Hello friends! Welcome to Installer #18, your guide to the best and coolest content in the world. (If you are new here, hello, Merry Christmas and you can also read all previous versions on the installer home page.)
This week, I’ve been going through a list of new board games to try, reading about the NFL team’s obsession with ping-pong and the rise of chess influencers, and the strange story of Yahoo Pipes ending in complete fiasco. The reading explains how to Wrap. It works, I check every type. As a conceptual option, we are trying to figure out how to justify buying a Lego Polaroid and adding us to all your words in the threads to welcome your European friends.
I’ve got a new way to play Grand Theft Auto, some new AI-powered note-taking and journaling tools, new things to watch this weekend, a look at the creator economy, and more.
I also have a question. We only have one more installer this year, so I thought it was time to: What was your favorite thing about 2023? I promise not to limit it, just like its legal standard is your one and only favorite forever. But when you look back over the last 12 months, what new show/book/blog/app/creator has come into your life that you’re particularly excited about? Tell me one, two or three! It doesn’t have to be new this year, just new to you.
to throw away
NPR App
If you gave me $100, I wouldn’t be able to tell you the difference between the NPR One app and the NPR app or why both apps exist. Luckily they don’t do that anymore! There’s only one new, better NPR app that does a great job of both storing stories in a news playlist and playing the shows I want.
GTA trilogy on Netflix.
Netflix’s gaming offering is indeed becoming more and more impressive. If you’re a subscriber, you now have free access to tons of great games, including three of GTA’s all-time greats: San Andreas, Vice City, and GTA III. They are old but still cracking.
Finalists One of the best to-do list apps I’ve seen in a while. My main problem with Finalist initially was that I didn’t like the color selection. With the new version you can design the application the way you want! And it’s still a super simple and quite clever method.
How much can I earn on TikTok vs Shorts vs Reels by Hank Green. No one explains the creative economy like Hank Green. (If you’ve never seen their statement against TikTok and the Creator Fund, check it out). It’s an incredibly honest and depressing look at how much money is actually in this game and where it comes from.
Day One Journaling Tips
When I wrote about the Apple Journal app – now available to everyone in iOS 17.2! – I said the most interesting part of the product is Journaling Suggestions, an API that provides content to journal through photos, activities, places, music, and more. Day One, my favorite journaling app, now adds suggestions directly to the app. This works really well.
Epic Holiday Sale This is one of the better “free games”! The deals you’ll find: Epic is giving away a number of older titles this holiday season. Right now, it’s Destiny 2: Legacy Collection, which includes a huge amount of Destiny content and 16 more games to get your hands on. I’ll be watching this over the next few days.
New Apple TV app.
I swear my Roku TV runs a little slower every day. And every day I get closer to connecting my Apple TV. I really like what Apple is trying to do with this app – universal search, cross-platform recommendations, easy purchases and rentals – even though it lacks Netflix and a few other important services.
NotebookLM.
The AI-powered Google Notes app still lacks a lot of features, and I still don’t fully understand why it doesn’t only support Keep and Docs… but it’s a great app nonetheless. Upload your documents, summarize them, ask questions about them, make it easier for you to study or research.
Xbox cloud gaming on Quest 3
This might be the best reason to buy a VR headset. If you’re a Game Pass subscriber, you can now connect your controller, turn on your giant virtual TV, and play games anywhere. This will soon become part of my bedtime routine.