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The layout of paths will seem right and comfortable only when it is compatible with the process of walking. And the process of walking is far more subtle than one might imagine.

More at 120 Paths and Goals.

This is basically the famous "make the buildings first, then add the paths later" meme, as told by the architect Christopher Alexander.

A human language must comfortably accommodate the natural cognitive arcs of the human thought process. Ideally, it should fit habits of thought as comfortably as a hand fits a well oiled leather baseball glove, one that your forefather gave to his son (or your foremother gave to her daughter), stretching in an unbroken chain all the way back to human prehistory.

What we need, then, is a good proto conlang that we can throw into a cultural stew pot to steep for a thousand years, accommodating to the human mind however it will. If by then it still seems rough, throw it back into the pot for another thousand years.

The figure of merit, therefore, for a proto conlang is that it accommodates its future evolution gracefully, blooming like a rose quite unexpectedly, making everyone blush (2000 years from now) over how we ever got along without it.

Instead, what most people busy themselves inventing is a proto conlang bowling shoe, a neat (but sweaty) communal object which fits anyone who happens to drop by to drop some pins, with no possibly confusion about which foot goes into which shoe, or how the lacing pattern goes if one the laces should happen to break—pouring over in their righteous zeal the following menu (among others) to divine the one true ineluctable escape from all things arbitrary:

43 Different Ways To Lace Shoes

What English already does: Riding Boot Lacing

This method is for riding boots (motorbike or equestrian) whose sides are joined at the top and loosen near the ankle. The laces zig-zag from both ends and are tied in the middle.

English knows from feet on the ground where the pressure goes.

What weedy conlingers tend to moot: Hidden Knot Lacing

By hiding the knot underneath, the result is an uninterrupted series of straight "bars" that looks particularly distinctive on dress shoes or sneakers alike.

Conglingers know from eyes in the face that irregular knots and loose ends of human cognition are better spoked than spoken.

The layout of paths will seem right and comfortable only when it is compatible with the process of walking. And the process of walking is far more subtle than one might imagine.

More at 120 Paths and Goals.

This is basically the famous "make the buildings first, then add the paths later" meme, as told by the architect Christopher Alexander.

A human language must comfortably accommodate the natural cognitive arcs of the human thought process. Ideally, it should fit habits of thought as comfortably as a hand fits a well oiled leather baseball glove, one that your forefather gave to his son (or your foremother gave to her daughter), stretching in an unbroken chain all the way back to human prehistory.

What we need, then, is a good proto conlang that we can throw into a cultural stew pot to steep for a thousand years, accommodating to the human mind however it will. If by then it still seems rough, throw it back into the pot for another thousand years.

The figure of merit, therefore, for a proto conlang is that it accommodates its future evolution gracefully, blooming like a rose quite unexpectedly, making everyone blush (2000 years from now) over how we ever got along without it.

Instead, what most people busy themselves inventing is a proto conlang bowling shoe, a neat (but sweaty) communal object which fits anyone who happens to drop by to drop some pins, with no possibly confusion about which foot goes into which shoe, or how the lacing pattern goes if one the laces should happen to break—pouring over in their righteous zeal the following menu (among others) to divine the one true ineluctable escape from all things arbitrary:

43 Different Ways To Lace Shoes

What English already does: Riding Boot Lacing

This method is for riding boots (motorbike or equestrian) whose sides are joined at the top and loosen near the ankle. The laces zig-zag from both ends and are tied in the middle.

English knows from feet on the ground where the pressure goes.

What weedy conlingers tend to moot: Hidden Knot Lacing

By hiding the knot underneath, the result is an uninterrupted series of straight "bars" that looks particularly distinctive on dress shoes or sneakers alike.

Conglingers know from eyes in the face that irregular knots and loose ends of human cognition are better spoked than spoken.

The layout of paths will seem right and comfortable only when it is compatible with the process of walking. And the process of walking is far more subtle than one might imagine.

More at 120 Paths and Goals.

This is basically the famous "make the buildings first, then add the paths later" meme, as told by the architect Christopher Alexander.

A human language must comfortably accommodate the natural cognitive arcs of the human thought process. Ideally, it should fit habits of thought as comfortably as a hand fits a well oiled leather baseball glove, one that your forefather gave to his son (or your foremother gave to her daughter), stretching in an unbroken chain all the way back to human prehistory.

What we need, then, is a good proto conlang that we can throw into a cultural stew pot to steep for a thousand years, accommodating to the human mind however it will. If by then it still seems rough, throw it back into the pot for another thousand years.

The figure of merit, therefore, for a proto conlang is that it accommodates its future evolution gracefully, blooming like a rose quite unexpectedly, making everyone blush (2000 years from now) over how we ever got along without it.

Instead, what most people busy themselves inventing is a proto conlang bowling shoe, a neat (but sweaty) communal object which fits anyone who happens to drop by to drop some pins, with no possibly confusion about which foot goes into which shoe, or how the lacing pattern goes if one the laces should happen to break—pouring over in their righteous zeal the following menu (among others) to divine the one true ineluctable escape from all things arbitrary:

43 Different Ways To Lace Shoes

What English already does: Riding Boot Lacing

This method is for riding boots (motorbike or equestrian) whose sides are joined at the top and loosen near the ankle. The laces zig-zag from both ends and are tied in the middle.

English knows from feet on the ground where the pressure goes.

What weedy conlingers tend to moot: Hidden Knot Lacing

By hiding the knot underneath, the result is an uninterrupted series of straight "bars" that looks particularly distinctive on dress shoes or sneakers alike.

Conglingers know from eyes in the face that irregular knots and loose ends of human cognition are better spoked than spoken.

I used to have to re-tie my shoes a few times a day until I found Ian's knot site. Now I tie them with the Ian's Secure Shoelace Knot and stopped having problems. I don't even need to tie them so tightly as before, and they are almost as easy to untie as before.

Get ready to be suprised.

There's even a book on that site about all the ways in which you can tie a shoe!

http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/iansbook.htm

And for those who just want to tie the damn things a bit quicker, there's the "ian knot":

http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/ianknot.htm

There's even a book on that site about all the ways in which you can tie a shoe!

http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/iansbook.htm

And for those who just want to tie the damn things a bit quicker, there's the "ian knot":

http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/ianknot.htm

For those less interested in theory, and more interested in choosing a lacing pattern and a good knot for their shoes, I recommend Ian's Shoelace Site.

This one is quite good, especially for rock climbing and hiking.

From the page I referenced:

Throw it in reverse

Now you can sync everything you buy on the iTunes Store back to any authorized computer.

See that? See how it says you can sync stuff back to a computer? From the iPod? Do you need some sort of picture with an ipod and a computer and an arrow from the ipod to the computer that says "BACK" over it, in order to make that clearer?

Hey check it out, I will even follow links for you. This right here is from the page to which the word "back" links:

SYNC BOTH WAYS

...

But what if you want to hear that song at work? Now you can, with reverse sync. Connect your iPod to any authorized computer -- iTunes lets you authorize up to five -- and you can sync everything you purchased from the iTunes Store back to it.(1)

...

1. Music and media not purchased from the iTunes store only syncs one way, from your computer to your iPod.

Okay? Do you understand now that Apple has added a new feature, which they call reverse sync, which allows you to sync in a reverse fashion (ie back, ie from an iPod to a computer)? Do you further understand that this is a new feature in iTunes, and that it does not involve manually copying files to your iPod, mounted as a disk? Is it clear now, to you, that this is not the same functionality as that to which you so snidely directed me, a person who is frankly your better, if only in the realm of reading comprehension?

Is there anything else I can help you with? Are you able to follow the news without assistance? Would you like me to read to you some instructions for tying your damn shoelaces, and perhaps walk you through the diagrams? Perhaps it would be better to direct you to a literacy program, which is a place where you can learn to read (ie teach a man, namely you, to fish rather than give the man, that's you again, an actual fish which will feed him only once)? Seriously, how can I best help you, here? Because I am here to help.

http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/ianknot.htm

Watch the little animated GIF at the top, then try to follow the directions. This cuts 25-50% off the total shoelace tying time, and up to 90% off the time for the actual 'bow' knot (not counting the base knot under the bow).

That site also has a bunch of other knots for different purposes. Boot lacing and tying methods, secure knots, even necktie knots :)

Today the U.S. Government has issued these equally important directives:

1) All federal employees must tie their shoelaces using a right-over-left Ian knot.

2) Handwritten ampersands must be of the official '&' variety and not the 'sloppy plus' variety.

3) Toilet paper must be folded, not crumpled.