PhotoPrism, Walks in Cold Weather and Migrating to Linux

PhotoPrism, Walks in Cold Weather and Migrating to Linux

Byrichard

A Cold Walk

Yesterday I went out for my daily walk but within minutes I noticed that my legs felt cold and that I really did need the scarf that I wore. It’s exceptional for me to wear a scarf. My fleece and my inner coat both have neck protection built in so I usually feel fine. Yesterday was unusually cold so I was happy to add the scarf to really keep my neck warmer. I removed it for a few minutes because it felt itchy but I soon put it back on.

PhotoPrism is Still Indexing

In the meantime PhotoPrism has been chugging away, indexing tens of thousands of files and adding location information as well as other metadata. It has indexed 60,000 files of which 20,000 are videos. Most of the video files are junk though, stuff I saved that has no personal value. I’m marking the video files as private and I will probably delete them as they take teraybtes of space without having much value.

Migrating to a Linux Machine

I also experimented with migrating my blog writing from this mac to a Linux machine. I managed to gh clone the blog files from github to my local linux machine but struggled a little with uploading the test file from the linux machine to the web server. While writing this blog post I was reminded of the solution that should work.

My mac is old and I suspect that at some point the battery will fail and I will lose access to it. I already had to swap the battery once and soon it will die again, and that’s when I will stop using it.
I considered swapping the battery a second time but I saw that Apple is about to stop support for it. If I can use a Linux machine instead, then I save money.

And Finally

Walking in challenging weather is good. It requires us to equip ourselves better, to remain comfortable, whether it’s cold, rainy, windy, or a heatwave. By migrating from Google Photos to PhotoPrism I can keep photos and videos locally rather than in the cloud, and access them with ease, as well as slide from the cheapest service to the cheapest service without investing days or weeks in the effort.

Sliding from Mac to Linux is about learning, and cutting costs, but mainly about experimentation and learing about a different OS. It’s good to be comfortable on Windows, Linux and Mac. At least now if, and when, the mac fails I will be ready to slide from one device to the other.

Slowed by the Wind

Slowed by the Wind

Byrichard

Yesterday I walked into the wind for two to three kilometres. The wind was so strong that the Apple watch gave me “high noise level” warnings more than once. The wind was around 30-40km/h. It was so strong that I stopped listening to an Audiobook because I couldn’t hear it. I then heard the summary for the last kilometre and was told that I was walking at 11 minutes per kilometre, compared to my 10 minutes 40 per kilometre.

I didn’t ride the bike because I saw how windy it was, but for the wind to be strong enough to affect my walking speed is new. I’ve walked in very high winds in the past, but that was at the sea side, not Switzerland. Walking in a strong wind is unpleasant because it’s noisy, So noisy that you can’t listen to anything but the wind.

Wind on a Bike

We are all familiar with the wind when cycling. We are used to that feeling of fighting an uphill battle despite being on flat ground. A few days ago I cycled to Geneva and back and I was fighting the wind. When you cycle into the wind you’re making a certain amount of effort but your progress is sluggish. You question whether you are less fit than usual, and you feel more tired. The wind makes you work hard. That’s why riding with the wind pushing is more fun. That’s when you feel much faster than usual.

Surprised

I was really surprised that the wind actually slowed me down but that’s normal. I was walking into the wind, and there were no trees or other obstacles to break up the wind. I was walking headlong into the wind, with no trees or anything else to slow it down. I tried walking in the lee of a power pole but that didn’t help. I just walked into the wind.

Warm Day

I checked the temperature before going on my walk. I saw that the temperature was 27°c, so walking in that temperature, with that wind, is not unpleasant. I wasn’t cold. I was simply impatient to get next to some trees and buildings, as well as to change direction, to stop facing straight into the wind.

According to the Beaufort scale, walking into the wind becomes difficult at around 32-38 kph (50-61 mph). This is the equivalent of a moderate gale. At this wind speed, the wind can start to push you back, making it difficult to maintain your balance and forward momentum. If the wind is blowing from the side, it can also make it difficult to walk in a straight line.

At wind speeds of 40 kph or more, walking into the wind can become dangerous. The wind can be strong enough to knock you over, and it can also make it difficult to breathe. If you are planning on walking in windy conditions, it is important to dress appropriately and to be aware of the risks involved.

According to Google Bard I was right at the limit of what can be walked in, comfortably. Just a little stronger and I would have been fighting with the wind, rather than inconvenienced.

And Finally

Overall this summer has been calmer than usual. We have had wind, rain and moderate heat. We have not had days in a row that reached 37°c or more. This summer has been more comfortable, less extreme.

High Winds And A Skipped Walk

High Winds And A Skipped Walk

Byrichard

There is a cold wind blowing today so I skipped my daily walk. I can dress for the weather and I am usually fine. Today I simply decided to miss my daily walk. I believe that walking whatever the weather, whatever the wind, and whatever the precipitation is good. I also believe that it fatigues us. For this reason it makes sense, sometimes, to stay indoors, and focus on studying or spending money on things we don’t need.


Early Sunsets


One of the problems with winter, aside from cold weather and finding a valid excuse is short days. When days are short you spend daylight working towards your goals, and by the time you’re free to go out the sun has set. It sets at 1720 at the moment so a one and a half hour walk requires going at three in the afternoon at the latest. Today I missed the window of opportunity.


Studies


I finished a course on closures in JavaScript today and I played around with creating a function to convert from knots to kilometres an hour. The first version was simple and had no interactivity but the second version, by copying someone else’s code works. I always make sure to credit the source from which I am learning. The next topic will be JavaScript Classes.


Android and iOS


I revived my android phone and tried Google Pay and it works very well but then tried Android car play or whatever it is called and that worked badly. In fact it didn’t work, so I feel that unless I swap the car, or go for what could be an expensive car os upgrade I might as well stick with Apple despite not being enthused with the platform at the moment. I wish switching the two could be as easy as a dual boot computer or laptop. Choose one, or the other, and everything is smooth. Unfortunately you need to commit to one or the other.


Playing With Tweetdeck


Recently I grew tired of seeing tweets that fill the entire screen. Twitter is meant to be a microblogging platform, not FaceBook. One way to avoid seeing tweets that fill the entire screen is to use Tweetdeck.twitter.com. It allows you to see as many lists and columns as you want. You can use the number keys to change between views. I believe that the decision to design for mobile first is a mistake, in the current web landscape, but is worth exploring in another blog post.



A Cold Walk In The Wind

A Cold Walk In The Wind

Byrichard

Today I went for a cold walk in the wind. The wind was blowing from west to East so for at least half of the walk I had it in my face. This was a good day to wear a cagoule and to wear the face mask, even when people were not around. The windchill made walking unpleasant and I even considered skipping my daily walk but didn’t. I am disciplined enough to walk, even when it is unpleasant. This weather is frustrating because we have the cold, without any of the beauty. It would be nice to have this cold, with snow and ice, rather than just ice.


Linux Mint On an EEEPC


Last night I installed Linux Mint on an EEEPC quite easily. I downloaded a 32bit OS, flashed the ROM to a USB key, booted the OS from the SD card, and then installed the OS. So far I have done very little. The eeepc feels slow. It is an old machine, and even when it was young, a few years ago, it felt slow. It would be nice to install Linux on a newer machine, to take more advantage of the OS. I actually like Linux but most computers are either windows or macOS.


And Finally


I should re-work my website so that it is KaiOS friendly. For now the top bar navigation and images are not friendly for the OS, especially not on a phone such as the one I am playing with. I find that it refuses to load the blog section of the website, and it struggles with the drop down menus. I should turn that feature off for tiny screens, and just let people scroll down to the relevant content. I have an opportunity to think differently.


I think the old WML format, Wireless Markup Language would be better suited, than the modern multi-display farce.

A Windy Day In Geneva

A Windy Day In Geneva

Byrichard

They announced that it would be windy today and it is. Windy days are fun because the lake goes from blue or green to English Breakfast tea brown. The waves crash against the walls and spray the promenade that goes from the Pont Du Mont Blanc to the Jardin Anglais. For now it’s getting things wet. With the right wind and low temperatures it could be great for the taking of photos.


A wave splashing over the wall
The Lac Leman when it’s the colour of English tea on a windy day


When I was taking pictures and videos my fingers got cold enough for me to try to warm up again on the exercise machines by the Bain de Paquis. It was cold enough to get cold while taking pictures and video.


Despite this cold some eccentric people still went for a swim. This, despite the waves, the wind, and the windchill. I saw two people swim, and then a third person swim. I then saw a group arrive for their Sunday swim.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf1JoTPAAGQ


As I walked to where the people go to set off I thought they would miss their swim in light of the conditions. I’m surprised that some people went for a solitary swim in such conditions. I’d prefer to have someone just in case I need help.


A Sea-like Lake

A Sea-like Lake

Byrichard

In the middle of summer you may go sailing on the lake and find that there is no, or very little wind. On such days you may spend long periods of time hoping for the wind to pick up and get from point A to point B.


https://youtu.be/rSb-8HC9KAQ


On other days the lake looks like in the footage above. After two days of constant wind the lake has been churned up and the waves are nice and large. They crash into the rocks and sometimes over them. The beaches are eroded and so you get this silty grey water.


A few years ago we went diving with this type of waves and it feels like getting into and out of the sea rather than getting into and out of a lake. The first few metres of the dive have very poor visibility but as you move further out to where the water is deeper the weather above goes unnoticed below. It might be darker but other than that it would be an ordinary dive.


When I lived by the sea I remember experiencing some very strong winds. I remember that the waves were so big and the wind so strong that the waves would crash onto the beach wall and the water would spray across and onto the seafront buildings in Weymouth. I also remember walking towards the town and walking against a wind so strong that I had to lean into it. On such days you could almost lie against the wind.


Although the wind of the last two days was strong and consistent it was not strong enough to have that kind of fun. It was enough to buffet me as I tried to get video of the waves splashing up and over the port walls.


They are setting up the Caribana despite the strong wind
They are setting up the Caribana despite the strong wind


I thought that I might be told that I was not allowed to film by the lake side due to the festival preparations but they said nothing. The festival that this infrastructure is for is the Caribana Festival. It’s the first music festival of the season.

Spring and summer are playing with us
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Spring and summer are playing with us

Byrichard

Spring and Summer are playing with us. A few weeks ago it was warm and sunny. It felt as if summer was finally here and that we could start planning outdoor activities that don’t require enormous amounts of fossil fuels, like skiing and snowboarding do. 😉


Looking down towards the Lac Leman. You can see the white lines at the top of waves being pushed along by the wind.
Looking down towards the Lac Leman. You can see the white lines at the top of waves being pushed along by the wind.


We had the rain and the cold and when the rain and cold grew tired the wind came by and replaced it. This was a moderately strong wind. Some gusts were strong enough to make me deviate on the scooter and strong enough not to be able to wear a hat. The wind was also strong enough to damage trees, blow plastic around the place and even to make you feel like you were walking through a wind tunnel rather than down a road between fields.


The wind did seduce boats into breaking from their moorings, tree branches and trees, from falling from above onto forest paths and even for a blue sky to emerge as water struggled to congregate in a single place. For the last two days we could see the Mont Blanc in most of its glory.


The two problems that we face with the wind are that it makes moving around harder because instead of cycling at 30 km/h with a 30 km/h wind you’re cycling at 20km/h with a 50km/h headwind. I didn’t try because the wind plays mind games. You feel like you’re unfit despite not being. I also found that when walking it dries out your ears and prevents you from listening to podcasts while walking.


Imagine, walking for an hour or two, deep in thought, rather than having your thoughts led by someone else.


A moment of rest from the wind in between the trees
A moment of rest from the wind in between the trees


Whilst it is nice to walk between the trees there is a danger of falling branches and other debris. You can hear the wind blowing above and on the trails you can see all the wood that has been loosened. Imagine if you were looking for firewood and were only allowed to pick up what had already fallen to the ground. You’d be happy.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yM_AO05QbtU
Crops behaving like water. Waves of movement.