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Until now I used OpenTrack with my DIY IR tracker or the Neuralnet tracker. I knew that my XR glasses feature IMU data though and the xr_driver of the Breezy Desktop project allows to access the data via IPC on Linux PC. So I did what Linux user do: I wrote a script to access the IMU data and forwarded it via UDP to OpenTrack:

Pick your poison to watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njuumLUvqrM / https://makertube.net/w/2bNyxJhdyydTeFq17onikv

This reminded me that I also wrote a proof of concept to implement the FaceTrackNoIR (or OpenTrack) protocol into FreeSpace 2 Open on Linux PC ( https://makertube.net/w/7VtfAjW7EiAUS5aiPwG7if ) so I gave it a spin to test the data bridge. That was smooth sailing!

The mod is Diaspora: Shattered Armistice, still awesome today: http://diaspora.hard-light.net/ (Warning: This may fuel a desire to re-watch the BSG series again 😀).

The bridge code can be found at https://github.com/bekopharm/xr_to_opentrack (pending changes).

It works with the Breezy GNOME xr_driver: https://github.com/wheaney/breezy-desktop (but the Vulkan one works probably too but that’s untested). It should also be compatible with other glasses that have IMU for Breezy available.

Update: hodasemi wrote a Rust connector based on the idea that works without Breezy: https://github.com/hodasemi/xr_to_opentrack_rs – comes with a systemd service file so it can run in the background. Once installed the only step left to do is fire up OpenTrack 🤘

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I know most of you won’t care or see why this is of interest but I got another game, this time No Man’s Sky, working in (side-by-side) mode using [on Linux PC] 🤓

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VGv_h097mI

Steam start parameters are a little bit different though, once ReShade was configured for Vulkan:

WINEDLLOVERRIDES="d3dcompiler_47=n;vulkan=n,b;vulkan-1=n,b"  gamescope -h 2160 -w 3840 -H 1080 -W 3840 --scaler stretch -f -e -- %command%

Apparently there is an open bug for ReShade and Vulkan via Proton but frankly I didn’t quite get the details – it just worked for me: https://github.com/kevinlekiller/reshade-steam-proton/issues/6 – YMMV.

As usual: Viture or XReal users can probably just press fullscreen after switching into SBS mode to watch this. Others may need an external player to sort it out – I sure love delivering to the absolute niche of the niche [of yet another niche] 🤷

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I know most of you won’t care or see why this is of interest but I got another game, that I like a lot, working in (side-by-side) mode yesterday using [on Linux PC] 🤓

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWnFRPkomzQ

Steam start parameters are a little bit different though, once ReShade was configured for DirectX11: 

WINEDLLOVERRIDES="d3dcompiler_47=n;d3d11=n,b" gamescope -h 1080 -w 1920 -H 1080 -W 3840 --scaler stretch -f -e -- %command%

I’m considering to start an extra channel for the SBS stuff since this probably just annoys most people. In fact downvotes started to pile up but is it my fault that YT (or PeerTube for that matter) doesn’t support this in any sane way? I know about frame packed versions now but that only results in badly automated out of focus Anaglyph 3D videos nobody can enjoy.

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https://makertube.net/w/bufv9BJv2vcXDb3KUaksB7 / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpP7KS1fbrY

`@ozoned` interviewed me on my home cockpit on a live stream via his instance at https://stream.ozoned.net/. This is a more condensed version of the stream that is still just 1h shy. We’re going over almost every feature of my Primary Buffer Panel and I explain how everything works. I also decided to add various photos, slideshows or video snippets during the talk only sections so things don’t get too boring. Sometimes that even complements the talks 😄

Ever wondered how to start your own DIY / on? It’s easy. Just watch this stream 🤓

Dedicated project website: https://SimPit.dev

Check out the original recording if you want to see more or the full stream with more [dirty] details: https://video.thepolarbear.co.uk/w/9zNcweVw2fxxpSrmBnaQJa

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So I started taking a closer look at the various panels I got with the old , which is a challenge in itself, since not everything has a handy badge telling me what it is. It’s also not like I’d have a clue in the first place. Figured out that this one apparently belonged into a but I don’t know the exact model yet. It was installed in the rear cockpit on the left side of the front panel and operated by the Weapon Systems Officer and is apparently no longer in use since ~1990. It’s safe to assume that this thing did see action and was closer to space than anything else I own.

Side view of the buttons array
Side view of the buttons array

Next was finding out how this thing is wired to see if I can convert it into a button box for PC gaming. The segment displays look pretty straight forward and I’ll definitely need some multiplexers to drive them but that has a low priority. The switches can easily be checked with a meter but thanks to @kranfahrer@mastodontech.de I was able to track down some wiring diagrams as well. Turns out these are not also very old but apparently rather pricey too? Someone mentioned an eBay offer for whopping 300 USD for a single button – which is insane to me 🤯

Backside of the Tornado WCP showing beautiful cable lacing.
Backside of the Tornado WCP showing beautiful cable lacing.

Speaking of wiring: The backplate may be missing but some of the original cable management is still in place. This is where we can see the rather beautiful cable lacing, which is used in avionics for bundling together wires with waxed nylon or linen cord in an environment with lots of shaking and vibrations. No I didn’t know this before and would probably have ignored it but A Hornet’s Nest just released a video about Cockpit Cable Management where he talks in detail about this technique. Great channel!

The lamp used in one of the buttons is not even LED yet
The lamp used in one of the buttons is not even LED yet

Another question was for what voltage the lamps are designed for. Each button comes with at least one lamp. This is a rather old fashioned and not a LED yet (and in fact LED replacements are rather expensive even). This specific one is the model OL387 rated for 28V DC and 40mA. Apparently this all is up to military spec MIL-S-22885 and bright enough to still be readable in sunlight and comes with high duty cycles before it needs replacements – so it will probably last a lifetime in my man cave 🤓

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This video is how I gutted my already modified old Thrustmaster F-16 FLCS joystick of my ViperPit and made it work again with the help of an Arduino Pro Micro. This flight stick (and also the other peripherals) do belong in a museum but where’s the fun in that? I modified it and now it’s a generic USB joystick that works on any recent system. I focus mostly on the 5×5 button matrix since this is the hardest part to understand. In the end are a few minutes of playing X4 Foundations with it to give it a good test run. Now it just needs some oil for the creaking 😅

https://makertube.net/w/qrqqZLr2QvJFjCwyNzzAmp / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYiPFDpHwmc

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Back in 2023 I started a new game in where I did set out (on a whim) to build the – and fair warning: I never finished it. I found some measurements of this iconic ship from the verse online, which is apparently something like 1.44km x 551m and converted this to 179.6 x 68.9 Satisfactory Foundations (look Mom, a game made me do MATHS again).

Finding a spot with enough space was a task on it’s own and I settled for the West Coast in the end. This is so close to the edge that the game starts to kill the player because the map ends there. This is also a Vanilla game with no mods.

After laying a square for the proportion and being somewhat satisfied (haha) with that I started refining the outlines. This took ages and some mad image editing skills to scale photos with correct proportions and overlaying them with a grid in the Gimp editor. Ah well not really but you get the idea.

The goal was to build a mega factory inside the hull working with the given layout. Vehicles and trains would pick up all required resources and bring them in via the fighter decks. I kinda imagined what could have happened if the Galactica crashed on a planet after her last journey. Using the powerful engines to power machines that would aid in starting with a settlement program or something like that, while the former ship itself would get decommissioned and transformed piece for piece.

I am rather happy with the result, even without ever completing this. My gaming focus shifted a lot and with the announcement that no further early access updates would happen I kinda lost interest in the project. I am not expecting to complete it once the release drops. That’s okay though. I am still looking forward to said release.

I mean after ~850 of casual hours I kinda have seen it all. Best early access ever – and yes all on a Linux PC – as usual for me 🤘I’m very curious what else the devs will come up with for this title. Anyway, here are the rest of the 16 screenshots. This shows more of the inner ship including the various power plants and reactors.

Thank you Coffee Stain Studios for making such an entertaining game. I enjoyed every hour of it and despite this being basically an endless grind game it never felt like grinding at all. Heck, thinking of all the possible ways to transport, collect and divide stuff is endless fun for me ❤️

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Visited the #lotl concert in #Stuttgart today and had a blast. Been years that I went to LKA Longhorn. Like.. dunno.. 20 or so? And nothing changed 😄

Show was great, felt familiar, what I really like. My personal highlight was “Unstoppable” (originally by Sia).

We did hear the struggle in the voice though. Band just recovered from Covid apparently. Hope they don’t overdo it 😅

Anyway, for the curious: The set list “15 Years Of ” is available on Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2yZvahybiLwDjDJUjldqef (yes yes Spotify evil).

Solo "Lighthouse"

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Apparently there is _nobody_ selling a 40cm blade for the G40LM40 / 25157 40V lawnmower by outside of the UK – or claims a shipping time of seven months! Is this the result of Brexit?

Well fck this. I ordered a 41cm blade for the G40LM41 / G24X2LM41 model on a hunch. This one was available. Looks like the fastening bolt is the same. Could confirm this when it arrived 4 days later.

Sadly it didn’t fit (no security clearance) – which was expected, of course. The fix is rather simple though. At least when you’ve an angle grinder.

And what do you say… perfect overlap of all the bends. This will do. Attached it and went for a test run depleting a whole battery (rechargeable, I’ve 4 of the big 4Ah suckers for this one because you know… grass).

If my guess is right this may be the last blade I could obtain for this lawnmower. What a shame. It’s doing fine for years and I really like the battery version. Less noise and no fumes are always a win in my book. It won’t stay though if replacement parts become such a pain in the… neck.

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I like my desktop but some things really drive me mad. I recently switched to an AM5 board (yeah yeah first world problems) which came with an integrated adapter. Which sucks. Badly. Dunno if it’s the driver or interference from the board itself or due to the case shielding the signal. I don’t really care as well. It can however not be deactivated in the UEFI settings.

I’m using a BT adapter plugged in via USB for years now and moved this over to my new system. It works _excellent_ even with multiple devices. I get clear sound without crackling on my headphones, which is what I really care for to stay “in the zone” for work.

Alas Gnome does not let you choose which BT adapter is used – unlike we know this e.g. from the NetworkManager. Apparently it even defaults to the _first_ adapter it finds, which is by design the integrated one – that I do not want in my case. I can basically only tell them apart by their addresses that I can obtain via the hcitool command:

$ hcitool dev
Devices:
	hci1	10:B1:DF:AA:63:50
	hci0	00:1A:7D:DA:71:06

The full details on this can be extracted from this [closed] 5 years old feature request: https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-control-center/-/issues/263 (let user choose one bluetooth device from several in gnome control center)

And everything mentioned there is still true and while I usually can understand Bastien’s reasoning in this case I can’t. Alas not all is lost. It’s a little tedious but the following example script was added to unbind an adapter:

#!/bin/sh

ADAPTER_TO_DISABLE=${1:-hci0}
SYSFS_PATH=/sys/class/bluetooth/$ADAPTER_TO_DISABLE

if [ ! -h $SYSFS_PATH ] ; then
	echo "Could not find adapter $ADAPTER_TO_DISABLE"
	echo "Usage: $0 [hciX]"
	exit 1
fi

USB_DEVICE_PATH=`realpath $SYSFS_PATH/device`
USB_DEVICE=`basename $USB_DEVICE_PATH`
echo $USB_DEVICE > $SYSFS_PATH/device/driver/unbind

The adapter will be back on the next reboot so it’s a little tedious but at least I can now kill the malfunctioning one. It’s a hammer to a nail but it works. Put in a script it may be called like this:

sudo unbind-bluetooth-driver.sh hci1

Oddly enough something in the gnome-shell extension acts up now and duplicates the device list.

BT quick selection modal of Gnome duplicating the list of known devices

I can live with that though and it may even be fixed with a more recent version already. I’m still on 44.9 and somewhat behind on this currently.