smores's recent activity

  1. Comment on how do you manage your personal ssh keys? in ~comp

    smores
    Link Parent
    I also hopped in here to mention 1Password! I’ve started using it for SSH keys lately and it rocks. Very smooth, protected with built in biometrics, and available on all of my devices. Plus, you...

    I also hopped in here to mention 1Password! I’ve started using it for SSH keys lately and it rocks. Very smooth, protected with built in biometrics, and available on all of my devices. Plus, you can use SSH keys to sign git commits now!

    6 votes
  2. Comment on [SOLVED] Debugging a slow connection between local devices in only one direction in ~tech

    smores
    Link Parent
    I think you're like... right on the money with a driver bug for my NIC, or something in that genre. Literally minutes before you posted this, I switched to the primary NIC for my motherboard, and...

    I think you're like... right on the money with a driver bug for my NIC, or something in that genre. Literally minutes before you posted this, I switched to the primary NIC for my motherboard, and that fixed it! No idea what the heck was going on, but I think I'm ok with this outcome hahaha

    3 votes
  3. Comment on [SOLVED] Debugging a slow connection between local devices in only one direction in ~tech

    smores
    Link Parent
    Thank you for hopping in! This is a longstanding problem, and the firmware was just updated like five days ago, so it would have to be a longstanding firmware bug (which I suppose is possible!)....

    Thank you for hopping in!

    This is a longstanding problem, and the firmware was just updated like five days ago, so it would have to be a longstanding firmware bug (which I suppose is possible!). It would be weird if the bug only affected transfers to one specific device, but I suppose it could be a confluence of things.

    The laptops can upload files to other wired and wireless devices on the network at the expected speeds.

    All of the devices are on the same IP subnet for sure. I'm going to try to disable the guest network just in case, but none of the devices are on that.

  4. Comment on [SOLVED] Debugging a slow connection between local devices in only one direction in ~tech

    smores
    Link Parent
    Hm, ok. I SSH'ed into the AP and ran tcpdump src <laptop> and dst <server A>. Then I ran an iperf test (basically the same results as above). For comparison, I did the same with server B. I don't...

    Hm, ok. I SSH'ed into the AP and ran tcpdump src <laptop> and dst <server A>. Then I ran an iperf test (basically the same results as above). For comparison, I did the same with server B. I don't really see any distinction between the two outputs, but I also am not totally sure what I should be looking for.

    Another thing I did notice is that the "Congestion window" for server A is tiny compared to server B. On the order of 5 KBytes or so, compared to 1.5 MBytes. It's not clear to me why that would be, or whether it's relevant. When I run an iperf from server B to server A, the bitrate is about 950 Mb/s, and the Cwnd is like 340 Kbytes.

    1 vote
  5. Comment on [SOLVED] Debugging a slow connection between local devices in only one direction in ~tech

    smores
    Link Parent
    Ah... I'm not, really, but if you have any tips I would definitely give it a shot. One relevant thing (@first-must-burn in case this triggers anything for you) is that I just noticed that there...

    Ah... I'm not, really, but if you have any tips I would definitely give it a shot.

    One relevant thing (@first-must-burn in case this triggers anything for you) is that I just noticed that there are tons of packets dropped on the slow transfers. Here's a sample iperf run:

    Connecting to host 192.168.1.73, port 9869
    [  5] local 192.168.1.146 port 53620 connected to 192.168.1.73 port 9869
    [ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr  Cwnd
    [  5]   0.00-1.00   sec  1.25 MBytes  10.5 Mbits/sec  124   4.24 KBytes       
    [  5]   1.00-2.00   sec  1.50 MBytes  12.6 Mbits/sec  134   1.41 KBytes       
    [  5]   2.00-3.00   sec  1.62 MBytes  13.6 Mbits/sec  126   5.66 KBytes       
    [  5]   3.00-4.00   sec  1.12 MBytes  9.44 Mbits/sec  138   1.41 KBytes       
    [  5]   4.00-5.00   sec  1.62 MBytes  13.6 Mbits/sec  125   19.8 KBytes       
    [  5]   5.00-6.00   sec  1.25 MBytes  10.5 Mbits/sec  137   4.24 KBytes
    

    If there's any way to determine why or where those packets get lost, that seems like it'd be very relevant??

    2 votes
  6. Comment on [SOLVED] Debugging a slow connection between local devices in only one direction in ~tech

    smores
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    Thanks so much. Some updates: Gave this a shot, same issues no matter which port I'm using. It basically can't be the cable, because server B can write to server A with no issue! Sorry for the...

    Thanks so much. Some updates:

    • Swap the cables and ports connecting the servers to the switch to see if its the cable or the port on the switch

    Gave this a shot, same issues no matter which port I'm using. It basically can't be the cable, because server B can write to server A with no issue!

    • Test speeds between server B and server A (I wasn't sure if that was included in your "all devices" comment about server A). I would do that to see if the wireless is involved.

    Sorry for the lack of clarity: yes, I can write from server B to server A with no issue (900 Mb/s). It does seem somehow specific to wireless devices.

    • Take the laptops off the wireless network and plug them into the switch, then rerun your speed tests.

    This is a good thought; I don't know if I have the necessary dongles for this (just tried daisy chaining a USB-C -> Thunderbolt and Thunderbolt -> Ethernet together to no avail) but I will keep hunting around and give it a shot if I can.

    • Take the UAPs offline one at a time to see if either of them contributes to the problem.

    It doesn't matter which UAP the wireless devices are connected to, same issue.

    • Try the wireless speed tests from different physical locations to see if interference is at play.

    It doesn't seem to matter. Also, I get exactly the expected speeds when wirelessly connecting to server B! So I don't think it's anything about the wireless connection itself.

    • if you have a spare or USB Ethernet adapter, try using it on server A to see if it's a bad port on the server.

    I think this is ruled out by successful transfers from server B to server A

    I really appreciate all of the tips, going to keep trying to find a way to connect the laptops with Ethernet!

    Update:

    Got my Macbook connected with Ethernet. It can transfer perfectly fine; 940 Mb/s on average. As soon as it's back on WiFi, down to 11 Mb/s!

    2 votes
  7. Comment on [SOLVED] Debugging a slow connection between local devices in only one direction in ~tech

    smores
    Link Parent
    This occurs when running iperf3 tests and scp'ing to /dev/null, too, so it's not related to the storage medium (that is a good a thought though and I also spent a few hours ruling that out initially!)

    This occurs when running iperf3 tests and scp'ing to /dev/null, too, so it's not related to the storage medium (that is a good a thought though and I also spent a few hours ruling that out initially!)

    1 vote
  8. [SOLVED] Debugging a slow connection between local devices in only one direction

    [SOLVED] ... well, this is in many ways very unsatisfying, because I have no idea why this worked, but I seem to have fixed it. Server A has two Ethernet ports, an Intel I219V and a Killer E3100....

    [SOLVED]

    ... well, this is in many ways very unsatisfying, because I have no idea why this worked, but I seem to have fixed it.

    Server A has two Ethernet ports, an Intel I219V and a Killer E3100. Several months ago, when trying to debug sporadic btrfs errors (I had my RAM installed incorrectly!), I had disabled some unused devices in BIOS, including the Killer Ethernet port.

    Since I had no other ideas, and it seemed like this was somehow specific to this server, I just re-enabled the Killer port and switched the Ethernet cable to that port. I'm now getting 300 Mb/s transfers from my wireless devices to my server, exactly as expected.

    I'm gonna like... go for a walk or something. Thank you so much to everyone who helped me rule out all of the very many things this could have been! I love this place, you all are so kind and supportive.

    Original:

    I'm trying to debug a perplexing networking situation, and I could use some guidance if anyone has any.

    Here's my setup:

    • UniFi Security Gateway
    • UniFi Switch Lite
    • Two UAPs
    • Two servers, A and B, connected to the USW-Lite with GbE
    • Many wireless devices, connected to the UAPs

    Here's what I'm experiencing:

    • Network transfers from the wireless devices to server A (as measured by iperf3 tests) are very slow. Consistently between 10 and 20 Mb/s.
    • Network transfers from server A to all devices are expected speeds. 900-1000 Mb/s to server B, 350-ish Mb/s to wireless devices.
    • Network transfers between server B and all devices (in both directions!) are expected speeds.
    • Network transfers from the USG to server A also seem slow, which is odd. Only about 60 MB/s.
    • Network transfers from the USG to server B and the wireless devices is about 300 MB/s

    So, specifically network transfers from any wireless device to server A are slow, and no other connections have any issues that I can see.

    Some potentially relevant details:

    • Server A is running Unraid
    • Server B is running Ubuntu
    • Wireless devices include a Fedora laptop, an iPhone, and a Macbook Pro
    • UniFi configuration is pretty straightforward. I have a few ports forwarded, a guest WiFi network (that none of these devices are on), a single default VLAN, and two simple "Allow LAN" firewall rules for Wireguard on the USG. No other firewall or routing config that I'm aware of.

    If anyone has any thoughts at all on how to continue debugging, I would be immensely grateful! I suppose the next step would be to try to determine whether it's the networking equipment or the server itself that is responsible for the throttling, but I'm not sure how best to do that.

    15 votes
  9. Comment on Lil Dicky - Harrison Ave (2024) in ~music

    smores
    Link Parent
    Lil Dicky is the stage name of David Burd. He’s been a rapper publicly since like 2013. Also, separately, he produced a loosely autobiographical TV show, DAVE. David Burd plays a fictionalized...

    Lil Dicky is the stage name of David Burd. He’s been a rapper publicly since like 2013.

    Also, separately, he produced a loosely autobiographical TV show, DAVE. David Burd plays a fictionalized version of himself in the show, as does GaTa (who is Burd’s real life friend and hype man, and himself a rapper).

    He’s now actually releasing an album called Penith, which is the name of the album that his character created in DAVE. The episode of the show that you’re referring to, that this song is about, is about a real event in Burd’s life, and he wrote Harrison Ave about it, and then wrote the episode about it/the song.

    4 votes
  10. Comment on Why the hovercraft's time might have finally arrived in ~transport

    smores
    Link Parent
    Pull quotes also drive me nuts. In their best usage, I’ve seen them used as essentially section headers, which only works when the text can be logically broken up into narrative sections, _and _...

    Pull quotes also drive me nuts. In their best usage, I’ve seen them used as essentially section headers, which only works when the text can be logically broken up into narrative sections, _and _ the author puts a considerable amount of time into choosing a quote that meaningfully represents the section.

    I actually had to implement pull quotes at the New York Times (at the time I’m pretty sure they were only used for the magazine, though, were just used the same tool for producing the magazine and the paper), and I remember being pretty disappointed by it, but they also seemed to have a power different understanding of what pull quotes were for. The pull quote block we implemented was specifically for pulling focus to a quote from a person, and included the author’s name, which I suspect could create a different utility than how they’re commonly used. I can’t even remember the last time I read a piece and didn’t find them distracting; I often find myself actively skipping them/avoiding reading them so that they don’t break my flow.

    1 vote
  11. Comment on I made an open-source, self-hostable synced narration platform for ebooks in ~books

    smores
    Link Parent
    Oh wow! Yeah I'm familiar with syncabook, it's a cool project! I hope Storyteller can make your life a bit simpler, though :)

    Oh wow! Yeah I'm familiar with syncabook, it's a cool project! I hope Storyteller can make your life a bit simpler, though :)

    1 vote
  12. Comment on I made an open-source, self-hostable synced narration platform for ebooks in ~books

    smores
    Link Parent
    Thank you!! You should be able to run this with a cloud provider for sure, and it should work with AWS ECS (I'm not super familiar with ECS but I've used analogous services in GCP and...

    Thank you!!

    You should be able to run this with a cloud provider for sure, and it should work with AWS ECS (I'm not super familiar with ECS but I've used analogous services in GCP and DigitalOcean).

    • You'll need a data volume for to bind to the /data path on the API container. It doesn't need to be massive or anything, but expect 1 to 2 GB per book (which, I guess, depending on the size of your library, could actually end up pretty massive)
    • Make sure that your environment variables are sensible. This will hopefully get simpler in the next release, but for now:
      • On the API, you need to set STORYTELLER_ALLOWED_ORIGINS to the url that you will be accessing the web interface from in the browser.
      • On the web service, you need to set STORYTELLER_API_HOST to a url that both the bockend (i.e. the web container) and the frontend (i.e. your browser) can access. If that's challenging/not an option, you can use the PUBLIC_STORYTELLER_API_HOST variable to specify an alternate url to access the API from the browser
    • You'll want a somewhat beefy machine for the API; the transcription and syncing processes are very CPU intensive and can take a while to complete

    If your plan is to expose this to the public internet (that should be fine!), make sure you're using HTTPS only!

    2 votes
  13. Comment on I made an open-source, self-hostable synced narration platform for ebooks in ~books

    smores
    Link Parent
    Please let me know if you do, and don't hesitate to reach out if you run into any issues!

    Please let me know if you do, and don't hesitate to reach out if you run into any issues!

    1 vote
  14. Comment on I made an open-source, self-hostable synced narration platform for ebooks in ~books

    smores
    Link Parent
    Thank you! You and me both, for sure. Honestly, almost every part of this has been... pretty challenging! The one piece that I was most comfortable with, building the web UI for administrating the...

    Thank you! You and me both, for sure.

    Honestly, almost every part of this has been... pretty challenging! The one piece that I was most comfortable with, building the web UI for administrating the server, was also by far the smallest and simplest part of the project.

    The forced alignment was months and months and months of tweaking and testing and tweaking and testing. I wrote up a description of the algorithm I ended up with here.

    Building the reader was also very challenging, though now that it's working it's incredibly rewarding. I had to do a lot of close readings of the EPUB spec and even more truly chaotic micromanagement of mobile WebViews in order to get the reader experience exactly how I wanted it, and there's honestly still more to do! This is also my first mobile app, though using React Native helped a lot, since I'm very comfortable with React.

    4 votes
  15. Comment on I made an open-source, self-hostable synced narration platform for ebooks in ~books

    smores
    Link Parent
    All the more reason to get that out the door, then!

    All the more reason to get that out the door, then!

    2 votes
  16. Comment on I made an open-source, self-hostable synced narration platform for ebooks in ~books

    smores
    Link Parent
    I hope it can be something useful for you! If you open a book and start playing from the mini-player, it'll highlight each sentence as it's read aloud. If you're not already familiar with self...

    I hope it can be something useful for you! If you open a book and start playing from the mini-player, it'll highlight each sentence as it's read aloud. If you're not already familiar with self hosting, the setup might be a little bit overwhelming; please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!

    3 votes
  17. Comment on I made an open-source, self-hostable synced narration platform for ebooks in ~books

    smores
    Link
    Hi, I made a thing! This is by far the most work I've ever sunk into a side project; I've been working on this thing for over two years, and I'm super proud of it, even though there's still a lot...

    Hi, I made a thing! This is by far the most work I've ever sunk into a side project; I've been working on this thing for over two years, and I'm super proud of it, even though there's still a lot more to do!

    Storyteller is a self-hosted platform for ebooks with synced narration. This is basically self-hosted WhisperSync, for anyone familiar with that Amazon product.

    It's currently made up of two self-hostable backend systems and a mobile app for reading and listening to the books it produces. Technically it uses an open spec, EPUB 3's "Media Overlay", for syncing the narration, but very few ebook apps actually support Media Overlays, and even fewer work well and have nice interfaces.

    The mobile app is available on the Apple App Store as "Storyteller Reader", and I plan to release it for Android as well early next year.

    Anyway, I hope someone finds this interesting or useful!

    15 votes
  18. Comment on Is there a programming language that brings you joy? in ~comp

    smores
    Link Parent
    Completely agree, and the tsx library (somewhat confusing name, supposed to be npx but for typescript) has dramatically furthered this for me. It even has a REPL! I basically don't include compile...

    Completely agree, and the tsx library (somewhat confusing name, supposed to be npx but for typescript) has dramatically furthered this for me. It even has a REPL! I basically don't include compile steps in my Node.js projects anymore; tsx is so fast that it's easier to just run the typescript files directly at runtime.

    I also love to use Deno when possible (native Typescript!), though I often find that I need to fall back to Node.js for more complex projects.

    5 votes
  19. Comment on Thoughts on anti-Zionism? in ~talk

    smores
    (edited )
    Link Parent
    This actually probably isn't true on the whole. A large part of what makes Judaism an ethnicity is the result of how uncommon it is for people to convert to Judaism (it's a pretty elaborate...
    • Exemplary

    This actually probably isn't true on the whole. A large part of what makes Judaism an ethnicity is the result of how uncommon it is for people to convert to Judaism (it's a pretty elaborate process and conversion of people who are not "descendants of Abraham" doesn't really make sense in the context of the scripture). The people that you're describing, Chinese Jews and Brazilian Jews, mostly came from the same small number of European and Russian settlements, and the vast majority of them only entered China and Brazil in the last hundred years. This isn't unique to China and Brazil, it's true of the entire Jewish Diaspora, but those are as good examples as any:

    There are ~3,000 Jews in China, essentially all of whom live in Shanghai, and essentially all of whom fled to China during the Holocaust. There are only 91,000 Jews in Brazil, which was actually one of the more popular destinations for Jews fleeing the Holocaust because of existing Jewish communities there. I can say with absolute certainty that I could, upon meeting a Brazilian Jew, immediately begin sharing stories of loving-but-overbearing mothers and loving-but-outstandingly-argumentation grandfathers, because there's a near certainty that their great grandparents fled the Russian and Polish pogroms, like my grandmother's family did, or Nazi Germany, like my grandfather's family did. That means two things: (1) Our ancestry is literally shared; we almost certainly can trace our ancestry back to the same specific communities without going more than five generations, and (2) our lives and cultures have been shaped by the same, immensely powerful forces.

    I think people often get deceived into thinking that Judaism is like other globally distributed religions, like Islam or Christianity, by how global the Jewish community is. But Islam and Christianity spread by adding new members, who already belonged to other cultures. Judaism spread by a single group of people being divided and evicted over, and over, and over. There are differences between Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jews, but they're not like the differences between native Germans and native Spaniards, they're like the differences between Irish Catholics in Ireland and Irish Catholics in the United States.

    I have met Jews from all over the world, and the comfort and affinity I feel to them (despite the fact that I, to be clear, do not actually practice Judaism as a religion, nor have any faith in its scriptures) far surpasses that of any given American Christian. Obviously I have a large number of American Christian friends, but it is notable that, despite living in a country whose Jewish population is 2% (edit: this originally said 0.2%, which is the global Jewish density, not the American one) of its total population, half of my closest friends are Jewish.

    I hope this helps explain what this means when people say that Judaism is an ethnicity, not just a religion. It's a complicated topic, but it's not just lip service; it's quite meaningful.

    21 votes