Kev QuirkModify

2025-07-16 20:55:00

So I've been playing around with a new design for this site for a couple of weeks now, and it's finally to the point where I think it's good to go live.

After updating the design history page recently, I got all nostalgic for the 2020 version of this website. I loved the design of it and the way in which it used emojis as icons. It was just a really fun design.

After playing around with different designs for the new version of the site, and even emulating the old site almost perfectly, I came to the realisation that I actually prefer the sidebar layout I already have.

So instead of trying to emulate that 2020 version, I decided an iterative update of the existing design was in order.

This new version is still using a sidebar (albeit a little wider now), it still has a brutal aesthetic, and it's still content focussed. But there's a few things I've changed, some of which are more obvious than others. Here's a list of some of the changes I've made:

• A new colour pallet that's similar to the 2020 design.
• A brand new header that includes the avatar Joel made for me (hover over it for a fun Easter egg) and a search bar.
• Emojis everywhere that are using Twemoji, so they should look the same no matter which OS you're using. I've also replaced a lot of the iconography with emojis - I think it's more fun!
• Removed around 400 lines of CSS from my stylesheet.

There's lots of other little improvements too, and some that I still need to make, but for now I'm happy with the new design.

What do you think?

2025-07-14 01:25:00

My Sony buds have finally bit the dust after repairing them last year.

I took the Pixel Bud A's out of the cupboard that I got free with my 9a. Garbage. No ANC and v.poor sound quality.

Looks like I'm on the hunt for a new pair of buds. 🙁

2025-07-13 23:55:00

✍️ Written by: Dennis E. Taylor
🏷 Genre: Sci-fi
🗓 Published: 05 October 2018
📄 Pages: 428
🧐 My rating: ★★★★☆ (4 stars)

If it were up to one man and one man alone to protect the entire human race — would you want it to be a down-on-his luck asteroid miner? When Ivan Pritchard signs on as a newbie aboard the Mad Astra, it's his final, desperate stab at giving his wife and children the life they deserve. He can survive the hazing of his crewmates, and how many times, really, can near-zero g make you vomit? But there's another challenge looming out there, in the farthest reaches of human exploration, that will test every man, woman and AI on the ship — and will force Ivan to confront the very essence of what makes him human.

Buy on Amazon     

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This was the last of Dennis E. Taylor's books I hadn’t read, and I’m glad I finally got to it. I’ve always enjoyed Taylor’s writing — he tells engaging stories without getting bogged down in unnecessary complexity (though the Bobiverse series has been teetering on that edge lately).

The Singularity Trap is no exception. It hooked me from the start, and the pacing kept me invested all the way through. The ending is satisfying without tying everything up too neatly — there’s enough mystery left to make the universe feel bigger, but it still delivers a proper conclusion.

That said, I’d love to see a sequel. Just like with Roadkill, there’s plenty of room to build on what’s already a strong standalone.

Taylor himself seems open to the idea. On his Status of Things page, he mentions:

I am open to sequels on Singularity Trap and Roadkill. I may in fact do Roadkill 2 for my next non-Bob book.

So here’s hoping both sequels happen.

In the meantime, if you haven’t read The Singularity Trap — or any of Taylor’s other books — I highly recommend giving them a go.

2025-07-12 19:55:00

I really need to cut the grass, but it's too damned hot. 🥵

2025-07-11 04:25:00

So I've gone down this giant rabbit hole of redesigning my site the last couple of weeks and I think I have an idea of what the next version of this site is gonna look like...

I know some people find this stuff boring, but I'm having a blast.

2025-07-08 00:45:00

...and now I'm playing around with similar designs to this site circa 2020, and I have to say, I really like it. 😵‍💫