DEV Community: Jeffrey Hamilton

Every link you share has trackers in it (here's how to clean them)

Jeffrey Hamilton — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Have you ever copied a link from an email newsletter or an ad and pasted it into a chat? If you look closely at that URL, you'll see a massive tail of tracking parameters: utm_source, fbclid, gclid, mc_cid.

When you share that link, you're sharing tracking data. You're telling Facebook, Google, or Mailchimp exactly who clicked what, and from where.

So I built LinkClean — it strips all tracking parameters from URLs instantly. No sign-up, no tracking, works entirely in your browser.

Try it: https://linkclean-seven.vercel.app
Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/linkclean

How it works
Paste a URL (or a batch of URLs, one per line)
See the clean URL instantly
See what was removed — LinkClean tells you exactly which trackers it stripped
Copy the clean link with one click
It strips 40+ tracking parameters including:

Google: utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_term, utm_content
Facebook: fbclid, fb_action_ids, fb_ref
Google Ads: gclid, gclsrc, dclid
Mailchimp: mc_cid, mc_eid
Microsoft: msclkid
Amazon: tag, linkCode, linkId, camp
...and many more
The architecture
Zero backend. It's a static site hosted on Vercel. The URL cleaning happens entirely in your browser using the native JavaScript URL API.

All computation is synchronous (instant results)
Zero dependencies (the app is tiny)
Batch mode: clean 100+ URLs instantly
No tracking, no analytics, no ads
The privacy model
100% client-side — URLs never leave your browser
Zero network requests
No accounts, no tracking, no analytics
Open source — read every line of code
Try it
Live: https://linkclean-seven.vercel.app
Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/linkclean

Stop sharing tracking data when you share links.

Every photo you share online has hidden GPS data in it (here's how to fix that)

Jeffrey Hamilton — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 14:05:00 +0000

Every time you take a photo with your phone, it bakes invisible data into the file. This includes:

Your exact GPS coordinates (accurate to a few meters)
Your phone model and settings
The exact date and time
Sometimes your name and copyright info
When you post that photo to social media, a forum, or a listing, you're sharing all of that data with the world. Stalkers, doxxers, and data brokers exploit this constantly.

So I built ExifErase — it strips all hidden metadata from your photos before you share them. No uploads, no sign-up, 100% free.

Try it: https://exif-erase.vercel.app
Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/ExifErase
How it works
Drop a photo (JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC from iPhone)
See what's hiding — ExifErase shows you the exact GPS, camera, and date data embedded in the file
Erase it — one click strips all metadata
Download the clean photo
The best part: the stripping happens via the Canvas API. When you re-encode an image to a canvas, the metadata simply doesn't carry over. Your file comes out completely clean.

The privacy model
100% client-side — photos are processed in your browser
Zero network requests — your photos never leave your device
No accounts, no tracking, no analytics
Open source — read every line of code
Why this matters
If you post a photo of your house, your kid, or your car online, you're also posting a map to your location. ExifErase makes sure that doesn't happen.

Try it
Live: https://exif-erase.vercel.app
Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/ExifErase

Your photos are yours. The data inside them shouldn't be shared without your knowledge.

I got tired of 15 ad-filled dev tool websites, so I built one clean page

Jeffrey Hamilton — Tue, 14 Jul 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Every time I need to format JSON, decode a JWT, or generate a UUID, I end up on a different sketchy, ad-heavy website. I got tired of closing popups just to format my code.

So I built DevToys — 40 essential developer tools in one clean, fast, single page. No ads, no sign-up, no tracking.

🔗 Try it: https://devtoys-nu.vercel.app
📦 Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/devtoys

What's inside
40 tools including:

JSON Formatter — pretty/minify/validate
Base64 — encode/decode
JWT Decoder — header, payload, signature
Regex Tester — live match highlighting
UUID Generator — batch generation
Hash Generator — MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, SHA-512
Color Converter — HEX ↔ RGB ↔ HSL
Timestamp Converter — Unix ↔ human date
Cron Parser — human-readable schedule
Diff Checker — line-by-line comparison
...and 30 more (URL encoder, Lorem Ipsum, etc.)
The architecture
Zero backend. It's a static site hosted on Vercel. Every tool runs entirely in your browser using native JavaScript APIs.

All computation is synchronous (instant results)
Zero heavy dependencies (tiny bundle, loads immediately)
No tracking, no analytics, no ads
Mobile responsive
Try it
🔗 Live: https://devtoys-nu.vercel.app
📦 Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/devtoys

Bookmark it and never look for a dev tool website again.

I built a background remover that doesn't upload your photos (no $40/month)

Jeffrey Hamilton — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 19:21:49 +0000

Remove.bg is a great tool, but it has a problem: they upload your photos to their servers. For personal photos, product images, or sensitive pictures, that's not ideal.

So I built Cutout — an AI background remover that runs entirely in your browser. No backend, no uploads, no sign-up, no $40/month subscription.

Try it: https://cutout-murex.vercel.app
Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/Cutout

How it works
The app uses @imgly/background-removal, a powerful AI library that runs directly in the browser via WebAssembly.

When you drop an image:

The AI model downloads (one-time, ~40MB, then cached by the browser)
The model runs locally via WebGPU/WASM to segment the foreground
The background is removed, leaving a transparent PNG
You download the result
Your photo literally never leaves your device. There is no server.

Features
Instant removal: Drop a photo, get a transparent PNG in seconds.
Batch mode: Remove backgrounds from multiple images at once.
Background replacement: Keep it transparent, or add a solid white/black background for JPEG export.
Manual refine: If the AI isn't perfect, use the eraser/restore brush to clean up edges.
The privacy model
100% client-side — photos are processed in your browser
Zero network requests during processing (except the one-time model download)
No accounts, no tracking, no analytics
No server-side storage — there IS no server
Open source — read every line of code
Try it
Live: https://cutout-murex.vercel.app
Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/Cutout

Feedback welcome — happy to answer questions about the WASM model or the architecture.

File converter that never uploads your files?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Fri, 26 Jun 2026 17:13:59 +0000

Every online file converter — from Zamzar to CloudConvert to FreeConvert — does the same thing: they upload your files to their servers, convert them, and send them back.

For personal photos, videos, and sensitive documents, that's not great.

So I built ConvertIt — a file format converter that runs entirely in your browser. No backend, no uploads, no sign-up.

What it converts
Images: PNG ↔ JPEG ↔ WebP ↔ AVIF, HEIC → anything, GIF → video
Video: MP4 ↔ WebM, MOV → MP4, any video → extract audio
Audio: WAV → MP3, FLAC → MP3, M4A → MP3, any audio → MP3
Documents: PDF → images (PNG/JPEG), images → PDF, SVG → PNG
How it works
File type Engine How
Video ffmpeg.wasm Compiled to WebAssembly, runs in-browser
Images Canvas API + OffscreenCanvas Re-encode to target format
Audio Web Audio API + lamejs Decode → re-encode to MP3
PDF pdf-lib + pdfjs-dist Render pages or combine images
The architecture
Zero backend. It's a static site hosted on Vercel. There is no server — your files are processed entirely in the browser.

Browser (your device)
├── Drop file
├── Auto-detect input format
├── Show available output formats
├── Convert entirely in memory (Blob URLs)
└── Download result
↳ Files NEVER touch a server

Key technical decisions

1. Lazy-loaded heavy dependencies
ffmpeg.wasm is 32MB. We don't load it until you actually convert a video. Same for pdf-lib (PDFs) and heic2any (iPhone photos). Initial page load stays fast.

2. Auto-detection & routing
Drop a file → the app detects the format by extension and MIME type → shows only the relevant output formats. You can't convert a PNG to MP3, so we don't show that option.

3. Mobile memory safeguards
Mobile devices get stricter file size limits (100MB for video vs 500MB on desktop), and ffmpeg is terminated after each conversion to free memory.

4. Never return a larger file
If a conversion somehow makes a file bigger (rare, but happens), we warn the user but still allow it.

The privacy model

This is the whole point:

100% client-side — files are processed in your browser
Zero network requests during conversion
No accounts, no tracking, no analytics, no cookies
No server-side storage — there IS no server
Open source — read every line of code

Your files are yours. They shouldn't need to visit a server to be converted.

Try it

Live: https://convertit.vercel.app

Source: GitHub

Feedback welcome — happy to answer questions about the architecture or the ffmpeg.wasm setup.

I built a file compressor that never uploads your files (ffmpeg.wasm + Canvas + Web Audio)

Jeffrey Hamilton — Wed, 24 Jun 2026 16:57:12 +0000

I kept using online file compressors and realized they all upload your files to sketchy servers. For tax PDFs, personal photos, and sensitive documents — that didn't feel right.

So I built ShrinkRay — a file compressor that runs entirely in your browser. No backend, no uploads, no sign-up.

Try it: https://shrink-ray.vercel.app
Source: GitHub

What it compresses
Images: PNG, JPEG, WebP, AVIF, HEIC (iPhone photos), GIF, BMP
Video: MP4, WebM, MOV, MKV, animated GIF (via ffmpeg.wasm)
Audio: MP3, WAV, OGG, M4A, FLAC, OPUS
PDF: Re-renders pages as compressed images
3D Models: GLB, GLTF, STL, OBJ, PLY, FBX — with format conversion via Three.js
SVG: Minification (strips metadata, comments, whitespace)
Text/Code: JSON, HTML, CSS, JS, XML, YAML — minified + gzipped
Anything else: Gzip compression
How it works
File type
Engine
How
Video ffmpeg.wasm Compiled to WebAssembly, runs in-browser
Images Canvas API + OffscreenCanvas Re-encode at chosen quality/format
Audio Web Audio API + lamejs Decode → re-encode to MP3
PDF pdf-lib + pdfjs-dist Render pages → rebuild with compressed images
3D Three.js Format conversion (STL→GLB, etc.) + gzip
Text/Code Native JS + fflate Minify (strip comments/whitespace) → gzip

The architecture
Zero backend. It's a static site hosted on Vercel. There is no server — your files are processed entirely in the browser using WebAssembly and Canvas APIs.

text

Browser (your device)
├── Drop file
├── Auto-detect type (image/video/audio/pdf/3d/text)
├── Route to correct engine
├── Process entirely in memory (Blob URLs)
└── Download result
↳ Files NEVER touch a server
Key technical decisions

Lazy-loaded heavy dependencies

ffmpeg.wasm is 32MB. We don't load it until you actually drop a video. Same for Three.js (3D), heic2any (HEIC photos), and pdfjs (PDFs). Initial page load stays fast.

Multi-threaded ffmpeg when available

On browsers with SharedArrayBuffer (COOP/COEP headers), ffmpeg uses multiple CPU cores via Web Workers. Falls back to single-threaded automatically.

Pre-warm on desktop, skip on mobile

On desktop, ffmpeg starts loading the moment the page opens (so it's ready when you drop a video). On mobile, we skip this — the 32MB download would freeze low-RAM devices.

Never return a larger file

If compression makes a file bigger (happens with already-compressed files), we return the original instead. You never download a file larger than what you uploaded.

Mobile memory safeguards

Mobile devices get stricter file size limits (100MB for video vs 500MB on desktop), and ffmpeg is terminated after each conversion to free memory.

The privacy model
This is the whole point:

100% client-side — files are processed in your browser
Zero network requests during compression
No accounts, no tracking, no analytics, no cookies
No server-side storage — there IS no server
Open source — read every line of code
Your files are yours. They shouldn't need to visit a server to be compressed.

Try it
Live: https://shrink-ray.vercel.app
Source: https://github.com/JeffreyHamilton6399/ShrinkRay

Feedback welcome — happy to answer questions about the ffmpeg.wasm setup, the 3D conversion pipeline, or the architecture.