The first thing I check for is if a game is Terraria. If it isn’t, I play Terraria instead.

All kidding aside, I tend to enjoy games that involve exploration, character development, and pleasent visuals. Good sound design is also a must, and I prefer games to be at least somewhat action oriented.

None of these things are hard and fast rules for me, of course. I like a lot of different games.

Honestly, this is kind of a weird question. It’s Google. They collect all of it. Every picture, every note, every keystroke. All of it.

The answer to "what information does GOOGLE SERVICE collect is always all of it.

Yes.

Next question.

Alright, then I can be “I can afford experimental treatment to regrow my teeth-man!”

Having recently undergone a full extraction of my remaining teeth and gotten dentures, I’ll take “has a healthy set of teeth”- or “can afford dental implants”-man

Oh, no dude, it’s not kind of weird…

It’s fucking creepy and bizarre culty shit. And that’s coming from someone who grew up doing it.

Oh, I agree it’s a leap. It’s just slightly less of a leap than complaining about the NSA. I’m not saying you’re wrong about the knee-jerk reaction some Americans have to Chinese tech and China in general.

It’s just that the sputtering nonsense makes very slightly more sense after you mentioned the ban in the original post. You opened a crack in the door, is what I’m saying, and if an American Jingoist Asshat can get his head in the crack, he’s gonna get all the way in.

Well, it doesn’t really, except that you mentioned the US trade ban, which brings the reason for the US trade ban into the topic at least tangentially.

I do. I’m with you on that. But it makes marginally more sense that bringing up the NSA would.

Oh, I care about Five (Seven, Nine) Eyes every bit as much as I care about China, I assure you. But in a thread about a Chinese company’s new tech, it would be a bit weird to complain about NSA data mining. Kinda off topic, if you see what I mean.

That’s actually the beginning of the Armed Services oath you take when you join the military here.

But yes, kids do still say the Pledge of Allegiance in schools. That’s hand on the heart, not raised right hand though. And it also sucks.

Me to, brother.

I raised my right hand and swore to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

That wasn’t my best decision ever, and I kinda knew it while I was doing it.

The Tao of Pooh, the Te of Piglet, and the Tao Te Ching.

“Tell him to use the plunger or we’re sunk!”

I feel weird recommending this movie because I fully acknowledge it’s not exactly good, but…

The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997)

This has long been one of my all time favorite comedies. I’ve seen it probably a half dozen times, and it still makes me laugh out loud. Bill Murray is brilliant and Alfred Molina is clearly having the time of his life. I absolutely love it.

Kinda also an indictment of how much we pay teachers and firefighters.

Just sayin’.

Gah! Yes, the vinegar is for the softener cycle! I fixed it in my post. Thank you, kind internet stranger!

• Use like half the recommend amount of laundry detergent. Unless your clothes are filthy, it’s plenty, it’ll save you money, and it’s better for the environment.
• Add 1/4 cup white vinegar as if it were liquid fabric softener (the food grade stuff, not the house cleaning stuff). This aids the detergent and acts as a mild fabric softener. It rinces completely in the wash and doesn’t leave an odor.
• Use dryer balls - 2 ot 3 balls of felted wool about the size of a tennis ball - in place of dryer sheets. They do almost as well at killing static and softening clothes without the chemical residue.

And, finally…

• Wash your clothes less often. Generally speaking, unless they’re visibly dirty or smell, they don’t need to be washed. This doesn’t apply to socks or undergarments - those should typically be washed, or at least rinced out, with every wear.

Edit: clarification, with thanks to antimidas who pointed it out!

Battle for Wesnoth really needs more love. I know it’s popular in the open source gaming community, but seriously, it’s sooooo good. Mainstream gamers really ought to jump on board.

I don’t know if you’ve heard of Unciv, but it’s another really well done open source game that needs more love:

https://github.com/yairm210/Unciv