Snow On Schoolmarm 10Nov20-11Nov20

Earliest season skiing continued on Schoolmarm with surprisingly good conditions over the last couple of days. We had several inches anew to ride each day. Brown and I scored plenty of runs by arriving early, and didn't go lame, by also leaving early for ORB or elsewhere. Yeah, it's just Schoolmarm thus far but the lesser inclines, yet decent speeds over good distances, allowed us to get some legs under us. Steve and I got about 50Kft of vert over several early season mornings at Keystone (and Steve added more while I fished) - November runs typically bode well for a season for me and with a knee holding up, it's even better. Keystone's wide runs allowed us to spread out and take different lines on each run down the mountain. On the last day we started taking Montezuma a bit more with Summit crowding, and the softer seating there. The one downside with the new season is the lack of edit-ability on the EpicMix lift tracking. The app is all new and there's no website access any more; further, the app doesn't discretely list the lifts taken. My tracking was lower than Steve's by a number of lifts but I can't true it up anymore. Small issue but feature deprecation from prior EpicMix.

That was day #2 and now day #3, Steve's always got new outfits, what a fashion maven. Me, I've got one (very good) look.

It's actually starting to look like real winter up in Summit. Woohoo.

Pursuits Of Privacy ~ Converting To Linux 07Nov20

With so many Linux builds with fast and efficient GUIs now available, and my mac hardware looking grim, I set out to build another Linux laptop. My first attempt was abysmally slow and I attributed that to the dated IBM Thinkpad. I found a cheap Lenovo T440P (Core I7 Pro Dual) and set out. I needed to replicate a rich daily driver from my MBP which allows normal surfing, email, strong calendaring, RoboForm password manager, and Photoshop editing but also a high end audio client driving my desktop DAC/AMP setups. Challenging but I have MLC as somewhat of a guide; he does often respond RTFM ~ and you know what that means: I am on my own. My starting point on Mint/XFCE was quickly disposed for Manjaro/XFCE due to core and package maintenance currency. Here are the (big) steps to converting from macOS to Linux:

1. Download Manjaro/XFCE .iso file and write it to a 4GB USB stick as a bootable image. Reboot target hardware and mount & install Manjaro from boot USB drive - I used a CowButt.
   
2. Reboot again and use update Manjaro capabilities to assure, apps & drivers are up to date. My T440P was decently recognized, so drivers were pretty clean (more later). I had external mouse, external keyboard, external and WiFi networking and external monitor all of which worked 1st time. Issue command "sudo pacman -Syu" to completely update your installation to most recent; this make take a while initally. Note - this is the only command you will likely need again to update Manjaro ArchLinux to current.
   
   
3. Assure your peripherals like, drives, external monitors, USB hubs, keyboards, wireless mouse, etc. are all working; adjust drivers as needed to make it clean.
   
4. Add your password manager into Firefox or as a separate app. I use Roboform and you should use something more than a scratchpad in your desk.
5. Use definitively Mozilla Firefox as your browser. Use the Mozilla VPN (just in beta right now on Linux) or Cloudflare VPN to assure traffic is masked from your ISP and others. Do this on your iPhone as well. Sure you aren't a perv who has anything to hide - but why give up your info to some company not paying for it, yet who would exploit it.
   
6. Configure Thunderbird email. Use Thunderbird... it's just "OK," but ok. This entails adding email accounts you use - use IMAP accounts to assure synchronization between devices (as IMAP email is kept on the server). [I own my own domain "irys.com" so no-one directly tracks it and I can own it forever - rather than having to shift from @yahoo.com to @gmail.com to @earthmail.net, etc. to @whatever-the-F.whatever-the-domain.]  I added my gmail accounts (used for spam-likely) and other accounts as useful.
   
7. Configure Thunderbird calendar. Again, use Thunderbird... it's just "OK," but ok. My main personal calendar is on Google (I know, work for another day). I used the tbsync add-in on Thunderbird to access my Google Cal account as CalDav. [I did it directly in TBird initially but found this add-in more flexible in read-write situations.] 
8. Subscribe to other key calendars whether .ics or CalDav: I add NAmerican Holidays, Astronomical Events, and Kala's Home calendar so I know when election day is coming or a meteor shower or when Kala has an appointment. Use TBird's +Calendar capability for this; you must know and have credentials to the network locations of the calendars.
   
9. Synchronize Thunderbird "address book" to cloud-based "contacts" you have. Again here I used tbsync to "scrape" my "contacts" on iCloud (synced with my iPhones and macs) and sync them to TBird AB. Then, add Birthdays scraped from the TBAB to another subscribed calendar in TBird Calendar.
   
10. Download and install Signal messaging, if you use it, and validate to your iPhone. If you don't use it, begin to so do - fully secure, fully open messaging. This is underappreciated and underused and that's unfortunate as iMessage is bollocks on Linux. You cannot do it reliably or well as yet.
11. Get your file server working on you home network with your new machine. I use a Win7 SMB server to keep files & images for, keep backups for, and record TV for every client in the house. Plex is the TV recorder and subject of other threads. Here I had to actually edit Win7 registry entries (rarely a good idea) to have the Win7Pro server advertise it's SMB1, SMB2 and SMB3 capability to Linux as I browsed over there. It's worked fine without these edits for macOS and iOS but WTF. Ultimately fully operational with full R/W/E access both on the LAN and remotely. I also set it such that these servers would mount automatically at each boot.
    
12. Add your printer and printer driver. Ok, this was strangely obtuse on Manjaro/XFCE IMO. I was super user in the terminal emulator to compile and install the printer package. I found, added, and tested postscript, etc. to my networked Brother laser printer after this but WTF? UPDATE - After doing a full system update I saw a new printer manager and adding subsequent printers and their drivers was simple and done via a simple GUI.
    
13. Test your skills with GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation) app for image editing, including loading and saving of remote (network server) files. Done with some pain in finding features - compared to Photoshop, but it is richer and more powerful. New blog entries feature images moded here.
    
14. Assure USB audio out works well. For me, my T440P does not have fiber out so I need for the USB ports to work high speed and bit-perfect with my WooAudio WA7 Fireflies @ the Nest and my Schitt Gungnir MB @ Blodgett DACs. It does via transcoding on PulseAudio for YouTube, etc. and my main HF audio system of JRiver MC didn't have an Arch Linux distro so I had to build something from their Debian package... damn it but I got it done! Full flac streaming, locally and remotely, from the library server @ Blodgett, on a repackaged build for ArchLinux, is running sweet.
    

You can't mess with me and I probably have more work to do but I am well down the road to a righteous conversion from macOS to ArchLinux. Features lost in the conversion seem to include iMessage, AirDrop (circumvented with iOS's recent CIFS additions), and Thunderbolt display support (big issue for me which I am still investigating).

UPDATE 21Nov20... Lost Features Update

• There is no directly or externally viable way to connect the T440P running Linux to an Apple Thunderbolt display... sheesh. Using the AT display with anything other than macOS on a mac is very elusive. This could be a blocking factor to a switch. Grrr...
• There is no viable way to run or receive iMessages on Linux (except for a virtual terminal like scheme). Not the end of the world but a bummer. Hmmm...
  
• There is no clean way to transfer music from Linux to iPhone (for the Apple Music client, due to it's obtuse file organization). One might be able to run Wine and some iTunes or iTunes-like thing in there to do it but I want a direct transfer. Yet...
• There is a way but I had to switch audio players on the iPhone, which uses its own and a simpler file organization, under iOS into which I can transfer the files. I chose FlacBox and use SMB to directly download to iOS from anywhere really: my Linux machine, my Win7 music store, my mac, etc.. There are even upsides from this switchover (though I did have to download the albums/tracks to iOS again) as I have more control over organization and playback and the player supports many formats, including high def (like flac).
  

Fall On The Blue 07Sat20

I left before wetting a line at the effluent of the Green Mtn Rez on the Blue River. I arrived at 9:20am with 19 vehicles in the lot - half with open and empty rod racks. I was dubious but proceeded to dress and grumble. Given the crowds I chose to throw the new Rodfather 3 weight for fun. As I entered the steep drop in it was very icy but there was a rope to aid my decent. Unfortunately, the rope broke free right at the steepest and iciest spot and I slid 20 ft down the hill. I scratched my hands open, and scraped my net, but worst of all broke off the tip top from my rod. I took all these factors as a sign and headed home to the Nest. Grrr... it really was a fall on the Blue.

UPDATE 13Nov20 ~ Tip top did not break off, it just was levered off of the end of the rod somehow. All fixed; and hands are healing with some time inside ski gloves.

Kudos To Keystone 06Nov20

Steve Brown and I hit opening day skiing at Keystone today. Keystone managed everything very well - reserving opened a bit late but I was in the waiting room and hour early and then got in quickly when it began. I was able to reserve plenty of near term dates (including the WE but I doubt I'll go due to crowdation). Many Keystone workers greeted and "encouraged" mask wearing. The lifts were not crowded for our 5 runs but we were there at opening... while there was no real distancing in lift lines, folks wore face covers and behaved sanely - we saw only one or two (Steve & I are brothers) on each chair. Best of all, Keystones snow making was stellar and we have plenty of room to groove the entire Schoolmarm. On our last runs there were some folks to navigate and the snow was a smidge more icy but we thought it vastly improved from ABay and even the best opening day experience thus far. Of course we capped it off with stellar beers from ORB, including the most recently released hazy IPA Squiggles, and ahi poke from Bird. Awesome 60° day on the mtn and in town followed by a soak in the tub and sounds from Reina del Cid and more IPA finery from Weldworks, the excellent DDH 3.5 Mile.

Ramblin' On The AFA 03Nov20

Kala and I headed to the Air Force Academy today on election day to hike a bit in the Indian Summer weather. We rambled for 4 or so miles and bushwhacked to a couple of new spots. Fun...

Blodgett Pk With Yoho Via North Ridge (& 2.4Mi Detour To Rampart) 01Nov20

Jim and I topped Blodgett Pk across snow fields and an error for 9mi and 4Kft of vert, via the north ridgeline. It's an extra several miles to "get around behind Blodgett" but the route is worth it - we saw the remains of the Waldo Canyon fire from 7 years ago, plane wreckage from the '50s, and great vistas towards Pikes Peak, Colo Spgs, Rampart Rez and more.  House-to-house it took us quite a long time as we added an hour at least by continuing on a road (part of Trail 713) for a mile after I missed our turn - we corrected. It was an awesome day on the Front Range but Jim biffed onto a rock on the way down the sketchy front side. Yes, there was blood. And, as prior, the summit was full of ladybugs. Trails up and down Blodgett are never easy, but it was rewarding to be out with my friend.

Blodgett IoT 30Oct20

We updated security and IoT at Blodgett. Of course I used SmartThings, Arlo and ZWave+ sensors and switches. I did not go overboard; thus far I've covered:

• Garage doors with tilt sensors
  
• Front doorbell with a sensor that connects to the existing doorbell transformer and alerts me when it dings
• Front outside lighting
• Blodgett Theater lighting
• Every room of Blodgett with motion sensing and 2 way audio security cameras
  

Undone as yet include:

• flood sensing
• online smoke/CO sensing
• proximity sensing to aid path lighting

Since we are "absent" to Summit Co on occasion, we most needed a security update. Too, we needed "Ring-like" features to capture and talk to package delivery (and potential package thievery) persons. Features completed include:

• Full home security motion detection and camera recording, including at night.
• More random lighting to mock homeness.
• Nightly schedule for outside lighting.
• Convenient remote control of theater lighting.