Over the last couple months I’ve open-sourced two pieces of software. The first was Camel, the blogging engine that runs this site. The second was Accidental Bot, a robot that sits in ATP’s chat room and takes title suggestions. Both can be found on Github.

Overall, the experience open-sourcing these projects has been awesome. Especially in the case of Accidental Bot, which struggled to stay afloat for the first few episodes of its existence, pull requests were frequent and almost always helpful. In fact, were it not for the help of Jeremy Banks, Brad Choate, Kyle Cronin, Balázs Galambosi, and E.Z. Hart, Accidental Bot would still be dying in the first 10 mintues of recording. The pull requests these gentlemen submitted were instrumental in moving Accidental Bot from an adorable yet embarrassing disaster to something that’s actually functional.

However, there’s a lot of work left to be done. I’m not just exclusively talking about enhancements and bug fixes. I’m also talking about the pull requests that are still pending. At the time of this writing, there are seven pull requests awaiting my review. Some of these changes are fairly minor, and I should have already handled them. Some others, however, are quite a bit more involved, and take a lot of thought.

I didn’t expect to get the response I did to open-sourcing either Camel or Accidental Bot. The pull requests that have been issued have been awesome, and I feel like I’ve accepted and merged the majority of them. That said, I also didn’t expect there to be an implied time commitment keeping the queue empty and moving pull requests through.

Despite not finding (making?) the time to review these pull requests all that often, I feel a surprising amount of guilt for not dealing with them quickly. This could lead to a long meta-discussion about not only whether or not I should feel guilt, and also how this compares and contrasts with things like Twitter mentions or e-mails. For now, though, I’ll simply say that this surprised me, and I’m still trying to find the right balance.

All told, I’m very glad that I open sourced both projects, and would do so again in the future. Now, however, I’ll have my eyes open and hopefully be more prepared for the commitment it requires.

Summer is in full swing, and we’ve now made it through both WWDC and Google I/O. Google has debuted some of their new offerings, and fall is just around the corner for Apple to introduce theirs. These days, there seems to be only one word on everyone’s minds: “wearable”.

What does this really mean? What kind of device is a “wearable”? Naturally, it’s assumed to be something worn on your person. After that, everything becomes fuzzy. The most natural conclusion is to assume that this device will be worn on the wrist. But is that really the right answer?

This “iWatch” situation reminds me quite a lot of the lead up to the iPhone. Coincidentally, just a few days ago was the seventh anniversary of the original iPhone going on sale. Before the iPhone was announced in January of 2007, there were a million ideas about what it would look like. It was not uncommon to see something insane that had a click wheel on it.

Naturally, that’s not what we got.

The more I think about it, the more I remind myself that Apple has a simple playbook when it comes to expanding into new product categories. For devices like the iPhone and iPad, Apple takes a market we are all pretty sure they’re interested in, and they enter it in a way we don’t expect. A phone without buttons? Just a big iPhone? Whaaaat?

On rare occasions, such as the iPod, Apple enters a market we just don’t expect them to enter at all. So how does that apply to an “iWatch”?

The most obvious solution for a “smart watch” is something like the Pebble. It seems a general consensus that this device will have:

• A screen to display things
• Physical controls, or a touchscreen, to interact with the device

The most blatant purpose of these devices, such as the Pebble, are to surface notifications to your wrist. While useful, this is obvious and uninspired; two words that are not found in the Apple playbook.

So what will Apple do?

I’ll bet that some sort of “iWatch” will likely involve some sort of clever application of either new or existing sensors. This isn’t exactly an original thought; in fact, it has has been brought up quite recently. I’m not sure what those sensors are, though it seems clear that they’ll be reporting to and/or interacting with the M7 and its future descendants.

I’d also wager a guess that this future device will take one of the following forms:

• Completely passive, providing no feedback of any kind
• Some sort of haptic feedback
• At most, and I find this extremely unlikely, one or more LEDs.

The more I think about it, the more I feel like a watch in its current form is too obvious. While I do think the idea of a ring is a bit preposterous, the more I think about it, the more I wonder if Craig was onto something.

I joined John Chidgey on this week’s episode of Pragmatic, a show that discusses the practical application of technology. In this week’s episode, John and I talked about our past experiences with developing software for both the American and Australian militaries.

Naturally, we had to be a little vague on the specifics, but I thought it was an interesting discussion about a flavo(u)r of software development that most people don’t get to see.

UPDATED: I revisited my Go Pack in summer 2015; you can see that updated post here.

I’m an inherently nervous traveler. I don’t do well with air travel in particular, though as I’ve gotten older I’ve relaxed quite a bit. Nevertheless, some small affordances and planning made now can make for a much better trip tomorrow. For some it’s fussy coffee. For me, it’s my “go pack” of cables and adapters, ready to go at a moment’s notice.

Here it is, as of today:

I’ll go through each item. Prices and links will be as they are today; I’m making no guarantee the prices will be the same nor that the links will stay functional forever.

A — Tom Bihn Ballistic Nylon Organizer Pouch — $16
This is the pouch that all of the other items pictured live in, with the exception of the next item. I have an unhealthy obsession with laptop and iPad bags; Tom Bihn is quickly becoming one of my favorite brands. Sturdy, functional, well designed.

B — Dynex Travel Power Strip (No longer available)
This power strip I picked up around five years ago from Best Buy. It isn’t available anymore, though this Belkin is the closest equivalent. What I love about this Dynex is that it will charge both our iPhones, as well as have three other plugs for charging computers/iPads/etc. But perhaps most importantly, it works with 220V electrical systems (unlike the Belkin), which makes it wonderful to use overseas.

C — Monoprice 3’ USB to Micro USB & Lightning Cable — $15
This cable has two ends on it, a Micro USB for charging miscellaneous other accessories such as a battery pack, as well as a standard Lightning charger. Kills two birds with one stone.

D — Monoprice 3’ USB to Lightning Cable x 2 — $9 each
I also carry two standard USB to Lightning cables. One of those pictured is Monoprice and one is Apple, but if I were to buy two new ones, I’d just get the Monoprice ones. They’re sturdy, but the Lightning side is also thin enough to fit in most standard cases. I’ve had far worse luck with the Amazon equivalents.

E — SF Cable 6’ Cat6 Flat Ethernet Cable — $6
This is a very slim Ethernet cable, which I like to bring with me to hotel rooms. Hotel WiFi is notoriously bad, but some hotels still have Ethernet jacks in their rooms. This allows me to connect in an often much more reliable (and comparatively snoop-resistant) way while adding little bulk to the pack.

F — Apple 12W USB Power Adapter (iPad Charger) — $19
A standard iPad charger. I bring this with me in part because we occasionally have three devices charging simultaneously, but also because the Dynex strip doesn’t output enough wattage over the built-in USB ports.

G — Monoprice 6’ USB Male to Female Extension x 3 — $1.50 each
Having a couple of these around makes charging phones at night way nicer. Since the Dynex power strip is likely near one side of the bed, these two extensions hooked together provide for an extra 12’ of slack on the standard charge cable. This way both Erin and I can have our phones on our respective bedside tables.

UPDATED 2014-09-03 8:00 AM: I’ve found that since hotel power outlets are often nowhere near the bed, I like to have an extension for my phone as well. Thus, though it’s not pictured, I’m actually carrying three of the extensions.

H — Monoprice 6’ Ultra Slim HDMI Cable — $14
Most hotel rooms these days also have flat panel TVs, and these nearly always have a free HDMI port. Like the Ethernet cable above, this HDMI cable is super slim and light, which makes it no burden at all to carry.
Curiously, however, this HDMI cable is directional. Apparently the RedMere technology that allows it to be so slim requires the cable to be directional. When I first tried using the cable I thought it was DOA, until I looked closely at the connectors and saw they were labeled.

I — Verizon SIM card and SD Card
As I’ve talked about several times in the past, I typically keep a T-Mobile SIM in my RetinaPad Mini, but occasionally find myself in situations where I need reliable coverage. Should that happen, I can pop in the Verizon SIM it came with, and pay for service on it.
The SD card is really there because I like keeping the SIM in that case.

J — Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter — $50
Earlier I mentioned the HDMI cable, so what video/audio am I running through it? This (really expensive) adapter allows me to connect my iPhone or iPad to the TV in the room to play whatever I want. I’ve used it to play media on the device, Netflix, my Slingbox, etc.

K — Monoprice Mini DisplayPort to HDMI Adapter with Audio Support — $5
If I happen to have my Mac with me, I may want to use it as the media source for the TV. This is especially true if I can connect via Ethernet. Thus, I bring an adapter to get the Mac to output via HDMI as well.

As you can see, there isn’t very much to this bag, but knowing it’s always ready to go brings me tremendous peace of mind. I don’t need to worry about rounding up cables from our bedroom, or our cars, just so we can travel. The go pack is ready to go, waiting for us to go on a trip.

The total cost for all of the above is around $150.

That’s quite a lot, but I’ve been building the pack and spreading the cost over a couple years. Additionally, the expensive Digital AV adapter alone is roughly one third of that cost.

To me it’s worth it. Anything to make travel a little bit easier.

UPDATED 2015-09-13 2:30 PM: Included a link to the updated edition.

I sat in for Richard on this week’s episode of the Technically Correct Podcast.

Other than sounding completely uncultured next to a couple of lovely British chaps, it was fun. After a bit of background about myself, we discussed the Amazon Fire Phone, how messed up our respective governments are, and more.

My co-host Marco has written about the genesis of our podcast in two great posts in the last week. His first posits that podcast networks are not necessary for exposure and to gain listeners. His second doubles down on this, contrasting with one of the networks we respect most: 5by5.

I’m mostly calling attention to these posts because Marco discusses some of the history and motivations behind both ATP and our retired show Neutral.

In his posts, something Marco keeps talking about is that networks aren’t necessary. I tend to agree; we’ve made it work without a network since the first episode of Neutral. This, understandably, is met with a lot of skepticism from those who aren’t as well known as John and Marco were in 2013 when Neutral started. These people seem to immediately attribute ATP’s success to their prior fame.

We can all agree that the fame we they had made it easier for ATP to get recognized. But, as Marco said, it didn’t much help for Neutral. Our first episode received around 10,000 downloads. That’s probably directly attributable to Marco and John’s fame. However, as Marco noted, the last regular episode got around 1,000 downloads.

Having an established audience is having a head start in a race. It makes it easier at the beginning, but you have to work to keep going. On our shows, we have to re-earn our audience every episode. Our audience pays us with the ultimate currency: time. If we waste our audience’s time, they’ll stop paying us. It’s as simple as that.

This has worked well for ATP. It didn’t for Neutral.

A great example of why a podcast network isn’t necessary is _David Smith’s wonderful podcast Developing Perspective. Dave has never been a part of a network. He had some modicum of fame when it was launched, but certainly considerably less than he does today. However, he plugged himself into the community, consistently produced great content, and was patient. Over time, that great content found its way into the light. As Dave slowly grew his audience, he occasionally caught the attention of someone like Marco. In talking to Dave, he told me links to Developing Perspective, and mentions on other shows such as Marco’s Build & Analyze, would nearly double his audience. Now, thanks to Dave’s hard work, and occasional links from his friend/peer “networks”, Dave measures downloads in thousands instead of hundreds.

Why?

Because it’s a damned good show. One that you should listen to as well, if you like ATP.

Being a part of a network can, sometimes, be a boost to get you noticed more quickly. The same can be said for having an audience before you start a podcast. Neither are requisite.

This week I joined Moisés Chiullan and Christina Warren on Moisés’ podcast about customer service, Thank You for Calling. In our episode, we discussed our mutual stint working at three video gaming stores in the late 1990s. It was a lot of fun to relive a bunch of old memories that I haven’t thought about in well over a decade.

We spent so long talking that Moisés split our discussion into two parts. Part two will be released soon; I’ll update this post when it’s out.

UPDATED 28 June 2014 4:45 PM: The second part is out now and available for download.

Today is Erin’s last day of work for the foreseeable future. She teaches high school biology.

I’ve asked — even begged — her to quit for years now. She works easily three times harder than I do for one third the salary. I’ve been asking her to quit for at least two or three years. “Just stay at home and get fat; I don’t care. Just don’t go back. It’s not worth the stress.”

I uttered those words to her nearly daily. (Note to self: perhaps there are better ways to be supportive.)

As it turns out, Erin has finally taken my advice. She is getting “fat” now, and we’ve decided that she should take a year leave of absence in order to be home with 🌱 when he or she arrives. I will surely beg Erin not to go back after next year, but we’ll see what happens. Nevertheless, she and I both are facing the real possibility that today is her last day of work for, at the least, several years.

(I’ve been telling her she’s “retiring” at 30. That joke is funny until 🌱 arrives and I realize she’s trading one impossibly hard job for another.)

Today, naturally, has brought an avalanche of emotion for Erin. While I do believe she’s ready to be done for a while, both of us can’t help but be nostalgic. Erin has been teaching for eight years, and has made an empirical difference on countless lives in that time. She has worked with a passion and drive that I could only dream to have.

While my heart tells me that Erin is unique in her dedication and drive to teaching, my brain knows otherwise. There are a tremendous amount of teachers that dedicate their lives to improving the lives of others. In America, this is one of the most thankless professions one can choose.

The problems vary from school to school. Erin was lucky enough that her largest problem was usually “helicopter parents”. You know these parents; we’ve all seen them. Erin would often recount conversations with parents to me:

“Oh, how did that meeting with the parent go today?”
“The usual. Their child has a B+ and they want to know what I’m going to do to improve it.”

Or perhaps…

“Did you talk to that parent today?”
“Yes. Their child has a C- and the parents don’t understand why. I explained that their child never pays attention in class and never does their homework.”
“I assume their special snowflake still deserves an A?”
“Oh yes. The parents recommended alternate ways in which I can teach so it will be better for their child.”
“What about the other 29 kids in your class?”
“Apparently they don’t matter.”

To be fair, this is in many ways considerably better than the alternative. Until America’s recent obsession with school shootings, she never felt unsafe in her class. Her parents are present, and care; however, they feel like they (and their children) are entitled to special treatment.

There’s a phrase that people often like to quote: “Those who can’t do, teach.”.

That offends me.

Or another: “Oh, teaching must be so easy — you get three months off each year!”

Grrrrrrrrrrrrr.

It wasn’t until I married a teacher that I realized the amount of work that teachers put into their jobs. Erin works easily 60-80 hours a week. School does not end when the final bell rings. That’s when all the grading happens. And the tutoring. And the parent phone calls. And the ridiculous government-mandated administrivia. The preparation for the standardized testing that does no one any good whatsoever.

Erin, and all the other public school teachers in America, goes through hell and back every single day in order to enrich the lives of America’s future. She puts up with more bullshit than any one human should have to. Erin does so for a pittance of a salary, no thanks from parents, and often times without the support of her administration.

Why does she do this? Why waste her time?

Because she knows what all of us like to forget: that teaching is arguably the most important job in the entire world. That teaching is an investment in our future. Not just our children, but ourselves. It’s a promise we make today to our future selves. It’s a way to ensure that our future is bright.

If you are reading these words, then you owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to at least one teacher in your life. If you are making a successful living, you surely owe more than just one.

I made a snarky tweet a long time ago:

The only groups I can think of whom constantly over deliver yet are constantly called "disappointing" are Apple employees and teachers.

— Casey Liss (@caseyliss) March 8, 2012

While I was being snarky, I stand by the teacher part of it. In America, teachers constantly over-deliver and yet are degraded, called “disappointing”, and micromanaged.

This is extremely unfair. Unfortunately, it’s the way things are here in the United States.

However, some of us know. Some of us understand.

So, to Erin, and all the other teachers out there:

One of the most popular questions that I get asked is “How do I learn to program? Where do I start?”. This actually takes one of many forms:

• What resource should I use to learn how to program?
• How did you learn X?
• Which language should I learn first?
• Is it worth learning Y?

The best answer I have is not an answer to any of those questions at all:

Find a problem to solve, then solve it using the most appropriate tool(s).

That’s it.

How did I learn Node? I figured out a problem I wanted to solve (how can I easily and efficiently write an engine to power a website?), and then solved it.

How did I learn Objective-C? I figured out a problem I wanted to solve (how can I make an app to enable me to quickly send text messages?), and then solved it.

That’s the first step. If you don’t have a concrete problem to solve, you’ll never have the patience nor tenacity to learn enough to solve it.

With apologies to Faith.

“Pencil Line”:

When Casey Liss casually mentioned on two podcasts, ATP and IRL Talk, that he thought vinyl records sounded better than digital audio. The approbation of the digital community rained down.
[…]
The argument quickly became a binary, scientific, evidential one - with Casey ultimately having to almost publicly apologise for daring to believe that he preferred analog to digital when listening to music.
[…]
The e-book copy [of a book] will be more faithful to the authors original text (my old copy has got a couple of pages missing and a red wine stain that makes a paragraph illegible) but the romance, the tactile feel, the old book smell, the memory of reading this book in cafe in Berlin before the wall came down, makes the overall sensory pleasure of reading the book infinitely superior to reading the text on my iPad. If Casey Liss, or anyone, feels the same way about music then so be it.

This past week, my cohosts and I joined Scott Simpson on John Gruber’s excellent podcast, The Talk Show. We were on stage in front of a live audience, but the show was recorded.

I’m extremely proud of all of us, and proud of the show. You should have a listen.

It was particularly odd — and wonderful — for me, as I remember vividly being in the audience for the first live The Talk Show, as a nobody. At last year’s, I was there in the audience again; then, as “that other guy”. This year, I was on stage.

It’s been a wild ride.

UPDATED 29 July 2014 9:00 AM: The video of this event has been released.