iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 03/10/2026

There's been a small recovery in regular gas but diesel is still insanely expensive. Not sure how much that's gonna help the GOP.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 03/10/2026

I picked up Gungeon again recently and wow the mid to late game is just Zelda and Metal Gear references huh?

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 02/10/2026

I've always had a hard time choosing between being nice and being mean as hell to regretful Trump voters. I'll probably struggle with it my entire life.

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Reposted by Matthew Connatser

Silicon Insights @siliconinsights.org · 02/10/2026

Finished up a piece about Bazzite's Deck 44 update from last month. My experience has been pretty great, to the point where my list of things I'd like to see fixed or implemented in Bazzite has gotten pretty short. www.siliconinsights.org/bazzite-deck...

siliconinsights.org

Bazzite Deck 44 is a great update for a SteamOS-like distro

I've finally tried out Bazzite Deck 44, and while its headline features aren't a big deal for me, it's the little details that make Deck 44 great.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 30/09/2026

Well now CachyOS says I have no touchpad, so RIP I guess.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 29/09/2026

And now it's whittled down to 25%. Iowa is just a point or two away from leaning Democrat, as is Kansas for being a tossup. Still got a whole month left before Election Day.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 29/09/2026

This touchpad is 100% cooked which is infuriating because I don't know if I trust MSI to do a repair without botching it or otherwise screwing me over. I also don't want to be completely out of a PC either.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 29/09/2026

Dios mio. 29% to 26 in just a single day. Also, Iowa is 2 or 3 points away from being recategorized as lean Democrat. And Kansas and South Carolina are nearly tossups. And this isn't even all of today's polls!

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 29/09/2026

I think it's actually dying or something because it's the most erratic towards the center. Which really sucks because I don't really wanna send this thing in and I don't know if I trust MSI to do it properly.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 29/09/2026

It's acting almost the exact same way if somehow the CPU was too bogged down to actually handle mouse stuff except this touchpad is the only thing that's lagging.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 29/09/2026

Guys what do you do if your touchpad is suddenly possessed by a very ornery demon? Because that's the only explanation I can come up with for this thing being the absolute worst in both Linux and Windows. Used to be a very well behaved trackpad too...

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 27/09/2026

Republicans fall to the 20s for the first time in the @fiftyplusone.news Senate forecast. I don't know if they'll get below the teens before Election Day but they've never had a winning streak so far. It's incredible.

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Reposted by Matthew Connatser

Silicon Insights @siliconinsights.org · 25/09/2026

This one is a little late coming out, but anyways here's a video version of the 8GB GPU performance testing I did a little while ago. Also, I did a very extremely minimalist style of editing for this one. Let me know if it worked out or not. www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3Wf...

youtube.com

Is 8GB actually enough for a midrange GPU after all?

YouTube video by Silicon Insights

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Reposted by Matthew Connatser

Silicon Insights @siliconinsights.org · 24/09/2026

Wow I just discovered it's really easy to edit videos if you're lazy and just have one long clip to cut up and trim. Literally got done in like an hour.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 23/09/2026

Half of the time it's just a scam attempt.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 23/09/2026

Really funny when you're writing a story and it just kind of keeps going. Might as well pull the trigger honestly, the only thing we don't know is when the bleeding stops.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 23/09/2026

Texas is now Lean Democrat according to @fiftyplusone.news, for the first time this cycle. There is now only one tossup state: Iowa, which has Democrat Turek at a 55% chance to win. At 60% or more, Iowa goes Lean Democrat. Overall odds in the Senate are still 68% chance for Dems to win.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 23/09/2026

She wouldn't have minded if it was someone who wasn't named Renee Good. What an ignorant and stupid woman.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 22/09/2026

Model update from @fiftyplusone.news: Democrats have a 68% chance to take the Senate, up from 64% to 65% in recent days. It is now most likely that Democrats flip 2/4 of the battleground states, and flipping all four is likelier than flipping one or none. House at 98% for Dems.

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Reposted by Matthew Connatser

Silicon Insights @siliconinsights.org · 22/09/2026

Wrote a little thing about trying out my first OLED TV that I got a few months ago and why I'm not 100% happy with the technology. Kinda wishing I went with Mini LED instead. www.siliconinsights.org/im-not-impre...

siliconinsights.org

I'm not impressed by my first OLED TV

The actuality of OLED just didn't measure up to the hype for me, mostly for one specific reason.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 21/09/2026

I'm just disputing where you said Democrats used to be fully supportive. They never have been.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 21/09/2026

Bathroom bills have been getting passed or proposed since 2015. I have no idea where you're coming from that transphobia suddenly popped up in 2021.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 21/09/2026

Aaaaand they're broken again. Even when I try to give Windows kudos, it spits in my face. Shame.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 21/09/2026

When exactly was this? Democrats have never been fully pro trans.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 20/09/2026

Drove around the Smokies this weekend, accidentally went on the Dragon for the return trip to East TN. Honestly still better than having to drive through Gatlinburg.

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Reposted by Matthew Connatser

Silicon Insights @siliconinsights.org · 18/09/2026

This week's massive article is about replacing your laptop with a desktop and everything you need to know before doing it. Or, if you've already done it, you can still take the advice I guess. www.siliconinsights.org/the-ultimate...

siliconinsights.org

The ultimate guide to using your laptop as a desktop

I used to be a desktop user with a laptop, now I'm a laptop user that uses his laptop as a desktop. Here's everything you need to know about the laptop-as-a-desktop experience.

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Reposted by Matthew Connatser

Stellbound: Stellraiser II @antlervel.vet · 18/09/2026

Share if you agree

Fat little chihuahua puppy (maybe?) looking extremely round and smiling lying on a tan fleece blanket

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 17/09/2026

Fuck it's out today? I don't even know when I'm gonna have time to play this.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 17/09/2026

Hot damn gas at BJ's in Sevierville is now $3.77, it was in the $3.30s just last week, maybe week before last. I wish I could fill up my car with all the surety I had that Trump 2.0 was going to be a disaster for America.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 17/09/2026

I can't imagine that the better case for us is that Democrats lose the Senate as quickly as possible. That just doesn't really make sense. We've seen in just a couple of years how easily rights and freedoms can be rolled back with a simple majority. We can't let it happen again.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 17/09/2026

It's as much a question of competence as it is politics. If they don't want the job, then that's that. Even if they do, it's a position that can't be given to someone else. For example, high profile candidates for President sometimes get cabinet positions (Clinton, Buttigieg, Carson, RFK Jr, etc).

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 17/09/2026

You want to believe your comparison is better because it confirms your bias. Senators elected during Presidential wave years tend to not do well when they're up next (1980/1986, 1964/1970, 1936/1940) because it's a midterm year. Midterm to Presidential tends to work much better, like in 2012.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 17/09/2026

This is a great way to appoint people who may not want or be particularly qualified for cabinet positions.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 17/09/2026

Why would 2008 to 2014 be a better comparison? That class was first elected during a Presidential election year and then had to run during Obama's second midterm. 2006 meanwhile happened in a Republican President's tenure, and 2012 was a Presidential year; 2026 and 2032 are the same way.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

Yea, the NYT did find that candidates like Sherrod Brown did better than generic Democrat.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

Ruffini has been coping the entire year. He doesn't realize it's Joever.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

I was gonna buy right before rates went up but it just didn't work out. I'm hoping rates will be down in 2028. At the very least my credit should get better.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

I am making some assumptions here, mainly that there will be a smaller blue wave in 2028 (probably on the level of 2020 or 2018) that will deliver a trifecta to Dems, and then in 2030 Dems will be on the defensive. I could be wrong though.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

It's worse in a normal year but amazing in a wave year. After Maine and North Carolina, there's a huge gulf to get to the next state to flip. Anywhere from D+5 to D+9 is good for those two but probably not enough for anything else. Double digits is where Dems can go from 49 to 53 and beyond.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

Nah, there's also the other seats in Alaska and Iowa, plus the regularly scheduled elections in Ohio and Florida in case Democrats miss them this cycle. Some longshot options could be Kansas, Missouri, hell maybe even Utah or Indiana. It's better than 2030 but worse than 2026.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

For the first time, FiftyPlusOne shows the Alaska Senate race as lean Democrat. Texas is probably not far behind. Democrats are up to a 65% chance to take the Senate.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

So this would be like a three year generation? It's never been this bad.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

But as soon as Republicans retake the Senate, things will go to hell again. Democrats are vulnerable in maybe 5 states in 2030. If it goes like 2022, great. If it goes like 2010, Democrats could lose the Senate if they then lose 2026's flips. I'm worried aggressive progress will be fragile.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

Well if that was the case then Dem Senators elected in 2006 would have lost in 2012 but actually they all won reelection (minus Bill Nelson who retired). Telling them to give up is such a crazy idea. The GOP will drown trying to retake states they lose this year.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

If they do that then they're just gonna get replaced by far worse Republican politicians. But hopefully there will be enough Democrats in the Senate that the balance of power won't rest on a single Manchin (60 in 2028 is very possible). After 2032 this strategy makes more sense though.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 16/09/2026

It's a really bad Senate map for Democrats this year. The next best flip after Maine and North Carolina is Ohio, then Alaska, then Texas. But on the other hand, if Democrats can take these red states, it locks down the Senate for at least 6 years, maybe over a decade. Great year for a blue wave.

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Matthew Connatser @matthewconnatser.net · 15/09/2026

Huh, my speakers finally have adjustable volume in Windows 11. I'm glad it got fixed somehow but I really would have just preferred it work from the getgo instead of taking a random update to resolve.

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