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Ben Evans: You can put the old ecosystem on the new form factor. You'll probably sell some of them. But is that the future, or is it a new Chevy Camaro or Mustang – a product that your existing fanbase loves but that ignores the Teslas and self-driving cars on the way?
Ben Evans:
You can put the old ecosystem on the new form factor. You'll probably sell some of them. But is that the future, or is it a new Chevy Camaro or Mustang – a product that your existing fanbase loves but that ignores the Teslas and self-driving cars on the way?
Backlighting desks just looks really cool with a nice space themed wallpaper to go with it.
One thing I have always thought to be an important part of a good office and desk setup is the lighting. It need not be bright, but it needs to set the right mood and feel for your work.
To that end, I’ve always loved backlighting my computer. Not only does it look cool, I think it helps me focus better on my work. Because of this preference most desk lamps simply won’t work for me. They typically don’t backlight well, and the space they take up on the desk drives me insane.
Speaking of Tom Bihn bags, look at the pains they go through testing back panel fabrics: In an effort to better understand what we were experiencing, Tom’s longtime friend Robert Swarner (sculptor, helicopter pilot, product designer, big wall climber and machinist) came up with a device that’d allow us to scientifically evaluate the effectiveness of…
Speaking of Tom Bihn bags, look at the pains they go through testing back panel fabrics:
In an effort to better understand what we were experiencing, Tom’s longtime friend Robert Swarner (sculptor, helicopter pilot, product designer, big wall climber and machinist) came up with a device that’d allow us to scientifically evaluate the effectiveness of Dri-Lex® Aero-Spacer® mesh. Tom and Robert modified a Synapse and equipped it with Robert’s mobile heat sensors and data recording device, which we named The Swarner 5000 Datalogger. The Synapse had a back panel split down the center vertically: one half was spacer mesh and the other half was 1050 Ballistic (both sides were padded with closed-cell foam). Over the course of the last year, we’ve used this special Synapse on day hikes long and short, on hot summer days and cooler winter ones, and usually on hikes with big elevation gains.
It’s the backpack you can pack in your luggage without people thinking your are weird. Kind of…
I looked through the archives yesterday and realized I never did a full review in the Daylight Backpack from Tom Bihn. All I wrote was a few poorly worded sentences on it, as part of a larger review. Which is a shame, and a mistake I want to correct now — because the Daylight Backpack is worthy of its own review.
The Daylight Backpack is an extremely simple bag, void of all padding, rigidity, and fanciness. It is a floppy mess of a bag when it is empty — which is perfect because it means you can easily stow it away when it is empty.
Great read on what goes into making a tvOS game.
Great read on what goes into making a tvOS game.
The Economist: On Oct. 31, 2015, one of economist.com’s vendors, PageFair, was hacked. If you visited economist.com at any time between Oct. 31, 23:52 GMT and 01:15 GMT, Nov. 1, using Windows OS and you do not have trusted anti-virus software installed, it is possible that malware, disguised as an Adobe update, was downloaded onto…
The Economist:
On Oct. 31, 2015, one of economist.com’s vendors, PageFair, was hacked. If you visited economist.com at any time between Oct. 31, 23:52 GMT and 01:15 GMT, Nov. 1, using Windows OS and you do not have trusted anti-virus software installed, it is possible that malware, disguised as an Adobe update, was downloaded onto your PC.
According to Twitter, PageFair is an anti-adblocker. Those fuckers.
This might be the ugliest router on the market, but it is named Nighthawk.
We moved into our house back in 2012, and one of my first tasks was getting the WiFi network established. I did it with a single Time Capsule, roughly centered in the house. But there was a bit of a dead spot in our bedroom, so I added in an Airport Express as a wireless repeater. I didn’t need much speed, just coverage at the time.
Then I started working from home, and speed became a thing I needed to worry about. I upgraded to an Airport Extreme with 802.11ac wireless. This upgrade helped, but I still was having a hell of a time getting video chats and Skype to work reliably — crucial for my job — so I needed a solution.
The solution I devised, was to route Ethernet from the AirPort Extreme to our bedroom (where my office was) and have the AirPort Express extend the network from a gigabit connection to the AirPort Extreme. That was a hassle but worked fine. I lost a lot of network speed in the process though. When connected to the AirPort Express I topped out at 28 Mbps on any device, but on the Extreme I would be at 60 Mbps, which was the max speed of my Internet connection.
Red, white, and blue for the win?
Like most people, when I ordered my Apple Watch, I had no clue what to expect from it. Because of this, I really didn’t want to spend a ton of money on it and accessories. So I ordered the 42mm Sport with the white band and left it at that. I chose white because I thought it looked pretty sharp, and I stayed with the white band for quite some time, but before WWDC I ordered the Brown Leather Loop to try out.
And then, with the launch of some new colors recently, I picked up the Red and Midnight Blue sport bands. While the Leather Loop never really worked for me, the sport bands do. Having more options for Sport Bands at my disposal, I have really started enjoying changing around the looks of the Apple Watch.
If you own an Apple Watch, then I really think you should own a few extra bands for it.
There's at least one John who wears his Apple Watch everyday.
There's at least one John who wears his Apple Watch everyday.
Holy big bag Batman.
Note: Tom Bihn sent me the Yeoman Duffel bag for review purposes. No agreements were made as to what that review may or may not look like, as is my standard practice I retain full editorial control.
I’ve always liked the idea of big duffel bags, or duffel bags in general, as there is something about the look of them that draws me in. Something about the idea of just throwing everything in that huge expanse, zipping it shut and heading off. Perhaps it is because I travel minimally and pack tightly and neatly in very small bags, that the idea of having copious amounts of space in which to pack seems like freedom.
I’m not sure.
I do have a small, classic looking, duffel bag which I have been using for years on weekend getaways. I transitioned it to be the bag for Sloane’s travel stuff when she was born, but with two kids it has become way too small.
George Monbiot: Fire is raging across the 5,000km length of Indonesia. It is surely, on any objective assessment, more important than anything else taking place today. And it shouldn’t require a columnist, writing in the middle of a newspaper, to say so. It should be on everyone’s front page. It is hard to convey the…
George Monbiot:
Fire is raging across the 5,000km length of Indonesia. It is surely, on any objective assessment, more important than anything else taking place today. And it shouldn’t require a columnist, writing in the middle of a newspaper, to say so. It should be on everyone’s front page. It is hard to convey the scale of this inferno, but here’s a comparison that might help: it is currently producing more carbon dioxide than the US economy. And in three weeks the fires have released more CO2 than the annual emissions of Germany.
Holy shit.
“Saving you time since I figured this out.”
Often I start reading an article which I saved to read later, and I think “yeah this is good stuff, I know it all, but it’s good stuff” and then I stop.
Why am I still reading this?
Who am I reading this for?
For crying out loud Apple, figure out where in my house I am, so we can get some shit done.
A few nights ago I sat down on my couch — the chaise lounge section of course — and got ready to start watching some TV. But the far lamp in our living room was turned on and from the spot I was sitting in that lamp casts a glare on the TV.
So it must be turned off.
CGP Grey: I’m taking this month to dial the volume down. But the problem is more difficult than it used to be. I'm having to do similar things as it will be the only way I can meet the crazy goals I set for myself this month.
CGP Grey:
I’m taking this month to dial the volume down. But the problem is more difficult than it used to be.
I'm having to do similar things as it will be the only way I can meet the crazy goals I set for myself this month.
That stupid thing I do where I compare computer electronics to cars, and everyone disagrees.
Since we finally have a new keyboard out from Apple, it is high time we look at what keyboard options there are. Since Keyboards map well to cars I think it is best to look at the in this vein. People tend to care a lot about their car, or not at all, and for the small group that resides somewhere in the middle: they tend to only know what cars they do not like. It is in that sense that I think keyboards fall into the same relationship with people, as do cars.
Most people probably don’t care about their keyboard.
And those that do care, typically care deeply.
There is the same small group as with cars, who just know what they do not like in their keyboard.
Does it bug anyone else that there are two lowercase letters between W and M, instead of just one?
I’ve known about NaNoWriMo for years, but the thing is: 50,000. That’s a big number, like almost an insurmountable number. I’ve never felt like I wanted to participate, but I always was impressed with those who did manage to at least try.
So this year I am going to do it.
But I’m not writing a novel.
Here's another app from a co-worker (lots this week). It's tvOS / iOS and is a nice little countdown to Christmas.
Here's another app from a co-worker (lots this week). It's tvOS / iOS and is a nice little countdown to Christmas.
Another app from a co-worker. That link? Yeah it won't work. Why? Because you can't link to tvOS only apps. Clever right? grumbles It's a tic tac toe game, and to find it you search for: “Tac-tics”.
Another app from a co-worker. That link? Yeah it won't work. Why? Because you can't link to tvOS only apps. Clever right? grumbles
It's a tic tac toe game, and to find it you search for: “Tac-tics”.
David Sparks: I think the case for a Magic Trackpad 2 upgrade is stronger than it is the Magic Keyboard. The bigger size and easier click at the top are compelling and while Force Touch isn’t all that just yet, I suspect it eventually will be. Funny that the selling points for both devices is…
David Sparks:
I think the case for a Magic Trackpad 2 upgrade is stronger than it is the Magic Keyboard. The bigger size and easier click at the top are compelling and while Force Touch isn’t all that just yet, I suspect it eventually will be.
Funny that the selling points for both devices is in part their size. Except it is the keyboard getting smaller and the trackpad getting larger. Goes to show just how important touch controls are becoming, even on a Mac.
Great tvOS game by my co-worker Alex Repty.
Great tvOS game by my co-worker Alex Repty.