Category: Humor

Matt inherited some C# code that reads from a JSON config file.

public ServerJsonLoader(string configFile)
{
	using (StreamReader reader = File.OpenText(configFile))
	{
		JObject config = ... 

		if (config.GetValue("inputs") != null)
		{
			this.mixedConfig = config;

			
			var inputs = ... 

			
			if (config.GetValue("outputs") != null)
			{
				var outputs = ... 
			}                
		}
		else
		{                 
			if(config.GetValue("inputs") != null)
				this.serverConfig = config;

			if (config.GetValue("outputs") != null)
				this.clientConfig = config; 
			
		}                    
	}
}

We open the file as a stream, and then hand it off to a JObject, which handles the parsing for us. Then, if it has a value "inputs", we store the config as mixedConfig, and handle the inputs. Then, if it also has "outputs", we also process the outputs.

If we don’t have an "inputs", we go down the else path, where we check: if we have "inputs", we store the config in serverConfig, and if we have "outputs", we store the config in clientConfig.

It pains me to say that this convoluted logic isn’t useless. It may not even be wrong. In the case where there are no "inputs", but there are "outputs", we’ll store the config in clientConfig.

What we have here is a terrible way to write a simple concept: if we have only outputs, we must be a client. I suspect that they once wanted it to also be true that if you had only inputs, you were a server. And if you had both, you were “mixed”. Then, something changed about their rules or their config, and the server-only configuration became a little vestigial branch off this chain of ifs, never to be executed again.

If you have internet access and enjoy using social media, chances are you are familiar with the term “Karen”, and just reading the name will probably trigger some sort of deep-rooted anger in you.

For those who don’t know, a Karen is slang referring to a middle-class white woman who is perceived as entitled or demanding beyond the scope of what is normal. To give an example, Karens are often associated with the kind of person who demands to “speak to the manager” to belittle the service industry.

Stereotypically sporting an asymmetric bob haircut with chunky highlights, Karens are also commonly associated with behaviors that stem from privilege, resulting in racist bias, such as calling the police when they see a person of color walking in their neighborhood.

Following the viral restaurant chain Karen’s Diner, renowned for serving a serious attitude, the Karen’s Hotel just launched in London

Image credits: booking

Image credits: karensbrighton

In other words, Karens aren’t likable figures, and have sparked many memes on the internet in recent years.

Nevertheless, a business has somewhat managed to profit from the despicable behavior Karens are infamous for, with the opening of Karen’s Hotel.

There, guests are able to experience verbal abuse, bad manners and public ridicule after a date at Karen’s Diner, before taking a probably very stressful nap at Karen’s Hotel.

Guests can experience verbal abuse, bad manners, and public ridicule after a date at Karen’s Diner

Image credits: karensbrighton

Image credits: karensdinerofficial

You can watch a clip of the Karen’s Diner experience below

@mica__young Besties @karensdinerofficial #karensdiner #grandmasoftiktok ♬ original sound – micayoung

Following their viral restaurant chain Karen’s Diner, renowned for serving a serious attitude, the Australian-American firm behind the concept have partnered with The Hadley Hotel in Barnet, North London, UK to launch Karen’s Hotel.

The hotel promises “an absurdly fun experience” where guests will be greeted by “rude hotel staff and waiters” before being taken to a room where they’ll “never know what they will find”.

Eddie Hall took his son Max along for a night away at Karen’s hotel, vlogging his experience for his YouTube channel

Image credits: Eddie Hall The Beast

Image credits: Eddie Hall The Beast

According to its official website, the Karen’s Hotel and diner experience includes the room for your stay, your meal at Karen’s diner (drinks not included), and your breakfast the next morning.

Prices start at £179 ($228 USD) for the package for two people per room. “Please note that your booking is not confirmed until we call you and F’ing confirm it, and for the love of Karen, don’t ask to speak to the manager,” the website further states.

Eddie Hall – better known as The Beast and former World’s Strongest Man – decided to take his young son Max along for a night away at the questionable stay, vlogging his experience for his YouTube channel.

The hotel promises “an absurdly fun experience” where guests are taken to a room where they’ll “never know what they will find”

Image credits: Eddie Hall The Beast

Image credits: Eddie Hall The Beast

In the video, Eddie revealed that he had not informed his son that this was a Karen’s Hotel, thus surprising Max with the brutal encounter.

After less than 24 hours in the place, Eddie dubbed it the “craziest overnight challenge he has done”, as per Unilad.

The father and son were first seen walking into the establishment’s reception and politely asked to check in. They were subsequently greeted by a sour-faced receptionist who asked them: “What do you want? Are you going to tell me your name? How many are staying?”

In the video, Eddie revealed that he had not informed his son that this was a Karen’s Hotel, therefore, surprising Max with a brutal encounter

Image credits: Eddie Hall The Beast

The receptionist went on to hilariously ask Eddie if his 10-year-old son was his “pet sperm?” before showing them to their room and adding: “Do you need any help with your bags? Ah, that’s a shame. Carry them yourself.”

After giggling at the receptionist’s unhinged behavior, Eddie and Max went on to walk into their room only to find one of the hotel’s staff members lounging around their unmade bed watching Squid Game.

Another employee was seen emerging from the toilet. “This is where we take our breaks, but you know, you’re here now, so,” one of the Karens angrily admitted.

You can watch Eddie’s hilarious experience at Karen’s Hotel

Further into the video, the dad and son realized that their pillows were just filled with styrofoam, while the TV was stuck in a foreign language.

Later on, Eddie was forced to sing Let It Go on karaoke at 10:30 pm, before being disturbed again at 2 am by music blasting outside in the corridor.

The stressed father was then woken up at 7:30 am with a megaphone and a glass of water over his face. He went on to admit: “We got what we paid for, didn’t we? The hotel was nice, food was nice, the service was absolutely f***ing awful, I’ll give them that.”

The concept of paying to receive rude treatment didn’t appeal to everyone

“This is a picture of my baptism. My mom thought it would be great to have a little extra entertainment so two of her friends dressed up as clowns. They used whatever my mom had in her house. I think that’s my moms red shirt and red pants. If you look closely, it looks like the clown on the right has blood on his checkered scarf…”

(submitted by Paola) 

Benjamin doesn’t have a lot of complaints about the project he works on. “There is,” he writes, “no tale of daily woe.” But even an otherwise healthy project isn’t immune to WTFs.

BOOL CCache::CalculateBmpImageSize(SIZE BackgroundControl, SIZE& NewImageSize)
{
        BOOL    bRes = TRUE;

        try
        {
                NewImageSize = BackgroundControl;
        }
        catch(...)
        {
                bRes = FALSE;
        }

        return bRes;
}

In this C++ code, SIZE is a struct containing width and height. This function, then, is just handling an assignment: copying the size of BackgroundControl into NewImageSize, which is helpfully passed as a reference.

This is an operation that isn’t going to throw an exception, and if for some reason this operation fails, mere exception handling isn’t going to recover the program. And then there’s the entire “take structured exception handling and turn it back into return codes,” which is also likely not the best choice.

“Who knows,” Benjamin writes, “maybe tomorrow this assingment will need to be replaced by a complex mathematical equation.” That, or I suspect that the developer responsible for this got burned by overloaded operators in the past, and has become overly cautious about them.

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, but sometimes an = is actually a complex operation written by a developer who wanted to be “clever”.