Chenyang “Platy” Hsu


Editor. Currently at SSPAI.

Reachable in Shenzhen physically, at me(at)cyhsu.net over port 25, and with the handle “platyhsu” elsewhere.

Scroll down for my recent writings (RSS, archive). You’re also welcomed to see colophon for trivia about me and the site, links for online resources and tools I frequent, and now for my current interests.


The Case Against ‘The Case Against Travel’


Bon voyage, and the rest is mystery.

How iOS Restricts Features by Region: A Look at MobileGestalt and Eligibility


Apple is a for-profit that is capable of and responsible for its own decisions of whether and how to comply. On the other hand, users can vote with their wallets. What’s more intriguing to me, though, is how Apple manages this growing set of regional feature restrictions.

Remote Book Scanning with 1DollarScan and Optimizing Scanned PDFs


Last month, I got interested in a textbook recommended by an online open course I happened to find. However, it’s quite old and not easily available for international shipping. Plus, since it’s a reader meant to be read non-sequentially and piecemeal, carrying it in its 600-page physical form seems to defeat the purpose. That was when I thought of the book scanning services I had heard about in the past and decided to try 1DollarScan.com, a service mentioned in multiple Hacker News threads.

On The Chinese Translations of Copywriting for Releases at Apple Sep. ’24 Special Event


往年苹果文案的翻译经常有一些「语出惊人」的地方,这两年似乎收敛了不少,但还是保留了每次看新品文案对比几版翻译的习惯。这里摘录美国官网原版和中、港、台版本翻译对此(方法见结尾),并就自己注意到、觉得值得一提的若干译法作出评论。观点仅供参考,欢迎批评。

On The Dinesenian Tales of Self-Reinvention


What’s fascinating about Dinesen’s storytelling is the labyrinthine structure and fractal logic. Typically, you start with a narrator who encounters others telling stories-within-stories; the narration keeps branching out until, just as the mass is about to become a mess, a ray of revelation cuts through, shockingly and cruelly exposing the underlying interconnections. Concurrently, through the constant creation and piercing of personae, and the alternating misreading and projection by others, issues of identity and subjectivity surface.

Galaxy Z Flip6


我祝贺 Flip 作为一个品类站稳了脚跟,也遗憾于这份新奇能带来的惊喜毕竟有限。折叠屏就像从智能机波澜不惊的剧情中翻开的副本,经过短暂几轮迭代,终于还是要从分叉合并回主线。它的屏幕上现在说:感谢你的陪伴;it’s been a fun ride.

The New Essential Guide to Electronics in Shenzhen


The New Essential Guide to Electronics in Shenzhen is a short guide designed for foreign electronic shoppers to navigate Shenzhen’s mesmerizing Huaqiangbei district, and an update to Andrew “bunnie” Huang’s original edition. It turns out the book, full of humorous yet insightful tips, is also an interesting read for Chinese readers.

Notes on the Neapolitan Novels


I was recently introduced to Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan Novels and spent about three weeks to read through the quartet. These notes are an unorganized collection of what I have learned or thought of during and after reading the series.

Morning Swims


As I navigate the terrains of reality where doubts inundate, and chart the boundaries of relations that warrant no reciprocity, the pool remains a steadfast, empathetic bulwark, always acknowledging my individuality and responding to my presence.

Adding Two Experimental Pages


I created two experimental pages, links and now, for this site.