Reconcilable Differences

Your hosts dive deep on John's recent post about streaming video apps and a follow-up post about how people feel about the streaming apps they use.

Things kick off with a withering review of presentations by children.

Follow-up covers TV pricing updates alongside John's complicated entertainment-stack needs.

(Recorded on Tuesday, February 22, 2022)

"We call it…maximum television."

Again, these are not frills. These are the bare-bones basics.

Nevertheless, for posterity, here’s how people are feeling about the streaming video apps they use.

Your hosts dive deep on "spaces."

Merlin apologizes about the links last week, but John saves the day by picking up the tabs.

Follow-up covers listener feedback on CRI and what Gmail's little envelope means. Gmail Keyboard Shortcuts are extolled. John has an update on his Ongoing Appliance Rebellion but has nothing new to share on his Ongoing Toe Rebellion.

The places where we live, work, hoard, purge, and hang up just so, so many coats. Can there be a taxonomy of spaces that helps us better pursue the lives we'd like to have?

Merlin thinks your spaces should be a willing partner (rather than a bossy adversary), while John sees benefits in giving your desk a fresh start (via a fresh attitude).

Is it weird to take advice from someone who's terrible at something, or is that maybe sometimes the best teacher you could hope for? Merlin contorts John's "Empathy for the Machine" to make a broader point about what can qualify as a machine.

(Recorded on Tuesday, February 8, 2022)

There are many incarnations of Link, each possessing the spirit of the hero, with some of them being blood-related as well.

"New brain!"

John has important updates on his body.

Things kick off with your hosts not quite talking about John's scanning project, but it quickly turns into a dive into tiny on-screen targets, DRM that prevents screenshots, and why, oh, why don't streaming services make things easier to share?

In follow-up, Merlin shares his new enthusiasm for the powerful combination of Git and Visual Studio Code. John expresses disappointment that Merlin still hasn't renamed his hard drive.

(Recorded on Tuesday, January 25, 2022)

John tells us why Sony is breaking his heart and making his journey to buying a new television more difficult than it needs to be.

After some discussion of the pre-flight and Merlin's problematic meal, there's a surprising amount of donut-related content, including identifying the unexpected challenges of running a successful Donut Friday. Merlin has some thoughts on the perils of cute ordering.

In follow-up, John highlights some helpful listener responses on LED bulbs. Man, light sure can be complicated.

I'd argue it's the perfect donut, especially if you're a chocolate lover.

TV talk.

This week's main topic concerns Merlin's Wisdom Project.

John opens with a question, and Merlin admits to thinking about John in the morning. This leads to some U2 content and quick look at Disney's Encanto.

In follow-up, John shares some updates on his freezer situation and implies that he still plans to talk about his body soon.

"I'm always talking… / Chicken squawking!"

Your hosts discuss John’s new freezer.

Merlin finally took a real vacation.

Things kick off with Merlin's ongoing confusion about the role of the pre-flight.

Merlin thinks John is being kind of terse, and John almost quotes what The Wolf said—and, yet, he somehow remembers exactly what model of car The Wolf drove.

Then, there's a fair amount of talk about old Apple keyboards. Merlin abuses his relationship with John to get some tech support.

In follow-up, John takes an unprecedented third crack at explaining security through obscurity. John can't even imagine ever sharing his screen, and Merlin bemoans the normalization of terrible security practices. In something like the opposite of nostalgia, your hosts remember their "college ID numbers."

As a main topic, your hosts discuss the future of gender.

In follow-up, your hosts fix a couple errors, then complain about restaurant delivery apps and label makers. The hammer drill is considered and demoed.

(Episode recorded Tuesday, November 16, 2021)

The main topic is "Lifestreams.". What were they, and why have you never heard of them?

Following an accidental pre-show, John bans clapping, and Merlin announces he doesn't want to run a store.

In an epic mini-topic, John addresses how he deals with safely getting rid of old media. The answers will not surprise you.

Next, Merlin has questions about lawn signs. Frank Chu is remembered.

(Recorded on Tuesday, November 2, 2021)

Chu has been campaigning to impeach an array of former U.S. Presidents he considers guilty of collaborating with a nefarious network of alien populations called the "12 Galaxies" to film him against his will, to broadcast this footage intergalactically, and to embezzle the royalties he is owed as a television and movie star.

Despite putting it off for as long as they could, your hosts finally return to the concept of "grit."

Your hosts did their first pre-flight, and it went pretty well.

Next up, in direct contravention to the dictates governing the uneasy peace with ATP, there is some computer talk. Specifically, Merlin wants to know if John really didn't do any research, and John wants to hear Merlin's reactions to Apple's recent announcements.

(Editor's Note: At one point, John accidentally/casually reveals the existence of a queue, and, of course, it's all Merlin can do not to stop the program, start over, and spend three hours interrogating John about this previously undisclosed queue. If John thinks he's off the hook for discussing this in the future, he is super wrong.)

Merlin confesses to being more frustrated with the fans than the concept, and John has some thoughts about oat bran. Also, Merlin is obviously more frustrated with the actual concept than he's comfortable admitting.

Can we reliably reverse-engineer grit from success? And how do we account for the grit it takes many folks just to survive day-to-day? John admits to being skeptical about any skeleton key, and Merlin thinks parents get way too attached to stuff that makes them feel smart.

(Episode recorded Tuesday, October 19, 2021)

The topic expands to a wider exploration of Big Ideas in parenting, education, and pedagogy. Merlin has a little niggle, and John remembers when parents had a modest annual kiss budget. Then, things get gritty. Can models help kids? Want a Rice Krispies treat?

"He also claims that his suit was cheap due to it being the suit that McCarthy-era lawyer Roy Cohn died in"

While it remains unclear whether grit can be taught, educators should be aware that even if it is possible to teach perseverance and passion, it’s unlikely to translate into things that schools can measure and take credit for.

"My investigation led me to two conclusions. The first is that the widespread assumption that grit is a salient concept for low-income students is a stark misconception. The second is that while grit theory offers little of value to those disadvantaged students, it can certainly harm them, by romanticizing hardship."

MacArthur 'Genius' Angela Duckworth Responds To A New Critique Of Grit : NPR Ed : NPR