Notices by Micr0byte (micr0@fuzzies.wtf)

i am moving my main account to @micr0@wetdry.world and i will primarily post from there.

this account will remain merely for administrative purposes. for info, about fuzzies.wft follow the @fuzzy account. And once again, fuzzies.wtf is not going anywhere! it will remain, and is still moderated by me and the fuzzies.wtf mod team!

just replaced the screen on my pixel 9 and it was a bit tedious with all the adhesive but i got there! everything works great and i feel a wave of relief

also a saved like 60 bucks by repairing it myself rather than having someone else do it

Cherry blossoms bloomed!! 🌸

Hey Fediverse!

I'm micr0, creator of @altbot, the open-source bot that helps generate alt-text for images on the Fediverse to make content more accessible.

After successfully moving image processing to local hardware with version 2.0, I've now brought video processing capability back - but with a major privacy upgrade! Altbot can now generate descriptions for videos completely locally and privately without sending content to Google or any other third-party services.

Important note: Currently, video processing is visual-only and doesn't include audio transcription. The audio processing Google was doing was some serious black magic fuckery that isn't possible to replicate locally with current technologies. But the visual descriptions are excellent and totally private!

With this update:

• All processing happens locally with zero data retention
• Complete privacy for all content
• No data used for training models
• Videos processed with the same privacy standards as images

I've also maintained Altbot's focus on energy efficiency - while video processing naturally requires more resources than images, I've implemented it to be as efficient as possible, keeping power consumption to a minimum while still delivering great results.

I want to express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who helped me reach my donation goal on Ko-fi with the 2.0 launch! Your generosity made it possible to set up the local processing infrastructure that powers this privacy-focused service.

The response from the community has been incredible, and it means so much to know that privacy and accessibility are values we share.

I'm already working on exciting future developments:

• An Altbot API that will allow developers to integrate alt-text generation into their applications
• Direct integration with Fediverse software platforms - I'm collaborating with instance developers to make accessibility a built-in feature!

Remember that Altbot has always been and remains fully open-source, with self-hosting being a core feature from day one for anyone who wants to run their own instance.

Altbot currently runs on hardware in my home, which means I'm covering all the electricity costs for powering the GPU server that processes your media. While I've designed the system to be energy-efficient, running a dedicated AI server still impacts my monthly power bill.

Monthly donations would be especially helpful in sustainably supporting:

• Ongoing electricity costs
• Time spent on development and maintenance
• Future infrastructure improvements

Even small recurring contributions can make a huge difference in keeping this service running reliably and allowing me to dedicate more time to improvements!

• Ko-fi (one-time or monthly): https://ko-fi.com/micr0byte
• Ethereum: 0xC992E57236eb9F30E79d0469446a6CF08Be05939

I've added the ETH option for those who prefer crypto or don't want to use PayPal!

Version 2.1 also includes various internal improvements and bug fixes that make everything run more smoothly behind the scenes.

Thanks again for your support in making the web more accessible without compromising on privacy!

Feel free to boost or reach out with questions! For press inquiries: inquiries@micr0.dev

#Accessibility #Privacy #Fediverse #AltText #Altbot

@morph probably! all the code is made to be very customizable with a ton of settings in the config file!

damn this altbot thing is kinda cool, and its completely privacy respecting??? thas crazy

what happened to dystopian mega corps sucking up all my data, ig people got tired of that

@jessew too many

@jessew

well the stock market crashing is sure as hell demotivating

Hey everyone,

I'm micr0, the creator of Altbot, the open-source bot that helps generate alt-text for images on the Fediverse to make content more accessible.

I have some exciting news to share - Altbot no longer uses Google's services! Many of you expressed concerns about privacy when I first launched Altbot using Google Gemini, worried about your images being processed on their servers and potentially used for training.

I promised to fix this, and I'm thrilled to announce that Altbot 2.0 is now running entirely on my own hardware using the Ovis2:8B model. Your images are processed locally with absolutely zero data retention - your content never leaves my server and isn't used to train any models.

The new system is fully GDPR compliant, and descriptions are even better across all 11 supported languages. What's also cool is that the setup is significantly more energy efficient, with 36% of power coming from clean sources. Altbot now even shows you how much energy was used for each request!

The only things Altbot 2.0 records are that a request happened, how long it took, and what language was used. No images, no content, no personal data - nothing that could identify you.

Building this upgrade was more expensive than planned - I needed a more powerful server with an A5500 GPU, which exceeded my budget by about $900 that I covered out of pocket. If you appreciate this commitment to privacy and accessibility, any support through my Ko-fi page would help recover these costs and keep Altbot free for everyone: https://ko-fi.com/micr0byte/goal?g=18

Thanks so much for your support! I built Altbot because I believe accessibility shouldn't compromise privacy, and now that vision is reality.

Feel free to boost or reach out with any questions! For press inquiries: inquiries@micr0.dev

@jessew damn I'm glad I don't have you on steam :So_happy_smiling_cat:

wish me luck, tornados and hail are gonna be here, had to move the cars to the town garage cuz parents are out of town. hopefully nothing is that bad but wish me luck still

chat my ads on Instagram are broken anyone know how to fix?

@disarray

@jessew what kind

chat any suggestions on what to do to celebrate the launch of altbot??

today is a HUGE fucking W

like im actually so happy launch went well aahhh i was so worried for literally months on end working for and worrying about this day

Exciting news! After months of development, Altbot 2.0 is officially launching with major improvements to privacy, efficiency, and description quality.

• 100% local AI processing for true privacy - unlike Google Gemini which saves data for training, Altbot 2.0 retains ZERO information about you or your images using the powerful Ovis2:8B model running on my custom AltTron server equipped with an A5500 GPU and expansion capacity for two additional GPUs
• Full GDPR compliance with clear informed consent - I've implemented comprehensive privacy measures including transparent data handling policies, user rights protection, and minimal data collection practices that exceed GDPR requirements
• Better quality descriptions across all 11 supported languages thanks to a newly developed translation layer specifically optimized for local LLM models
• Significantly more energy efficient with a new feature that shows you exactly how much energy was used for each request! This efficiency comes from using a server-grade GPU optimized for lower power consumption, and 36% of the energy consumed is from clean sources mainly nuclear power (thanks to being based in Georgia)

The only data Altbot 2.0 records:

• That a request happened
• How long it took to complete
• What type of media it was (image, video, or audio)
• What language was used

No images, no content, no personal data saved - ever.

For those who don't know, Altbot has been helping make the Fediverse more accessible by automatically generating alt-text descriptions for images. The project has grown beyond anything I imagined, now serving thousands of users across the network.

To bring these privacy and efficiency improvements to life, I had to invest in a more powerful server than initially planned. The server costs exceeded my budget by around $900, which I've covered out of pocket. Who woulda thought that competing with a $1.98 trillion dystopian mega corporation would be expensive? Shocking, I know.

I've set up a Ko-fi fundraising goal to help recover these costs and support ongoing development: Ko-fi.com/micr0byte

Your contributions will help ensure Altbot remains:

• Free for everyone
• Continuously improved
• Sustainably maintained

Even small donations make a huge difference and motivate me to keep enhancing accessibility across the Fediverse!

This milestone represents a commitment to ensuring accessibility doesn't come at the cost of privacy or environmental impact. I'm incredibly proud of what we've built together.

As Altbot continues to grow, I'm open to sharing more about this journey with anyone interested in accessibility, ethical AI, or Fediverse projects.

For press inquiries: inquiries@micr0.dev

Feel free to boost or reach out!

#Accessibility #Fediverse #AltText #EthicalAI #OpenSource #Privacy #Altbot

im in such a good mood today, im trying to not jinx it but like im doing so good for no apparent reason, i just got enough sleep and woke up early, its awsum