New Ideas for Twitter
Love these. Especially the news page.
Benjamin Button Reviews the new MacBook Pro
Brilliant. Just brilliant.
The most obvious change is the redesigned keyboard. Removing the Touchbar creates room for a row of physical function buttons and, in a nice touch, an escape key. This isn't a perfect solution: the function buttons map to a confusing series of actions that can send windows flying around the screen with an errant keystroke, and the new physical off switch is too close to the backspace key. But it is certainly a huge step forward, and it will be interesting to see how software developers take advantage of this clever new feature.
— Benjamin Button Reviews The New MacBook Pro by Maciej Cegłowski
The dust has finally settled from Apple's announcements. The world has returned to what it once was, but for a moment there it seemed that the drama was world-ending. Almost apocalyptic in nature. Only the release of an Apple product could have sparked such hype and drama.
So what was all the drama about then?
It was about Apple's new addition to the MacBook Pro, the Touch Bar. In case you don't know Apple have replaced the top row of keys on their keyboard with a touch bar. Kind of like a long and thin touch screen.
Looks good doesn't it? I thought so. And while I wasn't blown away from Apple's announcements I wondered how long it would be before I needed to replace my own MacBook Pro. Would the Touch Bar affect my decision to buy? That's a post for another day though. As a rule I don't buy brand new tech within a few months of it's release date. I do make exceptions, but not that often.
Anyway back to the point of this post. The Touch Bar and the lack of escape and function keys.
Most people will have looked at the new Touch Bar and thought, "Cool, I can see which emoji to use" or "My photo and video editing might become easier". Me, I just seen a new form of touch interface that may in time become useful. In fact, 1Password have already announced they'll be using the Touch Bar to enhance their password management product. Great stuff.
Not everyone was happy though. We developers are a fickle lot. If we're not jumping from one Javascript framework to the next we're arguing about which text editor is best. The world might be ending but by God we'll get our argument across as to why our text editor is the best before it happens.
And that was the start of the drama. The escape key is missing. Well not gone, just not always there. And that didn't go down well with a lot of people. Mostly people who are users of Vim and Emacs from what I could see. I say a lot of people, it's probably a small minority but on the Internet those that shout the loudest often get the stage for a longer than normal period of time. First it started with the tweets, then the blog posts followed. It was car crash television. You couldn't help but watch.
I honestly can't see what the problem is and here are two reasons why.
1. I rarely use the keyboard on my MacBook Pro
I have a laptop as it suits my needs to be mobile if I need to visit a client but that's not often. Most of the time my laptop sits on my Griffin Elevator Desktop Stand. I use a Logitech K811 keyboard and an Apple Magic Mouse for all my input needs. And yes my keyboard has an escape key. Here it is.
In fact I'm pretty sure that any developer who values their long time health will have a similar set up. If you're using a laptop all day to do your work then I would seriously question how comfortable that is.
2. I haven't used my text editor on the new MacBook Pro
When Apple were handing out the new MacBook Pro for field testing they must have missed my name on the list. Well, not really. They don't do that. In all honesty though I haven't used the new MacBook Pro with the new Touch Bar yet so I haven't the faintest idea how my preferred text editor will work with it. It might work straight out the box, it might not. I just don't know. And neither do the band of dis-gruntled developers who are doing the complaining. Ask any of them if they've used it yet. I doubt it.
The Internet has become the platform of choice to vent your anger, your frustration even your hate if you're that way inclined. Like a tabloid newspaper, the Internet loves drama and it thrives on it like a virus. It spreads quickly. Even the tiniest of arguments can blow up into a full on international shit storm. And with it comes the drama. People making assumptions that this company is doomed or that product is evil.
If I had a filter to block this shit I would. I would love too. I'm sure most of you would as well. But we can't. And it's getting worse. To the point where I'm considering scaling my back my time spent on social media. It's become counter-productive to use.
I can forgive the tech journalists for their sensational click grabbing headlines but even they didn't get all dramatic about Apple's announcements. They reported it, analysed it and made some conclusions. They might be right, they might be wrong, but they did their job. They provided some short form coverage of the announcement.
As for the rest of the Internet. Enough. Enough fucking drama. Unless you've used said product prior to it's release then save your attention grabbing, whining post until you have used the product.
Lesson from Vine. No platform or network is immune from being shut down.
Apple vs Microsoft: A Win for Both
Many might see the recent annoucements by Micrsoft and Apple as a win for Micrsoft and who can argue.
The company are finally interesting again and not just from a consumer perspective but from a technical and creative perspective. The flagship product of the Windows operating system is now having to share the spotlight with Microsoft's new line of hardware products. And while it's great to see Microsoft getting that innovative edge again I don't see it as a win only for Microsoft.
Their Surface products and open sourced software are now opening another front on the war between the tech giants. For too long it's been a two-horse race between Apple and Google.
Apple's line of hardware is different from Google's and that's where I find it hard to compare the two. Apple's traditional line of computers, tablets and phones are certainly different from the Chromebook and Chromecast dongles that Google sell.
Microsoft are now creating a name for themselves as a serious contender for those looking to make a new hardware purchase. And with the hardware purchase, the software purchases will pretty much follow suit. It's a model that Apple has run for years. Build great hardware and boost sales with software and service purchases. It's now Microsoft's turn to take a stab at it.
Microsoft have turned heads with their new products, but not just from a consumer angle but from a corporate angle. I wouldn't be against the idea of a few people at Cupertino who weren't quietly surprised by the new Surface Studio. Hell, they might even like it.
And that's the win for Apple. They have a new competitor on the horizon. A new front to battle on. A new chance to innovate again.
Switched to both Pocket and Pocket Casts in the last couple of days. New goal. Only use services with Pocket in the title.
Pockethub? Pocketpaper? Pocketslack?
The first three pages ...
Avoiding my timeline today, so opting to use the Twitter widget in Notifications Centre to post today.
Upon a friend's recommendation we took a break last year to Aviemore. We had such a great time last year we decided to head back again this year. We managed to do a few things different this year and the scenery was wonderful as always.
My first ride round Loch an Eilein on a murky and gloomy afternoon.
A walk through the elevated trails of Landmark Adventure park.
The boys trying to spot a few red squirrels.
Another ride round Loch an Eilein. This time before the sunrise on Thursday.
Attempted a panorama shot during a ride. Turned out quite well.