Tinyblocks Minimal iPhone Setup Guide... a review

Auto-generated description: A minimal iPhone setup guide is shown, featuring a smartphone screen with the date, time, and weather information.

Had I known that I could connect a Bluetooth mouse to my iPhone and use the pointer to reorganize my Homescreen I would have done that a long time ago. Apparently, this has been a feature since iOS 13, and later added to iPadOS 13.4. I know that using a pointer on my iPad is quite useful, but it never occurred to me to think I could do the same on my iPhone. As luck would have it, a fix found me!

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When I came across Tinyblock’s Minimal iPhone Setup guide in a toot on Mastodon I was intrigued. It’s always taken so much time to organize, group icons into folders, set up the right widgets, and whatnot. Then you have to swipe around or open folders or, even worse, search to find an app. The Minimal iPhone Setup Guide promised an entirely new way to interact with my iPhone.

IMPORTANT: This guide requires certain features available in iOS 18 not earlier versions, so keep that in mind.

After donating a fiver* to the author I was redirected to the guide. I’d never seen anyone deliver an experience using Notion before, and I was pleased with the experience. It works more like a slide deck app than just some hokey web page, and the formatting is nice and clean. The guide walked me through the steps of how to set up their concept of a Minimal iPhone Homescreen and had it set up in a total of about 15 minutes.

*NOTE: The author lets you set the price you’d like to pay for their work. I chose $5 US, and I felt that was perfectly fair. I ask that you consider a similar donation for their effort.

The result is almost indistinguishable from a standard homescreen setup, but the added functionality is transformative. Using a clever combination of Focus modes, Shortcuts, and various iOS standards like the Dock, Lock Screen, and Control Center, you can configure a wide range of easily customizable dashboards that suit your needs in the moment. And, at least for four of these, at a single touch when placed in the Dock (as shown in the image below).

Auto-generated description: A series of smartphone home screens display various app icons organized in different folders and layouts over a space-themed wallpaper.

Left to right are my Dashboard, Blogging, Finances, and Multimedia pages, each accessed by a single tap to the icons in the dock. If you look closely, you’ll note that the icon that appears next to the time roughly corresponds to the icon on the dock the page is associated with. The reason they are slightly different has nothing to do with the guide, but iOS. Focus and Shortcuts do not use the same icon sets. It’s as simple as that. It would be nice if Apple were to fix that…

With this setup, I only have two folders (top left on my Blogging Focus) for things I need access to, but don’t open very often. That means everything I use regularly is no more than two taps away or otherwise inside a folder, and often just the one tap to launch. And I can still Swipe Right to get the Today view and Swipe Left to get the App Library in each of the Focus modes.

For the first few days I found myself swiping like my old setup, but I soon got used to that and now I’m fully on-board with this new approach to accessing apps. I highly recommend it to anyone who’s tired of swiping and searching.

For additional details, head over to the Tinyblocks website.

PS: This is an entirely independent review. Tinyblocks has not asked for this review nor have I offered them to review it before posting.

Bloat... a film review

🍿 Bloat (2025)

Bloat poster

Tedious. Annoying. Unless you have some unnatural fondness for the very particular sub-sub-genre of horror known as “screen life”, which itself is a derivative of the mostly frustrating found footage sub-genre, then you will not like this film. I could barely get through ten minutes.

Conclusion: Don’t bother.

Editor’s Note: I’ve decided this is not the format for me, so I’m reposting this in my preferred format. It’s the exact same text, so if you’ve read this, you don’t need to see the other. It’s literally just a different format. -TKN

Hottest Trash Anime Master List - Winter 2025

Auto-generated description: An anime character with long blonde hair is drinking from a bottle next to the bold text Hottest Trash against a fiery background.

It’s that time again! Every three months, or “cour” as seems to be the preferred terminology, Geoff Thew puts out his guides for Best and Worst #anime of said season. This round is for the trash. Enjoy! www.youtube.com/watch

Isekai Slop Buffet

  • Possibly The Greatest Alchemist of All Time
  • Headhunted to Another World: From Salaryman to Big Four!
  • The Daily Life of a Middle-Aged Online Shopper in Another World
  • Magic Maker: How to Make Magic in Another World
  • I’m a Noble on the Brink of Ruin So I Might as Well Try Mastering Magic
  • Promise of Wizard
  • The Red Ranger Becomes an Adventurer in Another World

I Can’t Believe it’s Not Isekai

  • Solo Leveling
  • Farmagia
  • Even Given the Worthless Appraiser Class, I’m Actually The Strongest
  • I Left My A-Rank Party To Help My Former Students Reach The Dungeon Depths
  • Bogus Skill Fruit Master: About That Time I Became Able to Eat Unlimited Numbers of Skill Fruits That Kill You
  • I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time

Regular Fantasy Garbage

  • ĂśbelBlatt

Horny and Haremy

  • I’m Living With an Otaku NEET Kunoichi
  • Baban Baban Ban Vampire
  • I Want to Escape from Princess Lessons
  • Anyway, I’m Falling in Love With You
  • Medaka Kuroiwa is Impervious to My Charms
  • The Hundred Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really Love You
  • I’m Getting Married to a Girl I Hate in My Class

Main Courses

  • Grisaia Phantom Trigger
  • Momentary Lily
  • Beheneko: The Elf Girl’s Cat is Secretly an S-Rank Monster

The tea on the Framework 2nd Gen 2025 event

So, the #Framework event just ended and here’s the breakdown:

  • Updated Framework 13
  • More work on Framework 16
  • Introduced Framework Desktop
  • Showed Desktop 4-board cluster case
  • Introduced Framework 12 Convertible

For additional deets, click through. #tech #righttorepair youtu.be/dnCGwii7F…

Let’s dig in… First off, the Framework 13" laptop has been updated for 2025 with new translucent bezels (including the crucial Atomic Purple) and AMD Ryzen AI 300 series APUs. Framework is also working on updating the Framework 16" laptop with new large key stabilizers to eliminate noise and a new one-key module (more on that when I can get onto the website). The keyboard is also being updated with a Copilot logo, or without any Microsoft keys if you opt for the DIY models, and they have also shown off that they are working on an orthollinear design for fans of that layout. Pricing for the new Framework 13" starts at $899 for the DIY model and $1,099 for the pre-built.

For the new products they first announced 4.5L desktop system. Still maintaining the Framework Right-to-Repair ethic but leveraging existing desktop PC standards, the new system features AMD’s new Ryzen AI Max processor and comes in 32, 64, and 128GB RAM options. The RAM is soldered for the fastest possible speed, but prices remain reasonable at $1,099, $1,599, and 1,999, respectively. The desktop is available for pre-order now and the first batch will start shipping in Q3 of 2025.

The 32GB model comes with a Ryzen AI Max 385 8-core CPU, 32 graphics cores, two M.2 2280 NVMe storage slots, Wifi 7, a choice of Cooler Master and Noctua 120MM fans, and two slots on the front for Frameworks expansion cards, which are the same as the cards that are used on their laptops. The 64GB and 128GB models come with the AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 16-core CPU, 40 graphics cores, and everything else that comes with the 32GB model.

They also showed off a cluster case that can take up to four Desktop boards and work as a desktop cluster for advanced operations. And on the lighter side, the front plate of the standard desktop case can take up to seven customizable or 3D printed tiles in various colors and logos.

Finally, they announced the new Framework 12" Convertible Touchscreen laptop with pen support. Other than stating that it comes Intel’s 13th gen mobile processors, but no other specifications. From the presentation and the sizzle reel on the product page however, I can see that this smaller device will have four expansion card slots like the Framework 13. Unfortunately there are no additional details, specs, pricing, or precise timing, but they are confident it will ship before the end of this year.

I’ve posted a few images from the presentation and the 12" model sizzle reel as well as a link to the AMD version of the live stream already set to start when the presentation does. I will update this post as additional details are available.

Teetering on the edge and reaching back for helping hands

Auto-generated description: Two people are in the image, with one person standing behind the other, both looking toward the camera.

I don’t believe anyone relishes the idea of having to ask for help from strangers. We like to feel personally empowered, in control of our fates, and capable, but reality has a tendency to care little for our personal desires. While we have been blessed for many years to be able to keep a roof over our heads, we’ve come close to disaster a few times. This is one of those times.

I will neither embellish nor sugarcoat. We need to raise around $7,000 to wipe our debt clean with the mobile home park we live in, and I need to ask for that help from strangers in order to raise that much. We’ve been able to pay our mortgage, car note, and bills, but have fallen behind on the lot rent. I have asked what little family I have remaining, but they aren’t in a position to help much. With the message I am also asking my friends to pitch in, and a few already have in the way they can.

But here’s the thing. I’m not willing to ask people to give what they can. In fact, I’m not willing to ask people to give more than $1. There is a fairness to this, I believe. It levels the playing field and eliminates the imbalance of imposing a burden on others to save my family. So, that’s what I’m asking, for you to go to my Ko-Fi page and grant to me $1 a month. If you send more, as there is a facility to do so, I will return it. I’m not asking for more money from individuals. I’m asking for more individuals to give one, simple, plain, uncomplicated dollar.

The more who do so, the more we’ll have. If those who contribute their $1 ask others they know to do the same, and that continues outward, then with a few thousand contributors, we’ll have the funds we need to save our home and my little family without burdening anyone. That is my goal.

We’re a simple family. My wife and I have been writers for decades and we were blessed with a daughter whom, after discovering she is Autistic and has epilepsy, remains an only child. And despite her challenges she achieved her Associates Degree at a local college and is an accomplished artist. And yet she still faces difficulties, so we have dedicated our lives to protecting her. And at the same time, we deal with our own issues. My wife has had all of one and most of the other adrenal glands removed for benign tumors, suffers from Cushing’s Disease, and has had various other surgeries with complicated names I can never remember.

I am a structural mess having been diagnosed with degenerative disc disease in 1988 and having a motorcycle accident in 1990, I’m starting to feel it in at 56 years old. I have had a knee replaced and will likely need to get the other one done, a cervical spinal fusion, and will need to get an arm bone shortened to relieve intense wrist pain. And we all caught Covid in February 2020 when I was still driving for Lyft in LA and Orange County. I had Shingles at the time, as well. That was fun. And I now suffer from a range of Long Covid symptoms and have been going through rounds of testing to for my own Cushing’s Disease. Fate can be cruel.

There are additional societal and political issues at play in 2025, but I won’t bother going into those. Suffice it to say that we may face additional existential challenges in an uncertain future. Our need is simple. Our request for help is simple. Again, all I ask is that you go to my Ko-Fi page and agree to contribute one, single, solitary dollar to us on a monthly basis and share this plea so that others might do the same. If enough do so, then we will have what we need to survive.

And again, if you send more, I’ll send it back. If we get a lot more $1 subscribers than we need, then we’ll donate the extra to others who need help or organizations that benefit those whom are othered or deemed less worthy. We are all human beings. We all deserve to have a place to call home and a little recognition, regardless of who we are, what we look like, what language we speak, who we love, or what we think or believe.

I thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Tyler

PS: You might note that my Ko-Fi page is named Dollarnomics. I have written two articles about this concept. The first one is here and the second one is here.

Adventures in finding enough

Auto-generated description: A comic-style image depicts Batman slapping Robin, with speech bubbles showing them saying OW THAT HURT and SORRY.

#writing • Someone on the internet I have never met just poked me. So hard that it hurt. Her name is Liz and I forgive her because she didn’t poke me personally. I might even liken it to jabbing myself, and all because she defined the word “enough” in my context.

Things you can do instead of watching America being peacefully handed over to a criminal - Inauguration Special 2025

Don’t watch the news today since all they’ll be talking about is how great and normal it is to just hand an entire country over to a criminal in the name of a democracy that’s been utterly broken and shreaded. If that leaves you unsure of what to do instead, here are some suggestions:

  • Listen to some music. I’ve been sharing my album plays, and here’s a list of them that I refresh a few times a week. tylerknowsnothing.com/nothing-m…
  • Go for a walk
  • Spend time with friends
  • Play a game like a board game, video games, or get into table-top role-playing games (TTRPG), or even just a few dozen rounds of poker
  • Read a book like Isaac Asimov’s Robot series, many of which are murder mysteries. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robo…
  • Nap in a patch of sunlight or next to a warming fire with your kids and/or pets
  • Bake something like biscuits or pie or some nice, big potatoes and stuff them with cheese, bacon, sour cream, and chives, or whatever you like
  • Help out at your local homeless shelter or donate some old clothes to families in need
  • If you can afford it, slap a few hundred bucks on a gift card, go to that store, and pay for everyone until it runs out
  • Stop and smell some roses
  • Watch a movie or three like The Wild Robot (2024 on Apple TV, Google Play, Amazon Prime and more)
  • Write something nice on a pad of paper about nice and/or hopeful for yourself or someone you like
  • Get out an old computer and install Linux Mint and engage in some joyful technological discovery. linuxmint.com
  • Go out on a thrift shop crawl in your local area and buy some old things to give them a new home

And if you must watch TV, then allow me to suggest one of the single most joyful and affirming shows ever made;l Netflix’s Somebody Feed Phil. You will not regret it. Well, you’ll regret having trouble eating the food Phil eats, unless you live in one of the cities he’s covered.

Feel free to submit your own lists of things to do other than watch the news today. #animation #comics #manga #film #movies #linux #music #retrocomputing #humanrights #civilrights #scifi #tech #videogames #writing

$15 a month for a single newsletter is unsustainable

An animated GIF of a clip showing Jimmy McMillan arguing that the rent is too damn high.

#journalism #dollarnomics #editorial - Tyler K. Nothing reporting.

DATELINE INTERNETOPIA - #Substack has created a mythology in the form of the $15 a month newsletter. The claim was that it would help support independent writers who have been driven out of organized news gathering by capitalist greed’s desire to “trim the fat” (meaning people who cost money they’d rather have in their Cayman bank accounts), but the model is unsustainable. In reality, all it does is net Substack more revenue.

BEST Anime of Winter 2025 - Ones to Watch (Mother's Basement on YouTube)

The following is the complete list of shows mentioned in Geoff’s latest Best of Anime seasonal videos. Watch the linked YouTube video for details on each anime series –> www.youtube.com/watch

  • Sakamoto Days (Netflix)
  • Medalist (Hulu, Disney+)
  • Ameku MD Doctor Detective (Crunchyroll)
  • OKITSURA: Fell in Love with an Okinawan Girl, but I Just Wish I Knew What She’s Saying (Crunchyroll)
  • I Have a Crush at Work (Crunchyroll)
  • Honey Lemon Soda (Crunchyroll)
  • The Red Ranger Becomes an Adventurer in Another World (Crunchyroll)
  • Flower and Asura (HiDive)
  • From Bureaucrat to Villainess: Dad’s Been Reincarnated (HiDive)
  • Zenshu (Crunchyroll)

The Bargain Bin:

  • Tasokare Hotel (YouTube, Prime Video)
  • Sora-Iro Utility (HiDive)
  • I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I’ll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time (Crunchyroll)
  • Welcome to Japan, Miss Elf (Crunchyroll)
  • Beheneko: The Elf Girl’s Pet Cat is Secretly an S-rank Monster (HiDive)
  • Anyway, I’m Falling in Love With You (Crunchyroll)
  • Aquarion: Myth of Emotions (Crunchyroll)

#animation #anime #TV #Winter2025

Potential actual Switch 2 joycon images leaked?

First, watch the linked video to get the scope of the leaks so far, if you haven’t been tracking them already: www.youtube.com/watch #videogames #nintendo #switch2 #leaks