June 2025 - Talk - lists.gtalug.org

Dollar store computer audio system...
by Colin McGregor 21 Aug '25

21 Aug '25

A feature of the original Raspberry Pi from the original on up to the Raspberry Pi 4 was a 3.5 mm audio jack for sound output. I am told by audiophiles that the Pi audio out ... wasn't very good, but to me it sounded fine. With the Raspberry Pi 5 that audio jack was dropped. The loss of that audio jack isn't an issue if you're connecting to a TV via HDMI (use the TV audio), or if you don't need audio, or you use a Bluetooth speaker. But what if you want things more-or-less the way they were before? A visit to Dollarama might be your answer. At Dollarama I ran across a USB-C to audio cable for use with the likes of mobile phones for a little less than $5. Of course the Raspberry Pi 5 uses USB A for its' USB input/output connectors, but again for a little less than $5 you can get a Dollarama USB A to USB C adapter. Connect the above together and the Raspberry PI will see this as an audio device and be able to pass audio out. Less than $10 (before tax) and you can be back almost to the way things were before (okay granted this way you are down one USB port :-( , still that isn't too bad in most situations). Going beyond the above, Dollarama does sell an audio speaker (available in white red or black) about the size of a beverage can with a 3.5 mm input jack for $5 (plus HST) that can (in my case) run off an old phone charger (I didn't try the Dollarama phone charger, but that could be an option). Add in a Dollarama audio cable and you are good. Now, I am not enough of an audiophile to be able to tell if all of the above is good, but it does sound fine to me. I thought that getting a complete, if VERY modest, computer audio system at a dollar store is a bit wild and worth sharing.

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Revisit Debian? Stick with Tuxedo? Or look at Clear?
by Evan Leibovitch 21 Jul '25

21 Jul '25

Hi all. As some might have read in a previous thread, my daily driver PC has gone flaky and it's in the shop. When it comes back I will need to reinstall an OS as I wiped the drive before sending it in (and I had decent backups). I may also find myself with a new system to be used for AI and video content development. Now that I'm reinstalling, I'm wondering if this is a time to re-evaluate what distro to use. I'm not a frequent distro-hopper but I'm not scared of it. In the last five years I've gone from Kubuntu to KDE Neon to TuxedoOS. So yes, the replacement needs to be KDE and I'm far more familiar with Debian/Ubuntu package management than Fedora/CentOS's. And I would prefer to have one that I can stick with for many years. I continue to hear people say great things about Debian+KDE, but my experiences with it were not good the last time I tried it a few years back. Too much hardware was unsupported, too many tweaks and workarounds just to get it to work. Is it worth a revisit? Which version? Should I stick with Ubuntu-based TuxedoOS? Or consider something wholly new like Clear Linix? The hardware to be used: - One system: High-end (strix halo) Ryzen CPU/NPU/GPU, Linux only - Another system: mid-range AMD CPU and RTX 3060 GPU, dual-boot - Realtek 8125B 2.5Gb Ethernet in both Notable software to be run: - OBS - Kdenlive - Handbrake - Firefox - Davinci Resolve (maybe) - Blender (maybe) - LMStudio - Ollama - CUDA on the Nvidia system, ROCm on the AMD one I don't want: - snapd (flatpacks are OK, I guess, for non-system stuff) - X11 (want Wayland as the default) - non-optimal drivers for any hardware (closed-source drivers are sad but OK) - old releases. I'm OK with a reasonable update frequency so long as it's not too bleeding edge. Advice appreciated. I'm especially curious to hear from anyone who has tried Clear Linux; it's supposed to be tuned for Intel, but both my CPUs are AMDs. Thanks! -- Evan Leibovitch, Toronto Canada @evanleibovitch / @el56

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HDMI question?
by Karen Lewellen 10 Jul '25

10 Jul '25

I cannot imagine others have not addressed this..even if a while back. The new cable service winner is actually..Rogers. Because I get a 30% discount, with blending Internet with cable quite a deal. The Internet service, so far, is frankly stunning, and I am at the low end of the scale. However, there is a cable problem..their set top box uses HDMI..and nothing else. There are a couple of solutions, the tech is seeking an adapter, with my concern being that search must go through hands. One solution is tied to a digital splitter I use. red/white/yellow. Is there an HDMI adapter of this kind? The other involves the, miss spelling coming composite cable connection on my television..the same kind Rogers uses for their cable modems. so, an HDMI adapter to this port works as well, I can run audio from my set into the above referenced splitter, or if there is a USB to RCA adapter, manage the same. Thoughts that does not involve my changing TV equipment? I have other media production tools tied to this setup. With appreciation, Karen

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speaking of doctors, how about electronic repair ones?
by Karen Lewellen 02 Jul '25

02 Jul '25

as in things like DVD or cd players, coffeemakers those sorts of electronics? In the case of the DVD player it is a better quality Panasonic model, so I may ask them about out of warranty work. Other ideas? Thanks, Karen

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pretty cheap decent mini-PC
by D. Hugh Redelmeier 30 Jun '25

30 Jun '25

<https://forums.redflagdeals.com/amazon-ca-oasloa-mini-pc-ryzen-ryzen-5-7430…> $269.00 (the best part) 16G or RAM: a comfortable amount; I think that it can be upgraded 512G SSD: also comfortable (unknown band) Ryzen 5 7430u: OK laptop processor, but a re-brand of an older one so it doesn't have a more recent iGPU model. See the Red Flag Deals discussion.

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Is anyone interested in SteamOS?
by Evan Leibovitch 23 Jun '25

23 Jun '25

I toss this out as a possible topic for a future GTALUG meeting, as well as hearing opinions about it here in the list. This is a full-blown Linux distribution that has both a desktop mode and a gaming mode. The gaming mode makes a PC look just like a Steam Deck, The desktop mode seems to look like a conventional... PC desktop. Third party apps are all installed by flatpack from the looks of the video reviews. Until recently, steamOS was simply an operating system for Valve's own hardware, but they've now made of it available generically for PCs. To listen to some of the reviews I've seen on YouTube, SteamOS0 for PCs may be the best shot that desktop Linux has had taking on Microsoft in a long long time. While most people here who are comfortable with their Ubuntus and their Fedoras (not to mention the weird amongst you with your Archs) will probably find this too simple. I think the very point of this distribution being simple and somewhat more idiot proof may actually help it better in the mainstream. Possibly in the same way it took Google to make Linux useful on a mobile phone with Android, maybe it takes a company like steam to make a version of Linux that casual users will be comfortable with. I can't say for sure, but I would be very interested in knowing more about it. Would anyone else be interested in this topic? And would anybody be interested in downloading steamos trying it on a PC and reporting on their experiences at one of our meetings? Or is this all just a bunch of overhyped nonsense? Evan Leibovitch, Toronto Canada @evanleibovitch / @el56

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Samsung mobile phone A vs S series
by William Park 21 Jun '25

21 Jun '25

Anyone here with Samsung Axx phones? How would you compare it against Sxx quality? I know Axx is for budget and Sxx is for premium flagship. I want this purchase to be my last. So, I'm weighing - new Axx models (A16, A36) - used Sxx models (S21+) (S20 is 4G).

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are we about to lose another provoder?
by Karen Lewellen 21 Jun '25

21 Jun '25

Hi all, For whatever reason I cannot find the solid details. on 31 July though, everyone? will lose access to the 3d network? Or is it just that Chattr wireless will go away? I am a prepaid customer with them, but just before I joined they went non-human. Anyone know the story? Cheers, Karen

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Looking for a PC doctor/exorcist
by Evan Leibovitch 20 Jun '25

20 Jun '25

Unexpectedly and suddenly, my not-so-old daily driver PC has just given up. It boots but either freezes or reboots after between one and three minutes of activity. This happens under Windows and Linux, whether booting from the internal (M.2) disk or USB drive. I have: - wiped the OS from the internal disk and tried to reinstall - updated the BIOS to the latest version (Gigabyte motherboard, Ryzen CPU) - Booted safe mode under both Windows and Linux (tuxedoOS) - removed all peripherals (using the mobo onboard video) - checked that the CPU temperature is under 40C idle, at one point opening the case and pointing a floor fan at it. - swapped mouse and keyboard - run memtest, zero errors None of this has helped. Any suggestions? The culprits appear to be down to CPU, motherboard and power supply. I would really prefer not to have to replace all three. Sent from my laptop... any help, or suggestions of where to take this thing, are appreciated. -- Evan Leibovitch, Toronto Canada @evanleibovitch / @el56

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Hacklab Junk Independence Day, Sunday July 20th
by Scott Sullivan 20 Jun '25

20 Jun '25

Folks, I'm happy to relay that Hacklab is haveing another Junk Independence Day! Sunday July 20th 2025, 12PM-6PM @ Hacklab.to - 1677 St. Clair Ave. W Get rid of things. Get more things? JID is your opportunity to clear out those electronics taking up dust, or pick up some parts for that project you've got going. Items left at the end of the day will be responsibly donated/recycled. https://hacklab.to/archives/junk-independence-day-8/ -- Scott Sullivan

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