The PyroSoft blog

Notes from the workshop.

Guides, explainers, honest comparisons and development journals, written by the people who build the apps.

Development journal entries, most recent first

Battle Bot Arena EnginePart 2Delivering the tested arena build without changing the server around itDevelopment work: Oct 12, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
Battle Bot Arena EnginePart 1Battle Bot Arena Engine 2.0 reaches the browserDevelopment work: Oct 12, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
DevZIPPart 3DZCM: a context-mixing codec of our ownDevelopment work: Jun 4, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
DevZIPPart 2Compression levels and the cost of a smaller archiveDevelopment work: Jun 4, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
DevZIPPart 1DevZIP opens up its archive engineDevelopment work: Apr 13, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
FreeSparkPart 4Route, gather, then write the answer onceDevelopment work: Sep 12 – 13, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
FreeSparkPart 3Checking whether Spark actually helps the modelDevelopment work: Sep 10 – 11, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
FreeSparkPart 2Making local work survive the next conversationDevelopment work: Sep 9 – 10, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
FreeSparkPart 1FreeSpark: useful AI on the hardware you already haveDevelopment work: Sep 9, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
FriendlyIPPart 2Connecting FriendlyIP to the rest of PyroSoftDevelopment work: Sep 14, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
FriendlyIPPart 1FriendlyIP: an address you can read over the phoneRecorded snapshot · Sep 14, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
PSN Account ID FinderPart 2Preserving the whole PSN identifierDevelopment work: Sep 14, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
PSN Account ID FinderPart 1Finding the account ID a Remote Play client asks forRecorded snapshot · Sep 13, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
Steam Command GeneratorPart 1Steam Command Generator: useful commands with the right expectationsRecorded snapshot · Sep 13 – 14, 2026Updated Oct 21, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 10Moving Bourbon safely, then making the verification fasterDevelopment work: Oct 19 – 20, 2026New
Bourbon 26Part 9The audit that put saves and reset safety firstDevelopment work: Oct 19, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 8Native Steam integration and a library you can use from the couchDevelopment work: Oct 17 – 18, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 7Keeping older tools and newer Steam clients in their own lanesDevelopment work: Oct 13 – 16, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 6Giving SteamOS its own place in BourbonDevelopment work: Oct 9 – 12, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 5Activation, installers and knowing which program we launchedDevelopment work: Oct 2 – 8, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 4Smart Play starts figuring out unfamiliar gamesDevelopment work: Sep 29 – 30, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 3Making setup and repair less disruptiveDevelopment work: Aug 30 – Sep 6, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 2When the menus work but the game world is blackDevelopment work: Aug 17, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Bourbon 26Part 1Bourbon 26: choosing the right way to playDevelopment work: Jul 31, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 19Asynchronous I/O and the Bytes a Cancelled Write KeepsDevelopment work: Oct 11, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 18A Real Archive Roundtrip and Better File BehaviorDevelopment work: Oct 11, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 17Making the Launcher Own Its Storage and ProcessesDevelopment work: Oct 11, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 16Getting Wine's Real 32-Bit Startup to RunDevelopment work: Oct 9 – 11, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 15Making Memory Protection and Lifetime Tests More UsefulDevelopment work: Oct 6 – 9, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 14Recovering the Project and Resuming Real TestsDevelopment work: Oct 5, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 13Correcting the Ferrum Progress ReportDevelopment work: Oct 2, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 12Portal Reaches a Command Stream, With the Frame Still AheadDevelopment work: Sep 23 – 26, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 11A Launcher and a Freeze That Wasn't the PresenterDevelopment work: Sep 15 – 17, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 10Working on Presentation and Controller InputDevelopment work: Sep 7 – 12, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 9DirectX 12, Shader Caches, and the Steam Startup WorkDevelopment work: Sep 4 – 6, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 8Making Memory, Files, and Graphics State AgreeDevelopment work: Sep 2 – 3, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 7Building the 32-Bit Graphics PathDevelopment work: Aug 28 – Sep 1, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 6Game Progress and Measuring the Right ThingDevelopment work: Aug 23 – 27, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 5Installers, Saves, Fonts, and the Parts Around the GameDevelopment work: Aug 21 – 22, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 4Following a Game Through Its Opening VideoDevelopment work: Aug 19 – 20, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 3Building More of the Windows RuntimeDevelopment work: Aug 12 – 18, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 2From Return Values to Pixels and SoundDevelopment work: Aug 8 – 11, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
FerrumPart 1Bringing FEX to macOS: The First Windows ProgramDevelopment work: Aug 5 – 7, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
InfinitePIPPart 5Click-through controls and the cross-platform download setDevelopment work: Sep 8 – 9, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
InfinitePIPPart 4A better workspace for all your PiPsDevelopment work: Aug 30, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
InfinitePIPPart 3Giving InfinitePIP a clearer front doorDevelopment work: May 14, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
InfinitePIPPart 2Rebuilding InfinitePIP around independent floating windowsDevelopment work: Dec 24 – 26, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
InfinitePIPPart 1InfinitePIP begins with a simple desktop ideaDevelopment work: Dec 23, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Audio DriverPart 4Making the audio driver's foundations explicitDevelopment work: Mar 3, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Audio DriverPart 3Rolling back the effects experimentDevelopment work: Jan 15, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Audio DriverPart 2Exploring more formats, channels and audio controlsDevelopment work: Nov 14, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Audio DriverPart 1Virtual audio endpoints for a computer without speakersDevelopment work: Jan 2 – Jul 14, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Display DriverPart 6Safer monitor lifetimes and clearer driver repliesDevelopment work: Aug 31, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Display DriverPart 5More precise GPU selection and multi-monitor correctionsDevelopment work: Jan 8 – Jun 22, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Display DriverPart 4Building the tools around the display driverDevelopment work: Jan 1 – Nov 30, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Display DriverPart 3Fine-tuning the virtual displayDevelopment work: Sep 1 – Dec 31, 2024Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Display DriverPart 2HDR and choosing the GPU behind the virtual screenDevelopment work: Dec 2, 2023 – Aug 31, 2024Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Display DriverPart 1A monitor without another panel on the deskDevelopment work: Oct 14 – 21, 2023Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Driver ControlPart 5A rebuilt panel with displays, audio and an EDID labDevelopment work: Jun 12 – Aug 31, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Driver ControlPart 4Moving the panel behind a clearer application boundaryDevelopment work: Jan 12 – 13, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Driver ControlPart 3Reconnecting the interface and fixing driver detectionDevelopment work: Aug 17, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Driver ControlPart 2Connecting the panel to everyday driver tasksDevelopment work: May 1 – Jul 24, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Driver ControlPart 1A control panel for the settings behind the driverDevelopment work: Jan 27 – Feb 22, 2025Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Drivers for macOSPart 5Advanced controls, shared workflows and the bundled CLIDevelopment work: Oct 5, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Drivers for macOSPart 4Real camera sources, HID reports and a private peer tunnelDevelopment work: Oct 5, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Drivers for macOSPart 3Teaching the suite to recover its own devicesDevelopment work: Oct 5, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Drivers for macOSPart 2Testing what the Mac devices actually deliverDevelopment work: Sep 6 – 8, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new
Virtual Drivers for macOSPart 1From a Mac virtual display to a driver suiteDevelopment work: Aug 30 – 31, 2026Updated Oct 20, 2026, new