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After a month or so in the AMO review queue, ImageTweak 0.19 is finally available. Current users should be notified of the update soon.

To learn what’s new in 0.19, read this post. To download the latest version please head over to AMO.

Having recently bought a netbook (MSI U123) I had to readjust my browsing habits since normally I work on a 24″ Dell 2407WFP with a resolution of 1920×1200, whereas the MSI has a meager 10.1″ at 1024×600.

As a result I had to tweak my browser of choice to be able to work nicely on such a small screen. Fortunately enough, Firefox allows you to tailor almost exactly as you want, and to reclaim much of the needed vertical screen space.

So, let’s get started. read more »

One of the most exciting upcoming features of HTML5 is the ability to open persistent bidirectional sockets to a remote host.

As far as I know, one of the early proposals was about allowing web applications almost complete control over sockets, including the ability to create raw sockets and to listen for incoming connections exactly like a typical network daemon/server, but this proposal was later scraped because of security implications.

Fast forward to today and the Web Sockets API, even if still under development, are starting to get a stable shape and they will probably be implemented soon by the most forward-looking browser vendors.

The problem is, though, that the original proposal got crampled along the way and therefore there won’t be any means to create peer-to-peer connections between users, something that could enable all kinds of cool distributed systems.

That is, unless someone does something: what I’m thinking about right now is a kind of wrapper/extension around the Web Sockets API that does simply a few things:

1. allows a web application to register for incoming connections
2. opens up the required ports on the firewall/NAT
3. when a connection arrives, perform the handshaking required by the ws:// protocol and forwards a WebSocket object representing the connection to the application

Talking IDL, that would mean (the WebSocket interface is the current WHATWG proposal, while WebSocketListener is my addition):

[Constructor(in DOMString url, optional in DOMString protocol)]
interface WebSocket {
  readonly attribute DOMString URL;

  // ready state
  const unsigned short CONNECTING = 0;
  const unsigned short OPEN = 1;
  const unsigned short CLOSED = 2;
  readonly attribute unsigned short readyState;
  readonly attribute unsigned long bufferedAmount;

  // networking
           attribute Function onopen;
           attribute Function onmessage;
           attribute Function onclose;
  boolean send(in DOMString data);
  void close();
};

[Constructor(optional in short port, optional in DOMString protocol)]
interface WebSocketListener {
  readonly attribute short port;

  // ready state
  const unsigned short OPENING = 0;
  const unsigned short LISTENING = 1;
  const unsigned short CLOSED = 2;
  readonly attribute unsigned short readyState;

  // networking
           attribute Function onconnection;
  void close();
};

Talking about the Mozilla platform, points 1 and 3 are straightforward (once the Web Sockets API has been implemented), whereas point 2 will be platform-dependent and, therefore, trickier. Nevertheless, I think that all of this can be handled (with some work) by a Firefox extension.

Once Firefox will gain Web Sockets support I’ll definitely try to see if it is possible to add it.

Prompted by La Quadrature du Net, this is the letter I just sent to all Italian MEPs seating in the ITRE – you can find their mail addresses here. If you want to do the same, remember that the vote is expected to start today at 20:00 CET.

Salve,

mi chiamo Carlo Alberto Ferraris e sono uno studente di ingegneria delle Telecomunicazioni presso il Politecnico di Torino.

Le scrivo per attirare la Sua attenzione sull’emendamento 46 (ex-138) del “Telecom package” in discussione in questo periodo presso il Parlamento Europeo.

Come certamente saprà, Internet è nata con il preciso scopo di favorire e permettere gli scambi di conoscenza, conoscenza che è alla base stessa della pacifica e civile convivenza dell’intera società umana come sottolineato sin dai preamboli della Costituzione Europea¹ e negli articoli 12, 19, 26 e 27 della Dichiarazione Universale dei Diritti dell’Uomo.

Quanto in discussione in questo momento presso il Parlamento Europeo ha, a mio avviso, le potenzialità per minare gravemente alcune libertà che la stessa Unione Europea dichiara proprie. Per questo motivo, in primis come persona, come giovane e come italiano, spero voterà questo emendamento in piena coscienza e senza voler scendere a compromessi con essa.

La ringrazio per l’attenzione dedicatami, e porgo cordiali saluti.

Carlo Alberto Ferraris

¹ “CONVINTI che l’Europa, ormai riunificata dopo esperienze dolorose, intende avanzare sulla via della civiltà, del progresso e della prosperità per il bene di tutti i suoi abitanti, compresi i più deboli e bisognosi; che vuole restare un continente aperto alla cultura, al sapere e al progresso sociale; che desidera approfondire il carattere democratico e trasparente della vita pubblica e operare a favore della pace, della giustizia e della solidarietà nel mondo;”

Update: it looks like it worked.