James R Kirk

We address this question using a novel method - generative social simulation - that embeds Large Language Models within Agent-Based Models to create socially rich synthetic platforms. We create a minimal platform where agents can post, repost, and follow others. We find that the resulting following-networks reproduce three well-documented dysfunctions: (1) partisan echo chambers; (2) concentrated influence among a small elite; and (3) the amplification of polarized voices - creating a ‘social media prism’ that distorts political discourse.

1. lmao “generative AI chatbots trained on social media behave like social media users”
2. Shame on ArsTechnica they should be better than to publish a study like this.

Go with Bazzite, it tries to mimic SteamOS out of the box. Very easy install/setup process (easier than windows).

Bazzite is Fedora Kinoite with some extra stuff, Kinoite might be better for a desktop setup but either one is totally useable for gaming and desktop so don’t overthink it.

That’s all LLM software is, it has no connection to reality, it’s bullshitting 100% of the time. The fact that it is correct mostly, or confident always does not imply that it understands anything it’s saying.

I think immutability actually takes away from the confusion and kind of makes the overall experience much more similar to windows where editing system files is something rarely done even among most power users.

I would suggest installing Fedora Kinoite, poke around it for 20-30min and if you find it too confusing then just putting windows back.

My point is that it’s not a big decision/commitment. And it’s trivial to undo!

Did not realize swanstation was not the same as Duckstation! In my experience Beetle is good for accuracy but does not run well on lower end systems.

Surprised to hear that with the popularity of Retroarch on the Steam Deck

From someone waking up from a coma without experience with Windows or MacOS, Linux truly is the most user friendly. It may not have been true five years ago but in my mind it is without question true now.

I hate to admit sometimes that the Chrome experience (especially on mobile) can be a lot smoother and quicker to load, but Firefox wins every time on extensibility. But to your point yes the hate directed Firefox’s way can be well, a bit much.

I believe Firefox is completely FOSS.

Looks like it is! I was under the apparently false impression that it was only partly.

Well, because FOSS apps are usually the best/most user friendly option even if they’re not always the most popular. If you woke up after a 30 year coma and had no prior commitments to using any particular software, there would be absolutely zero question that Linux is the best OS today.

An OS is a complicated thing, yet the FOSS option is the safest, most user friendly, and most versatile. I’m just a little surprised there isn’t a browser that checks those boxes too, since the browser is a widely used thing. But I’m guessing because Firefox exists the number of devs willing to give the time investment just isn’t as many.

I’m not under the impression that a web browser is a simple thing to build but with Linux advancing the way it has in recent years it continues to surprise me that the “best” browser out there isn’t FOSS.

Hopefully that is about to change!

A Raspberry Pi is pre built haha, there is nothing to build (unless I suppose you consider inserting an SD card to be “building”). Those cool mini SNES cases are really just enclosures.

For what it’s worth, I saw the RetroFlag “SuperPI” SNES case in person once and was really impressed with the quality.

Fire stick works fine. Retropie is the simplest setup for a Raspberry Pi. You can also just buy one of those Anbernic handhelds with HDMI out. Most of them have bluetooth for additional controllers. I recommend replacing the OS with something like Knulli.

+1 for this recommendation. Gnome is going to feel more familiar to a MacOS user and Silverblue is very resilient.

That alt text is just TOO real

Eh, I would have agreed a few years ago. But now default Ubuntu boots up basically looking like MacOS with the browser (firefox by default, not Chrome) right there in your face ready to launch. For someone truly not aware how to use a computer beyond a browser it couldn’t be much easier (except booting directly into the browser). The only thing preventing that from catching on is that those people don’t even know what an operating system is, let alone that it could be changed.

The idea of ChromeOS is simple: it’s just enough Linux to get you online. It turns a PC into something akin to a tablet, with a full-screen icon-based app launcher. The desktop is very simple and vaguely Windows-like: there’s a taskbar at the bottom, a file manager, drivers enough common hardware that most things just work out of the box, including a bunch of common GPUs, networking including Wi-Fi. In terms of apps, there’s a built-in Google Drive client, and of course the Chrome web browser.

This is more or less describing one of the many immutable distros that only run programs with flatpaks. It’s entirely feasible if someone wanted to make a distro with even less functionality, but why?

Man I am the complete opposite. I need my browser to display the Web with tons and tons of tweaks and adjustments and filters in place to make it actually readable for me. Rawdogging the Web in 2025 is wild.