Notices by Kyle Rankin (kyle@mastodon.kylerank.in), page 2

My son wanted to be a white knight chess piece this year. We typically make his costumes and I decided to tackle this one. The result is in two pieces. The base is made from foam pipe insulation covered in an old bed sheet. The head is foam core with internal pool noodle scaffolding.

#halloween

I don't have much hope that new cars will be less invasive of my privacy any time soon, but this sort of project gives me hope that when the time comes to replace my car (hopefully a decade from now), that I might be able to convert it or some other pre-privacy-invasion car to electric.

https://www.dezeen.com/2023/10/09/alexander-burton-revr-electric-car-conversion-kit/

#privacy #ElectricCars

I started reading Anna Karenina for the first time today. War and Peace might be my favorite novel so I can't wait to see how this compares!

#books #reading

In retrospect, starting a Tolstoy novel two days before @kashhill 's new book arrives was probably a mistake. I might have to break my one-book-at-a-time rule.

After five years of helping to build hardware and software that protects people's privacy, security and freedom, at the end of the month I will no longer be at Purism (I'll still be helping out as an advisor).

For the near term, I plan to spend my time promoting my new book (coming very soon), writing yet another book, and thinking about what's next for my career.

If you have any suggestions for what I should do next, email me at next@kylerank.in (DMs are disabled on this instance).

Now that I have a printer that can print flexible filaments again, I've been able to try out a few TPU cases for my Librem 5 (I modified a Librem 5 slim model to remove most of the back). I tried printing face up and face down with supports to see what worked best for my printer.

I think I'm leaning toward the red case, although I do have some old black Ninjaflex I might try out later.

#3dprinting #Librem5

Since Purism, I have written and published two books, attended OpenSSF Day, FOSSY, and DEF CON, traveled 9000 miles coast-to-coast in an RV, and completely reorganized my garage.

Now I'm bored.

There's just no substitute for pouring my energy and skills into a day job and collaborating with others. I'm eager to dive back in. I've worn many hats and open to many types of roles and industries. If you know of a role you think I'd be a good fit for, DM me or email at next@kylerank.in .

I'm pleased to announce the immediate release of How To Write A Tech Book!

If you have ever thought about writing a tech book, but wasn't sure how, this is for you. I distill twenty years of experience writing a dozen books for multiple publishers (and self-publishing) into a book that walks you step-by-step through the full process.

Sample chapter: https://kylerank.in/htwatb_sample_chapter.pdf

Order page: https://www.lulu.com/spotlight/kyle_rankin

#writing #publishing

Most people (including most writers outside of tech) don't realize how unique the tech publishing industry is. There is a reason that some publishers and imprints focus just on tech books.

Tech books have a unique style that sits somewhere between academic journals and how-to books. Unlike with many other nonfiction authors, tech authors have to spend a significant amount of time not only writing clear how-to language, but also formatting their text much like an academic journal.

(Apologies to Elvis Costello)

I'm giving you a preview look
How To Write How To Write How To Write
How To Write A Tech Book

Chapter One: The Idea for books comes along
Chapter Two: The outline is useful for you
I pitch a publisher in the middle of chapter three
But I give all my writing tips in chapters four five and six

I'm giving you a preview look
How To Write How To Write How To Write
How To Write A Tech Book

https://kylerank.in/htwatb_sample_chapter.pdf

#writing

So my first place prize from the Woolery Weave Off arrived. Twenty-six, one-pound cones of cotton is... a lot.

#weaving

Wait, calling it "duck tape" is actually correct and not just a branding thing?

https://hackaday.com/2023/07/13/how-duck-tape-became-famous/

#TIL