Post the pot pie
Stories about the web you won’t find anywhere else.
The Sidebar is a newsletter from Mozilla, the makers of Firefox. We’ll drop into your inbox every week with tech insights, tips and behind-the-scenes stories about the web you won’t find anywhere else.
WHAT WE LOVED ON THE WEB THIS WEEK
Resurrecting a chatbot
Before ChatGPT there was Mom and Me, a quirky chatbot program from 1985 created by a cartoonist. It ran on the Atari ST (a computer popular in the ‘80s) and let users chat with an “artificial personality.” It got some media buzz, sold a few copies and then disappeared.
Decades later, journalist Josh Renaud went looking for it. What he found instead was a hole in the record: no images, no backups, just memories. So he tracked down the original disks, digitized them, and uploaded Mom and Me (and its sibling, Murray and Me) into the Internet Archive.
Read for a fun dive into forgotten software and the people who still care.
— Kristina, editor at Mozilla
HOW-TO…
Decide what to post when you're not an influencer
The internet used to be full of blurry food pics and sunset posts. Now it feels like we need a content strategy just to share our weekends.
In a new episode of Outside the Fox, hosts Kim and Ajay talked about how much online self-presentation has changed — and how weird it feels to post something that’s not a milestone, a carefully staged candid shot, or an ad.
If you’ve ever second-guessed posting the pot pie you made, here’s a framework to make it easier:
Is this you or your algorithm self?
Are you posting because it’s something you care about, or because you think it’ll perform?Does this need to be public?
Stories, close friends lists, and finstas exist for a reason. Use the tools. Shape the audience.Would you want to see this in someone else’s feed?
Not everything has to be a banger, but a little empathy scroll goes a long way.Are you overthinking it?
If it’s not harmful, not fake, and not selling junk, maybe it’s fine. The post doesn't have to represent your entire personality.
Still unsure? Do what Kim does: Post the pot pie if it’s good enough to make you excited. Otherwise, maybe just tell your friends about it in person.
THE COMMENT SECTION
Did you add alt-text to that image?
In the 1970s, most American streets didn’t work for wheelchair users. So disability activists in Berkeley poured their own cement on a curb and built a ramp — a political act that helped lead to curb cuts across the U.S. This helped not just wheelchair users but also stroller-pushers, cart-luggers, suitcase-haulers and pretty much everyone else. That’s the curb cut effect: built for access and useful to all.
Alt-text works the same way. It’s a short description added to images that helps screen reader users understand what's there. It also makes sure your message still comes through if the image breaks.
But accessibility shouldn’t stop at useful. “We have a chance to go beyond compliance,” said Kim Bryant, a Firefox product manager who’s also a proudly disabled grad student. Accessibility should be delightful to use, not just a checkbox.
P.S. If, like me, you’re still learning how to write alt-text, the Guide Dogs of America Instagram account is worth a follow. Come for the cute dogs, stay for the delightful descriptions.
ONE COOL PROJECT
The most L.A. corner of the internet
Last week, I talked to Javier Cabral, editor-in-chief of L.A. Taco — part food site, part neighborhood dispatch. Before that, he was a teenage food blogger who just wanted to write about the restaurants he saw on walks around East L.A. Now he’s leading the kind of site he always wanted to read.
He talked about building a journalism-meets-community hybrid, going deep on espresso Reddit, and why carnitas don’t need salsa (a take he’s ready to defend in any alley). And when asked what kind of internet he wants, his answer was simple: one where more people get a shot at telling stories they care about.