Tag: Linux
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Linux: Securely erasing a hard drive
I recently did some upgrading to my main desktop computer and my Network Attached Storage. As a result, I ended up moving around some hard drives and have several hard drives that are no longer in machines. I’m holding on to most of the hard drives, but some I plan on selling or giving away.…
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Linux: Auto Mount EXT4 partition
Several years ago I read a post in a Linux forum talking about splitting up one’s hard drive into multiple partitions so that when the inevitable reformat came along, there was no need to transfer one’s files during the process. Instead, if your files are on one partition while the operating system is on another…
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Linux: remove all directories with same name
I ran into an issue with a piece of software that created hundreds of directories amidst my music and video collections. However, all of the directories had the exact same name. Rather than delete all of them individually, I figured there had to be a way to delete them all with a single command. Turns…
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Ubuntu Linux (KDE): “Chrome didn’t shut down correctly” error
Every so often, Chrome on my Linux based computers (one running Kubuntu and one running Linux Mint KDE) starts having a problem. I like having Chrome save my tabs from my previous sessions so I can pick back up where I left off. But for some reason, and I’m not exactly sure what that reason…
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Linux: Getting “Find” working in Dolphin on KDE (Linux Mint and Kubuntu)
One of the reasons I switched to KDE from Gnome was Dolphin, the file manager that ships with KDE. When I made the switch a couple of years ago, the Find feature in KDE worked really well. But some time in the last couple of years, the two distributions I’ve been using – Kubuntu and…
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Linux: How to Change Password at The University of Tampa
Despite sending in feedback to the Information Technology department at my University about the myriad ways they could improve the process of changing passwords, they haven’t made the process much easier. Since the process is overly cumbersome, not at all intuitive, and I forget about the complications every time I have to change my password…
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Linux: Changing Date Format in Detailed Display in Dolphin File Manager
While there are many file managers to choose from when using a Linux-based operating system, the default file manager that comes with KDE – Dolphin – is pretty good. I’ve run into a few issues here and there that I wish were different, but it generally does what I need. There is one aspect of…
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Linux: Using dd to erase a hard drive (using pv to view progress)
I occasionally need to wipe a hard drive and give it to someone else. When I do, I’m always careful to make sure that I have wiped it clean. Of course, wiping a hard drive clean is a bit more complicated than just deleting everything or even reformatting it. If you really want to make…
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bypassing the “ssl_error_no_cypher_overlap” error in Firefox 34
Generally speaking, it’s a bad idea to override security protocols browsers have instituted as they are designed to keep you safe on the internet (in the “less likely to be hacked” sense). However, with a recent update to Firefox 34, a website I use all the time for my research that is run by my…
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Linux – Fixing PDFs opening in GIMP in Firefox/Zotero (instead of Evince or Okular)
I’m not exactly sure why, but with the latest Firefox updates, every time I download a PDF using Firefox or try to open one using Zotero integrated with Firefox, the PDF opens in GIMP. This didn’t used to happen, but it’s really annoying. It’s doubly annoying since you can’t solve it inside Firefox. It would…