My gear
This page is all about tech stuff that I own, fixing common problems in them, and if you should avoid any of them in case you’re considering purchasing one of these.
Computers
My current work / hobby setup include a Lenovo Thinkpad T14 AMD from work My current work computer is Macbook Pro with M1 pro 10 core, 32GB RAM and a terabyte of storage, and a Lenovo X230 that I bought off ebay-kleinanzeigen (a local ebay for private sales in Germany) with 16GB RAM and 256 gigs of storage. The Thinkpad runs Fedora Linux with GNOME these days. I have a spare Dell XPS 17 with an Intel 12900k and a beautiful display. It runs Fedora. My other personal laptop is a Chuwi X N100 mini laptop.
In the past, I owned a Fujitsu Lifebook A514 and a Lenovo Thinkpad T440. My work computer was a 2017 Macbook Pro. My last work computer was a Thinkpad T14 AMD Gen 1. I also have a spare Macbook Pro late 2015 edition that’s still very functional for notes, web browsing etc.
Displays
I have my work monitor, a Dell U2719D 27in 1440p IPS display and another monitor that I bought myself, a Dell P2419H 24in 1080p IPS display. I hardly use my X230 with my monitors, primarily because to use both the displays, I have to use the docking station.
Update 27.12.22: CF monitor returned, 24in Dell sold. New work monitor is Dell U2723Q.
Keyboard and mouse
I absolutely love Thinkpad keyboards and the trackpoint, but while at home I prefer my external keyboard and mouse. The keyboard is an IKBC MF108 mechanical keyboard with blue switches and the mouse is Logitech G305 budget gaming mouse. My work keyboard is a full sized Apple Magic Keyboard.
Sound and multimedia
I bought a Tribit Maxboom bluetooth speaker shortly after coming to Germany. That’s still my primary music source. For video calls and outdoors, I have cheap in ears called piston fit from a company called 1more. I bought Sony WH1000-XM4s for my birthday back in 2020 October and still use them to this date for calls etc. I started using Airpods Pro 2, and while the sound quality or comfort isn’t on par with the Sonys, the convenience of not having to carry another bag to carry the big headphones makes it all worth it. For home audio I have the Sony HT-X8500 sound bar, and a pair of Pioneer DM-40s that I use to listen to music.
Storage and backup
I got myself a WD Elements 5 TB hard drive for backing up files. I also have a 500GB spinning disk hard drive from my first laptop from 2015 and the 120 GB Transcend SSD that I bought along with the laptop, both in their own enclosures.
I have a Synology 2 bay NAS for storage, with some data scattered over cloud service providers.
Password manager – Bitwarden
I used LastPass for the longest time, but due to the recent issues surrounding a security breach they had, I’ve moved to Bitwarden and can recommend it.
Notes making – Obsidian
I highly recommend using Obsidian for making notes. I use it with the Excalidraw plugin and the integration is near perfect. With iCloud sync, everything works across all of my Apple devices seamlessly. I started paying Obsidian for the sync so that I could use it on my non-Apple devices and support their service.
Todo list
I love Ticktick for many reasons. The app is a joy to use and works across all of my devices. It has a global shortcut to quickly enter an item in the inbox. It works well coupled with the GTD method. I am giving Apple ecosystem a try, given that all of my primary devices are in Apple land right now, which is why I’m using a mix of Reminders and Notes apps for quick, non-permanent task scheduling.
Misc
If you are looking for a nice watch, do give Casio F-91W a thought. Really love it!
Apart from the F-91W, I’m also a proud owner of
- F-91WM-9ADF (same as F-91W classic, but gold dial, black strap)
- CA-53WF (calculator casio, revised, red dial and strap)
- AE-1200WH (Casio Royale, metallic silver dial and steel strap)
- A168WG-9EF (another classic, gold dial and strap)
I own an Apple Watch series 9 now, and I’m enjoying my smartwatch phase. I also have a Bangle JS 2, which is technically my first smart watch.
I have a Kindle, which is sometimes useful for reading. Thanks to mom for the present!
I have borrowed a Canon 7D camera with a 24mm, 50mm, 18-55mm and 75-300mm lenses which I use for occasional photography During my travels, I take with my a much more compact Sony RX100 mk5A. It has its cons against the Canon but overall a much more fun camera to use.
Check out some of my photos here: nagekar.com/photography
Technical documentation (T14)
Restart plasma if screen gets all messed up, store it as a alias
kquitapp5 plasmashell && kstart5 plasmashell &
Set charge threshhold in /etc/tlp.conf in START_CHARGE_THRESH_BAT0 and STOP_CHARGE_THRESH_BAT0
set 1080p resolution in kali https://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/227876/how-to-set-custom-resolution-using-xrandr-when-the-resolution-is-not-available-i
Technical documentation (x230)
Logitech g305 mouse buttons bind to workspace shift right and left
First install xdotool
# in .xbindkeysrc
"xdotool set_desktop --relative -- -1"
b:9
"xdotool set_desktop --relative 1"
b:8
Bind thinkvantage to gnome-terminal
gnome-terminal --window-with-profile=default
Bind thinkvantage key to
Technical documentation (T440, now sold, but kept here for anyone else’s reference)
General notes on how to get up and running with my favourite tools real quick. Also documented here are the common issues that I’ve faced and their mitigations. Current setup is Thinkpad T440 running Arch and i3
Unresponsive touchpad after resuming from sleep
Create a new file in /lib/systemd/system-sleep/trackpad-restart.sh and add the following to it. Make the file executable. It will run after each resume from suspend.
#!/bin/bash modprobe -r psmouse modprobe psmouse
Sound and brightness function keys
Install xbindkeys, create ~/.xbindkeysrc and do a $ xbindkeys -d > ~/.xbindkeysrc. Also put the following four lines in there.
# Increase volume "pactl set-sink-volume @DEFAULT_SINK@ +1000" XF86AudioRaiseVolume # Decrease volume "pactl set-sink-volume @DEFAULT_SINK@ -1000" XF86AudioLowerVolume # Mute volume "pactl set-sink-mute @DEFAULT_SINK@ toggle" XF86AudioMute # Increase backlight "light -A 2" XF86MonBrightnessUp # Decrease backlight "light -U 2" XF86MonBrightnessDown
Sync all terminal histories together
Bash aliases
alias gits="git status" alias gitch="git checkout" alias gitco="git commit -m" alias gita="git add" alias gitaa="git add ." alias gitph="git push" alias gitpl="git pull" alias gitpho="git push origin" alias gitplo="git pull origin" alias gitcp="git cherry-pick" alias bejs="bundle exec jekyll serve" alias bex="bundle exec" alias ls="exa" alias venv="source ./venv/bin/activate"
Technical documentation (Fujitsu A514)
Misty touchpad issue arch
Set the following boot parameter: i8042.noloop i8042.nomux i8042.nopnp i8042.reset
Redshift
Install redshift (comes with redshift-gtk). Enable redshift service and add redshift-gtk to ~/.xinitrc before dm startup. ~/.config/systemd/user/default.target.wants/redshift.service file to contain the following.
[Unit] Description=Redshift display colour temperature adjustment Documentation=https://jonls.dk/redshift/ After=display-manager.service [Service] ExecStart=/usr/bin/redshift -l 52.52:13.37 Environment=DISPLAY=:0 Restart=always [Install] WantedBy=default.target
The /etc/geoclue/geoclue.conf file to contain an additional section for redshift.
[redshift] allowed=true system=false users=
KDEConnect
On android just install the app. On desktop, install kdeconnect, and indicator-kdeconnect (aur) package. Add indicator-kdeconnect & to ~/.xinitrc.
Getting wifi to work
Connect to lan and install wpa_supplicant. Use iw to search for wifi and then add in wpa_supplicant config the wifi username and password. This page has everything needed to get up and running with wireless: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Wireless_network_configuration#WPA2_Personal. Install networkmanager, enable and start networkmanager service. Install nm-applet and add nm-applet & to ~/.xinitrc.
Get git and other autocomplete
Install bash-autocomplete