2023.01.31.

Bookmarked “multi“.

Create a custom, lightweight macOS app from a group of websites.

It’s like a modern version of Fluid app.

Bookmarked “Auxl“.

Auxl is a native API client for macOS. Its powerful node based system provides a whole new way to organise, test, and develop APIs.

2023.01.30.

The Open in Kaleidoscope Service

The Services menu is getting a well deserved love from the Kaleidoscope blog:

The Services menu, originally part of NeXTSTEP, was introduced to the Mac with the advent of OS X in 2001. Throughout the entire history of OS X (now called macOS), Services never received a lot of love or major updates. Luckily, Services continues to work to this day and can be remarkably helpful.

One of the things I like about LaunchBar is its integration with the Services menu. There is no need to install a bunch of LaunchBar plugins; you can simply reuse already provided system services and share extensions from installed apps.

Add to Kaleidoscope

2023.01.28.

2023.01.27.

2023.01.20.

Twitter Officially Bans All Third-Party Apps

Twitter today confirmed that it is no longer permitting third-party developers to create Twitter clients, with the information quietly shared in an updated developer agreement that was spotted by Engadget. A new clause under Restrictions says that developers are not able to “create a substitute or similar service or product to the Twitter Applications.”

The continued genius of Space Karen just impresses me.

This is the final nail in the coffin of Twitterrific and Tweetbot. These were great apps!

2023.01.11.

2023.01.09.

Learn about how I use OmniFocus

I got a chance to talk on The Omni Show about how I use OmniFocus:

In this episode, we’re joined by Zsolt Benke, a developer from Pécs, Hungary. More than a decade ago, Zsolt started his coding life on the Web, designing and building WordPress sites. Now, he works in both web and iOS development. In his spare time, Zsolt enjoys blogging about productivity and technology, and co-hosting the podcast Agyvihar.

I think it has turned out to be a cool episode. I mentioned a couple of tricks and tips from my current system based on GTD. I hope you’ll like it!

2022.12.29.

Getting the URL of the selected note in Apple Notes

I figured out how to get the built-in Apple Notes URL for the selected note in Hookmark (or in any app that can run Apple Scripts), so I can replace the default Hookmark script, which is a bit cumbersome.

I have a detailed write-up about the script’s inner workings in the Hookmark forums. It can be helpful even if you don’t use Hookmark. You can modify the script to copy the URL to the clipboard.

2022.12.23.

2022.12.19.

2022.10.31.

2022.06.24.

2022.04.04.

2022.04.03.

2022.03.21.

2022.03.08.

2022.02.23.

Bookmarked “Winnie Lim » this website as a learning and reflection tool“:

This website is essentially a repository of my memories, lessons I’ve learnt, insights I’ve discovered, a changelog of my previous selves. Most people build a map of things they have learnt, I am building a map of how I have come to be, in case I may get lost again. Maybe someone else interested in a similar lonely path will feel less alone with my documented footprints. Maybe that someone else would be me in the future. Maybe all of this would be interesting when I am dead, assuming I find a way to keep this site alive.

2022.01.31.

Portable thoughts is a website built using a single HTML file.

It simply uses URL #fragments and the :target CSS selector to show and hide “pages”. The result is a self-contained website, digital book, interactive document, or whatever you want to call it.

So, you have a single HTML file that contains everything and is easily navigable without any JavaScript by just showing and hiding sections via CSS. This is smart.

I don’t know what I’m going to use this idea yet, but it will be useful one day.

2022.01.30.

2021.12.22.

A deep dive into an NSO zero-click iMessage exploit: Remote Code Execution

The whole thing is fascinating, but this part just blows my mind. Very smart and really terrifying.

JBIG2 doesn’t have scripting capabilities, but when combined with a vulnerability, it does have the ability to emulate circuits of arbitrary logic gates operating on arbitrary memory. So why not just use that to build your own computer architecture and script that!? That’s exactly what this exploit does. Using over 70,000 segment commands defining logical bit operations, they define a small computer architecture with features such as registers and a full 64-bit adder and comparator which they use to search memory and perform arithmetic operations. It’s not as fast as Javascript, but it’s fundamentally computationally equivalent.

The bootstrapping operations for the sandbox escape exploit are written to run on this logic circuit and the whole thing runs in this weird, emulated environment created out of a single decompression pass through a JBIG2 stream. It’s pretty incredible, and at the same time, pretty terrifying.