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Coming off my three posts about my attempt at using Obsidian, I thought it would be fun to actually write about what I am using. Laptop: HP Pro-book running Linux Debian XFCE. I can’t stand using Windows day to day so I knew Linux was the only way to go on this laptop. Even for little things like updating my website using Git, Windows is just so much harder. Now part of that might just be that I am more comfortable in a Mac/Linux environment for such things but Powershell and other Windows tools just never clicked for me. I used to be an avid Windows user (those who have followed me for years would know this, hell I had Windows Phones and the original SurfaceRT), but paths since then have led me here. When choosing a distro I started with Arch which I do like due to how customizable it is, then played with Mint which I always keep around, and ended on Debian. I like how Debian is conservative with updates and and keeps things very stable, even if that means some items are a generation or two behind. XFCE is just a great low overhead environment which does what I need without the extras. ...

Digital sovereignty is not about owning everything, it is about ensuring that nothing essential can be taken away. Source: What is Digital Sovereignty - TDF Community Blog — Really like how Libre Office defined digital soverignty here.

After a few weeks of setting up Obsidian it’s already goodbye, not because I did not like it it’s just that I realized I had built a complex ecosystem around something that was supposed to be fundamentally simple. Obsidian is a fantastic piece of software, yet over time I found myself spending more brain power and time managing plugins, workspace layouts, and app settings than actually writing. The irony of the entire process is that Obsidian did one major thing right for me: it reminded me why I have always loved the power and simplicity of plain text and specifically markdown. (thanks John Gruber ) ...

Climate change is raising temperatures , but one factor that adds to that is often ignored. Walk down a city street and you see what would have been front gardens a decade or so ago have now been tarmacked over and turned into driveways. Source: The Coversation Climate change is such a massive challenge that I feel it leads most people to ignore it—not out of disbelief, but out of hopelessness. So much of that hopelessness stems from the narrative that each of us individually has to do “our part.” Sure, we can all do a little more, but the truth is none of that moves the needle on its own. I’m fine with paper straws, even though so many people have made their entire identity about opposing such a meaningless thing. But the paper straw represents something bigger: it represents passing the buck from those responsible for our current situation down to the “little people.” ...

If you did not read Setting Up Obsidian Part 1 you should read that first. Just a few updates. I am now using my Daily Note as a dashboard where I don’t actually type anything. It is more of a daily table of contents. It has links to my daily journal, which is where I actually type in all my thoughts and ideas each day, it has a section linking to my daily reading, daily fitness log, and then a table of all notes created or edited that day. It is very easy to create and when I am done I will share all of it in my last part of this series. ...

After a few starts and stops over the past few months, I have come to the conclusion that Obsidian is the right tool for me. As noted on my Stuff page, I live on different platforms. Right now I am writing the bulk of this on the Obsidian app on an HP laptop running Linux Mint. I also use iOS on my iPhone so I need access to everything my notes app holds. Here is the kicker about Obsidian being my “notes app,” it ends up being so much more than that. So far I am only partially through the process, so this is just part one, but I am going to share my vision. ...

This year might seem over for the New York Mets, but there is always next year!

A power auction conducted by a giant grid operator is expected to add $6.3 billion in additional charges to consumers and businesses because of electricity needs of data centers PJM’s grid serves all or part of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan, as well as the District of Columbia. Source: The New York Times There are obvious climate concerns with this, but it’s also corporate welfare. The people are going to pay for what the AI companies should ve paying. ...

Lindsey became one of the roughly 280,000 federal workers to lose their jobs, she knew something had to be done. Lindsey joined forces with former NOAA employees Anna Eshelman, and Mary Lindsey, her older sister, to become the core team behind the deactivated site’s successor, Climate.us, preserving over 15 years of key climate data and resources. The trove features key maps, educational materials and climate indicator reports, including the now-deleted Fifth National Climate Assessment, the government’s most comprehensive analysis of climate change that was at risk of being lost to the public. ...

On Thursday (July 9), Lorde performed at the Mad Cool Festival in Madrid and spoke up against smart glasses. “Increasingly in our world it gets harder and harder to know what is real,” the pop star said onstage. “You don’t know if someone is wearing sunglasses or if they’re wearing those fucked up fucking… Can I just say, for the record, ‘Fuck the Glasses.’ Don’t get the glasses. Not sexy.” ...