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Archive: 2024

Browse through our history of obscure stories.
Browse By Year 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 December Detecting Parasites Detecting Parasites December 31, 2024 Detecting Parasites Our year-end award for best blog post goes to a niche website known for its air purifier reviews. But the post reached way beyond its traditional audience—and may have helped change the way Google operates. Data-Driven Deception Data-Driven Deception December 30, 2024 Data-Driven Deception A story directly exposing how automakers were selling consumer driving data that ended up in the hands of insurers made a true ripple that drivers will benefit from in the years to come. The Calm Voice Of Chaos The Calm Voice Of Chaos December 27, 2024 The Calm Voice Of Chaos This year’s Tedium awards start off with a shout-out to a prevalent voice that brought protest music back to the masses: The endlessly prolific Jesse Welles. Christmas on Repeat Christmas on Repeat December 22, 2024 Christmas on Repeat Despite often being terrible, we watch the same holiday movies every year. Why's that? Well, it's not often about the movies—it's about our memories. The Thrill Was Never There The Thrill Was Never There December 20, 2024 The Thrill Was Never There A famous punk-music personality reveals he was in it for the money—a revelation that has upset fans. But to be fair, it was the algorithm that pushed him in that direction. Stupidest Drama Ever Stupidest Drama Ever December 17, 2024 Stupidest Drama Ever An apparent extortion scheme involving famous writers and entrepreneurs lit up Bluesky the other night. It raises some important questions about whether Bluesky is up to the task of moderation. Guided By Gifts Guided By Gifts December 15, 2024 Guided By Gifts Tedium’s annual last-minute gift guide is here to buy you a little extra time around the holidays—plus it gives us an excuse to highlight our year. Guitar, Synthesized Guitar, Synthesized December 15, 2024 Guitar, Synthesized When a synthesizer takes on the traits of a guitar, are you opening up new soundscapes or making musical compromises? Here’s what I’ve learned. Pressed Pressed December 14, 2024 Pressed This week’s preliminary injunction in the WordPress/WP Engine saga clears a lot of air for the CMS space. But does it clear enough? Going Atomic Going Atomic December 12, 2024 Going Atomic My recent Linux experience has been pretty awesome thanks to Bazzite. It may represent the frontier of OS experiences. Do General Audiences Exist? Do General Audiences Exist? December 8, 2024 Do General Audiences Exist? Based on the sharp decline of the G rating, apparently not. Let’s look at the oddities of the broadest film rating. Don’t Strip-Mine The Sky Don’t Strip-Mine The Sky December 5, 2024 Don’t Strip-Mine The Sky More thoughts on what Bluesky’s ultimate business model could look like: A modern take on Craigslist, a company that never exploited its users. How Giants Fall How Giants Fall December 3, 2024 How Giants Fall The departure of Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger via a forced retirement only further underlines just how shaky the ground is for the chip-making giant. Belated Expansion Belated Expansion December 2, 2024 Belated Expansion If you haven’t heard, people are finally using the NES’ forgotten expansion port in commercial products. What took them so long?! November Power User Vs. Strong POV Power User Vs. Strong POV November 29, 2024 Power User Vs. Strong POV The just-released elementary OS 8 is interesting, but it has a problem—its impressive but prescriptive interface paradigm has to live in an ecosystem of power users. Who blinks first? Corporate Casserole Corporate Casserole November 24, 2024 Corporate Casserole Pondering Thanksgiving through an exceedingly corporate lens. Some of the holiday’s most important elements were brought to you by marketing and lobbying. Not Ready For The Camera Not Ready For The Camera November 23, 2024 Not Ready For The Camera Why hasn’t video completely killed text-based social media, despite social platforms clearly favoring it? Simple: By its very nature, it excludes voices from the discussion. The Floater Manifesto The Floater Manifesto November 19, 2024 The Floater Manifesto Our technology should be good enough to work across operating systems now. The best way to test that is by using literally every platform. Which is what I plan to do. Leaning Towers Leaning Towers November 17, 2024 Leaning Towers Considering recent innovations in cell phone towers, which have been shrinking in the 5G era. Are they still NIMBY targets? Are we still trying to hide them with fake trees? The Network Serves Us The Network Serves Us November 14, 2024 The Network Serves Us Thoughts on the sudden surge of success Bluesky has seen this week—without a network-dampening algorithm in sight. The Loophole The Loophole November 10, 2024 The Loophole On the history and psychology of free samples—from free bars of soap to free AOL—and why you can no longer get drunk in Gatlinburg for free. The Hacker Ring The Hacker Ring November 8, 2024 The Hacker Ring I bought a ring because I heard about it on Hacker News. And it turns out that it’s my best tech purchase in months. Know What You Control Know What You Control November 6, 2024 Know What You Control If you’re stuck dealing with a bug that you can’t seem to fix, there’s nothing wrong with getting some white space from it. No harm in that. Everything Zen Everything Zen November 3, 2024 Everything Zen You’re getting hit by pre-election chaos on every other part of the internet. Let’s take a step back and get a bit of a palate cleanser. Personally, I find a little Tedium goes a long way. Pixel-Perfect? Pixel-Perfect? November 2, 2024 Pixel-Perfect? Apple makes a move to acquire an app so Apple-like that you might be surprised to learn it’s not first-party: Pixelmator. During an age when Adobe is laser-focused on the enterprise to its peril, this might be a good thing. October Caught In The Middle Caught In The Middle October 30, 2024 Caught In The Middle The mess with Bezos and The Washington Post is reflective of a trend that keeps popping up this year: The powerful entity stepping in it without considering the collateral damage. Why Butterfingers Break Why Butterfingers Break October 27, 2024 Why Butterfingers Break I’ve always been deeply curious about the brittle nature of Butterfinger candy bars—so with that in mind, I thought way too hard about it in this piece. Stressing The Protocol Stressing The Protocol October 23, 2024 Stressing The Protocol I’m trying to import as many of my old tweets as I can to Bluesky. Which is fun, because I have a lot of them. So, Your CMS Blew Up So, Your CMS Blew Up October 20, 2024 So, Your CMS Blew Up If your favorite content management system feels like it’s sinking into a shallow well of hubris, you might want alternatives. I have a few ideas. More Signs, Worse Signal More Signs, Worse Signal October 16, 2024 More Signs, Worse Signal A presidential get-out-the-vote campaign learns the hard way that rural areas have pretty terrible internet access. Gatekept Gatekept October 15, 2024 Gatekept Thoughts on a bruise to the ol’ ego that hurt a little more than I thought it would. But hey, it gives me a chance to talk about gatekeeping. Gateway Country Gateway Country October 13, 2024 Gateway Country Thinking about the globalization of the computer industry through a tech company so American it prominently promoted its birth on an Iowa farm on its packaging. Sick Of Fake Meat Sick Of Fake Meat October 10, 2024 Sick Of Fake Meat On meat analogues and the way that lucrative algorithm waves gradually burn us out on our interests. Call it an “interest analogue.” Domains For The Masses Domains For The Masses October 6, 2024 Domains For The Masses The tale of the founder of GoDaddy, a Vietnam vet who figured out the formula for getting regular people to buy domain names. Hooked On Clarendon Hooked On Clarendon October 5, 2024 Hooked On Clarendon I saw a font recently, and it inspired me to kick off work on a full redesign. The funny part: It’s the most common font, ever. When Benevolence Fades When Benevolence Fades October 3, 2024 When Benevolence Fades The WordPress situation devolves further, which raises an obvious question: What does this mean for every other open-source project? September Entering The Fray Entering The Fray September 29, 2024 Entering The Fray Becoming a commentator-turned-creator? Hope you’re getting hazard pay. Some thoughts on the art of creation when you’re usually a critic. The Paywall’s Final Frontier The Paywall’s Final Frontier September 28, 2024 The Paywall’s Final Frontier Word that CNN is getting a paywall feels like a sign that good information is more expensive than ever. Content Fighting Systems Content Fighting Systems September 25, 2024 Content Fighting Systems The co-founder of WordPress steps in it, repeatedly, in a forest-for-the-trees fight with WP Engine that makes me feel sad for the open internet. Party In The Rear Party In The Rear September 22, 2024 Party In The Rear Considering the legacy of rear-projection TVs, the most efficient route to a big-screen TV in the pre-LCD era. Moore’s Flinch Moore’s Flinch September 20, 2024 Moore’s Flinch The rumor mill is picking up steam that Intel might become the target of a takeover by Qualcomm. Which, honestly, would be the most dramatic shift in the history of the PC industry. Locking A Loophole Locking A Loophole September 17, 2024 Locking A Loophole The Biden administration’s push to close an obscure loophole on imports highlights just how disruptive the Temu model really is. No Plane? No Problem No Plane? No Problem September 15, 2024 No Plane? No Problem What it’s like to travel across the country via Amtrak—and what you need to know if you want to do it yourself. Can Weird Creatures Survive? Can Weird Creatures Survive? September 12, 2024 Can Weird Creatures Survive? Unfortunately for all of us, the internet doesn’t reward noble ideas just because they’re noble. Hence, what happened to cohost. Tethered Tethered September 8, 2024 Tethered On the freedom that cellular modems gave to consumers—and how mobile companies tried to claw it back during the iPhone era. Taking A Mile Taking A Mile September 4, 2024 Taking A Mile The risk of the open internet is that someone will exploit your well-intentioned openness thoughtlessly. That’s how the internet slowly stops being open. The Worst Form On The Internet? The Worst Form On The Internet? September 3, 2024 The Worst Form On The Internet? Oracle’s form to access free cloud server space seems designed to discourage you from taking advantage of the offering. It’ll leave you frustrated. Control Freaks Control Freaks September 1, 2024 Control Freaks An analysis of how three weird-but-widespread game controllers shaped the way we play. August Did Section 230 Meet Its Match? Did Section 230 Meet Its Match? August 30, 2024 Did Section 230 Meet Its Match? A new ruling from a federal appeals court finds that Section 230 protections may not apply to algorithms like the one TikTok uses. That could (potentially) be a big problem for the internet. Getting A Second-Hand Bill Getting A Second-Hand Bill August 28, 2024 Getting A Second-Hand Bill The makers behind connected gadgets are using software trickery to work around the first-sale doctrine. Now’s a good time to update that law for the Internet of Things era. Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too August 25, 2024 Maybe You’ve Been Brainwashed Too Pondering “You Get What You Give,” the one-hit wonder recorded by a guy smart enough to realize that it would be a one-hit wonder. It’s a survival story. When The Coffee Sweats When The Coffee Sweats August 23, 2024 When The Coffee Sweats Starbucks, which has devolved from laptop destination to coffee pickup counter, hires a burrito maven. The third place hangs in the balance. From Segments To Pixels From Segments To Pixels August 18, 2024 From Segments To Pixels Handheld calculators saw a massive amount of innovation in the 1970s—thanks in no small part to LCD screens and a primitive form of typography. All That Glitters All That Glitters August 15, 2024 All That Glitters I just learned an amazing fact about gold records from the Beastie Boys that you need to learn about, too. Platforms Built On Quicksand Platforms Built On Quicksand August 13, 2024 Platforms Built On Quicksand Given the choice between protecting creators and protecting a business relationship with a dominant, toxic company, Patreon chooses the business relationship. Maybe they shouldn’t. Dead On A Friday Dead On A Friday August 11, 2024 Dead On A Friday The Friday night death slot, and why Fridays carry such a hard-to-shake reputation as a place where good broadcast television goes to die. Mac As Appliance Mac As Appliance August 9, 2024 Mac As Appliance Apple ticks off its non-casual users by upping the naggy permissions menus in the upcoming version of MacOS. Best Foot Under Best Foot Under August 9, 2024 Best Foot Under My thoughts on using an elliptical machine under my desk for a couple of weeks. Can you exercise and type at the same time? Writearound Writearound August 5, 2024 Writearound How I gradually fell out of love with the idea of using a code editor for all of my writing—in part because of a subtle MacOS feature that Linux doesn’t have. Shape-Shifting Companies Shape-Shifting Companies August 4, 2024 Shape-Shifting Companies How the aggressive machinations of investor interests and corporate culture can significantly reshape a company’s focus. Just ask the company behind Frogger. The Rich Data Wonk The Rich Data Wonk August 2, 2024 The Rich Data Wonk There‘s something weirdly comforting about Steve Ballmer’s unusual second act as a nonpartisan truth-teller, through his USAFacts nonprofit. Subscribe, Forever Subscribe, Forever August 1, 2024 Subscribe, Forever Logitech’s hinting at a “forever mouse” suggests hardware companies want to become addicted to subscription revenue, too. July Cassingle Culture Cassingle Culture July 27, 2024 Cassingle Culture Why the single version of the cassette didn’t feel as worthy of a purchase as, say, a 45. Or, perhaps, even a digital download. Too Close To The Kernel Too Close To The Kernel July 26, 2024 Too Close To The Kernel The CrowdStrike mess points out just how close some developers get to the kernel—and efforts to lock things down will help highlight the tension between security and user choice. Linking Through Hoops Linking Through Hoops July 23, 2024 Linking Through Hoops You would not believe the level of insanity you have to go through to allow a link to see an organic audience on LinkedIn. Fill In The _____ Fill In The _____ July 20, 2024 Fill In The _____ Pondering the evolution of Mad Libs and Droodles—two iconic brain games from the 1950s that share an inventor. Reviewers Deserve Respect Reviewers Deserve Respect July 18, 2024 Reviewers Deserve Respect Manufacturers that strong-arm reviewers who don’t say nice things about products cannot become the norm. Which is why it’s good to see reviewers pushing back. Not So Tenacious Not So Tenacious July 16, 2024 Not So Tenacious The hiatus and possible breakup of Tenacious D makes me feel sad about the state of creative partnerships, and how power dynamics can break them. Never A Dull Moment Never A Dull Moment July 13, 2024 Never A Dull Moment How sharp knives disappeared from the dining room table, only to return, centuries later, in steak knife form. Kings, cardinals, and factories are involved. Knives Out, Knives In Knives Out, Knives In July 13, 2024 Knives Out, Knives In Someone gave me a set of kitchen knives to review, and surprisingly, I didn’t cut my fingers off in the process. My onion-cutting game did improve, though. Comedic Consultant Comedic Consultant July 12, 2024 Comedic Consultant Trevor Noah has been on the Microsoft payroll for years, and nobody apparently noticed until now. Is that a problem? (Hint: Yes.) Splog Prevention Splog Prevention July 10, 2024 Splog Prevention Why I ended up taking ownership of the domain where my late-2000s newspaper lived—and why you might want to consider doing the same. Mind The Pregap Mind The Pregap July 6, 2024 Mind The Pregap Pondering the compatibility issues and complications of a clever element of the audio CD hidden track boom: The before-album pregap. Keys To The Future Keys To The Future July 5, 2024 Keys To The Future Thoughts on a new phone keyboard from an organization that is making a convincing case we need to rethink our discussion around FOSS and self-hosting. Controlled Panic Controlled Panic July 3, 2024 Controlled Panic An upcoming iteration of the Linux kernel could take a user-friendly direction: A Linux version of the Blue Screen of Death, complete with QR code. June The Art Of Annoyance The Art Of Annoyance June 30, 2024 The Art Of Annoyance When it comes down to it, it’s best to think of advertising as a coordinated, decades-long campaign to annoy the heck out of you. And it works pretty well. Paramount Concerns Paramount Concerns June 27, 2024 Paramount Concerns In an immediate austerity measure after a failed merger, Paramount kills a ton of online content—an ironic move for a brand that has long exploited nostalgia. The Northern Mariana Touchdown The Northern Mariana Touchdown June 25, 2024 The Northern Mariana Touchdown After years in a British prison, Julian Assange is going back to Australia—minus a short layover in one of the world’s most remote places. As day trips go, it’s fascinating. Turn Off The Pillow Machines Turn Off The Pillow Machines June 23, 2024 Turn Off The Pillow Machines Amazon’s plans to shift its packaging strategy points at a new front in the lengthy tug of war between paper and plastic—a war that started in grocery stores. Finish The Job, Adam Finish The Job, Adam June 21, 2024 Finish The Job, Adam If Meta is going to support the fediverse, it needs to actually support people who don’t live on Threads. No lip service. No half-finished betas. When Robots Aggregate When Robots Aggregate June 20, 2024 When Robots Aggregate The mess between Forbes and Perplexity AI highlights how soulless and extractive aggregation can be in the wrong hands. It’s the wrong direction for LLMs. Artifacting Artifacting June 16, 2024 Artifacting How the JPEG file—and the lossy compression it allowed and encouraged—became the dominant way we shared digital photos on the internet. CHIP FIGHT GO! CHIP FIGHT GO! June 14, 2024 CHIP FIGHT GO! The emergence of a conflict between Qualcomm and Arm over desktop chip dominance feels like a revival of one of the PC industry’s most important conflicts. Adobe’s Slow Decay Adobe’s Slow Decay June 11, 2024 Adobe’s Slow Decay The problem with Adobe is not any single decision it has made. It is the company’s longer track record, which suggests a genuine lack of respect for non-enterprise users. They’re allowing things to rot. The Barleycorn Measurement Scheme The Barleycorn Measurement Scheme June 9, 2024 The Barleycorn Measurement Scheme How the Brannock Device—a measuring tool you’ve definitely seen but didn’t know the name of—made it a lot easier to figure out our shoe size. Let’s Bring Back Small Tools Let’s Bring Back Small Tools June 7, 2024 Let’s Bring Back Small Tools Thoughts on the misadventure of udm14, or what I hope to gain from successfully reviving the single-serving site for a couple of weeks. Quadruple-Booked Quadruple-Booked June 4, 2024 Quadruple-Booked The latest artificial intelligence use cases, like Windows’ Recall and Zoom’s digital twins, appear to be built specifically for managers and executives, and literally nobody else. That’s a problem. The Bargain Bin Evolves The Bargain Bin Evolves June 1, 2024 The Bargain Bin Evolves Thoughts on modern commerce from going to a bin store. It’s a place where e-commerce returns go to die. May Losing Sight Of Creators Losing Sight Of Creators May 31, 2024 Losing Sight Of Creators Instead of building ways to block ads, we need to make the case for the tech-minded to build creator-supporting ideas. Creators would help. Color Is The Enemy Color Is The Enemy May 27, 2024 Color Is The Enemy If you enjoyed our last issue about plastic, you’ll love this one, which suggests that colorful plastic could be a potential long-term health hazard. Macroplastics Macroplastics May 26, 2024 Macroplastics Discussing the invention of HDPE, one of the best plastics around, and how it evolved from Hula Hoops to milk crates to plastic lumber. The AI Laptops’ Secret Feature The AI Laptops’ Secret Feature May 22, 2024 The AI Laptops’ Secret Feature Ignore the AI that Microsoft is selling everyone. The reason why the new ARM laptops are exciting is because Qualcomm did the work with Linux. Also: I built a site. Defeating Mouse Lint Defeating Mouse Lint May 19, 2024 Defeating Mouse Lint The rise of the optical mouse, a device so good at its job that it effectively killed off the rubber ball, and the sometimes questionable people who invented it. Does One Line Fix Google? Does One Line Fix Google? May 17, 2024 Does One Line Fix Google? Forget AI. Google just created a version of its search engine free of all the extra junk it has added over the past decade-plus. All you have to do is add "udm=14" to the search URL. Everything Becomes Growth Hacking Everything Becomes Growth Hacking May 16, 2024 Everything Becomes Growth Hacking If your platform is being exploited by growth hackers, you need to moderate it, or you threaten its long-term health, reputation, and survival. It’s not easy—because growth hacking always finds a way. The CPU That Will Never Die The CPU That Will Never Die May 11, 2024 The CPU That Will Never Die Why the Z80 CPU has endured for the last 48 years, and what we're going to do now it starts to finally show hints of retirement. Press, Pause Press, Pause May 9, 2024 Press, Pause Beyond misunderstanding its iPad consumer base, Apple’s infamous “Crush” ad deeply misunderstands the role of the hydraulic press in meme culture. Chaos, Coyotes & Palm Trees Chaos, Coyotes & Palm Trees May 7, 2024 Chaos, Coyotes & Palm Trees John Mulaney’s pop-up Netflix show Everybody’s In L.A. is my absolute new favorite thing. If you’re not watching, you’re missing out on something special. When It Rains, It Pours When It Rains, It Pours May 4, 2024 When It Rains, It Pours Umbrella design is an interesting conundrum. Sure, it could be better, but nobody's come up with a successful new design in hundreds of years. Why is that? April Interface Interference Interface Interference April 30, 2024 Interface Interference The problem that’s bugging me about the Rabbit R1 and Humane AI Pin dunk-fests: A seeming discouragement of hardware innovation. Your Phone’s Other Number Your Phone’s Other Number April 27, 2024 Your Phone’s Other Number Where did the IMEI number come from, why is it so freaking long, and why does your phone need it? If you’ve ever wondered, we’ve got you covered. The Protest Song Wakes Up The Protest Song Wakes Up April 24, 2024 The Protest Song Wakes Up A buzzy protest song about the definition of war, timed perfectly to public protests against the Israel–Hamas War, shows that there’s room for social media and protest singers to coexist. Post-Post Post-Post April 22, 2024 Post-Post The demise of Post, one of the social networks that emerged from the 2022 Twitter exodus, shows how users have come to understand that vibes aren’t everything with social media. Trip’s Big Interactive Reset Trip’s Big Interactive Reset April 20, 2024 Trip’s Big Interactive Reset Why 3DO’s true innovation wasn’t its early 3D hardware, but its business model—a model that perfectly matches its founder’s philosophy. Berliner Goes Tabloid Berliner Goes Tabloid April 17, 2024 Berliner Goes Tabloid Considering the tale of the longtime NPR editor who decided to pull a Bulworth at the tail end of his long career. It’s Easy. But Is It Easy Enough? It’s Easy. But Is It Easy Enough? April 15, 2024 It’s Easy. But Is It Easy Enough? Self-hosted apps are having a moment, but people are still a little freaked out by them. Could a Flatpak-style approach to self-hosting help matters? What’s A Workgroup? What’s A Workgroup? April 13, 2024 What’s A Workgroup? How groupware gave us the first glimmers of what collaboration could be like in the online era, then became so pervasive that we don’t even think about it anymore. The Post-SEO Era The Post-SEO Era April 9, 2024 The Post-SEO Era What happens when a news site launches that basically ignores the SEO orthodoxy? Easy: They do fascinating stuff. Hence, Robinhood’s Sherwood. My Final Hackintosh Rodeo My Final Hackintosh Rodeo April 8, 2024 My Final Hackintosh Rodeo As we near what might be the final days of Hackintoshing, I tried out a VM-based technique for installing MacOS, complete with full-speed GPU, and you know what? It worked amazingly well. Three Flavors, One Carton Three Flavors, One Carton April 6, 2024 Three Flavors, One Carton Explaining why the multi-layer Neapolitan ice cream exists, and why it’s never actually appeared on a space shuttle despite strong suggestions otherwise. The Venue’s Too Small The Venue’s Too Small April 4, 2024 The Venue’s Too Small A popular indie-pop band announces just ahead of the beginning of a major arena tour that their show can’t fit in the minor-league hockey venue they chose. xz, tarred xz, tarred April 1, 2024 xz, tarred One of the most common programs in computing history gets nailed by a supply-chain attack—almost exactly a decade after Heartbleed highlighted similar structural weaknesses in the FOSS ecosystem. March Recapturing Real Time Recapturing Real Time March 30, 2024 Recapturing Real Time A decade ago, real-time social news coverage was a machine that simply worked. With our recent social media disarray, it feels broken. Can it be fixed? The Value Of A Promise The Value Of A Promise March 28, 2024 The Value Of A Promise When you hear a company like Substack or Canva make a promise, you may get pretty cynical that they’re going to keep it. Honestly, I get that. A Creative Market Reset A Creative Market Reset March 27, 2024 A Creative Market Reset Canva’s purchase of Affinity creates a new market dynamic for creative professionals, and it could have ripple effects as big as AI. Songs About Superman Songs About Superman March 23, 2024 Songs About Superman Why was alternative rock inundated with hit songs about Superman throughout the 1990s and early 2000s? Consider the monoculture. The House Always Wins The House Always Wins March 21, 2024 The House Always Wins The drama around G/O Media, including the mess with Deadspin I wrote about last week, points to the ways that the individual suffers at the hand of corporate greed. Hackintosh In The Pastintosh? Hackintosh In The Pastintosh? March 19, 2024 Hackintosh In The Pastintosh? If the Hackintosh ecosystem is about to fade away, it’s because it fulfilled its purpose as a way station between two vastly different eras of Apple. Digital Training Wheels Digital Training Wheels March 16, 2024 Digital Training Wheels Looking back at a bunch of toy electronics that may have latently inspired the tech that we use today. Might as well hook ’em young. Linux Lessons (So Far) Linux Lessons (So Far) March 14, 2024 Linux Lessons (So Far) My Linux journey has not been all sunshine and rainbows, but I think I’m getting the hang of it. A few thoughts. Spinning The Dead Spinning The Dead March 12, 2024 Spinning The Dead I am so obsessed with trying to figure out who Deadspin’s new owners are that it led me to some late night spam-blog sleuthing. Circles And Slashes Circles And Slashes March 9, 2024 Circles And Slashes One of the best-known icons of modern society is a classic example of a symbol—it’s easy to spot, but hard to explain. Who came up with it? Save Our Emulators Save Our Emulators March 6, 2024 Save Our Emulators Nintendo’s strong-arming of the Switch emulator Yuzu shows how little the company understands its own fan base. Emulators will not die so quietly. When The Ware Isn’t Firm When The Ware Isn’t Firm March 4, 2024 When The Ware Isn’t Firm A viral car review by tech-reviewing’s biggest name highlights the all-too-common pitfalls of shipping before the firmware is ready. Luster Lost Luster Lost March 2, 2024 Luster Lost Pondering the way that physical objects, like newspapers and photos, degrade over time, and why digital objects won’t fade in exactly the same way. February Missing The Human Touch Missing The Human Touch February 29, 2024 Missing The Human Touch Tech and creativity once had a symbiotic relationship in the push towards innovation. As generative content matures, it feels like they’re starting to diverge. And that’s bad for creative people. When Stewards Go Astray When Stewards Go Astray February 28, 2024 When Stewards Go Astray A pair of recent controversies around the tech-publishing giant Automattic raise an important question in my mind: Do we have to worry about the future of WordPress? Create For Yourself Create For Yourself February 23, 2024 Create For Yourself With disruption hitting the media industry acutely in 2024, now is the time to lean into owning your creative work. Have a say in your creative destiny. Losing The Buzz, Keeping The Heat Losing The Buzz, Keeping The Heat February 22, 2024 Losing The Buzz, Keeping The Heat BuzzFeed’s sale of Complex Networks (minus Hot Ones) shows how on the ropes the one-time media innovator really is. It feels reflective of the rest of the industry, too. Spammy Saturday Spammy Saturday February 20, 2024 Spammy Saturday A fediverse spam crisis highlights an inherent flaw in the decentralized social networking model: Some people are bad at updating and maintaining their apps. The Liaison The Liaison February 17, 2024 The Liaison How firmware became the layer between our hardware and software experiences. It was only sorta like Halt and Catch Fire. The Web App Switcheroo The Web App Switcheroo February 15, 2024 The Web App Switcheroo In its quest to do as little as possible to comply with the EU’s Digital Markets Act, Apple randomly kneecaps web apps. Also: Am I sending this newsletter to fake people? Retro Zeitgeist Retro Zeitgeist February 14, 2024 Retro Zeitgeist Jon Stewart’s fascinating late-career return to The Daily Show is further evidence that linear television is no longer what it once was. The Sneaky Standard The Sneaky Standard February 9, 2024 The Sneaky Standard How Intel screwed over a standards body in the midst of giving computer users one of the most resilient technologies around. sudo embrace sudo embrace February 8, 2024 sudo embrace Microsoft’s decision to introduce sudo for Windows is strangely symbolic of how influential UNIX has been even on non-UNIX ecosystems. Remaking Podcasts For Text Remaking Podcasts For Text February 6, 2024 Remaking Podcasts For Text Podcasts are far and away the great example of how RSS can empower creators. Today’s thought experiment: How can we bring these benefits to written content? The Ballad Of Mark Discordia The Ballad Of Mark Discordia February 2, 2024 The Ballad Of Mark Discordia Considering an infamous target of trolling in the early online era. Did the middle-aged Nintendo fan really deserve it? January Cache Clearing Cache Clearing January 31, 2024 Cache Clearing Google appears to hide away an important feature from its search engine—an easily accessible cache of search results. (It’s still there, if you know where to look.) No Frame Of Reference No Frame Of Reference January 29, 2024 No Frame Of Reference The mixed-feelings reviews about the Framework 16 laptop show how complicated it is to pull off the hat trick of ambitious, powerful, and repairable. Locked Up In Regions Locked Up In Regions January 26, 2024 Locked Up In Regions The history of region-locking, a once-unintentional process of keeping devices built for one region from being used in another. (Now Apple’s doing it.) The YouTube Boogie The YouTube Boogie January 24, 2024 The YouTube Boogie A livestreaming pianist accidentally steps into an international incident—and nobody ends up looking particularly good. Cropping Into A Debate Cropping Into A Debate January 22, 2024 Cropping Into A Debate I took a pretty rough swipe at GIMP last week, and rather than letting sleeping dogs lie, I’d like to explain my POV on the popular open-source image editor. Counterfeit Computing Counterfeit Computing January 19, 2024 Counterfeit Computing Discussing the piratical efforts to rip people off by counterfeiting computer hardware. It’s been happening for more than 40 years. Out With The Pitchforks Out With The Pitchforks January 18, 2024 Out With The Pitchforks What Condé Nast did to Pitchfork this week is a travesty, and worse, it deeply misunderstands the publication Pitchfork was becoming. Making My Linux Move Making My Linux Move January 17, 2024 Making My Linux Move Why I decided to mostly move to Linux in 2024, and what I’ve learned in the process of that move. What Was ISDN? What Was ISDN? January 12, 2024 What Was ISDN? For decades, the telephone industry supported a new technology designed to make copper lines more useful to the average consumer. It’s great—if you’re a voice actor. Barely Minimum Barely Minimum January 10, 2024 Barely Minimum Substack favors the quick fix for its moderation crisis over the fundamental change, leaving a lot of longtime users in the lurch. Mac All The Keyboards Mac All The Keyboards January 8, 2024 Mac All The Keyboards The standard Macintosh keyboard layout makes it easy to add writer-desired special characters without pulling up a menu or relying on software trickery. Here’s how to get it on Linux and Windows. Snapping The Cable Snapping The Cable January 6, 2024 Snapping The Cable 2024 feels like the year cable television is going to lose a lot of its cultural influence. Here’s why. The Gator Bites Back The Gator Bites Back January 4, 2024 The Gator Bites Back Facebook’s new “Link History” anti-feature reminds me of a very old data-siphoning trick: Create something of nominal value to convince consumers to give up the goods. We Beat The Machine We Beat The Machine January 2, 2024 We Beat The Machine The story of a 13-year-old gamer crashing the NES version of Tetris in a record-setting run is one of the best stories we have going right now.