Threads adds ‘ghost posts’ that disappear after 24 hours

Sarah Perez, writing for TechCrunch:

Users will now be able to create a ghost post on mobile devices by toggling on the new “ghost” icon on the app’s compose screen. When the post is published, it appears in others’ timelines with a dotted conversation bubble around it to differentiate the post from other content.

Other users on both desktop and mobile devices can reply to the post, but these responses are sent directly to the poster’s DMs (direct messages); these replies don’t appear in the timeline.

May be it’s because I’m old, but I’m failing to see the novelty of this feature.

October 27, 2025 ✚ Permalink

Remembering “In Focus”: The Atlantic’s Brilliant Photo Blog by Alan Taylor

While tidying up some old drafts on this blog, I stumbled upon an unpublished article from 2012 titled “Diwali: The Festival of Lights [Photos from the In Focus Blog]” Revisiting this piece instantly brought back memories of The Atlantic’s ‘In Focus’ photo blog, masterfully curated by Alan Taylor. This blog delivered captivating photo stories centered on current events and remarkable themes, enveloping readers in unforgettable visual experiences. It truly was one of the best places on the web to experience powerful photojournalism.

Alan originally started curating and publishing these photo stories when he was employed at The Boston Globe as a Web Developer and launched “The Big Picture” as a passion project. A few years later, Alan took that concept to The Atlantic, where he continued curating breathtaking collections under the banner In Focus — this time as his full-time role. The series featured everything from world events and cultural festivals to historical retrospectives and space exploration. Each photo essay was a masterclass in how photography can evoke emotion, context, and wonder.

Today, The Big Picture still lives on as a category Big Picture’ on The Boston Globe’s website, continuing the legacy that Alan started. Over at The Atlantic, In Focus has evolved into the broader Photography section, where Taylor still publishes his signature photo essays.

Don’t miss ‘The Lights of Diwali 2025‘ photo collection – a striking celebration of light and life, curated in Alan Taylor’s inimitable style. I also found a nice little archive of photos published on the In Focus blog over on Tumblr.

October 25, 2025 ✚ Permalink

Boring Is What We Wanted

Stephen Hackett, writing on 512 Pixels:

Apple silicon has been nothing but upside for the Mac, and yet some seem bored already. In the days since Apple announced the M5, I’ve seen and heard this sentiment more than I expected:

This is just another boring incremental upgrade.

That 👏 is 👏 the 👏 point.

Back in the PowerPC and Intel days, Macs would sometimes go years between spec bumps, as Apple waited on its partners to deliver appropriate hardware for various machines. From failing NVIDIA cards in MacBook Pros to 27-inch Intel iMacs that ran so hot the fans were audible at all times, Mac hardware wasn’t always what Apple wanted.

[…]

The difference is that with Apple silicon, Apple owns and controls the primary technologies behind the products it makes, as Tim Cook has always wanted. It means that it can ship updates to its SoCs on a regular cadence, making progress in terms of both power and efficiency each time.

A predictable update schedule means that incremental updates are inevitable. Revolution then evolution is not a bad thing; it’s okay that not every release is exciting or groundbreaking. It’s how technology has worked for decades.

This is such a well-written piece by Stephen, and he really hits the nail on the head. The switch to Apple Silicon has been one of the best things to happen to Mac hardware in modern times. I’ve owned an Intel iMac as well as an Intel MacBook Pro in the past. As he mentions, it’s completely okay that not every release is exciting or groundbreaking, because barely anyone upgrades on a yearly cycle. Most customers jump from one Mac to the other every 3-4 years, so these releases are never boring for them.

October 22, 2025 ✚ Permalink

Automattic CEO calls Tumblr his ‘biggest failure’ so far

Sarah Perez, reporting for TechCrunch:

WordPress co-founder and Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg called the company’s Tumblr acquisition his biggest failure — but one he hasn’t given up on yet. The comments were made at the recent WordCamp Canada 2025 conference, where Mullenweg went live for a Town Hall session to connect with the open source-focused WordPress community.

The exec noted that Tumblr was still on a different technical stack than WordPress — something he had intended to correct by migrating the back end to WordPress infrastructure. However, that massive undertaking was put on hold earlier this year, as the cost to move Tumblr’s half-billion blogs would be difficult given that the blogging platform wasn’t profitable and continues to be sustained by the profits of other Automattic products.

and

Mullenweg acknowledged these concerns at his Town Hall session, saying, “I need to switch [Tumblr] over to WordPress, but it’s a big lift. It’s over 500 million blogs, actually, and, as a business, it’s costing so much more to run than it generates in revenue.”

I’ve always thought Automattic’s purchase of Tumblr was a bit of an odd decision. It made me wonder what Matt’s endgame was — and honestly, it feels like that vision still hasn’t solidified. With the right leadership and a much-needed cleanup, it could absolutely thrive again. Matt’s juggling too many things right now, but I really believe someone could make Tumblr the go-to platform for the coming years, especially once it becomes part of the Fediverse.

October 21, 2025 ✚ Permalink

Kohler wants to put a camera in your toilet

Anthony Ha, writing for TechCrunch:

Home goods company Kohler recently unveiled a new device called the Dekoda — a $599 camera that can be attached to your toilet bowl and take pictures of what’s inside.

CNET reports that the Dekoda analyzes these images in order to provide updates on your gut health and hydration, and to potentially detect blood. It also comes with a rechargeable battery, a USB connection, and a fingerprint sensor to identify who’s using the toilet.

I had to double check the date on my calendar, because… I mean… huh!?

October 20, 2025 ✚ Permalink

The Real Problem with Syntax Highlighting (and How to Make It Work)

Nikita Prokopov, the creator of the fantastic Fira Code typeface, has published a very interesting look at how “everyone is getting syntax highlighting wrong”

Most color themes have a unique bright color for literally everything: one for variables, another for language keywords, constants, punctuation, functions, classes, calls, comments, etc.

Sometimes it gets so bad one can’t see the base text color: everything is highlighted.

There’s a bunch of screenshots in the article that he uses to make his argument, but there are some great counterpoints being raised on Hacker News as well.

October 17, 2025 ✚ Permalink

Apple TV+ is now simply Apple TV

Apple’s press release announcing the global streaming debut of “F1 The Movie” mentions something interesting about where the film will debut:

Apple TV+ is now simply Apple TV, with a vibrant new identity. Ahead of its global streaming debut on Apple TV, the film continues to be available for purchase on participating digital platforms, including the Apple TV app, Amazon Prime Video, Fandango at Home and more.

“Apple TV” has been the subject of ridicule for many years now, but I don’t think this rebranding has any bearing. As I mentioned on Mastodon, I think rebranding the streaming service as “Apple TV” makes perfect sense. Everyone already calls it that anyway, and it’s already available on most of the popular platforms like Android, Smart TVs, streaming devices, etc. You don’t need Apple TV hardware to watch Apple TV.

Instead, Apple should rebrand the hardware itself. Something like Apple Home Hub or Apple HomePod Hub. After all, the HomePod already runs tvOS under the hood to begin with. So “Apple TV” becomes the name of the streaming service that offers some of the best television content today, accessible on virtually any platform. And for those who prefer Apple’s own hardware experience, there’s the Apple Home Hub — a device that connects to your TV, brings an intelligent new Siri, acts as a Thread networking hub, delivers incredible sound, and does so much more.

October 14, 2025 ✚ Permalink

Instagram Tests Reels-first Experience in India

Meta has today announced that the company is testing a new “Reels-first” experience in the Instagram app in India.

To make it even easier to access these most-loved parts of Instagram, we’re testing a new Reels-first experience for a limited group of users. This experience is similar to our recent launch the Reels-first experience on iPad:

  • When you open Instagram, you’ll land directly in Reels. Stories remain at the top, making it easy to connect with friends.
  • DMs are now just one swipe away in the navigation bar for quick access to conversations from anywhere in the app.
  • There will also be a new “Following” tab, which gives you multiple ways to see the latest and greatest from the accounts you follow:
  • All: Recommended posts and Reels from accounts you follow.
  • Friends: Recommended posts and Reels from accounts you follow who also follow you back.
  • Latest: Chronological posts and Reels from accounts you follow, with the newest content first.

Very interesting, and I fully expected Instagram to dive head first into Reels considering how much they’ve blown up in the past couple of years. But more than the Reels feed taking centre-stage in the app, I’m very interested in experiencing the new “Following” tab that gives me a way to browse my “Friends” and “Latest” feeds separately.

I don’t have this new experience just yet, but I’m looking forward to it.

September 29, 2025 ✚ Permalink