, showing 6 titles, one of which is an audio book. The titles displayed are the Trans Teen Survival Guide; Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During This Crisis (and the next); We Will Be Shelter: Poems for Survival; Tomboy Survival Guide; A Burst of Light and Other Essays; and Saving Our Own Lives: A Liberatory Practice of Harm Reduction. End ID]

(thank you @teddypoi-qd for the ID!]

EDIT: Here is the Queer Liberation Library's donation page!

isuggestusingyourlocallibrary

I suggest using your local library!

anexperimentallife

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