Late March link roundup
Camelut, from (optional.is), is an experimental iOSa camera app [that] takes industry standard LUT Cube files[…] and applies them in real-time to your camera feed as you take photos.
Nice work, Brian!
ghost is
a native macOS note-taking app that feels like Ghostty — GPU-accelerated, keyboard-first, monospace, zero-config.
Its notes are plain
(via Karl).md files in ~/Documents/ghostmd/.
doas for running commands as root on FreeBSD, by Eryn.
Open Source Gave Me Everything Until I Had Nothing Left to Give, by Kenneth Reitz, via Ashe Dryden.
Falsehoods programmers believe about languages, by Michal Měchura, via Debbie.
ASCII characters are not pixels: a deep dive into ASCII rendering, by Alex Harri, via Eryn.
Windows Native App Development Is a Mess, by Domenic.
Initial thoughts on the tiny XTEINK X4 ereader, by Neil Brown. I’ve an X4 that lives in my purse; I’m currently reading The Well of Loneliness on it. Like Neil, I run CrossPoint on mine.
The End, by Craig Cook, via Jeremy.
Adults Lose Skills to AI. Children Never Build Them, by Timothy Cook M.Ed., via Christine Lemmer-Webber.
Some Things Just Take Time, by Armin Ronacher.
Flood fill vs. the magic circle, by Robin Sloan, via Jeremy.
Against Vibes Part 2: Ought You Use a Generative Model, by William J. Bowman PhD, via Eryn.
Si ce n’est de se poser plus sérieusement la question de ce qui reste. La vie a cette propriété formidable que la fin n’est pas vraiment déterminée. La conscience de la fin de la bobine est pourtant très présente, notable. On coud sans vraiment prévoir quand le bout du fil sera là. Alors, la question se pose, pressante. Comment veut-on redéfinir les choses sur lesquelles on veut passer plus de temps ? Redéfinir la distribution des activités, des lieux ?
Using AI to Evaluate Internet Standards (Part Two), by Mark. See also Part 1 from last summer.
Use of Large Language Models in Standards Work, a position statement from W3C’s Advisory Board (AB), edited by Elena Lape and Hidde de Vries.
How not to mandate device-based age assurance, by ekr.
WebKit Features for Safari 26.4, by Jen Simmons.
Rachel Mae Hannon asks, Why Has Japan Fallen in Love With Irish Traditional Music?
The sign I made for the protest is set in Deaschló GC, which was inspired by Irish road signage.
March, 19-21: God is a comedian, by No1, via Virginia.
For 80 years, the US was the underwriter for a system of globalisation based on UN Charter principles, multilateralism, territorial integrity, sovereign equality. It actually heralded an unprecedented and unique period of global prosperity and peace[…] But now, whether you like it or not, objectively, this period has ended[…] Basically, the underwriter of this world order has now become a revisionist power, and some people would even say a disruptor.
But the larger point is that the erosion of norms, processes, and institutions that underpinned a remarkable period of peace and prosperity; that foundation has gone. What you are seeing now, whether you watch the war in Ukraine, in the Middle East or elsewhere, including in Asia, to me these are symptoms of the underlying tectonic rupture. Big powers and even lesser powers have a more narrow definition of national interest. [They] are willing to weaponise all levers in their hands. You look at the weaponisation of currency, weaponisation of technology, weaponisation of critical minerals, weaponisation of trade interdependency, which were supposed to keep us at peace with one another—now it becomes yet another portal for exploitation.
The Consequences of Bad Labor Law, by Hamilton Nolan, via Ethan Marcotte.
H.R. 7661, The Nationwide Book Ban Bill Moves to the House, by Kelly Jensen.
Missouri Republicans Are Using Transphobia to Trick Voters Into Banning Abortion, by Susan Rinkunas.
Idaho Passes Most Extreme Bathroom Ban In Nation, Creating Path To Life In Prison, by Erin Reed.
Also by Erin:
- Portuguese Parliament Advances Sweeping Anti-Trans Bills, Borrowing From American Far-Right.
- Maine Governor Janet Mills Comes Out Against Billionaire-Funded Anti-Trans Sports/Bathrooms Referendum.
A brief history of how the UK’s broken Trans+ healthcare system only serves its cisgender doctors, by Ludovic Parsons.
India passes law to end transgender self-identification, by Andrew M. Potts.
Transgender Women Now Banned From Women’s Olympic Events, by Margaret Hetherman. See also The IOC’s New Policy Isn’t Really a Trans Story, by Parker Molloy, and Sex Testing Harms All Women and Girls, from the Sport and Rights Alliance:
“A sex testing and blanket ban policy would be a catastrophic erosion of women’s rights and safety” said Andrea Florence, Executive Director of the Sport & Rights Alliance. “Gender policing and exclusion harms all women and girls, and undermines the very dignity and fairness the IOC claims to uphold. Our concerns are compounded by the fact that the IOC also seems to be, at the same time, divesting from the safe sport infrastructure that actually provides protection for women and girls.”
Bill to track transgender Tennesseans passes the House, by Marianna Bacallao.
Operation Lifeboat is providing direct aid to trans people in Kansas–by helping them flee the state, by Artemis T. Douglas and Jane Migliara Brigham.
Also by Artemis: South Dakota signs multiple patriarchal enforcement bills into law. South Dakota Governor signs bills erasing trans people, making abortion and emergency contraception a felony, and allowing children to marry adults on the same day. More legislation signed on the same date mandates sex-based segregation and effectively bans trans people in publicly funded lodgings.
The Same Dark Money Behind Project 2025 Is Bankrolling A Northwestern Study Recruiting Trans Kids, by s. baum.
Also by s. baum: The Largest Physician Organization In The US Reaffirms Gender-Affirming Care Is Medically Necessary.
Sad news: GO Magazine Mourns The Loss of Beloved Contributor, Dan Tracer. I’ve linked to articles of his at least nine times over the years (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9).
Books and screens, by Carlo Iaconois, via Jeremy. What’s revealing about these panics is who was doing the panicking and why.
If you’ve run out of brain cells and are looking for something simple to do for dinner tonight, you could do a lot worse than Smitten Kitchen’s take on pasta e ceci.