Family guy and web developer
The contribution buys you an evening at home. No dressing up. No rubber chicken. No sitting at a table for eight trying to create stimulating conversation. No silent auction. No requirement other than that the time be used to relax and enjoy an evening without obligation. “Think about us…for a second or two,” the solicitation might suggest.
— Phantom Banquet by Kurt Harden
I love this. Buying yourself an evening at home.
Kurt, just send the invite when you get this organised.
Dropbox account downgraded to the free tier for the first time in three years. Just don’t need that much space in the cloud anymore.
I like the look of this.
via The Verge
In a quest to get back on the blogging bandwagon, I thought I would take a look this week at the different benefits that blogging offers.
Ownership might not be the most obvious answer but for me it’s the most important reason why I blog. I’m not just talking about the blog itself, but the words and the content and how my writing acts as my soapbox in the world today.
The most important reason why I blog is because it allows me the opportunity to put something out there that’s mine. They are my words, my opinions, my stories, my views. It might not always be gold, but that’s okay. They are my words.
It can be a short post, an article, some long form writing or even a short story. It might be a quote a link or even just a word. Just a single word is enough to convey some message across about where you are.
Another reason why I blog is the fact that I want to own my words. Lately there’s a lot of chatter about the pros and cons of hosting your blog in Medium and whether it’s a good or a bad thing. I can see why people would choose Medium as a blogging platform. It’s a great entry into writing online.
However I do prefer having more control over my blog and where it gets published too. Medium is snowballing as more and more people make the switch from their own hosted blog to becoming part of the Medium network, but the problem with this is that it becomes difficult for anyone but people on Medium to see your and follow your blog.
The other great benefit of owning your words is that you can take your blog with you to other blogging platforms if you find that you have outgrown your blogging platform. I started blogging on Tumblr years ago. I then moved to Posterous (now Posthaven), then to Jekyll and now I’m using Ghost. Throughout this time I’ve been able to take my posts with me so that nothing gets left behind.
The ability to own your little corner of the Internet and carve a niche out for yourself is why many people blog, but being accessible means owning your words and the space you blog form. You don’t have to run a fully configured server with a custom Wordpress install on it. There’s plenty of great blogging platforms out there that allow the world to read what you have to say.
Write it, publish it, own it. It’s as easy as that.
I love this post from Adrian about what he's learnt from his time as a developer and where he sees himself going next.
Take conscious decisions in your life. Be aware of your actions and their effect. Do not blush or be embarrased for changing your opinions. Say “I’m sorry” when required. Listen. Do not be a hotshot. Have integrity and self-respect.
— Being a Developer After 40 by Adrian Kosmaczewski
The big four-o for me is just around the corner. I can't freelance for another twenty years, or can I?
The Awl remembers the glory days of Google Reader.
Instead, our websites now keep tabs on us, the better to target us and hold us down and turn us into money, like so many caged broiler chickens, puffed up with soybean meal. Doesn’t feel good, does it?
— O Reader! My Reader by The Awl
To be fair it's not all that bad. People are still blogging and the demise of Google Reader as seen a growing market in RSS readers which is great for everyone. The glory days might still be ahead.
Project Infinite, announced at Dropbox’s Open London event wants to give you the best of both worlds. The idea is fairly simple: you can view all your Dropbox files right from your PC, but your computer will only download files as it needs them.
— Dropbox's new "Project Infinite" will make you stop crying about your puny SSD by The Next Web
For a while there I was wondering if Dropbox would do anything to update their service. This would be a great benefit as I don't need to have my whole Dropbox synced to my MacBook all the time. Just what I need, when I need it.
When I was a kid and my mother wasn’t around to make us something to eat, my dad used to smile and explain that we had our choice of a peanut butter sandwich, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or a jelly sandwich. “You should have it on toast,” he would say. “It tastes better because the peanut butter gets all gooey.”
— PB&J by Kurt Harden
The things that remind us of our childhood.
The project is vaguely on your mind. You sip coffee and read a book. You scan the news but with faint attention because you are still sorting out the project. As much as you might like to do so, the process can't be rushed.
— Nothing But Thinking by Michael Wade
I'm coming off the back of a frantic couple of months of client work and looking forward to a little bit more time spent like this.