Writing on technology, AI, and how we learn and think.

Long-form thoughts for a broad audience — from making sense of AI to career, critical thinking, and the occasional deep technical guide — collected in chronological order.

Remix v3 Hits RC: Upgrading Five Apps the Morning After

[email protected] shipped on 31 August and I moved five apps off beta.5 the next morning. The bump tripped two wires: my own npm minimum-release-age guard, whose failure mode looks like a missing version, and a createAssetServer rename (fileMap → mounts, allow → allowFiles) that crashed every server on boot. Plus the uncomfortable lesson of five green test suites with zero tests — and the two-curl smoke check that actually caught the breakage.

“Generate Videone Nganggo Opo, Pak?” — The Stack Behind My Reels

Answering a comment on one of my reels: my technical explainer videos aren't edited in CapCut or Canva — they're compiled. Declarative JavaScript scenes drawn by a Canvas 2D engine, captured with Playwright/Chromium, assembled by ffmpeg, then narrated with an ElevenLabs eleven_v3 voice-over fitted to the engine's timing. Plus an automated verifier that tests hooks, durations, collisions, and loops via pixel diff.

Codex Usage Limits, Explained by Someone Who Hit Zero

Codex, ChatGPT Work and Workspace Agents share one rolling 5-hour + weekly pool; regular ChatGPT chat does not. My four content-production agents were on the wrong side of that line — 170M tokens a month against the Codex pool. Where to check usage, when limits actually reset, and the move that fixed it: the same agents in ordinary chat, with a self-hosted MCP server doing the work.

Open Harness: What the 5-Minute claudex Alias Doesn't Tell You

An OpenAI engineer published a three-step recipe for pointing Claude Code at GPT-5.6 Sol, and it works. After running it as a daily driver: why a settings profile beats an alias, why a model name is a runtime capability rather than config, and how an unbounded subagent fan-out emptied a weekly quota in half a day.

Advanced PostgreSQL for Laravel Developers

Master PostgreSQL performance tuning for Laravel applications — from EXPLAIN ANALYZE and index strategies to autovacuum tuning, connection pooling, and table partitioning.

Kelas Pakar: Can Democracy Survive When Voters Stop Trusting Parties?

In MALAKA's Kelas Pakar, Edbert Gani Suryahudaya (Ph.D student, Political Science, University of Toronto) explains why political parties remain the backbone of representative democracy, what happens when public trust erodes, and how reform can realistically happen from within. This post translates his core arguments into practical frameworks and reform pathways.

Kelas Pakar: Why Activists Need Math — Turning Opinions into Impact

Applied mathematician Barry Sianturi (Imperial College London) makes the case that activism becomes sharper and more effective when grounded in mathematical thinking. From defining terms to mapping variables and testing assumptions, he shows how math elevates critique into constructive policy influence.

Kelas Pakar: If Ghosts Are Real, Physics Needs a Rewrite

Adrian Danar Wibisono (Electrical Engineering & Master Energy Engineering, Universitas Indonesia) examines ghost stories through the lens of physics. The core debate: if ghosts can be seen, heard, or even touch us, they must obey physical laws and be measurable. This post offers a scientific framework for evaluating supernatural claims—critical reading for anyone interested in science literacy.

Kelas Pakar: Generalist vs. Specialist: Who Wins in Today's Job Market?

In this episode of 'Kelas Pakar', Indra De Prestio dissects the age-old debate: is it better to be a deep specialist or a broad generalist? This post breaks down his key arguments, including the concepts of 'degree inflation', the V-shaped professional, and why adaptability might be the most crucial skill of all in a rapidly changing, AI-driven world.

Unlocking Indonesian Expertise: A Deep Dive into Malaka Project's 'Kelas Pakar'

Discover 'Kelas Pakar' (Expert Class) by Malaka Project, a brilliant Indonesian YouTube series bringing expert knowledge to the masses. From public speaking with a stand-up comedian to understanding the 'thrifting' boom, this series is a goldmine of insights. This post explores why this content is a must-watch for anyone interested in Indonesian culture, creative industries, and lifelong learning.