onfocus

"Various directors tried to tackle the book..." They tried and failed? They tried and died.

So this is happening. With star power. But if there’s no Walken—I’m walkin’ (with)out (rhythm).

There are few satisfactions in life greater than finding a more efficient way to do something in vi. But if you’re me you can’t just read a vi book. You have to read tutorials like this over and over until a new shortcut for moving, cutting, or pasting text just sticks. This is a good tutorial for ambient skill acquisition.

"'Electability' is a way to get voters to carry out a contrary agenda—not their own—while convincing them they’re being 'responsible.'"

I think this article is getting at a central problem with Democratic thinking right now. I agree that it’s impossible to know other people’s minds and trying to read minds (or public opinion) hurts my own ability to reason.

I've been using this Simplify Gmail chrome plugin for a week now and I highly recommend it. I've been accidentally clicking compose ever since Gmail added the fly-in-on-hover navigation on the left. This plugin removes that and adds a floating compose button in the lower right. It removes several distractions around the edges and lets you focus on reading email—which is what you're there to do.

These security and perfomance changes for websites are easy to add and include some new browser features I wasn't aware of before. I went with the recommendation here for a simple CSP header but it looks like you could really batten down the https hatches with that one if you read through the spec.

“In a connected, searchable world, it’s hard to share information about extremists and their tactics without also sharing their toxic views... Labeling extremist content or disinformation as ‘fake news’ doesn’t neutralize its ability to radicalize.”

This article describes the information contagion problem perfectly. I wonder if all information should come with specific instructions to stay grounded after consuming it.

I really like this extension that tells you if a book you’re viewing at Amazon is available at your local library. I wish it could tell me how much money I’ve saved over time. And I wish it could speed up my holds while I’m dreaming.

I’m on board with this plan. Take a look if you haven’t seen it yet. I’m even more on board with the widespread online mocking of this type of reaction to it: Elizabeth Warren's plan to cancel student loan debt would be a slap in the face to all those who struggled to pay off their loans. My favorite response from @petridishes: "this plan to stop slapping people in the face is a slap in the face to all those who were slapped in the face."

You might want to celebrate this Earth Day by revisiting Blackened by Metallica. When I was listening to this in junior high I was only vaguely aware it was about nuclear winter if I thought about it all. I was mostly interested in the guitar work. Maybe I grew up to care about the environment because of the heavy metal I listed to?

“We understand prices. But in a community, many of these transactions are not priced. You may do more favors than you get. You may not even get greater status as a result of something you do.”

This Freakonomics Radio interview with economist Raghuram Rajan is fantastic. He talks about the value of communities and the difficulty economists have quantifying their value. Local communities are also one of the primary ways we find meaning in our personal lives. There's a lot to think about there.

Google Maps has had indoor street view for seven or eight years now. This site collects images of the Google Maps robot caught in the mirrors of those interiors. The juxtaposition of lavish preserved 18th century decor with the utilitarian machine eye feels like something out of a Kubrik movie. And the lack of humans in most pictures makes it look like a post-depopulation survey.

There are many reasons D&D is having a cultural moment and this article mentions a few. I think the game design decision to use more gender inclusive language and imagery in the 5th edition has been a big part of it.