The Desk — Edition 84
Welcome to the 84th issue of the Desk. The Desk is my weekly newsletter covering newly published content and project updates.
Welcome to the 84th issue of The Desk — my weekly roundup of newly published content, project updates, and recommendations. Whether you’re following along for tutorials, blog posts, GitHub projects, or curated reads, there’s something for everyone building or exploring in tech, content, and open-source spaces.
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📝 New Blog Posts
In case you missed last week's The Desk edition:
The Desk — Edition 83
Welcome to the 83rd issue of the Desk. The Desk is my weekly newsletter covering newly published content and project updates.
Brandon Himpfen
Here is last week's posts from my blog:
What Makes a Resource “Authoritative” Without Being Centralized
An analytical look at how resources become authoritative through trust, transparency, and repeated use rather than central control or formal endorsement.
Brandon Himpfen
Why I Treat Curation as Infrastructure, Not Content
Why I treat curation as infrastructure, not content. An essay on Awesome Lists, editorial judgment, maintenance, and building durable public reference points in an Internet shaped by noise, algorithms, and information overload.
Brandon Himpfen
Why I Built a Dedicated Routing Layer Instead of Another Homepage
When projects grow beyond a single audience, homepages often become overloaded. This article explains why separating navigation from explanation led to building a dedicated routing layer instead of expanding an existing homepage.
Brandon Himpfen
Digital Marketing
Recent analysis and reporting from Bold Outlook, covering search, platforms, and AI in digital systems:
WordPress Social Media Post Sparks Backlash Over FAIR Project Criticism
An official WordPress.org social media post mocking the FAIR project sparked backlash from developers, raising concerns about professionalism, governance, and the future of decentralized plugin distribution in the WordPress ecosystem.
Brandon Himpfen
Google Introduces AI Mode Checkout and Branded Business Agents in Search
Google has unveiled AI Mode checkout, the Universal Commerce Protocol, and Business Agent chat, allowing shoppers to research and buy products directly in Search. The update signals a major shift in how ecommerce and discovery work.
Brandon Himpfen
Why Most Tech Coverage Misses the Actual Risk
Why tech reporting often focuses on incidents instead of the underlying systems that create real risk, and how incentives, dependencies, and governance shape long-term exposure.
Brandon Himpfen
Travel Intelligence
New work from Brandon Travel, focused on how travel systems, constraints, and incentives actually function:
Why We Separate Inspiration Content From Decision-Making Content
An analytical explanation of why Brandon Travel separates inspirational travel content from decision-making analysis, focusing on pricing, infrastructure, regulation, risk, and how travel systems actually function.
Brandon Himpfen
A Simple Model for Turning Travel Questions Into Dataset Fields
An analytical look at how common travel questions map to underlying data fields, revealing the systems, constraints, and tradeoffs that shape travel decisions beyond destinations.
Brandon Himpfen
Travel Blogging
Recent articles from Travel Bloggers Network, exploring sustainable growth, structure, and long-term publishing strategy:
Why Most Travel Blogs Stall (And How to Fix It)
Why many travel blogs stall after early growth, and how experienced bloggers can fix it by focusing on sustainability, trust, systems, and long-term publishing strategy.
Brandon Himpfen
Solo Travel
New posts from Solo Traveler, centered on solo-first travel realities, safety, and independent decision-making:
Brandon’s Curated Shortlist of Trips for Solo Travelers - Issue 10
Discover curated trips for solo travelers with Brandon’s Shortlist! Explore unique adventures, no/low single supplements, and destinations tailored for independent explorers. Your gateway to affordable, exciting solo travel experiences starts here.
Brandon Himpfen
How We Decide What Not to Recommend
An inside look at how the Solo Traveler decides what not to recommend. Learn how safety, logistics, cost, cultural context, and personal comfort guide our approach to responsible solo travel advice.
Brandon Himpfen
What Solo Washing Is And Why It Matters for Independent Travelers
Solo washing refers to marketing travel as “solo-friendly” without meaningful accommodations for independent travelers. This article defines the term, explains why it exists, and explores its impact on solo travel pricing and design.
Brandon Himpfen
Solo Travel Society
Community-driven reflections and analysis from Solo Travel Society, grounded in lived experience and shared insight:
The Difference Between Being Alone and Feeling Lonely While Traveling - Solo Travel Society
A reflective exploration of the emotional difference between being alone and feeling lonely while traveling, written for solo travelers navigating independence, solitude, and self-trust.
Brandon Himpfen
📝 New Newsletter Posts
LinkedIn Newsletters
Last week’s issues from my LinkedIn-hosted newsletters, covering crypto, AI, and digital marketing:
Digital Marketing Weekly — Issue 4
January 12, 2026 👋 Welcome back. Digital Marketing Weekly is a curated overview of developments across SEO, content, social, analytics, and digital growth strategy.
Brandon H.
Crypto & FinTech Weekly — Issue 3
January 12, 2026 👋 Welcome back. Crypto & FinTech Weekly is a curated overview of developments at the intersection of digital assets, financial infrastructure, regulation, and financial technology.
Brandon H.
AI Weekly — Issue 3
January 12, 2026 👋 Welcome back. AI Weekly is a curated overview of developments across artificial intelligence, machine learning, and applied AI systems.
Brandon H.
Substack Newsletters
New Substack posts published across my personal, travel, and technology newsletters:
JavaScript Weekly Issue 157
Curated articles, tools, and releases for JavaScript developers.
Brandon Himpfen
Golang Weekly Issue 165
Curated Go news, tools, and insights — weekly.
Brandon Himpfen
Welcome to Solo Travel Society
Solo travel isn’t a trend. It’s a way of moving through the world with intention.
Brandon Himpfen
Why “Topical Authority” Is Usually Just Better Site Structure
Search engines reward clarity, not mystique. What we call authority is often the byproduct of organized information.
Brandon Himpfen
Awesome Lists as Infrastructure: Curating the Internet Without the Noise
Why open curation, maintenance, and restraint matter more than ever in an Internet driven by volume.
Brandon Himpfen
How I Decide What Becomes a Project vs. a Post
On structure, responsibility, and knowing when an idea needs stewardship.
Brandon Himpfen
🛠️ New Code Snippets
As mentioned last week, I'm aiming to publish, on average, two code snippets per week. Here are this past weeks code snippets:
A tiny, dependency-free Python progress bar for loops and iterables (supports known totals, unknown totals, and ETA).
A tiny, dependency-free Python progress bar for loops and iterables (supports known totals, unknown totals, and ETA). - python-progress-bar-no-deps.py
262588213843476
Go custom error wrapping pattern using %w, errors.Is/As, and optional typed sentinel errors (clean, idiomatic, and debuggable).
Go custom error wrapping pattern using %w, errors.Is/As, and optional typed sentinel errors (clean, idiomatic, and debuggable). - go-error-wrapping-pattern.go
262588213843476
🤝New LinkedIn Groups
My newest LinkedIn group is Travel Intelligence & Research, a group that is dedicated to understanding travel as a system, not just as an experience.
LinkedIn Login, Sign in | LinkedIn
Login to LinkedIn to keep in touch with people you know, share ideas, and build your career.
📦 New GitHub Repos
Here are a collection of brand new GitHub repos:
- Solo Traveler Media now has a dedicated hub that links properties together:
GitHub - solotravelerorg/solotraveler.xyz
Contribute to solotravelerorg/solotraveler.xyz development by creating an account on GitHub.
solotravelerorg
I regularly publish new GitHub repos, so please ensure to follow my GitHub and or my GitHub orgs for the latest.
🛠️ Updated GitHub Repos
Here are notable updates to existing GitHub repositories:
GitHub - awesomelistsio/awesomelists.io
Contribute to awesomelistsio/awesomelists.io development by creating an account on GitHub.
awesomelistsio
GitHub - awesomelistsio/awesome: A collection of awesome lists that are about a variety of different topics.
A collection of awesome lists that are about a variety of different topics. - awesomelistsio/awesome
awesomelistsio
I’m constantly improving my GitHub repositories to make them more useful for both contributors and end users.
📚 Recommended Reading
Here are a few standout articles and blog posts I recommend checking out this week:
A single click mounted a covert, multistage attack against Copilot
Exploit exfiltrating data from chat histories worked even after users closed chat windows.
Dan Goodin
CIRO says about 750K people’s data affected by cybersecurity incident
The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization says about 750,000 Canadian investors may have had personal information compromised in a data breach last year.
The Canadian Press
Sensitive data of Eurail, Interrail travelers compromised in data breach - Help Net Security
A data breach at the Netherlands-based company that sells Eurail (Interrail) train passes exposed sensitive info of travelers.
Zeljka Zorz
Anthropic And OpenAI Are Doubling Down On Health. Here’s What It Means For Startups And VCs.
8 expert-driven hot takes that break down what startups need to know about the AI labs’ announcements from healthcare’s big week.
Alex Konrad
Wikipedia’s new mascot is too cute for words
Welcome to the world, Baby Globe.
Natalie Fear
Wikimedia Foundation announces new AI partnerships with Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Perplexity, and others | TechCrunch
The AI partnerships allow companies to access the org’s content, like Wikipedia, at scale.
Sarah Perez
OpenAI invests in Sam Altman’s brain computer interface startup Merge Labs | TechCrunch
Merge Labs is a “research lab” dedicated to “bridging biological and artificial intelligence to maximize human ability.” OpenAI wrote the largest check in Merge Labs’ $250 million seed round at an $850 million valuation.
Rebecca Bellan
Cerebras
Cerebras is the go-to platform for fast and effortless AI training. Learn more at cerebras.ai.
Andrew Feldman
Gemini introduces Personal Intelligence
Personal Intelligence connects the Gemini app to your Google apps to provide more personalized suggestions.
Josh Woodward
Airbnb poaches former Meta GenAI leader to be new technology chief
The new appointment comes amid Airbnb’s massive app redesign, which added catering and personal training.
Samantha Subin
Everest Ransomware Claims Breach at Nissan, Says 900GB of Data Stolen
Follow us on Bluesky, Twitter (X), Mastodon and Facebook at @Hackread
Waqas
Musk says Tesla is moving Full Self-Driving to a monthly subscription
Tesla is lagging Waymo in autonomous mobility as the Alphabet-owned driverless car service topped 450,000 paid weekly rides in December.
Chris Eudaily,Lora Kolodny
Google tests Gemini Auto Browse tool for Chrome users
Google is testing an Auto Browse tool for Gemini, allowing the AI to manage tasks in Chrome. Early signs suggest a premium Gemini Ultra launch.
Alexey Shabanov
Apple’s new Google Gemini deal sounds bigger, better than expected - 9to5Mac
Apple and Google are teaming up to power the next-generation Siri with custom Gemini models. And the details so far seem like great news.
Ryan Christoffel
Apple is Fighting for TSMC Capacity as Nvidia Takes Center Stage
[Exclusive] A 15-year relationship helped TSMC grow and Apple leap ahead of rivals. Nvidia is stealing the spotlight, but Apple’s importance is not over.
Tim Culpan
China-Linked Hackers Exploit VMware ESXi Zero-Days to Escape Virtual Machines
Researchers found Chinese-linked attackers abused SonicWall VPN access and VMware ESXi zero-day flaws to escape VMs and gain hypervisor control.
The Hacker News
CISA orders feds to patch Gogs RCE flaw exploited in zero-day attacks
CISA has ordered government agencies to secure their systems against a high-severity Gogs vulnerability that was exploited in zero-day attacks.
Sergiu Gatlan
Trend Micro fixed a remote code execution in Apex Central
Trend Micro fixed three Apex Central flaws discovered by Tenable that could allow remote code execution or denial-of-service attacks.
Pierluigi Paganini
These are curated for developers, creators, travelers, and digital professionals — with an eye on quality and depth.
Thanks for reading The Desk — Edition 84! If you found something valuable, feel free to share it or subscribe to keep up with future updates.
