Thoughts and ideas of a dyslexic designer/developer
Author: Ianforrester
Founder and firestarter of cubicgarden ltd.
Emergent technology expert, public service supporter, defender of human scale flourishing, city dweller, European at heart and social geek event organiser.
Captivated by the digital legacy, future of dating, human data interaction, self-hosing, personal data, open-source, house music, neurodiversity thinking, kindness and collaborative futures for all.
Can be found at cubicgarden@mas.to, cubicgarden@twit.social and cubicgarden@blacktwitter.io
I recently was in Toronto for a unconference with Mozilla. During that whole week I spend a lot of time with the Drift Zero and created a lot of mixes. Some were really good, others less so.
A few stood out, which I needed to half redo because of a few mistakes with the volume and needing to stop the recording for reasons…
I have been listening to this mix over and over again recently and it seriously rocks with a number of classic Techtrance tunes mixed in with a bunch of new tunes I recently got my hands on.
00:00:00 The Answer Machine – Green Velvet 00:03:03 7 days (Southmind bigroom edit) – Meduza & Kevin De Vries 00:06:44 Amino Acid – Tau-rine 00:10:27 Panic attack – Simon Patterson 00:15:46 Believe – Eli Brown 00:20:22 Brush Strokes – Simon Patterson 00:25:31 Erase – Brooks Aleksander 00:28:22 Drugs from Amsterdam – Mau P 00:32:45 Stellar – Driftmoon 00:37:20 Surveillance – Jordan Suckley & Kutski 00:38:53 7 days (Extended mix) – Meduza & Kevin De Vries 00:42:39 Intruder – Armin vs. M.I.K.E 00:46:30 Earth mover – Cosmic gate 00:49:29 Opus (Trashock remix) – Eric Prydz
When I bought my Framework 13 laptop while leaving BBC R&D, I was so excited to set it up I failed to add LUKS disk encryption to the system. I knew I should but thought I can do it later… (big mistake)
So 1.5 years later, having dismissing the task to add disk encryption over and over again; then wondering if I should move the to do date closer while traveling across international borders. Then finally deciding to do it when Ubuntu 26.04 comes out but then having to wait for the point release…
Finally I did it!
My wayland keyboard problem was so ingrained into my finger tips than even now I press shift+2 to get “quote marks.” (When I logged in to Ubuntu with Wayland, which became the default last year instead of X11; my UK keyboard would be set to US key mapping).
I told myself I would wait for the latest Ubuntu 26.04, then upgrade and if it broke the system start again fresh. I did the upgrade and it worked. But that left me with the issue that I needed to add encryption! I loaded up Gparted live but decided since I already copied everything I should do a complete clean install (especially because the US key-mapping persisted!).
Reinstalling while jet-lagged and my internet was out was a bad idea!
I just came back from the Mozilla-alumni in Toronto (it was incredible and I remember how much I like Toronto). Was pretty badly jet-lagged (always was going west to east) and didn’t sleep for over 26 hours. Then a long time ago I considered switching my fibre internet to a business level but the date had come up sooner than expected. I agreed to everything but when I saw the contract was for 36 months! I didn’t sign and return the doc. However on Monday they moved me over and closed my old consumer connection! (I am considering this should be an complaint I raise…)
I tried to call them but ultimately they had closed my consumer account and the change back would be a new connection!
The next day sat in a coffee shop, I got a phone call with a deal. It was ok but nothing more than expected. Finally the internet was back and finally I could do everything at home.
This all happened when access to my multiple emails was pretty important.
I certainly pick my moments!!!
But at least now I have a UK keyboard mapping attached to my UK keyboard and I finally got rid of my BBC R&D configs and legacy projects. Although I am wondering if I should have used the hardware option?
To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.“
Ian thinks: Although focused on America Gen-Z, I found the attitudes of these young people thoughtful and well balanced. The conversation with Bernie Sanders was also a good conversation
Ian thinks: So many stories of tech industry people being let go, its awful to hear but a clear reminder of how broken the tech industry is in right now. Its clear things must change and the status-quo is no more.
Ian thinks: Hof does a good job explaining how AI water-marketing works and then casts an eye on what this means for the decentralised and federated future we should be moving towards.
Ian thinks: As AI becomes more mainstream, the history and cult like status is unknown by many. However as Zittron and friends dredge through the past uncovering some of the motivations behind key people. Its clear a lot of people are not aware. Gebru’s thoughts on TESCREAL and quote is perfectly placed… “I understood that it was an ideological thing. It was almost like a secular religion, and these are true believers.”
This also comes up in a recent book Nerd Reich, which I just finished and don’t miss Gebru’s interview.
Ian thinks: Schneier has an amazing way of thinking about different things in real life with a hackers mindset. In this talk Schneier, goes deep on AI and the future uses of it. Its a seriously thoughtful speech and worth every moment.
Ian thinks: Gary’s piece about the potential Oura IPO speaks volumes about the state of data, subscriptions and enshittification. Oura has been quite a darling of the the quantified self movement but knowing where the data maybe going even has me looking for an alternative.
Ian thinks: I recently read the book by Gabriel Zucman, We Need to Tax Billionaires; which is a very good and short read and a blueprint for how to tax the super rich. This video covers the basics and rights some of the misunderstandings I still hear in debates about taxing the rich.
Ian thinks: I like the way JD thinks, its a clever and honest observation of traditional social media through the eyes of a black man. It also makes a number of good comparisons which will make you think a little deeper.
Ian thinks: The debate over mainly Meta smart glasses is intense but the people most affected right now are women, hence the term pervert glasses. I think this is pretty much summed up when one of the guests tries to say tech are looking to make useful products to which everyone laughs, and rephrases it with yes it a money grab. Something which is summed up in the pervert economy video.
Sherry Turkle’s new book, is casing a lot of conversation. Although I am waiting for the Audiobook, this interview with 404 media is one of the better interviews with Turkle. Honestly this book covers not only now such as social media, LLMs but also deeply human topics like empathy and Intimacy.
This is the first proper mix with the Drift DJ Zero while on holiday in Athens recently. It was done over two parts because of a crash with the beta firmware. Most of it in a lovely place in Athens (Morgan All Jeans) then second part on my flight to Barcelona, which attracted the eye of one of the captains of the plane!
One of the captains of the airplane has an amazed look at the Drift DJ Zero
I asked permission to take the picture but wanted to preserve the privacy of the pilot and member of public who was in the seat opposite. I gather the staff of the plane had talked about it over the backchannel and he decided to come check it out? All I can say is he was blown away and to be honest I had similar interest while DJing to myself in Athens and Barcelona. Lots of positive questions and thoughts.
But back to the actual mix…
Its a good mix (especially since I don’t have all my tunes synced on the zero) and using the Drift Zero is smooth now I fully understand the DJ mix flow. As I’m always DJing in my headphones there is a few extra steps I have to take. A few times I forget and you could hear the cueing in the mix, which isn’t great but its human error. However I’m kinda use to it and because its still beta there’s still lots of opportunity to feedback and shape the Dj flow.
Enjoy my first full mix on the Zero, there will be many more to come I’m sure! Its not the end for the Pacemaker device but as the beta firmwares get better and better, I’m carrying around a lot less, so we shall see what happens…
Here’s the playlist
00:00:00 Fade To Grey (Moreno J Remix) – Visage 00:01:58 Everything’s Been Written – 8 Wonders 00:06:41 Believe – Eli Brown 00:10:52 Mass Noise 2015 – Fred Baker & Seb B- 00:14:54 Turbulance – Klauss Gourlart 00:20:19 Eclipse – Neo 00:23:50 Steller – Driftwood 00:28:53 Catch me – Ormus 00:31:31 You’ve Got The love (Sonny Noto Remix) – Florence The Machine 00:36:32 Never (DJ Tiesto remix) – The Roc Project feat Tina Arena 00:41:32 Earth mover – Cosmic gate
I have been interested in the different ways to capture thoughts I have but with the wave of AI nonsense I have seen stuff which seriously is quite scary. With my focus on local AI control, I found the Pebble index 01 an interesting proposition.
So I bought the Pebble index 01, as an external trigger for local recording. I thought it would be useful, as I like the idea and found speech to text very useful generally when trying to spell words or sharing my thoughts. However the problem always tends to be is getting my phone out trigger the recorder. In a world where phones are regularly being stolen on streets, the less I use my phone in public the better really.
Some may say, your watch can do a great job at this and I agree, I did install quick voice notes. But I noticed something of a unique case, which relates to something I’ve been thinking about for a long while.
After coming out of hospital and watching likely too much Inception on repeat (although I also had read about dreams previously), I had a long think about dream sharing via mydreamscape. What got me thinking is dream capturing is a nightmare, as you usually have to switch a light on, shaking you out of your slightly relaxed state. Most people use a note pad next to the bed or even record their quick recap on their phones. The phone requires the screen to be turned on causing you to be more awake than you might like again.
The Index 01 can be worn during sleep and when in a slight awaken state could be used to record a dream for a few minutes. Then sync it to the phone and turned into editable text using a chosen remote or local LLM. On top of this all, the whole thing can be encrypted to keep all those interesting dreams secret.
Who knows maybe I’ll give it a try and if my thoughts are right, setup a prototype with a Anytype project/template.
To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.“
Ian thinks: This interview with GetReal is honestly incredibly difficult and NSFW listen to. It certainly digs in to how the AI tools from the likes of Grok and Meta is have not only caused the deep-fake dilemma people have predicted for years. But also a crisis for those trying to report and stop them.
Ian thinks: On a similar point, Channel 4’s breakdown of what happened in the Ceuta migrant crisis, is a good solid watch. Watching it made super clear how disinformation is a real killer and how clearly thoughts about its weaponisation has long become a reality. Sadly its only going to get far worst.
Ian thinks: The EFF, are great for tools which help so many people understand the nuances of the digital surveillance state we find our selves in now. I would love to see tools like this become something which is shared with others organisations across the world.
Ian thinks: I have a lot of time for Blane, I have come across he quite a lot and his thoughtful mind is perfect for this conversation. A little bit of what Twitter could have been but not the nostalgia nonsense I occasionally still here, but forks in the road where decisions could have made something much closer to what social looks like now.
Ian thinks: This interview on Jon Steward’s weekly show with Cory Doctorow is full of amazing insight about our lives with AI. I only started reading Doctorow’s Reverse Centaur’s Guide to Life After AI, but I won’t lie I budged it to the top my reading list after watching this. Even if you are fed up of hearing about AI, this is a must read.
Ian thinks: The digital public space or the public service internet. Both have been tried but like always, its about the timing. Maybe New_Public have it right this time? As there are a lot of events in the states which could really need stronger local news and communities. One to keep an eye on.
Ian thinks: I respect the points about trusted place especially when looking at the awful nightmare of Facebook marketplace. IKEA seem to be doing a solid for buyers and sellers. However I wonder about the centralisation of this all. There is a number of power plays they could put into action but time will tell, how successful it will be and how much control they will unleash? Dare I say enshittification…?
Ian thinks: Following the Louis Threoux documentary about the Manosphere, the notion of grifting became a lot more common to most the internet users. Grifting isn’t anything new but the ecosystem which has grown around it is something super charged by the physiological super weapons of Gen AI. As usual the companies and people selling the tools are also benefitting off griffters. Just like people selling shoves during the gold rush.
Ian thinks: As someone writing a book and building a new type of system to make connections more meaningful; I have found a lot of discussion about how straight dating is broken beyond repair, including one from the same Vox channel. This interview summaries a lot of the thoughts I have about this space. Yes its slightly broken (always was) but its turned up to 11 and echoed by the internet/social algorithms. Its not good and its a clear example of the real human effects, adding to the loneliness epidemic; even in part.
I recently posted this on linkedin. It came from an email conversation with Alex DS and my experiences with applying for jobs recently.I’ll say it again, Alex is extremely smart and been a fantastic person to talk with about so many things, especially the rights and wrongs of the tech industry.
A month ago, I remembered something fundamental: my network matters far more than applications sent into the void of public job boards.
Thanks to Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino for the wise words again and the nudge!
I’m finally putting this into action…
I’m seeking roles inspired by four core strengths I bring to the table:
🔹 Declarative Development – xHTML, CSS, SVG, #XML, RDF, #Linked Data, Semantic Web. I’m a declarative coder at heart, specialising in this space. Data privacy and management are non-negotiable.
🔹 Project Leadership – Planning, leading, and nurturing projects from early development, through securing funding, all the way to public launch.
🔹 Real-World AI Advising – Beyond the hype! I combine academic rigour with hands-on experience running local, private #AI systems on regular open-source systems. I’m also a strong advisor on technology, design, and data-related projects.
🔹 Leading, Lecturing & Teaching – #UX research and future media development (object-based, adaptive and perceptive media). I’m passionate about shifting from #HCI (Human Computer Interaction) to an #HDI (Human Data Interaction) mindset, with a focus on alternative metrics grounded in human values, sustainability and good human incentives.
If you know of opportunities, teams, or conversations that align with any of these areas, or if you’d just like to connect and exchange ideas (especially around digital legacy, ethically connecting people or the digital public space), I’d love to hear from you.
Open to remote, hybrid, or in-person opportunities.
Feel free to comment or send me a DM. And if you think someone else should see this, I’d appreciate the re-share…
Its clear this post connected with quite a few people, and I have booked in talks with quite a few people…
Enjoy the incredible lasers and even fire balls! Heck the firestarter is back?
The null sector organisers are incredible and the audio isn’t straight from the desk, so you can sense how crystal clear the sound system was. Even some of the videos friends recorded, with a phone are pretty clear.
The whole set was done on the Pacemaker device, but I’ll certainly be using the Drift Zero if I’m back in 2 or 4 years time.
The hardest part I have found is my tunes are from all over, going from Rave stuff from the late 90’s to more recent stuff with decent metadata. Some of it is recorded at as low as 192k to 320k but some at a sampling rate of 32, 44 and 48khz. However the current and previous firmware’s have had problems with different sampling rates.
This will get fixed but for now I spent a lot of time trying to work out what is a problem with my music collection and what is a bug.
I recently was working this out in a coffee shop over a pour over coffee and I had some interesting questions and comments about the Drift Zero. Its certainly eye catching and like my prototype one before, I had some really interesting comments from the public. Looking forward to a long train journey to Amsterdam again on the Eurostar in November or the long international flight to Canada in October.
I’m finally at a happy place where I can do a mix and be confident the tunes in the library will play and can be mixed. So hopefully you will my first proper mix, although I’m also going to convert all my nux tunes to Opus audio to see how that changes everything,
Ian Forrester, founder of QS-Manchester back in the day, gave a fascinating talk a couple of weeks ago at EMF Camp on machine-readable wishes: applying the logic of automation rules to the question of what should happen to your personal data after you die. Ian’s talk made me think about my personal archives in a different way. He makes the case that a personal archive should contain executable instructions and provides an open-source framework to help you do this without entangling yourself even further in rent-seeking cloud services.
I do think Gary, has the right idea. Machine readable wishes could be used to connect items and (for example) open source data sets for the public research. Or more realistically, create a custom last note to friends and family. Imagine leaving a beautiful infographic of the key moments in your life which were super meaningful to you. I am always reminded of Fabio who tracked all his conversations. Imagine if that conversation after the Quantified self was so impactful and then 40 years later you have a message reminding you how much it meant to the person who recently passed?
Ok bit far out or even creepy, but I was reminded of someone who helped me through my divorce without really knowing how impactful it was to me at the time. Sadly I think that person died.
I do have a markdown document of all the key moments in my life using the markwhen syntax. It wouldn’t take a lot to convert the document to something more readable then provide a few lines in my machine readable wishes to convert it into something beautiful to maybe part of the funeral booklet/order of service; if my executors allow it.
