If we are trying to dig into the root cause? Then yes, honestly. It is Google. And don't call them the "search engine guys", that's not what they are about. They are the "mass aggregation and correlation of user data guys". Search has been a means to an end for Google for a very long time.

All those other things didn't exist when google was developing their model. Google paved the way for the internet no longer being free, but being "free" with payment rendered in the form of user data. That in turn directly led to all those other evils you referred to. It is not an exaggeration to imply that Google is ultimately at fault for the way the internet functions today.

Mathematicians and racists hate this one trick!

Valve is a private company. Microsoft can't just buy Valve, Valve would have to agree to that. Considering Valve has (for a company their size) effectively unlimited resources already, and considering that Valve's founder and leader is a known detractor of Microsoft, this is a nothing story. Microsoft will not buy Valve. This is baseless musing, like how I sometimes daydream with my wife about what we'd do if we won the lottery (which we don't play).

Of course Microsoft would love to buy Valve. Just like they would love to buy Nintendo. I'd like to buy a Lamborghini. All these things are about equivalently likely, zero likely.

Only one reply saying you should involve your wife in this decision. Not enough.

You need to involve your wife in this decision. Her use case is nothing for a modern laptop, either Windows or Mac. Anything new will run like a dream in comparison to what she's got. Literally anything. Get her to a physical store to type on the keyboards and make sure she likes whatever models are in contention. This is highly personal and subjective so other opinions aren't worth much.

I do think it worth mentioning that switching ecosystems isn't something to do lightly. She needs to be involved in that decision. I've used both Windows and Mac. I'm comfortable with both, but generally prefer Windows. They are way too different to treat the possibility of switching flippantly.

Why smoking remains so prevalent. I'm sure it's not a majority that smokes, but it is massively more common anywhere I've been in Europe than here in the US. I live in a fairly large city and I will go many days in a row without seeing a single person smoking.

I just don't really get it. It's gross, it smells, it ruins your teeth and your lungs, and it's expensive. Why do it?

This is good advice in general.

But the answer to this question is extremely well known across the internet and every thread that comes up will eventually boil down to the same two responses: Toyota and Honda as 1 and 1a.

There isn't some secret answer to find, those are just the answers. People will definitely come up with anecdotes supporting various other cars, but as these threads hit a certain mass of replies they invariably boil down to those two choices.

They are not the flashiest cars, nor the most feature rich, nor the most efficient or most powerful. But if you want to buy a car that will just keep on running after years of minimal maintenance, often even after being abused during that time, a Toyota or Honda is what you should buy.

$10M??

I'd take $10. Seriously. I mean I guess unless the meal was fully paid for and pretty fancy. But with either of these two donuts that feels like hardly a given.

$10 is a sure bet.

I'm gonna need an explanation of your bun situation. From here that looks like you're using extra wide english muffins or something.

Unless you're Waukesha, Wisconsin, where they specifically voted to stop giving kids handouts (i.e. free lunch). Because, you know, kids should work for their food or something instead of using their energy to learn.

Well you see, it's important to aggressively gatekeep anything that people start to use and enjoy.

Not sure what country you're in, but at least in the US there is some precedent for a dying declaration being used to secure a warrant for search.

Considering how long ago this was and the fact that there is zero actual evidence I think you face a pretty extreme uphill battle in anything being done about this. It also sounds like, given your story, local authorities could be in on it. Makes it even harder.

Without directly pursuing this yourself using your own resources, potentially legally grey area tactics, and likely endangering yourself I have a hard time believing much can or will be done about this. But it's definitely a compelling story and I agree with the other poster that publicizing it may be your best bet.

I really love this web comic. I'm very unsure how it will translate to anything beyond its current scope, which is essentially translation of individual "moments" into literal language. The shtick doesn't have a chance to get old when it's never a situation longer than like 6 panels. But I'm curious enough to be mildly interested.

And by all means, good for Nathan Pyle for cashing in on this. That's awesome.