28 November 2025 by Lincoln Ramsay
I got my new Pebble watch. A Core Pebble 2 Duo.
So naturally, I wanted to get my SHD watch face going on it, if possible.
I was expecting a bit of a challenge…
- Needing to port from Java to C.
- Pebble hardware is extremely limited compared to Wear OS hardware.
- A tiny, black and white screen.
But not only did it work, it works pretty well. I’ve thrown the code up on github and even published it into the rebble store so it can be installed on any Pebble watch (only tested in the emulator, except for my specific model). more…
15 June 2025 by Lincoln Ramsay
I built a watch face for my TicWatch E, running Wear OS 2 (Android 8). I ported it to my TicWatch E3 (Wear OS 2, Android 9) and when it finally got the Wear OS 3 update, I ported it to that.
But apparently, Google is now so against the very idea of interesting watch faces that they are actively blocking installation of anything except for the new Watch Face Format on newer watches, and apparently on all watches from Jan 2026? Hopefully this does not apply to watches stuck on Wear OS 3, since Watch Face Format isn’t even compatible with Wear OS 3…
The problem is that my watch face was designed with gratuitous animation in mind. It is very much not possible to re-build it using the extremely limited, static XML that Watch Face Format allows.
I have been seriously considering if I even want to stay in the Wear OS ecosystem. The pixel watches failed to impress me, and while my TicWatch E3 is still doing ok, it’s battery is already showing signs of age, and I don’t see anything equivalent from Mobvoi. Just larger, more fitness-focussed watches. I never had a Pebble watch back in the day but I was very interested in them. I ordered a Core 2 Duo so within a few months I’ll know for sure if Wear OS has any chance of staying interesting to me or if I become a Pebble fan.
As a last hurrah, I’m releasing the code to my watch face on github. more…
01 April 2025 by Lincoln Ramsay
I listen to the Triple J Hack podcast every day, but this year they are posting both a regular episode, and one (or more?) snippets. So every day I have to refresh the feed, download the show, and mark the snippet as played so it doesn’t clutter up my podcast app. Ew.
I have come up with a tiny bit of php that fetches the feed and removes these snippets automatically for me. I’m posting the code in case it inspires anyone else. more…
22 May 2024 by Lincoln Ramsay
I have a server at home. It runs jobs overnight and needs to notify me of success/failure. It does this by sending me an email. For a long time, I used msmtp, because normal MTAs don’t play well with GMail. However, at some point even this became a pain due to Google’s insistence on using 2FA so I switched to sending mail using the host that serves these pages.
Recently I have noticed that some times the emails just don’t arrive, so I was forced to dive into the weird world that is email delivery. more…
09 May 2024 by Lincoln Ramsay
As it cools down, I have found myself wanting some mulled wine. I looked up recipes and it’s easy to make. I make a single serve like so.
Half a bottle of wine. An orange (cut up). 2 cloves. Star anise. Cinnamon stick. 2 tablespoons honey. Gently simmer for 15 minutes (covered). Strain and serve.
My first attempt used Merlot. It was nice, but half a bottle in one serve is plenty, even without the traditional brandy spike.
I noticed alcohol free Shiraz when shopping so I used that for my second attempt. It is less fruity, so the orange was more present. I did not mind this at all.
09 May 2024 by Lincoln Ramsay
Today (er, some months ago, but whatever) I took a daemon written in python that was chewing 30% of the CPU and beat the code into submission until I was left with a daemon written in C that used under 1% CPU. Along the way I learned some surprising things. more…
09 May 2024 by Lincoln Ramsay
My TicWatch E3 got another system update.
The list of changes was small. Mostly it restores the ability to run a specific app when pressing the bottom button, and it updates the security patch level.
When I got the TicWatch E, it was already very old and so it never received any system updates (though some of the apps did get a few updates).
When I got the TicWatch E3, it was waiting for Wear OS 3, so it also never received any system updates. I’m not sure if this is a sign that system updates will continue or if it’s just leftover work from the big Wear OS 3 update.
Since I don’t run apps on my watch, a lack of updates has never bothered me.
03 February 2024 by Lincoln Ramsay
Now that I’ve had my TicWatch E3 running Wear OS 3 for a week or so, I can speak a little more to the things that weren’t immediately obvious. more…
26 January 2024 by Lincoln Ramsay
Apparently it’s been just over a year since I got a TicWatch E3. In that time it has been a nearly flawless* watch, despite running Wear OS 2 long after everything else had moved on. Yesterday I was finally offered the Wear OS 3 update that had been promised before I even bought the watch. more…
26 January 2024 by Lincoln Ramsay
Over Christmas, there was a thing with my trusty old Pixel 4a, where it couldn’t make or receive calls. I’m not sure why, but I got it in my head that it must be a hardware-related issue, so I went and bought a new phone. more…