• If you're here for vtubers, I highly recommend you go to The Virtual Asylum instead.
    They'll love you there

Megathread Software Sunday (Software recommendation)

Thread Description
Weekly software recommendations #swsd

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Here i post weekly software recommendation (mostly Windows, Linux and Android). If you have interesting software to share, a questions or critic please tell!

I will (try to) only post free and open source or at least well known software with good reputation. Regardless I can't guarantee anything and you should always verify the safety/legitimacy with multiple sources (see disclaimer).

If you are interested in more check out my De-Google thread.

Disclaimer:
The use of the software and scripts linked on this site is done at your own discretion and risk and with agreement that you will be solely responsible for any damage to your computer system or loss of data that results from such activities.
TL;DR: use your brain, look the software up and don't blindly follow one person/site.

Relevant info (Terms explained):

What is open source software (OSS) and close source software (CSS)?
What is a software fork?

Useful Sites:
Privacy Tools: https://privacytools.io/
Software Alternative Finder: https://alternativeto.net/
Technology News: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/
Technology News aggregator: https://news.ycombinator.com/
Android App Tracker & Permission lookup: https://reports.exodus-privacy.eu.org/en/
Android De-Google App compatibility checker: https://plexus.techlore.tech/
Browser Fingerprinting test: https://www.bromite.org/detect
Website Privacy Inspector (or just use uBlockO/uMatrix): https://themarkup.org/blacklight
Ad&Tracking Blocker Benchmark: https://d3ward.github.io/toolz/src/adblock.html
Help for deleting online accounts: https://justdeleteme.xyz/
Browser feature support lookup: https://caniuse.com/
Wikis: https://wiki.archlinux.org/ & https://wiki.installgentoo.com



If you like the software please consider supporting there developers!

Index:
  1. Software Sunday #1 (14/02/2021) - EverythingToolbar: Better Windows Searchbar
  2. Software Sunday #2 (21/02/2021) - Youtube-DLG & youtube-dl: Video Downloader
  3. MPV: Video player
  4. Software Sunday #3 (28/02/2021) - F-Droid: Privacy friendly Android app store
  5. Software Sunday #4 (7/03/2021) - ScreenToGif: Gif creation and editing tool
  6. Software Sunday #5 (14/03/2021) - KeePass: Offline Password Manager
  7. Software Sunday #6 (21/03/2021) - uBlock Origin: Browser content blocker
  8. Software Sunday #7 (28/03/2021) - andOTP: two-factor authentication (2FA) App
  9. Software Sunday #8 (4/04/2021) - Privacy Redirect: Redirect Big Tech sites to privacy friendlier alternatives
  10. Grabber: Art scraper/bulk downloader
  11. Software Sunday #9 (11/04/2021) - QDirStat: Disk usage statistics viewer
  12. Quicky: Image Searching services/tool
  13. Software Sunday #10 (18/04/2021) - CrystalDiskInfo & CrystalDiskMark: disk health monitoring & disk benchmarking tool +cute anime girls
  14. Software Sunday #11 (25/04/2021) - HandBrake: GUI video converting tool
  15. Software Sunday #12 (02/05/2021) - EXIF Tools: remove sensitive information from images and videos
  16. Software Sunday #13 (09/05/2021) - Cryptomator: Client-side encryption tool for both local and cloud storage
  17. Software Sunday #14 (16/05/2021) - NewPipe: lightweight, privacy friendlier and feature rich YouTube Front-end app for Android
  18. Software Sunday #15 (23/05/2021) - simplewall: lightweight client Firewall tool for Windows
  19. Software Sunday #16 (30/05/2021) - εxodus (Exodus): privacy auditing platform to analyze Android apps
  20. Software Sunday #17 (06/06/2021) - GrapheneOS: privacy and security focused mobile OS based on Android
  21. Software Sunday #18 (13/06/2021) - SponsorBlock: Easily skip sponsor segments in YouTube videos
  22. Software Sunday #19 (20/06/2021) - dupeGuru: GUI tool to find duplicate and similar files
  23. Software Sunday #20 (27/06/2021) - PCAPdroid: Network monitor and traffic dump tool for Android
  24. Software Sunday #21 (05/07/2021) - DarkReader: Turn every website into Dark Mode
  25. Software Sunday #22 (11/07/2021) - OpenRGB: LED lighting control application that doesn't depend on manufacturer software
  26. Software Sunday #23 (18/07/2021) - User script manager: Change and add functionalities to any website
  27. Software Sunday #24 (25/07/2021) - VirtualBox: Hypervisor to run VirtualMachines (e.g. run Linux inside of Windows)
  28. Software Sunday #25 (01/08/2021) - Kdenlive: Video editing software
  29. Software Sunday #26 (08/08/2021) - Web Archives: quickly search for and create archived versions of Web Sites
  30. Software Sunday #27 (15/08/2021) - Meld: visual diff and merge tool for files and directories
  31. Software Sunday #28 (22/08/2021) - Privatezilla: manage Windows 10 Privacy settings
 
Last edited:

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #1 (14/02/2021)

EverythingToolbar (OSS) is a Windows 10 search integration tool for the search application Everything (CSS) by voidtools.

Instant search in your taskbar regardless of how much data you have.

everything1.gif




Requirements:
.NET Framework 4.7 or newer
Everything 1.4.1 or higher needs to run in the background
High DPI support requires at least Windows 10 Creators Update.

Download and install from GitHub. If you like the software please support the developer!

Everything Privacy Policy
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #2 (21/02/2021)

youtube-dl (OSS) is a cross-platform command-line video downloader written in python. You can download pretty much any video from almost every website (supported sites work out of the box other probably require browser console digging=F12).

It's the best tool for (bulk) downloading videos, channels, playlists and even all videos with specific titles from YouTube. You can also get a lot more than only the video (thumbnails, all subtitle, livechats, comments, description, pretty much all video infos as .json,....).

Im aware that this is more of a tutorial than simple recommendation but i still hope that it can be helpful for some at least.



Since the command-line can be scary for beginners, i will also cover Youtube-DLG by oleksis. A easy to use GUI (Graphical User Interface), if you are serious about downloading many video and channels i would strongly recommend the command line version.

Youtube-DLG:
Installation is pretty straight forward. Download the latest youtube-dlg.exe from the GitHub release page and place it in a directory (preferably called YouTube-DLG) and start it.

Click on the gear wheel at the top right and click "Update". This will get you the newest youtube-dl version to avoid problems.

show example:
1.png

Now you can already download videos, but i recommend that you first download FFMPEG (choose: "ffmpeg-N-[NUMBERS]-win64-gpl.zip" and unzip ffmpeg.exe, ffprobe.exe fplay.exe) and AtomicParsley to put them in the same directory for thumbnail, subtitle and other metadata embedding and file merging.

You can configure the download options by clicking on the gear wheel > "Options". But writing them into "Extra" gives you much more control and options (it's also similar to how you would use the command-line version).

show example:
gif1.gif


To change the filename format go:
gear wheel > "Options" > "General" > "Filename format":
I recommend using "Title + ID" to easier find videos by search later
2.png


There are tons of options so I will focus on the ones i think are relevant.
Get the format (.mp4, .mkv, .webm,...) with the best quality:
Code:
-f bestvideo+bestaudio

To specify a format you can use (not all videos are available in all formats):
Code:
-f bestvideo[ext=mp4]+bestaudio[ext=m4a]

You can also automatically merge the output to a specified format:
Code:
--merge-output-format mp4


To get more than just the video use the following options:

embed video thumbnail:
Code:
--embed-thumbnail

embed video info such as description, author, upload date and more:
Code:
--add-metadata

get all subs and embed them:
Code:
--all-subs --embed-subs

To only download videos once (filename and path can be modified):
Code:
--download-archive archive.txt

Since some formats have problems with embedding certain information. I usually use the .mp4/m4a format (Works on YT but could make problems on other Sites and has has some limitations)
lower audio sample rate 44k Hz vs 48k Hz (for .mkv and .webm) which shouldn't be noticeable to the human ear outside of maybe audio editing.
Code:
-f bestvideo+bestaudio[ext=m4a] --embed-thumbnail --add-metadata --all-subs --embed-subs

Write your options into the "Extra" section and you're good to go.

Now put video URLs into the box, choose the output path, click "add" and start the download.

You should always check the "Status" for "warnings" and "errors" that can indicate a broken or failed download. If you encounter one go to gear wheel > "View Log" and look what the problem is.

show example:
gif2.gif



YouTube-DL:
For installing, basic usage and updating watch the video below.

I personally use the more active maintained fork youtube-dlp that has more features, supported sites and less bugs (also not +3k open issues lol). Simply download youtube-dlp instead of youtube-dl like shown in the video.



You should always check the text output about the download in the command-line and lookout for "warnings" and "errors" that can indicate a broken or failed download!

Here are the simplified commands I use for YouTube:
Show Video Formats and Quality:
To see what video is available in what formats and quality you can use:
Code:
youtube-dl video_url --list-formats

Video download:
Best video quality with best m4a Audio merged into MP4 (use "yt-dlp" if you use the dlp fork):
Code:
youtube-dl -f bestvideo+bestaudio[ext=m4a] video_url --merge-output-format mp4

where to put the video in "Video title - (videoID).mp4" naming scheme (using IDs makes it easier to find specific videos later):
Code:
-o "C:/path/to/videos/%(title)s - (%(id)s).%(ext)s"

embed thumbnail, metadata and all subs:
Code:
--embed-thumbnail --add-metadata --all-subs --embed-subs

To log which vides where already downloaded:
Code:
--download-archive "C:/path/to/videos/archive.txt"

Config
to always use certain options you can include them in your config in "C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\youtube-dl\config.txt" (/yt-dlp/ for the dlp version)
Code:
-f bestvideo+bestaudio[ext=m4a] -o "C:/path/to/videos/%(uploader)s/%(title)s - (%(id)s).%(ext)s" --embed-thumbnail --add-metadata --all-subs --embed-subs --merge-output-format mp4

Video download:
Code:
youtube-dl -f bestvideo+bestaudio[ext=m4a] video_url -o "C:/path/to/videos/%(title)s - (%(id)s).%(ext)s" --embed-thumbnail --add-metadata --all-subs --embed-subs --merge-output-format mp4 --download-archive "C:/path/to/videos/archive.txt"

Full channel download:
Just replace the placeholder with channel url.
Code:
youtube-dl -f bestvideo+bestaudio[ext=m4a] channel_url -o "C:/path/to/%(uploader)s/%(title)s - (%(id)s).%(ext)s" --embed-thumbnail --add-metadata --all-subs --embed-subs --merge-output-format mp4 --download-archive "C:/path/to/channel_name/channel_name.txt"

Download login restricted Videos:
To download videos behind paywall/login you can use a cookie file.
  1. download cookies-txt browser addon
  2. login to site
  3. create a cookie.txt by clicking on the addon
  4. add --cookies C:/path/to/cookie.txt to your download command

Download (YT) livestreams:
You need to manually run it when the livestream starts and use "CTRL+C" when it ends (it can take some time to process the video. Don't press "CTRL+C" twice!).
Code:
youtube-dl -f best stream_link --embed-thumbnail --add-metadata --hls-use-mpegts
 
Last edited:

hzp

varishangout.com
Great thread. I hope OP doesn't mind me posting this on a thursday nonetheless.
But in the same line of ffmpeg and video (youtube-dl) I can't recommend mpv enough (and as a bonus a useful extension mpv-webm that works with ffmpeg).

I don't think it's a controversial claim to say that mpv and ffmpeg are one of the finest open source softwares out there and a showcase of the power and freedom that is often (always) advertised by free software advocates.
Despite its extremely sober and simplistic UI (just a status bar when the cursor reaches the lower half of the window) it is an extremely powerful video player.
xur62f.png

It gets the job done with grace and sobriety for normal users, but also has slight learning curve for users who aren't used to keybinds intensive UX and/or config file fiddling.
The mouse gets you 90% of a normal job done though:
  • right-click : play/pause (also space and p)
  • double-left-click : full screen (also f and the little icon in the bottom right)
  • wheel up , down : forward/backward (also left/right-arrow with shift and up/down-arrow for seeking with various timelapses (1sec, 10sec, 1minute, etc.)
  • pgUp , pgDn : next/previous chapter (if video has chapters encoded)
  • 9 , 0 or / , * : for volume control (/ and * feel weird on a qwerty so maybe this is for certain kinds of keyboards)
  • m : mute
  • v : hide subtitles (without changing/unloading track)
  • s : take a screenshot (S [shift+s] for screenshot without subs)
these are the basics, I recommend checking the docs when in doubt. Maybe the following keybinds are also useful for people who often have problems with playback/delays:
  • [ , ] : playback speed
  • z , Z [z and shift+z] : subtitles delay
  • Ctrl + , Ctrl - : audio delay
  • Ctrl Shift left/right-arrow : this can sound weird but is pretty useful for syncing subs, basically it displays either the previous or next subtitle at the current time
  • , , . [comma and dot] : useful with mpv-webm and sub syncing for going forward or backward one frame at a time (enjoy your autism)
The keybinds are very intuitive imo, frankly speaking it's very rare you need to do anything but watch videos with your player (aside from the basic play/pause/next/etc.)

The config file can be found in the usual config directory on linux ($HOME/.config/mpv/mpv.conf). On windows, I'm not so sure since I don't use the OS that much, usually the equivalent of either $HOME or $HOME/.config (mostly known as the $XDG_CONFIG_HOME but I don't want to start explaining xdg here and how this claim isn't exactly right) is the %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming[1] but iirc in my setup since the mpv program comes as a portable binary (i.e. just an .exe inside a folder) mpv.conf can be found or created inside the same folder as the binary (personally I have a %USERPROFILE%\bin\ where I put all these portable folders/executables).

I won't go into the configuration autism as the defaults are better than 90% of competing video players out there, and in all honestly I have no idea what temmporal dithering or deband threshold does or is. For this I highly recommend googling or lurking/asking the mpv general on /g/; there are probably a ton of config files out there for specific setups and whatnot.
One useful and more friendly config though, is for setting a screenshot directory (by default screenshots are saved in local directory of video):
Code:
screenshot-directory=/home/hzp/pictures/screenshots/
screenshot-format=png
screenshot-template=mpvshot_%F%05n


[1] %USERPROFILE% is the environment variable on windows like $HOME, by default in normal cases this is C:\Users\user_name\ and is the directory containing Documents, Downloads, Pictures, etc.​


note: you'll also need ffmpeg for this.
mpv-webm is a plugin for mpv, and imo is a good example of how extensible and hq mpv is. The plugin is a mere lua script (right-click > Save Page As or copy-paste contents) that should be placed in the scripts directory which itself is (or should be created) inside mpv's config directory (as explained earlier, i.e. where the mpv.conf file should be).

Once this is done, congrats, just boot mpv and press W [shift-w] to open the menu. Then a menu with the keybinds for configuring the outputted webm should appear in the upper left corner.
sample.jpg


To set the time you press 1 and 2 (by default start and end of video) to record the current time (frame) in the video as the start or end time of your output webm (hence why being able to move one frame at a time can be useful).
For cropping you'll have to use your cursor:
  1. press c to start
  2. use 1 and 2 to set the upper-left and bottom-right corners where you cursor currently is
  3. ENTER to confirm
The other keybinds are self-explanatory.
smor2m.png


More options can be tuned by pressing o.
  • output format: currently raw (same format as source video), mp4 and webm
  • two pass: this is related to ffmpeg, basically means higher quality for stricter file size (fucks up with displaying progress)
  • apply current video filter: self explanatory
  • scale height: same
  • strict filesize constraint: recommended to set to no unless you have trouble meeting the restricted file size
  • write filename on metadata: the metadata field "Title" will be set to the current filename
  • target filesize: desired filesize in kilobytes
  • crf: stand for constant rate factor again related to ffmpeg. basically 0 means lossless 51 means shittiest quality possible. it's a good way to tradeoff quality and filesize (more details)
1ndgrd.png


Once everything is as you like, you can press p to see a looping preview, or e to start encoding (exporting).
A useful thing to know is that if you muted the video, then no audio will be exported; so just press m before encoding for disabling audio.

More (permanent) fine tuning can be done in the script itself. You can also change a couple defaults in there.
On the 6th line you can find the options variable declaration, there you can easily change the fields without much coding knowledge, and there all very well documented.
For example I changed the default filesize (to 4MB since that's the limit on 4chan) because I was tired of having to change it every fucking time, as well as the output directory:
Code:
local mp = require("mp")
local assdraw = require("mp.assdraw")
local msg = require("mp.msg")
local utils = require("mp.utils")
local mpopts = require("mp.options")
local options = {
    -- Defaults to shift+w
    keybind = "W",
    -- If empty, saves on the same directory of the playing video.
    -- A starting "~" will be replaced by the home dir.
    -- This field is delimited by double-square-brackets - [[ and ]] - instead of
    -- quotes, because Windows users might run into a issue when using
    -- backslashes as a path separator. Examples of valid inputs for this field
    -- would be: [[]] (the default, empty value), [[C:\Users\John]] (on Windows),
    -- and [[/home/john]] (on Unix-like systems eg. Linux).
    output_directory = [[/home/hzp/videos/mpv-shots]],
    -- ...
    target_filesize = 4000,
lines starting with -- are comments (just explanations that are ignored when the code is running).

Ok that's about it for a very fast intro/demonstration of mpv and one of its plugins.
Mpv is one of my favourite program, I've been using it daily for everything for years without a single problem, ever!
Mpv-webm is my primary way to make webms (and combined with youtube-dl makes it extremely easy to make clips of youtube videos), it has been buggy sometimes and crashed on my once or twice, but globally it's a really good plugin.
I hope you enjoy, and also hope the OP doesn't interpret this as thread hijacking or anything.
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
nice post. i think i will rename the topic at some point but i can't come up with a good name.

i haven't really tried mpv but heard /g/ always rave about it so i might check it out now.
 

hzp

varishangout.com
oh yeah, I forgot to mention that one of the reasons mpv is held in such high regard is the architecture of it, allowing anyone to make a custom frontend for it without having to fork or anything.
If you want a more graphical UI there are a bunch of different ones: pick your poison
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #3 (28/02/2021)

F-Droid is a privacy friendly alternative Android App Store to the Google Play Store. In contrast to it every app has to met certain criteria such as being Free and Open Source (which of course limits the app selection).

logo.png

Apps that include Anti-Features such as ads, tracking or other functions that benefit no one expect the developer have to be transparently listed.

pic1.png

Permissions required also need to be disclosed with an easy to understand description.

pic2.png

This gives the users enough information to make an educated choice about apps and also prevents rouge Apps. Such as Flashlight apps that need +50 permissions (from internet, messages to full storage access) that already have flooded the Play Store for years with google doing little to nothing about it. Similar cases haven't been found on F-Droid!

It also decreases Googles power over Android Apps. Which they have abused already numerous times in the past:

Another advantage is that F-Droid doesn't require an account, run in the background to gather data or other unnecessary permissions to be functional.
The data they collect is minimal especially in comparison to the massive amount Play Store (or Stock Android) does.

F-Droid is also more secure against attacks from governments or other powerful actors, since they don't require the app developers to hand over there app signing keys which are used ensure apps are only modified by the developer themselves.



Installation:
  1. Download the .apk from the official website. If you like the software please support the developer!
  2. Allow installation from unknown sources for your Browser (which should only be done for trustworthy apps and disabled later)
  3. Install/open F-Droid.apk
  4. Disable the permission from unknown sources for your Browser! (search in settings: Install unknown apps -> uncheck your browser)



I hope this introduction leads to people being more aware about privacy friendly and more transparent app alternatives.

If your interested in seeing more about F-Droid/OSS apps, check out the thread i made in the Android Forum.
 
Last edited:

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #4 (7/03/2021)

ScreenToGif (OSS) is a Gif creation and editing tool that let's you record a selected area of your screen.

1622410315273.png

How to use
It can sometimes be a little difficult to make them small enough to post. Try to use less FPS, Color or lower render quality.

pic1.png

Installations:
Download and install it from GitHub. If you like the software please support the developer!

Requirements
Windows 7 SP1 or newer
.Net Framework 4.8 or newer

Privacy&Terms
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #5 (14/03/2021)

KeePass (OSS) is a Password Manager for Windows with several ports on Linux (KeePassXC) and Android (KeePassDX). You can not only store passwords but also other private data such as recovery codes and even files. It has been awarded and audited by multiple government security organizations.

logo.png
Since passwords and online identities are sensitive information they should be kept locally on your devices and only stored in the cloud if they have been encrypted.



Why should you use a password manager?
At first it might seem bothersome and too much work to write down your online identities, but you will be grateful in the long run for multiple reasons:
  1. Central list of all your online accounts will make it much easier to manage them (which accounts do i have?; what password/email/username did i use?; what is my 2FA recovery code/security question?)
  2. Login securely with only a few clicks (autofill hotkey + 1 click). No need to type and remember dozen of long usernames, emails and passwords. Keep in mind that deepending on your browser/OS websites and apps could get access to the clipboard, compromising copy+paste passwords -> use autofill with KeePass (shown below).
    gif1.gif
  3. Since you don't need to remember passwords, you can make them as long and random as possible. +100 character long and completely random passwords? No problem! (i should work in marketing :kyoko-smug:)
  4. With the number of data breaches and computing power increasing each year. It will only get more important to use strong and unique passwords for each account in the future. Which is impossible without help, considering that the average person has around 100 passwords (Adding numbers to an old password is not safe!).



How to install
Download (Keepass 2.xx Installer for Windows) and install it. If you like the software please support the developer!



How to use
  • Create your password Database (DB) (lose DB = you are screwed > have backups in multiple locations)
  • Set a master password. As the name implies, this is your key to the kingdom (forget master password = you are screwed > maybe (physically) write it down in a safe place or just gitgud and don't forget). Make it long but easy to remember, which means use a passphrase (NIST recommendation)
    • NIST definition of passphrase: A passphrase is a memorized secret consisting of a sequence of words or other text that a claimant uses to authenticate their identity. A passphrase is similar to a password in usage, but is generally longer for added security.
    • You can create them by following this simple guide by the EFF. You only need one dice and ~5 minutes. I would recommend using more than six Words (maybe even from different languages), special characters and numbers for the passphrase. You can always start easy by using only 5-6 words and then keep adding new ones when your are comfortable remembering the old ones.
  • To increase security you can check "Show expert options:" to add a Keyfile which functions as an additional authentication method (Password = something you know + Keyfile = something you have). When using one you will always need the master password + Keyfile to access the DB (lose/modify the Keyfile = you are screwed > have backups in multiple locations). This is handy if you want to store your DB in the cloud without worrying about somebody cracking your master password, but remember to copy the Keyfile on all your devices you want to access it from.
  • General > Give the DB a name e.g. KeePassDB
  • Security > Key transformation >
    • Key derivation function: "Argon2d" (more info)
    • Iterations:
      We recommend the following procedure for determining the Argon2 parameters:
      Set the number of iterations to 2.
      [*]Find out the RAM size of each of your devices on which you want to open your database file. Let M be the minimum of these sizes. Set the memory parameter to min(M/2, 1 GB) (i.e. use the half of M, if it is less than 1 GB, otherwise use 1 GB).
      • Example 1: if you have a PC with 32 GB RAM and a mobile phone with 1 GB RAM (on which you want to open your database file), set the memory parameter to 500 MB.
      • Example 2: if you have a PC with 32 GB RAM and a PC with 8 GB RAM, set the memory parameter to 1 GB.
      On Windows 10, the RAM size can be found in the system settings → 'System' → 'About'.
      [*]Find out the number of logical processors of each of your devices. Set the parallelism parameter to the minimum of these numbers. On Windows 10, the number of logical processors can be found in the Task Manager (right-click onto the taskbar → 'Task Manager') on the 'Performance' tab page.
      [*]Click the 'Test' button.
      • If the key transformation takes too much time (longer than you are willing to wait when opening/saving the database file, e.g. more than 1 second), cancel it, decrease the memory parameter and click the 'Test' button again. Repeat this until the required time is acceptable.
      • If the key transformation takes too few time (in the case of 1 GB memory), increase the number of iterations and click the 'Test' button again. Repeat this until you like the required time.
  • Consider Printing a Emergency Sheet for recovery!
  • Now you can create folders and Account entries.
  • To access the DB on other devices you only need to transfer the DB (and Keyfile if used)
  • Extra options i recommended (Tools > Options...):
    • Security > Advanced = check "Enter master key on secure desktop (only Windows)
    • By default autofill checks if an password entry matches a program/browser window title. If an application/website isn't recognized, edit the entry (Double click entry Title->Auto-Type -> Add -> select Target window -> change keystroke sequence if needed).
    • Using an secondary authentication method (2FA) besides a password is still important (see andOTP for more info).
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #6 (21/03/2021)

uBlock Origin (OSS) created by Raymond Hill is a Content Blocker that can block Ads, Scripts, Tracker and other malicious or undesirable content in your Browser.

logo.png

It's available for Firefox and Chromium (Warning: other Extensions/Addons without "Origin" in the name like ublock.org that are not mentioned on GitHub are copycats/scams and should be avoided).

Why should you use uBlock Origin instead of other (ad)blocker?
  1. Not owned or developed by a corporation but the community (No data collection)
  2. All Ads are being blocked > No "Acceptable Ads" are allowed
  3. More than "just an adblocker" (Tracker, Scripts and other malicious or undesirable content)
  4. Faster and less resources intensive than other adblocker
  5. Better at blocking
  6. You don't need any other Adblocker



Installation and usage
It's as easy as any other Extension/Addon installation. Just follow the instruction on the GitHub site.

After that you are already Done! If you want to disable it on a site, click on the uBlock Origin Logo and on the big blue shutdown symbol (blue = on / white = off)

If you want to learn more you can keep reading or visit the Wiki.

Block Sites
Click on the uBlock Origin Logo and Settings
pic1.png


Go "My filters" and add the site you want to block with || in front of the name like ||google.com. Then "Apply changes".
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Now when you try to visit the site you will see the following
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Block certain elements
Click on the uBlock Origin Logo and choose the "element picker"
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Choose a website element you want to remove and click "Create". "Pick" to select a new elements.
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All filters are in "Settings" > " My filters" and can be changed/removed
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Block Scripts (What is JS and why should you disable it?)
Block JavaScript Globally (all sites) in the Settings.
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and allow it for sites that you trust (1st-party; 3rd-party or all)
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See all connections/elements a Site has and what is blocked (Useful if you want to determine if a service really cares about your privacy and security)
Click on the uBlock Origin Logo and "More"
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Now all sites that are used are displayed (Green=Allowed; Yellow=partially blocked; Red=blocked). As you can see A LOT (28%) of elements/connections that have no benefit for the user (ads, tracking and other crap) are being used but automatically blocked. With "Advanced user features" you could choose to block or allow manually.
pic8.png

Edit Filterlists (They are used to block content like ads)
Click on the uBlock Origin Logo and Settings
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In "Filter lists" you can add, remove and update Filterlists. You can use Lists from filterlists.com or any other list with domain/hostnames (e.g.: google.com) hosted on the internet.
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Prevent DNS leaking (relevant for VPN/Proxy user)
Click on the uBlock Origin Logo and Settings
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Check the following box
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For more control over blocking such as "Dynamic filtering", use "Advanced user features" (Warning: Can "break" Sites and is not recommended for noobs or lazy people).[/spoiler]
 

immahnoob

varishangout.com
Regular
Patron of the Forums
Do you know how I could replace my Windows Search with "Everything" like in the example given by the GitHub? Mine just appears near my tray which is just sad.
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Do you know how I could replace my Windows Search with "Everything" like in the example given by the GitHub? Mine just appears near my tray which is just sad.
right click on taskbar > search > hide
right click on taskbar > toolbars > everything toolbar

then you can move it around which can be weird but mine looks like that:
346.png
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #7 (28/03/2021)

andOTP (OSS) is a two-factor authentication (2FA) App for Android, to safeguard your online accounts against malicious takeovers. It adds another layer of security and prevents access to your accounts even if somebody knows your username and password.

logo.png

This is especially helpful if you have been affected by a data breach and use the same/similar passwords for multiple online accounts or just weak passwords in general (Don't do that! Use unique and strong passwords with a Password Manager).

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Why an APP and not SMS for 2FA?
Using SMS for 2FA is less secure and private than 2FA Apps (based on TOTP). SMS are unencrypted, interceptable, vulnerable to SIM swapping and will be used for data harvesting or even advertisement.

Why andOTP and not Google authenticator?
  1. It's CSS and made by google so you can be sure that they will keep track of every account you have
  2. More App Permissions: Google authenticator = 12 vs andOTP = 1
  3. No PIN to access App or encrypt backups
  4. Less customization

Software (APP) vs Hardware (Token) 2FA
Hardware is superior to software based 2FA but (currently) lacks proper support from sites. But I will talk about it here eventually.



Installation and usage
Download the App from one of the options on the GitHub page (preferably F-Droid) and install it. If you like the software please support the developer!

After installing you should set a Password/PIN that you use to access the app. Now you are ready to create 2FA entries for your online accounts. Just go to your security settings in an online account that supports 2FA (we also support it on the Forum and Pleroma) and scan the QR-Code with the App by using the "+" icon > "Scan QR code". Now every time you login you are required to input the code you get from the App.

Backup
Since the app is 100% offline (no auto sync in cloud) you should backup your 2FA data regularly to another device. You can also activate Android sync to make scheduled backups on your phone (see Recommended Settings > backup below).

Recommended Settings (3 dots on top right > "Settings")
Security:​
Re-lock on inactivity = check
Delay for inactivity re-lock = 30 (sec)
Block accessibility services = check
Block autofill = check

User interface​
Theme = Dark theme
Single-tab = Reveal/Hide

Backup​
Enable Android sync = check
Default backup location = choose location for backup file
Backup password = set password for backup file
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #8 (4/04/2021)

Privacy Redirect is a browser extension/addon that redirects privacy invasive sites such as Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Google Maps, Reddit and Google Search to privacy friendlier alternatives.

logo.png

This is great if you want to view content on them without supporting them with traffic/ads or just don't want to be tracked by them. The alternatives also generally load faster since all ads and tracking have been removed (also no JavaScript :cultured: ). On Android UntrackMe (OSS) does the same for all links opened in other Apps.

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Installation
Download it from GitHub for your browser. If you like the software please support the developer!

Usage
Click on the extension/addon icon and "More Options". In the settings you can choose which services should be redirected and which instances of that alternative service should be used (default is random instance).

Alternative Sites:
Twitter -> Nitter
YouTube -> Invidious
Instagram -> Bibliogram
Google Maps -> OpenStreetMap
Reddit -> Teddit/Libreddit/Snew/old.reddit
Google Translate -> SimplyTranslate
Search Engine (Google) -> SearX/DuckDuckGo/Startpage/Qwant/Mojeek/Presearch/Whoogle
Wikipedia -> Wikiless
 
Last edited:

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Software Sunday #9 (11/04/2021)

QDirStat (OSS) is a disk usage statistics viewer for Linux and BSD that can be used to explore, compress, remove junk and most importantly display info about data and folder structure. On Windows WinDirStat (OSS) works similar although slower and with fewer features.

logo.png

Besides looking pretty it can also help to free up or find folders that use too much space (e.g. temp folders). To do that you can either look at the % number on the folders or click on the bigger colored squares in the treemap at the bottom.

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It can also display Size Statistics such as Median, Quartiles and Percentiles (basically big brain average data size)

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and File Type Statistics that show how much and what file types there are.

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Installation
Follow the instructions on GitHub for your OS. If you like the software please support the developer!

Usage (self explanatory)
Choose a directory/drive and wait until it finishes loading the data (F5 = refresh all; F6 = refresh selected)
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now you can explore folder and right click on them for more options.
5.png

Settings
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Cleanup Actions:
Modify the different actions (accessible via right click) such as opening file manager & terminal, check file type, compress or delete data (deactivate actions separately with the checkbox at the top).
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MIME Categories:
Edit the file type categories used in "Cleanup Actions"
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Exclude Rules:
hide certain files/folders based on different Syntax (e.g. hide all folder named "info").
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General:
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Would be nice to see peoples collections :kanna-inspect: here is mine.
11.png
 

DarkMahesvara

varishangout.com
Regular
Quicky: Image Searching services/tools

If you want to find the source of an image your can use the following services:

Art/Manga: SauceNAO; Iqdb
Anime: trace.moe

To search images faster in your browser without visiting the image search sites separately you can use Search by Image (OSS) or Image Search Options (CSS) browser addon/extension. I use Search by Image since its open source, has more Image Searching services integrated (43 vs 11) and is actively maintained/updated.

If you like the software/services please support them!
 
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