the magnificent rhys

https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/@rhys

Tech strategist. Tedious Starmerite. Em- and en-dash enthusiast. Linux nerd, self-hoster, Rust hobbyist, occasional street photographer, fountain pen idiot, and wine lover.

Website: https://rhys.wtf
Pronouns: he/him
Matrix: the magnificent rhys (npub1kye…7ldc):matrix.rhys.wtf
Signal: rhyswtf.99

Public Key

npub1kyeaw6vkmnltmah35g7elgdvl2jc26lmy3thce8tqhz7qhg804ysrp7ldc

NIP-05 Address

rhys_at_mastodon.rhys.wtf@momostr.pink

Profile Code

nprofile1qqstzv7hdxtdel4a7mc6y0vl5xk04fv9d0ajg4muvn4st30qt5rh6jgpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsf6nzd3

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relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub1kyeaw6vkmnltmah35g7elgdvl2jc26lmy3thce8tqhz7qhg804ysrp7ldc

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Last Notes

2026-06-24 13:46:56 UTC

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Score!
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/116/805/385/325/147/424/original/575168afebb1ce67.jpg

2026-06-16 22:01:31 UTC

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Will you have any cool swag available 👀

2026-01-27 16:26:40 UTC

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BBC News is paywalled elsewhere in the world? I didn't know that.

2026-01-27 15:58:06 UTC

If it seems strange that Matt Goodwin, a man who repeatedly says he never departed the left and merely stuck to his traditional working class views while everyone else went woke, would join Reform then it really shouldn't.
Not only is his entire persona one huge grift, he's the most vacuous soul I've ever met and one of the stupidest people I've ever seen on a debate stage.
The most loathsome man in this entire cursed country.
#UKPolitics #UKPol
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gr06y3n9zo

2025-11-26 23:41:09 UTC

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The weird part for me was this was around 2017 when there was some genuine drama around outing you. I was way outside the drama even then and never cared, but everyone in the local scene here in the UK had an opinion on you.
I was at middle management then and I got the vibe that the people interviewing me were trying to convince me they were legit by plugging into internet nonsense — at a time before that was a big deal.
Sorry my anecdote isn't better.

2025-11-26 23:32:42 UTC

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I interviewed at a company once where the interviewer told me you were a 30-year old Brummie working for a soc/cyber consultancy based out of Houston and, err, Cardiff.
Easily googleable but I ran for the hills immediately knowing you're an insane weirdo planeophiliac Xboxer Microsoft fanboy who would never set foot in Cardiff — a city without a permanent station housing F-35Bs.
This is true and I have receipts btw.

2025-11-23 14:46:36 UTC

I can't believe Ukraine isn't grateful that Witkoff took a Russian plan for Ukrainian capitulation, ran it through Google Translate, and mandated that Zelenskyy accept it by Thursday!
My soul is shattered over the impact of Americans having not elected Kamala. All the pain and suffering — domestically as well as in Ukraine and elsewhere — could have been avoided.
Things are going to get much, much worse, and my heart breaks for #Ukraine.
#Trump #USPol #USPolitics
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c33mv4y2187t?app-referrer=push-notification&post=asset%3A0d76358e-6405-47c0-b7b3-f133578f7a77#post

2025-09-25 19:29:22 UTC

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I'm keen to hear others' opinions on this.
A facet to it I've expressed before around my often paranoid privacy and security practices is that I don't view the police or the government in this country as my adversaries. I would in China, Russia, or the US, but not here.
I view private companies, primarily big tech companies, as my adversaries. I'd prefer a digital identity provided by government to a Google or Facebook account by far, for example.

2025-09-25 15:44:04 UTC

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GDS is very good, and if a central identity system could be used and managed across all central and local government services that'd be great and help alleviate issues with tons of disparate identity/security providers of varying consistency and maturity — perhaps even wider than just public services too. Maybe it could service the Online Security Act age verification.
On the other hand, huuuuuge target.
🤔
#UKPolitics #UKPol

2025-09-25 15:41:19 UTC

Hmmm.
I remember protesting against ID cards when Blair pursued them. Nowadays... I'm not sure how I feel. It'd certainly be convenient, especially in the age of voter ID.
My general view of government has changed too. I don't view government as an adversary anymore; rather I want government to do more and be better at it.
But then, the threat of the far right looms. I would fear a slide toward authoritarianism with them in power 🤔
#UKPolitics #UKPol
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g54g6vgpdo

2025-08-08 23:20:21 UTC

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Foundation has its ups and downs, but I love every second of it. Jared Harris and Lee Pace are infectiously watchable.

2025-07-12 09:13:59 UTC

I love the hubris from some folks. This guy rematched me twice then started chatting in our third game.
I won all three.
#chess
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/839/490/266/972/332/original/e0484d9b98733482.png

2025-07-07 14:48:06 UTC

I like how my weekly sheet turned out today.
I do one of these every Monday and by Friday they're usually a huge mess. Some new inks and pens inspired me to start making them a bit prettier.
The high performance and opinionated implementation things are key messages from my CTO I've been mulling over.
At the bottom is my weight loss chart. I had a rocky week due to some team events and a gig, but I'm racing a friend on a weight loss jab to -10kg.
#FountainPens #ink #todo #FountainPen
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/812/460/068/596/839/original/190e3a0c06a22973.jpg

2025-07-03 12:06:23 UTC

My local pen store had the Dialog 3 on sale for 50% off 👀
#FountainPen #FountainPens #stationery #ink
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/789/202/503/853/682/original/94e7d90593af2edf.jpg

2025-06-27 09:56:18 UTC

I somehow managed to break my TWSBI Vac Mini. It cracked at the back end somehow where the plunger bit is.
Kept the fine nib assembly and ordered a new one immediately with a medium nib — along with some Sailor Manyo Yomogi: https://mountainofink.com/blog/sailor-manyo-yomogi
#founrainpen #fountainpens #stationery #ink

2025-06-12 23:29:17 UTC

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I think there's something to this. Like, Mastodon as the default, the thing that's always there no matter what.
Mark's dissatisfaction with Bluesky isn't a million miles away from everyone else's. It's got a shit culture — like X, like Reddit, like everywhere else. It's just apparent to him now that there are multiple options and Twitter isn't just the default everyone uses.
The hard part is just ensuring there are lots of big, high capacity instances for folks — like yours.

2025-06-09 22:32:03 UTC

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I liked it when on an my old jailbroken iPhone I could make the icons spin when I swiped between screens.
Also if I tapped the screen three times John Cena popped up.

2025-05-17 13:24:39 UTC

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It's the third most wonderful thing I've ever put in my mouth.

2025-05-16 15:46:31 UTC

I've discovered the most heavenly thing. I don't know where this has been all my life.
I've honestly felt these last few decades like there was a hole in me, some sense of unfulfillment, like there's a part of my soul missing.
This is it! This makes me complete as a person!
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/518/278/554/692/167/original/710bf3834e5942c8.jpg

2025-04-14 15:16:28 UTC

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Mine is new straight out of the packaging. I ran some warm water through it first like I do with all my new pens.
I don't think emeraude de chivor is a particularly dry ink, but my inks are pretty old now and some that have pigment material do thicken over time. That might be the cause for me.

2025-04-14 14:22:24 UTC

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I'm trying to remember if my Kaweco Sport had the same issue — I haven't used it in ages, but the nib and feed seems to be the same 🤔

2025-04-14 12:51:27 UTC

Inky hands again for #NewPenDay — the beautiful Kaweco Student, first designed in the 1920s and popularised in the 1960s.
The feed seems super tight though. I had to water my Jacques Herbin Emeraude de Chivor down a ton to get it to write well and it's still not perfect 🤔
#FountainPen #FountainPens
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/336/384/746/795/523/original/05f55fa688461152.jpg

2025-04-12 09:55:31 UTC

Telltale sign that I recently had to refill my Vac Mini.
#FountainPen #FountainPens #ink
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/324/380/554/818/317/original/ecfff602c2ffc9bf.jpg
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/324/380/628/767/298/original/22d0dd757af36989.jpg

2025-04-06 07:46:17 UTC

My sympathies to my fellow single people out there. The dating apps are super weird these days.
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/289/898/088/237/085/original/52d170af25085fa3.png

2025-04-05 10:50:20 UTC

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Nah, this is the way The Guardian presents their RSS feeds — only a part of their article is in the feed, with 'continue reading' taking you to the full article.
When you click through to there, you need some other solution to get past the popup. I use Firefox's reader view, which on both desktop and mobile gets past it so you can read the full article.

2025-04-05 10:40:34 UTC

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Same. Not quite 50 years for me, but it still feels alien reading them less.
What I'm doing is using my #FreshRSS server to gather their articles then I use reader view in Firefox to read each one: https://fresh.rhys.wtf
I use Readrops on Android, which points to my FreshRSS server to make things a bit nicer.
Some of my Fresh instance is publicly presentable so others can use it this way too if they like.

2025-04-01 10:42:45 UTC

#NewPenDay! Pilot Capless, medium nib, with Iroshizuku Ina-Ho ink.
#FountainPen #FountainPens #poetry
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/262/273/326/900/459/original/bf9a18d2fa3f512e.jpg

2025-03-30 10:52:36 UTC

That's the end of The #Guardian for me then.
This practice of requiring a subscription to reject cookies is highly likely to be unlawful but hasn't been tested in court yet. The Independent went first and now the Graun's followed suit — after requiring an account to use their app after a certain number of views and a ruined CX with constant interstitial banners.
I'm sure most people just mash accept on cookie notices and so there'll be no consequence for them here, but this is dire.
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/250/981/364/066/145/original/f91a542b05c12ae0.png

2025-03-21 15:36:54 UTC

Man, I love this fountain pen store near me, but this is insane. I bought this exact same pen from a competitor about a year ago for £90.
#FountainPen #FountainPens #pen #pens #stationery
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/114/201/151/494/461/340/original/574dc5b1301732e3.jpg

2025-03-15 10:57:40 UTC

Binged this show yesterday while sick and this review is spot on: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/mar/13/adolescence-review-the-closest-thing-to-tv-perfection-in-decades
The show is a sublime exploration of a 13-year old boy's view of masculinity social pressure while he goes through being arrested for allegedly murdering a female classmate.
The third episode with Erin Doherty going through a psychological examination with him is outstanding — TV perfection, as that review says.
Highly recommended.
#Adolescence #TV

2025-03-01 10:57:51 UTC

Doing my duty as a Welshman today by waking up and eating three (3) raw leeks for breakfast before standing in front of the full-frame portrait of Max Boyce hanging in my living room and belting out Delilah at the top of my lungs until the neighbours call the police.
Happy Saint David's Day/Dydd gwyl Dewi hapus.

2025-02-07 00:55:53 UTC

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I'm so far removed from Windows... does it actually do this?

2025-01-30 18:50:52 UTC

Republicans blaming everything bad that happens on DEI went in my head from 'haha that's absurd, they're so ridiculous' to 'they are going to reshape society into a white-male chauvinistic ethnostate' pretty damn fast.

2025-01-13 23:43:18 UTC

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sad yes :(

2025-01-10 09:34:13 UTC

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Same here. The thing that really stung was when folks I'd successfully helped move to Signal moved back to WhatsApp when they dropped SMS support.
I now have a fairly even split of about 10 or so folks I regularly chat with on each — but WhatsApp is still very much the default for arranging events with normal people or when meeting someone new.
I feel like it's not just about privacy anymore though. Now it feels like a moral imperative to reduce the dominance of these corps.

2025-01-09 08:08:02 UTC

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Oh, that's interesting. I'll try that.
edit: nope, still falls foul.
edit2: others have detailed it here: https://github.com/PrivSec-dev/banking-apps-compat-report/issues/53

2025-01-09 08:06:50 UTC

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I have. I used your guide on problematic apps here, to no avail: https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/8330-app-compatibility-with-grapheneos
Lloyds is one of them as detailed here: https://discuss.grapheneos.org/d/8888-banking-apps-have-updated-and-are-now-complaining-about-root
I appreciate this is because of the heinous integrity API, but I have these two devices in front of me right now and it works fine on Calyx but not on Graphene.

2025-01-08 23:17:45 UTC

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I have a tiny bit of remorse over having spent so much on a whim, but whatever, it's an awesome device.
Graphene so far seems flawless. I loved Calyx but that had some jank and frequent bugs with each update, but Graphene appears to have zero jank.
One irksome thing is that Graphene's app sandbox is interpreted by some banking apps' root detection so they don't work — but they all did with Calyx using microG.

2025-01-08 23:10:57 UTC

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I think it's 'solved' in that the fold is barely noticeable now, but Reddit indicates failures are still prominent.
Fwiw I had a Flip 3 and used it caseless and without the screen protector it shipped with, and it took about two years before the fold showed signs of wear — but it never failed; my dad still uses it now.

2025-01-08 23:06:18 UTC

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Pixel 9 Pro Fold. It's ludicrously priced but very nice.

2025-01-08 19:44:35 UTC

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Well, this is excellent!
Graphene is lovely too. Feels a tad more 'complete' than Calyx to me.
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/113/794/440/475/702/893/original/7a85bbd5dd72edea.jpg

2025-01-08 17:11:15 UTC

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I haven't installed Graphene yet, but I had a bit of a play in stock Android and the device seems wonderful. Lichess is very nice to use on it :)

2025-01-08 16:26:58 UTC

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I've been using #CalyxOS for years, and my plan had been to move to a Fairphone or some other less FAANGy phone next, but that story about #GrapheneOS being Cellebrite-resistant and some whim about how good chess would be on this thing appealed to me in my sleep-deprived state.

2025-01-08 16:24:14 UTC

I'm not entirely sure about my logic here, but while in an insomnia-driven state of delirium the other night and after reading a certain important news story I decided buying this stupid thing and putting #GrapheneOS on it would be a good idea.
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/113/793/654/090/980/866/original/79abf896d6921c8f.jpg

2025-01-07 23:50:41 UTC

My hope for the coming year is that we figure out a good way to get people off WhatsApp and onto @npub1rkw…5q62.

2024-12-14 18:13:04 UTC

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Thank you for posting this and thank you for your excellent response.
There's no end to how insidious Russian manipulation is in trying to shift views, and there's much too much apologia for it online — including on the Fediverse.
Being open and transparent about it like this is super helpful in combating it.

2024-12-05 19:35:04 UTC

Lots of Spotify Wrapped posts doing the rounds.
I'm the cantankerous old git urging you to please disassociate from streaming platforms and to buy music instead.

2024-11-26 22:24:24 UTC

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We're in a new era where foreign policy might be dictated by how well we can embellish a toddler, and in that vein I support this Ukrainian MP.
But still... 😬

2024-11-26 21:02:41 UTC

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😬

2024-11-20 18:04:17 UTC

A pal made me a HIMARS pen holder for some of my #FountainPens!
Might paint a Ukrainian flag on it 🤔
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/113/516/590/095/447/486/original/524b2da821d9bbbd.jpg

2024-11-13 17:31:58 UTC

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Can confirm rhys.wtf's only downtime through this eventful year was the time I accidentally removed my user from the sudoers file and had to restore from backup.

2024-11-07 14:57:27 UTC

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I concur.
Someone needs to find a way to build a cultural counterbalance to X, to Rogan, to YouTube, and others.
Disassociating from big tech and these awful voices online isn't enough if the goal is actually to win elections and swing the world back toward goodness.
The thing is, I haven't the foggiest idea how to do any of that, and certainly not to a sufficient extent to overcome the power of the uber wealthy backing the other side.

2024-11-06 12:12:28 UTC

My gosh, Badenoch is atrocious at #PMQs.
It's a terrible format for her, directly exposing her brand of posture- and theatrics-based politics. She's letting Starmer look as adept as Blair at the despatch box.
#UKPolitics #UKPol

2024-10-23 07:14:47 UTC

I'm hating how much of my life is dominated by #Fortinet right now.
It's gotten a bit easier now some media outlets are reporting on it, mainly based on @npub1lcc…lcye's toots, but good grief, what a mess.
On the plus side, it's encouraging my place to finally start taking vendor assessment and how we architecturally position vendor appliances a bit more seriously.

2024-10-17 09:40:51 UTC

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Picturing Sunak having his brunch, smashing his fist on the table and wailing through tears of rage seeing that more people in the North will be afforded access to modern, fast, green public transport.
The only major thing he accomplished in power was cancelling the northern leg of HS2. I hope we end up building it all in full to fully trash his shit legacy, and at the northern leg's opening we erect a statue of him being shat on by a giant Greggs pasty to celebrate.

2024-10-17 09:32:34 UTC

Hell yes!
It looks like Sunak's axing of phase 2a will be reversed, with #HS2 running from Euston right through to Crewe!
Usual drivel from the lunatic-right Taxpayers' Alliance opposing it in the commentary, but this sounds firm.
#UKPolitics #UKPol
https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/hs2-london-euston-to-crewe-labour/

2024-10-16 01:56:31 UTC

In the last day he's danced in a daze for 40 minutes at a rally, had two disastrous and unhinged interviews, and now he's accusing Democrats of... banning cows and windows.
I mean, I'm sure all the folks who love him for his fascism won't mind, but I think we're witnessing a remarkable breakdown here. He's always been insane, but now I think he's reaching the point of being pathologically so.
#USPolitics #USPol #Trump
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/15/trump-democrats-cows-windows

2024-10-15 18:17:16 UTC

Holy shit.
I'm not in principle opposed to spy cops, but I am opposed to them being misused.
In this case, a spy cop infiltrated an environmental group got embroiled in a libel case between them and McDonald's, got his hands on their confidential legal advice, and his superiors at Scotland Yard then shared it with McDonald's.
On its own that's bad enough, but it's made sensational by their barrister having been the future Prime Minister.
#UKPolitics
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/oct/15/undercover-policeman-admits-spying-on-keir-starmer-when-he-was-a-barrister

2024-10-09 19:20:39 UTC

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His bad is the current controversy in your view? Paying off staff who wanted to leave seems like WordPress themselves aren't going to walk things back.

2024-10-09 17:21:36 UTC

After all that, the Tories learned nothing. It's down to the two most right wing candidates. The membership will pick the most right wing and they'll be out of power for ~10-15 years.
It's amazing such a terrifically stupid party was allowed to run the country for so long, virtually unopposed.
#UKPolitics
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cje343q1zy8o

2024-09-21 07:23:41 UTC

"We've always done it this way."
https://youtu.be/si9iqF5uTFk

2024-09-11 04:05:06 UTC

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I love this so much.
The 'childless cat lady' line is one born purely of spite, epitomising the 'the cruelty is the point' ethos of MAGAism. Seeing that pointless cruelty come back and bite them in the ass is just delicious — and hopefully something of a turning point, should it lead to Americans rejecting the bullying and spite that's characteristic of Trumpism.

2024-09-11 02:57:39 UTC

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Eating dogs and cats was the funniest for me I think.

2024-09-05 14:35:02 UTC

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That graphic appears to have a small error.
At the top it lists an individual Russian propagandist as being named, "Scott Ritter," whereas I believe the proper name with which to refer to that specific Russian propagandist is, "Convicted child sex offender Scott Ritter."

2024-08-23 09:55:31 UTC

Celebrate the season, folks. Do loads of Big Shits.
https://mastodon.rhys.wtf/system/media_attachments/files/113/010/710/567/840/088/original/995fd73b907a3b07.jpg

2024-08-10 09:11:35 UTC

I'm happy for her and love her attitude in this piece, but I wish journalists were more prudent in their reporting and made clear that:
- the IBA is a Russian organisation,
- there's no evidence a 'gender test' ever took place,
- the organisation hasn't specified the type of test it was or released its results, and,
- there's evidence the decision to ban the two boxers was taken on a whim by its CEO and General Secretary.
#boxing #gender #olympics #ol24 #ParisOlympics
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/aug/10/i-am-a-woman-imane-khelif-hits-back-in-gender-row-after-claiming-gold