Privacy-minded essentials
Updated 2026-07-18 · 8 min read · By Ben Liu
DNS filtering, sync, notes, and analytics with fewer third parties in the path.
Design goal
Reduce silent third-party collection in daily browsing and writing workflows. This is not anonymity theater — it is practical residency and fewer trackers.
Pair DNS filtering with honest privacy disclosures if you also publish a public site with analytics.
Operator checklist
Document which devices use the DNS resolver. Keep Syncthing folders selective so phones do not sync bulk archives. Confirm note export formats before migrating years of writing.
For analytics, ship aggregate page views first and keep retention short.
Projects in this collection
Tools in this stack are listed for context. This column leads with guides — open each project only when you need a deeper lab note.
Pi-hole
Blackhole for Internet advertisements with a GUI for management and monitoring.
Syncthing
Syncthing is an open source peer-to-peer file synchronisation tool.
Standard Notes
Simple and private notes app. Protect your privacy while getting more done. That's Standard Notes.
Plausible Analytics
Simple, lightweight (< 1 KB) and privacy-friendly web analytics.