For New Readers

This is a start page for writing by Venkatesh Rao on this blog. Ribbonfarm ran from 2007 to 2024 — 1,133 posts, nearly 2 million words. For writing by guests, check out the Contributors page. For an easier introduction, try the ebook collections. Here are some of the better-known posts:

1. The Gervais Principle
2. A Big Little Idea Called Legibility
3. Welcome to the Future Nauseous
4. King Ruinous and the City of Darkness
5. The Premium Mediocre Life of Maya Millennial
6. The Internet of Beefs

Ready to binge? The archive is organized into three six-year "ages."

• Charnel Age (2019–2024): The final age, ending with the blog's retirement in November 2024. Annual roundups: 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019.
• Snowflake Age (2013–18): The collaborative era, with the heaviest concentration of guest contributors. Annual roundups: 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013. See also the idea map with narrated video walkthrough. Crash Early, Crash Often is the ebook anthology from this era.
• Rust Age (2007–12): The founding era, best covered in four curated ebooks edited by Jordan Peacock. Annual roundups: 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007. See The Rust Age of Ribbonfarm for an overview.

For reading suggestions beyond the greatest hits, try browsing by series, thematic cluster, or the bibliography of books cited across the archive.