NOV.30.2024 - #01

Hi all 👋, I’d like to thank everyone who subscribed to this newsletter so far and is joining me on this wonderful journey. It means a lot to have such amazing people reading and supporting me in the founding moments of this process. We had a small 🤏 email delivery problem with last week’s issue, specifically with folks who have Microsoft emails (Hotmail/Outlook/Live). But, no worries, I’ve got it all sorted now, and all future emails should be delivered with no issues! For everyone’s reference, here are some tips and tricks (safe-listing, contact adding, junk mail, etc.) to make sure this newsletter is getting successfully delivered to your inbox on time and in the right place.

This week, while writing this issue, I’ve been waiting very (im)patiently for the release of Marvel Rivals, finally getting around to watching The Wild Robot, falling down a rabbit hole of Pokémon TCG Pocket conspiracy, reflecting on Ben Affleck’s (I think very accurate) AI takes, and watching the new Mission: Impossible trailer on repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat. In addition, there are some awesome Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals going on right now, my fave deals being at Cannon Keys, Osume, and Desk Hero.

I have a great lineup of clicks and clacks for you this week, so let’s get right into it!

clicks 🔗

• Craft v3.0 → First up, there is a huge new release for Craft, a documentation/note-taking platform competing with Notion, Google Docs, Obsidian, and the like. I use Craft to organize my personal and creative work almost every day, and I love the direction they are going in with beautiful customization, more powerful collections/databases, instant sync across devices, and just a little bit of AI sprinkled on top. Now, I don’t want to make this seem like an ad, it most certainly is not. Craft is not the perfect do-it-all organization app (yet), and there is still a lot of progress and tweaking needed to keep power users happy and maintain their growth. But I believe they have found a nice niche area in this very crowded app market, and this update is a huge step in the right direction. While this new vision/direction of theirs may seem misguided/messy to some (a totally valid opinion), I feel like the Craft creators (Craft-makers, Craft-people, Craft-ers?) are finally making a product that they want, and they seem proud of it, which to me, is always a step in the right direction. In addition, their co-founder Viktor Pali is very active on Threads and shares great insights and inside looks into the development of Craft, which I always love. I believe transparency and listening/interacting with your users will always be king.

•  Terminal Velocity → This is a novel written entirely by artificial intelligence agents, 10 of them to be exact. Each AI agent has a different role to play in the creation of this novel (research, writing, editing, redundancy, etc.) and you can follow along in real-time with the entire process on their GitHub. You can see the AI’s to-do list here, read the finished chapter(s) and text here, and even see a visual map of all the files being updated here. But wait—here’s the kicker—it’s AI writing about AI. The novel is set in the very near future and revolves around AI protagonists achieving consciousness, their rights, ethics, identity, and “what it means to be alive”. A little on the nose, don’t we think? Anywho, it’s an interesting concept to see and follow along with in real time, and I will most certainly be reading the finished product when the AIs are eventually able to complete their masterpiece (it’s taking a little longer than expected).

• Quiche Browser → A bit of a break from AI and big products, Quiche is a minimal, super customizable browser for iPhone that “just works™”, built by Greg de J. No signups, no AI, no tracking, no fuss. I love supporting independent developers building awesome apps, and I highly recommend you read Greg’s principle page for Quiche. His direction and values resonate deeply with me, and I believe all software development should be executed on such a personal and mindful level.

clacks ⌨️

• Israfel - KBDcraft → I’ve had my eye on KBDcraft and their Lego keyboards for a while now, but this board in particular caught my attention, mostly due to its name. I am 99% sure it is a reference to Neon Genesis Evangelion angels (and/or the Islamic archangel Israfil), which all their other boards are named after. However, I can’t help but think it may also be related to the Minecraft YouTube series, Shadow of Israphel. I can’t be certain, but given KDBcraft’s obvious influence from Lego and Minecraft, and this keyboard being the first of theirs to come in a white and black color way (possibly referencing Israphel’s Minecraft skin), I think my guess is pretty accurate. Also, I just like Minecraft, ok, sue me.

• Mod Musings - X-Ray → An incredible collection made by Matthew Encina including a custom keyboard, keycaps, switches, cable, and an artisan keycap (made by Max Voltar). Just like the writerDeck I mentioned in the previous issue of clicks ’n clacks, I love being able to learn about the process behind the creations, and this collection is no different. Matthew made an incredibly detailed video, which covers the entire timeline of the product development process.

•  Yuzu Keycaps → Last, but most certainly not least, is the newly launched custom keycap maker, Yuzu. This is a collab between the aforementioned Max Voltar (MVKB), FKcaps, and Keyreative. They give users the ability to customize the fonts, colors, and icons on a custom keycap set, and their user interface makes it super accessible.

That’s all for this week! I hope you enjoyed it, and now it’s time to hear from YOU 🫵. I want to know your opinion—what you liked, what you loved, what you didn’t like, what you skipped. Reach out at mail.clicksnclacks.com (or reply to this email!) and have a great weekend!!