Mark Sample
@samplereality.bsky.social
Professor of Film, Media, and Digital Studies at a small liberal arts college.
Digital skulduggery and more
☞ https://www.samplereality.com ☜
Digital skulduggery and more
☞ https://www.samplereality.com ☜
Zarf's Visible Zorker was so cool, glad to see he's giving ALL the Infocom games the same treatment. Support his new Patreon if you can for this non-trivial media archaeological work!
Replay for the morning crowd:
I have launched a Patreon to do Visible Zork 3, followed by all the rest of the Infocom games. One per month. There's an associated Discord for game discussion as we run through them.
blog.zarfhome.com/2026/01/the-...
www.patreon.com/VisibleZorker
I have launched a Patreon to do Visible Zork 3, followed by all the rest of the Infocom games. One per month. There's an associated Discord for game discussion as we run through them.
blog.zarfhome.com/2026/01/the-...
www.patreon.com/VisibleZorker
The Visible Zorker Project (and Patreon)
Announcing the Visible Zorker Project and Patreon. The plan: deconstruct every Infocom game, one per month, and make the source code explorable.
blog.zarfhome.com
January 28, 2026 at 4:42 PM
Zarf's Visible Zorker was so cool, glad to see he's giving ALL the Infocom games the same treatment. Support his new Patreon if you can for this non-trivial media archaeological work!
The world is falling apart, but 2026 is the year I finally get my use of Obsidian to stick.
January 28, 2026 at 4:22 PM
The world is falling apart, but 2026 is the year I finally get my use of Obsidian to stick.
Stop supporting ed tech or predatory platforms like academia dot edu. Start supporting community-led initiatives like Knowledge Commons (Humanities Commons), built by academics *for* academics.
🧵 1/3 Today we’re announcing a new individual membership program, KC Champions, available through our storefront! 💪
Our platform is available free of charge, but we've designed an offering for those who want just a bit extra and who want to help support us.
🔗 about.hcommons.org/2026/01/26/b...
Our platform is available free of charge, but we've designed an offering for those who want just a bit extra and who want to help support us.
🔗 about.hcommons.org/2026/01/26/b...
Become a KC Champion – About Knowledge Commons
about.hcommons.org
January 27, 2026 at 8:08 PM
Stop supporting ed tech or predatory platforms like academia dot edu. Start supporting community-led initiatives like Knowledge Commons (Humanities Commons), built by academics *for* academics.
Reposted by Mark Sample
Happy to have some moral clarity at the head of my union these days.
Join AAUP. Your dues pay for these legal victories we keep wrapping up and these trainings that have taught a thousand new organizers how to do the work.
Join AAUP. Your dues pay for these legal victories we keep wrapping up and these trainings that have taught a thousand new organizers how to do the work.
"These court victories tell us that … we have a right to say that Charlie Kirk said some disgusting things, and just because we’re faculty members doesn’t mean we don’t have the right to say those things.”
– Todd Wolfson, AAUP President
– Todd Wolfson, AAUP President
Faculty firings over Kirk commentary are unraveling
The fierce First Amendment clash between faculty and their colleges sparked by the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk is starting to tip in the educators’ favor.
www.politico.com
January 26, 2026 at 4:29 PM
Happy to have some moral clarity at the head of my union these days.
Join AAUP. Your dues pay for these legal victories we keep wrapping up and these trainings that have taught a thousand new organizers how to do the work.
Join AAUP. Your dues pay for these legal victories we keep wrapping up and these trainings that have taught a thousand new organizers how to do the work.
The answer is No
Do thou, too, remain warm among ice.
January 25, 2026 at 3:48 AM
The answer is No
Reposted by Mark Sample
Hi friends. I haven’t been around here much and intend to be around here even less going foreward. Mastodon is far from perfect, but if you’re looking for a scholar-run space that promises not to blue-check fascists, we’d love to see you at hcommons.social.
hcommons.social
hcommons.social is a microblogging network supporting scholars and practitioners across the humanities and around the world.
hcommons.social
January 18, 2026 at 11:05 PM
Hi friends. I haven’t been around here much and intend to be around here even less going foreward. Mastodon is far from perfect, but if you’re looking for a scholar-run space that promises not to blue-check fascists, we’d love to see you at hcommons.social.
Saw someone here arguing that George R.R. Martin owes it to his fans to finish his Song of Ice and Fire series.
Once you start something, the post argued, you just can't leave fans hanging. 🧵
Once you start something, the post argued, you just can't leave fans hanging. 🧵
January 18, 2026 at 4:49 PM
Saw someone here arguing that George R.R. Martin owes it to his fans to finish his Song of Ice and Fire series.
Once you start something, the post argued, you just can't leave fans hanging. 🧵
Once you start something, the post argued, you just can't leave fans hanging. 🧵
One line of code, or the Ruffle browser extension, and you can get William Poundstone's fantastic 2005 Flash piece "Project for Tachistoscope {Bottomless Pit}" up and running
January 17, 2026 at 11:50 PM
One line of code, or the Ruffle browser extension, and you can get William Poundstone's fantastic 2005 Flash piece "Project for Tachistoscope {Bottomless Pit}" up and running
Reposted by Mark Sample
i have worked with Casey and can corroborate their being a great team member. really smart, versatile, dedicated, and a great partner in brainstorming and product engineering
Got three job rejections in one day so: I am asking for help finding a new full-stack web development job. My website/portfolio is available at casey.kolderup.org. I'm a great team member and I've worked at small startups and medium-sized companies with success working across teams and disciplines.
January 16, 2026 at 1:43 AM
i have worked with Casey and can corroborate their being a great team member. really smart, versatile, dedicated, and a great partner in brainstorming and product engineering
Again, I'm working on something I think is so cool that only a few other people will also think is so cool
January 15, 2026 at 1:07 AM
Again, I'm working on something I think is so cool that only a few other people will also think is so cool
How Generative AI Destroys Institutions. Killer opening line:
"If you wanted to create a tool that would enable the destruction of institutions that prop up democratic life, you could not do better than artificial intelligence."
"If you wanted to create a tool that would enable the destruction of institutions that prop up democratic life, you could not do better than artificial intelligence."
How AI Destroys Institutions
Civic institutions—the rule of law, universities, and a free press—are the backbone of democratic life. They are the mechanisms through which complex societies
papers.ssrn.com
January 14, 2026 at 4:52 PM
How Generative AI Destroys Institutions. Killer opening line:
"If you wanted to create a tool that would enable the destruction of institutions that prop up democratic life, you could not do better than artificial intelligence."
"If you wanted to create a tool that would enable the destruction of institutions that prop up democratic life, you could not do better than artificial intelligence."
Reposted by Mark Sample
A Department of Homeland Security whistleblower has released the identities of about 4,500 ICE and Border Patrol employees Tuesday in what has been called potentially the largest agency data breach for the department.
www.rawstory.com/ice-agents-d...
www.rawstory.com/ice-agents-d...
Whistleblower drops 'largest ever' ICE leak to unmask agents: 'The last straw'
A Department of Homeland Security whistleblower has released the identities of about 4,500 ICE and Border Patrol employees Tuesday in what has been called potentially the largest agency data breach fo...
www.rawstory.com
January 14, 2026 at 3:35 AM
A Department of Homeland Security whistleblower has released the identities of about 4,500 ICE and Border Patrol employees Tuesday in what has been called potentially the largest agency data breach for the department.
www.rawstory.com/ice-agents-d...
www.rawstory.com/ice-agents-d...
Been thinking a lot lately about Pete Seeger's "My Name is Lisa Kalvelage," the lyrics of which are taken almost verbatim from Lisa Kalvelage's court statement after her arrest for an anti-war protest.
My Name is Lisa Kalvelage
YouTube video by Pete Seeger - Topic
www.youtube.com
January 14, 2026 at 3:18 AM
Been thinking a lot lately about Pete Seeger's "My Name is Lisa Kalvelage," the lyrics of which are taken almost verbatim from Lisa Kalvelage's court statement after her arrest for an anti-war protest.
Reposted by Mark Sample
I made a Python script to selectively delete your Bluesky posts based on certain criteria (age of posts, number of likes, images or not, etc.). Check it out! github.com/samplerealit...
GitHub - samplereality/bsky-deleter: Python tool to selectively delete old Bluesky posts based on age and engagement
Python tool to selectively delete old Bluesky posts based on age and engagement - samplereality/bsky-deleter
github.com
January 12, 2026 at 2:29 PM
I made a Python script to selectively delete your Bluesky posts based on certain criteria (age of posts, number of likes, images or not, etc.). Check it out! github.com/samplerealit...
Ordered some material for a physical computing project. Received a follow-up email saying I'll have to pay a 45% import duty upon arrival. Fuck yeah, this economic policy is working just perfectly.
January 13, 2026 at 1:34 AM
Ordered some material for a physical computing project. Received a follow-up email saying I'll have to pay a 45% import duty upon arrival. Fuck yeah, this economic policy is working just perfectly.
I made a Python script to selectively delete your Bluesky posts based on certain criteria (age of posts, number of likes, images or not, etc.). Check it out! github.com/samplerealit...
GitHub - samplereality/bsky-deleter: Python tool to selectively delete old Bluesky posts based on age and engagement
Python tool to selectively delete old Bluesky posts based on age and engagement - samplereality/bsky-deleter
github.com
January 12, 2026 at 2:29 PM
I made a Python script to selectively delete your Bluesky posts based on certain criteria (age of posts, number of likes, images or not, etc.). Check it out! github.com/samplerealit...
Reposted by Mark Sample
IMINT #14696 from NROL-82 (EXPERIMENTAL)
1. Quantum Kink Commissary
2. Erotic Astronauts
3. Radioactive Content
1. Quantum Kink Commissary
2. Erotic Astronauts
3. Radioactive Content
January 7, 2026 at 11:51 AM
IMINT #14696 from NROL-82 (EXPERIMENTAL)
1. Quantum Kink Commissary
2. Erotic Astronauts
3. Radioactive Content
1. Quantum Kink Commissary
2. Erotic Astronauts
3. Radioactive Content
Today I updated my procedurally-generated million-stanza ode to the daily news fugitivetexts.net/acts/
![A series of short pieces of flash fiction. From top left: "The librarian secretly kept copies as fictional characters were exiled." - "This evening a person came up to Yamileth and haded a letter to her. The air was thick with anticipation." - "Sculpture" - "Rory was let go from the National Endowment for the Humanities. By a 22-year-old intern." - "Kaylani didn't see herself as a poet but she tried writing a poem about war anyway." - "The blue light of Noemi's phone bathed her face. Could the news be any worse?" - "Ring camera footage shows ICE arresting Blanca Camacho Navarro, a union organizer and legal immigrant with an American spouse." - "portrait" - "The shell casing dropped to the asphalt, the word 'delay' scribbled on it with a red sharpie." - "Fight." - "7 professors and students executed in Oklahoma with a Sig Sauer p226. RFK Jr. says the victims should have learned CPT." - "With bitter fury Taylor read poetry in allews where cameras couldn't see." - "More files were released today. Including photos of [name redacted] and [name redacted] in a hot tub." - "Simone wrote poetry that remained when monuments fell. Her poems filled Danielle's heart with a mixture of resignation and hope." - "Just after midnight you came across the message 'POWER TO THE PEOPLE' chaled on the street sign." - "See that salt water, and paper and gasoline, causing a fire"](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gpmpz7xi4k5efyma3cfuxen3/bafkreiea3qopz3lhcwgoyvd3jzqf2w2ir6w54ovze5tiqlhs3ofuekom2i@jpeg)
January 12, 2026 at 3:01 AM
Today I updated my procedurally-generated million-stanza ode to the daily news fugitivetexts.net/acts/
Pre-ordered!
I wrote a book with my friend. It's about making video games.
@adamledoux.net wrote the forward and @brkeogh.bsky.social blurbed it.
It's like thirty dollarydoos. Buy it, won't you?
Storytelling for Video Games Using Bitsy: A Guide for Aspiring Designers www.amazon.com/dp/3031893344
@adamledoux.net wrote the forward and @brkeogh.bsky.social blurbed it.
It's like thirty dollarydoos. Buy it, won't you?
Storytelling for Video Games Using Bitsy: A Guide for Aspiring Designers www.amazon.com/dp/3031893344
Storytelling for Video Games Using Bitsy: A Guide for Aspiring Designers
Amazon.com: Storytelling for Video Games Using Bitsy: A Guide for Aspiring Designers: 9783031893346: Condis, Megan, Schweizer, Bobby: Books
www.amazon.com
January 7, 2026 at 10:23 PM
Pre-ordered!
Creepy things at my in-laws' that give my kids nightmares 🧵
1 - a porcelain cat next to an old fruit press
1 - a porcelain cat next to an old fruit press
January 5, 2026 at 10:47 PM
Creepy things at my in-laws' that give my kids nightmares 🧵
1 - a porcelain cat next to an old fruit press
1 - a porcelain cat next to an old fruit press
While I wish good riddance to 2025, it wasn't exactly a bad year professionally and creatively. A roundup of my last 12 months: samplereality.com/2025/12/31/m...
My 2025 Highlights
A roundup of Mark Sample's creative and published work from 2025, including "No Time to Discourse" and "A Million Random Acts."
samplereality.com
January 5, 2026 at 4:21 PM
While I wish good riddance to 2025, it wasn't exactly a bad year professionally and creatively. A roundup of my last 12 months: samplereality.com/2025/12/31/m...
Reposted by Mark Sample
all this is both foolish and unnecessary
January 4, 2026 at 9:47 PM
all this is both foolish and unnecessary
Pretty funny that the 12-months of credit monitoring and identity theft protection I'm receiving because of a hack of my employer's HR data doesn't have 2FA.
January 3, 2026 at 5:11 PM
Pretty funny that the 12-months of credit monitoring and identity theft protection I'm receiving because of a hack of my employer's HR data doesn't have 2FA.
I knew we were cooked as a country the first time I heard "Born in the U.S.A." appropriated as a patriotic, nationalistic song. Approximately 10 minutes after the song was released in 1984.
January 3, 2026 at 5:00 PM
I knew we were cooked as a country the first time I heard "Born in the U.S.A." appropriated as a patriotic, nationalistic song. Approximately 10 minutes after the song was released in 1984.