176: The Curse of Convenience

Merlin apologizes about the links last week, but John saves the day by picking up the tabs. Follow-up covers listener feedback on CRI and what Gmail's little envelope means. Gmail Keyboard Shortcuts are extolled. John has an update on his Ongoing Appliance Rebellion but has nothing new to share on his Ongoing Toe Rebellion. As a main topic, your hosts dive deep on _spaces_. The places where we live, work, hoard, purge, and hang up just so, *so* many coats. Can there be a taxonomy of spaces that helps us better pursue the lives we'd like to have? Merlin thinks your spaces should be a willing partner (rather than a bossy adversary), while John sees benefits in giving your desk a fresh start (via a fresh attitude). Is it weird to take advice from someone who's terrible at something, or is that maybe sometimes the best teacher you could hope for? Merlin contorts John's "Empathy for the Machine" to make a broader point about what can qualify as a machine. (_Recorded on Tuesday, February 8, 2022_)