Posts

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Bad Move Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201379330

Amazon are cancelling the ability to upload your own .mp3’s from 2019, which the vast collection of music I have amassed on CD and ripped and then uploaded wont be available to Alexa and the Echo’s unless I re-purchase them in digital form, or subscribe to their full streaming service and hope everything I have previously purchased is also available from them.

Maybe there’s a way to write a skill that will reference my OneDrive where is all also backed up

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Updating Certificates

Its that time again, to renew the SSL Cert with LetsEncrypt.

Lets Encrypt Logo

 

 

Following the renew instructions here
https://certbot.eff.org/all-instructions/#freebsd-none-of-the-above

Essentially main steps are to stop Apache so it can bind to port 80 or 443.

sudo apachectl stop

sudo certbot renew -dry-run

sudo certbot renew

sudo apachectl start

Assuming all goes well, the new cert will be applied.   Next step is to set up a CRON job to automate this every 60 days.

 

Bootnote: whilst updating WordPress I also got around to enabling Google Analytics following instructions from http://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/how-to-install-google-analytics-in-wordpress/ 

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Broadband Speeds – Wifi impact

Was lamenting the appalling download speeds this morning and then remembered I was on the 2Ghz circuit and not the 5Ghz one. Toggling over to the 5Ghz resulted in a much improved service. Seems the Ps4 was updating and maxing out the 2G Wifi.

Just goes to show its not always your ISP to blame.

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Alexa – Voice identification – coming soon

Having a house full of Echo’s is useful, especially the multi-room audio , but Echo Dot

 

having the kids song choices populate my playlist can get annoying at time, so news that the Echo’s will personalise actions based on id’ing you based on your own voice is welcome.

It looks like it must be region specific at the moment as although I have the latest apps, I don’t have the menu option to set up.

more details at  https://www.digitaltrends.com/home/amazon-alexa-2/amp/ 

 

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Alexa Calling and DropIn

Amazon have launched the mobile calling integration and home intercom functions in the UK today with the latest version of the App.

As the echos and dots are shared around the house, I will need to work on creating profiles for the girls so they don’t receive my phone call on their bedroom dots, and likewise, once they are set up I am not bombarded with their calls and messages.   As I am on cable, and don’t need a phone line, this almost certainly sounds the death knell for the land line.

However the most useful feature I am sure is the slightly spooky in a privacy sense, Drop In mode.    You can “Drop In on The Study” and create an almost instant connection with that room,  and bellow at the kids that their tea is ready, or come and lay the table…. but they will need to make sure they know how to “hang up” a drop in connection if they don’t want Dad listening to them babble away any more than he needs to.

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Lumina Desktop update fixed

Lumina Desktop Trying to update Lumina via the ports to the latest 1.3.0 didn’t play nicely with portmaster.  Kept complaining about a circular reference with the Lumina Archiver.

It seems the Meta port now needs to be deleted before the Lumina-Core port can be updated, but that is not mention in UPDATING.  But a quick SUDO PKG DELETE LUMINA seemed to do the trick and I was then able to build the new Lumina-Core from the dedicated port directory.

I have yet to check if I now need to install all the other new Lumina ports, but Chromium works fine which is all I am normally using it for.

On the plus side I also notices that MATE-SESSIONS was also no longer installed and MATE had ceased firing up from STARTX, but installing that port again has restored MATE to full working order as well.

 

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Freebsd 11.1

Successfully completed an in-place upgrade of Freebsd 11.0 to the 11.1 release using the simple FREEBSD-UPDATE command and a couple of reboots as required to update the kernel and then the installed package libraries.

No new features that I can make use of, as its running on legacy hardware, but least it means another year of security patches.

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Fixed

Two power cuts in quick succession last week borked the database server so although up and running, corruptions to the backend probably prevented much content being server.   A quick bit of googling and forcing a rebuild of the DB engine looks to have everything back up and running.

It was also a timely reminded to renew the LetsEncrypt SSL Certificate so we are good until December again.   Renewal process worked flawlessly once I had stopped Apache so its could bind onto port 443 to do the actual renewal.

 

 

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Echo Multi-room

Its finally arrived, the ability to pair or group multiple Echo’s and Dots into a mesh network, so I can stream the same song upstairs, downstairs or into the girls rooms on command.
Little test planned for tomorrow at 6:45am, get Alexa to stream Misirlou into the Girls rooms in syncro…