Utilities for work and play.

"Instead of planned obsolescence, there should be planned longevity."
- viznut

trabant

A mid-2015 MacBook Pro that runs linux with Ubuntu and Regolith alongside a selected range of software for light or text-based projects, communication and traveling.

It replaced my mid-2012 model in 2023 to be able to use it with the drawing tablet.

I found it online in almost new condition for 450 EUR.

trabant 2015 specs

Host: Mid-2015 MacBookPro 11,5
RAM: 16 GB
Processor: Intel Core i7 @ 8 x 2.7GHz
Display: 15.4-inch LED/IPS - 2880 x 1800 @ 220 ppi
Graphics: AMD Radeon R9 M370X with 2GB of GDDR5
Storage: 500 GB
Weight: 2.04 kg
Operating System: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
Desktop Environment: Regolith

Issues

Most of the issues I had on the 2012 model didn't appear, but getting individual resolution scaling to work took some figuring out.

Resolution Scaling

Ubuntu kept setting the same scaling for both monitors. I used xrandr to fix this:

xrandr --dpi $DPI --fb "$full_X"x"$full_Y" \
--output $MAIN --mode "$MAIN_X"x"$MAIN_Y" --scale "$MAIN_SCALE"x"$MAIN_SCALE" \
--output $WACOM --mode "$WACOM_X"x"$WACOM_Y" --scale "$WACOM_SCALE"x"$WACOM_SCALE" --pos 0x"$mainY"

Webcam Not Detected

The internal webcam didn't work out of the box and the instructions found online were opaque and hard to find. After some trial and error I modified a set of instructions found in an article online:

$ cd /usr/local/src
$ sudo git clone https://github.com/patjak/bcwc_pcie.git
$ sudo git clone https://github.com/patjak/facetimehd-firmware
$ cd facetimehd-firmware/
$ sudo make
$ sudo make install
$ cd ../bcwc_pcie/
$ sudo make
$ sudo make install
$ sudo depmod
$ sudo modprobe -r bdc_pci
$ sudo modprobe facetimehd

Power Save Settings

gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.screensaver idle-activation-enabled false

Disables automatic screensaver.

gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.power sleep-inactive-ac-timeout 0

Disables automatic sleep activation when plugged into the AC adapter.

Also make sure to turn off Automatic Screen Lock hidden in Settings > Privacy > Screen.

Default Startup Brightness

One reboot, the screen brightness was very low. To set another default edit or create /etc/rc.local file and make it executable using chmod sudo chmod +x rc.local. Edit the file with the following content:

#!/bin/bash
#
# rc.local
#
# This script is executed at the end of each multiuser runlevel.
# Make sure that the script will "exit 0" on success or any other
# value on error.
#
# In order to enable or disable this script just change the execution
# bits.
#
# By default this script does nothing.
echo 900 > /sys/class/backlight/gmux_backlight/brightness

exit 0
```
Make sure the file path `/sys/class/backlight/gmux_backlight/brightness` is correct.
## Pre 2024
A mid-2012 MacBook Pro that runs linux with Ubuntu and Regolith alongside a selected range of software for light or text-based projects, communication and traveling.
It was out of use for a few years because of a broken graphics chip that was bridged in late 2022. The nVidia graphics chip is now not usable anymore which means that it cannot run graphics intense software and the HDMI and Thunderbold outputs are useless.
trabant 2012 specs

Host: Mid-2012 MacBookPro 10,1
RAM: 16 GB
Processor: Intel Core i7 @ 8 x 2.3GHz
Display: 15.4-inch LED/IPS - 2880 x 1800 @ 220 ppi
Graphics: Intel HD 4000 (IVB GT2)
Storage: 250 GB
Weight: 2.02 kg
Operating System: Ubuntu 22.10
Desktop Environment: Regolith

There are a few things to get everything working right with ubuntu.
Regolith is a desktop environment that can be either installed on top of Ubuntu or with a custom installer image.
### Issues
+ i3wm handling High Pixel Density Display
+ Left Alt/Cmd keys are switched
#### Backlight Brightness
> xrandr --output eDP-1 --brightness value
The `value` is between `0` and `1`.
Wrote a bash script and mapped it to brightness keys `XF86MonBrightnessUp/Down` in i3 config file.
#### Startup Chime
To decrease the volume of the startup sound, edit the EFI variable `SystemAudioVolume-7c436110-ab2a-4bbb-a880-fe41995c9f82`.
Drop to root access using `sudo -su`, then change directory `cd /sys/firmware/efi/efivars/`.
To overwrite the variable content, first change the immutable bit of the file with `chattr -i SystemAudioVolume-7c436110-ab2a-4bbb-a880-fe41995c9f82`.
Now change the content with `printf "\x07\x00\x00\x00\x00" > SystemAudioVolume-7c436110-ab2a-4bbb-a880-fe41995c9f82`.
Change the immutable bit again with `chattr +i SystemAudioVolume-7c436110-ab2a-4bbb-a880-fe41995c9f82`.
#### Alt/Cmd keys switched
Use Gnome Tweaks to switch the keys.

rosinante

With the introduction of the 2015 model of Trabant, Rosinante was retired. I keep this page for archive purposes.

Rosinante was a stationary laptop located in my workstation that I used for projects with high performance demands such as developing Gibbon: Beyond the Trees. It was setup to be able to boot into Windows, but usually runs linux with Ubuntu and Regolith alongside a selected range of software.

It had no communication capabilities and was intended for deep focus work only.

rosinante specs

Host: Lenovo ThinkPad P50, 15"
RAM: 32 GB
Processor: Intel Core i7 @ 8 x 2.7GHz
Graphics: nVidia117 / Mesa Intel HD 530 (SKL GT2)
Operating System: Ubuntu 20.04 LTS
Desktop Environment: Regolith
Keyboard: OLKB Preonic

tablets

preonic

For day to day work on trabant I use the OLKB Preonic v3, a 5x12 orthographic keyboard with Gateron Aliaz Silent MX mechanical switches and the Acute keycap set.

It runs the QMK firmware that allows custom key mapping. To do so, the firmware along the configuration file are compiled and flashed onto the keyboard. To install QMK CLI run:

python3 -m pip install --user qmk

Clone the qmk_firmware repository. Then run the setup with the repository as a path and install all dependencies:

qmk setup -H /path/to/qmk/

Set the default configuration:

qmk config user.keyboard=preonic/rev3 user.keymap=rostiger

Note: If the user configuration doesn't write over the ini file, open $HOME/.config/qmk/qmk.ini and enter the information manually:

[user]
qmk_home = /home/rostiger/projects/keyboards/qmk
keyboard = preonic/rev3
keymap = rostiger

Use the online configuration tool to configure the mapping to your liking, name it preonic/rev3/rostiger and download the .json file. Store the file at qmk/keyboards/preonic/keymaps/rostiger/rostiger.json.

Navigate to the above directory and convert the json file to C:

qmk json2c rostiger.json > keymap.c

Build the keymap layout and flash the keyboard by running

qmk compile

If the build was successful, use a pin to push the reset button on the underside of the PCB. This will put the keyboard in flash mode. It is not functional in this mode and must not be unplugged.

Now flash the keyboard:

qmk flash

planck ez

A small, portable and highly configurable keyboard that I use with RASP/UTIN and the pocketchip. It features a 4x12 layout and Cherry MX Brown mechanical switches with double ring silencers.

To make up for the few keys, it can be configured to activate different layouts with a press of the "raise" or "lower" keys.

Keymap

The keymap is configured to be as versatile as possible while leaning torwards programming.

,------------------------------------- 0: Base -------------------------------------.
|  Tab |   Q  |   W  |   E  |   R  |   T  |   Y  |   U  |   I  |   O  |   P  | Bksp |
|------+------+------+------+------+-------------+------+------+------+------+------|
|  Esc |   A  |   S  |   D  |   F  |   G  |   H  |   J  |   K  |   L  |   ;  |   '  |
|------+------+------+------+------+------|------+------+------+------+------+------|
| Shift|   Z  |   X  |   C  |   V  |   B  |   N  |   M  |   ,  |   .  |   /  |Enter |
|------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------|
|Extend| Ctrl | GUI |  Alt |Lower |    Space     | Raise| Left | Down |  Up  |Right |
`-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------'
,------------------------------------ 1: Lower -------------------------------------.
|   ~  |   !  |   @  |   #  |   $  |   %  |   ^  |   &  |   *  |   (  |   )  | Ins  |
|------+------+------+------+------+-------------+------+------+------+------+------|
|  Esc |  F1  |  F2  |  F3  |  F4  |  F5  |  F6  |   _  |   =  |   {  |   }  |  |   |
|------+------+------+------+------+------|------+------+------+------+------+------|
| RCtrl|  F7  |  F8  |  F9  | F10  | F11  | F12  |      |      |      |      |Enter |
|------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |             |      | Home | PgDn | PgUp | End  |
`-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------'
,------------------------------------ 2: Raise -------------------------------------.
|   `  |   1  |   2  |   3  |   4  |   5  |   6  |   7  |   8  |   9  |   0  | Del  |
|------+------+------+------+------+-------------+------+------+------+------+------|
|  Del |      |      |      |      |      |      |   -  |   +  |   [  |   ]  |  \   |
|------+------+------+------+------+------|------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
|------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |             |      |BRGTH-|BRGTH+| Vol- | Vol+ |
`-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------'
,------------------------------------ 3: Adjust ------------------------------------.
|      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
|------+------+------+------+------+-------------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |BRGTH+|BRGTH-|      |      |
|------+------+------+------+------+------|------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |CLRTGL|LGTTGL|      |      |
|------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |             |      |      |      |      | Prnt |
`-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------'
,----------------------------------- 4: Extend -------------------------------------.
|      |      |      |      |      |WheelU|WheelD|      |      |      |      |      |
|------+------+------+------+------+-------------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |LClick|RClick|      |      |      |      |      |
|------+------+------+------+------+------|------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      | MLeft| MDown| MUp  |MRight|      |      | MLeft| MDown| MUp  |MRight|      |
|------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------|
|      |      |      |      |      |             |      |      |      |      | Prnt |
`-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------'

pocketchip

A handheld single-board computer for making PICO-8 games

The PocketChip production was discontinued in 2017, the company producing it entered insolvency in 2018. By now, all documentation and data went offline, but there still is an active community around the device.

I found it used online for 40EUR in 2021. Unfortunately it died in 2022 after little use.

Specifications

1 GHz ARMv7 processor
512 MB RAM
480 x 272 LED backlit touchscreen
Membrane keyboard
One USB port
Headphone jack
Wireless Internet
Bluetooth
5V DC, 500mA battery
Up to 5 hours usage

A small touch screen pen made from a bamboo chopstick

printer

3in1 printer bought second hand in 2019.

Install Generic drivers

sudo apt install cups

In the Gnome settings, select the printer and set it as the default printer.

If the host can't be located, try

service cups-browsed restart
service cups restart

Printing

Print from command line

lp filename

Adjust columns per inch and lines per inch to control output size.

lp -o cpi=14 -o lpi=8 filename

Cancel all print jobs

cancel -a

I added a bash function to .bash_aliases for a printing template:

lpt() { margin=60; marginTB=30 lp -o cpi=14 -o lpi=8 -o page-top=$marginTB -o page-left=$margin -o page-bottom=$marginTB -o page-right=$margin -t "$1" $1; }

Refilling the Tanks

Simply open the lid and fill the corresponding color tank with ink up to the top most line. In the printer menu, head to Maintenance>Reset Ink Level and follow the navigation.