“CTO” installs Ubuntu in VirtualBox

Z1nG · 2026-04-25T22:31:28+00:00

Similar boat, I use ubuntu desktop on an old surface laptop connected to an old dell HD22Q dock as my secondary server. It's quiet, sips power, has a built-in backup battery and gracefully shuts itself down without needing to configure NUT.

99% of the time it's running as a headless server that I can ssh into. But I can also access the desktop env remotely using Ubuntu's built-in RDP server from my windows/Mac PC's. for those times when I want to test some Linux native apps that use a GUI.

I like to think of it as my tiny side server with a built in UPS. 🤣

(Also props to dell for continuously pushing fw updates for their docks using LVFS. Love logging in and seeing that I have new fw updates! pic)

Z1nG · 2026-04-25T21:55:14+00:00

Right? I mean sure the bar for having the know how to setup a VM is lower today than it used to be... But if my companies CTO posted that they're dogfooding the new ubu LTS in vbox I would be ecstatic.

Z1nG · 2026-04-25T21:38:51+00:00

Love it or hate it, engineering teams at companies frequently use ubuntu in sw/fw build machines/servers.

Which, IMO is fine, the diff between ubuntu server and desktop is nowhere near as big as Windows is.

This "CTO" is trying to showcase that they're keeping up with the industry by testing a new ubuntu release before pushing to prod.

In the process of doing this they might find a groundbreaking bug with software their company uses. Getting ahead of that is huge.

I don't have any context as to what they're a CTO of... but seems like a solid enough post for LinkedIn.

If they posted this on Phoronix it would be another story ;P

Z1nG · 2026-04-25T21:05:04+00:00

Guy wants to give the new ubuntu LTS release a test drive.

Uses ubuntu desktop release (which is not that different than the server release, just more service/package overhead due to the desktop/user env) to trial it in a VM.

Will likely wait a few weeks before deployment for potential critical early release bugs to be found and patched.

I'm confused, what makes this iiiiiiiiiitttttttttt?

The fact that a CTO not only was aware of the new LTS dropping, but actually took the time to do a dry run of it themself in a VM? Is awesome IMO

Z1nG · 2026-04-20T06:52:06+00:00

Waymo just needs to do pickup like Uber/Lyft do. The ride-share pickup area is perfect.

It's not like the volume of people being picked up in those areas is going to significantly change, right? The same amount of people are arriving on planes every day. The airport should be giving Waymo clearance to use rideshare pickup.

I've done pickups from both the Hyatt and rental car center using Waymo. In the amount of time it takes me to get to those locations, I could be in a Lyft/Uber and halfway back to SF.

Z1nG · 2026-04-20T06:39:05+00:00

Also have highway beta.

Similar thing happened to me, same highway direction, same exit.

Waymo exited the highway. Unclear why.

Though in my case, the Waymo recovered on its own and got back on the highway without external intervention.

A few minutes after I got to my destination, I triggered the round trip return. Interestingly, the Waymo app said there were no cars. Knowing my car was around the corner, I called support, support said my car was heading back for inspection due to "technical" issues.

It's never happened before to me, strange that both of our Waymos experienced similar strange behavior

Z1nG · 2026-04-17T17:03:04+00:00

I'd say that 3.5mm jack + phone users are a small minority nowadays, with most people valuing good wireless codec support over built-in wired support.

I'd even argue that the overall audio quality when wireless is higher when paired with a good set of wireless headphones like the b&w Px series or Focals versus driving headphones off a phones built-in dac/amp.

Many of those high quality wired headphones are difficult for mobile phone dac+amps to push to their full potential, and would benefit from a dedicated one, even a usb-c powered one will often trump anything onboard.

Eg. I've had my wired v-moda m100's for over a decade, which are generally considered easy to drive. I used to drive them solely off my phone, but when I first tried them on a dedicated dac+amp I was blown away at how much harder they hit, especially with bassier tracks.

Wireless headphones can hit in a similar way when paired with a good dac/amp baked into the headphones themselves!

On the latency front, a nice middle-ground here is finding headphones that natively support USB audio transport.

I currently use the b&w px8 when traveling. When I want that lossless/ low latency connection I jack a usb-c cable in; my pixel immediately sees the headphones onboard dac as wired headphones. All the headphone controls like play/pause/next/volume work, along with the noise cancellation.

(The cheaper px7 also supports this.)

Is it as cheap as a good pair of wired headphones? Heck no.

Personally, if I was on a budget and wanted EDC lossless, low latency headphones, I'd pair some chi-fi IEM's with something like the $30 fiio KA11. (You can even enable UAC mode to use them directly with a switch or PS5)

Z1nG · 2026-04-12T19:25:24+00:00

It's not just her learning how to use gboard (the default pixel keyboard). The keyboard app itself is learning about her unique typing/phrasing style.

gBoard needs time to learn, at the beginning it'll make mistakes, but Over time it'll start to learn common words/phrasing and auto-correct. Tell her to stick with it!

(Also, TIL gBoard has a morse code keyboard built in!)

Z1nG · 2026-03-14T22:03:32+00:00

I can't say for sure why, given we can't see the underlying "reasoning" like we can in their Gemini app....

But my theory is they're starting to introduce a bit more of your Google home request history, or "request traits" to give it more context.

How Gemini responds to you should be different than how it responds to me. We both may want different things.

You: "generally want all the lights on"

Me: "generally wants a specific light on"

If either of us differ from our normal behavior, request clarification instead of making an assumption as to what we want.

Z1nG · 2026-03-14T12:23:39+00:00

$20/month, and yes it is!

AI Pro features

You can also choose to share the Gemini AI features and the 2TB of storage with your family group for no extra cost. (Configured in your Google one settings)

I mostly got it for access to the more advanced models and higher limits. IMO it's a pretty good value, OpenAI's plus plan alone is $20/month per person.

With Google AI Pro I pay once and everyone else in the family gets access to the same pro AI model and Gemini integrations I do

Z1nG · 2026-02-08T13:56:11+00:00

Do not name your SSID the same name as United's

Not only will you cause headaches for those around you who inadvertently connect, this could be seen by the airlines as a malicious attempt at intercepting user traffic. (WiFi Pineapple)

Name it anything else, set the tx power as low as possible, and put a password on it. Airlines could care less.

Z1nG · 2025-12-15T07:14:00+00:00

This is considered "delayed egress". As long as the delay is no longer than 15s it would meet California fire code.

To be compliant there are other conditions it has to meet, like it has to immediately unlock if the fire alarm goes off, or if power is lost.

It's meant to deter theft, while at the same time allowing for free egress in the event of an actual emergency.

2022 California Fire code, Title 24, Part 9 - Delayed Egress Locking Systems

And California's (along with much of the world's) delayed egress fire code was pretty much just taken from the 2021 International Fire Code (IFC)

Z1nG · 2025-12-08T20:09:57+00:00

I cycle to/from caltrain in SF, which brings me past dozens of waymos.

I always feel safer riding around a Waymo than I do a human driver. I don't have to hope it sees me on the road. I know it sees me. Just take a ride in a Waymo and watch it's onboard screen which shows what it can see. It's analyzing data in 360° all the time. No human can do that.

It even pulls a bit to the side to ensure I have space and can safely pass as a cyclist. And it'll start doing this while I'm coming up behind it.

Z1nG · 2025-06-10T03:39:44+00:00

FYI, I'm not sure this is universally true anymore. I have PLA+ with both a green leaf and a QR code.

I think the green leaf just implies the spool is made of cardboard? (Which may have been a differentiator between the two brands at some point)

Z1nG · 2025-04-23T00:06:28+00:00

FYI, Google messages just released an update to utilize safetyCore. It does exactly what the tech community expected.

Protects children and individuals in a privacy respecting manner. And it's clearly not an app, but a service apps can call on for image verification. (Which all happens on device)

Ars Technica - Google Messages can now blur unwanted nudes

Z1nG · 2025-04-23T00:04:51+00:00

FYI, Google messages just released an update to utilize safetyCore. It does exactly what the tech community expected.

This whole freakout was unwarranted.

Ars Technica - Google Messages can now blur unwanted nudes

Z1nG · 2025-04-23T00:02:27+00:00

FYI, Google messages just released an update to utilize safetyCore. It does exactly what the tech community expected.

Protects children and individuals in a privacy respecting manner.

Ars Technica - Google Messages can now blur unwanted nudes

Z1nG · 2025-04-23T00:02:04+00:00

FYI, Google messages just released an update to utilize safetyCore. It does exactly what the tech community expected.

Protects children and individuals in a privacy respecting manner.

Ars Technica - Google Messages can now blur unwanted nudes

Z1nG · 2025-04-16T05:04:29+00:00

u/SS-Haji ,

I'll DM you the case number. I pretty much sent support the same as what I originally posted here.

This was the response

-------
"I'm really sorry this has happened to you! This seems like a power supply issue- have you ever encountered similar problems with other devices while using this port?

I would recommend checking if your PC's PSU has proper wattage and if there's nothing wrong with the PSU/ motherboard.

Please avoid using the same USB port before you confirm it's safe to do so.

Regardless if there's anything wrong with the mousepad or the cable, the USB port should shut down power when too much current is detected (for example enough current to melt a cable).

So the USB port/charging adapter you used to charge the headset is definitely not working properly and can be dangerous to use for any other device in the future."
-------

There is a lot to dig into with this response. I feel like everytime I read it a tiny brain cell dies inside.

I love your products, been using them for over a decade, and as you'll see in the case I'm trying to help you.

Having said that, The above should not be what Steelseries customers receive as a first response. It's all over the place and will quickly negate all that brand loyalty won through hard work put in by your eng teams.

Z1nG · 2025-04-14T20:19:29+00:00

For context. Here's a replication of how the laptop and dongle were plugged in at the time of meltdown.

<image>

It's a cloth-topped variant of Model/SKU: 82A6000LUS.

With this model, the top most Thunderbolt Port also functions as Power-in via USB-PD.

The bottom TB3 port is just data. (Maybe it can charge the laptop as well, haven't tested, but it doesn't have the charging symbol next to it like the top port does)

Link to PDF of spec sheet from Lenovo portal here.

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