down to the surface

Awesome! Video from NASA of the Perseverance rover descending to the surface of Mars - https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-s-mars-perseverance-rover-provides-front-row-seat-to-landing-first-audio

at long last, split view in thunar!

I don't know why it took so long, but: "Xfce’s Thunar File Manager Gets Split View, File Creation Times, and More"

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!

ulyssa

For years, Linux Mint (site: https://linuxmint.com/) 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 linuxmint-20.1-xfce-64bit.iso and took a look at the Xfce version in a live session.

 

 

"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.

Linux Mint 20.1 Xfce release notes: https://linuxmint.com/rel_ulyssa_xfce.php

great jazz

Volunteer Andre Lacerda hosts "The House That Jazz Built" every Sunday from 11 pm to 1 am on KUNM radio here in New Mexico. As KUNM's website (https://www.kunm.org/) describes it:

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.

Lacerda (see: https://www.kunm.org/people/andre-lacerda) 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.

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).

 

demographic shift

Check out Gary Younge's article, "Counted out: Trump's desperate fight to stop the minority vote", the latest piece in The long read section at The Guardian. Excerpt:

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.

they're sho nuff playin ruff

My song for the day: "So Ruff, So Tuff" by Roger - https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=s90dqNfPDR0&list=RDAMVMs90dqNfPDR0

 

we are one

My song for the day:

 

We Are One 

by Frankie Beverly and Maze

 

Can't understand
Why we treat each other in this way
Taking up time
With the silly silly games we play
We've got our love
And no matter how it's said or done

We are one no matter what we do
We are one love will see us through
We are one and that's the way it is

Sometimes I feel
That we try and make each other sad
The things we do
How we make each other feel so bad
We've got so much
We could all be having so much fun

We are one from the very start
We are one deep down in your heart
We are one
And that's the way it is

I can't understand
Why we treat each other in this way
Taking up time
With the silly silly games we play
We've got our love
And no matter how it's said or done

We are one no matter what we do
We are one love will see us through
We are one and that's the way it is