The Ghost Operator's Signal
Git is a powerful tool, but solo developers often inherit processes designed for large teams.
Corporate branching strategies solve coordination problems that an individual simply doesn’t have.
When you’re the only developer in the room, heavy processes become friction.
You don’t need gates, ceremonies, or complex merging rules to work effectively.
By DeadSwitch | The Cyber Ghost
“Your thoughts should never be anyone’s business. Encrypt the silence.”
In a world obsessed with sharing, I write to forget – not to be remembered by others. My journal isn’t a scrapbook for dopamine or a backup for someone else’s algorithm. It’s a log of operations, and operations require secrecy.
So I encrypt mine. With Emacs. In plain text.
This is how DeadSwitch keeps a daily log that even the digital gods can’t peek into.
Why Encrypt a Journal?
Because the mind is sacred.
Because ideas are weapons.
Because tomorrow’s threat often begins with yesterday’s leak.
Encrypted journaling isn’t about fear. It’s about respect – for your thoughts, your process, your silence.
The Setup – Emacs, Org-mode, and GPG
Here’s the toolbox:
org-cryptEmacs Configuration
Drop this into your config:
(require 'org-crypt)
(setq org-tags-exclude-from-inheritance '("crypt"))
(setq org-crypt-key nil) ;; uses your default GPG key
(org-crypt-use-before-save-magic)
This tells Emacs to automatically encrypt any headline tagged with :crypt: before saving.
Decryption happens only when you open the file – and stays in RAM.
A Sample Entry
* May 2025 :crypt:
** [2025-05-04 Sun]
- 5k run - 22:18 [2025-05-04 Sun 09:06]
- Cold shower - difficulty: easy [2025-05-04 Sun 09:28]
- New idea: Emacs Lisp for internal ops [2025-05-04 Sun 14:24]
Your operations, encrypted. Your timestamps, precise. Your log, protected.
Timestamps and Logging Shortcuts
C-c . – insert dateC-u C-c . – insert date and timeC-c ! – inactive timestampC-u C-c ! – inactive date and timeYou want traceability without noise. Emacs delivers.
Why Not Notion, Joplin, Obsidian, or Others?
Because I don’t trust clouds.
Because their encryption isn’t mine.
Because their sync means exposure.
Because when I type, I want code – not JavaScript trying to sell me my own thoughts.
Final Note
“Encryption is not paranoia. It is self-respect.”
Your mind is a fortress. Don’t leave the gate open.
By DeadSwitch — The Cyber Ghost
“The quiet ones don’t hate meetings. They just hate wasting time.”
– DeadSwitch
Meetings were once war rooms for big decisions, plans, and alignment. But somewhere along the way, they became something else – rituals that too often miss the mark.
At Tom’s IT Cafe, we don’t believe in tearing things down without building something better in its place. So here’s something built for you: a clear, practical Meeting Manifesto, born from years in tech trenches, conference calls, and silent frustrations. It’s made to help -not blame- and it works whether you’re a developer, a product owner, or a manager.
Let’s get back to meetings that matter.
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Continue reading “How to use Python virtual environments in Visual Studio Code?”Although home office was a thing for more than a decade for technologists, it came into a spotlight recently with the international lockdowns.
People formed two groups, the first group is those who support and like the home office and remote work, and the other group is convinced that work can only be done in an office with people in the organizational structure and with “real” visibility.
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Continue reading “How to read faster and boost the productivity?”
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