#011 Friday's Findings
Discover more from The Meandering Mind
#011 Friday's Findings
How to admit you’re wrong, death hangs over you, developer tools and more.
Hello everyone, and happy easter!
I must admit, I do not quite follow or agree on the actual events of the holiday, but nonetheless, I respect the tradition.
This past week, I have been utterly consumed with a development project I am currently working on, and it is going splendidly. The project is a chat system, ideally between freelancers and clients — for easy communication and sending files. Do not get me wrong, I am just getting started, but hopefully I will be able to release it and work on it along the way.
I am currently building for web, but who knows, it would be pretty cool to see it in an actual application.
On a different note, I went for a great—and needed—walk yesterday. For the first time this year, I ventured to the place I mostly meander in the summer. The smell of spring was apparent, whilst I watched the sundown from the field.
Enjoy the weekend!
Suggested readings
“A few years ago, I was talking with a colleague about a high-profile project at work. I said offhand, “That project looks so exciting — I wish I could work on it.” My colleague said, “Oh, who have you told that to?” I said, “Hmm, you? Just now?” I could *feel* my colleague’s frustration at my response. They pointed out (remarkably calmly) that I had all the ingredients for a great pitch. I knew all the people involved, I knew how the project was going, and I knew what skills I’d bring to make it stronger. I still balked. I had trained myself to never ask for help, out of fear of looking weak or worrying that I’d “waste” a favor on something I wasn’t even 100% sure I wanted. What helped me?…” (Asking for help is a competitive advantage)
“The important issue, then, is what exactly smartphones are doing to teens that makes them so miserable? DeBoer’s answers are quite good—I especially welcome his emphasis on the misery of being constantly bombarded by images of lives none of us can actually live—but I think we can significantly deepen our understanding of these matters by turning to an account of human behavior offered by the philosopher David Hume nearly three centuries ago…” (David Hume’s Guide to Social Media)
“Does wearing a mask stop the spread of COVID-19? Is climate change driven primarily by human-made emissions? With these kinds of issues dividing the public, it sometimes feels as if Americans are losing our ability to agree about basic facts of the world. There have been widespread disagreements about matters of seemingly objective fact in the past, yet the number of recent examples can make it feel as though our shared sense of reality is shrinking. As a law professor, I’ve written about legal challenges to vaccination requirements and COVID-19 restrictions, as well as what counts as “truth” in court. In other words, I spend a lot of time mulling over how people define truth, and why U.S. society has such a hard time agreeing on it these days. There are two ideas that can help us think about polarization on matters of fact…” (Why can’t Americans agree on, well, nearly anything? Philosophy has some answers)
“I have been reading a lot lately on attachment and impermanence. It’s a big topic, one that is often hard to wrap your head and heart around. How can I live a life without attachment? Doesn’t that mean that I am not being a loving or caring person? I mean really, no attachment—it just seems cold. This all started for me when the love of my life told me, “I love you, I am just not in love with you.” Ouch. To say I was hurt would be a gross understatement. How could someone who I felt such strong love for not reciprocate the same feelings? This wasn’t the way it was supposed to go. We were together, attached forever, remember? Wrong...” (Nothing Is Permanent: Letting Go of Attachment to People)
“The bottom dropped out of my stomach,” Strand says. “It was terrible to realize that I had not just made a mistake, but published a mistake.” Being wrong is an unavoidable aspect of the human condition. Defining what constitutes “wrong,” however, can get messy. People can be wrong about any multitude of things, from misremembering the name of a ’90s pop song to incorrectly casting blame onto a friend during a heated argument. Regardless of its definition, people are often afraid to experience it or hesitant to admit it...” (How to admit you’re wrong)
Two quotes I’m contemplating: “Do not act as if you were going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over you. While you live, while it is in your power, be good.” — Marcus Aurelius
“Impermanence is not something to be afraid of. It’s the evolution, a never-ending horizon.” —Deepak Chopra
Tools and Proposals
Today I bring extremely helpful developer tools for those using Chromium. I use all of these on a daily basis.
Eye Dropper (Chrome) — I suggest you try this color picking tool. This will allow you to pick the colors you see on a website, but it doesn’t disrupt the site like other webtools.
Wappalyzer (Chrome) — I recommend you check out this tool for analyzing web tools. Wappalyzer will show you which technologies a website use. For example, on my Unicopy site, you will see “Hostinger” under the hosting category. Or, on coolors.co, you will see CDN, authentication, analytics, libraries and more. It is a useful tool for knowing what popular site uses.
Window Resizer (Chrome) — I encourage you to try this chrome extension. Window resizer is helpful for developers, as it will easily resize your window to sizes often used by customers, like 1920x1080, 1024x650, 1170x2532 and so on. You can, of course, add more resolutions yourself.
ob.s. see CatGPT for a good smile.
Sounds
Until next time,
Magnus