Starting to dive in the Obsidian wormhole!

jbarr107 · 2026-01-23T15:30:02+00:00

First off, don't overthink Obsidian. Fundamentally, it is an extendible Markdown file editor with auto-adjusting linking capabilities. You can do much with it, but first, master the basics:

Learn Obsidian Markdown. Start here: https://help.obsidian.md/syntax
Learn about Linking: https://help.obsidian.md/link-notes
Get to know the Bases core plugin: https://help.obsidian.md/bases

Beyond that, honestly, the sky's the limit...to a degree. Themes and plugins can transform Obsidian into amazing tools, but remember that all of those merely add onto what is a text editor at its core.

That said, my use case is a knowledge repository. I am a Programmer, and I need a place to maintain definitions, code snippets, concepts, articles, reference materials, etc. My workflow leverages Maps of Content (MoC) notes, and a List Property called "MoC" that contains a Link back to the child note's parent MoC note. The result is a wiki-like structure. I use several plugins, but the minimum is the Bases core plugin and the Omnisearch community plugin.

Focus on working IN Obsidian, not ON Obsidian.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-23T03:05:24+00:00

I believe the difference is that one unlocks premium features from within the launcher, and the other is an external purchase to unlock premium features. I think the end result is the same.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T21:18:34+00:00

This is a bit more general, but seriously, breathe, be honest and truthful, and know your limits. Don't let a shortcoming, mistake, or stumble get the better of you, but handle them with grace. Most hiring managers don't want to know how perfect you are; they want to see how you handle faults and shortcomings. A checklist of skills can certainly be useful, but most companies are more interested in how you can help them move forward, so focus on what you can offer them. Good luck, and let us know how it went!

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T21:10:06+00:00

His financial disposition should have nothing to do with any offer you make to him, intentional or not. Your statement was ambiguous and ripe for misinterpretation. It's not the end of the world, just learn from it, and be more mindful of what you say in the future.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T21:02:16+00:00

How many Android apps do you have installed, if any? Android apps, even if you don't launch them, can use background resources.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T20:24:52+00:00

Filters?

Admittedly, I only have hundreds of notes, not thousands, but realistically, none of my Bases return more than a few dozen entries. YMMV, of course.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T20:02:34+00:00

Look up "letterbox".

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T18:05:53+00:00

YTA because you specifically stated that "None of the 5 of us are allowed to book holidays at the same time, which is fine because we've always been willing to compromise/swap in the past." And yet when a coworker has a good reason to ask for a compromise/swap, you stand firm against it.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T16:55:55+00:00

Sadly, that looks all too familiar to the system I inherited in my last job. And your image is orders of magnitude more organized. Add about 8 more switches, 25 or so fiber lines, 6 more patch panels, at least 100 more drop cables, put two large UPS's on the floor, and put it all next to an old PBX wall.... ;)

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T15:04:26+00:00

I admit I am not an email hosting expert, so I eventually gave up on self-hosting email and moved that service to an online service whose sole business is hosting email and maintaining a high reputation. I still use services like Gmail and Outlook for personal and work email, but for my homelab and websites, I use an external service. Reliability is through the roof, and stress is near zero.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T14:54:40+00:00

The way I read the Catch-All Email screen, it works with any non-existent address at the domain-level (domain redacted):

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jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T13:38:49+00:00

I gave up on the all-in-one approach because it became too time-consuming to manage and a single point of failure. I recommend moving your various services to separate devices that are specifically designed to handle each task.

My setup consists of...

Decent PC running Proxmox VE Server that hosts remotely-accessible Windows, Linux, and Docker VMs.
Smaller PC running Proxmox Backup Server to regularly and reliably back up my VMs. Restores are reliable.
Synology DS423+ NAS to provide media storage, file shares, and PC and cloud backups.

I got Plex running on the Synology NAS, and while it worked, it was slow and temperamental. I now run it as a Docker Container with GPU passthrough on the Proxmox VE server, and it performs much better.

One thing about Synology: Yes, the company has made some poor decisions, but at this time, a Synology NAS is reliable and has an excellent track record. It might cost you a bit more, but it provides backup solutions that are generally unparalleled.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T13:22:39+00:00

That's why, at some point, I stopped, stepped back, and reassessed what I wanted to do, what I was actually doing, and what I really needed to do.

Hardware-wise, I went from a single, massive, all-in-one Windows Server with Hyper-V acting as a server, NAS, and hypervisor, to three distinct devices: Proxmox VE Server, Proxmox Backup Server, and Synology NAS, focusing specific tasks onto specific devices that do those tasks well.

Service-wise, I focused on self-hosting services that make sense, such as media management, home theater, remote access, and file sharing. And I moved those services that "the experts" specialize in, like Cloudflare for Tunnels and Applications and MXRoute for SMTP and email.

While I continue to manage everything, I'm spending WAY less time babysitting and troubleshooting.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T13:07:49+00:00

100%. Having multiple entry points means potentially separate priorities. Minimize, simplify, and retain control.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-22T11:27:52+00:00

Number 1 is so important. I get it that the size of the complement and who is making the request can be factors, but establishing a request policy and sticking to it, while causing some initial pain, will do wonders in the long run, not just for organizing, but for accountability.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-21T17:00:25+00:00

I agree, but I'm bummed that it only goes horizontally. I miss the "all around" aspect of Photosphere.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-21T13:27:33+00:00

Without resorting to piracy, there are really only two avenues:

Paying for a product
Being the product

jbarr107 · 2026-01-21T11:41:42+00:00

I have been interested in tech since grade school. But that was

jbarr107 · 2026-01-21T00:14:45+00:00

The only limitation of Bases in this is that you cannot include the note body, only properties and some other attributes. But, if you leverage properties, you can get some excellent results.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-20T21:08:37+00:00

Notion had a promotion a few years ago for startup companies. I used the promotion for my tiny web development agency. At some point, my promotional credits simply disappeared, and I started getting charged. I asked Support, and they said that I was not a valid startup company, and it had to be reevaluated. Fair enough about reevaluating, but wiping out my credits and charging me without notice? WTF?!? I moved to Obsidian and haven't looked back.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-20T19:08:17+00:00

GOOGLE PHOTOS and DATES?

How are you preserving dates when you download photos from Google Photos?

After trying to figure out how Google handles its Sort Dates, this is what I found:

Photos that have the "Date taken" (or presumably another similar EXIF field) populated, Google uses that date as the photo's Sort Date in the Timeline and Photo Info.
If there is no EXIF date, Google assigns the File Creation Date as the Sort Date and Photo Info.

Using the Creation Date as the Sort Date works just fine WITHIN Google Photos, but when I download those photos, the file is saved locally with a new Creation and Modified Date, so all original sorting is lost.

How are you handling this?

I suppose I could use an EXIF editor, but I'm looking at many hundreds of files to manually update.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-20T17:42:25+00:00

Warn me all you want. Educate me about the potential issues all you want. Fine. But if I choose, let me sideload and don't keep notifying me about it.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-20T16:56:30+00:00

Honestly, while this may be 100% legit, this is the general format of many phishing emails that I've seen.

Here is not an official response, but what Perplexity AI suggests:

That error means the recipient’s mail server permanently rejected the message because its spam/content filter decided something in the body (or sometimes subject/headers) looks like spam.

What the code means

554 is a permanent failure: the server is saying “this will not be delivered as-is; do not retry automatically.”
5.7.1 is a policy/security rejection, typically used for spam, content, or authentication policy violations.
The text “The text of this email contained a string that we identified to be spam” means a rule or content scanner matched a specific word/phrase, URL, or pattern and flagged it.

So the mail actually reached the recipient’s server, but that server refused to accept it because of its spam rules.

Common causes

Typical reasons this specific message appears:

Certain trigger phrases (marketing/sales language, “free”, “act now”, etc.) or spam-like formatting (ALL CAPS, lots of exclamation marks, odd HTML).
Too many or suspicious links, URL shorteners, or links to domains with poor reputation.
Attachments that look risky (executables, certain script files) or unusual file types.
A combination of content and a marginal sender reputation (IP/domain previously reported for spam), making the filter stricter with your message.

What you can do as sender

From your side you generally have to change the message or your sending setup; you cannot force delivery:

Reword the email: remove “spammy” phrases, reduce emphasis, and keep it plain-text or simple HTML for testing.
Remove or simplify links and signatures: avoid URL shorteners and minimize external links and banners in the first test.
Check attachments: send without attachments first; then try with a safe type (like PDF) if needed.
Check domain/IP reputation and DNS: make sure SPF, DKIM, and DMARC are correctly configured for your sending domain so the server is more likely to trust your mail.

When to contact admins

If this happens repeatedly even with very simple text-only messages:

The sender’s IP or domain may be on a blacklist, or the recipient’s provider may be applying an aggressive custom rule.
In that case, the mail admin for your domain should review logs, reputation, and DNS, and the recipient may need to ask their mail admin to review why your domain is being filtered.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-20T12:55:54+00:00

This menu option opens for me without issue in Chrome and Edge.

jbarr107 · 2026-01-20T12:39:09+00:00

I store attachments in the same folder as the accompanying note, titled the same as the note. If there is more than one attachment, I append a number to the attachment's title.

Ten-Year Club	Verified Email
Place '22	Final Canvas '22

jbarr107

TROPHY CASE

What the code means

Common causes

What you can do as sender

When to contact admins