Author: george georgovassilis

Ubuntu on the ASUS VivoBook 17

Following the proud tradition [1],[2],[3] of documenting Linux installations on all the hardware I break, I'm happy to report that Ubuntu 18.04 works fine on the ASUS VivoBook 17 (model number X705U). Things I tested and that work: OS boots from USB and from harddisk Secure boot WLAN USB On board and external (USB) camera … Continue reading Ubuntu on the ASUS VivoBook 17 →

Thunderbird forgetting passwords

After a simultaneous Thunderbird upgrade and profile migration from Windows to Linux the mail program permanently forgets passwords. The setting: Thunderbird 52 on Windows Back up profile Restore profile to Thunderbird 60 on Linux Observe that all passwords to all accounts are lost even if entered again This seems to be some … Continue reading Thunderbird forgetting passwords →

Software architecture for 5G networks

The 5G mobile network specification introduces network function virtualization [NFV] which enables mobile network operators (carriers henceforth) to expose network resources to business applications as PaaS solution building blocks [SBB]. Naturally, this moves 5G into the focus of software architecture. Unsurprisingly, the NFV specs detail services from the carrier's point of view, so they are … Continue reading Software architecture for 5G networks →

About focus

There are three conceptual combinations of temporality, significance and impact which require our attention: urgency (I either deal with it now or not at all), importance (I can deal with it later, but I can’t afford to ignore it) and opportunity (I may safely ignore it, but there are significant benefits if I don't). While … Continue reading About focus →

HTTP compression and incremental rendering

TL;DR: HTTP compression can delay rendering of web resources HTTP permits content to be served with different encodings, some of which can be used to compress [1] the data volume transferred over the network, which has become a frequent suggestion [2] towards optimising websites for performance. It turns out that the deflation phase of the … Continue reading HTTP compression and incremental rendering →

Climbing the monolith

I love learning a term for a vague idea that has been with me for a while already; it gives the fuzzy cloud in my head a box to live in and a label to put under... not to mention convenient stowage when I need room for other things. One such illuminating moment was listening … Continue reading Climbing the monolith →

Unlocking a password-protected hard disk

TL;DR: Recovering data from a password-protected SATA hard disk that was locked by a Thinkpad I wish this post would be as generally valid as the title suggests; at this hour I'm just unspeakably glad to have unlocked a hard disk I didn't even know I had locked and can finally go to bed. What … Continue reading Unlocking a password-protected hard disk →

Off topic: the odds of being hit by space debris

ESA says [1] it's 106 times more likely to be hit by a lightning twice in the same year that to be hit by Tiangong 1's debris. There are 2 recorded incidents [2] of space debris that caused harm to people, the earliest recorded in 1979. According to [3], chances of being struck by lighting in … Continue reading Off topic: the odds of being hit by space debris →

Secure messaging in the browser

By observing news and public discussions I feel that there is a growing awareness of data privacy and an increasing demand for secure person-to-person communication. In order to address my communication needs, I plugged together a few Javascript libraries and started the Webencryption [1] project on Github. What is Webencryption? Webencryption is a rather crude … Continue reading Secure messaging in the browser →