iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 15h

The proliferation of ads on #YouTube lately isn't a platform thing, it's actually on the channel's end. And it's up to creators to go through all their content and manually choose better ad ratios for mid-rolls. We can't choose the ads, but we CAN* choose when they appear. [Read ALTs for details.]

A behind-the-scenes look at my YouTube video monetization settings. This is how many ads there would be on my video if I let YouTube's AI pick the placement and didn't manually trim them down. Each tick on the timeline is an ad, and there are breaks every couple of minutes throughout. Obviously this is a longer video, but ads still tend to be this frequent in short videos too. Which I personally find unacceptable.

Originally, YouTube told creators that "ads wouldn't always play every time", but lately they do, and as such, I think it's important that creators take time to curate ad frequency and placement. Either by trimming down existing ads from the current placements (just click the trash bins on ones you want to delete), or by clicking the "Ad Break" button to ad them somewhere manually.

Ads are also generated where the AI think it detects silence, to try not to interrupt the speaker. So consider putting in actual "ad break" sections when creating the video itself, or for gameplay like me, placing them in spots like loading screens.

Yes, this process takes a couple minutes each time. But honestly, I think we owe it to our audiences.

Meanwhile, this is what an ad-break timeline looks like when it has been manually trimmed down. Where once there was dozens of ad breaks, now there's only a tick about every half hour.

Personally, as a Let's Play / VTuber channel, I've deliberately chosen to put my ad breaks approximately every 30 minutes for story-heavy or engaging segments, and every 60 minutes for rpg grinding or slower ones. Give or take depending on video pace, but never going above that amount. As I feel this is a relatively fair trade-off, and fits the more relaxing "I want to listen to these videos in the background" style of my channel.

(As such, I'd really appreciate it if you'd consider whitelisting my channel if you use a workaround method. Unless I literally have no choice due to copyright claims, I try and make ad breaks on my YouTube videos to feel relatively natural for where they appear, and thus as unobtrusive as possible.)

However, many creators likely don't even realize this feature exists, and as such I think if viewers are getting bombarded by ads, it wouldn't be wrong to **POLITELY** point out that this setting exists. They may not know that their content is becoming borderline unwatchable as a result. It can be found under the "monetization" tab of each video, and is also available while the video is uploading.

YouTube's AI feature also takes a while to sniff out said ad spots, so creators need to remember to un-tick the "Automatic Ad Slots" button, even if they pick the slots manually, or the AI will just later put them all in again.

What the monetization page looks like for a video that has been completely copyright-claimed. The option for ads is listed as "Ineligible", and all options to toggle settings are greyed out.

So this video in particular might be riddled with ads, or it may have none, but I don't really have any good way of knowing. Either way, ad-wise, videos like these are beyond my control. Sorry.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

I don't think sleep mode is enabled, though I do have my PC set to balanced. It's a desktop without a battery, so I never bothered to mess with it.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The Ratchet & Clank Future series can now supposedly run on RPCS3. I can potentially pick this LP series back up now after a 6 year hiatus, so long as my system is powerful enough to run it. I recorded TOD off of a physical PS3, but it was such a convoluted setup for not great video quality.

A Tweet from the official RPCS3 that reads:
“ALL Ratchet & Clank PS3 games can be played on PC without crashes!
-Tools of Destruction (2007)
- Quest For Booty (2008)
- A Crack In Time (2009)
- All 4 One (2011)
- QForce (2012)
- Into The Nexus (2013)”

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Almost exactly two years later, and I've finally finished all of Natlan's MSQ. I've still got some world quests to go, and wish to backtrack to fully finish up the playlist, but burnout really hit me at the end. Even though I liked it way more than previous patches. www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Was storming all morning and I had about 6 cups (1420ml) of vanilla yogurt to use up, so I baked three protein muffin loafs. One basic, a white chocolate, and a chocolate peanut butter. Normally I make these into muffins, but I couldn't be bothered. Probably won't make any for a while though lol.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Forgot to update here, but I have also started a Johto-only challenge run of Pokemon HeartGold on my channel. This is also the first project I began while using a Vtubing avatar. www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

I got through the lengthy fish tycoon event. Nine and a half hours later, for just this quest alone. It was a fun idea for an event, and while they gave us more days than usual to finish it...it was still waaaay too long for me. Especially as someone already behind. It also heavily spoiled the MSQ.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 16/07/2026

Brightest time of the day, usually. The smog has blocked out the sun.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Bridge? What bridge? 🌁 (In all seriousness, it’s hard to breathe even indoors right now.)

Mackinac Bridge completely engulfed in wildfire smoke. Only a small, closer portion of the bridge’s road is visible, and neither the larger structure or lakes below can be clearly seen. You have to look closely to even realize car headlights are still passing through.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

So I didn't realize that the Selenic Chronicles would require 7 IRL server resets between quests. I thought they'd be one a day. So uh...for the sake of continuity, I may need to start Snezhnaya early and have it run simultaneously alongside Nod-Krai to not fall further behind.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

I suppose this counts as a debut of sorts. Still working some things out, but functional is functional. Took the time to learn some new programs and now I have my own avatar for future streams or videos.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

I have no idea what I'm doing with this whole virtual avatar thing, but I'd like to hope I'm making progress. I have a base body built after a few days, now it's a matter of mapping movement and actually piloting it. Which is uh...a whole other process. 😅

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

Please bear with me, I promise I'm still re-editing the Genshin videos. But Inazuma marks the beginning of needing to re-record game audio, and try and balance and piecemeal it all back together, in a manner that's still somewhat presentable. It's not as simple as just cutting segments out anymore.😵‍💫

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

Elgato HD60 S is pretty standard affair for the most part, as it's an external card. 3.X USB-A. HDMI-only. Device firmware is 17.03.17, and Elgato 4K Software version is 1.7.16 (10419).

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

This is in the now-downgraded 29.1.3 version, but is the same settings as before. Although, -22dB is what I record most of my PC and PS4 games at, which is still much higher audio than what I was getting. The mixer usually shows it low because there were no other PC input noises at the time.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

- Advanced audio says it is where it is supposed to be, and game audio shows itself as being much louder than what it actually outputs. - No filters on the Elgato track. - I use Audio Input Capture for Elgato, but even switching back to just video source w/ capture audio only, gives the same issue.

My audio mixer settings in OBS. I like in-game audio to be around the -30-25 range for spoken dialogue and combat effects. And while my settings showed just that, my audio was streamed and recorded as being closer to -50.

Not the best screenshot, but I hope it conveys the issue.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

I've tested every audio adjustment stat I can think of and they're all where they're supposed to be, but the actual audio is WAY quieter than what it's showing for the final recording/stream. This is also only for my Elgato. PC audio recording is still totally normal. As is recording in 4K capture.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 29/03/2026

Re-finished Nier: Automata 100% in my own time. I'm still torn on doing an LP. For franchises I like *too much*, I always feel like I'd never do them justice, or would miss talking about a single aspect of lore and beat myself up over it forever. Anyways, platinum trophy added to profile.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

The latest NVIDIA drivers just broke my ability to render videos with NVENC. 🙃

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

And of course I have to give a special mention to Mew, my very first Pokemon. As without Mew randomly being given to me as a card as part of a random promo, I may have never gotten so into Pokemon. Mew also sparked my deeper love for games and how they're made, due to how it can be obtained.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Picking my personal favorite 4 (5) Pokemon based on the team I'd build IRL. Though I doubt I'd be a traditional trainer lol. Each one I've highlighted isn't just a design, but also represents something more personal to me over the years as well. (See alt.) Happy 30th anniversary to this series.💛

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 22/02/2026

My neighbor also loudly drums (with no soundproofing) every night now, from 7pm-midnight, which is leaving me both incredibly sleep deprived, and is an environment that is impossible to record or stream anything in. They get escalating fines every time too, and nothing changes. We all hate them.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 17/02/2026

A man who stays logged in all the time because he's in the final days of cancer. Kids facing abuse at home or severe bullying at school. Queer people who have no representation or community. People struggling with mental illness or disability. Not to mention the conspiracy all this confusion causes.

The characters Tsukasa and Subaru, who are a canonically queer couple, from .Hack//Sign. Subaru is lovingly embracing Tsukasa from behind, with Tsukasa softly holding Subaru's arms in return, while both wear expressions of fondness mixed with depression.

For further context not in the image, Subaru is wheelchair-bound IRL, limiting her independence compared to other girls her age. Tsukasa lives in an extremely abusive household, and possibly also deals with gender dysphoria. (Though whether it's due to abuse related to being born AFAB, combined with missing memories or not, is unknown - as the characters themselves might not know either, and lack the language for expression. Though the two navigate this aspect of their relationship together regardless, and an OVA confirms them still being a couple after the series ends.)

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

Finished Dragon Quest 11 S. Really enjoyed the first two acts, but the final one kind of overstayed it's welcome and made a bit of a mess of things. Especially as the game was pretty linear up until that point, and then act 3 was a bit too directionless and didn't bother keeping track of quests.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 23/01/2026

So cold out that our personal thermometer gave up. 🥶🌡️

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Came out a tad short, but oatmeal bread was a success. Consistency reminds me more of a biscuit, but with a more breakfasty taste. Would probably be good with peanut butter and jam. 🍞

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

I may be uploading fewer series going forwards, as I want to focus on "traditional" 100% Let's Play runs for single-player games, instead of primarily blind playthroughs. But that doesn't mean I'm out of games to choose from yet! And of course this list will only grow as I try new experiences.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

I promise I'm making progress towards my anima weapon in Heavensward, there's just a whole lot of tomestone grinding to do in the background. (I'm halfway there!)

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 03/01/2026

Already finished my first personal backlog game of the year, as it was a short one - the original Portal. Definitely a bit trickier than the second game for sure, and having you think outside the adorably musical box [🩷].

The start screen after you reach the ending in Portal. (Cake party with the Companion Cube [🩷]).

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

Yearly anime and manga tier list for 2025. Truth be told, there's actually a lot more manga than this that I've started and that are on my TBR, but many of them are still publishing, and I didn't want them to flood the whole category. Manga might get their own list in the future.

Tier List of anime and manga I finished in 2025. Listed left-to-right in ranking of personal enjoyment.

A (Yearly Favorites):
Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun (season 1)
Dandadan (season 2)
Dr. Stone: New World (part 2)
Sk8: The Infinity Extra Part
The Summer Hikaru Died
Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun (season 2)
Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun (season 3)

B (Good):
Assassination Classroom (season 1)
Hunter x Hunter Movie: Phantom Rouge
My Hero Academia Movie: You’re Next
The Apothecary Diaries (season 1)
Godzilla: Singular Point
Ranma ½ (season 2)
Sakamoto Days (season 1)
Leviathan
Mashle (season 1)

C (Average / Meh):
Kobato [manga]
Astra: Lost In Space [manga]
Demon Slayer: Hashira Training Arc
Naruto Shippuden Movie 3: The Will Of Fire
Wind Breaker (season 1)
Sakamoto Days (season 2)
Bastard: Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy (season 1)
Bastard: Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy (season 3)
Bastard: Heavy Metal, Dark Fantasy (season 2)
Modest Heroes
Gestalt OVA

D (Not For Me / Dropped):
Just Like Mona Lisa [manga]

Unfinished (Shelved or Ongoing Projects):
Naruto Shippuden [ongoing - 140 episodes]
Digimon: Beatbreak [5 episodes]
Black Clover [ongoing [51 episodes]

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

Yearly game tier list for 2025. Spent most of the year in and out of hospitals, so again, I didn't reach my goal of 10 finished entries. Though I did 100% KH:DDD as something to do while not feeling well (pet *ALL* the critters!). Going to focus more on just playing games in my own time in 2026.

Tier List of games I finished (made it to end credits) in for 2025. Listed left-to-right in ranking of personal enjoyment.

Text reads:
A (Yearly Favorites):
Final Fantasy 14: Heavensward
Honkai: Star Rail 2.0 (Penacony)

B (Good):
Final Fantasy III [PSP version]
Oxenfree
Kingdom Hearts 0.2: Birth by Sleep – A Fragmentary Passage
Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance HD

C (Average / Meh):
.Hack// Volume 3: Outbreak

D (Not For Me / Dropped)
N/A

Unfinished (Shelved or Ongoing Projects):
Genshin Impact 5.0 (Natlan) [ongoing]
Dragon Quest 11 S: Echoes Of An Elusive Age [ongoing]
Honkai: Star Rail 3.0 (Amphoreus) [ongoing]
Zenless Zone Zero 1.0 [ongoing…technically]

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Last-minute entry for games in 2025 was Oxenfree. Picked it up last night when the blizzard was messing with my power and I couldn’t sleep. Added to the uncanny dynamic of it, actually. Fun little mystery game that reminds me of classic point-and-click scavenger adventures when played on a tablet.

Title screen for Oxenfree (tablet version).

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

It’s a tad unnerving watching the pressure drop like this when everything is absolutely still outside. It’s the winter equivalent of watching a hurricane roll up on the horizon. We already had an ice storm over the holiday, but now we’re expecting a heavy blizzard to roll in too.

Barometer reading the current pressure as 29.11, inHg and dropping steadily (it was 29.30 an hour ago). Often signaling an upcoming storm. Which is also being professionally predicted.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 08/12/2025

Was warned that Kingdom Hearts: Fragmentary Passage was more challenging than usual, so I did the first run in my own time. (I might do this more often in the future to provide more insightful commentary). The LP will thus be in Critical Mode, with most optional side objectives already done.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

I did it. Got the Platinum trophy for Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance. 🗝️🎈 Plan to edit the video into boss highlights and get it up soon.

Proof of the Platinum trophy for Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance on PS4.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 25/11/2025

I’m back from surgery. Had my stomach, and both large and small intestines biopsied. 🔬🏥🩹 Might need to rest for a few days.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 22/11/2025

So...I may have secretly been working on the Platinum trophy for Kingdom Hearts DDD behind the scenes. Levels and Flick Rush are both maxed out, so all that's really left is maxing out all spirits skills/affinity (which I'm about halfway done with), and then streaming the secret portals/bosses.

Screenshot of a menu in Kingdom Hearts DDD showing maxed out levels for characters and for Flick Rush.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 25/10/2025

Pink drink. 💖☕️👻 (I can’t find the matcha one anywhere though. 🍵) #PokemonGo

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 16/10/2025

Got a whole assortment of devices hooked up to me now. 🏥😷

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 10/10/2025

I used to do this a lot with homework as a kid too. I wanted to get good grades, and I could even be interested in the subject material. But after a long day, I'd fully intend to do homework (no distractions), get my name/assignment title on the page and just...zone out. For the rest of the night.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

Baked a chocolate zucchini loaf. 🍫🥒🍞

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 24/08/2025

Harvested a good garden bounty in the rain. Probably going to bake some zucchini bread and make some marinara spaghetti squash for dinner.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 06/08/2025

Also, you as a VIEWER can block and report individual ads on the site. Click the 3 dots while the ad is playing, and then choose Report, and then BLOCK. Just be sure to report FIRST, as blocking will close out the ad page. Take note of topics, and share URL's for others to block (it's in Report).🧵

Where to go to block ads on mobile. (I'm assuming it's the same on desktop, but I haven't seen an ad there for years).

Report the ad first and from there you can also grab the URL for other people to share around and block. Only choose Block once you're done, as that will close out the ad window.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 21/07/2025

Squash and tomatoes are finally starting to grow in the garden. And I also finally got to harvest a bunch of semi-wild raspberries.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 20/07/2025

Temps are pretty good too, so it doesn't seem to be overheating. Even while streaming, my PC usually runs at temps of: CPU: 32-50°C GPU: 55-75°C Coolant: Always around 30°C. If I had to guess, I'd say there's a bubble in the radiator (weird with a ceiling orientation/age), or it's a fan bearing.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 20/07/2025

Here’s what it sounds like (usually) while not under any sort of load. Nice and quiet. And sometimes lightly tapping the top or putting a small rock above it also gets it to stop. All screws are tight, and I doubt there’d not be enough coolant after only a year?

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 20/07/2025

Really wish I could get my PC to stop grinding like this. It’s done so for about a year after I got it. It’s not the pump, as the sound is coming from either the radiator or top right fan. And I’m terrified to disassemble it, lest I break something and can’t go back. As this thing is so fickle.

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AetherNightmare @aethernightmare.bsky.social · 16/07/2025

I'll be hearing this sound in my sleep. Been farming this spot for bolts for like an hour, and only 135,000 more bolts to go. 🙃 (Bonus, I forgot I can disable the frame limit with F4. That'll help tremendously).

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