Photography and more

The other day, I received an email from Amazon that the Kindle I bought used from RE-PC a few years ago would no longer be able to download books from Amazon starting May 20, 2026. They graciously offered me a discount code to buy a new one, however. I understand that tech gets old and at some point it no longer makes sense to support older devices. Newer models of phones have different hardware, and app programmers can only test their code on so many different devices before it becomes a huge headache for diminishing returns. So at some point, you just stop testing on older versions. This is currently happening to my iPhone X from 2017. It’s annoying because my phone is otherwise still fast and capable, but I get it. Apps are complicated, and my phone is missing 8 years of new hardware and is running a version of iOS from 2022. ...

I’m giving it a try. In the previous post I was working through some thoughts on serial fiction, and I guess I talked myself into it. I’m calling it “til you make it.” Expect short scenes, character sketches and other random character and world-building work. It’s less like a finished piece of fiction and more like a chance to watch my form of fiction development happen in real time. I will try to make each episode at least somewhat entertaining, though. ...

I’m thinking about writing some form of serial fiction. It’s been a long time since I’ve written fiction, and partly that’s because my available time to write typically comes in short segments here and there rather than the long focus sessions that I would want. So maybe I need to shake that up, and maybe writing even shorter pieces than a typical short story could be at least a way to get something going. ...

If you want to teach a child about how photography works, I cannot think of a better method than light writing. I’ve done this now with my first-grader as well as my niece and nephew, and they all loved it. Light writing is easier than it looks. All you need is a camera capable of manual settings — most importantly shutter speed — and a tripod or other method for propping it up perfectly still. Then set the shutter speed to something like 5 seconds or longer depending on what you’re trying to write or draw. Then face the camera and once the shutter opens, use some kind of flashlight (doesn’t need to be super bright) to “write” in the air. If you want yourself to be clearly visible, briefly shine the light on your own face. Otherwise, your body will be like a ghost, which is also cool. ...