u/Anima_Monday

It is suggested in the course I just did to use a separate email address for testing purposes. It is one of the first courses in the academy.

Do I use this email address as my Utest email address, or do I use my own personal one for Utest and the separate email is for if I need to create an account during a testing assignment?

In the course I just completed it is unclear to me if it is one or the other or both.

A koan is a reflection which has no proper answer in words, which is designed as a tool to go beyond dependence on concepts at least for a while, and experience 'what is' directly.

The quadruple negative is basically the following formula:

not A + not B + not both + not neither

This can be applied to many different things and can assist in the experience of a state of non-dual awareness, i.e. a 'doing nothing' or 'just being', 'practice of no practice' type of meditation.

An example of a koan like this would be asking the following to oneself, no need to ask aloud, just in the mind:

'What doesn't exist, doesn't not exist, and not both, and not neither?'

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I am considering signing up as a tester but have not done so yet.

The questions that are currently on my mind after reading the terms and conditions are as follows.

There is a clause about not having any special setup regarding network connections and there is another part or perhaps a separate clause about only using industry standard security software.

On my Windows 10 computer which I intend to use for Utest if I sign up, I have the following network setup: Normal ISP IP (no VPN), DNS is set to Quad 9 for the main reason that it has DNS security block-list and is proven to provide a good level of protection in this regard. I have it set both device level and browser level as browser level offers another layer of security with DoH.

Regarding security that does not relate to network settings, I have Windows Defender on that device as I see it to be just as good as most other industry standard security software, Windows is receiving ESU and is up to date, though I am running 0patch on the machine as that is what I intend to use when Windows 10 ESU period ends, though maybe by then I will be able to afford a windows 11 machine but I do not have one at the moment. The 0patch thing I expect might not be considered industry standard but it defends against 0 days and in my understanding complements Windows Defender as it patches some things that Defender and Windows updates do not and sometimes other things more quickly.

So my question is will they allow this (non ISP dns for security enhancement, no vpn, running windows defender and 0patch), because the clause in the terms and conditions document does not give a detailed list of what is allowed and what is not, as far as I have understood with a thorough as possible read through.

Also a question if I can have Firefox security set to strict or do I need to keep it on standard.

I ask because I wish to meet the terms and conditions while also keeping the device as safe as possible and testing is one of those things which could be risky for the testers apps, OS and device, so what is the highest level of security I am allowed to have?

The self that exists relatively, of course exists, but only relatively. This means it exists relative to other things. If there was nothing for it to be relative to, it would not exist, but of course there is plenty for it to be relative to, such as situation, things, people, perspective, perception and so on. This allows for practical interaction and communication. It has its purpose and it is not a problem as long as we understand it to be a relative construct and nothing more.

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But what is self ultimately?

Many might say that ultimately there is no self, as the self is a thought construct. That is as helpful as it is unhelpful, as both self existing ultimately and self not existing ultimately are thought constructs, therefore relative.

Perhaps the closest way to put ultimate reality into words regarding the self is the following:

There is not self. There is not no-self. Nor is there both. Nor is there neither.

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So, it could be said that ultimate reality is the seeing as relative of anything that is posited by cognition. Cognition has its practical purpose relatively, but it can only ever reflect relative truth, truth up to a point and relative to other things. Of course, the above reflection applies not only to self, but to any person, being or thing, physical or non-physical, common or uncommon, 'outer' or 'inner', from the senses or the mind.

I am looking for side gigs that have promise of making more than 20 dollars/pounds/euros a week. Something that is possible to bring in a 100 or more per week on average is ideal.

I have been considering digital, remote QA crowdtesting websites/companies, though I have not signed up for any yet as I read the terms and conditions and then realize that they appear to have datamining and monetizing of the workers' data as a large part of their business model, or that they state multiple reasons in the terms and conditions or a link within the terms and conditions where they can actually take/request/demand money from the worker and the amount they can take and specific examples are not properly disclosed. Or that they have too many negative ratings on trust pilot with too many disgruntled ex workers saying they got banned and did not get paid and a lot of the time they don't find out why.

So I was wondering if anyone has had any positive experiences with these types of companies and if you have any that you would recommend to a new starter in this line of work. I am willing to do training on a company's own website if it is available to level up before doing paid work.

A lot of nondual-ish meditation teachers and practices teach awareness is the witness and that everything else is not it.

This is dualistic. Not only that, it is, in my experience at least, untrue. I can only speak for myself here of course, so feel free to share your experience and thoughts on the matter.

Having given a very good run to abiding as witnessing awareness practices, they never felt completely natural and there was always a level of contrived effort to them.

I happened by my own exploration of experience in meditation and otherwise to realise that awareness and experience are in fact the same 'thing'. I use 'thing' here because words fail at this point.

The point is that experience is awareness, and awareness is experience, not conventionally of course but ultimately. Not 'esoteric', 'far away' ultimately, but ultimately as in what is as it is in this immediate moment. I can honestly say that I have never had one without the other. Even if there is an experience of a degree of lack of experience it is still an experience of some type. A more subtle type of experience like that which happens in meditation and deep relaxation sometimes.

But one does not need to do anything special to have a direct experience of awareness because it is literally each and every thing that one is and is experiencing in every moment in the five senses and mind, aka the field of awareness.

The issue arises when you take anything in that field of awareness as it simply is in this moment, and believe, in a way that is more than a practical and relative one, that 'this is me', 'this is mine', 'this is who/what I am'. That is because it is dependent on conditions being a certain way, conditions which are bound to change.

Relative, aka conventional self is of course necessary to function properly and relate to others, so it is not a problem in itself, but it is relative, subject to change due to conditions, including the conditions of perception, perceptive and situation.

Ultimate self is not separate from that but what is known as the other side of the same coin. It is experience-awareness, or awareness-experience. Not one or the other as they are not actually separate things. Also not a specific type of awareness nor a specific type of experience.

Anyway, that is what I have to say here but feel free to provide your feedback on the matter.

This is not for a study and I have posted in this sub before. I think that people are likely to have their own take on this so that is why I am asking. I know what I would say but I am looking for your answers here.