I bought a USB fingerprint reader for my Linux laptop from Temu because it was the only one I could find that I knew would work. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17319282/linux-external-fingerprint-reader-challenges

Like logging into stuff using your fingerprints? In Linux, it’s harder than it should be. tedium.co/2026/04/14/l...

So, here’s a fun thing I just discovered. The IRS website has 1040 forms going all the way back to 1916.

A meditation on the game of Solitaire and its endless variations, which go well beyond what you can find in Windows 3.1. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17316812/solitaire-card-game-types-history

Solitaire is a game that has no demands of us other than to play. And maybe play some more. And a little more after that. Tedium’s very own David Buck: tedium.co/2026/04/09/s...

This post has everything I like: - Puppets - Open-source software - Passion projects - Creativity Hopefully you’ll dig it, too. tedium.co/2026/04/07/p...

What inspired the semi-viral fake GIMP trailer that recently fluttered around FOSS circles? The creator and puppeteer behind Pork Johnson explains. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17315642/pork-johnson-gimp-parody-interview

More puppetry in Tedium, please tedium.co/2026/04/07/p...

What makes one decide to make a parody movie trailer for, of all things, the GNU Image Manipulation Program? I asked the puppeteer behind Pork Johnson, the star of the semi-viral GIMP clip. tedium.co/2026/04/07/p... new @tedium.co

Looking for a good weekend read? I was pretty proud of this one: tedium.co/2026/03/31/r...

Some thoughts on @cloudflare.social’s attempt to build a successor to WordPress: Hey, if this keeps some old sites from going offline, all for it. tedium.co/2026/04/02/e... new @tedium.co

Cloudflare’s new attempt to win over the hearts of developers could help keep a few ancient WordPress sites from falling off the internet. That‘s a good thing. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17312777/emdash-cloudflare-wordpress-competitor

As Apple hits its 50th anniversary this week, we got a chance to talk to its forgotten third founder: Ronald G. Wayne. Apple is honestly a footnote in his long life. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17311236/ronald-g-wayne-apple-interview

We talked to an Apple founder about all the non-Apple stuff he did. tedium.co/2026/03/31/r...

What if you lived an incredibly long life, full of interesting, creative work, and all anyone ever wanted to talk about was two weeks of it? Ronald G. Wayne, the third cofounder of Apple, gets a lot of attention for that, but he’s done so much more. tedium.co/2026/03/31/r... new @tedium.co

We’re going back to Tuesdays/Thursdays starting this week. The doing-it-when-we-felt-like-it thing wasn’t working, ultimately.

In an age when cheap RAM is not a guaranteed thing, should we still be buying mini-PCs to run self-hosted stacks? I dove into a ton of tools and tested on a mini PC whose ram is fortunately soldered (no take-backs). My thoughts here: tedium.co/2026/03/28/s... new @tedium.co

Once upon a time, self-hosting used to be a cost-effective thing. Is it still a good option for fending off SaaS as the prices keep creeping up? https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17308221/self-hosting-platform-tools-guide

Should you be self-hosting? Is it still relatively cheap in the era of scarce RAM? Is it painless? A few thoughts: tedium.co/2026/03/28/s...

By ditching the Mac Pro so close to its 50th anniversary, Apple is making a statement of intent for its next 50 years. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17307620/apple-mac-pro-discontinued-anniversary

Apple is nothing if not a company that sends messages with its product decisions. tedium.co/2026/03/27/a...

When every discussion feels flat, how do you fluff it up? The answer, to me, is to eat fewer pancakes. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17304313/social-media-flat-discussion

We miss blogs. tedium.co/2026/03/23/s...

One of the business models that has always fascinated me, first-run television syndication, suffered a body blow this week—NBCUniversal is quitting it entirely. Is that an NBCUniversal problem, or is the model itself on the way out? tedium.co/2026/03/13/t... new @tedium.co

One of television’s most important business models—syndicating first-run content to TV stations looking to fill airtime—might be losing strea … er, steam. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17299183/television-first-run-syndication-decline

In case you missed it, I built a simple paywall stack that I think any creator could use. if you’d like to try it, sign up for the $3 tier at ko-fi.com/tedium

How I made a very light paywall using the most minimal of parts. tedium.co/2026/03/08/m... new @tedium.co

Pay attention Substackers.

What’s the least you can do to build an effective paywall for creators that’s mostly open-source? If we can figure that out, that might make it easier to cut out the big platforms. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17295750/minimal-paywall-setup-idea

I once turned down Substack because of their design limitations. As they emerge yet again in the news cycle, I thought I’d make my point with some of that design stuff they don’t do. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17288375/betting-against-substack

The problem with making coding easier for more people is that it makes spam more conventionally attractive. Which is bad. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17283566/vibe-coded-email-spam

More spam looks attractive on a surface level—which we can credit vibe coding for. Good luck with not getting hacked! tedium.co/2026/02/25/v...

Old news: 2026 is the year of Linux desktop New hotness: 2026 is the year of the Markdown website tedium.co/2026/02/17/m...

For some reason, a bunch of big companies are really leaning into Markdown right now. AI may be the reason, but I kind of love the possible side benefits. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17278321/markdown-growing-influence-cloudflare-ai

Why do corporate restructuring plans get code names the way operating systems do? And why are the names often so bizarre? https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17277502/corporate-turnaround-code-names-history

Why companies sometimes give their restructuring efforts clever code names. tedium.co/2026/02/16/c...

I’ve had a weird thought lately: For the past 40 years we’ve been completely wedded to the GUI to do graphic design work. What if, at least in some cases, we’re better off in a terminal, or a text editor? Let’s follow that thought monster through: tedium.co/2026/02/14/t... new @tedium.co

Design is perhaps the software paradigm most wedded to the mouse and the GUI. But there’s no reason it can’t be text-driven. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17276365/text-based-design-mindset

Mass layoffs are a fact of life in journalism. Your favorite writers and editors have dealt with them. But they weren’t supposed to happen at The Post. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17272194/washington-post-layoffs-perspective

A mass newspaper layoff, and the chaos it brings. tedium.co/2026/02/07/w...

You know what makes me happy? Publishing a piece by @andrewegan.bsky.social—who I haven’t had on the site in three freaking years! He’s got a great story about the plaques that show up around NYC—and the townhouse that doesn’t have one, but probably should. tedium.co/2026/02/06/n... New @tedium.co

Sometimes consequential places might be hiding right under your nose—no plaques in sight. tedium.co/2026/02/06/n...

A mostly unknown townhouse in Manhattan was the site of a small but significant moment in the history of 20th-century American literature. It also gives insight into how modern society defines its history. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17271801/new-york-plaques-historic-moments

Been doing some server optimizations this AM so in case udm14 or Tedium have been a bit slow, that’s why. I think I got it fixed but give a shout in case you’re still having an issue.

It took a while, but scrolling window managers are finally having a moment. Today's @tedium.co talks about how the form has evolved from PaperWM to Niri, and how setups like DankMaterialShell might make it more approachable for folks sick of GNOME or KDE. tedium.co/2026/01/29/n...

My favorite UX metaphor, the scrolling window manager, is having a moment—and it’s for pretty dank reasons. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17266116/niri-danklinux-scrolling-window-managers

Hey all, back at the @tedium.co commissioned search game—it’s been too long! Our current one comes from Amandeep Jutla, who has a question about two-liter plastic bottles. [thread]

OnePlus isn’t dead, but they’re not exactly functioning from a position of strength. tedium.co/2026/01/22/o...

Recent news about the OnePlus brand has freaked out some of its longtime users. Certainly it didn’t help that when I went to a T-Mobile store recently, the salesperson didn’t know what OnePlus was, despite the fact her store used to sell them. tedium.co/2026/01/22/o... new @tedium.co

Rumors of OnePlus’ possible death are heating up, which would be a real shame, given how much the smartphone market has already contracted. It’s not true, but their grip is slipping. https://feed.tedium.co/link/15204/17261173/oneplus-decline-shutdown-rumors-commentary