Writing

A short practical guide to ~/.ssh/config: create readable SSH aliases, pin the right user, port, and key, verify the final config, and avoid common agent-forwarding mistakes.

An archived 2012 MySQL password reset recipe. The original commands are preserved for reference and should not be used on modern MySQL.

After power problems, my Sandy Bridge PC entered a reboot loop. This 2012 note records the symptoms and a BIOS hypothesis, but no final repair result.

In 2012, Opera refused to refresh my CAPTCHA image. Moving a random value from the URL fragment to the query string worked; the distinction still matters.

The original Ubuntu PPA recipe from 2012, with its historical package names preserved and a note pointing to current Git installation guidance.

There is a useful thing in *nix systems called command shortcuts, or aliases. Almost everyone has probably thought about this while typing another long path to some command.

I got to know Glen Cook a long time ago, though, as it turned out, through the side door: I devoured his entire Garrett detective series and enjoyed every bit of it.

I already knew the conclusion. Reading Darwin meant working through the observations and objections behind it, with more fatigue and more respect than a summary could convey.

Many years have passed since the time when I happily spent my leisure time fussing with insects during long summer school vacations.

I read Guns, Germs, and Steel with 'what if?' in mind. Diamond offers an absorbing answer to why history unfolded this way, even when I don't take it as the final answer.