So, some random thoughts about technology, and not just information technology...
If Publisher's Clearing House or another contest called you to say you are a winner, would you actually answer because of all the spam and "extended warranty" call?
Just some thoughts on technological progress.. My original TRS-80 Model III had 5¼-inch floppy drives, with each floppy disc had a capacity of 178,944 bytes available, and a 5 MB hard drive cost you an arm and a leg ($2,000-$2,500), and no, I didn't have one. My first computer with a hard drive was a 386-33 computer with a 5¼-inch floppy drive (max capacity 1.2 megabytes), a 3½-inch floppy drive (max capacity 1.44 megabytes), and a 105MB hard drive. Nowadays, because of the data captures and the high amount of details on the data files, it is not uncommon for a file to be generated that is megabytes in size. It's hard to purchase a USB thumb drive with a capacity less than 1GB unless you want to purchase 20-50 drives at once, plus the price difference between a 1 GB USB thumb drive and a slightly larger capacity is miniscule.
To that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually, with the reasoning that you would never carry a calculator around with you... how many scientific calculator apps are available for download now? Of course, because of cheating and such, there are only certain calculators that are approved for major exams (https://education.ti.com/en/resources/test-preparation), and they better have no WiFi connectivity.
Quote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMIf Publisher's Clearing House or another contest called you to say you are a winner,
You mean they don't actually show up on your front porch with a giant check? My dreams are shattered.
Quote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually, with the reasoning that you would never carry a calculator around with you... how many scientific calculator apps are available for download now? Of course, because of cheating and such, there are only certain calculators that are approved for major exams (https://education.ti.com/en/resources/test-preparation), and they better have no WiFi connectivity.
Not to mention that, in the real world, anyone that cares about your answers being right would absolutely prefer you to use a calculator rather than relying on your thirty-year-old memories of the times table. When I worked as a casino cashier they supplied one of those huge ten-key adding machines for each cashier window. We were encouraged to use it any time we had even a shadow of a doubt that we had the total right. Better to take a minute to punch up the total on the ten-key than to think you have it right and overpay someone.
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 15, 2024, 11:26:33 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually, with the reasoning that you would never carry a calculator around with you... how many scientific calculator apps are available for download now? Of course, because of cheating and such, there are only certain calculators that are approved for major exams (https://education.ti.com/en/resources/test-preparation), and they better have no WiFi connectivity.
Not to mention that, in the real world, anyone that cares about your answers being right would absolutely prefer you to use a calculator rather than relying on your thirty-year-old memories of the times table. When I worked as a casino cashier they supplied one of those huge ten-key adding machines for each cashier window. We were encouraged to use it any time we had even a shadow of a doubt that we had the total right. Better to take a minute to punch up the total on the ten-key than to think you have it right and overpay someone.
There is - at least should be - some balance between trying to do everything in you head and staring blank at $20+$1 for a $5.80 charge.
I still try to "make change" and work out things like multiplication/division tables in my head just to keep the dusty mathematician in my head happy. (Problem is, he obviously quit his job about midway through high school.)
If I need to look busy, I'll scribble out a math problem during things like expense reporting, or it's super useful for finding a good point to hang picture frames, re-arrange furniture, et cetera...when I need to sketch out the ideas and then the numbers just flow from there.
Technology-wise, there's still a lot of things I'm just stubborn or get forgetful. I sometimes forget the exact process for using our Fire stick and TV, because I might use it once every two months. Or recalling how to do things in Windows; I usually have to look up obscure features that I once used frequently 20 years ago.
And darn it, despite having loads of camera gear, I was mighty disappointed by my near-eclipse photos. I'll chalk that up to operator error, even though I've had my latest camera for over a year now. With so many more features and the camera over-thinking for you, sometimes there's moments you have to override several settings just to get exactly what you want out of it. Again, there's the humbling moment when I know others could probably get their desired results, because they practiced and learned for that moment and knew what to do, and I just winged it, and winged it some more. The best camera is the one in your hand, and the better camera is knowing to use it in that situation.
Quote from: kalvado on April 16, 2024, 09:09:30 AMQuote from: Scott5114 on April 15, 2024, 11:26:33 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually, with the reasoning that you would never carry a calculator around with you... how many scientific calculator apps are available for download now? Of course, because of cheating and such, there are only certain calculators that are approved for major exams (https://education.ti.com/en/resources/test-preparation), and they better have no WiFi connectivity.
Not to mention that, in the real world, anyone that cares about your answers being right would absolutely prefer you to use a calculator rather than relying on your thirty-year-old memories of the times table. When I worked as a casino cashier they supplied one of those huge ten-key adding machines for each cashier window. We were encouraged to use it any time we had even a shadow of a doubt that we had the total right. Better to take a minute to punch up the total on the ten-key than to think you have it right and overpay someone.
There is - at least should be - some balance between trying to do everything in you head and staring blank at $20+$1 for a $5.80 charge.
From a customer's point of view: Come on, give me my change.
From an employee's point of view: Procedures are to enter the amount I was provided. We've been instructed there's scam artists that will purposely try to trick cashiers. If I get an additional dollar after the fact, do I try to calculate the change myself? Will I get written up? If I give back the wrong change and my drawer is short, will I get written up?
Not everyone is a mathematician. And the customer's employment isn't on the line if the employee screws up.
I am naturally good at math, but I use a calculator all of the time. I care more about accuracy than anything else, and its not any sort of badge of honor to do things in my head or on paper when I can get a 100% accurate answer in less time.
I also stopped writing in cursive as soon as they allowed me to and don't think it should be taught in schools at all.
Quote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually,
This was "that one teacher" of mine in seventh grade.
Quote from: epzik8 on April 16, 2024, 10:22:59 AMQuote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually,
This was "that one teacher" of mine in seventh grade.
I don't know when you went to school, but I was never allowed to use a calculator in math class until I had a scientific one for trig in high school. This was the mid to late 80s.
Quote from: SEWIGuy on April 16, 2024, 10:29:12 AMQuote from: epzik8 on April 16, 2024, 10:22:59 AMQuote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually,
This was "that one teacher" of mine in seventh grade.
I don't know when you went to school, but I was never allowed to use a calculator in math class until I had a scientific one for trig in high school. This was the mid to late 80s.
I wasn't allowed a calculator on tests in a classroom until my 12th-grade Physics teacher said it was okay. Mostly because it wasn't a required course (sciences were only required for the first three years of high school) and because he reminded us that the formulas and processes were the important things to remember.
Quote from: kalvado on April 16, 2024, 09:09:30 AMQuote from: Scott5114 on April 15, 2024, 11:26:33 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually, with the reasoning that you would never carry a calculator around with you... how many scientific calculator apps are available for download now? Of course, because of cheating and such, there are only certain calculators that are approved for major exams (https://education.ti.com/en/resources/test-preparation), and they better have no WiFi connectivity.
Not to mention that, in the real world, anyone that cares about your answers being right would absolutely prefer you to use a calculator rather than relying on your thirty-year-old memories of the times table. When I worked as a casino cashier they supplied one of those huge ten-key adding machines for each cashier window. We were encouraged to use it any time we had even a shadow of a doubt that we had the total right. Better to take a minute to punch up the total on the ten-key than to think you have it right and overpay someone.
There is - at least should be - some balance between trying to do everything in you head and staring blank at $20+$1 for a $5.80 charge.
The balance is to just pay with the $20, keep the $1, and accept the consequences for your own unpreparedness instead of foisting them on some poor cashier.
The first Apple Macintosh computer I used in the newspaper business in 1987 was a Mac Plus. It had 1 MB of RAM and a 20 MB external hard drive. The souped-up computer we used for ad composition had 2 MB of RAM and a 40 MB external hard drive. We connected to our Apple LaserWriter printer with PhoneNet connectors. The hard drivers were SCSI and the mouse and keyboard used Apple Desktop Bus (ADB) connectors.
Quote from: SEWIGuy on April 16, 2024, 10:29:12 AMI don't know when you went to school, but I was never allowed to use a calculator in math class until I had a scientific one for trig in high school. This was the mid to late 80s.
From my school experience in the mid-late 80's: calculators were forbidden in Algebra I and Geometry. In Algebra II, we had a few tests/quizzes where we did a few questions without calculators ("just so you remember how to do math without them"), before we were allowed to break them out for the rest of the test.
I think my Trig class was one of the first ones where we didn't have to learn how to use trig tables; we were just expected to use scientific calculators. (I was, of course, a smart-ass and brought a slide rule to my final exam.)
Random access technology: We were thrilled when FORTRAN got indexed sequential files. You no longer had to read the entire file to find the record you wanted. This would have been sometime in the late 1980's if I recall.
Quote from: GaryV on April 18, 2024, 02:48:44 PMRandom access technology: We were thrilled when FORTRAN got indexed sequential files. You no longer had to read the entire file to find the record you wanted. This would have been sometime in the late 1980's if I recall.
I'm pretty sure that VAX Fortran had ISAM (indexed sequenced access method) back in the late 1970s. By Late 1981, CDC was rolling out AAM (Record Manager advanced access methods) which improved its ISAM (VAX Cobol 5 was the first to use the new AAM, and the other languages could be retrofitted soon after). But I remember the kluge to get IBM Fortran to interact with VSAM (virtual storage access method) using a JCL shell (on both OS360 and OS370). Note that I "woren't gute at it", so I went on into the world of Control Systems. But I hung onto Fortran programming until the end of my software days.
I mean, from what you hear from the Unix old timers, neither Fortran nor JCL were any good at being programming languages, so I'm not entirely sure you should feel bad about not being good at them:
Quote from: the Jargon FileFortrash: /for·trash/, n.
Hackerism for the Fortran language, referring to its primitive design, gross and irregular syntax, limited control constructs, and slippery, exception-filled semantics.
JCL: /J·C·L/, n.
1. IBM's supremely rude Job Control Language. JCL is the script language used to control the execution of programs in IBM's batch systems. JCL has a very fascist syntax, and some versions will, for example, barf if two spaces appear where it expects one. Most programmers confronted with JCL simply copy a working file (or card deck), changing the file names. Someone who actually understands and generates unique JCL is regarded with the mixed respect one gives to someone who memorizes the phone book. It is reported that hackers at IBM itself sometimes sing "Who's the breeder of the crud that mangles you and me? I-B-M, J-C-L, M-o-u-s-e" to the tune of the Mickey Mouse Club theme to express their opinion of the beast.
2. A comparative for any very rude software that a hacker is expected to use. "That's as bad as JCL." As with COBOL, JCL is often used as an archetype of ugliness even by those who haven't experienced it. See also IBM, fear and loathing.
Quote from: Dirt Roads on April 18, 2024, 09:45:46 PMVAX Fortran had ISAM (indexed sequenced access method) back in the late 1970s
Maybe we were just late adopters then. I didn't start at the company until late 1981, and I know there were a few years at least before we had ISAM.
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 19, 2024, 06:39:17 AMI mean, from what you hear from the Unix old timers, neither Fortran nor JCL were any good at being programming languages, so I'm not entirely sure you should feel bad about not being good at them:
Actually, I meant that I wasn't good at getting IBM Fortran to interact with VSAM to keep oneself from having to load the entire database before finding a record at a known location.
To be honest, I didn't have all that much programming experience in my career. But I was proficient in the myriad of differences between FORTRAN3, FORTRAN4, FORTRAN77, IBM Fortran, VAX Fortran, MS Fortran, and Microsoft VisualFortran. Including the fact that Microsoft couldn't get their function calls for matrix multiplication to work with imaginary numbers (which are indeed required in calculating the power flow when trains are in motion). And yes, I still have my old JCL Programmers Card around here somewhere.
As for the UNIX folks, I can understand where most of them were coming from. Folks that used JCL and Fortran were geared for engineering calculations. Folks that used UNIX and the old C were wired for telecomms. I had one friend (now deceased) who was superb at both (he worked for both AT&T and a rocket propulsion simulation consultancy). I had several times that I needed to use UNIX, but even those were programming with Fortan77. Looks like I just got stuck in a rut.
Maybe I'm too darn young as a programmer, but I don't think I've ever run into a Fortran program. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the C libraries for mathematical calculations are imported Fortran code, though. I'm not sure what makes Fortran really good at math and only math -- apparently it has to do with almost everything being a vector, but the same is also true in C (except pointers which are integers, and structs which are their own mess; I think they're also pointers?). Never worked with non-Unix / non-Windows OSes; JCL strikes me as a walled garden with a lot of proprietary nonsense, since it seems only IBM uses that language.
I have taken an assembly programming class where programs can't be larger than 4 KB of RAM. I'm not very good at it, since trying to do tasks that are trivial in C (like sending data over a serial port) become an absolute slog in assembly. I never wrote programs larger than 700 bytes, but I can't imagine writing something like a game in assembly (but people have done it, and even in sizes smaller than 1 KB as an exercise).
Since I went to school in the Internet age, I've never been told "you'll never have a calculator in your pocket". Maybe in elementary school, but by middle school everyone had a smartphone. These days I rarely use my graphing calculator, since I'm usually doing algebra or looking up a Fourier transform, not calculations.
Quote from: noelbotevera on April 21, 2024, 10:29:26 PMI wouldn't be surprised if some of the C libraries for mathematical calculations are imported Fortran code, though.
Assuming you're talking about the standard libraries, I would be pretty surprised if they were—Dennis Ritchie was such a brilliant programmer he would have had no reason to use existing Fortran code as a basis for anything in C, and if he somehow got stuck, well, he hung out with Ken Thompson. (The one time I read Thompson's writing I had to give up on it because it was clear he was on such completely different level than I that I felt like an ant trying to comprehend the Apollo space program.)
If you mean third-party vendors, maybe, but I would imagine those have long since been replaced in day-to-day use by open-source libraries written by dyed-in-the-wool C hackers who would feel queasy at the thought of even reading through a Fortran source file, never mind porting it.
Getting started with C for me was the most unusual thing, because once it started clicking, I could feel it rewriting the way my brain worked, for the better. It's such a simple language (when I got to the end of K&R, I was like...wait, that's it? that's the whole language?), and yet so incredibly powerful. It's a little tedious sometimes, but it's actually kind of fun to mess around with in a way that other languages aren't (although Perl can be a lot of fun too if you enjoy the sheer syntax lunacy it will let you get away with).
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 22, 2024, 03:31:23 AM(when I got to the end of K&R, I was like...wait, that's it? that's the whole language?)
When I was in college, that book was (only half) jokingly referred to as "the Bible". I still have it after all these years, even though at this point the odds of me doing anything in C are slim to none. The C language does have a certain elegance that many other languages lack.
I pull it out and read it cover to cover from time to time, even when I'm not planning on writing any C any time soon. So many modern languages (especially the two I write the most code in, Perl and PHP) lean so heavily on what C does, that it's helpful to refresh my knowledge of C even if I'm not writing in it.
I remember long ago writing an in-house app using C and curses (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curses_%28programming_library%29) to track satellite telemetry. It was text-mode only, with a spreadsheet-like interface, and a super crude "best effort" chart feature using line drawing characters and the 80x25 screen. And: a macro language using recursive descent parsing. The tools were primitive, but the job was great fun.
Quote from: vdeane on April 22, 2024, 08:56:08 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on April 22, 2024, 03:31:23 AM(when I got to the end of K&R, I was like...wait, that's it? that's the whole language?)
When I was in college, that book was (only half) jokingly referred to as "the Bible". I still have it after all these years, even though at this point the odds of me doing anything in C are slim to none. The C language does have a certain elegance that many other languages lack.
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 22, 2024, 10:27:16 PMI pull it out and read it cover to cover from time to time, even when I'm not planning on writing any C any time soon. So many modern languages (especially the two I write the most code in, Perl and PHP) lean so heavily on what C does, that it's helpful to refresh my knowledge of C even if I'm not writing in it.
Hey, I actually printed out this book to self study! I'm amazed at how it also teaches you to be a better programmer (like avoiding magic numbers -- replace fixed constants with symbols, so it's easier to change these constants later) while teaching you the language. Obviously some of it is outdated, namely anything involving floats being simplified with C99.
I think one of the neatest tricks with (Unix like) C is how basic system calls like read(), write(), open(), and close() can be used for both files and network sockets. What sort of witchcraft is being performed to make a network socket behave like a file? Makes file transfer really freaking easy in C.
Quote from: noelbotevera on April 25, 2024, 12:20:13 AMWhat sort of witchcraft is being performed to make a network socket behave like a file? Makes file transfer really freaking easy in C.
That's how Unix works—everything is a file, even devices. (Look in your /dev directory and there they all are.) You send data to a device by writing to the file that corresponds to the device. This means you can do some kind of amazing stuff very simply. You can make a white noise generator by reading /dev/random and writing it to the speakers, for instance.
Since C is native to Unix, it just kept the same metaphor.
What has me scratching my head is this from my TrueNAS Scale server:
(https://i.ibb.co/n8Zk9R0/chrome-2024-05-08-20-31-54.png) (https://ibb.co/93zY6Gv)
Okay, eno1 and eno2 (hey, what happened to 0) are my server motherboard's ethernet ports, but both are limited to 1 Gigabit which is what was available in my price range in mid-2016. enp1s0 is a 2.5 gigabit network card which I installed as part of a home network upgrade, as I replaced the switch with a 2.5 gigabit switch, while all three of the computers on the network support 2.5 gigabit LAN connections. I'm still scratching my head on the naming. enoX is short for ethernnet onboard. I'm guessing that enp1s0 is short for Ethernet Port 1 PCI Slot 0.
I just decommissioned my mother's old laptop after it was replaced with a mini-PC a few months ago and ensuring that there was no further need. (A backup is on my server "just in case"). A few years ago, I replaced the hard drive with a Samsung 500GB 840 EVO SSD drive. Just for fun, I decided to check online for the price, and was shocked. Amazon lists the SSD drive for $160 (https://amzn.to/3WxDlik) while NewEgg lists the drive for $198. :-o
The funny part is that you can get a more modern drive for much cheaper. Amazon lists the 870 EVO 500GB for $75 (https://amzn.to/3UPQaU5). NewEgg lists multiple 500GB SSDs (various specs) from $40 to $90.
Shrug. Into the "recycled for future use" box it goes. On the other hand, that box also had a 1 TB 2½" HDD that I pulled a year ago from my old laptop. I have no idea why I was saving it since, beyond my TrueNAS file server, I've banished hard drives from my life. I previously removed the partitions, and am performing a secure wipe now before it goes into the recycle bin.
From Smithsonian Magazine:
Cleaning Crew Discovers One of the World's Oldest Surviving Desktop Computers
The 1972 Q1 microcomputer could fetch $60,000 at auctionQuoteLast December, employees at Just Clear, a London-based house clearance company, were emptying a property when they stumbled across two decades-old computers.
At first, the workers were unsure what they had uncovered. They didn't recognize the items and couldn't find any relevant information online, Just Clear's founder, Brendan O'Shea, tells Live Science's Keumars Afifi-Sabet. After speaking with an expert, however, O'Shea learned that his team had found rare pieces of technology history: a 1972 Q1 desktop microcomputer with an internal printer and a 1976 Q1 Lite with an external companion printer.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2us)
From Engadget:
Spotify's Car Thing will soon transform into Spotify's Car Brick
The company said it will stop working on December 9.QuoteSpotify's Car Thing, a limited hardware "test" the company began shipping only three years ago, is about to bite the dust. The company wrote on Thursday that the device, which brought Spotify to automobiles without Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, will "no longer be operational" as of December 9.
Car Thing was aimed at drivers who want to listen to Spotify in their cars but don't have modern systems with built-in streaming apps. The $90 device let you control the service with voice recognition and preset buttons, and it had a four-inch color touchscreen. However, Spotify had already discontinued it by mid-2022.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://www.engadget.com/spotifys-car-thing-will-soon-transform-into-spotifys-car-brick-180208232.html)
Quote from: vdeane on April 22, 2024, 08:56:08 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on April 22, 2024, 03:31:23 AM(when I got to the end of K&R, I was like...wait, that's it? that's the whole language?)
When I was in college, that book was (only half) jokingly referred to as "the Bible". I still have it after all these years, even though at this point the odds of me doing anything in C are slim to none. The C language does have a certain elegance that many other languages lack.
I've still got my copy of K&R, which Kernighan and Ritchie were nice enough to sign for me.
C is very much like an assembly language with more modern syntax and control structures added.
Quote from: kkt on May 25, 2024, 10:11:22 PMI've still got my copy of K&R, which Kernighan and Ritchie were nice enough to sign for me.
That's probably worth some bucks.
Has anyone here been getting the ridiculous "AI Overviews" at the top of their Google search results pages? I haven't, but I've seen some screenshots of some real doozies, including some where the primary source appears to be The Onion.
Quote from: Scott5114 on May 26, 2024, 06:35:48 PMHas anyone here been getting the ridiculous "AI Overviews" at the top of their Google search results pages? I haven't, but I've seen some screenshots of some real doozies, including some where the primary source appears to be The Onion.
On occasion, yes.
Quote from: Scott5114 on May 26, 2024, 02:54:45 PMQuote from: kkt on May 25, 2024, 10:11:22 PMI've still got my copy of K&R, which Kernighan and Ritchie were nice enough to sign for me.
That's probably worth some bucks.
Perhaps, there probably weren't that many fans who got them signed. However, my copy is not a pristine condition or anything. I'm not selling anyway, anyone who wants it will have to negotiate with my heir.
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 22, 2024, 03:31:23 AM(when I got to the end of K&R, I was like...wait, that's it? that's the whole language?)
Quote from: vdeane on April 22, 2024, 08:56:08 PMWhen I was in college, that book was (only half) jokingly referred to as "the Bible". I still have it after all these years, even though at this point the odds of me doing anything in C are slim to none. The C language does have a certain elegance that many other languages lack.
Quote from: kkt on May 25, 2024, 10:11:22 PMI've still got my copy of K&R, which Kernighan and Ritchie were nice enough to sign for me.
C is very much like an assembly language with more modern syntax and control structures added.
I've still got my old copy of K&R also. I had one project group class where the focus was an EMAIL prototype. My part of the assignment looked pretty intense, but turned out to be only 91 lines of code when using C. The professor loved it, and I couldn't get any additional assignments. So that is the entirety of my experience with what was the defacto programming language used in my world of data communications (railroading and rail transit). Fortunately, decent skills in FORTRAN [somehow] ended up saving me in this career.
From How-To Geek:
After 60 Years the 4-Pin Molex Connector Is Finally (Almost) DeadQuoteFor the entirety of my PC building career, the 4-pin Molex power connector has been there. At one point it felt like everything on my computer used it, but my love-hate relationship with this common connector is almost at an end, it seems. So it's time to prepare the eulogy.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2ut)
Thank goodness. Lord knows how many times I got frustrated because the pins were very loose in the connector.
Quote from: ZLoth on May 30, 2024, 12:43:35 PMFrom How-To Geek:
After 60 Years the 4-Pin Molex Connector Is Finally (Almost) DeadQuoteFor the entirety of my PC building career, the 4-pin Molex power connector has been there. At one point it felt like everything on my computer used it, but my love-hate relationship with this common connector is almost at an end, it seems. So it's time to prepare the eulogy.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2ut)
Thank goodness. Lord knows how many times I got frustrated because the pins were very loose in the connector.
Now, for for someone to come up with a reliable and easy to use 12v power outlet plug connector for the car. :banghead:
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on May 31, 2024, 11:52:34 AMNow, for for someone to come up with a reliable and easy to use 12v power outlet plug connector for the car.
Like... uh.... USB?
Quote from: ZLoth on May 31, 2024, 01:47:34 PMQuote from: mgk920 on May 31, 2024, 11:52:34 AMNow, for for someone to come up with a reliable and easy to use 12v power outlet plug connector for the car.
Like... uh.... USB?
A*five volt* USB plug won't have the energy capacity to feed a 65 watt 120 VAC power inverter.
Mike
An über-annoying tech thought (such as in this and other forvms) - getting ready to click on an icon to see a deeper discussion page of interest and as you start pressing the button, an ad loads causing the icon to 'jump', resulting in a sometimes unknowable page opeming. :banghead:
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on May 31, 2024, 11:52:34 AMQuote from: ZLoth on May 30, 2024, 12:43:35 PMFrom How-To Geek:
After 60 Years the 4-Pin Molex Connector Is Finally (Almost) DeadQuoteFor the entirety of my PC building career, the 4-pin Molex power connector has been there. At one point it felt like everything on my computer used it, but my love-hate relationship with this common connector is almost at an end, it seems. So it's time to prepare the eulogy.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2ut)
Thank goodness. Lord knows how many times I got frustrated because the pins were very loose in the connector.
Now, for for someone to come up with a reliable and easy to use 12v power outlet plug connector for the car. :banghead:
Mike
https://www.google.com/search?q=12v+to+110v+inverter+for+car
Avoid going over 300-400 watts in most cars and light trucks unless your alternator and battery can spare it (medium-duty vehicle applications).
I use a small 150W one for my car and a larger 400W inverter for long trips with the kids. No problems over 10-15 of use, though they're not used every day, either.
I love Linux, and I am never ever going back to Windows as a daily driver for any reason. It doesn't try to steal my data, there's no AI shit, and it is designed according to what theoretically benefits the user instead of what makes some shithead CEO more money. But the tradeoff means that every once in a while I have to deal with a hideous bug of some kind.
With the most recent Inkscape update, it will fail to start if a drawing tablet is connected. Like, just straight up instant crash and barf out a stack trace on startup. It's choking when trying to query the input devices, I guess. So the obvious thing to do is just disconnect the tablet when I need to start Inkscape. This would be mildly annoying with my old tablet, which just had a simple USB plug. But my new tablet pairs to the computer through Bluetooth. But I can't bypass the bug just by turning the tablet off, oh no. To get Inkscape to start, I have to completely unpair and purge the tablet from the system. Then it will start. And after that, I can re-pair the tablet and use it, even in Inkscape, just fine. Inkscape just can't be allowed to know while starting up that there is a drawing tablet, of any kind, anywhere in the Las Vegas Valley.
Of course, since unpairing/forgetting a device is probably a thing most people do once over the course of the device's lifetime, if that, the interface for this is kind of clunky and annoying to get to. So I'm trying to keep an empty Inkscape window open at all times, just so that any time I try to get some work done I don't have to play Bluetooth hokey pokey. But of course, periodically Inkscape will crash for other, unrelated reasons, so then I still get to take my tablet out, and put my tablet in, and shake it all about.
Quote from: Scott5114 on June 08, 2024, 05:24:20 AMWith the most recent Inkscape update, it will fail to start if a drawing tablet is connected. Like, just straight up instant crash and barf out a stack trace on startup. It's choking when trying to query the input devices, I guess.
Have you checked the Inkscape forums to see if it is a known issue?
Quote from: ZLoth on June 08, 2024, 10:29:14 AMQuote from: Scott5114 on June 08, 2024, 05:24:20 AMWith the most recent Inkscape update, it will fail to start if a drawing tablet is connected. Like, just straight up instant crash and barf out a stack trace on startup. It's choking when trying to query the input devices, I guess.
Have you checked the Inkscape forums to see if it is a known issue?
Yes, that's how I found out that it was the tablet doing it. (The nice thing about having a stack trace is you can usually just paste it into Google and, if your issue is known, it will be the first thing that comes up.)
https://gitlab.com/inkscape/inkscape/-/issues/4649
Fixed in the development version (apparently it was an upstream issue that was fixed when they migrated library versions). But they haven't released a version with the fix included yet; it looks like the devs were waffling on whether they want to do an unplanned bugfix release to 1.3 or just wait for 1.4, which is in beta now. Given that the last comment here was about a week before the beta was released, I'm guessing they're just waiting for 1.4. Which, fair enough, but that does mean I basically have to wait in line while all of the 1.4 bugs are fixed.
At least there's all this transparency with open-source software, so I at least know the devs care about the problem and a fix is coming. If this happened with Adobe Illustrator, not only would I be giving Adobe all my money and data constantly, but I'd have no way of knowing if the company intended on actually fixing its product or not.
From Ars Technica:
Retired engineer discovers 55-year-old bug in Lunar Lander computer game code
A physics simulation flaw in text-based 1969 computer game went unnoticed until today.QuoteOn Friday, a retired software engineer named Martin C. Martin announced that he recently discovered a bug in the original Lunar Lander computer game's physics code while tinkering with the software. Created by a 17-year-old high school student named Jim Storer in 1969, this primordial game rendered the action only as text status updates on a teletype, but it set the stage for future versions to come.
The legendary game—which Storer developed on a PDP-8 minicomputer in a programming language called FOCAL just months after Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin made their historic moonwalks—allows players to control a lunar module's descent onto the Moon's surface. Players must carefully manage their fuel usage to achieve a gentle landing, making critical decisions every ten seconds to burn the right amount of fuel.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2v3)
From Reuters:
Japan declares victory in effort to end government use of floppy disksQuoteJapan's government has finally eliminated the use of floppy disks in all its systems, two decades since their heyday, reaching a long-awaited milestone in a campaign to modernise the bureaucracy.
By the middle of last month, the Digital Agency had scrapped all 1,034 regulations governing their use, except for one environmental stricture related to vehicle recycling.
"We have won the war on floppy disks on June 28!" Digital Minister Taro Kono, who has been vocal about wiping out fax machines and other analogue technology in government, told Reuters in a statement on Wednesday.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/japan-declares-victory-effort-end-government-use-floppy-disks-2024-07-03/)
From Tom's Hardware:
Japanese gov celebrates demise of the floppy disk — 1,000+ regulations requiring their use have been scrappedQuoteJapan's Digital Minister, Taro Kono, is celebrating the demise of the floppy disk. "We have won the war on floppy disks on June 28," Kono told Reuters earlier today. The milestone, decades after the storage medium's heyday, was reached as the scrapping of 1,034 official regulations that required the filing of floppy disks was enacted.
Back in January, we reported on the Japanese government's planned abolition of the floppy disk as it sought to modernize. Thus, these last few months have been the final hurrah for the iconic magnetic media format in Japan. As of June 28, only one official regulation requires a floppy to be filed—an environmental stricture related to vehicle recycling.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/storage/japanese-gov-celebrates-demise-of-the-floppy-disk-1000-regulations-requiring-their-use-have-been-scrapped)
From Japan Today:
Japan declares victory in effort to end government use of floppy disksQuoteJapan's government has finally eliminated the use of floppy disks in all its systems, two decades since their heyday, reaching a long-awaited milestone in a campaign to modernize the bureaucracy.
By the middle of last month, the Digital Agency had scrapped all 1,034 regulations governing their use, except for one environmental stricture related to vehicle recycling.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://japantoday.com/category/business/japan-declares-victory-in-effort-to-end-government-use-of-floppy-disks)
I haven't used a mechanical external drive disk, including 'burnable' CDs, for data storage in nearly two decades. I do have a 'flash' thumb drive on my keychain as a backup.
Mike
Quote from: Scott5114 on June 08, 2024, 05:24:20 AMWith the most recent Inkscape update, it will fail to start if a drawing tablet is connected. Like, just straight up instant crash and barf out a stack trace on startup. It's choking when trying to query the input devices, I guess. So the obvious thing to do is just disconnect the tablet when I need to start Inkscape. This would be mildly annoying with my old tablet, which just had a simple USB plug. But my new tablet pairs to the computer through Bluetooth. But I can't bypass the bug just by turning the tablet off, oh no. To get Inkscape to start, I have to completely unpair and purge the tablet from the system. Then it will start. And after that, I can re-pair the tablet and use it, even in Inkscape, just fine. Inkscape just can't be allowed to know while starting up that there is a drawing tablet, of any kind, anywhere in the Las Vegas Valley.
I have come up with the stupidest workaround to this bug.
The least ludicrous part is that I downloaded the 1.4 beta, in which the bug is fixed. I have it as an AppImage, which is basically a self contained package that contains the executable and all of the dependencies, so that it will always run on every Linux system, regardless of what libraries it has installed and where. But anyway, it starts regardless of whether my tablet is around or not.
Now, the problem here is that I absolutely loathe the file selector Inkscape uses. I am used to being able to jump deep into a folder hierarchy by just typing the absolute path in a box, hitting enter, and then selecting the file I want. Inkscape uses the GTK file selector, which implements this in a way that's awkward enough that I would much rather just cruise around the file system in my file manager and click SVGs in that to open them. (This works better for my workflow anyway because I normally have to check the SVG into Git or run a script on it after I edit it, and the Dolphin file manager has a shell window that will automatically cd to wherever the graphical file manager is.)
Downloading an AppImage, however, does not update file associations. There's probably a way to update the file association to point at the AppImage, but I'd just have to undo that whenever 1.4 is officially released, so I don't feel like looking up how to do it. So anytime I click an SVG, an Inkscape 1.3 window opens and immediately crashes. But before it does...it apparently writes the file it opened into the recent files list...which is shared between the installed 1.3 and the 1.4 AppImage somehow.
So my stupid workaround is to open the file in 1.3, let it crash, then snag it from the recent files list in 1.4.
Discover the excellence!
My daughter has a car without an MP3 player nor AUX port, just a CD player and radio. She asked me to copy a few CDs from my collection, so the originals aren't lost. I dug around in some boxes, and found about two dozen unused CD-ROMs. She also had an old CD player in her room that was unused since she was about 4-5, but it still works.
I honestly forgot if it was called "ripping" or "burning" a CD, and I had to quickly look up how to do it on Windows Media Player; I hadn't made a copy (legal or otherwise) in almost 20 years, since acquiring an MP3 player in late-2004.
Quote from: formulanone on July 08, 2024, 10:49:04 AMMy daughter has a car without an MP3 player nor AUX port, just a CD player and radio. She asked me to copy a few CDs from my collection, so the originals aren't lost. I dug around in some boxes, and found about two dozen unused CD-ROMs. She also had an old CD player in her room that was unused since she was about 4-5, but it still works.
I honestly forgot if it was called "ripping" or "burning" a CD, and I had to quickly look up how to do it on Windows Media Player; I hadn't made a copy (legal or otherwise) in almost 20 years, since acquiring an MP3 player in late-2004.
"Ripping" is the term of pulling the audio from a CD to a MP3 file. Also, there were programs that would duplicate a CD to a burnable CD.
Without knowing the make and model, there are FM transmitters available that can rebroadcast the Bluetooth to a unused FM frequency, but the power is limited and is subject to interference. There are afternmarket solutions as well to add Bluetooth capability.
I use a couple of cheap AC powered amplified computer desk speakers thrown on the back seat floor to play an old-school iPod in the car. Works and sounds great - and I can listen to something else, like a game, on the car's radio at the same time.
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 12:37:00 PMI use a couple of cheap AC powered amplified computer desk speakers thrown on the back seat floor to play an old-school iPod in the car. Works and sounds great - and I can listen to something else, like a game, on the car's radio at the same time.
Mike
That sounds noisy.
Quote from: Rothman on July 08, 2024, 06:27:58 PMQuote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 12:37:00 PMI use a couple of cheap AC powered amplified computer desk speakers thrown on the back seat floor to play an old-school iPod in the car. Works and sounds great - and I can listen to something else, like a game, on the car's radio at the same time.
Mike
That sounds noisy.
Zip-tie the wires and cords together, works great, the speakers are shaped like triangular prisms.
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 09:23:03 PMQuote from: Rothman on July 08, 2024, 06:27:58 PMQuote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 12:37:00 PMI use a couple of cheap AC powered amplified computer desk speakers thrown on the back seat floor to play an old-school iPod in the car. Works and sounds great - and I can listen to something else, like a game, on the car's radio at the same time.
Mike
That sounds noisy.
Zip-tie the wires and cords together, works great, the speakers are shaped like triangular prisms.
Mike
That doesn't do anything about the iPod and the radio going at the same time. My brain would overheat trying and failing to pick one to focus on. Even worse if the radio is playing music, because then you have two different songs going at once that probably aren't even in the same key so they'd be making all sorts of discordant noise.
Quote from: ZLoth on July 08, 2024, 11:14:32 AMQuote from: formulanone on July 08, 2024, 10:49:04 AMMy daughter has a car without an MP3 player nor AUX port, just a CD player and radio. She asked me to copy a few CDs from my collection, so the originals aren't lost. I dug around in some boxes, and found about two dozen unused CD-ROMs. She also had an old CD player in her room that was unused since she was about 4-5, but it still works.
I honestly forgot if it was called "ripping" or "burning" a CD, and I had to quickly look up how to do it on Windows Media Player; I hadn't made a copy (legal or otherwise) in almost 20 years, since acquiring an MP3 player in late-2004.
"Ripping" is the term of pulling the audio from a CD to a MP3 file. Also, there were programs that would duplicate a CD to a burnable CD.
Without knowing the make and model, there are FM transmitters available that can rebroadcast the Bluetooth to a unused FM frequency, but the power is limited and is subject to interference. There are aftermarket solutions as well to add Bluetooth capability.
She has one of those for the car; but I think many in her generation are doing what many others have done before: a sense of nostalgia for things they didn't have or was just a decade before their times. To a small extent, they want CDs, film cameras, and 80s-90s fashion. The first two aren't going to overtake commonplace music and image/video distribution, it's cool they want to be part of something that would otherwise be entirely forgotten.
It's driven by the same way every teen-to-twentysomething is hawked curiosities, fashions, or arts/culture from 30 years ago, probably from the last 50-60 years or so. It just so happens we have a lot of that kind of stuff around the house.
Quote from: Scott5114 on July 08, 2024, 10:10:51 PMQuote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 09:23:03 PMQuote from: Rothman on July 08, 2024, 06:27:58 PMQuote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 12:37:00 PMI use a couple of cheap AC powered amplified computer desk speakers thrown on the back seat floor to play an old-school iPod in the car. Works and sounds great - and I can listen to something else, like a game, on the car's radio at the same time.
Mike
That sounds noisy.
Zip-tie the wires and cords together, works great, the speakers are shaped like triangular prisms.
Mike
That doesn't do anything about the iPod and the radio going at the same time. My brain would overheat trying and failing to pick one to focus on. Even worse if the radio is playing music, because then you have two different songs going at once that probably aren't even in the same key so they'd be making all sorts of discordant noise.
My mind doesn't work like that and adjusting the volume between the two is like a 'second nature' to me.
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on July 09, 2024, 11:02:57 AMQuote from: Scott5114 on July 08, 2024, 10:10:51 PMQuote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 09:23:03 PMQuote from: Rothman on July 08, 2024, 06:27:58 PMQuote from: mgk920 on July 08, 2024, 12:37:00 PMI use a couple of cheap AC powered amplified computer desk speakers thrown on the back seat floor to play an old-school iPod in the car. Works and sounds great - and I can listen to something else, like a game, on the car's radio at the same time.
Mike
That sounds noisy.
Zip-tie the wires and cords together, works great, the speakers are shaped like triangular prisms.
Mike
That doesn't do anything about the iPod and the radio going at the same time. My brain would overheat trying and failing to pick one to focus on. Even worse if the radio is playing music, because then you have two different songs going at once that probably aren't even in the same key so they'd be making all sorts of discordant noise.
My mind doesn't work like that and adjusting the volume between the two is like a 'second nature' to me.
Mike
Wut.
From Ars Technica:
Intel is offering extended warranties for crashing 13th- and 14th-gen desktop CPUs
Intel's microcode fix won't help CPUs that are already damaged.QuoteIntel will be releasing a microcode update to prevent further damage to crashing 13th- and 14th-generation desktop processors sometime this month if it can stick to its previously announced schedule. This fix should be available via BIOS updates from PC and motherboard makers and from Microsoft as a Windows update. But it will take time for those updates to roll out to users, and Intel has said that processors that are already exhibiting crashes have been permanently damaged and won't be fixed by the microcode update.
In an effort to provide peace of mind to buyers and cover anyone whose CPU is subtly damaged but not showing explicit signs of instability, Intel is extending the warranty on all affected 13th- and 14th-generation CPUs by an additional two years, Tom's Hardware reports. This raises the warranty on a new boxed Intel CPU from three years to five. For processors that came installed in pre-built PCs, Intel says users should reach out to their PC's manufacturer for support instead.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2vb)
:banghead:
From Ars Technica:
Sci-fi writer and WordStar lover re-releases the cult DOS app for free
"Compared to it, Microsoft Word is pure madness"—Anne Rice.QuoteWordStar's most recent claim to fame might be that it's the word processing application on which George R.R. Martin is still not finishing A Song of Ice and Fire.
But many writers loved and still love WordStar, a word processor notably good for actual writing. As computers moved on from DOS to Windows, and word programs grew to encompass features that strayed far from organizing words on a page, WordStar hung back, whether in DOS emulation or in the hearts of its die-hard fans.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2vc)
Quote from: ZLoth on August 08, 2024, 10:43:03 AMFrom Ars Technica:
Sci-fi writer and WordStar lover re-releases the cult DOS app for free
"Compared to it, Microsoft Word is pure madness"—Anne Rice.QuoteWordStar's most recent claim to fame might be that it's the word processing application on which George R.R. Martin is still not finishing A Song of Ice and Fire.
But many writers loved and still love WordStar, a word processor notably good for actual writing. As computers moved on from DOS to Windows, and word programs grew to encompass features that strayed far from organizing words on a page, WordStar hung back, whether in DOS emulation or in the hearts of its die-hard fans.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2vc)
I haven't used WordStar for over 40 years, but I've configured its main control character key assignments into other text editors and word processors ever since.
Yesterday was... interesting. Here goes...
- I had a power outage at my home where I discovered that the backup battery on my garage door opener as well as batteries for my two Uninterruptible Power Supply.
- I had it with my Dynamic DNS service that was offered through my router. The name was in the format example.asuscomm.com (substitute example for the name I was using), but was constantly dropping off the network with a two-minute TTL. I then discovered that there was a TrueNAS app called "[ddns-updater](https://github.com/qdm12/ddns-updater)" which will also the job. Cloudflare, as it turns out, has a free service for Dynamic DNS, and I'm able to use a full qualified domain name (FQDN) instead of sub-domaining off someone else. It was just a matter of finding the proper update token.
- Then I went through the headache of setting up [Nginx Proxy Manager](https://nginxproxymanager.com/) so that I can have a reserve proxy and SSL connections. However, I have to install it as root, otherwise it gets stuck at deploying. Only took about five tries.
- Oh hey, it turns out that Nginx can support subdomains so that https://app1.example.com points to http://192.168.1.2:10235 and https://app2.example.com points to http://192.168.1.2:3189 and have each https subdomain have it's own Let's Encrypt certificate.
- Of course, that means I have to update all of the configs of those two apps to point to those two domain names.
- OK, while I'm at it, I'll also go through the trouble is setting up some self-signed internal certificates for my server and install them on my computer.
Whee....
From Bleeping Computer:
Google warns uBlock Origin and other extensions may be disabled soonQuoteGoogle's Chrome Web Store is now warning that the uBlock Origin ad blocker and other extensions may soon be blocked as part of the company's deprecation of the Manifest V2 extension specification.
"This extension may soon no longer be supported because it doesn't follow best practices for Chrome extensions," reads the Chrome Web Store page for uBlock Origin.
The warning includes a link to a Google support bulletin that states the browser extension may be disabled to protect users' privacy and security.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2w4)
I know this was coming. Oh well, I just deployed AdGuard Home (https://github.com/AdguardTeam/AdGuardHome) as an app on my server to serve as the DNS server to block the URLs instead. It was much simpler than I expected once I made the necessary DHCP modifications.
Gah. I really like uBlock.
Quote from: ZLoth on October 14, 2024, 08:50:21 PMQuotethe browser extension may be disabled to protect users' privacy and security.
YEAH, RIGHT!
Quote from: Rothman on October 14, 2024, 09:09:58 PMGah. I really like uBlock.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Quote from: Scott5114 on October 15, 2024, 10:22:49 AMQuote from: Rothman on October 14, 2024, 09:09:58 PMGah. I really like uBlock.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Unfortunately Firefox has missing features compared to Chrome and its derivatives. No reading list, for instance (Pocket fills a very different niche). And customizing the start page is a pain in the rear (and reverted after I tried). And middle clicking the links on the start page jumps to the new tab instead of opening it in the background (what if I want to open more than one?). And it manages to use more resources than Chrome when streaming video, resulting in my computer locking up when I tried.
My experiment with switching to Firefox over this issue didn't even last a day before I gave up and went back to Vivaldi (which does have a built-in adblocker, but it's not nearly as good as UBO; even UBOL is probably better).
Quote from: vdeane on October 15, 2024, 12:57:43 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on October 15, 2024, 10:22:49 AMQuote from: Rothman on October 14, 2024, 09:09:58 PMGah. I really like uBlock.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Unfortunately Firefox has missing features compared to Chrome and its derivatives. No reading list, for instance (Pocket fills a very different niche). And customizing the start page is a pain in the rear (and reverted after I tried). And middle clicking the links on the start page jumps to the new tab instead of opening it in the background (what if I want to open more than one?). And it manages to use more resources than Chrome when streaming video, resulting in my computer locking up when I tried.
My experiment with switching to Firefox over this issue didn't even last a day before I gave up and went back to Vivaldi (which does have a built-in adblocker, but it's not nearly as good as UBO; even UBOL is probably better).
I would guess "no adblock allowed" is a much bigger deal-breaker to most people than any of these very minor issues. (Other than the streaming video one which I haven't ever had a problem with, even when I was using my 10-year-old computer. Perhaps your graphics drivers are fucked?)
If the start page is really that much of an issue, you can always just put together an HTML page of whatever it is you want on it, saved to your home directory, and set that as the page that opens whenever you open a new tab. (My start page is basically blank since whenever I am opening a new tab it's because I already have a place in mind I want to go in it, so any sort of bell or whistle on the start page only appears for a few seconds anyway.)
I'm telling you, the day YouTube permanently breaks adblocking extensions for Firefox is the day I stop watching YouTube.
Quote from: LilianaUwU on October 15, 2024, 10:30:42 PMI'm telling you, the day YouTube permanently breaks adblocking extensions for Firefox is the day I stop watching YouTube.
I'm not sure they've even managed to keep Manifest v3 compliant extensions from blocking YouTube ads, at least not permanently, though I haven't tried them since Vivaldi's built-in adblocking was (mostly) fixed on YouTube.
Quote from: Scott5114 on October 15, 2024, 09:37:11 PMQuote from: vdeane on October 15, 2024, 12:57:43 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on October 15, 2024, 10:22:49 AMQuote from: Rothman on October 14, 2024, 09:09:58 PMGah. I really like uBlock.
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Unfortunately Firefox has missing features compared to Chrome and its derivatives. No reading list, for instance (Pocket fills a very different niche). And customizing the start page is a pain in the rear (and reverted after I tried). And middle clicking the links on the start page jumps to the new tab instead of opening it in the background (what if I want to open more than one?). And it manages to use more resources than Chrome when streaming video, resulting in my computer locking up when I tried.
My experiment with switching to Firefox over this issue didn't even last a day before I gave up and went back to Vivaldi (which does have a built-in adblocker, but it's not nearly as good as UBO; even UBOL is probably better).
I would guess "no adblock allowed" is a much bigger deal-breaker to most people than any of these very minor issues. (Other than the streaming video one which I haven't ever had a problem with, even when I was using my 10-year-old computer. Perhaps your graphics drivers are fucked?)
If the start page is really that much of an issue, you can always just put together an HTML page of whatever it is you want on it, saved to your home directory, and set that as the page that opens whenever you open a new tab. (My start page is basically blank since whenever I am opening a new tab it's because I already have a place in mind I want to go in it, so any sort of bell or whistle on the start page only appears for a few seconds anyway.)
The proprietary Nvidia drivers should be fine, but not really sure how to make sure. All I know is that it didn't run well and my laptop would be even worse (though this test was done under Linux Mint 21, Linux Mint 22 is noticeably heavier and my laptop is always bogged down now; who knew when I got either that simple web browsing would one day require 8-16 GB of RAM?).
The start screen is because I always follow the same path on routine browsing, across ~4 tabs:
-Gmail (always open)
-YouTube Subscriptions (refresh at evening, then check my union email once that's done or I watch all new videos I'm interested in, whichever is last)
-Albany/Rochester Weather (Weather Underground)->morning Facebook check
-Inoreader->Google News->AA Roads->Travel Mapping Forum->evening Facebook check
All other browsing (except things like online banking) is done via incognito tabs, an old habit from when I was curating Chrome's "most visited" list on the new tab page that I haven't managed to break even though it's obsolete.
The reading list, meanwhile, is indispensable when reading fanfiction or online serials.
Quote from: vdeane on October 16, 2024, 01:01:11 PMThe start screen is because I always follow the same path on routine browsing, across ~4 tabs:
I handle this by using Firefox's "pinned tabs" feature to keep my routinely-checked tabs always open and at the front of the tab list. I also use an extension that kicks tabs out of memory if they haven't been used for 5 minutes. (This means that any time I visit one of my pinned tabs, it refreshes.) So my first six tabs, for example, are my four email accounts, the forum, and my AARoads Wiki watchlist.
I have no concept of a "reading list" feature, so I can't speak to how I'd solve that particular problem. For things like webcomics which only get updated periodically, I just...uh, pin the tabs for those and try to remember to check them every so often.
Doing everything in incognito tabs is wild. Couldn't be me—I've had to go on a deep dive into browser history to find a page I forgot the URL to too many times.
Quote from: Scott5114 on October 17, 2024, 12:16:12 AMI also use an extension that kicks tabs out of memory if they haven't been used for 5 minutes. (This means that any time I visit one of my pinned tabs, it refreshes.) So my first six tabs, for example, are my four email accounts, the forum, and my AARoads Wiki watchlist.
Interesting how different people browser differently. I had to install an extension to disable Chromium's built-in tab discard/refresh feature because I was tired of page content changing/resetting (thereby preventing me from continuing from wherever I was before I switched away) whenever I'd return to a tab. Although the fact that this feature was annoying the crap out of me should have probably been my first clue that web browsing takes a lot more RAM than it used to. Instead I thought the browser was just being way too aggressive with discarding RAM.
Sigh... the war against annoying ads continues. I love how they are including the obligatory "guilt trip" message "Continue without supporting", but one site which I was visiting from my mobile browser, when you click on "Continue without supporting", just freezes your browser window preventing you from scrolling. That left me with a choice... either disable the AdGuard home for about a minute to read the article, or take the option of "Never recommend articles from the site". I chose the "Never recommend articles".
Quote from: vdeane on October 17, 2024, 09:29:04 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on October 17, 2024, 12:16:12 AMI also use an extension that kicks tabs out of memory if they haven't been used for 5 minutes. (This means that any time I visit one of my pinned tabs, it refreshes.) So my first six tabs, for example, are my four email accounts, the forum, and my AARoads Wiki watchlist.
Interesting how different people browser differently. I had to install an extension to disable Chromium's built-in tab discard/refresh feature because I was tired of page content changing/resetting (thereby preventing me from continuing from wherever I was before I switched away) whenever I'd return to a tab. Although the fact that this feature was annoying the crap out of me should have probably been my first clue that web browsing takes a lot more RAM than it used to. Instead I thought the browser was just being way too aggressive with discarding RAM.
This particular extension won't discard a tab if anything has been entered into a form on the page, which would be my main concern. Any other site where a refresh would cause problems, I can add into a "never discard tabs from this site" list.
From The Register:
That hardware will be more reliable if you stop stabbing it all day
Knives and lasers don't mix ... until they do
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://www.theregister.com/2024/11/15/on_call/)
Does anyone know why the iCloud control panel would not allow one to log in on a Windows 10 PC? This morning, for whatever reason, the iCloud control panel opened when I booted my PC. It hasn't done that in ages, at least a year or two. I noted that the new iOS password manager can apparently now sync to a PC using iCloud, so I clicked to enabled that and it told me to sign in. No big deal, I entered my password and then the six-digit code it sent to my phone....and then it became a problem because it dumped me right back to the password screen. Same thing happened multiple times. I checked the password and it's correct. Anyone know what might be causing this? I don't want to sign out of iCloud on my PC because it says it will remove the iCloud photo stream from the device if I do that.
From CNET:
Live in an Old House or Apartment? Your Gaming PC May Be a Fire Hazard
If you haven't had electrical work done in decades, you may need to worry about harmonics when using your gaming PC. Here's what to watch out for.QuoteAn electrical fire smells like fish. I learned this the hard way after my gaming PC with an RTX 4090 and Intel Core-i9 processor melted the outlet it was plugged into, along with the plug. The fish smell comes from the plastic and heat-resistant chemicals used in outlets, circuit breakers and wiring insulation overheating.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2wo)
From ZDNet:
Linux drops support for 486 and early Pentium processors - 20 years after Microsoft
I can still remember when the 33MHz 486DX was the fastest chip aroundQuoteRIP, 486 processor. You've had a long run since Intel released you back in 1989. While Microsoft stopped supporting you with the release of Windows XP in 2001, Linux kept you alive and well for another 20+ years. But all good things must come to an end, and with the forthcoming release of the Linux 6.15 kernel, the 486 and the first Pentium processors will be sunsetted.
Why? Linus Torvalds wrote recently on the Linux Kernel Mailing List (LKML), "I really get the feeling that it's time to leave i486 support behind. There's zero real reason for anybody to waste one second of development effort on this kind of issue."
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2wv)
From ArsTechnica:
Self-hosting is having a moment. Ethan Sholly knows why.
We interview Ethan Sholly of the selfh.st podcast/newsletter/directoryQuoteSelf-hosting is having a moment, even if it's hard to define exactly what it is.
It's a niche that goes beyond regular computing devices and networks but falls short of a full-on home lab. (Most home labs involve self-hosting, but not all self-hosting makes for a home lab.) It adds privacy, provides DRM-free alternatives, and reduces advertising. It's often touted as a way to get more out of your network-attached storage (NAS), but it's much more than just backup and media streaming.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2ww)
Our first home computer was a 386. My reasoning was, "Who would ever need a 486?"
Quote from: ZLoth on May 22, 2025, 08:42:14 AMFrom ZDNet:
Linux drops support for 486 and early Pentium processors - 20 years after Microsoft
I can still remember when the 33MHz 486DX was the fastest chip aroundQuoteRIP, 486 processor. You've had a long run since Intel released you back in 1989. While Microsoft stopped supporting you with the release of Windows XP in 2001, Linux kept you alive and well for another 20+ years. But all good things must come to an end, and with the forthcoming release of the Linux 6.15 kernel, the 486 and the first Pentium processors will be sunsetted.
Why? Linus Torvalds wrote recently on the Linux Kernel Mailing List (LKML), "I really get the feeling that it's time to leave i486 support behind. There's zero real reason for anybody to waste one second of development effort on this kind of issue."
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2wv)
Take it easy. We'll always have NetBSD.
Quote from: kkt on May 25, 2025, 09:56:22 AMQuote from: ZLoth on May 22, 2025, 08:42:14 AMFrom ZDNet:
Linux drops support for 486 and early Pentium processors - 20 years after Microsoft
I can still remember when the 33MHz 486DX was the fastest chip around
Take it easy. We'll always have NetBSD.
It's Linux. It would not surprise me if it was used some older embedded systems that used a 80486 processor. You can easily strip down a Linux install to it's bare essentials and it works.
Just to show there is still a use for old technology... I put in an old nVidia 1080 video card into my TrueNAS server to help with Plex transcoding. After a few tweaks at the command line level, the card was recognized within my Plex instance. Now, I have hardware transcoding and, more importantly, my 4K material plays back smoothly on both my Android phone and tablet.
And, a few days later, I picked up a 8GB 5060 card for my secondary computer to replace the one that I pulled out. For gaming, it isn't a good card because it should have more memory, but for transcoding, it's what I needed. Of course, this is when I discover my great error: While Handbrake had the checkbox set in the Preferences → Video → Nvidia NVENC, I never selected it as an encoding option. When I did and saved the preset, my encoding speeds literally tripled.
A planned personal server upgrade went... sideways... today. The server motherboard that I received is bigger than my case, necessitating a new case order.
I just ordered a pair of new hard drives, external to provide mass storage for my laptop. 26 terabytes each, and two of them so they can be mirrored.
My first computer hard drive, back in the early 1990s, was huge - about 500 megabytes.
Quote from: kkt on July 03, 2025, 11:07:33 PMMy first computer hard drive, back in the early 1990s, was huge - about 500 megabytes.
My first hard drive was a 105MB. I was happy when I replaced it with a 305 MB drive for $300.
Quote from: ZLoth on July 03, 2025, 09:47:07 PMA planned personal server upgrade went... sideways... today. The server motherboard that I received is bigger than my case, necessitating a new case order.
The case arrived Tuesday, and I installed the new hardware in it. No drives were installed, as I ran memory tests to stress test the memory. The NVMe boot drive and hard drives were transferred over Wednesday night, and Thursday morning, the system was closed up and transferred to my closet.
One neato feature that I made sure to get on this motherboard is Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI). This is a seperate subsystem on the motherboard, including it's own network port, that allows me console access through a web browser. This including being able to turn on and off the computer as well as perform a reset.
I ordered a new personal laptop (https://amzn.to/4lKndns) for around $500. The specs aren't perfect (I would have preferred 32GB of memory instead of 16GB), but at least I can expand the memory. Too many laptops nowadays is "what you see is what you get" with no option of memory or hard drive replacement. It should be more than adequate for what I need it to do.
I got the laptop on Wednesday evening. It was refreshingly barebones as there was no additional software installed beyond Windows 11 Pro, and not even a trial of Office 365. I got all the software I plan on using installed, and in looking at CPU-Z, there is only one 16GB DDR SO-DIMM installed out of two. OK, order another 16GB memory module (https://amzn.to/46yMP25), it won't hurt. The laptop lacks a ethernet port, and tops out at around 500 megabits for WiFI, so a 2.5GB USB dongle (https://amzn.to/3U6dDiP) comes in handy.
From Tom's Hardware:
Amazon sells a legacy MSI CPU air cooler for $5,340 — the Core Frozr L launched in 2016 with a $50 MSRP
News
Are you willing to spend a fortune on old PC hardware?QuoteMSI is returning to the air-cooling space with the MAG Core Frozr AA13, after a nearly 10-year break from its last release. However, it doesn't mean that its old air cooler lineup has already disappeared — in fact, Amazon is still selling the MSI Core Frozr L for $5,340.25.
The Core Frozr L launched in 2016. Not only is it available, but you also have to pay a premium to get your hands on it. It's currently priced at $5,340.25 on the online marketplace, a far cry from its $49.99 MSRP at launch. Even if you account for inflation, the cooler should only be priced at just $66.71.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2x1)
The answer from me would begin with a F and end with the word NO!
Reminds me of whenever you see someone on eBay selling an ordinary modern Interstate shield for $10,000 or something.
I've heard that sometimes there's sellers who keep old and ridiculouly-overpriced goods on Amazon and eBay just to keep their accounts "fresh" so they don't lose a favorable rating.
There's folks that do this in the camera world too, they don't have the item and figure nobody will make a move on their item so it doesn't ding them nor harm anyone. I suppose it's safer than being too low and intentionally sending the wrong item or playing stupid games with the buyer.
On the other hand, I was shopping for a new printer and wanted one which takes the old cartridges but everything was last produced 3-4 years ago, so the prices are either stratospherically overpriced or not in stock (likely never). So I'm just biting down and going to donate the cartridges (work paid for them, anyhow).
From BoingBoing:
1976 film helps you learn computing termsQuoteIn this video, or, rather, this film, now rendered in digital form after an unknowable sequence of transfers that surely involved video recording and/or transmission, we learn the basic computing terms of 1976. Meet Harry, a 1970s businessman overwhelmed by his backlog and unfamiliar with new technology.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2x2)
And now AOL pulling the plug on their dialup service . . . What is the World coming to?!?!
:-o
Mike
(https://zipline.markholtz.net/u/HAbuJj.jpg)
Quote from: mgk920 on August 14, 2025, 11:29:06 AMAnd now AOL pulling the plug on their dialup service . . . What is the World coming to?!?!
:-o
Mike
Gotta be honest, I would have guessed that died off years ago.
Quote from: GaryV on May 22, 2025, 05:16:06 PMOur first home computer was a 386. My reasoning was, "Who would ever need a 486?"
I've long idly wondered why these numbers always ended in 86. Was there ever a 586?
Quote from: CtrlAltDel on August 21, 2025, 11:10:23 AMQuote from: GaryV on May 22, 2025, 05:16:06 PMOur first home computer was a 386. My reasoning was, "Who would ever need a 486?"
I've long idly wondered why these numbers always ended in 86. Was there ever a 586?
the 5 was used calling it the pentium.
Quote from: CtrlAltDel on August 21, 2025, 11:10:23 AMI've long idly wondered why these numbers always ended in 86. Was there ever a 586?
The original Pentium was the 80586. Intel ran into some legal and trademark issues by trying to trademark just numbers.
Quote from: SEWIGuy on August 21, 2025, 10:57:13 AMQuote from: mgk920 on August 14, 2025, 11:29:06 AMAnd now AOL pulling the plug on their dialup service . . . What is the World coming to?!?!
:-o
Mike
Gotta be honest, I would have guessed that died off years ago.
:-P
Mike
Quote from: ZLoth on August 21, 2025, 12:27:10 PMQuote from: CtrlAltDel on August 21, 2025, 11:10:23 AMI've long idly wondered why these numbers always ended in 86. Was there ever a 586?
The original Pentium was the 80586. Intel ran into some legal and trademark issues by trying to trademark just numbers.
And the Pentium Pro, Pentium II and Pentium III were all 686.
On Linux, they were afraid of violating Intel trademarks, so the processor architectures (which you'd see when you'd install software) would show up as "i586" or "i686". When everything went to 64-bit, it became "x86_64".
Quote from: ZLoth on August 21, 2025, 12:27:10 PMQuote from: CtrlAltDel on August 21, 2025, 11:10:23 AMI've long idly wondered why these numbers always ended in 86. Was there ever a 586?
The original Pentium was the 80586. Intel ran into some legal and trademark issues by trying to trademark just numbers.
As a side note, "Pent" means 5, hence "Pentium" as it was a marketable name for Intel's 586 processors.
^^ Knowing that no interstate highways has those numbers.
I miss 486...
Quote from: jeffandnicole on August 22, 2025, 09:25:27 AMColleges had courses on how to use the internet in the mid-1990s.
Yes, I know. I graduated high school in 1999.
Quote from: mgk920 on August 21, 2025, 12:35:02 PMQuote from: SEWIGuy on August 21, 2025, 10:57:13 AMQuote from: mgk920 on August 14, 2025, 11:29:06 AMAnd now AOL pulling the plug on their dialup service . . . What is the World coming to?!?!
:-o
Mike
Gotta be honest, I would have guessed that died off years ago.
:-P
Mike
So no more of those way kewl startup discs in the mail . . .
:ded:
Mike
I like the text editor vi, but it was pretty clearly built for a different era of computing and thus a lot of the commands work in ways that are kind of jank by modern standards. Like the way the arrow keys work—if you have text wrapping on and press the up and down keys, rather than going down one screen line, it goes down one logical line (i.e., to the character after the next newline). That is...not exactly what I want.
Fortunately there is a ~/.vimrc file you can edit to tweak this behavior. I found something online to remap j and k so that they do the same thing the arrow keys do in, say, Notepad, or a text edit box in a web browser. (j and k are the default up and down keys for vi because it was written before the arrow keys were invented.) But I want my arrow keys fixed. So I made a minor edit to it to remap the arrows instead of j and k.
Works like a charm...except I forgot which of j and k is up and which is down, since I never use them because why would I? So now when I press the down key on the keyboard the cursor goes up a line.
Quote from: Scott5114 on August 23, 2025, 12:05:27 AMI like the text editor vi, but it was pretty clearly built for a different era of computing and thus a lot of the commands work in ways that are kind of jank by modern standards. Like the way the arrow keys work—if you have text wrapping on and press the up and down keys, rather than going down one screen line, it goes down one logical line (i.e., to the character after the next newline). That is...not exactly what I want.
Fortunately there is a ~/.vimrc file you can edit to tweak this behavior. I found something online to remap j and k so that they do the same thing the arrow keys do in, say, Notepad, or a text edit box in a web browser. (j and k are the default up and down keys for vi because it was written before the arrow keys were invented.) But I want my arrow keys fixed. So I made a minor edit to it to remap the arrows instead of j and k.
Works like a charm...except I forgot which of j and k is up and which is down, since I never use them because why would I? So now when I press the down key on the keyboard the cursor goes up a line.
vi/vim are legendary both for surviving all these years and how esoteric the commands are, to the point where accidentally opening vim and learning how to quit is a rite of passage for new software developers. (
:q, or
:wq to write, if some poor soul finds this thread while trying to quit vim.) You can apparently be very efficient with it if you learn all of the obscure commands, but I never bothered to learn more than the basics.
Of course, real programmers use a magnetized needle and a steady hand (https://xkcd.com/378/).
Quote from: TheCatalyst31 on August 23, 2025, 12:40:10 AMvi/vim are legendary both for surviving all these years and how esoteric the commands are, to the point where accidentally opening vim and learning how to quit is a rite of passage for new software developers. (:q, or :wq to write, if some poor soul finds this thread while trying to quit vim.) You can apparently be very efficient with it if you learn all of the obscure commands, but I never bothered to learn more than the basics.
I'm competent enough to use it for minor edits to things like config files, but I've been trying to use it more for more routine tasks. In particular, I'd like to get to where I can write prose (especially things like wiki articles) in it—a full screen console with
vi in it is about as close to a perfect distraction-free writing environment as you can get.
https://cheatography.com/ericg/cheat-sheets/vi-editor/
From my experience, it's helpful to have rudimentary knowledge of vi since every *nix install is going to have it. However, if possible, I try to install nano as an editor. When I worked at a ISP 20 years ago, we used ted.
Quote from: ZLoth on August 23, 2025, 08:24:49 AMWhen I worked at a ISP 20 years ago, we used ted.
Poor Ted.
Quote from: Scott5114 on August 23, 2025, 12:05:27 AMI like the text editor vi, but it was pretty clearly built for a different era of computing and thus a lot of the commands work in ways that are kind of jank by modern standards. Like the way the arrow keys work—if you have text wrapping on and press the up and down keys, rather than going down one screen line, it goes down one logical line (i.e., to the character after the next newline). That is...not exactly what I want.
That might be one reason why programmers like it. Of course, it sucks for prose (or when I'm editing a paragraph of text on my website).
Quote from: vdeane on August 23, 2025, 12:29:21 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on August 23, 2025, 12:05:27 AMI like the text editor vi, but it was pretty clearly built for a different era of computing and thus a lot of the commands work in ways that are kind of jank by modern standards. Like the way the arrow keys work—if you have text wrapping on and press the up and down keys, rather than going down one screen line, it goes down one logical line (i.e., to the character after the next newline). That is...not exactly what I want.
That might be one reason why programmers like it. Of course, it sucks for prose (or when I'm editing a paragraph of text on my website).
Here, try my (fixed)
~/.vimrc.
set nocompatible
filetype on
filetype plugin on
filetype indent on
syntax on
set number
set shiftwidth=4
set tabstop=4
set expandtab
set nolist wrap linebreak breakat&vim
noremap <expr> <Down> v:count ? '<Down>' : 'gj'
noremap <expr> <Up> v:count ? '<Up>' : 'gk'
From PC Gamer:
'It crawls into every crevice, stains your cables, and turns teardown into a full day regret spiral.' That's what awaits you if you plan on immersing your graphics card in automatic transmission fluid for a spot of messy overclocking funQuoteIf you're looking to come up with a different way of cooling a big CPU or GPU to get more oomph out of it, your options are a bit limited. Water loops, dry ice, liquid nitrogen, mineral oil—they've all been done before and to varying degrees of success. Enter stage left, one tech YouTuber with a cooler from a Dodge Journey SUV and a whole heap of automatic transmission fluid.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2x4)
Wait, what? And, no!
I'm surprised you don't hear of people cooling GPUs with honest-to-god refrigerant. It wouldn't be that hard to hack an old car AC unit into cooling a GPU, would it?
From Tom's Hardware:
The Intel i386 turns 40 years old — 275,000 transistors running at 16MHz changed personal computing forever
Intel's i386 brought 32-bit registers to x86 and paved the way for Windows 3.0 and Linux.QuoteIntel's 80386 turned 40 this week. Introduced in October 1985, the third-generation x86 processor — better known as the i386 — was the first 32-bit chip in Intel's PC line, the origin point for the IA-32 instruction set, and the architectural turning point that transformed personal computing.
The i386 shipped with 275,000 transistors and ran at up to 16 MHz at launch. Internally, it brought 32-bit general-purpose registers, a flat memory model, and support for up to 4GB of address space, but the bigger change was to the system architecture. Protected mode, virtual 8086 mode, and hardware paging laid the groundwork for real multitasking and virtual memory on x86. Microsoft's early i386 development kits included demos showing multiple DOS sessions running in parallel, each in its own paged VM. That became a core feature of Windows 3.0 in 1990, under the name "386 Enhanced Mode."
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2x6)
From The Verge:
TiVo has sold its last DVRQuoteIt's the end of an era for TiVo. Cord Cutters flagged that the company has removed every digital video recorder product from its website, with TiVo confirming to the publication last week that it has officially ceased making DVR hardware after 26 years in the industry. Its last DVR release was the TiVo Edge in 2019, with TiVo later merging with software company Xperi in June 2020.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2x7)
Quote from: ZLoth on August 21, 2025, 10:31:24 AM(https://zipline.markholtz.net/u/HAbuJj.jpg)
Hm. If I were to characterize one type of computer's users as a cult, it would probably be Apple.
Quote from: Rothman on August 21, 2025, 05:53:54 PMI miss 486...
I miss PDP-10s. And Nexts.
Quote from: Scott5114 on September 02, 2025, 08:12:24 PMI'm surprised you don't hear of people cooling GPUs with honest-to-god refrigerant. It wouldn't be that hard to hack an old car AC unit into cooling a GPU, would it?
There are some people who do that, but there are significant risks. The refrigerant might leak, damaging the other components, and the loss of refrigerant might also result in overheating which would also damage the GPU or other components.
Quote from: Scott5114 on August 23, 2025, 12:49:48 AMQuote from: TheCatalyst31 on August 23, 2025, 12:40:10 AMvi/vim are legendary both for surviving all these years and how esoteric the commands are, to the point where accidentally opening vim and learning how to quit is a rite of passage for new software developers. (:q, or :wq to write, if some poor soul finds this thread while trying to quit vim.) You can apparently be very efficient with it if you learn all of the obscure commands, but I never bothered to learn more than the basics.
I'm competent enough to use it for minor edits to things like config files, but I've been trying to use it more for more routine tasks. In particular, I'd like to get to where I can write prose (especially things like wiki articles) in it—a full screen console with vi in it is about as close to a perfect distraction-free writing environment as you can get.
Ed. Ed is the standard. It is on virtually every computer system, not only Unix and its descendents but microcomputers running CP/M or MS-DOS. And ed even works when your computer's terminal emulation is hosed so you can't use an addressable cursor.
Quote from: kkt on October 20, 2025, 04:11:54 PMHm. If I were to characterize one type of computer's users as a cult, it would probably be Apple.
Oh, the stories I could tell when dealing with some Apple end users. I didn't encounter this directly, but about a decade and a half ago, a former co-worker gave the story of a customer who color-coordinated their room to match the color of the iMac they were using, but the iMac had to the RMA-ed and came back with a different color... and the customer didn't like it.
On the other hand, the smoothest cases I had usually involved the Linux users. They had all of their details and answers I needed, and were easily able to provide logs.
Current status report at Amazon Web Services at https://health.aws.amazon.com/health/status . I'm just trying to figure out which URLs handle Alexa and set up some monitors at Uptime Kuma.
Edit: Added the status report (https://zipline.markholtz.net/u/8yp1tW.pdf) as a PDF.
It has [redacted] happened again. When I rebuild my TrueNAS server at the beginning of July, the price of 2×32GB of ECC memory was $288. It is now $559 at Newegg and $479 at Amazon. Fortunately, adding another 64GB to my server was under the "gee, nice to have" category, and is under permanent postponement.
This happened when I build my TrueNAS server the last time in 2016. A month or so after I purchased 64GB of memory at around $400, the price quickly doubled. Fortunately, I already had maxed out that motherboard.
I also had purchased a new if low-end laptop last summer. It had a single 16GB SODIMM which I promptly added a second 16GB DDR5 RAM, 4800MHz CL40 SODIMM Module (https://amzn.to/4hOeD6b) which cost me $44 in July. Said module is now at least $140, although another brand is listing for $100.
You might check memory prices around Black Friday. When I was building my computer, I was able to find a Black Friday deal on memory that was good enough I was able to put a truly obnoxious amount of it in there.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 07, 2025, 06:58:48 PMYou might check memory prices around Black Friday. When I was building my computer, I was able to find a Black Friday deal on memory that was good enough I was able to put a truly obnoxious amount of it in there.
I sincerely doubt that server memory will have a Black Friday deal, and there is no need for expansion beyond 64GB. Look at how much is already being used by ZFS cache:
(https://zipline.markholtz.net/u/kUBH6H.png)
Most of my regular computers have 32 GB of memory already with the exception of my main box which has 64 GB. More than enough to meet my needs.
See PC Gamer: You can watch RAM prices going up almost in real-time on Amazon and it's only likely to get worse (https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/memory/you-can-watch-ram-prices-going-up-almost-in-real-time-on-amazon-and-its-only-likely-to-get-worse/).
Besides, what do you consider "truly obnoxious amount" of memory?
64 GB. But that seemed obnoxious because I was moving from a computer with something like 4 GB, which meant at the end there, I was having to manually manage memory like I was a C programmer, lest the out-of-memory killer be invoked. 64 GB seemed like I was splurging in comparison.
The only time I've run into the OOM killer on this machine was a week or so ago, when a webpage I visited tried to preload hundreds and hundreds of extremely-high-res photos for some reason, which caused Firefox to malloc itself to death.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 08, 2025, 03:06:26 AM64 GB. But that seemed obnoxious because I was moving from a computer with something like 4 GB, which meant at the end there, I was having to manually manage memory like I was a C programmer, lest the out-of-memory killer be invoked. 64 GB seemed like I was splurging in comparison.
64 GB is not an obnoxious amount, it just means that you are a power user.
Anyone remember the 32-bit operating system Windows XP? Back then, it seemed that 256 MB or 512 MB was commonplace, and 4GB, because of the pricing back them, was considered "obscene". By the time XP reached EOL, 4GB was easily accomplished. Now, 4GB isn't enough for Windows 11, with 8 GB being the absolutely bare minimum, 16GB being minimum recommended, 32GB being recommended, and 64GB being power user. Reason being... there is less memory swapping to the physical drive going on. Having said that, there is a point of diminishing returns.... the improvement noticed from going from 8 GB to 16 GB is more noticeable than going from 16 GB to 32 GB, while the improvement is hardly noticed on going from 32 GB to 64.
When I received my personal laptop last summer, I immediately did a memory check using CPU-Z and saw that only one of the two memory slots was populated. With the second 16GB being $44, it was a no brainer to get the memory module and expand it to 32GB. That should be more than enough to last the laptop especially with applications gaining more functionality at the cost of additional RAM consumed.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 08, 2025, 03:06:26 AMThe only time I've run into the OOM killer on this machine was a week or so ago, when a webpage I visited tried to preload hundreds and hundreds of extremely-high-res photos for some reason, which caused Firefox to malloc itself to death.
I don't know how Firefox does it, but Chrome (and all browsers based on it) tends to go OOM at 1-2 GB of memory usage for a tab regardless of how much the computer actually has available, and I could have sworn that amount shrunk recently, so it might be even smaller now.
Quote from: ZLoth on November 08, 2025, 06:21:34 AMAnyone remember the 32-bit operating system Windows XP? Back then, it seemed that 256 MB or 512 MB was commonplace, and 4GB, because of the pricing back them, was considered "obscene". By the time XP reached EOL, 4GB was easily accomplished. Now, 4GB isn't enough for Windows 11, with 8 GB being the absolutely bare minimum, 16GB being minimum recommended, 32GB being recommended, and 64GB being power user. Reason being... there is less memory swapping to the physical drive going on. Having said that, there is a point of diminishing returns.... the improvement noticed from going from 8 GB to 16 GB is more noticeable than going from 16 GB to 32 GB, while the improvement is hardly noticed on going from 32 GB to 64.
I do! Heck, my calibration for how much RAM is needed was stuck in the Vista/7 era for a long time, with 4 GB feeling like a good amount and 8 GB feeling like a lot (kinda like how many people still have their sense for what prices should be calibrated for 2019). It seemed weird that more would ever be needed, given that the desktop computer industry has seemed fairly stable for a decade now. I guess it makes sense that swapping is less common, given how many laptops no longer use spinning hard drives any more and are 100% SSD, so the swapping would wear out the drive sooner.
Looks like another blow for RSS. Google and the other browser makers are moving to drop support for XSLT, which is the technology that's used to make them look like something and provide an explanation to users of what a RSS feed is and how they're used. Otherwise, they look like an unfriendly raw XML blob. I use it myself on my own site's RSS feed. I'm not sure what I'm going to replace it with.
https://ppc.land/google-targets-rss-feeds-in-new-xslt-removal-proposal/
From Tom's Hardware:
Louvre heist reveals museum used 'LOUVRE' as password for its video surveillance, still has workstations with Windows 2000 - glaring security weaknesses revealed in previous reportQuoteThe recent heist at the Louvre, in which jewelry worth around €88 million (US$101 million) was stolen from the museum in broad daylight, has revealed glaring weaknesses in the museum's security systems. According to the French publication Libération [machine translated], a security audit by the French National Agency for the Security of Information Systems (ANSSI) in 2014 reported that the museum's video surveillance system's password was 'LOUVRE.'
The same audit revealed that another system, built by defense and cybersecurity company Thales, used 'THALES' as its access credentials. Additionally, the museum's automation network also used computers that were equipped with Windows 2000 operating systems — making them vulnerable, as Microsoft stopped support for Windows 2000 in 2010.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2xa)
The Louvre heist showed none of that—an audit done in 2014 did. I would hope they changed the password after that.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 12, 2025, 10:44:46 PMThe Louvre heist showed none of that—an audit done in 2014 did. I would hope they changed the password after that.
Probably to LOUVRE1.
Quote from: kphoger on November 12, 2025, 11:18:15 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on November 12, 2025, 10:44:46 PMThe Louvre heist showed none of that—an audit done in 2014 did. I would hope they changed the password after that.
Probably to LOUVRE1.
Come now. Surely, LOUVRE!
From Ats Technica:
Ryanair tries forcing app downloads by eliminating paper boarding passes
Ryanair CEO admits "there'll be some teething problems."QuoteRyanair is trying to force users to download its mobile app by eliminating paper boarding passes, starting on November 12.
As announced in February and subsequently delayed from earlier start dates, Europe's biggest airline is moving to digital-only boarding passes, meaning customers will no longer be able to print physical ones. In order to access their boarding passes, Ryanair flyers will have to download Ryanair's app.
"Almost 100 percent of passengers have smartphones, and we want to move everybody onto that smartphone technology," Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said recently on The Independent's daily travel podcast.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2xb)
Ryanair is a low cost airline serving destinations in Europe. Some have described the airline as a customer-hostile version of Spirit Airlines.
Quote from: ZLoth on November 14, 2025, 07:13:16 AMFrom Ats Technica:
Ryanair tries forcing app downloads by eliminating paper boarding passes
Ryanair CEO admits "there'll be some teething problems."QuoteRyanair is trying to force users to download its mobile app by eliminating paper boarding passes, starting on November 12.
As announced in February and subsequently delayed from earlier start dates, Europe's biggest airline is moving to digital-only boarding passes, meaning customers will no longer be able to print physical ones. In order to access their boarding passes, Ryanair flyers will have to download Ryanair's app.
"Almost 100 percent of passengers have smartphones, and we want to move everybody onto that smartphone technology," Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary said recently on The Independent's daily travel podcast.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2xb)
Ryanair is a low cost airline serving destinations in Europe. Some have described the airline as a customer-hostile version of Spirit Airlines.
Requiring people to use an app for something should be illegal. At least send them to people via email if you don't want to print paper. Even people with smartphones might not want to download their app and shouldn't be forced to. I know I don't want to load up my phone with apps; I even uninstall the vast majority of the ones that come with a new phone (I swear, it's worse than new PC/laptop bloatware ever was).
From RyanAir's own website dedicated to this change:
QuoteWhat happens if I lose my smartphone or tablet?
If you have already checked-in online and your smartphone or tablet is lost, you will receive a free of charge boarding pass at the airport.
What happens if my smartphone or tablet dies before airport security?
If you have already checked-in online and your smartphone or tablet dies, you will receive a free of charge boarding pass at the airport.
What about passengers who don't have a smartphone or tablet?
If passengers don't have a smartphone or tablet, as long as they have already checked-in online before arriving at the airport, they will receive a free of charge boarding pass at the airport. However, they will not be able to access real-time flight updates or benefit from enhanced customer service during any flight disruptions.
Something tells me that, if you tell them at the ticket counter that you don't have a smartphone or tablet, then they aren't going to search you first before printing you a boarding pass. Then again, it is RyanAir...
Quote from: vdeane on November 14, 2025, 12:48:23 PMRequiring people to use an app for something should be illegal.
Based on everything I've heard about it, Ryanair should be illegal.
Quote from: vdeane on November 14, 2025, 12:48:23 PMRequiring people to use an app for something should be illegal. At least send them to people via email if you don't want to print paper. Even people with smartphones might not want to download their app and shouldn't be forced to.
Ryanair is a European airline which emphasizes on
CHEAP. (Where is that Comic Sans font when you need it?) Noone is forcing you to use a particular airline, but you do have to play by that airline's rules. There are people who are more than willing to put on a rainbow wig, white face paint, and a large red nose if it meant flying coast-to-coast for $9.
Lets also talk about items where the functionality is only with the app, and there is no desktop application or web page to access security videos on a desktop.
Quote from: vdeane on November 14, 2025, 12:48:23 PMI know I don't want to load up my phone with apps; I even uninstall the vast majority of the ones that come with a new phone (I swear, it's worse than new PC/laptop bloatware ever was).
Are you talking about removing about a dozen pre-installed games that you won't play at all? That's what I experienced when I got a 5G tablet last spring... which I promptly uninstalled because of the microtransactions that have contaminated all of those games.
Quote from: ZLoth on November 14, 2025, 11:47:50 PMRyanair is a European airline which emphasizes on CHEAP. (Where is that Comic Sans font when you need it?) Noone is forcing you to use a particular airline, but you do have to play by that airline's rules. There are people who are more than willing to put on a rainbow wig, white face paint, and a large red nose if it meant flying coast-to-coast for $9.
Lets also talk about items where the functionality is only with the app, and there is no desktop application or web page to access security videos on a desktop.
Once one airline does it, others will follow. Just look at the headphone jack in smartphones. And yes, those other things would fall under the way I think it should be illegal (let's appreciate that online dating being app-only is likely one of the reasons I will be forever alone).
Quote from: ZLoth on November 14, 2025, 11:47:50 PMAre you talking about removing about a dozen pre-installed games that you won't play at all? That's what I experienced when I got a 5G tablet last spring... which I promptly uninstalled because of the microtransactions that have contaminated all of those games.
It was more than a dozen, but yes, among other things. Too bad Facebook can only be disabled and not removed (same with Google Assistant and a few other things).
Quote from: vdeane on November 15, 2025, 03:55:14 PMOnce one airline does it, others will follow. Just look at the headphone jack in smartphones.
Eh, in this case, I don't think so. Ryanair is basically an Frontier/Spirit/Allegiant type airline taken to an even further extreme. The business model is to offer extremely cheap fares in exchange for nickel and diming you over every little frill. Even something like Southwest is a step up from that, and the American/United/Delta type airlines are courting an entirely different type of higher-end customer who would never consider flying something like Frontier and never tolerate those sort of shenanigans.
Quote from: vdeane on November 15, 2025, 03:55:14 PM(let's appreciate that online dating being app-only is likely one of the reasons I will be forever alone)
Those who have access to online dating are not doing any better—typical Silicon Valley enshittification has hit pretty hard in that market. Consider that if the app is successful in leading to a monogamous relationship, the user will stop using it, and the incentive for the platform to descend into antipatterns is even stronger than for other categories of app.
Most recent dating advice I've seen has suggested that apps are such a lost cause that they advocate for returning to more traditional means of dating.
From EuroNews:
Portugal warns Ryanair cannot refuse passengers with paper boarding passes
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2xc)
Ryanair (and other ULCCs) do allow folks to print boarding passes...if they pony up the fee to get checked in by an agent.
According to the BBC article, they did drop the previous £20 fee for printing a boarding pass at the airport if you checked in online. Still abhorrent and should be swiftly shot down by regulators for being blatantly anti-consumer.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 15, 2025, 05:13:37 PMMost recent dating advice I've seen has suggested that apps are such a lost cause that they advocate for returning to more traditional means of dating.
Of course, that requires that one naturally encounter people as they go about their life and have the social skills necessary to tell if someone's interested and to get to know that person. To say nothing of other complicating factors (being LGBT, etc.).
Quote from: vdeane on November 16, 2025, 02:34:33 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on November 15, 2025, 05:13:37 PMMost recent dating advice I've seen has suggested that apps are such a lost cause that they advocate for returning to more traditional means of dating.
Of course, that requires that one naturally encounter people as they go about their life and have the social skills necessary to tell if someone's interested and to get to know that person. To say nothing of other complicating factors (being LGBT, etc.).
Admittedly it has been many years since I used an online dating service, so it's possible this is no longer true. That said, I always had much better luck with dating sites that were "specialized" in some way (i.e. they catered to people with a specific lifestyle and/or interest) than general services like match.com or eHarmony. That way, at least you know you have one thing in common right off the bat and can sort through your matches from there. Not going to post publicly the service I used (though I would tell someone if they asked) and I certainly had plenty of bad experiences but a number of good ones as well.
Sadly I doubt there are enough of us in the roadgeek community for a specialized roadgeek dating service. Though it would bring a whole new meaning to the term "road meet." :bigass:
Quote from: vdeane on November 16, 2025, 02:34:33 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on November 15, 2025, 05:13:37 PMMost recent dating advice I've seen has suggested that apps are such a lost cause that they advocate for returning to more traditional means of dating.
Of course, that requires that one naturally encounter people as they go about their life and have the social skills necessary to tell if someone's interested and to get to know that person. To say nothing of other complicating factors (being LGBT, etc.).
Basically the only way to make it happen is to intentionally structure your life in such a way that you naturally encounter people (and not a stream of random people, but the same people, repeatedly, such that you have a shared experience because you've just straight-up been there for the same things). This is traditionally what bars were for (and lots of people get away with using church for the same purpose), but you could substitute something like an activity group or becoming a regular at a game store or something like that.
Similar considerations exist when trying to make friends in a new city. The difficulty I have run into is that because I was an only child growing up in a rural area, all of my naturally-developed hobbies and interests are solo endeavors. So I don't have much of a chance of running into a potential local friend unless I artificially pretend I'm into playing kickball or something like that. That being said there are a couple of guys at the gym I go to who I've talked to often enough that we know the basics of each other's lives and interests, although I don't know any of them well enough to hang out with them outside of the gym or anything like that. But that kind of reinforces the idea that starting a human relationship of any sort is mostly a matter of just consistently being at the same time and public place so that people recognize you as a fixed point they can connect to.
Heck, that's even how this forum works; we all have various degrees of friendship here because we see the same names over and over and we all get to know each other. That's why it feels like more of a community, as opposed to somewhere like Reddit where there's a million people who feel more or less interchangeable since the username is in tiny letters in the corner of each post.
Quote from: ModernDayWarrior on November 16, 2025, 03:02:01 PMSadly I doubt there are enough of us in the roadgeek community for a specialized roadgeek dating service. Though it would bring a whole new meaning to the term "road meet." :bigass:
There's certainly not enough volume to justify an entire service based on that, but I think there would be worse ideas than trying to date a fellow roadgeek if you found one who lived reasonably close and you found attractive. A short daytrip to clinch nearby stuff has the same structure as an ideal date (adequately long periods to talk to get to know each other better, split up by intermittent bursts of activity to provide shared experiences).
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 16, 2025, 04:14:50 PMBasically the only way to make it happen is to intentionally structure your life in such a way that you naturally encounter people (and not a stream of random people, but the same people, repeatedly, such that you have a shared experience because you've just straight-up been there for the same things).
Two docents at the zoo got married recently.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 15, 2025, 05:13:37 PMlet's appreciate that online dating being app-only is likely one of the reasons I will be forever alone
My wife and I met online a few years before either of us had even
heard of smartphones—and when an app was still something you ordered ahead of your meal at a restaurant.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 15, 2025, 05:13:37 PMmore traditional means of dating.
Quote from: vdeane on November 16, 2025, 02:34:33 PMOf course, that requires that one naturally encounter people as they go about their life and have the social skills necessary to tell if someone's interested and to get to know that person.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 16, 2025, 04:14:50 PMBasically the only way to make it happen is to intentionally structure your life in such a way that you naturally encounter people (and not a stream of random people, but the same people, repeatedly, such that you have a shared experience because you've just straight-up been there for the same things).
This is very insightful. Not to "encounter" a stream of people, but rather to have a pool of people in your life large enough (the pool, not necessarily the people) to draw from. And the "in your life" part matters. Shared interests or experiences or situations. It's by spending time with people and actually having conversations that we find out who we like and who we don't—and that goes not just for romantic interests, but friends in general. Good food for thought.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 16, 2025, 04:14:50 PMThis is traditionally what bars were for (and lots of people get away with using church for the same purpose), but you could substitute something like an activity group or becoming a regular at a game store or something like that.
When my daughter's mom and I broke up way back in the early 00s, and I was starting to get depressed and desperate to find someone to settle down with, I asked a co-worker where I could find a wife. That's how I phrased it, too:
— Where can I find a wife?
— Church.
— That takes too long. Where can I find a wife faster?
— *pause* ... The internet?
So that's what I ended up doing. I went to the library one evening to use the internet, looked at several different sites, and settled on one. I signed up for a free seven-day trial account and filled out a profile. Only one person ever contacted me, and I'm the only one she contacted. We figured out a way around the filter that prevented sharing e-mail addresses, exchanged e-mails for a little bit, then moved to phone calls shortly thereafter. The first couple of phone calls were really awkward, but then the wall broke down and the conversation floodwaters rushed in. The first time we met face to face was when she picked me up at the bus station in Springfield MO a couple of months later. We're now coming up on our 20th wedding anniversary.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 16, 2025, 04:14:50 PMSimilar considerations exist when trying to make friends in a new city. The difficulty I have run into is that because I was an only child growing up in a rural area, all of my naturally-developed hobbies and interests are solo endeavors. So I don't have much of a chance of running into a potential local friend unless I artificially pretend I'm into playing kickball or something like that.
I grew up in a small town too, as you know. My dad was pastor at two congregations, one in town and one out in the country. At the country church, I think only one member wasn't somehow (if only distantly) related to everyone else. But by the time I met my wife, I was living in suburban Chicago.
My wife is from Branson. Her issue was that she knew everyone in her church so well that they were like brothers to her—so much like brothers, in fact, that she didn't want to even consider any of them romantically. But going to a bar or something in Branson would have presented her with two basic pools of guys: (1) tourists, who didn't even live there; (2) rednecks.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 16, 2025, 04:14:50 PMThat being said there are a couple of guys at the gym I go to who I've talked to often enough that we know the basics of each other's lives and interests, although I don't know any of them well enough to hang out with them outside of the gym or anything like that. But that kind of reinforces the idea that starting a human relationship of any sort is mostly a matter of just consistently being at the same time and public place so that people recognize you as a fixed point they can connect to.
I sometimes wish someone,
anyone would give each other so much as a smile and a nod at the gym—let alone actually start a conversation. It's such an anti-social place in my eyes, with everyone wearing headphones and half of them staring into their phones. My wife says people don't come to talk, they come to work out. But what's wrong with doing both?
Quote from: ModernDayWarrior on November 16, 2025, 03:02:01 PMI always had much better luck with dating sites that were "specialized" in some way (i.e. they catered to people with a specific lifestyle and/or interest) than general services like match.com or eHarmony. That way, at least you know you have one thing in common right off the bat and can sort through your matches from there.
The site that my wife and I met on was a Christian one. I remember it being called something similar to christiansoulmates.com, but that doesn't appear to exist. The most similar one I can find is christiansoulmate.com (not plural), so maybe that's it. Anyway, that site says right on the Who Are We? page: "We believe the future of online dating lies in sites being tailored to particular interests, hobbies, or clearly specified member needs..."
A friend of mine from back then also met her husband online, and that site was specifically for Lutherans. They were both also serious Trekkies. They're still married too.
But I don't know what other types of "niche" dating sites are out there.
Quote from: ModernDayWarrior on November 16, 2025, 03:02:01 PMSadly I doubt there are enough of us in the roadgeek community for a specialized roadgeek dating service.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 16, 2025, 04:14:50 PMThere's certainly not enough volume to justify an entire service based on that
I wonder what the male:female ratio would be.
Quote from: kphoger on November 17, 2025, 10:02:41 AMI wonder what the male:female ratio would be.
I have a spreadsheet of this. While the forum stats page showed something close to 15:1, it just counted registered members, many of whom haven't made any posts.
Of the 481 forum members with at least 282 posts (there are 505) where I know their gender, there are five cis women (one being a lesbian), six trans women, three nonbinary, and everyone else is male. This doesn't take into account who is active and who hasn't posted in years.
Quote from: kphoger on November 17, 2025, 10:02:41 AMI wonder what the male:female ratio would be.
Quote from: hotdogPi on November 17, 2025, 10:15:25 AMI have a spreadsheet of this. While the forum stats page showed something close to 15:1, it just counted registered members, many of whom haven't made any posts.
Of the 481 forum members with at least 282 posts (there are 505) where I know their gender, there are five cis women (one being a lesbian), six trans women, three nonbinary, and everyone else is male. This doesn't take into account who is active and who hasn't posted in years.
Then the obvious factor would be how many males
vs females in roadgeekdom would actually sign up on a dating site.
But this is not the question that really needs to be answered. What we really need to answer is this:
What would we name a roadgeek dating site?
Quote from: kphoger on November 17, 2025, 10:02:41 AMI sometimes wish someone, anyone would give each other so much as a smile and a nod at the gym—let alone actually start a conversation. It's such an anti-social place in my eyes, with everyone wearing headphones and half of them staring into their phones. My wife says people don't come to talk, they come to work out. But what's wrong with doing both?
One of the things I had to get used to in Las Vegas is that people are much, much more willing to just start up a conversation with a random person than they are in Oklahoma. The first time I went to the grocery store here I had no less than three people randomly say something to me to start a conversation (one commented on my shirt, another was the cashier who wanted to talk about how much she liked my reusable bags, don't remember exactly what the third one said). It sort of freaked me out, like, was I so obviously Not From Here that I stood out somehow and was drawing everyone's attention? It put me on edge, because normally if someone starts a conversation with you in Oklahoma, it normally means either they want something from you, or something is wrong that they feel the need to warn you about.
Turns out, no, Las Vegas is just like that!
These guys at the gym I started getting to know because they struck up a conversation with me in the sauna after a workout, but now they come up and say hi on the main floor too. So maybe try starting a conversation there with someone you see regularly, if your gym has a sauna.
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 17, 2025, 04:17:59 PMThese guys at the gym I started getting to know because they struck up a conversation with me in the sauna after a workout, but now they come up and say hi on the main floor too. So maybe try starting a conversation there with someone you see regularly, if your gym has a sauna.
Ah, that explains it. Yes, a sauna is a place where you're more likely to find yourself in a conversation. But no, it's Planet Fitness, so no sauna.
(https://zipline.markholtz.net/u/c7wlTL.jpg)
Love it!
What's even better is that, from what I can tell, the original Twitter post with that image is from more than six years ago.
When is the last time you saw a 3½" floppy disk in actual use?
(Were there icons back in the 5¼" days?)
Quote from: kphoger on November 19, 2025, 12:12:59 PM(Were there icons back in the 5¼" days?)
I don't remember one on our word processor for Commodore 64.
Well, that was a fun rabbit hole...
Here's a screenshot of Lotus 1-2-3 from the 1991-1992 days:
(https://winworldpc.com/res/img/screenshots/1x-win-4c3634d6257592e73dbb854500fe5f2a-Lotus%201-2-3%201.1%20for%20Windows%20-%20Edit.png)
Quote from: JayhawkCO on November 19, 2025, 12:15:05 PMQuote from: kphoger on November 19, 2025, 12:12:59 PM(Were there icons back in the 5¼" days?)
I don't remember one on our word processor for Commodore 64.
I found the one that we used. Looks like instead of a disk icon to save, you clicked the file cabinet.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Desk
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/86/Magic_Desk_I_main_screen.png)
Quote from: kphoger on November 19, 2025, 12:12:59 PM(Were there icons back in the 5¼" days?)
In the late 80's I briefly had an Apple IIGS computer, which was kind of a "bridge" between the older Apple II and the new Macintosh. Although essentially an Apple II at its core (pun intended) it had a nascent GUI which had icons for both 5.25" and 3.5" floppies.
One of my projects this weekend is to migrate my TrueNAS applications, including Audiobookshelf, Plex, and Kavita from HDDs to SSDs drives. This was possible because of the following:
- I upgraded my TrueNAS hardware to a faster processor and a motherboard that has three instead of one NVMe slots. The first slot is occupied by the boot NVMe drive from when I first built my system in 2016.
- Two SABRENT Rocket 4 1TB NVMe (https://amzn.to/4iqcjm3) NVMe drives which I configured as a mirrored virtual device (VDEV).
- The 25.10 update of the TrueNAS including a feature which made migrating the .ix-apps from one drive to another super easy, although it took a little over 30 minutes.
- The TrueNAS System Dataset was also migrated from the HDD VDEV to the SSD VDEV.
- There was some post-migration clean-up to move some of the data directories of the apps over to the NVMe drives and updating the mapping in the Docker config files.
I should note that the actual media (eBooks, audio books, movies, TV shows, music) is still stored of the HDD VDEV. However, the apps are feeling much faster now with the databases on SSDs. What took several seconds (or more) for Audiobookshelf to load up a library on the web browser or phone is now almost instantaneous.
Quote from: kphoger on November 19, 2025, 12:12:59 PMWhen is the last time you saw a 3½" floppy disk in actual use?
(Were there icons back in the 5¼" days?)
Quote from: JayhawkCO on November 19, 2025, 12:15:05 PMI don't remember one on our word processor for Commodore 64.
Quote from: dlsterner on November 20, 2025, 04:25:43 PMIn the late 80's I briefly had an Apple IIGS computer, which was kind of a "bridge" between the older Apple II and the new Macintosh. Although essentially an Apple II at its core (pun intended) it had a nascent GUI which had icons for both 5.25" and 3.5" floppies.
I don't recall any icons, but I was (and to some extent, still am) a heavy DOS-prompt kind of guy. But the funny thing is that I had a cassette tape drive for my first computer (Tandy TRS-80 circa 1980), and then twin 3-1/2" floppies for my next computer (Tandy 1400LT laptop circa 1987). After that, I moved up to desktop towers with 5-1/4" floppies (and of course, I had to install my own 3-1/2" inch floppy drives to maintain compatibility).
Quote from: dlsterner on November 20, 2025, 04:25:43 PMQuote from: kphoger on November 19, 2025, 12:12:59 PM(Were there icons back in the 5¼" days?)
In the late 80's I briefly had an Apple IIGS computer, which was kind of a "bridge" between the older Apple II and the new Macintosh. Although essentially an Apple II at its core (pun intended) it had a nascent GUI which had icons for both 5.25" and 3.5" floppies.
Found a screen snapshot from the Apple IIgs which shows icons for both 3.5" and 5.25" floppies (and a RAM disk as well). I suspect this dates back to approximately 1987.
(Yes, I see that the image has a 2015 date on it. I'm assuming that this person was running an Apple IIgs emulator on (possibly) a Macintosh much more recently. And I don't believe the original IIgs didn't have the 8 MB of RAM as shown. But the technology of the image is 1987-ish.)
(https://www.apple2faq.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Screen-Shot-2018-12-03-at-2.53.09-PM.png)
Quote from: Dirt Roads on November 23, 2025, 07:30:27 PMI was (and to some extent, still am) a heavy DOS-prompt kind of guy.
During internet issues, I always check for packet loss via cmd.exe ping test. I also use cmd.exe for filename searches. But those are the only two things I use it for.
Quote from: kphoger on November 24, 2025, 09:39:01 AMQuote from: Dirt Roads on November 23, 2025, 07:30:27 PMI was (and to some extent, still am) a heavy DOS-prompt kind of guy.
During internet issues, I always check for packet loss via cmd.exe ping test. I also use cmd.exe for filename searches. But those are the only two things I use it for.
I use Linux for my job, so I'm so used to using command line interface, but I can't remember the last time I "voluntarily" used Windows cmd/DOS prompt. I think I had to do it once or twice on my work PC to install some packages for my job, but otherwise it's probably just an ipconfig or something 7-8 years so.
I enjoy the retro green-on-black look too, so my usual order of operations to check for packet loss is something like this:
Win+R
cmd
>cd\
>color 0a
>cls
>ping www.amtrak.com -n 20
Quote from: kphoger on November 24, 2025, 11:31:07 AMI enjoy the retro green-on-black look too, so my usual order of operations to check for packet loss is something like this:
Win+R
cmd
>cd\
>color 0a
>cls
>ping www.amtrak.com -n 20
I think it's disappointing it doesn't save that preference between sessions. (Every shell program on Linux does, even the primordial
xterm.)
Quote from: kphoger on November 24, 2025, 11:31:07 AMI enjoy the retro green-on-black look too, so my usual order of operations to check for packet loss is something like this:
Win+R
cmd
>cd\
>color 0a
>cls
>ping www.amtrak.com -n 20
In that example, it may be hard to tell if the packets are lost or just delayed by freight traffic.
Quote from: TheCatalyst31 on November 24, 2025, 11:10:12 PMIn that example, it may be hard to tell if the packets are lost or just delayed by freight traffic.
Amtrak delays tend to not be measurable in milliseconds...
Quote from: kphoger on November 25, 2025, 09:32:24 AMQuote from: TheCatalyst31 on November 24, 2025, 11:10:12 PMIn that example, it may be hard to tell if the packets are lost or just delayed by freight traffic.
Amtrak delays tend to not be measurable in milliseconds...
That depends on big the integers are on your system...
Quote from: hotdogPi on November 17, 2025, 10:15:25 AMQuote from: kphoger on November 17, 2025, 10:02:41 AMI wonder what the male:female ratio would be.
I have a spreadsheet of this. While the forum stats page showed something close to 15:1, it just counted registered members, many of whom haven't made any posts.
Of the 481 forum members with at least 282 posts (there are 505) where I know their gender, there are five cis women (one being a lesbian), six trans women, three nonbinary, and everyone else is male. This doesn't take into account who is active and who hasn't posted in years.
So much for a road meat ;)
Quote from: kphoger on November 19, 2025, 12:12:59 PMLove it!
What's even better is that, from what I can tell, the original Twitter post with that image is from more than six years ago.
When is the last time you saw a 3½" floppy disk in actual use?
(Were there icons back in the 5¼" days?)
Oh, sure. Icons were on the Xerox Alto and Star and rapidly copied by Apple for the Mac, and a little later on Windows.
Quote from: TheCatalyst31 on November 24, 2025, 11:10:12 PMIn that example, it may be hard to tell if the packets are lost or just delayed by freight traffic.
Quote from: kphoger on November 25, 2025, 09:32:24 AMAmtrak delays tend to not be measurable in milliseconds...
Quote from: Scott5114 on November 25, 2025, 03:34:04 PMThat depends on big the integers are on your system...
I had no doubt that you would say something like that...
Reply from 2001:578:2c:fe91::1860: time=3702508ms
am I not the only one who can no longer make commentary on YT smartphone app video clips?
:banghead:
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on December 13, 2025, 12:39:18 PMam I not the only one who can no longer make commentary on YT smartphone app video clips?
The commentary I've seen on YouTube videos suggests that nobody has ever been able to do that.
Quote from: Scott5114 on December 15, 2025, 02:07:52 AMQuote from: mgk920 on December 13, 2025, 12:39:18 PMam I not the only one who can no longer make commentary on YT smartphone app video clips?
The commentary I've seen on YouTube videos suggests that nobody has ever been able to do that.
I was until a week or so ago,
Mike
Four news bits:
From WccTech: You Might Soon See 8GB Laptops Everywhere, as Manufacturers Are Likely to Make High-RAM Configurations Unaffordable (https://wccftech.com/you-might-soon-see-8gb-laptops-everywhere/)
From PCWorld: RAM is so expensive, Samsung won't even sell it to Samsung (https://www.pcworld.com/article/2998935/ram-is-so-expensive-samsung-wont-even-sell-it-to-samsung.html)
From TechPowerUp: Samsung Could Stop SATA SSD Production Amid NAND Flash Shortage (https://www.techpowerup.com/344090/samsung-could-stop-sata-ssd-production-amid-nand-flash-shortage)
From TechPowerUp: Sandisk and Samsung Delay NAND Shipments, Transcend Left Without Supply Since October (https://www.techpowerup.com/343619/sandisk-and-samsung-delay-nand-shipments-transcend-left-without-supply-since-october)
Oh! My! Goodness! Does that mean that we're going to have to make do with what we have in computers, laptops, and mobile devices until, what, 2028??? The world is coming to an END!
In all seriousness, while you can run Windows 10/11 with just 8 GB of memory, the experience will be a bit painful as memory has to be swapped to the storage device. 16 GB is a better experience although I already had my computers set up for 32 GB of memory with the exception of my main computer and TrueNAS server which is running 64 GB.
As for mobile devices, I got my Google 9 Pro last year, and my mother got a Google 10 Pro two months ago, so making the phones last is just a matter of being able to replace the battery.
The Security Now picture of the week (https://www.grc.com/sn/sn-1056-notes.pdf) seems really appropriate for this thread.
Quote from: vdeane on December 15, 2025, 09:11:30 PMThe Security Now picture of the week (https://www.grc.com/sn/sn-1056-notes.pdf) seems really appropriate for this thread.
:-D
16 GB on my main computer. If I was replacing it today I'd get at least double, obviously.
(Yelling at clouds: "48 KB on my first computer! And glad to get it!")
Quote from: kkt on December 19, 2025, 10:16:06 PM(Yelling at clouds: "48 KB on my first computer! And glad to get it!")
My first computer was a TRS-80 Model III... with 16KB of memory.
Quote from: formulanone on April 16, 2024, 09:16:13 AMAnd darn it, despite having loads of camera gear, I was mighty disappointed by my near-eclipse photos. I'll chalk that up to operator error, even though I've had my latest camera for over a year now. With so many more features and the camera over-thinking for you, sometimes there's moments you have to override several settings just to get exactly what you want out of it. Again, there's the humbling moment when I know others could probably get their desired results, because they practiced and learned for that moment and knew what to do, and I just winged it, and winged it some more. The best camera is the one in your hand, and the better camera is knowing to use it in that situation.
Don't feel badly about that -- one of my lifetime hobbies is amateur astronomy, and while I don't do astrophotography myself I know a lot of people who do, and it takes some well-developed skills and telescope to take good photos of the Sun or any heavenly body.
Quote from: ZLoth on April 14, 2024, 09:04:38 PMTo that grade school/junior high/high school teacher who insisted that calculators be banned and that we had to figure it out manually, with the reasoning that you would never carry a calculator around with you... how many scientific calculator apps are available for download now? Of course, because of cheating and such, there are only certain calculators that are approved for major exams, and they better have no WiFi connectivity.
No handheld calculators existed when I was in high school and early college years.
I got one in 1980 when I worked in road design, and it was a programmable TI-59C, cost about $100 and had trig functions which are necessary in roadway design.
People used to do trig manually. I saw the trig books in the office with tables of values for each minute of an arc for 0 to 360 degrees, for each of the six trig functions. Then you would take the two numbers on either side of your angle and interpolate to get the value for your angle down to the second of an arc. Before my time.
Quote from: Dirt Roads on April 19, 2024, 09:24:22 PMTo be honest, I didn't have all that much programming experience in my career. But I was proficient in the myriad of differences between FORTRAN3, FORTRAN4, FORTRAN77, IBM Fortran, VAX Fortran, MS Fortran, and Microsoft VisualFortran. Including the fact that Microsoft couldn't get their function calls for matrix multiplication to work with imaginary numbers (which are indeed required in calculating the power flow when trains are in motion). And yes, I still have my old JCL Programmers Card around here somewhere.
I was a mainframe COBOL programmer and systems designer for 16 years, and also worked in SAS and NATURAL/ADABAS.
Y2K conversion -- I was on a mainframe conversion project to update over 300 programs and over 50 files, to handle the 4-digit year in the date. There would have been major problems if the conversion did not happen. Smart businesses everywhere did the same thing and that is why it was a non-event.
Quote from: hbelkins on April 17, 2024, 06:18:00 PMThe first Apple Macintosh computer I used in the newspaper business in 1987 was a Mac Plus. It had 1 MB of RAM and a 20 MB external hard drive. The souped-up computer we used for ad composition had 2 MB of RAM and a 40 MB external hard drive. We connected to our Apple LaserWriter printer with PhoneNet connectors. The hard drivers were SCSI and the mouse and keyboard used Apple Desktop Bus (ADB) connectors.
First for me at work was a 486 desktop in 1992, and a Pentium laptop in 1994. Pretty advanced machines at the time.
First home computer (well later that many IT folks in my office at work) was a Pentium 200 desktop in 1997. Used that to start my first website.
(https://zipline.markholtz.net/u/bwFR76.jpg)
Quote from: Beltway on December 20, 2025, 05:25:09 AMFirst for me at work was a 486 desktop in 1992, and a Pentium laptop in 1994. Pretty advanced machines at the time.
The first time I had a Pentium was in 1999, although I think it may have been a P3.
Happy DEC-20th day! The DEC-20 was a very common timesharing system in the 1970s, the most common single model on the Arpanet.
Quote from: kkt on December 21, 2025, 12:12:59 AMHappy DEC-20th day! The DEC-20 was a very common timesharing system in the 1970s, the most common single model on the Arpanet.
Nerds can also celebrate this on OCT 24
Quote from: kphoger on December 20, 2025, 10:33:46 PMQuote from: Beltway on December 20, 2025, 05:25:09 AMFirst for me at work was a 486 desktop in 1992, and a Pentium laptop in 1994. Pretty advanced machines at the time.
The first time I had a Pentium was in 1999, although I think it may have been a P3.
My first home computer in 1997 was a Pentium desktop with a 200 MHz processor.
My second was in 2002 and a Pentium 4 desktop with a 2.4 GHz processor.
Quote from: kurumi on December 21, 2025, 12:46:48 PMQuote from: kkt on December 21, 2025, 12:12:59 AMHappy DEC-20th day! The DEC-20 was a very common timesharing system in the 1970s, the most common single model on the Arpanet.
Nerds can also celebrate this on OCT 24
Reminds me of the old joke that nerds confuse Halloween and Christmas because OCT 31 == DEC 25.
From Ars Technica:
RAM shortage chaos expands to GPUs, high-capacity SSDs, and even hard drives
GPU makers may prioritize more profitable models; large SSDs are harder to find.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2xd)
Even the 1TB NVMe drives that I purchased for $90 and $100 pre-Thanksgiving are now going for $190... if you can find them. At least I'm able to ride this out. My primary systems and my TrueNAS server have 64 GB of memory while my secondary systems have 32GB of memory. No system upgrades planned until 2028. However, my NAS drives are 4 years old which is a worry spot.
I'm starting to see YT video clips of AI-generated people speaking in very deadpan monotonous manners. Welcome to the future of news presentation and debate . . . :banghead:
Mike
Quote from: mgk920 on February 03, 2026, 02:32:28 PMI'm starting to see YT video clips of AI-generated people speaking in very deadpan monotonous manners. Welcome to the future of news presentation and debate . . . :banghead:
Mike
My company has begun doing this for short how-to technical videos, but the follow-along pacing is terrible, and the accenting is erratic.
It's for intracompany stuff, mostly how to find something within our portal or a quick new addition/option on our customer-facing software.
Quote from: formulanone on February 03, 2026, 07:47:24 PMQuote from: mgk920 on February 03, 2026, 02:32:28 PMI'm starting to see YT video clips of AI-generated people speaking in very deadpan monotonous manners. Welcome to the future of news presentation and debate . . . :banghead:
Mike
My company has begun doing this for short how-to technical videos, but the follow-along pacing is terrible, and the accenting is erratic.
It's for intracompany stuff, mostly how to find something within our portal or a quick new addition/option on our customer-facing software.
I will never understand why some people will make everyone else go through hoops simply because they don't want to read text.
Quote from: mgk920 on December 13, 2025, 12:39:18 PMam I not the only one who can no longer make commentary on YT smartphone app video clips?
:banghead:
Mike
It looks like YT just turned that back on. :-P
Mike
Quote from: Scott5114 on February 03, 2026, 10:41:15 PMQuote from: formulanone on February 03, 2026, 07:47:24 PMQuote from: mgk920 on February 03, 2026, 02:32:28 PMI'm starting to see YT video clips of AI-generated people speaking in very deadpan monotonous manners. Welcome to the future of news presentation and debate . . . :banghead:
Mike
My company has begun doing this for short how-to technical videos, but the follow-along pacing is terrible, and the accenting is erratic.
It's for intracompany stuff, mostly how to find something within our portal or a quick new addition/option on our customer-facing software.
I will never understand why some people will make everyone else go through hoops simply because they don't want to read text.
Some people (including me) actually sometimes like the 'passive' nature of having stuff like that audibly read to them. See (or hear): 'Audio books' and 'Old Time Radio' shows.
Mike
I thought about starting a new thread to ask this, but it seems to fit here overall. Has anyone ever switched from PC to Mac? If so, any thoughts?
The reason I ask is that my wife's laptop is showing its age. She doesn't want a desktop. She works part-time and doesn't use her laptop much for that purpose beyond accessing various contact information for certain people and remote access to e-mail. Aside from that, she uses it primarily for personal e-mail and managing/printing photos.
The photo thing is what made me start wondering whether a MacBook might make sense because we both have iPhones/iPads and the idea of her photos, e-mail, and text messages all syncing automatically is appealing. On the flip side, I'm her tech support. I've been a PC user since the days of DOS 3.3 and I won't be changing because my work system runs on Windows 11. What I'm wondering is, how much of a learning curve is there if you switch from PC to Mac? My wife is not the most patient person and is quite vocal about making her displeasure known. So I'm wondering whether I would set myself up for constant harangues and other verbal abuse if I get her a MacBook to replace her current Dell laptop.
Quote from: mgk920 on March 19, 2026, 07:29:55 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on February 03, 2026, 10:41:15 PMQuote from: formulanone on February 03, 2026, 07:47:24 PMQuote from: mgk920 on February 03, 2026, 02:32:28 PMI'm starting to see YT video clips of AI-generated people speaking in very deadpan monotonous manners. Welcome to the future of news presentation and debate . . . :banghead:
Mike
My company has begun doing this for short how-to technical videos, but the follow-along pacing is terrible, and the accenting is erratic.
It's for intracompany stuff, mostly how to find something within our portal or a quick new addition/option on our customer-facing software.
I will never understand why some people will make everyone else go through hoops simply because they don't want to read text.
Some people (including me) actually sometimes like the 'passive' nature of having stuff like that audibly read to them. See (or hear): 'Audio books' and 'Old Time Radio' shows.
Mike
Congrats. You're not everyone.
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 19, 2026, 09:10:51 PMI thought about starting a new thread to ask this, but it seems to fit here overall. Has anyone ever switched from PC to Mac? If so, any thoughts?
The reason I ask is that my wife's laptop is showing its age. She doesn't want a desktop. She works part-time and doesn't use her laptop much for that purpose beyond accessing various contact information for certain people and remote access to e-mail. Aside from that, she uses it primarily for personal e-mail and managing/printing photos.
I'm a Windows person with some Linux. However, in my not-so-humble opinion, it is a lousy time to get a new computer simply because the prices of computer memory, solid state drives, hard drives, and even processors are at sky-high levels. This is passed down to even pre-built computers. Right now, some manufacturers have dropped the memory from 16GB to 8GB just to keep it affordable.
Also, beware of computers with soldered-in memory.
Quote from: ZLoth on March 20, 2026, 12:41:01 AMQuote from: 1995hoo on March 19, 2026, 09:10:51 PMI thought about starting a new thread to ask this, but it seems to fit here overall. Has anyone ever switched from PC to Mac? If so, any thoughts?
The reason I ask is that my wife's laptop is showing its age. She doesn't want a desktop. She works part-time and doesn't use her laptop much for that purpose beyond accessing various contact information for certain people and remote access to e-mail. Aside from that, she uses it primarily for personal e-mail and managing/printing photos.
I'm a Windows person with some Linux. However, in my not-so-humble opinion, it is a lousy time to get a new computer simply because the prices of computer memory, solid state drives, hard drives, and even processors are at sky-high levels. This is passed down to even pre-built computers. Right now, some manufacturers have dropped the memory from 16GB to 8GB just to keep it affordable.
Also, beware of computers with soldered-in memory.
Prices have been high for a long, long time. Waiting for cheaper prices would mean possibly never buying a new computer.
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 19, 2026, 09:10:51 PMI thought about starting a new thread to ask this, but it seems to fit here overall. Has anyone ever switched from PC to Mac? If so, any thoughts?
The reason I ask is that my wife's laptop is showing its age. She doesn't want a desktop. She works part-time and doesn't use her laptop much for that purpose beyond accessing various contact information for certain people and remote access to e-mail. Aside from that, she uses it primarily for personal e-mail and managing/printing photos.
The photo thing is what made me start wondering whether a MacBook might make sense because we both have iPhones/iPads and the idea of her photos, e-mail, and text messages all syncing automatically is appealing. On the flip side, I'm her tech support. I've been a PC user since the days of DOS 3.3 and I won't be changing because my work system runs on Windows 11. What I'm wondering is, how much of a learning curve is there if you switch from PC to Mac? My wife is not the most patient person and is quite vocal about making her displeasure known. So I'm wondering whether I would set myself up for constant harangues and other verbal abuse if I get her a MacBook to replace her current Dell laptop.
Quote from: Rothman on March 20, 2026, 06:56:46 AMPrices have been high for a long, long time. Waiting for cheaper prices would mean possibly never buying a new computer.
If that's the case, then consider the MacBook Neo. I don't know how hard it is to switch as I've never done it, but if it's price that you have a concern about, then it's only $500 and more power than most similarly priced Chromebook or Windows devices.
Quote from: TheGinger on March 20, 2026, 07:39:20 AMIf that's the case, then consider the MacBook Neo. I don't know how hard it is to switch as I've never done it, but if it's price that you have a concern about, then it's only $500 and more power than most similarly priced Chromebook or Windows devices.
Price isn't really a controlling factor, but I found that particular device interesting in part because it sounded like a bit of a bargain and it got good reviews. The base model is $599, but I would probably go for the $699 version to get the increased storage and the Touch ID feature.
Quote from: Rothman on March 20, 2026, 06:56:46 AMQuote from: ZLoth on March 20, 2026, 12:41:01 AMI'm a Windows person with some Linux. However, in my not-so-humble opinion, it is a lousy time to get a new computer simply because the prices of computer memory, solid state drives, hard drives, and even processors are at sky-high levels. This is passed down to even pre-built computers. Right now, some manufacturers have dropped the memory from 16GB to 8GB just to keep it affordable.
Prices have been high for a long, long time. Waiting for cheaper prices would mean possibly never buying a new computer.
Define a "long, long time". From my perspective, they have been rising since last Fall.
Prices will go down as soon as the AI bubble bursts.
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 20, 2026, 10:27:29 AMQuote from: TheGinger on March 20, 2026, 07:39:20 AMIf that's the case, then consider the MacBook Neo. I don't know how hard it is to switch as I've never done it, but if it's price that you have a concern about, then it's only $500 and more power than most similarly priced Chromebook or Windows devices.
Price isn't really a controlling factor, but I found that particular device interesting in part because it sounded like a bit of a bargain and it got good reviews. The base model is $599, but I would probably go for the $699 version to get the increased storage and the Touch ID feature.
It's actually an awesome deal, because not only is it affordable, but it's quite repairable if something were to happen to it.
Quote from: hotdogPi on March 20, 2026, 10:40:46 AMPrices will go down as soon as the AI bubble bursts.
When will that be?
Quote from: Rothman on March 20, 2026, 11:13:49 AMQuote from: hotdogPi on March 20, 2026, 10:40:46 AMPrices will go down as soon as the AI bubble bursts.
When will that be?
(Visions of tulip bulbs are dancing in my head right now . . . )
Mike
Quote from: hotdogPi on March 20, 2026, 10:40:46 AMPrices will go down as soon as the AI bubble bursts.
The question is not if, but when. Right now, when is about a year or two off. :banghead:
Quote from: hotdogPi on March 20, 2026, 10:40:46 AMPrices will go down as soon as the AI bubble bursts.
Quote from: Rothman on March 20, 2026, 11:13:49 AMWhen will that be?
Probably right around the time inflation goes up...
I'm not entirely sure the AI bubble even is going to burst, to be honest. This isn't a normal instance of big tech getting ahead of itself, selling us on capabilities that are further away/less feasible than they say, and then everyone later realizing it was bunk. The CEO of Palantir admitted that it's specifically being done to kill off certain industries for reasons that are against the rules to elaborate on here. In other words, we're not dealing with overly-optimistic tech bros or financiers wanting to make a quick buck. We're looking at rich, influential people using it specifically to reshape society in a certain direction. They aren't going to give up just because AI can't do what they claim it can as well as they claim it can.
Quote from: vdeane on March 20, 2026, 12:44:57 PMI'm not entirely sure the AI bubble even is going to burst, to be honest. This isn't a normal instance of big tech getting ahead of itself, selling us on capabilities that are further away/less feasible than they say, and then everyone later realizing it was bunk. The CEO of Palantir admitted that it's specifically being done to kill off certain industries for reasons that are against the rules to elaborate on here. In other words, we're not dealing with overly-optimistic tech bros or financiers wanting to make a quick buck. We're looking at rich, influential people using it specifically to reshape society in a certain direction. They aren't going to give up just because AI can't do what they claim it can as well as they claim it can.
Nothing in this post is relevant to why the bubble is going to burst—because all of the companies involved are doing Enron shit with their financials.
Quote from: vdeane on March 20, 2026, 12:44:57 PMI'm not entirely sure the AI bubble even is going to burst, to be honest.
Not to give any ideas, but I think they'll just point to how Amazon or Google also weren't profitable companies right out of the gate, the former taking about a decade to record a profit. Of course, every household name in technology was blazed by the paths of a few hundred acquisitions, and paved with many thousands of failures.
Amazing how everyone seems to be patient for this massive public drain of a mostly subtractive industry, but not for the quarterly earnings of corporations which use actual human labors and endeavors...
The AI Industry Is Lying To You (https://www.wheresyoured.at/the-ai-industry-is-lying-to-you/)
Quote from: formulanone on March 24, 2026, 06:28:41 PMNot to give any ideas, but I think they'll just point to how Amazon or Google also weren't profitable companies right out of the gate, the former taking about a decade to record a profit.
Amazon and Google at least had a business plan that amounted to more than "1. Buy a fuckton of chips from Jensen Huang 2. ??? 3. Profit"!
Sora (the OpenAI video generation site) was just announced to be shutting down, because it made $2 million in January while losing $16 million
every day. How the
fuck do you make up a deficit of $494 million a month, or damn near $6 billion a year? Like, that's not "oh, well, once the buildout is done we'll be able to cover costs through economies of scale", that's "if we robbed a Federal Reserve Bank and then lit the cash on fire we would lose less money than we are now"!
Quote from: Scott5114 on March 25, 2026, 03:58:03 AMThe AI Industry Is Lying To You (https://www.wheresyoured.at/the-ai-industry-is-lying-to-you/)
Website looks like it was designed by some guy still living in his mother's basement.
Quote from: Rothman on March 25, 2026, 07:06:11 AMQuote from: Scott5114 on March 25, 2026, 03:58:03 AMThe AI Industry Is Lying To You (https://www.wheresyoured.at/the-ai-industry-is-lying-to-you/)
Website looks like it was designed by some guy still living in his mother's basement.
Not enough maximum-saturation colors on a black background for that concept.
From The Verge:
Sony temporarily suspends memory card sales due to shortagesQuoteSony has announced that as of March 27th, 2026, the company is no longer accepting orders for nearly all the products in its CFexpress and SD memory card lines. The list of affected memory products includes CFexpress Type A, Type B, and SDXC/SDHC cards, although a few models of Type B and low-end SF-UZ series SD cards remain in production, according to PetaPixel, and you may still be able to find them on shelves until the existing supply runs out.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2xh)
Quote from: The_Ginger on March 20, 2026, 10:44:59 AMQuote from: 1995hoo on March 20, 2026, 10:27:29 AMQuote from: TheGinger on March 20, 2026, 07:39:20 AMIf that's the case, then consider the MacBook Neo. I don't know how hard it is to switch as I've never done it, but if it's price that you have a concern about, then it's only $500 and more power than most similarly priced Chromebook or Windows devices.
Price isn't really a controlling factor, but I found that particular device interesting in part because it sounded like a bit of a bargain and it got good reviews. The base model is $599, but I would probably go for the $699 version to get the increased storage and the Touch ID feature.
It's actually an awesome deal, because not only is it affordable, but it's quite repairable if something were to happen to it.
Following up on this from the previous page, I did get my wife the MacBook Neo, the model with the built-in Touch ID key and the bigger SSD. There are going to be adjustments. I stopped at Micro Center to get a female USB-A to male USB-C adapter so she can use her existing mouse rather than the trackpad (we both dislike trackpads, though I use mine when I'm on the Acela). Now I have to adjust how it scrolls because it uses the scroll wheel in the opposite direction from what we're used to.
She already really loves how it integrates with her other devices. For example, logging into a banking website required an SMS code. The Mac picked up the code from her phone and she didn't have to retype it, which blew her mind (she asked why her old laptop didn't do that, to which I replied, "It was a PC and didn't support that feature").
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 28, 2026, 05:39:18 PMFollowing up on this from the previous page, I did get my wife the MacBook Neo, the model with the built-in Touch ID key and the bigger SSD. There are going to be adjustments. I stopped at Micro Center to get a female USB-A to male USB-C adapter so she can use her existing mouse rather than the trackpad (we both dislike trackpads, though I use mine when I'm on the Acela).
I carry an external mouse with me and dislike trackpads. With my old work laptop, I had a docking station so that I could use my monitors and external keyboard and mouse to work. With my personal laptop that I got last summer, I'm just doing a remote session since the purpose is just bringing up webpages and Powerpoint presentations when away from my home. It's light-duty stuff.
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 28, 2026, 05:39:18 PMShe already really loves how it integrates with her other devices. For example, logging into a banking website required an SMS code. The Mac picked up the code from her phone and she didn't have to retype it, which blew her mind (she asked why her old laptop didn't do that, to which I replied, "It was a PC and didn't support that feature").
Under Windows 11, there is now a feature that allows you to link up your phone to your Windows install, thus allowing you to see text messages and file transfers. You do have to install an application on the phone though. If you don't like that type of integration, there is the Google Messenger app which you can install and then bring up the phone's messages on your web browser.
It sounds like she is using a iPhone, so the ecosystem is a bit tighter and subject to the blessing of the high Apple priests.
I have that Windows 11 feature active on my personal desktop (not allowed on the work machine). It works so-so. Some messages don't always appear, like MFA codes. We both have iPhones, which is why hers integrates so well with the new Mac. The integration was ultimately the main thing that made me decide to get her that one. Thirty years ago I loved tinkering with my PCs, but nowadays I just want everything to work with a minimum of drama.
Looks like Reddit may soon require Face ID to go to the site to screen out bots. Why can't they just use Cloudflare like this forum does?
https://www.pcmag.com/news/reddit-could-soon-require-face-id-to-prove-youre-not-a-bot
Reddit currently uses either Cloudflare or AWS (not sure which), since it was affected by one of the outages.
Quote from: vdeane on March 29, 2026, 09:59:06 PMLooks like Reddit may soon require Face ID to go to the site to screen out bots. Why can't they just use Cloudflare like this forum does?
https://www.pcmag.com/news/reddit-could-soon-require-face-id-to-prove-youre-not-a-bot
Because they've found a way to monetize a whole bunch of faces?
Quote from: kkt on March 29, 2026, 11:43:54 PMBecause they've found a way to monetize a whole bunch of faces?
What do you think the face of the average Redditor is worth?
I mean, besides face value.
Quote from: Scott5114 on March 30, 2026, 02:41:38 AMQuote from: kkt on March 29, 2026, 11:43:54 PMBecause they've found a way to monetize a whole bunch of faces?
What do you think the face of the average Redditor is worth?
I mean, besides face value.
63 cents
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 28, 2026, 05:39:18 PMit uses the scroll wheel in the opposite direction from what we're used to.
:crazy:
Quote from: kphoger on March 30, 2026, 10:05:14 AMQuote from: 1995hoo on March 28, 2026, 05:39:18 PMit uses the scroll wheel in the opposite direction from what we're used to.
:crazy:
In other words, on my Windows 11 PC, if I scroll the wheel "up" (towards the end of the mouse located away from me), I scroll up towards the top of whatever is displayed, and vice versa if I scroll "down." On the Mac, it was exactly the opposite. Apparently the reason why the Mac does it that way is to make it track with how it works when you drag your finger to scroll on a touchscreen—if you drag up from the bottom, material pushes off the top of the screen (you move "down," in other words), so the scroll wheel on the mouse works the same way. I understand the logic, but I also know that it would drive my wife nuts for the wheel to work in the opposite way from what she's used to. It drove me nuts too when I was using it to configure printers. It turned out to be easy to correct in the settings app (I believe the option was called "Natural Scrolling" and you simply turn that option off).
Quote from: 1995hoo on March 30, 2026, 11:05:12 AMexplanation
Ugh. Scroll wheels should all work the same way. That would drive me bananas.
Quote from: kphoger on March 30, 2026, 11:11:45 AMQuote from: 1995hoo on March 30, 2026, 11:05:12 AMexplanation
Ugh. Scroll wheels should all work the same way. That would drive me bananas.
I had never really thought about the issue before because I'd never had reason to. I'd never encountered a mouse on which scrolling "down" made the screen scroll up. In principle, I agree with you—but I also think letting the user choose which way it works is perfectly sensible as well.
I just did a Google search and it turns out Windows 11 lets you change the scrolling direction. You go into the control panel and select "Bluetooth & devices" -> "Mouse" -> "Scrolling direction," at which point you choose between "Down motion scrolls down" and "Down motion scrolls up." So ultimately both Windows and MacOS let you select which way you prefer the scroll wheel to operate. As I say, I didn't know Windows provided the option because I'd never thought about it before. (The two platforms' adoption of opposite defaults is weird, though, regardless of whether I understand Apple's thought process.)
I agree that it's nice to be able to flip it as an option. But as an option, not the default.
And I should have added that I find the description Windows uses ("Down motion scrolls down") to be a clearer way to explain it than MacOS's use of the term "Natural scrolling," which is not really descriptive and is arguably an expression of personal opinion (I, for one, found it very unnatural to have the direction reversed when using a mouse).
Linux defaults match those of Windows. In the KDE system settings program it's a checkbox that says "Invert scroll direction", which seems reasonably clear (presumably you've noticed the default by the time you get there so you know whether you want it like that or inverted, though the Windows phrasing is probably more helpful).
So yeah, it's Apple being weird, as usual.
I suspect Apple's choice of default is emblematic of them arguably being primarily a phone/tablet company, not a personal computer company. Sure, Microsoft tried, but it was a big flop, and Linux users aren't exactly the type of people who would rather use a smartphone/tablet over a PC.
I received the replacement front fans from AliExpress for my LanCool 216 RGB case (https://amzn.to/417jS9A). One of the two front fans (https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805010962572.html) was making a horrible noise for months already, but finding a replacement locally was impossible. It turns out that Lian Li onlly sells the fans through their AliExpress store. The fan costs only $10.79 each, but the shipping was a horrible $17.89, thus, I ordered two fans instead of one as a spare. The fans finally arrived Monday, and I installed it Tuesday morning. It is nice to have a "mostly" quiet computer again.
Why does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Quote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Because you only purchased half of a printer?
The only printer that I ever owned that could take a full ream was a widecarriage HP 4V Laserjet that I bought almost 30 years ago. But eventually, the full ream cartridge broke and had to switch back to the half ream standard cartridge. I still have it and I've got a few unused toner cartridges remaining. When Microsoft upgraded its NT to Windows 2000 (and soonafter when Microsoft migrated regular Windows over to NT as Windows XP in 2001), the 4V driver did port over correctly and shifted the margins. If it weren't for that, I would still be using this printer since it was a monster for its time. (Last time I tried it, it still worked great on my old 486 machine except it needed the drum cleaned).
Quote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
The full-size copier/printers we had at the casino could hold full reams. The big fancy one in OTB that did duplex printing and auto-stapling took six.
Quote from: Dirt Roads on April 12, 2026, 08:05:50 PMThe only printer that I ever owned that could take a full ream was a widecarriage HP 4V Laserjet that I bought almost 30 years ago.
I had a HP Laserjet 4, but because of the power consumption (it lacked a green mode), it was off most of the time. One of the known annoyances was that you had to replace the rollers in the back because of the "harmonica fold". Still the HP printers were known for being tanks.
I eventually replaced with a color laser printer that also does duplexing (double-sided printing).
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 12, 2026, 08:12:47 PMThe full-size copier/printers we had at the casino could hold full reams. The big fancy one in OTB that did duplex printing and auto-stapling took six.
I wish there was a consumer-level printer that did auto-stapling. Alas, I just got myself a electric stapler.
Quote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 08:48:36 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on April 12, 2026, 08:12:47 PMThe full-size copier/printers we had at the casino could hold full reams. The big fancy one in OTB that did duplex printing and auto-stapling took six.
I wish there was a consumer-level printer that did auto-stapling.
You probably don't. The stapler attachment added so much complexity to the machine that it was constantly jamming, sometimes badly enough that none of us could fix it and we'd have to call the vendor out for service. I used to call it the hell printer.
Quote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Why are there 12 eggs in a carton? Ever try to eat that many eggs in one meal?
Quote from: Beltway on April 12, 2026, 09:09:56 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Why are there 12 eggs in a carton? Ever try to eat that many eggs in one meal?
Yes, once I ate eighteen cakes.
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 12, 2026, 09:14:48 PMQuote from: Beltway on April 12, 2026, 09:09:56 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Why are there 12 eggs in a carton? Ever try to eat that many eggs in one meal?
Yes, once I ate eighteen cakes.
Did it bounce?
If so it doesn't count.
Quote from: Beltway on April 12, 2026, 09:38:00 PMQuote from: Scott5114 on April 12, 2026, 09:14:48 PMQuote from: Beltway on April 12, 2026, 09:09:56 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Why are there 12 eggs in a carton? Ever try to eat that many eggs in one meal?
Yes, once I ate eighteen cakes.
Did it bounce?
If so it doesn't count.
More from Giles later.
Quote from: Beltway on April 12, 2026, 09:09:56 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Why are there 12 eggs in a carton? Ever try to eat that many eggs in one meal?
We buy the 18-egg cartons. My wife likes to bake.
Large commercial copier/printer machines can hold 2 or 3 reams of paper in the main tray; the other trays (for letterhead paper, legal size, etc.) usually hold a ream each. Most home office setups don't have room for a stove-size printer though.
Yeah, commercial copiers take full reams. The real question is, why isn't it more common to find smaller package sizes for residential use—say, half-ream or 100-count? Of course, our home printer wouldn't be able to accommodate even that many, so maybe there's your reason.
Quote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
That's the same thing with packages of hot dogs v. buns.
Mike
Quote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Quote from: mgk920 on April 13, 2026, 10:40:10 AMThat's the same thing with packages of hot dogs v. buns.
Because hot dogs are sold by weight, but bakery equipment is manufactured to accommodate four- or eight-loaf pans?
(10 hot dogs = 1 pound | 8 buns = 1 pan)
Quote from: kphoger on April 13, 2026, 09:58:22 AMYeah, commercial copiers take full reams. The real question is, why isn't it more common to find smaller package sizes for residential use—say, half-ream or 100-count? Of course, our home printer wouldn't be able to accommodate even that many, so maybe there's your reason.
Yeah, that would be nice. Dealing with opened things of paper isn't exactly fun. Unopened ones are pretty sturdy, but opened ones you need to be careful with if you want the paper to stay nice until it can go in the printer.
Quote from: mgk920 on April 13, 2026, 10:40:10 AMQuote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
That's the same thing with packages of hot dogs v. buns.
Mike
They actually do sell hot dogs in packs of 8. It's not as common as packs of 10, but it's what I get on the rare occasion I buy hot dogs to avoid food waste.
Quote from: vdeane on April 13, 2026, 12:51:00 PMThey actually do sell hot dogs in packs of 8. It's not as common as packs of 10, but it's what I get on the rare occasion I buy hot dogs to avoid food waste.
Huh? It's perfectly possible to eat a hot dog without a bun.
In fact, when we have hot dogs at home, often at least one of us will be hungry enough for seconds but not hungry enough for a whole hot dog and bun, so they'll have a hot dog without a bun instead. Perfect way to use up those extra two dogs.
I would be surprised if my home printer took more than 100 pages of paper. I don't print that much, so I barely notice that shallow tray except when I use the even more dinky tray for 4x6 photo paper.
Quote from: kphoger on April 13, 2026, 01:10:39 PMQuote from: vdeane on April 13, 2026, 12:51:00 PMThey actually do sell hot dogs in packs of 8. It's not as common as packs of 10, but it's what I get on the rare occasion I buy hot dogs to avoid food waste.
Huh? It's perfectly possible to eat a hot dog without a bun.
In fact, when we have hot dogs at home, often at least one of us will be hungry enough for seconds but not hungry enough for a whole hot dog and bun, so they'll have a hot dog without a bun instead. Perfect way to use up those extra two dogs.
I usually don't even buy hot dog buns, I just use the same bread I use for sandwiches. Seems kind of silly to have a special kind of bread that I might or might not use up by the time it goes bad.
Hot dogs are even fairly tasty in a tortilla (with mayo and grilled onions or whatever your jam is). You can even go all out and put cheese in there and grill or pan-fry the whole thing.
Quote from: kphoger on April 13, 2026, 08:37:14 PMHot dogs are even fairly tasty in a tortilla (with mayo and grilled onions or whatever your jam is). You can even go all out and put cheese in there and grill or pan-fry the whole thing.
Make sure to put ketchup on it. :bigass:
Quote from: Big John on April 13, 2026, 09:33:32 PMMake sure to put ketchup on it.
I don't really care for ketchup at all. But, when I grill hot dogs, I first smoosh them around in a dish with ketchup and Worcestershire sauce, so they get all coated in that mixture. Then I grill them but leave the leftover ketchup and W-sauce in the dish. After they're done on the grill, I smoosh them around against in that little bit of leftover sauce, it becomes a sort of glaze. Good stuff!
Quote from: kphoger on April 13, 2026, 10:22:49 PMQuote from: Big John on April 13, 2026, 09:33:32 PMMake sure to put ketchup on it.
I don't really care for ketchup at all. But, when I grill hot dogs, I first smoosh them around in a dish with ketchup and Worcestershire sauce, so they get all coated in that mixture. Then I grill them but leave the leftover ketchup and W-sauce in the dish. After they're done on the grill, I smoosh them around against in that little bit of leftover sauce, it becomes a sort of glaze. Good stuff!
Smooshed hot dogs sound yucky.
Quote from: Beltway on April 12, 2026, 09:09:56 PMQuote from: ZLoth on April 12, 2026, 07:23:39 PMWhy does paper come in 500 sheet ream, but the printer trays hold only 250 sheets?
Why are there 12 eggs in a carton? Ever try to eat that many eggs in one meal?
I can't even eat that many eggs in six months. I wish they'd sell half dozens or even just 2-3 at a time so most of them don't go bad.
Quote from: kphoger on April 13, 2026, 08:37:14 PMHot dogs are even fairly tasty in a tortilla (with mayo and grilled onions or whatever your jam is). You can even go all out and put cheese in there and grill or pan-fry the whole thing.
Strawberry-rhubarb?
Quote from: Rothman on April 13, 2026, 11:35:14 PMSmooshed hot dogs sound yucky.
Yeah, I couldn't think of the right word. Swirl?
Quote from: kkt on April 13, 2026, 11:41:44 PMI wish they'd sell half dozens
They do.
From WCCFTech:
Samsung and Kingston Hike SSD Prices By 10% Again, Pushing 1TB Drives Past $330 As NAND Shortage Deepens
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://wccftech.com/samsung-and-kingston-hike-ssd-prices-by-10-again-pushing-1tb-drives-past-330-as-nand-shortage-deepens/)
Pain woes as it was about a year ago that a 1TB was under $100. Thankfully, my storage needs are all met for quite a while.
Quote from: kphoger on April 14, 2026, 09:26:05 AMQuote from: Rothman on April 13, 2026, 11:35:14 PMSmooshed hot dogs sound yucky.
Yeah, I couldn't think of the right word. Swirl?
Quote from: kkt on April 13, 2026, 11:41:44 PMI wish they'd sell half dozens
They do.
Not around here. I've been to about a dozen stores.
Only dozens.
Quote from: kkt on April 23, 2026, 08:23:58 PMNot around here. I've been to about a dozen stores.
Only dozens.
That's so weird to me. I see them all the time here.
Keep your eyes open at gas stations with a small grocery section. They might sell half-dozens there.
Quote from: kkt on April 23, 2026, 08:23:58 PMI've been to about a dozen stores.
Well, there's your problem. You need to go to half-dozen stores.
Quote from: Scott5114 on April 24, 2026, 01:32:41 PMQuote from: kkt on April 23, 2026, 08:23:58 PMI've been to about a dozen stores.
Well, there's your problem. You need to go to half-dozen stores.
Are those like
Ending In 99 Cents Stores?
Just for fun, I checked to see what faster Internet speeds were available at my home. I was surprised at not only the speeds, but the prices as well. Plus, I prefer my own mesh WiFi routers, and I would have to upgrade those in order to take advantage of those speeds. No thanks. My existing gigabit services is more than adequate, plus I'm usually sleeping while I upload my backups to a offsite cloud storage.
(https://zipline.markholtz.net/u/IJgMzY.png)
It should be noted that when I first started on the Internet in the early 1990s, we would joke about getting our own T1 lines which has speeds of 1.544 Mbps (megabits per second) when we won the lottery. Granted, it was around the time that pre-dated the web browser, so most of it was text-based. The obvious benefit was the faster downloads, as I remember that OS/2 update that was spread across multiple 3½ inch discs. Today, that T1 line is considered slow and our dependence on the various Internet applications for video streaming, online collaboration, and helping to bring people together. At least, that's my positive view of it.
I actually had a T1 line until not too many years ago. It was expensive as hell, but tariffed, had an SLA and boasted exceptionally low latency. It was the only line I could get when I first moved into the house. I didn't, and still don't, do a lot of streaming or video, so it was fine. Plus, I was never down more than 24 hours, or they'd have to pay me money.
However, my wife does do a lot of streaming and video, so we now have cable Internet, and the T1 provider got out of that business a few years ago anyway. The NID/smartjack is still on the wall near the electrical panel, but it's just a museum piece now.
Quote from: ClassicHasClass on May 05, 2026, 09:33:54 PMHowever, my wife does do a lot of streaming and video, so we now have cable Internet, and the T1 provider got out of that business a few years ago anyway. The NID/smartjack is still on the wall near the electrical panel, but it's just a museum piece now.
Here in Wichita, telephone service finally went all digital maybe... five... ? ... years ago? I still see NIU serial numbers on accounts every so often, although they're no longer provisioned for phone service. I'm not sure if there are any Cox markets left with active analog phone service via NIU. The only other markets I've dealt with that used to are Omaha and Oklahoma City, but my company hasn't done business in those markets in several years.
I can never remember on how to install and run a Python environment on VS Code.
*I type the command python3 -m .venv ~/venv/(whatever library) in the VS terminal to set up my virtual environment and install a new library.*
"Excuse me sir, but I do believe this is a Python environment?"
"Doesn't look familiar to me."
"What? I just saw you install it. Here. *points to the Python file directory*"
"Nope, I don't recognize that directory."
"It is a Python directory. I am trying to be a good person and set up a virtual environment in it."
"Virtual environment in where?"
:banghead:
"Isn't this a virtual environment?" "Yep."
"And it is a Python virtual environment?" "Yep."
"I found this Python virtual environment in this file. And if that's the case, isn't Python also in this file?" "Makes sense to me."
"Then run the command." "This isn't a Python virtual environment."
Python's package management and versioning is so grotesque it puts me off using the language at all. If you have to provide virtual environments as a means to manage library version conflicts then you are failing as a language. pip makes the mess worse, not better.
It's even worse on Linux because the system has its own package management system that it expects everything to funnel through. Besides all the non-development and system software, it manages C and C++ libraries just fine, and it does an adequate job with Perl (every once in a while you have to break out cpan but most of the time the system repo has a perfectly cromulent version available to install). But because Python devs can't resist the urge to make breaking changes every three days, every script you download from somewhere has a different set of version requirements, so you have to deal with pip and venv and God knows what else.
Every time I've used Python, it's never been by choice. Either a job or an assignment required it. It's a great learning language, it's great at data manipulation (mostly thanks to pandas), but I will not defend the less than stellar user experience.
Getting Python to play nice with IDEs like Spyder, Anaconda, IDLE -- all IDEs designed with Python in mind -- is trivial. In fact, it makes me almost want to use Python as a daily driver given how convenient using those IDEs are.
But the moment I export a program to another IDE like Visual Studio, which was not designed with Python in mind, I bring a whole bunch of unnecessary gaff just to make the file play nice in the new IDE. It's portable, because I'm sure a Python file could run on Mac or whatever, but it's not an easy process.
Compare this to C++ where #include directives only add what's necessary with less overhead.*
*(Okay, it's not that simple because object binaries are also involved and C++ likes generating way too many of those. But those files tend to be smaller and can be modified or deleted without wrecking the entire program.)
And on Linux you are expected to not use an IDE—the OS is the IDE. That is, the prevailing belief is that so much work has gone into the editors and various OS utilities like grep that it's kind of silly to use a purpose-built program just for writing and compiling only one language. (I started counting the number of syntax-highlighting options my preferred editor supports and got tired of counting at 130 with the scroll bar about a quarter of the way down. And that editor is considered kind of a Johnny-come-lately slouch compared with the venerable vi and emacs.)
Okay, what are the folks at Plex smoking?
From Plex Blog:
New Lifetime Plex Pass PricingQuoteToday we're announcing an important pricing update. Starting July 1, 2026, the price of a new Lifetime Plex Pass will increase to $749.99 USD*.
When Plex first started, we were movie and TV fans who wanted to make something great for people like us. We chose to offer a Lifetime subscription early on because we knew many of our customers would rather pay a higher one-time fee for software that they can depend on every day.
We've considered eliminating the Lifetime Plex Pass in the past, given that recurring subscriptions help us sustain long-term development, but we know it's still a valuable option for many in our community. So instead of retiring it, we're keeping it available at a price that reflects the real, ongoing value of the software we're committed to building and maintaining for years to come.
FULL ARTICLE HERE (https://markholtz.info/2xn)
I am so glad that I picked up a Lifetime Plex Pass in 2016 for $120. However, the part about "eliminating the Lifetime Plex Pass" is giving me pause. Maybe I'll try Jellyfin or Emby again....