Thib

Please everyone give

a warm welcome as he’s joining us at

and will take over my role!

It’s been a fantastic run for almost five years. I’m glad I could set the stage for many to shine, I’m grateful for everyone who showed up to contribute to Matrix, and I hope I managed to keep logistics and boring work out of their way.

Welcome Andy, you’re in good hands with our community!

https://matrix.org/blog/2026/06/26/this-week-in-matrix-2026-06-26/

Well, I’ve been completely oblivious to any GitLab news but by the look of my timeline I guess they went all in on AI?

I’m looking for an illustrator for my blog! If you can make simple, decluttered banners like the ones on my blog (hand drawn, no background), please send me a DM with a link to your portfolio and your rates!

🔄 Boosts welcome

https://ergaster.org/blog/

#illustration #commission

I think I’ve put my finger on why the discourse about AI on Mastodon grates me.

All the posts I see do nothing but reinforce the feeling of powerlessness. All leave me wondering “and what now?”

Does anyone write about the geopolitical implications of it? Are there groups organizing to think about how to improve the situation?

I think we’ve had our fair share of rants against AI, they’re not helping anymore.

RE: https://floss.social/@kdenlive/116425440021929906

It’s easy to take improvements for granted and forget about the papercuts that existed. That’s a great retrospective of how Kdenlive has progressed over the last year 👏

I’ve wanted to add search on my static website for a little while and I didn’t know what to do.

Pagefind is a nice library that provides client-side search for static websites, and it’s as easy to deploy as adding two web components!

https://ergaster.org/til/pagefind-static-search/

#smallWeb #indieWeb #webdev

RE: https://mastodon.social/@haeckerfelix/116342975055276289

This Week in

is a superb resource to discover gems like Wildcard, the local regex explainer app.

curates the community entries on his own, and publishes them on the nostr:npub1dug5p7c3y6svstg23pc684plfpd3mp5fdnc2m5a8f3yvthpwnssq00kxeq Foundation infra.

He single handedly built the website and the bot to curate reports. Massive props to him for that!

I’m looking for a mobile app / PWA that could let me create a new branch on a git repo, and create commits to that branch as I update a markdown draft based on an

content collection.

Does such a thing exist? I’d like to avoid hosting a fully fledged CMS.

#smallWeb #CMS

Somehow, it was simpler and cheaper to install a touchscreen, display an image of a finger touching a circle that contains a fingerprint, print a label that says “please get a ticket and go to the waiting room” than… just putting an obvious physical push button.

The

Foundation has created a program to fund direct contributions to GNOME, especially on the maintenance side.

This is excellent news, and it will make people who "only want to fund development" happy.

I also wanted to highlight that GNOME is first and foremost a community. A community that often ends up producing code, but that needs much more than a git repo to do so.

https://ergaster.org/til/gnome-fellowship/

#linux #gnome

Welp, I think I’m ripe for the podiatrist.

#running #runnersOfMastodon

The cat is out of the box:

is looking for a new Thib!

If you think you can be a good fit for the role, please send me an email explaining why and attach your CV.

If you tick most of the boxes but not all, please reach out nonetheless. It’s a tall order, but we have fantastic volunteers and a great handbook to help you settle into the role.

https://matrix.org/jobs/devrel/

#FediHire #DevRel

I quite liked shooting portraits of speakers at FOSDEM, and I wish I had had the time to go to other devrooms and shoot more.

I wonder what conference to go to next, to shoot more of those.

#fosdem #conference #portrait

RE: https://infosec.exchange/@briankrebs/115962508398912420

If you consider going to the US, whatever the reason, don’t, for your own safety.

If you consider organizing an event to the US for an international community, you’re putting people’s lives at risk.

If you want an English-speaking environment for an international event, pick Canada or the UK. Heck, even in Scandinavian countries everyone speaks English.

If you’re going by train to

, heads-up that there are strikes announced between Jan 25 and Jan 30.

https://fosdem.org/2026/news/2026-01-11-travel-transportation-advisories/

#fosdem #train #strike

Woo, I ran a 10K under one hour 🥳

I can already feel I’ve pushed too hard on my calves, but I won’t run for the next two days anyway!

#running #runnersOfMastodon

RE: https://androiddev.social/@MishaalRahman/115849772521760098

It’s worth repeating. Android is not a viable base for an independent or even just collaborative operating system. Android is Google and only Google’s project.

If you want to see an actually transparent, international, and collaborative system on phones, support @postmarketOS

#android #opensource

Me: successfully spends the past year recovering from depression and existential dread

The world: hold my beer

So you know the International Criminal Court judges who just did their job got cut off from the international banking system because it’s American-centric? And got cut off from virtually any American service?

Cloudflare, GitHub, AWS, Azure are also US companies. They can be forced to boot you or your company out too.

We need better European services. But we’re talking about an existential risk here. Org leaders must create the demand for such services.

#europe #eu #sovereignty

"We don't have dueling western and Chinese principles of structural engineering. [...]

We wouldn't tolerate secrecy in the calculations used to keep our buildings upright, and we shouldn't tolerate opacity in the software that keeps our tractors, hearing aids, ventilators, pacemakers, trains, games consoles, phones, CCTVs, door locks, and government ministries working."

hitting the nail on the head once again at #39c3

https://pluralistic.net/2026/01/01/39c3/

Pretty cool work from

to see

in numbers

https://blogs.gnome.org/sophieh/2025/12/27/gnome-in-2025-some-numbers/

#linux #gnome #data

The biggest missing piece in my collection of local-first apps is a simple, decluttered, epub library manager.

I don't even need it to sync with my Kobo, although it would be a nice addition.

This one hits way too close to home. I have backed up my pictures on devices that are in my office precisely for this reason.

This can happen to anyone.

I don’t trust Apple with my memories or my digital identity anymore, and Cook accelerated that by bending the knee.

https://cloudisland.nz/@parisba/115710491106723110

What do you mean the closing sequence of a markdown codeblock can be longer that the opening one?!?

This… this… this doesn’t feel right!

https://mastodon.social/@timokoesters/115660404547593866

The replies in this thread are so heartwarming. I love seeing that

solves real people’s problems in their everyday life.

I love that it’s more than a project for computer enthusiasts. It has a massive positive impact on people’s lives.

https://floss.social/@gnome/115656841072336977

Really love Allan’s weekly updates! They’re good insights of what the

foundation is about!

It’s a welcome breath of fresh air and transparency 💙

https://blogs.gnome.org/aday/2025/11/28/gnome-foundation-update-2025-11-28/

They blame TikTok for brain rot, but have you seen LinkedIn? Have you seen the billionaire owned newspapers?

is cozy computing.

Adwaita apps are calm, focused, consistent. Tasks can often be done offline. Even badges for unread notifications are tinted blue and not red.

Non core apps are maintained by indie developers scratching their own itch. With GNOME Circle, a community of more experienced people help review and polish them.

GNOME is the village of Gauls peacefully resisting the Big Tech Empire with its sole existence.

https://circle.gnome.org/

#gnome #adwaita #cozy #linux

Mozilla announces more AI in Firefox, still failing to understand that at this point their market share is made of tech savvy people who do not want that.

Mozilla, please. Stop chasing the fads. Get your own values.

People use Firefox to get access to an open web, use a sturdy browser, and not to be tracked. Build in that direction and that direction only.

Nobody from your current user base will recommend Firefox with AI to their friends.

https://blog.mozilla.org/en/firefox/ai-window/

#firefox #ai #privacy

I see a lot of reporting about the Louvre theft and that the French people are "relieved" that thieves got caught or that we feel "humiliated" that it happened in the first place.

Absolutely not. Nobody around me cares one bit about it. We care about the public service disappearing, we care about the rampant corruption in the political spheres, we care about the pensions they're trying to steal from us.

We're more than ready to trade stupid jewels for transparent democracy that works.

I’m glad

exists, is hosted by the European arm of the Linux Foundation, has excellent engineers from

paid to work on it, and is funded by

.

Web browsers are a crucial component of how we access to (and share) information. The status quo is not okay, and it’s likely to deteriorate further.

In early September, The Matrix Foundation homeserver went down.

I'm extremely proud of our SRE team. They had a Disaster Recovery Plan and monthly exercises to apply it, resulting in no data loss despite a 24h outage.

I've learned a lot about how to properly backup/restore a Postgres database when writing this post with SREs. We also learned how to better prevent and be resilient to human error.

Thanks all for the hugops during the outage!

https://matrix.org/blog/2025/10/post-mortem/

#homelab #selfHosting #sre

People are slowly realizing that Android only weaponized open source licenses but was always meant to be a captive platform, like people are slowly realizing that VS Code has open source code but is a captive platform.

Open source licences are not enough. They’re regularly weaponized as a tech enthusiast trap.

Are there good reasons to hard wrap lines in a markdown file?

It looks satisfying, but it feels like adding complexity to a document to solve non-problems. Since editors support soft wrap nowadays, what problem does hard wrapping solve?

Me in 2021: everything must have a nice GUI or I won't touch it, tiling WMs are overrated, let me be just normal people.

Me in 2025: I thrive in TUIs, use Amethyst on my mac and would love to use Niri, and I'll edit everything I can in Helix. I only use a mouse when I'm in a browser. I know that setup only works for nerds, but I guess I am one of them now.

What have you done to me, colleagues, what have you done to me.

How I picture employees in big tech that are forced to use AI not to be fired

#ai #work #management

I need to find a Spezi importer in France

#MatrixConf2025 #SpeziConf2025

I know

is good people because they’re actively working on abuse management, and stripping EXIF metadata from pictures so people don’t dox themselves.

You can tell this project is led by its users, not by salespeople.

https://forgejo.org/2025-10-release-v13-0/

Aaaaand thats a wrap! Thanks to all the volunteers, sponsors and attendees who made #matrixConference2025 possible!

Matrix Foundation Governing Board update

#matrixConf2025 #backstage

You may wonder why the pride flags are so prominent at Matrix Conf. It’s a statement of safety.

The flag means “who you are is not our business.” The flag means “you belong” and “you’re safe here.” It means “we care” and it means “those who don’t want you around won’t be around.”

#MatrixConf2025

Kicking off The Matrix Conference 2025 with the

keynote, and still a packed room!

#matrixConf2025

If you’re enjoying the Matrix Conference, we owe the organization to the two people on the right!

and

are the most organized troublemakers I could find (or who found me?)

10/10 team, would recommend, would do it again.

#matrixConf2025

Room overflow, too many people passionate about Matrix, Water, Oil & Mayonnaise

(Or they just like

)

#matrixConf2025

Fully packed room for the opening session at The Matrix Conference!!

Volunteers in training!

#matrixConf2025

It wouldn’t be the

Conference without our signature chalk spray mark!

Buildup going well 💪

I don’t need a framework laptop, I don’t need one, I really don’t need one. I don’t.

Nonono, not those lovely little Framework 12 that are super cute, nah. The sage color is not going to make me change my mind, no chance.

Ok screw it, that's my new profile picture. How do I look?

Do I know people who use Bluefin on their

12? How does it feel? How's the battery life? What doesn't work?

I'm particularly interested in Bluefin, more than Aurora or Bazzite, but happy to learn more about either.

#bluefin #framework

Fedifriends, do you have recommendations for compact, travel-friendly beard trimmers? Ideally usb-c powered so I don’t have to carry a huge charger with it.

More interested in first hand recommendations than in people googling reviews for me :)

#travel #beard

Probably going with Ministry of The Future in the short term, but I think I’d like a shorter book first.

Recommendations for a sci-fi lover? Something that’s not too bleak ideally?

#scifi #reading #books

To be usable by the less savvy, the Linux desktop lacks stability. Not software stability, but organizational and human stability.

I want maintainers to have a stable income. I want apps to last a decade, instead of having to chase the next rewrite of an abandoned project.

The Linux desktop is a beautiful accident that only exists because people devote part of their lives to it, for better or worse. We ought to support it financially, as a public service.

#linux #publicGood

Me: let's move my services to my homelab so I can shave off VPS costs

Plausible: oops, your blog posts got too many views, upgrade your subscription

Nice problems to have I guess 🙃

Gang, when you want to send to a friend a link to a book so they can see the cover, author, summary, ISBN etc, what service do you use?

I’m not too keen on sending links to Goodreads because I don’t like being part of the Amazon funnel.

I’d like to link to a stable service to avoid link rot too. Any recommendations?

#books #reading

Me: I need to work out more. This calisthenics program seems to be a good fit to keep me motivated and not ruin me with equipment!

Also me: Hej I could create a Svelte app to keep track of progress and see when I need to step up to the next exercise! It can be a PWA with local storage only and…

…and I would spend my evenings developing it instead of working out.

I didn't expect the last post to get this much attention! A lot of support, but also a few surprising takes. Here are a few posts where I expand on our relationship with technology.

In January 2024 I talked about why technical solutions are not enough to escape surveillance capitalism

https://ergaster.org/posts/2024/01/18-escaping-surveillance-capitalism-at-scale/

#selfHosting #surveillance #privacy

At the individual scale, self-hosting is not a good way to “be in control of my data.”

It’s like saying I do a vegetable garden to be in control of my food. I need much more than I can grow, it’s an inefficient use of my time, and I’m one bad season away from losing it all.

Resilience and transparency are key to be in control of my data and I can’t achieve this alone. This is a social problem, we need to bring solutions as a society.

#sovereignty #selfHosting #gardening

I wish companies didn’t ask me to rate things and especially not people. This is indecent, dehumanizing, and not my job.

Give me an easy way to report that something is/went wrong and leave me alone if I don’t complain.

I don’t earn any money from writing on my blog, despite it taking significant time and energy. But it still feels like the right thing to do.

• I write to save others the trouble I’ve been through.
• I write to structure my thought and self-review my work from a different perspective.
• I write as a social activity, to get something others can criticize and help me improve.
• I write because that’s how we humans share ideas.

I write to connect with others.

#blog #writing

On one hand I would want everyone to be able to enjoy what the fediverse has to offer

On another, being a less crowded place that is not attractive to brands also means we don’t see those awful fake science/content farm accounts or ads like on other platforms.

The fediverse is a tea house in a world of malls

I reluctantly have an O365 subscription that was costly enough at €69/year, and now Microsoft tells me they raise it to €99/year to reflect "the added value from last year" and "help support their operating costs."

They want me to pay for their investments in AI, that I explicitly don't want to use. So I go to the subscription management page to cancel, and an option magically appears to let me keep my €69/year subscription without AI.

Disgusting dark pattern to force AI on people. I'm out.

I just received my

! I’m 6 years old and it’s Christmas!

#selfHosting #kvm #jetkvm

Fediverse, I need you! I could do with more positivity in my timeline.

Do you follow and can you recommend accounts who motivate you (because they inspire you, not out of outrage)?

I’m particularly after tinkerers, or people who break things down and explain how they work 🤗

Woo, the new

Conference website is out, and I'm very happy with the result 🥳

https://conference.matrix.org

Sometimes Strasbourg feels like it's bringing you back to a simpler past. There's some quiet and enchanting beauty into it. I also love that the city center is pedestrian and cyclist centric.

If I was looking for an excuse to visit, I'd definitely submit a proposal to the

Conference Call for Proposals!

#strasbourg #matrixConf2025

Really love the vibe of the venue for

Conference 2025

#MatrixConf2025 #Strasbourg

Fediverse, I consider giving Kagi a go. What do I need to know about them?

Anything bad below the nice veneer?

I wrote this post about welcoming feedback a little while ago. Most of it still stands, but I have come to a realization.

Friction is a friend, not an enemy.

I do welcome feedback about my posts. I even actively look for it before publishing.

But not all feedback is equal. A snarky comment on reddit can be cheap and demoralizing. A thoughtful email can bring me a new perspective.

Friction to comment is actually a good thing.

https://ergaster.org/posts/2024/03/06-welcoming-feedback/

You can't do anything without your phone or laptop, and your phone wouldn't run without American companies. But the current American administration is going wild.

We have everything at our disposal to make an international, transparent operating system that respects people's rights, and it wouldn't make a dent in the EU's budget.

https://ergaster.org/posts/2025/02/28-prosthetics-that-dont-betray

#ethical #eu #computing

I have been part of the industry producing them in the past, but gosh.

Slideshows (PowerPoints) are so unpleasant to read as a document. Everything looks cramped, small, unreadable on small screens, and not accessible.

My hunch is that there's a real industry need for a "portable website" file format, that wouldn't be much more than a tarball/zip file that only contains html and css.

I used to subscribe to Apple Music and then stopped. When I subscribed again, I had lost all my hand-curated playlists that I had carefully crafted over the years.

I’m done with this subscription-based life where everything you cherish can and will be taken away from you. So I took the radical decision to own my music, like we used to when iPods were fashionable.

And you can too.

https://ergaster.org/posts/2025/02/14-you-can-own-music/

#music #subscription #ipod

The more I look at the geopolitical situation, the more I think the cheapest, most robust and realistic option for Europe to reclaim its digital independence is to massively support

and its upstreams.

No need to mine or buy rare earths, tons of jobs created along the way, countless devices saved from the landfill where they would have poisoned the soil, and even the possibility to monetize other countries’ waste.

It’s just what makes the most sense.

Kept nodding as I read through this

https://andysblog.uk/why-blog-if-nobody-reads-it/

The

team added a whole section about contributing upstream in https://postmarketos.org/contribute/

These folks are humble, and they have their heart in the right place.

If you keep hearing about FOSDEM but never got a chance to go there, here is how it looks like as seen by an attendee, fringe event organizer, stand organizer, and devroom organizer.

Also, trains 🚄

https://ergaster.org/posts/2025/02/fosdem-work-fun/

#fosdem #conference #trains