The Price of Mainstream Divergence

Having replaced the Mac OS on my Mac Book with OS Chrome Flex and Windows 10 on my granddaughter's HP Pavilion x360 with Ubuntu 20.04, the consequences are now being felt but it's OK, I'm retired and have plenty of time to deal with these problems. For a working person, who needs his or her laptop to be fully functional so as to maintain productivity, I wouldn't recommend my course of action.

On Ubuntu, I decided to install Calibre that I use to organise my collection of ebooks. However, once installed it wouldn't launch. Apparently, there are problems getting Calibre to run on the latest version of Ubuntu.

To add to my frustrations, I wrote in my Astrology blog about a similar problem:

... the Astrolog website links to openastro.org that has an Ubuntu repository that I'm keen to test out. Figure 1 shows a screenshot.

Figure 1

Unfortunately, I get the following error message:

The following packages have unmet dependencies:

openastro.org : Depends :  imagemagick

E: unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

Given that Ubuntu is a far more mature OS than the beta Chrome OS Flex, these failures are disappointing. 

Meanwhile the problems with the latter OS are many. The webcam doesn't work on my Mac Book and the touchpad is all but useless. I had to resort to using a mouse again, a practice that I abandoned over a decade ago. Fortunately the mouse works fine unless I connect an external monitor in which case the mouse becomes unstable.

While I seem to have successfully installed the Linux development environment in Chrome OS Flex, I get the following error message when opening the terminal:

Starting the virtual machine Error starting penguin container: 5

Launching vmshell failed: Error starting crostini for terminal: 5

This of course means that no installations of Linux applications are possible. None of these things are game changers but there's also the temptation to go out and buy the M2 Mac Book Air when it comes out later this year and have all these frustrations disappear.

On the positive side, it's interesting with Chrome OS Flex to be actively involved in the ongoing development and testing of the operating system.

Chrome OS Flex Update

Having installed Chrome OS Flex on my 2103 Mac Book and replacing the Mac operating system, I've been using it successively to carry out my everyday tasks. On the plus side, the WiFi glitch that so bedeviled my Mac with the old operating system has gone. The problem arose when I tried to access the WiFi from a repeater. I would get an IP conflict error message. Not anymore.

On the negative side, the touch pad remains problematic. The pointer works but sometimes is not responsive for a few seconds and this makes it impossible to use for sustained periods of time. Fortunately the mouse works just fine. However, when connected to an external monitor, the mouse becomes "twitchy" and suddenly jumps from the laptop screen to the external monitor. This becomes quite an irritation when using dual screens for extended periods of time.

I've tried to download Linux but so far I've not been successful. Figure 1 shows what happens.

Figure 1

Setting up a recovery image on my USB drive also fails as can be seen in Figure 2.

Figure 2

I don't print anything so I've no idea what problems there are with printing. I would suppose many but fortunately that's not an issue for me. I've learned about PWAs or Progressive Web Apps, defined by Wikipedia as:

A progressive web application (PWA), commonly known as a progressive web app, is a type of application software delivered through the web, built using common web technologies including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and WebAssembly. It is intended to work on any platform that uses a standards-compliant browser, including both desktop and mobile devices.

I've set one up for Twitter so that I'm saved from needing to open it via the browser. Here is some additional information from Wikipedia:

In 2017, Twitter released Twitter Lite, a PWA alternative to the official native Android and iOS apps. According to Twitter, Twitter Lite consumed only 1-3% of the size of the native apps. In July 2019 Twitter started serving all website users to Twitter Lite by default. On June 1, 2020, Twitter deactivated the legacy website layout, leaving the progressive web app version as the only option.

Starbucks provides a PWA that is 99.84% smaller than its equivalent iOS app. After deploying its PWA, Starbucks doubled the number of online orders, with desktop users ordering at about the same rate as mobile app users.

Several businesses highlight significant improvements in a wide variety of key performance indicators after PWA implementation, like increased time spent on page, conversions, or revenue.

As I take many screenshots, I was relieved to discover the following keyboard shortcuts:

• Take a screenshot: Press Ctrl + Show windows 
• Take a partial screenshot: Press Shift + Ctrl + Show windows , then click and drag.

Another issue is that my poor quality webcam does not work which is unfortunate but it's something that I never use so it's no great loss to me. Obviously, it could be a deal breaker for some who need to use the device on a regular basis. 

Additionally, my Express VPN does not support Chrome OS which seems odd but I'll investigate the matter further and will consult with the company's technical support if I can't resolve the issue.

Overall I'm happy with my new operating system that is still in unstable beta release. I'll look forward to some of my existing problems disappearing during future updates to the operating system.

Trials and Tribulations

No sooner did I get Chrome OS Flex installed on my Mac Book than the charger gave out. It had been playing up for a couple of days beforehand, alternating between charging and not charging, until it finally died. This now dead charger I bought online about a year or so ago (to replace the original) so it's had a relatively short lifespan. I've ordered a new one and it should arrive today. I'm hoping it's the charger that is the problem and not the battery itself. If the latter, then that may be the end of my laptop. In the meantime, I'll remain optimistic.

In the absence of a functioning computer, I turned to my granddaughter's HP Pavilion x360 that I bought for her about four years ago and which she seldom uses, preferring instead her 2020 iPad Pro. The computer ran Windows 10 and she said that she sometimes plays games on it. When I first used it, it took forever to start up and ran maddeningly slowly when it did. She agreed to my replacing the operating system and so I tested out Chrome OS Flex on it by booting from a USB thumb drive.

The WiFi refused to work and so I installed Lubuntu instead but encountered the same problem. I then tried full-blown Ubuntu and that's what I'm currently using to create this post. I still have no WiFi but managed to access the Internet via a USB C hub into which I've run an Ethernet cable. There is no sound whatever. The keyboard of this laptop has long ceased to be functional because of several dead keys. I'm using a Logitech wireless keyboard and mouse that work off a USB dongle.

The laptop was originally purchased because it can be converted into a (very heavy) tablet and has a touch screen. My granddaughter wanted to use it for digital artwork. From the beginning it was a dog of a machine and then the keyboard gave out. This abomination from HP is certainly the worst device I'm come across and it remains to be seen whether I can ever get it functioning properly again using some other operating system. 

While creating this post, I came across an intriguing workaround for my Mac Book charging problems. It's a USB C to MagSafe 2 converter. See Figure 1.

 

This particular one is rated at 90W whereas my charger is 60W. I haven't been able to find a 60W version of this adapter and I may not need to if my new charger works properly. However, if this charger fails again after a year or so, I may consider this USB C option. Of course, the latest Mac Books all have USB C charging which does away with all this proprietary nonsense.

Update: the charger arrived and it works fine so I'm up and running on my old Mac Book with Chrome OS Flex installed.

Chrome OS Flex

I'm experimenting with Chrome OS Flex on my 2013 Mac Book Pro having booted it off a USB drive. The operating system has been heavily touted lately as a way of breathing new life into old computers by replacing resource-hungry operating systems like Windows and Mac OS with a light-weight alternative.

While my Mac Book still works fine, it does labour when using web-based applications like Airtable. The fan starts up and the laptop starts to get quite hot. That's why I thought I'd give Chrome OS Flex a workout. If I like it, I can install it permanently on my laptop, replacing the Mac OS Sierra that's currently on it. Most of my work I do is done in the Chrome browser and most the apps I use are Google-based.

It's early days yet and problems are bound to arise. I've already found the trackpad rather sluggish and have resorted to using a mouse again. Whether this will remain a problem or resolve itself after a proper installation, I don't know. Another problem that has arisen involves the use of Command + Shift + F4 that I regularly use to capture part of the screen. That keyboard combination doesn't work anymore.

Figure 1: source

Figure 1 shows that I've surmounted that problem, so all is well. One program that I use is Calibre, that keeps track of my ebook collection. I'm interested to see if I can get that up and running on Flex. It should be possible because there is a Linux version of Calibre but first Linux needs to be installed and this is a 450Mb download. I'll download it overnight and test things out tomorrow. See Figure 2.

Figure 2

The other program that I frequently run of course is Astrolog and downloading Linux should enable me to run this program because there is a Linux version. In the meantime, I need to remember that Flex is currently in Beta release and more improvements are on the way. Google senses a business opportunity in Flex and is not likely to lose interest in improving it. Flex may even be able to run Android apps in the future.

The YouTube video above gives a pretty good account of what Google's strategy is, moving ahead. 

One advantage of Flex is that it has eliminated my WiFi problem that causes an IP conflict alert whenever I connect to a repeater. Whenever I'm in the bedroom, where a repeater has been setup to boost the weak WiFi signal from the router, I need to connect my laptop to the Internet via an Ethernet cable. So far I've encountered no such alerts.

A final problem of course is to get my VPN to work on Flex. This is something I need to keep working on but I'm sure that it's possible, even if it may require some troubleshooting from the VPN's technicians.

Hard Mode in Wordle

I don't have to use Hard Mode in Wordle but I instinctively do, even though I've not altered the default setting. See Figure 1.

Figure 1

Setting Hard Mode to on or just adhering to it by choice can make things difficult. Today's Wordle is a good example. See Figure 2.

Figure 2

I was very happy to have guessed four out of the five letters after two tries. I was left with SHA*E and only one letter left to guess. Unfortunately, there were many possible words: SHADE, SHAKE, SHALE, SHAME, SHAPE, SHARE and SHAVE. I had the seven valid letter choices of D, K, L, M, P, R and V. 

If I'd gone by letter frequencies, highest to lowest, I wouldn't have made it. "K" has the lowest frequency of all the letters. I was lucky to get the correct word on my last try. See Figure 3 for a graph of letter frequencies in the English language.

Figure 3: source

Setting Hard Mode to off or relaxing my voluntary adherence to that mode, would it have been possible to get the correct answer for certain using my remaining four tries? What if I started with a word like PROVE? That would eliminate P, R and V with only four letters remaining: D, K, L and M. A word like MOULD would eliminate M, L and D with only K remaining. So yes, I could have definitely gotten the correct word on my fifth try.

So Hard Mode is aptly named because it does make guessing the correct word much more difficult in situations such as I encountered with COAST and SHADE.

More Word Game Adventures

Following on from my previous post, my word game adventures continue. I was a bit late coming to the party but eventually discovered Wordle. Although I'd seen many mentions of it, it didn't really tweak my curiosity until I read about a guy who built a freely accessible archive of all the words used by Wordle since its inception.

But firstly, for those not in the know, what is Wordle? Well, there's a full account of the phenomenon on Wikipedia so there's no need to repeat all of that here. Suffice to say that it is web-based and only one challenge is presented each day. Figure 1 shows the help screen that summarises the way the game is played.

Figure 1

It is similar to the board game Mastermind that I used to play back in 70's and 80's. However, the game involved determining the colours of four hidden pegs rather than five unknown letters. See Figure 2.

Figure 2: Mastermind

Figure 3 shows my completed Wordle for today, February 5th 2022.

Figure 3

The site that contains the archive of all previous words used in Wordle is located here. Figure 4 shows my latest attempt, although make a mistake while completing it if you look closely.

Figure 4

Wordle has spawned many clones of course given its growing popularity. Meanwhile I continue to play Word Master at the highest level and win more times than I lose. Figures 5 and 6 show the screen and statistics for my latest narrow win.

Figure 5

Figure 6

Getting back to Wordle however, and we find that:

The New York Times Co. bought the popular word game Wordle on Jan. 31 from the game’s creator, Josh Wardle, for a price “in the low seven figures,” according to an article from The New York Times. Source.

The price "in the low seven figures" means that he must have received more that one million dollars since 1000000 is the first number to have seven digits. The game remains free at the moment but whether that will be the case in the future is unknown.

There is an Indonesian copy of the game, KATLA, that can also be played in the web browser at the URL https://katla.vercel.app/. I tested it out and managed to find the word in four tries. See Figure 7 for a screenshot.

Figure 7

Of course, this not the way to share your results on social media. Instead when one shares, a series of shaded and unshaded boxes are generated to indicate your progress without revealing the actual letters as shown below:

⬛⬛🟨 🟨 ⬛

🟨 🟨 ⬛⬛⬛

🟩 🟨 ⬛🟨 🟨

🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩

The game is clearly a good way for me to improve my Indonesian vocabulary. For example, the word "prabu" means "king" which must have come from Sanskrit because the similar word in Hindi, "prabhu", means "lord".