Casey Liss, rightfully, chimes in on my camera remarks too.

The reason that no one complained about “badly exposed 35mm prints” is because that was the best (or at the least, most approachable) option at the time, short of spending serious money on a camera body and lenses. Today, one can spend comparatively little money and get a camera setup that is, in my estimation, vastly superior to the iPhone camera.

As someone who just bought a semi-fancy camera for this very reason, I can tell you that I could not possibly be more happy that I did. While I absolutely can take acceptable shots using my iPhone, I much prefer the results from the Olympus. The shots are unequivocally better. I say that as someone who does not have a strong artistic eye.

— On Nerd Elitism — Liss is More

While $600 is pretty dear for a camera by my estimation, I’m not going to throw Casey under the bus for his reasoning. (And I only linked him about the ice because his piece on it is well written, not to attack. He’s too nice of a guy for that.)

My fault for not explaining that my problem with camera talk is talk about the camera rather than the photos you take with it. It’s a problem that isn’t limited to cameras, but it was the jumping-off point my brain towards a larger issue, and I’m glad the responses have picked up on that.

Thanks, Casey.

Álvaro Serrano has a damn good counterpoint to my statement on high-end cameras in geekdom.

I don’t mean that the intensity with which I love photography somehow justifies my obsession, that it’s OK for me to do it because I love it more than you do. Nothing like that. What I mean is that I probably think of photography in a different way than you do. To me, a camera is not just a memory-making machine: it’s a creative tool. It’s not just about capturing moments, it’s about creating the images I see in my head, much like a painter creates an image on an empty canvas.

— On cameras, smartphones, smug superiority and the geek’s pissing contest – Analog Senses

When photography is something you care about, passionately, be it a hobby or a profession, then care about your tools all the way. You’ll want a real camera with all the appropriate kit…

But that doesn’t mean it has to be “the best” camera, either. All it takes is a minimum of manual controls — ISO, aperture and shutter speed — and, depending on your preference as a photographer, the possibility to use interchangeable lenses. That’s it.

The vibe I get from so many blog posts I see on cameras—though not Álvaro’s—isn’t love of photography, it’s about love of cameras. That’s a huge difference, and the sort of thing that irks me.

The only certainty is that ad block is increasingly an issue. Don’t forget that there are numerous blocking techniques on mobile, too, so the shift from desktop to mobile does not implicitly solve anything.

Publishers will address it with a variety of approaches; I expect to see a rise of ad-block-blocking and of circumvention techniques a la Secret Media. These are both antagonistic methods, but will at least add exposure to the issue. I do think that deliberately circumventing the user’s desire is a poor long term choice – it is rare that content is truly unique in the vast expanse that is the internet.

— FairBlocker: A Better Way to Browse

An interesting analysis of the problems with web ads and with ad blocking, with a possible solution.

I use ad blockers across all my browsers, my phone, and my tablet. I’m not happy about it, but the aggressive nature of most web ads is infuriating, and the browser is slow enough already. FairBlocker seems like an interesting solution to the problem, but it seems to suffer from the same issue as Readability’s old business model: how does the content creator actually get their share of the money?

“For many of us, hooked into an abusive relationship with tech, with Twitter, with local and global communities, or even corporate entities, we are constantly walking on eggshells. The toxicity (or implicit threat) of sexism, racism, transphobia, ableism, and poverty leave us feeling utterly isolated and without recourse. Faced with organized infiltration, appropriation and psychological abuse in our online communities, we have stopped believing in our own interpretations of what we experience. We don’t believe our innate reactions are valid. If we are extremely lucky, and not utterly isolated, we rely on the trusted counsel of a few close friends, so that we can periodically reassure ourselves that what we are perceiving and experiencing is real.”

— Flickering the Gaslight: Tactics of Organized Online Harassment by Gersande La Flèche | Model View Culture

The same tools that enable marginalized groups to find each other and unite for their benefit had the problem of exposing them to ever more anonymous abuse. It doesn’t help that so many declarations of harassment are so easily dismissed by those of us in a space of privilege online. Either harassment doesn’t happen to us, or it’s just an inevitable fact of living online. Neither is a valid reaction. The experience of harassment is real, and we owe its victims to find a way to end it.

“The battle between listening to your own body’s needs versus letting technology tell you what your body needs has begun. Call me a Luddite, but I side with your inner voice. When was the last time you wrote in a journal—dear diary—how you felt physically (energy levels), what you ate and your mood two-three hours later; or what you did for exercise (walking included) and used complete sentences? It sounds cheesy, but I’m serious. You owe it to yourself. Tracking calories from your Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup addiction in a food app is not going to solve your problems. Reflecting on how groggy you felt after eating the sugar bomb will.”

— The Dark Side of Your Fitbit And Fitness App – The Daily Beast

An interesting counterpoint to Federico Viticci’s experience with using his iPhone to get back in shape after cancer. I’m trying to drop another 30 pounds, and it’s hard. Calorie tracking got me from 230 to 200, so there’s something to it, but these new tools are still blunt. It would be great to get a better sense of how what I eat and how I move affects me, and I’m terrible at reading myself. My inner voice is the one that says “eat the pudding.”

I do think we’ll get there, eventually, but we shouldn’t lose sight that people managed to get into shape, drop pounds, and be healthy long before we had iPhones and fitness trackers.