Desku

desku

Why? For me, self-hosting is like having my own personal playground where I can experiment, tinker, and learn. It’s a great way to explore new technologies, try out different setups, and have fun with my projects. As part of my job, I need to have a deep understanding of developer experience. The best way to build this understanding is to be the developer, both initial experience with any development tool, as well as day-to-day work with these systems. Self-hosting is in a way, building empathy with the developer community. Understanding differences, and good/bad versions. My main reason is “learning.” There are a bunch of other reasons one may choose to do this: Privacy: your data
Full control: You own it (well, both good and bad)
Cost-effective: (may not be always true, but mostly true) You Shouldn’t Do This… But if You Really Want to… I don’t suggest this route for the majority of the people. It’s hard, you’ll hit walls way more frequently than you want. You have to be a warrior. If your reason is similar to mine, go for it. There is a strong determining factor though, your connectivity. Let’s get started. I’ll start the connectivity, then the hardware and software. Sounds Common but Not So Common: It’s a Privilege to Be on Fios While high-speed internet has become more commonplace, it’s still a privilege, especially in the United States. We’re (I’m) definitely taking it for granted. I use Verizon Fios is a fiber internet service. If it wasn’t for this, I wouldn’t self-host my stuff. The big practical separation for Fios is how stable it is, regardless of the “mpbs/gbps” package you have. I used Fios in residential and office setups in New York City for years. I got off as I moved to different neighborhoods, and I really really missed it when I didn’t have it, even though I got 1gbps service packages from other providers. Back in the day when we used dial-ups and tried to play Half-Life (or Counter-Strike) online, your connection speed mattered but “lag” mattered even more. I lived in Turkey back then, and we had a cable internet provider vs ADSL services the difference was that you were getting super low lag/ping in cable network even though you were 1/4, 1/3th of the connection speed you had compared to other services that bragged how fast they were. Didn’t matter when playing online. I have 300/300mbps which is what’s called a “symmetrical” connection. 300mbps is already way higher than the average internet connectivity worldwide (although certain countries/cities regions have way faster networks, overall world citizen gets access to the internet at lower speeds). But it would be ok even if it was slower because it’s a Fiber network, and it’s symmetrical which means download and upload speeds are the same. Often, you see traditional ISPs advertise something ridiculous with high speeds like 500mbps, but it’s often only referred to as download speeds. And in the majority of consumer scenarios, this is fine. But you need the upload speed to be high and consistent/stable when you want to serve upstream. Hardware Since it’s hobby purposes, I initially searched some “old” servers (like servers sitting on racks) on eBay. Then I realized it had a million combinations of hardware components, like CPU architectures, and network interfaces. I quickly went down the rabbit hole of Reddit threads both fun and scary stories. These “serious” server hardware were electric eating, heating sources that are also giant, require space kinda machines turned me off, and I backed out quickly. Then I explored mini PCs, which are more common computers that could handle my applications really easily. Think like you’re looking for a computer that you could use, but instead, you just host stuff and it sits somewhere in your home in a closet, without being a fire risk or a thing that you need to worry about how to keep it cool. I bought an “HP Elite Desk Mini” which is a decent computer if I were to use it as my desktop. It has 16GB memory, an i7 quad-core CPU, and 510 GB SSD. I think I bought it under $150 on Amazon. You can go fancier with a much beefier machine with a few hundred dollars if you’re being much more serious about this. I’m thinking of buying another (same machine) and stacking them. The footprint of this machine is super small. It snuck under my Verizon router in a closet, has almost zero noise, and barely heats. I’m sure if I find an ARM version of this thing (or a Raspberry Pi) I can go smaller and have almost no heat but I’ve never seen overheating on these. Whether this machine is a good or bad hardware decision, it’s debatable, but I’m really happy a few years in. Software: Ubuntu & Docker The first thing I did was to clean it up and install Ubuntu (LTS). Almost bare-bones Ubuntu then right away docker installed. I have Nginx and PHP on it for some early play of a WordPress blog (not this one) but then abandoned it. I run almost everything exclusively in Docker (more on this below). I try to update & upgrade Ubuntu once a year. Nothing else. Access: Cloudflare Zero Trust The machine itself is completely closed to direct internet access. Its IP Tables don’t allow connections even from the local network (except SSH port accepts local network IP range). Traditionally, the machine needs to open ports outside, then have a router port forwarding and set up all public IP sort things. More than 2 decades ago, I did that with static IP from my ISP. Man, all the hustle… None of that is necessary anymore. I use Cloudflare Access and Tunnels which has an agent always running in the server, and from remote configuration, I can listen to any internal port (without opening it up) and forward the port directly to a subdomain of my domains. This shortcut the DNS works for me too. On top of that, most of my private apps run on subdomains that are protected by Cloudflare Zero Trust access (only me). I love Cloudflare’s feature that solves 2 to 3 problems at once. One might wonder, what happens if Cloudflare has an outage, and their Zero Trust tools stop working, does it open my apps to the public all of a sudden? No, because my apps are not open to the public in the first place. Zero Trust tunnel has to work in order to open it up to the public, and if Zero Trust authentication is down, the subdomain will also not be accessible (because it’s proxied through Zero Trust “application” record. Worst case scenario, I lose access to my private apps from outside. Even with that, I can SSH to my server and create a tunnel, port forwarding to the specific port the app is running. On a normal day, I simply join to Zero Trust network using Cloudflare’s desktop app WARP, which replaces VPN for me. All things considered, I’m sure there are still holes and paranoia in this plan. You can go through a more traditional route that is not any different than hosting this instance in Digital Ocean or AWS and replicate what you think is “more secure”, but I’m pretty happy with the baseline Cloudflare brings, and solves a few unnecessary things I have to take care (like no need to do reverse proxy for all apps I’m running). Deploy Apps: Portainer + Gitops I use Portainer to both set up deployments and manage my containers. Portainer is essentially a nice UI version of your docker command line tools. But where it shines is the gitops integration that integrates with GitHub via webhooks, so when I push any change to any of my app repos (which all have docker-compose.yml that includes their infra and application configurations), my apps get re-deployed by portainer. This makes spinning up a new app, or an open-source tool in my server, a breeze. I covered Portainer and its gitops integration in this article: Portainer + gitops ❤️: A simple way to deploy and manage your self-hosted applications Why? For me, self-hosting is like having my own personal playground where I can experiment, tinker, and learn. It’s a great way to explore new technologies, try out different setups, and have fun with my projects. As part of my job, I need to have a deep understanding of developer experience. The best way to build this understanding is to be the developer, both initial experience with any development tool, as well as day-to-day work with these systems. Self-hosting is in a way, building empathy with the developer community. Understanding differences, and good/bad versions. My main reason is “learning.” There are a bunch of other reasons one may choose to do this: Privacy: your data Full control: You own it (well, both good and bad) Cost-effective: (may not be always true, but mostly true) Privacy : your data Privacy Full control : You own it (well, both good and bad) Full control Cost-effective : (may not be always true, but mostly true) Cost-effective You Shouldn’t Do This… But if You Really Want to… I don’t suggest this route for the majority of the people. It’s hard, you’ll hit walls way more frequently than you want. You have to be a warrior. If your reason is similar to mine, go for it. There is a strong determining factor though, your connectivity. Let’s get started. I’ll start the connectivity, then the hardware and software. Sounds Common but Not So Common: It’s a Privilege to Be on Fios While high-speed internet has become more commonplace, it’s still a privilege, especially in the United States. We’re (I’m) definitely taking it for granted. I use Verizon Fios is a fiber internet service. If it wasn’t for this, I wouldn’t self-host my stuff. The big practical separation for Fios is how stable it is, regardless of the “mpbs/gbps” package you have. I used Fios in residential and office setups in New York City for years. I got off as I moved to different neighborhoods, and I really really missed it when I didn’t have it, even though I got 1gbps service packages from other providers. Back in the day when we used dial-ups and tried to play Half-Life (or Counter-Strike) online, your connection speed mattered but “lag” mattered even more. I lived in Turkey back then, and we had a cable internet provider vs ADSL services the difference was that you were getting super low lag/ping in cable network even though you were 1/4, 1/3th of the connection speed you had compared to other services that bragged how fast they were. Didn’t matter when playing online. I have 300/300mbps which is what’s called a “symmetrical” connection. 300mbps is already way higher than the average internet connectivity worldwide (although certain countries/cities regions have way faster networks, overall world citizen gets access to the internet at lower speeds). But it would be ok even if it was slower because it’s a Fiber network, and it’s symmetrical which means download and upload speeds are the same. Often, you see traditional ISPs advertise something ridiculous with high speeds like 500mbps, but it’s often only referred to as download speeds. And in the majority of consumer scenarios, this is fine. But you need the upload speed to be high and consistent/stable when you want to serve upstream. Hardware Since it’s hobby purposes, I initially searched some “old” servers (like servers sitting on racks) on eBay. Then I realized it had a million combinations of hardware components, like CPU architectures, and network interfaces. I quickly went down the rabbit hole of Reddit threads both fun and scary stories. These “serious” server hardware were electric eating, heating sources that are also giant, require space kinda machines turned me off, and I backed out quickly. Then I explored mini PCs, which are more common computers that could handle my applications really easily. Think like you’re looking for a computer that you could use, but instead, you just host stuff and it sits somewhere in your home in a closet, without being a fire risk or a thing that you need to worry about how to keep it cool. I bought an “HP Elite Desk Mini” which is a decent computer if I were to use it as my desktop. It has 16GB memory, an i7 quad-core CPU, and 510 GB SSD. I think I bought it under $150 on Amazon. You can go fancier with a much beefier machine with a few hundred dollars if you’re being much more serious about this. I’m thinking of buying another (same machine) and stacking them. The footprint of this machine is super small. It snuck under my Verizon router in a closet, has almost zero noise, and barely heats. I’m sure if I find an ARM version of this thing (or a Raspberry Pi) I can go smaller and have almost no heat but I’ve never seen overheating on these. Whether this machine is a good or bad hardware decision, it’s debatable, but I’m really happy a few years in. Software: Ubuntu & Docker The first thing I did was to clean it up and install Ubuntu (LTS). Almost bare-bones Ubuntu then right away docker installed. I have Nginx and PHP on it for some early play of a WordPress blog (not this one) but then abandoned it. I run almost everything exclusively in Docker (more on this below). I try to update & upgrade Ubuntu once a year. Nothing else. Access: Cloudflare Zero Trust The machine itself is completely closed to direct internet access. Its IP Tables don’t allow connections even from the local network (except SSH port accepts local network IP range). Traditionally, the machine needs to open ports outside, then have a router port forwarding and set up all public IP sort things. More than 2 decades ago, I did that with static IP from my ISP. Man, all the hustle… None of that is necessary anymore. I use Cloudflare Access and Tunnels which has an agent always running in the server, and from remote configuration, I can listen to any internal port (without opening it up) and forward the port directly to a subdomain of my domains. This shortcut the DNS works for me too. On top of that, most of my private apps run on subdomains that are protected by Cloudflare Zero Trust access (only me). I love Cloudflare’s feature that solves 2 to 3 problems at once. One might wonder, what happens if Cloudflare has an outage, and their Zero Trust tools stop working, does it open my apps to the public all of a sudden? No, because my apps are not open to the public in the first place. Zero Trust tunnel has to work in order to open it up to the public, and if Zero Trust authentication is down, the subdomain will also not be accessible (because it’s proxied through Zero Trust “application” record. Worst case scenario, I lose access to my private apps from outside. Even with that, I can SSH to my server and create a tunnel, port forwarding to the specific port the app is running. On a normal day, I simply join to Zero Trust network using Cloudflare’s desktop app WARP, which replaces VPN for me. All things considered, I’m sure there are still holes and paranoia in this plan. You can go through a more traditional route that is not any different than hosting this instance in Digital Ocean or AWS and replicate what you think is “more secure”, but I’m pretty happy with the baseline Cloudflare brings, and solves a few unnecessary things I have to take care (like no need to do reverse proxy for all apps I’m running). Deploy Apps: Portainer + Gitops I use Portainer to both set up deployments and manage my containers. Portainer is essentially a nice UI version of your docker command line tools. But where it shines is the gitops integration that integrates with GitHub via webhooks, so when I push any change to any of my app repos (which all have docker-compose.yml that includes their infra and application configurations), my apps get re-deployed by portainer. This makes spinning up a new app, or an open-source tool in my server, a breeze. I covered Portainer and its gitops integration in this article: Portainer + gitops ❤️: A simple way to deploy and manage your self-hosted applications Portainer + gitops ❤️: A simple way to deploy and manage your self-hosted applications

How I Hosted My Hobby Projects From a Cheap HP Mini Desktop From My Closet (Verizon Fios)

What is OpenFDE? OpenFDE (Open Fusion Desktop Environment) is a new Linux desktop environment design exploration project, similar to KDE and GNOME, focusing on enhancing the user experience from login to runtime. The difference is that the graphical part of OpenFDE is based on AOSP, which can bring more rich application software and games to Linux, provide the same use experience of Android and Linux applications, and a unified and novel Linux desktop application development model. At the same time, the OpenFDE open source community has also been established, and we hope to bring together the open source power of everyone to jointly expand the Linux ecosystem. Our highlights Linux&Andorid fusion OpenFDE connects the AOSP framework and runtime environment to the standard Linux kernel, so that everyone can experience the latest Android applications on Linux. Of course, existing Linux GUI and command line applications can also coexist and natively share together. At the same time, in order to ensure the interoperability of Android and Linux applications, OpenFDE integrates the network, file system, clipboard, and input method of the two, so that the two can share and communicate. 2. Developer friendly OpenFDE provides complete Android development environment and tools so that developers can directly develop mobile applications on the OpenFDE platform without additional adaptation costs and support the synchronous update and release of desktop software and mobile software so as to achieve the goal of bringing higher social value at a lower social cost. At the same time, OpenFDE inherits the Android API design framework so that the two follow a unified set of peripheral and power management APIs. This can greatly alleviate the problems of coexistence of API versions and generations, and more random and chaotic modifications in the use and development of graphical interfaces. About us We are the developers and users of the linux operating system, we love Linux, but also face various challenges. In order to solve the problem of hardware and software compatibility, development ecology and other deficiencies, but also to improve the user experience and promote the breakthrough of the Linux ecosystem, we created OpenFDE — a new open source converged desktop environment. We know that our project is not perfect, our team is not strong enough, but we have confidence, passion and ideals. We hope that by establishing the OpenFDE open source community, we can gather more forces and jointly build a free and open communication platform and the best open source desktop environment. No matter who you are, no matter what you do, if you are interested in Linux, we welcome you to join us. Let’s work together, innovate together, and contribute to the Linux desktop environment together! If you are interested, visit OpenFDE’s website (openfde.com/en) to learn more. What is OpenFDE? What is OpenFDE? OpenFDE (Open Fusion Desktop Environment) is a new Linux desktop environment design exploration project, similar to KDE and GNOME, focusing on enhancing the user experience from login to runtime. The difference is that the graphical part of OpenFDE is based on AOSP, which can bring more rich application software and games to Linux, provide the same use experience of Android and Linux applications, and a unified and novel Linux desktop application development model. At the same time, the OpenFDE open source community has also been established, and we hope to bring together the open source power of everyone to jointly expand the Linux ecosystem. Our highlights Our highlights Linux&Andorid fusion Linux&Andorid fusion OpenFDE connects the AOSP framework and runtime environment to the standard Linux kernel, so that everyone can experience the latest Android applications on Linux. Of course, existing Linux GUI and command line applications can also coexist and natively share together. At the same time, in order to ensure the interoperability of Android and Linux applications, OpenFDE integrates the network, file system, clipboard, and input method of the two, so that the two can share and communicate. 2. Developer friendly 2. Developer friendly OpenFDE provides complete Android development environment and tools so that developers can directly develop mobile applications on the OpenFDE platform without additional adaptation costs and support the synchronous update and release of desktop software and mobile software so as to achieve the goal of bringing higher social value at a lower social cost. At the same time, OpenFDE inherits the Android API design framework so that the two follow a unified set of peripheral and power management APIs. This can greatly alleviate the problems of coexistence of API versions and generations, and more random and chaotic modifications in the use and development of graphical interfaces. About us About us We are the developers and users of the linux operating system, we love Linux, but also face various challenges. In order to solve the problem of hardware and software compatibility, development ecology and other deficiencies, but also to improve the user experience and promote the breakthrough of the Linux ecosystem, we created OpenFDE — a new open source converged desktop environment. We know that our project is not perfect, our team is not strong enough, but we have confidence, passion and ideals. We hope that by establishing the OpenFDE open source community, we can gather more forces and jointly build a free and open communication platform and the best open source desktop environment. No matter who you are, no matter what you do, if you are interested in Linux, we welcome you to join us. Let’s work together, innovate together, and contribute to the Linux desktop environment together! If you are interested, visit OpenFDE’s website ( openfde.com/en ) to learn more. openfde.com/en openfde.com/en

AOSP and Linux Cross Border Convergence! Look at OpenFDE, New Open Source Linux Desktop Environment

Desktop customization is a fun activity that many of you have likely tried at least once. There are various customization options, such as changing the boot screen logo, the start menu icon, or transforming the entire Windows interface to resemble macOS. Today, we are about to discuss one such customization, which is setting a different background wallpaper for each desktop (or monitor) in Windows 11 and 10 for aesthetics, productivity, creativity, or any other reason. Setting Different Backgrounds for Each Desktop on Windows 11, 10 In Windows, there is no limit on the number of desktops you can create from Task View (though more desktops will consume more system resources), allowing you to create as many desktops as you want and set different wallpapers for each. To customize which wallpaper appears on each desktop, 1. Press Win+Tab to open Task View. All your existing desktops will be listed below, with a "+" option to create more. 2. Right-click on the respective desktop (in my case, "Desktop 2") whose background wallpaper you want to change, and then select "Choose background" from the context menu. 3. It will redirect you to the "Personalize your background" section for that desktop, where you can choose a wallpaper from the recent images or select a new one from the file explorer. 4. Once the new background wallpaper for the desktop is set, you can confirm the changes by visiting the desktop. 5. To verify that each desktop has its own separate background wallpaper, you can take another peek into the Task View using Win+Tab shortcut. That's it! You've successfully set a different background wallpaper for each desktop on Windows 11 and 10. Bonus Tip! You can directly change the desktop background wallpaper from your current desktop by navigating to "Settings" -> "Personalization" -> "Background" and then right-clicking on any image to open a context menu with the "Set for desktop" option, allowing you to change the background wallpaper of your preferred desktop. Wrap Up That’s how you can change the background wallpaper for each desktop on Windows 11 and 10. You can further change all of your existing desktops background wallpaper by following this method. Desktop customization is a fun activity that many of you have likely tried at least once. There are various customization options, such as changing the boot screen logo, the start menu icon, or transforming the entire Windows interface to resemble macOS. Today, we are about to discuss one such customization, which is setting a different background wallpaper for each desktop (or monitor) in Windows 11 and 10 for aesthetics, productivity, creativity, or any other reason. Setting Different Backgrounds for Each Desktop on Windows 11, 10 In Windows, there is no limit on the number of desktops you can create from Task View (though more desktops will consume more system resources), allowing you to create as many desktops as you want and set different wallpapers for each. To customize which wallpaper appears on each desktop, 1. Press Win+Tab to open Task View. Win+Tab All your existing desktops will be listed below, with a "+" option to create more. All your existing desktops will be listed below, with a "+" option to create more. 2. Right-click on the respective desktop (in my case, " Desktop 2 ") whose background wallpaper you want to change, and then select " Choose background " from the context menu. Desktop 2 Choose background 3. It will redirect you to the " Personalize your background " section for that desktop, where you can choose a wallpaper from the recent images or select a new one from the file explorer. Personalize your background 4. Once the new background wallpaper for the desktop is set, you can confirm the changes by visiting the desktop. 5. To verify that each desktop has its own separate background wallpaper, you can take another peek into the Task View using Win+Tab shortcut. Win+Tab That's it! You've successfully set a different background wallpaper for each desktop on Windows 11 and 10. Bonus Tip! You can directly change the desktop background wallpaper from your current desktop by navigating to " Settings " -> " Personalization " -> " Background " and then right-clicking on any image to open a context menu with the " Set for desktop " option, allowing you to change the background wallpaper of your preferred desktop. Settings Personalization Background Set for desktop Wrap Up That’s how you can change the background wallpaper for each desktop on Windows 11 and 10. You can further change all of your existing desktops background wallpaper by following this method.

Setting Different Backgrounds for Each Desktop on Windows 11 and 10

So, you're itching to publish a story on HackerNoon but feeling a bit lost? Don't fret! We've put together this step-by-step guide with all the information you'll need to go from draft to top story in no time. Let's dive in! TL:DR To Submit a story to HackerNoon, please follow the Below Checklist: Log in to Hacker Noon via Hackernoon.com/login. If you’re struggling to create an account at HackerNoon, read this blog post or visit our help page.
Click on Start Writing to the left of your thumbnail (or go directly there).
Write or upload a great tech story - detailed instructions for editor 3.0 here.
Click Story Settings in the upper right-hand corner.
Enter 8 tags (guideline).
Upload a feature image (guideline).
Enter your meta tag so search engines can easily find you (guideline).
Confirm that you have the rights to submit the content and that all vested interests of companies mentioned in the story have been disclosed.
Select Submit Story for Review.
You will then receive an email to confirm that we have received your submission.
A Staff Editor should review within 3 business days..ish. See full guidelines here.
If accepted, we’ll distribute, distribute, and distribute your tech story. See how we distribute things here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5p0nUvIZ6A&embedable=true Writers meet the draft page! Let's set the scene: you've been an avid reader of HackerNoon for some time now and finally decided it's time to share your own content here. So you hit the "Start Writing" button sitting at the top right corner of your screen. Boom! It's writing time - and here's what you'll find on our editor 3.0: If you’re looking to import a story, learn more here, and consult our republishing guidelines here. 1. Titles When crafting your new story in our editor, you've got two choices for titles: you can either come up with your own or let our system generate suggestions for you. To enter your own title, simply type it into the designated space and use our auto-capitalization feature to ensure proper formatting—click the robot icon to toggle this feature on or off. If you're feeling stuck, click the lightbulb icon for a suggestion. Just make sure your text body contains enough content for our system to detect the story's theme, and ensure the title space is empty before clicking "generate headline". Once you've added your title, your draft will be automatically saved, so remember to include some text. Remember, your title should accurately reflect the essence of your story and include relevant keywords to help readers discover it. Learn more here. 2. Formatting Features In our editor, you've got all the tools at your fingertips to format your text just how you want it: bold, overline, underline, lists, links, headlines, quotes, code, and more. To do so select your text and choose your desired options. Alternatively, you can click the + button on the left of your text line and pick an option from the list, which contains some options seen above and others like tables, images, links, dividers, info notices, and more. Here’s how it looks: 3. Embeds There are three main things you can embed in your story: images, videos, and links. Starting with images, you've got a range of choices: import from your device, import an image from a URL, grab one from an image bank, embed a GIF, or generate an AI image. Simply choose your preferred option, and voila! Your image will appear in your draft. When it comes to videos, you've can import them as you would images or embed YouTube links. Click the + button, navigate to the link option, paste your URL, and hit enter. Then, you'll encounter a prompt asking if you want to embed the link. For YouTube videos, you'll have the choice to add just the video, the transcription, or both - it will look something like this: Lastly, links: it’s very similar to embedding YouTube videos, except you can link stories, code, and other external sources. Here’s how: Embedding also extends to Twitter/X threads. Onto The Story Settings Now that you have the gist of what you can do with your copy on our editor, here’s the rundown on the story settings fields you’ll need to fill out before submitting the story for editorial review: Add all of your story’s 8 tags: Tags help Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, and friends find your content, to serve it to users searching for those terms. Plus, tags help HackerNoon distribute your content to top trafficked pages, as well as the most subscribed tags via our customizable newsletter, The Tech Brief. 2. Open Story Settings: At the top of your story settings you’ll see the number of words written - check this before submitting. One of our editorial guidelines stipulates a minimum word count for publication eligibility. Upload a featured image: Choose one from your device, explore image banks, and GIFs, or ask AI to create a new one. Customize how you want comments managed for your story: Decide whether you want them to undergo editorial review or be approved instantly.
Add your metadescription: Help web crawlers to index and humans to read
Craft a TL:DR: type between 300 and 500 characters or have our AI generate a TL:DR for you Pick Emoji Credibility Indicators: These indicators help you provide additional information relating to your story, giving readers more context.
Is your story original? If it's a republication, hit "No" and drop the URL where it first went live; if it's fresh content, just tap "Yes". When in doubt, consult our republishing guidelines here. Once you've wrapped up all these steps, keep an eye out for a button that pops up at the bottom prompting you to "Submit Your Story for Review!" If you're feeling good about your story, just give it a click. Soon after, you'll get an email confirming that we've received your submission. A Staff Editor should review it within 3 business days..ish, and if accepted, we’ll distribute, distribute, and distribute your tech story. NEW! On your draft, you’ll see the Submit Story button left in three different places:

At the bottom of your story settings
At the top corner of your screen
At the bottom right corner of your screen

Once you select the checkbox that matches your story's originality, these buttons will become active. Additional tools In the story settings, you'll find some extra goodies! You can whip up sticky notes and shoot a message to an editor for some writing support. Check out how it looks below: And there you have it! You're now equipped with the tools to transition from draft to publication - no reason not to hit that submit button and share your work with the world! So, you're itching to publish a story on HackerNoon but feeling a bit lost? Don't fret! We've put together this step-by-step guide with all the information you'll need to go from draft to top story in no time. Let's dive in! from draft to top story TL:DR To Submit a story to HackerNoon, please follow the Below Checklist: To Submit a story to HackerNoon, please follow the Below Checklist: Log in to Hacker Noon via Hackernoon.com/login. If you’re struggling to create an account at HackerNoon, read this blog post or visit our help page. Click on Start Writing to the left of your thumbnail (or go directly there). Write or upload a great tech story - detailed instructions for editor 3.0 here. Click Story Settings in the upper right-hand corner. Enter 8 tags (guideline). Upload a feature image (guideline). Enter your meta tag so search engines can easily find you (guideline). Confirm that you have the rights to submit the content and that all vested interests of companies mentioned in the story have been disclosed. Select Submit Story for Review. You will then receive an email to confirm that we have received your submission. A Staff Editor should review within 3 business days..ish. See full guidelines here. If accepted, we’ll distribute, distribute, and distribute your tech story. See how we distribute things here. Log in to Hacker Noon via Hackernoon.com/login . If you’re struggling to create an account at HackerNoon, read this blog post or visit our help page . Hackernoon.com/login read this blog post help page Click on Start Writing to the left of your thumbnail (or go directly there ). there Write or upload a great tech story - detailed instructions for editor 3.0 here . upload a great tech story here Click Story Settings in the upper right-hand corner. Enter 8 tags ( guideline ). guideline Upload a feature image ( guideline ). guideline Enter your meta tag so search engines can easily find you ( guideline ). guideline Confirm that you have the rights to submit the content and that all vested interests of companies mentioned in the story have been disclosed. Select Submit Story for Review. You will then receive an email to confirm that we have received your submission. A Staff Editor should review within 3 business days..ish. See full guidelines here . here If accepted, we’ll distribute, distribute, and distribute your tech story. See how we distribute things here . here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5p0nUvIZ6A&embedable=true https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5p0nUvIZ6A&embedable=true Writers meet the draft page! Writers meet the draft page! Let's set the scene: you've been an avid reader of HackerNoon for some time now and finally decided it's time to share your own content here. So you hit the "Start Writing" button sitting at the top right corner of your screen. Boom! It's writing time - and here's what you'll find on our editor 3.0 : editor 3.0 If you’re looking to import a story, learn more here, and consult our republishing guidelines here. If you’re looking to import a story, learn more here , and consult our republishing guidelines here . learn more here here 1. Titles Titles When crafting your new story in our editor, you've got two choices for titles: you can either come up with your own or let our system generate suggestions for you. To enter your own title, simply type it into the designated space and use our auto-capitalization feature to ensure proper formatting—click the robot icon to toggle this feature on or off. If you're feeling stuck, click the lightbulb icon for a suggestion. Just make sure your text body contains enough content for our system to detect the story's theme, and ensure the title space is empty before clicking " generate headline ". generate headline Once you've added your title, your draft will be automatically saved, so remember to include some text. Remember, your title should accurately reflect the essence of your story and include relevant keywords to help readers discover it. Learn more here. Remember, your title should accurately reflect the essence of your story and include relevant keywords to help readers discover it. Learn more here . here 2. Formatting Features In our editor, you've got all the tools at your fingertips to format your text just how you want it: bold, overline, underline, lists, links, headlines , quotes , code , and more. To do so select your text and choose your desired options. format your text headlines quotes code Alternatively, you can click the + button on the left of your text line and pick an option from the list, which contains some options seen above and others like tables, images, links, dividers, info notices, and more. Here’s how it looks: 3. Embeds There are three main things you can embed in your story: images, videos , and links. videos Starting with images, you've got a range of choices: import from your device, import an image from a URL, grab one from an image bank, embed a GIF , or generate an AI image . Simply choose your preferred option, and voila! Your image will appear in your draft. embed a GIF generate an AI image When it comes to videos, you've can import them as you would images or embed YouTube links . Click the + button , navigate to the link option, paste your URL, and hit enter. Then, you'll encounter a prompt asking if you want to embed the link. For YouTube videos, you'll have the choice to add just the video, the transcription, or both - it will look something like this: embed YouTube links + button Lastly, links: it’s very similar to embedding YouTube videos, except you can link stories, code, and other external sources . Here’s how: link stories, code, and other external sources Embedding also extends to Twitter/X threads. Embedding also extends to Twitter/X threads . Twitter/X threads Onto The Story Settings Now that you have the gist of what you can do with your copy on our editor, here’s the rundown on the story settings fields you’ll need to fill out before submitting the story for editorial review: Add all of your story’s 8 tags: Tags help Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, and friends find your content, to serve it to users searching for those terms. Plus, tags help HackerNoon distribute your content to top trafficked pages, as well as the most subscribed tags via our customizable newsletter, The Tech Brief. Add all of your story’s 8 tags: Tags help Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, and friends find your content, to serve it to users searching for those terms. Plus, tags help HackerNoon distribute your content to top trafficked pages, as well as the most subscribed tags via our customizable newsletter, The Tech Brief. Add all of your story’s 8 tags: Tags help Google , Bing , DuckDuckGo , and friends find your content, to serve it to users searching for those terms. Plus, tags help HackerNoon distribute your content to top trafficked pages, as well as the most subscribed tags via our customizable newsletter, The Tech Brief. Add all of your story’s 8 tags : Add all of your story’s 8 tags Google Bing DuckDuckGo 2. Open Story Settings : At the top of your story settings you’ll see the number of words written - check this before submitting. One of our editorial guidelines stipulates a minimum word count for publication eligibility. Open Story Settings editorial guidelines Upload a featured image: Choose one from your device, explore image banks, and GIFs, or ask AI to create a new one. Upload a featured image: Choose one from your device, explore image banks, and GIFs, or ask AI to create a new one. Upload a featured image: Customize how you want comments managed for your story: Decide whether you want them to undergo editorial review or be approved instantly. Add your metadescription: Help web crawlers to index and humans to read Craft a TL:DR: type between 300 and 500 characters or have our AI generate a TL:DR for you Customize how you want comments managed for your story: Decide whether you want them to undergo editorial review or be approved instantly. Customize how you want comments managed for your story: Customize how you want comments managed for your story: Add your metadescription: Help web crawlers to index and humans to read Add your metadescription : Add your metadescription Craft a TL:DR: type between 300 and 500 characters or have our AI generate a TL:DR for you Craft a TL:DR: Pick Emoji Credibility Indicators: These indicators help you provide additional information relating to your story, giving readers more context. Is your story original? If it's a republication, hit "No" and drop the URL where it first went live; if it's fresh content, just tap "Yes". When in doubt, consult our republishing guidelines here. Pick Emoji Credibility Indicators: These indicators help you provide additional information relating to your story, giving readers more context. Pick Emoji Credibility Indicators : Pick Emoji Credibility Indicators Is your story original? If it's a republication, hit "No" and drop the URL where it first went live; if it's fresh content, just tap "Yes". When in doubt, consult our republishing guidelines here . Is your story original? here Once you've wrapped up all these steps, keep an eye out for a button that pops up at the bottom prompting you to " Submit Your Story for Review! " If you're feeling good about your story, just give it a click. Soon after, you'll get an email confirming that we've received your submission. A Staff Editor should review it within 3 business days..ish, and if accepted, we’ll distribute, distribute, and distribute your tech story. Submit Your Story for Review! NEW! On your draft, you’ll see the Submit Story button left in three different places: At the bottom of your story settings
At the top corner of your screen
At the bottom right corner of your screen Once you select the checkbox that matches your story's originality, these buttons will become active. NEW! On your draft, you’ll see the Submit Story button left in three different places: Submit Story At the bottom of your story settings At the top corner of your screen At the bottom right corner of your screen At the bottom of your story settings At the top corner of your screen At the bottom right corner of your screen Once you select the checkbox that matches your story's originality, these buttons will become active. Additional tools In the story settings, you'll find some extra goodies! You can whip up sticky notes and shoot a message to an editor for some writing support. Check out how it looks below: And there you have it! You're now equipped with the tools to transition from draft to publication - no reason not to hit that submit button and share your work with the world!

From Desk to HackerNoon: Your Ultimate Guide on How to Publish a Story

ডেস্ক থেকে হ্যাকারনুন পর্যন্ত: কীভাবে একটি গল্প প্রকাশ করবেন তার চূড়ান্ত গাইড

Vom Schreibtisch zum HackerNoon: Ihr ultimativer Leitfaden zum Veröffentlichen einer Story

Del escritorio a HackerNoon: su guía definitiva sobre cómo publicar una historia

Du bureau à HackerNoon : votre guide ultime sur la façon de publier une histoire

डेस्क से हैकरनून तक: कहानी प्रकाशित करने के बारे में आपकी अंतिम मार्गदर्शिका

デスクから HackerNoon へ: ストーリーを公開するための究極のガイド

데스크에서 HackerNoon까지: 스토리 게시 방법에 대한 최고의 가이드

From Desk to HackerNoon: seu guia definitivo sobre como publicar uma história

От стола до HackerNoon: ваше полное руководство о том, как опубликовать историю

Masadan HackerNoon'a: Bir Hikayenin Nasıl Yayınlanacağına İlişkin Temel Kılavuzunuz

Từ bàn làm việc đến HackerNoon: Hướng dẫn cơ bản về cách xuất bản một câu chuyện

从办公桌到 HackerNoon：如何发布故事的终极指南

Raindex Launch and Why It Matters Raindex, has proudly announced the release of its desktop application on the creator blockchain Flare. The Flare Time Series Oracle (FTSO), presents a revolutionary way to approach decentralised exchange (DEX) that is reminiscent of intentions-based trading. Raindex looks to be a lighthouse for traders wanting the complex functionality found in centralized exchanges while retaining autonomy. Users may define their trading settings, such as bid and offer prices, as well as sophisticated features like stop loss and take profit choices. Furthermore, the platform provides a unique possibility to mimic others' trading methods by performing all activities trustlessly, without permissions, and immediately on-chain. Intents-Like Architecture With its deliberate commercial architecture, Raindex stands apart. The software lets users describe trade outcomes without executing, allowing them to create complex future trading strategies in one transaction. Anyone may use these strategies while following the rules. For instance, utilizing the FTSO, a user may establish a strategy to sell assets at a given price point, and Raindex easily facilitates buyer-seller interactions without market knowledge or manual order placement and this lets users automate trading based on criteria, reducing time and improving profit. After three years of hard effort, Raindex combines the finest of CEXs and DEXs into a single platform. This union offers a unique trading experience like CEXs but with DEXs' autonomy and security. The platform will benefit from FTSOv2's "Fast Updates" feature, which provides asset price updates every few seconds. Flare's unique architecture ensures accurate pricing and censorship resistance, boosting the platform's credibility. Rain's co-founder, Josh Hardy, expresses his enthusiasm: "Secure, reliable data is an essential part of the toolkit for anyone writing trading strategies." We're really thrilled to welcome Rainlang and Raindex into the Flare ecosystem, engage with the DeFi community, and see what they come up with!" Rainlang reduces the complexity associated with , making them more accessible to a wider audience. If one is skilled at creating Excel formulae, navigating Rainlang to construct will be a snap. This accessibility enables traders to employ unique techniques, ranging from dollar-cost averaging to complex market-making approaches. Raindex overcomes the limits of existing Automated Market Maker models, providing unprecedented trade expression flexibility while guaranteeing a consistent on-chain ecosystem. programming languages smart contracts Hugo Philion, the co-founder and CEO of Flare Labs, emphasizes the upgrades to the Flare Time Series Oracle: “The recently announced upgrades to the Flare Time Series Oracle will enable up to 1,000 asset prices to be delivered on-chain every second or so, without sacrificing decentralization or security. Combine this with Rain’s intents-like DEX and you enable much of the functionality of a centralized exchange but without the risk of needing to custody your assets with a third party.” A Comprehensive Toolkit for Traders Raindex's desktop application is intended to provide traders with a comprehensive set of tools in a single package. With Rainlang, users can declare their trading preferences, secure their tokens inside vaults, and issue their orders at the most opportune moment, all while taking advantage of real-time performance monitoring made available via the Raindex app. To generate enthusiasm among the Flare community and demonstrate trading expertise, Raindex is planning to hold a trading contest that will take place throughout May 2024. A total prize pool of twelve thousand dollars is being offered in this competition, which encourages traders to develop and implement lucrative tactics utilizing Rainlang. The competition promises both a challenge and a reward. The Bedrock: About Flare Flare is not only a blockchain; rather, it provides a platform for data-intensive applications, which include anything from artificial intelligence and machine learning to the tokenization of assets in the real world. The decentralized oracles that it offers developers provide them with trustless access to a broad range of data. This is what sets it apart from other systems. Flare is now in a position to become a vital platform in the process of increasing the usefulness of blockchain technology and encouraging the creation of fresh use cases. Don’t forget to like and share the story! This author is an independent contributor publishing via our . HackerNoon has reviewed the report for quality, but the claims herein belong to the author. #DYOR. Vested Interest Disclosure: business blogging program

Raindex Aims Shake Up the DeFi World With a Desktop App for Advanced, Intentions-Based Trading

The completely changed the business world as I knew it. With everyone working from home, it quickly became difficult to ensure things were happening the way they needed to. That's why so many companies, including my own, had to start exploring remote work surveillance options. pandemic Suddenly, my days were filled with collecting information, observing progress, and overseeing employees, all from the comfort of my home office. This shift led me to wonder—can , or will I fall into the ? As with many things in the remote work world, finding the balance is key. I effectively track progress micromanagement trap What Does Remote Monitoring Mean? At its core, remote monitoring is all about giving companies an eye into their employees' workdays. I get why there's hesitation and confusion surrounding this idea, so let's be clear: it's about making sure things are on track, not catching someone scrolling through Instagram. Think of it as performance assessment for a remote world. Why Track Remote Workers? As a business owner, the ability to see how teams function has been life-changing. Remote work surveillance comes with several powerful benefits: (even from afar) It's hard to deny that monitoring can keep people focused and help teams make serious progress. Productivity Boost: Data breaches are frighteningly common, and remote monitoring tools are exceptional in preventing these types of attacks. Security Reinforcement: When remote workers know someone might check-in, there's less temptation to procrastinate or waste time. Discipline Maintenance: Harnessing the Power of Remote Surveillance There's a reason they call it " ". Expanding beyond office walls gives me access to the absolute best people globally. That's incredible, particularly when remote surveillance brings these benefits: hiring talent I see exactly what work is happening and track contributions without constantly interrupting individuals. Authentic Progress Reports: Sometimes "research" becomes "shopping." Monitoring alerts me if employees are straying from work-related sites. Spotting Website/App Red Flags: Making sure my remote team starts and ends work on time keeps things fair and helps me anticipate their availability. Checking Attendance with Confidence: Calculating hours for freelancers and remote teams gets so much easier with tracking technology. Simplifying Payment: Monitoring Your Teams Without Micromanaging It's true there's a fine line. I never want to become an overbearing digital presence! Here's what I focus on for balanced remote monitoring: No surprises here. If my remote employees know clearly what I'm tracking and why, there's less room for conflict later. The Remote Policy: It's natural for workers to face distraction online, so my policy outlines which sites fall into territory during work hours. Communication is key here– I have to can focus, but tools let me step in gently if the distraction becomes excessive. Identifying Problem Zones: "off-limits" trust my employees Task management and monitoring tools make all of this seamless, and some do this automatically without me feeling like an overseer. Helpful Tech: Not every worker knows right away how to thrive in a remote setting. Offering tools and training for success lets me keep tabs on everyone while helping them succeed. Essential Training: Work is work. I use monitoring tools to get progress updates, not to intrude on my employees' lives beyond normal work hours. Privacy Respect: Is Micromanagement Really That Bad? Let me answer that bluntly: yes! Nobody wants a boss constantly breathing down their neck, whether in-person or online. Excessive monitoring stifles creativity and turns enthusiastic talent into clock-watchers. Here's why micromanagers do more harm than good: If you're spending the bulk of your time checking what everyone else is doing, you aren't working on high-level company growth. It Limits Your Efficiency: Workers deserve space to prove themselves. Hovering over every detail crushes morale. You Undermine Confidence: A business stuck in micromanagement will forever be tied to a small talent pool of those willing to accept it. Growth Becomes Impossible: Finding the Middle Ground I know remote work requires trust, but I also value accountability. Remote surveillance with the right strategy and tools gives me both while helping team members feel valued and supported. I believe remote work represents the future, and technology that enables monitoring will likely change and improve rapidly. I'm optimistic that both business owners and employees can embrace these practices as tools for building strong, flexible, and high-performing remote teams.

The Boss Can't Walk By Your Desk Anymore, But Tech Can

Welcome, hackers. This article documents how I recreated old malware named Kuku in Python. Python? Who makes malware in ? Yes, there are a few, but here, Python is absolutely justified because the purpose of this virus is to annoy the victim, not to be efficient or fast. Python Intro-rant I came across this 10-year-old where malware from 1991 is shown. At that time, malware was as funny and annoying as it should be. Nowadays, cyberspace is packed with profit-driven spyware and ransomware, with little room for trolling. YouTube video Malware is not what it used to be, and capitalism is to blame. Disclaimer It's crucial to emphasize that the intention behind this guide is purely educational, and I do not endorse malware development for malicious purposes. With that out of the way, let's dive into our almost-educational retro maldev guide. The original Kuku! The video shows Eastern European malware on that randomly overwrites files and displays more and more colored , this is a bit destructive, but more than that, it's totally annoying. MS-DOS KUKU! Popups As for the name, or means something like in multiple Slav languages. It is also the sound a cuckoo makes “kuku” “ку-ку“ "I gotch you" You can view in the VX Underground malware collection. However, it was written in TURBO-BASIC, which is even more painful to read than regular assembly. the original source code See this snippet: data"n$=string$(8,63)+chr$(46)+chr$(66)+chr$(65)+chr$(83):dim dta%(32),find%(32)
data"for a%=0% to 32%:dta%(a%)=0:next
data"for z=0 to len(n$)-2 step 2:find%(z/2)=asc(mid$(n$,z+2,1))*256+asc(mid$(n$,z+1,1)):next
data"reg 1,&h1A00:reg 8,varseg(dta%(0)):reg 4,varptr(dta%(0)):call interrupt &h21
data"reg 1,&h4e00:reg 3,attr:reg 8,varseg(find%(0)):reg 4,varptr(find%(0)):call interrupt &h21
data"if reg(1)<>0 then p$=string$(15,255):goto findfirstfile1
data"for a=0 to 32:h=dta%(a) and 255:p$=p$+chr$(h):l=(dta%(a)-h)/&h100 and 255:p$=p$+chr$(l):next
data"findfirstfile1:
data"dta$=p$:f$=mid$(dta$,&h1f,13):if f$=string$(len(f$),255) then
data"for J=1 to 1500:Sound Rnd(1)*(1500-j)+40,.01:NEXT:delay(2)
data"screen 1:def seg=&Hb800:for a=0 to 16384:poke a,rnd(1)*255:next:exit sub
data"end if More about VX Underground here: https://vx-underground.org/ Maldev guide Recreation This pseudo-nostalgia (I was not born) has inspired me to recreate the KUKU virus on modern operating systems. I chose Python, a solid language for rapid development. At the same time, it is inherently cross-platform because scripts are cross-platform. Unfortunately, this is not true for the Python interpreter. Portability Malware can't rely on the victim having Python installed, so I used the library, which wraps the script, libraries, and interpreter into one binary.
Unfortunately, PyInstaller does not support cross-compilation, so it must be compiled on the OS and architecture on which the malware will be used. PyInstaller GUI For the GUI, I used the library; thanks to that, I avoided using the low-level GUI API, and I can use the high-level call, which works on both Windows and Linux. Options like disabling the toolbox and header tab did come in handy. These made my program look more like the original virus. Tkinter Result Python script is compiled into two binaries (elf and exe), which behave the same as the original virus. It's not the fastest implementation; other languages would probably be better. But the speed with which I created this malware is unmatched. Python can be written in a blazingly fast pace. This was a fun insertion into the past. I look forward to trying this malware on some victims (work colleagues). Praise the cyberbullying. You can view my source code here: https://github.com/matejsmycka/kuku-malware-remake?embedable=true Thank you for reading. Feedback is appreciated. Resources [1]: Original YT video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWtcvOLsLIk [2]: PyInstaller docs - https://pyinstaller.org/en/stable/ [3]: Kuku source code - https://github.com/vxunderground/MalwareSourceCode/blob/main/MSDOS/K-Index/Virus.MSDOS.Unknown.kuku.bas [4]: Turbo BASIC - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PowerBASIC [5]: My repository https://github.com/matejsmycka/kuku-malware-remake

Virus.DOS.Kuku: Recreating MS-DOS Malware in Python.

Originally posted on newsletter.jan.ai (Substack) - Written by someone with a vested interest in Jan.ai A “Non-Engineers” Discovery of Jan Discovering Jan felt like finding a hidden gem in the tech world. Jan is a bootstrapped company, which to me, is synonymous with sustainable growth. Jan's philosophy on remote work is another aspect I deeply appreciate. In a world where work-life balance is often just a buzzword, Jan.ai genuinely embraces it. The flexibility to work from anywhere doesn’t just mean comfort- it means trust. It’s empowering to know that the company trusts you to do your job without the need for constant oversight. What resonates with me the most is the culture of ownership at Jan. As well as being part of a team where everyone has skin in the game. Building Out the Growth Function @ Jan Jan is on a mission to redefine how AI integrates into daily life, focusing on practical, user-friendly use cases. (The , , etc., to name a few.) assistants framework embeddable ai As a growth contributor, my role is to amplify this vision. Partnering with creators for user-generated content, I aim to tell the Jan story in a way that resonates with real people. It’s about showcasing how Jan fits into diverse lifestyles and workflows We’re not here just to race in LLM benchmark tests. We’re building solutions to real problems. Team Approach to Transparency and Learning The Jan team believes that the best companies, no matter how big ( ), are holistically transparent. or small! How we’re aiming to increase transparency. holistic We show you how the sausage is made (being open-source and built-in public- we don’t hide away from the hard questions- and have a clear position on most things from day 1) The questions Jan gets asked are answered either in our discord straight away, by another contributor or core team member, and then documented for mass knowledge sharing. We draw inspiration from companies like , , and , especially for their storytelling. Posthog ConvertKit HuggingFace Their ability to balance compelling narratives around their products and engage with their communities is something we admire and strive to emulate. They’ve shown that a tech company can excel not just through its features but through the stories it tells. The Jan Roadmap and Content Strategy At Jan, the content strategy aims to match to #buildinpublic culture of our engineering function and community. We’ll be testing “raw updates” as content. No polished talking heads, no scripted pitches. We’re a collective, a community of real people sharing real updates. This approach stems from our understanding of our place in how AI shapes 2024 and beyond. How Is Jan.ai Different From Other Tools? We often get asked how we differ from tools like ChatGPT, and this has become a cornerstone of our DNA. Our answer is simple yet profound- we may not be dramatically different from what you’d expect from AI, but it’s how we deliver and integrate that AI into real life that sets us apart. The nuts and bolts of it- Jan runs 100% offline. Jan is AGPLv3 licensed = we welcome forks and commercial use. Our team strongly believes that AI needs to be open source, with a “right to repair” ( not blocked by proprietary filing systems). We highly encourage tinkering with Jan, and celebrate forks = people actually care enough about our work! We highly encourage commercial use = people trust us enough for business (tbh, we still have bugs, but with more eyes, all bugs are shallow). The one requirement we do have is for forks to contribute back to the Jan ecosystem, and also be AGPLv3 and open source. Open Source is participatory and transparent, and any improvements you make can be fed back into the ecosystem. Jan is about enhancing life, not complicating it with overhyped promises. Join the Jan Journey Read our docs and guide - Jan.ai . Check out our repo & public roadmap , or see what we’re building at Jan.ai Join us on Discord Also published here

The Jan Mission - Bring AI to Desktop

How can help desk software supercharge your business? Maintaining streamlined communication and timely support resolutions can be nerve-wracking with growing customer expectations and demands, especially if you use different tools. In an era where is imperative, inefficiencies such as delayed responses and lack of visibility into the customer experience can be disastrous to any startup. customer support Actually, according to recent research by Axio HQ, US businesses due to ineffective communication. lose about $2 trillion annually streamline communication, and enhance customer satisfaction. This highlights an urgent need to implement efficient tools such as help desk software to increase productivity, Help desk software can help you achieve your business goals by efficiently delivering quality customer assistance and support. In this article, I will discuss the help desk software benefits and show you how to get the best out of your software. Let’s get started. 1. Provide 24/7 Customer Support Customers expect timely and round-the-clock customer support. Not all your customers are going to need help during business hours. This is why your team should be able to answer questions as soon as they come up in real-time every day, especially if you have a global customer base. Well, providing round-the-clock assistance is possible, but it would require you to hire a more extensive support team, which translates to higher staff costs. As a small business, this is not ideal for saving money. While 24/7 support isn’t always necessary, it can help your business retain customers, increase satisfaction, and increase revenue in 2024. Round-the-clock customer support is one of the help desk software benefits that could transform how you interact with your customers, ensuring real-time communication and faster response time. In fact, according to a survey by CM, more than expect 24/7 availability, which can be challenging without the right tools. 60 percent of the surveyed customers Help desks enable your team to be available to customers even when unavailable. Cloud-based help desk software can be accessed from anywhere on mobile phones, PCs, or laptops. Additionally, with technology such as chatbots that conversational AI backs, customers can always get assistance without necessarily talking to an agent. Holmes Place is an Israel-based company that provides services in fitness and health. During the pandemic, they needed a solution that could provide 24/7 support. With Glassix, the company was able to answer about through the chatbot, reducing the number of calls customers made. 35% of the club members’ calls 2. Reduce Tickets With a Knowledge Base A high number of customer requests can overwhelm your support team. Sometimes, it can be challenging for your small business to assist with every customer request, especially if they are coming in at a high rate. Despite this, your customers must get assistance, failure to which they get frustrated, something you do not want to happen. But let’s be honest: not every request requires a customer to contact support. . A lot of time is wasted resolving minor and repetitive issues that can affect your team’s productivity and delay the resolution of more urgent issues Additionally, hiring more call agents to handle the numerous requests may incur costs. How can help desk software help with this? With a robust knowledge base filled with resourceful company information and a self-service portal, you can significantly reduce the number of tickets your support team receives. This benefits your startup and the consumer by ensuring they get immediate and 24/7 customer support. In fact, according to Vanilla Forums, 77% of the surveyed customers say that they view organizations more positively if they offer self-service support options for customers. For instance, a customer can refer to the knowledge base to understand how to use a product or get information about the return policy. Miles & Stockbridge P.C is a company that provides IT technical support to attorneys. The company needed an easy to use software to resolve support requests. Thanks to Giva’s knowledge base, Miles & Stockbridge P.C was able to and enhance overall customer satisfaction by over 60%. increase first contact resolution by 65% 3. Enhances Collaboration Between Departments Effective team collaboration is key for small businesses. Without effective collaborations, you may experience communication difficulties and challenges in completing assignments successfully and providing adequate customer support. For instance, your call agent should be able to to the IT department for a timely resolution, which can be difficult with disjointed communication. route an IT support request Additionally, the importance of your team having a common goal cannot be overlooked. Sometimes, different departments may not have aligned goals, significantly affecting their productivity, motivation, and efficiency. Research has found that cross-functional collaboration fuels customer experiences. In fact, according to research by Fierce, inc., 86% of employees cite a lack of collaboration or ineffective communication as the main source of workplace failures. Collaboration will help your team share knowledge, resources, and expertise to deliver accurate and timely . Moreover, call agents can route requests to appropriate departments effectively to ensure customers get the best experience and support. assistance to customer requests Additionally, they simplify communication by providing an efficient channel to eliminate information overload. Help desk software provides collaboration tools that facilitate seamless and real-time interactions. Family Fund Business Services is an end-to-end fulfillment service that works with several organizations. The company needed a centralized and easy-to-use system for their team to for their daily workflow. collaborate and use They sort Halo Service Desk as their solution, which provides a cost-effective platform for easier cross-team collaboration. 4. Automate Manual Tasks Timely responses and request resolution are critical to the success of your startup. However, manually handling customer support issues in 2024 can be sluggish and time-consuming, let alone backbreaking. This is not to mention that it takes up more time and can deviate your agents from focusing on more urgent issues. In fact, Zapier’s report states that 94% of the surveyed U.S. knowledge workers spend some portion of the day performing repetitive, time-consuming work, including manual tasks. These statistics highlight the need for an efficient solution that will help save time while reducing your agents’ workload. Among the best help desk software benefits is the ability to automate manual tasks. Automation guarantees streamlined workflows while ensuring accuracy and limited errors. Additionally, with help desk automation, you can easily automate workflows, set up processes for knowledge base creation, automatically route tickets, and expedite communication using chatbots. that can detect customers’ sentiments to assist with basic requests. It is worth mentioning that some help desk software has customizable chatbots paired with conversational AI Ultimately, automation features speed up operations and help your small business deliver prompt assistance and enhance customer experience. Brastel is a telecommunication company with multiple branches servicing both individuals and businesses. The company realized that its traditional call center was getting outdated and needed to find an efficient solution to help customers stay in touch. With HelpDesk, Brastel set up 20 automated workflows and reduced handling time per ticket by up to 39%. 5. Tracks Performance and Key Help Desk Metrics Data can help you enhance customer support. Measuring your call agents’ performances is as essential as any other key aspect of your business. Without insight into your agents’ performance, it can be difficult to tell whether your business is headed in the right direction. Actually, according to a report by Harvard Business Review, said they thought their performance would improve if their managers would provide corrective feedback. 72% of the respondents This figure shows that a lack of proper performance tracking can impede improvement, affecting customer experience and your company’s growth. Additionally, you may end up spending resources and time on activities that aren’t productive. Fortunately, the best help desk software can accurately track the performance of every agent and provide insight to help you make data-driven decisions. Help desk solutions can do this by monitoring KPIs and critical data metrics such as response time, agent utilization rate, and resolution time. , areas that would benefit from more end-user training and other information that helps you enhance the services you offer to customers. Metrics collected by your help desk can offer vital insight into the effectiveness of your agents’ work For instance, knowing the accurate resolution and response times will help you make changes to expedite the process and ensure you deliver the best customer experience. Tutlo, an e-learning platform, assists students in getting an online English language immersion by speaking to native speakers. It is, therefore, critical for the company to get meeting analytics to enhance training. Through Demodesk, the company was able to know meetings were successful with the help of precise and reliable analytics. Conclusion Customer experience is critical to the success of modern small businesses. It is clear from numerous research that prioritizing CX can supercharge your business by ensuring customer satisfaction and setting you apart from your competitors. Actually, according to a Watermark Consulting analysis, customer experience leaders generated a total cumulative return that was than that of the customer experience laggards. 3.4 times greater An efficient customer support solution is the best partner to help you achieve these goals. Help desk software benefits such as automation, performance tracking, and collaboration, to name a few, can help you , save time, and reduce operational costs. enhance the experience for your customers Additionally, with powerful integrations such as live chat and AI, your team can deliver a 360-degree customer experience. However, before running to purchase a help desk solution, ensure you consider several factors such as features, budget, and integration capabilities, to ensure you get the best of the help desk software benefits. Also published here.

5 Reasons Why Startups and Small Businesses Need Help Desk Software in 2024

Software failures can derail medium-sized businesses. One of the benefits of is the ability to centralize software troubleshooting and access specialized help 24/7. Without it, you’d have to turn to software problem resolution through traditional services like service tickets. virtual desktop software This involves calling IT experts for a local solution, which takes time and increases productivity downtimes and service outages. Overall, prolonged software failure resolution causes huge employee downtimes that can cost your small business in revenue. In fact, an Infrascale survey revealed that experience downtime due to software failure, making it the biggest cause of business outages. 53% of small businesses That’s where virtual desktop software helps. They centralize troubleshooting and provide more reliable software solutions that guarantee excellent uptime and quick software problem resolution. In this article, I’ll guide you through the top virtual desktop software benefits for large businesses in 2024 that will make your workflow more productive, cost-efficient, and profitable. Let’s get started. 1. Improved collaboration among workers Collaboration can be a challenge at times. For instance, the lack of real-time communication channels can delay team-driven projects and further hamper productivity. Additionally, when employees have to constantly upload and send large files back and forth between themselves, facing restrictions by size-limited IT systems, then collaboration further takes a hit. All in all, . poor workplace collaboration boils down to legacy IT systems that don’t have all the necessary collaboration features As a matter of fact, a Fierce Inc. survey revealed that 85% of employees blame workplace failures on poor collaboration. So your small business’s success greatly depends on improving collaboration. Fortunately, among the benefits of virtual desktop software for small businesses is the ability to enhance collaboration. First, virtual desktop software improves collaboration by enabling unlimited and fast file exchanges between your employees. Additionally, some of these tools also come with features that allow real-time discussions and communication about the files and generally about the work at hand. Via an activity stream, users can also get notifications of file changes in real-time, which also goes a long way to streamline collaboration for your medium to large-sized business by ensuring everyone is in sync with the latest task developments. MAC Engineering based in Calgary, Canada, was facing difficulties implementing remote collaboration due to resource-intensive applications that could only run on on-site hardware. However, they successfully via Inuvika’s enterprise virtualization solution. With live communication tools & large processing power, their engineers now collaborate remotely via their devices with minimal latency. transitioned to a distributed workforce 2. Faster login times to boost productivity Many small businesses struggle with performance issues. Moreso if you’re reliant upon old infrastructure, which is prone to long log-in times for your employees and profile inconsistencies. In addition to lags, aging IT infrastructure just ruins your workflow, by making your processes and your employees tethered to just one location. Overall, aging IT infrastructure results in slower performance for your small business, which reduces your productivity and output. According to a Nexthix study, small businesses lose to digital disruptions such as huge application loading times and slow system performance. 1 hour and 12 minutes daily This downtime translates to huge revenue losses each month. With virtual desktop software, you can keep your business’ IT infrastructure fast, agile, and ahead of the curve. Because they run on cloud servers, one of the benefits of virtual desktop software for small businesses in 2024 is access to additional computational power. This allows you to leverage more hardware power than you would on a typical PC, which tends to also slow down, particularly during high load times, due to the apps installed and memory issues. Since virtual desktop software doesn’t experience this problem, they load up faster to ensure faster log-in times as well as faster overall performance. One leading light electrical giant based in the UK had trouble with underperforming collaboration tools and third-party vendor solutions which slowed down performance. Through WhiteHat Virtual, they . By cutting down log-in times and boosting efficiency, the company achieved greater productivity and output. lowered employee log-in times by 79% 3. Makes your business more competitive Why do small businesses often fall behind enterprises? It’s usually simply because the playing field is not even. For example, enterprises tend to have a better technology adoption rate compared to small businesses. As a result, they tend to enjoy higher operation efficiency while your small business provides lower-quality service. Therefore, not tapping into virtualization technologies keeps your small business at a competitive disadvantage. According to a Spiceworks report, only 24% of small businesses have implemented desktop virtualization compared to 50% of enterprises. So the adoption rate by enterprises is double that of small businesses, which shows how much small businesses lag behind. But you can turn things around. When you adopt this technology, you get access to the game-changing for small businesses in 2024 that your more established competitors enjoy. benefits of virtual desktop software From greater workflow performance due to increased business continuity to higher operational efficiency, you gain the capabilities to match your competitors in terms of their productivity and quality of service. Overall, I find that virtual desktop software levels the playing field and allows your small business to sharpen its competitive advantage. And with the majority of small businesses yet to adopt virtualization, doing so will make you stand out from the crowd with superior service provision. Based in Europe, PIK Group had trouble meeting the intense hardware needs of all its graphic designers and simultaneously staying profitable and competitive. However, they raised competitiveness and profitability by adopting Dell’s desktop virtualization technologies to create a more flexible work environment with fewer hardware costs. 4. Better data disaster recovery IT disasters are part of running a small business. That being said, without a good disaster recovery in place, this can possibly ruin the future of your small business due to the subsequent downtime and revenue losses. Many small businesses tend to store their data in on-site data centers. In case of damage, theft, or loss, this can lead to irreparable data loss and IT outages. Ultimately, poor disaster recovery can lead to the downfall of your small business. In fact, a Logic Monitor study revealed that 94% of small businesses experienced IT outages and this translated to a considerable amount of revenue loss per year. But with virtual desktop software, you can protect your IT systems from data loss. For instance, among the benefits of virtual desktop software for small businesses in 2024 is data decentralization to the cloud. So in the event of hardware failure such as hard disk crashes or some other problem with on-premise data centers, you can still recover valuable data. With safe and decentralized data backup solutions, I find that your small business becomes immune to data loss that can occur due to natural disasters and human error. Consequently, your business enjoys greater continuity. Godstowe School in the UK used to rely on redundant data recovery measures. They wanted a modern solution that would get around building an expensive data center. So they using Azure virtual desktop which alleviated the need to raise money to build a data center, thereby raising the school’s cost-efficiency. implemented a cloud disaster recovery solution 5. Greater cybersecurity for remote work Remote work isn’t always easy to implement. Small businesses, in particular, face certain concerns with this work model, chief of which are cyber security risks associated with the decentralization of work. For instance, a malware attack on an employee’s device can put confidential business information at risk. Overall, individual cyber security threats stemming from employee negligence can cripple your entire business’s systems. Moreover, according to a survey by OpenVPN, said that remote workers are a huge cyber security threat. This proves how front-line, remote workers can be the biggest liability to any small business. 73% of business leaders As one of the critical benefits of virtual desktop software, this technology offers robust data storage. So instead of data being stored on end-user devices such as a remote worker’s phone or PC, for example, it’s instead stored in the cloud, with the user just given temporary access to it. Therefore, in case of theft of end-user devices, your small business’s data remains safe. Additionally, also incorporates customizable firewall controls and traffic isolation tactics, which further reinforces your small business’ workflow to prevent third-party attacks. virtualization software With greater cybersecurity measures in place, your small business can scale its remote work model with ease. Based in Sweden, Klarahill ran on legacy Windows applications that posed both a security threat and inflated costs for the business. They when they adopted Cameyo’s virtual desktop solution. Additionally, they also ended up realizing 85% cost savings due to reduced remote desktop expenses. negated potential security issues Conclusion End-point hardware for employees attracts massive costs. For small businesses, the cost of fully furnishing each employee with a computer can be through the roof. These expenses just keep on piling up by the head with individual software licenses, and, at the end of the day, they can have serious ramifications. Overall, getting fully furnished end-point hardware for each employee can cost your small business a fortune. According to a Statista report, small businesses spend on hardware alone. This goes to show just how costly end-point hardware can be. 31% of their budgets However, virtualization offers the ability to utilize thin client machines. Unlike a traditional OS, these virtual OS rely on small stripped-down machines and shared software licenses that are cheaper. But there’s more. Other benefits of virtual desktop software like Inuvika include better productivity, giving your business a competitive edge, and better data disaster recovery. For these reasons, I recommend that you acquire virtual desktop software today. Also published here.

Stories, News & Mentions about DESKU

Desku’s Stories on HackerNoon