We start with Manton’s frustration with Apple platform development. Manton has been shifting away from macOS and iOS development, begrudging Apple’s outsized influence. Daniel and Manton talk about the broader issues of whether to accept closed platform restrictions after tasting the freedom of self-publishing. Then they wrap up with the Apple Vision Pro’s approach to privacy and whether a locked-down device can ever really replace the Mac.
Daniel returns home from vacation and he and Manton talk about Meta’s Threads launch. They discuss how misunderstandings about what ActivityPub provides could impact expected user-facing features. Finally they revisit whether Tumblr will still support ActivityPub, and which platform gets there first: Tumblr or Threads?
Daniel and Manton start with a discussion of the possible Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk cage match, the value of Nintendo Switch’s subscription service, and whether Elon Musk is getting better at not making empty promises. Then Daniel gives a first-look at the macOS Sonoma beta and specifically the feature to save Safari web apps to the Dock.
WWDC 2023 recap, with an emphasize on the Apple Vision Pro. Manton’s road trip to Colorado instead of Cupertino. Daniel and Manton discuss whether Apple missed the AI bandwagon, and they try to predict the technical future of the headset.
Manton and Daniel recap Micro Camp 2023 and look forward to WWDC, including events from John Gruber and try! Swift. Then they wrap up with how Daniel’s 50%-off sale for MarsEdit went.
Daniel and Manton react to Apple Store employees asking for tips. They wonder if Square-style kiosks are making tipping more widely expected, even where it doesn’t really belong. Daniel’s enthusiasm for ChatGPT wanes, contrasting with Manton’s increased usage of it. They talk about the value of products originating from authentic human creativity, the huge pressure on Apple to offer something for AI integration in Xcode, and the potential for AI to shake up the status quo of winners and losers in tech.
Daniel and Manton talk about Bluesky. In the context of Nostr, what is the merit of social norms, and how has the meaning of phrases like “anti-censorship” and “fake news” changed because of social networks.
The Twitter API is finally going away. Daniel and Manton talk about Twitter not understanding the benefits of the web. Then Manton starts experimenting with AI image generation and they talk about the role of AI in general for creative pursuits.
Daniel and Manton talk about the new AI-based transcripts feature in Micro.blog. What are the advantages (and new opportunities) to software developers for all these AI tools?
Daniel and Manton talk about Manton’s impressions of the new Bluesky network. They reflect on the lack of evolution in microblogging over ten years, as WordPress focused on “macroblogging” features like Gutenberg Blocks, and how WordPress.com’s marketing compares with other sites that emphasize blogging. Finally, they talk about Nostr and the loaded nature of “anti-censorship” platforms.
