1Password Gets Apple Silicon Support

Hooray! 1Password now supports Apple silicon. From the 1Password blog:

“1Password now runs natively on Apple’s latest processors and hardware. We’ve been unbelievably impressed at the speed and efficiency of the new Apple Silicon Macs and can’t wait to see what form factors roll out next.”

This is more than simple compatibility. The 1Password team went all-in on embracing the new silicon. I’ve been running it with no problems. Overall, the Apple silicon transition seems to be going swimmingly for Mac developers.

Mac Power Users 579: 30 Mac Apps for Under $30

The ecosystem of Mac apps is small compared to what’s available for iOS and iPadOS. On this episode of Mac Power Users, Stephen and I talk about some real gems out there that make working on macOS more productive.

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Apple Stops Selling the Big HomePod

Apple made a Friday afternoon announcement that they are no longer selling the big HomePod and currently focused on the HomePod Mini. (No companies deliver good news on Friday afternoon.) I’m not surprised that the Home Pod is going away. It’s expensive, and there are some design issues. I still trigger mine several times a week when my hand (or shirt) barely touches the touch screen on top. Siri on the HomePod also still needs more work.

Nevertheless, my HomePods sound great, and I remain happy with them. I hope Apple isn’t giving up on the idea of a home speaker/voice assistant thingy that includes a quality speaker.

Automators 71: Automated Capture

On this episode of Automators, Rosemary and I tackle the sticky subject of automated capture. In places where no Post-it has gone before, learn how we use Drafts, Obsidian, and task management and reference systems to handle our capture.

This episode of Automators is sponsored by:

Sync Up, a OneDrive podcast: Takes you behind the scenes of OneDrive.
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Jazz Friday: The Blue Note Tokyo All-Star Jazz Orchestra

Lately I’ve been on a kick with YouTube watching international jazz. Specifically, how the art form has evolved in other countries. One sub-genre of jazz is the big band. Big-band music was a big deal back in the swing era, but it’s hard to make a big band work these days. It’s usually 17 (or more) players, and there isn’t enough of a market for jazz for a big band to keep its members fed.

There is a Blue Note jazz club in Tokyo, and they have a house big band called the “Blue Note Tokyo All-Star Jazz Orchestra”, which is excellent. Remarkably, they have no albums on Apple Music, but there are several videos on YouTube. One of my favorite things about the band is its director Eric Miyashiro. He clearly loves both his job and jazz music. Part of me thinks Miyashiro must walk around Tokyo and everyone says, “Hey! It’s jazz-guy Eric.” At least that’s my head canon. If I can ever get my way to Tokyo, I fully intend to make my way to the Blue Note and, hopefully, meet Eric Miyashiro.

They have lots of songs on YouTube, but I’ve picked the video below, which isn’t as much straight ahead jazz, but it does a great job of featuring more of the band members with solos. I would also note that one of the nice things about jazz migrating to foreign countries is that they will have their own take on the music, and this is a good example. They have a YouTube channel with a lot more music.

Home Screens — Jake Kahana

This week’s home screen features Jake Kahana (Twitter) (website), one of the founders of Caveday.org and a very intentional guy. So Jake, show us your home screen.

What are some of your favorite apps?

I’ve been getting more and more into Notion. We started using it as a project management and notetaking tool for Caveday. And in the last few months I’ve put my entire personal system on there. Book notes, meeting notes, goal setting, job tracking, etc.

I’m a fan of Superhuman and feel like my relationship to email is a bit healthier since using it.

Which app is your guilty pleasure?

NY Times Crossword, maybe?

Or more realistically, based on my usage, Zillow and Redfin.

What app makes you most productive?

And I love Freedom. I love that it syncs across devices. It blocks internet when I need and just minimizes distractions. I love their “Pause” Chrome plugin too. That 5-second delay before I go to a social media or news site is enough friction to usually close the window.

What app do you know you’re underutilizing?

Notion. While I love it and so much of my life is on it, I know there are so many other features (database tools, cross-database features, widgets, and what-not) that could make it more powerful. Part of my goal this year, overall, is to learn more shortcuts and use snippets in email, in my design tools like the Adobe Creative Suite and Sketch, and definitely in Notion.

How many times a day do you use your iPhone/iPad?

I don’t have an iPad, but I try my best to put my iPhone away when I’m working, often in another room or at least across the room, so I’ll check it maybe once an hour or less.

What is your favorite feature of the iPhone/iPad?

Airplane Mode! When I really need to do my most focused work, I’ll open a Google Doc, make it available offline, and just get to work.

But maybe more functionally is AirDrop. I’ll send stuff from my phone to my computer and to my wife’s phone all the time. So easy.

If you were in charge at Apple, what would you add or change?

I’m really disappointed by the idea of planned obsolescence. When it comes to being the best designed tech out there, I’d say aesthetically that’s true. User experience-wise, it may be true as well. But thinking about environmental impacts and functionality of hardware, there’s a lot of waste that comes from replacing phones and computers every 3-4 years. What might it look like to have devices that had a 100+ year lifespan that just needed a small upgrade here and there to replace certain parts or pieces, or to have upcycled digital hardware?

What’s your wallpaper and why?

My lock screen and home screen (and my computer desktop) are all photos of my daughter. It’s a bit cliché, sure, but it’s a great reminder for me for why I’m doing the work I’m doing (to make her proud, and to make enough money that I can stop working every day and spend time with her, and so she has what she needs). The photos themselves are moments of play and joy and wonder, which is another good reminder for me to stop and try and find joy and wonder in what I’m doing (and think of her).

Anything else you’d like to share?

I try a lot of productivity apps out to write about them and recommend them (or to recommend AGAINST them) for my company, Caveday. We’re all about helping people find focus in a distracting world and so a lot of my favorite apps and features are therefore focus-related. I’ve curated some of my favorite tips, plugins, apps, and books on the subject at caveday.org/tools

AirPods 3 Rumors

There have now been several leaks concerning the AirPods 3. According to the latest leaked photos, like the ones below, the AirPods 3 are getting a new design.

Nice pic.twitter.com/2PJdCd2hEn

— LeaksApplePro (@LeaksApplePro) March 10, 2021

This makes me nervous. Even though I have some ridiculously fancy headphones, I use the standard AirPods all day long while I’m making calls and meandering about the house. (Power tip: Just wear one at a time.) The existing AirPods fit comfortably in my ears. This new design, if true, looks a lot more like the AirPods Pro, which don’t fit my ears as well.

The AirPods are such a successful product that I expect Apple wouldn’t have changed the design unless they were sure they’d be just as comfortable as the last design. Nevertheless … yikes.

Appointments in the Menu Bar

I routinely keep my appointments listed in my menu bar when working on my Mac. As someone who does a lot of block scheduling, this is just one more reminder of where I should be as I work through the day. I also use Bartender to thin down the menu bar so truly useful data, like this, can be visible.

There are a few ways to pull this off. Fantastical has a setting that lets me put the next appointment in my menu bar with the “Show Upcoming Item in Menu Bar” checkbox in the Appearance settings. Fantastical also gives you a calendar and list of events if you click on the menu bar icon.

There are also some apps to scratch this itch. MeetingBar is my favorite. It gives you plenty of control over exactly what will show up and also a nice scrolling list if you click on the menu bar item. Both MeetingBar and Fantastical work with the meeting services like Teams and Zoom so you can launch meetings from the menu bar. Also, MeetingBar has a cool flip board-inspired icon, and I dig flip boards.

The Never-Ending Inertia of Habits

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about habits. I think most of us have it wrong about habits. We think of habits as these little behaviors we intentionally build into our own selves when the need arises.

While we may think that habits are intentionally formed, habits are more often unintentionally formed. Things like getting french fries on the way home from the office, planting yourself in front of the TV for hours at a time, and hitting the snooze button are all habits unintentionally formed. The unintentional ones are the most insidious because they check all the habit boxes (cue, craving, response, reward) without the human being conscious of them arising.

Then one day, you wake up and realize you can’t stop eating french fries. You waste way too much of your time in front of the television. You can’t get out of bed in the morning. And you don’t know why.

Put simply, habits are always forming. The train never stops. Perhaps even more important than being intentional about forming new habits is being aware of all the habits you have already formed, many of which are self-destructive. I have tried to pull this intentionality to the front by making a list of all habits I’m observing in myself (some good, lots bad) and then trying to rewire myself where appropriate. This will take a while, but awareness is definitely the first step.