tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58142546891503293592024-02-07T16:51:25.880-08:00MALsPa's SpaceA few words from M.A.L.'s dad -- Albuquerque, NMUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1036125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-4251355365316941912021-09-18T05:21:00.000-07:002021-09-18T05:21:08.700-07:00new metheny<p>He's still at it. Pat Metheny's latest album, recorded live before the pandemic: <a href="https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_ntF23ms_Ofsu0e2iTCyl5-tFcITKemvbo">Pat Metheny - Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV)</a>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpe4oIM3HoJKhqOMD1FLaKYgFFmmZ9mbgLezTfhJ9tyMAJ7Tq6NIWYTaRJlQCgYsB_bg_yF7LH_h8nq94dRpi450x3wLQpZ_txuDIR__8m74o-kYdsutYWYG_gWQOHkprRprMHEWRphP8/s744/side-eye.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="421" data-original-width="744" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpe4oIM3HoJKhqOMD1FLaKYgFFmmZ9mbgLezTfhJ9tyMAJ7Tq6NIWYTaRJlQCgYsB_bg_yF7LH_h8nq94dRpi450x3wLQpZ_txuDIR__8m74o-kYdsutYWYG_gWQOHkprRprMHEWRphP8/w640-h362/side-eye.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>A couple of reviews:</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/sep/10/pat-metheny-side-eye-nyc-v1iv-review">Pat Metheny: Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV) review – new talent and wily reinventions</a></p><p><a href="https://jazztimes.com/reviews/albums/pat-metheny-side-eye-nyc-v1-iv-modern/">Pat Metheny: Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV) (Modern) - A review of the guitarist's live album showcasing two gifted rising stars: James Francies and Marcus Gilmore</a></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-20784051715042717462021-07-03T21:24:00.000-07:002021-07-03T21:24:22.340-07:00too many, too much<p><i><b></b></i></p><blockquote><i><b>There's too many men, too many people<br />Making too many problems<br />And not much love to go round<br />Can't you see this is a land of confusion?</b></i></blockquote><p></p><p>-- Genesis, "Land of Confusion"</p><p><br /></p><p><i><b></b></i></p><blockquote><i><b>My personal view is that climate change is occurring. But the primary driver is population and consumption. When my grandfather was born, the world population was about 1.3 billion. When I was born it was 2.2 billion, and today it is 7.5 billion. The UN predicts a population of about 10 billion by 2055. In my opinion this is the primary driver of everything relating to our worsening environment.</b></i></blockquote>-- Ken Croasdale, 82, researcher and engineer at Imperial Oil from 1968 to 1992, as quoted in the article <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jul/02/scientists-climate-crisis-big-oil-climate-crimes">"The scientists hired by big oil who predicted the climate crisis long ago"</a><p></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-51479352144270748632021-07-03T20:46:00.000-07:002021-07-03T20:46:03.181-07:00a nice idea<p></p><blockquote><i><b>So, I am calling for a new national holiday – American Interdependence Day – a celebration of the “us” in the U.S. and acknowledgement of the fact that our individual fates are inextricably linked.</b></i></blockquote><p></p><p>-- Peter T. Coleman, in <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2021/07/03/how-fix-american-polarization-celebrate-our-interdependence-july-fourth/7838822002/"><i>"Divided States of America: Why we need an Interdependence Day to restore national unity"</i></a></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-90974143346939377522021-06-19T10:51:00.000-07:002021-06-19T10:51:42.283-07:00a hot and dry future<p>The writing's on the wall. Article: <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jun/16/american-south-west-drought-water">The drought in US south-west is the worst in 1,200 years. It might be here to stay</a> by Kim Heacox.</p><p>Heacox writes:</p><p></p><blockquote><i>John Wesley Powell, the one-armed US army civil war veteran who led the first white expedition down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon – a daring boat run in 1869 – later became an ethnographer who wrote a prescient 1878 government paper titled: Report on the Lands of the Arid Regions of the United States. In it, he unflinchingly described the scarcity of water, and summarized that much of the American south-west, if it must be settled, should be settled lightly and modestly. Overpopulate it, and it will be unforgiving.</i></blockquote><p>People came anyway: <br /></p><p></p><p></p><blockquote><i>Decades later, the US Bureau of Reclamation oversaw the construction of two massive arch-gravity concrete dams on the river: Hoover Dam in the 1930s that impounded Lake Mead; and Glen Canyon Dam in the 1960s, that impounded Lake Powell.<br /></i></blockquote><p>And: <br /></p><p></p><p></p><blockquote><i>When the Bureau of Reclamation planned and designed the dams, they were warned that their data sets were too small; that the desert has moods, that rivers fluctuate, water comes and goes, and <b>the bones of previous civilizations are everywhere</b>.</i></blockquote><p></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-69608275755415807212021-06-09T14:45:00.000-07:002021-06-09T14:45:23.957-07:00"secret" ff tips<p>Article: <a href="https://blog.mozilla.org/en/products/firefox/firefox-tips/firefox-secret-tips/">11 secret tips for Firefox that will make you an internet pro</a><br /><br />The two tips that I think will be most useful here:<br /><br /><b>4. Reopen a closed tab</b> - Type Ctrl+Shift+T for PC, or Command+Shift+T for Mac.<br /><br /><b>7. Sample any color with the built-in eyedropper</b> - This lets the user sample colors from web pages and copy the HEX value to use elsewhere. Click the main menu in the upper right corner, scroll to "More Tools", and then select "Eyedropper".<br /></p><p><br />Yay!! Thank you for these!!</p><p> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-79704754397163538042021-06-07T16:41:00.001-07:002021-06-07T16:45:16.425-07:00firefox 89.0 fixes<p>This webpage has some tips for dealing with the newly released Firefox 89.0, for those who aren't happy with the changes: <a href="https://www.askvg.com/tip-restore-compact-mode-density-option-in-firefox-customize-window/">https://www.askvg.com/tip-restore-compact-mode-density-option-in-firefox-customize-window/</a></p><p>My favorite is to simply use the following <i>about:config</i> fix to set the Firefox window to "compact mode", getting rid of some wasted space at the top:</p><div><div><b>browser.uidensity = 0</b> -- change to <b>1</b> (for "compact mode")</div><div> </div><div> </div><div>For Fluxbox users, if the Firefox window doesn't render correctly in Fluxbox (happened to me in one of my Arch installations), the <b>Restart Fluxbox</b> tool fixes it for the current session only. For a more permanent fix, use the following <i>about:config</i> settings:<div><div><br /></div></div><div><b>gfx.webrender.all = false</b> -- this was the default</div><div><b>gfx.webrender.force-disabled = false</b> -- toggle to <b>true</b> to fix window in Fluxbox</div><div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div>To completely disable the new "Proton" look, toggle the following from <b>true</b> to <b>false</b>:</div><div><div><br /></div></div><div><b>browser.proton.enabled</b></div><div><div><br /></div></div><div><b>browser.proton.modals.enabled</b></div><div><div><br /></div></div><div><b>browser.proton.doorhangers.enabled</b></div><div><div><br /></div></div><div><b>browser.proton.contextmenus.enabled</b></div><div><b> </b></div><div><b>browser.proton.places-tooltip.enabled <br /></b></div><div><div><br /></div></div><div>Then restart Firefox.</div><div> </div></div></div> </div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-9599743350227140322021-06-05T05:21:00.000-07:002021-06-05T05:21:01.757-07:00parallel<div>Article: <b><i><a href="https://ostechnix.com/enable-parallel-downloading-in-pacman-in-arch-linux/">Enable Parallel Downloading In Pacman In Arch Linux</a></i></b></div><div><br /></div><div>See <i>man pacman.conf</i>, under the OPTIONS section:</div><div><br /></div><div> <i>ParallelDownloads</i></div><div><i> Specifies number of concurrent download streams. The value needs to be a positive</i></div><div><i> integer. If this config option is not set then only one download stream is used (i.e.</i></div><div><i> downloads happen sequentially).</i></div><div><br /></div><div>The article linked above describes how to easily enable parallel downloading in Arch Linux. This is kinda cool; I'm trying it in one of my Arch installations. Not sure if it speeds things up or not, or if it's really helpful to me in any way. I think I like it anyway. Found an interesting discussion on the topic at the Arch forums: <a href="https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=266854">https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=266854</a></div><div><br /></div><div>The options I'm currently using in the /etc/pacman.conf file are summarized below:</div><div><i></i></div><blockquote><div><i>[options]</i></div><div><i>HoldPkg = pacman glibc</i></div><div><i>Architecture = auto</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i># Misc options</i></div><div><i>Color</i></div><div><i>CheckSpace</i></div><div><i>VerbosePkgLists</i></div><div><i>ILoveCandy</i></div><div><i>ParallelDownloads = 5</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i># By default, pacman accepts packages signed by keys that its local keyring</i></div><div><i># trusts (see pacman-key and its man page), as well as unsigned packages.</i></div><div><i>SigLevel = Required DatabaseOptional</i></div><div><i>LocalFileSigLevel = Optional</i></div></blockquote><div><i></i></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-63942278138410003932021-05-10T16:29:00.000-07:002021-05-10T16:29:21.423-07:00too long; didn't read<p></p><blockquote><i>The <b>tldr-pages</b> project is a collection of community-maintained help pages for command-line tools, that aims to be a simpler, more approachable complement to traditional man pages.</i></blockquote>- <a href="https://github.com/tldr-pages/tldr">https://github.com/tldr-pages/tldr</a><br /><br />(Also see: <a href="https://tldr.sh/">https://tldr.sh/</a>)<br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p>Nice tool. Here's an example:<br /><br /><i><b>$ tldr df<br /><br /> df<br /><br /> Gives an overview of the filesystem disk space usage.<br /> More information: https://www.gnu.org/software/coreutils/df.<br /><br /> - Display all filesystems and their disk usage:<br /> df<br /><br /> - Display all filesystems and their disk usage in human readable form:<br /> df -h<br /><br /> - Display the filesystem and its disk usage containing the given file or directory:<br /> df path/to/file_or_directory<br /><br /> - Display statistics on the number of free inodes:<br /> df -i<br /><br /> - Display filesystems but exclude the specified types:<br /> df -x squashfs -x tmpfs</b><br /><br /></i><br />The <i>tldr</i> tool was mentioned in the article <a href="https://opensource.com/article/20/6/modern-linux-command-line-tools">"5 modern alternatives to essential Linux command-line tools"</a>.</p><p> </p><p>I installed it in Debian and in Kubuntu with:</p><p><b><i>$ sudo apt install tldr</i></b></p><p>And, I added it in Arch with:</p><p><i><b>$ sudo pacman -S tldr</b></i></p><p> </p><p>Looks like the tldr-pages project will nicely complement the (still) all-important man pages. It's very nice to have a few command examples at the fingertips, no question.</p><p> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-77072719133812683032021-04-26T20:52:00.001-07:002021-04-26T20:52:35.339-07:00trying out some new (to me) software<div>A couple of apps I'm testing in Linux appear to be winners. Time will tell.</div><div><br /></div>DeaDBeeF, which I mentioned <a href="https://monksblog-malspa.blogspot.com/2021/03/another-simple-audio-player.html">in a post last month</a>, seems to have quickly replaced Audacious as my favorite music player for Linux -- although it's a close call. DeaDBeeF might be the best fit for me, but I'm keeping Audacious installed, as it's definitely worth keeping as well.<div><br /></div><div>I prefer a lightweight audio player over a media player (I don't normally bother with video, etc.). I've gone with Audacious for the past few years, and I think it's generally considered to be the better of the two music players. <br /><div><br /></div><div>Today I'm taking my first look at the Brave web browser (<a href="https://brave.com/">https://brave.com/</a>). Although I've used a few different web browsers in Linux, most of my time's been spent with Firefox. I can't see myself giving up Firefox anytime soon. But Brave brings an interesting approach, and it seems fine here so far. I added it in Debian Buster, using these commands found at <a href="https://brave.com/linux/">https://brave.com/linux/</a>:</div><div><br /></div><div></div><blockquote><div><i>sudo apt install apt-transport-https curl</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>sudo curl -fsSLo /usr/share/keyrings/brave-browser-archive-keyring.gpg https://brave-browser-apt-release.s3.brave.com/brave-browser-archive-keyring.gpg</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>echo "deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/brave-browser-archive-keyring.gpg arch=amd64] https://brave-browser-apt-release.s3.brave.com/ stable main"|sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/brave-browser-release.list</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>sudo apt update</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>sudo apt install brave-browser</i></div></blockquote><div></div><div><br /></div><div>This adds the file /etc/apt/sources.list.d/brave-browser-release.list and installs the browser.</div><div><br /></div><div>Brave does seem to be faster than Firefox, but scrolling web pages is slow and clunky. I found something that helped somewhat: I brought up the Flags menu by typing <b>brave://flags/</b> in the search bar, and then enabled "Smooth Scrolling". Better, but still not quite as quick and smooth as scrolling in Firefox.</div><div><br /></div><div>I haven't had any issues yet with Brave doing what I think of as "normal" stuff. Happy with it so far.</div></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-1875650065376403142021-04-03T08:25:00.000-07:002021-04-03T08:25:21.264-07:00not a fork!<p>One of the more interesting Linux distros out there: <i><b>Void Linux</b></i> (<a href="https://voidlinux.org/">https://voidlinux.org/</a>)</p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhznXCgc-SCeQjzOXprZPgV_LHo9mPsi9yyYo2hd5Ybn23Iv8m_CZ2OqumLEtL_gpImMVyGsTsSnXMY8Pl1IoTkFEI2q0LGYPQ-hNq_px4TkW_SrYMiFeMeTXjWjrJb1UHaQq6wnvyRqgI/s1165/void.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="1165" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhznXCgc-SCeQjzOXprZPgV_LHo9mPsi9yyYo2hd5Ybn23Iv8m_CZ2OqumLEtL_gpImMVyGsTsSnXMY8Pl1IoTkFEI2q0LGYPQ-hNq_px4TkW_SrYMiFeMeTXjWjrJb1UHaQq6wnvyRqgI/w640-h300/void.png" width="640" /></a></div><p><br />The Void Linux page at <i>DistroWatch</i>: <a href="https://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=void">https://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=void</a><br /><br />And, check out the recent review by Jesse Smith: <a href="https://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?issue=20210329#void">https://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?issue=20210329#void</a> </p><p>I'm very tempted to try installing and using this distro. My next big project, maybe!</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-85773685087469241042021-04-03T07:03:00.005-07:002021-04-03T07:03:47.726-07:00cool date<p>Lucky day, or what? Today's date: <span style="color: #073763;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>4/3/21</b></span></span></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-91114073470929118492021-04-03T06:48:00.011-07:002021-04-03T06:50:55.305-07:00change can be good<p>I'm testing out the deb822-style format for control files used by <i>apt</i>, replacing the older one-line-style format used in the <i>sources.list</i> file. I couldn't find any "official" Debian documentation on this topic except for what's contained in <i>man sources.list</i> (see <a href="https://manpages.debian.org/buster/apt/sources.list.5.en.html">https://manpages.debian.org/buster/apt/sources.list.5.en.html</a>).<br /></p><p><br />I did find a couple of pages online that helped a bit:<br /><br /><b><i>"How to use the new DEB822 apt format on Ubuntu"</i></b> - <a href="https://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-to-use-the-new-deb822-apt-format-on-ubuntu/">https://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-to-use-the-new-deb822-apt-format-on-ubuntu/</a><br /><br /><i><b>"Explanation of the DEB822 Source Format"</b></i> - <a href="https://repolib.readthedocs.io/en/latest/deb822-format.html">https://repolib.readthedocs.io/en/latest/deb822-format.html<br /></a><br /><br />I tested the new format in Debian Buster. Here are the lines I was using in the <i>/etc/apt/sources.list</i> file:<br /></p><blockquote><b><i>deb http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/ buster main contrib non-free<br />deb http://security.debian.org/debian-security buster/updates main contrib non-free<br />deb http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/ buster-updates main contrib non-free</i></b></blockquote><br /><br />I renamed the <i>sources.list</i> file with the following command:<br /><br /><i>$ sudo mv /etc/apt/sources.list /etc/apt/sources.list-bkup</i><br /><br />Then I created the new file <i>/etc/apt/sources.list.d/debian-sources</i>:<br /><br /><i>$ sudo nano /etc/apt/sources.list.d/debian.sources</i><br /><p></p><p><br />The contents of the <i>debian-sources</i> file:<br /></p><blockquote><b><i>Types: deb<br />URIs: http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/<br />Suites: buster buster-updates<br />Components: main contrib non-free<br /><br />Types: deb<br />URIs: http://security.debian.org/debian-security<br />Suites: buster/updates<br />Components: main contrib non-free</i></b></blockquote><br /><br />Finally, I ran the following to make sure everything worked correctly:<br /><br /><i>$ sudo apt update<br /></i><br /><br />Users can decide for themselves if they like the newer format or prefer to stick with the older one. I think the deb822 format makes it a bit easier to see, at a glance, how things are set up.<p></p><p> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-75601158905529771462021-03-16T11:46:00.008-07:002021-03-16T11:46:58.865-07:00another simple audio player<p>I'm taking a look at the DeaDBeeF audio player. I've installed it in Arch, where it's available from the repos, and also in Debian. DeaDBeeF is not available in the Debian repos (same with Ubuntu), but simple instructions for installing it in Debian (and in Ubuntu) can be found at <a href="https://deadbeef.sourceforge.io/">https://deadbeef.sourceforge.io/</a>.</p><p> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim7v-ZxzhnBwz7kIDUP0h1RAtQcAkH94NHpV8cqs6PddRYuc4shat3F6FTvptCNj7Y9CfFgebjIBo-ZPPAriinEWe7X4kqqdgktocSAdMRy1XuXxwJONTHL3TWgb4E95h335lg_vUdNUI/s853/deadbeef-01.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="853" height="408" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim7v-ZxzhnBwz7kIDUP0h1RAtQcAkH94NHpV8cqs6PddRYuc4shat3F6FTvptCNj7Y9CfFgebjIBo-ZPPAriinEWe7X4kqqdgktocSAdMRy1XuXxwJONTHL3TWgb4E95h335lg_vUdNUI/w640-h408/deadbeef-01.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-62655412532907298892021-02-23T10:03:00.001-08:002021-02-23T10:03:29.292-08:00as viewed from space<p>Screenshots from Bullseye GNOME. The desktop background is a beautiful shot of what's still the only home for Life that we know of.</p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9w_x3wvkboQGJxE95jrxe-v19YWLqsn1kF30wR5GRx1fX6XR1X7Gs11HxL6tmIAYLc9aSXFMcSB4l8ZrvedIAqqP5KgxfyNiTM3qxYbxuplH3s3LQfMeBx8KbyRFhP4IGinBiAUL1hrg/s800/bullseye-gnome-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="800" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9w_x3wvkboQGJxE95jrxe-v19YWLqsn1kF30wR5GRx1fX6XR1X7Gs11HxL6tmIAYLc9aSXFMcSB4l8ZrvedIAqqP5KgxfyNiTM3qxYbxuplH3s3LQfMeBx8KbyRFhP4IGinBiAUL1hrg/w640-h360/bullseye-gnome-01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1UBle4jTFFdS488yC-3TRnR_J1B6wMUVuc3dXy2divnwZMepXNrBm1M22qL7A00uJMBrN0wzcdEbjZe6Xue2y69e029uhys-tUzew9O3GqiCrF-bl4epqVKFNlROoTQWBvFz_58Y_Wqs/s800/bullseye-gnome-02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="800" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1UBle4jTFFdS488yC-3TRnR_J1B6wMUVuc3dXy2divnwZMepXNrBm1M22qL7A00uJMBrN0wzcdEbjZe6Xue2y69e029uhys-tUzew9O3GqiCrF-bl4epqVKFNlROoTQWBvFz_58Y_Wqs/w640-h360/bullseye-gnome-02.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-55486212112951034662021-02-22T12:56:00.003-08:002021-02-22T12:59:43.497-08:00soft freeze<p>Debian 11 (Bullseye) went into "Milestone 2 - Soft Freeze" status this month. The plan for Bullseye is a little bit different than for Buster. <br /><br />The freeze timeline for Debian Buster:<br /><br />* 2019-01-12 - Transition freeze<br />* 2019-02-12 - Soft-freeze<br />* 2019-03-12 - Full-freeze<br /><br />(from: <a href="https://release.debian.org/buster/freeze_policy.html">https://release.debian.org/buster/freeze_policy.html</a>)<br /><br />The freeze timeline for Debian Bullseye:<br /><br />* 2021-01-12 - Milestone 1 - Transition and (build-)essential Freeze<br />* 2021-02-12 - Milestone 2 - Soft Freeze<br />* 2021-03-12 - Milestone 3 - Hard Freeze - for key packages and packages without autopkgtests<br />* TBA - Milestone 4 - Full Freeze<br /><br />(from: <a href="https://release.debian.org/bullseye/freeze_policy.html">https://release.debian.org/bullseye/freeze_policy.html</a>)<br /><br /><br />I downloaded the Debian Bullseye GNOME live (w/ non-free firmware) image from <a href="https://cdimage.debian.org/images/unofficial/non-free/images-including-firmware/weekly-live-builds/amd64/iso-hybrid/">https://cdimage.debian.org/images/unofficial/non-free/images-including-firmware/weekly-live-builds/amd64/iso-hybrid/</a>, put it on a flash drive, and booted into it. Things looked okay, so I decided to do an installation. From the Activities overview, there was an "Install Debian" icon, so I clicked on that. It started up the Calamares installer. The resulting system was quite loaded with apps and packages -- too "heavy" for my tastes, although the approach, with Calamares, would work out fine for many users, I'm sure.<br /><br />I prefer a network installation for Debian, so I downloaded the <i>firmware-testing-amd64-netinst.iso</i> image from <a href="https://cdimage.debian.org/images/unofficial/non-free/images-including-firmware/weekly-builds/amd64/iso-cd/">here</a> and reinstalled using Debian's Graphical Installer. This gave me a lot more control over what went in.<br /><br />It's best if users wait for the Debian Stable release rather than jumping in during "Testing" status, but there shouldn't be any major issues with Bullseye at this point. Things seem fine here, so far.</p><p> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-84168750035646318512021-02-22T12:11:00.000-08:002021-02-22T12:11:00.248-08:00down to the surface<p>Awesome! Video from NASA of the Perseverance rover descending to the surface of Mars - <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-s-mars-perseverance-rover-provides-front-row-seat-to-landing-first-audio">https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-s-mars-perseverance-rover-provides-front-row-seat-to-landing-first-audio</a></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-64735591361319266392021-01-25T02:29:00.000-08:002021-01-25T02:29:08.391-08:00at long last, split view in thunar!<p>I don't know why it took so long, but: <a href="https://9to5linux.com/xfces-thunar-file-manager-gets-split-view-file-creation-times-and-more">"Xfce’s Thunar File Manager Gets Split View, File Creation Times, and More"</a></p><p>That should take care of the main annoyance I've had with Thunar - the lack of a split view window. I think I'll be able to test it out soon in Arch. Looking forward to it!</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-13971424044961364672021-01-19T05:42:00.000-08:002021-01-19T05:42:36.580-08:00ulyssa<p>For years, <i><b>Linux Mint</b></i> (site: <a href="https://linuxmint.com/">https://linuxmint.com/</a>) has been one of the best options for folks new to the Linux world. Released on January 8, Linux Mint 20.1 "Ulyssa" ships in Cinnamon, MATE, and Xfce flavors. I downloaded <i>linuxmint-20.1-xfce-64bit.iso</i> and took a look at the Xfce version in a live session.</p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgpt_TKmfd_YFqrwYSdePcAnWfNxnQCIk2gp65GgNDEhTeUjHlDNMlrXyYXKv-hi1QcoHNtVt1n1IE_J3VLKLbHWEaEa1cLsBW-31mMpm3D77nLmRgW-wRTVZ2u4zcK9npRpdxgda2SBI/s800/linux-mint-ulyssa-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="800" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgpt_TKmfd_YFqrwYSdePcAnWfNxnQCIk2gp65GgNDEhTeUjHlDNMlrXyYXKv-hi1QcoHNtVt1n1IE_J3VLKLbHWEaEa1cLsBW-31mMpm3D77nLmRgW-wRTVZ2u4zcK9npRpdxgda2SBI/w640-h360/linux-mint-ulyssa-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-szM-6Xk789iUt-ZCbtAOmzKX7m8GQNfSYMyC6ZghShE-V5yWWWCMP9IFWeW28a81NGMHbtcJlpOf9zTMMztH87lg2qOI6umT6Reiu6muZe4ytPSjIwSuPRaXS-tZGUbbrA_K6KAtzJM/s800/linux-mint-ulyssa-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="800" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-szM-6Xk789iUt-ZCbtAOmzKX7m8GQNfSYMyC6ZghShE-V5yWWWCMP9IFWeW28a81NGMHbtcJlpOf9zTMMztH87lg2qOI6umT6Reiu6muZe4ytPSjIwSuPRaXS-tZGUbbrA_K6KAtzJM/w640-h360/linux-mint-ulyssa-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p> </p><p>"Ulyssa" booted up quickly and easily from a flash drive on the three laptops I tried it on. The Xfce desktop's setup has a pleasant and comfy feel to it. They've loaded the release with a nice selection of tools, making it a breeze for the user to jump right in and get things done. I felt that I was working with one of the best live sessions I've seen.</p><p>Linux Mint 20.1 Xfce release notes: <a href="https://linuxmint.com/rel_ulyssa_xfce.php">https://linuxmint.com/rel_ulyssa_xfce.php</a></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-43215275065607724962020-12-21T13:02:00.000-08:002020-12-21T13:04:34.456-08:00great jazz<p>Volunteer Andre Lacerda hosts <b>"The House That Jazz Built"</b> every Sunday from 11 pm to 1 am on KUNM radio here in New Mexico. As KUNM's website (<a href="https://www.kunm.org/">https://www.kunm.org/</a>) describes it:</p><p></p><blockquote><i>The House That Jazz Built brings you Avant Garde, Contemporary and Experimental Jazz from the last 50 years with a focus on recent releases. Includes interviews with local artists, recordings of live shows and current events.</i></blockquote><p></p><p>Lacerda (see: <a href="https://www.kunm.org/people/andre-lacerda">https://www.kunm.org/people/andre-lacerda</a>) also serves as substitute host for some other shows at KUNM, including the "All That Jazz" segment, which airs here Monday thru Friday from noon to 1:30 pm. He's been a regular this year on the Monday slot. For "All That Jazz", Lacerda steps back from the "experimental" stuff he plays on Sunday nights, and the result is an hour and a half of some of the finest jazz you'll hear anywhere.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin5R4OxQVgsZ7MLO6IKWFZtjS5t_qrMdjbYeSAy33V955mBVJOgQeCi0QeNx0YQpKnQGgM6Hye7JSLCoPkLHBVhzfikbGkWaNkeK93xol5bGqczTRARCFDjWEL7f4SKawlRJ5NJj1QSDI/s929/kunm-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="595" data-original-width="929" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin5R4OxQVgsZ7MLO6IKWFZtjS5t_qrMdjbYeSAy33V955mBVJOgQeCi0QeNx0YQpKnQGgM6Hye7JSLCoPkLHBVhzfikbGkWaNkeK93xol5bGqczTRARCFDjWEL7f4SKawlRJ5NJj1QSDI/w640-h410/kunm-2.png" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>kunm.org has the great "Two Week Archive" feature (I take advantage of it all the time!), for those who can't catch on-air broadcasts (or who want to replay them).</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHJGJWKgRhGmf0TgmusVMfT8xMwdj6gxiQEyd8HlxUL1Ypw_O6JPdYxVIURWJvTbh6XSgo68m4V6jZ_si1rW3ZUx7TDbnm-4QMOiuXUfqiSmX9KrqcQVuu1KAF6yAdEwoD3QyH8oNLLU/s1084/kunm-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="627" data-original-width="1084" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoHJGJWKgRhGmf0TgmusVMfT8xMwdj6gxiQEyd8HlxUL1Ypw_O6JPdYxVIURWJvTbh6XSgo68m4V6jZ_si1rW3ZUx7TDbnm-4QMOiuXUfqiSmX9KrqcQVuu1KAF6yAdEwoD3QyH8oNLLU/w640-h370/kunm-1.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-47075753098126270352020-11-17T04:57:00.004-08:002020-11-17T04:57:51.042-08:00demographic shift<p>Check out Gary Younge's article, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/17/trump-desperate-fight-stop-minority-vote-republicans-racism">"Counted out: Trump's desperate fight to stop the minority vote"</a>, the latest piece in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/news/series/the-long-read">The long read</a> section at <i>The Guardian</i>. Excerpt:</p><p></p><blockquote><i><b>The trouble is that as white people become a minority in the US, efforts to disfranchise non-white voters necessarily become ever more crude and ever more desperate, but cannot be guaranteed to produce results. The sums just don’t add up. The group sought for exclusion is growing at a faster rate than can plausibly be excluded. Republicans have only won the popular vote once in the last eight presidential elections. This, in no small part, explains the bizarre moment we find ourselves in, with many Republicans refusing to admit what everyone else can plainly see – that they lost the election. They are howling at the moon because they are running out of options here on Earth.</b></i></blockquote><i><b></b></i><p></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-12281968915677022272020-11-11T01:56:00.005-08:002020-11-11T01:56:58.910-08:00they're sho nuff playin ruff<p>My song for the day: "So Ruff, So Tuff" by Roger - <a href="https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=s90dqNfPDR0&list=RDAMVMs90dqNfPDR0">https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=s90dqNfPDR0&list=RDAMVMs90dqNfPDR0</a></p><p> </p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-4120952894876571772020-11-02T05:18:00.000-08:002020-11-02T05:18:52.051-08:00we are one<p>My song for the day:</p><p> </p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=WoFt3_m76eg&list=RDAMVMWoFt3_m76eg"><i><b>We Are One</b></i></a> </p><p style="text-align: center;">by Frankie Beverly and Maze</p><p style="text-align: center;"> </p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><i>Can't understand<br />Why we treat each other in this way<br />Taking up time<br />With the silly silly games we play<br />We've got our love<br />And no matter how it's said or done<br /><br />We are one no matter what we do<br />We are one love will see us through<br />We are one and that's the way it is<br /><br />Sometimes I feel<br />That we try and make each other sad<br />The things we do<br />How we make each other feel so bad<br />We've got so much<br />We could all be having so much fun<br /><br />We are one from the very start<br />We are one deep down in your heart<br />We are one<br />And that's the way it is<br /><br />I can't understand<br />Why we treat each other in this way<br />Taking up time<br />With the silly silly games we play<br />We've got our love<br />And no matter how it's said or done<br /><br />We are one no matter what we do<br />We are one love will see us through<br />We are one and that's the way it is</i></b></p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlaqHrmOo1iNONEu0e9XXf21f6WOdVa-BBUSeKBD25-XUqbB8yS3J2lGj7PuHKabPoLiN64JFqrfj8Q7LjEpqnHUzZBjCJLTklGWELRJWs-quycGoThUlZue7msaoGTOrlfU5EKm0vTzQ/s462/maze.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="462" data-original-width="459" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlaqHrmOo1iNONEu0e9XXf21f6WOdVa-BBUSeKBD25-XUqbB8yS3J2lGj7PuHKabPoLiN64JFqrfj8Q7LjEpqnHUzZBjCJLTklGWELRJWs-quycGoThUlZue7msaoGTOrlfU5EKm0vTzQ/w636-h640/maze.jpg" width="636" /></a></div><p></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-88324303022366615632020-10-26T20:48:00.002-07:002020-10-26T20:48:41.648-07:00some reading material<p>Courtesy of <i>The New Yorker</i>, an exclusive excerpt from Barack Obama's soon-to-be-released presidential memoir, <b><i>A Promised Land</i></b>: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/11/02/barack-obama-new-book-excerpt-promised-land-obamacare">"A President Looks Back on His Toughest Fight"</a> </p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-61335256369379454952020-10-24T05:06:00.004-07:002020-10-24T05:06:56.080-07:00enlightenment<p>Listening to <a href="https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=snJ1D373S1Y&list=OLAK5uy_kB5Y_Zc3Vl-CUc6bUu_fihOvDtYOHSTv4">the <i>Enlightenment</i> album by McCoy Tyner</a>, recorded in 1973 at the Montreaux Jazz Festival. Alphonse Mouzon on drums (see: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphonse_Mouzon">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphonse_Mouzon</a>). More about the album <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enlightenment_(McCoy_Tyner_album)">here</a>.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5814254689150329359.post-23869411256585954132020-10-21T11:50:00.002-07:002020-10-21T11:50:56.713-07:00two from pragmatic<p>Found two nice articles from <a href="http://pragmaticlinux.com">pragmaticlinux.com</a>. First:</p><p><i><b>"Getting started with Double Commander"</b></i> - <a href="https://www.pragmaticlinux.com/2020/06/getting-started-with-double-commander/">https://www.pragmaticlinux.com/2020/06/getting-started-with-double-commander/</a></p><p>This article, from back in June, offers some tips on using the dual-paned, "orthodox" Double Commander file manager. As the author writes:<br /></p><p></p><blockquote><i>Double Commander is a free and open source dual pane file manager. It is an excellent file manager, especially for those who prefer a consistent file manager experience, while trying out different Linux desktop environments. This article assists you with getting Double Commander installed and configured on your Linux system.<br /><br />Each desktop environment ships with its own file manager: Nautilus on Gnome, Dolphin on KDE, Thunar on XFCE, etc. Working in the file manager forms and integral part of my daily PC work flow. Therefore I do not enjoy being forced to switch to a different file manager, each time I try out a different desktop environment on Linux. Additionally, I really enjoy dual pane file managers. If you recognize yourself in these file manager preferences, then I can highly recommend giving Double Commander a try.</i></blockquote><p></p><p>Kinda sums up why I use "DC".</p><p><br /></p><p>Second:</p><p><i><b>"Install a minimal KDE on Debian 10 'buster'"</b></i> - <a href="https://www.pragmaticlinux.com/2020/10/install-a-minimal-kde-on-debian-10-buster/">https://www.pragmaticlinux.com/2020/10/install-a-minimal-kde-on-debian-10-buster/</a></p><p>Good tips here. Basically, do a netinstall, choose only "standard system utilities", then run:</p><p></p><blockquote><i><b>sudo apt -y install kde-plasma-desktop plasma-nm</b></i></blockquote><p></p><p>After that, add whatever packages/apps desired.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0