Millions of blogging platforms everywhere! Again! Again again? History repeating repeats:
- Ghost
- “Ghost is an Open Source application which allows you to write and publish your own blog, giving you the tools to make it easy and even fun to do. It’s simple, elegant, and designed so that you can spend less time making your blog work and more time blogging.”
- Post Haven
- “What would it be like to make a service that lasts for 10 years? 100 years? That’s what we’re trying to build at Posthaven. We’re as sick as you are to have to switch services every few years, or worry about running your own servers and getting hacked all the time.”
- Medium
- “Now that we’ve made sharing information virtually effortless, how do we increase the depth of understanding, while also creating a level playing field that encourages great ideas coming from anywhere? In short, we think that words (still) matter, so we built a better system for sharing them.”
- Draft
- “You don’t need writing software; you need someone’s feedback on your writing.
You don’t need version control software; you need to find all the things you’ve written without fear.You don’t need distraction free text editors; you need to find ways to write more concisely, more clearly.
You don’t need real time collaboration software; you need a bigger audience for your writing.
I’m working on Draft to provide what you need. What I need.”
- “You don’t need writing software; you need someone’s feedback on your writing.
- Svbtle
- “We’re a network of great people mixed with a platform that takes the best things from traditional publishing and combines them with the best parts of the web. We want to make it easier for people to share and discover new ideas.Want to be a part of the network? Awesome. But for now, we’re invite-only.”
Interesting to see the blending of editorial platforms and technical ones. Kind of like printing press manufacturers teaming up with newspapers. Kind of.
Illumiroom is a concept from Microsoft Research. I think it will stay there. The challenges of integrating with all those different living rooms are just too great.
Tips from Andrew Dumont on avoiding burnout:
- Morning Workouts
- An Evening Walk
- Fiction Reading
- A Day A Week (off)
- Intellectual Hobbies
- Small Wins
- A Healthy Diet
- Limiting Decisions
- Yearly Unplugs
The one that I thought was most interesting was “Limiting Decisions”. I always try to reduce psychic or cognitive load wherever possible. Some examples that worked for me:
- I only have one pair of shoes. Thanks to Pete Hellicar for buying them for me for the past three years.
- I don’t buy clothes or furniture or stuff. Just books, magazines and music. I do visit Levi’s once a year for four pairs of jeans. I seem to get given shirts and tops and t shirts, so make do with those.
- I Open Source everything I make. I just don’t want the load of having to market, sell or support things.
Useful tips from Michael Grinich on manufacturing products for the newbie. Or just go straight to Highway 1 and build your product from start in four months!