Every year, I do a list of 10 games I loved that year -- this is 2025! My guess is you'll know some of them, and also that you won't know some of them. Please let me tell you about these fine video games!! (Links are mostly to Steam, but some are on console too.) /thread

I have to impress upon you that Sudokuvania is a fully realized Metroidvania. It is merely expressed as 20+ integrated variant sudokus. There is nothing else like this. Solving it is one of my proudest achievements. It is a $0 website. Use a laptop. sudokupad.app/6u61fsw0di?s...

Every year, I do a list of 10 games I loved that year -- this is 2025! My guess is you'll know some of them, and also that you won't know some of them. Please let me tell you about these fine video games!! (Links are mostly to Steam, but some are on console too.) /thread

Enjoying seeing people write little unofficial bots on isitchristmas.com during its interactive season. :)

I'm working on cleaning up my withered online presence, starting with my homepage. Going back over long-ago (now private) blog posts really hits home that I just didn't know how to write like a grown-up until age 30 or so. Really wish I could have figured that out earlier.

I know some will be mad at Google for shutting down a service, but I am *unabashedly joyous* that a major URL shortener is getting turned off. These things are atrocious, fragile, and not at all in your interest as a producer or consumer of them. www.theverge.com/news/713125/...

I do not understand why the party is not marginalizing the obviously poor judgment and defensive crouch of the Biden campaign's inner circle. Anita Dunn, Ron Klain, or David Plouffe should not be allowed anywhere near a Democratic campaign again. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/19/u...

I have come to adore Mimic Logic, this weirdo little logic game that is essentially the Parlor game from Blue Prince taken to its extreme logical conclusions. It's at 98% positive, only a few reviews short of Overwhelmingly Positive on Steam - give it a go! store.steampowered.com/app/2455920/...

When is the overwraught Classics of Game thinkpiece finally going to arrive?

Come secure Wikipedia with me! We're hiring a manager to oversee security operations, and to lead a group of security and privacy engineers that keep the platform safe. There's never been more energy at Wikimedia for this kind of work. Throw in for it! job-boards.greenhouse.io/wikimedia/jo...

Come secure Wikipedia with me! We're hiring a manager to oversee security operations, and to lead a group of security and privacy engineers that keep the platform safe. There's never been more energy at Wikimedia for this kind of work. Throw in for it! job-boards.greenhouse.io/wikimedia/jo...

Trump's DOJ is validating the position state election officials have always held -- which is to reflexively push back against any potential for abusive federal political interference in elections, even well-intentioned security requirements. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/u...

@leedrutman.bsky.social Do you think the much more strategic and consistent use of cross-endorsing and alliances in NYC this time around is a point in favor of RCV in achieving its stated goals? Or no different?

I also hate that it’s borrowing from the evil plan name

attn @xor.blue

Pretty sweet job for a public interest journalist interested in making a podcast for @propublica.org! job-boards.greenhouse.io/propublica/j...

It's my favorite time of year - the Cerebral Puzzle Showcase on Steam! store.steampowered.com/sale/cerebra... Time to install 100 demos and wishlist 50 games!!

There's nothing "centrist" about speaking plainly in the language of your audience, rather than the language of your friends. I am definitely among those who believe progressives need to speak more like normal people in public life. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

We created a safer AV1 decoder, rav1d, by forking the dav1d decoder and rewriting the C code in Rust. It works great except our Rust is 5% slower than the C. We're not sure why so we're offering a $20k bounty to figure it out and make the Rust code faster. www.memorysafety.org/blog/rav1d-p...

In May, I'm joining @wikimediafoundation.org (the non-profit that hosts Wikipedia), where I'll be leading its product work across both security and trust & safety. And I'm excited about it! Hard to think of a better use of my energy than keeping Wikipedia strong and healthy for the next generation.

In May, I'm joining @wikimediafoundation.org (the non-profit that hosts Wikipedia), where I'll be leading its product work across both security and trust & safety. And I'm excited about it! Hard to think of a better use of my energy than keeping Wikipedia strong and healthy for the next generation.

@draknek.bsky.social Are you going to post the Electrifying Incident OST somewhere?

Absolutely loved this. Me and my 4yo finished it in about an hour and a half and were fully charmed by it.

woodchuck: (seeing some unchucked wood) what the fuck is this

This seems like a good time to re-post @edfelten.bsky.social's 2017 classic, "On Encryption Apps in the White House": blog.citp.princeton.edu/2017/02/27/o... The USG absolutely *does* need a Signal-like service - which could retain records and watch for errant invitees. We could have nice things!

I'm not usually one for text-based games, but Type Help absolutely gripped me for a few evenings until I was done. A haunting detective game inspired by Obra Dinn and others, its own unique mechanics and twists that are super satisfying. And it is free! Play here: william-rous.itch.io/type-help

Played the demo of Piece by Piece last night with my 4yo - he and I both loved it, and it was surprisingly clever and interesting for what I thought at first would be a shallow concept. I'm definitely going to buy the full game: store.steampowered.com/app/3249380/...

YESSS -- the former Zachtronics team is back with a new game about 1980's Japanese manufacturing logistics!! I have watched the trailer several times. www.pcgamer.com/games/puzzle...

As far as I can recall, this is the first time Bezos has taken direct and explicit responsibility for a change in editorial direction. For most of his tenure to this point, he was seen as he wanted to be seen, as a hands-off benefactor. He has relied on this. He's opened a door that can't be shut.

There's been a very clear trend on Signal of people changing their names to their initials. While I understand the instinct, I recommend against doing this. It doesn't help you, and it's working against our collective interests.

The firing of over a dozen inspectors general is a huge deal that impacts more than tech and security: www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202... But I want to give props to Mark Greenblatt, the Interior IG and a Trump appointee, for his work to puncture dangerous federal cybersecurity myths. (1/4)

In more wholesome (personal) news, I'm going to go to Boston in April for @sudokucon.bsky.social, a new small event that's spun out of the amazing logic puzzle community that Cracking the Cryptic helped create over the last few years. Let me know if you're going too! sudokucon.com/about

I regret every .io domain I ever registered. So expensive, was only passingly trendy, and is explicitly controlled by a geopolitical entity I have no affiliation with. Why did I do that??

There really just shouldn't be a presidential inauguration fund at all. That concept in American politics should go away.

I have a tradition at the end of the year to post ~10 games from that year that I loved and want to share. I bet at least a few will be new to you. 2024 was full of delightful and surprising games. Let me tell you about them!! (Links are to Steam, some are on console too.) 1/

There's been so much great work to finally create standard syncable passkeys that could work at scale for regular people. If the industry screws it up at the last minute due to dark pattern temptations, it will be a huge loss for those regular people. arstechnica.com/security/202...

It's the cusp of the new year - which means it's time for Daniel Schuman's (@americalabs.org) latest accessible explanation of how House rules work and the power dynamics that will determine them!! firstbranchforecast.substack.com/p/previewing... I always enjoy Daniel's writing and deep expertise.

I have a tradition at the end of the year to post ~10 games from that year that I loved and want to share. I bet at least a few will be new to you. 2024 was full of delightful and surprising games. Let me tell you about them!! (Links are to Steam, some are on console too.) 1/

Enjoying my weirdo holiday tradition of running a real-time mouse interaction sandbox on isitchristmas.com for a few days, with a secret (don't tell anyone!) chat room in the developer console. Someone's figured out how to make a little bot that can change its text colors on command!

The Department of the Interior is looking for a GS-12 in Winnemuca, Nevada to project manage Burning Man: www.usajobs.gov/job/820663900 Think it over!

As time passes, and I confront the realities of middle age, it is becoming increasingly difficult to believe that the options on every interactive call menu have recently changed.

@pattonoswalt.bsky.social My wife and I are hoping the 1% Club gets another season, we just finished the first. We don't usually watch game shows, but you do a great job connecting with real people, and it all really works!

It's taken about 7 years, but I finally got my first compliment on the Exapunks patch sewn onto my jacket sleeve.

🔐🔐🔐 Got FIDO? 🔐🔐🔐 The USDA does! Check out their FIDO success story: www.cisa.gov/resources-to... Our blog: www.cisa.gov/news-events/...

Genuinely excited that I can use my own custom domain name for my Bluesky profile - just switched away from the bky.social handle. It was like 5 minutes - an easy-to-find setting (in the web app at least), and a DNS TXT record to paste somewhere. If you have a domain, give it a shot.

All right, I'll give Bluesky a fresh shot.