Matthew's Journal

Last week's bread held out very well:

There was even enough to include in a frittata, along with red bell pepper and pepperoni, for Friday night supper.

Saturday breakfast rolls: basic buttermilk, with Marriage's Golden Wholegrain Bread Flour

Today's lunch; a stifado-type casserole of diced beef, served with slowcooked Bellaverde broccoli, baked San Marzano tomatoes and sticky rice.

Posted by B. Schneier

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2026/06/upcoming-speaking-engagements-57.html

https://www.schneier.com/?p=72178

This is a current list of where and when I am scheduled to speak:

• I’m giving a keynote at Cybernation 2026 in Berlin, Germany, on June 24, 2026.
• I’m speaking at the Potsdam Conference on National Cybersecurity at the Hasso Plattner Institut in Potsdam, Germany. The event runs June 24–25, 2026, and my talk will be the evening of June 24.
• I’m participating in a panel discussion at the Austrian Institute for International Affairs in Vienna on Thursday, June 25, 2026.
• I’m speaking at the Digital Humanism Conference in Vienna, Austria, on Friday, June 26, 2026.
• I’m giving a fireside chat for Epicenter Works, to be held at Kaffee Alt Wien in Vienna, Austria, on Friday, June 26, 2026.
• I’m participating (via Zoom) in a panel discussion at Quantum.Tech World in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, on Friday, June 26, 2026. The topic is “Q-Day’s Shortening Deadline: Immediate Solutions.”
• I’m speaking at Czech Technical University in Prague, Czechia, on Monday, June 29, 2026.
• I’m speaking at the Nuremberg Digital Festival in Nuremburg, Germany, on Wednesday, July 1, 2026.
• I’m speaking at CanSecWest 2026 in Vancouver, Canada. The conference runs September 30–October 1, 2026; the time of my talk is TBD.

The list is maintained on this page.

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2026/06/upcoming-speaking-engagements-57.html

https://www.schneier.com/?p=72178

Posted by Zach Weinersmith

https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/proof-6

Click here to go see the bonus panel!

Hovertext:
The notebook has feedback from a nurse, cowboy, and plumber.

https://www.smbc-comics.com/comic/proof-6

Podfic of There once was a princess from Alderaan by Petra:
A limerick of sapphic persuasion.

Cecil's broadcast from your average cancelled Thursday.

Podfic of The man with the katanas by Petra.

Posted by Daniel Lemire

https://lemire.me/blog/2026/06/14/parsing-json-at-compile-time-with-c26-static-reflection/

https://lemire.me/blog/?p=22702

Suppose that you have a configuration file in JSON. Something like this:

{ "width": 1920, "height": 1080, "fullscreen": true,
  "title": "My Game", "volume": 0.8 }

Normally you ship this file alongside your program, open it at startup, read it, and parse it. That is a lot of work for data that never changes. What if the file is fixed at build time? Could the compiler read it, parse it, and bake the result directly into the executable as a constant?

With C++26, the answer is yes. We need two new ingredients, all of which are usable right now with the latest version of the GCC compiler (16).

1. #embed to pull the file into the program at compile time,
2. A software library supporting static reflection like simdjson.

Let me show you how far we can take this.

The new #embed directive reads a file and expands it into a comma-separated list of byte values. To read the file data.json at compile time and keep it around as a constant, we write:

constexpr const char json_data[] = {
#embed "data.json"
    , 0
};

I use constexpr because I want the compiler to be allowed to inspect these bytes during constant evaluation. The trailing , 0 simply appends a null terminator, so the array can be treated as an ordinary C string.

There is no run-time input/output of any kind. The bytes are part of the program.

But embedded bytes are not yet useful by themselves. What I really want is a typed C++ object. In my example, the target type is this configuration struct:

struct Window {
  int         width;
  int         height;
  bool        fullscreen;
  std::string title;
  double      volume;
};

The traditional way to populate such a struct from JSON is to write, by hand, one line per field: read "width", store it into width, read "height", store it into height, and so on. It is tedious. And because it runs at startup, a malformed file becomes a run-time error, discovered by your users rather than by you.

Recent versions of simdjson can parse JSON at compile time using C++26 static reflection. The entry point is simdjson::compile_time::parse_json, and it does something I still find slightly magical: it reads the JSON and, from the keys it finds, and synthesises the struct type for you.

#define SIMDJSON_STATIC_REFLECTION 1
#include "simdjson.h"
constexpr const char json_data[] = {
#embed "data.json"
    , 0
};
constexpr auto window = simdjson::compile_time::parse_json<json_data>();

The variable window is a value computed entirely by the compiler. Its type is generated from the document: it has a width and a height (both 64-bit integers), a bool fullscreen, a double volume, and a title. From here on I write window.width and it behaves like any ordinary field.

How do I know the parsing really happened at compile time? Because I can assert things about the result that the compiler must check before the program even exists:

static_assert(window.width      == 1920);
static_assert(window.height     == 1080);
static_assert(window.fullscreen == true);

If I corrupt the JSON — delete a brace, misspell true, leave a trailing comma — the program no longer compiles, and the error points at the parse_json line. The broken file is caught at build time, on my machine, instead of at startup on someone else’s.

Because window is a genuine compile-time constant, any computation over it is a constant too. Consider this function:

int  screen_area()   { return window.width * window.height; }

Compiled with -O3, there is no multiplication, no field access, and certainly no parsing left — only the answers, as immediate values (here on my macBook):

screen_area:    mov  w0, #0xa400        // 0x1fa400 = 2073600
                movk w0, #0x1f, lsl #16
                ret

The JSON has vanished from the binary. It was read and parsed exactly once, by the compiler, and all that survives is the number 2073600.

Because static reflection is so new, when building with GCC 16, you need to pass the flags -std=c++26 -freflection: the -freflection flag is necessary to activate compile-time reflection You must also set the simdjson macro SIMDJSON_STATIC_REFLECTION=1 before importing the simdjson.h. It is a temporary safeguard.

The source code to reproduce these examples is available.

Reference: P2996 — Reflection for C++26 and the simdjson library.

Credit: The simdjson implementation is joint work with Francisco Geiman Thiesen.

https://lemire.me/blog/2026/06/14/parsing-json-at-compile-time-with-c26-static-reflection/

https://lemire.me/blog/?p=22702

Posted by Lindsey

https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/sunday-sweets-vintage-elegance-2026

"Elegance isn’t about being noticed, it’s about being remembered."

Isn't that a deep thought? I didn't think of it myself. I found it on Pinterest, which basically does my thinking for me these days.  But I do think you'll find today's vintage style Sweets to be nothing but noticeable AND memorable.

For instance, I don't think I will ever forget this cake, as I've been staring at it for a solid 20 minutes. 

By Melania's Exquisite Cakes

Its beauty has been burned into my brain!

This next one is completely fondant-free, and so exquisitely detailed it's actually causing me physical pain. Ugh.

Submitted by Denette L. & made by & Eat It, Too!

Have you ever felt that? A little sting from viewing something of absolute beauty? Like this gorgeous cake, or an amazing sunrise, or Zac Efron?  

Perhaps I've said too much.

I've never looked at a cake before and wished it was a ride at Disneyland, but here you have it:

By Amber's Cake Creations

 Hmm, but maybe an entire theme park dedicated to cake would be even better. Caketopia! I might be onto something here...

Now, prepare your eyeballs for the intense awesomeness they are about to behold:

Sub'd by Annette P. & made by J'Adore Cakes Co.

Each of these cakes is entirely breathtaking on its own, but THREE?  A pearly pink trifecta of  peacock plumaged perfection? Swoon. No. I take that back. They deserve two syllables: Swoo-hoon. 

I don't think anything fits the term 'vintage elegance' better than a corset.

By Frosted Love Celebration Cakes

And this incredible cake really embodies the phrase, huh? Get it?  *elbow nudge*

Ohh, I love the diamond tufting on this cake. And the colors are so retro and perfect. With the glints of gold and pearls, it's like a little jewelry box full of treasures!

Submitted by Crystal Q. and made by Andrea's SweetCakes

However, I wouldn't be disappointed to find it full of cake inside, either.

Someone should tell this cake that it's not polite to upstage the bride.

By Ron Ben-Israel

 Look at that lace! Simply gorgeous.

 Modern vintage: an oxymoron?

By Art and Appetite

Ha ha hardly.

(Well, I guess it is an oxymoron, but that word just sounds like an insult!)  This cake deserves nothing but flattery with its cool juxtaposition of stripes and ruffles.

And now: more ruffles!

By Amanda Oakleaf Cakes

 This confection looks totally cute and innocent, until you notice that one layer looks like a garter, and the  ruffly tier looks like a petticoat!  Gasp! I clutch my pearls in shock!  Such scandalousness.

And I'm not sure exactly how, but this cake is giving off a bit of a 'boudoir' vibe as well.  Maybe its the sassy stack of ruffles, or the 'stitching' along the stripes, or the fondant jewelry draped just-so.

Sub'd by Debbie C., made by The Caketress photo by Jennifer Klementti Photography

"Voulez-vous stare at this cake avec moi?"

PS: EDIBLE JEWELRY? Is this really real?  I approve.

Sweet sassafras! This final Sweet is amazing. It's like a '40s prom dress or something. In fact, it's the very definition of vintage elegance. I even made up a word in its honor:

By Sweet Pea Cakes

Flappergasting!  

(That uh, sounded more complimentary in my head.)

Happy Sunday, everyone!

*****

P.S. Anyone want to bring vintage style pins back? Because this entire set of 7 lovelies is only $12.

7 Pc Women's Brooch Set

OooOOOooh. I think the owl is my favorite. And the peacock.

And the dragonfly.

******

And from my other blog, Epbot:

https://www.cakewrecks.com/home/sunday-sweets-vintage-elegance-2026

Posted by Daily Otter

https://dailyotter.org/posts/2026/6/14/someotter-else-can-be-king-now

Via mzagerp

https://dailyotter.org/posts/2026/6/14/someotter-else-can-be-king-now

https://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/2791.html

https://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/2791.html

Posted by cks

https://utcc.utoronto.ca/~cks/space/blog/linux/DistrosAndOtherPackageManagers

https://utcc.utoronto.ca/~cks/space/blog/linux/DistrosAndOtherPackageManagers

https://www.oglaf.com/ruin/

https://www.oglaf.com/ruin/