Jason Thaine @jasomux@mastodon.technology

Spring version 20.21 is now available for users in the Northern hemisphere. Try it today.

Note: This release comes without any guarantee or implied warranties.

On today's menu:

Blueberry pie and chocolate Pi pie.

#piday

To add to my summer of "Fix Everything", my home theater acted up this week. It would only stay on for 30 sec and turn itself off.

Turns out all it needed was a good cleaning out and the fan was sticky. All better now.

I was happy to see that my nearly 20 yr old unit had good working thermal protection.

My A.I. is boycotting me for calling it artificial.

I've become spoiled by updating on Linux.

I pull out my never used Win 10 laptop, let it do 3 months of updates, and do a little tune-up. Neglected. Expected.

But, I head to the Internet and realize Firefox needs updating, and then KeePassXC is outdated, and whatever else.

If I still used Windows daily those things would get done as they come available, but it can't compare to the one stop CLI updates on my Linux boxes.

It's a strange night...

This toot brought to you via Windows 10.

Morning Typing Class:

No matter how many times I try it, "sudo apt udpate" is always an invalid operation.

#linux #cli

It's National Lightning Safety Awareness Month. Seriously.

Be safe and mind your conscience.

TFW Version 1.0 is announced for some software you've been using for years without issues. #opensource

There are many places to "Get the weather" online, but if your plans depend on the outside conditions there is nothing better than watching the local weather person describe exactly what's going on.

However, our local city news websites are all but unusable. I don't mind watching a 1 min ad before the live forecast, but the slide in ads, banners, trackers, etc. are unbearable (and insecure?). Block that garbage, and the video player won't even load.

It's all bloat.

I've been having a problem with images not showing correctly in Firefox on #ubuntu 20.04 (laptop) and occasional slow page loading. If I disconnect the WiFi and reconnect, the problem goes away - for a while.

I believe it's powersave mode being applied to the WiFi card. I edited

"/etc/NetworkManager/conf.d/default-wifi-powersave-on.conf"

and changed:

wifi.powersave = 3 to wifi.powersave = 2

So far the problem went away. Not the first time I've had a powersave WiFi issue.

I take pride in helping people with their tech stuff by walking them through the process, making them complete the steps so they can learn how.

Too many times I get feeling the person is only pretending to understand, as I'm basically doing it for them, and they don't feel it's something they will be doing again any time soon. Until the next time?

I've learned myself that "Can you show me how?" really means "Will you do it for me while I pretend to care?"

Movie/TV Computer Security Explained

Except for some high budget, technically accurate releases, most Hollywood productions generalize security terms for the masses. Here's the translation:

Encryption --> firewall
Password protection --> firewall
Bio-metrics --> firewall
Passkey protection --> firewall
2 factor authentication --> firewall
VPN --> firewall
Firewall --> firewall

Example: "We need Agent X's passkey to break the fifth and final encrypted firewall and access the system."

When I was a kid and found a technical discrepancy on a TV show, my Dad would say "You're not supposed to think about that." Meanwhile, being a car guy, he would point out every automotive inaccuracy.

I'm older now and find myself doing the same thing with tech and car issues.

It really annoys me when I text someone and get a response "Who is this? New phone, lost all my contacts."

Accidents happen, but in all other cases...

I really need a haircut. Even though I clip it myself with a little help from the Mrs. in the back, I think I'm holding out in a silent, subconscious show of support for those who require a professional.

The Mrs. had her first telemedicine appointment today; she was nervous, but I was excited to make it happen for her.

She asked her other two doctors for the same; they responded "Yeah, we don't do that."

#telemedicine #medical #stayhome

Tech Support: How much memory do you have?

Me: I don't remember.

Still playing with #Ubuntu 20.04 on my laptop. It appears fairly solid; I haven't had any issues yet, other than one of my printers acts a little screwy when scanning. My other printer and 2 flatbed scanners work as usual.

I don't think 20.04 boots as fast as 18.04, but neither did 19.10, and I haven't done any serious tweaking yet.