Christopher Kirk-Nielsen

https://front-end.social/@chriskirknielsen

🎨 Creative developer and CSS nerd at mojopsg.com 
🤓 Enjoys neon glow, gaming, movies, cats, languages (& puns!)
 📍 France-raised Dane, US-based (weird accent!) 🇫🇷🇩🇰🇺🇸
 🥚 Yet another bald white bearded man (thanks DNA!) 
💬 Pronouns: he/him 
If I make a terrible dad joke, I'm sorry (but not really)

Personal Web Site: https://chriskirknielsen.com
Shirts & Stickers: https://chriskirknielsen.com/designs
CodePen: https://codepen.io/chriskirknielsen
Location: USA

Public Key

npub19405hrqah8pkr50tqx5psudeqet65mhcgr8gzwgd3tzc3p27z0zsz9zhyh

NIP-05 Address

[email protected]

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsz6h6t3swmnsmp684sr2qcwxusv4a2dmuypn5p8yxc43vgs40p83gpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsa7qa9c

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub19405hrqah8pkr50tqx5psudeqet65mhcgr8gzwgd3tzc3p27z0zsz9zhyh

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Last Notes

2026-03-03 20:42:25 GMT

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The BuildAwesome Bundle, so… the BAB? BAB Monsour? Full circle! 😄

2026-01-27 14:10:27 GMT

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This was at the top of my feed, lovely coincidence: https://infosec.exchange/@rmd1023/115966991244578428

2026-01-27 14:09:49 GMT

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That's amazing, congratulations! CSS! 👏 CSS! 👏 CSS! 👏

2026-01-04 16:44:08 GMT

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Dang it. Guess I need to bake my own stuff!

2026-01-04 16:38:21 GMT

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These look great. I'll take two!

2025-12-31 17:49:18 GMT

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Right, that's exactly what it is, and it is without a doubt the best name for any physical phenomenon ever named!

2025-12-31 17:22:46 GMT

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Ah, who doesn't love toasted fences as a lil' treat. 😌 (but more seriously, that's really cool! or hot! I'm not a scientist!)

2025-12-06 13:59:17 GMT

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Lovely! I remember eating through an entire tin of those things. I should learn how to make some…

2025-11-29 22:41:57 GMT

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Aww that's so wholesome. ☺️

2025-11-29 21:43:31 GMT

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Is the SMS from a trusted person or unknown number? Not to make you paranoid but when my banking info was hacked a few months ago, legit messages from my bank were attempted to be drowned in a sea of spam. Hopefully it is just a glitch for you, and nothing serious!

2025-11-28 19:54:56 GMT

Have any of you ever transferred a sticker from one laptop (or other smooth surface) to another? My laptop case has cracked, so I'm going to use a sturdier one, though I really like my dozen-or-so stickers. Is it as simple as heating up the stickers with a hairdryer and re-applying them on the new surface, or should also I get some arts and craft kind of glue to make it hold?
I've looked at a couple of tips online that seem to indicate that's the way to go but I wonder if it's worth the hassle!

2025-11-22 02:13:06 GMT

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That's bonkers. Super creative (and evil!) way to use native browser APIs, but bonkers all the same.

2025-11-18 01:55:01 GMT

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Oh no, I was so sure… is my memory going already? Time for me to crawl into a hole. 🙈

2025-11-17 16:32:00 GMT

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Good stuff in this one!
For "toast", I can only assume the name comes from the slice of bread that jumps out from the toaster. 🍞
As for the `every()`/`some()` returning surprising results, you linked to a great article, but I remember another one from @npub128u…dj5r (paraphrasing): every human on Venus has blue skin is true because there's no way to say that there is a human who isn't blue. Or something like that. It's certainly confusing but the example stuck with me!

2025-11-16 13:55:55 GMT

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That's a good number! Happy birthday! 🎉

2025-11-07 20:06:09 GMT

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I commend your effort and wish you well on your Dune-devouring endeavours!
Haha I think I would lose my mind with GOT, probably about thirty thousand characters to keep track of. I read too slowly to remember anything, no thank youuuu.

2025-11-07 17:04:40 GMT

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I only read the first book, and enjoyed it, but I don't know if I have the patience to go through all the books. What you are saying is making me more comfortable in my choice haha.

2025-11-06 18:32:38 GMT

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I'd love for browsers to pay accessibility experts to weigh in before shipping features. (thinking recently about the CSS carousel debacle where the "accessible by default" statement was not really true, and the accessibility tree is a bit of a mess from what I can tell — I am not an accessibility expert but I trust those who are!)

2025-11-03 15:56:16 GMT

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Thanks for beta-testing this for us Sara. I hate it. 🫠 What happens when you have a maximised view (not full screen, just as large as possible), does it look worse than what I have now, with an even larger gap by the corner? (I maximise my dev browser and IDE but everything else I float around like you! *high five*)
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/115/486/580/707/625/857/original/b976c5ee99925d27.png

2025-11-01 14:14:40 GMT

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But as George McFly would this: this is good stuff! Maybe it'd be good for a conference "swag" run or something. brb starting a conf real quick

2025-10-31 21:20:47 GMT

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If I ever made a limited run that could be an option, but not sure about the viability of getting a set amount of shirts made. 🫣

2025-10-31 21:19:54 GMT

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I know TeePublic has a tie-dye print available but it's likely a little basic. I haven't gotten one from them but I'm afraid it's "printed" and not an actual tie-dye so it may look a little cheap. But it's certainly an option!

2025-10-31 12:42:59 GMT

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This is a dope idea. Though since I don't control the print process I wouldn't know how to get that sweet duotone split on a shirt. Agh decisions decisions!

2025-10-22 17:22:31 GMT

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Yeah mine are all in a sorry state too, but I tell myself it makes it look like a genuine shirt from the 80s/90s haha. I will be moving some of my designs onto CottonBureau to hopefully have a better quality available! Either way I really appreciate you wearing these lil' designs. 🥰

2025-10-22 16:13:06 GMT

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Thanks for sporting this shirt, Sara! 😊

2025-10-13 21:12:27 GMT

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Thank you so much for pointing @npub1nwk…slxa my way, this is the kind of project I love, or to be more on brand, `for which I go ba${parseInt('@').toString().toLowerCase()}as`.

2025-10-01 16:25:48 GMT

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I definitely won't be able to keep up so I will live vicariously through your efforts!
I like this one, top marks, but it's not (gl)assy enough: I am somehow able to read everything? What is this… actually accessible?! 🫠

2025-09-17 20:48:20 GMT

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Now that you mention it, I do see it! But it's like… from 2px thickness to 2.5px. Good thing I have a high DPI monitor. 🤓 (I'll stop the CSS nerdery talk sorry — glasses look good! Also quite nice to be able to get a pair of glasses online these days)

2025-09-17 20:06:21 GMT

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Ah the ol' `border-radius: 15%` to `border-radius: 17.5%` switcheroo!

2025-09-16 21:14:48 GMT

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I bruteforced my way through a couple of those, but I am finally giving up at level 44: I do not know how to play chess! Thanks for sharing though, this is fun!

2025-09-02 17:28:31 GMT

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Same here via Phanpy (desktop web) and Mastodon (iOS app), might be global, but definitely not just you!

2025-06-28 15:17:29 GMT

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Huh, if this can be useful, I hope it sticks around when the AI bubble collapses. (I still don't get what MCP is in the context of things but I just imagine a JSON-like API, that's as far as I'll learn!)

2025-06-27 12:18:57 GMT

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Today I learned… 😬

2025-06-14 22:54:44 GMT

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Much appreciated, Sara, especially given your own focus on whimsy. 🥰 (which is what the `w` in your handle stands for, of course: Sara, of House Joy and Whimsy)

2025-06-14 18:40:35 GMT

I wasn't happy with 8 different themes on my website, so there's now a 9th one, which lets you customise the main settings. It's driven by about a dozen #CSS custom properties (I love theming in CSS holy heck…I should write about it). It was a good… distraction, to build this.
Anyway, maybe you want some "Matrix" or bubble gum style instead of my painstakingly and lovingly crafted themes? That's fine, express yourself everywhere! Even on my personal website!
Have a go: https://chriskirknielsen.com/
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/114/683/178/725/227/472/original/e6383eabee40607e.png
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/114/683/178/733/278/029/original/286abc27e63af394.png
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/114/683/178/732/397/609/original/a8dcf835ccd60b8a.png

2025-06-03 15:33:47 GMT

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What a lovely and thoughtful post, thank you so much for sharing this with us. As the kids say these days: big agree.

2025-05-18 21:30:24 GMT

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The principle of the drawer is great but yeah I can see how that would be frustrating (especially if there's a snack you're trying to reach haha). I don't love using saw-based power tools either 😅, I hope you can figure something out to complete your mod!

2025-05-18 19:52:54 GMT

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Wow the IE coaster! And the whiteboard just right there looks like a great idea! I have one hanging on the wall on my right and I never look at it. 👀

2025-05-11 15:18:05 GMT

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That second one kinda looks like "😤" haha

2025-05-10 17:42:33 GMT

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I am not sure, but there is "gutte" which is probably similar minus the "old" part (and also minus the charming part haha). I usually just use it as "some guy" or "that fella", but it's rather neutral.

2025-05-10 17:21:54 GMT

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Unsurprisingly similar to Danish "earth berries" but I don't know if the etymology carries "little old men" in there, too. Languages are funny things! 😄

2025-05-10 16:14:46 GMT

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Horrible div-soup aside… why the heck the the last character isolated? (I've seen somebody else point this out) Is it to account for letter-spacing or something? Either way, ew!

2025-04-22 20:12:19 GMT

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Hell yeah, weird wide web. 🙌
I will say I remember watching that movie while tired, and watching it fully again the following night, because I was so, so lost. Might be worth rewatching on my end, too!

2025-04-22 19:54:48 GMT

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Never! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkG7WsznEl0 👀)

2025-04-22 19:31:38 GMT

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you forgot the last step: `sudo npm audit fix --force` (a.k.a. yolo)

2025-04-14 20:32:09 GMT

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while I know the topic is not joyful, I still very much appreciate these, you do a good job!
I'm also not a poet, but I think it's good for the ol' thinker. At work, I've been asked to write some nice words about a coworker for our yearly awards, so I naturally wrote a poem haha. Also a good spot for these musings are source code and console logs… 😄

2025-04-06 21:20:16 GMT

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Hah yeah I definitely relate! I know "show, not tell" can elevate a narrative but like, show me it with a high-vis vest and torchlights!

2025-04-06 19:18:08 GMT

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Yeah when I use my computer without glasses I don't mind a little bump to 110% at times. So many reasons to zoom… it is so frustrating when it doesn't work.
I also use UI scaling in video games that offer it: even with glasses on, my TV is just far enough that I can't read things clearly. Very annoying when a prompt is like "Press R1" but I can't tell if it says "L1" or "R2" which do very different things!

2025-04-06 18:29:45 GMT

Yesterday, I got my eyes checked, and pupils dilated as a result. It was a cloudy day so I thought walking home would be fine, but damn, what an uncomfortable feeling of being permanently…sun dazed (is there a term?). I also couldn't see things up close (which felt weird as I am near-sighted) for some hours.
Anyways, I guess the moral of the story is: sighted people browse the web with 150% zoom enabled for a variety of reasons, even if very briefly. Remember to test it! #a11y

2025-03-04 15:00:25 GMT

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Really cool that you've implemented this (not to mention your sequencer and everything else) in JS. It does sound nice! Also, I love that the caption at the end says "add more func", just to tie it back to JavaScript haha. (accidental as it may be)
I think anybody that might have trouble understanding should focus on the high hats to pick up the difference.

2025-03-02 20:37:55 GMT

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I love when a song can evoke such specific memories! 😁 For me it's burning my own "mixtape" CDs, or rather, letting my brother download the songs on eMule/Kazaa, then throw those MP3s onto a fresh CD-ROM, with me watching excitedly behind his shoulder haha.

2025-03-02 20:23:50 GMT

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What a throwback! 💜

2025-01-17 18:15:52 GMT

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Oh you're right, ew ew ewwwww!
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/113/845/059/544/238/706/original/e02a47e927807a76.mp4

2025-01-17 16:10:12 GMT

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Not sure if you're talking about the same server but I saw this today, from a user with a bored ape avatar… I know not to judge a book by its cover but… 👀

2025-01-09 22:40:17 GMT

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That looks really nice! Also your reflection looks like Link in the Legend of Zelda receiving a new heart container. 😄

2025-01-06 21:34:53 GMT

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You can, but I won't lie: it's a hassle… (vanilla JS synth I built: https://chriskirknielsen.com/about/#side-projects) As I've seen others mention in the replies, maybe check out Tone.js, should be easier to play around with!

2024-12-31 13:48:49 GMT

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Yes! Thank you for mentioning it somewhere (memory going blank here), I'm glad it caught my attention. It was a lovely read!

2024-12-30 13:42:21 GMT

A year in review kind of post, mainly a media diet digest with a lots of bullet points: https://chriskirknielsen.com/blog/2024-as-bullet-points/
Hopefully I'll blog a little more in 2025, and perhaps read more books, too. Toodle-oo!

2024-12-27 18:55:16 GMT

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#Expepperessions, a mouthful that only those peppers seem to be able to handle…

2024-11-20 19:33:45 GMT

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I saw it in 2012, so it's been a while… it's got an interesting concept of time as currency, but also utterly dystopian! I remember liking it well enough, but not sure how well it's aged… It's got Justin "This is going to ruin the tour" Timberlake, amongst other big names.

2024-11-20 18:21:40 GMT

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I have considered asking HR if there's a way to donate days in some form or another. If this were the movie In Time I could easily send you some!

2024-11-20 00:38:56 GMT

I rarely take time off (bad, I know) and every time, at the end of the year, I have too many days available (only 5 days can rollover into next year). So I just booked 10 days off, and still need to take 5 more. It's a nice problem to have, but complicated to work around "essential" meetings. (those quotes are doing a lot of work here)
First world problems, most definitely, but also: no wonder I tired. 😅
Take you vacations, folks!

2024-11-16 12:07:31 GMT

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Happy prime birthday! 🥳

2024-11-01 17:22:40 GMT

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I love that the advent calendar has an advent calendar in it. And all that gibberish text. (and by "love" I of course mean "feel sick at the sight of")

2024-10-31 13:22:07 GMT

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Haha this is great. I guess we don't say "G there on feet", another weird one. Language weirdness is fascinating!

2024-10-23 21:38:19 GMT

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I have made a donation (and subsequently gotten many texts and emails—I get why, but whew!), but I don't buy merch since I'm in Ohio — don't feel comfortable (= safe) enough to wear stuff like that juuuust yet. When I lived in NYC, that'd have been fine!

2024-10-23 20:36:21 GMT

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It sucks living in the US, paying taxes, but not being allowed to vote because I'm not a citizen. I get all the stress* but no voice in the matter.
I know the right to vote is usually knit with citizenship, but I can't help but feel it's a way to keep the GOP in power, as my gut tells me the majority of foreigners like me would likely vote to the left.
*recognising I'm a straight white cis man… I know that whatever stress I feel is a million times worse for folks who don't look like me

2024-10-23 13:25:43 GMT

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It's a bloody good theme, I think I've used it since it first came out. I did try a couple other ones here and there, but this one is just too good.

2024-10-21 12:18:17 GMT

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I think Sass supetsets rgb/hsl as functions, so it's likely trying to parse the contents into its own version of hsl, but doesn't understand modern CSS's relative color. (try `Hsl(...` with a capital H if you want to bypass the warning, maybe?)

2024-10-19 16:32:22 GMT

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This sounds familiar... Pinging @npub152k…te0s 🙈

2024-10-12 18:27:48 GMT

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Do you have the same problem with other cables?
I had this problem with my phone. Pocket lint was the problem. My phone would not connect unless exactly right. Took a toothpick, some alcohol on a q-tip, and gave it a proper clean, dug out lint, and then it worked fine. Hope it's as easy as that for you, too!

2024-10-08 16:00:45 GMT

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Blame the French! (we spell the dish and this tyrant's name the same, because if we spelt it "Putin", it would sound like "Putain", which is our equivalent of "Fuck", so that would not fly on live television) When in doubt, always blame the French…

2024-10-07 19:34:11 GMT

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Oh no. 😣 Wishing you all the best!

2024-10-07 14:44:29 GMT

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I forgot the `newLink.media="print"` and to remove it in `onload` but maybe you don't need it in this case? 😅

2024-10-07 14:25:37 GMT

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Gave it a quick test, _seems_ to prevent the flash (Chroem/FF)
```
document.getElementById('testbutton').addEventListener('click',() => {
const currLink = document.getElementById('current-style-sheet');
const newLink = document.createElement('link');
newLink.onload = () => { currLink.remove(); newLink.id = 'current-style-sheet'; };
newLink.rel = "stylesheet";
newLink.href= "/css/simple-purple/index.css";
document.querySelector('head').appendChild(newLink);
})
```

2024-10-07 13:46:51 GMT

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Could you use the old Filament Group trick (https://www.filamentgroup.com/lab/load-css-simpler/): inject the <link> as a print media with an onload handler, and the handler would then remove the media=print AND discard the previous stylesheet? Not tested, but an idea nonetheless. :)

2024-10-04 14:32:34 GMT

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Sounds terrifying. I would not know if I had any metal fillings. Do they put you through a metal detector or something, just to be sure? I hope you get some good/helpful results back!

2024-10-03 17:11:15 GMT

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I like the idea of making it more unique per release. It's more work, but more fun! Like if we imagined a new CSS release that just added text-shadow, adding a text-shadow to the number would be a cool nod. But that might be too meta. Either way, could be the numbers don't need to be the same, or it could be the pink background changes, like in the rest of Adam's samples.

2024-10-03 16:36:36 GMT

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I do love a good excuse to use Roman numerals! 😄 I think it's cool but perhaps too nerdy and it might stray from the usual #.0 notation we're used to seeing with software in general. (but let's be real, CSS X would be one hell of a release 😎)

2024-10-03 15:34:31 GMT

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Wait a second, are we _sure_?
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/113/244/220/115/435/303/original/d613a8f408202fad.mp4

2024-10-03 12:26:39 GMT

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I really like this style! 👏

2024-10-02 17:02:34 GMT

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I know I suggested long shadows but seeing this I'm not sure it's quite there yet. I think it feels off because (1) not all text has it (and I don't think "CSS" needs it) and (2) while it adds contrast, it "drags" the visual flow, if that makes sense? Maybe a lighter shadow could work? It's almost carving away from the shape when on a dark background, looks a little off. Maybe a super simple drop shadow (0px blur) instead?

2024-10-01 02:30:23 GMT

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Finally finished reading this, what an excellent deep-dive! Thanks for writing this up, it's the kind of nerdy approach to topics we need more of. 🤓

2024-09-30 19:55:27 GMT

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Okay I know it's the least "workable" but the bigass number in the background does look nice!
How about another non-monochromatic approach?
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/113/228/259/328/548/745/original/cc09bb63264ecdc0.png

2024-09-30 19:37:30 GMT

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*McConaughey voice* "You gotta tone those numbers down, those are chonky numbers in this racket."
The outlined numbers are yelling at me a little too much, I think they could be more discrete with a more standard styling (could be wrapped in a rounded square of its own? could had some good-ol' 2012 long shadows!)

2024-09-29 20:02:38 GMT

I got a silly idea on Friday evening so I obviously made it real and put it on my designs page: https://chriskirknielsen.com/designs/
(and holy shit can we talk about how the typography of the actual BTTF logo is a total mess but also works perfectly?)
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/113/222/625/218/049/486/original/e8f29028b7d4a2c8.png

2024-09-27 15:12:32 GMT

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Mostly pointer and aware of toggle crew here. Though I do use a _lot_ of shortcuts, too. Maybe more than I realise… like I always Cmd+Tab to switch apps, and rarely click the icon in the Dock (which I leave hidden), but I still consider myself a pointer-first user because I'll use the mouse for anything that requires more keystrokes than clicks to focus (except Cmd+Tab or Cmd+` I guess?). Mixed bag here. 😅

2024-09-25 16:57:33 GMT

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If it ain't broke… 😁 (also Keith I opened your homepage and was about to get upset because it made me hungry with that dessert, but then it made me remember I had a cupcake with my name on it in the fridge so I guess what I'm trying to say is thank you!)

2024-09-25 01:44:31 GMT

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Glad you figured something out! Yeah I think you're right, mixing units won't work so `0.6` should hopefully do the trick!

2024-09-25 01:33:07 GMT

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Safari exposes the computed value if you're on macOS (`=` button next to the var), and I believe that behaviour is coming to Firefox as well!

2024-09-24 21:58:35 GMT

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That's so wild. I could maybe understand like… removing the file and republish it with either no music, or a royalty-free version, but to erase it from digital existence instead is just such a CEO/lawyer move. 🙄

2024-09-24 21:42:11 GMT

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Also in recent memory: GTA Definitive Edition. No Killing In The Name Of in San Andreas, no Billie Jean in Vice City… if the remasters had been well done it might have made up for it but… that was not the case. 😅

2024-09-21 19:28:55 GMT

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Random harmonies… nature is healing. 😌

2024-09-21 00:53:23 GMT

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I will definitely check it out! I thought it was just a mobile app and I'm happy with that one so… I learned something new! (also I blamed the UI but let's be real it's my fault for not checking which tab I was typing into, thanks for understanding my intention regardless 😅)

2024-09-20 21:16:14 GMT

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Fuuuck this UI. Very much yes

2024-09-20 21:05:49 GMT

@npub1ftx…yzsr So much this. Progressive enhancement is fine like you mention, but if the experience isn't reasonably similar in all major browsers, that feature does not exist to me.
It's more fun anyways, once a feature drops all around, I get to play with it AND ship it (eh, sometimes), instead of solving problems with it in one browser and realising I need to wait another year for other to catch up. 🙃
(failed my reply to https://front-end.social/@mayank/113171180766216718)

2024-09-20 13:45:21 GMT

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Dang Feeder caching favicons forever haha. I'll do a manual update just like I did for Robb's!
Yeah I kinda like both, though I guess it's nice to easily be able to pick out when one link ends and another starts.

2024-09-20 13:00:47 GMT

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Shipped the column layout instead, seems like a better idea. Letting those links breathe!

2024-09-20 02:41:32 GMT

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I can't decide if this is a good layout or absolutely chaotically unreadable.
https://cdn.masto.host/frontendsocial/media_attachments/files/113/167/561/027/810/837/original/81462c29fcfc1da5.png

2024-09-18 03:05:06 GMT

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My blogrool, I mean blogroll, is starting to look halfway decent. Still some tweaks to make and some feeds to add, but I like the simplicity (the favicons do help a whole bunch — I love a good favicon!): https://chriskirknielsen.com/blogroll/
Who am I not following but should be? #rss