Useful Products and Services
Here are some additional neat things I think people could benefit from, if they knew they were available.
Additional Browser Extensions
These extensions are linked to and for Firefox, but they or similar versions can likely be found on other browsers. Some of these are pretty overkill; these are just the ones I have installed. Here is a Firefox collection for all the extensions. My favorites and the ones that I especially recommend you to check out are in bold. All are free, open-source, and on most desktop and mobile platforms unless otherwise noted. Please note that having too many browser extensions, even if they are all privacy related, can actually be counterproductive to privacy (Li and Xie, Hoffman).
See also: Blocking Ads and Internet Privacy Extensions
| Extension | Description | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Customization | ||
| Adaptive Tab Bar Color | Changes the tab bar colors based on the site. | Desktop only. |
| Dark Reader | Auto generated dark mode for any website. This site should automatically disable it. | |
| Firefox Color | Browser themes. | Desktop only. |
| Tools | ||
| Absolute Enable Right Click & Copy | Allows you to right-click to save/copy things you couldn't before. | Not obviously open-source. |
| DownThemAll! | Allows for the bulk downloading of lots of files at once. | Desktop only. |
| Ruffle | Emulator for Flash player content. | |
| Swift Selection Search | Allows you to right-click to search for texts on search engines of your choice. | Desktop only. |
| Information | ||
| BoyCat | Notifies you of things you should boycott. |
Not open-source. Desktop only. |
| Consumer Rights Wiki | Be notified if products/companies have a page on the Consumer Rights Wiki. | |
| Wayback Machine | View archived versions of sites and archive them yourself with the Wayback Machine. | |
| Redirecting | ||
| Indie Wiki Buddy | Redirects depreciated and not recommended wikis to the better community maintained ones. | |
| Redirector | Allows you to set custom redirects. | |
| Code | ||
| External Application Button | Allows you to run commands locally based on content from the browser. | Desktop only. |
| Greasemonkey | Allows for custom scripts for websites. | |
Emulation
Emulators are systems that are capable of replicating the function of a device on another. Many exist for retro and modern video game consoles, allowing you to play console games on PC or mobile. Often, emulators allow for a better and more accessible gaming experience when compared to the original consoles or other methods that corporations intend for you to utilize, like ports, while being available on more devices. r/emulation and r/Roms are also good resources. Below are some emulators I recommend for Nintendo consoles, all of which are free and open-source:
See also: Nintendo
| Console(s) | Platform(s) | Emulator |
|---|---|---|
| Most consoles, all in one place | Most mobile and PC platforms, and from any browser | RetroArch |
| Switch | Most PC platforms | Ryujinx |
| Wii U | Most PC platforms | Cemu |
|
3DS New 3DS |
Most PC platforms and Android | Azahar |
|
DS DSi |
Most PC platforms | MelonDS |
|
GameCube Wii |
Most PC platforms and Android | Dolphin |
| Nintendo 64 | Windows | Project64 |
|
Famicom/Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) Super Famicom/Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) GameBoy (GB) GameBoy Color (GBC) GameBoy Advance (GBA) TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine Master System Game Gear WonderSwan |
Most PC platforms | Mesen |
Nintendo Switch Emulation
Ryujinx was an emulator for Nintendo Switch on PC, before it was taken down after the team was contacted by Nintendo. Despite its discontinuation and unfinished state, it was capable of playing most Switch games better than an actual Switch can. Note that you need a pretty powerful gaming PC to be able to play these games well. Free and open-source. Available on most PC platforms. Yuzu is also a good option (it was also taken down by Nintendo). To get Ryujinx set up on your device:
- Download the latest version of the emulator from here (for 64-bit Windows, download "win-x64.zip").
- Move the extracted folder somewhere you'd like to keep it.
- Get the prod.key file and the firmware update zip from your hacked Switch.
- Get the "Amiibo.json" file with your amiibos.
- Create folders to store your games, updates, and DLCs somewhere you'd like to keep them.
- Open Ryujinx.exe. It will open a command prompt window, and then the UI menu will open.
- In Ryujinx, navigate to File > Open Ryujinx Folder.
- Navigate to .../Ryujinx/System and place the prod.keys file there.
- Create a folder called "amiibo" at .../Ryujinx/system/amiibo and place the Amiibo.json file there.
- In Ryujinx, navigate to Tools > Install Firmware > Install a firmware from XCI or ZIP.
- Select the firmware zip file.
- In Ryujinx, navigate to Options > Settings > User Interface > Game Directories.
- Add your game directory there.
- Once your games are loaded, add the updates and DLC to each game that has them by right-clicking the game > Manage Title Updates/Manage DLC and adding the update/DLC files from where ever you stored them.
- Check out the settings at Options > Settings.
Other Things
Free Stuff
You're likely familiar with thinks like loyalty programs and deals in apps with your favorite stores and corporations. If they sound too good to be true, that's because they are. It isn't done out of the goodness of the company's heart, it's so they can get consent to harvest and sell your personal information. I understand still wanting to sign up for them, times are hard and money is tight. If you are going to sign up for those kinds of programs, use fake information and a second email or phone number.
Epic Games and Steam give out free games as often as weekly, although sadly the best way I've found to be notified of the drops is through the Discord bot FreeStuff. Rewards programs often get you free stuff, although whether it is ethical to hand over your data to the big companies in order to get them is debatable. Also debatable is the use of Amazon Luna to get free games (added directly to your collections on platforms like EGS, Steam, and GOG), Twitch Prime to give free subs to your favorite creators, and Google Play Points to get free app-related things. Both are included with an Amazon Prime membership. Hopefully you don't have one, but if someone you know does and they aren't going to claim the free games and subs you might as well. While it does require you to use Amazon's services, if you don't claim them then they'll get the money from the subscription but never need to pay out. It's up to you if that justifies it.
GitHub and GitLab
Sites like GitHub and GitLab look scary at first if you aren't a techy person, but they aren't as threatening as they look. If you ever come across something you really want to use that's only on one of them and you don't know how to use it, first check for any guides on the project itself. Most projects contain a Read Me section that you can see by scrolling down on the main page. This Read Me section normally contains instructions on how to use the program. If the Read Me section isn't there, check the files for a file labeled as read me. If you still can't find it, look for the Releases section for any released versions of the program. Depending on the program, what you're looking for will often be there.
Kiwix
Kiwix is a service that allows you to download offline versions of many critical and crucial online resources like Wikipedia, Project Gutenberg, iFixit, MedlinePlus, Khan Academy, the Minecraft Wiki, and much more from their library then access them using their readers. You can download all of Wikipedia for just over 100 gigabytes. If you have an extra storage drive lying around, why not make use of it by backing up information in case of an internet outage or censorship? Free and open-source. Available on most mobile platforms, most PC platforms, most browsers, and from any browser.
Neocities
Neocities is a service that aims to bring back "the fun, creativity and independence that made the web great" (Neocities). You can use it to host your own personal site, for free, to help you get away from the centralized nature of social medias and platforms owned by billion-dollar corporations. You can use their tutorials to learn how to create your own site. Free and open-source. Available from any browser.
See also: Making a Site
RSS
RDF Site Summary/Really Simple Syndication (RSS) is a web feed that allows you to get a curated feed of things like news and updates. You can follow any given RSS feed using a reader. I use Read You (open-source, available on Android) to follow all the news services I enjoy and get notifications for a feed curated to me without needing to open a social media app or a designated app for each service.
You can get RSS feeds for:- Many sites by appending "/feed", "/rss", or ".rss" to the end of the normal URL (for example, ".rss" on Subreddits or with "/feed" on Substack)
- Any email newsletter by converting it using Kill the Newsletter!
- Lots of other things with RssEverything
Syncthing
Syncthing is a service that essentially allows you to have files on more than one device in a specific file location by synchronizing them. This can be used to back up files, as a free alternative to cloud storage that allows you to keep your files on your own hardware, or to sync things you want to access from multiple devices that need to be in a specific file location, like game save data. Free and open-source. Available on most mobile and PC platforms.