DEV Community: wendygostudio

Convert WebP to JPG Locally in Chrome

wendygostudio — Mon, 10 Aug 2026 17:04:27 +0000

WebP is efficient for the web, but some editors and publishing systems still ask for JPG. ConvertForge handles the change locally in Chrome:

Drop in the WebP file.
Select JPG.
Set quality deliberately.
Check dimensions and transparency.
Compare the downloaded result before replacing the original.

The file stays in the browser during conversion. Full guide: https://wendygostudio.com/blog/convert-webp-to-jpg-locally-chrome/

How to Build a Focus Ritual in Chrome Before a Pomodoro Session

wendygostudio — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 16:50:41 +0000

Starting is often harder than the work. A focus ritual reduces the choices between opening Chrome and doing the first useful action.

Try this four-step setup:

Write one observable outcome.
Choose a realistic 15 or 25 minute block.
Keep necessary research open and restrict only the sites that distract you.
Start the smallest action immediately.

SlimeForge connects that ritual to the session: goals, projects, the optional Focus Shield and the companion all stay in one local-first workflow. Read the full guide: https://wendygostudio.com/blog/focus-rituals-pomodoro-chrome/

Safe Margins for Social Media Images: A Chrome Workflow

wendygostudio — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 16:49:51 +0000

Social platforms crop the same image differently. The easiest way to avoid clipped headlines and logos is to treat the final crop as a separate preparation step.

This short workflow uses FrameForge in Chrome:

Start from the finished local image.
Choose the destination preset before judging the crop.
Keep the focal point and important text away from the edges.
Remove tiny edge-dependent details.
Export a clean copy and check it at the size people will see.

The result is a repeatable, private handoff from design to publishing. FrameForge processes the image locally, so the margin check does not require an account or an upload.

Read the full guide: https://wendygostudio.com/blog/safe-margins-social-media-images-chrome/

Convert a Markdown Table to Plain Text in Chrome

wendygostudio — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 16:49:50 +0000

Markdown tables are useful in a repository but awkward in email, tickets and terminals. A small local cleanup workflow can remove the pipes and alignment row without damaging the values.

Paste the raw table.
Remove the separator row.
Normalize spacing and wrapped lines.
Choose one stable separator.
Check a sample row before exporting.

TextForge keeps this cleanup in the browser and does not require an account. Read the full guide: https://wendygostudio.com/blog/convert-markdown-table-plain-text-chrome/

Pomodoro Focus Shield for Chrome: Protect the Block, Not the Whole Browser

wendygostudio — Thu, 06 Aug 2026 14:17:21 +0000

A focus shield should protect the block, not your whole browser

Blocking every distracting site sounds productive until the work itself needs research, documentation or a team chat. The useful version of a focus shield is narrower: protect the current Pomodoro block while leaving the context that makes the task possible.

A practical setup looks like this:

Define one observable outcome for the block.
Choose a duration you are likely to finish.
Add only the two or three sites that repeatedly pull you away.
Review the list during the break, not every few minutes.

The distinction matters because a shield is a focus aid, not a security boundary. If it blocks legitimate context, you will disable it. If it adds a small amount of friction to the sites you open automatically, it can help the work block win that first decision.

SlimeForge combines a Pomodoro timer with an optional Focus Shield. Sessions can be 15, 25, 45 or 60 minutes, and a companion grows as completed blocks accumulate. The core experience is local-first and does not require an account. Optional on-device AI depends on browser and device support.

The best shield is the one you barely notice while working. Keep the list task-specific, leave essential tabs available and use the break to adjust the next block.

Full guide: Pomodoro Focus Shield for Chrome.

Focus Timer with a Virtual Pet: When Visible Progress Helps

wendygostudio — Wed, 05 Aug 2026 14:09:37 +0000

Why a focus block can be more motivating when it leaves a visible trace

Most timers make a completed session disappear. You hear a bell, the counter resets, and tomorrow looks exactly like today. That is fine if the habit is already automatic. It is less helpful when the difficult part is returning to the task.

A different pattern is to keep the work block as the real unit, then add a small, immediate feedback loop around it. A virtual companion can make the completed block visible without turning focus into a points spreadsheet. The timer still measures attention; the companion simply gives the finished work a place in the story.

In practice, the routine is simple:

Choose a short block you can actually finish.
Write one observable outcome before starting.
Work until the bell instead of checking the reward layer.
Review progress during the break, then decide whether to repeat.

This distinction matters. Gamification should reduce the friction of starting, not create another dashboard to maintain. If the pet becomes more interesting than the task, move all companion interactions to the break and keep the timer front and centre.

SlimeForge applies this local-first approach to a Pomodoro timer. Completed sessions help a small animal-slime grow, while missions and gentle streaks make consistency visible. The extension works without an account, and optional on-device AI depends on browser and device support. Focus Shield is a focus aid, not parental-control software.

The useful test is not whether the reward feels exciting forever. It is whether it helps you complete the next block long enough for the habit to become easier on its own. A plain timer may be the right tool once that happens; a companion is simply one way to bridge the gap.

Read the full guide: Focus Timer with a Virtual Pet.

SlimeForge 1.9.13: Focus Sessions That Grow With You

wendygostudio — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 23:57:21 +0000

SlimeForge 1.9.13 makes focus feel like visible progress.

Every completed Pomodoro helps a tiny animal-slime companion grow. You can choose 15, 25, 45 or 60 minutes, add a goal, and use Focus Shield to gently warn you about distracting sites or block them until the session ends.

The update also brings a larger world around the timer: daily missions, gentle streaks, minigames, a garden, a wardrobe, Pack Mode for up to three companions, and expeditions with materials and relics to discover.

Optional on-device AI can help turn a vague goal into a practical next step. The model runs locally when supported by the browser and device.

SlimeForge requires no account and includes no tracking. The free version includes the complete timer, basic Focus Shield and a weekly expedition.

Try SlimeForge: wendygostudio.com

Why a Gamified Pomodoro Timer Can Make Focus Easier to Restart

wendygostudio — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 15:18:09 +0000

Why a Gamified Pomodoro Timer Can Make Focus Easier to Restart

Most Pomodoro timers solve the countdown problem. They tell you when to work, when to pause, and when the session is over. That is useful, but it leaves out the part that determines whether you open the timer tomorrow: the feedback loop.

A gamified Pomodoro timer connects a finished session to visible progress. Instead of resetting to zero after every 25 minutes, your effort becomes something you can see and return to. The reward does not need to be large. It needs to arrive immediately and make the next session feel worth starting.

What changes when the timer remembers your effort?

A plain timer gives you a sound and a number. A gamified timer can give you:

a streak that reflects completed sessions;
a companion or collection that grows over time;
small milestones between longer-term goals;
a reason to come back that is separate from willpower.

That distinction matters during the first weeks of a new routine. Motivation is usually weakest before the behavior becomes automatic. A visible reward makes the result of one session concrete, which lowers the friction of starting the next one.

The important design choice: effort, not spending

Gamification only helps if the reward system reinforces the behavior you want. In SlimeForge, focus sessions earn Brasas, the in-extension currency used for progression. Random progression is earned through focus; real-money purchases never buy a random outcome. That keeps the loop tied to the habit instead of turning progress into a spending mechanic.

The timer remains the main tool. The companion is a motivation layer, not a replacement for the work. If missions or collection screens become distracting, keep them between sessions and return to the countdown.

A simple routine to try

Start with 25 minutes, complete the session, and look at the immediate result before deciding whether to continue. After a few days, compare completed sessions rather than total hours. Consistency is easier to maintain when the measure is small enough to repeat.

The best timer is the one that makes the next focused session easier to begin. A virtual companion will not create discipline by itself, but it can turn an abstract streak into a visible routine.

Read the full guide with more details on wendygostudio.com.

Sanitize a MikroTik RouterOS Config Before You Share It

wendygostudio — Sat, 25 Jul 2026 21:04:12 +0000

MikroTik just shipped RouterOS 7.21.5 (long-term) and 6.49.20 on July 6, which means a lot of sysadmins pulled a fresh /export this month to diff against their old config. Good moment to check what's actually in that file.

Here's the thing: RouterOS already hides your passwords. By default, /export masks everything on a documented list of "sensitive" fields — WireGuard keys, RADIUS secrets, PPP passwords, SNMP community passwords, IPsec keys, VRRP passwords, around forty fields total. You only see the real values if you explicitly add show-sensitive to the command.

That's a genuinely good default. It also creates a false sense of security, because masking a fixed list of parameter names doesn't touch anything outside that list.

What's still sitting in a "clean" export:

every IP address, subnet and WAN peer endpoint you've configured
interface and VLAN comments — the ones where someone typed the client's name or an internal system label
RADIUS, NTP, DNS and SNMP server addresses (the address, not the secret — but still not nothing)
SNMP community names, when they're descriptive strings instead of passwords
system identity, routing peers, firewall address-lists

None of that is a bug on MikroTik's side. Their own configuration management docs show real-looking internal subnets in the export examples, because topology is exactly what an import needs to reconstruct. It's just not something you necessarily want sitting in a public forum thread next to your WAN IP.

The habit that actually closes the gap

Export like normal — you don't need show-sensitive for a support request or a forum post, so just leave it out. Then run the output through something that catches credential-shaped strings specifically, not just RouterOS's predefined field list. I built this into ScrubForge (a config sanitizer I work on) specifically because the "twelve vendor syntaxes, one workflow" problem shows up constantly: Cisco, FortiGate, MikroTik, Juniper, Palo Alto configs all have this same shape — real secrets sitting next to real topology, and only the topology is actually useful to whoever's helping you debug.

Before:

secret="Sup3rShared" address=10.20.0.1
private-key="wG9K...=="

After:

secret=[RADIUS_SECRET_1] address=10.20.0.1
private-key=[WG_KEY_1]

The peer address stays. That's what matters for troubleshooting. The secret doesn't need to be there at all.

One-line habit: whatever platform you're posting to — a vendor forum, a support ticket, a Slack channel with an AI bot in it — sanitize before you paste, not after someone points out you shouldn't have.

📖 Read the full guide with more details on wendygostudio.com

Your Pomodoro Break Is Stealing the Next Session

wendygostudio — Wed, 22 Jul 2026 14:12:58 +0000

A five-minute Pomodoro break should make the next focus session easier. Too often, it does the opposite.

You finish a sprint, open a social feed “for a minute,” and return twenty minutes later. Or you never leave the desk at all, so the timer becomes one long block with occasional alarms.

The useful middle ground is a bounded break: an activity that changes your physical or mental state and has a natural stopping point.

Use the return test

Before choosing what to do, ask:

Will this make it easier to begin the next session on time?

That one question rules out most infinite feeds, inboxes and “quick” chores. They create new decisions and have no reliable endpoint.

8 break ideas that fit inside five minutes

Stand and stretch your shoulders, wrists and hips.
Refill your water and return by the same route.
Look outside and focus farther away than your screen.
Walk one fixed lap around your room or office.
Open a window and take several slow breaths.
Clear only the surface immediately around your keyboard.
Write one sentence describing the next action in your task.
Sit or stand for one minute without consuming content.

The common feature is not relaxation. It is finishability. Each activity can end without negotiation.

Leave a restart cue

The best return begins before you stand up. Save your work and leave a tiny instruction:

“Continue from paragraph three.”
“Rename the remaining columns.”
“Test the empty-state branch.”

This removes the first decision from the next session. You do not have to reconstruct your context while the timer is already running.

Match the break to the work

After detailed screen work, move and rest your eyes. After physical work, sit and slow down. After a difficult conversation or creative block, choose quiet instead of adding more input.

A timer can enforce the boundary, but a repeatable ritual makes it easier to respect. Tools such as SlimeForge add a local focus session and a virtual companion that progresses with your routine, creating a visible transition without requiring an account.

The goal is not to find the most entertaining five-minute activity. It is to recover enough energy while protecting the next start.

The full guide includes twelve ideas, a comparison table and a reusable break menu:

Read the complete Pomodoro break guide on Wendygo Studio

When 'Warranty Expired' Isn't the End of an EU Claim

wendygostudio — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 16:40:21 +0000

Support said “warranty expired.” The product was only fourteen months old.

That answer sounds final, but in the EU it may be answering the wrong question. A manufacturer's commercial warranty and the legal guarantee attached to your purchase are not the same thing. If a product is faulty or does not work as advertised, the seller may still have responsibilities even after a one-year manufacturer warranty ends.

Here is the workflow I would use before sending another frustrated reply.

Build a small evidence file

Save the invoice, order confirmation and original product listing. Add photos or a short video of the defect, then write a timeline with delivery date, first sign of the problem, troubleshooting attempts and every contact with support.

A five-line timeline is more useful than five angry paragraphs. It gives a complaints manager—or a consumer body later—a case they can understand quickly.

Ask what they actually rejected

Reply in writing and ask whether the decision concerns:

the voluntary commercial warranty;
the EU legal guarantee;
alleged accidental damage or misuse; or
a store return policy.

These are different issues. A closed return window does not necessarily resolve a faulty-goods claim. Likewise, “the manufacturer only covers one year” does not by itself explain what happened to your rights against the seller.

Ask for the factual reason and any evidence behind it. Keep the language calm. The goal is to remove ambiguity and create a clean written record.

Request a concrete remedy

Do not finish with “please help.” State what you want.

Repair or replacement is commonly the first step under EU rules. Ask for the practical remedy to be completed free of charge, within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience. A refund may become relevant when repair or replacement is impossible, refused, disproportionate or not completed reasonably, but it is not always the automatic first option.

National law can add protection, so check the official consumer guidance for your country before relying on a template.

Escalate in order

If frontline support repeats the rejection, ask for the complaints team or a manager. Use the trader's formal process and keep proof of submission.

For a cross-border purchase, your national European Consumer Centre may be able to help with a trader in another EU country, Iceland or Norway. Depending on the case, alternative dispute resolution or a small-claims route may follow.

Tools can help organize the response. We built ClaimForge to structure consumer-rights letters and analyze seller replies locally in the browser. It is an assistant, not a lawyer: always review the draft and adapt it to your country and evidence.

The useful shift is simple: stop treating the rejection as a customer-service argument. Treat it as a documented claim with a legal basis, a requested remedy and a clear escalation path.

📖 Read the full guide with more details on wendygostudio.com

Why I Switched From CloudConvert (And You Might Too)

wendygostudio — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 15:48:24 +0000

For years, CloudConvert was my go-to converter. 200+ formats, solid API, worked reliably. But one day I noticed the nagging feeling: I was uploading photos, PDFs, and confidential work docs to a third-party server multiple times a week, and paying for the privilege once I hit my 25 free conversion minutes.

There had to be a better way.

The CloudConvert Limits That Got Me

The 25 free minutes per day sounded like enough until I converted a single 20-minute video and realized I'd burned most of my quota. Converting my entire photo library from HEIC to JPG? I had to spread it across multiple days.

Then there's the privacy angle. Every file—photos of my kids, scanned insurance documents, work spreadsheets—goes through their servers. They delete them afterward (supposedly), but uploading is an extra step I shouldn't have to take for a simple format change.

Also: no offline support. No internet = no conversions.

Here's What I Use Now

I ditched CloudConvert for a mix of tools based on what I'm actually converting:

For everyday file conversions (HEIC → JPG, PDF text extraction, CSV ↔ JSON), I use ConvertForge—a Chrome extension that runs entirely in your browser. Nothing leaves your device. It's weird that this wasn't my first instinct: the tool I needed was available locally the whole time.

For video and audio, I use FFmpeg when I'm scripting batch jobs. When I want a GUI, HandBrake handles the heavy lifting.

For documents (DOCX, spreadsheets), LibreOffice converts locally without uploads.

The Privacy Shift

The biggest win? I stopped uploading files to cloud converters entirely. Sounds paranoid until you realize:

You don't need a web service for format conversion anymore—your browser can do it
Command-line tools (FFmpeg, ImageMagick) run on your machine and work offline
Local tools have no daily limits or file-size caps

The Trade-off

CloudConvert still wins if you need 200+ format combinations or an API. But most people convert the same 5–10 formats repeatedly: photos, PDFs, audio, CSV/JSON, spreadsheets.

For that—local tools are cheaper (free), faster (no server round-trip), and way more private.

If you're tired of uploading every file you convert, try a local alternative. You might be surprised how much you never actually needed the cloud.

📖 Read the full guide with more details on wendygostudio.com/blog/cloudconvert-alternatives/