Octopus Thoughts

Why we all work better together when we contribute complementary skills, and why critical optimism is the best of all possible worldviews for our times.

Our first full year of business! Of course, we picked the messiest one we could find. We didn't accomplish everything we'd planned, but we made it through in one piece, which feels like an accomplishment on its own.

Employers are warming up to the idea of remote working, but not everyone is quite ready to trust their employees fully. Instead of resorting to privacy-invading software, it's time to update how we think about our productivity.

For a relatively simple app, Mic Drop took a lot longer than you might think to build. It turns out that there's a lot more to simplicity than there seems—and audio, in particular, is especially complex. Matt explores beneath the surface to share what we've learned from our first foray into macOS app development, from a (mostly) technical perspective.

With the coronavirus pandemic ongoing, it looks like remote working may be here to stay—which means lots and lots of Zoom meetings. Since video calling is our new normal, it’s time we had an etiquette guide for our post-COVID world. Spoiler alert: keep your trousers on and mute your mic.

Mic Drop is a little app for your Mac that makes it super easy to mute (and unmute!) your mic, using a global shortcut or a menu bar control. It's also our very first app, so please forgive us if we use too many exclamation points.

A little late, but there’s no expiration date on thoughtful reflection, right? We take the opportunity to review our first (short!) year in business: what we accomplished, what we didn’t, and where we’re headed next.

Saying you're all about ethics is one thing, but actually quantifying it and holding yourself accountable is another thing entirely. Let's get specific about what "ethical business practices" actually means.

Because it's the 8th of October, of course. It's also Ada Lovelace Day, so basically, it's auspicious all around.

Let's talk about design. And technology. And cephalopods, because we can't always be that serious.