Book Rated: Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Cover for Children of Time
> SCANNING: Children of Time> AUTHOR_SIG: Adrian Tchaikovsky> SENTIMENT_Q: 60.0% POSITIVE> THEMATIC_VECTORS: NON-HUMAN_POV, WORLD-BUILDING, ENTOMOLOGY> LEXICAL_DENSITY: 48.98> MEMETIC_HAZARD: HIGH

Sunset by Duncan's Point. I hadn't noticed the far-off cloudbank; the next day, the winds that had pulverized us were gone.

The sun creeps down behind rocks on the seashore. [Fuji X-T5 / Sigma 17-40 1.8]

Nevada City, Nevada County, California, 95959, United States

Photo from Nevada City, Nevada County, California, 95959, United States

Van's off to the woods

Nevada City, Nevada County, California, 95959, United States

Photo from Nevada City, Nevada County, California, 95959, United States

Good guys of the Sierra.

Book Rated: Sixteenth Watch, by Myke Cole

Cover for Sixteenth Watch
> SCANNING: Sixteenth Watch> AUTHOR_SIG: Myke Cole> SENTIMENT_Q: 20.0% POSITIVE> THEMATIC_VECTORS: NARRATIVE_STRUCTURE, SWEARS, FUNKY_ROBOTS> LEXICAL_DENSITY: 49.64> MEMETIC_HAZARD: LOW

A lil' newt bopping around in a forest near Angwin.

A little newt's face viewed from up-close. [Fuji X-T5 / Tamron 18-300]

Baby's First Executable

I used JPEGMini forever. First it got annoying (they added a bunch of meh features), then it got expensive, then it got annoying (constant callouts for features even when I already paid), and now it's been subsumed into something called Framer and I don't even know what it is anymore. So, no.

I tried a couple alternatives (e.g. Tyniy), but they just weren't doing it for me. I wanted something drag-and-drop which could easily replace files in situ. I didn't want a platform, a file picker, video support, etc. I just wanted to be able to easily export files from Lightroom then size 'em down for web stuff.

So I channeled my frustration into Xcode! The result is my first Mac executable – DewDrop!
I am certain it's "dumber" than JPEGMini (or at least, JPEGMini back when they actually had a focus on minifying JPGs...), but it is free-er. The behavior is what I wanted, the look is what I wanted, and the options are hopefully flexible-enough...
As my first Mac app, I was worried about the "officialization" process – how notarization and all that works. That was fine (modulo Apple's $100/yr developer fee), but there was basically no way it was going to be sandboxable without being a nightmare, and thus it'll never be Mac App Store-able. Which, whatever.

An Anise Swallowtail rests before fluttering off again.

A yellow, black, and blue butterfly rests on greenery, taking up most of the frame. [Fuji X-T5 / Tamron 18-300]

Book Rated: Young Men and Fire, by Norman Maclean

Cover for Young Men and Fire
> SCANNING: Young Men and Fire> AUTHOR_SIG: Norman Maclean> SENTIMENT_Q: 60.0% POSITIVE> THEMATIC_VECTORS: QUEBEC_NATIONALISM, SASQUATCH_APPEARANCES, CHEESE_DISTRIBUTION> LEXICAL_DENSITY: 45.83> MEMETIC_HAZARD: MEDIUM

Morning sun over Napa. We were heading over there for a hike and there was some pretty haze.

The sun rises behind the hills, over a field with trees in it. [Fuji X-T5 / Tamron 18-300]