#linklog: "Male bowerbirds hope to dazzle females with bright human-made items"

From the piece: "YKK makes the best zippers on earth. They're Japanese, they cost more per unit, and brands that care about longevity use them because a zipper failure kills a bag faster than fabric wear. On VF Corp's lower-tier models, YKK hardware got swapped for generic alternatives. A few cents saved per unit across millions of bags." I knew it! #

Your Backpack Got Worse On Purpose

In 1986, a corporation that made women's lingerie bought every backpack brand you've ever trusted.

Your Backpack Got Worse On Purpose

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Just as a reminder, another good text about the virtues and necessities for self-hosting. Thanks Paul for the link! #

Ownership of Digital Content Is an Illusion—Unless You Self‑Host

Prices are rising across Netflix, Spotify, and their peers, and more people are quietly returning to the oldest playbook of the internet: piracy. Is the golden age of streaming over?

Ownership of Digital Content Is an Illusion—Unless You Self‑Host

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This is both ridiculous and troubling. Troublingly ridiculous. #

NEA’s Creative Writing Fellowship Program Canceled

On Friday afternoon, writers who applied for the National Endowment for the Arts’ 2026 Creative Writing Fellowships received an email from the NEA saying that the program, and their applications, had been “withdrawn.”

NEA’s Creative Writing Fellowship Program Canceled

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Note: This is a quick and dirty linkpost. Find all past links here.