Skip to main content
 

Build Great Software By Repeatedly Encountering It

This is really important, and why we talk about "eating your own dogfood". If you don't use what you build, you can't build anything great.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

EV charging infrastruture is a joke – Brad Barrish

Non-Tesla EV charging infrastructure is awful. It's good that Tesla has opened the standard, but it's not good that the only really viable charging infrastructure is owned by one company. It needs to be fixed.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Notion web Clipper - Klippper

I'm a heavy Notion web clipper user, but this is far better for my needs. I was worried I'd need to build it myself. Luckily: no!

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

The #ViewSource Affordance

I strongly agree with this. "View source" has been an important part of the culture of the web since the beginning. Obfuscating that source or removing the option does damage to its underlying principles and makes the web a worse place. I like the comparison to the enclosure movement, which seems apt.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Mastodon 4.2

Lots of good new changes here - and in particular a much-needed search overhaul. My private instance is running the latest and I like it a lot.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Online Safety Bill: Crackdown on harmful social media content agreed

This is a horrendous bill that is designed to encourage self-censorship, including around topics like "illegal immigration", as well as vastly deepen surveillance on internet users. And Britain passing it will likely embolden other nations to try the same.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

A (more) Modern CSS Reset

I particularly valued the explanations here. I spend less time coding these days - I can go weeks without writing a line - and I’m determined to keep my skills up.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Nobody Will Tell You the Ugly Reason Apple Acquired a Classical Music Label

Makes complete sense: if you're charging a monthly subscription to access music, directing users to royalty-free music instead of other recordings will improve your margins. It doesn't say great things for classical music revenue in the future, though.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

David Golumbia, 1963–2023

Sad to hear that David Golumbia died. If you’re unfamiliar with The Politics of Bitcoin and you’re in tech, it’s a must-read.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

WordPress blogs can now be followed in the fediverse, including Mastodon

I'd prefer if this was default WordPress functionality - but the big lede is buried here. Hosted WordPress sites are getting fediverse compatibility. That's a huge deal.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Finishing With Twitter/X

Who at the intersection of tech and politics is still posting on Twitter? And should they be? A good breakdown.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Unity has changed its pricing model, and game developers are pissed off

As with API pricing changes across social media, these tiers disproportionately penalize indie developers. The message is clear: they don't want or need those customers. In a tighter economy, much of technology is re-organizing around serving bigger, wealthier players.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Microsoft announces new Copilot Copyright Commitment for customers

“As customers ask whether they can use Microsoft’s Copilot services and the output they generate without worrying about copyright claims, we are providing a straightforward answer: yes, you can, and if you are challenged on copyright grounds, we will assume responsibility for the potential legal risks involved.”

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Silicon Valley's Slaughterhouse

“Andreessen wasn’t advocating for a tech industry that accelerates the development of the human race, or elevates the human condition. He wanted to (and succeeded in creating) a Silicon Valley that builds technology that can, and I quote, “eat markets far larger than the technology industry has historically been able to pursue.””

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Google vet wants to turn your hot water heater into a "virtual power plant"

I really need this for my home, and I suspect my entire region needs it. This could do a lot of good and be the start of something much bigger using virtual power plants as a platform.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

It’s Official: Cars Are the Worst Product Category We Have Ever Reviewed for Privacy

Every modern car brand abuses your personal information. 84% sell your data (including where you go and when). 56% will share it with law enforcement without a warrant. And none of them have demonstrably adequate security.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Tucson's Molly Holzschlag, known as 'the fairy godmother of the web,' dead at 60

Rest in peace, Molly. We've lost one of the really good people who made the web better.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

In Europe, a regulatory vise tightens around big tech

Good overview. I think European tech regulations have been broadly good, establishing the anti-competitive and pro-privacy rules that US legislators have failed to enact. If we could only all be so protected.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Educational Sensational Inspirational Foundational

A really great list of foundational and/or influential writing about how to build the web, starting with Tim Berners-Lee's Cool URIs Don't Change post from 1998.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Web Scraping for Me, But Not for Thee

Good commentary on the dissonance between vendors like Microsoft banning scraping of their platforms while simultaneously releasing products that depend on scraping other peoples' data. Some sort of commons agreement would go a long way here, but it won't happen while platforms can get away with this one-sided relationship.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Introducing the 100-Year Plan: Secure Your Online Legacy for a Century

I'd love to understand what prompted Automattic to offer a hosting plan for $38K. On one level, I love it - it lasts for 100 years! and I love Automattic! - but I can't justify this, and I'm not quite sure who it's for? If this is marketing, what are the goals?

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

Changes to UK Surveillance Regime May Violate International Law

The UK seems to want to break international law to retain its ability to mass surveil by forcing software vendors to break their protections for users everywhere. It's an anti-democratic approach that puts journalists and vulnerable populations at risk. It also counter-productively undermines the UK's own technology sector.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

'We're Winning': Apple Formally Endorses Right to Repair Legislation After Spending Millions Fighting It

I'm a little bit suspicious that Apple is suddenly into right-to-repair, but broadly this is good. I just wish it was a nationwide law instead of one that is limited to California. Hopefully the idea can expand to the federal level.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

404 Media

A new, independent, worker-owned venture by ex-Motherboard journalists. I'm a subscriber.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post

 

The Secret Weapon Hackers Can Use to Dox Nearly Anyone in America for $15

It costs $15 to uncover an American's personally identifiable information illegally for potentially violent purposes. But also consider the number of entities that have access to this information legally, without any oversight. None of it should be allowable.

[Link]

· Links · Share this post