March 09, 2021
Empty string passed to getElementByID()? Why you can't just duplicate javascript functions for mobile and desktop elements.
March 04, 2021
Another scam hits my inbox! Developer's wouldn't find this one particularly interesting, but it's exactly the kind of e-mail I expect my clients would follow up on. Also, cool twist: it involves Nazis. The premise is simple: we own a version of your domain, and unless you pay us for it your brand will suffer. If you're a business owner and you've received an e-mail from computerbright.com, know that nothing about them seems legit.
February 15, 2021
It's just the way of Linux, especially on legacy hardware: every now and then you screw things up beyond repair--like when you change graphics drivers and can no longer access a login screen. I recently got myself in a pinch and, after hitting my head against a wall for several hours, decided that I'd look at reinstalling Ubuntu and restoring from a Duplicity/Deja Dup backup. Unfortunately, my first attempts to restore the backup presented me with an error that seems to be somewhat common. The fix, as often seems to be the case, was a simple permissions change.
February 10, 2021
It'll take a while for you to optimize your Pi 4, but the answer is a definitive "YES"--you can manage a development workflow on it. The real question is, do you want to?
February 02, 2021
I recently looked at my 2008 Mac Pro to optimize it's startup disk; today let's have a look at the Raspberry Pi 4 to see what kind of setup provides the fastest read speed on it's boot disk. We can take it for granted that the Pi 4's USB3 port will provide better throughput than the on-board microSD reader; I've seen people using different USB3 peripherals for their boot disks, though. Today, I'll have a look at how a USB3 flash drive performs against a 2.5" solid state.
January 29, 2021
This is probably a no-brainer for advanced Linux users, but for newbies it may strike as awkaward that if you create/partition a disk with one user on your computer, another user won't automatically have "access" to it. This is a good opportunity to revisit the function of permissions in Linux--a quick review of Users and Groups.
January 28, 2021
Just a quick recap of all the fun I had this week. No great revelations here, but sometimes it just feels good to vent.
January 14, 2021
Okay... BIG qualifier here: this post pertains to a 2008 Mac Pro running Ubuntu 18.04.5 LTS. If you're expecting some sort of cutting edge hardware review, this isn't it. However, I fetishize old computers and my 2008 Mac Pro holds well enough against contemporary computers that it can handle just about anything I throw at it as a web-developer in 2021. This computer has been an ongoing project, and I enjoy tweaking it here and there to see just how well it can keep up. I recently purchased some PCIe cards (adapters, really) to run hard-disks on, and in this post I'd like to casually review which card, which drive, and which connection gets me the best performance. I'll also discuss what kinds of tools on Ubuntu/Linux help me assess this.
November 05, 2020
Pi 4 as a desktop computer? Here are some initial thoughts as I sit down to play with the newest version of the Pi Foundation's single board computer.
October 21, 2020
Having difficulty getting file sharing set up in Xubuntu? Stop banging your head against a wall: all you need is an SFTP client! PS: this should work for Zorin OS as well.