matdevdug

matdevdug, 3 months ago to tech

The thing about #tech #layoffs that people who haven’t been through it often don’t understand is that morale never recovers. The employees who remain will never have the same relationship with that company, bosses or peers.

Watching people you respect pack their stuff and crying on the phone with their spouses is something that never goes away. When I survived a layoff in my 20s I became a “do exactly what the ticket says” person. I stopped suggesting ideas, providing feedback, believing anything a manager told me.

If you are a company considering layoffs, especially a profitable company, you should approach it as “this department will have 100% turnover”. The second I got another job offer I left that company and six months later nobody who had been there at the time of layoffs remained.

I’ve seen that pattern play out multiple times.

matdevdug, 4 months ago to apple

I wrote about my time as an #Apple dispatch repair tech going door to door in Chicago fixing #Macs https://matduggan.com/fixing-macs-door-to-door/

matdevdug, 6 months ago to random

A 3D printer is like a boat. You don’t want to own one, you just want to know someone who does.

matdevdug, 3 months ago to Europe

A lot of #americans are nervous when traveling to #europe. They’re worried about being judged or whatever. As someone who just waited in line with a ton of American tourists, here’s the number 1 thing you can do to stand out less in Europe.

Stop scream talking. The volume Americans talk at is frightening. Try whispering, then go like one step above that. That’s normal talking. If I can hear your entire conversation from 10 feet away, that’s too loud.

Need to make a phone call? Put the phone up to your ear and talk into it at that one step above whisper volume. Never ever ever put the person on speaker and then scream into the bottom of your phone. My jaw dropped as not one but two people coming to Denmark from California started doing this inside of a coffee shop. Not old people, people in their 20s.

Never fucking do this anywhere. For any reason. Unless your hands are like trapped by a car wreck and it is the only way to talk to emergency services. It’s not just rude it’s downright offensive. I cannot have a normal volume conversation with an employee because you are screaming about what bar you are going to.

#travel #tips #vacation

matdevdug, 4 days ago (edited 4 days ago) to random

New post on my blog. You can read it here: https://matduggan.com/the-worst-website-in-the-entire-world/
#vmware #broadcom #tech

matdevdug, 10 months ago to random

When I first moved to Chicago over 15 years ago, the only job I could find was basically being IT for rich people. I would go to their houses, setup backups, fix wifi, replace hard drives, that sort of thing. We were all background checked and vetted, whatever.

Coming from a farming town to Chicago I had never encountered rich like this. Rich people to me were people who bought new Toyota Camrys every 3-4 years. These were live in nanny, live in maid, chef cooks dinner 3-4 nights a week kind of rich I was working for.

For those unaware, how these households work is the wife runs the household and often has an assistant who is effectively your boss. You are warned to NEVER bother the husband EVER, that he worked “in finance” and was very tired when he got home. In practice it was never an issue, these men didn’t even seem to register my existence. I could be sitting at his desk and he would turn off the lights in the office.

I have a million stories of these people, but today I can’t get Mrs. French (not her name) out of my head. I remember her for humiliating me in a way that will always kinda linger with me. Her and her daughter used to pay my hourly fee to have me do things like “wait in line for the new phone” or go buy printer paper and put it in their printer. One day I mentioned casually to her daughter I was going to be moving kinda close to them. I had gotten a sweet deal on an apartment.

I knew I fucked up immediately. The daughter ran to the mom and they both looked upset. The next day they scheduled me again. It’s snowing, Chicago, etc. I made $25,000 a year plus a per trip fee and had zero wiggle room. I got to the house, side door and the assistant informed me I needed to wait for the owner “to be ready”.

Fine, I sit outside while snow falls. Hour 1 passes, I try again. Wait some more. Hour 2, I get insistent. “If you leave we will cancel our contract with your company.” I’ll get fired if they do that, so I sit down again. Hour 3 turns into 4 into 5.

I’m freezing out here, hands shaking. Finally the assistant comes to the door. “Oh, we forgot you were out here. You can go for today.” Then I look up and there they are. The mom and daughter are looking right at me grinning ear to ear. Everyone is staring at me.

Idk why it’s in my head today but that scene is burned into my memory.

matdevdug, 10 months ago to threads

Man #Threads as a piece of software is just not where I assumed #Meta would launch at. It’s not…..bad? But this thing is coming in screaming hot. It feels like a dev build that they slapped a 1.0 tag on and hit the launch button with their eyes closed.

No DM (which is actually good IMO), no feed of only people you follow (which is likely so the initial feed doesn’t look empty like Mastodon for new users). It’s a tribute to apps like #Ivory and the other third party #Mastodon apps that they’re just miles ahead of the Meta team.

The perks of this for the #Fediverse are pretty clear. People interested in social media as a business are gonna be here. The cross-posting to Instagram and celebrity roster are going to be the solve for “how do people who rely on social media for income join the non-commercial Fediverse”. So if you want to skip that content, it’s gonna be very easy to do cause it’ll all be here.

The ability to move your audience is also super compelling in social media. If you want to run your own server and move your identity from Meta to your own box, the ability to do that is going to be interesting. Again it solved problems for Meta from the perspective of gatekeeping regulation, but adds a lot in terms of moderation.

It’s clear from the interviews they’re going to treat outside servers as effectively “unknown outside content” and apply moderation/filtering to that content as it comes in. Long-term I’m not sure how that will work. Will there be some sort of DMARC-type security steps servers can take? Is it gonna be a trust score based on the domain of the server? Meta still has a ton of hard engineering problems to solve for and how they expose that data to end users outside their platform (if they ever will).

Long-term who knows if this is going to survive. Meta has a high failure rate with new apps and we won’t know if this matters for a few years. My guess is orgs will be willing to dip their toes in here and if they see success, move content from twitter to here. It’s more stable and better run.

matdevdug, 2 days ago to ai

Nothing like having a beautiful day ruined by Slack deciding they're going to opt every customer into training their LLM unless you send their customer service an email. I'm so mad at how scummy this is. Now I need to warn effectively every non-technical person I know that they need to send an email (not in the client cause Slack knows people might actually use that).

https://slack.com/trust/data-management/privacy-principles

#slack #ai #internetofshit

matdevdug, 9 months ago to ipv6

I wrote a thing about trying out an #IPv6 only server for the first time and how it went super badly. https://matduggan.com/ipv6-is-a-disaster-and-its-our-fault/

#devops #networking #linux

matdevdug, 9 months ago to linux

Sometimes I think about switching back to a #Linux or #Windows laptop and then I realize my M1 MacBook Pro has been unplugged all day and is at 70% battery life.

I can't go back to life like it was before, I'm sorry. This is just too convenient.

#apple #macos

matdevdug, 9 months ago to programming

It is so strange to me when you pick up a “help wanted” issue on an open source repo, make a PR and then the maintainer doesn’t touch it for weeks. They’re merging other PRs but nadda for you.

It feels like post gaming a date when the person doesn’t reach out after. “Did I not add the right tag? Is the test not written correctly? God I wish they’d just reject it and let me MOVE ON.”

Infuriating.

#programming #OpenSource

matdevdug, 8 months ago to firefox

#passkeys are the worst, most user-hostile security design ever imagined in my lifetime. They're endlessly confusing for people, the sync mechanisms make no goddamn sense and their rollout has been a complete shit-show so far.

Let's start with Chrome and passkeys. I'm on a Mac and I want to use a passkey. #Firefox doesn't even support passkeys, so I can use #Safari or #Chrome. IF I USE CHROME, the passkey generated is NOT synced OR usable on the iCloud Keychain. It exists only on the Mac Keychain. So if I lose this laptop OR delete my Chrome user, that login is simply gone forever.

Ok so I'll use safari. Whoa there partner, now the passkey isn't usable on Chrome! Now I'm locked to Safari forever. Let's say I'm sick of Apple and decide to go to Android someday? All those logins are gone forever.

Jesus Christ, I'll use Windows. Nope, those passkeys don't sync ever! So if I ever lose that laptop, I'm locked out of all those accounts regardless of how I use passkeys.

None of these risks have been properly communicated to users and none of them are acceptable. I cannot believe that we are suggesting that anyone use these broken things right now. Shameful.

#security #programming

matdevdug, 5 months ago to llm

Amidst all this talk of #llm replacing all customer service, it does feel like people saying this stuff has never worked in customer service.

The difference between what people perceive as good customer service and bad customer service can often be broken down into “how empowered is this agent in solving my problem”. The key difference with old #Apple retail and the stores of today was that Genius Bar staff were allowed to go “make the customers case” to a manager. You could bend rules, which is no longer true.

Companies are loath to empower actual human beings to make decisions, so there is no way they’ll ever risk it with a language model whose decision flowchart can be pretty easily exposed through basic pen testing. Instead it’s going to throw help articles back at you, which already exists and people dislike.

So if your company wasn’t helpful to customers now, sure replace it with an LLM. You’ll be as unhelpful but automated and quick. However I’ll be very surprised if anyone allows the LLM to actually meaningfully interact with their applications backend control panel.

#ai #AIhype

matdevdug, 3 months ago to Bulgaria

I feel like a lot of the conversation about the #EU #DMA misses the point of the act. It isn't designed to unlock devices, or promote libre software. It might do that (sorta) but that is a side effect.

The point of the DMA is that 2 US corporations have established a complete monopoly on the entire mobile sector. They effectively extract huge sums of money from the EU with minimal taxes (due to usage of the Double Irish tax system) and block domestic players from even getting involved.

The US government has effectively stopped regulating business. It sometimes makes them show up to hearings in front of Congress, but ultimately with minimal consequences. The EU has no obligation to empower US companies to maintain a monopoly worth hundreds of billions of euros.

So stop thinking of it as "the EU is making tech companies do what we want them to do" because that ends with disappointment. This is the EU attempting to break open the mobile monopoly to give domestic brands a chance of competing. Since smartphones are a mature market with consumers having sunk thousands of euros into their ecosystem, it's the only way to break it open.

#apple #google #android

matdevdug, 5 months ago to php

Look sometimes we all throw shade at #pearl or #php but trying to write a simple feature with #c++ and #aws is like trying to cook a chicken with a flamethrower.

I’m sure there are people who love the speed and power of the flamethrower but I’m just lighting trees on fire while a pile of raw meat sits on the ground.

matdevdug, 6 months ago to rant

I wrote a #friday #rant about #security: https://matduggan.com/security-feels-pointless/

matdevdug, 4 months ago to random

As someone who spent a few cold Michigan winters in a house without running the electricity to save money, let me share some quick tips to folks experiencing -17 C weather.

• set up a tent in a room connected to a bathroom and try to stay in it as much as possible. I bought a cheap 4 season tent used off Craigslist but it looks like Amazon has a ton for under $200.
• wool socks and hats are your best friends
• plastic wrap on the windows is a godsend but also hang blankets over the windows
• seal off the house as much as possible.
• get cheap tights, cut the legs off, fill them full of socks and use them to block the drafts under doors
• if you have a second floor and it’s well insulated that’s gonna be your best bet
• be very careful of any propane heater and always have a tested carbon monoxide detector in that room with you.
• get a digital thermometer. You are shooting for as close to 18 C as you can get. Below 13 and you need to run a heater for a bit
• contact the power company. I got a $300 credit for the winter that helped a lot.
• if you are having trouble hitting 18 C during daylight then older folks, kids, pets etc shouldn’t be there. Younger adults in good physical condition should be fine but consider it a warning sign.

#winter #cold #tips

matdevdug, 8 months ago to microsoft

I am enjoying watching executives demonstrate, without question, that every job in the US should be part of a union. Workers in unions are, across the country, striking to secure their future ability to thrive in this economic climate.

Meanwhile tech employees, often used in the modern era as an example of how well bosses treat employees without unions, are being treated with absolute contempt by their leaders. From #Microsoft not offering raises despite record profits to #Google and #Meta layoffs and everyone threatening termination if employees don’t return. People wake up to emails telling them they’re fired for no real reason.

It turns out surrendering all of your power to these tech executives and hoping they won’t abuse you wasn’t a winning strategy.

matdevdug, 8 months ago to random

What’s crazy about #soldering and electronics repair in general is once you learn how to do it, it comes up all the time. Everything has a PCB in it and almost every time something in my house breaks, it’s the same problem. A cable or connector has come off a board and needs to be reconnected.

It’s just nuts we don’t teach kids how to do this. My first tv as an adult was picked up off a curb. All that was broken was a few capacitors. Same with my first LCD monitor, saved from the garbage bin at work.

matdevdug, 8 months ago to random

In the #peppapig universe, we only ever meet one family of every species in their town. Danny dog, Peppa Pig, Pedro Pony, etc. This raises some serious genetic diversity questions which are somewhat answered by Uncle Pig, whose town suggests an almost duplicate town elsewhere in the UK.

My concern is that in the important episode “Daddy Pig Gets a Playgroup Star”, we see that Mommy and Daddy Pig were in the same playgroup as children. We have never seen more of the same species move to the town or anyone leave, suggesting that the children in the playgroup are the only potential future partners for the animal people. Since there is no cross-species breeding evident, we are left with the uncomfortable conclusion that Peppa and George, her brother, will be forced to breed to continue the Pig species.

Now I know what you are saying, “what about Chloe Pig?” The eldest child Pig is the child of Aunt and Uncle Pig. Alarmingly, she also appears to be related to Grandma and Grandpa Pig, who we know raised Mommy Pig. Uncle Pig is the brother of Daddy Pig, confirming the devastating inbreeding conclusion.

The exception to this problem appears to be the infinite clones of Miss Rabbit. Crucially, a different creature from Mommy Rabbit, Miss Rabbit fulfills every necessary function in society across different countries.

This is what happens when I am forced to watch dozens of hours of Peppa Pig. I ask the hard questions.

matdevdug, 2 months ago to news

Boy the speed by which we went from "vice is the future of news media" to "vice isn't even worth keeping a website up for anymore" is pretty shocking.

https://writing.exchange/@ernie/111977450241144169

#vice #news

matdevdug, 2 months ago (edited 2 months ago) to random

New post on my blog. You can read it here: https://matduggan.com/everyone-is-wrong-but-you/

matdevdug, 10 days ago to tech

I do wish I could tell recruiters that I’ll never apply to a company that reports record profits and also lays people off.

Like why are we wasting each others time talking about corporate mottos and exciting projects? Your leadership treats people like disposable cups. That’s all I need to know.

#tech #layoffs

matdevdug, 9 months ago to ipv6

Does anyone know of an #IPv6 compatible #SMTP service? #Mailgun and #AWS #SES appear to be IPv4 only.

#email #linux

matdevdug, 6 months ago to Bulgaria

I cannot believe the #EU wasted all that oxygen talking about how #GDPR was about "respect for privacy" only to attempt to pass secret legislation that allows the EU to break all SSL traffic for all of its citizens in the EU and spy on every person with zero regulation. Truly morally reprehensible. #europe

https://last-chance-for-eidas.org/