Change your ubuntu computer name

This is an incredibly easy (trivial even) task - but it involves two steps. Which means I always forget one of them. So this might stop me from doing it in future...

Say you want to change your computer name to be: bender.example.org

1. Edit the /etc/hostname file
       sudo nano /etc/hostname
   There's only one line in this file, change it to the desired computer name.
   In this case: "bender".
   
2. Edit the /etc/hosts file
       sudo nano /etc/hosts
   Leave the first loopback (127.0.0.1) line alone, but change the second one to list both your computer name, and the fully qualified domain name (if it has one).
   In this case: "127.0.0.1    bender.example.org    bender"

Now you're changes will stick after a reboot, and you can still SSH into your machine. 'cause it's always embarrassing when you can't connect to the computer you just renamed...

Microsoft, please wipe my phone. I don't need it anymore...

While trying out a ROM based on stock 4.0.1 (Ice Cream Sandwich); I noticed a scary warning when setting up Exchange ActiveSync to my work account:

So I'm thinking: would I really like someone else to be able to:

• change the way passwords work on my phone?
• change the lock screen settings on my phone?
• change the encryption on my phone?
• remotely wipe all data on my phone without warning?

I could easily imagine our daughter playing with the unlock screen, and triggering a remote wipe. Which would be fun for the first 1 to 2 seconds. Then pain for the subsequent 1 to 2 days.

How would one combat this (to me) potentially draconian IT policy?

Turns out (like most things with android); it's relatively easy - provided you invest a few minutes. The exchange sync provider,  like most things, is shipped independently as an APK file. The source code for the the provider is freely available, and if you don't like how it works -- well change it damnit...

Better yet - someone has already compiled it and packaged up the APK file. So all you really need to do is install it. xda-developers has all the goodies... To be clear:

1. Download the APK from the link
2. Delete the stock Email.apk file
3. Copy the patched version in it's place
4. Setup an exchange account as you normally would.
   Instead of the scary Exchange policy - you get a nice message that it will be ignored and a disclaimer that you are on your own.

Easy peasy. Kids can now draw pretty pictures with the lock screen without fear of triggering a remote wipe.

android 2.3.5 + htc sense 3.5 + facebook do not play nice...

I finally tracked down the incredibly annoying problem of incoming calls crashing com.android.phone (ie: the process that actually handles the incoming call!) Turns out something was attempting to draw absolutely nothing onto the canvas of the dialler (thanks android logs!). It was in fact a Facebook linked contact (with no image).

While there are a few documented work arounds. The simplest (albeit brutal), is to stop Facebook from synchronising contacts. More details are on the google group. In short:

Load Facebook app:

• Settings -> Syncronize -> None
• Logout

Android Settings:

• Accounts and sync
• Remove Facebook
• Remove Facebook for HTC sense

Start answering incoming calls :-/

rip aopen red thingy

Circa 2004, AOpen EZ65, With the delightful opening engrish passage in the user manual: "fun your life".
A subtle shade of bright red too.

8+ years of 24/7 use. Firstly as a (at the time) pretty reasonable Windows desktop; then as a no-hdd, usb bootin' webbrowser/kiosk machine; then a general purpose linux/samba/ssh/lamp/dns/virtualbox/general-shit-kicker server. I think I paid about $400 for it. So that's pretty good mileage.

I briefly considered looking harder into the reason it failed, maybe reanimating it Frankenstein-style (since I can't buy any new parts that would actually fit). But I figured it deserved some peace and quite after all these years of service without hiccup (until now).

I guess it's time to see if it's old duties can be services by a virtual machine now...

At 64KB/s, there's only one choice for search...

Sad days over the weekend, we where were capped at 64KB/s on the home ADSL connection.

I'd hardly call myself a fanboy, but Google still trumped Bing by a long margin.

Results for searching for a pretty popular term:
Google loaded the first and second results pages. I even had time to click on a search result and have the site load up before Bing even bothered to show me a home page and textbox to type anything! Good thing I wasn't in a hurry (64KB/s teaches patience if nothing else).

Regardless, 64KB/s is a pain I don't want to relive...