There's been several long threads recently on Google's crappy info-box. Google doesn't want you to leave the Google page, so Google slurps information up and presents you an answer on the Google homepage. Here's what it typically looks like. OK, that's kinda useful. Search for a thing and get the info without clicking through. But…
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This is a story about how modern masculinity is killing the world, and how feminism can save it. It's a story about sex and power and trauma and resistance and persistence. It's a story about how you can track the crisis of democracy against the crisis of White masculinity, and how the far right is…
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When I was a kid, I had two of my adult teeth surgically removed. As such, I still have two of my baby teeth. And, as I get older, they're starting to wear down. At every dental check-up my dentist prods them, gives them a wiggle, and sometimes takes an x-ray. "Well," they say, "They're…
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When I first helped get the IEC Power Symbol into Unicode - I made a promise to myself that I'd get it as a tattoo. One day. Turns out, I'm a massive wuss. How will I cope with actual needles in my flesh? And what if I don't like the placement? Or change my mind?…
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lustrum lŭs′trəm A ceremonial purification of the entire ancient Roman population after the census every five years. A period of five years. Five long years ago I quit my job in the mobile industry and started working for the Civil Service. It has been an "interesting" period! On a personal level, I've gone from GDS,…
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Computers would be so much better if they never had to deal with users, amirite?!!? I remember, years ago, working on a mobile web service which had a URl bar - so users could tap in bbc.co.uk on their T9 keypads - and a separate search bar. I thought that was pretty nifty. But it…
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The BBC Shipping Forecast is one of those strange bits of national tradition which, somehow, bridges the gap between infrastructure and folklore. You can listen listen to the latest forecast on the BBC - read by professional newscasters. But what if we wanted a robot to read it? If our speaker is sick, bored, or…
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Sitting down all day, every day, is killing me. Well, my doctor thinks it probably isn't brilliant for me and recommended trying a standing desk (as well as boring things like exercising more, drinking less, and eating fewer pies). I already have a fancy WFH desk which holds all my stuff. So I decided to…
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David Bowie invented the NFT in 19971. The "Bowie Bond" allowed you to directly invest in an artist's catalogue and receive royalty payments based on their sales. Here's how it worked2: You pay money to the artist (Bowie) Artist uses that money to buy the rights to their back catalogue Every time one of the…
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How do you quickly insert a 💩 emoji when using your laptop? I just type ScrLck, p, o, o! What is this 🧙♀️ craft? In your keyboard settings, you should see an option like this: You can set the "Compose" key to be anything you like. Personally, I use the otherwise-useless Scroll Lock button. Now,…
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