Murmel's Digest
March 05, 2026 · View on web
These are the most widely shared links from across Mastodon and the Fediverse today — surfaced by Murmel from thousands of posts in the open social web. This is the Fediverse-wide view. Sign up to get a digest tailored to the people you actually follow.
A soft-landing manual for the second gilded age
joanwestenberg.com · 23 people Worth reading
By the summer of 1945, West Berlin had been reduced to rubble. Allied bombing, the Soviet ground assault and Hitler's insistence on Götterdämmerung had destroyed roughly a third of the city's buildings and left most of the rest damaged. There was no functioning government, no reliable electrici...
The future is undetermined, the stakes are enormous, and the work is ours to do.
That's the most optimistic thing I can imagine.
The future is still up for grabs.
So grab it.
— @Daojoan · Mar 03
Nobody Gets Promoted for Simplicity
terriblesoftware.org · 32 people Worth reading
We reward complexity and ignore simplicity. In interviews, design reviews, and promotions. Here’s how to fix it.
🫠 Nobody Gets Promoted for Simplicity
｢ The actual path to seniority isn’t learning more tools and patterns, but learning when not to use them. Anyone can add complexity. It takes experience and confidence to leave it out.
So what do we actually do about this? Because saying “keep it simple” is easy. Changing incentive structures is harder ｣
— @jbz · Mar 05
Windows 12 Reportedly Set for Release This Year as a Fully Modular, Subscription-Based, AI-Focused OS
tech4gamers.com · 167 people
Reports suggest that Microsoft may be gearing up to launch Windows 12 this year, which will be a modular and AI-focused OS.
Windows 12 is due to come out this year.
1) Your computer does not meet the system requirements. Again.
Why?
Your PC will need a dedicated NPU — a specialized processor designed to handle AI tasks. So, if you recently bought a new PC just to use Windows 11, Microsoft wants you to go shopping again.
2) It will finally, unfortunately, introduce a subscription model.
That's right — you read that correctly. They want you to pay and keep paying to use the computer you just bought. Technically, you won’t own your computer while Windows is installed.
NOW is the time to try Linux. Stop waiting. Don’t make excuses. Don’t even complain — we all knew this day was coming. Either try Linux, or admit you’re Microsoft’s little bitch.
Source? Yes, this is real.
— @NetscapeNavigator · Mar 04
As Arkansas weighs a prison book ban, formerly incarcerated readers share how books reshaped their lives - Arkansas Times
arktimes.com · 22 people
Arkansas is considering the strictest book ban in the country, which would forbid all outside books, magazine and newspapers from being sent directly to people in prison. To understand what’s at stake, we spoke with formerly incarcerated Arkansans about how books helped them free their minds, f...
"I read a lot of #books over my time incarcerated, and some of the things that I learned in the books helped me along my journey since I’ve been out... I would never have known how to start a food truck business or even have an idea about it unless I was able to read up on it. Another book that I read was a book about how to talk to children and communicate with them." - Korelli Loyalty Woods, in an excellent #Arkansas Times article
— @DCBookstoPrisons · Mar 04
Media must stop normalizing the far right
politico.eu · 23 people
Every uncritical mention of far-right rhetoric is an editorial decision with political consequences.
Media must stop normalizing the far right
Every uncritical mention of far-right rhetoric is an editorial decision with political consequences.
— @eunews · Mar 04
Lenovo’s New T-Series ThinkPads Score 10/10 for Repairability
ifixit.com · 28 people
Repair goes mega mainstream with the launch of Lenovo’s new T-series business laptops, which earned our highest honor with a 10/10 repairability score.
Lenovo's New ThinkPads Score 10/10 for Repairability
Link:
Discussion:
— @hn50 · Mar 04
The Sun Is 'Glitching.' Scientists Investigated and Solved a Cosmic Mystery
404media.co · 7 people
Scientists studied tiny, abnormal vibrations—called “glitches”—to discover what happens inside the Sun while it undergoes phases of low activity.
Scientists studied tiny, abnormal vibrations—called “glitches”—to discover what happens inside the Sun while it undergoes phases of low activity.
— @404mediaco · Mar 04
Israel’s Gaza War Is One of History’s Worst Crimes
jacobin.com · 11 people Worth reading
Israel’s war in Gaza combines a staggeringly high death rate, shocking violence toward children, unparalleled physical destruction, and now a world-historical famine. The world has, by objective measure, never seen anything like this.
🔁 @Sage7225:"One famine expert has said of the famine that’s now started in Gaza that “there is no case since World War II of starvation that has been so minutely designed and controlled”" by Branko Marcetic
— @Miro_Collas · Mar 04
How Chevron Polluted the Amazon and Fought Environmental Lawyer Steven Donziger
truthout.org · 9 people Worth reading
Polluters want to use me as a symbol to silence the advocacy that is needed to save the planet, says Steven Donziger.
#ECUADOR IS NOT ABOUT DRUG CARTELS
it’s about committing #genocide against Amazonian Originarios in the name of #Chevron
❝ How Chevron Polluted the Amazon and Fought Environmental Lawyer Steven Donziger | Truthout -
GAZA #methane
UKRAINE #oil #rareEarthMinerals
NIGERIA oil
SOUTH SUDAN oil
VENEZUELA oil
ECUADOR oil
GREENLAND methane, rare earth mineralsthis criminal cartel has to be stopped
— @blogdiva · Mar 04
California's Age Assurance Lacuna
taggart-tech.com · 14 people
California's Digital Age Assurance Act presents new headaches and concerns for operating system maintainers and app developers. But is it the catastrophe some claim?
I've broken down the risks and potential response to California's new(ish) Digital Age Assurance Act. It has a giant open source gap that, if fixed, could allay many concerns.
— @mttaggart · Mar 04
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