Recent Articles

[Heml.is][1]:

> Normally security results in a complex and unfriendly user experience. It should not be that way. Heml.is is a messenger for everyone so we are dedicated to create the most user friendly messenger ever.

They are 88% funded, go back them for easy to use, but secure, messaging.

[1]: https://heml.is/

[Ben Crair][1]:

> What’s new is the entry of the medical establishment into the debate on the side of the standers, lending their preference an annoying air of moral superiority. The years the standers gain in longevity, though, are offset by lost pride: Is there a better symbol of corporate obeisance than the standing desk? Set aside writers for a moment, whose work routines are relatively idiosyncratic. Of course the long, stationary workdays of most Americans are unhealthy. The solution should not be to sit less, but to work less.

I’ve been standing for a long time now, but to be honest with you, whenever I read an article about this stuff I cannot finish the article unless I sit down. Talking about sitting reminds me of how good sitting feels, my body aches and pangs for me to sit, so I sit.

And when I finish reading I stand back up, my body feels fine once again, and so I get on with my moral superiority.

[1]: http://www.newrepublic.com/article/113790/geoff-dyer-zoe-heller-gary-shteyngart-sitting-vs-standing-desks%23

[Bruce Kennedy for MSN Money][1]:

> But Starbucks and small, independent coffeehouses alike now have growing concerns about the large number of customers who camp out for hours at their tables. These “laptop hobos” are working, surfing the Web, using the shop’s outlets as an unlimited power supply for their wireless devices and occasionally getting downright territorial with other customers over space.

This is a tempting argument to make, but wrongheaded. Coffee Shops started sprouting up *everywhere* in the U.S. because of massive demand for the coffee shop — not massive demand for coffee, mind you, but for the seats *in* the shops. This is evident with the way most shops are setup, but no more evidence needed than to look at the move of Starbucks providing free WiFi, instead of paid WiFi they started with.

Starbucks made that change because the little guys were offering free WiFi, and their lack of free WiFi was hindering the ability of Starbucks, Starbucks, to compete — people went to where the better amenities were/are. Because, with very few exceptions, most coffee shops are frequented as a place to hang out, not as a place to get *good* coffee — that’s the culture that surrounds coffee shops. Whether you have a laptop, book, or tablet in front of you is irrelevant — you are asking your customers to “stay, talk, read newspapers, but god don’t use a computer”?

Why?

The power draw from laptops is minimal, the WiFi cost negligible (you telling me you wouldn’t have WiFi for your business already?). The hardest part about retail is getting someones ass in your door. Once they are in your door, you stand a good chance at making a sale. Yes, there are mooches, but do they so drain your business that you need to kick out the non-mooches, or so punish those that just want a sit and sip on their coffee for two hours?

That’s crazy.

I stirred up a shit-storm on App.net about this, but my logic is pretty simple: better to have a full coffee shop of people paying $4 each, than to have a quarter of the people spending $8 each.

[Harry Marks][2]:

> Remember kids: It doesn’t matter if you actually buy anything in a store, as long as you’re there taking up space. That’s how businesses make money apparently. [\#themoreyouknow][3]

Seems to work fine for Apple Stores, but what do they know.

[Mark Hughes][4], whom I don’t often agree with, sums it up nicely:

> [@benbrooks][5] Some cafés tried limits, killing wifi, even kicking customers out when laptops and wifi first became popular, early ’00s. I got screamed at by an angry old man for having my laptop out, so I ditched that place. Those places went broke.

They didn’t just go broke, they are *still* going broke (I saw it happen just last month) — with exception to (perhaps) Blue Bottle.

[CJ Chilvers][6]:

> [@hcmarks][7] [@benbrooks][8] Forget coffee shops. Libraries are evolving to fill this gap. My library goes so far as to have a snack lounge, seating by a fireplace, professional podcasting studios and an entire floor of conference rooms.

> [http://ahml.info][9]

Now *that’s* a library I would frequent.

The problem isn’t WiFi or those mooching from it, the problem is that there is little reason to buy more than one $4 cup of shitty coffee. I don’t buy a new iPhone every year because they die every year, I buy them every year because they are compelling *every* year. Limiting access or time isn’t a compelling reason for consumers, that’s being hostile to them, a compelling reason is making your coffee actually taste good. ((Side note: Every coffee shop owner I ever talk to says the same thing: “We have the best coffee.” I think that mindset is a large part of the problem.))

[1]: http://money.msn.com/now/post–coffee-shops-look-to-oust-laptop-hobos?sharedfrom=scpshrjwlinkedin
[2]: https://alpha.app.net/hcmarks/post/7540723
[3]: https://alpha.app.net/hashtags/themoreyouknow
[4]: https://alpha.app.net/mdhughes
[5]: https://alpha.app.net/benbrooks
[6]: https://alpha.app.net/cjchilvers/post/7541978
[7]: https://alpha.app.net/hcmarks
[8]: https://alpha.app.net/benbrooks
[9]: http://ahml.info/

[Philip Bump posted a guide for][1] The Atlantic Wire on how to use encryption to hide your activity from the NSA. Except it’s a pretty shit guide. [Instead Micah Lee has a great guide][2] for the Freedom of the Press Foundation and [Tactical Tech has another nice outline][3] with guides for good secure software usage.

The latter two guides are far better than the first, but the gist of all of them (and [as I have said before][4]) is that truly secure communications is hard, cumbersome, and requires both parties to be using it. That latter is the hardest obstacle to overcome.

[1]: http://www.theatlanticwire.com/technology/2013/07/so-you-want-hide-nsa-your-guide-nearly-impossible/66942/
[2]: https://pressfreedomfoundation.org/encryption-works
[3]: https://alternatives.tacticaltech.org
[4]: https://brooksreview.net/2013/06/encrypting-stuff-against-starbucks-hacker-bob/

[A great new resource for privacy conscious apps][1]. I haven’t tried most, but the interesting section (to me at least) are the operating systems. You won’t hear me say this about many things, but I’d rather let the NSA track me than try to get by in life using Linux. ((Yes, I have used Linux full time before — many times actually.))

[1]: https://prism-break.org/

Back in May, [Chris Bowler posted][1] about his use of Reading List. His post actually inspired me to dump Instapaper and use only Apple’s Reading List feature instead. On the surface this seemed like a fantastic idea — I had full OS integration with reading things later (and I got to read them on the site itself, instead of in an app, [which is my preference][2]).

Since May I have been doing nothing but using Reading List and its given me a new found appreciation *for* Instapaper. You see, Reading List isn’t horrible, and it’s readily available, but it’s not great. There were numerous times when links would get lost, or inadvertently get marked as having already been read. There were even more times when I thought I saved something, but — well — *nope*, not saved.

I ran into many occasions when the current Reading List wasn’t up to date on my iOS devices, or my Mac. Other times when the link just didn’t get saved right. I couldn’t directly save links from Felix, or Sunstroke, or from the NextDraft and Digg apps. Those sources are where I get all my links from, and I had to jump through hoops to use Reading List with them.

A few days ago I about threw my iPad mini out the window because I realized that the 15 links I had just spent time adding to Reading List didn’t actually get added (I think that was an iOS 7 bug), instead of tossing the mini, I switched back to Instapaper.

Thank god for Instapaper.

I don’t know what the future of Instapaper holds — especially with iOS 7 on the horizon, but I do know a couple of things:

1. I have even [less faith in Pocket][3].
2. Instapaper is far better than Reading List, even if nothing about Instapaper changes.

I wasn’t going to write anything about this — it all seemed inconsequential — but then I saved a ton of links from Safari to Instapaper in record time with all the confidence in the world that they were *actually* saved. I’ll half read half of those links today, and know that they don’t get marked as read until I mark them as such.

Yes, Instapaper’s website needs an update. Yes, we don’t know what Betaworks will do with it. Yes, it’ll need major work to look native on iOS 7. *But*, it’s still leaps and bounds more stable, and better functioning, than Reading List. Even more, Instapaper’s wide adoption with third-party apps makes it a useful service that you actually have to try *not* to use — I cannot say the same of Reading List, even though it has OS level integration.

[1]: http://log.chrisbowler.com/post/50115173006/reading-list
[2]: https://brooksreview.net/2011/01/bland-web/
[3]: https://alpha.app.net/stevestreza/post/7183592

[Andrew Leonard][1]:

> Per [Wikipedia,][2] AdBlock Plus is the single most popular extension of any kinde for Firefox. But I’m betting that a hefty percentage of those millions don’t realize that major advertisers, [including Google,][3] can pay to have some of their ads “whitelisted” — in essence, given a free pass through AdBlock Plus.

*The power of Open.*

[Allie Jones][4]:

> According to forensics researcher Richard Hickman, [Snapchat doesn’t delete photos][5] on the Android, it just hides them. With the right forensics software and a decent amount of ill will, someone could recover your old Snaps.

*The power of Open.*

[Antone Gonsalves][6]:

> A Skype bug that enables an attacker to bypass the lock screen on several Android mobile devices demonstrates once again the need for additional security to protect corporate data against such flaws, experts say.

*The power of not policing your App Store.*

[Mark Milian][7]:

> Google spokeswoman Gina Scigliano confirms that the company has already inserted some of the NSA’s programming in Android OS. “All Android code and contributors are publicly available for review at source.android.com,” Scigliano says, declining to comment further.

*The power of…wait, holy shit, are you serious?*

> NSA officials say their code, known as Security Enhancements for Android, isolates apps to prevent hackers and marketers from gaining access to personal or corporate data stored on a device.

I guess you are serious. Never underestimate *the power of the hypocrite*, I guess.

[1]: http://www.salon.com/2013/07/05/adblock_plus_lets_some_advertisers_pay_to_play/singleton/
[2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adblock_Plus
[3]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5995140
[4]: http://www.theatlanticwire.com/technology/2013/07/snapchat-android/66868/
[5]: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media-network/partner-zone-infosecurity/snapchat-photos-not-deleted-hidden
[6]: http://www.techhive.com/article/2043765/skype-flaw-allows-android-lock-screen-to-be-cracked.html%23tk.rss_all
[7]: http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-07-03/security-enhanced-android-nsa-edition

[David Streitfeld writing about Amazon book pricing][1]:

> “Discounting, and especially inconsistent or shifting discounting, really messes with a publisher’s ability to price a book fairly and accurately to its cost,” he added. “You have to consider the fact that whatever price you put on the cover, Amazon is going to reduce it by as much as half — unless they don’t — or they may, but only for a while. But in short they’re going to make your book look like a thing with a cost lower than the one you placed on it.

As a consumer I love Amazon, as a “business guy” I am fascinated by Amazon, but as a lover of well made and sustainably priced products, I hate Amazon.

[1]: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/05/the-price-of-amazon/?ref=technology

[Alan Henry][1]:

> In a blog post today, Twitter announced that they’re “experimenting with new ways of targeting ads,” which is their way of saying they’re planning to track you around the web—even when you leave Twitter—and relay that information to advertisers to craft better ads. Here’s how to opt out.

Just another pain in the ass step you have to take, with no assurances they are being honest about those checkboxes, all to use a service for *free*. Yay.

[1]: http://lifehacker.com/twitter-wants-to-start-tracking-you-on-the-web-heres-661569459?utm_source=recirculation&utm_medium=recirculation&utm_campaign=afternoon

There’s a ton of apps that I have been playing with, but that I simply won’t have the time to write up full thoughts on. Here’s a few that I really want to mention to you.

## Sunstroke 1.5

Anthony Drendel launched version 1.5 of his fantastic Fever° client, [Sunstroke][1]. The biggest change to this version is the UI — as it has been refreshed and looks quite nice. This is an app I am keeping a close eye on to see how it is adapted to iOS 7.

[Drendel wrote up his thoughts][2] on the change here, worth a read if you are interested in the back story of apps.

## First Years

This is a [neat little app][3], like the Everyday app, for snapping photos. Except instead of snapping photos of yourself, you get a much cuter target: your child. It’s a neat app, but I’m not sure how long the habit will last — or the value of using it over something like Day One.

## Dispatch

[This might be][4] the first third-party email client for iOS that sticks — hell not just for iOS, for any computing platform. I like the snippets, I like the design. I like the Instapaper and OmniFocus integration and many many other things. I *just* started using it, expect more later, but I am happy with it so far. ((It doesn’t hurt that it feels very iOS 7 too.))

## Supr — Slim

That rubber band KickStarter wallet, no link provided on purpose? Been using it for a while, sucks balls. Just thought I’d get that out there.

[1]: https://itunes.apple.com/app/id488564806
[2]: http://anthonydrendel.com/blog/2013/6/22/sunstroke-past-and-present.html
[3]: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/first-years/id545230312?mt=8
[4]: http://www.dispatchapp.net

[Some good rules to email by][1]:

> You don’t need to reply to every email, especially not those that are themselves clear responses. An email saying “Thanks for your note. I’m in.” does not need you to reply “Great.” That just cost someone another 30 seconds.

[1]: http://emailcharter.org/index.html

[Fascinating post from David Pell][1], talking about how digital photography (among other things) is potentially (read: likely) changing the way we remember ourselves:

> Snapping and sharing photos from meaningful events is nothing new. But the frequency with which we take pictures and the immediacy with which we view them will clearly have a deep impact on the way we remember.

I distinctly remember *not* seeing many pictures of myself when I was a kid. I know there are a ton of them out there, I have albums full from my parents and grandparents, but I don’t ever remember *looking* at them. I really wonder what the long term effect will be, or if there is a long term effect of this immediacy with which kids view photos.

It’s also interesting to me that, perhaps because of the time I grew up, I don’t feel an immediate need to review photos. I often snap pictures on my iPhone, and then put my phone away. No editing, not reviewing, just snap-snap, and go about my day.

[1]: https://medium.com/click-the-shutter/d76bf316c4dc

Today the United States celebrates Independence Day. We celebrate our freedom by exploding small dangerous things with our kids — there is no better holiday.

This year feels a bit bittersweet to me.

I don’t blame the NSA, CIA, or any of the government contractors for the massive privacy invasions revealed through Edward Snowden — in my opinion these agencies were doing their jobs and operating inside the law — or so they are/were told by those that hired them (the ones that make the law). That’s not criminal in my book.

Lying in front of Congress is a different story, but the directors of these agencies are politicians installed by the White House — they aren’t the people following orders of the powers that be, slaving to protect a nation they so very much believe in.

I blame the politicians. I blame Congress for not investigating when they should have. I blame President Obama for not living up to the message that he sold the country on when he ran and won the election. These are tough problems, but the way that these problems were handled are the way that a parent handles a small child. “We know better, it’s not open for debate or discussion, go back to playing with your friends.”

Of course *we* put these people in power, and I still believe they did a good job [making this program in the image of Internet users][1].

It’s hard to think that today we celebrate freedom, when we now know:

– Our emails are being tracked, traced, trapped, and recorded by our own government and shared with foreign governments.
– Ditto our text messages, phone calls, etc…
– We will get scrutinized *more* if we try to be more private by using readily available methods to protect ourselves from our governments spying on us.
– [Our snail mail is even being monitored and copied][2].
– Cellular carriers and mobile OS makers our making money off of us by [selling our data][3].

We may, yet again, need to fight for our freedoms that we won long ago. This time we aren’t trying to wrest control from foreign rulers, we are trying to right our own ship, we won’t need guns, but we will need sharp tongues.

For now, I’m going to go shoot off a cannon, and get dangerously close to dubiously made “entertainment explosives”.

[1]: https://brooksreview.net/2013/06/privacy-secrecy-the-web-and-ads/
[2]: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/04/us/monitoring-of-snail-mail.html?hp&_r=2&
[3]: http://gigaom.com/2013/07/03/heres-a-big-shock-att-will-start-selling-customers-usage-data/

[Matthew J.X. Malady][1]:

> “Damn, hell, shit, and fuck are not what an anthropologist observing us would classify as ‘taboo,’ ” says linguist John McWhorter, author of What Language Is: And What It Isn’t and What It Could Be, among other books. “We all say them all the time. Those words are not profane in what our modern culture is—they are, rather, salty. That’s all. Anyone who objects would be surprised to go back 50 years and try to use those words as casually as we do now and ever be asked again to parties.”

No *shit* — that’s *fucking* great news.

[1]: http://www.slate.com/articles/life/the_good_word/2013/07/swear_words_old_and_new_sexual_and_religious_profanity_giving_way_to_sociological.single.html%23pagebreak_anchor_2

[Jon Vlachogiannis took a stab at estimating the cost of building][1] PRISM on commercial hardware:

> Total Hardware & Personnel Costs: €12M Per Month (€144M Per Year) = $187M Per Year

That’s not even a blip on the “defense” budget — though I would triple that number to figure out what the government would actually pay to make such a system.

[1]: http://highscalability.com/blog/2013/7/1/prism-the-amazingly-low-cost-of-using-bigdata-to-know-more-a.html

[I’ve been seeing this OmniFocus for iPhone redesign float around this morning][1] (done by Chris Sauvé). I must be the only one that thinks it doesn’t look great. I like the layout of the new task sheet, as I think it streamlines a rather cumbersome process for OmniFocus. That’s about the one of the few points of the design that I like.

The action bars look crappy, and the overall iconography of the design looks silly to me. Most of all, this app doesn’t look like it would fit well with iOS 7, and given that OmniFocus *is* made by an Apple only development company, I figure they are interested in looking more native that unique.

Sauvé has some great ideas surrounding things like notes and templates (and the input sheet mentioned above) but the overall look isn’t much improved.

[1]: http://cmsauve.com/projects/omnifocus/

[Ben Lincoln did some digging on his Motorola phone][1] and found that it was calling home. Worse yet, the wholly owned Google subsidiary is sending your usernames and passwords to Motorola/Google servers. Now what would Google want with all this non-metadata?

Gee, why would Google/Motorola care what apps are on your Home screen, what percentage of contacts come from which service — I mean why would any of that be valuable to the largest and most ruthless advertising company? *It’ll come to me…*

[1]: http://www.beneaththewaves.net/Projects/Motorola_Is_Listening.html?source=hn

Thomas Brand on Apple's choice of wallpapers:

You don’t have to be a Mac user to appreciate a good desktops pattern, but the attention to detail Apple takes towards choosing a default wallpaper means excitement for Mavericks will build long before it hits the shore.

What I like best about the Mavericks Wave photo is not the photo itself, but that the photo is bright. The space photos were gorgeous, but dark. I like bright images because they feel light — they feel happy — and this Wave photo does just that.

(Of course I change my wallpaper automatically based on the time of day, so that my eyes aren't seared by blinding brightness late at night.)

I’m getting reports that member feeds (and only member feeds) are not migrating to some RSS services properly. This seems to happen when you go to migrate, with some having success manually adding the member feed after the migration.

Please let me know if you are having any troubles.