Rendered at 13:50:52 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) with Cloudflare Workers.
rob74 6 hours ago [-]
Nitpick: those are (sharp) edges, not corners. Maybe the next generation of MacBooks will also actually have exactly 90° non-rounded corners? I guess that's the next logical step...
Also, TIL that Bosch also makes files. I was under the impression that they only made powertools (or electronic measuring devices, or other things with a battery or power cord).
ctippett 6 hours ago [-]
You mentioned Bosch and I can't think of anywhere or anyone else who'd be interested in this little bit of trivia, so a random comment on a thread about filing the edges off a laptop seems like a fitting place to share it.
Bosch dates their appliances using a thing called the Fertigungsdatum Number. The first two digits represent the year of manufacture, the second two are for the month. Except the year doesn't align with the actual year, you first have to add 20. Why 20? Well, Bosch first started using their internal dating system back in 1920 and appliances from that year started with the code "00". I had an oven that had a date of "7808", which means it was manufactured in August 1998 (it lasted almost 30 years before we finally had to replace it last month).
In 2020 the system wound back around and started with "00" again.
fransje26 5 hours ago [-]
And the majority owner of Bosch is the Robert Bosch Stiftung (Robert Bosch foundation), which uses its dividends to fund projects in social sciences, public health and education.
AndrewOMartin 4 hours ago [-]
What a tragedy Robert Bosch Stiftung isn't receiving the dividends into his personal accounts, as this means he's not incentivized to keep innovating or to reduce prices.
bluedevil2k 2 hours ago [-]
He’s also been dead for 80 years, which also removes his incentives.
vitorfblima 35 minutes ago [-]
There's always an excuse...
graemep 1 hours ago [-]
See what happens when you miss a /s out?
throwaway173738 1 hours ago [-]
I think you should look at their catalog. Their dishwashers have some wacky innovations like zeolite dryers. Their windshield wipers are very high quality and easy to install. These are just two examples.
mlrtime 4 hours ago [-]
At least you didn't go full 2026 anti capitalism rant that Bosch shouldn't exist to donate revenue in the first place :)
Trollmann 3 hours ago [-]
So essentially the epoch system we see in use for timestamps as well, including overflow behavior edge case.
OoooooooO 3 hours ago [-]
"Fertigungsdatum Number" is just the german word for "production date Number".
RealityVoid 2 hours ago [-]
They make many many many more things than just powertools. They have ebike motors, home appliances, industrial machinery, chips (they have a very good division for MEMS as far as I can tell, they make high quality IMU's, they are super popular for airbag usage), protocols (the CAN bus is BOSCH IP and you pay 1 cent royalty I think for each MCU's with CAN on them), automotive components.
ct0 2 hours ago [-]
I'm waiting for a Bosch dishwasher to be delivered today. Supposedly it's one of the best.
unangst 37 minutes ago [-]
Our kitchen remodel included a Bosch dishwasher - it’s silent and always clean. Glad we made the splurge! Enjoy!
Cthulhu_ 6 hours ago [-]
Their main bread and butter is components for cars and ebikes, their (power) tools / DIY stuff is like 22% of their business. Or so I learned just now.
dijit 5 hours ago [-]
as an aside, I have a shimano e-bike and a bosch one, and the bosch one is leagues superior.
Which feels weird when you consider the pedigree of shimano, but it makes sense when you think what kind of internals an ebike motor would need.. I guess.
lmm 2 hours ago [-]
Shimano is famously a company that people in about four seemingly random/unrelated fields/hobbies think of as a specialist brand in that hobby (e.g. fishing).
(They are or at least were originally a bearings company, specialising in things that need to spin with very low friction, and all their seemingly unrelated businesses started from that)
serf 4 minutes ago [-]
I don't know about the other industries, but within old cycling circles they're also just seen as the group that was first to make good counterfeit goods that were actually high enough quality to use, and their entrance to the market was aided by the fact that existing players, campagnolo and schwinn mostly, were producing junk from junk proprietary alloys in order to compete with 'overseas' components at truly exorbitant costs.
that was 40-50 years ago, so who cares, but Shimano is truly interesting for cultivating so many different opinions.
fhub 4 hours ago [-]
I have two Bosch powered e-bikes (gazelle Modeo and Turn GSD) and one DJI Avinox (Amflow PL carbon)
A few years between each bike and very different bikes. But Avinox feels like it has come from nowhere to be on par or superior to Bosch. The charging plug egonicis is 100x better too.
mlrtime 4 hours ago [-]
Bosch also makes the appliances that a lot of people know that aren't branded Bosch.
rob74 3 hours ago [-]
Actually it's a little bit more complicated: the appliances are made by a company called BSH (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BSH_Hausger%C3%A4te) which was originally (since 1967!) a joint venture between Siemens and Bosch, but Siemens withdrew from it in 2014, and since then it's a fully owned subsidiary of Bosch (but still uses the Siemens brand as well as some other brands such as Gaggenau, Neff, Thermador etc.).
stanac 3 hours ago [-]
Bosch owned Junkers since before WW2, at least heating appliances, I think airplanes where independent. They started rebranding Junkers to Bosch Thermotechnik ~20 years ago. I think they never sold heating appliances in UK under Junkers brand.
HPsquared 2 hours ago [-]
Someone in marketing must have put the kybosh (or maybe it's kybosch) on Junkers as a UK brand. For a couple of reasons, really.
mc32 2 hours ago [-]
Good idea since depending how you pronounce junkers in English it could sound like an undependable appliance.
Maybe… but less likely since few people remember plus we don’t have an issue with Mitsubishi and they built planes that gave us pain as well. What I’m saying is if Mitsubishi had been Mitshit instead they’d likely also feel pressure to change their name due to its sound rather than WWII infamy.
mauvehaus 26 minutes ago [-]
Approximately no one on the US home front had to fear harm coming to them from a Mitsubishi product. This stands in rather stark contrast to the experience on the British home front:
Decades ago I actually had an offer to work for them as a research student working on optimising internal combustion engines.
MezzoDelCammin 5 hours ago [-]
not a spark plug. They call it "armature in a circle", but that's somewhat generic.
Bosch used to do the first magnetos / dynamos in the early 1900s motorbikes / cars. The principle is similar to this day - one rotating magnetic field within one static. You can do all kinds of shenanigans and combinations of permanent magnets / coils where it's either the electric current generating a magnetic field or the magnetic field generating an electric current. Depending whether You want the movement to generate electricity or the electricity to generate movement.
In the first magnetos (the thing that uses the engine rotation in order to generate a current that then makes a spark in the spark plug) they used permanently magnetized exterior plating and a rotating winding. That's sort of what You see in the logo - two coil windings rotating in their housing.
szszrk 4 hours ago [-]
I find below article to be a cool explanation of that device, while actually showing shape Bosch uses in that logo.
But yeah, it's magneto ignition device, pre-sparkplug.
ce4 5 hours ago [-]
It resembles part of an electric motor, namely the windings (double t armature)
boredpudding 6 hours ago [-]
Bosch is one of those companies that makes a lot of different things. I own powertools, kitchen appliances and car parts from them.
alper 4 hours ago [-]
A classic German example of a zaibatsu.
luipugs 3 hours ago [-]
My very first mobile was a Bosch. I had no idea they even made phones. I wanted a Nokia though, but I was able to get that later.
B1FF_PSUVM 5 hours ago [-]
And car engine control software.
Bosch developed the "experimental" ECU software that VW used in the Dieselgate vehicles.
maxbrt 6 hours ago [-]
Ah right, thanks for the hint. I try to be more precise in more wording, but English isn't my first language so comments like these are really useful.
avadodin 4 hours ago [-]
I assumed it was a reference to early Apple user interfaces.
I believe their corners are already/still rounded, though.
If we have to be precise, however, perhaps blades would be a more appropriate term to refer to their products' edges.
dmaa 7 hours ago [-]
Great article and happy to see that I'm not alone. I don't get why on such a well thought-out and built device as this, the corners are so sharp.
From how I use the trackpad, the bottom of my thumb always feels sore-ish after a day's work and it took me a while to trace this to the sharp cornern of my macbook.
jimnotgym 4 hours ago [-]
>I don't get why on such a well thought-out and built device as this, the corners are so sharp.
Because macs have 3 big markets
1) graphic designers/ photo editors
2) web developers
3) people who value looks above other considerations
Number 3 buy more macs, so square corners it is
dmaa 4 hours ago [-]
I am in neither of these and nor is any of the many people I know with macbooks. I honestly do not understand why any average person would buy anything else than a macbook today.
GuB-42 32 minutes ago [-]
The first reason is price. Macs are expensive, you may argue that it is worth it but it is still a lot of money. The Macbook Neo change the deal somewhat, really good value, but even with that, it is not the cheapest laptop by far.
The second reason is compatibility. Apple does a pretty good job with x86 emulation, but it still a problem for many Windows games, Linux support is not the best either.
And then, there may be plenty of specific reasons, maybe you are missing some connectivity, maybe you don't like Apple, maybe you want a Nvidia GPU, etc...
Jtarii 32 minutes ago [-]
Why would you buy a macbook if you use windows or linux.
bluescrn 6 minutes ago [-]
Bad experiences with heat, fan noise, and poor battery life on Windows laptops.
jimnotgym 4 hours ago [-]
I use my home laptop once a month at most, a macbook would be an expensive paperweight. I use an old Thinkpad.
This thread is full of people who are scared of changing the look of their macbooks. Jewellery? Or fear of standing out?
bluescrn 3 minutes ago [-]
Taking metalworking tools to a very expensive machine with very limited spare parts availability seems rather extreme.
benjiro29 3 hours ago [-]
Resell value takes a nosedive on modified macbooks...
There is a large culture in the Mac community that anything that modifies your device, may have a impact on your expensive warranty when you need something fixed. Apple has taught their customer base well.
This translates into Macbooks that have been modified often having less resell value. See how many time people with the thermal mods need to point out warranty, battery, and the ability to remove it.
Laptops in general, be it macbooks, windows device, ... are already difficult devices to sell (in my experience) because they are very personal. So anything that steps outside that norm, makes it even harder to sell.
If your planning on keeping your device until eol, modify away. But a surprising large amount of people buy these devices with the idea of reselling after a year or two (as they hold value better then win devices), so they can then use that money on a upgraded version.
SwiftyBug 2 hours ago [-]
My reason for switching from a M1 MacBook to a ThinkPad: I can install Linux without worrying about compatibility issues. Also, being able to have 64GB RAM, 1TB SSD without having to sell a kidney to afford it is nice.
mcmcmc 37 minutes ago [-]
Everything else is cheaper
ghusto 3 hours ago [-]
I'm guessing the "many people [you] know" are category 2. Many people are in category 3, because most of the world is category 3.
gonzalohm 51 minutes ago [-]
One reason is because MacOs sucks
Dansvidania 44 minutes ago [-]
can you go into more detail? what am I missing, I am assuming by not switching back to linux?
skydhash 32 minutes ago [-]
The unix subtrate of macos is fine for daily usage. It’s the administration side that suffers. Package management, service management,…
jorisw 2 hours ago [-]
[citation needed]
citrus1330 8 minutes ago [-]
Wow never realized people cared about this. I think it looks better with sharp edges and haven't had any problems with ergonomics.
FredrikSE 4 hours ago [-]
I didn't have the heart to make something like this on my M2 Air so I did a new edge to 3D-print and attach to the edge. Works really well and have lasted more than 3 years to this date.
https://makerworld.com/models/1356464
challenger-derp 3 hours ago [-]
That's kinda clever, and possibly something to consider for users who prefer an alternative to filing.
HugoTea 1 days ago [-]
I love the animation on the background of your website.
And I totally understand what you mean about using a tool, if it's too delicate to do the job, then it's not doing its job. Imagine buying a hammer and trying to keep it clear of scuffs, it's obviously going to impede your work.
BoxOfRain 1 days ago [-]
Yeah I think the grief OP was getting over that statement in some of the other comments is unwarranted, I understand completely what they mean about tools. You have people who buy expensive guitars and barely play them for fear of scuffing them for example, depriving themselves and the tool of the thing it's actually for. I'll never understand that mentality.
I don't like to be precious about my tools either, scratches and so on are evidence it's being used for what it's made for!
Lio 3 hours ago [-]
Hmm, I sort of get this but I also think people fetish treating tools badly and then complain when they break.
I have a micrometer. It's delicate and lives in a velvet lined case.
I could treat it like a hammer but I know that once the surfaces get damaged it will be less useful.
It's no less of a tool just because you take extra care of it. I don't treat it well because I want to hand it down to my grand kids, I treat it well because it's delicate I want to keep it working.
Likewise, I don't baby my laptop but also don't throw it around, drop it or use it as a step to reach high shelves.
I don't sweat dings but I do use a proper fitted case when I transport it because I don't want them either.
dangayle 7 hours ago [-]
I bought a 1973 Fender Jazzmaster that was immaculate and should have been my forever guitar. I was so afraid of "ruining the value" that I sold it. I couldn't play it, I was so paranoid. It got into my head. Instead, I ended up buying a '65 AVRI Jazzmaster body and put on an EGC aluminum neck and a Tuffset bridge. The price was about 2/3 of the vintage one, but I have no qualms about playing this one. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
chasd00 1 hours ago [-]
my 14 year old recently got into guitars and has been teaching himself how to play. I went to my sister's house while they were out of town for an errand and her husband plays in a band. There was some guitar on a stand in her living room my son would not let anyone get within 5 feet of. It must have been important hah.
noufalibrahim 6 hours ago [-]
You remind me of Nigel Tufnel of the Spinal Tap rockumentary fame and his guitar collection. The clip on Youtube is a must watch if you're not seen it.
lb1lf 6 hours ago [-]
...and don't even get me started on people who buy a Rolex Submariner - the quintessential tool watch (and luxury symbol, by all means - but it wasn't always so) and then ask whether they should take any special precautions after accidentally showering with it...
Sigh.
noufalibrahim 6 hours ago [-]
I'm probably missing something here but if I have to worry about getting an expensive watch that calls it "Submariner" wet of all things, at the very least, it's badly named.
lb1lf 5 hours ago [-]
close04 pretty much nailed it with his comment below. There is nothing wrong with the Submariner - quite the contrary, it is an iconic design and exceedingly well made.
The 'problem' is that as it migrated (much like, say, Leica cameras and optics) from being tools for professionals into status symbols, a lot of its owners went from basically banging it about, relishing each and every battle scar obtained to (sigh) worrying about resale value.
close04 6 hours ago [-]
I think the bigger point is that people think they “afford” a luxury item as soon as they barely afford to buy it and forget that owning also has a cost. They are too afraid to use the damn thing out of fear that they damage it somehow. Their luxury item loses all meaning and use beyond showing ownership of an expensive thing.
Like those fancy luxury cars some people buy but are too expensive to drive, maintain, insure, or repair. One scratch wipes out their savings so the car sits in the garage.
noufalibrahim 2 hours ago [-]
Can't argue there. The first time I visited the US, I bought expensive calligraphy paper. I brought it back home to India and saved it for when I would be "Good enough" and practiced on cheap copier stock.
Fast forward a few years, I gingerly took out the pad and pulled out a sheet. I didn't do it right and tore the sheet down the middle and had to take fresh one. Then I dropped my pen while writing (since I was so "careful" with the paper) and had ink droplets fall onto the sheet. Finally, when I put pen to the paper, I found that it had absorbed moisture from the air and the the ink bled into the paper ruining everything.
maxbrt 23 hours ago [-]
Thanks for the encouragement, glad you like the background :-) Yeah I phrased it a bit badly initially. But what I meant was pretty much what you stated!
maccard 5 hours ago [-]
> Yeah I phrased it a bit badly initially. But what I meant was pretty much what you stated!
This is part of the fun of reading other peoples writing - thanks for sharing your work!
jiehong 1 hours ago [-]
It’s true in general, but not always.
Some tools do not work if you don’t treat them with utmost care (like an optical system that might need a clean room to work, or that gets damaged by a small bump, or whatever)
That contains mostly placeholder stuff from Wikipedia and does not go much into detail, I didn't get around to finishing it yet. I'll try to write it up in more detail
Yeah the sharp edges have bothered me since they started with the unibody. Luckily I'm completely off Mac these days. But really the last mac I enjoyed using was my powerbook. It had really nice plastic gaskets for the edges, a keyboard with really good travel and cupped keys, it was wonderful.
I got a plastic MacBook eventually which I filed down too because the edges were really sharp there. And plastic is easy to file. Also replaced the screen with a matte version, on the plastic MacBook that was also easy because the screens were readily available and there was no glass overlay.
Then I had a unibody MBP 15" matte. Less sharp and with off factory matte display. Not great keyboard though.
The current MBP I find abhorrent. Even after they switched from the horrible butterfly mistake the travel is still way too shallow. I just can't work with that anymore. These days I just don't buy laptops anymore. Only desk PCs.
giamma 4 hours ago [-]
It's always entertaining for me to realize that there are people who find very annoying things that I don't even notice.
xbas 3 hours ago [-]
[dead]
njsubedi 4 hours ago [-]
Used just 3 things - 1 debur tool, a 600 grit sandpaper & another 2000 grit sandpaper while still reading this thread. Totally worth it, and instant improvement in my quality of life. And it took me less than 5 minutes.
Thank you!
zaptrem 2 days ago [-]
This is my number one complaint about the M-series MBP line. Especially true of the cutout in the middle that has points so sharp they can cut you if you accidentally scrape it with your hand.
gargs 4 hours ago [-]
I actually have suffered from a cut. It's ridiculously sharp.
jader201 8 hours ago [-]
Is this unique to the M-series?
My 2015 MBP has this exact same issue.
_nivlac_ 7 hours ago [-]
I'm guessing they meant they had more complaints about the non-M models. Though I also misread the way you did too.
akhil08agrawal 6 hours ago [-]
Never knew that there are more people like me who get irked at such things. But yeah, I do not have the heart to do this to my laptop, so I end up using my laptop on a solid surface xD
wodenokoto 7 hours ago [-]
Maybe I drank the cool-aid, but I like the corners on my Mac, and it took a lot of empathy from me to accept “the other” authors filing job, but this looks beautiful.
Yeah but this guy did it carefully. That one looks like he took a powerfile to it.
lokimedes 45 minutes ago [-]
The meeting between my magnetic Apple Watch strap and the edge of the MacBook did the same for me, involuntarily. Apparently the magnets in these straps are quite abrasive.
musha68k 5 hours ago [-]
I've been using Macs for decades and never had these issues personally. It seems like some people do literally rest their hands / arms on desk / notebook body while typing.
The "sharp edge syndrome" here to me seems to be a good thing then as it acts as a reminder for proper ergonomics / posture.
First Google AI search result on the topic:
"Never rest your wrists on your MacBook while typing. Instead, let your palms rest gently on the laptop body only when you pause. Hover your hands as you type. This prevents you from bending your wrists and protects the nerves in your carpal tunnel."
That also pretty much exactly mirrors the way we learned typing / posture at school in Austria.
alexdbird 3 hours ago [-]
I've always wondered if this was the secret motivation behind it. I hated this bit of design when I switched from a smooth edged Thinkpad ~15 years ago. But I changed my typing posture for the better and it became a non-issue.
redsocksfan45 4 hours ago [-]
[dead]
rbanffy 2 hours ago [-]
One thing I'd love to see is a polished MacBook. I'll probably have to buy a dead one for experimentation.
Xenoamorphous 6 hours ago [-]
I’ve literally calluses on my wrists from those edges.
timvdalen 6 hours ago [-]
That looks so much better than that other post!
tiborsaas 3 hours ago [-]
I like pushing my fingers at those sharp edges and then feel the short lasting indent with my other finger. We are not the same :)
kqr 6 hours ago [-]
On a similar note, people are way too precious about their dead-tree books. Feel free to chuck them in bags, make notes in the margins, fold pages, underline, and strike through text in them. It's yours. Make it yours! Your scribblings don't detract from what's in there – they elevate it to something unique.
(This is particularly true if it's a book that's still in print, or was in large enough print runs it's easy to buy another second-hand copy when the one you have falls apart. It's still somewhat true even when that's not the case.)
4ggr0 2 hours ago [-]
i'm someone who takes a lot of care about their books, i especially don't like when the back is wrinkly/broken on paperbacks because of opening them all the way. after all that makes them break down faster in general, over time. and it looks worse in a shelf.
anyways, everyone handles their items differently, which is fine - a friend once borrowed a book from me which was in pristine condition after multiple years of me owning and reading it. when he returned it, the back was completely wrinkled, pages had dog-ears, he had bent the cover all the way around to be able to hold it better etc.
that kind of made me sad because it felt like something i took a lot of care to keep it in good condition was "destroyed" in a matter of weeks. of course i wasn't mad towards my friend because i realized that people handle books differently.
that being said. if someone borrows you something, try to keep it in more or less the same state as when it was given to you. accidents happen, of course. i on the other hand have learned to either not borrow books i care about, or make a point about me taking care of them when reading.
sometimes it's also not as easy as "just buy another copy". some books i care about because i bought them on a vacation, or someone gifted them to me. so the exact item has a sentimental value an additional copy will not be able to replicate. but again, i just learned to create two categories of books in my mind, those i borrow, and those i don't.
after all it's 2026, just download an eBook from Anna's Archive (if they borrow the physical copy from me there's no monetary transaction towards the author as well, so i really don't feel bad about it in these specific situations).
ozyschmozy 4 hours ago [-]
I'm like this for everything _except_ paper books. I grew up sharing books a lot, books I finished would go to younger kids in my extended family or my mom's students, and I got a bunch of books like that as well. So we took a lot of care keeping books in good condition. I don't buy many paper books anymore, and ones I do buy tend to be new and stay with me, but folding pages or breaking the spines still feels wrong to me
jimnotgym 4 hours ago [-]
There is only one way to damage a book, and that is to not read it
ta8903 4 hours ago [-]
I was riding my motorcycle in heavy rains and had a book in my work bag which, as I later found out, doesn't resist water at all, and the book got soaked. Half the pages puffed up, and I hated myself for it at first, but after a while I realized I like it even better since it feels like the book has been through something with me and I will always remember that incident whenever I think about the book.
Though admittedly, caring about this is even more vapid than caring about my books being pristine.
carodgers 7 hours ago [-]
I would just like to say that with this page open I have ~15% utilization on my GPU. XD
latable 6 hours ago [-]
I use a low-power sff pc with a i5-9500T for everyday tasks and it uses 50% cpu and 100% gpu ! The background is nice indeed but it makes the website sluggish.
ROllerozxa 5 hours ago [-]
Trying to even open the page in Chrome on my phone freezes the tab with rapid flickering and makes every other tab I switch to or open completely blank until I restart the browser... That effect sure is something.
trvz 6 hours ago [-]
I checked, too, after your comment. It's ~50% on an M2 (with 10 GPU cores) according to iStat Menus.
maxbrt 6 hours ago [-]
I know I know :D I have not done any optimization yet. Maybe I should also add some toggle to disable it or reduce the number of particles
tosh 3 hours ago [-]
I know, not the main purpose of it but what's the reduced weight in grams?
dmaa 3 hours ago [-]
Does anybody have experience with filing just the 'trackpad corners' on a dark-colored macbook?
ZephyrCannon 4 hours ago [-]
I couldn't do this. I know some like to customize their tools, but I like my stuff vanilla.
Neywiny 1 days ago [-]
Good to see a recognition that power tools are powerful. Too many amateur videos of people experimenting without nearly enough control and messing up projects
noufalibrahim 6 hours ago [-]
I did this with my first (and only Macbook) in 2014. Did it with a pocket file.
I never thought about blogging about it though. Perhaps something to consider.
JSR_FDED 1 days ago [-]
Brave to do this on a blue color MacBook - curious how the filed area will look compared to the rest of the body after some time.
maxbrt 1 days ago [-]
I'll try to do some updates after a while!
mc3301 1 days ago [-]
I used a dark blue sharpie to cover up some scratches; works fine and I touch it up every few months.
jimnotgym 4 hours ago [-]
Curious why it matters how it looks, it is supposed to be a computer, not a fashion accessory
gocolin 3 hours ago [-]
Oh my, I finally found out why I can only last 3 seconds..
zecg 1 days ago [-]
> The moment I am too scared to do something because I might damage the tool, it stops being a tool.
What? You can damage even the most robust and simple tool by using it wrongly or inattentively.
maxbrt 1 days ago [-]
You are correct, that was phrased badly. I've tried to update it, thanks for the comment.
hoppp 3 hours ago [-]
You should never use a mac on your lap if you are male because you can burn your balls. You can end up shooting blanks, these laptops can do heat castraton.
tiborsaas 3 hours ago [-]
It can also make you waste a lot of time and not do anything productive with your day which is worse than shooting blanks.
ButlerianJihad 3 hours ago [-]
Long ago in retirement, my father adopted the habit of sitting in his easy chair, with a view of the television set, with his laptop in his lap, clicking away at the Internet and whatever he did there. Sometimes the cat would stroll across his keyboard.
But he ran into a real problem: his computer began locking up. No warning, no prior glitches, just a hard lockup, and only a power-cycle could get it going again.
And I took one look at his setup and I said, "Dad, you need to ventilate that thing at the bottom. I bet your CPU is suffering an overheat condition."
And so Dad went out and he purchased a little laptop stand for the laptop, that contained fans in the base, and he set the laptop stand across his lap and put the laptop on the laptop stand. And he didn't even need to actively run the fans, but just the extra height and bottom ventilation did the trick, and his laptop never locked-up again, and he was overjoyed, along with the cat, and Mom as well. And they lived happily ever after.
deadbabe 2 hours ago [-]
Anywhere you could take this to have it professionally done? I like the idea but would never do it myself.
amelius 5 hours ago [-]
I'm sure Apple would prevent users from doing this if they could.
Next version: edge sharpness detectors. Or body resistance measurements.
user_7832 5 hours ago [-]
Intrusion detection already exists on many, laptops!
amelius 4 hours ago [-]
Yeah, they could probably run a very thin transformer wire along the edges.
lrvick 1 days ago [-]
Now try modifying the software that Apple sold you with it.
maxbrt 1 days ago [-]
Yeah that's been a major headache. I ssh into my server/desktop most of the time anyways, so there is no friction there. Then also I was surprised by how well VMs with OrbStack on Mac run. With yabai and skhd I've gotten it pretty closely to where I previously was with i3.
Even still, I'm looking forward to the day where I can run Asahi on this
lrvick 21 hours ago [-]
Three employers in a row insisted on handing me a macbook, and three times in a row I ported Gentoo to it out of pure spite and disdain for third parties trying to control the binaries I use to do my job.
At the time they called this crazy and unproductive, but those obsessions with control of my tools built the foundational skillsets that drove my career.
Hammershaft 7 hours ago [-]
If you struggle with Yabai I'll reccomend Aerospace, which I think is more performant & reliable.
bpye 7 hours ago [-]
They don't document the hardware, but it is possible to run unsigned code on the SoC - that's how the Asahi Linux project is able to exist.
Amazon link to a debuting tool. It uses sharp harder metal to cut off sharp metal edges.
shmeeed 5 hours ago [-]
I strongly recommend against using a deburring tool on a Macbook. IMO OP has picked their tools with perfect consideration.
These tools are made to remove burrs resulting from machining processes. They are very useful for quick&dirty jobs on bore holes or rough edges where optics don't matter, but they lack the precision for sensitive work.
Anybody who's not very well versed in using a deburring tool is just about guaranteed to produce a terrible result that will only take longer to sand out than approching the task with files and sandpaper from the start.
edot 1 hours ago [-]
Agreed. Deburring tools also frequently “catch” and dig in if you’re not careful. Especially on soft aluminum. Use a file if you’re going to do this.
asimovDev 6 hours ago [-]
I hate the vents on my work macbook, when I rest it on my lap, the edges dig into my thighs and leave imprints. One time after getting in the flow, I didn't notice how it was cutting into my flesh and ended up with a bruise
vortegne 7 hours ago [-]
looks great! not shade to the other guy, but your job is so much nicer looking
Pricey, but the lip covers the edge. My current one is 4 years old and lasted a couple of generations of Macbooks.
npunt 2 days ago [-]
The Helm is great. I'm not sure it really solves the wrists problem, at least for me since for how I use it the height of the laptop makes a huge difference in ergonomics. The MacBook Pro is already tall, and the Helm makes it taller, creating pressure on the wrists. Meanwhile I don't have this problem on my carry everywhere MacBook Air since it's so thin.
bofadeez 1 days ago [-]
"The moment I am too scared to do something because I might damage the tool, it stops being a tool"
That's just not the definition of the word "tool" at all but okay... whatever
maxbrt 1 days ago [-]
Sorry you did not like that part! All I was trying to express was that even though this thing is nice and shiny, it is a tool in the end so if modifying it would make it serve that purpose better, one should not be scared to do so. I wasn't trying to give a definition, but perhaps I should rephrase that. Thanks!
hinata08 1 days ago [-]
Calling it a tool is fine.
Some people would like to pretend means of production are holy assets you're supposed to value and trade (INVEST!!! making value is for losers and _these_ workers), when it's just a consummable that should serve a purpose right now.
A computer is a tool and customizing the case is not unheard of.
Thank you for desmystifying the Mac.
Users know best.
dlcarrier 7 hours ago [-]
It made sense to me. If you're to scared to use it without limits, then it is not useful for the scope of its intended purpose.
dlcarrier 7 hours ago [-]
It implies that it stops being a usable tool. It's still the same item, but it isn't able to be used as such.
benj111 4 hours ago [-]
A tool is meant to do something, not look pretty.
If your primary concern is something looking pretty, it is no longer primarily a tool.
Probably loose wording as damage can mean break something or make it look less pretty. I think the intent is clear though.
Also, TIL that Bosch also makes files. I was under the impression that they only made powertools (or electronic measuring devices, or other things with a battery or power cord).
Bosch dates their appliances using a thing called the Fertigungsdatum Number. The first two digits represent the year of manufacture, the second two are for the month. Except the year doesn't align with the actual year, you first have to add 20. Why 20? Well, Bosch first started using their internal dating system back in 1920 and appliances from that year started with the code "00". I had an oven that had a date of "7808", which means it was manufactured in August 1998 (it lasted almost 30 years before we finally had to replace it last month).
In 2020 the system wound back around and started with "00" again.
Which feels weird when you consider the pedigree of shimano, but it makes sense when you think what kind of internals an ebike motor would need.. I guess.
(They are or at least were originally a bearings company, specialising in things that need to spin with very low friction, and all their seemingly unrelated businesses started from that)
that was 40-50 years ago, so who cares, but Shimano is truly interesting for cultivating so many different opinions.
A few years between each bike and very different bikes. But Avinox feels like it has come from nowhere to be on par or superior to Bosch. The charging plug egonicis is 100x better too.
https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/second-world-war/blitz/blitz-...
Bosch's logo is something like a sparkplug (the thing used in internal combustion engines). To this day, the 'mobility' division is the biggest one. See https://www.bosch.com/stories/creation-of-the-bosch-logo/
Decades ago I actually had an offer to work for them as a research student working on optimising internal combustion engines.
Bosch used to do the first magnetos / dynamos in the early 1900s motorbikes / cars. The principle is similar to this day - one rotating magnetic field within one static. You can do all kinds of shenanigans and combinations of permanent magnets / coils where it's either the electric current generating a magnetic field or the magnetic field generating an electric current. Depending whether You want the movement to generate electricity or the electricity to generate movement.
In the first magnetos (the thing that uses the engine rotation in order to generate a current that then makes a spark in the spark plug) they used permanently magnetized exterior plating and a rotating winding. That's sort of what You see in the logo - two coil windings rotating in their housing.
https://www.da7c.co.uk/technical_torque_articles/magneto_ign...
But yeah, it's magneto ignition device, pre-sparkplug.
Bosch developed the "experimental" ECU software that VW used in the Dieselgate vehicles.
I believe their corners are already/still rounded, though.
If we have to be precise, however, perhaps blades would be a more appropriate term to refer to their products' edges.
From how I use the trackpad, the bottom of my thumb always feels sore-ish after a day's work and it took me a while to trace this to the sharp cornern of my macbook.
Because macs have 3 big markets
1) graphic designers/ photo editors
2) web developers
3) people who value looks above other considerations
Number 3 buy more macs, so square corners it is
The second reason is compatibility. Apple does a pretty good job with x86 emulation, but it still a problem for many Windows games, Linux support is not the best either.
And then, there may be plenty of specific reasons, maybe you are missing some connectivity, maybe you don't like Apple, maybe you want a Nvidia GPU, etc...
This thread is full of people who are scared of changing the look of their macbooks. Jewellery? Or fear of standing out?
There is a large culture in the Mac community that anything that modifies your device, may have a impact on your expensive warranty when you need something fixed. Apple has taught their customer base well.
This translates into Macbooks that have been modified often having less resell value. See how many time people with the thermal mods need to point out warranty, battery, and the ability to remove it.
Laptops in general, be it macbooks, windows device, ... are already difficult devices to sell (in my experience) because they are very personal. So anything that steps outside that norm, makes it even harder to sell.
If your planning on keeping your device until eol, modify away. But a surprising large amount of people buy these devices with the idea of reselling after a year or two (as they hold value better then win devices), so they can then use that money on a upgraded version.
I don't like to be precious about my tools either, scratches and so on are evidence it's being used for what it's made for!
I have a micrometer. It's delicate and lives in a velvet lined case.
I could treat it like a hammer but I know that once the surfaces get damaged it will be less useful.
It's no less of a tool just because you take extra care of it. I don't treat it well because I want to hand it down to my grand kids, I treat it well because it's delicate I want to keep it working.
Likewise, I don't baby my laptop but also don't throw it around, drop it or use it as a step to reach high shelves.
I don't sweat dings but I do use a proper fitted case when I transport it because I don't want them either.
Sigh.
The 'problem' is that as it migrated (much like, say, Leica cameras and optics) from being tools for professionals into status symbols, a lot of its owners went from basically banging it about, relishing each and every battle scar obtained to (sigh) worrying about resale value.
Like those fancy luxury cars some people buy but are too expensive to drive, maintain, insure, or repair. One scratch wipes out their savings so the car sits in the garage.
Fast forward a few years, I gingerly took out the pad and pulled out a sheet. I didn't do it right and tore the sheet down the middle and had to take fresh one. Then I dropped my pen while writing (since I was so "careful" with the paper) and had ink droplets fall onto the sheet. Finally, when I put pen to the paper, I found that it had absorbed moisture from the air and the the ink bled into the paper ruining everything.
This is part of the fun of reading other peoples writing - thanks for sharing your work!
Some tools do not work if you don’t treat them with utmost care (like an optical system that might need a clean room to work, or that gets damaged by a small bump, or whatever)
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trepanning
I got a plastic MacBook eventually which I filed down too because the edges were really sharp there. And plastic is easy to file. Also replaced the screen with a matte version, on the plastic MacBook that was also easy because the screens were readily available and there was no glass overlay.
Then I had a unibody MBP 15" matte. Less sharp and with off factory matte display. Not great keyboard though.
The current MBP I find abhorrent. Even after they switched from the horrible butterfly mistake the travel is still way too shallow. I just can't work with that anymore. These days I just don't buy laptops anymore. Only desk PCs.
My 2015 MBP has this exact same issue.
Thanks to both authors for sharing the work!
The "sharp edge syndrome" here to me seems to be a good thing then as it acts as a reminder for proper ergonomics / posture.
First Google AI search result on the topic:
"Never rest your wrists on your MacBook while typing. Instead, let your palms rest gently on the laptop body only when you pause. Hover your hands as you type. This prevents you from bending your wrists and protects the nerves in your carpal tunnel."
That also pretty much exactly mirrors the way we learned typing / posture at school in Austria.
(This is particularly true if it's a book that's still in print, or was in large enough print runs it's easy to buy another second-hand copy when the one you have falls apart. It's still somewhat true even when that's not the case.)
anyways, everyone handles their items differently, which is fine - a friend once borrowed a book from me which was in pristine condition after multiple years of me owning and reading it. when he returned it, the back was completely wrinkled, pages had dog-ears, he had bent the cover all the way around to be able to hold it better etc.
that kind of made me sad because it felt like something i took a lot of care to keep it in good condition was "destroyed" in a matter of weeks. of course i wasn't mad towards my friend because i realized that people handle books differently.
that being said. if someone borrows you something, try to keep it in more or less the same state as when it was given to you. accidents happen, of course. i on the other hand have learned to either not borrow books i care about, or make a point about me taking care of them when reading.
sometimes it's also not as easy as "just buy another copy". some books i care about because i bought them on a vacation, or someone gifted them to me. so the exact item has a sentimental value an additional copy will not be able to replicate. but again, i just learned to create two categories of books in my mind, those i borrow, and those i don't.
after all it's 2026, just download an eBook from Anna's Archive (if they borrow the physical copy from me there's no monetary transaction towards the author as well, so i really don't feel bad about it in these specific situations).
Though admittedly, caring about this is even more vapid than caring about my books being pristine.
I never thought about blogging about it though. Perhaps something to consider.
What? You can damage even the most robust and simple tool by using it wrongly or inattentively.
But he ran into a real problem: his computer began locking up. No warning, no prior glitches, just a hard lockup, and only a power-cycle could get it going again.
And I took one look at his setup and I said, "Dad, you need to ventilate that thing at the bottom. I bet your CPU is suffering an overheat condition."
And so Dad went out and he purchased a little laptop stand for the laptop, that contained fans in the base, and he set the laptop stand across his lap and put the laptop on the laptop stand. And he didn't even need to actively run the fans, but just the extra height and bottom ventilation did the trick, and his laptop never locked-up again, and he was overjoyed, along with the cat, and Mom as well. And they lived happily ever after.
Next version: edge sharpness detectors. Or body resistance measurements.
Even still, I'm looking forward to the day where I can run Asahi on this
At the time they called this crazy and unproductive, but those obsessions with control of my tools built the foundational skillsets that drove my career.
Amazon link to a debuting tool. It uses sharp harder metal to cut off sharp metal edges.
These tools are made to remove burrs resulting from machining processes. They are very useful for quick&dirty jobs on bore holes or rough edges where optics don't matter, but they lack the precision for sensitive work.
Anybody who's not very well versed in using a deburring tool is just about guaranteed to produce a terrible result that will only take longer to sand out than approching the task with files and sandpaper from the start.
https://www.andar.com/products/the-helm?variant=397924980491...
Pricey, but the lip covers the edge. My current one is 4 years old and lasted a couple of generations of Macbooks.
That's just not the definition of the word "tool" at all but okay... whatever
Some people would like to pretend means of production are holy assets you're supposed to value and trade (INVEST!!! making value is for losers and _these_ workers), when it's just a consummable that should serve a purpose right now.
A computer is a tool and customizing the case is not unheard of.
Thank you for desmystifying the Mac. Users know best.
If your primary concern is something looking pretty, it is no longer primarily a tool.
Probably loose wording as damage can mean break something or make it look less pretty. I think the intent is clear though.