Posts for 2019-05-16

I’ve tried Drafts on iOS, but I just can’t figure out how to get it doing what I want. Same with Shortcuts. I think the problem for me is that there’s no Help system in iOS. That’s what I always turned to on Mac and Windows.

Slipping back into some bad habits involving iPad games and procrastination. So I’m going cold-turkey for a while, uninstalled all of them except I Love Hue which I can play in fits and starts without worry.

Buying Too Much Stuff is Driven By Uncertainty

I’ve gradually weaned myself off of retail therapy, though I have occasional lapses still.

Idle Words > Talks > Privacy Rights and Data Collection in a Digital Economy (Senate hearing) (Testimony given by Maciej Ceglowski, creator of Pinboard.)

A characteristic of this new world of ambient surveillance is that we cannot opt out of it, any more than we might opt out of automobile culture by refusing to drive. However sincere our commitment to walking, the world around us would still be a world built for cars. We would still have to contend with roads, traffic jams, air pollution, and run the risk of being hit by a bus.

Similarly, while it is possible in principle to throw one’s laptop into the sea and renounce all technology, it is no longer be possible to opt out of a surveillance society.