How to place an existing folder under Version Control in Github for Desktop
I love version control, and I really like Github for Desktop. One thing I wish it had was the ability to place an existing folder under version control, but alas it’s not to be. We can create new repositories in empty folders, we can check out projects that are stored elsewhere, but GitHub for Desktop refuses to create repositories in folders that already have data in them. Granted, there are messy workarounds: you could simply create a new empty folder with version control, then paste all your existing data into it. That might upset...
read moreHow to create a Scheduled Task from the Command Line in Fedora
I don’t do this every day, especially not on Fedora, so here’s a quick refresher on how to setup a Cron Job or Scheduled Task from the command line. While other tools will work (like anacron), crontab is going to do a fine job for something you want to execute repeatedly. In my case a daily backup script. To invoke, we can type crontab -e and a Nano window will open by default. That’s the other reason why I’m taking this note: I usually don’t use nano (I’m a vi guy). The window may display existing cron...
read moreHow to download older versions of iMovie (or any Mac AppStore app)
Apple seriously dislike it when we use hardware that hasn’t been purchased in the last 5 minutes. Ideally we’d get a new iPhone every week and throw away our Macs every 12 months. That’s the least we can do for them, and the environment. Apple remind us of this when we try to install an app that demands the very latest operating system, which of course doesn’t run on older hardware. On iOS it’s very refreshing to see a dialogue that says “you can download the latest compatibel version of this app”,...
read moreHow to access your Mac files from Windows
I have a Mac and a PC on my internal network. Frequently I need to access files from either machine, depending which machines I’m working on. I have previously explained how to access Windows files from a Mac, so this article describes the other way round: how to access your Mac files while you’re working in Windows. On the Mac We need to enable File Sharing on the Mac so that paths can be shared. It’s disabled by default for security purposes. Head over to System Preferences and search for File Sharing and you’ll get...
read moreHow to setup a Facebook Live Event in advance
Facebook have one of the worst UIs ever. The interface changes every week, and I can never remember how to setup a live event there because it’s to unintuitive. Here’s how a quick step-by-step process to make my life: head over to https://facebook.com/creatorstudioclick Go Live at the top (next to the search bar)pick the page in question on the rightselect Schedule Live Event fill out the details and create the event Next time you stream, it’ll automatically go to that event.
read moreBuilding a LAMP Stack in Fedora Workstation
I needed to wipe my Fedora laptop yesterday because an in-place upgrade/downgrade went awry. No data was lost, but when it comes to doing it all again from scratch, there’s always something that I forget to do from memory. Hence this little list of step-by-step instructions on a vanilla installation of Fedora Workstation (35 in my case). We’ll do all these steps after using the sudo su command. Let’s start by enabling the SSH service first so we can login remotely. This will get rid of that slightly annoying...
read moreWhere are the MariaDB / MySQL files on Fedora 35
On Fedora, MariaDB stores its flat database files in a directory that’s defined in a configuration file called mariadb-server.cnf, under the mysqld section (datadir). You’ll find this file here: /etc/my.cnf.d/mariadb-server.cnf The data files on a default Fedora Workstation installation are stored here: /var/lib/mysql
read moreHow to disable GIFs and Emojis from auto-playing in Discord
I like GIFs in principle, but I don’t need to see moving video on static screens all the time. At least for me, less distractions are more. Thankfully there’s an option on the Discord desktop client to disable this option for embedded GIFs, as well as animated emotes that can be just as annoying. The option used to be under Text and Images but has moved to the Accessiblity section (makes more sense I guess). Head over to your user settings (little gear icon next to your user name), then find the Accessibility section. Disable the...
read moreRefreshing a License Key in Plesk
This morning I encountered an odd error on one of my Plesk servers: it wouldn’t let me log in, with an error message like this: SWKeyExFatalError Message Repository is not opened File functions.php I’ve tried running the Plesk repair tool, which found some errors and corrected them, but it kept telling me that that spurious repository could not be opened. I found this help article that suggested to check if the license file at /etc/sw/keys/info might be empty and add a line to it, but mine was not. Turns out though that Plesk had...
read moreHow to start a co-op campaign in HALO: Master Chief Collection
When I first tried the HALO Master Chief Collection shortly after its release, we had no idea how to enable co-op mode so we could play campaigns together over LAN or the internet. There was just no intuitive way to get this going, nor were there any instructions around. I returned the game for a refund and never thought about it again. Until this weekend, when the collection was playable for free over on Steam. This time I figured out how to invite friends and play the game together, and because I’ll probably forget for next time,...
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