Macbook Air M1 - Passive Cooling and Waterproofing Discussion

I saw a forum post where someone was wanting a waterproof Macbook Air.

I'm not sure why someone would want this.  The poster stated that it was for the sake of innovation, like adding needless features alone is considered to be innovative.

I explained that I've never spilled any liquids on any of the notebooks I've owned.  Sure, I'm speaking for myself, but self-restraint would prevent folks from accidentally spilling liquid on their notebooks.  I'd explained how I made sure I wasn't drinking over or even near my notebooks...that simple rule stopped me from ever having to worry about liquid damage repairs.  What of notebooks (in bags or backpacks) getting wet if caught in the rain?  Always check the weather before you leave an establishment, or don't take your notebook with you when/if you know it's raining.  If you need to go and you know it's going to rain, bring an umbrella or put your notebook inside a ziplock or plastic bag...it doesn't have to be airtight unless you're going underwater with it.

Some then made a quip of it being super simple to implement since the MBA was already sealed.

Wait.  What?

He thought that since the MBA had no fan, that the case was sealed (ie, no air gaps)

I told him that there is no way that the case is 100% sealed, even while the system is fanless.  I couldn't back this up, as there are no pictures or articles stating that there are no ports/ducts in the case, but I followed my gut.

I looked under my MBA M1 2020 and saw that there's a long rectangular cut underneath the display (when the display is lifted up).  At first I thought that this was where the ports were - I thought it was one elongated port, but I was wrong.  I felt along the port when opening and closing the lid, but couldn't find anything that suggested a true duct.

I powered down the notebook (not hibernated/sleeping).  I then closed the notebook and flipped it upside down.  I took a straightened plastic-covered paper clip and poked along the elongated duct.  I found that there are indeed two ducts within that elongated cut.  I thought they were hinges because they're covered by soft rubber pieces, but they flex away when prodded.

I also found this article: How The MacBook Air Cools Itself 2022 - The Mini Blog

That article clarifies some things.  

While it doesn't mention the two ducts, it does depict them.  The article explains that there are passive cooling mechanics designed into the system.  One passive cooler is the aluminum bottom plate.  It dissipates heat.  The system also has copper heat pipes, which are depicted within the article.  The article also explains that the CPU portion of the SoC (System on Chip) has what's called a cold plate over it, which helps dissipate heat.  

The below picture is an edit of what was depicted in the article.  The red circles indicate where the two cooling ducts are.  The copper heat pipes are circled in yellow.

What does this have to do with waterproofing a MBA?  Everything.  The MBA does not have fans and heat sinks on the hot bits to mitigate heat, as does the Macbook Pro and other non-Mac notebooks.  The MBA relies upon passive cooling.  A sealed case will cause issues with a system that uses passive cooling as the aluminum bottom alone won't wick the heat way.  What heat that is not dissipated by the aluminum bottom will not be able to leave the system, which is why the current MBA has the heat pipes and "exhaust" ports (the heat pipes absorb the heat and the pipes are pointed toward the ducts as another dissipation method).

The MBA, as it currently stands, is nowhere near being waterproof-capable, as you'd have to redesign the whole passive cooling system to account for the fact that the system needs to be air-tight to prevent liquid damage.

I explained to the forum poster that the ports are in place and that I've verified that they are ducts (showed him the pictures in the article and explained to him that I checked the ducts and they are indeed ducts).  He hasn't said a word in reply.

Now, with all that being said, his question was in regards to the new MBA (2022 M2).  Since the new MBA isn't yet released to the public, all I had to rely upon is the outgoing MBA (2020 M1).  

Note that I saw the bottom of the new 2022 M2 (internet picture) and saw that it has the same telltale elongated cutout on the bottom of the case, so I'm betting that the new MBA has the same exact ducting, since that system also uses passive cooling.

Macbook Air M1 & Multiple External Displays

 I saw several folks on Reddit complaining that the new M2 Macbook Air only supports one external monitor.  Technical specifications state that one 6K display is supported but I saw several posts over the past 30 days stating folks have been using multiple external displays with the M1 Mac Minis, which uses the exact same SoC as the M1 Macbook Air.

I decided to check with my Mac Mini M1to see what it would handle and if it could see more than one external monitor.

My Mac Mini is currently connected to an iMac 27" Late 2009 using a Thunderbolt-to-miniDisplayPort cable.  I switch between it and the iMac using Target Display Mode, which I posted about a few weeks ago.  My gaming PC uses a Samsung 34" UltraWQHD screen.  I disconnected it from my gaming PC and connected the display to the Mac Mini using and HDMI-to-HDMI cable, connecting it to the Mini's HDMI port.  The result is that the Mini is able to use both screens without issue, with both rendering in  1440p.

I then attempted to use the same two displays with my MBA M1.  Since the MBA M1 only has the two TB ports on the left side of the system, I had to use my Anker hub, which has an HDMI port.  I found that the MBA M1 can only use one of the two 1440p displays at a time, not both at the same time.  I did not alter the resolution.  NOTE - since the MBA only allows the usage of one external display, using a hub isn't necessary; you can use the aforementioned Thunderbolt-to-miniDisplayPort cable, which will give you the option of 1440p with the 27" iMac.

I think that two 4k monitors is a too much for the bandwidth of the MBA M1 and I've seen articles mentioning that two 4K displays was too much.  I need to test to determine if it'll detect both displays if one is not 4K or if I have to lower the resolution on both for them to be detected.

There are solutions that will allow the usage of multiple displays with the MBA M1, but you've to install DisplayLink.  I haven't tried that yet.

To be honest, the 34" as an external (or second) display is extremely large...it's like having two screens when in 1440p.  That's actually quite enough space for me, but I'll make it a project of trying to get the two 1440p displays to work with the MBA M1.

Upcoming M2-powered Macbook Air & "Refreshed" M2-powered 13" Macbook Pro

 So, I saw the specs of the new and upcoming M2 Macbook Air.

The technical specifications for the M2 Macbook Air are here.

The technical specifications for the M2 Macbook 13" Pro are here.

Immediately noticeable is the fact that the M2 MBP is using the same chassis as the previous M1 Air, while also using the M2 chipset.  They almost certainly just shoehorned the M2 into the existing M1 Air chassis, as the case layout and specs are extremely similar.

Basically, the M2 MBA gets a proper refresh while the M2 MBP does not.

The major differences are:

The MBA has a 13.6" display while the MBP's display is 13.3".  Both systems' displays are LED-backlit with IPS technology.  Both had the same nit capacity.

The M2 MBA base machine will have the 8-core CPU with 4 performance and 4 efficiency cores, and 8-core GPU.  The M2 MBP base will have the 8-core CPU with 4/4 performance/efficiency cores and a 10-core GPU.

The M2 MBA option would be the 8-core 4/4 core with 10-core GPU.  There's no other option for the M2 MBP.

So, the base M2 MBP starts with the better hardware, and the M2 MBA can be optioned to use the base MBP chipset.

Battery comparison:  The MBA battery is rated for 18 hours of Apple TV playback, 15 hours of wireless web, has a 52.6-watt-hour LiPo battery and includes a 30W power adapter.  The MBP battery is rated for 20 hours of Apple TV music playback, 17 hours of wireless web viewing, and has a 58.2-watt-hour LiPo battery.

Both have the exact same RAM capacity and offerings.

Both have the exact same SSD capacity and offerings.

That doesn't seem all that bad, but as you further compare, you'll see that the M2 MBA now has a 1080P front-facing camera while the M2 MPB has the same 720P camera as the outgoing M1 MBA and M1 13" MBP.

The MBA now has a Mag-Safe charging port with two Thunderbolt 3 ports.  The MBP has the same layout as the exiting M1 MBP 13" - two Thunderbolt 3 ports.  Note that the MBP will lose a TB port when using a charger, since it doesn't have a dedicated charing port.  The TB and USB bandwidth capabilities are the same for both systems.

The MBA uses a non-Touch Bar keyboard.  The MBP uses the Touch Bar keyboard, otherwise both keyboards are the same, as well as the touch pads.

The MBA uses a new four-speaker sound system. Both use the same three-mic array and 3.5mm headphone jack.

Both the MBA and MBP M2s officially support only one external 6K display.  I'm not sure what's unofficially supported.  I've heard that the M1 MBAs and MBPs can support two 4K displays.

Price-wise, the M2-powered MBA base model will now cost $1199, while the upgraded M2 MBA will cost $1499.  The M2 MBP base machine will cost $1299, while the upgraded model will cost $1499.

All of the above hints that the M2 MBP may be performing a swan song and may be exiting the market.  While it's not really overshadowed by the M2 MBA, (they share the same chip and the chips are exactly the same), they do not share the same shell.  The comparison is not really fair since the M2 MBA got a real refresh and the M2 MBP did not - the M2 MBP got a new chipset but is using the same chassis as the outgoing M1 MBP 13".

It's almost as if Apple had a surplus of M2 SoCs that they wanted to utilize for the sake of usage...they had spare M2s and spare 13" MBP chassis and used both surpluses to make "new" systems.

It's odd behavior, to be sure.

We'll see if I'm correct in my assessment.

Compared to the outgoing M1 MBA, the incoming M2 MBA is apparently 20% more powerful/efficient.

Are Macbooks Durable?

 Some guy on one of the Mac subreddit groups wanted to secure his Macbook in his car with a tether to deter theft.

I left a comment saying that his main concern should be the heat inside a car.

The storage spec for current Macbooks:

Storage temperature: −13° to 113° F (−25° to 45° C)

The next argument was that a trunk would suffice.  I argued against that, as a truck would be just as hot (it is not a sealed compartment and the heat from the cabin would, in almost all cars with trunks, radiate into the trunk.  The next argument was that the trunk didn't have windows.  A car can get hot even if the windows were covered, as the car is basically a metal enclosure sitting under direct sunlight.  The storage spec for the current MBAs is 113 F.  That temp can easily be attained in a car's trunk.

The next argument was that MBAs are durable.  

THEY ARE MOST CERTAINLY NOT.  A simple Reddit search shows the following - reddit.com: search results - macbook cracked screen - and most of those hits are very recent.  Many of the posts include pictures of the damage too, so yeah, that statement was quickly debunked.

Folks, don't believe everything you see on the internet.

Macbook Air M1 - Anker 7-Port Dock/Hub On The Way

I ordered an Anker 7-port dock/hub from Amazon today, as I've several external hard drives that I plan to use with my Macbook Air M1.  

This dock will allow me to connect drives to the MBA using USB-A connections.

I've also been closely monitoring how my MBA uses memory, just to understand how it performs.  I've yet to see the memory pressure rise to the point where the graph is yellow, but it does use swap (very little, actually - maybe 100 MB, infrequently).  I'm close to not worrying about it any longer.  I'm pretty sure the system will let me know (by throttling down components) if memory usage gets bad.  Life is too short to be constantly worrying on if your Mac MI is swapping...if it is, so be it - I highly doubt swapping is going to cut my drive's life in half.

New M1 user? Get the correct version of Chrome!

 Just so you know:

If you just got a new M1 Mac, make sure you’re using the right version of Google Chrome.

If you're wondering if you've the correct one, you can check the following:

• Open Chrome browser after it has installed, Go to the three vertical dots and click them.
• Select Help.
• Select About Chrome.  
• You should see "arm64", which is the M1 version.  See below recording.

Ubuntu Desktop 22.04 and Dell XPS 8930

2-3 years ago, I bought my daughter a Dell XPS 8930.  It was nothing special but was a good base in case she needed to expand the system a bit.

Not long after purchase, the motherboard went bad.  I had on-site support for it but never got around to getting it repaired until maybe a month before support expired.  A contractor showed up and replaced the mainboard. 

My daughter only used it a few months then decided to build her own.  The XPS was sitting in a corner, barely used.

I've a cheap system I bought from TigerDirect that is running Ubuntu.  It is currently running Ubuntu Desktop 18.04.  I'd installed Owncloud on it, but the install got jacked up.  it's all out of sync now, package-wise.  I'd attempted to update Owncloud and it choked.  I've not been able to get it running again and it has crucial data on it (it has two drives and the Owncloud data is on the 2nd non-system drive).

I decide to run Ubuntu Desktop 22.04 on the XPS.  I'd initially installed LTS 22.04 but at this time that version has issues with systems that have Nvidia cards and I didn't want a headless system (I already have several of those), so I opted for Desktop.  The Desktop install was seamless.

Desktop 22.04 already has a cloud-based system included in the default install - Nextcloud.  I'm still playing with it but I'll more than likely use that since it's within the Ubuntu repository (Owncloud wasn't when I last checked).

Some things I don't like about these latest Ubuntu versions (noticed this will LTS as well):

• vim wasn't installed by default.  vi is installed by default.  I think this is a licensing thing (I don't believe vim is POSIX).  As well, if vi is already installed, I guess vim wouldn't need to be.  If anyone needs vim, they can use apt to install it post-install.
• ifconfig was not installed by default.  IMO, ifconfig should be essential to a default install.  You might need to troubleshoot a network issue immediately after installing the distro and if you don't have a network connection, you're screwed.  ifconfig is included in the net-tools package.  That package shouldn't be excluded from the base install.

Everything else seems to be good with this distro version, but I'm sure I'll find something amiss as I use the system.

Macbook Air M1 and RAM/Swap research

 Last night, after 3-4 days of the MBA running (mostly hibernating but I did use it maybe 10 hours or so), I took at look at the kernel_task process and it was at around 16TB of writing. (!!)

I didn't have a ton of apps open but did have 15 tabs in an open Firefox browser.  I'm thinking that was the culprit...many days of running without killing the process, when Firefox is notorious for memory leaks.

I shut it down then decided to remove the whole program since it was migrated from my old iMac.  It was almost certainly running an Intel version, which meant that it was being translated by Rosetta2 before being used by the M1's ARM chipset.  

I installed the Mac version but decided to also look into Microsoft Edge, which has some memory leak protections built-in (it hibernates inactive tabs, I believe).  I initially looked for it at the App Store but it wasn't there.  It was the same for FF for Mac - had to go to the FF page and download it, so I went to Microsoft's page, found the Mac M1 version, downloaded and installed it.

The plan is to start using Edge in place of FF so that I can take advantage of it's anti-leak properties, but still have FF on-hand in case I need it.  Yeah, I can use Safari, as well, but I've grown used to FF and Safari doesn't have the anti-leak protection.

I also ensured that the other software I migrated from the iMac (GarageBand, iMovie, Pages, Keynote, Numbers, etc) was using versions native to Apple silicon.  They are all running versions designed for the M1 chipset.

I then restarted the MBA so that the kernel_task writes could be watched after my changes.

So far, my kernel_task writes are low (437 MB) and I'm not swapping (I'm at 2 GB of unused RAM currently).

As well, I've researched the RAM and swap issue.  Even if I start swapping, even if it was heavy swapping, the life of my SSD should last well over 10 years.

I've also thought of creating extra swap files/partitions to a 2nd SSD I have, and redirecting the swapping to those locations (if possible for the latter).  I can always replace the 2nd SSD since it's not embedded into the MBA.  This may be an option later on, but I'll not worry about it now.

Had to Rearrange My Desk

 I've rearranged my desk so that I can use the Macs at one end of the (long) desk.  

This resulted in moving my 27" iMac, placing it next to my Mac Mini.  The enables me to use the iMac as a monitor for my Mini, using Target Display Mode (TDM).  I had to buy a USB-C to mini-Displayport cable and use the one of the Thunderbolt slots to connect to the iMac.

Even though I can use TDM, there's the issue of having two sets of keyboard and mice between both systems.  I don't think there's a worthwhile way around that issue.

I'm also using a bluetooth mouse and keyboard with the Mini.  The mouse is a Corsair Harpoon that has a bluetooth mode.  I'd been using that mouse with my work laptop until I found that it had BT functionality, then I repurposed it for use with my Mini.  The keyboard is a Seenda ISJ-ZXKB01.  It has mapped controls for MacOS.  It works well, but tends to take a few seconds to reconnect when it is hibernating (I've to tap a button and wait maybe a second or two for it to awaken before I can use it).

Since I took the iMac from my work setup, I am mow using my Dell 27" monitor as my second screen for work.  I'd previously been using it as a second monitor for use when I'm streaming gameplay, but since that system has a 34" UW display, I really didn't have an excuse to use an additional monitor.  It did make things a bit more simple, as I could use OBS on that screen while the main screen was outputting gameplay.  I may buy another 27" screen from Dell if I want to go back to that setup, but I'd have to rearrange the desk or get a wallmount for it (or the iMac).  We'll see.

The Macbook Air (MBA) is doing well.  I've been using it to do light things such as blog posts, research, and note-taking (using OneNote).  I'd heard folks with M1 Macs using the MS Edge browser because it's less resource-intensive than Firefox and Chrome.  I've been using Firefox as my main browser, but I've to watch it closely because it tends to consume lots of memory.  I might try Edge soon.

Macbook Air (2020) M1 Base On the Way!

 I'd been torn on whether to get a mobile Mac, especially so shortly after I'd bought the M1 Mini (a few weeks ago).

I want to spend time on the Mac but also be near family.  The Mini is in the basement, which is where my office desk is.  I'd tried remoting into the Mini from the den while logged into my Dell G7, but there's some lag that takes away from the experience.  So, I decided to buy another Mac.

I mentioned I was torn on whether to make another Mac purchase.  Well, I was doubly torn with this purchase, as I couldn't decide on the Air or the Pro.  The Pro is a bit more expensive, but the specs between the two are almost identical.  I think the Air has 7 GPU cores while the Pro has 8 (note that there's an 8 GPU core option for the M1 MBA).  Also, the Air is fan-less while the Pro has a fan.  The Air doesn't have the touch bar but the Pro does.

I decided on the Air Base model because of price.  The Air was $150 less and has the same exact specs as the Macbook Pro 13" (2020 M1).  This Air is Space Gray in color.  That's a rather trivial difference but I'm trying to cut costs.  As well, there was $60 sales tax on this purchase!  If I could've found a Pro that was open box, it would've been as cheap as a new Air, but they had no open boxed Pros.  They also didn't have any certified used ones in this area.

I'm excited.  The only thing I'm missing now is the Apple Watch.  That one can wait until next year.

UPDATE:  I picked it up from Best Buy maybe an hour ago.  It is sweet. I think I should've bought this before I bought the Mini, but that's OK because they're both low-end Mac systems and I'm not under a financial burden.  I can use both.  The Air is pulling the new update (12.4) that was released last night.  The Mini is pulling the same update.  I'll have more to report over the next week or so.

UPDATE 2:  Three weeks later, Apple notified the public of two new incoming models - the Macbook Air M2 model and the Macbook Pro M2 model (which is basically the M2 SoC within the M1 shell - shitty "refresh", in my opinion)

I Have Another iPhone; Airpod Pro Earbuds; Mac Mini M1

iPhone 13 Pro Max 256 GB 

Back in March (2022), I decided to let go of my LG smartphone.  I've been using LGs since the V20 (used the V30 and had been using the V60 (which I still have) up until March).

When LG decided to get out of the smartphone business, I began my look for a different phone.  None of the other brands held my interest.  Yes, other companies make phones that have similar specifications, but most do not have expandable memory (micro SD) or physical audio ports (or even DAC).  LG's V60 was innovative, in that you could also use dual screens (docks with screens) with them.

I did not want a Chinese phone (no OnePlus or similar).  I did not want Samsung (used their phones awhile back...was NOT impressed and had several issues with two phones where I had to return both of them and one of the replacements experienced the same issue 1.5 years after the exchange).

Several things about iPhones that will never go away: Their resale value.  They also have a very good ecosystem.  The software and security is good.  They've long support.  If I have an issue with a phone, I can visit the local Apple Store.  Their peripherals work great (even when using them with non-Apple products).

I decided on, and bought, an iPhone 13 Pro Max 256 in Alpine Green.  The phone looks great and feels great in the hand.  It has an elegant look to it.

Right off the bat, I hated the fact that logins are tied to Apple IDs and iCloud.  I also hate the fact that I can't change the UI. (With Android, we use launchers to change the look of everything.)  The phone has no fingerprint reader. (Face ID works great, though!)  It came with no ear phones, nor did it come with a power adapter, which is mandatory for usage of the Fast Charging feature.  It's all glass but comes with no phone case (WTF).  Luckily, I ordered a case when I ordered the phone.  I also ordered a 32W power adapter.

It is now May and I've used the phone a few months.  I've grown accustomed to it.  There's less of an issue with me fighting with iCloud now. (I found that a large part of my issues stemmed from the fact that I somehow have two Apple IDs.)  

I've begun using the phone to listen to music.  Most of my music collection consists of raw MP3s, but it is a royal bitch to use raw MP3s with iPhones.  I had to import the raw files into iTunes on a PC so that I could import/link/sync them to the iPhone.  Some of my music was tied to one of the two Apple IDs, and for a while I had issues where I couldn't access the content I paid for ten years ago. (Yes, I got that sorted.)

Apple Airpod Pro Earbuds

I even bought a set of Airpod Pros.  I tried a pair of my daughter's corded Airpods but they would never stay in my ears.  Even Airpods slipped out, as they are similar to the corded variant.  The Pros have rubber pieces that help keep the pods in the ear canal, and they stay put better than regular AirPods, but they're still not all that secure when in my ear.  I foresee these falling out of my ear at inopportune moments.  They've great sound, with noise cancellation and sound pass-through and text-to-voice features.  The rechargeable case is great (although slick).

Mac Mini M1 (2020) Base - Space Gray

I'd been using my 27" iMac lately to access the music and files on it when using the new iPhone, but it is OLD (late 2009 model).  So, I bought a Mac Mini M1 to replace it - that was the best decision I've made in quite a while, as this Mini is very powerful.  I bought the 8GB RAM & 256GB SSD version.  I didn't want to spend a ton of money on another Mac, so I focused on the lower end (after doing research, the lower end will be fine for non-professional things and even some professional tasks).  As well, I bought a dock that gives me several more ports (for less than $100) - it fits under the Mini and has the same profile.  The dock also had a port for an SSD card, so I mounted a 500GB SSD to it, so the system now has a 500GB data drive.  The dock is a Quiizlab USB-C Hub.

I'd been using the iMac as a dedicated monitor for work, but I think I'll use it with the Mini instead.  I'm currently using a Dell SE2719H 27" monitor with the Mini but love the 1440p screen of the iMac.

What's also cool is that I'm remotely administrating the iMac from the Mini using the Screen Sharing tool.  This is somewhat new to me, as the iMac was previously the only other working Mac in the house.  Note that I've two old (2005ish) Macbooks that aren't being used, as well as a G4 PowerMac that's sitting in a corner.  The Mini may spur me to get another (modern) Mac system.  UPDATE - Yup...bought a Macbook Air M1.

I've also bought my first real app for the Mini: iStatistica Pro, a system monitoring tool.  I used to use iStat and was going to purchase it but saw that it hadn't been updated in awhile (and other issues).  iStatistica Pro was the same price ($10), and didn't seem to have any bad reviews, so I bought it.  I've already used it to pare down some files. (I copied the files from my iMac to the Mini when setting it up, so there's a bit of files on the Mini already.)

So, I'm happy.  I won't promise to document my experience with the recent Apple purchases since my life is pretty fragmented right now, but I'll document the experience when I remember I've things to share.

My daughter bought me a 1 TB WD Black SN750 SE NVMe SSD for Christmas. 

Wasn't able to install it until today. It took maybe an hour of investigating/researching, maybe 20 min of cloning the drive, then another 30-40 min of troubleshooting when Windows' Disk Management wouldn't extend the C: to use the rest of the unallocated drive space (I had to install a 3rd party disk manager tool).

Also, when I copied the partitions from the old M.2 to the new M.2, it broke Bitlocker on my data drive, but that was easily fixed by copying the drive's BL key from my Microsoft account and using it to re-establish access to the data drive. 

It feels nice to have 2 TB of space in a laptop!  The data drive is a mechanical drive - it'll suffice for now but I do have a spare 500 GB SSD that I can use in it's place (I actually have two of them but only one will fit in the laptop).

Post-Christmas post - December 2021

 I received the following as Christmas presents:

Thrustmaster TWCS Throttle

M.2 2280 1 TB Solid State Drive

Cargo Area Weather Mat for my 2018 Jeep Wrangler

I got a few other things as well, but the top two are things I'll definitely be using as soon as I can.

That SSD will be replacing what's currently in my Dell G7 laptop (it came with a 128 GB M.2 SSD).

The Thrustmaster throttle system will be replacing my Saitek X-52 Pro throttle.  The Saitek throttle works, but I've been having issues with it's matching stick, which has a loose PS/2 port (connector keeps falling out during gaming, so I switched to a 1st Gen Thrustmaster T.16000M stick.  I didn't want the HOTAS combo since I already have a T.16000M stick; plus, I prefer my CH Pro rudder pedals over the Thrustmaster TWCS pedals, which are too close together for my preference.

The Jeep's cargo mat isn't a tech item but it's pretty cool.  I already have Mopar weather mats for the seating area.  This particular mat is from Quadratec (cheaper product)...looks every bit as nice as the Mopar mats, though.

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!

Windows 11 & TPM 2.0 Requirements; Radeon Software Issues

I just wanted to speak a bit on the Windows 11 TPM 2.0 and SecureBoot requirements.

I spent a bit of time trying to understand why TPM 2.0 was needed.  When I investigated, I found that SecureBoot is also a requirement for upgrading to Windows 11.

I suggest enabling it if you have it.  If your system was built 3-4 years ago, it should already be TPM 2.0 capable (you may need to enable it within your BIOS or use a discreet TPM).  If your system is older, your system will more than likely not be capable of using TPM 2.0.

SecureBoot is also a requirement, as both TPM 2.0 and SecureBoot will keep rootkits from starting before the OS boots up.  I'm not sure on if SecureBoot will interfere with dual booting systems (if you've configured your systems to boot both Windows and Linux, for example)...it shouldn't but I'd test first.

The below video has a lot of information about TPM and SecureBoot.

Now, for a different subject.

So, as you know, I've upgraded my GPU to an AMD Radeon RX 6600.  While I love that it's a lot more capable than my prior GPU, I'm finding that I do NOT like certain things about it.  Well, it's not a card issue, specifically, but it is a driver and software issue that I've been experiencing the past few days.

If I right-click on my desktop, I should be able to pull up the AMD Radeon software console.  Well, it hasn't been working.  I've followed several tutorials explaining how to fix this issue, but none of them work.  It's always explained that the issue is due to conflicting drivers and that you have to remove the driver installation folders, safe boot, then use DDU to remove all GPU drivers, then boot back into the OS normally, then reinstall the drivers.  I've done that at least 3 times, back to back and the software still doesn't start.  This is problematic because the software should be checking for driver updates and notifying me.  If the software can't start, it can't check the drivers and notify the system owner.  Apparently this is a known pain point with AMD cards.  I'm not sure how long it'll be before I find a real solution to this issue, but I'll manage, a guess.

Upgrades Performed, New System is Functional!

 I posted earlier in the week that I'd bought parts for a new system.  

I'd said that I'd wait for the weekend to strip down my current system and replace the motherboard and supporting parts (GPU, CPU, memory).  Well, I couldn't wait.  The CPU HSF and memory arrived yesterday and waited an hour or two after they arrived to begin the rebuild.

I'd not done this in awhile but it wasn't all that difficult, but was sort of a pain in the ass.  I basically had to strip down the old motherboard while leaving the rest of the system attached to the case, then remove the motherboard, then attach the new CPU to the new motherboard, then attach the CPU HSF to the system, then attach the RAM to the motherboard, attach the back IO panel to the case, then mount the motherboard to the case, then plug in the motherboard power connectors and the rest of the cabling.  I also had to try to ensure wires and cables weren't interfering with the cooling fans.  Some of the wires are very long and some are also very short, so I spent some time trying to route things...I'm probably going to have to revisit this, as I could spend a whole day trying to route and secure cabling using zip ties.

The PowerColor video card was a beast!  I thought my GTX1060 was big.  This one is a bit bigger.  I didn't know it had blue lighting, which enhances the blue lighting I already have in the case.

When I booted up the system with the new parts, I honestly thought it wouldn't boot because of something I'd forgotten.  At least the PSU is sufficiently powerful.  It immediately booted up but was complaining because it couldn't control the CPU fan - I'd plugged it into the wrong outlet, so I had to fix that.  It was a bit of a pain because I'd used a hot glue gun to secure the wires to the frame of the HSF - I had to remove the glue to reroute the cabling and then reglue the cabling so that it wouldn't get caught in the CPU fan.

The system is ultra quick now.

I played a few matches of War Thunder last night and noticed that the system was complaining that Windows wasn't activated.  I'd saved my product key from when I'd upgraded to Windows 10 but the damned key wasn't working.  Apparently, I'd nullified it when I added the new hardware.  It took me maybe 15 minutes to fix that.

I also downloaded and installed the latest RX 6600 drivers.

At some point, I'll probably wipe the drive and reinstall Windows and all of my games and hardware, but for now everything works.

I still need to do some things like find another area to mount my SSD drives, as they're in the way in case I want to add additional USB 3.0 ports in back.  I may end up buying a new case, though...this one is a bit cluttered.

Here's to another seven years!  :D

Gaming Desktop Upgrade

I came into a bit of money and instead of doing what I normally do (spend extra money on firearms or ammo or anything supporting firearms), I decided to upgrade my video card in my desktop system, since I've been having issues playing a particular VR game, a light flight sim called VTOL VR.

What started the desktop system upgrade process was the fact that I couldn't upgrade my video card to the latest-greatest, since my current motherboard only supported PCIe 3.0 x16.

This meant that I wouldn't be able to upgrade the video card to the RTX 2060 or any RTX card above 2060, as most current graphics cards are PCIe 4.0.

The motherboard that I'm currently using is the MSI Z87-G41 PC Mate, which is a motherboard that supports the following:

• Supports 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7 / Core™ i5 / Core™ i3 / Pentium® / Celeron® processors for LGA 1150 socket.
• Uses the Z87 Express chipset.
• CPU currently being used: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-4690K CPU @ 3.50GHz

I also just now realized that this particular system is 7 years old!  And when I bought the above MSI motherboard, that motherboard wasn't cutting-edge.  In fact, there will be no Microsoft Windows 11 support for the i5 CPU I'm currently using. I will probably move it to another system and use it with Linux.

So, what started out as a GPU upgrade developed into a motherboard, CPU, and GPU upgrade, since I would need to upgrade the motherboard to use a PCIe 4.0 GPU and since I would need to buy a new CPU to use with the new motherboard.

I spent this weekend looking at motherboard/CPU packages at NewEgg and Microcenter (which is local to me).  I also looked and found an ideal GPU.

The problem with shopping for computer parts during Covid-19 times is that nothing stays in stock for long.  Also, there's a shortage of chips for GPUs, so GPUs are very expensive right now.  I could've waited but Covid is 2+ years long-in-the-tooth right now...could be a very long wait, while prices could keep climbing.  Microcenter isn't allowing online purchases of GPUs so I'd have to physically purchase the product.  NOTE:  While I hate that stores aren't selling GPUs online and that to buy them, you've to visit the brick/mortar store, it does lessen scalping and folks mass buying GPUs for cryto mining.  Also, I found that what was showing as in-stock was showing as out-of-stock after several hours of checking, and this occurred with the motherboard/CPU and GPU items I'd bookmarked (was researching so that I knew what to buy when I visited Microcenter the next day.

So, on Sunday, I did another quick search and found that NO i5 CPUs were in stock, which meant that I had to re-search for another combination that wasn't i5-related.  So, I stepped up to an i7 CPU.  

Also, there were no more Nvidia GPUs within my price range and I was NOT going to spend $800 on a card!  So, I changed up after doing a bit of research and decided to get an ATI video card instead.

Here's what I ended up getting:

• PowerColor AMD Radeon RX 6600 Hellhound Dual-Fan 8GB GDDR6 PCIe 4.0 Graphics Card
• Intel Core i7-10700K Comet Lake 3.8GHz Eight-Core LGA 1200 Boxed Processor - Heatsink Not Included
• ASUS Z590-P Prime Intel LGA 1200 ATX Motherboard

Because of the issue of every single part I selected repeatedly going out of stock over the course of two days, I ended up going over budget by like $250!  I was very close to just calling the whole thing off...it was an extremely frustrating situation.

I also realized before going to purchase the parts that I'd also need to buy new memory, as the new motherboard required DDR4.  I decided that I could buy that online via Amazon.com and would probably be able to find good bargains, so I held off on buying that at Microcenter.

I bought the parts and when I got home, I looked at the CPU.  The damned thing didn't come with a HSF (heatsink/fan).  Looking online for a HSF for an 11th gen i7 was daunting.  I'd selected to buy either the:

• Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo v2
• Cooler Master Hyper 212 Black Edition.  

I wanted to see how large they were before purchasing and I'm glad I checked because both of those were EXTREMELY large.  These two HSFs are overkill for someone who won't overclock.

I actually settled on the Intel BXTS15A HSF assembly air cooled instead.  It should arrive in 2 days.

For RAM, I bought the following:  NVTEK 16GB DDR4-2933 Desktop PC RAM Memory.  It should arrive in 2 days, also.

About the only thing I haven't had to buy is a new power supply unit (PSU) and a new case.  I already have a good display, a Samsung 34" UltraWQHD 1440p screen (LS34J552WQNXZA).  There's the possibility that I'll have to buy a larger PSU but I'll do that only when I see that I'll need to do it.  Hopefully, I won't have to upgrade the PSU.  The current PSU I'm using is a Corsair CX750M, which may well be sufficient for the CPU and GPU I bought.  If I need to upgrade, I'll probably buy the PSU locally, as I bought the Corsair from Best Buy locally seven years ago.

I'll begin the build this coming weekend, which will give me a bit of time to backup important things to my NAS.

So, what I thought was going to be a simple $400 GPU upgrade will probably end up being a $1000+ upgrade of 5 essential (and expensive) parts. :/

At least I won't have to worry about this for another 7 years.  :)

Yearly (LOL) update!

OK,  I've neglected this page, I'll admit, but there are some new toys I've received.

But first, my last post mentioned that I got an LG V60.  

How is it?  It's a great phone!  I also love the dual screen (I got that via the promotional offer).  It's camera is awesome.  I was able to capture some pictures of Neowize with it (the pictures were without a tripod, so there's some motion that was captured).  My wife also bought me a Bamboo pen for it.  Oh, and we now have 5G (we're on the edge of range)...when it works, it works well.

The bad?  The dual screen sometimes glitches out.  Since the dual screen isn't under warranty, I'm SOL with that.  Another con is that the dual screen's back is made of glass...WTF were they thinking?  There are many folks who have cracked or shattered their dual screen, and apparently, it doesn't take much effort to damage the glass.  The phone itself has a nagging issue of the screen not always staying dark when I have it between my shoulder and head.  What ends up happening is my ear ends the call or dials someone else, or puts the phone on speaker mode...whatever icon my ear touches will activate that feature.

I still love the phone, though.

For Christmas 2020, I got a monocular (Gosky 12x55 HD) that I plan to use for star gazing.  It has a tripod mount as well as a part that will mate my smartphone to it, so that I can take pictures with the phone.

Another Christmas present was another head-tracking system, the Delanclip Fusion with the LED clip.  For now, I'm just going to use the LED clip with my TrackIR setup (it appears to track more accurately than the passive hat clip I have).

For working from home during the Coronavirus pandemic, I bought a Samsung 34" UltraWQHD monitor that's 21:9!  I also bought a Skull Candy Venue headset, for work.  Work actually paid for that equipment (I bought and they reimbursed).

Also, this week, I found that my mouse was dying.  I've heavily used it the past 4-5 years as a gaming mouse.  It is the Logitech G700 (the original one, not the S model).  The primary left button works intermittently, which is sad because I love the G700 so much.  It's been acting up awhile now, and I bought an G700S two years ago in case the G700 died on me, so I've been using both.  

Now that the G700 died, I bought a new mouse to replace it, although I'll admit right now that I'm not liking this mouse.  

The replacement mouse is the Logitech G502 Hero.  There's a variant of the G502 that is $140!!  I wanted it but did not want to pay $140 for a freaking mouse, so I compromised and bought the Hero version.  

There are some things I had to compromise on (even compared to the G700):  

• My G502 is not a wireless mouse. Since I rarely used the wireless feature on the G700, I was OK with having a wired mouse.  
• The G502 has 11 programmable buttons, which I think is similar to the G700.  
• What's cool is that I can add weight or lessen the weight of the mouse, as it comes with metal ballast pieces.  
• This mouse also mated fully with G HUB, which the G700 would not do.  

What do I not like about the new mouse?  The scroll button.  I like the option of a notched scroll button (the G700 has this).  This mouse also has the option of a notch-less scroll button (the G700 has that, too).  The notched feature feels like a caveman designed it....it's lumpy as gravel lot (and noisy when it's used, too).

I'll continue to use the mouse, though, as I think it's an OK compromise in price and design.

A good comparison of these two mice is here.

I'd love a metal mouse, though...I'm tired of all the plastic, cheesy, and cheap mice.  That's why I didn't want to spend $140 on a mouse...that's some expensive plastic.  Metal is also recyclable...plastic is eco-friendly nor is it recyclable.  And, with a metal mouse, there's be less of a need for adding additional weight.

I'll try to be better at updating this page.

Fathers Day - LG V60

My wife asked me what I wanted for Fathers Day.  I told her I wanted another handgun.  She didn't bite.  Instead, she suggested a new phone.  I'd been using an LG V30 the past 3 years.  It's been working fine.  Before then, I'd used an LG V20.

What'd I get this time?  An LG V60.  Verizon is my carrier.

I'd wondered if the V60 would come with the dual screen case.  It does not (although you can purchase it separately if your carrier is AT&T.  I'd read that you could get a promotional offer of the dual screen case but no literature came with the phone that stated it.  I had to hunt it down on the internet.  Even then, the URLs were bad...it took me a while to find a functional URL that would let me submit for the dual screen case.  I submitted for it the same day I bought it (3 days ago).  It will take 4-6 weeks for me to receive it.

The phone is definitely an upgrade for me.  Everything about it is better (not that I had any major complaints on the V30).  The speakers are far better than the one on the V30.  The camera is better.  The V30's screen is better (but smaller).

I bought a cheap clear gel case for the V60.  I'll use it when I'm not using the dual screen case.

One thing about the dual screen case that I see people complaining about is the fragile front of the case (when closed).  It's made of glass.  While it will protect the phone, it destroys itself in the process.  I hear that LG will replace broken glass for you for $35.  That's not bad.  It would be better if they refined the case by making the front cover plastic instead, though.

I also have an active stylus coming (a Wacom Bamboo Ink Plus).

It also syncs well with my Samsung Galaxy watch (I didn't have an issue with the V30 connecting to it, either).

The V60 is a 5G phone and I don't live anywhere near a location that has 5G (closest area is Pentagon City and DC area).

The phone also is using Android 10, which is new to me.

One thing I have to get used to is using gestures instead of the home row keys that are usually at the bottom of the screen (home key, back key).  I can disable gestures to regain access to the home row keys but I thought I'd try to use the gestures for a bit to see if I can learn something new.  If I don't like it, I can always go back to what I'm used to.

I'll probably give the V30 to my son.  I've to remove the 256 GB microSD card first (he doesn't need that) and then ensure that my Google Authenticator entries have been migrated to my new phone.

IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad

I've purchased both IL-2 Sturmovik:  Battle of Stalingrad and IL-2 Sturmovik:  Battle of Bodenplatte. 

I purchased the premium version for both, meaning I also have the premium (ie, collector) planes for those two modules.

I've been flying IL-2 the past 3 weeks, off and on.  I'm also flying War Thunder in Simulator Battles mode.  I probably shouldn't be mixing the two, but the concepts are pretty much the same between the two games.  I can use the same tactics in both games.

I'll be posting on these two games as I learn more about them.

PC Gaming

During the pandemic, I've not been able to do my normal hobby (visiting the local range to shoot my firearms).

I've been trying to do things that are different.  One example is that I've been delving in using Python (the programming language). 

Another thing that I've been doing is playing different PC games than I'm used to.  I've recently been playing Cold Waters, a submarine warfare sim.  I've also been playing Arma 2.  I'd install Arma 3 but I probably have to uninstall a few other games before I do that.  Arma 2 has a smaller footprint.

I also recently bought Steel Beasts Pro PE, a tank/armor simulator that uses sandboxes (similar to Arma 3).  I bought the original version maybe 20 years ago and thought I'd have fun with the latest version.  It is fun but something that you have to keep playing to get used to.

Lastly, yesterday, I bought a set of rudder pedals and 8 GB of DDR3 RAM (to add to my gaming desktop, which already has 8 GB - I needed to add another 8).  The pedals I bought are CH Pro pedals.  It took me two weeks to decide which pedals to buy.  I didn't want to buy anything super-expensive...I just need a decent set to use to play War Thunder SB or even DCS with (I've the first version of Black Shark as well as A-10C Warthog, which I've rarely used).  If I end up flying SB within War Thunder or DCS a lot more, then I'll invest in a very nice set of pedals.  I plan to use the CH Pro pedals with my X52 Pro HOTAS.

I'm finding myself playing less War Thunder RB.  I think I'm bored.  I've been playing it hardcore a bit over a year and it's getting redundant.

I'll keep you all updated the next few weeks.

TrackIR and FPS

I bought a TrackIR (version 5) a few years ago but hardly ever used it. I wanted to try to use it for flight sims but never got around to using it. Well, I dusted it off and used it to play some Arma 2 this past weekend. All I can say is....WOW! I should've been using this a long time ago. While I realize that not all games allow for head-tracking, Arma does (I've many of the Arma variants, including Arma 3). I also used it a bit to play some War Thunder. It was awesome there as well, allowing for a very immersive bit of gameplay (although I just used the test drive feature to test the hardware). To use TrackIR with War Thunder will also, for full immersion, require the use of HOTAS, which I do have (I've the Saitek X52 Pro throttle and stick combo), as well as rudder pedals, which I do not yet have (I'm in the process of deciding which to buy...I'm not looking for Gucci equipment...just some decent pedals to facilitate gameplay). I'll be testing other FPS games to see if they allow for head-tracking. I may also delve into other flight sims such as DCS and the IL2 series. Stay tuned.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare

I bought Call of Duty: Modern Warfare last year, but haven't played it much.  A friend reached out to me via Battle.net to ask if we can play a few games and I told him I had CoD:MW.  

I started playing  the campaign to get familiar with it, but noticed that the game kept crashing after a few minutes of play.  

Initially, I tried dialing back the graphics, in case my system couldn't cope with it, but I play a lot of other resource-intensive PC games on this system, so I knew that this wasn't a hardware issue.  I had the game redo the shaders, as well.  Neither helped.  I reinstalled the game (as someone suggested) but that didn't help either.

Today, I fixed the issue.  It wasn't related to software or hardware.  This was a networking issue.  I went into my router's configuration and added some port fowarding entries using this resource.  It worked.  The game hasn't crashed and I've played maybe 1.5 hours.

My gaming system's specs:

Operating system: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro
Motherboard:  MSI MS-7850
CPU: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-4690K CPU @ 3.50GHz
Monitor: Dell SE2719H (27" LED)
Video Card: ZOTAC GTX 1060 6GB
Memory: 8GB DDR3 SDRAM
Mouse: Logitech G700S
Keyboard: Logitech G213 Prodigy
OS: Windows Version 7 Professional
Web Cam: Logitech C922 Pro Stream Webcam
Headset: Logitech G935

SSD Fever

Maybe 5 years ago, I bought a 750GB Samsung 840 EVO SSD drive for my Alienware 17" laptop.  It's still going strong (I don't use it as much as I used to).  3 years ago, I bought 2 x 500GB Samsung 750 EVO SSD drives for use in my gaming laptop.  2 days ago, I bought 2 x 1TB Samsung 860 EVO SSDs.

Why so big?  Why not?  Especially since they're super-cheap now.  The 1TB drives were $139 each.  The 500GB drives were around $170 each.  The 750GB was around $400.

I now need to determine how to use them.  I can sacrifice my two 500GB drives and put them into RAID0 for craps and giggles.  Or, I can put the two 1TB drives into RAID0 or RAID1...again, for fun.  I now have more SSD drives than I do mechanical drives.  I know many people buy small SSDs and put their OS on those drives.  Some put the OS and a game or three on the drive.  They would also have several mechanical drives for storage of files, images, and things like that. 


I've no idea how I'll use them, as I mainly bought them because they were on sale, but I'll find a way!  :)

UPDATE - 12/2/2018:

I decided to only use one of the SSDs.  I will probably put the other in another system or wait for a bit to use it.  For now, it's sitting bare but installed.  I could use it as a storage drive.  We'll see.

I reisntalled Windows 7 instead of cloning a different and older (and degraded) install.  I spend the Saturday installing Win7 and all of the required drivers and such, then attempted to install Win10 (I've an upgrade license).  The install hung at 63% and stayed there for 4 hours until I intervened and rebooted the system.  It did not like that but I had no choice.  I waited overnight for the rescue portion of the install disk to fix the errors.  I'll continue with Win7 and clone it, so that when I attempt to upgrade to Win10 and the process breaks, I'll have a fresh copy of Win7.

New Phone! LG V20!

I got rid of my shitty Samsung Galaxy Note Edge.

My daughter and I had been having boot loop issues.  I don't think it's an app or battery issue.  I think it's an OS/firmware issue.  Why?  Because there was nothing in common with my daughter's installed software and mine.  She's a teen and I'm almost 50 years old...we used totally different software across the board.  It wasn't a battery issue because I actually had my daughter's phone replaced (at $200, that was NOT a cheap "fix")...2 months later, the exact same issue started occurring again on her new phone.  The battery and phone were new.

So, I got tired of running the battery down to 30% where the phone would automatically shut down and reboot, go to the red Verizon screen, then reboot again, then again, then again, and again, and again.  The only way to stop it is to remove the battery.  Many times when removing it, the phone shows no battery power left to restart the phone...you usually have to plug the phone in to let it fast charge for awhile to get it to where it'll have enough power to restart.  Bottom line is that I now think that Samsung has quality control issues.  Everyone I know that has or has had a Samsung phone has had some type of issue that had hindered their phones in major ways.  I won't be buying another Samsung anytime soon.

Nor would I be going back to Apple.

I was eligible for an upgrade but it took me a long time to decide between the LG V20, the LG G5, the Google Pixels  (Pixel and Pixel XL), and the HTC 10.

I wanted a removable battery, expandable storage, and a large screen (at least as large as my Note Edge).

I almost settled on the Pixel XL, but wanted something more than just stock Android.  I'd had also had to give up both a removable battery and expandable external storage in getting that phone.  Yes, I know that with the Pixel, you get unlimited cloud storage via Google, but if you are not near a wireless AP and you don't have unlimited data, unlimited cloud storage is not going to be a good solution.

I've had the HTC One M8 as a work phone...my daughter had one as well.  It was a solid phone.  It had expandable storage but a built-in battery.  It had forward-facing speakers that sounded awesome.  The phone never gave me or my daughter issues.

I've never owned an LG phone and was eyeballing the G5 because I'd considered it awhile back, before I got the Note Edge.  I decided against the G5 because it isn't a recent phone and always seem to get phones that are not top-tier.  Two years ago, the G5 may've been top-tier, but not now.  I'd never heard of the V10 (for some reason).  I'd not even heard of the V20 until I began to search for Pixel competitors.  When I looked at the V20's specs, it compared to the Pixel very well, but was also cheaper, while also having expandable storage and a removable battery.  It is very much a top-tier phone.

I bought the LG V20.

There's a ton to like about the V20.  Basically, if you like the Pixel, you'll like the V20.  Like I said, they're very much comparable to each other.

The things I don't like about the V20:

The USB-C cable.  I can't stand it.  The cable that it comes with is way too short.  I had to go to Best Buy and get a Belkin car charger kit (5' cable) and what I did was swap the OEM cable for that one so that I can use the 5' cable to charge the phone and still use it while in bed.  The OEM is just long enough for me to use to charge the phone while it is mounted on my dash.  As well, with all my other Android phones, I always had spare micro-USB cables around the house that I could use to charge my phones (I also had a bunch of power adapter bricks).  I bought this phone and only had ONE USB-C cable.  I could not use any other of my cables.  I went to my sister's house and the phone needed to be charged...she had a ton of spare cables but no USB-Cs.  So now I have to ensure I have spare USB-C cables (one for my bedroom, one for my car, one for my Jeep, one in my wife's car)...they're not exactly cheap, either.

The V20 also has a feature that's called Smart Settings.  You can automate some things on the phone, like configure the phone to enable wifi when you get home, or turn off wifi when you leave home...things that you might do manually to save battery power, for example.  Well, Verizon removed that feature from Verizon V20s for some reason.  That was one of the features that drew my attention to the phone.  Yes, I can use 3rd party software to automate processes on this phone.  For example, I can use Tasker to do the same things.  Tasker isn't exactly easy to use...it's powerful but it's not intuitive.  Plus, I had created some tasks when I had my Note Edge.  The app maintainer upgraded the app, and all of a sudden my apps disappeared, never to be found again.  I wouldn't have to deal with that if Verizon hadn't removed the Smart Settings.  :/

Oh, and my damned Samsung Gear S won't work with this phone.  That's not an LG problem...it's another Samsung issue.  Samsung appears to be unwilling to enable this phone to work with non-Samsung phones.  When smart watches cost as much as they do nowadays, they should NOT be made to refuse communication with phones that are not the same make.  So, I won't be buying any more smart watches for awhile.  I'll await a neutral wearable maker before I spend my hard-earned cash on another watch.  I suppose I could use my Pebble but after taking calls from my Gear S, I refuse to step down to a Pebble...sorry.

The speaker could stand to be louder (it would be nice to have a forward-facing speaker on this phone, too).

The screen is very vivid and bright.

The phone doesn't feel bogged down and the interface isn't laggy.

The OS out-of-the-box is v7.0 (Nougat)...the only other phones that are using Nougat are the Pixel (naturally) and the HTC 10 (only just last week did that make the news).

As with my other phones, I'll keep you all updated on any glaring issues and will share any praises.

UPDATE - I replaced the LG V20 with the LG V30 (three years after I created this post).  Two years sfter that, I replaced that phone with the LG V60.  The V60 also came with a separate offer for a (free) dual screen case, which makes it very versatile - I ordered the dual screen case.  My wife also bought me a Wacom Bamboo Plus stylus for use with the V60 and dual screen.  All three were great phones.  I still have the V30 and V60, and actively use the V60 - the V60 is my backup phone.

My Android Phone's Browser Was Hijacked!

Last week, I went to a website on my smartphone and something took over the native Samsung web browser.  In fact, it was affecting the Chrome web browser as well.  Rebooting the phone didn't solve the issue.  A factory reset would've worked but I wanted something less impacting than resetting my phone.  AV apps didn't detect the browser hijack, which is a pity...AV apps for PCs tend to discover such anomalies, but smartphone apps are quite behind in this regard.

I found a fix, though.  I had to clear the cache (of the browser app) and force stop the app.

Note that this was not a malicious compromise of the phone.  I clicked nothing when the browser was hijacked and was prompting for me to acknowledge that I had viruses on my phone.  If I had clicked the links the links the hijack attempt was trying to force me to click, chances are that the phone would've been compromised, though.  As it was, the prompting didn't go away until I cleared the app cache and force restarted the browser app.

This was the very first time I've ever experienced such an issue with an Android smartphone (or any smartphone).

Samsung Gear S Replaced; Samsung Galaxy Note Edge and Android 6.0.1

So, I received my replacement smartwatch.

What can I say, other than "it works"?  I thought I'd get one in a box with a new cradle.  Nope.  They gave me the watch replacement and that is all.  At least it works, though.  We'll see if it'll last a year.  I'm not so sure.  This whole owner experience was fine until the watch died and I got to see how Samsung handles warranty claims.  Although they did good, I've the feeling I'll be pissed 18 months from now when the replacement watch dies without warranty coverage.  I don't even know if the watch is new or refurbished.  I'll investigate whether the watch is new (or a refurb) and find out if a new watch has a full warranty (it should)....and, I'll also discover how well the warranty coverage is for a refurb.

I had to activate the new watch and pair it with my phone.  While that wasn't complicated, it wasn't as simple as it should be, either.  I'll admit, though...it was simpler than when I got the first watch...this one wasn't glitching like the first one.

I also upgraded my phone (Samsung Galaxy Note Edge) from v5.0.1 to v6.0.1 (Marshmallow).

The phone had issues from the onset when trying to install the new firmware.  I kept getting error code 404.  I must've tried like 4 times before clearing the cache (each time I tried, I had to redownload the damned firmware...it was a PITA).  Clearing the cache worked and Marshmallow finally installed.

v6.0 consumes a lot of power.  I've been finding myself having to recharge during the day.  I used to get by without having to charge the phone after letting it charge overnight.  Fast Charge doesn't seem as fast as it was when I was using v5.0 (yes, Fast Charge is enabled).

Yesterday, I was taking a picture of my dog and the phone locked up.  It would freeze at the Verizon screen during boot-up.  It did this 4 times (each time, I had to remove the battery to unfreeze it).  I couldn't get past the freeze.  I ended up doing a factory reset.  This was a PITA.  Yes, I had a recent backup (I did a full backup the night before, using the Verizon Cloud app), but restoring it was very slow (did it over a wifi connection).  I believe my initial upgrade attempt worked but something crucial became corrupt in the process (it took like 24 hours to manifest).

I'm still trying to get the phone back to normal.  I've not yet played with much of the features.  The interface is a bit different in some places.  I don't know of any of the major enhancements.  I suppose I could research them but all I really care about is that I've a functional phone.  If I could find out if there's a fix for the abnormal power consumption, I'd be happy.

UPDATE (6/24/16) - I've experienced no freezing or rebooting or reboot loops since the upgrade to v6.0.1.  This is good news, as my daughter was also experiencing freezing and reboots (I ended up having Asurion replace the unit).  My daughter is still using v5.0.1, though, so I'm wondering if she will eventually experience those issues again -- I'll ask her how her phone is doing...last I asked, I thought she said that the issue was still occurring but was less frequent.

Samsung Gear S

Over the last ten months, I've enjoyed my Gear S.  Here's my user experience thus far:

The watch's voice command feature is very sensitive.  It activates when it thinks it hears a command, usually when I'm talking to someone else.  It's annoying.

The latch features on the charger cradle broke.  The fittings are plastic and snap into the watch.  The latches broke after 6-7 months of ownership.  This usually means you can no longer charge the watch (because the two of them won't stay attached).  This is why I hate proprietary cabling.  It means you have to either coerce Samsung into replacing the cradle or you've to put on your MacGyver hat and somehow latch the cradle to the watch.  If you get a replacement cradle, it will more than likely develop the same issue eventually (some people report their replacements breaking within a week of receiving them).  I usually wrap the band around a pill bottle that has a similar size to my wrist...that keeps the cradle to the watch during the charging period but do I really have to do this for a $400 watch???

What I like is that if I'm driving and don't want to take my eyes off the road, but I get a text or an e-mail arrives, I can usually look down at my watch for 1 sec to get a summary of the text or e-mail.

I can use the watch as a standalone device (in case my phone breaks, if I forget it while going to work, or if it runs out of power).  While I can't use it to browse the internet, I can receive reminders, texts, and calls.  I can even respond to texts.

My watch stopped working maybe three weeks ago while I was on a cruise.  It just died.  It wouldn't charge, it wouldn't turn on, and the indicators wouldn't blink...nothing.  Luckily, this happened before the 1-year manufacturer's warranty ended...I was at the 10 month mark when it died.  I went to the Samsung website and created a case for them to fix it.  They paid for the shipping to their facility and for the shipping back to me.  It turns out that they couldn't repair whatever it was that was damaged/faulty, so they sent me a new one.  It should be delivered to me today.

I get to see how long the replacement will last.  I'm getting tired of buying technology that almost seems like they're designed to self-destruct.  I think most manufacturers purposely build merchandise that doesn't last long, so that they can get a second chance at a customer's money, in the hopes that maybe the item breaks after the maker's warranty.  I'd insure the watch if I could, but I also don't want to end up feeding more money into the system ($12 a month for Asurion insurance coverage where, if the item breaks, it'll cost $200 for a replacement/repair...screw that).  Home owners' insurance may cover it, but there's a steep deductible to worry about.

While I love wearable tech, I'm not going to be spending huge sums of money for shit that's not going to have the legs to last 2-3 years.  No.

Gaming With My Custom Core i5 system!

About a year ago, I rebuilt an old system because I thought the mainboard was dead (only it wasn't).  I ended up buying an MSI MS-7850 mainboard that supported Intel CPUs.  I was coming from an AMD 6-core CPU, but wanted to try Intel's Core i5.  I settled on the Core i5-4690K (which runs at 3.50 GHz and is a 4-core CPU.  This thing is faster than my M17x R3...it should be since it's running later internals.  The system's specs are:

CPU:  Core i5-4690K @ 3.50 GHz (4-core)

Dedicated Video Card:  AMD Radeon HD 5670

Integrated Video Card:  Intel HD 4600

RAM:  8GB

Motherboard:  MSI MS-7850

Hard drive:  C drive - 233 GB; D drive - 500 GB

The video card is a spare that I had in my parts bin...it'll do some gaming but struggles with BF4 in medium settings.  The integrated video card is rather beefy compared to the ones in my other systems (especially my R3).

Anyways, my wife's car went into the shop and needed new front rotors and rear pads...the repair fee was $600 and some change, so I'll have to wait awhile to get my laptop fixed.  I can still use it but can't game with it unless I'm playing a game that is graphics-intensive (like BF4 and others).  I can play War Thunder on the integrated card but I have to dial down the configuration to its very lowest settings.  That takes away the immersion factor quite a bit and the frame rates are very low.

I decided to try War Thunder on my i5 system.  I'm using a Vizio E231-B1 23" monitor with it, connected with an HDMI cable (the video card accepts HDMI connections, which is great).  I can play with the high settings configured and still get 40fps.  It's quick, too.  No, it doesn't have a solid state drive, although I can remove the one that's in my R3 if I'm desperate (it's a Samsung 750GB 840 EVO), but I'm happy with a plated hard drive.  I've another 500GB drive that I use to replace the 233GB drive (that one replaced a bad 1-TB hard disk as a temporary solution).

About that 1-TB drive.  That's what was causing BSODs and shutdowns.  I had the machine open and my kids sat beside it while playing around...someone stepped on the SATA cable while it was plugged into the drive and it cracked the port.  I continued to use it but it must've been short-circuiting.  I misdiagnosed the issue in thinking it was a motherboard issue, only the same thing started happening with the new parts.  That's when I swapped out the hard disk for a small one, to test if it was the issue.  That was the problem.  I told my kids they owe me a big 5.25" drive.  So now I've a spare motherboard and AMD CPU that I can use to build another box (once I get the funds to get more parts -- case, RAM, CD drive, and PSU).

One thing I love about desktop systems is that I can easily replace parts, even major parts such as the mainboard (I can do that with my laptop as well, but it's a bit more complicated in removing such a part).  The reason I got a laptop machine was because I got tired of not having a gaming system when traveling.  I still swear by Alienware laptops, though...most geeks understand why after they've opened one up.  All the major parts are easily accessible and removable.

Alienware M17x R3 - Dedicated Video Card Dead!

So, I've been experiencing blue screens since April, at maybe twice a month in frequency, up until August.  From August until now, I was getting BSODs 3-5 times a month.  I couldn't figure out why because the error messages were obscure.  I've been trying different video card driver version as well, with no good results.

I finally downloaded WinDbg, a debugging tool, and used it to read the minidump files that the system compiles after a BSOD, and saw this:

Problem signature:

  Problem Event Name:        BlueScreen

  OS Version:        6.1.7601.2.1.0.768.3

  Locale ID:        1033

Additional information about the problem:

  BCCode:        116

  BCP1:        FFFFFA800CCFE4E0

  BCP2:        FFFFF88002C1501C

  BCP3:        FFFFFFFFC000009A

  BCP4:        0000000000000004

  OS Version:        6_1_7601

  Service Pack:        1_0

  Product:        768_1

Files that help describe the problem:

  C:\Windows\Minidump\091815-12682-01.dmp

  C:\Users\ron\AppData\Local\Temp\WER-30763-0.sysdata.xml

This error could be generated by a multitude of issues, such as motherboard problems, software problems, operating system problems, or hardware issues.

I opened up my system and cleaned it of dust (there wasn't all that much, considering I've not opened it to clean it -- ever).  I also removed the heat sinks from the CPU and graphics card, cleaned off old thermal paste (Dell just dumped a ton of it on each part without care).  I then re-applied new thermal paste and also added 4GB of RAM since I had it open.

I tried gaming again, after removing all the Nvidia drivers and reinstalling them, but was still getting BSODs.  What's funny is that the drivers disappear and I have to reapply them every time I get a BSOD, but still have to use a driver uninstaller to do it.

In looking at my logs for the month of October, I've experienced 8 BSODs so far and it's only halfway through the month.  Also, the logs say "Video hardware error", specifically:

A problem with your video hardware caused Windows to stop working correctly.

So, I guess my Nvidia GeForce 580M finally died.  Apparently, people have been having problems with them since 2012.  I guess I got lucky...I'm only now experiencing issues, 3 years after people began to notice they fail.  I shouldn't complain, I guess.

Now I need to determine which would be a good replacement card.  I've seen people using 680Ms in their M17x R3s without issue.  Some people have even used 780Ms and 880Ms, but those are pricey...I'm not ready to spend $800 on a video card.  I can either get another 580M and hope it gives me another 3 years or I can get a 680M (can find them new for $320-$360 on eBay, with warranties).  I can't find them as cheaply on Amazon.

For now, I've configured War Thunder (that's the game I'm currently playing) so that I can use the integrated graphics card (an Intel HD 3000).  It works but my frame rate dove down to 30-40fps.  :(  I suppose I can either try to do War Thunder on my iMac or use the desktop system I was using before I bought the Alienware.  I also have a Dell Latitude E5530 that has an Intel HD 4000 that might get better frame rates.  I do have options.

I'll update this blog entry as I decide what to do next.

iMac- Possible Drive Failure....Again

About a month ago, my iMac started acting funky again, only I didn't receive any drive failure alerts.  I ran several diagnostic checks on the system and the system checks out fine.  I won't take it back to Apple's Genius Bar because the system is out of warranty and it also is too heavy to be taking back and forth to Apple.  I wouldn't mind taking it in if they told me it would be a warranty repair and if I wouldn't have to keep ferrying the system back to them.

I ran FSCK twice (the first time it had to clear out some issues...the second time it didn't alert on any issues).  I used Disk Utility in Recovery mode to check the drive (there were no warnings).  I checked the disk's permissions...there were many that needed corrections but it fixed them all.  I reset NVRAM.  I tried Safe Boot mode.  I reset the SMC.  Nothing is working.

I opened the system and cleaned it of dust.  I didn't see anything amiss internally (the inside wasn't uber-dusty, either).

What's happening?  The damned beach ball is taking over the computer, which is why I think it's a drive issue.  It could well be a RAM issue, especially since it's only got 4GB of RAM but it has been running fine on 4GB for YEARS.  I can't use Activity Monitor to check any of the resources because the damned beach ball won't let me open anything.

Another thing is that the system keeps opening all these apps that I ran the last time I used the system and some of them are resource-intensive (iMovie, for example)...I wish there was a way to tell the system to clear out any cached apps and to not run them anymore, since it's interfering with my troubleshooting.

I'll be ordering a drive from iFixit but I need to know what brand is inside the computer.  I'd much rather not have to open it again, but I might have to, since it's taking forever to check within OS X.

But before I do that, I'm going to reinstall OS X to see if this fixes the problem.  I checked Disk Utility yet again and don't see any errors or SMART warnings.  I actually scanned the system with the included Application CD, which has additional diagnostics...it didn't detect anything.  I think a reinstall of OS X may work as my daughter was running a crapload of 3rd party software for Minecraft...she may have hosed the system.

UPDATE:  Annnnddd...it's working.  I was right...there must've been an issue with the OS installation. I need to get current OS-wise, though...I had to go all the way back to Snow Leopard.  I can't even install Lion, Mountain Lion, or Yosemite until I download the 10.6.8 update.

UPDATE #2:  As of 10/14/15, it's still working without issue.

PC Gaming - War Thunder, BF4, ARK: Survival Evolved

I've been somewhat bored with gaming the last few months, so I've been forcing myself to play BF4 again.  I stopped playing that game maybe 7 months ago but began playing again 3 weeks ago.  I only play in Hardcore mode (kill/damage model is more rewarding and realistic), but usually played Conquest mode.  I gravitated to Team Death Match and Gun Master modes, as they've a lot more going on.  I've had a spikes in kills (and deaths) and have been obtaining lots of ribbons and medals (and equipment)...all with it being more fun than the other modes I was playing last year.  I have to keep mixing it up, I guess.

Prior to being re-engaged with BF4, I gave ARK: Survival Evolved a spin.  I do NOT like it.  It's not a bad game, but is too time-consuming.  If you have OCD, this might just be your type of game, though.  I'm not going to explain the game, but if you're curious, a simple Google search will help.  Much of the game is open-ended (it's an open world that is undeveloped...you've to develop it).

I've also decided to try again with War Thunder.  I'd tried it awhile back and played it for maybe a week or two, then got bored with it.  I've been playing it again for maybe 2-3 days so far and I've gotten more kills/assists these last 2-3 days than I did in the 7-14 the last time I played it.  I've also been watching LOTS of WT tutorials on YouTube, which helps.  I'm also working my way through the game's single player tutorials and I'm finally working my way through some of the single player campaigns.  I've been doing this to get the extra virtual money and upgrade points, but realized that going through them would help me learn crucial WT knowledge/skills.  I also fly online nightly.  Normally I don't like learning games while being online, as experts tend to prey on those new to the game and that usually makes learning very frustrating, but it's different with WT, as when you fly in multiplayer mode, it matches you with others of your skill level.  This is something that I think a lot of games would benefit from (or, the game end users).  I've been very satisfied with WT the last few days and will probably continue to play the game.  I've been playing Arcade mode, but the plan is to eventually migrate up through the modes as I become more proficient with flying.

Maybe I'll capture some Fraps gameplay footage, post it to YouTube, and link it here.

Steam Hit by Major Security Breach, Many Accounts Hacked! -- Master Herald

http://masterherald.com/steam-hit-by-major-security-breach-many-accounts-hacked/23239/

The gist of it is, Steam was cracked, many Steam accounts were hacked, but Steam didn't notify it's users.  In my opinion, that's negligent...in a major way.  With today's problem with internet breaches, providers should be prompt and proactive in notifying their user base, as breaches tend to not only affect a person's service account, it can also affect finances and credit.  There's a lot of gray or overlapping areas where breaches are concerned.  If a game service provider is hacked and credit card data is tied to the account, purchases can be made internet-wide.  As well, home address information tied the the account can be used to open lines of credit against your name.

I really think that there should be laws that govern how businesses interact with their customers when breaches occur.  There should be no more waiting when there's a time criticality tied to most breaches.

Origin Account Hacked!

My Origin account got hacked today. Was out shopping and missed the "your password has been changed" e-mail from Origin. I saw it maybe an hour later, and immediately submitted a trouble ticket. They called me immediately (within a minute of creating the trouble ticket). Whoever made the change was able to guess the answers to my security questions (WTF).

They also changed the e-mail address associated with the account to "garryjhonson98@gmail.com". They changed the origin ID to "ENFIELD_Hare_Gr".

The EA agent reverted back to my original e-mail address and set up new security questions. He changed the Origin ID to something else. He also set up login verification (that wasn't active on my account) and tied it to my phone number so that any future password changes would be directed to my phone...if they don't have to code sent to my phone, they can't change anything on the account.

He also told me to check my friend list, as they tend to add themselves to the list after hacking accounts (so that they might be able to try again later).

I've no idea how they were able to know my login and guess my password, as well as the answers to my security questions. Luckily, no purchases were made, as I had a credit card linked to the account.

I'm sharing all this in case this person is jumping between people's friend lists.

UPDATE - 8/4/2015:  Noticed another hack attempt...Origin sent me a security code via text, meaning someone tried to access my account but won't be able unless they can retrieve the security code that was sent to me (via phone).