circling back around to the issue of writers being expected to do all their own goddamn marketing via social media these days, because it completely nixes the possibility of writers being weird shut ins, off-putting eccentrics, or misanthropes. 80% of the literary canon was written by weird shut ins, off-putting eccentrics, and misanthropes. if you weed out everyone who’s the wrong kind of insane to maintain a twitter presence, who on earth is left

i heard a talk about this by a terrific mystery novelist, John Straley, titled “In Defense of Misanthropes in the Arts.”

I’ll never forget him sharing his candid fear that authors like him, authors who did not want to post on Facebook or Twitter, authors who wanted to be curmudgeonly and left alone, were being steadily squeezed out of the writing world as publishers foisted more and more promotional work directly onto authors. Not everyone is cut out for the spotlight. Not everyone wants to be their own hype man. Not everyone presents well in 280 characters, especially in a space they don’t even want to be present. The time suck, the scrutiny, the punishment for making a “mistake” -- all this extracurricular work is so different from actual writing.

Make room for weird reclusive shut-in eccentric misanthropic artists and writers. Don’t forget those voices are worth your attention, too.

File under: reasons I gave up on writing professionally.

If I’m going to have to market my own work in addition to writing my books AND I’m going to make a pittance doing all of that…

I’m going to write for myself in my spare time, hold down my well-paid day job, and release my work whenever and wherever I feel like it, and people can drop me a bit of cash if they really like it. That way I don’t have to worry about piracy, nor what a publisher feels like doing with my IP, nor the pressure to produce more work or risk losing a contract, nor the whims of the indie publishers that gobble up 80%+ of the royalties…

Fuck it. It’s not worth it. Not for me.

Alternate action:

Use only these signs. Destroy gender-segregated bathrooms through sheer confusion.

I was looking at some examples of baroque art and I happened across a painting that is not supposed to be funny but I cannot stop laughing at it.

You ever see a painting that you feel like you can hear? Let me tell you, the noise that this painting makes in my head is killing me

Things I wish I had read in "beginner" sewing tutorials/people had told me before I started getting into sewing

I believe that's all - feel free to add unto it.

When your sewing machine becomes unruly and recalcitrant and mulish, unthread it completely both bobbin and spool, and rethread it from the ground up. Don't just like, try to troubleshoot which step of the threading has come un-hooked or whatever, just fuckin re-do the whole thing trust me just do it. After a few months of this you will become SO GOOD at threading. And then it will be no biggie at all and one day you will just fix the loop that came unhooked from step 3 of 7 and then you have graduated from needing to re-do it all from scratch every time.

Seconding @tidyturnip, but also! If your machine has been working well for a while but is SUDDENLY just not being kind, change your needle for a fresh one. A dull needle can wreak all kinds of havoc you wouldn't expect.

Yep, dull needles are not obvious, and they cause so many problems, and you really think you can get away without changing the needle but you CAN'T, you need to change it so much more often than you think!

Also, if the stitching is coming out uneven, like each stitch is a differnent length and it's getting all tangled, check your feed dogs and make sure they're tightly attached and not loose and wobbly.

One small but extremely annoying effect of Tech Modernization or w/e is how UI contrast is garbage anymore, especially just, like, application windows in general.

"Ooh our scrollbar expands when you mouse over it! Or does it? Only you can know by sitting there like an idiot for 3 seconds waiting for it to expand, only to move your cursor away just as it does so!" or Discord's even more excellent "scrollbar is 2 shades off of the background color and is one (1) pixel wide" fuck OFF

I tried to move a system window around yesterday and had to click 3 times before I got the half of the upper bar that let me drag it. Why are there two separate bars with absolutely nothing to visually differentiate them on that.

"Well if you look closely-" I should not!! have to squint!!! at the screen for a minute straight to detect basic UI elements!! Not mention how ableist this shit is, and for what? ~✨Aesthetic✨~?

and then every website and app imitates this but in different ways so everything is consistently dogshit to try to use but not always in ways you can immediately grok it's!!!! terrible!!!! just put lines on things again I'm begging you!!!!

I know I sound like a broken record when I praise Windows 95 UI, but holy fuck Microsoft figured this shit out already about 30 years ago. It's all there, black and white, clear as christmas:

So much of modern UX woes stem from not knowing, or intentionally ignoring the genuine design study put forth into GUIs in the 90s.

3D elements are 3D in a specific way with lighting from a specific side to make it obvious where a window element begins and ends.

The gradient always should from from one side, and keep it consistent.

Make your color shading and shape of scroll bars consistently side and easy to press. I have a 4K display, don't make me hunt for the magic activation pixel that makes your 3-pixel wide scroll bar appear.

It's a desktop application, I've got the screen real estate to spare to have the actual GUI elements present on screen at all times (I know, heresy).

The moment aesthetic takes precedence over form and function, you've failed as a UI designer.

And any argument about "we don't have the resolution" can go right out the window, we were having nice, clear and legible interface widgets on nine inch screens in 1984. We continued to have nice, clear and legible interfaces on machines vastly less powerful than today's and on screens vastly less pixel-dense than today's. We used to know what the hell we were doing. At least one of these examples even has on-screen instructions in case the widgets functionality isn't immediately apparent.

(images sourced from The GUI Gallery)

since this has come back to my dashboard again i want to call attention to one more thing that these GUIs have that modern ones don't even try to do.

RESIZE WIDGETS.

Do you tire of trying to grab and resize a window whose border is literally only 1 pixel wide?

Do you see how large the corner widgets are in those clips above? Those are at least 16x16 pixels. They're almost as large as the Close buttons on a modern GUI. If you can see the bottom right corner of your window, resizing it is a snap. You can aim much more easily at a 16x16 widget than you can at a one-pixel-wide vertical line.

OK, maybe technically Windows' borders are wider than 1 pixel. They're technically 3 pixels. That is still just really goddamn tiny compared to 16 of them.

We used to be a society. Look at this. Look at this.

WINDOWS FUGGIN' 95 HAD THE CORNER WIDGET. Why the hell can't Windows 11?

I'm going to say some things people might not like here, but I find this whole conversation super interesting and relevant and awesome! I'm mostly focused on these examples of old GUI, and how those in particular fit into the topic of accessibility vs aesthetic.

Most of these old interface examples...aren't good for accessibility. In fact some of them are very, very bad, and that's exactly why we don't see them anymore.

A big part of UX design is understanding UI patterns, and carefully thinking about when and how to break those patterns or establish new ones. People get used to patterns, and they like them, and when we change those patterns, even if it fixes a big problem and improves things for new users, even if it doesn't make anything actually worse (which admittedly is rare! but typically is carefully considered. Typically.) experienced users don't like that. Because they are used to doing it one way, and we have changed it, and now they have to learn how to do things this new way, which seems a lot harder to them than just keeping things the way they were because they learned to do it that way, so surely these new users can learn to do it that way, as well?

Think of QWERTY keyboards vs DVORAK keyboards. DVORAK is faster and better, but we use QWERTY, a layout designed to prevent typewriter keys from sticking, because everyone's used to it and changing now would be hugely detrimental to the majority of users.

And I wonder if this isn't part of what's going on here? These old interfaces are super overwhelming. They lack visual hierarchy, the text is difficult to read, they are cluttered. They work super well for some users, particularly people who started out on these interfaces and find them familiar and who have established the patterns of use, but also for users who need high visual contrast. For other users they are worse than what we see today. They're utterly esoteric to anyone who isn't highly technically literate.

I also agree that some of the current patterns are not improvements! A wider scrollbar on desktop browsers is not going to hurt the experience of a website, and will help users to want to use that method of scrolling. Same with providing "grip zones" at the edges of windows to help with resizing.

Accessibility is a complicated and often contradictory topic. Most of the time, increased accessibility helps everyone! In some instances, though, what some users need in order to use an interface comfortably will completely destroy that experience for a user with a different need. The good news is that we are seeing more and more accessibility tools that help provide for those multiple needs! And big kudos and thanks to people who bring up ADA lawsuits against websites. That is doing its job scaring other website owners into raising the bar on accessibility. So keep that up!

All this to say, hey, I'm going to look more closely at scrollbars in my designs and bring this up at work to see if we can make any changes to this in our products. And remember: no one is ever the default user. We all have particular and unique needs and preferences that makes design messy and fun!

i can’t believe this is real

not the source for the screen cap but here's a WSJ article (sans paywall)

Per previous tags--

In this model of Tesla, apparently—get this—according to the Tesla manual, you do it on a touchscreen.

Did a human being just die because of swiping the wrong way?

...And then, when you're in the water and the car's power systems (which operate the doors, because of course they do) have all gone down, how do you get out?

You partially disassemble the door and pull out one specific wire. The image via Warren Terra at Bluesky.)

...I don't know about the rest of you, but I am never getting into one of these alleged vehicles. Ever.

Okay. Alright. Things to take note of: Never get in a Tesla, it's a deathtrap. (Somewhat related note: I have several firefighter friends. They have told me that electric vehicle fires are just kind of... impossible to put out. Cities haven't figured out what to do yet other than just...let the car burn. It's in an underground parking garage? Too bad. There's nothing they can do. Let's hope the building doesn't catch fire. The best method they have so far, I've been told, to put out an electric vehicle fire is to just submerge that thing in a tank of water for several days. Because the fire will keep reigniting. Electric vehicles, all well and good, I want to save the environment, but maybe let's consider trains?)

The finished result! I’m so ridiculously proud and pleased with how it turned out!

This was an ordinary door + 3 pieces of mdf board. I carved and sculpted them with my dremel multitool, inspired by the carvings I saw in Bali, mounted them and then painted and sanded the whole thing in several layers before adding a final tint of gold. 💙

The door and side panel I sculpted myself. The top carving is from Bali.

This popped up on my activity page, getting notes again for some reason! :D

Damn, I miss doing things like this… I really should try to get around to setting up a proper workshop in the garage this spring, and see if I can get back into the groove.

WOW!!!!!

You are clearly an extremely focused and PATIENT person.  Even considering tackling something like this would give me a nervous breakdown requiring hospitalization.

I second the nervous breakdown…nope…you are amazing!

Thank you!

But also, it’s actually not that time consuming? Each of these panels took only a few hours to sketch and carve, I made one/day. And then mounting everything and doing the first layer of paint one day, sanding and second layer another day, and more sanding and final highlights and gold the third day.

I am in fact a very impatient person! If it hadn’t been fast, I could never have done it. 😂

Here’s another door I made; I cut out and carved the whole panel in… one day? Two? It was pretty fast at any rate!

And then I got as far as painting and sanding/distressing the paint in three layers, and adding highlights to 75% of it… and then I got adhd-tired of it and never finished the last few highlights or added gold. XD

It’s still pretty, though!

I realized I never actually shared the finished-finished result, with the door handles mounted!

I bought these two beautiful bronze-green seahorse handles on Bali several years ago (along with several bronze dragonflies of various kinds used as towel hooks and general decorations in the bathroom itself).

We bought a bronze patina lock from a local hardware store to match, and I covered the remaining hole with another lotus carving.

It’s been years, but seeing this door every time I head to take a bath or shower still makes me smile. I love it so much. 🥰

Would you ever consider making a tutorial? This is amazing!

Thank you! I actually have made one! You can find it here. 💚

It only covers the woodcarving and a simple fake stain paint, not the layered paint and distressing technique + gold I used on this door, but it shows how I work with my dremel. :)

A man walked straight into a bar

And then came out

If you are looking to be informed about international news, please go to the Guardian or NPR (neither requires a subscription to read) of some other reputable news organization and get your complete, detailed, FACT-CHECKED information there instead of relying on short posts and memes on social media. Please.

If you think you’re getting the whole story on social media, or that you’re getting information on social media that the news media is too cowardly or corrupt to show you, you are falling into the same conspiracy theory trap that a lot of older people have. The ones who used to be normal and are now being cut off by their kids and grandkids because they’re frothing at the mouth in their support for Trump.

Please, for your own sake, stop relying on social media for your news. Set a 20 minute timer, and read actual news stories about the subjects you’re interested in or care about. Look for more detail and more information than what is being spoon fed to you by strangers here.

literally what is the point of writing fantasy if you don't include luscious, evocative descriptions of banquet spreads

hard cheese with golden rind, dates and walnuts dipped in honey, pork in its crackling skin and egg-glazed loaves with braided, seed-studded crust, save me

hard cheese with golden rind, dates and walnuts dipped in honey, pork in its crackling skin and egg-glazed loaves with braided, seed-studded crust

save me, hard cheese with golden rind, dates and walnuts dipped in honey, pork in its crackling skin and egg-glazed loaves with braided, seed-studded crust

Redwall flashbacks.

Touchscreens do not belong in cars

And gauges and dials should be gauges and dials, not screens

Door releases should have a direct mechanical link to a latch, not send an electronic signal to a servo

You should not have to have your phone alive to unlock your car

Most touchscreens have a temperature resistance of less than 40°C (104°F). They do not belong on cars, toasters, ovens and stoves, any kind of safety equipment, or any equipment that requires precision of operation to maintain safety. They do not belong anywhere near a working engine.

Furthering this: household appliances should never ever have those flat touch-buttons. They should have 3D pressy buttons because A) visually impaired people exist? B) sometimes it is dark and I just want to do laundry without turning a light on C) the touch buttons are SO FINICKY and the plastic layers on top of them shred SO EASILY and it is SO ANNOYING D) pressing buttons is so fun, why would you take that small joy away form me for a "sleek interface"?

I have friends with an induction-top stove that I can't work without instructions, and where it is not at all clear which parts are displays vs buttons because it's all touch-buttons, and which will yell at you if anything touches the interface panel which is ON THE STOVETOP. WHO DID THIS?!

click this..

then click your blog(s)

scroll all the way down and click this..

profit?

On mobile it’s under visibility

This is better than the how-to I was about to write.

So yeah. Do this.

And let's see if we can get "fuck ai" trending, shall we?

Ok this wikipedia article is pissing me off so much 

yeah i’m gonna re-write this fucker

goddamn. there is so much bias in the first paragraph alone:

this is an EXCELLENT example of the way word choice and tone can be used to create bias and transform the truth to suit the writer’s purposes.

Here’s my re-write: 

i got rid of the passive tone (which distances Profumo from his actions), and changed the photo. notice how the original writer chose a photo taken before the scandal, portraying Profumo in a respected position of power, a powerful man seated at a desk. I chose a photo taken in the aftermath. Which would you say more accurately reflects the context? 

some other changes:

“denied impropriety” like he’s some maiden aunt clutching at pearls. No, what he actually did was:

oh, and he wasn’t

he was, in fact

after lying through his teeth. now here’s my favorite bit:

what does that MEAN? what the hell does that MEAN??? oh boo hoo hooey the Prime Minister’s self-confidence was damaged, how dreadful for the poor dear. the poor sweet man…

fuck that. in fact, Profumo’s actions

of the government, and rightly so.

oh, and the young woman in question was a model, not a “would-be” model. But ultimately her profession has no relevance here–what is relevant is that a middle-aged man in a position of power slept with a 19-year-old. I wonder what motive the original author could have had, to choose to emphasize her career over the fact she was still a teenager…

Words can be used to bend anything. Pay attention to tone. Pay attention to authorial intent. Pay attention to what is included and what isn’t. Question everything. But especially question the language used to describe historical and current events. Every writer has an agenda–look for it. Above all: 

Read critically.

ko-fi / paypal

Reblogging because this lesson is important to writers as well as readers. You can tell the exact same story many ways just by changing the tone, the wording, or the angle of the metaphorical camera.

If you are writing a piece of historical fiction, or a fantasy loosely set in the real world, be aware of these angles when doing research. It can help you 1) not misrepresent the past, and 2) create the tone you want in your interpretation.

What kind of wine would pair well with a 6 pc chicken strips basket for Dairy Queen?

Ordinarily, you think "chicken", you think "white wine", but in this case with the robust flavours of ketchup and/or barbeque sauce, I'm going out on a limb and suggesting a nice, light, spicy pinot noir.

Source

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I am American and I have never seen photos like this. I had no idea there are borders like this. Even though I LOVE the idea of open borders, I am staring at these pictures like “wait…people can just…walk across some stones or grass and BE IN ANOTHER COUNTRY??? and nobody stops them?? how does that WORK?!” So you can tell that my country’s propaganda has gotten to me by convincing me that this CAN’T work even though…it…obviously can. These pics just seem unreal to me. I’ve been taught my whole life that this can’t exist. In 27 years no one has ever sat me down and gone, look, here’s how it is elsewhere. It isn’t impossible at all.

I want to add something, but I’d just be restating what they said. I.. didn’t know peace and kindness like this was possible.

All of the above, and …

Why did the chicken cross the road?

To get to Belgium, apparently.

Okay but this is also kind of funny to me as a Canadian because the border between Canada and the USA is also like this.

Like, this is what YOUR border looks like in places.

A narrow river, one side USA one side Canada.

A clear cut strip in the forest.

This is the border between Stanstead, Quebec, and Derby, Vermont. It's a line of flower pots next to a public library.