iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 06/09/2026

I was so impressed with the #Apple #MacBookNeo after reviewing it that I bought one. I use it as a computer in the living room, something to grab off the coffee table. I'm happy with it, but now have more thoughts since I reviewed. Would this be something you'd be interested in reading?

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 04/09/2026

I want to upgrade my 2021 Apple TV 4K (32GB) and have been awaiting the new version allegedly in the works. Rumors are mixed on whether we'll see it when the iPhone 18 Pro line launches, but check this out: If you want to buy the current ATV4K, you can't get it until Sept. 22 at the earliest. MORE

Apple TV 4K Wi-Fi with 64GB storage
6 Order today. Delivers to 77019 F
Sep 22 - Sep 29 - Free
Order now. Pick up in store:
Wed, Sep 30 at Apple Highland Village

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 01/09/2026

I REALLY LIKE the changes made to the Weather app in Apple's 27 series of OSes. In particular: A toggle that changes hourly and weekly conditions forecast from temps, precipitation and wind. Very handy when a tropical storm is headed our way. #houwx #apple

This image is a screenshot of the Apple Weather app displaying the weather forecast for Houston. It shows a current temperature of 82 degrees with cloudy conditions, alongside various weather metrics including a 10-day forecast, an air quality map, and details on wind, humidity, and visibility.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 29/08/2026

If you see this, post your getaway vehicle.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 16/08/2026

While it’s a lot better, the “smarter Siri” In iOS 27 still has a ways to go. I asked it to do a margarita and it came up with a generic one. Then I told Siri to make it with black salt and “on the rocks.” It came up with this.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 05/08/2026

Check out the second suggested response to an innocuous text from a friend generated by the new, "smarter" and apparently weirder Siri AI. (I'm using the public beta of ipadOS 27.)

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 12/07/2026

Whoa. This is the speed I got on my iPhone today at the Tellepsen YMCA WiFi. Great job, guys (but you need to improve your upload game)! www.speedtest.net/result/i/715...

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 10/07/2026

Epic journey! A package shipped to me from Florida via the @uspostal.bsky.social took 11 days to arrive. That may not be unusual, except it bounced between more than 20 Houston-area processing centers and post offices - including one in Beaumont - before it reached me.

Screenshot showing more than 20 postal stations where my package was sent.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 07/07/2026

Are you in "the weights"? This is the training data for large language models. I am in there - as a tech columnist. But apparently one model has a hallucination that says I am an NFL player and coach. intheweights.com

ARE YOU TN
DWIGHT SILVERMAN
THE WEIGHTS?
DWIGHT SILVERMAN
HOUSTON CHRONICLE TECH COLUMNIST
777 STRENGTH • ToP 3%
GPT-5.5 SAYS
1/11 >
AMERICAN TECHNOLOGY JOURNALIST KNOWN FOR WRITING TECH COLUMNS FOR THE HOUSTON CHRONICLE AND COVERING CONSUMER TECHNOLOGY.
GPT-5.5
GPT-5.4 MINI
CLAUDE OPUS 4.S
CLAUDE HAIKU 4.5
GROK 4.20
GEMINI 3.1 LITE
KIMI K2 0905
DeePseEK V4
LLAMA 3.3 70B
LLAMA 3.2 18
GLM 4.7 FLASH
MISTRAL 3.2 24B
QWEN3 SB
COPY LINK
COPY IMAGE
HIDE 1 POSSIBLE HALLUCINATION

QWEN3 SB SAYS
DWIGHT SILVERMAN IS A FORMER AMERICAN FOOTBALL PLAYER AND COACH, KNOWN FOR HIS WORK IN THE NFL.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 02/07/2026

I’ve gotten a bunch of “we’ll miss you” messages and emails after I said and wrote that my column is ending. This is my favorite so far.

Thanks
Dwight,
Happy retirement! I found it boring, but I expect you'll keep busy some way, as I have.
Thank you for all the excellent guidance. My computers still eat my homework, but your columns have made my life much easier.
All the best,
Steve

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 11/06/2026

🎵Jeopardy music plays....🎶

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 10/06/2026

What my privacy on Facebook is worth.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 06/06/2026

Yikes. I came VERY close to falling for an Evite phishing scam. Sent from someone I'd communicated with yesterday, so it looked real - but the domain for the RSVP pointed to Bluehost instead of evite-dot-com. Wanted me to put in my Gmail account info - which I did not do. BE CAREFUL.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 30/05/2026

Apparently this feature has been around for a long time, but I just stumbled across it: In iOS/iPadOS, highlight a text passage before you share a post to Messages. The text appears in a quote above the share card. Who knew? Works in macOS when sharing via Safari, too.

You know the artificial intelligence backlash is in full swing when a venerable rock band uses jaw-dropping tech in a video for their latest single, and many of its staunchest fans are not amused.
New Rolling Stones video highlights growing backlash against Al
houstonchronicle.com

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 22/05/2026

If you open the Waymo app in Houston, this is what you'll see:

7:25
1
98
Our service is paused
Our service is currently paused
We're sorry for the inconvenience - please check back again soon

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 17/05/2026

This is the best of the comments under the video on YouTube:

@crisevens7238 7 hours ago
A.I. Can't Get No Satisfaction...

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 16/05/2026

Basically, if you've got a power station to keep the lights on (or, in our case, the refrigerator running) in an outage, you could probably also use a BAB (Big Ass Battery).

A portable power station with an extendable handle, multiple outlets, and a device labeled A N K E R on top.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 14/05/2026

You know, I have never looked at what the Internet Archive (aka the Wayback Machine) has stored of my personal website, dwightsilverman.com. I checked a very early capture, from 5/20/2000 and OMG: What a trip! This was all hand-coded by the way.

A vintage 2000 webpage titled "BEHOLD! Millennium Edition," featuring Dwight Silverman, with sections on what's here, what's new, and what's up, with red and blue text and icons.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 04/05/2026

Very cool little macOS app, WhatCable. Reports on the capabilities of the USB cables plugged into your Mac. Screenshots show an SSD drive I use for Time Machine backups and the single cable I connect to a Dell monitor with Thunderbolt hub, and what a port looks like when no cable is connected.

-. WhatCable
What can this USB-C cable actually do?
C涼
Port-USB-C@4
USB-C with video
Carrying both data and DisplayPort video.
• SuperSpeed USB (5 Gbps or faster)
• Carrying DisplayPort video
• Cable does not advertise an e-marker (basic cable)
• Currently negotiated: 20V @ 4.50A (90W)
• Connected device: Alternate Mode Adapter - Dell (0x413C)
Connected devices
• Creative Pebble X Plus - Full Speed (12 Mbps)
• USB 10_100_1000 LAN - Super Speed (5 Gbps)
• USB2 Controller Hub - High Speed (480 Mbps)
• USB2 Controller Hub - High Speed (480 Mbps)
• USB4206 Smart Hub - High Speed (480 Mbps)
• USB4216 Smart Hub - High Speed (480 Mbps)
• USB7206 Smart Hub - Super Speed+ (10 Gbps)
• USB7216 Smart Hub - Super Speed+ (10 Gbps)

WhatCable
What can this USB-C cable actually do?
C涼
Port-MagSafe 3@1
Nothing connected
Plug a cable into Port-MagSafe 3@1 to see what it can do.
Connection
Active
E-marker chip
Optical
USB active
SuperSpeed
Plug events
Transports
Supported
Provisioned
Active
No
No
No
Yes
-1
cC
-
> All raw I0Kit properties (59)
Port-USB-C@1
Nothing connected
Plug a cable into Port-USB-C@1 to see what it can do.
Connection
Active
E-marker chip
Optical
No
No
No

WhatCable
What can this USB-C cable actually do?
C涼
Port-USB-C@2
USB device
SuperSpeed data link is active.
• SuperSpeed USB (5 Gbps or faster)
• Cable does not advertise an e-marker (basic cable)
Connected device
• CT2000X9SSD9 - Super Speed+ (10 Gbps)
Connection
Active
E-marker chip
Optical
USB active
SuperSpeed
Plug events
Yes
No
No
Yes
Yes
2
Transports
Supported
Provisioned
Active
cC, USB2, USB3, CIO, DisplayPort
CC, USB3, USB2
CC, USB3
> All raw IOKit properties (74)

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 03/05/2026

An oldie by very goodie. From 2016.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 02/05/2026

Nerdiest joke ever. From my daughter, who we clearly raised right.

Cartoon character holding a stick of RAM up to a sprig of rosemary saying Go on, sniff. “The scent of rosemary can improve your memory.”

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 13/04/2026

Google finally put native vertical tabs in Chrome (which will change your life!) but it's a slow rollout. To force it, do this: - Head to chrome://flags/#vertical-tabs - Change from “Default” to “Enabled” - Right-click the tab bar and select “Show tabs vertically” Thanks @advisorator.com!

Screenshot with dropdown and Show Tabs Vertically in Chrome

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 11/04/2026

There are many, many things wrong with the FCC's sledgehammer approach to its foreign-made consumer router ban. Not only does it not improve security now, it could prevent router makers from securing existing products in the future. Gift link. www.houstonchronicle.com/business/tec...

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 28/03/2026

This person decompiled and examined the code in the White House's new "official" app for iOS and Android. (They used the Android app.) "Alarming" is a good word for what was found. blog.thereallo.dev/blog/decompi... It's a detailed breakdown of the code. For the less technically inclined:

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 28/03/2026

Took @waymo.bsky.social this afternoon for the first time, into downtown Houston and then back home. Fantastic experience - the electric Jaguar was comfy, I never felt nervous. Its driving was very ... humanlike. Maybe better. ~$10 cheaper than Uber, each way. 10/10 would recommend; WILL do again.

Driverless driver's seat in an autonomous Waymo vehicle.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 07/03/2026

Proof! From 2009, with my daughter Jessica.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 28/02/2026

Despite all the horrors on the planet at the moment, in #Houston it's a sunny #caturday.

Longhaired calico and red tabby cats on the coffee table. It's OK, they're allowed.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 27/02/2026

Hilariously generational correction. Spotted at www.theverge.com/c/22889425/s...

Correction January 29, 4:30PM ET: An earlier version of this story stated personal phone numbers are listed in the Yellow Pages. Personal numbers are in the White Pages. We regret the error.

020

Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 26/02/2026

Here's the version generated for the column by ChatGPT. (If you missed it, you can find the column at my profile page.)

Create an image showing a bottle of red wine on a table, with a wine glass with red wine in it. The label on the bottle should be visible, with the name of the vineyard being "Silverman Napa Valley" and the type of wine cabernet sauvignon. In smaller text, including "ALC 15.5% BY VOL" near the bottom of the label. The background behind the bottle and glass should be gently rolling hills rendered in a bokeh effect. Overall, the label should convey the feel of an upscale California wine.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 26/02/2026

Google launched its next-gen image generator, Nano Banana 2, today. I tried it with the prompt I used with ChatGPT for my column on a locally run AI thinking I was a wine mogul. Here's Nano Banana 2's version. Prompt is in the alt text.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 13/02/2026

Nothing like a little Flux dev.1 model image generation to get your M5 MacBook Pro's fans roaring in the morning.

:
CPU
183°
3.62GHz
GPU
203°
1.61GHz

TEMPERATURE
Airflow
93°
Battery
89°
CPU Efficiency Cores
187°
CPU Performance Cores
178°
Graphics
203°
SSD
118°
O
Wi-Fi
150°
POWER
CPU
4.4 W
Graphics
17.6 W
Total Power
41 W
VOLTAGE
Power Bus Rail
13.3 V
FANS
Fan
4,944 гр
FREQUENCY
CPU Efficiency Cores
3.05 GHz
CPU Performance Cores
3.72 GHz
Graphics
1.61 GHz
WARND
t 7:36

FANS
62%

Six pepperoni pizza pies flying in delta formation over downtown Houston, TX, at sunrise. Photorealistic.

030

Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 02/02/2026

Bought one of the new 2nd-generation AirTags. I've got enough of the 1st-gen ones but wanted to see if it was worth considering replacing the old with the new. The tl;dr: No, except maybe for one particular use case. V.2 has better Bluetooth range & Precision Finding and a louder speaker. 1/3

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 29/01/2026

I'm a big fan of Bauhaus Clock, a macOS screensaver that's just gorgeous to look at and even more fun to tweak in settings. The developer just released 2.0, and as he puts it, “it felt like going from Full HD to 4K.” It costs $19, and you get unlimited updates. Totally worth it. bauhausclock.com

Bauhaus Clock 2.0 screensaver running on the new Cream color dial

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 28/01/2026

You mean like this? The main social accounts will do it, I've noticed (I'm not a fulltime staffer so have no insight into when it's used). But if you share directly from a story, you'll get an extended URL, which is often a gift link.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 21/01/2026

Check your external power banks to make sure they're charged to full, so you can keep your digitalia running in an outage. And if you have a big battery power station, check its charge level, too. 2/

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 19/01/2026

If you read me on the regular (I love that phrase, for some reason), you know I am a sucker for charging gear. Bought @ankerofficial.bsky.social's new 45-watt Nano charger with a smart display. Pretty sweet - if you are using an iPhone, it recognizes the model. www.anker.com/world-first-...

Anker 45-watt Nano smart display charger shows 91% level and trickle charge.

Anker 45-watt Nano smart display charger shows 100% charged in 23 minutes.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 17/01/2026

When I see photos and videos of ICE thugs slipping on the Minneapolis ice, I think of this classic meme.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 11/01/2026

Generally I'm not a fan of folding phones, overpriced and something of a gimmick. But if #Apple plays to its strengths, I might be more interested in an iPhone Fold, PARTICULARLY if the Fold instantly switches from iOS to iPadOS when it opens up. That's the smart way to go, if you're Apple.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 10/01/2026

Still getting those gig speeds, intermittently.

12:11 -
٠١١١
99
< Back
Connections
Internet
Wired internet
Online
(.٠)
eero Internet Backup +
Speed
Download
V1.3 Gbps
Upload
1646 Mbps
Run test
Tested on Jan 10 at 12:11 pm

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 08/01/2026

Disney+ is going to add vertical video. But human eyes are aligned horizontally, making horizontally shot video natural. If human eyes were aligned vertically - and based on this ChatGPT image, thankfully they are not - then vertical video would make sense. It doesn't. deadline.com/2026/01/disn...

ChatGPT image showing a man with eyes aligned vertically on his face.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 08/01/2026

When M5 MacBook Airs launch, presumably this spring, I'll likely replace my 2021 M1 MacBook Pro. I no longer need the pro features, and don't mind living That Dongle Life™. I'd rather have a great 15-inch screen, killer battery life, minimal weight. Former MBP owners who switched: Regrets? #apple

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 03/12/2025

This is an ad found in the December eEdition (print replica) of Rolling Stone. If there was ever a cat face that screamed "What fresh hell is this?", this is it. Or maybe "YOU eat it, human."

A white cat with green eyes gazes at a pyramid-shaped mousse paté topped with gravy on a white plate.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 25/11/2025

Last week I discovered that Amazon has added a Price History feature on products sold on its website and via the app. Very handy for detecting real Black Friday deals. You can see 30- or 90-day views. Looks like it's been around since late last month.

A screenshot of an Amazon product page for the Anker MagGo Power Bank for Apple Watch, showing price history, product details, and purchase options.

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Dwight Silverman @dwightsilverman.com · 23/11/2025

I gotta believe this newspaper ad for Skechers features an AI-generated image, one of the most bizarre photos I've seen in a mainstream ad. Handsome family enraptured by a single sneaker in what appears to be a shoebox manger. The girl on the right seems to be PRAYING TO THE SHOE.

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