Category Archives: Computers

Convincing GNOME to allow remote desktop when screen is locked

Recent releases of GNOME on Ubuntu, and presumably in other distributions as well, finally support remote access to your GNOME desktop on both Xorg and Wayland from a VNC client. However, they do not allow you to connect to your desktop when it is locked, and similarly if your desktop locks — either because you… Read More: Convincing GNOME to allow remote desktop when screen is locked »

DisplayLink is now working with Ubuntu 21.04

UPDATE [August 9, 2021]: It turns out DisplayLink doesn’t quite work in 21.04. See this blog posting for the latest on how to work around the remaining issue. Thanks to Peter Boros for pointing out that Canonical and Synaptics have made the fixes necessary to make DisplayLink work with Ubuntu 21.04 without any of the… Read More: DisplayLink is now working with Ubuntu 21.04 »

Generic reply to unsolicited vendor sales emails

Dear sales representative who wants me to buy your company’s products, If I’ve emailed you a link to this blog posting, it’s probably because you’ve sent me multiple unsolicited sales emails. Welcome to the club of vendors from whom I’m unlikely to ever purchase anything! No unsolicited sales email I have ever received from a… Read More: Generic reply to unsolicited vendor sales emails »

The arduous saga of applying for a Google Store credit account

I have been trying for three months to open a @AskSynchrony account for the @Google store. It has been an unmitigated disaster every step of the way. It boggles the mind that Google has chosen such a terrible partner for providing this service. For background, I have never been a victim of identity theft, I… Read More: The arduous saga of applying for a Google Store credit… »

Here’s how I pick good passwords

A billion people have written about this before, but I like my approach, so I’m sharing it in case someone else finds it useful. Most of my passwords go into a password manager; those are long and random and generated by the password manager and I don’t care whether they’re easy to type or memorable… Read More: Here’s how I pick good passwords »

Update on using DisplayLink with Ubuntu 21.04 (Hirsute Hippo)

UPDATE [August 9, 2021]: It turns out DisplayLink doesn’t quite work in 21.04. See this blog posting for the latest on how to work around the remaining issue. UPDATE [June 3, 2021]: DisplayLink works on Ubuntu 21.04 now without any of my fixes. If you’ve installed my fixes, see this blog posting for uninstall instructions.… Read More: Update on using DisplayLink with Ubuntu 21.04 (Hirsute Hippo) »

Using DisplayLink with Ubuntu 21.04 (“Hirsute Hippo”)

UPDATE [August 9, 2021]: It turns out DisplayLink doesn’t quite work in 21.04. See this blog posting for the latest on how to work around the remaining issue. UPDATE [June 3, 2021]: DisplayLink works on Ubuntu 21.04 now without any of my fixes. If you’ve installed my fixes, see this blog posting for uninstall instructions.… Read More: Using DisplayLink with Ubuntu 21.04 (“Hirsute Hippo”) »

Automating TP-Link Archer AX6000 router (and others) from Python

Recently, I was confronted with the problem of automating the activation and deactivation of parental controls on my TP-Link Archer AX6000 router. Specifically, I needed a command-line tool that would allow me to disable or enable internet access for a specific parental controls profile. The router only provides the ability to set separate schedules for… Read More: Automating TP-Link Archer AX6000 router (and others) from Python »