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What is Daniel Scharrer's Abode in Cyberspace?
Daniel Scharrer's Abode in Cyberspace is the personal website of Daniel Scharrer, a software developer. It is a minimal homepage rather than a blog or portfolio: it lists his contact channels and the projects he maintains.
What the site covers
- Contact details: email addresses, IRC handles on Libera, OFTC and Rizon, and a PGP key for encrypted mail.
- Projects: two open-source tools.
- Arx Libertatis — a cross-platform port of the first-person role-playing game Arx Fatalis, licensed GPL3+.
- innoextract — a tool for unpacking installers built with Inno Setup, licensed zlib/libpng.
- Elsewhere: links to his GitHub, OBS, Launchpad and Open Hub profiles, all under the handle
dscharrer.
Who it is useful for
The site works as a reference point for people who already know the projects. If you run Arx Fatalis on Linux or macOS and want the engine port, or if you need to extract files from an Inno Setup installer, this page points you to the author and the source repositories. For anyone looking for tutorials, downloads or documentation, it offers little beyond the project names and licenses.
A sensible next step is to follow the GitHub link for the project you need and read its README there, since the homepage itself does not host instructions or releases.
What is Arx Libertatis and how does it let me play Arx Fatalis on modern systems?
Arx Libertatis is a cross-platform, open-source port of Arx Fatalis, the first-person role-playing game. It is not a remake or a new game: it reimplements the original engine so the game runs natively on modern operating systems, released under GPL3+. It is listed among the projects of Daniel Scharrer on Daniel Scharrer's Abode in Cyberspace.
What it does for players
- Modern-platform support: the project exists to make Arx Fatalis playable on current systems rather than relying on the original build.
- Open development: the GPL3+ license means the code can be inspected, modified and redistributed, which helps long-term fixes and community patches.
- Engine-level improvements: because it is a port of the engine, it can address compatibility and stability issues that the original executable cannot.
What to expect in practice
You still need the original Arx Fatalis game data; the port supplies the engine, not the content. If you own the game, your path is typically: install or copy the original files, then run them through Arx Libertatis. Expect the usual trade-offs of community ports — strong compatibility work but occasional rough edges, and fixes that depend on volunteer maintainers.
Deciding whether to use it
Use Arx Libertatis if your goal is simply to play Arx Fatalis on a modern machine, especially on Linux or macOS, or if you want an open, maintainable engine. If you only want the untouched original experience on hardware it already supports, the original build may be enough. As a next step, check the project's documentation for the supported game versions and installation steps before buying or reinstalling the game.
How do I extract files from an Inno Setup installer using innoextract?
Use innoextract, a command-line tool by Daniel Scharrer designed to unpack installers built with Inno Setup. It is listed on his personal site as a project under a zlib/libpng licence Daniel Scharrer's Abode in Cyberspace.
Basic workflow
- Download the innoextract build for your platform from its project page or your package manager.
- Open a terminal in the folder containing the installer.
- Run the extraction command against the installer file, for example
innoextract setup.exe. - By default the files are written into a subfolder named after the installer; check that folder for the unpacked contents.
Practical options
- Choose an output directory if you want the files somewhere specific rather than beside the installer.
- List contents first when you only want to see what the installer contains before extracting anything.
- Extract only selected files if you need a single component rather than the whole payload.
- Try a different Inno Setup version mode if the installer was built with an older or newer format and extraction reports unsupported compression.
When this is the right tool
innoextract suits people who want the raw files from an Inno Setup package without running the installer — for inspection, repackaging, or recovering data on a system where the installer will not run. It is not a general archive tool: it targets Inno Setup specifically. For installers built with other systems, you need a different extractor.
A sensible next step is to run the list option on your installer first, confirm the file names look like what you expect, and only then extract to a clean directory.
Which download should I choose for Arx Libertatis on Linux, Windows, or macOS?
Choose the download that matches your operating system, and on Linux match your distribution's package format and CPU architecture. The site lists Arx Libertatis as Daniel Scharrer's cross-platform port of Arx Fatalis under the GPL3+, but the page evidence here does not show a download table, version numbers or file names, so check the project's download page for the current list rather than relying on any single filename.
A practical way to decide:
- Windows: take the Windows build for your system type; if you are unsure whether your PC is 32- or 64-bit, check System settings first.
- macOS: take the macOS build that matches your Mac's chip (Apple Silicon or Intel), and confirm the minimum macOS version on the download page before installing.
- Linux: prefer the package your distribution provides if one exists, since it will be updated with your system. Otherwise choose the generic binary or build from source, matching your architecture.
Also note that Arx Libertatis is an engine port, not the game itself: you still need your own copy of Arx Fatalis game data for it to run. The project's GitHub account is listed as dscharrer, so the repository there is the sensible next stop for release notes and build instructions.
For general background on the original game, see Wikipedia's Arx Fatalis article; for the engine port's own documentation and downloads, use the project's GitHub releases page via GitHub.
How can I contact Daniel Scharrer or report a bug in one of his projects?
Use the contact details listed on Daniel Scharrer's Abode in Cyberspace 🏠: email [email protected] (a shorter [email protected] address is also listed), or IRC under the nick ds` on the Libera, OFTC or Rizon networks. For anything sensitive, the page also publishes a PGP key (fingerprint 28555A66D7E1DEC9), so encrypting email is an option.
For bugs, the better route is usually the project's own issue tracker rather than a personal email. His two listed projects are:
- Arx Libertatis — a cross-platform port of the game Arx Fatalis, licensed GPL3+.
- innoextract — a tool for unpacking Inno Setup installers, licensed zlib/libpng.
Both are open-source and hosted on GitHub under the account dscharrer, so a bug report with steps to reproduce, your OS, and the version you're running will land where the code lives. If you're unsure which project is at fault, describe the symptom and version first; that decides whether it belongs in the Arx Libertatis or innoextract tracker.
How do I verify the authenticity of Daniel Scharrer's project downloads using his PGP key?
Verify a download by matching it against Daniel Scharrer's published PGP key fingerprint, 28555A66D7E1DEC9, rather than by trusting the site's look or the file's name. His page lists that key alongside his contact addresses and his projects, so it is the reference point for checking signed releases.
A practical check
- Get the key from a keyserver or from a copy you trust, then confirm its full fingerprint ends in
28555A66D7E1DEC9. A short ID alone is weak; compare the whole fingerprint. - If a release includes a detached signature (often a
.sigor.ascfile), verify the downloaded file against it. - If only a checksum is published, treat it as an integrity check, not proof of authorship—checksums on the same page can be altered with the file.
- Confirm the signature was made by the key you verified, then install or run the file.
Where this matters
For Arx Libertatis, the cross-platform port of Arx Fatalis listed on Daniel Scharrer's Abode in Cyberspace, a forged build could run unwanted code on your machine. For innoextract, a tampered unpacker could quietly corrupt or alter the installers it extracts—less dramatic, but still a problem if you rely on the output.
Decision criterion
If a download has no signature and no fingerprint-checked checksum, prefer an official release channel you can trace back to the same key. When a signature exists but the fingerprint differs from 28555A66D7E1DEC9, stop and re-download from the project's own page.
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