Latest Comments by Philadelphus
Here's how to transfer files from your PC to a Steam Deck
27 March 2022 at 6:42 am UTC

Quoting: ShabbyX
Quoting: PhiladelphusJust tried Warpinator for the first time yesterday for my use case of, every so many weeks, getting the photos I've taken off my phone and onto my computer, and it worked great. (Much better than connecting via cable, which always seems to randomly unmount if I so much as bump my phone once it's connected.) Thanks for making me aware of it!

Does your cable not get plugged in all the way? You might have gunk in the usb port (of the phone). I used a tooth pick sliced in half to be super thin, then scraped all the gunk out.
I've got one of these magnetic cable tips in my phone, and while the cables can handle data transfer it's a little flaky. (It's actually probably kept my USB-C port cleaner than it would be normally.) But thanks. I did have to clean out another port (on I forget what) some time ago.

Here's how to transfer files from your PC to a Steam Deck
26 March 2022 at 9:40 pm UTC

Just tried Warpinator for the first time yesterday for my use case of, every so many weeks, getting the photos I've taken off my phone and onto my computer, and it worked great. (Much better than connecting via cable, which always seems to randomly unmount if I so much as bump my phone once it's connected.) Thanks for making me aware of it!

Steam Deck Client update brings more improvements, see more of our videos
22 March 2022 at 6:13 pm UTC Likes: 1

What's Steam Deck Rewards? Haven't heard that term before.

Please Fix The Road is a gorgeous upcoming puzzle game
22 March 2022 at 3:11 am UTC Likes: 1

Quoting: Purple Library GuyBeats the alternative. I always have the feeling that you can tell when society is starting to collapse--it's when the maintenance isn't being done any more.
Oh, for sure. I like to gripe, but it certainly needed it, and I've driven over some of the newly-paved sections and they're pretty nice.

Please Fix The Road is a gorgeous upcoming puzzle game
21 March 2022 at 7:01 pm UTC Likes: 3

Yeah, they've been tearing up a street that runs maybe ~75 meters from my house for months now, often working late into the night. Nothing like the sound of heavy equipment wafting in through the window as I'm lying in bed trying to sleep. Please Fix The Road succinctly expresses my feelings on the matter.

Boatswain is a new Stream Deck compatible app for Linux
20 March 2022 at 3:03 am UTC Likes: 1

Quoting: scaine
Quoting: PhiladelphusFollow-up article about your personal experience trying out Boatswain, or maybe a comparison between the two?

That's a great idea. I feel like it might be a little unfair, given that Boatswain is only three weeks old (not even a teenager!) and I'll be testing on Plasma, not Gnome, but in terms of how fiddly it is to get streamdeck-ui working, it would make for a nice short comparison.

I'll keep the idea in mind!
Sure, doesn't have to be right away. Could give Boatswain a little time to mature.

Boatswain is a new Stream Deck compatible app for Linux
19 March 2022 at 7:25 pm UTC

Quoting: scaineI've got a little 15-button Stream Deck and streamdeck-ui works really well, but it's a bit of a faff to get it all working. You have to install it through "python pip" which is fine, but then it installs into ~/.local/bin so you have to add that as a path by editing your .profile, or .bash_profile. Then you have sudoedit a bunch of udev lines to /etc/udev/rules.d. Then you have to create an auto-start entry in whatever DE you use so that your deck launches its config when you start your PC up.

Which is all fine, honestly, given that you only do all that faff once. But I bet it puts people off, so I'm really glad there's a driving force for a better app. Especially the bit about how the author managed to get Boatswain to use SystemD to bypass the need for udev changes... and the fact it'll be a Flathub install.

The StreamDeck-UI app itself is reasonably solid, but its biggest failing is probably a lack of paging - which might be coming to Boatswain (the author talks about "folders"). I'll keep an eye out. I don't mind adding a bunch of gnome libraries for stuff like this, if it's slick.
Follow-up article about your personal experience trying out Boatswain, or maybe a comparison between the two? (I've become mildly interested in getting a Stream Deck recently, so I'd be very interested in hearing about how the experience is on Linux.)

Quoting: chr
Quoting: TheRiddick
Quoting: elmapulis there any advantage of using stream deck over, i dont know... a phone? it dont seem something hard to replicate

Well phones auto turn off screen, don't have button feedback.
There are convenient issues with touch screen method of doing things.

One could certainly MAKE their own device with buttons and a touch screen in background, but it comes down to if you feel its worth your time and if your tech savvy enough to get all the bits together, probably also need 3d printing done.

Android has the option to not turn off the screen as long as the device is hooked to a power source. I think you can also have it always vibrate on touches.

For me though, the question is what kind of (FLO) software is there for such things? Can you effortlessly and quickly make menus to run arbitrary commands? And how would those things even integrate?
One potential issue I'd have with using a phone (he said, hypothetically, not owning a Stream Deck) would be the lack of physical buttons, which would require to you look at your hands any time you wanted to do something. Now, if you're only using it occasionally to turn your lights on or off or something that's probably fine, but I've read a lot of people end up using their Stream Decks for productivity shortcuts in various programs (and that'd be more my use case), where having to glance down at your hand each time would probably not be very conducive to creative flow.

GOG update their stance on DRM-free, Galaxy as 'optional' for single-player
19 March 2022 at 7:15 pm UTC

Quoting: Mountain ManCompanies that lose sight of their original focus tend to not last long.
To be fair, sometimes it works. A quick search turns up examples of famous companies that completely changed their focus and were fine, or got vastly more popular and successful as a result. Suzuki, now known for their motorcycles, originally sold mechanical looms, Avon originally sold books, etc.. Of course, sometimes it also doesn't work out (and I'm sure more business-savvy people than I could do a decent job predicting whether it will or won't for a particular case), but it's a little more complicated than a blanket statement either way.

Home Wind is a free minimalist, relaxing and cozy city builder
19 March 2022 at 6:48 pm UTC

Wow, that really does looks a lot like Islanders in the mechanics, doesn't it?

Stellaris: Overlord expansion announced enabling you to expand your power
18 March 2022 at 6:34 am UTC

Hmm, it might just be a coincidence, but an overhaul of vassal mechanics around the time Dune came out? Wonder if we'll see any references…