matt smith

For anyone that feels a little overwhelmed by 3d modeling tools (like Blender), I recommend TinkerCad.com -- it's web-based, free, and beginner friendly. And despite it's simplicity, it's capable enough to make designs like my wheel repair.

Back when most consumer goods were made of wood and metal, they lasted longer and could be fixed with simple tools. With modern-day plastic junk, we often have to throw things out. A surprisingly benefit of owning a 3d printer, is having a way to repair that stuff.

It's easy to forget how much magical technology we have at our finger tips... like video calls with people across the world, for free! Go back 100 years, and no one would believe your stories about: the internet, smartphones, and GPS navigation 🪄 #EverydayMagic

Some of my favorites challenges... - Build a SaaS app and search engine that can run offline in the browser - Create an image editor (in React) over the weekend - Find a Rubik's Cube solution with no complicated algorithms

Constraints can spark creativity, joy, and unexpected innovations. Here are some ideas you can try...

- Make a video that tells a story in under 10 seconds - Draw a picture without lifting the pen from the paper - Limit your emails to 100 words - Create a pitch deck with a single slide - Go on a week-long vacation with just a backpack - Make a "painting" out of legos

In the process of getting orange (and green) in the right spot, you will break the red and blue, but that's easy to fix. Just spin the white side 180 degrees and do ⬇️⬇️⬆️⬆️ again to put them back, and another 180 turn to line up all the colors again.

The 4th edge is the trickiest. Bring the orange piece down will break the green piece. The solution is to start by putting the green piece in front (where the orange is going to end up). That way, the orange will push the green back into the correct spot, when you do: ⬇️⬇️⬆️⬆️

What do Archer and Arrested Development have in common? 1. Jessica Walter as the mother, and... 2. This shot-for-shot callback scene. Song is "Gypsy: Rose's Turn" (Ethel Merman) youtu.be/byDPXhYETZI?si…

As someone that spent most of his life writing computer software, I empathize. But it seems inevitable that AI is going to automate a lot of work over the next few years: especially for artists and programmers.

The following sounds backlash against generative AI... "These machines were an advantage... one man performed the work of many... the work was inferior in quality." ...but it's actually from Lord Byron's speech defending the Luddites, in 1812. Is history repeating itself?

Situation: There are 9 different ways to log in. "That's confusing! Let's make one simple standard way, that easy for everyone." Result: There are 10 different ways to log in. 🤦

Fun Fact: You can solve a Rubik's Cube with one pattern (a.k.a. algorithm), and it is... - Easy to learn - Surprisingly intuitive - Hard to mess up - Only 4 moves long The pattern is: Down, Down, Up, Up (see video). Comment if you want more details on how it works.

This is what it feels like to use AI tools. They give you super-human abilities. If you're not already using AI (in your job), start today. Saying "I don't use AI" is like saying "I don't use electricity" -- it'll soon be a deal-breaker in (almost) every job interview. #AI

No other language has such a high signal-to-noise ratio, and (by extension) no framework is as delightful to use. My thanks to Yukihiro “Matz” Matsumoto for the elegance and kindness that he infused into the Ruby programming language (@yukihiro_matz)

After decades of software development, dozens of programming languages, and countless frameworks... I still keep coming back to my first love... Ruby on Rails! twobitfool.com/blog/why-i-sti…

I built: my first home, a startup company, and way too much software 😜 I'm very grateful for so many opportunities to make things, and so much support from friends and family. Also, I feel very lucky to have lived through the age when people wrote software. What defines you?

I've been thinking about what drives me, what makes me tick, and here's what I came up with... I am a builder.

Well... here are the percentages of the the US labor force that worked in farming: • 72% in 1820 • 26% in 1920 • 1% in 2020 There will still be software developers, but FAR fewer. And they won't spend much time writing code. They'll be busy driving the #AI "tractors".

AI tools that write code can already perform at the level of a (very) junior programmer, and they continue to improve. What does this mean for the future of software dev jobs?