#technology

It’s vitally important to have an About page, as well as a way for people to contact you with a Contact page.

However, this whole ‘/now’ page thing I find a little stale, boring, and at times lame.

But I might as well join the wonderful ‘movement’ so I set one up with something that won’t ever go out of date or be lame!

It’s my way of saying, I want to be with the cool kids and not be left out of this great fantastic super groovy idea.

Behold, my very own super awesome unicorn dust of a… /now  page.

I hate dark more. It’s no secret. I’ve written about it in the past. But I do see the need for people to have the option. So I added it to my site.

However, you have to be a special kind of cunt if your website is dark mode only!

How the fucking cunty fuck can someone read that shit in the day when it’s bright outside with the sun shining on the fucking screen?!

And don’t give me the childish shitty excuse of waiting to get inside.

I realised that people NEEDED the ability to have dark mode, so I added it. You on the other hand are a special kind of cunt in thinking that dark mode only is ‘cool’.

Do better, cunt!

Yeah I know, I use it. But I use Brave to watch things… so no ads!

But today Brave did an update (1.91.178) and it plastered ads all over the place!

I know it’ll get fixed, but what got my goat wasn’t Brave, but the amount of ads on even the shortest of videos!

Hence why (one of many reasons) I point people to my Odysee profile rather than my YouTube channel.

YouTube is good for being found, but sucks for embedding and watching (without an ad blocker)

I’ve had an email list for years, mostly for my business. But it’s time to consolidate my output and get rid of the old list.

Couple of things…

Agree with the RSS thing, however my workflow is: RSS ‘as my social media’.

I left social media but kept YouTube (for reasons), and 𝕏 (just because, but very rarely read/interact) so have my RSS app (Reeder) honed to what I want to be ‘exposed’ to.

And yes, reading in the RSS app doesn’t bring the personality of the writer, but it does help me to have a single place to see everything.

So my ‘flow’ is to scroll/read within the app and open things that intrigue me, like your post ;-)

Regarding the iPhone, I’m this close [visual of my thumb and finger an atom apart] to getting rid of mine, getting an iPad mini with a SIM, reviving my old original red Nokia 8210 and calling it a day.

That way I have a phone for emergencies, and a ‘computer’ to do the things I need to without being chained to a smartphone that’s invading my head space.

Smartphones have become this thing that we NEED to have.

I disagree.

I come from the time of Rolodex, pen, paper, and floppy disks, so going back to a simpler time with the occasional tech use is what I’m trying accomplish.

This is a reply to a post by Jon.

Life is full of chapters. And it’s up to you to understand when they cross your path and embrace them with vigorous happiness.

This past week it’s been quiet on the blog as I was working on a few things to move forward into the next chapter of my life.

And after being in tech for over 35 years and running various tech-related businesses successfully, I’ve realised I need to move on.

A long time subscriber Mark replied to a previous newsletter about using a second screen. And how using an iPad is helping him make things easier for him.

A nice addition and can be helpful from time to time is that I use my iPad as a 2nd screen. Not all the time, but for some work that is very beneficial.

Mark hit the nail on the head when he noted “Not all the time, but for some work that is very beneficial.”

Here’s the thing…

You don’t have to use something just because it’s there.
You should only use something if it’ll make your life easier.

And far for me to tell you what you should or shouldn’t use, but my experience and working with 1000’s clients over 35 years has taught me two very important things…

First and foremost: You can’t change people’s minds.
And secondly: Many simply have never needed a screen.

So, never be ‘press-ganged’ into anything if it’s not going to work for you.

The picture is of my truck, again in southern Spain whee I stayed for two nights, but you have to really zoom in to see it.

Let me know if you do see it!

After a hectic few weeks of cat sitting for my best friend, while packing my storage space to move. And the unexpected bad news about Woof! I’m exhausted!

However, life, and work, doesn’t stop. Not only that, I can’t sit still and wallow in self pity.

I’ve grieved, I’ve felt every emotion run through me. And I’m guessing it’s going to take a while to get it out of my system.

Hence an email rather than a video (for a while).

Anyhoo…

I wrote about my site being slow a few weeks back. It was annoying me no need. Even after back and forth with the support team, I got so frustrated and fed up, I caved and got myself a VPS (Virtual Private Server).

I initially got it purely for speeding up my website. And it’s really speedy now!

But I got to thinkin’…

Why not use the server for more than just a website.

I got to work and thought about all the services, their respective monthly payments, and whether I could securely host everything I needed.

Yes. The answer was Yes! I can move a bunch of stuff, self host. And it’ll be WAY cheaper.

And here’s the list…

– Website
– Analytics
– Podcast
– Newsletter
– Email server

Setting up the Website, Analytics, Podcast and Newsletter were simple. However, the Email server needed for the Newsletter to be sent, was a little tricky.

But once you navigate the techno babble, it too was rather quite simple. And it only took me about a week to do it all.

One of the issues with hosting your own Email server, or SMTP service (the protocol that send email via the internet) is that the server, IP and hostname has to be ‘warmed up’ so that it doesn’t land in/on a block list, and for other servers to ’trust’ it.

That can take quite a while, 1-3 months (!!)

And although it’s all running perfectly, I’m going to be warming it up by only sending the newsletter to a select few from the new server for a while.

What really helps with the ‘warm up’, and would help me greatly is for my newsletter recipients to reply.

Here’s the thing…

Apart from wanting to self host, and save money. I wanted everything to be on brand. Especially the Newsletter.

I want my newsletter to be an ‘Email’ not a ‘Flyer’.

Not just something that sounds like a sales pitch. But more importantly, it doesn’t look like a freaking sales pitch!

Like 99% of all newsletters out there!

I think I’ve succeeded, you be the judge…

Did you receive my old ‘Flyer’ style newsletter? Or are you one of the lucky ones who received the new improved super-duper ‘Email’ style newsletter?

Hit reply and let me know!

Kia.

P.S. Oh and do let me know if my newsletters are going into Spam automatically too!

P.P.S If you too are fed up with paying for software and tools you could self host and want help, hit me up!

I was born to a generation that could buy things once - and keep them.

A CD.
A movie.
A piece of software.

Your were given a physical thing with a set price that you controlled.

Now, everything is a ‘subscription’.

More expensive over time.
Taken off you for ‘violating’ terms…

— Alexandra Marshall (@ellymelly) July 16, 2025

I wholeheartedly agree with this. I know we can’t take things with us when we go on our long holiday, but to be able to pass the things that ment a lot to us down should be preserved.

I was an audio engineer back in the day, and this video popped up in my feed so I had to watch it, as I’m always interest in this topic.

However, the end of the video intrigued me more than the title and the thumbnail, so I just had to share it.

It’s a great video with a well thought-out topic twist.

There are times when texting, emailing or even writing a blog post doesn’t convey how you feel. That’s why I think video is so important to master.

Want to simplify?

It’s never good when your Mac or the tech you use in your business stops working.

But, can you continue working and delivering your services to your clients when that happens?

Do you have a plan in case it does happen?

Doing something that doesn’t bring you joy is no fun. Doing work with tools you don’t like is no different. There’s nothing worse than doing your work with apps that suck and are challenging to use.

Lets talk about finding the right tools for you!

In today’s world, your online security is vitally important to your privacy. So having everything, from your online accounts to your Mac, iPhone, and other Apple devices, safe and secure should be vitally important to you too!

Minimalist Password: minimalistpassword.com
Bitwarden: bitwarden.com

You can get all the advice you can, but if it’s wrong, you’re back to square one and none the wiser.

Working remotely does have its challenges, but if done right, your tech will be future proof and you’ll be a master nomad in no time.

Humans have a great way of making things easier, simpler, and more comfortable.

That shouldn’t just stop because you’re at work. Making your work and life easier should be on top of your list.

We collect, gather and hoard way too much data that we need to. Have you thought about the impact it’s having on our mental state? And the energy we use to keep data that we will probably never need or use?

Article by Karina Meerman (Dutch)

Getting the right workflow takes time and thought, just like playing chess. You need to understand your opponent and win by understanding your needs; otherwise, you’ll lose.

Click here to simplify your workflow

The more you say ‘YES’ to things, the less time you have to yourself.

It’s not always good to accept new projects, tools or favours you do because that will inevitably suck the time you have for yourself.

The more we have, the more problems we have to deal with. This is true in all areas of our lives.

Just because your technology is the newsiest, the one with the most features or has won awards, doesn’t mean it will work for you.

In today’s episode, I share a personal story, about how the experience helped me understand the importance of being poor, having nothing, and how it helped me realise that less is more.