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cryptpad review !

in depth review of cryptpad as someone who is using it as a replacement for google docs because i don't trust google and i dipped the moment i heard "fully integrated ai" 🤭

we're scoring cryptpad on a scale of 1-10 based on its interface, features, accessibility, ease of access, and storage.

scoring criteria:

usability 10/10 : has a lot of formatting options, while also being easy on the eyes. offers features that allow the software to be easily customizable to each user's needs and preferences, or features that make writing easier, without being overwhelming.

accessibility 10/10 : includes accessibility options for eye strain/dyslexia/etc like a proper dark mode and dyslexia friendly fonts, while also having an easy-to-navigate layout, and a mobile app that is equally easy to use without losing its features. doesn't take a long time to load, and is easy to adapt to as a new user.

storage 10/10 : provides a free account with very high or unlimited storage. the documents and files you create don't take up a ton of space, and you have options for upgrading storage if applicable.

what is cryptpad?

similar to how docs operates on desktop, cryptpad is a website-based file drive and software. it's free to create an account, and offers a selection of different kinds of files you can make. here's a list of features i think are notable, first:

there's 10 different of kinds of files you can create, including even code documents! cryptpad also allows you to create as many folders as you like, upload pre-existing files or folders, and even allows you to add links to your drive if you have links you want to save.

cryptpad always will open a new document or a pre-existing one in a new tab! when making a new document it automatically gives you the options to name it, password-lock it, set a destruction date.

there's diversity in your sharing options: you can toggle and change the rules for the kinds of access people get to your shared documents!

somewhat on the same topic, there's access settings and details you can review and tweak at any time.

also you can change your account's display name in your settings LMAO

there's a chat option on documents for when you're working on something with other people in the upper right corner of your screen!

the actual scoring:

usability: 7/10

formatting your documents isn't terribly versatile on cryptpad, but it offers to you that you can make as many folders and nest as many of them as you want, while also making its layout and navigation simple. there isn't a ton of super fancy features in the rich text documents, but i enjoy that, to be honest! keeps it simple.

accessibility: 7.5/10

tragically, you cannot change the background of cryptpad files, and there's no mobile app :( if i could i would. they do, at least, offer a light or dark mode? i have dark mode selected of course, but it um... yeah the background is always just that white 😬 unfortunately. they do have basic font options, but personally, my love for cryptpad's accessibility lies in the fact you can make as many folders and nested folders as you damn well please, and the drive screen is SO easy to navigate.

storage: 10/10

1GB for free, to start with? sir, i have 52 files in this drive (all rich text) and i have used 0.03 of that !! which, if i did my math correctly (debatable), that means i'll need over 5 thousand files to fill up that 1GB. AND it's upgradable, without the upgrade price being my soul? you can even donate just for funsies!

overall rating: 8/10

personally, i love cryptpad! i do wish you could change the document background color, and i wish that i had more formatting option like line spacing, but it's a good iteration of what i want in a writing program! i'd definitely recommend if you like supporting freelance guys doin their own thing while also not struggling to figure out how the fuck a writing software works.

So you don’t have to watch the video every time you need one of these hacks immediately:

1. If you feel nauseated, smell rubbing alcohol.

2. If you feel like throwing up, start humming.

3. If you have a runny nose, put your tongue to the roof of your mouth and press your thumb to your forehead for about 20 seconds.

4. If you have a headache, pinch the webbing between your fingers and rub it back and forth for about 1 minute.

5. If you’re lightheaded from standing up too quickly, clench your butt cheeks.

6. If your arm’s dead/has the pins and needles feeling, rock your head back and forth.

7. If you need to pee badly, think of sex to trick your brain and relieve the pressure.

8. If you have a migraine, stick your hands in ice water.

9. If you wanna calm your racing heart, blow on your thumb.

Types Of Writer’s Block (And How To Fix Them)

1. High inspiration, low motivation. You have so many ideas to write, but you just don’t have the motivation to actually get them down, and even if you can make yourself start writing it you’ll often find yourself getting distracted or disengaged in favour of imagining everything playing out

Try just bullet pointing the ideas you have instead of writing them properly, especially if you won’t remember it afterwards if you don’t. At least you’ll have the ideas ready to use when you have the motivation later on

2. Low inspiration, high motivation. You’re all prepared, you’re so pumped to write, you open your document aaaaand… three hours later, that cursor is still blinking at the top of a blank page

RIP pantsers but this is where plotting wins out; refer back to your plans and figure out where to go from here. You can also use your bullet points from the last point if this is applicable

3. No inspiration, no motivation. You don’t have any ideas, you don’t feel like writing, all in all everything is just sucky when you think about it

Make a deal with yourself; usually when I’m feeling this way I can tell myself “Okay, just write anyway for ten minutes and after that, if you really want to stop, you can stop” and then once my ten minutes is up I’ve often found my flow. Just remember that, if you still don’t want to keep writing after your ten minutes is up, don’t keep writing anyway and break your deal - it’ll be harder to make deals with yourself in future if your brain knows you don’t honour them

4. Can’t bridge the gap. When you’re stuck on this one sentence/paragraph that you just don’t know how to progress through. Until you figure it out, productivity has slowed to a halt

Mark it up, bullet point what you want to happen here, then move on. A lot of people don’t know how to keep writing after skipping a part because they don’t know exactly what happened to lead up to this moment - but you have a general idea just like you do for everything else you’re writing, and that’s enough. Just keep it generic and know you can go back to edit later, at the same time as when you’re filling in the blank. It’ll give editing you a clear purpose, if nothing else

5. Perfectionism and self-doubt. You don’t think your writing is perfect first time, so you struggle to accept that it’s anything better than a total failure. Whether or not you’re aware of the fact that this is an unrealistic standard makes no difference

Perfection is stagnant. If you write the perfect story, which would require you to turn a good story into something objective rather than subjective, then after that you’d never write again, because nothing will ever meet that standard again. That or you would only ever write the same kind of stories over and over, never growing or developing as a writer. If you’re looking back on your writing and saying “This is so bad, I hate it”, that’s generally a good thing; it means you’ve grown and improved. Maybe your current writing isn’t bad, if just matched your skill level at the time, and since then you’re able to maintain a higher standard since you’ve learned more about your craft as time went on