March 3, 2024

7 Things This Week [#134]

A weekly list of interesting things I found on the internet, posted on Sundays. Sometimes themed, often not.


1️⃣ The perfect game doesn’t exis… [🔗 @rileytestut // threads.net]

2️⃣ David Letterman’s reactions to trying the Vision Pro had me grinning from start to finish. [🔗 Letterman // youtube.com]

3️⃣ Some leadership lessons derived from the (complicated) Steve Jobs. [🔗 Walter Issacson // hbr.org]

4️⃣ Some common sense (once you read them) rules for web design. [🔗 anthonyhobday.com]

5️⃣ Apps like this AR MIDI Widgets creator are exactly what I was hoping would get explored with Vision Pro. Such a clever use of anchoring settings to your wrist. Can’t wait to see more like this in action. [🔗 Geert Bevin // youtube.com]

6️⃣ I’ve always been frustrated by folks who talk shit about e-bikes and how they make you lazy”. Now there’s research that shows people riding e-bikes get more exercise than riding traditional ones. Anything that gets people more likely to get outside and moving is great in my book. [🔗 Micah Toll // electrek.co]

7️⃣ Are you an uphill person or a downhill person? (I’m uphill leaning, but I sure do love going down on skis too!) [🔗 @outsidemagazine // instagram.com]


52 Albums Project

Human by dodie (2019) — #9/52

So, I have a thing for stylistically stripped back music where lyrics take center stage and ear worm tunes. I can’t remember how I happened across dodie’s music, but it fell right in place with those preferences. I like to think of her as a bedroom creator, just noodling around on her songs, crafting them till their just right and recording without many frills. My imagination is probably all wrong from reality, but it’s how I like to picture this music coming to be.

Human is just a tight 23 minutes, but it’s one of my favorites and provides an excellent intro to dodie’s music. If you get to the end of the seven tracks yearning for more, well, you’re in for a treat. She has a number of EPs and singles, as well as another full album, waiting for you.

Follow along on the 52 Albums Project page where I’m making some playlists for you.


Take a Chance


Thanks for reading 7 Things. If you enjoyed these links or have something neat to share, please let me know. And remember that you can get more links to internet nuggets that I’m finding every day by following me @jarrod on the social web.

7 Things 52 Albums


February 29, 2024

30

I’ve been busy the last few days, so I’m taking advantage of this extra leap day that February has provided us to catch up on my annual birthday post.

The past few years, I’ve used my birthday as a chance to lay out a set of goals that I wanted to complete over the next year. It was aspirational, but ultimately a bit too New Year Resolution-y” and ended up being more of a stressor than a motivator. With 28 or so things to do in a year, that means accomplishing — checks math — one of those items every couple of weeks. Yikes. In reality, I hardly looked at the list until the end of December, and then scrambled over the next couple months to try to check a few more off. Yikes. Though I still like the idea, it wasn’t leaving me feeling good.

So I’m not gonna do that this year.

Instead, I’d like to reflect a little on my 30th year here on Earth, and ruminate a bit on where my life is headed. And I’ll probably make another list… but different. You’ll see.

My Thirtieth Year

As far as milestones are concerned, this past year was dominated by going through the process of finding and purchasing our first home, and, of course, moving in and making it our own. If I’m honest, I’m still not particularly thrilled about the whole thing, but it makes my wife very happy which is good enough for me. Someday I’ll tell the whole story of our journey into home ownership — in fact, I typed a large portion of it out just now, but this isn’t the right time for that tale.

I lost a few loved ones. I made new friends. I enjoyed my first full year of mountain guiding — a goal I’d been working toward for over a decade. I achieved climbing, running, and skiing goals that I’d set for myself. It was probably the most active year of my life.

I faced difficult conversations when I wasn’t doing my best in some relationships, but emerged stronger, more self-aware, and gained more humility from them.

But perhaps the best reflection going into my 30th birthday came from a question my wife posed to me on a walk just a few days ahead of her own 30th (just two days before mine): Did I feel good about going into my 30s or did I resent it?

It seems like there are a whole lot of people who resent turning 30. Maybe because it’s seen as leaving the last years of your youth behind? Maybe because it can be a wake up call if you’re not traveling along the path you imagined for yourself career or family-wise?

But not me. I have no regrets about my 20s, and feel very fortunate to say that I’m happy where I’ve landed so far. I’ve got a wonderful wife and little family with our fur babies. I’m working in the field that I want, and actually get to use what I studied in school. I’ve learned so much over the last decade about who I am, what I’m good at, and what I’m not. I’m living in a place that allows me to pursue climbing, running, skiing, hiking, and many other outdoor adventures. I have a place of my own to live, and some financial stability. I’m not left needing, only hungry to experience ever more.

I think my 30s will be my best decade yet.

The Next Decade

Alright, I promised you a list. Rather than stuff my calendar with more obligations each month, this year I’ve been thinking about a more measured and manageable approach to goal-setting.

This year, I’d like to lay out a set of 10 goals that I’d like to accomplish over the next decade. At just one per year, and with the option to readjust each birthday, I think I’ll be cause to stay on the bandwagon this time around.

Now, I did just put together my Impossible List just a few months ago, which serves a similarly purpose. But I’m thinking about this post as an opportunity to prioritize some items already present there. Let’s dig in.

  1. Start my own small business. The big one, and what I’m most anxious and excited to pursue this year. I’ve come to realize that I’m only truly happy and fulfilled when I get to call the shots. I’ve got ideas that I want to be able to implement without asking anyone’s permission. I want to be able to set my own schedule to allow more time for learning, training, and progressing, in addition to wanting the opportunity travel and spend more quality time with my wife. I’ve got both short-term and long-term plans/dreams that I think could work really well, and I’m eager to give them a shot. It’s my big leap.
  2. Climb in Yosemite National Park.
  3. Complete a thru-hike.
  4. Run a marathon.
  5. Visit a new country.
  6. Develop an app.
  7. Earn my AMGA Rock Guide certification.
  8. Establish annual trips with a few close friends and family.
  9. Reestablish an annual big backpacking trip with my wife.
  10. Write or guest write for a favorite blog.

The time has already begun. Wish me luck!


Previously: 27, 28, 29

Journal


February 25, 2024

7 Things (Which Are My HomeKit Tips) This Week [#133]

A weekly list of interesting things I found on the internet, posted on Sundays. Sometimes themed, often not.


1️⃣ It’s probably the hub’s fault that your devices aren’t responding. Try to purchase hubless lights and outlets instead.

2️⃣ You probably need more remotes/switches than you thought to replace/add physical controllers for the non-nerds in your household. This Wemo one works quite well and offers six different commands in a tiny footprint.

3️⃣ Setting up automations for when the first person arrives home (turn on lights, raise thermostat), and when the last person leaves (turn off lights, lower thermostat) are some of the most useful things you can set up and that everyone will appreciate.

4️⃣ Don’t overlook the Home widget. You can turn off the automatic feature where it guesses which devices you want to control in a given moment and instead set the eight-ish accessories/scenes that you want quick access to. Mine is full of the things I’d want to control first thing in the morning or last at night in bed.

5️⃣ I can’t stress enough how much it helps to ask your partner/housemates what they’d expect to happen when you say a phrase like Hey dingus, good morning”, or when you long press the bottom button on a remote/switch. They should have some say in how the devices react, and you’ll get more buy-in if things do what they expect.

6️⃣ I’ve been using indoor Nanoleaf lights in outdoor sconces throughout the very chilly winter weather here in upstate New York, and it’s been totally fine. Worth a shot rather than looking for outdoor-specific devices.

7️⃣ It’s expensive, but the physically wired HomeKit switches from Lutron have been so worthwhile and rock solid (even with the hub) for us. I wish I had a little more control over what happens when you press a button (maybe let me run a scene?), but having more lights, fans, and things be HomeKit addressable while still using the existing wiring for physical switches has been great.


52 Albums Project

Tarzan (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by Phil Collins & Mark Mancina (1999) — #8/52

My inner Disney child is showing, but the Tarzan (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) still rocks. I remember dancing around my room to these songs, pretending I was swinging from trees. In college, Trashin’ the Camp” (with *NSYNC?!) was a very common song to be heard being skat from my roommate’s and my dorm. Son of Man” still gets the blood pumping, and You’ll Be in My Heart” still brings out the tenderness.

Phil Collins, man, he made a great soundtrack.

Follow along on the 52 Albums Project page where I’m making some playlists for you.


Take a Chance


Thanks for reading 7 Things. If you enjoyed these links or have something neat to share, please let me know. And remember that you can get more links to internet nuggets that I’m finding every day by following me @jarrod on the social web.

7 Things 52 Albums Tips


February 25, 2024

Crashing Clockwise #541: ‘Peripherereral Free’

In which I turn one of my favorite podcasts into blogging fodder each week.

The tech podcast where we’d like you to be our valentine.”

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Dan Moren: How many peripherals do you usually have connected to your computer?

Well, let’s take a look! I’ve got my monitor, a 3-in-1 cable that usually connects my mechanical keyboard (but that often gets used to charge things or connect the occasional other gadget), an external SSD for Time Machine backups, a webcam, and an old HyperDrive hub dock thing that is also a Qi charger (it’s kinda flakey, but gets the job done for how little I use it and was a cool Kickstarter project at the time). Wirelessly, I’ve got a Magic Mouse, a Magic Trackpad, and a HomePod mini stereo pair that I’ve routed music and stuff to play through from my Mac mini.

So, eight. Eight peripherals.

(Links for items can be found on my gear page.)

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Lex Friedman: What is your tech setup when watching TV or movies — meaning what do you watch it on, and what are you doing while you watch?

If we’re talking specifically about TV or movies, the vast majority of my watching happens on our main television. It’s an LG 55-inch C9 4K OLED from a few years ago which looks great and sounds great through our Sonos Beam/One surround setup with it. I typically watch shows with my wife while eating dinner, and I don’t do a whole bunch of TV time otherwise. That’s beginning to change now with my Vision Pro, which I bought partially to have another nice large screen to watch stuff on while my wife plays games on the TV.

Sometimes I watch things on an iPad, but that’s usually just YouTube.

As for what I’m doing while I watch TV or movies — well, usually nothing else! I’m easily distracted by the TV, which is good since when I make time to watch something, I want to catch all of it. If I’m not super into the show, maybe I’ll poke around on my phone, but that’s not very often. Unless, of course, it’s to figure out where I’ve seen that actor before using Callsheet.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Mikah Sargent: Which do you prefer, voice dictation or hand typing as input for messaging?

I think of my text conversations as private, so I rarely feel comfortable dictating a message out loud around other people. So 98% of my messages are typed by hand (or thumb). But I will say that I’ve made a conscious effort to try dictation more often because I know it’s gotten better and can be much faster in some contexts. Audio messages are another thing I’d like to try more.

Oh, and I suppose I dictate fairly often to messages with CarPlay, so there’s that.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Kathy Campbell: Have you worn an Apple Vision Pro out in public, or have you seen them?

Nope, and nope. The closest I’ve come is bringing it to work and wearing it during my lunch hour, which I spend alone most days. And even then I felt so self-conscious that it was hard to enjoy the experience. I think it’s going to be a home computer for now, and perhaps a travel one where I’m only around strangers and don’t care what they think.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Bonus Topic: Do you have any Valentine’s Day traditions?

The only thing that springs to mind is the typical dinner date with my wife. This year I even managed to call in a reservation nearly four weeks(!) in advance. I guess you could call our usual discussion about how we feel our relationship is doing, where it’s been, and where it’s going as traditional as well.

I saw a video somewhere of an older couple hanging out in a convenience store together looking through all the greeting cards in stock, choosing the best one, giving” to their partner, and then putting them back without purchasing anything. That seems kind of fun, and might suggest it to my wife for next year.

⏰⏰⏰

Overtime Topic: Where do you want to take the human out of the equation, like driverless cars?

I’m going to have to go with house cleaning, but the real kind, not just a Roomba. I’m super uncomfortable with the idea of inviting someone into my home to clean up my messes for me, but I’d be very happy with a dexterous and capable robot that could get the job done.

🙋‍♂️🙋‍♂️🙋‍♂️

My Question for Readers: Is there any particular creator online that you’ve recently started supporting that you want to share with the world?

I’ll give a shoutout to Matt Birchler of birchtree.me who spun up a membership (More Birchtree) to his website. Matt has the sort of site I aspire to, with regular posts about a wide range of interests. Sure, he’s got his hot takes, but it’s more common for Matt to share a measured, well-reasoned perspective about what’s going on in the technosphere, and to do so with kindness and empathy.

That, the longevity of his blog, how much value I’ve gotten out of reading his writing, and the accompanying high-quality (and quick) YouTube videos all made me happy to shell out a few bucks per month to help him keep things going and show my support for the effort he puts into his site.

Crashing Clockwise Podcasts


February 18, 2024

7 Things This Week [#132]

A weekly list of interesting things I found on the internet, posted on Sundays. Sometimes themed, often not.


1️⃣ If you, like me, are more into Superb Owls than Super Bowls then The Atlantic has you covered. Might be my favorite webpage of the year. 😁 [🔗 Alan Taylor // theatlantic.com]

2️⃣ I’m a fan of these little montages from their shows and films that Apple TV puts together around special events and holidays. This one was pretty cute for Valentine’s Day. [🔗 Apple TV // youtube.com]

3️⃣ I’ve filed away this who vs. whom rule of thumb. Can’t believe I’d never heard it before! [🔗 Mike Crittenden // critter.blog]

4️⃣ It’s so easy to lose time in Vision Pro. This might help. [🔗 @sindresorhus // mastodon.social]

5️⃣ If you’re a climber, you might be interested in the newest contender to the GriGri, the Ederid Pinch. This (long) video is a discussion of the design decisions and prototyping done over five years to bring it to market. I found it fascinating! [🔗 EDELRID // youtube.com]

6️⃣ I’ve started a 30-day yoga challenge using Yoga with Adriene’s YouTube videos (link is the playlist). So far so good. Anyone want to join me? [▶️ Yoga with Adriene // youtube.com]

7️⃣ I just got home from watching a showing of the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour here in Lake Placid, and WOW! I watch a lot of mountain sports-related video content, but I was impressed by the breadth, quality, and themes of this year’s film lineup. It wasn’t the usual suspects. You can check out some of their stuff on demand if you want a taste. [▶️ Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity // banffcentre.ca]


52 Albums Project

The Good Witch by Maisie Peters (2023) — #7/52

Get to know Maisie Peters because she’s the real deal. I first came across her music as a guest artist in season one of Trying on Apple TV+ (excellent show, by the way) and then I guess they liked her so much that she was contracted to write the entire soundtrack for season two. She’s also been an Apple Music Up Next artist, and has been putting out studio albums as well. The Good Witch is her latest one. She’s signed on by Gingerbread Man Records (headed up by Ed Sheeran) and just seems to be having the time of her life.

She’s building mastery of lyrics in a Taylor Swift-esque style, I’d say, which is a huge compliment in my books. Her music can be raw and heartbreaking one moment, and party-pop fun the next. Like I said, keep an eye on her.

Follow along on the 52 Albums Project page where I’m making some playlists for you.


Take a Chance


Thanks for reading 7 Things. If you enjoyed these links or have something neat to share, please let me know. And remember that you can get more links to internet nuggets that I’m finding every day by following me @jarrod on the social web.

7 Things 52 Albums


February 16, 2024

Apple Return Policy PSA

PSA for folks looking to get the most out of a generous return period/policy:1

From Apple, you get two weeks before you need to initiate the return. And then, in my experience, another two weeks before it needs to be shipped with their free return label. I initiated a return on February 15 for something delivered on the 2nd, but it just needs to get to FedEx by the 29th. Nearly a full month for you to try it out. And plenty of time for me to see if this way cheaper Vision Pro case as recommended by MacStories can beat out the Apple one, which I don’t love only because it’s massive.


  1. Which, by the way, I have no qualms with. If they didn’t want people to use it, or want to stand behind it, they wouldn’t offer it! Both Amazon’s and Apple’s winter holiday return policies get liberal use in this household.↩︎

Tips


February 16, 2024

So Much To Do

It’s already been a pretty full day that started at 5AM this morning, but I have a bit of free time this afternoon before ice skating and dinner with friends. Lately, when these precious unscheduled hours present themselves, I face paralysis of choice in deciding how to fill them.

I could…

Read and nap. (Meaning I start reading with the intent of falling asleep, but will inevitably never put my iPad down).

Actually take a much-needed nap.

Write something for my blog.

Work on the design of my blog.

Research and book lodging for an upcoming trip.

Clear out a few low-energy tasks on my to-do list.

Watch an episode of TV or a movie that’s on my backlog.

Clean up the house.

Fix a bunch of HomeKit devices that stopped working a few weeks ago and that’s super annoying to deal with on a daily basis.

Research startup costs for a business I’d like to start.

Do some yoga/stretches that my body would desperately enjoy.

Catch up on my social media timeline.

Get lost in Instagram Reels. (NO!)

Catch up with friends or family.

Play with my Vision Pro.

Send some photos to shared albums that I usually do every month, but have fallen embarrassingly behind on.

Log my climbing days so they’re ready to submit for my guiding license.

Tinker with an RSS feed idea I just had in the shower.

Publish some shortcuts that I’ve been sitting on.

Answer emails and clear out that inbox.

…and you better believe that I could go on.

But which?

Sure, there are some things on this list that immediately get cast aside, but most of them feel equally important or appealing. All of them would bring me a sense of accomplishment, and I want to do them all. But time is limited.

I can’t say that I’m good at this, but one method I turn to in order to get something done is determine which task will bring the longest benefit with the least effort. You could imagine an X/Y-axis graph in which the horizontal X-axis is the task’s long-term benefit, and the vertical y-axis is time or effort it takes to do it. I gravitate toward the tasks that are pretty low vertically, but way off to the right horizontally.

A hand-drawn graph with axes labeled “Time/Effort to complete” and “Long-term benefit,” with five points labeled with various comments such as “Good, I guess. It’s the middle.” and “Best, I love you.”
Jarrod’s patented (not patented) Task Prioritization Graph.

I recognize that this is just basic prioritizing but, man, prioritizing can be difficult.

But really, which?

Obviously, I chose to write a blog post. And no, it doesn’t meet the criteria that I just explained above. I did tell you that I’m not very good at it. But it’s been a while since I’ve done a regular” blog post, and I guess I felt that I was neglecting it — meaning that in a weird way I felt like I was neglecting that part of me.

But let’s prioritize a few tasks that I can do with the hour or some that I have left:

  1. Write something for my blog.
  2. Fix a bunch of HomeKit devices. (Will make my wife happy, which bumps it way up.)
  3. Log my climbing days for my guiding license résumé. (I take an exam next week, and I want the paperwork to be ready to submit ASAP since it will unlock more guiding opportunities for the winter.)
  4. Tinker with an RSS idea. (Will automate part of my posting process that will save me a few minutes with every new blog post., and I think it’ll be quick to do.1)
  5. Research lodging for my trip. (It’s not urgent, per se, but it is on a countdown and needs to get done sooner rather than later.)

Wish me luck.


  1. Famous last words.↩︎

Journal


February 13, 2024

Crashing Clockwise #540: ‘I Did Something Bad’

The tech podcast that runs at 30 frames per second.”

Audio narration generated using Shortcuts.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Mikah Sargent: Tell me about one or two of your favorite PC or Mac apps that you really enjoy.

Well, I always like giving shoutouts to my favorite apps, so I appreciate this question. Since I’m sure you already know about my mainstays like Things and Drafts, I’d like to pitch one of the menu bar apps that I really like. Dropzone 4 lives in the menu bar and expands out into a drop zone” as you drag items near it. It’s part Yoink in that it gives you a place to temporarily drop stuff like photos and files while you figure out where they need to go next (without clogging up your desktop). But it’s also partly a triage mechanism because you drop items directly into folders or apps or shortcuts that you’ve pinned into the zone. And finally, it’s part Shortcuts because you can also pin actions in Dropzone. You can drop a file or link onto actions like Install Application”, Shorten Link”, or Zip Files” to have things just happen.

It’s super handy and can be gotten directly from the developer’s website, on the Mac App Store, or from Setapp.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Aleen Simms: What are your favorite apps for taking, editing, and/or sharing photos on your mobile touch-based devices?

I wish I were a better photographer, but I’m not willing (yet) to put in the effort to become one. So for now, I basically just shoot with the stock camera app on my iPhone and I hardly ever edit my pics more than the occasional crop job.

I do have and pay for Halide, specifically so that I can use their Macro Photography mode with my iPhone 13 mini. But I use even that feature less than a handful of times each year.

As for sharing photos, that’s usually done through my microblog and Instagram — although these days those two destinations are closer than ever because I’ve set up a Make.com automation to crosspost anything I share to Instagram as a new microblog post. So everything I send to Instagram also ends up on my own website and is available to see via Mastodon.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Dan Moren: Do you think Vision Pro Personas are acceptable or ever will be acceptable?

When it comes to Personas, I recognize that they’re not perfect but I’ll be damned if they’re not incredible. The fact that you can create an astonishingly accurate 3D version of your face and torso with barely two minutes of scanning and processing is frankly amazing. And I don’t think they look as weird as other people seem to. If you’re the only Persona in a big meeting room full of normal camera views, sure, you’re going to stand out. But for one-on-one video calls or especially Persona-to-Persona calls, I think they’re pretty great.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Ant Pruitt: With Bluesky being open to anyone, do you even care with all the other social media platforms out there? Does Bluesky have a chance?

In two words, not really. I’ve had a Bluesky account for several months and do crosspost to it via my Micro.blog account. So you could say that I’m a fairly active poster on Bluesky. But I never browse my timeline there and only interact with the platform if I get a reply there.

Their AT protocol sounds interesting, and I’ve heard that it would be a technically better protocol than ActivityPub for many of the federated use cases out there, but I think they were too slow to catch the post-Twitter bandwagon — which is too bad because they were already in motion long before Elon Musk took over there.

⏱️⏱️⏱️

Bonus Topic: What is your favorite board game or card game?

If you asked me this growing up, it would undoubtedly have been Parcheesi — a game that taught me that grandmas can be ruthless, even to their grandchildren. Many laughs and frustrations were had around the dinner table due to that game.

But in recent years, my go-to board game has been Ticket to Ride. The objective is to build train routes that connect the cities you’re dealt. But there are limited resources and a certain amount of luck involved. I love that it can be slow-paced, allowing for conversation while you play. Also, you’re kind of doing your own thing, and only occasionally crossing paths with the other players — at least until the end of the game is sneaking up and available track options are limited. The tension builds throughout the game as you desperately hope no one will build their track in the critical spot you need.

⏰⏰⏰

Overtime Topic: Is there a way in which you use technology to prevent yourself from messing something up?

Oh man, there are plenty! Between shortcuts and Drafts templates, I’ve got a lot of little tricks that help me format things just right. I’m also a big proponent of using the Remind me to do this when I leave work” phrase with Siri to make sure timely or location-dependent tasks don’t get forgotten.

But perhaps my favorite automation in this regard is the one that controls all our smart home devices like lights, fans, and thermostat to go into their away-from-home or arriving-home states based on when the first person gets home or the last person leaves our house. It’s so handy to know that I can just walk out the door and we won’t waste electricity, heat, or money.

🙋‍♂️🙋‍♂️🙋‍♂️

My Question for Readers: What’s your favorite charging gadget?

For me, I might have to go with the MagSafe Duo charging pad. I know it hasn’t received much love from the press and Apple has actually discontinued it, but I think it’s fantastic. It folds up smaller, flatter, and lighter than any other similar product out there, and needs just one lightning cable. Plus, it looks great! Mine lives on my bedside table but gets taken along for any trips too.

Crashing Clockwise Podcasts


February 11, 2024

7 Things This Week [#131]

A weekly list of interesting things I found on the internet, posted on Sundays. Sometimes themed, often not.


1️⃣ iFixit’s tear down of the Vision Pro is really something. So much tech packed into a really small space. [🔗 Charlie Sorrel // ifixit.com]

2️⃣ Spoiler, but wow, I really did not see Internet Explorer coming as the brand behind this ad. It’s great! [🔗 internetexplorer // youtube.com] (Via Matt Mullenweg)

3️⃣ This site is a collection of poems written by AI based on The New York Times headlines of the day. [🔗 newspoetry.kaplich.me]

4️⃣ I really kind of dig tiny internet experiments like how Adam Newbold has hooked up his status site to convey all the information within each one’s URL. [🔗 notes.neatnik.net]

5️⃣ For the App Defaults trend, Jason made a playlist of the apps he uses, rather than the traditional blog post. Yes, you read that correctly. [🔗 music.apple.com]

6️⃣ The Deadpool movies are always a treat, and this new one looks to be no different. Except that it could change everything, again? [▶️ Ryan Reynolds // youtube.com]

7️⃣ I used to be pretty against tattoos in general, and never wanted one myself. Now I love seeing how people express themselves through the ink they put into their skin. Cory’s post about the meaning behind each of his body artworks made them even more appealing. [🔗 Cory Dransfeldt // coryd.dev]


52 Albums Project

1989 (Taylor’s Version) [Deluxe] by Taylor Swift (2023) — #6/52

In honor of the Taylor Bowl — er, I mean Super Bowl — today, I thought I’d highlight a Taylor Swift album. 1989 isn’t my favorite of her records, but I do come back to it often. Blank Space” is the quintessential track, for sure, but the whole thing has a great vibe and it’s what I turned to this evening.

Follow along on the 52 Albums Project page where I’m making some playlists for you.


Take a Chance


Thanks for reading 7 Things. If you enjoyed these links or have something neat to share, please let me know. And remember that you can get more links to internet nuggets that I’m finding every day by following me @jarrod on the social web.

7 Things 52 Albums


February 7, 2024

Crashing Clockwise #539: ‘You Folks Need Some Help’

Another week, another (belated) edition of Crashing Clockwise!

Audio narration generated using Shortcuts.

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Dan Moren: Do you feel that the changes that Apple laid out to comply with the EUs Digital Markets Act are meaningful, or rather a poison pill” to keep things as the status quo.

I think that Apple is doing the thing that we should have all expected them to do, which is to follow as closely to the letter of the law while still maintaining what they think is the best experience for their users and what makes them most profitable. Toeing that line while balancing those objectives is, I expect, quite tricky, but that’s why their lawyers and executives are paid handsomely.

I think that their proposed changes will are perhaps the warning tremors for bigger, more global changes in the years ahead, even if they’re not very palatable or accessible to most developers right now.

I also think that by sticking to the letter of the law rather than the spirit of it, they are continuing to erode goodwill from their developer community, which I think is the worst part of this whole thing. Apple is gaining a reputation of being developer-hostile, and that will be very difficult to shed if and when they wake up to that reality — something that they seem unwilling or unable to do.

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Allison Sheridan: Have you gotten into the portable monitor craze?

This is an easy one: No, I haven’t! The idea of carrying around a laptop-sized screen to supplement a laptop doesn’t seem like a valuable use of space or weight. That said, when I had a MacBook I would sometimes use my iPad in Sidecar mode to be an external display, but at least the iPad was functional in other ways so it never felt like a waste.

Using my Vision Pro as a display for my Mac is definitely something I’m interested in doing, but since I only have a desktop Mac… the utility as a portable display will be limited. Plus, the peripherals need to be able to connect to the Mac, so my dream of using” my upstairs Mac mini through the Vision Pro while seated on my downstairs couch is limited by the Bluetooth range of my keyboard and trackpad.

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Mikah Sargent: What browser or browsers are you using, and are they consistent between your desktop and mobile devices?

I’ve been a Safari-only guy for many, many years. I rarely feel any need to try other browsers when Safari works so well for me. But if I run into a situation where I need an Chromium-based1 alternative browser, I’ll fire up Firefox. That was the browser I used back in my Windows days, and it’s a worthy choice to this day. Their web inspector view is excellent, so I’ll sometimes use that when I’m troubleshooting my site or researching the blueprint of other people’s sites.

I have tried Arc a couple of times, but it’s never stuck for longer than an afternoon. The classic design and UX of browsers are so ingrained, that I feel really out of place using their sidebar-oriented design.

Oh, and I guess I technically use Chrome and Firefox regularly at work where I’m stuck on Windows desktops. But for my devices, whether I’m mobile or otherwise, it’s typically all Safari, all the time.

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John Voorhees: How are you managing links these days?

Oh boy, what a rabbit hole we could go down here. Right now, my read-later links go to Pocket. My watch-later links go to Play. My listen-later links go to MusicBox. My reference-later links go to Raindrop. My write-later links go to Drafts. And my Take a Chance’ links go to GoodLinks.

How they are routed to their resting places is accomplished through a series of shortcuts or extensions.

It sounds like a lot of complexity, but it works for me.

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Bonus Topic: If you were stuck in a time loop, what is the first skill or task that you would devote yourself to learning?

My first instinct was to say learning American Sign Language, which is the language I would most like to know. But then Allison’s and Mikah’s answer of learning to code as a programmer also struck a chord. I might have to go with that as well because I have many app ideas, but not the skill to create them. Yet.

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Overtime Topic: Besides your computer, of course including external monitors attached to it, what piece of tech can you not live without that is on your desk at this very moment?

I think I’d have to go with my Magic Mouse. I’ve tried other mice and trackpads, but the Magic Mouse’s shape and unique touch gestures work so well for my hands on my Mac. I think everything else on the desk — monitor, lamp, keyboard, chargers — could be replaced without much consternation, but the Magic Mouse is the one true mouse for me.


  1. Turns out Firefox isn’t based on Chromium. Who knew? Not me! Thanks Robert.↩︎

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