Stuart Langridge
@sil.kryogenix.org
Builds stuff for computers, advises other people how to do so, plays PBP D&D, makes the occasional solo game, eats sandwiches. Part of Open Web Advocacy. Runner of the Critical Role transcript search. In the People’s Republic of Brum. https://kryogenix.org
All of this. If you use the web (which you do) on a phone (which you do) and you’re in the UK then you should be aware of the laws that are being made (and hopefully enforced) in your name.
If you’re not in the UK, check out what your government are doing about all this. @open-web-advocacy.org know.
If you’re not in the UK, check out what your government are doing about all this. @open-web-advocacy.org know.
On Apple’s pinky promises to CMA brucelawson.co.uk/2026/on-appl... (I've calmed down - a bit - after yesterdays grumpiness at Apple taking the absolute piss.)
Bruce Lawson's personal site
» On Apple’s pinky promises to CMA
brucelawson.co.uk
February 11, 2026 at 4:12 PM
All of this. If you use the web (which you do) on a phone (which you do) and you’re in the UK then you should be aware of the laws that are being made (and hopefully enforced) in your name.
If you’re not in the UK, check out what your government are doing about all this. @open-web-advocacy.org know.
If you’re not in the UK, check out what your government are doing about all this. @open-web-advocacy.org know.
how to avoid Discord age verification: post a bunch of pictures of you doing all the stuff from those memes about using pencils on a cassette tape, and then say your back hurts. Pow, verified by the AI
Discord says ‘vast majority’ of users won’t see its new age verification setup
Discord says ‘vast majority’ of users won’t see its new age verification setup
Age prediction could be sufficient for many users.
buff.ly
February 10, 2026 at 8:28 PM
how to avoid Discord age verification: post a bunch of pictures of you doing all the stuff from those memes about using pencils on a cassette tape, and then say your back hurts. Pow, verified by the AI
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
Apple is not making commitments to CMA in good faith. for example, the new channel to grovel for interoperability is only for developers "registered in the UK". So bad luck, non-UK developers, or browsers HQd in Oslo, Mountain View, San Francisco. No interop for you. www.gov.uk/government/c...
February 10, 2026 at 3:30 PM
Apple is not making commitments to CMA in good faith. for example, the new channel to grovel for interoperability is only for developers "registered in the UK". So bad luck, non-UK developers, or browsers HQd in Oslo, Mountain View, San Francisco. No interop for you. www.gov.uk/government/c...
“We built the web on optimistic assumptions. We assumed good faith. We assumed people would respect robots.txt because we all understood we were building something great together. The Web was supposed to be for everyone.”
This is a very true, very depressing read.
This is a very true, very depressing read.
February 9, 2026 at 9:52 PM
“We built the web on optimistic assumptions. We assumed good faith. We assumed people would respect robots.txt because we all understood we were building something great together. The Web was supposed to be for everyone.”
This is a very true, very depressing read.
This is a very true, very depressing read.
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
I posted the same Windows complaint on three platforms - got 49x more engagement on Threads (my smallest following) than Mastodon (16x more followers). Turns out algorithms love rage bait.
The Threads Algorithm Loves Rage Bait
I use Publer to post identical content across Threads, Mastodon, and Bluesky. Same words, same time, same bloke. It’s a massive time-saver, and means I can reach people wherever they happen to hang out online without having to faff about copying and pasting between apps.
I wasn’t running some grand social media experiment. I was just having a moan about Windows updates like any reasonable person would. But the results were so stark they opened my eyes to exactly what these platforms reward - and it’s not what you might think.
blog.popey.com
February 8, 2026 at 12:35 AM
I posted the same Windows complaint on three platforms - got 49x more engagement on Threads (my smallest following) than Mastodon (16x more followers). Turns out algorithms love rage bait.
Rayner for PM? Could be. I think that’d be cool.
February 6, 2026 at 8:15 AM
Rayner for PM? Could be. I think that’d be cool.
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
Name them
shame them
shame them
February 5, 2026 at 2:30 PM
Name them
shame them
shame them
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
@entroware.bsky.social is there somewhere I can find specs for your older devices, specifically the Aura? the website doesn't seem to know that it ever existed
January 30, 2026 at 11:56 AM
@entroware.bsky.social is there somewhere I can find specs for your older devices, specifically the Aura? the website doesn't seem to know that it ever existed
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
Half of all rail journeys that Great British Railways will ultimately be responsible for will be on services run by publicly owned operators from Sunday, as London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway services join the fast-growing family of operators "owned by the public for the public."
London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway services return to public ownership
Services to return to public ownership this Sunday, bringing the country one step closer to a simpler, unified rail system under Great British Railways.
More than 8,500 publicly owned rail services...
dft-newsroom.prgloo.com
January 30, 2026 at 10:46 AM
Half of all rail journeys that Great British Railways will ultimately be responsible for will be on services run by publicly owned operators from Sunday, as London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway services join the fast-growing family of operators "owned by the public for the public."
as days pass by — fifty
A post by Stuart Langridge (sil)
www.kryogenix.org
January 30, 2026 at 8:12 AM
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
This government clearly don't really understand the complexity or the danger of the situation. They show no sign of beginning to understand, and every sign of asking the monorail salesman how public transport should work. It's going to be an uphill struggle, but don't leave this to politicians.
January 28, 2026 at 1:26 PM
This government clearly don't really understand the complexity or the danger of the situation. They show no sign of beginning to understand, and every sign of asking the monorail salesman how public transport should work. It's going to be an uphill struggle, but don't leave this to politicians.
I’m not American, or in America. All I know of Minneapolis is John Sandford books and what I see on here and the news. But I think I believe that most people are basically decent. I certainly try to, even if I lapse occasionally.
So I like www.techdirt.com/2026/01/28/m... by @mmasnick.bsky.social
So I like www.techdirt.com/2026/01/28/m... by @mmasnick.bsky.social
Minneapolis Proved Something MAGA Can’t Accept: Most People Are Actually Virtuous
There’s a line buried in Adam Serwer’s recent Atlantic piece on the Minneapolis resistance to ICE that deserves to be pulled out, examined, and posted on every lamppost in America: The …
www.techdirt.com
January 28, 2026 at 10:12 PM
I’m not American, or in America. All I know of Minneapolis is John Sandford books and what I see on here and the news. But I think I believe that most people are basically decent. I certainly try to, even if I lapse occasionally.
So I like www.techdirt.com/2026/01/28/m... by @mmasnick.bsky.social
So I like www.techdirt.com/2026/01/28/m... by @mmasnick.bsky.social
Imagine if you were the director of a film that hardly anybody will watch except Tim Cook. What would you put in the script?
“I liked when he blew up the Nazi camp! And the bit where he delivered a homily on how it is small-minded fear to ban other web browsers from your platform was really moving”
“I liked when he blew up the Nazi camp! And the bit where he delivered a homily on how it is small-minded fear to ban other web browsers from your platform was really moving”
Not sure what’s more incredible. That probably less than a 100 people saw the Melania movie on its opening weekend or that one of them was Tim Cook.
January 28, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Imagine if you were the director of a film that hardly anybody will watch except Tim Cook. What would you put in the script?
“I liked when he blew up the Nazi camp! And the bit where he delivered a homily on how it is small-minded fear to ban other web browsers from your platform was really moving”
“I liked when he blew up the Nazi camp! And the bit where he delivered a homily on how it is small-minded fear to ban other web browsers from your platform was really moving”
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
I'll go you one better:
WHY DO THEY NEED AN APP?
The app is more or less a specialized web browser that goes one place: Patreon's website. The app gives you nothing the website won't.
And it's not like other apps, because creators are *constantly* pushing Patreon links. They don't need exposure!
WHY DO THEY NEED AN APP?
The app is more or less a specialized web browser that goes one place: Patreon's website. The app gives you nothing the website won't.
And it's not like other apps, because creators are *constantly* pushing Patreon links. They don't need exposure!
I'm begging you not to use apple products. This shit is devastating to creators like me
January 28, 2026 at 8:45 PM
I'll go you one better:
WHY DO THEY NEED AN APP?
The app is more or less a specialized web browser that goes one place: Patreon's website. The app gives you nothing the website won't.
And it's not like other apps, because creators are *constantly* pushing Patreon links. They don't need exposure!
WHY DO THEY NEED AN APP?
The app is more or less a specialized web browser that goes one place: Patreon's website. The app gives you nothing the website won't.
And it's not like other apps, because creators are *constantly* pushing Patreon links. They don't need exposure!
Things I’ve been paid for include:
* CTO
* software architecture consultancy
* book author
* shrinkwrapping boxes of animal vaccine in hot plastic and putting them on a pallet while they were still so hot that all the skin blistered off my hands after a week and the boxes stuck together
* web dev
* CTO
* software architecture consultancy
* book author
* shrinkwrapping boxes of animal vaccine in hot plastic and putting them on a pallet while they were still so hot that all the skin blistered off my hands after a week and the boxes stuck together
* web dev
Things I have been paid for include:
- tenure-stream faculty member
- on-camera work (role: “self”)
- secretary/admin assistant
- freelance illustrator
- toilet measurer
- tenure-stream faculty member
- on-camera work (role: “self”)
- secretary/admin assistant
- freelance illustrator
- toilet measurer
5 jobs I've had:
* Management Accountant
* Comms Officer (digital so UX research and content design)
* Writer/Podcaster/Presenter/Videographer (yes that was all one job, you may know the one)
* The Bins
* Librarian
* Management Accountant
* Comms Officer (digital so UX research and content design)
* Writer/Podcaster/Presenter/Videographer (yes that was all one job, you may know the one)
* The Bins
* Librarian
January 28, 2026 at 9:44 PM
Things I’ve been paid for include:
* CTO
* software architecture consultancy
* book author
* shrinkwrapping boxes of animal vaccine in hot plastic and putting them on a pallet while they were still so hot that all the skin blistered off my hands after a week and the boxes stuck together
* web dev
* CTO
* software architecture consultancy
* book author
* shrinkwrapping boxes of animal vaccine in hot plastic and putting them on a pallet while they were still so hot that all the skin blistered off my hands after a week and the boxes stuck together
* web dev
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
Does anyone know how to apply controls to their parents YouTube account
Visiting my 85yr old dad for the weekend and the YouTube recommendations he getting are horrendous stuff — click bait, scams, right wing politics etc
Visiting my 85yr old dad for the weekend and the YouTube recommendations he getting are horrendous stuff — click bait, scams, right wing politics etc
January 24, 2026 at 9:06 PM
Does anyone know how to apply controls to their parents YouTube account
Visiting my 85yr old dad for the weekend and the YouTube recommendations he getting are horrendous stuff — click bait, scams, right wing politics etc
Visiting my 85yr old dad for the weekend and the YouTube recommendations he getting are horrendous stuff — click bait, scams, right wing politics etc
Amazingly, the PC Gamer headline is a proper reflection of what was said.
What most annoys me is they believe they have a right to do a thing they acknowledge is damaging, which'll maybe be good eventually (which they acknowledge it isn't yet) and the only limit is "quick! before the bubble bursts!"
What most annoys me is they believe they have a right to do a thing they acknowledge is damaging, which'll maybe be good eventually (which they acknowledge it isn't yet) and the only limit is "quick! before the bubble bursts!"
January 22, 2026 at 10:41 AM
Amazingly, the PC Gamer headline is a proper reflection of what was said.
What most annoys me is they believe they have a right to do a thing they acknowledge is damaging, which'll maybe be good eventually (which they acknowledge it isn't yet) and the only limit is "quick! before the bubble bursts!"
What most annoys me is they believe they have a right to do a thing they acknowledge is damaging, which'll maybe be good eventually (which they acknowledge it isn't yet) and the only limit is "quick! before the bubble bursts!"
actual quotation from this meeting:
interviewer: can you justify this piece of madness in any way?
US government official: well, justifying any of this, it's canard
interviewer: can you justify this piece of madness in any way?
US government official: well, justifying any of this, it's canard
Bessent dismisses Trump letter linking Greenland with Nobel snub: ‘A complete canard’
Bessent dismisses Trump letter linking Greenland with Nobel snub: ‘A complete canard’
Bessent dismisses Trump letter linking Greenland with Nobel snub: ‘A complete canard’
www.independent.co.uk
January 20, 2026 at 10:58 PM
actual quotation from this meeting:
interviewer: can you justify this piece of madness in any way?
US government official: well, justifying any of this, it's canard
interviewer: can you justify this piece of madness in any way?
US government official: well, justifying any of this, it's canard
Bunch of UK people seeing the #aurora right now, plus aurorawatch.lancs.ac.uk/ says it’s likely to be visible. I had a look, but no dice in the middle of the city. I’m glad some of you managed it though, and maybe a few more might wanna go out in the back garden or the car park tonight and look.
AuroraWatch UK · AuroraWatch UK
See the aurora borealis from the UK
aurorawatch.lancs.ac.uk
January 19, 2026 at 10:45 PM
Bunch of UK people seeing the #aurora right now, plus aurorawatch.lancs.ac.uk/ says it’s likely to be visible. I had a look, but no dice in the middle of the city. I’m glad some of you managed it though, and maybe a few more might wanna go out in the back garden or the car park tonight and look.
The idea that the leader of a country can, if they choose, dictate to any people in that country what they have to do and must be obeyed... explains quite a lot about the current style of US government.
Trump to NBC: Norway "totally controls" the Nobel Prize committee "despite what they say"
January 19, 2026 at 4:34 PM
The idea that the leader of a country can, if they choose, dictate to any people in that country what they have to do and must be obeyed... explains quite a lot about the current style of US government.
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
Wow, sure would be pretty crazy if a ton of experts in the artificial intelligence field relentlessly warned everyone about this state of affairs being inevitable over and over for years.
January 17, 2026 at 11:38 AM
Wow, sure would be pretty crazy if a ton of experts in the artificial intelligence field relentlessly warned everyone about this state of affairs being inevitable over and over for years.
Reposted by Stuart Langridge
pretty sure he meant the other thing, grok, but very cool that those are your two things
January 16, 2026 at 4:55 PM
pretty sure he meant the other thing, grok, but very cool that those are your two things