In a race towards the post-reality era, TikTok are leading the way. Image filters are now at a stage where they trigger visceral emotions and have a very real impact on psychological wellbeing. They have effects on self-esteem, self-image and confidence. More than that, they provide a glimpse of a...
The same celebrated AI tools that save time for one group of people will make things harder and prompt plenty of headaches for others. Among other things, the tools will force us to rethink how literary works are published. We are facing an avalanche of books written by machines, and...
I started my first podcast in the spring of 2007, not long before the first iPhone was released to the world. Back then the origin of the word podcast was more obvious, as dedicated producers and consumers of course listened on Apple's groundbreaking mp3 player, the iPod. After...
"But what is it you really work with, Per?" I get this question from time to time in the workplace. Over the years it has, contrary to my expectations, become harder to answer. Not because I do not know, but because it is not readily summarised in an...
Digital tools, smart devices, AI and virtual worlds are celebrated for the problems they solve, while the problems they create are concealed or glossed over. My name is Per Axbom and I’m a Swedish communication theorist born in Liberia. My international upbringing, my early 80s computer enthusiasm, aligned with...
There are parts of my design work I want to work even more with. The parts that appear small but make a huge difference. The parts that contribute to new knowledge, inspire change, and allow people and organisations to move forward with more confidence. I can help you visualise, teach...
While I've written several guides and posts on Mastodon and the fediverse, the first step of joining is always the biggest obstacle: Choosing an instance to join. Seeing a demand for it, I put together this brief overview of 10 instances. You will often hear that there are...
Twenty-five years ago today I registered axbom.com as my domain name for sharing updates and stories. I had started blogging (or web logging) prior to then, on a Swedish platform known as Passagen, but owning my own name as a dot com was exhilirating. I first coded my pages...
As more and more people are asking me about Mastodon I felt a need for a picture to point at, showcasing how the software known as Mastodon fits into the much larger concept of the Fediverse. I made this infographic to help myself and others explain the many different use-cases...
