David Olsen
@ddsd.dolsen.net
Craft beer, Pinball, NRL, Startups, Hard Techno - Sydney, Australia.
Splurging on rotisserie chickens.
A food item supermarkets notoriously sell at a loss to attract customers into their store who they hope don't *only* buy chicken.
A food item supermarkets notoriously sell at a loss to attract customers into their store who they hope don't *only* buy chicken.
Gen Zers and millennials are swimming in student debt and may never own homes, but they’re splurging on gut-healthy juices and rotisserie chickens.
The Booming Business of Luxury Grocery Stores
A new crop of gourmet grocers has hit the city, drawing lines of trendy TikTokers, MAHA-curious health fiends and Instacart devotees who want to pop in for a treat.
on.wsj.com
February 11, 2026 at 8:42 AM
Splurging on rotisserie chickens.
A food item supermarkets notoriously sell at a loss to attract customers into their store who they hope don't *only* buy chicken.
A food item supermarkets notoriously sell at a loss to attract customers into their store who they hope don't *only* buy chicken.
Reposted by David Olsen
I wrote about why I'm skeptical of that AI author earning six figures pumping out 200 books a year story, but also about how authors might need to surf above the waves of slop countercraft.substack.com/p/surfs-up-i...
Surf's Up in Slop City
How should authors navigate a world with disappearing books coverage and a rising flood of AI slop books?
countercraft.substack.com
February 10, 2026 at 4:35 PM
I wrote about why I'm skeptical of that AI author earning six figures pumping out 200 books a year story, but also about how authors might need to surf above the waves of slop countercraft.substack.com/p/surfs-up-i...
Reposted by David Olsen
My take on AI use
1) It's making it harder for people to learn *how* to learn
2) If you can't do everything you think ou should be doing without resorting to it — then you're doing (or being asked to do) too much
www.patreon.com/posts/149942...
1) It's making it harder for people to learn *how* to learn
2) If you can't do everything you think ou should be doing without resorting to it — then you're doing (or being asked to do) too much
www.patreon.com/posts/149942...
Don’t Let The Machines Do The Living | Culture Study
Get more from Culture Study on Patreon
www.patreon.com
February 10, 2026 at 3:30 AM
My take on AI use
1) It's making it harder for people to learn *how* to learn
2) If you can't do everything you think ou should be doing without resorting to it — then you're doing (or being asked to do) too much
www.patreon.com/posts/149942...
1) It's making it harder for people to learn *how* to learn
2) If you can't do everything you think ou should be doing without resorting to it — then you're doing (or being asked to do) too much
www.patreon.com/posts/149942...
In Australia, Dick Smith sold a version of this under their own brand name (and the later VZ300 model) where it was surprisingly popular (anecdotally selling 100k units per year until it was discontinued).
The VZ200 is a homebrew effort to re-imagine the Vtech Laser 200 by Mr. Collins of Z8D Homebrew Computers, and it was awesome to see this prototype demonstrated! Really looking forward to the next evolution as it just keeps getting better!
February 9, 2026 at 7:45 AM
In Australia, Dick Smith sold a version of this under their own brand name (and the later VZ300 model) where it was surprisingly popular (anecdotally selling 100k units per year until it was discontinued).
Reposted by David Olsen
I've been working on a network of webrings to connect people's hobby sites! I have multiple lines that I visualize as subway lines, so I call it the Smallweb Subway!
Every station is someone's website. You can explore it here:
gusbus.space/smallweb-sub...
#smallweb #webdev #webring
Every station is someone's website. You can explore it here:
gusbus.space/smallweb-sub...
#smallweb #webdev #webring
February 7, 2026 at 10:06 PM
I've been working on a network of webrings to connect people's hobby sites! I have multiple lines that I visualize as subway lines, so I call it the Smallweb Subway!
Every station is someone's website. You can explore it here:
gusbus.space/smallweb-sub...
#smallweb #webdev #webring
Every station is someone's website. You can explore it here:
gusbus.space/smallweb-sub...
#smallweb #webdev #webring
Reposted by David Olsen
The world is abuzz with new features like Google's AI Inbox, and we've seen more and more of our private messages being summarised by AI.
But did we really consent to this?
Read more in the ACS Information Age: https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2026/why-is-ai-allowed-to-read-my-messages-.html
But did we really consent to this?
Read more in the ACS Information Age: https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2026/why-is-ai-allowed-to-read-my-messages-.html
February 9, 2026 at 12:01 AM
The world is abuzz with new features like Google's AI Inbox, and we've seen more and more of our private messages being summarised by AI.
But did we really consent to this?
Read more in the ACS Information Age: https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2026/why-is-ai-allowed-to-read-my-messages-.html
But did we really consent to this?
Read more in the ACS Information Age: https://ia.acs.org.au/article/2026/why-is-ai-allowed-to-read-my-messages-.html
Reposted by David Olsen
This kind of smart, walkable, mixed-use urbanism is illegal to build in most American cities.
February 9, 2026 at 3:50 AM
This kind of smart, walkable, mixed-use urbanism is illegal to build in most American cities.
I'd anyone in Western Australia wants to get in on this vaccine clinical trial it's happening in your state and the details are in this thread.
GOOD NEWS! A UNIVERSAL sarbecovirus vaccine candidate has officially started clinical trials! GBP511 is the FIRST vaccine to reach human testing that is intended to protect against MULTIPLE strains of SARS-CoV-2 as well as other related coronaviruses with the potential to spark dangerous outbreaks.
February 9, 2026 at 2:50 AM
I'd anyone in Western Australia wants to get in on this vaccine clinical trial it's happening in your state and the details are in this thread.
Reposted by David Olsen
Green Day: “don’t wanna be an American Idiot”
Page Six:
Page Six:
February 8, 2026 at 11:33 PM
Green Day: “don’t wanna be an American Idiot”
Page Six:
Page Six:
Reposted by David Olsen
They sang “American Idiot”
Green Day avoids making political statement during Super Bowl 2026 opening performance
Green Day avoids making political statement during Super Bowl 2026 opening performance
A rocking start to the Super Bowl.
pagesix.com
February 8, 2026 at 11:35 PM
They sang “American Idiot”
Reposted by David Olsen
If you have not yet read @adamserwer.bsky.social on Minnesotans' heroics, you are going to feel way better when you do. He went there. He talked to the people doing the work. Then he thought about it and produced something rare. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0... [gift link]
January 28, 2026 at 10:11 PM
If you have not yet read @adamserwer.bsky.social on Minnesotans' heroics, you are going to feel way better when you do. He went there. He talked to the people doing the work. Then he thought about it and produced something rare. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0... [gift link]
It looks like the Winter Olympics Space Army came prepared to throw punches.
February 7, 2026 at 3:12 AM
It looks like the Winter Olympics Space Army came prepared to throw punches.
Reposted by David Olsen
I’d never tell anyone they MUST* understand JavaScript to work on the web, but I will make the case that one SHOULD*. To understand JavaScript is to know the boundaries of how users can interact with your medium — any role is improved by that.
wil.to/newsletters/...
* www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2119
wil.to/newsletters/...
* www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2119
What Understanding JavaScript Gets You
wil.to
October 24, 2025 at 12:37 PM
I’d never tell anyone they MUST* understand JavaScript to work on the web, but I will make the case that one SHOULD*. To understand JavaScript is to know the boundaries of how users can interact with your medium — any role is improved by that.
wil.to/newsletters/...
* www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2119
wil.to/newsletters/...
* www.rfc-editor.org/rfc/rfc2119
Hey @gork.it is this true.
The comms rep just had no ability to comprehend that AI takes in the information that already exists in the world and repackages it. Our reporting had yet to be published and therefore wasn't out in the world hadn't been ingested by any chatbot.
And they just... believed the chatbot.
And they just... believed the chatbot.
February 5, 2026 at 9:28 PM
Hey @gork.it is this true.
Reposted by David Olsen
The console wars, as told by 90s Nintendo and Sega advertisements
aftermath.site/console-wars-n...
aftermath.site/console-wars-n...
February 4, 2026 at 3:09 PM
The console wars, as told by 90s Nintendo and Sega advertisements
aftermath.site/console-wars-n...
aftermath.site/console-wars-n...
February 3, 2026 at 9:03 PM
Reposted by David Olsen
Adobe announced it's killing off Animate (formerly Flash), abandoning millions of artists who depend on the software while continuing its push into AI-heavy toolsets.
www.cartoonbrew.com/tools/adobe-...
www.cartoonbrew.com/tools/adobe-...
Adobe Ends Animate, Abandoning Millions Of Artists Amid AI Push
The sudden shutdown ends decades of workflows, jeopardizes active productions, and deepens fears that AI-first strategies are steering the industry.
www.cartoonbrew.com
February 3, 2026 at 1:43 PM
Adobe announced it's killing off Animate (formerly Flash), abandoning millions of artists who depend on the software while continuing its push into AI-heavy toolsets.
www.cartoonbrew.com/tools/adobe-...
www.cartoonbrew.com/tools/adobe-...
Reposted by David Olsen
I wrote this 14 years ago. I still get infuriated every time Turing gets so misunderstood. Which is every time.
“But Turing never claimed that computers can be intelligent. He simply suggested that it would be appealing to consider how computers…might pretend to seem human in interesting ways.”
“But Turing never claimed that computers can be intelligent. He simply suggested that it would be appealing to consider how computers…might pretend to seem human in interesting ways.”
February 3, 2026 at 3:30 AM
I wrote this 14 years ago. I still get infuriated every time Turing gets so misunderstood. Which is every time.
“But Turing never claimed that computers can be intelligent. He simply suggested that it would be appealing to consider how computers…might pretend to seem human in interesting ways.”
“But Turing never claimed that computers can be intelligent. He simply suggested that it would be appealing to consider how computers…might pretend to seem human in interesting ways.”
Reposted by David Olsen
This looks cool; great to give people more expressive spaces to publish and foster communities…
HOWEVER: Substack is not and never will be "your corner of the internet" — it's a walled garden: no API, opaque algo, a platform you don't own
In the Atmosphere we build on open data + open networks ✨
HOWEVER: Substack is not and never will be "your corner of the internet" — it's a walled garden: no API, opaque algo, a platform you don't own
In the Atmosphere we build on open data + open networks ✨
Substack is your corner of the internet
Introducing a new way to build custom spaces and deepen relationships with your subscribers
on.substack.com
February 2, 2026 at 7:24 PM
This looks cool; great to give people more expressive spaces to publish and foster communities…
HOWEVER: Substack is not and never will be "your corner of the internet" — it's a walled garden: no API, opaque algo, a platform you don't own
In the Atmosphere we build on open data + open networks ✨
HOWEVER: Substack is not and never will be "your corner of the internet" — it's a walled garden: no API, opaque algo, a platform you don't own
In the Atmosphere we build on open data + open networks ✨
Unplug Skynet.
The preprint is now out : arxiv.org/abs/2601.21016
February 2, 2026 at 10:54 PM
Unplug Skynet.
Reposted by David Olsen
A human writer uses a dash to set off a relatively abrupt jump in thought. But the machines are constantly calculating the most predictable next thing to say, plodding around the same area. So the machine dash looks like it's gesturing toward something new, only to always land on something obvious.
At first I didn't understand why people were holding forth about how an em dash—a totally normal and human piece of punctuation—was an obvious tell that an AI wrote something. But eventually I figured it out.
That's not just an em dash—it's the AI Voice em dash
February 2, 2026 at 9:58 PM
A human writer uses a dash to set off a relatively abrupt jump in thought. But the machines are constantly calculating the most predictable next thing to say, plodding around the same area. So the machine dash looks like it's gesturing toward something new, only to always land on something obvious.
Reposted by David Olsen
I keep reposting this article because it needs to be seen. This is what responsible journalism on a discriminatory act against trans people looks like. Jo put in the work.
It's no longer just my and others' personal accounts vs. random men with opinions.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
It's no longer just my and others' personal accounts vs. random men with opinions.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
How a trans woman's removal from a restroom tore the world of competitive pinball apart
Pinball is one of the most welcoming sports for trans players. But after a confrontation at an arcade last fall, pinball’s governing group is struggling to rebuild trust.
www.nbcnews.com
February 2, 2026 at 5:15 AM
I keep reposting this article because it needs to be seen. This is what responsible journalism on a discriminatory act against trans people looks like. Jo put in the work.
It's no longer just my and others' personal accounts vs. random men with opinions.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
It's no longer just my and others' personal accounts vs. random men with opinions.
www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...
Reposted by David Olsen
I need you to know that you can buy individual crabs from LEGO and they are 21¢ each
www.lego.com/en-us/pick-a...
www.lego.com/en-us/pick-a...
January 30, 2026 at 8:33 PM
I need you to know that you can buy individual crabs from LEGO and they are 21¢ each
www.lego.com/en-us/pick-a...
www.lego.com/en-us/pick-a...
Reposted by David Olsen
HAPPY BOSTON MOONINITE PANIC DAY TO ALL WHO CELEBRATE
January 31, 2026 at 3:32 PM
HAPPY BOSTON MOONINITE PANIC DAY TO ALL WHO CELEBRATE