Author | Lightnews

McPhail

@mcphail.uk

120 followers 110 following 800 posts

Photon flinger. Stop male violence against women.

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · Jun 23

Looking to start #RetroGameDev for the ZX Spectrum, ZX81 or Spectrum Next? My devcontainer makes this easy on Windows, Linux or MacOS. Now available on GitHub!

github.com/mcphail/spec...

GitHub - mcphail/speccydev: Devcontainer for building programs for the ZX Spectrum and related 8-bit devices including ZX81 and Spectrum Next.

Devcontainer for building programs for the ZX Spectrum and related 8-bit devices including ZX81 and Spectrum Next. - mcphail/speccydev

github.com

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 23h

Here are some applications and services I've been using and enjoying lately. It is good to fight back against poor quality software and predatory businesses.

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 3d

I've made a blog post celebrating really great software

gld.mcphail.uk/posts/really...

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 3d

I've made a blog post celebrating really great software

gld.mcphail.uk/posts/really...

Reposted by McPhail

Marina Purkiss @marina-purkiss.bsky.social · 4d

A woman is killed by a man every 3 days in the UK...

78% are murdered by a partner/ex

Yet not once have I heard Reform talk about this

Not once have I heard them back measures to protect women’s safety

In fact, they voted against them...

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 5d

Plus, there's the ongoing brilliance of:

Project Bluefin (the best way to use Linux)
Mullvad (the best VPN service)
Proxmox (the hyperest of hypervisors)
Gitea (or forgejo, if you wish, GitHub alternatives)
Firefox (the only browser in town)

We're in a golden age. Fighting enshittification :)

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 5d

I grumble a lot about computers but over the past few weeks I've been hugely impressed by:

Immich (photo management)
Davinci Resolve (video editing)
libro.fm (more ethical Audible alternative)
Audiobookshelf (audiobook and podcast management)
Peertube (YouTube alternative)

Great stuff.

Buy audiobooks & support local bookstores

Libro.fm makes it possible for you to buy audiobooks directly through local bookstores.

libro.fm

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 5d

I've joined peertube.wtf who have been really good, but I suspect the tld would not be acceptable for the church?!

PeerTube.wtf

A PeerTube provider for general use, hosted in northern Europe.

peertube.wtf

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 5d

I've been impressed by peertube, surprisingly, but haven't used it for live streaming

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 6d

As far as breezes are concerned, looks as if we're in for a bit of a stiffie at the weekend.

A storm prediction chart, showing a long ovoid area extending from the Caribbean archipelagoes towards the UK across the Atlantic. To my, very immature, eyes it looks rather like a crude drawing of a cock and balls.

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 6d

Elvis Presley, Agatha Christie, Werner Heisenberg and Paul Robeson were still alive. It was ancient times.

Anyway, you can't mention the awful A.G. without compensating by linking to the greatest musical recording ever cut.

youtu.be/FvzNeh4Mq1o

The Flamingos - I Only Have Eyes For You

YouTube video by TahoeThom

youtu.be

Reposted by McPhail

ScottBatemanArt @scottbatemanart.bsky.social · 6d

"RetroSpectrum - Reloaded"

Digital collage made in Photoshop based on the glorious games of the Sinclair ZX Spectrum 😍

#zxspectrum #retrogaming #pixelart #8bitart

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 6d

Probably a sensible time to repost gld.mcphail.uk/posts/how-to...

How to Perform a Major Version Upgrade on Bluefin

I’ve been a happy Project Bluefin user for several weeks. I was excited to read the official announcement that the underlying Fedora OS has had a major version upgrade. I have gone through the upgrade...

gld.mcphail.uk

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Reposted by McPhail

L Break Into Program @breakintoprogram.co.uk · 7d

Started putting together some documentation and tutorials together for the Spectrum Next 3D engine. This is the first of many.

Next 3D Engine: Export from Blender

YouTube video by Break Into Program

youtu.be

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 7d

🎵 I was a Prince
Now I'm a funky 🎵

Reposted by McPhail

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 7d

I've recently bought a drone and have been enjoying flying, recording videos and taking photographs. I've written a wee blog post.

gld.mcphail.uk/posts/flying...

Flying a Drone in the UK

Recently, YouTube has been throwing me a lot of hiking and bikepacking videos. Some of the photography in them has been astonishing. In particular, I’ve been amazed by the quality of the aerial shots,...

gld.mcphail.uk

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 7d

I've recently bought a drone and have been enjoying flying, recording videos and taking photographs. I've written a wee blog post.

gld.mcphail.uk/posts/flying...

Flying a Drone in the UK

gld.mcphail.uk

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 8d

The irony of having terrible typos in this post is not lost on me. Damn you, Android keyboard!

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 8d

I won't post my referral code. I think the service is good enough to stand alone without such shenanigans, but curious to hear what authors think about it?

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 8d

I was introduced to libro.fm last week - a DRM-free audiobook Europe l store which appears to be a proper alternative to Audible.

Currently have books by @robinince.bsky.social, @profaliceroberts.bsky.social and @proffrancesca.bsky.social on wishlist. They claim to support local independent shops!

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 8d

This is a little film I made of some stunning scenery on and around Loch Ness. A bit of calm for a Monday morning. But, does the Monster make an appearance?

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 9d

A little bit of sunshine is needed, now the clocks have changed.

youtu.be/3tFy9b8ghsU

#scotland #lochness #inverness #drone #notthatsortofdrone #nature #djimini4pro

Loch Ness from the air, October 2025

YouTube video by njmcphail

youtu.be

Reposted by McPhail

Alan Pope @popey.me · 8d

The #Ubuntu Unity project is calling for developer support. A lack of available maintainers has led to critical bugs and no 25.10 release. They need help to fix the desktop and maintain the flavor for the 26.04 LTS.
discourse.ubuntu.com/t/regarding-...

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McPhail @mcphail.uk · 8d

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful

McPhail @mcphail.uk · 9d

A little bit of sunshine is needed, now the clocks have changed.

youtu.be/3tFy9b8ghsU

#scotland #lochness #inverness #drone #notthatsortofdrone #nature #djimini4pro

Loch Ness from the air, October 2025

YouTube video by njmcphail

youtu.be

Reposted by McPhail

ScottBatemanArt @scottbatemanart.bsky.social · 9d

An animated loop basd on the games of the ZX Spectrum 8 bit micro from the 1980s

This was made in photoshop and Blender and just a fun little tribute to my all time favourite home computer

#zxspectrum #retrogaming #pixelart #8bitart

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