John Schrag
@jvschrag.hachyderm.io.ap.brid.gy
Retired software engineer, interaction designer, and UX exec in the #VFX software field. Original Maya team member. 🏳️🌈
I write about a lot of things […]
[bridged from https://hachyderm.io/@jvschrag on the fediverse by https://fed.brid.gy/ ]
I write about a lot of things […]
[bridged from https://hachyderm.io/@jvschrag on the fediverse by https://fed.brid.gy/ ]
After reading some recent research about the effects of erythitol and other sugar alcohols on blood platelet “stickiness”, I thought I’d try my favourite keto cheesecake recipe using liquid stevia as the sweetener instead. (I used about a teaspoon of stevia to replace a cup of powdered […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 22, 2025 at 11:39 PM
After reading some recent research about the effects of erythitol and other sugar alcohols on blood platelet “stickiness”, I thought I’d try my favourite keto cheesecake recipe using liquid stevia as the sweetener instead. (I used about a teaspoon of stevia to replace a cup of powdered […]
I just finished reading “A Memory Called Empire” by Arkady Martine. It’s a science fiction political thriller. The protagonist is the ambassador from a small republic on the edge of a sprawling galactic empire, who is trying to preserve their independence, when she discovers that her predecessor […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 21, 2025 at 1:50 PM
I just finished reading “A Memory Called Empire” by Arkady Martine. It’s a science fiction political thriller. The protagonist is the ambassador from a small republic on the edge of a sprawling galactic empire, who is trying to preserve their independence, when she discovers that her predecessor […]
Fun Friday Fact:
(I learned this back around 1990 when I had to write a decoder for TIFF image files for the product I was working on.)
The official format specification for TIFF mandates that the third and fourth bytes of the file are always the number “42”, which the spec describes as an […]
(I learned this back around 1990 when I had to write a decoder for TIFF image files for the product I was working on.)
The official format specification for TIFF mandates that the third and fourth bytes of the file are always the number “42”, which the spec describes as an […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 20, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Fun Friday Fact:
(I learned this back around 1990 when I had to write a decoder for TIFF image files for the product I was working on.)
The official format specification for TIFF mandates that the third and fourth bytes of the file are always the number “42”, which the spec describes as an […]
(I learned this back around 1990 when I had to write a decoder for TIFF image files for the product I was working on.)
The official format specification for TIFF mandates that the third and fourth bytes of the file are always the number “42”, which the spec describes as an […]
Reposted by John Schrag
Hey #canadians: we support each other, we stand up for each other, and we show up for each other. Here is how we do that right now, today:
https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-7027
Even if you only read the petition, learning about what the Saskatchewan and […]
https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-7027
Even if you only read the petition, learning about what the Saskatchewan and […]
Original post on mastodon.social
mastodon.social
December 20, 2025 at 12:18 AM
Hey #canadians: we support each other, we stand up for each other, and we show up for each other. Here is how we do that right now, today:
https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-7027
Even if you only read the petition, learning about what the Saskatchewan and […]
https://www.ourcommons.ca/petitions/en/Petition/Details?Petition=e-7027
Even if you only read the petition, learning about what the Saskatchewan and […]
Reposted by John Schrag
So happy to hear @thewaroncars.bsky.social has finally added a Toronto stop for their book tour! Let's be sure to give them a warm #BikeTO welcome when they arrive on February 5! #TOpoli #VisionZero
TORONTO! Save the date. We'll be coming to what is arguably the birthplace of the war on cars for a live show on February 5th, 2026. Patreoners will get first dibs on tickets. Stay tuned for more details! Doug Ford will not be our special guest.
www.patreon.com/c/thewaronca...
www.patreon.com/c/thewaronca...
The War on Cars | Patreon
Creating a podcast about the fight against car dominance
www.patreon.com
December 19, 2025 at 1:44 PM
So happy to hear @thewaroncars.bsky.social has finally added a Toronto stop for their book tour! Let's be sure to give them a warm #BikeTO welcome when they arrive on February 5! #TOpoli #VisionZero
I watch Jeopardy most days, and it’s become clear to me that my knowledge of African geography is abysmal. So I made myself a tiny web app with a blank map to help me practice remembering where all the different countries are on the continent.
Test your own knowledge! […]
Test your own knowledge! […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 18, 2025 at 1:58 AM
I watch Jeopardy most days, and it’s become clear to me that my knowledge of African geography is abysmal. So I made myself a tiny web app with a blank map to help me practice remembering where all the different countries are on the continent.
Test your own knowledge! […]
Test your own knowledge! […]
I think if I were running a city, I’d hire Toronto City Councilor Holyday as a consultant, and then always do the exact opposite of what he recommended. I’ve been watching City Hall politics for years and I’ve never seen an elected official who is so reliably wrongheaded.
#topoli #toronto
#topoli #toronto
December 16, 2025 at 9:30 PM
I enjoyed this podcast interview with city planner Brent Todarian. ( @brenttoderian.bsky.social) He’s got a combination of competence and bluntness that I’d like to see more of in public figures.
What I wasn’t expecting (but was really valuable) was to hear a discussion about the most effective […]
What I wasn’t expecting (but was really valuable) was to hear a discussion about the most effective […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 15, 2025 at 6:53 PM
I enjoyed this podcast interview with city planner Brent Todarian. ( @brenttoderian.bsky.social) He’s got a combination of competence and bluntness that I’d like to see more of in public figures.
What I wasn’t expecting (but was really valuable) was to hear a discussion about the most effective […]
What I wasn’t expecting (but was really valuable) was to hear a discussion about the most effective […]
I wish I was as optimistic as the person whose robocaller has called me every other day for the last five years to attempt to scam me in Mandarin.
December 13, 2025 at 6:31 PM
I wish I was as optimistic as the person whose robocaller has called me every other day for the last five years to attempt to scam me in Mandarin.
Reposted by John Schrag
Ok, fedi ... what do we like for an epub reader that works for iPhone? Happy to pay for it, don't want yucky ads or tracking. Would love if there was an easy way to connect it to Calibre.
Lovely if it syncs across devices, and also totally okay if it doesn't.
#askfedi
Lovely if it syncs across devices, and also totally okay if it doesn't.
#askfedi
December 9, 2025 at 5:40 PM
Ok, fedi ... what do we like for an epub reader that works for iPhone? Happy to pay for it, don't want yucky ads or tracking. Would love if there was an easy way to connect it to Calibre.
Lovely if it syncs across devices, and also totally okay if it doesn't.
#askfedi
Lovely if it syncs across devices, and also totally okay if it doesn't.
#askfedi
I really enjoyed the Corridor Crew’s latest video. It’s about how the LOTR crew were able to do forced-perspective shots with a moving camera, something that was previously believed impossible. But the video is much more than that — it gets into the tension and partnership between practical and […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 9, 2025 at 2:59 PM
I really enjoyed the Corridor Crew’s latest video. It’s about how the LOTR crew were able to do forced-perspective shots with a moving camera, something that was previously believed impossible. But the video is much more than that — it gets into the tension and partnership between practical and […]
Degoogling phase one is complete! Four Gmail accounts eliminated, my domain now flowing through a privacy-respecting European provider, paid services cancelled.
While I was cancelling, they offered me a much better monthly price to get me to stay. So it’s probably not a bad idea to threaten […]
While I was cancelling, they offered me a much better monthly price to get me to stay. So it’s probably not a bad idea to threaten […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 8, 2025 at 5:38 PM
Degoogling phase one is complete! Four Gmail accounts eliminated, my domain now flowing through a privacy-respecting European provider, paid services cancelled.
While I was cancelling, they offered me a much better monthly price to get me to stay. So it’s probably not a bad idea to threaten […]
While I was cancelling, they offered me a much better monthly price to get me to stay. So it’s probably not a bad idea to threaten […]
Oh great. The “correct” DNS management interface is also broken. So while I can delete records no problem, adding new ones is impossible. Which I discovered after deleting my old MX record.
On the bright side… having no MX record on my domain means that I won’t be getting any junk mail! (Or any […]
On the bright side… having no MX record on my domain means that I won’t be getting any junk mail! (Or any […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 6, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Oh great. The “correct” DNS management interface is also broken. So while I can delete records no problem, adding new ones is impossible. Which I discovered after deleting my old MX record.
On the bright side… having no MX record on my domain means that I won’t be getting any junk mail! (Or any […]
On the bright side… having no MX record on my domain means that I won’t be getting any junk mail! (Or any […]
Degoogling progress: over the last two days I’ve deleted over twenty thousand unneeded messages in my Gmail account and downloaded the remaining ones onto my machine. I’ve opened a new mail account with a European provider that offers ad-free, no-tracking, privacy-respecting email with multiple […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 6, 2025 at 11:39 AM
Degoogling progress: over the last two days I’ve deleted over twenty thousand unneeded messages in my Gmail account and downloaded the remaining ones onto my machine. I’ve opened a new mail account with a European provider that offers ad-free, no-tracking, privacy-respecting email with multiple […]
I’ve just started the process of degoogling, and it’s become clear that this is probably going to take a few months at least.
Step One is cleaning up my Gmail inbox, so that I can move the useful messages off Google and move my email to a different provider. I’ve enlisted clean.email to help […]
Step One is cleaning up my Gmail inbox, so that I can move the useful messages off Google and move my email to a different provider. I’ve enlisted clean.email to help […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 4, 2025 at 3:59 PM
I’ve just started the process of degoogling, and it’s become clear that this is probably going to take a few months at least.
Step One is cleaning up my Gmail inbox, so that I can move the useful messages off Google and move my email to a different provider. I’ve enlisted clean.email to help […]
Step One is cleaning up my Gmail inbox, so that I can move the useful messages off Google and move my email to a different provider. I’ve enlisted clean.email to help […]
I unfollowed someone today, and I’m not entirely happy about it.
This person posts great content on a topic I care about, but they also post a ton of stuff on many other topics I don’t care about, which were filling my timeline. If this person had used hashtags to mark their posts by topic, I […]
This person posts great content on a topic I care about, but they also post a ton of stuff on many other topics I don’t care about, which were filling my timeline. If this person had used hashtags to mark their posts by topic, I […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 3, 2025 at 7:02 PM
I unfollowed someone today, and I’m not entirely happy about it.
This person posts great content on a topic I care about, but they also post a ton of stuff on many other topics I don’t care about, which were filling my timeline. If this person had used hashtags to mark their posts by topic, I […]
This person posts great content on a topic I care about, but they also post a ton of stuff on many other topics I don’t care about, which were filling my timeline. If this person had used hashtags to mark their posts by topic, I […]
Reposted by John Schrag
HEY CANADA.
MP Elizabeth May is sponsoring a petition to get Electoral Reform back in front of Parliament.
Could all of us who were utterly betrayed in 2016 when JT reneged on this please go put our electrons onto this one? yes, yes, the petitions don't mean a thing WILL happen, but there was […]
MP Elizabeth May is sponsoring a petition to get Electoral Reform back in front of Parliament.
Could all of us who were utterly betrayed in 2016 when JT reneged on this please go put our electrons onto this one? yes, yes, the petitions don't mean a thing WILL happen, but there was […]
Original post on cosocial.ca
cosocial.ca
December 2, 2025 at 11:19 PM
HEY CANADA.
MP Elizabeth May is sponsoring a petition to get Electoral Reform back in front of Parliament.
Could all of us who were utterly betrayed in 2016 when JT reneged on this please go put our electrons onto this one? yes, yes, the petitions don't mean a thing WILL happen, but there was […]
MP Elizabeth May is sponsoring a petition to get Electoral Reform back in front of Parliament.
Could all of us who were utterly betrayed in 2016 when JT reneged on this please go put our electrons onto this one? yes, yes, the petitions don't mean a thing WILL happen, but there was […]
I saw “Wicked: for Good” last night. No spoilers here.
I first read the book “Wicked” long before the musical existed, and now I’ve seen the musical and the movie. And (personal opinion), but I liked the movies best of the three. I think the movies were able to keep all the great musical […]
I first read the book “Wicked” long before the musical existed, and now I’ve seen the musical and the movie. And (personal opinion), but I liked the movies best of the three. I think the movies were able to keep all the great musical […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
December 2, 2025 at 8:09 PM
I saw “Wicked: for Good” last night. No spoilers here.
I first read the book “Wicked” long before the musical existed, and now I’ve seen the musical and the movie. And (personal opinion), but I liked the movies best of the three. I think the movies were able to keep all the great musical […]
I first read the book “Wicked” long before the musical existed, and now I’ve seen the musical and the movie. And (personal opinion), but I liked the movies best of the three. I think the movies were able to keep all the great musical […]
I just finished reading “Dinner with King Tut”, a pop-science book about experimental archaeology. In each section of the book, author Sam Kean meets someone who is trying to recreate some ancient technology or practice to see what we can learn from it to supplement the archaeological record […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
November 30, 2025 at 2:06 PM
I just finished reading “Dinner with King Tut”, a pop-science book about experimental archaeology. In each section of the book, author Sam Kean meets someone who is trying to recreate some ancient technology or practice to see what we can learn from it to supplement the archaeological record […]
My husband likes to cook kale.
Every time he makes dinner and serves kale, I don’t eat it until I first chant “Kale! Kale! Fire and Snow!” (Not out of compulsion — I just think it’s funny.)
23 years of marriage and he’s never asked me why. I love him so much.
Every time he makes dinner and serves kale, I don’t eat it until I first chant “Kale! Kale! Fire and Snow!” (Not out of compulsion — I just think it’s funny.)
23 years of marriage and he’s never asked me why. I love him so much.
November 24, 2025 at 4:11 PM
My husband likes to cook kale.
Every time he makes dinner and serves kale, I don’t eat it until I first chant “Kale! Kale! Fire and Snow!” (Not out of compulsion — I just think it’s funny.)
23 years of marriage and he’s never asked me why. I love him so much.
Every time he makes dinner and serves kale, I don’t eat it until I first chant “Kale! Kale! Fire and Snow!” (Not out of compulsion — I just think it’s funny.)
23 years of marriage and he’s never asked me why. I love him so much.
Reposted by John Schrag
WATCH: If you STILL don’t understand how car-dependent suburbia is HEAVILY SUBSIDIZED by downtown & all the urban parts of your city, watch this EXCELLENT video by @notjustbikes with @UrbanThree & @StrongTowns. And then please SHARE it as much as possible. youtu.be/7Nw6qyyrTeI
November 22, 2025 at 7:20 AM
WATCH: If you STILL don’t understand how car-dependent suburbia is HEAVILY SUBSIDIZED by downtown & all the urban parts of your city, watch this EXCELLENT video by @notjustbikes with @UrbanThree & @StrongTowns. And then please SHARE it as much as possible. youtu.be/7Nw6qyyrTeI
I like to solve cryptic crosswords, but I find it very hard to do anagrams in my head. So I made a tiny web page for myself that lets you type or paste in the letters you want to work with, then drag them around into different orders.
If this would be useful to you, feel free to use it […]
If this would be useful to you, feel free to use it […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
November 21, 2025 at 2:19 PM
I like to solve cryptic crosswords, but I find it very hard to do anagrams in my head. So I made a tiny web page for myself that lets you type or paste in the letters you want to work with, then drag them around into different orders.
If this would be useful to you, feel free to use it […]
If this would be useful to you, feel free to use it […]
[Description of burlesque]
Just attended my first burlesque show, to support a young friend who was performing. All female performers. Lots of hooting and hollering from the crowd. I was mostly fascinated by a young straight guy sitting in front of me with his girlfriend, as he carefully […]
Just attended my first burlesque show, to support a young friend who was performing. All female performers. Lots of hooting and hollering from the crowd. I was mostly fascinated by a young straight guy sitting in front of me with his girlfriend, as he carefully […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
November 21, 2025 at 2:34 AM
[Description of burlesque]
Just attended my first burlesque show, to support a young friend who was performing. All female performers. Lots of hooting and hollering from the crowd. I was mostly fascinated by a young straight guy sitting in front of me with his girlfriend, as he carefully […]
Just attended my first burlesque show, to support a young friend who was performing. All female performers. Lots of hooting and hollering from the crowd. I was mostly fascinated by a young straight guy sitting in front of me with his girlfriend, as he carefully […]
Reposted by John Schrag
Looking for an elder 2SLGBTQI+ person to join my volunteer non-profit board at https://ODLAN.ca. Must be based in Canada, since we serve Canadian non-profits in our community.
We're doing some really neat work and are growing our reach and impact every year. Help our 2SLGBTQI+ communities exist […]
We're doing some really neat work and are growing our reach and impact every year. Help our 2SLGBTQI+ communities exist […]
Original post on beige.party
beige.party
November 20, 2025 at 12:32 AM
Looking for an elder 2SLGBTQI+ person to join my volunteer non-profit board at https://ODLAN.ca. Must be based in Canada, since we serve Canadian non-profits in our community.
We're doing some really neat work and are growing our reach and impact every year. Help our 2SLGBTQI+ communities exist […]
We're doing some really neat work and are growing our reach and impact every year. Help our 2SLGBTQI+ communities exist […]
Tiny story:
My first full-time job out of University was as a junior dev at a company that made mapping software. Our clients would put thousands of geographic data points into our software, and it would spit out instructions to a large-scale pen plotter to create these giant maps. The software […]
My first full-time job out of University was as a junior dev at a company that made mapping software. Our clients would put thousands of geographic data points into our software, and it would spit out instructions to a large-scale pen plotter to create these giant maps. The software […]
Original post on hachyderm.io
hachyderm.io
November 19, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Tiny story:
My first full-time job out of University was as a junior dev at a company that made mapping software. Our clients would put thousands of geographic data points into our software, and it would spit out instructions to a large-scale pen plotter to create these giant maps. The software […]
My first full-time job out of University was as a junior dev at a company that made mapping software. Our clients would put thousands of geographic data points into our software, and it would spit out instructions to a large-scale pen plotter to create these giant maps. The software […]