1. Merlin's Wisdom Project

Good advice helps you find the solution to your problem. Great advice helps you find you were solving the wrong problem.

2. We Sort snippets

I love a good Commonplace-type archive. Lots of great, short things to explore in this one from Ben at We Sort.

3. Elon Musk’s Worthless, Poisoned Hall of Mirrors

This is X in 2025: Potentially fake accounts crying at other potentially fake accounts that they aren’t real, all while refusing to acknowledge that they themselves aren’t who they say they are—a Russian nesting doll of bullshit.

4. Paper Airplane Designs

A brilliantly simple database of paper airplane designs, categorised by characteristic and difficulty. No notes.

5. The Privacy Rabbit Hole

A good plain-language blog post on privacy. This feels relatable:

If you aren't trying to hide from the FBI, NSA, MI5 or some other 3 letter acronym agency then your “threat model” is probably quite similar to mine.

These are my key concerns:

• I never want to give a company a copy of my identity (passport, driving licence or ID card) unless it is strictly necessary. I can understand for banking to prevent money laundering or for accessing government or medical services, but I am not doing it to access social media or any other user forums or websites. If Netflix starts asking for my ID I will just take my money elsewhere.
• I don't want anyone reading my private messages or phone calls that I have with my wife, family, or friends. I expect that conversation to stay as private as if I had had it in person. The thought of the government or some corporate company reading or scanning my messages is just creepy.
• I don't want any of my files, emails, messages, or other personal information being used to train AI or used for advertising purposes. _. I don't want the government deciding what I can or cannot view as an adult on the internet (excluding illegal content). If I want to learn how to brew beer, I don't expect to be censored or blocked because it is not child appropriate.

What am I up to?

• Almost all of my work comes through collaborations, so I’ve put together a short page that collaborators can share with clients that covers the key things to know about me.
• Reminder that I’m planning to ask some designers about their design process for a new project. If this interests you: who would you want to hear from and what would you like to know?
• I have space for three design consultations each week – a great way to get design feedback without the commitment of a large project
• My next available Unoffice Hour slot is 21 January
• I have limited availability for new projects from January.

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Until next time,

Dave

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