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Web Review, Week 2025-04

Friday, 24 January 2025 | Kevin Ottens

Let’s go for my web review for the week 2025-04.


No billionaires at FOSDEM

Tags: tech, fosdem, foss, politics

I think this is a very welcome protest at FOSDEM. This keynote would be a shame on the conference. Unfortunately I already planned to not attend FOSDEM this year, but if you are: please participate to this sit-in.

https://drewdevault.com/2025/01/16/2025-01-16-No-Billionares-at-FOSDEM-please.html


Decentralized Social Media Is the Only Alternative to the Tech Oligarchy

Tags: tech, social-media, politics

This is indeed clear, the centralized web platforms are fragile by default. They are very prone to capture, this is what just happened.

https://www.404media.co/decentralized-social-media-is-the-only-alternative-to-the-tech-oligarchy/


I’ve been advocating for RSS support, and you should too

Tags: tech, rss

You like RSS feeds? Ask for them!

https://reedybear.bearblog.dev/ive-been-advocating-for-rss-support-and-you-should-too/


The PC is Dead: It’s Time to Make Computing Personal Again

Tags: tech, business, politics, DRM, surveillance, vendor-lockin

Very nice editorial. It’s clear that the level of trust in the technologies we depend on is low… but that’s not due to the technologies themselves it’s more about the business practices around them. In the end the solution will have to be political, in the meantime we ought to support the good players.

https://www.vintagecomputing.com/index.php/archives/3292/the-pc-is-dead-its-time-to-make-computing-personal-again


Block AI scrapers with Anubis

Tags: tech, ai, machine-learning, gpt

There was a time when scraping bots were well behaved… Now apparently we have to add software to actively defend against AI scrapers.

https://xeiaso.net/blog/2025/anubis/


Introducing Versara

Tags: tech, ai, machine-learning, gpt

Yet another attempt at protecting content from AI scrapers. A very different approach for this one.

https://versara.ai/about


PostgreSQL Anonymizer

Tags: tech, databases, postgresql, data, anonymity, gdpr

A nice extension for Postgres allowing to ease the protection of personal information.

https://postgresql-anonymizer.readthedocs.io/en/stable/


Oh Shit, Git!?!

Tags: tech, version-control, git

Stuck in a state you don’t like with Git? Here is a list of funny recipes.

https://ohshitgit.com/


Git Trailers | Alchemists

Tags: tech, version-control, git, tools

This article is feature packed, lots of great ideas to exploit git trailers. This can help automate some workflows easily.

https://alchemists.io/articles/git_trailers


Interrupting scripts without tracebacks

Tags: tech, programming, python

Nice trick for cleaner interruptible python scripts indeed.

https://mathspp.com/blog/til/interrupting-scripts-without-tracebacks


isd (interactive systemd) — a better way to work with systemd units

Tags: tech, systemd, tools

Looks like a really nice tool to work with systemd services. It also integrates with my trusty lnav for the journal handling. I’ll definitely give it a try going forward.

https://isd-project.github.io/isd/


Building a tiny Linux from scratch

Tags: tech, linux, system, minimalism

Nice experiment in minimalism. It’s nice to see we can still build tiny systems like that.

https://blinry.org/tiny-linux/


C stdlib isn’t threadsafe and even safe Rust didn’t save us

Tags: tech, system, c, rust, safety, multithreading

A harsh reminder that getenv is not thread safe…

https://www.edgedb.com/blog/c-stdlib-isn-t-threadsafe-and-even-safe-rust-didn-t-save-us


Prototyping in Rust

Tags: tech, programming, rust

A bit long and a bit too much framed in a “vs Python” fashion for my taste. That said it contains good advice on how to prototype or start simple with Rust. It’s aligned with some of the advice I give as well. People tend to turn to low level details too quickly forcing themselves into a corner. There are better ways to handle it.

https://corrode.dev/blog/prototyping/


How I think about Zig and Rust

Tags: tech, rust, zig, system

Interesting article. There’s clearly space for both languages indeed. They’ll end up having each their own ecological niches, probably with some overlap.

https://lewiscampbell.tech/blog/250117.html


Type Inference in Rust and C++

Tags: tech, type-systems, rust, c++

Very nice explorations of the different behaviours type systems can have around inference.

https://herecomesthemoon.net/2025/01/type-inference-in-rust-and-cpp/


The Essence of Successful Abstractions

Tags: tech, complexity, type-systems

Nice musing on how a type system can be a way to tame complexity or at least isolate it explicitly in one place.

https://v5.chriskrycho.com/journal/essence-of-successful-abstractions/


Generating an infinite world with the Wave Function Collapse algorithm

Tags: tech, 3d, mathematics

Really cool procedural environment generation.

https://marian42.de/article/infinite-wfc/


Issues with Color Spaces and Perceptual Brightness — John Austin

Tags: tech, colors, vision

Color perception keeps being a fascinating and difficult topic.

https://johnaustin.io/articles/2025/issues-with-cielab-and-perceptual-brightness


Moving on from React, a Year Later

Tags: tech, web, frontend, react, backend, performance, complexity

It becomes clear that there are more and more reasons to move back to simpler times regarding the handling of web frontends.

https://kellysutton.com/2025/01/18/moving-on-from-react-a-year-later.html


Additional Testing After Refactoring - by Kent Beck

Tags: tech, tdd, tests

Pointing out an important dilemma indeed. Which tests to keep over time? What to do with redundancies?

https://tidyfirst.substack.com/p/additional-testing-after-refactoring


The Documentation System

Tags: tech, documentation, writing

Interesting proposal of structure for technical documentation.

https://docs.divio.com/documentation-system/


Tags: tech, project-management, risk

Or why it can be dangerous to label medium the high likelihood low impact risks and the low likelihood high impact ones. One category is to be completely avoided while the other brings learning opportunities.

https://jacobian.org/2025/jan/17/two-flavors-of-medium-risk/


Master the Art of the Product Manager ‘No’

Tags: tech, product-management, funny

Nice tricks to say no when people push to get something in a product. 😉

https://letsnotdothat.com/


Training or Learning? - Congruent Change

Tags: learning, teaching

OK, this is advertisement to their PSL workshops. That being said the quote from Hoverstadt is important, this and the feedback of one of their attendees: “I can honestly say I learned at least as much from other participants”. This is exactly what I’m trying to foster when I design learning experiences.

https://www.congruentchange.com/training-or-learning/



Bye for now!