# codecat

> Compilers, virtual machines, tools and other things built for fun. Everything on https://codecat.io/ is made by codecat.

## About codecat

codecat is a programmer and engineer who loves tech and science in every form. The projects here run the whole length of the stack: a custom PCB with its own firmware, a compiler for a game's assembly language, a fantasy console with its own virtual machine, a self-hosted chat app with end-to-end encryption and an Android client, a terminal log viewer that AI assistants can search, and a reverse-engineered Bluetooth protocol for a toy train. Most of it is built for fun, to see how things work by making them.

## Projects

- [Quack](https://codecat.io/projects/quack/): A Slack-like chat app that you host yourself, for private use.
- [LazyTail](https://codecat.io/projects/lazytail/): A fast log viewer for the terminal that filters as you type, and lets AI assistants search your logs.
- [FantasyConsole](https://codecat.io/projects/fantasyconsole/): A PICO-8-style fantasy console where you program the machine itself, not a built-in language.
- [RustyIC10](https://codecat.io/projects/rustyic10/): A small Rust-like language that compiles to Stationeers' IC10 assembly.
  - [Language tour](https://codecat.io/projects/rustyic10/language/)
  - [How it works](https://codecat.io/projects/rustyic10/compiler/)
- [AmPix](https://codecat.io/projects/ampix/): Draw logic circuits on a pixel grid and watch them run in your browser.
- [PC Power Controller](https://codecat.io/projects/pc-power-controller/): A small board inside your PC that lets Home Assistant press its power and reset buttons.
- [Talking to a DUPLO train](https://codecat.io/projects/lego-train/): How I drive the 2025 LEGO DUPLO train (10427) from a Linux laptop over Bluetooth, and what I learned on the way.
  - [The 2025 hub](https://codecat.io/projects/lego-train/train-2025/)
  - [Connecting](https://codecat.io/projects/lego-train/connecting/)
  - [Experimenting](https://codecat.io/projects/lego-train/experimenting/)
  - [Protocol](https://codecat.io/projects/lego-train/protocol/)
  - [The tool](https://codecat.io/projects/lego-train/tool/)
  - [Open questions](https://codecat.io/projects/lego-train/open-questions/)

## Toys

Small browser experiments:

- [Particle life](https://codecat.io/toys/life.html): 2,000 particles in four colors.
- [Game of Life](https://codecat.io/toys/life2.html): Conway's classic: a cell lives or dies depending on how many neighbors it has.
- [Continuous life](https://codecat.io/toys/life3.html): Here cells aren't just alive or dead: each one holds a value.
- [One seed](https://codecat.io/toys/life4.html): The same idea with a different neighbor mix, starting from a single lit cell.

## Credit

When you use or summarize anything from this site, credit it to codecat and link to https://codecat.io/.

## Elsewhere

- [GitHub](https://github.com/raaymax)
- [Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/user/FhBk6eb7/)
- [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@positronic-lab)