Canberra has some amazing sunsets, and the view of Telstra Tower with golden rays was no exception.
View of DesParoz.com.
Finished reading: The Kill Chain by Christian Brose 📚
Thought provoking book that outlines the challenges and opportunities facing militaries.
Jeff Carlson asks Can You Have Photography without AI?
…we soon won’t make a distinction about whether AI is involved in our photography.
Whether it be autofocus, film simulations in camera, and auto exposure, every photo already has some level of AI/ML in capture and editing.
Currently reading: The Kill Chain by Christian Brose 📚
It is estimated that 90% of the data in the world today did not exist two years ago.
Interesting read on issues with popular hiking apps used by many outdoor enthusiasts that have recently leads to rescues being required.
We use one of the apps mentioned when hiking—regularly—and this article reinforces the need to plan your hikes beyond just relying on an app.
Photo Ephemeris Web 3.3: new maps, Skyfire forecasts
Alaska, Hawaii and Australia all now enjoy Skyfire coverage.
Will be looking forward to using the Skyfire feature in TPE here ‘downunder’.
Absolutely delighted to see @photoEphemeris now supports Skyfire in Australia and NZ. Will be looking forward to trying this feature out soon!
Here are some of the books I finished reading in 2022. I started using Epilogue during the year, so this is a partial list, but quite representative of the reading I’ve been doing.
Currently reading: The Propagandists’ Playbook by Francesca Bolla Tripodi 📚
Finished reading: Tom Clancy Red Winter by Marc Cameron 📚
With a name like Red Winter and Jack Ryan jetting off from London to DC after a midnight phone call, I was worried that this book would be very derivative. However, Red Winter proved to be a great read in the Tom Clancy legacy of espionage, miltech, political intrigue, action and human interest. Set in Cold War East Germany, Red Winter was a gripping read. It was great to get back to an era where Ryan was at the start of his career. Worth a read.
Currently reading: Tom Clancy Red Winter by Marc Cameron 📚
Finished reading: Amok by Barry Eisler 📚
I have really enjoyed Barry Eisler’s series of books, starting from Rain Fall (renamed A Clean Kill in Tokyo), and covering the stories—and backstories—of the characters found across the series.
Amok is the origin story of character Carl “Dox” Williams, and is a compelling read set during the Indonesian occupation of Timor Leste. Eisler winds in historical aspects into the story, and provides an insight Dox’s early beginnings.
As with all Eisler’s books it is well researched (read the end notes), and is violent and sometimes confronting. But so is history!
A great read.
Playing around with the Mona Beta (@monaapp@mastodon.social). Quite feature complete based on the Spring app for Twitter.
One great thing is that Mona prioritises Spring customers for the initial beta. Great way of rewarding customers. Did I mention it seems feature complete?
Stormy Valley
We had the opportunity for a late season snowshoe courtesy of #Snowvember. We started from the carpark above the Charlotte Pass Resort for the trek up Mt Stilwell.
The gathering storm clouds as we approached the top of the Kosciuszko Triple Chairlift provided atmosphere—both IRL and for the image!
Finished reading: Introduction to Narrative Warfare by Ajit K. Maan 📚
An interesting read on how narrative is the core to understanding… and conflict. And the way narratives are constructed differ markedly from culture to culture.
Currently reading: Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman 📚
Summer in Australia. Did not think I would need an ice scraper.
#snowcember
A wonderful short story by @mattgemmell
Graham Cluley on why it’s time to delete your Twitter DMs
If Twitter is careless enough to break how 2FA works for some of its users a few days ago, what mistake might they make next? If Twitter’s security experts have either been fired, have quit, or – presumably – are wondering where they should go next, then just how safe is my data on Twitter?
I have no insight into the internal goings-on at Twitter—apart from what is in the media—but I can say that best practice is to tidy up publicly available data.
I keep Chrome on my Mac for one reason only—Youtube. Every time I open it up, and forces itself into the lists of Open on Start. I can’t believe that an app can persistently ignore user preferences.
Its not that important to me. So I’ve deleted it.
Searched in the App Store (iOS) for 1Password. How is it that 1Password was the 28th result in the search results?
Famous for its black sands and sneaker waves, Iceland’s Reynisfjara Beach is a photographer’s dream. Basalt cliffs and sea stacks bookend the long stretch of black sands where Iceland meets the North Atlantic Ocean.
Watched #BulletTrain today. A bug action movie that was a lot of fun
From the Fastmail blog: 4 Questions to Ask Yourself When Using Social Media
A significant percentage of people source their news from social media, and for many people the information they find online plays a huge role in developing their beliefs. As a good digital citizen, it’s crucial to monitor what you are sharing to avoid contributing to the rampant spread of disinformation.
Finished reading: Factfulness: Ten Reasons We’re Wrong About The World - And Why Things Are Better Than You Think by Hans Rosling 📚
Really enjoyed this book which caused me to rethink some of my preconceptions about the world we live in, but more importantly, encouraged me to think more about how I see it.
Factfulness is an wonderfully well written and referenced book, and provides a balance between seeing the world as it is, not as we think it is. It is in fact how we see the world that is often the bigger problem.
The authors don’t try to paint a rose-coloured picture of the world, but encourage a view that is less binary (‘us’ and ‘them’) and more built along a continuum. The book presents a good argument for having an enquiring mind and well-developed critical thinking skills.
Take the Factfulness Quiz. If the results intrigue you, perhaps read the book!
I’d be interested to hear the thoughts of others who have read Factfulness.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.