iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/10/2025

bsky.app/profile/dunc...

Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/10/2025

What a mess. I personally believe that everyone was acting with the best of intent from their point of view under a lot of pressure. I can’t help but think how much better this would have gone if everyone had sat down first over a meal and a beverage to talk through how to accomplish this.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/10/2025

Finally, last month Ruby Central took some much needed steps to consolidate control and accountability over the RubyGems GitHub repositories. It was the right general thing to do but the execution of it was… not the greatest. Blame flew hard and fast.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/10/2025

That didn’t help as much as it should have and things have been in an uncomfortable state since then. During my entire tenure at Shopify, I worked closely with the Ruby and Rails teams there and we were incredibly concerned about the security of the Ruby ecosystem software supply chain

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/10/2025

A bit of history: For a while after its creation, RubyGems was loosely supported by the community. Then, Rails-hosting provider Engine Yard stepped in and provided support until 2015 or so. Then, André Arko and several others formed Ruby Together to serve as a vehicle for sponsorship of the work.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/10/2025

I’m really happy to see the RubyGems repository transferred to the Ruby organization. This is probably 20 years overdue. www.ruby-lang.org/en/news/2025...

ruby-lang.org

The Transition of RubyGems Repository Ownership

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 18/10/2025

I’m really happy that Ruby core is stepping in for the repos/governance. Gems is core to Ruby now, and has been for a long time. It should be there, imo.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 18/10/2025

I’ve been staying out of it but I know that there are layers and layers, probably most of which aren’t visible and therefore making what we see in the surface seem really weird.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 06/10/2025

It’s a fascinating example of how LLMs generate what *ought* to exist rather than what *does* exist. Pattern matching, not truth retrieval. Theia Vogel has a great deep-dive on why this happens: vgel.me/posts/seahor...

vgel.me

Why do LLMs freak out over the seahorse emoji?

Investigating the seahorse emoji doom loop using logitlens.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 06/10/2025

There is no seahorse emoji. But GPT-5, Claude, and most other LLMs are absolutely convinced there is—and will confidently try to give you one if you ask.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 01/10/2025

I like the slight change in attitude that Sonnet 4.5 has. When it was reviewing my latest link blog post and adding in the confidence it had in its answers (in my preference prompt), it replied: “Confidence level: Pretty high - I write and edit regularly, though of course taste varies.” 🤣

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 10/09/2025

Really cool to see that @flox.dev keeps expanding where Nix and reproducible environments can go.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 08/09/2025

I really like how Reeder renders the `external_url` property in JSON feed and finally got off my butt and implemented a JSON feed for my site. Yay for the open web!

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 01/09/2025

KPop Demon Hunters is on heavy rotation in the house these days, which means those damn catchy tunes are ear-wormed into my brain. Solution: Headphones and a thorough metal cleanse followed up by some good beats. Today’s treatment is the new Linkin Park followed up by some Chemical Brothers.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/08/2025

Halcyon on and on… so good

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 19/08/2025

Reminder: the ‘Rona is still out there even in the summertime on the beach where I’ve been. This time pretty mild so far, thankfully.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 27/07/2025

I’m a fan of Satya and hold Microsoft stock.But I’m not a fan of this zero-sum approach to the near future. I may be naïve. But I still believe there’s a positive-sum version of AI disruption—one that values people and builds new leverage for teams, not just balance sheets.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 27/07/2025

That inversion? It’s the shift from human-driven productivity to AI-driven margins. It’s a vision where profitability can grow—without so many of those messy human costs.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 27/07/2025

Satya’s memo is polished and clear. It lays out Microsoft’s pivot toward an AI-first future and positions layoffs as an inevitable consequence of reinvention at scale. “For years, the sector has been generous to its employees… AI, however, inverts that relationship.” says Om.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 27/07/2025

Microsoft lays off ~15,000 people in a year where it reports record profits. Satya Nadella sends a memo framing the pain as necessary and leadership as embracing it early. Om Malik took a closer look: om.co/2025…

om.co

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 13/07/2025

One door closes and the next opens. God speed my friend.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 16/06/2025

Almost four and a half years ago in early 2021, I went to work at Shopify. It was one of the best jobs I’ve had. But every tour of duty comes to a close. I’m going to take a few months this summer to really reflect on what I want to take forward with me. duncan.dev/post/free-ag...

duncan.dev

A free agent again, for now

After over 4 years at Shopify, I’m a free agent again. The AI revolution feels like 1997’s web all over again. It’s time to step back and reflect on what I’ve learned and what’s next.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 14/06/2025

Neither do a lot of people. 🤷🏼

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 14/06/2025

I've found that leaning into Daniel Kahneman’s "Thinking fast and slow" has really improved the way I work with LLMs. It’s all about the mindset you arrive with. duncan.dev/post/ai-thin...

duncan.dev

AI thinks fast, so think slow

It’s useful to treat LLM outputs as System 1 thinking (fast, reflexive, pattern-matching) while you provide System 2 oversight (deliberate, logical). This framework helps maintain thoughtful human jud...

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 13/06/2025

Claude can create 50 API designs in minutes. ChatGPT can write endless variations. The new superpower isn’t generating work — it’s knowing what to reject. duncan.dev/post/art-of-...

duncan.dev

The art of saying no

Claude can create 50 API designs in minutes. ChatGPT can write endless variations. The new superpower isn’t generating work — it’s knowing what to reject. Curation is becoming the primary creative act...

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 11/06/2025

I picked up a new MacBook Pro on recent travels and the model I wanted at the Apple Store had a nano-texture screen. And oh boy, yah. Me like. It’s gooooood.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 27/05/2025

Especially when enhanced by jet lag.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 27/05/2025

I type as I walk down a hall very unlike the Severance halls but … oddly disturbing as well.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 27/05/2025

Maybe a grunge version of Severance.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 26/05/2025

This used to be a Walgreens that i shopped at. Now, i want to shoot a movie here with some sort od fitting plot line of emptiness and a state of being discarded.

Empty store interior that was used for decades as a drug store and is now empty

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 26/05/2025

Setting up a new personal laptop and digging into @flox.dev to set things up. We’ve been using Nix a lot more at work, but I really like the layer on top of Nix that Flox gives.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 22/05/2025

Happy to see the Shopify logo up in the Anthropic presentation!

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Reposted by Duncan Davidson

BWJones @bwjones.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

James Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev In SLC, UT bryanwjones.com/2025/05/jame...

A black and white photograph of a brilliant renaissance man, and all around good human being, James Duncan Davidson looking into the camera.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 21/05/2025

I wish I’d been in an A seat for this approach. Still, it always brings a smile to my face to see the Bay Area out the window.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 20/05/2025

Thanks @craigmod.com craigmod.com/books/other_...

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 07/05/2025

I’m totally stoked about this: zed.dev/agentic. Yes, Cursor and Windsurf and even using Copilot in VScode are good. But, I’ve got a soft spot for @zed.dev and I’m so happy to see their new agent mode ship. Great agent in a super fast editor. 🎉

zed.dev

Zed — Agentic Editing

Collaborate with agents at 120fps in a natively multiplayer IDE.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 23/04/2025

You know what I really dislike about GraphQL? All requests look the same in HTTP logs. I really miss not having that when I’m trying to figure out why something something that somebody is doing in their app is blowing up our SaaS provider. (intentionally left vague to protect the guilty)

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 25/03/2025

I think the lesson I’m taking away is that I should accept more invitations to group chats that I don’t recognize. 😳

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 09/03/2025

And arrive. Early. 45 mins early.

Airplane flying over the Rocky Mountains

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 09/03/2025

PS: I love you Canada. But I don’t feel the same way about your airlines.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 09/03/2025

I ended the day in a warm room and a comfy bed with a laptop in my lap. So, success? 😆😀

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 09/03/2025

Wake up. Nothing from first airline. Incomplete reservation. So I call again. And hold. And pack. And go back to airport. Still on hold. Time to call it. Check in for my backup. Drop off bag. Security. Coffee. Exit row to myself. It’s time to fly.

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Duncan Davidson @duncan.dev · 09/03/2025

Get to NY. First airline says call us. So I do. And hold. And hold. Hours. I book a new ticket. Fully refundable. I have a safety net. Relief. Fall sleep before I get off hold.

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