Author: Ross Wintle

🙄 I discovered LightningCSS today. Looks like a great replacement for a bunch of build tools for CSS. Built in Rust! Perhaps I can remove a bunch more fragile npm dependencies?!

Oh. But I need to `npm install` it?

WHY?!

🤔 Today I’m thinking about supply-chain attacks in utilities that are written in Go, Rust etc and compiled.

With tools like esbuild and LightningCSS, we only have a single dependency, rather than the hundreds/thousands of dependencies in the tree for an npm-based tool.

But if something is written in Rust and it’s using some off-the-shelf crate/package, would I know about that?

Do all tools dependent on a library get flagged if a package is found to have an issue?

Can I say I frickin LOVE that women’s sport has grown so much these last few years. How it was never such a big thing before I don’t know (*).

But it’s great that it’s a thing now because it’s damn good.

(*) – OK, yes, the patriarchy, I DO know

@JPEGuin Hello. Just subscribed to race control, mostly for team radio. But it’s not working. Any ideas why?

I get the play buttons. But clicking does nothing.

Is this feature broken?

📻 The previous post, by the way, was a reaction blog to this REALLY FREAKIN’ EXCELLENT episode of This American Life that looks at intelligence – artificial and otherwise – from a number of different creative angles.

https://www.thisamericanlife.org/803/greetings-people-of-earth

🤖 I don’t remember who recommend it, but DANG this episode of “This American Life” that tells stories about intelligence – artificial and otherwise – was good.

So good I had to write some thoughts down about it.

"Is ChatGPT clever because it _has_ "theory of mind", or is it stupid because it _lacks_ the instincts that keep a toddler alive.”

https://rosswintle.uk/2023/07/what-is-intelligence-anyway/

The route to death of a social network on my mobile is:

Level 1. App deleted. Try to use just the web app on mobile.
Level 2. Ignore on mobile. Only use on desktop occasionally.
Level 3. Stop using altogether.

Current status:

Facebook: Level 2.5 – just need schools to stop using it for critical comms

Instagram: Level 1 but only for school stuff

Twitter: Level 2

Can you believe I’ve NEVER been on TikTok?

Threads opinions

---

*Opens Threads.*

What’s all this stuff in my timeline from accounts that I don’t follow?

Oh, it’s an addictive engagement machine.

No thanks.

*Deletes Threads*

I guess I always thought that posting on my blog was keeping my content out of the social companies. But are they just seeing it all anyway and attributing it to me?

I’m trying not to talk about the Threads app, but if it’s federated does that mean Meta will scrape my Mastodon content and use it in my social/ad profile?

And is this something new? Are Meta/Twitter doing this already?

Do they need permission? Do they have it already?

I'm at that point of being not-very-well where I can do things sat down, with my brain, but the moment I try to, say, walk somewhere, I'm exhausted.

Also… can people stop talking to me please? Especially the small people who have SO many words.

Why are people – governments mostly, but corporations and individuals too – not looking at the climate, utterly freaking out, and making big, serious, fast decisions? Who is leading?!

World's hottest day since records began https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-66104822

OK. Beta 3 of #WordPress 6.3 is out. It's fixed the command palette styles.

My opinion: They shouldn't release the command palette in this form. It's too early. It's REALLY inconsistent. People will be put off the whole idea.

Put it back in the plugin until it's ready.

❓ There's been so much discussion about the NAME of the #WordPress Command Palette, but I've not seen much discussion of the actual feature/functionality.

Styles are broken right now (https://github.com/WordPress/gutenberg/issues/52097) but what do people think of it?

Does it look like a useful tool?

I updated the final paragraphs of this as it wasn't very clear. Turns out I *was* having a bad day and was being a bit too clever in my writing.

I love learning new things. But it really helps if I find them compelling, or their use is properly justified.

I have a website you can visit as many times as you like.

You can even get a feed that you can put in an RSS reader (I like Feedbin) with other peoples website feeds.

And you can check your feeds as often as you like.

Magical.

Am I having a bad day?

Will I regret writing this?

Does it add anything to the converstion?

I don't know. But I feel compelled to write it.

"The web used to be fun and simple and easy to get stuff done with. Now it's discovering that someone who doesn't know what they were doing used a div instead of a button and fixing it involves half a day of poking around files that make no sense and fixing a broken build process.”

I'm tired of web dev!

https://rosswintle.uk/2023/07/im-tired-of-web-dev/

🚗 This is a really excellent article on the pros and cons of EVs. Debunks lots of myths. LOTS of data.

https://philsturgeon.com/unf-king-the-climate-electric-cars/

Me: Can add the cricket for a month to my TV package?

TV people: You’ll need to sign up to a premium TV package and then add the cricket on. It will cost you 10 times what you are currently paying for TV if you sign up for a 12 month contract.

😱