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gbil commented on Nova Launcher added Facebook and Google Ads tracking   lemdro.id/post/lemdro.id/... · Posted by u/celsoazevedo
breput · a month ago
I was a 10+ year long Nova Launcher user and knew this day was coming after the sale and layoffs[0][1]...

This evening I at looked several replacement launchers, such as Lawnchair and even the stock Pixel launcher again, but Octopi Launcher[2] is the more modern, more refined Nova replacement that you are looking for.

It was a very easy, natural transition process from Nova - all of the Nova features that I used were there (unlike Lawnchair), such as swipe up/down on icons to perform different actions. And little things like folder options, icon placement, and widget handling are SO much nicer on Octopi compared to Nova. Staggeringly better.

I took a screenshot of each home screen page, set Octopi as the new default launcher, and was back to my previous configuration but with a significantly improved visual appearance, in about 15 minutes. It's a no-brainer upgrade from Nova.

The Google Play install is free and basically unlimited, but there is an unobtrusive "Buy Me A Coffee" type button that allows you to donate either $1 or $3 to unlock some eye candy, which I did, but mostly just wanting to support the developer.

[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45170000

[1] https://www.androidpolice.com/exclusive-cliff-wade-nova-laun...

[2] https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.otp.octopi...

gbil · 25 days ago
What is your experience from a performance perspective? Nova Launcher was pretty light on that front, I'm using smart launcher since a few months and it is ok but Nova was lighter.
gbil commented on Grok turns off image generator for most after outcry over sexualised AI imagery   theguardian.com/technolog... · Posted by u/beardyw
gbil · a month ago
Is this some kind of a joke? People, children, are getting bullied every day by fake nude images of them ending even in suicide and you are asking what is "so terrible" ???

EDIT: op seems to have clarified in another reply that they are talking about fully generated computer images but this is out of context, the outcry here is that Grok generated fake images of actual people to start with!

gbil commented on Pebble Round 2   repebble.com/blog/pebble-... · Posted by u/jackwilsdon
faitswulff · a month ago
The Pebble Time 2 has a heart rate monitor
gbil · a month ago
Isn’t this thread about the pebble round 2 which is the closest from form factor to a garmin ? Moreover, GPS is lacking on any pebble anyhow which is also a major use case and again therefore, garmin’s and pebble’s can’t be compared, 2 different use cases for me.
gbil commented on Pebble Round 2   repebble.com/blog/pebble-... · Posted by u/jackwilsdon
jolmg · a month ago
> check out some of the cheaper Garmin smart watches. They use MIP displays so the battery life runs about 2 weeks

Same deal with the watch of the article. It uses the same display: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46471292

The difference between such Garmin watches and Pebble Round 2 seems to be trading off hardware like built-in GPS and NFC for open source software and thinness. 100% worthwhile trade IMO.

gbil · a month ago
No HRM on the pebble which makes it a totally separate use case and can't be compared at all with the Garmin ones.
gbil commented on The biggest CRT ever made: Sony's PVM-4300   dfarq.homeip.net/the-bigg... · Posted by u/giuliomagnifico
jsheard · 2 months ago
Don't sleep on that Shank Mods video linked at the end, it's insane that he managed to pull that off.

He also made a second video (not linked) which shows off more of the actual hardware.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dgkw3uu19V8

gbil · 2 months ago
Personal anecdotes from my early mid teen years

1. Touching the circuit board on the back of the CRT tube by mistake trying to troubleshoot image issues, “fortunately” it was a “low” voltage as it was a B&W monitor….

2. Throwing a big big stone to an abandoned next to the trashcan CRT TV while I had it placed normally because it didn’t break when I threw it facing up and the next thing I remember after opening my eyes which I closed from the bang was my friends who were further down the road looking at me as it I were a ghost since big big chunks for the CRT glass flew just right next to me.

CRTs were dangerous in many aspects!

EDIT: I meant to reply to the other thread with the dangers of CRTs

gbil commented on ARIN Public Incident Report – 4.10 Misissuance Error   arin.net/announcements/20... · Posted by u/immibis
gbil · 2 months ago
A couple of years ago ARIN increased their fees considerably - way higher than fees paid to RIPE for way less resources - and had a call with their management to express my frustration, not because I was paying from my pocket but because of the high discrepancy of the what they wanted to get and the quantity/quality of their services. Now I can see that their backbone services haven't really improved while their income for sure has.

On a sidenote, what I appreciate in both RIPE and ARIN is that you can have at least a proper discussion when you have valid arguments with their support teams.

gbil commented on Independent review of UK national security law warns of overreach   techradar.com/vpn/vpn-pri... · Posted by u/donohoe
flowerthoughts · 2 months ago
> He warns that developers of apps like Signal and WhatsApp could technically fall within the legal definition of "hostile activity" simply because their technology "make[s] it more difficult for UK security and intelligence agencies to monitor communications.

Sounds like Let's Encrypt would also fall under that.

This has got to stop. If you want to stop criminals, then focus on their illegal activites, not the streets they walk on. I walk on them too. And don't use CP as a catch-all argument to insert backdoors.

Their big problem here is that previously, it was hard to find people with the same opinion as you. If you couldn't find someone in the same village who wanted to start a rebellion, it probably wouldn't happen. Today, someone can post a Telegram group message and make thousands of people rally to a town square. I see the dangers, and I see why governments think they are doing this to protect the people. No one wants civil war. That is still not a strong enough reason to call road construction a hostile activity.

I'm back in Sweden after 12 years abroad. Time to read up on which parties are sane and which aren't when it comes to technical infrastructure.

gbil · 2 months ago
Curtains should also fall under the same category because they do make it more difficult for UK security and intelligence agencies to monitor suspect activities. Then of course you also have walls...

The argument is so fundamentally stupid that they should be embarrassed just putting it down in writing!

gbil commented on Canada's Carney called out for 'utilizing' British spelling   bbc.com/news/articles/cj6... · Posted by u/haunter
jamincan · 2 months ago
Apparently it was acceptable to use s or z in words like catalyse or analyze in British English until Microsoft Word came out with a British English spellchecker that picked the s spelling as its standard. Whether this is just myth or fact seems to be a point of controversy.
gbil · 2 months ago
I learned British English starting in the 80s and using s whereas z was used in American English, together with tre instead of ter (eg. theatre), was a big difference. And I can tell you that MS Word back then was just not there so this sounds like an urban legend but let the British people in HN chime in.
gbil commented on Mozilla's new CEO is doubling down on an AI future for Firefox   theverge.com/tech/845216/... · Posted by u/latexr
gbil · 2 months ago
> At some point, though, Enzor-DeMeo will have to tend to Mozilla’s own business. “I do think we need revenue diversification away from Google,” he says, “but I don’t necessarily believe we need revenue diversification away from the browser.”

So they want to monetize the browser somehow outside of the Google deal. Future does't look good for Firefox

gbil commented on Nokia N900 Necromancy   yaky.dev/2025-12-11-nokia... · Posted by u/yaky
daveoc64 · 2 months ago
That article is full of made up slop - at least in terms of Europe.

Most of the dates stated are just plain wrong.

The UK dates are completely wrong - by 5 years in most cases.

All of the UK's 2G networks are still running, and the last won't be switched off until at least 2030.

gbil · 2 months ago
The article is from 2022 and is good enough summary. Specifics for sure can vary in between but that is why you are more than able to do an individual search.

u/gbil

KarmaCake day1062September 18, 2016View Original