This could go in both threads. is there a site with a comprehensive list of CMR and PMR drives? I would like to avoid shingled drives and I would like to avoid spending a lot of time researching as well.

>>13 WD finally relented and admitted which drives are which https://blog.westerndigital.com/wd-red-nas-drives/ As a rule, if the price/capacity is too good to be true, or it's labeled "archive", then it's probably shingled. Most of my shucked externals appear to be shingled. I just don't worry because I do long-term media storage on them exclusively.

>>4 Im looking to enhance my audio listening experince, any advice, what shold i look into investing ? Keep in mind that prices shoud be in neetbux teir.

>>31 You'll want an external DAC. You can find budget ones that are reasonable. You could also just plug into your computer's audio jack, but your motherboard might have interference from electronic components, so a DAC is preferred. Definitely if you want to use a non-USB microphone you should use an external device. If you're looking at budget headphones then you can look at budget DACs; the only limiting factor is the resistance, and nicer headphones have higher resistance, so it's usually not a concern if you stick to ~35Ω As for the headphones themselves, you can shop around, but I'd recommend something with a detachable cable. Sennheiser is often praised but it's overhyped and overpriced. I like Beyerdynamic, and they've got stuff starting around the $150 range that's pretty good for the price. If you want cheaper than that, it's doable, but you may be better off waiting for a sale from somewhere. Avoid "gaming" headsets, even if you want to use it for that. Marks up the price.

>>32 Some of the PCI-E sound cards are nice. Asus used to have a good line, at least for the higher end cards, and there was that other company that was great too but I forgot the name. >$150 range The Audio Technica ATH-M50 were around that price and used to be really good headphones all around. I'm not sure if that's still the case though, as a few years ago I bought a new pair to replace my beat up old ones and the quality wasn't quite the same, but it was still reasonable. There are pages out there that have reviews and tiers for headphones, might want to check those out.

>>32 >>33 Thanks for recoms, i already use analogue output in my mobo and as i read it has ELNA audio capacitors, when i save up some money i will find some dac or better headphones.

>>33 I've had some weird experiences with PCI-E sound cards. They're more expensive than just a DAC, require drivers/software, and sometimes don't even have an amp because they're intended for home theater use and not for headphones. >>34 Honestly, you can live without a DAC for the headphones. I don't notice much. But the interference on the microphone line (in my case) is awful and this seems to be a common experience. Something to keep in mind if/when you run a microphone. If people complain about static then you should just get a DAC or look into standalone USB mics that have their own built-in.

which vpns should I consider? I bought a 12 month subscription to purevpn and I'm going to ask for a refund if I find a more trustworthy vpn. price not important as long as it's not obscenely expensive (no more than $15 a month)

>>58 Some anon recommended Mullvad to me last year and I haven't looked back. It's locked at 5 Euros which isn't a bad deal. But the best part is account management. You generate a unique ID and can pay via bitcoin, mail, or however if you're really paranoid. Or just charge it to your card if you don't care. They also run their own DNS so you won't leak your real IP. As a rule, I definitely wouldn't use anything you see advertised commonly. If they have an advertising budget then it means they're for-profit and privacy isn't their only concern. Any VPN can track data and screw you, but Mullvad has done a lot to give me faith in them and to provide an extra layer of OPSEC that most VPNs just don't bother with.

>>35 I've had a pretty good experience with my Xonar STX. Even Linux has drivers for it incorporated into the kernel somehow so no config is necessary. It also has a good amp with exchangeable operational amplifiers if you're into that, and it drives my AKG K702s just fine. I'm surprised that external DACs are cheaper, I don't remember that being the case when I bought my card so many years ago, but maybe I didn't research them enough.

>>31 I think basically the number one change you can make is going to be your speakers or headphones. Other peripheral things can help, but my take is that even a low resolution mp3 will be more enjoyable to listen to on a nice speaker system, versus a high quality .flac file played on some crappy desktop speakers, even with a good DAC and stuff. so if you're on a budget, my recommendation would be to look for a used pair of Beyerdynamic DT770 headphones, this is just my personal recommendation because they're what I use and I really like them. They are expensive new but I paid $90 online for them which, since they have lasted me a few years already and will last many more, is a good price for me. However, if you can, I would look into a cheap 2.1 speaker system. 2.1 means you have 2 speakers and the .1 means you have a subwoofer as well. I will admit most of my equipment is almost poverty tier but it works well for me and should for you as well if you don't have a lot of money. I have a 2.1 system that I got as e-waste. pretty cheap logitech desktop speakers and a small subwoofer, but it is very enjoyable to listen to. it's not the best but it does a good job and because of the sub, and because I like strong bass, I like it better than my headphones. I'm not sure how much they cost used but I assume it won't break the bank. Or if you look around you might find it being thrown away like I did. I did have to do some minor work on it, I had to re-solder some wires because it was making strange noises and I had to clean up the contacts and switches but now it works great. but that's probably because this thing was just thrown on the street and was damaged. just my 2 cents, good luck finding something you will enjoy

>>58 Depends on what you're getting a VPN for. >>59 >I definitely wouldn't use anything you see advertised commonly. Good rule, but keep in mind that "for profit" is essentially a requirement to continue operations and not get all user data auctioned off when you go bankrupt.

What are good thin laptops/ultrabooks available? Current laptop is about one and a quarter inches tall when closed, looking for something smaller. Rather than getting just a thinkpad reccomedation, I'm askin for laptops as a whole. Much appreciated

>>161 Obligatory "buy a ThinkPad" If you absolutely insist on not buying a ThinkPad then your options are pretty much a Dell XPS or a Macbook. Not sure what Linux support on Macbooks is like these days, but good luck getting anything done on OSX. Dell XPS can be pretty good, but I've also seen used ones sell for more than they are worth. Frankly I think the price of any new laptops is overblown. You should absolutely buy used. Which XPS is right for you is down to screen size and battery life and such. Macbooks are pretty much only worth it if you get a Pro, and idiots think they hold value more than they do so expect to pay a premium for even a used one. Oh, and good luck if you get one that only has a single USB-C port for charging and I/O. I'd just get an x220 unless you have a workload that needs more power. You could also look at ThinkPad X1 Carbons if you must have a newer, thinner ultrabook. As a bonus, you won't get the best keyboard, but it won't literally just die like Apple's.

>>14 thanks lad

>>169 You should also look for dell latitudes. Look for models like e7440. Latitudes and Thinkpads have the best GNU/Linux support, even some dells come with GNU/Linux pre-installed.

>>238 In my experience with modern Thinkpads and Dells, Dells have much better GNU/Linux support. I always run into driver problems on Thinkpads.

NAS suggestions? I'm looking for something cheap but without horrible vendor lock-in (so that I may recover data when the machine kicks the bucket), only purpose would be backup on LAN to help my tech illiterate parents.

>>352 Would you be willing to build your own? You can find a case with a bunch of drive bays. You don't need a very powerful system. There's Ryzen chips that are $100. Dump the rest into either a better motherboard or a SATA PCI expansion card. Then either configure Linux to use ZFS or install FreeNAS if you can handle their faggotry. Then shuck some WD external drives. If you need fast write speeds then be on the lookout for shingled drives. I can't recommend any brands of prebuilt NAS personally. I just build my own.

>>356 The problem with building my own would be that it seems good only for a serious NAS and not the kind of ghetto solution I'm trying to put together. FreeNAS is far, far beyond the kind of reliability I need, and the kind of hardware it requires (RAM in particular) brings the price up significantly. For comparison, I was considering buying two shitty WD single bay NAS and have them both backup the same stuff (so hopefully they won't die at the same time), and that would cost less than 300 bucks for more storage than my parents will ever use (and infinitely more reliability than "who cares if I delete files, I can always mail Microsoft and they'll find them").

>>364 For a solution that small, you might want to just get some external WD drives. Can get at least 16 TB for about $300. Performance won't be amazing, especially writes. But unless you need actual network-attached storage that might be the best solution. And you can always just map it and make that computer network-accessible anyways. Just saying, if "that level of hardware" is out of your league then maybe a NAS is overkill for what you need anyways.

>>367 The idea is to do automatic backups as my parents spend a signficant portion of their day in wifi range, they can't be trusted to do backups manually, and they don't have (nor want) a desktop: that's why the "network attached" part is important, while speed and storage size (they don't have 1 TB of storage across all of their devices put together, maybe 10 GB of data worth backing up) are much less of a consideration. The issue with FreeNAS is not the price in itself, but the price/performance ratio going to shit as almost all the capabilities of such a device would go unused.

>>378 Well for pure budget, attaching an external to an old laptop can mapping that to the network can't be beat. Your main problem is that you can't avoid proprietary solutions, lock-in, etc. Your best bet for budget + ease-of-use would probably just be whatever you can find on Amazon. Seems like WD has a 4 TB for about $170, and there's some other vendors selling enclosures for a bit less than that which you can fill with any drives you'd like. I can't personally recommend any of them as I have little experience with off-the-shelf NAS solutions. But I wouldn't worry too much about vendor lock-in. Why? Because if the time ever comes where you have a great need for vast storage and a budget to actually afford it you'll probably want to just ditch the old one and build something from scratch. It's for your parents, it just has to work, you won't be around them to maintain it forever. Just but something like a "WD Cloud" device and call it a day.

>>384 >It's for your parents, it just has to work, you won't be around them to maintain it forever. Given their age, I might very well be around to maintain it for the rest of their life. Anyways, WD Clouds don't seem too bad in terms of lock in, did I miss something?

>>386 >did I miss something No real upgrade path, I guess. WD has a bad reputation mostly for shafting shuckers, so those of us wanting cheap drives to build our own have to do research and compare notes. If you just want a simple product that "just werks" then you're probably fine. As long as you don't need to use their backup software you should be okay. And you shouldn't, but I haven't used their "Cloud" products, just regular externals.

>>387 Thanks, I'll go for it then.

>>58 >>59 i'm really torn between getting TorGuard (it's cheap as fuck and supposedly pretty fast) and Mullvad. On the one hand, TorGuard "supports" Socks5 proxies, but recently their forums are filled with unhappy customers because they took down the IP list and want you to use the hostnames which have dynamic IPs and that causes a lot of connectivity problems for a lot of people. They seem to say they're working on it but their customers seem dissatisfied with the amount of clarity there. On the other hand, I like Mullvad's anonymity. However I think it's kind of moot since your VPN will see your Real IP anyway, no matter which service you go with. I would still pay in crypto though, just because IPv4 isn't exactly your identity like a credit card is. But it seems that every single VPN takes crypto. I just really want to find a fast, reputable VPN for a cheap price that has good Socks5 support. I like being able to configure my IRC client such that I will never accidentally connect with my real IP (because i already was an idiot and got my real IP g-lined, lmfao)

I'm looking at getting a new keyboard to replace this stupid membrane garbage I've had for like five/six years. I'd like something mechanical, though im not entirely certain what sort of switch to get. I'm leaning towards Blue, but i haven't really used a mechanical keyboard before so i don't have the experience to know which is actually the "best". I primarily want this for programming, but also games. I'd like something full-sized, but could live without a numpad. Thank you for any recommendations. I'm also considering getting a quality microphone. As stupid as it sounds I've been considering getting into some minor voice acting work, and would like to be able to record clear audio. This is a separate thing and far less vital than a new keyboard though.

>>393 >I would still pay in crypto though, just because IPv4 isn't exactly your identity like a credit card is. You're right, your CC info needs a warranty to be acquired while all crypto transactions are public.

>>394 I like full-sized keyboards with stiff keys. If you want custom keycaps you're basically locked into Cherry-compatible switches, in which case I recommend Browns, Greens, or Clears depending on stiffness and how loud you want clicks to be. Stiffer keys are considered better for typing but I've never had a problem gaming with them. I recommend buying one of those samplers so you can test them out. They're like $10 but it's better to do that than be stuck with a switch you don't like. If you don't care about custom keycaps ever, you can get a replica IBM Model M from Unicomp. Some people really like Das keyboard and I think they're Cherry-compatible if you want custom keycaps. Or you can try building one yourself, but most of the designs for building your own are memes (ergnomic, reeeaaallly tiny, etc). And you have to order from China and it's expensive for what you get. I would actively avoid any keyboard that squares the keys up, is missing most of its keys, or doesn't want to curve the keys at all. You're asking for carpal tunnel and a bad typing experience.

>>399 Thank you for the reply, though i ended up getting a Redragon K551 on the recommendation of someone else before i saw your post. Its got "oetemu" blue switches, which appear to be a chink cherry knockoff. the keyboard was very cheap, however, and had good reviews, do i picked it up. After using it to type this message i find its certainly more pleasant to type on than my old keyboard, though it does have a strange bell-like quality, wherein it rings slightly when i type. the form-factor was exactly what i was looking for, however, and it otherwise feels very nice. the key switches are apparently user-replaceable, so theoretically i could replace these with cherries if ever i desire to. Oetemus are apparently clones, so PRESUMABLY they've got the same dimensions? Either way, so far im pleased with this, especially for the price. lets hope it lasts. It may take a little while to get completely used to it, as its a somewhat different shape to my old one, which is likely to interfere with muscle memory.

My old and barely functional phone needs a replacement. Matching all the right variables to get a good phone sounds like hell, can anyone advise? I don't need a very expensive phone but I'm willing to spend if it means getting a good device that will last me many years like my current one. Should I aim for something that has good support for LineageOS? Is there any other OSes I should be considering? Should I look for phones with a good modding community that can provide debloated ROMs or should I debloat them myself somehow? I definitely would like to root it, is there anything I should keep in mind? There's a shitton of other interesting things I'm seeing that I'm not familiar with, like /e/, F-Droid, Aurora, MicroG... any info on these (or others I still haven't gotten to) would be appreciated.

>>417 >identify requirements >>why do you need a phone >>what does it has to do >identify constraint >>budget? >>level of acceptable botnet? >educate yourself on your target, no spoonfeeding here >>hint: you don't seem to understand these: >>>OS >>>Program >>learn about them and apply to the Android instance of them You are responsible for your own choices, do your researches. Everything is out there.

>>417 Ideally you would get whatever phone the developers of LineageOS or other major ROMs use. If your main concern is custom ROM support then this is the best way to get it. Be careful of Samsung phones which have different locked bootloaders and ROM support by region because of their dual architecture model. If you just want a cheap phone with features and are willing to rely on new generic system images for custom ROMs, I've had good experiences with budget Motorola phones in the past. Last I checked, the Moto E still have a headphone jack, removable battery, and expandable storage (and you'll likely need to take advantage of the latter). You could also go for something a little more "out there". There's Planet Computers PDAs, the Librem 5, and the Pinephone. There's a lot of choices out there. Most of them a bit shit or with big trade-offs, but we're seeing a little more (((diversity))) return to phone choice. I have yet to find a phone I would consider "perfect", but I definitely have some devices that are more fully-featured than a $1,500 candybar at a fraction of the price.

>>417 Grab sone cheap phone with unlockable bootloader, install Magisk, don't use it for anything important. I did that with some crappy sub-200 dollar asus that still works perfectly after 4 years.

Does there exist a device that only plays brown noise? It's the only reason I use my phone now and since it has more than 5 years the battery is all kinds of messed up and shuts down randomly around 70-85 percent. Can't be rooted either since the devkit is no longer mantained.

>>417 >>423 >>424 After about a week of doing nothing but research I'm still frustrated. The modding scene for devices is just sad compared to how it was in early/mid 2010s, everything is just deserted except for maybe 1-2 devices, most new devices are not supported and old devices are an awful value for the money and may be difficult to obtain (made worse because of where I need to buy from). I feel trolled having to purchase a new device for $200+ that has similar hardware specs as my old 7 year old phone, I'll try to squeeze some more life out of it for now. Wish the scene for alternative mobile devices like anon mentioned was a bit more mature, because between spending a stupid amount on a device I'm gonna hate or a stupid amount on a device that might actually be a good fit for me while also supporting these kind of endeavors, the choice is clear. >>467 If that's the only thing you're after then look for bargains for old phones. One of my friends told me he was able to get a Pixel for like $15, more than enough for playing brown noise. If you don't mind, getting an used or refurbished phone might also be an opportunity for you. If only the Pixel had a slot for an SDcard I would have gotten one too.

>>474 I've been buying obscure, alternative devices the past couple years (since my Galaxy Nexus, which I had for a long time, finally was becoming unusable) and it seems like most mainstream devices just rely on generic images now. If you have devices with Treble support, these should work. But as a consequence, results for how to modify them have dried-up. That and Google has done a lot to discourage fracturing the community. You'll find normalfag forums full of people who "don't feel a custom ROM is necessary anymore". They might be paid shills, considering the narrative being crafted. I'd argue anyone not installing a ROM is making a mistake. That being said, if you do get an altphone like a PlanetCom model, Pinephone, or Librem 5, you'll get a less polished experience but if you're comfortable enough making tweaks yourself it's generally not unbearable.

>>475 >Treble support I haven't really read much about it honestly. I found it mentioned a few times but that's it. It sounds too good to deliver what it promises and I'd be hesitant to drop cash on something on the premise it would work with a ROM for some other phone. >You'll find normalfag forums full of people who "don't feel a custom ROM is necessary anymore" Yes, I did. Bunch of blind idiots. On the other hand, something I've been asking myself as a result of this is whether I'd just use a custom ROM found on some obscure forum like I used to do. It's a bit shady isn't it? Doesn't have the same sense of legitimacy and peer review as mainstream FOSS. >you'll get a less polished experience I guess in part it depends on the use you give your phone. I don't really use any of Google's shit, I don't use their map apps, or any of their other apps, so I wouldn't mind if it just wasn't there. In fact I was planning on going full MicroG, which already sounds like a pain in the ass to make work so getting a device that (in a way) already has it implemented by default sounds like an advantage. On the other hand, I'm not sure what I could do about some applications that I need to use and can't opt out of.

>>475 >>476 Oh, also regarding the last point, using custom ROMs would already likely gimp the phone in various ways and take away from a polished experience, so in my opinion this also levels the playing field a bit.

>>477 I can't say I've had a phone gimped by a ROM basically ever. Only when running beta releases on unsupported hardware. Even then, experience was generally stable. Would imagine Treble support has improved this, since the drivers were the biggest barrier to feature parity and stability. If you want a polished experience then you could just stick with Google's poz. By going the FOSS route you inevitably sacrifice some of that. Is it worth it? I say "yes".

>>474 >The modding scene for devices is just sad compared to how it was in early/mid 2010s No shit, google and the other companies worked hard to kill it.

>>481 Well, on the other hand, I've always found that custom ROMs break some features of the phone. If you're using a LineageOS or AOSP based ROM chances are some of the peripherals are going to be fucked because those depend on blobs/closed drivers and don't have good support on ROMs which are not based on that phone's own stock ROM. Most notably this happens with the camera, which you always find people complaining about, but it can happen to other stuff too like bluetooth. CyanogenMod had (starting with CM10) for the longest time a bug where the caller would hear his own audio (echo), and I'm not even sure if it's not still around for some devices as I've found a few people having exactly that issue. Also device-specific features are probably a no-go. My current phone is using a customized stock ROM and has a few things which don't work, like wifi hotspots, and there's a bug where the app switcher would take a good while to open instead of being instant.

>>169 Yeah, I ended up getting an X series thinkpad afterall. I don't really need the power since I got a pretty beefy home rig. >>474 I'll second the other anons. If you're using a phone just for calling and texting, you can't go wrong with older phones and getting /e/ or postmarketOS or really on it. Here's a fairly extensive list for PMOS: https://wiki.postmarketos.org/wiki/Devices I've got zero direct experience with /e/, I've only heard from some friends who can vouch for it. Replicant hasn't seen much big progress in the past couple of years, but that is another possible option.

Where can I purchase a CPU the cheapest? With the pandemic shit almost 5x'd the price it had

>>505 In the future, if you really need a CPU right now it will be expensive.

>>505 As a rule, if you have a Micro Center near you they discount the price of CPUs and make it up when people buy other parts. If you only get a CPU from them you can save a few dollars. Otherwise you'll want to wait for the market to normalize, or wait for the next round of product launches to pick one up secondhand.

>>505 >>510 There's always those combo deals that Newegg has if your only choice is e-commerce. Just like me. Our only choice for enthusiast computer parts is Fry's and the selection there is little to none because of dealer payment issues, making Best Buy the only available choice for anything tech.

I'm looking for the most powerful laptop available under $1300, preferably with at least 500gb ssd, 16gb ram, and an amd cpu. I plan on installing gentoo and playing games on windows in a vm.

>>534 If you want to play newer games you'll need a hefty GPU which is a big ask in a sub-$1300 laptop. For a given desktop build, laptops usually cost 2x for the same performance, so you'll get something, at best, on-par with a $750 desktop. I'd always recommend looking for a ThinkPad model that would meet your needs, since used ones are usually a steal, but finding one with a decent GPU is going to be hard, and you'll need a newer one (with all the problems that come with it) if you want a decent one. There are some Dell and Asus laptops for about $1k that come with decent budget GPUs. A 1650 or 1050 Ti will perform well enough for most new games. Your alternative, if you really want a solid GPU, would be to just buy whatever cheap laptop with a decent CPU is out there and then connect an external card. This is perfect if your goal is to have a functional laptop for work or school that can also play games, since you'll have full power when at a desk but it can still be light and efficient when on the move. You'll definitely get a better deal this way. I've tried the $300 used ThinkPad + external GPU combo before and it's a pretty good deal. Running Windows in a VM is perfect for an e-GPU configuration because Linux does not play not with hotplugged PCI hardware. Having a VM that will only be used when the GPU in connected resolves this issue. You mainly just want to be sure your hardware can do passthrough.

>>534 >gaming on a laptop >gaming in a VM To make things worse, Nvidia has all the best GPUs and those don't work well under linux. >>535 >eGPU A high-latency meme.

Someone asked me to help build a Raspberry Pi for them. They want it purely for plugging into the tv and playing video games. Apparently the Pi 4 can run Dreamcast and PSP pretty well. Looking it up, it would cost like $150 Canuckbucks to get the 8GB Pi 4 with the fancy fan you need to keep it from exploding, plus the various wires and stuff. And that isn't counting a case or storage. Assuming they'd want storage to hold a lot of disc based games, that would be like another $100CAN. Now I don't actually know shit about computers, and my computer is a toaster since I only use it for shitposting and work emails, but PC Master Race people are always saying you can get beefy gaymen rigs for like $150 these days. I always thought they were clearly bullshitting, but I figured I'd ask before I helped someone spend that much money on a Raspberry Pi. I'm assuming not going for the Pi would allow us to get better performance for the same budget. By "better performance," I just mean "getting more games to be playable." Am I wrong? What kind of budget would need to be spent to get games running well on Dolphin? Don't care about things like upscaling or whatever. Just want them to run and not lag like hell. >tl;dr: Someone asked me to build a Pi 4 for them, but they only want it for games. Can I get equivalent performance for less money (or better performance for equivalent money) if I just build a PC for that price?

>>550 Best place to start is always Logical Increments. https://www.logicalincrements.com/ Their cheapest option is $250, and it will have less RAM and probably less storage. SD cards aren't fast but will beat an SSD. The size is also an issue. Micro ATX is still pretty "big". A Pi will sit in a tiny case. The Pi is cheap because they have negotiated good contracts (primarily with Broadcom) and provide the product nearly at-cost so it can be used in education. PC manufacturers need to make a profit. I think you can build a full gaming PC that will compete with modern consoles for $400, but those type of parts don't scale well towards the budget end because there are fixed costs the Pi Foundation do not have. Should probably just go for the Pi. Be sure to add at least a heatsink and maybe an active fan. There are kits available and it will be worth the price. Or get a case with one. Pi 3 and 4 tend to overheat. The only limit of the Pi, really, is the CPU (especially when it throttle) and the fact that it's ARM, but for emulation these aren't big concerns since it's beefy enough to outright emulate old hardware and you get little benefit for surpassing the minimum.

I thought I would've gotten an ASUS motherboard but ended up getting an AsRock. The store didn't define them, it just said A320 chipset MOBO, should I ask for a refund?

>>554 Why did you buy a motherboard without knowing the brand? If they didn't lie then it's on you to verify. If it's the right chipset then it probably doesn't matter, unless you want slightly less Chinese poz and slightly more irregular USB implementations.

>>554 The store is shady as shit and should probably be shut down, you're an idiot for buying an unlabeled product, you're probably not getting a refund because milking idiots is profitable and also cool thanks to the US normalizing it.

Is the Radeon 5700 XT still a decent buy for rendering in Blender? Are drivers less shitty under GNU/Linux? It seems like all of the non-XT models are completely out of stock.

>>707 >Is the Radeon 5700 XT still a decent buy for rendering in Blender? It's not a top tier card (as the price should have made clear), so don't expect the same performance a 2080ti can put out, but it's still fairly high end so things shouldn't take too long either. That said, the specific answer depends on which rendered and options you're using in Blender: it's very easy to 100% your CPU with a denoise filter on an Eevee render (which normally uses almost exclusively the GPU), for example. >Are drivers less shitty under GNU/Linux? LOL no: as a general rule Linux doesn't have better drivers, there's a few exceptions but not for halfway popular or recent PC hardware.

>>707 State of drivers is pretty fucked for graphics, but if you are just interested in OpenCL then it might be fine, although I think CUDA generally outperforms OpenCL for tasks like this. One thing worth considering is that an RTX 2060 (or Super) also has raytracing. This should lead to a bigger performance boost in rendering versus other tasks. Then again, this isn't my wheelhouse. I don't do renders and I haven't compared performance between AMD and nVidia cards for this purpose. My card does not support raytracing. But that's the route I'd go down.

>>708 >LOL no: as a general rule Linux doesn't have better drivers, there's a few exceptions but not for halfway popular or recent PC hardware. That's blatantly wrong, you retard. Do you even have an AMD card? Have you seen the opinions of people who have one? AMD's OpenGL Linux drivers are way better than their Windows ones, and their hardware is plenty stable, especially Polaris. I've personally got Polaris and Navi, and the latter did get some GPU hangs, but that's because of ACO, which is still not completely fleshed out on that arch. Using LLVM is flawless.

>>720 >loonixtard still trying to shill Your developers care so little about the users that they break wifi drivers on stable kernel releases, not even MacOS reaches those levels of open contempt for its users.

>>720 What OS are you using that you got a Navi card to fucking work? I spent weeks trying to troubleshoot why I couldn't get my 5600XT card recognized by blender, and I hit a dead end at "llvm uses static linking and rocm doesn't like that".

>>730 Not that anon but just for curiosity and future reference what distro did you try that on? For what it's worth I have Vega and also have had 0 issues.

>>740 Gentoo, and my process of troubleshooting this went: >opencl device not shown in blender >must be missing opencl >recompile everything with opencl support >opencl still doesn't work >AMD has a newer implementation of opencl for navi cards called ROCM >build ROCM for system, recompile everything >blender now just crashes when opening it >check numerous things and all leads to same answer >llvm uses static linking, rocm can't work with that, no solutions found and I just couldn't sink any more time into trying to find a fix or workaround

>>730 >>744 >rocm Navi cards like the 5700XT and the 5600XT still don't support it yet: http://archive.md/gyraz It might be better to Just Wait™ until ROCm officially supports all of the Navi-based GPUs, including Big Navi. If not, get a Vega/Polaris card or NVIDIA if you want proprietary shit like CUDA/Optix, which works better for >>707 since Blender has better performance on even the 2060. Might be better to also wait for Ampere as well since it's coming in a couple of months.

>>750 Well shit, so if the 5600xt doesn't even support rocm yet it should at least support opencl, so I'm still in the dark about why blender wouldn't recognize it with system-wide opencl compiled in.

>>720 >linux has better drivers >AMD like a few others have mentioned, opencl on linux sucks. Currently my only way of using opencl is through the depreciated dev-libs/amdgpu-pro-opencl hack around, which just adds amdgpu-pro drivers ontop of free drivers. It sucks and is often prone to random crashing. Getting anything to render on blender is basically a coin flip.

>>730 >>740 >>764 When I wrote that post, I was thinking mostly about OpenGL and Vulkan drivers not being shit. OpenCL drivers specifically are a mess, yes, but that doesn't mean all of their drivers are shit. Maybe the faggot I replied to shouldn't make such sweeping statements.

>>4 will it be cheaper for me to buy an expensive graphics card ?

>>779 Sure, if you find it used/on sale.

>>352 >>356 Also looking to set up some kind of NAS using free nas and a raid z setup. I'm currently wondering whether I should use regular PC parts and stuff I have and save money, or buy a 19" server. The smaller ones aren't that expensive on their own and offer a shitload of drive bays. The sas hdds themselves are kinda expensive. I wouldn't really care about SAS in terms of speed but I wonder if I wouldn't pay just as much if I cherrypicked SATA drives that don't use SMR.

Anyone know of any good, high quality, VHS players? I have a lot of recorded tapes at my house, and all that I have left as far as players is an old foot-high CRT and some VHS/DVD combo players that work only half the time. Despite the tech being long forgotten at this point, have there been any good high quality players that released, preferably something with an output better than S-Video?

>>839 This is a question I have asked myself a lot over the years, and I don't have a good answer. In short, you need something produced no later than the mid-90's, after which point manufacturers stopped trying to innovate and started trying to go cheaper. They stopped dumping money into R&D and fancy components. Japan started their economic slump. You'll want something old, bulky, and Japanese. There is no gold standard player that I am aware of, and if it exists then enthusiast forums and collectors have probably made them scarce. Just have to troll eBay for some good finds.

i wanna evga 2070 zooper for on the cheap you know what i mean best advic plZ

>>968 Save your money and wait for the niggerlicious Ampere GPUs.

>>968 Unless you find someone selling it out of a van, your best bet is to wait for the next release and then pick up a used one. That or try stuffing it down your pants and walking out of a store.

I have got a mid-tower case and 32GB of system memory (two 16GB kits). Should I get the processor first, the motherboard or wait until I have money for both. Keep in mind that my state has 8% sales tax I'm trying to make an editing computer (it's going to serve multiple purposes, I'm trying to build for my toughest workload, which is video editing) and already have a power supply, a whole bunch of mechanical hard-drives (one's in use right now), a DVD drive and a graphics card that I can port over to the new build from my old one.

>>1087 There's never any reason to buy now when you can buy later. New products usually cost the same as what they replace, give or take. The old product usually gets a slight discount and buyfags with too much money will upgrade immediately and ditch the old ones, used, for cheap. Buying now just ensures you'll end up with an old part to match with a new part, and it'll cost just as much. The only exception to this rule would be if you knew there'd be a price spike, but usually these occur because of natural disasters. Flooding, pandemic, etc have all raised prices out of nowhere. You cannot usually predict a price increase. And currently, prices are inflated for this reason. At this point in the cycle I would wait for AMD to release their new chips. Their current B550 chipset motherboards should be forwards-compatible, but if you can't use it now, why spend the money? You can then get their newest Ryzens or expect the current ones to be cheaper. You only end up with more options and more prices. These are probably the best options for an editing rig right now; the threadcount is insane and it'll get work done.

>>1087 I would buy the motherboard and get everything installed and ready, so that when you get the CPU you just have to install that and you're good to go.

I'm looking for suggestions for a good 2.5'' SATA hard drive enclosure for external use.

>>1099 My brother liked my clear plastic Orico enclosure so much he changed the subject when I asked for it back. Personally I mostly use a dock instead, which also happens to be Orico branded. Not sure who the ODM is.

What's a good access point that supports OpenWRT or another FLOSS firmware?

>>1242 While I can't give you a specific recommendation, they maintain a table of supported hardware currently available for sale https://openwrt.org/toh/views/toh_available_16128 I will say, as a rule, to avoid Broadcom chipsets. These are difficult for developers to write drivers for because of poor documentation and I've hit a wall on a number of projects simply because of Broadcom chips. It's the reason Raspberry Pis are not used much for network wizardry even though they'd otherwise be an ideal platform.

>>417 Update: phone's dead. From that post until about two weeks ago it kept gradually losing even more functionality and working erratically until I started finding it turned off in the morning after it failing to wake me up. Then I realized that if I turned off the wifi, the phone would die, and after that it also started dying if the screen even got turned off, and it'd be very difficult to get it to turn on again. Having already tried to get a new phone back then and failing, mfw. By pure chance I ended up taking a look at the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8, and by some kind of miracle that phone actually has pretty much everything I wanted! >4gb ram >audio jack >sdcard slot >seemingly good camera >notification light >a way to install a pretty stable and clean lineageOs >a way to install microg >cheap as all fuck Overall it's not a 10/10 but man it's pretty close, I'm very happy. The note 8 pro is an ever better bang for your buck but the scene behind it is much weaker due to the amount of bullshit it throws your way if you want to play with custom ROMs, so I didn't end up getting it. Went from Android 5 to Android 10, and a lot of the useful features the retards at Google removed between Kitkat and Lollipop make a comeback. Feels unreal that I managed to get a modern device that runs on open source shit and has even better functionality and features than the last one.

Would a Banana Pi or something similar be suitable for a one-person home server to install Nextcloud on? I need a file synchronization with backup system, which I could also expand to it having NAS functions.

>>1316 Depends on how much storage you need. I know the RPi has some major limitations on expanding storage. Your options are generally limited to buying large SD cards (not always the best read/write but will have space) or connecting an external drive via USB (which can be slow and might consume all the bandwidth of the controller). There is a hack for the RPi that lets you connect PCI cards, and there is PCI storage, so that might also be an option if you need size and speed. But if it's just to host files and backups then I don't see why it wouldn't be suitable. You don't need a lot of power to run something like that if you're the only one using. I would definitely stagger backup times, though. You don't want everything trying to write at once.

I want a cheap e-reader that just reads book. Suggestions?

>>1370 Your phone, the Librera PRO app from f-droid, and a shortcut to libgen. Bonus: android gps lady reads you books as you fall asleep.

Does anyone have a Surface Book, the kind that has the heavy keyboard/battery thing? If so, is it any good? Taking notes is going to become my thing for a while.

Does anyone have experience with the Pinebook Pro? Do you recommend it? I am planning to install OpenBSD on it.

>>1428 I know someone who does, and they use it pretty much exclusively for note-taking. However, they have said they wouldn't buy one, at least not new. They got it as a gift. When they're at home and have a desk, they use a beefier laptop and a wacom tablet for notes, drawing, etc. So it's fine, but you do have other options. You'll also be stuck on Windows if you want that touch support. I think touchscreen ThinkPads have decent Linux support, though. >>1430 I haven't had one, but I would caution you that it's ARM. Perhaps this is a non-issue with BSD, but I don't know the state of the ecosystem. The specs of the Pine board are very competitive with the Raspberry Pi, especially for the price, and and I would assume it's a functioning laptop. But for $200 new I'd expect build quality closer to a Chromebook than a Mac or a ThinkPad. What is your primary use case? What makes something like the Pinebook preferable to you over a "regular" laptop? Is it just the price and the promise of open source driver support?

What's a good portable HDD to buy, preferably 500GB-1TB and around 5400RPM-7200RPM?

>>1440 Hard to go wrong with any of the WD ones. You can get a 1 TB HDD for $100 or less and it will be pocket-sized.

>>1427 I want an e-ink screen, not a glorified PDF reader.

What's a good domain registrar to buy my domain(s) from?

>>1541 Do you need one with loose terms of service, or do you just want something cheap?

>>1550 Loose terms of service, but not too expensive or scammy

>>1553 here At this point, I found out about https://njal.la/ for domains. Seems pretty good despite the minimum 15 euro price.

Anyone have experience with or own one of these compact thinkpad boards (0B47190 KU-1255)? Considering getting one but I'm a bit concerned over the key roll over. Some reviews say it has 6KRO and others say its KRO depends on which keys you're using but "gamer" keys like WASD work fine. I've been hunting for a reasonably priced rubber dome TKL low profile keyboard with 5+KRO for years and am thinking on settling on this one.

Should I get a VPS that doesn't have a IPv4 address in the plan and only has a IPv6 address?

>>1586 Doubt anyone would benefit from the information but I went ahead and bought it based on reviews saying it had roughly 6 key roll over. It's actually 4 key roll over for the standard QWERTY rows, then 5 key roll over including modifiers. 2 key roll over for the rest of the board that isn't surrounding WASD. I've yet to test it with a USB to PS2 adapter but I suspect that won't change much as it hasn't in the past with other boards. Acceptable key roll over that likely won't ever cause an issue in any game, but would have been nice if it was true 6 key roll over for the price.

>>1601 You run the risk that those without an IPv6 address cannot access your site. But if you have one and just need to be able to access it yourself then there's probably no harm and it should be cheaper. >>1602 Thanks for the update. Sorry to hear it's not full 6 key, but it sounds like they cheaped-out where it probably won't be noticed by most.

>>1603 Yeah I kind of got fucked by retarded reviews not understanding key roll over. It's basically just standard 2 key roll over like any other keyboard. Most basic key combinations can go up to 5 key roll over but small unlikely clusters like A,W,Q or A,S,Z are 2 key roll over. Kind of a shame considering how much I spent on it but since it's otherwise a quality keyboard I'll probably just tough it out since the likelihood of those combinations are incredibly low anyways. Tested it with a PS/2 adapter and it just doesn't register at all so that idea was a bust. The state of rubber dome keyboards is abysmal. It's a shame retards created this marketing craze around loud as fuck mechanical keyboards. This was the only rubber dome low profile compact board I could find with any claims of 6KRO that didn't have ridiculous pricing and even those claims were bogus.

>>1605 I agree the hatred of membranes and praise for mechanical is a meme. I bought into it and while I have eventually adapted I don't feel nearly as comfortable with my current keyboard and I did with my old Logitech membrane one. What I hate in particular is how much wiggle various keys have. I've never had a membrane keyboard that I can flap back and forth like a tree in a hurricane, but it seems standard for mechanical boards. Model Ms and similar didn't have these issues, because they're a different design. Cherry switches and similar are just flimsy beanpoles with caps on top. Unfortunately, if you want any customization options. mechanical + Cherry is the only real way to go. But you need to go for ultra-stiff switches and add extra stabilizers to get anything approaching a Model M or similar. Not to mention the absolute joke that is common kits and boards aimed at the mechanical crowd. No numpad, sometimes not even Function and Number keys? Aligned in a grid? Ultra-tiny? Surely the minimalist aesthetic isn't worth making the keyboard unusable. Removing markings and going with a Das Keyboard is one thing, but some of these keyboards look like torture devices meant to induce carpal tunnel. Personally I cannot stand the new ThinkPad keyboard style, simply because of chiclet keys. They're less bad than other laptops, but that doesn't make them good to use. Old ThinkPad keyboards weren't amazing but they are far better than anything since. I am used to battleship keyboards, and I want to smash keys without breaking my fingers. Maybe the fads will die, laptops will go back to having full-sized keyboards, and someone will eventually realize mechanical is great in theory, but their implementation can be improved by breaking from tradition. For what it's worth, if rollover is important to you or you want a proper keyboard, you should probably just buy used. The cleaning stage is a pain but they (mostly) don't make them like they used to.

>>1606 Mechanical keyboards are really only customizable in theory. In practice building one from scratch costs you 5 times the amount. Keycaps are ridiculously expensive, anything that isn't a 60% PCB will immediately increase the cost at least 3 times. And as you said the 60% keyboard standard is fucking shit. It's a retarded consumerist hobby to make anything even slightly customized, and all the mass produced boards use the 3 shittiest fucking switches known to man. If you want to get anything or build anything with an actually good switch you get to spend anywhere between $200 and $400. I don't think key roll over will actually end up causing me any problems. It's just an autistic thing that bothers me in the back of my mind knowing I may end up pressing some combination of keys that might not register, which gives my retarded brain mild anxiety. I'm stuck with it now and the typing experience and space on my desk is more convenient than the peace of mind of 6KRO that my full size keyboard has. Plus despite the chiclet keys being inferior to the previous lineup it's still a rather satisfying and quiet typing experience. I fucking hate the keyboard market.

Should I bother with installing Urbit, or is it shit?

what's the best laptop for around 1k?

>>1609 Urbit's only purpose is to pander to a specific flavour of lolbertarians, it has zero practical use.

What's a good flip-phone that will work on Verizon? Preferably one that I can use as a hotspot, and FLOSS friendly if even possible

>>1640 Your best bet is probably going to be finding a "flip phone" that's running Android and then rooting it. No idea if any of them support hotspot. But you're certainly not going to buy an off-the-shelf FLOSS phone that has all of these things. >>1611 Find a ThinkPad in your budget on eBay. Although anything around $300 is probably good enough.

Anything on >>1370 >>1523

Any advice on a basic headphone cable? When I try to research for a simple durable one I get autistic audiophile bullshit that costs an arm and a leg. I just need a simple headphone cable from a reputable brand.

>>1698 V-Moda sells some "rugged" ones, although they can be broken if you're rough enough. But they hold up a little better. But all audio cables eventually fail, and you should probably just go with Monoprice or Amazon Basics. I'd lean towards Monoprice. If you buy in bulk, you can save (the biggest cost is shipping) and they generally avoid manufacturing in China. Keep a dozen replacements on hand and stop worrying about if one breaks.

>>1698 Imagine not making your own cable. $10 box of 3.5mm tips, dirt cheap harbor freight soldering iron, some solder and you are set for life. Most "cable" dying are actually just the connector. You may not even have to solder a new connector, if that's only bad connector. Cable broke in the middle and don't care about audio quality? Solder them back or snap two cables from trash and solder. Holy fucking shit, you retarded zoomers.

>>1708 *only a bad contact.

What for? Miners will take them all again.

>>1716 Have you been in a coma for three years or something, faggot? The Ethereum craze is long gone. All cryptos eventually become too hard to mine by GPUs and ASICs are needed to keep mining profitably. It happened to Bitcoin all the way back to 2014/2015, and it happened to Ethereum in early 2019, I think. Or 2018. So, no miners will pick those up. Just scalpers.

>>1731 If you don't know a shit, just don't post anything. Alright, kiddo?

>>1741 Ok mister smart ass, who the fuck is mining nowadays? I've seen the news about AMD making a "blockchain" card, but honestly I have no clue who could that be for. Maybe it's just a compute card or whatever. AMD is looking to get into compute quite hard, well they've always been doing it, it's just that their software is garbage in more ways than one comparing it to CUDA.

>>1751 >who the fuck is mining nowadays? Obviously anyone with cheap or even free electricity. Cheap — picture related including CIS. Free — enterprises with privileges and government benefits.

What's a good 5G USB wifi adapter to buy that has OOTB Linux drivers?

Are Kobo e-readers any good? I want something relatively cheap and small to read public domain and stolen e-books with on an e-ink screen.

>>1798 They're not bad. Better than anything Amazon offers. If you want a FOSS reader then they aren't it. Japs don't go in for that. If you just want something to load with tons of pirated e-books then it's perfect. I think they operate a store but don't try to upsell you the way Amazon does. Lots of options for screen size and most of them are waterproof. >>1790 Knew someone with a TP-Link nub once and it worked out of the box apparently. Heard it has issues on newer kernels and might need drivers now? Maybe they have newer models that don't suffer from the same problem.

>>1799 >If you want a FOSS reader then they aren't it. Are there FOSS readers with e-ink screens?

>>1803 There's a dedicated thread >>608 with some discussion of that, and I maybe some requests for the same earlier in this thread.

What exactly wrong with modern HDD's and SMR? Should i avoid any of hard drives with cache bigger than 64MB because of SMR? Requesting for something silent (5400RPM) with at least 2TB storage. Up to ~70$

>>1919 It depends on what you're using them for. How often will you be writing data? I use shingled drives for cold storage. Back up all my big files and then leave them for years, reading when needed. The write performance can be shit but I never write to them after I fill them up. For best value and maximum silence you should probably get a WD Elements. If you want to access them over USB they have portable ones. 2.5 inches, ultra quiet, 2 TB for like $60. Not sure if those are shingled. If you want a full-sized internal you can probably grab a MyBook and shuck it. Not sure they offer those as small as 2 TB anymore, but you can probably get a 3 TB for like $90. Maybe better with holiday sales. But at that point, just spend $150 for the 8 TB and never buy another drive again. Will almost certainly be shingled, though.

>>1921 I'd like to use it as cold storage only, so i can free my 2'5 500Gb and 3'5 1TB HDD's and use them for gayming with Primo Cache on. I didn't knew about MyBook and MyPassport tho. In my country it costs 120$ for 4TB and 60$ for 2TB respectively. I see it in stock, wich is awesome. Considering that i use Windows 10 (i'm retarded a gaymer) it is perfect solution for me. You know it randomly reads HDD's even when you don't ask for it. So i'll get this one, thank you for comprehensive answer.

>>1923 Glad I could help. Good luck with your data migration! I would recommend giving dual booting a try. Gaming was a barrier for me initially, but Steam+Proton has changed the game entirely. I can play almost any game, even new DX12 titles, on Day 1 with few issues. The only thing I cannot play is online-centric multiplayer games with strong anti-cheat. But giving up Red Orchestra for Linux was worth it, and if I get desperate I can dual boot or spin up a VM. There's a learning curve, but I think it's worth it. I remember installing games 20 years ago which would fail to install correctly. You'd have to hunt down installers for extra codecs and drivers, or tweak a .bat file. If your drivers weren't updated you might just be out of luck, or need a new GPU entirely. Proton is easier than all of that. The hiccups are worth it to get away from Microsoft.

>>1926 I was about wiping C disk and installing Fedora, but there is no support for Genshin Impact. The developers are beware of cheaters, so they don't share any data. >The only thing I cannot play is online-centric multiplayer games with strong anti-cheat Perhaps the era of competitive games is coming to an end and collaborations with players for a common goal will replace the meaningless temporary destruction of 3d models. I meant look at any modern online FPS, it's mostly filled with cheaters and people who have no idea what is going on and what to do. >installing games 20 years ago Agreed. Installing games was pretty much pain in ass before Steam and other launchers, like i had to hot swap two disks with a single game, and writing could took like hour or so. I kinda heard about Proton, but didn't paid enough attention, and since my GPU is RX 570 i'm really interested in forcing Vulkan API, despite majority of games running well, Deep Rock Galactic as example of good performance and Planetside 2 as bad one. I hope GOG.com will join Proton. And EGS... is EGS, it's DRM'd so deep it's not even working without internet connection. tl;dr I'll give it a shot. Thanks for additional advices.

Family is inquiring about gift requests. It's been a year or two since I last checked, but have SSDs improved significantly in terms of reliability? Last I heard a lot of them had high failure rates, particularly the more full they got. Any brands that have solved those issues? Other caveats I should be aware of? What are your recommendations?

>>1936 That issue has been "solved" for years. Modern SSDs can be written to fully a couple thousand times. The firmware has improved massively in the last 5 years. I've used a 500 Gb from a few years ago as a boot drive with no issue. Unless you're using an SSD as a dedicated cache for another drive, or a scratch disk for large media projects, I doubt you'd encounter SSD end of life. By the time you get there, you can replace it with a much bigger drive on the cheap. At this point, the biggest problem is the bandwidth limit of SATA. If your motherboard supports M.2 you should look into those and check out benchmarks, assuming you care about speed.

Good FOSS firewalls for Windows?

Good budget phone that has 4G and will work with T-Mobile? >mainly interested in emulating retro games on the fly, bonus if it has bluetooth to connect controllers to.

>>2005 Linux

>>417 In case anyone else is looking for a Lineage phone, don't go with Samsung. I thought a used S9 would be good for the price/features I wanted, but it wasn't worth the hassle. I wish I just spent the extra money on a different phone. >only (some) international phones are supported >US, chink, and some spic models won't work at all >even the supported models still have bullshit time locks for OEM unlocking >the official Lineage guide has no FAQs on various issues like SecureBoot >my old 1+1 was natively supported by Cyanogen and had no issues doing any of this shit I just wanted a newer rootable phone with an aux port. Is that too much to ask?

>>2023 >I just wanted a newer rootable phone with an aux port. Is that too much to ask? In [Current Year + 6]? Yes. Total bullshit. I've actually had okay luck with low-end phones. How is it Motorola can make a $150 phone with removable battery, 3.5mm audio jack, and expandable storage, but a $1,000 phone can't do any of that? How are people this stupid? If you just want dev support, find out what phones the biggest contributors to LineageOS use. Guaranteed best compatibility since they'll autistically tune the project for their hardware. Or just go for a Librem 5 or Planet Computers PDA instead and run GNU/Linux instead of Android. >>2015 My Moto E6 (mentioned above) has held up remarkably well aside from the power button being "sticky". It feels like it goes down but get stuck and doesn't actually trigger, which can be frustrating, but it works from the right angle. It was $150 for decent horsepower, perfectly fine cameras, and all of the above. Certainly beats flagship phones for the price. As far as I know, it supports T-Mobile. Don't most phones now support all carriers?

>>2023 Nigger you should have gone with the Note 8 like I commented in a reply to that post. It's less than $200 new, how much did the S9 cost? >Samsung My previous phone was a Samsung and the modding on that phone was shit. I was eager to avoid them after that. >>2024 >How is it Motorola can make a $150 phone with removable battery, 3.5mm audio jack, and expandable storage, but a $1,000 phone can't do any of that? That's something that I found super weird too, but it seems it's just Motorola (not counting the Chinese companies). And it's not just this, the specs on their phones are great. There's definitely something fishy.

>>2024 I'm just pissed because there was a phone in the UK that would have been great for me, but they wouldn't ship to the US. (Fairphone?) I was even willing to spend the extra money because I use my phones as long as possible. Only this year I'm ditching my 1+1 from 2014 because it's starting to have glaring issues. Researching replacement phones and the bullshit I dealt with for my "new" Samsung made me just want to fix my old phone. Looking up your Moto specs, that's not bad for the price. >How is it Motorola can make a $150 phone with removable battery, 3.5mm audio jack, and expandable storage, but a $1,000 phone can't do any of that? How are people this stupid? People are retarded and believe the "supposed reasons" for dropping features: >no removable battery <Waterproofing and low quality off-brand batteries because they can't seal a battery compartment properly that can be opened. >removing audio jacks <Phones are getting too thin and people "mostly use bluetooth headsets anyway". >removing SD slots <People pull these out during phone usage and corrupt files, or install apps to them and complain of bad performance. Some of these are true, but it's mostly kikery fluff. They're excuses to force changes rather than work around them. >>2025 >how much did the S9 cost? I spent about $170 used, but they're closer to $250 typically. >Nigger you should have gone with the Note 8 like I commented in a reply to that post. It's less than $200 new <6.3" phone I want a phone that fits comfortably in my pocket, not a fucking tablet. I'm sick of these huge phones.

>>2024 The Moto e6 certainly looks promising, thank's for the recommendation! >Don't most phones now support all carriers? They should now, but it mainly depends on the network bands they have. >Or just go for a Librem 5 or Planet Computers PDA instead and run GNU/Linux instead of Android. The Planet Computer PDA has piqued my interest but it doesn't seem to have as many network bands as the Moto. <Planet Computer PDA LTE bands: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 12, 17, 20, 41 <Moto LTE bands: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 25, 26, 38, 41, 66, 71 I assume with the 4GB of RAM the PDA has and with it having Linux, it'll be enough for running Virtual Machines?

>>2026 >I want a phone that fits comfortably in my pocket, not a fucking tablet. I'm sick of these huge phones. I was also bothered by this and was surprised that most phones seem to be so big these days when only certain models were back when I got my previous one. Unfortunately it's tough to get a perfect match and I had to compromise on the screen size.

>>2027 >it'll be enough for running Virtual Machines? In theory, sure, but I never did that. I owned one for a bit but it was unceremoniously run over one day, so I didn't get to test its true potential. I was hoping to pick up a Cosmo Communicator eventually which looks like a big improvement. They do have less bands but I think it would be sufficient. >>2026 >>2028 Phones are definitely way too big. In my opinion, phone design peaked with the Galaxy Nexus. 5.5" display, a little bit bigger because bezels still existed but you could either shrink that or make the screen slightly bigger today. The back was gently curved for your hand, not like the flat pieces of shit today. For all their talk of ergonomics and "beauty" they can't make anything functional.

>>2027 The number of bands isn't really as important as ensuring your phone carrier uses enough of the bands your phone has. Typically more bands is better to increase potential compatibility, but that's not always the case. If a phone isn't advertised to run on your carrier, research the bands used to ensure you'll get the best connection/speeds. I didn't learn this until years later when I realized my international phone was only using 1 T-Mobile band, while other phones at the time could use 5.

I broke my hdmi cable and I my dad has a shitton of hdmi but it doesn't fit. My dad only has the normal ones in bulk, should I get mini or mirco hdmi cable? How do I know what will fit before buying? For now I putting the cable on the intel HD card port instead of the gpu port.

>>1754 >below 5 cents per kwh on average You are better off living in the Dakotas or Kansas if you live in the US. Cheap electricty here

I am looking for a screwdriver set fit for electronic repairs. I would like a set that... >has the special bits. For instance, the Y wing commonly seen on Apple products, the gamebits seen on nintendo consoles pre-wii, and the special torxs that have holes in the middle for the xbox 360 controllers. >isn't made out of cheap chinkshit metal that breaks easily I'm conflicted with ifixit because while their manta kit has the largest amount of bits usable, I'm skeptical of the reviews so I don't know if they're good for my needs. Wiha is said to be good as their stuff is made to last, being that it's in germany, and they have a modest selection of usable drivers, but they are very pricey compared to ifixit. What does /t/ suggest?

>>2056 >Y wing commonly seen on Apple products My friend has a set that includes bits for Apple. I don't think it was iFixit, so I'll double check which set he has. >bits seen on nintendo consoles pre-wii >the special torxs that have holes in the middle for the xbox 360 controllers Were those proprietary bits or just really niche? I've never seen them on a toolset before. I don't even know if my friend's set has them. Nintendo's tri-wing was niche enough that I couldn't find one in any local hardware store. I ended up buying one on Amazon last year specifically to fix my GBC/DS.

>>2057 >Were those proprietary bits or just really niche? I've never seen them on a toolset before. I don't know what constitutes as a 'proprietary bit', but beyond being used for nintendo consoles, the gamebit was also used for IBM PS/2 computers. Besides those, I haven't seen any further information of it beyond it being a japanese system. Maybe it's both? For the special torxs with holes, they appear to be a variant of the torx screws. I haven't seen other devices using the same screw as the xbox 360 controller, so I wager the special variant being niche.

>>2059 Oh wait, I think you mean 'proprietary bit' as in the physical tool stores don't carry those gamebits in which case, yeah they are proprietary.

>>2056 I have the smaller iFixit kit (Mako) that was bundled with spudgers and I've been very satisfied with it. Makes most electronics work a breeze. You can hold the top and rotate the rest independently, and everything is magnetic which makes it much easier to insert and remove most screws. It's also useful for some non-electronic work, but it really wasn't designed for that. I understand the impulse to be skeptical. I can't say definitively if an iFixit kit is better than any of their competitors. But if you had your eye on the Manta kit because it has the bits you need, and you just want to know if the product holds up? Yeah, it does. It's not made of Chinesium. It doesn't feel cheap. It hasn't broken or failed on me. I feel like I work faster with it than with most modular screwdriver kits. It works as advertised and I've been satisfied with its performance. If I lost my kit in a fire, I'd probably buy another one to replace it. If you're still skeptical, it looks like Amazon has it, and their return policy is usually generous.

>>2061 >I can't say definitively if an iFixit kit is better than any of their competitors. That's one part of my skepticism with ifixit is that the competitors it has as far as I know of are the cheap chink shits sold on places like amazon, such as ORIA which I contemplated on getting, but I didn't want to take a chance with it because I don't want to buy any more cheap chink shit that breaks easy and have to get a new one. Another small part of the skepticism in ifixit would be the e-celebs who shilled for them in their videos. My main skepticism isn't really targetted at ifixit but more at sifting through online reviews and finding out if the reviewer(s) know what they're talking about or if they're blowing smoke because they're idiots who made a big mistake. Ifixit's lifetime warrentary seems cool to have, but I'm also not certain that it will still be honored in the later years because there could be a change of hand or someone sabotages them. Can the ifixit bits be used on a non-ifixit screwdriver that magnatizes the bits or are they proprietary? Is there also a point in the repair business toolkit? Couldn't one get all those supplies from other places for much cheaper instead of paying $200?

>>2065 >That's one part of my skepticism with ifixit is that the competitors it has as far as I know of are the cheap chink shits sold on places like amazon If you're considering the cheap "modular" screwdriver kits competitors, I've got a stack of 'em in my garage. Half gifts, half Home Depot impulse buys. They feel cheap, often break, parts go missing, and I spent more time fiddling with the tool than working on actual projects. iFixit hasn't let me down yet, nor threatened to, which gives me great peace of mind. >Another small part of the skepticism in ifixit would be the e-celebs who shilled for them in their videos. iFixit is a tool for enthusiasts and beginning professionals. Someone who refurbishes Amigas on their weekends will get a lot of mileage out of their toolkits. But the marketing is aimed squarely at Applefags who want to replace their iPhone batteries, so the extent that most of the spudgers are specifically for iPhone screen removal and are included in most of their kits. Note how the proprietary drivers for shit like Nintendo are in the expensive, standalone toolkit? It's because iFags just want enough to make small repairs and feel like they didn't buy a single use kit. But if you get a proper kit, it will last and get the job done for most electronics. Never trust e-celebs, but them shilling a product doesn't mean it's bad. Most reviews now are either sponsored or bots, unfortunately. >Can the ifixit bits be used on a non-ifixit screwdriver that magnatizes the bits or are they proprietary? Aside from some inherited Craftsman tools that predate most of the magnetic bit standards, and my pile of chinkshit, I don't have any other screwdrivers or bits. The bits and the socket they slip into are about a quarter inch diameter and hexagonal. I wouldn't be surprised if something else fit it. >Is there also a point in the repair business toolkit? lolno >Couldn't one get all those supplies from other places for much cheaper instead of paying $200? More importantly, you can pick and choose what tools you want and get quality ones. If you really need a multimeter, you either already own one or you should do research and pick the right one for your needs separately. Want calipers? Do research, pick the best ones. The spudgers and tweezers that come with some toolkits are nice, but you can also buy comparable ones elsehwere. The screwdriver and bits is the meat and potatoes of all these kits, and you should put your money towards that and worry about the rest as you need it. I mainly bought a "kit" with spudgers because friends often ask me to drive to their house and fix this laptops and it was convenient to have it all in one roll. If you just need something around the house, a standalone Manta kit is pretty ideal. Hell, I'd consider buying one for the extra bits and tossing my current kit in the car permanently.

>>2068 Sounds like iFixit is the way to go then. I'll look into the manta kit and hope that'll do its job for my repairs. I also realized the manta also has the thinner driver along with the fat one, which I hope will also work ok when it comes to removing screws in areas where it's hard to reach with a thick or short driver. Do you have any advice in regards to cleaning the devices once they're torn down? I've been using rubbing alcohol to get the dirty grim off the contacts and the edges of the shells because I assume water will mess up the contacts and circuts.

>>2056 I have pic related, which is their older screwdriver kit. I don't know how it compares to their new kits, but I would imagine the quality to be pretty much the same. I am very satisfied with this kit for personal use, it does what it's supposed to do reliably, none of the bits have worn out and they haven't stripped any of my screws. A couple of points of note: - The bits are too small to be used in a regular screwdriver, but there is an adapter included in the kit - Keep the length of the bits in mind if you need to go into a deep hole. For example, the triwing bits cannot access all the screws of a GameCub controller, so I use a cheap standalone screwdriver off eBay for that - The old set has an amazing feature which is missing from the new sets: you can take the extension piece of the screwdriver off, stick it through the butt of the screwdriver and get a T-shaped lever for extra torque. It's an amazing feature When you buy random chinkshit you are taking a gamble. You might buy literally the same thing iFixit is selling, minus the branding, or you might buy cheap shit that is just going to cause more problems than it solves. If you are not short on cash I would recommend buying the iFixit tools and have peace of mind knowing that you can at any time rely on your screwdrivers.

>>2071 My kit came with the thinner screwdriver and also an ultra-thin extender for reaching deep inside things. So they definitely make a proper extender, I just don't know if they bundle it with their largest kit. Kind of gay if true, but at least such a thing exists. I've never used the fatter one. I assume it's at least as good. Nothing I've worked on required much torque. >Advice for cleaning Alcohol (isopropyl/rubbing) is recommended mainly because it evaporates quickly, although you can also trust it not to leave much sediment behind. Distilled water is just as good, but then you have to air it out before plugging it in. You'll also want something to wipe with that won't leave fibers behind. Mechanic shops sell lint-free rags for wiping down cars. Coffee filters work for some residue. I'd also recommend some form of tweezers, short and long, for removing debris that might be jammed down inside or under stuff. I cleaned my mouse recently and there wheel was clogged. Required something needle-thin to remove some of it. Less of an issue for the inside of sealed electronics, but keyboards, mice, and possible phones must build up hand residue and debris, which is gross. You want to be able to reach them with minimal disassembly, and have the ability to grab and yank small stuff. Tweezers are also great for dropped screws or releasing ribbon cables. A lot of it depends on what you're trying to clean. For basic maintenance, a good cloth and some alcohol is plenty. For spills, garage sale finds, and hands-on items you might need a different approach. >>2072 God damn, that budget kit looks just like the chinkshit in my garage. Glad I went with the larger, nicer kit. I guess you gotta hit the budget segment of the market, too, but suckers need to learn a tool should be an investment. Wouldn't surprise me if that one was just rebanded. I've never seen any kits in stores that look like the Mako or Manta.

>>2073 The extender isn't included in the manta kit, it must be bought separately for $7. Do you also have any advice when it comes to painting the shells and buttons of the devices? Beyond retr0brighting them, I want to paint them in custom colors. Would using spray paint cans be ideal or is there a better method like dipping them in paint?

>>2076 I'm the wrong guy to ask about paints and dyes. I'm incredibly inept at repainting stuff. You'll probably need to do some research on what paints bond well to that kind of plastic, do some prep work, and consider how even different coatings turn out. I've had bad experiences with spraypaint. It "works" but usually looks bad and doesn't hold up well. Acrylic works better but I'm not sure how to best coat something evenly.

>>2073 >God damn, that budget kit looks just like the chinkshit in my garage. Glad I went with the larger, nicer kit. I guess you gotta hit the budget segment of the market, too, but suckers need to learn a tool should be an investment. Wouldn't surprise me if that one was just rebanded. I've never seen any kits in stores that look like the Mako or Manta. I think it's the other way around, chinks copied the iFixit kit but worse. I really can't complain about my kit, and have had my share of cheap bit sets. actually it was my dad who used to buy cheap shit, I learned the lesson from him

>>2077 Not a problem! I'm just about covered on searching for the best repair tool kit and am ready to find some junk devices to repair and restore.

My iFixit manta kit arrived. Tested it on the xbox 360 controller and it was able to get the nuts out with ease. I first used the bigger screwdriver but it wasn't able to reach deeper spots, so I used the thinner one instead which worked better. No need to buy extender Both the screwdrivers felt good to use and they didn't feel like they were made out of cheap chink shit, the material reminded me of those little metal flashlights. I was able to connect a phillips screw from the kit into another screwdriver because I wanted to see if it's compatible on other makers. The smaller bits didn't work, but I can guess that they too can be put on other toolmakers. I don't see why I would use other toolmakers though when iFixit seems pretty good enough. Whether or not they are durable or will last longer than the average toolkit will be a mystery, but I am pleased to say that it seems to be a good investment.

Are there any Single Board Computers, that can run Office stuff without lagging and needing cooling? I have a lot of time at work and look for something small and light that can help me get into Linux, while alternativly being able to do some paper work/writing.

>>2108 A cheap thin client running Windows/Office 2000. Thank me later.

>>2109 Not finding what you mean. I look for something the size and price range of a Pi. Things with a Via Eden CPU are either too big or cost thrice the price.

>>2108 >>2114 Does a Pi not perform adequalely? Or is the dealbreaker there the cooling? Pine boards are a little more powerful than a Pi (sometimes, depending on release cycle) but a Pi is probably the best deal for the money with best developer support. If it's overheating, get a cheap heatsink with fins and attach it. That usually solves it. Barring that, would a tiny fan kill you? Outside of that, you're looking at overpriced NUCs from Intel.

>>2108 Odroid boards have better performance than Pi, so you could look into that. (See if anyone's tested LibreOffice or similar programs on Youtube.) I use one for some programs and small game servers, and it runs around 50C typically. Otherwise you could try the NUCs from Intel/AMD if you can afford to spare a little extra space.

>>2114 Not necessarily, I got one of these for $20 and it's x86 so it'll run pretty much everything.

>>2121 >Or is the dealbreaker there the cooling? >Barring that, would a tiny fan kill you? Cooling and noice are the dealbreaker. I need something that is silent so the colleagues aren't disturbed, but it also has to be small&inconspicuous so that a random visitor dosn't notices that its a computer.

Any benefits/drawbacks to 144hz+ monitors beside quicker response time and Freesync/G-SYNC? I'm curious if they can be useful for applications other than gaming.

>>2137 Some say it makes the desktop feel smoother, I don't really notice much. It's mostly just a gaming thing practically speaking.

>>2137 90/120Hz can probably make general usage feel smoother, but to me the difference is marginal

>>2137 It's probably easier on the eyes in general. CRTs could run in 60, 75, and 80 FPS mode if I remember correctly and I realized when I had mine accidentally running at 60 FPS because my eyes would get teary. Despite the eye candy of things being more fluid in games, after switching to LCDs I remember having (further) issues in games because splashes like weapon fire and blood started taking too long on the screen or had deeper color instead of being just a flash like with higher refresh rate CRTs, so when I was getting shot I couldn't see shit. Having said all this, it all happened some 15 years ago and I imagine my dumb eyes couldn't distinguish anything anymore. In terms of drawbacks since 60 FPS became the standard I have no idea how prepared every application and desktop manager is to run at a different (or even variable!) refresh rate.

How to make a stiff membrane keyboard softer? I bought an used lenono keyboard because i thought "hey its lenovo so the keyboard must be great" and the thing is so much harder to press compared to the typical laptop keyboard that I am so used to. Am I supposed to adapt to it or what? I'm getting used to it though.

>>2162 I don't think you can. Maybe with lots of use it will start to wear out? But it seems like you'll adjust before you break it in.

What kind of lubricant should i apply to my laptop fan? The thing is like 7 years old so I guess it's dying or something. This shop I went to apply sewing machine oil and it lasted for 2 weeks. I have gone to it twice and every time the fan was only quiet for 2 weeks or so before it started sounding like a machine gun again. Is there any option better than sewing machine oil?

>>2170 Easiest solution would be to spritz some WD-40 in there and hope that solves it. Pulling it apart to lubricate the ball bearings properly isn't really worth it compared to just replacing the fan.

What would be a good replacement for a Samsung Galaxy Note 4? I've been trying to degoogle for months and my current goyphone doesn't seem to support LineageOS not to mention that the battery keeps busting and the shit I used to tape down the replacement screen isn't working that well anymore, mainly due to the battery bulge pushing against the screen. Ideally it should be not manufactured by those who pay lip service to subversives, and doesn't have any business with chinks; similar specs to my current goyphone would be nice as well, but as long as it can play local videos without shitting itself, I could probably use whatever.

>>2328 If you want to run LineageOS you should see what the devs have. Those phones are usually the best supported. Beware of Samsung phones, which differ in hardware between regions. Some phones are unlockable and have good driver support while others are locked down. It's not simply enough to pick a Samsung model that is "supported", it must be from the right region. Or just look for anything with an unlockable bootloader. Motorola phones had an open unlock policy last time I checked. You void the warranty but can freely unlock it. Some of their cheaper phones don't have explicit support, though. Shame, because the Moto E and Moto G still have a headphone jack and are ridiculously affordable.

>>2328 New phones are almost certainly not going to be supported by LOS because it takes time to add support, unless it's some sort of deal where the phone manufacturer actually pays someone to add it at launch or something. The better supported phones I think are the OnePlus ones because you can unlock them without voiding the warranty so a lot of developers get them, but last I checked their hardware is mediocre for the huge price they command. I think they're also Chinese. The best place to start researching is the LOS supported devices list: https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/ However be advised that it's very hard to find a good LOS phone and even if you find a supported phone that you like, the support may be mediocre and not all the functionality may work. Additionally some phones have unofficial support, check XDA to see if anyone's maintaining a LOS ROM if you see a phone that might be a good candidate. I had to change my phone a few months back and I got a Xiaomi Note 8, see >>1308. I run it completely degoogled (I use MicroG and F-Droid) and the sucker lasts a good week of time with light use before I need to plug it back in. Funny story, this phone didn't have official LOS support back when I purchased it but someone was maintaining an unofficial ROM that worked pretty well, but then someone decided to create a different ROM and make it official which made the unofficial dev cancel his own ROM, however it seems the official devs didn't know what they were doing and their ROM has a lot of issues which the canceled ROM didn't have.

>>2328 If you really want to degoogle, you could check out GrapheneOS (no Google at all) or CalyxOS (has the option of microG or none at all). Somewhat ironically they only work on Pixel 3 and 4 including variants because of hardware (CalyxOS has a tiny bit more coverage), but they're more secure than Lineage and you can relock your bootloader. GrapheneOS is probably the most secure mobile operating system that there is. You could buy a used one to avoid giving money to Jewgle.

I'm trying to piece out an upgrade, will 9400F and 750Ti/1030 be enough for Yuzu/Ryujinx and lighter RPCS3(weeb JRPGs and such, I'm not interested in western hard to run AAAs like Last of Us or Skate 3). >>1606 >Unfortunately, if you want any customization options. mechanical + Cherry is the only real way to go. If you know a bit of Japanese, you'll find some options for low profile Chocs(but still nowhere near Cherry unfortunately) in places like Pixiv BOOTH. I'm planning to build a custom myself with them in the future, probably one piece like a Revivung but with a numrow.

>>2550 9400F seems to be on the lower end. CPU horsepower is important when it comes to emulation. If this is strictly an update of those two parts, I'd at least look through listings for a used i7 that will fit your socket. If you're upgrading the motherboard, too, you'll probably get more bang for your buck with Ryzen. 750 Ti is fine, if a bit on the low end. A 1050 Ti can be had for under $100, which is roughly the same price range as a 750 Ti is going for right now. There's a lower end to PC part prices, and you're better off finding the newest component that has hit the bottom tier. Going older just loses your performance and only saves you a few dollars.

Is there any good reason to build a system with 32gb of ram instead of 16gb, provided that they're both the same speed and have similar timings? Is there anything that would take advantage of the raw space other than compiling large programs and video editing? Would I be falling for the future-proofing meme if I did?

>>2682 You can do meme stuff like run software on a ramdisk. I've had 32 Gb in my builds since 2012 and I'm not going back. Browsers eat a ton now, although more RAM seems to help very little on the upper end. You can also do scientific computing with more RAM. Ryzen is timing sensitive so the money might be better put to that. >future-proofing There will never be a need for 32 Gb of RAM any more than there is a need for more than 8 Gb of RAM. Expect developers to optimize less over time. Easy solution would be to buy 16 Gbs now and add more later if needed, but DDR4 is only going to get more expensive.

>>2682 Depends on your operating system, the various programs you run, your workflow, and how long you go between upgrades. In 6 years every fucking program on the planet will be some bloated electron app, and a windows install will probably take up 1TB of space and 8 gigs of ram at boot (hyperbole)). In 5-6 years a game might need more than 16gb of ram, or at least might see a performance hit with less. But this also assumes you even play modern AAA games at all. I use virtual machines every day to compartmentalize things so personally 32gb of ram is a no brainer. But if you don't utilize any virtual machines, and don't run a ridiculously bloated software suite, 16gb is probably adequate. It's pretty annoying that there aren't any halfway points between ram upgrades. The case could be made for 24gb of ram rather than 32.

Trying to find a new phone for Lineage. (or similar ROMs) I wanted something slightly better than my old OnePlus, but everything is either a tablet or has no headphone jack. The Moto G7 Play is the right size, although slightly to noticeably worse in all specs. It's usable, I was just hoping for something at least equal. https://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_moto_g7_play-9532.php Are there any issues with bootloader locking? I might just buy this if there's nothing better specs-size for the size.

>>2682 >Is there any good reason to build a system with 32gb of ram instead of 16gb For most people no. 8GB is fine for light browsing and 16GB for most games on high settings. You might need more for less optimized AAA games or ultra settings, but you'd also need to invest in a better GPU for that. I ended up getting 32GB RAM as a gift, so I'm a bit more generous with VM settings, file compression, and even RAM disks. If you want to future-proof, instead of buying 2x8GB RAM, you buy 1x16GB and leave slots open to upgrade. Don't buy parts you don't need unless you know there will be issues getting them in the future.

>>32 >>68 >Headphones for 90$ Is there a average Headphone whose sound quality isn't too shit in the 50-60$ range?

>>2682 Depends on your use case. I sometimes run 3 browser sessions (so 3 different browsers pretty much) and 3 VMs at the same time, so 32 GB is necessary. It also allows some nice tricks with the memory like mounting RAM disks. Before I upgraded I had 8 GB and it was a humiliating experience, fucking GPUs had more VRAM than I had RAM by the time I did the upgrade.

I just want a device for storing music on that's portable. One that's relatively inexpensive (<$150). I want it to have: 1. Long lasting battery 8+ hours 2. Either expandable storage (micro sd) or lots of storage space 3.I don't need any FLAC files on it, but I atleast would like it to support 320kbps .mp3 files. 4. Good audio quality. 5.Small, portable, and light Most of you guys are probably going to say get a phone, but I'd like a dedicated player instead. But if it ends up that I can't find one that I like, I'll just purchase a phone.

>>2899 This is the best mp3 player in my opinion (with the Rockbox.org software installed). Very long battery file, expandable with SD to fuckhuge storage (with some cons because of fat32 restraints), flac, mp3, gapless playback, built-in radio, can run doom. It's why I got 2 of them right when they were discontinued. You could trawl your local craigslist and equivalents for them. Otherwise, try searching for audio player specific forums (although most of them care about flac stuff and portability less so)

>>2903 Thank you. I was thinking of getting this, but I was unsure. I looked more into rockbox and now I know I will definitely be getting this, or any one that supports rockbox software. I think an acquaintance of mine still has his. If he doesn't have it, I'll just look for one. Thank you so much once again.

What's a good, modern(ish) computer to get that can be debotneted (or at least, has it debotneted by default; for the record, I mean the Intel ME and the AMD PSP), can have libreboot installed, and can ideally have at least the normal level of hassle that comes when installiing Gentoo on it? And, if possible, what storefront I could get it from that didn't give even platitudes in support for the Chimp-out of 2020?

>>2962 Pretty sure purism computers ship with ME as neutered as possible and might even come with libreboot.

>>2963 Correction, it comes with coreboot as their laptops need some proprietary blobs still. <Our coreboot currently contains the following blobs: > * memory/silicon initialization blob (FSP) — there are some rumors Intel might release source code for this, so our work on this is currently on hold. > * CPU microcode updates — microcode updates are uploaded to the CPU at boot time, which patch the built-in microcode and disables buggy parts of the CPU to improve reliability. In the past, these updates were handled by the operating system kernel, but on all recent Intel systems the system firmware is required to perform this task (though it can still be updated by the kernel after the fact). > * Intel Management Engine (ME) firmware — we disable and effectively neutralize this blob by removing most of its code and setting flags to disable the ME coprocessor at boot time.

I'm looking for a general-purpose (but mostly stationary) laptop under 1k, preferably able to run some 5 year old games on medium settings. I've looked into Thinkpads, but their GPUs seem quite underpowered. Any recs?

>>3211 https://pcpartpicker.com/products/laptop/ This and just watching jewtube reviews for products in your budget is probably your best bet. https://www.ifixit.com/laptop-repairability And maybe consult this page and it might have something on how easy the laptop is to work on. But for the most part if you want a gaymen capable laptop you're probably just going be accepting that you're burning $1000 on something that will probably shit itself in one way or another in a few years.

>>2170 Machine oil (duh!), i'd suggest the Singer one. But, if the bearing is struggling to work properly, the only thing you can do is replace the fan. >>2194 Please, no! WD40 is a solvent, NOT a lubricant!

>>3356 If the fan is full of gunk, as it probably is, WD40 follwed by an actual lubricant would be better.

>>>/v/278826 I would trawl local sales first anon. Monitors don't usually tend to die gradually they just stop working, so finding something on craigslist or whatever has a good chance of working well while being cheaper.

>>3211 Get a used enterprise (Dell is one of biggest/best brands) laptop from ebay. They're usually pretty cheap and can be in pretty decent condition. And if anything breaks they're usually pretty simple to repair.

What kind of HDD model should I be buying if I need more storage space, are the variants with more than 2TB space worth it? I would prefer buying from a firm with the least likely chance of HDD failures, I'm not sure if its still a concern because I heard there are still some models out there that tend to fail often than other types.

>>3493 Mostly the same problem as with Thinkpads - weak GPUs. I did manage to find a new laptop that seems to fit my needs in terms of performance and price (Dell Vostro 15 3500), but I can't find any reviews of it outside of pajeets on jewtube.

Is there a USB Bluetooth adapter that I can use with a controller that doesn't suck? So far every one I've used has latency issues. Using the same controller on a PS4 that's next to my PC works just fine. >>3494 I use 12TB WD Reds in my ZFS server. Been running 24/7 for a couple years now without any issue. If you need something external Easystores are pretty much the same drives as Reds.

>>3545 >look it up on jewmazon >WD Red Plus 12 TB NAS 3.5" Interne Festplatte – 7.200 RPM Class, SATA 6 Gbit/s, CMR, 256 MB Cache >356 yurop buck for a single unit You're killing me.

>>3611 You can either get something cheap or something good, not both also don't buy from amazon, you never know what you're gonna get. Buy directly from WD

Is there a good tablet that you can use to read books without having to jailbreak or root it?

>>3696 What does /t/ think of the Kobo Aura?

>>3696 You can get a Nexus 7 for like $50 or less and they bootloader is unlocked. You can just flash a stock AOSP image + root and it's totally free. If you don't give a shit, just buy something cheap. For the most part, all the ads and malware are targeted at high end devices. Personally, I don't like reading on tablets. The screen is too big and the LED screens are harsh. Either get an eBook reader or use a super cheap phone so your eyes don't need to move as much.

>>3697 I was looking at Kobo eReaders. If you're not going to build your own and want to avoid Amazon's poz they're probably the best choice. Not sure what the benefit of an Aura is over a Forma or Libra, though.

>>3697 I have a Clara HD instead of an aura, but regardless, Kobo's are a good investment. You can mod them to increase the storage capacity and do other things. Calibre also has support for it, so you can upload your books from you harddrive onto the kobo.

https://www.csl-computer.com/k/w997h8UO Improvements to this desktop build? More cost effective, better performance etc. Can't exceed €1700. Give absolutely no shits about RGB or noise. Mix of work and play. Not using windows.

Are there any mid-tier GPUs to look forward to? I was looking forward to the new GPUs because of cost/performance then sand got expensive, but now my coil whine is getting considerably worse so I'm looking for one again.

>>3795 >mid-tier GPUs Eventually. >to look forward to? Not any time soon. Most of nVidia's silicon is going towards their high-end models, and their others are significantly delayed. At this rate, there might not be a decent mid-tier you can buy for another year or two. You could look at used mid-tiers from previous cycles and see if there's any deals. Someone with a 2060 might stick it out, but someone with a 1060 would probably ditch it if they can get a 3000 series.

>>3820 I looked around for old cards and it's not really worth it. It's either retards thinking an used GPU is still worth 96% of the original price or the shittiest cards. Though from looking around for specs it seems the 3070 isn't really that better from the 3060, I figured it would be the poorfag GPU but it's really good even when compared to the 20 series. I'll just hope my GPU doesn't explode and try and wait it out for a cheap 3060.

>>3824 Unfortunately the silicon shortage has broken the entire market. People are selling early-cycle 2060s for above MSRP. It's a great time to sell but an absolutely terrible time to buy.

>>3824 >>3845 Since desktop parts are in no sight, should I get eluktronics or whatever named laptop? I heard they are the better ones in value, I don't want pre-built which being expensive and have trouble upgrading anyways.

>>4083 I'd just wait for parts to become available. CPUs should come down in price in the next few months, and GPUs some time next year.

Have any one heard or used Trust.zone VPN? I searched for different options using this comparison chart https://www.safetydetectives.com/best-vpns/#comparison and looking at the information here: https://torrentfreak.com/best-vpn-anonymous-no-logging/#trustzone Is it trust worthy/secure? Does it usually have downtimes? My main usage is to protect my privacy, use torrents and use it to bypass certain website blocks my ISP placed on my end. Normie usage you could say. Privacy for me is fully required but is not tinfoil levels of avoiding the government or being persecuted. I'm not going to do anything ilegal. Also just for reference, I'm not in US or 1st class country. I'm in a 3rd world country but don't have to worry of gov censorship.

>>4107 Never heard of it. Just stick to Nord or Mullvad or something else with a reputation.

>>4108 Thanks. I get what you mean and i'll check more on Mullvad but I have another question: Isn't it better to avoid VPN services that could comply with the 5/14 eyes ?

>>4117 Even if they're not active participants, you're going to be routed through networks that are sniffing all kinds of data. In theory, if it's encrypted and the provider is uncooperative you're as safe as you can get. If they don't keep logs, like many claim, then there's no real legal basis for taking action against you. Your only real option to guarantee avoiding 5 eyes would probably be a Russian or Chinese VPN, which will almost certainly record and steal the data themselves. With 5 eyes, your risk is limited to unconstitutional national security letters or their willing cooperation. I'll take that over Russia any day.

I find it tough to pick a headset. I want something with good audio input and output so I can be a g a m e r but I read that "gaming headsets" are just an excuse to drive up the price. I see the opinion that beyerdynamic is good, but all the mic-attached headsets are labeled gaming. Maybe gaming is just a red flag if you're in the market for headphones only? No mic? I want a headset that will last as long as a gaming PC, roughly 10 years, but so far plantronics, turtle beach, and... spellond? have failed in my PC's lifespan. 11 years and also needing a replacement The worst was turtlebeach.

>>4151 If you have the space and patience, consider getting a boom mic along with a decent set of headphones. I thought everyone giving me this advice was just a memelord, but after getting some Sony MDR-7506 headphones and a cheap Audio-Technica mic, along with the bits and bobs it needs, I realized two things: >combined, the cost was only slightly more than your average Logitech gaymer headset >the individual quality of both my incoming audio and outgoing voice were orders of magnitude more satisfying Granted, I have a ton of desk space and my own office/computer room, so the real estate required to have a larger mic setup don't affect me as much as they may affect you. But I'm completely satisfied with the setup I have; those headphones are really good for the price and the rare times when I need to use voice comms I always receive compliments on my mic quality.

>>4152 I'm too mobile with it. Ideally I have a really long cord and be able to sit outside with it, 5 feet from my computer, but it's not that big of a deal. Might be worth getting an extension cord. Anyway, point being a mic that I have to physically carry would be a bother. I do appreciate the input, but it doesn't seem right for my situation.

>>4153 >physically carry By that, I mean in my hands, rather than it being attached to the headset

>>4153 >>4154 By "boom mic", I meant a heavier microphone that is secured to your desk via a boom/scissor mount (pic related; not mine but illustrates my point). There are also little tripod mounts for microphones - many come with them, in fact - but they transmit way too much desk noise in my experience. Definitely not your standard newscaster-style hold-it-in-your-hands microphone, obviously, because that kinda defeats the purpose.

>>4155 but I'd have to hold it in my hand to take it outside

My moto G5+ is falling apart so i need a new phone sim/sd tray no longer works so i'm making do with the 32GB it came with and no phone data, 2GB RAM isn't enough for anything these days, 3.5 jack is busted so i'm forced to use wireless buds and the battery duration is pitiful, barely 3 hours, 5 if i just use it for music, budget is $200 because i live in a place where theft while commuting is common and i am an absolute retard who drops his phone frequently and doesn't use it for anything outside of the alarm and wasting time at work. >what exactly do you need Something with an acceptable SoC and amount of RAM (midtier snapdragon and 4GB at least), expandable storage (i can overlook this one as long as it has 64GB at the very least), 3.5 jack and custom ROM support, i don't mind importing or using old phones. Locally i've considered the following: >Moto G7 Plus SoC is a little weak but everything else is alright, the only problem is that the fucking thing is made entirely out of glass and i don't trust myself not to break it in under a month, plus it's still kinda expensive for being nearly 3 years old ($200). >Pixel 2 Great specs, $150, almost bought it until i took a closer look and saw it had no expandable storage nor 3.5 jack. >HTC 10 Basically my dream phone, the store was selling it for $100 but the back was all scratched and the battery duration was bound to be ass since it's a phone from 2015.

>>4191 If you like Motorola phones then I'd stick with them. Their low-end devices are the only ones I know of with decent build quality, headphone jacks, and removable batteries. Are they perfect? No. Is storage sparse? Yes. But they're affordable and not gimped to be more like Apple, and they let you unlock the bootloader. >SoC is a little weak I don't think a single phone released in the last 5 years is underpowered. You don't need that many resources to run most apps. Maybe if you want to use it for shitty VR, or emulation, you might want a little more oomph, but even the Moto E can handle a lot of that now.

>>4215 I'm not really a fan of motorola, but i've used their phones since forever (razr>g1>g4p>g5+) because they're reasonably cheap and have good enough specs, but this time i want something that will last me a lot longer, thus why i want a phone with a more powerful chip and at least 4GB of RAM, preferably 6GB. >moto E7 The specs suck and mediatek SoCs never get many custom roms, the E7 Plus however does look a little more interesting, 4/64 with snapdragon chip, expandable storage and a 5000 mAh battery, and it would cost me around $160 if i were to buy it locally. I guess i'll go take a look at it tomorrow and buy it if i end up liking it.

Not your usual consumer advice question, but does anyone know of a good source (Like a book or documentary) that details the rise and continued demise of IBM and AOL?

I'm the guy who asked for a $150 phone, i ended up buying a galaxy S7 since it has everything i could ever want and more (SD820, 4GB RAM, 1440p super AMOLED screen, expandable storage, no camera bezel shit and fucking physical buttons). Was a little worried about the battery, but then i realized i was not going to get anything better for 150 dollars, and i can get around the SoT by flashing a more battery efficient rom+kernel+micro G, plus it's not like i don't have a power outlet right next to me 24/7. The only downside is that it uses micro USB, but it's not like i expected anything else on this price range. Pretty happy with my purchase, let's hope it doesn't explode or anything, because it had no warranty on the store and samchink no longer manufactures these things.

>>4320 >phone not even once

>>4320 Happy for you anon, researching phone purchases is hard work. I'm surprised such an old model has features that good (and also that you were able to find one). If you're going full degoogled with MicroG do tell us how it works for you, I'm curious about other people's experiences. >The only downside is that it uses micro USB Why is this a downside? I've only seen people complain about USB-C, though mostly because of not having cables available since everyone still mostly uses Micro USB.

>>4321 >>4325 Welp nevermind, turns out i wasn't thorough with my research, as the variant i bought (G930T) cannot have its bootloader unlocked AND it can only be rooted if it's on stock nougat (it's not), the battery duration isn't terrible considering it's 4 years old, but unless i lower the screen resolution to 720p it gets so hot that it can legitimately burn a hole in my pocket (this can be fixed, however it requires a kernel manager, which needs root, which i cannot have), no wonder it was so cheap, to top it off the store i bought it from has a "no refund/returns" policy, and if i were to pawn it off somewhere else i can only expect between 70 and 100 dollars (i paid $140). A damn shame because something newer with the same specs would set me back at least $400 and it would be brick sized, have a ugly camera hole on the screen and no physical buttons.

>>4320 >>4334 nigger its a phone. You are not going to do anything more than take calls, search google and watch porn. Considering you're a poorfag you have a great device. Use it well and it will serve you well. s7 battery can be replaced, though its a lot harder. Use it few years and sell for $50.

Thinking of buying a laptop since gpu's are gone and looked at Asus g14 and lenovo legion 5. I will be needing a webcam (job) and enough gpu to run at 120/144hz. Is rtx 2060 worth over 1660ti, not considering rtx? Is 4800h good enough for loaded task? Around $1000 budget.

>>4340 Mobile gpu performance is a clusterfuck to generalize because the difference in cooling solutions and power target variance. A mobile 2060 in one system could have drastically worse performance than another system. https://invidious.snopyta.org/watch?v=s9jS1c4H5lk See basically all of this channels (Hardware Unboxed) laptop related content for good context and advice. The video I linked in particular seems to specifically mention the gpu's you're interested in, but I only skimmed it. It might answer your question.

I'm looking for a way to allow me to remotely connect into a PC on my local network. Kind of like a KVM switch, but while still being able to use my main PC. VNC or similar won't work because I want to control the PC on bootup as well to make BIOS changes. I guess it'd be like connecting by VNC/RDP into a KVM switch? I could use a regular KVM switch if nothing else works, but I'd prefer to be able to use something to connect to the device from another room if possible.

>>4334 I'm in the same boat as you. I had to settle on a Moto G7+ because I got screwed on phones I couldn't flash either. I figured I could get something similar to my OnePlus, but 6 years later there's still no phone with similar features/performance for the price. I either had to spend a lot more for features while losing others (aux port), or spend less and lose stuff anyway. I was close to giving up and just finding another OnePlus in better condition to replace my dying one. It works well enough for the most part, but there's a lot of little features I'm still getting used to not having (RGB notification, double tap to wake screen, a case that fits properly, a full taskbar without the fucking front camera in the way, actual buttons, etc). Seriously, this model phone for some reason has 0 cases designed properly. My camera has an oval bezel while every case has a circle cutout. Even in the pictures on Amazon they all show oval cameras in a circle hole. It's the biggest complaint on every case but they're still designed wrong. How do they all fuck up and no one fixes it? spoiled for rant

>>4338 I don't think it's going to be worth more than $10 in a few years, but yeah it's a pretty good phone if i'm willing to put up with the shitty battery life and the fact that it gets uncomfortably hot sometimes. I am not planning on replacing the battery though, because i'm 100% sure i will fuck it up and i don't want to sink even more money on this thing, so i i'll just use it until i save up a bit of money, then i'll buy a moto g/redmi note phone, brand new this time. >>4363 It sucks that they completely fucked up phone design somewhere around 2017, the moto G line was my favorite due to being cheap and still offering things that even $500+ phones of the time didn't (expandable storage and removable battery), and starting from the G4 they let you completely hide the onscreen buttons and use the fingerprint sensor to navigate even on the stock rom, too bad they got bought by lenovo and we got nothing but shit phones after the G5 line.

>>4362 There's KVM over IP but those might be pricey or huge since they tend to be only for rackmounted equipment. Maybe there's a chinese 1 pc kit out there who knows

>>4373 >KVM over IP >those might be pricey or huge That looks like what I want, but you're definitely right about expensive. I might just settle with a normal KVM switch + long USB/video cables if nothing else is reasonable.

>>4378 You can get some used ones for pretty cheap on ebay. A quick search pulled up a few switches for ~$40

>>4371 I can get the sealed battery - hot air and pry tools and is out. But what about the shitty camera cutout? The useless dual cameras? Shitty UI with updates to fuck it more up? Not to mention all glass front and back that 90% just put a case on anyway.

Gonna update my blog real quick, hope you guys don't mind. I was able to sell the S7 for $110 to a coworker the potato he'd been using was even worse than the one i previously had, SD410/1GB, mine was SD625/2GB, i asked for the $150 i paid for it, but when he took a good look at the phone he noticed a scratch near the logo (probably my keys) and cosmetic damage on the fingerprint sensor (this one was 100% my fault, i tried to clean it and i ended up scratching the paint), so i had to lower the price because i simply didn't want it anymore. Luckily he doesn't mind the shitty battery life because his phone is always plugged, all he wants is a phone that can handle porn, music and gacha shit at work.

Best dirt cheap web host? I can code my own site up from Linux is need be

>>4437 Just go with DigitalOcean or Linode or something like that depending on your needs. You can get a shared core for $5 a month and for low-traffic static sites that is plenty, especially if you put Cloudflare in front of it to cache pages.

Moto G7 Plus or Redmi Note 7? I can get either for $140. >what are you looking for in a phone 4GB of RAM, a midtier snapdragon (6XX series), SD card slot, 3.5 jack and 1080p screen, it also needs to be rootable/moddable and have official lineageOS support, failing that it has to have at least a few custom pajeet ROMs because i want to microG this bitch just like i did with my old moto G4 play. As far as i know both the G7+ and the N7 qualify, but i'm not really sure which one is better. And yes, it has to be either of these, as my budget is $150.

>>4496 Make sure you check the exact model before buying it. Looks like either one would be allright. I never tried a chinkphone so I don't know if they're finally decent or not.

>>4497 The Redmi Note 7 is the global version, which can be fully unlocked, the Moto G7 Plus is the american version, which doesn't have NFC, and it can also be fully unlocked, the only difference between the two is the infrared port and slightly stronger chip on the redmi phone, both have 4GB of ram. >never used chinkphones My man, every phone these days is a chinkphone; samsung was a gook company from day one, sony xperia is manufactured in taiwan, huawei is chinese and motorola got bought by lenovo in 2014.

>>4500 >Infrared Very comfy if you have devices that use it (like my boomer ass)

Is there such a thing as replacement thinkpoint keyboards for stock laptops that don't originally have a thinkpoint? Asking cause i've been looking for a new laptop but none of them have thinkpoints and that is a major deal breaker. If i could just replace their crappy keyboard with a better one that'd be pretty cool. either that, or find a laptop that isn't super restrictive, has amd gpu/cpu, has a thinkpoint and isn't made by lenovo. modern minimalist laptops are absolute ass cancer.

I ended up going with the Redmi Note 7, i´ll post a review once i get home.

First of all i am the same idiot as >>4191 >>4320 >>4334, so if you're a poorfag like me or simply don't want to spend a lot on a phone go with used ones, but don't buy devices older than 2 years as they're guaranteed to have worn out batteries and replacing them is an extra $50 (not to mention it's a total hassle doing it yourself), and whatever you do don't buy samsung, there's a ton of variants out there for every model and only a select few can be unlocked, for example the Galaxy S7 i first bought was the G930T, which can't be unlocked at all, and the battery duration was dogshit, i always charge my phone before going to bed and even my G5+ woke up with less than 5% battery used overnight, the S7 somehow drained 30% (after "debloating" this was reduced to 20%, but it's still a lot), and even though i use my phone almost exclusively as a DAP ie audio only with the screen off, it wouldn't last me the whole day, by the end of my shift i had about 10% battery left, whereas my G5+ usually ended the whole day with 35% or so. But enough complaining about my samshit, it's time to complain about the Redmi Note 7 i bought a few days ago. Since my G5+ was a brick by now (i detailed its problems here >>4191) i decided to browse local shops for pawned phones again, and i ended up stumbling on these two >>4496, both looked brand new and came with their box and accessories, but this time i didn't buy blindly, i immediately went home and did a thorough research, both were exactly what i was looking for, so i went back a couple hours later and bought the superior one. I got home and immediately began working on unlocking the bootloader (a process facilitated by xiaomi's own tools, mi flash and mi unlock, you just need to make an account on their site), flashing another rom and rooting it, this is where my problems began. TWRP wouldn't stay no matter what i did, it always reverted back to the stock recovery, so i looked up the issue and found out you just have to flash TWRP once, boot it, then install OrangeFox from there, which is permanent. So i did exactly that, then i found out that just like my old G5+ did, this thing wouldn't accept custom roms older than the newest android it had installed on the stock rom, so i couldn't flash microG+resurrection remix (10) and had to use pixel experience (11, gapps preinstalled) instead, it's okay though, as titanium backup lets you completely remove anything you don't want. Another issue was that since i bought the global variant it came with a "super charger" instead of a generic one, sounds good? It has the wrong plug, so until i get an adapter i'll have to rely on the old one i had. But those are really minor issues compared to the next one. You see, not all Redmi Note 7 phones were manufactured with the same parts, the first batch was shipped with standard panels that had no issues whatsoever, but in order to keep up with demand the following batches had cheaper tianma panels, which have screen retention issues. Mine had one of these, and i didn't notice because screen burn-in/retention is not really a thing on LCD panels. I thought it was a lost cause (it is a very notorious issue in this brand of phones, the Mi/Poco series released that year and the following generation of Note phones all have the same shitty panels, up until the recently released Note 10, which changed it to an AMOLED display), until i read that setting the RGB display values to a lower setting (which can be done even on the stock rom) completely fixes it, thinking it was just a bugman shilling for their shit products i dismissed his advice and went about installing a kernel manager (as another person advised) and toying around with the settings, it didn't work and i was left with yet another $140 brick. Or so i thought, because the next day i decided to follow the chinaman's advice and set the RGB values to 90, and it fucking worked somehow, thinking it was just some fuckery of the MIUI rom (i reflashed the global rom because i wanted to return the phone) i flashed pixel experience again (i had all the files on the sd card) and used the same settings, and the screen ghosting/retention was gone as well, so i decided to give this phone a chance. Holy shit it's great, i finished my shift and the fucking thing still had 75% battery, and 4GB of RAM does make a difference, my old phone crashed while opening some websites on firefox and all apps had to be relaunched every time you quick swapped between them, this one keeps them all in memory and doesn't lag when playing 1080p goytube videos, mx pro used to take roughly a minute to cache the subs of my mkv animus, on this phone it takes 5 seconds. So even though it's not perfect (screen notch and curved screen makes it less than ideal for reading manga, glass front and back, unremovable battery, defective panel) i am very happy with it. Oh and before you ask why i didn't get the Note 7 Pro, Note 8/Pro or Note 9/Pro, it's because they're only very marginal upgrades (even if you get the 6/8GB RAM ones), not to mention they're more than twice as expensive, my country doesn't get the variants with extra RAM, the 8 has less third party support and the 9 copied that fugly tiny hole in the top of the screen and the fuckhuge square camera on the back typical of apple phones.

>>4533 tl;dr don't buy samshit, do a thorough research before buying second hand shit, sorry for the blogpost and awful formatting, it's a fucking pain writing on a phone

>>4533 >>4534 Shit, this just makes me want to buy a pinephone and wait for it to git gud

Can anyone recommend me some headphones (Open/Closed) that costs under 250$? I am planning on getting the 6XX's from massdrop, and I plan on using them for casual use. Should I get these or not? Also an amp recommendation that's not too expensive should be nice as well. I have a broken pair of Philips x2hr that I am going to replace with a new pair later this year as well. I really enjoy the soundstage on these and I was also wondering if the 6xx's have a similar soundstage to these. Because if that's the case, then I won't need to buy another pair.

>>4559 I wouldn't get two openended pairs but that's me. I just end up coming back to my cheaper (99 dollars I think?) JVC headphones. Comfy, better quality or just placebo effect from them actually fitting my giant misshapen head well. Only other I got is sony xm3 noise cancelling because fuck airplanes.

>>4560 Yeah, you have a point. But then again, I already have two pairs of iems that already fulfill the only purpose of me getting a closed back headphone -- sound isolation. So for home usage, I don't mind open backed headphones. And I really appreciate the recommendations. Can you tell me specifically which JVC headphones you have? Also, the xmc seems to be wireless, which is something that I don't prefer all too much. I looked at your recommen

>>4560 >>4563 I forgot to remove the last part of my post, ignore it. Sorry about that.

>>4563 JVC HA-RX900, usually on my cheapo audiobox usb 96 interface because music stuff

I need a Flip Phone that will - work with an AT&T sim card at least - can call people - can text people - can listen to songs aka plays mp3 files Plus If the Flip Phone works with any mobile carrier in USA that would be even better, but it needs to work with AT&T. Any recommendations are appreciated.

>>4655 The AT&T Cingular Flip IV seems to behave similar to the Alcatel Go Flip I had right down to being run on Kai OS (with the difference being that the Cingular Flip IV is more up to date whereas Go Flip wasn't.) While it's not the exact same, I'll write my experience with the Go Flip to give you an idea of what to expect >it's basic to operate >calls worked okay >texting worked okay, message is typed via T9 & iirc, has a character limit >played my mp3 files fine, album art works with it too. Didn't go far beyond the basics, so I don't know if there's a shuffle mode >ringtone can be changed. iirc, I think unique tones for contacts can be done >has headphone jack >battery can be removed The negative <couldn't change notification sound, stuck with the stock ones <sucks at navigating the internet <camera is shit <mine had no app store. Despite the update made to KaiOS in later years, it seems fairly lacking in content It is possible to jailbreak the Kai OS phones to make them do more than what's advertised, bananahackers has some resources in performing the operation, but I didn't get too far ahead with mine & there wasn't much help as far as the videos went. The fags pretty much consolidated to dicksword. I have attached the rest of the AT&T flip phones from their site, but you'll need to do a little homework to see if any of them meet your expectations.

>>4655 Remember that 3G ends next year so just something to watch out with that type of phones.

>>4655 >>4671 I have the Alcatel Go Flip, I'm on Verizon but I think there's a version for ATT. It's nice and simple, and fits all my needs. And as a bonus I can use it as a 4G hotspot if for some reason I need it.

I want to get an audio player that doesn't necessarily need to be portable, can take an SD/microSD card and that can be easily used by old people (70+) that don't know English, does anyone know of anything that could meet the criteria? What if my budget doesn't exceed ~50$? It should also have/be able to be used with speakers. It doesn't matter if the speakers aren't included though.

>>4799 If you don't need audio to be selectable and just want a bunch of stuff on shuffle, get a boombox with a USB port. Boomers have probably used one before so plugging in a flash drive and selecting it should be pretty simple.

>>4799 Why SD? That'll just lead you to things like the sansa clip+ (used to be 40 bucks now it's probably 100's because it's moddable). You could just get an ipod from craigslist for 50 bucks. Easy enough for non-english speakers too

>>4800 >>4801 USB is fine too. I would prefer the tracks to be selectable as well though, and maybe even searchable while playing, does anyone have a boombox with such a feature in mind? And thanks for the replies.

Guys does anyone have experience with drawing tablets? Is a Wacom Intuos S enough for some simple sketches and for using in blender? Never used one but my prof said it's better for 3d modelling, I'm not doing it professionally it's just for a project but if it makes the process less cancerous I'm willing to spend some money.

Oh I forgot, I also need new PC speakers, any recommendations? I'm not an audiophile, my current trash cost me 30€, what can I get for around 50-100€? Thx in advance.

>>4508 Do you mean the trackpoint/nipple/clit ? I doubt you can find older keyboards that will fit a laptop that wasnt designed to have it because it will just not fit the chasis. I dont know if someone makes custom keyboards that include the trackpoint but i havent seen any and there certainly arent official ones

>>4799 Buckle that seatbelt because I'm gonna say a lot about Classic iPods & why they're the best choice one can make now for themselves or for seniors that just want to listen to music and not have it be interrupted by phone activity. On the surface, one may voice their concern and say "the iPod family doesn't take SD cards of any kind, they're running on a hard drive that is at least 15 years old", which is true but one can modify some of them to take those cards instead of the mechnical drives that will fail in passing time due to mechincal moving parts. Let's go over some iPods together. <1st, 2nd, and 3rd gen classic >cool to collect but very limited storage spaces and only run on FireWire. Haven't seen anything that shows those models running from flash, perhaps one day it will be made. Unless one's computer has a FireWire port, they should avoid buying these oldies for practical reasons. <Mini >first to introduce Click Wheel sounds and more compact in size, the best iPod one can buy with their budget. Unlike its older siblings, the Mini will work with FireWire and USB. Future iPods would eventually adapt to have USB connectivity and only have FireWire for charging. <there are two different iPod Mini models to look out for: 1st gen & 2nd gen. Whatever one chooses, the iFlash SD-CF adapter will work with both units. >1st Gen Minis were made in 2004 and on every single model has gray text on their click wheels. If modified to flash, SD card storage maximum is 128GB >2nd Gen Minis were made in 2005 and text on every click wheel matches the body's color. If modified to flash, SD card storage maximum is 256GB. >can't go wrong buying the Mini if budget is the main concern, even taking into account of the adapter which isn't too bad in price. <4th Gen >it is basically a regular sized iPod Mini due to the click wheel tech and monochrome screen. If one isn't comfortable with having a small screen to read, then the 4th Gen Monochrome is another good iPod for the budget. >there is also a color version called the iPod Photo and iPod with Color Display (they're both the same) which allows one to view photos and display album art when listening to music. If one wishes for more colour in their life instead of sticking with the classic monochrome look, this is a good choice. Every model after this gen now has colour screen. <5th & Enhanced 5.5 Gen >usually considered the best iPods ever to listen to music due to using Wolfson audio chips. Some audiophiles swear by the Enhanced 5.5 Gen iPod to have the best audio quality, but the regular 5th Gen also has very good quality. Whatever revision one picks, they have a very good music player in their hands and there are more parts availible to customize them to their liking (Such as having a bigger battery for longevity.) There are more flash storage options from iFlash on this iPod such as being able to use up to 4 SD Cards to extend storage size, but I am not sure what the maximum size is as I haven't seen any info anywhere discussing it (One would be better off buying the Solo board for budget reasons.) Word of warning, while I have not seen the maximum amount of storage these iPods can carry, one must be reminded not to put in more than 30,000 songs if they want to make use of the shuffling feature. These items are budget friendly as long as one sticks with iFlash's Solo board and nothing more beyond an SD Card. If one doesn't mind stretching their wallet, they would do themselves a favour getting a new battery that will extend the power of the device that lasts longer and getting the 5.5 Gen instead of the 5th Gen due to the former having a search feature (That's how one knows they have an Enhanced 5th Gen iPod.) It is also possible to modify it for Bluetooth, but I haven't done it myself. In conclusion: Buy these. The 5.5 Gen may be a little more pricey but one could snag a good deal if they look up the serial number posted by the seller or see a search function in the menu. Even if the 5.5 Gen is unattainable, the 5th Gen is a good compromise for budget and audio quality. Either way, they'll sound great on the speakers. <6th & 7th Gen >more flashier than the 5th gen and also the most exspensive iPod to buy. The hardest to disassemble due to the new anodized aluminum body. The new features added don't justify the trade-off, so one would be better off skipping those. TL:DR Recommended iPods. Enhanced 5.5 Gen > 5th Gen > Mini = 4th Gen > 1st, 2nd, 3rd Gen No matter what iPod is chosen, it will have a selection of non-English language options. The Mini is the easiest to work on, even those with little to no experience can do it. Pre-6th Gen iPods are easy to work with as well. Whatever is chosen, be careful not to break the little ribbon cables. While the stock firmware for pre-5th Gen has no option to search for music , one can install Rockbox & get the function there. They can also play more codecs than what the original firmware would allow and have custom themes. One might say "I don't have Mac or Windows, I have my favorite Linux distro installed as my OS" which is no problem as they only need a VM of Windows 7 (Haven't tried XP) with iTunes installed to have the firmware restored when they finish modifying it or if it previously went tits up. If RockBox is installed on the device, one can just simply plug it in their computer via USB & drag 'n drop the groovy tunes to any folder (I made a regular MUSIC folder for reference.) Original firmware wouldn't pick up the content unless it was transferred from iTunes (or if using Linux, RhythmBox or gtk-pod.) If one laments the monochrome iPods lacking the ability to display album art when their music is played, RockBox can display them. It isn't in full colour, but it is a compromise. I do not recommend the Nano for the same reasons I wouldn't recommend the 6th and 7th Gen: They are a pain to disassemble. The Shuffles are inferior to the Classics. I hope I have convinced many of the Classic iPods & why they're still worth it.

>>4878 i had no idea there was an ipod fetish but i read through this and they seem cozy. Sadly, 99% of time i need to carry my phone with me so i wont bother with another device

My parents have this desktop: >AMD Athlon(tm) II X2 260 Processor >4GB ram >hdd Should I upgrade them to ssd or get a new computer for them? I would have upgraded them to ssd earlier but I'm over 9000 miles away without physical access.

>>4947 It depends. >how long has the HDD been used? >does it take one minute or more to boot upon turning it on? >do they mostly use the desktop for work? If so, do they need to keep sensitive information for use in future references? >what OS are they running? >does it take a little more time for the files to load?

>>4948 Thank you anon. >how long has the HDD been used? Just over 10 years. Never had an issue with bad sectors etc. >does it take one minute or more to boot upon turning it on? It takes over a minute for sure, but parents keep it on all day and usually switch off for the night. >do they mostly use the desktop for work? Both retired. They're using it for email (webmail for Mum, Thunderbird for Dad), writing an odd document, printing something, online banking, looking at family photos, visiting hobby websites, watching some youtube, rarely a movie (from a file). >If so, do they need to keep sensitive information for use in future references? Documents with contact details to the family and friends and photos going back over 10 years would be the biggest loss I think. I'm keeping backups (see below). >what OS are they running? Ubuntu Mate, they've been using Ubuntu for the past 5 years. I ssh to their machine to do maintenance or sort out a rare issue. Also doing backup this way and distro-upgrades. The fun part is that parents have no idea this is Linux and seem not to think much about it, computer works and desktop layout hasn't changed so they're happy. >does it take a little more time for the files to load? It's hard to tell, but I imagine websites may be slowing down. Anyway, I had a look at the stock in a garage and found a spare office desktop: CPU: Topology: Dual Core model: Intel Core i5 650 bits: 64 type: MT MCP L2 cache: 4096 KiB Speed: 1463 MHz min/max: 1197/3193 MHz Core speeds (MHz): 1: 1463 2: 1463 3: 1463 4: 1463 Graphics: Device-1: AMD Cedar [Radeon HD 5000/6000/7350/8350 Series] driver: radeon v: kernel Display: server: X.Org 1.20.9 driver: ati,radeon unloaded: fbdev,modesetting,vesa resolution: 1920x1200~60Hz OpenGL: renderer: AMD CEDAR (DRM 2.50.0 / 5.8.0-63-generic LLVM 11.0.0) v: 3.3 Mesa 20.2.6 Audio: Device-1: Intel 5 Series/3400 Series High Definition Audio driver: snd_hda_intel Device-2: AMD Cedar HDMI Audio [Radeon HD 5400/6300/7300 Series] driver: snd_hda_intel Sound Server: ALSA v: k5.8.0-63-generic Network: Device-1: Intel 82578DM Gigabit Network driver: e1000e IF: eno1 state: up speed: 1000 Mbps duplex: full mac: 70:71:bc:7c:c2:02 Drives: Local Storage: total: 465.76 GiB used: 9.80 GiB (2.1%) ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Samsung model: HD502HJ size: 465.76 GiB Partition: ID-1: / size: 456.95 GiB used: 9.80 GiB (2.1%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda5 Sensors: System Temperatures: cpu: 38.0 C mobo: N/A gpu: radeon temp: 54 C Fan Speeds (RPM): N/A Info: Processes: 209 Uptime: 28m Memory: 5.67 GiB used: 1022.8 MiB (17.6%) Shell: bash inxi: 3.0.38 I'm thinking now of kitting out this machine with ssd and more ram, put Ubuntu Mate or new Debian stable (also Mate) on it and send it to my parents with a courier. Setting it up with their files, shortcuts etc, so when parents get the pc all that needs to be done is plug the cables. What do you think? Is the new machine powerful enough to meet my parents' computing needs for the next 3-5 years?

>>4950 Judging from your answers, it would probably be a wise choice to upgrade to a SSD. I would not trust a hard drive that has been operating for a decade to continue swimmingly but that's just me. Even if their desktop use is basic, they could still benefit from having a SSD cut their boot time alone. I firmly believe time is of the essence. >The fun part is that parents have no idea this is Linux and seem not to think much about it, computer works and desktop layout hasn't changed so they're happy. Thats great. I had a similar success story with my relative who has been using Windows for basic work as well and hasn't looked back. I did need to put a Windows skin over the OS to ease their transition, 'old habits dying hard' and all. >cpu specs I'm a little confused at deciphering the CPU Speed. I do not really know if it will be good for 3-5 years for my following prediction <the releases of Windows 11 and since MacOS Catalina not offering compatibility for 32-bit give me the impression that developers may be unlikely to optimise their code for remaining lower power machines. While it shouldn't be an issue with Linux in having forks made of certain programs and working on hardware mainstream OSs don't support, the new internet web system, program, whatever, might start to have issues on legacy hardware. <on the other hand, there might be a resurgence in economical computers as things get more exspensive and there's been a chip shortage. Then again, makers may find a way to rope people in to the newest computers needed to go on the internet similar to how game makers bloat their games where one large-sized SSD drive isn't enough. I may be talking out of my ass. I wouldn't expect the companies to have everyone on the planet pay for power house desktops, especially as some countries get by fine using Windows XP and there haven't been many radical changes recently made in computers that I know of being a must have. I hardly use HDMI and am not interested in 4K right now. As far as I'm concerned, I think their setup will be okay for the next couple years but I would keep my eyes open on tech. I just have a nagging feeling there will be changes to accomodate the covid circus show might be handled incompetantly given pajeets and their code

>>4961 thank you anon for your comments I'm now more confident that sending them this upgraded machine will be a good move.

I'm looking for an app I can use to call/text from a different number. This is mostly to sell stuff on Craiglist without having to give out my real phone. I'd rather not use Jewgle Voice. I'm fine with paying if the cost is reasonable. What are my options? I have a dual-SIM phone if cheap pay-as-you-go plans are better.

>>5022 I'm using voipdiscount https://www.voipdiscount.com/ you can register a phone number in their app and after confirming with it you can call using this number I hope this makes sense

What tech companies do not produce their products in mainland China? I'm trying to find an external hard drive because my current drives are a little full, and I'm trying to become more aware of where my products are made. However, I cannot find out which companies produce their products where. Does anyone have a list of "safe" tech companies who produce their material outside of West Taiwan (Or, even better, are made in the U.S.)?

>>5030 Don't take my word for it as I haven't bought it myself but Buffalo seems to have some portable hard drives that are made in Japan. Just be prepared to pay more than something like SeaGate. They even made a Evangelion collab SSD, also Made in Japan (So it says) I have noticed the manufactoring changes myself and would also benefit from having a list of those who don't make their stuff in China. I would not be surprised if they decided to move their production to Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, or maybe the Phillipines, should they feel the heat from the buyers who do not want to do business with China. Those used to be the countries of choice besides Taiwan for cheapskating tech products back then.

>>5034 >Just be prepared to pay more than something like SeaGate. <Buffalo 8TB hard drives go for $300 <Seagate goes for $200 You weren't kidding. Any other companies? Also, I've meanly been sticking to regular externals since I don't really take my hard drives anywhere, but what's the difference between portable hard drives and regular external hard drives?

>>5037 Assuming you have an external SSD drive already mounted, there isn't a large difference to my knowledge of those drives beyond the portable having a different form factor and being portable. It can be thought of as a super thumb drive that can carry more data. As for other company names, there is Mushkin where their labels say are Made in the USA, which is probably what you really want. However, it must be repeated that you may need to prepare to pay more for that than something like SeaGate. I also have not bought it myself. Based on an article I read from a couple years ago, even if you purchased a USA-made drive like Mushkin there is a good chance that some componets have been imported from China (among countries I named above) which should explain why it seems common for tech products to be made there. <Born in the USA: Computer Hardware Made in America archive.is/Ks7NH <Bear in mind that computers assembled in the U.S. are comprised of components shipped in from all over the world. Unless you custom-fabricate your own circuitry, it is next to impossible to build a PC exclusively sourced from North America. The mainstream supply chain for parts and components is predominantly of Asian origination. <Mushkin’s $499 4TB SSD: Made in USA Works! archive.is/M3wCL >Bill Gates often recommends reading books by Vaclav Smil, especially the Made in the USA: The Rise and Retreat of American Manufacturing. In this book, Vaclav goes in depth why a shift in manufacturing is irreversible, and goes in depth about the errors USA made while it moved mountains in manufacturing and the unstoppable move to service-based economy. >However, every opinion is subject to change, and over the past couple of years, we’ve seen a lot of manufacturing returning to the USA, from high-end components to mainstream products. Furthermore, we’re seeing several Chinese companies moving the production to the North American continent. Faraday Future raised a lot of attention, but it represents a Chinese billionaire moving the production to mirror the success Tesla Motors experienced with its focus on California and Nevada.

>>5043 Forgot to attach images. Correction: There does indeed exist a Mushkin SSD that is Made in USA, but I have also seen other Mushkin products which are Made in Mexico. I don't know the quality of products made in that country but I don't think they are strangers of manufactoring. They make TVs & the original Xbox there, at least the early revisions (which some are unlucky to find nowadays issues with the low quality clock capcitor leaking acid to the board) before they predictably got changed to China.

>>5043 >>5044 I fine if it's not solely made in America because, to be quite honest, we don't have the mining and production facilities that most Asia countries have established over the past couple decades (Partially because, even with companies getting away with paying employees almost nil in those countries, government regulations are a bitch that's holding the rest of the production line back from being actually profitable at a reasonable price for the customer). However, I will take what I can, so my baseline is just companies who are staying out of West Taiwan. Overall, I'm fine with paying the $300, but I'm just still shopping around.

Whats the best laptop I could buy to install and play with DOS? I am interested in trying out some programs made like video and music players.

>>5070 If you're just getting into it I'd start with DOSbox or using FreeDOS in a VM, there's not really a need to buy old hardware. Especially with collectorfags and jewtubers driving up prices.

>>5022 >>5024 This looks interesting, I was looking for a Google Voice alternative as well. Do they have their own phone numbers for purchase, or do I have to use my own? If not, where can I get another number to use? >>5070 An old IBM ThinkPad might be good as they're reliable, but they're not going to be cheap because of the brand name. Anything on eBay or Craigslist available from the DOS era that's still working might be fine. (You're on your own in the event of a hardware failure.) I say just use DOSbox or other VMs/emulators unless you really need dedicated hardware for some reason.

>>5079 >>5088 I would just love to have an old laptop that can run FreeDOS/DOS fine and still be able to do tasks like what I mentioned previously and reading e-book files because I saw a video where someone discussed using DOS as a main PC and from their results, it was doable but it isn't going to be like OSs people take for granted now. I'm challenging myself to making the most with underpowered hardware.

should i buy warranty on stuff i buy? i always feel ripped off for wasting an extra $100s on a product that works perfectly fine

>>5151 no don't get extra warranty waste of money

Two separate questions First is that I have two phones and a tablet who's batteries seems to drain like crazy whenever I don't have them charging or powered completely off. Would it be worth it to buy replacement batteries for these devices? They are an LG V10, and LG Optimus L9, and an Acer Iconia W3-810. Main reason I'm asking is because I want to know if the issue may by with the batteries or just the devices having terrible battery life in the first place. Second, I'm planning on buying a flip-phone because I don't care for how much of a waste smartphones seem to be for the purposes of actually operating as a phone as well as the insane prices. What are some good suggestions? The only real "needs" I want is a good camera, can be used as an internet hotspot, doesn't run on Android or iOS, and isn't made in West Taiwan.

>>5187 If they're pretty old and were heavily used, it's worth changing the battery. It's a new life for most things like that, other that companies being bitches and having no security updates (but you can stick to f-droid apps for a lot).

I'm looking to buy customer data for telemarketing purposes, the file must include infos such as, name, email, phone number... do you happen to know where can I buy such data

>>5190 create fake job ads on Gumtree ask potential candidates to send you any info you want

>>5187 What >>5189 said. Consider also installing LineageOS or other roms if they exist for the devices. >flip-phone It depends on the carrier you have. >good camera Not likely to find any for phones sold in the US. Certain Japanese-Imported phones have good 8MP camera, but they run on Android and they are unlikely to get better signal ranges beyond the 'soon to be defunct' 2G outside of the country. >doesn't run on Android or iOS You are likely to find flip-phones running KaiOS which is developed in Hong Kong but has TLC as its largest shareholder (jewgle has also invested in KaiOS.) Might have better luck with the cell phone maker's proprietary OS but I would not hold my breath. >isn't made in West Taiwan None seem to exist for flip phones. While it does not fit your criteria as these are smartphones, the Sony Xperia 1 is Made in Japan and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 is supposedly Made in South Korea. They run Android though and fetch for insane prices.

For gaming, should I get a workstation pc instead? (pic related comes with AMD Ryzen 9 5950X + NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3090)

>>5234 Is it just gaming? If so, that's probably overkill anon. You only need 8/16 GB RAM, small but speedy storage, extra drive/external drive. Unfortunately video card prices are in full retardation, so buying a prebuilt may not be retarded. If you'll actually use the workstation power for something (developing, rendering, etc.) then it might be worthy to consider.

What is the cheapest laptop I can buy that has Thunderbolt 3?

>>5190 You don't have to pay for it. Just have a website or mobile app that requires that info to sign up. A lot of people just give it up willingly nowadays without second thought. >>5187 >I'm planning on buying a flip-phone >I don't care for how much of a waste smartphones seem to be for the purposes of actually operating as a phone <I want is a good camera <can be used as an internet hotspot <doesn't run on Android or iOS So you want a flip phone to avoid smartphone waste, but with features of a smartphone, and without the smartphone OS? Your best best is to get a cheap android phone (probably an open source one) and install one of the Android custom ROMs with stripped google features. (Replicant comes to mind, but its device list is pretty limited. https://replicant.us/supported-devices.php Otherwise you'll need to try ones like Lineage that are more compatible, but less de-Googled.) Otherwise you can stop by your phone carrier's store, or shop online for compatible flip phones. (Older ones may not work anymore due to changes in cell band usage.) Most flip phones will have a shit camera, little or no internet access (definitely not likely to have hotspot usage), but it won't run Android/iOS at least. If you do get a basic flip phone, you can still get a separate hotspot.

>>5234 Unless you can customize the specs, or somehow get a good deal, I'd say no. Do you really need 64GB of RAM? Do you really need a Ryzen 9? Do you need 1TB SSD + 3TB HDD? Seems way overkill for $5000. I'd personally recommend >Ryzen 5 5600x >16GB RAM >1TB SSD If you need more multi-threading, upgrade to a Ryzen 7/9 as needed. (You probably won't. 6 cores/12 threads is more than enough for most people. Many games are still single-threaded.) If you run a lot of programs, or run memory intensive games, you can up the RAM to 32GB. (Don't go to 64GB unless you really want or need to run memory intensive programs like CAD, heavy video rendering, etc) If you need the storage for games or have a lot of documents, then a larger SSD or additional HDD makes sense. The other benefit to building your own PC is not cheaping out on the PSU. A lot of pre-builts use shitty PSUs that either die quickly, or are more wasteful with power. (They may cheap on other parts too, but I'm most worried about the PSU being skimped on. Of anything in a PC made of cheap Chinesium, it's the PSU that's more likely to kill your whole PC.)

>>5242 That's more of a question for newegg search anon. They got the 'power search' button with all the features you can search for.

Are there any reasonably priced earbuds that either let ambient outside noise bleed in significantly or have the feature where there's a microphone feeding in ambient noise actively? The only ones I've seen with this feature are expensive wireless earbuds and I'm not interested in paying $100+ for something that I should be able to achieve for $10. Every fucking earbud on the market advertises how "sound isolating" they are when I can't imagine why anyone would NOT want to hear what the fuck is happening around them at any given moment.

>>5256 I bought some cheap earbuds at a checkout stand for about $5-15 that do exactly that. (I forget where and exactly how much. This was back in 2014.) Your best bet is probably to pick up some no-name brand earbuds off the clearance rack. I really can't imagine all $10 earbuds have noise canceling.

>>5256 you can try bone conduction headphones https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_conduction

My old sony headphones finally broke so i need a new pair, currently using some shitty wireless earbuds because i have absolutely nothing else and i don't want my parents to hear my animu. Budget is $60, i've considered a lot of skullcandy ones locally but not only do they look gay as all fuck, they also sound terrible and don't actually cover your ears, they don't even rest properly on top of your ears. I'm so desperate for a new pair that i even went inside a gamestop to look for ones because every other store only had wireless trash (and wired skullcandy's). No open back, wired and no chinese imports please (i need them ASAP), that's all i ask.

>>5305 This is old as shit but perhaps it'll be useful to you. The HD202s are a good choice, I've used them before years ago before switching to the ATH-M50s. It might be a problem that you could spend more and therefore get a better pair but you aren't spending enough to make a difference. If at all possible try to go for the ATH-M50s since they're really solid and have excellent sound isolation, if not there's a Sony model which is cheaper and also good, I think it was the MDR-7506 although the guide also lists the MDR-V6 which I imagine is similar but I have no experience with.

Looking for a Thinkpad, primarily for ease of travel. Will run Linux. Minimum 8GB RAM, if I can install 16GB great. Internet Browsing, 1080p video playback, and i want to play some 3D games if possible like TF2 but not serious stuff unless the laptop can do TB3 eGPU. X240 + IPS is good choice?

>>5307 >MDR-V6 It's exactly this model the one i had, and i didn't replace them with another pair because they're absurdly expensive by now ($300+, your picture is indeed old). The seinheiser HD 202 (and the 202-II) seem alright for the price, but i've had nothing but trouble with headphones that have the cable attached to both sides, so i think i'll go with the monoprice retro since i can't get anything better on this pricerange ($40 on amazon, monoprice has these on sale for $22.99 but after shipping costs it'll end up costing the same as buying directly from amazon) unless i'm willing to import from china.

Why is that Android phones need official vendor supported updates regardless of which OS you're running? For example GrapheneOS says they only support devices that are still getting vendor firmware/kernel updates. Yet I can run my thinkpad from a billion years ago and it still gets Linux updates just fine. Once the Pixel 3 stops getting vendor updates this year does that mean that a 3 year old phone is suddenly an insecure device? 3 fucking years? At this point I'm considering getting a pinephone despite how clunky and non-functional they are just because it's insane to me that a device can stop getting supported after just 3 years.

>>5349 Parts vendors don't support their parts past a certain date. Hard to update the phone if you can't sign updates for half the parts.

>>5351 But there are parts in a laptop too. Does lenovo supply constant updates to the linux kernel for ancient laptops? I suppose my question is what are the security implications of having an out of date phone versus an older computer. Do out of date phones still receive most updates and just not some? I don't even know how one updates an android phone, the entire system is very confusing to me.

>>5030 >>5034 >>5037 >>5043 >>5044 >>5046 So, I ordered the Buffalo hard drive, along with a USB thumb drive from PNY. Can confirm that Buffalo makes regular hard drives in Japan. As for the PNY thumb drive, the option was between either it or a thumb drive from Patriot Memory, both drives are made in Taiwan, and PNY was the cheaper one.

>>5352 >wipe old phone >turn on old phone >phone detects internet connection >awshit.jpeg.exe >all the bloatware vendors wake up from their tombs >30 crapware installs >implying not a single of those ad companies is an alphabet soup front that now has your phone info It's just a terrible dead imo

>>5349 In general phones are much more restricted and proprietary devices so it's more tricky than building linux for x86. The biggest problem is manpower however because finding a phone with good custom ROM support is already one in a million, so finding a developer that will maintain a ROM for years on end is not realistic, as unfortunate as it is. Other than that a lot of ROMs are based on the original ROM of the phone manufacturer so I'm not sure how much a ROM developer can do if there are no more updates coming from upstream. In the case of LOS-based ROMs I think it should be doable since as far as I know they don't use code from the manufacturers outside of blobs, and indeed it's pretty popular when a new Android version gets released to bring it to a phone through LOS before it actually hits the normalfag distribution channels. >GrapheneOS Because they are autistic. >>5352 >Does lenovo supply constant updates to the linux kernel for ancient laptops? No, but most laptops or x86 computers are all in general relatively similar, that's why you can install the exact same distro/kernel on your desktop and your laptop so other people can do it without Lenovo's help. Phones are all custom boards with custom peripherals that require custom firmware, and don't forget that it's not that simple either because there's a humongous javashit layer sitting between Linux, the Apps, and (You). >I suppose my question is what are the security implications of having an out of date phone versus an older computer It depends on the kind of use you're going to give each. On your Linux computer you're going to be running for the most part trusted programs that come from your distro, while on your phone you're going to be downloading unknown apps all the time, which is a huge attack surface. Then it's also more likely that your phone is going to be in use in hostile places than your laptop (e.g. connected to random wifis), while a desktop is always in your own network behind a NAT.

>>5388 >Can confirm that Buffalo makes regular hard drives in Japan. Excellent! You'll have to let me know if it still works good, I'm planning on grabbing them myself.

>>5416 y-you too

Is framework laptop worth looking into since I want a laptop I can take in public (office), play emulated games, dual boot and not worry about when opening the back? I do like a 3:2 display and I don't care about ports, only usb A and sd card. Thinkpads isn't "aesthetic" enough. Will going intel instead of ryzen affect much for productivity tasks?

>>5433 As far as I'm aware the framework laptop isn't really a good price to performance deal by any stretch of the imagination. If you really want a repairable laptop or want to support the cause and the company than it would be fine to buy, but you could probably get a laptop with a dedicated GPU in it for the same price, or a laptop of equivalent performance for a fraction of the price. I don't know why a used chinkpad wouldn't fit an office aesthetic since that's literally exactly what they're designed for. And a newer used chinkpad will be like $300-$500 and do everything you need.

I've decided to get a VPN service. I have the notion that Switzerland-based VPN's are preferable for their client privacy laws, making them among the least likely to lie about deleting logs. Any VPN recommendations?

>>5458 >swiss protonmail was compelled to give up email data by the courts. they claim their VPN is unaffected. I don't have any advice other than to say if I see or hear VPN adverts on mainstream media I cross them off the list.

Also, My GPU may be dying. What current GPU gives around the same performance as a 980 Ti?

>>5475 You usually step down one product level per generation for comparable performance. 980 -> 1070 -> 2060 -> 3050. You may be able to get away with a 1660, although that series number is so broken and confusing. It's become nVidia's junk drawer for weird experiments and leftover hardware. Some models have multiple revisions with different components, and there's no consistency between the branding. So if you look at those, do your research. >>5458 I don't think the Swiss laws are all they're cracked up to be. By all accounts, Nord and Mullvad are the best. Nord is out for me because they advertise, which makes me distrust them. Mullvad is Swedish, which is concerning, but they don't seem to log anything and you can just send cash or crypto if you're that paranoid. Only downside is their endpoints are well-known, so if sites blacklist or hassle you for being on a VPN then you will be treated as a second-class user or blocked entirely. Nord and some others do a better job of rotating IPs, so you might avoid VPN detection. If you really care about Netflix from other countries, etc, then you should probably buy a residential VPN.

A couple questions in regards to cellphones: >1. Who is better (Or, the least shit); AT&T, Sprint, or Verizon? >2. Which of the "alternative" OSes is better: KaiOS or AOSP, and how does each compare to standard Android? The latter question I'm curious about because I cannot find a single phone on the marketplace that does NOT use Android, and these seem to be the best options available.

>>5501 >2. Which of the "alternative" OSes is better: KaiOS or AOSP, and how does each compare to standard Android? AOSP is to Android what Chromium is to Chrome. It's basically the base project on top of which the phone vendors (including google) later do their customizations. Some enthusiasts also make their own ROMs which use AOSP as the starting point. CianogenMod/LOS is also derived from AOSP. The last part of the question doesn't make a lot of sense because it's too generic, you're not going to be using "Android" or "AOSP" directly, instead you're going to use someone's ROM that's gonna have more or less customizations, e.g. MIUI from Xiaomi, whatever the name was for Samsung's brand of Android, LOS or some ROM based on LOS, etc.. Each one will have more or less bloatware, google spyware, come with different applications, configurations that might not be available in other ROMs, and so on, so you have to compare on a case by case basis. KaiOS as far as I know is a proprietary OS for feature phones whose only market is Asia. Not sure why anyone would be interested in it. >I cannot find a single phone on the marketplace that does NOT use Android Try iOS :^)

Whats a good e-ink reader for reading books and also has expandable storage?

I was thinking if I could use a 40w powerbank for phones to charge my laptop, which has a 65w charger? I would use a usb cable with the other end the shape of my laptop's plug. Would that work? How long would 10000mah last on a laptop?

>>5521 yes, thats like 8 hours it good do it

What are your shitposting plans when the power is out? Are solar generators worth it? How big do I need it to be? I already running a gas generator and I have enough power to run my laptop and fridge but not enough use my ac

>>5548 I believe their usefulness will depend how much sun your region gets. If you're in commiefornia I'm sure they're a great investment. If you're in some nordic country they might be mostly a waste. But I could be wrong, that's just what I remember from my rough research on them years ago. They're silent where generators obviously aren't. Also I don't think there is such a thing as an actual solar "generator". They're just solar panels you attach to a battery, and those batteries are expensive as fuck and die eventually like any other battery. I don't think gas generators have that downside.

>>5548 just need a bicycle without wheels a strong magnet and a spool of copper wire

>>5517 I got a kobo clara. It doesn't have expandable storage by default but it's modable, so you can do that as well as puting pirated stuff on there as well.

Is there a el cheapo Android tablet for around 20 yurop bucks that is suitable for drawing doodles? I'm wondering because I have no experience with tables at all, of course I can't except much for something at that price range but I hoped that such a tablet would be good for shit drawing at least.

>>5641 For 20 Euro bucks, no android tablet will be good for drawing. You could try getting a used drawing tablet, that is one w/o a display, just the surface and the pencil. This is a monoprice tablet, 50 american pesos brand new. Probably can pick up something similar used for 20.

>>5590 I like what the Clara offers but I noticed the forma and libra have bigger screens. Even if they do not have options for more storage, would it be better to get a bigger sized screen to read documents and have more space for holding the item?

Is there a reason not to get a Kindle?

>>5654 For me it is more of a priniciple of not giving Amazon data and money. On a more technical note, this applies more towards the Paperwhite 2, but it is harder to jailbreak the thing if its on newest firmware. Even jailbroken, the 2GB storage wasn't enough for me. You also have to pay Amazon to remove ads if you don't want them on your reader. Technically there exists versions of the Kindles that don't include advertisements but they want you to pay an additional $20 or so.

>>5644 (checked) Ah that is interesting, so basically a peripheral for the computer? I didn't know such thing existed.

>>5659 Yes, you draw on the interface while looking at the computer. It's the best budget approach to digital art as any worthwhile tablet with a display on it is going to be at least a few hundred dollars. There's no way you're spending $20 and getting something even remotely viable for drawing.

>>4 >Looking to buy something but aren't sure what to get? Ask here. What's better, the Wyse KB-3923 or the Perixx Periboard-107? Related question: I've read that modern motherboards don't have true PS/2 ports, and that they actually convert PS/2 to USB internally. Is this true? I have the ASRock H570 Steel Legend.

>>5707 >not getting one of these beauties ngmi

>>5715 >not getting one of these beauties you're more than welcome to ship one of those to me

My 980 Ti died. I was going to ask for the closest modern analogue, but now I'm thinking it was always overboard for me. I use dual 1080p monitors and only game on one screen. What current gen GPU would you buy in my place?

>>5738 1080p 60hz or 144hz? Either way 1080p can be handled by whatever the lowest end of the current generation stack is, so RX 6600 or the RTX 3060. But if you ever plan to go up to 1440p you might want something a bit more powerful, though those cards can handle a bit of 1440p as well depending on the game settings and game itself. An RX 6600 is probably the only thing you would find in stock anywhere near MSRP so suggesting a card is kind of impossible. The RX 6600 is a god awful value and barely performs better than the 5600 XT. But that doesn't matter because the 5600 XT has better mining hash rate then the 6000's series cards so it's literally impossible to get even used. So uh, buy whatever the fuck you can actually find on shelves I guess.

>>5739 >1080p can be handled by whatever the lowest end of the current generation stack is Oh wow, you're right. Was a stupid question, I guess. Thanks. I knew there was a shortage pricing, but the 3060 is at double the MSRP where I live. Not a prudent time. 1050 must chug on.

Any recommendations for bluetooth dongles? I bought one years back for a few bucks but it's range is terrible and whenever I move my controller underneath my desk it loses connection. I'd like to get something designed for gaming controllers so it's at least somewhat low latency. Also was that linux bluetooth vulnerability ever fixed?

Does anyone have experience with hard drive docks? I was wondering if they generally just show up as external drives on the machine or if they require some bullshit drivers that likely don't exist for linux.

>>5884 No experience but quick search implies there's plenty of docks that work with linux, as one would expect.

>>5884 >Does anyone have experience with hard drive docks? Yes, almost none of them will pass TRIM commands to SATA SSDs. Secific models from StarTech seem to be the exception. If you only care about mechanical hard drives, I can vouch for WeMe dual SATA docks.

I've never seen "happy" outlets like in pic rel (middle row), would they work with normal electronics or are they for some other type of plug? >>https://www.amazon.com/POWSAV-Protector-Outlets-Outlet-Extension/dp/B099NB3TTY/

>>5904 That's a lot of plugs for a single point.

>>5828 They're all pretty terrible in my experience. Expensive ones are just the cheap ones rebranded. I'd be happy if I'm wrong tho. >>5884 I have 3 janky hard drive enclosures and docks plugged in right now. No issues. Just watch out if the enclosure/dock has a hardware switch for "raid" or whatever. I usually just JBOD them.

>>5906 Agreed. Thank God for circuit breakers

>>5828 I have picrel, it keeps my TWS earbuds connected even if I leave the room, but the sound drops if I have my hands near my face. I've tested it in Linux, Win 8.1 and Win 10. 10 is the only one able to handle the volume controls on my earbuds properly

>>5828 Every USB adapter is trash. If you want something good get a PCIe BT adapter. I have the Archer T5E, works great with my controllers.

>>4 I'd like to buy a wok related Laptop with at least 6GB GPU and at least 16 GB of RAM, but so far every single purchasable option has been some cringy gamer computer with multicolored keys and unnecessary gizmos. I don't really care much about the price so long as I can run certain rather heavy/ bloated applications (think a stacked Matlab). Any suggestion?

>>5947 https://www.dell.com/en-us/work/shop/workstations-isv-certified/new-precision-7760-workstation/spd/precision-17-7760-laptop/

>>5947 Anon >>5955 is correct. Search for "workstation" with other manufacturers as well.

>>5947 >I'd like to buy a wok related Laptop with at least 6GB GPU and at least 16 GB of RAM >so I google searched "gaming laptops" instead of "work laptops" >why are all the results all gaymer shit?

anyone know a central hidden services where new leaks by ransomware groups etc are anounced?

You can freely use social media for work and etc. Because social media is a 24/7 communications channel you can get instant feedback on your marketing campaigns – enabling you to update and fine-tune your marketing posts. It can also provide you with an immediate and honest assessment of your organisation, products, services or posts – for better or for worse. I used info from https://www.aimprosoft.com/blog/how-to-build-a-social-media-website/ because have plan to build one social media app

Is there a durable mechanical keyboard that can survive a black out power surge?

>>6326 >black out power surge no such thing with a power surge first the transformer outside would blow, if not then your circuit breakers would trip if not then your computers adapter would blow up, nothing would happen to your computer let alone keyboard

>>6349 Maybe i didn't explain it correctly but there are many black outs in where i live, they thankfully haven't caused my Computer adapter to blow up. I believe the power going out has effected my Das Keyboard because now it doesn't turn on randomly and sometimes it does work. So i am looking for a Mechanical Keyboard that can survive black outs.

Posting these links in case anons like >>5030 want to avoid china-made product. chinanever.com notmadeinchina.directory

>>6353 If you have money for a Das you have money to save for a Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) instead of dancing around the issue.

>>6406 ive read those things catch on fire a lot. any truth to that?

>>6421 Just stick it in a sand bucket.

>>6421 You gave to buy a decent brand and not use more Watt/hr that it's rated for. If you connect a 800w PC to a 400w UPS, bad things will happen.

>>6421 >ive read those things catch on fire a lot. any truth to that? No truth to that. I work at a tech company and most dev's have a UPS, so there's probly 100 UPS's plugged in at any given time. And many of us also have personal UPS's at home. No fires Lithium Polymer batteries (lipo's) are the ones that are prone to bursting into flames, and most UPS's have lead acid batteries in them

Is it worth buying an external hard drive if I don't have a safe area or enough space to place it? Only asking because I heard they can break easily.

>>6466 Spinning HDD's break easily. SSD's don't break easily. If you're planning on dropping an external HDD there's a good chance it will break. If you aren't dropping them they won't break. What you're probably hearing is that the USB controllers in them break on their own pretty easily, which is sometimes true. But you pop the drives out of their enclosures and put them in working enclosures very easily so it's not that big of a deal. A lot of people harvest drives from external drive enclosures because they're sometimes cheaper than buying raw drives.

>>6467 Almost forgot about SSDs, I'll probably get one of those then. Which brings me to my next question, how do I decide which one to buy? Looking at my local store many have positive reviews and I'm able to afford them but there's different brands, most common being WD, Sandisk, and Samsung. I'm tech illiterate so I don't know the differences between them, but I already have an idea of the amount of storage and USB type I'll need.

>>6473 The best and most expensive one.

>>6473 >Almost forgot about SSDs, I'll probably get one of those then Keep in mind that they have different use cases. SSDs for long term cold-storage aren't a very good idea and aren't designed to retain data for years as cold storage. Whereas an HDD can sit on the shelf for a decade and still retain data just fine for the most part. Or at least that's what I've read, the information on SSDs as archival storage is kind of all over the place. >Which brings me to my next question, how do I decide which one to buy? Depends on how you're using it. If it's just going to be used to transfer some movies then whatever the cheapest one is is probably fine. The distinguishing factor between SSDs is usually whether or not they have DRAM cache or not, and that information can be hard to find. But I would only really care about an SSD having cache if it was going to be an operating system drive or a drive you're running games off of. Without describing your use case it's hard to give advice.

>>6475 I plan on using it as a backup in case the system crashes or if I can't access my files.

>>6487 That would be considered a cold storage solution then. I would probably lean towards an HDD over an SSD in that case.

>>6406 I have a surge protector now, so hopefully when the power goes it out it won't harm the new keyboard.

>>6475 >I would only really care about an SSD having cache if it was going to be an operating system drive or a drive you're running games off of. I dont like the idea of a disk leeching off my system memory (aka host memory buffer). i dont think that applies to sata ssds though

>>6475 >SSDs for long term cold-storage aren't a very good idea and aren't designed to retain data for years as cold storage. FUD. I use SSDs for cold storage without an issue. I have 2 TB of gog.com game installers saved to one. Just plug them in with a USB-SATA adapter cable once every year or two to avoid bit-rot, but the issue is really overblown. If something is super-duper important then write it to an M-Disc and put the disc in a safe. But SSD vs HDD, I'd be more concerned about the mechanical drive not spinning up after sitting on a shelf a few years. I've seen that happen. I also recently found a 1GB USB flash drive at my moms house, and it still had my word documents and powerpoints from middle school, which was over 15 years ago

>>6445 >most UPS's have lead acid batteries i've seen novice auto mechanics light lead acids on fire more than once

>>6429 what UPS would you recommend for an amcrest nvr, a 5 port PoE switch, and four PTZ PoE security cameras?

>>6467 >If you aren't dropping them they won't break. unless its a seagate inb4 muh anecdote why does seagate have so many more negative anecdotes than wd?

>>6507 >i've seen novice auto mechanics light lead acids on fire more than once Agreed. I wasn't trying to say that it was impossible, just that it was unlikely during normal usage. I've never heard of a lead acid UPS catching fire during normal usage. If others have a different experience then I would like to hear the details since I have a UPS plugged in 24/7 in my house

>>6510 i live in an apartment, my main concern is my upstairs neighbor burning to death while im at work

>>6524 Well, you could always unplug it when you leave for work

>>6534 that kind of defeats the purpose, i was trying to make sure my security cameras keep recording if the power goes out in my apartment

>>6550 Well Keep in mind that any electronic device has the potential of catching on fire, not just a UPS. A few years ago I on my desktop computer late at night and suddenly there was a loud BOOM and smoke started coming out of my box. I quickly shutdown and unplugged it. Turns out that one of the filter capacitors in the power supply had exploded. Hard to say whether or not it would have caused a fire. <I replaced the capacitor and I'm still using that 15 year old power supply today. It was a high dollar unit when new Had something similar happen with a laptop charger, and this was much more dangerous since it was sitting on carpet. I never leave a laptop plugged in while I'm gone. Here's a discussion thread about fire potential of a UPS. https://forum.electricunicycle.org/topic/7308-ups-uninterruptible-power-supply-is-it-a-fire-hazard/

>>6554 I think I'll just go for it. Unfortunately I believe the chance of catching a home invader on video is greater than the chance the UPS kills my neighbor. This may tell you something of my living situation inb4 "you should move" this reality is coming soon to white suburbs everywhere

My 1280x1024 dell monitor broke after 12 years of service so i need to replace it, i want to try a dual monitor setup BUT i don't want to spend a lot of money on it as i own a "toaster", so i don't need 4k 144fps and related memes, which monitors would you guys suggest? Budget is $500, and i want two of the same, preferably 1080p with audio jack. Size, TN panel or it being VGA only doesn't matter. I've been looking at a couple of them locally and the ASUS VS228H-P seems to be the best choice, it's quite cheap too, i can get two for around $300.

>>6557 https://pcpartpicker.com/products/monitor/#r=192001080&sort=price&R=5,4 Asus VP228HE appears to have better response times, 1ms instead of 5ms.

>>6557 You can also try getting a cheap but decent dell monitor used. Lots of business-grade equipment out there, just search for ultrasharp as an example. Don't know if you'd be able to snag two of the same for dual monitor, that's up to luck.

>>6558 It has speakers too, i might go with this one if i can't find anything better. >>6581 These look amazing, but the cheapest one that would suit all my needs is $250 AND i have to pay $100 dollars for shipping i don't live in the US, so these are out of the question.

>>6587 >It has speakers too, i might go with this one if i can't find anything better. Don't know how much value I would put into monitor speakers. What I look for is an AUX port so you can plug a little cheap mini-soundbar into it and pass through audio through to one of those. Or at least I hope that's how they work since that's how I want to setup an extra monitor for playing console games eventually. But built in speakers are nice to haves on top of that I suppose if you don't want to spend any extra money.

Should I buy a refurbished Gateway 1080p laptop with a Ryzen 5 3450U for $270 or wait until after Christmas to browse used listings? I want to get a cheap-as-possible Ryzen 5 laptop as a linux toy .

>>6610 Well, I have an acer with a ryzen3 3200U (I paid ~$260 for in feb 2020) that works fine as a linux toy. That's basically twice the CPU as I have here, and it's a 1080p screen, so I'm inclined to say go for it.

Anyone know if DELL trackpoints fit/work on thinkpad keyboards? I want a black trackpoint instead of a red one.

Between these two which one is better/more durable? It's for a gift and i don't want to spend more than $20 on it because the little shit who's getting this tends to slam his mouse on the table whenever he gets killed in meincraft. I do realize i could buy some $5 chinkshit that would somehow perform better than both, but it wouldn't arrive until march or so, i need this for christmas and i can get either on a store once i go home.

i had the g203 and it developed the double clicking issue after a month or so

>>6649 Just googling for a second I've found thinkpad nubs of assorted colors on sale, including black.

>>6710 >it's a christmas gift for some kid Get the one with more lights, problem solved.

>>6725 Good thing i'm not buying it for myself. >>6734 The logitech it is then, thank you.

Are PoE security cameras with proprietary firmware risky to use for home security? Currently raspberrypi costs are through the roof so making a PoE camera out of them doesn't seem financially viable. There's the pinecube as an alternative but it has awful resolution. I know I can air gap the network but because of my general ignorance about networking I try to be cautious and steer towards full FOSS wherever possible.

>>6857 I wouldn't just to avoid vendor lock-in. You should be able to buy Pi Zeros at MSRP, but they may be out of stock from the manufacturer. I don't know what the resolution is on the pinecubes but most proprietary cameras have a bad resolution anyways.

>>6905 They're sold out basically everywhere for my country, and I would also need to find PoE hats for them too which aren't sold on every site and look pretty expensive in general.

from ontario canada need qr passport code to be verified by verify ontario app looked everyone not sure

>>7013 its $6 each kike

>>7015 I both they're at lists them for half-off.

>>7013 -Math books(including the tables & formulae ones) -O'Reilly book -Crypto book -Assembly book -The truck repair book

>>7022 What about the Oracle, HTML, OOP, ISDN, C, and Java books? Or, are those so old that they're no longer relevant?

>>7025 online videos offer much more than them, some directly lift from those works

Guys, I fell into the skillshare trap. It's all shit in there. Basic as fuck tutorials. I wanted to learn some electronics (to add turn signals to my ebike) and learn Godot. What I found was painfully elementary. There are only like 3 channels on YT that make Godot tutorials. Does anyone know of another source of knowledge?

Tjoo everyone! Just asking for a smart tool or an extension for Moe chan expands images tool! Any one jave any tips or soo where to get one?

>>7032 You must, unfortunately, read the documentation.

Thoughts on my new micro SD card /t/?

>>7065 At least compress the image if you're going to fucking spam it everywhere you fucking retard.

I need to get a new phone by the end of the year due to the 3G networks being decommissioned and my ancient samsung feature phone will no longer be usable. Between the Pinephone and the Librem 5, which of the two is less pozzed? Or maybe there are better alternatives now that I'm not aware of? I barely even use the damn thing for anything other than actual calls and texts, and I guess occassionally taking a picture or video, so certain features breaking isn't really a concern. But making sure that the device is functional is, so I would need a detailed guide on how to configure the device properly either way. Oh yeah, and the phone should hopefully have a microSD card slot too so I don't have to rely on sending pictures and other crap through the network. Also, my network provider is Verizon, if that matters.

>>7109 As far as I understand it the linux phones are spotty when it comes to receiving and sending SMS. The librem5 costs a fuckton more and apparently people are still waiting after multiple years to receive theirs in the mail so I'd just go with the pinephone if you really want a linux phone. The camera quality on the pinephone is abysmal so if that matters to you it might be an issue. Generally speaking people advise you just buy an android and install a privacy oriented rom onto it. The jewgle pixel phones are ironically the most compatible and recommended phones for installing CalyxOS or grapheneOS which are the two best android privacy roms. You can go with a pinephone if you want but it's an extremely experimental device that won't be reliable. Frankly I don't know why anyone bothered making linux phones when they could have just made open source android phones with privacy switches. Would be a lot simpler and achieve the same degree of privacy and anonymity with much more functionality.

>>7110 >The camera quality on the pinephone is abysmal How bad exactly? My ancient feature phone takes pictures in 1280x960 resolution. But it's not like the 3G shutdown will render the camera unusable and I can always just take photos/videos with something else. >Generally speaking people advise you just buy an android and install a privacy oriented rom onto it. The jewgle pixel phones are ironically the most compatible and recommended phones for installing CalyxOS or grapheneOS which are the two best android privacy roms. I see. Would I be correct in assuming I would install the custom ROM after switching to a newer phone, then? Also can you explain to me what the exact limitations are, privacy-wise and compatibility-wise, of the privacy ROM on a jewgle phone approach? It's not as if I'm not going to compartmentalize and just go browsing wrongthink sites on a botnet device, but off should mean OFF and the cameras/mouthpiece shouldn't be running unless I say so. Yet at the same time I don't want to be thrown for a loop by something suddenly breaking. Sorry if I'm being bothersome by asking all these questions but nobody really makes this kind of stuff easy to navigate.

>>7111 >after switching to a newer phone By this I mean after putting the newer phone on my current plan rather than the old one, just to be clear.

>>7111 >How bad exactly? My ancient feature phone takes pictures in 1280x960 resolution. But it's not like the 3G shutdown will render the camera unusable and I can always just take photos/videos with something else. Depends on the conditions. Also the software has been getting better which improved the quality a bit. If you don't care if your images look like pic related then have at it. >I see. Would I be correct in assuming I would install the custom ROM after switching to a newer phone, then? There are some vendors you can buy phones with the ROMs pre-installed I think. But generally yes you would buy the phone, maybe refurbished, then change the rom yourself. >Also can you explain to me what the exact limitations are, privacy-wise and compatibility-wise, of the privacy ROM on a jewgle phone approach? You're still dependent on some proprietary blobs from google to keep the phone up to date I believe. So if you want to absolutely maximize privacy at all costs the pinephone is optimal. Also the issue with android phones is that they typically have a shelf life for how long they update a piece of hardware. So if you're wanting a phone that you can just keep forever with constant security patches indefinitely a linux phone will probably be better for that. You're just going to have to deal with the headaches of a very unfinished software stack. >It's not as if I'm not going to compartmentalize and just go browsing wrongthink sites on a botnet device, but off should mean OFF and the cameras/mouthpiece shouldn't be running unless I say so. With CalyxOS and GrapheneOS they should be properly open source versions of android and therefore pretty trustworthy. But if you don't want any chance of a mic being enabled through software the pinephone is the only thing that you can have a physical switch to turn off with absolutely 100% certainty. >Yet at the same time I don't want to be thrown for a loop by something suddenly breaking. I haven't had hands on experiences with the pinephone or custom android roms myself so it's hard for me to definitively say which is better. I read a lot of issues with the pinephone on forums so you should do the same to get a grasp on if people have ran into mission critical problems you wouldn't tolerate. https://libreddit.silkky.cloud/r/PINE64official/ This is the pine64 reddit. If you search through here for pinephone posts you'll be able to get a better picture on if the device is viable based on the shit people who have bought it are having problems with.

>>7112 I could be wrong as I don't really use phones that often but don't you just put your sim card into a device to get your phone plan onto it? Phone plans aren't necessarily tied to a device, well I know there's modern "e-sim" shit that might be but you said you had an old device. So you just get phone, install ROM, slap sim card into it and you're good. But like I said I've never really tinkered with it much myself so maybe I'm wrong.

I want to buy a laptop. It will have Windows but I want to put Linux on it. Is there any chance that this isn't possible, like things I should look out for with locked BIOS? I'm thinking of the Acer Nitro 5.

>>7153 https://inv.cthd.icu/watch?v=MFUM17wdEOQ

>>7153 Make you sure do extra research on what other people trying linux on a particular laptop say. Watch out for issues like trackpad or wifi card problems, etc. Grub2 usually plays nicely for a bootloader. Have you got a distro in mind?

>>7111 >Would I be correct in assuming I would install the custom ROM after switching to a newer phone You'd >buy new phone >install whatever crap you want on it, try different ROMs if you'd like and tweak them to your liking, taking advantage that the phone is empty and wiping it is no loss >check that everything works (mobile data, wifi, camera, calls, bluetooth, etc.) >download whatever personal stuff you want into the new phone (contacts, photos, music, etc.) and switch your SIM to the new phone >done >It's not as if I'm not going to compartmentalize and just go browsing wrongthink sites on a botnet device You may want to consider going full ungoogled. Although I don't use GrapheneOS I use a custom ROM without anything from google installed and it's pretty great honestly, I'm very happy with it. I don't even use any closed source apps at all I believe. >Sorry if I'm being bothersome by asking all these questions but nobody really makes this kind of stuff easy to navigate. I feel your pain. The whole thing is a mess.

>>2137 >Any benefits/drawbacks to 144hz+ monitors beside quicker response time and Freesync/G-SYNC? 120 and 144 are multiples of 24. Most Blu-Ray, DVD and VHS movies are ~24 fps. I keep my monitor set to 120 Hz instead of 144 Hz, for smooth playback of 24, 30 and 60 fps content.

What's a good Linux distro to install on a desktop that has Pentium 4 & another that has Pentium D? Tried installing the latest version of Linux Mint XFCE but it froze on the boot menu upon hitting 'Start Linux Mint' My criteria for it is it should be as beginner-friendly to use as Mint

>>7205 AntiX isn't super beginner friendly but depending on your user case it might work. I haven't really used any of the other ultra-light linux distros so it's the only one I can reference. How much ram do the machines have?

>>7206 The Pentium 4 has 512MB of RAM. I don't know on the Pentium D. It's a Dell XPS with a model number of DCTA & it also runs Windows XP like the Pentium 4. It doesn't have a hard drive or OS inside.

>>7207 Lubuntu is a more linux mint-like experience so you could try that. But antiX will be the lightest on ram you can reasonably achieve without switching to something like a tiling window manager instead of a traditional desktop environment. There are other distros like bodhi linux but as I said I've never tried them. Linux mint requires a gig of ram so that's probably why it froze. Zorin OS Lite also claims to run on 512MB of ram so it could be another option.

>>7208 Gonna grab those distros mentioned. Is antiX-21_386-full.iso the right file to download & burn for the Pentium 4? It's 32-bit

>>7209 Yes that's the 32 bit iso. x64 is 64 bit.

Here's how the distros fared on the Pentium 4. With the exception of ReactOS, all of them have been tried on a USB thumbdrive. >Zorin OS Lite 15 Goes to the desktop, but is way too slow to operate. >AntiX Couldn't boot to desktop, said I was missing a file. Not sure what's the problem. Will have to redownload the iso again & see if it appears again >PuppyLinux Boots to desktop, operates decently. Installation to hdd however seems to freeze. Will have to try again later as it looks promising >ReactOS Didn't work on USB so I made CD for it. Freezed at the blue screen waiting prompt. >Bodhi This one worked the best for me. Booted to desktop & operated without problems, installed to hdd swimmingly, & once rebooted into the hard drive, it still operated very nicely and took less time to shutdown than Windows XP. When the machine originally had XP, it worked okay but it was slow to operate especially in transferring files & shutting down. Could the old hard drives (despite still working after god knows how many years) or having less than 2GB of RAM be the culprit in my difficulties? If so on the hard drive, what would be a good one to buy that is cheap & works within the machine? I don't need more than 128GB, but if the prices have gotten better for more space, I guess it doesn't matter. Because Pentium 4 desktop is old, I don't think I can connect to the internet wirelessly. Is there a way of installing programs for Linux (in this case, Bodhi) without a connection?

>>7239 >slow to operate especially in transferring files did you install it right or did you create another live cd on the harddrive, slow file transfer is typical for an os running in a ramdisk >installing programs use your phone as a tether with a usb, it should connect just like ethernet or use another machine with internet and download the packages on a usb ( apt download 'package' ) or download from the repo site https://packages.debian.org/stable/, dont know where the bodhi repo is but its a debian flavour so there shouldnt be an issue

>>7246 I didn't install XP myself so I don't know how the installation or live cd went. It hasn't been touched in almost 10 years. Since Bodhi is working better, I don't plan on reinstalling XP unless there's any big issues I find.

The USB tethering really works wonders, got some programs downloaded for Bodhi & they seem to be working pretty good for the old dog. I am impressed some tasks can be performed decently like internet browsing on a Pentium 4 (Doubt youtube will work but it doesn't matter) Thanks for the great help /t/echie. Unfortunately I can't seem to get the Pentium D desktop to work. It keeps beeping in intervals & the screen stays black even with a HDD thrown in.

>>7239 >Could the old hard drives (despite still working after god knows how many years) or having less than 2GB of RAM be the culprit in my difficulties? I mean, having more resources will obviously make it run faster, but you shouldn't need top of the line specs (for a windows XP machine) for it to run okay. I used to have an old laptop with some intel processor and 512MB of RAM that used XP and that thing was snappy even though it was using a 2.5 mini-ide HDD. Windows always gets slower with time and my laptop was never really used so maybe your desktop was suffering from windows old age syndrome or something. >>7239 I'm pretty sure there are ways to create a repository mirror on removable media. Many distros create their ISOs so that their installer media can double as repositories already. >>7251 >The USB tethering really works wonders I'm rather surprised that worked. I've always had a lot of trouble making USB operations against my phone work on older computers. >It keeps beeping in intervals That's a BIOS beeping code. If you manage to find the manual for the motherboard it should tell you what's wrong.

Had some fun running Bodhi, here's my experience of using it on the Pentium 4. >read music CDs fine without problems <DVDs on the other hand didn't work at all. Then again, windows media player didn't work at playing video footage, only audio. >VLC works pretty good on playing FLAC songs & videos. It is a step up from the occasional chugging windows media player suffered from & didn't crash when I skipped to the near end of the running time <however on my Gunsmith Cats Chapter 1 test, I noticed the crazy effects at the intro looked more blocky & the muzzle flashes at the shootout scene also looked a little off as if a vidya game was being emulated & the effects weren't perfected. >Pinta & a game of Solitaire I downloaded worked fine. I imagine the rest of the programs I grabbed from their site will be okay <tried to install Wine, followed most procedures, but I couldn't test Touhou 6 on it, kept encountering problems that needed to close. The clock & internet explorer worked though. >installed Firefox as the browser, worked pretty decently <haven't tried it too extensively, doubt it will run youtube well even on those instances. The state of modern internet being so carelessly bloated & developed poorly may also not be too kind to an old pentium. Haven't tested file transfer speed but I didn't get any bad hiccups. Navigation was pretty smooth compared to XP. Overall, it's a not too bad of an upgrade, being able to have some modern stuff work nicely on such an old machine is a very good feeling despite having less than steller specs. Sure I probably won't be able to open as many tabs in the browser or have multiple operations going on at once, but for the machine's age it is impressive at can be done.

>>7157 Thank you, that looks doable. >>7163 Thanks for the tips. I want Linux Mint, because it's easy to install and use unlike Arch or Debian but it's not Ubuntu.

>>7254 <haven't tried it too extensively, doubt it will run youtube well even on those instances. The state of modern internet being so carelessly bloated & developed poorly may also not be too kind to an old pentium. There are a lot of ways to watch youtube on linux. Command-line programs that will load the videos directly into mpv and shit like freetube will probably run a lot better than the site itself.

>>7261 There doesn't seem to be a download of freetube available for x86 when I went to their site. However, I am again shocked that I was able to watch a video on yewtu.be in the firefox browser, but I had to compromise with the quality being set to medium as the HD option makes the video lag & not much the audio as quickly. I think it runs well likely due to not having as much bloat as the regular youtube site, according to what uMatrix says anyway. I'm curious to see how VirtualBox would fare, but I also doubt that with the low specs I would be able to run a virtual XP or windows 98. At most, I could probably play with DOSBox & not get too many problems. That old machine keeps surprising me at what it can do.

>>7270 Yeah you'll run into a lot of software these days not running on 32bit operating systems unfortunately. You could try installing mps-youtube, I believe that's the standard terminal youtube video search/launcher people tend to use. Alternatively setting up rss feeds then just configuring them to launch the video URL's in VLC would probably also work.

Continung with my adventures of the Pentium 4 desktop, I have taken it apart & discovered a second HDD that shows up as an expandable volume unit of 320GB. I think Bodhi will still run fine since I didn't install it on there. I have removed the 320GB HD out of the machine & am saving it for the other Pentium I have that lacks storage. Here is my question: Is it safe to run the Pentium 4 unit with one part of the ribbon cable & the P6/P7 thing removed? Both hard drives each had a cable attached to them. If I took a hard drive out along with 1 set of the cables mentioned, will it cause problems?

>>7285 How did you end up with so many ancient computers? >If I took a hard drive out along with 1 set of the cables mentioned, will it cause problems? I think that could only cause issues if both drives were on the same IDE cable. >P6/P7 thing removed I have no idea what you mean by this. Jumper settings?

>>7297 >How did you end up with so many ancient computers? Relatives gave them to me since they don't use them anymore and aren't the type to tinker. I posted a pic of the parts, the items I'm referring to are highlighted in a red circle.

>>7299 What you're looking at is a real old hard drive which uses IDE connections. Basically the predecessor to SATA, which is the dominant form of Hard Drive connector these days, not counting most SSD's. To answer your initial question, it's safe to run your computer even with those parts 'unplugged'. Those extra slots are there in case you want to add an additional HDD to the computer. You'll have a hard time finding one old enough that supports that connection unless you work with servers or something.

>>7299 See, that's what I mean. Both disks are connected on the same IDE cable (the bigass cable on the left). I don't think you're going to damage the computer no matter what you do but if it fails to recognize the disk you leave in you may have to adjust jumper settings. The P6/P7 connectors are molex connectors, which carry 12V and 5V if I remember correctly. Since they're just power connectors they can't bring in any conflicts. Word of warning, since you don't seem to recognize molex connectors. They are supposed to only fit one way but the way this works is pretty shoddy, basically if I remember correctly the upper side of the connector is rounded off instead of being completely squared, but if you put some pressure on it the connector will fit the wrong way in anyway and ruin your peripheral.

Can someone recommend me a good wired mouse with optical switches and a wired keyboard that isn't mechanical and keeps the numpad? I've been using a G213 and G203 prodigy since forever and both are starting to show their age (double clicking, having to press really hard for some keys to register). Doesn't have to be logitech.

>>7332 just clean it with alcohol the actual metal contacts not the outside, the mouse contacts are in little clicky boxes you need to open, still cant figure out they get fucking dirty, I think its oil residue from old decaying plastic

>>7333 >just destroy your skates every time your mouse starts double-clicking Or he could just get optical switches and never need to worry about it. >>7332 The Razer Viper Mini is cheap, light, and has optical switches. But the software is so unbelievably fucking trash that that alone would full stop prevent me from wanting to use it, at least on Windows. Linux has open source drivers for them.

>>5030 From personal experience when ordering stuff since I to try to avoid Mao's Chinesium. Acer makes their hard drives in Taiwan. Transcend makes pretty much everything in Taiwan as far as I'm aware of. I think Gigastone is also Taiwanese or at least half their stuff is made their...? Samsung makes makes their hard drives in their home country South Korea, Samsung also has their wireless ear buds made in Vietnam and their micro SD cards in the Philippians. Can't really think of anything tech wise that's from the USA or India though so your alone on that one. Note this is all knowledge from digging around in online stores because I had some left over Christmas money and some Amazon gift cards I got, you can always just turn physical products over in stores, so don't just limit that to tech. Also you have to take into account the global trade of raw materials aspect so likely China is still making a profit in at least half of those. Another thing, if your gonna boycott CCP-Chinesium you should also add Pakistan and Ethiopia to that list as well since they're allies/vassals of Mainland China. Plus me personally there are a dozen reasons I'm ideologically apposed to those countries as well besides the whole China ass kissing though Tedros basically worshiping Xi only adds to that. Lastly since this reply is about boycotting pro-commie shit I'd also recommend never buying Levi jeans or jackets ever again since they're a very vocal anti 2A company in bed with Bloomberg. I've even got a thread up on /k/ for that. >>>/k/1032 I hope this has helped

>>7357 denim is the fabric of homosexuality its second only to cargo shorts(any kind)

https://odysee.com/@AllVisuals4U_Shorts:9/3D_Printed_Micro_SD_Card_Holder_Micro_SD_Card_Storage_SD_Card_Storage_Box_Shorts:7 https://odysee.com/@FFFTech:3/22LR-Snap-Cap:b >>7358 >its second only to cargo shorts(any kind) Ouch, that one cut a little too deep. Seriously what else am I supposed to wear to have both breath-ability and enough pockets to carry my shit at the same time? My only alternative would be wearing a fanny pack and I'm nowere near the age of 60 yet to justify it. It's not like I go out of my way to have an over the top tactitard sheep dog look or anything anon, that's why I stick with navy blue's and dark greys usually.

>>7333 Disassembled the thing and did what you said, didn't work. I ended up getting another G213 Prodigy, i considered getting a "superior" model but they all were mechanical shit and lacked media buttons. >>7335 Well i'm on W10 so i'll avoid Razer entirely. I think i'll just get a G203 Lightsync, which is supposed to be identical to the G203 Prodigy.

can someone recommend IEMs solely for use with my smartphone which is a V60, I use a DT770 80ohm with my computer and I like it, I also have a Sony WF-1000XM3, but I have recently been interested in IEMs, and since my V60 phone has a headphone jack planning on buying new IEMs that will hopefully beat the WF-1000XM3 in sound quality, people on 4chan recommended the Tin T2 plus, is there any better recommendation? As for sound signature pic related is the type of music I listen, if it helps

>>7441 just ask 4/mu/, you do everything they say anyway.

The Pentium 4 D desktop used to work for a moment when I had the USB LuBuntu plugged into the rear. I ran a quick memory test which looked promising until it hit around the 50-60% threshold, then it cut to a black screen and the monitor was on power saving mode. The machine kept beeping at me & continued no matter how many times I restart it. I put a new watch battery in, I cleaned the RAM sticks, nothing seems to be working. Afraid this old dog is going to have to be turned to scraps. Hope the other pentium 4 will be happy with having extra RAM even though it's only 1GB. will that at least give me more distro options or run programs better?

>>7523 Most desktop environments typically run under 1GB of ram so yeah 1GB of ram is a big boon over 512MB. Browsers are basically their own operating system too so 1GB is kind of the minimum you can realistically get away with for a functional modern computer.

>>7523 tinycore is probably the lowest you can go it runs on anything but nothing runs on it, I think it has icecat or waterfox so if you just want something to manage files and surf the internet using a potato it seems a good match

Is stickers on laptops inherently cringe, or could it be acceptable if the stickers themselves weren't terrible? Obviously anyone with Rick and Morty or CCCP stickers deserves to be shot on sight, but would you still look down upon a stranger whose laptop had OpenBSD/FSF/etc stickers on it?

>>7531 They are inherently cringe. There is no other descriptive term beyond virtue signalling to describe the behavior.

Convince me not to boycott every WEF partner: https://www.weforum.org/partners#search This includes Apple, ARM, Sony, Dell, HP, IBM, Western Digital (and therefore SanDisk and HGST), Microsoft, and many others. Sorry Thinkpad, Optiplex and Pinebook bros. Mozilla and Google are both WEF partners, too. Notably absent from the list are Samsung, SK Group (Hynix), Asus, AMD and Nvidia. The WEF is the source of the "You'll own nothing and be happy" meme. If AMD didn't exist for some reason, I'd rather deal with shitty Linux drivers (Nvidia) than fund the Great Reset (Intel). Change my mind.

>>7542 >Change my mind. No.

>>7542 majority of companies that became wef members dont give a shit about their cringe politics, its just a pseudo conglomeration and a way to make deals with OTHER members not wef itself, wef is completely irrelevant and by design, its just a facade for racketeering to allow companies to break antitrust laws which is what all major tech companies do anyway even when not involved in the faggot wef, tech companies have always been the scum of the earth

I need budget SSDs to replace the slow HDDs, what is a good one that has decent longevity & isn't expensive to purchase?

>>7552 >majority of companies that became wef members dont give a shit about their cringe politics I understand: they only care about profit, at the expense of our freedom. When you give these companies your money, I assume they use some of it to pay their WEF membership dues, which end up in Klaus Schwab's pocket.

>>7542 >Convince me not to boycott every WEF partner You should just boycott every company period. Do not give any your money unless you really need to, and then it's a matter of what product costs the least for you. Even companies not in the WEF list conspire against your interests anyway in one way or another. >>7556 >that has decent longevity Unfortunately longevity is somewhat proportional to the quality of the device and therefore to the cost of the device, at least in the specs, so don't expect wonders, but then again the same could be said about performance, which is already pretty controversial even when you're not constrained in the budget. If I remember correctly there was a really cheap Intel model and there was also another cheap model from a different manufacturer, BX400 or BX500 or something like that. I'm sure you can find them on your own. These are bottom of the barrel though.

>>7577 >Do not give any your money unless you really need to, and then it's a matter of what product costs the least for you.

Does anyone have an uncensored, unabridged version of "The Richest Man in Babylon"? I would like the PDF or EPUB format if possible.

>>7595 just use libgen next time: https://libgen.is/book/index.php?md5=965C61CF09858EC359F2E00C1971E793

>>7613 Thank you, and I apologize for not checking libgen first.

>>7615 no need for apology you still my homie

i want to buy this bitcoin tool can some one help me to get this tool for me :D http://2khd5qqtyp45ps6d7nmtzwwyjrqdn7jhnhz5vt42moppnil22jrq3qyd.onion/

What's a good user-friendly Linux distro that will run on 1.5GB & 4GB RAM? I was thinking about Mint but the recent specs for XFCE don't seem too friendly for the lower end of RAM. My other options from the searches seem to be Lubuntu, Xubuntu, & AntiX.

>>7631 The distro isn't really as important just the desktop environment. You could install mint and just change the DE to whatever. Bohdi Linux is apparently decent.

>>7632 >You could install mint and just change the DE to whatever. What do you mean? If I installed Mint XFCE, I could change it to Cinnamon?

>>7633 Yeah. Should be something like sudo apt install cinnamon. Then you just log out and switch it from the login screen. Probably better to install it from the GUI package manager though just to make sure you're installing the correct meta package.

>>7634 Tested Linux Mint 19.3 XFCE on the laptop with 1.5GB of RAM via USB. Seems to run & play videos fine, but will it be different when I actually install the OS on laptop hardware? I don't want to think it's fast simply because it's running on USB. >inb4 why 19.3? Support's been cut Stress testing the machine

>>7647 I used to have a chromebook with >1GB of RAM and had little problems running XFCE. You should be fine.

>>7647 It would only be better on the HDD.