Mozilla has acquired Pocket, a kind of DVR for the internet, for an undisclosed sum. The nine-year-old company, which makes tools for saving articles and videos to view them later, is Mozilla’s first acquisition. It represents a homecoming of sorts for Pocket, which began life as a Firefox extension before eventually expanding its team and building a suite of apps for every major platform. Pocket has been Firefox’s default read-it-later service since 2015.
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SpaceX to fly tourists around the moon next year
The dark side of the moon. I think I’ll wait a bit on this trip.
Cop offers snarky PSA for ‘amazing’ turn signals
This is pretty funny.
Reasons why you should love a cheap kit lens
I tell my students to NOT buy a new lens when they buy their first, beginner DSLR. There’s no point. The kit lens is “good enough” for beginners until they learn how to use the camera and create great images with it. Only once you know what kind of photographer you are should you start looking to buy replacement lenses.
Taking Pocket further with Mozilla
I hope this is good news for the Pocket team. I’ve been a huge fan (and, apparently a heavy user – according to Pocket, I’m in the top 1% of readers for the past four years!) and really like the service.
How Ikea’s Billy bookcase took over the world
These may be the only truly disposable furniture I’ve ever owned. While they are cheap, easy to assemble bookcases, they always seem pretty flimsy. Whenever I’ve moved, I’ve always just thrown out the old Billy and bought a new one.
The end of the Olympics as we know it
I’d be sad to see the Olympics disappear but it would make economic sense if they did.
The red carpet isn’t actually red, and other secrets underfoot at the Oscars
I just learned more than I ever thought I would about the carpet at the Oscars.
Apple says third-party iPhone screen repairs no longer fully void your warranty
This is great news for those of you who have had your screens replaced.
How to draw an exoplanet
The artist renderings of what these new planets might look like are fascinating.
So, um, how do you, like, stop using filler words?
With the explosion of podcasting comes an equal explosion of people not trained in public speaking. The funny thing is the fix is easy but hard to do.
How to shoot a 360 video
With Ar/VR “on the horizon”, more and more 360 video is showing up. If you’d like to start creating your own content, this is a good primer to help you get started.
The true story of the “Ellen Selfie”
We all know that selfie wasn’t a spontaneous moment so it’s interesting to see how it came about.
Inside Jack White’s new vinyl-pressing paradise
We will never again have a format so wonderfully tactile as vinyl. I have nothing to play records on anymore and have no vinyl but I still have a fondness for the physicality of holding a record.
Android can’t compete with iMessage. Google is changing that.
It’s hard to overstate how convenient I find iMessage. On the rare occasions I “see the green” when I text someone, it’s really deflating.
What those little shapes on car bumpers are for
I’ve often wondered what those were.
Macintosh, Midi, and Music circa 1988
You don’t have to be a music fan to enjoy this great video from 1988. See how many people you recognize in the video.
My other favorite fictional detective
Earlier this week I posted about Jeremy Brett being my favorite Sherlock Holmes. I received a lot of great feedback from that, so I thought I’d tell you my other favorite fictional detective, Poirot.
David Suchet is absolutely spectacular in his depiction of Agatha Christie’s famous detective. I have watched these shows over and over again, enjoying them each time.
Apple addresses unexpected iPhone 6, 6s shutdowns with iOS 10.2.1
For a while now there have been reports of some older iPhone models, namely iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s, shutting down unexpectedly. Apple introduced some diagnostics into iOS 10.2 back in December to try and determine what was happening and, with iOS 10.2.1, they’ve rolled out a fix.
Glad to see they figured out what was going on.
Post producing an Oscar nominated short film on Final Cut Pro
In the busy week in the run up to the awards, the director of Timecode, Juanjo Giménez, very kindly answered our questions about the post production process.
What’s amazing to me is that this was his first project using Final Cut Pro.
Google sues Uber over self-driving trade secrets theft
Alphabet’s Waymo self-driving car unit sued Uber Technologies and its autonomous trucking subsidiary Otto in federal court on Thursday over allegations of theft of its confidential sensor technology.
Oh boy.
Apollo 11 space capsule is going on another mission
One of the great museum exhibits in the world is going on tour and you owe it to yourself to go see it if it comes to your area. It will be in Houston, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, and Seattle. I was lucky enough to see it in DC at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum but when it comes to Seattle, I’ll definitely make the trip down there to see it again.
New Top Gear trailer
I’ll always have a soft spot for Top Gear but its first season after the Clarkson implosion was not good by any measure. But I also don’t think “The Grand Tour” was a whole lot better. I’m looking forward to seeing this version of Top Gear with the two-thirds new cast.
Set up your Medical ID in the Health app on your iPhone
Apple has set up a procedure you can use on your iPhone to assist EMTs with information about you and who to contact in case of an emergency.
Scientists discover 7 ‘Earthlike’ planets orbiting a nearby star
This is an amazing discovery and really cool science but when you hear the media describe it as a “nearby” star, note that’s in astronomical terms. Even though it’s “only” 39 light-years away, it will likely be at least a century before humans can even think about traveling to them.
ColorWare’s colored AirPods
I usually don’t go for these types of colored Apple products, but damn I’d love to have a set of purple AirPods.
Fitbit paid just $23 million for Pebble
The price tag was just $23 million, according to figures disclosed Wednesday as part of Fitbit’s quarterly earnings report. Fitbit also spent $15 million on the assets of Vector Watch, another smartwatch company.
I’m not sure that Fitbit can do any more with Pebble than what Pebble did.
81 year old’s amazing guitar playing
Damn, I hope to still be walking at 81. Much respect.
Amazon gives everyone a discount on purchases today
Celebrating its 86.27 score in the Harris Corporate Reputation Poll, Amazon is giving everyone a discount of $8.62 on orders of $50 or more today only. Hey, celebrate whatever you want if I can save money.
Field Notes Utility Edition
“Utility” features your choice of two often-requested but rarely-available body pages: Engineer Graph or Ledger. Engineer Graph features an 1/8-inch grid with bolder lines each half-inch. It awaits your schematics, assembly drawings, geometry homework, or dungeon maps. The Ledger version, of course, is ultra-handy for mileage logs, parts lists, to-do lists, or any sort of handwritten accounting.
I’ve used these notebooks for years for all of my interviews and notes while on the road. I’d highly recommend them.