Matisyahu's Blog

"When the people are being beaten with a stick, they are not much happier if it is called 'the People's Stick'"

recent posts

  • Feeling good so far.

    At the half way point of my shift but I am feeling good – third day of getting back on track. I have to admit, the first few days were pretty difficult but on the third day I’m feeling pretty good and I’m sure that as the days turn into weeks and weeks turn into months that it’ll become a lot easier.

    I checked my email before going to bed last night and I received confirmation that the clothes I have ordered have been shipped. It is amazing how connected the world is because the clothes I purchased are coming all the way from Jordan and being couriered all the way down to New Zealand. It is something that for young people (younger than myself) who grew up in a time where the internet and buying stuff from overseas being the norm now take for granted where as when I was growing up the whole process was pretty laboured thus most people avoided it if they could. Once it arrives I’ll have another look at their catalogue to see what else I can buy because unfortunately it is closing down and their clothes are the style of clothing I like along with being good quality and at a reasonable price.

    I opened up my Microsoft Surface Laptop with an ARM chip and Qualcomm has released an update to their GPU driver however it isn’t a major update. After installing the driver update I was hoping that maybe it would be updated to WDDM 3.2 but unfortunately it is still stuck at WDDM 3.1, I haven’t done any benchmarks regarding the improvements but I have a feeling that because ARM is more geared towards battery life over absolute raw performance I’m sure any improvement will come about through balancing performance and battery life. On a side note, the ARM based laptops running Windows are a great device if you’re mainly using Microsoft Office and web based applications via Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome.

  • The second day completed, feeling good.

    It’s the end of the second day of getting back on track again – I stuck to my diet plan today, did some free weights before work, on my breaks and after work, then I went for an 11.6km walk tonight and although there were a few drops of rain it quickly stopped. I was able to get the walk out of the way in 1 hour and 50 minutes then when I came back I did some stretching as I cooled down, jumped into the shower and got all washed up after that work out, and now I’m in bed relaxing before I head off to sleep for the night.

    I was hoping that maybe Safari Technology Preview 235 would be released but it appears that with the time off over the festive season I guess it is a matter of people gradually coming back into the office. When it comes to Ubiquiti, they have released UniFi Gateway software version 5.0.10 in the early access area which makes me wonder whether their focus has been getting the software support for the UniFi Gateway (the non-cloud version) to date before releasing a final version. Just recently the UCK G2 Plus (UniFi Cloud Key) software version 5.0.9 was released which updated the software to the latest version. It’ll be interesting to see whether we see the software update for cloud released in the next few weeks.

    Oh, and on the issue of macOS 26.2 where I noted that there was a performance increase with the release of macOS 26.2 but I couldn’t nail down exactly what the reasoning was. It appears that there was a software update (link) which is probably the reason why I saw the WiFi stack updated in the ‘System Information’ application. It is great that in the era of pointless AI crap being rammed down the collective throats of end users that there are still companies in Silicon Valley making sure the fundamentals aka ‘meat and potatoes’ are being taken care of.

    I’ve noted in the past how more an more functionality is being pushed into user space (use the use of DriverKit in the driver names) which makes me me wonder whether the version 27 release will be more about under the hood changes that they can make since they’ll be (rumoured to) dropping support for x86 where drivers operating in user space has a performance penalty hit that is higher than doing the same thing on ARM. I wouldn’t be surprised if we ended up seeing iOS end up becoming more powerful through the use of more companies supporting their hardware on iOS through the use of DriverKit.

    Given the backlash regarding Liquid Glass and the new executive in charge of user interface, I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw further refinement in future versions of macOS and iOS with any major overhaul being reserved for version 27. I don’t think there is going to be a major change but I think some of the ‘glassy’ aspects of it will be toned down, we may even see a nod to the Aqua interface of the past and see some of those aspects return.

  • A lovely day so far.

    It has been a lovely day so far – nice weather, the neighbourhood is quiet although that will change once the kids go back to school. There are two schools nearby and they’re doing some building improvements – nothing major, just regular maintenance but is good to see that the government is finally making the investment required to bring it up to a reasonable standard.

    I’m gradually working through my second bottle of coffee concentrate because I’m eventually going to move to the Up and Go Iced Coffee with extra protein because it used long life milk so it is possible to buy them in 6 packs and fill up the fridge so then I’ve always got them cold and ready to be consumed. I’m on my 30 minute break at the moment and have been squeezing in some barbell exercises – rather than setting aside a set amount of time I prefer to squeeze it in when I have spare time or when I’m waiting for something to happen eg waiting for the washing to complete.

    Daily writing prompt
    What are your thoughts on the concept of living a very long life?
    View all responses

    The idea of living a long life would be great but you’d have to have something to keep you engaged in the world rather than just merely existing. For me, living a long life would mean being able to live to experience scientific and technological progress that at the moment can only be dreamed of. Imagine being able to live long enough that space travel becomes as much of a normal thing to do as we do today when we board an aircraft. When you think about flying, I don’t think anyone would have imagined 70 years ago that in 2025 there would be massive aircrafts like the Airbus A380 and the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet would be flying people around the globe. That doesn’t even touch on the latest aircrafts, an Airbus 350 long range model can be in the air for 22 hours.

  • Keep your eye on the prize.

    Back to work on Wednesday which was uneventful although I had to catch up on a bit of news and changes that got released at the beginning of the week. The industry I am it is important to always stay up to day with changes inside the industry as well as any sort of legislative changes given that said industry has quite a few regulations that need to be followed – it certainly right up there with the banking sector when it comes to regulations and oversight by various government agencies.

    After finishing work tonight I went for a 11.6km walk then came over, had some roasted seaweed as a snack then jumped into the shower to freshen up then clean my teeth all ready for bed. I’ve stuck to my diet reset today and I’m looking forward to getting through tomorrow – taking it one day at a time with my goal being to be below 100kg by the middle of this year. I’ve had a look in my closet and there are quite a few items I’d love to be able to fit into by the time I have my mid year time off in June when WWDC ’27 takes place.

    There is a red hemp hoodie I purchase many years ago from Cosmic Corner in Wellington but I never got around to wearing it because it didn’t fit me when I bought it. Why did I buy it? I guess I had the horrible logic that it would serve as an incentive to lose weight but many years later it appears it didn’t work. At the moment I have made great progress and it is working to serve as a good incentive these days – I try it on once a week to see how thins are progressing and it does give me a boost of confidence seeing that it is starting to fit me better.

    I think I’ve mentioned in the past that I find things like my clothes fitting better as a more useful barometer regarding how well I am progressing because it isn’t can abstract idea like weight but something you can see relative to where you were when you bought the clothes and comparing to now where it is fitting better. I’ve got some trousers that are size 36 and 38 although I may find that even with weight loss the cut of the trousers won’t work with my body time and if that is the case then I’ll either give it to my sister’s partner or I’ll donate it to an op-shop where someone will find a use for it.

  • Back to work on Wednesday.

    Today was a good day, I was able to get a whole lot of tidying up the house sorted out as well as getting my kitchen better organised. I think I need to get into a habit of keeping things organised as I go rather than waiting for the weekend to get everything in order. It reminds me of the old policy when working in hospitality – clean as you go, don’t let it build up because it you spend so much more time at the end of the shift trying to catch up.

    Mum came over and had a look at the garden shed out the back and what we decided is we need to get around 2m of 4×2 as a way of providing rigidity to the metal structure when we attach the door because the problem is that the metal is flimsy and the weight of the door isn’t properly supported by just the metal walls alone. I am tempted at some point to maybe construct a false floor or put something on the ground so then I have a dry foundation I can put stuff on the floor without having to worry about dampness. At the moment my furniture padding is currently inside but outside would be easier.

    I went mum’s place for dinner and help her with updating the software on her computer and devices – she has a Chromebook laptop but her desktop is a Bee-PC and the phone is an iPhone 16 Pro. I’ve kept mum on iOS 18.7.3 because I’m unsure about moving her to 26.2 so what I’ll probably do is wait until 26.3 or maybe 26.4 but the concern is regarding whether the text is readable and the UI change isn’t too much all at once.

    After dinner mum dropped me back home and on the way I did some grocery shopping and part of the ‘new year, new me’ the big focus is on making sure that those cupboards are full and there are no excuses for buying outside the fortnightly shop. The problem is when you shop outside the fortnightly shop is that you say to yourself that you’re only going to pick up a few items then 30minutes later you got those items plus a whole lot more. The other point is to make sure that I always have tasty nutritious meals in the house so that there is never an excuse for sneaking out to grab from the local store. Oh, and I found some anti-frizz spray which I’ve put on my hair and it has done a pretty good job – it is a ‘leave in conditioner’ and it has made my hair less frizzy.

    One thing I am looking at doing is maybe getting my ears pierced, both of them, however I am looking for a local place with a good reputation for doing a good job. I’ll have a chat with my sister to see what place she goes to get it done. As for the type of earrings, I’d be looking at a basic stud like this:

    I may get some black, dark blue and dark red ones if I can. One of those things you keep putting off and I’m at that moment in my life where I just want to go ‘fuck it, I’m going to do it’ after playing it safe.

  • A good night sleep, a wonderful day.

    I had a good night sleep, one of those sleeps when your head hits the pillow and you’re out like a light and have a solid 8-9 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Before going to sleep last night I received an email with a credit so then I could purchase the free hats and scarfs up to the value of the order I made, I was going to leave it to the next day but I thought it would be best to get it out of the way or otherwise I’ll end up forgetting all about it.

    I woke up this morning check for updates and uBlock Origin Lite version 2026.104.1656 had been released for both iOS and macOS. It fixes up a few regressions – I have a feeling that they may have no bothered with the previous release and rolled up the bug fixes into this release. I noticed on a few websites that the websites loaded a bit cleaner and faster so I’m unsure whether that is related to the update but if you are running an older version then take the plunge and update

    Microsoft CEO is complaining that AI slop is being called slop – the lack of self awareness by the tech dude bros is truly amazing but then again when Silicon Valley are huffing each others farts then convincing themselves that they know better than end users regarding what they want. It shouldn’t be surprising at all the dopey ideas that come out when you’re so divorced from reality. If there was ever a good argument to move an organisation out of Silicon Valley just so tech dude bros can ‘touch grass’ and get acquainted with reality then the last 5 years at least would be a good argument in favour of it.

    I’ve been following the media coverage post Venezuela regime change and the announcements by the Trump administration afterwards. What I find interesting are how the pro-USA sycophants in New Zealand politics have remained remarkably quiet – why have they suddenly disappeared or at least are very quiet? sorry to be snarky but such individuals lectured via the media about how China is the giant boogieman and that we need to suck up and snivel to the United States because it is in our ‘best interests’.

    I hope that after the recent action by the United States that there will be some push back to those in politics who routinely push the narrative we need get closer to the United States. The last time I checked, it wasn’t China who imposed a 15% tariffs on New Zealand exports, the Australia signed a ‘free trade’ agreement with the United States over 25 years ago and have found that it isn’t worth the paper it is written on after the Trump administration pretty much ripped up the agreement (not to mention it is a worse free trade agreement that exists between New Zealand and China).

  • Good start to the weekend.

    Got up at around 11am today, had breakfast, did some light weights then had a shower then caught the bus to head down to the supermarket to pick up some fresh ciabatta bread along with some fresh blackberries and raspberries. The weather was nice today, I had all the windows at home open to get some fresh air into the home.

    I opened up the app store on my iOS device and I found that uBlock Origin Lite version 2026.104.1656 has been released however on the Mac app store it hasn’t ben updated so maybe when I check on Tuesday I’ll see the update available for install. The update does fix up a couple of regressions although I guess I have been lucky in that I haven’t come across any issues relating to content not being blocked as it should.

    I received confirmation of the clothing order and hopefully it’ll be shipped in 24/48 hours and it’ll probably take maybe a week or two to arrive. I’m having a look through some of the items of clothing – although I may not need them straight away I do like to stock up when there is a special so when I need it I’ll have it in my wardrobe. With that being said, I need to come up with a plan regarding a place where I can put it – I’m having a look at the following:

    Which will go with the existing furniture in my bedroom but at the moment I do have a chair but I can move that into the lounge room and then put the wardrobe in its place. When it comes to the official ‘front door’ that I never use (I use the door that goes into the kitchen from the carport) however the alternative would be to have a tallboy or maybe a clothes chest then move the hoodies I have hanging up into that which would free up space in the cupboard.

    What I would do is move the bookshelf I have in my office into the lounge room over near the door that goes out to the patio then put the tallboy in the office. I’m having a look at my lounge room wall paper and it is looking like it needs to be stripped back and repainted – that is really more of a long term project but the rest of the place I perfectly fine because I think at some point they wall papered the lounge room but kept all the other rooms the default that came with the house. I’m tempted to also maybe do something about the front door I never use – maybe put a curtain over it or something, basically hide it from view.

    On Tuesday I’ve got dinner with mum and then on the way home I’ll pick up a few groceries. I still have the French ciabatta baguette so I’ll bring that for dinner which will go good with the salmon fish cakes, vegetables etc. I’ll also bring the butter too along with a bottle of Pepsi Max. I always like to bring something over for dinner so I don’t feel as though I’m freeloading.

    Daily writing prompt
    If you had a freeway billboard, what would it say?
    View all responses

    “AI slop is downstream from capitalism” and a second one would be “increased productivity will not result in lower prices” – and use the ‘bitter pills’ meme to hammer home the message.

  • My thoughts on Venezuela and what may happen in the future.

    I’ve been following a few people on YouTube from the left, centre and right so I can see what their analysis of the situation is and I thought I may as well throw my 5 cents worth out into the ether of the internet. At the moment there is a lot of speculation in the media with the situation not being helped when the Trump administration not appearing to have a coherent narrative regarding the justification for what took place, the plan is in the immediate future and some sort of macro level long term vision they have for the Americas.

    The one thing I have noticed is that the Trump administration has factions all vying for influence and with each faction justifying the operation in Venezuela in their own way – Trump with is “to the victor go the spoils”, Rubio and the neoconservatives they see it as part of a larger operation to pull Venezuela into the US sphere of influence then cripple the Cuban regime (as part of a larger reorganisation of the international order) and the anti-immigration faction who is it as an opportunity to get rid of the obstacle that will allow them to report refugees back to their country by dealing with the regime that cause the refugees coming to the US in the first place.

    When it comes to the issue regarding Oil, I think it an excuse that Trump uses because Trump isn’t exactly a deep philosophical thinker and needs a nice simple explanation eg “that country has something I want, I’ll take it”. The problem is that 5 minutes worth of research will bring up facts about their oil which kind of undermines Trump. The sort of oil that is found in Venezuela is known as ‘sour crude oil’ aka some of the nastiest oil on the planet that requires a lot of energy to turn it into something that can be mixed with sweet crude oil and light crude oil. That doesn’t even touch on the fact that oil is already had historical lows in terms of pricing which is why even though there are oil wells out there it doesn’t make any sense running them given the low price not to mention the exploration rights that aren’t being utilised because, once again, the price isn’t high enough to make it worth while.

    There is the Neo-conservative view is part of a larger project where the toppling of Venezuela will cut oil supplies off from Cuba and then force regime change in Cuba then the next focus is on regime change in Iran (hence the recent threats put out by Trump regarding what he’ll do if the Iranian shoots protesters). As for where North Korea, China and Russia fit into it, that is the million dollar question – I don’t believe they have thought that far ahead (or the believe the pressure will force reform within those countries without firing a shot) or otherwise they wouldn’t be doing what they doing in the first place. Long term Europeans take over their own security, the Middle East is left to Saudi Arabia and Israel to take care of along with a democratised Iran thus leaving the United States to focus on it’s ‘own back yard’ along with the Asia-Pacific region.

    Then there is what I call the anti-immigration faction who see the opportunity to engage in regime change as a means to achieve their end goals of deporting refugees back to the countries they were escaping from – now that the threat from a dysfunctional and despotic regime they will use that as a justification for ending refugee protection for people from those countries.

    Basically the three factions have their own reasons for supporting the neoconservative project of conducting geopolitical engineering on a grand scale. I can’t help but get the feeling that they’re wanting to get Venezuela and Cuba sorted out before the midterms and the intervention in Iran is started before the mid terms – utilising the whole ‘war time president’ shtick in a hope that it’ll shape the mid terms. I could be wrong and in the next days, weeks or months I’m shown to be a fool but I thought I may as well put my thoughts out there.

  • Things are going well.

    Looking forward to Monday but before I get ready to go to bed I got the butterflied chicken out of the freezer so that tomorrow when I get up it’ll be all defrosted and ready to go. I’ve left the chicken out (it’s in a vacuum sealed bag) on the bench to defrost where it normally takes an overnight process and when I get up in the morning I’ll put it in the fridge. I’ll end up going for a walk down to the supermarket to pick up some salad and maybe a few other items but I’ll see what is happening for dinner with mum regarding whether it’ll be on Monday or Tuesday night then see if she would like me to bring something for dinner. I’m unsure whether mum has got her new stove but given that he old stove lasted for 20 years and it was used every day, multiple times per day, 20 years is pretty good to last that long – if new parts were available then it may have lasted a few more years but unfortunate spare parts are no longer made.

    The uBlock Origin Lite version 2025.1230.2048 hasn’t ben released yet which is probably due to the whole Christmas and New Years break however I’d hazard to guess that it may make an appearance in Tuesday New Zealand time. It is kind of strange that both Google and Microsoft were able to make it available on their respective stores so hopefully Apple isn’t too far behind. I may give AdGuard another try when either 26.3 or 26.4 is released because at the moment when I use it there is weird glitch where the webpage will freeze and become unresponsive but the problem doesn’t occur with uBlock Origin Lite which leads me to believe it is an issue with the advanced blocking using custom code where as uBlock Origin Lite is a purely Declarative Net Request (DNR) filtering extension.

    I got my confirmation from the clothing company I ordered from where they asked me to confirm that I understood that because they’re closing down that all their sales are final. If I notice a few other items I may place another order but I’ll wait for the first order to arrive before ordering any more. The one I’m interested in trying out is the Malik Suit which comes with a shirt, waist coat each which will good good although the the other item of clothing I may get adjusted to make it shorter since the coat does down to ones ankles where as I’d prefer it to go down below my knees kind of like a frock coat.

  • End of the first week back.

    End of the first week back at work after having Christmas off – finished work at 10pm, did some light weights during the day, went for a brief walk, picked up a few things from the store and headed back home. Relaxing in bed watching some tv series and seeing the whole Venezuela situation unfold. I’m held off putting my thoughts out there because I’ve been having a look at a few videos from people I respect give their point of view regarding what is goal of the Trump regime. Yeah, Trump runs his mouth and it has little to do what what the actual plan is – I can’t help but get the feeling that Trump has outsourced the foreign policy to Marco Rubio given how disinterested he was when he did the press conference at Mar-a-lago where it was pretty clear he wanted to be anywhere but there.

    Anyway, this coming week things will get back to normal in New Zealand as people return from their Christmas and New Years holidays although things don’y really get back into full swing until almost every is back before the start of the new school year. I’ll go for a walk tomorrow and get some fresh air – I really do need to get out more if for no other reason than to being some sort of shut in/recluse. The weather is great so I may even go into Wellington, a walk along the water front and make a day of it.

    On the technology front I was going to wait for Macs that came with WiFi 7 inclusion but the reality is that due to the access point I have not support MLO by default (it is still considered ‘early access’) it didn’t really make much sense and since WiFi 6E includes 6GHz there was very little benefit holding off for what amounts to a minor change. Another thing to keep in mind is even with MLO enabled and WiFi 7 available on my computer the backhaul capacity from the access point to the gateway is only 2.5Gbps so there would little to no benefit.