I've been building malleable software for almost a decade, starting with our vision for the Fluid Framework and Microsoft Loop (now Copilot Pages) for collaborative, customizable applications that are as easy to work with as Google Docs.
In 2019, we built a demo that was really futuristic at the time. We added a Monaco editor (a code editor) to a Word document that let you program and host a widget "in vivo." From within Word, you could edit and build new widgets, which would show on the page as they were being built.
One favorite demo was pretending to be a WSJ reporter working on a report. At some point, the reporter would need the WSJ Pinpoint view and ask a friend to enter the document and build it live. It would show up as it was being built, usable and collaborative on the page right there.
Today, the malleable software vision is much more fleshed out and it's top of mind for many of the top thinkers on how AI affects programming, workflows, and UX, but we tinkerers ignore a fundamental problem: most people don't have the tinkerer's urge to modify their environment.
Damn, isn't that annoying?
I observe this in friends' homes: there are people who accept spaces as-is and people who incrementally improve them. Guess what? A well-placed knife rack or towel hook can transform a kitchen's usability, but not everyone has the instinct to make the change. Some prioritize professional fit and finish; others are content with the basics.
But for me? I want to be like Casey Neistat.
I want to make my software a little better. My life a little better. Build my mise en place - that careful arrangement of tools and materials to make my work flow naturally. I want the agency and the vision to create the tools that enable better work. But I love the process, I appreciate the results, and I don't mind if it looks a little home made.
Some would say these improvements are not worth it at all, but they're worth it more often than you realize.
You can build a lot in 4 minutes now, so if you do it weekly, automate it.
Motivating the desire to tinker is another essay and should be something more people think about. In my mind, it's equivalent to inspiring agency, but practically it includes reducing barriers and automating the creation process.
I put the tinkerer's philosphy into practice last night. I've long used the Eisenhower Matrix to prioritize tasks - importance vs. urgency, a mental model that helps me focus on the right task. Until last night this was a mental model, but I had an hour so I whipped it up in Cursor and added it to my extensively modified Obsidian workflow. A small tool to help organize my mind, built because I could, and because it made my life a little better.