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dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
dorotaC
@dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
8 followers 0 following 250 posts
Greybeard but revolutionary. 80-char lines are good for museums.

My tech writing (hire me): https://dorotac.eu/
Open bike computer: https://jazda.org
dcz on libera.chat

🌉 bridged from ⁂ https://fosstodon.org/@dcz, follow @ap.brid.gy to interact
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dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
What would the image weigh without the undesired passenger?

With #gimp again, I posterized it to 16 colors, which nuked any visible watermark and got a quarter the original size: 140kiB.

But the black-and-white image was still smaller, so there must be […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
An image of 2 chatbot messages on colored backgrounds.
February 14, 2026 at 8:49 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Well, maybe my human eyes cannot see something that's there.

Captain #gimp to the rescue!
A little thresholding... and there it is. The sand in the gears of #png . Not-quite-random noise all over the background (try different thresholds to see the rest).

The […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
A picture of text, with a background of a semi-regular pattent. The text is of two chatbot messages.
February 14, 2026 at 8:33 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
How much does a screenshot of some text weigh?

5kiB? 50kB?

But not this one.

I wanted to store an article for future reference and it was a crazy 500kiB!
And there's nothing in it!

What's the answer to this riddle? Follow this thread to find out […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
A screenshot of two chatbot replies. Just text on colored backgrounds.
February 14, 2026 at 8:28 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
#mastodon advice:
subscribe to hashtags!
I now have a dedicated, temporary FOSDEM column.
Search for #fosdem , click the little arrows on top, add "pin".
Works with the advanced interface.
A partial screenshot of 2 columns: both say #FOSDEM, one has two arrows labeled 1 and 2, to small white arrows symbols and to +Pin button. The other column is highlighted red and numbered 3
January 30, 2026 at 1:53 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
I hung up the printer used by @c3loc :(

So the building maps weren't ready today at #39c3. Perhaps tomorrow!

@c3sign could you ping me when your A3 printer is available :P?

#ccc #maps
A simplified diagram of level 3 and level 4 of a building with prominently marked staircases, toilets and lecture halls. It also says 39C3.
December 27, 2025 at 9:44 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
What's up with #gpg password prompts over #ssh ?

Sometimes it appears instantly, usually takes a minute or so. It seems to depend on the mood the *client* booted in.

It's quite annoying to wait and I don't know how to debug it.

#terminal #console
A terminal-based "window" with the prompt: "Please enter the passphrase to unlock the OpenPGP secret key: passphrase: * <ok> <cancel>"
November 22, 2025 at 7:37 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Files before folders?
Folders before files?

Or maybe it's a statement on the implicit, unexamined assumption about the spatial relationship corresponding to "before".

It's the little unexpected pranks that make me love #gtk .

#ui #programming #freesoftware #bug #bugs #opensource #humor
A GTK3 window showing FILES sorted on top of folders. A menu shows a checked checkbox FOLDERS before files.
November 13, 2025 at 7:19 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
2 weeks, 6 repos touched.

If this goes through, #mobile #linux on-screen keyboards get some nice features on #wayland:

https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/wayland/wayland-protocols/-/merge_requests/433#note_3184487

Reference implementations available. Looking for […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
November 10, 2025 at 8:02 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Another day, another #wayland protocol.

Still working on improving input methods. Just "finished" a feature useful especially to #cjk languages (#chinese , #japanese , #korean ):

the input method intercepts some #key presses […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
October 29, 2025 at 5:35 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Guess what I'm working^W wasting my life on.
The letter C, in many sizes, on a greenish background. The C on the bottom is pixelates.
October 14, 2025 at 9:37 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Spectrometer: 150EUR.

Objectively establishing that it's cloudy outside: priceless.

Thanks to wejn, setup was on the painless side:
https://github.com/wejn/tobes-ui

#optics #hardware #freesoftware #physics
The actual view from my window. It's gray. Presumably clouds. Spectrogram of the clouds: peak in blue, then tapering off. A small black box with a white disc on the front wall. It's the spectrometer. It reads TORCH BEARER under a Chinese label.
October 8, 2025 at 12:45 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
What's the simplest useful thing I want on my desktop?

A plain text area.

Now that I made it, any other #kde user can have it, too!

https://codeberg.org/dcz/kwlejka

#linux #plasma #kdeplasma #freesoftware #desktop #clipboard #copypaste
A screenshot of a bottom panel with a paste icon, from which a text area emerges.
October 8, 2025 at 6:27 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
@benedikt I'm always impressed when my government supports a standards-based, free market.
AusweisApp. Supports Apple, Google, Windows, Huawei. Where's Linux?
October 5, 2025 at 12:27 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
One email to the German credit agency, and two weeks late, I have my own product ID to connect my janky payment script to banks.

That was surprisingly painless.

The library I use no longer provides a default one, and they recommend getting one, so I thought […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
An email client screenshot. It's a reply to some form. It contains a number for the paynow/invoicer product.
September 16, 2025 at 4:44 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Ladies and gentlemen, preparing for my #mrmcd2025 talk.
I legit thought the laptop was dead. Seems to be not glitching most of the time after recovering the account though.

See you in the evening!

https://talks.mrmcd.net/2025/talk/U87GK7/

#mrmcd
Bad Luck Brian: Gives a talk today / YG^&TR%E^ / glItcheS / cOMPUter
September 13, 2025 at 8:04 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Thanks #digikey. I know you're optimistic about my projects, but let's talk about 5000 units after I manage to make use of the 3 I originally wanted to buy.

#electronics #retail
An offer for alternative packaging shows 3 units in one package for 17 EUR, 3 units in another for 23 EUR and 5000 units in another for 18000 EUR
September 2, 2025 at 9:49 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Just procrastinating, nothing to see here...
A messy screenshot of a PCB editor. There's a "jazda 3.1" text on it.
August 30, 2025 at 10:48 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Solder warriors, how do you protect your etched boards from corrosion?

I bought this one a lifetime ago. Clearly homemade. It's covered with rosin.

I thought rosin was corrosive to the traces.

What technique is this? What kind of rosin is used here?

#pcb #electronics #copperetching #askfedi
A printed circuit board with a chip on it and a couple more components. Its surface looks irregular because of a semi-transparent layer on top of the traces.
August 12, 2025 at 10:37 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
This just in: my friends chucked out a shitty "CO2" #sensor.

Actually a breathalyzer:

https://hackaday.com/2023/02/18/anatomy-of-a-fake-co2-sensor/

It's a really pretty design! And while the man in the video says it's useless, I actually started a CO2 sensor […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
A bunch of lines corresponding to shapes on a LCD display. The image is grayscale. Actually a reflection of the sky, with a cloud visible on top as a white blob.
August 6, 2025 at 6:55 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Today I learned about spiral ratchet #screwdrivers .

You push, screw turns.

The ones I've seen on sale in #germany take some unusual bits.

Does anyone know where to get one accepting regular hex bits? (Germany)

#tools #askfedi
Wikipedia image of 3 complicated-looking long screwdrivers.
August 1, 2025 at 2:35 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Psst... Hey, kid! Ever tried...

#coding in proportional #fonts ?

It's smooth, you know. Your eyes will feel incredible.
Don't listen to typewriter geezers, there's nothing wrong with wanting your #text to look nice.

Try it. For free.

I code like this every […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
A narrow window of Kate IDE displaying some Rust code. The fonts are proportional.
July 23, 2025 at 11:14 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
So I visited someone who used to work at a hospital in the '90s and I got this hand-made #vintage #pcb .

The writing is
Coronametrics Front End/Ultrasound
the other side has 02/83 , could be a year.

No solder mask, traces at weird angles, no clear grid, rusty […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
A glamour shot of an old PCB full of through-hole components. A bird's eye view of an old PCB. A view of a backside of an old PCB, full of traces. It shows pads for slotting the board into something.
July 11, 2025 at 4:24 PM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Another weekend, another couple of steps fixing the input method mess I (partly) started:

https://gitlab.freedesktop.org/wayland/wayland-protocols/-/merge_requests/408

Keyboard support and moving popups.

https://codeberg.org/dcz/stiwri/src/branch/popup

On […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
May 26, 2025 at 4:59 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Hey electrofedis,
anyone able to say if this is LVDS or eDP?

I suspect 4 differential pairs is too much for eDP for 1024x600, but I couldn't find any datasheet to confirm it.

The display is KD101N7 from an Android 4.1-era Archos tablet.

#askfedi #electronics #repair #upcycling
A 40-pin FPC ribbon cable.
May 6, 2025 at 11:31 AM
dcz.fosstodon.org.ap.brid.gy
Back to #wayland and input methods.

What's your favorite input method?

Cause for me it was the one on old #nokia phones. I could type with my hands in my pockets! Handy in winter.

https://codeberg.org/dcz/stiwri

Tested with #cosmic and #gtk .

This is just […]

[Original post on fosstodon.org]
April 17, 2025 at 4:32 AM