Substrate

A digital garden of notes, ideas, and reflections from Doug Belshaw.

Back to the surface

May 2026

28 notes
notes updated 1 min read Untended

E-ink screens

AI summary

The author is interested in e-ink screens for writing, particularly to reduce glare due to light sensitivity, and wishes for a laptop that can switch between regular and e-ink displays. They cite a programmer's experience using the Onyx BOOX Mira Pro Color e-ink monitor as a primary display.

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notes updated 1 min read Untended

US as failed state

AI summary

The note argues that the US resembles a failed state due to the arbitrariness and uncertainty caused by an unpredictable narcissist leader. The author would prefer to go to China than the US and declined a respected invitation to a US-based conference for this reason.

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reflections updated 2 min read Untended

No Country for Old Men

AI summary

The note compares Cormac McCarthy's novel and the Coen brothers' film adaptation of No Country for Old Men, noting that while they share the same events and dialogue, the book emphasizes Sheriff Bell's reflective narration and randomness, while the film focuses more on the suspenseful hunt and alters Carla Jean's death scene to imply cause and effect.

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ideas PINNED updated 1 min read

Substrate is a digital garden

AI summary

The note explains that after trying other tools like Obsidian and Forestry.md, the author created Substrate, a digital garden that pulls in Are.na bookmarks and organizes notes into stages: Rough, Working, and Settled. The name derives from the biological concept of substrate, the surface on which organisms live, as a more fitting metaphor than "digital garden."

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