Work and Python

So I have been "loaned" to another group to help with some development efforts.  For the past month I have been allocated 100% to this project and have been developing a python library of tools, some applications, linux configuration, etc.

It has been SO MUCH FUN!  But it has also been a lot of work.  I don't think I've worked LESS than 10 hours a day since it started.  Some days up to 14 hours or more.  Still...  I hadn't had the opportunity to code in my current position for 4 years, so this has been so refreshing.

Programming makes me feel like I am doing something constructive.  My "normal" job feels like a big paperwork shuffle.  In my "normal" job I do not feel as though I am actually doing anything.  It feels like a lot of meetings, a lot of talking...

So it has been fun to get back into Python.  I hadn't really done work in Python since around 2004.  Since then it was mostly Java, ruby, groovy and some php.  Python is my second favorite language, after Ada, and my favorite interactive language, with the bonus of some pretty good byte-compiled code execution speeds.

Another language I like a lot is Scala.  I am looking into Kotlin as well.  I hear it is a solid language.  Since groovy, scala and kotlin (generally) run on top of the JVM they are performant and have access to the JDK, and all the Java-based libraries you can find.  Good stuff.

My wife has been working on a children's book series that her aunt wrote, she is illustrating the stories.  The first book was completed, the second is in progress.  She is also "pet-sitting" and is having fun with that.  I believe she is saving up for her next pup.  :)

My mini's check engine light came on last week...  I did not worry much about it as it was running fine.  Turns out mini's have a lot of "check engine" issues that turn out to be absolutely nothing as was the case with this one.  It WAS near the time to have my oil changed, so I went and had them run diagnostics and change the oil.  They did nothing else, and the check engine light went off.  So... either it was related to the oil (which came out pretty clear because I am staying on top of it) or possibly the gas cap (which is a frequent trigger of CE lights).  Anyway, oil changed, tank filled and check engine light off... she is purring like a kitten.

Fedora, Fuel and KaOS

Well you know me by now... can't settle down for anything.  I have been back on Fedora (I have been flipping back and forth between Pop_OS! and Fedora for awhile now) for a couple of weeks.  The terrible GNOME visual eye candy performance drove me crazy and, as I have noted in a previous web log entry, Fedora is vastly superior in that regard.

So I installed and configured Fedora 29, using a grey theme, easy on the eyes (similar to MX Linux greybird theme), got Nvidia going, got PlayOnLinux, Steam and other tools that I like to use up and running.  But... I am always looking at odd new distros.  Today my three choices were Slackware, SolydK and KaOS.

I've run all of these for at least a day at some point in time.  A LONG time ago I ran Slackware on a machine with Gnome 2 or something like that.  But, Slackware is nice, but it is work and I am lazy, but it was nice to see it booted fine off my thumb drive!  Solyd might be a solid distro, but it did not work very well on my hardware.  KaOS...

Well I had tried KaOS over a year ago and thought "this is a nice distro!"  My problem with it then was its come-hell-or-high-water-we-will-only-be-64-bits mantra.  And honestly I get it, the keeper/developer worked HARD to make a gorgeous, usable KDE distro unlike any other.  When I say gorgeous I mean GORGEOUS!  Very nice to look at.  But even better than that... it supports flatpak.  Yes, you can install flatpak on KaOS and (if you are not familiar with flatpak) because of that you can now use any application in the flatpak library.  STEAM is one of those.  In fact in a previous incarnation of Fedora I ran a flatpak version of Steam!  Not only that, Wine 64 runs on KaOS and really, my favorite game runs on 64 bit Wine... so, while I might not have PlayOnLinux to install it on KaOS, I should be able to figure out how to manually install my game through Wine.

This means that if I WANT to switch over to KaOS, nothing is really holding me back.  I need to think about it though as Fedora is a very good Gnome/Gtk based linux distribution.

Ahhh the FUEL part.  Nothing to do with Linux really.  I ordered some gasoline additive that is supposed to raise your octane points over 10!  And I mean 10 Octane as you read it at the pump, not octane points... it raises over 100 of them.

My gas tank is down to about 1/2.  I figure I will use a little more up tomorrow and add this to my tank and fill it with regular unleaded.  That should get me over 95 octane easily.  I am curious to see how my engine tuner responds to that.  I thought about going with 91 octane + the additive but, that seems like overkill++.

Also, I have narrowed down my "hesitation" issue.  It happens usually when accelerating half-heartedly between 40 and 50 miles per hour... I believe the tuner I have on confuses the transmission somehow... so unless I am mashing it or just driving plain-jane style around that speed the engine starts up-down-up-down shifting, or just stops shifting and almost seems to get stuck in neutral.  It is a bizarre thing.

Good night!

I am not much of a mechanic but...

...I do manage to perform some maintenance on my vehicles.  Tonight I replaced the spark plugs in my R59 mini S, and boy the old plugs looked bad.  I got the old ones out easily, put some anti-seize on the new ones and they went right in.  Took the mini around the block for a test drive and, call me crazy but I think the exhaust smelled a lot cleaner.

It will be interesting to see how she performs over the next week.

I am also...  such a dork...  I am also back on Fedora.  Love Pop, but the gnome performance is terribly sketchy.  I can get Nvidia drivers and non-free audio drivers installed on Fedora, AND gnome runs like butter.  So ... here I am.

Other than that, not too much to report.  Gotta go to bed soon.  Have a 6:30 AM meeting in the office tomorrow.   :)

General updates and ramblings...

Still on Pop!_OS.  I recently tried (in live mode) Manjaro Openbox, Mabox, Manjaro Deepin... and I just cannot get into them.  MX Linux is still out there as one of my favorites though.  But I don't know... Pop has just been THERE and out of my way.  It isn't super special in any way.  It just has enough tweaks and conveniences that set it apart from Ubuntu.

I really like XFCE and distros that use it.  I am not a huge fan of KDE even though I did use it for a year a number of years ago.  Openbox seems usable... but I remember when GNOME 3 came out I really did not like it.  I have bounced around Mac OS, Linux and Windows for awhile now but when Windows 7 came out I moved to that and stayed on it for years, through to Windows 10 (I even own a copy of Windows 10 Pro now).  But I have always preferred unix-like, posix-standard-meeting systems over Windows or OS/2, etc.

I am rambling.  But where I was going with that previous paragraph was that perhaps getting used to Windows 8 and then Windows 10 interface along with the more recent versions of Mac OS X, GNOME is no longer a "shock" to my system.  I don't know.  But I even like it now.

I think that Fedora puts out a decent GNOME 3 workstation but it is more difficult (ie. I am lazy) to configure graphics drivers and to get Steam working the way I like it.  Manjaro GNOME is also very good.

I could hunt around for the "best G3 linux" and see what else is out there, but so far Pop!_OS has been very good.

I really want to like Deepin.  I have tried Deepin OS, I have tried Manjaro Deepin, but I just can't bring myself to stick with it.  It has some gorgeous design elements but...  it just feels a little rough to me.  Maybe I will play with a few more distros over the rest of my vacation.

Vacation is almost over and then it is back to work.  Of course I developed an ear infection (again) over the holidays.  :)  Alas.  Didn't really slow us down though.  We got to hang out with family and do some other fun things.  Sandi and I went on a short trip with some other Mini Cooper enthusiasts.

We joined a local Mini club and they did a run up to Prescott via Wickenberg and Peeples Valley.  The city center is all lit up.  There was also a gingerbread house competition at the local casino.  While we were there Sandi and I ate at a somewhat famous restaurant (we've eaten there before) and enjoyed the evening before heading back down to Phoenix.

That's all I have for now!  Shall write more soon.

Mini and Pop

Still on Pop!_os, probably a record for me, except back in the day when Ubuntu was first released and the year I used PC-BSD for work.  I know it is mostly just a gnome distro but something about it just feels ... I don't know, it just stays out of your way.

I recently updated my 4.19 kernel to a point release.  Working fine.  I DID have ONE freeze episode.  I had been playing Borderlands 2 early in the day, but just paused the game and left it running while we went out to run errands, then went to a church event...  so basically for hours.  I came back, fired it up to finish a quick mission and it froze.  So, not a huge deal since basically I kind of abused my poor system for hours.  I give this one a pass.  :)

Our Mini Coopers are great.  My wife's is a Countryman Park Lane, not much more to say about it except that it is a pleasure to drive in.  I've been driving top-down in my Roadster every day.  So much fun!

I will update more about the Mini soon.

...off to work.

Mini post