RE: https://mastodon.social/@marioguzman/117316531382425853

And I’d like to mention that AI was not used to make this. This is about 90% #AppKit with some #SwiftUI views. But I can’t tell you how much time I spent researching Cocoa Bindings, NSTreeController and a little on NSArrayController to make sure bindings, sorting, drag and drop, and menus “just work.”

And I now know very well how this shit works and should be used. Why? Because I didn’t rely on AI to give me the answers.

This is a project I started back in March & I am so proud of it so far.

I run PiHole on my home network, and started seeing ads on my devices; this is why.

Think about this: Apple enabled a feature that sees a block while downloading ad shit, then reaches out through the cellular network to get it.

I’ve inadvertently spent 130MB of data on adware, thanks to this feature.

https://mstdn.social/@dazfuller/117307714035903073

Why is this treated as "Oh, we were naughty, let's behave more responsibly at some undefined future time" rather than an unauthorised access of a computer system, which is illegal. Where is the accountability? https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/sep/18/google-gemini-ai-hack

Wait, what is this madness? Me offering a strange new programming course? Yes. https://dabeaz.com/sicpminus.html

A new format and some new challenges. Bwahahahahaha!

I am gobsmacked that somehow it has become controversial to state that saving the lives of people in peril at sea is a good thing to do.

But apparently it is.

Anyway, if you think that saving lives at sea is a good thing to do, perhaps you'd like to show your support by donating a few quid to the RNLI? I'm sure they could use a bit of support right now.

https://rnli.org/support-us/give-money/donate

(direct link) or

https://www.justgiving.com/charity/rnli?utm_source=CL&utm_medium=DT

(via JustGiving if that's easier for you)

#RNLI #Lifeboats

RE: https://mastodon.scot/@mattgemmell/117245877920815883

I’d not seen this blog post before and it’s not an easy read but it is definitely worth it and for some of us it will resonate at some level.

I don’t think that any of this is as uncommon as we would all like to think or hope. Maybe everybody has their own private battles and inner demons and as someone with them I have no idea if people genuinely don’t.

And it does feel ironic writing this on social media — one of the things that can greatly influences my own state of mind.

Watching this Apple event tout how iPhones will soon be able to record ambient audio/conversations and transcribe "high level notes" for you. It's billed as private and end-to-end encrypted, but I think the bigger harm is the normalization of always-listening devices. It's creepy and not normal.

Today Channel 4 have said that they are laying off over 25% of the staff and it makes me very sad but it also made me reflect on how much that job must have impacted on me to have that effect a quarter of a century later.

I worked there for 18 months around 25 years ago and, despite how long ago it was and how short my time there was (I left because we moved from London to Somerset), it is one of the jobs I have loved the most in terms of the people and culture.

https://www.channel4.com/press/news/channel-4-begins-major-transformation-strategy-prioritise-content-investment-grow-impact

“In conclusion, the current study successfully determined the beneficial effect of a 10-minute single bout of very slow running on improving mood and executive function with lateral prefrontal neural activation. This discovery of the positive relationship between head acceleration and improved mood may be one of the underlying mechanisms through which very slow running promotes mental health. To this end, these findings contribute to social wellbeing by encouraging people with various health conditions to keep physically and mentally active, while also maintaining their own safety, through very slow running. ”

Good news, everyone!

It’s 2026 and I’m still trying to learn new things the old fashioned way… I’m expecting a programming book to be delivered today which ticks both the “physical media” and “still learning” boxes and I’m actually excited about both elements.

Creating a Collection/Starter pack for Elixir and BEAM VM languages on the Fediverse:

https://hachyderm.io/collections/117207736812744842

Comment or DM me if you want to be added
Right now it supports only some versions of Mastodon, and you need to be searchable on the fediverse :)

#elixir #elixirlang #gleam #gleamlang #Erlang #BeamVM

I decided to try a simple, obvious reverse route through the woods near my village today in an attempt to work out how, on my first run there, I turned 5k into 10k by getting lost. Still got lost but at least I know that the “Private Drive” to a farmhouse is also a public right of way. And this time I only added around 1k to the planned route by stumbling around in the undergrowth. Some additional comments in the alt text of the photos. #Running #RunnersOfMastodon

Suddenly finding a new obsession

© Sarah Andersen

RE: https://ruby.social/@testobsessed/117142585190336544

After watching the talk I bought a copy of The Cuckoo’s Egg which has just been delivered. I’m looking forward to reading it (and just wish that could be whilst I’m beside a swimming pool on holiday somewhere).

But first I need to finish Peter Sinton-Hewitt’s autobiography, One Small Step, which I’m hugely enjoying, despite the fairly grim childhood he went through.

https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/paul-sinton-hewitt/one-small-step/9781035065073

This is, quite possibly, the most entertaining interview i have ever encountered. You simply *must * read it. It keeps getting better with every question.
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/b-c-swimmer-crosses-strait-of-georgia-under-nine-hours-9.7316260

I’m only part-way through this but “Buried with Michael Sheen”, which is about toxic waste, is shocking: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m002zkql/buried-with-michael-sheen

Monsanto were producing PCBs which are toxic and carcinogenic and dumping the waste in quarries in South Wales. After they were essentially forced to stop production in America in the early 1970s they increased production in Wales, knowing the risks and dangers.

Corporate greed at the expense of everyone else is not a new phenomenon.

This is the most wonderful video. Recorded August 8, 2026. Just posted yesterday. In it, 76yo Cliff Stoll tells the riveting 1986 spy-hunting story he captured in his book Cuckoo's Egg, using his original viewgraphs. It's amazing. He is utterly delightful. Chaos personified. Stop what you're doing and watch it. You'll thank me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=656058JxTM0

And stick around for the ending when he talks about the importance of connecting with people, staying creative, and telling stories.

❤️

My book is out!

This one was a passion project. It's about how we've used computers for writing, including nroff, LaTeX, HTML, and DITA. There's even a chapter in there about WordStar on DOS. 🤓

I added a ton of references and examples, so you can see how it works. I think the chapters on nroff and troff are my favorite, because they show a really interesting part of tech writing history.

Links in comments 👇

Today I ran the #Frome #Running Festival #10k with a chip time of 59:44 so I finally broke the sub-1 hour barrier (just and mainly thanks to a short, fairly steep downhill bit in the final kilometre).

I think I need to be more confident at race starts because the first kilometre was really slow whilst I made my way through the pack.

#RunnersOfMastodon