The latest articles on DEV Community by athenis (@athenis). https://dev.to/athenis https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3928051%2Fb59b28b0-8653-412e-8cb2-44a3f2b21d29.png https://dev.to/athenis en athenis Tue, 12 May 2026 22:31:17 +0000 https://dev.to/athenis/i-built-compressly-because-most-image-conversion-tools-were-honestly-frustrating-380k https://dev.to/athenis/i-built-compressly-because-most-image-conversion-tools-were-honestly-frustrating-380k <h1> Compressly didn’t start as a startup idea </h1> <p>It started because I was tired of fighting image files.</p> <p>I was working on a game project and constantly dealing with formats like <code>.tga</code>, <code>.dds</code>, and random texture exports that half the software ecosystem still treats like forbidden knowledge.</p> <p>If you’ve touched game assets, modding, or 3D workflows, you probably know the routine:</p> <ul> <li>Windows preview breaks</li> <li>transparency disappears for no reason</li> <li>one tool opens the file but exports it wrong</li> <li>another requires a plugin from 2014</li> <li>and eventually you end up with 17 tabs open trying to convert one texture</li> </ul> <p>At one point my workflow genuinely looked like this:</p> <ol> <li>Export texture </li> <li>Realize Photoshop hates the format </li> <li>Open random GitHub converter </li> <li>Download ancient desktop app </li> <li>Accidentally install 3 toolbars </li> <li>Convert file </li> <li>Compression settings ruined anyway </li> </ol> <p>And somehow in 2026, online image tools are even worse now.</p> <p>Everything has:</p> <ul> <li>daily limits</li> <li>“credits”</li> <li>locked batch processing</li> <li>forced uploads</li> <li>compression paywalls</li> <li>signup walls</li> <li>“PRO EXPORT QUALITY™”</li> </ul> <p>...just to convert an image.</p> <p>Meanwhile they still don’t support half the formats developers actually use.</p> <p>That’s when I had the thought:</p> <blockquote> <p>Modern browsers are ridiculously powerful now.<br><br> Why are we still uploading files to random servers just to convert images?</p> </blockquote> <p>So I started building a small local-first tool for myself.</p> <p>That eventually became <a href="https://compressly.net" rel="noopener noreferrer">Compressly</a>.</p> <p>The whole thing runs locally in the browser using WASM, so:</p> <ul> <li>files never leave your device</li> <li>conversions start instantly</li> <li>no server queues</li> <li>and it even works offline after the first load</li> </ul> <p>Basically:</p> <ul> <li>no uploads</li> <li>no cloud dependency</li> <li>no waiting around</li> </ul> <p>I also wanted proper format support instead of “JPG to PNG and that’s it.”</p> <p>Right now it supports:</p> <ul> <li>WebP</li> <li>AVIF</li> <li>JPEG XL</li> <li>PSD</li> <li>DDS</li> <li>TGA</li> <li>HEIC</li> <li>PNG</li> <li>JPEG</li> <li>SVG</li> <li>BMP</li> <li>ICO</li> </ul> <p>Mostly because I got tired of hunting for tools that supported them reliably 😅</p> <p>The goal is pretty simple:</p> <blockquote> <p>Make image conversion fast, private, and actually usable again.</p> </blockquote> <p>If you want to try it:</p> <p>👉 <a href="https://compressly.net" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://compressly.net</a></p> <p>Also curious:</p> <p>What file format or asset workflow still causes you the most pain these days?</p> gamedev showdev sideprojects tooling