There are 447 blog posts for you to enjoy.
Dark Patterns - the Modern Internet Part 3
January 14, 2026
Have you ever wondered, Why can't websites be built in a way that actually works properly, makes sense, and are truly useful? For example: Facebook (full of problems) - I'm logged in, of course, and looking at my profile page and I used the search to find, for example, all posts with "Marx" - searching for Groucho Marx quote-memes. There are 5 of them. There they are, fully visible, in all their glory, and a 3-button hamburger menu. Oh, but what is that? A menu with only one option? Does that qualify as a menu? Not in my opinion. That one option is to save the post. So, if I want to delete the post I'm looking at, I have to click the post to look at the same post in another view, then I get a menu with many options. Why can't they just put that menu on the previous view of the post? Seriously, building a working website is not rocket science.
Ha! Welcome to the modern web, where billion-dollar companies somehow still can't design a menu that behaves like...you know...a menu.
The thing is, these sites could be built sensibly. They just aren't. And it's not because the engineers don't know how, it's because the entire product philosophy of Big Web is, well, dumb by design.
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Cayambe: High Altitude, Quiet Streets, and a Market That Takes Over
January 10, 2026
Cayambe, Ecuador, also known as San Pedro de Cayambe, was founded in 1824, was reversed in 1851, then reestablished in 1883, and sits at 2839 meters (9285 feet). The town has a population of around 45,000, mostly indigenous people. The town is located in the northern Ecuadoran Andes Mountains and sits on the lower slopes of the Cayambe volcano. The equator is only a few minutes' drive south of town. There is a monument area, but how accurate it is, I don't know, as I didn't go to it. The origin of the name has at least 4 stories, so I'm not even going to delve into that.
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Dark Patterns - the Modern Internet Part 2
January 7, 2026
Have you ever wondered, Why can't websites be built in a way that actually works properly, makes sense, and are truly useful? For example: Facebook (full of problems) - I'm logged in, of course, and looking at my profile page and I used the search to find, for example, all posts with "Marx" - searching for Groucho Marx quote-memes. There are 5 of them. There they are, fully visible, in all their glory, and a 3-button hamburger menu. Oh, but what is that? A menu with only one option? Does that qualify as a menu? Not in my opinion. That one option is to save the post. So, if I want to delete the post I'm looking at, I have to click the post to look at the same post in another view, then I get a menu with many options. Why can't they just put that menu on the previous view of the post? Seriously, building a working website is not rocket science.
Ha! Welcome to the modern web, where billion-dollar companies somehow still can't design a menu that behaves like...you know...a menu.
The thing is, these sites could be built sensibly. They just aren't. And it's not because the engineers don't know how, it's because the entire product philosophy of Big Web is, well, dumb by design.
Read More
Otavalo: Quiet Streets, Courteous Drivers, and a Surprise from Mexico
January 5, 2026
Otavalo, or by its formal name - San Luis de Otavalo, is located in the north-central Andes Mountains a bit south of the border with Colombia. The city sits in a river valley at an elevation of about 2500 meters (8200 feet). The largest percentage of the population is made up of the Otavalo indigenous people. The city has a population of around 42,000 as of 2022. This small city is famous for its indigenous crafts market. It is the largest such market of indigenous crafts in Ecuador. It is located in, and fills in its entirety, a 1-block-square plaza called Plaza de Ponchos. During the day the plaza is jam-packed with vendors selling all types of hand-crafts from jewellry to ponchos (of course), clothing, blankets, hats, and much more. There are photos in the photo album.
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Roldanillo at 450: A Town That Learned How to Last
January 1, 2026
In 2026, Roldanillo turns 450 years old.
That alone earns it a pause, a chair in the shade, and maybe a second cup of coffee. Because towns don't reach 450 by accident. Roldanillo wasn't born as a tourist postcard, or an art destination, or a paragliding magnet. Like most enduring Latin American towns, it began as something far more modest and far more difficult: a survival experiment.
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