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2024/06/29 Pride 2024 XOXO Festival at Midway SF With Above and Beyond

π 2024-06-29 01:01 in Clubbing, Festivals

This was the biggest show and festival that had ever been held at Midway in SF, so that is to say it was an impressive setup. A lot of new things that could have gone not too well, did go well, so kudos to everyone that was involved in the setup and made sure it ran smoothly. Honestly the only thing I noticed was that at some point there were enough people (the most Midway likely has ever had) that all the bathrooms were a bit insufficient for the crowd (and they brought extra), so I will call this a success :)

It was one of the longest days of the year, so we only had 90mn of darkness, and as usual, I made the best of it :)

But let's go back to the beginning, lots of sunlight, and thankfully it was actually quite nice and cool.

huge stage got setup in the street with daytime visible RGB Panels with holes to let the wind through

the inside of Midway got decked out

nice custom poster

a lot of anjunafam came early, and thankfully the weather was actually cool

hahah

Great to run into lots of friends as always:

The event also had multiple dancers and costumed performers:

and yes, this qualified as a festival, 3 rooms going at once:

We got a nice selection of DJs that played lovely trance for us, starting with Blur:

Next was elevven:

Ilan Bluestone was next:

Mor Avrahami came from Israel took over before above and beyond:

I tried to go check out the other rooms too:

And then Jono and Paavo from Above and Beyond finished the day, which hadn't turned into night yet (one of the longest days of the year):

After the regular party, there was an after party from 22:00 to 06:00, so plenty of partying for anyone who had the energy :)

Great job to everyone at midway who got this event running pretty flawlessly, thanks for the event!

Video Summary:

See more images for Pride 2024 XOXO Festival at Midway SF With Above and Beyond

2024/06/29 Putting 27 P5 64x32 Azerone Panels To Good Use, a Big 288x192 Matrix

π 2024-06-29 01:01 in Arduino

I had a bigger stack of returned P5 RGBPanels that Azerone was nice enough to send me, it came to completment an existing stash of 12 panels I already had to make a 4x3 128x192 P5 array (pictured on the left):

This is what I started with, 128x192 in P2, P4, and P5 panels

Now let's look at the back and my old (left) vs new mounting method (right). On the left is my "up to then" McGuyver's method of attaching things: using some metal rails with holes, I was somewhat able to aligh enough holes to put some screws in, which kind of held everything together, but not securely:

On the right, a new way to put things together thanks to Marc Estes who laser cut connecting pieces so that each panel could be more securely and correctly attached to the one next to it. Also, note each panel being upside down from the previous one to allow for short ribbon cables and less signal loss, clock drift and crosstalk

Here is the end result of the new panels I put together, the code to reverse panel directions worked:

but the colors were broken, see below

So here is my old 3x4 P5 array next to the new 3x5 array I was building, just testing signal would work:

then rewired everything nicely to be the same orientation

took a while to add power and all the connector bits that Mark Estes made for me

I found those nice power concentrators from amazon

Here are 2 videos that explain the build:

But the colors were wrong. Why? Well, turns out some of the panels were badly wired from the factory and had reversed colors:

So it was all nice and good, until I turned it on:

oh great, some of the panels have broken color order

yeah, that's because I got those panels for free as returns, and they are different generations, some with broken colors. I used the orange and blue labels to tell them apart.

Ok, so since I had a couple of damaged panels and I wanted a nice row of matching panels so that the color intensities would simliar enough, I bought 3 more panels. They came with the orange label, so I wired the orange together, and got this:

Son of a.... The 3 new orange label panels lower left, have fixed colors, so they are not the same as the older orange label panels....

they looked similar enough but they were not

after getting what was going on, I re=wired everything a 3rd time to get bad color panels together

I briefly considered fixing this by swapping the color channels in the ribbon cables but then I figured out it would be less work to fix it in software. rpi-rgb-panel allows for swapping colors on a per panel basis, but not on a per panel basis. Thankfully the code was written well enough to allow very easy remapping of colors per pixel and of course per panel. I also fixed a prior patch of mine that had an unfortunate behavior with Zmapper:v that swapped the order around every time you added a row of panels. Here are the 2 patches:

https://github.com/hzeller/rpi-rgb-led-matrix/issues/1672

https://github.com/hzeller/rpi-rgb-led-matrix/pull/1664

which fixes https://github.com/hzeller/rpi-rgb-led-matrix/issues/1663

And after these fixes, finally the panels are oriented the correct way and the colors are fixed:

After more days than planned, it was finally time to mount it on my wall, and that was not trivial, partially because I didn't put enough time into getting proper mounting hardware. I did have some leftover rails I used for added structural integrity, but found out under the wait and stress, they would bend too:

the mounting location was also challenging, made measurements and marks

I used electrical wire as the best hanging wire I had around and put 4 layers just to be sure. Also I found out I had to attach it to the frame in the middle to stop the frame from bending under weight

getting all the attach points under the wire, was totally not trival, but done!

The last thing I had was the native display orientation was portrait, so I wanted to switch to landscape. Turns out rPi3 is too slow to handle an array that big, the data exceeded some internal CPU cache and became very slow, and even more so if I tried the driver's 90 dgree rotate function. So, I tried an rPi4 instead, which showed other interesting electronic bits: the panels on the left are newer and can handle faster update speed while the ones on the right are slower refreshes. This is why it looked like this below. I had to add some delay fasctor in the rPi4 output and then everything was well. Fix was the expected --led-slowdown-gpio=4

See also this page that discusses the cache overflow issues on rPi3, switching to rPi4, and how led-slowdown-gpio can be a bit counter intuitive:

https://github.com/hzeller/rpi-rgb-led-matrix/issues/1674#issuecomment-2216512501

And here is the end result:

See more images for Putting 27 P5 64x32 Azerone Panels To Good Use, a Big 288x192 Matrix

2024/06/28 Castle Rock Hike

π 2024-06-28 01:01 in Hiking

Nice to go back, it had been a while.

See more images for Castle Rock Hike

2024/06/27 Fast Toys F488 at Sears Point

π 2024-06-27 01:01 in Ncars

Not a bad drive to Sears Point:

Lots of nice cars:

I did mostly ok, but not great, I was generally tired and didn't want to push it. I got a few laps down to 1:55, and that's as low as I managed, which is a time I have done in my 650S on street tires (apparently I only got down to 2:00-ish in the 2 sessions I tried in the 650S). I did a 1:53 in a mercedes race car that was slower in 2020. I'm sure the car was good for 1:45 or so, but I was not. That said, I avoided pushing too hard and running out of talent, which is always good.

So yeah, not my best day, but still a fun day at the track and not a super long drive home:

See more images for Fast Toys F488 at Sears Point

2024/06/27 Testing Azerone P5 vs P4 vs P2 RGBPanels to Display My 128x192 Outfit Matrix

π 2024-06-27 01:01 in Arduino

I received more panels in the mail thanks to Azerone, just the right amount to make another array, and make another copy of my LED outfit display in a different size. Nice to compare all 3:

What it looks like from the back:

See more images for Testing Azerone P5 vs P4 vs P2 RGBPanels to Display My 128x192 Outfit Matrix

2024/06/24 Linux on Lenovo P17gen2

π 2024-06-24 01:01 in Computers, Linux

I had a forced upgrade from P73 to P17gen2 after my P73 suddenly died, and the upgrade wasn't as seamless as I was hoping for. First, the new laptop did not support SATA M2 anymore, and removed the 2.5" Sata drive slot despite the huge laptop size, so I had to get new drives (all 3 had to be M2 NVME).

I have to admit now that while I've been using debian since 1997 and I'm not super interested in switching again to ubuntu, especially when I already did once, and they honestly sucked and let me down enough that I went back to debian. But in this case, debian didn't support sound right this new laptop, especially sound input (microphone), and it took several days of work painstakenly diffing the latest ubuntu 23 that worked, and debian that did not. Eventually got debian to work though.

P73 (after it died) next to P17gen2

Intro

You should look at these pages first:

My Linux on Thinkpad P70 page has most of the info you need and that is still valid for P73 and P17gen2

this explains Upgrading from Sata SSD, to M2 Sata, to M2 NVME on P70

How to get the P70 to charge from slimtip adapters it doesn't like

By then Lenovo messed up P73 power further and it refused to even use an 20V power unless I built special trickery, so this page helps with getting around power limitations

And definitely read this page on Thinkpad P70 vs P73 vs P17

Note that as per the last page linked above, I do not recommend getting a P17 if you already have a P73. I found nothing really better in the P17gen2 despite it being 2 years newer. Quite disappointing.

Power

That's the biggest issue on this laptop, battery use is way too high, even under windows, and Lenovo could not be bothered to make it work with USB-PD, unlike Dell who did a fine job of that.

The page with workaround again, but it's very sad I still had to do this for P17 :(

By then Lenovo messed up P73 power further and it refused to even use an 20V power unless I built special trickery, so this page helps with getting around power limitations

If you want a laptop with a proper power system and 2x the battery life while being also faster, try the Dell XPS 9730 (see review)

Configs

If that helps, a few config files ( You also can get them here )

/etc/pipewire/microphone.conf

# https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/PipeWire
context.objects = [
    { factory = adapter
        args = {
            factory.name           = api.alsa.pcm.source
            node.name              = "microphone"
            node.description       = "Lenovo P17 DMIC16kHz"
            media.class            = "Audio/Source"
# arecord -l
            api.alsa.path          = "hw:0,7"
        }
    }
]

/etc/modprobe.d/thinkpad..conf

alias char-major-10-170 thinkpad alias /dev/thinkpad thinkpad alias /dev/thinkpad/thinkpad thinkpad alias /dev/thinkpad/smapi smapi alias /dev/thinkpad/superio superio alias /dev/thinkpad/rtcmosram rtcmosram

# See http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/How_to_get_special_keys_to_work options thinkpad_acpi hotkey=0xff8c7ffb experimental=1 fan_control=1

options thinkpad enable_smapi=1 enable_superio=1 enable_rtcmosram=1 enable_thinkpadpm=1 #http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Tp_smapi options thinkpad_ec force_io=1 # Invert X and Y: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/HDAPS options hdaps invert=1

options usbcore autosuspend=1

# http://www.mjmwired.net/kernel/Documentation/sound/alsa/HD-Audio-Models.txt # http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1316634 options snd-hda-intel probe_mask=1 model=thinkpad

#options iwlwifi 11n_disable=2

# To prevent applications from using ALSA's OSS emulation and bypassing # PulseAudio (thereby preventing other applications from playing sound), # make sure the module snd_pcm_oss is not being loaded at boot # https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/PulseAudio#ALSA blacklist snd_pcm_oss blacklist snd_mixer_oss

blacklist dvb_usb_rtl28xxu #blacklist snd_hda_codec_hdmi

# slows down boot blacklist mei_wdt

# irq 48: nobody cared (try booting with the "irqpoll" option) # [<00000000c1127e5c>] tis_int_handler [tpm_tis_core] blacklist tpm_tis_core

Sound

Sounds got complicated, took me a while to understand how sound now works (so changed so many times), and debug it:

pipewire replaces pulseaudio https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/PipeWire
helvum is graphical interface, it's pretty but not sure it's useful
qpwgraph is the same as helvum
pulseaudio still needed to talk to it.

Check out the linux kernel config options in here if that helps.

sauron:~$ pactl info
Server String: /run/user/500/pulse/native
Library Protocol Version: 35
Server Protocol Version: 35
Is Local: yes
Client Index: 557
Tile Size: 65472
User Name: merlin
Host Name: sauron.svh.merlins.org
Server Name: PulseAudio (on PipeWire 0.3.65)
Server Version: 15.0.0
Default Sample Specification: float32le 2ch 48000Hz
Default Channel Map: front-left,front-right
Default Sink: alsa_output.pci-0000_00_1f.3-platform-skl_hda_dsp_generic.stereo-fallback
Default Source: alsa_output.pci-0000_00_1f.3-platform-skl_hda_dsp_generic.stereo-fallback.monitor
Cookie: 1ece:0308

sauron:/etc/modprobe.d# inxi -aA
Audio:
  Device-1: Intel Tiger Lake-H HD Audio vendor: Lenovo
    driver: sof-audio-pci-intel-tgl
    alternate: snd_hda_intel,snd_sof_pci_intel_tgl bus-ID: 00:1f.3
    chip-ID: 8086:43c8 class-ID: 0401
  Device-2: NVIDIA GA104 High Definition Audio vendor: Lenovo
    driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel pcie: gen: 4 speed: 16 GT/s lanes: 16
    bus-ID: 01:00.1 chip-ID: 10de:228b class-ID: 0403
  API: ALSA v: k6.6.8-amd64-volpre-sysrq-20231218 status: kernel-api
    with: aoss type: oss-emulator tools: alsamixer,amixer
  Server-1: PipeWire v: 0.3.65 status: n/a (root, process) with:
    1: pipewire-pulse status: active 2: wireplumber status: active
    3: pipewire-alsa type: plugin 4: pw-jack type: plugin
    tools: pactl,pw-cat,pw-cli,wpctl

======================
microphone not working
======================
https://forum.endeavouros.com/t/pipewire-pipewire-media-session-vs-wireplumber/20705
wireplumber is new and inevitable, it uses LUA and different config files

https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/PipeWire
/usr/share/wireplumber/main.lua.d/50-alsa-config.lua
      -- ["api.alsa.use-acp"] = true,
=> yeah, this kind of works but prevents headphones from working later

default output is Tiger Lake HD Audio Controller
microphone is HD Autdio Controller DMIC 16Khz

Instead of fixing in wireplugger, fix in pipewire which was not super documented:

Tried again with /etc/pipewire/microphone.conf after ln -s /usr/share/pipewire /etc/pipewire
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
merlin:/etc/pipewire$ ls -l /etc/pipewire
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 19 Dec 25 03:37 /etc/pipewire -> /usr/share/pipewire
merlin:/etc/pipewire$ cat microphone.conf
# https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/PipeWire
context.objects = [
    { factory = adapter
        args = {
            factory.name           = api.alsa.pcm.source
            node.name              = "microphone"
            node.description       = "Lenovo P17 DMIC16kHz"
            media.class            = "Audio/Source"
# arecord -l
            api.alsa.path          = "hw:0,7"
        }
    }
]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

then restart:
killall pipewire pipewire-pulse
(which gets auto restarted)

changes
Audio
 |- Devices:
 |      44. GA104 High Definition Audio Controller [alsa]
 |      45. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller    [alsa]
 |
 |- Sinks:
 |  *   54. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller Stereo [vol: 0.71]
 |
 |- Sink endpoints:
 |
 |- Sources:
 |      55. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller Stereo [vol: 0.61]

to
Audio
 |- Devices:
 |      45. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller    [alsa:pcm]
 |      51. GA104 High Definition Audio Controller [alsa:pcm]
 |
 |- Sinks:
 |  *   33. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller    [vol: 0.89]
 |      37. GA104 High Definition Audio Controller (HDMI 1) [vol: 1.00]
 |      38. GA104 High Definition Audio Controller (HDMI 3) [vol: 1.00]
 |      39. GA104 High Definition Audio Controller (HDMI 2) [vol: 1.00]
 |      40. GA104 High Definition Audio Controller (HDMI 0) [vol: 1.00]
 |     363. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller (HDA Analog Deep Buffer (*)) [vol: 1.00]
 |     366. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller (HDMI3 (*)) [vol: 1.00]
 |     377. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller (HDMI2 (*)) [vol: 1.00]
 |     378. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller (HDMI1 (*)) [vol: 1.00]
 |
 |- Sink endpoints:
 |
 |- Sources:
 |     364. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller (DMIC16kHz (*)) [vol: 0.61]
 |     365. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller (DMIC (*)) [vol: 1.00]
 |  *  411. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller    [vol: 0.55]

ubuntu had this instead:
Audio  Chip: Realtek ALC287
 |- Devices:
 |      44. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller    [alsa]
 |      45. GA104 High Definition Audio Controller [alsa]
 |
 |- Sinks:
 |      46. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller HDMI / DisplayPort 3 Output [vol: 1.00]
 |      47. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller HDMI / DisplayPort 2 Output [vol: 1.00]
 |      48. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller HDMI / DisplayPort 1 Output [vol: 1.00]
 |  *   49. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller Speaker + Headphones [vol: 0.40]
 |
 |- Sink endpoints:
 |
 |- Sources:
 |      50. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller Headphones Stereo Microphone [vol: 1.00]
 |  *   51. Tiger Lake-H HD Audio Controller Digital Microphone [vol: 1.00]

sauron:~# lsmod | grep snd
snd_seq_dummy          12288  0
snd_hrtimer            12288  1
snd_hda_codec_hdmi     90112  1
snd_hda_codec_realtek   196608  1
snd_hda_codec_generic   110592  1 snd_hda_codec_realtek
snd_soc_dmic           12288  1
snd_sof_pci_intel_tgl    12288  2
snd_sof_intel_hda_common   208896  1 snd_sof_pci_intel_tgl
snd_sof_intel_hda      24576  1 snd_sof_intel_hda_common
snd_sof_pci            24576  2 snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_sof_pci_intel_tgl
snd_sof_xtensa_dsp     12288  1 snd_sof_intel_hda_common
snd_soc_hdac_hda       24576  1 snd_sof_intel_hda_common
snd_soc_acpi_intel_match    98304  2 snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_sof_pci_intel_tgl
snd_soc_acpi           16384  2 snd_soc_acpi_intel_match,snd_sof_intel_hda_common
snd_hda_intel          57344  0
soundwire_intel        69632  1 snd_sof_intel_hda_common
snd_sof_intel_hda_mlink    40960  2 soundwire_intel,snd_sof_intel_hda_common
snd_sof_probes         24576  0
snd_sof               352256  4 snd_sof_pci,snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_sof_probes,snd_sof_intel_hda
snd_sof_utils          16384  1 snd_sof
snd_intel_dspcfg       36864  3 snd_hda_intel,snd_sof,snd_sof_intel_hda_common
snd_intel_sdw_acpi     16384  2 snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_intel_dspcfg
snd_soc_skl_hda_dsp    24576  4
snd_soc_intel_hda_dsp_common    16384  1 snd_soc_skl_hda_dsp
snd_hda_codec         217088  8 snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec_realtek,
    snd_soc_intel_hda_dsp_common,snd_soc_hdac_hda,snd_sof_intel_hda,snd_soc_skl_hda_dsp
snd_hwdep              20480  1 snd_hda_codec
snd_soc_hdac_hdmi      45056  1 snd_soc_skl_hda_dsp
snd_hda_ext_core       40960  5 snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_soc_hdac_hdmi,snd_soc_hdac_hda,snd_sof_intel_
    hda_mlink,snd_sof_intel_hda
snd_hda_core          147456  11 snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_ext_core,
    snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_soc_intel_hda_dsp_common,snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_soc_hdac_hdmi,
    snd_soc_hdac_hda,snd_sof_intel_hda
snd_soc_core          421888  8 soundwire_intel,snd_sof,snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_soc_hdac_hdmi,
    snd_soc_hdac_hda,snd_sof_probes,snd_soc_dmic,snd_soc_skl_hda_dsp
snd_compress           28672  2 snd_soc_core,snd_sof_probes
snd_pcm_dmaengine      16384  1 snd_soc_core
snd_pcm               192512  13 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,soundwire_intel,snd_sof,
    snd_sof_intel_hda_common,snd_soc_hdac_hdmi,snd_compress,snd_soc_core,snd_sof_utils,snd_hda_core,snd_pcm_dmaengine
snd_seq_midi           20480  0
snd_seq_midi_event     16384  1 snd_seq_midi
snd_seq               106496  9 snd_seq_midi,snd_seq_midi_event,snd_seq_dummy
snd_timer              53248  3 snd_seq,snd_hrtimer,snd_pcm
snd_rawmidi            53248  1 snd_seq_midi
snd_seq_device         16384  3 snd_seq,snd_seq_midi,snd_rawmidi
snd_ctl_led            24576  0
snd                   155648  26 snd_ctl_led,snd_hda_codec_generic,snd_seq,snd_seq_device,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hwdep,
    snd_hda_intel,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_sof,snd_timer,snd_soc_hdac_hdmi,snd_compress,thinkpad_acpi,
    snd_soc_core,snd_pcm,snd_rawmidi
soundcore              16384  2 snd_ctl_led,snd
ledtrig_audio          12288  3 snd_ctl_led,snd_hda_codec_generic,thinkpad_acpi
ac97_bus               12288  1 snd_soc_core
sauron:~# dmesg | grep snd
[   30.162413] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: vgaarb: pci_notify
[   30.162418] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: runtime IRQ mapping not provided by arch
[   30.162422] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: DSP detected with PCI class/subclass/prog-if info 0x040100
[   30.162441] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: Digital mics found on Skylake+ platform, using SOF driver
[   30.162444] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: vgaarb: pci_notify
[   30.838258] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0: autoconfig for ALC287: line_outs=1 (0x14/0x0/0x0/0x0/0x0) type:speaker
[   30.853017] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0:    speaker_outs=0 (0x0/0x0/0x0/0x0/0x0)
[   30.871445] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0:    hp_outs=1 (0x21/0x0/0x0/0x0/0x0)
[   30.892281] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0:    mono: mono_out=0x0
[   30.892292] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0:    inputs:
[   30.892342] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0:      Mic=0x19
[   30.969586] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0: ASoC: sink widget AIF1TX overwritten
[   30.977231] snd_hda_codec_realtek ehdaudio0D0: ASoC: source widget AIF1RX overwritten
sauron:~# dmesg | grep firmware
[    2.855848] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] Finished loading DMC firmware i915/tgl_dmc_ver2_12.bin (v2.12)
[    2.881616] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: GuC firmware i915/tgl_guc_70.1.1.bin version 70.1.1
[    2.881621] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: HuC firmware i915/tgl_huc_7.9.3.bin version 7.9.3
[    3.942915] psmouse serio2: trackpoint: Elan TrackPoint firmware: 0x12, buttons: 3/3
[   29.602566] systemd[1]: systemd-pcrmachine.service - TPM2 PCR Machine ID Measurement was skipped because of an 
    unmet condition check (ConditionPathExists=/sys/firmware/efi/efivars/StubPcrKernelImage-4a67b082-0a4c-41cf-b6c7-440b29bb8c4f).
[   30.386592] iwlwifi 0000:09:00.0: loaded firmware version 83.e8f84e98.0 ty-a0-gf-a0-83.ucode op_mode iwlmvm
[  469.044883] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: GuC firmware i915/tgl_guc_70.1.1.bin version 70.1.1
[  469.044897] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: HuC firmware i915/tgl_huc_7.9.3.bin version 7.9.3
[  621.435387] iwlwifi 0000:09:00.0: loaded firmware version 83.e8f84e98.0 ty-a0-gf-a0-83.ucode op_mode iwlmvm
[ 3319.317148] Bluetooth: hci0: Minimum firmware build 1 week 10 2014
[ 3319.325256] Bluetooth: hci0: Found device firmware: intel/ibt-0041-0041.sfi
[ 3320.667073] Bluetooth: hci0: Waiting for firmware download to complete
[50195.773603] usb 3-7: device firmware changed
[74491.611751] Bluetooth: hci0: Minimum firmware build 1 week 10 2014
[74491.620036] Bluetooth: hci0: Found device firmware: intel/ibt-0041-0041.sfi
[74492.962244] Bluetooth: hci0: Waiting for firmware download to complete
[86582.232349] iwlwifi 0000:09:00.0: loaded firmware version 83.e8f84e98.0 ty-a0-gf-a0-83.ucode op_mode iwlmvm
[87048.949201] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: GuC firmware i915/tgl_guc_70.1.1.bin version 70.1.1
[87048.949215] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: HuC firmware i915/tgl_huc_7.9.3.bin version 7.9.3
[88544.085573] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: GuC firmware i915/tgl_guc_70.1.1.bin version 70.1.1
[88544.085590] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: HuC firmware i915/tgl_huc_7.9.3.bin version 7.9.3
[88711.577697] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: GuC firmware i915/tgl_guc_70.1.1.bin version 70.1.1
[88711.577711] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: HuC firmware i915/tgl_huc_7.9.3.bin version 7.9.3
[88712.922837] Bluetooth: hci0: Minimum firmware build 1 week 10 2014

See more images for Linux on Lenovo P17gen2

2024/06/23 Linux on Dell XPS 9730

π 2024-06-23 01:01 in Computers, Linux

Intro

I had a forced upgrade from P73 to P17gen2 after my P73 suddenly died, and honestly I wasn't really impressed with the P17gen2, it was still huge, was not faster CPU wise, and did not run any longer on batteries despite going from Intel gen9 to gen11 (lenovo has no newer CPUs for 17" and 4K). This is where I looked into other options and found the Dell XPS 9730 as pretty much the only up to date gen13 laptop with 4K and 17" LCD.

Have a look at this page on Thinkpad P70 vs P73 vs P17

XPS 9730 is definitely smaller and more pixels than the P17gen

smaller footprint and lighter, sadly also a shit keyboard :(

the text console is very small ;)

battery use is much better than lenovo

13th gen intol, 6 fast cores plus 8 low power cores

nice 3840x2400 native panel resolution

compared to lenovo, the laptop is not easy to open, but hopefully you only have to do it once to add/replace NVME M2 drives (M2 SATA is not supported)

The things I don't like about this laptop however:

no trackpoint. I'm sorry trackpoint is so much more reliable and efficient when you know how to use it. The trackpoint only is why I go back to my thinkpad when I'm not travelling and need lightweight and long battery life

the keyboard layout sucks. Why trying to save keys on a 17" laptop? Why no Pg Down/Pg Up without Fn? Why no direct home and end? and OMG sysrq does not work :( Seriously, Dell, what were you thinking? Why such a crappy small laptop keyboard on your biggest keyboard? The other reason I go back to the thinkpad is because of the proper keyboard.

Linux config files

You can get them here

Missing hardware ports

Somehow Dell decided it was worth removing the USB-A ports, that sucks, I really wanted at least one or two. Anyway, you can use USB-C to USB-A adapters, but now you're carrying dongles taped ton your laptop :-
They do provide a dongle that outputs 1x USB-A (works but dongle is too big for that), and 1x HDMI. That latter one is actually the cool one, because it just worked on linux. Getting HDMI out on lenovo with their stupid nvidia chip in the way has been a complete pain, but HDMI over USB-C actually just worked!

Hardware support

A recent kernel is important with the right build options to get support for the touchpad, the touchscreen, and sound


modprobe dell_laptop

merlin:~# lsmod | grep ^dell
dell_rbu               20480  0
dell_laptop            32768  0
dell_wmi               28672  1 dell_laptop
dell_smbios            32768  2 dell_wmi,dell_laptop
dell_wmi_sysman        53248  0
dell_wmi_descriptor    20480  2 dell_wmi,dell_smbios
dell_wmi_ddv           24576  0

Need this in kernel build:
Dell X86 Platform Specific Device Drivers

Dell X86 Platform Specific Device Drivers (X86_PLATFORM_DRIVERS_DELL) [N/y/?] (NEW) y
  Alienware Special feature control (ALIENWARE_WMI) [M/n/?] (NEW) m
  Dell Systems Management Base Driver (DCDBAS) [M/n/y/?] (NEW) m
  Dell Laptop Extras (DELL_LAPTOP) [M/n/?] (NEW) m
  BIOS update support for DELL systems via sysfs (DELL_RBU) [M/n/y/?] (NEW) m
  Dell Airplane Mode Switch driver (DELL_RBTN) [M/n/?] (NEW) m
  Dell SMBIOS driver (DELL_SMBIOS) [M/n/?] (NEW) m
    Dell SMBIOS driver WMI backend (DELL_SMBIOS_WMI) [Y/n/?] (NEW) m
  Dell Latitude freefall driver (ACPI SMO88XX) (DELL_SMO8800) [M/n/y/?] (NEW) y
  Dell WMI notifications (DELL_WMI) [M/n/?] (NEW) y
    Dell WMI Hardware Privacy Support (DELL_WMI_PRIVACY) [N/y/?] (NEW) y
  WMI Hotkeys for Dell All-In-One series (DELL_WMI_AIO) [M/n/?] (NEW) y
  Dell WMI sensors Support (DELL_WMI_DDV) [M/n/?] (NEW) m
  External LED on Dell Business Netbooks (DELL_WMI_LED) [M/n/?] (NEW) m
  Dell WMI-based Systems management driver (DELL_WMI_SYSMAN) [M/n/?] (NEW) m

Touchpad

https://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic-t-1026576-start-0.html <<< kernel modules for touchpad
Have a look for USB HID SUPPORT and turn on raw HID SUPPORT there.
merlin:~# lsmod | grep -i HID
hid_sensor_als         16384  0
hid_sensor_trigger     20480  2 hid_sensor_als
industrialio_triggered_buffer    12288  1 hid_sensor_trigger
industrialio          131072  4 industrialio_triggered_buffer,hid_sensor_trigger,kfifo_buf,hid_sensor_als
hid_sensor_iio_common    20480  2 hid_sensor_trigger,hid_sensor_als
intel_hid              32768  0
sparse_keymap          16384  2 intel_hid,dell_wmi
hid_multitouch         32768  0
usbhid                 69632  0
hid_sensor_custom      28672  0
hid_sensor_hub         28672  4 hid_sensor_trigger,hid_sensor_iio_common,hid_sensor_als,hid_sensor_custom
intel_ishtp_hid        28672  0
hid_generic            12288  0
usbcore               389120  5 xhci_hcd,usbhid,uvcvideo,btusb,xhci_pci
intel_ishtp            73728  2 intel_ishtp_hid,intel_ish_ipc
i2c_hid_acpi           12288  0
i2c_hid                36864  1 i2c_hid_acpi
hid                   167936  6 i2c_hid,usbhid,hid_multitouch,hid_sensor_hub,intel_ishtp_hid,hid_generic

screen touch works

touchpad:
merlin:~$ xinput
Unable to connect to X server
merlin:~$ DISPLAY=:0 xinput
| Virtual core pointer                          id=2    [master pointer  (3)]
|   | Virtual core XTEST pointer                id=4    [slave  pointer  (2)]
|   | ELAN2097:00 04F3:2A15                     id=10   [slave  pointer  (2)]
|   | VEN_06CB:00 06CB:CE7E Mouse               id=11   [slave  pointer  (2)]
|   | VEN_06CB:00 06CB:CE7E Touchpad            id=12   [slave  pointer  (2)]
|   | PS/2 Generic Mouse                        id=19   [slave  pointer  (2)]
| Virtual core keyboard                         id=3    [master keyboard (2)]
    | Virtual core XTEST keyboard               id=5    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Video Bus                                 id=6    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Video Bus                                 id=7    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Power Button                              id=8    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Sleep Button                              id=9    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | sof-soundwire Headset Jack                id=13   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Intel HID events                          id=14   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Intel HID 5 button array                  id=15   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Dell Privacy Driver                       id=16   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | Dell WMI hotkeys                          id=17   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    | AT Translated Set 2 keyboard              id=18   [slave  keyboard (3)]

Other touchpad notes, including upgrading your firmware if it's too old and setup an ACPI hotkey to turn the touchpad back on with Fn+F3 if it gets turned off by mistake

https://ubuntuforums.org/archive/index.php/t-2392658.html So, the two touchpads (you can get the id easily with dmesg | grep -i touchpad): ELAN 04F3:311C <-- this is the one with issues Synaptics 06CB:CE7E => I have the right one but if not lastest firmware fixes things: https://bugzilla.kernel.org/show_bug.cgi?id=214597

https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000150104/precision-xps-ubuntu-general-touchpad-mouse-issue-fix

Added a hotkey to re-enablet touchpad if it gets turned off by mistake by syndaemon merlin:/etc/acpi# grep . touchpad-local.sh events/dell-f* touchpad-local.sh:#!/bin/bash touchpad-local.sh:su - merlin -c "DISPLAY=:0 synclient TouchpadOff=0" events/dell-f4-cdplay-sleep-local:event=button/volumeup VOLUP 00000080 00000000 events/dell-f4-cdplay-sleep-local:action=/etc/acpi/touchpad-local.sh

Fan control needed for CPU

Fan control is also required to allow CPUs to work faster, or they will be temperature throttled.


merlin:~#  smbios-thermal-ctl -g
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Current Thermal Modes: 
         Performance

Current Active Acoustic Controller (AAC) Mode: 
         AAC mode Disabled

Current Active Acoustic Controller (AAC) Mode: 
        Global (AAC enable/disable applies to all supported USTT modes)

Current Fan Failure Mode: 
Helper function to Get current Thermal Mode settings

by default, CPUs are throttled down for temperature, install throttled to control fans
which in turn allow CPUs to run harder:
apt install thermald
merlin:~# systemctl start thermald
merlin:~# psg thermald
root       45398  0.0  0.0 287000 10240 ?        Ssl  04:09   0:00 /usr/sbin/thermald --systemd --dbus-enable --adaptive

Sound

Sound is fairly tricky, it worked in Ubuntu 23, nothing less than that and not so much on Debian.

This firmware module is crutial and missing on debian: merlin:/# dpkg -S iwlwifi-so-a0-gf-a0-83.ucode linux-firmware: /lib/firmware/iwlwifi-so-a0-gf-a0-83.ucode.zst

/etc/pipewire/microphone.conf

# https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/PipeWire
# this works for pipewire-media-session but not wireplumber (that uses lua)
context.objects = [
    { factory = adapter
        args = {
            factory.name           = api.alsa.pcm.source
            node.name              = "microphone"
            node.description       = "Undetected Microphone"
            media.class            = "Audio/Source"
# arecord -l
            api.alsa.path          = "hw:1,7"
        }
    }
]

merlin:~# dmesg | grep snd
[   84.237700] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: vgaarb: pci_notify
[   84.242752] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: runtime IRQ mapping not provided by arch
[   84.242780] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: DSP detected with PCI class/subclass/prog-if info 0x040100
[   84.247195] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: SoundWire enabled on CannonLake+ platform, using SOF driver
[   84.247203] snd_hda_intel 0000:00:1f.3: vgaarb: pci_notify

merlin:~# dmesg | grep firmware
[    2.924714] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] Finished loading DMC firmware i915/adlp_dmc.bin (v2.19)
[    2.949985] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: GuC firmware i915/adlp_guc_70.bin version 70.5.1
[    2.949993] i915 0000:00:02.0: [drm] GT0: HuC firmware i915/tgl_huc.bin version 7.9.3
[   83.756991] systemd[1]: systemd-pcrmachine.service - TPM2 PCR Machine ID
Measurement was skipped because of an unmet condition check
(ConditionPathExists=/sys/firmware/efi/efivars/StubPcrKernelImage-4a67b082-0a4c-41cf-b6c7-440b29bb8c4f).
[   84.624266] iwlwifi 0000:00:14.3: loaded firmware version 83.e8f84e98.0 so-a0-gf-a0-83.ucode op_mode iwlmvm
[   85.611677] Bluetooth: hci0: Minimum firmware build 1 week 10 2014
[   85.641830] Bluetooth: hci0: Found device firmware: intel/ibt-0040-0041.sfi
[   87.312791] Bluetooth: hci0: Waiting for firmware download to complete

https://thesofproject.github.io/latest/getting_started/intel_debug/suggestions.html#run-alsa-info

No sound on speakers on dell 9730 (But works on wired headphones and bluetooth) #4758: https://github.com/thesofproject/linux/issues/4758#issuecomment-1874578163

apt-get install -t bullseye-backports firmware-sof-signed thermald intel-microcode amd64-microcode firmware-realtek firmware-iwlwifi

apt-get install -t unstable firmware-sof-signed alsa-ucm-conf

Without alsa-ucm.conf (not always installed on debian), this crutial file was missing: merlin:~# cat /usr/share/alsa/ucm2/sof-soundwire/rt1316-2.conf # Use case Configuration for sof-soundwire card

SectionDevice."Speaker" { Comment "Speaker"

If.lrswitch { Condition { Type ControlExists Control "name='rt1316-1 DAC L Switch'" } True { EnableSequence [ cset "name='rt1316-1 RX Channel Select' L,L" cset "name='rt1316-2 RX Channel Select' R,R" cset "name='rt1316-1 DAC L Switch' 1" cset "name='rt1316-1 DAC R Switch' 1" cset "name='rt1316-2 DAC L Switch' 1" cset "name='rt1316-2 DAC R Switch' 1" cset "name='Speaker Switch' on" ]

merlin:~$ inxi -aA Audio: Device-1: Intel vendor: Dell driver: sof-audio-pci-intel-tgl alternate: snd_hda_intel,snd_sof_pci_intel_tgl bus-ID: 0000:00:1f.3 chip-ID: 8086:51ca class-ID: 0401 API: ALSA v: k6.6.9-amd64-volpre-sysrq-20240101 status: kernel-api with: aoss type: oss-emulator tools: alsamixer,amixer Server-1: PipeWire v: 0.3.65 status: active (process) with: 1: pipewire-pulse status: active 2: wireplumber status: active 3: pipewire-alsa type: plugin 4: pw-jack type: plugin tools: pactl,pw-cat,pw-cli,wpctl

merlin:~$ wpctl status PipeWire 'pipewire-0' [0.3.65, merlin@merlin.svh.merlins.org, cookie:3437972412] `- Clients: 31. pipewire [0.3.65, merlin@merlin.svh.merlins.org, pid:3849] 33. WirePlumber [0.3.65, merlin@merlin.svh.merlins.org, pid:3847] 34. WirePlumber [export] [0.3.65, merlin@merlin.svh.merlins.org, pid:3847] 81. Efl Volume Control [0.3.65, merlin@merlin.svh.merlins.org, pid:32317] 95. enlightenment [0.3.65, merlin@merlin.svh.merlins.org, pid:32317] 102. wpctl [0.3.65, merlin@merlin.svh.merlins.org, pid:41767]

Configs

If that helps, a few config files ( You also can get them here )

This config file is very important if you want to configure the touchpad to emulate 3 buttons at the bottom of the bad (left/middle/right)
/etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/70-synaptics.conf

# https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Touchpad_Synaptics#Configuration # https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000150104/precision-xps-ubuntu-general-touchpad-mouse-issue-fix

Section "InputClass" Identifier "touchpad" Driver "synaptics" MatchIsTouchpad "on" #Option "TapButton1" "1" #Option "TapButton2" "3" #Option "TapButton3" "2" #Option "VertEdgeScroll" "on" #Option "VertTwoFingerScroll" "on" #Option "HorizEdgeScroll" "on" #Option "HorizTwoFingerScroll" "on" #Option "CircularScrolling" "on" #Option "CircScrollTrigger" "2" #Option "EmulateTwoFingerMinZ" "40" #Option "EmulateTwoFingerMinW" "8" #Option "CoastingSpeed" "0" #Option "FingerLow" "30" #Option "FingerHigh" "50" #Option "MaxTapTime" "125" #Option "SendEventsMode" "disabled-on-external-mouse" #Option "Tapping" "True" Option "AccelProfile" "adaptive" Option "AccelSpeed" "0.3" #Option "TappingDrag" "True" #Option "HorizontalScrolling" "True" #Option "ScrollMethod" "edge" # https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Touchpad_Synaptics # left 40% middle 25% (40% to 65%) right 35% (from 65% to 0=inf) # buttons go from 90% down to 0=inf Option "SoftButtonAreas" "66% 0 90% 0 40% 65% 90% 0" EndSection

lmsensors if the right kernel build options are set

merlin:~# sensors
coretemp-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
Package id 0:  +62.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 0:        +58.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 4:        +57.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 8:        +60.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 12:       +59.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 16:       +58.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 20:       +52.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 24:       +59.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 25:       +59.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 26:       +59.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 27:       +59.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 28:       +59.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 29:       +58.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 30:       +58.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 31:       +58.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)

dell_ddv-virtual-0
Adapter: Virtual device
CPU Fan:     2866 RPM
Video Fan:   2857 RPM
CPU:          +61.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
NB:           +52.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +56.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +51.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +53.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Ambient:      +28.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +49.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Unknown:      +26.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Video:        +53.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)

ubuntu 6.5.0-14 kernel:
merlin:/lib/modules# sensors
ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:002-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:           5.00 V  (min =  +5.00 V, max =  +5.00 V)
curr1:         0.00 A  (max =  +0.00 A)

iwlwifi_1-virtual-0
Adapter: Virtual device
temp1:        +39.0�°C

ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:004-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:           5.00 V  (min =  +5.00 V, max =  +5.00 V)
curr1:         0.00 A  (max =  +3.00 A)

coretemp-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
Package id 0:  +51.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 0:        +44.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 4:        +43.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 8:        +46.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 12:       +41.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 16:       +41.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 20:       +45.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 24:       +47.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 25:       +47.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 26:       +47.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 27:       +47.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 28:       +48.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 29:       +48.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 30:       +48.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)
Core 31:       +48.0�°C  (high = +100.0�°C, crit = +100.0�°C)

nvme-pci-e200
Adapter: PCI adapter
Composite:    +30.9�°C  (low  = -40.1�°C, high = +119.8�°C)
                       (crit = +129.8�°C)
Sensor 1:     +40.9�°C  (low  = -40.1�°C, high = +139.8�°C)
Sensor 2:     +30.9�°C  (low  = -40.1�°C, high = +119.8�°C)

ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:003-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:           5.00 V  (min =  +5.00 V, max =  +5.00 V)
curr1:         0.00 A  (max =  +0.00 A)

ucsi_source_psy_USBC000:001-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
in0:          18.00 V  (min =  +0.00 V, max = +20.00 V)
curr1:         6.50 A  (max =  +6.50 A)

dell_ddv-virtual-0
Adapter: Virtual device
CPU Fan:     1221 RPM
Video Fan:   1206 RPM
CPU:          +53.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
NB:           +43.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +47.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +42.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +45.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Ambient:      +31.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Other:        +42.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Unknown:      +27.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)
Video:        +36.0�°C  (low  =  +0.0�°C, high =  +0.0�°C)

nvme-pci-e100
Adapter: PCI adapter
Composite:    +31.9�°C  (low  =  -5.2�°C, high = +89.8�°C)
                       (crit = +93.8�°C)

BAT0-acpi-0
Adapter: ACPI interface
in0:          13.13 V
curr1:       1000.00 uA

See more images for Linux on Dell XPS 9730

2024/06/20 My Dad's 80th Birthday!

π 2024-06-20 01:01 in Family

I was not there for the exact day, but we celebrated when I was able to visit:

Patrick brought a fun game:

I did so-so

not as good the 2nd time

Then we had seafood for lunch:

While there, I took a few more pictures:

just a few years back :)

and old minitel I used, back in the days

vintage wine

Nice weather in the yard:

some small wild parrots came to visit

We also found some old school notebooks from my dad, dating back to the 50's and 9th grade which was pretty advanced for thsoe days:

Glad to have been back, lovely visit.

See more images for My Dad's 80th Birthday!

2024/06/19 A bit of Summer in Paris

π 2024-06-19 01:01 in Ntrips, Paris, Trips

I was able to come visit my dad for his BD party, a few pictures while I was there.

Got to meet to my friend David in Paris:

A few pictures from the store:

yum :)

Given the nice weather, went back out to enjoy the city during "fete de la musique"

And after all these years and failing due to limited opening dates/times, I finally got to visit la tour st jaques:

Fantastic view from the top:

Since it was fete the la musique, I went around to several places to see performers:

Quick video summary of the music:

See more images for A bit of Summer in Paris

2024/06/18 Day trip from Prague to Cesky Krumlov

π 2024-06-18 01:01 in Ntrips

I had heard about Cesky Krumlov as a charming town with castle, but it's indeed a long ways from Prague, almost 3h each way, so it didn't happen last time I was in the area. But this time around, it worked out, and I figured it would make sense to get a tour from getyourguide with 5H to spend there, 2h were a so-so skipable fairly commercial guided tour that in hindsight I would have done without. It did help with getting oriented in the town, but it also burned 90mn needlessly that coudl have been better spent. Still, even with that more minor setback, there was enough time to enjoy most of the town and main attractions.

After arriving, we started with a walk around town:

Once back in the castle, a quick castle museum and castle tour:

Of course great views from up there:

After that there was a bit of time left to see town, but that time was running out and then it was time to get back to the bus back to Prague:

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2024/06/15 My 2nd Transmission at Prague's O2 Arena

π 2024-06-15 01:01 in Clubbing, Festivals

Transmission Elysium Prague 2024 was simply outstanding again, and even topped my "this was the best show I've seen, ever" from Transmission Prague 2019 (and with that ending from Kobi Blastoyz I will simply never forget, that was hard to top).
While, I did miss the psytrance ending this time around, the show itself was amazing on so many levels, all the way to guide wire led fireworks shot above the crowd and towards VIP/golden VIP (above our heads) during the storyline rocket scenes.

I was a bit worried that after such great memories of transmission prague 2019, I had over hyped those memories. Due to covid shutdowns, and then tranmission losing access to O2 arena for a few years, it had been 5 years since I last went. It's also true that I've seen epic shows like Gareth Emery's Laserface at Bill Graham, San Francisco which was the best laser show I've ever seen, but Transmission still did a better job laying out their lasers plus many other lights, giving an even better show in the end.

So yes, 2024 was just even better than 2019 and 2019 was already the best indoor show I had ever seen, and note that I'm saying this when I just got back from EDC Vegas, and to me (because I prefer night festivals and love lights), EDC is the best festival I've been to in the World, but as an indoor show, Transmission wins.

Transmission 2019 vs 2024:

the lighting looked similar enough, stellar for both

lasers were similarly stellar for both

the between DJ transitions and storyline was equally epic for both

2024 had wire guided pyro rockets that shot just above the crowd, simulating rockets in the storyline, sweet!

golden VIP still has no better viewing than 2019 (VIP was better), see below for more details

both lineups were really enjoyable, although this year used 2 DJ duos maybe to get more names in for the fixed amount of time?

transmix was much longer in 2024 and OMG was it pure joy. Seriously that transmix was fire!

So let's start with the pictures, arrived bright and early, unfortunately tixbase, one of the ticket providers, completely failed and no one was able to get in for over 30mn, which was super disappointing. I'm a bit surprised that no one in the staff said "f'it", and didn't just let people get in with barcodes that couldn't be scanned, that part kind of sucked:

the poor VIP ladies were stuck smiling at us while we were stuck outside, mssing the first DJ :-/

Thankfully security was very nice like last time, and getting in was no issues after the ticket issue was finally fixed. It was great to meet many people I had seen around the world, plus plenty of locals that were happy to take pictures :)

It was also great to find Craig and Daxson after their set, and enjoy some of the show together from the VIP viewing area (the best location in my opinion):

Putting that pretty disappointing part aside, especially since it apparently only affected VIP ticketholders who had paid a lot more to get in, and didn't get to get in while regular ticket holders were already in for 30mn... still got to catch the end of Dusk's warmup set:

Thankfully despite the long delay, we did get to see all of Craig Connelly's set, which I sure didn't want to miss:

After Craig's great set, came Daxson, who also threw a great set:

the AV guys didn't wait long before pushing all the buttons :)

Next, came Cosmic Gate:

Then came Markus Schulz, who amongst other things, played a track spelling out PLUR and its meaning, nice!

The transmix from Driftmoon was pure gold and the visuals were all out at that time:

Driftmoon was so good that it was hard work for Paul Van Dyk to play next, but of course he delivered!

After that, we got Digital Culture, RAM and Richard Durand:

And the night ended with Nilsix, Orjan Nilsen, and Mark Sixma:

But the worst part of the night was when the music ended and all the lights came back on. Oh no, 9H have passed already, the dream is over!

Transmission Prague: The best visuals I've seen on this planet, bar none!

So, you tell me where else you've seen this:

the light columns are one of my favorites

let's mix in a few lasers for good measure

And it takes a "few" people to run all this, the most AV guys I've seen anywhere:

I was able to find this partial picture of the team involved (i.e. it's not everyone who worked on it, but still a good subset). That was more folks than I even imagined...

Should you go? Would I go Back?

So I did put this event in the festival category, but given that it's a single day, single stage event, I'm not sure if it truly qualifies for the festival definition. And yet, I don't actually care, transmission prague is so good that I'm happy to put it in that bucket.

At this point, I do not travel across the world for a single day festival. It just doesn't make sense for me to spend more time travelling across the world than time spent at the festival itself (and that's not even counting about cost). In the case of transmission Bangkok, it was technically a single day eent I flew for, but it was really a 4 day festival with the pre pre, pre and post parties. It's true that Transmission Prague was a bit light on pre/post parties that were trance related, there was techmission the day before. but AV-wise it was nowhere close to transmission itself. I would say it's totally worth going to Prague just to also visit Prague as it's truly a beautiful city that you can visit for multiple days, and in my case I simply enjoyed transmission in 2019 so much that I was happy to brake my own rule and come back for transmission only this year again. That's a lot of words to say the event is definitely unique.

Security was more than reasonable

Bars took regular money (credit cards/phones), no fake festival money wristband BS. Thank you! (transmission BKK required fake money and whatever you loaded was non refundable, which sucked. Also tap water was not drinkable there so you were kind of forced to use the wristband money which makes me unhappy).

You could refill drinkable water in the restrooms if you wished

Suggestions for improvement

I found out too late after asking in way too many places that there was a boat pre-party the day before (with trance), but it was not announced on time, left too early in the afternoon and before my flight arrived that afternoon (long ass trip from san francisco), so I didn't make it. Still, there was techmission, but understandably, for a trance lover, it's not quite the same.

I heard others saying they had issues getting in the past due to ticketing failures, don't have details on this, but tixbase totally failed this year. This is obviously not transmission's direct fault, except an opportunity to choose more reliable ticketing platforms and have heavy fines in the contract if they fail to work the day of. And if they do fail, just let people in without scanning the barcodes that can't be scanned. It's simply not ok to have people wait and miss the show while waiting outside in the sun if they showed up early to be there at the beginning set.

I bought golden VIP instead of VIP last time, and while the food and drinks were great, the vantage point was very disappointing. What happened then and still happened this time around is that some uber uber VIPs had tables taking all the platform space, and you pretty much ogt no middle view, had to stand in the stairs or chairs on the side, after paying all that money. You are not allowed to go to the VIP platform with golden VIP tickets :(

So this year I only bought VIP tickets, and honestly it felt like a much better choice, the viewing platform was great and people with tables did not block our view. I'd have happily paid more for golden though if transmission offers a guaranteed good view from the top or access to the VIP platform.

Definitely have at least a pre-party in a local club the day before and maybe a post party the day after, like Bangkok. By that I mean with trance music (techmission didn't really count). Of course, I'd love for transmission to be a 2 night event, but that's maybe asking too much?

Conclusions and other thoughts

As per the prior point, the visuals are the best I've seen in any indoor show anywhere in the world. I do believe transmission prague has better visuals than all other editions. I'm told the Dutch one was good but not quite on par, and the one I saw in Bangkok, at the end of the day was a very good show in one room of a convention center, the lineup was great, but the AV was simply "Good". Visuals in Prague were "outstanding". As I'm writing this and asking others for their thoughts, I just heard back that transmission did officially post they had more lights in the NL show, but the venue was a lot bigger, so that's why it felt more impressive in Prague. That makes sense and I'll take "impressive" because it was :)

Part of me is sad that all this AV firepower that likely took days to setup, was really used just one night (most was not used during techmission), and that transmission is a single day event.

I personally enjoyed the lineup. Of course some DJs were more to my liking than others, but the show was so good that honestly even music I didn't love as much, still felt great.

The driftmoon transmix was 1H long and pure joy!

The Sci-Fi story shown as transitions between DJs, was still a lot of fun and unique to this event. If you want to see the preview to the show:

Needless to say that putting aside a couple of unfortunate things that happened, I had a great time and the show was still as good as I remembered it, youtube doesn't quite do it justice, you have to see it in person.

Here is my video Summary:

bestof pictures are here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/a3WwtGPSKaheRTo19

and summary of IG stories from that night: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/18008728796525779

or concatenated here:

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2024/06/14 Transmission Pre-Party: Techmission at O2 Prague Arena

π 2024-06-14 01:01 in Clubbing

While looking for transmission pre-parties, I found that there was a boat party, but unfortunately it left too early in the afternoon for my flight in on Friday (had it been announced earlier, maybe I could have gotten things to match, but by then it was too late), but when I looked around the other option was indeed Techmission, happening in the same arena than transmission the day after.
I'll admit right now that I'm not much of a techno guy, so my experience and opinion here is not going to be worth much. I'll also admit that I didn't know any of the DJs on the lineup. If you're a techno lover, I apologize to you in advance for my ignorance and lack of taste :)

The night was a good rehearsal night, and made sure my outfit, that just came out of the luggage, was working correctly:

Despite being late due a long as trip from California and the 2nd plane being late, still got to catch the end of the first DJ, Philipp Straub:

Next came Goom Gum:

My guess is the first 2 DJs were probably supposed not to out-stage the main DJ of the night, Paul KalkBrenner, but I'm sorry to say that I didn't find him very engaging. Some tracks, he didn't even mix, he just finished the previous track, then blank and then played the next one. But eh, I'm the wrong person to appreciate this kind of music anyway, and plenty of people in the crowd were delighted, so that's the important thing:

probably the most lights I saw during that set for a brief moment

glad to run into friends along the way :)

I'll say honestly by then I was quite disappointed with the visuals, I knew how good they could be and how good the would be the next day, but up to then, the AV guys had shown a lot of restraint (likely by request).
Anfisa Letyago was next and played techno that was more enticing for me, and the visuals started being cranked up by then, which was nice:

getting better

nice!

The night then finished with Broken Robot which was also a nice set, but not the most useful name to find since there were too many hits on google and instagram for it:

nice teaser for the next night

And that was it for the night, while not my favorite music, it was a fun evening nonetheless and good warmup for Transmission the next night.

Video Summary:

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2024/06/14 More Time in Prague After Another Transmission

π 2024-06-14 01:01 in Ntrips

Flying to Prague worked through Frankfurt with Condor business, which was cheaper and not too bad:

Back to Prague for another Transmission at O2 Arena, a wonderful show

Welcome to Prague

I chose a Prague underground tour this time around, it was interesting as Prague used to be an entire floor lower, exactly like Seattle, and due to repeated flooding, they raised the entire city to the first floor. However, just like Seattle, you can visit the old ground floor in a few places:

Next, it was fun to go back to the top of the clock tower, which you can do by elevator:

After that I booked a river tour, one of the other things to do in Prague that I hadn't done before:

The next day, a quick tour of the castle and its majestic Vitus cathedral

Next, it was time to go back to the excellent Narodni reopened state museum:

Across the street a sister museum:

On that day, I also booked a communism and underground bunker tour, which was a pretty informative tour and story:

where the revolution started

There was a bit of time after that to go to the lego museum, now renamed museum of bricks because patents?

and just enough time left to see the Bansky Museum, which is definitely intriguing:

A few pictures left:

The last day was a full day tour to Day trip from Prague to Cesky Krumlov (clickme)

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2024/06/07 Arty at Audio SF

π 2024-06-07 01:01 in Clubbing

Back at Audio SF, this time for Arty. Glad to see some friends again:

I unfortunately need to point out the sound at Audio made things harder to enjoy, it was quite loud, and even my newer camera with sound gain turned all the way down, was totally overwhelmed. Our ears were too :-

Still, great to see Arty:

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2024/06/04 Quick Hike Around El Corte De Madera Creek

π 2024-06-04 01:01 in Hiking

It had been a little while since I had done a hike, and way too long since I had driven my first car, so I made plans to meet my friend Cynthia who was able to duck early from work by Skeggs point on skyline (always a fun drive even if we got there separately):

Hike Track: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/15747010864

The trail was nice and shady and a good choice for an almost 3H hike on that day that was otherwise pretty damn hot :)

The drive back had more cars, I was able to pass a couple on kings mountain road and have a nice ride down. Cynthia (going her own way north), got stuck behind one of those 2 drivers that chose to actively block her from passing and ruined the beautiful road for her. Sigh...

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2024/06/02 Xoogler LTA (Lighter Than Air) Moffett Visit and Lunch

π 2024-06-02 01:01 in Google

A big thanks to Kerah for organizing this visit of LTA at Moffett Hanger 2 for OG Xooglers. A few of us met up sunday morning to get a guided tour:

looks like hangar 1 is still being deskinned and reskinned

I'm not too sure what's happening to hangar 3

We met at hangar 2, which has been hosting LTA for the last few years. I wish I had pictures of the inside, but we were requested not to take any, so I complied. Inside had the current version of the newest airship LTA designed and built, it was pretty massive. They are using some new manufacturing techniques to build an inside frame quicker than via other methods, probably lighter too I assume. The shape with motors allows for a speed of 80 to 100kts which isn't bad for an airship:

The presentation was very insightful, but I'm not sure if there will be a real market for airships, given their limited speed, and limitations on how they can be used. Time will tell.

After a nice tour and presentation, we did a group picture and went to have lunch at a new google building with a cafe for visitors: