PODCAST · technology
Back to Work
by 5by5
Back to Work is an award winning talk show with Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin discussing productivity, communication, work, barriers, constraints, tools, and more.
Episodes
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Episode 644: A Tony Bennett Hair Hat
An important discussion about aging as examined and explained through the lens of James Howlett.
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Episode 643: The Price of Lies
Merlin thinks LLMs have raised the bar for voice assistants in general and Siri in particular. Dan and his kid watch the excellent HBO series, Chernobyl. Merlin’s weird, truncated contexts in Things.
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Episode 642: A Better Roll of Toilet Paper
Your hosts discuss facial hair, notebooks, the metric system, flexing about local weather, and becoming the bathroom supplies you want to see in the world.
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Episode 641: Germans in the Wild
Travel is not always about traveling, but it is definitely always about your life.
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Episode 640: Bob's Big Mess
A classic odds n' sods episode. Plus, Merlin has thoughts about memory and ecosystems, and Dan is considering jetting through an eclipse.
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Episode 639: The Commodore's Club
Dan talks about what he's learned from traveling a bunch, and Merlin thinks a lot of weirdness comes from our twin fears of boredom and inconvenience.
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Episode 638: A New Kind of Bullet
A classic odds n' sods episode.
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Episode 637: The Minimally Viable Log Cabin Channel
Merlin conducts a deep dive on being busy versus being time-constrained, and Dan has some updates on his task management odyssey.
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Episode 636: Honoring My Pivot Table
Dan is navigating the landscape of task management apps, and, shockingly, Merlin has some thoughts.
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Episode 635: Buffet de Canard
Dan and Merlin kick off the new year with a wide-ranging look at how tools and motivations evolve with how we work.
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Episode 634: Nominally Future-Resistant
A fairly epic episode covering health tracking and self-quantization. Remember: data doesn't have to hurt.
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Episode 633: A Self-Aware Old Man
Your hosts talk about how we perceive the world and the challenge of mindfully updating our perceptions.
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Episode 632: Big Strong Beef Boy
Dan and Merlin are excited about technologies that have found a place in their lives. What a blessed season of thanks! Runner-Up Titles: A Lot of Their Unhappiness Came from Me The Smell of a 15-Year-Old My Trans Daddy is a Fox Las Vegas Poops
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Episode 631: Little Bit of Dirty Grey
Merlin has more on generative AI, and Dan has a sweet new watch.
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Episode 630: Monchichabowsky
On AI and curiosity.
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Episode 629: Benjamin Franklin's Disease
And and Merlin have a wide-ranging discussion.
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Episode 628: Beating Yourself Up at Scale
Talk of eyes, intentionalities, and HDMI.
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Episode 627: Unscheduled Dirt Event
Merlin claims he's not going to do any work for this one, and Dan has some advice for travelers.
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Episode 626: Chekhov's Lightsaber
Your hosts catch up on some great media, and Merlin expounds on the magic of Channels. Also, Merlin logrolls a recent podcast episode and re-extolls the power of dictation.
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Episode 625: Chapters of Madness
Dan and Merlin have a wide-ranging discussion.
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Episode 624: Rectangle Time
Dan and Merlin have a wide-ranging discussion about technology, and Merlin lays the groundwork for several spirited rants.
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Episode 623: My Terrible Adhesion
Over the course of this classic Odds n' Sods episode, it becomes clear that all Merlin cares about is babies and 3D printing.
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Episode 622: A Gentleman's Malt Liquor
Dan returns from a nice trip, and Merlin has been printing lizards.
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Episode 621: Hairy Legs and the Whole Nine
You’re either early or you’re late; leave time for a flat tire; have you tried melatonin?; a new search engine and some enthusiasm for blogs.
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Episode 620: Happy to be a Chair
With Merlin on the mend, your hosts discuss actors named Hurt, comic books, and old Macs.
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Episode 619: A Beautiful Jam-Up
DISCUSSED: A self-hypnosis recommendation leads to another look at meditation (as well as not-meditation), plus Merlin has a few more beta finds that contribute to the Tiny Life Improvement Project.
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Episode 618: The Living Room Test
DISCUSSED: Dan sets up his little office, your hosts talk about the new Apple dingus, and Merlin highlights some strong OS updates.
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Episode 617: Trailer for the Future
Dan needs your help with a flooring dilemma, and your hosts share some thoughts on WWDC announcements.
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Episode 616: Archipelagos of Functionality
Dan dives deep on his Sonos setup, and Merlin explores official state things.
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Episode 615: An Attractive Nuisance
DISCUSSED: Merlin's family doesn't understand him; an extremely funny TV show is recommended; your hosts address some of the trade-offs that continue to hinder easy smart home adoption; Dan teases a big smart audio episode next week; and Merlin starts trying to tackle an unusual Thought…
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Episode 614: Sloppy Boy
Try to make sure fear is always preceded by curiosity.
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Episode 613: That's Hair and That's Robot
Merlin has a lot of thoughts about AI stuff.
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Episode 612: See All of Your Face
Dan's house continues to get smarter, and Merlin has some very good media picks.
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Episode 611: Running FFMpeg on Myself
Dan has big updates about his smart home setup, and Merlin is getting intimate with a robot.
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Episode 610: Hero Light
DISCUSSED: Steve Buscemi is celebrated, and The Big Lebowski is congratulated; the guys continue their dive into the state of smart home hardware with a focus on switches.
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Episode 609: A Reverse Egg
Dan is curious about AI voice transcription, and Merlin has yet more smart home advice for a new homeowner.
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Episode 608: Charles Entertainment Berry
DISCUSSED: Merlin has some been analyzing a very misleading song about beaches, and Dan has been visiting more with ChadGPT.
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Episode 607: Age of Garbage
DISCUSSED: Dan has a new iPad keyboard, and Merlin is intrigued by ChatGPT. Also, Merlin almost tunes his guitar.
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Episode 606: Goodnight, Night
DISCUSSED: Dan's takes some smart baby steps into home automation, and Merlin has a lot to say about everything.
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Episode 605: A Case for a Life
DISCUSSED: Dan begins a new journey into smart home living, and Merlin is excited about common misconceptions.
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Episode 604: Grandpa's Automation
DISCUSSED: After settling some confusion about Anna Borg, the boys settle into an amble about the state of voice assistants and the future of the theoretically smart home. As ever, Merlin is pretty excited about music, but he also needs your help figuring out where in the hell he got this new...
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Episode 603: A Jaws of Life for Playgrounds
DISCUSSED: Merlin is extremely happy with a suggestion that Dan made, and Dan has a bunch of apps he's excited about.
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Episode 602: Apple Juice Flood
Typing on an iPad, rhyming compulsively, default media, and taking a young foodie out on the town.
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Episode 601: Big Broom
DISCUSSED: Merlin is excited about reading, and Dan sometimes puts his time in a box. Also: Breaking Bad.
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Episode 600: The Trauma of My Chumby
DISCUSSED: Merlin recommends an exciting new beta; Dan gets a new e-reader; and Merlin has a lot to say about taking notes.
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Episode 599: Self-Involved at Scale
DISCUSSED: a classic odds n' sods episode encompassing a missing remote (and a failed system), some wallet FU, cool help with playlist management, unsubscribing in dribs and drabs, and a big-ass RV.
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Episode 598: Chewbacca Credit Union
Merlin is still on Island Time, so discussion is mostly limited to Columbo, Star Wars, Merlin's playlists, Ellsworth, and, of course, wallets.
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Episode 597: The Bronze Hour
DISCUSSED: Dan has a new concern; some thoughts on resistance; Merlin shares a new insight on creativity and sleep; Dan has FU directly from the Nosferatu band; Merlin serves a turducken of suggestions related to text editing; and, finally, Dan needs your advice on wallets, while Merlin makes a...
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Episode 596: Turkey Legs in the Renaissance
DISCUSSED: Merlin is playing with his new dingus; Dan almost talks about wallets; try Tailscale to make your stuff work better together; why you (yes, you) need a VPN; Dan is getting enthused about Obsidian; Merlin is freshly re-enthused about Daytum; and finally Dan is very excited about a…
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Episode 595: Blessèd Vessel
DISCUSSED: Halloween Follow-Up; exit interview for Season 4 of What We Do in the Shadows; how Apple could build users' confidence and stimulate their curiosity with better documentation; Merlin makes his case for spreadsheets as your potential place where stuff goes.
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Back to Work is an award winning talk show with Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin discussing productivity, communication, work, barriers, constraints, tools, and more.
HOSTED BY
5by5
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Back to Work have?
Back to Work currently has 643 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Back to Work about?
Back to Work is an award winning talk show with Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin discussing productivity, communication, work, barriers, constraints, tools, and more.
How often does Back to Work release new episodes?
Back to Work releases new episodes frequently with a large back catalog of 643 episodes. Check the episode list for recent publication dates.
Where can I listen to Back to Work?
You can listen to Back to Work on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Back to Work?
Back to Work is created and hosted by 5by5.
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