Posts
Alt+SysRq on a newer ThinkPad
In Linux, the magic Alt+SysRq+X keyboard combination can perform emergency system tasks, like unmounting the disk(s) and rebooting the system, even if the operating system appears dead or hung. As an example, here are the SysRq key combos that I’ve used to cleanly reboot a hung system (in this order): Alt+SysRq+S: sync the filesystems Alt+SysRq+U: unmount the filesystems Alt+SysRq+B: reboot Unfortunately, recent ThinkPads eliminated the top keyboard row, where the SysRq key resided. But there is a workaround, described in this post . Here is the procedure:
December 6, 2022
Language Puzzles
I’m an old fart now, so the inevitable changes happening to the English language are puzzling me.
November 28, 2022
Fixing HP P1006 Printer Out of Paper Error
On my Linux Mint 19 system, when the HP P1006 printer runs out of paper, the printing system (CUPS) refuses to print even after loading paper into the printer, power-cycling the printer, and disconnecting and reconnecting the USB cable. In the end, restarting CUPS seems to be the only way to eliminate the “out of paper” indicator: sudo systemctl restart cups
November 9, 2022
Setting up scan to email in HP Color LaserJet printer
Our library has a relatively new HP multi-function laser printer that has scanning and copying functions. Recently a patron tried unsuccessfully to use the printer’s “scan to email” feature, and I realized we had never configured the printer to enable this feature. Here are the steps I had to take to get this work.
October 31, 2022
Gary Brooker R.I.P.
I just learned that Gary Brooker, the co-founder of Procol Harum, died six months ago. He was one of the finest songwriters in the rock genre. His lyricist for most of his songs was Keith Reid. The original band had other fine musicians, notably B. J. Wilson (drums), Robin Trower (guitar), and Matthew Fisher (organ).
August 26, 2022
Hunter Biden Emails
Now that the Hunter Biden emails from the famous laptop are available, it’s possible to download them to one’s own computer and examine them at leisure, without using the very overloaded site, and without requiring a network connection. I accomplished this using the mail indexer notmuch , and my own fork of the sup email client that uses notmuch as a backend.
May 17, 2022
Windows, UTC, and the hardware clock
Users of Windows / Linux dual boot systems might notice that the time of day is correct in LInux but incorrect in Windows. I ran into this problem with a PC at our local library. There is a fix for this, but to explain the cause of the problem in the first place, we have to look at the 40-year history of the IBM PC and subsequent compatible computers.
March 16, 2021
Linux on Lenovo Ideapad 3
I was asked to install Linux alongside Windows 10 on a new Lenovo Ideapad 3. There were several problems to solve: getting Windows setup to not require a Microsoft account, fixing the boot-related options in the BIOS, finding a working version of Linux Mint, and getting the touchpad to work.
February 10, 2021
Fixing Guest Session on Linux Mint 20
It appears that out of the box, the guest session feature of Linux Mint 20 (and Ubuntu 20.04) is broken. In the Mate edition of Mint, this feature is enabled in the Login Window portion of the Control Center. But if you attempt to login as a guest, an error dialog pops up saying “Could not update ICEauthority file /run/user/999/ICEauthority”. The desktop eventually appears, but only after a very long delay.
December 12, 2020