An ICE agent murdered a woman in Minneapolis today. Mayor Jacob Frey...

An ICE agent murdered a woman in Minneapolis today. Mayor Jacob Frey to ICE: “Get the fuck out of Minneapolis.”

Superstition

The Sony a7s Lineup is Most Likely Dead

For most of Sony's mirrorless camera history, the Sony a7s series has been about videographers and high ISO output more than anything else. In 2020, I was a part of the review this site did of the Sony a7s III and even back then, I could tell that Sony really didn't know what to…

How Did We Map the World Before Satellites?

In 1375, a Spanish mapmaker made a world map we now refer to as the Catalan Atlas. For its time, the atlas was remarkably accurate and comprehensive. This video explains how such a map was made in medieval times. From Open Culture: The upshot is an answer to the very reasonab…

WikiFlix is a streaming site for movies in the public domain, including...

WikiFlix is a streaming site for movies in the public domain, including Metropolis, It’s a Wonderful Life, All Quiet on the Western Front, and Charade. 💬 Join the discussion on kottke.org →

Toward a Proof of Concept for MyTerms

I’m thinking out loud here about how to get development rolling for MyTerms. I see three pieces required for a proof of concept: When we first thought about this at ProjectVRM in the late ’00s, we saw a browser header that looked like this: The ⊂ and the ⊃ are for the pe…

The Photography Process That Changed the World

Before digital photography, there was obviously analog photography. We needed to print images often back in those days. And some black and white printing processes were so much better than others. Today, we're looking at one of the best.

“South Korea imports more kimchi than it exports, and the gap has...

“South Korea imports more kimchi than it exports, and the gap has widened as cheaper Chinese-made products take hold in the domestic market.” 💬 Join the discussion on kottke.org →

A group of students at a New Mexico college (mostly) gave up...

A group of students at a New Mexico college (mostly) gave up their phones & computers for a week. What did they learn? “Most students said they had gotten to know themselves better without their phones butting in all day long.” 💬 Join the discussion on kott…

Mittwoch

Why German keyboards wear out faster I need to keep coming up with new titles for blog posts that might end up being on any number of subjects. Mittwoch jumped into my head because it's German for Wednesday. I took two years of German in high school, one of them twice, and gave…

MTV Rewind

MTV Rewind is an interface through which you can watch music videos from the 70s to the 20s, organized by decade. There are also “channels” for 120 Minutes, MTV Unplugged, Yo! MTV Raps, Headbangers Ball, and the first full day of MTV programming. All of the music videos,…

The proliferation of hummingbird feeders has become a “major evolutionary force” for...

The proliferation of hummingbird feeders has become a “major evolutionary force” for the Anna’s hummingbird species in the western US. “Over just a few generations, their beaks have dramatically changed in size and shape.” 💬 Join the discussion on kot…

What the Hell Did You Do, Nikon?

Today, Nikon copied Canon and announced their new Nikkor Z 24-105mm f4-7.1. We reviewed the Canon variant of this lens around 6 years ago, and optically speaking it was just fine. But let's be honest, it's harder for some people in Western countries to drink the recommended amou…

PSA: Your Camera’s Shutter is Fine. Stop Worrying

A little while back, I read one of the most ridiculous things that I've ever read: and it has to do with a camera's shutter. This is mostly affecting the used camera market in the way that people often ask about the shutter count on the camera. In fact, folks won't buy it if the…

The Two High End Full Frame Cameras From Canon

Canon cameras are some of the most sought-after devices in the industry. The company's 5D and 6D series are an example of that. However, with their mirrorless cameras, the company took several years to introduce some top-of-the-line full-frame cameras. Today, we look at some new…

Dear Camera Manufacturers: Please Take This Seriously

This is a list of ideas and things that manufacturers should do in order for them to keep the camera world fresh. The past few years have felt like one manufacturer basically copying the other over and over again. And it has made the camera and photography world so incredibly du…

Lost episodes of Star Trek from the 70s. They were going to...

Lost episodes of Star Trek from the 70s. They were going to do a reboot of the TV series (without Spock!) but the project morphed into the first movie. There are 19 episode scripts & treatments from the project; a few were adapted for ST:TNG. 💬 Join the discuss…

Robin Sloan asserts (provocatively) that AGI is already here (and has been...

Robin Sloan asserts (provocatively) that AGI is already here (and has been for a few years). “We’ve got this ubiquitous term, Artificial General Intelligence, & it appears that the Artificial Intelligence has become Really Very General, so … ?”

The Story of Czech Graphic Design

Identity — The Story of Czech Graphic Design is a seven-part series available on YouTube. In seven parts, the Identita series introduces viewers to the history of Czech graphic design. We will not only explore together the development of the visual face of the Czechoslovak…

“Norman Rockwell was antifa”, says Daisy Rockwell, Norman’s granddaughter. “So you’ll understand...

“Norman Rockwell was antifa”, says Daisy Rockwell, Norman’s granddaughter. “So you’ll understand her indignation when President Trump began hijacking her grandfather’s legacy to promote what she considers modern-day fascism.”

A Collection of Unreleased Boards of Canada Tracks

A couple of weeks ago, someone uploaded to YouTube and Google Drive eleven unreleased tracks from Boards of Canada (made from 1985-1996). This seems to be a legit, high-quality leak, judging from the excitement in the YT comments and on Reddit. I’ve heard a couple of these b…

This sucks: the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is no more. “Its board...

This sucks: the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is no more. “Its board of directors chose Monday to shutter CPB completely instead of keeping it in existence as a shell.” GOP ghouls finally killed it.

The Kodak Camera That Launched Photojournalism’s Digital Era

Kodak has been one of the few companies that have changed the face of photography. From the Brownie camera that made the more accessible to the launch of Kodachrome film, whose colors are still revered today, the company introduced some exciting innovations. What most people for…

The Autofocus Trick for Birding Everyone Forgets About

In the past few years, the popularity of bird photography and the act of birding has become much more popular. Part of it comes from the pandemic and the other part comes probably from boredom and wanting to do something while hiking. Combine that with many photographers shootin…

The Detectorists — A Short Film About Otters and Detection Dogs.

An ecologist in Wales uses tracking dogs to help track & protect the endangered wild otter population; meet The Detectorists. Set against the serene backdrop of rural Wales, this short documentary follows wildlife ecologist Lee Jenkins and his two German Pointers — Neo and…

Tiled.art: “Discover great tessellation art, understand how it works, and create your...

Tiled.art: “Discover great tessellation art, understand how it works, and create your own.” 💬 Join the discussion on kottke.org →

Anna’s Archive (“the largest truly open library in human history”) is backing...

Anna’s Archive (“the largest truly open library in human history”) is backing up the entirety of Spotify. “We have archived around 86 million songs from Spotify. While this only represents 37% of songs, it represents around 99.6% of listens.”

O’Hare can you see?

Always buy in the past In 1991, my bride bought us both lifetime memberships in United Airlines' airport lounge, then called the Red Carpet Club. I forget the price; but it was cheap, considering. I'm guessing it was less than what one would pay now for just a year's worth of se…

Sony’s Cutest Camera Ever Needs a Comeback

Over the years, Sony has introduced a range of exciting cameras. The a99 series was great DSLRs, the alpha series changed the way we look at mirrorless, and the a1 II is the most effective flagship out there. However, while the company excelled in the mid-2010s, it also introduc…

By Appointment Only: We’re Doing Portfolio Reviews

Social media algorithms tend to value video over photographs. That means that you're going to have to find a way to make your images that much more impactful. It's true, a single photo can get a whole lot more interaction and engagement than a random video with the same AI gener…