Linked List: April 8, 2020

Wednesday, 8 April 2020

Stephanie Farr, writing for The Philadelphia Inquirer:

If Danny DeVito was an Italian grandma from South Philly who made red gravy three times a week, he’d be Dolores Paolino.

Blunt as a pickax handle with a fierce fervor for White Claw hard seltzers, the 4-foot-5 Paolino earned the nickname “Dolly Broadway” growing up in South Philly, where she spent every night out on the town. “I was a party animal,” Paolino said. “It’s a shame kids don’t know that kind of fun today.”

Now 86, Paolino — under her nickname — has once again earned a reputation for partying, but this time it’s on social media, where she’s got more than 1.2 million followers on TikTok and more than 5,000 on Instagram.

She’s the most Philly Philadelphian I’ve ever seen.

How Jigsaw Puzzles Are Made ★

Amie Tsang, writing for The New York Times:

The rush to get hold of a jigsaw puzzle — and even stockpiling by regular enthusiasts — has transformed this quiet hobby and put companies under pressure as demand surges past Christmas levels. […]

Each puzzle piece must be uniquely shaped, to avoid one accidentally fitting into the wrong place. That means 1,000 different shapes for a 1,000-piece puzzle, each drawn by hand by workers. Before a puzzle is cut for the first time, each piece is sketched on a sheet of paper draped over the finished image.

Pieces of metal are then shaped to form an elaborate cookie cutter made just for that jigsaw puzzle; it takes about four weeks to build one. The cutter can be used only a limited number of times before its edges are dulled. It can be resharpened once and must then be discarded. At busy times of the year, the company will go through several cutters a day.

I would not have guessed each puzzle is so labor intensive. I simply assumed each puzzle of the same size was cut with the same pattern. Even having read this I’m not sure why they don’t do it that way. But the machines sure look cool. I’m also curious how they ensure they don’t package up the puzzle with a piece or two missing, which is surely a recipe for driving someone mad.

(I’ve long been curious how Lego does that too — I’ve put together untold dozens of Lego models in my life, and never once had a missing piece in a kit. Sometimes a few extras, but never something missing.)

Jason Snell on the Brydge Pro+ iPad Keyboard With Trackpad ★

Jason Snell, writing at Six Colors:

Still, I figured that the Brydge Pro+ would find an ecological niche to fill. It’s going to be $100 or $120 cheaper than the Magic Keyboard, and will probably offer a more traditional laptop feel than Apple’s cantilevered design.

Unfortunately, none of that matters if Brydge doesn’t get the trackpad right on the Pro+, and I’m sorry to report that it hasn’t. The trackpad on the Pro+ isn’t remotely close to Apple’s trackpads in class. Sometimes I move my finger across the trackpad and the cursor appears, but doesn’t move. Other times it moves, hesitates, and then moves some more. Two-finger scrolling is similarly unpleasant. The result is an imprecise, jerky experience. It’s no good. And there’s no support for navigating between apps via three-finger gestures, either.

I’ve been using the Brydge Pro+ to write this article, and I find myself actively avoiding using the trackpad, because every time I try it, I just end up frustrated.

Federico Viticci:

Unfortunately, have to agree with Jason. I was sent a final production unit a couple weeks ago, and I had all the cursor issues Jason mentions too. Also: no three-finger gestures. I’ll be waiting for the Magic Keyboard.

Aaron Vegh:

I guess Brydge is finding out what most PC trackpad vendors have known for ages: trackpads are hard.

More on Apple’s IS&T Group ★

“IST-Throwaway”, on Hacker News:

Although my experience is several years old, everything in this article rings true. The contracting companies they had us working for were taking a huge cut, the quality of the code they produced was dismal, (as soon as we were no longer allowed to re-write their code major things began breaking almost immediately) and people getting transferred around constantly and having no time to understand any one project was common. (rkho’s comment about their hiring process seeming like it was simply a beard for a nepotistic contractor conversion was something we definitely saw a number of times.)

All in all it was an extremely eye-opening experience. Considering how “do it the Apple way” every other department we interacted with was, being in the IS&T buildings was like landing on an alien planet.

Via Michael Tsai’s updated post, which has a few more links and comments from readers.

A note from a long-time but now former Apple engineer (and long-time DF reader):

Inside Apple, IS&T is pronounced isn’t. As in, the network isn’t up right now.

Assembly Instructions for Apple’s PPE Face Shields ★

Replete with Apple’s typically high-quality illustrations and animations.

Bernie Sanders Drops Out ★

Sydney Embers, reporting for The New York Times:

Mr. Sanders, 78, leaves the campaign having almost single-handedly moved the Democratic Party to the left. He inspired the modern progressive movement with his expansive policy agenda and his impassioned message that “health care is a human right,” and electrified a legion of loyal supporters who wholeheartedly embraced his promise to lift up those who need it most. He also transformed the way Democratic campaigns raised money, eschewing big fund-raisers and instead relying on an army of small-dollar donors.

All true. By exiting now, Sanders leaves this race with his head high. Next up: pull his supporters behind Biden.