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The Raymii.org RSS feed, all about GNU/Linux, programming and other topics that interest me.
Site URL: raymii.org/s/feed.xml
Feed URL: raymii.org/s/feed.xml
Posts: 525
Followers: 1
But can your calculator run Linux?
Published: August 1, 2026 20:08
One of my all time favorite calculators is the [HP 16C] (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HP-16C). It is an RPN calculator aimed at computer programmers with support for hex, binary, octal and decimal and all sorts of useful operations like bit shifting,…
More emulation goodness, an Intel Itanium (IA-64) emulator that boots Windows!
Published: July 18, 2026 23:33
The emulation space is going crazy, after my previous [post on Windows booting on DEC Alpha es40 emulator](/s/blog/Run_Windows_2000_for_Dec_Alpha_on_a_new_es40_fork.html), there is now another huge breakthrough in the emulation of other non-x86 CPU…
Run Windows 2000 on a DEC Alpha with a new es40 fork
Published: July 5, 2026 20:33
As you might know, I'm involved a bit in the [OpenVMS](/s/tags/openvms.html) community and the [Alpha emulation side via AXPBox](/s/blog/AXPBox-version-1.0.0-released.html). AXPBox ([github](https://github.com/lenticularis39/axpbox)) is a fork of the es40…
Put your SSH keys in your TPM chip!
Published: April 10, 2026 19:37
I've got a [long](/s/articles/Get_Started_With_The_Nitrokey_HSM.html) [history](/s/tags/hsm.html) [with](/s/tags/yubikey.html) [hardware security modules](/s/articles/Nitrokey_HSM_web_cluster.html), both professionally and for fun. For the longest time, my…
A way to run Ansible 2.19 on old operating systems like Ubuntu 18.04 with working Apt
Published: January 31, 2026 23:08
Ansible recently stopped working on one of my older servers. The playbooks wouldn't execute anymore, with a cryptic python error. With Ansible 2.14 this server worked, after upgrading to 2.19 the playbooks failed. It turned out that the Python version on…
Finally, run Docker containers natively in Proxmox 9.1 (OCI images)
Published: November 20, 2025 22:34
Proxmox VE is a virtualization platform, like VMWare, but open source, based on Debian. It can run KVM virtual machines and Linux Containers (LXC). I've been using it for over 10 years, the [first article I wrote mentioning it was in…
Bringing a Decade Old Bicycle Navigator Back to Life with Open Source Software (and DOOM)
Published: July 25, 2025 23:37
I recently found a Navman Bike 1000 in a thrift store for EUR 10. This is a bike computer, a navigation device for cyclists, made by MiTaC, the same company that makes the Mio bike computers. This Navman Bike 1000 is a rebadged `Mio Cyclo 200`. It's from…
High Available Mosquitto MQTT on Kubernetes
Published: May 14, 2025 22:11
In this post, we'll walk through a fully declarative, Kubernetes-native setup for running a highly available MQTT broker using Eclipse Mosquitto. This configuration leverages core Kubernetes primitives (`Deployments`, `Services`, `ConfigMaps`, and `RBAC`),…
Leaf Node Monitoring v2025.01 released with Import/Export and Connectivity Check
Published: April 19, 2025 19:04
I'm pleased to announce the next version of Leaf Node Monitoring, the simple and easy to use open source site and server monitoring tool. This update adds two features users have requested, plus a couple of small but useful fixes. This post goes over…
Fast MQTT logger (to syslog)
Published: March 25, 2025 21:33
For almost 5 years I've been using the `mqtt-data-logger` [python script](https://github.com/RaymiiOrg/mqtt-data-logger) to log all MQTT communication. This script works, but is a bit limited in how it stores logs (files per time it's started) and it often…
After 47 years, OpenVMS gets a package manager (VSP)!
Published: March 17, 2025 20:33
As of the 18th of February, OpenVMS, known for its stability and high-availability, 47 years old and ported to 4 different CPU architecture, has a package manager! This article shows you how to use the package manager and talks about a few of its quirks.…
Safely expose the Kubernetes Dashboard in Traefik k3s via a ServersTransport
Published: March 11, 2025 22:11
I'm using the Headlamp dashboard for my [high-available local kubernetes cluster](/s/tutorials/High_Available_k3s_kubernetes_cluster_with_keepalived_galera_and_longhorn.html) because I find that to be faster, more clear and useful than the full blown…
My First PCB: Relay AND gate
Published: January 20, 2025 03:59
This is the result of my first attempt at learning KiCad during the Christmas break. I love the sound of a relay, so trying out [these relay logic gates](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nXc439NTYk) from the Usagi video and the information [here on the…
My go-to C++ code for asynchronous work processing on a separate thread
Published: December 17, 2024 23:59
You probably recognise this situation. You're working on your code and realise that the thing you're writing might take long, be blocking or is batch-wise. It might be resizing images, calling some API or processing hardware inputs or a stream of incoming…
The Adventure of the Missing Syscall: Error 38
Published: October 24, 2024 21:33
Sherlock Holmes tackles a modern computing dilemma involving a missing system call. In this case, a frustrated developer attempts to port an embedded device running Yocto to a newer version, only to be met with `Error 38` due to a missing syscall. Holmes…
Logging all C++ destructors, poor mans run-time tracing
Published: September 21, 2024 23:59
I recently faced a challenging issue with an application that wasn't shutting down correctly, either segfaulting or terminating without an active exception. Running the program via `valgrind` to check for memory leaks wasn't possible because the program…
Compiling TETRIS from 1992 on OpenVMS x86 in 2024!
Published: August 18, 2024 14:33
Since [DECWindows / CDE](/s/blog/OpenVMS_x86_E9.2-3_fixes_CDE_and_adds_Guest_Console.html) now works on OpenVMS x86 (from 9.2-3 onwards) there is much fun stuff to do. Back in 2021 I wrote an article on the [CDE desktop on Alpha /…
OpenVMS x86 E9.2-3 fixes CDE (DECWindows) and adds a Guest Console (no serial port required anymore)
Published: August 14, 2024 23:58
I'm a big fan of OpenVMS. You can [read all my OpenVMS articles here](/s/tags/openvms.html). Since the [licensing changes](https://web.archive.org/web/20240814192656/https://vmssoftware.com/about/news/2024-03-25-community-license-update/) to the Hobbyist…
Create Kubernetes user restricted to one namespace with resource limits
Published: July 29, 2024 04:39
This guide shows you how to use Role-based access control (RBAC) to create a user account that only has rights for one specific namespace. I'll also show you how to limit the resource usage of that `Namespace`. Last but not least, I'll also show you how…
nameConstraints on your Self Signed Root CA in Kubernetes with cert-manager
Published: July 17, 2024 23:22
If you have [set up a Self Signed Root CA](/s/tutorials/Self_signed_Root_CA_in_Kubernetes_with_k3s_cert-manager_and_traefik.html) for your local Kubernetes Cluster and have trusted the Root Certificate, you are at risk if the key is compromised. If the key…
Self-signed Root CA in Kubernetes with k3s, cert-manager and traefik. Bonus howto on regular certificates
Published: July 17, 2024 04:22
Now that I'm learning Kubernetes for a few weeks, I'm finally at the point where I was 20 years ago with regular boring old tech, being able to [host multiple domains](/s/tutorials/Kubernetes_k3s_Ingress_for_different_domains_like_virtual_hosts.html),…
OpenSSL get entire certificate chain from a domain or loop over entire chain in file
Published: July 16, 2024 18:30
The `openssl x509` command can be used to get information from a certificate. If you supply a filename, the command will only use the topmost certificate in the file, not all certificates in the file, like in the case of a certificate chain. The `openssl…
Password protect web services in Kubernetes (k3s/traefik) with basic auth
Published: July 15, 2024 20:11
Now that I have a [high-available local kubernetes cluster](/s/tutorials/High_Available_k3s_kubernetes_cluster_with_keepalived_galera_and_longhorn.html) and am [experimenting with deploying…
Leaf Node Monitoring v2024.02 released, autostart, ssl certificate expiry and minimize to tray
Published: July 12, 2024 22:30
I'm pleased to announce the next version of Leaf Node Monitoring, the simple and easy to use open source site and server monitoring tool. Major new features include minimizing to the tray, automatic startup on Windows and Linux and a new check, SSL…
Using nodeSelector to deploy a Kubernetes Helm chart only on x86/amd64 nodes, not arm64
Published: July 11, 2024 23:39
My [k3s cluster](/s/tutorials/My_First_Kubernetes_k3s_cluster_on_3_Orange_Pi_Zero_3s_including_k8s_dashboard_hello-node_and_failover.html) runs on Orange Pi Zero 3 small board computers, with a 1.5 GHz Allwinner H618 Quad-Core Cortex-A53 ARM64 CPU.…
Kubernetes (k3s) Ingress for different domains (virtual hosts)
Published: July 10, 2024 20:39
Now that I have a [high-available local kubernetes cluster](/s/tutorials/High_Available_k3s_kubernetes_cluster_with_keepalived_galera_and_longhorn.html) it's time to learn not just managing the cluster but actually deploying some services on there. Most…
High Available k3s kubernetes cluster with keepalived, galera and longhorn
Published: July 9, 2024 22:30
After my [first adventure with Kubernetes](/s/tutorials/My_First_Kubernetes_k3s_cluster_on_3_Orange_Pi_Zero_3s_including_k8s_dashboard_hello-node_and_failover.html), getting started with k3s on my small 3 node ARM cluster that [boots via PXE /…
My First Kubernetes: k3s 'cluster' on 3 Orange Pi Zero 3's, including the dashboard, hello-node and failover
Published: June 28, 2024 22:30
I've been working as an embedded C++ developer for over 5 years now so my sysadmin / devops skills are becoming a bit rusty. The odd bit of Ansible here and there but no new stuff. I figured it was time to expore Kubernetes, as it is what all the cool kids…
Netboot (PXE) Armbian on an Orange Pi Zero 3 from SPI with NFS root filesystem
Published: June 25, 2024 22:30
Because I wanted to experiment with Kubernetes I bought a few cheap SBC's and a Power over Ethernet switch to run `k3s`. Since Kubernetes is very resource intensive I wanted to try to boot the boards via the network without causing wear on the Micro SD…
Leaf Node Monitoring v2024.01 released, better notifications and history
Published: June 15, 2024 22:30
I'm pleased to announce the next version of Leaf Node Monitoring, the simple and easy to use open source site and server monitoring tool. Major new features include better alerting and history of events. This post goes over everything that is new in this…
Using a 1965 Dutch Rotary Phone via VoIP (T65) in 2024
Published: June 14, 2024 04:00
Recently I was gifted a T65 rotary telephone. This was **the** standard telephone in The Netherlands in the seventies and eighties. I remember my parents having one as well. Because this phone does not use DTMF but pulse dialing it does not work with…
Qt Property Macro (Q_PROPERTY with 95% less code)
Published: May 29, 2024 22:00
Adding [properties to QObject based classes](https://web.archive.org/web/20240529180113/https://doc.qt.io/qt-6/properties.html) is cumbersome. Although [the property system](https://web.archive.org/web/20240529180113/https://doc.qt.io/qt-6/properties.html)…
Qt 5.15 LTS on Windows without a Qt Account
Published: May 19, 2024 00:00
I recently had to setup a Windows development environment with Qt 5.15. Qt 5.15 is still developed by the Qt company, but only released in binary form for paying customers. The [source code is released after 1…
Fixing the hiss on my Atgames Legends Pinball Micro including root access
Published: January 23, 2024 22:00
The [Atgames Legends Pinball Micro](https://web.archive.org/web/20240123213954/https://www.atgames.us/products/legends-pinball-micro) is a small virtual pinball cabinet for around USD 350. I imported one to the Netherlands, Atgames does not ship here. The…
Which Root Certificates should you trust? Find out with CertInfo
Published: January 1, 2024 09:00
Which Root Certificates should you trust? Did you know that any certificate authority can issue a certificate for any website? There are protocols in place so that should not happen, but when (not if, when) they get hacked or coerced by their government,…
YouLessQt, helps you align the YouLess to an analog electricity meter
https://raymii.org/s/software/YouLessQt.html?utm_medium=rss&utm_source=raymii&utm_campaign=mainfeed
Published: September 16, 2023 09:00
The [YouLess](https://youless.nl/home.html) is a device that can help you monitor energy usage. It works on so called smart meters using a P1 port, it can monitor solar panels but it also works with regular old analog meters. I have an old style analog…
A docker image for Qt 5.15 LTS for Android, including OpenSSL and the KDE patch collection
Published: September 13, 2023 22:00
Recently I got an email from Google regarding the API level of [Leaf Node Monitoring](https://leafnode.nl), my open source monitoring app for Windows, Linux and Android. The Play Store version must be updated to target API level 33. For Windows and Linux…
Drawing a Circle in Qt QML three different ways
Published: July 5, 2023 23:59
Qt has no `Circle` built in to QML as a basic type, as for example the `Rectangle` or the `Button` control. This post shows you how to get a `Circle` in QML, from the most basic method (a `Rectangle` with a `radius` of 180) to more advanced methods, using…
Site update, self-hosted search via pagefind
Published: July 1, 2023 21:32
This is a static site, meaning that no server-side processing occurs. All HTML is generated out of a few folders full of markdown source and then uploaded to the cluster. Searching on this site was always provided by a text-box form that sent you to google…
My 24 year old HP Jornada can do things your modern iPhone still can't do!
Published: June 15, 2023 01:30
I like to tinker with old hardware. The [DEC](https://raymii.org/s/tags/dec.html) PDP-8 is my favorite [retro computer](/s/tags/pdp-8.html) and [Office 2003](/s/blog/Using_a_Windows_Mobile_2003_PDA_hp_ipaq_in_2022_including_whatsapp.html) is the best…
Bare Metal Vi, boot into Vi without an OS!
Published: April 22, 2023 22:30
This guide shows you how to run `Vi` without an operating system, bare metal. This is a follow up on my article from 2014 where I made a custom linux distro that would [Boot to Vim, VIM as PID 1](https://raymii.org/s/blog/Vim_as_PID_1_Boot_to_Vim.html).…
OpenVMS 9.2 for x86, Installing HAProxy and troubleshooting UNIX file paths
Published: April 19, 2023 22:30
This article shows you how to install HAProxy on OpenVMS 9.2 for x86. I've often used HAProxy in my career as a sysadmin and find it a very useful tool. HAProxy is an open source, fast, reliable load balancer for TCP and HTTP-based applications. This guide…
OpenVMS 9.2 for x86, Getting Started part 3, the WebUI
Published: April 16, 2023 22:30
OpenVMS on x86 is now available for hobbyists! Almost a year after [the official release](/s/blog/OpenVMS_9.2_for_x86_will_be_released_tomorrow.html). This is a part 3 of my getting started guide. Part 2 ended with a working network setup and SSH access.…
OpenVMS 9.2 for x86, Getting Started part 2, auto boot, licenses, PAKs, networking and SSH
Published: April 15, 2023 22:30
OpenVMS on x86 is now available for hobbyists! Almost a year after [the official release](/s/blog/OpenVMS_9.2_for_x86_will_be_released_tomorrow.html). This is a part 2 of my getting started guide. [Part…
OpenVMS 9.2 for x86, Getting Started part 1, install guide with VirtualBox
Published: April 11, 2023 22:30
OpenVMS on x86 is now available for hobbyists! Almost a year after [the official release](/s/blog/OpenVMS_9.2_for_x86_will_be_released_tomorrow.html). This is a part 1 of my getting started guide, showing you how to install OpenVMS on VirtualBox on Windows…
OpenVMS 9.2 for x86 is finally available for hobbyists!
Published: April 9, 2023 23:59
OpenVMS x86 is now available for (most) hobbyists! Almost a year after [the official release](/s/blog/OpenVMS_9.2_for_x86_will_be_released_tomorrow.html) most hobbyists can now login to the [Service Portal](https://sp.vmssoftware.com) to download their…
Site update, cookie consent popup (for a static site)
Published: March 22, 2023 00:00
A small site update this time, just to let you know that I've added a cookie consent popup to this static site. If you reject all cookies, you should not see any advertisements and aren't tracked by Google Analytics. It's open source, cookieconsent by…
Named Booleans prevent C++ bugs and save you time
Published: February 17, 2023 20:21
During a recent code review I found a hard to spot bug, a misplaced parenthesis in an `if` statement. I often employ a technique I call `named booleans`, which would have prevented this bug. It's a simple technique, instead of a long `if` statement, give…
Johnnie 'QObject' Walker, replace a service locator pattern while you're at it
Published: January 14, 2023 04:30
I've seen many C++ code bases where there was the concept of a service locator. An global static object that anyone can query to get a class. This is handy with old legacy spiderweb intertwined code that gets everything from everywhere, but not so useful…
APT keeps complaining that the HTTPS certificate cannot be validated?
Published: January 11, 2023 05:31
Recently a few of my Ubuntu 20.04 and Debian 11 servers failed to run an `apt update` because it insisted that the HTTPS certificate for a repository could not be validated, while `curl` on the same system had no issues connecting. Join me on a deep dive…
Leaf Node Monitoring v2023.01 released, major performance improvements, new layout and new checks!
Published: January 5, 2023 00:00
I'm pleased to announce the next version of Leaf Node Monitoring, the simple and easy to use open source site and server monitoring tool. Major new features include a responsive and adjustable layout, massive performance improvements and a new check type,…
Add moc includes to speed up Qt compilation
Published: December 12, 2022 00:00
The Meta-Object Compiler, `moc`, handles Qt's C++ extensions and it is required for signals and slots and properties in Qt. `moc` reads C++ header files and if the `Q_OBJECT` macro is used, it generates an extra `.cpp` file named `moc_filename.cpp`…
Spinrite 6.0 on UEFI and an NVMe SSD drive
Published: November 3, 2022 21:00
Spinrite is a hard drive recovery and maintenance utility written by Steve Gibson from GRC. It is marketed on the Security Now TWiT podcast which I often listen to. I have bought a copy of it and sometimes use it on solid state disks or SD cards. Spinrite…
OpenSSL generate self signed certificate with SAN in one command (subject alternative name)
Published: October 14, 2022 22:02
This small one liner lets you generate an OpenSSL self signed certificate with both a common name and a [Subject Alternative Name (SAN)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subject_Alternative_Name). Most guides online require you to specify a separate config…
Fade in / fade out in Qt/QML
Published: August 19, 2022 21:30
This guide shows you how to add a fade in / fade out effect to a control in QML. There are a lot of built in animations in Qt/QML, but no fade in/fade out. Using a state machine and a `SequentialAnimation`, we can first animate the opacity, then set the…
Responsive Qt/QML layout coming to Leaf Node Monitoring
Published: August 15, 2022 21:00
[Leaf Node Monitoring](https://leafnode.nl) is my own open source (GPLv3), paid, network monitoring program for Windows, Linux & Android. Written in C++ & Qt 5. Perfect to run on your desktop and monitor your servers. Simple setup, auto-detects running…
What's coming in the next version of Leaf Node Monitoring?
Published: July 14, 2022 00:00
Leaf Node Monitoring is my own open source (GPLv3), paid, network monitoring program for Windows, Linux & Android. Written in C++ & Qt 5. Perfect to run on your desktop and monitor your servers. Simple setup, auto-detects running services, runs checks…
OpenVMS 9.2 for x86 will be released tomorrow (2022-07-14), so exciting!
Published: July 13, 2022 00:00
On July 8th, a few days ago, I saw the following post on the VMS Software Inc (VSI) blog, titled 'Release of OpenVMS V9.2 for x86 Scheduled for July 14, 2022'. That is tomorrow! I'm so excited, I can't wait to start playing around with it. This short post…
Using a Windows Mobile 2003 PDA (HP iPAQ h4350) in 2022, including WhatsApp!
Published: May 29, 2022 01:30
While cleaning out my collection of electronics, I found a PDA. Not the modern kind (voice assistant), but the old school precursor to the smartphone. It's a HP iPAQ h4350, it was a model used by the Dutch Railways. I picked it up in working condition…
Qt/QML Property bindings break after a JavaScript assignment
Published: May 19, 2022 05:30
Property bindings are one of the most powerful concepts in Qt/QML. Property bindings let you specify relationships between different object properties. When a properties dependencies change in value, the property is automatically updated according to the…
HTTP GET requests with Qt and in Qml (async)
Published: April 29, 2022 00:00
With Qt it's very easy to work with (async) HTTP requests. This guide shows you how to do it with Qt core and in Qml. The two examples print the output of a HTTP GET request on screen after pressing a button. The Qml method uses JavaScript, so that's…
Selling my own GPL software part 3, prior art (existing GPL software for sale)
Published: April 24, 2022 00:00
In my earlier posts I described the hurdles I faced with my plan to [sell my own](/s/blog/Selling_GPL_Software_part_1_lots_of_hurdles.html) GPL software and I described how to [embed the source code directly inside the app]…
Proxmox VE 7 Corosync QDevice in a Docker container
Published: April 17, 2022 00:00
At home I have a 2 node Proxmox VE cluster consisting of 2 HP EliteDesk Mini machines, both running with 16 GB RAM and both an NVMe and SATA SSD with ZFS on root (256 GB). It's small enough (physically) and is just enough for my homelab needs specs wise.…
Price of a guest post on dragonflydigest.com?
Published: April 7, 2022 00:00
I have a deep-seated hatred towards half-assed quick-moneygrabbing marketeers, but today they reached at an all-time low. This site is `raymii.org`, I received an email for a guest post on `dragonflydigest.com`. Not even remotely alike in spelling. I'm not…
Build a WeatherTerminal app for the Seeed reTerminal (with Qt 6 & QML)
Published: April 2, 2022 00:00
In this guide I'll show you how to build a weather app for the Seeed reTerminal using Qt and QML. Imagine the reTerminal in your entrance hallway and with just a quick glance at the screen you'll know what the weather will be the next few hours, if you…
Yocto boot2qt for the Seeed reTerminal (Qt 6)
Published: March 18, 2022 00:00
In this guide we'll build a linux distribution for Seeed reTerminal, using the Yocto project and the `boot2qt` stack provided by Qt. This `boot2qt` image can be written to the internal eMMC and when booted up, the Seeed reTerminal runs a software stack…
Qt 5.15.3 Open Source released
Published: March 4, 2022 00:00
Qt is a nice C++ framework with a GUI toolkit on top, actually, 2 toolkit, Widgets and Qml. Qt is available under the GPL and LPGL, open source licenses and a closed source license. [Back in 2020](https://lwn.net/Articles/817129/), the Qt company decided…
Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 eMMC flashing issue (nRPI_BOOT)
Published: February 26, 2022 00:00
I recently got my hands on a Raspberry Pi 4 Compute Module, 4 GB with 32 GB eMMC flash and a Compute Module 4 IO board. Due to the global chip shortage it's hard to find one in stock but I got lucky by checking [rpilocator.com] (https://rpilocator.com/)…
Execute a script in a Yocto package on every image build
Published: February 22, 2022 00:00
This is a small snippet showing a Yocto recipe that executes a script on every build of an image that includes that recipe. I use it to write the build hosts date/time to a file on the image, but you could do anything you want inside the script. It's not…
Yocto boot2qt for the Raspberry Pi 4, both Qt 5.15 and 6.2
Published: February 21, 2022 00:00
In this guide we'll build a linux distribution for Raspberry Pi 4, using the Yocto project and the `boot2qt` stack provided by Qt. This `boot2qt` image can be written to an SD card and when booted up, the Raspberry Pi runs a software stack that integrates…
Embed the source code directly in your Qt app with qmake and qrc, for GPL compliance
Published: February 12, 2022 00:00
In my earlier [post on selling GPL software](/s/blog/Selling_GPL_Software_part_1_lots_of_hurdles.html) I outlined a few points that make it hard to sell GPL software. One of them is the availability of the source code. You could put it online but then…
Loop over all Repeater items or Delegate's in Qml
Published: February 9, 2022 00:00
This small snippet shows how to loop over all Repeater items in Qml and also over all Delegate items in Qml. There are sublte differences between the two. I'm using this to update visual all items in a control, before syncing state to a networked backend,…
Log all Item properties and functions in Qml
Published: February 9, 2022 00:00
This small snippet of Javascript logs all properties and functions of a Qml Item. This is useful when you're knees-deep in a dynamic control that has a model and you're wondering why your code does not work. Probably because you're not using the correct…
Thank you, shotternail!
Published: February 8, 2022 00:00
Recently I got a new Github Sponsor, a one-time donor. Often, these github profiles list a name, email address or some information to contact the person, even a last-resort ssh key with a comment, but this profile has nothing. They joined github 8 days…
QML Touch Area visualization with QML_VISUAL_TOUCH_DEBUGGING
Published: February 7, 2022 00:00
This guide shows you how to enable a red visual square around your `Mouseareas` and `MultiPointTouchArea` controls. It visualizes where you can click/touch and also shows any overlapping touch area's. It's helpful on full screen device interfaces like a…
QML Drag and Drop including reordering the C++ model
Published: January 21, 2022 00:00
This guide shows you how to implement drag and drop in Qml including how to reorder the backing C++ (`QAbstractListModel` derived) data model. Most QML Drag and Drop examples you find online, including the Qt official example, use a `ListModel` in the same…
Selling my own GPL software, part 1: a lot of hurdles
Published: December 24, 2021 00:00
For as long as I can remember I've got this dream of a passive income software project. At first I thought of it as a hosted service, probably something monitoring related, or high-available cloud hosting-ish. That's the kind of stuff a sysadmin dreams of.…
The yearly backup restore test
Published: November 5, 2021 00:00
In my calendar there is a yearly recurring item named 'backup restore test'. This is an article on my backup scheme and the yearly restore test, covering all aspects, such as data validation, backup scheme, time and cost involved. I started doing personal…
Responsive QML Layout (with scrollbars)
Published: October 5, 2021 00:00
In this article I'll show you how to make a responsive layout in Qt / QML that automatically adjusts the amount of columns and rows based on the window dimensions, including scrollbars for when the content does not fit inside the window. This also works if…
Render markdown in a Qt QML Text or TextEdit control
Published: October 4, 2021 00:00
I recently discovered that Qt QML can render Markdown in `Text{}` controls. This snippet shows you how to do that including a screenshot and demo QML app.
Qt/QML: Expose C++ classes to QML and why setContextProperty is not the best idea
Published: October 3, 2021 00:00
In this article I'm going to discuss the different ways to expose a C++ class to QML. QML is a markup language (part of the QT framework) like HTML/CSS, with inline JavaScript that can interact with the C++ code of your (QT) application. There are multiple…
Expose any Qt5 program via VNC
Published: September 20, 2021 00:00
A few months ago I wrote about [Microsoft Teams running on a coffee machine. That was a fun work experiment where I got a VNC client running on the Linux-based coffee machines that we produce at work. In the comments on hackernews Jean-Michaël Celerier…
Rectangle{} debugging in QML, just like printf(), but for QT
Published: September 8, 2021 00:00
Recently I've been using a debugging technique in QT/QML that I've decided to name `Rectangle{}` debugging, in the same vein as `printf()` debugging. QML is a markup language (part of the QT framework) like HTML/CSS, with inline Javascript that can…
Relegendable keycaps for your macropad, the best thing ever for developer productivity
Published: September 6, 2021 00:00
As you might know, I've got a weird keyboard. It is an Ergodox EZ, it's split up in two halves and for me it's the best thing ever to combat RSI. I've also got a weird mouse, a left handed vertical mouse, for the same reason. Even 15 minutes on a regular…
Install NetBSD 9.2 on a DEC Alpha CPU with AXPBox
Published: August 28, 2021 00:00
This is a guide on installing and running NetBSD 9.2 for the DEC Alpha CPU architecture on AXPbox, the open source Alpha Emulator. I recently wrote an article on how to install NetBSD in QEMU for Alpha and since I'm involved with the AXPbox project this…
Remote desktop on NetBSD with Xnest (no VNC)
Published: August 22, 2021 00:00
After I recently wrote about NetBSD on the DEC Alpha CPU in QEMU, I decided to play with NetBSD some more. One x86_64 virtual machine later, I'm starting to appreciate the beauty and simplicity. Great documentation, both online and via the manpages, low…
Install NetBSD 9.2 on a DEC Alpha CPU in QEMU with X11
Published: August 18, 2021 00:00
This is a guide on installing and running NetBSD 9.2 for the DEC Alpha CPU architecture in QEMU, including a GUI (X11 via VNC). It requires you to patch and compile QEMU yourself. It was never possible, until now, to run an actual operating system easily…
Using IceWM and a Raspberry Pi as my main PC, sharing my theme, config and some tips and tricks.
Published: July 10, 2021 00:00
KDE is my desktop environment of choice. KDE5 is rock-solid, configurable in any way possible and works great. It treats you like a responsible adult instead of a child like GNOME does these days, and after XFCE switched to GTK3, the RAM usage is on-par,…
Firefox 89 Proton UI Tab Styling
Published: June 27, 2021 00:00
Firefox 89 recently came out with a 'new' user interface (named proton). I'm not a fan of change because UX/UI people need to make it seem like their job is relevant. Also, the picture they show under the headline '17 billion clicks...' only scares the…
Execute a command and get both output and exit status in C++ (Windows & Linux)
Published: June 7, 2021 00:00
Recently I had to parse some command line output inside a C++ program. Executing a command and getting just the exit status is easy using `std::system`, but also getting output is a bit harder and OS specific. By using `popen`, a POSIX `C` function we can…
Exclude lines in less (or journalctl)
Published: May 23, 2021 00:00
This is a small tip I want to give you when using a `less` based pager, for example in `journalctl` or when viewing a file interactively with `less` or `more`. You can exclude certain lines that match one or multiple words (or a regex) with a few…
All packages that were present in Ubuntu 18.04 but absent in Ubuntu 20.04
Published: May 19, 2021 00:00
Otherwise titled `Figure out the differences between two apt repositories`. Recently I've had a few packages that I often use but were missing from Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. One is [ckermit](/s/blog/Ive_packaged_up_CKermit_as_a_snap_for_Ubuntu_20.04.html) and the…
I've packaged up CKermit as a snap, for Ubuntu 20.04
Published: May 16, 2021 00:00
Last year I packaged up [gnash as a snap](/s/blog/Ive_packaged_up_Gnash_as_a_Snap_for_modern_linux.html) because it was missing from the Ubuntu 20.04 apt repositories. Recently I found out that `ckermit` is also not in Ubuntu 20.04, as far as I can tell…
It compiles does not always mean that it works, a tale of virtual overridden fun in C++
Published: May 12, 2021 00:00
In a [recent article on clang-tidy](/s/snippets/Run_one_specific_clang-tidy_check_on_your_codebase.html) I referenced the fact that we're doing a huge refactoring regarding `char` pointers, lifetime, ownership and `std::strings`. Todays post is another one…
Run MS Teams on a coffee machine?!? (Or: Embedded Linux Framebuffer VNC client)
Published: April 8, 2021 00:00
To fill some time [during compiling](https://xkcd.com/303/) I tried to get a VNC client running on a coffee machine, specifically to show MS Teams. At work I develop software for these coffee machines in C++, which allows me to do such fun stuff, because…
Run one specific clang-tidy check on your entire codebase
Published: April 5, 2021 00:00
Recently I did a major refactor on a piece of code that involved thousands of lines of code which were in one way or another related to string handling. All of the code handled `char*` (C style character pointer arrays) and the concept of `const` or…
Three ways to print booleans as 'True' or 'False' in C++
Published: March 21, 2021 00:00
In this article I'll show you three ways to print a textual representation of a boolean in C++. Normally a bool is printed as either a `0` or a `1` by `std::cout`, but more often than not, if you're printing a `bool`, it's better to see `true/false`.…
Record your Linux Desktop with ffmpeg and slop to any format
Published: March 17, 2021 00:00
This two-line shell script allows you to record a region of your linux desktop to a video file, or a `.gif`, using `slop` and `ffmpeg`. I use it often when a screenshot is not enough, or when you need to explain a sequence of events to someone.
Disable (debug) logging in QT and QML
Published: February 27, 2021 00:00
In QT you can use a few functions from the `qDebug.h` header like `qDebug()` and `qWarning()` to log information to the console. In QML you can use the likes of `console.log()`, `console.error()`. It's also very easy to implement your own logger (eg.…
QT / QML Signals and Slots with C++
Published: February 25, 2021 00:00
QT has an Observer mechanism built in, which they call '[Signals and Slots](https://web.archive.org/web/20210210180603/https://doc.qt.io/qt-5/signalsandslots.html)'. It allows objects to communicate with each other without having to have knowledge of…
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