MSIs are so bloated and horribly designed, it isn't even funny. Why does it insist on storing a copy of the entire .msi - and any patches - in C:\Windows\Installer? From what I've observed, the original MSI is required to perform repairs and reconfiguration, or setting up new-user defaults for that app. This seems horribly inefficient to me, and on heavily used system this can easily waste space on the C: drive.
And occasionally you run into issues with the MSI database corrupting, where you can't install/upgrade/uninstall something (we see this commonly with Adobe apps) , so you'd need to resort to third-party tools like MSI Zapper to get rid of all the references from the database. What a messy system.
I miss the days when programs used to use NSIS (Nullsoft) installers - they were tiny, and super easy to make and automate.
> These days it’s more and more common to completely ignore the windows installer system and install per-user to app data, which has the benefit of allowing a better self-updating experience without elevated permissions, and lower risk of pollution of system files.
On the flip side, this is a nightmare to manage as sysadmins, who try to maintain a tight ship using AppLocker polices. So many apps these days have a standard installer, but then they download an update and try to run the newer version from AppData, and of course, it gets blocked and we get calls from angry users saying that their app no longer works. Of course, we could whitelist the digitally-signed executable, but some apps aren't even digitally signed (or only partially signed), sometimes the digital signature changes completely... it's a mess.
Then there's the problem of dumping large binaries and entire applications into the AppData folders, which bloats up user profiles. This can be a bit of an issue with certain roaming profile systems like Citrix User Profile Manager, which by default works in a blacklist mode (ie, you have to explicitly blacklist paths that you don't want to roam). If you don't stay on top of this and add new AppData subfolders to the exclusion list, then you'll find all your large Chrome updates or whatever (with several versioned folders) all syncing back up to the profile server, wasting space, bandwidth, and increasing logon, backup, and AV Scan times. In a large organization with several thousands of users, this is a disaster waiting to happen.
Also, using AppData to store entire apps is just plan wrong - that's NOT what it was meant for. AppData was meant for storing app data, and the apps themselves are supposed to be stored in Program Files.
These self-updating apps are the worst thing that could ever happen in a corporate environment.
The problem is, some of these missing cmdlets are pretty basic/essential (speaking as a sysadmin), so it's a bit ridiculous that they're still left out. I mean, sure, I could just call the native *nix binary, but then I'd lose out on the objects, which then defeats the whole point of PowerShell. Plus, I'd have to rewrite all my existing scripts/scriptlets/libraries, which kills the portability.
I could write wrappers around the native binaries, or build custom PSCustomObjects on the fly in the pipeline, but I don't want to waste my time doing this, when these cmdlets are all pretty standard on Windows, and we really shouldn't be expected to do Microsoft's work.
For instance, Test-NetConnection, Resolve-DnsName (and other net commands), Register-ScheduledJob (background jobs), Get-Partition (and other disk management stuff), I could go on, but these and a lot of essential cmdlets are missing.
More than that, my biggest issue is that a lot of my favorite modules and scripts that I've been using (from the PowerShell Gallery and other places) don't work, and many of my scripts have dependencies on them - which means I'd have to rewrite them all to make it work, and some of them may never have a hope working in Linux/macOS due to missing .NET libs/Windows APIs.
Basically, PowerShell on non-windows systems is not fun. It's neither here, nor there - ie neither does it provide all the functionally of Windows PowerShell, nor does it fit in like a proper *nix shell, and even then, it doesn't object-ify any popular *nix native binaries, so you lose out on all the object-oriented benefits, unless you spend time writing wrappers or constantly build PSCOs in the pipeline.
At the end of the day, if I've resolved myself to just parse all the text from *nix binaries, then I might as well work in a shell that is a first-class *nix citizen like fish or zsh, which is more suitable for that sort of workflow, instead of working in a confusing shell that's neither here nor there.
*Allegedly. We do not know yet they that this is from the actual Linux Foundation, could be some patent troll looking for a quick buck, or maybe a rival seller getting pissy.
There are thousands of T-shirts with literal "Linux" written on them[1], with no relation to the Foundation, so it's extremely unlikely that this takedown is from them.
You know what would be cool? A defragmentation game. It's basically Tetris but in a circular layout, and you get more points the better optimized it is - with frequently used data blocks towards the outer tracks and old/archive file types towards the inner tracks.
I always enjoyed watching graphical defragmenters do their magic back in the day and would unironically love to play a defragging game.
> A distro that is made to be resilient and simple, that has wizards for everything, sensible defaults and sturdy guardrails, to the point Linux pros would turn up their nose, is certainly technically possible
There are already distros like that - pretty much most immutable distros are aiming to be that way. Eg, SteamOS, or Fedora's Silverblue.
It's because popular PC manufacturers don't bundle Linux (for the masses, so not counting developer machines). Your average Joe isn't going to care, or bother about installing an operating system on their device - they'll look at the brand, the looks of the device, and the price. They may not even know, what an "operating system" is in the first place.
The Steam Deck's popularity shows this, most people who bought the Deck bought it because it's a good handheld gaming device, and they don't care that it's running Linux (at least, prior to making the purchase decision).
Furthermore, the Steam Deck shows that Linux is accepted by the masses when it's marketed as a purpose-built device. Take Chromebooks for instance, which is basically a nerfed Linux - people still buy them in spite of all it's limitations.
Now imagine a big OEM marketing and championing a full-fledged distro, which is just as user friendly and secure as ChromeOS but allows you to do much more - with the right marketing, budget and polish, it could take off.
I really like what System76 is doing with their Pop_OS!, but unfortunately they're still just a niche brand, and without the right marketing and partnership, they will continue to remain a niche player. But imagine if they spent $$$ on marketing (including viral campaigns on new social media) and partnered up with the likes of Best Buy and Amazon etc to sell their PCs, they could really take off.
Cool, but did you ever hear about and play BioMenace? Everyone always talks about Keen, but literally no one ever mentions BioMenace, which was built on the same engine as Keen. :(
I have an air filter that ramps up when I'm eating. I bring cooked/heated food into my room and a minute or so later my air filter detects VOCs and ramps up. Sometimes it even goes all the way up to the highest level (level 9) with scary red colors, and that frightens me - is what I'm breathing while eating really harmful, and if it is, then how about whilst cooking? And what about chefs and all others who work in a restaurant, how fucked up would their lungs be?
> It is a phone. If you need uninterrupted productivity, use any other type of personal computing device.
Phones have stopped being just phones for a while now. Modern smartphones are full fledged computing devices and are a key productivity tool for many users.
Personally I hardly even use the phone feature to justify calling my device a phone. I make maybe one or two traditional phone calls a month, as most of my day-to-day communications is done over the Internet.
Have you tried using a DAC with a USB noise isolator? I don't get any hiss with my setup:
Neutron Player on Android > USB OTG cable > HiFimeDIY USB noise isolator > HiFimeDIY USB DAC > Beyerdynamic DT880
Although I don't use all that any longer, for convenience sake I just use a wireless Audiotechnica ATH-DSR9BT which supports aptX-HD and produces "good enough" quality with no hissing/noise.
> _It turns out that all music players on Android actually play music using the Android-media-player-service._
This is inaccurate. Neutron music player bypasses Android's Media Player APIs and talks directly to your DAC and plays music without resampling (if the DAC supports it). Never had any audio popping or explosions using Neutron, and I've tried it on 6 different devices so far without any issues (LG G3, Nexus 6P, Nextbit Robin, OnePlus 3, Note 8, OnePlus 6). My headphones are a Beyerdynamic DT880.
The number line representation is incorrect. (5 < x && x < 10) represents x has possible values of 6,7,8,9 (assuming x is int), whereas the number line shows that 5 and 10 are inclusive, but that's not the case as per the provided example.
Warning: DO NOT OPEN THE ABOVE LINK IF YOU'RE NOT IN INDIA!
It made my browser (Chrome mobile) freeze, it displayed a url saying "nonIndia" and was stuck in a constant refresh loop. On Chrome mobile I was unable to close the tab due to bad UX (the close button wouldn't respond so you tap it constantly, but then it closes and you accidently clock on the "reopen tap button" which appears right below your finger and you go back to square one.
Yes but they've recently added some P2W features, which is a bit concerning. Here's hoping that they tone down the IAPs in the coming months, before they retire the old scanner.
And occasionally you run into issues with the MSI database corrupting, where you can't install/upgrade/uninstall something (we see this commonly with Adobe apps) , so you'd need to resort to third-party tools like MSI Zapper to get rid of all the references from the database. What a messy system.
I miss the days when programs used to use NSIS (Nullsoft) installers - they were tiny, and super easy to make and automate.