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LSD: Not Even Once
Taking LSD was a profound experience, one of the most important things in my life. […] – Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple
122
The era of American computer magazines has drawn to a close
I’ve been buying a copy of Maximum PC magazine at the airport newsstand on every long-distance trip I’ve taken over the past two decades. I’m primarily a Mac user but Maximum PC, which started life as boot, bought at these … Continue reading →
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The retaliation: Pranking my roommate with targeted Facebook ads (2014)
Ghost Influence by Brian Swichkow2023335 points75 commentscited by 37Society, Policy & Culture details
This is the chronicle of the most epic retaliation and how I pranked my roommate with targeted Facebook Ads to the point of complete paranoia and delusion.
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Do we live in a society without a counterculture?
I read this recently and it got me thinking:
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Email addresses are not good 'permanent' identifiers for accounts
You're probably reading this page because you've attempted to access some part of my blog (Wandering Thoughts) or CSpace , the wiki thing it's part of. Unfortunately you're using a browser version that my anti-crawler precautions consider suspicious, most often because it's too old (most often this applies to versions…
126
Splitting the Web
Splitting the Web par Ploum - Lionel Dricot.
127
A literary history of fake texts in Apple's marketing materials
Exploring the Applecore style
128
IPinside: Korea’s Mandatory Spyware
Banking websites in South Korea can only be used with IPinside installed. This application collects lots of data about the user, and it makes that data accessible to each and every website. The protection is inadequate.
129
The Door Close Button
This will probably be a short one, and I know I haven't written for a while, but it has always been the case that you get what you pay for and Computers Are Bad is nothing if not affordable. Still, this is a topic on which I am moderately passionate and so I can probably stretch it to an implausible length.
130
Weird A.I. Yankovic: a cursed deep dive into the world of voice cloning
What would it sound like if the musicians parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic sang *his* parodies instead? I jumped off the deep end into the world of A.I. cover songs to find out, and the results are even worse than you imagine.
131
Way ahead of its time: The Remote Lounge NYC (2013)
Remembering the retro-futuristic voyeur bar that was way ahead of it's time.
132
If you have first-hand knowledge of the FDA’s torpor, get in touch
The title says it: if you’re involved in drug or medical development and have experienced the FDA’s torpor, or vengeance, consider getting in touch; anonymously is fine. I want to make …
133
UK Threatens End-to-End Encryption
In an open letter, seven secure messaging apps—including Signal and WhatsApp—point out that the UK’s Online Safety Bill could destroy end-to-end encryption: As currently drafted, the Bill could break end-to-end encryption,opening the door to routine, general and indiscriminate surveillance of personal messages of…
134
Dear websites, stop asking for ransom sign-ups
A rant about websites that collect user data before revealing that a sign-up is required to see the results.
135
The decline of net neutrality activism
For many years, telecom and Net Neutrality-related policies have been a hot-button political issue for me, to the extent that I, an ordinary software engineer at Microsoft have been blocked on Twitter by former FCC chairman Ajit Pai because I tweeted support for Net Neutrality publicly. I also noticed that Net…
136
Apple developer boycott of Feedback Assistant
I'm organizing a boycott of Apple's Feedback Assistant , starting immediately, and I encourage all Apple developers to join me. Here's how I propose that each of us can effectively participate in the boycott and let Apple know that we're boycotting Feedback Assistant:
137
A conversation with a newspaper owner raided by cops
Eric Meyer says his paper had been investigating the police chief prior to the raids on his office and home.
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Fine, I'll run a regression analysis but it won't make you happy
State partisanship and COVID vaccination rates are strongly predictive of COVID death rates even once you account for age.
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A child’s privacy is worth more than likes (2022)
The Privacy Whisperer, by Luiza Jarovsky
140
APIs for content sites must be free
Social media businesses should not charge* for APIs. If a company like Reddit or Twitter derives most of its value from content that users write for free then it must provide APIs for anyone to download and manipulate that content. While an interactive API that enables third party applications is desirable, a simple…
141
Bell Labs gave up its roof to patch the Statue of Liberty
It’s 1986 and you’ve got a 31 tons of copper, in the form of a giant 46 meter tall statue, that’s looking a bit worse for wear.
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The antitrust trial against Google is starting in September
Google's monopoly is going on trial starting September 12. This is the big one. Or rather, it's the start of a series of big ones.
143
A note to young folks: download the things you love
Many years ago, my favorite podcast was The Totally Rad Show. It was a fun video podcast where the hosts reviewed movies, games, TV shows, and other general nerd stuff. The hosts were Jeff Cannata (who last year I called the podcasting GOAT), Dan Trachtenberg (who went on to direct
144
AI’s big rift is like a religious schism
The cult-like battles between e/acc and doomers
145
Companies use drip pricing to overcharge consumers
How Companies Use Drip Pricing to Overcharge Consumers
146
The AI Trust Crisis
Dropbox added some new AI features. In the past couple of days these have attracted a firestorm of criticism. Benj Edwards rounds it up in Dropbox spooks users with new …
147
Tech's Elite Hates Labor
DO NOT SUBSCRIBE HERE subscribe at wheresyoured.at. Click to read DO NOT SUBSCRIBE HERE subscribe at wheresyoured.at, by Ed Zitron, a Substack publication.
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The elite's war on remote work has nothing to do with productivity
Xoilac tv là kênh xem bóng đá trực tiếp 24/7 phát sóng trực tiếp bóng đá hơn 20 giải đấu. Chất lượng hình ảnh HD 4K, tốc độ ổn định, xem ttbd trên mọi thiết bị.
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Leaving Twitter had no effect on NPR's traffic
Enshittification is the process by which a platform lures in and then captures end users (stage one), who serve as bait for business customers, who are also captured (stage two), whereupon the platform rug-pulls both groups and allocates all the value they generate and exchange to itself (stage three):
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Google search's death by a thousand cuts
Reddit communities are still private in protest of new API rules. Twitter moved beyond a login wall and is rate-limiting users. Users are frustrated but still using these sites.