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The No-One-Should-be-Fooled Edition Wednesday, January 2, 2019

Big Tech May Look Troubled, But It’s Just Getting Started, by David Streitfeld, New York Times

Big Tech needs to be regulated, many are beginning to argue, and yet there are worries about giving that power to the government.

“The government doesn’t have a good clue,” said Mr. Bajarin, the consultant. “They’re not even asking the kind of questions that would drive to regulation.”

Which leaves regulation up to the companies themselves, always a dubious proposition.

Corporations Are Finding Their Politically Responsible Side, by Adam Winkler, Los Angeles Times

Big business has earned its credibility on these issues: 91% of Fortune 500 companies have policies against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. (Only 42% of states ban such discrimination.) And many high-profile companies, especially in the technology sector, rely heavily on immigrants and have long advocated for easing restrictions on entry for skilled workers.

No one should be fooled into thinking big business has become suddenly altruistic. CEOs are legally obligated to run corporations in the interest of their shareholders, not the public interest.

And yet the pressures on business to get political are increasing and coming from numerous sources.

Stuff

Can’t Figure Out How To Type A Character On A Mac? It’s Time For The Virtual Keyboard, by Glenn Fleishman, Macworld

As a long-time Mac user, I once had to rely on Key Caps, an early Mac helper that would show you where special characters hid on a keyboard. Holding down Option and Shift-Option would reveal the secrets of π and ‰ and accent marks.

That feature never disappeared, though it did recede from view, and was renamed Keyboard Viewer. You may rarely need it—except when you’re trying to type a key that your keyboard doesn’t allow or you can’t find.

5 Smart Tips For Making The Most Of The Health App On Your iPhone, by Kwasi Enoch, Jbklutse.com

It’s not easy staying fit and healthy these days with addicting phones, junk foods and long workdays, to name just a few things. To succeed in being healthy always, it takes work, commitment, and an understanding of your mind and body — and your iPhone can help you with some of that.

The “Health” app can help with everything else, it’s full of useful health and fitness-tracking features to make sure you can stick to goals and be as healthy as you can be, whether you want to lose a little weight, stop snacking, destress your life, get better sleep, improve your overall physical fitness, or take care of your heart.

6 Essential Apps To Help You Get The Most Out Of The Gym, by Jon Knight, Gadget Hacks

The gym can be pretty distracting. With the slamming of weights and pieces of equipment, loud music blasting through the speakers, and plain old grunting, it can be challenging to focus on your workout. However, with your just your phone, you can not only eliminate these distractions but make the most of your time there.

Using just six apps, you can maximize your time at the gym so very little of it is wasted. No more standing around wondering what to do or being distracted by the commotion around you — these apps will guide you on the way to a better, healthier you. All apps listed here work for both Android and iPhone, so avid gym-goers and newbies alike have no excuse not to try them out.

Best Apps To Tackle Your New Year's Resolutions, by Ian Fuchs, Cult of Mac

Whatever your goal is for the new year, there’s probably an app to help. These are some of the best apps to help you on your journey to a better you in 2019.

Develop

How To Crush Your Habits In The New Year With The Help Of Science, by Susan Shain, New York Times

While Mr. Duhigg said cues usually fall into one of five categories — time, location, people, emotion or ritual — rewards are more difficult to ascertain. Do you always get an afternoon snack because you’re hungry? Because you’re bored? Or is it because you’re starved for office gossip? To determine an effective replacement habit, it’s vital to understand what reward you crave.

“Any habit can be diagnosed and shifted,” Mr. Duhigg said. “You need to give yourself time to really figure out the cues and rewards that are driving that behavior — and oftentimes the only way … is through a process of experimentation.”

How I Approach My New Year Goals, by Shawn Blanc

I do not overhaul my life on January first. Instead, I pick a few things that I know I can stick with. The compounding impact of small routines done regularly is so much more powerful than that one giant event.

Bottom of the Page

We don't need more apps on macOS (and Windows, for that matter) that are single-window apps. But we do need better windows management at the operating system level.

Single-window apps are not better. Just like Simple Finder is not a better Finder, and Photos is not a better Aperture.

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Thanks for reading.