Hosted by Merlin Mann and John Siracusa.
John Siracusa and Merlin Mann try to figure out exactly how they got this way.
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Get an ad-free version of the show, plus a monthly extended episode.Latest Episodes
#196: Less Talk, More Squawk
November 25th, 2022 · 99 minutes
Things kick off with a quick look at the recent TicketMaster dustup. Merlin shares what a "news peg" is, and John has simple ideas for avoiding unnecessary logjams on the web.
As a main topic. upon Merlin's request, John generously provides a tour of his app, SwitchGlass. We learn what itch John was scratching an…
#195: Sloppy Focus
November 12th, 2022 · 103 minutes
Things kick off with about ten minutes of very useful nail clipper talk.
Up next, lots of good listener Follow-Up on the origins of CSS color names, how to pause a TikTok with your meat fingers, plus revealing some scalable methods for finding free money from …
#194: Hard Four
October 28th, 2022 · 89 minutes
Things kick off with John's strident observation of pre-show hygiene, and Merlin struggles to know his Targaryens from his Velaryons and his Valyrians. Merlin has a lot of problem with twins, and John mourns this new generation's lack of respect for proper media queuing. As ever, Merlin's demos are the worst.
There's some brief confusion abou…
#193: The Wrong Helen
October 14th, 2022 · 91 minutes
Things kick off with an ambitious proposal to recognize outstanding work by team members and keep the relationship fresh.
After ticking an item off of his "queue," John leads a nominally rapid-fire round highlighted by a controversial new Secret Weird Things People Do.
Things wrap with a provocative Dog Update in which John leverages the l…
#192: The End Table is Not Your Enemy
September 30th, 2022 · 89 minutes
John has concerns about why his fans are spinning up, and Merlin interrogates his recent obsession with the previous vice president.
The main topic this week concerns a question that's been banging around in Merlin's brain forever: is John inoculated against stress?
Once the usual arguments about wording and meaning have been (mostly) sett…
#191: Love and Cleaning
September 17th, 2022 · 96 minutes
John learns a little about a legendary Hollywood producer, and Merlin may not know how to do his job.
Apple announces some new products, London Bridge is down, and your hosts continue their tour of mini-topics.
#190: Three Whys Later
September 2nd, 2022 · 81 minutes
Things kick off with a brief debate on whether using things wrong makes you a hacker.
In Follow-Up, John has updates on that announcement about dropping a device in a plane seat, and Merlin expresses skepticism about announcements in general.
Then, there's some updates related to the prior discussion of performance reviews. Believe it or not…
#189: The Cutting Edge of Technological Grievance
August 19th, 2022 · 100 minutes
In Follow-Up, John reminds everyone that RecDiffs listeners knew what’s bad about TV stands before any of the normals.
John also shares his Vacation Results—alongside some anthropological observations on the state of air travel in 2022.
Finally, your hosts dig in to the continuing saga of John’s TV.
(Recorded August 9, 2022)
#188: Ten-Year Cleanse
August 6th, 2022 · 65 minutes
This week finds both John and Merlin helping things leave their house.
In our members-only bonus show: John previews vacation planning progress.
Sign up today to get lots of extra stuff and to support our program.
(Recorded on Tuesday, July 19, 2022)
#187: Beauty Fades
July 22nd, 2022 · 91 minutes
Once John is ready, things kick off with a discussion of Merlin's increasing asymmetry.
Follow-up concerns pinned messages. Merlin thinks Marco still doesn't understand what a priority is, and John thinks skeuomorphism doesn't mean what it used to mean.
John graciously saves Merlin's sanity, and then your hosts express skepticism about the…