Erica "digifox" Kovac
@digifox.binaryden.net
Software Engineer | Social Democrat | Pro-Nuclear, Pro-Growth | in the vicinity of "Tomboy Transfemme", she/her | Opinions are mine, not my employer's.
Pfp by @nicnak044.bsky.social
Pfp by @nicnak044.bsky.social
Pinned
let the version of the industry that does this repent through bankruptcy; if I pay for technology I expect it to serve *my* interests, not those who wish to control and surveill me
Software is a tool, and tools should serve the user above all else.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
#ofcom only punches downwards, and is too frightened to enforce UK law against musk/trump
Lib Dem MP Luke Taylor in last week's debate on social media:
Elon Musk's recent London speech represented "a foreign billionaire, armed with his global megaphone, fanning the flames of division and calling for the overthrow of our democratically elected Government."
"We call that treason here."
Elon Musk's recent London speech represented "a foreign billionaire, armed with his global megaphone, fanning the flames of division and calling for the overthrow of our democratically elected Government."
"We call that treason here."
November 24, 2025 at 1:40 PM
#ofcom only punches downwards, and is too frightened to enforce UK law against musk/trump
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
#publicAI needs nurturing not nixing - walledculture.org/why-public-a...
November 24, 2025 at 1:48 PM
#publicAI needs nurturing not nixing - walledculture.org/why-public-a...
Agreed that libraries are a pretty good solution to cultural access and preservation for the written word, in spite of my objections to intellectual property as a concept in general.
I’m just going to block anyone attempting to justify or excuse pirating books. Times are hard, yes, but absolutely NO ONE needs to steal books. Libraries exist. There are umpteen works legitimately in the public domain. You don’t need to take income from authors trying to scrape a living.
November 24, 2025 at 1:24 PM
Agreed that libraries are a pretty good solution to cultural access and preservation for the written word, in spite of my objections to intellectual property as a concept in general.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
every social media company is bad but Meta really is uniquely evil
Instagram’s former head of safety and well-being Vaishnavi Jayakumar testified the company had a “17x” strike policy for accounts that engaged in the trafficking of humans for sex.
“You could incur 16 violations and upon the 17th violation, your account would be suspended"
time.com/7336204/meta...
“You could incur 16 violations and upon the 17th violation, your account would be suspended"
time.com/7336204/meta...
7 Allegations Against Meta in Newly Unsealed Filings
Court filings allege Meta tolerated sex trafficking, hid harms to teens, and prioritized growth over user safety for years.
time.com
November 23, 2025 at 8:08 PM
every social media company is bad but Meta really is uniquely evil
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
the “thanksgiving food is bad” discourse raises its ugly head every year, but the truth remains that thanksgiving food can be amazing as long as you know how to cook. the problem is we’re throwing a few million sunday drivers directly into a grand prix
I think this is unfair to turkey. turkey is good but hard to cook well because it is so damn big. turkey *parts* are great but lack the esthetic appeal of a centerpiece bird.
it is tired to the point of cliche to say if turkey was good, people would make it more than once a year. but it is understated that at least one American explodes every Thanksgiving in a brave attempt to make the main dish more palatable
November 23, 2025 at 7:44 PM
the “thanksgiving food is bad” discourse raises its ugly head every year, but the truth remains that thanksgiving food can be amazing as long as you know how to cook. the problem is we’re throwing a few million sunday drivers directly into a grand prix
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
You know, eight hundred years after the War of the One Ring, there would be chin-stroking conservative professors in Middle Earth bemoaning the destruction of the One Ring and writing long articles about how Sauron had a point.
November 22, 2025 at 11:40 PM
You know, eight hundred years after the War of the One Ring, there would be chin-stroking conservative professors in Middle Earth bemoaning the destruction of the One Ring and writing long articles about how Sauron had a point.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Bonus trivia: the Sharpe v Winterville case that clearly established recording cops as 1A-protected conduct here originated from a tweet
November 22, 2025 at 11:14 PM
Bonus trivia: the Sharpe v Winterville case that clearly established recording cops as 1A-protected conduct here originated from a tweet
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
I think copyright really hurts artists, and that's why each field ends up with very specific definitions of what "reperformance" means that evolve over time. And the instant we see intermediate organizations enforce or own copyright, even that value can vanish.
November 22, 2025 at 4:43 PM
I think copyright really hurts artists, and that's why each field ends up with very specific definitions of what "reperformance" means that evolve over time. And the instant we see intermediate organizations enforce or own copyright, even that value can vanish.
@vivziepop.bsky.social are there any plans to do a CD release of the Season 1 soundtrack of Hazbin Hotel? Don't see one on Amazon or the VivziePop store.
November 22, 2025 at 12:11 PM
@vivziepop.bsky.social are there any plans to do a CD release of the Season 1 soundtrack of Hazbin Hotel? Don't see one on Amazon or the VivziePop store.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
I feel like everyone who has takes like this probably overestimates the environmental impact of an LLM query relative to other normal activities by several orders of magnitude
November 22, 2025 at 9:20 AM
I feel like everyone who has takes like this probably overestimates the environmental impact of an LLM query relative to other normal activities by several orders of magnitude
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
This is, like, a minor disagreement and I'm completely fine with the person living their own life as they see fit so don't wanna put them on blast or be annoying in their mentions. But also I do disagree, I feel like this is a bit of a puritanical attitude tbh. It's ok to have some fun sometimes.
November 21, 2025 at 8:15 AM
This is, like, a minor disagreement and I'm completely fine with the person living their own life as they see fit so don't wanna put them on blast or be annoying in their mentions. But also I do disagree, I feel like this is a bit of a puritanical attitude tbh. It's ok to have some fun sometimes.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Did you know that strong intellectual property protections are a blight on society?
How Trademark Ruined Colorado-Style Pizza
You've heard of New York style, Chicago deep dish, Detroit square pans. But Colorado-style pizza? Probably not. And there's a perfectly ridiculous reason why this regional style never spread beyond a handful of restaurants in the Rocky Mountains: one guy…
You've heard of New York style, Chicago deep dish, Detroit square pans. But Colorado-style pizza? Probably not. And there's a perfectly ridiculous reason why this regional style never spread beyond a handful of restaurants in the Rocky Mountains: one guy…
How Trademark Ruined Colorado-Style Pizza
You've heard of New York style, Chicago deep dish, Detroit square pans. But Colorado-style pizza? Probably not. And there's a perfectly ridiculous reason why this regional style never spread beyond a handful of restaurants in the Rocky Mountains: one guy trademarked it and scared everyone else away from making it. This story comes via a fascinating Sporkful podcast episode where reporter Paul Karolyi spent years investigating why Colorado-style pizza remains trapped in obscurity while other regional styles became national phenomena.
www.techdirt.com
November 21, 2025 at 4:47 PM
Did you know that strong intellectual property protections are a blight on society?
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
somehow the crown we threw in the gutter is going to be waiting for us to pick it up when we're able
Much like USAid, if the rest of the world wanted to replace what the US has done for the last 80 years, they would have been doing it already
people predicting a "post-American world" really over their skis
November 21, 2025 at 1:18 PM
somehow the crown we threw in the gutter is going to be waiting for us to pick it up when we're able
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Something I’ve commented before is this site in particular has a sort of funhouse mirror “model minority” thing going on where if I don’t check all the boxes that someone wants I’m somehow “not really queer”, like, bite me.
I am allowed to believe things like “free markets generally maximize welfare outcomes” without surrendering my queerness and it’s frankly deeply insulting to say I’m not who I am because eg. I have an Econ degree. Even the fash on Twitter don’t go that far (granted, they’re just calling me slurs…)
November 21, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Something I’ve commented before is this site in particular has a sort of funhouse mirror “model minority” thing going on where if I don’t check all the boxes that someone wants I’m somehow “not really queer”, like, bite me.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
tapping the sign
November 21, 2025 at 5:52 AM
tapping the sign
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
It's extremely bad for left politics that we are apparently incapable of doing the internal hygiene required to keep these vicious bullies from claiming the mantle of "leftism"
Felt the need to share my journal entry today. Don't know why. Here it is, make of it what you will.
November 21, 2025 at 2:44 AM
It's extremely bad for left politics that we are apparently incapable of doing the internal hygiene required to keep these vicious bullies from claiming the mantle of "leftism"
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
~75% of ice agents need felony convictions or ice will non metaphorically burn the institutions down. basically every agent who doesnt turn flip
November 20, 2025 at 10:23 PM
~75% of ice agents need felony convictions or ice will non metaphorically burn the institutions down. basically every agent who doesnt turn flip
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
I have spent some time thinking about how to best respond to Donald J Saruman's peace plan
November 21, 2025 at 8:57 AM
I have spent some time thinking about how to best respond to Donald J Saruman's peace plan
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
am I doing it right
November 21, 2025 at 9:36 AM
am I doing it right
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
I don't believe in ghosts but feel uncomfortable when I notice the cat has been staring intently at the same empty space for like 5 minutes now.
do you believe in ghosts or are you like me, a person who finds themself saying all the time “I absolutely don’t believe in ghosts, but this place has ghosts.”
November 21, 2025 at 3:11 AM
I don't believe in ghosts but feel uncomfortable when I notice the cat has been staring intently at the same empty space for like 5 minutes now.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
do you believe in ghosts or are you like me, a person who finds themself saying all the time “I absolutely don’t believe in ghosts, but this place has ghosts.”
November 19, 2025 at 5:24 AM
do you believe in ghosts or are you like me, a person who finds themself saying all the time “I absolutely don’t believe in ghosts, but this place has ghosts.”
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
When @offline.mountainherder.xyz and I were first dating, I once sat up in bed, pointed to the corner of the bedroom, whispered “it’s in the room with us” and immediately fell over and went back to sleep.
anyway, it’s amazing we’re somehow still together, despite the fact that my brain is haunted
anyway, it’s amazing we’re somehow still together, despite the fact that my brain is haunted
I don't believe in ghosts but feel uncomfortable when I notice the cat has been staring intently at the same empty space for like 5 minutes now.
do you believe in ghosts or are you like me, a person who finds themself saying all the time “I absolutely don’t believe in ghosts, but this place has ghosts.”
November 21, 2025 at 3:29 AM
When @offline.mountainherder.xyz and I were first dating, I once sat up in bed, pointed to the corner of the bedroom, whispered “it’s in the room with us” and immediately fell over and went back to sleep.
anyway, it’s amazing we’re somehow still together, despite the fact that my brain is haunted
anyway, it’s amazing we’re somehow still together, despite the fact that my brain is haunted
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
Trump has found a terrifyingly effective way to eliminate bad news: delete the data.
From hunger and poverty stats to foreign investment numbers, federal agencies are being gutted—making it harder to measure the impact of his policies.
@crampell.bsky.social reports:
From hunger and poverty stats to foreign investment numbers, federal agencies are being gutted—making it harder to measure the impact of his policies.
@crampell.bsky.social reports:
November 21, 2025 at 1:21 AM
Trump has found a terrifyingly effective way to eliminate bad news: delete the data.
From hunger and poverty stats to foreign investment numbers, federal agencies are being gutted—making it harder to measure the impact of his policies.
@crampell.bsky.social reports:
From hunger and poverty stats to foreign investment numbers, federal agencies are being gutted—making it harder to measure the impact of his policies.
@crampell.bsky.social reports:
Any motorist who complains about bollards should have their driver's license taken away.
And before you say anything about Just Do More Public Transit, make your neighbors less fucking neurotic about funding and designing roads for public transit
Replace bike lane flex posts with bollards!
Replace bike lane flex posts with bollards!
November 21, 2025 at 1:14 AM
Any motorist who complains about bollards should have their driver's license taken away.
Reposted by Erica "digifox" Kovac
“do we protect, include, and tolerate people from all backgrounds” is the beating heart and solemn promise of liberalism and I’m convinced people who trivialize it have not reflected on a world without it
November 21, 2025 at 1:09 AM
“do we protect, include, and tolerate people from all backgrounds” is the beating heart and solemn promise of liberalism and I’m convinced people who trivialize it have not reflected on a world without it