Opinion

Big Tweaks

Compact UI

https://userstyles.world/style/7065/compact-er-mastodon

Larger UI

https://userstyles.world/style/4743/spacious-mastodon

Blackout Theme

https://userstyles.world/style/4511/hackers-black-out-beta

Changelog

2023-01-02

Add time to font adjustments

2022-12-11

Add way to hide images without alt-text / descriptions

2022-12-10

Added way to hide boosts via css

2022-11-24

Initial Post

Preface

I’ve not hidden the fact I find the latest Mastodon 4.0.x UI a lesson in terrible UX and reduced accessibility. This post is everything I’ve managed to put together to make the latest Mastodon UI more usable. Please borrow whatever you need from the below.

Forward

I was recently reminded of the analog life I lead and how that’s evolved over the years since I first wrote about the topic. After some review and reading I can safely say: that’s a different topic. What I did notice is that I’ve never discussed just how I manage inflows of information and manage things I want to retain long term.

Sexy

I used to sleep without a pillow for many years. I hate foam pillows that much. I’d rather sleep with my head in the dirt than use a foam pillow.

Down pillows changed things. I started using a pillow again.

Feathers!

Almost 2 decades ago I was visting a “camp” (a cabin with fire, walls, a roof and basic plumbing) with a friend and was given a down pillow to sleep upon. That pillow changed everything. I bought it from my friend and used it for years before it finally was worn out completely.

TLDR

I was recently whining to a friend about how my Honeybush Tea always ends up cold and I end up always going back to warm it up over the course of a day. They mentioned they were gifted an Ember Mug (link) recently and suggested it is actually worth looking into. Despite my initial hesitations, I’m not upset by the purchase. When the nerds that avoid smart tech admit they were wrong, it’s something worth looking at closer.

How I came to have a cyber deck that gets out of my way and allows me to focus on creation, not consumption

Prelude

For years I have seen posts about cyber decks and always wondered why people build them. I think I finally “Get It” while also not at all understanding why people build the decks I see posted online.

Good Intention, Failure Imminent

I intended to write a post about all the systems and ideas I’ve tried over the years. Instead it was more appropriate to call bullshit and tell you it’s a brain wiring problem and until you find something that ‘clicks’ it’ll just be failure after failure and soul crushing.

This post is meant to inspire you to think about organization systems and let you know that you’re not alone with this topic. It’s a non-trivial concern for people and it can take a long time to find a good organization system tuned to an individuals needs. Don’t worry: I’ll let you know what works for me but it’s not dogma, gospel, the best or anything else. What I use to stay organized works for me, I have no illusions it’s a strange system that won’t work for most humans walking the planet.

In short : I could have bought the FiiO F9 Pro’s instead of the Shure SE215’s.

I recently had both of my Shure ear bud / in ear monitor setups break on me. To say I was a bit pissed off is great understatement. Thankfully they are within the warranty period and I shouldn’t have to pay for fixes. I’ll be posting about that later hopefully.

Full Disclosure

I am not affiliated with any company, website, organization or similar behind the items in this post.

I found the game Satisfactory through my Steam recommendation queue, thought it was worth trying and ended up playing it for a week.

I’ve never kept my love of Tamoe River Paper (link) a secret. I’d have posted about it specifically but I’ve never really had anything to say beyond an ultra mini review of ‘This stuff is AMAZING, BUY NOW’. It’s the perfect loose leaf paper: cheap, thin, easy to work with and translucent.

The Noun Project (link) is one of those rare websites that’s simple, useful and full of good stuff. I’d have written a super long post extolling how much I like this site and have used it over the last few years but I think I can condense it to a few sentences.

ALL of the icons I’ve ever needed exist on their site, they have a great ‘Pro’ licensing scheme that won’t break the bank and you’d be hard pressed to find something missing from their catalog.