Recently, I discovered two digital spaces for exploring the web: bubbles.town and Standard Reader. They are two entirely different but complementary approaches. Standard Reader is very focused on discovering publications. Bubbles.town relies on reader participation by letting users vote for an article, similar to Digg. I have set a goal to visit these two spaces every day over the next few weeks.

Since Claude Code exists, I have noticed a surprising phenomenon: more and more new applications are appearing on the App Store or coming to life as web applications accessible only to their creator-promoter. The process is called vibe coding. When I see people creating new applications with the help of artificial intelligence, I can’t help but think back to the era of the introduction of PageMaker, the LaserWriter laser printer, and the Macintosh. These three elements enabled the democratization of what became known as ‘Desktop Publishing.’ Many people who knew nothing about printing, layout, and design started creating posters, newsletters, etc. The results were not always of very high quality. Fast forward to today: artificial intelligence and tools like Claude Code are bringing us back into a similar context of high-velocity creation. It’s fascinating. The more things change…

This morning, I visited Reddit to answer a question about Craft. When I noticed five notifications, I clicked the bell icon. Two of them were about engagement stimulation, which I felt was manipulative and deceptive. I dislike being tricked this way. LinkedIn is also good at this. And Meta, the master of them all. Major platforms will likely face legal challenges in the future because their product design promotes toxic engagement tactics that manipulate users for growth. Om Malik won’t be around to see this unfold, sadly.