I love Lego. When I was a kid it was my way to escape. I had loads of sets but I loved to make my own builds and stories. One recurring theme was space, building moon bases and fantastic rockets to take me there. Oh to go back to those times.
Another love was space, especially the Apollo missions, so when Lego announced a set would be launched to commemorate the moon landings I had to buy it. The Lego Apollo Saturn V is expensive at £110 but is a metre tall and contains 1969 parts. This would take a fair bit of time to build.
So I set aside a weekend and got to work. Of course, I did a time-lapse that didn’t quite come out as hoped but that was a side project to the main event.
Some of the build was intricate but overall it was fantastic to put together. The instructions were clear and the parts came in 12 bags so was fairly easy to sort and work through. Overall it’s a superb kit and the final rocket looks great. It was also nice to get a small stand for the rocket to give you a choice of how you want to display it. If you are into Lego or space in any way treat yourself to this set, I loved it.
Life
The Grenfell Tower fire puts everything into perspective. People lost families, friends, possessions and it’s hard to see who is helping them apart form themselves. Heartbreaking.
As for me, last week wears really busy but I’ve now got a week off work. However it didn’t get off to the best of starts with our boiler being condemned on Friday. New one being fitted this week which will cause quite a bit of upheaval…and probably a new kitchen will be required. Sigh. Media
More WipEout, more Ready Player One. Half way through and it’s so good. Links
WordPress parent Automattic is closing its San Francisco office because its remote workers never show up — Quartz
Automattic, the technology company that owns WordPress.com, has a beautiful office in a converted San Francisco warehouse, with soaring ceilings, a library, and a custom-made barn door. If you like the space, you’re free to move in. The office at 140 Hawthorne went on the market after CEO Matt Mullenweg came to the realization not… Flxible and mobile working is the future.
WWDC 2017 — Some Thoughts – Learning By Shipping
Putting some of the major announcements of new platform technologies in context. What are the implications for ARKit, Core ML, SiriKit. Also ow does iOS 11 and the iPad Pro 10″ improve “productivity’. More thoughts on WWDC.
Grenfell Tower cladding: Claims fire-resistance would have cost just £5,000 | London Evening Standard
Anger is growing over claims a series of safety failings led to the Grenfell Tower disaster after it emerged contractors could have spent just £5,000 more on fire-resistant cladding. A “Justice for Grenfell” rally is set to take place in Westminster on Friday evening, while numerous distraught residents have demanded answers from politicians over the blaze that killed at least 17 people on Wednesday. If this is true then words fail me.
Life A week is a long time in politics. Roll back six weeks and no one could have predicted what we’ve seen in the last few days. May is a busted flush. Indyref 2 looks dead…but I’m sure brexit or some other significant and material change will bring it back into the limelight. As for me, looking forward to a week off work from this Friday.
Media
WipEout Omega on the PS4 launched and is stunning. If you like anything about the original series you will love this.
Links
The Second Coming Of iPad A great WWDC from Apple and this post covers my views on the iPad potential.
The Talk Show Live From WWDC 2017 on Vimeo
Recorded in front of a live audience at The California Theatre in San Jose, John Gruber is joined by Phil Schiller and Craig Federighi to discuss the news from WWDC:… Enjoyed The Talk Show live with Gruber. Always teases out some nice background to the new WWDC announcements and how Apple thinks.
How to Make $80,000 Per Month on the Apple App Store
At WWDC, Apple reported that they’ve paid out $70 billion to developers, with 30% of that ($21 billion!) in the last year. That’s a huge spike, and surprising to me because it didn’t seem like my… Scummy. Apple need to act to get rid of these type of apps.
How Britain Voted – The New York Times
Results and analysis from the British general election. Great visualisations on what happened last week in the elections.
Insight: Wake-up call for Nicola Sturgeon’s indyref2 dreamers – The Scotsman
In the end there was no real Portillo moment: the claiming of one high-profile scalp – such as Angus Robertson, the SNP leader at Westminster – that symbolised the much-touted blue surge. Shame to see Angus Robertson go from the House of Commons, but there’s no doubt that lasts weeks vote was a large drop for SNP…and nothing to do with Labour voters defecting to the tories despite what the Nat’s are spinning.
Black Panther Teaser Trailer [HD] – YouTube
HERO. LEGEND. KING. Watch Marvel Studio’s Black Panther teaser trailer now. ► Subscribe to Marvel: http://bit.ly/WeO3YJ Follow Marvel on Twitter: https://tw… Looking good.
Life
What a fucked up week. Politics, terrorists and all the while the predominantly right wing media twist everything to suit their will. Hoping next Thursday will be a day of reckoning. Fearing it won’t be.
At least there’s WWDC to look forward to.
Media
Really enjoying Ready Player One. I can see me getting more into Audiobooks thanks to this.
Britain’s most average place – BBC News
The views on the streets of Worcester – Britain’s most average constituency. Great article just one week before the election.
StockStream – Twitch Mike Roberts is an Amazon engineer who is letting the crowd guide his $50,000 investments via Twitch. Bold…and it will be interesting to see if the wisdom of the crowd pays out.
What Is ‘Covfefe’? The Internet Wonders
Late Tuesday night, President Donald Trump tweeted the word “covfefe,” sending the internet into a frenzy. The Mango Mussolini strikes again…but what does it mean? I don’t think I’ve seen so many memes spread so quickly. Twitter at it’s best.
What Really Happened with Vista A long read but really great. Vista was a mess and this story reveals some of the reasons why.
Grilling Glasgow: a short documentary about Glasgow’s burger scene – YouTube
Between 2012 and 2015, Glasgow experienced a foodie phenomenon – a burger boom. In this short documentary, we speak to the biggest and most influential playe… Good wee video into the burger scene in Glasgow and how it grew over the last few years.
Two days from now and we’ll have just sat through the WWDC 2017 keynote. WWDC is predominantly a software event with focus on new iOS and macOS releases but Apple’s hardware has been stagnating so expectations for Monday are high. What do I hope/expect?
iOS improvements especially for iPad. My iPad is 3 1/2 years old and I want to see a jump in functionality for iPad users.
A new iPad! I’d like to pick up one along with a keyboard and pen. I’m not sure what to expect from new hardware although the rumours of an in-between size of the two current pro’s and more glass/less bezel sounds pretty compelling.
macOS – hope Apple can show the Mac a little love. I like the idea of going to macOS 11 and linking numbering to iOS but doubt it will happen. Hopefully there’s something on the software front as I expect any Mac hardware updates will be CPU only. How about killing iTunes which has been on many people’s wish list for years? Fingers crossed.
Photo’s. Really needs some love after a promising start especially when compared to Google Photos.
One more thing…Siri speaker? I’d prefer a 4k Apple TV at a reasonable price to be honest.
A fairly modest list of wants really. It will be interesting to see what’s shown that hasn’t been predicted or talked about, and also how they stack up against Google and Facebook and the industry in general which is focussing on AI and AR. Changing of the guard, my tastes changing or the appeal of something new? All I know is Apple isn’t delivering for me like they used to. Roll on Monday.
Life
More crazy hours at work meant for another tiring week but hopefully thats all done for a while. Thanks to a quirk at our place and despite tomorrow being a UK holiday…we don’t get it so no rest for the wicked. Booking a week off in June though to top up the batteries.
Media
Caught up with Logan. Loved it even though the ending was telegraphed through the film. Finally a good Wolverine movie, and my favourite X-Men film.
Also got into Ready Player One, via Audible as I find long reading quite dull. Hour and a half in and I’m hooked. What can I say – #dannywasright
Links
Mossberg: The Disappearing Computer – Recode
Tech was once always in your way. Soon, it will be almost invisible. Walt Mossberg is the tech writer and this is his last column. Loved his articles and recently enjoyed his Ctrl-Walt-Delete podcast. Will be missed.
Essential apps for switching from Mac to Windows – Charged
If you’re making the jump from Mac to Windows like I did, you’re probably missing some of your favorite apps. Here’s a selection of my favorite Windows apps. Some good Windows apps recommended here.
Cover Story: Star Wars: The Last Jedi, the Definitive Preview | Vanity Fair
Star Wars devotees who can’t wait for December need look no further. With exclusive access to writer-director Rian Johnson, plus interviews with Mark Hamill, Daisy Ridley, and others, V.F. presents the ultimate sneak peek at The Last Jedi—and Carrie Fisher’s lasting legacy. Some good info on the upcoming movie without anything being revealed. Roll on December.
A few weeks ago the New York Times asked the question Which Tech Giant Would You Drop? Did you take the test? If you haven’t then give it a go, it only takes a minute. For me it was pretty straightforward. I would drop in the following order:
Facebook
Microsoft
Alphabet
Amazon
Apple
Since then both Microsoft and Google have had major events, Amazon have released new Echo devices and WWDC is only around the corner. I’ve also been thinking more about what I’d lose if each service was shutdown. These tech giants own so many products. Take a look at what would go if each one shutdown.
FacebookMicrosoftAmazonAlphabetApple
Instead of choosing between five companies you are choosing between dozens of products. Does it change your drop order? For me it does.
Facebook would still go first. I’ve been a bit harsh and missed out a couple of important products like Facebook Messenger, but Facebook would go despite my love of Instagram. Either people would flock to Flickr (ok, that won’t happen) or Google Photo’s would evolve to take Instagram’s place. Oculus isn’t doing anything that HTC’s Vive couldn’t and you’ve got Signal to take over from WhatsApp.
Originally I had Microsoft in fourth and Alphabet in third but it’s now a choice between Microsoft and Amazon. When putting the graphics together I was going to swap Amazon into fourth but one thing stopped me – AWS. How many app’s and services would disappear because AWS is no longer around? Azure competes really well but when I look at the Microsoft services I can swap them out for alternatives. PSN for Xbox, AWS for Azure, macOS for Windows and who needs LinkedIn or Bing? So Microsoft stays in fourth and Amazon moves to third despite the lure of Prime.
That leaves Alphabet and Apple. For me it breaks down to Apple for the hardware and O/S I use all the time, and Alphabet for the services I use all the time. For years I’ve preferred Apple’s hardware for it’s design and reliability but there’s no doubt that the shine has lessened in recent years.
I use Google services every day. Google Search is still my goto, Google Doc’s drive’s the podcast and has never let us down in six years of usage and YouTube really has no equivalent. However services are only as good as the hardware they run from and for me Apple still wins out in that front. Just. The speed of the iPhone is hard to beat and while the rest of my hardware is getting long in the tooth it’s reliable and I trust when I upgrade devices over the next couple of years I’ll get a great hardware boost.
Whats also helped has been Google (and others) making sure that they are available on all platforms, not just their own, so that all users can benefit and also so they can get access to as many eyes as they can. Compared to a few years ago it’s really a great time for users with the best choice of hardware and services.
So, who would you drop first? More importantly who would you keep until last?
Life
As expected the last week was busy and tiring but ultimately interesting and enjoyable. Hopefully more of the same next week with a few original twists to keep me on my toes.
Media
American Gods is well worth a watch, apart from that it’s been a week of catching up on podcasts.
Links
Apple’s New Campus: An Exclusive Look Inside the Mothership | WIRED
Flawless curves, milled aluminum, endless glass, walled garden—sounds like an Apple product. In fact, it’s the company’s biggest launch ever. Looks stunning, will be interesting to see how it ages over the next few years.
Theresa May to create new internet that would be controlled and regulated by government | The Independent
Theresa May is planning to introduce huge regulations on the way the internet works, allowing the government to decide what is said online. Particular focus has been drawn to the end of the manifesto, which makes clear that the Tories want to introduce huge changes to the way the internet works. “Some people say that it is not for government to regulate when it comes to technology and the internet,” it states. “We disagree.” What a mess. This is unworkable bullshit, just hyperbole to appeal to the right wing.
IBM tells thousands of remote employees to come back to office or find new jobs | Ars Technica UK
While selling benefits of “telework” to others, IBM forces relocation in stealth layoff. Bonkers. Flexibility of when and where I work is one of the better perks that I currently get. While getting everyone together has it’s benefits, in todays age of fast broadband and comms over IP this is such a backwards step.
Literary fighters: Glasgow’s last surviving independent book shops – The Scotsman
Since the rise of internet giants and high street chain stores, the humble independent book shop has all but disappeared from our towns and cities. With only a few remaining, we talk to the owners of some of Glasgow’s finest, and find out what drives them Voltaire and Rousseau is a must visit, a west end classic.
The big picture – The Verge
Photos is growing faster than YouTube, Gmail, or Chrome. It’s also far better than Apple Photo’s. Will we see any improvements at WWDC?
LUNAR on Vimeo
This short film is dedicated to all people who believe in peaceful expansion of our borders. In the year 1957 the cold war expands to space. The Soviet-Union… A video on space? Of course I’ll watch it…and so should you as it’s stunning.
Life
House fixing progressing….could be an expensive year. Apart from that work is pretty busy and the next couple of weeks will see some very early starts. Joy.
Media
Mario Kart is incredibly good. Finished off Billions this week as well which is well worth a watch.
Links
BLADE RUNNER 2049 – Official Trailer – YouTube
There are still pages left in this story. Watch the NEW trailer for #BladeRunner2049, in theaters October 6. — Thirty years after the events of the first fi… Can’t wait to see this…don’t fuck this up!
How to shoot on iPhone 7 – Photography – Apple
We believe that everyone can take great photos. So we’ve put together these tips and techniques to help you take even better ones with your iPhone. Apple posted some short videos on how to take better pictures with your phone. Nicely done.
Which Tech Giant Would You Drop? – The New York Times
The Big Five tech companies increasingly dominate our lives. Could you ditch them? Interesting article. I’d drop Facebook first but the rest are a bit more challenging to sort the order.
Life
The weeks are flying by. Work is busy, health is fair to middling and there’s never enough time to do what I want. turning attention to some projects around the house – shit needs fixing.
Media
Guardians of the Galaxy 2 was pretty fantastic. Made me laugh, the visuals were top notch and the 3D wasn’t bad. Add on another great soundtrack and there’s not much to hate. Yes it follows a formula, but when done well it’s not an issue for me.
Also watched Nightcrawler (from 2014). What a great but creepy/disturbing film.
Links
PSA: If you opened your PayPal account before you were 18, close it now.
Everyone knows a horror story about PayPal, I’ve had several painful experiences with them over the last decade, but now I’ll never have to experience that again, as I’ve just been permanently banned… PayPal are such a shitty company. Avoid them if at all possible.
Earth From Above – Earth From Above Aerial photography has really taken off now that drones are affordable and the camera’s on them are so good. Some of these images are jaw dropping.
Damage – Matt Gemmell
Apple’s destruction of the value of software, and the sustainability of indie developer businesses. Hard to disagree with this. Software has so little value for so many people and the App Store hasn’t done enough to combat that perception.
Regulating the internet giants: The world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil, but data | The Economist
A NEW commodity spawns a lucrative, fast-growing industry, prompting antitrust regulators to step in to restrain those who control its flow. A century ago, the resource in question was oil. Now similar concerns are being raised by the giants that deal in data, the oil of the digital era. Thought provoking, especially in this age where news spreads so quickly, almost nothing is fact checked and the mob can rule.
Laura Galante: How to exploit democracy | TED Talk | TED.com
Hacking, fake news, information bubbles … all these and more have become part of the vernacular in recent years. But as cyberspace analyst Laura Galante describes in this alarming talk, the real target of anyone looking to influence geopolitics is dastardly simple: it’s you. Video of the week.
