ColinTheMathmo @ColinTheMathmo@mathstodon.xyz

Some state that "Mastodon sucks" because of federation, calling it "a states-rights solution to a global problem." (amongst other things)

Trouble is, while they may have a point, and my posts here may be kept forever, I see no reason why I should remain in Jack's Dudebro Cesspool. I'm taking my chances here.

NEW USERS! Feel like mastodon.social is too busy? You can sign up on another instance and still communicate freely with everyone here and elsewhere.

https://instances.noct.zone/ is a good curated list of instances with short summaries of what they're all about, https://instances.social/ has a "wizard" to help you pick a place from a nice big list of options.

A lot of smaller instances have closed registrations to prevent spam, but users there may be able to send invites if you have friends!

One of the most important things to know if you're migrating here from Twitter is that simply liking a post does NOT cause it to show up in anyone else's timeline. That only happens if you actually boost ("RT") the post.

This is especially important when creators you care about are trying to get the word out about their work. It is unbelievably disheartening to send out something important (like a Kickstarter link) and see everybody like it but nobody boost it.

REMEMBER TO BOOST THINGS

Let \(S = \sum_{r=1}^n r^2\).

Then \(S = \\
1+\\
2+2+\\
3+3+3+\\
\cdots \\
n+n+n+\cdots+n\)

Also, \(S = \\
n+\\
n+(n-1)+\\
n+(n-1)+(n-2)+\\
\cdots \\
n+(n-1)+(n-2)+\cdots+2+1\)

And \(S = \\
n+\\
(n-1)+n+\\
(n-2)+(n-1)+n+\\
\cdots \\
1+2+3+\cdots+(n-1)+n\)

So \(S+S+S = \\
(2n+1)+\\
(2n+1)+(2n+1)+\\
(2n+1)+(2n+1)+(2n+1)+\\
\cdots \\
(2n+1)+(2n+1)+(2n+1)+\cdots+(2n+1)+(2n+1)\)

i.e., \(3S = (2n+1) \times \frac{n(n+1)}{2}\) or \(S = \frac{1}{6} n(n+1)(2n+1)\) #proofinatoot (via Jeremy Kun)

Are you new and just giving mastodon a try? Are you worried that it isn't or won't get popular enough? Are you concerned that it might be unstable?

Never fear. The fediverse is older than you think. It has grown slowly, naturally, sustainably. The fediverse is not a startup. The fediverse will not change unexpectedly. The fediverse cannot go out of business. The fediverse is as healthy as we want it to be.

Tfw. two non-tech people on the bus started talking about convenience/privacy tradeoff, then about "deleted" stuff on some socnet nor being really deleted, and now are talking about targeted advertising.

This means there's still hope. People notice that stuff. Raising awareness isn't futile.

After a bit of work, we now have a Shadertoy-style renderer which handles internal reflection and refraction for the glass and the water!

I was originally planning on adding caustics (more likely using Guardado and Sánchez-Crespo's method from GPU Gems 1 than by projecting a grid from the light to the ground) and dust (just visualizing how the water particles move), but this is probably enough for now!

We've had quite the influx of new users on Mastodon recently. Welcome to you all! Here are some links that you might like to explore if you're new here, or if just want to know more about how Mastodon works.

1. Resources for Mastodon newbies:

https://github.com/nolanlawson/resources-for-mastodon-newbies

2. An Increasingly Less-Brief Guide to Mastodon:

https://github.com/joyeusenoelle/GuideToMastodon/

3. Mastodon User's Guide

https://github.com/tootsuite/documentation/blob/master/Using-Mastodon/User-guide.md

4. How does Mastodon work?
https://kevq.uk/how-does-mastodon-work/

#Mastodon #Mastotips #tootorial

We now have a custom emoji for the superiour siege weapon:

I’m at the point where I refuse to believe this is ignorant design. It’s malicious design.

When your (accept only!) cookie notice covers your footer, which contains your only link to your Privacy Policy…

I’ve heard tell of a great post with suggestions on when to use CW for sensitive topics. Anybody got a link?

Follow-up: George Paget Thomson, one of the physicists who experimentally confirmed wave behavior of the electron, was the son of J. J. Thomson, the physicist credited with verifying that the electron is a distinct particle.

Dad showed that the electron is a particle, and his son, in an act of filial physics rebellion, showed that it’s a wave.

Just a quick tip for anyone saying they're having difficulty making connections here (I'm seeing this pop up more than once).

Honestly, just be genuine. Share your passions ( with hashtags so the right folk can see them ), engage with other people about theirs. Like real life( but with hashtags).

People are less likely to engage with you if all you're doing is complaining people aren't coming to you.

It can be daunting, but it's fun.