danie10

I know the LiDAR scanner is used for face ID and detection, and also for scanning depth for camera focus etc, but I did not realise it can also be used for real 3D colour scans to very easily create 3D objects for games, CAD, or other uses. Using the 3d Scanner App (link below) it allows sharing via iMessage (in AR), OBJ, GLTF, GLB, STL, Point Cloud, Sketchfab, or DAE (for Sketchup). These objects are accurate enough to be true to scale and measurements.

The iPhone needs to have a LiDAR sensor for this to work, but any phone or computer can view the 3D image and allow you to zoom in, rotate, pan, etc. A good cross-platform app for this is MadView3D. Do a search "iphone lidar 3d scans" to see many example videos of what a scan looks like.

Yes you can do great 3D scans of someone's head too and then rotate them around etc (Harry Potter style). You can also use some formats to print the "object" out on a 3D printer. Many of these iOS apps charge subscriptions, but the one below seems to be completely free and pretty fully featured.

See https://apps.apple.com/us/app/3d-scanner-app/id1419913995

#technology #iphone #lidar #3D #CAD

Many other guides dive deep into 10 plus pages of how to set up such a service with Dovecot, Postfix and a web server all from the command line, but this one is a lot simpler because most of what you need is inside Citadel. Citadel also has calendar, Contacts, Notes, Tasks and chat rooms so can be a good alternative to Google or other providers. Your only cost really is the Raspberry Pi and a domain name if you don't already have one.

You could tweak this a bit further by using your own DNS provider (or alternative to Cloudflare) and considering an external hard drive connected to the Pi for reliability.

See https://pimylifeup.com/raspberry-pi-email-server/

#technology #email #privacy #raspberrypi #alternativeto #opensource

I have three of these adjustable razors: A 50+ year Gillette Fatboy inherited from my Dad, the Merkur Progress, and the Parker Variant. The Fatboy still shaves well so just goes to show these razors will last more than one generation.

Why? Well because me or my beard seems to get accustomed to a particular razor after a few months and a change is as good as a holiday, and secondly adjustables are great as some parts of your beard area need a more aggressive shave while others a less aggressive shave (an adjustable works well for this).

Watch at https://youtu.be/NAHOyh77lqQ

#traditionalshaving #wetshaving #safetyrazor #shaving

Some very interesting insight imparted here from Joaquin Quiñonero Candela, a director of AI at Facebook, about how AI started to take off within Facebook, the prominence it was given, and the depths to which it was encouraged to instigate interactions.

We have known a long time, even before Cambridge Analytica, that private information was leaking out of Facebook (not what this article is about), but this exposure about how AI is used now also confirms the lengths to which Facebook would go to "fuel flames" in order to elicit more engagement. The goal really was to inflame as much of any sort of engagement as possible. Obvious misinformation often invokes more response, than agreement with any topic.

Seriously this is not what most other social networks do. Most (all?) open source social networks such as Mastodon, Hubzilla, Pixelfed, etc have very superficial algorithms to deal with popular vs chronological order choices, managing blocks and bans, etc, but those algorithms are generally visible for inspection. Generally open source social networks are fun networks for people to interact and socialise on. They are not intended to manipulate their users. Facebook is just not that in any form or way...

But it's our own choice what social network we join. Absolutely no-one is forced to join any specific social network. You should ask what the purpose/goal of a specific social network is, and are your own goals the same?

See https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/03/11/1020600/facebook-responsible-ai-misinformation/

#technology #AI #deletefacebook #misinformation

Widgets are rather weak on iOS in terms of lots of options e.g. you get basic activity rings for Health but no large step counter option. So this is where Widgetsmith comes in by offering a few extra options for widgets and all that I needed were included free without premium subscription required. I was looking for a step counter widgets and a day of the week and date widget. You can further customise the widgets, and don't forget that iOS 14 does allow stacking of widgets too.

It's not very intuitive for beginners as to how to add widgets using Widgetsmith, so the article below gives some guidance.

See https://9to5mac.com/2020/12/25/widgetsmith-ios-14-home-screen-widgets

#technology #ios #widgets #iphone

Valve is currently testing a new feature on Steam Beta. The “Invite Anyone” upgrade to the existing Remote Play feature allows you, a Steam gamer, to play compatible games with any of your friends. They won’t need to set up an account on Steam to do so; they’ll just be able to hop right in after they click on a hyperlink (and install an app).

Your friend will need to have Steam Link installed on their Windows, Android, or iOS device before they click. Let's hope this expands still to MacOS and Linux.

See how it works at https://lifehacker.com/how-to-remote-play-steam-games-without-a-steam-account-1846355074

#technology #gaming #steamgames

Yes another thing taken for granted on an Android phone by just long pressing on the app icon (at least with Nova Launcher) but there is an effective trick using Shortcuts on an iPhone to do the same. It may be a bit long-winded, but you only have to do it once.

Why? Well because some third party apps for services like XMPP and Mastodon have really cryptic names and icons and I really can never remember what services they are for. This solves that problem once and for all!

See https://www.cnet.com/how-to/make-your-iphone-aesthetic-in-ios-14-3-heres-how-to-customize-your-home-screen/

#technology #ios #tip #iphone #apple

Defeating Huawei’s draconian security measures wasn’t an easy task, but a developer named Andrey Smirnoff actually managed to decipher the bootloader unlock code generation algorithm for devices that are based on HiSilicon Kirin 960/659/655 chipsets. Apart from that, what makes PotatoNV possible is a low-level bootloader flashing method discovered by XDA Senior Member hackintosh5. The tool, which makes use of the VCOM_DOWNLOAD mode, requires users to open up the target device and access the test points on the motherboard.

With the release of PotatoNV, owners of the aforementioned Huawei and Honor devices are finally able to flash all the custom ROMs and kernels they desire. So this can mean being able to replace the Huawei software with a custom ROM like LineageOS or others, where you can optionally install the Google apps if you wanted to. Point is Huawei still gets to sell their hardware device so there is no loss to them, it just opens up additional options for users.

See https://www.xda-developers.com/huawei-honor-bootloader-unlock-potatonv/

#technology #mobile #huawei #rooting

I sometimes show a mobile screen when I record videos and have been looking for something as easy to use as Android has through their emulator. I tried a few apps but most were quite clunky, and I have now got it down to RPiPlay (Linux desktops or for a Raspberry Pi) or installing the Windows version of 5KPlayer (installs and runs perfectly if you have WINE installed on Linux).

Both will work without any apps being installed on the iOS device (just use normal screen mirroring to AirPlay) mirror the screen and audio. Control remains on the iOS device though, so you can't use the mouse to control from the Linux side. Instructions for RPiPlay are at https://github.com/FD-/RPiPlay, but it installed from AUR for me on Manjaro Linux.

#technology #ios #linux #tip

I was used to Watchmaker for some excellent 3rd party watch faces for Android WearOS but was a bit disappointed with the selection there for Apple Watch. After looking around a bit I discovered Clockology and was really impressed with some of the watch faces there.

The only issue many have, is how to install and use it properly because of Apple's idiosyncrasies, so this video does help explain that. One thing to note about the wake screen setting is the menu option has changed, so instead you long press on the watch face and choose Stay Alive.

Unfortunately many watch face groups are on Facebook but you need not login especially for the Hong Kong one, and there is also a sub reddit for Clockology.

Watch at https://youtu.be/sF2IkMPb0bE

#technology #apple #watchfaces #clockology #applewatch

Usually each component manufacturer has their own software for controlling RGB lights, with some requiring an online account to function. For Linux users, even that is not usually available since most of these applications are proprietary and Windows only. This is where OpenRGB comes in. OpenRGB is a free and open source application to control RGB lighting for a multitude of devices, independent of the manufacturer.

It's working on my Manjaro Linux using the AppImage executable. It was not detecting my USB devices though until I ran it with admin privileges. So the keyboard is working fine, but does seem I may have to patch the kernel for the fans and CPU coolers to work. That always requires some caution so don't just jump in and take that step until doing some homework on their Gitlab issues forum.

See https://www.linuxuprising.com/2021/02/openrgb-open-source-rgb-lighting.html

#technology #opensource #linux #windows #OpenRGB

This open source and privacy focussed social network offers a lot more functionality than most other social networks especially in the P2P space. In this video I explain how to get connected to other peers, I give an overview of all the functions it can perform, and end off touring around the interface and showing how it works.

Functions include Chatrooms, Mail, Channels, Forums, Boards with more to come in the next version.

My RetroShare Link of the video at retroshare://file?name=My+Overview+Overview+of+RetroShare+Social+Network.mp4&size=581508519&hash=9633d48565b60031310ad9ce447b7de076524dd6

Watch at https://youtu.be/A-qkix_R6Hs

#technology #opensource #socialnetwork #retroshare