johnvaluk

6 ms·

1.
by johnvaluk 3mo ago
The older Intel-based Dell XPS 13 machines have the same footprint as some 11 inch Chromebooks. Some models have thermal quirks that cause a shutdown, which is easily addressed by lowering the CPU frequency. Battery life is pretty good (but
2.
by johnvaluk 3mo ago
There are a lot of old Chromebooks with only 2GB of RAM soldered to the motherboard. Other than that, they're surprisingly capable machines after you flash them with MrChromebox firmware.
3.
by johnvaluk 2y ago
Is it possible to override shellcheck? It's a valuable tool that I use all the time, but it reports many false positives. It's not unusual for junior developers to introduce bugs in scripts because they blindly follow the output o
4.
by johnvaluk 2y ago
And a CLI you can use interactively or for automation (once you get the quoting right).
5.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
Like any documentation system, its success depends on its audience. As an administrator, I wish MediaWiki had a built-in updater (bonus points if it could be automated).
6.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
Can you describe the fix?
7.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
This isn't fair. Researchers put an extraordinary burden on administration in an academic institution. Research by its very nature is cutting edge and is always testing limits. "I want it now!" ignores existing streamlined pr
8.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
Yes, your local agent can be accessed on the destination host by any other user with the necessary privileges (including your own account -- a root compromise is not required). This has been known for a very long time and a warning is inclu
9.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
SSHFS provides enormous value precisely because it doesn't rely on configuring a file server or elevated privileges. It's convenient, secure and performs well. The ability to create ad hoc mounts for any remote location I can acce
10.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
This is a nice guide. In my experience, it isn't necessary to configure ChromeOS by logging into a Google account after enabling Developer Mode, if you simply want to ditch ChromeOS and flash the UEFI firmware. Just press ctrl+alt+F2 t
11.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
Great novel. It's a shame the author never gave it a title. /s
12.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
I started refusing local anaesthetic for dental procedures when I was teenager. I discovered the pain of the procedure itself (such as drilling a cavity) was the same, but I was spared the pain of the injection and lingering numbness afterw
13.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
It would be nice to see the MacOS-specific commands in a separate table (or somehow marked as such).
14.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
The discourse UI is horrible. Adding insult to injury, it checks browser versions and breaks for anything it deems unworthy. Why would a text forum care about which browser is used?
15.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
I call them firemen who put out their own fires. Also annoying are the managers who suddenly champion mission continuity without wondering why operations have been free of disruption for years...
16.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
Whenever someone wishes for a film adaptation of Blood Meridian, I recommend The Proposition. I'll be amazed if any Blood Meridian movie is as good.
17.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
I just canceled one of my ISPs because there was no way for me to adjust my plan online unless I selected an upgrade. The agents I chatted with were misleading and the website was full of dark patterns. I'd still be a customer if they
18.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
You can also hold down the Option key when booting to select bootable partitions or external devices. Different models may require extra steps to enable this, but I've never needed to use rEFInd.
19.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
I run NixOS on several old Chromebooks with 2 GB RAM and 16 GB drives. It's doable if you stay on top of garbage collection. YMMV depending on your use case.
20.
by johnvaluk 3y ago
Note that some firmware upgrades will only be applied if MacOS is booted from the internal drive (NVME support was added this way to some models). I leave MacOS on the machine for as long as it's supported and dual boot other operating
21.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
As a touch typist, I can usually adapt quickly to variations in the bottom row (Ctrl, Fn, Alt, super key). But I find it impossible to use a keyboard with undersized, asymmetrical Shift keys. Odd choice for a flexible keyboard.
22.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
For a feature that isn't enabled by default, "just use Nix Flakes" hardly qualifies as best practice or even commonplace. I've used Nix/NixOS for years and still don't have a use case for flakes. I only enabled
23.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
Why does CSS animation consume so much CPU? I've been trying to use it in my own projects, but the fans kick in even with a single simple continuous animation. Unfortunately, this (awesome!) example is no exception.
24.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
Don't overlook the benefits. Use them to your favor. Go for a walk. Did you see an interesting bird, insect, or plant? Take a picture or commit to memory and try to identify it when you get home. Got any broken stuff? Look up informati
25.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
Common Table Expression (the WITH clause).
26.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
See the NixOS manual for more information on buildFHSUserEnv ( https://nixos.org/manual/nixpkgs/stable/#sec-fhs-environment... ).
27.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
Cormac MaCarthy writes terrible novels that are good to the last word.
28.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
Blood Meridian left me with the feeling that Judge Holden was originally multiple characters turned into a composite to serve as a narrative device and metaphor. I think I would have enjoyed the book more if it had been a straightforward od
29.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
I'm tempted to try UML with GitHub Copilot to see if two wrongs make a right.
30.
by johnvaluk 4y ago
I just want to download the image and dd it to a flash drive. Nobody uses ChromeOS without a Google account, so why add extra hoops to jump through?

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