Drew DeVault’s blog features sharp commentary on open source, software engineering, programming languages, ethics in tech, and the social impact of technology.
354 articles from this blog
Introducing Wio, a Wayland compositor inspired by Plan 9's Rio desktop, featuring per-application nested compositors.
A humorous take on coding style guides, arguing to follow the project's existing conventions rather than debating personal preferences.
A technical guide on using the Cage Wayland compositor with wlroots' RDP backend to create a seamless remote desktop session.
A critical analysis of VPN services, highlighting privacy risks and the importance of researching providers before use.
Developer updates on aerc2 email client progress, git-send-email.io tutorial, lists.sr.ht improvements, and Wayland work for Sway and Godot.
Sourcehut now offers full, first-class support for Mercurial version control, matching its Git features, including CI and email-driven collaboration.
NewPipe is a free, open-source Android app for YouTube that offers ad-free viewing, background play, downloads, and more, prioritizing user privacy and control.
Argues Rust is a poor replacement for C due to its rapid feature growth and complexity, contrasting it with C's stability and portability.
Developer's March 2019 update on FOSS projects: Sway 1.0 release, Librem 5 touch support, wlroots work, and aerc2 progress.
Announcing the stable release of sway 1.0, an i3-compatible Wayland desktop for Linux and FreeBSD, representing a major overhaul.
Explores the minimalist, engineering-focused design philosophy behind Sourcehut's web interface, contrasting it with platforms like GitHub.
A guide to disciplined Git workflows, covering commit message best practices, atomic commits, and tools for productive version control.
An opinion piece arguing that Go's conservative design and lack of generics is a strength, not a missing feature, and that innovation should come from first principles.
A wlroots maintainer debunks common misconceptions about Wayland, addressing security concerns and screenshot/capture functionality.
A developer's personal recap of attending and volunteering at FOSDEM 2019, covering meetings, technical talks, and community experiences.
A developer explains why Flask was the ideal Python framework for building sr.ht's modular mini-services, citing its simplicity and flexibility.
A developer explains the benefits of using older, well-supported hardware for software development and empathizing with users on limited systems.
A developer announces they are transitioning to full-time work on their free and open-source software projects, funded by community donations and subscriptions.
An overview of the backup and redundancy strategies used for the sr.ht software forge, focusing on PostgreSQL, ZFS, and data integrity.
A reflection on open source philosophy, encouraging users to take ownership and contribute fixes or features to free software projects.
