digitalfox @digitalfox@vulpine.club

This #introduction dossier details a classified Blappeture Mesa research project. The Enrichment Center would like to remind you of these mandatory safety and happiness guidelines:

1. Petting and patient discussion are encouraged. ⚠️​ Device size may vary.

2. The device will never threaten to bite you and, in fact, may hug you. Repeatedly. (With permission.)

3. The device is slow to respond. Your request will be processed.

#Art details/full resolution/extra story: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/27507881/

Feeling foxie, might delete later
​ ​​ ​ ​​ ​

(Custom emojo are wonderful things.)

When obstacles seem insurmountable, you need a bigger companion to see you through them. In the heat of the summer, this tiny speck of a blue #wolf has taken a break atop the cool, black oasis of #nose belonging to this mountainous expanse of #fox. It's a sensible way to #snuggle.

Featuring / drawn by the lovely 'lil wuff, Alef – https://www.furaffinity.net/user/alef-gp and https://twitter.com/Alef_GP.

#macro / #micro #pov #fisheye #perspective #snout #art. Full quality and details here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/35728194/

#xkcd 's latest #comic offers a hopeful, amusing take on society's response to #COVID19 and diseases in general, looking at the situation from the viruses' perspective: https://xkcd.com/2287/

CC @Azure - reminds me of how you might encourage folks that are worried: "We're not not trapped in here with the coronavirus. The coronavirus is trapped in here with us." :)

> How long did it take you to learn _____?
> Wait, don’t answer that. It doesn’t matter.
> Beginners seem to ask this question when they are feeling daunted by the challenge before them. Maybe they are hoping for a helpful answer, but it seems like most answers will just be a jumping off point for feeling bad about their own progress.
> Everyone learns differently. They learn from different sources, at different paces. Suppose you ask this question and someone answers “one month”? Will you feel bad about yourself because you’ve been at it for six weeks? Suppose they say, “ten years”? Now what do you think?
> […trimmed out details in the full blog post…]
> My advice to beginners is: don’t compare your learning to other peoples’. Everyone learns differently, using different materials, at different speeds.

Good #advice on #learning to keep in mind, from https://nedbatchelder.com/blog/202003/how_long_did_it_take_you_to_learn_python.html See the full article for more, especially related to #Python and programming.

*whispers to @Yarideki about big foxes…*

🎨🔗 https://www.deviantart.com/quiet-victories/art/quick-826641120 (1st) and https://www.deviantart.com/quiet-victories/art/quiet-826641176 (2nd)
#macro #fox #teapot #winter #waffles #art #byQuietVictories

Complimenting folks by saying their art is better than your own sets them up to feel bad when they see others' art that's better than their own.

I'm going to keep trying to not put my own #art down when I #compliment others.

#Firefox multi-tab-select works for creating new #bookmarks by drag-and-drop!

1. Open the Library to Bookmarks view (Ctrl+Alt+O, or Library > Bookmarks > Show All Bookmarks, at bottom)
2. Multi-select tabs with Ctrl/Shift and clicking
3. Drag and drop the selected tabs inside your desired folder within the Bookmarks Library window

(This easier than right-click > Bookmark Tabs… when you have many nested folders.)

@IceWolf Android Developer Preview 2 has implemented this!

Also, Google provides a good use case for this ability, better than the quick launcher feature I mentioned: app stores like F-Droid.

https://developer.android.com/preview/privacy/package-visibility#all-apps
> In rare cases, your app might need to query or interact with all installed apps on a device, independent of the components they contain. An example is an app store like Google Play. To allow your app to see all other installed apps, Android 11 introduces the QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES permission.

As of #Android11 Developer Preview 2, this #privacy change is now implemented!

https://developer.android.com/preview/privacy/package-visibility

Thankfully, there's a QUERY_ALL_APPLICATIONS permission for those apps which will need access (e.g. alternative app stores like F-Droid, or quick launchers).

https://developer.android.com/reference/kotlin/android/Manifest.permission#query_all_packages

It remains to be seen how the Google Play Store guidelines will handle this permission - probably a human-reviewed permission request form, like SMS permissions are handled today. Which.. wasn't handled well at first, but eventually was sorted out.

Blocking #Android apps from seeing every app you install without any effort (including, say, Mental Health App or BigCorp Banking App or Magisk Manager) is a nice change.

@monorail Finally catching up to your story!
https://www.deviantart.com/izzetkeyrune/art/Holly-s-Big-Chill-Part-1-734755204

I like the slow reveal of details in the first chapter, constraining the audience's perspective to Holly's, as well as making one's physical appearance clear for those of us who aren't as familiar with Pokémon. (H-hey, don't bap me, I'm learning!)

Also, stuck with "Okay, Google" instead of adopting "Hey Google", I see. 🙃 Not that it actually matters, I've just been curious who switched after October 2017.

The attention to detail is appreciated! From the Assistant's queries to the element of the home's dwindling structural integrity due to weight, and Ben's quip on smallness jokes being in short supply…

I look forward to continuing reading. 🦊

Friendly heads up: I've created an alternative/backup account over on @digitalfox

I haven't yet committed to migrating, still trying out the place, but, like any backup policy, it's best to exist in more than only one place. ​ Feel free to follow here and there, and I'll post in both places if I later migrate.

Near the end of this article on the #sound #foxes make… https://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-09/what-sound-does-fox-make/ (the article has several video examples)

"Then there's the other problem. Foxes are common and cute, they feature in myths and we have gone to extreme lengths to make them our pets, but the noises they make are sort of...awful. The red fox does not have a mellifluous voice; even when it's happy, it mostly sounds like it's being strangled. It would be awkward to teach your young child that the cow goes moo, the frog goes croak, and the fox goes YAAGGAGHHGHHHHHHAHHHH!!!!!"
"But! Now you know. The fox goes yow-wow-wow, ack-ack-ackawoo-ack, and YAAGGAGHHGHHHHHHAHHHH!!!!!."

…I mean, I see nothing wrong with the #noise a #fox makes. 🦊​🔊​

An interesting, well-reasoned counter to the myth that "mail is hard", including the importance of #SelfHosting for the health of #email (if you're technical enough to run services), just like a large network of ActivityPub servers (Mastodon, Pleroma, etc) help strengthen the #fediverse:
https://poolp.org/posts/2019-08-30/you-should-not-run-your-mail-server-because-mail-is-hard/

The short version is in the disclaimer and end:
> Self-hosting mail is not HARD but requires WORK, which are two different things. Setting up a mail infrastructures requires a lot of initial work, then basic long term maintenance.
> We need to reclaim mail. I’m not saying people shouldn’t be hosted at Big Mailer Corps, but these should not become the Pavlovian reaction to “where do I get an e-mail address ?”.

#Furry downside of having (foot)paws: missing out on the softness of new #socks.

(Just got a new pack of socks, first in several years. It's strange how nice they feel.)

As #Macro March is upon us, I am disappointed that "FuzzBench" isn't an affectionate name for a #giant, fuzzy (or scaley/etc!) critter who offers big, warm perches to all who wish to be held/hugged/squeezed.

But security is good, too: https://security.googleblog.com/2020/03/fuzzbench-fuzzer-benchmarking-as-service.html

(Though security testing would be even better if your security analyst was a giant, friendly critter. 🦊​)