Subj : USB lock up - poo! To : Ky Moffet From : Barry Martin Date : Tue Feb 15 2022 09:56:00 Hi Ky! > KM> Also that LibreOffice does not like XP64 at all. (OpenOffice runs > KM> fine, tho. So does WordPerfect x6.) > Would cloning work? I've not done it other than with Raspberry Pi's. KM> Nope, tried that. Also tried x64 and x86 versions and even back KM> to 4.0, all no joy. Either it won't run at all, or as soon as I KM> apply any formatting, BOOM-CRASH. Looks like my Googling was better than yours: Can LibreOffice run on Windows XP? The latest version of open-source LibreOffice is a great suite for Linux, Mac, or Windows users. ... Note: The 64-bit edition will not run on Windows XP, but the 32-bit version will run on XP. Further: Which version of LibreOffice works with Windows XP? And take a look at 5.4 release notes, where it's officially stated that 5.4 is the last version to support XP/Vista. > As for LibreOffice, OpenOffice uses the same format (.odt, etc.) so > sseems should at least mostly work. I do have some old files probably > under LibreOffice and when when opened under OpenOffice the sizing is > sometimes too large: is like its display in 14 font but says is using > 12. Data's all there. KM> .ODT is an invention of the devil. It's basically identical to KM> .DOCX. It's really a bunch of XML and stylesheets zipped up KM> together. And if the ZIP header gets corrupted, the document is KM> toast; you can't just load it into a text editor and recover it KM> like you can with .DOC or .WPD or any of the uncompressed KM> document formats. I have an editing client who lost a whole KM> finished novel that way (I'm fairly good at extracting stuff from KM> buggered ZIPfiles, and all I could recover was a page background KM> image). I don't recall having any corrupted/unrecoverable documents but have had a few issues of not wanting to open, cancel, works the second try. Might not have been an actual document issue as I'm recalling some isses where the document opening was probably held up because the system was searching for external jpg's, etc. Would then get a square where the graphic was supposed to go with the address. Since have learned and manually copy in. KM> The only worse document format is Apple Pages, which KM> double-compresses so even if you can recover the wrapper, the KM> contents are toast. All that just to save a little space on the hard drive! > KM> have some TIX solder here somewhere, or can order... (there's > KM> still new old stock around) very hard but low melting point. Used > KM> to work where it was made. Ideal for electronics or jewelry. > KM> Contains iridium, among other secret ingredients. > Order it now so when it after you use it you'll put it away and find the > original spool! KM> LOL, yeah, that's how it works! We almost did that with a roll of Teflon tape. Not all that expensive, just the principle of the things, especially as had _two_ rolls here -- one bought and the other came with something plumbing we bought a while back. Both of us could visualize the rolls: one larger, blue and white snap=together container, the other a blue spool with the white tape. Normally kept on the shelf with the other hardware stuff (think gigantic medicine cabinet -- drawer boxes for sorted screws, bolts, nuts, electrical, electronics parts). Looked in the shoe box in the kitchen pantry -- maybe when we were going to start the project something else came up and shoved them in there? Nope. ...Maybe in the Junk Drawer? Nope..... Casually glance around as we wander the house -- like playing Hide and Seek. Eventually I find both spools: on my Electronics Workbench (oops!). Sort-of tray of smaller items to be put away -- got cold down there/other more important projects and finishing up the cleaning never got finished. And of course I had looked in that area -- several times. Maybe they were playing Hide and Seek! > KM> [Pinephone] > RTFM! But first to FFM! (Find the manual.) As far as not moving the KM> I may have to do that. KM> I did find a couple of PDFs purporting to be manuals. "Please the batterie charge. On button push two tick. Off button push three tcik. ..." > files, permissions error? On occasion I've given up and done in two > steps: create a temporary directory on the destination device, copy the > files to there, then copy the files from the temporary directory to > their proper home. (These files were too large and/or too many for > Sneakernet.) KM> Shouldn't be the issue. It stalls at about 200k which is why I KM> think is timeout problem. Want me to try? Send the link to my Metronet account (in signature should you have a brain fart! ). I might be able to send it on in a different format. > KM> Keyboard case doohickey: > KM> https://pine64.com/product/pinephone-pinephone-pro-keyboard-case/ > Nice! The PinePhone must fit in the top for that price: they didn't > didn't explain it as far as I could see. Does come with a USB port for > hacking! You'll like that! KM> Yeah, you pop the back off the phone and pop it into the case. OK, makes sense. More leave the PinePhone semi-permanent in the keyboard case as opposed to random use. > KM> This is the phone part: > KM> https://pine64.com/product/pinephone-beta-edition-with-convergence > KM> -package/ > Looks good! And nice little dongle with the extra ports! KM> Yeah, now to figure out how to make it work... Check the manual .... Oh. > KM> battery replacement kit, now waiting for the fiddly patience to > KM> do the job. Forgot to order that component. > Mine's on back order! KM> Is THAT the problem... Can we blame that one on supply chain issues also?! > > What was pre-installed is probably a combination of lowest cost to > > install and what the person in charged liked. As for browsers, ran > KM> It's Manjaro linux with the KDE/Plasma desktop. So it's more or > KM> less whatever KDE apps have already been compiled for ARM (same > KM> CPU class as the Raspberry Pi -- under the hood this is a Rock > KM> Pi, IIRC). Some run well, others are still iffy. > Yes, noted today when snooping the first link the ARM processor. > ..Have it talk to a Pi! (Just because same processor or even similar > unit doesn't mean they'll work together.) KM> IIRC it's a RockPi under the hood... rivals, more like... Possibly: I haven't checked any of that out. For less confusion and easier parts (hardware and software) swapping I try to keep everything with Ubuntu or Raspberry Pi. Bad enough the new Bullseye OS for the Pi doesn't fully support the stuff that worked under Buster. > I think I sent you that information a little while ago but here's the > link: https://raspberrytips.com/best-web-browsers-raspberry-pi/ KM> Ah yes. We have several in the repository, but haven't had brain KM> to mess with it yet. Today it did a big update and pretty much KM> replaced the whole monkey. Apparently it's a rolling distro. Hopefully not a seven hour update like with Windows! > KM> But linux phones are only a couple years old in the retail > KM> market, so a long way to go yet. The most mature is the Librem; > KM> while nice, out of my price range. (However, for $2000 you can > KM> get a Librem phone with NO Chinese parts; worth it if you're > KM> privacy-critical, given that ALL Chinese chips and software are > KM> to some degree compromised.) > Yes, I think it's kind of 'funny' how all of a sudden the worry about > potential hacking. Heck, one of the first things I thought of when > looking for (monitoring) cameras here at the house was someone capturing > the signal. Other problem was the video data want to some external > site, seemed usually China just because that's where the unit was > manufactured, and then back to me. What happens when the Internet is KM> I too thought that was a rather obvious concern. > out? At the time I had DSL and every so often problem with their copper > lines. No/poor Internet, no video feed! KM> And what happens when Big Brother decides to share the link? I'm not too concerned (note: not to be interpreted as not concerned) but more for things like accidental cross-feeds. Here the cameras are just monitoring outside, so no juicy inside displays, but other people have cameras inside so 'surprise!'. > > across an article on browsers for the Raspberry Pi and he liked (best to > > worst) Puffin, Chromium, Vivaldi, Firefox, Midori, > > https://raspberrytips.com/best-web-browsers-raspberry-pi/ , also lists > > pros and cons of each, amount of RAM used, etc. > (Hey! look what I found! ) KM> It's following you around. Playing Hide and Go Seek?! > KM> Midori is reportedly a good choice as a bit less heavy, tho no > KM> idea how well it works. > I remember trying it a few years ago, so on a Raspberry Pi 3 or 3B -- > seems like it worked but at the time I wasn't impressed with it. For > the Pi's here I generally don't need a broswer so haven't expermented -- > Chromium is good enough. KM> It works well enough, yeah, and has the extensions I need. KM> Probably a bit weighty for an ARM, unless they've really pared it KM> down. Maybe something you can do -- my code writing is basicly lightweight scripting. > > That's bad! Anything like a hidden .Desktop directory? > KM> Of course, being it's linux. I'm thinkin' the problem is that > KM> it's Desktop View, which will hide icons. (Folder View shows 'em. > KM> Or is it the other way around; I forget.) This is probably not to > KM> mess with. > When's that stopped you? Just make sure to have a working backup!! KM> Suuuuure, when I figure that part out... Maybe be like the old joke of the secretary photocopying the floppies to make backups?! My guess is maybe remove the SD card and clone that on a computer. ....Well that was easy: Googled 'PinePhone Backups" https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=11343 This one you might like better: https://forum.manjaro.org/t/whats-the-best-way-to-back-up-a-pinephone/59 924/2 Whole poop-load of other suggestions. If using dd might be nice to see something is happening so use pv or past few versions of Ubuntu can append: status=progress . > I think you're using D:\Info like I'm using $HOME/File Cabinet. ...I was > looking to see how many subdirectoris it contained; did it the wrong way > but has 192 GB inside! KM> Or rather D:\ as the File Cabinet... lessee.... root KM> directories.... KM> !!!HollyLisle KM> !!Books Yup! I also use some 'coding' to force items to the top of the list. > > BTW, what do you do with all those extra SD to micro-SD adapters?? > KM> Stick idle micro-SD cards in 'em so they don't get lost, being > KM> they're the size of your little fingernail and prone to go > KM> flipping off into the depths of the carpet. > OK. I had bought something like 50 of the plastic holders a while back > -- stick a single microSD card in (they can hold up to 6). Cut a small > piece of paper to fit inside as a label. When working on a project will > have two or three: clone before the next major step! Will tape a note > to the outside. KM> Mine live in a tin can on the top shelf of the desk. Yours are KM> obviously more upscale! Some are living in two matching (oooo!!) blue boxes with a flip-open cover. What's even better is the coin envelopes I have just fit inside the boxes, so the SD cards inside their plastic holders can be inside -- sometimes two or three of the same/similar (like backups for the cameras on different IP addresses). > KM> Or... HEY! I need to use that computer *today*, not next week! > Really. That's somewhat how I got started with two monitors: do an KM> And how I got started with two computers!! Spares are good! Something happens to the first one, use the second to Google how to first the first one, order replacement parts. > KM> proactive about such things, and it's a rolling distro, so > KM> updates continuously). > I haven't timed the updates here: seems no more than a minute, then > generally about a minute or two extracting and installing, though some > several minutes, depending on what the update is. Good news is doesn't > clog the connection -- I did sometimes notice a bit of a slowdown with > the old DSL service (7 Mbps). KM> Well, the diff is rolling is always up to date for every package, KM> and there are no system upgrades. Mostly small and often, unless KM> KDE has another point update, then larger. PCLOS is good about KM> sharing the connection. Fedora is not. I have -- ??. Kept current with the LivePatch option ==> automatically updates and installs in the background. Also does the System Update ones: the "A" in the Favourites Panel with the popup. Some require a reboot, most just a manual intervention. No idea why those couldn't be done in the background too. > Ouch! One would think with vacuuming and probably actually looking for > embedded staples at the beginning all would have been found by now. > Nope! Just like here -- not in the carpeting but outside every so often > find a nail from when the roof was done several years ago. KM> In the desert, nails were the major cash crop. You could find KM> nails literally anywhere. Not another trace of anything ever, KM> but.. nails! "Dry rot" of the wood the nails were holding together?! (It occurred in the desert, where it's dry....) > Back in the old-old days I had a small electronics work area set up in > the basement of my parents house. At the time the house had fuses -- I > put in a smaller value fuse to the workbench so (theoretically) if I > screwed up I'd just shut off my area and not a part of the house. Also > wired it so the bench area light was on the other side of my fuse: that > way still had light! KM> You're much fancier than I'll ever be Aw, thanks! We all have our specialties! Some of mine is just thinking outside the box/non-traditionally. Or "fear": Dad would have been annoyed but understanding if I blew a house circuit; my Mother not nearly so. Therefore if I can reduce the 'area of harm' to just myself then Dad's impressed and my Mother thinks I'm so smart! (And no, I wasn't cowering towards my parents, and they weren't overbearing.) > KM> Oh, the paid ones at Mozilla Foundation are no better. > Maybe the unpaid ones use the paid portion as a base. I sometimes think > the free stuff is really us end-users beta testing for the commercial > use version. KM> Yep, in fact yonder are Fedora and RedHat, proof of concept. Is that the sequence? Again something I haven't really needed to get into. My starting with Ubuntu was more based on MythTV used it back then (Mythbuntu). LIS somewhere up there I only want to use a few options just to make things easier on my few little Gray Matter Thingies. Otherwise it's "so this computer uses Fedora and this computer Ubuntu and this computer...". Bad enoug I stick labels on the keyboards so I know which one connects to which computer (especially if wireless and the keyboard's here on the desk and the computer is over there at the other section!). > I haven't played with NVMe's yet -- nothing seems to be all that KM> There's a third party driver to make 'em work with XP and Win7. KM> Works fine with XP64. But made Win7 throw up in ways I'd never KM> seen before. Win10 flags them as corrupt if it didn't format KM> them. (That's twice. And why Win10 never touches Silver again.) IMO that's the OS being too posessive! KM> Anyway.... the speed is impressive. About 5x that of a good SSD. > sluggish to access. "Worst" is the MythTV files: ...largest 21GB, > generally 3-5 GB. Generally a second, sometimes two, to start playing. > Never times, so maybe not as long as it sometimes think it takes. KM> Video playback is not real speed-sensitive. Even an old HDD KM> suffices. It's not reading the whole file at once, only the part KM> it needs to fill the buffer. Probably so, and it seems various video utilties do it differently. Back a few years ago I was using a Raspberry Pi 3 (probably 3B) as a MythTV Frontend. Connect wirelessly - stuttered; connect via Ethernet - smooth. The RPi 3(B)'s WiFi was the 2 GHz band, plus 'only' 54 Mbps, and I think there were a few other bottlenecks. Now using an RPi 4 via WiFi MythTV is smooth -- of course using the 5 GHz band, there are some improvements in the RPi4.... > > KM> Considered the size of VMs, and thought to myself... Self, > > KM> wouldn't that be a good job for the fastest storage available?? > > Ummm....a 620 TB HDD?!!!!!! > KM> That sounds about right! > Though apparently try to avoid the shingled version. KM> My hard drive needs reroofing! Especially after you opened it to look at the R/W head dangling and the arm broken off in the other! > KM> Mine do a lot of typing. > That's probably it, plus could be additional factors like how hard one > hits the keys. Plus the wireless keyboards here are used on 'secondary' > computers; my main computer has always been wired. And yes, I do wear > away the wired keyboards. KM> Wired are better, for sure, but it's just too much crap to trip KM> over here. All those wires are behind the desk, etc. Laid out neatly, somehow get tangled just sitting there. I have had to run wires/cables across the walkway for various reasons. Try to use a bright/contrast colour to the carpet to remind me it's there. Overnight I'll throw a tee shirt or something over the wire -- not to protect the wire but to protect from me from tripping over it! Big White Splotch is more noticeable than Tiny White Line! > At one time I tried using those number strips like I used for > identifying the wireless keyboards to identify the RPi microsSD cards. > Just the right size! Also too thick: had a couple get stuck and needed > to wiggle out using needle-noise pliers (gently, on the sides!), KM> Ooops.... yeah, a good way to mark those has so far escaped me. I've read some people had used fingernail polish. One, none here, though could buy some, or probably hobbyist paints. Not really that good an option for me as somewhat colour blind. > Mickey Mouse mouse (!). Worked fine except the layering to make > Mickey's features were uncomfortable and dug a little into my hand. KM> LOL, now I want one, just because :D I took a semi-quick look at Amazon: didn't see any Mickey Mouse mice but did see some Mickey Mouse USB drives. Also saw a mousepad with Mickey and Gang. > This keyboard has a full-sized Backspace! ...Old Aspire- > branded keybaodr I using with the RPi project currently also has a > full-sized BS. Handy thing about that keyboard is has a USB port to > plug the mouse in to. ...Looking at other keyboards up here: all have KM> Handy! It is! One less USB port to use, one less cable out of the Pi. > KM> I can't use a touchpad, not without wanting to hurt someone. > Guy I knew a while back used a trackball. Seemed to be a good option, KM> Can't use those, makes my wrist hurt. That's not good! > except here if doing mostly typing (so little mousing) I'll shove the > mouse towards the back and move the keyboard over so the main part of > the keyboard is directly in front of me. With a trackball I'd probably > smack the little roller ball out and then go looking for it on the > floor! KM> Except it's a big roller and it lands on your toe, and... Years ago I added some brackets to the back of my keyboard slide tray shelf -- whatever it's called. Remember I said I shove my mouse to the back and bring the keyboard over? Yup: one too many times shoved the mouse over the edge! And there have been times when I had two keyboards on the shelf -- so one shoved to the back and the other onto the shelf -- oops! > KM> All else being equal, I'd go with MSI as being less influenced by > KM> the endless beta hardware of the gaming market. I've become > KM> convinced that they literally use gamers to beta-test hardware, > KM> so if you want stable hardware, wait til it's old hat to gamers > KM> but standard for business. > That tends to make sense. Also tends to go along with my old idea a > motherboard made for gamers was going to be great for those of us who > didn't want to wait (fast file retrieval, etc.). KM> Gamers tend to be all bling and quick fix, and a LOT of hardware KM> churn. The bus speed is the same for a given spec regardless. So KM> let them work the bugs out and buy when it becomes a business or KM> workstation board! Works for me! I don't mind doing some beta testing but tend to prefer software over hardware. > KM> It's called tearing, and can be software issue or inadequate > KM> hardware. > Thought it was called 'tearing' but wasn't sure. Here the old MythTV > system had it but the new system does not. Not sure what caused the > change: the Frontends have the same hardware but have been updated to > MythTV version 31. The Backend is a completely new system: KM> Enough of an upgrade to fix the issue, anyway! Yup! Eventually the old system (BE3 -- probably will get a new name) will be upgraded: whatever the current LTS is, whatever the current MythTV is (version 32 due out the end of March last I heard). Will install a SSD for the OS -- right now combined with the same drive holding the recordings. > both in TV mode and HDMI via MythTV. Have one computer which will 'act > up' on occasion; exit to the Desktop and man is the display tiny! Not > tiny as in shrunk with black surrounding, tiny as in small -- instead of > a 1920x1080 it's something like 3840x2160 (4K), though seems like I saw > a 4,000-something when I checked. (TV's not all that high-end a one.) KM> "Suddenly my screen is half a mile away!!" That's what it seemed like! The bad news was the text size was almost too small to read, even up close. The good news is I knew what needed to be typed in Terminal so just blind-typed. > KM> So will Windows. In fact in the old days of never-enough-RAM but > KM> swap-is-way-too-slow there was a switch to make Windows > KM> preferentially use all RAM before touching swap. I ran with swap > KM> disabled for years. You can disable it on linux too, but modern > KM> hoggy browsers make that ... unwise. > Yes, I've seen when one could disable Swap but further reading made it > seem like not a good idea to do so. I have more than enough room on the KM> Mine rarely touches it, and then only cuz Chrome Hog. Right now this computer (running Ubuntu 18.04) is using 2.0 MiB of a 32.0 GiB Swap file and 6.3 GiB of 31.3 GiB RAM. No idea why its using any Swap; I don't I've seen it use anywhere near half the RAM. I rebooted on the 13th (two days ago as I write this), and probably the worst stress the system had was doing the backups. > hard drives (multiple computers) so don't need the extra few GBs. Plus > it seems like the Swap Drive occasionaly holds some 'valuable' data?? KM> Nope. You should even be able to access it. 4GB should be enough, KM> tho. At install the system decided on 32 GB, err GiB. I have more than enough room, so.... > I've not investigated but sometimes seem the size of whatever is in the > Swap Drive could be something like update stuff ==> run this file next > time a reboot is done??? I've seen times when there's something in the > Swap drive and AFAICT no reason to be because the RAM isn't even half > capacity. ...Just guessing. KM> Dunno. Only time I've ever seen it used is when Chrome is being KM> stupid, and then I had probably better close down and restart. Yes, if Chrome (or anything else) is having to use the Swap drive either something else is stuck or getting too greedy! > Actually does make sense: some motherboards have two slots, > others 4. If 50 motherboards have two slots and 50 motherboards have > four then the average is 3 slots. (This is the first time I've seen a > motherboard with eight slots - I'd be checking if 8+8+8+8+8+8+8+8 could > be used to give me 64 -- cheaper to buy 8 8's than 4 16's? (That kind KM> 8GB are about the largest before price per GB starts majorly KM> going up. (I get it used from any of several used-RAM dealers; KM> dunno what new prices are doing but they all went up last year.) I'm hoping to have the RAM for the new system in the storage box. Haven't checked yet. Might be able to take from the unused/stored computers, though that tends to render them useless unless can exchnage a small RAM stick for the 'stolen' larger one. Otherwise its credit card time! And I've also purchased used RAM from so far reliable sources. > of a system would probably max out with 256 GB, maybe 512, of memory - > I doubt I'd want to spend that amount of money at once -- do a memory > upgrade every so ofetn when need the smaller RAM for another computer.) KM> Silver is maxed out with 64GB. Fireball also has 64GB, but being KM> a workstation type board can max out at 192GB. Both have 8 slots. I'll probably go between 16 and 32 GB for the new system. > KM> Oh, no, the $50 brand new vidcards are now $200 brand new > KM> vidcards. > Oh - that seems more like taking excuse of the Supply Chain Issue. KM> And the chip shortage. There just isn't anything in the pipeline. That too! > One thing I found with the new monitors is they are sometimes too slow > in auto-switching to capture the computer's VGA signal, or at least on > booting. Was the reason I kept the CRT VGA monitor semi-handy. Might be > just the older computers as I haven't used the VGA monitor in ages. KM> I've found they can be slow to come back from sleep. I have a KM> couple CRTs yet but haven't seen 'em in years! Yes, I remember that sluggishness. I think one thing that helps, or helped at the time, was the monitor was only VGA: the monitor and the computer didn't need to do the handshaking and deciding routine. Monitor: VGA. Computer: well OK then. > > Change is good! I can't imagine you listening to Bubble Gum Rock! > KM> Well, I do like the Raveonettes... tho I'm not sure how bubbly > KM> they are... > I selected a semi-random video (something Love Song -- the earlier > listed were their Christmas songs) -- she reminded me of Blondie. Music > wasn't! KM> Yeah, they're like Blondie on bad drugs. "The Last Dance" KM> came on my little MP3 player, or I'd have never heard of 'em. Some time back Jukebox-type e-mails were being circulated. (I knew the source, so very low chance of it being a virus infection.) What was fun for me is I could sample the music - nope, nope, hmm! Never heard of this guy but I like it! > KM> People like all sorts of crap, or it wouldn't exist. So long as I > KM> don't have to endure it, why do I care?? > Nope! Actually I like having other music suggested and have discovered > stuff I never knew about. Admittedly I'm not into "screaming rock" nor > fall-asleep classical nor twangy country yet there are selections I do > like. KM> Yeah, you never know. Frex I follow a Japanese violinist... look KM> up Teppei Okada on Youtube. He does all sorts of weird stuff KM> besides the obvious. Including musical standup, funny even tho in KM> Japanese of which I have like two words. Run "Closed Caption | grep -i 'Google Translate'" (Not the right formatting but hopefully conveys the joke.) > > Go to https://youtu.be/zx8M5DXmH_0, though when I copied that the > KM> It's daaaaaaark!! > Really? It's nice and bright! ...Then it dawned on me! KM> Is that how it works? My sundial must need recalibrating. It's always 5 o'clock somewhere! (That's a reference to a country- western song out a few years ago.) > For some reason the OxBlue site I reference is still pointing at the > riverbank/under the bridges -- do know this Spring Bettendorf is > supposed to be installing some sort of elevator so walkers and bikers on > the River Trail can get up onto the I-74 Bridge to cross to the Illinois > side (there's a pedestrian lane built into one of the bridges). KM> I was noticing how much flood space there is under that KM> bridge.... There are times when it and more will be used! This year probably not as much: news had a blurb where this year's snowfall in Iowa is about half of normal. > Pretty! It seems they're showing as much snow as I have here: thought > Montanta was supposed to be colder and snowier than I am in Iowa! KM> A lot drier than Iowa... and we got hardly any snow this year. KM> We've had about 15 inches here, total, and it's long gone. But KM> that's not terribly unusual to get every few years. We made up KM> for it with 106" a couple years back. Eek! We tend to have that similar cycling. Gee, not all that distant! There have been years when wondering where to put the next snowfall and > > could bluff -- if I knew how to gamble! --- QScan/PCB v1.20a / 01-0462 * Origin: ILink: CFBBS | cfbbs.no-ip.com | 856-933-7096 (454:1/1) .