Monthly update #0324 • April 2017
Monthly update 324 • April 2017 • 2017-04-01 - 2017-04-30
Monthly Updates
2017
83 posts
Privacy Roundup #0129 • April 2017
April 2017 was dominated by the repeal of America's broadband privacy rules, fresh leaks of government hacking tools and a steady drip of breaches and surveillance disclosures.
Privacy
Eurobloat #0083 • March 2017
The month Brussels turned sixty, drew up five maps to a place nobody asked to go, and watched Britain post the letter that asks for directions out.
Eurobloat
Swift Source Compatibility Test Suite Now Available
Apple announced a new Swift source compatibility test suite to help keep source compatibility in future releases.
Development
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), directed by James Gunn, follows the team as Peter Quill meets his father, a celestial being called Ego. Chris Pratt plays Quill, who must choose between the family he was born into and the one he found.
Movies
The Lives of Others
The Lives of Others (2006), directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, shows East Germany in 1984. Ulrich Mühe plays Gerd Wiesler, a Stasi captain who spies on a playwright. He sits in an attic with headphones.
Movies
Happy Easter
Over the years my grasp of Easter has matured. Jesus conquered death for all who believe.
Christianity
Good Friday
Over the years my grasp of Good Friday has matured. Jesus gave his life on the cross for all who believe.
Christianity
Privacy Roundup #0128 • March 2017
March 2017 was dominated by the WikiLeaks Vault 7 disclosures and a Congressional vote to scrap broadband privacy rules, alongside a run of leaky databases and connected devices that spilled personal data.
Privacy
Monthly update #0323 • March 2017
Monthly update 323 • March 2017 • 2017-03-01 - 2017-03-31
Monthly Updates
Ghost in the Shell
Ghost in the Shell (2017), directed by Rupert Sanders, is based on the Japanese manga by Masamune Shirow. Scarlett Johansson plays Major Mira Killian, a woman whose brain is placed inside a fully synthetic body, making her the first of her kind and a weapon against cyber crime.
Movies
Eurobloat #0082 • February 2017
The month Brussels invented legal personhood for robots, drew up plans for an EU finance minister and a eurozone treasury, and paid Libyan militias to keep the boats away. A vintage February.
Eurobloat
Swift 3.1 Released!
Apple released Swift 3.1 as a minor update that keeps source compatibility with Swift 3.0.
Development
Useful macOS defaults: Mouse
Handy defaults write commands for the mouse, controlling tracking speed, scrolling, and button behaviour.
Mac
What is secinitd?
If you see secinitd running on your Mac, here is what this security process does when apps launch.
Mac
What is PowerUIAgent?
If you see PowerUIAgent running on your Mac, here is what this power notification process does.
Mac
What is nehelper?
If you see nehelper running on your Mac, here is what this network extension process does.
Mac
Monthly update #0322 • February 2017
Monthly update 322 • February 2017 • 2017-02-01 - 2017-02-28
Monthly Updates
Privacy Roundup #0127 • February 2017
February 2017 paired sloppy corporate data leaks with a hardening of government surveillance at the border and in the courts.
Privacy
Eurobloat #0081 • January 2017
Brussels rang in the new year by drafting rules to read your WhatsApp, inventing a plastic card so plumbers may cross borders, and ordering members to ask permission before passing their own laws.
Eurobloat
What is touchbarserver?
If you see touchbarserver running on your Mac, here is what this Touch Bar process does.
Mac
Swift 4 Release Process
Swift 4 is a major release set for fall 2017. It focuses on source stability for Swift 3 code and essential features for binary stability, with big updates to generics and the String type.
Development
What is mediaremoted?
If you see mediaremoted running on your Mac, here is what this media control process does.
Mac
Allied
Allied (2016), directed by Robert Zemeckis, is a wartime thriller set during the Second World War. Brad Pitt plays Max Vatan, a Canadian intelligence officer who falls in love with a French resistance fighter during a mission in North Africa.
Movies
John Wick: Chapter 2
John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017), directed by Chad Stahelski, follows John as a blood oath from his past forces him back into the world he tried to leave. Keanu Reeves plays John Wick, who must travel to Rome to fulfil a debt he cannot refuse.
Movies