November 2022: Austin, Writing, YouTube
What I Did This Month
Published a big post on the history of our app server for PostHog (along with a bunch of tutorials and now YouTube videos) and a piece on how municipalities can attract and retain smart young people for Smart Young BC.
Went to Austin on my first team offsite. I love tacos, BBQ and Topo Chico, had them nearly every meal. Being warm in the fall is really nice (I returned to snow in Vancouver).
Upgraded Write Concise to make it easier to get started (thanks to PostHog session recordings).
Watched Strange World (big solarpunk inspo) and Canada at the World Cup (depressing and over so fast). Made like 15 omelettes but still can’t figure out how to do it well. Had good pizza in Vancouver for the first time at Spacca Napoli.
Thoughts
A lot of writing apps and advice focus on words (spell check, synonyms, Grammarly, GPT-3), but few focus on structure. Helping improve writing’s structure is a big opportunity. Hemingway is on the right track.
Learning how to use your computer fast is a valuable skill no one teaches you how to do. Every a few basic shortcuts can get you a long way. Starcraft players are doing it right.
There are step changes in life waiting for you to find them.
I’m in favour of more housing, but sometimes the YIMBY industrial complex is out of control. I don’t fully understand the massive infrastructure investment into bike lanes everywhere in a place that rains 8 months of the year. Just because bike lanes are generally “good,” doesn’t mean they make sense in all circumstances. Related: why aren’t covered bike lanes a thing? Places where it rains a lot need more covered spaces in general.
Whenever I talk with someone disillusioned by crypto, I recommend they look into Urbit. Growing number of people.
In a big company, things are constantly going out of date, and there is little way to know they are out of date other than having that local knowledge.
Big problems can be solved through shippable intermediaries.
What should you write about? Secrets, whatever is endlessly fascinating, something you explain often.
If you think you are going to forget something, you probably will. Don’t do forgettable things. Do things that are worth the effort to remember.
Recommendations
Reading articles about optimizing web apps is weirdly fun for me. It is like watching someone play Factorio but in real (computer) life. Here’s one about optimizing a Vue app I found recently.
Have enjoyed Matt Rickard’s daily short essays on software engineering, I read nearly every one. Here’s one of my favourite on GitHub Actions and another on GitHub as a social network.
Here’s the exit for super smart people worried about AI killing everyone.
Build it and you still need to get people to come, Malaysia Edition.
I thought George Hotz was cool before he blew up this month. Leaving comma and working on Twitter is an interesting path. Doing great things often a leap, but it is possible, others have done it.
Van Neistat on why veteran artists don’t quit.
Read a solid chunk of Coders at Work (retro website) this month. The quality of interviews and interviewees is extremely high. It is kind of funny how repetitive it gets, but the first few are quite interesting.
Ethereum’s moat is the ability to curate and cultivate its communities slowly. Holidays will expand until moral improves. Notion AI is cool. SBF didn’t actually donate that much to EA.
Shipping a lot is a good path to getting lucky. How to have good ideas. Figure out the mission, then learn the skill. Tips for good writing. Small groups of individuals can have a massive impact.
Canada is a democracy governed by two rival cellphone companies and a grocery store. In praise of “runk.” Standup comedy practice everyday. Why can everyone learn any skill, but stay stuck as social media copywriters?
Upcoming
Write lots and, make YouTube videos for work. Need to upgrade my setup.
Catch up on reading.
Celebrate Christmas, my favourite holiday, eat lots of holiday cooking.
Start the next year early, make sure I’m focused on what matters.