Past week while grabbing some coffee with Ed: "It is our hope that Tlon's interfaces quicken people's understanding that they are the true owners and arbiters of their computer's presentation — of everything their computer is capable of.... We hope that Urbit's current interface presentation, which is designed to feel 'vessel-like', or 'empty', or 'flattened', modulates a person using Urbit to realize that this computer is a place to project one's self: Tlon is absolutely not in the business of projecting itself strongly through the act of 'visual design'. Our stance is one of beautiful infrastructure, and any 'beautiful' visual presentation that manifests via this stance is a side-effect. Tlon is absolutely not in the business of producing "desire for objects" through the act of interface design. Our interfaces are in their default state not baubles for the masses to pine over, they are not eye-candy, they are not striving for lickability, they are not produced for our fellow designers or for our friends."