Generative art, aka artistic output that’s produced by a sophisticated set of parameters, cycles, connections, and yes, even algorithms, has been around for decades—especially in music—and has a prestigious and invigorating history. More importantly, generative art tools have helped usher in countless new art forms.

Contrast that with…well…y’know. 😂

In this so-called “Age of AI” we find ourselves in, it’s helpful to take a step back and remember that new generative artistic capabilities have typically given rise to vast new worlds of creative expression. Augmentation if you will, not substitution. Alas, Silicon Valley seems to have lost the plot. We should stop trusting they’re seeing something we’re not, and instead trust our own judgement in choosing tools which elevate (not badly approximate) human ingenuity and artistry.

A tale of two Threads: one—the Threadiverse—is a subportion of the Fediverse dedicated to replicating the kind of experiences we’re familiar with on Reddit, Hacker News, and the like; the other is Meta’s fast-growing competitor to X. Not confusing at all! 😂

In this episode I break down what the Threadiverse is and how I’ve been using and enjoying Lemmy, and then cover the latest developments with Threads having entered the Fediverse (in a partial solution) and what’s coming next—and how it’s being impacted by the Fedipact. I also cover a range of exciting news on the growth of the open social web.

And in the Fusion+ segment this week: my spoiler-light review of Alex Garland’s heady movie Civil War and the fascinating metanarrative it offers on the nature of journalism, activism, and the quest for Truth.

Sigh. It’s frustrating to still feel like an early adopter of open web technology. How many years has it been? 25? 30? But here we are, trying to convince the masses that you can use open protocols, networks, and software to build lasting publishing businesses and outlets for your creativity. And who better to show us the way than…Donald Trump? Perish the thought! 😱 (But seriously, it’s amazing to recall everyone once scoffed at his fledgling social network once he was booted off Facebook and Twitter and…well, it was hardly the kiss of death.)

He proved Big Social just ain’t so powerful anymore. Can people who aren’t *batshit crazy* please take inspiration from this and use the open web for good?? TIA! 🙏

Say it with me: Own Your Own Platform.

Microblogging is an artform, just like any other creative endeavor people publish on the web. In this episode, I talk about one of the subtle techniques I sometimes use to microblog which increases the likelihood of engagement and boosting—but beware! You can definitely overdo it, and you can also manipulate people with it if you’re a bad actor. Use responsibly. 😅

And in the Fusion+ segment: it’s been six years since the acquisition of GitHub by Microsoft. How has that corporate overlordship gone? It’s difficult to deny Microsoft’s stewardship of GitHub has been a success, but there are dark clouds on the horizon…

In this episode, I dive deep into how I might be willing to acknowledge an ethical approach to using generative AI tools, and why virtually all tools in widespread use today fall wildly short in the morality department—which makes the embrace of these tools by corporations incredibly disappointing. But can we thread this needle? Is there a viable path forward? Let’s discuss.

Folks have been talking about different terminology and ways of describing this brave new world of decentralized social networking. But with Threads’ staggering growth to 150 million MAU (Monthly Active Users), combined with its embrace of the colloquial term “fediverse”, I make the case that fediverse is here to stay. I also touch on the recent news around Google’s flailing leadership causing Googlers to get real grumpy real fast.

And in the Fusion+ segment: after a long period of time where microblogging (aka text-focused social media) and blogging seemed at odds with each other, we finally have an opportunity to go back to what made the web great, where both blogging and microblogging can not only co-exist but thrive together. Yay!

People will remember the “browser wars” of the 1990s, but they may not remember the “webtop wars” — that is, the battle for who will control the Push Technology which transforms your OS desktop into a tuner for live web channels. Learn about this fascinating blip in early internet history which eventually gave rise to a much simpler technology still in use today…one might even call it Really Simple (Syndication). 😁

Also in this episode: celebrating the 6th anniversary of ActivityPub becoming an official W3C recommendation, looking at a breakdown of the 100 most popular fediverse accounts, and some initial thoughts on Apple Vision Pro.

It’s a new year, I’m moving my business away from HEY (to Fastmail) & Basecamp (to GitHub & Email), and I’m listening to a lot of podcasts! I talk about all of that in this episode as well as my latest blogging kick due to a small but mighty design tweak on my website.

And in the Fusion+ segment: Is podcasting still as great as it ever was? For the “big shows” with major sponsorships, probably not. BUT…for the long tail of creators out there, it’s a totally different story!

Accidental Tech Podcast
 

After some follow up around switching from Glass to Pixelfed and importing new photos into my site from there, I dive into the heart of the episode: how do we deal with YouTube? As fediverse-aware content creators, YouTube remains a major hurdle, but there are still ways to route around it—either partially or completely. I walk through some of the possible solutions in this episode, and then wrap up with a challenge to “long tail” content creators: what have you got to lose? The time to experiment in this space is now!

And in the Fusion+ segment: Rumor has it that Apple is working on LLM technology to integrate into Siri. Will it be any good? And will I use it?

Call it a reboot, a resurrection if you will. A new chapter in my history as a blogger. And—literally for the first time ever—a mostly-complete chronicle of all my tech blogging during a span of almost 30 years. Get ready for The Internet Review.

I haven’t been a general “tech blogger” in some time. This year, that all changes. I regret I never had the discipline in the 2000s to become a John Gruber, or in the 2010s to become a Jason Snell. Perhaps I don’t now. But it’s now or never. If I don’t get started on this soon, it ain’t never gonna happen.

Also, get ready for The Internet, Reviewed — an exclusive podcast for Intuitive+ members! Each episode I will be looking back at a fascinating tech story from the past, a moment in the annals of internet history as presented by my past self. This is definitely a show you won’t want to miss!

And on Fresh Fusion+: commentary on Anil Dash’s piece for Rolling Stone about how the internet is about to get weird, and the new relationship we’ll begin to see from “big box” corporate web services and the “indie web”.