RE: mamot.fr/@pluralistic/11605182…

@pluralistic : ...America's unabashed dollar weaponization has been getting worse for years, but under Trump, the weaponized dollar has come to constitute an existential risk to the rest of the world, sending them scrambling for alternatives. As November Kelly says, Trump inherited a poker game that was rigged in his favor, but he still flipped over the table because he resents having to pretend to play at all:

pluralistic.net/2026/01/26/i-d…

Once Trump tried to steal Greenland, it became apparent that the downsides of the dollar far outweigh its upsides. Last month, Christine Lagarde (president of the European Central Bank) made a public announcement on a radio show that Europe "urgently" needed to build its own payment system to avoid the American payment duopoly, Visa/Mastercard:

davekeating.substack.com/p/can…

Now, there's plenty of reasons to want to avoid Visa/Mastercard, starting with cost: the companies have raised their prices by more than 40% since the pandemic started (needless to say, updating database entries has not gotten 40% more expensive since 2020). This allows two American companies to impose a tax on the entire global economy, collecting swipe fees and other commissions on $24t worth of the world's transactions every year:...'

Bitchat, guida semplice per capirlo e provarlo

Io uso e continuo a usare il mio server Matrix fatto in casa, che condivido con gli amici di snowfan.it, non lo mollo. Bitchat per me è un esperimento in più, utile in alcuni casi particolari.

Che cos’è Bitchat

Bitchat è un’app di messaggistica molto essenziale, fatta per scrivere e basta, con un sapore un po’ da vecchie chat in stile IRC.
Non ti chiede un numero di telefono, non ti chiede un account, installi e inizi.

Come funziona, l’idea in due righe

Bitchat ha due modi per far viaggiare i messaggi.

• Vicino a te, via Bluetooth

Funziona anche senza Internet. I telefoni nelle vicinanze possono “passarsi” i messaggi tra loro, così la portata può aumentare un po’, però resta una cosa da distanze corte rispetto a Internet.

• Lontano, via Internet appoggiandosi a relay Nostr

Se c’è Internet, Bitchat può usare una rete di relay pubblici per far arrivare i messaggi molto più lontano, potenzialmente ovunque.

Cosa aspettarti, limiti chiari

• In modalità Bluetooth conta chi ti sta attorno

Se sei da solo o ci sono poche persone con l’app, c’è poco traffico. Se sei in un posto pieno, evento, fiera, concerto, allora ha più senso.

• Non è la bacchetta magica contro i blocchi di rete

Se Internet viene tagliata del tutto, resta la parte Bluetooth, quindi comunicazione locale. Se Internet c’è, allora i relay Nostr aiutano a “uscire” dalla bolla locale.

Come si usa, passo passo

1. Installa l’app e aprila
In genere parti subito a scrivere, senza registrazione.

2. Prova una chat locale
È quella che funziona via Bluetooth, utile per parlare con persone relativamente vicine.

3. Prova canali per zona quando hai Internet
Oltre alla chat locale, esistono canali legati alla zona, tipo quartiere, città, regione, che passano tramite i relay Nostr.

4. Se ti piace lo stile IRC, trovi comandi rapidi
Ci sono comandi in stile IRC per alcune azioni, senza fronzoli.

BitChatExplorer, a cosa serve

C’è un sito chiamato BitChatExplorer che mostra attività e canali visibili sui relay Nostr, in pratica una mappa e un flusso pubblico di quello che sta girando online. È utile per capire se “c’è vita” e dove.
bitchatexplorer.com/

Perché proprio Bitchat, per me

Perché è minimale, senza fronzoli, e mi ricorda i tempi delle chat IRC, testo e via.

Io lo sto ancora provando, ogni ulteriore informazione è più che gradita.

Designing a Compact RGB 14-Segment Display

Sometimes you’re looking for a component for a project that you know should exist, but you just cannot find it. Something like a 14-segment LED display, but not just one with a fixed color, instead you want some of that sweet addressable RGB-ness. Unfortunately for [EastMakes], this particular display was nowhere to be found, so he decided to try making his own.

Using addressable SK6805 RGB LEDs with a mere 1.5 x 1.5 footprint as the basis, the layout for these individual LEDs on the PCBs was determined, and a layout created in KiCad. The PCB manufacturing and assembly were straightforward enough — the thing that really makes these displays is the diffuser. Here a few different approaches were tried, including FR4 with translucent segments in the soldermask, and a 3D printed version in both white and black PLA filament.

The FR4 approach using 0.8 mm thin PCBs looked quite all right, with the addition of through vias in the 1 mm version showing how these help to boost overall brightness. The 3D printed version prototypes didn’t look too shabby either, but it would probably help a lot if this diffuser panel also fit around the LEDs to prevent light bleeding between segments.

We’d love to see this type of RGB display being experimented with, as it seems to hold a lot of promise while also definitely being something that ought to exist.

youtube.com/embed/2100sdgQtL4?…

hackaday.com/2026/02/11/design…

Scanning Table for the Professional Maker

Sometimes the simplest objects need some overthinking. This is exactly what [Chris Borge] realized when using his 3D scanner and finding that the included rotation table left quite a bit to be desired — providing him the perfect excuse to build a new one.

One of the main features of a rotation stage is the, well, rotation. This was done in [Chris]’s case with a NEMA 17 stepper motor, perfect for precise rotation of scanning. Hooking up the motor to a basic perf board with an Arduino Nano allows for on the fly adjustments to rotation speed. To really solidify the over-engineering, [Chris] applies his obligatory concrete mix to add some heft to the stage.

While the previous features could be removed/downgraded without much loss, the adjustable grid built into the top adds significant functionality. The grid is based on [Chris]’s past projects, which allows cross compatibility.

We love over-engineering here at Hackaday, especially when adding something new. For more prime overthought design, check out this over engineered egg cracker!

youtube.com/embed/GbyohbWr60A?…

hackaday.com/2026/02/10/scanni…