Zack Sheppard

Zack Sheppard

@zack.computer

App maker, cocktail mixer, traveler (he/him)

42 followers40 following26 posts

It might be time to start tweeting again with everything happening in the tech world right now. I feel like it would be a good time to help folks both inside and outside make sense of AI and what is going on there as things move so quickly...

Came across a weird scam on the Apple app store - apps that are advertising themselves openly as casino/gambling apps in ad networks, but then the app listing page has been camouflaged so that they can evade Apple's gambling and age restrictions (downloadable by kids as young as 4).

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I'm interested by these cropping up for two reasons. First because the "report a problem" link has been removed from app store pages, so now the only way to report an app like this is to install it on your device. Secondly because the Epic v Apple case was in the news as recently as today.

A big part of that case has been Apple's promise that the walled garden of a reviewed app store is to keep the store a safe place. However, I don't believe anyone in app review even opened these apps because literally the only thing the app does is open a web browser to an online casino...

Came across a weird scam on the Apple app store - apps that are advertising themselves openly as casino/gambling apps in ad networks, but then the app listing page has been camouflaged so that they can evade Apple's gambling and age restrictions (downloadable by kids as young as 4).

One for a fish-themed slot machine has an app store page listing itself as "Gill Guru" an ai-powered "fishing mentor." Another for an Egyptian-themed slot has an app page that pretends to be a historical reference app. And I'm sure this is an iceberg tip and there are plenty more.

Must be nice to be an LLM - I wish every request to *me* started with some affirmation like "You are a top notch software engineer who cares about coding reliable, user-friendly experiences..."

Zack Sheppard reposted

“No matter where you stand on Israel and Gaza, these blatant attacks on free speech should terrify you. We are witnessing the most aggressive crackdowns on speech, both online and off, that we’ve seen in decades.”

Taylor Lorenz@taylorlorenz.bsky.social

We witnessed things like RICO charges being levied at protesters fighting cop city in ATL, mask bans that lock disabled ppl out of public life, students facing federal charges for peaceful protests, all under Democratic leadership. I wrote about how Dems set the stage for Trump's attacks on speech

Requiring reproduction repos linked in your Github issues is an anti-pattern. I get the reasoning, but I suspect that in practice 90% of the repos with this requirement are adding it just so that people don't report issues.

Every time I play around with React Native, I'm reminded how far behind that dev ecosystem is compared with React on web. So many tools we take for granted on the web are still in their infancy on native - definitely feels like a big opportunity space for folks interested in DX tooling.

Well, that’s one way to confirm that TikTok did, indeed, believe my account was based in the USA… Darn it, now I have to train the algorithm from scratch all over again!

The age of generative AI is overhearing “my phone autocorrected merry Christmas to meerkat Christmas?” and being able to respond with a beautiful joke image in 30 seconds. I’m sure there’s some other useful stuff it does, but I’m here for the memes. So Meerkat Christmas, to all who celebrate!

Oops! Startup YesMadam is now in damage control mode after (they claim) a viral marketing post meant to promote their new "employee destress" wellness programs went *too* viral and trashed the company's reputation. Don't try and stir up viral outrage at yourself!

indianstartupnews.comYes Madam clarifies on firing over 100 employees for being stressed, says, 'No one was fired; it was an..'The Noida-based startup said that no employees were terminated and that the survey was part of an awareness initiative aimed at highlighting workplace stress.
Dare Obasanjo@carnage4life.bsky.social

This is pure supervillain behavior

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