About the Author

Last update : 17/2/2023

Personal intro

First, lemme list some things about me:

• Somehow careful enough not to drop devices 90% of the time, yet occasionally clumsy enough to drop other stuff - pry tools, ballpoint pens, typos.
• A pessimistic man in his 20s
The word "man" above may refer to either human or male. Definitely the former tho.

• Totally not lazy, just not easily inspired
• Might have too many hobbies to the point they clash with everything
• Tries to embrace pragmatism in life as much as possible (while trying to avoid as much bad stuff as possible)
• Still reorganizing personals at the moment
• La Weeblist
• Contact infos

Then, here's the list of shit I like:

• Gundam, & by extension, GunPla. Mainly SEED, but also 00 - I like their Gundam designs. Universal Century's cool too, up to Unicorn's era. Don't get me started on Build Fighters series, that shit's story is too cheesy (but at least there's some good ones, such as Lightning Gundam).
• Games, mainly offline ones (I particularly like action, adventure, racing, RPG, and visual novel). The only online game I could stand is Fate/Grand Order, mostly due to the obscenely rich character roster & storyline. Though at some point I felt that it was too much (the compromises I had to deal with in return for being able to play FGO), so I ended up quitting (and went back in again thanks to some unwanted influence).
• The Fate series (nasuverse). No matter where you start, you're getting spoilers of something at some point, so start wherever you like (or start with the Fate/Stay Night visual novel & spend hundreds of hours reading a visual novel).
• Simple & easy to use software. I prefer open source, but closed source is fine as long as it doesn't phone home.
• Reading stuff - that got me stuck in Fate/GO and Rainstorms in July.

And, on the flip side, here's the list of things I abhor:

• Tobacco products like cigars, cigarettes, etc.. They smell like toxic shit & causes a shit-ton of issues (such as health, financials, ethics, etc.).
• Privacy-hostile software, regardless whether they're proprietary / not. Admittedly, a good chunk of these privacy-hostile stuff are proprietary, but then again...
• Onions - not the T.O.R. onion, but the edible onion.
• Shit music played in public areas.
• Streaming media, such as Netflix & Spotify.
• DRM (digital rights/restriction management). I also mentioned Netflix & Spotify above, so let me link Stallman's article regarding Netflix & Spotify.
• Social media, particularly dis-social media like Fashebook, Twatter, Instaounce. This unfortunately means I am probably going to remain absent from the Fediverse.
• Game cheats - sure, it's probably fun to play with cheats. However, there's no glory in winning games with them. That's something I discovered long ago, back when I was playing Mario Kart on a DS with cheats. Initially, I enjoyed the win, but I felt unsatisfied at the same time, as if I'm unfairly steamrolling through what should and/or could have been a challenge.
TL;DR : I'm not cool with using cheats, though I'm not opposed to its development.


• Cellphones. It all started with me starting to really like Android in the Oreo era (which eventually led me to the Poco F1), flashing ROMs starting with Pie (all just to make Fate/GO work on the F1, which initially didn't in MIUI because I forgot to disable ADB), getting serious about it in A10 (losing AppOps but getting a proper theme customization in return), and beginning to hate it in A12 with Material "Papa Goolag WILL not let you theme" You, and really hating it with A13 finally combining keyboard vibration with navbar & app drawer.

The dates on the site uses the DD-MM-YYYY format.

My devices

Here are the list of the devices I'm using, along with their current functions & what they're currently running. It mostly mirrors my cellphone list, but with the previously mentioned additions, in addition to their live/dead status.

Currently active cellphones :

• Xiaomi Poco X3 Pro - Official crDroid 8.12 24/12/2022; 4.14.302 NoGravity kernel 3.1.0

The current pocket box to replace the rather unsatisfying X3N (in terms of performance).

• Xiaomi Poco F1 - Official crDroid 8.12 19/12/2022; 4.9.336 NoGravity kernel 4.1.0

Currently serving as my personal Fate/GO machine, as it was supposed to be. Otherwise, it is too versatile for its own good & I would be indiscriminately flashing it if I wanted to.

• Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC - Official LineageOS 19 2/1/2023; 4.14.302 Deluxe kernel

As much as I would like to admit I don't know what to do with the X3N, at the moment of writing (11/1/2023) I am using it to play around with Skyline, a Nintendo Switch emulator.

• LG V30 (US998) - Unofficial LineageOS 19.1 15/8/2022; 4.4.302 stock kernel

Currently serves as a backup music player.

Currently active computers :

• ASUS ROG Strix G531GD

Currently used for PC gaming.

Windows 10 "Pro" 2004, tuned up to disable forced updates; with stock BIOS/UEFI

• Lenovo Thinkpad T470

Currently used for working on the site, as my daily driver PC.

Artix Linux with stock BIOS/UEFI

• Lenovo Thinkpad X270

Not sure what I'll be using it for, especially if the X220 gets fixed.

Artix Linux with stock BIOS/UEFI

• Lenovo Thinkpad X220

Artix Linux with modded stock BIOS/UEFI

The Switch "ecosystem" :

• Nintendo Switch V2
Since Skyline isn't fully convincing for me at the moment, I decided to get my own Switch (and leave the OLED Switch to the sibling who brought it from Japan). The soldered USB-C port sucks.


• Ipega PG-SW006 Joycon

Other peripherals (a.k.a. the rest of my so-called "ecosystem") :

• Anker Powerline+ USB-C to USB-A 3.0 (0.9m)
A decent USB-C to USB-A cable for everyday purposes (cellphone charging, USB debugging, data transfer).


• Audio-Technica ATH-M50X (with aftermarket cable that supports mic & media controls and a Brainwavz earpad)
Obtained by trading in my CalyxOS-infested Pixel 3 to a friend who regretted buying the M50X out of hype. So far, it's kinda profitable for both of us - he gets a performant (albeit restrictive) FGO cellphone; while I get a decent (but underwhelming) wired headphone (and a fixed up X220).


• BlackShark FunCooler BR11
Mostly used to cool down cellphones when charging and/or gaming, hooked up to some from-the-box USB cable. Cannot be attached if the cellphone is docked to DualSense with phone clamp.


• j5create JUCX01 USB-C to USB-C
Pretty much the best (according to personal anecdote about it lasting for upwards of 3 years) USB-C to USB-C cable I've ever used (mostly thanks to a positive review from some USB C reviewer in Google+ / the botnet named after a rainforest), dating back to 2018 (and still charging my USB-C devices).


• Moondrop Chu (with mic)
For something that costs as much as a quarter of my Sennheiser Momentum (or somewhere around the Hammerhead V2's price at the place I got them), I somehow liked it better. Build quality is only slightly worse than the Momentum (owing to a fiddly earhook & lack of strain relief at the y-splitter; not to mention a lack of interchangeable cables that Chi-Fi fans consider unacceptable), but the audio, fit, and noise isolation seals the deal for me, making the Chu my newest daily driver... at least for now. Let's just hope it lasts longer than just 2 years.


• Sandisk microSD cards
• 64GB Sandisk Ultra (without A1) to store stuff for testing; formatted in exFAT to test out AetherSX2 before it lands on my X3P.
• 256GB Sandisk Extreme for my daily driving (mostly storing music, some PSP & PS2 games, and setup files) on the X3P; formatted in exFAT to accomodate larger PS2 games
• Sandisk Dual Drive OTG (64GB)
• Sony DualSense with Dobe phone clamp
Mostly used as an external controller for playing AetherSX2 / PPSSPP using the X3P, though occasionally used alongside DS4Windows for playing some Windows games. The Dobe clamp is a bit janky in terms of build quality (and also prevents mounting phone coolers), but works fine for keeping the X3P & DualSense together; while the controller works finely (mostly when plugged in to X3P with a C-to-C cable, though the headphone needs to be plugged in the X3P's jack after the controller or there will be no audio).


• UGREEN USB-A / USB-C 2-in-1 microSD/SD card reader
• Ultimate Power TC108 Elite
Kinda like my old RAVPower charger, but trades in 2 USB-A ports for another USB-C port that pumps out 100W on its own, or 60W if both USB-C ports are used at the same time. The blue LED can be disturbingly bright at bedtime.


• Razer DeathAdder Essential
Razer's entry-grade mouse. Works finely on Linux & Windows (didn't bother trying it on Android), although it'll prompt to install Razer Synapse (only once, AFAICR) on the latter if it's plugged in while the PC is online.


• Sennheiser Momentum Wired In-ear G
Pretty much my primary in-ear of choice... until I tried out Moondrop Chu. Decent sound & buttons (although the buttons may not work on Android if you got the i variant); and a rather pleasant red/black accent (if you didn't get the chrome version; the chrome version seem more stealthy).

The graveyard (dead / given up stuff) :

• OnePlus 3T
It was the phone for the soydev stuff I can't be bothered to link to my personal stuff, until it fell to its demise.


• Asus Zenfone 6 2019 (ZS630KL / I01WD)
The OG pocketbox, until it was given up as spare parts due to its unreliability.


• Google Pixel XL
Once used as the clearnet communications device (proprietary soydev stuff that I don't link to my personals), until its death by inability to find replacement display.


• Google Pixel 3 - official CalyxOS (locked bootloader)

My first attempt on GrapheneOS & CalyxOS, the 2 ROMs known to support bootloader relocking. Given to Bob for his online game stuff in return for a helping hand with my X220 & a headphone he regretted purchasing.

• RAVPower 60W 5-port USB wall charger with USB-C
Decent charger for cellphone, but not so much for laptops; which tend to require 65W & higher (the USB-C port on the RAVPower can only supply up to 45W). Traded in for the Ultimate Power TC108 Elite.


• Razer Hammerhead Pro V2
It's not a bad in-ear headphone, if you can ignore the gaudy green cable, subpar buttons, & questionable noise isolation. 2/7/2022 Update : It died. Not going to be missed.


• Sony Xperia XZ1 (AU SOV36; sealed bootloader)
In theory, the XZ1 has a good potential of reaching at least #3. However, due to the sealed bootloader, I cannot give the XZ1 any kind of modifications. In conclusion, it's useless for me, so I gave it up as spare parts.


• Xiaomi Mi A2
Yes, turns out I have an unfortunate habit of destroying phones, particularly those with my SIM card. Turns out SD660 isn't as performant as I liked.


• Xiaomi Mi A1
The 2nd device I've modded, now dead. Rest in bits, you won't be missed.

Current & tentative device wishlist :

• None for now.

Opinions regarding some stuff

Here's some of my opinions about some other things I otherwise won't even mention in this site.

Open source vs proprietary

Most of the time, I prefer open source, especially if I'm already used to using it; since they are more accessible than proprietary stuff. However, I also use proprietary software if the open source equivalents aren't good enough to convince me to switch from my proprietary software of choice.

As an example for Android, I've tried AIMP, Vanilla Music, Simple Music Player, Symphony, & Phonograph (and various other Android music apps), & I stuck with AIMP since I feel that the others weren't good enough IMO; though I eventually switched to Simple Music after AIMP ruined itself.

As someone who used both proprietary & open source software, I can say that I don't really care about it being open source or not, as long as it is simple to access & does what I need it to do without it getting in my way.

Piracy

Not only do I not believe in piracy (as it currently stands, not what it used to be centuries ago), I believe the word "piracy" is used to vilify sharing.

To celebrate my support for piracy, I'll link /r/piracy & /r/FREEMEDIAHECKYEAH for more information (though I'll probably make my own page about this in the foreseeable future).

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