I have a “reading table” where I sit every morning with a cup of coffee, and this is my current reading list. As you can see, it’s all about mindfulness and meditation.
(On a related note, here’s my list of over 100 mindfulness quotes.)
Scala, Java, Unix, MacOS tutorials (page 219)
A website named wallpaper.com has a good interview with Jonathan Ive about the new Apple Pencil and iPad Pro. For quite a while now there has been no need to upgrade an iPad, but this makes it a little more compelling, especially for people who like (or need) to draw.
High winds + tumbleweed can lead to crunching sounds when you drive your car in Colorado, as shown in the highlighted portion of this image.
A week or two ago Google put the first generation Moto 360 watch/smartwatch on sale for $99, and I was lucky enough to buy one before they went out of stock. It seems weird to write a review about an older piece of technology, but I actually like the watch much more than I expected to — despite a few bugs — so I thought I’d share what I’ve learned.
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This is a photo of Fairbanks, Alaska, from the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner’s Facebook page. Their caption says it’s about 15 degrees below zero, but it was gloriously sunny for the six hours of sunlight they saw today (which would have been very low on the horizon).
A nice thing about not having a memory is that I can wrap this book up tonight as a “gift to self,” and by the time Christmas gets here, I’ll have no idea what I’ve given myself.
“I love to sit in silence, beneath the shady trees.” This is pretty.
Here’s a link to a good article on medium.com titled, Intro to Product Design.
I woke up this morning to all of my apartment windows rattling, and my upstairs neighbor’s Christmas light slamming against my living room windows every few seconds. 45 mpg winds will do that.
Important note: I wrote the following text just after receiving my Moto 360, charging it, and connecting it to my Android device. At that time these instructions were 100% accurate. But what I learned the next morning is that the Moto 360 user interface changes on the second day (or perhaps within the first 24 hours). I don’t know why it works this way, but in the morning I received a notification saying that pressing the power button now brings up the Settings menu as well as a menu of apps, and sure enough it does.
(Click the image for a much larger image.)
Some time in the last week or two Google announced a $99 sale on their first generation Moto 360 watches. I purchased one, and it came in the mail this morning. My main purpose for buying one is to see how my “Just Be” mindfulness reminders app (for Android) works with Android Wear smartwatches. This image shows what the notifications currently look like.
I like the way it works off the shelf, but I kinda want to get rid of the “Just Be” name on the notification. The watch shows the app icon, and that’s good enough for me. I know it probably should be there for “branding” purposes, but I’d rather just see the mindfulness reminder message. At least the app name is in a much lighter font color, that’s good.
FWIW, I don’t have an Android phone, but I do have a Google/Android Nexus 9 tablet, and everything between the tablet and watch seems to be working fine so far.
(The Moto 360 watches were available at this link on the Google Play store, but the last time I checked they were out of stock.)
Rdio announced that Pandora is acquiring their “innovative technology and critically-acclaimed design” for $75M. Pandora confirmed this with their press release.
