Category Archives: web

Downworthy

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attic

For those who are familiar with the clickbait headlines that seem to pervade all news sites (even somewhat reputable ones) – you know, they’re the enticing headlines usually accompanied by an equally interesting photo you just can’t help but click sometimes, even though you know you’ll probably end up with an Ask.com toolbar – well, there’s a fun plugin for your browser that subverts those headlines:

Downworthy replaces hyperbolic headlines from bombastic viral websites with a slightly more realistic version. For example:

  • “Literally” becomes “Figuratively”
  • “Will Blow Your Mind” becomes “Might Perhaps Mildly Entertain You For a Moment”
  • “One Weird Trick” becomes “One Piece of Completely Anecdotal Horseshit”

I can’t say the plugin worked all that well in my quick test, but the concept is hilarious, and I hope they continue developing it to be more effective. The name is a play on Upworthy, probably the single site that either invented or at least popularized clickbait headlines.

Hey Bro

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I really love MetaFilter sometimes. Not only was the link in the post a well-written and interesting take on communication and relationships, but some very high-quality comments ensued:

Presumably the dialogue isn’t meant to be a panacea, but it seems unlikely to do much when there’s a poisonous subtext to the bad behavior. Given that we assume of others what we know of ourselves, it seems worth thinking about how such a conversation is actually likely to unfold.

So, maybe I should be watching Key and Peele, in addition to reading MetaFilter.

Hipster Ipsum

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Maybe old news to some, but my web designer just introduced me to http://hipsteripsum.me/ (“Artisanal filler text for your site or project.”) via one of his mockups. I thought it was pretty amusing.

Put a bird on it DIY church-key, ethical craft beer single-origin coffee butcher freegan sriracha marfa narwhal mustache gluten-free disrupt. Letterpress VHS fashion axe, PBR flannel wolf gentrify artisan street art wayfarers. Butcher plaid fap terry richardson, truffaut flexitarian pour-over cliche gentrify +1 meh polaroid tousled street art occupy. Irony butcher authentic gastropub, +1 marfa neutra mumblecore keffiyeh forage kale chips cred polaroid godard. Leggings readymade thundercats, typewriter umami pour-over cosby sweater intelligentsia brooklyn lomo church-key 3 wolf moon before they sold out. Ethnic next level retro, pickled pop-up marfa odd future pork belly blog readymade synth bicycle rights carles. Pork belly wayfarers kogi, disrupt flexitarian salvia food truck deep v meh mumblecore ethnic marfa thundercats.

 

I’m pretty sure that paragraph of gibberish just summed up everything I love/hate about Austin.

Edit: I love when I google things I’m not sure about and end up learning something amazing.