The new blink-182 song Dance with Me is extremely catchy, but it can't really be added to playlists or played at the gym, for example, because of the sexual joke at the beginning of the track. I mean, the whole song is about sex—fair enough—and individual sensibilities do differ. Still, the spoken part is so jarring that I wouldn't want to play the song in polite company.
I've encountered this problem before, usually with bonus tracks that play after several minutes of silence. They can be great songs, but there's no great way to add them to playlists, and there's no way to add the first song without the silence and the bonus track. It would be trivial for an app to implement a technical solution to this problem: just let the user choose an offset of some number of seconds and apply that offset whenever the song is played from a playlist. However, it's not clear if that would be worth the added user interface complexity. Most people would never use the feature, and they might be confused if they saw a menu item for it somewhere. Perhaps the easiest solution would be for publishers to release alternate cuts more often. Let's get a version of Dance with Me without the joke. Let's get Maybe I'm Just Tired without the bonus track.
I dislike when online platforms are split into multiple sub-sites (sometimes called servers, instances, organizations, or groups), such that each user has one profile on each sub-site and each profile has its own settings. Slack works this way, as do Meetup and Stack Exchange. For example, if I change my personal Slack settings in one organization, my settings for other organizations do not change.
Why do these platforms work this way? I see no upside for the user. Even if there is some esoteric benefit, I suspect most users find it incredibly confusing. I certainly do. Sure, there may be cases where I want settings to be different for different sub-sites, but that should be the exception rather than the rule
As usual, there's no subtext here. I'm not trying to be mysterious or send someone a message. I just think some truths are best summarized concisely. They may also be easier to remember that way.
What's wrong with hyperpartisan media? Pick your favorite example of a one-sided TV channel, YouTube channel, website, radio show, podcast, or magazine. If the problem is that these outlets promote overly simplistic, slanted perspectives, never reporting the other side of the story or only reporting half-truths, then why are we not equally worried about social media filter bubbles, given that they are designed to do exactly the same thing?
TikTok, Facebook, and other social media platforms show us what we want to see. They reinforce our existing worldviews. One doesn’t need to think hard to understand why; anything else would be bad for business! Nobody signs in to be told they’re wrong. Nobody enjoys having their reality challenged. Validation is more fun, even when it's unjustified.
I’m concerned about old-style hyperpartisan media, but this new, “social” version is much worse. Many of us walk around with personalized, digital propagandists in our pockets. They push our buttons and beg for our limited attention—buzz, buzz! Sometimes, we spend more time with them than with real human beings, with their nuanced and thoughtful perspectives.
I’ve often wondered what I do differently that makes me “good” with computers.
Being willing to make mistakes is huge, although I empathize with anyone who is unwilling to take that risk; a single button press can destroy hours of work… or at least appear to. Sure, many things can be undone, but what good is that if people aren't taught how to undo them? You might be like a high school friend of mine, who was amazed when I reminded him that his “lost” paper was probably just in the “Recycle Bin.”
In thinking about this question, I’ve also noticed one habit that seems to help: when I install a new app or set up a new device, I immediately peruse the settings. Doing so is a great way to learn what the software is and isn’t capable of. It makes the software seem less “magical.” It bounds the possibilities. I recommend giving it a shot.
Never say of anything, “I have lost it,” but, “I have restored it.” Has your child died? It is restored. Has your wife died? She is restored. Has your estate been taken away? That likewise is restored. “But it was a bad man who took it.” What is it to you by whose hands he who gave it has demanded it again? While he permits you to possess it, hold it as something not your own, as do travelers at an inn. —The Enchiridion of Epictetus
Some might find these comments on death to be callous and blunt. I find them helpful. The default is nothingness. We are lucky to have others while we do. Moreover, reality is what it is, whether we like it or not. We can either fight reality, an impossible task, or we can find some way to live in harmony with reality. It’s easier said than done, but it’s our only real option.
Tagalong (Taggy) passed away on the last day of July. She was 15. Her health had declined suddenly the previous day after receiving bad news from the vet just a few days prior. It all happened so fast. She passed peacefully with her momma by her side, which is all I could have asked for.
edit (2025-12-03): I'm tagging this as a favorite because I think about this often. I think it's good advice for anyone who finds themselves in a bad situation. So often, cults and controlling people want to control how you leave the bad environment they've created. Fuck them. Just leave.
My love-hate relationship with Apple continues. In my earlier post on the topic, I only briefly mentioned what may be my biggest gripe with the company: vendor lock-in.
I'm honestly bewildered by how easy it is to export data from Google products. What is Google's incentive for helping with this? On the other hand, exporting data from Apple products can be almost impossible. Want to take your to-do list with you when you switch to the next big thing, without jumping through hoops? Good luck.
Using Apple products is like staying at the Hotel Cupertino: you can check out any time you like, but your data will never leave. As much as I admire Apple products, with their attention to detail and their focus on usability and user experience, this problem may be the one that prevents me from moving to Apple's ecosystem.
edit (2026-02-21): I've since heard from other people who have found it easy to migrate from Apple to Android. Maybe doing that is easier than I realized. I don't think Apple officially supports export, though, do they? Maybe Google is able to get the data some other way.
