ldstephens weblog
ldstephens weblog
ldstephens
A weblog by ldstephens. This is my little corner of the web where I share whatever’s on my mind: stories, random thoughts, and the occasional rant.
Latest Posts
On Friday, I was working in Safari on my MacBook and needed to sign in to a few accounts. I discovered nothing would log in. Bitwarden’s latest update had broken the Safari extension, leaving me with an endless loading spinner. Good...
Kev A look at why small, personal websites don’t need big-tech static hosting, and how a simple local build and rsync workflow gives you faster deploys, more control, and far fewer dependencies. […] It got me thinking about my fellow...
Despite what sites like ProBlogger say, I don’t have a niche, and I don’t try to grow my audience (I don’t even know how big my audience is). I just write whatever is on my mind at any given time, and people usually get in touch with me...
Howard Oakley DS_Store files contain a folder’s custom attributes, data like icon positions, and in more recent versions of macOS custom settings for the display of file metadata. I first encountered .DS_Store files in my 11ty projects....
I did a little digital housekeeping today. On my iPhone and MacBook Pro, I went through my apps and deleted the extras — keeping just one for each task. I also got rid of anything I never use. If I ever miss something, I can always add...
November 1, 2025 This morning, I updated the homepage of this site. I've been wanting to add my 10 most recent posts to it, and I finally managed to get it done.
November 1, 2025 One of my favorite hobbies is exploring different text editors. They typically fall into two categories: simple and ready-to-use, or deep and endlessly customizable, provided you invest the time. Editors like iA Writer...
October 25, 2025 I updated the design of this site today. It’s simpler, faster, and easier to read. The new look sticks to a clean black-and-white theme that automatically switches to dark mode if your device prefers it. Links are always...
Thomas Rigby Smartphones are not the enemy, doom scrolling is. Smartphones are not the enemy, the attention economy is. Smartphones are not the enemy, unfettered rampant capitalism is. I often ask myself, am I addicted to my iPhone? I...
October 21, 2025 I've been with Geico for the past 8 years. Eight years! I was the definition of a loyal customer—the kind insurance companies love because I just kept hitting "renew" every six months without asking questions. Until this...
October 8, 2025 I recently wrote about weather apps and their importance in my area. In that post, I mentioned my love for Carrot Weather, but noted that the available weather sources are not accurate for central New Jersey. The most...
Hey friends, I see this question come up occasionally, and I want to share what this site is to me. This site is a hobby in the truest sense. I love experimenting with new technology, tinkering with ideas, and writing about what I...
This week the Fed cut interest rates a quarter of a percent. The commentary is always about how this makes borrowing for consumers cheaper—lower mortgage rates, cheaper car loans, even a little relief on credit cards. Good news if you’re...
August 24, 2025 Made a few more changes to the site today. Moved the navigation from the footer to the top.
August 23, 2025 I’ve been tinkering with the site’s design and layout the last couple of days. The new color scheme is my take on Dracula (the theme, not the vampire), and navigation has moved to the footer. I like this version better...