Side note: I am a developer myself Hello Windows11 I usually don't post much on reddit but today was triggering enough for me to write this post.
First and foremost. I want you people to check the size of your AppData folder because it may genuinely surprise you, mine for example is \checks notes** 40 whole gigabytes
Result from WizTree - A program that visualises your storage space
And this is AFTER me cleaning up another 10 GB from AppData You maybe asking yourself: "How does one even get to this point"
Let me tell you, all of those electron based apps, which basically ship with a SEPERATE INSTANCE OF CHROME(IUM)
Sooo many apps use electron when they don't need to
Screenshot taken from ElectronJS website
Yes, it is definitely easier for the devs because its "cross-platfrom" but honstly, imo, its just skill issue!
Even the smallest calendar app, or a git client use electron
I personally dont have a problem with electron itself if its gonna use a "singular-browser" based system (more on that later)
But they always insist on keeping the app up to date. which means downloading another "browser" and it always 'forgets' to remove the old version. (installer.exe)
Not to mention the memory hogging but that's another topic for another day

Its not just electron!

take another example, JetBrains, the people who know their stuff!
the people who made IDEs like IntelliJ Idea, PyChram, CLion!
they insist on using 'JetBrains ToolBox' and yet, every time it updates an IDE
It doesn't delete the old version nor does it migrate the cache. You have to manually find the old files in AppData and delete them.

My point

Our AppData directory is already difficult to access by normies. The last thing it should be is a data-dump for apps!
As a developer myself, we developers should keep the AppData clean and minimise "data-dumping"

Possible solutions that I propose

• Look at all the folders that have installer*.exe and delete them
• Delete and 'cache' folders
• Always keep an eye out on your free storage
• Always monitor an electron app after it updates

Since I am a dev myself, I'll make a script, specifically in something like powershell or python to clean up our appdata files without touching whats important, maybe using advanced pattern matching and whatnot
I will post the link to the script/app (with the mods permission) when I finish it
I hope this post has been of some help and not a complete rant.

Some useful stuff I found

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with any brands/software mentioned
WizTree useful for visualising how your storage is being used, basically a faster version of WinDirStat
cleanmgr.exe (press WIN+R and type this) useful for disk clean-up that is genuinely a good tool
Also: be mindful of the apps you install
And empty your recycle bin and downloads folder, yes, you! who is reading this.

TL;DR

If you running unusually low on storage, check your AppData folder and clean it up. You may be surprised

Art by Bob Nicholls
Nowadays, when we envision the words “prey,” among modern mammalian fauna, few taxa come to mind as quickly as the hoofed mammals, better known as the ungulates. Indeed, for the better part of their entire evolutionary history, the ungulates have become entirely indistinguishable from the term “prey.” Across their two major modern branches, the artiodactyls (the “even-toed ungulates,” such as bovids, pigs, deer, hippos and giraffes) and the perissodactyls (the “odd-toed ungulates,” including horses, rhinos and tapir), the ungulates too have created an empire spanning nearly every continent, establishing themselves as the the dominant herbivores throughout their entire range. However, as a price for such success, their lot as herbivores have forced them into an unenviable position: being the food for the predators. Indeed, throughout the diets of most modern predators, ungulates make up the majority, if not the entirety, of their diet, becoming their counterparts in this evolutionary dance of theirs. They have become the lamb to their wolf, the zebra to their lion, the stag to their tiger. If there is a predator in need of lunch, chances are that there is an ungulate there to provide it. Of course, such a dynamic is not necessarily a recent innovation. For the last 15-20 million years, across much of the world, both new and old, the ungulates have served as prey for these predators through it all. Over the course of whole epochs, these two groups have played into these roles for millions of years, coevolving with each other in an eons-long game of cat-and-mouse. The shoes they fill are not new, but have existed for ages, and within their niches they have cultivated their roles to perfection. Indeed, with such a tenured history, it seems hardly surprising the ungulates are wholly inseparable from the terms “prey,” itself.
However, while this is the case now, as it has been for the last 15-20 million years, go back far enough, and we see that this dynamic is not as set in stone as we would think. Indeed, back during the Eocene and Oligocene, during the very earliest days of age of mammals, things were very different for the ungulates. While today they are considered little more than food for modern predators, during these olden days, the ungulates weren’t quite so benign. In fact, far from being fodder for top predators, the ungulates had turned the tables, instead becoming top predators themselves. Indeed, though nearly unheard of today, throughout much of the Eocene and Oligocene, carnivorous ungulates thrived in abundance, developing specializations for catching large prey and establishing themselves as top predators that competed alongside the more traditional carnivores, and even dominating them in some instances. Given such success, it’s no wonder that multiple such clades had arisen during this time. Such predators included the arctocyonids, a lineage of (ironically) hoof-less ungulates with large jaws and sharp teeth for capturing large prey. There were also the mesonychians, a lineage of dog-like ungulates with massive skulls and jaws that allowed them to reign as the top predator across much of the Eocene.
However, among these various lineages, one stands stands out among the rest, by far. Arising during the Eocene, this lineage, though superficially resembling modern pigs, hailed from one an ancient lineage of artiodactyls far removed from swine or most other ungulates in general, with few close relatives alive today. Through perhaps not the most predatory of the bunch, it was among the most formidable, as their superficially pig-like appearance came with giant predatory jaws and teeth unlike anything from the modern era. And of course, as if all of that wasn’t enough, this lineage also went on to earn arguably one of the most badass nicknames of any lineage of mammals, period. These predators, of course, were the entelodonts, a.k.a the “hell-pigs.” More so than any other predatory ungulate lineage, these formidable ungulates were the ones to turn the current paradigm upside down, becoming some of the largest and most dominant carnivores in their landscape, even with (and often in spite of) the presence of more traditional predators. Through impressive size, fearsome teeth and sheer tenacity, these animals became the top dogs of their time, ruling as behemoth-kings of their Paleogene kingdoms, domineering all comers, and throughout the ranks, one entelodont in particular demonstrated such dominance the best. Though not the largest or most powerful of their kind, it is one of the most iconic, being among the most well-known members of its lineage to date. Moreover, this enteledont also has some of the most complete life histories ever seen out of this clade, with its brutality and predatory prowess being displayed in the fossil record in a way seen in no other member of its kind. More than anything else, however, it was this predator that best turned the notion of “ungulates being prey” on its head, living in an environment that bore some of the largest carnivoran hypercarnivores to date and still reigning as the undisputed top predator of its domain. This fearsome beast was none other than Archaeotherium, icon of the entelodonts, terror of the Oligocene American west and undisputed king of the White River badlands.
The rise of Archaeotherium (and of entelodonts in general) is closely tied to the ascendancy of carnivorous ungulates as a whole, one of the earliest evolutionary success stories of the entire Cenozoic. Having become their own derived clade since the late Cretaceous, the ungulates were remarkably successful during the early Paleogene, as they were among the first mammalian clades to reach large sizes during those early days after the non-avian dinosaurs had gone extinct. As such, it was with incredible swiftness that, as the Paleogene progressed, the ungulates swooped upon the various niches left empty by the K-Pg mass extinction that killed the dinosaurs. This of course included the herbivorous niches we would know them for today, but this also included other, much more carnivore roles. Indeed, early on during the Paleogene, it was the ungulates that first seized the roles of large mammalian predators, becoming some the earliest large mammalian carnivores to ever live, well before even the carnivorans. Such predators included the arctocyonids, a lineage of vaguely dog-like, hoof-less ungulates with robust jaws and sharpened teeth that acted as some of earliest large carnivores of the Paleocene, with genera such as Arctocyon mumak getting up to the size of big cats. Even more prolific were the mesonychids. More so than what pretty much any other lineage of predator, it was the mesonychids that would stand out as the earliest dominant predators of the early Cenozoic. Growing up to the size of bears and with enormous, bone-crushing jaws, the mesonychids were among the most powerful and successful predators on the market at that time, with a near-global range and being capable of subjugating just about any other predator in their environments. Indeed, they, along with other carnivorous ungulates (as well as ungulates in general), were experiencing a golden age during this time, easily being the most prolific predators of the age. Given such prevalence, it should be no surprise that there would be yet another lineage of predatory ungulates would throw their hat into the ring, and by early Eocene, that contender would none other than the entelodonts.
The very first entelodonts had arisen from artiodactyl ancestors during the Eocene epoch, at a time when artiodactyls were far more diverse and bizarre than they are now. Through today known from their modern herbivorous representatives such as bovines, deer, and antelope, during the Paleocene and Eocene, the artiodacyls, as with most ungulates of that time, were stronger and far more predaceous, particularly when it came to one such clade of artiodactyls, the cetacodontamorphs. Only known today from hippos and another group of artiodactyls (one which will become relevant later), the cetacodantomorphs emerged out of Asia around 55 million years ago, at around the same time that artiodactyls themselves had made their debut. These animals included the first truly predatory artiodactyls, with many of them possessing large skulls with powerful jaws and sharp, predatory teeth. Among their ranks included animals as puny as Indohyus, a piscivorous artiodactyl the size of a cat, to as formidable as Andrewsarchus, a giant, bison-sized predator often touted as one of the largest predatory mammals to ever live. Given such a predatory disposition, it wouldn’t be long until this clade produced a lineage of truly diverse, truly successful predators, and by around 40 million years ago, that is exactly what they did, as it was at that time that the entelodonts themselves first emerged. From their Asian homeland, the entelodonts spread across the world, spreading through not only most of Eurasia but also colonizing North America as well, with genera such as Brachyhyops being found across both continents. Here, in this North American frontier, the entelodonts began to diversify further, turning into their most successful and formidable forms yet, and it was around the late Eocene and early Oligocene that Archaeotherium itself had entered the scene.
Just from a passing glance at Archaeotherium, it is clear how exactly it (as well as the other entelodonts) earned the nickname of “hell-pigs.” It was a bruiser for starters; its body bore a robust, pig-like physique, with prominent neural spines and their associated musculature forming a hump around the shoulder region, similar to the hump of a bison. With such a bulky physique came with it impressive size; the average A. mortoni had a head-body length of roughly 1.6-2.0 m (5.3-6.6 ft), a shoulder height of 1.2 m (4 ft) and a body mass of around 180 kg (396 lb) in weight (Boardman & Secord, 2013; Joeckel, 1990). At such sizes, an adult Archaeotherium the size of a large male black bear. However, they had the potential to get even bigger. While most Archaeotherium specimens were around the size described above, a select few specimens, labeled under the synonymous genus “Megachoerus,” are found to be much larger, with skulls getting up to 66% longer than average A. mortoni specimens (Foss, 2001; Joeckel, 1990). At such sizes and using isometric scaling, such massive Archaeotherium specimens would attained body lengths over 2.5 m (8.2 ft) and would have reached weighs well over 500 kg (1100 lb), or as big as a mature male polar bear. Indeed, at such sizes, it is already abundantly evident that Archaeotherium is a force to be recorded with.
However, there was more to these formidable animals than sheer size alone. Behind all that bulk was an astoundingly swift and graceful predator, especially in terms of locomotion. Indeed, the hoofed feet of Archaeotherium, along with other entelodonts, sported several adaptations that gave it incredible locomotive efficiency, essentially turning it into a speed demon of the badlands. Such adaptations include longer distal leg elements (e.g. the radius and tibia) than their proximal counterparts (e.g. the humerus and femur), fusion of the radius and ulna for increased running efficiency, the loss of the clavicle (collar-bone) to allow for greater leg length, the loss of the acromion to enhance leg movement along the fore-and-aft plane, the loss of digits to reduce the mass of the forelimb, the fusion of the ectocuneiform and the mesocuneiform wrist-bones, among many other such traits (Theodore, 1996) . Perhaps most significant of these adaptations is the evolution of the “double-pulley astragalus (ankle-bone),” a specialized modification of the ankle that, while restricting rotation and side-to-side movement at the ankle-joint, allows for greater rotation in the fore-and-aft direction, thus allowing for more more powerful propulsion from the limbs, faster extension and retraction of the limbs and overall greater locomotive efficiency (Foss, 2001). Of course, such a trait was not only found in entelodonts but in artiodactyls as a whole, likely being a response to predatory pressures from incumbent predatory clades arising at the same time as the artiodactyls (Foss, 2001). However, in the case of the entelodonts, such adaptations were not used for merely escaping predators. Rather, they were used to for another, much more lethal effect…
Such notions are further reinforced by the entelodonts most formidable aspect, none either than their fearsome jaws, and in this respect, Archaeotherium excelled. Both for its size and in general, the head of Archaeotherium was massive, measuring 40-50 cm (1.3-1.6 ft) in length among average A. mortoni specimens, to up to 78 cm (~2.6 ft) in the larger “Megachoerus” specimens (Joeckel, 1990). Such massive skulls were supported and supplemented by equally massive neck muscles and ligaments, which attached to massive neural spines on the anterior thoracic vertebrae akin to a bisons hump as well as to the sternum, allowing Archaeotherium to keep its head aloft despite the skulls massive size (Effinger, 1998). Of course, with such a massive skull, it should come as no surprise that such skulls housed exceptionally formidable jaws as well, and indeed, the bite of Archaeotherium was an especially deadly one. Its zygomatic arches (cheek-bones) and its temporal fossa were enlarged and expanded, indicative of massive temporalis muscles that afforded Archaeotherium astoundingly powerful bites (Joeckel, 1990). This is further augmented by Archaeotherium’s massive jugal flanges (bony projections of the cheek), which supported powerful masseter muscles which enhanced chewing and mastication, as well as an enlarged postorbital bar that reinforced the skull against torsional stresses (Foss, 2001). Last but not least, powerful jaws are supplemented by an enlarged gape, facilitated by a low coronoid process and enlarged posterior mandibular tubercles (bony projections originating from the lower jaw), which provided an insertion site for sternum-to-mandible jaw abduction muscles, allowing for a more forceful opening of the jaw (Foss, 2001). All together, such traits suggest a massive and incredibly fearsome bite, perhaps the most formidable of any animal in its environment.
Of course, none of such traits are especially indicative of a predatory lifestyle. Indeed, many modern non-predatory ungulates, like hippos, pigs and peccaries, also possess large, formidable skulls and jaws. However, in peeling back the layers, it is found there was more to the skull of Archaeotherium that lies in store. Indeed, when inspecting the animal closely, a unique mosaic of features is revealed; traits that make it out to be much more lethal than the average artiodactyl. On one hand, Archaeotherium possessed many traits similar to those of herbivores animals, as is expected of ungulates. For instance, its jaw musculature that allowed the lower jaw of Archaeotherium a full side-to-side chewing motion as in herbivores (whereas most carnivores can only move their lower jaw up and down)(Effinger, 1998). On the other hand, Archaeotherium wielded many other traits far more lethal in their morphology, less akin to a herbivore and far more akin to a bonafide predator. For instance, the aforementioned enlarged gape of Archaeotherium is a bizarre trait on a supposed herbivore, as such animals do not need large gapes to eat vegetation and thus have smaller, more restricted gapes. Conversely, many predatory lineages have comparatively large gapes, as larger gapes allow for the the jaws to grab on to more effectively larger objects, namely large prey animals (Joeckel, 1990).
Such a juxtaposition, however, is most evident when discussing the real killing instruments of Archaeotherium — the teeth. More so than any facet of this animal, the teeth of Archaeotherium are the real stars of the show, showing both how alike it was compared to its herbivores counterparts and more importantly, how it couldn’t be more different. For instance, the molars of Archaeotherium were quite similar to modern herbivores ungulates, in that they were robust, bunodont, and were designed for crushing and grinding, similar in form and function to modern ungulates like peccaries (Joeckel, 1990). However, while the molars give the impression that Archaeotherium was a herbivore, the other teeth tell a very different story. The incisors, for example, were enlarged, sharpened, and fully interlocked (as opposed to the flat-topped incisors seen in herbivores ungulates), creating an incisor array that was seemingly ill-suited for cropping vegetation and much more adept at for gripping, puncturing and cutting (Joeckel, 1990). Even more formidable were the canines. Like the modern pigs from which entelodonts derived their nicknames, the canines of Archaeotherium were sharp and enlarged to form prominent tusk-like teeth, but unlike pigs, they were rounded in cross-section (similar to modern carnivores like big cats, indicating more durable canines that can absorb and resist torsional forces, such as those from struggling prey) and were serrated to form a distinct cutting edge (Effinger, 1998; Joeckel, 1990; Ruff & Van Valkenburgh, 1987). These canines, along with the incisors, interlock to stabilize the jaws while biting and dismantling in a carnivore-like fashion. More strikingly, the canines also seem to act as “occlusal guides,” wherein the canines help align the movement and position of the rear teeth as they come together, allowing for a more efficient shearing action by the rear teeth. This function is seen most prevalently modern carnivorous mammals, and is evidenced by the canine tooth-wear, which is also analogous to modern predators like bears and canids (Joeckel, 1990). Indeed, going off such teeth alone, it is clear that Archaeotherium is far more predatory than expected of an ungulate. However, the real stars of the show, the teeth that truly betray the predatory nature of these ungulates, are the premolars. Perhaps the most carnivore-like teeth in the entelodont’s entire tooth row, the premolars of Archaeotherium, particularly the anterior premolars, are laterally compressed, somewhat conical in shape, and are weakly serrated to bear a cutting edge, giving them a somewhat carnivorous form and function of shearing and slicing (Effinger, 1998). Most strikingly of all, the premolars of Archaeotherium bear unique features similar not to modern herbivores, but to durophagous carnivores like hyenas, particularly apical wear patterns, highly thickened enamel, “zigzag-shaped” enamel prism layers (Hunter-Schraeger bands) on the premolars which is also seen in osteophagous animals like hyenas, and an interlocking premolar interface wherein linear objects (such as bones) inserted into jaws from the side would be pinned between the premolars and crushed (Foss, 2001). Taken together, these features do not suggest a diet of grass or vegetation like other ungulates. Rather, they suggest a far more violent diet, one including flesh as well as hard, durable foods, particularly bone. All in all, the evidence is clear. Archaeotherium and other entelodonts, unlike the rest of their artiodactyl kin, were not the passive herbivores as we envision ungulates today. Rather, they were willing, unrepentant meat-eaters that had a taste for flesh as well as foliage.
Of course, even with such lines of evidence, its hard to conclude that Archaeotherium was a true predator. After all, its wide gape and durophagous teeth could have just as easily been used for scavenging or even to eat tough plant matter such as seeds or nuts, as in peccaries and pigs, which themselves share many of the same adaptations as Archaeotherium, include the more carnivorous ones (e.g. the wide gape, using the canines as an occlusal guide, etc.). How exactly do we know that these things were veritable predators and not pretenders to the title. To this end, there is yet one last piece of evidence, one that puts on full display the predatory prowess of Archaeotherium —evidence of a kill itself. Found within oligocene-aged sediment in what is now Wyoming, a collection of various fossil remains was found, each belonging to the ancient sheep-sized camel Poebrotherium, with many of the skeletal remains being disarticulated and even missing whole hindlimbs or even entire rear halves of their body. Tellingly, many of the remains bear extensive bite marks and puncture wounds across their surface. Upon close examination, the spacing and size of the punctures leave only one culprit: Archaeotherium. Of course, such an event could still have been scavenging; the entelodonts were consuming the remains of already dead, decomposed camels, explaining the bite marks. What was far more telling, however, was where the bite marks were found. In addition bite marks being found on the torso and lumbar regions of the camels, various puncture wounds were found on the skull and neck, which were otherwise uneaten. Scavengers rarely feast on the head to begin with; there is very little worthwhile meat on it besides the brain, cheek-muscles and eyes, and even if they did feed on the skull and neck, they would still eat it wholesale, not merely bite it and then leave it otherwise untouched. Indeed, it was clear that this was no mere scavenging event. Rather than merely consuming these camels, Archaeotherium was actively preying upon and killing them, dispatching them via a crushing bite to the skull or neck before dismembering and even bisecting the hapless camels with their powerful jaws to preferentially feast on their hindquarters (likely by swallowing the hindquarters whole, as the pelvis of Poebrotherium was coincidentally the perfect width for Archaeotherium to devour whole), eventually discarding the leftovers in meat caches for later consumption (Sundell, 1999). With this finding, such a feat of brutality leaves no doubt in ones mind as to what the true nature of Archaeotherium was. This was no herbivore, nor was it a simple scavenger. This was an active, rapacious predator, the most powerful in its entire ecosystem.
Indeed, with such brutal evidence of predation frozen in time, combined with various dental, cranial, and post cranial adaptations of this formidable animal, it’s possible to paint a picture of how this formidable creature lived. Though an omnivore by trade, willing and able to feast on plant matter such as grass, roots and tubers, Archaeotherium was also a wanton predator that took just about any prey it wanted. Upon detecting its prey, it approached its vicim from ambush before launching itself at blazing speed. From there, its cursorial, hoofed legs, used by other ungulates for escape predation, were here employed to capture prey, carrying it at great speeds as it caught up to its quarry. Having closed the distance with its target, it was then that the entelodont brought its jaws to bear, grabbing hold of the victim with powerful jaws and gripping teeth to bring it to a screeching halt. If the victim is lucky, Archaeotherium will then kill it quickly with a crushing bite to the skull or neck, puncturing the brain or spinal cord and killing its target instantly. If not, the victim is eaten alive, torn apart while it’s still kicking, as modern boars will do today. In any case, incapacitated prey are subsequently dismantled, with the entelodont using its entire head and heavily-muscled necks to bite into and pull apart its victim in devastating “puncture-and pull’ bites (Foss, 2001). Prey would then finally be consumed starting at the hindquarters, with not even the bones of its prey being spared. Such brutality, though far from clean, drove home a singular truth: that during this time, ungulates were not just prey, that they were not the mere “predator-fodder” we know them as today. rather, they themselves were the predators themselves, dominating as superb hunters within their domain and even suppressing clades we know as predators today, least of all the carnivorans. Indeed, during this point in time, the age of the carnivorous ungulates had hit their stride, and more specifically, the age of entelodonts had begun.
Of course, more so than any other entelodont, Archaeotherium took to this new age with gusto. Archaeotherium lived from 35-28 million years ago during the late Eocene and early Oligocene in a locality known today as the White River Badlands, a fossil locality nestled along the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains. Though a chalky, barren landscape today, during the time of Archaeotherium, the White River Badlands was a swamp-like floodplain crisscrossed with rivers and interspersed with by a mosaic of forests concentrated around waterways, open woodlands and open plains. As with most ecosystems with such a lush disposition, this locale teemed with life, with ancient hornless rhinos, small horse-like hyracodonts and early camels roaming the open habitats while giant brontotheres, small early horses and strange, sheep-like ungulates called merycoidodonts (also known as “oreodonts”) dwelled within the dense forests. Within this locale, Archaeotherium stalked the open woodlands and riparian forests of its domain. Here, it acted as a dominant predator and scavenger across is territory, filling a niche similar to modern grizzly bears but far more predatory. Among its preferred food items would be plant matter such as roots, foliage and nuts, but also meat in the form of carrion or freshly caught prey. In this respect, smaller ungulates such as the fleet-footed camel Poebrotherium, a known prey item of Archaeotherium, would have made a for choice prey, as its small size would make it easy for Archaeotherium to dispatch with its powerful jaws, while the entelodonts swift legs gave it the speed necessary to keep pace with its agile prey.
However, the entelodont didn’t have such a feast all to itself. Just as the badlands teemed with herbivores, so too did it teem with rival predators. Among their ranks included fearsome predators such as Hyaenodon, a powerful, vaguely dog-like predator up to the size of wolves (as in H. horridus) or even lions (as in the Eocene-aged H. megaloides, which was replaced by H. horridus during the Oligocene). Armed with a massive head, fierce jaws and a set of knife-like teeth that could cut down even large prey in seconds, these were some of the most formidable predators on the landscape. There were also the nimravids, cat-like carnivorans that bore saber-teeth to kill large prey in seconds, and included the likes of the lynx-sized Dinictis, the leopard-sized Hoplophoneus and even the jaguar-sized Eusmilus. Furthermore, there were amphicyonids, better known as the bear-dogs. Though known from much larger forms later on in their existence, during the late Eocene and Oligocene, they were much smaller and acted as the “canid-analogues” of the ecosystem, filling a role similar to wolves or coyotes. Last but not least, there were the bathornithid birds, huge cariamiform birds related to modern seriemas but much larger, which filled a niche similar to modern seriemas or secretary birds, albeit on a much larger scale. Given such competition, it would seem that Archaeotherium would have its hands full. However, things are not as they appear. For starters, habitat differences would mitigate high amounts of competition, as both Hyaenodon and the various nimravids occupy more specialized ecological roles (being a plains-specialist and forest-specialist, respectively) than did Archaeotherium, providing a buffer to stave off competition: More importantly, however, none of the aforementioned predators were simply big enough to take Archaeotherium on. During the roughly 7 million years existence of Archaeotherium, the only carnivore that matched it in size was H. megaloides, and even that would have an only applied to average A. mortoni individuals, not to the much larger, bison-sized “Megachoerus” individuals. The next largest predator at that point would be the jaguars-sized Eusmilus (specifically E. adelos) which would have only been a bit more than half the size of even an average A. mortoni. Besides that, virtually every other predator on the landscape was simply outclassed by the much larger entelodont in terms of size and brute strength. As such, within its domain, Archaeotherium had total, unquestioned authority, dominating the other predators in the landscape and likely stealing their kills as well. In fact, just about the only threat Archaeotherium had was other Archaeotherium, as fossil bite marks suggest that this animal regularly and fraglantly engaged in intraspecific combat, usually through face-biting and possibly even jaw-wrestling (Effinger, 1998; Tanke & Currie, 1998). Nevertheless, it was clear that Archaeotherium was the undisputed king of the badlands; in a landscape of hyaenodonts and carnivorans galore, it was a hoofed ungulate that reigned supreme.
However, such a reign would not last. As the Eocene transitioned into the Eocene, the planet underwent an abrupt cooling and drying phase known as Eocene-Oligocene Transition or more simply the Grande Coupure. This change in climate would eliminate the sprawling wetlands and river systems that Archaeotherium had been depending on, gradually replacing it with drier and more open habitats. To its credit, Archaeotherium did manage to hang on, persisting well after the Grand-Coupure had taken place, but in the end the damage had been done; Archaeotherium was a dead-man-walking. Eventually, by around 28 million years ago, Archaeotherium would go extinct, perishing due to this change in global climate (Gillham, 2019). Entelodonts as a whole would persist into the Miocene, producing some of their largest forms ever known in the form of the bison-sized Daeodon (which was itself even more carnivorous than Archaeotherium), however they too would meet the same fate as their earlier cousins. By around 15-20 million years ago, entelodonts as a whole would go extinct. However, while the entelodonts may have perished, this was not the end of carnivorous ungulates as a whole. Recall that the cetacodontamorphs, the lineage of artiodactyls that produced the entelodonts, left behind two living descendants. The first among them were the hippos, themselves fairly frequent herbivores. The second of such lineage, however, was a different story. Emerging out of South Asia, this lineage of piscivorous cetacodontamorphs, in a an attempt to further specialize for the fish-hunting lifestyle, began to delve further and further into the water, becoming more and more aquatic and the millennia passed by. At a certain point, these carnivorous artiodactlys had become something completely unrecognizable from their original hoofed forms. Their skin became hairless and their bodies became streamlined for life in water. Their hoofed limbs grew into giant flippers for steering in the water and their previously tiny tails became massive and sported giant tail flukes for aquatic propulsion. Their noses even moved to the tip of their head, becoming a blowhole that would be signature to this clade as a whole. Indeed, this clade was none other than the modern whales, themselves derived, carnivorous ungulates that had specialized for a life in the water, and in doing so, became the some of the most dominant aquatic predators across the globe for millions of years. Indeed, though long gone, the legacy of the entelodonts and of predatory ungulates as a whole, a legacy Archaeotherium itself had helped foster, lives on in these paragons of predatory prowess, showing that the ungulates are more than just the mere “prey” that they are often made out to be. Moreover, given the success that carnivorous ungulates had enjoyed in the past and given how modern omnivorous ungulates like boar dabble in predation themselves, perhaps, in the distant future, this planet may see the rise of carnivorous ungulates once again, following in the footsteps left behind by Archaeotherium and the other predatory ungulates all those millions of years ago.

Art by Bob Nicholls
Nowadays, when we envision the words “prey,” among modern mammalian fauna, few taxa come to mind as quickly as the hoofed mammals, better known as the ungulates. Indeed, for the better part of their entire evolutionary history, the ungulates have become entirely indistinguishable from the term “prey.” Across their two major modern branches, the artiodactyls (the “even-toed ungulates,” such as bovids, pigs, deer, hippos and giraffes) and the perissodactyls (the “odd-toed ungulates,” including horses, rhinos and tapir), the ungulates too have created an empire spanning nearly every continent, establishing themselves as the the dominant herbivores throughout their entire range. However, as a price for such success, their lot as herbivores have forced them into an unenviable position: being the food for the predators. Indeed, throughout the diets of most modern predators, ungulates make up the majority, if not the entirety, of their diet, becoming their counterparts in this evolutionary dance of theirs. They have become the lamb to their wolf, the zebra to their lion, the stag to their tiger. If there is a predator in need of lunch, chances are that there is an ungulate there to provide it. Of course, such a dynamic is not necessarily a recent innovation. For the last 15-20 million years, across much of the world, both new and old, the ungulates have served as prey for these predators through it all. Over the course of whole epochs, these two groups have played into these roles for millions of years, coevolving with each other in an eons-long game of cat-and-mouse. The shoes they fill are not new, but have existed for ages, and within their niches they have cultivated their roles to perfection. Indeed, with such a tenured history, it seems hardly surprising the ungulates are wholly inseparable from the terms “prey,” itself.
However, while this is the case now, as it has been for the last 15-20 million years, go back far enough, and we see that this dynamic is not as set in stone as we would think. Indeed, back during the Eocene and Oligocene, during the very earliest days of age of mammals, things were very different for the ungulates. While today they are considered little more than food for modern predators, during these olden days, the ungulates weren’t quite so benign. In fact, far from being fodder for top predators, the ungulates had turned the tables, instead becoming top predators themselves. Indeed, though nearly unheard of today, throughout much of the Eocene and Oligocene, carnivorous ungulates thrived in abundance, developing specializations for catching large prey and establishing themselves as top predators that competed alongside the more traditional carnivores, and even dominating them in some instances. Given such success, it’s no wonder that multiple such clades had arisen during this time. Such predators included the arctocyonids, a lineage of (ironically) hoof-less ungulates with large jaws and sharp teeth for capturing large prey. There were also the mesonychians, a lineage of dog-like ungulates with massive skulls and jaws that allowed them to reign as the top predator across much of the Eocene.
However, among these various lineages, one stands stands out among the rest, by far. Arising during the Eocene, this lineage, though superficially resembling modern pigs, hailed from one an ancient lineage of artiodactyls far removed from swine or most other ungulates in general, with few close relatives alive today. Through perhaps not the most predatory of the bunch, it was among the most formidable, as their superficially pig-like appearance came with giant predatory jaws and teeth unlike anything from the modern era. And of course, as if all of that wasn’t enough, this lineage also went on to earn arguably one of the most badass nicknames of any lineage of mammals, period. These predators, of course, were the entelodonts, a.k.a the “hell-pigs.” More so than any other predatory ungulate lineage, these formidable ungulates were the ones to turn the current paradigm upside down, becoming some of the largest and most dominant carnivores in their landscape, even with (and often in spite of) the presence of more traditional predators. Through impressive size, fearsome teeth and sheer tenacity, these animals became the top dogs of their time, ruling as behemoth-kings of their Paleogene kingdoms, domineering all comers, and throughout the ranks, one entelodont in particular demonstrated such dominance the best. Though not the largest or most powerful of their kind, it is one of the most iconic, being among the most well-known members of its lineage to date. Moreover, this enteledont also has some of the most complete life histories ever seen out of this clade, with its brutality and predatory prowess being displayed in the fossil record in a way seen in no other member of its kind. More than anything else, however, it was this predator that best turned the notion of “ungulates being prey” on its head, living in an environment that bore some of the largest carnivoran hypercarnivores to date and still reigning as the undisputed top predator of its domain. This fearsome beast was none other than Archaeotherium, icon of the entelodonts, terror of the Oligocene American west and undisputed king of the White River badlands.
The rise of Archaeotherium (and of entelodonts in general) is closely tied to the ascendancy of carnivorous ungulates as a whole, one of the earliest evolutionary success stories of the entire Cenozoic. Having become their own derived clade since the late Cretaceous, the ungulates were remarkably successful during the early Paleogene, as they were among the first mammalian clades to reach large sizes during those early days after the non-avian dinosaurs had gone extinct. As such, it was with incredible swiftness that, as the Paleogene progressed, the ungulates swooped upon the various niches left empty by the K-Pg mass extinction that killed the dinosaurs. This of course included the herbivorous niches we would know them for today, but this also included other, much more carnivore roles. Indeed, early on during the Paleogene, it was the ungulates that first seized the roles of large mammalian predators, becoming some the earliest large mammalian carnivores to ever live, well before even the carnivorans. Such predators included the arctocyonids, a lineage of vaguely dog-like, hoof-less ungulates with robust jaws and sharpened teeth that acted as some of earliest large carnivores of the Paleocene, with genera such as Arctocyon mumak getting up to the size of big cats. Even more prolific were the mesonychids. More so than what pretty much any other lineage of predator, it was the mesonychids that would stand out as the earliest dominant predators of the early Cenozoic. Growing up to the size of bears and with enormous, bone-crushing jaws, the mesonychids were among the most powerful and successful predators on the market at that time, with a near-global range and being capable of subjugating just about any other predator in their environments. Indeed, they, along with other carnivorous ungulates (as well as ungulates in general), were experiencing a golden age during this time, easily being the most prolific predators of the age. Given such prevalence, it should be no surprise that there would be yet another lineage of predatory ungulates would throw their hat into the ring, and by early Eocene, that contender would none other than the entelodonts.
The very first entelodonts had arisen from artiodactyl ancestors during the Eocene epoch, at a time when artiodactyls were far more diverse and bizarre than they are now. Through today known from their modern herbivorous representatives such as bovines, deer, and antelope, during the Paleocene and Eocene, the artiodacyls, as with most ungulates of that time, were stronger and far more predaceous, particularly when it came to one such clade of artiodactyls, the cetacodontamorphs. Only known today from hippos and another group of artiodactyls (one which will become relevant later), the cetacodantomorphs emerged out of Asia around 55 million years ago, at around the same time that artiodactyls themselves had made their debut. These animals included the first truly predatory artiodactyls, with many of them possessing large skulls with powerful jaws and sharp, predatory teeth. Among their ranks included animals as puny as Indohyus, a piscivorous artiodactyl the size of a cat, to as formidable as Andrewsarchus, a giant, bison-sized predator often touted as one of the largest predatory mammals to ever live. Given such a predatory disposition, it wouldn’t be long until this clade produced a lineage of truly diverse, truly successful predators, and by around 40 million years ago, that is exactly what they did, as it was at that time that the entelodonts themselves first emerged. From their Asian homeland, the entelodonts spread across the world, spreading through not only most of Eurasia but also colonizing North America as well, with genera such as Brachyhyops being found across both continents. Here, in this North American frontier, the entelodonts began to diversify further, turning into their most successful and formidable forms yet, and it was around the late Eocene and early Oligocene that Archaeotherium itself had entered the scene.
Just from a passing glance at Archaeotherium, it is clear how exactly it (as well as the other entelodonts) earned the nickname of “hell-pigs.” It was a bruiser for starters; its body bore a robust, pig-like physique, with prominent neural spines and their associated musculature forming a hump around the shoulder region, similar to the hump of a bison. With such a bulky physique came with it impressive size; the average A. mortoni had a head-body length of roughly 1.6-2.0 m (5.3-6.6 ft), a shoulder height of 1.2 m (4 ft) and a body mass of around 180 kg (396 lb) in weight (Boardman & Secord, 2013; Joeckel, 1990). At such sizes, an adult Archaeotherium the size of a large male black bear. However, they had the potential to get even bigger. While most Archaeotherium specimens were around the size described above, a select few specimens, labeled under the synonymous genus “Megachoerus,” are found to be much larger, with skulls getting up to 66% longer than average A. mortoni specimens (Foss, 2001; Joeckel, 1990). At such sizes and using isometric scaling, such massive Archaeotherium specimens would attained body lengths over 2.5 m (8.2 ft) and would have reached weighs well over 500 kg (1100 lb), or as big as a mature male polar bear. Indeed, at such sizes, it is already abundantly evident that Archaeotherium is a force to be recorded with.
However, there was more to these formidable animals than sheer size alone. Behind all that bulk was an astoundingly swift and graceful predator, especially in terms of locomotion. Indeed, the hoofed feet of Archaeotherium, along with other entelodonts, sported several adaptations that gave it incredible locomotive efficiency, essentially turning it into a speed demon of the badlands. Such adaptations include longer distal leg elements (e.g. the radius and tibia) than their proximal counterparts (e.g. the humerus and femur), fusion of the radius and ulna for increased running efficiency, the loss of the clavicle (collar-bone) to allow for greater leg length, the loss of the acromion to enhance leg movement along the fore-and-aft plane, the loss of digits to reduce the mass of the forelimb, the fusion of the ectocuneiform and the mesocuneiform wrist-bones, among many other such traits (Theodore, 1996) . Perhaps most significant of these adaptations is the evolution of the “double-pulley astragalus (ankle-bone),” a specialized modification of the ankle that, while restricting rotation and side-to-side movement at the ankle-joint, allows for greater rotation in the fore-and-aft direction, thus allowing for more more powerful propulsion from the limbs, faster extension and retraction of the limbs and overall greater locomotive efficiency (Foss, 2001). Of course, such a trait was not only found in entelodonts but in artiodactyls as a whole, likely being a response to predatory pressures from incumbent predatory clades arising at the same time as the artiodactyls (Foss, 2001). However, in the case of the entelodonts, such adaptations were not used for merely escaping predators. Rather, they were used to for another, much more lethal effect…
Such notions are further reinforced by the entelodonts most formidable aspect, none either than their fearsome jaws, and in this respect, Archaeotherium excelled. Both for its size and in general, the head of Archaeotherium was massive, measuring 40-50 cm (1.3-1.6 ft) in length among average A. mortoni specimens, to up to 78 cm (~2.6 ft) in the larger “Megachoerus” specimens (Joeckel, 1990). Such massive skulls were supported and supplemented by equally massive neck muscles and ligaments, which attached to massive neural spines on the anterior thoracic vertebrae akin to a bisons hump as well as to the sternum, allowing Archaeotherium to keep its head aloft despite the skulls massive size (Effinger, 1998). Of course, with such a massive skull, it should come as no surprise that such skulls housed exceptionally formidable jaws as well, and indeed, the bite of Archaeotherium was an especially deadly one. Its zygomatic arches (cheek-bones) and its temporal fossa were enlarged and expanded, indicative of massive temporalis muscles that afforded Archaeotherium astoundingly powerful bites (Joeckel, 1990). This is further augmented by Archaeotherium’s massive jugal flanges (bony projections of the cheek), which supported powerful masseter muscles which enhanced chewing and mastication, as well as an enlarged postorbital bar that reinforced the skull against torsional stresses (Foss, 2001). Last but not least, powerful jaws are supplemented by an enlarged gape, facilitated by a low coronoid process and enlarged posterior mandibular tubercles (bony projections originating from the lower jaw), which provided an insertion site for sternum-to-mandible jaw abduction muscles, allowing for a more forceful opening of the jaw (Foss, 2001). All together, such traits suggest a massive and incredibly fearsome bite, perhaps the most formidable of any animal in its environment.
Of course, none of such traits are especially indicative of a predatory lifestyle. Indeed, many modern non-predatory ungulates, like hippos, pigs and peccaries, also possess large, formidable skulls and jaws. However, in peeling back the layers, it is found there was more to the skull of Archaeotherium that lies in store. Indeed, when inspecting the animal closely, a unique mosaic of features is revealed; traits that make it out to be much more lethal than the average artiodactyl. On one hand, Archaeotherium possessed many traits similar to those of herbivores animals, as is expected of ungulates. For instance, its jaw musculature that allowed the lower jaw of Archaeotherium a full side-to-side chewing motion as in herbivores (whereas most carnivores can only move their lower jaw up and down)(Effinger, 1998). On the other hand, Archaeotherium wielded many other traits far more lethal in their morphology, less akin to a herbivore and far more akin to a bonafide predator. For instance, the aforementioned enlarged gape of Archaeotherium is a bizarre trait on a supposed herbivore, as such animals do not need large gapes to eat vegetation and thus have smaller, more restricted gapes. Conversely, many predatory lineages have comparatively large gapes, as larger gapes allow for the the jaws to grab on to more effectively larger objects, namely large prey animals (Joeckel, 1990).
Such a juxtaposition, however, is most evident when discussing the real killing instruments of Archaeotherium — the teeth. More so than any facet of this animal, the teeth of Archaeotherium are the real stars of the show, showing both how alike it was compared to its herbivores counterparts and more importantly, how it couldn’t be more different. For instance, the molars of Archaeotherium were quite similar to modern herbivores ungulates, in that they were robust, bunodont, and were designed for crushing and grinding, similar in form and function to modern ungulates like peccaries (Joeckel, 1990). However, while the molars give the impression that Archaeotherium was a herbivore, the other teeth tell a very different story. The incisors, for example, were enlarged, sharpened, and fully interlocked (as opposed to the flat-topped incisors seen in herbivores ungulates), creating an incisor array that was seemingly ill-suited for cropping vegetation and much more adept at for gripping, puncturing and cutting (Joeckel, 1990). Even more formidable were the canines. Like the modern pigs from which entelodonts derived their nicknames, the canines of Archaeotherium were sharp and enlarged to form prominent tusk-like teeth, but unlike pigs, they were rounded in cross-section (similar to modern carnivores like big cats, indicating more durable canines that can absorb and resist torsional forces, such as those from struggling prey) and were serrated to form a distinct cutting edge (Effinger, 1998; Joeckel, 1990; Ruff & Van Valkenburgh, 1987). These canines, along with the incisors, interlock to stabilize the jaws while biting and dismantling in a carnivore-like fashion. More strikingly, the canines also seem to act as “occlusal guides,” wherein the canines help align the movement and position of the rear teeth as they come together, allowing for a more efficient shearing action by the rear teeth. This function is seen most prevalently modern carnivores mammals, and is evidenced by the canine tooth-wear, which is also analogous to modern predators like bears and canids (Joeckel, 1990). Indeed, going off such teeth alone, it is clear that Archaeotherium is far more predatory than expected of an ungulate. However, the real stars of the show, the teeth that truly betray the predatory nature of these ungulates, are the premolars. Perhaps the most carnivore-like teeth in the entelodont’s entire tooth row, the premolars of Archaeotherium, particularly the anterior premolars, are laterally compressed, somewhat conical in shape, and are weakly serrated to bear a cutting edge, giving them a somewhat carnivorous form and function of shearing and slicing (Effinger, 1998). Most strikingly of all, the premolars of Archaeotherium bear unique features similar not to modern herbivores, but to durophagous carnivores like hyenas, particularly apical wear patterns, highly thickened enamel, “zigzag-shaped” enamel prism layers (Hunter-Schraeger bands) on the premolars which is also seen in osteophagous animals like hyenas, and an interlocking premolar interface wherein linear objects (such as bones) inserted into jaws from the side would be pinned between the premolars and crushed (Foss, 2001). Taken together, these features do not suggest a diet of grass or vegetation like other ungulates. Rather, they suggest a far more violent diet, one including flesh as well as hard, durable foods, particularly bone. All in all, the evidence is clear. Archaeotherium and other entelodonts, unlike the rest of their artiodactyl kin, were not the passive herbivores as we envision ungulates today. Rather, they were willing, unrepentant meat-eaters that had a taste for flesh as well as foliage.
Of course, even with such lines of evidence, its hard to conclude that Archaeotherium was a true predator. After all, its wide gape and durophagous teeth could have just as easily been used for scavenging or even to eat tough plant matter such as seeds or nuts, as in peccaries and pigs, which themselves share many of the same adaptations as Archaeotherium, include the more carnivorous ones (e.g. the wide gape, using the canines as an occlusal guide, etc.). How exactly do we know that these things were veritable predators and not pretenders to the title. To this end, there is yet one last piece of evidence, one that puts on full display the predatory prowess of Archaeotherium —evidence of a kill itself. Found within oligocene-aged sediment in what is now Wyoming, a collection of various fossil remains was found, each belonging to the ancient sheep-sized camel Poebrotherium, with many of the skeletal remains being disarticulated and even missing whole hindlimbs or even entire rear halves of their body. Tellingly, many of the remains bear extensive bite marks and puncture wounds across their surface. Upon close examination, the spacing and size of the punctures leave only one culprit: Archaeotherium. Of course, such an event could still have been scavenging; the entelodonts were consuming the remains of already dead, decomposed camels, explaining the bite marks. What was far more telling, however, was where the bite marks were found. In addition bite marks being found on the torso and lumbar regions of the camels, various puncture wounds were found on the skull and neck, which were otherwise uneaten. Scavengers rarely feast on the head to begin with; there is very little worthwhile meat on it besides the brain, cheek-muscles and eyes, and even if they did feed on the skull and neck, they would still eat it wholesale, not merely bite it and then leave it otherwise untouched. Indeed, it was clear that this was no mere scavenging event. Rather than merely consuming these camels, Archaeotherium was actively preying upon and killing them, dispatching them via a crushing bite to the skull or neck before dismembering and even bisecting the hapless camels with their powerful jaws to preferentially feast on their hindquarters (likely by swallowing the hindquarters whole, as the pelvis of Poebrotherium was coincidentally the perfect width for Archaeotherium to devour whole), eventually discarding the leftovers in meat caches for later consumption (Sundell, 1999). With this finding, such a feat of brutality leaves no doubt in ones mind as to what the true nature of Archaeotherium was. This was no herbivore, nor was it a simple scavenger. This was an active, rapacious predator, the most powerful in its entire ecosystem.
Indeed, with such brutal evidence of predation frozen in time, combined with various dental, cranial, and post cranial adaptations of this formidable animal, it’s possible to paint a picture of how this formidable creature lived. Though an omnivore by trade, willing and able to feast on plant matter such as grass, roots and tubers, Archaeotherium was also a wanton predator that took just about any prey it wanted. Upon detecting its prey, it approached its vicim from ambush before launching itself at blazing speed. From there, its cursorial, hoofed legs, used by other ungulates for escape predation, were here employed to capture prey, carrying it at great speeds as it caught up to its quarry. Having closed the distance with its target, it was then that the entelodont brought its jaws to bear, grabbing hold of the victim with powerful jaws and gripping teeth to bring it to a screeching halt. If the victim is lucky, Archaeotherium will then kill it quickly with a crushing bite to the skull or neck, puncturing the brain or spinal cord and killing its target instantly. If not, the victim is eaten alive, torn apart while it’s still kicking, as modern boars will do today. In any case, incapacitated prey are subsequently dismantled, with the entelodont using its entire head and heavily-muscled necks to bite into and pull apart its victim in devastating “puncture-and pull’ bites (Foss, 2001). Prey would then finally be consumed starting at the hindquarters, with not even the bones of its prey being spared. Such brutality, though far from clean, drove home a singular truth: that during this time, ungulates were not just prey, that they were not the mere “predator-fodder” we know them as today. rather, they themselves were the predators themselves, dominating as superb hunters within their domain and even suppressing clades we know as predators today, least of all the carnivorans. Indeed, during this point in time, the age of the carnivorous ungulates had hit their stride, and more specifically, the age of entelodonts had begun.
Of course, more so than any other ettelodont, Archaeotherium took to this new age with gusto. Archaeotherium lived from 35-28 million years ago during the late Eocene and early Oligocene in a locality known today as the White River Badlands, a fossil locality nestled along the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains. Though a chalky, barren landscape today, during the time of Archaeotherium, the White River Badlands was a swamp-like floodplain crisscrossed with rivers and interspersed with by a mosaic of forests concentrated around waterways, open woodlands and open plains. As with most ecosystems with such a lush disposition, this locale teemed with life, with ancient hornless rhinos, small horse-like hyracodonts and early camels roaming the open habitats while giant brontotheres, small early horses and strange, sheep-like ungulates called merycoidodonts (also known as “oreodonts”) dwelled within the dense forests. Within this locale, Archaeotherium stalked the open woodlands and riparian forests of its domain. Here, it acted as a dominant predator and scavenger across is territory, filling a niche similar to modern grizzly bears but far more predatory. Among its preferred food items would be plant matter such as roots, foliage and nuts, but also meat in the form of carrion or freshly caught prey. In this respect, smaller ungulates such as the fleet-footed camel Poebrotherium, a known prey item of Archaeotherium, would have made a for choice prey, as its small size would make it easy for Archaeotherium to dispatch with its powerful jaws, while the entelodonts swift legs gave it the speed necessary to keep pace with its agile prey.
However, the entelodont didn’t have such a feast all to itself. Just as the badlands teemed with herbivores, so too did it teem with rival predators. Among their ranks included fearsome predators such as Hyaenodon, a powerful, vaguely dog-like predator up to the size of wolves (as in H. horridus) or even lions (as in the Eocene-aged H. megaloides, which was replaced by H. horridus during the Oligocene). Armed with a massive head, fierce jaws and a set of knife-like teeth that could cut down even large prey in seconds, these were some of the most formidable predators on the landscape. There were also the nimravids, cat-like carnivorans that bore saber-teeth to kill large prey in seconds, and included the likes of the lynx-sized Dinictis, the leopard-sized Hoplophoneus and even the jaguar-sized Eusmilus. Furthermore, there were amphicyonids, better known as the bear-dogs. Though known from much larger forms later on in their existence, during the late Eocene and Oligocene, they were much smaller and acted as the “canid-analogues” of the ecosystem, filling a role similar to wolves or coyotes. Last but not least, there were the bathornithid birds, huge cariamiform birds related to modern seriemas but much larger, which filled a niche similar to modern seriemas or secretary birds, albeit on a much larger scale. Given such competition, it would seem that Archaeotherium would have its hands full. However, things are not as they appear. For starters, habitat differences would mitigate high amounts of competition, as both Hyaenodon and the various nimravids occupy more specialized ecological roles (being a plains-specialist and forest-specialist, respectively) than did Archaeotherium, providing a buffer to stave off competition: More importantly, however, none of the aforementioned predators were simply big enough to take Archaeotherium on. During the roughly 7 million years existence of Archaeotherium, the only carnivore that matched it in size was H. megaloides, and even that would have an only applied to average A. mortoni individuals, not to the much larger, bison-sized “Megachoerus” individuals. The next largest predator at that point would be the jaguars-sized Eusmilus (specifically E. adelos) which would have only been a bit more than half the size of even an average A. mortoni. Besides that, virtually every other predator on the landscape was simply outclassed by the much larger entelodont in terms of size and brute strength. As such, within its domain, Archaeotherium had total, unquestioned authority, dominating the other predators in the landscape and likely stealing their kills as well. In fact, just about the only threat Archaeotherium had was other Archaeotherium, as fossil bite marks suggest that this animal regularly and fraglantly engaged in intraspecific combat, usually through face-biting and possibly even jaw-wrestling (Effinger, 1998; Tanke & Currie, 1998). Nevertheless, it was clear that Archaeotherium was the undisputed king of the badlands; in a landscape of hyaenodonts and carnivorans galore, it was a hoofed ungulate that reigned supreme.
However, such a reign would not last. As the Eocene transitioned into the Eocene, the planet underwent an abrupt cooling and drying phase known as Eocene-Oligocene Transition or more simply the Grande Coupure. This change in climate would eliminate the sprawling wetlands and river systems that Archaeotherium had been depending on, gradually replacing it with drier and more open habitats. To its credit, Archaeotherium did manage to hang on, persisting well after the Grand-Coupure had taken place, but in the end the damage had been done; Archaeotherium was a dead-man-walking. Eventually, by around 28 million years ago, Archaeotherium would go extinct, perishing due to this change in global climate (Gillham, 2019). Entelodonts as a whole would persist into the Miocene, producing some of their largest forms ever known in the form of the bison-sized Daeodon (which was itself even more carnivorous than Archaeotherium), however they too would meet the same fate as their earlier cousins. By around 15-20 million years ago, entelodonts as a whole would go extinct. However, while the entelodonts may have perished, this was not the end of carnivorous ungulates as a whole. Recall that the cetacodontamorphs, the lineage of artiodactyls that produced the entelodonts, left behind two living descendants. The first among them were the hippos, themselves fairly frequent herbivores. The second of such lineage, however, was a different story. Emerging out of South Asia, this lineage of piscivorous cetacodontamorphs, in a an attempt to further specialize for the fish-hunting lifestyle, began to delve further and further into the water, becoming more and more aquatic and the millennia passed by. At a certain point, these carnivorous artiodactlys had become something completely unrecognizable from their original hoofed forms. Their skin became hairless and their bodies became streamlined for life in water. Their hoofed limbs grew into giant flippers for steering in the water and their previously tiny tails became massive and sported giant tail flukes for aquatic propulsion. Their noses even moved to the tip of their head, becoming a blowhole that would be signature to this clade as a whole. Indeed, this clade was none other than the modern whales, themselves derived, carnivorous ungulates that had specialized for a life in the water, and in doing so, became the some of the most dominant aquatic predators across the globe for millions of years. Indeed, though long gone, the legacy of the entelodonts and of predatory ungulates as a whole, a legacy Archaeotherium itself had helped foster, lives on in these paragons of predatory prowess, showing that the ungulates are more than just the mere “prey” that they are often made out to be. Moreover, given the success that carnivorous ungulates had enjoyed in the past and given how modern omnivorous ungulates like boar dabble in predation themselves, perhaps, in the distant future, this planet may see the rise of carnivorous ungulates once again, following in the footsteps left behind by Archaeotherium and the other predatory ungulates all those millions of years ago.

In the ever-evolving digital economy, the demand for faster, more robust, and secure payment solutions is paramount, highlighting the crucial role of payment technology. With the landscape continuously evolving, its imperative to understand the changing dynamics of the payments industry and anticipate emerging trends for 2024. Additionally, exploring the potential of AI in shaping the future of digital transactions provides valuable insights into the trajectory of the industry.
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The purpose of the blog Exploring the Impact of AI on Payments Industry: An Outlook for 2024 is to analyze the evolving role of AI in shaping the future of digital transactions and navigating key trends in the payments industry.
Learnings:
Digital Payment Trends: The digital economy demands faster, more robust, and secure payment solutions. Key trends include the projected growth of global digital payments revenue to and the widespread adoption of digital payments worldwide.
Role of AI in Shaping the Future: AI holds immense potential in revolutionizing digital transactions. Its ability to enhance security, streamline processes, and offer personalized experiences makes it a critical area for exploration in the payments industry.
Innovations in Payment Technology: From blockchain for cross-border payments to AI-driven fraud detection and biometric authentication, various technological advancements are reshaping the payments landscape. Technology providers play a crucial role in driving innovation, security, and efficiency across the financial ecosystem.
Implications of Regulatory Scrutiny: While AI promises significant benefits, its implementation raises concerns about data privacy and regulatory compliance. Financial institutions must navigate these challenges while harnessing the potential of AI to drive business growth and innovation.
Opportunities for Growth and Collaboration: With the evolving landscape of banking and FinTech in 2024, organizations have opportunities to explore new markets, expand partnerships, and embrace innovative solutions. Understanding and adapting to emerging trends will be key to staying competitive in the dynamic payments industry.
Navigating Digital Payments: Key Statistics and Trends
Digital payments are reshaping the financial landscape, and understanding these trends is essential for businesses, consumers, and policymakers alike. The potential of AI in shaping the future of digital transactions holds exciting possibilities, making it a critical area to explore. Lets delve into some key statistics and trends related to digital payments in the ever-evolving landscape.
Global Digital Payments Revenue:
By 2027, the global digital payments revenue is projected to reach an impressive $14.79 trillion.
The market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 11.79% from 2023 to 2027.
In 2023, the total global digital payments transaction value is estimated to be $9.47 trillion.
Global Adoption of Digital Payments:
Two-thirds (2/3) of adults worldwide are now using digital payments, with 89% adoption in the United States.
Developed countries have a higher adoption rate (95%) compared to developing countries (57%).
Approximately 84% of financial services account owners globally engage in digital transactions.
Ecommerce and Digital Wallets:
Ecommerce is projected to account for 24% of global consumer spend by 2026.
Digital wallets play a significant role, accounting for 49% of global ecommerce sales, while credit cards contribute 21%.
Top digital wallets in the U.S. include PayPal (36%), Apple Pay (20%), and Venmo (16%).
Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs)
Nine in 10 central banks are exploring the concept of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
CBDCs could revolutionize the way we conduct transactions and enhance financial inclusion.
Unbanked Population:
While 76% of adults worldwide have a bank account or use a mobile money provider, approximately 1.4 billion adults remain unbanked.
Efforts to bridge this gap are crucial for financial inclusion and economic growth.
Analyzing the Current State of Innovation in the Payments Industry
The payments industry is widely perceived to be approaching a saturation point concerning technological interventions, according to numerous financial experts. Over the past few years, the FinTech revolution has gained considerable momentum, significantly simplifying customer experiences. Despite these advancements, there remains ample opportunity for enhancement across various facets of the industry.
One lens through which to examine innovation is by considering market drivers. For instance, the macroeconomic landscape of 2023 compelled many companies to prioritize operational efficiency over expansion. Managing costs, mitigating risks, and ensuring service quality became paramount for maintaining market share. Additionally, heightened consumer awareness emerged as a significant catalyst for this paradigm shift. Present-day consumers are more cognizant of the time value of money, checkout experiences, and safety considerations, all of which are poised to influence the trajectory of innovation in the industry.
A Recap of Payment Innovation in 2023
The year 2023 witnessed significant developments across various fronts in the payments industry. One notable highlight was the rebranding of several companies, indicative of their strategic positioning within the sector. These rebrandings often aimed to align with evolving market dynamics and underscore their commitment to serving as strategic partners for banking and financial institutions.
In terms of technological advancements, there was a notable focus on adopting AI-first solutions to enhance payment operations, reduce costs, and improve overall customer satisfaction. Companies showcased a range of innovative solutions leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as FedNow, blockchain, and omnichannel commerce.
Partnership ecosystems also saw expansion, with collaborations formed with leading tech companies like Google Cloud, AWS, Microsoft, Databricks, Stripe, Salesforce, and Checkmarx. Such alliances were aimed at fostering innovation and delivering value-added services to clients.
Looking ahead, there are plans for workforce growth and exploration of new markets, indicating a continued drive for expansion and innovation within the industry. Overall, 2023 was characterized by significant strides in technological innovation, partnership development, and strategic positioning within the payments landscape.
Exploring the Role of Technology Providers in the Evolving Payments Landscape
At the forefront of the banking and payments revolution are technology solution providers, working in tandem with both banking and non-banking financial institutions.
For banking institutions, the focus lies on modernizing legacy infrastructure to address scalability, agility, and performance limitations. Digital transformation initiatives enable banks to offer contemporary payment experiences, integrating emerging technologies like instant payments and buy-now-pay-later for enhanced convenience and flexibility. Adoption of advanced technologies such as APIs, serverless architecture, microservices, cloud-native frameworks, and data services further bolsters performance and security measures.
Successful modernization empowers banks to develop tailored solutions, enhancing customer value and competitiveness. Support in infrastructural upgrades, operational efficiency, and service excellence aids institutions in aligning with evolving customer expectations and thriving in a competitive landscape.
Non-banking institutions and FinTechs leverage technology partners to explore distinctive use cases and business models.
Collaborative efforts result in innovative solutions tailored to meet customer needs and preferences. Leveraging industry expertise, creative problem-solving, product engineering, and technological proficiency, these partners deliver value-added services that differentiate entities from competitors. Integration of cutting-edge technologies such as blockchain, AI, and deep analytics diversifies payment channels while ensuring regulatory compliance and robust security measures.
Exploring Innovations in the Payments Landscape: Use Cases and Providers
Lets delve into some key use cases and some prominent PayTech companies or technology providers that are reshaping the evolving payments landscape:
Blockchain for Cross-Border Payments:
Use Case: Blockchain technology enables secure, transparent, and real-time cross-border transactions.
Technology Providers: Companies like Ripple and Stellar offer blockchain-based solutions for seamless international payments.
AI-Powered Fraud Detection:
Use Case: AI algorithms analyze transaction patterns, detect anomalies, and prevent fraudulent activities in real time.
Technology Providers: Feedzai, Forter, and Kount specialize in AI-driven fraud prevention for payment processors and merchants.
Biometric Authentication:
Use Case: Biometrics (such as fingerprint or facial recognition) enhance security and streamline user authentication during payments.
Technology Providers: IDEMIA, BioCatch, and Veridium offer biometric authentication solutions.
Embedded Finance and APIs:
Use Case: Technology providers enable businesses to embed financial services directly into their platforms.
Technology Providers: Plaid, Adyen, and Stripe facilitate API-driven financial integrations.
Contactless Payments and NFC:
Use Case: Near Field Communication (NFC) technology allows users to make secure payments by tapping their smartphones or cards.
Technology Providers: Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay lead in contactless payment adoption.
Real-Time Payments Infrastructure:
Use Case: Technology providers build and maintain real-time payment rails for instant fund transfers.
Technology Providers: Volante Technologies, Jack Henry, and Finzly actively participate in the FedNow Pilot Program.
Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL):
Use Case: BNPL services allow consumers to split payments into installments, enhancing affordability and flexibility.
Technology Providers: Affirm, Afterpay, and Klarna are popular BNPL providers.
AI-Driven Personalization:
Use Case: AI analyzes customer behavior to offer personalized payment options and targeted promotions.
Technology Providers: Personetics, ZestFinance, and DataRobot specialize in AI-driven personalization.
Open Banking and PSD2 Compliance:
Use Case: Technology providers facilitate secure data sharing between banks and third-party apps.
Technology Providers: Tink, Plaid, and Yodlee offer open banking solutions.
Automated Invoice Processing:
Use Case: AI automates invoice reconciliation, reducing manual effort and improving accuracy.
Technology Providers: Blue Prism, UiPath, and ABBYY provide intelligent automation for payment processing.
These technology providers or PayTech companies play a pivotal role in shaping the future of payments, driving innovation, security, and efficiency across the financial ecosystem.
Analyzing the Implications of the FedNow Service Launch on the U.S. Payments Landscape
The launch of the FedNow Service marks a significant milestone in the evolution of the U.S. payments landscape. Positioned to revolutionize payment processes, FedNow promises to facilitate instant peer-to-peer payments, bill pay, and e-commerce transactions, catering to customer-centric use cases.
Additionally, the FedNow framework prioritizes crucial aspects such as fraud prevention, liquidity management, and message standardization, all of which are integral to modernizing the U.S. payments system.
Various entities such as J.P. Morgan, Citi, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, Volante Technologies, Jack Henry, Finzly, are actively engaged in the FedNow Pilot Program, showcasing early participation and expertise in providing end-to-end FedNow integration services. These services encompass gap analysis, identification of use cases, and the development of implementation roadmaps aimed at expediting development timelines, reducing costs, and mitigating risks associated with FedNow integration.
Preparing for the AI Revolution in Payments: Strategies for Industry Leaders
As the belief in AIs pivotal role in shaping the future of payments gains momentum, organizations across the financial sector are gearing up for this transformative shift.
MSys Technologies, recognized for its leadership in AI-first, Cloud-first solutions tailored to the financial industry, stands poised to assist financial institutions in accelerating their AI adoption journey. Addressing common early adoption challenges, such as tool inadequacy, data complexity, and scalability concerns, MSys Technologies offers comprehensive support to clients.
By conducting thorough assessments and providing actionable implementation roadmaps, MSys Technologies helps organizations navigate the complexities of AI integration. This encompasses various stages, including data preparation, model development, and deployment, ensuring a seamless transition towards AI-driven decision-making.
Central to this endeavor is the establishment of a resilient, flexible, and modern data ecosystem. MSys Technologies assists clients in building a unified data marketplace and implementing data-as-a-service capabilities to streamline data management processes. Moreover, integrated data governance policies are put in place to uphold security standards and ensure compliance with industry regulations.
In aligning with the AI revolution, MSys Technologies empowers financial institutions to harness the power of data and drive critical business decisions effectively.
Navigating the Future of Banking and FinTech in 2024: Insights and Opportunities
As we step into 2024, the banking and FinTech sectors are poised for continued evolution and innovation. With ISO 20022 emerging as a global standard for payment messages, financial institutions are prioritizing its adoption to facilitate seamless cross-border transactions. The integration of contextual data flow not only reduces friction points but also presents an opportunity for delivering enhanced payment experiences to both retail and business customers.
Looking ahead, blockchain and distributed ledger technologies are anticipated to play a significant role in easing cross-border payments, offering promising solutions to existing challenges in the payment landscape.
However, as AI assumes a more prominent role, it brings along genuine concerns regarding its implementation and impact. Regulatory scrutiny is expected to intensify, with governments monitoring AI-related activities for potential unfair or harmful implications. In this context, adherence to existing federal laws and the development of comprehensive regulatory frameworks will be paramount.
Navigating this evolving landscape necessitates a nuanced understanding of AI usage, data collection, and risk mitigation strategies. Data privacy emerges as a central concern, underscoring the importance of robust controls and regular model testing to ensure compliance and safeguard consumer interests.
In embracing innovation with AI while adhering to regulatory requirements, organizations position themselves favorably to navigate the evolving landscape of banking and FinTech in 2024.
Reference site - https://www.msystechnologies.com/blog/exploring-the-impact-of-ai-on-payments-industry-an-outlook-for-2024/

Hello,

I thought I would share the journey I have taken in following Qullamaggie, and the various paths I have explored. The sole purpose is to offer some suggestions which I hope you find useful, and to highlight things which I have discovered along the way that really helped me out.
This is simply a selection of things I have discovered and advise which I would have benefited from when I first started out. I hope you find it helpful.

My background:
Background in finance, started my own trading firm which I sold and now I trade for myself. I wish I had discovered Qullamaggie sooner!

The Start:
My journey into this strategy started 4 years and as instructed by Qullamaggie, I did nothing but look at charts. I spent well over 1,000 hours studying charts and just focusing on the breakout chart pattern. This is the only thing people new to this strategy should be doing. Do not open any broker accounts or place a single trade until you have completed this task first.
Why?
1 – It is hard work, which is what it takes to be successful.
2 – It is boring at times. much like trading. There will be long periods in trading where there is nothing to do.
3 – Through this process you will learn if you are committed and will succeed, or not, without placing a single trade or risking any of your own money. Do not risk your own money until you have done this. It is hard to earn money in this world, look after it and look after yourself in the process.
Please note – the art of being successful is finding a strategy that fits your personality and lifestyle. Some will fail trading breakouts but succeed at day trading, some will fail at day trading but succeed with Fair Value Gaps (ICT), or algos, or scalping etc. You get the idea. There are hundreds of different trading styles to explore.
Success is a combination of finding what style strategy works best for the type of person you are. So do not be disheartened – keep exploring, but do so without risking any money whilst you learn.
I watched all of Qullamaggie’s live Twitch streams, they were great to experience. I have also watched all of his YouTube content too, learning as much as I could along the way.
I use OneNote because it was included in the MS Office bundle. I started with TradingView, and still use it to this day, and slowly started building up my own database. You learn so much from doing this, and because you make each discovery yourself, it stays with you and automatically becomes part of your trading thought process.
When trading, be it paper trading as part of your back test, or live trading, log as much information as you can.
-What % move up did the stock make before consolidating
-How long did it consolidate for
-What % move did the stock make once it broke out
-Did it continue moving up after the position was closed
-Were the EPS and Revenues of the company increasing or decreasing QoQ
-What is the Relative Strength of the stock – it is outperforming the index, the sector
-What is the stock market doing
-What are the different sectors doing
By seeing and capturing this data for each trade your understanding will explode, you will see how Market Awareness is key to taking the signals with the highest probability of success.

Universe of stocks:
The best place to start is the NASDAQ. In addition to what Qullamaggie said about high ADR stocks, the fact is that AI is the new driver for tech stocks. The combined market cap of Google, Amazon and Microsoft is larger than the GDP of Japan. That’s quite significant and won’t change anytime soon.
Only trading quality stocks will also help increase the probability of a successful outcome.
NASDAQ is going to provide some of the best opportunities for some time to come. Only diversify when you are well established. I still only trade NASDAQ. No signals = day off 😊 Less is More.

Scans:
Scans are critical. Your ability to understand the market and reflect this in your scans will create a natural edge and increase the probability of each trade.
The choices that are available are improving all the time. TC2000 is good, I used it for almost 2 years, but there are so many more choices to consider now.
See the Useful Resources section at the end of this post for a list of alternative solutions.
A lot of time is spent trying to find good setups. I have evolved the way I scan for setups. I decided last year to learn how to code in python. This allows me to refine and improve the scans to give the best possible setups. This was based on what I had learnt by capturing as much data as possible when back testing. I started by downloading a universe of several thousand stocks and filtered out those with low liquidity and low price. This is refreshed automatically each month. This leaves me with around 1,500 stocks to run my scans on.
Using python I download the data for free each day from Yahoo Finance. I just use EOD data to identify potential Breakout setups, then add them to TradingView and use real-time alerts to notify me when to consider taking a long position as and when the stocks move. I run 2 breakout scans and one combined scan for the 1, 3 and 6 month gainers.
I add high probability stocks to my watchlist in TradingView and set alerts, and then ‘stalk them’ as Qullamaggie says.
I have tried lots of different ideas. For example, scanning for stocks that met the criteria and were breaking out above an upper Bollinger Band level just to see if this made a difference. Always research different ideas and keep looking for ways to improve.

Python Dashboard:
I must admit, I got a little carried away with my adventures in python and used streamlit to build my own dashboard. Streamlit is a free library to allow you to create a web based dashboard without the need to learn html. I integrated all the scans as well into one place. Here’s what it looks like;

https://preview.redd.it/d9md2f8c1e0d1.png?width=602&format=png&auto=webp&s=6c2bfec06396ec62f30c5a8c7a631821a0032375
https://preview.redd.it/pmrtynsi1e0d1.png?width=602&format=png&auto=webp&s=d23a3cc6e0bc9e4cb99e277dae60af0c6403ac7e

https://preview.redd.it/rrdrc39k1e0d1.png?width=602&format=png&auto=webp&s=b451355d612fed38dc8f03ab500bb5832c56cd75
I was pulling in stock data, news, fundamental data including EPS, Sales and Revenue figures. I also tracked sector performance correlations to identify relative strengths.
However, after 2 months of creating this dashboard I realised that all the charting was better in TradingView, which already has EPS, Revenues and Dividend Dates. Now I just run my 3 scans which automatically create watch list files to upload each day. It was a fun exercise however, there are free or cheap solutions readily available that work just as well.

Market Awareness:
Very important, after scans. Part of what I run to understand the market / situation is simply compiled within Excel. Here is what it looks like;
https://preview.redd.it/xeeyc3ul1e0d1.png?width=561&format=png&auto=webp&s=4bf181cc73f45f1b6a4a3e81f16de5e0c7033410

https://preview.redd.it/qysx6m2n1e0d1.png?width=558&format=png&auto=webp&s=f3656e16ef5ccc8b173634a97d820d7796cefd51
When I get a signal I cross reference to see what is happening to the stocks sector and market, to see if this adds to the probability of it being a profitable trade.
Finviz also provides a free map of which stocks are showing relative strength and outperforming the market, see the Resource section at the end for the link.
https://preview.redd.it/jwis5n385e0d1.png?width=1232&format=png&auto=webp&s=d229f3dcc9956d6823351f5604e1a4f26b6601e6
Progress so far in 2024:
So how is this working out? Am I making money in the current environment (May 2024)?
Here is my Equity Curve since the start of the year, up 43%. There have been 93 trading days year to date.
https://preview.redd.it/i3ykd1pq1e0d1.png?width=392&format=png&auto=webp&s=29df3a4ec2e0fab1bf069da47878620619a81837
This Equity Curve represents over 1,000 hours of studying charts, of testing different ideas, new platforms etc. Always be searching for ways to increase the probability of a trade being profitable. Needless to say, my first year did not look like this! 😊
You absolutely can increase the probability of trades being profitable if you study and understand the market behaviour. Then you start to trade with confidence and without emotion.

3 Lessons I have Learnt:
1 – Study, constantly. Look at charts, make notes and log all this somewhere. I use OneNote and Excel to capture this every day.
2 – Focus on quality scans, searching for the best setups.
3 – Be inquisitive. Try lots of different ideas to improve your edge and increase the probability of profitable trades;
-Filter out illiquid stocks from your universe
-Don’t trade stocks < $5 as these can be prone to pumps
-What difference does increasing volume make?
-Do increasing EPS figures improve the outcome?
-What if I scan for stocks breaking out above an upper Bollinger Band instead?
-What different types of news has the best positive influence on a stock price?

When you have spent time asking and then answering these types of questions, and have studied as much as is required, you will know that you are ready to start to risk your hard earned money. And you will have a positive expectancy of a profitable outcome.

I hope this of use to people.

Useful Resources:
Here are things I have found which I hope you find useful. These are all useful tools to help you as you study, but will not negate the need to study.

TC2000, of course
Finviz is a great place to start if you aren’t using TC2000
TradingView has some basic core features you can use for scans
Deepvue.com is a better option and includes built in Qullamaggie scans
Python – Jupyter Notebook or Spyder, video on how to get started. Lots of content on "python finance" on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClTWPoDHY_s
Finviz sector map:
https://finviz.com/bubbles.ashx?x=sector&y=sma200&size=marketCap&color=sector&idx=any&cap=smallover&sh_avgvol=o100
Listen to others who just post quality setups, not guff about their life, or offer courses. There are plenty of people out there who are very quietly providing great content, for free, to encourage others. Here are just a few:
https://twitter.com/n_bancroft2
https://twitter.com/FranVezz
https://twitter.com/MissLowRisk
A detailed breakdown of the strategy for new people, useful video explaining how it all comes together;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we5LLjFlHCc&t=3404s
Very useful indicator for TradingView:
https://www.tradingview.com/script/uloAa2EI-Swing-Data-ADR-RVol-PVol-Float-Avg-Vol/

So I am stitching this pattern by mad Mille cross stitch. But I have changed one of the colours and am concerned that I need to change the others too.
So it’s a present for my sister who has two liver spotted Dalmatians so I changed the 310 to 838 and am really happy with the colour. However I’m worried the other colours won’t look right now. The other colours are blanc which I’m sure will be fine but then 3 and 24. Which are a grey and a lilac.
What do you think?

Currently playing catchup on a SAL from one of my favourite cross stich companies (unconventionalxstich) opted for a colour change but it is turning out absolutely adorable.