Notes

Back in the last century I followed a few key people (by which I mean "white men”) closely as the web evolved into an app platform. I just thought to look them up to see where their attention is, today. Maybe I’d find some new inspiration?

• Tim Bray is politically active in admirable ways, and into software architecture that’s deeper than my interests.
• Philips Greenspun cares mostly about planes and thinks a little too highly of his own social perspective.
• Craig McClanahan is retired and offline.
• Jon Udell is making Hypothesis happen, which is awesome.
• Dave Winer is still fighting for feed syndication, bless him, and too caught up in the Trump flurry.

The London Bridge attack story has everything. Islamic terrorist! Effective gun control! Ineffective state surveillance! Rehabilitated murderer hero! Polish immigrant hero! Narwhal tusk!

This segment of This American Life mentions congressional committee rooms are dramatically unbalanced; the majority party enjoys much nicer offices.

I am astonished by this architectural expression of the competitive dysfunction in democracy, but can’t find any relevant history.

Jony Ive is officially out of Apple, which was announced months ago.

I am glad for it.

I adore Ive’s aesthetic and appreciate the rigor he maintained for the firm. Yet he was prone to going too far for beauty over function even in hardware, and it was simply a mistake to give him authority over software design.

The iOS 7 reset towards cleanliness may have been necessary, but it took way too long to acknowledge the resulting weaknesses. It should never have even launched with indiscernible buttons and color-only interactive cues, yet we had to wait years, until after his departure was announced, for even these basic mistakes to be corrected.

We need to be spreading this news to all Americans: they don’t hate our freedom, they hate our solidarity. https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/russia-troll-2020-election-interference-twitter-916482/

Ever since I read this post by @frank_chimero I find myself avoiding like buttons and enjoying the act of small compliments.