Notable

Does the Sun always rise in the same direction? No. As the months change, the direction toward the rising Sun changes, too. The featured image shows the direction of sunrise every month during 2019 as seen from near the city of Amman, Jordan

Posted 22nd Dec 2020 @ 09:25

I had to resort to using Chrome's developer tools to take this screenshot. I had to set the viewport to 8,000px (three zeros) in height to fit it in. In comparison, Twitter required 4,000px and WhatsApp only needed 2,500px.

If you have the time, read through it and then remember that Facebook are going to war with Apple over privacy. Apple's changes cannot come soon enough and the EFF are being very critical of Facebook's stance.

(Given its dimensions and the fact it weighs 1.5mb, I've linked to it rather than display it here.

Posted 21st Dec 2020 @ 12:11

Posted 21st Dec 2020 @ 10:30

Posted 19th Dec 2020 @ 23:26

It'S jUsT tHe Flu

Posted 19th Dec 2020 @ 21:55

This is bullshit from Facebook's side. Claiming that they're speaking up for small businesses is a great way to try and change the conversation about targeted advertising. I'm sure there's some truth to the fact that small businesses will loose out if target advertising fades away but how many small business owners actually understand that they are also a victim in this? They are not immune from being tracked just because they use the data to target their adverts.

I'll be phasing out Google Analytics on any site I own/run between Christmas and the New Year and refuse to implement sharing tools built by anyone now.

Apple's anti-tracking feature cannot come soon enough.

Read more on the topic from John Gruber over at Daring Fireball.

Posted 17th Dec 2020 @ 15:32

I loved Ted Lasso, the actual sport aspect of it all was the least interesting bit. This update from Jason Kottke hits the nail on the head:

another aspect I appreciate about the show is it demonstrates how you can be competitive without being toxic. Lasso is a very competitive guy who cares about winning, but he goes about it in a constructive way, not a destructive way. It's the kind of energy their mom and I are always trying to impart to our kids, who are both competitive (albeit in pretty different ways).

The show was renewed for two more seasons, which is great news and it's been getting praise from two of the podcasts I've been listening to: Fake Doctors, Real Friends and John Gruber's The Talk Show.

Posted 17th Dec 2020 @ 08:48

I agree with pretty much everything in this article. If this happens and Instagram go it alone, then they've proved that they can generate revenue the 'problem' will be loosing access to the data that drives it. I can't see Facebook handing over the keys as part of a divorce but I wonder if Instagram would even be interested in taking that baggage with them.

I think Instagram would thrive on its own but it's actually WhatsApp that would really gain more credibility by being split out again. Things might be end-to-end encrypted at the moment but there's not a part of me that doesn't believe Facebook are analysing everything we're typing.

I much prefer Flickr to Instagram because I can do a deep dive on the details of a photo but Instagram is where all my friends and family are. Similar situation for WhatsApp, Messages is a fuss-free app that makes messaging simple and yet everyone I know is using WhatsApp, whether they have a Facebook or Instagram account or not.

Posted 16th Dec 2020 @ 13:45

I learnt a lot about RAW files in general reading their article, and as far as the cameras go, the Pro models definitely earn their moniker now. It will be interesting to see the results of being able too have this much control of your photos.

Posted 16th Dec 2020 @ 12:24

The iPhone 12 Mini is the ideal phone for most people, in my opinion. It's perfectly sized and enjoys the same cameras as the regular 12.

I really expected it to be a hit so to hear sales are sluggish is a little disappointing. It's the form factor Apple should be pushing the limits on, but if there's no appetite for it, then that just won't happen.

Maybe it's a side affect of the pandemic? We've all grown accustomed to larger phones and with a name that implies it's small, maybe fewer people are willing to take the chance on it? I think if most people were given the chance to hold both the regular 12 and the 12 Mini side by side they might have purchased differently.

Posted 16th Dec 2020 @ 08:35