Category: Usability
Categories: Commentary, Tutorial, Usability
2023
October
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Count Selected Lines in Kate
Despite many features, one that seems missing from KDE Kate . . .
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Keeping Virtual Machine Disks Small
The office desktop, also the house network file server, hosts . . .
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Sparse File Backups
Some backups were needed after deciding to retain Windows 10 . . .
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Wiping Windows
The journey continues with the house network Thinkpad T580. Slackware . . .
September
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KDE Taskbar Drag-and-Drop
A distracting KDE bug is clicking on a taskbar icon . . .
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KDE Configuration Files
The K Desktop Environment (KDE) long has been known for . . .
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A New Computer Monitor
For many years a 19 inch Acer X193w+ computer monitor . . .
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Managing Conky in KDE
Conky is a handy tool but configuring can be cantankerous. . . .
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KDE Activity Manager
Adjusting to the new T580 laptop continues. One oddball event . . .
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Nano Keybindings
Linux console text editors mostly remain obtuse for many users. . . .
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Tweaking the Thinkpad T580
Like all laptops, the newly acquired Thinkpad T580 came with . . .
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GRUB Screen Size in a Thinkpad T580
Not quite the curious incident of the dog in the . . .
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Slackware 15.0 in a Thinkpad T580
After toying with Windows 10 for some hours the time . . .
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The House Network
The house network is quite different from decades ago using . . .
August
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A New Laptop
The house network welcomed a new member, a Thinkpad T580 . . .
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The More Things Change
Browsing online computer discussions often finds questions about transferring large . . .
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Migration Reflections
Despite the original journey taking much time, the migration away . . .
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KDE Bookmarks
One of the helpful features of KDE is bookmarks. System . . .
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Wake-on-LAN with Windows
The office desktop is the house network file server . . .
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Logging When a Printer is Powered On
Some months after resolving a desire to log when computer . . .
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No Kernel Modules Found
In the house network the Lenovo T400 laptop has a . . .
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Monthly and Weekly Cron Jobs
In the house network monthly and weekly cron jobs are . . .
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Syntax Highlighting
Syntax highlighting is a useful tool and nowadays a common . . .
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DD-WRT Inconsistency
A normal morning of powering on the office computer equipment . . .
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KDE and TDE Window Rules
One of the long standing features of the original KDE, . . .
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Computer Rest Breaks
Having been a steady reader for decades means often forgetting . . .
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Obtaining RTC Information From a 486
Many people tinker with vintage computers with much the same . . .
July
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Laptop Battery Management
For some years the house Lenovo T400 laptop has gone . . .
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Cron Jobs on the First Saturday of the Month
Configuring cron jobs to run on the first day of . . .
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Nano Text Editor and $TERM
The nano text editor is installed in the house network . . .
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Dictionary Translations
The offline Goldendict dictionary has been a staple in the . . .
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Thirty Years of Slackware
Slackware often is tagged as the oldest surviving Linux distro. . . .
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Smoking Rope
Out of the blue one day the following error message . . .
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The at Scheduler
The at command is a helpful scheduling utility for one-time . . .
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Gracefully Closing Programs Redux
Chasing little paper cuts and quirks is ongoing since adopting . . .
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Lightning Calendar Data — 2
Exporting Lightning calendar data into TDE KAlarm turned out not . . .
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Lightning Calendar Data — 1
One of the long shot goals with migrating to KDE . . .
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Globally Installing LibreOffice Extensions
After having settled on the Oxygen icon theme in KDE . . .
June
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KDE Kate Find Tool
One frustrating feature of KDE Kate is the Find tool . . .
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KDE Kate Indentation
For the most part since adopting KDE 5 as the . . .
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Loss of KDE Panel
Several times since starting to daily use KDE 5 the . . .
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KDE Panel Icon Spacing
Despite overall satisfaction with KDE 5 there remain some paper . . .
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KDE Dolphin Keyboard Navigation
For the most part since adopting KDE 5 as the . . .
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KDE Notifications
One minor annoyance with KDE notifications is popups can be . . .
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KDE Countdown Timer
Since breaking away from GTK, one of the features of . . .
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KDE Kate Bracket Auto Completion
Kate is a decent advanced text editor but definitely is . . .
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KDE Konsole Color Popups
Recently while using Konsole an obtrusive and annoying black square . . .
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KDE Failed Keyboard Shortcut
KDE 5 has become the primary desktop environment in the . . .
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KDE VNC Termination
One tool used in the house network that was not . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 8
Migrating to a new desktop environment (DE) is complete. The . . .
May
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Warning: iconv failed to convert degree sign
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, a system . . .
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Conky CPU Frequency Display
Since updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, the Conky . . .
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BUG: unable to handle page fault for address
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, several times . . .
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High CPU Temperature
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, an oddball . . .
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Intel CPU Frequency Governors
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, an annoying . . .
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Bitten Again
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, indexes on . . .
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SSH and Embedded Devices Yet Again
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, attempting to . . .
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No Xauth Data
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, using SSH . . .
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QuiteRSS Quirk
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0 and when . . .
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Sendmail Log Spew
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0 and resolving . . .
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Samba and Vintage Computers
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, the vintage . . .
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Mouse Pointer Speed
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, the mouse . . .
April
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Strange HFS Behavior
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, the system . . .
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Core Utilities uname Quirk
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, several shell . . .
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Local Intranet Mail
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, despite several . . .
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Network Controller WoL Failure
After updating the office desktop to Slackware 15.0, the system . . .
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Slackware 15 — 10
Preparing to update computer systems is always a challenge. There . . .
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Desktop Lockdown
The projects to break away from GTK and update Slackware . . .
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LibreOffice Help
One of the modern trends is software developers presuming everybody . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 7
In the quest to fine tune KDE and TDE, trying . . .
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Editing System Files
The anti-root crusade is kind of silly. Having been around . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 6
Attempting to mix-and-match components of LXQt, KDE, and TDE has . . .
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Updating an Old Virtual Machine
Recently observed in the house network is the local Slackware . . .
March
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Strange Caja Behavior
In the house network the Caja file manager started launching . . .
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Icon theme not found
When launching GUI software from a terminal window there might . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 5
There is a pecking order, or perhaps mild madness, with . . .
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Falkon Web Browser
The Falkon web browser shows promise although development might be . . .
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Discoverability
A interface design element that often is embraced by developers . . .
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Disruptive Features
Personal pet peeves that impede usability are mouse wheel cycling, . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 4
As anticipated, evaluating desktop environment (DE) options to break away . . .
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KDE Plasma — 4
Testing KDE has been going well, but real-world reality checks . . .
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KDE Plasma — 3
Learning to configure the KDE panel initially was a tad . . .
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KDE Plasma — 2
The Dolphin file manager is above average but seems to . . .
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KDE Plasma — 1
For many years KDE has seen little action in the . . .
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LXQt
Exploring desktop environments (DE) continues with LXQt. Interestingly, LXQt, using . . .
February
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Trinity Desktop Environment — 2
Some Slackware Trinity Desktop Environment (TDE) build scripts are available . . .
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Trinity Desktop Environment — 1
Some time was spent reminiscing about KDE 3 and the . . .
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Absolute Linux
On the check list to break away from GTK is . . .
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Salix 15 — 2
After poking around the Core install there did not seem . . .
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Salix 15 — 1
GTK has become a proverbial thorn in the side. The . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 3
While breaking away from GTK includes the basic desktop environment, . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 2
Reasonable choices to break away from GTK seem limited to . . .
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Exploring Desktop Environments — 1
From the beginning more than 21 years ago of using . . .
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Little Things
Little things usually are what many people detest about updating . . .
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Xfce Desktop Background Color
A curious configuration quirk appeared in Xfce while testing Slackware . . .
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Slackware 15 — 9
Walking away from updating to Slackware 15.0 was a healthy . . .
January
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Frozen Desktops
Troubleshooting a frozen desktop is frustrating and requires much patience. . . .
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Monitoring CMOS Batteries
A depleted CMOS battery can be a tad irritating because . . .
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Cron Jobs On the Last Day of a Month
Some computer tasks needed to be performed on the first . . .
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Updating a Testing Partition Without Rebooting
Some of the computers in the house network have testing . . .
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Booting a 486 from a CD
Tinkering with the 486 in the vintage computer collection presents . . .
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Detecting the First Boot of the Year
With the arrival of a new calendar year an interesting . . .
2022
December
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LPT1 Pass-Through
Some time ago a parallel port flat bed scanner connected . . .
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Old CMOS Batteries
An odd observation surfaced while adventuring with vintage computers. The . . .
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Bandwidth Hogging
Popular copying and downloading commands such as wget and rsync . . .
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Slackware Minimal Install
Slackware is designed to be a Unix like operating system . . .
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A Handy SSH Feature
One method to limit SSH access is generating a key . . .
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VBoxManage Error
I ran into an obscure problem with VirtualBox. For weeks . . .
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Two-Factor Authentication
Recently I found myself forced to use two-factor authentication (2FA). . . .
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Broken rsync
I continue investigating rsync failures during certain backups. The reported . . .
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Long Arguments With rsnapshot
Since the unexplained loss of disk space I have been . . .
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Accessing VirtualBox Disks Redux
After resolving the retbleed boot message in VirtualBox virtual machines . . .
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SSH and Embedded Devices Redux
While tinkering with Slackware 15.0, I discovered I could not . . .
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Spectre Warnings
A while ago on the office desktop running Slackware 14.2, . . .
November
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Monitoring Disk Usage
Hard disk capacities these days are large compared to the . . .
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Sylpheed Keybindings
Despite quirks I continue using Sylpheed as a second GUI . . .
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Building a File Server
A common question found in online computer forums is how . . .
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Starlink Redux
Living in a rural area has advantages, but internet access . . .
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Interviewing Subject Matter Experts
A common ritual for tech writers is interviewing other people . . .
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Long Term Support
The development of free/libre software moves at a relentless, some . . .
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Some Simple Usability Experiments
Enthusiasts often tout that the Linux Desktop is ready for . . .
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SSH With Embedded Devices
With normal Linux systems using $HOME/.ssh/config eliminates the need for . . .
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LibreOffice Launch Speed
I am like many people and do not use all . . .
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First Computer Program
My memory is fuzzy but I think my first meaningful . . .
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No Router Redux
One item left incomplete after manually restoring the router was . . .
October
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Logging When a Computer is Powered On
I want to know when each computer in the house . . .
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Ping by Name — Unknown Host
Some time after manually restoring the local router, I realized . . .
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Scanning a Network
Sometimes I want to know what systems are online. A . . .
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Googer Teller
I ran across an interesting little tool that emits an . . .
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Dramatic Wireless Improvement
For some years I have monitored and logged connection speeds . . .
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Useful IT Documentation
The goal of any documentation is to help people. “Good” . . .
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The shuf Command
The shuf command is a nice little utility. The command . . .
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Time Zones
I never much appreciated the complexities of dealing with time . . .
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SSH and Embedded Devices
For the past several years several options in SSH have . . .
September
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No Router
My not-favorite firmware befuddled me once again . . .
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GRUB and LILO
The two common boot loaders for Linux systems are GRUB . . .
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lddlibc4 command not found
The ldd command is useful for checking broken links to . . .
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Updating Multiple Systems
In a previous role as Linux Admin for a mom-and-pop . . .
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New Network Switch
For many years in the house network I have used . . .
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Opportunity Knocking
I have been looking for a nice standalone GUI reminder . . .
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Give Linux a Try
I ran across an online article where the author encouraged . . .
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Machine ID
In one of my virtual machines (VMs) I was frustrated . . .
August
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Failed to Send Host Log Message
Some time ago I was annoyed with a Linux boot . . .
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My Short List for Avoiding Windows
I had a Windows 7 system that I updated to . . .
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Running Windows in Linux
A common question from people who dual boot Linux and . . .
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Living with Laptops
I much prefer desktop systems over laptops . . .
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Technical Editing
While the two titles often are the same role in . . .
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Copying and Moving Files
I tend to avoid using desktop file managers for bulk . . .
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Linux is not Windows
Attracting attention months ago was an effort from two people . . .
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The Linux Desktop Experience
After using computers for more than 40 years, using Linux . . .
July
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Slackware 15 — 8
Through the years I notice that updating each new Slackware . . .
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Slackware 15 — 7
I continue to test updating to Slackware 15.0 . . .
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Slackware 15 — 6
I continue to test updating to Slackware 15.0 . . .
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Slackware 15 — 5
On the office computer the ethtool command does not display . . .
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Slackware 15 — 4
One of the irregularities while testing 15.0 were error messages . . .
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Slackware 15 — 3
I have not been restless or eager about updating my . . .
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Slackware 15 — 2
For me the next step with updating Slackware is compiling . . .
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Slackware 15 — 1
Slackware 15.0 was released February 2, 2022 22:22 UTC — more . . .
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Newer is Not Always Better
One of the never-ending challenges of computer software are regressions. . . .
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Measure Twice Cut Once
Sometimes the root cause of a problem is easily found — . . .
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MP-BIOS Bug 8254
After having configured a system hard disk for the not-well-admired . . .
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No POST No Display No Boot
I thought I would tinker more after configuring one of . . .
June
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Repurposing a Cranky Computer
One of the bumps encountered while traveling memory lane was . . .
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Vintage Computers — 17
Maintaining vintage computers might seem like a waste of time, . . .
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Vintage Computers — 16
While not related to the previous DOS escapades, I continued . . .
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Vintage Computers — 15
After configuring the 486 system I created a dd image . . .
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Vintage Computers — 14
After renovating the 486 computer I received an interesting dialog . . .
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Vintage Computers — 13
During my initial steps of traveling memory lane I pondered . . .
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Vintage Computers — 12
Although the special floppy disk drive cable remained inside the . . .
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Vintage Computers — 11
One reason I began this vintage computer journey was to . . .
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Vintage Computers — 10
With the K6-III+ system in the office, I wanted to . . .
May
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Vintage Computers — 9
This enchanting vintage computer journey began with wanting to image . . .
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Vintage Computers — 8
Some years go on the 486 system the CMOS battery . . .
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Vintage Computers — 7
Using the vboxmanage command I converted the new virtual disk . . .
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Vintage Computers — 6
I chose a different tactic to brush away the cobwebs . . .
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Vintage Computers — 5
I have a tendency to tinker with multiple projects. In . . .
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Vintage Computers — 4
The next computer was a throwaway. The system had an . . .
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Vintage Computers — 3
In late 1997 the next office system was an ASUS . . .
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Vintage Computers — 2
My first personal computer was a Commodore 64 in 1982. . . .
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Vintage Computers — 1
About 15 years ago I archived my collection of floppy . . .
2021
November
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Reliable Software
A sobering commentary, but nothing new to anybody who has . . .
October
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Web Browser Auto Suggest
The Mozilla folks again acted questionably with a new Firefox . . .
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Do Not Use a VPN
Recently some online writers have been sharing that using a . . .
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End of an Era
The recent release of Geany 1.38 ends support for GTK . . .
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Converting a Physical Disk to Virtual
Virtual machine (VM) technology is one of the great features . . .
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Helping Free Software Projects
Often I read forum posts from liberated new users asking . . .
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Windows 11 and Linux
Apparently the hardware requirements for Windows 11 will require some, . . .
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Personal Migration
Once upon a time I used only Windows . . .
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The Sad Demise of Hewlett-Packard Printers
About 20 years ago a nice Hewlett-Packard (HP) LaserJet 4200 . . .
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Web Browser Privacy Leaking
Online authors like to discuss how web browsers leak private . . .
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Linux vs. Other Operating Systems
There are many online articles touting how Linux is better . . .
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Pipes
I long have enjoyed the flexibility of Linux shell scripting. . . .
September
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Predictable Network Interface Naming
While the so-called Predictable Network Interface Naming specification helps certain . . .
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Atheros alx Driver
Some years I ago I purchased a ASRock N68C-GS4 FX . . .
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Increasing Partition Space
The default configuration for Linux ext file systems is to . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — Lessons Learned
There are some lessons learned after testing disaster recovery scenarios . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 10
Usually computer disaster recovery plans presume available backups in one . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 9
Disaster recovery testing continues with rebuilding both office desktop hard . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 8
Disaster recovery testing continues with rebuilding both office desktop hard . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 7
The next step with testing disaster recovery plans is rebuilding . . .
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A Distro for the Tech Illiterate
After 40 years of using computers, more than 20 years . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 6
Continuing my disaster recovery testing, next was replacing a failed . . .
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A Handy NFS Export Trick
While exploring ways to prevent certain network systems from accessing . . .
August
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Email Overload
Many people claim to suffer anxiety and stress from something . . .
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Computing 2001 Style
I enjoy reading articles and blogs about using older computer . . .
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Scratching Itches
I subscribe to a sufficient number of RSS feeds to . . .
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Complex File Systems
In the home network the only file systems used are . . .
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Complex Software
For a long while I have noticed many skilled computer . . .
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The Pain of Updating Windows
Although not being used in any productive manner, I decided . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 5
The living room media player was next in the ongoing . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 4
Another oddball disaster struck. I am not a big believer . . .
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Reducing Computer Fatigue
Many people experience eye strain when using computers. I encountered . . .
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CentOS and Apt-Cacher-NG
Somebody asked about an equivalent apt-cacher-ng software package for CentOS. . . .
July
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Configuring Clementine with LIRC
Amarok 1.4 from the KDE 3 days was installed in . . .
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New Media Player Remote Control
Remote controls are wonderful devices. Not great for a person’s . . .
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ICMP Rate Limiting
I was using the traceroute command while testing a VPN . . .
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LibreOffice Writer Compatibility with MS-Word
LibreOffice has a mixed compatibility reputation with MS Office files. . . .
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Extracting Attachments Without Launching Thunderbird
One of the precautions I have taken to avoid a . . .
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DD-WRT Bites Me Again
Embedded devices often suck. No, really. They are challenging to . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 3
Reviewing and rehearsing disaster recovery plans is prudent and helpful. . . .
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Avoiding Ransomware
Ransomware is more or less out of control. There are . . .
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Exporting Lightning Calendar Data
In my effort to find a stand-alone desktop calendar, I . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 2
Continuing my disaster recovery testing, I had one of those . . .
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Disaster Recovery Testing — 1
Generally, unlike proprietary operating systems, moving hard disks from one . . .
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Desktop Calendar
The Thunderbird Lightning calendar works well enough for me. There . . .
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Speed Tests Redux
I was content with my new method of monitoring internet . . .
June
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Detecting NFS Clients Redux
I never have been fully satisfied with detecting connected NFS . . .
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Windows 10 P2V
There is a single Windows 10 system in the house. . . .
-
Copying Console Text to the Clipboard
I created a new computer work flow associated with a . . .
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Inode Extent Could Be Narrower
One day I was greeted with a cryptic message when . . .
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More Annoying Sylpheed Quirks
I am still using Sylpheed as a second GUI mail . . .
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Annoying Sylpheed Quirk
After only a few days I grew frustrated with a . . .
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Checking Local Spool Mail
One of the precautions I have taken with learning to . . .
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Tech Writing and Hemingway
Often I have thought that technical writers should read Hemingway . . .
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Speed Tests
I long have monitored my ISP connection. Generally the connection . . .
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Thunderbird and Movemail
According to the Thunderbird 87 change log, Movemail support was . . .
May
-
Copying a Directory Tree
I wanted to duplicate a directory tree without copying files. . . .
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Updating Slackware — 6
I found more issues while testing the upcoming Slackware 15 . . .
-
Accessing VirtualBox Disks
I was looking to directly access VirtualBox vdi virtual disks . . .
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VirtualBox Snapshots With Raw Disk Access
Several times I have used VirtualBox raw disk access. Raw . . .
-
Gracefully Closing Programs
In my ongoing efforts with learning to use a VPN . . .
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Updating Slackware — 5
I found more issues while testing the upcoming Slackware 15 . . .
-
ISP Snooping — 4
I am looking at ways to avoid ISP snooping . . .
-
Updating Slackware — 4
I found several issues after creating support scripts to help . . .
-
ISP Snooping — 3
I am looking at ways to avoid ISP snooping . . .
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Renaming Files With Underscores
Through the past 20 years I have written hundreds of . . .
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Updating Slackware — 3
Resolving a problem is a challenge when something “just works” . . .
April
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ISP Snooping — 2
I am looking into ways to avoid ISP snooping. For . . .
-
Updating Slackware — 2
My first attempt at updating Slackware 14.2 to the upcoming . . .
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ISP Snooping — 1
I have been reading about the ways ISPs can invade . . .
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Forced Updates
I read that the Linux Mint developers were concerned about . . .
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Updating Slackware — 1
I really dislike updating operating systems. My dislike goes back . . .
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The Madness of Updating Computers
Computers are complex machines. Really complex. So complex that many . . .
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Loss of Console Soft Scrollback
Once in a while I feel as though free/libre software . . .
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Protecting Email Addresses
Many people pay little attention to their email addresses. Many . . .
January
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Not Broke Don’t Fix
I am not fond of rapid release development . . .
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Technical Writing and Return on Investment
Generally the investment in technical writing is driven by a . . .
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Unable to Run inxi in Debian
I have a “system info” script that gathers information and . . .
-
Laptop Wireless Always Hard Blocked
At work we have a Panasonic Toughbook CF-52F laptop. Previously . . .
2020
December
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Plain Text Email
Humans tend to tolerate many forms of inconvenience. To paraphrase . . .
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A New Workstation
At work I convinced the owner to roll out Linux . . .
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NFS4 Remote Path Warning
At work we replaced one office workstation. The new motherboard . . .
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Replacing a Flat Tire
The challenges of technical writing often are overlooked or discounted. . . .
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Automating Computer Tasks
Computers are great at automating tasks. One attraction for me . . .
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Supporting Multiple Distros in Scripts
At home I am a Slackware user. At work I . . .
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Display Managers
Generally, display/login managers are used when booting into a graphical . . .
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Automounting Removable Devices
Often on many Linux distros removable devices, primarily USB flash . . .
November
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sshpass
Once upon a time I was hired to help change . . .
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Creating Bootable USB Sticks
Creating a bootable USB flash drive from an ISO image . . .
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Backups
I've been backing up my personal computer systems for 30 . . .
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Acronyms
One of the cardinal rules of writing is explaining acronyms. . . .
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Restoring a Debian System
For many years on all Linux systems I use I . . .
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Dual Booting
Many people want to dual boot Linux and Windows. Dual . . .
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Writing Procedures
I spent most of my tech writing days writing maintenance . . .
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Migrating from Windows
A common topic in Linux forums is migrating from Windows. . . .
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Writing Tools
I consider myself a decent speller but I am human. . . .
-
Different Firefox Address Bar Behavior
Since updating to Firefox 78 ESR at work, I have . . .
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Updating Thunderbird
At work I support both Firefox and Thunderbird . . .
October
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Odd MATE Menu Bug
The bug seems to only happen with the MATE 1.20 . . .
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Cron Job Shell Scripts Failing
A common request in Linux forums is shell scripts working . . .
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The Year of the Linux Desktop
An interesting opinion why Linux fails on the desktop . . .
-
Useless Error Messages
The web is filled with examples of useless computer error . . .
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Updating Windows 7 to Windows 10
At work, in our migration efforts we decided we would . . .
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Modern Day Tech Writing
I enjoy working as a Linux admin, but I yearn . . .
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How I Use Linux Three Years Later
I few years ago I shared how I use Linux . . .
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Exit Ubuntu Enter Debian
A few years ago I was hired as a Linux . . .
-
Updating Firefox ESR — 2
In certain ways updating software has become a mess. For . . .
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User Experience
I notice many job postings for user experience (UX) developers. . . .
September
-
Updating Firefox ESR — 1
Some months ago, starting with Firefox 67, the Firefox design . . .
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Distros Come and Go
An online conversation had me pause to reflect on my . . .
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Helping Others Online
Computer savvy people long have had a history of being . . .
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The Internet is Designed Wrong
Way back around 1990 when I had a CompuServe account . . .
-
Letting Problems Fester
Resolving problems is satisfying. Until resolved the problem can be . . .
-
Dueling Banjos
I notice many people asking questions about the dual purpose . . .
-
Technical Writing Tool Chains
I enjoy working as a Linux admin. Yet part of . . .
-
For a Better Experience Please Use Chrome
At work I was asked to install a proprietary software. . . .
August
-
Removing Firefox Built-In Add-ons
Some months ago I decided to use a sledge hammer . . .
-
Keeping Systems Updated and Synchronized
These days many people manage multiple computers. A common desire . . .
-
Odd Suspend to RAM Behavior
At home on my laptop I seldom need or want . . .
-
Snaps and Flatpaks
There are some interesting discussions online about snaps and flatpaks . . .
-
GitLab
I am not a professional software developer. I have no . . .
-
Computers Do Not Always Do As Expected
At work I needed to send an email to all . . .
-
Fixing Firefox Search Engines
My recent adventure with the duckduckgo search engine stirred some . . .
-
DuckDuckGo Changes
I entered a search query into the Firefox search box. . . .
-
Startpage.com Going Downhill
I suspected this would happen . . .
-
Security Exploits and Click-Bait Headlines
Computer security receives decent attention these days. Potential exploits are . . .
July
-
GRUB Security Exploit
A GRUB boot loader security flaw was announced around the . . .
-
A Monkey Off the Back
We have six single node Proxmox hosts at work. For . . .
-
Writing Notes to Self
Often I run across online articles about so-called “note-taking” apps. . . .
-
Resolving Problems
A fascinating response to a simple question. The answers can . . .
-
Terminating a Frozen SSH Session
One of my observations about computer software is no matter . . .
-
The Unhelpfulness of NetworkManager
At work the techs told me their new ASIX based . . .
-
Simple Graph Paper
Recently I wanted to draw on a grid — using a . . .
-
The Holy Grail of Technical Writing
The concept of single sourcing documentation long has been the . . .
-
Unclean Unmounts
The home office computer is a pseudo server as well . . .
-
A Keystone Kops Day
Some days ago a song line made popular in 1961 . . .
June
-
Just Reboot Now Dammit
Every person has vices and eccentricities . . .
-
isolinux.bin Missing or Corrupt
At work we have one old Dell 2950. I wanted . . .
-
Recovering From GRUB Failures
Sometimes life belches and GRUB fails to function. Here are . . .
-
Converting MBR to GPT
Converting a DOS (MBR) partition layout to GPT without losing . . .
-
Odd VirtualBox Audio Bug
For a long time on my Slackware 14.2 host host . . .
-
Moving a LUKS Partition
I had three operating systems installed on my laptop. I . . .
-
Phoning Home
I began testing a security auditing package . . .
-
Auto Suspend
Linux systems are designed to auto suspend USB devices . . .
-
Fine Tuning File Searches
A common helpful tool when searching for files on Linux . . .
-
Memory Muscle
At work I migrated workstations and laptops from Ubuntu MATE . . .
-
Tech Writing Collaboration
Often people are asked to collaborate in technical writing projects. . . .
May
-
Templates and Style Tags
The cornerstones of tech writing include templates and style tags . . .
-
Dualing Notification Daemons
I ran into another Xfce and MATE clash . . .
-
Loss of RTC Device Node
At work we have two workstations with aging motherboards. With . . .
-
Style Guides
One of the cornerstones of tech writing is a style . . .
-
Shrinking Windows Partitions
Many people want to install a Linux distro without wiping . . .
-
Copying Files to USB Flash Drives
Many people complain about corrupt files on USB flash drives . . .
-
Writing a Document
A common technical writing question is how to interview subject . . .
-
Xfce4 Power Manager Redux
At work I ran into a quirk that I am . . .
-
Writing Style
Common themes in online Technical Writing discussions include organization and . . .
-
Successful Migration
At work I migrated workstations and laptops from Ubuntu MATE . . .
-
Creating PDFs
Not creating PDFs directly from digital source documents seems to . . .
April
-
Installing Linux on Bleeding Edge Computers
A common question I find in online forums is how . . .
-
Installing Linux on Old Computers
A common question I find in online forums is how . . .
-
Writing That Just Works
Early in my tech writing career I learned a valuable . . .
-
Meld
A disruptive usability pain is when developers change an application’s . . .
-
Debian and su
At work our migration from Ubuntu to Debian is progressing . . .
-
Launching Scripts in a Terminal Window
At work our migration from Ubuntu to Debian is progressing . . .
-
Harmless
One of the more frustrating human replies to receive when . . .
-
Do Not Write Documentation in Markdown
Seems the web has a few “Don’t write documentation in . . .
-
Xfce4 Power Manager
Configuring the Xfce power manager is a tad quirky . . .
-
Debian and Mail
I doubt I will ever acclimate to the way Linux . . .
-
Unable to Partition a Disk
I have two removable drive bays in my office computer. . . .
-
The RAFT System
A common question in forums and a common topic in . . .
March
-
Feedbro
I read some positive reviews of the Feedbro extension for . . .
-
Writing for Hire
I monitor outlets for technical writing opportunities. I am dismayed . . .
-
LibreOffice Slow to Launch
For some months I have been plagued with LibreOffice launching . . .
-
Copying Password Hashes
At work we don’t have central authentication. Unlikely that will . . .
-
Dconf Madness
I needed to compare dconf settings. There are oodles of . . .
-
VirtualBox Raw Disk Management
Recently I bit myself. Not seriously . . .
-
Hardware Clock Sync Failure
A normal day. I booted the office computer. The computer . . .
-
Debian 10 and LibreOffice
The stock Debian 10 includes LibreOffice 6.1.5. A newer version . . .
-
Debian 10 and WINE
The stock Debian 10 includes WINE 4.0. The newer 5.0 . . .
-
Debian 10 and VirtualBox
While progressing at work toward the eventual replacement of Ubuntu . . .
-
Ubuntu and VirtualBox
At work I am testing Debian 10. The goal is . . .
-
IndexedDB
At work a fellow employee discovered access to GMail failed . . .
-
Odd Date Comparison Error
At work I wrote a shell script to sync certain . . .
-
Computers and Complexity
Computers are complex tools. Sometimes too complex . . .
February
-
A Proofreading Checklist
Today most writing is created using a computer. Even text . . .
-
NVidia Strikes Again
At work I have been progressing nicely with converting the . . .
-
Imaging Failure
In my quest to migrate work systems from Ubuntu to . . .
-
Right-Click
Despite being common, the phrase “right-click” is inaccurate. The phrase . . .
-
Debian Ideology and Installations
Among free/libre software users, Debian users are known as advocates . . .
-
Debian Printer Access
At work I began testing office printers in Debian 10. . . .
-
Ubuntu Printing
At work we no longer could print to the office . . .
-
The Insanity of Windows 10
While helping technicians at work with updating Windows 7 to . . .
-
Windows 10 ISO Images Redux
At work, after Windows 7 reached end-of-life (EOL) in January, . . .
January
-
Switching From Windows 7 to Linux
Similar to people seeking an easy distro for beginners, I . . .
-
Consistent Menus
One trait is common in many human endeavors, especially software . . .
-
Beginner Distro
A common question in many online forums is seeking an . . .
-
Xfce Menus
A common recommendation is not to run X as root. . . .
-
Downloading Windows 10 ISO Images
Occasionally at work I provide some nominal Windows support. I . . .
-
XFS Filesystem has duplicate UUID
Part of my backup strategy includes cloned disks. The idea . . .
-
Gobbledygook
I maintain a virtual machine (VM) of Slackware Current. I . . .
-
Default Vim in Debian
When testing Debian with a live ISO, I noticed vim . . .
-
Life Without Internet
The house Internet connection is provided by a Fixed Wireless . . .
2019
December
-
Some Technical Writing Tips
Technical writing has a certain mystique, which is unfortunate. Technical . . .
-
Debian and Wireless
In my recent quest to migrate from Ubuntu to Debian, . . .
-
The Shortest Day of the Year
Today is December 21. Often in the northern hemisphere the . . .
-
Writing for Users
Writing is about communicating ideas. Language provides a variety of . . .
-
Ubuntu Sneaking in Snaps
I'm testing Debian as I prepare to migrate work systems . . .
-
My Start in Tech Writing
My first exposure to technical writing was writing job aids . . .
-
VirtualBox Quirk
I wanted to update VirtualBox from 5.2.28 to 5.2.34 . . .
November
-
Debian 10 Boot Errors
While testing Debian 10 in VirtualBox I saw the following . . .
-
Debian 10 Boot Spew
I have been testing Debian 10 as a replacement for . . .
-
LibreOffice Nag Notices
Occasionally when using LibreOffice I see a blue banner: . . .
-
Corrupted Disk Redux
This past summer I experienced a corrupted disk in my . . .
-
Ubuntu and Firefox ESR Snap
To avoid admin overhead at work I remove all packages . . .
-
Proxmox Nag Notices
At work we use Proxmox. Decent software. Recently I began . . .
-
Ubuntu and Firefox ESR
At work we use Firefox ESR. That is a sane . . .
October
-
Disabling IPV6
For no significant reason I decided to disable ipv6 on . . .
-
Thunderbird Profiles Redux
I am fortunate that much of my job is performed . . .
-
A Productive Linux Desktop
I was browsing some of my writing and computer notes. . . .
-
Thunderbird Profiles
To support my recent effort to reclaim me time, I . . .
-
Sneaker Net
A co-worker asked me how to send an email in . . .
-
Java Plugin
At work I discovered that one of our network connected . . .
-
Carriage Returns
I ran into a puzzling and then infuriating problem . . .
September
-
Disabling Thunderbird Email Accounts
Ever try to temporarily disable a Thunderbird email account? . . .
-
Desktop Freezing
For the past couple of months my office desktop occasionally . . .
-
Desktop Defaults
For many years I have watched other people use computers. . . .
-
Xfce Terminal Cure
I might have resolved two irritants with xfce4-terminal. I updated . . .
-
Xfce Paper Cuts
My switch to Xfce has “some pebbles in the shoes.” . . .
-
Mikrotik Scripting
At work we use several dozen Mikrotik routers. I am . . .
August
-
Using Xfce Again
Lately my Slackware 14.2 64-bit MATE desktop has been freezing. . . .
-
Remote Access
Since configuring remote SSH and OpenVPN on my router, I . . .
-
Firefox Crashing
I launched Firefox. I opened a bookmark to a regularly . . .
July
-
Corrupted Disk
Powering on a computer only to be greeted with a . . .
-
ifup — interface not configured
I was tinkering with Proxmox with an eventual goal of . . .
-
A New Tracfrone
I don’t want a monthly phone plan. Pay-as-I-go makes more . . .
-
SSHFS and Cron
I wanted to run some new scripts in some cron . . .
-
Nightly Shutdowns
To conserve electricity at home, all workstations and laptops are . . .
-
LUKS Encryption
Recently I poked around trying to learn how to keep . . .
-
Boot Failure and _netdev
Recently at work a backup server decided to reboot itself . . .
June
-
Surveillance Capitalism
Recently board members of a regional school used a large . . .
-
Word Processors and Complex Documents
I read the following online: . . .
-
The Tragedy of Ubuntu
I am no noob to Linux based systems. I have . . .
-
Unable to Reboot or Shutdown
Early in our migration I configured a way to avoid . . .
-
VirtualBox Extension Pack License Redux
At work I use the Oracle repository for VirtualBox. With . . .
-
Bleeding Edge
One of the frustrating and irritating aspects of free/libre software . . .
-
VirtualBox Extension Pack License
Unlike the bulk of the Oracle VirtualBox code, the Oracle . . .
-
Updating Ubuntu MATE 16.04 to 18.04
Our migration from Windows to Ubuntu MATE crashed hard . . .
-
Booting to Console
For some years I have noticed on Ubuntu systems, when . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 21
At work we started migrating laptops from Windows 7 to . . .
May
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 20
One of our workstations in our migration continues to be . . .
-
Par For the Course
One day I am using Firefox ESR 60.6. Double-clicking on . . .
-
Remote Access Fun
I had some fun the other day . . .
-
WordPress 5.2, PHP, and CentOS 7
At work I have to support a WordPress (WP) site. . . .
-
CentOS 8
Recently Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8 was released. The . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 19
At work one of our workstations was not migrated from . . .
-
Firefox Add-on Certificate Expiration
The recent Mozilla hiccup with an expired add-on signing certificate . . .
April
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 18
At work I have been migrating Windows 7 systems to . . .
-
More Software Breakage
At work the Ubuntu 4.4.0-143 kernel update started an avalanche . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 17
I work at a small mom-and-pop business. We make do . . .
-
Presumed LAN Design
Recently at work I had a use case to install . . .
-
Computer Not Powering Down
For a long time I have been unable to power . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 16
At work I have been migrating laptops and workstation to . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 15
Part of our migration effort includes a disk imaging process . . .
-
Software Updates and Breakage
Recently in Ubuntu MATE 16.04 there was a kernel update . . .
March
-
Musings About RAID
I have been reading about RAID. I am no expert . . .
-
Dual Network Cards
In our migration at work we ran into an interesting . . .
February
-
WINE 4.0
WINE 4.0 was released. At work we are using WINE . . .
-
Updating Vendor Firmware
At work in our migration efforts we have successfully migrated . . .
January
-
Running a Script in a MATE Launcher
At work in our migration efforts I wanted to add . . .
-
Replacing Windows Network Scripts
At work in our migration efforts we still had two . . .
-
Network Manager Strikes Again
At work NetworkManager (NM) has been a pebble in our . . .
-
MATE Loses Color Background Support
I do not use Slackware Current as a daily driver. . . .
-
cal Command Formatting
For years I have used a paper calendar in the . . .
2018
December
-
Obnoxious Web Sites
Why do web developers and bloggers design web sites on . . .
-
The Usual Suspect — II
CentOS 7.6 is a buggy release . . .
-
The Usual Suspect — I
About a month after the most recent Red Hat point . . .
-
Lessons Learned
I strive towards not using the common terms of success . . .
-
Commodity Thinking
I helped a person with a new Acer computer. The . . .
November
-
Copying Windows 10 User Profiles
While helping a person with a new Windows 10 Home . . .
-
Software As A Service
I helped a person with a new computer that came . . .
-
Detecting NFS Clients
For many years I have used a “safe-shutdown” script. One . . .
-
Thunderbird and Lightning — 2
The Thunderbird Lightning add-on has been in development for many . . .
-
Thunderbird and Lightning — 1
After my escapades with Thunderbird 60.x and ReminderFox, I decided . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 14
In our migration efforts we do not plan to migrate . . .
-
Thunderbird and ReminderFox
On my Slackware office system I decided to update Thunderbird . . .
-
Multi-User System Challenges
I work at a very small business with less than . . .
-
Firefox ESR
In our our migration effort we decided to use Firefox . . .
-
WINE File Duplication
In our our migration effort we are using WINE. Currently . . .
October
-
CentOS 6 and fastboot
At work we have a lone CentOS 6 container running . . .
-
LightDM and Expired Passwords
Part of our migration effort includes a disk imaging process. . . .
-
Low Video Resolution
I converted my ASRock N68C-GS4 FX system into a testing . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 13
NetworkManager saves all connections, which includes saving all pre-shared keys. . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 12
One aspect of our migration that caused some frowns is . . .
September
-
Wonderful Firefox Addons
I hate the current fad of using overlays . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 11
After abandoning NFS and moving to CIFS, I decided to . . .
-
Finding Online Help
I have been using RSS to follow a few Reddit . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 10
On our laptops we have no need for user mails. . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 9
NetworkManager (NM) and NFS reared their ugly head to create . . .
August
-
Installing DokuWiki in CentOS 7
Once again CentOS bit me . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 8
Another challenge encountered in our migration at work is the . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 7
One of the challenges encountered in our migration at work . . .
-
Package Dependencies
I ran into two moments where I stared like the . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 6
Two days after placing our first two Linux laptops into . . .
-
GUI File Manager Drag-and-Drop
To my knowledge there is no way to enable a . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 5
Within the first day of placing our first two Linux . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 4
The second laptop to convert in our migration effort was . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 3
The first laptop to convert in our migration effort was . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 2
I dislike default configurations on any operating system and desktop . . .
July
-
V2P and Encryption — 2
I was uncomfortable with my recent virtual-to-physical (V2P) effort. The . . .
-
V2P and Encryption — 1
Although an improvement, I remained unsatisfied after creating a 32-bit . . .
-
Simple PuTTY Usability Tweaks
From the respective web page, visitors learn that PuTTY “is . . .
-
Migrating a Business to Linux — 1
At work we have three Windows 7 systems in the . . .
-
CentOS and VirtualBox
Recently I updated my sole CentOS 7 virtual machine (VM), . . .
-
NetworkManager Security
At work we have a use case of using laptops . . .
May
-
Sluggish Laptop
For a while I have noticed a sluggishness with my . . .
-
LibreOffice Draw Observations
I continue learning LibreOffice Draw. I am not an artist . . .
-
Creating LibreOffice Draw Gallery Themes
As I continue my journey with creating network diagrams, I . . .
-
Network Diagrams Redux
I want to draw some network diagrams. I have been . . .
-
LibreOffice Draw Glue Points
I want to draw some network diagrams. I have been . . .
-
LibreOffice Draw Spastic Toolbars
I want to draw some network diagrams. I have been . . .
April
-
RKHunter Hidden Ports
At work I received some rkhunter emails from a server: . . .
-
Windows Shortcuts
An upcoming project at work is replacing a commercial off-the-shelf . . .
-
Dokuwiki
I manage the knowledge base wiki software at work. I . . .
-
RouterOS and Proxmox
After configuring a RouterOS virtual machine (VM) in VirtualBox, I . . .
-
VirtualBox NAT Network
I wanted to tinker with Mikrotik RouterOS. One reason is . . .
-
NFS Stale File Handles
We replaced a backup server at work because of hardware . . .
March
-
Windows 10 Fall Creators Edition Redux
After inhaling deep through clenched teeth, I decided to try . . .
-
About LibreOffice
I noticed something pleasant after updating LibreOffice to version 6.0.2 . . .
-
Interesting Usage Observations
Two months have elapsed since retiring the dedicated server and . . .
-
Firefox 57 — 4
I am continuing my efforts to customize the newer Firefox . . .
-
Firefox 57 — 3
I am using Firefox 52 ESR. Continuing my adventure with . . .
-
Firefox and the Illusion of Privacy
Some nominal observations about the Mozilla folks claiming to be . . .
-
A Newbie Installing VirtualBox
Ubuntu 16.04 with the Unity desktop is installed on a . . .
-
Working Around RTC Limitations
To conserve energy at work I configured three non essential . . .
February
-
Firefox 57 — 2
I have not yet updated to the Quantum series of . . .
-
Replacing ReminderFox
I am using Firefox 52 ESR. I have been using . . .
-
Replacing NewsFox
I am using Firefox 52 ESR. I have been using . . .
-
Updated Kernel Kills Suspend
Slackware 14.2 received a 4.4.115 kernel update related to the . . .
-
Updated Kernel Kills Ethernet Detection
Slackware 14.2 received a 4.4.111 kernel update related to the . . .
-
NoSquint Plus Replacement
I think the NoSquint Plus saga has ended. I had . . .
-
usb 1-11: can’t set config error -32
Since buying the new office motherboard I have been plagued . . .
-
Broken Xine
I haven’t used xine in a couple of years. At . . .
-
Distros That Just Work
I sigh every time I read a Distros That Just . . .
-
Linux on a 486
Some folks had some fun getting Linux running on a . . .
January
-
Odd Fonts in Ubuntu 16.04.3 32-bit
I installed Ubuntu 16.04.3 32-bit in a VirtualBox virtual machine . . .
-
Configuring an OpenVPN Server in DD-WRT — 3
I was contacted about my previous attempts to configure OpenVPN . . .
-
A Strange VirtualBox Quirk
A strange VirtualBox quirk appeared on the new new office . . .
-
Retiring the Server
I resolved my server crash issue, but not in a . . .
-
Log Spew From sysctl
Recently at work I browsed some servers logs. In the . . .
-
GRUB Disappears With Above 4G Decoding
I was fiddling with the first steps of PCI pass-through . . .
-
vboxpci: IOMMU not found (not registered)
As a passing curiosity with the new office desktop motherboard, . . .
-
Digging Deeper With Server Issues
I was still experiencing problems with my server. I had . . .
-
Not The Year of the Linux Desktop
An interesting article appeared online about why The Year of . . .
-
Firefox Blocking Tracking Scripts
The Firefox developers seem rather proud of the fact that . . .
2017
December
-
DD-WRT Broken Again
After resolving my bricked Asus RT-AC66U router, I wanted to . . .
-
How to Waste the Day (Again)
The DD-WRT developers did me in again while updating the . . .
-
CentOS and Disk Partitioning
I still wanted to build a CentOS test system. At . . .
-
One Chance to Make a First Impression
I am not an avid user of desktop icons. I . . .
-
Firefox 57 — 1
I have been using Firefox since the Netscape 2.x/3.x/4.x days, . . .
-
Windows 10 Fall Creators Edition
Some time ago my Windows 10 system tried updating to . . .
-
Server Crash
Lately my server crashed a few times. The first few . . .
-
Intel CPU Management Engine
With all the noise about the Intel CPU Management Engine . . .
-
Booting From USB
Continuing my desire to create a CentOS test system, I . . .
-
Munich and Windows
I am not surprised the folks in Munich are returning . . .
-
Installing a Linux Based System For Others
A common question I see in discussion forums is people . . .
November
-
Wonky Internet Connection
My Internet connection went wonky . . .
-
Keeping Older Hardware Useful
Once upon a time there was a popular mantra that . . .
-
NetworkManager
A few weeks ago the NetworkManager package was updated in . . .
-
wget Logging
Years ago I wrote a shell script to monitor unexpected . . .
-
Windows Estimations
Among long-standing computer users, the Windows copy dialog joke is . . .
-
Exit CentOS Enter Ubuntu
Of late I have been frustrated by annoying CentOS issues . . .
-
Single Quotation Marks with Linux Systems
Ever notice that opening single quotation marks in Linux man . . .
-
cannot connect to brltty
There are many online discussions about the following stderr message . . .
-
Windows 10 is a Bloatware Nightmare
Updating Windows 10 really is a nightmare. A way to . . .
-
Windows 10 is an Updating Nightmare
I booted the Windows 10 POS. There was a cumulative . . .
-
Windows 10 is a Network Hog
To date I have done little more than updating, but . . .
-
Screen Blanking Nonsense
For some time I have noticed that despite configuring a . . .
-
Securing NetworkManager
Laptop security is different from a stationary desktop system. Laptops . . .
-
Odd Kerning Glitch with LibreOffice Calc
Several days after installing the new office desktop motherboard I . . .
-
Copying Movie DVDs with dd
Many people prefer copying a movie DVD to their media . . .
October
-
How to Waste the Day
I received a new antenna from the WISP owner. The . . .
-
Locking Guest Accounts
Some days after configuring a guest account on my HP . . .
-
CentOS Again
I had configured a caching proxy server to cache downloaded . . .
-
Getting Things Done
I maintain three to-do lists. For home chores, computer projects, . . .
-
Slower Laptop Network Speeds
For the past few weeks I noticed network connectivity had . . .
-
Boot Splashes Redux
Recently I had to fix the boot splash on an . . .
-
A New Motherboard
After many years I bought a new motherboard for my . . .
-
Another 20 GB Wasted
Another weekend after attempting to update Windows 10 to the . . .
-
Yet Another CentOS Quirk
Updating all CentOS servers at work to 7.4 went smooth. . . .
-
Why Package Managers Suck
A person posted an online opinion about package managers. In . . .
-
20 GB Wasted
Updating a Windows 10 computer is insanity . . .
-
The Sick World of Advertising
I enjoy reading about the never-ending battle between advertisers and . . .
-
Nothing New Under the Sun
Mostly I am ambivalent about systemd. I prefer not using . . .
-
The Root Cause of the Equifax Data Breaches
Much attention was given to the Equifax data breach. Many . . .
-
Creating a Guest Account
I wanted to add a guest account on my HP . . .
September
-
Faster Updates
I use Slackware on all of my computers, but there . . .
-
Firefox Welcome Pages
For a long time in CentOS I have been annoyed . . .
-
Another CentOS Quirk
After updating to CentOS 7.4, I noticed a peculiar error . . .
-
More CentOS 7.4 and VirtualBox Breakage
VirtualBox 5.1.28 was released on or about September 14, the . . .
-
Advertisers are Deeply Concerned
Advertising wonks are “deeply concerned” about some new Safari web . . .
-
CentOS 7.4 and VirtualBox Breakage
One of the trademarks of free/libre software is something always . . .
-
User Centric Development
A decent discussion about user-centric development . . .
-
CentOS Strikes Again
CentOS kicked me again . . .
-
Linux Sucks
Recently I searched the web using the keywords linux sucks. . . .
-
Ghosts in the Machine
Recently I could not use Meld to view the differences . . .
-
Search Engines That Do Not Track
Owners of some online search engines like to claim that . . .
-
Database Disk Image Is Malformed
I am using the original Amarok 1.4 on the living . . .
-
Avoiding HTML Markup
Yet another proposal for avoiding HTML markup in order to, . . .
-
Blocking Ad Blockers
Analogies almost always break at some point, but they are . . .
-
One Step Forward Two Steps Back
An interesting article about the problem of free/libre developers treating . . .
August
-
Things to Know Before Using Linux
I was reading an article online with a similar title. . . .
-
Preserving Hard Links
Recently I traveled an interesting journey . . .
-
25 Megabits Per Second
Currently in the political region known as the United States, . . .
-
Autoplaying Ads
The Google morons, er, engineers, are experimenting with auto-playing video . . .
-
The Demise of Flash
Be careful what you wish for . . .
-
GTK3 in CentOS 7
On or about August 13 I updated my CentOS 7 . . .
-
Free/Libre Tablet and Phone
Here is an odd observation. Many people want a true . . .
-
Fixing the State of Technical Documentation
Technical documentation has long been an uncomfortable element of free/libre . . .
-
Nagios PROBLEM Host Alert localhost is DOWN
Recently I installed the Nagios and nagios-plugins package . . .
-
Web Site Overlays
What is the deal with the overwhelming obsession with intrusive . . .
-
Boot Splashes
A boot splash is an odd feature. While the boot . . .
-
Broken Kernels
Thankfully the Slackware BDFL is not a card-carrying member of . . .
-
Battling The ACPI Daemon
Recently I caused some of my own grief. The resulting . . .
July
-
Nagios Log Date Stamps
Recently I installed Nagios on my LAN server with the . . .
-
Firefox and Google Analytics
Recently there was a stink about Firefox using Google Analytics . . .
-
Peculiar NoSquint Plus Failure Redux
This is amazing. An exact repeat of a previous failure . . .
-
Enough Already
The web is filled with useless “How to install....” click-bait . . .
-
What My Web Browser Reveals About Me
I am watchful for information about protecting online privacy. The . . .
-
The Illusion Of Uptime
For many years a common bragging point for Linux based . . .
-
Web Site Design Sucks
These days web site design really sucks. Sucks bad. Exasperating . . .
June
-
A Funny Redshift Quirk
While probably not yet conclusive, there is some research that . . .
-
Dealing With The Bane Of The Web
Within my personal needs I am able to live comfortably . . .
-
Living Without Computers
Recently I enjoyed a short vacation. I purposely did not . . .
-
Five Myths
Yet Another Linux Fluff Piece . . .
-
Empowerment
I dropped out of college after my first attempt. I . . .
-
Simple Two Factor Authentication
Much noise is made about two factor authentication (2FA) . . .
-
Not Your Fault
Walt Mossberg wrote his last planned column. Mossberg is known . . .
-
Ransomware and the Internet of Things
Ransomware is getting a lot of press these days. Especially . . .
-
WannaCrypt and Linux
The WannaCrypt ransomware attack had some people chattering that Linux . . .
May
-
Command Line Access To Windows Shares
Recently for work I had to access a Windows share . . .
-
Replacing ifconfig
This is a typical geek article. Yes, technology evolves. No, . . .
-
CentOS Update Notifier
I have been content with my virtual machine (VM) that . . .
-
Communicating Is Hard Work
Communicating is difficult. I never performed any scientific research, but . . .
-
A Linux Wish List
Many online discussions exist where people argue about The Year . . .
-
Solving User Experience Problems
User interface issues are common topics in this blog. There . . .
-
A Slick LibreOffice Writer Trick
At one time I considered myself a Microsoft Word whiz. . . .
-
Broken Networking
Lately I had been experiencing problems with my laptop wireless . . .
-
Mouse Woes
A coworker told me about laptop trackpad issues with Ubuntu . . .
-
Configuring CentOS 7
I use CentOS 7 at work. Until recently that usage . . .
-
Isolating Personal And Business Work Flows
I need remote access to work related computers. My primary . . .
-
Another Big Purge
I decided on another big purge . . .
-
What Did I Do?
I seldom use the trackpad on my laptop. Nonetheless I . . .
-
MATE Desktop and Mouse Wheel Cycling
For a long time I have been irritated with a . . .
-
Conky Issues
About 7 months ago I updated Conky from version 1.9 . . .
April
-
Fixing Things
Sadly, the first sentence of this article is spot on . . .
-
Viewing An ISO Image
I am in a raw mood. I ran across an . . .
-
Updating Windows 10
I seldom power on my Windows computer. Windows exists mostly . . .
-
MATE Desktop And GTK3
The MATE desktop is a fork of GNOME 2. The . . .
-
Peculiar NoSquint Plus Failure
On or about April 10 11:56 AM, many Firefox NoSquint . . .
-
A Shrewd Plan
Dear Web Site Designer . . .
-
Remove Annoying Overlays
I discovered a great feature of the Firefox NoScript add-on . . .
-
Modern Software Development Is Cancer
I agree with the sentiment . . .
-
Improving Online Comments
Somebody derived the quaint idea of requiring visitors to prove . . .
-
The Case of the Missing Nightly Reboot
For several months I have been using my Asus RT-AC66U . . .
-
Cross Site Action Detected
Recently I tried to reboot my router from within Firefox. . . .
-
Updating to Slackware 14.2
All computer systems in the house are now updated to . . .
-
Broken WOL
My server was the last system updated to Slackware 14.2. . . .
-
MATE Session Bus Errors
While updating the living room media player to Slackware 14.2, . . .
March
-
My Future With Firefox
The proverbial handwriting is on the wall. With the eventual . . .
-
Odd AT-SPI Messages
A curiosity encountered during my updating from Slackware 14.1 to . . .
-
Cranky Sendmail
Another problem I encountered with updating my living room media . . .
-
EVIOCSKEYCODE
After updating my office desktop and laptop to Slackware 14.2, . . .
-
Annoying Firefox Tooltip Popups
Browsing a discussion forum became annoying after updating Firefox to . . .
-
Reading System Logs
Another security irritant is reading system logs. Home users and . . .
-
Managing Dmesg Restrictions
I get irritated by pedantic default security configurations on Linux . . .
-
NVidia Woes Again
I have maintained a list of quirks and unresolved issues . . .
-
A New Forward Button
A Mozilla Firefox developer shared some thoughts about a possible . . .
-
Write Permissions With Remote NFS Shares
For the past several weeks I have been testing Slackware . . .
-
Simple SSH Intrusion Detection
With the ability to use SSH to provide remote access . . .
-
How I Use Linux
Linux based operating systems are a staple of my daily . . .
-
Why I Use Slackware
I have been using Slackware since 10.0. That would be . . .
-
Slackware As My Desktop
Although I tested Salix as a potential preferred desktop, I . . .
-
Salix 14.2 Xfce — 3
Satisfied with my preliminary testing in a virtual machine (VM), . . .
February
-
Salix 14.2 Xfce — 2
Unlike Slackware, the intended Salix package management tool is slapt-get . . .
-
Salix 14.2 Xfce — 1
Of the many mysteries and unfinished stories in my life, . . .
-
Finding A New Desktop Distro
I had grown mildly irritable with the way some things . . .
-
SSHFS — A VPN Alternative
I returned to configuring an OpenVPN server in DD-WRT. My . . .
-
Configuring an OpenVPN Server in DD-WRT — 2
I returned to configuring an OpenVPN server in DD-WRT. My . . .
-
GTK3 Tooltips
As I progress toward removing the kinks with updating from . . .
-
Firefox Lockdown
An addition to locking the MATE desktop on the living . . .
-
MATE Desktop Lockdown
With my transition of updating from Slackware 14.1 to 14.2, . . .
-
The End Of The Road
I expected this day to arrive . . .
-
Broken Suspend to RAM in Slackware 14.2
In my tinkering with Slackware 14.2 with the intent of . . .
-
Keyboard Shortcut To Toggle A Trackpad
I do not like laptop trackpads. They are not a . . .
-
Slackware NetworkManager and Firewall Conflict
In my journey to update all of my Slackware 14.1 . . .
-
Moving vnstat from 32-bit to 64-bit
One of the quirks I ran into when migrating from . . .
-
The Big Update
I stopped my big update to Slackware 14.2 64-bit. A . . .
January
-
Preparing For The Big Update
I am a tad late for the party. Slackware 14.2 . . .
-
Updating Slackware
I do not like updating computer operating systems. I am . . .
-
MATE Session Manager Looking For A Dock
I dislike miscellaneous error messages, especially uninformative messages. For some . . .
-
MATE Panel Clock Format
The MATE clock configuration dialog lacks certain controls to customize . . .
-
Unwanted Display Blanking
For some time I noticed my systems blanking the monitor . . .
-
Trends In Documentation
An interesting article about current trends in open source documentation . . .
-
Failed Resume From Sleep
The complexity of computer software never stops astounding me . . .
-
Distraction-Free Writing
Occasionally I run across an online article about distraction-free writing . . .
-
NetworkManager Dispatcher Scripts
I ran into a perplexing problem with NetworkManager dispatcher scripts. . . .
-
The Internet Is Becoming a Cesspool
The Internet, specifically the World Wide Web layer, provides humans . . .
-
The Insanity of Data Mining and Tracking
I have been around desktop computers a long time. In . . .
-
Schweddy Balls
Two things often happen when I run Windows 10 and . . .
-
Migrating Windows User Settings and Profiles
Despite all the hoopla about migrating people from Windows to . . .
-
Basic Linux Commands
About weekly a link comes through my RSS feeds about . . .
-
Embrace, Extend, Extinguish
Can a leopard change its spots? . . .
-
Helping With Technical Documentation
This is why few people volunteer to help with writing . . .
2016
December
-
Designed By Geeks For Geeks
I keep abreast of and have a decent grasp what . . .
-
New Router Connection Speeds Redux
After achieving some success with improved 802.11n connection speeds, I . . .
-
Secure Remote Access With DD-WRT
I am not a security expert or network engineer. I . . .
-
Port Forwarding VNC With SSH
After struggling with OpenVPN I decided to provide myself remote . . .
-
Configuring an OpenVPN Server in DD-WRT
Compared to PPTP, configuring OpenVPN is much different than configuring . . .
-
Configuring a PPTP VPN Server in DD-WRT
Continuing my journey to provide remote access to my home . . .
-
Port Forwarding With DD-WRT
While configuring my Asus RT-AC66U router to allow remote access . . .
-
Remote Access With DD-WRT
I have been wanting to provide myself remote access to . . .
-
New Router Connection Speeds
Some time ago I wrote a shell script to monitor . . .
-
Using Unique SSIDs
Several days after configuring my RT-AC66U with DD-WRT, I realized . . .
-
Configuring DD-WRT
I have decent notes and backups of my Linksys WRT54GL . . .
-
Installing CentOS 7
After failing to successfully install CentOS 7 in VirtualBox, I . . .
-
CentOS As A VirtualBox Guest
A person with whom I work occasionally uses CentOS 6 . . .
-
Limiting NFS And Samba Connections
I use the same subnet for my LAN wired and . . .
-
Throw Everything Away And Buy New
I ran into freezing problems while installing Windows 10 on . . .
November
-
Thunderbird and Minimizing to the Tray
When I migrated a person back to Windows, I noticed . . .
-
Migrating Back To Windows
Migrating people from Windows to a Linux based system is . . .
-
90 Percent of Everything
Sturgeon’s revelation or Sturgeon’s law states that, “90% of everything . . .
-
Some Simple Solutions
There is a simple solution to eliminating patent and copyright . . .
-
Contempt for Advertisers
I never much liked advertising. Before the world wide web . . .
-
The Illusion of Multitasking Humans
I sigh every time I read or hear somebody discussing . . .
-
Mysterious Floppy Drive Error
My office desktop has a floppy drive. The device is . . .
-
Is DD-WRT Secure?
Lately I have been reading more about router security. While . . .
-
Microsoft Surface Woes
Microsoft Surface tablets are used by players and coaches in . . .
-
Hardware Tech Reviews
Considering the madness of online tracking and the nightmare of . . .
October
-
The Nightmare of the Internet of Things
Recently I read a discussion about how a typical computer . . .
-
Installing a New Router
For the past 10 years I have been using a . . .
-
The Art Of Deception
The primary phone in the home is VOIP through the . . .
-
Running a 32-Bit Distro Without PAE
I use 32-bit on my 64-bit computers. Moving to 64-bit . . .
-
Chromebooks
Published Oct. 17, 1991 in the Wall Street Journal, Walt . . .
-
Safely Halting or Rebooting
The idea of a safe shutdown shell script is hardly . . .
-
Struggling with Thunderbird
Although I migrated from KMail to Thunderbird, I have been . . .
-
Not Quite Older Than Dirt
In 1991 I bought a 486 system. Alongside an Amiga . . .
-
Managing This Blog — 4
I am pleased and content with the way I now . . .
-
Learning Something New About The at Daemon
I hope anybody using a Linux based system admits that . . .
-
Windows 10 Anniversary Update
Tabloid writers and fanboys all got excited Pavlovian style about . . .
-
Corner Cases
The term corner case is used in software programming conversations. . . .
September
-
Proverbial Last Straws
I am not a distro hopper. While I enjoy updated . . .
-
Ubuntu Package Updates
In Ubuntu MATE 16.04, Firefox was updated to 49.0. Firefox . . .
-
Installing Ubuntu 32-bit In VirtualBox
For some time I have been unable to install in . . .
-
Updating the Ubuntu MATE Kernel
I updated Ubuntu MATE with the usual kernel-of-the-week updates. Not . . .
-
Updating the Slackware Kernel 3.10.17
Many distro maintainers require users join the kernel-of-the-week club with . . .
-
Apt Cache Proxy
I face bandwidth caps. For years I have maintained a . . .
-
Buzzword of the Day — Passion
A common buzzword these days is passion . . .
-
Google Is Not Part of My Life
I avoid Google products and services, which includes Android. Too . . .
-
State of the Linux Desktop
This is hilarious . . .
-
Password Strength Meters
I do not mind when developers include a password strength . . .
-
Unpleasant Linux Observations
Most IT professionals are serious about security in the server . . .
August
-
Planned Obsolescence
Planned obsolescence is a fact of life with software and . . .
-
Web Site Design
Now that “mobile compatibility” is some kind of web standard, . . .
-
Technical Writing Tips
I accept that I live in a big world and . . .
-
Why Desktop Linux Still Hasn’t Taken Over the World
Recently an online article prompted many comments about the Year . . .
-
Slow Boiling Frogs
The Microsoft folks decided, like the Windows 10 design, they . . .
-
Managing This Blog — 3
I was thoroughly discouraged with the geek factor of static . . .
-
Managing This Blog — 2
For many months I used wordpress.com to host this blog. . . .
-
Managing This Blog — 1
Some relationships are unhealthy. Such relationships should be terminated . . .
-
Firefox 48 and Unsigned Add-ons
Firefox 48.0 was released. That means the Mozilla developers no . . .
-
The Bane of the Web
I surf the web with Firefox and the NoScript add-on. . . .
-
Freezing Mouse Pointer
Since purchasing a few summers ago I have been plagued . . .
-
Windows 10 Malware Dialog
About a week ago I was at the hardware store . . .
July
-
Helping One Another
There are some things many people learn as they age . . .
-
Broken notify-send
Somewhere during the recent months I wrote a shell script . . .
-
Ubuntu Deleting Cache Packages
Lately I noticed with my Ubuntu MATE 16.04 systems that . . .
-
Ubuntu Quirks
In addition to printing woes in Ubuntu, a few weeks . . .
-
Ubuntu Printing
For some oddball reason, since installing I have had no . . .
-
Migrating Apps — KMail — 2
Thunderbird showed some frustrating design holes . . .
-
Migrating Apps — KMail — 1
My last major app to migrate is KMail. I saved . . .
-
SMPlayer Broken
I updated the much appreciated SMPlayer from 16.4 to 16.6. . . .
-
Firefox Broken Again
I updated Firefox to version 47.0. Nothing new for me — . . .
June
-
Tradeoffs
Once upon a time there were only single computers in . . .
-
Migrating Apps — KAlarm — 2
I wanted first to focus on massaging or converting the . . .
-
Migrating Apps — KAlarm — 1
Of the apps I have been migrating, two have been . . .
-
Using Proprietary Software
I have nothing against using closed source or proprietary software. . . .
-
Smart Technology
I do not own or use a smart phone. I . . .
-
Ubuntu MATE and VirtualBox
Of late I have been dual booting my office desktop . . .
-
SMPlayer View
I have been using SMPlayer to watch Youtube videos. Missing . . .
-
Reflections About Windows 10
My escapade with updating Windows 7 to Windows 10 was . . .
-
Updating to Windows 10 — 3
Unanswered at this point is how to create a Windows . . .
-
Updating to Windows 10 — 2
After installing Windows 10 directly to the Windows 7 partition, . . .
-
Updating to Windows 10 — 1
I have Windows 7 installed on a separate machine. The . . .
-
Free Is Seldom Free
Free is seldom truly free . . .
-
More Vertical Software Woes
A person for whom I installed Linux contacted me about . . .
-
The Big Purge
I reduced my distro usage to two distros. This has . . .
-
GUI System Updates
I updated two Xubuntu 15.10 systems to 16.04 using the . . .
May
-
An Updated MATE Desktop Wish List
While MATE evolves and matures with each release, my MATE . . .
-
Ubuntu MATE 16.04
For several weeks I tinkered with the beta version of . . .
-
Fan Control
An example of the chasm that exists between developers and . . .
-
The Vertical Software Trap
Some time ago I helped a person move to Linux. . . .
-
GTK Bookmarks
There is a history of bug reports against the usability . . .
-
Skill of the Craft
One of the skills learned by technical writers and trainers . . .
-
Technical Writing for Geeks
I worked in the tech writing field for many years. . . .
April
-
Simple Proofreading Techniques
Many people offering editing and proofreading tips focus on the . . .
-
Xubuntu 16.04
I updated two Xubuntu systems from 15.10 to 16.04. One . . .
-
The Computer Challenged User
I long have enjoyed Ken Stark’s writing style and wit. . . .
-
Free/Libre Software Usability
Generally, most people do not resist change as long as . . .
-
Wiki Usability — 2
I was asked to help update a private wiki knowledge . . .
-
Wiki Usability — 1
I was asked to help update a private wiki knowledge . . .
-
Xubuntu Woes
My Happy Feet time with Xubuntu 15.10 ended. In addition . . .
-
We’re From the Phone Company
I remember the Saturday Night Live Lily Tomlin “Ernestine” routine . . .
-
Living Peacefully Without Windows 10
I have a single Windows 7 box. My original hard . . .
-
Playing Youtube Videos
Some folks might think I am late to the game, . . .
-
Migrating Apps — K3B
Next in my app migration list was K3B . . .
-
Migrating Apps — Digikam
Next in my app migration list was Digikam . . .
-
Migrating Apps — Amarok
Next in my app migration list was Amarok. The old . . .
-
Migrating Apps — Kaffeine
My main server performs most of my movie recording. Occasionally . . .
-
Migrating Apps
A popular topic for people migrating from Windows to Linux . . .
March
-
Decisions
Some days ago I awakened from my sleep several hours . . .
-
Another Example of Broken Software
I have been tinkering with Xubuntu to improve my understanding . . .
-
Xubuntu 15.10
My first gander into Ubuntu territory was Linux Mint 17.3 . . .
-
Is Ubuntu in My Future?
I am not an Ubuntu user. After some honest thinking, . . .
-
An Xfce Desktop Wish List
After using Xfce for a while now, I can list . . .
-
Migrating from MATE to Xfce — 3
I updated my Slackware 14.1 systems to Xfce 4.12 using . . .
-
Migrating from MATE to Xfce — 2
Before I updated my Slackware systems to Xfce 4.12, which . . .
-
Migrating from MATE to Xfce — 1
While MATE has much to like, my MATE wish list . . .
-
Dumbing Down Linux
Matt Hartley wrote a commentary about “dumbing down” Linux. I . . .
-
The Bottom Line
A significant majority of people using computers do not care . . .
February
-
I’ll be careful, I promise!
The first time a Firefox user attempts to use the . . .
-
DD-WRT NVRAM Broken
The day after I updated my WRT54GL DD-WRT router, I . . .
-
DD-WRT SSH Broken
The other day I wanted to update a startup script . . .
-
Another Clue
There is a clue that many Linux users do not . . .
-
Mixing Desktop Environments
I have noticed the past few years how Linux desktop . . .
-
Where are the True Linux Based Tablets?
I have yet to buy a tablet. I am unlikely . . .
-
My First Distro
With my mind wandering the other day, I pawed through . . .
-
I Still Do Not Trust Computers
I have no idea what made me chuckle about a . . .
-
Hidden Features
Software developers seem to relish sharing what they call hidden . . .
-
Where is a Free/Libre Teamviewer?
I have been looking for convenient ways to remotely support . . .
-
Updating Windows 7
I have been improving my Windows 7 knowledge and skills. . . .
-
Microsoft Updates
Lately I have been tinkering with my refurbished Windows 7 . . .
-
Microsoft Support Web Site
Ever visit the Microsoft support web site? . . .
-
Firefox and Third Party Cookies
The Mozilla folks like to swagger with their alleged efforts . . .
-
GTK Sorting Inconsistency
GTK development has always bordered on a Cubism perspective. Sorting . . .
-
Another Fedora Mystery
I ran into a strange Fedora quirk. I started Firefox . . .
-
Another MATE Quirk
When I use Midnight Commander in the mate-terminal, often I . . .
-
BSD to the Rescue
Within the past year I ran across a few stories . . .
-
What Happened?
What happened to the Year of the Linux Desktop? . . .
-
Fedora Hibernation Woes
Continuing my excursion into suspend and hibernation, I configured my . . .
-
Nvidia Woes Redux
I want to configure my new server — actually all of . . .
-
Centralizing Work Flow
Installing a dedicated server exposed some challenges with my work . . .
-
A Dedicated Server
I am now using a dedicated server in my network. . . .
-
Missing Command Line Tweaks
While building my new server for my home LAN, I . . .
-
Zero RX and TX Packets
My new server had been running for about 10 days. . . .
January
-
Nvidia Woes
In my office desktop I have an Asus M3N78-EM main . . .
-
Missing Motherboard Features
I replaced my full scale home theater PC (HTPC) with . . .
-
High 1037U CPU Frequency
My new living room NM70I-1037U media streamer almost always ran . . .
-
A New Media Streaming Computer
Part of my network revamp plan was to replace the . . .
-
Detecting a Parent Process ID
I ran into an interesting but irritating quirk when I . . .
-
Yet Another Missing Motherboard Feature
The ASRock N68C-GS4 FX motherboard contained no PC speaker. I . . .
-
Choosing a Server Motherboard
For my new server I purchased an ASRock N68C-GS4 FX . . .
-
Building a New Server
For some time I have wanted to build a dedicated . . .
-
Revamping My Network
For more than a year I have been planning to . . .
-
Finding a Stable Distro
Continuing some thoughts from my previous post . . .
-
Updating Fedora — 2
Continuing my story with updating Fedora 22 to 23 . . .
-
Updating Fedora — 1
On my Thinkpad T400 I used a spare partition to . . .
-
Removing Windows 7 Spyware
The ability to block Microsoft from updating users to Windows . . .
-
Flashing LED When in Suspend
Unlike laptops, desktop systems have no fancy quarter moon LED . . .
-
Laptop Frustration
I never owned a laptop until a few summers ago. . . .
-
Protecting Against Ransomware
I have been reading quite a bit about ransomware. Ransomware . . .
-
Inconsistency
Inconsistency is one of the themes in this blog. Nice . . .
-
People Who Never Use a Computer
I live in a rural area. I know people who . . .
-
Firefox Broken Videos
Continuing with my rant about Firefox 43, a second broken . . .
-
Firefox Search Box
There are times when I want to enter a room . . .
-
A Simple Usability Guide
Desktop environments should never irritate users or get in their . . .
2015
December
-
Customizing the MATE Panel
Customizing the MATE panel basically works. Mostly . . .
-
Compatibility Mode
I am not anything close to a Live distro expert . . .
-
Wrangling With the Geany Spell Check Plugin
I use multiple computers and multiple user accounts. One of . . .
-
Slackware MATE
The MATE desktop is not part of the official stock . . .
-
Updating Operating Systems
Several operating system updates loom on the horizon for me. . . .
-
Search Engines Suck
Search engines are getting more frustrating. So much noise to . . .
-
A MATE Desktop Wish List
Most of the time I use the MATE desktop. Like . . .
-
My Ideal Distro
From the perspective of non technical users, of course . . .
-
Slackware GUI Administration
I mentioned that I like the simplicity Slackware provides but . . .
-
When NFS Breaks
For many years I have used NFS. Works great except . . .
-
Synchronizing Firefox
Years ago When I dual booted with Windows NT4 and . . .
-
Surfing Without JavaScript
I Turned Off JavaScript for a Whole Week and It . . .
-
Unable to Suspend to RAM Redux
I am unable to suspend my desktop system. The motherboard . . .
-
Long Stall When Rebooting or Halting
When I updated from Fedora 21 to 22, more often . . .
-
Understanding the Chasm
Most of what I write in this blog addresses the . . .
-
Unable to Suspend to RAM
Recently in Fedora 21 and 22 I noticed I was . . .
-
Laptop Screen Dimming
I use a Thinkpad T400 laptop. One of the installed . . .
-
RSS Feeds
Using multiple computers creates a desire to centralize work flows . . .
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Distro Reviews
A significant majority of distro reviews are little more than . . .
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Protecting Backup Files
A problem that bothered me for a long time is . . .
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Meld Deleting MRU Files
I ran across an interesting quirk. To me this quirk . . .
November
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GRUB Menus
The menu options created in GRUB are classic geek poop. . . .
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Updates vs. Upgrades
With respect to computers and many other products, I do . . .
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Not Invented Here
One of the noticeable impediments in free/libre software is the . . .
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System Updates
There is something Linux distro maintainers do not handle well. . . .
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Network Diagrams
Vendor lock-in and proprietary file formats are the bane of . . .
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MATE Menu Descriptions
In addition to not having a Run option directly in . . .
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Learning Linux
There are many online tutorials for learning about Linux based . . .
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LAN Notifications
Once upon a time, notifications among LAN systems were handled . . .
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GTK3 Scroll Bar Sliders
GTK 3 developers seem to revel in perverting traditional desktop . . .
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Broken Software
Much has been written about how proprietary software cannot be . . .
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Application Based Firewall
A common question asked by Windows users new to Linux . . .
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Customizing Firefox
The Mozilla Firefox developers continue their rampage with removing usability . . .
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Plan B
My office computer had been a tad flaky for many . . .
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Nvidia
After 8 years my office desktop PC died . . .
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Recovering Deleted Files
A common question asked in Linux forums and covered in . . .
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Using Windows 7
Until this past summer I had been away from the . . .
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Things to Do After Installing Distro X
Ever notice those online articles titled “Things to Do After . . .
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Familiarity Breeds Contempt
Generally the expression “familiarity breeds contempt” means that the more . . .
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MATE Menu Delay
One of the mysteries that has annoyed me with MATE . . .
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Slackware
While mostly I use Fedora as my preferred desktop system . . .
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LMDE
Despite some shortcomings, I use Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) . . .
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Finding the Right Distro
While there are many “Best Distro for Beginners” articles on . . .
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CentOS 7 As A Desktop
CentOS (Community Enterprise Operating System) is a clone of RHEL . . .
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Network Browsing
Here is a simple usability issue I do not understand. . . .
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Startpage
I stopped using Google some time ago. Since my Firefox . . .
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What Changed This Time
I have been using Firefox since the Phoenix days and . . .
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Authentication Required When Resuming From Sleep
I used my laptop for a long spell without suspending . . .
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Lazy Developers
In Firefox there two examples of lazy developers . . .
October
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ATFQ
The term RTFM is familiar to many free/libre software users. . . .
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Youtube Autoplay
I am not a video junkie and am not a . . .
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Year of the Linux Desktop
Why has there never been a Year of the Linux . . .
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Adding a Dictionary
Some time ago I had been trying to install Goldendict, . . .
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Virtualizing XP
This past summer I was asked to install a Linux . . .
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Old Computers
At one time I was interested in tinkering with Linux . . .
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Parental Controls
There are certain areas where the most die hard Linux . . .
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Firefox Autofocus
I do not remember the versions, but months ago while . . .
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Conky Displays
I have used Conky for many years. I like Conky . . .
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Console Text Editors
I do not use vi[m] or emacs. I appreciate that . . .
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Everything Just Works
With respect to computers a common phrase heard is “Everything . . .
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Where is Linux
While watching an NFL game, I noticed a significant presence . . .
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Left-Handed Mice
One of my long-standing peeves with all operating systems is . . .
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When Developers Conduct Usability Testing
I do not know whether the Firefox developers performed any . . .
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The Presumption of Unlimited Bandwidth
Related to the presumption of being connected 24/7 is the . . .
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The Presumption of Working Online
An unfortunate usability trend has emerged the past few years — . . .
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Black Screen of Death
Some Linux users like to poke fun at Windows users . . .
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DConf Usability
For several years a Windows registry of sorts called dconf . . .
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MATE Run Command
Overall I like the MATE desktop environment, which I use . . .
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GTK3 Scroll Bar Widths
Along with the frustrating concept of maximizing screen real estate . . .
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Maximizing Screen Real Estate
Linux developers seem obsessed with the idea of “maximizing screen . . .
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Work Spaces
I have noticed a constant throughout my years of using . . .
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Window Placement
There is a trend in Linux desktop design toward tiling . . .
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Terminals for Geeks
I notice a trend of late. Default terminal configurations have . . .
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Adding Printers
From a usability perspective, especially non enterprise users, no passwords . . .
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Linux Mint Update Notifier
The Linux Mint folks are a tad better at usability . . .
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Automatic Updates
Usually distros are designed not to automatically update software. This . . .
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Yum to Dnf
I noticed a frustrating design choice while running trial tests . . .
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Linux For Beginners
At least monthly I run across an article about the . . .
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Creating Usable Desktops
Linux development includes tech savvy people. Rarely does development include . . .
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The Love Affair With The Terminal
Every time I read a forum thread where a non . . .
September
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Rapid Release and Usability
A significant frustration with using free/libre software is the break . . .
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Remember the Users
A chasm exists between free/libre software developers and most users. . . .
Categories: Commentary, Tutorial, Usability