Something Random

Mercutio

Fatwah on Western Digital
Joined
Jan 17, 2002
Messages
22,552
Location
I am omnipresent
My office building used to be a bank. We still have the vault, the safety deposit boxes and the pneumatic tubes for the drive through teller lanes. The building is supposedly hardened to vehicle crashes or explosions as well, so I'm guessing it's an insulation thing. My personal office is on the back side of the building and looks out into Indiana Dunes National Park and/or State Park, which just means that I see a meadow and a lot of trees.

I finally have AC again and since I got to tell the techs how to set up the new system, I finally, possibly for the first time in my entire life, got to choose how climate control will work someplace. I have an HVAC zone to myself and don't have to share with hot flash grandmas any more.
 

jtr1962

Storage? I am Storage!
Joined
Jan 25, 2002
Messages
4,459
Location
Flushing, New York
How's the living alone situation going? I'm guessing it's an even bigger adjustment for you than for me. I couldn't have anything resembling a conversation with my mother although she was still physically there.
 

Mercutio

Fatwah on Western Digital
Joined
Jan 17, 2002
Messages
22,552
Location
I am omnipresent
I'm not used to the empty place. My quasi- partner goes out at night because she lives somewhere with a night life now, so we don't talk nearly as often as I'd hoped. I've been able to keep relatively busy with photography work and general hobby-tinkering but my cats aren't great at keeping up their end of a conversation.

On the positive side, I'll be getting my place cleaned and decluttered this week by friends with more domestic sense than me and thanks to the power of cheap plane tickets, i should be able to see her at least three times in the next couple months. At some point I expect we'll have to have a talk about ending our relationship just over the practicalities of distance and age but for now we're still as together as people who live exactly 1110 miles apart could be.
 

jtr1962

Storage? I am Storage!
Joined
Jan 25, 2002
Messages
4,459
Location
Flushing, New York
I'm not used to the empty place. My quasi- partner goes out at night because she lives somewhere with a night life now, so we don't talk nearly as often as I'd hoped. I've been able to keep relatively busy with photography work and general hobby-tinkering but my cats aren't great at keeping up their end of a conversation.

On the positive side, I'll be getting my place cleaned and decluttered this week by friends with more domestic sense than me and thanks to the power of cheap plane tickets, i should be able to see her at least three times in the next couple months. At some point I expect we'll have to have a talk about ending our relationship just over the practicalities of distance and age but for now we're still as together as people who live exactly 1110 miles apart could be.
My cat isn't so good at conversation, either. I'm also in the process of organizing my place a bit. Over ten years of taking care of mom meant I let lots of things slide.

Yeah, long distance relationships are hard. Heck, I lost touch with my high school friends after school ended and we were in the same city. Not being in daily contact tends to have that effect. Out of sight, out of mind. I guess eventually you'll have to have the talk you're probably both dreading. I'm guessing it would be difficult to impossible for you to move near her for work and other reasons. I'll also guess you haven't saved enough to consider retiring or semi-retiring at this point.

Just take it day by day I guess, and be thankful for the time you did have together.
 

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
Both of my past relationships, the one when I was a teenager and the more recent one that ended rather abruptly, were LDRs. I'm not willing to do anything long-distance ever again -- if it starts local and one of us has to move away, well. It probably wasn't going to work out anyway. And I'm back to how I was in regards to not looking for anyone -- I need to lock in and focus on my career anyway. I would qualify that with what I did last time, with how if someone came looking for me, I wouldn't necessarily close that door, but... honestly, I think I might. The whole reason that relationship started was because I was so startled at the thought of someone pursuing me that I just let it happen. And that was a mistake.

Merc, not to sound like a downer, but it kind of sounds like you were expecting something like this for a while now with how you referred to her as a 'quasi-' partner. All I can say is it really sucks. I know. And to hear "just be thankful for the time you did have" while true, can be a little patronizing. jtr, I know that wasn't your intent, don't worry -- I just got a lot of that when my relationship ended in February, and by the end, it really did feel patronizing. You're in good company, I guess, Merc, is what I'm trying to say.
 

jtr1962

Storage? I am Storage!
Joined
Jan 25, 2002
Messages
4,459
Location
Flushing, New York
And to hear "just be thankful for the time you did have" while true, can be a little patronizing. jtr, I know that wasn't your intent, don't worry -- I just got a lot of that when my relationship ended in February, and by the end, it really did feel patronizing. You're in good company, I guess, Merc, is what I'm trying to say.
That wasn't my intent but yes, it could be taken as kind of patronizing and cliche.

Last time I was in love was when I was 19. That didn't work out obviously. After that I sort of gave up pursuing people. It helped that I didn't meet anyone I found particularly interesting. My attitude has always been like yours. In the unlikely event someone pursued me, and it was a person I could see myself with, then I wouldn't close the door, but I'm not spending time actively looking. At least if that happened I avoid potential rejection knowing they're already attracted to me. That hasn't happened though. At this point I'm not getting my hopes up, either. Zero interest in anyone my age or close to it. I'd probably be looking for someone your age or younger. Not looking to get married, and certainly not looking to start a family. I'd just enjoy it for as long as it lasts, then move on.
 

Mercutio

Fatwah on Western Digital
Joined
Jan 17, 2002
Messages
22,552
Location
I am omnipresent
sed, my partner is literally half my age. I took her in because she didn't have a place to stay right when the pandemic started; she'd been couch surfing for a few months and was basically sleeping with people to have a place to keep her stuff. Her situation kept getting progressively worse and early 2020 was not the time to keep living like that. As it happened, we did get closer and more intimate over time, but the only thing I ever asked of her was that she clean up after herself. She has always considered our relationship to be a long-term thing. I hate to sound like I've had one foot out the door but I've known she was going to have to move elsewhere to progress in her career and I've always assumed things would end thereafter. I'm just trying to make sure she's in better shape than when I met her. I miss her company but we talk enough that I'm still emotionally fulfilled. I'm just waiting for the day she's ready to call it.

She's up here visiting through the weekend. We're going to a cabin in the woods of north central Michigan so she doesn't have to put up with fireworks on her birthday.
 

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
[...] My attitude has always been like yours. In the unlikely event someone pursued me, and it was a person I could see myself with, then I wouldn't close the door, but I'm not spending time actively looking. [...]

I probably worded it poorly, but I was just saying I think I'm done entirely. I was so shocked at being pursued that I let it happen, and that was a mistake; I think in the future my answer will be 'no'. Maybe I'll word it more nicely, maybe I'll just keep it the one word, simple and clear. Not that I expect to have to give that answer at any point again, if it took until I was 26 to happen the first time.

Merc, your story is really bittersweet. I'm glad she's with you right now.
 

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
I did another playthrough of Morrowind recently with Tamriel Rebuilt, which among (most of) the Morrowind mainland it implements (the base game takes place on the island of Vvardenfell, a lore-relevant Tribunal Temple preserve only recently opened to colonists) it also implements vanilla-esque character heads and hairs and this was the combination I chose for a bosmer marksman build. He looks like he sells and does skooma, it was funny. This was a 3rd person vanity camera shot I took of him levitating around Vivec, I think that's the top of the Foreign Quarter canton in the background.

I made it my avatar in a lot of places and I've just updated it here. I just... do that, occasionally.
 

Gödel

Storage is nice, especially if it doesn't rotate
Joined
Nov 21, 2002
Messages
535
Location
Virginia
I'd seen that, and I was going to try to change my member name as well as my avatar.

I thought I'd seen that as a possibility, but I can't find how to do it. Oh, well.
 
Last edited:

Gödel

Storage is nice, especially if it doesn't rotate
Joined
Nov 21, 2002
Messages
535
Location
Virginia
And now, for something completely random. I found how to do that change. https://storageforum.net/forum/account/account-details.

Unfortunately, "If you decide to change your username now you will not be able to again until Aug 2, 2025." I hope that doesn't mean I can't post until Aug 2.

Anyway, I'm going to try changing my name from Newtun to Gödel, with an appropriate new avatar.

Update: I did so, and it's awaiting approval by a moderator. The avatar change is already in effect.
 
Last edited:

jtr1962

Storage? I am Storage!
Joined
Jan 25, 2002
Messages
4,459
Location
Flushing, New York

Handruin

Administrator
Joined
Jan 13, 2002
Messages
13,963
Location
USA
And now, for something completely random. I found how to do that change. https://storageforum.net/forum/account/account-details.

Unfortunately, "If you decide to change your username now you will not be able to again until Aug 2, 2025." I hope that doesn't mean I can't post until Aug 2.

Anyway, I'm going to try changing my name from Newtun to Gödel, with an appropriate new avatar.

Update: I did so, and it's awaiting approval by a moderator. The avatar change is already in effect.
Sorry for the delay, it looks like it went through ok
 

Gödel

Storage is nice, especially if it doesn't rotate
Joined
Nov 21, 2002
Messages
535
Location
Virginia
Thanks, Handy! (I wasn't expecting rapid response on this unimportant change.)

But even better, I was logged on to the new user name automatically when I opened the web site today. I was expecting to have to re-logon with the new user name. Any my old posts were re-user-named, too. I guess there's an underlying user number that links to whatever the user name is.

Oh, and you even included the umlaut in the name!
 

Handruin

Administrator
Joined
Jan 13, 2002
Messages
13,963
Location
USA
There wasn't much I had to do except click and accept button to your requested change 😆. I'm happy it all worked out
 

Gödel

Storage is nice, especially if it doesn't rotate
Joined
Nov 21, 2002
Messages
535
Location
Virginia
To celebrate my name and avatar change here, I also updated my cell phone avatar:

The world's most interesting man
I don't know how many of you will recognize it. ;) 🍺 (XX)
It's a little humor, since I'm far from the world's most interesting man. 😴
 
Last edited:

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
Dad's up 25 pounds and has a lot of his strength back after a couple months on the feeding tube. He's still got a bit of a road ahead as far as getting his leg strength up so he can walk again without being in danger of falling, but even being able to be up and out of bed would be a massive difference to his condition after how he was when I saw him last.
 

ddrueding

Fixture
Joined
Feb 4, 2002
Messages
19,847
Location
Horsens, Denmark
In the spirit of Reinhold Niebuhr's Serenity Prayer, know what you can change, and freaking out about what you cannot change is unhelpful.

So, this is, in fact, fine.
 

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
In need of a nigh-disposable extra-portable machine for some light web browsing and such while I'm out again, and less an EliteBook 840G8 that frankly had some bad memories attached that I gave to my neighbor before she moved, I re-examined my discarded project Chromebook -- an HP 13g1, from what I can tell the highest-trim model with the Core m7-6y75, 16GB of RAM, and the ultra-annoying ultra-highres 3200x1800 13.3" display. 2015's finest. I don't understand why they could put an m.2 slot in a Haswell Chromebook they released the previous year with a Celeron, but not this; indeed, it has only 32GB of soldered eMMC for storage. Sufficient, but with no breathing room or options for entertainment that aren't streamed in off the network.

After updating my copy of Debian I'd stuffed on there I managed to break my fragile sound drivers -- I'd needed a custom kernel to have support for the audio devices these Chromebooks needed on there, anyway, though newer stock kernels implement the modules fine. Chromebooks do funky-wacky things in some ways. I gave it up as a bad job, pulled a backup of its eMMC, and threw a copy of Arch on it using... some graphical ISO the name of which escapes me now, but does indeed install regular full-fat Arch. I used said ISO because the pixel density of this thing is frankly terrifying and I outright cannot read a VGA text console at this size, even with a 16x32 vconsole font.

... It also preloaded a desktop environment. I'd not intended to use one, trying to keep as many spare CPU cycles handy as I could manage -- my Debian setup had used i3wm and I'd planned on replicating my setup there. Of the options available, I'd picked XFCE as it was the one I deemed least likely to make me sit and wait on a loading screen. I was pleasantly surprised by how responsive it was. I know I shouldn't be shocked by XFCE being usable, but it was more that any full desktop-environment was a pleasant experience. I'm very able to eke workability out of absolutely gutless machines -- I was once challenged to being stuck with a 1GHz Pentium III for a week, and honestly they should have stipulated that I had to use a modern operating system and productivity stack, because it was almost too easy.

Predictably the scaling was an issue. I eventually worked out some combination of environment variables and DPI settings to get everything graphical scaled acceptably without blurring all the text, though I did turn around and increase font and icon sizes for my environment after that (10pt fonts and 24x24 icons up to 12pt fonts and 36x36) as even an effective 1600x900 is just a mite small for my eyes at 13 inches.

As originally configured, the CPU in this thing was struggling to boost past 1.6GHz all-core, putting its performance figures in the "miserable" range, by my estimate roughly comparable to trying to eke out an existence in the modern day on a low-end Conroe-era Core2Duo. Even with an undervolt of 75mV on both the CPU and iGP, it didn't really want to go past 1.8 all-core, 2 flat for single. But I discovered a little script I'd used to talk the intel-rapl driver into forcing the power limits to reasonable numbers on my old 2015 MacBook Pro 13, where it used a 28W i5-5257U but was constantly thermal throttling because the cooling solution was intended more for an ultrabook-class power draw around 15W and they were allergic to turning the fan on. Some adjustments to the watt limits and further adjustments to power-limit length and I was in business.

Did you know the m7 is stuck with 4.5W to work with in PL1? For 28 seconds... for some reason? And PL2 is just useless. 15W, but for literally a thousandth of a second. Talk about race to idle. I tuned these numbers to a much more reasonable 7W for 25s at PL1, and 12W for 5s for PL2. Now my all-core is consistently around 2.6 under full load, single hitting 2.8 -- not quite the 3.1 promised by Intel, but much closer than 2.0. Battery life is impacted, but not as much as you might think really -- being able to boost high enough to finish work before being slammed with more means it can actually return to idle instead of sitting at 50-100% all the time. I'd say it was about a 30% reduction in battery life, but this thing got around 9h off jump, so 6h with the machine actually being tolerable to use is fair enough.

Purely due to timing of release, the HD515 this has for graphics can only decode up to h264 and VP8, so I did have to install h264ify to get smooth YouTube playback. Such is life. Really not bad for a 10-year-old Chromebook, even a high end one.
 

Mercutio

Fatwah on Western Digital
Joined
Jan 17, 2002
Messages
22,552
Location
I am omnipresent
Somewhere in my piles of discarded nonsense, I have a Thinkpad X1 tablet. I liked the form factor but it was actively unpleasant to use for either Windows 10 or Linux. To its credit, it is the only tablet PC I've ever seen that can have internal parts swapped, so for example I could add more RAM or switch the SSD. Nothing helped the m7 though, so now that thing is resting at the bottom of a stack of stuff I might pull out and show off to kids who want to know how to work on hardware.

sed, if you need a less crappy system, I can probably dig up a notebook or chromebook I could send your way.
 

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
I'm perfectly okay. I can buy something else if I need to -- heck, we've got refurbs in stock at the office I have practically free license to look through if I want -- I wanted to see if I could press this back into service before I gave that a go, and I'm pleasantly surprised by it now that it's not struggling to hit a reasonable boost clock. I didn't need a ton of performance on tap, just something to do some personal browsing and media playback on without lugging my Precision around when work has me out of town. Something that, ideally, if I forget about it and lose it somewhere, I'm not all that cut-up over it.

Its annoying parts are well-able to be worked around -- I eventually got the scaling situation acceptably sorted -- and the stupid Chromebook keyboard layout is eminently capable of being redefined through judicious use of keyd. And the display is crisp and pretty, the keyboard is tactile and responsive, it gets plenty of life on battery, and interestingly it does this with the thickness of, like, a modern iPad Pro. This thing is thin, and light, and somehow very sturdy despite that. It has the kind of build quality I wish HP would put into all of their products, not just... this thing... and EliteBooks.

I might be interested in that X1 with the m7, if it still works and you're actively looking to get rid of it. Especially now that I know more about how to tweak these chips -- given a reasonable power budget, they aren't bad at all. They're not fast, but they get out of their own way well enough. The major sticking point I'm facing with the Chromebook is that it's got soldered eMMC, and not a lot of it. It's not an issue right now, but I could see it becoming one in the future. It sounds like that X1's screen might have a more reasonable res as well.
 
Last edited:

Mercutio

Fatwah on Western Digital
Joined
Jan 17, 2002
Messages
22,552
Location
I am omnipresent
The main value I have for the X1 is as a tablet that can be taken apart without destroying the damned thing. I have an old Surface Pro that I had to chip the screen off completely to get to its drive, so I usually show those systems off side by side as a teaching aid.
 

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
That's fair enough and a really good point. They're not super dear on eBay if the curiosity becomes unbearable, I suppose. If you're in the mood to tinker with it, you might try ThrottleStop on Windows, or a combination of intel-undervolt and poking at the intel-rapl power driver for Linux. Here's the script I put together to poke reasonable values into those ephemeral config files for the rapl driver under /sys/class:

#! /bin/bash

echo 1 > /sys/class/powercap/intel-rapl:0/enabled
echo 7000000 > /sys/class/powercap/intel-rapl:0/constraint_0_power_limit_uw
echo 25000000 > /sys/class/powercap/intel-rapl:0/constraint_0_time_window_us
echo 12000000 > /sys/class/powercap/intel-rapl:0/constraint_1_power_limit_uw
echo 5000000 > /sys/class/powercap/intel-rapl:0/constraint_1_time_window_us
 

sedrosken

Florida Man
Joined
Nov 20, 2013
Messages
1,949
Location
Eglin AFB Area
Website
sedrosken.xyz
Also just realized it might be best to drop the systemd unit file I put together to call that script on bootup. It assumes you install the script system-wide to /usr/local/bin.

[Service]
Type=oneshot
RemainAfterExit=yes
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/power-limit-set

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
 

Gödel

Storage is nice, especially if it doesn't rotate
Joined
Nov 21, 2002
Messages
535
Location
Virginia
If you can find them at your grocery store, these are the best popsicles ever.

I've only tried the 1753323333951.png and1753323527716.pngones.

The coconut ones are really creamy, with coconut bits; the raspberry ones (and other fruits, I assume) are more like popsicles made with real fruit.

I'm going to try some other ones, like the variety packs of 12 minis and the cherry/limeade and tropical punch (coconut/mango/passion fruit) blends.
 
Top