New Kindle Day 2024

Scott McNulty, on Blankbaby:

Amazon has announced a stack of new Kindles today, and that’s always fun for me!
[…]
And there’s a new family on the Kindle block today. Which means I’m not just going to buy them all. But will I be buying any of them?

Great fresh overview from Scott on the new Kindle’s released today. I’m happy he’s excited. Although for me, it seems like a very boring update. There’s no model with buttons — the old Kindle Oasis was completely discontinued.

If I had to choose, I’d probably go with the plain Kindle. Although for the life of me, I don’t understand why they don’t have a flush screen for it.

The Kindle Paperwhite gets a slightly bigger screen and it’s a bit thinner, which is a welcome addition. However, I still feel that it’s too thick and a bit on the heavy side.

The color version has one of the worst names I can think of — Colorsoft? Really?. And in reality, since I don’t read much comics (and when I do, I prefer the iPad mini) I don’t see the benefit of the color screen other than having prettier book covers.

The Kindle Scribe update is nice, especially because it signals that they’re not abandoning it. However, unless you are a heavy Kindle user, I’d look at other options — it’s just too thick.

I’m happy with my Boox Leaf2 for now¹ — but sure would have loved an updated Kindle Voyage² in the lineup alongside the Paperwhite. That would have me thinking twice. For now, I’m looking forward to that phone-sized category of ereaders will bring.

Apple Updates iPad mini

From Apple Newsroom:

Apple today introduced the new iPad mini, supercharged by the A17 Pro chip and Apple Intelligence, the easy-to-use personal intelligence system that understands personal context to deliver intelligence that is helpful and relevant while protecting user privacy. With a beloved ultraportable design, the new iPad mini is available in four gorgeous finishes, including a new blue and purple, and features the brilliant 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display.

No doubt, better than nothing. But not much thought. I classify these sort of updates: if current one breaks, replacement hurts less. As an iPad mini Gen 6th owner, I don’t see any reason to update. This is fine for yearly updates, but for a product that is updated every 3 years, I’d expect to want to upgrade every cycle.

As usual, Michael Tsai’s aggregation of comments paints the best picture of public reactions. That said, with the increase to 128GB for the base $499 model, I still recommend the iPad mini for all us mini tablets fans.

Update to GitHub Issues Public Beta

From The GitHub Blog:

Today we are excited to unveil a major evolution of issues and projects, featuring a range of highly requested enhancements including sub-issues, issue types and advanced search for issues. Together, these additions make it easier than ever to break down work, visualize progress, categorize and find just the right issue in GitHub.

I love GitHub issues, but it lost to Jira in the Agile New World Order at my corporate job. Not sure it’s a loss for GitHub though — I’m actually happy that burndown charts and velocity reports is not on its roadmap. But having these new features would have given me at least a chance to argue for it.

Panic Transmit Ending Support for Google Drive

Michael, on blog.panic.com:

At some unknown point in the future, Google will revoke Transmit’s access to Google Drive. Sometime after that, we’ll be releasing updates to Transmit and Nova that remove the ability to create Google Drive connections.

My guess is that something similar is happening to Blot’s Google Drive support. Happy I didn’t went with moving from Dropbox to Google Drive a while back for my blogging back-end.

There’s always a tension between security and features. So I get the need for control over Google Drive access. However, when the features you want out of a service, disappear in the name of security. Then the whole reason to use the tool itself goes away.

John Naughton on Dave Winer and the Blogosphere

John Naughton, on The Guardian:

So Dave was present at the creation of some cool stuff, but it was blogging that brought him to a wider public. “Some people were born to play country music,” he wrote at one stage. “I was born to blog. At the beginning of blogging I thought everyone would be a blogger. I was wrong. Most people don’t have the impulse to say what they think.”

This got to me. The possibilities of sharing long-form text content that exists an equal link away from anyone as any established publications has always been part of the promise of the web. But most with internet access do not take advantage of it.

Dave was the exact opposite. He was (and remains) articulate and forthright. His formidable record as a tech innovator meant that he couldn’t be written off as a crank. The fact that he was financially secure meant that he didn’t have to suck up to anyone: he could speak his mind.

What Dave Winer says, I listen.

ChatGPT Canvas UX Introduced

From openai.com:

We’re introducing canvas, a new interface for working with ChatGPT on writing and coding projects that go beyond simple chat. Canvas opens in a separate window, allowing you and ChatGPT to collaborate on a project. This early beta introduces a new way of working together—not just through conversation, but by creating and refining ideas side by side.

AI related apps are the new playground of UI/UX interactions. My AI stack remains fairly stable, but I expect them to change and merge considerably over the next few years.

My hope is that these interfaces can be replicated by third-party apps, but it’s not likely.

Option and Shift Modifiers Not Available Anymore in macOS Sequoia

Matthias Gansrigler, on developer.apple.com:

In my app, I use RegisterEventHotkey to implement global keyboard shortcuts to trigger actions.
Up until macOS Sequoia, I was able to use a keyboard shortcut with option and shift as the modifiers, like option shift 2 (⌥ ⇧ 2).
Now, on macOS Sequoia, using RegisterEventHotkey to register a hotkey with those exact modifiers (option and shift), regardless of the key, fails with the error -9868 (eventInternalErr).

Apple’s Frameworks Engineer reply:

This was an intentional change in macOS Sequoia to limit the ability of key-logging malware to observe keys in other applications. The issue of concern was that shift+option can be used to generate alternate characters in passwords, such as Ø (shift-option-O). There is no workaround; macOS Sequoia now requires that a hotkey registration use at least one modifier that is not shift or option.

Say goodbye to option-shift (⌥ ⇧) keyboard shortcuts. If you’re pro enough to use these sort of shortcuts, you should really consider adopting a hyperkey. Hat tip to this Shottr KB article.

Dave Winer On Markdown and ActivityPub

Dave Winer, on Scripting News:

And finally, if I were the czar of ActivityPub, I’d add Markdown support to the spec because it ain’t the web if you can’t link in your writing. Maybe even invent some new kinds of links, after all it’s been 35 years since the first web was invented.

Here, here. Markdown everywhere or… let’s take on Dave’s challenge and figure new type of link.

Also, loved this:

it ain’t the web if you can’t link in your writing

So true.

Castro Developer on Shipping New Features

Posted by Dustin Bluck on Sep 25, 2024, on castro.fm:

Castro isn’t a museum. We have to ship new features. The product has been stagnant for too long, and we can hardly say it’s the best app for listening to podcasts on iOS when it still lacks basic features like device sync. We also can’t sit in a room and rewrite the app from scratch for 6-12 months while the product remains stagnant. Even if we could, that’s not a good way to ship software. Full rewrites rarely turn out to be a good idea.

I rather live in a world in which Castro iterates features — and I risk some affecting my workflow — than one in which my favorite podcast player just slowly goes away.

MacStories First Look of Logitech's MX Creative Console

John Voorhees, on macstories.net:

[…] the MX Creative Console comes in two parts. The first is a wireless dialpad with a big knob, a scroll wheel, and four programmable buttons; the dialpad is wireless because it has no screens, allowing it to run on AAA batteries. The second part is a keypad with nine customizable buttons plus two buttons for paging among multiple sets of the nine buttons. The two devices can work together, allowing, for example, a press of something like a brightness button on the keypad to control brightness via the dialpad’s knob.

I recently got a 16 key Megalodon Triple Knob Macro Pad for my birthday. And I’m loving it. It’s extremely geeky, but it has convinced my about the power of specialized keys for apps.

The Logitech’s MX Creative Console, as well as the Elgato’s Stream Deck, are way more user friendly. I’m still happy with my Macro Pad, but a cheaper and simpler version of the Logitech, similar to the Stream Deck Neo will be something to keep in the radar.

Ratta Supernote A5 X2 Key Features Teased

From Ratta Supernote:

• What are the key features of Supernote A5 X2?
  • Slimmer - 18% thinner
  • Lighter - about 15% relief
  • Clearer - 33% higher PPI
  • More Sustainable

All of above vs their original A5 X. With reMarkable going into a more premium direction with their latest Pro, my eink tablet browser-window shopping is open for business. Supernote user always have nice things to say about their device, and Ratta’s support. In fact, if the Viwoods AiPaper had come from Ratta — I wouldn’t had hesitated with one the devices.

Will keep an eye on this upcoming version,

Omega-3 on Anxiety and Depression (in Mice)

Vladimir Hedrih, on PsyPost:

A study on mice found that adding omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids to their diets effectively counteracts depressive and anxiety-like behaviors induced by stress. Not only did the supplementation reduce these stress-induced symptoms, but it also lowered anxiety levels in mice that were not exposed to stress. These findings, published in Neurobiology of Stress, suggest that omega-3 fatty acids may have protective mental health benefits.

During my first year in Norway — the lead-in to winter really affected my mood. Someone at work strongly suggested daily fish-oil. It worked wonders. I’ve always suspected it wasn’t a placebo effect, but it’s good to know.

Arc Browser Vulnerability CVE-2024-45489

Eva, on kibty.town:

this would be the final attack chain: obtain the user id of the victim via one of the mentioned methods create a malicious boost with whatever payload you want on your own account update the boost creatorID field to the targets whenever the victim visits the targeted website, they will get compromised

Make no mistake. This was bad. Still, I think The Browser Company response was quick and sincere:

Hursh here, CTO and Cofounder of The Browser Company. We want to let all Arc users know that a security vulnerability existed in Arc prior to 8/25/24. We were made aware of a vulnerability on 8/25, it was fixed on 8/26. This issue allowed the possibility of remote code execution on users’ computers. We’ve patched the vulnerability immediately, already rolled out the fix, and verified that no one outside of the security researcher who discovered the bug has exploited it. This means no members were affected by this vulnerability, and you do not need to take any action to be protected.

Back to Eva’s post:

the browser company normally does not do bug bounties (update: see at the end of post), but for this catastrophic of a vuln, they decided to award me with $2,000 USD

Overall, while the incident was scary, no one was affected. I trust Arc’s team response and attitude will make the most of this as a learning opportunity, and it will make the browser (and related services) better in the end. Still my default browser.

Windows App Replaces Microsoft Remote Desktop

Andrew Cunningham, on Ars Technica:

Microsoft announced today that it’s releasing a new app called Windows App as an app for Windows that allows users to run Windows and also Windows apps (it’s also coming to macOS, iOS, web browsers, and is in public preview for Android).

I just had to link to the month’s best article title: Microsoft releases a new Windows app called Windows App for running Windows apps.

Apple A16 SOC is Made in America

Tim Culpan, on Tim Culpan’s Position:

This is a BFD. TSMC Arizona is the marquee project of the US government’s $39 billion CHIPS for America Fund under the CHIPS Act. Six months ago, I thought Apple might tap Arizona for a less-consequential chip like the H-series used in AirPods. I was surprised when I heard it was the A16. The fact that they went for the most-advanced chip they could manage on US soil, in terms of both technology and volume, shows Apple and TSMC want to start big.

Agree that — if/when confirmed — this is a big freaking deal. Sentiment was that these US foundries were going to be building very low volume, or lower performance chips. If true that the iPhone 15 (last year’s model), will have be using a US produced SKU, then things are going a lot better than expected.

Python in Excel Announced by Third Party on Windows

PR from Anaconda:

Excel users can now use Python’s advanced capabilities for data manipulation, statistical analysis, and data visualization without leaving their familiar spreadsheet environment. This opens up new possibilities for complex analyses and sophisticated visualizations.  

Wow, this is interesting. You have my attentions, but how would it work?

Using Python in Excel is as easy as typing “=PY(” followed by Python code in an Excel cell. The results of the Python calculations or visualizations appear directly in the Excel worksheet.

Ok, I’m up. I see the potential. How can I try it?

Python in Excel is available now to Excel users on Windows.

I’m going back to bed.

Neato CMS Development Updates

Adam, on notes.neatnik.net:

I’ve been working on a new thing called Neato for the past six months. My natural inclination is to start my work in a code editor, but for the first five months I worked exclusively in a paper notebook. With a pencil.

I’m excited about this. I’m ready for a change on my blogging setup — if only just to come back crawling to blot and figure out an updated theme.

Alan Adler Profile – AeroPress Inventor

David Friedman, on Ironic Sans:

I figured that if the coffee maker had so many fans, a video about the man behind the coffee maker would surely be a hit. When I looked into its inventor and discovered that he also invented the Aerobie toy that I played with when I was a kid, I was delighted to discover a broader story than I originally anticipated.

I had this realization years ago. It was fun to know that the AeroPress wasn’t the first product invented by Adler I owned. Many years ago, I used to play non-stop with Aerobie in a golf course — after closing time.

I’ve read about he AeroPress invention many teams, but this article is a good summary. Still enjoy seeing prototypes and recipes:

And I went out in my shop and I made what was a prototype of the AeroPress. And I was just wowed at how good the coffee tasted. It was much sweeter, less bitter. Later on I measured it with instruments and found it had only 1/5 the acid level of ordinary drip coffee.

Jason Snell macOS Sequoia 15 review

Jason Snell, on Six Colors:

What I’m saying is, macOS 15.0 Sequoia is here, but all anyone wants to know about is version 15.1. As with iOS and iPadOS, this fall’s release is the one that will begin to deeply integrate machine-learning models, dubbed Apple Intelligence, throughout the operating system. But the point-oh versions entirely lack those anticipated features, which won’t arrive until point-one.

This is not to say that there aren’t a bunch of new Mac features in macOS Sequoia 15.0.

If you only have time for one short post macOS 15 review. I recommend this one.

Tidbits for 2024 Week 38

A silence of ten weeks, cannot be forgiven. My apologies dear reader, for absence of links. Testing something new then, hope it’s as fun to click on as it’s to save. Stay safe!

• Rosemary Orchard announced Menubox, which seems to be Alex Hay’s last app. Insta-download and support from me. As usual, it brings an elegant way to replace shortcuts.

• I replaced Draft’s floating window with Scratchpad this week — which replaced Scrap Paper after less than a week. It’s a bit cleaner — and forces me to sort whatever I write. In reality, all 3 apps works fine.

• Robata for macOS is a really cool take on on window switching — wtill too beta for me, but there’s something there to revisit. However, with Sequoia window tilling, I’m going default for a while. One thing I’ll miss is Moom’s resizing superpower. Free Swift Shift might be a good alternative.

• Now that I didn’t renew Kagi, I might revisit Lucky Safari plugin to cleanup Google Search results.

• After his Talk Show appearance, I downloaded VegasMate. Now I’m daydreaming of a WWDC friends reunion in Las Vegas for 2025.

• I usually end up in Deckset when I need to do slides in a hurry. But ‎Showdown lets you also create a quick markdown-based presentation, and it’s free.

Google Flights Travel Trends and Insights

James Byers, on Google:

International flights: If you’re traveling abroad, you should probably book as early as you can. While average prices have been lowest 101 days before departure, the historical low price range is anytime 50 days or more before takeoff. In other words, for international travel from the U.S., average prices don’t meaningfully drop anytime before departure, but they usually do start to rise within 50 days of the flight itself.

I’m a big user for Google Flights for prices tracking and deciding routes. Great post if you’re tracking multiple flights for the upcoming holidays.

Apple iPhone Event 2024 Wishlist

Two days away from the September event this year — and one Mark Gurman newsletter still left — so nothing is certain.

• iPhone 16 and 16 Pro. Can’t think of anything that will make me want to upgrade — and I’m on a iPhone 15 without Apple Intelligence. Additional buttons seems cool, but I’ll get them on an eventual upgrade. Only an iPhone 16 mini or something out of left field.

• AirPods 4. I currently have the AirPods 3 and AirPods Pro 2. I carry both, with the v3 always in my pocket and the Pro’s in my bag for work calls. This works great, and the only thing I’m missing is the USB-C charger on both.

• AirPods. This will likely be a great xmas stocking fillers this year. Ana still has a refurbished OGs. It might me time for an upgrade — specially if they now come with USB-C, even if she never uses them,

• Apple Watch Series 10. Curious about the slimmer version. But I’m only on last year’s model because my Series 7 fell on a lake.

  • What I really want is the ability to install regular eSims on Apple Cellular Watches — not the carried approved version which is not available in Costa Rica. Not that I want it, but I think that an Apple Watch with Cellular in a case is the perfect kid communicator before they get an actual phone.

Will do my best to watch live on Monday. My calendar has the placeholder to anyone to know I’m busy. But the October event for m4 Macs and iPad mini¹ is going to be where my heart is at.

The Remarkable Paper Pro Released

Alex Cranz, on The Verge:

It’s got a front light! It’s got color! It’s got an 11.8-inch display! It’s got the very best keyboard case available today! […] Starting at $579 (available directly from Remarkable and Best Buy), the Paper Pro is not a practical device for most people, but Remarkable has pushed E Ink displays to their limits here, and by God do I love it for that.

This basically says it all. Looks great, just like a MacBook Pro 16in looks great. But as a that price, it’s not for me. Also, didn’t want it to be bigger. Important to point that MingChi Kuo nailed this one:

It is worth noting that reMarkable will also adopt about 12” ACeP color e-paper with a high unit price.

What I wanted/hopped was an updated reMarkable3 with faster speed, same price, and keeping te rm2 as an entry level. No upgrading from me then.

A Friend on His Favorite Women Authors Books

Jose, on his shiny new Structured Thoughts blog:

A friend recently posted his “to be read” list and I noticed that only one of the books was written by women. Of course I felt the need to step in and share some of my favorites women written books. He invited me to blog about it. So here I am.

I’m the friend being called out on my recent 2024 Rereading post. I always enjoy Jose’s reading recommendation, and I’m so happy that my pushback that he should post somewhere resulted in a new blog.

Needless to say I’m subscribed and looking forward to public discussions with him.

M4 Mac mini Coming – I'm Tempted

Mark Gurman, on X (formerly Twitter):

Apple’s smaller M4 Mac mini will have 5 USB-C ports (3 on the back and 2 on the front), an internal power brick, HDMI, Ethernet, but lose USB-A. Units are about to start shipping from overseas suppliers.

The idea of a powerful Mac mini has always been intriguing. A very powerful and actually mini sized¹ Mac is extremely intriguing.

This rumor has thrown a fun wrench into my personal Mac plans for this year.

Tyler Cowen on The Daylight Computer

Tyler Cowen, on Marginal REVOLUTION:

I’ve been looking for a Kindle improvement for a long time, and this is it.  Kindle Fire was not.

This seems to be the best general reading device humans ever have invented.  Compared to a Kindle, the page is much larger, the color choice is excellent, scrolling is easy, and it captures far more of “does this feel like reading a book?” impression than a Kindle ever did.  It also can handle all sorts of glare and sunlight issues.

I don’t regret much not getting the Daylight when I first heard about it. $700 is not play toy money. But I’m looking forward the next generation of Kindle’s and the Remarkable3 to make an upgrade decision next year.

Complete Visual Guide to Sony CLIÉ (2000-2004)

Obsolete Sony’s Newsletter:

Sony’s CLIÉ series, launched in the early 2000s, marked a significant leap in PDA technology, blending innovation with stylish design. Over just a few years, Sony released numerous CLIÉ models, each introducing new features and enhancements. Let’s take a closer look at these iconic devices and what was new with each release.

Sony CLIÉ’s always felt like from an alternate reality. This was an amazing walk through memory lane.

Automattic Moving Tumblr Backend to WordPress

Bob Ralian, on Automattic:

We’re talking about running Tumblr’s back-end on WordPress. You won’t even notice a difference from the outside.

Until around 2013 this blog ran on Tumblr, so it will always have a special place in my heart. I see this a great news. Anything that lowers the cost of maintenance of Tumblr by Automattic, allows it to live another day decade.

Moom 4 Window Manager Released

From manytricks.com:

It may have been a long time coming—over 12 years since Moom 3’s release—but we think Moom 4 was well worth the wait. During those years, we’ve been listening to all your input, as well as learning more about what we can do with windows on macOS, and Moom 4 reflects that feedback and learning. It’s both the same app you’ve known and used since its initial release in 2011, and an entirely new app that offers a number of new window management tools.

I’ve used Moom on-and-off for years. Of course this was an instant upgrade for me. Lots of polishing and some new features. My favorite being Drop zones:

Any saved layout can be added to a screen edge in Moom’s snap feature. Once you’ve done that, drag a window onto that region, and the associated saved layout’s window locations become drop zone targets:

Move the window around, and each window location highlights; drop the window on the highlighted zone, and that’s where it goes. Watch the video.

I’m still looking for a long term window management solution. Sadly Sequoia is not it. But what’s great about the Mac is having 3rd party alternatives like Moom.

Apple Podcasts Now Has a Web App

Jay Peters, on The Verge:

Apple has launched a web app for its Podcasts app, and you can access it right now at podcasts.apple.com. The app works on Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari, MacRumors reports.

Not sure I’ll be using it, but anything that allows discovery and sharing of podcast in the open web is a win for me. I’m happily back on Castro with no plan of switching players anytime soon.

2024 Remaining Rereading

My new boss recently asked me which books have influenced me, I noticed I hadn’t read them in a long time. This led me to start an experiment in July:

For the rest of the year I’m only going to pick books I read — or abandoned — previously.

Only exception is going to be audiobooks, which I’ll leave open to any new books I fancy. Let’s see how the experiment goes.

Here’s what I’m already reading, or what’s up next:

Fiction:

• The Dreaming Void by Peter F. Hamilton.
• Old Man’s War by John Scalzi.
• The Forever War by Joe Haldeman.
• Seveneves by Neal Stephenson
• The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Non-Fiction:

• Up the Organization: How to Stop the Corporation from Stifling People and Strangling Profits by Robert C. Townsend
• Turn the Ship Around!: A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders by L. David Marquet
• Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just Five Days by Jake Knapp
• Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts by Annie Duke
• Liminal Thinking by Dave Gray

Lou Plummer on the Random Joy Blogging Brings

Lou Plummer, on Living Out Loud:

Each night i go to bed with the satisfaction of completing an important daily goal, but there’s more joy in blogging than just checking something off a to do list. Here are a few other elements of the experience that make me happy.

I can absolutely relate. Of all my self-help hacks, posting basically anything at the end of the day on this blog, is one of the best quick shots of dopamine I can give myself.

Framework 13 Laptop High-Res Screen

David Heinemeier Hansson, on world.hey.com:

But now Framework has fixed it! They’ve just released a new 13.5” screen running a 2880x1920 resolution for a MacBook Pro-beating 256 PPI! And it’s still matte and 3:2! AND 120HZ! Hallelujah!

What’s even cooler is that this new screen can be retrofitted to existing Framework laptops. And that’s exactly what I’ve done. It’s a $269 upgrade, so it’s not cheap, but it’s a hellavu lot cheaper than buying a whole new computer. Not to mention way less wasteful.

That’s very cool. Framework devices are for sure on my radar. I hope they branch out to desktop devices soon so I have an excuse to place with them.

But you can just set it to 60hz when on the go, and you’ll still get those roughly 6 hours of mixed use from the 61wh battery.

Here’s the thing, I’m too spoiled by Apple Silicon to go back to 6 hours of battery life. But still, a great option for Linux users.

Suspicious data pattern in recent Venezuelan election | Statistical Modeling, Causal Inference, and Social Science

Andrew, on statmodeling.stat.columbia.edu:

A political party trying to overturn the will of the voters by using physical force and denying the election outcome—that bothers me when it happened in the United States on 6 Jan 2021 (see here for some review of evidence) and it bothers me when it’s happening in a much more extreme way in Venezuela right now. I agree that the statistical error is kind of funny, but it’s hard for me to amused, giving the upsetting context.

He’s responding from a note from Luis Zambrano to his blog, whom I presume is Venezuelan. But I share his amusement:

If it is not evidence of fraud by itself I do not know what is. Anyhow, the image of the Chavista bosses fabricating the results with a napkin and their phone calculators seems to be as plausible as amusing.

It’s been a two rollercoaster weeks. We now have Twitter/X banned for 10 days, Maria Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia in hiding. I still believe we have reached a new stage in the conflict — closer to a democratic Venezuela. But there’s a hard and scary road ahead.

COSMIC Desktop Environment Alpha Available

From system76.com:

COSMIC began as our answer to user feedback we’ve received on improving Pop!_OS. The new desktop environment introduces a custom theming system, streamlined Auto-tiling, new core applications including an app store, and provides you more control over your workflow. Written in the Rust programming language, COSMIC is more stable, more secure, and better optimized for performance.

It doesn’t look that different from other DE’s, however I’m hoping that’ll behave in a much more cohesive way. Looking forward to playing with it.

Why CSV is Still King

From konbert.com:

In the world of data, CSV is the cockroach of file formats. It’s simple, resilient, and seemingly impossible to kill off. While flashier formats have come and gone, CSV quietly reigns supreme in the data processing kingdom. But how the hell did this happen? Let’s dive into the fascinating history of this accidental standard.

Cockroach of file formats is harsh, but applicable. Great summary of an accidental standard that I use almost every day.

500 Social Mastodon Instance Launched

Kev Quirk, on his blog:

500 Social is a new deliberately small online community that is limited to a maximum of 500 members. I must stress that 500 is a maximum, not a target.

If I weren’t committed to social.lol, I’d jump on this in a second. I love paying something for my Mastodon instance. It sets the incentives right.

I might reconsider of the lifetime option is offered. I still have 4 years left at omg.lol,so I’m in no hurry.

Addled – Nitin Khanna

Nitin Khanna, on nitinkhanna.com:

You’ve spent over thirty years,” she continued, “not getting addicted to any of this stuff. You read books. You read articles and blogs. You need to go back to those. We can’t all be addicts.” She knows of my RSS feeds and Instapaper “habit”. I reckon a habit needs to be something you do regularly, but I don’t follow up on those often enough. Not anymore.

This absolutely resonated with me. I’ve seen my reading time affected my YouTube and the Twitter’s For You feed.

But it’s time to pull back.

We can’t be going into our 40s getting sucked into echo chambers and algorithmic escapes. That’s not the way to live a life.

I generate friction for rabbit holes this way:

1. Remove App from Spotlight Search results and Siri suggestions.
2. I use one sec for a pause screen before an app launches, and intervention notifications while used.

Tidbits for 2024 Week 28

It’s Prime Day week, hopefully we’ll get some savings in whatever rabbit hole we’re into. If not, here’s some links:

• JuxtaText: free macOS compare & merge text tool.

• Wipr: my new ad-blocker for Safari on all platforms.

• Neo Network Utility: ye-old Network Utility is no more. This freeware allows to use Netstat, Ping, Lookup, Traceroute, Whois, Finger, Port Scan, and Network Speed in GUI style.

• Facecam Neo: new $99 webcam from Elgato. Here’s hoping Opal releases a similar price-point soon.

• Defer: task inbox app for iOS & macOS. Looks very easy to integrate into Shortcuts and Webhooks workflows.

• Clamshell: macOS app for actions when the clamshell closes, specially Turn Off Displays & Prevent Idle Sleep.

A Mouse Tale

During the WFH pandemic months, I bought to the Microsoft Surface Precision Mouse and it’s been my default mouse ever since. I absolutely love the size and shape. I even bought its simpler version, the Microsoft Bluetooth Ergonomic Mouse for the office.

The Surface Precision does have a rubberized thumb-rest that tends to flake over time. That, and the medieval micro-usb charger had me wishing/hoping for an updated version over the last year. Sadly, has there been no update, but the mouse itself has been discontinued with the cancelation of Microsoft accessories.

Keychron M6, Magic Mouse and MS Surface Precision

I went on a shopping walkabout and settled on the Keychron M6 mouse. I use their keyboards at home and in the office, and high hopes. But the quality isn’t there. The M6 has a nice shape — very similar to the Logitech MX3, but it’s extremely plasticky. The actual deal-breaker has been that it doesn’t work reliably on my home-office glass-top desk.

No problem, I’ll purchase another Microsoft Bluetooth Ergonomic Mouse , which has the same form factor I love. While it uses replaceable batteries and only has smooth scrolling (not detent/smooth selection), it’s good enough to hold me for a while. No dice.

The Incase Designed by Microsoft relaunch of some of the keyboard and mouse lineup is still nowhere to be seen. Even worse, the remaining stock of the Bluetooth Ergonomic Mouse is selling for around $69. At the original $25 it was a steal, but it’s not worth anything above $40.

What to do? I tried using my magic mouse and magic trackpad. But sadly, both leave my wrist in pain at the end of the day. Even tried an adaptor for the magic mouse to raise its profile — something I really wanted to like. But it still was too flat, and let me hurting.

After playing with the Signature M650 Large at a store, I want ahead and purchased the Lenovo Professional Bluetooth Rechargeable Mouse. It has the right price ($29), and a good enough shape it seems. Hopefully I’ll get it this week and will test it a few days.

37signals Introduces Writebook

Jason Fried, on world.hey.com:

Introducing Writebook. It’s a dead simple platform to publish web-based books. They have covers, they can have title pages, they can have picture pages, and they can have text pages. Each book gets its own URL, and navigating and keeping track of your progress is all built right in.

Oh man. I want to use this somehow. Don’t have the confidence of making something out of my content, but will play with it for sure.

EDC Backpack — A Shameful Post

For about 10 years, my EDC backpacks were clearly defined: a small WaterField Designs Bolt Briefcase for heading to the office, and a GORUCK GR1 for trips. Both black. Easy-peasy. The fact that I considered both very expensive made it easy to comply to my rule of not looking at other bags until these fell apart¹. I’m also particular with my tastes: no branding, no outside fun colors², no fancy looking textures, and no cheap brands that surely mean quality is low. A Wild and Crazy Guy I am.

My current backpacks

Then I fell off my high horse. While browsing through Nordstorm Racks (I know), an Original Penguin Business Backpack caught my attention (I know). While the white penguin logo on the zipper puller was an instant turn-off, the overall bag material looked attractive . But above all, the 3 compartment distribution immediately clicked with me. Specially the back device compartment, which is much more comfortable than the very slim sleeve style in the GR1.

But what caught my attention the most was that bag stayed up by itself, something that drives me nuts of both the Bolt and the GR1. As you can probably guess, I bought it, and it’s been by EDC for a few months. Here are some of my notes:

• Likes
  • The compartment distribution is amazing. Really this was that clearest change in my preferences.
    • Made me realize how much the cavernous GR1 space was something didn’t particularly enjoy.
    • The device compartment in the back allows both my MacBook Air 13in and reMarkable2 to fit comfortably and mostly padded.
    • Main comportment has a lot of space, and another laptop holder, but when empty, it mostly disappears.
  • It’s fairly light
  • Thick padded top handle.
    • I carry it as a briefcase more often than I expected, so the comfortable top handle is a appreciated.
• Dislikes
  • Quality.
    • 3 months in, one of the should straps stitches are already coming apart.
      
  • Zipper puller design. I’m sorry, but the white penguin on the puller drives me nuts.
  • Side (zipped) water bottles pouches are a waste of space.
    • I don’t think they’d carry anything securely, and the combination of zipped with mesh seems extremely breakable.

With Amazon Prime Day in the horizon, I’m window shopping for the following bags as a replacement for the Original Penguin Business Backpack:

Candidates

1. tomtoc Compact Laptop Backpack 18L
   • Seems the clearest replacement. Price is right $80 and compartment design seems perfect.
   • Design is ok, not sure how I feel about the leatherish looking top strips.
   • Not crazy about the unpadded carry handles. But nice that it has some on the side.
   • Quality seems anecdotally good, with some stitching fails but apparently great customer support.
2. Day Owl Unisex Recycled Backpack Pro Slim 14”
   • I really like the design.
   • Not sure about the compartments, it looks like a smart implementation of a big main space with enough pockets. I could love it or hate it.
   • Price is a bit high at $135, but quality seems great.
3. Peak Design Everyday Backpack Zip 15L
   • Beautiful but makes no sense for me with its huge compartment.
     
   • It’s less a replacement of the Penguin Backpack and more for GR1.
   • Price of $189.95 is really beyond what I want to spend.