iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

eventually, I hope to make it a game about a naughty possum getting into trouble on a farm. Right now it just draws some random crap to the screen to test the library I'm writing for it :)

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 1h

So that's why so much "AI" "art" has that piss-yellow tint!

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 2h

I've started working on a simple DOS project in Mode X and straight C (with OpenWatcom). It's so much fun! Decoding PCX files, blitting sprites around, remembering how bad I am at pointer math...

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 3h

This gurgling fuck is like what you'd get if you poured your racist aunt's Facebook feed into a filthy leather sack and somehow imbued it with life

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 3h

It took me longer than it should have to put this together, and now I can't un-hear the abject creepyness of this line of argument.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 3h

It's not boring for me. I like programming. That's why I've done it for 20+ years. There have always been people that were into tech for the rewards, and people that liked doing it. "AI" only serves to make this distinction more clear.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 29/09/2026

respectfully, I've always imagined that you make a Revolver Ocelot meow. I am happy to be proven incorrect in this detail. youtu.be/y897tozJeg8?...

youtu.be

OCELOT MEOWING

YouTube video by Otagel

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 29/09/2026

Very much so. It's my desperate hope that the bubble will pop soon. For the time being, it seems like people that still like using their brains will have to be very explicit about that fact.

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Dr. DaShanne Stokes @dashannestokes.com · 28/09/2026

Your reminder that there is a felon in the White House identified in the Epstein files as a rapist, there has been no investigation, and the files are still being hidden in violation of federal law.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

While I understand the frustration (dealt with it myself), it's to the point where if a developer doesn't explicitly disclaim the use of "AI", I assume they are using it. I'm unfortunately proven correct with the vast majority of posts to social media/reddit/etc. about new games or retro projects.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

I'm so happy we're replacing our entire economy with technology you have to constantly distract to make it somewhat less statistically likely to cause real, irreparable harm it's like we duct taped two half-critical masses of plutonium to the hands of a toddler and have to pray it doesn't clap

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

"please don't kill me with a gun." "please don't kill me with an axe." "please don't kill me with scissors." "You didn't specify what kind of scissors, so I killed you with those round, stubby scissors you give preschoolers, and that's on me"

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

If these kinds of "guardrails" are in the system prompt, they're not guardrails at all. Absolutely mind-boggling someone thought this was acceptable to ship with.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

Half the reason for "AI" is so companies can push responsibility for crimes (up to and including mass murder) onto a non-corporeal, non-prosecutable legal fiction, but still be allowed to collect the profits.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

An uncomfortable percentage of otherwise-intelligent people turn their brains off when they see "AI" do a little dance for them. I worked at a Large Government Facility(tm) where someone gave OpenClaw access to their password manager and OTP tokens because they were tired of having to log in so much

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

I never thought the cybernetically enhanced pack of billions of face eating leopards that already ate every face would eat my face

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 28/09/2026

Engine reliability continues to be a nightmare.

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Robert McNees @mcnees.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

No one should be surprised that OpenAI — a company that built their systems on stolen work — would steal the work of researchers and try to take credit for it.

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Better Things Are Possible @internethippo.bsky.social · 28/10/2025

I've built a socioeconomic system that depends on everyone to do useful work and act ethically except the people at the top, who get unimaginable rewards for being antisocial frauds and criminals. And I think it will stand the test of time

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 27/09/2026

I'm really starting to understand why so many of the pro-"ai" talking points ("you can't stop it, just get used to it") sound SO. FUCKING. RAPEY. #fuckai

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 27/09/2026

I spent my entire 20+yr career in tech being told that hooking up with/dating your coworkers was the worst possible thing you could do in a professional environment (a sentiment I generally agree with) and now the "AI" bros are doing this shit?!?

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 27/09/2026

the pipeline from "all database objects should have a non-meaningful primary key" to "we should shoot immigrants" is... really something

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 27/09/2026

Just when you think "ai" marketing shills can't get any shill-ier.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 27/09/2026

I would check out SAD CAT COOL ZONE but sadly I am a boyz |<

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 27/09/2026

Horrible and utterly unsurprising

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 26/09/2026

ah yes, my many nostalgic memories playing Bank Street Writer in the lobby of Pizza Hut

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 26/09/2026

I went to a tech hangout wearing this t-shirt. Three separate people asked if I used AI to make it. Like.... what the fuck? Do people not remember that you can make things? By yourself? With your own little brain? #fuckai

A white male with a bald head and mostly white beard wearing a black t-shirt with the words "F*ck AI." on the front

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 26/09/2026

AI is, in fact, the dividing line. Contributors should be required to disclose AI usage so users can make an informed decision.

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Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 25/09/2026

I have blamed The agents That hacked Your website And which You probably Reasonably thought I controlled Forgive me I am rich And unaccustomed To taking responsibility

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

I'm unfortunately coming to the same conclusion.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

You start by prosecuting this entire rag-tag cabinet for corruption and malfeasance. You confiscate their illegal gains from insider trading, predictions markets, and flat-out thievery. You ban any appointee from ever again holding public office for life. That would be a pretty fantastic start.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

There have to be investigations, prosecutions, and guardrails built to prevent this from ever happening again. Otherwise this is all just fundraising jabber.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

print shop + scissors is the optimal way to make retro computing signage

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

#vcf needs to get on board as well. There were a small but prominent number of tables with slop posters and AI-developed products without acknowledgement at #vcfmw.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

I am legitimately concerned for broad swaths of society, especially older people, once these predatory "ai" companies start collapsing. I have firsthand seen folks become incapable of handling basic daily tasks without asking "chat".

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

Every new project in the next few years, regardless of source, is going to require high levels of scrutiny, at least until labeling becomes mandatory.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

Whether the model runs in a data center or on your computer, it was still trained on the theft and destruction of human creativity. It's still shoveling Soylent Green in your mouth, whether you eat it at the restaurant or get a to-go box.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

Unfortunately, it's going to get worse. There will absolutely be larger, higher-profile releases in the retro scene with corporate backing that are going to require the same level of scrutiny.

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mjc0961 @mjc0961.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

"Sometimes I will not find any self-reporting of A.I. usage, play the project, then later come to find out it was slop the whole time." I won't play anything without a disclosure at this point. It usually means they did use AI and want to hide it. Anyone who didn't use it is proud to say "no AI"

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

again, they're giggling about building an arch when his poll numbers are low, and plugging their columns on the Atlantic, and utterly ignoring how this is a plan to murder US citizens on the streets of DC. To say liberalism is failing to rise to the moment is tragically, comedically insufficient.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

Oh, on the panel we have an expert on fancy buildings who is also selling a book, very demure, very mindful

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

listening to very moderated, polite discourse on KQED about a deranged narcissist building a literal sniper nest in the middle of DC. Literally no discussion about who he's planning to murder in the next couple months

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

Can't count the number of people I've encountered who don't understand subject matter area X who say "AI" is bad for other things but fine for X. No, sweetie, you just don't understand how bad it is at X, too. (Where X is art, math, code, writing, printed circuit board layouts, etc.)

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

Imagine, if you will, a functioning government.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

"Oh no, I can't pretend that I made something!"

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

My rule of thumb nowadays is: if you don't make a concrete statement that you *didn't* use it, I'm assuming you used it. And if I'm assuming you used it, I'm assuming you used it for *everything*.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

You mean you can't IMMEDIATELY taste the poison I put in this brownie? You stupid stupid fool. Obviously all brownies should be made of poison.

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John Riney III @8bithe.art · 25/09/2026

Also, Grace should be ashamed, and her manager that let this happen should be prosecuted.

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