The latest articles on DEV Community by sk8162053-hash (@sk8162053hash). https://dev.to/sk8162053hash https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4055570%2F54f08074-96bd-4dcb-bb07-c2cf466a7ea8.png https://dev.to/sk8162053hash en sk8162053-hash Thu, 30 Jul 2026 18:48:12 +0000 https://dev.to/sk8162053hash/i-built-a-free-privacy-first-file-compressor-converter-that-runs-entirely-in-your-browser-26a4 https://dev.to/sk8162053hash/i-built-a-free-privacy-first-file-compressor-converter-that-runs-entirely-in-your-browser-26a4 <h2> The Problem </h2> <p>Most online file compression and conversion tools require uploading your files to a server. For personal photos, exam documents, or client files, that's not always comfortable — you're trusting a third-party server with your data, even if temporarily.</p> <p>I wanted a tool that does everything <strong>locally in the browser</strong> — no uploads, no server processing, no signup friction.</p> <h2> What I Built </h2> <p><strong>Mini Compressor</strong> (<a href="https://minicompressor.online" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://minicompressor.online</a>) is a free web app that handles:</p> <ul> <li>🖼️ <strong>Image compression</strong> — JPG, PNG, WebP, with target-size input (compress to exactly 50KB, 100KB, etc.) instead of guessing quality percentages</li> <li>📄 <strong>Document conversion</strong> — PDF ↔ Word, PDF ↔ PNG, PDF/Word → Excel</li> <li>🔒 <strong>100% client-side processing</strong> using the Canvas API and libraries like pdf.js and mammoth.js — nothing ever touches a server</li> </ul> <h2> Tech Stack </h2> <ul> <li>React + Vite</li> <li>Canvas API for image processing</li> <li>pdf.js for PDF parsing</li> <li>mammoth.js for Word document parsing</li> <li>Deployed on Vercel</li> </ul> <h2> Why Target-Size Compression? </h2> <p>Most compressors only offer a quality slider (10%-100%), which means trial and error to hit a specific file size requirement — something I ran into constantly with exam forms and job application portals that enforce strict KB limits (a very common requirement in India for competitive exams like SSC, UPSC, NEET).</p> <p>So instead, Mini Compressor lets you type in your target size directly (e.g., "50KB") and it iteratively adjusts compression to get as close as possible.</p> <h2> What's Next </h2> <p>I'm actively improving the document conversion accuracy (formatting fidelity is genuinely hard to get right in-browser vs. server-side tools like LibreOffice), and considering adding OCR support for scanned PDFs.</p> <p>Would love feedback from this community — especially if you've tackled similar client-side file processing challenges!</p> <p>🔗 Try it here: <a href="https://minicompressor.online" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://minicompressor.online</a></p> webdev javascript opensource react