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DavidRomao

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  1. Informative
    DavidRomao reacted to LinusTech in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    There won't be a big WAN Show segment about this or anything. Most of what I have to say, I've already said, and I've done so privately.

    To Steve, I expressed my disappointment that he didn't go through proper journalistic practices in creating this piece. He has my email and number (along with numerous other members of our team) and could have asked me for context that may have proven to be valuable (like the fact that we didn't 'sell' the monoblock, but rather auctioned it for charity due to a miscommunication... AND the fact that while we haven't sent payment yet, we have already agreed to compensate Billet Labs for the cost of their prototype). There are other issues, but I've told him that I won't be drawn into a public sniping match over this and that I'll be continuing to move forward in good faith as part of 'Team Media'. When/if he's ready to do so again I'll be ready.

    To my team (and my CEO's team, but realistically I was at the helm for all of these errors, so I need to own it), I stressed the importance of diligence in our work because there are so many eyes on us. We are going through some growing pains - we've been very public about them in the interest of transparency - and it's clear we have some work to do on internal processes and communication. We have already been doing a lot of work internally to clean up our processes, but these things take time. Rome wasn't built in a day, but that's no excuse for sloppiness.

    Now, for my community, all I can say is the same things I always say. We know that we're not perfect. We wear our imperfection on our sleeves in the interest of ensuring that we stay accountable to you. But it's sad and unfortunate when this transparency gets warped into a bad thing. The Labs team is hard at work hard creating processes and tools to generate data that will benefit all consumers - a work in progress that is very much not done and that we've communicated needs to be treated as such. Do we have notes under some videos? Yes. Is it because we are striving for transparency/improvement? Yeah... What we're doing hasn't been in many years, if ever.. and we would make a much larger correction if the circumstances merited it. Listing the wrong amount of cache on a table for a CPU review is sloppy, but given that our conclusions are drawn based on our testing, not the spec sheet, it doesn't materially change the recommendation. That doesn't mean these things don't matter. We've set KPIs for our writing/labs team around accuracy, and we are continually installing new checks and balances to ensure that things continue to get better. If you haven't seen the improvement, frankly I wonder if you're really looking for it... The thoroughness that we managed on our last handful of GPU videos is getting really incredible given the limited time we have for these embargoes. I'm REALLY excited about what the future will hold.
     
    With all of that said, I still disagree that the Billet Labs video (not the situation with the return, which I've already addressed above) is an 'accuracy' issue. It's more like I just read the room wrong. We COULD have re-tested it with perfect accuracy, but to do so PROPERLY - accounting for which cases it could be installed in (none) and which radiators it would be plumbed with (again... mystery) would have been impossible... and also didn't affect the conclusion of the video... OR SO I THOUGHT...
     
    I wanted to evaluate it as a product, and as a product, IF it could manage to compete with the temperatures of the highest end blocks on the planet, it still wouldn't make sense to buy... so from my point of view, re-testing it and finding out that yes, it did in fact run cooler made no difference to the conclusion, so it didn't really make a difference.
     
    Adam and I were talking about this today. He advocated for re-testing it regardless of how non-viable it was as a product at the time and I think he expressed really well today why it mattered. It was like making a video about a supercar. It doesn't mater if no one watching will buy it. They just wanna see it rip.  I missed that, but it wasn't because I didn't care about the consumer.. it was because I was so focused on how this product impacted a potential buyer. Either way, clearly my bad, but my intention was never to harm Billet Labs. I specifically called out their incredible machining skills because I wanted to see them create something with a viable market for it and was hoping others would appreciate the fineness of the craftsmanship even if the product was impractical. I still hope they move forward building something else because they obviously have talent and I've watched countless niche water cooling vendors come and go. It's an astonishingly unforgiving market.
     
    Either way, I'm sorry I got the community's priorities mixed-up on this one, and that we didn't show the Billet in the best light. Our intention wasn't to hurt anyone. We wanted no one to buy it (because it's an egregious waste of money no matter what temps it runs at) and we wanted Billet to make something marketable (so they can, y'know, eat).
     
    With all of this in mind, it saddens me how quickly the pitchforks were raised over this. It also comes across a touch hypocritical when some basic due diligence could have helped clarify much of it. I have a LONG history of meeting issues head on and I've never been afraid to answer questions, which lands me in hot water regularly, but helps keep me in tune with my peers and with the community. The only reason I can think of not to ask me is because my honest response might be inconvenient. 
     
    We can test that... with this post. Will the "It was a mistake (a bad one, but a mistake) and they're taking care of it" reality manage to have the same reach? Let's see if anyone actually wants to know what happened. I hope so, but it's been disheartening seeing how many people were willing to jump on us here. Believe it or not, I'm a real person and so is the rest of my team. We are trying our best, and if what we were doing was easy, everyone would do it. Today sucks.
     
    Thanks for reading this.
  2. Funny
  3. Agree
    DavidRomao reacted to FadedSpark in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    Way too hot of a take.
     
    Last night I was all over here talking about what I think should happen etc etc and Linus looking inward is definitely prime on the list but damn, this is aggressive.
     
    You ever feel pride in something? You ever feel protective of something or someone? That's I'm certain how Linus feels every day. About LTT/LMG, his family, his friends, and co-workers. It's not a bad thing that he feels this way, until he compromised their and his credibility and the only justification we can see is cold hard cash.
     
    There's the no one should buy this excuse about the waterblock, and to that I think Linus should hand in his enthusiast card and give up all his cool projects he's got going, like his remote gaming computers, his pool cooled server rack etc. He did that for the same reason billet made that block, to be the best, cost be damned. He should recognize that, because he lives that life daily. It's not for everyone, but it is for someone.
     
    He should have reframed his view on the product as an incredibly niche product, not just a waterblock.
     
    Ironically, his out of touch reaction on this one was in the opposite direction, and more in line with average consumer response.
     
    It's not narcissism unless it continues. Until then, it's pride, a (REALLY) bad take, and poor judgement/bad leadership.
     
    He can fix that. If he crosses the line in to narcissism? Well, that's game over.
  4. Agree
    DavidRomao got a reaction from ze77y in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    It's shame plenty of people are just deflecting and instead of judging the facts presented in front of them, are instead pointing the finger back at GN. No channel is perfect and Steve is surely aware there are problems on his side as well, that doesn't invalidate the facts he presented about LTT/LMG videos.
    So instead of pointing your anger at him, just reflect on what you were made aware of. I speak for myself as well, as I mainly watch LTT videos, we have to be able to get out of the bubble, not be a fan boy, and at least listen to the criticism presented agaisn't the current pratices of LTT.
     
    It is honestly worrying seeing some members of the staff saying they're very rarely proud of a video they've worked on. You should take some time to reflect @LinusTech is this is really the correct approach, as having your employees feeling that way is worth the amount of videos you put out weekly. If you can prioritise quality during the development of your merch, why can't you seem to afford to do the same for your videos ? Nobody really needs 25 videos a week from you, it's self imposed goal and if you can't do it in a sustainable way, then perhaps it shouldn't be done at all ( said from a guy with absolutely no knowledge about having a YT channel, just my honest opinion )
     
    Will definetely continuing watching the channel as I've done for many years for the time being, as I believe the issues will be addressed and the processes adapted where needed.
  5. Agree
    DavidRomao reacted to Schmuckford in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    I feel like most people are missing the point of this video completely and are focusing on one side of the extreme or the other; either saying LTT did nothing wrong and everyone makes mistakes and GN is only doing this to hurt a competitor, or that LTT is horrible and actively willing to destroy a small company for profit with no remorse. I don't believe either of these things, though I am more on the GN side as his main points were included but seemingly glossed over by the community at large.
     
    The issues with the benchmark/review mistakes isn't necessarily that they happened in the first place. As Linus said, this is a new process for them that they are getting down and they will inevitably make mistakes. Where this goes from making an honest mistake to being unethical is in how these mistakes are being handled. LMG seems dead set on having a video a day regardless, which doesn't leave room for removing a video that is found to contain major errors. Simply putting an asterisk or a pinned comment is not nearly enough in the examples in the GN video. These videos should have been removed and re-uploaded with correct information, both in the graphs and the recorded dialogue. If you are worried about spreading misinformation, giving consumers the wrong idea or guidance, and accurately recording the performance of a product, then that choice should have been obvious. The fact that Linus has responded the way he has, in that he would rather save on labor costs and refuse to allow the time to make meaningful corrections to found mistakes in the video itself before the initial upload shows to me and I assume many others where Linus's priorities lie, in that getting a video out the door in whatever shape is more important than representing things accurately and clearly. That, is my main concern as it is, in my opinion, not the right attitude when entering a space reliant on accurate data and testing.
     
    I don't believe that LTT purposely sold the prototype with full acknowledgement that they had been requested to return it. I truly believe it was a miscommunication and was an accident. I also believe Linus truly had the consumer's best interest in mind with his initial reasoning in that, in that state at that price, nobody should buy it. I would tend to agree with that sentiment. With that said, that does not lower the level of how unacceptable this whole situation was, from the initial testing on incompatible hardware to the selling of the prototype. The company has grown to a size that makes this miscommunication way too easy to have happen, and makes it harder to pin point a single point of correction that would make it never happen again.
     
    Here is where my conjecture comes in; LMG has been trying to keep up with it's self-imposed video schedule and been on a hiring spree to maintain it. I believe this is the wrong approach and we are currently seeing the ramifications for it. LTT has over 100 employees, who all have bills, families, things that LTT is now responsible for providing for with their career. That weight is a lot to bear for any business owner/leader. I imagine that's why spending the extra ~$500 in labor cost to re-test that prototype was as easy a decision as it was for Linus to make. But Linus has put himself in this position and in my opinion exasperated the issues with all of the additional hiring. From previous WAN shows describing how Linus had to teach new camera operators how to successfully shoot shots, I can only imagine how much additional training is needed for every new hire in every department they are hired for. Throwing additional manpower at a deadline is never going to work unless they are properly trained, whether that's direct proper training or what appears to be happening now in they are training by fire by having to learn by making mistakes. I believe that instead of hiring writers, camera operators, and endless number of other rolls, they could have hired fewer people and allowed themselves to slow down production and make sure things are right before the initial upload instead of forcing a video out every day regardless of the quality or ramifications. All this additional hiring, to me as an outside viewer, has both decreased the quality and increased the number of issues/mistakes/corrections needing to be made. And as I said before, mistakes are fine if they are properly addressed. But LMG does not appear to be interested in properly addressing mistakes.
     
    To end my rambling, I'll just say this. I'm thankful for Steve's video for pointing out what I've felt for well over a year now. It's come to the point where any interesting LTT video I watch will inevitably come with levels of disappointment. The first level is the transition of what the thumbnail and title imply vs the actual concept for the video. The second level is when they either don't have what they need or miss important information or steps needed to accomplish the concept of the video. The third level is the half-baked solution that is typically involved just to get the video to some sort of conclusion point in the time they allotted themselves to do it. This is the pattern I've noticed and it's been extremely tiring and frustrating to see more and more over time. This Friday's WAN show might be the last LTT content I consume going forward, which will be met with frustration as Linus said he won't be directly addressing any of this there.
  6. Agree
    DavidRomao reacted to doncerdo in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    Linus, 
     
    Just subbed to post on this. 
     
    The problem is you and let me explain:
     
    1. Your narcism, ego and self-righteousness are killing the brand you have worked your ass off to create and maintain. 
     
    2. You are alienating everyone from your wife, to Luke, to all those who work at LMG, to your community, by always having the last word and standing your ground. 
     
    3. You've become so out of touch with reality that you are building people and companies to tear them down. 
     
    Killing of you brand's capital is bad business. Being tone deaf is bad business. Not listening to those who wish you to make things better is bad for business. 
     
    If you were burning yourself down alone, fine. But your actions affect the livelihoods of 100+ souls and their families within LMG. Your reckless behavior is damaging the livelihood of people outside your company that also have families. But in your self-contained narcissistic bubble, you only think about how it affects you. In any other company, you would have been fired by now. 
     
    Me, me me. That's your problem. One that in years past, coaching would be the recommendation. Today, you really need an intervention and professional help. You are way beyond repair. Ethics, moral compass and being truthful are out the window because you are so self-contained in your bubble of righteousness that no one, again, not even your wife or Luke can knock you out of it. They maneuver their way around your illness. 
     
    100+ forum pages, downvotes on YT and trolling on a new scale on X shows the scale of the issue. Don't solve your personal issues "for the community" at large, do it for your employees and their families. Self destruct by yourself, don't drag people who love the work they do to your chasm. 
     
    GN held an attempt of an intervention, you, as an addict of your narcism reject it and try to justify yourself. No different than any other person with an addiction. Hope you get the help you need. Others literally depend on you not being ill. 
     
    tl;dr: you are addicted to your narcissistic ways, with that, you are destroying the very thing that pays LMG's bills: trust. By not caring to recognize your mistakes just to prove you are right, you are endangering the livelihoods of 100s of families. You are an addict and need help. 
  7. Like
    DavidRomao reacted to Big Head Tech in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    Hey Linus,
     
    You may or may not recognize me but I've been a follower since 171k subscribers. I always loved watching your videos because you have a lot of the same likes and biases I do. To be honest, I never really used your testing at the gospel but I also always did my own testing when I was a reviewer. I loved your personal takes on many products because it feels genuine.

    With that said, I think you should have waited to respond. Maybe just a simple post stating that you saw the video and want to take some consideration and feedback from the team then responding. The reality is, and you may not agree with it, but this won't just blow over. This is not something that in 2 weeks everyone will forget. This will impact future sponsorship deals (afraid of being exposed for favoritism) or just negative PR. When the whole "Hard R" incident happened, everyone including me felt you were genuine, and even I had the same thoughts on its meaning. This won't be like that.
     
    Are you wrong about Steve not checking with you regarding the block issue? No, but you phrase it in a defensive way. Yes, your brand is being questioned but look at the backlash. All of Reddit, well 90% is against you atm. The reality is, a shorter response would have been better. Acknowledge the water block issue, issue a correction, and acknowledge that you agree with Steve that you have much to improve and will put policies in place after consulting others in leadership. Then reach out to Steve and have a serious conversation and see if you can pick his brain as well. Work WITH the media not against them, embrace feedback don't reject it. You know deep down, you're going too hard too fast and it's a problem. Rome wasn't built in a day nor was it built by 1 person.
     
    Thanks,
    Stevie
  8. Like
    DavidRomao reacted to coopa in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    Many have pointed this out, including Linus himself, but honest question - what would it have changed? All it would have changed is that Linus' statement made here would have been included in the video, and honestly, given how feeble and corporate-speak Linus' reply was here, I don't believe it would have changed anyone's mind.

    The only substantive point addressed in Linus' post here is that he disputes that they did not "sell" the prototype, they "accidentally auctioned" it. Firstly, Steve from GN stated MULTIPLE times that LMG auctioned the Billet labs prototype. Secondly, that is a distinction without any real difference - they were given a review sample (a prototype), and instead of returning it as agreed, they sold it. The fact that the money went to charity instead of LMG's corporate coffers is irrelevant - they sold something that they did not own.

    Further on Billet, Linus improperly tested the product having been told that it was for a 3090 Ti not a 4090, and when this was pointed out, they said it wasn't worth the time/money to re-review it. Testing a monoblock on a GPU it was not designed to be used on is a completely invalid test, so Linus' conclusion that it wasn't worth retesting because it didn't cool a 4090 well was completely invalid because it wasn't designed to be used on a 4090. His conclusion that it wasn't worth retesting based on performance was based either on ineptitude, laziness, or malice by LMG to install and test the product properly.
     
    The rest of Linus' post is all corporate speak in the vein of "we try hard, we make mistakes, we're trying to do better" without any real addressing of GN's other points or substantive commitment acknowledging the quality errors/mistakes in LMG videos and trying to improve on them. It's word salad.
     
    One can say that GN should have given LMG the chance to reply before publication, and I agree with that - but it doesn't make anything that Steve said incorrect or wrong. And based on Linus' responses here where he is completely dismissive of criticism rather than honestly acknowledging it, it wouldn't have mattered anyways.

    Linus and LMG need to take some reflection and take an honest and hard look at what GN said, and work as a team to form a cohesive, meaningful reply. Instead of a rushed one that was clearly not based on watching the video (example: Linus' statement that GN said that LMG "sold" the prototype is wrong. Steve said they mistakenly put it up for auction multiple times.)
  9. Agree
    DavidRomao got a reaction from Dom1252 in Gamers Nexus alleges LMG has insufficient ethics and integrity   
    It's shame plenty of people are just deflecting and instead of judging the facts presented in front of them, are instead pointing the finger back at GN. No channel is perfect and Steve is surely aware there are problems on his side as well, that doesn't invalidate the facts he presented about LTT/LMG videos.
    So instead of pointing your anger at him, just reflect on what you were made aware of. I speak for myself as well, as I mainly watch LTT videos, we have to be able to get out of the bubble, not be a fan boy, and at least listen to the criticism presented agaisn't the current pratices of LTT.
     
    It is honestly worrying seeing some members of the staff saying they're very rarely proud of a video they've worked on. You should take some time to reflect @LinusTech is this is really the correct approach, as having your employees feeling that way is worth the amount of videos you put out weekly. If you can prioritise quality during the development of your merch, why can't you seem to afford to do the same for your videos ? Nobody really needs 25 videos a week from you, it's self imposed goal and if you can't do it in a sustainable way, then perhaps it shouldn't be done at all ( said from a guy with absolutely no knowledge about having a YT channel, just my honest opinion )
     
    Will definetely continuing watching the channel as I've done for many years for the time being, as I believe the issues will be addressed and the processes adapted where needed.
  10. Informative
    DavidRomao reacted to Srius1 in Streamlining "Working from home" hot swapable?   
    I have this DOWN TO A SCIENCE!
     
    step 1. Does your monitor have any usb ports? If so, you are off to a good start. If not, no worries! Just buy a usb switch .
    https://www.amazon.com/ABLEWE-Selector-Computers-Switcher-Compatible-dp-B08MBXMZLV/dp/B08MBXMZLV/ref=dp_ob_title_ce
     
     
    2. Connect all your usb stuff to the usb switch (link below). Connect each switch output to your 2 PCs. If you need more than 4 USB ports, you can daisy chain POWERED usb hubs to it. Or use monitors USB ports !!
     
    3. Connect video outputs from your gaming pc / work pc to different video inputs on your monitor.
    so use hdmi for work PCs, and display port for gaming PCs. Most monitors have a “auto switch” feature so when you turn on a new pc, it should switch sources automatically. If it doesn’t, just manually switch inputs. 
     
    you will 100% need a usb c hub like this for the display outputs / charging. https://www.amazon.com/Monitors-Adapter-Charging-Docking-Compatible/dp/B08KXMHZ7X/ref=sr_1_4_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=Tarsus+usb+c+hub+2+hdmi&qid=1627960127&s=electronics&sr=1-4-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExNVdUMFlKN01BUlI4JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUExMDQwNDIwNEM4M1RPSFYwWUxHJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA0Mzk1NDkxNTFHNjZSTlNaRDBNJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfbXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

     
    also the usb switch will also automatically switch inputs when new device is turned on.
    .
     
    trust me this is the BEST WAY. When you turn on a new system, everything literally changes over with nothing more needed. All your peripherals get transferred due to the usb switch and video from your monitor. Again I would HUGHLY recommend using your monitors USB ports if you can for less clutter. 
     
    on mine, I connected a usb hub directly to one of my monitors 2 USB ports. It’s a 4 port hub. On that hub I connected (kb, webcam, microphone, and usb cable for charging ). Other USB port is free for something else. Then I connect the big usb cable from back of monitor to that switch. Voila! 1 USB port on that switch is used for most of my stuff. And you have 3 more ports to use for other things. On mine,I have 1 port being used for laptop cooling fan and other usb stuff. 
     
     
    and if you need to take laptop out, just disconnect the one usb c cable.
  11. Agree
    DavidRomao got a reaction from PeachGr in How does gmail make money   
    Most of google services don't make money by themselves, their main purpose is to keep you on their ecosystem (Gmail, Google Youtube, Chrome, Google Keep, Docs, etc).
    They make money by using your data to sell ads, and they can only get your data as long as you are on their ecosystem, and the more dependent you are the more data you generate.
     
  12. Like
    DavidRomao reacted to PineyCreek in Is the 3080 adequate for Gaming at 1440p 144hz with graphics on maximum/near maximum?   
    Definitely has the performance for it, considering the 1080Ti usually handles it just fine and the 3080 supposedly kicks the tail of the 1080Ti's successor.  That's predicated on the assumption the game will run at that resolution/speed in the first place.   Not every game performs the same way with a particular card after all.
  13. Like
    DavidRomao reacted to Yebi in Is the 3080 adequate for Gaming at 1440p 144hz with graphics on maximum/near maximum?   
    It will not be a locked 144Hz in all games (especially with RTX), but overall you'll be fine with 100+ in pretty much everything. Get a monitor with G-sync
  14. Like
    DavidRomao reacted to Juular in Is the 3080 adequate for Gaming at 1440p 144hz with graphics on maximum/near maximum?   
    Depends on the game, in Control it isn't capable of outputting 144Hz even with DLSS but Remedy just didn't do a good job optimizing it.

    Although even without RTX there's quite a few titles which don't max-out to 144 FPS in 2k.

    But thing is, you're unlikely to notice any difference between 100 FPS and 144 FPS so it doesn't really matter and it appears that RTX3090 wouldn't be fast enough too.
  15. Agree
    DavidRomao reacted to straight_stewie in Java "program" running faster than C   
    What's going on here is a difference of compiler optimizations, and the fact that you are including the time required to write text to the screen in your benchmark.

    Here are the usual next steps for this task:
    Separate your code out to three sections Input gathering, which won't be benchmarked Generating prime numbers, which will be benchmarked Outputting the results, which won't be benchmarked. Make sure that you give your C code an equal chance If you have optimizations enabled in your Java compiler (they are unless you've changed this), make sure you set the same settings in your C compiler. Use a Sieve of Eratosthenes. Notice that your C code is now faster. Optimize both of the sieve algorithms (there are a few things you can do here, such as noticing that you only actually have to check the numbers below Ceiling(SquareRoot(MaxNum)). Optimize your C code to use pointers instead of array indexing.
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