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Author: Miroslav Rovis
Date:  
To: parazyd
CC: heads
Subject: Re: [heads] some notes and questions about heads usage and developement
On 170423-13:18+0200, parazyd wrote:
> On Tue, 11 Apr 2017, Miroslav Rovis wrote:
>
> > Awesome I believe is great, but I wasn't (yet, and time is not
> > abundantly in supply to me) able to get some equivalent of simple
> > keyboard shortcuts that I use in plain Openbox in my Gentoo
>
> > So, I was saying how I wasn't able to get [in Awsome] some equivalent of
> > simple keyboard shortcuts that I use in plain Openbox in my Gentoo.
> >
> > I don't even use any special shortcuts, but those that are delivered
> > with simply installing of Openbox
> > (
> > I installed it probably some three or four years ago, I don't know if
> > those shortcuts have changed in the meantime for the stock installing of
> > Openbox...
> > )
> > It's just simple stuff like Alt-Tab to (visually) list (in the middle of
> > the screen) the windows that are opened in the session, and, at that
> > visual listing, select the one window that I want to work on next (I
> > always open at least a dozen windows, be it terminals, browser windows
> > or some other program windows)... I couldn't get it in Awesome (perhaps
> > because it is in Virtual Machine?) to use the keyboard to select
> > windows. And I don't like having to use mouse to select windows, which
> > is all that is left for me for selecting windows to work in, in Heads'
> > Awesome.
> >
> > What is the solution to that? I tried a few guides for Awesome, none
> > offered anything that I can afford time to master. Some of the guides
> > would take me days to understand, the time that I don't have...
> >
> > E.g.:
> >
> > Launcher
> > Super+Enter open the terminal
> > Super+p show the menubar
> > Super+r run prompt
> >
> > Super I guess is the Windows key, on very simple keyboards (the only
> > ones that I would ever willingly regularly use, I despise, say, those
> > with buttons to even get your computer to go to sleep or, even greater
> > idiocy, shut it down), but that Super key just doesn't work here, and I
> > don't know if I'm alone in that.
> >
> > Again, that could be because I run Heads in VM, but what is the solution
> > then, to get Awesome to be useful in a VM, under Qemu, in a simple
> > Openbox desktop? (I'm asking here; but I guess Qemu ML is another place
> > to ask ;-) as well.)
>
>
> AwesomeWM is different in the concept as a window manager. You are
> supposed to manage your own tags. Instead of alt-tabbing, you select a
> the window with the number it was tagged with.
>
> If you are running in QEMU, you should grab your keyboard and mouse
> input first. On Gentoo the default is Ctrl+Alt+G. Same combination also
> to release grab. This should allow you to use AwesomeWM properly.

It's just Ctrl+Alt (when I looked up a week or two ago). If I understand
correctly what you mean. Not sure if that is what you mean... Because I
wouldn't be able to get out from or in to the VM, if didn't know that
shortcut, so I'm not sure if you may be talking about something else
here... Namely, I've been getting in and out of VM constantly, you can't
use it really if you can't get in and out...

> > I was courious to know if git clone'ing remains anonymous in Heads?
> > Simple as that. Say, from github (not endorsing them, but just citing an
> > example).
>
> If by anonymous you mean Github not knowing it's you? Yes, as long as
> you're cloning behind Tor you are anonymous. Same as with any other
> website.
>
> > But I was thinking, wouldn't gnunet and secushell be the best way to go
> > for sustainable, even strong, anonimity? And, I bet they will be growing
> > really large, with time, for user numbers so necessary for anonimity?
>
> With time, sure. There hasn't yet been enough adoption.

Sadly it is so, yes. And they're also targeting them. They being the
shadows as I call such kind...

> > I know it's a Tor question, but since I'm asking other questions here:
> > why do I mostly get "Not recommended", and in the caption when mousing
> > over the two words just cited, recently I most often get "This relay is
> > running a software version that is not recommended by the directory
> > authorities". How serious is that? I usually just try and get another
> > circuit, but it won't happen from the graphical interface in the
> > browser, no way. I have to shut down the Tor browser, and restart it
> > from the visible Awesome desktop background (or the button at the top
> > left), i.e. from the launcher menu.
>
> It usually means that the Tor instance running there is out of date.
> This may mean it has vulnerabilities or bugs.
>
> The new-circuit thing I am working on. The thing with the Tor Browser in
> heads, it's a bit different. Tor Browser is usually self-contained in
> its own directory and it starts its own Tor instance. I do not do this
> but rather explode that directory into the heads system itself and use
> the Tor instance that's already running from boot.

I will need some digging to understand what you mean... and time...
Thanks for the hint, for now.

> > Will there be a way some day, to anonymously converse about Heads? I'm
> > sure it will, but anything planned yet? ...Just courious.
>
> We can talk anonymously on the IRC.

Will look into that option.

> > I don't like some of the programs which are Debian legacy, and which
> > have been kind of robbed off from their rightful maintainers/creators
> > ("kind of" because nobody disputes it was done legally). I'm talking
> > about wodim (forked and renamed from cdrecord) and I'm talking about
> > libav (a poor quality fork of FFmpeg). I just don't want them. cdrecord
> > is ever more rarely used nowadays, but FFmpeg I'd like to have from
> > deb-multimedia.org ... And remain anonymous.
>
> This could happen eventually but I do not have it in plan for now. As a
> sidenote: libav is far from poor quality. libav is the good version of
> FFmpeg where excellent code is being written and it's done with care,
> rather than FFmpeg which is merging whatever it can. Take a look where
> FFmpeg's is getting it's code from these days ;)
> (spoiler alert: it's libav)

I'm not up to date (and I'm not really a programmer anyways) about
FFmpeg vs libac, so I will forgo more discussion about it.

> > Again: from deb-multimedia.org... And remain anonymous. Do they have an
> > onion? No? If not, then what's the way to get some of their packages and
> > still remain anonymous? Possible at all? (And of course, another place
> > where to ask about it is deb-multimedia.org mailing list, and I likely
> > will, afterwards.)
> >
> > "Anonymous" above of course means I'm now testing it, thinking about it.
> > I know that now that I wrote about it here, it can't really any more be
> > the case. But I hope I'm talking for others here as well. And they then
> > might be able to, after we solve this, use FFmpeg or other of those
> > mentioned programs, and remain anonymous about it...
> >
> > There is no simple solution to this, I know! It's really lots of things
> > are different btwn the once Debain's official multimedia repo, now
> > offered in Devuan, and the deb-multimedia repo... And if they won't
> > offer an onion in a foreseeable futurre, will Devuan right the wrongs
> > done (as I, and many other perceive it; but I don't claim any shadow of
> > authority in proclaiming it) to those developers/maintainers and include
> > packages mentioned above? Along with, if there are such, correct and
> > label non-free programs in deb-multimedia, without diminishing the great
> > offer of deb-multimedia (apologies if my language is not fully to the
> > point, no time to elaborate)? (A question for Dng mailing list, will ask
> > there if I find time; fits here though: the concrete itch is Ffmpeg in
> > Heads install.)
>
> You are still anonymous if you use the clearnet repository.

But the onion is safer, stronger anonimity. Good that Devuan is offered
in onion as well...

> > And last but most important, I know that to ask some of the questions
> > above, I should have installed from Heads repo... But don't blame me for
> > that, because I would have done it, if I could have. Reason: I'm no so
> > advanced to move so fast... ;-)
> >
> > I have spent quite a few hours studying inside-heads.pdf, Guidelines for
> > a heads developer. Nope, not quick at all would the work be in Gentoo.
> > Right at the start of work there would be, it's in:
> > <editor> ./build-system/README.md
> > ...
> > additional dependencies
> > -----------------------
> > live-boot-initramfs-tools gcc-6-plugin-dev
> >
> > Those appear to me to be Devuan specific programs, and while I would
> > very much like to try and build Heads in Gentoo, I don't know if I can
> > dedicate the time needed (I reckon my slowliness would take days, and
> > with some luck, before there would be any results; days of dedicated
> > work; that's my expectation, didn't look into those programs, but even
> > the installation of Debian/Devuan packages on Gentoo, while they say
> > --they being seasoned developers-- is easy, I haven't yet played with
> > it...)
>
> I haven't tested building on Gentoo, but in theory it should work. The
> gcc plugins you already have by default when you emerge GCC. I'd have to
> check the live-boot thing, but I suppose Gentoo also provides in some
> way.

I've been having other issues in my life these weeks, and I've been late
in my plans in a few areas, the above is another thing to forgo, for
now.

> > Also, extremely pleasing to my feelings about what I (hope to once)
> > build and install, is that Heads development is PGP-signed every commit!
> > So it qualifies for my working with it and installing of it! The main
> > developer stands by his work without repudiation, and such developers
> > are trusted here! (See also the note about Air-Gap, and installing from
> > local mirrors further above. Heads qualifies in full here!)
>
> Thanks for the thoughts!

Sure! That above is an important thing. I've met much more capable
people than me who accepted my advice to go good PGP way, which is great
when people are humble... And others, very capable!, that upon my asking
when they don't do it, who just don't get the importance of
PGP-verification of their work... Ah, what can you, such is life!

> --
> ~ parazyd
> GPG: 0333 7671 FDE7 5BB6 A85E C91F B876 CB44 FA1B 0274


Instead of a sig like the above, I just don't (almost ever) send
messages without signing them... I like the integrity, the
non-repudiation of that...

Do you know that I got one signed message[1] from Jaromil, a very kind
message in which he appreciated my alerting the team of (trivial, I must
say, but urgent) security issues with Devuan repos? Here:

BAD sig with Devuan Jessie 1.0.0-RC
https://lists.dyne.org/lurker/message/20170424.101015.535e3ef4.en.html
It means a lot to me! (and I won't be bragging about it again, I
promise)...

---
[1] It is a signed message (in my Mutt maildir), but why the
PGP-attachment doesn't show on the web? The Lurker on
https://lists.dyne.org/lurker/list/dng.en.html is missing features (but
that is not related to Heads, so...)
--
Miroslav Rovis
Zagreb, Croatia
https://www.CroatiaFidelis.hr