A Desktop Made for One
The author describes their journey of replacing nearly all standard desktop software with custom-built tools over a few weeks, guided in part by AI assistance. They reflect on how advancements in programming languages like Rust and AI tools have drastically reduced the time and effort needed to create personalized software. While not intended for public use, the project demonstrates how feasible it is now for individuals to build tailored computing environments.
- ▪The author replaced almost all off-the-shelf software with tools they designed, including a custom text editor called scribe and a file manager called RTFM.
- ▪Their system has two main layers: CHasm, written in x86_64 assembly, and Fe₂O₃, a Rust-based application layer built on a shared TUI library called crust.
- ▪The only remaining non-custom programs regularly used are WeeChat for chat and Firefox for browsing.
- ▪The author replaced vim, which they had used for 25 years, with their own editor scribe in just three days.
- ▪Advances in Rust, AI assistance via Claude Code, and well-documented TUI programming practices made rapid development of custom tools feasible.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
A desktop made for one For the first time in twenty-five years I’m sitting in front of a computer where almost every program I touch was designed by me. One tool at a time, the off-the-shelf option got swapped out for something a little closer to how my hands wanted to work. (I wrote about the start of this a couple of weeks ago — that post laid out the early swaps; this one is the view from the other side of the journey.) It’s been a crazy few weeks guiding Claude Code inbetween all the other stuff I’m doing in life. I direct CC, it works while I do other stuff. I get a second or few in between tasks, and I respond. Then off it goes adding features or hunting bugs.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Hacker News: Front Page.
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