Miscellaneous (3)
Either general or personal entries that havenāt been categorized.
Privacy Experiments: How to Auto-Generate Random Web Traffic
I believe that privacy, which has never been about āhiding something,ā is a fundamental civil right, one that is but must not be infringed on; so I once more played with randomizing personal web traffic.
#53 Ā·
What Happens When You Email the Companies That Are Responsible for 71% of All Greenhouse Gas Emissions
A few months ago I ran into an article referring to data from the Carbon Disclosure Project. I realized that the data may have been inaccurate and incomplete but also that it presented an avenue for us to actually do, a little.
#52 Ā·
Living Websites, Living Books
To me, websites are living objects. They require regular care and maintenance. Such care starts with monitoring, from uptime control to visual site tests, demands technical quality control, and ends with content checksā¦
#51 Ā· Ā· development
Highlights From Martinās āThe Behavior of Crowdsā
āWhen most of our neighbors are motivated by certain ideas, those ideas become part of the social environment to which we must adjust ourselves. In this sense they are āreal,ā however ācrazy.āā
#50 Ā· Ā· politics
Why Iām Suspending Interviews With US Companies
Over the last few quarters I was in conversations to move back to the United States. Over the last few weeks I noticed that that would feel like endorsing US policy, and contradict my principles and values.
#49 Ā·
On Work
On work, retirement, definitions, and mixing things up.
#48 Ā·
Highlights From Wattlesās āThe Science of Getting Richā
āMan is a thinking center, and can originate thought. All the forms that man fashions with his hands must first exist in his thought; he cannot shape a thing until he has thought that thing.ā
#47 Ā· Ā· philosophy
My Top 10 Android Apps
Years ago, in 2009, I wrote an enthusiastic post about my then-favorite apps for Android. More for fun than anything I decided to write a follow-up.
#46 Ā·
The Great Neglect
What is most important for us to learn in our lives? Are we learning it? Teaching it? On āone of the greatest motive powers in the world,ā and āthe noblest of possessions.ā
#45 Ā· Ā· politics
Highlights From Smilesās āCharacterā
āThe very sight of a great and good man is often an inspiration to the young, who cannot help admiring and loving the gentle, the brave, the truthful, the magnanimous.ā
#44 Ā·
Privacy, Obscurity: Randomizing New Tabs
You want to leave a less predictable online trail? I wrote a little browser extension for Chrome that accomplishes that: the New Tab Traffic Randomizer. The extension requests a random URL every time a new tab is openedā¦
#43 Ā· Ā· tools
Living and Mistakes
We canāt make a mistake living our own lives. A counter to the fear of doing wrong, the harmful idea of guilt, as well as unhelpful doubt, the statementās power lies in the realization that itās impossible for us to live our lives āincorrectly.ā
#42 Ā·
A Note on meiert.com Feeds
There are a number of ways to follow what I write on this website, from a very low volume newsletter for German publications to an enriched account on Google+. The most reliable and focused option, however, is to subscribe to one of this siteās RSS feeds.
#41 Ā·
On Rationality, and Love
Philosophy can be heart-breaking, orā
#40 Ā· Ā· philosophy
The Reminder Trick
This tool is so powerful and at the same time so trivial to make a routine that I ask everyone who regularly employs it to transcend their disappointmentāIām mentioning it for the people I meet who donāt use it.
#39 Ā·
Itās Not Too Late
ā¦to contribute to good causes.
#38 Ā·
Crowdfunding, 5 Years and 81 Projects Later
Iām a Kickstarter and Indiegogo backer. Iāve backed my first campaign in February 2011, and the so far last one in May. In the five years on Kickstarter and Indiegogo, Iāve bid on 81 projects of which 73 funded successfullyā¦
#37 Ā·
Personally Speaking
After my eternal travels Iāve had entered a new stage of my life. Now that I and the dust have settled a little, the position that I assume in the world is a bit more clear, at least for the next couple of years. A few notesā¦
#36 Ā·
Love Reciprocity
Love! What a wonderful topic. My mind would instantly turn into a good number of directions, from love in our personal lives to different forms of love, to the powers of love, to the possibly universal character of love. Letās be more specific.
#35 Ā·
The One Belief to Cultivate
Thereās a particularly important belief, habit, or trait for us to cultivate: that whatever it is we want to be or master, we can learn how to be or master whatever it is we want.
#34 Ā·
On Taking Life
We cannot accept killing. The default must be to respect, to cherish life. We should get help to those who suggest to take lives. Eight theses on a most critical matter.
#33 Ā· Ā· politics, philosophy
On Age
Age is wonderful. Aging is wonderful. Age is wonderful for in a life reasonably lived, in a life not exclusively spent idly or hedonistically, age signifies the accumulation of experience and knowledge, and perhaps even wisdom.
#32 Ā·
Love
Love is vulnerability. First and foremost, love is vulnerability. It took me many years to recognize this. Many years in which there wasnāt much love in my life, even permitted in my life. I had locked it all out, out of fear to beā¦ vulnerable.
#31 Ā·
Character
A couple of weeks ago I read Samuel Smilesā Character, a book extraordinarily useful and important. I think youād like it. āCharacter is one of the greatest motive powers in the world. In its noblest embodiments, it exemplifies human nature in its highest formsā¦ā
#30 Ā·
On America
The United States has so far engaged in 71 wars in which it killed 13.8 million people; not counted are the World Wars it ended with nuclear strikes on Japan. The US has led 26 proxy wars in which it took 1.4 million livesā¦
#29 Ā·
Sources
I always like to learn what people turn to for information, education, and also entertainment. In particular what they deem most excellent. Thatās part of trying to be open. Yet, learning about peopleās sources typically requires inquiring directly. Here Iām extrovert and shareā¦
#28 Ā·
The Most Boring Person in the World
On Tim Moss allowing the most boring person in the world to speak about the mindset of trying everything.
#27 Ā· Ā· adventure
On Writing
Frankly, on fears.
#26 Ā·
The 6 Most Useful Books Iāve Ever Read
I love reading, and over time Iāve been lucky to read many useful, and then a handful quite extraordinary books. Here I like to share my current non-fiction favorites: The Nature of Personal Reality, Getting More, Public Opinion, and, you can tell, three more.
#25 Ā·
Lessons From Writing a Dream Journal
I love dreaming. I love dreams. Dreams are fascinating. Iāve learned that dreams are realities just as real as this one, physical reality. Iāve learned that much when it comes to dream memory depends on oneās own beliefs with respect to dreamingā¦
#24 Ā· Ā· philosophy
On Writing a Book With Google Docs and Amazon KDP
Google Docs is okay to write short books and when making limited use of the comment feature. Amazon KDPās HTML format is a technical disgrace, and Amazon needs to fix it. A few thoughts and tips on completing a book using either.
#23 Ā· Ā· development
How I Read 10 Books a Month
I read 10ā15 books a month. As Iāve been doing this for a few years and thus developed a routine, I thought it could be interesting to share a few notes, tips, and quirksāI remember how hard it can be to even read 1 book a month.
#22 Ā·
9 Tips to Become a Better Driver
What makes a good driver? I donāt know whether I know. Iāve driven much, have deepened my skills, I fit stereotypesāand Iāve also screwed up. What I do know is that Iām a driver who cares. A few ideas on what could make people better drivers.
#21 Ā·
The Art of Saying Thank You, One Thousand Times
But not here, on onethousandthankyous.org.
#20 Ā·
The Meanings of Googliness
The words āgoogleyā and āgooglinessā are not found in common language. Even at Google, where theyāve been coined, itās not clear to everyone what these words mean. And thatās no surprise: You donāt get a handout with a descriptionā¦
#19 Ā·
Goodbye Google, San Francisco, California, and United States
Iām resetting my life. Iāve quit at Google, Iāve quit my apartment in San Francisco, Iāve sold most of what I own and put the rest in storage. Iām now about to backpack the world to pursue my studies and goals and to build a new life somewhere else. Hereās a little story.
#18 Ā·
Driving: Tips and Thoughts
Itās time for a heart-warming post about driving.
#17 Ā·
How to Relocate, the Alternative Guide
If thereās one area of expertise Iām only involuntarily linked with, itās moving. I moved 25 times so far, spanning cities, countries, and now continents; my career stats mean .81 relocations per year, or 1.24 years per relocation. Some lessons I learned.
#16 Ā·
My Top 15 Android Apps
This is a serious post, not one of those āthe 1,000 best blahā ones. I think. Iām an Android user for a bit longer than December 2008, and I love my HTC Magic as much as the HTC Dream (aka G1)ā¦
#15 Ā·
Presentingā¦ the Google Shoe
They finally arrived, long longed for Google shoes, in this case the āGoogle j9tā model based on the Adidas ZX700. Theyāre not for sale but I might share the configuration I used to design them. The āGoogle j9tā may only be worn for dynamite fishing and important launches.
#14 Ā·
Thoughts on Disclaimers
Disclaimers are popular in Germany, both for websites and emails. Recently I came across the German Wikipedia article on disclaimers which talks about the topic in detail, and I could not but go for another āthoughtsā postā¦
#13 Ā·
meiert.com Survey Results
Itās one and a half months since I asked for your feedback about meiert.com, and Iāve finally decided to publish some of the results.
#12 Ā·
Asking for Your Feedback
Iād like to ask for 15 seconds (meaning exactly 15 seconds) of your precious time for a short survey related to this website, to learn about your perspective.
#11 Ā·
Expertise and the Inverted Parabola
Iām not a mathematician!ābut it looks like applying oneās experience and expertise results in an inverted parabola when it comes to the amount of work invested. That is, knowledge or its use, respectively, seem to mean that beginners donāt know what to do and thus donāt do much, while expertsā¦
#10 Ā·
Thoughts on Email
Email was, is, and will remain the Webās true killer application, but spam, top-posting, incompetent use of newsletters, and the HTML email problem mean serious challenges.
#9 Ā·
The 1,000 Dollar Donation
A few minutes ago, I donated the 1,000 US dollars I offered in the 1,000 Dollar Comment Game. I rounded the 1,000 dollars to 700 euros and transferred the money to āSelbsthilfe fĆ¼r Wohnungslose e.V.ā, Hanover.
#8 Ā·
Akismet Plugins Archive
Since no older versions of famous WordPress spam protection plugin Akismet seem to be available anymore, I decided to preserve the collection of Akismet plugins I could get my hands on. Get your API key all excited.
#7 Ā·
3 Great Learning Strategies for Generalists
āLifelong learningā sounds like some sort of buzzword, but itās necessary to develop and progress, and awesome to cultivate. Mistakes are great, too, as they are accelerating the learning process, and this needs to be kept in mindā¦
#6 Ā·
The 1,000 Dollar Comment Game
Finally, the remake of the infamous comment game. Easy money and link love.
#5 Ā·
Interview: On Blogs and Blogging
Bruce C. Brown interviewed me for his forthcoming book, The Secret Power of Blogging.
#4 Ā· Ā· interviews