The Midnight Cafe blog
Practical guides for people who work alone, make things, or miss the old chat-room worlds. Each one covers a single question and links to the sources.
How to make friends as an adult
Why friends are harder to make after school, how many hours it takes (a University of Kansas study), and ways that fit a busy evening schedule.
How to make friends online, without dating apps
Where to meet people online who are not looking for a date: interest communities, Discord, games, forums, open source and virtual worlds, and how to stay safe.
What is lofi music?
Lofi means low fidelity. Here is where the word comes from, how lofi hip hop grew from J Dilla and Nujabes to the Lofi Girl stream, and how it sounds.
Music for coding
What to listen to while coding: why lyrics get in the way, instrumental options from lofi to game soundtracks, when silence wins, and a routine for evening sessions.
The third place, and can it be online?
What Ray Oldenburg meant by a third place, its traits, why coffee shops count, and arguments for and against online third places, including MMO research.
How to find an accountability partner for your side project
How to find an accountability partner for a side project, what to say in a weekly check-in, where to look, and what one small study found about sharing goals.
Multiplayer browser games to play with friends
Free browser games for groups, with no download: drawing games, board games, chess, a watch-together site and a few chill places to hang out. Checked October 2026.
Things to do online at night
Calm things to do online late at night when you are bored, awake or want company: read, listen to live radio, build something small, or sit in a quiet room.
The old internet: what we miss, and where to find it now
What people miss about the internet of the 1990s and early 2000s, from GeoCities and webrings to MSN Messenger and Habbo, and where that spirit still lives.
Room decorating games you can play online
Room decorating and room design games you can play today, with platform and price checked in October 2026, from Unpacking and The Sims 4 to browser worlds.
Free virtual world games you can play in a browser
What is left of the old chat-room worlds and which free virtual worlds are worth a look: Habbo, Second Life, work spaces and Midnight Cafe.
Body doubling online: free and paid options
What body doubling is and how to do it online for free or for a fee: friends, Focusmate, videos and a virtual cafe. Checked 13 October 2026.
Virtual coworking spaces compared
A fair look at virtual coworking for freelancers and remote workers: session services, virtual offices and cozy rooms. Prices checked 13 October 2026.
Coffee shop ambience for working: why it helps and what to use
Why cafe noise can help some people focus, what the best-known study found, and ways to get it at home, from videos to a virtual cafe.
Where to promote an indie game for free
Free places to show an indie game and what each is good for: itch.io, subreddits, Hacker News, Discord. With the rules to check before you post.
How to get first feedback on a side project
Practical ways to get honest first reactions to a side project: what to ask, where to ask, and how to read the answers. Includes the Show HN rules.
Indie maker communities worth joining
Where indie developers and makers share work and get feedback: Indie Hackers, Hacker News, Reddit, Discord, itch.io, and how to take part without spamming.
Study with me videos, and other ways to work with company
What study-with-me videos are, why people like them, where they fall short, and other ways to work with company: body doubling and virtual rooms.