Matthew Lang

Over the last few days I’ve been assessing a number of projects that I have in the works.

The problem with each of these projects is that their largely untested product ideas that have stagnated for too long and will require more time to get back on track than I can afford. Most of these projects are getting killed. I can’t afford the time to explore them further. The remaining couple of projects will be re-written and released as open source so that others can run them on their own.

With Apple’s iOS 14 update, there are two features that I am using now to tidy up my home screen. Widgets and the App Library.

Widgets are tiles of different size that can show you a snapshot of an app. This give’s you the benefit of being able to preview information from that app and also tap on the widget to open the app which is much better than having to open the app and then find that information that you need. The only downside to this is that apps with widgets are minimal at the moment, but I’m sure over the next few weeks, there will be plenty of App Store updates for these apps to include more widgets.

The App Library is a feature that I actually read about a few weeks ago and then forgot about when I finished uploading my iPhone. The App Library contains all the apps that you install and puts them in folders based on usage, installation date and also by their category. You can access it by scrolling to the right of the home screen. The benefit of this is that you can now remove an app from your home screen without deleting the app itself. Nice!

In time I think I will see more widgets on my home screen to replace their app icons. These apps I’ll also delete and let them live on in the App Library. I’ll only use widgets for the apps that I use daily with a few other widgets for things like weather and photos.

Between the two of these features, I think I will also have more pages on my home screen to separate how I use my phone. At the moment I’m thinking about screens for daily, photos, work and then downtime.

It will mean less clutter on my home screen and will hopefully mean that I don’t check my phone as often, which is a bad habit of mine at the moment.

I managed to catch the NHS Spitfire as it flew over two hopsitals in my hometown of Paisley this afternoon.

That’s three times now that I’ve been fortunate enough to see this magnificent airplane flying. It was my favourite as a kid, and now that I’ve seen it again in the sky, it’s still my favourite.

Just finished watching Greyhound on Apple TV+.

A great watch and goes straight into the action. Tom Hanks is brilliant as always and Stephen Graham is also great as the Greyhound’s executive officer.

I also think I’ve found myself a book to add to the reading list. The Good Shepherd by C. S. Forester, the book on which the movie is based.

EA is bringing Colin Kaepernick back to Madden. Starting today, Kaepernick will be available as a QB who can be added to any team in Franchise mode in Madden NFL 21, which was released in late August. He can also be selected in the game’s Play Now mode.

— EA adds Colin Kaepernick to Madden NFL 21

You can play as Kaepernick! That’s all I need to know.

Oh look. The big tech companies are now all just passing on the new digital services tax straight to their customers. Who could have predicted that? All in a sarcastic tone of course.

Many small businesses and entrepreneurs will have received an email the other day from Google which informed them that from the 1st November 2020 Google will be passing the UK’s new 2% digital services tax straight onto their customers.

They are even adding a line item on their invoices for DST (Digital Services Tax) alongside VAT.

That means they are joining the likes of Amazon and others who are simply passing this tax straight onto small and medium businesses and consumers in the UK. Exactly what every online business owner knew they would do.

— UK scores an own goal with its Digital Services Tax

Two things I’m taking from this.

1. The UK goverment are fools if they thought that the big tech companies weren’t going to do this. It’s decisions like this that make me wonder if I should change my vote. I didn’t vote for an independent Scotland the first time, but I’m considering it now.
2. I’m of the mind that the big tech companies exist now only to serve themselves. And yes, I’m including Apple in this one. The big tech companies face no competition and can call the shots in most countries. Of course they’ll just pass a tax onto their customers. With the amounts of money they are commanding, they can afford to do so.