Notable

Posted 5th May 2022 @ 09:37

Some fantastic advice from Kevin Kelly on his 70th birthday. Well worth reading all 103 items on the list.

Posted 3rd May 2022 @ 12:25

Posted 29th Apr 2022 @ 10:45

I wondered about this statistic over the weekend and good to see that there's some data on the subject to look at. Pretty clear that being vaccinated massively reduces your risk of death should you be (re-)infected.

I'm still very disappointed with the general feeling that we're just going to live with COVID, but this data does help to put me at ease. A little.

Posted 27th Apr 2022 @ 10:28

Leah Elliott's updated Chrome comic:

All facets of your life are scrupulously collected

Posted 22nd Apr 2022 @ 14:39

Debra Caplan:

We are watching an astounding mass delusion unfold in real time.

The pandemic is far from over, if hundreds are still dying at the hands of a virus it feels very strange for us all to just learn to live with it.

Not only have our governments failed us, but we all failed to be kind enough to each other and actually put an end to the transmission of Covid.

Posted 22nd Apr 2022 @ 12:12

Somehow I avoided having any USB-C devices until early 2020. It's only been the last 6 months where I've gone from having a single USB-C device to multiple.

While I don't think this is a bad idea, it does annoy me that the whole USB-C cable situation is an absolute mess. It's even worse when you throw in Thunderbolt which looks the same but isn't.

If device manufacturers are going to be forced to provide USB-C ports, then the whole ecosystem needs to just work. You can't have a situation where the average consumer may or may not buy the correct cable. Numbers indicating the Gbps and wattage aren't good enough, in my opinion. A PD label isn't either.

Lightning on the other hand, it does what it does well. Even Micro-USB gets it right and is probably the most common port for non-Apple devices in our house.

Overall, it is probably a good move I just don't understand why the world of USB-C is so complicated.

For more on the topic, listen to John Gruber and Nilay Patel over on The Talk Show podcast.

Posted 21st Apr 2022 @ 16:00

We followed the rules. My kids missed out on months of their education. We haven't left the country for two years and that doesn't look like a streak that will end any time soon for us. We followed the rules.

While remote working suites us, it was forced upon us and with it a lack of human interaction we're used to. We followed the rules. We didn't see family for months until we were allowed. We followed the rules. When we were allowed to meet, we never stretched the household/groups we met. We followed the rules.

We're in a fairly privileged situation where the pandemic made life hard, but not as hard it was for so many other families and yet, we followed the rules.

After keeping my family safe, the most important thought for me was to keep anyone around me safe. By wearing a mask. By keeping my distance. By doing what little I could to make it safer for everyone.

We were so far from 0 cases and time and time again, restrictions were imposed too late or lifted too early. Now we have to live with COVID.

The predictability of it all was maddening enough but this latest news has to be the last straw. Boris Johnson is indefensible. All those that have defended him before already have their reputations shred to pieces and anyone that tries to defend his law breaking should be ignored for eternity.

What they're saying: "Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak have broken the law and repeatedly lied to the British public," opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer tweeted Tuesday. "They must both resign."

• "The Conservatives are totally unfit to govern. Britain deserves better," he added.
• Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, tweeted Tuesday that Parliament should be recalled from its Easter break to hold a no confidence vote against Johnson.

Boris Johnson has to resign. If he doesn't, his party needs to hold him accountable for his actions and force him out. If they don't, then what is the point of having rules anymore?

Posted 12th Apr 2022 @ 15:00

I thought this was one of the best car reviews I've seen. The more I watched, the more I felt that any range anxiety I might have is misplaced if Tesla was a serious consideration for me.

Would I buy a Tesla? The build quality seems to come up every time and I fully agree with Jonny Smith that the Models 3 and Y are ugly. The headlights in particular don't work for me as part of the face. I don't mind the brutal crease at the very front but they could and should do so much better. The Model S on the other hand has evolved really nicely and would be my preferred choice but that's out of reach for me at the moment.

Other than interior space, I don't get the obsession with crossovers and SUVs. I sat in a Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupé a few years ago and was shocked to find that it was just a taller C Class without any of the benefits of being a taller car. Everyone was just seated higher. The other extreme is that the cars are much wider and longer than a car ever needs to be for normal, everyday, use.

Having said that, Tesla seem to be miles ahead with their UX, their UI and integration of hardware and software.

Posted 5th Apr 2022 @ 11:00

I would, in most cases, prefer to pay more for the same amount of a product. Shrinkflation always feels dishonest and I have little sympathy behind some of the reasoning.

Rather than shrinking their products, public companies like PepsiCo have two other options when facing inflation: Raise prices, which could result in fewer sales, or accept lower profits on existing sales, which will assuredly upset shareholders.

Why shouldn't shareholders feel the consequences of changes in value of a product? To me at least it all feels a little fake, if you're making the same profit by making a product smaller then would it remain a success if it was full-size at a higher price? If not, then maybe the appetite isn't really there for it? In many cases the items we're talking about are luxuries anyway, no one needs a chocolate bar so it should cost what it costs.

Posted 30th Mar 2022 @ 12:00