Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
I've updated my Choose Your Own Adventure Tic-Tac-Toe Zine for a larger half-page sized version that you can print double-sided. I created these for PyCon US 2025 and wrote about the Python code for generating it in a previous blog post.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
Satyrn AI is a project from the Python and Jupyter community to develop local models with a Python-focus. I think it has great promise to figure out local AI-assisted coding from trusted, free resources. You can find more information on https://satyrn.ai. I'll be updating this blog post with the latest instructions for downloading and running these models with Ollama or other local model software.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
Brython Offline is a single .html file that contains Brython, the browser-based Python interpreter, and a simple tabbed file editor. Now to do basic Python exercises you don't need to install Python, just open this one html file in a browser. No ads. No registration. No subscription. You can right-click and save the page and own it forever.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
laptop_battery_status is a pure Python package for getting the battery status of your laptop. It reports the battery charge, the time remaining, and whether the computer is plugged in. It works on Windows, macOS, and Linux and runs on Python 3.5 and later. Install with pip install laptop_battery_status. Git repo.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
The Guy I Almost Was by Patrick S. Farley is a web comic published in 2009 about living through (and becoming disillusioned with) 80s and 90s cyberculture. It perfectly captures a certain vibe that you'd have it you were a certain type (male, middle class, gen x or elder millennial) when we would naively say things like "information longs to be free". It's about the promise of the internet and personal computing meeting the economic reality that most people didn't have the disposable income to buy the electronic toys required to participate.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
Similar to my scroll art concept, this Flip Dot Display visualizer tool mimics the flip dot displays you see on buses and other large signs. The tool can be fed a list of [x, y, pause] triplets detailing which dot to toggle and how long of a pause to employ after the flip. The idea beind this tool is that beginner programmers can write programs that generate the animation sequences for interesting binary bitmap artwork. There's over 50 demo transitions (where each dot is flipped exactly once) built into the visualizer tool, but you can also load in your own animation sequences to play. I plan on making some programming tutorials or challenges that use this tool.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
I've redesigned my ScrollArt.org website, The Scroll Art Museum. Scroll art is made from program loops and print() to generate endless, scrolling animations. They are suitable for beginners learning to program, but can grow into boundless sophistication and creativity. The website is now set up to be more friendly for browsing or to leave running full screen as a display. I've also added some new pieces, with other pieces in the works.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
I've created a new blog where I post random notes that might be useful for others. Mostly it's resources and lists I've had LLMs generate. It is Detour Through the Junk Drawer
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
If you've ever had to spell something out over the phone by saying, "D as in Dog", you've reinvented the NATO Phonetic Alphabet. This is an international standard set of words for letters in cases where you are likely to be misheard. Every now and then I like to practice it by reading out words using it. I'd always look up the Wikipedia page for a reference but I wanted an easy, offline reference as well. I generated simple shell scripts for macOS, Windows, and Linux so that when you enter nato into a terminal window, you get a reference. You can also give the scripts text to spell out as well: nato foo produces Foxtrot Oscar Oscar.
Posted by Al Sweigart in misc
A small, browser-only utility for converting subtitle and transcript files between VTT, SRT, and TXT. Everything runs locally in the browser. Files are never uploaded to a server. Free, and the entire app is one html file that works offline. Run the app in your browser.