The author argues that tools aren’t just passive instruments but active participants in shaping how we think, work, and create. Whether it’s a minimalist text editor or a robust design app, the tools we use guide our behaviors and the way we approach problems.
As someone who experiments with tools, I definitely agree with him, and that’s why preventing the “shiny new tool syndrome” is critical.
My friend Marius made me discover the writing of Ploum and I spent a day reading everything he wrote on this blog. Lots of interesting topics written about!
With this article, we focus on the simplicity that is sometimes missing, the trend of overengineering products even if it becomes detrimental. I would add another article to the list, the file-over-app philosophy by Steph Ango from Obsidian. It is more complex than just going for the simplest tools, it’s about listing your needs and focusing on the tool that answers them.
Let me introduce you to WordStar 4.0, a popular word processor from the early 80s.
WordStar 4.0
As old as it seems, George R.R. Martin used it to write “A Song of Ice and Fire”.
Why would someone use such an old piece of software to write over 5,000 pages? I love how he puts it:
It does everything I want a word processing program to do and it doesn't do anything else.
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