● 08.20.23

Gemini version available ♊︎

● Links 20/08/2023: Budgie 10.8 Desktop and Linux 6.5 RC7

Posted in News Roundup at 8:28 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

GNU/Linux

Audiocasts/Shows

• We review some of the most popular Linux desktop environment options. Included are KDE Plasma, Gnome, Cinnamon, MATE, XFCE, LXDE, Budgie, Pantheon and Deepin.

• Episode Time Stamps 00:00 Going Linux #444 · Welcome to Linux! – Desktops 01:18 Bill broke KDE on his computer 02:08 Larry fixed a 13 year old laptop with LXLE 09:29 Definition: Linux desktop environments

Kernel Space

Graphics Stack

• Finally a default value for gl_PointSize.

• Long-term fans of the blog will recall that I’ve previously raged against the insane concept that pointsize must be written many times prior. In fact, it remains the second most blogged about topic in SGC history right behind

• Big Triangledescriptor management, the topic that modern graphics-related blogs must cover above all others.

• Finally with maintenance5 we can be freed from these unjust shackles that have bound us for so long. No more* shall complex logic be unnecessarily injected into the compiler stack to add senseless writes to this output.* except all that code still has to exist and run to handle drivers that don’t support maintenance5

• Beyond the obvious benefit of having a fixed default pointsize (sanity), let’s check out some other benefits.

• Previously all zink-emitted shaders would have a pointsize write, even those that were never used for drawing points. This resulted in unnecessary shader i/o at the hardware level. Nobody wants unnecessary shader i/o at the hardware level.

• Now, however, it’s possible to use heuristics during linking to delete all unnecessary pointsize writes any time there is no XFB emission.

• How much performance improvement will this yield?

Applications

• Big Data is an all-inclusive term that refers to data sets so large and complex that they need to be processed by specially designed hardware and software tools.

• The software featured in this group test is based on spritzing. Read text without moving your eyes, and therefore rapidly increase your reading speed.

• There is a new application available for Sparkers: Penguins’ eggs What is Penguins’ eggs? penguins-eggs is a console tool, under continuous development, that allows you to remaster your system and redistribute it as live images on usb sticks or via PXE. It supports: Debian, Devuan, Ubuntu and major derivatives: Linuxmint, KDE neon, etc.

• SMB (Server Message Block) protocol is a cornerstone of file and printer sharing in connected environments. However, the default configuration of Samba can pose significant security risks, leaving your network vulnerable to unauthorized access and cyberattacks.

• If you’re hosting a Samba server, you need to be extra cautious with the configurations you have set in place. Here are 10 critical steps to ensure your SMB server remains secure and protected.

• Linux is great for hosting servers. However, whenever you’re dealing with servers, you have to tread carefully and be extra aware as Linux servers are always a lucrative target for threat actors.

• It is paramount that you put sincere effort into fortifying your network and hardening your Linux servers. Besides properly configuring Samba, there are a few other measures you should take to ensure your Linux server is safe from the crosshair of adversaries.

Instructionals/Technical

• When you want to work with your Docker containers…

• Have you noticed “how can you see the size of directory in Linux?”

• The top command in Linux is one of the most frequently used commands in our daily system administrative jobs.

• In this tutorial, we will show you how to install Squid Proxy on Rocky Linux 9. For those of you who didn’t know, Squid Proxy is an open-source caching and forwarding HTTP proxy server that enables clients to access web resources while hiding their identity and improving browsing speed through content caching.

• RAR files are a widely used archive format that enables users to compress and package multiple files into a single, space-saving package. As a Linux user, understanding how to efficiently extract and create RAR files is essential for managing your data effectively.

• In this tutorial, we will show you how to install WildFly on Debian 12. For those of you who didn’t know, WildFly formerly known as JBoss, is a leading open-source Java application server that provides a robust platform for developing and deploying Java-based applications.

• This tutorial shows in detail how to install a Debian 12 (Bookworm) minimal server with many screenshots. The purpose of this guide is to provide a minimal setup that can be used as the basis for our other Debian 12 tutorials here at howtoforge.com.

• Learn step-by-step: Install LEMP stack (Nginx, MariaDB, PHP) on Debian 12 “Bookworm” for efficient web hosting and blazing-fast performance.

• When working with Docker containers, you’ll often want to pass configuration options and other data into containers via environment variables. There are several ways to inject environment variables into Docker containers both at build and run time.

• There are several ways to install Visual Studio Code on Debian 12.

• However, in this tutorial you will learn how to install Visual Studio Code on Debian 12 by using the official repository.

• MySQL is well known and an open-source database management system. It uses a relational database and SQL to manage data.

• I hope you read all my previous Linux Mint tutorials in the preferred order, so you know now how to download Linux Mint…

• Cockpit Client provides a graphical interface to your servers, containers, and virtual machines. Connections are made over SSH, using the SSH configuration of the local user (including aliases, known hosts, key files, hardware tokens, etc).

• The tar command is famous for being hard to use. What flags do you use for creating a tarball? What about extracting one?

• I remember two mnemonics when doing this: create a file and extract a file.

• Here are a couple of ways of getting the directory location of your bash script inside the bash script.

Desktop Environments/WMs

• Budgie 10.8 comes with a new applet called Budgie Trash Applet that was previously available as a third-party applet, but not it comes pre-installed by default with the new Budgie release. Apart from the usual functionality of such an applet, the Budgie Trash Applet also features support for restoring trashed files.

• Another interesting change in Budgie 10.8 is support for the StatusNotifier specification in the System Tray Applet, which enables applications to show their icons and menus in the system tray area in a modern way that is expected from a desktop environment in 2023.

• Exciting news, y’all! Budgie 10.8 has landed, and the Linux desktop environment is packed with features that promise to transform how we interact with our desktops.

• First off, the Budgie Menu has received quite the makeover. If you’ve ever scratched your head wondering why certain apps are in the ‘Other’ category, you’re not alone. The team listened to feedback, and now, applications have found more fitting categories. Plus, there’s a nifty fix for non-Latin text crashes, thanks to a switch to C for the Application Indexer’s fuzzy scoring function. And, let’s say goodbye to the Utilities category; its apps have found a new home in System Tools.

• Budgie Desktop is a modern, user-friendly desktop environment for Linux operating systems built on GNOME technologies. It is designed to provide a clean, elegant user interface while lightweight and efficient.

• Initially developed by the Solus Project, the desktop has gained popularity and has been widely adopted by other Linux distributions. Currently, it is developed by the Buddies of Budgie organization.

• Nearly seven months after version 10.7 was released at the beginning of the year, Budgie 10.8 is here, so let’s see what’s changed.

K Desktop Environment/KDE SC/Qt

• For me this was surprising, so I would like to raise a few questions here that might as well be answered with: “sure, we are”, and I just did not see it because I am a bit out of touch with KDE development news (and modern ways of communication in general). Personal and biased opinion follows. But here are the questions first:

• Are we handling such a prominently user-facing (as in in your face) changes transparently enough?

• How do we decide for such (as in groundbreaking) new defaults?

• Have the users (as in many of them) been asked?

• So, now for the personal opinion…

GNOME Desktop/GTK

• I am thrilled to announce that a lot of progress happened once again over the past few weeks! Starting with the most important thing, the diagram, a lot of bugs has been squashed and the rendering performance is now improved to a usable and merge-able state.

• Introduction We often overlook the file explorer or manager when it comes to Linux distributions or general computers.

Distributions and Operating Systems

• Linux servers are renowned for their robustness, enhanced security features, and ability to handle heavy traffic, making them an optimal choice for businesses and organizations. These servers offer dynamic versatility and scalability, allowing diverse customization options and the ability to adapt to varying load conditions.

BSD

• I see see these log messages on a regular basis. There is no distinct pattern. Some nights there might be 1, others 2. Today there were three: r730-01 is my main server in the basement.

• I’ve used Bacula since at least January 2004 (so nearly 20 years). I liked it so much I dropped my deployment-in-motion of another tool (if you search lightly, you can find out which one). I liked it so much, I wrote a PostgreSQL backend for it. This post is not for Bacula novices.

SUSE/OpenSUSE

• So, openSUSE Leap 15.5 being an enterprise-like system with slow moving releases, it’s been something of a chore to set up for a laptop, especially one where I occasionally want to play Windows games.

• Even after installing the vulkan packages and Wine Stable 8.0, and the media codecs from the “Packman” repository with “opi”, when I launched Fallout 4 Game of the Year Edition this time, I ended up with no voices and no soundtracks.

• When I ran it with wine Fallout4.exe, it complained that it could not find a Windows Media Audio codec for gstreamer.

Devices/Embedded

• In this guide, we’ll explain how to set up a private LoRaWAN network using the Raspberry Pi CM4-based RAKwireless’ WisGate Connect gateway and Docker or Portainer to install NodeRED, InfluxDB, Grafana, and other packages required to configure our gateway. The WisGate Connect is quite a versatile gateway with Gigabit and 2.5Gbps Ethernet plus several optional wireless connectivity options such as LoRaWAN, 4G LTE, 5G, WiFi 6, Zigbee, WiFi HaLoW, and more that can be added through Mini PCIe or M.2 sockets, expansion through WisBlock IO connectors and a 40-pin Raspberry Pi HAT connector. We’ll start by looking at the gateway features in detail, but if you already know all that, you can jump to the private LoRaWAN network configuration section.

Open Hardware/Modding

• Yakroo is at it again, this time with a Raspberry Pi Pico-powered Nixie LCD clock—complete with a custom PCB.

• Ike T. Sanglay Jr. is using a Raspberry Pi to both power and operate his custom-built cyberdeck project.

Leftovers

Ruben Schade ☛ Spelling misatkes (cough)I’m trying to train myself to stop misspelling these words:acknowlege → acknowledgediscernable → discernibleexistance → existenceeshew → eschewmaintanance → maintenancevaccum → vacuumvechile → vehicleMy success rate thus far is hovering around… 50%? I’m at the point now where I remember both spellings, but forget which one I’m supposed to be using.

• Businesses of all kinds are finding it increasingly challenging to protect their customers’ financial and private details as technology advances.

• As the old saying goes, “The only constant in life is change.” My life has been ruled by it, moving around as a kid, life in the military, and the same old stuff we all deal with as we age and grow.

• For the last 15 years, my wife has been the only constant in my life. We met in Delaware while I was stationed there. We fell in love, got married, and I scooped her away from the only home she had ever known to go live in Spain with me.

Hardware

• Improve the quality of your 3D prints by choosing the ideal infill pattern based on your needs.

• Guitar effects have come a long way from the jangly, unaltered sounds of the 1950s when rock and roll started picking up steam. Starting in large part with [Jimi Hendrix] in the 60s, the number of available effects available to guitarists snowballed in the following decades step-by-step with the burgeoning electronics industry. Now, there are tons of effects, from simple analog devices that would have been familiar to [Hendrix] to complex, far-reaching, digital effects available to anyone with a computer. Another thing available to modern guitarists is the ability to model these effects and guitars in circuit simulators, as [Iain] does.

• With over a dozen new desktop GPUs launched over the past year, we provide a retrospective on how things have played out, both good and bad. Unfortunately, most of the latest generation has been a disappointment.

• Picture it. You’ve got a big roll of NeoPixels, but you have no idea how many are actually on the tape. Or you need to count how many WS2812B LEDs are in a display to properly plan your animations. Fear not, for [Gustavo Laureano] has built the perfect tool for counting the addressable LEDs.

Health/Nutrition/Agriculture

• The weird mystery of biological age.

• Bad news for anyone with a brain.

Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)

• Sam Hartman wrote an interesting blog post about his work as a sex and intimacy educator and how GPT systems could impact that [1].

• I’ve read some positive reviews of Replika – a commercial system that is somewhat promoted as a counsellor [2], so I decided to try it out. In my brief trial it seemed to be using all the methods that Android pay to play games are known for. Having multiple types of in-game currency, pay to buy new clothes etc for your friend, etc. Basically it seems pretty horrible. I didn’t pay for it and the erotic and romantic features all require payment so I didn’t test that.

• The actor and comedian on what’s at stake in the writers’ strike, why politics are central to her standup, and how the scene has changed during her thirty-plus-year career.

• Shanna Gardner Fernandez, who could get the death penalty if convicted, won’t waive extradition during her first court appearance late Friday afternoon.

• The hackers had the blessing of the White House and leading A.I. companies, which want to learn about vulnerabilities before those with nefarious intentions do.

Security

• A cybersecurity researcher from SUSE, a Linux distribution manufacturer, has made public a serious security flaw in the Mozilla VPN client for Linux.

• North Korea-linked “Kimsuky” hackers carried out “continuous malicious email attacks” on contractors working at the war simulation centre.

Privacy/Surveillance

• As handy as having a smart doorbell is, with its ability to remotely see who’s at the front door from anywhere with an Internet connection, the off-the-shelf units are not typically known for keeping user privacy as a top priority. Even if their cloud storage systems were perfectly secure (which is not a wise assumption to make) they have been known to give governmental agencies and police free reign to view the videos whenever they like. Unfortunately if you take privacy seriously, you might need to implement your own smart doorbell yourself.

Defence/Aggression

• Earlier this month, the U.S. Navy’s Bataan Amphibious Ready Group and the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived in the Middle East.

• What its signers, Japan, South Korea and the United States, call deterrence, China characterizes as encirclement, even provocation.

• President Biden is hosting the leaders of the two Asian nations to overcome historical grievances and present a united front in the face of an increasingly assertive China.

• At Camp David, the three leaders laud a ‘blossoming’ of ties and pledge annual summits and military exercises.

• China opposed the meeting of the council on abuses in North Korea, but it did not attempt to block it.

• This paper examines the historical record of cognitive biases, focusing on the US intelligence community’s failure to forecast PRC intervention in the Korean War, despite collecting information and evidence indicative of that outcome.

• China held air and sea drills around Taiwan on Saturday, in what it said was a “stern warning” after the island’s vice president visited the United States.

• Official documents reviewed by MintPress show that the government of Taiwan is attempting to drum up anti-China hostility, intimidate American politicians and is even working with the FBI to spy on Chinese Americans.

• Many head for Hong Kong-run or pro-democracy businesses, as Cantonese is increasingly spoken on Taipei’s streets.

• >

• Taiwan’s Defence Ministry has strongly condemned the drills.

• The joint air and sea drills, widely expected in response to a presidential candidate’s visit to the United States, so far appear to be relatively limited.

• Murky ‘Golden Triangle’ Special Economic Zone is gambling and tourist hub catering to Chinese.

• Kyrgyz Prime Minister Akylbek Japarov signed agreements during a visit to China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region with the Chinese company Tebian Electric Apparatus for the construction of hydropower plants along the Sary-Jaz River and high-voltage powerlines in the country’s northern regions.

• According to industry reports, prices for rare metal gallium (Ga) have increased tenfold in less than a month. The price increase follows a supply decrease following the August 1st-imposed export restrictions by China.

• Independent Chinese media outlets go out of business and are replaced with Beijing-friendly voices.

• “No one likes Zuckerberg because he’s a communist that’s suppressing our speech, and ruining most of our businesses,” Robichaux told The Post. “We feel like he needs his a– beat.”

• With the country’s attention riveted on violence perpetrated by gangs and drug cartels, the security issue is paramount — and may be decisive.

Environment

• By Steven Chan and Thomas Chan, The Green Earth Marine light pollution caused by bright fishing lights is a growing concern in Hong Kong. It adversely affects the environment, disrupts coastal residents, harms marine life, and poses risks to navigation.

• The torrential rain and flooding that threaten Southern California also menaced Baja California, the western Mexico peninsula that is popular with tourists.

• Tropical Storm Hilary is bringing the likelihood of “catastrophic and life-threatening flooding” to California Sunday, while prompting unprecedented tropical storm warnings for Los Angeles and San Diego.

• Threat level: The storm is not only dumping two years or more worth of rain in California’s desert areas. It is also bringing tropical rainfall rates, which can be torrential, to areas that have never experienced them and are vulnerable to flash flooding even in more ordinary downpours.

• Hurricane Hilary is speeding up its approach to southern California, prompting unprecedented tropical storm warnings for Los Angeles and San Diego, and fears of “catastrophic” flooding, according to the National Hurricane Center.

• A half-trillion dollars is starting to work its way through the US economy, remaking climate technology along the way.  One year ago, the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law, marking the most significant action on climate change to date from the federal government.

Energy/Transportation

• This is post #4 of the Milo Stove project. Post #3 is here:

• https://bkhome.org/news/202308/milo-stove-chicken-tin-and-mesh-stand.html

• The lid of the Milo tin is being re-purposed as the base on which will sit the alcohol burner. As mentioned in post #3, the air inlet is underneath the chicken-tin. Here are the holes drilled in the lid: [...]

• The U.S. power grid is outdated and overtaxed, and it’s only growing more vulnerable under the pressures of soaring demand, extreme weather and climate change.

Finance

• Blue-collar jobs in delivery and logistics are still a stopgap for workers with gig staffing companies recording a churn in recruited partners every 4-5 months, according to experts. Blue collar staffing for delivery and logistics, a relatively new job category, is seen by workers as a stopgap arrangement or means of generating supplementary income, say experts adding that many prefer not to take it up as a permanent career choice citing the “stigma” attached to these roles.

• There’s more bad news for potential homebuyers in the US, who’re already challenged by a dearth of available homes. The cost of borrowing is shooting up to decade highs.

• Beijing wanted to cool its housing market, but created a bigger problem, as the fallout from debt-laden developers and sinking sales spreads to the broader economy.

• By Rebecca Bailey with Emily Wang Chinese livestreamer Chen Ying has spent more than 100,000 yuan (around US$14,000) on lottery scratch cards, which she systematically scrapes through on camera for her followers on social media platform Douyin.

• China Evergrande Group, the property giant whose collapse precipitated a real estate sector crisis in the country, has filed for bankruptcy in the US. The company sought protection under chapter 15 of the US bankruptcy code in a Manhattan court on Thursday (Aug. 17) as part of its massive debt restructuring plan.

• Embattled Chinese property giant Evergrande Group filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States on Thursday, court documents showed, a measure that protects its US assets while it attempts to restructure.

• The Chinese economy is weakening as seen through indicators related to its property and manufacturing sectors, unemployment, inflation, and trade.

• Progressives like Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders typically blame corporate greed for higher prices. When prices go down, does this mean they should credit corporate benevolence?

• The Chinese economy is weakening as seen through indicators related to its property and manufacturing sectors, unemployment, inflation, and trade.

• As inflation continues to fall we look at whether the cost of supermarket groceries could follow

• Asian stocks have followed Wall Street lower after notes from a U.S. Federal Reserve meeting dented hopes interest rate hikes are finished. Hong Kong and Tokyo lost more than 1%. Shanghai, Seoul and Sydney also retreated. Oil prices declined. Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 lost 0.8% after minutes from the Fed’s latest meeting suggested board members are unsure what to do after raising their key lending rate to a two-decade high. Traders had hoped they would decide inflation was under control and last month’s rate hike was the last. Bond yields widened after the Fed notes increased expectations of another possible rate hike.

• As the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) reaches a milestone on Wednesday (August 16), H2 View weighs up the positives and uncertainties surrounding the landmark legislation.

• This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. The rise of the tech ethics congregation Just before Christmas last year, a pastor preached a gospel of morals over money to several hundred members of his flock.

• Rail fare rises to stay below the separate RPI measure of inflation which hit 9%

AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics

• Can an intellectual on an anti-graft crusade win the presidency in a nation sliding toward authoritarianism? Guatemala is about to find out.

• A surprise presidential runoff candidate, a blatant attack on electoral independence, and the shock waves that could shift the future of democracy in Guatemala.

• Days after the woman called her chambers, Judge Tanya S. Chutkan cautioned the former president about making “inflammatory statements” that could harm the integrity of the case.

Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda

• Beijing’s infiltration has morphed into targeting dissent, religious groups and technical know-how

Censorship/Free Speech

• From Thursday’s story in the Sacramento Bee (Sam Stanton) (link added): More than two years after a Sacramento-area businesswoman was falsely accused of posting racist and hateful comments on the Facebook page for Sacramento’s Black Lives Matter chapter, her lawsuit against BLM Sacramento has been settled with the group’s founder issuing a public apology….

• Generally speaking, the law can’t punish false statements about the government—even knowing lies—on the grounds that they damage the government’s reputation.

• “[T]he fate of Plaintiff’s claims hinges to some extent on the truth or falsity of Defendant’s statements regarding Plaintiff’s conviction of a crime. Whether Defendant’s statements are false—a determination that relies at least in part on Plaintiff’s criminal records—is directly relevant to the public.”

• People may be able to successfully sue based on allegedly false and defamatory statements about themselves, or about very small groups of people that include themselves—but not based on statements about whole countries or ethnic groups.

• was unconstitutional.

Civil Rights/Policing

• Prominent Pakistani human rights activist Imaan Zainab Mazari was detained in Islamabad on August 20, purportedly in connection with a speech she delivered two days earlier in which she sharply criticized the military.

• MLK lieutenant Clarence Jones says he’s still drawn to the words of a German-born rabbi.

Internet Policy/Net Neutrality

• Sophy Romvari’s film follows a young woman who works online, sometimes stripping, sometimes singing, always involved in the performance of self.

Monopolies

• Intel has terminated its plans to acquire Israeli chip maker Tower Semiconductor after both companies failed to get timely regulatory approvals from Chinese authorities.

• Intel Corp. today scrapped its plan to acquire specialty chipmaker Tower Semiconductor Ltd. for $5.4 billion. Under the terms of the acquisition, which the companies announced last February, Intel had until Tuesday midnight PDT to close the transaction. It reportedly missed the deadline after failing to secure regulatory approval in China.

• Intel calls off its planned acquisition of Tower Semiconductor, an Israeli chip maker, after waiting in vain for 18 months for a review by Chinese regulators.

• Huawei, JCET, Verisilicon, NationalChip, and Tongfu can support Chinese chiplet efforts.

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