Jan-Lukas ElseApps and services I use🛡️ Infrastructure, Security & Network 💻️ Operating systems: Ubuntu 26.04 on the desktop, Fedora CoreOS and NixOS on servers 🔐 Passwords: Bitwarden with Vaultwarden 🛑 Adblocking: AdGuard Home and uBlock Origin in all browser 🔑 VPN: Tailscale, AdGuard, Surfshark 📮 Mail server: Self-hosted docker-mailserver 📆🙍🏻♂️ Calendar/Contacts: Baïkal with DAVx⁵ 📝 Blog: GoBlog (self-hosted and self-developed) 🔗 URL shortener: GoShort (self-hosted and self-developed) 📨 Communication & Browsing 📨 Mail clients…
Jan-Lukas ElseMy default apps in 2026Many are taking the start of the year as a chance to update their “default apps” lists. I created a post listing mine in 2023. But as I also had a list of “self-hosted services” I use, I decided to merge those lists, and you can find it on a subpage of my /uses-page now. There are also separate lists about the hardware and the browser add-ons I use. And I know, I should find an alternative for OneDrive. I was thinking about switching to a self-hosted OpenCloud with S3-storage at the latest wh…
Jan-Lukas ElseI have neglected my homepage for a while. But now I have deleted or updated a few pages, like the list with the hardware I use or the list with my self-hosted services. 🧹
Jan-Lukas ElseMy default apps in 2026Many are taking the start of the year as a chance to update their “default apps” lists. I created a post listing mine in 2023. But as I also had a list of “self-hosted services” I use, I decided to merge those lists, and you can find it on a subpage of my /uses-page now. There are also separate lists about the hardware and the browser add-ons I use. And I know, I should find an alternative for OneDrive. I was thinking about switching to a self-hosted OpenCloud with S3-storage at the latest wh…
https://justinvollmer.com/posts/2026/01/app-defaults-2026/App Defaults 2026All the cool kids, or at least Robb, Matt, and Jan-Lukas are updating their app defaults, something that started in the blogosphere back in 2023. And I can’t resist jumping on a fun bandwagon when I see one, and so… here’s mine! (honestly not much has changed since 2023 and 2024) ✉️ Mail Service: iCloud, Fastmail, Zoho, all with custom domains 📬 Mail Client: Apple Mail ☑️ Tasks: Todoist 📓 Notes: Obsidian 📰 RSS Service: Feedbin 🗞️ RSS Client: Fiery Feeds ⌨️ Launcher: Alfred ☁️ Cloud Storage: i…
Jan-Lukas ElseWhy I bought a new laptop 💻I just updated my Hardware Uses page. Recently, I bought a new notebook and today I reset my Surface Go and sent it to a trade-in portal. Why? For at least the next two years, I will have two households. One household shared with my girlfriend in her university town, and a second “commuter apartment” (my previous primary residence). So far, I’ve mostly used my desktop PC at home and my Surface Go on the road. When I do some programming, I mostly do it over SSH on my home server anyway. My Sur…
Jan-Lukas ElseMein November ‘22 im RückblickAuch der November ist nun rum und es ist Dezember und die Weihnachtszeit fängt an. Aber erstmal ein kurzer Rückblick in den November… Im November war viel los. Zu Beginn des Monats war ich noch für eine Weile bei meiner Familie, bevor ich dann zurück nach Braunschweig gefahren bin, um hier an einer Präsenzschulung im Büro (und einer Beerdigung) teilzunehmen. Es ging um Persönlichkeitstypen und hat bestimmt geholfen, das gegenseitige Verständnis in der Kommunikation ein bisschen zu verbessern.…
Jan-Lukas ElseMy November ‘22 in ReviewNovember is now over and it’s December and the Christmas season begins. But first a short review of November… There was a lot going on in November. At the beginning of the month I was with my family for a while before I went back to Braunschweig to attend a face-to-face training in the office (and a funeral) here. It was about personality types and surely helped to improve the mutual understanding in communication a bit. A few days later, I went to Kassel, where I worked in the new (still emp…
Jan-Lukas ElseUsing non-Apple hardware usually has one big advantage: Much better upgradeability. Even though my laptop isn’t as modifiable as the Framework Laptop (it was a lot cheaper, though), I just upgraded its battery from the 36 watt-hour version to double that, 73 watt-hours. Pretty good for a 14" laptop, I think. Based on past battery performance, this new battery should easily last 10 hours of my typical usage. Past upgrades: 16 GB to 40 GB memory, 512 GB to 1 TB storage.
Jan-Lukas ElseTwo years with my new laptop 💻It’s now about two years since I got my new laptop and replaced my Surface Go and my desktop computer with it to be more flexible when commuting. Here’s a small recap on why I’m so happy about my companion. I bought the GIGABYTE U4 UD for 449 € and since replaced the battery with a larger one (73 Wh — 45 €) and upgraded the memory (to 40 GB — 62 €) and storage (1 TB Crucial P5 Plus — 80 €). So in total, I spent about 636 € on it. As it’s based on the Clevo barebone L141PU, which is also used …
Jan-Lukas ElseI have neglected my homepage for a while. But now I have deleted or updated a few pages, like the list with the hardware I use or the list with my self-hosted services. 🧹
terrygrier@jlelse how is the real world battery life on the go. I …@jlelse how is the real world battery life on the go. I am so spoiled via the iPad.
jlelse@terrygrier Which device? My Surface Go (1. Gen): Quite good, I can use it multiple hours (ca. 4-6?) without a power outlet. Probably depends on the usage.
pimoore@jlelse How do you find Gitea? I read somewhere it was finicky to setup and manage, but I’m not sure if that’s just a one off. Does it offer compatibility with services that link to GitHub?
jlelse@pimoore I already use it for many years using Docker, IMO simple to setup. There are services that just offer GitHub or Gitlab integration and won't work with Gitea, but I don't use these. For GoBlog I recently switched back to GitHub with the main repo because of GitHub actions, but I still prefer Gitea to host my other repositories.
pimoore@jlelse Interesting, how are you using GitHub actions with relation to GoBlog?
Jan BoddezLiked https://jlelse.blog/micro/2022/05/2022-05-21-jnwyw.
jlelse@pimoore To test, build and publish the Docker images
Jan-Lukas ElseMy storage setupSince I use many different devices and want to access the same files from all of them, I run my “own cloud” at home with an Odroid-HC2 (a Raspberry 4 or similar device should work just as well). A 2 TB NAS hard disk (Seagate Ironwolf) is connected to the HC2, where all files are stored. Using Docker I have installed Nextcloud for files (documents, photos, etc.) as well as Gitea (code repositories). Encrypted incremental backups are done daily at night using restic and uploaded to Backblaze B2…
Jan-Lukas ElseIch habe schon genug GeräteEin Problem, das auftreten kann, wenn man sich in einer technikfokussierten Blase befindet ist, dass man öfter den Wunsch verspürt sich neue Hardware anschaffen zu wollen, obwohl man ja eigentlich schon alles hat was man braucht. Die Spezifikationen und Berichte und sonstiges, was man über ein neues Gerät hört, löst den Wunsch aus, es auch haben zu wollen. Dabei erfüllen alle Geräte, die ich besitze bereits alle meine Anforderungen und ich habe eigentlich keinen legitimen Grund mir ein neues …
Jan-Lukas ElseI already have enough devicesOne problem that can occur when you are in a technology-focused bubble is that you often feel the desire to buy new hardware, even though you already have everything you need. The specifications and reports and whatever else you hear about a new device makes you want to have it. All the devices I own already meet all my requirements and I have no legitimate reason to buy a new one. Especially since new devices often cost a lot of money. Money that I should perhaps rather save or invest in a h…