Challenged Myself To Make Low Poly Krobus In An Hour. Then Took Another Hour To Figure Out How To Animate

yum! thanks!

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man. i really needed to see this rn

thank you

You’re tired. Burnt out. Exhausted. Stressed.

This lowers your capacity for emotional regulation.

You’ll cry more easily. Get dragged into low moods more easily. Simple little things where you’re like ‘dang, that shouldn’t hit so hard,’ will wallop you.

This will trick you into thinking you’re weak and can’t handle life. A loser.

Not so my friend.

It’s a signal that you need a nap, need to allow for more sleep at night, need to prioritize and scale back on what you can accomplish in a day, need to take a mental health day or even a leave.

Something’s got to give.

But!

It’s not your self worth.

beginner’s guide to the indie web

“i miss the old internet” “we’ll never have websites like the ones from the 90s and early 2000s ever again” “i’m tired of social media but there’s nowhere to go”

HOLD ON!

personal websites and indie web development still very much exist! it may be out of the way to access and may not be the default internet experience anymore, but if you want to look and read through someone’s personally crafted site, or even make your own, you can still do it! here’s how:

use NEOCITIES! neocities has a built in search and browse tools to let you discover websites, and most importantly, lets you build your own website from scratch for free! (there are other ways to host websites for free, but neocities is a really good hub for beginners!)

need help getting started with coding your website? sadgrl online has a section on her website dedicated to providing resources for newbie webmasters!

HTML (HyperText Markup Language) and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) are the core of what all websites are built on. many websites also use JS (JavaScript) to add interactive elements to their pages. w3schools is a useful directory of quick reference for pretty much every HTML/CSS/JS topic you can think of.

there is also this well written and lengthy guide on dragonfly cave that will put you step by step through the basics of HTML/CSS (what webpages are made from), if that’s your sort of thing!

stack overflow is every programmer’s hub for asking questions and getting help, so if you’re struggling with getting something to look how you want or can’t fix a bug, you may be able to get your answer here! you can even ask if no one’s asked the same question before.

websites like codepen and jsfiddle let you test HTML/CSS/JS in your browser as you tinker with small edits and bugfixing.

want to find indie websites outside the scope of neocities? use the search engine marginalia to find results you actually want that google won’t show you!

you can also use directory sites like yesterweb’s link section to find websites in all sorts of places.

if you are going to browse the indie web or make your own website, i also have some more personal tips as a webmaster myself (i am not an expert and i am just a small hobbyist, so take me with a grain of salt!)

if you are making your own site:

get expressive! truly make whatever you want! customize your corner of the internet to your heart’s content! you have left the constrains of social media where every page looks the same. you have no character limit, image limit, or design limit. want to make an entire page or even a whole website dedicated to your one niche interest that no one seems to be into but you? go for it! want to keep a public journal where you can express your thoughts without worry? do it! want to keep an art gallery that looks exactly how you want? heck yeah! you are free now! you will enjoy the indie web so much more if you actually use it for the things you can’t do on websites like twitter, instead of just using it as a carrd bio alternative or a place to dump nostalgic geocities gifs.

don’t overwhelm yourself! if you’ve never worked with HTML/CSS or JS before, it may look really intimidating. start slow, use some guides, and don’t bite off more than you can chew. even if your site doesn’t look how you want quite yet, be proud of your work! you’re learning a skill that most people don’t have or care to have, and that’s pretty cool.

keep a personal copy of your website downloaded to your computer and don’t just edit it on neocities (or your host of choice) and call it a day. if for some reason your host were to ever go down, you would lose all your hard work! and besides, by editing locally and offline, you can use editors like vscode (very robust) or notepad++ (on the simpler side), which have more features and is more intuitive than editing a site in-browser.

you can use ctrl+shift+i on most browsers to inspect the HTML/CSS and other components of the website you’re currently viewing. it’ll even notify you of errors! this is useful for bugfixing your own site if you have a problem, as well as looking at the code of sites you like and learning from it. don’t use this to steal other people’s code! it would be like art theft to just copy/paste an entire website layout. learn, don’t steal.

don’t hotlink images from other sites, unless the resource you’re taking from says it’s okay! it’s common courtesy to download images and host them on your own site instead of linking to someone else’s site to display them. by hotlinking, every time someone views your site, you’re taking up someone else’s bandwidth.

if you want to make your website easily editable in the future (or even for it to have multiple themes), you will find it useful to not use inline CSS (putting CSS in your HTML document, which holds your website’s content) and instead put it in a separate CSS file. this way, you can also use the same theme for multiple pages on your site by simply linking the CSS file to it. if this sounds overwhelming or foreign to you, don’t sweat it, but if you are interested in the difference between inline CSS and using separate stylesheets, w3schools has a useful, quick guide on the subject.

visit other people’s sites sometimes! you may gain new ideas or find links to more cool websites or resources just by browsing.

if you are browsing sites:

if the page you’re viewing has a guestbook or cbox and you enjoyed looking at the site, leave a comment! there is nothing better as a webmaster than for someone to take the time to even just say “love your site” in their guestbook.

that being said, if there’s something on a website you don’t like, simply move on to something else and don’t leave hate comments. this should be self explanatory, but it is really not the norm to start discourse in indie web spaces, and you will likely not even be responded to. it’s not worth it when you could be spending your time on stuff you love somewhere else.

take your time! indie web doesn’t prioritize fast content consumption the way social media does. you’ll get a lot more out of indie websites if you really read what’s in front of you, or take a little while to notice the details in someone’s art gallery instead of just moving on to the next thing. the person who put labor into presenting this information to you would also love to know that someone is truly looking and listening.

explore! by clicking links on a website, it’s easy to go down rabbitholes of more and more websites that you can get lost in for hours.

seeking out fansites or pages for the stuff you love is great and fulfilling, but reading someone’s site about a topic you’ve never even heard of before can be fun, too. i encourage you to branch out and really look for all the indie web has to offer.

i hope this post helps you get started with using and browsing the indie web! feel free to shoot me an ask if you have any questions or want any advice. <3

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I wanna be an art tutorial guy soobad

David Dastmalchian is killing it!!

Photoshoot by Mike Ruiz

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(looks at you)

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Cut to the chase, this will be a very long post because of the amount of information the people presenting gave us! So much! Anyhoo, the 1.5-hour Zoom meeting was a bunch of representatives from mostly tech companies giving out advice for CVs/Resumes, practical career advice, interviews, and technical interviews. Though this is targeted towards tech people, anything can find the information given to be somewhat helpful!

The Sections

CV/Resume Advice focused

Preparing for first round Interview

How to Stand Out on LinkedIn

Technical Interviews and how to stand out to the Tech Hiring Manager

Career and CV/Resume tips for Tech Graduates

Warning Signs from An Interview

Section 1 - CV / Resume Advice 💻📑

Employers only read your CV in 30 seconds - make the information they are going to read count. 

Make it personal to you AND relevant to the role you are applying for

Make sure the content on your CV is concise - don't ramble on forever

The layout should be easy on the eye - not all stuck together in terms of text but not too colorful and in your face

Formatting - The most important and relevant information at the top. 

Create a punchy Bio summary at the top - Three-four sentences about who you are and what you do - what you are passionate about

It’s okay to have a 2-page CV/Resume IF the information is all relevant. If not, keep it to 1 page.

Skills - Technical skills and soft skills listed

Your experience ✨

Fact-based. 

Don’t copy the job descriptive

Talk about YOUR achievements

Don’t use too much “I did this… I am this…”

Your education 🏫

Include everything relevant like bootcamps, apprenticeships in the area you are applying for 

Keep high school information minimal if not relevant

Hobbies and Interests 🎮🎲

Share hobbies that show a skill

Think about what the company does e.g. A gaming company and you're a gamer

Share you’re creative - an eye for colour, design, and creative thinking

Know how to destress - you like yoga and mindfulness

Don’t include hobbies that are more lifestyle e.g. shopping and eating out

Include awards you have gotten that would be relevant to the job you are applying to.

Section 2 - Preparing for first round Interview 👩‍💻

❌ Don't ❌

Do not speak negatively of your previous company/employees - it has a bad look on you and might jeopardize your employment stage if you get the job when they talk to your previous manager

Do not appear to be disengaged/uninterested when interviewed - body language can be assessed also

Do not give false information - about your skill set, don't lie saying you know a language when you don't, and be transparent

✅ Do ✅

 Do ask for clarification if you are unsure about anything. Could be about the job description, or want them to expand on things, do ask questions 💯

Do active listening and respond 👂 - ensure that you are present in the moment

Do ensure you sell your strength/have a positive attitude - sell yourself so that they can pick you

What is the typical interview process? 🎬

Phone/Video Screening with the hiring manager/someone from the company

1st interview -  Face-to-Face / Remote with the hiring manager/member of the team via Teams / Zoom etc

2nd Interview

Stakeholder/Hiring Manager

Might do a presentation or a task (technical interview if for a tech role)

Give yourself enough time to complete the task

Key Tips to succeed in the interview 🔑

Preparation - ensure you look up who the attendees are for the interview (e.g. via Linkedin)

Research - Look up the company information/Statistics/Glassdoor reviews/Social media content. See how they are online, what the company’s culture is like, pros and cons

Questions - Do not be afraid to have a list of questions for your potential employer / take a notepad with you, to prompt this / take responses down.

Review - Study the job descriptions to identify the pros and cons of the job.

Structure your answers - STAR approach - Situation, Task, Action, Approach

Time management - If you have multiple interviews to prepare for, schedule allocated time in your day to prepare for each process

Rest - Ensure to have a good night's rest prior to the day. Allow yourself no distractions in the last 15 mins leading up to your interview!

Section 3 - How to Stand Out on LinkedIn 🙌

Going through each section of your LinkedIn profile and tips on how to improve it!

Banner

Having a banner is best, don’t leave it empty.

Make it related to your desired role - a techy image for tech people, the image of the city’s business sector for business people

Profile picture

Have a profile picture to have an idea of who you are

Have the “Looking for work” banner on 

Sub-section

The headline: Be passionate about who you are. Have key elements of who you are.

Have your name and pronouns

It's okay to use emojis in your profile - shows personality

Featured Section

Use the featured section to show off who you are

Show pieces of work you’ve done

Have certificates? Show them here

You can have up to 5 pieces in the featured section so choose wisely

It shows the employer how active you are in the community for tech people

Activity

Write posts every so often

Use hashtags (only 4-5 at most) to make your post reach more

Use hashtags that have a lot of followers (search in on LinkedIn to find out how many followers the hashtag has)

If you have recently been let go, make a post about it, with the hashtag, and people will repost or comment to help you

About

Another part where you can talk about yourself

Make it really personal

Be specific - not just a long paragraph about yourself

Key skills - programming languages, even things you are currently working to learn

Talk about your strong areas

Add a GitHub, Replit, GitLab, etc

Recommendation

If you have worked somewhere else, have an ex-coworker make a recommendation for you - employers love to see how other people who have interacted with you have to say about you

Talking to Hiring people - Not a section but a to-do

It can be scary but it’s okay to message the hiring individual to say “Hey I have recently applied, is it okay to look out for my application” and go on more about why you would be a good candidate.

The hiring managers have to look at so many applications and CVs/Reumes and they find it difficult to see people’s values and personalities so giving them a message will prompt them to search for your application and read through it.

Section 4 - Technical Interviews and Standing out to the Hiring manager in one 🚀🤘

Each company is different and will be doing it in a different way - e.g. one company tests your C# skills and another might test your PHP skills

Prepare by asking questions about what it would involve - most employers tell you what languages will be involved, if they don’t, ASK!

Coding exercises and Take-Home challenges are the most common

Understand what platform and what format will it be in e.g. what programming language you will use

Ask questions if you don’t understand something! - You don’t understand one part of the coding exercise, ask. It’s not weak to ask questions, you don’t want to do the exercise completely wrong.

Use Google - It's okay to Google to refresh your knowledge you've forgotten a bit. Googling is a skill in itself.

Use the STAR technique

Be honest and be yourself - don’t lie, be honest if you completely don’t understand something

Be confident in what you CAN do

How to Impress a Tech employer 👀

Ask questions 🤔

The relevant question to the job role

Ask about the team, company, culture, responsibilities, and career path, and even ask the Hiring Manger why they like their job also!

Don’t wing it

Highlight additional learning

Coding bootcamps, open source contributions, online free learning

Showcase your previous work

GitHub, GitLab, Projects, Presentations, etc.

Section 6 - Warning Signs from An Interview 😰❌

Not every company knows how to hire and interview well - making the whole process even worse. Here are some things to watch out for...

Structure ❌

No structure to the interview

No intro to set expectations

Not being able to articulate what the company does not get you excited about the work they do

Or it’s like they asked to do an interview with 10 minutes notice…

The Interviews 😨

Whenever you ask how long the interview process / how many rounds there will be and they don’t give you a concrete answer… start to worry…

Rule of 4 interviews - having so many rounds wastes your time and the company’s time. 4 interview rounds at most!

Quality ❌

It might be structured but they might be asking shit questions that have no relevance to the job role at all

E.g. “How many golf balls can you fit in a mini car?” Why are you asking me that when I’m applying for a C# Developer role?

Power to the people!!! 🤘💯

Leave reviews on Google, Glassdoor, or anywhere else if the interview process was terrible.

Let other people know what the company is really like!

Call them out and make them improve their interviewing process.

┌── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

Well, that's all! I hope some or all of the information I collected help you! If you think any of the information is incorrect or false, take it to the companies because I just copied what they presented on their slideshows 😋

Have a nice day/night and happy programming 👍🏾💗

└── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

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Goofy Jake Animation to learn Procreate.

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Alright alright tonight's lesson before my sleeping pills knock me out is about how to socialize when you don't know how

You will need:

a genuine interest in people

some premade sentences

practice

bravery

So you're a neurodivergent adult who wants to make friends? Let this awkward weirdo of an extrovert explain a technique refined over decades.

The most important lesson I could impart you is:

We all want friends.

So you can go into the world knowing that other person would also like to be your friend.

Step 1, the hardest thing you've done in your life: The opener.

Listen, this sucks, but this whole operation rests on the idea that everyone hates taking the first step so might as well do it yourself.

You and person B are in a social situation. You have never talked, but you would like to. So you can borrow one of these:

I love your dress! Did you make it yourself? I love the pattern.

Oh, nice Deadpool tshirt, hello, fellow fan!

Wow I can't believe Linda left us without making presentations. Hi, I'm Carol.

Oh hey, I've seen you work over there, I'm right over here! 6 am shifts, huh?

Well this awkward silence won't break itself. Hi, I'm Tracy and I like horses. You?

I haven't seen you at these parties before! Come, sit with me, let's talk. Who do you know here?

The point is:

Greeting

point something you might have in common

ask a question.

(you'll find your favorites eventually).

Attention, muy importante:

YOU NEED TO BE GENUINE

It needs to be true. You need to find the other person interesting, and be curious and joyful about them.

These premade examples only work if the feeling behind is true.

Step 2: Be interested

There should be the start of a conversation going. You can ask about what they do, what interests them, whatever follows your opening line. And then react favorably.

Ex:

'Yeah, I'm a statistician.'

'I know absolutely nothing about numbers so I'm impressed. What exactly is it that you do?'

or

'I work at the McDonald's down the street.'

'I heard working there is exhausting, working on your feet and being nice all day long sounds tiring.'

Once again:

You need to be genuine in your delight. People are different, jobs are all respectable and hard to do, you can empathize with everyone over being tired/it's the weekend/can't wait for summer/etc.

Step 3: The middle

We're all awkward, we're all weird, and we mostly all learned how to fit in society despite being err, too much.

So I suggest: go with the level of masking that feels natural at first, and still keep a part of your true self ready to shine, because the goal is for them to get used to you gradually. This is, after all, a first meeting.

Ex: I slow down my speech, try to tone down the excitement, but I won't change my opinions or personality. So you do whatever has worked for you in the past.

Also, we're all a bit too nerd and too online, so I guess we got a lot of quotes and preinstalled humor. If used correctly, they work with regular people and they end up thinking you're super witty when you actually just quoted Parks and Recs.

Step 4: The end

In the end of the conversation, you should get a feel if you'd like to stay acquaintances or if you'd really like them as a friend.

How to close with acquaintances:

I was glad to meet you! Hope to see you at Sam's next birthday, haha!

Yeah, the convention was great, let me give you my discord--

My break is over, gotta go. See you around, Ted!

Vague acknowledgement of seeing them in the future, nothing concrete.

BUT if you want to become friends, you're gonna have to put the work, and plan the next time you'll see each other:

This was great, I loved talking about your opinions on subject X. Do you think we could get a coffee, sometime next week, so we can continue the discussion?

You guys are so cool. Do you want to go see the next marvel movie? Yeah, invite that other friend too! Ok I'm sending facebook invites, I'll make an event--

Next week we can do Mario Party and beer at my place.

Mostly, this step requires you to work, organize, and be dependable. People want to be invited to things, but often won't do it first. They'll be grateful that someone else is taking the initiative.

And you will need to do it more than once, too. Establish channels of communication and feed them with conversations, jokes and memes.

And keep inviting them to things. Becoming friends takes time, you have to make sure to create that time.

Hope this can help a couple of you.

be direct, be genuine, be consistent