🆕📝 Mac Reincarnation Diary: The Plan Pays Off
TL;DR: The fresh install of macOS in July went well, it’s (somewhat) faster now, and I’ve got a checklist you can follow to see how I personalize my Mac.
A few weeks ago, I started to type out a new post expressing my love for the ‘Smart Speed’ feature of @overcastfm@mastodon.social because I had crossed 1000 hours of silence stripped from what I’ve listened to. It ended up being a rehash of what I wrote back in February 2022 when I reached 30 days of silence saved:
So, instead of those 724 hours of silence, I’ve been able to listen to 724 more hours of my favorite podcasts, without adding any extra time over the last six years.
You can probably just substitute “1000 hours” for “30 days” and get the same effect. What a great feature!
🆕📝 Crashing Clockwise #530: ‘The Noise of the Youth’
Happy Thanksgiving! Here’s a little podcast side quest in case you need a few minutes to yourself.
I’ve been trying Kagi for a few days, but my quick searches via Keyword Search not playing nice with it might be a deal breaker. Both use Safari Extensions (necessary for Kagi as the default engine), which I think crosses the wires. Might have to wait for Kagi to become a built-in default option.
Update: Kagi has its own quick searches.
Trump was impeached twice, openly colluded with hostile foreign dictators, was found liable for sexual assault, and is currently facing four separate criminal investigations related to unlawful document retention endangering national security, campaign finance violations, and state and federal charges for his attempted insurrection. […]
But don’t forget, when Biden was a senior in high school, Trump was just a mere freshman.
🔗 I moved from my self hosted Mastodon instance to a micro.blog account // Rach Smith
I recently learnt that micro.blog accounts can federate with Mastodon, so I decided to try it. It only costs $5 USD/month and creates no sysadmin/ops work for me. I am technically storing my data with “someone else”, which is what I was trying to avoid by running my instance, but the company seems like a small group of people trying to make a product people like, and as someone who works in a small group of people who trying to make a product people like… that appeals to me.
🆕📝 A Few Rambly Thoughts About Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour Movie
So, I went and saw the Eras Tour movie a few weeks ago. There were things that happened on that stage that I didn’t think was possible.
🆕📝 Letters with Kev, November 2023 [#2]
In our latest exchange, @kev@fosstodon.org and I chat about Scouts, ambitions, wristwatches and distractions, and — of course — blogs.
Parks & Rec is so goddamn funny every single time. S3E2 (Flu Season) and S3E3 (Time Capsule) are two absolute banger classics, and it’s such a treat that they’re lined up one after the other. You probably don’t even need me to link to those episodes; I’m sure you can picture them already.
If you're on the edge of subscribing to shoutouts, I have some good news, and it's running until the end of the month, you can get 40% off on the yearly (usually $20) using OMGWHATAREYOUDOING. Use it, share it, print it on T-Shirts 😋
It'll help keep the lights on if you're able ✌️❤️
Shoutouts is so good that I’m using it for two different projects. Go get it!
Dropshare Cloud is sunsetting on January 31st, 2024. As an existing Dropshare Cloud customer, you are eligible for special pricing when purchasing a Dropshare for macOS license to use the app with any of the over 27 supported storage providers.
Damn. I love Dropshare and have used their cloud sharing feature for years because it was easy, well-done, and free with Setapp. This is yet another reminder that you should own your space on the web. Looks like I might have to build some shortcuts to replicate it for Micro.blog uploads.
The ad that stole my heart and put it in Apple’s pocket: youtu.be/sIHmj2lL3…
These Nanos still look so rad nearly 20 years later.
🔗
One thing that really stood out for me was the interaction and engagement I was seeing. I thought I’d try sharing a recent link to one of my blog posts, the fun default apps trend. […] [M]y posts generally get little to no engagement. After sharing it to Artifact, however, it received way more hits than I’d ever generally get
Interest = piqued. I test drove the app and it’s well-done. I’m not hurting for things to read, but it might make a good discovery engine, both for new blogs to follow and my own posts.
🔗
The first time I sent an email was really cool. The performance and battery life of my M1 Mac was (is) very impressive; far better than any laptop I’ve ever had before. But I’m not talking about impressive. I’m talking about the kind of impression that makes you say, “holy shit, that’s fucking incredible!”
For me, it was the Vision Pro introduction. The interaction model, the visuals, and the use cases were utterly compelling, and the raw technology necessary left me astonished. Can’t wait.
🔗 The Search For A New Interface // Greg Morris
A new interaction method takes time to find its space in society, like the smartphone. Some never reach that place and die out like Google Glass, and it remains to be seen how long Humane can hang in there. Working to persuade people that the learning curve is worth it. Voice first and lasers seems like an interesting proposition, but new doesn’t always mean good.
Do good by buying Gui’s apps.
My dad's home was destroyed by a massive flood in the city where I grew up and where he currently lives. It’s the worst flood in over 100 years, and he lost almost all of his possessions, including the equipment he uses for work. I'm trying to help him out as much as I can, so all of my income in the following months will be going towards helping him. If you'd like to help, you can do so by getting any of my products listed here: https://buddysoftware.tech or here: https://insidegui.gumroad.com
🔗
I don’t really care what others think of me, or what status is assigned to my job. I’m enjoying the effort of being a good manager. As a manager I have an ethos of never asking somebody to do something that I wouldn’t do myself (if I have the requisite skill and capability).
Mopping. I know this. 30 years later, the mop is still as friendly as ever. I feel no embarrassment about being a manager that mops.
When I was a camp director and people asked what I did, I always said, “I take out the trash and turn off the lights.”
I’ve been meaning to watch that OpenAI dev keynote, but now I can’t help but feel that its relevance is seeping away.
You’ve got to listen to the conversation in this Vergecast episode with Spotify’s Gustav Söderström. I’m an Apple Music guy myself, but I sure like his ideas around AI-facilitated recommendations. He’s clear-eyed about the challenges that entails, and focused on finding us our next favorite music. 🎙️
Ours went from 80 Mbps to 530 Mbps. It took one minute of work that I wish I knew to do 3 years ago. 🤦♂️
I had an idea from my blog remixed for the first time (I think) today. Shariq Raza Qadri is starting their own ‘7 Things This Week’ series. I was awfully confused when I saw it pop up in my feed reader — I thought something had gone dreadfully wrong with my publishing workflow.
🔗
We realized we ran out of tests a few weeks ago. Good timing to get a few more free kits.
Published just in the nick of time! 😮💨
🎙️ ‘Norah Jones is Playing Along’ with Dave Grohl
This warm and wide-ranging episode gives an intimate peek into the mind of one of modern rock’s most beloved legends.
I’m a Norah Jones fan, but have never been into the Foo Fighters. That said, this session with Dave Grohl was one of the best listening experiences I’ve had in ages. It was like eavesdropping in on two friends just hanging out chatting and occasionally jamming out a song — they just so happen to be world-class musicians and performers. Got an hour that needs some background listening? Do yourself a favor and throw this on.
🔗
Microsoft’s Satya Nadella is reportedly mediating the discussion between Altman, former OpenAI president Greg Brockman, and the four current board members as they attempt to select a new board. We’re also told Microsoft would very much like to wrap this up before the stock market opens tomorrow morning.
There’s something very funny to me picturing Satya Nadella being the parent in the room, forcing the kids to work out their problems before going to work.