ChessCraft in 2022

Published on 2022-12-31 by Stuart Spence

I've often liked year-end reviews like from quanta magazine or Wendover. So why not do a short one for ChessCraft?

336,000 Installs

It has now been 5 years and 1 day since my first git version of ChessCraft. Remarkably, installs per month are still steadily going up, even though …

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ECCC and ChatGPT

Published on 2022-12-09 by Stuart Spence

The free ChatGPT AI gave excellent or perfect answers to all my real ECCC interview questions: code writing and soft skills.

This post is written for public servants that need to know about the latest AI tool called ChatGPT. We should all understand what kind of text and interview answers …

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My First Union Event

Published on 2022-11-22 by Stuart Spence

The views expressed here are my own, and do not express the views of my employer or my union.

Here's my experience attending my union's annual general meeting. I felt some empowerment but mostly outrage and boredom.

Clearly my union is sclerotic and archaic. We gathered to vote and share …

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Green Party of Canada Membership Test

Published on 2022-09-24 by Stuart Spence

What's more important to you: climate science or social justice?

Canadian politics is better when all parties are strong. How can the Green Party of Canada (GPC) recover its legitimacy and relevancy? Here I describe a simple and likely controversial membership test. I can't think of any other way forward …

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Public and Private Sector IT

Published on 2022-06-29 by Stuart Spence

I often see these questions online:

"What are the differences between private and public sector IT?"

"What makes you stay in government IT?"

"Aren't government IT workers underpaid?"

This page is my list of the best things about public sector IT.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are my own, and …

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Training Video Philosophy

Published on 2022-03-05 by Stuart Spence

Most training videos are really bad. This is troublesome to me because I must constantly re-explain my philosophies and processes to colleagues or volunteers. This page aims to help.

Over the years I've made over a hundred training videos for public servants, high school and university students, workshops, and the …

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Patronware

Published on 2021-10-24 by Stuart Spence

I like that the full ChessCraft game is free and ad-free, and yet it is monetized. It has been a challenge describing this monetization strategy succinctly. I wish there were a word for it. In this post I'll explore how words like "donationware", "freemium", and "nagware" aren't a good fit …

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Release 1.13: Eight More Rules and Seven More Languages!

Published on 2021-07-01 by Stuart Spence

This amazing release has the most new piece and board rules ever in a single update! I've also added seven new languages. As usual, it may take a few days for Google to make the update available to everyone.

I must extend a special thanks to Politique 2.0, Maria …

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Oh, Stallman

Published on 2021-04-17 by Stuart Spence

Richard Stallman may be a legend in the world of software, but he also has decades of history promoting a toxic environment in software communities. Due to this, the Free Software Foundation (FSF) has been pressured to kick out Stallman from the board of directors, which they did, though he …

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