Links from 2014

<blockquote>I used to be really excited about JavaScript. I worked for five years running an open source project that was 95% JavaScript. I still never felt like I had a great handle on the tech stack though, and my understanding of so much of the new JS hotness (ES6, Angular, Ember, Shadow DOM, Module systems, etc) feels woefully lightweight. So many jobs seem to ask for AngularJS knowledge now. I took a few stabs at it, but the frequent BC breaks and plans for 2.0 have almost entirely soured me on the framework. My interest in rich client-side apps has almost entirely reversed, and now I’m more interested in doing good ol’ server rendering with the occasional side of progressive enhancement, just like we did it in 2004.</blockquote>

<blockquote>Here's a handy list of tools and apps for developers and folks launching businesses.</blockquote>

<blockquote>The actual "gear queer hits the street" look is crazier than that - I don't really understand it… As near as I can tell it's the look of people who aren't carrying a gun but want to make you think they are. It's a mad look - the people they imagine they are dressing up as will never be caught dead in any of that gear, because they are carrying guns. Their uniform is baggy khakis, a striped polo shirt and a faded ball cap. It's called "grey man" and it's this look that's in-between everything. Are they tennis playing tech executives, or are they there to fix the air conditioner? You sort of can't tell. It's designed to attract absolutely no attention and project as little law enforcement and special forces vibe as possible. It's become so popular that now when I see anyone wearing that uniform I check for the bulge of a weapon. In Afghanistan I've been told that with a very specific trim of beard that look will get you in trouble unless you genuinely are the real thing.</blockquote>

Bugger.

<blockquote>Los Angeles photographer Ed Freeman captures the architecture of the American roadside</blockquote>

<blockquote>A CSS-only way to style native selects everywhere.</blockquote>

Very pleasing.

Co-working in a relaxed, informal, working environment.

<blockquote>Code search for the modern programmer. Find the code you need quickly, see anywhere in the open-source world that a function or library is used, and discover other like-minded programmers.</blockquote>

<blockquote>Learn how to generate static pages with Middleman and set up Continuous Deployment to Amazon S3 with Codeship.</blockquote>

<blockquote>I write margin notes while reading books. They help me keep my thoughts on record and within context. But how do I do that on a website or an ebook?</blockquote>

TJ moves to Go.

<blockquote>From bare-footed gallops along the beach to challenging mountains and beautiful national parks, the authors of Wild Running, choose eight of their favourites</blockquote>

I love Github – I think it’s made contributing to open source 1000% more approachable and enjoyable. But I’ve found the open source maintainer workflow that…

<blockquote>London handyman services. Professional property maintenance & handyman service at home or work.</blockquote>

Chris Roos Introduction We’re going to see whether we can start a credit union . We’ve been talking about this for a while and we’ve decided to use our current…

After running a service that delivers new work opportunities to designers and developers , I’ve come to realize most of us do portfolios wrong. Your online…

Introduction SUIT CSS is a reliable and testable styling methodology for component-based UI development . A collection of CSS packages and build tools are…

<blockquote>Editorial can be just a text editor, but its true potential and versatility are revealed by an Automator-inspired interface that is the foundation for workflows to automate text editing, web services, image manipulation, and more -- all on an iPad, without needing a Mac.</blockquote>

<blockquote>Public servants can't pivot to a new problem or a new set of users. They have to solve the problem that's in front of them, and, probably, they'll have to keep solving it for years. That's something that the 'civic tech' community is going to have to face.</blockquote>

New mail-building tool

Finally found something sciencey. Or at least, someone who attempts to look at literature, rather than parroting guesswork.

<blockquote>Craft is for folks who like to take their time and do things right, building out their HTML, CSS, and JS by hand. This is not a site builder or some sort of design tool. There are no themes, and you won’t find any flashy UI tools full of sliders and other gadgets that will help you “design” your website in minutes.</blockquote>

bounce.js lets you create tasty CSS3 powered animations in no time. Give it a spin .

<blockquote>Chapanis had recognised that human beings’ propensity to make mistakes when they are tired is much harder to fix than the design of levers. His deeper insight was that people have limits, and many of their mistakes are predictable effects of those limits. That is why the architects of CRM defined its aim as the reduction of human error, rather than pilot error. Rather than trying to hire or train perfect pilots, it is better to design systems that minimise or mitigate inevitable human mistakes.</blockquote>

Automating Web Performance Measurement with PSI - a new #nodejs module http://t.co/lVqO0gyaIU ~ works great with @gulpjs & @gruntjs

S Who knew that LEGO designed their figures’ hands perfectly to hold Apple lightning and other types of cables? Stick a LEGO brick on your desk, attach LEGO…

Surveymonkey alternative

<blockquote>"A mother needs to know herself, to own up to the diverse, contradictory, often overwhelming feelings evoked by motherhood. It doesn't matter whether she stays at home, goes out to work, is partnered or single. Only a mother who can face her own inner turbulence can make sense of her child's. It's only by accepting that at times you are a bad mother, that you can ever be a good mother." </blockquote>

Make a Printer Friendly & PDF version of any webpage.

<blockquote>When the American Academy of Sleep Medicine reviewed the literature on infant and child sleep training, it reported that in 17 out of 19 published studies, unmodified extinction—the clinical term for crying-it-out—effectively reduced bedtime resistance and the frequency of nighttime wakings, concluding that it “has a strong record of accomplishment.”</blockquote>

Macbook mumps.

<blockquote>If you're thinking about switching from Gmail to FastMail, you can try out FastMail while still running everything through your Gmail account.</blockquote>

<blockquote>Of all the tech changes I’ve made in the last few years, moving from Google Apps mail to Fastmail is the one that’s made me the happiest, every day.</blockquote>

<blockquote>If you, like me, have used a white-noise machine to help your wee one sleep, you probably had a panic attack when you…</blockquote>

<blockquote>From Nigerian reports on Boko Haram to talk shows about Australian escalators, this fascinating website allows listeners to share the breakfast concerns of people across the planet.</blockquote>

It depends.