on the Trader Joe's aftermarket, people too far from a TJ store pay 3-4x markups: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=merchant-items&me=AMX9T244H02DU

given the extra logistics, that still seems like a pretty good deal.

different LED grow lights produce very different spectrum. the impact can be huge. and:

* grow light makers optimize the spec that buyers & reviewers want: PPFD (intensity).

some spectrum is cheaper to produce, so they ship crappy intense light. since there's no spectrum quality metric, nobody notices.

* plants absorb red but reflect far-red, so plants think a low red:far-red means crowding. they grow taller but branch less. a bit of far-red changes the ratio a lot.

#agriculture #greenhouse

achievement unlocked: applying clear caulk

while bleeding from a finger

without leaving evidence

looking for small intra-canopy lights. usually these have two ~100° arcs (facing left and right) or one ~150° arc (facing up).

the options seem to be Arize Integral, Plessey Hyperion, Thrive Agritech Boost, or something DIY.

I think the Integral has the best light pattern, but at 8' long, it's probably too big for my minuscule environment.

#yoloberryfarm #urbanag

I opened a Mastodon feature request. If you've ever followed a hashtag, this one's for you.

"Let users ignore toots containing more than X hashtags (when following a hashtag)": https://github.com/mastodon/mastodon/issues/26977

Let's give users what they actually want to see when they follow a hashtag: conversations about that topic.

#MastodonServer

Every exterior wood stain manufacturer has a gallery of project photos on day 1.

I want a gallery of project photos after 1, 2, 3, and 4 years.

Armstrong-Clark, TWP, Olympic, Cutek, Behr - none of them advertise how their products actually fare against sun and rain.

(trying to pick an exterior stain? real-world tests are https://www.jlconline.com/deck-builder/the-great-stain-shoot-out-the-sequel_o , https://www.consumerreports.org/wood-stains/best-wood-stains-from-consumer-reports-tests-a4478428531/ , and painttalk.com posts. I wish Consumer Reports included more stains in their test.)

#consumerreports

Reading https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-23-106696 :

"GAO estimates that the amount of fraud in unemployment insurance (UI) programs during the COVID-19 pandemic was likely between $100 billion and $135 billion. This is about 11 percent and 15 percent, respectively, of the total amount of UI benefits paid" between April 2020 and May 2023.

finally, USB-C EarPods