Re: New Ways To Be Old

1

It's possible I'm too old to look at something called "Yummly".


Posted by: Beefo Meaty | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:09 AM
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I admit to being a little confused by Paper. It's basically Flipboard, except without my Twitter and RSS feeds. It's pretty, sure, and if Facebook deprecates its original app in favor of it, I'll use it, but I can't really see myself using it as my "reading/exploring" app in general. Time will tell.

The UI does have some kinks to work out -- the cool "swipe up to open! swipe down to close!" sometimes means you can't do little things like scroll, but whatever.


Posted by: emdash | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:18 AM
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Let me be the first to say that I've never heard of Yummly, reeder, or Flipboard.


Posted by: heebie-geebie | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:19 AM
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Right, there's also the "aggregator" vs. "curator" issue, but that seems specific to the app, and not part of a trend (that I know of).


Posted by: ogged | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:19 AM
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I have to admit that I much prefer using reeder as an RSS aggregator over, say, feedly. Basically for the same reasons Ogged gives in the OP.


Posted by: nattarGcM ttaM | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:20 AM
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a picture-dominated, "magazine-style" layout

I don't mind some of those. What I really don't like is that everything is turning into videos. If I wanted things to move, I'd watch TV.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:20 AM
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7

Feedly doesn't bother me; as Blume says vsoobc the part with the image previews is not integral and can be skipped basically instantly.


Posted by: Beefo Meaty | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:24 AM
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8

Prediction: no one here has done (or will do) the Facebook movie that is flooding my feed.


Posted by: heebie-geebie | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:24 AM
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9

I saw part of the Facebook movie. It was mostly the guy who was the voice of the male bird in Riotyping. I got bored and didn't finish it.


Posted by: Moby Hick | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:28 AM
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8: Already disproven. I saw one from a commenter a couple of days ago. I don't know what it is, but it was definitely labeled Facebook movie.


Posted by: LizardBreath | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:31 AM
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I did it! But I did not post it. I watched it and was like, "Holy shit, you are a vain motherfucker."


Posted by: oudemia | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:33 AM
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8 -- Oops, sorry. Mine was kind of sweet, though, with pix of wife and kids.


Posted by: CharleyCarp | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:33 AM
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Yeah I looked at mine.


Posted by: Beefo Meaty | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:37 AM
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14

So, anyway, it seems (via Alex the Ranter) that the reason Rupert Murdoch got divorced is that his wife Wendi Deng was probably having an affair with Tony Blair.

The response in my office:
A FEMALE COLLEAGUE: (sincerely) Poor Cherie!
A MALE COLLEAGUE: (not very sincerely) Poor Rupert!
ME: Poor Wendi!


Posted by: ajay | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:49 AM
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re: 7

With feedly, I don't mind it on desktop machines. But on my phone, I don't find the UI congenial. So I switch to reeder.


Posted by: nattarGcM ttaM | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:49 AM
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re: 14

Yeah, that story has been circulating for a while, but it seems like Vanity Fair have decided to go big on it.


Posted by: nattarGcM ttaM | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:49 AM
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I watched my movie, but it was boring and I did not post it.

I really fookin hate the interface, and the trend it's a part of

Yeah, me too.


Posted by: apostropher | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 7:52 AM
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What I really don't like is that everything is turning into videos.

Fuck yes. I have a friend who always sends me links to talks and lectures and the like. Often they look interesting but there's just no way I'm going to watch a video or listen to a podcast. Text or nothing.


Posted by: nattarGcM ttaM | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 8:04 AM
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||
So, George Zimmerman is going to box DMX.

After reading that, I went to Tanya Harding's Wikipedia page to see how long she boxed (6 bouts from 2003-04, 3-3 record) and found out this: "On August 12, 2009, Harding set a new land speed record for a vintage gas coupe with a speed of 97.177 mph driving a 1931 Ford Model A, named Lickity - Split, on the Bonneville Salt Flats."

The things you learn in a day...
|>


Posted by: apostropher | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 8:27 AM
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I was going to say my movie is stupid but it wasn't too bad- did they do another movie like thing a few months ago and improve the algorithm? Because I watched the first one and it was stupid, mostly pictures of random funny things I posted like a box of blackberries rather than anything I cared about.


Posted by: SP | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 8:49 AM
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What I really don't like is that everything is turning into videos.

THIS.


Posted by: heebie-geebie | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 9:08 AM
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re: 19

Wow, that's pretty crazy. Going purely by superficial physical appearance, I'm guessing that Zimmerman isn't going to do very well.


Posted by: nattarGcM ttaM | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 9:17 AM
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I generally agree that videos are regrettable, with a few exceptions-- lots of biology is communicated in talks that are much clearer and more effective for context and nuance than publication. Also repair and DIY benefit hugely from video publishing.

Software instructional videos, though-- what's next, interpretive dance?


Posted by: lw | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 9:19 AM
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Often they look interesting but there's just no way I'm going to watch a video or listen to a podcast. Text or nothing.

Yup. If I can't skim it or skip around, it needs to clear a much higher initial-interest bar.


Posted by: Blume | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 10:00 AM
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A couple of undigested thoughts about the kind of interface we're talking about:

1. Have people come around to the order of their Facebook feed being controlled by mysterious FB algorithms? I still always switch it to "most recent". Everyone was up in arms when it first switched, but maybe people have gotten used to it? Is/was there an age divide in who wants to look at it list-wise, in chronological order?

2. I just finally got around to looking at the site for Paper. I was struck by the boast that "Stories appear fullscreen and distraction free." Um, you mean "context free"? Because that's how a lot of these UIs feel to me. I guess I am old; I want more hierarchy and structure.


Posted by: Blume | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 10:03 AM
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I still hate the news feed and use most recent, on browsers it persists for a week or so but on the phone it keeps switching back and it super annoying. News feed pulls up bullshit that's like 4 days old and puts it at the top, and skips things I do care about. Maybe it doesn't work because I never use the like button. Or maybe I just need more friends.


Posted by: SP | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 11:10 AM
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25.2 is right: I think this means either that we're old, or that we're just more text-based than many. The New Republic went to a picture-based front page format several months ago when what's-his-name took over; it means they now show only 15 or so articles on the main page, and I don't bother to look at it any more. It takes too much work to view what's actually on the site. Is that part of the point, to force more page clicks?


Posted by: parsimon | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 11:38 AM
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I'm text based because I want to be able to read things in meetings when I'm bored so video is right out. Maybe young people don't have in person meetings?


Posted by: SP | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 11:40 AM
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I think it's a revenue device first, a way to make it more difficult to identify and skip ads.

One place the lack of context really bothers me is tumblr. There are a few blogs of visual art that I like where I'd like to know sources, but tumblr makes it hard to find those. There also, there's a profit motive, since identifying copyright infringers is easier if files have clear provenance attached. Still, I'd be curious to know to what extent that was a business decision.


Posted by: lw | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 11:48 AM
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Text or nothing.

Also a good mouseover!

I was struck by the boast that "Stories appear fullscreen and distraction free." Um, you mean "context free"?

I haven't installed it yet, but I thought "distraction free" was code for "we're not putting ads in, yet".


Posted by: x.trapnel | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 12:12 PM
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order of their Facebook feed being controlled by mysterious FB algorithms

I'm not thrilled with the current implementation but I'm on board with the idea. Here's why: There's too much stuff to keep up with, in general, and in my Facebook feed as a particular example. Even if I'm keeping up well enough this week, maybe I will have less free time or do less procrastinating on Facebook next week.

The question then becomes what subset of it I'm going to see: (a) the most recent things at the moments I happen to check in (as on a normal chronological blog or older-style social media feed) (b) the oldest things, with a larger and larger backlog growing in front of me until I give up and throw all the unread stuff away (many email clients) (c) some subset that the system believes I will find important or interesting. There's lots of data that can drive option (c) - other people reading/commenting/"liking"/resharing posts, particular other people doing so, posts by people I've interacted with more, etc., etc., and I think it's likely to show me things I care about more than the random sampling of (a) will.

The biggest thing I don't like about the current implementation is that it's hard to tell what's been de-prioritized or hidden, in the instances when I *do* have time to catch up all the way. But as time goes on, I think that's going to be less and less often the case.


Posted by: Nathan Williams | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 12:25 PM
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14: I was sort of sad (only a little!) about his divorce from his second wife. The first one seemed like a youthful, automatic step, but the second to Anna Maria Torv seemed like true love.


Posted by: Bostoniangirl | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 12:39 PM
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There's too much stuff to keep up with, in general, and in my Facebook feed as a particular example. Even if I'm keeping up well enough this week, maybe I will have less free time or do less procrastinating on Facebook next week.

This reads like Greek to me. Presumably you have more interesting Facebook friends than I do, or at least: those FB friends I'm interested in I encounter elsewhere, so I don't need to see their FB posts.

Perhaps those who keep it old-style should actually brand themselves as old style, as a counter measure or pushback to the new and pretty. But I doubt that those in the old-style loop really need to be told.


Posted by: parsimon | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 12:42 PM
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I like to watch videos sometimes, but I am always annoyed whenever a Yahoo news piece requires me to watch a video.

I had never heard of a bunch of these apps. The only one I knew about was the original Paper.

Speaking of apps, I would like to find a very simple app to balance my checkbook. I want to be able to enter ATM transactions, checks and online bill pay stuff which is scheduled to go out later so that I know how much money I have. (I still write paper checks once a month.)


Posted by: Bostoniangirl | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 12:43 PM
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35

Does anyone have a checkbook app recommendation?


Posted by: Bostoniangirl | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 12:44 PM
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36

I have used one for years called Pocket Money, and it's been very good for me, but it's hard to recommend it now since its main developer died of a heart attack last year, so the app probably going to slowly become useless.


Posted by: Nathan Williams | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 12:49 PM
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37

Interestingly, in the last few hours Chrome has decided that Facebook is in Han Chinese and is offering to translate it. Perhaps I should accept the offer.


Posted by: SP | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:01 PM
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38

Ah, if I scroll down I do have a friend who posted something from a Taiwan newspaper.
To BG, I've used Mint on and off which is nice because it syncs with your accounts (if you trust them to keep your logins safe) but I don't know if it has a feature that lets you put in upcoming bills/charges that aren't already recorded and whether it will recalculate your balance accordingly.


Posted by: SP | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:04 PM
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A lot of these new site designs are partially attempts to solve the problem of not being able to anticipate every screen dimension. Having a mobile site distinct from a desktop site isn't really adequate for a lot of people now. A design that reorders "cards" as you narrow the browser window is one way to deal with that.


Posted by: fake accent | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:04 PM
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"A design that reorders "cards" as you narrow the browser window is one way to deal with that."
Oh, so Facebook is trying to adopt the interface of their wildly more successful competitor, Google+? Brilliant move.


Posted by: SP | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:09 PM
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Speaking of apps, I would like to find a very simple app to balance my checkbook. I want to be able to enter ATM transactions, checks and online bill pay stuff which is scheduled to go out later so that I know how much money I have. (I still write paper checks once a month.)

I must be completely behind the times or something: I just see all that by logging in to my bank account. It shows ATM transactions, pending checks, and online billpay stuff which is pending. Is the issue that you need this in an app, i.e. something you see via cellphone? I thought my bank was mobile friendly.

Maybe it's that your bank isn't all up (or down) with these things? I'm puzzled by the reference to having to "enter" things. The only thing I can see having a time lag would be paper checks that have gone out.


Posted by: parsimon | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:12 PM
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42

I have no idea what Paper looks like. Or Google+ looks like. But flat design and responsive design are all over the place right now.


Posted by: fake accent | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:13 PM
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43

I think she means she writes a check and can enter it into the app and have it reflect the balance minus the outstanding check, even if the person hasn't deposited the check yet and it still only exists as a piece of paper with BGs signature on it. Scheduled bill payments I think most banks do currently handle if they're pushed from the bank, but not if they're pulled by the recipient (e.g. credit cards, utilities)


Posted by: SP | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:14 PM
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41 and 43: ING/Capital One pulls the money straight away; Bank of America does not.

I frequently schedule a credit card payment to go out 4 or 5 days before it's due. That's not reflected in my checking account.

Plus, I want to make sure that there are no discrepancies.


Posted by: Bostoniangirl | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:18 PM
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39 is correct. Responsiveness is a lot easier if what you are doing is shifting around how a lot of fixed-proportion boxes are stacked into columns, rather than doing a lot of redrawing of the proportions and fit of page elements.


Posted by: Criminally Bulgur | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:19 PM
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38: I kind of don't want to sync it. I'd like pretty graphics like Wunderlist's, but I want to keep it simple. Like a paper register, only for the iPhone.


Posted by: Bostoniangirl | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:20 PM
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I like the You Need a Budget program.


Posted by: Blume | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 1:25 PM
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With feedly, I don't mind it on desktop machines. But on my phone, I don't find the UI congenial. So I switch to reeder.

I have to say it never even occurred to me to use Feedly's own app on my phone. I just switched the syncing on my regular readers (mainly gReader Pro) to Feedly when Google Reader was switched off. It's a good back-end, but why mess about with their front-end when you can choose the best one for you?


Posted by: Ginger Yellow | Link to this comment | 02- 5-14 10:17 PM
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I use newsblur and have no complaints.


Posted by: Nworb Werdna | Link to this comment | 02- 6-14 1:42 AM
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BG, I use clearcheckbook. Tbh, I prefer the mobile site to the app, but he's pretty active about updating all aspects.


Posted by: asilon | Link to this comment | 02- 6-14 2:35 AM
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