Yearly Archives: 2015

I love this song.

Brett Terpstra:

My point is, optimism is not the shining light of the enlightened human being. I’m tired of reading “inspirational” quotes on Facebook about how optimism is a goal we should all strive toward. Optimism and pessimism are not light and dark sides, they’re complementing halves of the same token. We need each other, you and I.

Interesting read.

Eddie is just such a great player.

When I first wrote my review of Apple Watch review and follow-up in June, I had lost 40 pounds. I noted that I still had a little way to go to reach a goal I had set about 11 months ago—today, I made it. […]

My thanks to Hullo for sponsoring The Loop this week. You already know the ergonomics of your desktop workstation are important; have you considered your sleep ergonomics? Hullo customer Matt writes:

“I’m kind of shocked myself at how big a difference it’s made, and surprised to find myself writing one of those seemingly overenthusiastic reviews, but Hullo deserves it. So worth it—the ability to precisely shape the pillow so that it supports my neck just right is something I’ll never want to give up!”

Check out Hullo for 60 nights. If you don’t like it, just send it back for a refund.

A great read from Jeffrey Zeldman. I especially liked this:

(Hint: if you’re thinking about leaving your job, you probably want to.)

If you ever wondered what swear words are popular around America, this story maps it out for you—literally.

Great app. I’ve been using Reeder for years.

Using insights from our more than 500 million Shutterstock downloads, discover which emotions businesses, marketing agencies, and media organizations are using to design an ongoing relationship with their customers.

I’m not a fan of infographics, but I did find this fascinating.

Are you a metalhead or a bot?

Brilliant.

As security researcher Nicholas Weaver put it in a (now deleted) tweet, ”Imagine if Windows patches had to pass through Dell and your ISP before they came to you? And neither cared? That is called Android.”

The way Android users get updates is just so screwed up.

Silicon Valley Business Journal:

Apple has been criticized for the curvaceous project being closed off and suburban in its orientation (large earthen berms will block the public’s view of the campus from bordering streets). But the new public visitor’s center shows Apple is at least making a concession to the public’s great interest in the Spaceship.

The plans show a super-modern glass-walled structure topped by a carbon-fiber roof with extended eaves, punctuated by large skylights. On the ground floor: A 2,386-square-foot cafe and 10,114-square-foot store “which allows visitors to view and purchase the newest Apple products.” Stairs and elevators take visitors to the roof level, about 23 feet up. There, they’ll be able to behold the multi-billion-dollar campus.

There was never any doub that Apple would have some sort of area for the general public, similar to the present Employee Store. Whether it will be a full blown Apple Retail location where you can buy Apple’s hardware (unlike the Employee Store where the general public can only buy accessories and Apple-branded merchandise) remains to be seen.

The Verge:

Former Top Gear presenters Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May have signed up for a new motoring show on Amazon Prime, set to air in 2016. The news ends months of speculation about the trio’s future on TV after the BBC refused to renew Clarkson’s contract following a “fracas” during filming this year. The deal is a major coup for Amazon’s streaming service, which lags behind rival Netflix, and although there are no details of how much the firm paid for the trio, a company insider told the London Evening Standard: “We have made a significant investment.”

It’s a three year deal and set for broadcast in 2016. Clarkson is a buffoon but there is no argument that the trio, even for non-car lovers, are a fun team to watch. I’m looking forward to seeing the new format and whether or not this version of the show is better or worse now that the boys will be free from the restraints of the BBC.

Anyone that’s every listened to me talk about guitars knows how much I love Taylor. Their workmanship, attention to detail, and tone are second to none. I just got this beauty today.

“It was just right there,” he told Ars. “It was hovering, I would never have shot it if it was flying. When he came down with a video camera right over my back deck, that’s not going to work. I know they’re neat little vehicles, but one of those uses shouldn’t be flying into people’s yards and videotaping.”

Some drone owners are morons. There was a case in California where firefighters were trying to get a blaze under control and people with drones prevented helicopters from getting into the air. Jesus people, use your common sense.

Theodor Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, is one of the best children’s authors ever.

Om Malik:

Whether it is the fear of carrier overages, or just the preconceived notion that WiFi is faster, most of us continue to log into WiFi expecting it to be blazing fast. But it isn’t really true, both from my personal, anecdotal and totally unreliable point of view and from a data-backed view. Most of the popular public WiFi platforms like Starbucks WiFi, Xfinity, hotel WiFi and a whole lot of others are quite slow compared to a good LTE connection—especially Verizon, which is pricey but reliable.

This is so true. I connect to WiFi just assuming it will be faster than LTE, but many (most) times it just sucks.

AppleInsider has a roundup of the early reviews. Good for Microsoft if they’re able to pull this off—the last couple of releases alienated many of their users.

If I used a case, this is what I would have.

My friends Dave Wiskus and Joe Cieplinski have started a new band and podcast called Airplane Mode. In the first episode they tell the story of how they moved to New York City and started a band.