<article>
<h2 id="introduction">Introduction</h2>
<p>Hosts:</p>
<ul>
<li><a
href="https://hackerpublicradio.org/correspondents/0201.html">MrX</a></li>
<li><a
href="https://hackerpublicradio.org/correspondents/0225.html">Dave
Morriss</a></li>
</ul>
<p>We recorded this on Saturday March 11<sup>th</sup> 2023. This time we
met in person, first at a pub called <em>The Steading</em> close to the
entrance to the <a
href="https://www.midlothian.gov.uk/info/200281/snowsports_centre"><em>Midlothian
Snowsports Centre</em></a> where we had something to eat and drink -
though they only serve breakfast items before 12 noon. Then we adjourned
to Dave’s Citroen car (<em>Studio C</em>) in the car park and recorded a
chat.</p>
<p>The last of these chats was over Mumble in September 2022, so it was
great to be away from home and to meet in person again after a long time
of COVID avoidance.</p>
<h2 id="topics-discussed">Topics discussed</h2>
<ul>
<li>Google Docs - Dave and MrX use this to build shared notes to help
organise these sessions
<ul>
<li>There are issues with cut and paste when using Firefox – it doesn’t
work!
<ul>
<li>It can be fixed by selecting <code>about:config</code> in a new
tab.</li>
<li>Change the attribute <code>dom.event.clipboardevents.enabled</code>
to <code>true</code>.</li>
</ul></li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Is email still relevant in 2023?
<ul>
<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Wave">Google Wave</a>
- Google’s possible email replacement seemed not to have lasted very
long</li>
<li>Alternative access to Gmail using the IMAP protocol</li>
<li>Folders versus labels. <a
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPhJbKBuNnA">Tom Scott’s video “I
tried using AI. It scared me.”</a></li>
<li>Dave’s experiences with email:
<ul>
<li><a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Equipment_Corporation">Digital
Equipment Corporation’s</a> Vax VMS used DECmail, which needed <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DECnet">DECNet</a> networking.</li>
<li>The UK Academic network (<a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JANET">JANET</a>) initially used its
own <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coloured_Book_protocols">Coloured
Book protocols</a>, including Grey Book mail. This ran over an X.25
network.</li>
<li>Gradual transition to TCP/IP and SMTP mail (over JANET Internet
Protocol Service, “JIPS”).</li>
<li>In early Unix days (Ultrix) there was <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MH_Message_Handling_System"><code>MH</code>
(Message Handler)</a></li>
<li>Later, this was replaced by <a
href="https://www.nongnu.org/nmh/"><code>nmh</code></a>.</li>
<li>A GUI interface was available called <code>xmh</code></li>
<li>A very flexible open-source front end called <code>exmh</code> was
crafted using Tcl/Tk</li>
<li>Using <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procmail"><code>procmail</code></a>
allowed an enormous number of capabilities, like sophisticated
filtering, spam detection and automatic replies.</li>
<li>Now using <a href="https://www.thunderbird.net/">Thunderbird</a>,
and has been for maybe 15 years.</li>
</ul></li>
<li>MrX used Eudora in the past, but mostly uses Outlook now.</li>
<li>Both agree that many useful features of email, available in the
past, have gone. Both of us still find email relevant however!</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Calendars:
<ul>
<li>MrX misses the calendar on the Psion Organiser</li>
<li>Dave used to use an X-Windows tool called <code>ical</code> on
Ultrix (no relation to the later <code>iCalendar</code> standard). Moved
to Thunderbird and its calendar called <code>Lightning</code>.</li>
<li>Both have used the Google Calendar, Dave uses a Thunderbird add-on
to share family calendars</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Lifetime of storage media:
<ul>
<li>SD cards can last a fairly long time, but getting the right type is
important. Using older-style cards in new projects might turn out to be
a false economy.</li>
<li>Hard disks can last a long time if the right sort is used. One thing
that shortens their life is getting them hot.</li>
<li>MrX has used Western Digital Passport hard drives for some time, and
they have been very reliable – none have failed.</li>
<li>There are different drives from Western Digital which have different
performances and they are colour coded. See the <a
href="https://www.westerndigital.com/en-gb/solutions/color-drives">Western
Digital</a> website for details.</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Complexity and single points of failure:
<ul>
<li>Chip shortages and lack of resilience:
<ul>
<li>Modern components that do a single job used to consist of multiple
discrete components that could be replaced individually. Now, if a
component fails it has to be replaced in its entirety, and because of
the shortage of chips it uses it may be unavailable.</li>
<li>Older devices and components may still use older less specialised
parts and so can be repaired.</li>
<li>Unnecessary reliance on GPS in devices, cloud services in <em>Smart
Home</em> equipment, etc.</li>
<li>For example, managing enormous warehouses requires a lot of services
that may not be too resilient, and could fail catastrophically.</li>
</ul></li>
<li><a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronal_mass_ejection">Coronal Mass
Ejection (CME)</a>:
<ul>
<li>Such an event could destroy many satellites (such as those providing
GPS). It could also cause a massive overload of the power grid.
Transformers used in the grid can be damaged or destroyed and <a
href="https://www.tdworld.com/substations/article/21258955/no-easy-answers-transformer-supply-crisis-deepens">replacing
them in a timely fashion can be difficult</a>.</li>
<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrington_Event">Carrington
event</a> in September 1859 telegraph machines reportedly shocked
operators and caused small fires.</li>
<li><a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_1989_geomagnetic_storm">March
1989 CME</a> caused a power outage in Quebec, Canada.</li>
<li>Recent YouTube video from Anton Petrov: <a
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJCytV7PUzk"><em>Wow! Sun Just
Produced a Carrington Like Event, But We Got Super Lucky</em></a></li>
</ul></li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Keeping systems up to date:
<ul>
<li>MrX has had problems getting various RPis updated and running.</li>
<li>Dave has had similar problems making the jump from Raspbian to
Raspberry Pi OS.</li>
<li>In some cases the operating system on the Pis have needed to be
completely reinstalled, and the work in installing and reconfiguring
software has proved to be too much!</li>
<li>MrX’s <a
href="https://www.piface.org.uk/products/piface_control_and_display/">PiFace
Control and Display board</a> is giving problems, as is the simpler <a
href="https://www.piface.org.uk/products/piface_digital/">PiFace
Digital</a>. It looks as if the company has gone out of business
unfortunately.</li>
<li>Dave has a <a
href="https://shop.pimoroni.com/products/pico-rgb-keypad-base">Pico RGB
Base from Pimoroni</a>, a 14-key board with RGB LEDs which could be used
as a way of controlling things.</li>
<li>Dave’s <a
href="https://hackerpublicradio.org/eps.php?id=3039"><em>Magic
Mirror</em></a> system (a Pi 3A+ attached to a monitor) failed because
the Pi needed to be upgraded and then the <code>Node.js</code> code
didn’t seem to be maintained any more! Needs work!!</li>
<li>MrX’s desktop PC is small and quiet, but since it’s in a cold room,
tends not to get used too much in the winter! Dave’s PC is in an
extension (addition) to the house and tends to get used quite a lot, but
in cold winter weather, less so.</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>YouTube list:
<ul>
<li>We were going to mention a few YouTube channels we’d watched lately,
but felt we’d already talked long enough!</li>
<li>Rather than just adding the list to the notes, as we discussed, we
will leave this section to the next time we make a recording such as
this.</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Completing HPR shows:
<ul>
<li>MrX has a show he has recorded but is held up preparing notes to go
with it.</li>
<li>Dave tends to write draft notes first, then build the recording
around them, but this approach isn’t necessarily faster!</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="links">Links</h2>
<ul>
<li>Google:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Wave">Google
Wave</a></li>
<li><a href="https://support.google.com/mail/answer/7126229">Accessing
Gmail with IMAP</a></li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Early mail tools:
<ul>
<li><a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MH_Message_Handling_System">MH
Message Handling System</a></li>
<li><a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MH_%26_xmh:_Email_for_Users_%26_Programmers"><em>MH
&amp; xmh: Email for Users &amp; Programmers</em>, Jerry Peek,
1996</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.nongnu.org/nmh/">nmh - Message Handling
System</a></li>
<li><a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procmail"><code>procmail</code> mail
filter</a></li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Solar storms / Coronal Mass Ejections:
<ul>
<li>Wikipedia article on <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronal_mass_ejection">Coronal Mass
Ejections (CME)</a>.</li>
<li>Wikipedia article on the <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrington_Event">Carrington
event</a> in September 1859.</li>
<li>Wikipedia article on the <a
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_1989_geomagnetic_storm">March
1989 CME</a>.</li>
<li><a href="">List of solar storms</a></li>
<li><a
href="https://www.tdworld.com/substations/article/21258955/no-easy-answers-transformer-supply-crisis-deepens">Transformer
shortage in the USA</a></li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
</article>
