Things That Caught My Attention

Things That Caught My Attention is a newsletter about the internet and life that I’ve been writing since January 2014. I’ve been writing online since 1998.

I write about a lot: artificial intelligence, internet of things, the ethics of technology and software, government technology, design, videogames, community management, content moderation, social networks, platforms and a very, very long-running chapter by chapter critical breakdown of Neal Stephenson’s Snow Crash. In other words, I wrote about anything that software touches.

I don’t just write about technology: I also write about technology from a personal perspective. I write about adult ADHD, mental health, what it’s like to be a father and what it’s like to be an immigrant in America raising a family.

Paid supporters and subscribers now get a free copy of Things That Caught My Attention, Volume 1, an ebook collecting the best essays from the first fifty episodes. You can also buy a copy from Gumroad.

Elsewhere, you can find me on Twitter (@hondanhon) and Mastodon (danhon@dan.mastohon.com).

Who subscribes?

If you subscribe, you’ll be joining academics, writers, ad agency executive creative directors and managers, digital strategist, poets, artists, journalists, software engineers, venture capital partners, parents and caregivers, futurists, management consultants, designers and researchers and more.

What my subscribers have in common is that they’re interested in the things I write about: technology and what it’s like to be a person.

Things readers have said

Reading @hondanhon's post on scaling bureaucracy. So many parallels to ontology, to government as a platform....even #ResearchOps > > I spend so much of my time these days trying to work through stuff that doesn't easily scale. Thx for the brain-bending Dan! > > by Brigette Metzler, about episode s07e12: Scaling Bureaucracy.

Cracking newsletter from @hondanhon today (s07e08: Jeremy Bearimy), particularly the Dr Malcolm bit in section 1.2, which is basically the Jurassic Park follow-up I want to see in the world. > > by Dr. Kate Devlin.

This is an excellent newsletter and you should all subscribe and this episode features @hondanhon diving into data bias with some real examples and spot-on metaphors that do not involve lakes, streams, or rivers despite my description of him diving. > > by Sarah K Moir, about episode s07e10: Tireless five year olds).

I practically stuck my finger through the screen I hit the Apple Pay button so hard. @hondanhon firing up his newsletter again, and taking money for it because its bloody good and that shit takes time and pain? Why yes, I shall be subscribing. You should too. > > by Ben Hammersley

Are you interested in interesting things like: how we can make government tech deliver (and measure) outcomes? Check out @hondanhon’s new old newsletter > > by Jason Sparks

I honestly couldn't subscribe fast enough to @hondanhon's new newsletter, Things That Have Caught My Attention. That's some Damn Fine Writing for $7/mo. Stop being so cheap and sign up already. > > by Dr. Chris Rice