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PocketToolz

Guides

The questions that come before the tool. Which format, what size, how to get under a limit — answered properly, then pointed at something that does the job.

Choosing an image format

A straight answer for each kind of image — photographs, logos, screenshots, transparency — and what each format costs you.

7 min

Social media image sizes

Current upload dimensions for Instagram, X, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and Pinterest — plus how to crop without losing the subject.

6 min

Making a file smaller

What actually makes a PDF or an image large, which lever to pull first, and how to lose the least quality doing it.

6 min

Are online tools safe?

Most converters upload your file to a server you know nothing about. Some do not need to — here is how to tell the difference, and how to check for yourself.

7 min

Hashing, encoding and encryption

Base64 is not encryption, a hash is not reversible, and confusing them is how credentials end up in plain sight. What each one is actually for.

8 min

Working with PDFs

Why the text will not copy, why the file is 40MB, why editing one is awkward — and what to do about each.

6 min

Colour on the web

Four ways to write the same colour, and why the newest one finally makes lightness mean what you expect.

6 min

Metric and imperial

Why two systems still exist, the conversions worth memorising, and the three that catch people out — including a gallon that is not a gallon.

7 min

Measuring a room

Which measurements each job actually needs, how much to add for waste, and the openings people forget to subtract.

7 min

Regular expressions

The dozen or so pieces that cover almost every real use, why greedy matching surprises everyone, and when not to reach for a regex at all.

9 min