John is coming in hot this week, and Merlin is kind of struggling to keep up with him. Merlin tries to compensate by making up some lyrics, and John explains canary traps. Merlin forgets things. John intērrogates the virality of podcast mispronunciations, and before long, the listener is subjected to a blinding fusillade of quips, japes, references, bits, and metacommentary that you will be forgiven for finding exhausting. John incepts Merlin, and Merlin regrets doubling-up on his 100-year words...
May 29, 2019•2 hr 52 min•Ep 105•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with John confronting Merlin about his lack of a checklist and Merlin confronting John about his paltry micturition. This leads to Merlin explaining why he's a recycling whale who deliberately withholds his bounty from one particular Tusken Raider. Going to the bathroom can be a sleep-extinction event. John's kids can't print, and now it's _his_ fault. Merlin's kid still can't activate planning mode. There are generally concerns about declaring "done." Preparedness drills and...
May 15, 2019•2 hr 34 min•Ep 104•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with some follow-up on John's epic fridge journey. In addition to *many* photos of uneven refrigerator doors, John has also received several warnings about what he needs to be watching out for. John also appends his anecdote to include a related new appliance, and Merlin recommends a tactical ice option. Your hosts discuss the mysterious tween Whisper Network. Merlin thinks John might be a Buddhist. John revisits Merlin's oopsies with apparently not remembering to record podc...
May 01, 2019•1 hr 19 min•Ep 103•Transcript available on Metacast Your hosts discuss John’s new refrigerator.
Apr 17, 2019•2 hr 58 min•Ep 102•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with a critique of the GUI for Skype. What’s Merlin’s problem with Swing anyway? John introduces the “MPU” then mostly agrees to drive. John interrogates Merlin about a recent and notorious technical problem with one of his other programs. There is talk of check lists plus more fretfulness about the topic that cannot be discussed. Next, your hosts respond at length to a listener’s question about things they’ve given up. Status is less pursued, insight on privilege is sought, ...
Apr 03, 2019•2 hr 50 min•Ep 101•Transcript available on Metacast This week, Merlin feels a little thin, and John *still* has to re-position his windows. Every time. John has follow-up on peanut butter and a theory about the balls in Merlin's brain. In further follow-up, John has achieved success in his ticking-clock _Destiny_ project, but it doesn't mean quite as much as his achievement in _Super Monkey Ball_. In related news, a regular _Destiny_ segment is not currently planned. Merlin is very happy with the streaming quality of _Spider-Man: Into the Spider-...
Mar 21, 2019•2 hr 48 min•Ep 100•Transcript available on Metacast Merlin thinks John is late, and John thinks Merlin needs to check his NTP server. Merlin's family is watching *The Office*, and this leads to a discussion of sitcom conceits. John assigned some secondary homework this week, so the trailer for _Yesterday_ is considered. Merlin realizes he shouldn't look at links, and John almost admits to liking a given time-travel movie. John has questions about the provenance of "karmasuck," and Merlin accidentally talks like Mario. Other purported Merlinisms p...
Mar 07, 2019•2 hr 39 min•Ep 99•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with some weather talk but quickly pivots to the frustrating world of presentations and bad presentation culture. Why does this have to take over the whole screen, and why is that control thingee covering a bunch of the slide? Also, who just joined the call? In a mini-topic, Merlin risks John's wrath by asking a technical question: *why* does turning something off and on fix so many problems? John has answers, and anecdotes about state-confused devices are shared. Why won't c...
Feb 21, 2019•2 hr 35 min•Ep 98•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with John reminding Merlin he needs to study up to make better jokes. Merlin thinks John just needs to buy a better long sword at the pop-up. Things move quickly into a mini-topic on the *Black Mirror* episode, "Bandersnatch." Does this unusual experiment potentially represent a new way of telling stories, and can we expect to see more uses of interactive tech on TV? John has strong opinions on the platforms that are best suited for video-game-like interaction. Meanwhile, Mer...
Feb 07, 2019•2 hr 37 min•Ep 97•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with a warning. Merlin has had some small reboots, and John learned about a new brain disease. John confronts Merlin on his disloyalty, and this leads to John interrogating Merlin's newfound fondness for NBA basketball. Yes: sports are discussed. Then things turn to some follow-up on Merlin's recent office cleanup, and John introduces how refuse is "aging" in his house. Merlin cops to some stacking and defends his fad diet. John's weight is within his limits, but, man, does h...
Jan 23, 2019•2 hr 37 min•Ep 96•Transcript available on Metacast This week, John is just back from his holiday trip, and Merlin thinks he's a *titan*. Merlin's daughter wants to be a monk, and the art of AD&D is discussed. John has more questions about Merlin's Britishisms. We are introduced to "Hello, Richard" and the flats of San Francisco are re-litigated. The taxonomy of the Google doc is also re-litigated. Although it won't turn into one-third of every episode, listeners are invited to ask your hosts questions via "`#AskRecDiffs`". In what becomes a mini...
Jan 10, 2019•1 hr 29 min•Ep 95•Transcript available on Metacast Things kick off with some discussion of the recent _Do By Friday_ Holiday Party, then John takes the axe to Merlin's latest experiment with the show doc. In follow-up, John catches us up on how his jammed thumb is mending, and your hosts talk about TV fixes and calibration. John reminds Merlin what they've already talked about. The list of Big Topics is briefly scanned. In further follow-up, Merlin asks about locating hard-to-find Mac files, and John wishes Merlin had asked him about what he was...
Dec 26, 2018•2 hr 49 min•Ep 94•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with a dive into the sad world of middle-aged injuries and afflictions. John missed a step, and Merlin experiences a grave sweatpant malfunction. Does it always take this long to heal, and why do people keep putting things in other people’s areas? John interrogates Merlin about his heartbeat, and Merlin reveals he’s conducting a personal longitudinal study. John still has concerns, and the problem of unreliable podcast statistics comes up. John tracks the nutrition stats for ...
Dec 13, 2018•2 hr 49 min•Ep 93•Transcript available on Metacast This week’s *wraparound episode* kicks off with coverage of Merlin's new overalls and baby-bottle-nipple hat. John has some thoughts on this new sartorial turn, and Merlin has questions about John's sleep. Merlin gets an alarming message. Merlin expresses gratitude for John's introduction to a new band, and this leads to a discussion of how your hosts discover, consume, and curate music these days. Who's wearing a Beatles wig, and when does it work? Tricking kids into liking music is considered....
Nov 29, 2018•2 hr 37 min•Ep 92•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with the Mid-Term Election Extravaganza. Merlin is definitely not watching the results, and John realizes he shouldn’t have checked in at all. Listeners are assigned Spoiler Slot homework being the Amazon Prime series, _Homecoming_. Also, upon John’s recommendation, Merlin bought a very large book. Your hosts talk about the phenomenon of The Movie Before the Movie, and where it’s been best deployed. John talks about the ordering of a homework laptop. This leads to a discussio...
Nov 14, 2018•2 hr 33 min•Ep 91•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with some *Dear Evan Hansen* talk, and Merlin admits he still hasn’t *earned* the second act. This leads John to interrogate this odd affliction of Merlin’s. Both hosts finally address how, whether, and when they commit to the full consumption of cultural products. Why does John so often stick with the whole season of a C-plus TV show, and when does Merlin know he’s ready for the second half of a given Broadway hit? This leads to a broader discussion of what gets you hooked o...
Nov 01, 2018•2 hr 39 min•Ep 90•Transcript available on Metacast This week, Merlin has a lot going on, and John has questions about how _Do By Friday_ works behind the scenes. In turn, Merlin has some iCloud questions for John. There is discussion of photo management and the trend line for Apple’s dependability in services. John worries about losing his hearts, and Merlin gets some really terrible prints made. In-home intercom systems are recalled, and the sorry state of your hosts’ childhood electronics is explored. Updates to smart cylinders and screens are...
Oct 18, 2018•1 hr 26 min•Ep 89•Transcript available on Metacast This week, John has a musical request for Merlin, and Merlin agrees to hop on the court. This leads to a discussion of musical fingernail trimming, and the revelation of an upsetting new callus. John has questions about Merlin’s crazy bandwidth. This leads to misty, water-colored memories of the way we downloaded. Time was, no one could get ISDN, and John makes a funny goof. John did not fix the document. In follow-up, Merlin has an update on homework at after-care, then kind of goes off about w...
Oct 04, 2018•2 hr 3 min•Ep 88•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with some complaining about Google’s UI cruft. Also, why are school websites so bad? Technology old and new is discussed. John just wants to upload a photo, and Merlin learns a _lot_ about targeted individuals. John is skeptical about whether this is really a thing, but Merlin is pretty sure it is. John thinks Merlin missed an opportunity to be a guru, and Merlin has thoughts on how not to be that particular guy. In further discussion of crappy business software and practices...
Sep 20, 2018•2 hr 51 min•Ep 87•Transcript available on Metacast This week, Merlin is losing his mind, and John’s kids can’t _even_. Merlin praises his kid’s tech-savvy teacher, and John has questions about how well Merlin has been following his orders. Merlin admits that he literally has not. Homework is discussed, and John confesses to once starting the world’s longest book report. John recounts his career of creative abuse of Macintosh skills back in elementary and high school, and Merlin dons his notional 43 Folders hat. The topic expands to a wider explo...
Sep 05, 2018•2 hr 2 min•Ep 86•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with John’s candid assessment of Merlin’s new facial hair experiment, and Merlin expresses sympathy for John’s own grave face challenges. Ziti is briefly discussed, and Merlin has a feature request for _ATP_. John has some questions about a podcast Merlin likes, and this leads to a discursive walk through ***what makes a podcast stick***. John doesn’t want to know how much Chapo makes each month, Merlin makes some recommendations, and your hosts struggle, as ever, with recomm...
Aug 23, 2018•2 hr 47 min•Ep 85•Transcript available on Metacast Again with the Skype, and the show is off and running with a quick gloss on Programming, Scratch, homemade Pong, and another podcast where John adjudicates what is or is not a thing. John goes bowling, but it isn’t _proper bowling_, and Merlin doesn’t actually make it into arcades so much anymore. John explores the squalid underworld of Gambling for Children, and Merlin talks about some recent high-quality dogs he’s met. John thinks Merlin is nowhere near ready for a canine in his life, but Merl...
Aug 09, 2018•2 hr 49 min•Ep 84•Transcript available on Metacast This week, Merlin has managed his time poorly and John has notes about the verisimilitude of Memoji. John’s daughter is at camp and Merlin thinks the show notes are just a mess. This week’s mini-topic cover’s Merlin’s struggle with a sound bar. This leads to some TV (set) talk. John is in the market for a new one and Merlin asks for some tech advice. Plants are discussed. John brings us up to date on his recent trip to England, and Merlin talks about Cho Chang. John has some notes on Merlin’s ic...
Jul 26, 2018•1 hr 26 min•Ep 83•Transcript available on Metacast This week starts with an inhale as Merlin fails to solve several of John's musical puzzles. Then, there's some R.E.M. talk. As you do. This week's mini-topic involves ***Merlin's Summer Projects.*** Merlin likes choosing the right word, and John doesn't really _do_ projects. This ends up leading to some deep discussion about buying a guitar and trying to get better at it. John can't understand why Merlin would paste a screenshot, and Merlin likes watching John edit the Google Doc. This week's ma...
Jul 11, 2018•2 hr 45 min•Ep 82•Transcript available on Metacast This week opens with Merlin’s heavy reappraisal of *Isle of Dogs*, plus an anecdote that involves his wife slapping a remote out of his hands. John shares some strong opinions about motion smoothing and reveals the stunning secrets of Instagram. Your hosts discuss New England. John reveals a new wrinkle in his daughter’s recent dietary radicalization, while Merlin points out that John has a lot of balls in the air. It is agreed that all houses should probably come with documentation. Your hosts ...
Jun 28, 2018•2 hr 35 min•Ep 81•Transcript available on Metacast This week’s *wraparound episode* begins with the annual WWDC reporting live from the show floor. Then, Merlin explains a joke and shows John an image you can’t see yet. John has trouble stopping the flow of *WIRED*, and Apple TV apps are further discussed. Merlin briefly uses his Nest camera as a voice dingus. *Very briefly*. Your hosts talk about how they handle the Wild West of two-factor authentication, and what happened with that whole Amazon tube lady dustup. John has thoughts on what it wo...
Jun 14, 2018•2 hr 41 min•Ep 80•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off with a main topic: ***Kid Independence Projects***. Merlin is trying a new thing, and John admits that he’s *pan-fretful*. What kind of stuff do you undertake to encourage your kids’ independence and responsibility? What about the fires and the knives? Merlin is proud when his daughter deceives him, but John’s a little disappointed with his kid’s failure to cover her tracks. Can you even **imagine** your kid having to go to church? In follow-up, John updates us on how his bel...
May 31, 2018•2 hr 32 min•Ep 79•Transcript available on Metacast This week kicks off punctually, with some follow-up from John on Destiny 2 users getting more vault space to hold all their stuff. Why not 3000 slots? Who even knows? Merlin confesses that he’s terrible at controlling his PlayStation and extolls the magic and perplexity of *Movies Anywhere*. Siri control of Apple TV is discussed. In more official follow-up, John has updates on the systematic **_chair cleansing_** at his office. John has a rooting interest in the last rebel chair, and Merlin wond...
May 17, 2018•2 hr 50 min•Ep 78•Transcript available on Metacast This week, John and Merlin come in _hot_ with an accidental main topic: ***punctuality***. Is punctuality important, and how much tardiness can we abide from our pals and business associates? Merlin wonders if _expecting_ punctuality might be a form of privilege, and John has strong feelings about the police, just in general. In follow-up, Merlin clarifies where you can listen to that Simpsons episode of _The Incomparable_, then applauds Jason Snell's editing skills and suggests ways to give oth...
May 03, 2018•2 hr 56 min•Ep 77•Transcript available on Metacast This week’s episode has _lots_ of really good follow-up. Follow-up on accents, Face ID, how Roderick records, and Merlin’s new internet friend. John provides much-requested follow-up on Twitter’s recently announced changes. This leads to a broader discussion of free speech and platform ownership. John and Merlin embarrass their families, fret about Disney, and talk about some excellent Simpsons lines. Combed, biscuits, chicken, yellow, mailman…very good. (_Recorded on Tuesday, April 9, 2018._)...
Apr 18, 2018•2 hr 2 min•Ep 76•Transcript available on Metacast 
