Shows
TIC TEK TOEGenius In. Genius Out. aka Episode 032This is episode 032 of the TIC TEK TOE podcast, featuring Marcel Gagné and Evan Leibovitch. Today, the boys are talking about why the whole FOSS world has become so boring, and why there may be a solution to that boredom and a renewal of that old open-source excitement courtesy of AI.
Links
Marcel's "Free Thinkers at Large" Discord server. Chat with us here:
https://discord.gg/STbxVA3
"First they came..."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_they_came_
2023-04-301h 03TIC TEK TOEMind The Guardrails, Folks!This is episode 031 or your beloved TIC TEK TOE podcast. Marcel and Evan decide to, at the very least, attempt to take TIC TEK TOE direct to YouTube. While here, they discuss the new tech being used to record, namely Wave.Video, along with virtual reality games (Marcel got himself a PSVR2 headset for his PS5 game console), ChatGPT, artificial intelligence, guardrails, blogging, and attempts to fix the news.
LINKS
Just a Free Thinker at Large (Marcel's new blog): https://freethinkeratlarge.com
You.com, alternative chat-enabled search engine: https://you.com
Winnie The...2023-03-021h 14TIC TEK TOEDon't Know Much About AI Art, But I Know What I Like!This is TIC TEK TOE, episode 030. Marcel and Evan dissect the topic of art created by Artificial Intelligence using tools like Dall-E, Midjourney, and Marcel's current favorite, Stable Diffusion, and try to see if this is the beginning of the end of the world. Most specifically, the world of art, for artists. What does the word, "the", mean to an AI? Also, the boys compare notes on what they did during their summer, discuss music and musical covers, and argue vehemently over whether "Don't Stop Believing" by Journey is, in fact, a good song.
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Send in a vo...2022-09-2757 min
TIC TEK TOEThe Obsolescence EpisodeThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 029. Marcel and Evan riff, again, on the subject of virtual worlds, wherein Marcel gets ordained as a priest in an imaginary church, gets an honorary doctorate at an imaginary university (you can call him Dr. Marcel, if you like), and obtains dual citizenship from an imaginary country. Between the two of them, they discuss what any of this means in a world that is becoming increasingly virtual. Evan, meanwhile, tries out his new microphone and complains bitterly about tech hardware obsolescence. Who can blame him?
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Send in a...2022-04-281h 04TIC TEK TOEThe Metaverse Is Boring!This is "TIC TEK TOE" episode 028 and one for which I (Marcel) must apologize up front. I decided to wear my gaming headset and just assumed that it would be just fine for the podcast. Instead, it's noise cancelling microphone cancelled far more than it should have and my audio sounds clipped and occasionally vanishes into the pits of wherever audio goes. Evan, on the other hand sounds just fine.
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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tic-tek-toe/message2022-04-011h 05TIC TEK TOELiving Dangerously and Taking Public TransitThis is episode 027 of TIC TEK TOE, your light-hearted look at whatever comes into your hosts' heads. In today's episode, Evan and Marcel discuss slowly getting back out into the (hopefully increasingly) post pandemic world and what it feels like to travel right now. Evan heads east into Quebec and Marcel heads into Niagara Falls for an overnight stay. They discuss wine, feel-good television as a pandemic salve, fear, Jon Stewart's new show, fear, Ted Lasso and sportsball shows, fear, autism in movies and television, fear, aphantasia, a condition whereby a person has no 'inner eye' to visualize, fear...2021-10-131h 01TIC TEK TOEChe Guevara Posters and the Freedom to Be a SchmuckThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 26! Marcel and Evan discuss why neither owns a Che Guevara poster, hard to find centrists, progressophobia, why you really should not feed the trolls, platforming and deplatforming, empathy, moral panics, the future of work, the coming collaps of the commercial real estate market, Zoom, real live people, embracing avatars, Yoda (not baby Yoda), and dark circles. In short, the boys cover a lot of ground and, as usual, have trouble staying on topic. Heck, I can't even remember what the topic was. Enjoy!
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Send in a voice message...2021-07-0555 minTIC TEK TOEAmazon Deliveries on Mars!This is TIC TEK TOE, episode 25! Woo Hoo! Marcel and Evan discuss the ethics of killing NPCs in video games, simulation theory wars, and why an otherwise respectable university would sabotage its standing in the Linux community. That last bit is juxtaposed with Evan making a blasphemous presentation at the Toronto Linux User Group, GTALUG. The boys also cover running graphical Linux apps in Windows, old style book printing and publishing, turtles, dwarves, giants, and tardigrades. Today's episode features the quintessential Canadian story, and yes, it involves a beaver. Or two. Now that we have drones on Mars, can A...2021-05-0752 minTIC TEK TOECheesy NFT GraphicsThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 024, the episode they said we would never do. Marcel and Evan discuss cheese, because . . . well . . . CHEESE! The boys discuss their favourite types, chat about declining attendance in US churches and synagogues and whether Trump has anything to do with it. Because NFTs are a thing now, Marcel and Evan find ways to make fun of them, while decrying the insane price of graphics cards (assuming you can even get them), and whether this whole crypto thing just needs to go away. Then, there's that thing about RMS returning to the FSF which brings...2021-04-111h 04TIC TEK TOEThe Evil Episode . . . Eeeeeevil!!This is episode 023 of TIC TEK TOE, and we're calling this one "The Evil Episode" because it's all about evil, specifically who is evil, who isn't, and just what constitutes evil these days. Once upon a time, especially to those in the Free and Open Source Software (aka FOSS) world, it was Microsoft. These days, however, there's Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon (aka GAFA) fighting it out for the crown of ultimate evil. And Microsoft? They're starting to look like one of the good guys. The boys also discuss the banning and/or cancelling of Dr. Seuss, the de-sexing o...2021-03-171h 01
Unusually Well InformedTesla, SpaceX, The Promise And Ethics Of Artificial Intelligence - And "Third Life"?Marcel Gagné is a tech guy with a focus on Linux and Open Source software. He is a multi-award winning writer and columnist, and author of the "Moving to Linux" series of books. He has written for a number of magazines. He is probably best known as the creator of "Cooking With Linux", his trademark column which ran for ten years in the Linux Journal.
Outside of his open source wordsmithing, Marcel’s been an editor, editor in chief, and is a published science fiction and fantasy author. He's a former Top 40 DJ, a radio and television pers...2021-02-181h 25TIC TEK TOEEmbrace The CringeThis is episode 022 of TIC TEK TOE. Marcel and Evan discuss cracking open a cold one, in this case fizzy water, renovation porn, the stock market along with the latest sort-selling GameStop madness, the awesome power of Reddit, the possibly even more awesome power of Elon Musk, Signal, MeWe, Animaniacs, and PSYCH. Oh, and Schitt's Creek, too!
Links from the Show
Sodastream discussion, spawned from me cracking open a cold one (PC fizzy water).
Fusion Flavours (where Evan buys his mad scientist fizzy water supplies)
Renovation porn subreddit
Note...2021-02-0152 minTIC TEK TOEThe Back End of 2020 and Exploding RocketsIn this final episode of 2020, number 21, Marcel and Evan ask what the big deal is with one day changes of date while really wanting to see the back end of this particular year. They then meander down the path of picking up new skills, video games, ad blockers, virtual reality (again), exploding rocket ships, and why Elon Musk is the perfect Bond Villain.
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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tic-tek-toe/message2020-12-2252 minTIC TEK TOEMagic TV UnicornsThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 020. Today, Marcel and Evan discuss why televisions are so cheap, even those huge things that you struggle to find space for on your wall, the awesome comedy, "Superstore", a wrap for season 2 of "The BOYS", Google's cloud gaming platform, Stadia, the cost of modern video games, where concerts have gone during the pandemic, the quest for an open Metaverse, and whether it's okay to kill virtual beings, even if they are zombies and other versions of the undead.
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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tic-tek-toe/message2020-12-0748 minTIC TEK TOENo More Travel For You, but Have Some Cheese!This is TIC TEK TOE, episode 019. Marcel and Evan start out discussing cheese and its precursor, milk, move on to meat, including the plant based alternatives, Incredible Burger and Beyond Meat, after which Evan does his best to alienate GMO's foes. Moving on to a discussion of ultra-violence on TV with shows like Preacher and The Boys, the two slip into anime and video games. From there, it's VR, the end of business travel as we know it, including conference SWAG, open source virtual reality, and a teaser about an upcoming discussion where Marcel will point out why Evan...2020-10-1655 minTIC TEK TOESpying Devices in My House and Internet ID CardsThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 018, where Marcel and Evan discuss whether anyone is real but you, dear listener, are presumably and hopefully really who you are. In today's show, Marcel and Evan discover that there musical tastes may not be entirely discerning, Evan foists some really bizarre music on Marcel as Marcel backs away slowly, Marcel suggests that perhaps we need a kind of Internet ID card, Evan expresses his distrust for "in home listening devices", and the pair discuss artificial and virtual beings.
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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/p...2020-10-0253 minTIC TEK TOEAn Open Source Canadian in Microsoft's WorldThis is TIC TEK TOE episode 017. In today's show, Marcel drags Evan into the rabbit hole he's been exploring for the last couple of weeks. After fighting to get his Roblox on under Windows, not to mention Unity 3D development work for world development on the Oculus Quest, Marcel decides to stop fighting and give in to the dark side, setting up a Windows machine and plugging his nose. All is not lost however, as Marcel tries to make his Windows system look and behave more like a Linux system. Is this the end of the world? Will lightning s...2020-09-1046 minTIC TEK TOETalk To My AvatarThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 016. Today, Marcel finally gets Evan to watch UPLOAD and grills him on the show. The guys discuss the increasingly rapid development cycles on the Oculus Quest, including VR games as well as business offerings. AltspaceVR tries to rush ahead of the long-delayed Facebook Horizons. Marcel and Evan share their experience with ImmersedVR, talk about the brewing legal battle between Slack and Microsoft, and consider the differences in video chat apps. Oh, and Marcel gets a new avatar.
Links from the show
Show Links
Facebook Horizons teaser : https://w...2020-08-0748 minTIC TEK TOELiving On in VR and YouTube Death MatchesThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 015. Today, Marcel and Evan visit the afterlife in VR, consider the world's loudest 21 seconds of silence, consider some Microsoft and Open Source conspiracy theories, wonder at the beauty of chroma key and Zoom backgrounds, mourn over the graves of many failed products, ask the tough questions about when good news becomes bad news, and generally chat about how we never cover the topics we think we're going to cover.
Links to topics covered
Everyone on the GNOME board of directors works for Microsoft (Dr. Roy)
Trudeau and hi...2020-06-181h 03TIC TEK TOEReduced to the Level of YouTuber Unboxing VideosThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 014. Today's episode, which was recorded last week but Marcel didn't edit until today, covers the ongoing COVID-19 isolation, pandemic bread and tourist food, famous chefs and food porn, an apology to Jitsi from Marcel, a happy ending for dot ORG, Universal Basic Income, Ayn Rand, buying wine during the lockdown, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and a push from Evan for Some Good News.
Links From The Show
Twoflower, the Discworld's first tourist
That all fondue restaurant in Geneva, Hotel Edelweiss
Jamie Oliver's YouTube Channel
...2020-05-1152 minTIC TEK TOEFear is the Mindkiller, and Battery-Operated BidetsThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 013, from deep inside the heart of self-isolation. In this episode, Marcel and Evan discuss the strange world we all find ourselves living in, the climate of fear, the hazards of grocery shopping, Zoom going zoom and its security concerns, virtual reality headsets, virtual reality social environments, toilet paper, bidets, and why it's not so different for some people out there.
Links From The Show
Litany against fear, from DUNE, by Frank Herbert
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total o...2020-04-0856 minTIC TEK TOETIC TEK TOE Slips Into Virtual RealityTIC TEK TOE, episode 012. Welcome to a bold experiment into the future of something or other. Let's be honest. It's hard to tell. Is it a podcast? Is it a virtual reality (VR) show? Is it just two guys mucking about in AltspaceVR and trying to see if it's possible to tie your shoes when there's only one controller? Marcel has been playing with VR for a long time, but Evan is a relative newcomer and Marcel, being that kind of guy, wanted to see how Evan would handle himself in this strange new world. This show is unusual...2020-03-2317 minTIC TEK TOENot that virus, Restaurants, Stupid Government Oversight, Star Trek, Picard, Bad Science, and Alcohol ConsumptionTIK TEK TOE, Episode 011. In this episode, Evan finally returns from a bout with a virus, but not that Virus, even though three weeks before, he was in China, in that part of China. We also talk about how to track said virus, restaurant ambiance, stupid government laws regarding privacy and copyright, social media alternatives, the new Star Trek series, "Picard," being guilty until proven innocent, wrestling, bad science, and alcohol consumption.
Once you're done listening, or right now for that matter, please (pretty please, even) make sure you share this podcast with your friends, family, neighbours, e...2020-02-141h 00TIC TEK TOEFast Food, Stolen Cars, Ricky Gervais, Embarrassment, Monsters, Reboot, and Questionable HistoryTIK TEK TOE, episode 010. It's 2020 and time for episode 010 of the show. In a rare event, Marcel and Evan meet at a fast food restaurant following one of the most embarrassing events of Marcel's life wherein his car was both stolen and not stolen. The guys discuss other forms of embarrassment including Ricky Gervais at the recent Golden Globes, new takes on old monsters, The Order, Buffy, simulation theory, turning mundane events into video games, and some really questionable history.
Once you're done listening, or right now for that matter, please (pretty please, even) make sure you sh...2020-01-0929 minTIC TEK TOEHappy New Year maybe, VR games, Jumanji, RISCV, The Witcher, the Overnet, and the Future!TIK TEK TOE, episode 009. In this final episode of the decade, or at least, this year, Marcel and Evan riff on Christmas gifts, VR games, Jumanji, Open Hardware vs closed borders, The Witcher, and several other diversions. Somewhere in there, they reminisce over the last decade of free software, a free and open Internet (the Overnet), and lots of other things you really don't want to miss. Oh, and Marcel learns about Gwen Stacy, or is it Gaven and Stacey?
Once you're done listening, or right now for that matter, please (pretty please, even) make sure you s...2019-12-3154 minTIC TEK TOEDora, Ms. Frizzle, the Phillipines, Hardware, and ChimerasTIK TEK TOE, episode 008. Marcel and Evan discuss Dora the Explorer, the Magic School Bus, how Adam ruins everything, Open Source in the Phillipines, the value of old hardware, consumer vs creator devices, licences (again) and .org (again). Cloud gaming makes another appearance and Marcel totally geeks out on the concept of human chimeras and how this might impact DNA evidence and even, wait for it, conciousness.
Once you're done listening, or right now for that matter, please (pretty please, even) make sure you share this podcast with your friends, family, neighbours, enemies . . . just share and recommend. Al...2019-12-1348 minTIC TEK TOETIC TEK TOE (Trailer)---
Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tic-tek-toe/message2019-12-0400 minTIC TEK TOEPikachu, FOSS Decade, .ORG vs Girl Scouts, Drake, and Perineum SunningTIK TEK TOE, episode 007. Marcel and Evan discuss Ryan Reynold's continued redemption with Detective Pikachu, martial arts movies, VR arcades, whether a decade starts on a 0 or 1, what kind of decade FOSS has had, or is about to have had, the Internet Society and .ORG vs the Girl Scouts (our money is on the Girls Scouts), on-demand culture, Drake (yeah, that Drake), and perineum sunning.
Once you're done listening, or right now for that matter, please (pretty please, even) make sure you share this podcast with your friends, family, neighbours, enemies . . . just share and recommend. Also, if y...2019-12-0245 minTIC TEK TOEEnergy Drinks, Teen Titans GO!, Bad Superheroes, and Don CherryTIK TEK TOE, episode 006. Today, Marcel and Evan discuss where our listeners are in the world, why neither Marcel nor Evan gets a kick from caffeine, what the options are when you really need that kick, open source licenses, politics, good superheroes, bad superheroes, fallen heroes, not talking about politics, whether pepperoni makes a good cough suppressant, and, $DEITY help us, Don Cherry. Also, both Marcel and Evan get more homework for episode 7.
Once you're done listening, or right now for that matter, please (pretty please, even) make sure you share this podcast with your friends, family...2019-11-1637 minTIC TEK TOECanadian Election Postmortem, UNIX at 50, SuperheroesTIK TEK TOE, episode 005. Today, Marcel and Evan discuss politics, or at least, what the recent Canadian election actually said about open ideas, oil, the Prime Minister, and the environment. We talk about Unix turning 50 and how Linux wormed its way into pretty much becoming Unix, and Marcel gives Evan some superhero homework.
Once you're done listening, or right now for that matter, make sure you share this podcast with your friends, family, neighbours, enemies . . . just share and recommend. Also, if you can spare a few extra keystrokes, be sure to leave us a comment and tell...2019-10-3042 minTIC TEK TOERhinos, Telecom, Four Freedoms, and Being OffendedTIK TEK TOE, episode 004. Today, Marcel and Evan vote early, but not often, talk strange politics, whine about telecom charges, consider open Internet, discuss the Four Freedoms, software licenses, DUNE, George Carlin, and Dave Chapelle.
And once you're done, make sure you share this podcast with your friends, family, neighbours, enemies . . . just share and recommend.
Links From the Show
Canada's Rhino Party
https://www.partyrhino.ca/en/
Aaron Swartz
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Swartz
Starlink satellite system by SpaceX
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St...2019-10-1556 min
TIC TEK TOEVR Fitness, Distrowatch, and Forget Me (not)TIK TEK TOE, episode 003. Today, Marcel and Evan decide to rename the show, so now it's called, "Tic Tek Toe" and not "Trash-Talking FOSS". The guys talk about VR fitness, courtesy of Marcel's Oculus Quest, Distrowatch, Lucky Charms cereal (no, really), and whether or not you have a right to be erased from the Internet.
And once you're done, make sure you share this podcast with your friends, family, neighbours, enemies . . . just share and recommend.
Links from the show
Oculus Quest and Beat Saber
Distrowatch Website
Distro Chooser Website (16 questions to pi...2019-10-0148 minTIC TEK TOEStallman Resigns, Huawei does Linux, DeepinTic Tek Toe, episode 002 : In this episode, Evan and Marcel discuss the recent events surrounding Richard Stallman resigning from both M.I.T. and the Free Software Foundation. We also talk about another controversy, namely the ongoing security and trade concerns around Huawei and whether we should be worried about their new laptops running Deepin Linux. Even before Huawei was on Trump's list, there were some questions as to whether Deepin might include Chinese spyware. Finally, Marcel addresses some feedback about how he ends his episodes.
Links from this episode
Stallman Resigns From MIT and t...2019-09-2324 minTIC TEK TOEHell Freezes Over, Linux Journal Goodbye, lilockedThis is TIC TEK TOE, episode 1. In this, the first episode, Evan and Marcel discuss the signs that hell has frozen over as Richard Stallman speaks at Microsoft. They also discuss the end of Linux Journal and how that relates to traditional publishing, how to make money in an increasingly free digital age, and a new exploit targeting Linux servers. Sort of. Also, Marcel wants to register a complaint.
Links
Another sign of the End Times: Free software guru Richard Stallman speaks at Microsoft HQ
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2019/09/05/richard_stallman_microsoft/
2019-09-1239 min