Don’t Be Evil Won’t Avoid Evil

“Don’t Be Evil.” If you’ve followed the tech industry long enough, you know that used to be Google’s motto. Whatever happened to that Google? We could ask that of our attempts at mere avoidance of evil, too.

Is the iPad Finally Ready to Be a Computer?

I became the lab rat. Three weeks ago, I put away my trusty MacBook to discover if the technically powerful 11” M4 iPad Pro could handle everything this solo pastor’s jack-of-all-trades work demands — writing, video editing, programming, system administration, the whole enchilada. A year ago, the answer was clearly “no.” Now, I wasn’t so sure.

Whether Apple Crate or Cracker Barrel, Change Ain't Improvement

The Cracker Barrel rebrand ought to remind everyone, change and improvement are not the same. Amongst others, I hope Apple is listening.

Chrome is the Antitrust Problem, Selling It is Not the Solution

Google is worse than Microsoft ever was. With a stranglehold on search and online advertising, backed with an Orwellian surveillance of users, dominating the browser market is too much. The solution cannot be to sell Chrome to OpenAI, however.

I Want a Better Mac, so I’m Cheering for a Better Linux

My recent column on Apple’s declining software quality hit a nerve. So why do any of us put up with software that grows increasingly buggy? One word: hardware.

Chasing the Unified Messaging Dream

Microsoft gave it a try in 1999 and failed. The same tantalizing possibility returns every few years: a single place to communicate rather than an ever-expanding cacophony of apps, each with its own quirks. Are we any closer to this hope a quarter century later?

AI Meets Every Day Life

Bing's Chatbot and Quora's Poe are Contrasting, but Useful Tools

Some level of mainstream machine learning has been present in the lives of ordinary folks like you and me since iPhoto first did facial recognition well over a decade ago. Other AI or AI-like tech has become increasingly pervasive, but quite limited. Now, a flood of “experience this now” machine learning is drowning out past years’ “imagine if this were just a bit better” tech. Two tools to utilize such tech are worth your attention right now.

Zippy: Big Courts, Big Tech and Big Questions

Are you ready to Zip? This episode the Faithful Snail of Speed, Tim Butler​ and Jason Kettinger​ turn to further consideration of the recent #SCOTUS religious freedom ruling, attempts to regulate #BigTech and comfort in #Job. #ZippyTheWonderSnail 🏁🐌🏁

Jason and I are having an awful lot of fun talking about news and culture on the podcast. Love to have you join us!