lazypc

So I want to start teaching electronics to my grandson instead of us just playing video games anytime he comes over. Going to start simple, components and circuits, then graduate into arduino sketches. Eventually I think I would like to revive one of those old pi-laptop projects that way he has a device to start creating his own sketches on. But here is the issue, a big part of why I want to devote so much time to this is not only in hopes that he does something with it as he gets older, but that he is frustrated bored at home, and his mom has really strict approach with his online access. Now that he has been caught trying to search "adult" material twice at school so the situation is deteriorating further. Age 10 if someone is curious. So if we make this pi-laptop I need to disable the networking on it, that way he just can't casually turn it back on and now something I'm trying to do to help turns into something only making it worse in his mom's eyes. Ideally I would like it to be something I can turn back on to do updates, and grab libraries as projects progress. Ethernet probably needs to get disabled as well so he doesn't just go plug it into the modem when his mom isn't home. And I figure that if it had the pi version of minecraft it would probably be a plus for him as well since he doesn't have a PC and getting grounded from his xbox is normally the first level of punishment. So I am asking for suggestions, I am comfortable with linux command line but how drivers and devices work in linux is still a little meh to me... I literally just spent 4 days trying to get a USB TV Tuner to work in Plex on a headless Ubuntu Server so I'm using that as a reminder to ask for help when I need it.

Summary Using a computer script to keep track of scalping, engineer Michael Driscoll has been able to track close to 50,000 NVIDIA RTX 30 series cards sold by scalpers online. Quotes My thoughts I don't have anything great or inspiring to say on the situation as a whole. The reimposed US tariffs are only going to make this worse. I'm glad my 1080 still does fine, and I think I'm just going to start buying previous generation cards when a new generation comes until that burns me. So I expect to finally purchase a 3080 used sometime late 2023. Sources https://www.pcmag.com/news/scalpers-have-sold-50000-nvidia-rtx-3000-gpus-through-ebay-stockx https://basictech.tips/2021/01/27/scalpers-have-sold-over-50000-rtx-30-series-gpus-online/

And just to echo also that you are right in what you are seeing, when I have had issues with RAM being labeled as hardware reserved, that RAM is in fact unusable by the system, either reserved by iGPU or just unable to be utilized for a different reason.

Just to echo my experience with what others have already said. Since you have been so thorough in troubleshooting already and ruled out iGPU reservation, and checked that each stick is good. I think your only recourse is to keep trying different slot configurations and stick orders to see if it detects it. As frustrating as it is to not have a concrete answer why, I have had a system in particular that was way too picky about RAM and slots. Even though it's not recommended you could leave a stick in the first slot and test every other slot with a second stick to see if they are all working. Granted some mobos may throw a fit if you don't follow the every other slot rule. I would also check if the BIOS has a way to specify Dual-Channel memory. Most mobos would auto detect this to enable, but worth a shot to look, and if dual channel is enabled somehow that would be the issue. Dual channel is only 2, 4, 6 sticks ect. 1, 3, 5 would go to single channel.

There have been a few good points here. I think there is a difference between a company not choosing to work with another company over their working conditions and a company violating supplier agreements over working conditions. I can see how the former may never get talked about, but the latter would even if there wasn't criminal charges due to violations of said agreement. I understand that this is far from the only case of labor misuse not only by Apple, but companies everywhere. Just the other day I read an article about Costco dropping a coconut milk supplier over forced use of monkey labor. Where monkeys where being used to harvest over 1,000 coconuts per day and chained to tires or put in small cages when not working or performing. Over the years a number of companies have been found to use Child Labor, Forced Labor, or just not pay employees enough to live off of. But as much as I dislike some of the ways the internet has become a way to spread fake news, or it's effects on youth with social media. The spread of information has gotten better and less dictated by mainstream media. Otherwise I think we would still hear little on the subject and a lot of the recently exposed examples would still exist.

Is that why this building has no stairs???

Summary After finding violations and falsified paperwork concerning it's student labor program, Apple has cut off major supplier Pegatron from any new contracts. Quotes My thoughts We hear Linus speak fairly often on going to manufacturing facilities to inspect working environments concerning merchandise, and I know it is a practice that is becoming more standard with imported goods. But, rarely does it seem like any violations or corrective actions make the news. So I appreciate knowing when inspections do actually find something and what is being done to correct it. Not an Apple fan... but kudos Sources https://basictech.tips/2020/11/09/apple-cuts-off-supplier-pegatron-for-student-labor-violations/ https://www.theverge.com/2020/11/9/21556154/apple-supplier-pegatron-student-labor-violation https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-09/apple-suspends-new-business-with-pegatron-over-labor-violations https://www.apple.com/supplier-responsibility/pdf/Apple-Supplier-Code-of-Conduct-January.pdf

The Verge article mentioned 15% in New York so I am wondering if closed stores or time of day for cleaning might be a factor.

Summary Yesterday the website McBroken was launched, tracking every broken ice-cream machine in the US, and updating it's status every 30 minutes. Quotes My thoughts I may have had a couple night caps or date nights dampened by those words myself. And although I do not find myself in a McDonalds drive in very often anymore, I think this is great. Sources https://basictech.tips/2020/10/23/meet-the-website-tracking-broken-mcdonalds-ice-cream-machines/ https://www.theverge.com/2020/10/22/21529477/mcdonalds-mcbroken-bot-ice-cream-machines-app-engineering

I think it's still hit and miss depending on the manufacturer. Our 2020 Nissan is useable, but pretty crap and clunky, about on par with some Donut/Eclair Android action. The 2019 Chevrolet system is a lot more complex than the Nissan, and does a better job at putting pertinent information about the car where it needs to be. Even the menu navigation structure makes more sense. So if the Nissan is a 4/10 I would give the Chevy a 6/10. But neither is great, and especially after my fiancé bought the Nissan I am wishing she had taken the time to look at cars from more manufacturers, although not solely just based off the infotainment system. CarPlay and AndroidAuto are good for certain things, putting music in the car I actually enjoy and letting me interact with it, being thumbs up/down with Pandora, or adding to a playlist. It also does a great job at being able to use up to date maps in navigation with traffic reports, because those are the things we expect in 2020 with smartphone apps. And all CarPlay or AndroidAuto really does is project the smartphone screen onto the infotainment system. But everything else the infotainment system controls in the car, be it HVAC controls, Fuel Mileage, Tire Pressure Sensors, Backup Camera, Collision Sensor Warnings, or most actual car functions mean dropping out of CarPlay or AndroidAuto and using the stock interface. And IMO that ends up making an inconsistent experience, especially when like in the Nissan the stock interface is a relatively poor experience. I don't think Unreal Engine is the salvation of the situation, or that it will even unify the experience between manufacturers. I think it just gives the developers a good set of tools to create a better experience. So they can spend less time having to build a front end from the ground up and hopefully have a significantly more polished feel then if they did. Your also right that these tools probably already exist elsewhere. But name association, and being able to tell your kid, hey this is built on the same engine as your favorite game Fortnite is a total dad move, and likely to make your kid not any more impressed with you then they already are not.

Summary Epic Games announced this week that Unreal Engine is being used to power the infotainment system in the upcoming GMC Hummer EV. Quotes My thoughts I am all for getting rid of the unresponsive clunky interfaces that I have seen in cars for over the last decade. I think it's a great idea actually. But, watching the video that epic put out for the announcement showed almost nothing relating to the Hummer it is supposed to debut in, other then activating the crab walk feature, that was more of a 15 degree slant than a crab walk. In fact, the video showed mostly things that would not relate at all, like changing colors of 3d models that were not a hummer, particle effects, and rocket league. So this perhaps was due to GMC not allowing them to show those screens, but I will really have to see the end result as it relates to actual use before really forming an opinion. Sources https://www.autoblog.com/2020/10/07/gmc-hummer-ev-infotainment-unreal-engine/ https://basictech.tips/2020/10/09/unreal-engine-used-to-power-new-gmc-hummer-infotainment-system/

Summary Apple announced an upcoming event set for October 13th. Named "Hi, Speed" this is likely the reveal of the delayed iPhone 12, although some other products may be thrown in the mix like over-the-ear headphones, a new HomePod, as well as a device locator dubbed AirTag Quotes My thoughts I'm not an iPhone user so this does not excite me that much... but my fiancé has been chatting my ear off about rumored specs and features so I'm glad it's finally getting announced. That being said, I do have a medical condition starting to affect my life in that I might need to keep track of my blood oxygen level, so I may end up looking at a iPhone to pair with a new iWatch that can now measure Blood Oxygen levels, unless someone knows of a good watchOS equivalent. Sources https://www.theverge.com/2020/10/6/21498218/apple-fall-iphone-12-event-october-13th https://basictech.tips/2020/10/07/apple-announces-hi-speed-event-for-october-13th/

Hey I'm curious what you mean by trying to be apple and not following the android model if you get a chance to go a little more in depth with it. I had a windows phone and I did like it, but didnt pay as much attention to development so I'm all ears when it comes to understanding why it failed. Even though I have an opinion from my understanding and experience.

Your not wrong, but there really isn't a whole lot of options out there. Unless you want to become a crackberry and hope that 3g doesn't die soon in your area. Maybe a windows phone, but Microsoft is no better than Google or Apple when it comes to privacy and customization, so now it's basically Android or iOS without the apps. I don't feel like there is a real winner either way between iOS or Android, you just pick what you prefer and am willing to pay for.

They already use that loophole for the Apple iOS app, but it was hell getting it approved, even a slight mention of going outside the app to subscribe to a creator and make a direct payment to floatplane in the app meant it was denied by Apple. So they can go the same route on Android if necessary, it just is a little sad it's coming to this. Hopefully Google is a little more lenient about mentioning going to the website to subscribe to creators and payments inside the app... but I won't be too surprised if they don't.

I forgot about the service provider app stores... (AT&T, T-Mobile ect) It really must not take a whole lot of development to get alternative app stores working, or there are just a lot of phone manufacturers and service providers under the same delusion that it might work.

Sorry if I misled, I really wasn't pushing toward phone manufacturers building a new OS. I don't see that being a profitable venture either, at least in Western markets. Especially considering the success of Windows Phones or Linux on phones. I really just meant alternative app stores on Android, or even on iOS which would seem to be something Epic Games may be trying for. Sidenote I did own a Windows Phone 8, that migrated to the "10" version. I actually did like it a lot, stability was great but without developers willing to bring their apps into that ecosystem there was never going to be a chance for it to succeed.

So they could run Ads or push sponsored Apps to the top of the list for money. Sell your data to marketing. Offer built in payment processing to app developers for the low low price of a 29.99% cut giving the developer a extra penny for every hundred dollars of in app purchases vs Google/Apple. There are opportunities for someone willing to develop an alternative app store, and it has been tried before by even big names like Samsung, but most don't gain much traction.

Testing the theory on Netflix it does appear you can subscribe using in app payments upon account creation, not sure about updating existing accounts if the account was originally created on the website and billing info needed to be updated or the person tried to resub. Also something I didn't know existed was I could not take a screenshot of this due to Android security policy.

They couldn't have their own payment processing in the app alongside Google's. Or, they won't be able to in a year anyways. But I don't know about mentioning going to a website outside of the app to make direct payments. Since this has just now come up I think it will be something developers will want to clarify with Google, and I am hoping Google is lenient in that regard. Since my hope for Floatplane is that even if they cannot do direct payments or subscriptions inside the app, they can at least instruct users to go to the website for payments, but still be able to watch creators they subscribe to in app.

The just want all that floatplane money

Big Oof..

I agree that it probably is a minority in our tech community. There are a lot of people who don't own smart devices other than their phone, with maybe a fire tv, or a gaming console at home. Like my kids!!! lol. Even though they have had access to a windows computer their entire teen life, they choose to just use their phone for a majority of their content consumption, and they both have Spotify premium on iOS, but use the family Netflix account. I guess that could make it a generational trend as well.

I forgot to mention that I absolutely love that the title of Google's Blog article announcing this is "Listening to Developer Feedback to Improve Google Play"

Summary Google plans to start enforcing it's policy requiring all in-app purchases on Play Store apps use Google's in-app payment processing and give Google it's 30% cut. Quotes Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai gestures during a session at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, on January 22, 2020. My thoughts I find it hard to believe that Google is just now catching onto apps like Netflix and Spotify having direct payment methods in their apps, especially with how quick Fortnite was pulled down after adding their own payment method. So my guess is that Google is banking on Apple winning the Apple vs Epic Games battle over in-app payments, that way they can cash in on profits they are missing out on now. Which would also mean that year before enforcement is just as much for the legal battle to play out as much as it is for developers to prepare for the "change". I do have empathy for the team over at Floatplane though, with all the hell they just went through trying to get Floatplane on iOS this is probably the last thing they need. But at least they have a year, and although they could de-list and go the APK sideload route. Maybe Google will just be a little more lenient about directing people to subscribe through the website, even if it is just written instructions and not full blown links. Sources https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/28/google-to-enforce-30percent-cut-on-in-app-purchases-next-year.html https://basictech.tips/2020/09/29/google-plans-to-enforce-30-cut-on-all-in-app-purchases/ https://android-developers.googleblog.com/2020/09/listening-to-developer-feedback-to.html