Light Phone 2, my favorite tech thing of 2024
One device had the biggest impact on me this year, and mostly for what it doesn't do.
Read moreIt's not my civic duty to be famous
A thread that emerged from the post-election analysis is about how much the election was influenced by, well, influencers.
Read moreMake it yourself book from NODE
Internet brain
I followed a series of YouTube recommendations that lead me into literal hell. Unfortunately, I don't have the option to click away when these rabbit-holes seep into the real world.
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NODE is a creator (or a group?) that publishes interesting technology projects and supporting ideas on their N-O-D-E YouTube channel and website. What makes NODE interesting, beyond any individual project or video, is the ethos behind their work. In the zine Node VOL 02: Manifesting Reality, manifesting reality refers to a decentralized community using readily available technology to build the future that they want to see. It’s a critique of commercial technology, but presented with an optimistic and empowering tone, rather than complaining about any particular company or product.
The most recently published work is Make it Yourself: 1000 Useful Things to Make (YouTube) (and blog post), which announced the release of a PDF book also called Make it Yourself: 1000 Useful Things to Make. The book compiles 1000 different do-it-yourself projects from around the internet into a kind of greatest hits album.
The book’s contents are links to web pages with the original author’s instructions on how to make those projects. You will need to read it on a computer with internet access and a web browser (as opposed to an e-reader).
Most of the projects are beyond anything I would attempt, but it’s really fun to see so many nice do-it-yourself projects in one place, organized, and with attractive renderings. Check it out!