For ten years, Phil Gyford has been republishing Samuel Pepys's diaries online in one-entry-per-day chunks. On the way, he and a growing community of readers, historians, literary scholars and enthusiasts have annotated Pepys's legendary accounts of life in 17th century London. In this presentation, Phil walks us through the most surprising and interesting moments in his decade of Pepysianism, from random Twitterers who've taken on the personae of other characters in Pepys's saga to Google mashups of Pepys's London. I saw him present this earlier this year at The Story in London and it was marvellous.
Lessons from 10 years of Pepys's diaries online
California's net neutrality law survives courtroom challenge
As Ars Technica puts it, "ISPs can't find any judges who will block California's Net Neutrality law", and it's not like they haven't been shopping hard. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, who voted for federal net neutrality rules in 2015 and opposed their repeal in 2017, applauded yesterday's court decision."This is big. Because when the FCC… READ THE REST
The mystery of ⍼, a Unicode character of unknown purpose
⍼, "RIGHT ANGLE WITH DOWNWARDS ZIGZAG ARROW", is a Unicode character of uncertain origin. It may be summoned as the HTML entity ⍼. Jonathan Chan set out to uncover its mysterious purpose, a journey that led way back to Unicode's own antecedents. The meaning of ⍼ will be whatever meaning is assigned by whoever uses… READ THE REST
Etsy sellers on strike
Etsy sellers are going on strike to protest a 30% fee increase, algorithmic moderation and the growing presence of resellers pitching manufacturered and sweatshop-sourced junk (the platform was originally for crafted and vintage items, but is slowly turning into pastelibaba). We are striking to protest Etsy's treatment of sellers. We will put our shops on… READ THE REST
This affordable and stylish tabletop fire pit leaves zero mess
Whether it's winter or summer, there is something so inviting about a fire. It's a great way to create intimate lighting, adds to the coziness of an atmosphere, and enhances the aesthetics of any situation. We haven't even gotten to the s'mores benefits of fires yet! But the reality is that fires can be frustrating… READ THE REST
Get your wine on this summer with 15 bottles from Splash Wines for $50
There's nothing quite like sipping on a chilled glass of wine on a hot summer day to take the edge off and wind down. This summer, instead of spending $10 to $20 per bottle, you can get an assortment of 15 good-tasting wines from Splash Wines for only $50. An amazing way to prepare and stock up… READ THE REST
Turn any room into a far-off galaxy with this epic projector
Even if you've spent hours scrolling through Pinterest and Instagram looking for interior decor ideas to no avail, perhaps something a little "otherworldly" would give your space that something special. Whether it's your kid's room or your living room, a quick transformation doesn't have to be as complicated as you think. Before you start painting… READ THE REST
