ShaunKL

joined 2 years ago
[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 1 points 1 hour ago

PAL the format has a higher resolution but DS9’s production process was for NTSC. They would not have redone the series in PAL so that version is likely scaled the lower resolution up to the PAL resolution along with the speed artifacts described.

I think the AI upscales we have now are a novelty but not a substitute for the DVD masters. Additionally, Marvin Rush used specific camera techniques to isolate characters from the background in the early seasons which in hindsight can the image looks undersaturated and muddy.

LCD technology is pretty poor at scaling up non-native resolutions, even in 2026. DVD is probably the best quality but your mileage may vary based on the screen you use. Streaming imposed an additional penalty due to additional artifacting from the low resolution and the usual penalty of increased blur and smudging during camera motion.

Counterintuitively, using an old CRT screen or a filter component like ShaderGlass or RetroArch will process the image in such a way that tightens up the blurriness the image and will let your eyes relax.

As much as I wish DS9 HD was a thing, it will almost certainly remain an artifact of contemporary production. There are ways to mitigate that reality, but no way to change it.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 23 hours ago) (1 children)

I don’t believe what we see from the genetically-engineered characters in DS9 is representative of the intellectual disabilities they possessed beforehand.

The implication is that, as Khan and the augments from the 20th Century developed a superiority complex and compulsion to enact their desires on the world, personality traits from Lauren, Patrick, and the others also became heightened. Lauren may have had learning disabilities and a high libido before her cognitive abilities were enhanced. The learning disability was removed, but her enhanced cognitive abilities tipped the high libido into a permanent state of nymphomania.

Likewise, Patrick may have had learning disabilities and emotional processing issues. The learning disabilities got “fixed” but the cognitive enhancements supercharged his emotional processing issues.

Also inferred from dialogue is Bashir’s enhancements were less intensive than the others, which prevented him from developing the kinds of neurosis the others suffered from. Jack, for instance, mentions a “full package” implying a full augmentation, à la Khan and his supermen.

I agree that there was likely censorship involved that toned down the presentation of the neurosis (a great deal of TV was like this at the time) along with a lack of nuanced understanding of the subject matter.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

The first episode with greytop uniforms is DS9 5x10 “Rapture”, four episodes after “Trials and Tribble-ations”. The tailoring for it wasn’t complete, so it could be argued to be a different variant than the regular greytop duty uniforms Sisko starts wearing from 5x11 “The Darkness and the Light”.

There aren’t too many stardates cited around that point in season five unless the OP knows something I don’t about the chronological events of 2373.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 5 points 2 days ago (5 children)

On Joined Trill memory, it could be thought of as a similar concept to “Me” in Doctor Who. The humanoid brain can’t hold multiple lifetimes of memory, but in the case of a Trill, the memory is stored in a symbiont and accessed through a complex psychological connection.

One could also liken it to sense memory, reductively, like Jason Bourne- with an amnesia that allows access to memories or experiences when exposed to emotional or physical stimuli. Take Jadzia, who before being joined had a background that was almost entirely based in scientific academia. However, when on a starship, she is almost always the pilot. Why? Put her in front of the helm and she can access the skills and experience of Torias Dax.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 5 points 2 days ago

I think of pagh as something like Prana or Chi. I imagine Sam’s program gives off vital signs, so someone sensitive to those vital signs would be able to “read” her.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 38 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (3 children)

Can confirm this is an actual issue from Microsoft impacting lots of normal system apps that update via the Microsoft Store and/or Windows Update.

I’ve seen it mess up Notepad, Snipping Tool to name a few.

It’s pretty egregious that a bug like this can mess up utilities already installed on your computer.

Windows is really feeling like a single-player video game that requires an always on connection.

Source: I’m an IT professional who has been helping people with this since yesterday.

More source: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5729246/how-to-fix-error-code-0x803f8001

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 17 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

I’ve been trying to find a source but from what I remember the transition was in maybe Munich and it was going fine.

Microsoft opened a new sales or operation center there and got cozy with the government there as quickly as possible to turn them back into a customer.

EDIT: Here is the LiMux endeavor.

Microsoft had announced in 2013 its willingness to move its German headquarters to Munich in 2016, which according to Reiter though, is unrelated to the criticism they've presented against the LiMux project.

 

It looks like artist Dan Mora took inspiration from Deep Space Nine and gave Batman a bat’leth in Batman: Knightfight #2.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 10 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I tested it in my iPad and it’s an eyesore and genuinely less readable.

In a simple mechanical sense the glass effects are well done but they create ugly imperfections when covering different backgrounds. In my opinion Windows Aero was more tasteful.

There is also a degradation when it comes to buttons and control frameworks. In previous versions of iOS it was easier to determine what was a control layer and what was a content layer in the UI. Now the content layers are minimized or even hidden for a non appreciable “aesthetic gain” I think in a quest to further make the UI look less technical, in an user interface that already has been made less readable by previous aesthetic considerations (the removal of obvious buttons, which, from an IT standpoint, I run into issues with every day where a user cannot determine what is a control element vs what is a design element)

sixcolors posted a great breakdown on icon regression as well. A lot of icons look downright sloppy or almost like placeholders while penalizing previously well designed icons by third party devs that don’t conform by putting them in the community-coined “bubble jail”.

In short, there is a distinct lack of taste and a poor execution of ideas that is also hostile to third parties who produce software that looks better than this new paradigm.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 11 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Nobody likes being pointed at. The fist point, then, is a way to underscore an important point without the scolding, accusatory associations of a raised index finger—because it uses a thumb instead. Clinton Thumb works best when paired with an intellectually complex point, making it a TED talk favorite. “It is articulating that you’re focusing on something, and that you’re grasping it cognitively,” body language expert Joe Navarro told Business Insider.

[–] ShaunKL@startrek.website 6 points 5 months ago (1 children)

It was announced for PC and consoles so I don’t think so.

 

David Collins has been a great musical podcast host starting all the way back with Star Wars Oxygen. I’ve always wanted him to cover Star Trek and it looks like it’s finally happening!

I really hope he does TMP/Goldsmith as a whole.

 

Recently a user on Mastodon had a thought about Lt. Ortegas. She is clearly part of the Engineering/Operations division, which is abnormal given the triad of gold that normally sat on the bridge during Kirk's five year mission.

So I began to dig. José Tyler wore Command gold with an engineering insignia. Detmer wears bronze on the Discovery, which continued into the 32nd century. Gary Mitchell wore the darker operations color with a Sciences insignia. I think this suggests Helm can be a multidisciplinary position, though it is typically staffed by a young Command officer. The Command division tends to be more administrative or dedicated to control functions, but we also have Vice Admiral Toddman who wore Security yellow and Earth Starfleet's Maxwell Forrest who also did not wear Command colors.

Continuing forward the exceptions to the rule become less frequent. Lt. Leslie manned the helm as an Operations officer several times under Kirk and Demora Sulu wore Operations gold as the Enterprise-B's helm officer.

I have not dug terribly further, but outside of the 23rd century, the only notable helm officer not wearing command colors is Hector Illario.

Are there any other notable helm officers who don't wear Command colors?