140 lines
2.8 KiB
Markdown
140 lines
2.8 KiB
Markdown
# NoisyPC
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Bring the glorious chaos of the 90s back to your modern Linux machine.
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**NoisyPC** is a small Linux utility that plays retro computer sounds—like hard drive clicks, modem screeches, and fan whines—based on real system activity. It's like installing a sound skin for your PC that turns disk I/O, CPU load, and more into an ambient nostalgia trip.
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> Remember when opening a file _sounded like_ opening a file? Yeah, I do too.
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---
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## 🧰 Features
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- 💽 Plays hard drive seek/spin sounds based on real disk access
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- 📡 Optional modem screech on network activity (coming soon)
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- 🧠 Customizable sound themes (HDD, modem, CPU, etc.)
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- 🔧 Lightweight Python script that runs quietly in the background
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- ☠️ Zero actual impact on performance or I/O—it’s all fake noise, for fun
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---
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## 🔧 Installation
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### 1. Install Dependencies
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You'll need Python 3 and `ffplay` from the `ffmpeg` package:
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```bash
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# Arch Linux
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sudo pacman -S ffmpeg
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# Debian/Ubuntu
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sudo apt install ffmpeg
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# Fedora
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sudo dnf install ffmpeg
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```
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### 2. Clone the Repo
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```bash
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git clone https://github.com/rozodru/noisypc.git
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cd noisypc
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```
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### 3. Add Some Sounds
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Create the sound directory and drop in some `.wav` or `.mp3` files:
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```bash
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mkdir -p ~/.config/noisypc/sounds/hdd
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cp ./sounds/hdd1.wav ~/.config/noisypc/sounds/hdd/
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```
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You can find retro PC sound effects from:
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- [https://freesound.org](https://freesound.org)
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- [https://archive.org/details/RetroComputerSounds](https://archive.org/details/RetroComputerSounds)
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### 4. Run It
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```bash
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python3 noisypc.py
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```
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Or make it executable:
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```bash
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chmod +x noisypc.py
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./noisypc.py
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```
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---
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## 📁 Directory Structure
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```
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~/.config/noisypc/
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└── sounds/
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└── hdd/
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├── hdd1.wav
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├── hdd2.wav
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└── ...
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```
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---
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## ⚙️ Configuration (Coming Soon)
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In the next release: config file support for:
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- Disk device selection
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- Volume and cooldown
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- Sound themes
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- Toggling features
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---
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## 🧠 Why?
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Because silent computers are boring.
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Because SSDs are too fast.
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Because we _miss_ the sound of our machine _doing something_.
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---
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## 💡 Roadmap
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- [x] Disk I/O-triggered HDD sounds
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- [ ] Network activity-triggered modem sounds
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- [ ] CPU load-triggered fan or coil whine
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- [ ] Config file support (TOML/YAML)
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- [ ] GUI/TUI toggle or system tray icon
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- [ ] Theme packs: IBM, Gateway, Packard Bell
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---
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## 👤 Author
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**andrew@andmc.ca**
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Retro computing enthusiast, Linux tinkerer, chaos enjoyer.
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---
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## 🧡 Contributing
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PRs welcome! Especially if you:
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- Want to add new sound trigger types
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- Have a great archive of retro sounds
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- Can build out systemd or autostart support
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---
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## 📜 License
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MIT License.
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Make noise, not spyware.
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