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           [[ the offical zine of circumlunar.space ]]

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- - - ------------------------------------------------------- - - -
Issue One                                                  May 2021

===========================[ PREFACE ]=============================

Back in February,      Anyone who has had     The strategy of this  
around the time of     the pleasure of        first run has been to 
the ogre incident,     perusing the many      just get it out       
Jone wondered out      phlogs and gemlogs     there. Rather than    
loud on the            here at                prematurely           
circumlunar.space      circumlunar.space      exhausting our energy 
BBS, telem, about the  will be aware of the   on determining what   
possibility of a CS    impressive diversity   it should be, or      
zine. The idea was     of interests,          pidgeonholing         
well-received by the   talents, and           ourselves into a      
rest of us sundogs,    backgrounds of the     niche or format       
and for some time,     sundogs residing       without actually      
talk of the zine       here. It will be       having produced any   
flooded telem as we    interesting to see     content, we elected   
proceeded to howl at   how these influence    to first just give it 
the moon in            the zine over time,    a go and see what we  
excitement. Amidst     but currently what     get. So for this      
this jubilee, I        the zine is and how    first issue, we have  
somehow ended up       it will be produced    what has been         
wearing the            is largely still up    endearingly termed a  
proverbial editor      in the air. It's       "topic salad." And I  
pants--for this        really just a fun      believe it has turned 
inaugural issue, at    experiment, and this   out to be quite a     
least.                 first issue is a kind  nutritious one at     
                       of pilot episode.      that.                 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Circumlunar            printable formats      have otherwise. It is 
Transmissions will be  that readers can       with profound         
distributed            easily print-and-bind  gratitude and pride   
exclusively over       for their own          for this habitat and  
Gopher and Gemini by   enjoyment offline      its inhabitants,      
whoever would like to  or to distribute       and the smolnet       
host a copy on their   locally.               ecosystem at          
own gopherhole or                             large, that I         
capsule. That is,      It has been a          present to you        
anyone can clone the   pleasure to            this first issue      
git repo of the        contribute something   of our smolzine,      
project and serve its  to this wonderful      Circumlunar           
contents from their    community of           Transmissions.        
own smolnet space.     thoughtful and                               
This kind of           creative individuals                   
"newstand" method of   whom I respect and             
distribution solves a  admire sincerely.              
lot of the logistical  During my relatively                  ~mieum
issues of where and    brief inhabitation of         April 25, 2021
how to bi-host such a  the Zaibatsu, I've            Incheon, Korea
thing in an            learnt a great many   
accessible way. In     things and have been  
addition to Gopher     inspired to create    
and Gemini editions,   and wonder about      
we intend to provide   things I would not    




======================[ TABLE OF CONTENTS ]========================


[title]                                                  [line no.]

The Circumlunar Mixtape..........................................97
by sloum

Ask Jone........................................................159
by joneworlds

Manifesto of a Granular Ideologue...............................227
by tfurrows

What's the Deal with Leap Seconds?..............................279
by solderpunk

The Hearth of the Matter........................................596
by durtal

Why I Still Game Proprietary....................................668
by wholesomedonut




===================[ THE CIRCUMLUNAR MIXTAPE ]=====================

            - - -[ sloum's covid-year playlist ]- - -

The Circumlunar Mixtape is an ongoing series for Circumlunar
Transmissions where one user per issue shares 10 tracks they have
been listening to.   .------------------------. Y'all have all 
kinds of ways to     | CT001                  | stream music, or
otherwise find and   |     __  ______  __     | listen to music, so
tracks are just      |    /. \|\.....|/  \    | listed and it is on
the reader to locate |    \__/|/_____|\__/    | them. As a court-
esy, when a weblink  |                  sloum | to streaming is
available, playlist  |    ________________    | curators may choose
to supply it.        |___/_._o________o_._\___|

These are songs I have listened to at various points throughout the
last year. Some are old some are new. It has been a weird year and
this is a kind of weird mix. I provided Bandcamp weblinks for each
track except the Charlie Parr, which is a Youtube link because I
like this song live and this is my favorite performance recording
of it and the recording doesn't appear on any of his albums.

                               Enjoy!


[track name]                [artist name]              [album name]
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Forward Becons Rebound     Adrianne Lenker                    Songs
https://adriannelenker.bandcamp.com/track/forwards-beckon-rebound

Catamaran                      talons'              Songs for Boats
https://talons.bandcamp.com/track/catamaran

Possessed by the Devil       Charlie Parr                N/A (live)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P46hGYUycoE

Some Voices                    Pinback               Some Voices EP
https://pinback.bandcamp.com/track/some-voices

Get To Know You             Tomo Nakayama                  Melonday
https://tomomusic.bandcamp.com/track/get-to-know-you

Just a Cloud                   Lusine                  Sensorimotor
https://lusine.bandcamp.com/track/just-a-cloud-feat-vilja-larjosto

Good Morning Captain            Slint        Spiderland(Remastered)
https://slint.bandcamp.com/track/good-morning-captain-remastered

Step Into You                    Hum                          Inlet
https://humband.bandcamp.com/track/step-into-you

Kingfisher                     Windhand     Grief's Infernal Flower    
https://windhand.bandcamp.com/track/kingfisher

Nue                           Nils Frahm                Wintermusik
https://nilsfrahm.bandcamp.com/track/nue





===========================[ ASK JONE ]===========================

          Do you have a problem? Send your questions to:
                      joneworlds@mailbox.org

                              W. asks:
          "I have a strained relationship with my sister.   
           What are some things I can do to help repair it?"


I remember my dad      feels like eating      Chunk'n'Dunk? Not     
and I went through     anymore. Although      great. And I guess    
this patch where       that stuff is          dad's thinking along  
we were both pretty    just not very          the same lines as me, 
pissed off at each     nutritious. But        because every time I  
other, not that I      because I'm mad        come by he leaves me  
remember why at        at him, I don't        another pair of snow  
this point. But        bother to bring        tires he found. But   
sharing is caring,     his favorite, the      I'm not selling tires 
right? So to keep      meatball-carrot stew   any more by then,     
things going, I'm      one. Instead, I bring  so I don't want       
still dropping off     him can after can of   them. And he knows    
cans of Chunk'n'Dunk   turkey-a-la-king. You  that, but he keeps on 
soup for him, because  ever try               getting tires anyhow. 
it's all he ever       that one from                                
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
And so we go on like   of cans. And some      it I find that        
this for weeks:        falls on his head      co-incidentally the   
I come by and put      and he falls over,     big pile of snow      
like 5 more cans of    and the rest of the    tires out there has   
turkey-a-la-king on    cans come crashing     also fallen over,     
his kitchen counter,   down on him. Pretty    and it's crushed some 
and he stacks a few    bad scene. So I go     unlucky little gnome  
more snow tires        to help him up, but    who must have been    
outside his door       I slip and trip on a   milling around by     
for me. And all        can on the floor, and  there. Those things   
this stuff is piling   hit the ground hard    are so bad at staying 
higher and higher and  too. And if you've     alive, I just can't   
higher, and we're      ever fallen on a       believe it sometimes. 
gradually getting      pile of Chunk'n'Dunk                         
madder and madder at   turkey-a-la-king       Anyways, if you're    
each other. Until one  cans, you know that    looking to patch      
day I go over there    hurts pretty bad.      things up with your   
with another box of                           sister, I would say   
cans, and he starts    So we're both          maybe don't do it     
screaming and yelling  groaning on the        with canned soup,     
about how he hates     ground, and then       or snow tires. It     
turkey-a-la-king. And  there's this weird     sure didn't help us   
he gets so mad he      sound by the front     any. It just wasn't   
accidentally knocks    door. When I get       a good result for     
over the stack         out there to check     anyone, especially    
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
for that gnome. Or  
if you have to      
go with soup, at                  ________________________
least stick with                 |\                      /|
the meatball-carrot              | \     joneworlds     / |
one. It's actually               |  \        @         /  |
not bad.                         |   \   mailbox.org  /   |
                                 |    \______________/    |
Thanks for writing               |      /         \       |
in. I hope that                  |     /           \      |
helps.                           |____/_____________\_____|  
                 -JONE   




================[ MANIFESTO OF A GRANULAR IDEOLOGUE ]==============
                            by tfurrows

     - - -[ Passing Thoughts of an Impractical Idealist ]- - -

Our ancestors stood on Permanence dammed the  This is not the        
the banks of the       river, a logjam of     manifesto to end all   
Euphrates and cast     ideas tossed in as if  manifestos. It is a    
their ideas into the   each was a consummate  message in a bottle    
inexhaustible current. standard. Life-giving  that few will find. It 
First they cast in     waters slowed,         is a loose model for   
words, ephemeral. Then intelligence waned,    dealing with the       
they learned           the elastic mind       mountainous dam of     
permanence; epochs     seized and crumbled.   manifestos that stop   
brought clay tablets   The word manifesto     the flow of            
and papyrus, script    dates to the           creativity, passion,   
and type, bits and     fourteenth century,    and progress. At the   
clouds.                but the notion dates   risk of making the     
                       to our earliest        problem worse, I       
                       written conclusions.   proffer:               

  From a Message in a Bottle, Sitting Atop the Dam of Manifestos
  ..............................................................

          * Let your mind move freely, become a seeker
          * Accept that knowledge is scattered broadly
          * Find kernels of truth and germinate thoughts
          
          * Take something from every ideology, 
              fear nothing
          * Subscribe to that which you find value in
          * Mistrust labels, they carry unimaginable
              baggage
          
          * Acknowledge all that came before, but accept
              the utility of your journey
          * Never believe that you have the best vision
              for the world
          * Don't try to fashion the world to your
              ideals; your ideals are cursory

          * Be a maximal minimalist, distill purity from
              immensity
          * Find, purify, share, repeat
          * To conclude means to cease to grow

                                       <tfurrows@circumlunar.space>
                                                 <tfurrows@sdf.org>




==============[ WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH LEAP SECONDS? ]===============
================[ A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF TIMESCALES ]=================
                          by solderpunk

ASTRONOMICAL SECONDS

Why is a second as     didn't, so you're      "why is a day as long  
long as it is, and not stuck reading this,    as it is?" - one day   
a little shorter or a  instead: a brief,      is the time it takes   
little longer?  This   incomplete, possibly   the Earth to complete  
is a seemingly simple  slightly inaccurate    a single revolution    
question which leads   overview based on my   about its axis.  And   
down a deep and        own characteristically since there are 60     
delightfully twisted   obsessive reading on   seconds in a minute,   
rabbit hole.  It's     the topic over the     60 minutes in an hour  
something that I wish  past week or so.       and 24 hours in a day, 
Neal Stephenson had                           a second is simply one 
written an epically    For most of the time   86,400th of the time   
long, inexplicably     that the concept of    it takes the Earth to  
compelling 1990s Wired the second has been    rotate once.  Or, if   
article about, in the  around, its length has you like, a second is  
spirit of his "Mother  been defined           the time it takes for  
Earth, Mother Board"   implicitly by that of  the Earth to rotate    
or "In the Kingdom of  the day.  Everybody    one 240th of a degree, 
Mao Bell".  But he     knows the answer to    out of the full 360.   
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
End of story, right?   observatories tracking enough to notice       
                       the movement of        this).  In fact, the   
Well, no.  This is a   distant radio sources  Earth's rotation is    
perfectly sensible way across the sky as the  slowing down.  Very    
to define time - for   Earth rotates.  This   slowly, of course.     
some applications,     is easier than making  Every century, a       
it's the best way to   precision measurements complete rotation      
do it.  This           of the sun, but is     takes about 2          
astronomically         still measuring the    milliseconds longer    
defined time scale is  exact same thing.      than it used to.  The  
still in use today in                         rate of slowing down   
certain contexts.  The EARTH IS A NICE PLACE  is not steady.  Some   
official name of its   TO LIVE, BUT IT'S NOT  years the change is    
modern incarnation is  THE BEST CLOCK         more and other years   
Universal Time, or UT                         it's less.  In fact,  
(technically, there    The problem with an    even though the       
are a few subtly       astronomical           overall trend is one  
different variants,    definition of the      of slowing down, some 
denoted UT0, UT1 and   second is this: the    years the rotation    
UT2, but we'll gloss   Earth doesn't actually actually speeds up.   
over that here). The   rotate at a perfectly  The dynamics of the   
official determination constant rate (it      process are           
of UT nowadays is      wasn't until the 19th  complicated, and we   
based mostly on        century that we could  can't make accurate   
measurements made at   build clocks accurate  long term forecasts.  
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Gravitational          small, random          was going to be late
interaction between    fluctuations in their  to lunch because of
the Earth and the moon duration over long     the Earth's unsteady
is the primary driver, time spans.  If you    rotation. But by the
but the movement of    define the second by   20th century, sci-
tectonic plates and    looking into the       entific and techno-
friction between       skies, no two seconds  logical progress 
Earth's surface and    are exactly the same.  meant these tiny 
its atmosphere and                            fluctuations started 
oceans have their say, That's a pretty        to matter, as we 
too.  The Indian Ocean inconvenient property  began measuring 
Earthquake in 2004 was for the official       natural phenomena and
powerful enough to     definition of a        building machines
shorten the length of  fundamentally          which operated on
a day by 2.68          important unit like    very small time 
microseconds.  There   the second to have.    scales. A 10 mega-
are even periodic      For most of the time   hertz radio 
variations in the rate this definition was    oscillator, for
of rotation that we    used, the fluctuations example, has a period
just don't understand  were smaller than we   of 0.0000001 seconds  
the cause of yet.  But could reliably         --only 100 nano-
the take home message  measure. Certainly,    seconds! Gigahertz
is that, whatever the  they weren't enough to radiation, which is
causes, astronomical   have an impact on      important in radio 
seconds actually have  everyday life. Nobody  astronomy and was
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
used for communi-      Fortunately, in the    The new atomic second   
cations and radar      1950s, atomic clocks   was defined such that   
during WWII decades    were invented which    it had the same         
before it came to      kept time better than  length as the           
underpin modern        any previous           astronomical second     
technology like GPS,   mechanism. I'll gloss  in use before it, as    
WiFi, and mobile data  right over the         far as measurements     
networks, has periods  details, but suffice   at the time could       
measured in            it to say, we came up  tell, but it had the    

very, very small       define the second      length of the second    
variations in the      which involved         was then fixed and      
length of a second are measuring the          unchanging. Caesium     
enough to make the     properties of caesium  atoms at a given        
measured frequency of  atoms instead of       temperature "vibrate"   
radio waves change,    looking at things      (very loosely           
even if the *actual*   moving through the     speaking) at a          
frequency is fixed.    sky. In 1967, the      frequency which, as     
Modern technological   relatively young       far as we can tell,     
society simply         International System   is completely and       
couldn't be built      (or SI, for the French perfectly stable, and   
using a wobbly clock   "Système               which can be measured   
like the Earth.        International") of     very accurately in a    
                       units redefined the    sufficiently advanced   
ATOMIC SECONDS         second on this basis.  laboratory.             
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
With the arrival of    until now is a little  other hand, is        
atomic seconds, a new  less than 40 seconds,  fundamentally         
time scale was also    but it will continue   divorced from it.     
defined: International to grow, without       Thousands of years in 
Atomic Time (or TAI,   limit. And while the   the future, there     
for the French "Temps  perfectly uniform      will come a day when, 
Atomique Inter-        seconds of TAI make it according to TAI, the 
national"). At mid-    the perfect tool for   sun rises in          
night on January 1st   some tasks, this drift Greenwich at          
in 1958, TAI and UT    apart from UT makes it midnight.             
were perfectly         problematic for                              
synchronised. Ever     others. If you go      This isn't just an    
since then, they have  outside at noon UT in  abstract concern for  
slowly but surely      Greenwich, England (or the distant future.   
drifted apart. The     anywhere else at 0     In the late '50s when 
seconds of TAI are of  degrees longitude),    TAI was defined, it   
perfectly unchanging   the sun will *always*  was still common for  
length (as measured by be high in the sky.    ships at sea to       
averaging hundreds of  This is true today and figure out where they 
atomic clocks all over it will be true in a   were by using a       
the world), but the    thousand years,        sextant to record the 
seconds of UT          Because UT is          position of the sun   
fluctuate with the     fundamentally linked   above the horizon at  
Earth's rotation. The  to the Earth's         a certain time and    
accumulated drift up   rotation. TAI, on the  consulting a printed  
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
table of conversions.  increasingly less      International de       
For this purpose,      accurate as TAI        l'Heure", but today    
ships carried the most drifted further out of the torch has been     
accurate clocks they   synch with the Earth   passed to a            
could afford, and      and the stars. This    combination of the     
compared them          meant that the "new    International Bureau   
regularly against true and improved" TAI time of Weights and         
UT time using time     scale wasn't actually  Measures, or BIPM,     
signals broadcast by   an improvement for     for the French         
radio stations all     everybody.             "Bureau International  
over the world.                               des Poids et Mesures"  
Celestial navigation   COORDINATING CHAOS     and the International  
works very well when   Instead of             Earth Rotation         
using a timescale      broadcasting two       Service, who have the  
which is tightly       different time signals gall to abbreviate     
linked to Earth's      for different          the *English* version  
rotation, and hence    purposes, which could  of their name and go   
the position of things easily lead to         by IERS) defined yet   
in the sky. But if the confusion, on January  another time scale,    
radio time signals     1st in 1960 the powers in an attempt to       
switched to            that be (back then     achieve the best of    
broadcasting TAI       that was the           both worlds and make   
instead of UT,         International Time     everybody happy.       
celestial navigation   Bureau, or BIH, for    Enter Coordinated      
would become           the French "Bureau     Universal Time, or     
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
 UTC - at last,        allowing scientists    technical             
 something normal      and engineers around   compromises, using    
 people have heard of! the world to           ugly hacks. It cannot 
                       calibrate their        be any other way, as  
 The abbreviation UTC  instruments and        UTC is a stubborn     
 is a strange          reliably measure time  attempt to reconcile  
 compromise between    intervals and          two desirable but     
 the English           frequencies very       fundamentally         
 abbreviation CUT and  precisely. But         incompatible          
 the French            whereas TAI is         properties of a       
 abbreviation TUC (for destined to drift      timescale: perfectly  
 "Temps Universel      ever further away      regular seconds, and  
 Coordonné"). This is  from UT, to the        synchronisation with  
 somewhat fitting,     chagrin of sailors     a spinning globe      
 because UTC itself is and astronomers, UTC   whose rate of         
 a strange compromise  is kept synchronised   rotation is           
 time scale between UT closely enough with    unpredictably         
 and TAI. Like TAI,    UT that it allows      irregular.            
 UTC is an atomic time seafarers to perform                         
 scale. Every second   celestial navigation   The precise nature of 
 of UTC is exactly as  with sufficient        the ugly hack         
 long as any other,    accuracy for safe      underlying UTC has    
 using the SI standard ocean passage. This    changed somewhat      
 second based on       synchronisation is     since it was first    
 caesium atoms,        achieved, like all     defined, but for      
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
almost 50 years now,   not absolutely fixed   rather than removals. 
starting in 1972, the  at 86,400 by           They don't happen on  
ugly hack of choice    definition. There      a regular,            
has been the leap      almost always *are*    predictable basis,    
second. The way it     86,400 seconds in a    like leap years       
works is this. The     UTC day, but 86,401    (which are an         
difference between     and 86,399 are also    adjustment for the    
UTC and UT - a         allowed when           fact that the time it 
quantity denoted DUT   necessary to keep the  takes the Earth to    
- is carefully         time scale locked to   orbit the sun once,   
monitored. Any time    the movement of the    defining a year, is   
it looks like that     sun across the sky.    not perfectly         
difference is on                              divisible by the time 
track to exceed 0.9    So far, there have     it takes the Earth to 
seconds, in either     been 27 leap seconds   rotate once, defining 
direction, UTC is      defined, although UTC  a day). Because the   
kicked back into       and ATI are today      Earth's rate of       
alignment by either    exactly 37 seconds     rotation fluctuates   
inserting or removing  apart - the other 10   randomly, sometimes   
a single second on     seconds come from      slowing down and      
one particular day.    hacks applied before   sometimes speeding    
This makes UTC the     leap seconds were      up, astronomers need  

where the number of    All of them to date    lookout for excessive 
seconds in a day is    have been insertions   values of DUT. When   
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it's decided a leap    precise time           technology means that  
second is needed -     synchronisation        celestial navigation   
it's the IERS who      should be caught by    at sea is now rarely   
makes that call -      surprise when a leap   a matter of life or    
they are announced at  second rolls around.   death (although some   
least six months in    In practice, it's not  sailors still          
advance. They're       always so simple.      appreciate the         
allowed to occur on                           relative simplicity    
either June 30th or    INCREASING             of the technology it   
December 31st, and     IMPLEMENTATION BURDEN  relies on), removing   
are inserted or        AND AN UNCERTAIN       some of the argument   
deleted at midnight    FUTURE                 for making sure UTC    
UTC (which is the                             stays in lock step     
middle of the day in   Leap seconds have      with the Earth's       
some time zones, of    always had their       rotation. At the same  
course) on those       critics, but at the    time, the internet     
days. At the time of   time they were         has come along: a      
writing, the last      adopted, their         massive network of     
leap second happened   benefits arguably      computers talking to   
on December 31st,      balanced their         each other, with the   
2016. In principle,    associated hassle. 50  frequent need for      
six months is enough   years later, this hack activity on one to be  
advance warning that   is starting to show    synchronised with      
nobody doing anything  its age. The advent of activity on another    
which depends on       cheap and reliable GPS (hence tools like the  
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Network Time Protocol, added to software as   Some systems, of      
NTP). Computer         an afterthought - if   course, forget to do  
programmers *hate*     they are added at all. anything at all.      
leap seconds, for the  Some systems represent Because all the leap  
same reason they hate  the extra second using seconds to date have  
Daylight Saving Time:  the timestamp          been insertions       
they complicate time   23:59:60, but others   rather than removals, 
calculations (you      instead repeat the     it's a safe bet that  
can't accurately       timestamp 23:59:59     there's plenty of     
calculate the number   twice (since some      software out there    
of seconds between two software will fail to  which has worked      
UTC timestamps without parse a timestamp      correctly so far but  
consulting a table of  ending in :60). Other  will fail the first   
when previous leap     systems "smear" the    time a second is      
seconds were inserted) leap second out over   removed. And the      
and are a frequent     longer time periods,   Earth's rotation is   
cause of confusion and like 24 hours, to      going through a bit   
errors, when one       avoid problems         of a fast phase right 
system implements them associated with sudden now, so the first     
differently from       discontinuities. This  negative leap second  
another its trying to  just leads to a whole  might be looming on   
interoperate with.     day of small, slowly   the horizon.          
                       varying errors                               
Affordances for leap   compared to            The software          
seconds are often      non-smearing systems.  interoperability      
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situation at the time  option. It's one thing cause are only likely 
of a leap second is    to shut down the New   to get worse. The     
bad enough that        York Stock Exchange    atomic definition of  
several major stock    for an hour, but Air   second likely isn't   
exchanges simply       Traffic Control has to going away any time   
agreed to voluntarily  stay up 24/7. It's no  soon, though, and     
shut down for an hour  surprise that          that means that       
around midnight UTC in increasingly many      getting rid of leap   
2016, rather than risk voices in the tech     seconds entirely      
problems by continuing industry are calling   means abandoning the  
to trade during the    for leap seconds to be millennia old notion  
leap second. Given     abolished. Plenty of   that the way we       
that a number of major people are very        represent time is     
web services,          unhappy with that      intimately linked     
including Amazon,      idea, of course, not   with the natural      
Instagram, Netflix and to mention there's no  cycle of night and    
Twitter, experienced   consensus on what to   day. Assuming we're   
outages around this    do instead.            not willing to do     
time, this was                                that, there are only  
probably not a bad     It's far from clear    two alternatives:     
idea. Of course,       what the future holds  coming up with a new  
simply shutting time   for the leap second.   ugly hack which is    
critical services off  As software continues  somehow less          
for every leap second  to eat the world, the  problematic, or       
isn't always an        headaches leap seconds giving up on a  "one      
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size fits all" time    recommend the article  time scales like      
scale.                 "The leap second: its  Ephemeris Time (ET),  
                       history and possible   GPS Time (GPST) and   
BUT WAIT,              future", which you can Terrestrial Time      
THERE'S MORE!          easily find on the web (TT), and discover    
                       (full citation below), that the SI system of 
If you think this      along with, as always, units defined the     
story has been         following Wikipedia    second based on       
needlessly fiddly and  links wherever they    something other than  
complicated, rest      take you. Along the    Earth's rotation when 
assured I have skipped way you can learn the  it was established in 
over a tonne of        difference between     1960, seven years     
details. If you're     UT0, UT1 and UT2, meet before the caesium    
actually interested to other exciting         definition was        
learn more, I highly   astronomic and atomic  adopted.              
 
                      - - -[ REFERENCES ]- - -

Nelson, R., McCarthy, D., Malys, S., Levine, J.M., Guinot, B.,
  Fliegel, H., Beard, R., & Bartholomew, T. (2001). The Leap Second 
  - Its History and Possible Future. Metrologia, 38, 509-529.

"Time-nuttery 101" by Ole Petter Ronningen 
https://efos3.com/TimeNut.html 

"UTC might be redefined without Leap Seconds" by Steve Allen 
https://ucolick.org/~sla/leapsecs/timescales.html 




====================[ THE HEARTH OF THE MATTER ]===================
                              by durtal

It seems that Kepler   Hobbes brought 'focus' life in unfortunate   
first used the Latin   into broader English   ways.                 
word 'focus' in 1604   parlance nearly fifty                        
to refer to 'the point years later. I don't   Ironically, the       
of convergence' in the know if he did this    political philosopher 
mathematical sphere.   with a magnifying      who espoused that     
It is possible that    glass or not. But,     humans are "all take  
this is an analogical  Hobbes is certainly    and little give" used 
use of the term and    not my favourite       a word that belied    
may reference the      philosopher. With its  his contentions in    
point of light created particular take on     the original. Focus   
with a lens. You       human nature, he       is the Latin          
probably know what I   published Leviathan    equivalent of the Old 
mean. I remember       about the same time he English word          
another child showing  popularised a word     'hearth'. People      
me a trick with a      whose use is           still used the latter 
magnifying glass       ubiquitous but whose   term in my youth,     
outside one sunny day. original meaning is    especially in rural   
He quickly adjusted    too often unknown.     regions. Phrases like 
the glass's height     Sometimes the          "hearth and home" and 
over my forearm to     abstractions of        "keep the home fires  
effect a sharp pain as science and a specific burning" catch        
the converging rays    sort of philosophy     something of its      
burned a hole in my    separate us from the   ethos. The hearth was 
skin.                  mundane realities of   where household       
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members gathered to    it is to wait in       them and drink your   
cook or to work by the anticipation for the   morning coffee. You   
hearthstone's          warmth of a fire on a  smile and share a     
firelight. In its      cold winter's morning. joke or two with your 
warmth, children sat   Others gather close to fellows. One of them  
to hear the stories of you, hoping to absorb  ruefully remembers    
the family and         a little of your       that it is his day to 
community after dusk.  body's heat while they do the dishes; they   
Kith and kin           wait too. You each rub are piling up as      
entertained themselves and blow warm breaths  the others finish     
with music and         onto your hands and    and go. This time,    
drinking and dance     comment on the cold,   like its later        
nearby. In some        and you remark on the  double, is            
cultures, families     day ahead. As the      a short space of      
kept ancestral bones   kindling catches, hope intimacy before       
beneath the            builds and blossoms as separation.           
hearthstone. Here was  the flames devour the                        
a point of convergence larger pieces of wood. By analogy, sunrise   
in the human habitat.  The fire roars madly   is like the birth of  
                       as you back away,      a child for whom the  
The rising or setting  waiting for the wooden family cares. Such    
sun reminds me of a    pyramid to collapse.   brief familial        
hearth fire as it      When there are coals   intimacy is still     
converges on the       left mostly, you cook  most often the case   
horizon. I know what   your breakfast over    for the young. But,   
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not so for the         members, nurse the     that the world offers 
elderly. We fill the   frail and wash their   in this day when      
noon meridians of our  bodies late in life    hearth fires and home 
lives so completely    and at its very end.   are all but           
with striving and      Frequently, there is   forgotten. We now     
drift so far from one  only the intimacy of   only focus camera     
another that, too      strangers who alone    lenses                
often, family members  know where the bare    (automatically).      
no longer live near    bones of our final                           
to one another at the  days lie before we     Did old Thomas Hobbes 
sunset of a loved      slip into the deep     have a point?         
one's life. Now        dark of death's      
others, not family     night. This is all   




==================[ WHY I STILL GAME PROPRIETARY ]=================
                          by wholesomedonut
                         
PROPRIETARY GAMING     in the market.         thou angereth me!" I
ISN'T ALL BAD                                 hear in the imaginary 
                       I agree with all of    comments section      
Since getting into the those observations.    because this is       
FOSS community, I see  They tire me. They     Gemini and you can't  
a lot of pushback      concern me. They       do that. I am certain 
towards the gaming     frustrate me daily.    you will find         
industry as a whole. I                        peace through         
can see why: DRM runs  However! There are     measured              
rampant, terrible      still reasons -not- to contemplation and     
business practices     go the route of some I a cup of whatever     
regularly conflagrate  see in the FOSS world  warm or cold          
internet forums,       and eschew gaming      liquid you enjoy.     
anti-cheat programs    altogether on anything                       
are basically          but a FOSS platform,   WHY DO I USE STEAM?   
consensual (and        with FOSS games,       
mandatory for official because.... FOSS. That Well.... everyone   
online play in some    argument is just as    else that isn't a   
cases) trojans, and to dumb in practice,      computer nerd       
make it all worse it   because it's an        usually does too.   
costs a mint to get    artificial limitation  And the overhead    
into the hobby         that stands on         for getting         
nowadays due to        somewhat subjective,   people of minimum   
scalpers and crypto    opinionated reasoning. technical under-    
miners running rampant "But wholesomedonut,   standing (that like 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
playing video games)   PS/Xbox or some-other  download, to playing   
into FOSS gaming       thing, there is a      the game with their    
generally is much more solid 90% chance I'm   friends needs to be    
costly in terms of     going to lose that     understandable,        
mental and social      argument unless they   unobtrusive and        
capacity than the      are very specifically  transparent. That is,  
clout I usually have   interested in that     if the overall         
with my friends or     particular kind of     userbase is to         
family on such         game, its' content,    grow and sustain       
matters.               or have a better       itself on a            
                       socially-driven        higher magnitude       
King's English: If I   reason. This comes     than current.          
have to instruct them  from years of trying                          
to download the latest and f'nagling with     GIVE PEOPLE THE        
version of the game    people from many       BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT   
directly from Github   walks of life; the UI                         
in the Releases tab,   and UX of FOSS gaming  People are             
or from some random    needs to be on-par     intelligent,           
website they've never  with modern            generally. They're     
heard of (even if it   commercial offerings;  very skilled in a      
looks nice and is      this means all the     multitude of things    
HTTPS secure) instead  way from landing on a  that aren't            
of just adding it on   page, to funneling     computers. But asking  
Steam or Epic or       through a sales        someone who -isn't-    
Microsoft Store or     conversion or free     tech savvy to figure   
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
out how to pull down   mentality commercial   combined-arms         
the right version of   systems have           strategy on a hex     
a FOSS game from a     fostered.              board that involves   
code repo (or heaven                          groups of multi-ton   
forbid build it        ENTER THE MECH MAN     robots, tanks,        
themselves with cmake                         airplanes and         
or whatever) is like   A good example of a    infantry taking and   
asking ME to diagnose  FOSS game that has     giving damage to      
a car's problems       plenty of good and     individual            
using nothing but a    bad would be MegaMek.  components, weapons   
flashlight and a       It's basically a       and armor locations   
screwdriver. I have    fully computerized     in a somewhat         
no idea what the hell  version of the         realistic and highly  
I'm doing anyway in    Classic Battletech     detailed simulation   
that department.       rules, which is a      of 31st-century       
Without the proper     board game that's      warfare.              
tools and education    existed since the                            
too? I'm screwed.      1980s and is going on  To alleviate the      
Therefore I urge       40 years of            issue of significant  
empathy and patience   conniving,             calculational         
in introducing others  number-crunching       overhead for          
to FOSS gaming. It's   tomfoolery that only   every-single-action-  
a bit more finicky     a particular subset    attack-or-damage-     
than the               of people even enjoy.  roll-ever, this       
plug-and-play          All in the name of     program does all      
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
of the math,           the game in their      in that regard. A      
calculations, and      head: they're          game of Classic        
rules proofing for     obviously not the      Battletech that could  
you. So you can enjoy  target of this         easily take 5 or 6     
the game with others,  article.               hours in person        
wherever they may be,                         without any sort of    
instead of reaching    I shiver at the        calculator apps or an  
for your G.A.T.O.R.    thought of doing all   otherwise breakneck    
card for the           that stuff manually    pace of gameplay and   
tenth time to          if I don't have to.    rules-lawyering will   
show the newbie        That kind of           only take an hour or   
of the group what      tedium takes away      two maximum with       
happens when an        from the               Megamek. It's a        
SRM-6 missile          moment-by-moment       godsend for a hobby    
spread hits a          gameplay, forcing      that would otherwise   
light vehicle          everybody to get       be relegated to local  
whose armor is         ox-in-the-mired        play over              
already exposed        over details that      predetermined days,    
on its' left           don't matter           not a "Hey want to     
flank. There are       overall instead        play a match? Sure!"   
plenty of              of letting their       kind of casual pickup  
grognards out          big stompy robots      on a boring            
there who know         blow each other up.    afternoon.             
these rules well                                                     
and can do half        Megamek works wonders         
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
BUT IT ISN'T ALL       progresses smoothly.   that the much easier   
SUNSHINE AND RAINBOWS  But it's still just    and more recent Alpha  
                       as much a spaghetti    Strike ruleset isn't   
Nope! Megamek is, in   plate in terms of      included at all by     
my humble and          user experience:       default, to my         
donut-shaped opinion,  configuration options  knowledge. You might   
a terrible example of  laid out in long       be able to configure   
UI and UX. I played a  lists of check boxes   something like that    
round recently, and    organized by multiple  using plugins, but     
another aficionado of  top-window tabs; a     we're already putting  
the series played      decidedly              the cart before the    
against me. Quoth my   15-years-old design    horse at that point.   
opponent: "This        language that clashes                         
program looks like     with modern            TO BE FAIR             
something out of       perceptions of UI and                         
Windows 95." Neither   UX (which is bad       The project started    
of us had played the   considering that       in 2000. It's 21       
most recent version    taking in new blood    years old in some      
of the game. I hadn't  is crucial for both    places, if only in     
touched it in a year   userbase and           logic and not literal  
at least.              developer              syntax. It's written   
                       contribution           in Java. And it's      
Some changes were      reasons); and the      been a community       
welcome, and the       final nail in the      effort by dozens of    
development            coffin is the fact     talented people over   
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the decades. The fact  that does a better      a relic of an earlier  
that it's alive at     job, in proportion to   time of online         
all is impressive,     the complexity of the   gaming, where dial-up  
but so's the fact      physical source         connections were       
that the franchise     material and gameplay   still common. That's   
whose boardgame it     flow.                   a given. And it is     
emulates even has a                            what it is. I won't    
fanbase still. BT      So considering it was   waste time bemoaning   
fans aren't quitters,  made in the waning      those facts that are   
certainly. And this    days of Win98           immutable in this      
is all considering     (because Windows ME     context. I'm only      
the fact that trying   doesn't exist and you   stating them to set    
to automate,           can't convince me       the stage.             
obfuscate and          otherwise) it's                                
de-FUBAR the mountain  expected that it's      I'M LEFT AT AN         
of minutiae that       ugly as most things     INTERESTING IMPASSE   
Battletech's rulesets  were back then. It                             
and technical data     was written in Java     There is no other way  
(on a per unit and     (yea verily, begone     I could ever play      
per variant basis no   foul JVM!), which for   Battletech with        
less) is a monumental  all its' foibles        friends from all over  
task. I can hardly     makes a very easy       the world in such a    
think of a video-game  cross-platform          great degree of        
adaptation of a more   distributable           fidelity. Megamek      
complex board game     program. It's solidly   serves its' purpose    
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very well for what it  So, I leave it to you   make my hobby free     
is: a highly detailed  to put the pieces       and open if there      
computerization of a   together here. I can    isn't a platform for   
niche franchise that   choose to play with     those newcomers to     
has a fanbase          average people that     even stand on and      
spanning generations.  A) aren't technically   explore once (or if    
However, it also       inclined, B) don't      ever) they choose to   
stands out to me as    have a heart that       get involved in FOSS   
one of the prime       beats for               gaming of their own    
examples of a FOSS     free-as-in-freedom,     volition.              
project being          and C) want something                          
understandably opaque  that "just works," or   AT THE END OF THE DAY  
to newcomers. It's     confine myself to a                            
hard to use at first,  much smaller content    I encourage people     
hard to look at        base with an even       who play video games   
always, and sometimes  smaller playerbase to   which are also         
hard to find other     share it with.          interested in free     
people to play it                              and open source        
with. Those three      Call me the gaming      software to consider   
things will nail the   nerd Whore of           the prospect of       
coffin of any          Babylon, but I don't    inviting others into  
fledgling game shut.   see the point in        this world of         
That concept is true   beating my head         free-as-in-freedom/   
regardless of genre,   against the wall        beer/whatever         
art style, or UI/UX.   overtly trying to       with a grain of salt. 
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Until we make it       not be seen. And        growth in production  
easier to onboard new  therefore we will not   quality, variety, and 
people from all walks  see the requisite       competitiveness in    
of life, significant   uptick in talent,       the market space of   
adoption of FOSS       contribution and        people's free time.   
systems or the games   playerbase that will  
that run on them will  consequently drive a  


                      - - -[ CONTACT ME ]- - - 

           external email: wholesomedonut at tuta dot io
           mastodon: at wholesomedonut at fosstodon dot org
           matrix: at wholesomedonut colon matrix dot org


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                          ~wholesomedonut
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